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DEDICATED, BY PERMISSION, TO HER MAJESTY.
Natural History
Ok
♦ ft
Buoviti giMsbtt d "Cfee ^nglis]^ dDgriopobia,
yC
CONDUCTED BY
CHAKLES KNIGHT.
Volume II.
LONDON:
BRADBURY, EVANS, & CO., 11, BOUVERIE ST., FLEET ST., E.C.
SCRIBNER, WELFORD, & CX)., 654, BROADWAY, NEW YORK.
i86r.
.ens'
lokdon:
BRADBURT, KVAHU, AHD CX)., PKINTKRS, WUtTEFRIARB.
0
CL-b^^hr
' ' \
Ul 'i '
a
NATURAL HISTORY
VOLUME II.
CLIVINA.
CLUPEIDiEL
CLI VFNA, a genus of ColeopterouB Inflects of the family SeariiidiB,
and section Qtodephaga, It has the following oharacten :— -Body
elongate, somewhat cylindrical ; antennae monilifonn, the basal joints
rather long (the first longest), the remaining joints short and rounded ;
palpi with the terminal joint long and pointed ; mentum trilobate ;
thorax, nearly square ; anterior tibinJbroad and compressed, with two
notches eztemiJly, leaving three long pointed tooth-like processes ;
the intermediate pair of legs with one of these external prooesseB on
the tibia.
Dejean incorporates with this genus that of jyyiehirivM, but we
think without sufficient reason.
These insects are of small size, and live under stones m damp
situations, particnlariy on the margins of rirers, lakes, fta Their
dentated anterior tibiis enable them to burrow like the Lamellicom
Beetles.
Of the genus Cliwna but few species are knows. In Bn|;laDd there
are two ; the more common is C. fouor (or O. arenarta of some
authors). This species is rather more than ^ths of an inch in length,
and of a black or brown colour ; the legs, antennn, and palpi, are
reddish. C. collarit, the other British species, is rather less than the
one just described. It is black, and has chestnut-red elytra, sometimes
with a black dash on the suture.
The species of the genus Dytchiriut are distinguished from those of
Clivina principally by their having the thorax globular, the terminal
joint of the palpi thicker in proportion, and somewhat securiform.
The body is generally shorter in proportion, and more convex, or less
cylindrical ; they are almost always of a brsssy metallic colour,
whereas the species of Clivina are black or brown, and without any
metallic hue.
Of the genus Dytchiri^u between twenty and thirty speciee are
known, ^eir habits are much like those of the genus CUvina, but
they are less frequently found under stones, and often make cylin-
drical burrows in the ground in banks at the margin of rivers or
other pieces of water. Upwards of twelve species inhabit this country,
the largest of which is scarcely more than one-eighth of an inch in
length.
CLO ANTHITE, a oobaltiferous anentde of nickel.
CLOT. [Blood.]
CLOTHO, a genus of Fossil Bivalve Shells, established by Faujas
de Saint Fond. Shell oval, subregular, striated longitudinafiy, equi-
valve, subequilateral Hinge formed by a bifid tooth, curved into a
hook, a little larger in one valve than in the other. Ligament
extemaL
CLOTHONIA. [BoiDJB.1
CLOUDBERRY, a dwarf kind of Bramble, with herbaoeons stems,
and orange-yellow fruity found in turfy alpine bogs ; it is the Rubut
chamcmorui of botanists. Its fhiH is excellently well flavoured when
newly gathered. [RuBUS.]
CLOVE-PINK, a species of JHanthtu, so called frt>m a supposed
reaemblsnce in odour between its flowers and the cloves of the shops.
[DiANTHUS.]
CLOVER. rTRnrouuM.]
CLOVES. fCABYOPHTLLUS.]
CLUB-MOSS, or SNAKE-MOSS, is a prostrate moss-like plant,
with small scaly imbricated leaves, found in alpine or damp situations
in most parts of the world. Its fructification consists of little two-
valved cases, containing powdery nuitter. All the spedes belong to
VAT. HI8T. Dr7. VOL. IL
the genus Lyeopodimm; that to which the name is most oommonly
applied is A ekwaium. [Ltcopodiux.]
CLUNCH, a name given to the lower and harder beds of the
Cretaceous Rocks. They are occasionally used for building purposes,
and have been especially employed for internal work in cathedrals
and other large public buildmgs. This material stands well if not
exposed to accidents from mechanical violrace. (Ansted, JBlementary
Qeology.)
CLUPE1DJS, a family of Fishes of the section AhdominaUi. The
CUnpeidm are placed by Cuvier between the Salmanidiz and the
Qadida : in ftJC^ they form the fifth and last division of his section
' Malaoopterygiens Abdominaox.' The fishes of this division may be
distinguished by their wanting the adipose fin, by having the upper
jaw composed of the inteimaxillaiy bones in the middle, and the
maxiUaries at the sides, and by the body being always covered with
scales. Some of the species ascend rivers.
The genus Clupea, as now restricted by Cuvier, may be thus
characterised : — Maxillaries arched in frxint ; opening of the mouth
XAoderate; upper jaw entire; body compressed and covered with
laiige scales; teeth minute or wanting. To this genus belong the
Herring, Sprats Whitebaity^ Pilchard, kc
0. narengutf Linn., the Herring (French, Le Hareng Commun), is a
fish well known. Its characters however will be useful to distinguish
it fix>m some allied species ; they are* as follows : —
Small teeth in both jaws; subopercolum rounded; veins on the
infrsrorbitals and gUl-oovers ; dorsal fin behind the centre of gravity ;
this fin commences about half way between the point of the upper
jaw and the end of the fleshy portion of the tul ; ventrals placed
beneath the middle of the donal fin ; toll foiked ; length of the head
one-fifth of that of the body ; the greatest deptii of the body one-fifth
of the whole length. The upper part of the fidi is blue or green,
according to the light ; the aides, belly, and gill-covers are silvery-
white ; ordinary length, ten to twelve indies.
The term Herring is the same as the Qerman Hiiring, which,
according to some, is derived from Heer, an army, and is applied to
these fishes from their visiting the coasts in such immftnaA numbers.
"The Herring inhabits the deep waters all round the British
coasts, and approaches the shores in the months of August and
September for the purpose of depositing its spawn, which takes place
in October, or the begumingof November. It is during these months
that the great fishing is carried on, for after the spawning is over it
returns to deep water. The mode of fishing f6r herrings is by drift-
nets, very similar to those employed for taking mackerel and pilchard,
with a slight dififerenoe in the size of the mesh. The net is suspended
by its upper edge from the drift-rope by various shorter sad smaller
ropes, called buoy-ropes; and considerable practical sldll is required
in the arrang^ement, that the net may hang with the meshes square,
smooth and even, in the water, and at the proper depth ; for according
to the wind, tide, situation of their food, and other causes, the herrings
swim at various distances below the surface.
" The size of the boat used depends on the distance from shore at
which the fishery is carried on, tmt whether in deep or in shallow
water, the nets are only in actual use during the ni^t^ It is found
that the fish strike the nets in much greater numbers 'v^en it is dark
than when it is light : the darkest nights therefore and those in which
the surface of the water is ruffled by a breeae are considered the most
((svourable. It ib sappoied that nets stretched in the daytime alarm
CLUPEIDJE.
' CLUSIA.
the fish, and cause them to quit the places where that praotioe is
followed ; it is therefore strictly forhidden.*' (YarrelL)
The young are found on our coast during the summer months in
great abundance, and are often taken in sniall-meBhed nets used for
catching other fishes.
The food of the Herring consists principally of small Cfnutaeea, but
they have been known to devour the fi^ of their own species.
C. Leaehii, Leach's Herring. This second species of herring was
discovered by Mr. Yarrell, and described in the ' Proceedings of the
Zoological Society ' for 1831, p. Si. An account by the same gentle-
man is also given in the ' Zoological Journal/ vol r., where a figure
of the species will be found, as well as in his 'History of British
li^hes.' The following is Mr. Yarrell's description : —
*' The length of the head, compared to that of the body alone, with-
out the head or caudal rays, is as one to three ; the depth of the body
greater than the length of the head, and, compared to the length of
the head and body together, is as one to three and a half; it va there-
fore much deeper in proportion to its length than our common
herring, and has both the dorsal and alidominal lines much more
convex : the under jaw longer than the upper, and provided with
three or four prominent teeth just within me angle formed by the
symphysis; the superior maziUiiiy bones have their edges slightly
crenated ; the eye is large, in breadth fuU one-fourth of the length of
the whole head; iridespale yellow; the dorsal fin is placed behind
the centre of gravity, but not so much so as in the common herring ;
the scales are smaller ; the sides without any distinct lateral line ;
the edge of the belly carinated, but not serrated; the fins small
The fin-rays in number are->dorsaI, 18; pectoral, 17; ventral, 9;
anal, 16 ; and caudal, 20. Vertebra, 54.
" The back and upper part of the sides are deep blue, with green
reflections, passing into . silveiy-white beneath. The flesh of this
species differs from that of the common herring in flavour, and is
much more mild."
Mr. Yarrell first discovered this species when examining the various
kinds of fishes caught by the fishermen engaged in taking sprats.
C, SpraUtu, the Spi«t» called in France Le Melet» EBprot» or
Harenguet This fish has by many authors been confounded with
the young of the herring. It is however disthust^ and its characters
were first pointed out by Pennant ; Uiey are as follows : — ^proportions
nearly the same as those of the herring, but the depth of the body is
greater in proportion than in the voung of that species ; the giU-
covers are not veined ; the teeth of the lower jaw are so minute as
to be scansely visible to the touch. The dorsal fin is placed fiiurther
back, and the ke^ to the abdomen is more aontefy serrated than in
the herring.
Sprat-fijB^ing commences in the early part of November; hence in
season they immediately follow herrings, and the markets continue
to be suppUed with them during the winter months. Like the
herrings these fishes inhabit the deep water during the summer:
they are so plentiful as to be frequently used for manuring the land,
and are often sold as low as 6cL per buweL
(7. alba (Yarxell), the White-Bait; French, Blanquette; German,
Brietling. This fiah has been supposed to be the young of the Shad.
ILr. Yanell however, upon a careftil investigation of the subject)
ascertained it to be a distinct species. Its distinguishing characters
are : — Length of the head compared with that of the body, and not
including uie tail, as two to five ; depth, as compared to the whole
length of the fidi, as one to five; keel of the abdomen distinctly
serrated, but not so sharp as in the Shad. The dorsal fin commences
half way between the tip of the mujssle and the end of the tail ; the
upper jaw is slightly crenated, the lower jaw is the longer, and is
smooth. Its colour is silveiy-white, growing (preenish on the back ;
the body is more oompressed than in the herring, and the keel to
the abdomen is more sharply serrated than in either that fish or the
sprat.
The White-Bait is caught in great abundance in the Thames as
high up as Woolwich and BladkwaU. The* fishing commences about
the beginning of April, and is continued to September. "When
fishing as high as Woolwich," says Mr. Yarrell, " the tide must have
flowed from three to four hours, and the watw become sensibly
bracULsh to the taste, before the White-Bait will be found to make
their appearance. They return down the river with the first ebb-
tide ; and various attempts to preserve them in well-boats in pure
fresh water have uniformly failed." The food of the White-Bait
consists of small Cnutacea, Dr. Pamell states that he has taken
White-Bait in the Frith of Forth in considerable numbers during the
summer months. It is also taken in the Ex and other rivers of
Eng^d. When fried with flour it is a favourite dish with all classes
of the community ; and amongst the English few entertainments are
more popular than White-Bait dinners. It is the young of the season
that are taken in such large numbers in the Thames. The adult White-
Bait are taken on the Kentish and Essex coasts throughout the winter.
C. Pilchardw, the Pilchard ; Le Celan of the French. In size this
fish resembles the herring ; it is also nearly of the same form, but rather
thicker, and of greater proportionate depth ; the scales are larger, the
head is shorter, tiie suboperculum is square, and the dorsal fin is
more forward in position ; the gill-covers are distinctly veined.
This fish is caught off the coast of Cornwall in great abundance ;
the fishing commences in July. The food of the Pilchud consists
of small shrimps and other crustaoeous animals.
O, aloia, LimuBus (Alota firUa, Cuvier), the Shad, is another fish
belonging to this group. Cuvier separated this, together with several
other species, from the true ClutpecB, from the circumstance of their
having the upper jaw deeply notched in the middle.
Two species of Shad are foimd off the British coast ; the first, the
Twaite Shad of Yarrell, known generally by the name of Shad {Alota
fifUa), is about 14 inches in length ; its colour is brownish-green on
the back, or inclining to blue in certain lights ; the rest of uie body
is silvery ; five or six dusky spots are observed on each side, and are
disposed longitudinally, the first close to the head, and the others
at short intervals ; the length of the head, as compared with the body,
is as one to five; the body rather exceeds this measurement in
depth ; the jaws are furnished with distinct teeth, and the tail is
deeply forked.
This fish is found in the Severn and Thames in tolerable abundance.
The principal fishing season for the Shad in the Thames is about the
second week of July. They begin to ascend the river about May for
the purpose of depositing their spawn, and this being done they
return to the sea about the end of July.
In former times the Shad was caught as high up the river as
Putney; it now rarely passes London Bridge, and is caught in the
greatest abundance a little below QreenwidL Its flesh is dry, and
therefore not much esteemed for the table.
The second species of Shad, the Allice, or Allice Shad of Yarrell
{AUua eotMMmii), is considerably larger than the one just described,
from two to tlu«e feet in length : it may moreover be distin-
,ed by its having only one spot on the side of the body, near the
, and that is sometimes scarcely visibla : the jaws have no distinct
teeth, and 'the aotlM of the body are rather smaller in proportion,
though they are laxge in both species.
The Allice Shad is plentiful in the Severn, but of rather rare
occurrence in ^e Thames.
O. encraneoku O^innssus}, the Anchovy (Bngraidit eneratieol^
Fleming ; JSngraulii vulgarts, Cuvier). This fish, whidi is a favourite
condiment^ is a native of the Britidi seas. It has been taken in the
river Dart; and Mr. Couch, in his 'Cornish Fauna,' says, "This fish
abounds towards the end of summer, and if attention were paid to
the fishery enough might be caught to supply the consumption of the
British Islands. It is abundant on the coast of Wales : " and Mr.
Yairell says, " The Anchovy is reported to be at this time an inha-
bitant of the large piece of water below Blackwall called Dagenham
Breach ; and in May 1838 I received one that was caught in the
Thames, where however this species is so little known that the
specimen referred to was sent to me with a request to know what
fish it was." [Anohovt.]
CLU'SIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
OUuiacea or Outtifero!, named after Charles de I'Ecluse, or Clusius, one
of the most celebrated botanists of the 16th century. [Clusius,
Cabolus, in Bioo. Div.] It has a calyx of four imbricate coloured
permanent sepals, the outer ones smallest, usually doubly bracteate
at the base ; the corolla of 4-6 deciduous petals ; the stamens nume-
rous and free in the male flowers ; few, sterile, and connected in the
female flowers; the style absent ; the stigmas 5-12, radiately peltate,
sessile, permanent; uxe flowers usually polygamous; the ovaiy
surrounded by a short staminiferous nectiury; the capsule fleshy,
5-12-celled, opening bv valves from the top to the base, with a dis-
sepiment in tne middle of each valve ; the placenta thick, triangular,
central; tiie seeds egg-shaped, surrounded hj pulp, suspended from
the inner angle of the cells ; the embryo straight, inverteid ; the coty-
ledons separable. This definition includes the genus Quapoya of
Aublet The species are trees and shrubs, usually parasitical, and
yielding a viscid resinous juioe^ of a balsamic flavour ; hence they are
called in England Balaam-Trees.
C, ro»ea, Rose-Flowered Balsam-Tree, has polygamous flowers, a
rose-coloured 5-6-sepaled calyx ; the tops of the dense nectaries awl-
shaped; 8-12 stigmas; the leaves obovate, obtuse^ veinless, some-
times enkarginate, on short striated petioles. It is a native of the
Carolines and St^ Domingo, and other parts of tropical America. The
fruit is green, and of the size of an apple, with eight lines running like
the meridians of a globe : when it ripens it opens at these lines,
disclosing its scarlet seeds lying in the midst of a pulpy mucilaginous
matter, similar to the pomegranate. The whole tree is very hand-
some, but few fruits offer so beautiful a piece of mechanism. " It
grows on rocks, and frequentiy on the trunks and limbs of trees,
occasioned by birds scattering or voiding the seeds, which being
glutinous, like those of the mistietoe, take root in the same manner ;
but the roots not findmg suflicient nutriment spread on the surface
of the tree till they find a decayed hole or other lodgment wherein is
some small portion of soil : the fertility of this being exhausted a
root is discharged out of the hole till it reaches the ground, where it
fixes itself, and the stem becomes a large tree." (Loudon.) The
resin collected from this plant is used as an external application in
veterinary medicine, and also is employed for covering boats instead
of tallow and pitch.
C. alba has hermaphrodite flowers, a many-leaved calyx ; corolla
with 5-8 petals ; tops of nectaries retuse, or with 5-10 short stamens ;
CLUBIACBA
CLTTUa •
i«f«r it to ipacdta of Omiiigia, Zamlko<Afmt», BOradeiuhwt, and
BbilaffmMi. The But ludiu TennulkUK U yidded bj s ipedca of
QifapiiWfaw. rCALoraTLLOiL] Tha Butter orTdlow-Tree of Siwn
I«oiM h the PaUadmma tMyrocM. The frnlta of nuny eptoJM srs
eeteemtd, bcddea the Ifui^ait««n. The Hammee Apple, m Wild
Afojoot of South America, u aaid to be very dcdidoni. It« aeiKU an
aDtlieliniiilio ; ita floren vield on diatillatioi] a apirit known aa Eaa
ds Creole, and vine ia obtained 1^ farmeDtiiig ite lap. Tha lain
beiriaa of the PaoouryuTa {PlaloiMa Hu^nit) of Braail are hlgliW
priied on aooount of Uiair delidona flavour. The tndUt of aernvl
apecice of OarcMia [Qutoiliu.], baaidea the Hangooteen, an brought
to table in Oie countriea where thay grow, but tiiaj are Rgvded aa
vary inferior. The bloaaotna of Mtna ftrrea are remaAabla for thcdr
fngrmnoa, and ara aold In the banara of India under tha name of
Nagkeaur.
The affinitiee of the order Chuiatta an with Sfpericaeta, TWn-
ttrOnicaeea, and Mtitaeta. The order oonlaina SO ganei« and ISO
Sndln', VegOaiU Sinfdim.)
UTHALITE, aUineralooouRinginlai^Bodnba in amygdaloid,
oonatitutii^ a oongariaa of imperfect ciyatala with ron^ aarfkoea.
Colour fleah-red. Hardnaaa 8-(£ BritUe. Luatra *ltr«oiia. Opaqne
or tnmaluoent on the edgea only. Spedflc gravity 2106. Found in
the Rilpatariok HiUa, ami Dumbarton. An analyaia t^ Dr. ThonuMi
givea—
SUiM Gl-SflS
Alumina ....... 38560
Peroxide of Iron T'S06
Soda E'lSO
Hagneaia 1-28S
Water . ' 10M8
CLTUBNIA. rCLTMunsA]
CLTMENID^, a fii^ilr of FomH IfoBiiaca bdooglngto D-Orbtgn/B
Older TmlanU^eraotiiMaiimO^luUepoda. Itembraoea aevenjgenen^
which are divided into groupa aooording aa Uudr partitiona are withont
or poaaaaa a aingle lateral loW To the firat diviuon, or thoaa without
lateral or donJ lobee, belong Um genera Mdia, Chmenetnu, Oimpw-
Ufa, and Tr^MlUa. To the aeeond diviaion, or thoee In whioh the
parttUona have one latraal lobebnt no donal lobe, the genera Olfnmia
and Mtgatipi«»ia are rehired.
The genua Otyauina, the type of thia fantUy, waa flnrt aepaiated
from the Omiatiia, to which It haa a ationg reaerablanoe, by Count
Hunater. The BpadM of Olynwrna have the variationa of form and
lorfaoa aeea In tJoniatila. [CkiHunraa.] By aome writcia the
ClymaHda are referred to th« yattlilUa, with which they have no
doubt a atronger afflnitf than with Jatatonttutoi, the family to which
Ooniattitt mnat be ref eirvd.
The genua (Xfoiaiia haa a diaooidal ahall with alightly lobed aapta,
and an internal aiphmicle. BevenI apsciea ware deacnbed by Count
Hunater from aome oalc&raoui bands in the Falnoaoio strata of the
Fiohtelgebarge. Some of tfaeee, with othera, ooour in the etrata of
Devon and Cornwall, and aUo in North America.
CLTPBASTER. [EoHnnnA]
CLTTBDS, the gmerio name given b^ Klein and Leake to a group
of Foaail Xcktitida, nwoent In the Oolitic Formationa. C. awmatw M
Leake ia the largeat Bntiah apeciea. C. cfaMwoIarii of Smith ia now
ranked aa a Aiicfaolifca.
CLYTHRA, a gauoa of Coleoptennu Inaecta of the family
OkrytomMda. The inaacta of thia gcoua generally have the body
more or leaa cylindrical ; the antennn abort, with the baaal joint
thick, the two following jointa ghort, ind the remaining (with the
eioaption of the apical joint) aensted, that ia, produoed intOTually, aa
aa to reaemble the teeth of a saw. The head ia placed vertically, and
inaerted into the thorax, ao aato be acareely visible from above ; often
larger in the male than the female. The lega are moderately long,
rather thick ; in the malea the anterior pair are ottea oomdderably
larger than the two poatorior paira ; the penultimate joint of tha
'rdiabilobed.
The larvtB of tbeae inaecta (at least tfaoae that are known) inbatnt
a corlaceooa tube, which they drag about with them.
The ClyfAni teeide on (reea and ahruba, and thoae found in thia
country appear in the beginning of tlie aummer. The apeciea are
very abundant, and aeldomadomedwithmetalliecolouia. In England
we have five apedee, the moat common of which ia C. guadriputittala.
Thia i> not qmie half an inch in length, and black ; the elytoa ochre-
ilonred, with four blank apota, two near the baae, and two near tha
liddle. The next apeciea which ie not tmcommonly met with ia
C. IridaiXata. Thia beetle ia nther leaa than .the laat, and of a
blue-gteen colour, thickly and finely pnnotui«d above; the elytrk
e pale-yeBow and immaculate ; tha anterior pair of lega in the male
e elongated.
CLT'TUS, a genua of Coleoptenma Inaeota of the aeotion Limgi'
coma and family Cerambyeida.
The apedea of the genua Olj/fm (a genua eatabliihed \>j Fahridoi)
form a well-marked group among the OcroatijrcKia, and are ohiaflj
diatinguiahed by their having the palpi abort and nearly equal, the
terminal joint thicker than the othen, and tiunoated at the apex j
tha head nanower than the thonx, and tha latter nearly globular ot
RoM-Flonnd BakaiD-rtn {CXtula roMn).
1, an axpaniMl lawer ; 9, a salfi tto firm below ; I, the Dvary, with a
part of tha ealfi sDt i.inj ; i, a UaBmna KctlDn or a trolL
atigmaa 6-6 ; Icevee like tha preceding, but not ematginate. An
elegant tree, native of South America, and epiphytical on larger traea.
The trunk ia frequently a foot in diameter. It abonnda in a balaamio
juice of a green colour, which becomea brawn on being expoaed to
the air. Tha fruit ia acai^et, and contain! Ita aeeda embedded in a
acarlet Dulp. Birda ore very fond of the aeeda, and pluck thcta out
of the fruit while hanging on the tree. The Caiibbeea uae the juice
fbr painting the outaide of their boata, The flowera are white, but
O. Quopoya haa atalked dimdoua flowan ; the oalyi of S or S
amala; the eorolla of fi or ft yellow petala; the neotary abort,
4-S-lobad ; atigmaa 5 ; fmlt globoae ; leavee obovmte, acute. It ia a
native of the wooda of Qnyana, where it ia called Quapoy. It ia a
climbins thrub with yellow flaweie, and when cut into yielda a white
tranaparent juice. O, pcmopanari ia a aimilar plant, yielding a
yellow jnioe. C, JUtva i> a tree cloady naembling C. aHa. C. JIava
la aaid by Bndlicher to yield the Hog-Oum of Jamaica. The flowera
of O. ttwi^it weep a ocnaiderable quantity of reain from the diac and
atannena. Ton Hartiui aava he obtained an oonoe from two flowera.
All the apeciea grow weU in a li^t aandy loam, and cuttinga root
freely in aand under a hand-glaaa in heat. The pola in whioh tha
planta are grown require to be well drained with potaherda.
SDoa, DiMtatydrnvt Plant! ; iModon, EneycUqiadia of PlaiUt.)
!LDSIA'CE£, or QnTTIFEIUG, Outtifer; a amall natural order of
Exogenooi Planta, inhabiting the hotter parte of tropical countriea In
both the Old and New World. Th^ are readily known by their
ooriaoeoua oppoaite leavea, with van fine veina running parallel with
each other in a gentle euirve from the midrib to the margin ; by the
abaenoa of atipulea ; their oa^ oompcaed of aavaral aepala r^ularly
overlapping aaoh other, and bearing a definite proportion to the
pelala ; thdr numeroua atamensj and their aupenor ovary, which ia
In moat caaea many-oelled and many-aeeded, with a peltate radiant
atignta. Their fruit ia auooulent, juic^, and in many caaea reaembling
\ large apple or oTwige. The Mangoeteen [Qareinia Mangotl<ma) ia
probably the moat delicioui of any known ; but it haa never been
'n a freah atale in Europe, for the tree will hardly eiiet
wall known aa a vaTlow pigment, aa
alao a purgative medidne. The plant which yielda tha Otunboge of
commerce ia atill unknown. The London College of Phynciana in
thdr ' Pharmacopcaia ' refer it to aome upeciea of (lOrtWHO, others
CNEMIDIUM.
COAL.
approaching to a cylinder. The body ib elongate, and nearly cylin-
drical ; the antenniB are shorter than the body, and filiform ; the
basal joint is rather thick ; and the terminal joints are sometimes
incrassated ; the legs are moderately long.
These insects are generally of moderate aze, and haye the elvtra
adorned with arcuated fasoisB ; their ground colour is usually blacK or
brown, and the markings rellow.
About 90 species of uus genus have been disoovered, and they
appear to inhabit every quarter of the globe ; 5 are recorded as
Bntish, of which the more common are C. myttiouij C, ArietiSf and 0.
arcuatU9. (7. mywlicuB is about half an inch in length ; colour black ;
the base of the elytra red-brown ; three bent white fasciA are situated
near the middle of the elytra ; and there is a white patch at the apex.
This spedes is common in the neighbourhood of London. We
have frequently found its larva in the rotten wood of old black-
thorns.
(7. ArielU is about the same size as the last ; its colour is black ;
legs and base of the antennse reddish ; the former with the thighs of
the two anterior pairs blackish ; thorax with a yellow band on the
anterior part, and another on ^e posterior ; soutellum yellow ; elytra
with four yeUow bands.
This insect is frequently met with in gardens and woods in the
neighbourhood of London and elsewhere. When handled it makes a
peculiar noise, which seems to be produced by the friction of the thorax
against the smooth part of the abdomen which is inserted in that part
Many of the Ceramhycida have this power.
(7. arcnottM is less common than either of the preceding species ; it
somewhat resembles the O, Arietit, but is considerably larger and
broader in proportion. The ftTit<ynTiflB are entirely of a reddish-yellow
colour; the legs are coloured as in the last-mentioned species ; the
thorax has a yellow band on the fore ^art^ and an interrupted band
in the middle; the dytra have three yellow bands, and towards
the base three spots of the same colour ; the scutellum is also yellow.
CNEKI'DIUH, a genus of Sponffiadce, proposed by Qoldfuss for
some fossils usually ranked as ManUUia and Stphonia,
COAGULATION. [Blood.]
COAITA, or QUATA. [Atslbs.]
COATIMONDI. [Viybbbida]
COAL, an opaque combustible mineral substance of a black or
brown colour, and in all cases giving indications of having been
derived from a vegetable source. Such is a definition that would
probably include aU those substances which are used in domestio
economy and the arts for the purposes of combustion, and popular^
called Coal. At the same time it should be stated that the tetm hM
at present no special scientific application that is univertallv admitted,
•aa each investigator thinks himself at libertv to apply the term in
accordance with his own views. As the knowledge of chemioal prin-
oiples and methods of investigation have advanced, substances which
at one time were regarded as identioal have been shown to have a
very diffeiient chemioeJ composition as well as miorosoopio struoture.
This has led in some instances to the discussion of the question,
What is Coal?
For instance, in our courts of law, one of the most recent oases —
that of QiUeapie v. Ruasell — ^was tried in Edinburgh durixig the pre-
sent y«ar (1863). In this case, by an agreement for a lease entered
into between the plaintiffs and defendants, the former agreed to grant
to the latter a lease of " the whole coal, ironstone, iron-ore, limestone,
and fire-day, but not to comprehend copper or any other mineral
whatsoever. ' It was alleged by the plamtifb that, although the
defendants had in the course of their operations come upon iron-ore
and ironstone, coal, and firenolay of workable value, they had n^lected
these, and had chi^y worked a certain mineral substance which the
p]ainti£b contended was not let to the defendants, not being one of
the mineral substances specified in the sgreement. This mineral was
of much greater value, it was stated, than any which the defendants
were permitted to work. Although used as a combustible material,
it was alleged that tiiis substance was not coal, and that its chemical,
microscopical, and mineralogical characters were not those of coal.
On the other hand, it was asserted by the defendants that the mineral
in question was coal; that they had been led to seek a lease of the
Torbane-Hill estate from the fisMt that on the adjoining lands of
Boghead this minenl existed, and was worked and sold as coal, beiiig
known in the markets l^ the name of the ' Boghead Gas CoaL' This
mineral, they contended, was true coal belonging to the variety known
as Cannel or Parrot CoaL This trial was interesting on account of the
large nimiber of chemists, mineralogists, geologists, and mioroscopiats
examined, who appeared in about eqiuQ numbers on either side;
one set of them contending that the mineral was coal, whilst the
others contended it was not. A laige amount of interesting facts on
the nature of coal and the substances with which it is found asso-
ciated was laid before the jury, who came to the conclusion that,
wluktever might be the result of scientific investigation in more
rigorously defining the nature of coal and limiting the use of that
term, both plaintiffii and defendants called this mineral coal when the
lease was ^wn up, and therefore gave a verdict in &vour of the
defendants.
The same .question which has thus been debated in Scotland has
also oome before the law courts of G^ermany and of the United States
of America with the same differences of opinion ; and we refer to these
cases to show the difficulty of defining accurately this weU-kdown
substance. It may be regarded in the present state of our knowledge
as one of those instances in which the typical form is lost by irregular
combination with other and different substances.
That Coal is and must be of vegetable origin seems to be agreed
upon by all inquirers, but the question of how to determine that
origin in particular cases is the difficulty. Again, it is well known
that coal after it is deposited undezgoes certain chemical changes by
which substances with a v6ry definite chemical character are pro-
duced, such as bitumen, paniffine, &c. These, mixed with the coal
itself and the earthy matters around, nuiy form compound substances
about whose nature there may be considerable difference of opinion.
This is not improbably the case with the Torbane-Hill mineral, and
will account for the peculiarity of both its chemical and microscopical
characters.
Coal presents itself ordinarily in a massive form, and is brittle or
sectile. It has a hardness of 2*5, and a specific gravitv of 1*2 to 1*75.
It is opaque, and has a black or brown colour. Its chemical compo-
sition is distinguished by the presence of carbon ; in addition, it also
yields, on ultimate analysis, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. On
burning it leaves an ash whidi conaiBts of vaiying quantities of silica,
alumina, and oxide of iron. The carbon and hydrogen are often
found chemically united to form bituminoua compounds which are
mixed with the coaL It is Uie presence of these compounds whidi
causes coals to bum with a bright flame ; at the same l^e they give
off a bituminous odour. Tliose destitute of bitimiinous compounds
bum with a pale blue flame, due to carbonic oxide, which is formed
in these cases through the decomposition of the water present.
The following taUe, founded on Mr. Mushet's Analysis of Coel, is
taken from Professor Ansted's 'Elementary Course of Gtoology,
Mineralogy, and Physical Geography ^ —
Anaij^ of tariout Kinds of OoaL
Looality.
Description
of OoaL
•
If
•
1
Bitumen.
Volatile
Matter.
Water.
i
1. Neweastle-QpoB-Tyne
Bitumiaoas. .
1*257
57*00
87*60
5-40
Ditto . . .
1-260
54*90
40*48
4-62
8. Ditto . . .
~.
56*40
41*00
2*60
4. North Wales .
—
62*72
8600
1*38
6. Staffordshire Potteries
Ditto . . .
—
62*40
84*10
8-50
6. Torkahlre
Ditto . . .
«~
67*14
80-78
2-18
7. Ditto . . .
Ditto . . .
_
58*88
89-51
2-00
Ditto . . .
1-285
52*46
45-50
2-04
e. Ditto . . .
Oaanel . . .
1-278
48*86
47*00
4-64
10. Ditto .
Cherry . . •
—
57*00
40*00
8*00
11. Shiopahire . . .
Bituminous. .
».
64*10
84*77
1*18
12. South StaflDfdihire .
Ditto . . .
—
54*05
43*70
8*25
18. Ditto . : .
Ditto . . .
—
5417
48*88
2-50
14. Dean Forest
Ditto . . .
—
68*72
83-08
4*25
15. South Walei . .
Ditto . . .
.^
60-25
8800
6*75
16. Ditto .
Ditto . . .
.«
66-02
29*15
2-88
17. Ditto . . .
Ditto . . .
_
70*68
2^*82
8-50
18. Ditto .
Anthraeits • .
—
91*89
5*61
1*50
19. Ditto . . .
Dry . . . .
^^
79*50
17*50
8*00
30. Ditto .
Steam . . .
.—
85-00
11-87
8*80
21. Clyde YaUey . .
Bituminous . .
—
51*30
45*50
813
Cannel . . .
—
89*48
56-57
4-00
23. Sootch Goal (mean) .
Dry . . . .
—
48*81
41*85
9-84
24. Ireland, Lelntter
Dry Anthracite
1*602
92*88
4-25
2*87
25. Ditto ditto . .
Cannel . . .
—
79*60
iroo
8*40
26. France (mean) .
Dry ....
m^
79-15
7*87
18*25
27. France, St.-Etlemie .
Bituminous. .
.».
65*68
27*88
6*49
28. Spain (B«A) .
Ditto . . .
—
58*00
40*00
7*00
39. Belgiunn, Qainault .
Ditto . . .
1*276
84-67
18-28
2*10
80. Belgium, U^
Ditto . . .
—
76*00
19-60
4*40
81. Ditto ditto . .
Dry . . • .
1*865
81-90
9-00
9-10
82. Silesia .
Glance . . .
—
5817
87*89
8*93
88. Bengal . . .
Slaty. . . .
1*447
41-00
8600
28-00
84. America, Ohio .
Bituminous . .
—
55*55
41-85
3*60
85. America, Alleghany .
Dry . . . .
—
78*85
9-47
11*78
36. America, Nora Scotia
Bituminous . .
1-821
58-80
28*20
12*95
87. America, Fennsylvanii
i Anthracite . .
"^
92-60
2-25
2*25
The following analyses of the Torbane-Hill Mineral and Cannel Coal
were presented by Br. Fjfe at the trial in Edinburgh :— '
Torbaaa.Hill Mineral
Capeldrae Cannel Coal
Carh.
Hyd.
Oxy.
Nit
Sulp.
60*25
8*8
8*6
1-5
9-8
56*7
6-8
8*8
1-9
0-25
Ash.
25*6
25*4
The Torbane mineral is only remarkable amongst other coals for
the Isige quantity of sulphur it contains.
A large series of coals, more especially Welsh, has been submitted
to fthi^TTii*^ examination by order of the government ; and the fol-
lowing table is taken from the ' Report on the Coals suited to tiie
Steam Nayy,' by Sir Henry De la Beche and Dr. Lyon Playfiur, in
the second volume of the ' Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great
Britain : ' —
COAL.
COAL FORMATION.
10
Locality, or name
ofOoaL
1
1
g
1
1
8
i
Percentage
of Coal
lefh in each.
Welsh Coals:—
Graigola .
1*80
84-87
3-84
0-41
0-45
7-19
3-24
85-6
Anthracite
1876
91-44
8-46
0-21
0-79
2-68
1-62
92-9
Oldcastle Fiery Veiii
1-289
87-68
4-89
1-81
009
8 89
2-64
79-8
Ward's Fiery Vein .
1-844
87-87
8-98
2-02
0*83
included
in Ash
7-04
—
BureaCoal
1*804
88 66
4-68
1-43
0-83
103
8-96
88-10
Uangennech
1-812
86-46
4-20
1-07
0-20
2-44
6-64
83-60
Pentrepoth
Pontrefelin •
1-81
88-72
4-60
0-18
—
8 '24
8-36
82-5
1-358
85 52
3-72
trace
012
4 55
6 09
85 0
Dufl^yn .
1-826
88-26
4-66
1-45
177
0-66
8-26
84-3
Mynydd Newydd
1-81
84-71
6-76
166
1-21
8-62
8-24
74-8
Three - quarter )
Rock Vein . i
Cwm Frood Rock)
Vein . ;
1-84
7616
4-98
1-07
2-86
604
10-96
62-5
1-266
S2-26
6-84
111
1-22
8-68
600
68-8
Cwm Nanty-gros .
1-28
78-86
6-69
1-86
8-01
6-68
6-60
65-6
RasolTen •
1-82
79-88
4-76
1-88
6-07
included
in Ash
9-41
83-9
Ponty Pool
1-82
80 70
6-66
1-86
2-89
4-38
5-62
64-8
Bedwaa
1-82
80 61
6-01
1-44
8*50
1-60
6-94
71-7
Ebbw Vale
1-276
89-78
615
2-16
1-02
0-39
1-60
77-6
Porthmawr Bock
Vein . . '
1-89
74-70
4-79
1-28
0-91
8*60
14-72
681
Coleahill .
1-29
78-84
614
1-47
a-84
8-29
8-92
66-0
^ootoh Coals :—
Dalkeith Jewel Beam
1-277
74-66
6-14
010
0-88
15-61
4-37
40-8
Dalkeith Corona- 1
tion Seam )
1-816
76-94
6*20
trace
0-88
14-87
810
63-6
Wallaend Elgin
1-20
76-00
6-22
1-41
1-68
6-05
10-70
68-45
Fordel Splint .
Orange Mouth .
Engliah Coals :—
1-25
79-68
6-60
lis
1-46
8-38
4-00
62*03
1-29
79-85
6-28
1-35
1-42
8-68
3 62
66 6
Broomhill .
1-25
81-70
617
1-84
8*86
4-87
8-07
60-2
Park Bad, Sydney .
i-iss
78-62
6*60
S-04
2-27
6-48
10*00
67-8
Irish Coals:—
Sievardagh
Foreign Coals :—
1-69
80-08
2-30
0-28
6-76
indnded
in Ash
10-80
90-1
Formosa Island
1-84
78-26
6-70
0-64
0-49
10-95
8*96
_
JBomeo (Labuan
kind) . . •
1-ffl
64-62
4-74
0-80
1-46
20-75
7-74
—
8 feet Seam
1-87
64-81
603
0-98
114
24-22
14-82
_
11 feet Seam .
1-21
70-88
6-41
0-67
117
1919
3-28
_
Patent Fuel :—
Wylam*s Patent Fuel
1*10
79-91
6-69
1-68
1-26
6-63
4-84
66-8
Bell's ditto .
1-14
87-88
6-22
0-81
0-71
0-42
4-96
71-7
Warllch^s ditto . 115
90 02
6-66
trace
1-62
indnded
in Ash
2-91
85-1
Coal diffan oonsiderably in its physical properties, and it has
obtuned various names in the markets. The mineralogist generally
divides it into two varieties : —
First, Coal without Bitumen.
Second, Coal with Bitumen.
The first variety is known by the general name of AtUhracite, It
has however various local names. [Aztthraoitb.] It is sometimes
very hard, and has a high lustre, and is often iridescent. Besides
being used for fuel it is often made into inkstands, small boxes, and
other articles of use. This is more especiBlly the case with the
Anthracite of AmeriosL It is the most common form of coal in the
Welsh beds.
The Bituminous varieties of Coal present greater differences of
structure and appearance, and have a larger number of names. By
the above analyses it will be seen that the quantity of ^Bitumen, or
substances resembling it [BrnrMEx], differ very much in different
specimens of coaL It is generally softer and less lustrous than
Anthracite, although occasionally specimens exhibit a very brilliant
fracture. Its speofio gravity is less than that of Anthracite, seldom
exceeding 1*5, whilst the spedfio gravity of Anthracite ranges from
1*8 to 1*75. The kinds of this coal are known by various names.
'The following are analyses of the different Unds of Coal as they
occur in the Newcastle beds : —
Density ....
Carbon ....
Hydrogen ....
Nitrogen and Oxjgen
ASu .....
SelatlTs heat by the same weight \
of Coal.
Belatire heat by the same volume
of Coal . . . . /
Splint
Coal.
1*302
74*961
6-254
4'878
1S'912
110*340
108*990
Caking
Coal.
No. 1.
1*274
83*688
5- 150
8*743
2*591
114-980
111*310
Caking
Coal.
No. 2.
1-280
87-800
5*159
6*139
1*898
122-560
119*030
Cherry
Coal.
1-266
84*694
5-054
8*476
1-576
110-630
112*070
PUchingor Caking Coal is known by its velvet or grayish-block
colour. When first Uirown on a fire it breaks into smidl pieces, but
on the continued application of heat the pieces again unite into a
solid mass or cake. It bums readily with a yellow flame, but on
account of its caking quality it is likely to clog the fire unless it is
freouently stirred. The Newcastle beds mostly yield this form of coal
Uktrry Coal resembles in external appearance the pitch coal, and
whan exposed to heat it cracks and iiea, but does not cake. It is
very brittle, and on this account much loss is occasioned in mining it.
It bums with a clear yellow flame. This kind of coal occurs in the
Ghuigowbeds.
S^iini Coal is a variety found in connection with the last, and is
remarkable for its hardners ; for which reason it is sometimes called
Hard CoaL It is also found at Qla^gow.
Cannd Coal has little lustre, is very compact and smooth in its
texture, and breaks with a large condhoidal fracture. It bums very
i^'o<^<lil7» giring out a clear yellow flame without melting. In conse-
quence it has been employed for the making of candles — Whence its
name. It is often employed for making inkstands, snuff-boxes, and
other articles of uscl At the Great Exhibition of 1861 several models
of public buildings^ monuments, &c., were exhibited, formed of
Cannel CoaL
The above cools are those most commonly bnnied. Their goodness
for heating is tested by the quantity of water they evaporate. The
following are the results of some recent experiments : —
lb.
5
7
8
OS.
14
5
0
84
anthracite
Common Scotch Bituminous Coal . .
Carres West Hartley Main (Newcastle)
Merthyr Bituminous Coal
Pure Welch Anthracite 10
From which it will be seen that the heating power of
nearly doubles that of some bituminous ooals.
Broion Coal, Wood Coal, LignUe, are names given to less perfect
varieties of coal than the Ifust Specimens of these coals have a
brownish-black colour, and bum with an emp^umatic odour.
On placing sections of Lignite under the microscope, the structure
of the wood of the plant foraoing it can be readily detected. This is
not the case with the other kinds of coal, where, although the woody
fibre can be frequently made out, it has evidently undergone con-
siderable change. Professor Quekett, on this ground, proposes to con-
fine the term Coal to those fossil or mineral substances alone which
are evidently made up of the woody tissue of plants. He maintained
that the Torbane mineral was not coal, on the ground that it was not
composed of the debris or remains of v^etable woody tissue.
Althou^ woody and vascular tissue can be seen in the Torbane
mineral. Professor Quekett mainfnma that this has been accidentallv
introduced, and that no true vascular or spiral tissue is found in coal.
The term Brown Coal is frequently applied to coal more recentlpr
deposited than that of ike great coal-beds of the world, and this
quite independent of its structure or any^ peculiarity in combustion.
LignUe is also a term applied to the semi-carbonised forms of wood
which are frequently found in deposits later than those cfl the coal
deposits. Most of these varieties of coal contain a laige quantity of
water, and the quantity of matter given off at a moderate heat by
distillation is at least equal to Uiat of the carbon contained. .
" DytodU is a yellow or grayish highly laminated substance, often
found with lignite, and burning vividly, and spreading an odour of
assafoetida." (Ansted.)
Jet is another variety of coal belonging to the bituaoinous series.
It sometimes occurs in elongated reniform masses, and sometimes in
the form of branches with a woody structure. It is soft and brittle,
with a oonchoidal fracture. Its specific gravity is but little greater
than that of water. It is opaque, of a velvet-black colour, and has a
brilliant and resinous lustre. It is found in Saxony, and also in the
Prussian amber-mines in detached fragments. It is sometimes washed
up on the shores of Great Britain. The finer sorts are used in the
manufacture of ornaments and trinkets of various kinds. The coarser
sorts are burned as fueL It gives out when burned a greenish fiame
and a strong bituminous smell, and leaves a yellowish ash. It con-
tains about 874 P^>* ^^'^^^ o^ volatile matter.
For an account of the origin of Coal, an^ che beds of Coal on the
surface of the earth, see Coal Formation ;ad Coal Plants.
(Dana, Manual of Mineralogy; Ansted, Elementary Cowrte of
Otology, Mineralogy,andPhy»ical Geography ; Memoirt of the Geological
Survey of Oreai £rit<tin and qf the Mueeum of Practical Geology ;
Gregory, Hand-Book of Organic Chemistry ; Reports of Juries of Great
RschOnlion ; Catalogue cf the Great Exhibition ; Proceedings cf the
Microscopical Society ; Microscopical Journal, 1854.)
COAL FORMATION. That part of the Carboniferous System of
Rocks which lies above the Limestone Shale and Motmtain Limestone
is called the Coal Formation. The deposits constituting this formation
consiBt of a series of alternating beds of sandstone and shales, between
which Ue beds or seams of coid. These deposits generally lie upon a
rock called the Millstone Grit. The following is a synopsis of the
Carboniferous System as it is developed in two of the most typical
coal districts in the British Isle& These two districts are South
Wales and Derbyshire.
In South Wales we get, resting on the Old Red-Sandstone, a band
of about a hundred feet in thickness, of black fossiliferous shals^
called the Lower Limestone Shale, over which are beds of thick
limestone, called the Mountain or Carboniferous Limestone. The fol-
lowing is a synopsis of the whole formation, taken from the published
sections of the ' Geological Survey of Britam' (ascending order) : —
1. Lower Limestone Shale, about 100 feet.
2. Carboniferous Limestone; limestone^ with occasional partings of
black shale ; from 600 to 1500 feet
m ■ ■■■
11
COAL FORICATION.
COAL FORMATIOK.
IS
8. Milktone Orit^ or Farewell Rook ; white qturtsose aandstone
and ooDglomemte ; 800 to 600 feet.
4. Coal-Measures ; a great series of sltemations of sandstones and
shales, with occasional beds of coal ; from 8000 to 12,000 feet in total
In the Derbyshire district we get the following groups or series : —
1. Mountain Litnestone ; the base of whidi ib not exposed, consist-
ing principally of thick limestone, occasionally interstratified with
black shales, and exceeding 1200 feetw
2. Limestone Shale ; black shales, with their interstratified lime-
stones ; in some places 400 to 650 feet.
8. Millstone Qrit; strong sandstones, with occasional small con-
glomerate, interstratified with shales and a few small beds of coal ;
about 1700 feet.
4. Coal-Measures ; alternations of sandstone and shale, with beds
of ooal and ironstone ; total thickness, 2700 feet and more.
Proceeding from the Derbyshire district towards the north, a
gradual change takes place in the Carboniferoxis Formation in sudi a
way that it becomes more and more a series of Coal-Measures from
top to bottom. The Millstone Orit is never anything more than the
lower part of the Coal-Measures in which beds of strong sandstone
occur. These as we proceed north become more and more split up
and interstratified by beds of shale and occasional beds of coaL The
Limestone Shale, too, of Derbyshire farther north becomes split up bv
beds of gritstone and limestone, and still fiurther north by beds of ooaL
Lastly, the Mountain limestone itself becomes split up and interstra-
tified first by beds of shale, then by beds of shale and sandstone, and
lastly, on the borders of Scotland, by shales, sandstones, and coals.
In the midland counties of England — namely, in Leicestershire^,
Warwickshire^ Stafibrdehire, and Shropshire — the Carboniferous
Formation consists simply of the upper group of the formation of the
Coal-Measures. Little patches of Mountain Limestone are found
below them in one or two spots in the first and last named counties ;
but usually the Coal-Measures rest directly and unconformably on
Silurian and still older rocks. In Staffordshire sereral beds of ooal
oome together by the thinning out of the intermediate measures, and
make a mass of coal which in some places is upwards of 80 feet
thick, in fiom 10 to 18 beds.
In Scotland the Carboniferous Fonnotion admits of no subdivisions
into groups. Immediately above the Old Red-Sandstone are Coal-
Measures containing beds of ooal, over which are thick encrinital
limestones interstratified with shales, so that no single maas of lime-
stone is more than 40 feet thick. The whole series of Carboniferous
rocks in Scotland is said to be upwards of 6000 feet thick, the whole
being Coal-Measures with intentratified beds of limestone in tiie
lower portion, representing the Mountain Limestone of England.
The whole series is oompooed of materials in the following pro-
portions:—
Feet.
Sandstone 8800
Shale I ' • 2160
Umestone 806
Coal 180
Clay 183
6078
These materials tjfe so disposed that there never is an unbroken set
of beds of more than tbe f oUowing thickness of each sort : —
Feet.
Sandstone 200
Shale ........ 180
Limestone 40
Coal. 18
Clay 28
Small bands and nodules of clay-ironstone are found ocoasionally
in all the shales and days of the Carboniferous rocks of England^
Scotland, and Indand ; but though of economical value, they are not
of great geological importance.
In IreSmd the Carboniferous rooks consist in the south and west
of two subdivisions — Carboniferous Limestone and Coal-Measures.
The Carboniferous Limestone, the maximum thickness of which is
about 8000 feet, is locally again subdivided into three parts — A. Lower
Limestone. B. Calp, a series of dark limestones, iaterstratified with
black shale. C. Upper Limestone. The Coal-Measures consist of
alternations of shale and sandstone, with a few thin beds of coal
principally anthracite or culm, and have a thickness of more than
2000 feet in the Queen's County. In the north of Ireland the Car-
boniferous rooks seem to assume more of the type of those of York-
shire and the north of England. The Coal-Measures are still confined
to the .upper portion ; but the lower part seems to consist of alterna-
tions of shale and sandstone with various thick beds of limestone, so
that it may be doubted whether the subdivisions of the Carboniferous
Limestone of the centre of Ireland can be accurately traced into the
north or north-west.
The Carboniferous Formation of Belgiimi admits of a three-fold
subdivision (ascending order) : —
1. Arenaceous Shales; gray shales, limestones and purolitio iron-ore,
OTtr which are gray nndsUmes and anthracite.
2. Limestone Group; orinoidal, dolomttio, and pioductos lime-
stones, with chert and anthracite.
8. Coal-Measures ; shale and sandstone, with coaL
The formation is found slso at St.-Etienne in central France, where
it appears to consist of conglomerate and sandstone below, and shale
and sandstone above, with beds of coaL
In Westphalia there are black shsles below, passing up into black
limestones, and those into lighterooloured hmestone, whidi sre
covered by black shales and sandstone in which beds of ooal occur.
In Russia there are, according to Sir R. Murchison, two types of
the formation. The northern type consists of (ascending order) : —
1. Sands and Shales with coal
2. Dark-Gray Productus Limestone^ Yellow Magnesian Limestone,
White Limestone of MoscoWi shale and sandstone, and gray, white,
and yellow limestone.
8. Limestonesy calcareous grits, and flagstones capped by con-
glomerate.
In this type the ooal is confined to the base of the fonnation.
The souwem type consists of : —
1. Sands and Shales without coaL
2. Productus Limestone with shalei^ sandstones, and thin lime-
stones, with many beds of coaL
8. Limestone, oalcareous grits, and flagstones, with traces of ooal,
capped by sandstone oontaining ooal plants.
In this type the most coal occurs about the centre of the formation.
The above remarks, taken from Mr. Jukes's admirable 'Intro-
duction to Physical Geology,' will serve to show the relation of the
deposits of Coal to the other rooks and substances with which it is
found associated. The Coal-Measures above referred to occupy defi-
nite and limited areas of somewhat considerable extent in various
parts of Europe, Ada, America, and the islands adjacent. The
following is an estimate of the annual production of ooids in various
parts of the worid as given by Professor Ansted : —
Conntriet.
Ooal Area
Proportion
Total Yearly
in Square MUm.
toArea.
Prodnotion in Tons.
British UUnds
1S,000
1— 10
82,000,000
Franoe
S,000
1—100
4,150,000
Belgiom
6S0
1~ S2
8,000,000
Spain . . . .
4,000
1— 4S
680,000
PniMia
l.SOO
1— 80
8,800,000
1,000
1— SO
—
United States of America
119,000
1— 20
4,000,000
Britlah North Amerioa .
18,000
2— 0
(t)
Table pf tU Principal Coal-Fidds qf the Bntitk Idandt.
Fiim Ptofuaor Avited,
COAL-FISLDS.
1. Worthnmberland and Dnriuun Diitriet
Neweaetle OoaUFIeld
2. Cnmberlaad, Westmoralaad, and West
Biding of Torkshiie : —
Whitehaven and Akertoa •
Applehy (8 basins) . •
Seberghsm (Ctunberland)
Kirhy Lonsdale . .
S. Lancashire, Flintdiire, and North
Staflbrdshlre :—
Laneashircl^SoaUField •
Flintshire ....
Pottery, North Staflbrdshlre .
Cheadle, North Staflbrdshlre .
4. Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, and
Derbyshire :—
Great Yorkshire Ooal.FleId .
Darley Moor, Derbyshire ; Shirley )
Moor, Derbyshire • /
5. Shropshire and Worcestershire : —
Colebrook Dale, Shropshire .
Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Brown Glee HiU, ShropsUre .
Titterstone Glee HUl, frhn^vshlre
Lnkey Hill, Worcestershire •
Bcwdley, Worcestershire •
8. South Staflbrdshlre : —
Dudley and Wolverhampton •
7, Warwickshire and Leicestershire : —
Nuneaton . . • •
Ashby-de-laJSouch
8. Somersetshire and Gloucestershire : —
Bristol
Forest of Dean
Newent, Gloucestershire
800,000
80,000
17,000
(?)
2,800
880,000
120,000
40,000
10,000
880,000
1,800
21,000
16,000
1,800
5,000
680
45,000
65,000
40,000
40,000
130,000
86,000
1,800
I-
^1
18
17
1
4
78
8
24
12
17
8
8
(t)
(t)
11
9
8
50
37
15
3ll
80
8
17
180
89
88
82
40
(I)
67
30
83
00
17
4
J
I
8
9
10
9
10
10
(T)
40
18
21
II
I i
6 s
2,00
6,000
200
1,000
IS
COAL FORMATION.
COAL FORMATION.
14
{Table eon^MMieei)
COALFIELDS.
9f South Welch Coal-Field • •
10. SoottUh Ooftl-FieldB :~
Clyde Yallej, Lanarkthlre, South
SootUnd lererftl nmUl areu
Hid Lothian
East Lothian
Kilauurnoek, Ayrshire •
Pifethira ....
Dnmfiries Coal region .
11. Irish OoaUFields:—
Ulater
Connanght ....
Lelnster, Kilkenny
Hnniter, lereral .
oft
I
1^
P
600,000
1,000,000
(T)
(t)
(!)
(!)
45,000
600,000
200,000
150,000
1,000,000
i
o
II
80
84
S4
60
S
(!)
10
8
8
hi
X3.9 «
a|1
100
200(1)
94
180
40
(!)
55
40a)
28
I
8«
I
IS
18
SO
21
6
I I
ill
a
12,000
6,000
4,400
6,000
The following airangemeiit is that of Mesara. Conybeare and PhiUipa,
and from its siinpliclty will serve as a plan for some general remarks
on the ooal-fields of Great Britain : — 1. The great northern district,
including all the coal-fields north of the Trent 2. The central
district^ indoding Leicester, Warwick, Stafford, and Shropshire.
3. The western district^ which may be subdiTided into north-western,
including North Wales ; and south-western, including South Wales,
Gloucester, and Somersetshire.
Ooal-Dutrict North of the Treni. — This great coal formation encircles
the whole Pennine mountain chain on the easty south, and north ; not
however in one uninterrupted line, but in a series of detached ooal-fields.
1. The Coal-Field of Northumbtfland and Durham. 2. Some small
detached Coal-Fields in the North of Torkshire. 8. The Coal-Field of
South Yorkshire, Nottingham, and Derby. 4. The Cosl-Field of
North Stafford. 5. The South Lancaahure Coal-Field. 6. The North
Lancashire Coal-Field. 7. The Whitehaven Coal-Field.
1. The Coal-Field of Northumberland and Durham commences
near the mouth of the river Coquet on the north, and extends nearly
to the Tees on the south. As £ur as Shields the sea is its boundary on
the east; from that point it leaves a margin of a few miles between
it and the sea, and extends about 10 miles west from Newcastle. Its
greatest length is 68 miles, and its greatest breadth about 24 miles. The
coal-measures of this field rest on the series of strata of the millstone
grit and shale, and are in part under the magnesian limestone, the
northernmost point of which is near the mouth of the Tjme. The
beds of which this coal formation is composed dip towards the east
and crop out towards the west, so that a section of them gives the
idea of a form of a boat. In consequence of this disposition the beds
of coal in some places appear at the surfiioe, while in the middle of
the basin they are at great depths. At Yarrow, about five miles fh>m
the mouth of the Tyne, one of the thickest beds, cidled the High
Main, is 960 feet deep, and rises on all sides ; the dip of the strata
averages one inch in twenty, but this is not uniform throughout; and
theren)re that bed does not rise to the surfiuse at equal distances around
Yarrow. The beds of the ooal-measures are 82 in number, and consist
of alternating beds of coal, sandstone, and slate-day; twaVfng ^n
aggregate thickness of 1620 feet, which varies however in different
parts. The irregularities of the surface do not affbct the dip or in-
clination of the strata ; so that when a valley intervenes tney are
found in the sides of the opposite hills at the same levels as if the
respective strata had once been continuous. It is difficult to deter-
mine the exact number of beds of coal, in consequence of the different
depths at which the same bed occurs, the numerous faults, and the
varying thickness of the beds of coal and other strata. These strata
occasionally enlarge and contract so much, that it is only by extensive
observation that the identity of the seams can be ascertuned. Dr.
Thomson supposes the whole number of beds of coal in this field to
be twenty-five ; Messrs. Conybeare and Phillips state that forty beds
of coal have been seen : a considerable number however of these are
very thin. The two most important beds are those distinguished by
the names of High Main and Low Bfain. The thickness of the
first is 6 feet, and of the second 6 feet 6 inches. The Low Bfain is
about 60 fathoms below the High Main. Eight other beds of coal
occur between these : one called Bensham is 4 feet thick, and another
called Coal- Yard is 8 feet thick. Seven beds of coal have been ob-
served under the Low Biain, some of which are of considerable
thickneas, but of an inferior quality. The aggregate thickness of
the whole number of seams is about 44 feet ; but there are eleven
beds not workable, the thickness of some of them being only a few
inches. Five others amount together to only 6 feet. Making proper
deductions for these, it may be considered that the available beds
amount to 80 feet in thickness.
The number of dykes or faults which traverse this field is very
considerable. They appear to run in aU directions. The most re-
markable, called the Great Dyke, or 90-&tbom dyke, has received the
latter name because the beds on the north side of it have been thrown
down 00 fsthoms. Its direction is north-north-east and south-south-
west It enten the sea a little to the south of Hartley, or about three
miles north of Shields, and running westward crosses the Tyne at
Lemington, about four miles west of Newcastle Bridge. In some
places it is only a few inches wide, but in Montagu colliery it is 22 yards
wide, and is filled with hard and soft sandstone. From the southern
side of this dyke two others branch off, one to the soutJi-east and the
other to the south-west The latter, called from its breadth the
70-yard dyke, is also filled with hard and soft sandstone. This dyke
intersects the upper or Beaumont seam of coal, but does not alter the
level on either side. The thickness of the seam however decreases,
beginning at the distance of 15 or 16 yards from the dyke : and the
coal first becomes sooty, and at length assumes the appearance of
coke. The south-eastern branch is only 20 yards in breaduL Another
dyke, which passes through Coal^ Hill, about four miles west of
Newcastle, is about 24 feet wide. It is filled with basalt'in detached
masses, which are coated with yellow ochre ; a thin layer of indurated
day is interposed between the sides of the fissure add the basalt
The upper seam of coal is here about 85 feet from the surface, and
where it is in contact with the dyke is completdy chaired. Another
dyke, which crosses the l^rne at Walker, and traverses the Walker
colliny, does not alter the levd of the strata^ but on each side of it
the coal is converted into coke, which on one side in some places was
found to be 18 feet thid[^ and on the opposite side only about 9 feet
At Walbottle Dean, 5i miles west of Newcastle, a double vein of
basalt crosses the ravine in a diagonal direction, passing nearly due
east and west; it underlies at an angle of 78 degrees, and cuts the
coal strata without altering their dip, but the seam of coal is chsored.
A dyke, called the Cockfield Dyke, 17 feet wide, throws up the coal-
measures on th^ south 18 feet The Low Main coal, contiguous to
the basalt^ is only 9 inches thick, but enlaiges to 6 feet at the distance
of 150 feet from it; the coal contiguous to the dyke is reduced to a
dnder. The dykes, if not large, are locally called troubUa, tUpi, or
kUehet. These minor faults are numerous and extensive, and are a
perpetual source of diffic^ty and expense to the coal-owner by dis-
turbing the levd of the strata and by the disengagement of carburetted
hydrogen gas. They are not however without thdr use, being often
filled with a tenadous water-proof clay, by whidi numerous springs
are dammed up and brought to the surface. The faults which depress
the strata have kept valuable seams within the basin, which would
otherwise have cropped out and have been lost
The coal-fidd of Northumberland and Durham supplies an enor-
mous quantity of coaL Besides being consumed in its own district^
London depends nearly altogether on it, as wdl as all the southern
coast counties, with the exception of ComwalL It is consumed along
the eastern coast, induding all the eastern coimties as far west as
Hull, Boston, Peterborough, Bedford, and Windsor. An inquiry as
to the probable duration of this supply is one of no small inta«st
Dr. Thomson calculates that this coal-fidd may fiuriy be expected
to yield coal for 1000 years, at the annual consumption of two
millions of dialdrons ; but as we have no data by which to discover
how much coal has been already consumed, we cannot tell how mudi
of these 1000 years has already elapsed. Besides this, Dr. Thomson
has taken the average annual consumption much too low for the
present time. The coals shipped from the Tyne, the Wear, and the
Tees, in 1885, amounted to 4,868,144 tons. The quantity of waste
coal is estimatiBd at one-third of the whole. Without therefore taking
into account the pousumption of the immediate district, the annual
quantity of coal taken from tiie mines is more than 6,552,216 tons.
On the other hand it appears tiiat in this calculation the area of the
coal-fidd is very much under-estimated, being taken at 1 80 square miles.
Professor Buddand, in his examination before the House of Commons,
limits the period of supply at the present rate of consumption to
about 400 years. Mr. Baily, in his ' Survey of Durham,' states the
period for the exhaustion of the ooal to be about 200 years hence.
Some proprietors of the coal-mines, when examined before the House
of Commons, in 1830, extended the period of exhaustion to 1727
years. They assumed that there are 837 square miles of coal strata
in this fidd, and that only 105 miles had been worked out The small
coal taken out of the pits is not considered worth shipment ; large
quantities of it were therefore often piled up near the mouths of the
pits. These masses of ooal were frequently set on fire, and bumed
for several years. Dr. Thomson describes two of these immense fires
which were burning in 1814. About three miles to the north of
Newcastle, and three miles off the road from Berwick, on the left
hand, '' one has been burning these#ight years. The heap of coal is
said to cover twelve acres. The other, on the right hand, is nearer the
road and therefore appears more bright : it has been burning these
three or four years (1814)." Of late years many more manufactories
have been established in this district, by whidi, and by converting it
into coke, most of the small coal is consumed.
Besides this coal-field there is another coal formation in the northern
coimties, which is minutdy described by Dr. Thomson in the 'Annals
of Philosophy,' November, 1814, under the name of the Independent
Cod Formation. This tract terminates westward at Cross Fell, in
Cumberland, is supposed to occupy the whde of Durham, and con-
stitutes the whole of that part of Northumberland east of the Cheviots
u
COAL FORMATION.
COAL FORMATION.
16
ezelufllTe of the oottl-field already deaoribed. The diffezent strata of
this ooal formation amount to about 147. The coal-meaeurea here
differ from those we have just noticed, in having limestone as well as
sandstone and slate-day alternating wii^ the iMds of ooal ; the ooal
worked in this formation is slate-CKNJ| and is considered inferior in
quality to the Newcastle ooal. There are several ooUieries, but the
ooal is only employed for home consumption. The lowest bed of these
measures crops out near Cross Fell The coal of which it is composed,
provinoially called crow-coal, falls into powder when exposed to the
air, and cannot be burnt by itselC The poorer dass make it up into
balls with clay, and use it for fuel. This bed is 887 fathoms below
the lowest of ike Newcastle beds. {* Ann. of Phil,' vol iv.) There
are numerous lead mines in this tract
2. Detached Coal-Fields in the North of Yorksire. — These are very
limited in extent, being small insulated coal basins, lying in hollows
in the gritstone. They occur near Middleham, Leybume, Thorpefell,
near Bumsell, and as far west as KettlewelL The seam is seldom
more than 20 inches thick. At Thedswell Moor the lowest seam is
one yard, btit the stratum diminishes and vanishes at the edges.
Messrs. Conybeare and Phillips doubt whether these beds should not
be referred to the thin ooal seams subordinate to the millstone gdt
series, rather than to ^e prindpal coal-measures.
Coal is wrought in some jparts of the great carboniferous chain
extending from Fenigent to Kirkby Stephen. Here the great ' Craven
fault' occurs, descril^ by Professor Sedgwick (' On the Carboniferous
Chain from Fenigent to Kirkby Stephen,' in * Geol Trans.,' voL iv.
series 2) as ranging idong the line of junction of the central dhaan with
the skirts of the Cumbrian system, passing along the south flank of
Casterton Low Fell, up Barbondale, thence across the valley of Dent
through the upper part of the valley of Sedbeigh, and along the
flanks of Bowe Fell, and Wildboar Fell, to the ridge which flanks
Bavenstone Dale. Throughout the whole of this line there are
enormous and most complex dislocations, which affect the strata of
the coal formation and produce other phenomena Oidy one of the
coal strata in the lowest part of the coal-measures is suffidently
valuable to be worked ; it varies from ISinches to nearly 4 feet in
thickness. At Tuma Fell, near Hawes, in x orkshire and at Tan Hill,
near the highest part of the road from Brough to Aigengarthdale, this
coal is extensively woriked, and is of good quality. The same seam is
found near Kirkby Stephen. Horizontal dnfts have been canned into
this bed near the top of Fenigent, of Whernside, and of Great Colm ;
but in these parts it is of bad quality and not fit for domestic use,
being mixed with ferruginous and pyritous shale. This coal varies in
thicbiess from a mere trace to 2 feet. It was once worked to some
extent on the south side of the valley of Dent, by means of horizontal
drifts under Oreat Colm. It was only a few inches in thickness, but
said to be of so good a quality as to be in great request About 70 or
80 years ago it was sent on pack-horses from this place as far as
Kendal, for the use of blacksmiths' forges, &c. Kendal has long been
supplied witii fuel from the Lancashire coal-field ; but this fact, of
comparatively so recent a date, strongly illustrates the astonishing
progress we have made in our modes of internal communication.
At the Barbon coal-pit in Westmoreland, a coal-bed of this series
is likewise wrought ; the lower part of it is however so impure as to
be unfit for ordinary purposes, and is chiefly consumed in lime-works.
The following is a section of the strata as occurring in the Barbon
colliery:—
feet. in.
1. Alluvial Soil 52 6
2. Plate (Calcareous Shale) . . . .'.16
8. Limestone, the 4th or Mosdale Moor Limestone
of the great section 27 0
4. Gritstone 27 0
6. Alternations of Shale and Gritstone . ..120
6. Shale SO 0
7. Crow Limestone 2 0
8. Plate with a S-inch Crow-Coal . . .16
9. Gritstone 27 0
10. Coal 12
The strata of the ooal are in general much less regularly continuous
than the strata of limestone. This however is not always the case.
Some of the thin bands of coal here appear to continue with astonish-
ing regularity. The following example is quoted from Professor
S^gwick. "At Cross Pits, in the valley of Dent, the coal seam
under the 12-fatiiom limestone is divided, by a band of day half an
inch thick, into two parts, with distinct mineral characters ; and the
same coal seam, with exactly th^same subdivisions, has been foimd
in the mountain on the opposite side of the valley at the distance of
3 or 4 miles measured in a straight Ihie. This seems to prove that a
bed not more than a fraction of an inch thick was originally con-
tinuous throughout an area probably several miles in diameter."
(* Geol. Trans.' vol. iv. sec 2, p. 101.)
8. Coal-Field of South Yorkshire, Nottingham, and Derbyshire. —
This extensive field, which in character is closely allied to that of
Newcastle, is considered by some geologists as a re-emergence of the
same strata from beneath iLe covering of magneeian limestone under
which it is concealed through the intervening space. This coal-field
occupies an area extending north and south from a little to the north-
east of Leeds nearly to Derby, a distance of more than 65 miles ; its
greatest width. 28 miles, is on the north, reaching nearly as ^Ear as
Halifax to the west On the south it extends towards the east to
Nottingham, and is here about 12 miles wide ; but in some parts it
is much narrower The strata of these ooal-measures range in the
same manner as in the Northumberland ooal-field, from north to south,
dip to the east and rise to the west and north-west^ in which direc-
tions the lowest measures at length crop out sgainst the rodcs of the
millstone-grit series, which constitute the higher ridges of the Pennine
chain, ^e strata of this ooal formation are very numerous. Th^
are 20 beds of gritstone at the least, some x>t great thickness. Most
of these beds consist of grains of semi-transnarent sUex united by an
ai^|;illaceous cement ; the lowest of these beds is termed the miUrtone
gnt» beneath which no workable coal is found. Besides these gritstone
beds there are numerous strata of shale (slat»^y), bind (indurated
loam), and dunoh (indurated day), altematiDg with several beds of
coal of diffBrent thickness and value. A hard argillaceous rode called
crow-stone forms in some places the floor of &e ooal beds, and is
supposed to be a variety of the dunch still more highly indurated.
The numerous faults in this ooal-fidd render it extremely difficult to
ascertain the exact number and order of the ooal beds. Mr. BiJte-
wdl (p. 884) states their number at 80, varying from 6 indies to
11 feet^ and the total thickness of ooal at 26 yards. This however he
oonsiders as only an approximation. Three varieties of coal oocur in
these measures : hard, or stone-coal, which bums to a white ash ;
sofb^ or bright, which bums to a white ash ; caking, or oroiling, which
usually bums to a red ash. The first is esteemed the best^ and ia in
much greater demand than the others. The tluckest bed is worked
near Bamsby. In a pit near Middleton three seams are being worked ;
one at the depth of about 40 to 70 yards from the surface, another
88 yards lower, and the deepest fr^m 28 to 82 yards deeper, making
the whole depth from 106 to 140 yards. The upper seam is about 2
feet 8 inches thick, the middle seam from 2 feet 10 inches to 8 feet
4 inches, and tiie lower one from 4 feet 6 inches to 5 feet.
The strata of this field are traversed by an immense fault com-
mencing from Allestry, in the south, and running in a aigzag direction
through the south and east part of the field ; the rise of the strata is
said to be much more rapid on the western than the eastern side of
the fault. Besides tlus great fault there are man^ others which
txaverse the field in various directions, and create an mextricable con-
fusion by the rise and fall of the different strata, rendering it almost
impossible to trace distinctly the continuation of each bed. This coal-
field supplies the ooal for the important manufactures which surround
it, and dso, by means of inland navigation, the midland counties
south and east of Derbyshire.
A little to the west of the coal-fidd already described, coal has been
found in two places about half-way between Ashbome and Derby, but
it has not been worked.
4. Coal-Fidd of North Sta£ford.— There are two detached coal-
fields : the one situated on the north-cast of Newcastle-under-Lyne,
distinguished as the Pottery Coal-Field ; the other at Cheadle, to the
east of the first. The form of the Pottery Coal-Field is triangular.
Its vertex is near Congleton, from which point the sides diverge to
the south-south-east and south-south-west, running in each direction
about ten miles ; the base is estimated at about seven miles : New-
castle is nearlv in the centre of the base. The strata dip from the
two sides to tne centre of the area. On the eastern side the inclina-
tion westward is estimated at one foot in four ; on the other side it is
still more rapid. Between Burslem and its eastern limit, nearly in
the centre of the coal-field, it has been ascertained that there are
32 beds of ooal of various thickness, generally from about 3 to 10
feet each ; but tiie strata are in general much dislocated in this field.
In the prindpal mines in this district coal is found at various
depths, from 50 to 800 yards and more; there has been a mine
worked at the depth of more than 400 yards. Some seams only 20
inches thick have occasionally been worked, ** ' they are seldom
worked under 8 or 4 feet thickness.
The Cheadle Coal-Field is an insulated basin surroimded by and
reposing upon millstone grit ; it is about five miles long and three
miles broad, and is of litUe importance.
5. The Manchester or Soutiii-Lancashire Coal-Fidd is separated
from that of South Yorkshire and Derbyshire by the range of lofty
hills extending from near Colne to Blackstone Edge, and thence to
Ax Edge in Derbyshire. It commences near the western side of this
range in the north-west of Derbyshire, and continues thence to the
south-western part of Lancashire, forming an area somewhat in the
shape of a crescent^ having Manchester nearly in the centre. The
chord or span between the opposite horns is about forty miles. It
runs nearly due north from Macclesfield to a few miles beyond Roch-
dale, a distance of thirty miles; the part between Macclesfield and
Manchester is however very narrow, being in some places not two
miles in width. From Rochdale it extends westward to Bolton and
Chorley, south-west to Leigh and Prescot, north-west to Preston, and
north to Colne. Viewing it as a whole, the strata rise towards the
exterior edge of this crescent-shaped coal-field, along which the strata
of miUstone grit, on which they repose, crop out from beneath them,
and dip towards its inner edge, where they are covered by the superior
strata of the newer sandstone formation, whidi contain occasionally
17
COAL FORMATION.
COAL FORMATION.
18
k
y
beds of calcareo-magnesian conglomerate. Qreat duturbaaces bave
however interrupted the regidarity of this arraneement, and caoBed
diviflions of the ooal-measures, which render it difficult to trace out
the exact dimenjnonB of the field. At Dialey, in Cheshire, it bifur-
cates into two branches, having an intermediate ridge or " saddle of
millstone grit, the eastern branch forming a trough, of which the
strata crop out on both sides against the millstone grit." Tlds part of
the field is a long narrow strip joined to the main field at Disley, and
extending thence southward fifteen miles to near Mearbrooke in
Staffordshire. The strata of the western branch of this bifurcation,
extending from Disley to Macclesfield, dip again to the west^ but not
at so great an angle aa thev rose, on the eust side of the intermediate
ridge. In other parts of the coal-field great faults occur, but it has
not been sufficiently investigated by the geologist for them to be
distinctly traced. Mr. Bakewell has investigated a small portion,
which he distinguishes as the Coal-Field of Bradford : the result of his
observations is found in the second volume of the ' Qeological Trans-
actions.' This tract is rather more than two miles long, and little
more than one mile and a furlong wide. It is situated on the river
Medlock, a short distance east-south-east of Manchester. It is sur-
rounded on every side, except the east^ by the red-sandstone which
prevails in the environs of Manchester. Beds of limestone pass under
this and overlay the coal-measures, in which there are several beds of
coal rising to the north, under aa angle of 30*. One of these, near
the centre of the field, is four feet in Udcknesa. To the north of these
inclined beds there is a considerable disturbance, and the direction of
the beds becomes suddenly vertical One of the vertical beds, toge-
ther with its accompanying strata, bears so close a resemblance to the
4 -feet coal above mentioned, that there is no doubt of their iden-
tity, and that the vertical stratum was, before the dislocation which
severed them took place, a continuation of the first With these
vertical beds the ooal-measures terminate : on the north an interval of
the red-sandstone succeeds for about 1400 yards, when coal-beds
again appear, rising as before towards the north. All this indicates
considerable faults and subsidences, which however cannot be accu-
rately traced at present The coal from the Lancashire field supplies
Manchester, Liverpool, and the surrounding districts.
6. The North Lancashire Coal-Field is one of little importance. It
lies midway between Lancaster and Ingleton ; it is about eight miles
long and six miles wide, but it has never been thoroughly examinedi
and its strata cannot be distinctly stated.
7. The Whitehaven Coal-Field is situated on the west coast of
Cumberland, and extends from near Egremont, south of Whitehaven,
to near AJlonby on the north.
Central Coal DUtrict, — Under this division are classed the coal-
fields of Ashbv-de-la-Zouch, of Warwickshire, and South Staffordshire.
1. The Coal-Field of Ashby-de-la-Zouch is of a very irregular figure,
and so much dislocated that it rather forms two small basins than
one continuous whole. The greatest length from north-west to south-
east is about ten miles, the greatest breadth about eight miles. The
eastern extremity of this area approaches almost dose to the transition
district of Chamwood Forest. This coal-field is described by Mr.
Farey as "one of the highly curious but perhaps not uncommon
occurrences in the red man districts ; a tract entirely surrounded by
a fault, or a series of faults, which unite, seem lifted up through the
red marl strata, and denudated, the coal strata having rapid dips in
various directions, while the surrounding strata of red marl are hori-
Eontal, or as nearly so as may be." Of the two portions of the
field, one ranges by Ashby Wold, about three miles on the west
of Ashby ; the other by Coleorton, which is about the same distance
on the east.
The Ashby Wold portion ranges from Swepston, four miles south
of Ashby, to Bretby in Derbyshire : the inclination of the strata is
towards Ashby ; but between the out-crop of the beds and that town
another crop ha^ been traced near Brothorpe, dipping in a contrary
direction. More than twenty coal-works have betBU opened on thiiB
line. The lowest shaft sunk is to. the depth of 246 yards. One of
the seams is from 17 to 21 feet thick. This great thickness is catised,
it is supposed, by the running together of two or more seams — a cir-
cumstance which is known to occur in the coal-fields of South
Staffordshire. The eastern portion of this district commences about
a mile and a half north-east of Ashby, and extends about six miles in
length, running parallel to the larger portion. The strata dip to east-
north-east In tiie pits belonging to Sir Geoige Beaumont two coal-
beds, each a yard and a half thick, are worked. On Coleorton Moor
several coal-seams, which have been proved to lie above these, have
been worked at the depth of 116 feet
2. The Warwickshire Coal-Field commences at Wyken and Sow,
two villsges about three miles east of Coventry, and continues in a
north-west direction to Polosworth and Wareston, about five miles
east of Tamworth, a distance of sixteen miles : its average breadth is
about three miles. All the strata rise to the east-north-east^ the
inclination becoming greater towards the eastern edge of the field,
where in many parU it makes an angle of more than 45° with the
horizon : towards the west it decreases to about one foot in three,
and lastly in five. The principal collieries are near the south of the
field, at Qriff and Bed worth. The depth of the first is 117 yards, and
the principal seam three yards in thickness. The same seams are
VAT. HIBT. DIY. TOL. II.
worked in the Bedworth mines, but there the first and second coal-
seams of Griff run together and form a 5-yard seam. The interme-
diate strata of shale which separate them at Griff are found in the
eastern shaft to be 88 yards, and in the western 25 yards thick ; but
they gradually decrease as they proceed westward, till at length
they entirely vanish.
8. South Staffordshire or Dudley Coal-Field, the principal in the
central district, extends from. Beverton, near Badgely, on the north-
east> to near Stourbridge on the south-west The greatest length is
about twenty miles, and its greatest breadth, from Walsall to Wolver-
hampton, is about seven nuies, but it is veiy irregular towards the
south, bcong almost divided into two parts. The area, from actual
survey, has been found to be about sixty square miles. The soulhen^
portion, extending from Stourbridge to Bilston, about seven or eight
miles in length and four in breadth, has been fully investigated by
Mr. Keirs, and described by him in Shaw's ' History of Staffordshire.'
No satisfactory accoimt of the northern portions of this field has
hitherto been published ; manv coal-seams, of eight, six, and four
feet in thickness, are worked in, it The southern portion is of much
more importance, as it contains seams firom 80 to 45 feet in thickness.
This enormous thickness is however not one continuous seam, but a
number of seams, divided by layers of what the miners caU band,
which are very thin beds of day-slate. The working of these thick
seams is not so profitable as might be supposed. The pillars left
standing in order to support the high roof are estimated at about one-
third of the whole coal in the bed, and the small coal left in the mine
is about equal to another third, so that only one-third of the whole is
at present taken out of the mine.
In the coal-measures of this district there is an absence of the
millstone grit, carboniferous limestone, and old red-sandstone, which
usually lie under the coal-meaiyires. The coal-measures rest, in the
Dudley Coal-Field, on the transition rock at once, without any inter-
mediate strata : this singularity is likewise observed in the Coal*
brook Dale coal formation.
The coal district in South Staffordshire is traversed from north-
west to south-east by apparently a line of hills, but they are not
absolutely continuous, though they have a uniform general direction.
On exammation, the hills on the north and those on the south of
Dudley are found to differ entirelv in their character. The northern
chain consists of highly inclinea strata of limestone, against the
sides of which all the ooal-measures crop out at a considerable aaglo^
but come nearer a horizontal position as they recede from these
hills. The other chain of bills, on the south of Dudley, is entirely
composed of one mass of basalt and amygdaloid, and the coal-
measures preserve their usual level in approaching the hills, not
cropping out as they do upon the limestone chain. Two opinions
are entertained with r^ard to these basalt elevations: "they may
be either the protruding edge of a vast basaltic dyke traversing the
coal-field, or an overlying mass :" the latter is considered the more
probable. The coal-measures on the south, near Stourbridge, appear
to dip beneath the beds of the newer red-sandstone formation : the
beds of this and of the Warwickshire coal-field dipping in opposite
directions imder the superstrata, give reason for supposing that they
may extend' continuously below this through the intervenixigspace.
The eastern side of the field, which extends a little beyond WaJsall,
is bounded by the same limestone with that of Dudley, and the coal-
measures are observed again to crop out against it, thus lying in a
basin between these two towns. Tluit the coal-beds rise towaitis the
north, and the upper ones crop out while others continue imder the
surface, is very satisfactorily shown by the comparison of the strata
in different collieries. At Tividale tiie main coal is 60( fathoms
below the surface ; at Bradley it is only 20} ; and the greater number
of beds which cover the mam coal at the former place have entirely
disappeared before the main seam reaches Bradley ; and farther to
the north the main seam also crops out and disappears altogether.
A very curious phenomenon takes place at Bloomfield colliery, to the
south of Bilston, thus described in the ' Geology of England,' p. 412 :
— " The two upper beds of the main coal, called the roo^ fioor, and
top slipper, separate from the rest, and are distinguished by the
name of the 'flying reed.' This separation grows wider, and at
Bradley oolliery amounts to 12 feet, four beds of shale (slate-day)
and ironstone being interposed. These two upper beds crop out,
while the rest of the main coal goes on to Bilston, and is only eight
yards thick."
This district supplies coals to the numerous iron-works in the
immediate neighbourhood, and the manufactories of Birmingham
and its vicinity; besides which, all the neighbouring counties, aa
far south as Beading and Gloucesteri are supplied by means of inland
navigation.
The clay ironstone occurs in various beds, but is only wrought
in two : one of these is the bed under the main coal, and is wrought
for iron- ore.
Many faults or dykes occur in this field ; they are usually fissures
in the beds, filled up with day, and very frequently the levels of the
different strata vary in consequence. There is a great fault near
Bilston, which causes the dip of the strata to be reversed, the beds
on the south side dipping south, and those on the north side dipping
north: this is however an unusual droumstanoe
C
19
COAL FORMATION.
COAL FORMATION.
90
Western Coal DistrieU. — The Coal-Fields of this diyision axe dis-
posed around the transition district of North and South Wales. The
north-western district includes the coal-fields of Anglesey and Flint-
shire, the western those of Shropshire, the south-western those of
South Wales, of South Qloucester and Somerset^ and of the Forest
of Dean.
1. Isle of Anglesey. — ^At the distance of about six nules from the
Menai Straits, and running nwAj parallel to them, a remarkable
valley stretches across the whole island. This yalley opens oi^the
north into Red Wharf Bay, and on the south into the tdstuary of
Maltraeth ; it is flanked on both sides by parallel bands of carboni-
ferous limestone, in the depression between which coal has been
found, and it is thought probable that the coal-measures may extend
through the whole line. Coal has been worked near the Maltraeth
estuaiy ; and a few years since shafts were sunk in the neighbour-
hood of Trefdaeth. Successful trials have likewise been made at
Pentreberen, about five miles north-east of the former pits : the
beds are said to be of a tolerable thicknesB, and the coals of a good
quali^.
2. Flintshire. — The Coal-Field of this county extends north and
louth from. Llanassa, near the western cape of the sestuary of the
Dee, to near Oswestry, in Shropshire^ forming an exterior belt co-
ext^udve with the range of the mountain line crom the north of the
Qwyd. Where the carboniferous limestone is partially interrupted
by the mountain of Selattyn the coal shales rest immediately on the
transition slate, of which that mountain is composed. (Conybeare
and Phillips, p. 419.) The greatest lenjgth of the district in which
the coal-measures are found is about th&y miles, but it must by no
means be understood that coal is worked throuf^out At Oswestry
there is a very small detached piece, not more than three miles long
and half a mile broad ; there is then an interval of some miles.
Near Chirk another coal tract commences, and runs north for about
five miles; then another interval occurs; and a little to the north of
Wrexham the prindpcd portion begins, and thence extends to the
coast, and forms a narrow belt along it to the termination at the
west cape of the Dee. The beds dip from one yard in four to two
in three, sink beneath the eastuaiy of the Dee, reappear on its opposite
side, and finally sink beneath the strata of the newer red-sandstone.
This position of the coal-measures has led to the conjecture that
they are connected with the beds of the limcashire coal-field. The
coal formation here commences with the same strata as those of
Derbyshire. The beds of coal vary in thickness from three quarters
of a yard to five yards. In the Basalt mines three seams are worked,
varying from 84 to 7feet. Common, cannel, and peacock coid are found.
3. The Coalbrook Dale Coal-Field rests on transition xock: it
extends from Wombridge, in the parallel of Wellington, to Coal
Port, on the Severn, a length of about six miles ; its greatest breadth
is about two miles. The coal-measures are composed of the usual
alternating strata, which occur without much legulari^, except that
each bed of coal is always immediately covered by indurated or
slaty clay, and not by sandstone. The strata are 86 in number. In
Maaely colliery a shaft is sunk 729 feet through all the bed& The
first coal-seam, which occurs at the depth of 102 feet, is very
sulphurous, and not more than 4 inches tmok ; nine other beds of a
nmilar nature, but rather thicker, occur between this and the depth
of 896 feet. This coal is called ' stinking coal,' and is only emploved
in the burning of lime. The first seam of coal that is worxed is
496 feet deep and 5 feet thick. Two other beds of coal occur, one
10 inches and the other 8 feet thick, before the bed of 'big fiint'
sandstone, which is found at the depth of 676 feet : nine beds of
coal occur, of the sggregate thickness of 16 feet, between Uie 'great
flint' and the 'little flint' bed (an interval of 100 feet). Beneath
the ' little flint ' and the lowest bed of the whole formation there is
a sulphurous 8-inch coal. This account of the strata refers more
particularly to the Madely colliery. The coal of this field is usually
a mixture of slatoKXMl and pitch^ooal.
West of the Coalbrook Dale field there are a few detached, narrow,
and broken coal-fields in the plain of Shrewsbuiy^ at the other side
of the Wrekin.
Several small Coal-Fields occur in the Brown Clee Wil] and the
Titterstone Clee Hill, which rise a few miles south of the Coalbxx>ok
Dale Field ; the latter hill is about four miles south of the former.
The coals in the Brown Clee Hill only lie in thin strata, while the
principal stratum in the Titterstone Clee Hill is 6 feet thick. The
coal-fields on the Titterstone Clee Hill are represented as six detached
portions, or separate basins, cut asunder and rendered irreg^ular by a
vast basaltic dyke, more than 100 yards wide, which intersects the
hilL These coal-measures are more interesting to ihe geologist than
the miner.
On the east of these hills, and between them and the Severn, a
Coal-Field extends from Dense Hill and Billingsley on the north to the
borders of Shropshire and Worcestershire on the south, a length of
about eight miles, coal being worked in several points along 1^ line.
Coal is also worked near Over Arley, on the Severn, adjoining this
tract on the west. Only a few miles from the Billingsley coal-field at
Pensex, near the foot of the Abberley Hills, is "a sznall patch (rather
than field) of coal-measures," and another similar piece about three
miles to the west
The SoutK-Weitem Coal Dittrid comprehends the several Coal-Fields
near the seetuarv of the Severn and the Bristol Channel, including
parts of the adjacent coimties of Qloucester, Somerset, Monmouth,
and Glamorgan. The various coal-fields distributed over this district
are apparency insulated, yet they have several pomts of cozmection.
" They all rest on one common base of old red-sandstone ; they all
appear to have been formed by similar agency and at the same era ;
to nave been subject at a later period to the same revolutions ; and
lastly, to have been covered paitiallv b^ similar overlying deposits."
(' OteclL Trans.,' voL L) The several basins in the coal formation are
divided by lines termed ' antidinal,' formed by the saddles of the
strata or meetings at the surfi»ce of their vertical angles, on each side
of which the strata dip in opposite directions. The coal-measures are
1. AbMH**'^' line ftmniag the erest of a hlU. 2. Tha isme line mnniBf
aloBf the eouae of a vaUsj*
thus surrounded by exterior bands of mountain limestone and old
red-sandstone, in the order of the outcrop of the subjacent beds. This
district includes three principal coal oasins, together with some
smaller ones, adjacent to and closely connected with the two last
Hnt, the South Welsh coal basin ; second, that of South Qloucester
and Somerset ; third, that of the Forest of Dean.
1. The Coal-Field of South Wales is upwards of 100 miles in length,
and the average breadth in the counties of Monmouth, Qlamoi^gan,
Caermarthen, and part of Brecon, is frx>m 18 to 20 miles ; it becomes
much narrower in Pembrokeshire, being there only from 8 to 5 miles.
This area extends frt>m Pontypool on the east to St Bride's Bay on
the west, and forms a vast basin of limestone in which all the strata
of coal and ironstone are deposited. The deepest part of the basin is
between Neath and Llanelly : ftom a line ranging nearly east and
west through Neath all the strata rise on the south towards the south,
and on the north towards the north, cropping out at the edges. The
limestone crops out at the surface all round the coal, except where
its continui^ is interrupted by Swansea and Caermarthen bays.
The depths from the surface to the various strata depend upon local
situations. The upper coal-seam does not extend a inile either north
or south beyond Neath, and not many miles in an east or west direc-
tion, and its utmost depth is not above 60 or 60 fathoms ; the next
stratum of coal and those likewise beneath, being deeper, crop out at
a greater distance from the centre ; and so of the rest in proportion
to their dep^ The lowest bed is 700 fathoms deep at the centre,
and all the principal strata lie from 600 fathoms deep to this depth.
But this district is intersected by dee^ valleys which generally run in
a north and south direction, intersectinff the coaL By driving levels
in tiie hills the beds of coal are found without the labour and expense
of sinking shafts; there are also many pits in the low valleys. This
basin contains twelve beds of coal from 8 to 9 feet thick, making on
aggregate of 70( feet ; and there are eleven more from 18 inches to 8
feet, ^ether equal to 244 feet ; the whole thioknew is therefore 95
feet A number of smaller seams likewise occur. On the south side
of the basin, from Pontypool to Caermarthen Bay, the coal is princi-
pally of a bituminous nature ; on the north-east it is a caking coal ;
on the nortii-west, anthracitia It is this latter coal which has the
greatest heating power. It is found in abundance near Swansea, and
IS cheap. Qreat faults occur in this field, which traverse it generally
in a north and south direction, and throw the strata out of their level
40, 60, 80, or 100 fathoms. These dislocations are not often shown
on tiie surface. A principal fault occurs at Cribbath, where the
strata of limestone stand erect ; another of considerable magnitude
lies between Tsteadvellte and Penderryn. These dykes are usually
fiUed with clay, but one of some magnitude has been observed near
Swansea, which is many frithoms wide and filled vrith fragments of
the disrupted strata, the level of which differs by more than 240 feet
The rich ironstone of this basin supplies extensive iron-works in the
neighbourhood The principal beds of ironstone occur in the lower
part of the coal-measures ; the most valuable bed is found beneath
tiie lowest ooaL The strata of this coal formation dip much more
rapidly on the south than on the north ; on the south tiiey make an
angle of 46" with the horizon, and on the north dipping only 10**.
The coal from, the South Wales basin supplies the whole of Wales
with the exception of the more northern counties, the whole of Corn-
wall, and the western half of Devonshire.
2. South Qloucester and Somerset Basin. — This basin occupies an
irregular triangular space, bounded on the south by the Mendip
Hills, which are a high range of mountain lii]lestone resting on an
arch of old red-eandstone. The vertex of the triangle is on the north,
at the village of Tortworth in Qloucestershire : the western side from
theMendips to the vertex is formed by three insulated masses of high
land, separated by narrow intervals^ tiie widest of which is less than
X
/
21
COAL FOBMATION.
COAL FOBMATION.
three miles. Kear Toitwoith the range extending from Almonds-
bury Ib deflected suddenly to the south, and this may be considerBd
the north-eastern frontier of the basin ; it may also be traced through
Wickwar to Sodbuzy. The south-eastern lunit^ from Sodbury to
near Hells, the eastern extremity of the Mendips, is mostly oonooded
by overlying deposits. Partial denudations occur at Lansdown, near
Wick Bock, where the limestone can be traced in the valleys dipping
towards the centre of the coal basin. From Lansdown to the Mendips
the continuity of the basin can be well ascertained, the coal-measures
being imcov^«d in some of the valleys in which the principal collieries
are situated. In other places shafts have been sunk through the
overlying horizontal deposits beneath which the coal is worked. The
greatest length of this area is 25 miles ; the width, from the collieries
near Bath to those of Bedminster near Bristol on the west, is about
11 nules. In this district there is much local irregularity, and the
stratification of the coal-measures is so deranged that they have yeiry
different and varying leveLk In some parts the beds are denuded^
in others concealed by the more recent horizontal deposits ; and thus
the whole basin is divided into several detadied coal-fields.
The imcovered areas may be divided into the northern, the central,
the southern, the eastern, and the western coal-tracts. The northern
is the most extensive and elevated : its greatest length, from the vertex
of the basin near Tortworth to the viUage of Brislington on the left
bank of the Avon near Bristol, is 12 miles ; its greatmt breadth from
east to west is nearly four miles. The collieries of Iron Acton, Sodbury,
and Kingswood are in this coal-tract. Along the northern limits of
the basin, frt>m Sodbury to Cromehall and Titherington, the coal-
measures are exposed in immediate contact with the limestone ; on
the western, southern, and great part of Uie eastern border of the
tract they are skirted by hills of red marl capped by lias. At
Pucklechuroh shafts are sunk to the coal through both the latter
formations.
The central tract, which begins on the south of Dundry Hill, is
divided into two parts by a narrow valley; the northern portion,
about six miles in length, extends from Burnet on the north-east to
Knowl Hill, near Stanton Drew, on the south-west; near Pensford it
is about two miles in breadth. The southern division, extending from
Temple Cloud on the west to between High IdtUeton and Timsbury
on the east, is about three miles in length. To the south-east of this
central coal-tract the coal-measures are entirely concealed by super-
i*acent deposits through a distance of six milee. Throughout this space
lowever many shafts are sunk — some through the red marl of the
valleys, and some through the lias which occurs on higher ground.
There are several of the latter description in the parishes of TimsbiOT
and Poulton ; but the deepest is on Clan Down near Badstock, which
is sunk 200 fathoms before its horizontal adits are driven. Another
shaft, beginning in the oolite, is sunk on the edge of the same Down
near Pamton ; but it is not so deep as the former, since here there is
a rise in the strata, and the coal-seams are in consequence much nearer
the surface. On the ascent of the hiU abovQ Clmcompton the coal-
measures are again exposed to the extent of about an acre.
The southern coal-tract commences near the point where the road
between Bath and Shepton Mallet crosses the Nettlebridge stream,
and ends between Vobster and Mells ; its greatest length is six miles,
and greatest breadth two miles and a hal£ The coal-measures of the
eastern coal-tract axe laid open In the vale of the Buoyd at Wick and
Upton, both in Gloucestershire ; they are likewise exposed at Newton
St. Loe, on the left bank of the Avon below Bath, dipping towards the
interior of the basin. Several seams are worked at Upton and Newton.
The western coal-tract lies at the south-east of Leigh Down, near
Bristol Beds of red marl form the upper strata in tiae shafts of all
the coal-pits of this tract between Long Ashton and Bedminster. The
coal-field of Nailsea,lying more to the west, is a continuation of thistraot
A great undulation in the strata of the coal-measures which form
the coal-basin of Somersetshire and the south of Gloucestershire, alters
the apparent position of the seams so much that it is very difficult to
ascertain the identity of each throughout the various colnerieft. The
local names of the several seams also tend to oonfrise the g^logist
The cham of hills which limits the western boundary of this coal
district presents remarkable anomalies between Clevedon and Port-
buxy along its northern escarpment. A great fault rangijog along the
edge effects a very considerable subsidence of the strata. In conse-
quence of this " the coal-measures, depressed to the level of the old
rad-sandstone, appear to occupv its place, and seem to dip beneath
the mountain limestone, on which in fiaiot they repose. ('GeoL
Trans.,' voL iv.)
The following are the principal subdivisions of theCoal-Measures in
this basin, beginning witn the nighest : — The Upper Coal Shale; the
Pennant Grit (sandstone) ; the Lower Coal Shale ; and the Millstone Grit.
In the Bedminster collieiy on the south-west of Bristol there are
three seams of good bituminous coal : the deepest and uppermost are
worked ; the former is i feet 8 inches, the latter 2^ feet to 3 feet
thick; the middle seam is only 1 foot The interval between the two
principal seams is 28 fathoms ; the lowest shaft simk is 127 fathoms
deep. These beds are obviou^y referrible to the lower coal shale.
In the meridian of Pitcot, situated a little to the north-east of
Nettlebridge, all the strata are vertical : a perpendicular shaft is
there sunk to the depth of 80 fothoms in one bed of coal.
The total number of mines worked in this district is probably less
than it was formerly, but the whole produce is certainly much greater,
owin^ to improved methods in working. The seams of coal are very
thin m oompaiison with those which are worked in the principal coal-
fields of England, and in most of those would be rejected as not
worth the working.
8. The Forest of Dean Coal-Basin oooupies an irregular elliptical
area, circumscribed by the trian^e formea by the Wye, the Severn,
and the road from Gloucester to Ross ; the laigest diameter from
north-north-east to south-south-west is about ten miles, the shorter
about six miles. AU the strata dip unifcnrmly towards the centre of
the basin. The whole of this coal-tract^ together with the high land
that surrounds it^ constitutes a mountain group, the average height
of which above the level of the sea is about 900 feet. The aggregate
thickness of the whole strata of the coal-measures is, according to Mr.
MuAet, 600 faUioms ; he divides the diflferent strata into seven series,
in which there are 27 beds of coaL
On the north of the Forest of Dean basin, and at the distance of a
few miles, is the Newent coal-field, a very sinall tract surroimded and
concealed by overlying strata of the new red-sandstone.
Scotch Coal-Pidas, — Several small Coal-Fields occur in Dumfries-
shire, forming narrow basins in the valleys of the great southern
transition chtun of Scotland. In the valley of the Nith, in the parishes-
of Sanqidiar and Kirkoozmel, there is one of these coal-basins, about
7 miles in length and 2^ miles in breadth. Three seams of workable
coal have been discovered, avera^^ing in thickness from 8 to 4 J feet.
The range of the seams is in the direction of the Nith ; the measures
are disturbed by a dyke running north and south, by which the strata
are much depressed on the east side. In the parish of Canobie,
adjoining Cimiberland, coal is worked in two pits : the principal seam
is 5 feet 10 inches thick.
The principal coal-district of Scotland occupies the tract which
forms tiie great central lowland of Scotland, and lies between the
great transition chain on the south and the still loftier primitive
mountains of tibe Highlands on the north. " The whole of this wide
tract is occupied by the coal-measures, the carbomferous limestone,
and the old red-sandstone, associated in every possible manner with
vast accumulations of every variety of trap." (Conybb and Phil.)
To b^gin with the most eastern oountv in this tract in which coal
is found : — In the parish of Dunbar, on tne east coast of Haddington,
there are indications of coal, but no seams have yet been found of
sufficient thidmess for working. In the pariah of Ormiston, in the west
of the same county, coal is found in abundance; there are three
workable seams of coal, varying from 28 to 48 indies in thickness,
and the coal is of good quality.
Coal oocurftin Fifeshire, on the north side of the Forth. ^ There are
mines in tiie parish of Dysart, where coahi were first raised in Scotland
nearly 400 yean ago. Coal is wrouglit in several places in Mid-Lothian.
In Lanark the cou-fields are numerous and extensive. The Wilson-
town coal-basin and the Climpy basin both occur in the parish of
C^umwath; the latter is on the west side of the first, the crop of the
one nearlv approaching the other. There are several seams of coal
in these basms. The main coal, or lowest^ is called the 4-feet coal ;
another seam is about 2 feet in thickness. The accompanying strata
are sandstone^ varying in composition and hardness, bituminous shale,
slate-day, and thin beds of ironstone alternate with the coaL Several
small faults, or hitches, as they are here called, traverse the field. On
the south-west part of the fidd the main coal is generally 14 feet
bdow the crow coal, which is the next superior bed ; on the north-
east the space between the same beds is only about 2 feet. These
basios form part of the great coal-basin of the Clyde, which extends
on both sides of that river, and the centre of which is near DalzieL
On the same side of the river, in the parish of Monkland, there are
many collieries, in which the thickest bed of ooal is 9 feet, and it is
of good quality. On the left bank of the river coal is wrought in
several places. Several mines ai-e worked in the parish of Rutheiglen,
and othen in the adjoining parish of Cambuslang. There are several
also in Hamilton, Stonehouse, and Douglass. Throughout this dis-
trict seven seams of coal are usually found within 415 feet of the
surface; five of these seams are of sufficient thickness and good
quality to be wrought The following ehowb the situation and thick-
ness of the seams of coal in the pits in the parish of Cambuslang : —
feet. in.
Upper soil (earth and day) . • . from 20 to 80 0
Argillaceous white fiwestone 20 0
Shde, with vegetable impressions, from 80 feet to 40 feet 85 0
1st Seam, soft coal 4 6
Interval (hard freestone, &a) 26 6
2nd Seam, soft coal 8 6
Interval (shale) 68 6
8rd Seam, snaft ootl 5 0
r shale, 20 feet . . . . 1 .
Interval < hard ironstone, from 6 to 18 inches > . 65 2
[shale and freestone . . *}
4th Seam, soft coal 6 0
COAti f^BltAf lOK.
COAL FORMATION.
U
feet. in.
Sth Seam, aoft ooal * . 8 0
i-*«™^{dSf"} ...... 10 0
6ih Seam, hud. coal, good for iron-works, forges^ &c. . 8 6
Interval (shale) . . . . . . .16
7th Seam, soft coal .,,.,,. 16
Till, ftc., with thin seams of ooal 84 0
445 8
The thickness of the coal and of the freestone varies considerably
in different parts, and the numbers here given must be taken only as
an approximation. The strata are frequently deranged by faults,
several of which run from east to west In their genend arrangement
the strata usually run nearly parallel to each other, elthous^ they
have always a considerable angle of elevation, and uniformly dip
towards the Clyde. A great fault occurs between Hamilton and
Quarter, and none of the principal seams are wrought for some miles
north of this spot, the coiu-beds being sunk nearly 100 fathoms lower
than those out of the fault. The main seam worked at Quarter is
5 feet 6 inches thick, and consists of four distinct varieties of coaL
This Coal-Basin of the Clyde extends into Renfrew, where there are
many collieries. Coal is wrought in the parish of Eastwood, in that
county, in several seams of various thickness, but none exceed 2 feet
6 inches. ^The whole are of good quality. Five of them are wrought
in pits vaiying in depth from 10 to 40 fathoms. The coal-measures
here consist of the usual series of freestone, shale, &o., dipping
generally to the south-west. This coal formation pad*tly surrounds
the Loch of Castle Semple, and continues without interruption into
Ayrshire, around Kilbimie Loch, and onwards to Ardrossan. Coal
occurs in different places in Dumbarton, where, among other parishes,
it is wrought in Easter Kilpatrick. It is also foimd abundantly in
Stirlingshire, along the southern base of the Lennox Hills. Coal
likewise occurs thiHoughout Linlithgow, and is worked extensively in
that county ; it is likewise found in Clackmannan and in the south
of the counties of Perth and Kinross.
Some of the richest and most valuable bands of ironstone are
obtained from the coal-measures of Scotland, chiefly in the basin of
the Clyde. The manufacture of iron in this distnct is very exten-
sive. In the year 1849 nearly 700,000 tons of pig-iron were wrought
in this district The Scotch beds include a large proportion of sand-
stone and a peculiar limestone, worked at Burdie House near Edin-
burgh. The remains of plants and animals are found in these rocks,
and amongst the latter the MegaliclUhift, a fossil fish of large size and
interesting structure. [MsaALiOHTHT8.1
Irith Coal-Fieldt. — ^Mr. Qrifi&ths, in his ' Report on the Leinster
Coal District,' gives an excellent summary of the Irish coal-fields,
from which what follows la taken : — ** If we except the Leinster dis-
trict, my knowledge of the coal-fields of Ireland is as yet vexy limited;
and though each in its turn will form the subject of a separate report>
I think it right to draw attention to them in this place, bv giving
such general infonnation as I possess respecting their situation and
circumstances. Coal had been discovered in more or less quantity in
seventeen counties of Ireland; but I believe the island contains but
four prindpctl coal-districts — ^namely, the Leinster, the Munster, the
Connaught, and the Ulster. The two former contain carbonaceous
or stone-coal, and the latter bitimunous or blazing coaL
" The Leinster ooal-district is situated in the counties of Kilkenny,
Queen's County, and county of Carlow. It also extends a short dis-
tance into the county of Tipperary, aa far aa Killenaule. This is
the principal carbonaceous ooal-district. It is divided into three
detached parts, separated from each other by a secondary limestone
country, which not only envelops, but in continuation passes under
the whole of the coal-district ; a fact which was indisputably, though
accidentally, proved by the Grand Canal Company, who sank a pit
through 18 yards of black slate-clay and flinty slate into the limestone
in search of coal. The Leinster coal-district is therefore of subsequent
formation to the limestone.
" The Munster ooal-district occupies a considerable portion of the
oonnties of Limerick and Kerry, and a large part of the county of
Cork. It is by much the most extensive in Ireland ; but as yet there
is not suflicient information respecting the number, extent^ or thick-
ness of the beds of coal it may contain.
" Coal and culm have hem raised for near a century in the neigh-
bourhood of Kanturk, ih the county of Cork. At Dromagh colliery
I understand the work has been carried on to a very considerable
extent^ and its annual supplies of coal and culm have materially
contributed t6 the agricultural improvement of an immense extent
of the great maritime and commercial counties of Cork and Limerick,
which must otherwise have continued neglected and unreclaimed.
** Many drcumstances combine to mue the examination of this
district of peculiar interest and importance ; and as a recent applica-
tion has been made by tixe Cork Institution to the DubUn Society to
aid the undertaking, it is probable that this immense district will
shortly be minutely explored. From all that has been ascertained,
it is very dear Uiat the dip of the beds and the quality of the coal
differ materially from those of the Leinster district In the Munster
district the beds run east and west^ and dip to the south, forming an
angle of 45*. In the Dromagh oolliety, where all tJie beds which
have been discovered have been successively and in general success-
fully wrought^ four beds incline on each other, and at no greater
distance than 200 yards. The first of these beds is a 8-feet stone-
coal, and is the leading bed. All faults, checks, and dislocations,
simUar to those which are discoverable in this bed, are in genenl to
be encountered in the other threa The names of the four beds are,
the eo€Urbed — this lies farthest to the north ; the roek-eoal, so called
from its being oomparativelv of harder quality than the other beds ;
the hulk-bed, so called from its contents being found in laige marwcfi or
bulks ; and Bath't-hed, so called from the name of a celebrated English
miner, by whom it had been many years ago discovered and worked.
The coal-bed consists of 3-feet solid coal, and is not sulphurous ;
the rock-coal is nearly .of the same thickness with the leading bed,
but is very sulphurous, and, having the soundest roof, is the most
easily wrought The other beds are of the culm spedes, but of
peculiar strength. . . . The bulk-bed forms immense bulks and
masses of culm, in which the miners have frequently been unable to
retain the ordinaiy directions of roof and seat
*' No work has been undertaken in the Munster cosl-district to a
greater depth than 80 vards. The present work at the Dromagh
colliexy is at that depth; it is heavily watered, and consequently
expensivdy wrought The quality of the coal and culm improves as
the work descends. . . .
" The Connaught coal-district stands next in order of value and
importance to the Leinster and Munster, and possibly may be found
to deserve the first place when its subterranean treasures shall be
explored. At present nothing is known, except that the outer edges
of several beds of coal have oeen observed, but they have not been
traced to any distance, so that their extoit is by no means ascer-
tained. The coal is of the bituminous spedesi Tins coal is particu-
larly adapted to the purposes of iron-works, foundries, ftc. ftc.
** The iJUter coal-custrict is of trifling importance when compared
with the for^^ing. It commences near Dungannon, in the county of
Tyrone, and extends in a northern direction to Coal Island, and in
continuation to the neighbourhood of Cookstown. Ko beds of ooal
worth working have hitherto been discovered between Coal Island
and Cookstown, but certainly the coal strata extend there. The
principal collieries are at Coal Island and at Dungannon. The coal
of this district is bituminous. I understand that mdications of coal
have been observed at Drumquin, in the coun^ of Tyrone ; and also
at Petigoe, to the north of Leugh Erne. Possibly the coal foxmation
may extend firom the neighbourhood of Cookstown westward to the
north of Lough Erne.
"Besides the foregoing principal coal-districts^ there are okhen of
less consequence. Bituminous coal has been found in the neighbour^
hood of Belturbet^ in the ootmty of Cavan, and at the ooUieries of
Ballycastle, in the county of Antrim ; but Uie Antrim ooal-distriet is
not very extendve. These collieries have been wrought for a number
of years. The coals are of a slaty nature, and greatlv resemble both
the coal and the accompanying rocks which occur m Ayrshire, and
probably they bdong to the same foxmation."
CorUinentcu Europe. — ^France. — In the centre and south of France
some small coal-fidds occur in the valleys of the Loire, the Allier,
the Creuse, and the Dordcgne, the .KYejron, and Axd^che^
between ridges proceeding from the primitive central group
connected with the Cevennes; and, in a few localities, some of the
thickest beds of coal yet discovered have been found. In the north
of France, the coal-formation occupies a very large tract of country,
running westward frt>m Hardinghen, near Boulogne, by Valendennea,
and thence up the Schdde and down the Mouse to Eschweiler,
beyond Aix-la<!hapelle. The total area of coal in France is probably
not less than 2000 square miles. Its annual yield is not less than
4,000,000 tons. These depodts are of the same age as those of England,
but they rest on granite or other ciystalline and metamorphine rocks.
Belgium. — ^The district along the Meuse, between Namur and
Lidge, is said to resemble in its geological structure, as well as pic-
turesque features, the Somersetshire and South Qloucester district :
the strata being broken and deranged, exhibit, if posdble^ still more
contorted and mverted positions of the respective beds. The defiles
of the Sambre and the Mouse {* CeoL Trans.,' voL L, 2nd 8eriesX_pre-
sent an exact cotmterpart of those of the Avon and the Wye. There
are two prindpal coal-fields in Belgium, the one extending to the east
and known as the Li^ Coal-Field, and the other west forming the
Hainault dividon. The seams are generally thin, remaricably
numerous, and presenting an apparent multiplication by doublings
of the strata. A kind of coal is found in Belgium called Flenu Coal,
which is not found in Great Britain. It bums rapidly, giving out a
disagreeable smelL [Belgium, in Qeoo. Div.]
Qermany. — The coal-districts in the north of Germany are probably
the prolongation of the Belgium formation. On the north-east and
Bouui-east of the Hans Mountains, near Ballenstadt and Keustadt, the
coel-formation occurs resting on the transition rod^ of that group. In
Saxony coal is found in man^ places along the northern foot of the
Erzegebixge. It is extensively worked near Zwickau and near
Dresden. There is a very extendve coal-district in Bohemia, extend-
ing into Upper Silesia. This district lies between the great primitive
chain of the Erzegebiige and the Riesengebixge, on the north, and the
COAL FORMATION.
COAL FORMATION.
26
great distriot of primitive slate which t>ccupie8 the larger part of
Bohemia aouth of the Beraun and Upper Elbe. More than forty beds
of coal are supposed to be worked in this district. The whole annual
supply from Prussia and the Qerman States of the Zollyerein exceeds
2,760,000 tons.
Russia. — Qood ooal has been found in Southern Ruflm% near Toula,
lat. 54*, long. 87% where it is worked ; but the quantity is so small,
and the difficulty of working it beneath a loose and half-liquid bed of
quicksand is so great, that it seems unlikely to be of much utility.
Coal halt also been worked at Bakhmont^ mt 48'', long. 88**, in the
Stvemment of Katerinoslat (Mr. Strangways on the Oeology of
ussia, ' OeoL Trans.,' toL i., 2nd series, p. 85.)
Sweden. — ^Coal occurs in this country near Helsingborg at the
entrance of the Baltic, and also in the island of Bomholm.
[BOBKBOLM, in Gsoo. DlY.]
Spain. — ^Both bituminous coal and anthracite are found in Spain.
The richest beds are in Asturias, where the measures are so much
broken and altered aa to be worked by almost Tertical shafts driven
through the beds. The area covered by coal-beds ^in Spain is not
exactly known, but it is said to be the largest in Europe, presenting
upwazds of 100 workable seams varying from 3 to 12 feet ia thickness.
(Anstad.)
Hunguy and some other countries in the east of Europe contain
coal-measures which appear to belong to the carboniferous period.
It has hem, conjectured that ooal exists in several parts of contmental
Greece.' Coal is said to be found north of Constantinopla
Atia, — ^In Asia coal has long been known in China, where it is said
to have been worked as early as the 18th oent'ury. Mr. Williams says
that both bituminous coal and anthracite are seen in the coal marts
of the north of Chintu Coal is likewise found in the countries imme-
diately around the Persian Qulf, but of a very indifferent description.
In most parts of Cutch, ooal occurs in abundsAoe and of good quality ;
it Ignites quicUy, and bums to a white ashl Coals are also found in
Bundelcund. There are huge mines in the district of BurAwan, 180
miles from Calcutta, and worked to the extent of 14,000 or 15,000
tons annually. They are situated on the banks of a river connected
with the Hoogly, and were first worked about thirty-five years ago,
but they have not been in extensive operation more than twenty-five
years; the principal seam is about 9 feet thick, and is about 90 feet
from the surfiice. Coal has likewise been got fram a mine opened
near Bhaugulpoor, on the Ganges, about 800 miles from Buxdwan.
Another ooal-field has been discovered on the banks of the Hoogly,
near Merzipoor, about forty miles from Calcutta ; the coal is found
close to tile surface, and the thickness of the principal seam is
said to be 2 feet. Coal of good quality likewise occurs in the Birman
Empirci
America, — ^Plofessor Ansted says, " It is only within a few years
that the coal-measures of the continents of America have been in an v
way knowD, and we are even now in ignorance of many details with
regard to the greater number ; but enough is ascertain^ to convince
any unprejudiced person that the supply of mineral fuel there obtun-
able is amply sufficient for the requirements of the whole civilised
world for thousands of years, even should the demand increase
rapidly and the consumption continue to bear reference to the multi-
plication of all kinds of industrial occupation. There are in North
America four principal coal areas, compared with which the richest
deposits of otner coimtries are comparatively insignificant These
are the great central Coal-Fields of the AUeghanies ; the Coal-Field of
Illinois and the basin of the Ohio ; that of the basin of the Missouri ;
and those of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Cape Breton. Besides
these there are many smaller coal areas which in other coimtries
might well take rank as of vast national importance, and which even
ioNorth America will one day contribute greatly to the riches of
various states. We will endeavour to give a brief outline of the
main fsuits concerning the chief of these districts.
** The Alleghany or Appalachian Coal-Field measures 750 miles in
length, with a mean breadth of 85 miles, and traverses eight of the
principal states in the American Union. Its whole area is estimated
at not less than 65|000 square miles, or upwards of 40,000,000 of acres.
The area is thus distributed —
Name of States. Area in Acrea.
Alabama .... 2,250,000
Georgia 100,000
Tennessee 2,750,000
Kentucli^ 5,750,000
Virginia 13,500,000
Ma^land 850,000
Ohio 7,500,000
Pennsylvania 9,500,000
41,700,000
" Making a liberal deduction for improductive portions, denuded and
eroded strata, and the parts of the seams out of reach, we may still
fahrly calculate that there exists in this district an area of 25,000,000
acree of productive coal-measures. The working has already com-
menced in most of the states above mentioned, though not geneially
to any very considerable extent. Thus in Alabama, the beds alternate
with the usual sandstones, shales, and clays, and the coal-seams worked
seem to be from 4 to 10 feet thick, and are quarried at the surface.
They repose on grits and appear on the two sides of an anticUnid.
The coal is bituminous and used for gas. In Kentucky both
bituminous and cannel coal are worked in seams about 8 or 4 feet
thick, the cannel being sometimes associated with the bituminous
ooal as a portion of the same seam ; and there are in addition valuable
bands of iron-ore. In Western Virginia there are several coal-seams
of variable thickness, one 9^ feet, two others of 5 feet, and others
8 or 4 feet On the whole there seems to be at least 40 feet of ooal
distributed in thirteen seams. In the Ohio district the whole ooal-
field affords on an average at least 6 feet of coaL The Maryland dis-
trict is less extensive, but is remarkable as containing the best and
most useful coal, which is worked now to some extent at Frostbnr^.
There appears to be about 80 feet of good coal in four seams, besides
many others of less importance. j_ The quality is intermediate between
bituminous and anthracitic, anoit is considered well adapted to iron-
making. Lastly, in Pennsylvania there are generally from two to five
workable beds, yielding on an average about 10 feet of workable coal,
and amongst them is one bed traceable for no leas than 450 miles,
consisting of bituminous coal, its thickness being from 12 to 14 feet
on the south-eastern border, but gradually diminishing to 5 or 6 feet.
Besides tiie bituminous coal there are in Pennsylvania the largest
anthracitic deposits in the States, occupying as much as 250,000 acres
and divided into three principal districts. The Illjlnois Coal-Field, in
the plain of the Mississippi, is only second in importance to the vast
areas already described. There are four principal divisions traceable,
of which the first or Indiana district contains several seams of bitu-
minous coal, distributed over an area of nearly 8000 square miles. It
is of excellent qilality for many purposes; one kind burning with
much light and very freely, approaching cannel coal in some of its
properties ; other'kmds consist of caking or splint coaL In addition
to the Indiana Coal-Field, there appears to be as much as 48,000
aquare miles of coal tCrotk in the other divisioiu of the Illinois dis-
trict Although these site leas known and not at present mudi
worked,' 80,000 square miles are in the Sta.te of Illinois, which sup-
plies' coal of excellent quality and with great fietcility. The ooal is
generally bituminous. The third great coal area of the United States
is that of the Missouri, which is little known at present, although
oertainly of great importance. From the account given of these
localities the rteder'will be able to appreciate in soxiie measure the
mineral resources of the United States, and may perceive also the
importance of geological knowledge in. recognising the laws of the
position of a material so valuable.
" British America oontains very large supplies of cpal in the provinces
of N6w Brunlnvick and Nova Scotia. The former presents three coal-
fields, occupying in all no less than 57,000 square iniles ; but the latter
is far larger; and exhibits several very distinct localities where coal
abounds. The New Brunswick coal-measures include not only
ahales and sandstones, as is usual with such deposits, but bands of
lignite infpregnated with vitreous copper-ore and ooated by green
carbonate of copper. 'The coal is generally in thin seams lying
horizontally. It is Chiefiy or entirely bituminous.".
Nova Scotia contains a great quantity of coaL The great coal-field
of Pictou has been traced from Carriboo Harbour to Merigomish,
comprising an area of more than 100 square mUes. The seams of
coal tesemble much more those of Staffordshire than those in the
north of England. One bed is described by a practical miner, who
went to Nova Scotia to superintend the opening of the mines^ as 40
feet in thickness ; it is not however equally good throughout, and it
was th#ught advisalde to work only 10 feet of the upper part Ac-
cording to Bouchette, the seams of this field vary in thickness from
1 foot to 50 feet The coal is highly bituminous and bums well.
There is another ooal-field, also of considerable extent, in the north-
west part of the county of Northumberland, between tiie river Macan
and the shores of the Chignecti ChaimeL In this district there are
eight strata of coal, varying from 1 foot to 4 feet in thickness. This
coal is not considered so good as that of Pictou. There are also indica-
tions of coal in the township of Londonderry and at Onslow ; on the
north shore of the Mina's basin ; at the head of Pomket Harbour, in
the upper district of the county of Sydney ; and on the south shore
of Wallace Harbour, in the county of Cumberland. (Bouchette.y
Coals of excellent quality are got in Cape BretoiL The coal-
measures have been traced in the western part of the island, on
Inhabitants River, at Port Hoodi and at Mabou. On the east the
Sydney Coal'^Field is of great extent; it eommenees at Miray Bay and
runs along the coast to the Great Bras d'Or, being in length about 40
miles, and averaging 5 miles in breadth. " From a minute calcula-
tion, after deducting harbours, bays, and all •other interpositions, it
appears Uiat there are 120 square miles of land,- containing available
veins of coaL" (Bouchette.) The measures in this district contain
fourteen beds of coal, varying frt>m 8 to 11 feet in thickness. The
coal is wrought at Sydney Harbour and at Lingan.
Coal is found very abundantly in Australia, and is worked exten-
sively in the Newcastle district, on the Hunter's River. A ooal
formation likewise occurs in Van Diemen's Land ; and ooal has been
found and is wrought in several parts of New Zealand, £Sttpp. }
27
COAL FORMATION.
COAL PLAKTa
FauUi of the Coal Formation.
The plants found in this deposit are so important that a separate
article, Coal FhAsn, is deroted to them. The animal remains found
have only been occasionally alluded to : we acoordingly furnish a list
of the g^era of animals found in the entire Carboniferous System of
Great Britain, fus given in Professor Tennant's list of British Fossils.
Where the species are more than one, the number is given, but where
there is but one the specific name is added.
Amorphozoa.
TragoB, temicirculare .
ZOOPHTTA.
AmpUxui .
AitfiBa aranea
AitfHBopora aniiqna .
Anlopora
Bermieea(f) megattoma
Caryophyllia .
C^<Me9radi<mi
Oladoeora
OyathophyUwm
Favotitea capillaris
FenateUa .
FUiMra palmata
Giaueonome
Chiyoma
ffemitrypa Hibemica .
Ichihyorachie Ncwenham
Jania.
Lithodendron .
Lithottrotum
Michdinia ienutaepta
Orbieulitea antiquu$ .
Polypora
Ptylop&ra phma
Puttnlopora
JUitpora undata ,
Stromatopora auhtUis
Syrmgopora
TuMnUia expama ,
VinetUaria,
EOHnrODSBXATA.
Aetinocrimu .
Atoerinut MiUeri
C^atkoerinm .
JSdkinoermut
Bwryocrimti wneavu$
OUberttoerinut .
Paktekinm
Pentairemaiitti .
PkUUpaoerimm earjfocrinoidet
PlatyervMu
PoteriocriMu .
Khodoerinfu
Symbathocrinut eonicvi .
TauDocrimu
AVKXLXDA.
SaMla tmiiqua
Serpula
SetTHtlitet
SpwrorhU .
i^roglyphw margintUut
Ikucta.
OureuUaidet . •
Cbubtaoba.
ApnM dubUu .
Aaaphut quadraUmhu
Bairdia . * • .
Cydutradialu .
Cypriii^)
Cyihert
Cytharina Phimpnana .
Vapknia primava
Ditkyroearit .
BiUotnocanchui Scouleri
Bwrypterui Seouleri,
GrijUhidea
Lm.vim ....
PhiUiptia .
2
2
8
2
2
20
4
2
8
8
4
4
2
2
4
10
9
5
4
6
8
16
6
2
4
5
2
4
2
2
4
17
8
5
8
11
CONCmPEBA BlXTABU.
Amphidetma(Ji) . . . . 4
Anotma ..... 2
Area 2
ArUmisparva
Aitarte 2
Axinna 7
ByMtoarea 5
Cardinia(1) ... 5
Cardiomwpha . . 8
Cardium orbieulare
Corhia eanedlata . .
Oorbfda aeniUa
Orenella aeutiroairia . . .
OueuUcea .... 8
Cyprieardia . . . . 11
Uyprina 2
Ihlabra 5
Ihnax primigeniua ,
3im<mdia untformia • . .
laocardia axiniformia .
KeUia gregaria . ...
La/ni^ea 2
Leptodamua . . . . 2
Lithodomua dactyloidea .
Lucina . . . . . 2
Lutraria .... 8
Mactraovata . . . .
Modiola 9
Mytilua 8
Nucula 22
Pandora davata . . .
Pinna 4
Pleurorhynehua . . . 10
PaamnuHna decuaaaia
PuUaatra 4
Sanguinolitaa . . . .19
Sedgwiekia 6
Solemya primasva .
SoUnpdagicma . ...
y^naritpia » . .8
Venits 4
Ungidina atUiaua .
rnfo(?) 8
CoyCHIPEBA MOVOICTARU.
Aviada 16
CkrviUia 4
Inoceramua . . 7
Lima . . . . .8
MeUagrina . . . 6
MonoHa caqualia »
Pectm 75
Poaidonomya .... 9
Ptmnea 8
Ptenmita .... 5
■
Bbachiopoda.
Atrypa 9
Chondea 12
Orama vtaicuhaa . .
Zitptcsna • . .4
Lingula 5
Orbicula 4
Orthia 17
Prodmdua .46
Spirifer 59
TerAratuda • .26
Oastebopoda.
AerocuUa ....
. 4
Buecimim
. 8
drrua ....
. 5
Dentaiiitm inomaium
BUndima ....
. 2
Buomphalaa •
. 17
FiaanSrdla dongaia
Olobultia. . . . ,
. 8
Lacuna aaUiqtM .
Loxanema . . . .
. 11
LittoHnapuaiUa . . .
MaeraehcUua • • • ,
, B
Metoptoma . . 5
Mieroconehua carbonariua
MurdUaonia . . 8
Natica • .... 8
Natieopaia 6
Neriia 2
Paidla 5
Phanerotinua .... 2
Platyeeraa 8
Platyadiiama .... 8
Plmrotomaria . . 41
Pyramia 2
Sipkonaria Konindn . . .
Terebra eondrida .
T^vchdla priaea . . .
Tnrbo 5
Twritdla 8
Umbrdla kevigata .
PVnWFODA.
Oonularia quadrindeaia . .
Phyaonemna aubterea . . .
Oyracanthua .... 4
Oraeanth^a . . 4
Lapraeanthua .... 2
^TVittyc^MM orciMlia . . .
Cladaeanlkua paradoxna
Oieaeanthua loneaii ....
Oroduaeindua
Orthaeanthiu eylindricua . .
PleuraeaaUhua ... 4
ffdodua 9
Chomatodfua .... 8
a>eU»o<lM« 5
\Paammodua .... 4
PcBcilodua 6
Pleuirod/ua . . .2
Ctfnoplyc&HM . . 8
Otenodm .... 4
P€<a2(K2if« 8
Cladodua .... 7
Diplodm 2
Hbtxbopoda.
BdUropkon
Poredlia .
Ckfbalopoda.
Adtnoeeraa
Oyrtoeeraa t^Aereidaiwik
Ooniatitea
I^atUUua . . . .
Orthaceraa
Phragmoceraa JUxidria
TaoEB,
Placoidaa,
Onehua ....
Cftena^mihua
Ptychaeanihua aM<Bvia .
Sphenaeanthua aemUaiua .
Aataropiydiiua
19
8
2
54
42
82
6
6
(T^onoMfei.
Aeantkodea auteatua .
Pakeomacui •
iWynofus
Seiicroiefei.
JHplapterua •
Pygoptarua.
AeroUpia aaUirodria
Orognathua oonideua .
GraptoUpia omaiua .
Pdodua eapUatua
Ccelaeamikua . .
Holopygua Bennuvi .
jBIeronaiMit [odcUtis
. 3
. . 6
. 2
2
2
3
2
8
COAL PLAKTS. That ooal is the result of the minenlisation of
vegetable remains is abundantly proved, both by tlie numerous
impresiions of plants found in connection with it^ and by the traces
of organisation which are still discoverable in it.
In general the impressions of plants occur chiefly in the shale of
the coal-measures, that is, in the mud which separates the seams of
coal, or in the sandstone or ironstone associated with the coal fonna*
tlon ; and as such impressions are much more distinct than any that
occur in the ooal itself, it is chiefly from them that our ideas of the
vegetation from which coal has been produced have been derived.
They are often present in inconcdvable beauty and abundance, as
may be imagined from Dr. Buckland's graphic accoimt of those in
the coal-mines of Bohemiiu In his ' Bridgewater Treatise,' he says : —
"The finest example I have ever witneraed is that of the coal-mines
of Bohemia just mentioned. The most elaborate imitations of living
foliage upon the painted ceilings of Italian palaces bear no comparison
with the beauteous profusion of extinct vegetable forms with which
the galleries of these instructive coal mines are overhung. The roof
is covered as with a canopy of gorgeous tapestry, enriched with
festoons of most graceful xoliage, flung in wild irregular profusion
over every portion of its surface. The efi<Bct is heightened by the
contrast of the coal-black colour of these vegetables with the light
ground-work of the rock to which thev are attached. The spectator
feels himself transported, as if by enchantment, into the forests of
another world; he beholds trees of forms and charaeten now
unknown upon the surface of the earth, presented to his senses
almost in the beauty and vigour of their primeval life; their scaly
stems and b^icUng branches, with their delicate apparatus of foliage,
are all spread forth before him, little impaired l^ the lapse of
countless ages, and bearing faithful records of extinct systems of
vegetation, which began and terminated in times of which these
rehcs are llie infiUlible historians."
Such remains consist chiefly of impressions of leaves separated
from their branches, and of casts of trunks more or less in a broken
state ; and with them occur now and then pieces of wood or remains
of trees in which the vegetable texture is to some extent preserved.
Of the leaves the greater part is more or less mutflated; those of
ferns, which are extremely numerous, have lost their fructification in
the majority of ^stances; and it fre(j[uently happois that the
leaflets of compound leaves have been disarticulated either wholly
or partially. Stems or trunks are in all cases in a state which must
be supposed to result from decay previously to their conversion into
coal ; aestitute of bark, or with the principal part of that envelope
gone, and often pressed quite flat, so that all trace of their original
convexity is deslxoyed. Where ripe fruits are met with, they are not
in dusters as they probably were when alive, but sepacmted into
»
COAL PLANT&
COAL PLANTa
30
Bingle indiylduals. Of flowen there is no trace that can be satiB-
factorily identified ; for AfUhdUhea PUeaimuB, the most perfect that
has yet been diBCovered, is altogether of a doubtful nature.
It will at once be seen that the investigation of plants in such a
condition is very much more difficult than that which is presented by
a recent Flora, The nature of the inquiries, and the difficulties
presented to an investigator of the plants of the coal formation^ have
been well described by Dr. Joseph D. Hooker, in a paper 'On the
Vegetation of the Carboniferous Period as compared witn that of the
Pr^nt Bay/ in the second volume of the 'Memoirs of the
(j^logical Survey of Great Britain.' His remarks are arranged under
four heads — ^the nature of the plants, their geographical distribution,
relation to the boU, and the reciprocal influence of the whole mass of
the vegetation on the surface it covers : —
"1. Of the mutual affinities of the groups under which the
majority of the genera of ooal-plants arrange themselves little more
can be said but that the ferns occupy thejower end of the series and
the Con^ferm possibly the highest ; but this depends upon the view
taken of the affinities of StgiUaruB, the most important group.
These are classed by some observers amongst Ferns, ny others with
CcnifircB, another considers them as linking these two widely different
families, whilst a fourth ranks them much higher than either. The
affinities of another group, CaltmUtetf are entirely unascertained.
Of the whole amoimt of species in each no conjecture can be formed,
or any but a very rough one, of the number mto which those with
which we are familiar as of common occurrence should be divided
The Ferns far outnumber probably all the others; but this again
materially depends on the value according to the markings of
StgillaruB, as means of dividing that genus; for if the slight
differences hitherto employed be msisted upon, the number of the
so-called species may be uzilimitedl^ increased.
"2. With regard to the geograpmcal distribution of the spedes, ftci.,
it appears that a uniformity once existed in the vegetation through-
out the extra-tropical countries of the Northern Hemisphere, to
which there is now no parallel ; and this was so whether we consider
the coal-plants as representing all the flora of the period, or a part
only, consisting of some widely-distributed forms that characterised
certain local conditions. Nor is this uniformity less conspicuous in
what may be cdled the vertical distribution; the fosnls in the
lowest coal-beds of one field very frequently pervading all the
succeeding beds, though so many as thirty may be interposed
between Uie highest and the lowest
" 3. Of the relations between the soil and the plants nourished by it»
little more is recognisable than that the SiffiUaria have been partiou-
lariy abundant on the under day, which, judging from the absence of
any other fossils but SiffiUarioB roots {Stigmaria), seems to have been
either in itself unfriendly to vegetation, or so placed (perhaps from
being gubmei^ged) as to be incapable of supporting anjr other. The
latter Is the most probable, because both SigtUaria and their
Stigmaria roots occur in other soils^ besides under day, and are there
accompanied by CaUunUei, Ferns, &a The 0(m\fara! again are chiefiy
found m the sandstones, and their remains being exceedingly rare in
the clays, shales, or ironstones, it may be oonduded that they never
were associated with the SigiUarue and other plants which abound
in the coal-seams, but that they flourished in the neij^bourhood, and
were at times transported to these localities. The qoanti^ of
moisture to which these plants were subjected must remam a
question so long as some authors insist upon the SigiUaria being
ulied to plants now characteristic of deserts, and others to such as
are the mhabitants of moist and insular dimatea. The singular
succulent texture and extraordinary size of both the vascular and
cellular tissttes of many, possibly indicate a great amount of humidity.
The question of light and heat involves a yet more important
question, some of the coal-plants of the arctic regions beinf^ considered
identical with those of Britain. How these can have existed in that
latitude under the now prevailing distribution of light and heat has
not been hiUierto explained ; they are too bulky for comparison with
any vegetables inhabiting those regions at the present time, and of
too lax a tissue to admit of a prolonged withdrawal of the stimulus
of light, or of their being subjected to continued frosts.
"4. The consequence of the existence of the ooal-plants has been
the formation of coal; but how this operation was conducted is a
question yet unsolved. The under-day or soil upon which the coal
rests, and upon whidi some of the plants grew, seems in general to
have suffered little change thereby, further wan what was effected by
the intrusion of a vast number of roots throughout the mass. The
shales on the other hand are composed of inorganic matter, materially
altered by the presence of the vegetable matter they contain. The
iron-clays again present a third modiflcation of this mixture of
organic and inox^ganic matter, often occurring in the form of nodules.
These nodules seem to be the result of a peculiar action of vegetable
matter upon water, chaiged with soil and a salt of iron ; the iron-
stone nodules of existing peat-bogs appearing altogetiier analogous
to those of the carboniferous period, whether in form or in chemical
constituents. Here then tne botanist recognises in one ooal-
seam a vegetable detritus under three distinct phases, and which
has been acted upon in each by very different causes. Li the under-
day there are roots only ; these permeate its mass as those of the
water-lily and other aquatic plants do the silt at the bottom of still
waters.
" The coal is the detritus dther of those plants whose roots are
preserved in the under-day, or of those togeuier wiUi others which
may have grown amongst tiiem or at a distance, and have been after-
wards tliiftiBd to the same position. Above the cod is the third soil,
bearing evidence of the action of a vigorous vegetation ; this is the
shde, which has all the appearance of a quiet deposit from water
chaiged with mineral matters, and into which broken pieces of plants
have fUlen. Here there is so clear a divisional line between the coal
and shale that it is still a disputed point whether the plants oon-
tained in the latter actually grew upon the former, or were drifted to
that podtion in the fluid whidi depodted the mineral matter. Amongst
the sndes are also interspersed in many cases innumerable stumps of
SigUlaria, similar to those whose roots occur in the underdav, and
which are themsdves found attached to those roots in soils similar to
the underdays, but unconnected with anv seam of ooal These
stumps are almost universally ereot^ are uniformly scattered over the
seamsy and otherwise appear to have deddedhr grown on the surfkoe
of the ood ; the shales likewise seem depodted between these stomps.
The rarity of SigiUaria roots (l^igmaria) in this podtion is probably
due to their bong incorporated with the ood itself, though they
sometimes occur above that minerd and between the layers of shde.
The seams of ironstone (or black band) are the last modifications of
soil by vegetable matter to which allusion has been mada When
these are uniform beds or layers, they may be supposed to be the
depodt fh>m water diaiged with iron and soil widen has percolated
through the peat» and in so doiiig absorbed a great ded of vegetable
matter. The layers of nodular ironstone are simple modifications of
these, and may be caused by the sedimentary partides contained in
the fluid, whidi instead of being deposited in a unifonn stratum, are
aggrmted round bits of vegetable matter (as fern leaves, stems, or
cones) which served as nudei
"Nowy though each of these points admits of some explanation
when taken separately, and some illustration firom the action of an
existing veptation on the soil, ftc., it is very difficult to und^vtand
their oombmed operation over so enormous a Bur&oe — ^for instance,
as one of the American ood-fidds — and even more to account for
their regular recurrence according to some flxed law in eveiy succes-
dve coal-seam throughout the whole carboniferous formation."
Cod-plants may be divided for practicd purposes into three classes :
1, those of which only wood still containing organic structure has
been found ; 2, those which have an obvious andogy with recent
plants ; 8, those with which no existing andogy has been traced.
1. Coal-Planii of which Wood only amtaining Opganio Structure
hat been jownd.
The exlstenoe of wood in the cod foraAtion with its texture still
preserved, is a discovery of very modem date. Mr. Nicol, of Edin-
burgh, oldms the credit of having first invented the art of preparing
fosm wood so as to show its structure microscopicdly ; Mr. Witham
has investijgated the subject extendvely, and he nas beoi foUowed by
Messrs. Lindley, Hutton, and others. The result of these inquiries
has been, that wood still preserving its texture exists in a minerd
state extendvely t^iroughout the ood-mines of the north of England ;
that it in most cases has a structure andogous to, dthough not
identical with, that of recent coniferous wood ; and that in those
oases in which its structure is not coniferous it is unlike that of any
existing trees.
Coniferous wood is known amongst other things bv the presence of
small discs upon the ddes of its woody tubes ; differences in the
arrangements of these discs have given rise to the formation of the
genera Pence and Pinitet, to one or other of which dl the ooniferous
cod-wood seems refeirible. Mr. Niool believes that it may all be
referred to dther the existing genera Ptn/iu or Araucaria, Specimens
of this kind of wood occur sometimes of condderable sise. A trunk
of PvnUet Bramdlingi has been found 72 feet long^ and another of
Pinitee WUhami 36 feet long.
The wood to which Mr. Witham's genus Anahaihra apparently
bdongs Is known by its longitudind section 'representing tubes
marked by parallel transverse lines resembling the steps of a ladder.
This iB Yery uncommon, and is stated by Messrs. Lindley and Hutton
to belong to the genus Stigmaria, mentioned hereafter.
Specimens in ironstone dso have occurred of the wood of the
genus Lepidodendron. It consists principally of loose odltdar tissue,
having near the centre a zone of spird vessels, connected with the
bases of the leaves by arcs of spird vessels, and having rudiments of
wood on the outdde of the zone.
2. Ooal-Pkmte which have an obviout Analogy with Heeent Plante»
Coniferous plants have but few .remains, except wood, by
which they can be recognised. A cone of PinMe onlAroctna has been
met with, and there is reason to believe that certain stems called
Bothrodendron, having numerous minute dots upon their surfitce, and
deep circular oblique concavities 4 or 5 inches across, at intervals of
10 or 11 inches, are also remains of trees of this description. It is
probable moreover that some of the fosdls referred to the genua
n COAL PLANTS;
£giHloilen(fnMi in reall; eooiferoui planta, eipeciaU; £. leng\fativm ;
but upon tbw point □□thing certki^ la known.
It wkB at one tims lupposed that the ramuna of palms had bean
found : the eridence, however, upon wbioh thia nippoaition reabi ia
coutidered by JL Brongniart and Dr. Hooker aa insufficient. The only
portiooa of planta auppoaed to be palmi that have been fonnd, ai« the
nmaint of fniila. Theae remaina are generally oblong; S-aided or
6«idid bodies, not mors than an incb long. They haxe been named
Trigonoearpitai NSigtrathi.
Lycopodiaceona plants, or what are oonaidersd anslogoni to tham,
form a vary largs proportion of ths vsgetable remEtlns or tbe nortli of
England coal-field. They are repreaanted by impresaiona clonly
coTcrsd either with loiengo-ahaped apacei diapoaed in a apinl manner,
or by small scalo-like learea, which are sappoaad to have produoed
those spaces by fslling off. Whan they branch Uu; have often been
observed to do so in a forked or dichotomous ■wnner. Somstimes
they are minute, and no larger than existing Lgeofodia, bat they are
oooamonally found of considcxable size, som* bkTing besn seen whiah,
.- -^5o7^-
althpngh n
« fragmenlB,w
a betwean 40 and GO U
than 1 feet in diameter. An idea of tlieir
dwi of tlieir aopeaiani
. iriU '
Sttnierjii.
be gained
ZtpUatlnlia TsriaHlit.
Ifplititniean Sltmitrfii.
Asaodated with Uiem aro narrow sbarp'pointed loves reasmUti
scalea, which no doubt belonged to them, but which are distingoiahi
by Uie name of ZepidojAyliun, In the same formations ar« found
cones of differeat aima, conajating of small sharp-pointed lax ncalea, in
the aiila of which were aeeds : theae have been supposed to be the
fhictiScation of Lipidodaidnm ; but as there is no actual oertaintj of
the but, the; bear the name of LepidoMlrnbi. The aliove figure repre-
sents Lepidalnbiu rariniilu. [LEFIDOSTnOBm.]
Ltpidadaidra are usually quoted as an instance of andant i^edea
belonging to the budb genua aa modem plants of very hnmble ttatdre
{tor existing tii/copodia, although they acquire sometime* Hie laigth
or liei^t of three or four fert, gjv always more like monaea than Iteea),
having artivod at gigantic dimenBions in the remote ages when coal
was depoaltad. Thia is ths opinion of M. Adolphe Brongniart and
Dr. Joseph Hooker, who liave bath studied this subject carefully.
Dr. Lindley haa however expressed the opinion that the Ltpidodeadra
are allied to the Canifera. He arguea, iu ths first pUce, that there is
no certainty whatever that the moat gigantic Lepiiodtndra were not
flr-treea,aiui!ogoua to.JroiKorio; a conjecture which ia rendered the
more probable by Mr. Nicol's discovery that some of the apedmena of
fosul coniferous wood are nearly identical with the wood of that
genua. Now, the Norfolk Taland Pine, which ia a speciea of Arau-
Corio, ia one of the latgeat of knovra trees. In the second place, it ia
asserted that Lepidodendron Harcouriii ia not a Lyeopodiaceous plant
at all, but an extinct genua, intermediate in organisation betvreea
Omiftra and Ljfeopodiaeir, connecting Oymnoepermn and Acrogens
more directly ud satLsfactoiily than any known plant Dr. Lindlej
COAL PI-AKTS. tt
admita that with regard to the small spedsa of Lepidodtndron, it is
more probable that th^ belonged to the genus Lycopadutm; but
there U nothiog remarkable in their stature.
Pema are the most abundant of all planta In the ahale of the ooa],
almoat every yard of it being more or leas marked by their impresnons,
and veiy oflen containing them in great multitudes. It naa beaa
estimated that of the vegetable remains belonging to tlte Coal Flora,
one-half at least of the apeciea are feme. They ore inmost oases deiti-
tute of fnicUGcaUon, ao that tllfly oanuot be arranged acoording to
the system in uae for recent apeciea ; and conaequent^ M. Ado^^
Brongniart, the great writer upon these aubjeota, haa divided them
into genera characteriaed chiefly by the way la wliich the veins are
disposed. The number of ferns renden it ooovenient that some anch
clasdBeation ihould be formed, and M. Bcongniart'H plan boa been
adopted by all other writers. It ia no part of our object to go into
auch details iu thia plioe, but it will be useful to many of our reader*
to know what the diflei«neea are between some of tlie moat ooumon
of these foaail genera. Such ore the following : —
Pteaplerii consiata of apedea whoae leavea are once, twic*, at thriee
pinnated, with the leateta eHber odhsrin^ bv the whole breadth of
their base, or by the centre only. The midrib runs quite through to
the point, and the veins ore planted upon it tomswhat perpendiouStfly.
PtcfltrU ItnMtiee, a Ultle lufBiflnL
Nrunpltrii haa leavea divided like those of Pttopterit, but the mid'
rib doe* not reach the apex of the leaflets ; on the oontniy, it divides
off right and left into veins, ud giaduall; disappeaiA
Knnflirii f if Htm.
W COAL PLAHTS.
OdmtlOfttrii hu Iutoi like ths UM, bat its lekflets kdhwa to tlia
■Ulk by their whola haae ; then ii no midrib ; Mid the Toini spriDg
■Mb by dde at diim fram the bMe of the leaflet, puung onvu^
ttxnwdi the point.
COAL PLANTS.
Spktm^lent htt twice or thrice
n^miwert >t the bue, and the v
radiated from the bue; t^ leofleti
thui uy other figure.
innatifld laavee ; the leaflet
la generally amnged >a if they
r« more frequently wedge-ehaped
^fimafttrit crtmitltifUiit, magnUed.
XowsteiiterM baa the learea aereiml tiniBi pinnatiBd, and the laaSela
more or leea imitod to one another at the baee ; then il k diatinol
midrib, and the Teiua are reticulaUd.
Lnuhopitru Bridi.
Cfdapttrit has the leaveg umple, and either altagether undivided
or only lobed at the margin ; they are more or lea orbieular, and are
filled with Tune ndiating hom the baee ; there ia no midrib. 8pMi-
meaa of thii genus am common in innutone sodulei.
Sekiatfttri* ie like the laat, except that tlia leaf ie deeply divided
into numeiotu unequal aegmenta, whieh are uraally lobed and taper-
Under the name of CmJopttri» an oompreheDded all the kinds of
■teme of bvejema. They are finmd in the form of ehort, round, or
oQinpreeeod tmncheone, marked eitamally by oblong acara of cooai-
derable aiie, much wider than the ipacea that eepante them, and
having their eurfaoo irr«((ukrly interrupted bv projeoting poiote.
Bach appeaiancea ar» owing to the manner in which the woody parte
of the iMf when tteah wen connected with (he etem. The fragments
'' which this name is given no doubt belong to leaves bearing other
impoaalble I
_ ... r fonnd united, it .
I identity them. Remaina of tree-fem itama an of buoI
that up (a the preaent time not more than two o
been f ' '" ■' -
I found in the rich ooal-fielde of Oreat
three epeoimena have 1
Dr. Joeeph Hooker obeervee, with re^ud to the apedea of foaeil
feme, tliat the charaoten on which num^ of them have been
founded are quite insufficient to prove them distinct. Be ahowi that
amonget reoent ferna the presence of the fructification is alone suffl-
of prooedun amongst foasil fema, woold be widely d
CUoatiM are foeails found in abort, jointed, cylindrical, or com-
preened f^agmenta, with channele furrowed in tbeirsidee, and loine-
timea partially ■urrotittded by • bituminou coatdng, the renwina ot »
oortioal integument.
They were originally hollow, but the oavity is oiually filled up wiHi
the eubatanoe into which they thenuelvea are eoBVerted. They wore
■eparsbia at their articulations, and, when broken acrooa at that part
■how a number of strin originating in the hirrows of the eide^ and
tuning inwards towards the centre of the etem, which however tboy
do not reach. It ie not known whether thia etnictoi* waa oonneoted
with an impeifaot diaphragm etretched ocroea the hollow of tfaa
Btem at each joint, or whether it merely repraaante the anda of "W^O^
plat^ of *tl>9)^ ttie aojid )>nrt al the stem was oempuaed. ^tOT
SS COAL PLANTS.
Bitremities have been duooTBred either to taper endnall; to & point,
or to end abruptly, the inten&lB becomiog sborter and emaller. The
Utter ore believed tohavebeeDthert>ot.endBaf thenepUutg, the otbeni
the eitremity at their branchee. Varioua speculBtiona upon the
nmture of theiie plants ore to be foimd in H. Adolphe BrongDiort'e
works, slid in Lindlay Mid Button's ■ FdbsP Flora.' The former
bobuiiat eoncludea that th^ were plants allied to Equiietiim, only of
a more gigantic stature. Later botoniffte, on the oontrarj, adduce
what they consider ample eridenceto show the supposition that Cala-
mila were analogous to Ej^tiiela to be unfoimded ; and that thay
more probably irere a race of plants which have now become extinct.
It is particularly urged that the preeenoa of bark in Ctdamitu, the
ezisteuce of wbicb H. Adolphe Broagnisrt admits, is quite conEluuTe
against these plants being related to the EgutMetacea. Dr. Hooker
also points out the absence of siliceous matter in the Calataita, a sub-
atacos always found to be present in recent Bquitetaair.
Stigmaria U one of the moat common Tegetable forma in the cool
fonnatioii ; not a mine is opened, nor a heap of shale thrown out, but
there occur fragments of on irregularly-compressed roundish form,
apparently portions of a stem, marked eilermdly with small oaTities
in the centee of slight tubendes arranged irregularl}', but somewhat
in a qoincundal manner. The axis of these fragments is often hollow,
or different in texture from tbe Burrounding port. From the tubercles
arias long ribbon-shaped bodies, said to have been traced to the length
of twenty feet. Although for a long time regarded es an independent
plant, there is now no longer any doubt that SigmarM is tbe root of
Sigillmia. In various places specimens of Siffiitaria have been found
standing upright in nlit, with tbe Siigmaria proceeding from it u
BtiffButria JUoidu.
SigUlariit comprehends all those oolumnar ^gantio stems which
oooor oonunonly in the sandstone of the coal in an erect or ns4riy
OMOt position, but whioh are prostnte and crushed flat in the oou-
sbole, and which ore marked by fluUngs with a single row of small
scan hetmsn them. In diameter they Toiy from S to 3S inches, and
thn most have sometimes been full tO or 60 test high.
It U baUered, from the verj comprsHed state of many specimens,
that these plants must have berai of a aoft nature, and, mim the gene-
ral absence of soan i^ Isrgesize, that they must have been veiy little
blanched.
Of the folisse of StgHiariai little or nothing is known. The scon,
especially in the larger species, are much too brood to be regarded as
the point of attschment of learee such aa may be sappoaed to have
been the case in ZcpidedoKiron. The great maaa of the stems of i%il-
laria seems to hare been of a soft and succulcot character, but the
remains of a oentral oolumn of a denser texture are soffldently
obvious in many of the upright stems. These have been called Endo-
gmita. "That this slender column," says Dr. Hooker, "roproBented
all the vascular tissue of this plant, I cannot doubt from examination o '
Sluniaria, whoes vascular column often osaumee the same appearance.'
The affinities of these plants have been variously estimated. Artie,
Lindlmr, Button, and Corda, have referred them to EupKorhiacea ,
Bchlotheim to Palms ; Vun Hartius to Cactacea ; Sternberg to Ferns ,
Sronguiart to Oycadacae. Dr. Hooker, regarding SHnllana efe^onj as
their type, places them not for from Lj/aopodiiKKe, and near to Lepi~
dodeBdroa, " That it was," he says, " of much completer structure
Mid higher organisation than either, [i iBCOuteatable ; but the iudica-
COAL PLANTS. m
ions of a relationship with any individual group higher in the neriea,
ir with (^catUa in particular, appear to me for too feeble to justify
lur considering it as tending to unite these two natural ordeis." It
s a plant which must be considered as belonging to the great fiuuil;
if Ferns, diaplaying a relationship, though only of analogy, to C^a-
dea in one point and to Euphorlnacti* and Oactacca in othen,"
BigiUaria rtniforwtU,
AdenfhyUitm are reiy common plants, with narrow pointed whoried
learei^ which vary in fignre and In size, but which, together with the
■lendmMSS of Uie stem to which they belong, give the plants much
Uie appeonaoe of the modem genus OMum. Thsy present howera'
no further afBnity to Bzogsnous Plant* than this anidogy of form.
SphtnofhsUum, with many of the characters of the last genua, has
broad wedgMhaped leaves, the Teios of which axa forked. That cii^
cunutanoe has led to the notion that it was related to Fem^ aspeciallj
to the genus Maniiaa.
Such are the more cotomon of the plants whose remains are traced
In the coal-meosuras. One of tbe first things vhich strikes us in cast-
ing the ne on the list is tbe little variety of form apparent in the old
flom. Instead of the infinite diversity of plants which are contained
in a modem forest, nothing here preeents itself except fir-treesi, fema,
and a small numbw of speciea whose nature ia unknown. Kot a ttace
is found of grasses, or Uie numerous herbs and shrubs that are now
met with in all regions clothed vrith vegetation ; and of the Tsst class
of Eiogens not one authentic instance occurs. Feme, loo, would
seein to have constitnted in themselves one-half of the entire Flora,
and yet it is only in a few rare cases that they have been met with in
a state of fructipoation. These circumstances have led to the bast;
inference that in the beginning nature was in reality but little diverai-
£ed ; that a few forms of organisation of the lower kind only were all
that clothed the iace of tbe earth ; and that it was only in aftei-«ges
that nature assumed her many^oolonred eTer-vaTying robe. And yet
it has been at the same time admitted that in those early days vegeta-
tion was more luxuriant and vigorous than at the present hour. It
ia not a little singular that the true explanation of this drcomstauce
should not have been hit upon without any direct eiperimsnt having
87
COAL PLANTS.
COAL PLANTS.
•13
been instituted for the purpose of demouBtrating how it is really to
be expkined ; for, coxuddenng that all geologists are of accord in the
opinion that the plants which formed coal were for a period of some
duration floating in water, a partial destruction of them might easily
have been suppiosed to be the result. Professor Lindley has proved
that plants are capable of enduring suspension in water in very difiEer-
ent degrees, some resisting a long suspension almost without change,
others rapidly decomposing and disappearing. One hundred and
seventy-fleven plants were thrown into a vessel containing fresh water ;
among them were species belonging to the natural orders of which
the flora of the coal-measures consists, and also to the common
orders^ which, from their general dispersion over the globe at the
present day, it might have been expected should be found there. In
two years one himdred and twenty-one species had entirely disap-
peared ; and of the fifty-six which still remained, the most perfect
specimens were those of Conifarous Plants, Palms, I^copodiaewef and
tne like ; thus showing in the blearest manner that the meagre cha-
racter of the Coal Flora may be owing to the different capabilities of
different plants of resisting destruction in water. The same experi-
ment accoimts for the want of fructification in fossil fems ; for it
showed that one of the consequences of long immersion in water is
a destruction of the fructification of those plimts.
A much more important fact is the presence of certain tropical
forms of vegetation, such ea tree-ferns, m the coal; and the quasi-
tropical character of other species, as Ara/ikeaHaAJika CkmiftrcB, This
is the more startling when connected with another fact, that the coal-
measures of Newcastle are of the same age as those of Newfoundland,
and even of Melville Island, in 75* N. lat.
From this it has been inferred that the northern parts of the world
enjoyed in remote ages a dimate where firost and snow, and the incle-
ment seasons of arctic regions were unknown ; that t2i0y were at least
as hot as equinoctial countries now are ; and that the inhospitable
hyperborean plains of Melville Island at one time displayed the noble
scene of a luxuriant and stately vegetation. Palms, it has been said,
were there, and they are the especial and princdy denicens of the
tropics; tree-ferns occur, and they now only exist in the -primeval
forests of the torrid zone, haunting their deepest recesses, breathing
a damp and equable atmosphere, and living, like vegetable eremites,
without even a parasite to fix itself upon their trunks and keep them
company. Stigmarke, SigiUariat, and even Calamites have been
enlisted in the cause of tlus theory, notwithstanding that no one can
say what they may have been. And in confirmation of all this, the
preponderance of fems has been appealed to as having its parallel
nowhere except in the hottest and dampest islands of Polynesia.
In opposition to this view it has been asserted that the presence of
these tropical forms of vegetation in northern latitudes is no proof of
what the climate in which they were deposited formerly was, because
they mav have been drifted to their present situations by currenta
The^ perfect state of many of the remains offers however great diffi-
culties in the way of this supposition ; for although they are very
much broken, yet the angles of most fossil plants are by no means
water-worn, and in SiffUtariag, &c. are as sharp as they ever were.
Nor is the state of those tropical stems and firuits, which in modem
times reach the coasts of Ireland and Norway, at all like that of the
buried plants of the coal-measures.
Another difficulty in the way of admitting a high temperature in
northern regions in former days is suggested by considering the dura*
tion of the days. Without a diurnal change of light and darlmeas
Slants cannot exist ; absence of light blanches them, by the aocumu-
ktion of undecomposed carbonic acid ; absence of darkness destroys
or dwarfs and deforms them, by the incessant decomposition of tiieir
carbonic acid. Now, however this may be reconciled with a oountiy
like England, in which the winter days are of moderate length, it is
leas reconcilable with the northern parts of North America, and not
at all with Melville Island, in which there are 94 days when the sun
is never above the horizon, and 104 days that he never sets. With
regard to the transportation of the ooal, the absence of indications of
washing, and the frequent occurrence of upright stems, seem to lead
to the conclusion that in most instances the plants which formed coal
have^ grown at the most within a few hundred miles of the places
where they are now deposited, and probably in their very vicinity.
From this statement we must at present except the coal of Melville
Island ; for although the veg^ble impressions in the English coal-
measures are by no means water-worn, yet those in the British
Museum from lielville Island are so rubbed and damaged that there
is no doubt they have travelled long distances before they were
deposited.
The opinion that the plants of the coal-measures afford evidence
that the climate where they grew must have been tropical, has been
founded upon three classes of fkots, each of whidi requires separate
examination ; the one, the excessive development of certain forms of
vegetation ; another, tiie presence of the remains of palms and tree-
ferns, which are usually considered incapable of existing unless in a
tropical atmosphere ; the third, the excessive disproportion of fems
to other plants.
With regard to thfr first alignment it may be answered, that we
know too little of the real nature of the SigiUairiaBy Lepidodendr<i,
CdlamiUs, and other plants, to form a correct opinion. It is almost
certain that all these plants are in reality destitut-e of living analogies ;
and therefore as we do not know what they were, we have no means of
judging what kind of climate they required. Supposing that some of
the L^ddodendra were closely allied to the modem genus Araucaria, as
is highly probable, yet that fact does not afford any proof of a tropical
climate ; for AraucaHa Ihmbeyi now inhabits the cold mountains of
southern Chili, and is at this day uninjured in the severest of our
English winten ; while Ckmmngkamia SinentU, and species of OaUUria
or Dacrydiiunf with which other remains of Zepidodtndra may be
compared, although not European, are by no means of tropical habits^
but are found on the mountains of New Zealand and Van Diemen's
Land, where they are exposed to a far trom temperate cUmatei
Moreover, Saliiiyuna cuiiantifolia, which would certainly be oonsidcored
a tropical form of Oontfera, if found in an extinct state only, is one of
the hardiest of trees, and a native of the rigorous climate of Japan.
But even supposing SigiUairia could be found to have been succment
plants, allied to Cactaceat or EuphorbiaeetE^ as some think, still no real
evidence of their having required a tropical climate for their develop-
ment would be afforded by th^m, because there is nothing in the mere
oiganisation of succulent plants which unfits them for oold dimates;
A capability of enduring cold is something immaterial and independ-
ent of oiganisation, about which nothing can be judgedl k priori ; for
tumipsy cabbages, Jerusalem artichokes, house-leek, and many other
hardy plants are in parts as succulent as OaeUtcecB, All azgnments
therefore to prove that the north of Europe was foraierly tropical,
deduced frt>m the presence of sueh plants as those now mentioned,
are inadmissible.
Nor is the argument derived from the presence of palms and tree-
fems of much greater force. In the first place^ we have seen that
there is really no grounds for believing that palms existed ; and as for
tree-ferns, we have them in New Zealand, and especially on tJie south
side of Van Diemen's Land, where the mean t^pentore probably
does not exceed 54' Fahrenheit So that, aU things considered, it
is by no means safe to take the remains of these plants as good evi-
dence of a tropical climate, or of a climate materially unBke that
which we now experience.
The only remaining argument 'to be considered is that derived from
the great preponderance of fems in the Coal Flora. It is said by
Adolphe Brongniart, that as it is oidy in damp tropical regions that we
now find fems equal in the number of their species to all the species
of other plants, and as this same proportion is found in the Coal
Flora, that therefore the climate undnr which the Coal Flora was
produced must have been damp and tropical. But as, by the experi-
ment already mentioned, it was shown that when a given number of
plants of entirely different habits are plunged into ihe same vessel of
water, by far the greater part is decomposed before fems b^;in to
be affected, it is obvious that no estimate of what the proportion of
ferns to other plants really was, can now be formed ; and consequently
this argument also falls to the ground.
From these facts it appears wen that we may safely adopt the fol-
lowing conclusions : —
1. That coal is of vegetable origin.
2. That at the period of its deposit, the earth was covered with a
rich vegetation^ of which onlv a small portion has been preserved ;
and that of thk portion all the species and several of the races are
totally unknown at the present day.
8. That the climate may possibly have been something milder than
it now is, but that there is no evidence in the vegetable kingdom to
show that it was materiallv di£brent from that of the present day.
The following is a list of the species of plants that have been found
in the coal-measures of Great Britain, as given by Plro&ssor Tennant
in his ' Stratigraphical List of British Fossils.' Very few species indeed
appear to have been found in other parts of the world that are not
found in Ghneat Britain : —
AleOyopikerit OitUi, Oopp.
A. heterophylUtf Gopp.
A. Lindieyana, PresL
A. hmchitidit, Stemb.
A, ManteUi, Oopp.
A. nervotci, Gopp.
A. Sawverii, Gopp^
A, Sara, Gopp.
A, Serlii, Gopp.
A, urophylla, Gopp.
A. vuiffoUcTf Stemb.
Anabathra pvlcherrimOf Lindley.
Annularia fertUis, Stemb.
A, longifolia, Brong.
AnthUUhei onomoZiw, Morris.
A, Pitcaimia, Lindley.
Aphlebia adniueent, PresL
Artitia apprtKcinuUtt, Brong.
A. ditiang, Brong.
A. transvertaf PresL
Atpidiairia Anglicct, PresL
A, eov^ueng, I^-esL
A, erittaiki, PresL
A, qmdrainguUuriM, PimL
A. «Mic{ii2ato, PresL
Atteropkyllitet eomoMif, Lindley.
A, foliotut, lindley.
A. ffoUoidei, Lindiey.
A. Jvlbatutf Lindley.
A. rigidtttj Lindley.
Beehara ehara^ormig, Stemb.
B. fframdU, Stemb.
Bomia egwifee^fbrmis^ Stemb.
Bruckmannia grandiMi Lindley.
B. tonffifolia, Stemb..
B, rigtdOf Stemb.
B. tmuifoUa, Stemb.
B. tnbercuUUa, Stemb.
Caiamtteg approximaiHi, Brong.
C. eamneeformit, Schlot
C. OUtii, Brong.
C, decortUvt, Brong.
C. dubiut, Brong.
C, inaquaUa, Brong.
O. JAndUyi, B^Mnxh.
O.nodotui Schlot.
COAL PLANTa
COOALT OtlEa
C. paehjfdenna, Brong.
O. romotnc, Brong.
C. Sleinkaweri, Brong.
C. Swkowii, Brong:
O, %mdulaiug, Brong.
C. variani, Stembw
a ^ertieillalmg, LincDey.
Oardioeorpon ac^Oumf Brong.
CarpoUiMes alaiuiflJikdlBy,
C. kdkteroidat Monia.
O, margmtUMg, Artia.
C, gamioidaf Morrio.
CoMlopteriB PkiUiptii, Lindley.
C, primavet, Lindley.
CkimdriteM Ptatmei, Morria.
CjfetopUru dUaUtUif Lindlej.
q/oMtoa, Brong.
O. Mala, Lindley.
C Mtqua, Brong.
C orbicMkHg, Brong.
C, reniformi§f Brong.
Ojfperitet hicarmata, Lindley.
Favutaria tmaeOata, Lindley.
F, nodo$a, Lindley.
FlahMaria horamfoUa, Sternb.
Hatonia ditHeka, Morris.
J7. gracUu, Lindley.
H. reguUui$, Lindley.
J7. (orCttMO^ Lindley.
J7. M«roM2ots, Lindley.
l^pidodendron Bueklandi, Brong.
Z. eUgant, Brong.
L, Hareowrtiif Lindley
L. longifoUum, Brong.
L, obopoium, Stemb.
L, phtmairinmf Lindley.
L. Mdaginoideif Sternb.
Z. Serlii, PresL
L, Stemhergiif Brong.
I^epidopkuUiMm imtermedwrn,
L, kmceoMUfMi.
L, trinerve, Lindley.
Ztpidottroinu eomotut, Lindley.
L. omaitu, Lindley.
L, pinagteTf Lindley.
Jt, vatriabiliif Lindley.
Ljfeopoditei eordattu, Stemb.
L. pkUffmarwidei, Sternb.
Mtffophyton AUani, Preal.
M, approximatum, Lindley
M, dktan$f Lindley.
MyriophyUUe$ graeHU^ Artia.
NewropUru luwminala, Brong.
N. aeSuiifoUa, Brong.
N. amgitt^foUoy Brong.
N, aUenmaia, Lindley.
N, eordaia, Brong.
N, fiexwMo, Sternbb
N, gigaaUeOy Sternb.
N. AeUrophyUOf Brong.
y, LoAU, Brong.
N, maerophfUa, Brong.
N, roiwtdifoUa, Broog.
N. SoretH, Brong.
N, tmuifolia, Sternb.
Nofffferathiajlabdktia, Lindley.
OdontopterU BriUmniea, PreaL
0. LindUj^na, Stemb.
0, oUusa, Brong.
0. Sehhtheimn,Brfmg.
PeeopierU aUrevtatof Brong.
P. adiamioidea, Lindley.
P, arboreteent, Brong.
P, Buddandi, Brong.
P. dentata, Brong.
P. heterophffUa, Lindley.
P. laeiniSata, Lindley.
P, MUUnU, Brong.
P, murieaia, Brong.
P. cbliqua, Brong.
P, or&iutridUf Brong.
P. plmmo§a, Brong.
P, pieroidea, Brong.
P. repamda, Lindley.
P. vittota, Brong.
Pemee WUhami, Lindley.
Pimiim ambiffmu, WHham.
P. amtkraeina, Lindley.
P, BramdUmgi, Lindley.
P, earhonaeet, Witham.
P, medullarii, Lindley.
P. WUkami, Lindley.
PinmUaina eapiUacea, Lindley
Pitya amUqua, Witham.
P. priKUBvaf WithanL
Poaeite» coeoina, Lindley
JSjUkIm dteeeeo, PreaL
RJurcata^FTeBl
Soffmaria tuuUaia, PreaL
& ctxiaia, Brong.
8, ophimra, Brong.
SeloffmUta patent, Brong.
SigiJUitria aUeman§, Lindley.
8. eatemdata, Lindley.
8. eowtraela, Brong.
& dongatOf Brong.
8, JU^moaa, Lindley.
8 Kwtrrii, Brong.
5. leioderma, Brong.
8 lavigata, Brong.
.5. Mwtchiiom, Lindley.
»8, notaia, Brong.
8. ocuUUa, Lindley.
8 (frnatmn, Brong.
8 rentformu, Brong.
8 8tmlUi, Brong.
Sphftnoph^um deiUaium, Brong.
8 emarginatwm, Brong.
8 eratiim, Lindley.
8 8ehlotheimii, Brong.
Sphmopient aeuttfolia, Brongp
8 adianloidei, Lindley.
8 affimg, Lindley.
8 artemiicrfoUet, Stemb.
iSL bifida, Lindky.
8. camdata, Lindley.
8, OoMoagi, Lindley.
8 era$mt, Lindley.
8 erenaia, Lindley.
8 cuneolaia, Lindley.
8 dUaiata, Lindley.
8 eUgam, Brong.
8 €SBedi€tt Lindley.
8. gnteilia, Brong.
8. HibbertU, Lindley.
8 UaifoUa, Brong.
8 linearit, Stemb.
8 maeilenta, Lindley.
6. mulUi;flda, Lindley.
8. obopoia, Lindley.
8, polyphyUa, Lindley.
8. tmdla, Brong.
19. trifcUata, Brong.
StigmaHaficoides, Brong.
Trigonocairpvm Dmoeaii, Lindley.
T. NoeggerathH, Brong.
T. cblarifgwn, Lindley.
T. oUvcrfonne, Lindley.
T, owUum, Lindley.
Ulodtndnm AUani, BudcL
U. Cimf^earii, BuokL
U, Lueatii, BuckL
U* nu^us, Lindley.
U. minut, Lindley.
Walehia pinifvrmit, Sehlot.
More recent inTeatigationa haye enlaiged thia liat: at the aame
time it ahonld be romembered, that there ia oonaideirable donbt aa to
whether iH theae forma ahould be regained aa apeciea. The following
table drawn up by ICr. Pattiaon in hia Siaptera on FqaaU ^tany will
giye an idea of the oompaiatiye abundance and diyendty of the planta
of the Coal period in Great Britain aa compared with that of any other
geological period ■—
Formation.
Plaati foQBd Fonil.
0(U6i'a.
SpMin*
Tertlarj
Chalk
Oraenaaad
WeaUoi
OoUta * . . .
IJm , .
n
t
7
8
84
7
8
88
1
ISO
4
f
11
88
10
8
S79
1
New Bed-SudstoM
Coal-Mbajobxi
148
6S9
COASSUa [CnyiDA]
COBiBA'CEiE, a amall natoral order of PIaata» aeparatad by D.
Don firom Poiemomiaceee, It haa a leafy 6-cleft'eqnal «lyx; an
inliarior eampannlate regular 6'lobed oorollay imbricate in natiyation ;
6 unequal atamena riaing-from the baae of the corc^ with 8-celled
oompreaaed anthera ; auperior. 8-celled oyary, aurrounded by a fleahy
annular hjpogynoua diac; the oyulea aeyeral, aacending; aimple
atyle; trifid atlgma; the fruit capsular, S^Mlled, S-yalvi^ with a
aeptiddal dehiaoence; the placenta yenr laige^ S-coroerad in the
azia, ita anglea toudiing the line of dehiacence of the pericarpium ;
the aeeda llat» winged, imbricated in a double row, their intagument
mudlaginoua, fleahy albumen, and a atraight embryo ; the cotyledona
foliaceoua; the radicle inferior. The apeciea are climUng ahrabe,
with altemate pinnated leayea, the common petiole bemg ccnyerted
into a tendriL G. Don obaervea that thiaorder la readily diatinsuiahed
from BigmomaettB $nd PedaimecB by the flowers bcrag ragnlar and
pentandroua, and in the preaence of albumen in the aeeda ; and from
Polemamaetm by habit and ita winged aeedai Lindlaj placea the
genua Oobaa, which ia the only one of the order, in Pdemomiaeea,
and aaya, " The diflfarenoea of miportanoe between the one and the
other appear to oonaiat in the former haying an unuaualhr laige lobed
diaq, a aepticidal dehiacence^ and climbing habit; diatinctiona, I
fear, of too little moment to be admitted aa of ordinal yalue."
Than aro two apeciea of Oobaa, C. aeamdmu and C, hdea : the
former haa large eampannlate flowers, with a short tube of a dark
dirty purple colour ; the latter haa yellowiah flowera, about half the
aiae of thoae of O, aeemdem. The O, ieandem ia a great fkyourite in
our gardena, and ia a rapid-growing and abundant-flowerfaig climber.
It will grow in the open air in summer, and ahould ho trained
againat a aouth wall, or against a honae^ when it flowers pofriaely.
It ia adapted for conaeryatoriea and graenhouaea. It may be propa-
gated by aeeda or cuttinga.
a>on, DidUaawdeomi Plamti; Lindley, NaNnl SgHeaL)
COBALT 0RB3. Cobalt ia not found m the natiye atate^ and its
orea, though not numeroua, require a more minute examination than
they haye hitherto receiyed. We ahaU notice those which are beat
known.
Brigfa WkUeOobaUw TFU^ Cbftoft occurs aystalline and maaaiye;
the primary form is a cube, the planes of which are usually attiated ;
colour ailyer-white; atreak grayiah-black ; luatre metallic; hardneaa
6*6, yielding with difficulty to the knife, and not yery frangible;
apeeifto gravity 6*8 to 6*6 ; fracture nneyen ; deayage parallel to the
fiioea of the cube ; before the blowpipe on charcoal giyea araenical
fumea, and tin^ borax of a deep blue.
It ia found m fine ciyatala at Tunaberg in Sweden, in Norway,
Sileaia, and ComwalL
It ia met with alao amorphoua, aihoraacent^ botryoidal, and
atalactitic. The foUowiog ia the analyaia of the cryatala from Tuna-
berg by Klaproth and Stromeyer : —
Cobalt 44 86-7
Araenic 55 49*0
Sulphnr 00*6 6*6
6*6
09*6
97*8
Tm-WkUeOoiaUiiirffard TfAito Cb6aU oecuim maasiye anderystal*
lised in cubes snd octahedrons; colour tin-white^ but sometimes
externally tarnished; fracture fine-grained and uneyen; lustra
metallic; it yields with difficulty to the knife, and is hard and
brittle; specific grayity yariously stated, from 6*74 to 7*7; yields
arsenical vapour whan heated with the blowpipe, and tinges borax
deep blue.
The maasiyB is amorphous, arborescent^ botnrotdal, fte. The
amorphous occun in Cornwall, and the orystsllissd at ^cuttamd in
Norway. Analyais of the crystals by Stromeyer : —
Cobalt .... . . 88*10
Araenio 48*46
Iron . . 8*SS
Sulphur • 90*00
99-^9
41 COBALTINE.
Oray Cohalt occunt mHMive Hnd ctystallued ; primiuy (orm it Ciibo ;
colour gimyiili tin-whila; atreak gTByimh-bUck ; luKtre mfli&llio; hard-
nenB 5'5 ; apacifio gnrity 6'46S \ fnotura nneven ; cleaTOgs indUtiact.
The miuiVfl ocoun amorphoiu uid T«tiouUt«d. It in found prin-
cipollj kt.EtatuiMbais in Sazonj, and ia xatA in the muiufuture of
EaTt\y Cobalt oooon munTS, amorphotu, botryoidal, pnlTsmlent,
Jtc; oolouTyellairuh-browiisiidbluuh-bliok; spBoificgravitf 2to2'4 ;
the fnotore of the nundTa ii earthT and dull, but polithed bj
friction, ud jrields to the knife readily ; wbait heated on charcoal
RiTfls on anemokl odour, and a deep blue colour with borax: itia
found in Heaae, Saxony, Bohemia, and also in Cheahire and Cornwall
StilphurtI of Cobalt oocura yeliowlih-vhite and ateal-graj; streak
gnj ; it ii amorphoiu or boUyoidal, and externally brilliant ; fraoture
uneren. Aocordinf; to Buinger it coniiata of —
Cobalt lS-3
Copper ll'l
Iron 8'SS
StUphnr S8-fiO
Earthy Blatter -SS '
Arieaialt of Ci^idU—CiAaU filooM— Aoi CMoU— ooonn flbraui,
maaaiTe, and cryHtoUiMd ; primary form an oblique rikombio priam ;
colour TOriona ihodes of red paning into crimaon; sometimee
grayish ; tranaluoeot, traniparent ; it is soft, light, md flexible ;
apeciflo gravity a'e48 ; the manive variety amorphtnu, botrjoidal
etnioture fibroua, imdiating; before tiie blowpipe emita oraenical
odoura, and tinges beroz blue ; It oooun In Saxony, Bohemia, Soot-
land, and Commll, ka.
Analyrii by BnoholB : —
AiMnioAdd ST-4
Oiida of Cobalt SB-3
Water 23-9
100
BuipKaU of OiAab—Sai 7Un«l~lM at a pale rose-red oolonr, ssd
oocuTB inreeting other minerala, in amall maaaes and in atalaotitea
the marainn are aenu-baniparent and crystalline; it ia aolnbls ii
water ; tranalnoant ; loatra vitreoDS, often dull exteraallj : it DOOnn
among the mining heaps nnr ECaoan and in Balibatt;.
COBALTINE, u Arsenical Ore of Cobalt containing sulphur. I.
' la of a lilver-white oolonr InoUniag to red. It ia alao called white
oobolt [CouLT Oan.]
COBI'TIS, a genua of nahes belonging to the Abdominal MaUt-
copltrygU and &mily Oyprimida. This genua includes the Loaohea,
Uieir haying the head ima]] ; month but alightly cleft, with
and furniahed with barbnlea on the upper lip ; body elongated,
oorered with small scales, and invested with a mucous secretion ;
ventral fina situated for back, doml fin placed above them; gill-
opaninga small ; bronohiaategouB rays three in number.
C. lariatula, the Loach, Loche, or Beordie, ia common in most ol
our running watem It ia about i inchea in length, and of a dirty
pale-yallow colour, motUed with brown ; its upper lip la famlahed
with nx borbulee, one of which apringi from eaoh comer of the
mouth, and the oUisra are situated on the fore part
Like flahes in graieral whioh have barbuJee, the Loaches feed at
the bottom of the water. The speoies above deeoribed apawna
Uarch or early in April, and ia very proliflo.
O. toiMo (T.inn }, the Spined Loooh, or Oronndling, la a far li
common apeoies than the above ; its form ia more compressed ; the
barbnles are very ahort, and consequently less oonspicuoui
principal ohaiaoter howsvar oonaiata in its having two apinei.
before each eye. From this character and some other diffiirenoes of
minor importance, this fish, and sevenl others having the same
structure, have betm separated tmm the true loachea^ and now con-
stitute the genua BoUa at Hr. Oray.
The Losohes are eitremely reatlen during atormv wnther, when
they generally rise to the aurftoe of tile water, which from ^'----
rastleaanaaa is kept in conatont agitation.
COB-NUT or HOO-NDT, a name given In the West Indfee t . _
fruit ot a apecjea of Omphaiea. {Oufkalmx.} It is alao applied to
the larger forma of the cultivated Haiel-Kab [FiLBSBT. A. ft S. DiT.]
COBRA. fNlu.1
COCA, the dried leaf of SiytkroxylM^ Coca, is one of those stimu-
lating narcotics which belong to the same doss with tobooco and
opium, but ia more remarkable than either of them in ite effeota upon
the human natem. The plant ia found wild in Peru, according to
Piippig, in the environs of Cuchero, and on the stony summit of the
Cerro de San Cristobal. It ia cultivated eitensiTaly in the mild but
very moiat climate of the Andes of Peru, at from 2000 to
aixne the aea : in colder aituationa it is apt to be killed, and in
wanner diatiicts tlie leaf loaea its fiavour.
A detailed aooount of it ia given by Fopplg and Sir WilHom
Hooker in the ' Companion to the Botanicsl Hagaaina,* whence we
extract the following mformaticn. It forms a shrub from 1 to B feet
high, the stem covered with whitish tnbercles, which appear to be
formed of two curved lineH 8ot fnoe to face. The leaves are oblong,
acute at each end, 3-ribbed, on short petioles, with a pair of Intra-
peticlary brown acute atipulea. Flowers in little fasddea ; peduncle*
iharplv angled; i»lyx 6-elefl; petals oblong, concave, wavy, with a
jagged plaited membrane arising &om within their base ; stamens
10; stylea 8 ; fruit a 1-seeded oblong dr«pe.
Ayttm]>lsH Cbta.
The sffiwts of this dmg are ladd to be of the most pemlctotu
nature^ eioeeding even opium in the destruction of msntsl and
bodily powen, The coca leaf is chawed by the Peruviana, mixed
with flnely-powdered chalk, and bringa on a state of apathy and
indiffsrence to all surrounding objects, the dnire for which increaaea
BO muoh with indulgence in it, that a confirmed Coes-chewer is said
nevra to have been reclaimed. Fiippig describes such a person In his
usual graphic manner ; —
" Useless Ibr every active pursuit In lifb, and ths slave of his
pononi, even more than the drunkard, he exposes bimaelf to the
greatest dangers for the sake of grati^ng this propensity. As the
stimulus of the oooa is moat fully davaloped when the body Is
sxhanated with toil, or the mind with eonvenatlon, the poor victim
then hastens to some retreat in a gloomy native wood, and flinging
himself under a tree, remains atretcbed out them, heedlees of niight
or of storms, unprotected by covering or by fire, unconscious of ths
floods of rain and of the tnmsndoas winds which sweep the tbreat ;
and after yielding himself, for two or three entire days, to the occu-
pation of chewing coco, retoma home to his abode, with trembling
£nibs and a pallid ooontenance, the miserable apectacia of uuDataral
enjoyment. Whoever aoddaitally meets the Coqoero under such
(ureumstonoes, and by speaking interrupta the e£Fect of this Intoxi-
cation, ia aura to draw upon himself the hatred of the half-maddened
creature. The man who is once seised with the paasion for this
practice, if placed in oircuraatanoaa which favour its indulgence, ia a
ruined being. Hany inatano« were related to ua in Peru, where
young people of the best fomiliee, by occasionally visiting the forests,
have b^nn using the oooa for the sake of passing the time away,
and, acquiring a relish for it, have, from that period, been lost to
dvilioation ; as if Belzed by some malevolent inatinct, they refuse to
return to their homes; and, resisting the entreaties of their friends,
tunity of escaping when they have been brought bock to ths
The immodarate addiction of the Peruvians to the use of this
drug ia Buch that their forests have long since ceased to be able to
supply their wants ; and the cultivation of the plant baa been carried
to a vary great extent, not only under the Incaa, but beneath the
local govammant of the Bpaninrda, nho seem to have been no mor«
able to resist the temptation of a lam revenue from the monopoly
of this article than European nations from the conaumptiou ot
ardent spirits. It ia said that in ths year 1G8S the govamment of
Potoai derived a autn of not lem than 500,000 dollars from the con-
sumption of 90,000 to 100,000 boskets of the leaf. The cultivation
of Coca is therefore an important feature in Peruvian husbandry,
and, it is added, ao lucrative, that a coca plantation, whose original
oost and current expanses amounted to 2500 dollars daring the
first SO months, will, at the end of 1 0 months more, bring a clear
Inaame of ITOO doltws. FQppig states that Coca hoa now bscom*
evil ; that thouHuda of persona would ba
43
COCCID-^
COCCOLITE.
4A
deprived of their meaxu of ezisience if its consumption were put a
Btop to ; and that the value of it in Peru and Bolivia amounts to
above two and a half millions of dollars a year.
Hie exciting principle of tlie Coca has not yet been inquired into.
It is stated by P5ppig to«be of so veiy volatile a nature that
leaves only twelve months old become perfectly inert and good for
nothing. "Large heaps of the freshly-dried leaves, paiticularly
whileuie warm rays of the snn are upon than, diffuse a very strong
smell, resembling uiat of hay in which there is a quantity of melilot
The natives never permit strangers to sleep near them, as they would
suffer violent headaches in consequence. When kept in small
portions, and alter a few months, the coca loses its scent and becomes
weak in proportion. The novice thinks that the grassy smell and
fresh hue are as perceptible in the old state as wlien new, and this
is to be expected with the Peruvian, who never uses it without the
addition of burnt lime. Without this, which always excoriates the
mouth of a stranger, the natives declare that coca has not its true
taste, a flavour, by the bye, which can only be detected after a long
use of it. It then tinges green the carefully-swallowed spittle, and
yields an infusion of the same colour. Of the latter alone I made
trial, and found that it had a flat grass-like taste, but I experienced
the full power of its stimulating principles. When taken in the
evening it was followed by great restlesBneas, loss of sleep, and gene-
rally uncomfortable sensations; while, from its exhibition ,in the
morning, a similar effect, though to a slijght degree, arose, aocompazued
witii loss of appetite. The Knglish physioian, ih, Ardliibald Smith,
who has a sugar plantation near Huanuco, once, when unprovided
with Chinese tea, made a trial of the coca as a substitute for it, but
experienced such distressing sensations of nervous excitement that
he never ventured to use it agaixL The Peruvian increases its effects
by large doses, utter retirement^ and the addition of other stimulating
substances. The inordinate use of the coca speedily occasions bodily
disease, and detriment to the moral powers; but still the custom
may be persevered in for many yean, especially if frequently inter-
mitted, and a Coquero sometimes attains the age of fiffy, wim com-
paratively few complaints. But the oftener the orgies are celebrated,
especially in a warm and moist cUmate, the sooner are their destructive
effects made evident. For this reason the natives of the cold and
dry districts of the Andes are more addicted to the consumption of
coca than those of the dose forests, where, undoubtedly, other
stimulants do but take its place. Weakness in the digestive organs,
which, like most incurable complaints, increases continually m a
greater or less degree, first attacks the unfortunate Coquero. This
complaint, which is called ' opilaoion,' may be trifling at the beginning;
but soon attains an alarming heif^t. Then come bmous obstructions,
attended with all those thousand painful symptoms which are
so much aggravated by a tropical climate. Jaimdice and derangement
of the nervous system follow, along with pains in the head, and such
a prostration of strength that the patient speedily loses all appetite;
the hue of ihe whites assumes a leaden colour, and a total inability
to sleep ensues, which aggravates the mental depression of the
unhappv individual who, spite of all his ills, cannot relinquish the
use of the herb to which he owes his sufferings, but craves brandy in
addition. The appetite becomes quite irregular, sometimes failing
altogether, and sometimes assuming quite a wolfish voracity, espe-
cially for animal food. Thus do yean of misery drag on, succeeded
at length by a painful death."
(Poppig, Bntc in C%ile, Ac, vol u. ; Hooker, Companum to BoL
Mag, h and ii)
OOCCIDiB (Leach), GaUinaeda (Lat)-eille), a fSunily of Insects
placed by Latrcdlle and others at the end of tiie Somopiera. These
msects apparentiy have but one joint to the tarsi, and this is furnished
with a smgle claw. The males are destitute of rostrum, and have two
wings, wmch when closed are laid horizontally on the body : the
apex of ihe abdomen is furnished with two setn. The females are
apterous, and provided with a rostrum. The antennas are generally
filiform or setaceous.
The insects belonging to this family live upon trees or plants of
various kinds : they are of small size, and in the larva state nave the
impearance of oval or round scales, hence they are called Scale Insects.
They are closely attached to the plant or bark of the tree they
inhabit, and exhibit no distinct external origans. At certain seasons,
when about to undergo their transformation, they become fixed to
the plant, and assume the pupa state within the skin of the larva.
The pupa of the males has their two anterior legs directed forwards,
and the remaining four backwards ; whereas in l£e females the whole
six are directed backwards. When the nudes have assumed the
winged or imago state they are said to iMue from tile posterior
extremity of their cocoon.
In the spring time the body of the female becomes greatly enlarged,
and approaches more or less to a spherical form. In some the skin
is smooth, and in others transverse mcidons or vestiges of segments
are visible. It is in this state that tiie female receives the embraces
of the male, after which she deposits her eggs, which are extremely
numerous. In some the eggs are deposited by the insect beneatn
her own body, after which she dies, and tiie body hardens and forms
a scale-like covering; which serves toprotect the egga nntU the
following season, when they hatch. The females of other species
cover their ^ggs with a white cotton-like substance; which answers
the same end.
Upwards of thirty species of the fSunily CoccidcB, or CfaOimaeela, are
enumerated in Mr. Stephens's ' Catalogue of Britiidi Insects ;' several
of these however have undoubtedly been introduced with the plants
they inhabit, and to which th0y are peculiar.
Many of the exotic Cocci have long been odebrated for the beantif ol
dyes they yield. The Coccua Cacti of Linmeus may be mentioned as
an instance. The female of this species is of a dieep brown colonr,
covered with a white powder, and exhibits transverse mcisions on the
abdomen. The male is of a deep red colour, and has white wing^
Ooeeua OacU, mafnifled.
a, the male; h, the female.
This insect, which when property prepared yields the dye called
cochineal, is a native of Mexico, and feeds upon a partioolar kind of
Indian fig, which is cultivated for the express purpose of rearing it.
[COOHINBAI..]
C. Ilicia, an insect found abundantiy upon a small species of ever-
green oak (Qucrcua eoeeifera), oonunon in the south of PVanoe and
many other parts, has been employed to impart a bk>od-ied or
crimson dye to doth fh)m the earliest ages. ('Introduction to
Entomology,' by Kirby and Spenoe, voL L p. 819.)
C PotSnacua is another species which is used in dyeing, and
imparts a red colour. It is now chiefly employed by the Turks for
dyeing wool, silk, and hair, and for staining the nails of women's
fingers. (Kirby and Spenoe, voL i p. 320.)
But we are not only indebted to tiie Cbccua tribe for the dyes they
vield ; the substance called Lac is also procured from one of these
insects (the Coccua Zacctu)^ This species inhabits India, where it is
found on various trees in great abundance. " When the females of
this Coccua have fixed themselves to a part of the branch of the
trees on which they feed {Ficua rdigioaa, and F, Indica, BuUa
frondoaa, and Bhamnua Ji^uba), a pelluoid and glutinous substance
b^ni> to exude from tiie margins of the body, and in the and covers
the whole insect with aioell of this substance, which when huniened
by exposure to the air becomes lao. So numerous are these insects,
and so closely crowded together, that they often entirelv cover a
branch ; and the groups take difoent shaptt, as squsxes, hexagons,
ftc., according to the space left round the imrnst which first began to
form its cell. Under these cells the females deposit their eggs, which
after a certain period are hatched, and the young ones eat their way
out." (Kirby and Spenoe, voL iv. p. 142.)
C, adonddfwnt the Mealy Bug, is an insect well known in our hot-
housea It attacks vines, pineapples, and other plants. It is of a
reddish colour, and is covered with a white mealy powdery-looking
substance — Whence its name.
C. Vitia, the Vine-Scale, is another spedes which does great mischier
to vines on account of the rapidity with which it is propagated.
C. Jleaperidum is found on orange-trees. C, Teatmdo, the Turtie-
Scale, is found on stove-plants exposed to a high^ temperature.^
Many ways are recommended of getting rid of these insects.
Brualung them off with cold or lukewarm water, when plants
will bear it, is a good plan. Painting with spirits of turpentine, ot
exposiug them to the fumes of turpentine; or tobacco, or sulphur
has also been found effectuaL
COCCINELLA. [TBiMnA.]
COCCOLITE, a general name fbr grRnular varieties of PfroxnM,
[Ptbozbnb.]
43 COCCOLOBA.
COCCO'LOBA, ft geouB of Plants belonging to the natural order
Polt/gonacBX. It haa a Gparted oalfi, ereDtoBlly becoming succu-
lent ; the fiUmenta 6, uuert«il into the bosa of ihe ca1;i, and farming
a short ring by their unioQ ; tLe iitjl« S ; atigma limple ; the nut
l-seeded, bony, oovared with the fucculent enlarged calyx; the
nmbryo in Vbe middle of the albumen.
C. wifera, Sea-Side Qrape, has cordate ronndiah ahining leavea.
It is a tree 20 feet in he%ht^ intli fleiuose branchea. The leavea
are very beautiful, being of a full bright gloisj green colour, i*tth
the pnncipal nerves of a deep red. As the fruit advances to maturity
it becomes surrounded by the succulent perianth, which forms an
obovate reddish purple berry, not unlike a small pear. The nut in
the inside is roundish, very acute, 3-lobed at the base, and attached
by the centre. The embryo has foliaceoos cotyledons. The leaves,
wood, and bark of this plant are powerfully astringent, and a
decoction of them is evaporated to form the Bubatanoe caJled Jamaica
Kino, The af!trin|;enc7 depends on the presence of taimin, but there
is in addition present in the wood a red colouiing-matter which is
used OS a dye. The wood is sltn valued for oabinet-worfc. The fruit
is eatable, and is exposed for sale in the West Indian markets, but is
not valued much. It is a native of the sea-oossta of most of the
West Indian Islands and the adjoining shares of Araerica. Then
are several oIlieT species of Ooccoloia natives of the West Indies.
They are all of tliem eveigreen-tiees. They grow freely in a light
loamy soil, and ripened cuttings taken oETat the joint and placed under
ahand-glassiaapot of sand will root (reely. Theyreqi" ' —
coTsring, ftom Uie Old B«d-8andstons of Gamrie, Cromarty, Caitbneog,
and the Orkney Islands. (Agsssi&i)
COCCOTHRAUSTES, ■ geno* of Insessorial Birds bslonging to
the family Frinqillida. It has the following characters : — Be«k
conical, very thidc at the base, tapering nraidh to the point ; culmen
rounded ; the commissure slightly aiehad ; lower mandible nearly
OS large m the upper, its cutting edges inflected, and shutting within
those of the □pper. Nostrila banl, lateral, oblique, oval, nearly
hidden by the ahort feoUien at Qie base of the b«k Wings long,
ratlier powerful, the second and third quiU-feallierB of nearly equal
length and rathra longer than the first. Legs with the taim short,
not eiceediog the length of ibe middle toe, the outer toe longer than
the middle one ; claws sharp and curved, the hind-toe and claw broad
and strong. Tul short and more or less forked.
C. vtUgarit. the Hawanch, Haw Qrosbeak, Orosbeak, of the
English; Oylflnbraff of the Welsh; Le Giosbec and Finson
Boyol of the French ; Prog^one, Frocdone; Froeoue, Frisone,
Friggioue, of the Italians ; Kembeisser, Elrsch EembeisBeT, Kersch-
fink, Nusbeiseor, of tlie Oermans; App^-Yink of Oia NetherUDdos;
Loxia (hemthraiutei of Linntsus; FrmgiUa CWcatinniffet of
Temminck; Cocatthrmuta vulgarit of Briffion.
It has the rump, head, and cheeks, red-brown; edging round the
bill, space between tbat and the crye, a line beyond the eye and throat,
deep black; a lat^ ash-coloured ooUor just below the nape; back
and greater port of the wings deep brown, but there is an oblique
white stripe upon the wing, and beyond it a oonsIdeiKble space of a
light whitikh colour going o7 into chestnut ; secondary quills as if
out off squars at tlie ends, or, as Edvnuds si^ with justice, like the
figuiea of some of the ancient battie-axes, glossed with rioh blue, lees
conspicuous in the female; tell-ttethers whita within, of a blsc^ish-
brown on the external borba ; lower parte of the bird vinous-red ; Iris
pale red (according to Temminck); feet and biU gn^ish-brown.
Length seven indies.
ifbs female is generally like the male, but with the oolauis much
less brilliant.
The young of the year before the moult ore very dififarent from the
adulta and old birds. Throat yellow ; &ce, cheeks, and summit of
the head dirty yellowish ; lower ports white or whitosh ; iddee marked
with small trown streaks, with which all the featheie are terminated.
As the young bird advances in age some red vinous fbathere appear
disposed irregularly upon the belly; the upper parts are of a
toniished brown, spotted with dirty yellowish ; bill whitjsh brown,
except at the point, where it is deep brown. (Temminck.)
Mr. Gould ('Birds of Europe') says that In the male the beak and
feet in winter are of a delicate flesh-brown, the farmer beooming in
chestnut-brown. The rest of the description does not dffibr much
from H. Temminck's.
Varietie& — White, yellovrish, or grayish. Wings and tiJl often
white. Plumage often vari^ated with white feathers.
Food, Habits, Reproduction, Ac — Hard seeds and kernels form the
principal food of the Qrosbeak, but we have seen it feeding on the
bemce of the hawthorn (whenoe its name), and shot it when eo
employed; so that it is probable that the soft part of fjruits is not
disagreeable to it, although Uie bill ia evidently farmed for cracking
the stony kem^. Willughby states that it broaks the stones of
cherries, and even of olives, with expedition. The stomach of one
ivhich he dissected in the month of December was full of the stones
of holly-bemea. The majority of ornithologists give the Hawfinch
credit for forming a
vegetable fibres, witli .
But, according to Hr. Doubleday, who has thrown much light on ihe
history of this bird, and discovered it breeding in Epping Forest in
Hny and June, the nest, which is made in some instances in bushy
trees at the height of five or eix feet^ and in others near the top of
firs at an elevation of twenty or thirty feet, is remarkably shallow
in intensity, spotted and streaked with greenish-gray and brown.
Mr. Oould states that he has known the bird to breed near Windsor,
and a few other places ; b^ certainly nowhere so abundantly as on
the estate of W. Wells, Esq., at Rodieaf, near Penshurst, Kent This
gentlemaii informed Mr. Oould that he had, with the aid of a small
teleecope, counted at one time eighteen on his lawn.
Mr. Selby remarks that in the pairing sesaon it probably utters a
superior song, aa Montagu says that even in winter, during mild
weather, he has heard it aing aweetly in low and plaintive notm.
Distribution. — Plentiful in some districts of France ; permanent
and not uncommon in Itjdy ; common in Oermany, Sweden, and port
of BuBsia. In Mr. Selli^B ' niuitrations,' and indeed in meat other
English works, the Hawfinch is noticed aa an occssioiial visitant.
Dr. Latham says that " the hawfinch visits us chiefly in winter, but
one was shot in the summer months near Dortfocd, in Kent." He
goes on to remark that White records another instsjice at the soma
season, snd aaya that it hod the kernels of damsons in its stomach,
" These," continues Dr. Latham, " might possibly have bred here,
though we have no authority for its ever being the case." This
authority now exists in the observations of Mr. Doubleday. "The
hawfinch," nys Mr. Doubleday, " is not mlgraloiy, but remains with
us during the whole of the year." 'Thia observer sufflcientty
accounts for the rarity of ite appearance: — "Its >hy and retiring
habits leading it to choose the moat secluded places in the thickest
and mora remote parts of woods and forests, and when disturbed it
Invariably perches on the tallest tree in the neighbourhood."
Omsbesk {Coteot^auta tatgarii].
C. cUcrw, the Qreenflnch or Qreen {grosbeak ; Ghoabeo Yerdier of
the French ; Loxia Morit and Fringiiia cUoria of authors.
The male has the upper porta and breast yellowish-green ; the head
tinged with gray ; the edges of the wings, outer wsbe of primanr
quills, with the boaal part of the tail-featWa, yellow. Female with
the upper parts greenisn-brown ; the breast grayiah-brown ; the wings
and tail marked yellow, as In the mole. Young ainular to the femalt^
with foint brown streaks on ihe back.
This bird is common in all the oountries of Southern Europe, and
is found geneially in the oultdvated parb of Englajid, Ireland, and
Scotland. It remains in this country all the veor round, and
frequents gardens, shrubberies, orchards, small wooiu, and cultivated
lands. It feeds on gr^n, seeds, and insects. Its notes are haiell
and inharmonious. The eggs ara white tinged with blue, finm four
to six in number.
SLrrell, BrMA Birdt; MaceilUvisy, Mtumai of BriiiA BirtU.)
'CCULUS, a ^os of IMantA belonging to ihe natural oi4er
MenitptrvMeta, oonnsting of olimbers, whose leaves are usually more
or less heortehaped, and the flowers small, and either white or pale
green, in loose panicles or ncamea ; in most coses they an diosoious,
and ore always very minute. The distinguishing ohancten of the
genus ara: — eix > - ■ ■ ■ ......
} whorls, a corolla ^ 6 petal% 3 or
3, 6, (
nsnally powerfdl bitter febrifuges. OoeaUm cruptit, ■ twining
plant found m Sumatra and the Holuooas, with a iubOToIed or wsrted
stem, is employed by the Hataya for the cure of intermittent
fevers. Owmg to ita intense bittemees and twining habit it was
called Ftmit ftOvu by Rumf. Another plant, the ifeniipmnius
who illaB [t, itMp it in
M k iliomMliio.
0. viUottu, > pUut oommon in the hedges of BengiJ, with TftriabU
downy Ihth uiii aiilluy ■olituy fenule flowen, aucceeded by deep
purple berriei the dsaof peas, ii ■ Bpesiei of ootuddanbla importuice
to tag Hindoos. The juice of its npe berriea makes a good durable
bluish-purple ink, aooording to Roibuigli, who adds gome further
[lartlculars oonoamiiig its uses: — "A decoction of the &eah roots,
with a few heads of long pepper, in goata' milk, is adminiaterad for
rtiaumatlo and old renereal pains; it is rackoned heating, lazative,
and iudoriflc. The fresh lesTea taste simply berbsfeousj rubbed in
water they thleksn It Into s greeu jelly, which is sweetmed with
SURV, and drank, when fraah made, to (fte quantity of half a pint
twioa a dav, far the oure of heat of urine in gonorrhcea. If Buffered
to tUnd for a few minutes, Qxa gelatinaos or mucilaginous parts
•sparate, oontraot, and float in tlie centre, leKving the water clear,
like Madeira wins, and almost tasteless. Curry is made of the leareii^
forpeopla under a ooune of its roots, or jell^ of thelearea."
T'ha species most important to Europeans is ttut which produces
ths celsbratad Calumba Boot, Ooccuha palmatM, from wMch a
valuable bitter is procured. This plant is a native of Hoaambiqae
and Oibo, abounding in the thick forests that Dover the shores of
those oountrles, and sztendins inland for IS or 20 miles. The
AIMcani of Uieea parts call it Kalumb. It has a large fleshy deep
yellow root, divided into many irregular forks or fangs, which are
amputated by the collectors, cut into slices, strung on oords, and
hung to dry in the shade. The stem is oovered with a thick whitish-
green glandular fur ; the leaves are large, rounded, baart-shaped, and
deeply divided into &am t! to T shari^point«d lobes. The plant i>
now cultivated in the island of Mauritius.
QfdeylHf juAaiUu.
a, mile flower ; h, widsr side, ihewlBC »1^ j c, ituien ; 4, petal ; (, bractea.
The name given to this genus is that of a kind of seed importad
from the East Indies under the name of Coooulus Indious Berries,
which poneaa a powerful bitter poisonous principle, that, aooording
to Ooupil, exists principally in the kernel The plaiit is found in the
forests of Malabar, and when tnnsplanted to tlie Iratanui garden,
Croatia, grew in a few years so as to extend over a Urge mango-tr^e,
with a stout woody stem as thick as a man's wrist, oovered with
deeply cracked, spongy, ash-ooloured bsj^ The leaves were very
ezaouy eoidate, entire, obtuse, or amai^inate. of a hard texture,
shining on the upper Bur&oe, uid team 1 to 12 inchea long, by from
8 to S inches broad. This plant is the ifmitptrmum Coecuhu of
Linnnus, the Coectibu Mubtrotiu of De Candolle ; but according to
Heesia. Wight and Amott, it does not properiy belong to the latter
genus, haviog the stamens combined into a central oolumu and no
corolla. They call it J namiiia Ooccalia.
Dr. CbrisloBon reovmmendt "the medical jurist to make himself
COCHINEAL. w
well acquainted with the extamal characters of those berries,
because, beaidea being occasionally used in medicine, they are a
familiar poison for deatroying flsh, and have also been extensively
used Iiy brewers as a substitute for hops — an adultention which ia
prohilHtad in Britain by severe statutes." This fruit is a berried
drupe, varying in siae from that of a pea to that of a laurel (or bay)
bern; auba^boae, smaiginate, dark brown, opaque, rough, and
wrinkled ; the ext<nial integument, or husk, is vecj brittle ; within
is the seed or kernel, lunulate, oily, with a nauseous and intensely
bitter taste. The kernel contains about one part in the hundred of
Picrotoiia, or Heuispermia, as some term it. Upon this principle
its polBonoua properties depend. It seems to act b^ exhausting the
irritability of the heart, and if the doss be considerable ita &tal
effects are very speedily displayed. What renders it a moi« redoubt-
able sgeut ia Uie circumstance of ite leaving scaroely any trace of ita
ptqaeitoe on the aoats of the stomach. Ooeeihu IndtctiM is never used
mtemally in the praddoe of medicine, but an ointment formed of the
powdered berries ia ver; efBcaoiouB in some cutaneous disesses, such
as Porrigo CapUii and ,^|reatu Menti. It speedily allays the inflamma-
tory state ; but ite employment requirea gT«at ears. Creaaote will
probably supersede it in such oases.
Oa'wmia is the root of the CocailMipalxfuiiiia, a native of ths foreate
of the Bsat ooast of Africa, whence it is sent to Ceylon, and thence to
Europe. It occurs in the form of tnuiTarw sectioos, the bark of
which ia thick and easily separable ; the woody portion is spongy, of
a yellow colour, and when old much perforat«d by worms. The
odour is bintty aromatic, ths taste Utter and alightly acrid. It
contains much starch, a yellow asotised matter, a y^ow bitter
principle, IfBoea of a volatile oil, woody fibre, salte (chiefly of lima
and potassa), oxide of iron, and ailei. The active principle is Calum-
bina, which may be obtained either by alcohol or ether. As Calumba
□ontains nothing which can decompose the salte of iron it may be
given along with them. The powder is a good form : ths infusion
soon spoils, but is otherwise a very eioellent form ; a tincture or
extract retains the virtues, and keeps a loi^ time.
Other roote sie oft«n fraudulently subatitutad for Calumba. Soma
of these are supplied by America, athen by AMca. The American,
which is the moat common in England and the north of Europe, is
the root of the Fraura Waiitra (Idich.), a native of the marshes of
Carolina. It ma; be distinguished &om the true by ita whiter colour,
lighter texture, the presence of longitudinal pieces, and the taste
b^ng at first sweetish, and not nearly so bitter as genuine Calumba.
Chemical teste further sssist in diacrimiaating them : solutjon of
proto-sulphate or of permuriata of iron, does not trouble the tincturo
of tha teal, while it gives the false a dark gi«en colour ; the tinctura
of ths genuine yieldg with tincture of ^Ils a copious dirty gray
precmitate, but the false none. The substance of the true is rendered
blueb; lodina, Uie false brown. In large doses the spurious causes
vomiting, but the genuine allays that action.
BliccB of bryony root ara often employed to adulterate Calumba
C0CCD8. rCooom*.]
C0CCTZU8. [CoaoLiDJL]
COCHINEAL u extremely rich in the Snest red oolouring-matter,
and has been long employed in scarlet dyeing and In tha manufacture
of carmine. [Cobhiiib, m ABta asd Sc. Div.]
Cochineal has been aualyaed by Folletier and Caventou, and they
find that it contains : — 1, a oolouring-matter to which Oiey have
given the name of carmine, or oarminium ; 3, a peculiar animal
matter ; S, fatty matter which is soluble in ethar, and consiiting of
stearine, oleiue, and an odorous acid ; 4, phosphate of lime and of
potash, chloride of potassium, and carbonate of lime, and potash
oombinsd with an organic acid.
Caimininm was obtained by Felletier and Caventou bj digesting
Cochineal in ether; tieating the reddus repeatedly with boiling
alcohol, allowing it to cool ; treating the deposit formed with pure
alcohol, and then adding a volume equal to ite own of pure sulphuric
ether : a deposit of Corminium is thus formed.
Tha chief use of Cochineal is the dyeing of scarlet ; tha fine colour
which it yields is oonvortad to this tint by means of chloride of tin
usually oolUd Muriate of Tin, and by the clyer Tin Spirita.
The insect which constitutes Cochineal tbeds chieBy upon tbe
CbcfUi eoclimtiliftra and O. Bpuniia. [CooCID«.] The female insect
oiJy is collected. Several varieties are distinguished in commerce, and
have diBerent d(«reee of value attached to them, dependent chieSy upon
the different methods employed to kill and dry the insects. When
dried they rBHembie small grains scarcely so large as a p«ppei'<»m,
ovala, convex above, plane below, traneveraely furrowed, axtemally
btackiah-brovra, but as if dusted vrith a white powder, light, friable,
the internal substance consisting of extremely small gruns, obecurely
purple, but when roduoed to powder of a rich purple. Inodorous,
but with a bittersweet acrid taste. They import to wate'r or alcohol
by digestion an intensely red colour. Tha colouring principle ia
termed Carmine. Adulterations are effected either by mixing old
insecte oonoisting of the mere skin or grains artificially prepared with
Cochineal has hitherto bean employed mostly as a colouring
material either of tinctures or of other things, the nature of which it
€9
COCHLEABIA.
COCKATRICE.
50
ia wished to disguise ; but lately it has been stated to possess diuretic
and antispasmodic powers, and to be useful in pertussis, or hooping-
coueh. Its claim to this diaracter requires yet to be established by
further eyidenoe.
COCHLEAHIA (from Cochleare^ a spoon, the leaves of the species
being hollowed out like the bowl of a spoon), a genus of Plants
belonging to the natural order Crucifera, the sul>order PUurorhuea,
the ^be Alyuvnem, It has sessile ovate-globose or oblong silicles,
with ventricose very convex valves, with a prominent dorsal nerve ;
many seeds, not margined; the calyx equal at the base, spreading;
the petals entire; the stamens too^less. The species are annual or
perennial herbs, usually smooth and fleshy, but sometimes pubescent.
The flowers are mostly white.
One of the most common species of this genus, as formerly defined,
28 the common Horse-Radish {O, Armoracia). This species however
is now referred by some botanists to a new genus, Armoracick, and is
described by Babington, in his * Manual of British Botany,' as
A. rusUcmM. The genus Armoracia diflers from Cochlearia in its
globose pouches or silicles being destitute of a prominent dorsal
nerve. The Horse-Radish, though described in books on British
Botany, can scarcely be considered a native of Great Britain, aa the
wild specimens are evidently escapes from gardens.
C. officincUis, common Sourvy-^rass, has the radical leaves cordato,
reniform, stalked ; the stem-leaves sessile, oblong-sinuate, half
embracing the stem ; the pouch globose or ovate. It is a native of
Great Britcdn, in muddy places near the seaKK>a8K This plant varies
much in aize, and two or three varieties have been described. The
C. GroBfdandica of Smith and Withering appears to be nothing more
than a diminutive variety of this species. In France the Scurvy-
Grass is called Cranson Officinal ; in Germany Loffelkraut. When
fr^sh it has a peculiar smell and a bitter acrid taste, which are quite
lost by drying. The fresh plant is a stimulant, and possesses the
antiscorbutic virtues of the whole order. It has however a peculiar
reputetion in the disease caUed scurvy ; hence ite common name. It
is sometimes used as a salad. When cultivated the seeds should be
sown in July, in drills eight inches apart^ and when the plante are up
they should be thinned to about six inches apart. Those plante
whftsh are taken out may be placed iir new beds. They will all be fit
for use in the following spring.
C. Danica has the leaves all stalked, the radical ones cordate, some-
what lobed ; the stem-leaves 8-5-lobed, subdeltoid uppermost, mostly
shortly stalked ; the pouch roundish, elUpticaL It is found in Great
Britain, in a few places on the sea^<x>ast. It is a more abundant
native of the sean^aste of the north of Europe, and is a native of
Kamtehatka.
C. Anglica, English Scurvy-Grass, has the radical leaves stalked,
ovate-oblong, entire; the stem-leaves oblong, entire or toothed,
mostly sessile, the upper ones embracing ^e stem ; the pouch oval,
oblong veinedL It is a native of muddy sea-shores about the mouths
of rivers, especially in Great Britain ; but is found in Norway and
Lapland and other parts of Europe.
There are several other species of Co^learia described ; they are
however most of them insignificant plante, inhabitante of nortnem
climates. For the culture and medioil properties of C. Armoraeia
see Horss-Radish, in Arts and So. Diy.
COCHLICELLA. [Helioida]
COCHLICOPA. [Hblioid^J
COCHLIODUS, a genus of Placoid Fishes, from the Carboniferous
Limestone of Armagh and Bristol. (Agassiz.)
COCHLITOMA. [Hblicida]
COCHLODESMA. [Ptloridea.]
COCHLODINA. [Hblioida]
COCHLODONTA, [HBLicmiB.]
COCHLOGENA. [Helicidjb.]
COCHLOHYDRA. [Hblicida]
COCHLOSPERMUM, a genus of Plante placed by Lmdley in the
natural order CistacecB, found in Asia, Africa, and Soutii America.
Botaniste usually place it amongst the Theads (TemgtHimiacete) ; but
ite parietel plaoentee, acrisomerous flowers, and curved embryo lying
in the midst of albumen, seem fatal objections to that association.
C. Go89ypiwn is a large tree with downy shoots. Leaves 5-6 inches
long, 5-lobed ; ovary beneath on C7lin<hrical downy stalks. Panicle
terminal Flowers lai^ge, and bright yellow. The trunk yields the
gum Kuteera, which in the North-Westem Provinces of India is
substituted for Tragacanth.
C inaignt growb in Brazil on the plains in the western desert^ part of
the province of Minas Geraes, and also on the Catui^ges of Minas Novas.
The leaves are coriaceous, palmate, 5-lobed, the lobes folded together
coarsely and sharply double serrated, when full grown nearly smooth.
A decoction of the rooto is employed in internal pains, especially such
as result from falls or accidente ; it is also said to heed absoesses
already commenced. C, tinetorivm is used in cases of amenorrhoea,
and also as a yellow dye.
(Lindley, Flora Sfedica ; Lindley, VegetaibU Kingdom^
COCHLOSTYLA. [Hblicida]
COCK. [PHASlAiriD2B.1
COCK OF THE WOOD. rCAPEBOALL]
COCKATOO. [PsrrtJLOTDAj
RAY. HI3T. DIY. YOU IL
COCKATRICE, one of the names by which the Basilisk was known.
"Many opinions," says Dr. Thomas Browne, in his 'Pseudodoxia
Epidemica,' "ai'e passant concerning the basilisk, or little king of
serpents, commonly called the Cockatrice; some affirming, others
denying, moat doubting, the relations made hereof. .... That
such an animal there is, if we evade not the testimouy of Scripture
and human writers, we cannot safely deny." This is very true ; and
it is equally true that the alleged generation of the Basilisk or Cocka-
trice, and Uie powers attributed to it in ancient times, were the most
ridiculous fables.
Of Basilisks or Cockatrices there were said to be three, if not four
kinds. One species burned up whatever they approached; — a sort of
breathing upases, they made a desert wherever tney went, for every-
thing animal and vegeteble withered before them ; a second were a
kind of wandering Hedusa's heads, and their look, like Yathek's eye,
caused an instant horror, which was immediately followed by death * ;
the touch of a third caused the flesh to fall from the bones of the
wretohed animal with which they came in contact ; and a fourth, a
concentration of evil, was said to be produced from the eggs of
extremely old cocks {Ova centonkia)), hatohed under .toads or ser-
pente. There are authors who maintain that this parentage did not
belong exclusively to one kind only, but that it was the origin of the
whole infernal brood.
The Greek won> 'RturOdaKoi is often translated in Latin by the word
Regvlvs. When mention is made of these Basilisks or Cockatrices in
the Holy Scriptures, nothing appears to occur in the sacred volume
beyond words expressive of a very poisonous and deleterious serpent,
intended, in the opinion of many commentetors, to typify sin, misery,
destruction, God's judgments, and the principle of evil, or Anti-Christ.
Thus, in Psalm xcL 13, it is written — "Super aspidem et basilisciim
ambiUabis," which in the old quarto Bible, * imprinted at London by
Robert Barker, printer to the King's most excellent Majestic, 1615,'
is translated — " Thou shalt walke upon the lion and aspe ;" and in the
more modem editions, " Thou shalt tread upon the Hon and adder."
In the 'Booke of Common Prayer,' by the same printer (Robert
Barker), 1618, the passage stands, "Thou shalt goe upon tiie lion
and adder," and so in the more modem editions. Again (Proverbs
xxiiL 82), speaking of the abuse of the wine-cup, " Monlebit ut colu-
ber et sicut Regulus venena dififundet," which in the old edition above
alluded to is rendered, " In the end thereof, it will bite like a serpent
and hurt like a cockatrice; " and, in the modem version, " At the last
it biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder." So, Isaiah xiv. 29,
" Ne Iseteris," fta " de radice enim colubri egredietur Regulus," &c.,
in the old quarto, " Rejoyce not (thou whole Palestina) because the
rod of him that did beate Uiee is broken ; for out of y^ serpente roote
shal come forth a cockatrice, and the fruit thereof shall be a fiery
flying serpent:" and lix. 5, speaking of the wicked, "Ova aspidis
rumpunt et telas aranearum texunt ; qui comederit de ovis ejus morie-
tur, et quod fructum erit crumpet in Regulum :" in the old quarto,
** They hatch cockatrice egges, and weave the spiders webbe : he t^at
eateth of their egges dieth, and that which is trod upon breaketh out
into a serpent ;" which the commentetor tiius explains, " Whatsoever
Cometh from tliem is poison and bringeth death. They are profitable
to no purpose." The present edition reads, " They hateh cockatrice-
eggs, and weave the spider's-web : he that eateth of their eggs dieth,
and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper." Also Jeremiah
viii. 17, " Ecce ego mittam vobis serpentes Regulos," &c., which the
same old edition renders, '* For behold I will send serpents and cock-
atrices among you, which will not bee charmed : and they shall sting
you, saith the Lord ; " which the commentetor explains as follows :
" Go4 threateneth to send the Babylonians among them, who shall
utterly destroy them in such sort as by no meanes they shall escape."
The modem edition scarcely varies from the old quarto, except fti the
substitution of the word *bite* for 'sting.*
These Basilisks were called Kings of Serpente, because all other
dragons and snakoi, behaving like good subjecte, and wisely not wish-
ing either to be burnt up, or struck dead, or to have their flesh fall
from their bones, although they were in full feast upon the most
delicious prey, were supposed, the moment they heani the distant
hiss of their king, to turn tail in a ' sauve qui pent ' style, leaving the
sole enjoyment of the banquet to the royal monster.
Of the ancient profane writers, Aristotle, as might be expected,
says nothing aboiit the wonders of the Cockatrice ; but Pliny, who
dearly loved a fable, mentions the Basilisk more than once : thus
(* Hist Nat' book viii. c. 21, and book xxix. c. 4) he enters at length
into ite deadly attributes, and records the praises with which magi-
cians celebrate the efficacy of ite blood, which was considered an
admirable antidote agaiilst sorceiY (veneficia). Dioscorides, Galen,
Solinus, JSIian, and others, are eloquent upon Basilisks, as are Avi-
cenna, Grevinus, Scaliger, and many more.
Browne (Paeiidodoxia) is of opinion that what " we vulgarly call a
cockatrice, and wherein (but under a different name) we intend a
formal identity and adequate conception with the basilisk, is not the
basilisk of the anciente, whereof such wonders are delivered ; for this
* Lady Anne, in Shakapere's play of Biohard IIL, in answer to Biohard's
obaervatioa on her eyes, sajb— '
" Would they were baailiaka to strike ibee dead I '*
" COCKATBICE.
of ours is genenllj deicribed with lege, wingi, ■ serpeDtine and wind-
ing toil, uid > criat or comb lomeirlut like a oock ; but ths bamliiik
of slder tim« iru b propar kind of •erpent, Dot &boTe three polniB
lon^ u KimB accouDt ; uid differeni^ from other aapeuta by
wiTUiciiig hii head, uid •ome white nuriu or aoroiuuy spots upon
the cromi, ss all authentio writ«n Iutb delivered." The following is
Flinr's description ('Hiit. Nat' viiL 21). After stating that the
Builisk, like the beast Catoblepu, ilsjrs wilJi its nje, he proceeds : —
"The Cyreiuuc proiince prodacea bim of Uia gnatDesa of not more
thsn twelve fingers, and remarkable for a while ipot, like a, diadem,
on hii hssd. He drives away all serpents bv his hissiiig, Dor does he
im Ml his body like the rest by a multiplied fleiioo, but advances lofty
and upright (celsus et erectus In medio). He kills the shrubs, not
only by coated^ but by breathing on them, soorche* up the green
herb, and iplita the rocks : such power of evil is there in hTtn I(
was formerly behaved that if killed by a spear from on honelwck,
the power of the poison conducted Uirougb the weapon killed not
only the rider, but the hone also." To this Lnoan alladea in these
" Quid prodsn mlmi buUbetu ciuplde Himl
Truasotu t velor currlt per tela veDennm,
Inndllqn* miaau."
Snch a prodigy waa not likely to b« psnad over in die l^endi of
the saints. Aooordingly we find that a good man (vir quidnm Justus)
a fountain in the desert, suddenly beheld " '" "
related of the abbot 8i^ John, who, by prayor, alew a Basilisk
that In; hid in the bottom of a deep well, and nduced the monks of
a monastery built by him to the greatest distress for want of water.
IiBo IV., by a limiliLr piety, is said to have delivered Rome &om a
Basilisk whose breath afflicted the inhabitants witlx a terribia pesti-
lence in his pontificate.
Jonston enumerates the attribute! of tbe Basilisk in silence, tiU he
comes to its alleged power of annihilating wiUi the eye, wheu he sagely
remarks, " Intuitu interimere viz crediderim, quis enim primoa
vidiuiet ? " — " I would acareely believe that it killi with its look, for
who flnt could hsve seen it t" The woithy physiciaii was not awam
that those who went to bant the Basilisk of thia sort, took with
them a minor which reflected back the deadly glare upon its author,
and, by a kind of poetical justice, slew the Basilisk iriUl it* own
It is curious to observe that Browne, who treats moat of the fable*
about the Basilisk with contempt, ia still unable to leaist the story of
its killing with the eye. We think we can traoe a little of the sym-
pathetic theory maintained by Sir Kenelm Digby and othera, in the
fcllowing passage : " According to the doctrine of the andanta, men
still affirm that it killeth at a distance, that it poisoneth by the eye,
and by priority of vision. Now that deleterious it may be at some
distance, and deetructive without corporal contaction, what uncer-
tainty soever there be in the eflTect. ther« ia no improbability in the
relation. For if plsguei or pestilential atoms have been conveyed in
the air from difTerent regions ; if men at a distance have infected each
other ; if the shadows of some treea be noiioua ; if torpedoes deliver
their opium at a diatanoe, and stupify beyond themselves ; we cannot
reasonably den; that (beaidea our grois and restrained poisons,
requiring contiguity unto their actions) there may proceed from
aubtiUer seeds more agile emanations, which contemn tboae lawa, and
invade at a diatatioe unexpected. That this Tenenation diooteth Aom
the eye, and Qitt this w^ a *^ii«^ ma; emp(Haan, although thus
much be not agreed upon by auUion, some uapntmg it unto the
breajjli, others unto the bite, it is net a thing impoenbls ; for eysa
receive olliiasive impressions bom their objects, and may have innu-
ences dcrtruotiva to each other ; for the visible Bpecies of thioga abike
not our senses immaterially, but streaming in corporal raies, do carry
with them the qualitiea of the object from whence they flow, anil the
medium through which they paai. Thus, through a green or red
glasi, all things wa behold appear of the same colours ; thus, sore
eyes affect those which are sound, and themselves also by reflexion,
as will hsppen to an inflamed eye that beholds itself long in a glass :
thus is fascination made out ; and thus also it ia not impossible what
is affirmed of thia animal; the visible raies of their ejea carrying
forth the Bubtillest portion of their poison, which, received by the eye
of man or beast^ infscteth flnt the brain, and la from thence ooounu-
nioatvd unto the heart"
But if the author of the ' Inqniries into Vulgar and Common
Errors ' here shows something of the lingering lo^ with which moat
wen regard received prejudices, he makes amends b; declaring war
against the story of the mode of the Cockatrice's produotioiL " A*
for the generatioD," lays be, " of the bsMlisk, that it proeeedath from
a oock'»egg hatched under a toad or serpent, it is a oonceit as mon-
■troua aa Uie brood itself." Jonston, who aupears to rcfpud with a
proper horror most of the ne&rious prooeedingi of the Cockatrice,
treats tiiis part of ths aubjeot quite profeedonolly. " Quomodo,"
rsmonsttates the sage doctor of medicine, " formari a gallo intra
ovmo poisit cum utero deatituatnr non video." It ia aupposed that
this idea took its rise {mm an Egyptian tradition conoetning the
this; "for an opinion it wat of that nation that the ibis feeding upon
COCKATBICE.
food BO fnqainatas their oval) oonoeptiDEia, or
eggs within their bodies, that they sometimea csme forth in serpeutjns
sh^HB ; and tJierefbre the; alwaiea brake their ^g^ nor would they
endure the bird to sit upon them." (Bniwoe.) Biuitdsta Porta is of
opinion tliat if a hen's«gg be placed in a ditch full of serpent*, cor^
mption (tabes), arsenic, and other poisona, it will produce an animal
n<^OQB to the sight and touch ; at the same time he put* On expari-
mentolist on his guard, l»t in tiying to produce thia atdmaf ha
might (like EVankonstein) give birth to a croture that would do him
But what ms to atta^ this terrible and* unapproachable monster t
There is an old sa;ing that " ever;thing hath its enemy j " and the
Cockatrice quailed before the weoseL (Pliuy, Solinus, and othera)
The Basilisk might look daggers, the weasel cared not; — in he went
to Uis scratch. When it came to biting, the a&ir became more
•aiona ; but the waasd retired for a moment to eat some rue (which,
of eoDna^ was the only plant which the Basilisks could not wither,
and was always growing where they lay), returned to the charge, and
never left the enemy idl be lay stretched dead before Kini, So that
when men found out the den of a Basilisk, they had only to torn in a
weoael, and the thing was done. The monster, too, as if oonsooos of
the irregular way in wMoh ha entered the worid, was supposed to
have a great antipathy to a cod ; and well he mi^t ; for aa soon aa
he heard the cock crow, ha expired. Tiiia we learn from .£lian ; and
African travellcn, conBei|uentl;, carried with thero the * bird of
dawning ' aa a specific against Cockatrices.
The Basilisk was of some ute after death. Thoa wa read that its
mspended in the Temple of Apollo, and in private houses
ths sacred pbum.
The reader will, we apprehend, bj this time have " supped full " of
absurdities, bnt still we can iiriagme his anxie^ to know what a
Cookatrioe was like. We therefore subjoin from Aldroraodns, in
whose work he will find two others made out of skatea (Raia), a
couple of Sgnreo, one of which he seems to owe to Cardan, and the
other to Grevinus. In both it will be seen that ,
BntiHtem in *pK(m«ih 4;*i(« li
AsiiKMW, ite* St^yt, GlCTiol.
■ COCKCHAFER.
In thva outs will be seen bh exunple of the ' Bomak Poiton-
taque Theauk,' irhicli luTe vuiuhed bafot* Um light of fdMKe.
COCKROACH. The o
! for the Blaaa trimtalU.
a.]
_.._.. . [Cocoa]
COCOA-PLUH, the fruit of CKrywbafanM leaea. [Chbts
COCOON. [Bohbicida; Pufa.1
COCOS, K geauB of Pluita bBlongtoK to ths utuial order ot
Palms. It ii l£uB defined V Von Hutliu :— Both mala ud famale
flowen on the aame spadix. Spatbe aiinple ; flowan wnile. Hklee :
caljx S-leitTsd ; corolU of S petals ; Btamaiia 6 ; a rudiment of a
KtiL Famolaa ; 8 sepoU and S petals rolled together ; ovuy
elled ; itigmaa 3, leaBUe j drupe fibrous ; putamen wiOi three
Coooa-Hol Palm (Omi mteVtra).
0, lo'ver portion of tbo spfctlu opennl ; ^ bruuhlrtt with fnoida flomrs
the mils on the upper nd dtopprd off; i, fcmsle flover; ^ itunvn
porei at the base ; albumen hamogenaous, hoUow ; embryo next one
of the porea at the bB» ; stems either loft; or middle-oiad, alendar,
ringed, or cromied bj the basu of the petiolea, with a pale fibroua
vood ; leave* pimiAted ; the pinnis lanceolate or Hoear ; flowers pali
jretlow; drupe* broim, green, or orange-oolour, rather di7. The
" inua oontaina soToral spaciea.
Cocot nudfera. the common Cocoa-Nut Palm. This plant is found
I over the tropioai parts of the world, especially in the Tidnity of
Its principal range is said by Ur. HarsbsU U
and the 25th parallel of latitude, and in the equinoctial sons to an
altitude of about S900 feet. Its great importance to man has cnuaed
be cultivated wherever the climate ia favourable to ita growth ;
and accordingly it is sometimes found occupying eitensire tracts to
jxclusion of all other trees : the whole Biazilian coast from tha
San FraDcisoo to the bar of Mamangui^w, a distance of 280 miles,
Lth few breaks, thus occupied ; and it was estjmated that in the
year 1813 no fewer than 10,000,000 trees were growing on the south-
sat coast of Ceylon.
The Cocoa-Kut Palm rises like a slender column to t^m 60 to SO
feet in height ; its stem is of a soft fibrous natun, and is marked on
the outside by rings produced by the foil of ita lea'tes j two such
leaves are sud to drop off annually, and oonsequently the age of an
individual is equal to half the number of the annular acara of it4
stem. About a dozen or fifteen leaves, each from 12 to 11 feet long,
a the summit of the stem ; and as theae are not inaptly compared
to gigantic ostrich-feathers, they give the plant the air of an enormon*
toft of v^table plume*. A retioulatad substance, resembling coarse
cloth, envelops the base of each leaf-atslk, but falls off befora the leaf
is fiill grown. The Sowers proceed from within a large pointed apathe,
which always opens on the under side. In wet aeasoniT tha tree
blossoms every five or six weaka, so that there are geaerslij fr«sh
flowen and ripe nuts on the tree at the same time : Uieie are com-
monly from five to ' fifteen nut* In a bunch ; and in good soils a tree
may produce from eight to twelve bunohea, or ftom 80 to 100 nut*
inuBlly.
In hot oountriee the uses to which the Coeo(i-Nut Tree ia applicable
e innumerable The roots are chewed in place of the areca-nut;
gutters, drums, and the pasta of huts are formed trom the trunk ; the
youog buds are a delicate vegetable ; shade is furnished by the leaves
when growing, and after separation from ths tree their large siie and
hard texture render them mvsluable as thatch for cottages ; they are
moreover manufactured into baskets, buckets, laotems, articles of
head-diees, and even books, upon which writing is traced with an iron
stylus. Their asbea yield potash in abundance ; their midrib forms
oars i and brushes are formed by bruising the end of a leaf with a
portion of the midrib adhering to it.
Tha sap of the tree during the time of blosmming ascends in large
quantities: it is veiysweet, and Sows &«elj on the stem being punctured,
in CeyloD it is diuly collected by a clsas of people known as ' toddy-
drawara,' wh^ get up early to procure it for the use of the inhabitants.
If allowed to stand, this toddy ferments, and fonna palm-wine, from
which an ardent spirit called arrack is distilled. By further diatilW
tion sugar is procured from this spirit, which is called ' ga^^ghsu
sugar.' This sugar, mixed with lime, forms a powerful cement, which
lemsts moisture, endurea great solar heat, and will take a fine polish.
A farinaceous matter contained in the stem is a good substitute for
sago. The ripe fruit is a wholesome food, and the milk it contains is
husk, which has three flat sides le
the top in a blunt point. This peculiar form seems to be a special
provision for the disBemination of the sgecieB; growing, as it does, Dear
the shores of seas and rivers, its large seeds drop into the water, and
their ahape particularly adapts them for sailing; one edge, being down-
wards, fonns the keel, while the upper snrfaoe, being fiat, is acted upon
by the wind, and so propelled ^ng on the surface until it reaches
some coral reef or shore, where, whan stranded, it vegetates and rises
to be a magnificent palm, affording food and shelter in abundance.
The shell of the Cocoa-Nut is inclosed in a fibrous husk, which has
DOW become a considerable article of commerce on account of the
strength and durability of the fibre. Its preparation is veiy simple,
consisting of little more than beating the husks to separate the fibre*,
which are dir and but loosely held together, and afterwards drawing
them through a coaraa oouib or heckle, by which the refuse is cleaned
oat ; it is tbra spun into yarzis of different thickness, and is now
extensively manufactured in Europe into ropee and matting : it is also
used to stuff mattresses and cushions. In India it is very genenlly
used as cordage for vessels, and for fishing-nets ; its lightness recom-
mends it especially for the latter purpose. Ita durability is surprising ;
perhaps no other vegetablfrfibre will resist so long the action of altei-
nate dryness and moisture. The hair-like fibre is made also into
scrubbing-brushes ; and the poorer classes in many places use the
entire husk for the same purpose. The imports of cocoa-nut yam
sod rope into England are greatly increasing . in the year 18E1 (as
Dearly as can be asoertained) 10,661 tons were brought into Liver-
pool from Ceylon and Bombay. The oil of the Cocoa-Nut is valuable
as an export : it is used lan^ely in Europe for burning, in the manu-
facture of torches, and in the composition of pharmaceutical prepan-
tiona. Mixed with dammar (the resin of Skoria Tobvila), it forms ths
substance used in India for payiug the seams of boats and ships.
(0 COFFEA.
■roniBtic nimuiBted mlsatanoe to ■ nutmeg. If U a BecMtioD foimed
iu the interior of the leail, and oDTelaping the embryo plant, for
whoBe anppoit it ia destined whm it fint begjmi to germlDnte; it
coDititutea the principal part of the ue<], the embryo iUelf being A
minute body lying in a cavity at one end of the albumen. Unakilfiil
obserren are often unable to find the embiyo ; but it may readily be
seen by the following ainiple means r— Take a new aampla of amall
fine unroasted Mooha cofrea> and throw it into boiling water ; the
embryo will, after a httle while, be expelled with foroe from the
albumen in a maiority of cosea.
The genua Cogta is known among Cinchonaceoua Plants by haring
a tubulaT corolla, with four or five ipreadiog diviiiona ; itameni
ariaing from the naked throat of the corolla, and either extending
beyond it or incloaed withic it ; and a succulent berry containing two
cells lined with a cartilaginous membrane, of the texture of parch-
ment, in eaoh of which cella there is a single seed, convex at the
back and deeply furrowed in front, in conaequence of the albumen
being rolled inwards.
Coffia AnJnca ia an evergreen ihrub, with oval shining wavr
sharp-pointed leaves, white fragrant Gve-cleft clustered corollas with
Erojecting antheia. and oblong pulpy berries, which are at first of a
right red, but afterwards become purple. It is stattid by If iebuhr
to have been brought from Abyssinia to Yemen by the Ar«bs from a
country similar to their own plains and mountains. By that people
it has for ages been cultivated in the hilly range of Jabal, in a headthy
temperate climate, watered by frequent rains, and abounding in wells
and watfiT-tanks. Here the plants are grown in grounds that are
Continually irrigated, and in aoU from one to one and a half foot deep.
Among the plantationB are intenperaed various kinds of trees, whose
shadebas a beneficial effect upon the coSba-bushee. When in Sower,
they diffuse a most delicious fragrance, in the midst of which the natives
fix their habitations. The fruit begins to ripen in February: and
when the seeds are prepared, they are oonveyed to the city of Beit el
Faldh, whence part goes to Hocha, and another portion to Hodeida
and Loheia, whense it finds its way to Djedda and Snes for the
Turkish and Europesji madeU.
Ihs •anu 1 /, nnbrfo.
ttiehoMS of soil in the Weat Indies has been thought to be the cause
of the inferior quality of coffee grown in that part of the world, and
to the SBppoaed dryness of Yemen has been ascribed the excellence
of Hocha coffee. But it has been shown that the Arabs counteract
the effect of an; dirness in the ur by abundant irrigation ; and that
moreover it is not m the Tehama or dry parts of the country that it
is cultivated, but on hill-aides, where the temperature is mudi lower,
and when it laina daily for four months in the year.
COLCBICACG£ rt
The seed of Coffea Jro&ica conaisla of much homy albumen, and a
peculiar principle or alkaloid, termed CaSeiiMi, which oootaiu more
nitrogen than anyothsr known vegetable lubalance. Theaeed is osed
in a raw stitte in medicine, and, when roasted, both as a medieiDe and
still more extensively as an article of diet. The coSeHilant begins to
produce frnit when two or two and a half years old ; but the quality
of the seeds from young stems is not ao good as that from stems four
or five years old. The aixe and oolonr at the bean (as the inner part
of the seed ii called) vary oonsidenbly, those from the West Inilifs
bong larger than thoae tiata tiie East, Huch more depends upon the
manner of roasting and making the coffee, than upon the qunlity of
the beau. The supariori^ of French coffee, in the prepustion of
which little or no Hocha coffee is used, proves this position. Beans
of a good quality are hard and heavy, sink quickly in water, are of a
light yellowish-green oolour, not diaooloursd or black, and poeeoua the
odour of eoffse, which Uiongh faint is peculiar, and are free fttnn any
damp smelL Beans recently oollected, or only two or three montltt
from the tree, are not so good as those about a year old ; when older
than this Ihev become deteriomled. From the analyns of Segnln and
SnhrOder, coffee oonsista of ooffee-bitter (impure offdne), lolid fat,
resin, a little aromatio principle, gum, albumen (this albumen, accord-
ing to Beguin, nnitea with the jcUow coffee-hitter, and fonns t, greeo).
The taste of rmw imB^ is somewhat sweetie ; but the application
of heat in the process of roasting prodoces important ohangea.
The bean increasai to nearly twice the original atae, while it loses
about one third of its weight : a powerful and agreeable odour is
evolved, and a laije quantity of empyreumatic oil, which ^pe«rs in
small drops on the surface, is formed along with a bitter prindpli^
probably by an alteration in the caffeine, and of the saodiarlne matter.
The roaeting should take plaoe in a close revolving iron cylinder, over
a clear but moderate fire, and should not be earned too &r : when
the beans have aoqnired a light cheetnut colour, the roastins should
be diaoontinued. The beans are then to be cooled quicUyby being
toned up into the air, and the grinding, or rather rough pounding,
should be performed in a covered mortar or milL The drink ahould
be prepared from it as soon as possible, by infusion, which is pnftr-
able, unless some apparatus be employed by which a kind of decoction
is made in a close vessel Abonthalfanonnoe of ooflee powder should
be used fbr erety eight ounces (half a pint) of water. Id Britain the
roasting is generally earned too (ar ; and ika subvqnsnt parts of die
proceaa, instead of being perfonned immediately, are ofUm postponed
for days or even WMU, by which the aroma is diaipated : when
made the liquid is generally deficient in strength and cleamev. Ths
employment of white of egg or flsh-skin for clarification is decidedly
objectionable : clearness is thus purchaaed, but at the expense of the
•trengtb.
The addition of milk (which should always be hot) and of sugar
heightens the nourishingqualities of this beverage, and in the morning
renders it a more subs^tial article for breakfast When taken after
dinner to promote digestion it should be without milk, and, where the
palate can be recoodled to it, vrithout sugar.
There is much uncertainty as to the first introduction of ooflbs
into the weatem parte of Europe. The Yenetians, who tnded with
the Levant, were probably the first to use it. We find it mentioned
in the year 1916 b^ Peter de la Yalle, and thirty yeui afler this some
gentlemen returmng from Constantinople to Haiseille brought with
them a supply of tlus luxury, together with the vessels required for
CoS^ was first introdnoed into England in the year 1653, fourteen
yean esrlter than the introduction of tea. The first ooSee-faouse was
opened in Oeoige Yard, Lombard Street, 1^ a Qreek named Paaque,
who was brought from Turkey by a merchant of ths name of
Edwards.
The adulterations of grauDd ooffee are very considersble ; the most
Important of these is chicory, a dork brown powder made from the
roasted roots of the CkiBoriiim Inlyiui. It is perfectly haimleaa, and
by some is thought to be an agreeable additioo to the coffee : it is not
however of sn much value, and should not therefore be added to the
coffee hy the dealer, but sold separately, aa that those who dodrato add
it may purchase it themselves. Tanous other seeds aro used eitfaor
as imitations or adulterations of coffee, such as Rye-Chick Peas (Ckh-
aritlinwn). Broom Seeds (Sparlum tcopariitm), the Yellow Water-Iris
(Irit pMOHtaturui), and the Dandelion root (LtimtodcK taraxacum).
It has been suggested to use the leaves of the coffee-plant in infusion
the same as those of the tea-plant, and it is said they form a very
agreeable beverage ; but the berries are too valuable in themselves to
permit of the trees being injured by the loss of their leaves, as they
would be were titers any demand for them as an article of diet.
For medical uses, trade, and cultivation, see CorFU, in Astb «jm
ScDiT.
COIX, a genus of Plants belonging to the natutsl order of Oraosesi
One of the species, C. Lachryma, has hard stony fruits, which are
known by the name of Job s Tears. These frmts ore supposed by
— ^' — '- be strengthening and diuretia
81
COLCHICUM.
COLEOPTERA.
es
COLCHICUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
MelarUhacece, It has a coloured funnel-shaped perianth, with a very
long subterranean slender tube, and a somewhat campanulate 6-parted
limb; 6 stamens inserted into the throat of the tube; a S-celled
ovary; numerous ovules in 2 or 4 rows; 8 long filiform styles;
stigmas somewhat clavate ; capsule 8-celled, S-partible, opening
inwardly; seeds numerous, roundish, with a shrivelled skin.
O. auttmndU, Meadow Saffron, is a plant with a solid bulb-like
rootstock, found wild in various parts of Europe, as well as in Great
Britain, and forming a gay carpet in the autumn in the fields, where
its lively purple croous-uke flowers spring up. Its under-ground
stems, or bulbs, as they are called, and its seeds, abound in an acrid
stimulating deleterious principle, which has been carefully examined
by modem chemists, and the plant forms an important article in the
Materia Medica, large quantities of both rootstooks and seeds being
annually consumed in the manufacture of Eau M^dicinale, and other
medicinal preparations. The rootstock is irregularly egg-eiiaped, and
covered with a dry brittle brown skin ; at its base it bears a bud,
which feeds upon the parent stock, exhausting and finally replacing
it every year. Its flowers are large, pale purple, and spring up in the
autumn witiiout leaves, forcing &emselves resdily through the soil,
and expanding just their orifice, together with the anthers and
stigmas, above the surfieuM of the soi^ while the tubular part with
the ovary and filaments, remains enveloped in membranous sheathing
spathes below the soiL Each stock produces six or eight of these
flowers. The stamens are six, the ovaries three, each with a long
thread-shaped style, and not adhering in any degree to the tube of
the flower. These are succeeded by three little follicles, which
slightly adhere to one another by their inner edge, and in the spring
are elevated above Uie soil by their lengthened footstalk. At this
time, too, the foliage makes its appearance in the form of an erect tuft
of broad, oblong, shining, sheathing leaves. Each follicle contains
several oblong seeds. It is found in the moist rich pastures of
England, and in various other countries of Europe.
Colchicum is so very like an autumn crocus that an inexperienced
observer might readily mistake the one for the other. They are
however to 1^ distinguished by the crocus having only three stamens,
one style, and an inferior ovary, while the Colchicum has six stamens,
three styles, and a superior ovary — distinctions of no little importance
when the poisonous qualities of Colchicum, in which the crocus does
not at all participate, are considered.
For medicinal purposes the rootstocks of Colchicum should be col-
lected at Midsummer, and they should be used immediately ; for at
that time the peculiar principles which they contain are in the
greatest state of concentration. If they are employed at a time when
the plant is in a state of growth, especially when it is coming into
flower, those principles are partly lost and decomposed by the growth
of the plant, and there is no certainty as to the quantity of Colchicine
that a given weight of the rootstocks will yield.
Other species of Colc^cum are cultivated for the sake of their
flowers, but they aro of no medicinal importance, and aro very badly
distinguished from each other by botanists.
Three difibrent parts of O. autumnale yield an active principle used
in medicine, but wey respectively contain it in the greatest mtensity
at different seasons of the year ; the cormus (incorrectly called root
or solid bulb) having it in perfection about June or July, the flowers
in September, and the seeds the following spring. The cormus and
seeds are most frequently employed in Britain ; but should the proper
period (Midsummer) for collecting the cormi be neglected, the flowers
may be substituted,' though they can only be put to immediate use,
as they do not keep well. The cormi are found at various depths
under ground ; when very deep they aro not so good, being the pro-
duce of old exhausted plants. Each cormus is about the size of a
hazel-nut or walnut, ovate or heartwdiaped, consisting of a white
fleshy succulent substance, which, when cut across, exhibits roundish
plates. It is somewhat flatter on one side, on which also may be dis-
covered a groove, in which is lodged the germ of the flowernitem of
the following year. The recent cormus has a nauseous radish-like
odour ; when dried, no odour ; the taste is sweetish-bitter, leaving an
acrid sensation in the throat.
The seeds, which should be collected in May, are small, globose,
about the size of a grain of millet, of an obscure fawn-colour, opaque,
raugh, and wrinkled, with a white hilum at the base, very hard,
tough, and difficult to reduce to powder. The relative proportions
of the constituent ingredients of the cormus differ greatly, according
to the season of the year when it is taken up for examination, as
Stolze's analyses demonstrate. The active principle of Colchicum
was long considered to be the same as that of Veratrum, and hence
called Veratria; but Geiger and Hesse have shown that it is different,
and have termed it ColcUcine. The seeds contain this principle, and
likewise some thick oiL Colchicum imparts its active principle
partially to water, but more so to acetic acid, proof spirit, and wine.
A sirup is sometimes formed of it^ but it does not keep wdL
COLE, COLESEED. rBRABSiCA.]
COLEOTTERA (ico\cdirTcpa), a name first applied by Aristotle
^' Hist. Anim.' i &c.), and now imiversally adopted, to designate one of
the orders into which Insects are divided, the species of which order
are commonly known by the name of Beetles
Nearly all true Insects, or those Annulose Animals which have six
legs, exhibit, in a more or less developed state, four wings, or mem-
bers, which, although they may not enable the animal to fiy, occupy
the same situation, and are analogous to those which in many insects
are true oigans of flight.
These members are modified in various ways to suit the habits of
the species or of the groups in general ; but in those insects whose
habits are of a nature not to require the power of flight they are very
seldom entirely wanting, being found either in a rudimentary state,
or modified in their structure so as to perform some other office. In
those instances where the wings are only rudimentary, we cannot
often assign any positive use for them ; we can only perceive that the
affinities of the individuals exercise an influence in these respects —
that is to say, those species which belong to groups where tne indi-
viduals generally possess perfect wings, wiB often possess these
members in a rudimentary state^ when from their habits they do
not require the power of flying. It appeared necessary to make
these few general remarks before proceeding to give the distin-
guishing characters of a Coleopterous Insect, in order that tiie
nature of these characters and the departures from them might be
understood ; for it ia difficult to give a strict definition of any group
of animals.
The insects, then, which constitute the order OoUoptera may be
characterised as having four wings, of which the two superior are not
suited to flight> but form a covering and protection to the two inferior,
and are of a hard and homy or parchment-like nature, and when
closed, their inner maxgins, which are straight, touch and form a
longitudinal suture {fig. 16, c); the inferior wings, when not in use,
are folded transversely under the superior, and are membranous.
From this character of having the wings in a sheath, the term
OoU(^tera was applied, it being composed of the two Groek words
KoAc^f, a sheath, and rrepd, wings. The superior wings, which form
the sheath, are generally called elytra.
The principal exceptions to this general rule are as follows : — those
beetles whicH have no under-wings, or have them in a rudimentary
state, as in Carabua eancelUztut, and those in which the elytra are
soldered together at the suture, in which case we believe no under
wings are ever found. Another species of Carahut {C. violaceiu) and
many among the ffeteromera afford examples of this exception. There
are several beetles in which the elytra do not close at the suture, and
in which the under-wings are not protected by them. Such is the
case in the genera SUarit, RipipJionu, and others, in which the wing-
cases, or elytra, are somewhat pointed ; and in the genus MolorchuB,
among the CerambycidcBf the wing-cases are very short, and the wings
are not folded beneath them when at rest. In the Staphylinidix l£e
wing-cases are also very short, but the under-wings, by a series of
folds, are, when not in use. entirely concealed beneath them; and
as in this tribe the elytra form a straight suture when closed, the
only exception consiBts in the greater number of folds in the under-
wings. *^
Numerous other exceptions might be noticed, but we shall merely
mention the genus Afeloe, where one elytron partly folds over the
other ; the families Lampyridce and Tdepkoridce, in which the elytra
are comparatively soft and flexible ; and the glow-worm, the female
of which beetle has neither elytra nor wings.
The larvae c^ Coleopterous Insects are generally composed of
thirteen distinct segments, the head included. They aro almost
always of an elongate cylindrical or slightly depressed form; the
body is often soft and fleshy, and of a white colour : in these the head
is always of a firmer texture, being of a homy nature. The principal
parts of the mouth are the same, as to number, as in the perfect
insect^ although the parts aro (as far as our observations go) always
differently formed. The head is furnished with two antennae, which
are generally minute, and composed of four joints ; and ocelli, or simple
eyes, are, on each side, situated near the base of the antenna. The
body is furnished with six legs, which are attached to the first three
segments, or those next the head, a pair to each : the legs are small
and usually terminated by a simple claw. Sometimes, in addition to
the ordinary legs, the larva is furnished with false legs (often termed
pro-legs) ; these are fieshy tuberoles which the animal can protrude
at pleasure, and are used to propel the body. Some larvae have only
two of these pro-legs, which are attached to the apex of the terminal
segment of the abdomen, or placed beneath that segment; and in
the larvae of the species of CtrambycidcB each segment of the body
is thickened in the middle both above and below : these parts the
animal has the power of protruding considerably, by which means it
is enabled to thrust itself forwards or backwards in the holes in
the trunks or boughs of trees which are formed by its feeding upon
the wood.
The larvae of groups (generally believed to be natural) very closely
resemble each other, though those of different groups are sufficiently
distinct ; hence a knowledge of the larvae is of great use in determin-
ing the natural affinities of species when their fSamilies or sections are
not well ascertained.
We select as an illustration of the principal characten of a Coleop-
terous larva, that of one of the LameUicomeSf a group which comprises
the common Cockchafer, and where the larvae generolly, if notalway^^
have their body bent under at the apex.
COLEOPT£BA.
Fig. 1, lArnoraColsivWrowluHtti ■.mtonlilia; t,Uti
d, numdibl* ; •, nuilla. F^. 3, F«P> (Uta oT tb* Hma Ijum
nitorml lengUi <^ tha pupn.
WeahaUi
IT proceed to the pup« «
le of Coleoptoroiu
■tate bj remoTing . .
open oval space : otheifl form
oomtmcted of paiticlaB of earth,
joined together by t, kind of web or glutJnouB BubBtanca. Wood-
feeding lorVEC, or Oioie that live in the tnmkii or bark of tress, for the
moBt part auimie the pupa state vithout each preparation.
Some luTS which feed upon phukta inclose thnnselTea in * sphe-
rical cocoon; others again siupend themaslTes b7 the'tul, and hang
from Ai leaf or stalk of the plant. In one instance We have known the
■nimal to aBimme the pupa state within the skin of the larra. The
pupse of ColeopterouB Insects are what is termed iocomplete, that ia,
■11 the parte of the perfect insect ore distioctly liaiUe, the legi,
antonnie, winge^ Ao-f being each inclosed in a separate sheath, iLd
not as in the pupa or cluTBaUs state of moths and bntterfliea, where
all the parte are eoldered together, or as in the pnpBS of the Eaniptera
(bug-tribe), or Orlhopttra (locust-tribe), in which stage the insect is
ective, aiid in some instances cannot be distinguished from the perfeot
insect. This character of inoompletenees in the pupa ia therefore
ona of great importance, and is generall; added to Uie deGnition of a
Coleopterous Insect, for there are no other insecta which, in tha pupa
■lata, are incomplete, and which in the imsgo state could be oon-
founded with the CoUoptira.
Having traced the beetle through the larva and pupa states, vre
arrive at the last or imago stato, tha perfeot ioaoot.
Beetles belong to the Manda>viata, which forms the first of the two
great sections into which Ineecte are divided : a section, the indivi-
duals of which are distinguished b7 their pcsseeaing distinct mandi-
bles; and as the insects of the order Calioptent possess the mandibles
and all other parte of the mouth so well developed, they have by
many Iwea placed at the head of the Insect-Tribe. We ims^ine,
however, that the reasons elated for so doing are not suffloienb
The anatomy of insecta is given mider the article Ihbecta. We shall
therefore at preaent con&ne ourselves to Uie external parts of a beetle,
and to those only which it is esaential to know, in order to understand
the description of tboaa insects.
When we look at a beetle, we perceive that it is oompond of three
distinct parts, the foremost of whioh is the head ; the next is tailed
the thorax; and the last the abdomen.
The head is furnished with two e^ea, two antenn«, and tha various
parte of the mouth, called the trophi. The eyes aie situated on each
aide of the head, and are generally prominent, and always convex
manee oomposed of an immense number of leuaes arranged oloeely
together, so that their interstices form hexsgons. These are techni-
csJij termed compound eyee, and are of a circular or oval form,
frequently kidney-shaped, and in some instances (as in the genus
TelToft among the Ctnanhycida) they are completely divided.
The antennn in Coleopterous Insects have their origin genenlly
near the eyes, and are situated for the most port either between them
or before them. They are generally composed of eleven Jointa ; in
many however this number cannot be traced, whiiat in soma few there
appear to be twelve. The form of the antentiES is extremely variable,
and will be best understood by an inspection of the following illus-
trations, among which will be found most of tlie more common forma,
and some of the more extraordinary : —
Fig. i represents the head (with one antenna atteched) of ona of the
OurcvlioBida, a large tribe of beetles, in which the antennie are what
is termed geniculate ; that is, they have the terminal jointa kneed, or
bent at an angle with the basal joint. In deecribing beetlea of this
tribe the antenna is generally divided into three parts. The long
basal joint (a) is called the scapus, the several following joints (6) are
tonned the funiculus, and the terminal jointa which form the nob
(c) clavB. Figi. S and 12repreBent antennsa which are tonned capitate,
or which have the terminal joint or jotnte suddenly enlarged and
forming a knob. When the knob exhibits distinct articulatioiis {fg. G),
the Hutenna is tenosd capitate with perfoliate knob ; and whan the
COLEOPTERA. M
knob does not exhibit articulations, or is composed of a single joint,
it is said to be capitate with solid knob. Examplca of the former
will be foond in the genns JVecrepAonu, and of the Utter in the genu*
Monotoma. Fig. 9 represents on antenna which becomea gradually
thicker towards the apex, and which is termed clavate. Fig. 7 is the
' mn of ona of a moat extraordinary group of beetlea, the Pauttid/r,
J of which insects have the knob of that member swollen or
infiat«d. Fig. 8 is an auriculato ant«ima, and is ao called from ita
having an eaivlike appendage at its base. This description of antenna
is found in the genera Pamut and Gyrintti. Fig. 6 represente the
antenna of the common Cockchafer {MttobnMa vtUgarit). This form
of antenna, whioh is termed lamellate, is fbund thniughout the
Immense tribe of beetle* called by Linnsius ScartA<nu, and which
ha* received the luune of Lanellitmitei from this peculiar ohaiacter.
It must be observed however that slight modiGcations are found.
Fiff. 10 is a figure of a serrate antenna. Antennai are ao called when
they hare the apex of the jointe widened, so as to resemble the t«th
of a saw. Examples may be found in the Eialtrida and Sapratida.
Pectinate antenna ify. 11) ore those in which the i^x of the joints
is produced on one aide, and which somewhat resemble the teeth of
a comb. There are many examples of this structure in the anteniue
of Iho Lampgrida, A:c, and there are some in whioh the jointe are
elongated on each aide : these are termed bipectinat& Fig. 13 is
what is called a fissate antenna (the jointe on one aide divided aa b;
incisures). This form of antenna is found in the genoi Xvcaau,
Fig. H repreeenta a very common form of antenna (where it is slender
and teperine gradually to the apex) ; it is tonned setaceoua, and most
of the Caraiida and Cerambycida will afford examplee. The antennai
termed Blifonn somewhat resemble the last, but the jointa are all of
equal thickneaa throughout. The Lut dettcriptioo of antemuB which
we shall notice ore those termed monilifcrm. {Fig. IS.) Here all tbs
joints are ova] or round, and resemble a necklaoe of beads. Examplta
are found in many of tha apociea of the section lltteronera.
We now come to the parte which constitute the mouth of a beetle ;
these, it is scarcely necessary to say, are situated in the fore part of
tha head : they consist of a labrum, or upper lip j two mandiblee, or
jaws; two moxillie, or undeHaws ; and a labium, or under hp. These
are the six principal parts. We shall however also notice the portions
called the mentum, or chin,'and the clypeus, since the; are frequently
mentioned in descriptjens.
The labrum ia a moveable piste, often on the same plane with the
fore part of the head, which it terminates, and generally covera the
l»se (at least) of the mandibles above ; hence it is often called the
upper lip, forming as it does the upper boundary of the mouth.
This portion, although of various forms, is less liable to variation
than most of the other parte of the mouth. The moet common fonn
perhaps is somewhat quadrate, or brooder than long, as in fig. 21, a.
Upon referring to the article CaRibub, it will be aer n that that
genus and some other closely-allied genera an sepanted chiefly on
account of the diffarence in tha form of this member. In one it ia
described as bilobate ; by this is meant that the labrum is notched in
the middle, so that the two side-pieces form lobes (Fig. 2S.) When
the labrum ia not thus notched, but presents on even anterior margin,
it is described as entire. In one ot the other Beuarm (iVocnisfa),
where the labrum is desoribed as trilobate, the only di^reooe
consiste in ite having two notches on the anterior parts, and is thm
separated as it were into three lobee.
as COLEOPTERA.
The olfpeuB ia the part to which Oie Ltbrum ii attached, and which
ia uiuallv on the lune plane with it The term olypetu will eeldom
be foaod in descriptiDnii, eioepting in giving the chantctera of tboee
beetle! which beloDX to the LatatUicarmt, a tribe in which this part
ia great!; developed (jl^t. IT and 18, d), and where the l^nim '
hidden beneath it.
Under the labnim the mandiblei (mandibalie) are dtuated. Tbcae,
oa their name implies, are the oisaiw of mandacatioD ; thejT move
horizontally, and an most comtnonlj of a ebape moie or ]em
approaching to a trian^ Their form howsTer vaiiee acooidiog to
the food of the ineeot.
Generally speaking, in bsetleB which feed upon vegetable sub-
stancts the Jawb ■» broad, obtuaelr pointed at the apex, and have
moreover ■ broad flat BUiface at their base (often with Uttls eharp
ridges), which pomewbat reeemblefl a molar tooth of herUvoroiu
quadrupeds. IPig- 21.) In thoae epeciea whose habiU are carnivo-
rous the jaws are longer and less stoat, have the apex acatelypointed,
and seveial sharp tooth-Iilce processea on their inner side. (I'ig. 20.)
Next in aucceasion follow the maxillie, or under jaws (^. 17, n, and
Jig. 22) : theae organs are situated beneath the mandibles, and, like
them, move honjsontallj. A t^picA] maxilla consists of several parte,
the priacipal of which are — the hinge (cardo), a piece situated at the
base of the maxilla (fig. 22, <f) ; the maxillarir palpua (j(jr. 22, a), an
ortiinilated oi^an generallj composed of four jointe ; Uie outer lobe
(lobuB superior), which in beetlee of camivoroua habits ia a two-jointed
process IJlg. 23, b) eituated between the maxillary palpos and the
inferior lobe (lobua inferior), which last portion oonsUtutes the imier
part cf the maxilla, and is often formed like the blade of a knife, snd
fiimiahed generally with a series of bristles or hairs on the inner edge.
(Fig. 22, c) The maxillm aeem to be used vdtb the labium in direct-
ing the food during mauducatiaD, and the bristles on the inner edge
appear to serve as a kind of etrainer through which the juioea are
pressed, for we cbserve that aeUd inbetancei are seldom ewallowed b;
insects in their imago state.
The labium, or under lip (fig. IT, A and g, and figi. 23 and 26), ia
a moveable organ which serves to close the mouth beneath, and ia
generall; divided b; a traosverae suture, in wMoh case the lower
portion oonatitutee the mentum, or chin. The tongue (fig. 23, e),
which may be considered as ■ portion of the labium, in Coleopterous
Inaecta, is usually situated at iht apex of that member, or emerging
from it. The labial palpi (Jig. 23, b, b, ani fig. IT,/) are two articu-
lated oigana osiially springing Sana the summit of the labium on
Having noff brieSy noticed the head and its parts, we come to the
thorax. On this portion it will be unnecessary to dwell : we need
only mention that the thorax in ineecta is composed of the three first
aegmenta of the body, which in the larva state are naually distinct ;
these are termed the prothorax, meeothorai, and motathoiai ; and it
generally happens that in the perfect insect one of (heee segmenta ia
greatly developed at the expeoae of the other two, particularly on
'the upper lurfsoeor the bod;; meh ia the caae in thaBeeUe Tribe,
RAT. am. Div. VOL. u.
COLEOPTERA. ee
where Uie firat portion or prvthorax (fig. 16, a) and the email plate
(fig. 16, b), which is a part of the meaothorax, are all that ia visible
ftoia above when the elytra are closed. Some few entomologista,
therefore, in describing Beetles, call the part (fig. 16, a) the protborax,
but it is most oommODly called the thorax. The small plate (fig. Ifl, i]
above referred to ia called the scutellum, and is uaually of a trianguhir
To the thorax are attached the legs and wings : the anterior pair
of lege are attached to the prothorax ; to the maiothorai the inter-
mediate pair of legii and the anterior pair of winge, or elytra, as they
are termed in the CoUofttra; and to the metathorax the posterior
pur of legs and the hinder pair of wings. Of the winga enough haa
for the Dresanb.
a their habita. Thua in aome
^ -r ,■ others for Bwimming (fig. 38) ;
here they are very broad and dat : in others agun their atructure ia
Boited to burrowing habita 0^, 29) ; and fig. 30 reprasenta the hind
lag of a beetle, which haa the power of leaping to a great distuioe,
where the thigh ia vary larger
A leg may be divided into five principal parta : the coxa, cr hip
{otfigi, 27 and 26), which is the flrat joint, or Uiat joined to the body,
where it playa in a aocket ; the next part, or aeoond joint of the 1^,
ia the trochanter (b, figt. 27, 28, and 29) ; the third is the femur, or
thigh (n, figt. 2T, 26, and 29} ; the fourth joint is called the tibia, or
shank (d, figi. 2T, 23, and 29) ; the fifth and last part is the tareus (t,
figt. 2T, 38, and 39) : this put in a great portion>of the Coleopteroua
Inaecta ii compoaed of five jainta ; in many a leaser number is found,
but in ncme do they exceed five : the last joint of the tareus is uaually
tenoinated by two hooked claws called unguiculi (g, fig. 27), and the
rt of tike tjbia ia fumiahed generally with two atnight apinea called
cricaria(/,/in.2Tand2S}.
Aa regards the clsssification of the CoUopttra, aa well as of inaecta
in general, in almost every work which treats of the subject, a new
meUiod ia proposed. We shall content ouraeives however with
noticing two — that which is moet oommonly adopted on the conti-
nent, and that which ia followed by moat entomologiets of our own
country : the former ia the method proposed by I^treille, and tha
Utter by Btepheni.
In the classifiostion of the CeUofttra, published by JCr. Stepbena
fn his ' Syatematic Catalogue of Britdah Inaecta,' the varioua aectiona
and Bubtections are aa follows : —
BeeLl. Adtphagii.
" ■ " ■ 1. Ottdephaga,
2. Bydradtphaga.
8. Philhi/iirida.
t. Hcrrophaga.
Sect 2. ChOagnaUtotaorpha.
Sab-Seot. 1. Clanctima.
2. ZoffieUKomca.
8. Plenum.
4. Mcdacodtrva.
Order, OaUopUra.
BtipiiiUhomorplui.
' 1. SMiHitopkara.
2. Longieonta.
Sub-Sect. I
2. Oy'dica.
8. ZWfwri
Sect S. f cteranem.
Sect fl. Brachdtlra.
Saotion 1. Ptntatntra, inolndlng all those Beetlaa which have five
joints to their taraL
Section 2. Eiteromera, Beetles with five joinla to the tarai of the
two anterior pairs of 1(^ and four to thooa
of the posterior pair.
Section \ T^Tomera, Beetlea with only four diatinct jointa to all
the taraL
Section 4. IMmeri, Beetlea with only tliree distinct jcnnts to Uis
opuuon b
the value of certain groups. The TWowH, aocordiog to Latreille, fa
of the four gr«at aectiona, whilst Hr. Stephen* makea tha
LatndSe'a At
it equal unpmtanoa witlt
k grtmi number of iiuecti poBseaaiiig certain characters ui conusaa,
but it often happens that we cannot asoertain what influence these
chancten have on the habits and economy of the imiiTiiluats. In such
instances, the moit ooireot waj psrhapg would be to judge of the
Talne of a character from its conatanc; ; or, in other words, to con-
sider that character of moat importance, aa ragards claaaificatioD,
which Is found in the greateat number of apeciei, theae speciaa
agreeing more or leas in aome olJier points.
In all groups of animals then arahowerer certain tjpical chatacters
to which all the speoies approach more or leas, and which perhaps the
greater portion aotuallj poaaaBS. The typical charaoters of a group,
and the departures from them, ought not therefore to be selected for
conatructing natural and equivalent groups. In the CoUopltra, for
instance, the typical (truoture is to possess five joints to tjie tarai ;
Lalfeille's firat seotion (the Penlam^ra) consequently oompriaea at
least half the species and seTeral distinct groups, each of which is
equivalent to one of his other sections.
It appeaia to us, being guided by the points abore mentioned, that
the Older CUcopfera contains the thirtsen fallowing distinct sectiona,
and that Latreille'B groupa are not natural : —
All the Tani with file jointa.
Section 1. OtodtiAaga, H'Leay. ^
2. Hydradtjihaga, H'Leay.
8. SraeMylra, LatreiUe.
4. Nccnipliaga, M'Leay.
C Pa^itcomti, Latraille.
6. LaneliKOTTiM, Latreills.
7. 3ltntoxi, Latreills.
8. MiUacodtrmi, Latreille.
five Joint* to the Tusi of the two antenor pair* of legs, and four to
the posterior pair.
9. BtUromtra, Latreille.
All the Tarsi with four joints.
10. AAyneqUtoro, Latreille.
IL Lomtoriut, latreille.
12. Oydiea, Latreille.
All the T^isi with three jointa.
IS. Trmtri, Latreille.
The number of species of Beetles in sxistenoe may probably amount
to between 30,000 and 10,000.
The principal works on the Ooltopltra are as follows : — Fabricius
g. C), ' Systema Eleutheratorum ;* OUvier (A. T.), ' Entomolo^e, ou
istoire Naturelle dea Insectes,' &ve vols. foLo, wiUi coloured pjates ;
Paykul (QustaTos), ' Fauna Suedea,' three vols. ; QyUanhal (L.),
' Insecta Suedoa ;' Schtenherr (G. J-), ' Qenera et Species Curculioni'
dum j' Dejean, * Species Oi5n^ral des Col4optferea ; fEve volumea of
this work are publiahod, and contain deacriptions of the genera and
^edes of the Carainda and Gicindilida. Besides these, the works of
dermar, UliKer, Sturm, Knoch, and Duftachmid may be conaultei! ;
and the (Mcoptera of our own country will be found described in
Stephens's ' Ulustratioua uf British Entomology.' The works also of
Curtis, Kirby and Speaoe, Westwood, Newman, and the Tranaactions
of the T'""r'" and Entomological SuciBtiee, may be consulted with
COL^L JTBOcmLiDAl
COLLEUACG^ an order in the Liohenal Alliance proposed b;
Dr. Lindley, having the following chaiaoten :^Nuoleus bearing asci ;
thallus homogeneous, gelatinous, or oartilaginoua. Dr. Lindley has
given no arrangement of the genera and species of this order in his
' VegeUble Kingdom.' [Lie ■"
COLLO'MLA (from ititAAa, ,
natural order PoUmtmiacea.
COLLO'HIA (from KitAAo, glue), a genua of Plants belonging to the
natural order Polemoniaceir. It has a oampanulate cslji, S^left or
somewhat 6-parted, the lobes lanoeolate or linear, equa^ entire ; the
corolla salver-shaped, with a slender eiserted tube, and a spreading
6-parted limb ; the aegmenta oblong, entire ; the stamena inserted
towards the middle of the tube ; the anthen ovate-rouudiah ; the
cells of the capsule 1-2-seeded. The species are annual herbs, with
alternate leaves and dense heada of flowera. They are all nattvea of
C. Imearu is an erect branched plant, clothed with glandolai burs ;
the leaves ovate-lanceolatc^ qulta entdre, opaque, reniform, the upp^
ones downy beneath ; the calyx cup-shaped, S-parted ; corolla more
than twioe as lon^ as the otuyi; the cells of the capsule 1-seeded.
This plant Is a native of North America, from Lake Winnepog to the
western ocean. The corolla has a reddish tube and a rose-coloured
limb. The seeds of this as well as the other species are covered with
a testa, which is oompoaed of a spiral tiasue held together by inspissated
mucus. On the seeds being placed in water the gum of the mucus is
dissolved, and the spiral fibres start up on the surface of the seed.
The species of cdUmia are showy pUuits, and may be eaaily cnlti-
ffted in any common garden soiL The seeds should be sown in an
ffprnttorderin spring.
(O^ IHiAlaMylpnu Flaall.)
C0L0BU8. «s
COLLOFHORA, a genua of PUnta belongiag to the natuivl order
Apotynacea. One of the spedee, C tUilu, palda oaoutchou^ or a
substance analogous to it '
COLLUKICINCLA. [Lawad*.]
COLLUBIO. [LaaiAD*!
CO'LOBUS, a genus of Quadnuoanoua ifammaZta (Cheiropeds of
Mr. Ogilby) established by Illiger and adopted by M, Qeo&oy. The
latter places the genus in the group of SingssCatarrhina, or Monkeys
of the Old Continent ; a group distinguished by having their noatrila
separated bv a very thin partition, and by poaaeaaing five molar teeth
o[Jt on each aide of the two jawa,
Ths genus has the following characters : — Fatoal anf^e from 4 0 to
46 d^reea ; muzale abort; face naked; body elongated and small;
extremities slender; the anterior hands deprived of a thumb; the
fingers rather short ; the posterior thumb very distant &om the
fingers, snd placed veiT much baekwaids ; tail longer than the body,
snuil], and tufted at the end ; cheek-pouchea ; and calloaitie* on the
buttocks.
The CoMii, which are supposed to be inhabitanta of the Coast of
Guinea, seem to be in Uie Old World the repreaentativea of .^Ufe),
whose locality is South America.
C. pciycoDKU, Ooo&oy, is the iSimia palyconum of Schreber ; the
^tniia comota of Shaw ; the Quanon h Camail of Bufibn ; and the
Full Bottom of Pennant It is a very handsome spedee. The head
and upper part of the body are covered with hair, falling over the
shoulders and forming a kind of hood and pelerine, from whence it
derives the name given to it by Buffon, while the resemblance of this
chsielure to a wig determined Pennant to give it the English name
above recorded. This ornament is compooad of aoating hiura, which
are yellow miogled with blwik ; the face is brown, and the rest of
ths body is covered with very short close hair of a jet-block, a oolour
which seta off the snow-white tail, which is much longer than the
body and not prehenole. In this last particular, in the posaeasion of-
cheek pouchea, and in other characters, it diffsra from ^t«l<i,- while
ia some points, and eepecially in the absence of the thumb in tha
anterior hands, it resemblea it much.
Poll Bottom {Oolntmi patyamiii).
It inhabila the forests of Sierra Leone, where the natives give i<
name of the ' King of the Monkeys ' (Roi dee Singes), apparently,
Desmarat, on account of the b«uty of its colours, and its ' can
which represents a sort of diadem. They attach great value t<
fur, of which they make ornaments, and they apply it to vai
purposes.
0. polt/eomoi, Schreber, with the bead and shoulders covered '
long coarse fiowing hair, of a dirty yellowish colour, mixed '
black ; body, arms, and legs of a fine glosay blackness, covered
short hsir ; tail of a snowy whiteness, witii very long hair at the
fomung a tufL (Pennant) Locality, SieriB Leone.
s;
«> COLOCASU.
C t'l'rtRtM, Ogilby, " with vary long gloea; black hur over the
whole body aod eitreroities, sod a long Bnowji-white tail, tufted at
the end;" described finm two impenect akins without haads or
hands. It is probable that this animal is onl; a Tsriety or idsatical
with C poiynnno*.
C. Gueraa, Biipp«Il, with the head, face, neck, bock, timba, and
basaJ half of the tail, covered with abort black hair ; the temploa,
chin, throat, and a
band over Uie ejres,
white ; Hie iddcs,
flanks from the
shouldcia downwards.
Sawing whit«,
hangs down on eacn
side like a, loose gia-
meDt ; the tip of the
tail tufted with dirty-
white. Locolitr, AbjB-
sinia. There u - ■"--
QeoflVoy. Crown
black 1 bock of & deep
bay colour ; outside
of the limbs black ;
cheeks, under part of
the body, and legs,
very bright bay; tail
black. Locality, Siem
C. fidiffinoiiu, CobAm
Smoky-blue above,
dirty yellowiah-gToy beneath; cheeks, throat, tail, and eitremitiei,
brick-red. (OgUhy.) Locality, the Oambis. Hr. Ogilby obaerrea
that the (ace is short, the head ronnd, and the whole form and habit
of the animal similar to those of the Semnopithcci. The teeth, he
adda, are of the usual form and number, and there are large and
very distinct cheek-pouches. "I was the more particular," says
ISt. Ogilby. " in making this last observation, because the organs in
questioii had not been previously recorded as existing in the Colobi,
aud because H. QeoBroy St. Hilaire, in bis valuable lectures, of which
it is a matter of great regret that so small a portion has been given
to the public, even doubts their existence." In the ' British Museum
Catalogue ' this species is given sa a synonym of the following ; —
C. Temminckii, Kuhl, " with the hands, face, and tail, purpUsh-red ;
restof the membera clear-red; belly reddish-yellow ; head, neck, back,
shoulders, and outer face of the thighs, UacL" Habitation unljiown.
Described from a specimen formerly in Bullock's Huseum, and now
in that of Leyden.
COLOCASIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Araeta. The species are excessively acrid ; the leaves of C. tttslaita
excite a violent salivation and biuning sensation in the mouth. Not-
withstanding this property many of the species are used as food by
the natives of the south of Europe. The leaves and roots of
C. acaltnta, C. Bimalam, C. antiquaram, and C nutenmata, under
the names of Cocoa-Nut, Eddoes, and Yams, when boiled or roasted,
are common articles of diet in hot countries. Whale Selds of
C. macrorhaa are coltivated in the South Sea Islands under the nc
-a or Kopeh roots. In the Himalayas the apeciea which is called
I.', aimalenru forma a chief portjon of the food of the Hill Tribes.
Medicinally the root is stimulant, diaphoretic, and expectorant. The
:io1e of the species are remarkable for containing a milky juice.
They are cultivated in Portugal, Greece, and Egypt.
COLOCYNTH. [Cucciaa.]
COLOy. The abmentary canal below the stomach is divided into
the small and great intestjnea. The former consist of the duodenum,
jejunum, and ileum ; the latter of the colon and rectum. The Colon
commencGE a little above the right groin, in the right iliac fossa
[Abdomen], in the form of a dilated pouch, which is called the caput
coli, or more commonly the ccccum.mim its blind rounded extremity.
The ileum opens obliquely into the left side of this pouch, its inner
or mucous membrane projecting so as to fbrm the Ubo-ciscbI valve,
which, permitting the cootents of the small intestine to pass into the
Colon, suffices to prevent tikeir return, except in peculiar casee of
diseased action. Near the some part of the ctecum opens also a
slender contorted intestine about two inches long, likewise blind,
which is called the appendix vermiformia, from its resemblance in
the human subject to a worm. The use of this appendsge is
unknown ; in some animals, as the sheep, it is much larger, and is
probably of more importance than in man. From the right iliac
region wa Colon passes upwards along the side to the under surface
of the liver. Hence it turns to the left, stretching over the upper
part of the bally just below and in front of the stomach, to which
It is oannected 1^ the common attachment of both organs to the
COLOPHONIA.
, a loose pendulous membrane, formed by a double fold of
the peritoneum, and spread like on aprao in front of the small intes-
tinea Having reached the opposite aide of the abdomen, the Colon
passes downwards to the left iliac fosea ; thence, taking two sudden
tuma to the right and downwards, it descends into the pelvia over
the last lumbar vertebra, and becomes continuous with uie rectum.
The double turn Just mentioned is the sigmoid Seiure ; the trans-
verse port is called
the areh of the Colon ;
and the ascending and
descending or lateral
parts, as they lie im-
mediately over the
loins, are called the
right and left lumbar
portions. The central
space thus nearly en-
circled by the Colon
is occupied by the
convoluted heap of
small intestines. The
length of the whole
intestinal canal is six
or seven times that
of the body in man,
the Colon constituting
about a fifth part. In
graminivorous animals
its length is proper-
tionably greater ; in
those which feed ez>
cluaively on flesh it is
The Colon is en-
Khtcu. veloped in the seroaa
membrane colled the
peritoneum, which forms the external covering of all the abdominal
viscera. [Abdoiibn,] This outer tunic passing entirely round it, meets
behind, and forms a duplicatnre called the mesocolon, which attaches
it, more loosely at the arch than at the rades, to the spine and loins, and
serves as a medium for the passage of nerves and vessels, and the
lodgment of absorbent glands. Between the peritoneal coat and the
interior mucous lining thars is a layer of muscular fibres, some of
which encircle the bowel in scattered bands, and serve to diminish its
calibre ; others, more rwulorly arranged in three distinct longitu-
dinal bands, contract its length ; and their combined actions, t^ing
place succesnvely in difieient parts of the intestine, but on the whole
Siropagoted from above downwards, agitate its contents backwards and
orwaMs, and urge them ultimately mto t*— — '
~ " lli blood
The Colon is amply supplied w
nddu ■
rell a
ilood -vessels, nerves, lymphatics,
■ "•-• '•■'■-cateB lie interior as
separated from the
blood SB being injurious or nseless. The canal is not smooth and
uniform like the small intestines, but bulges out between the bands
of muscular fibre into various prominences more or leas regular in
their form, in which the becee lodge for a time and become deprived
of much of their moisture as they ore rolled onwatdibylhaperuitaltia
action. Hence arises their lobiUated or globular form, more observable
in some of the lower animals, as the hone and sheep, than in man.
It is in tie Colon that the feces acquire their peculiar odour, which
is not perceived above the ileo-cowal valve. It is in this port of the
alimentaiy canal that the fluid port of the food is chiefly absorbed,
being no longer needed to keep the nutritive particles in suspenaion.
The lymphatjc vessels of the Colon are consegueutl* found distended
with a transparent fluid, and not the milk-like chyle absorbed by
those of the small intestines. [Absobbuct Brsnu.]
COLOPHO'NIA (in French the wood is called Boil de Colophane),
a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Burieniceir. It has
on urceolar bluntly 3-lobed calyx ; G roundish-ovate petsis inserted
under the disc, imbricated in Uie bud ; 0 stamens, one-half shorter
than the petals, equal in length to the calyx ; the disc S-lobed, It is
to a genus thus defined that De Candolle refers the tree producing the
Bois de Colophane of the island of Mauritius, and calls it C. Mauriliana.
In bis description of the tree he says the fruit is unknown. Lindlej,
in his ' Flora Medics,' gives Colophoaia Mauriluma, Da Cand.,
Buitera panicvlala. Lam., Amyru Zeiflaniea, Rate, and Baliomo-
dendntn Ztylanieam, Da Cond., as synonyms of Canartitm cominime.
This last Is described as a small tree, with T-11 leaflets on long etalks,
ovate-oblong, acute or shortly acuminated, quite entare, smooth ;
stipules oval; the panicles of flowers tennizia], divaricating; the
flowera S'3 together, almost eeaaile, when young covered over by
broad ovate concave eilky brocteola ; the calyx siUy externally ; the
drupes oblottg, black. The bark of this plant yields a limpid oil,
with a pungent turpentine smell, whioh congeals into a buttery
iperties as
Copa
eet it
Don aaya : — " When the nuts are mature t1 .
Tuel. which does not bnoome rancid, and which reeembles
ret chestnut; they are eaten boti raw and dressed by the
71
COLOPHONITE.
COLTTMBn)^
fa
inhabitants of the Mohiccas, Banda, and New Guinea ; and an oil ia
expressed from them, which is used at the table when fresh, and for
lamps when stale ; bread is also made from them, cakes, biscuits, &c.,
for the table. Eaten fresh they are apt to bring on diarrhoeas and
dysenteries, and to occasion an oppression at the breast." The same
tree is also said to yield East Indian Elemi It is a native of the
continent of India and of the islands of the Eastern Archipelago.
(Don, Dichlamydeotu Plantt; Lindley, Flora Medico.)
COLOPHONITE, a coarse granular variety of Oamet, presenting
iridescent hues and a resinous lustre. [Gabnst.]
COLOQUINTIDA. [Cucumis.]
COLOSSOCHELYa [Chblonia.]
COLTSFOOT, the common name of TuesUago Foffara,
[TUSSILAOO.]
COLUBER. [Colubbida]
COLUBRID^, a family of Snakes, the last of the sub-order
Colubrina of Dr. J. K Gray. The Colubrinfi include the families
HydridcB PHTDRiDiE], Boida [BoiDJt], and Col/vibridcB, This last
family includes the genus CcHibtr of Linnmns, which comprised all
the serpents, whether venomous or not, whose scales beneaui the tail
are divided into two, or, more properly speaking, arranged in pairs ;
but the term is generally applied by Cuvier and other authors to
those sorfjbnts which have transverse plates on the belly, and the
plates under the tail forming a double row, a flattened head with
nine laiger plates, teeth almost equal, and no poison-fangs. The
following is Dr. Gray's definition of the sub-order CoVubrina .'—Jaws
strong, both toothed, sometimes with some fangs in front or grooved
teeth behind. Head moderate or indistinct; crown often covered
with regular shields. The section of this order to which the
Cclvbrida belong have the belly covered with broad band^like shields;
vent without any ; spur-like feiet ; the tail conical and tapering. The
only family in this section are the CohAridoBj which have the nostrils
apical, lateral, open ; the head g^erally shielded. *
Laurenti placed the ColvbriicB between the Rattlesnakes (Caudi-
mma) and the Vipers. Scopoli's genera were those of Linnaras.
Lac^pMe placed the CMbrida at the head of his nine genera of
Serpents^ and next to them came the Boas and Rattiesnakes.
Alexander Brongniart made them the last but one of his six genera
of Ophidians, arranging them between the Vipers and the Boas.
Latreille gave the genus a place between Ckenydnu and IHpttu in
his family of Anguivipdres. Daudin comprehended 172 species under
the genus. In the synoptical table of Dum^ril and Bibron, Cuvier is
made to place it between JHp&aa and Cerberut. Oppel subdivides his
section (the second) the Sqiummata (Ecallleux) into seven families,
of which the CokArida (Couleuvr^es) are the last, coming imme-
diately after the Pseudo-vip&res. Merrem divided the Serpents into
two sub-tribes: in the fint sub-division, the Innocui, or serpents
without venom, of the first tribe {Chdonet), Colvher appears between
SeytdU and Hwrridk, De Blainville separated the Serpents into
Dipodet and Apodet; Coluber coming immediately after Boa, is placed
in the innocuous division of these Apodei. Dr. Harlan made the
Ophidians, his fourth order, contain six genera, and placed Coluber,
between Ophieamrut, his firaty and Vipera, his third- genus. Ifr.
Haworth arranged the genus Colvber between Scytale and Dryinue,
among the True Serpents (Apoda epalpdtraia, or serpents without
eyelids), and under the innocuous branch of the Gulonia, Fitzinger
(1826) placed the CohibrOidet between the Pythondide$ and the
Biimgariidet, in his comprehensive third tribe Monopjioa Bquammata.
Ritgen (1828) arranged the Colvbridce and the Boida under his
MfkcrotUimata, the third sub-partition of the first subdivision,
HolodomUupiMteB (with entire teeth), of his third sub-order of Scaly
Serpenta Wagler publiahed in 1830 his 'Naturliohes System der
Amphibiens.' He mjAkes his fourth order, the Serpents, consist of one
family only, comprehending 97 genera, and places Colvber the forty-
ninth between SpUota (Wagler) and Herpetodrye (Boi^).
In 1882 Professor John MiiUer, of Bonn, published his system :
the Colubers are arranged by him immediately after Dryinus, as the
last of the Isodonts, the third family of his second order, uniting the
Macrostomet, which correspond to the Heterodermet of DumdriL
The species of the genus Colvber, as left by Cuvier, aro very
numerous, and their geographical distribution ia very wide. The
foreign species are some of them remarkable for their vivid colouring,
and others for the regularity of the pattern, so to spei^ with whidi
they are marked. Others again are singularly slender in form, but
none grow to a lane size.
The harmless Common Snake or Ringed Snake (Neidr fraith,
Neidr y tomenydd, of the Welsh, Nairix torqwUa of Gesner and
Ray, Colvber NcUrix of Limueus) is the best example of the fonn.
[Natbdl]
COLUbRINA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Bhamnacea. It has a spreading 5-oleft calyx; petals 5, obovate-
convolute ; stigmas 8. Fruit capsular, dehiscent^ tricoceous, girded
at the base by the oa]yx. The seeds are furnished with a short stalk.
The species are shrubs with alternate, quite entire, or crenulated
leaves, netted with distant feather-nerves, smooth but usually pubes-
cent or rusty villous. The .flowers are in axillary short crowded
cymes, or in fascicles with simple peduncles.
(7. ftrmmUwn, Fermented Snake-Wood, is a native of Guinea ; the
bitter bark of which tree is said to bring on violent fermentation in
the liquors into which it is thrown. There are several other species
described, natives of South America, Africa, and the East Indies.
None of them are of any known wae, and are not worth enltivatiaa
except in general collections.
COLUMBA. [CoLnMBiD&]
COLUICBIDjE, a natural tuDjly of Birds, comprising the Hgeoni^
Doves, and Turtles.
Aristotle mentions five, if not six, birds of this group — IXc^^rcp^
IlfAccib, ^TTo, Olrhs, and Tpv7^,^-entering at laive into their
organisation and habita (* Hist,' b. L a 1 ; b. ii. c 15, 17 ; b. iii c. 1 ;
b. V. c. 18 ; b. vi a 1, 2, i, and 8 ; b. viiL c 8 ; b. ix. c. 7.) He also
(b. viiL c 8) speaks of a bird named *&^, which A^enaeua ('Deipn.,'
b. ix. o. 11) and others consider to be one of the Columbidee, while
others a^in hold a different opinion, inasmuch as Atheneus states
that Anstotle has distinguished five species of Pigeons, and
enumerates ^^ as one, omitting IIcXci^; and so Aristotle does
(b. viii. c. 8), but he mentions n^cuU elsewhere (b* '^^ ^ ^^)t ^i^d it
is clear to us from the context that Phapg signified one of the
CoUimbida!, tltpurrtpMiSus, There is considerable doubt as to which
of the species of pigeons Aristotle intended to designate by the
terms above given, and some of them have been applied by modem
ornithologists to signify forms which he probably never saw. Only
two, or at most three, can be identified with anything like certainty.
Pliny ('Nat. Hist,' b. x. c 84) writes 'De Columbis,' and (c 35) 'De
Palumbibus.' He enters moreover laigely into their habits in other
parts of his ' Natural History.'
Much doubt seems to have prevailed as to the proper place of the
pigeons in the system. Belon collected the few species known to him
under the titles Ramiers, Tourterelles, Bisets, Pigeons Fuyarda, and
Pigeons, among the birds " qu'on trouve viander indiffdremment en
tons lieux," placing them between the Toroou (Yunx TorqwiUa, Wry-
neck) and the Merle Bleu (Blue Thrush). Gesner arranged them
between the Gallinaceous Birds and the Bustards ; Aldrovandus placed
them between the Domestic Cock and the Sparrow; Willughby
between the Bustards and Thrushes, and Ray gave them Ihe same
place. Brisson, Pennant, and Latham insulated them in a particular
order. Pennant also arranged them between the Gallinaceous and
Passerine Birds, and Latham between the Pottere* and the OoUuub.
Other authors placed them among the Gallinaceous Buds. linnseus
made them a genus of his order Pa$aere», arranging them between
Tetrao (the Grouse and Partridges, kc) and JUawda (the Lazks).
Cuvier placed them among the Gallinaceous Birds, next to the
Tinamous {Tinaimu, Lathun; Oryptvtrvt, Illiger), making them the
last of the order. In his arrangement the Echassiers JiflraJUaioreM,
Wading Birds) form the order which immediately follows the
Ghdlinac^ LacdpMe had previously given them the first place in
the last-mentioned fiunily, as did also DumdriL Meyer had insulated
them as his seventh order, coming between the Ckdidxmee (Swallow
Tribe) and his eighth order, OiUma; and Illiger had found a
situation for them under his Batoret (the Rasorial Birds). Le
Vaillant, who seems to have been the first who separated the
ColwoAida into well-defined divisions, arranged them in three
sections; the first containing the Colombes, fijniers, and Tourte-
relles; the second the Colombars ; and the third the Colombi-Gallines.
Vieillot made them the last family but one (Colombins) of his second
tribe (Aniaodactyli), arranging them between his OpkiopkagtM and
Aleetridee. M. Temminck classed them as his ninth order between
the Chelidons and the Ghillinacds. De Blainville's order Sponsored, or
Les Colombins, contained these birds, and came between the Saltatoret
(Paaseret) and the Oradaiorei (Pheasants or Partridges): in his
amended method, as developed by M. Lherminier, they occupy nearly
the same position between the Paueret and the Gallinaceous Birds.
C. Bonaptrte (Prince of Canine) assigns the same place to them.
(* Specchio Comparativa')
When he wrote the article 'Pigeon ' in the ' Dictionnaire d'Histoire
Naturelle,' M. Vieillot conformed to the opinion of Linnaeus in
placing these birds among the Pataeret, because of its natural great
analogy to the last-mentioned group, like nearly the whole of which
the pigeons pair in the season of love, the male and female working
jointly at the nest^ taking their turns during incubation, and partici-
gating in the care of the young, which, among the true pigeons, are
atched blind, fed in the nest, which they do not quit till Uiey are
covered with feathers, and are supported by their parents some time
after their departure from it^ having no power to feed themselves.
Such are the points of resemblance. Their dissimilarity consists in
their mode of drinking and feeding their young, in the nature of their
plumage, and the singularity of their courtship and of their voice —
points of difference which slso separate them from the true gallina-
ceous birds, with which, says M. Vieillot, they have no analogy in their
instincts, tiieir habits, or their loves. Nearly all tiie gallinaoeoTis
birds are polygamous, and lay a great number of eggs each time they
incubate, wmch is rarely more than once a year in the temperate
zones; while the true pigeons lay only two eggs each time, incubate
frequentiy during the year, and are monogamous. Among the galli-
naceous birds, as a general rule, the male does not solace the female
at the time of building the nest and of inoubation ; the young run as
soon almost aa they are out of the agg-iheU, quitting their nest^ and
-- - llll«M iJilBI
73
COWKBlhM.
COLtTMBlD^.
74
seeking their own food immediately, f'inally, a striking character
remoTes the pigeons from the gallinaceous birds, and in 11
Yieillot's opinion places them in the same natural group witii ^e
Pcuaerei, namely, liie possession of a posterior toe articulated at the
bottom of the tarsus, upon the same plane as the anterior toes,
touching the ground throughout its length in walking and embracing
the roost in perching. On the contrary, in the gallinaceous birds, the
hind toe is articulated upon the tarsus higher tlum the otJiers, and
only touches the ground with its claw, or at most with its first
phidanx, and remains peipendicular when the bird is on the perch.
Nevertheless it must be confessed that there are found among the
pigeons species which participate in some degree with the gallinaceous
birds in regard to theur manners and gait (allures) or some exterior
conformity. Such are the Colombi-Qallines, the Pigeon-CaUle of Le
Vaillant, to which must be added the Colombi-Gallines of M. Temminck,
the Mountain-Partridge of Sloane, the Blue-Headed Pigeon, the
Cocotzin, &&, all which have their feet more elongated than those of
their congeners, with the wings of the partridges, that is to say
rounded, and with the two first quills shorter than the third or fourth ;
but for the rest, all, with the exception of the Colombe-Oalline of Le
Vaillant, approach the other pigeons in their amours, their laying, and
the bringing up of their young; and so it is of the birds which at
Guadaloupe and Martinique bear the name of Partridge ; and M.
Vieillot quotes Dutertre, who says that "according to the common
opinion of the inhabitants of Guadaloupe, there are thi^e sorts of
partridges, red, black, and gray, which have never passed in my mind
for aught but turtles (tourterelles) ; for they have not the short
quality of flesh belonging to our partridges, tiiey have the straight
bill, they perch and bmld their nests in trees, they only lay two ^ggs,"
&c. C Hist des AntiUes,' tom. ii.) These facts, adds M. Vieillot,
have been confirmed to me by the inhabitants of Martinique and
Quadaloupe. Of all the pigeons and turtles, continues this ornitho-
logist, which I have had occcasion to study in the living state, the
Cocotzins are those which appear to me to have the greatest relation
to the partridges ; their haunt is always hi the fields and savannahs ;
there they secuc their food, and never resort to trees ; they raise them-
selves into the air like the partridges, and after a short flight alight
upon the ground. For this reason the En^h and the inhabitants of
the United States call it the Ground Dove. But the habit of
frequenting the ground, Ac does not belong exclusively to the
pigeons whose wings are formed as above stated ; fZtar, according to
lAtham, the Coltmba Chaleoptera (Pkapt), which M. Temmin^
arranges with his OoUmbeB (Vieillot* s first section), has the same
habits^ so that the English of Australia call it the Ground Pigeon.
(Vieillot)
"The family of OolwrnbidcB (says Mr. Vigors, 'Linn. Trans.,'
YoL xiv. p. 410), alteniately arranged by systematio writers among the
Perching and Gallinaceous orders, and not unfrequently grouped as a
separate order between the two, at once indicates where the point of
iunction exists between them. These birds, although we have the
high authority of Linnsus for uniting them with that division of our
Perchers whi^ forms his Pcuteret, Ido not hesitate in arranging, con-
formably to the opinion of Messrs. Cuvier and Illiger, as a subdivision
of the Gallinaoeous Birds.
" In those particulars, where they respectively assume the character
of each order, their affinity with the latter is considerably stronger
than that which approximates them to the former. Their food and
habits, their internal economy, and the formation of their bills,
identify them with the Rtuoret ; while, on the other hand, the cha-
racters which bring them near the Intesioret, their divided toes and
comparatively short legs, are weakened by the resemblance which
those members bear to the same parts of the contiguous order in their
general structure, and more particularly in the blimtneas of the nails,
BO strongly indicative of the rasorial habits of the Gallinaceous Tribes,
and so strikingly contrasted with the sharpness of the nails in the
Linnaean Pantrti, They are much more nearly allied to these latter
tribes by their habits of perching and building their nests in trees or
rocks, by the absence of the spur on the legs of the male, and by the
inferior nimiber of their tail-feathers."
In a note to that part of the text which alludes to the rasorial
habits of the Gallinaceous Birds, the author cites the habits of
Colwttha Nieobariea, Ooiwnba caruneulata, and Colvmba paaterina.
Mr. Vigors accordingly places the Oolumbida In the aberrant group
of his Rawrei. ** I have already observed, when speaking of the affi-
nities," says that ornithologist in the paper above quoted, " which
connect the orders of birds together, that the Ooltmbida form the
passage from the Intesaores to the Roiorea by their habits of perching
and ^eir powers of fUght, The hind toe is articulated, as in the
Perchers, and their tarsi are shorter, more particularly in the earlier
groups, than those of the Gallinaceous Birds in general. The first
group which we meet in this extensive fiimily is the genus Vinago of
M. Cuvier, the bills of which, stronger and more solid than they are
usually found to be among the pigeons, unite them to Pendope and
Crax, which form the opposite extreme of the present order, as well
as to Mutophaga and Cbf^^Aaix, which approach, as we have seen, the
whole of the groups before us, and connect them with the Perchers.
From this genus Vinoffo, which seems confined to the southern divi-
sions of the Old World, we may observe a series of cpx>ups leading
gradually to the true Coluniba, of which genus the European species
Colvmha (EnaSf Linn., may be considered to form the type. Hence
we are led by several intervening species to the Columbi-Gallines of
M. Le Vaillant, which, still retaining the soft and fiexible bill of
ColuffihOf approach the typical Gallinaceous Birds in their moi^e ele-
vated tarsi, and in their habits of living in company and seeking their
nourishment chiefly on the ground. Among these may be noticed
some forms, (7. Nicob€urieaf Linn., and C. caruncvlata, Temm., for
instance, which possess the feathered appendages, together witib the
naked face and caruncles of the Linnssan GcUIiikb ; and another group,
the Lophynu of M. Vieillot, which exhibits the size and general form
of the same birds, as well as the singular plumes which frequently
decorate their head. This last-mentioned genus, formed of ^e
crowned pigeon of India, possessing the strongly-formed leg and foot
of Meleagritf Linn., but without the spurs, while at the same time it
retains the bill of Colwnba, may be observed to open the passage
immediately from the present to the succeeding family" (the
Phtuianidte).
The following remarks embody Mr. Swainaon's views upon this
interestitg family : — " The extensive genus of (7oZum&a, like that of
Falco, has been pronounced indivisible by an eminent ornithologist of
the present day; who, from having made these birds his peculiar
study, is in one sense pre-eminently qualified to give a decided
opinion. The principle he has laid down, and on which this opinion
consequently is founded, is, that whenever intermediate species are
discovered which serve to unite two neighbouring genera, such genera
should invariably be united." After stating that this theory hu been
refuted in the pages of the ' Zoological Journal,' Mr. Swainson thus
continues : " It is admitted that there are certain peculiarities of form
and of economy among the ColumbicUEf which point out natural divi-
sions. Some of these have been used for the construction of genera,
by Messrs. Le Vaillant, Vieillot, and Cuvier, and of sections by M. Tem-
minck ; but the inmiense number of species already known, and the
great influx of new ones, renders it essential that many others should
be formed. As we labour under a comparative ignorance of the
natural economy of the vast number of tropical species recently
described, any attempt to throw tiie Columbtda into their natural
arrangement must be very imperfect The basis of such a work must
rest on their natural habits, their food, and their geographic distribu-
tion. Tet, as we ^ee in other natunl families that a peculiarity of
economy is almost invariably accompanied by some corresponding
modification of structure, we shall receive considerable assistance by
accurately examining such variations. We may note the forms
without being acquainted with their reference to the peculiar habits,
of the group; and although our inference in some cases may be
erroneous, in others we shall not be tar from the truth. The pas-
senger-pigeons, for instance, have their first quill-feather as long as
any of the others — a sure indication of that rapid and long-continued
power of flight they are known to possess. The Columbi-Gallines of
M. Le Vaillant are described as having naked and somewhat length-
ened tand; a structure well adapted to those ambulating habits
which bring some of them close to the Phaaianida, Vigors, and others
to the Oraeida, Vigors. Another group, the Colombars of M. Le
Vaillant {Vinago, Cuv., Triron, VieilL), liave a strong hard bill; and
their short clasping tarsi covered with feathers lead us to conclude
they seldom perch upon the ground ; in fact, Messrs. Le Vaillant
and Cuvier both assert that these birds are only found in the tropical
forests of the Old World. Apparently confined to the same regions,
we see another group, wherein the bill partakes of that weak structure
observed in the generality of pigeons, while the tarsi are thickly
clothed with feathers, similar to 3ie group last mentioned. These
seem to be the principal divisions among the Columbidca," In 1827
the same author characterised the genera Periatara, durmtpdia, and
Ectopiatea; and in the 'Fauna Boreali-Americana,' under Columha
Bctopiatea migratoriOf he has the following note : — "As ornithologists
do not appear to be aware of the great difference which exists in the
groups of this £unily in the relative structure of their feet, we shall
here draw their attention to the principal groups. In the even-tailed
wood-pigeons of Europe, North America, and the Old World, forming
the restricted genus uohmba, the external and internal anterior toes
are equal In the lovely genus PtilinoptUf Swainson, confined to the
men pigeons of the Indum and Australian isles, and in that of Vinago f
Cuv., formed l^ the thick-billed species of the same countries, uie
inner toe is much shorter than the outer ; but in the sub-genus (Y)
JSetopiatea, Swainson, and the small turtle doves, this proportion is
reversed, the inner toe being the longest In the beautifrd genus
Periatera, Swainson, which comprises idl the bromse-winged pigeons
of Australia and the ground-pigeons of America, the tand are more
elevated, the hind toe shorter, and the inner toe is likewise the
longest We have been for some time engaged in analysing this
family, with the view of ascertaining the reUxive value of aU these
groups." Dr. Ritgen (1828) makes the genus Colwnba, Linn., form
the tnird tamilj{Herpochoropteni) of his first tribe {Chofyptemj, of his
second series (Xeromithea, or birds of the dry land) in his tricho-
tomous system, as applied to birda
P. J. Selby, Esq., in the ' Naturalist's Library' (1886), charaoteriset
the following genera, Catpophaga, Phapa, and OeophUua. He thus
speaks of the classification: — " Of the sub-families or five typical
Ti COLUHBIDA
fonnB of the Catvimbida., we oan only Bpeak with difBdence and uncer-
taintf, u DO uutjsia oftho gpecisa eamcientl? strict or eitenmve lus
bitherto been instituted, fn>m wbesce conclasire deductiona can be
dnvn. We etudl onl; cunorily obaerre, that the arboreal pigeoni,
embracing Viaago, Swmiiuoii'B genna PlUrao}na,i>MT gentu Carpophaga,
and aoQis other imdafined groups, with feet formed sipniialj for
perehing and graaping, uid through which, fram their babita uid
form, the neceaaary eoiuiection with the inaeaaoria] order is Buppart«d,
are likely to eonelitate one ; the true pigeons, of which our ring-
pigeon and commoD pigeon may be considered typie&l, a aeoond ; the
tujtlea mod their tihea, with feet of different proportions from the
preceding, and graduated tails, a third; the mund-pigeons, or
Columbi-Oallinea of the French □atunlists, a fourd ; and the fifth 1*
not unlikely to be repreaented by Vioillofs genua Lophym, in which
the deviation from the proper Columbine form ia not to that of the
typical Xatira, but to the OrrKidfi, placed at the farther eitremity,
and, like the CiihmMda, another aberrant family of the Baaorial
B^ote apeakiog of the olaanficstion of the Caliiri^iida, one part of
the internal organiiation of the pigeon ia worthy of apeci^ notice.
Tbe crop, in the state which ia adapted for ordinary digeation, is thin
and membranouB, and the internal surface ia smooth ; but by the
time the young are about to be hatched, the whole, sxoept that part
which lies on tbe trachea, becomes thicker, and puts on » glandular
appearance, hAving its internal surface very irregular. In tbii organ
it is that the food is elaborated by the parents before it is conveyed
to the young ; tor a milky fluid of a grayish colour ia secreted and
poured into the crop among the grain or seeds undergoing digestion,
and a quality of food suited to the nestling is thus produced. The
fluid coagulates with adds and forms curd, and the apparatus fi>rms,
nmong birds, the nearest approach to the mammm of wnrm-blooded
animals [Birds]; hence no doubt the term ' pigeoa's-milk.' The
number of vertebnc amounts to 13 cervical, 7 dorsal, 13 sacral, and
7 caudal = 40 (Cuvier), The atenium is narrow, with a deep keel,
the inferior border convex, and the anterior one curved forwards, thin,
and trencbatit ; the manubrial process is strong and bifurcated, tbe
oostal processes short. The posterior margin is clefl by two Essurea
on either side of tbe meeisl plane, the lateral and superior fisaurea
being the deepest ; the mesial onee are occasionally converted into a
foramen, Tbe costal surface of the lateral margin is, as in the galli-
naceous birds, of very little extent. In the crown-pigeon l^e swerior
fissures are so deep and wide as to convert the rest of the lateral
margin into a mere flattened process, which is dilated at the extre-
miM', (Owen.)
The distribution of this family is very extensive, the form occurring
almost everywhere, except withm the frigid zones, Tbs specieB are
most abundant in Southern Asia and the Orest Indian Archipelago.
The following definition includes the Colnmbida:, to which we shall
refer in the preaent article : — Bill moderate, oompresned, covered at
the base of the upper mandible with a soft skin, in which the nostrils
are pierced, and more or less curved at the point. Feet with three
divided toes in front, and one behind.
Vimigo (Cuvier),^Bi]l comparatively large, strong, thick, and solid,
compressed at tbe sides; the tip very bard, hooked, and inflated ; the
nostrils comparatively exposed, and with the swollen or projecting
membrane but little , developed. Tarsi short, partly clothed with
featben below the tarsal joint ; sole wide, the membrane being
extended, and the whole foot formed for perching and grasping ; the
outer toe longer than the inner, claws strong, sbsrp, and semioiroular,
" closely resembling in form those of tbe woodpecker or other scan-
■orial birda" (Selby.) Wings of mean length, strong and pointed,
second and third quills about equal, and the longest in the wing,
Mr. Selby soys, that in all the species submitted to examination the
third qmll 1^ lie central part of the inner web deeply notched, as if
a piece had been cut out ; and that tbe prevailing colours are green
and yellow of different intensitiee, contrasted more or less in cert '
parts with rich purple and reddish-brown.
The ipeoies mhobit intertropical Asia and Africa. Tbsy feed
berries and fmita. They are shy and timid, and inhabit the woods.
Mr. Selby gives the following, on tbe authority of Hr. Neill, who,
speaking of Vinajfo iphoHtra, says : " I hod two, but both, I believe,
were males. BoUk had a song, very different from tbe mere o '
of the ringdove. When they sang in concert, they gave the
little tune, but on different keys. After the death of one thi
vivor used to sing at command, or, at all events, when incited to it by
. . It is the Columbia anmaliea of Latham, "The
Aromatie Vinago is of a mild and timorous disposition, and is gene-
rally seen in flocks or societies, except during the period of reproduc-
tion, when they pair, and retire to the recesses of the foreel. The
nest ie simple, and composed of a few twigs loosely put together, and
tbe eggs are twa .... The base or softer pari of the bill is a
blackish-gray, the tip yellowish-wbite, strong, muoh hooked, and
bulging on the side. The forehsod is of a bright siskin-green, tht
crown greenisb^ray, the chin and throat gamboge-yellow, the remain
der of the nedi, the breast, belly, lower back, and rump, yellowish
green. The upper back or mantle, and a part of tbe lesser wing
eoverta, are of a rich brovmish-ped, and exhibit a purplish-tinge u
in lights The greater wing-coverts and secondary quills are
greenish-blAck, with a deep and well-defined edgizig of gambr^s-
yellow throughout their length. The tail has the two middle feathars
'holly green, and slightly exceeding the rest in length ; tbeee are of
- dark bluish-gray, with a dark eenbal band. The under tail-coverta
are yellowish-white, barred with green. The legs and toea are rod,
the claws pale gay, strong, sharp, and semicircular." (Salby ; and sea
Tamminik.)
Aranstio TlBM^n [ rinaft anmAltet).
It inhabits the continent of India, Java, and other adjacent islanda
The habits of this speoieB are arboreal. Hr. Selby, givee tbe follow-
ing note which accompanied the skins of V. nilitani, and F. aromalica.
" Green Pigeon,— This beautiful bird has brilliant red eyes. Its feet
are sometlung like the parrot's, and it climbs in the same way as that
bird. It is very difficult to find ; for although a flock is maAed into
a tree, yet its colour is so siniilar to the leaf of the banyan ( on tiis
small red Sg of which it feeds ), that if a bird does not move you may
look for many minutes before you can see one, although there may ba
Ptilinapm (Swainson). — Wings moderate, first quill oontrvcted
towards the apex, third and fourth longest Bill slendw. Tatm
feathered.
Mr. Swainaon says that in propoemg the characters of this gmua,
he wishes them to be considered more as indicating a group, by whidi
the genus IWron, Fiaill. { Vinago, Cuv.), may ba united to the naked-
legged pigeons, than as being so rigidly framed as to exclude all other
species which do not strictly present the same structure.
Hr. Selby, in the ' Naturalist's Library,' feels inclined to still
further subdivide the group, restrictiag the genuine title of J>fiItnop«
to that group of sm^er pigeons in which the fint quill-feather
becomes suddenly nnirowed or attenuated towards the tip, and the
tarsi are feathered almost to tbe division of the tee^
The species inhabit the Holucosa, the Celebea, and the islands of
thePacific (Selby.) Their habits are retired ; they live hi forwt aoli-
tudef. Food, fruita and berries.
The following is a description of the genoi aa realnoted by
Ur. Selby :— Bill comparatively slender, the base slightly dspresaod,
and the soft covering of the nostrils not much arched or swollen;
the tip though bard is little inflated, with a gentle curvature ; the
forehead ia ratber low and depreased ; the legs are short but strong ;
the taru clothed with feathera nearly to the division of the toea ; the
feet are calculated for grasping, and are aimilar in form to those of
Vinago, the sides of the toes beiog enlarged by the eitenaion of tha
laternal mombrane, and tbe outer longer than the inner one ; the
wings are strong, and of moderate length, tbe first quill-fcAther con-
siderably shorter than tbe second, and suddenly narrowed towards the
tip — a peculiarity also possessed by several pigeons belonging to other
distinct groups, and by which means the connexion ia thus kept up
between them. Tbe third and fourth quills are nearly equal to each
other, and an the longest in the wing. The tail is of proportionate
length, and genarally square at the end. Predominating oolonr like
that of FiiKwo, green, varied in ports with yellow and orange, and in
acme, besntifully encircled with maseee of purplish-red and vivid blua.
P. qfOHO-wirau. It is the tSJiMRAa qf/uw-viireHi of Leason, who
described it in the 'Voyage de la Coquille." Tbe bird is termed
Manasope in the Papuan tongue, and iuhabita, says Lesson, the pro-
foond and still virgin foresta ifencore viergsa) of Now Ghiinea. " It was
ib the nei^bourhood of tha harbour of Dordry that we procured the
COLUMBID^.
6 linea (Frenoh); bill delicate and black; iria
of a red-brown J iaia ahort, uid naarly entirely faatbered; totK
with ■ membruioiu border, uid of a livaly oncge cdour ; hwd, rump,
upper part of the body, winga, uid tail, tdajt ogneoble grase-grean ; a
lATge palub falotte) of a beautiful indieo-blue cxnan the oodput ;
elongated blua apota ocmipy Uie oentie of the aubalw feathen, whioh
are bordered witli a atraight yellow line j the internal and hidden part
of the same featherB ia brown ; the qoilla are entirely brown, and
bordered at the external edge with a liiie of canary yellow ; the tail is
square and rectilinear ; the featheis which oomposa it sre fourteen in
number, brown, their eitremitiee whita below, aod of a green siuular
to that of (he back abuve, pasBing into black in the middle, ood each
tenniaating within with a white spot; the two exterior onea an
bivwn, bordsred with yellow exteru^y, as are the two or three next ;
the shaft is brows ; (he (hroat to half-way down the neck ia ash-gray ;
the breaat ia grayiah-graan ; the belly and the flanks are at first green
mingled with some yellow bordering^ and then oomee a lai^ paUJk
of yetlowiih-white eztending on each side ao as to fonn a kind of
giidle; the festhera of (be thigba are green; those of the rent, white
and pale yellow; the lower tail-coverts are yellow mingled wiUi green.
H. Lesson mention! another indiiidual rather inuller, with some
diSerances of plumage, which he supposea to have been either a female
or a young one. Mr. Selbj remarks upon the &ct that no notice is
taken of the form of the Srst quill-feather in this deaoription, and
regrets it, but entertaina little or no doubt of its preaenoe m nearly a
similar form to that assumed by (he rest of tliia group, of which
P. purftiraltit is the type.
Oarpofhaga (Selby).— "In this group," says Ur. Selby, "which is
composed of birds i^ a mucb iaiger size than ths preceding, the
wings, though posseaaing the same relatiTe proportiona, havs no
emuginstioD, or sudden naironing of the tip of the first quill Their
tanii also are not ao thickly or entirely feaUiered j and their nostrils
are placed nesrar to the base of the bill In some apedes, green,
yellow, and purple are the prevailing colours ; in others, a rich
bronzed or metallic colour compoiee t£e upper plumige, exhibiting
shades of deep green and puiple, accordiug to the light in which it is
viewed, while in those which lead the way to the typical pigeons, the
tints become less vivid and more uniform in their distribution. Their
hill is considerably depressed at the base, tbe membrane ia which (be
nostiila are plaoed but little prominent or swollen, the tip compressed
and moderately arched, the tomia slightly ainuated. The forehead
ia low, and tbe fsatheiB advance considerably upon the soft portion of
ths bill In man^ of theca a caruncle, or gristly knob, vatyiug in sise
and shape according to the species, grows upon the basal part of the
upper mandible during the season of propagation. This is anppoeed
to be common to both seiea, ss the female is described with it in
Duperrey's ' Voyage.' Aftw thia epoch it is rapidly absorbed, and its
situation scarcely to be obaerved upon the surface of the bilL The
feet are powerful and formed for grasping, the soles being flat and
greatly extended. As in the other memb^ of this group, th« bmtl
toe ia fully developed and long, and the exterior longer thui the iunar
toe. They inhabit the forests of India, the Holucoas, Celebes, Aus-
tralia, and the Pacific Iale& Their food consists of fruits and berries.
That of the preoioua nutmeg, or imthsr its Soft covering, known (o us
by (he namo of mace, at certain teMoas affiitdi a likTOuntble repast to
COLUMBIDJS. n
some species, and upon thia luiurioua diet they become so loaded
with fat as A^quently, when shot, to burat asunder when they trJl to
the ground. And here we may remark on the remarkable provision
nature has made for the propagation as well as the diaaemination of
thia valuable spice ; for the nutm^ itself, which is gsnerallv swallowed
with the whole of its pulpy covering, passes uninjured through the
digestive otgans of the bird, and is thus dispeised throughout the
group of the Moluccas and other islands of ths east. Indeed, from
repeated experiments, it appears that an artificial preparation ana-
logous to that which it undergoes in its passsge through the bird, ia
neceasary to enauie the growtii and fertility of the nut ; and it was
not till after many unsuccesaful attempts bad been made that a
lixivium of lime, in which tbe nuta were steeped for a certain time,
was found to have the wished-for eBect^ and to induoe the germinat-
ing tendency. The fruit of the Banyan (Ficui rtligioia), we sacred
tree of the Hindoos, is also a favourite repast of all the pigeons of thia
group, as well as of the stronger-billed Vinago."
O. Dcranica. It is the CotunJia oetanica of Lesson. This s|>eciea,
according to Leaeon, is the Houlouesse, or Houleux, of the nabvea of
Oualan, and though it approaches the Nutmeg Pigeon, Colmnia
(Carjtophaga) anea, very nearly, it differs from it in sise, being one-
third lees, and in the distiibution of some of ita colours. "The
Nutmeg Pigeon lives mora particularly in the eastern Holuocaa, and
BSpaciaJly nt New Guinea and Waigiou, while the Octanio tVuil-
PJgeon is abundant in the little isle of Ouslan, in the midst of the
great archipelago of the Carolines, and seems to exist in the Pslew
Islands, where Wilson mentions it under the narn^ of cyep/' Lesson
further observes, thst it may be posably spread over the Philippines,
and atHagindanaa
Oeeanle FmltJigMin lOaiypiafa s«hhjm).
Description. — Total length, 14 inchea (EVench), including the
tail, which measures five ; the bill, an inch long, is block, strong, and
surmounted at its base by a roundod and very block caruncle ; the
feet are veiy strong and of a bright orange colour ; the tarai are
feathered nearly down to the toes, which have a well-dereloped
border ; the wings are pointed, and only one inch ahorter than the
toil, wlucb ia almost rectilinear. The feathers of tiie forehead, cheeks
and throat, are whitish mixed with gray ; the head and the bock
of tbe neck are of a deep slaty gray ; ttie book, rump, wing-coverts,
quills, and tail-feathers, are of a uniform metallic green, passing into
brawn on the interior of the great feathers; the breast and upper
part of the belly are gray, with a tint of rust-colour ; the lower port
of the belly, the vent, Uie thighs, and the lower tail-coverts, are a
deep ferruginous red ; the tail-featheiB on the under side are a bright
reddish-green (vert rougelirB olair). (Lesson.)
VL Lesson thinks that this, very probably, is the species mentioned
by "the ceJebisted naturalist, Foreter (and not Captain Forster, as
the reading is, twice, in M. Temminck's work, torn. L p. 89, 8vo),
who observed in the Isle of Tanna, one of tho New Hebrides (Cook's
'Sooond Voyage,' vol iU. p. 17B, *to), a Nutmeg Pigeon of tbe some
apeciee as Hat which occurred at the Friendly Islands."
Tbe caruncle shown in the cut ia disiiipated after the breeding
aeaaon, leaving nothing but a slight cu^meous wrinkle. M. Lesson
says that thebird feeds on a berry which is veij abundant in the
small lala of Oualan, and that it is not disturbed by tbe natives.
Mr. Selby givea as a form apparently belonging to this divinon of
tbe (MvB^ida, tbe foDowing species : Cuiumio PKatiantUa (Tonun.),
the strueture of the bill being, as he obaervea. Intermediate between
that of Vinago and CbJvmia, and the feet formed upon the same
plan M those of the rest of the Ptiliaofina.
n COLTIMniD.E.
DeaeriptioD. — Langth from 11 to 16 iDchea, the tail being KTen,
mnd rather more. Winga ahart. Teaching, when closed, about an inch
and a half bejond the root of the tail, rounded, and with the third
quill longest ; the first and fourth being equal to each other. BUI,
tneasnrmg from the forehead, nearly three quarten of an inch long
the tip of the upper miuidible moderatel; arched, and with a notoh
that of the lower augulated and itrong ; tliroat, yeUowioh-nhita ,
head, nidaa, and front of the neck, and whole of the under plumage
orange-brown ; hinder part of the neck changeable rich Tiolet-purple,
with brilliant gold reSectionis; back, wing-coverts, and the rest of
xhe upper plumage, deep redduh-brown, shot with bronze in some
lights J tail graduated or cuneiform, the two middle featherB brown,
the laterKl marked obliquelj with a black bar ; feet and naked part
of 1<^ reddish-brown; sole of the hind and innai toes tnoch
expanded.
Young differing from the adult in having the neck dirty reddish'
brown, trith narrow ban of black ; bell; of a pale reddiah-graj,
minutely and darkly speckled ; back inclining to haii~brown ; and
smaller winjfcoverta deeply edged with orange-brown.
H. Temminck first described the spedea.in the 'Linntean Trans-
actions,' from an Australian spacimen. It has sincA been observed
in moat of the Philippine and Holucca Islands, Java, fto.
Caitmiia Phatiamlla ia an inhabitant of the wooda. Its food ii laJd
to connst of a kind of pimento and of other aiomatio bertiea,
swallowed entire. The flesh is dark, bnt ita flavour is stated to be
Hr. Selby makes the group to oontain C<dumiba Maermtra, Auct. ;
C. nucAo/ii, Wogler ; and V. Seitaeardtii, Temm. " Of its precise
situation," says Mr. Selby, "in the circle of the Cotumbida, we speak
with some degree of doubt, not having had an opportunity of
instituting so strict an analysis of the species as the subject reqturea ;
bnt we believe'it will be found to enter among the i'tiltnoprntr, or
arboreal pigeons, as the feet and tarsi of its members are similar in
form to those of that division, the latter being very short and partly
plumed below the joint, the fonner with the exterior toe longer than
the inner, and the hinder toe fully developed ; the sole of the foot,
by the extension of the membrane, is broad and expansive, and the
euws ore arched and strong, all of whioh are oharaeters evidently
ahowiug these members to be expT«HBly adapted f<^ perohing and
prehenmoo, and not for gmsorial movements. The bill slso in one
species (0. Reimcardtii) approaches in point of strength neariy to
that of Vinago, and in all of them the tip of both mandibles ia hard
and flrtn, tho upper one with a visible emargination and moderately
arohed. Their habita and mode of life are also nearly allied to the
other arboreal speciea, being the oonstant inhabitants of the vroods,
and subsisting upon tbe fruits and berriee of various trees and shruba.
U. Temminck, in his description of tins species, says that it pos-
•SMBa a straeture and form precisely sinulor to that of the C.
nijfratoria of North America. To this we cannot mbscribe, seeiog
that Ita essNitial obancten^ ** above described, are difiersn^ and
COLUMBID.E. so
that the only point of resemblance conaiEta in the length of the tail,
Indeed, so tut removed do we think it from the American group,
that we cannot consider it aa ita analogue in the Asiatic regions
where it resides."
CoUm^a, Auct Most ornithologists are agreed that the sub-familx
Colwnbina conttuns the type of the form of the Coimmbida, and that
we are to look among the species of our ovm country for that type.
The Ring.Pigeon, Cuahat or Queeet (C. Palmabut), the Wood-Pigeon
«7. (Enat), and ilia Rock-Pigeon or Biaet (O. livia), are oonudered to
be the foima in which the peculiarly of structure and habita of tha
family are moat petfeotij developed, and of these 0. Palumbiu is
generally taken aa the t<rpioal point of comparison. The Columiina
are diatmgnished In a bill of moderate strength, witii a hard tip,
bulging and somewhat arohed. The nostrils ore partly ololhed by a
soft membrane, and the orblta of the eyes axe more or less denuded
of feathers. The feet may be'called both greseorial end inasBBorial ;
for they are so organised, that the action of walUnK or perching
1 at pleasure, for the bad: toi ' . ■ •
e BO formed and placed as n
t the longest. The tail ia
pointed; the second and tl
generally square, and moderately long
"In those speciea," laya Hr. Selby, in the WOA above quoted,
" which ate the media of eonneebion with other groups, the above
charactan become partially modified, aa we see exemplified in the
spedsB neanst allied to die Ptiii»opkue, or arboreal pigeons, their
tbet loung the tme character of that of the common pigeon, and
assoming more of the grasping fbnn than that fitted for progress upon
the grodnd." -
The speciea are *ei7 nnmeroos, and spread over ever; quarter of
the globe.
" The prevailing Oolonr of tha pigeons ia bluish-gray, of various
intfinaitieB and shaded frequently embelliahed upon the neck with
fsathers having a metallic lustre and peculiar form, and which exhilnt
various tints of oolour according to the light in which they ara viewed.
They are naturally birds of a wild and tmiid disposition (though one
species has been partly reclaimed), and usually live congregated in
extensive flocks, except during the season of reproduction, when thej
pur. Most of tlie species seek their food upon the ground. This
consists of the different Certalia, as also aooma, beech-mast, and other
seedi, and oocasionally of the green and tender leaves of particular
plants. Their flesh is sapid and nutritious, being of a warm and
mvigorating nature. Their fl^ht ia powerful, very rapid, and can bo
long Buatoined, and many Bpeoim are in tlio habit of making distant
periodical migrations. They are widely diaaeminated, speciea of the
genua being found in every quarter of the globe, and in all climates,
except the fruien reg^ona of the two hemispherea. They build in
trees or holea of rocka, ""l-'ng a shallow nest of small twigs loosely
put together. Their eggs ate never mora than two in number, their
oolour a pore white; they are incubated alternately by both sexes,
and are hatched after being sat upon from eighteen to twenty-one days.
The young, upon exclusion, ore thinly covered with down, which ia
rapiiUy succeeded by the proper feathers." (Selby.) The apparatus
r preparing the food for the neBblinga hoa boen before adverted to-
O. tpadi^ea. Hr. Selby places this Bpedea aa connecting the arbo-
real species with the typical pigeons, but arranges it under the Ooium-
bina, not vrithout doubt, " for (dtbough it presents characters in some
of ita members approaching tboae of tiie pigeoTis, it cannot be denied
that, in its general appearance, and the metsllic lustre of its plumage,
it also shows evident maiks of a near.affinity to several species of tho
genua CoTjiophaga, and it might perhaps with equal propriety be
placed at the extremity of that group ;" and regnta the litUa infor-
mation extant of its peculiar habita and mods of life, which would
have asaiated in farming a more satisfactory conclusion oe to its proper
poaitioD. He adds, that from the form and size of the feet we may
judge that its habits are more those of an arboreal than terrestrioL
bird, though its claws wont the great curvature of those of the Ptili-
nopttur, and show its capability of occadonally resorting to the ground
for food. H. Lesson, who killed many iadividusJs of this brilliant
Sigeon, described by Lathsm and figured by Tenuninck, says that its
ah is excellent, and that it is very abundant in the woods about
the Bay of Ipiripi, or the Bay of lalanda. The first which he procured
was kUled and sent to the expedition by one of the offlceia of the
CoquiUe ; and Toui, ohief of the hippoh of Koouera, near which ahe
was moored, brought them frequentiy on board. He adds, that the
individual described by Latham as the Chestnut-Shouldered Pigeon
from Norfolk Island, not far frem New ZcsJand, and that
H. Temminck indicates the Friendly or Tonga Islands as its native
oountry. This locality M. Lesson, from whom the following descrlp-
tion ia taken, seems to doubt.
*" tal length, 16} inches (French) — English anthoni give it as from
20 inches; tul 6 inchea, nearly rect^«l, and slightly notched ;
bill rather swollen near the point of the lower mandible, of a brilliant
ine at its base as well aa the feet, the tarsi of which are feathered
almost to the toea. The eyes ore surrounded with a bright^red mem<
brane, and the iris is of the same colour. All the upper parts of the
SI COLUMBID-R
bird, tbe bsck, the rump, tbe wings, nnd the thront, are of a chan
able huo, in which are mingled rosy coppar-reBeBtiona nmning ii
briUiant and irideiceDt tiuts, but becoming more Boiubra upon i
great quOin. The plumage of the breaat, bBlly, yeot, and tarai
pu™ while. The upper part of the tail ia brown, slightly tinged with
grefmiah ; aa^ below it ia brown, whith ii deepest witlun and at the
C. dUtpIka, " In this euriooB qMcies," uyi Hr. Belbr. " bvidea the
ooapital crest, an ornuaeDt which ia found iu many other birda, thare
is an additicnal one in front, oompoaed of long recurved and lai
featbe™, which not only oooupj the forehead, but also the superior
part of the soft or banJ portion of the bill. This double creet girea
the head of the pigeon a, cbaraotar unlike any of its coogeoeni, and
more raesmbling that of aome of the created P/iatianida or CnKida,
witli which an aualogieal relation is thua austuaed. In other respeota
it« characters agree with those of 0. tpadicta, the proportion of the
wiaga and the form of the feet being nearly the same. Temminck,
who first described it, obserres, " Cette nouTelle esp^ce a le plus de
npporta daoa toutea aea formes aveo la Columha tpadicea, at toutes
Ics dniii Bout trte pen diff^rent«9 de notre Krunier d'Euiope,"
COLUMDID^. n
The alee of this bird ia nearly that of C. ipadieta. Wings long and
powerful, reaching when closed beyond the middle of the tail, second,
third, and fourth feathers longest and nearly equal, fifth shorter thau
the fimt, Biil rich orauKe, tip of undermandible obliquely truncated,
tip of upper niaudible comprsaaed, somewhat arched, culmeu rouudeii.
Frontal crest begimiiag on the upper part of tbe bill immediately
behind the homy tip aud above the nostrila, composed of long curved
feathers, soft and loose in texture, and bluish-gray tinged with rufous
in colour, pointing backwards. Occipital creet rich rufous, bounded
on each aide from the posterior angle of the eye by a streak of glossy
black, decumbent, composed also of long soft featben with open
barbulee, each feather widening towards the tip. Side and front of
neck and breast pale gray, block at the base of the feathen, which ia
bid. Tbe feathen here are trifid at the end ; on the back of the neck
they are acuminated, but not distinctly divided as upon the breaat.
Bock, acapulara, and wingKHiverta deep bluiab-gray, the feathers
darker at tbe margin; quills and eecondariea bluish-black | under
plumage gray. Tail square, basal part and narrow band pale gray
tinged with reddiah, tip and broad intermediate bar black ; length
7 inches. Naked parte of tarai and toes crimson-red ; hind toe
strong, with a broad flat sole, aud exceeding the tarsus in length ;
naQa long and somewhat curved. It ia found in Australia and Java.
C. Palmniui, the Cushat. It is the Ramier of the French ; Torquato,
Ohiondario, kc, of the Italians, according to Belon ; Colombacoio,
Polombo, Picdone da Ohianda of tbe same, according to PriUce Bona-
parte ; BingdufwB of the 'Fauna Suecicaj' Witd-Taube and Ringel-
Tauba of the Oermansj Ring-Do ve, Queest, and Cushat of the British ;
Ysguthan of the Welsh, and in Belon's opinion the Wttb of the
Greeks.
Instances have been known of its laying in aviaries, and Hr. Selby
states that a pair of ring-pigeons in one of the aviaries of the
Zoological Qardens " built their neat in a tree or shrub contained
within it, and that the female laid two eggs, which unfortunately
were deatroyed by aome accident during incubation. Thia fact ahowa
that under favourable circumstances, and when the habits of the bird
ore attended to, a progeny may be obtained."
0. (Emu. It is the Falomballa, Falombella di Hacchia, Piccdone
Topacchio of the Itsliana ; Le Pigeon Sauvage of Brisaon ; Stock-Dove
and Wood-Pigeon of the British. Mr. Selby observes, " Near as it
approaohsB the common pigeon in size and form, no mixed breed that
-e ore aware of has ever been obtained between them, although
ipaatfld attempts to effect an intercourse have been mode. Thia in
ar tnind appears a strong and convincing proof that all the varieties
geneially blown by the name of Fancy Pigeons have originated from
one and the some stock, and not from crosses with other species, as
some have supposed, the produce of which, even could it be ocoa-
aionslly obtained, we ^tc no doubt would prove to be barren, or
what are genEsally termed mules."
C. livia. This— the Pigeon Priv^ of Bflon; Le Pigeon Domestiqno,
Le Biset, and Le Kocheraye, of Brisson ; Coulon, Colombe, Pigeon,
of the French ; Palombello, Piccione di Tom, Piocjone di Rocoa, of the
Italians; F^ld-Taube,Haaa-raube, Hohl-Taube, BUu-Taube, ondHolts-
Taube, of tiie Oermana ; Wild Rock-Pigeon of the British; Colommen
of the Welsh — is the stock from whidi ornithologists generally now
agree that the domestic pigeon and its varieties ore derived.
" Under this species," writes Ur. Selby, " we include not only the
nnmou pigeon, or inhabitant of the dove-oot, but all those numerous
srieties, or, ss they are frequently termed, nces of domestitsted
pigeons, ss highly prized, and fostered with suoh care aad attention
by the amateur breeder or pigeon fancier; for, however diversified
their forms, colour, or peculiarity of habit may be, we consider them
all as having originated from a few accidental varieties of the common
pigeon, and not from any cross of that bird with other species, no
or marks whatever of such being apparent in any of the nume-
rous varieties known to ua. In fact, the greater part of them owe their
moe to tbe interference and the art of man ; for by separating
from the parent stock such accidental varieties as have occasionally
oocurred, by subjsctiug these to captivity and domestication, and by
assorting them and pairing them together as fancy or caprice sug-
gested, he haa at intervals generalsd all tbe various races and peouliir
varietiee which it is well known when once produosd may be per-
petuated for an indefinite period, by being kept separate from and
unmixed with others, or what by those interested In auch pursuits
ia usually termed ' brenling in and in.' Such also, we may add, is
the opinion of the most eminent nsturalists aa to their origin, and it
is strongly inusted on by U. Tamminck in his valuable work tbe
' Histoire OJn jrale Naturalle dea Pigeons.' Indeed the fact that all
Jie varietiea, however much they may diSbr in colour, siie, or other
particulars, if permitted, breed freely and indiaciiminately with each
other, and produce a progeny equally prolific, is another and «
convincing proof of their common and self-same origm ; for it is one
' ' ise universal laws of nature, extending even to plants, and ona
which if once set sside or not enforced would plunge ail animated
ir into indescribable confusion, that the offepring produced by
the intercourse of different species, that is, distdnct spedes, is incapable
of further incresiae. That such an intercourse may be e&otod is w«U
B3 COLUUBID^
known to ali ; but it ii geDarally under peculiif or oitifictal circmn-
st&ncea, and rarely when the animala, birds, or Trhatsrer the; may
be, Dfe in their natural state, and in a qondition to make tlieir own
election. It u eeen in the orossea obtained in a atate of confinement
between the uqut and goldfinch, linnet, &0. ; in the hybrids between
different apedea of Anatida, when domeatioated or kept in captivity;
in the croaa between the pheasant and conimon fowl, tut. -
" The bastard produce of the common wild turtle (Turlur comnunu)
with the turtle of the aviary (TWttir ruon'iu} has been proved by
freqaent eiperimente to be btu^ren, although the two speciea from
whence it originates appear to be closely allied, and a mixed breed
is easily procured ; and Buoh, we have no hesitation in aayinif, would
be the event if ■ croaa could be obtained between the common pigeon
and the ring pigeon, the wood pigeon, or any other apectes." These
observations are well woriJiy of attention. The aaaertion respecting
the bastard produee of the tnrtleo, made above, ia corroborated by
Heaan. Boitard and Corbid In Uisir ' Hisloire dss Pigeons de Toliire,'
and tiie princble is further confirmed by the eiperimenta of Uaudayt,
VieiUot, and Corbi&
The varieties of this bird produced under the fostering band of
man, the tumblers, croppers, jscobines, runts, spots, turbite, owls,
nuna, Sx. ko,, would fill a volume. Uur limits will not permit us to
figurs or describe them. Tbe Carrier however demands notice. In
one of his odes (EIi OifHimpdi') Anacieoa has immortalised it as the
bearer of epiattea. Taurosthsnes sent to bis expectant father, who
maided in .£gina, the glad tidings of his success in the Olympie
games on the very day of his victory. Pliny (' Nat. Hist.' book i.
37) speaks of the communication kept up between Hirtins and
Decimus Brutus at the siege of Uutlna (Uodeoa) : "What aviuled An-
tony the trench and the watch of the beeiegere j what availed the neti
(retia) stretched across the river, while the messenger was cleaving
the air (per ctsliim eunte nuntio)." The Crusaders employed them,
and Joinville records an instance during tjie cruaade of Samt Louis.
Tasso ' Oieroaalenuna Liberata,' cant, iviii angs of one that wa^
attaclud by a blcon and defended by Qod&ey,
which 'carta' Godfrey of oourae reads, and ia put in possesnon of all
thesecrala. In the sams way Ariosto {cant, iv.) makwtbe 'Castellan di
Damiata' spread the news of Orrilo's death all over Egypt. Sir John
Haundeville, knight, warrior, and pilgrim, who penetiat«d to the border
of China in the reigns of our Second aod Third Edward, thus writes ;
" In that contree and other oootreea beionde thai )i«" a ouatom, whan
thei schulle nsen werre, and whan men holden sege abouten oytee or
cssteUa, and thei withinnen dur not senden out messacen with lettere
fro lord to lord, for to aske sokour, thei maken here letters and
bynden them to the nekke of a Ooher, and letten the Colver flee ;
and the Colverea bon ao taugbte that theraean with the lettera to
tbe very pkce that men wolde sonde hem to. For the Colveres ben
norysBcht in the places where thei ben sent to ; and the! senden bam
thus for to bsrsn bare letters. And the CoLveres retournea ssen
where as thei ben noriascht, and so tbey den comounly."
The Carrier however gradually Bank, in this countiy at least, to the
bearer of the intelligoncs of the felon'a death at Tybum— Hogarth's
print will oocur~to every body: it became the messonger from the
rBc»«ourBs andpriie-ring, and woa olao largely used in Btook-jobbing
transactions. The inventjon and applioation however of ths electric
telegnph hsi to a oonudcarable extent superseded the use of the
Carrier-^geon.
Some idea of the astoniahing fecundity of the domesticated pigeon
may be derived from the aaeertioa of Biberg, who observes that if
you suppose two pigeons to hatch nine times a year they may produce
iu four years 14,760 young.
In its wild state the Hock Pigeon ia widely distributed ; the rooky
isUnda of Africa and Asia, and in the Hediterranean, abound with
them. Tiigil'a beautiful simila in the Fiith ^neid evidently rdatei
to this spedea : —
In the Orkneys and Hebrides it is said to swarm. " It is also met
irith upon the northern and western coasts of Sutherland, the perfo-
rated and cavernous rocks which gird the eastern side of Loch Eriboll,
and those of the limestone district of J>umeaa, furnishing suitable
places of retreat ; and again upon the eastern ooaste of Sootland it is
seen about the rocky steeps of the Isle of Baas and the bold pramon-
torv of St Abb'a Head." (Selby.)
C. twin in its wild state has the following charactdra : — Bill blackiah-
brownj the nostril membnne red, sprinkled as it were with a white
powder. The irides pale reddish-orange. Head and throat bluiah-
gr^. Kdes of tbe neck and upper part of the breast dark lavender-
punilt^ glossed with shades of green and porpliah-red. Lower part
of brnsl and abdomen bluinh-gray. Upper mandible and wing-
OOTsrta Un»fTay. Greater coverts and secoodariaa barred with black,
■o that there are two broad and distinct baia acrooa the closed wings.
Lower part of ths back white j rump and tail-coverta bluiah-gray.
Tail deep gray, with a bi:oad black bar at the end. L^ and feet
Wild Boek-Fiteon (Cblunte Una).
Turiur lEdapitlaia, Selby),— Bill more alender than that of the
pigeona. Tip of the upper mandible gently deflected, that of tbe
lowor Bcarcely exhibiting the MpeaiancB of an angle. Tarsi rather
shorter than the middle toa. Feet formed for walking or perching ;
inner toe longer than the outer. Front of tarai covered with broad
imbricated aodea. Winga — flrat quill a little ahort^r than the second,
third longest of alL Tail rounded or slightly giaduat«d. (Selby.)
•T. ritoritu. It ia the Ootan^a riaoria of authors; T. lorcuatut
Saugitifnuit, Brisson ; Tourtorelle & Collier, Bufian ; probab^ the
Turtle of the Scriptures, and atill plentiful in Egypt and other ea«tem
coontries, where it is often kept in confinement. The relics of Qreek
and Roman art give a very fair repreeentation of this species ;
BAon and others seem to be of opinion that the T, ec ~
Turtle Dove, was the T/iOynt of the Greeks.
The following is a description of a wild specimen from Southern
Africa : — Length about 1 0 inches. Chin whitish ; from the oometa
of the mouth to the eyes a narrow streak of block. Forehead pale
bluiah-giay ; crown darker ; cheeks, neck, breaat, and belly, gray,
tinged irith vinaoeoua or pole purplish -rad ; the hind neck with a
demi-oollar of block ; some of the aide feathers of the collar tipped
with white. Bock, scapulan, and rump, pale clove-brovm, with a
greenish tinge. Margins of wings, greater oover^ and nnder win^
coverts, blua^pmy- Greater quiUa hair-brown, delicately edged wiUi
giayiah-white. Vent and under tail-coverts white. Legs and feet
gray ; inner toe a little longer than the outer. (Selby.)
In its natural state this species haunts the woods, where it breeds,
(I COLlTUBID^
making ■ Deat like that of the common turtle, flnd lays two wbits
tggn. It Heka its food in ths open grannda, and Rubeitta upon groin,
gntneeds, imd pulM, &c Its triTisl nune ii dgriTsd !com > fanciful
reaemblonoe to the human Uugh in its ccninga. (3elb<^.)
A race between the common turtle and thie speciee has been ob-
tained ; bat the mule* are stated to hare been iQTSTiablf barren.
T. nmnUHiu (Linnsus), the Turtle Dove {Cohtmba lurlw of authon),
is found in Great Britain. It oocon only aa a sunimsr Tijuter coming
from Africa.
Mr Selbf proTiaioaally placei the C. lophoia of Temminck under
this genua.
EctopUtu (Swninsoa).— Bill ilender, notched. Wings rather elon-
gated, pointed ; the Snt and third quill equal ; the second longest.
Tijl rounded, or curvated. Feet ihort, naked ; anterior sooles of the
tuid imbricate ; lateral scales very small, reticulate.
£ nigreaoria. It ia the C. migritiaria of authors, the Passenger
Pigeon of Wilson, Audubon, and othera. Our limits not allowing --
PssKnfCr FiEtOD ISetapiila migratiiria).
" The rooating-placeB ore always in the woods, and aometimea
occupy a large eitent of foreat When they have frequented one of
tbcae places for some time, the appearance it eihihita is aurpriaing.
The ground is covered to the depth of several inches with their dung ;
all the tender grass and underwood destroyed; the aurfaoe strewed
trith large limbs of trees, broken down by the weight of the birds
collecting one above another ; and the trees themselves, for thousands
of scree, killed aa completely as if girdled with on axe. The morlu
of their desolation remun for many years on thespot; and numerous
places could be pointed out where, for several years alter, scarcely a
discovered, the inhabitants, from considerable dislanceii, visit them
in the night with guns, clubs, long poles, pots of sulphur, and various
other enginee of destruction. In a few hours they fill msny socks
and load honn with thsm. By the Indiazu a pigeon-ioost or breed-
ing-place ia consjdflfed on important source of national proSt and
dependence for that season, and all their active ingenuity is eierdsed
on the occaaioa. The breeding-place differs from the former in its
greater eitent In the western oountriee, namely, the states of Ohio,
Kentucky, and Indiana, these are generally in back wood^ and often
extend in neor^ a stroight line aoroas the country for a great way.
Not far from ^elbyviUe, in the state of Kentucky, about five years
ago, there was one of these breeding-places, which sb«tched through
the woods in nearly a north and south direction, was several miles in
breadth, and was said to be upwards of forty miles in extent. In this
tract almost every tree was furoished with nests wherever the branches
could accommodate them. The pigeons made tlieir first appearance
there about the 10th of April, andleft it altogether with their young
before the 25th of Hay. Aa soon os the young were fully grown, and
before they left the nests, numerous parties of the inhabitants tram
all part* of the adjacent country came with waggons, axes, beds,
cooking utensils, many of them accompanied by the greater part of
their families, and encamped for several days at tills immense nunery.
SeTer«t of them informed me that the noise was so great aa to terriF^
their horses, and that it was difficult fbr one person to hear another
speak without bawling in his ear. The ground was strewed with
broken limbs of trees, eggs, and young squab pigeons, which had been
piecipitated from above, and on which herds of hoga were fattening.
Hawks, buzEardB,and eagles were sailing about in great numbers, and
seizing the squabs from we nests at pleasure, while, from twenty feet
upwards to ute top of the trees, the view through the woods presented
a pcrpeloal tumult of crowding and fluttering multitudes of pigeons,
their wings roaring like thunder, mingled wiw the frequent crash of
falling timber ; for nowUie axemen were at work, cutting down thi
trees that seemed to be most croivded vrith nests, ond coatrived tof
them in such a manner, that in their descert they might bring down
several others; by which means the falling of one large tree some-
times produced 200 squaba, little inferior in siss t6 the old ones, and
olmost one heap of fat^ On some single treea upwarda of 1 00 neitla
were found, each cont^ning one squab only ; a circumstance in the
history of this bird not generally known to natunliata. It waa
dangerous to walk under these flying and fluttering millions, &om tha
int fall of large branches, broken down by the weight of tha
budea above, and which in their descent often destroyed numbeni
of the birds themaelves ; while the clothes of those engaged in
the woods were completely covered with tie excrements
of the pigeons.
" Thefle eircumfftances were reloted to me by many of Uie moat
ipectable part of tbe community in that quarter, and were con-
firmed in part by what I myself witnessed. I passed for several miles
through thie same breeding-place, where every tree was spotted with
nests, the remains of those above described. In many instances I
connted upwards of ninety nests on a single tree ; but tbe pigeons
had abandoned this place for another, sixty or eighty miles off. towards
Green River, where they were said at tliat time to be equally numer-
ous. From the great numbem that were constantly passing over onr
beada to or from that quarter, I hod no doubt of the truth of this
statement. Tbe mast bod been chiefly conaumcd in Kentucky ; and
the pigeons, every morning a little Mfore sunrise, set out for Uw
Indiana territory, the nearest part of which was about sixty milea
distant. Many of these returned before ten o'clock, and the great
body generally appeared on their return a little aft— noon. I had
left the public road to visit the remuns of the hreeding-plooe near
Shelbyville, and was traversing the woods with my gun, on my way
to Frankfort, when about ten o'clock the pigeons which I hod observed
flying the greater part of the morning northerly, began to return in
such immense numbers as I never before had witneued. Coming to
on opening by the aide of a creek called tbe Benson, where I had a
more uninterrupted view, I was astonished at their appearance : thej
were flying with great steadiness and rapidity, at a height beyond gun-
shot, in several strata deep, and so close together that, could shot
have reached them, one discharge could not have failed of bringing
down several individuals. From right to left, as far as the eye could
reach, the breadth of this vast procession extended, seeming every-
where equally crowded. Curious to determine how long thia appear-
ance would continue, I took out my watch to note the time, and aat
down to observe tbem. It was then half-past one ; I sat for more
than an hour, but instead of a diminution of this prodigious proces-
sion, it seemed rather to increase, both in numben and rapidity;
and anxious to reach Frankfort before nigbt I rose and went on.
Aboot four o'clock in the afternoon I crossed Kentucky River, at tho
town of Frankfort, at which time the living torrent above my head
seemed as numerous and as extensive as ever. Long after this I
observed them in large bodies that continued to pass for ail or eight
minutea, and theae again were fallowed by other detached bodies, all
movmg in tbe some south-east direction, till after six o'clock in tbe
evening. The great breadth of front which this mighty multituda
preserved would seem to intimate a corresponding breadtli of their
breeding-plaoe, which, by several gentlemen who tiad lately passed
through part of it, was stated to me at asvera] milea."
ihat its whole length was 240
miles, and that the numbers oomponng it amounted to 2,280,272,000
pigeons, observing that this is probably far below the aotual amount.
He adds, that allowing each pigeon to consume half a pint of food
daily, the whole quantity would equal 17,424,000 bushels doily. Ur.
Audubon conflrms Wilson in every point, excepting that he very pro-
perly corrects that part of the murative wtuph would lead to the
conclusion that a single young one only is hatehed each time. The
latter observes that the bird lays two eggs of a pure while, and that
each brood generally consists of a male and female. ,
DeeoriptioD. — Winga long and acuminate, having the seeoad quill-
feather exceeding the othera in length. The taii is greatly cuneifonu
or graduated, and consists of twelve tapering fea^era Bill black,
and like that of the turtle. Legs purpliah-red, abort, and atrong.
Iria bright orange-red, the naked orbit purplish-red. Head and cheek)
pale bluish-gray. Fore-neck, breast, and aides brovfoish-red, with a
puniliah' tinge. Abdomen and vent white. Lower port and sides of
neck purplish-crimaon, reBecting tints of emerold green and gold.
Upper plumage deep bluish-gray, some of the scapulars and wing-
coverts apotted with black. Greater ooverta gray, tipped with wbitK
Quills blaokish-gny, their exterior webs bluish-gtiy. Tail with the
two middle feothera block, the other five on each side grav at the base,
with a black bar on the interior arch, and paaaing into white towards
the extremitieik
The female is rather smaller, and has the coloun of her plumaga
much duller than tbooe of the male, though the diatribution ia the
some. (Selby.)
The Passenger Pigeon inhabits the North American continent, be-
tween the 20th and 02nd degrees of north latitude. Mr. Eyton has
flgured one as a visitant to our shares, on the authority of Dr. Fleming,
who, in his ' History of British Animals,' says that one was shot in
tbe parish of Monimai), Fifeahire, on tbe 31st December, 1335. llr.
a COLUMBIDJS.
Yurell also records the capture of anoUieT Bpecimen at RayBton,
in Cambrtdgeehire.
Hr. Selb; refsn praviraooBlly fbfwnta Capeatit, Aiiot, C. Mac-
giMirni, Loaun, uid C. vemtila, Temm., to his group of EeUrpittma,
<uid thinlu that bythsBeuid some other nearly allied forma apaaaaga
tc the next RTOup, Ftriiitrina, the Qroiutd-DoTea, is affected.
Family PeritUrina (Selby). — DiaJJnguiahed from the praeodlng
graupa by their terrene habits, and their evideot approach in many
points to the more typioal Satora, or OallinaceouB Birds. In these
the bill is rather alender, frequently aub-emargiuat^ and the tip of
the upper mandible gently deflected ; the wings are generally shart
and rounded, and in many instances concave, aa in the partridgo,
gronso, &c The legs are canaidersbty longer than in the typical
pigeons, the taisus uanally exoeeding Uis middle toe in length, and
the feet better adapted for walking than grasping ; the olaws an
obtuse and alightly arched. The hallux a shorter, and ita relative
position different ftom that of the arboreal apeciea. Their plamags
IS plaiuBT and more uniform In tint than that of some of the preced-
ing groups, though it is still brilliant in those epeciee which connect
them with other forms. They live almoat entirely upon the greund,
and many of the gpeciea run with gnat celerity, on which account
they have been called Partridge Flgeoni. Their fli^t, which is
usually low, is efibcted with greater exertion than that u the pigeons,
and is nerer long suatalned. (Selby.)
Mr. Selby observes that this division oontains a great number of
species, and is of opinion that wlien better investigated it will be
feund divisible into a variety of minor groupa or g«isn. He places
under it Pha^, Chanurfdia, and Periilera. This group is dis-
tinsniabed by a longer bill, very faintly emarginate, and by its tarsi,
whieh are moderat^y long and naked, with the ^ntal scales divided
into two aeries, and Uie sides and hinder port reticulated with minute
scales. Another group, he adds, leems indicated by certain Amatio
■pedes, conspicuoua for the rich metallic green of the plumage
oLUieir backs, resembling therein some of the Ptiluurpina. The
tarsi of these are destitute of scales, except a few indistinct ones in
front, just above the toes. The bill ia rather long, and destitute of a
notch. Thi^ live mostly on the ground, but their flight ia powerful
Mr. Selby tales CUmalba titperiAiata of Wagler bb the type of this
last-mentioned group.
Pkapi (Selby). — Bill moderately long, rather slender ; upper man-
dible gently deflected at the tip, and with the indication of a notch
or emargination. Wings of mean length ; second and third feathers
longest, and nearly equal Tall slightly rounded. Legs — tarsi aslong
s« tde middle toe, the front covered with a double row of scales, sides
and back reticulated with small hexagonal acalea. Hind toe short ;
inner toe exceeding the out«r in lei^tli. Claws blunt, slightly arched.
Type, Cblumia eAaieopfcru, Latham. C. tiegaiu, Temm. ; and C. picata,
Wftgler, belong to this group. (Selby.)
P. duUeoptera. It is the G. chaUopltnt, Latham ; the C. Lamaehellt
of Temminok ; Bronie-Winged Qraund-DoTe.
Broan-Wingcd Onnad-DoTC (napi e^kopttrB).
Bin about that of C. (Ema. Total length about IG inches. Bill,
from edges of the gapo, hardly an inch ; black anteriorty ; reddish
near the base. Forehead, stripe below the eyes, and throaty white ;
crown brown, tinged with reddish, filleted with dusky red ; cheeks
Mid sides of neck bluiah-gray ; bottom of neck in front and breast
scapulars, rump, and upper tan-ooverta, brown tinged w_._ „. .
in Home lights, the border of each feather paler. Wing-coven blnisb-
giay, but the outer webs of every feather have a large ovate spot,
producing varioua tints of metallic brilliancy according to the direc-
tion of the light. Quills brown above, with the iimer sur&oe <rf tha
webs, the axillary feathers, and under wing-cavSrta bordeied rather
deeply with pale orange-red. Tail slightly rounded, bluish-gray, with
a black baad. Legs red ; two rows of scales in fron^ the sides
reticulated.
It is an inhabitant of Australia and islands in the PadSc ; in the
ground, and occasionally perched upon the low branches of shrubs.
Ifest inartificial, in holes of low trees or decayed tninks near the
greund, sometimes on it Egga two, white. These l^rds go in paira
generally ; their cooing is tond, and has been compared, whoi heaid at
a distance, to the lowing of a cow,
Ckamcepdia (Swainion), — Bill slender, entire. Wings rounded, tha
first quill short, third, fourth, and fifth nearly equal and longest ; Ut«
weba on both sides alighUy emaiginate. Tul rounded. Feet nther
short ; the sides of the tarsi feathered. Types, Coiimiib* posscrina,
Linn. ; 0. tjuoauua, Temm. (Swainion).
C. Talpieati. It ia the OolaoJia Talpieoti of Temminok, the spedsa
which Mr. Selby considen to be the ^pe. Length 3J inches, adult
male j forahead, crown, and nape of neck, aah-gny ; cheeka and throat
pinkiah-white ; upper plumage entirely brownish-orangs, with tiie
exception of a few transverse etreab of black upon ths exterior weba
of the wing-coverta neareet the body ; under plumage deep
browniah-blnck, with reddish-brown tips, moderately curved ; bill and
orbits bluish-gray ; legs and toes pale red, tha outer side of the tarsus
with a row of amsll feathers down the line of junction b
and parataraia; quilla broad, the fourth with a large
Cjectdng notch Cowardi the middle of the inner web. The fnnale
the crown of the head at a sordid gray j the apper plumage of •
wood-brown, tinged with red ; the scapular and wing^overts marked
OS on the male ; under plumnga dirty gray, tinged with pale tnirpli*I>*
red. (Selby.)
Chamaftlia Tiilpieiiti.
This bird inhabits Brazil, Poiaguay, and other districts of South
America. It haunts open grounda near woods, where it roots and
breeds upon the underwood, but never far frem the ground, where it
ia active, and feeds upon the smaller cerealia, berries, Aa. Generally
observed in pairs, sometimes in familiea of four or six, never in luge
flooka. Does not fly fi'om the face of man, but affects the confines of
hooaes and farm-yards. Easily kept and propagated in aviariea.
Pei-uKra (Swainson). — Bill slender, sub-emaiginata. Wings rounded,
the fii-Bt quill abort and abruptly at(enna(«d, second and fiftli equal,
third and fourth equal and longest Tul rounded. Feet strong,
naked, somewhat lengthened ; anterior scales of the tatai imbricati^
lateral scales none. Type, L'ottanlia emtrea, Temm. (Swainaon).
P. tyatpamtlna. It is the CbJumia t^paaitlria of Temminok.
Leogth about 9 inches ; upper plumage brown, slighUy tinged with
gray on the neck ; large spots of shining dark green on the outer webs
of three or four of the greater wing-ooverts ; middle tail-feothera
brown ; the two exterior on each Hi(k gray, with a broad black tiar
near the tip ; inner weba of greater quilla deep brown ; forehead,
streak over the eye, and under plumage, pure white; under wing-
ooverts and sides pale oruige-brown ; undu' tail-oo verts brown ; bul
and legs gray, thejatter with a reddish tinga
It inhabits South Africa, where it is said to haunt woods. The
spedea does not seem to be common.
Qeophiliu (Selby),— Mr. Selby, speaking of Oohmba Cfatu/Ctphalm,
Wsgler, IWttir Janatcouu, Brisson J Co^tMt&i Mranculnfs, Wagler;
and Oolambn Nicabarica, Latham, Ceivmba QaUvt, Wagler, Bay»—
Piriittra lg„^KuMa.
" Whether tlie7will fonzi a wparate diTuucn, or the three fint will
enter among the Pervterina, and the Lophymt eJons ramain a repn-
■entntiTO of another group, we are noabls to detwmine, not poaaeoBuig
sufficient materuJa to ioatitute so etrict an aoalfaii aa ii necenary, or
to b-aee out with precimon the direot afBoitiea of those ipecLeB, and
the aitaaUon they hold in mpect to the other gronpa of the
CUnmMdor, M well u those of the adjoining families. The three firat
wa hare proriaioiiall; included in the genus Otofhiliu. In their
form and babita they approach still nearer to the typieal gallinaoeoua
birda than the species we have just heen describing. Their tarsi are
lon^ and covered with hexagonal scales ; their tail short, and rather
pendcmt ; their wings ooncave, shorty and rounded ; aud their body,
aa oompared with the typical pigeons, thid: and heavy. A striking
departure from the gennvl economy of the CohnMda is further
obeerved in th«ir mode of propagation, the number of the eggt they
Uy each hatching not being confined to two, aa is seal to prevail in
the groups alrea^ described, but extending to eight or ten, which are
incubated upon the ground, and the yoimg, l^e those of the true
gallinaoeona birds, are produced from the egg in such a state aa to
be able immediately to ibUow the parent, which brooda over and
attaids them like the partridge or domestic fowL Tbey live entirely
upon the grotmd, ezoept during the hours of repose, when they some-
tiinei lelira to boshes, or the loi# branches of tiws. They walk and
nm with great qniekness, like the OaUina, and in fact appear to be
the forms which immediately connect this family Vith the Pavonida
and TelrtKmiAx. JUthoogh for the present we have placed the first
three under the ume generic head, yet from their distinct geogra-
phioal distributian, and the diSerence observed in the bill of the first)
it ia more than probable that a further division will be required."
a. eaniuMtalut. It is the Columba eartmctilaia of Temminek ; the
Colombe Oalline of Le Vaillant. Sim about that of the Common
Turtle, bnt with the body stouter and more rounded. Base of the
bill and forehead covered with a naked red wattle; another wattle of
the same hue depends from the chin, and branches of it extend
upwards towards the ears. Plunuge of head, cheeks, neck, and
breaat, purplish-gray ; back, scapulars, and wing-ooverts, pale gray ;
feathers bordered with white. Belly, UPI*^ and under tail-coverts,
Banks, and under wing^ooverta, white. Tail aborts rounded, deep
ruddy-brown, except the outer feather on each side ; these have the
outer web white. Legs covered with hexagonal scales, pnlplish-red.
Iris with a doable cirole, yellow and red. The female bat UO wattle^
and her ooloure are less pure. (Le Taillant.)
It inhabits South A&iea, where it was disooveind in the Oraat
Kamaqoa ooantry t^ Le Taillant, who gives the following aoeount of
ile habits and ^Bnilies : — " To Uie pigeons its affinity is shown by
the form of the bill and the plnntage ; while It difite* from them in
the pendaot wattle, elongated tarn, rounder body, less gnuwful form,
tail, which it osniea baoging down like that of a partridge, and
rounded vrings ; points which bring it near to the Oaliinte." A
passage ia thus formed by it, in his opinion, betweoi tboae birds and
the pigeons. The nart, oompoaed of twigs and the dried stems of
grasses, is formed in aooe sli^t hollow of the gronnd, and there tbs
female lays six or eight reddisb-wbite eggs, which are Inmbated by
both the parenta. The yoong are hatched clothed wil^ down of a
l«iidish-gray, run immediately and follow their parents, which keep
COLUMBID..E. M
them together by a peculiar oft-repeated- cry, and brood over them
with their wings. Their fir«t food consists of the larvn of anta, dead
inseota, and worms, which the parents point out to them. When
strong enough to find their own food, they live on grain of difibrent
sorts, berries insects, tc, and keep together in coveys, like the
[lartridge and other Ttlraxmida, till tiie poiriug-time.
OtopkUiu
If the wattles of the last-named apeciea recall to the observer the
highly devel. '
txt present '
GalUna.
O. NicDbarieuM, It is the Coluatta Nieoiariea of Latham, the
0. OaUut of Wagler. Length hardly IS inches ; iaH slender, about 1 \
inch long, tip but little bent downwards; the t^ pure white, the
quills deep blackish-blue, with varying ttnin of green ; ^ the rest of
Uie plumage rich metallic green, shooting, according to the light,
into the variegated tints of gnlden^freeQi bronze, bright ooppcr-
oolour, and deep purplish-red; neck-feathera long, narrow, and
pointed, like those of the domestic cock ; barbulea towards the tip
alky and distinct; bail ahorti pendent, nearly square; wings, whoi
oloaed, reaching nearly to the termination of tail; legs strong,
moderetely lone, black, covered with hexagonal scales ; nails yellow,
gently curved, blunt- Cpon the base of tiie upper mandible of the
male a round fleshy tubercle (probably apparent in the breeding
season only). The female resemuea the male in colour, but bar neck-
feathers are not so long, and she has no tubercle.
It inhabits the isles of Nicobar, Java, Sumatra, snd nisnjr of the
Uoluocaa, Authors differ about its habits, some asserting that ila
nest ia }daced on the ground, and that the female lays sBveral eggs,
the yoong running aa soon as hatched ; but Mr. Bennett, who saw
them in Mr. Beale'a aviaiy at Uacao, aays that they w«re usually
sera perdied apon the trees, even upon the loftiest branches, and
adds, that they build their rode nests and rear their young npm
tress, similar to all tiie pigeon tribe.
Lofhynu (Tieillot). — Bill moderate, rather slender, and slightly
gibbons towards the tip ; npper mandible cduumelad (sUloimfe) 'Ml
COLTTUBIKB.
tbs lidn, t""!'"*-* toirarda the point; noatrili Mtu»)*il
winsi roundad. (VieiUot.)
L. evrtmaiiu. It b tiis Columba atnmata of ImAata ; PAonamu
cH^oJw Indian, BiiMaD ; CMwkM foeco, La Vaill. ; Colomba Oalline
Ogim, Tamm. ; QrtaX CmwDed Pigeon, Edv. A apec'
in nza all tha other Cobimbida. Total length from 27
bill two iochea long, blank, tip* of maodiblea thickened
upper one lomswhat deflectA) ; bead with a Urge elera
Itf eompreawd ereat of narroir itrai^t feathen, with dsoompoaad
or rather diaunitad nlky barbulea, always erect ; treat and bodj below
grayish-bliu ; feathen of back, acapulaia, and ainallsr wing-coveita,
black at the baae, rich piirpLe-brown at the tip* ; greater coverta
■una colour, but ceotrall; barred with white, forming a aingle trane-
Verae bond acroee the ninga when cloaed ; quilla and tail deep gray,
the latter terminated with grapah-blue ; legi gn; ; tani 31 inehea id
Imgih, covered witti rounded acalea not clotel; aet, with a white
border of akin round each ; toea itrong and lomewhat ahort, acalei
pUced H in the Q^tminn^
""''**Wi^_^
Gm( Crownad Tlgnn ( CopAynu esrsmUu).
Thia bird Ii found in many of the iilanda of the great Indian group.
Not nr« in Java and Banda, abundant in New Quioea and in ntost of
the Holuocaa. Meat built in treoa; eggs two; cooing of the male
hoane, aooompanied b; a noiae BDmewhat like that of a turkey-cock
whan atrulling. Food— berrien, teed, grain, Ac Flavour of the flesh
•aid to be excellent.
"In thia magnificent and beautiful bird," aayi Mr. Selby, "we
obMTTe a combinatjoa of form different from that of the ground-
pigeoDH lo lately described ; for, instead of the marked affinity to the
typioal raaorial famUiea, the Pavonidre and Tttriumida, lo decidedly
exhibited by these ipeoiea, both in their mode of life and in their
divlation from the uaual Columbine figure, we haie, in the present
Inatanoe, an approximation of structure much nearer that of oome of
^he Oracidtr, another tribe of birda which oonstitutea an aberrant
bunlly of the Raaorial Order; and it ia on thia aooount we think that
tbia bird cannot well be placed in the aame diviaion with the ground-
dovea, but miut constitute the type of a eeparate group."
FoaH CiJtmbida.—J>T. BuoMand enumerates the bonea of the
pigeon among the remaina In the on at Kirkdals, and figures a bone
which he aan uproaches oIom^ to the Spaiush runt ; but Profeaaor
Owen, in hia ' ^itUh Foa^ MaTnmali and Birds,* is silent on Uiis
COLiniBINE. [Aoduou.]
OOLtlHBITE, a Kinetal into the ootupotitian of wUeh Iha metal
Columblum etitanL Columblum on its fliM diMoverr was alao called
by ohemlila Tantalum, and tbli BuiMnl has idao been ealled
Colutnhita oooon in notugular prisms, mom or leM modified, also
COLTTUELttACB^ «
ii'C. It Li of an iruu-blouk or bi-owiuihliLkck colour, often with
a choncteristic irideaoence on a surface of firoetute ; the streak dark
hrowtt, slightly leddiah ; \aiAn snbmetallie, «*'i"'"g ; opaque i brittle.
The hardnaaa is S to 8 ; the specific grmnty S-8 to 6L
According to Dana the eompodtioD of an American specimen was
Colnmhie with Ifiobic Acid SO'l
Protoxide of Iron ISit
Protoxide of Hanganeae 6*0
Oxide of Tin -1
Oxides of Copper and Lead -l
BaTaiion specimens contain Pelopic acid, wliich, oecordiog to Boa(^
accounts for their high specific grarity, which rougea bom G'TtoS'l.
This mineral is infusible alone before ttie blowpipe, but on miitore
with borax in Gne powder it fuses slowly but perfectly, forming ■ dark
green glass, which indicates the presence of iron.
Columlnte is found in granite at Bodenmais in Bavaria, also in
shemia. It ooonn in the United States in faldspathia or albitjo
nx^ at Hiddletown and Haddam, Conneeticnt, at Chesterfield and
Bevsrl<7, Hasaachnsetts, and at Aicworth, New Hampshire; Faro-
tantalitt ia a Colnmhate of Iron.
(Dana, ilmeralogji.)
COLUHE'LLA, the oeutnd part or axis in the theoa of a noes,
around which the sporea are arranged, without having any de6nile
oonneolioa with it. Also Uie axis irf any kind of fruit when separate
' the carpels : in the latter esse it is a hardened state of the
growing poinL
COLUHELLIACE^, a natural otder of EiOMnoDs Planta with
epipetalooa stamena^ nnnona antiiat* busting longitodioaUy, and
unsymmetrical flowera. They are evergreen shmba or trees. The
leaVflfl opposite, wiUiout stipule^ entire or serrated; the flowers
yellow and teiminoi; calyx supsriar, S-parted; corolla rotate, S-8-
parted, with an imlnicated Ecstivation ; stameni S, inserted in the
throat, alternate with the aegmenta of the corolla ; anthers roundish,
3-lobed, bursting externally, eoob comnstdng of tliree pairs of narrow
somewhat ainiiaos cells, which open loogitudiiully, and which are
placed upon a solid fleshy connective. The affinities of thia order
are very doubtfuL Professor Don, who first noticed the order, plocsa
it near the Jasmines. It differs however materially from them, and
may almost t>e described as a form of monopetalous O^agraeae. Dr.
Ltndley, in thia uncertainty, leaves it by the sids of Btrbtraeta and
Cindtonaeia ; to either cS which, and especially to the latter, it may
COLDMNARIA.
I for PlocU belonging to the
u Pluta, .
TOigs;
COLimSI'PERM,
nitunl order Matvaeea. [Halvaora.]
nhich explode vhsD auddenlj compressed, and which look like Tegs'
table bludden, whence the conunon Eaglish name of Bladdei^SeimA.
The species have jellow or yellow and red flowers of Boue beauty ;
and are kll found in the South of Europe, in Palestine, md in the
fiinulnft Hountaini.
COLT'MBIDiE, a fuoilj of Swimming Birds {NatMoret), having a
smootli, atnight, oompressed, and pointed bill.
WiUnghbj anigned the fsjnily ft place in his fllth section (' Whole-
Footed Birda, wiUi Shorter Lws '), under the nsJne of " Douckera or
Loons, called in Latine Cblysto^' and he divided them into " Cloren-
Footad Douckors that have no Tails," the Qreban, and the " Whole-
Footed Douckers with Tails," the true Divert. The following is
Wiliughby"! doecription ' of^DouokerH in general : '— " DouokecB have
ow, stntight, Bharp-poiiitad bills, small heads, lad also small
1^ ; tlunr legs situate backwards, near the tail, for quick awim-
g and easier diving ; broad 3at lees, by which nota they are di>-
tingiiiahed from all other kinds of birdu ; broad claws, like human
naus. Of Uiose Douckers there are two kinds ; the Smt is of such as
an cloran-foolad, hat fln-toed, having lateral membranes all along the
sides of ttidr toes, aid Uiat want the tail ; the.second is of those that
ace wbolO'footed and candat^ iriiich do nearly approach to those
Urds we call TridaOfjla, that want the back toe. These are not
without good reason called 'Douckers,' for that tbey dive mach, and
continua long nnder water, aa soon aa they are up dropping down
igain."
Bay, in his ' Synopsis,' amnges the Cloven-Footed and Whole-
Footed OUyitAi, Grebes, and Diven, mider hia 'Palmipedes Tstta-
doctyls di^to postioo solute, et prim6 roatro recto angusto acuto,
Bradiyptetm et Uriuatricea, Column dictn.' He also mdades the
genua Mergalia. [Ade.]
linnnus placed both the Divers, property eo Called, and the Qrebee
under hie genus Calymlnu, which stands in his ^atem nnder the
order Anteret, between the genera Phaiton (Tropio Birds), and ZanM
{OuIIb).
Pennant followed BrisBon in separating the Orebea ^m the Diven.
The fint he placed next to the Cool«, and immediately before the
Aicoets ; and the Divers between the Quillemots and the Oulls.
Under the term ' Plongeurs, ou Brachyptirea,' Cuvier arranges
thoae Paimiiptda, " a part of which have some relation to the Watei-
Hens. The legs placed more backward.thBu in any of the other birds,
reader walking a ditBcult operation, and oblige them, when on land,
to keep themselves in a vertical position. Aa the greater part of them
are, besidee, bad flyeni, inasmuch as some of them cannot fly at all
on account of the shortness of their wings, they may be regarded aa
almost eicluaively attached to the surface of the waters. Id aocord-
snce with this destination their plumage ia more close-set, and some-
times it evan ofibra a smooth sor&ce and ailveiy hue. The; awim
under the water, Uding themaelves with their wings, Dearly as if th<^
were fina. Their naaaid ia anffldently mnacular, their oeeoa arc
iiiademt<^ and dur have each a pecnliar muscle on each aide of didr
lower lannz." The following are the genera comprehended under
this buJlT by Cuvier : — the Grebes, Brieaon {Padietft, Latham ;
Colyntiui, BrisBon and Illiger) ; Oie Diven (Flongeons), properly no
called (Mergm, Brisson ; Colyv^m, Latham ; Eudyta, Uliger) ; the
Goillemota lUria, Briseoa and Illiger) ; the Auks (I^ngouins), Alea
of Linnmoa; the Penguiiu (Hani^ticts), Aplauidj/ta of Foister, con-
sisting of the Bub-genen ApUnodnttt, Cuvier ; Calatrhaeta, Brisson ;
and Sphenixiit, Briasou.
Temminck places the Qrebee {Podicrpt) next to the Phalaropti, at
the end of his fourteenth order, the Piimatipida, or Fin-Footed
Birds ; and the Diven {Oigmhu*, Latham) between Ills Pelicans and
the GuiUemotB in his fifteenth order, the Palmiptdtt.
VLt. Vigors mokes his fifth order of birds (Natatvrti) comprise the
foUowing fauiliea ; —
Anatida, Leach.
Oolymbida, Leach,
Pdtcanidai, Leach.
Larida, Leach.
Or, with reference to the ^pical nvupa —
Hormal Group.
.iAkadec
Aberrant Group. , Bj„.,—ij-
With longer and weU-feathered wings, and feet espe- 1 VoJ^
dally placed within the equipoiae of the body , •\Aiialida.
COLYllBID.^:.
'y of «"
sizth order of birds, Les PalnupMes {ffatalora of Illiger and Vieillot) ;
and the family oomprises the genera Podictpi, Latham ; Calymmu
(part), Linnaeus ; and Ctp\ut, Cuvier.
The Prince of Canino places Podicepi under his order Amera in
the fiunily Lobiptda, and Colpiilmt undn' the aame order in his family
Pygopoda.
In the ' Fauna Boreali-Americnna,' Podierpt is placed at the head
of the order Natatora, and is immediately succeeded by SterRU {the
Terns) ; the pontion of Cblymiiu is between Peleeamu and Uria,
which lust-mentioned genus concludes the order.
Podicepi. — Bill longer than the head, robust, elighUy compreased or
Hnd tod Foot at tb* male Earsd Grebe ; i
Hi. Qanld'i ' Biltiili Birds / the foot frsm ■
ZODloglol SiKinj.
The species of Podictpi are called Qrebea. They haunt the aea aa
well as the rivers, are excellent BvrimmerB, and dive frequently, as aU
who have watched the Dabchick or Little Grebe (Padictpt minor),
and have been amused by its quickly-repeated plungings, well know.
Tbey feed on small Sshes, frogs, crustaceans, and insects, and their
neete, farmed of a large quantity of gras, Ac, ore generally placed
amoDg reeds and coricee, and rise and foil with the water.
The geographical distribution of this genus is very wid& Fiva
European species are enumerated, and the foreign species ore very
numerous. The form seems oapable of adaptation to great varieties m
climate. In the ' Tables ' published in the ' Introduction to Fauna
Boreali-Amerioana,' we And P. comutut and P. CaroUnentii among
the birds which merely winter in Pennsylvania, and migrate in
summer to rear their young in the Fur Countriea ; and P. eriila-
ttu, P. ntbricoUii, and P. eoriHitiit in tiie list of speoies common to
the Old World and to the Fur Countries. Sabine gives a deeodption
of a mature individual of P. rufrricoUu killed at Great Slave lake,
and of a ^ecimen of P. Carolinentu killed at tiie same plaoe, both in
Sir John Franklin's first expedition and in May 1S22; and Sir John
Richardson notes P. erittaint as having been killed on the Saskatche-
wan, and P. cemtitM at Great Slave Lake ('Fauna Boreali-Amerioana').
P. CkUtmiM and P. Ameneannt are naUvea of the warm parts of
America ; the Snt, aa its name implies, having been found in the Btf
BB COLYHBID^.
of ConoepfioD, and the nooud on the Biwdliu wtUn (Bio Qiando
■nd S. Piuilo).
P. oecipit^ii (Laosou) maj be taken aa aa euunple. Thu Qrebe,
aooording to H. Leason, .a reaaAtiiXv for the d^mte tiiita of ita
eiuisge, which ia atate-gny (gria ftrdois^ sbare and of ii utiiiy white
low. The oheeka and foniieftd are of a light grmf ; a bundle of
loose plumflB (plumea efflldes) springB behind each eye, and is pro-
longsd backwBixla and on the sides of the neok. A calotte of deep
black rises from the occiput, and ia prolonged on the posterior part of
Hie neck half-wa; down it. The throat ia of > pearlsd-gray, which
becomes lighter, so that the &OQt of the neck and tlie sides are of ■
pure white, as well aa the reat of the lower part of the body. The
back and wings are of a deeper slate-colour, and this tint, mingled
however with white, prevaila on the feathers of the rump. The tarn,
toea, and the ooostderably large membranes whioh fringe them, are
greukiah. The bill is short and black. The iria ia of a moat lively
rad, BO brilliant aa to call forth from Vire Dom Pemetty, whose Petit
Plongeon b Lunettea it ia, the expression that " diamonds and rubies
have nothing to offer equal to the fire of the eyee of a spedas of
Flongeon whioh is frequently found on the edge of the sea." The
total length of this Qrebe is II inchea and 2 or 3 lines ; &ota the
forehead to the point of the bill, 8 lines; tarai, IT liuea; ezt«nialtoe,
2 inches.
The British species of thia genoe given by Tarrell in hia ' British
Birds,' are — P. crittatat, the Oreat-Created or Qreat-Tippet Orebe ;
P. rabricoHit, the Red-Ifooked Grebe ; P. aymntiiu, tha SolaTonian,
Dusky, or Homed Orebe ; P. auritat. the Eared Qrebe ; and P. minor,
the Little or Black-Chin Qrebe, Dabchick, and DidSpper.
CWyminK — It is the Mtrgvt of Briaaon ; Urinaior, Lac^lpide ; and
Sudgta, Illiger. Bill moderate, alfong, atraightj vary much pointed,
oompreaaedi nostrils concave, half closed. Wings abort; the first
quill the longest Tail short, rounded. Three front toes very long,
entirely palmated ; hind toe bordered with a small supple membrane.
The Diren bear a dose resemblance to the Qrebes, from which
tiley differ but little, excepting in their palmated feet On the water
they are at their ease : on land, thejr, as well as the Qrebea, ara awk-
Wanl and beset with difflcolties in their looamotion.
They priDOipslly inhabit tiie northern latitudes, where they nestle
in the wildest and moat desert spote. In the ' Tables ' in ' Faona
Boreali-Amaricana,' we find C. glaciaiit and C. ttptenirioniUit in ths
liat of species which merely winter in Pannsylvania and migrate in
Bummer to rear their young in the Fur Countriss, and C. teptaUriann-
lit in the list of bir^ (migratory) detected on the Korth Qeorgian
lalands and adjoining seas (lat. 73° to 76° north), on Sir Edward
Parry's first voyage. 0. glaciaUt and 0. ttptaUrionalit ocmir in
Sabine's list of Qreenland Birds ; and C. glaeiattiM, C. antieat, and
C teptaUTwnatit in Sir John Bichardaon'a list of species oommon to
the Old World and to tha Fur Countriea.
O. glacialit, the Qreat Northern Diver. Head, neok, and npper tul-
oovarta glossed wi(h deep purplish-green on a blaek ground. A short
' lebaion tha throaty a collar on the middle of tlie ueA, inter-
Grest Northsra Dlier {Myilmi glaelatiM).
mpted above and below, and the ahonldats white, broadly striped on
the shafts with blaek. Whole upper plumage, winga, sides of the
bi«aat, Qanki, and under tul-ooverb^ blodi ; all, except the quills and
COLYHBID^ M
tail, mariied with a pair of white spate near the tip of each feather :
the apota form rowi, and are large and quadrangular un the acapulars
and interscapulars, round and smaller elsewhere, smalleet on tke rump.
Under plums^ and inner wing^nverts white, the aiiUsiiee striped
down their middles with black. Iridea brown. Bill oompressed,
strong, tapering ; its rictus quite straight ; its contour very slightly
arched above ; Tower mandible channeled beneath, appearing deepest
in the middle ; ita gonys sloping npwarda to the point ; margina of
both mandiblee, but pu-ticularly of the lower one, infisct«d. Inner
wing-eoverta vary long. Tail, of twenty feathers, much rounded. Total
length Sflinchea; extentofwinglSincheB. Sir John Richardson, whose
deacriptioD this isi obserTea, that speoimena iu mature plumage vary
oonsidarablv in total length, upwards of an inch in length of wing,
and mora than half aa indk in the length of the tarsus.
The young of the year di^r considerably from the old birds. The
head of the young, the ocdput, and the whole posterior part of the
neok ara of an ashy-brown ; on the cheeks are small ashy and white
points ; throat, front of the neok, and other lower parts, pura white ;
feathers of the back, of the winga, of tha rump and flanks, of a Tory
deep brown in the middle, bordered and terminated by bluish-ash ;
upper mandible ashy-gray, lower mandible whitiah ; iris brown ; feet
externally deep brown ; internally, aa well as the membranes, whitish.
In this state Temminck says that the bird is the Ooii/minu Immer,
{Qinelin, ■ SjsL Lath. Ind.') ; Le Qrand Plongeon of Bnflbn (but the
plate eid. 914 repreeents a young individual of Oalymbut orcftnu) ;
Heigo Maggiora o Smergo ('Stor. dag. Uoo.'), with a good figure. Ue
thinks that the Imber Taucher of Beohsteiu (' Naturg. Deat^') is pro-
bably a young of this species on aooount of its large dimensions, and
remuka that under the name of C. Immer the young of this species
ara often oonfonnded with those of C. arclieiu.
At the age of a year, according to the same author, the indiridoala
of both aexei ahow a tranaverse biaokish-brown bsjid towards the
middle of the ned, about an inch in length, forming a kind of collar ;
the featben of the back become of a blackish tint, and the small white
blotchea begin to appear. In this stste it is the Qrsnd Plongeon of
Bresson (voL vi. p. 105, pL 10, f. 1), a very eiaot flgui«.
At tha age of two years the collar is more defined : this part, the
head, and the neck ara varied with brown and greenish-black feathers ;
the rmmeraua blotches on the back and wings beoome more prevalent,
and the band under the throat, and the nuchal collar also, are marked
with longitudinal brawn and white linea.
At the age of three years the plumage ia perfect.
Aeoordiog to Mdntagu, 0>lyajna glaeiaiit ia the Ooiyaiiu maximtu
eimdatM* of Bay ; Mtrgvi major n/tvva and MtrguM nmwu of Briason ;
L'Imbrim of Buffon ; Oreateet Speckled Diver or Loon of Willughby ;
and Northern Diver of Pennant (' Brit. ZooL') : and tha female ia
Oolymhut Inmer of Limueus ; Colspihui vmximut Qetneri of Ray;
SttTfftu mnjor of BrisBOD ; Le Qrand Plongeon of Bufion; Ember
Qooae of Sibbsld ; and Imber Diver of tha Britiah ZooIoct. It is the
Ofymbnt torgitatui of Bnumich ; Uie Schwanhalaiger See-Tauoher,
™- "■--icher, Orosse HaJb-Enta, and Meer-Ni '
of the Norwegians; Turlik of the Q
Ti of the Cree Indians ; Talkyeh of the i^mpewyans ; Kagiooiex
Esquimaux ; Inland Loon of the Hudson's Bay residents ; and
TrochyddHawr of the Welsh ; it is proviacially oslled by the British
Gunner and Greater Doucker.
Fish is the prindpal food of this apeciea, and the herring in par-
ticular ; the fry of fiah, crustaceana, and marine Tegetablea. It nestles
in small islands and on the banks of fresh waten, and tha female l^s
two eggs of so Isabella-white, maded with very large and witlt amsll
spots of a putplish-Bsb. Sir John Bichardaon gives the ft^owing
deeoripCion of ita maimen : — " Though this bandjKiioe bird i* gene-
rally described as an inhabitant of the ooeao, we seldom observed it
dther in the Arctic Sea or Hndson's Bay ; but it abounds in all the
interior lakes, where it destroys vsat quantities of fi"li It is rarely
seen on land, ita limbs being ill fitted for walking, though admirably
adapted to ita aquatic habits. It can swim vrith great en-iftnees, and
to a very oonaiderabla diatance under the water; and when it comes
lo the aurface, it seldom expoeea more than the neck. It takea wing
with difficulty, fliea heavily, though iwiftly, and frequently in a drcle
round thoac who intrude on its haunte. Ibi loud and very melaooholy
cry, tike the howling of tha wolf, and at times like the distant acream
of a man in distress, is said to portend rain. Its flesh is dark, tough,
and unpalatable. We caught several of these birds in the fiahing-
neta, in which they had entangled themselves in the ponnit of fish."
The Bpedes is sometimea taken even in tha south of England. Montagu
mentions one which waa kept in a pond for some months. In a few
daya it became extremely docile, would come to the call from one
aide of the pond to the other, and would take food from the hand.
The bird had reoeivad an injury in the head, whieh had deprived one
eye of ita sight, and the other was a little impaired ; but, notwith-
standing, it could, by incessantly diving, discover all the fish that
ware thrown into the pond Whan it could not get fiah it would eat
fleah ; and when it quitted the water, it shoved its body along upon
the ground like a seal, b^ jorka, rubbing the breast against the
ground ; end returned sgam to tha water in a similar manner. In
swimming and diving the legs only were used, and nut the winge, and
by their situation so far behind, and their lit) lo deviation Ir^ the
V7
COLYMBUS.
COMA.TULA.
P4
tine of the body, it is enabled to propel itaelf in the water with great
velocity in a straight line, as well as turn with astoaishing quickuessL
In the winter of 1813-14, according to Mr. Graves, during the intense
frost, two fine individuals were taken alive in the Thames below
Woolwich, and were kept in confinement for some months. They
eagerly devoured most kinds of fish or ofiaL At the approach of
ipriog they began to show great uneasiness in their coE^nement,
though they hiiwd the range of an extensive piece of water, from
whence they ultimately escaped in the month of ApriL The distance
of the river from the pond in which they were confined was several
hundred yards, but they made their escape ; and two birds resembling
them in colour were seen on the river in that neighbourhood for
aeveral days after they were missed; and though repeatedly shot at,
they escaped by diving.
They are found in the azotic seas of the New and Old World ; very
abundant in the Hebrides, Norway, Sweden, and Russia ; accidental
vifliterB along the coasts of the ocean. The young in winter are very
rare on the lakes of the interior, in Germany, Fhmoe, and Switzer*
land; the old birds are never seen there. (Temminok.) It is a
rather rare visitant to these islands, especially to the southward.
C. areticut, the Black-Throated Diver, the Lesser Imber, Plongeon
k Qotge Noire of the FVenoh. In habits and appearance this bird is
like the last. It is more rare in this country.
C. aeptentrunuUu, the Red-Throated, or Speckled Diver, is the most
common species in Great Britain.
Lesson arranges the genus Cephut, Moehring, Cuvier (Colymhut,
Linn. ; Uria, Temm. ; Merffulus, Ray, Vieillot), uuder the Colymhidcs,
obstsrving that it forms the passage fh>m the Divers to the Auks.
[Auk.]
COLYMBUS. [C0LT1IBID.B.]
COLZA. [Bbassica.]
CO'MARUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
BoBoctoB, It has a concave 8-10-parted calyx in two rows, the five
exterior sepals being smallest ; 4-5 petals ; the receptacle ultimately
large, fleshy, spongy, and persistent ; the style lateral near the summit
of the nu^ the seed ascending. There is but one species of this
genus, CpaUutrt^ Marsh Cinquefoil. It has an ascending stem, is
about one foot high, has pinnate leaves, dark purple flowers, and
numerous carpels seated on the dry spongy receptacle. This plant is
a hative of Great Britain. It is found in marshes and peaty bogs.
In Scotland the fruit is called Cow-Berries. The roots dye wool of
a dirty red colour, and possess a sufficient amount of tannin to render
them available for makmg leather. In gardens it will grow in any
moist soil, and may be increased by dividing at the root.
COMATULA, Lamarck {AUeto, Leach), a genus of Radiated
Animals. Linneos appears to have confounded the form with the
other Star-Fishes ; for it is only noticed by him as a species of his
genus Aslericu, Neither Gmelin nor Pennant disturbed thui arrange-
ment M. de IV^minville (' Nouv. BuU. des Sciences') seems to be
the first who formed a genus for it^ under the name of AfUedon. Leach
characterised it genericaUy under the name of Alecto. Lamarck
makes it the first genus of his first family (Les Stell^rides) of his
order of Echinodermatous Radiariaf placing it immediately before
EuryaU, Cuvier arranges the genus under his Eichinodermes P^-
cellds ; observing, that it is near to the division of the Ewryaln and
CamatuUB that the EncrvnUet ought to have their position. Miller is
of opinion that Cvmatviia presents a conformity of structure with
that of the Pentacrinite almost perfect in every essential part, except-
mg that the column is either wanting or reduced to a single plate ;
and M. de Blainville makes it come under his first section (Free
Asterencrinideans) of his third feunily (Asterencrinideans) of his
third order (Stelleredians^ of his first class (Cirrhodeimarians) of his
first type (Actinozoarians) of Zoophvtes.
The genus is thus characterised by M. de Blainville : — Body orbi-
cular, depressed; membranous ; protected above by an aasembkge of
calcare6us pieces, of which one is medio-dorsal, with one or two rows
of acoessorr articulated simple rays, and provided on its drcum-
fersnce witn five great rays, deeply bifid and pinnated, commencing
with three basilary pieces. Mouth rather anterior, isolated, mem-
branous, at the bottom of a star formed by five bifurcated channels.
A large peeudo-anal orifice at the fringed extremity of a visceral sac
The following details of structure are given by the same author.
The body of CcmtUula is almost entirely membranous below ; above,
on the contrary, it is protected by a sort of cupule, which is thick,
and composed of calcareous pieces, articulated and held together by
a very delicate and hardly distinct skin. This cupule is formed by a
centro-doFud part, in which two pieces placed one over the other
enter. It is round the first that the auxiliary rays are articulated,
and to the second the great rays are joined by means of their basilary
part.
The auxiliary rays, whatever may be their number, for they may
form one or two rows, are always simple ; that is, they are composed
of simple articulations joined end to end, of which the last is attenu-
ated and curved into a hook. {Pig. 5.) They are never pinnated, and
it would appear that they are not provided with any sucxers.
The g^reat rays enter by their base into the composition of the
cupule or cell in whidi the visceral mass is contained. Each of them
IS formed by a simple basilary part^ and another much more extended,
vijo. Bin, PIT. YOU n.
divided, and pinnated. The basilary part is composed of three joints,
a first articulated with the centro-dorsal piece, a second intermediate,
and a third terminal, with which the two principal divisions of the
rays are joined, and which on that account is shaped into an angle at
its summit. The joints of this basilary part not only articulate with
each other, but laterally they touch the corresponding parts of the
two neighbouring rays. By such a disposition, becoming more and
more complex, it is that the heads of EnerinUet and the genera allied
to them are formed. With regard to the pinnated or complex part of
the ray, it is at first constantly double, that is, formed of two digita-
tions, which are thems^ves often subdivided in a variable manner ;
so that sometimes the ChmiUvia bears a resemblance to a great figure
of a sun : each subdivision is composed of joints in general but Uttle
elongated, which augment but little in number in a given space in
proportion as they approach towards the extremity. Their most
remarkable points are, that they alternately differ a little in length,
and that the longfest carry, right and lefl> on their internal surface
compressed triangular pinnules nearly cirrhous at their extremity,
and also composed of a great number of short articulations. The
result is, that when the animal is dead the digitation resembles the
leaves of the Mimo$a, because the pinnules in repose cling one to
another like the folioles of sensitive plants throughout the length of
the rachis when they are dosed. But the principal character which
disting^hes the great rays from the accessory ones is, that through
the whole length of the axis and pinnules the buccal or labial channel,
fleshy and provided with sucking cirrhi serving the animal to seize its
prey, is continued. In following out these channelings (espies de
sillons), the number of which is in proportion to that of the digita-
tions of the ray, we arrive, by means of a channel from each, and
occupying its base, at the centre of a sort of star with thick fringed
borders, and finally at the mouth, which is at the bottom. The star
formed by the junction of the channelB of the rays is not symmetri-
cal, that is, its branches are veiy unequal ; some, which we shall call
the anterior ones, being shorter than the others, or posterior ones.
The result is, that the mouth is not at the centre of the star, but
much nearer one side than the other ; it is difficult to be seen, which
is not the case with another orifice which we shall presently discuss,
and which M. Lamarck seems to have taken for it. The mouth is
deeply buried in the star of the channelings, is round, unarmed, and
leads immediately into the stomach. What is remarkable in this last
is, that its parietes are thick, and especially that it is not simpla It
is in fact ftul of laoims, or rather it forms a sort of caveinous tissue,
enveloped on all sides by a yellow g^ranulated matter of some volume,
which must be the liver. The result of this disposition of stomach
and liver is a considerable visceral mass, which occupies the excavated
|)art of the calcareous cupule, and which is attenuated by degrees as
it retires backwards, where it terminates in a soft and obtuse point.
All this mass projects in the interior of a large cavity, of which it
remains to speak. This cavity, entirely membranous — at least below,
for above and on the sides it is doubled by the solid parte — surrounds
the visceral mass, and detaches it from all the rest of the animal,
except towards the mouth, where it is continued. The internal orifice
M. de Blainville was unable to discover. It is perfectly smooth, but it
is prolonged externally into a sort of bladder (vessie), the base of
which is behind, and whose truncated summit is forward. This free
summit passes even a little beyond the mouth as it advances below it.
It is pierced by a large gaping orifice, provided with a circular row of
tentaculiform papille.
In the ' Descriptive Catalogue of the Museum of the College of
Surgeons' (Physiological Series, vol. i), there is a notice regarding
Alecto glaeialit (No. 485, ▲), wbdch imports that the alimentary caniu
is continued in a spiral direction from the sub-central opening at the
convergence of the radiated canals to the opening at the extremity of
the fieuiy tube which projects forwards by the side of the mouth,
forming a second distinct orifice or anus. Professor Owen at first
follow^ Lamar^ in considering this tubular orifice as the mouth ;
but after dissecting a specimen carefully, and considering the analogy
of Alecto with the other Aeterite, he regarded it as the superadded
orifice, and the sessile orifioe at the convei^gence of the canals or
channels as the normal orifice, and consequently the mouth. He is of
opinion that this tubular orifice cannot be the opening of the oviducts,
because the ovaries are situated in membranous expansions on the
inside of the pinnules of the rays, as has been described in another
part of the ' Physiological Catalogue.' That the tubular cavity should
be a locomotive orgiui he oonsiders most improbable, to use no
stronger term ; indeed the animal is so well provided with moveable
rays, that such an adaptation would be superfluous. Whether or not
some respiratory actions are effected by the fleshy tube and receptacle
is another question, requiring observation on the ouxrents, &c, while
the animal is living, for its solution.
P^ron states that these Badi€Uii suspend themselves by the small
arms from fud and polyparies, and in that position watch for their
prey, which they entotp in iheir spreading arms.
uonuUiUa roeacea. Link, Rosy Feather-Star. The whole animal is of
a deep rose-colour dotted by brown ovaries and fringed by transparent
cirrhi Professor £. Forbes, in his ' History of British Star-Fishes,' says :
— " The histoiy of this creature is one of the little romances in winch
natund liutoi^ abounds, one of those nazxations which while beUeriiitg
M COHATULA.
we ■ImtHit doubt, aod 7«t while doubting wa muat beliara, it bcuig tha
only Criaotd ammil at preHiit mbaUtlug our saa*, at one tjma lo full
of thoea beautiful and wonderful creiturea, pnaeotiBg; pointa of groat
intsreat noC to the aoologiat oul; but also to the geoTi^UL" In the
Tear 1823 Mr. J. V. Thompaon discovered in the Ba; of Cork a ningiiUr
Lttle pedunculated animal, which he colled Pentacrimu EitFopmu,
and which proved to be the young of the ConuUtUa, and gave riae tu
muoh interest and diaouiiaion both at home and abroad, for it waa the
first animal of tha Enorinita kind which had been aeen in the aeaa of
Europe, and the firat recent JSncrmttt that had ever been eiamined
by a competent obaarver in a living state. In 1836 Ur. Thompiim
publiahed a memoir in tha ' Edinburgb Now Fhiloaophical Journal,'
maintaining tha propoaition that bia PeUaeriimi Eun/paut waa only
the younj of ConaMa ; that the Feather^tar commaDced life aa an
Bnermile, and thua ai it were changed its nature &om a Hendo-polfpe
to a itar-fiah. He then compares the youngest Oanatwa he had met
with, with ths oldest Ptnlatrvuu, and ibowa the gradual
I, (hmahJa AitBna, tbraa-tOnrUia ot tb« n
ride of tbe tune ; 1, part ot Um Dnder tide of a .
A, oDa of the dotui nyi ma^Ulcd, ihowlnff the book or uohor.
De BtalnTille.
of form doling tha darelopment of the lattar towarda Uie adult atata
of the fonner. Since that time other naturaUata have taatil!ed to
this obaarration of Hr. J. T. Thompson ; it is confirnied by Profeasor
£. Forbaa, Dr. Ball of Dublin, and tha Ut« Mr. W. Thompaon of
Belfast.
G Adtom of Lamarok ha* the foUowiog cbaractara . — 10 pinnatad.
COHEPHOBUS. loa
slender, penniform raya ; pionulea laooeolate, oomplicatedly eaoaliou-
lata below ; 20 dorsal cirrbi.
It inhabita the seas of Aiutnlia, when Pdron and Lttuaor found
it hooked OD to an Adtona. Itia amall, dulicale, with 10 very alendar
feathery rays, and only S inchea in diameter. The pinnulaa are
lanoeolated, and folded m two, aa it
e, below, longit
le pinnu.
"7-..
The apeciea of ComiluZa are widely spread. The Rosy father-
' ' .... Q^(^ Coast. Two apedea are
works on aoolo^, 0. maaa and C. barba!a.
id on many pariA of tht
Dren aa British in most works on i .
Thay are evidently the same animal of difTetent ages
atatee of prcservabon : thc^ are both identical wiui the C. Mediler-
preaerred in spirits with its expanded fins fiom what it appears when
dried. In the Museum of the Coll^ of Sui^eona there an two
spBciniena {rota the Society lalea, one brought up from a depth of
22fl fathoma, in 80° 20' N. lat, 12° 30' K lon^ (H.ILS. Dorothea,
Captain Buchan, B.N.); and the same apeciea (Aueioglatialit) troot
250 fathoma, 80° 26' N. lal, 11° S2' E. long. <H.1LS. Trant, lien-
tenant FranUin, RN.).
Dr. Laaeh recoida
and De
Tha apaciea probably are tcJerably ni
Urae apedet, two in iba British Huae
~ iville nine. Hany of the qi«ciea a
[EOHOK
FattU CoimUiiUe.
I four apeciea ii«m Solenhofen (Oolitic group),
of the Britiah atiato.
Oaldfiw
There are none in any
COMBRETA'CK*,
ith 1-eelled inferior
ao, and pendnlona, the stamens definite in number, and tha oo^ledona
convolute. It caimot be doubted that thia order haa a near rolatioa
to Mfriactit and eapadally to Paniea. Dr. Lindl^ conmders it to be
in olooer alliance with Lauraeta and Cbnponto.
4
eiPilUli ^itanuD', n^lrult; /, borluntal le
The apeciea known as Hyrobalans are tropical ohruba or trees, with
alternate or oppomte laavee destitute of stipules, and long Blender
stamens. The order doea not contun any plants of much importance
for their useful propertieo. Some of them are astringent and used
for tanning, and the kernels of othen are eatable; they are chiefly
valued for their brightly oolourad ihowy flaWBi% eopacially in the
genua Conbrttnak
COHEPBORUS, a genua of Ilahea belonging to the family of
Qobiea. There is only one apaciea, which ii found in tha freah-watar
lake of BailcaL It is not taken by Qis flohennen, but ia found dead
on the shores after tlie Mvere stoima to which Uiat lake ia freqaently
m COUFAET.
exposed. The 6stL ia aboat a fout in lengtli, and of a Kift greaa;
toxtiir& It ia oaUsated uid proBsed for oil, but ia not Mton,
COMFREY. [BthfhtthilI
COHUELTKX. [ConuLTNAiTUL]
COUHELTNA'CE^, a ver; rdoII order of Trip«taloid«ouB
Eodogena, uoiuiBting of Planta with aheaUiing lurga, white or mo«t
frequenUf btoe flowers inclosed in ■ green sputhe, and a nngle
B-oaUed oykj terminated by a nngle style. They are moreover
remu-kftblfl for their pulley-sbaped (or trochlear) embryo Ijiug in a
porticoiar eaiity of the albumen. Ifoae of the apeoiea are European,
nor of any known lue. Many of them ue common Indian weeds ;
others are handaome Amorican herbeoflona plan^ The conAnon
Spiderworts are a good type of the oider. Thn an in many reapecta
sUied to the Lillea. Blown •ompana them with Ruahea. They may
alao be compared with Aliamads. Lindley placea them between
LiUaeta and BrmuiUatta. Then are 16 genera of Uiia order and
■bout 260 apeoiaa.
a, Caljx. itimau, uil rlilU ; i, •tuDsn tiUEiilAed ; a, Jointed hair fimi (be
Olaaanla of tlie«tuiitD; d, plitll; /, fniiti g, hortiontil Kotlim of Ibe Kcd-
Tfaaal; k, i, atetloni oCuMdi t, embtra; f, ued g«RBli»t[tir.
COUHA, a genoa of Plants belonging to the natural order
BifiKiAiaeta. It has dicedous floweia. Tha ataminiferous flowers
are formed of braota united into an amentom; the atamena are
nnmenma and united into a BJngle cnlumo. The piatiliferoua flowera
are noemcae, the oalyi ia S-parted, the styles S, the capanle 3-tobed.
O. ddUHolHMiutf is a small tree witti a leainoos jnios. It has
•Hemate aotiie amooth learea. The mala flowen are amentaoeos^
the "— Wnif conriating of imbiicatad 1-flowered acalc^ axillary and
duat ; the (tanale flowers raosmcaa, terminal, and amalL Uiia tzea
ylalds a gnm which poaaaaaes emetia and purgative prOMCtiea. It ia
reooomiended in oaaea of dropay, but hu not been Introdnced into
EoTOpaan pnottoa. It la a natiTe of Cochin China.
OOMMUIQTONITB, a Mineral belonging to tlie Plicate of Iron
HCioL It la a eompomid of ailiea, iron, nunganeee, and soda.
OOMOCLADIA (&om «V<k hair, and kA^i, a branch), a genoa
of Flanla belonging to the natural order Atiaeardiatta. It has
hnm^ihzodito or monceoious flowera ; a 3-4-parted permanent oalyl,
S-1 long petala ; &-1 abort atamena ; a single oTary with no style, and
■ ain^atlgmai an orate l-oelIed,I-eeededdrupe; tha seed somewhat
pendnlooa from a ourred funioalua originating at the base of the
d dmtata, Tooth-Leared Huden-Plum, has pinnated shining leaTea,
gnsn abiire, with a roimd raehia 6 inches long, S-10 teafleta on aaoh
lid<^ with an odd one oblong, acuminate, spiny-toothad, vein, and
■omewhat downy at the baak. This plant is a tree reading a hai^t
efabootSOfaat. Itlaanativaorthairoodaof Cnb«aad8tI)omingo,
COKPOSIT^ 101
where it ia called Ouao. It has an erect not much branched steuk
A milky juice eiudea from it, which ia glutinous, and beoomea black
by expoaure to the air. It ataina linen and Uie akin blick, which
cannot be waahed out of the former, and only comes off from the
latter by the exfoliation of the cuticle. It is belieTed by the natives
of Cuba that it is death for persons to sleep under tliia tree, especially
if they are fat or of a full halut of body. It ia, undoubtedly, a
poisonous tree, although nothing ia recorded of ita mode of action on
C. inlegrifolia hsa stalked leaflets, lanceolate, quite entire, smooth.
It ia a tree 20 feet high, with sinall scentleaa deep red flowora.
The berries are black and suoouleot, and may be fsaten with impunity,
but ore not pleasant to the taste. The wood is hard, of a fine grain,
and reddish colour. The tree gives out a natery Juice, which ii
alightW glutinous, and grows black on exposure to the air. Like the
juioe from tha last, it stuns linen and the skin indelibly. It ia a
native of Jamaica.
(Don, DieAloMwUotu Plmtt; Lindl^, Flora Mtdica.)
OOHPCSIT.^ the laneat known natural order of Plaota. It
oonsiats of Honopetaloua Exogena mtii syugsnepious stamens, and an
erect solitary ovule in a simple 1-oelled inferior ovary, the style of
whiob ia divided into two arms ; the flowera are alwaya arranged in
dense heada, or capitula, and are aunounded by one or more external
rows of btaota forming sn involuore. Profeaaor Lindley regards it aa
an alliance of aeverol natural orders. It consiata of herba, abruba, or
treaa, found in all parte of the world, but aaauming an arborescent
oharaoter only in warm latitudes : the; occur in every conceivable
varie^ of situation, are often exceedingly similar to eaoh other in
, and have always been, from the birth of botany aa a
adance, the puaala and reproach of syatematista. Every
■uimsuuig writer, with a few exoeptiona, rendered the subject more
complicated and difficult, till Caasini, a Frenchman, of good powers of
observation, much patience in investigation, and a clear bead, wiUi
the command of the rich materials included in the Paris herbaria,
sat ataadily about a re-fonnation and re.«iBminBtion of the whole
order. In 1SS3 Laadng gave tha woild a aynopsis of the genera of
Aatpalita^ in which for the fint time aolear, oompendioua, intelligiblo
view of the order was ayatematicaUy taken. Subeequently De Can-
dolle, the oelebrated botanist of Geneva, achieved the difficult task of
syst^natining tha Cbmpottto in an nnezoeptionabls manner in his
great worit, ' Prodromua Systamatis Naturalis Regni Vwatabilis.'
The old and generally adopted plan of breakiog up Chmfotita into
primaiy divisions ia that of Jussieu, which may be eiplained thus ; —
Every head of flowera, or florets, aa they are technically named, has a
oentnJ part, or diao, and a dronmference, or lay : of th»e floreta
some are n^ularly tubular, with their limb out into four or Gve m-
menta ; others are alit up on one aide, opened Sat, and turned toward
the drcumferenoe of the head ; the Litter are named ligulate floret*.
When In a head of flowera oU the floreta ore alike and ligulate, it
belonged to the division CiiJuraeea (Jtg. a), aa in the dandrliou ; if
thefloretaof thadisavraratubnlar, and thoat of tha orcurafereuce only
ligulate, it was referrible to Cormibiftra (Jig. t), as in the marigold ;
and when all the floreta are alike tubular, both In the disc and ny
-), It behmged to Oftua-ot^u^ provided the faivolucre waa at
una time sfiff and ovate, as in the thistla. The latter ohaiaoter
.euesBBi'i in order to distinguish C^rnorocepiala from tJioae Curyat-
Tnftra in iridch tha ray ia not developed, as common graundsal. To
(heae three diviaiotis a tburtli baa in later times bean added nndar the
ime of Latii^ifOTa, in oonaeqnenoe of the floreta having diatlnetly
ro lipa of unequal siae. {Figt. d and t.)
These divisions have however been thought obleotionable on aereial
account^ and De Candoll^ following Cassuil and LesainB, has tnialed
more to modifications of the style ; the result of which b the folloi^
g arrangement i£ the order in eight tribee : —
■ T^Hndifiora; namely, with the hermaphrodite florets regularly
tabular, and C-toothed, seldom 4'toothed.
Tribe 1, Ytnumiaeta. Style of the hermaphrodite flowers cylin-
drical, its arms usually lengthened and subulate, rarely ehort and
obtuse, always equally hispid la about all the length. The true stigma
ending short of the middle of the arms of the style. A part of the
~~~'Issa Oorgwiiifera. {Pig. 1.)
Priba S, Enpiloriaeea. Style of the hermaphrodite flowen cylin-
drical, with long somewhat club-shaped arms, which on covered
externally near the end with papillose down. The true stigma but
little prominent, and usually ending short of the middle of the arms
of the style. A port of the rayleas Corymb^era. (Fig. 2.)
Tribe 8, AiltriidtiE. Style of the hermaphrodite flowera cylindrioal,
with linear arms, rather flat externally, and towards Ilia end equidly
and finely downy. The true stigma produced about as for aa the
iiiirin of the external down. A part of Corj/mbifera. (Pig. 3.)
Tribe *, SenttvmiiUa. Style of the hermaphrodite flowers cjlin-
drioal, wit^ linear arms having a pencil of hairs at the point ; either
truncated, or produced beyond the pennl into a abort cone, or a long
narrow hiapia appendage. The true stigma broad and prominoit aa
br «a the penciL A [«rt of Qoryv^iftra. (Fig. 4.)
Tribe 5. Opuma. Style of the hermaphrodite floweia thickened
and knobby towwda Uie npper end, and often pencilled at the knob^
CONCBACEA.
UH
aenfiamt. A)l Uie CfnaroapMaiiE. {Pig. S.)
* ■ IiMalifionx ; ntxaaij, with the hennapbrodito florati nnuUj 2-lipped.
on th* outaid^ uid >t the upper part oovared irilli
{Pig. 8.)
Tribe T, ^ouaunaaic. Style at the hermaphrodite Sowen nerer biabb? uid
thickened ; the unu linear, latier long, truncated, and pencilled at the point
onlj. (Pig. 1.)
■ * * lAgydifiora ; namely, with all the flowsn hermaphrodite and li^ate.
of the middle of the .
De Candolle egtimatea Conptaita at ODe-t«nth of the whole TegetAb'e kingdom.
They are in soma cuea ■oporiGo, aa Isttuoe and aucoory ; in otbera Uiej are
diuretic, aa variou* ooDysai ; aome are tonio and atomachic^ aa wormwood and
cbamomile. Common artichokes with tbeir auooulant recaptacl ei, and Jeruaalem
' utichakes with their auoculent tubera, are the only eaculents. Maoy are beautiful
objecta to look upon, and are amoagit our cboioeat garden flowen, aa dahliaa,
tnari^ilda, ooreopsia, aatan, Ac.
For furtber infonnBtion on thie order iM-^AcBILLla ; AirTBIUIS; ARtnoa:
Abtucsia; Astib; Baboehahiu; Bklubj BtDiHa; Calehdula; CKMTADitEa;
' CBBTUNTBnnrM; CtOHaaacBX; CiuHOBiOHi CiMaRAniA} CoriTZAj CoRTMBtrinxi
Crems; Ci.v.tn>i Qm.tik.otM; Dablu ; DiOTia ;
tle; Bbioeiiohj BurAlonloM ; Filioo; Hsum-
; HiEHAciuu; HTFocBcuia; Ihdla; LaorncA;
LarBANA ; Leontodon; Luiostbis ; Sohohuh ; Hdl-
aEDID>; PETABim; PlOHLS; PBINANTEBBi PtBITHBUII;
SEnxno; BouDAOO; OFOSintAj TaHAOETDM; ThbiucIa;
TRAOOI'OOOII ; TUBalLAOO.
COUPOUKD FLOWERS are the flower-heada oT
Comparita:; they are maaiea of nnall flowua coUedAl
upon a deprss»d azii, or receptacle, and aurrounded by
ao involucre of flon! leave* or braota.
COUPT'ONIA, a gennB of Flanta belongiiig to th>
latural order Mj/rieactiE, named after Hwiy ComptoD,
uahop of London, by whom tite fine collection of ptanta
attached to the epiaoopal palace at Fulham waa formed.
The male flowers have cylindrical looaelj imbrioatod
catkins, with dectduous l-flowei«d braeli; ! aepala;
' stamens, adhering in pain : the female flowen have
rate deuealy imbricated catkins, with 1-flowered braota ;
aepala, larger than the brada ; 2 eapillaiy abylea, aud
l-weded nnC. There is onlj one speeiea, the C. atpUiu-
fotia. Sweet FernT It ia a small bush fhim 3 to 1 feet in
height, yielding a powerful aromatic fragnnce when
rubbed between the fingers. It haa long lin^ pinnatLfid
leavea, brown and nther downy on the nndarnde, shining
on the upper. It ii a native of the wooda and mouuUJna
of the United Statea, whera it la a favourite domwUo
remedy for the cure of dianfaoea. It poaaeeaea tonic and
aatriogent propertisa. It ia a handaome ahrub, and will
thrive in a peat soil or sandy loam, and may be propa-
gated by layen or Backers. It was called Ltqttidamiar
ofpleni/olttm by Linnaua, but differa very muoh from
that genua in Ita cfaaraotata and propertiea. (Lindley,
Plora MedUa; London, Saq/dopaaia a/ PlanU.)
COHPTONITB, a Hineial, also called Thomnmilt.
Trimetric. In right teotangular prisma. TIsnally in
maaaea having a radiated atruotore within, and oonaiat-
ing of long flbrea or acicnlar eryatala. Also amorphoua.
Cleavage parallel to the diagonal planea of the primai;
form. Flaoture uneven, oonohoidaL Hardnea^ acratchea
fliior-apar. Colour anow-white; Inatre vitreoos, in-
clining to pearly ; tranaparsnt to traoaluoent. Specific
gravity, 2'S to 2-lT. Compositian :—
SiUca 38-S
Alumina . 307
Lime 135
Soda i-5
Watar 13.0
It intumesces aud Incomes opaque, but the eilgea merely
are rounded at a high heat. When pulverised it gelatiniaea
with nitric or muriatic adds. It is diatinniiahed from
NatnSilt and oilier Zealita by ita difficult fuaibility. It
occurs in Amygdaloid near Kilpatrick, Scotland ; in
lAvas at Veauvioi; in Clinkatone in Bohemia; also at
Peltar'a Point in Nova Scotia, in Trap.
COKCHA'CEA, a family of MMutea in IL De Blain-
ville's arrangement of the Animal Kingdom. The fol-
lowing is hu definition of the family : — " Mantle cloaed
before (en avant), above, and behind, where it is pro-
longed by two tubes more or less long, extensile, and
either aeparated or unlt«d ; abdomen constantly provided
with a foot of slightly variable form, aerving for loco-
motion. Shell nearly always regular, entirdy oloaed,
eqaivalve; nmbonta curved forward; hinge dorsal, com-
plete— tiiat is to say, with teeth and a lignment; ttua last
cither external or internal, ahoit, and awoUen (bomb^) ;
two distinct muacular impresmona united below by a
ligule more or less large, and very often inflected or
rutuming backwards {rentrie en arriere).
" All the animals of this &mily live plnnged more or
leaa deeply in the sand or in IJie mud, bnt Uhey are still
U. Rang thus modifiei De Bl»nville'a definitjon,
priDcipally for the introduction of Iridma (which aooord-
mg to the observations of II. Deehayea ooold no longer
be retained among the StAmylUacta) and Oratdn^ia, a
foBsil apeciaa
" Mantle closed, fiimished with a conaidenble antero-
inferior opening, for the passage of a foot, and pnaenting
two posterior tabee more or leaa elongated, eitenaila,
united or aeparated longitudinally, the lower one serving
for reopiration, and the upper one for dejectiona. Shell
equivalve, geaendly regular, rarely gaping; umbonea
more or leea curved forwards; hinge almoat always with
teeth ; ligament ahort and swollen, internal or external ;
murcular impreaaioDs vei; diatinct ; united by a pallial
impreaaion more or len excavated posteriorly.
" Animals marins^ rarely ftedi-water."
1>3
CONCHACEA.
CONCHACEA.
CuTiar, in hii li*t edition of tlis ' Rigne AnimJ,' at, Ibi
defiuition of the Cardiaeta, th« fourth funilj of bis
A eijAala, haa th* folloviDg liot« ■ — -" U. d* BUinviUs en fkit U
fuuiUe d<a Conchaeta." The following ii CuTler*! definition of bi»
Cudiiu^: — " HuUe open in troai (pur dennt), mnd moreorer with
two Mparate opening*, cme for reapintion and the other for the excra-
ments, which mre tirolanged into tubes eometiiDaa diitinot, lometitnes
onitfld iiit« ■ ungle mue. Then U idwafi a tiaDirene mtuole at
each eztnnu^, and a foot which moat fraquoitl; Mnrea for oraarang.
' It mtj be re^rded m t, Huffidentl^ gennal ride, that those irtiidi
have long tabea live plunged in the mnd or und. One may rvcogoiw
on the Bhell thii oondition of otguiiaatiou by the mora or lew
developed contour (contonr plus ou moina rentnnt), which the im-
preudon of tha BttochraeDt of the borders of the mantis deicribeB
bafare uniting with the impnadon of the posterior tnnsvene
These definltiona appear oontntdictoiy, bnt in reality they are
meant to conrey the same idaaa. Tha month is placed anteriorly, Uia
foot ia eiaertad <tiferii)rlj, and the tubes opeD poeteriorly. The fbl-
lowiug i* an anangemaot of the genera : —
Hinge lineu- and tootUess— freshwater. (Hang.)
Iridiita. — Animal elongated, sbaight, nther thick od the back,
thinner towards its inferior border; mantle daheate, terminated
anteriorly by a thick border, open bom the anterior musole to two-
thirda of the lower border for the paassge of the foot ; harden of
the mantle united throughout the whole posterior part, whenoe q>ring
two abort and unequal tubes, with no rebsctor muacle to the aiphoni ;
foot compressed and aharp-edged. Shell, with an epidermis, nacreous
or iridescent internally, tolerably thick, oral oblong, elongated, in-
auriculated, eqniv&lTe, inequilateral, the anterior end sluaW than
the posterior, a little gaping at either end ; umbonea small and pro-
jecting but little, alighUy inclined ; hinge veiy long, linear, attenuated
towBidi the middle, often crenulated, as it wers^ throughout its
length ; ligament Tery long, marginal, external ; muscular impreoiona
Tery distinck Example, I. txatita. Lam. ; 1. tlmgata. Sow.
TrUima aeliea, onbtUid of uturti ■!».
I«mank pros the riTera of wnnn climates aa the locslitj. The
specimens were supposed to oome from China. H. Caillaud found
them in considerable abundance in Uie Nile ; and from his speoinieni
preesrred in spirit U. Deahayes made his examination. Hr. O. R
Sowerby figures another spades (' ZooL Joum.,' roL i.), I. IfiMtea,
obtained from Sennaor bj X. CoiUaud, and sent to England by U.
D'Aadebord. It veiy much i Mumbles the species given here as on
eiunple, bat its hinge margin is not crcnulatfid or dentatod. H. Des-
hayea, in his lost edition of Lamarck, mokes It identical with
/. uotita. Lam. and Dash., Anodenta emiica, BLdav., and Le Hutel,
Begolar: Hinge-Teeth lateral and wide apart (marine).
Oardium [CiAnroHl. — Tha apeoiea are onmennu, and
a very la^e ai
of Lomanik, gives
} separate from the others, oomprehending the spedes with com-
preaaed Valves strongly oarinated in tha middle, observing that it is
difficult to suppose that tha animal is not modified in unison with
this ■ingulor {noformation. U. Rang oorroborates Cnvier's observo-
tioD, fmm the examination of many living individuals of Cardiuin
CariUfa, the type ; but U Deahayes oonaidars that theform can only
be admitted as a aaction.
De BloinviUs divides the genus into the follovring secUoaa
1. Species more or less gaping posteriorly, and wi<ti the ribs of the
shell as lai^ aa the channetings. Example, Cardium smMcMM. ,
2. Speoiea not gaping, and with the ribs as large as the ohannslings.
Example, 0. Inicrciilataic*.
3. Species not gaping, with the ribs loigar than Uie ohannaliugs.
Example, C tdnU.
i. Smooth or almost smooth species. Example, C. dongaiitM.
5. SpecisawhaBsanteriorddeis very shortandneariyflat. Example
C. ktmuartiiiim.
Sevetsl spades have bean added to this genus from the ooUeotion
of Hr. Cuming.
The spedes of Oardivm are found foaaiL
nalonl lllt. 1. Otriium [?Mi(Hr«H>)
Deahayes in his Tables gives fifty-three living spedes and thirty-nine
fossil (tertiary), and C. ringm, C. ciliare, (7. ccAtnaMtm, C. ntonttMH,
C. tduit, C lafterca/aMm, and 0. ptaimlaM, as both living and fossil
Bpedea (tertiary). Of the recent epedes M. Deshayes, in his edition
(^ lamarck, where they are given as forty-dght, considers C. IndicHm,
0, ringait, C. ecAtfuWmt (of which last be makes C. (uiermJottiM to be
only a variety), C. nileat»n, and C. ethile (common cockle) as identical
with fcasil apaoiei described by Brocchi and others under different
names. The fossil species he nukes amount to thirty. Of theae he
refera C. tckinatMm, to its living analogue, C. Burdigalimtm to the
recent C. Indiokm, C, rhmnbiida to the recent C. eduU, and Considers
C. dilsrumwn. Lam,, as identical with C. kiaiu, Brocchi. The fossils
ooeur in nearly all the fosailiferouB atrata from tha Supracretseeous
the Qrauwa^a group, and appesr to be most abundant in the dig.
inferior border for the passags of a compressed and very large foot :
Cipta BraxUittuU,
CONCHACEA.
,e diBtijict bi
umboDee ; a large Bi
le polllBl ii
The ipecieB are found in temperate and warm isoa. They bu]
themsalTea at a bihbII depth m the sand, where they ore said to 1
with the posterior part upward! to facilitate the inSux of the water
for respiration. The genus has beau foimd in sandy mud and soft
mod, at depths vaiying from five to twelve fathoms from the aurface
of the leo.
Hr. Q. B. Sowerb; has added a new species, C allior, brought he
by Mr. Cuming. {' ZooJ. Proc.')
Donax. — Animal rather compressed, more or less triangular, having
the mantle bordered with tentacular appendages ; kbial appendages
laigs ; mouth small ; branchiie ven unequal, on the »
le side ; foot
iDgmtO a duns of the mootle.
Shell more or leea triangular and oompressed, always longer than
it ts high, regular, equivalve, very inequilateral, posterior side shorter
tikan the antsrior ; umbones but little prominent, and nearly vertical ;
hinge composed of two cardinal teeth, sometinufl upon both valves,
Bometinies upon one only, and one or two lateral teeth more or less
distant ; ligament external, short and swollen ; muscular impreasions
rounded, nnit«d by a pallial impression, whioh is straight and very
much excavated posteriorly.
The species are widely extended. De Blainvilla says that they
occur in all parts of the world. They pltmge themselves in aond and
sandy mud, where the animal lies with the short side of the shell
uppermost, at a depth longing from the surface of the sea to ten
hdioms.
M. Deshayes in his Tables «
le living, and in his edition of Lamarck thirty of thsM^
BTH 2>. puAeicou, Limi., as havingbeen established on a yoong
of A swrtvm ; i>. trranosii, Lam., as ft rariet J of i). eiHiaafa ;
2>. (rifttcfra, as approaching
tbs (^thmirr than the AnuKet;
oelonging to the genus Capia, Lam., if Lamarck's
ligoroualy followed ; D. cardiliidtt (the onimoJ), as
o that of Cardiam vudium than those of the
Ihnaea ; and O. MerUe and D. leripta, as having more of the ohano-
tsrs of OyUunta than Donaea. Forbes and Hanley give ths fitllawiitg
Bpedes as British :^D. anaftnuL It has the inner margin crenulated,
and the hings with lateral teeth. It is the D. tnmctUiu of Linnaiuo.
It is veiy common on all our shoreo. D. potilut luui the inner margin
eotire; It is the D, eoB^lanaivt of Montagu, and is one of the most
beautiful of our native shells. It is never common, and is much prised
by ooUectoro. It is found on the south coasts of England, and at
Itoatry Bay in Ireland.
Lamarck divides the species Sato two Beetjans : fiist, those which
have the internal border of the valves entire or nearly bo ; seoond,
those that have the internal border distinctly crenulated or dentated.
De Blainville aeporatea them into Sve divieions, according to the
shape, sculpture, and markings of the shell His fifth divinon is the
genus Capia of Lamarck.
Mr. Q. B. Sowerby, in his ' Oeoera of Sbella,' says, " Of fossil species
there are very few : Brocchi mentions two, and we possess a Bmsll
one&om Bordeaux, but we believe they at« very scarce." De Bloin'
ville quotes Defiance for seventeen, three of which are anali^uea, one
•t Loignan, near Bordeaux, one in lUly, and a third In the environs
CONCHACEA. its
of Paris. Deshayes in his Tablesgivea fifteen fj sil ,l«rtinry), and one
only (D. tiongata) as both living and fossil (tertiary). In Iub editjon
of Lamarck, the last-mentioned species is passed without any notice
of its occurring in n fossil state ; but D. tnintviut is noticed as faesil,
and Brocchi, ' Conch.,' t.ii., p. 637, No. 1, is quoted ; nine fossil speciea
only ore given. The fosailB are said to have occurred principally in
the blue marls of the south of France, Ao., the bads at Bordeaux and
Dai, and in the oolitic group.
(hattlupia. — Shell subtrigonal, oquivalve, regular, nearly eqnilatenj,
a little attenuated at its posterior part, and pregenting at the pontero-
inferior border a alight sinuosity ; umbonee very small, not projeetiog,
hardly inclined forwards ; hinge with three cudinol diverging teeui
in eo^ valve, and from three to six cardim.«erial teeth, lamellar, with
finely dentelated edges, converging towards ths sommita, and situated
a litUe below them, under the ligament ; a single lateral tooth, ante-
rior, beneath the lunule, in the left valve, corresponding with a hollow
oval, noitsd by a pallial impr«asion largely and very deeply excavated
poeteriorly.
This genos, founded by H. Chories des Moulins, was confounded
with the Donaces by M. de Basterot. U. Bang, who agrsea with
H. des Moulins on the propriety of this separation, says that there is
but one species, Q. donacifonnu, which is fbsaiL It is found in the
marine beds of Mdrignao (tertiary). Dr. Lea, in his ' Contributions
to Qeology,' describee and figures another sp< ' ~ " " " " '
Claiboma, Alabama (Amsrioa), here copied.
Craltlupia VMlintii.
IVUtna. — Animal generally very much compressed, oonsiderably
eloDgitad; mantle moderately opeo at its antero-inferior part, and
bonier«d with tentacular appendages ; branchim unequal, on both
■idea ; foot Teiy mach eonpreeseiC trenchant, and painted before ;
tubes very muah eloogatad, aepftrmted, and oap^ls <tf being retutned
'~to a fold cf the mantis.
Sbdl gmerally riongated, and very mnoh oompreMed, equiralvs,
regular, sometimes slightiy inequilateral ; the antoior aide not being
always much longer than the posterior one, which is oftan angular,
witli a fleiuous and irregular bend or fold at its lower btndar;
' [mea very small; hinge with three cardinal teeth, and two lateral
which Gire often distant, with a hollow at their base in eooh valve ;
„ unt posterior, swollen and elongated; a very small second
ligamant near the umbo ; muscular impreasioiis rounded ; poUiol
imprenion straight, and very deeply excavated.
lAmarck mokes the forme of Tellina and Tdiinidm disliiiet^ genericL
Mr, O. R Sowerby follows Lamarck's arrangement, observing that of
the TUfiwE there are many apectiB,someof a form very much elongated
in a transverse direction, aa T. roitrata, T. Spengleri, ftc ; others of an
oval shape, some of which are rough on the outeide, T. Iinjnq/alu,
for example ; othen, again, nearly orbicular, T. timbmata, T. eamaira,
ka. ; a very few have one valve more flat than the other, T, optrei^aHt,
for instanoe : while both valves are remarkably deep in others, aa in
T. 100*0040. Of TtUinida, he says that the number of shells that
may be ranged under it is rather conalderable, althou^ Lamarck baa
th M. de BlaJnville and H. Rang think that theea two form*
belong to one genus, and M. Deabayas is of the same opinion.
The species are found in almost all seas, but more particularly in
oae of worm climates, where, like the Doaaca, they live plunged in
0 sands and sandy mud ; TeWino having been found in the former
depths varying from the Burfoce of the aea to seventeen bthoms,
and Tdlinidei in sandy mud at depths ranging &om five to riitaen
iathoms. Mr. Q. B. Sowerby obawves that thsy are ocmmonly th«
prey of Aporrhtridei, Bttcema, and other cftmivoroos Troehtl^iodt,
which pierce the shell to devour the inhabitant.
The speciea ore very numerous. M. Deshayes, inhisTablee, makes
tha number of livingspeciesaiity-eight, and that of TUItnuJu, one. In
his edition of Lamarck (183S), he records sixty-two only, the number of
speciea of TtUinidet being still one. Of these, he connders soma aa
repetitions or varieties (TtUina nmmaettUUa, T. nlijf^imta, for example
tha Gnt of which ha Donsiders a white vonety of T. rodi/tia, and tha
second as identical with T. tofvatfro, tha only dilTersnee being that
IN CONCUACEA.
of colour), and othan u> founded merelj on the diflemuM of i^
T. ehtonititea, for exumpls.
Laourck dinded the spscUa into — '
1. TboM with the shall traiiBTanely oblong, ExHbpIe, T.
3. Thou with tba shell orbiauUr, or loimded onL Example,
T. teoiinata.
De BlaisTille dirides the geniu Ihua : —
1. Sabtriquetral ipecisB. EumpU, T. bimaaUala.
2. EloDgaiad Bpeoiea, but which uve the posterior side shorter
and lurTDwaT (plus dtroit) than the uitarior. Exunpl^ T. radiala.
3. Onl, or Buborbioubtf, sod nwl; eqniUteraL Kumpla, T.
tabmata.
4. EqoUatersl apecice, Bufflcieotly elongated, almost without a
fliKuoaa fold ; two divergent cardinal teeth, and two distant lateral
ones, of wbich the antarior is but little distant from the umbo.
{TtlUnidu, Lazn.)
Thefoaailsi
1. IMItfu nxf rofa. 1. Tellmi
■B recorded as ocourring in the Sap
ronp, in the Cntsceou* groop, and in the Oolitio group (Coralline
Oolite, Yo AshJre ; Kinuneridge Cia; ; Bemeae JuraX Sir S. Hurchison
mentions two Bpeciea (probab!;) in the Salopian outlier of Liaa.
Aatpkidana. — Shell suboval or rounded, of little thickneas, longer
than it ia high, inequilateral, sometimea ■ little gaping ; hinge with
one or two cardinal teeth, and lomeUnMa latenl tseth mora or Ism
projecting ; ligament double ; one lignment external and abort, the
other iutenial and fixed in a narrow (Aroite) hollow of the hinge.
As the ganoB was left b; Lamarck, it would appear to be widely
■pread, for it is recorded as oooarring in the European aaaa (Northern,
Ensjidi Channel, MediterrsDeu) ; t^oae of Auatralia and the south ;
and on the ooaats of BranJ. But it should be remembared that A.
torbaioidm, Imd., Mga Nonetgica, ChenuL, ia the example giren by
Deehayaa f tn" hia gonna CWcodssmn, while ^.plairella (aeasof Anatralia
and Kangaroo ialsa) is one of his JfeMdosMta. The EpeoieB, which
are tolnmbly nomaroua in their undisturbed state (Amtphidttma,
I^m.), are sMd to have been found in sands and mud at depths
vaiTing b-oin the sur&ce of the sea to forty fathoma. Lamarck gives
aixl«an ntadea ; Hr. Q. B. Sowsrby baa added twelve, brought home
bjHr. Cuming. ('ZooL Pnio.')
J. s>arM(nX<H nay be takes Han example of the genna. Itisfoaud
on the ooaat of Brazil.
Bnt few ipeoiea have been found foaaiL
Maodttma (Deshayes).— Animal inclining to oval or nbtrigonal,
flattened ; lobes of the mantle united for two-thiida of the posterior
length, and provided, at their posterior extremity, with two short
aipbona prolonged within by a very delicate membrane; foot verv
much flattened, quoitrangulor, hidden in port by the ' ' ' ~
COMCHACEA. IW
are abort, truncated, and flied (aoud^) posteriorly, the eitdmal pair
amaUest and BubarticuUted. Shell oval, transverBe or triangular,
thick and ordinarily closed. Hinge with a apoon-ahaped hollow,
Btruight and mesial for the ligament, and, on each aide, an oblong and
simtile tooth. (Deebayes.)
M. Deahajes remaps that the ahellB of this genus are eaally
reoognised. llie ahell is always thicker than that of the ilaelra :
they ore more compreaaed, more completely cloBed (mieui ferm^)
and in this respect approach the OrattattUa. The binge is particularly
remarkabla ; in the middle of the border and immediately below the
umbo ia placed a spoon-ehaped triangular deep hollow, the border
of which pnijecte within the valves as in the greater part of the
ZolrartOL On each aide of tbia spoon-like procees, in which the
ligament is inserted, is seen in each valve a Urge thick tooth, and
behind ia a hollow to receive tho tooth of the opposite valve. Muscular
ImpreBBionB unequal ; the anterior largest, elongated ; the posterior
somewhat rounded. The pallial impreasioQ in the spedes which
approach the Maclra haa a moderate posterior ainuoaity wbich
diminishes mora and more in proportion oa the species have more
reaambUnoe to the Oranattlla. The ainuoaity exiata however in all
tiie epedea of the genua.
Ouningia (G. B. Sowerby). — A genua which ahould he plaoed near
to AnpKidama. It ia remairfcable for the diaaimilnrity of the hinge
of the two valvea, one having a strong lateral tooth on each aide of
the ligament, and the other being entirely destibute of Uteral teeth.
Having only met with a small West Indian species, we could not
venture to oonstder this gcmiiB as established, until Hr. Cuming showed
UH several species in his rich collectian of South American and Pacific
abelts, one of which ia sufBciently large to show the charaotepa
distinctly. ('Oeneraof BocantandFoseil SheUa.'Ho. 40.) Mr. Sowerby
eharacterissa the shell as inequilateral, equivalve, wiUi the anterior
side rounded and the posterior rather acuminated. A single small
anterior cardinal tooth observable in each valve : one strong lateral
tooth on each side of the hinge in one valve, but no lateral tooth in
the other valve ; ligament internal, and affixed to a somewhat spoon-
shaped pit in each valve. Muscular impressiona two in each valvc^
lat^al and distant, the anterior irregular and oblong, the posterior
ronnded. A very large Btnus in the muscular impresaion of the manUo.
The apedea are found in the tropical seas oa far as ia yet hiown, ia
clay, mud, and aand, in the fissures of rocks, at a depth varying from
the BOiface of the aea to six fathoma, No fossil specie* known.
.. (Sow.).
Cuminfta mutiea,
Madra. — *plmtl oral, somswhat thick, wiUi the borden of tba
mantle thick and simple, fHimisbed posteriorly with two tubes but
little elongated end united ; branchial lamin« small and nearly equal ;
foot oval, trenchant, very long, angular. Shell transvene, inequi-
lateial, aubtrigonal, sometimes a little gaping at the sidee; umbone*
protuberant ; hinge with one cardinal tooth, folded into the shape of
the letter T, the point being neanat the umbo and the branches
diverging from it ; posterior to this and very close to it ia a very
thin sluup tooth ; aometimee the bronchee of the folding tooth are
separated at the base, forming two divarging teeth ; ligamental pit
immediately behind the angular tooth and projecting within tbe
sbelL Lateral teeth, two on each side in one valve, one on each aide
in the other, diverts from the umbones, and very near the margin,
thin, moatly elongated, and the inner ones more prominent than the
outer, but m aome species very short, in the tbiokar spedes perpen-
dicularly atriated. Muscular impressions two, lateral, distant; pcdlial
impreesion with a small sinus. Ligament oonsisting of two portiona
(as usual), one, by far the larger, internal ; the other external. In
some spedea the umbones are separated, and the ligament farma a
deep pit extending both within and without to the point of the beaks:
of this Jf . Spengltri is an example.
" Thia genus," aaya Mr. O. B. fjowerby, " ooutains a groat number
of spedea, some of which are handsome and others very ungular
shslla ; upon examining a number of species we think it might ba
dedrahle to divide it mto several genera, because we find aeveral
distinct forms in it." It is found in Europe, East and W«t Indies,
Africa, North America, Ac, buried generally in sandy mud and Bands
at a depth varying from the surface of the aea to 12 fathoms.
The spedei axe numerous. DeshByes,inliiBTables,gives thirtjr-two
living ; m his edition of Lamarck thirty-three ; but in his opinion
one of these, M. datutcia, is not a Maclra but' a ltitodmt»a, and
others are lepetitJODS or varieties.
Ill
COSCHACEA.
De BUinTille thua divides Uie genus ; —
1, 8p«dw whoM eanliQsl teath become nearlf
ooosequeDce of the enliirgement of the ligamantal hollow. Elunple,
U. giganlta.
2, Species »11 of whowi teeth ore Ter? lorgs, Ismallar, knd not
■triatsd. Example, M. SttiUonHa.
3, Thick and solid species without sn epidermis ; the Utarel
teeth Snel; atri&ted; mantle pteroed with two apenings; but
almost withoat tubas. Example, M. IrigimeUa.
i. Very thick solid specieB atristed longitudiosUy ; cardinal
teeth none or unt to nana; Utenl teeth very thick, approximated,
raised ; an external ligunent besides the intranal one.
Jladra Bratilimi
Mr. a. B, Sowerby ssyo, " The fose
they are onW found in the tertiary bed^ unless indeed some very
ringular fosaili faimd in the secoQiliuT strata, particularly oolite, be
tndy refarrible to thia genus ; of this however we cannot be eertidn,
beosose we know not thsir hinges ;" they will be found represented in
Sowerby's ' Mineral Conchology.' Da Blainville quotas M. Dafrance
for eightean fossil apeoiBS, one identical, one analogue in the FUiian-
lin, and another analogua "dana la Caroline du Kord." Desha^M
in his Tables gives fourteen foaail (tertiary) snd four as both living
and fossil (tertian) : in hia edition of Lamarck but three ipecies are
maiborae
. anMotetlcL — Shell eqoivalve, tnnsrarse, inequilateral, not attached
nor gaping. In one valve two strong, cuneiform, mgosa, loinetimea
perpandicularly-grooved cardinal teeth ; in the other odIv one ; liga-
netit internal, attached to a concave space placed on the anterior
ude of the binge ; the pit divided by a carina into two portions, and
that part of the ligament attached to the outer portion virible
externally when the valves are cloaad : two strong oblong depiessioos
may then be observed, one on the anterior side of the umbo, rmther
elongated, aitd not so distinct as the other on the posterior side.
Muscular impressions two, distant, lateral, rather oblong; lateral
teeth none, or nearly obsolete. Shell very thick, particularly in old
■pscimetis ; the recent ones with a brownish somewhat homy spi-
dermis ; all more or lees transTersely grooved near the umbones.
The spedee are found in the seas of Australia.
IL Deshayes, in his Tables, gives the number of living spades at
nine. The shdls may be distinguished &om Maadama by msoni of
the pillial imprcesioD, which is always simple in the C?natalella, and
always rinnous posteriorly in Maodama.
Mr. G. B. Sowerby, in his 'Qenera,' mentions C. Ivmida sod
C- cwnjimvt from tite Caloaire GrOBsier of the environs of Paris, and
C. mictUa as very common at Holdwell, and as appearing to be
CONCHIFERA. ll»
ohoncteristic of the London Clay. M. Deshayes remarks npon that
shell, that Lamarck regarded tlie fossils at Besuvais and those living
at Australia as analogues; but that he has satisfied hinuelf that t^oae
fossils and C. (ti^nUa are difibrent speciea. C. twnida, he observes,
■pproachea C, Singicola nearer than any other,
De Blainville states tliat there ore seven at least foaail in Fnnce,
and that H. Defiance mentions twenty from the lower chalk with
some doubt In his Tables M. Deshayes gives twenty-four fossil
species (tertiary) : in his edition of Lamarck he records fourteen
only. It appears in the catalogaes in the Bupracretaoeous and
Cratoceou* groups.
Other geuers balon^ng to De BlaJnville'a (bncAocsa vrill be found
under liTraoPBAaiDM, oiid the generu sepatsted &rom Vttivd, or allied
to that family, nndsr Vbhhida
CONCHITERA, Lamarck's name for that large class of Molluscuus
*¥iiiiu.l« which are protected by shells oonaiatjng of two principid
piaoes oommonly known under the denominatioa of Bivalves. It
oomtoiMi the whole of the Aoephalous Hollusks of Cuvier, including
the SmMopoda. [BaiOHiopODi.]
Idmarok divided the dasa into two great orders, the Dinyaria
(Dirajairea), or Cendufers, furnished vrith two adductor muscles, and
the Mtiumyaria (Hoaoonires), or Conchifers furnished with one
Dmyaria; 3, the Mtmomj/aria. Ha foundi this order of arrange-
ment on the principle that the organisation of the Brackitrpoda is
more siiaple than that of the other Conchifers, white that of the
Dimj/aria is somewhat less oomplai than that of the Mtmonyaria.
The tvro lost divinons are now more generally called LamelU-
branehiata, fkom iJie fact that in nearly every case the brandmB, or
gill^ ocour in the form of four riband-shaped lamelhe, two of which
are attached to each lobe of the mantle.
The following account of the atructurs of the OmAifera refen
more especially to the Lamdlibmneltiala :—
Digestive System. — Houth witiiout any hard parts, situated ante-
riorly : in the Dimyarians oonoeoled between the foot and the anteiio-
retractor musde : in the Honomyariane under a sort of hood made hr
the mantle. Labial palpa or lips Sattenad, aometimea truncated,
sometimn laminated internally, more or less elongated, extending on
dlher side. No aolivaiy Eland. (Esophagua varying in length and
capacity, often wanting altogetiier both in Dimyarians and Mono-
mjarions. Stomach sometimes, not often, lengthened and narrow,
aometimea subcircular, geuerally pear^haped ; interior surfiice vrith
irregular depressions, or biliary crypts. Intestine arising posteriorly,
convoluted within the liver and ovary, and so brought towards the
bock and mesial line of the animal, and continued posteriorly to the
vent, nearly of the same diameter all through. Rectum, which
commencee vrith the dorsal port of the intestine, shorter in the
Monomyarions than in the Dimyarians : in the former it is convo-
luted behind the single central adductor, and terminates in a floating
vent hetwaau the edges of the mantle ; in tiie latter the vsnt is
situated above the niperior adductor. Liver very larger aupporlad
by muscular flbrea, which traverse it, pouring the bile into the
stomach by the bilioiy crypts.
Ciroulat(H7 and Kespiiatoiy System. — Cinmlatioi, a simple eircoit
of two vasci^ar systems, namel;, a ventricle and an arterial system —
a vanoua system and two auricles, the ventricle firmly and cloady
embracing the rectum, so that it appears to pass through it. The
arterial system not ocmpUoated, the venoua syitem upon a oondder-
able Bcole of development. Circulating fluid nearly colourless, or
white, aoarcelj tinged with bluiah, alightly viadd, and with very
little crasaamantum. [Blood.] "Circulation then ia an eitremdy
simple fouotion in the Conchiferous Uollusks ; an aorUo ventricle
gives the blood impulse enough to carry it through the two syitems
of vessels, to expel it from the heart, and to carry it back agaiD to
the auiiole. In other branchiferous animals the auricle is sometimes
adapted to give the blood a new impulse when it ia about to psa
throng^ the bronchisj; hare, on the contrary, the auriclee do not
receive the blood until it hoa been expoaed to the "revivifying influence
of theorew" of reapirotion." (Daahayea.) Tha respiratory function
is carried on by means of hranchiie variously disposed. They are all
however disposed in a lamelliform manner.
The reproductive system consists aimply of an ovaiy enveloped in
the viaoenl mass. Taking the common oyster for example, it reate,
a whitish mass of considerable nze, upon tha adductor, and may be
seen through tha mantle. It oocupies the whole upper part of tho
molluak, and creeps down along the sides and lower parte, being
filled at the time of reproduction with a milky fluid, containing
multitudes of small globules of a whitish colour. These are the eggs;
and in many of the famil; the; are not at the time of their exclusioQ
abandoned at onee, but ore deposited between the two membranes of
tha branchial laminEe, where tbey undergo a kind of incubation. In
some the shell is developed in the ovum before it quits this receptacle.
This fostering of the eggs seems to be analogous to the gestation of
the eggs in the CrtuliKta and the pipe-fishes. Sir Anthony Carlisle
('Hunlarian OtatioQ,' 1826) says, "OyBtara are viviparous, and their
young are found within the tracheal poasagee and between the folds
of the ooTsrlet (mantle) during tho month* of June snd Jul; to Uua
m CONCHIFERA.
diniWtfL In tU fint state the ojBter sihibita two Bemi-orbiculac films
of tranaparent ahell, vbich are continuajl; oponiog and cloitng mt
regulirintemlB. Tha whole brood are nssociated together by being
iniolTed in a viscid Blime, and in th&t state called the 'spat,' it beiog
eemmoD unong viviparous animals of this kind to have their spawn
n*ted in contact with the luogs. The involving slime servea as the
notriinent : and we may infer that the fcotal food no influenced
bj the gills is at the same time a respiratorj' supply to the imperfecllf
fonnad f ouDg." In the siphoniferous branch of the family the longer
the siphoiiB the laivaT, as a general rule, is the mass of the ovarj : in
those fonuB which have the siphons short and the foot compaiaUvely
Urge the ovary is compaiatively small. As far >■ anatomy baa
hitherto detected this part of the organisation, here we hara hermv
phroditiam in the true sense of the word. The whole bualoeea of
reproduction is apparently carried on within the two valves of the
shell without the aid of a second individual, as it is in a hermaphro-
dite flower. But it will occur to most observers that the Con^tra
are gregnrions; the Filed Conchifeni (Oyslera, Spondyli, Chama,
&c, for instance) eminently so ; and it ia by no means dear that
this coDgregatJon may not be a necessary condition for the
fecundation of the ova ; and that there may not be a mutual
diSuaicn of some influenco analogous to that of the milt in fishes.
M, Fraioat, who made his experiments upon the Uraona, would
make it appear that though there can be no union, still no propa-
gation takes place without an assemblage of these animals upon the
The muscular system, as it rsfsids moUon, Is two-fold; valvular
and locomoliTe. The first conaists in the adaptaUon of muscular
Sbra to the movement of the valves, and indeed this muscular appa-
ratus may in some cases be made ancillary to locomotion, as in
the Pecteiu, for eiample. The adductor muaclea are attached to
(ppoaite points in each valve, and their offlce ia to cloae the valves by
their contractility, or sufler them to expand by their relaxation. In
the greater number [Dimyana) there are two ; one anterior near the
oval apertott^ the other posterior. The Monamyana have appa-
rently one only ; but Poli has shown that this muscle is in reality an
approximation of two, and thence most prebably arose the slight
regard manifeeted b]L Cuvier for the division of Lamarck. The
•ecood or true looomotire organ ia called the foot, and is formed of
various layer* of flbrea, which by their counteraction bestow on it
great power of motion when the organ is well developed. Though in
some species merely rudimentary it is found in all the Dimyaria,
not 90 in the Monomyaria, some of which are entirely without it. Its
place may be defined by stating that the mouth is generally hidden
between its base and the anterior adductor. Where well developed
it is of various shapea, cylindriol, flattened, ftc In some it is a
digging organ, or kind of ploughshare for making a furrow in the
land or mud wherein the animal means to lie hid ; in others, as in
the cockle, Jko., it becomes a leaping organ, god enables the coni^fer
to clear a boat's gunwale when laid on the bottom boards. The foot
ia the instrument which produces the bysaus. [Btssub.] The
following is Deshayea'a acoount of the structure : — " If the byaaus and
foot of a byaaiferous molluak be placed under a powerful lens, the last
EUmenta of the bysaus ar« first seen to be nearest to the tiase of the
foot ; and if the inferior edge of the foot be inspected, a fissure will
be found miming completely along it, at the tnttom of which a
brewniah and semicomeous filament is often to be perceived : this is
neither more nor lees than a filament of the bysaus prepared to be
detached by the animal, in order to which the animal atretchee forth
its foot until it encounters the object upon which Uie other fibres of
the byasus are fixed ; to this it applies the point of the foot, which
then secretea a small quantity of glutinous matter continuous with
the rilky filament lying aloi^j- the bottom of the furrow of which we
have spoken. When the pasty matter has acquired sufficient oon-
aistency, and is firmly fixed to the stone or other body at the bottom,
the aniPiM retracts ita foot, and in doing so detaches the new fibre at
the base of the pedicle. The mode in wliich the filaments of the
bjsaui are formed is consequently entirely difierent from that in
which hair or the horns of the higher animals are evolved, and it is
easily understood when the intimate structure of the foot of ths
bpBiferouB molluska is known, when we are aware that this organ
irall.
imala that
now eogages our attention the fibres situated at the bottom of the
groove of the foot become horny, and are detached in succession in
the form of threads as they become oonaolidated." The siphons,
which are the organs by which these animals take in and throw out
vater, are retracted by means of two latersl fen-shaped muscles,
situated posteriorly.
Uantle and Cuticular System. — Two thin fleshy lamins applied over
the back of the animal, extending over its aides, and with its edges
meeting along the anterior middle aspect of the body, covering, or
dosely in contact with, the whole interior surface of the shell, form
the mantle, in the thickened edge of which is the principal apparatus
that secretes the shell : there are also frequently rows of oontraotile
tentacular cilia fringing it. The whole of these parte are ezquisitety
senuble, and highly contractile. The mantle becomes free at the
origin of the brancbiie, and forms a cavity round the lower part of
CONCHIFERA.
i, aaleilor or oral citremlty ; P, poaterlor or anal extremity.
BbeU at (V"Unta.
116
CONCHIFERA,
CONCHIFERA.
116
the animal, containing the visceral mass, the foot, for the extrusion of
which there is an opening, and the branchiae. This is the pallial sac,
and is the area wherein &e omrents for respiration and nutrition are
formed. The siphons^ where they exist, project from tiie mantle,
with which they are continuous. The^ are sometimes very long, and
sometimes reduced to mere perforations ; sometimes separate, and
sometimes conjoined; but in any case the superior siphon is that
destined for dejections, and is called the anal siphon, while the office
of the lower one is to conduct the water to the branchiae; whence it
is termed the branchial or oral siphon. The structure of these
posterior siphons or tubes is eminently contractile, and their apertures
are fringed with a number of papillsB of great sensibility, capable of
giying notice of the contact of any prejudicial foreign body. The
retractor muscle is generally more or less developed according to the
greater or less development of these parts.
The nervous system is very simple. Symmetrical in the Dimy<tria,
hardly symmetrical in the Monomyaria. They have no true brain. In
the Dimycuia there is a ganglion above the oesophagus on each side of the
mouth towards the labial palps, connected by a transverse filament
crossing the cesophagus. From these ganglions filaments are given
off to Uie mouth, anterior adductor, kc ; and from their posterior
edges two nervous branches go to the stomach, liver, and heart, ovary,
and branchisB. A branch of some volimie goes down to the foot.
The lateral filaments, after advancing along the internal surface of the
posterior adductor, are coi\joined into one or two ganglions larger than
the anterior ones. These posterior ganglions give off the nerves to
all the posterior parts ; if the ganglions are much separated a nervous
filament connects theoL In the Monomyaria the system is less
perfectly developed
The senses of these animals are very limited ; and indeed there is
no good ground for attributing to the generality of them anything
beyond a sense of touch and taste. That most of them may be
conscious of the presence or absence of light is possible. "Not
having any especial organs for seeing, hearing, or smelling," says Sir
Anthony Carlise, speaking of the common oyster, in hia 'Hunterian
Oration' (1826), "the creature is limited to perceive no other
impressions but those of immediate contact ; and yet eveiy part of
its exterior seems to be sensible to light, sounds, odours, and liquid
stimulants. It is asserted by fishermen that oysters, in confined
beds, may be seen, if the water is clear, to dose their shells whenever
the shadow of a boat passes over them."
M. Deshayes goes so far as to say that no especial oxgan of sense
can be detected among them, unless perhaps those of touch and
taste ; but we must not fox^t what have been called the eye-specks in
Peetm, to the animal of which Poll gave the name of Argug, from the
supposed number of its visual organs. The peotens are free swimmera,
and, from their rapid and desultory motions, we have heard Uiem
termed the butterflies of the ocean. The manner in which these
motions are executed, especially on the approach of danger, indicates
the possession of a sense analogous at least to that of ordinary
vision. These eye^pecks may be seen in the pecten placed at short
intervals round the thickened edge of the mantle, on the outworks,
as it were, of the internal part of the animal fabria "As locomo-
tion so vision" is a general aphorism, not without its particular
exception ; for there is good reason for believing that Spondyfus,
whicui is a fixture in its adult state, is furnished with these visual
specks.
The following arrangement of the Conehifera proposed by H. Deshayes, is published in the ' Cydopflddia of Anatomy and Physiology ' : —
CLASSIFICATION OF THE CONCHIFERA.
FamiliM.
TUBIOOUB (^^P**??!""*
iStplaria
Tenduia
PholOM
OsrsoDmcATA
'Pkoladomya o
Ctteodttma e
Ptriploma ^
Anatina
^T%raeia
iCMnda*
(V,
*
AnatindUi
^ The lobes of the insntla(
united in a greater or 1
fDIlCTARIA..,
dogroe poeteri<»rly
M0LLU8CA ,
ACEPHALA (
BIVALVU
Mactkacbjb
ILutraria
Maetra
Mtaodetma
Cm$aatdla
JBfyc%iut
Amphidwna
PMmmoMo-
Donax
) PBTRIOOUB
OOKOBiB
• • • • • • 1
AitarUi
is CyrkM
QaUakta
^ ( Cjnprieardia
Cabdiac&b \l!oeardia.^,t^
TmmAoncjE
' Naiadu . . .
The lobes of the mantle
dieunitod
TaioovBA
Abcaceji
^Mttilaci
'Having a foot
Max.liao>«
iBippopua
fOmftta
\Unio
i TriffotUa
{Nweuta
{Peehmtului
Area
Cueyilka
Pimna
Avieula
(MaUeuM
Vul$dla
,( Crmahda
^ Pentor-
lllMciMa
Ung¥lina
Jlfyo^ama
%Clei(UlheruM
Ckama
JHeenU*
BOuria
}
LUCINIPiB
CHAMAOEA
Hippwitn
Copriua
}
RUDI8TE8
^MOKOMYARIAI
Having no foot
,PMjniiii>i
OSTlAOBiV
JnoeeramM*
{OcUUbu
IUma
Pedmm
Ptetm
PUaUvla
Spondflut
-OerviUia
{
Odna^
^Plaauut )
Plaeunanomia VPLACUNIDJB
itfnomiat )
iTerdftniula,
117
CONCHODERMA.
CONDOR.
118
Thn lobes of the mantle, the thick edges of which form tho
principal secreting organ, determine apparently the form of the shell.
[Shell, Psabl.] In the Conchifera it is bivalve, or composed ot two
pieces, often covered with an epidermis, joined at their uppw edge
(corresponding to the dorsal part of the animal) by a hinge.
The hii^e is entirely formed by the inner layer of shell, and
consists of either a simple cardinal process, or a serrated edge, or of
projections, or teeth as they are called, and corresponding cavities
into which they are inserted. To this hinge is superadded a ligament^
which binds the two parts together, and keeps the parts composing
the hinge in their places. The ligament is either internal or external,
intemal when it is hidden by the outside of the cardinal edge,
external when it appears beyond it, and is highly elastic, being
composed of a number of fibres parallel to each other, and perpendi-
cular to the valves which they connect. This is a beautiful
contrivance for the necessities of the animaL When undisturbed, the
elastic ligament keeps the valves open, and the animal functions are
carried on without any e£fort; when danger is apprehended, or
circumstances require it, the adductor muscle or muscles contiact,
overcome the resistance of the hinge, and shut the valves close till
they may be opened in ssfety. One of the earliest signs of the loss
of vitality in the Conchifers is the more than ordinaiy wide gaping of
the shelL This arises from the state of the adductor muscle, which
being relaxed by death is no longer an antagonist to the elastic
ligament
The common oyster will serve as an example of the Konomyarians,
and the cuts will give a general idea of the Dimyariansi, their shelly
and its muscular impraarions.
COKCHODERMI. [Cibripedia.]
CONCHOLEPAS. [Eiteomostomata.]
CONCHOLOGT is that branch of science which teaches the
stmcture and forms of the shells which are the hard external
covering of the animals belonging to the class MoUusca, Although
these shells present great variety of forms, and aro variously marked,
they are only a subsidiary part of the structure of the animals to
which they belong. Hence amongst naturalists the shells are only
studied in connection with the structure of the ^nimRla which
inhabit them. An account of these animals, with their shells, will
be found in the articles Mollusca, Braohiopoda, Tunioata, Covchi-
nRA, Gastbbopoda, Pterofoda, Cephalopoda ; also under the heads
of the more important of the families and genera of the MoUuaca,
CONDAMINEA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural oider
CmckonacetB. It has a campanulate calyx, 6-crenate or 6-toothed
limb, deciduous; corolla funnel-shaped, with a somewhat curved
tube, which is a little longer than the calyx, a dilated throat, and a
5-parted limb ; stamens inserted above the middle of the tube or near
the throat ; anthers oblong, linear, bifid at the base, length of corolla ;
stigma 2-lobed. Capsule turbinate, truncate, opening in the middle
of the cells. Seeds numerous, very small, wedge-shaped. The
species are American shrubs, with 2-parted acuminate stipules and
terminal many-flowered corymbs.
0. corymba$a is a native of the hills and ravines of the Peruvian
Andes. It has ovate-oblong leaves, acuminate, cordate, sessile,
plicated, coriaceous ; corymbs large, brachiate, trichotomous ; corolla
purple externally, with the throat and filaments naked ; teeth of ^e
calyx broad, short, and blunt The bark is febrifugal The bark-
gatherers of Peru are said to use this plant for adulterating samples of
Cinchona. Its bark is only slightly bitter, and may be easily
recognised by its being white inside, rather bitter, and viscid.
C. tinetoria is a native of South America, and is used occasionally
as a dye.
(Lindlev, Vegetable Kingdom ; Lindley, Flora Medico.)
CONDOR, or OwntwTj one of the largest Birds belonging to the
family VtUturida. Of the size and habits of this bird many exagge-
rated accounts were at one time current. It was compared to the
Roc of the Arabian romance-writers ; nay, by some it was considered
identical with that monstrous oriental conception. In the ' Mudteom
Tiudescan.tianum,' under title ' Clawes,' we find " the daw of the bird
Rock, who, as authors report, is able to trusse an elephant." This
may have been the claw of a Condor, exaggerated by some of the
artiste who wrought extraordinaxy zoological forms for the collectors
of the day. Near the passage quoted there is a notice of a toucan's
(Aracari's) bill, and other parts of birds from Brazil and ' the West
Indias.' In the old French ' Encydopddie,' after noticing Condamine's
statement^ the writer adds that it is believed that these birds exist
also in the region of Sophala, of the Kaffirs, and of Monomotapa, as far
as the kingdom of Angola, and that it is supposed that they do not
differ from tliose which the Arabians call ' roiidi.'
Ray, in his ' Synopsis,' confesses that such was the enormous and
almost incredible magnitude attributed to it, that he at one time con-
sidered the Condor the mere o£bpring of fiction ; that he dared not
insert the bird in Willughby's ' Ornithology ;' and that it was to Sir
Hans Sloane, who possessed a feather plucked from the wing of one
•hot on the coast of Chili, and presented to him by Ci^tain Strong,
who gave him at the same thne the measurement of the bird, that he
first owed his belief of its existence.
Joseph Aoosta, Qarcilasso de la Vega, and John de Laet, all speak
of this vulture. Acosta says that the birds called Condors are of
great magnitude, and of such strength that they are ni>t only able to
eviscerate and devour a sheep, but even an entire calf. Qarcilasso
enumerate among the rapacious birds those called Cuntur, and cor-
ruptly by the Spaniards Condor, and states that some of those killed
by the Spaniards measured 15 or 16 feet from tip to tip of the
extended wings. He further observes that nature, in order to temper
their ferocity and strength, has denied them the crooked talons which
she has bestowed on the eagle, and given them daws more like those
of the Gallinaceous Birds ; but that she has however endowed them
with a beak sufficiently strong to perforate and tear off a bull's hide,
and to rip out its entrails. Two of them, he adds, will dare to attack
a cow or a bull, and will devour it ; " neither do Uiey abstain from
the human race, but will set upon and slay single-handed boys of ten
or twdve years, and it is by a providence of nature, for the protection
of the flocks and the natives, that many are not hatched ; for, if they
were numerous, they would cause great slaughter among the herds,
and the greatest damage to the inhabitants." The accoimt given by
John de Laet, who speaks of the ' vasta moles' of the bird, is much
the same with that of Qarcilasso.
In relation to the Condor's alleged attack upon children, Condamine
notices^ a story of tho Indians setting up a figure of a child made of
very viscous clay ; on this the Condors were said to pounce, and so
entangle their claws that they were hdd fast.
Abbeville assures his readers that it is twice the size of the most
colossal ei^le. Desmarchais gives eighteen feet as the extent of the
wings, which, he says, are so enormous that the bird can never enter
the forest ; and he adds that it will attack a man, and carry off a stag.
Linnseus seems to have drawn up his account of the habits of the bird
£rom the writers above noticed, some of whom he quotes. " It preys,"
says Linnseus, " on calves, sheep, nav, on boys of ten years ; a pair
wUl tear up and devour a cow ; " and he adds, that the rudung of its
wings, as it nears the earth, renders men planet-struck, as it were, and
almost deafens them — ** in terram devolans, susurro attonitos et surdos
fbre reddit homines : " he makes the alar extent from 18 to 16 feet.
These marvellous stories were left to work upon the minds of men
always prone to receive the wild and the wonderful ; foif, till within
the last forty or fifty years, one or two specimens, and Uxose not perfect^
were the ozdy evidences of the Condor in the cabinets of Europe.
The Great Vulture of the Andes was a striking instance of the way
in which things imperfectly known are exaggerated. " It was with
the Condor," observes Vieillot, " as it was with the Patagonians, —
" both shraiik before examination." To the scrutiny of the Baron
Von Humboldt and of M. Bonpland we owe the reduction of the bird
to its proper dimensions. Nestling in the most solitary places, often
upon the ridges of rocks which border the lower limit of perpetual
snow, and crowned with its extraordinary comb, the Condor for a
long time appeared to the eyes of Humboldt himself as a winged
giant, and he avows that it was only the measurement of the dead bird
that dissipated this optical illusion. The grand scenery among which
it is found had a precisdy contrary effect on Lieutenant Maw ('Journal
of a Passage from the Pacific to tiie Atlantic '), who, in describing Ms
descent into the deep and narrow valley of Magdalena, says : " "V^ilst
descending, several condors hovered round us, and about the rocks on
which they build their nests; but so vast was the scale of the rocks
and mountains, that even these immense birds appeared quite insig-
nificant, and I doubted for a time that they were condors."
Under the name of Zopilote, a word derived from the Mexican word
Tzopilotl, which is said to signify ' King of the Vultures,' M. Vieillot
places the Condor in the same genus with the bird usually termed
' the King of the Vultures ' ( Vultur papa of Linnseus and others), and
the Califomian Vulture ( Vidtur Califomianue, TAfhum and o&ers).
His Latin name for this genua is Oypague, Mr. Bennett adopts this
arrangement^ and, as his description of the bird is accurate, and evi-
dently made from personal observation, we give it the preference.
*'The condor," writes Mr. Bennett, "forms the type of a genus, a
second species of which is the Yvlttw papa of Linnaeus, the ' King of
the Vultures ' of British writers. They are both peculiar to the New
World, but approach in their most essential characters very closely to
the vultures oi the Old Contiuent, differing from the latter prindpally
in the large fleshy or rather cartilaginous caruncle which surmoimts
their beaks ; in the large size of their oval and longitudinal nostrils,
placed almost at the veiy extremity of the cere ; and in the compara-
tive length of their quill-feathers, the third being the longest 'of the
series. The most important of these differences — the size and position
of their nostrils — appears to be well calculated to add to the already
highly powerful sense of smell possessed by the typical vultures, ada
for which these birds have been almost proverbially cdebrated from
the earUest age& There is also a third species^ the Califomian vulture,
two noble specimens of which, the only pair in Europe, are preserved
in the Sodety's museum, rivalling the condor in bulk, and agreeing in
every respect with the generic characters of the group, except in Uie
existiauce of the carunde, of which they are entirely destitute.
"In size, the condor is little, if at all, superior to the bearded griffin
(the Lonimergeyer of the Alps), with which Buffon was disposed con-
jccturally to confound it, but to which it bears at most but a distant
relation. The greatest authentic measurement scarcely carries the
extent of its wings byond 14 feet ; and it appears rarely to attain i
gigantic a size. M. Humboldt met with none that exceeded P '^
lit CONDOR.
uid wu auDi«d bjrmui; credible inhftbitanta oF the pcvTiuce of Quito
that the; bftd never ahot an; that measured more than 11 feet. The
length of a male Bpecimea ■ometrhiLt leu than 9 feet in expanse, wu
3 feet S inches from tho tip of the beak to the eitreroity o! the tail .
and its heiglit, when perching, with the neck parti; withdrawn, 2 feet
"■ ' ■■ ■ ■ ■ ■ "n length, and an inch and a quartai
in depth when closed.
t the b
>ppe>
mandible beoamei archc
Btrong and wall-currfld hoot The basal
the remaining portion towards the point is nearl; white. The head
and neck are bars of feathers, and covered with a hard, wrinkled ,
dusk; reddish skin, rat which are scattered some short brown or
blacbsh hain. On the top of the head, which is much flattened
above and ertendiog some distance along the beak, is attached an
oblong firm caruncle or oamb, covered by a continuation of the skin
which invests the head. This organ is peculiar to the male. It
wmiectfld to the beak onl; in its anterior part, and is separated fmta
it at the base in such a manner as to allow of a free passage of the
air to the large oval nostrils which are situated beneath it at that
Enrt. Behind the e;e«, which ara somewhat elongated and not mink
Bneath the general suiface of the head, the akin of the neck
were, gathered into a series of descending folds, extending obliquel;
from Uie back of the head over the temploi to the under side of the
neck, and there connected anteriorl; with a lax membrane or wattle,
capable of being dilated at pleasure, like that of the common turkey.
The neck is marked b; niuneroua deep parallel folds, produced by
the habit of retracting the head, in which the bird indulges when at
rest. In this position scarce!; an; part of the neck is visible.
" Round the lower part of the neck both sexes, the female as woU
as the male, are futnished with a broad white ruff of down; feathi
which forms the line of separation between the naked skin above i
- the true feathera covering the body below it All the other feathi
with the exception of the wing-coverta and the second ar; quill-featheni,
are of a bright black, generall; mingled with a gra;iBh tinge of greater
or less inl«iBity. In the female tie wing^;overi« are blackish gra; ;
but the males have their points, and frequentl; as much as half their
length,' whits. The wings of the latter are consequently distinguished
fromthose of the female bylheir lacge white patches. The secondary
Joill-fsatheri of both sexes are white on the outer side. The tail is
lort and wedge-shaped. The legs are excessively thick and powerful,
and Bra coloured of a bluish-gra;, intermingled with whitish streaks.
Their elongated toes are united at the base by a loose but very appa-
rent memlMDe, and are terminated by long black talons of considerable
thickneaa, but very little curved. The hinder toe is muoh shorter
than the rest, and its talon, although more distinctly curved, is equal!;
wanting in strength ; a deficiency which rendera the foot much less
powerfid as an organ of prehension than that of any other of ths large
birds of the raptorial order."
This bird is found in the Andes, and the greater part of the
mountain chain which runs up South America to 7* H. lat, but i
common in Peru and ChilL
The Condor is found moot frequently at an elevation of from 10
to 15,000 feet above the level of the sea, and there they ara to be i
in groups of three or four, but never in large companies, like the true
Tulturea. Many of tho clusters of rocks and of the elevated plateaux
are named after them Cuntur Kahua, Cuntur Palti, and Cuntur Hua-
cana, for example — nsmea which, in the language of the Incaa, are said
to aigni^ the Condor's Look-out, the Condor's Boost, and the Condor's
Nest In this rarefied atmosphere the bird breathes freely, and
morts to the plains only when impelled b; hunger. Then two of
them will attack the vicuna, the guanaco, the heifer, and even the
puma, the lion of South America, persecuting the tormented quad-
ruped till overpowered it falls beneath the wo^iods inflicted b; their
claws and beaks, groaning and protruding ita tongua Upon thia and
the eyes, their favourite morsels, the Condors instantly seise, and the
bloody banquet is continued till they are quits gorged. Humboldt
saw them alter such repasts sitting sullen and sombre on the rocks ;
and when thus overlosdud, tbey mil sufiiir themselves to be driven
before the hunter rather than take wing. But he has also seen them,
when on the look-out for prey, and especially on serene days, soaring
at a prodigious height, as iJT for the purpose of commanding the most
extensive view. " C^est I'oiseau," says Cuvier, speaking of the Condor,
" qui s' tl&ve le plushauL" With regard to the stories of their carry-
ing off children, Humboldt never heiurl of an instance, although the
in&nts of the Indians who gather snow for sale are frequently left
sleeping in the open air in the midst of the haunts of these birds.
He often approached within a few feet of three or four of them as
the; sat on the rocks, but they never manifested any disposition to
attack him : and the Indians ot Quito assured tii"! that men have
nothing to fear from Condon : hs admits indeed that two of these
vultures would be dangerous antagonista for a single man to oope
with; and SirFrancia Head describes a severe struggle between one ot
them and a Comisb miner, with his usual graphic power. When
the bird descends into the plains, it rerel; perches on trees, preferring
the ground, for standing snd walking on which its toes and sliaight
daws are better adapted.
Biimboldt was assured UutttJie eggs, which are whlto, «nd thiM or
CONDBOLITE. IM
four inches in length, are depoaited on the bat^ rock without any
border of straw or other defence. The young ones are said to remain
with tho female during one ;ear. The nestlings have no feathers ;
their bodies for some months are covered with a very fine curling
whitish down or hair, something like that of young owls ; and they
ara BO puffed out by this envelope, that they look almost larger than
adults. At the age of two years the Condor is not yet black, but of
a ;e11owUh-brewn ; up to this time the female baa no appearance of
the white ruff {gollUa of the Spaniards), and it is owing to want of
observation on this change of plumage that man; naturalists and
travellera — nay, the inhabitants of Peru themselves — talk of two
species of Condor, the black and the brown (Condor nt^re ; Condor
pardo). Thus Lieutenant Haw, in the sequel to the passage above
quoted, b»;s, " There were two kinds of Condors ; one dark-brown,
tJie other white on ths bock, with half the upper aide of ths wings
next the back, and a white ring round the neck."
At Peru, Quito, and in the pravince of Popayne, Condors are taken
alive with the iaaao. To this end a cow or a hone is killed. Down
come the Condom, and ore permitted to gorge themselves. Then tha
Indians, with their lassoes, appear on the scene, and soon eaptura
them. When one of the birds finds itself hampered, it makes
incredible efforts to raise itself in the air, and succeeds, after vomiting
freely. The Spaniards call this sport * oorrsr Buitres,' and it is, next
to the bull-feBsta, ths great amusement of the country people. In
other countries it is said that poiaonous herba are placed in jlie belly
of the quadruped that serves as a bait, and then the Condon appear
OS if intoxicated after their meal.
The tenacity of life exhibited b; the Condor almost rivals the
endurance of the Qrisl; Bear. [BuB,] Humboldt relates that at
Riobomba he saw some Indians first strangle one with a lasso snd
hang it on a tree, pulling it fordbl; by the feet for some minutes.
The lasso was hardly removed when ths Condor arc«, and walked
about as if nothing extraordinary bad happened. At less ihan four
paces, three balls were then discharged from a pistol at it, all of which
entered its body, wounding it in the neck, chest, and abdomen : the
bird still kept its legs. Another ball broke its thigh, and brought it
to the ground ; but the wretched creature did not die till after on
interval of half an hour. Ulloa asserts that in the colder parts of
Peru the skin of the Condor is so closely covered with feathers, that
eight or ten balls may be heard to strike it without penetrating its
This celebrated vulture, Vvttur Gryphut of LinnEus, Gypayia
Orsfftu of Vieillot^ Sarcoramphvi OrypAtu of Dum&4!, is said to
possess a most exquisite sense of smelling. It may be doubted how-
ever whether, as in other vultures, Uke eye is not at lesst as great an
ossistantto thebirdin discovering its prey as ths nostrils ore. [Bird^]
Lieutenant Maw saw ths Condor s quiII used ss a pen in ths Cordillera
(Toulea).
malt).
The Zoological Society of London have now made thia bird, of
which such romantic ttJes were told and credited, familiar to the
whole population of the metropolis. It js a striking contrast to rise
from lie perusal of one of these marvellous stories, and look iX the
hving bird in tha Regent's Park.
CONDKODITK [U&cldrbitb.] .
Ill COKDURBITE.
CONDURRITE, a MiDenJ fouDd in Cornw»U. It U bq arMnato of
eopperof abrovnidi-bliuk or blue colour. It gives out, like tbe other
uttenatCB, as aUlaceouB odour vben heated on charcoal before the
blow-pipe.
CONDTLnilA, Illigor, a genuB of IcaectiToroua Mammalia,
founded on tbe Sorex crulolwi of Linneus. CuTier observea that
DesmarMt ma die Arrt who made the peculiar deutition of the genua
It haa the following chaiKoten : — Body thick, furr; ; muzile much
elongated, bordered with membranoui creata. diipoaed Btor-like round
the opeoing of the noatrilJi; ao ext«rDal auHclea; ejes eitremelf
Bmall 1 anterior feet abort, luge, with fire toes, fumiahed with robust
ciaits properfordigging ; poBteiioc feat sleoder, with five toes : length
of tail moderate.
lacieara, ~; caDinei, -^^ ; moUn, - — ==40.
Tnth of aw{«fura tHitaia (F. Cnrler).
Leason obHrrea that tbe generic name reata on an error made b;
La Faille, whobadrepreHntedthe radiated mole with knatt; Bwelliugs
on the tab ; but it ia generally received by aoologista. The genui i>
allied to the Uolea and to Scalopi.
The speciea an eatirelf confined to North America, as far as ii
known Rt prwent. Spedting of some Hpecimens of Candylura longi-
catuJola in the Muaeumof tbe Zoological Societ]', obtained from Mouse
Factory, Hudaon'a Bay, Sir John Richardson says, "They were not
accompanied by any occaunt of thejr habita, or notice of the eiact
locality where thw were kUled ; but, as the most aouthem fur posta
depeuding upon Hoose Fwctory are situated upon the tnrdere of Lake
Superior, it is probable that tbuy came from that quarter, Pennant's
specimen wss received from New York."
C. nuKTVum (Harlan), the Thick-Tailed Star-Kose. The follow-
ing is Sir John Rtcbardson's description of a specimen presented to
him by the unfortunate Mr. David Douglas, and which the latter bad
procured OD the banks of the Columbia River.
" Tbe head is remarkably Urge ; the body is thick and short, and
becomes narrower towards tbe toil, and the hind legs are consequently
nearer to each other than the fore onea. The nose is rather thick,
and projects beyond the month ; it ia naked towards its end, is
marked with a furrow above, and terminates in a flat surface, which
is aurroutided by IT cartilaginous processes, with two more anterior
ones situated above the DOstrila, and a pair of forked ones immediately
below the nostrils. The surfaces of those procaaaea are minutely
granulated. Some white whUkers spring fram the side of the nose,
and reach about half thg length of tbe head. There are others not so
long on' the upper end under lips. The fur on tbe bod; is very soft
and Sne, and has considerable lustre. It is longer than the fur of the
other two known species. Its colour on the dorsal aspect is dark
amber-brown, approaching to blackish-brown. On the belly it ia
pale livei^brown. Whan the fur ia blown aside, it exhibits a shining
bUckisb-gray colour towards its roots. It ia longer on tbe hind-head
and neck than on the belly. The tail is narrow at its origin, but it
suddenly swells to an inch and a half in circumference ; it then tapeia
gradually until it ecds in a fine point, formed by a pencil of hairs,
about half an inch long. It ia round, or very slightly compressed,
and ia covered with scales about as laive as those on the feet, and
with short, tapering, acute hairs, which do not conceal the scales.
The hairs covering the upper surface of the tail are nearly black ;
those beneath are of a browner hue. The eitremitias are shaped
almost precisely like those of the C lotigicatidata. Only the palms
and toee of the fore feet project beyond the body. The palina are
nearly circular, and are protected by a granulated skin like shagreen.
Tbe sides of the feet are furnished with long white hairs, wbisb curve
in over the palms. Tbe Eve toes are very short, equal to each other
in length, and, together with the book of the hands, are oovered with
hexagon^ scales. The fore claws are white, nearly atraight, broadly
linear, and acuta, convex above and flat beneath. The palms turn
obliquely outwaids, which causes the fourth claw to project out the
farthest ; but the third one measures as much, the second is shorter,
and the first and fifth are equal to each other, and a little shorter
than the rest. The hind feet are also turned obliquely outwards,
and are scaly, with a few interspersed hsira above, and granulated
underaeath. Tbe aides are narrow, and present a coospicuoua calloua
tubercle, poaterior to the origin of the inner toe. The hind legs are
very short, and are clothed with aoft brown hair, a tuft of which
curves over the heel There on no hairs on the sides of the bind
feet, like those which form a margin to the fore ones. The
toes are longer thm the fore ones, and are armed with mora sleodgr
C0N1D.S. l:i
claWB, which are white, ani-shsped, curved, and acuta. They have a
narrow groove towards their paints underneath. Length of the bead
and body i inches 3 lines ; of the bead, 1 inch 6 lines ; of the tail,
2 inchea 6 lines, including the pencil ol hairs at ite extremity,
S inches 3 lines ; naked part of the nose, exclusive of the awl-ihaped
processes, i\ lines," Ac. (' Fauna Boreoli-Ami
Thiek.Tsiled Btar.TCoM (Onityrsra maermra).
Dr. Oodman observes, that though the eztemsl ear in C criilata
ia destitute of auricle, it is very extensive, and is situated at a short
distance frem the shoulder, in the broad triangular fold of integu-
ment connecting the fore-arm and head.
Two or three other species are known.
COMESSI BABK is the produce of a plant belonging to the
natural order Ap^c^aaaf a native of the western const of Hindustan,
It is the WrigUia anttdyiaUtrUa, and is a valuable astringent.
COXPEHVACEjG, a nsma sometimes considered synonymous
with Alga. It is limited in aystematic botany to a section of Alga,
eoQoisting of simple tubular jointed species mbabiting fresh water.
CONFERVITES, species of FosmI Plants, probably of Uie Con-
fervaceoua Family, occurring in the chalk of Bomholm and the south
of England, in Uie Qreenaond of Maidstone, and Chalk-Marl of
Hamsey, (Mantetl)
CONOER-EEL, [Mubshids.]
CONQLOMERATB. This term is most usually applied by geolo-
gists to designate rocks more or lesa distinctly inclosing displaced
fragments of mineral mames which bad been consolidated at some
previous epoch, and subsequently broken up, removed frem their
original site, and placed in circumstances such as to permit of their
being re-aggregated, and more or lesa cemented together by interven-
ing smaller particlea Thus the old red conglomenitd on the borders
of tha Orampiana ia full of fragmeuts of the atill more ancient
schistose and gneisaic strata, worn by attrition in water, and reunited
into a solid rock by interposed reil sands. In some volcanic regions
the matariala thrown out by eruptions are re-aggregated into conglo-
merate, by the operation of water.
The coarser conglomerates are sometimes oaUed Pudding-Stone.
Conglomerates diSer in their nature, and vary in the siie of their
component parts sccordjng to the process by which they have been
brought into the form of congloraerate. Along the base of the
Maritime Alps the rivers, with few eiceptiona, are now forming con-
glomerate and ssnd, (Lyeirs • Geology.') Near Kico the mud,
pebbles, and portions of rock brought down by tho torrenta form
beda of shingle ; but the greater part are swept into the deep sea,
where they form strata of inclined conglomerate, about 1000 feet in
thickneas oud 7 or Smiles in length. Volcanic eruptions also tend
to the formation of conglomerate by uniting masses of rock together.
Conglomerates, as already observed, to whatever causes owing, are
characterised by being manifestly a congeries of ^agmenta of rock,
of various siieB, whi<£ have undergone the process of attrition, and
consequently have been formed by fragments of various rocks that
have been carried conudersble distancea. [Sheccia.] Many of these
conglomerates ore sometimes so well compsoted as to form a hard
rock, eapaUe of receiving a considerable degree of polish, as we
observe in two colossal fragments of hesds in the British Museum,
the faces of which are tolerably smoothed by Egyptian art, while
the broken paria exhibit a conglomerate consisting of irregulartjaed
rounded grains, and masses of qoartE and other recks. According aa
they consist of granite, qoartK, limestone, 4c., they are called
, granitic, quortsose, calcareous In building, the oonglomerBtes are
generally only employed for the coarser kinds of work, as foi rounds'
tjons and the abutments of bridges.
COHID.^, a family of Oaateropodoui JfoUwca, including tha
genera Cunni [CuHDs] and Plamtoma [SirHOMOBtoMaTA]. Thsy are
in CONIFERS
dunctcrised b; the ahell being iurenely oooical ; the aperture Inng
Mid DHTOw ; the outer lip DOtched at or near the auture ; operculum
minnta and lamellar. The aaimal ha* an oblong foot truacated in
front, with a coiupicuous pore in the middle. The head a produced,
and the tentacles are far aparL Tlie ejea are attached to the tea taclee.
The gitla an two. The lingual teeth are la purs, elongate, subulate,
or hastate.
Lamarcic reoords nine foujl apeciea of Cottida. Deehajee in hia
'Tablet' makea the nuuiber farty-oine (tertiary), one of which, C.Medi-
Itrraneut, he giiea ae both living aud foasil (terUar;), Mr. Q. B.
Sowerby ('Genera') aajs: — "Foaail oones are not unfrequeot; but
we believe that they occur only in the newer atrata, or thoee above
the chaU. such as the London Clay and Crag in Englaud, the Calcaire
Oroaaier in France, and the contemporaneous bads in other countrisa.
There are a few aeen in collections, Rlleil with a coarae dark-green
arenaoeouB subatance ; these belong to the Terraina Calcoreo- Trap-
pfienaof Brongniart Doubtfulcaatsoremetwithin the inferior Oolito,
according to Coiiylware and Phillips." The aama author gives a
figure of C. darmitot, a fowl from Barton, approaching very near to
a PUarotoma. Many ipeciea are found in the blue marla of the south
of France (M. Marcel de aorroa). M. de BuaCerot givn many from
Bordeaux aud Dai, Ac ; one of thetn, C. deprrdilm of Lamarck, as
analogous to the eiiHbing species at Owbyhee. Among the fo«il
■pedes from the western borders of the Red Sea, collected by Ur.
James Burton, named by Dr. J. E. Qray and Mr. Fretnbley, and com-
municated to Sir Charles Lyell by Mr. QreeDough, are twelve species
all living; hut neither C. MediUrraneut nor C. deperditut appears in
thelir"
Tannanlinhis List of British Fuaails records three species of i'^n
Omm in the latter fan
lama in the Crag and uinetoen In the London Chty, a
le species of
CONITER.1E, a natural order of Oymnoapermous EUogens (called
by Dr. Lindley Pinacea), consiating of resinous, mostly evergreen,
hard-lesved trees or shrubs, inhabiting all those parts of the world in
which arborescent plants can exist. Under this name are collected
the Tarious rscea of fir-tiees, pines, cedars, junipers, cypresses, aud
the like, which, however dissimilar they may at first sight appear,
correspond not only in their universally terobinlaceoiis sap, but in
the following poinU of organisation :— They all branch from numerous
buds, procenlmg from the side of a main stem. Their wood consists
of tubes of nearly equal diameter, oniong which there are here and
there fistular cavities which receive the resin that eiudes from the
wood. The sides of the woody tubes are marked by circular discs,
which when highly msgniSed appear as if coaaistiug uf a smaller
internal and a large external circle : the nature and use of these discs
■re unknown. The following out representa highly-mngnified sections
of s piece of deal A shows the nearly equal size of the woody tubes
when viewed tranaversely ; B is a perpendicular section with the discs
seen on the sides of the tubes.
The leaves ars articulated with the stem, and rery often are linear,
veinleas, and sharp-pointed ; but in some esses, as ^iiiburia adianti-
folia. Jig. 1, and Podotarjnu atplaiii/olia, fy. i, the leaves becomi
broad, and then they are filled with veins, which are all of the sami
nie, and branch by repeatedly forking ; a mode of veining knowi.
only in these plants and in ferns. The Bowers are collected in little
■caly cones ; males in one cone and females in another. The fenwjes
haVe no pvricarpial coverine, but consist of naked ovules, to which
fertilisation is communicated directlv from the pollen, without the
intarpositian of a style or stigma. When the fruit is ripe it consists
of a certain number of acales collected into a cone, and inclosing the
naked seeds in their axils. Sometimsa luch scales sie thin as in t
larch, or bard and long as in the pine, or even succulent as in t
juniper, whose berries, as they are named, are small cones with 11
culent consolidated scsles.
Satiahufia adiautifvlia- Podocarpvt aipttmiifbiia^
Lindley places this order between the Ci/cadacea and Taxacea.
There are SO genera aud above 100 species, which include trees and
ehruba of univeiaal importance to maokind. Oigantic in size, rapid
in growth, noble in aspect, robust in constitution, these trees form a
considerable proportion of woods and plantations in cultivated
countriea, and of forests where nature remains in temperste countries
in a aavage state. They are natives of Tarioyt parts of the world,
from the perpetual snows of arctic America to the hottest regions of
the Indian Archipelago. The principal part of the order is found in
temperate climates. In Europe, Siberia, China, and the temperate
parts of North America, the species are exceedingly abundant. The
timber of these trees is exceedingly valuable in commerce, and is
knownunderthenamesofDeal, Fir, Pine, aud Cedar. Their resuious
secretions are also well known by the names of Oil of Turpentine,
Burgundy Pitch, Canailian Balsam, kc. The common I^rch yields
Venetian Turpentine 1 Liquid SCorax is procured from a species of
Pine ; the branches of the Hemlock Spruce are used in making spnice
beer ; and the Savin, which is well known in medicine, is a species
CONlROSTREa, a family of Bi^d^ the third amongst Cuvier's
Pattera. Jt comprises those genera which have a strong bill, more or
less conical, and without notchea Cuvier says that t£ey live exclu-
sively upon seeds, in proportion as their bill is more or lees thick.
The CoairotlTa form one of Uie five tribes of tbe order Iniai>ra of
Mr. Vigors. [B1BD8.J
CONIUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Apiacea,
or UmbtU^/eric. It has an obsolete calyx ; petals obcordate, some-
what emarginate, with a very short iuBexed lobe. Fruit oompressed
at the side; ovata Half-fruits vrltb five prominent equal undulated
ridges, of which the lateral are on the border. Channels with many
striic, but no vittie. Biennials Root fusiform; stem taper^branched ;
leaves decompound ; botli involucres 3-G-loaved, the pextial one-halved.
Flowers whiu, aU fertile.
0. miKulalum, Hemlock, is found in waste places throughout
Europe, the east of Asia, and the cultivated parts of America. It
possesses highly narcotic and dangerous quslitiee, but is used medi<
cinally as a remedy in nervous affections. It has a white fusiform
biennial rout ; an erect branched bright-green spotted stem, fivm
five to ten feet high, on which are planted so many smooth finely cut
large fem-like leavo. When very healthy, and growing in a spot
where it is neither injured by sterma nor disfigured by dust, the
Hemlock is one of the moat nobk) of our wild plants. Its little
greenish white fiowers, arranged in umbels after the manner of its
order, have a minute involucre of severTiI leaves at the base ; and the
firtial umbels have also three or four short oval leaflets on one aide,
he fruit is globular, encfa half having five projecting angles, which
are slightly crcnelled, without either x-itto! or appendages or projec.
tions between them. It grows in wild places, sometimes by the
sides of ditches in meadows, but more frequently in light upland
pastures, flowering in June and July. It is almost the only wild
umbelliferous plant whose fiuit is destitute of vittai, aud consequently
It is necessary to pay the greatest attention to the botanical cha-
radera of Conntm maculatum, in order that the genaine plant may be
collected. Sometimes plants resembling it are collected, which ai«
almost or entiraly inert when employed as a medicine ; or plants
*1 of {greater potency ara iia*d in iU Bt««d, Trom which fatal offBotiiBlly allayed by coniuiii and IpecaouanluL From tlie Tery deoidiid
femltB h»vo followed. It is » " well-known ciromn«t«noB that the , aedatiTe sction of conia on the apbal Oord, Dr. Gordon hu suggested
greatest discrepancy prerula among medical men aa to the activity ' that it will prove a useful remedy in t«tauua and other spauuodio
of hemlock, not niBroly u a remedy hut. also aa a poison." Thie dia- "'
CT«piincy admits of satisfactory eiplan
even! graunds. The
activi^ of the pluit — even supposing the proper one to be colleoled-
depends greatly upon its plaoo of growth, the kind of sesMn, the
time when collected, and the meaoi employed to dry it or form it
a the temperature and dryness of the plaoa where
I on the length of time it has been k^t. In the
d wllh fmlt, nitanl site ; i, (he buk tI«w of ■
miit, mncli mi^iBcd-; 3, a IniuTcne hkUdu of tic rune, ahowing Ibe
rtdm, Ihe abKD« or tIIUb, ind the iniolnte albnnien.
south of Eompa it is much more energetic than in the aartb, owing
to the greater intensity of light ; even in the eonthem proTincei( of
France it is more powerful than in the northern. The wild plant,
growing in well-eiposed sitnations, is always to be preferred to a
cultivated one; the kind of season markedlj iaSuenoes its power,
which is greatest in a dry sunny season, and least in a wat gloomy
one. The leaves during the first year of growth possess little potency ;
nor do they possess much during the early period of the second, till
the flower-atem is developed, and the flowere are about to expand.
If this period, which is the fittest time for collecting the leaves, is
allowed to pass, it is better to wait two months longer, and oollect
the fruits instead, as they become the reoipient of the active principle.
The leaves should be dried quickly, but not by the application of a
high temperature ; they should never be powdered till the time when
it is intended to use them, but prsBcrred meanwhile in a cool dry
place. If an extract be formed which requires much care in the
preparation, it can rarely be kept beyond twelve months. A. fresh
supply of leaves, fruits, or extract, abauld consequently be procured
every year, and the farmer thrown away, as the action of time or heat
volatilises the active principle (Conia), and renders the residue nearly
inert. When these precautions are attended to, Hemlock is a medi-
cine of great power and unqueationable value.
The &eeh leaves are dark green, shining : odour strong, stapifying,
nnpleasant, resembling that of mice, or the urinous odour of fresh
Spanish Flies ; when dried the colour is lighter, a grayish green ; the
taste is disagreeably saline, nausBously bitter, and at last somewhat
said. The expressed juice is green.
According to LinnEeua, aheep eat the leaves, but horses, cows, and
goats refuse it. Say informs us that the thrush will feed upon the
seeds even when com is to be had. The first physician who endea-
voured to bring hemlock into repute as a medicine was Baron Stcerck
of Vienna, who announced that it exerted extraordinary efTecte on tbe
most inveterate chronic diiiordere in 1760. The whole plant is a viru-
lent poison, but varying much in atrength according to circumstances.
When taken in an over done it produces vertigo, dimness of sight,
nausea, and paralysis of the limbs. In small doees however it is found
very useful in scirrhus, scrofulous tumours, dropsy, epilepsy, and
as an anodyne. Dr. Pereira and Dr. Christison recommend an
alcoholic tincture of the bruised ripe fruit instead of the leaves.
In what way hemlock proves useful aa a remedial agent in many
diseases ia by no m^ana clear, unless it be by allaying irritabiUty in
the diseased parts, and giving an opportunity to the vital powers to
recover their beathful action. That it leesena irritability in many
diseased organs ia certain, from the eSsota of the adminidtratioa of
even a few dosea, especially in many cases of scrofulous aSectiona,
and above all from allaying tbe irritation of the lungs during the
fonnatioa of tubercles, and indeed during all the subsequent stagea of
consumption. Even when inhaled along with the vapour of wann
water the same good effect is said to follow, but this is rather doubtful.
Its beneficial influence over external ulcers is however open to oleerva-
tion ; and John Hunler remarked, that under the combined action of
conium and cinchona-bark, many obstinate buboes, which resisted
every other mode of trcAtment, aoon took on a healing process. Many
irritable or oainful ulcere are soothed and improved by a hemlock
poultice. RiieuniBtio pains, and those attending nodes, are said to be
Dr. Chriatiaon is of opinion that the Coniuta macvlalwn of the
present day is not the plant which furnished the poison employed to
dispatch Phocion and Socrates. Waller conHiders it to have been
Oinula viroia. [CoNlA, in Abm AND So, Dry.]
For farther partioulars with regard to tbo subject of this article
we refer to Dr. Christison's ' Memoir on the Poisonous Properties of
Hemlock and its Aloaloid, Conia." (' Traneaotiona of the Royal Soriaty
of Edinburgh,' voL xiiL)
CONNARACE^ a natnral order of tropicil Trees or Shrubs allied
to Anacardiaccie and Legami-naice, It coutaitis 5 genera and about 40
apeciea. The leaves ara compound, not dotted, alternate, witiout
stipules. The flowere terminal and axillary, in racemes or panicles,
with bracts. Calyx 5-parted, regular, pereistant ; [estivation either
imbricated or valvular. Petals 6, inserted on the calyx, imbricated,
rarely valvate in eestivation. Stamens twice the number of petals,
hypogynooB, those opposite the petals shorter than the others;
filaments usually monadelphaua. Carpels solitary or several, each
with a separata style and stigma. Ovidee 2, collateral, orthotropal.
II isd >(]'1m; 3, a
ascending; s^les terminal; stigmas usually dilated. Fruit dehiscent,
fotlioular, splitting lengthwise internally. Seeds erect, in pairs or
solitary, vritJi or without albumen, often with an aril ; radicle superior,
at the extremity opposite the hilum ; cotyledons thick in the speeies
without albumen, foliaoeous in those with albumen. Brown says the
genua can be distinguished from Leguminous plants by the relation
which parts of its embryo bear to the umbihcus of the seed ; that is
to say, by tbe radicle being at the extremity moat remote trmn the
hilum. From AnacardiactiE and othen they ara at once known by
their total want of reainous juice and their orthotropal ovules.
The species are all tropical ; most common in America. The beautiful
ESbra-wood now so much nsed by cabinet-makers is ascertained to be
produced by Omph/Uobiitm Lamherti, a large Guyana tree of this
CONNOCHETES. [Antiixipejs.]
CONNOR, a Fish belonging to tbefamilyZo&rtdiT. [CRKHILLBftDB.]
CONO'CEKAS, a genus of Cephi^opoda, fossil on Lake Huron.
Bronn founds the characters of it on the form of the aepta, which are
convex towards the base of the cone.
CONOELIX,CONCELIX,orCO»JOHELIX,agenuaofTurUil«ted
Malliuea, eatabliahed by Mr. Swainaon for a group which, ia his
m coNOPa
npinioii, "fonn k beaatifull; deBaed link connecting the Cones iriUi
the Volutes, atrtcUj so tenned." It bu the following generic chir
neter; — ^"Shell caniTorm. Spin tctj ahart Outsr lip ■imple.
Columella or pillu- pluted. Apertun linear, dutdw, longer thin
the apin^ Generic tjpe, Conalix Uiualut." (Swunson.)
Hr.SmiaKin ('Zoological Illoitrstions') figures three species, and
nwntions Uut sererKl specimens are in the Bsnluian oollection from
Um Pd«w Iilsnds. To one of th«e species in thst ooUeetJoD, Tnheite,
nsosUr called Otaheit«, is giren as b locality. Hr. Cumitig brought
home another species, 0. Virgo, which Mr, Swainson considers as
rcpresgiting CtHia Virfo, &om the reefs at the island of Bietea. It
was in shsllow water.
C. liKodu. '• Shell smooth, whitjsh, with truasYerae oapillarr
(qItous linea. Bpire depressed, the spei prominent. PilLirsii-plsited.
Inhabits the South Seas (T)." (Swainson.) The figures, which are of
tlie Dstoral tii^ are oopied fivm the accurate drawing in the ' Zoological
niuatratiooi.' All the other known species are compsntiTelf small
DeHainTilla dirides the genus Milra into Sts sections, and makes
bis fifth oonaiiit ot Imbricaria, Sebum., and Caindix, Sow,, meaning
SuworUy ; bat the genus is Swainson's, and is generally adopted.
COMOPS, a genus of Inseeta belonging to the order Diplera and
tlia (ainily Concpida. The family Conopida is thus chsncterised : —
Proboecis distinct, last joints of ontenns forming a short style.
Wings perfect. Cubital vein simple ; brachial veius without spurious
vein ; uillary lobe rounded. H^teres uncovered.
The genus Conopt has tbe following characters : — Body of middle
size, nUher slender, generally adorned with yellow or red bands-
Head thick, TCaiculose, the crown especially, with a transTerse ved-
eulsr tabercle ; front brood in both seiea. Eyes prominent, oblong ;
ocelli none. Proboscis long, porrect, stiff, cloTste, horizontal, or
somewhat nused rnto a curve, geniculate at the base, arched above,
hollow beneath, obliquely notched at tbe tip, much shorter than the
labium. Lingua slender, filiform, transparent. Pslpi untarticulate,
short, Tery small, fringed itt tbe tips with fine bristles. La,bium
obliquely porrect, cylindrical, twice the length of the lingua, narrower
towards the tip, most slender in the mide, bilobed, slightly hairy,
and with three shallow transverse furrows at tbe tip. Antennn
about as long ss the head, porrect, seated on a tubercle, approximate
at the base, diverging thence ; first joint short, cyliadrit^, pubescent,
forming on angle with the second; seoond long, Bub-clavate; third
conical, shorter than the second ; fourth very short ; fifth and aiztb
liuger, widened on one side; siith and seventh like a little spine.
Thorax almost quadrate, slightly convei above, with a scapula on
each aide ; scutellum small, semicircular. Wings lanceolate, finely
pubescent incumbent, and parallel in repose, prwbrachial vein united
with the cubital tovsrds the tip; proahrachial and discal sreolete
long, Che latter closed near the posten or margin l)y a tnnsTeiH vein;
onol areolet long, distinct, complete. Abdomen arched, rather long,
jrilh six segments more or less slender towards the base, obclavate
towards tiie tip, which is incurved. Legs rather stout; tibial very
slightly curved, compressed and dilated at the tips, in some cases
with a tnnsveras auture ; tani rather broa^; ungues and onychia
distinct,
Male, — Abdomen with a ptojecting oonic^ proeeas on the fourth
CONUS.
ita
"s;
lese flie* frequent flowers ; their larm are paraaitio on those of
are twenty spedes of this insect in the ool-
<um, of these not more than three are found
; been caught in ths south of Fnnce, Korth
il genus of MoBtuta, generally ranked witli
Dame for jScAvtwdi, to which also the term
laleropodou* ifoSusca, founded byLinDDBUB.
eery much compressed and involved, with a
loted by a proboBcts capable of mnch eiten-
^e rather short, but projeotjng, and armed
rth ; tentscula cylindncol, carrying the eyes
al, elongated, wider before than it ia behind,
)r channel ; mantle scanty, narrow, forming
Shell thick, solid, rolled ap aa it were in a conical form ; epidermis
membranous, sometimes very thick ; spire of different degrees of
elevation, sometimes almost flat ; aperture long and very narrow,
widening a little anteriorly; lipa generally straight and parallel, the
outer lip simple and sbartHedged, sometimes a little curved, the iimer
lip without any plaits on the columella, but with a few elevated strin
on its anterior termination. Operculum homyj very small, subspiral,
vrith a terminal summit, placed obliquely on the bock part of tbe
foot^ and, when compared with the length of the aperture, appearing
like a rudiment.
The apecies ore found in southern and tropical sess. The form
becomes gradually less developed as Ihe locality appioachn tbe north.
In the Mediterranean there are a few species, but none appear to have
been detected in the northern seas. They are camiToroue, and found
on sandy mud at depths vaiying from near the sur&oe of the sea to
seventeen fathoma.
Tbe species are very nomerooB. Lamarck raoorda 181 recent ; and
aerersl of these include Tarieties. The following obeerrations of
Hr, Broderip in bis introduction to the description of some new spedes
in the Gumingian collection may be of use to the student After
pointing out the difficulty of tbe task arising from the infinite varieties
presented by the genus, and the very few pointa of form and s^iicturs
in the shell that con be relied on as the foundation of speciSc cho-
them may bo w
cat! examine an extensive coiiecuon 01 v;anea, particujo;
many individuala of each species, for the purpoea < . ^ ,
without being struck by tbe force of tbe observation. Colonr, granu-
lation, or smoothness, length or shortness of the spire, its plunness
or coronation, will be found m many apecies the result of locality,
food, or temperature." H. Ducloe, in reference to tJie numbers given
by Lamarck, states that he is convinced that there are many of the
Bpefies which can only be regarded as varieties at most. About
269 recent species and 80 fossil epeciea have heen described up to the
present time,
Uony of these species and nrieties are very beautiful, both in shape
and colour, and the genus baa always been highly volaed by collectora.
Oonui gliiria-marii, C. etdo-nnlti, C. Dmaicitf, C. aurisiociM, C. amntir-
ajti, and some others, have brought very large prices, and aom* of the
finest specimens of these shells are now m this country.
Lamarck separates thegenus into two diviaiona : the first compriaidg
thoae apeciea wbose apire ia coronated; and the second thoee whose
spire is simple. By far the greater proportion of apedea belong to the
Utter division.
De Blainville thna divides the genu ; —
(Oeaua Rhombiu, De Uontfort)
Conical SDedes with a coronated spir^ which is either projecting
or flattened. (Example, 0. imperialii).
(Qenus Ct/linder, De Hontfort.)
Species a littie elongated, suboval ; the spire projecting and
pointed, but not coronated. (Example, C. ttxitle.)
■J.)
(Genua Htrma, De Montfort)
Elongated, cylindrical apedea with a projecting spire, and the
aperture as in the genus TrrsicUum, that ia, angular posteriorly.
(Examples, C. Nwuatelia and C. nu/nUiu,)
Mr. G. a Sowarby ('Genera of Recent and Fosdl Shells') observes
that the Cones are Uabte to be confounded with the PUaroloiaata, and
the young spedmena of some Slron^i ; and tbosa which are rathei
Animal or Oomu iaiiitina,
a. Been [d proSle ; i, iliw of UDdrr ilde ; c, DpennilDni,
ventricosa with young Ogfraa ; but that they may be disliDgiiiahed
from tbe Plevrolowita by their short spire, their linear apei'ture, and
their straight columella; troai the young Strombi, by .their being
I»
CONVALtABITES.
entirely destitute of TBrioote suturea, *iid by tbeir never haTJog; any
■ppeanuice of a notsh neu the lower axtremit; of the outer lip ; the
young &rombi moreoTer an Mldoin, if ever, so regularly ooniod;
and from the young Cypraa by the thickneH of their ahell, by the
coroiuted or abrupt ipire, and b; their not being naturally polubed
in every pari, whioh the Ci/praa alnnya nra, in cooKqueDce of the
want of epidermia which covers the shell of the Cone, while in the
Ol^raa the Urge mantle Oomee in oontaotwith the whole of the ahalL
Shell at OnuupifunLM).
CONVALLABIT^, a genua of IJliaceans <t} Plants foadl m the
Ilsd-3and>tone of Sulibad. (Brongniart.)
CONVOLVnLA'CEl<S,aiiatural Older of Hanopetalooa Exogenous
Plants, with bell-ahapad flowers, opening or contracting beneath the
inBaence of light, a plaited natiTation of the coroUo, 5 gtameni, and a
fruit with 2 or 3 celle, in which 1 or 2 OTulea itand erect The
embryo is crumpled up in the midst of very firm albumen. - The
common Bind- Weeds of the hedges, the Ipomaa and Oonvolvuii of the
Gardens, offer illnstrstiona of the ordinary state of Utis order, the
s^ieedes of which have purgative roots ; and in the case of scammony,
yielded by Contolvulfu Scammonia, and of jalap, produced by various
spedee of Ipouioa [IroWEA], are of great medictnol importance.
OcGasionally the purgative principle is so much diffused among Uis
fieculii of the root as to be almost inappreciable, as is the case in the
Cowtoirtiiiu Balaiai, or Sweet Potato of America, which was the
fororunner of the common potato, and gave it its name, and which is
still cultivated in the south of Spain and France. [BiTaias.]
of this natural order ai
it ia immediately recognised ; but oecasioiiaUy they ai
B spiny, and when that happens it is n '
CONTZA. IM
know the order. If however attention is paid to the -fery imbricated
state of the calyx, two of the sepals beine^uite exterior with respect
to the other three, no real difficulty in id^tifying it need be experi-
enced. For illustration we have taken a singular East Indian genus
called (Veuroprfris, in which the flowers grow from the niidrib ot the
bractesl leavea
The BpedsB are abundant in all porta of the tropics, but rsre in
cold elimates where only a few are found. In the ooldest elimataa
they are unknown. The roots abound in a milky juice, which ia
■tronglr purgative : this property dependa on a peculiar resin
which u the active principle of jatap, scammony, and oUien of like
nature. There aie 43 genera and above SOO i^tedes. The order.
Dr. Lindl^, is allied to Solanaeea, Boroffiaacta, and
COMVOLYULnS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural
order ConvolwiiKta, The spades are chiefly herbs or herbflhruba,
The genus ia known by the style being divided into 2 linear arma
and its ovaiy having 2 cells in which stand 2 erect ovul&s. There
are aboTS ISO species of this genus, They ore commonly known by
the name of Biod-Weeds,
C. Scammonia, Scamtaony Bind-Weed, is a native of Syria, Cappa-
docio, and of the island of Rhodca, in hedges. It has large campanu-
late cream-coloured or very pale red corollas. The roota, whii^ ara
very long and thick, when freah contain a milky juice. Thia ia
obtained Dy removing the earth from the npper part of the rootj^ and
cutting off the tops obliquely. The milky juice which flows out is
oollected in a vessel in the earth at the lower end of the cut. Sach
root fumishes a few drachms, and the produce of several roota is
added together, and then dried in the sun. This is the true and una-
dulterated Seammony. It is lights of a dorkgray colour, and becomes
of a whitish-yellow when touched with the wet finger. It seldom
reaches us in a pure stato, but is commonly mixed with the eiprened
juice of the root, and often with Sour, sand, or earth. The best comes
from Aleppo, and a second quality from Smyrna. Scommony Is
an eiDoaoioiu and powerful purgative. [Scamuost, in Abts and
8o.DtT.]
C. dPKDsis has angularatriated atoms; leaves sagittate, somewhat auri-
eledjpeduncleausuaUyl'Bowered; sepals ovate, roundish; corolla whita
or rose-colour. It ia native throughout Europe in sandy fields and by
road-sidee ; also in China, Persia, and some parts of Indis. It [s very
common in Oreat Britain, lliis species is said to possess a purgative
quality, oa also C. SoidantUa, C. laaritianu, and O, tnacncarpvt,
C. pmdvn^uM abounds in prussic add, and ia one of the plants from
which the liqueur Noyau is prepared.
C. abmoida is a nstivs of the South of Europe North of Africa,
and Levant, climbing ammg bushes. It hoe stems branched from the
bottom, cliinbing or spreading, taper and leafy ; the conilta about two
inches long, and of a beautiful rose^nlour. According to M. Loiseleur
Dealongchamps the roots contain a purgative resin, ^ch is given in
doses from 16 to 24 grains.
C. SoldantUa and C. SQnun are now referred to the genua Calytt^ia
by Robert Brown. [Calibtbou.] Several of the apeciet are nativea
of Qreat Britain. Many grow well in our gardens, and form handsome
and showy flowsrs.
COMY'ZA, a genus of Plants belonging to ths natural order Ctm-
pcrila, to the sub-order TiibulijUnr, Uie tribe Eupaloriaaa, the sub-
tribe £aechan<Ua, the division Cimyua, and the lub-diviidon Enco-
ngita. It has an herbaooooa imbricate involucre, the flowen of l^s
ray tubular, 3-toothed, pistiliferous, those of the diso tubular, 6-
toothed, hermaphrodite ; the anthers caudate, the achenium beakless,
the pappus pilose, the receptacle naked. The species are herbs and
shrubs, and are found in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America.
C. iquamoia, Fleabane, Ploughman's Spikenard, has the scalea of
the involucre Ul linear, theleavesoTal«-lanceol«le,downy,denticulBte,
the lower leaves narrowed into a footstalk, the florets of the ray sub-
ligulate, the fruit terete. This is a common plant on calcareous soila
in Great Britain and throughout Europe. It possesses a volatile oil
with a peculiar scent, and is used for the purpoae of driving away
fleas and gnala. It seems to have had this reputation from an early
period, as ita names in most languages have reference to this quali^.
Ila I«tin name is PidUana: French, Herbea sui Puces ; English,
Fleabane. Thia species has been referred bj De Condolle, in his
' Prodivmus,' who is followed by Babington, m his ' Manual,' to the
genus Inla, under the name of I. Conynt.
O. anlkdmiatKa has ovate or oval-oblong leaves, acuminate at both
ends, coarsely serrated, and downy ; the heads corymbose, each con-
taining 40-SO florets ; the scalea of the involucre Uncsotat«, linear,
acute, the outer somewhat spreadiog. le<ifly, and obovale-linear. It is
a oommon plant among rubbish and in dry uncultivated ground in
the Ejist Indies. It is the Vsnumi'a anihrlmmiiea of Willdenow,
The fruit is used by the doctors of Indio as a powerful remedy for
C, gtnitUUoida has very small leaves reduced to sharpish somewhat
temate acnlea ; 1-2 heads in interrupted spikca, the involucre turbinate,
with the acsles all acuminata. This plint U a native of Peru and
Braiil. It is the Baeeharit goiitUitoida of PerM>on, the Molina
rcHcidaia of Lcwlng. It contains a bitter ettrootiva matter aikd an
nromutiii oil, and ia not unlike in Ha medioiual ehomcters the oommoa
wormwood, tt ia em;dojeiI in the Bmzila id inUnnittent fimn, and
nuiy be u»«d in tH tho» ciiBe« where the Artamiiisi U indicated. It
is puticuliirif beoeficiftl in the chronio dieenHfl of horees, which are
ver; fond of this plant Itmty be employed in the form of an eitract
C. Harglandica hoe seuite, broad -lanceolate, acute, aemited leaves ;
the corTmbe tenninal nud fastiginta. It is a natiTe of North America,
■nd eeorot«a a powerful volatile oil, which givea out the odour of
oimphor. This property is also poaatieeed by C, eamphorata.
(Loudon, Encyclopadiaof Planti; Koch, Ptara GermatUa; Lindley,
Flora Medico.)
COOKIA, n gonui of Plnnta belongiig to the naturd order
Auraaliacta. The epeciee are emull trees with impari-pinnate leaTea;
Icnfleta nlteniate, uoequal at the b.-ise, or oblique.
C. punctata ia a native of China and tlie Molucoaa ; it hu ovate
Injioeolftto leaflets, acuminated, hardly unequal at the base. It is a
ini<1dle'Bized tree bearing eatable fruit about the aJES of a pigeon's egg,
yellow OD the outside, the pulp white, rather acrid, but sweet. Thu
fruit is esteemed as an article of diet in China and the ladian Archi-
P'liigo, and is tnown by the name of Wiimpee. There are two or
three other species, natives of the Kaat, all known as Wampee Trees.
COOT. [RaLLiD*.]
COPAI'FERA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Fahacea or Lrgviminota, sometimes placed in the Aiayridacea. It has
a 4-parted oalyi, eegraents diverging, the lowest the narrowest.
Curolla wanting; stamens 10, declinate. Ovary roundish, com-
pnsBcd, with 2 ovules. Fruit pedicelUte, oblique, obovate, 2-valved,
1-aceded ; seed inclosod in a l-sided aril. The species are trees or
xhnibe, inhnbiting tropical America. Their trunks yield balsam by
inoirioQ. The leaves are alternate, pinnntetl equally or unequally;
leaBeta opposite or alternate, either dotted or not. The flowers
are arranged in compound aiillary and terminal spikes.
C. Jacqaini, the C. officinatii of Jacquin, is a nntive of the West
Indies. The leaves are gcnciTkllv equally pinnated ; leaflets in 2-5
pairs, incurved, ovate, uncquu-aided, obtusely noumtnato, with
pellucid dots. From this species is obtnined the Copniva Balsam
of the West Indies, which is used in medicine. [Cofaiva, in Arts
ASD 8c. Div.]
Oipaififa JaequifiL
C.nvl/ijuga has equally-pinnated leaves; leaflets O-IO pairs, some-
what incurred, unequal-sided, with a long tapering point and pellucid
dote, the lower ovate-oblong, the upjior lanceolate. This is said to
yield the Copaiva exported from Para.
C. Langtdorfli grows in the province of 3. Paulo In Brazil. It has
leafiets in 3-S pairs, equal-sided, obtuse, with pellucid dots ; the lower
ovate, the upper elliptical : the petioles and peduncles slightly
The Copaiva H*'""" of Braiil is fumiahed bj this and the next
■pedes.
C. earUKta is also a native of S. Paalo in Brazil. It has leaflets ia
S-3 pairs, elliptical, equal-aided, cmarginate, not dotted ; petioles and
peduncles nearly smooth. The Balsam of Copaiva, an acrid bitter
IS liquid resin, is apparently furnished by all iba species of this
applied indiscrimiDately to many diBTeient apecit
The ParpleHeart, a Ouyana tree yielding timber of great toughneos,
which is very valuable for resisting the shock of artillery-discbarges,
sod is therefore employed for making niortnr-lwds, ia the C. jminfivra
COPPER in
and hntdeata. The balsam is said to gush out of tlie heart of these
trees in largo quantitiee when wounded.
COPAL, a resin poasoesed of peculiar properties, the prodace of
the SJtiu copaUinumj a n.itiTe of Mexico ; it is in rounded masses,
■mootli and brittle, tronapareat or nearly ao, without oolour or having
a slight tinge of yellow; it has but little taste, and is nsarif
inodorous ; it is Insoluble in water, fusible, and inflammable. It
differs from most other resins in its very sparing solubility in slcohol ;
and of the little that dissolves with the assistance of heat the greater
part is deposited as the solution cools. It ia dlasolvcd by ether and
A aubstauce resembling Copal is also found mineral, which is called
Foail Copal. It ia however insoluble in alcohol.
CO'PHINUS, a fossil genua whoaaafEuiticB are uncertain. (Uun^
'Sil. Syet.' pL 26, f. 12.)
COPPER, one of the motals, occura native in conaideruble quantiUea ;
also combined with oxygen, sulphur, selenium, and various acida The
ores of copper voir in apeciGc gravity from 3'5 to 8'S, audaeldom exceed
i in hardnesa. Many of the ores give to borax a gnten colour in the
outer flame, and an opaque dull red in the inner. With carbonate of
aoda on charcoal, nearly al! the orea are reduced, and a globule of
copper obtained ; borax and tinfoil are required in some cases, where
a combination with other metals oonceala the copper. When soluble
in the acids, a clean plate of iron inaerted in the aolution become*
covered wiUi copper, and ammonia produces a blue solution.
NlTlvi CoFPiB. — Uonometric In octahedrons; no cleavage appa-
rent. Oflen in plates or masses, or arborescent and filiform shape*.
Colour copper-red. Ductile and malleable. Hardness, 2'5 to 8. Specific
gravity, 8-68.
Native copper oflen contains a little silver disseminated throu^out
it. Before the blow-pipe it fuses readily, and on cooling it ia oovared
with a black oxide. It dlsnlvea in nitric acid, and produces a Uu9
aolution with ammonia.
Native copper accompanies the ores of copper, and usuallj occurs
in the vicinity of dykes of igneotu rocks. Siberia, Brwdl, and Corn-
wall, are noted for the copper they have produoed. A. mass, supposed
to be from Bahia, now at Lisbon, weighs 2616 lbs. The vidnity of
Lake Superior ia one of the moat extnordinary regions in the world
fur ita native copper, whero it occurs moatly in vertical seams in timp,
and alao in the inclosing sandstone. A mass weighing 3TIH lbs. haa
been taken from thence to Washington dty. One large mass weigh-
ing 80 tons was quarried out in the same district. It was GO feet
long, 6 feet deep, and averaged 6 inches in thicknesa This copper
rontJuns intimately mixed with it about 3-lOths per cent, of silver.
Besidea this, perfectly pure silver in strings, masses, and grains is
ofteu dieseminated through the copper ; and aome masses when
polished appear aprinklcd with large white spots of silver. Crystals
of native copper are also found penetrating magses of prehnita and
onolcime in the trap rock. This mixture of copper and silver cannot
be imitated by art, aa the two metals form an alloy when melted
together. It is probable that the separation in the rocks is due to
the cooling from fusion being so extremely gradual as to allow the
two metals to solidify separately at their respective temperatures of
Bolidiflcation ; the trsp being an igneoua rock, and ages often elapsing,
as is well known, during the cooling of a bed of lava covered from
the air. Small specimena of native copper have been found in various
parts of the Unitnl States. It occura also in Australia.
FUrtotu Copptr Ore. — Trimetric Cleavage parallel to the faces of
a right rbombio piiam, but indistinct. Secondary forms, variously
modified rhombic prisms. It occurs also in compound crystals like
aiTSgonite ; often massive. Colour and streak hinckiah lead-gray,
often tamishod, blue or green, streak sometimes shining. BardnesB,
26 to 3. Specific gravity, iS to C*S. Compoaition : —
Sulphur 20-8
Copper 77-2
Bcforo the blow-pipe it gives off fumes of sulphur, fuses easily in the
external flame, and boils. After the sulphur is driven off a globule of
copper remains. Dissolves in heated nitric acid, with a precipitation
of the Bulphur, The vitreous copper ore resembles vitreous silver
ore ; but the lustre of a surface of fracture is lees brilliant, and they
aSbrd different results before the blow-pipe. The solution made bj
putting a piece of the ore in nitric acid covers an iron-plate or knife-
blade with copper, while a similar solution of the silver ore ooven a
copper-plate with rilver.
This ore occurs with other copper ores in beds end veina. In Corn-
wall splendid orjatollisations occur. Siberia, Heaao, Saxony, the
Bannat, Chili, and the United States, also afford it.
Capper Pyrita — Sulphuret of Copper and Iron. Dlmetrio. Crys-
tola tetroliedrsl or octahedral, sometimes compound. Clsavsge
indistinct It occurs also massive and of various shapes. Colour
bian-yellow, often tamiahed deep yellow, and also iridesosntj
atreak unmetallic, greenish-bhuk, and but little shining. Hardneas,
8S to i. Specific gravity, *-16 to *-17. Compoaition ;—
Sulphur SB'S
Copper ... ... SSI
Iron . . . . 81-B
133
COPPEtt.
COPPER.
134
It fusea before the blow-pipe to a globule, which is mugnetic, owing to
the iron present. Gives sulphur-fumes on charcoal; with borax
affords pure copper. The usual effect with nitric acid.
This ore resembles native gold and also iron pyrites. It is dis-
tinguished from gold by crumbling when it is attempted to cut it,
instead of separating in slices ; and from iron pyrites in its deeper
yellow colour, and in yielding easily to the point of a knife, instead
of striking fire with a steeL
Copper pyrites occurs in veins in granite and allied rocks; also in
grauwacke, &c. It is usually associated with iron pyrites, and often
with galena, blende, and carbonates of copper. The copper of Fahlun,
Sweden, is obtained mostly from this ore, where it occurs with serpen-
tine in gneiss. Other mines of this ore are in the Harz, near Goslar,
in the Bannat, Hungary, Thuringia, &c. The Coinwall ore is mostly
of this kind, and 10,000 to 12,000 tons of pure copper are smelted
annually. There is much of this ore found in the United States.
Besides being mined for copper, this ore is used extensively in the
manufacture of blue vitriol (sulphate of copper) in the same manner
that sulphate of iron (copperas) is obtained from iron pyrites.
Vari^foied Copper Pyn'/eiL^Monometric. Cleavage ootahedral,
in traces. Occurs in cubes and octahedrons ; also massive. Colour
between oopper-red and pinchbeck-brown ; tarnishes rapidly on expo-
sure ; streak pale grayish-black, and but slightly shining. Brittle.
Hardness, 8. Specific Qravity, 6. Composition : —
Sulphur 25*7
Copper 62*8
Iron 11»6
It fuses before the blow-pipe to a globule, attiTictable by the magnet.
On charcoal affords fumes of sulphur. Mostly dissolved in nitric acid.
This ore is distinguished from tne preceding by its pale reddixh-yellow
colour. It occurs with other copper ores in granitic and allied rocks,
and also in secondary formations. The mines of Cornwall have
afforded crystallised specimens, and it is there called from its colour
Horseflesh Ore. Other localities of massive varieties are — Ross
Island, Killamey, Norway, Hesse, Silesia, Siberia, and the Bannat.
Fine crystallisations occur in some of the United States.
Gray Copper Ore, — ^Honometric. Occurs in modified tetrahedrons,
and also in compound crystals. Cleavage octahedral, in traces.
Colour between steel-gray and iron-black; streak nearly as the
colour. Rather brittle. Hardness, 8 to 4. Specific Gravity,
4*75 to 5.1. Composition : —
Sulphur 26*3
Copper 88*6
Antimony 16*5
Aisenic ....... 7*2
together with some iron, sine, and silver, amounting to 15 per cent.
It sometimes contains 80 per cent, of diver, in place of part of the
copper, and is then called Argentiferow Cray Copper Ore, or Silver
FakUrz. The amount of arsenic varies from 0 to 10 per cent One
variety from Spain included 10 i>er cent, of platinum, and another
from Hohenstein some gold ; another from Tuscany ^*7 per cent, of
mercury. These varieties give off before the blow-pipe fumes of
arsenic and antimonv, and after roasting yield a globiUe of copper.
It dissolves, when pulverised, in nitric add, affording a brownish-green
solution. Its copper-reactions before the blow-pipe, and in solution
in nitrio acid, distinguish it from the gray silver ores. The Cornish
mines, Andieasberg in the Harz, Kremnits in Hungary, Freiberg in
Saxony, Kapnik in Transylvania, and Dillenberg in Nassau, afford
fine crystallisations of this ore. It is a conmion ore in the Chilian
mines, and is worked there and elsewhere for copper, and often also
for silTer.
Bed Copper Ore. — Monometric. In reg^ular octahedrons, and modi-
fied forms of the same. Cleavage octahedral. Also massive, and
sometimes earthy. Colour deep red, of various shades; streak
brownish-red. Lustre adamantine, or sub-metallio; also earthy,
sub-transparent to nearly opaque. Brittle. Hardness, 8*5 to 4.
Specific Gravity, 6. Composition : —
Copper 88*88
Oxygen 12
Before the blow-pipe on charcoal it yields a globule of copper.
It dissolves in nitnc acid. The earthy varieties have been called TiU
Ore, from the colour. From cinnabar it differs in not being volatile
before the blow-pipe, and from red iron ore in yielding a bead of
copper on charcoal, and copper-reactions. It occurs with other
copper ores in the Bsnnat, Thuringia, Cornwall, at Chessy, near Lyon ;
in Siberia, and Brazil ; also in the United States. The octahedrons
are often green, forming a coating of malachite.
Black Copper, TenoriU, — ^An oxide of copper occurring as a black
powder and in dull black masses and botryoidul conci^etions, in veins
or along witlk other copper ores. From Cornwall, and also the Yesu-
viau lavas. It is an abundant ore in some of the copper mines of the
Mississippi Valley, and yields 60 to 70 per cent of copper. The
oxides of copper are ensily smelted by heating with the aid of
charcoal alone. They may be converted directly into sulphate
or blue vitriol by means of sulphuric acid, but are more
valuable for the copper they afford.
Blue Vilriol, Sulphate of Copper, C7oj)p«r<M.— Triclinate, In oblique
rhomboidol prisms ; also as an efflorescence or incrustation. Colour
deep sky-blue; streak uncoloured. Sub-transparent to translucent.
Lustre vitreous. Soluble. Taste nauseous and metallic. Hardness,
2 to 2*5. Specific Gravity, 2*21. Composition :—
Sulphuric Acid
Oxide of Copper
Water
81*7
821
86.2
A polished plate of iron in a solution becomes covered with copper.
It occurs with the sulphurets of copper as a result of their decompo-
sition, and is often in solution in tlio waters flowiug from copper
mines. Occurs in the Harz, at Fablun iu Sweden, and in many
other copper regions.
Blue Vitriol is much used in dyeing opcrati(Hi8, and in the printing
of cotton and linen ; also for vai'ious other purposes in the arts. It
has been employed to prevent dry rot by steeping wood in its solu-
tion, and is a powerfiJ preservative of auimal substances ; when
imbued with it and dried they remain uunltered. It is afforded by
the decomposition of copper pyrites, iu the same manner as greeu
vitriol from iron pyrites: It is manufactured for the arts from old
copper sheathing, copper turnings, and copper refinery scales. The
scales are readily dissolved in dilute sulphuric acid at the temperature
of ebullition ; the solution obtained is evaporated to the point where
crystallisation will take place on cooling. Metallic copper is exposed
in hot rooms to the atmosphere after it has been wotted in weak
sulphuric acid. By alternate wetting and exposure it is rapidly
corroded, and affords a solution which is evaporated for crystals.
400,000 lbs. is the annual consumption of blue vitriol in the United
States. In some mines the solution of sulphate of copper is so
abtmdant as to afford considerable copper, which is obtained by im-
mersing clean iron in it. It is called Copper of Cementation. At the
copper springs of Wicklow, Ireland, about 500 tons of iron wei« laid
at one time in the pits: in about twelve months the bars were
dissolved, and every ton of iron yielded a ton and a half, and some-
times nearly two tons, of a precipitated reddish mud, each ton of
which produced 16cwt. of pure copper. The Rio Tinto mine, in
Spain, is another instance of working the sulphate iu solution. These
waters yield annually 1800 owt. of copper, and consume 2400 cwt. of
iron.
Qrten Malachite. Green Carbonate of Coppa\ — ^Monoclinate. Usual in
incrustations, with a smooth tuberose botryoidal or stalactitic surface.
Structure finely and firmly fibrous ; also earthy. Colour light green ;
streak paler. Usually nearly opaque. Crystals translucent Lustro
of ciystals adamantine, inclining to vitreous; but fibrous incrustations
silky, on a cross fracture. Earthy varieties dulL Hardness, 3*5 to 4.
Specific Gravity, 4. Composition : —
Carbonic Acid 18
Oxide of Copper . . ... 70*5
Water lis
Dissolves with effervescence in nitric acid. Decrepitates and blackens
before the blow-pipe, and becomes partly a black scoria. With borax
it fuses to a deep green globule, and ultimately affords a bead of
copper* It is readily disting^uished by its copper-green colour and its
association with copper ores. It resembles a siliceous ore of copper,
ChrysocoUa, a common ore in the mines of the Mississippi valley ;
but it is distinguished by its complete solution and effervescence iu
nitric acid. The colour also is not the bluish-green of chrysocolla.
Green malachite usually accompanies other ores of copper, and forms
incrustations, which when thick have the colours blended, and
extremely delicate in their shades and blending. Perfect crystals
are quite rare. The mines of Siberia, at Nischne Togilsk have
afforded great quantities of this ore. A mass partly disclosed mea-
sured at top 9 feet by 18 feet; and the portion uncovered contained at
least half a million pounds of pure malachite. Other noted localities
are Chessy in France, Sandlodge in Shetland, Schwartz in the Tyrol,
Cornwall, Australia, and the island of Cuba. This mineral receives
a high polish, and is used for inlaid work, and also ear-rings, snuff-
boxes, and various ornamental articles. It is not much prized in
jewellery. Very large mosses are occasionally obtained in Russia,
which are worked into slabs for tables, mantel-piecen, and vases,
which are of exquisite beauty, owing to the delicate shadings and
radiations of colour. In the Great Exhibition of 1851 there were
magnificent specimens of this material in the shape of doors and
vases sent thither by the Emperor of Riissio. At Versailles there is
a room furnished entii*ely with tables, chairs, &c., wrought in
malachite, and the same are to be found in other European palaces.
At NiBchue Tagilsk, a block of malachite was obtained weighing
40 tons. Malachite is sometimes passed off in jewellery as turquoise,
though easily distinguished by its shade of colour and much inferior
hardness. It is a valuable ore when abundant^ but it is seldom
smelted alone, because the metal is liable to escape with the liberated
volatile ingredient, carbonic acid.
Agurile. Blue Carbonate of Copper. — Monodinate. In modified
oblique rhombic prisms, the crystals rather short and stout ; lateral
cleavage perfect ; also massive ; often earthy. Colour deep blue,
azure, or Berlin blue ; transparent to nearly opaque; streak bluisli.
lU
COPPER.
COPROLITES.
IM
Lustr6 vitreous, almost adamantine. Brittle. HardneM, 8 '6 to 4*5.
Specifio Qrayity, 3*5 to 3*85. Compositioii : —
Carbonic Acid 26*5
Oxide of Copper 691
Water 5*5
Before the blow-pipe and in acids it acts like the preceding. Azurite
accompanies other ores of copper. At Chessy in France its crystal-
ILiations are very splendid. It is found also in Siberia, in the Bauanat,
and near Redruth in ComwalL As incrustations, and rarely as
crystalB, it occurs uear Singsing, New York ; also in other parts of
the United States.
When abundant it is a valuable ore of copper. It makes a poor
pigment, as it is liable to turn green.
ChrfftocoUa. Silicate of Copper, — Usually as incrustations ; botryoidal
and massive; also in thin seams and stains ; no fibrous structure
apparent, nor any appearance of crystallisation. Colour bright green,
bluish-green. Lustre of surface of incrustations smoothly shining ;
also ewrthy. Translucent to opaque. Hardness, 2 to 8. Specific
Gravity, 2 to 2*3. Composition : —
Oxide of Copper 400
Silica 86*5
Water 20*2
Carbonic Acid 2*1
Oxide of Iron I'O
This mineral varies much in the proportion of its constituents, as
it is not crystallised. It blackens in the inner flame of the blow-pipe
without melting. With borax it is partly reduced. No effervescence
nor complete solution in nitric acid, cold or heated.
It is distinguished from green malachite, as stated under that species.
It accompanies other copper ores in Cornwall, Hungary, the Tyrol,
Siberia, Thuringia, kc In Chili it is abundant at the various mines.
In Wisconsin and Missouri it is so abimdant as to be worked for
copper. It was formerly taken for green malachit& This ore in the
pure state affords 30 per cent of copper, but as it occurs in the rock
will hardly yield one-third of this amount. Still, when abundant^ as
it appears to be in the Mississippi valley, it is a valuable ore. It is
easy of reduction by means of limestone as a flux.
bioptate is another silicate of copper, occurring in rhombohedral
crystals and hexsgonal prisms. Colour emerald green. Lustre
vitreous ; streak greenish. Transparent to nearly opaque. Hardness,
5. Specific Gravity, 8*28. From the Kirghese Steppes of Siberia.
Besides the above salts of copper, the following species, which are of
little use in the arts, are given in Dana's ' Manual of Minerslogy ' : —
ArupnattM of Copper,
JSvtehroite has a bright emerald-green colour, and contains 83 per
cent of arsenic acid and 48 per cent, of oxide of copper. Occurs in
modified rhombic prisms. Hardness, 8*75. Specific Gravity, 3*4.
From Lebethen in Hungary.
AphanetUe is of a dark verdcgris-green inclining to blue, and also
dark blue. Hardness, 2*5 to 8. 8p. Gr., 4*19. It contains 80 per cent,
of arsenic acid and 54 per cent of oxide of copper. From Cornwall
£rmUe hss an emerald-green colour, and occurs in mammillated
coatings. Hardness, 4*5 to 5. Sp. Gr., 4*04. Contains 83*8 per cent
of arsenic acid and 59*4 per cent of oxide of copper. Ftom Limerick,
Ireland.
Liroconite varies from sky-blue to verdigris-green. It ooeun in
rhombic prisms sometimes an inch broad. Hardness, 2*5. Sp. Gr.,
2 '8 to 2*9. Contains 14 per cent of arsenic acid and 49 per cent
of oxide of copper.
OliveniU presents olive-green to brownish colours, and occurs in pria-
matic crystals or velvety coatings. Hardness, 8. Sp. Gr., 4*2. Contains
36*7 per cent of arsenic acid and 56*4 per cent of oxide of copper.
Copper Mica is remarkable for its thin foliated or mica-like struc-
ture. The colour is emerald or grass-green. Hardness, 2. Sp. Gr.,
2*55. It contains 21 per cent of arsenic acid, 58 per cent of oxide
of copper, and 21 per cent of water. From Cornwall and Hungary.
Copper Froth is another arsenate of a pale apple-green and veitligris-
green colour. It has a perfect cleavage. It contains 25 per cent of
arsenic acid, 43'9 of oxide of copper, 17'5 of water, and 18*6 of carbo-
nate of lime. From Hungary, Siberia, the Tyrol, and Derbyshire.
Condurritc has a browuish-black or blue colour. From ComwalL
These different arsenates of copper give an alliaceous odour when
heated on charcoal before the blow-pipe.
Pho9phatea of Copper.
Pteudo-MalachiU occurs in very oblique crystals or massive and
incrusting, and has an emerald or blackish-green colour. Hardness,
4*5 to 5. Sp. Gr., 4'2. Contains 68 per cent of oxide of copper.
From near Bonn on the Rhine, and also from Hungary.
Lihdhenite has a dark or olive-green colour, and occurs in prismatic
crystals and massive. Hardness, 4. Sp. Gr., 8*6 to 3*8. Contains 64
per cent of oxide of copper. From Hungary and Cornwall.
Thromholite is a green phosphate occurring massive in Hungary.
Contains 39 per cent, of oxide of copper.
These phosphates give no fumes before the blow-pipe, and have the
reaction of phosphoric add.
Chloridet of Copper,
Ataeamiie. — Colour green to blackish-green. Lustre adamantine to
vitreous; streak apple-green. Translucent to sub-tmnslucent Oocrora
in right rhombic prisms and rectangular octahedrons ; also maaarve.
Consists of oxide of copper 76*6, muriatic acid 10*6, water 12*8. Gives
off fiimes of muriatic acid before the blow-pipe, and leaves a ^obnls
of copper. From the Atacama Desert between Chili and Peru, and
elsewnere in Chili ; also from Vesuvius and Saxony. It is ground up in
Chili, and sold as a powder for letters under the name of ArseniUo.
A Sulphate Chlwide of Copper has been observed in Cornwall, in
blue acicular crystals, apparently hexagonaL
Beaumoniite of C. T. Jackson is a hydrous crenato-ailicate of copper,
containing 15'8 per cent of crenic acid. It is bluish-green to greraish-
white, and pulverulent when dry. From Cheasy, France.
Vanadate of Copper, — Massive and foliated or pulverulent; folia
citron-yellow, pearly. From the Ural.
Bwatite. — A hydrous carbonate of copper, zinc, and lime, occurring
in blmsh radiating needles. Sp. Gr., 8*2. From Chessy, France ; the
Altai Mountains; and Tuscany.
Velvel Copper Ore. — In velvety druses or coatings, oonsiating of
short fine fibrous crrstallisations. Colour, fine smalt blue.
Copper has been known since the earliest periods. It is obtained
for the arts mostly from pyritous copper — the gray sulphurets
and the carbonate ; also to some extent from the black oxide and
from solutions of the sulphate. The principal copper mines in the
world are those of Cornwall and Devon in England; of the island of
Cuba; of Copiapo and other places in Chili ; Chessy, near Lyon, in
France ; in the Er^gebixge, in Saxony ; at Eisleben and Sangerhauaen,
in Prussia ; at Goslar, in the Lower Harz ; at Schemnitz, Kremnits,
Kapnik, and the Bannat^ in Hungary ; at Fahlun, in Sweden ; at
Turmsk, Nischne Tagilsk, and other places in the Urals; also
in China and Japan. Lately extensive mines have been opened in
Southern Australia. Copper, united with zinc in different proportions,
forms brass and pinchbeck. Bronze is an alloy of copi>er with 7 to 10
per cent of tin. This is the material used for cannon. With 8 per
cent of tin it is the bronze used for medals. With 20 per cent of
tin, the material for cymbals. Bell-metal is composed of copper with
a Uiird to a fifth as much tin by weight Sheet-copper is made by
heating the copper in a furnace, and rolling it between iron rollers.
Copper is also worked by forging and casting. In casting it will not
bear over a red heat wiUiout burning.
(We are indebted for the substance of this article to Dana's excel*
lent ' Manual of Mineralogy.') [SuppLBannr.]
COPPER, ORES OF. rCoppER.]
COPPERAS. [COPPKB.]
COPROLITES {K6wpos and \i0os), the fossilised excrements of
reptiles, fish, and other animals, found in various strata of the earth.
Dr. Buckland in his ' Bridgewater Treatise ' first drew attention to
the probable nature of these substances, some of which bad been
previously known under the name of Bezoar Stones. These foesila
were first detected in the Lias at Lyme Regis and in other localities,
and their true nature inferred from the fact of their identity with
similar masses found actually within the body of many species of
IdUhyoBaunu, The Coprolitet are often found to contain scales of
fishes, and occasionally teeth, and fragments of bone, belonging to
species of fishes and reptiles which have been swallowed by the animal
as food, and have passed undigested throu^ its stomach. They often
occur in a spirally twisted form, which is a characteristic of the
excrements of some of the larger forms of recent fish, and have been
accepted by comparative anatomists as indications of the nature of
the intestinal tube in the extinct forms of Reptiles and Fishes.
Professor Liebig says in his 'Letters on Chemistry,' "In the autupin
of 1842 Dr. Buckland pointed out to me a bed of Coprolites in the
neighbourhood of Clifton, from half to one foot thick, Inclosed in a
limestone formation, extending as a brown stripe in the rocks for
miles along the banks of the Severn. The limestone marl of Lyme
Boob conusts for the most part of one fourth part of fossil excrements
and bones. The same are abundant in the Lias of Batheaston, and
Broadway Hill, near Evesham. Dr. Buckland mentions beds several
miles in extent, the substance of which consists in many places of a
fourth part of Coprolites."
Coprolites, when chemically examined, are found to contain a large
proportion of phosphate of lime. Liebig states that some he examined
from Clifton contamed above 18 per cent of phosphate of lime^ whilst
other specimens have afforded a much laxger per oentaga The
occurrence of phosphate of lime in these substances has led to their
use as manurei^ and large quantities are annually 0(dleoted in this
country for that purpose. Biofore being used they are submitted to
the action of sulphuric acid, by which the phosphate is converted into
a super-phosphate of lime. [Manure, in Arts aud Sa Dir.l
Not only have the beds of the Lias afforded deposits of pnosphate
of lime which have received the name of Coprolitee, but they have also
been found in the Greensand, in the Wealden Formation, and in the
Red Crag. In the latter formation it may be altogether doubted as
to whether the phosphate of lime there found in the form of dark-
brown or blackish smooth nodules, can be appropriately called
Coprolites. These nodules occur in beds or seams running through
the Red Cm| of Suffolk, where, in the neighbourhood of Ipswich and
i!7 COPROPHAQI.
Woodbndge, uid oa tho lea-cout of Feliiatow and Bawilae;, it it
worked to K coiuidembie extent. Id ndditiou to these nodules, ore
foond the fmgmenta of the bonei of vorioui forme of Ceiaeta, nil of
irbicli contoui large qunotitiea of phoaphate of lime, and &re collected
luider the nune of Coprolttes. It a itill a quutton of interest u to
how the nodulea not bsTing im orguiic bmais bava been formed. It
hu been Bnppoaed tlint all deposits of phoi^phala of lime are derived
from the deatruetion of organised beinge, but it is very evident that
phosphate of lime must have existed in some form or another before
the creation of either vegetable or animal beings. The increase alao
of the number of indiTiduali of epeciee of plants and animala demand
that there afaould be some oomitant supply of thiA substance from tba
mineral kingdom. Whatever may be the result of further inquiry on
this point, there cim be little doubt of Che itopropriety of .calling all
depoota of phosphate of lime Coprolites. A better general name and
whieh ia not eipoaed to the objection of a falsa theory would be
PJuuphalUe. [PBoarnATnx.]
CWPROPHlai, [SciBiBiroia.]
CDPTIS (from niirTB, to out), a genua of Plants belonging to the
natural order EanatxcidiKai. It hu S-6 sepals, ootound, petaloid,
deciduoni ; the petalj imall, cucullate ; the stameua 20-2fi ; the
capsalea S-10, on long italla, somewhat stellate, membrauoui, ovate,
oblong, tipped with ^e style j 1-6 seeded.
C, trifoUa, Gold Thread, has tenute leaves, obovate blunt toothed
hardly 3-lubed leaflets ; the soape 1-Qowered. It ii a native of Ice.
Virginia. It is a small plant with white Sowers and a yellow fibrous
rtiizoma which rung in all directions. The French in Canada coll it
TinvojBiins jaune. A decoctioD of tbe'leaves and stalks is used by
lbs Indiana for giving a yellow colour (o cloth and skins. Tba rhiio-
mata are bitter, and when administend as a medicine act in the sama
manner aa ouasaia, gentian, and other hitters, but are not astringent ;
it ia a popular remedy in the United Ststaa for aphthous afiectioni of
the mouth in children.
C. atpUnifoiia has bitemate leaves, the leaflets rather pinnatifid, very
acutely seintted, the scape i-towend. It is a native of Japan and the
north-west coast, of America.
Both species areprettyplantfl, and will thrive in a peat BoiL A moist
■itnatioD agrees with them, or they may be planted in pota among alpine
plants. They may be propagated by seed, or by dividing the roots.
(Don, IHchlamydtoui PlaaU ; Llndley, Flora Medical)
CORACES. [CoRiciAS.]
CORACIAS, agenuaof Birds belonging to the Inseasorial or Perch-
ing division.
LioDa-ua arranged the genua Caraciai between Cormu and Oriolus.
Beooant ('British Zoology') gives it a position between the Nut-
Oracker and the Oriole ; sL Dumdril placed it between the Birds of
Pandisa and the Crowa ; and Meyer arranged it in his second order,
Coraca, among which it stands in llliger's method. Cuvier placed the
Kullers (Ooratiat, Lion.) between the Crows (Comtf, Linn.) and the
Birds of Paradise {Paraduea, Linn.), the poution assigned to them by
LacipMa; and includes under that title the Hollers properly so called
{Coraciai garrvia, Linn, kc), and the Rolles [Colaru).
Mr. Vigore places them iu his family CorviiHr. [CoRTIDA.]
M. Lesson's family Eurytamida (Rolliers of Cur.) oonsiala of tbe
Rollers iGalgiUiu, Brisson, and Coraciat, Linn.); the genus KoUe
(fsryHontu, Vieill rUiHOFm.s], Colarii, Cur., Cotikuu, Linn.) ; the
l!>TDus JfaiTKUw {Eidaba, Cuv., Orofda, Lino.) ; and the genus ifins.
Less. U. Lesson rejects the term Coradai, because many suthora
have BO dismembered it, according to their different views, that a
confusion calculated to produce error is the result.
In tbe system of Hr. Swainson, who retains tbe generic name
Coraciat, the Bolters appear among the Men>pida. [Hzbopuis.]
The Prince of Canlno arranges the genus C'oraciai, giving as an
eiample the common Boiler, ( C. narmia, Linn. ) in the family
Awipttida. (' Birds of Europe and North America.')
In Mr. Gould's great work on tiie 'Birds of Europe,' the BoUer
(C. gamUa) comes down between the Bee.Eater {Merop$ apituStr) and
Siogflaher [A letde arpida).
Hr. Yarrell ('British Birds') arranges the common Boiler under
the family Mtropidce.
C. garniia, the Roller. It is the Pica Marina and Pics Merdsria of tbe
Italians; Bollier of the French; Birk-Beher, Blaue-Backe, and
Uaodelkrshe, of the GermaDa ; Spnnsk Kmka, Blakrako, and AUe-
knka, of the Swedes ; Ellekrage of Brunich ; and Bholydd of the
Welsh. The bill ia black towards the point, becoming brown st the
Use with a few bristles ; irides of two circles yellow and brown ; head.
Deck, breast, and belly various ahades of varditer-blue changing to
pale green; shoulders aiure-blue, bock reddish-brown, rump purple,
ving.primaries dark bluiah.black, edge lighter, tnil-feathera pale
greemsh-blue, the outer ones tipped with black, those in the middle
•Ira much darker in colour ; legs reddish-brown ; in old males the
Dul«r tail-feathers are somewhat elongated.
Adult females diSer but little from the moles ; joung birds do not
attain their brilliant colour till the second year. (Gould, ' Birds of
Eorope.') Length about 13 inches.
This bird appears to have a wide geographical range. In Enropa,
CORACIAS.
IM
it is found in Denmark, Sweden (where it arrives with tbe Cuckoo),
and tbe southern provinces of Russia; is more common in Qermany
than France, where however it haa been found in Provence ; and it
has been taken at Gibraltar. In Italy, according to Prince Bonaparte,
it is rather common, arriving in thoapring and departing in September.
In Malts and Sicily it is exposed for sale in the shops of poulttrers,
and is said to have the taste of a turtle-dove. In tbe Moron it ia con-
sidered a delicacy in tbe autumn, when it is fat with its summer food.
It has been captured at Aleppo, and at Trebiiond and Knerum. It '
visits the countries between the Black and the Caspian seas ; and
Dr. von Siebold and M. Burger inclucio it among the birds of Japan.
inNorthAfricait is found from Marocco to Egypt. Flocks were seen
by Adanson at Senegal, and ha concluded that they passed the winter
there. Dr, Andrew Smith records it among the buds of South Africa.
In Great Britain it haa been killed in Cornwall, in Suffolk.and Norfolk,
ia Cambridgeshire, in Yorkshire, Northumberland, Perthshire, the eaal
of Scotland.aiid Orkney. It has been only occaaioDolly seen in Ireland.
The Itollcr [Oaraciai farmla).
Deep forests of oak and bireh appear to be tba &vonrite hannia ol
the Boiler. In the 'Annabi of Natural History' for 183l>, it is stated
by a traveller in Asia Minor, that the Roller, which was most common
ibroughout the south and west parts of the country wherever the
magpie was not found (fbr it was not seen in the same district willi
that bird), was observed to fall through the air like a Tumbler Pigeon.
Temminck states that it makes its nest in the holes of trees, where it
lays from four to seven e^a of a lustrous white. M. Vieillot atates
that iu Malta, where trees are scarce, tbe bird builds on the ground.
In Barbary it has been observed to form its nest in the banks of the
Shelifl', Booberak. and other riven ; and Pennant remarks that where
trees are wanting, it makes it in clayey banks, ^hese last modes of
nidification bring it very close to tbe Bee-Eatareand KingRshers, whose
eggs quite reeemble those of the Roller in colour and shape, and odIj
vary in size. Tbe male takes hie turn to sit. The food is very varied,
according to Temmtnck, who enumerates moles, crickets, cookchafeis,
grasshoppers, millipedes, and other insects, slugs, and worma. Gould
states that it feeda on worms, slugs, and insects generally. Yarrell
informs us that tbe food oonsista of worms, slugs, insects in tlieir
various stages, and berries.
Bechstein observes that til! lately he fasd Hiought that the Boiler
waa untnmeable ; but Dr. Meyer of Offenbach had convinced him to
the contrary, having himself reared them in hia room by the following
method : — The young ones must be token from the neat when only
half grovn, and fed on little bits of cow't.heart or any other meat
which is lean and tender, till they can feed alone ; small frogs, worms,
and insects may then be added. Its mode of kiUing and swallowing
insects is thus described : it commences by seiKingond crusbingthem
with its bill, and then throws them into the air several times, in order
to receive them in its throat, which is very capacious. When the
morsel is too large, or the insect is still slive, the bird strikes it hard
against the ground, and begins again to throw it into the air till it
falls not across, but so aa to thread the throat, when it is easily swal-
lowed. Bechstein says that he had never seen the bird drink. The
translator of Becbstein's interesting little book states, that be once
saw a Roller drink after having aw^owed dry anta'-eggs ; it then ate
greedily of lettuce and endive, " Another which I kept," adds the
translator, " liked the outside of lettuces and spinach after having
eaten insects, especially beetles, which are very heating. To judge
" om what I have observed, the Boiler is by nature wild and solitary ;
seldom changes its situation except to seek its food or to hide itself
[>m strangers. It is a good thing, whether kept in a cage or let
range, always to have a box in its way, in which it may take i^tiigt
u»
COSACIAS.
wbeo frightened ; it will not foil to hide Itjielf then, and b; thii
meunwiJl not ba tempted to bent itself TiolentJ 7, which ttdoes when
it cuinot fly (rma the object of its fright. It knowa lie mietnea very
well, lets ber talcs it up, comes near her, find >ita without any fear on
her knees for whole hours without atiikng. This is as far u it goes
even when tamed. It is usither caressing nor funillsr ; when fright-
ened it utters harsh oriea, soller ones when its food is brought ; but
' crag, crag, oraag,' at the same time raising its head, is the eipression
" of its joy or triumph."
Oracvia rdigioia (Linnmus), the Mino-Bird. is the Boo and Hencho
of the JavaoeHi, Teeong of the Sumatrans, and is referred by Hr. Swain-
■ou to the Stumida. Mr. 0. R. Qray BirangeB it under the family
Corrida, in the sub-fumly Oraciiiinar. Mr. Swoiuson atatee that
analyais has convinced him that neither the Rollers nor the bird in
question belong to the Corvida ,- aad he romorVs that the little value
that can be attached to speculatianB on the rank of the preseot genen
founded upon mere eyntheeis, will best appeor by looking to those
artificial anangementa that place the sbort-lt^^ed Rolleia close to the
long-i^ged and powerfully-constructed Qrakle {Oratvla rdiffioia).
H. Louon places this bird next to the Holleie, and among tiie
Euiytt</Mida.
Uiso-Blrd {Oracula nllgicMa), (Aifatw /anmu, Tlelll.)
It ia the tvpe of Cuvier's genus Eiiiaha, which has the following
oluuaoters : — Bill short, stout, not so long as the head ; tntirsly com-
praosed. Frontal feathen advancing far upon the base, Imt not
dividing the &ont. Culmen gradually curved from Uie hose to the
Up, which is distinctly notched. Commissure but slightly angnlated.
Under nundible with the bnae fannd and dilated. Xostiila bual,
naked, round, sunk in a depression. Frontal feathers short, velvety.
Head with naked wattles. Wings as in Pastor. Tail short, oven.
Feet rather short, very strong. Tanus and middle toe equal ; hinder
toe shorter ; inner toe almost equal to the outer toe. (Sw.)
Its colour is of a deep velvety black ; a white space in the middle
□f the wing ; bill and feet yellow ; behind the eye spring fleshy ca-
runcloB of a bright orango-oolour, and extend beyond the occiput.
It is found in Java, Sumatra, and the great Eastern Islands.
Insects end fruits form the food of the Kino-Bird, which is easily
tamed, and learns to whistle and talk with great facility. With the
natives it is a, great favourite in consequence. Haisden says of it,
Uiat it has the isculty of imitating human ipeecb in greater perfection
than any other of the feathered tribe. &>ntiuB, who terms it Picn,
SCTt pptitu iSMmiu /ndtcM, heads the chapter where he figure* and
describes it, with the following lines : —
"Piitlacns EcrUqavnTliI
•sloquu
nlu ladu.
And tells the fallowing story :— There was, when he was !d Batavia,
an old Javiuieee woman, the aerrant of a Chiuesfl gardener, who kept
one of these birds, which was very loquacious. Bonlius vu very
anxious to buy it, but this the old woman would not hear oC He
then begged Oiat she would at least tend it to him that ite picture
might be taken, a request which was at last gnnted with no very
good grace, the ancient Mohammedan dame being under groat appre-
hension that Bontine would offer that abomination, pork, to her
beloved bird. This he promised not to do. and had the loan of the
Mino, which kept continually saying " Onuig Naaarani Catjor Hacan
Bahi." Thia, being interpreted, means "Christian Dog, Eater of
Fork ; '* and Bontius carne to the couclusion that tiie uuwillingneas of
the old woman arose not only from the fear of her bird being dfc^e-
cnited \ij nn offer of swino'e flesh, but nl,"o fmm the apprehonaion
that he or his servants, irritated by its contumelies, would wring its
neck. U. Lesson also saw one at Java which knew whole pbrasea of
the Unlaj' language.
CORACIKA. no
The genera] opinion seems to ba that there ii but one spedea of
Mino-Binl.
Cuvier however states that Linnmus oonfounded two spacies nnder
the name of QnKviM rtligiota, namely, Buiaba Indietu and BtUabet
Javama.
H. Lcason, who states that only one spoaies is known, namely, the
Hainate ReUgieui, Gracnla rdigioia, Linn,, Bco and Henoho of the
JnTsneae, remarks afterwards that there is said to be a smallsr variety :
this is probably the Ealaba /ndicui above noljced.
The last-mentioned ornithologist appliea the old Indian irord Hino
» a generic term for a veiy di&rent bird, Mino AmoiKii, described
a him in the ' Zoology of the Coquiile,' and lliere figured at pL 26.
I is also of opinion that GranUa ci^tia, Linn., should bo added to
this geuus.
CORA'CINA.a ^nua of Birds, separated from the Crowe {Oavitltx)
by Tieillot, and divided by him into four aectians. The first comprises
those species n'hich have the bill fumiahod at ila base with velvety
(cAthers (Lea Col-Nus, 'naked necks'); the aecond those whose nostrils
are covered with setaceous feathers, directed forwards, and whose
upper mandible is notched towards the end (LeaChoucnris,(A-aiicaJiu) ;
the third those whose bill is nake<l at the base, and notohed at the
point (CariKina gymnocfphain, VieiUot ; Corviu calvui, Latham, for
example) ; and the fourth, that curious species on which Geoffi^j-
3aiat.Bi]aire founded hia geuus Cfptudojtterut.
Cuvier, in the last edition of the ' Rigno Animal,' defines Graucaint
to be the Qreek name of an nsh-colouKd binl (oiseau cendn!), and
says that three Choiicaris out of four are of that colour. M. Vieillot,
he adds, confounds these birds with bis Coraeina, which oomprise tlie
Oymnoderi and the Oymnoetphali,
H. Lesson, who places the group under the Amp^ida, ohserres that
the genus Coraeitui ia far from being determined. Thus, he obeerres,
M. Tieillot phices under it the CepluJopltnu of M. QooBroy.Saint-
Hilaire, the Choucaris and the Col-Nu, or Ogmnodena. (He might
have added tbe Oymnocsphalm of Qeoflroy and Cuvier.) Temminck
adds to it many of the Cotingm of Le Vaillant ; but for hia own
(Leeson'a) part, ho adopts the term Ooracina for that group of birds
which Cuvier has collected together under the name of Piauhaus.
Oaraema, Lesson {Ooracina, Temminck ; Lea Piauhaus, Coliiiga,
Cuvier ; Piauhau, Qaerula, Vieiilot). — Bill depresaed, smooth, ciliated
at the base, thick, narrowed at the pointy angular above, a little curved
towaids the end, slightly toothed at the point ; lower mandihle a little
flattened below ; head and neck feathered, but without any ornamental
plumes, and without any naked skin.
C, icniala, Temminck and Latham. Tliis ipedea differs but little
from Comeina nbricoUii, Mvieicapa rvbricollit, of Gmelin, in the
colour of its plumsgo, but the wings are shorter. In C, mbrieoUit the
plumsge ia all black, with the exception of the throat and ttont of
the neck, which are of a purpled rose-colour. In C. Mcutala, the red,
which coven the throat and breast, goes aa low as the upper part of
the belly, and the bill ia not black aa it ia in C n^iritoUl*. It is found
hi Biwdl, which is also the habitat of C. nbricolli:
Oifninoeephaltu{Coracina, Tieillot). — M. Lesson observes that Hcssr^
Tiemot and Temminck place the (TyninocKipAali (Bnld-Heods) among
the Coradna, and that Cuvier contents himself with ohserviug that
Coi-tui (olrat, Irfitham, the type of this new gennp, has the bill of the
Tyrants, with the ridge (culmen) a little more arched, and a great
portion of the face denuded of fenthers. Le Tailiant, he states,
regarded this denudation of the skin in the front of the head as tha
CORACINA.
lU
Ths principal ehuiu:teni at Oymtmdena, OeoS^f -Saint- HiUire, rest
on the poassiaion of a bill lika that of tlw Coraeiwc and CtpSalopla-i,
with a partially naked neck and a head coTer«d -with TeNoty fcatben.
0. fatidui. It ia Coradna ffymnodtra, Viaillot; Cornu nudm,
Latham ; Oracuia nudicoUu, Shaw ; Oraada Jalida, Linccciu ; Col-
" BuDoD. Rather larger thiu the jackdav, but Uio body ia thick
lashy. The aidea of the neck are entirely naked, and only pro-
■ome trscea of dowu. Buffon's figure, on the contrary (Flanchea
Enlmn. 609), repreBenta this part ai bciog clothed with a eoiwldBrably
thick down. Upper part of the hoad, back of the neck and throa^
covered with amall elose-wtt feathen like black velTet. External
edges of the quills of the middle of the wing, the laat quilli, and all
the wing-corerta, bluish-gray. Qreat quilla and tail-feathon black,
with bluish reflections. The rest of the plumage, bill, and feet, black.
Eyea red brown, with a yellow skin beneath. The female ta unaller,
and of a brownish black. It is ■ native of Brazil and Guyana.
reault of a particular habit ; and in the ' History of the Birds of
Paradise' has printed a nota, in which he affirms that he had reoeived
from Cayenne a specimen having this part well oaverod with featheti ;
but H. Loson adds that ha hinuelf bod seen at Kochefort mor«
than twenty skins of Oynamxphati, and thnt all had the face bare of
feathe™. However it may be, he contiaues, this genus entirely
requires revision.
O. rains, the Ckpuchin Baldhead. It ia the Coradna gynttoapliala,
Tieillot ; Cbr*M calnu, Latham. Biie of the crow ; and of the ootour
of Spanish innf^ or, as some authon write it, Capuchin colour, whence
the Cr«oIea of Cayenne gire it ths name of Oiseau mon FAce. The
quills and the tail-feathers are black. The large beak and ample fore-
head bare of feathen give a singular air to this bird. Tieillot obaerrei
that it has been compared to the rook, on account of the nakedneas
of the head, a comparison which seems to him just; "for," says
Viallot, " it baa not this part nakod till it is adult, the yoong, like
the yooDg rook, having the head entirely feathered, and even the
OyjHnodrrui ftrtidnt^ mate.
CtfiAalppfenu.— Bill strong, robust j mandibles nearly equal, tha
upper one convex and scarcely curved at the summit, not notched at
the point; lower mandible flattened below. Nostnla longitudinal,
ojien, hollowed into an ova] excavation ; briatles at the border of th«
bill, which infringe a little on (he frontal feathers. Two tow* ot
feathers, taking their origin on the forehead, and elevating themselvea
into a pluma or crest on the head. The feathers of the neck form a
kind of pendent pelerine in front of the neck, which is naked.
C. entalv. It is the Ceradna e^pkaiopUra of Vieiltot Colour a
Capoelila Baldlicad {Q^mnottphaiut caicut),
nostrils coverad with amall setaceous feathers, as I can testify, from
the iospactioD of a young individual of which I have nude mention
in tbe em edition of the ' Houveau DioUannsore d'Histoire Natnrelle.' "
It is a native of Quyana.
G^nuadcrM((7i»-acisa,Vieillot,Temmincki CbJitvOiL^VaiUant). —
Ii3
CORACITB.
CORALlilNACE^
lU
uniform blue black. Head and base of the bill ornamented with a
plume or crest, forming a sort of parasol, composed of straight elevated
feathers, with white and stiff shafts, and terminated by an ear (^pi) of
black beards, which projects forwards (se renverse en devant). The
sidM of the neck are naked, but long feathers forming a loose pelerine,
and hanging down lower than the breast, spring from beneath the
throat and from the sides of the neck. TaU long, slightly rounded.
General plumage of a deep black. Crest and feathers of the pelerine
giving metallic reflections. (Lesson.)
The bird that furnished the description was brought to M. Qeoffroy-
Saint-Hilaire from Lisbon. M. Lesson states that the belief was that
it came from Brazil, but that a well-informed PoHuguese had told
him that it was from Gba. M. Vieillot says that the colour of the
naked skin of the neck is cerulean blue. Mr. Swainson, in his
' Natural History and Classification of Birds,' London, 1836, says : —
" The crest of this extraordinary bird is immensely large, advancing
so fkr in front as to touch the end of the bill, and it is compressed in
the same manner as that of Rupicola ; but the ends of the feathers,
instead of meeting so as to form a sharp ridge, suddenly recede from
each other, curve outwards, and form a most el^;ant drooping line of
plumes, hanging over on the sides so as to shade the face like an
umbrella. The figures that have hitherto been given of this rare
bird are all taken from the specimen in the Paris Museum, and which
has been sadly distorted in the setting up. A minute examination of
this specimen has convinced us that the frontal feathers, instead of
being nused over the bill, as Temminck represents them, partly repose
and overshadow it, at least as much as do those of CcUyptomeiia and
Rupicola*' (voL L p. 41). The species above noticed is the only one
known.
CORACITE (Le ConteX an ore resembling PildMende [Uba-
Kiuu], in which oxide of aluminium supplants a part of the oxide
of uranium contained in that mineral. It is found on the north
shore of Lake Superior in a vein two inches wide, near the junction
of trap and syenite. It occurs massive with a resinous lustre, and
has a hardness of 4*5, and a specific gravity of 4*38.
CORAL. [POLTPIFERA.]
CORAL RAO, the most calcareous or at least most coralliferous
part of the Oxford Oolite Formation. It is a variable and singular
rock, most rich in Madrephylliaa and Rchinodermalta, in the vicinity
of Calne.
CORALLINA. [CoRALLnrACBJS.]
CORALLINACEifi, a family of Marine PUnts belonging to the
order Algat. According to Harvey's definition it includes the CoraU
Unee and SpongiUa of Kiitzing, and the CoralUmdtz and NtUliporidce
of Dr. Johnston.
The forms referred to this family have been alternately regarded
as animals and plants. When their structure was imperfectly under-
stood they were regarded with many of the zoophytes {Polypi/era
and Polytoa) and sponges as sea-weeds. When the animal nature
of these beings was established it was again an inference that the
Corallines belonged to the animal kingdom. Recent researches have
however demonstrated the truly vegetable nature of this family both
in their general structure and mode of reproduction. The following
is Dr. Harvey's diagnosis in his 'Manual of the British Marine
AlgsB :' — ^Rigid, articulated, or crostaceous, mostly calcareous sea-
weeds, purple when recent» flEuling on exposure to milk-white.
Composed of closely-packed elongated cells or filaments, in which
carbonate of limo is deposited in an oi^ganised fonn. Tetraspores
tufted, contained in ovate or spherical oonceptades. Ceramidia
furnished with a terminal pore.
The following general remarks on this family are taken from Dr.
Harvey's work : — ^The root, where this organ is manifested, is an ex-
panded crustaceous disc, often widely spreading. The frond almost
always calcareous, effervescing strongly when thrown into acids, rarely
destitute of lime, very variable in aspect and habit, llie lowest
forms of the order are simple incrustations, spreading like the crus-
taceous lichens over the suiface of rocks, or Uie fronds of the lai^ger
Algce. In the smaller of these the crust is a mere film, as thin as
paper, generally circular, and extending by means of small additions
to the ciroumference, so that the frond becomes marked as it advances
with concentric oirdes. In the larger the crust is thick and stony,
rising here and there into prominences and sinking into depressions.
Still farther advance manifests itself by the crust assuming a branched
habit: at first papills rise from the surface; these thicken, and
widen, and lengtnen, and at length throw out branches, till a shrubby
frond, of stony hardness, but extremely brittle, is formed. All these
changes in character take place within the limits of a single eenus,
Mdobuia. Nearly related to this (and by many botanists considered
identical) is Maslophorci, a genus in whicli the frond is expanded
into leafy lobes, usuallv fan-shaped, sessile, or stalked, but not adnate
to rocks; of a flexible substance, containing a smaller portion of
carbonate of lime than the former group. Some of these have the
habit of Padina, but differ from that genus in being of a red colour.
They are the most perfectly organised of the leafy or frondose
Corallines (Jfi^Z^porece). The articulated or true Corallines are
filiform, either pinnated or dichotomous, the branches formed of
strings of calcareous articulations, truncated at the upper extremity
and rounded at the lower, each articulation connected with that above
and below it by a flexible joint composed of cellular tissue, destitute
of carbonate of lime. This joint in our British species is scarcely
evident till after maceration ; but in many exotic species (of Amphiroa)
it is so long as to interrupt the continuity of the articulations, and is
either marked or coated with warlike GEilcareous tubercles.
The form of the articulations varies extremely, and often in the
same species, or even in the same specimen, so that the determination
of these plants is sometimes difficult. In many the articulations are
cylindrical, in others oval and compressed, in some flat and irregularly
shaped ; but in the greater number they are heart-shaped or wedge-
shaped, with the upper angles frequently prolonged with horns.
The fructification consists of hollow extemsJ or inmiersed con-
ceptades containing a tuft of oblong spores, divided at maturity by
three horizontal fissures into four parts. They are therefore tetra-
spores, precisely similar to those of Plocamiunif Hypnea, &a The
nature of the conceptacle varies even in the same species. Thus in
CoraUina it is normally formed by the metamorphosis of the terminal
articulation of the branches, which swells at the sides and becomes
piereed at the apex; but in C. tquamata and even in C. officinaliM
other articulations frequently bear numerous small hemispherical
conceptacles on their sides; and sometimes the whole surfiace is
warted with such, and these irregular organs are equally furnished
with tetraspores as the normal ones. These latter conceptacles, which
are irregular in CoreUlina, are the normal fruit of ^mp^troa, a genus
chiefly firom the Southern Ocean. In Jania the oonceptade is similar
to that of OoraUiTM^ except that it generally bears a pair of ramuli
(resembling the antennae of an insect) from its upper angles.
The Coiallines are found in all parts of the ocean, but are much
more numerous in warm than in cold countries, and some of the
species of the tropical and sub-tropical ocean are among the most
beautiful of marine vegetables. Until recently the plants of this
order were with other calcareous Alga confounded with Zoophytet, or
polypiferous corals. They are however undoubtedly of v^etable
nature, and when the lime which they contain is removed by acid,
the vegetable framework concealed beneath it is found to be of a
similar structure to that of other Rhodosperms, to which g^up of
Alga they are further allied by their colour and the nature of their
spores. The order consists of two, or if Lgthoeyttea be rightly placed
in it> of three sub-orders, as follows : —
Sgnoptia of the British Qtnera,
Sub-order 1. CoraUinea. — Frond filiform, articulated.
1. CoraUma. — ^Frond pinnated. Ceramidia terminal, simple.
2. Jama, — Frond dichotomous. Ceramidia tipped with two horn-
like ramulL
Sub-order 2. iVtifftporea.— Frond crustaceous or foliaoeousi, opaque,
not artictdated.
3. Mddbeaia, — Frond stony, forming either a crustaceous expansion
or a foliaceous or shrub-like body.
4. jffildenbrandlia. — ^Frond cartilaginous, not stony, forming a
crustaceous expansion. ' *
Sub-order 3. LythocyttetB. — Frond plane, hyaline, composed of
cells radiating from a centre. Fructification unknown.
5. Lythoey$ti$, — ^A minute parasite.
Sub-order 1. OoraUinece.
1. OoraUina. — Frond filiform, articulated, branched (mostly pin-
nate), coated with a calcareous deposit. Fructification turbinate or
obovate, mostly terminal ceramidia, pieroed at the apex by a minute
spore, and containing a tuft of erect pyriform or club-shaped trans-
versely parted tetraspores. Name from Corallium, Coral, which these
plants resemble in having a stony substance.
C. officinalia is the most common example of this genus on British
shores. It is decompound, pinnate, the lower articulations cylindrical,
twice as long as broad, upper slightly obconical, round edged, their
angles blunt, ultimate ramuli cylindrical obtuse. It is found on rocks
between the tide marks, extending from the limits of high to the
extremity of low water mark. Perennial. Winter and spring. The
root is a widely expanded rod .crust. The fronds from two to six
inches high, tuftod, much branched, bipinnated, but varying greatly
in luxuriance according to the depth at wliich it grows.
C. dongaia and C. »quamata* are both British species, and are
mentioned in Dr. Johxuston's woi^ on the Corallines and also by
Dr. Harvey.
2. /anto. — Frond filiform, articulated, dichotomous, branched,
coated with a calcareous deposit. Fructification urn-shaped. Ceramidia
formed of the axillary articulation of the uppermost branches (mostly
two-homed), pierced at the apex by a minute pore, and containing a
tuft of erect pyriform transversely parted tetraspores. Named fbom
JanirOj one of the Nereides,
J, rubetu is found on all parts of the British coast on the smaller
AlgcB between tide marks. The articulations of the principal branches
and ramuli are cylindricfd, about four times as long as broad. The
fronds are from half an inch to two inches high, densely tufted,
dichotomous, many times forked, fostigiate ; branches either erect or
spreading gradually, tapering upwards. Articulations cylindrical in
all parts of the frond, without prominent angles ; those near the base
very shorty the up^ter ones gradually longer. Ceramidia subterminali
lis
CORALLINES.
CORDIACEiE.
lid
um-ehaped with long horns, formed of two to four articulations.
Colour a pale i-ed with a purplish nhade when quite fresh.
/. eornicidcUa is also found on the southern shores of England and
Ireland, and in Jersey.
Sub-order 2. NuUtparecB.
8. Melobesia, — Frond attached or free, either flattened, orbicular,
sinuated or irregularly lobed, or cylindrical and branched (never arti-
culated), coated with a calcareous deposit; fructification conical,
sessile. Ceramidia scattered over tiie surface of the frond, and con-
taining a tuft of transversely-parted oblong tetraspores. The genus
is named from one of the sea nymphs of Hesiod.
If. polymorpha is foimd attached to rocks, thick, stony, incrusting,
or rising into short clumsy branches, which are seldom much divided,
and often merely rudimentary. Much is yet to be done in working
out the species of this genus.
Af. ptuttdata is the laz^^est and most developed of the parasitic
section of the genus. It is found on Phyllophora rubenSf Chondrut
crisput,^ &c It is thick, of a dull purple^ or green colour, oblong or lobed,
incrusting, smooth. Ceramidia numerous, large, rather prominent, and
conical. Dr. Johnston refers this species to Corallina officinalis.
This plant, he says, appears first in the g^ise of a circular CfUcareous
patch of a purplish colour, and in this state is common on almost
every object that grows between tide-marks. When developing on
the leaves of Zogtent, or in other unfavoiu^ble sites, these patches are
usually pulverulent and ill-coloured, green or white, and never
become lax^e ; but in suitable situations they continue enlai^ging in
concentric circles, each marked with a pale zone until they ultimately
cover a space of several inches in diameter. The resemblance which
in this condition the crust has to some crustaceous fungi, more espe-
cially to Polypwtu verneoloTf is remarkably exact ; and neither is it
less variable than the fungus in its growth, the variations depending
on the nature of the site from which it grows. If this is smooth and
even, the foliaceous coralline is entirely adnate and also even ; but if
the surface of the site is imeven or knobbed, the coralline assumes the
same character. If it grows from the edge of a rock, or the frond of
a narrow sea-weed, or from a branch of the perfect coralline, the
basal laminsB spread beyond in overlapping imbrications of consider-
able neatness and beauty ; they are semicircular, wavy, either smooth
or studded with scattered granules, and these granules (ceramidia)
may be either solid or perforated on the top. Such states of the
corajline have been described as MiUepora Hchenoides, while its
earlier states constitute Lamouroux's various species of Melobesia.
4. HildtHJbrandtia. — The frond cartilagineo-membranaceous (not
stony), crustaceous, suborbicular, adhering by its lower surface;
composed of very slender closely-packed vertical filaments ; concep-
tacles immersed in the frond, orbicular, depressed, pierced by a hole,
and containing tetraspores and paraphyses at the base of the cavity.
H. rtAra is found on smooth stones and pebbles between tide-marks
and in deep water. It is very common, and fomu a thin membra-
nous crust, at first orbicular, and spreading concentrically, at last
irregular in form, following the sinuosities of the body to which it
may be attached. Viewed under the microscope, a small portion
shows minute cells lying in a clear jelly. When in fruit, the surface
is pitted with disc-like depressions, pierced by a hole which commu-
nicates with a chamber in which the spores lie. The colour is
variable ; now a bright^ now a dull red.
Sub-order 3. (?) LUhocystea,
LithocffHis. — Plant calcareous; consisting of a single plane of
cellules, which are disposed in radiating dichotomous series, forming
an uppressed flabelliform frond., Nameid from a stone in the bladder,
because the cells have stony coats. '
5. L. AUmanni is parasitical on Chrysymenia clavellosa firom an oyster
bed at Malahide, Dublin, by Professor Allmann. It forms minute dot-
like {Mttches of a whitish colour on the fronds of the Chrysymeniti.
Each dot consists of one or several fan-shaped fronds composed of
qnadrate cells disposed in dichotomous series. The plant is brittle,
colourless, and effervesces in acid.
(Harvey, British Algat,)
CORALLINES. rCORALLINACE&]
CORALLIUM. [POLYPIFERA.]
CORALLORHI'ZA, agenus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Orchidea^ and to the tribe Malaxidea, It has a converging perianth ;
the lips with two prominent longitudinal ridges at the base ; 8-lobed,
the lateral lobes small, the middle lobe large, slightly emarginate ; the
spur short or obsolete ; the stigma triangular ; the rostellum obsolete,
but with a laige globose appendage ; the anthers terminal, 2-celled,
opening transversely; the colxunn elongated; the germen slightly
stalked, straight.
C. iflauUa has the sptur obsolete or wanting. It has thick fieshy
roots vrith much Ivanched fibres. The flowers are seated on a spike,
and are of a yellowish colour. It is found in Qreat Britain in moun-
tainous woods, but is a rare plant. There are several An^erican species.
They are exceedingly difficult of cultivation.
CORALWORT. [Dentaria,]
CORBULA, a genus of Marine MoUuseaf belonging to the Lamelli-
branckiata. The shell is suborbicular or oval, tumid or depressed,
SAT. HIST. DIY. VOL. IL
very inequivalve, slightly inequilateral, rounded anteriorly, more or
loss truncated posteriorly ; beaks prominent ; surface of the valves
mora or leas furrowed or transversely striated, covered with an epi-
dermis. Hinge composed of a recurved primary tooth in one or both
valves, with corresponding socket and ligamental pit beside it. Liga-
ment small, interior. Muscular impressions slightly marked, united
by a pallial one with a very slight sinus. The animal is short, with
veiy short imited siphonal tubes. 'Orifices fimbriated. Mouth closed,
except in front, where there is an opening for a bony narrow thick
foot of considerable dimensions. Anal siphon with a conspicuous
tubular membrane. Labial tentacles slender.
This genus was once abundant in the European seas, especially
during the early part of the Tertiary epoch. Only a few species now
exist. It has more species in the tropical seas of the present day.
O. nucletLs is one of the most common species in the seas around the
British IslandSL Whilst very frequently found in the dredges, it is
seldom washed on shore or found in shallow waters. It is about half
an inch in length and about one-fourth less in breadth.
This genus belongs to De Blainville's family Pyloridea, which
embraces Solen, Panopea, Mya, and other allied species. [Ptloridia.]
CORCHORUS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
TUiacecB. The leaves of C. olitoriut are used in S^gypt as a pot-herb.
Fishing-lines and nets, rice bags, and a coarse kind of linen called tat,
are made in India of the fibres of C. eapsularis.
CORDIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Cordiacete.
It has a tubular calyx, 4-5-toothed. Corolla funnel shaped or cam-
panulate, with a flat 6-7-cleft limb, and a hairy or naked throat.
Stamens 5, short, inserted in the throat of the corolla. Style pro-
truding, bifid, with 4 stigmaa Ovary 3-4-celled. Drupe containing
1 stone with 1 or 8 cells, two of which are usually abortive.
O. UuifoUa is a native of Hindustan. It has numerous spreading and
drooping branches ; the young shoots angular and smooth The general
height of trees ten or twelve years old about 20 feet. Leaves alternate,
petioled, round, cordate, and ovate, often slightly repand ; 3-nerved ;
of a hard texture, smooth above, scabrous and pide underneath ; from
8 to 7 or even 8 inches long, and rather less in breadth. Petioles
nearly rounded and smooth. Panicles short, terminal, and lateral,
roundish; the branches alternate, divex^ging, and one or more
frequently dichotomous. Flowers numerous, small, white. Bracts
minute, Filloua. Calyx villous, campanulate, leathery ; mouth unequally
toothed. Corolla short, campanulate. Segments 5, linear-oblong;
filaments as long as the segments of the corolla, and inserted imme-
diately under their fissures. Anthers incumbent. Ovary ovate, 4-celled,
with one ovule in each attached to the upper end of the axis. Style
short. Stigma 4-cleft ; segments long, rugose, and recurved. Drupe
oblate-spheroidal, about an inch or an inch and a quarter in diameter;
smooth when ripe, straw-coloured, covered with a whitish bloom.
Under the name Sebesten Plums, Sebestans, or Sepistans, two sorts
of Indian fruit, have been employed as pectoral medicines, for which
their mucilaginous qualities, combined with some astringency, have
recommended them. They are believed to have been the Persea of
Dioscorides. Linnseus has erroneously applied the name of Sebesten
to an American species of this genus which is not known in medicine.
C, Myxa is a native of many parts of India, Persia, Arabia, and Egypt.
The trunk is generally crooked, from 6 to 12 feet high, and as thick
or thicker than a man's body. The bark gray, cracked in various
directions. Branches numerous, spreading, and bent in every possible
direction, forming a dense shady head. The flowers are numerous,
white, small ; a very large proportion of them are sterile, and they
always want the style. The drupe is globular, smooth, the size of a
cherry, sitting in the enlarged calyx ; when ripe, yellow ; the pulp is
almost transparent, very tough, and viscid. The smell of the nut
when cut is heavy and disagreeable ; the taste of the kernels like that
of filberts. It is the true Sebesten of the European Materia Medica.
The fruits, according to Roxburgh, are not used in the Circars
medicinally, but when ripe are eaten by the natives, and also most
greedily by several sorts of birds, being of a sweetish taste. The
wood is soft, and of little use except for fuel. It is reckoned one of
the best kinds for Idndling fire by friction, and is thought to have
furnished the wood from which the Egyptians constructed their
mummy cases. The wood is said by Dr. Royle to be accounted a
mild tonic
(7. Qerasaeamthus is a native of the West Indies in woods, and of
Mexico, near Acapulco. It has ovate oblong leaves, acute^ quite
entire, glabrous; racemes terminal, aggregate; flowers verticillate,
sessile; calyx 10-furrowed, lO-striped, downy; limb of corolla 5-cleft;
throat villous; stamens the length of the corolla. This is esteemed one
of the best timber-trees in Jamaica, of which it is a native. The wood is
of a dark brown colour, and gently striped ; it is tough and elastic, of
a fine grain, and easily worked. It is called Spanish Elm or Prince
Wood by the English, and Bois de Chypre by the French.
O, Ruanphii has brown wood beautifully veined with black, and
smelling of musk.
There are above 100 species of this genus.
^Lindl^, Fhra Medico.)
bOBDlXVEM, a smaU natural order of Monopetslous Exogens,
with a shrubby or arborescent habit, a gyrate inflorescence, and a •
drupaceous fruit. The leaves are alternate, usually covered with aspe-
L
H» CORMEIIITE.
ritieB, KnA deatitute of Mipulea. The oOtx !■ ioferior Bud S-toolhed ;
tbd coro11& regular, with 6 itamenB proceedintt from the tube, uid
kltemikta nith the Bdgmenta. Tbere is n peDduloiu arule in encb cell.
and the >t;1e is Iwice-forkrd. Thn cotyleilaiiB are crumpled or folded
in plaita lengthwiw. The aSuitiea of the order ire olmort equnl between
Bomginacea tmd Cmvolwlaaa, but prepondsistaa in fnvour of tbo
former. The onl; ecoDominl pluita cantsined In it tire the Sebeet«u
Piums, the produce of Cordin Uyia uid Sdialeaa, the rind of which
u mjcculent and macitaginana. All the Epeoies are tropical.
CORDIEHITE, [Iolub.]
C0BEOONU8, fSii-MoMn)*.]
CORIANDER. [CoaiiUDBCB.]
CORIANDRUM, a genus of Plant* belonging to the natural order
Vfnhtllifera. TthaefiAcutecalyxteetb, unequal and permanent; petals
oboTate. emarginate, with an inflsied segment, the exterior rndiating
and bifid. Fniit globoae, with 10 riba scarcely separaWng. Halt
fniita, with G primary deprened wavy ridges, and 4 secondary ones
(besides the marginals) more prominent and keeled. Channels with-
out vittae ; commlBmire with 2 vittie. Seed hollowed out in front
with a loose skin. The species are smooth herbs. Leaves muIUfid ;
nmbets with S or 5 rays. Involuoro none; involucels about 3-leaved,
halved.
C. lativun is found in the corn-Gelds of Tartary, the Levant, Qreece,
Italy, and the south of Europe. It ie not really wild in EngUnd.
The root is tapering, the
■tern erect, 12 or 18 inches
high, mare or Issa branch-
ed, leafy, round, atriated.
The lower leaves are pin-
nate on longish slender
stalks, their leafleta wedge-
shaped or fan-shaped, and
acutely notched ; npper
leaves multifid in fine
lineal segments. The
flowera are white, often of
a reddish tint. The fruit
pale brown, somewhat
coriaceous, spherical, 1(
lines in diameter ; all the
ridgee indistinctly shown
on account of tbeir slight
elevation; the Titlje of
the commissure short, lu-
ibcl. In bolt j 1, a halt nata, just visible without
' IM same, dissection. The fruit is
C ullsn oonstdeied it more powerfully corrective of the odour and taste
if eenna than any other aromatic {Lindley, ' Flora Medica.'}
Coriander fruit, or seeds as they are incorrectly called, are used in
fwcelmeats, in certain stomachic liqueun, and in some countries in
(ookpry ; they are little esteemed in Enghmd.
CCEIARIA'CE^, n vary small iintunil order of Qynobaaie Poly-
•y) -^ '(If
Oorvria m)fTt\falia.
HctiOB ottbosa
petolou
CORIfACE^ lU
ovariea, with distinct spreading itigmss. The two genera, of which
alone tiie order comusta, are nearly allied to Rutacta, but their leavea
are not dotted. The only plant uat gives the onter any interest is
Coriaria myiiifoHa, a shrub inhabiting the south of Kurope, and
employed by dyers for staining black. Its fniit is suoculent, and aaid
to Ie poisonous.
CORIOCELLA. [Chibhobbakcbiata.]
CORK, botanically considered, is a soft and elastic layer of bark
which becomes remarkably developed in the kind of oak iahabiting
Spain and FortugaL [Qitsrcus; BaIiil] This aubstnnce is deve-
loped in other plants, but in none in so ]ari:e quantity as in tba
Qnfrriu Subtr. As soon as the boi'k dies it ceases to grow, and then,
not dixtending as it is pressed upon from within, it f^ls off in flakea
wbiiti correspond to the layen that are formed annually. These
flakes are tbe layen of cork which the Spaniards collect under the
name of the outer bark, while tbo inner living bark is cr rather should
be spared. We are told however by Captain 8. Cook that the
Spaniards have been in the habit of stripping off the inner bark also,
although it is of no value except for tanning, and although its removal
destroys the trees. The same intelligent obeerrcr states that tbe
cork-tree accura in Spain throughout the whole extent uf the Tierra
Caliento, but is most abundant in Catalonia and Valencia, whence the
principal ezporta have been made. Cork sppean to be a corruption
of tbe Latin word 'cortei.' For the uses of Cork in the arts ■«« CoBK
in Anra ahd Sc. Div.
CORK, MODNTAIN. [ABBtsrua.]
CORK-TREE. [QnEiiciia.]
CORK-WINO. [CBEKlLiBRUB.]
CORKLING. rCREIIILAHBUS.1
CORMORANT. rTELi
CORN-MARIGOLD. [Chb
CORN-SALAD. [VALBnliMELLA.]
CORKA'CE.£, a small natural order of Polypetalous Exogenous
Planta. They consist principally of shrubs, very rarely of berbaccoua
plants. They have opposite strongly-veined leaves without stipules; an
inferior ovary, in each of whose cells is one pendulous ovule ; 1 val-
vate petals ; 1 slamena alternating with them ; and a drupaceous fruit
wiUi two cells i the embiyo lies in some fleshy albumen.
cut tlinHi|li
vcrtlosU)', ihowinf a eup-tike diss inrrDiinilinR Itis bus of tbs ttrle, sad the
pendulaui ovb1« ; 9, ■ (rait cat lo u to (haw tbe slniie ; 1, ■ vttUcal KCUoo
at the itoae, eihlliltlBg tbe e mbrja and albuDUD.
Kany of the species are cultivated in European gardens^ especially
ComHi taos, the Gomel-Tree; C. alba, C tangminta, and O, tericta,
called Dogwood ; together with Bcnlhaniia fragifera. They ai«
valued either for their bright-red ahoots, which in the winter are
149
CORNBRASH.
CORONILLA.
150
highly ornamental, or for their richly-coloured fruit. BmUiamia
fragifera in particular has its drupe* collected in roundish strawberry-
like heads, which have a beautiful effect in the south-west of England,
where it haa been several years intix>duced from the Himalaya Moun-
tains. The bracts of some species of this order are very large, and
resemble petals, and being white they are a gay substitute for the
flowers themselves, which are small and inconspicuous. This is
particularly the case with Oomua herbacea, C. fiorida, and Benthamia
fragiftra. Medicinally, Comaoeous plants are of great importance.
The American physicians esteem the bark of ComiM Jlorida and
C, aericea equal to Cinchona as a febrifuge.
Formerly the Comut mat used to be cultivated in gardens for the
sake of its fruit, which were called Cornelian Cherries. It is a deci-
duous tree, with clusters of small starry yellow flowers, appealing in
the spring before the leaves. The leaves are ovate-lanceolate, acute,
wavy, and of a dull grayish-green. The fruit consists of oblong
drupes of a red or occasionally a yellow colour ; they are excessively
austere before ripe, but eventually blet like medlars, and then
become eatable.
This order is allied to Vmbellifera and ffamamdidacece. There
are 9 genera and above 40 species.
CORNBRASH, a thin calcareous member of the Oolitic Formations.
It oonatitates the uppermost band of the Bath Oolitic Formation,
and is extremely ridi in Echinodermata Bnd ConcKifera, but somewhat
remarkabbr deficient in BeUmnUet.
C0RNC31AK£. [Rallid&]
CORNEA. [Ete.]
CORNEL-TREE. [Cobkus.]
CORNELIAN, or CARNELIAN. fAQATB.]
CORNELIAN CHERRY. [Cobnaoba]
CORNISH CHOUGH. [Cobvidjb.]
CORNISH DAW. [Cobvida]
CORNSTONK The peculiar Limestone, often mottled in colour,
of the Old Red-Sandstone of Hereford, Salop, and South Wales, receives
this title. (Murchison, Silurioin Syttem.)
CORNUAMMONia [AiocoviTBa.]
CORNULITES, an obscurely characterised genus (of PUypiaria f),
which occtm in the Silurian Limestones and Sandstones very fre-
quently, as at Dudley, Usk, Marloes Bay, &c. (Murchison, SUnrian
HjfMteaiy pL 26, t 5.)
CORN US, a genus of Plants, the type of the natural oxder Cwnaeem.
It has a calyx with a very small 4-toothed limb; with 4 oblong
sessile petals ; 6 stamens ; 1 style ; a baccate drupe marked with
traces of a <»lyx; the stone 2Hselled, rarely S-oeUed; the seeds
solitary, pendulous; the albumen fleshy; Uie radide-of the embryo
shorter than the cotyledons. The species are trees, shrubs, or low
herbs, with opposite leaves, and white flowers^ sometimes yellowish.
C, Mfi^mea, Dog-Wood, Wild Cornel-Tree, has arborescent straight
branches; ovate cuspidate leaves, green on both sides; t]^e cymes
flat^ without an involucre. This plant is a shrub, i«aohing a height
of 5. or 6 feet Its branches are of a reddish colour. It is a native of
Oreat Britain, in hedges and thickets. It also inhabits North America,
in Canada and the State of New York; but was probably introduced
there. It has a dark purple fruit, which is very bitter. Matthiolus
says that it contains an oil, which is sometimes expressed, and is used
for lampa The wood is used for making charcoal, from which gun-
powder is made. The fruits are sometimes mistaken for those of
bnckthom, but do not possesa the active properties of that plant
The wood is also used for making skewers for butchers. It is called in
the country Female Cornel, Pnck-Wood, Dogberry-Tree, Hound'a-
Tree, Gat^ and Qaten-Tree.
C, mueiea, Dwarf Cornel, has herbaceous stems, the leaves all oppo-
site, sessile, ovate; the nerves separate almost to the base; the
flowers umbellate^ shorter than the 4-leaved petaloid involucre. It is
found in high mountain pastures in England and Scotland. It is not
BO large a plant as the last, and has purple flowers with yellow
stamens. The berries are red and sweetish, and are supposed by the
Highlanders to create an appetite^ of which their name for Uiem,
' Lua-a-Chrasis,' is expressive.
C, fionda has shining branches, ovate acuminated leaves, pale
beneath, beset with adprcooed hairs ; the flowers umbellate ; the leaves
of involucre large, roundish, retuse, the drupes ovate. It is a native
of moist forests in the United States, especially on the borders of
swamps. The bark of this tree is a powerful tonic, astringent^ and
antiseptic, resembling Cinekona in its action on the system, and much
valued by American physicians. The young branches stripped of
their bark, when rubbed against the teeth, render them extremely
white. The bark of the roots yields a colouring-matter which dyes
cloth scarlet
C. aericea. Silky Dogwood, has spreading branches ; woolly branch-
lets ; ovate acuminate leaves, clothed with rusty pubescence beneath ;
the corymbs depressed, woolly; the nucleus cpmpressed. It is a
native of North America, in moist woods. It has the same properties
as the last species, and is used for the cure of intermittent fevers. It
is probable that these plants contain an alkaloid identical with quinine,
but it has not yet been separated.
C, ma$, Male Cornel, Cornelian Cherry, has smoothish branches ;
leaves or:tl, acuminate, i-ather pubescent on both surfaces ; flowers I
rising before the leaves; the umbels about equal in length to the 4-
leaved involucre ; the fruit elliptic. It is a native throughout the
continent of Europe, but is not found in Qreat Britain. It has yellow
flowers, which are succeeded by an elliptical fruit of a bright shining
scarlet colour, of the sixe and form of a small acorn. This plant was
formerly cultivated for the sake of its fruit, but it is very inferior to
many others that can be more easily produced, so thiit it is not now
often used. The fruit is called Corbet by the Turks, and is used
by them in the manufacture of sherbet The wood is very durable
The species of Comus form good plants for shrubberries, and many
of them \7ill grow under the drip of trees, and in spots where other
plants will not thrive. They may be propagated by cuttings, layers,
or suckers.
(Don, I>iehlamydeou» Plantt ; Lindley, Flora Mediea ; Babington,
Manual of British Botany.)
COROLLA, the name given by botanists to the innermost of the
envelopes of which the flower is composed. Like the Calyx [Caltx]
it ia formed of leaves changed from the ordinary state of those parts
in consequence of an alteration in the office they have to perform, but
liable to resume the state of common leaves if exposed to the effect of
any disturbing cause. The corolla is usually thin, delicate, perish-
able, and both laiger and more richly coloured than the calyx ; hence
the older botanists considered those qualities proper to the corolla,
and applied the term to all cases in which they existed. But it is now
known that the calyx is frequently in the same state, and hence the
only distinction that is now made between calyx and corolla is to
consider everything calyx which forms the exterior of two or more
rows of floral envelopes, everything corolla that belongs to the inner
rows, and when there is omy one row, to refer that to the calyx,
whatever the colour or texture of it may be.
There is little doubt that when a calvx is green and leafy its busi-
ness is principally to protect the corolla ; and that a corolla when
laige, thin, and brightly coloured, is intended to exercise some special
influence upon the fertUising organs of the flower; for while the
respiratory action of the calyx when green is not distinguishable from
that of common leaves, the corolla differs most essentinJly in the want
of all power of decomposing carbonic acid ; it absorbs oxygen from
the air, but does not part with it again in a pure state : on the con-
trary, it combines it with its carbon, and throws off the carbonic acid
thus formed. But although there is this difference between the calyx
and corolla in ordinary cases, the functions of the corolla are par-
formed by the calyx when it has the appearance of a corolla, and
vice vend. The peculiar functions of tnese parta are therefore
performed indifferently by the one or the other according to their
structure.
The leaves of which a corolla is composed are called Petals ; and
the endless varieties of its form and structure depend principally
upon the different manner in which those parts are unitea, or upon
the proportions they bear to each other. A Monopetalous Corolla, for
instance, is composed of several petals joined more or less together by
their edges ; Campanulate Corollas originate from petals without a
claw or unguis; Tubular Corollas from unguiculate petals. In a
regular monopetalous corolla all the petals are of equal size, and are
united in the same degree ; in an irregular monopetalous ooroUa, the
petals are unequal in size, and perhaps unequally united.
The corolla is generally the part of the flower in which grotesque
forms are most frequently met with ; such as horns or spurs project-
ing from the base ; or a cowled figure, or dark hairy appearances
resembling the bodies of insects, as in the Bee-Larkspur, various orchi-
daceous plants, &a The cause of these singular forms is entirely
unknown ; they appear to be specific cases of which no explanation
can be given. [Flowbb.]
COROLLIFLOR^, a subdivision of the class of Exogenous or
Dicotyledonous Plants. It embraces those orders in which the petals
are united and the stamens are attached to those organs.
CORONARIL [Ammonites.]
CORONILLA, agenits of Plants belonging to the natural order Zf^a-
minoeau It has a campanulate calyx, short, 5-toothed, the superior
teeth approximated and nearly united. Claws of the petals distinctly
longer than the calyx ; keel acute. Stamens diadelphous. Legume
tapering, slender, finally separating into oblong l-seedod joints. Seeds
ovate or cylindricaL The speciea are shrubs or herbaceous plants.
Leaves unequally pinnated. Peduncles axillary, bearing an umbel
of stalked flowers.
C, Emerue is common all over the South of Europe. It is known
by the name of Scorpion Senna, and its leaves are cathartic like thos<>
of true Senna, but less so. It is a small bush. Branches deep
green, strongly furrowed, quite smooth. Leaflets 2-3 pairs, obovatew
retuse or obtuse, when young very downy ; stipules ovate, acute, very
much shorter ^an the first joint of the petiole. Peduncles axillary,
2-3-flowered, slender, erect, as lonj; as the leaves. Calyx fdightly
downy, only half the length of the claws of the petals. Corolla deep
bright yellow. Legume a long while before its joints drop in pieces.
C. vana is an herbaceous plant, with distinct lanceolate petals ; the
leaflets 9-13, oblong, elliptic, mucronate, the lower ones approaching
the stem ; the umbels 16-2(lf-flowered ; the legumes angular, veiy long^
straight It inhabits meadows and waste places iu the soutli of
Europe and in the Crimea. The leavea h.ive a diuretic action on th^
lei
COBONULA.
CORVlDiE.
luS
fiyiftem, and aLio puiige. The juice is said to be poiaonouB wLen taken
in large quantities ; although this is the action on the human system,
cattle feed on this plant with aridity, and it has been proposed to
cultivate it in. this countiy as fodder. It probably does not develop
its aetire secretions in climates north ot its native districts. In a
good soil the stems grow to the height of five feet, so as amply to
repay its cultivation, especially in a diy season. When once planted
it is diiBcult to eradicate. C. globota and C, (beriea have the same
tendency.
The species of OoroniUa are numerous, and are all shrubs or herbs,
adapted for ornamental cultivation. Of the hardy shrubby species,
ripened cuttings root freely, and may be planted in open ground in
the autumn. The frame and greenhouse species are of easy culture.
They grow best in a mixture of loam and peat; cuttings strike
readily in sand under a hand-glass, and may be turned out into the
open border in spring, where they will flower all summer. Many of
them are well adapted for rock-wotk, but are apt to be killed during
a severe winter.
(Don, XHchUunydeaus Plants; Loudon, Enepclopcedia of PlcaUs;
Lindley, Flora medico.)
CORONULA. [CiBBiPRDiA.]
COROPHIUM, a genus of Animals belonging to the class Crustacea
and the family Oammarince. With the whole of the funily, it is
remarkable for the length of its antenna. It has no claws. One of
the species. Cancer aronipe* of Linnseus, QafMuaruM longieomU of
FabriciuB, Onitcua vMutaior of Pallas, is well known on the coast of
La Rochelle for its habit of burrowing in the sand. They live prin-
cipally upon the annelides which inhabit the sand, and are remarkable
for assembling in great numbers around their prey, and destroying it
although it may be twenty times as large as themselves. They also
attack fishes, moUntca, and the dead bodies of other ftwitwiilM.
CORREA, n genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
JtutacffE, of which one of the species, C, alba, is used by the settlers in
Australia as a substitute for tea. (Lindley, Vegetable Kingdom.)
CORRIOrOLA (diminutive of corrigia, a shoe-string), a genus of
Plants belonging to the natural order Paronyehieee, It has 5 sepals
slightlv cohering at the base ; 5 petals equalling the sepals ; 5 stamens;
8 sessile stigmas ; a 1-seeded indehiscent fruit; the seed suspended
by its cord, which arises from the base of the capsule; the petal, as
the sepal, inserted upon an obscurely perigynous ring at the bottom
of the calyx. The species are procumbent glaucous herbs, with
alternate stipulate leaves.
C. littoraliSf Strap- Wort, has the stem leafy on the part only which
bears the flowers. It is the only British species of the genus. It is
found on sandy shores in England, but it is not an abundant plant.
There are three or four other species described, natives of America
and Africa.
(Babington, Manual of BrUith Botany.)
CORSIOAN MOSS. [Plooabia.]
CORUNDUM. Several substances difiering considerably in colour,
and sometimes in form, but nearly agreeing in composition, are classed
together tmder the name of Corundum, which is that given to the
common variety bv the natives of India.
tSapphire, of which there are several varieties, the names of which
are dependent chiefly upon their colour : the White Sapphire, which
is transparent or translucent ; the Oriental Sapphire, which is blue ;
Oriental Amethyst, which is purple; the OrienteU Topaz, yellow; the
Oriental Emerald, green ; and some other varieties occur, as the Cha-
toyant and the Opaleecent Sapphire. The Sapphire occurs in rolled
masses and crystallised, and the primary form oi this and every variety
of crystallised Corundum is a slightly acute rhomboid, presenting a
great variety of secondary forms ; it usually occurs in the form of
0-sided prisms variously terminated. Its specific gravity is 8*976 to
4*101 ; it possesses double refraction, and is inferior in business only
to the diamond. Alone before the blow-pipe it suffers no change ;
with borax it fuses slowly but perfectly into a colourless glass. In
one direction only the crystals cleave readily parallel with the faces
of the primary rhomboid, and present a very brilliant surface ; the
cross fracture is conchoidaL The finest are found in Ceylon. Accord-
ing to the analysis of Chenevix, the Sapphire consists of —
Alumina 92
SUica 6*25
Oxide of Iron 1
98-26
According however to Dr. Thomas Muir, this substance is pure
alumina, containing no silica but what is abraded from the mortar ;
and this is the view adopted by modem mineralogists.
Jiuby. Colour blood-red or rose-red, sometimes a tinge of violet ;
primary form as above, and generally occurs in Owitded prisms. It is
not 80 hnrd as the Sapphire, and is more readily cleaved. Like the
Sapphire, it consists of pure alumina. '' The laigest oriental ruby
known was brought from China to Prince Gargarin, governor of Siberia ;
it afterwards came into the possession of Prince Menzilkoff", and con-
stitutes now a jewel in the Imperial Crown of Russia." (Dana.)
CoTnmon Corundum, the variety usually called Adamantine Spar,
occurs, like the Sapphire and Ruby, commonly in the secondary form
of 0-sided prisms, but usually much laigor. It is sometimes nearly
colourless, and rather translucent ; it presents great vai*ioty of colour.
but is most coinuiouly gi-ecnish or grayish ; occasionally bruwu or i-eJ,
rarely blue. Although iu most common form is the 6-sided prism,
it occurs, though rarely, also in acute and obtuse double 6-eided
pyramids. On account of its extreme hardness it received the name
of Adamantine Spar. It occurs in China, Bengal, Malabar, Tibet, the
Camatic, ftc. It is used in the East Indies for cutting and polishing
precious stones, and also granite and other hard rocks that are em-
ployed in the temples and other public monuments. According to
Chenevix, the Camatic Corundum contains silica, but this does not
appear to be constants
Emery. This substance which, when reduced to powder, is much
used for polishing hard bodies, though very different in appearance
from the preceding, is, on account of its hardness and analysis,
regarded ss Amorphous Corundum. Its colour is usually gray; its
lustre is somewhat glistening. Its specific gravity is about 8'66
to 4 ; it occurs massive, and is granular. It is principally imported
from the island of Naxos in the Qredao Archipelago, and was found
by Mr. Smithson Tennant to consist of —
Alumina 86
SiUca 8
Oxide of Iron 4
—98
It occurs also in Italy, Spain, and Saxony ; and it is said, in small
quantities, also in Wicklow, Ireland.
CCRVIDiE, Crows, a family of Birds belonging to the division
Conirottres. The bill is strong, slightly cultrirostral, or more or leas
compressed ; the gape or commissure straightb The nostrilB are
covered with stiff bruitle-like feathers directed forwards.
" The Nueifraga, Briss., our Britidi Nutcracker," savs Mr. Yigors,*
in his paper ' On the Natural Affinities that connect the Orders and
Families of Birds,' in ' Linn. Trans.,' " closely resembling the pre-
ceding groups (Fam. Stumida) in the form of its bill, in conjunction
with Barita, Cuv., introduces us into the family of Corvidce, From
that genus we may trace a line of affinities, through some intervening
forms, to the Jays and Rollers, Oarrulm, Briss., and Ooraeiat, Linn.,
until we arrive at the Corvut of Linnaeus, which again branches out
into several groups closely allied to each other, but differing consider-
ably in the structure of the bill. Hence we proceed by means of
Olaueopu, Forst., to some genera, among which we may particularise
Ptilonorhynehus, KuhL, Crypeirina, VieiS., Eulabee, Cuv., and PregUut,
Cuv., which, in the metallic lustre of their plumage and the velvet*
like process that in some species ornaments the face, indicate our
approach to the Birds of Paradis& The last-mentioned genus, Pre-
gilus, in particular, by its curved and slender bill, brings us imme-
diately into this group, the Paradieea, Linn., which, in conjunction
with the EpifMuihue of M. Cuvier, tenninates the family of Cvrvidct,
Here we shall probably find the passage from the present to the
succeeding family. The Epimachun, more united in its front toes
than the Corvida in general, holds a middle station in respect to that
character between the two groups ; while in the length and curvature
of its bill it approaches, in conjunction with many of the Paradiseee,
to some of the extreme species of the Bueeridee, among which 'the
Buceroe natutut of Latham may be instanced." Mr. Vigors, in a note,
says that he speaks with considerable hesitation as to the situation of
Epimachue, wtdch bears too strong a resemblance to the Promerope
of M. Brisson, a group feeding on vegetable juices, with an extoisile
tongue, to permit him to separate it without some expression of
doubt.
Mr. Swainson, in ' Fauna Boreali-Americana,' vol il, thus writes on
the Corvidce : — " There are some singular and highly interesting
peculiarities exclusively belonging to groups pre-eminently typical,
which demand the deepest attention of the {milosophio natuiaUstk
One of the most striking of these is the great difference between
those forms which belong to perfect and natural genera, strictly so
termed. We might cite the restricted genera, Tanagra, CeuhmoT'
hynchua (Camnarhynchot), and Coccothrauetee, as remarluible examples
of this fact, and as groups which would repav the most minute
analysis. This peculiarity sometimes extends to higher groups ; and
in the present family, the most pre-eminently typical in the whole
circle of ornithology, it is more striking than in any other. It is
perhaps to this circumstance that we must attribute the very imper-
fect manner in which the internal relations of the Corvidce have been
illustrated, and the artificial distribution that has been made of the
groups it containa Our space indeed will not permit us at present to
throw much light upon the subject, further than what may be gained
by studying the following table of sub-families : —
1. Typical Qroup.
Analogies. Siib-fainillca.
2. Sub-Typical Qroup.
8. Aberrant Qroup.
SCAKSORES. TBiU short, entire, light; feet short. 1 Crypeirince.
Tenuirostres. <♦ ♦ • • • • *M
FissiRoSTRBS. [ BiU slender, lengthened ; feet short. J JWgi'ina:,
va
COUVWJE.
" k glnnce ftl the modem nrrangeinentd miii ihow how eu
we differ from all ornilbologints who lika oa hnvo attempted ■
lUM this yerj iutricate family. Tha t«st« however ly which every
nerieB of animatfl thought to be natiim] muHt be tried, will brio^ to
light moDj remarkable peculiarities which belong Dal; to the fore-
gi>ing arrangement. Yet however confideQt we feel on the general
accurac; of this sketch, vra are unprepared either to show in what
■□aiiner the aub-families are connected, or to refer man; of the modem
{.Tiiera to their natural divisiona. The Jsjs (Oamiina) UQqueation-
ably represent the Buih-Shrikes (Tliamnophilina) ; while the genua
Criiptirata and the ahort-leggod Glaucopina of M. Tomminck form
part of a gronptypifjing the Drongo-ahrikea, The slender bill ot the
PngtUna, at the opposite side of the circle, indicites the position of
the fiseirostrsl group, corresponding to the Bactrida. But we have
' msuy doubts on the true nature of the tenuirostial tf pe, siace it
miiit QOt oaly represent the Hang-Ne*t Starlings (/cfcrins), but also
the Calerpillar-Catchera Ifitblipyritta), and the typical Ampetida, or
Chatterer*. Now it will strike every ornithologist who has the means
of eiamining the Graevia ealea of authors, that notwithstanding its
general resemblance to the Chauve of Le Taillant (■ Oiseaux de
I'Amtfrique,' pL 49), it is decidedly a Crow ; while the latter is con-
•idered by Le VaiUant as unquestionably belonging lo the A mptlida.
We have therefore good reason to suspect the Qracila caiva to be one
of the tenuirostml types of the Corrida. Id all probability it will
prove to be the sub-family type representing that tribe, although at
gite.
<^
the ndea; convei and curved towards lie point, its edges cutting.
Nostrils open. Fourth qoill the longest. Tail even, rounded, or
red^linenr.
" The apecies Coma," says H. Leasoo, " is very Dumerous in its
species. Birds which differ in their characters and halnta tima the
crows, properly so callad^which are the largest of the Poswru,
whose way of life is camivoroud, and their food composed of oU sorts
of nibstances, especially carrion — have been joined to the genus; The
crows poBsess much intelligence, are easily tuned, and become very
fnmiliar. They ore very vorscions, and live in numerous bands, and
their harsh cry has been called croaking. They often commit sui^
hsvoc that a price is set on their head m some countries. They have
at all times been objects of superetitjon to the people. Some of the
' ' " rs again are travellera, and migrate annually.
imd in ell the four quarters of fho
Tbvj moult hut (
The species of
globe.
C. Corax, the Raven. This welt-known bird ia the lU|>atafthe
Oreeks ; ComuM of the Latins ; Corro, Corbo, and Corvo Qroaso of
the modem ttaliaas; El Cuervo ot the Spaniards; Corbeau of the
French; Ber Rabe and Der Kolkrabe of ^eQermans; Korpofthe
Swedes; Rkud of the Danes; Corbie of the Sootoh ; Cigfran of the
Welsh ; Knw-kaw-gew of tie Cree Indians ; and TooUoo-ak of tike
Esquimaux. Sir John Richardson says that it abounds in the Fur
Countries, and visits the remotest islands of the Polar Seas. "It
frequents the Barren Qrouuds even in the moat intense winter colds,
its movements being directed in a great measure by those of the berds
of rein-deer, musk-oxen, and bison, which it follows, ready to assist in
devouring such as are killed by beasts of prey or by accident. Np
sooner has a hunter alaiigbtered an animal than these birds are seen
coming from various quarters to feast on the offal ; and considerable
numbers constantly attend the fishing stations, where the; show
Hiual boldness and rapacity. The eiperienced native, when he aeea
from afar a flock of ravens wheeling in small circles, knows that a
party of hia countrymen well provided with veniaon are encamped on
the spot, or that a band of wolves are preying upon the carcass of some
of the larger quadrupeds, and pushes on briskly in the certain pros-
pect of having his wants supplied. The thievish habib of a tame
raven are well known ; but it is remarkable that, inhabiting in a wild
state the most socluded and worst peopled districts of America, it
thould exhibit the same disposition to carry off shining metallic
bodies and other articles totally unfit either for food or to be used in
the construction of its nest; Hr. Kendall, in crossing the height of land
which divides the natera that flow towsfils Hudson'a Bay from those
which fall into the Arctic Sea, aaw a raven Sying off wMi something
in his clawB pursued by a number of his clamourous companions.
The bird being fired at dropped the object of contention, which
proved to be the lock of a cheat"
The aptitude of the raven for articulating clearly ia generally
admitted. Hr. Swainson says, "One belonging to lib. Henalow, of
BL Albans, speaks so distinctly that when Brst we heard it we were
actually deceived in thinking it was a human voice : and there !s
another at Chatham which has mode equal proficiency ; for living in
the vicini^ of a giiaid-houae it has more than once turned out the
guard, who thought they were called by the sentinel on duty."
Sir John Richardson {'Fauna Boreali -Americana ') statiS that a
pied individual was killed on the south branch of the Uackeniie from
a flock of the common sort lis nsck, fore part of the baok, and
part of VUa wings were gray ; the i«it of ita plumage black.
COUVID^ lU
This," writes Dr. Latham, "is a univeraid apcdes, found both In
the old and new continents ; from Greenland to the Cape of Oood
Hope in the one, and from Hudson's Bay to Heiico in the other. It
was also met with by our circumnavigators in the Sandwich Isles,
and at Owhybee was held in great estimation." Its appearance ia
recorded in the first and second voyage of Parry as occurring within
the Arctic Circle, and in Franklin's Journal. Several pairs were seen
Helville laland, and Sir John RicbardaoQ gives a desoription of
le killed at Fort Franklin in March, 1820.
Sir James Roas ('Anpendii to Sir John RoJs's Second Voyage,'
p. 28), speaking of the lUven, soya, " This is one of the few birds Uiat
- — capable of braving the severity of an arctic winter, and of enduring
scorching raya ot a tropical sun without any change being pro-
duced in its plumage by the extremes of climate. Cuvier and other
authora mention that in the north it is frequently found more or less
white : we never saw anything corroborative of such an observstiott.
It preserves ita plumage and peculiar characteristics unchanged in
evBiy quarter of the globe."
In his ' History of British Birds,' Hr. Yorrell haa gone into ■
minute investigation of the stmcture of the larynx in the Raven, in
which he shows that ita power of voioe depends on the complicated
Lture of the muscular apparatus with which tbia oi^an is supplied.
C./rufi'ifffui (Linn.), the Rook. This well-known gregarious and
familiar bird (for it seems to aS*ect the neighbourhood of man. and
even not to be seared by the amoky atmosphere of great towns) is the
Comacchia Nera and Comacchione of the Italians; Qraye, Orolle,
Freux, and Fniyonne of the French ; ComeilleMoisaoneuseof Brieson;
Schwartce Kriihe of the Qermans ; Boka of the Swedes ; and Ydfren
of the Welsh.
DvDd and Fool at Book {Oimu firufUifn).
Bslon and Caius, the latter of whom names the Rook l^iervmhgiu,
ant Fmgikga, appear to be of opinion that it is the 3npiii)\iyai of
Aristot^ ('Hist Anim.'viiLS). It is doubtless, as Pennant observe^
the Comu of Vi:^, who has happily described a flock of Uiem —
.* lib. i. V
The Rook is spread over the graator part of Europe ; but nowhen
doe* it seem to be more abundant than in Great Britain and Ireland.
Wooded and cultivated districts are ita &vourite haunts. The
farther north the observer goes in Scotland the fewer rooks does he
see. In Orknn and Shetland there are none, nor are there any in
Guernsey and Jersey. They do not appear to be numnona in Den-
mark, nor in the southern districts of Sweden, nor in Russia and
northern Asia, thou^ they may be seen there. In iMly the Rook is
oommon and permanent ; but it appean to be migratory over a part
of the continent of Europe. In France it is also common, and th*
following quatrain appears under the cut of it in tba 'Fortraita
d'Oyseaui :'~
" Ismsls le Fnax ne haole ta livagei
£t ne se palst que de rnliu et
u, srofliwrvers,
It oocura between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea ; and Dr. Yon
Stebold and H. Biirger note it among the European birds seen by
them in Japan.
Grain, and insects especially, form the food of the Book, and then
doubt that it amply renays the farmer for the seed which
165
CORVID-^
CORVIDiE.
136
llook-Worma in many places, and the birds may be seen following
the plough-tail to gather them up as the share exposes them. In the
end of May and beginning of June, when the young are able to fly
and go abroad with their parents, they may often be seen among the
bright green leaves of the horse-chestnut and other trees, bending the
branches with their weight as they assemble to pick off the cock-
chafers in their winged state. Where these birds have been incon-
siderately destroyed on account of the supposed damage which they
had done, a total ftulure of the crops has made the farmer glad to try
to get them back again. The stick-built nest contains four or five
pale g^reenish eggs, blotched with dark greenish-brown; these are
sometimes palmed upon the undisceming for plovers' eggs, but are
easily distinguished from them. Not that a rook's egg is by any
means bad, though far inferior in every respect to the other. The
male is most attentive to the female whilst she is sitting, and feeds
her assiduously ; both are very industrious in supplying their young,
and the skin under the tongue may at this season be often seen
dilated into a kind of pouch by the collected food. During the
building season they have great squabbles among themselves about
their nests. An account of one of their battles with the herons for
the possession of a disputed territory is alluded to in the article
Abdba. They frequently visit their nest-trees in the autumn on
their way to roost in some distant wood, and come to them for the
purpose of repairing their nest, and setting about the business of
mcubation early in March.
The Rook is not without the power of mimicry granted so laigely
to the greater part of the true crows, is docile, capable of learning
amusing tricks, and becomes much attached to the kind hand that
feeds it. It has been heard to imitate the note of a jackdaw
(Hewitson) and the barking of dogs so perfectly that if the mimic
had been out of sight no ear could have discovered the deception.
(Macgillivray.)
Varieties. — ^White, pied, and cream-coloured. "A gentleman,"
says the charming author of the ' History of Selbome, " had two
milk-white rooks in one nest. A bOoby of a carter finding them
before they were able to fly, threw them down and destroyed them,
to the regret of the owner, who would have been glad to have pre-
served such a curiosity in the rookery. I saw the birds myself nslled
against the end of a Imm, and was surprised to find that their bills,
legs, feet, and claws were milk-white. These perhaps were perfect
albinos, and might so have continu^ ; but instances are not wanting
where the origioal light colour deepens into the usual sable with age.
Mr. Yarrell quotes Mr. Hunt, of Norwich, who states that a gentleman
of his acquaintance had in 1816 a young rook of a light ash colour
most beautifully mottled all over with black, and the quill and tail-
feathers elegantly barred ; but when the bird moulted it became a
jet-black rook, and in this state was suffered to join its sable brethren
in the fields. Mr. Yarrell remarks that this agrees with his own
observations, and he adds that accidental varieties will generally be
found to be comparatively small and weak birda As these young
birds increase in age and gain constitutional power, the secretions, he
observes, become perfect, and the plumage assumes its natural
colours, whilst the assumption of white feathers by old birds is
probably the effect of the converse operation of the physiological law.
(* British Birds.')
It has been, and indeed still is with some, a question whether the
loss of the feathers at the base of the beak in the young rook upon
the first moult, is or is not a specific distinction, or merely the result
of denudation from plimging the bill into the ground in search of
prey. It must be borne in mind that some foreign birds resemble
the rook in this particular. Mr. John Blackwall's observations
(' Researches in Zoology ') touching this matter are full of interest.
He i-efers to a rook preserved in the Manchester Museum, which has
its mandibles crossed near their extremities, but so slightly that the
malformation could not have interfered materially with the mode of
procuring food usually resorted to by rooks, as is clearly shown by
the denuded state of the nostrils and anterior part of the head, both
of which are entirely destitute of feathers. But he notices another
specimen, in the possession of Mr. R. Wood of Manchester, which has
the mandibles greatly elongated and much curved. "Now," says
Mr. Blackwall, *'it is evident that the bird possessing a bill thus
formed could not thrust it into the ground in search of worms and
larvsB of insects, as the rook is known to do habitually ; and accord-
ingly the plumage at the base of the bill of this individual, and the
bnstly feathers which cover its nostrils, are very conspicuous, not
having sustained the slightest injury. The opinion entertained by
many persons that the naked condition of the nostrils and anterior
part of the head is an original peculiarity in the rook is thus satis-
factorily proved to be incorrect ; indeed the fact that young rooks
exhibit no deficiency in these particulars is sufficiently conclusive on
this point ; but the possibility of an entire species being endowed
with an instinct destructive of a usual portion of its organisation was
probably never contemplated by tliese observers ; it is not surprising
therefore that the inference deduced from a partial view of the
subject should be erroneous."
C, Corone, the Carrion-Crow, Qor Crow, Black Crow, Corby Crow,
Hoody, Bran. ; the Comeille Noire of the FrencL It has the feathers
of the throat short, ovate-lanceolate, compact. Tail stniight, slightly |
rounded. Plumnge black, highly glossed, with purple reflections
above and green beneath. Young similar, but less glossy.
It is found throughout England, and also in the north of Ireland
and Scotland. It idso inhabits Germany, France, Spain, Provence,
and Italy. Temminck says it is a native of Japan.
Like the raven, the crows keep in pairs all the year, and seldom
more than two are found together, unless at a feast of carrion. Its
partiality to animal food has given it its various appellations, as well
as that of Flesh-Crow. They are dangerous enemies where sheep are.
They attack lambs and small quadrupeds, as well as the young of
birds. They also eat shell-fish on the sea-shore. In de&ult of meat
they eat grain, potatoes, and have been known to feed on green-
walnuts. The Carrion-Crow is an early breeder, and commences
building its nest in February. The female lays four or five eggs of a
pale bluish-green, spotted and speckled with two shades of ash colour
and dove-brown.
C. comixt the Hooded or Royston Crow, Gray-Backed Crow, Gray
Crow, Dun Crow, Bunting Crow, Heedy Crow ; Comeille Mantel^ of
the French. The feathers of the throat are short, lanceolate, comp€u^t ;
tail straight, slightly rounded ; head, fore-neck, wings, and tail, black ;
the other parts ash-gray. Young with the plumage all dull blacky
except a broadband of dusky round the fore part of the body.
This bird resembles the last in its form, and in its habits is said to
be even more mischievous. In the southern parts of England it ia
only a winter visitant, arriving from the north early in October, and
departing again in ApriL In the western and northern parts of Scot-
land it remains all the year. It frequents marshes near the sea, the
banks and shores of tidal rivers, as for instance the Thames. It is
called Royston from its frequency in the neighbourhood of that town
from October to ApriL Like tbe last species, they feed on lambs,
poultry, and other animals, and when on the sea-shore partaking of
cnutacea, moUutcti, and fish. Mr. Selby says, "I have repeatedly
observed one of these birds to soar up to a considerable height in the
air, with a cockle or mussel in its bill, and then drop it upon the r jok
in order to obtain the included fish." The Hooded Crow often pairs
with the Carrion-Crow, and, what is singular, the produce are not
apparent hybrids, but assume either the plumage of the Hooded Crow,
or Carrion-Crow.
Pica. — Bill entire, with cutting edges, straight or curved, furnished
at the base with setaceous feathers, lying forwards. Tail very long,
graduated. (Vieillot)
The Piece, Magpies, feed much in the same manner as the true
crows, build their nests in trees, advance on the ground by hopping,
are clamorous, leam to articulate words easily, and the European
species is renowned for hiding anything shining and portable that
pleases its eye. This bird also has been always an object of supersti-
tion with the vulgar.
P. caiid<Ua of Ray, Corvui Pica of LimuDus, our common Magpie,
or Pianet, is, there is hardly any doubt, the Klrra of the Greeks. It
is the Pica of the Romans ; Gazza, Regazsa, Putta, Picha, Gazzuola,
Gazzara, Ghiandara, Gaggia, and Ghiggia Domenicana, of the Italians ;
Pie, Jaguette, Dame, and Agasse, of the French; Die Elster,
Die Aebter or Aglaster, of the Germans ; Skade and Huus Skade of
the Danes ; Skior and Tunfugl of the Norwegians ; Piogen of the
Welsh ; and Ootawa-kee-aakee of the Cree Indianis.
The Magpie hardly needs description, its plumage of black and
white being so characteristic and well known. It is omnivorous, and
lays six or seven oblong eggs of a yellowish-white, spotted with brown,
and cinereous : its nest^ wdl fortified with blackthorn twigs, is a curiosity.
The female is rather less than the male, and her tail is shorter.
"This bird," says Sir John Richardson ('Fauna Boreali- Ameri-
cana'), "so common in Europe, is equally plentiful in the interior
prairie lands of America; but it is singular that though it abounds
on the shores of Sweden and other maritime parts of the Old World,
it is very rare on the Atlantic coasts of America, or near Hudson's
Bay : only stray individuals passing to the eastward of the Mississippi
or of Lake Winipeg. Mr. Say informs us that it winters on the
Missouri, and takes its departiure northwards on the 23rd of March.
It does not entirely quit the banks of the Saskatchewan even in
winter, but is much more frequent in summer. On comparing its
eggs with those of the European bird, they are found to be longer and
narrower; and though the coloiuv are the same, the blotcnes art
laiger and more diffused. The manners of the American bird are
precisely the same that we are accustomed to observe in the Engli-ih
one." Mr. Swainson odds, that he has been able to compare English
and Arctic specimens with one from the interior of China, communi-
cated to him by Mr. Gray, and that he cannot perceive the slightest
difference whereon to build even the character of a variety, much less
of a species. The tails of the Arctic specimens, he observes, are very
beautiful. A white variety of this bird is occasionally seen.
The habits of the Magpie are very suspicious. Although seeking
the habitations of man, it is always prompted by s^-interestw " It
is," says Montagu, "a great enemy to the husbandman ^nd the
preserver of game; but has cunning enough to evade their wrath.
No animal food comes amiss to their carnivorous appetite; young
poultry, eggs, young lambs^ and even weakly sheep it will attempt to
destroy by first plucking out their eyes ; the young of hares, rabbiti^
and feathered game, share the same fiate; fish, carrion, insects^ and
fhiit, lutly grain, irheD oothuig eUe can be got. It ia
bird.
l»aUyg
r aloud I
apparent danger, and thereby j
J Dr. Latham aayi be baa Been ti*o Tarietiea ; the one pure nliite, the
LI I other as in the ConunoQ Jay, bat haling the whola of tbs quilli
appear without being obeerved end haunted ; even the fowler la
frequently apolled of hie sporty tar all other birda seem to koo^r the
alorraing chatter of the magpie."
Everywhere this bird ia marked for destruction, and were it not
for ita sagacity it would certoiuljloDg eince have become extinct.
This bird is common io Scotland. Although not koown in Ireland
a ceutury and half mnce, they are now common. This bird is very
oommon in Norway, where the tnbabjtanta avoid destroying it. It
liree in X^pland, and is common in the Morea. It is also a oAtive of
China and Japan.
There ore several foreign spedea of PUa. They occur both in the
Old and New World.
DemtneUla — a genus founded by Mr, Qould, and comprehending
Pica vagabunda of Wagler, P. SiatntU of Hardwicke and Gray, and
a tliird ipedei, which Hr. Qould believes to have been hitherto
ird ipeciei,
It haa the bill ehorter than the head, cultreted, broad at the base
ctjlmen arched, aidee eubtumid; nostrils basal, partly oovred witi:
■etaceoni feathers. Wings moderate : fifth and sixth quills longest
Tail elongate, cuneated, the tail-feathers spatulat«. Feet (tani) short
and weak: toes moderate; hallux strong, with a etroog incurv'-'
D. loKDgaitnL Block ; occiput, neck, tiansvene artripe at the
of the quills, and abdomen, white ; scapulars, interscapular n _
<intei»c*pulio), and lower tail-coverts, tinged with chestnut (dilute
caatoneis); two intamal toil-featliers a^-colouied, except at their tips.
" The sbortneBB and compantive feebleness of the tarsi in Den-
dToeUta, and its more elongated tail, tbe feethen of which are equally
gTaduat«d, except the two middle ones, which ore much longer than
Uie others, distinguish it from the typical Pica, the common magpie,
for example. These characters are in accordance with its haUt of
wandering from tree to tree in search of ite food. It is farther
distingni^ed by the form of ita bill.
" All the speciea jet known are native! of Eastern Asia." (Ooold,
ZooL'Ptoc.,' May lith, 1833.)
D. ragabunda. Pica ragabtrnda, Wagler. Head, neck, and crest, of
a amoke colour, or blackish gray; the back light cinnamon ; tbe centre
of the wings gny ; tbe quilla black ; the tail gray, each feather being
tipped laigel; with block ; under surface pole tawny ; beak and tarai
black. Length 16} iuchca; beak IJ inch; tarsi 11 inch; tail ID
incheo. The species ia mom wide! j diffused than an; of its congeners,
beiUK found in oonsidereble abundance all over India. (Qonld, 'Century
ot Birda from the Himalaya Mountaina')
Carr^M. — Bill moderate, straight^ with cuttjng edges, inclined, and
with obecnre notches near l^e point. Tail even, sometimes rounded.
(TieilloL)
The Joya are inhabitants of the wooded dietricta, and live chiefly
upon fruits, principaiiy acorns and such vegetable productions. They
larely come mto the open country, but make great havoc in gardens
and cultivated grounds in the neighbourhood of woodlands. Their
food is much leas varied thou that of the true crows ; but they may
■till be styled omnivorouo. Their plumage is generally |ay, and even
brilliant: the beautiful speculum on the wing is a leadmg eharoctar.
The manners of the foreign species are analogous to those of the
foreign magpies. Those of the Common Jay and ita aptness at
imitation ore vrell known.
G. gtandaritu, the Common Jay, is auppoaed by Belon to be
the Maiuwsicrani;! of Aristotle; sod we may observe, in coa-
SrmotioD of this opinion, that the editor of the lost edition of
Pennant says, that the bird is very common in Greece, where it still
retains ita ondent name, MiUmniitpttFriii. Belon statee it to be the
Oaia Ghiandaia, or Ohiandora, the Gaia Verio, and the Berla, of
tbe Italians; and the Prince of Cauino gives Ghiandaja, Pica,
Pica ffkiandaja, and Piat paUmbina os its Italian appellations. It
is the Jay and Oeai of the French, the Kieben-Hoher (Oak Jay),
Holtnchryer (Wood-Cryer), or Holz-Baher, of tbe Oermana; and
Screch y Coed of the Welsh.
The Jay, like the Magpie, is too well known to require deaoriptiDU.
Its beautiful colours make it one of the handsomest of our native
birda. It builds ila basket-like nest in treea or high coppico-wood and
hedges, and lays five or six (ggs of a dull whitish olive, mottled vary
obscurely with pale brown ; towards the large end there aro usuallj-
two or three black linea. It is a sad enemy to gardeners. Fruits,
•specialty cherries, ond peas are its great favourites, and it ia fre-
Krntly taken by springa sat upon the rows ot peas when in bearing.
, KiMier says that it will kiU small birds. With regard to their
imitative powero, Bewick Bays, " We hove heard one imitate the sound
made by the action of a saw so exactly, that though it was on a
Sunday, we could hardly be pereooded that the person who kept it had
not a oipenter ot work in the house. Another, ot the approach of
cattle, bod learned to bound a cur dog upon them, by whistling and
calling upon him by his name. At hist, during a severe frost, the dog
waa, by that means, excited to attack a cow big vrith calf, when tbe
poor animal foil on tha lo^ and waa much hurt ; the jay waa oom-
plained of as « nuiMUioa, and its owner was oblized to destroy it."
Joy, bat having t
The author last quoted states that this species, though not neoriy
so for spread as the magpie, eiiota in various paiis of the continent
of Europe, aud that he has observed it sniong drawings done in
Chins.
There sre aeveml foreign species, both of the New and Old World.
Mr. Gould, who figures three species in his 'Centuiy ot Birds,' well
observes that, " The close affinity which the Gamdm lanciolaltit
bears to some soeciea inhabiting the United States and Mexico is
worthy of remark, as o corroboration of the fact so often insisted on,
that eimilor forms of ornithology are found in countries widely
separated from each other, whose' temperatures ore alike." Indeed,
the lost-mentioned bird immediately reminds the observer of the
Blue Jay (GamJut mifuCut) of America, while Oarntliu biipeculari4
recalls flie common Joy to his recoUaction.
Picalharlei — o genus foiindod by H. Leieon, who takes for the type
the Ke Chauve (Cormu ffymnocephalut of Temniiuck),
It has the bill convex, not very robust, the upper moudible higher
than the lower; the latter a little swollen towards its eitremitv ; the
base entirely without hain, and furoished with a cere. Nostrils
placed on the middlu of the bill, oval, open, hollowed into an oblong
excavation. Head entirely naked. Feet (tarsi) long, but little
Bcutellated in front, naked behind; claws feeble; wings rounded,
short. Toil long, graduated. (Lesson.)
" The form of this singular tuid," says M. Temminck, " the cut of
its wings, ond its long conical and very graduated tail, serve me os
indicia to judge by ^olo^iy of whot country it may be a native, ita
locality being unknown. In tact, on comparing our new species with
tbe Piapic of Le Vaillant (Comu Senegalemit), one is inclined, from
the marked analogy, to conclude Africa to be its country. Some data,
which it is noveruieless not prudent to trust, lead me to believe that
the only individual known, which is in the collection ot Mr. Lead-
beater of London, was brought from the English possessions on the
coast of Guiuea."
" Proportions (taille) a little stronger, tar« much longer, and a toil
less in proportion distinguish our bird from the Piapic The head in
certain pomts offers some resnnblance to that of the Graeitia caiva of
the Philippines, and tbis approximation is so strong that it would
produce doubts as to its African origin, if it did not bear a greater
resemblance in its general contour to tiie Piapic of Africa. In fine,
if this bird is not AAican, it can onlf be a native of the Philippine
FkalKarUr ff^MWtetpl
Upon this passage M. Lesson remarks, that he does not find the
least analogy between tbe figure of the Enlum., 638, which i>
C'liiTiu Scaigalmtu, and the Pie Chauve, whivh ff "
lU COBVID^
Catluula. Th« coacluaion itated In H. Temtsiiiok'i I*a( wnteDOB H.
LwaoQ U fiir from Bdniittuigf.
Tha following ii Tsmmiiiofc'a dMcriptioa of the apecica; "Thu
Dnlied parta ot tba head oSar a particular character. The whole of
the auUitorj meatna ia completely deatitute of feathen and otcd of
hair*. A amall border, or nuUment of membniDB, fomu, beloir the
orifice of the ear, a sort of eitflmal concha, but little apparent, it ii
true, in tba staffed BpecimeQ, but the extent of which miiat be renaark-
able to the liring bird. All thJB part of the organ of hearing, as
well aa a part of each aide of the occiput, are covered bf a black skin
with a ahghtlj-projecting orbicDlar border, and forming a rounded
plaque. The cere which enrelops the base of the bUI ia ain blick.
All the reet of tha naked parte of the head, the mesial line of the
occiput which eepaiatei the black plaquea of the temples, and Uie
upper part of the top of the neck, appear to ma to hare been red or
ros; in the living aubject ; a (light tint of roej-jellow cotoi these
parta in that before ua The whole of tha nape is covered, clorly,
by a whitiah and very short down. The front of the neck and all the
other parte are white. The back, well covered with thick-set feathera,
is of an aahy-black ; all the rest of the plumage is bistre brown.
The feet ara yellow, and the bill is black. Length 16 inchea."
<Telnla.)
Pudoca. — This geaui was founded by M. Fischer, for a bird dia-
oovered by Dr. Paoder, in the country of the EiroheM beyond Otcm-
burg, whose habits of life are analogous to those of the crows, among
nhich ilL Leason thinks it ought to be placed
The bill is moderate, of the length of the head, bendiug downwards
at ita point, without a ifotcb, and slightly angular, the upper mandible
shorter than tha lower, receiving and covering the edges of it.
Noetrilj basal, rounded, large, covered with setaceous oveihaoging
fmthers (plumea setactSeeretombantaa). Feet robust and long ; chws
triangular, very mnch pointed, and but litUe i^rred ; a warty mam-
brane bordering the thickness of the phalanges. First quill short,
second long, the three neit equaL Tail rectilinear. (Fischer.)
P. Pandtri. Greenish glaucous above ; eyebrows white ; bill and
claws blackish ; feet greenish. The bird flies badly but wolki very
wea It lives'- " ^
feet areenii
Bocka.
JWmu FtKdrrl.
_«, (trong ant ...
oueniDg with some stiff 'bristies and small feathera turned forwards.
Iiaaol nasB eub-oval, closed by a large membrane. Winga rounded,
niodaiata. Quilla nearly equal, the third longeat Feet very long,
demiseutellatad. Tail rounded.
There are aevaral ipedaa, all oriental Mr. Oould, who has pub-
lished two, namely, Jf. Bm^iddii and 3f, Ttmminctii, in his
' Century,' states tha^ aa regards the habits of these birds, little can
be said with certainty, but that &om their lengthened tarsi and
general structura they m^ be couudered aa depending in a great
measure fjr their subsistence upon worms, insects,
manners of M. TVnninciu, when on the groimd, ai
leaeuible those of the English blackbird. It may
whether this grvup ia property plaoed among the Cor
M. Jtsvirotlrii (M. ■wfoUiciu, Temm.) Entirely of i
with metallic tints. Bill of a beautiful jellow.
inbabita Java.
and larva), 'ile
re Bidd much to
be questionable
iryopinntu JIarimiiii.
Ptilonorhjiitektu. — BUI strung, rohnst, widened, rather long, upper
baaal termination convex, but little marked ; point recurved ; upper
mandible presenting two small notches at its aitreniity ; edges a little
swollen i lower mandible slightly convex ; commissure of the mouth
itnught, simple. Nostrils basal, lateral, furnished with short briatlea.
Wings short, rounded. Tail moderate, graduated. Feet skndcr.
Tba genus, aa modified by Lesson, contains but two apedea. He
thinka that it would be better placed among the Dattirctlrtt at the
side of the Cboucaria (Ontuealiu, Cuvier) ; but he allows that it baa
all the forms of the Boilers (Coraciai) and of the Crows, Locality,
the warmest islands of the Weet Indian Archipelago.
P. Sintntit, Coraeiat Sinauii, Latham. Body above pale aqua-
tuarins green clouded with yellowiBh-green. Forehead furnished with
silky round feathers turned in ^Serent directions; feathers of tha
nape long, unravelled aa it were, and capable of being erected into a
tufl— boUi of a yellowiah-green. A black band taking ita rise from
the angle of the bill surrounds the eye and nape. Throat and cheeks
of a yellowish-green. Lesser wing-covarts brown. Quilla brown,
inclining to olive externally and chestnut internally; the lut thrre
progreesively terminated with greenish white. Bill red, Burtounded
by a few black bristles ; feet reddish. Siie 11 inchea. Locali^, the
Philippine Ishuids.
The other specie^ accordingly Lesson, is Killa fWasnna, Tem-
KiUa. — Bill short, oonvex, com pressed on the sides ; upper mandible
with the bKSal termination recurved, and depressed aides ; the point
aharp and fucuiibhcd on each side with a sm^dl projecting tooth, bor-
dera of the mandibles thick, recurved, and covered at the commiaure.
Noatrits baaol, transversal, hidden by the silky feathers of the fore-
head, and by a row of small btistlea Wings pointed Tall equal,
rounded. E«et robust ; toes equal ; hallux atoeng. (Lesson.)
Lesson, who places in this genus Killa hotoxrieta, Plilonerkynelitit
Smtthii, and Killa rircscms, says that what was observed aa to the
last-mentioned geEus is applicable to this, which has tha genersJ
characters of the Rollers and BoUes (Oolarit).
The birds composing the genus are exclusively peculiar to Aus*
ttalia and the temperate sons. (Lesson.)
K. kolatrricca, Tom mi nek ; PtiloaorhgndiiH kolOKriaut, Kuhl;
Satin Oiakle. Latham ; PCtionorAyncAiu Mac-Ltayii, Latham USS.
Vigora and Uorsfleld.
IWe, very briHiant bl^kUli-blue. QuilU and Uil-feathara dead
blank. Bal and feet j-ellow. A double row of Bilky uid toItbIt
blukh-black feathers at the baaa of the hih. Unft^i 13 inchaa. The
ftmala haa tho upper parts of im olive-green. The quilU and tail-
BalLn-Bliil {Eitla holoifHcta).
feather* of a i«d-brown ; wing'Coverta varied irith brown and a colour
inclining to olive ; lower parte gneniah, barred with blaok. There
are whitiih barliontal epots, lanceolated, and bordered with black, on
the front of the neck.
COBVID.(E. in
Mr. Caley eaja (Vigore and Honfield, ' Linn. Traaa./ toL it. p. SflJ)
that ■ tbe male of thie species is reckoned a leiy scarce bird, and ia
highly valued. The natives call it Cowry, the colonists Satin-Bird.
I have novr and then mot with a solitary bird of this species ; but I
once saw lai'ge flocks of them on some newly-eown wheat, from
wlienoB they fled on being KSred into a nf ighbouring bnieh. When
all was af!un quiet they soon returned to tie whent They did not
leave the brush above a few yards. There were no black onea amons
them, nor can I affirm that they were feeding on the wheat."
A'um/rnjo— Bill long, thick, with cutting edges terminating in a
blunt |K)int, furnished with setaceous feathers at the base, the upper
mandible longer than the lower. Noatrils round, open. Wiugs
pointed ; fourti quill longeat.
Till the publication of Mr. Oonld's Niulfraga hemitpxla (see ' Cen-
tury of Birds') but one species wrh known, namely, that which we
select as the example :—
K. Caryocatar-la. Briason, the Nutcracker; OaryiKaiacta nueifraga,
NiU ; Conui Caryocalada. LinnIBU^ the Caese-Noii of the French ;
the Tannen-Hiiher of the Qermane; the Noddekrigr of the Danes; tbe
Not-Kraake of the Norwegians; and the Aderyn y Cnau of the
Thia bird ia somewhat less than the Jackdaw. The bill ia atraigbt,
strong, and black. Head, neck, breast, and body, rusty brown.
Crown of the head and rump pUin, the other parta marked with
triangular white spots. Winiri black. Covi-rts spotted like the body.
Tail rounded at the end, black, tipped with white. Legs dusky.
Locality, most parts of Europe ; but the Prince of Caniuo does not
notice it in bis ' Specchio Compamtivo."
PgrrhiiTOTax, — Bill moderate:', oompreaiied, subulate, rather slender,
furnished at the base with festhera directed forwards, and at the
extremity of the upper mandible with two small teotb whidi are
often wanting. Nostrils basal, ovoid, open, hidden by bristles. Feet
robust; claws strong and recurved. Fourth and fifth quills longeet
These birds, the Choquords of the French, live in troops like the
Jackdaws, which they resemble in their manners. They inhabit the
high moimtains of Europe, and especially the snowy regiona of the
AJpe, Thej are omnivorous, feeding on insects, worms, soft fruit*, and
seeds. They moult once a year, aod the sexes are alike eitemally.
P. Pyrrhocorax. Brilliant black, but the colour is dull in youth,
und the bill and feet are black. In the adult bird tbe black preaenta
iridescent and changeable tints varying to greenish ; the bill is yd-
lowish, and the feet bright red. Tbe female lays four white egga,
ipotted with dirty yellow ; the neat is in holes of the rocka Locality,
Alps of Switzerland. The Prince of Canino {' Specchio Compantivo )
ites it as rare, and only occurring in the Apennines.
^V^M.— Bill longer than the head, slender, entire, arched, pointed.
Nostrils covered with feathers directed forwards.
Lesson is at opinion that this genus ought to be united with the
last, from which it only diSers in having tbo bill longer and more
curved, which ma.le Cuvier place it in the tribe of Ttaviratlre*, near
the Hoopoes {Upupa). The species have the manners, habits, and
general organiaation of the crows ; and the European species (selected
here as an example) perfectly resembles Fyrrhocarax. (Lesson.)
P. gractUta, Temm. ; Corrai ffracutut, Linn. The CoroiBh Chough,
or Red-Legged Craw, is considered by Belon, on no bod grounds, to
be the Koinuilat, the KapAwTi ^anKipayxai <Red-Billed Crow) of the
Greeks and the J^rrAoraroi of tbe Romans; Spelvier, Taccols, Pason,
Zorl, of the Italians (Belon); Choucas aui Pieds et Bee Rouge, Choquar,
Choiiette Rouge, of the French (Belon) ; Stein-Tahen and Stein-Fne
of the (^rmans ; and Br&n Big U6ch of the Welsh.
BHck beautifully glossed with blue and purpla Legs and bill
bright orange, inclining to red. Tongue almost as long as the bill,
and a little cloven. Claws large, hooked, and black. The Chough
builds its nesta in high cliffs or ruined towers, and lays four or five
eggs, white, spotted with dirty yellow or light brown and ash colour.
It is a native of England in Devonshire, Cornwall, and Wales.
Pennant says that it is found in different parts of Scotland ai far sa
Straithnavern, and in some of the Hebridtt. He also atstes that it ia
found in small numbers on Dover cliff, where tbry came by accident;
a gentleman in that neighbourhood had a pair sent as a present frotn
Cornwall which escaped and stocked these rocks. They sometime*
desert (he place for n week or ten days at a time, and repeat it eevei-al
times in the year. Montagu, speaking of this locality, says, " Wa
believe tbe breed in those parts is ngain lost." Latham states that it
ia also said tu frequent the South Downs about Beachy Head and
Eastboum, where it is culled the Red-Billed Jackdaw. With regard
to its general geographical dietributioQ, Pennant observes that we do
not find it in other parts of Europe except England and the Alps.
In Asia the island of Candia produces it; in Africa, Egypt, which
laat place it visite towards the end of the inundations of thp Nile.
He quotes Pliny, Brissun. Belon. and Haaselquist, for these statements.
The e^tor of the last edition of Pennant says that the Chough inha-
bits the lofty cli& about the mid region of the higheat mountains of
Qreece, but never the maritime partA, as with us. Scopoli apcaks of
it in Camiola, and ssya that the feet of some during autumn turn
black- These were probably young birda.
Tbe Comiah Chough is easily tamed, and may be taught to speak.
Ona in Colonel Montagu's possesaion would stand quietly for hours to
ba lootlMd tad atnued, btit would rsaent an afiWint lioUi with bill
uid cUm. "It «," Bays Penmuib, "aotiva, rertlBBg, and thiBiring ;
mudl taken with glitter, nnd ao meddUnK u not to be tnuted when
UuDgB of oon«equcace lie. It ii veiy apt to alflh up bits of lishted
(Ucki, 10 that there ars iiutuioet t^ houiea being let on Are br lb
nieuu, whicb ie the reuon that Camden calls it ' inoendiaria btu.' "
Ssrenlof Um WeUhand Comiih fkmilLea bear tliii bird in thsir ooat-
l^ere are foreign Bpeciai — Fregilut leucoptena, Tigort and Hoci-
fieW (Pyrrhocorax leaci^ltnu, Tomniinok}. from Auatialia, where
it ji called b; tbe nHlivei Wajbung, according to Hr. Caliejr, and
Rrgiltu Enca, of Horsflsld, from Java, for inatance.
Paradiiea — fBiBDB oi PiBiDiSE.]
AilTo^ia. — 'Bill amootb at the baae, compressed laterally, etraight
aboTe, pointed, notched, and bent toTrarda the eitrsmitj. Tail Teiy
loi^ and very gmdunted.
Pie d* Puadli.
plum*^ 1
nigra, and Latham that of Paradttta gviari; while Cut
COBTLi.CK£. IM
it to coma under tbe genus Titrdta (Herle de la you^elle Oninfe).
Thii beautiful bird is the Pie de Faradis or Incomparable of th«
FrencL Leeson ea;a : — " I brought from New Qutnea two indiriduala
of this magnificent bird, the value of which is sufficiently considerabla
in France, and which saenu to ba Tery rare eren in its native country ;
for, during our sojourn at tbe Moluccas aud the land of the Papoua,
I only law there two birds, and cna of these now embellishes tha
gallerioa of the muaeum where I deposited it."
No desoriptioQ osn convBy any idea of the brilliancy of this bird.
The metallic tints of almost every hue, varying with the pisy of the
light on the plumage, olmoat nirpan beliet It is well figurad in
Le Vaillant'i ' Oi»Bui de Pandis,' plaU 20 aad 21 ; but no colouc-
ing can give the ilighteat Dolaon of its aplendid intensity and varietj.
The form may be imagiued from the preceding out taken from th*
plates above mentiivied.
the c«ve at Kirkdale, and figures the right ulna of one of those luids
in ' Reliquin Diluviaiue,' plata xl
C0RVU3. rCoBTnii]
CORTDA'LIS, a genua of Plants belonging to the natural order
Pumariacia. It haa a calyx oomposed of two sepals, or abaent ; 4
petals, the upper one spurred at the base ; the stamens diadelphous ;
the pod 2-valvad, man; seeded, oompreased. Tbe species are mostly
small glaucous herbs, with temat« or pinnated leaves, and fuiifonD
tuberous or fibrous roots. Upwards of 10 apeciea of this genua have
been dncribed. They are natives of the temperate parts of the earth
in tbe four quarter! of the globe.
0. tiavicalala. White Climbing Fumitory, haa a fibrous root; pin-
nate kavee, with acuminate bracts, the pinnsa temate ; footstalk ending
in tendrils. It bas small pale-yallow or nearly white flowers. It liai
a slender climbing stem, 1 to 4 feet long. It is found in bushy place*
in hill; districts of Great Britain and throughout Europe.
C. lulta. Yellow Fumitory, haa a fibrous root, tritemate leaves;
minute oblong cuapidate bracts ; shining aeeda, gnu) u late-rugose, with
a patent denticulatad crest. Thia plant ia a native of the south oi
Europe, in the fiasurea of rocke and old walla. It ii now naturallaed
in Oraat Britain, and forms a picturesque object on the old walls of
ruins, as at Casdeton in Derbyshire, and Fountains Abbey, YoiUiin.
It ia a very common plant in gardens.
C. lolida haa n tuberous sohd root, with bitemata cut leavaa, the
lowest petiole a leafleaa scale, the bracts palmate. It is found in Qraat
Britain, but has been undoubtedly introduced.
0. Fahacta has a nearly limple erect stem, scaly under tbs lower
leaf I the leaves stalked, bitemate ; the bncta ovate, acute, longer than
the pedicles. It is a native of shady mountainous places in Sweden,
Denmark, and many other ports of the continent of Europe. This
species, as well as C. UiberaKi, a native of the South of Europe, bas a
tuberous root. Tbe root of both the spedea is very bittar and rather
acrid. That of C. Htieroia ia hollow, and is found to contain a pecQ-
liar alkali called Coiydolin. On the continent these roots are used
under the name of Radix Aralolochitc, and uv employed aa eiteroal
appUcations to indolent tumours. C. bulboia bas a tuber which ia
somewhat aromatic, extremely bitter, slightly astringent and acrid,
and was formerly used as a substitute for Birth- Worts in expelling
intestinal worms, anJ as an ammensgogue.
Many of the species on cultivated in Qreat Britain, and, having
escaped from gardeus, ore occasionally found wild, but only C. tlawi-
cuiaia is a native ; C- Uttea ia naturalised- In cultivation they require
A light rich soil. They are well adapted for flowar-bordeta and rock-
work. The perennial apeciee may be propagated by dividing the roots,
the annual % seeds, which shotud be sown where they are intended
to remain. Thay will grow well under treea it the abil ba not very dry.
(Don, ZHiJilamydfoii4 PlaaU ; Lindlay, Flora Ifedica; Loudon,
Encyelopadia of PlanU : BMagtaa, ManutU of BritiA Sotaag.)
CORYLA'CE.^, MaitviorU, the Oak.Tribe, a highly important
natural order of Apetalous or Incomplete Exogenous Pluila,
eonoiating of trees or shruba, chiefly natives of the colder port*
of the world, and valuable either for the nuia they bear or the
timber they produce. The Oak, the Beech, the Hazel, (he Horn-
beam, and the Sweet Cheatnat, all belong to this order, the
general character of which ia briefly thia : — Leaves alternate, usually
serrated, often with veins running atroight from the midrib to the
margin, beyond which they ilighUy project ; at the base of each leai
a pair of membranous stipules. Flowers monracioua ; the males in
catkins ; the females in bud-like clusters. Stamens from S to 20,
arising from the acolas of the catkin. Ovoiy infarior, crowned by a
toothed obsolete calyx, seated in a membranous cup or involucra^
with more cells than one, and aa many styles as cells ; ovules solitary
or in pairs, penduloua ; all the ovules except one and all the cells
disappear after the flowering is over, and whan the fruit is ripe there
is but one cell and one seed, whatever thoir number may originally
have been. Fruit, a nut (called also acorn, maat, &c), incloaed within
a peouliar kind of involucre or cupule composed of bracts more or leaa
united together, and forming a cup in the oak, a huak in the filbert,
and a apiny osaa in the oheatnut nnd beech. The seed conusts of a
roundiall embryo, with thick fleshy cotyledons, and no albumen. Tha
M coRttTra
mort Mntheni of the spaaica of this order ia the Beech, of irhinh nun;
nn<Ci«s occur in the lower parts of South Amarioa, AuatnlU,
and Sew Zealiuid. The order w (Jlied to Jaglandaeea. For parti-
cnkra respecting the genera of thia moat importajit fiimilf of plants
Me CABriyris ; Ostbta ; Cobtlits ; Fiam ; Caiiania ; Qukboub ;
LiraocABFVB.
Flonra of Ihe Sacel-Nnt {Oerftat Ataiana),
I, a tmneb, wltb tba aula flowen " In dreaping satklni ; the ftmile* • In
bnd-liko cluilen ; 1, onn of the Kslci of Iha duIe »tkin, irlth Iha itameiu
•tuctwd to It ; 3, B female bud. wiLb Itie ilfla prnJmtiiiB bejimd tba brteti i
4, Ibc rooDt onriia wllh Uh biacU remoTed ; 3, a h«1ds of the otstj,
nhlMtlnf the otuIh, the loolhid hIti, and the bsie ol the stjle ; 6, a eroH
(Hiiua at Um otuj ; 1, a laniitadissl section ot a not.
C0HTLTJ9, a genua of Plant* after whiiA the natural otdar Ctorj-
loMd recaiTCB its name. It consieta of the diSersnt ipedes of hazal-
tmt, and ia diatinguiehed from the genera aaaociated witb it bf its
eupule baing a twa-leavad lacerated husk, and its Ovar; bunng but
two cella, in each of nhich is one ovule.
C. Av^ana, the Comman Uazel-Xub This planl^ which It •
nitire of all the cooler parts of Europe, Northern Asia, and North
America, is the parent of the many varieties of nuts and filberls now
cultivated for their fruit. [Hazel-Nut, Fi[.BEBt,in Abtb add 9a D^.]
It is speciGcall/ known fa; its husks baing hispid with glands, laafj,
broad, much lacerated, and ruther spreading at the point ; never con-
tflKted into a long tube, nor divided into narrow rigid s^ments ; b;
its rounded, heart-ehaped, very rugose, angular, toothed cuspidate
leaves, glandular-hispid branchni, and shrubb; habit. It varies very
much in the form of its hueke, in the degree of their hisptdit;, eoma
being nearly smooth, in the shape of their nuta, and in the height to
which it grows. In the Hazel-Kut the husk is open at the point,
ehoiter or at least but little longer than the nut, and nearly smooth ;
while in the Filbert (Coryliu fuiWoja of some writers) it is lengthened
ooneiderably beyond the nut, and covered more or leas with glandular
hairs ; all d^jTeea of intermediate atructure ma; be found in the cul-
tivated vaiieties. This plant is found as a large shrub having nome-
rous stems rising from the rool^ or as a small bushy tree with a great
number of branches, which ore covered with hairs when it is young.
It is found all over Oreat Britain, from Cornwall to Sut^erlandihire.
It grows at the height of 1600 feet above the level of the sea, in the
north of England and Scotland. It is cultivated very generally on
account of its nnte, eapetially in the caunt; of Kent, where it attains
its greatest perfection. It is also cultivated on the continent of
Europe ; and every year laige quantitiea of the nuts are brought into
England from various |»rts of Fiance, Portugal, and Spain. The
haiel is valued in planting principally as an undergrowth. Its branches
sod stems are used for various kinds of wicker-work. The wood
is said to make the beat charcoal for gunpowder, and ia also used foi
Disking crayons for drawing purposes.
C. Amtritana is not distinguishable as a variety from the last
spedee. The Beaked American or Cuckold-Hscel is a pretty purple-
leaved kind in shmbberiea.
C. rotfrala, the Homed Hazal-Nut. In this tlie branches are
qnite free from glandular hispidity, the leaves are oblong, not cordate,
doubly toothed, and acuminate, and the husks globular over the nuta,
' e they are eitremely hispid, without ever being glandular;
dOBTHBIFER.^. l«i
C. Columa, the Constantinople Nut, a white-barked tree SO feet
and more high, with an erect trunk and a dense spreading head. The
leaves are shining, much less nigoee than in the haiel-nut, cordate,
angular, serrated, acute or acuminate, slightly haiiy on the under
BurFace. The branches and all the other parts are destitute of
glands ; tJie huaks are campanulata, deeply cut into narrow hairj
rather falcate segments. The nuts ore roundish and verv hard- It
is a native of Aaia Minor, and known from all the other garden
apede* by its becoming a tree. It seldom produces ita nuts in thia
climate.
Besides these tliere ore the C. laeera and C. /trax, two spedea
found in the Himslaya Hounlaine. Of these, the former, gathered in
Kumaon, is hardly different from C, Colnmaj the other, from Mount
Sheupore, has narrow taper-pointed leaves, and eiceesively hard nula
'nclosed in a husk, with divaricating narrow epiny divisions.
COSYHB, a form of inflorescence approaching ven nearly to the
nceme. The raceme consists of an axis, upon which all the floweta
ire disposed upon footstalks of the earns length ; and henoe ita figure
a more or less cylindrical. A corymb oonsiets of an axia, the lowar-
noat flowers on which have very long stalks, and the uppermost
rery short ones, so that the mass of inflorescence ia an inverted oon^
IB in candytuft and man; other cruciferous plants. The oorymb i^
in fact, an umbel with a lengthened axis.
From this word ia derived the term Corymbose, which is applied not
only to flowers, but to any kind of branching in which the lowermost
parts are very long aud the uppermost very short, as is the case in
most spedes of Atter. [Ikflorbbcssce.]
CORTMBI'FER^, one of the primary subdivisions in the system
of Jussieu, of the natural order CotnpotUa. It comprehends most of
the Tttbulijlora of De Candolle. It is characterised by the absanoe of
albumen, an erect aeed, a hemispherical involucre, and the florets vt.
the ray, if present, ligiUate. Thia division comprises b; far the
laigeot number of the genera of the large order Oonyionta. The
apedea of Corymii/era produce more active secretions, and have been
used more extensively by man than those of the other subdivisions of
the order. They generally represent the Cichoracfa [Cioboraoka]
in hot elimatee, and this will perhaps account for their more active
properties. In Oreat Britain the CotytiA^fera ore more numerous
than either the C^naracea or CieKoracta, The number of apeoiea hi
the second edition of Babington's ' Manual of British Botai^ ia —
Oarymbiftm SS
CiAortKta 61
Cynaractai 28
Comptmttt 189
De Candolle estimates that the apeciea of the C<mtiil>tita form a
tenth part of the flowering planta in tlie world, and this is about ib*
proportion in which they occur in Oreat Britain.
The following is a nynopsis of the British genera of Ooryntitftrtl !—
Tribe I. Eupatoriaci*.
Section L Si^/aiorta.
Eupaiariitm eannabinwn
Section IL TnutUagntta,
PitatUa vtt^rij
Tuuilago Fcufara
Tribe IL AniROiSES.
Section I. AUereic
Alter IHpirftwn
Erigtron . . . S spedes
SittU pirennil
Solidago Virgaurea
Chryiocoma Lmotjfrit
Section IL Invito.
Inula .... 3 species
Pulicaria . . 2 speciea
Tribe IIL SKTraciosniK*
Section I. Ifelianlkta.
Sidetu ... 2 specdea
Seotion II. Anlktmidaf.
AnthanU, . . S species
Achilita ... 4 speciea
Diotw maritima
Chryianthenium ! species
Pyrtlhram . . 3 species
Slalriearia ChancimiUa
Atttmitia . . 5 speciea
Tanactitmi vulgare
Section IIL Onapkaiieo'.
Pilago . . . S species
Qaaphalitim . 6 species
Antamaria . . 2 speciex
Seotion IV, Seitcionta.
w
COBTNE.
The propertiea oF thU dirisiou of Compotita un otuTacteristic.
BittfiDHO, with ta nroni&tic odour, a common tio M the apecies.
Whether the bitterueiM depends oa ui alkaloid or not, checniBta hRFe
not detennined. Hany of the ipeciog poBBesa properties very similar
to thooe possessed bj quinine, and ore administered in the same
diseasee u cincliona; among Uiesa fire species of the genera IntUa,
' Pigueria, Mitania, and Emilia. This bitter principle seldom hov-
ever girea the chaiicter to the plant alone, but is combbed with some
BTDmatJc oil, which gives the plant the properties of both a tonic and
a, aiimu]ant. Such a combination is found in many of the species o*
thp genera AtUhtnU, Arlenitia, Diolii, Santolma, CArytan/Aonuni
Eufatonvm, Liatu, Ac. Sometimes the volatile oil is more promi
nent than the bitter principle ; and this is obvious in the species of
Pl/rtlhrum, Tamuelum, Sleaactit, Erigeron, &C. In some of these the
volatile oil nasumeBthe characters of turpentine and the oil of juniper,
and acta aa a diuretic ; heuoe a certajn number of these plants Imve
the repatatioD of stimuIatinK the action of the kidnejs. In some the
volatile oil assumes an acrid character, as in Bidau, and acts as a sia-
logogue, as in Pyrtlhrum and Spilanlka ; in Mamia it is sufficiently
active to produce vomitiog. In some a secretion is produced, similar
to that which gTves the character to Oicheracea. Thus Sapl^lialmum
i^UiciJotima is said to possess oarcotic powers, and the Arnicamaafana
it stated by Burnett to have yielded a principle identical with Citi-
mne, the active principle of the laburnum. Some of the species yield
a filed oil. In addition to the acrid oil in Pi/rethmm offcinate, there
is a butyraccoue matter, consisting principally of atearinc. The seeds
of the species of HtliatUhu4 yield a fixed oil on ezpresaioo, and this is
probably not couSued to the seed-i of this genus. These seeds also
contain nutiitivs matter (protein F), and are the support of birda and
sometimes of man, in America. Another group yield colouring-
matl«ra : Anthtmit titatoria, and the species of CalmdMla and Bidmt,
are used for dyeing yellow ; the TJnamliim vulyare for dyeing green.
The roots of many species contain starnh, and in quantities large
enough to afford food for man, as in the tubers of SHiavUhu* tubtrotut.
Hany of the species also yield the peculiar kind of starch known by
the name of laulin, so named after tiie Inulas tn vhich it was first
foond. Some of them appropriate potash in the spots where they
grow, and a spedes of Erigerva is remarkable for the large quantities
of this alkali which it contuns. Qum is a secretion found in consi-
derable quantities in some species, as of Q/uipludmm, Vauyta, and
TuMfilago, and on this account they have been used in medicine as
demulceala. TanniD is not found in any quantity in this tribe of
plants, BO that they seldom eiert on astringent action upon the sys-
tem ; the Acliillca mi'Ifr/ofiTim seems ho vsver to possess this proper^.
Uany of ths omamenta of the garden belong to the (7Drym6t/<!ii;. The
Dahiia, CArytanlliemum, Xerati>hemum,Airtr,Erigen)n, Soiida^, Cert-
eptit, and Tagda, are amongst the genera that ^ord the most showy
and highly valued flowers in the autumn of tbe year. Although tha
properUes and uses of these plants in relation to man are important,
yet iu proportion to tbe poaitian they oocupy in the veiretable king-
dom, they are few. Mjuy orders which yield a much smaller number
of species aSWii! n.v.'-h -.r.iiie abundant materials for the use of man,
(Lindley, J^ffra Medi^'i; Liudley, Vegetable Kingdom: BabingtOD,
Manttai of BritiA Eolati-i ; Burnett, Outiima of Botany.)
CORYNE [Pot,TPi»kM-]
CORTNETBORUii, a K~r.ns of British Qrasass, belonging to the
tribe Avmaiea, with the liiUuwin'g characters : — Awn club-shaped,
straight, jointed in the middlv, the upper portion clavate, a tuft of
boirs at the joint, panicle lai, glumes 2-flowered. There is but one
Secies, C caneKent, which has a rather dense elongated panicle, the
imes acuminate, longer than the flower, the awn coming from near
the base of the palea, the leavea aetaceous. It ia a native of the sandy
coastH oF Norfolk and Sufiblk and Jersey. (Babington, Manual)
COJIYFHA, a genua of Plants belonging to the natunl order Pet-
maecit. Jt has gigantic fan-shaped leaves, Sowers with a S-toothed
calyi, S petals, 6 stamens, and a 8-cslled ovary. The &uit ia oom-
posed of round l-aeeded berries.
C. TaUirra, the Tara, or Talliera, is an elegant stately apeciea in-
habiting Bengal, Its trunk is about 30 feet high, and as nearly as
possible of equal thickness throughout. The leaves are in about
80 divisions, each 6 feet long by 4 inches broad, radiating from the
point of a leaf-stalk from fi to ID feet !ong, and covered with strong
spines at its edge. Roxburgh describes the spadix as decompound,
issuing iu the month of February from the apei of the tree and centre
of the leaves, farming an immense diffuse ovate panicla of about
20 or more (eet in height. The fruit is the size of a crab-apple,
wrinkled, dark-olive, or greenish-yellow. The leaves are used by tbe
natives of India to write upon with their steel styles, and for other
purposes.
a umbrattiliftra, the Tah^ or Talipat Palm, ia a native of Csylon,
and similar in appeamnce ; but its leaves are not so round as those oF
tlie Talliera, the divisions in tho centre being ehorter than those at
the sid«. The trunk grows 60 or 70 Feet high ; the leaves are U Feet
broad and 18 Feet long, exclusive of this stalk, and they form a heail
about 40 Feet in diHmeter. Fana of enormous size are manufactured
from this pinut in Ceylon ; the pith of its trunk Furnishes a sort cF
flour From which bread is made; the leaves make excellent thatcli,
end arc sIko used For writing on, tike those of the Talliem.
COBTPHJENA 1«
C. Oibauga is one of the most useful of all the Tadian Palms. It«
pith furnishes a sort of sago ; its leaves are used for thatch and
broad-brimmed hats; fiihing-nets and linen shivto are woven from its
fibrLs, and ropes from its twisted leaF-atalks ; tbe root is both emollient
and 'lightly astringent ; sliced, it is used in slight diarrhcni^ and
Waita says that it in a most valuable remedy for the periodical
diarrhceaB which in the East Indies attack Enropeana.
CORYPHJENA (Linnaus), a genus of Fishes belonging to the
section Aeanlhopierygii and family SamberidiF.
The group of fi^es formerly iocludrd under the head Corypkatia
is new Bubdivided, and the subdivisions may be either termed sub-
genets of the genus Coryphama, or the group may be looked upon
as a BubFsmily, and the subdivisions as genera. The principal
characters of this group are aa follows ; — Body elongated, compressed,
covered with small scales ; dorsal fin extending the whole irngth of
the back (or nearly so); branch iostecous rays generally seven in
number. These fishes have commonly a long anal fin. iu Eome
extending From tbe tail almost to the ventral. The tail is more or
leas Forked, and tbe pectoral fin ia usually Jirohed above and pointed.
Considering Corj^phiena aa a genus, Oit following are the sub-gen eta :
— Coryphana (proper), Caranxomorat, Cenlrolophiu, Atlrodermtit, and
Pttraclit.
Cbtyphana. — The species have the bead much elevated, and the
and they prey upon the fiying-fish
C. hij^urm (Linn,), a speciee not uncommon in the Mediterranean,
is about 2 feet in length, of a bluish-lead colour above and pale-yellow
beneath. There are dark-blue spota on the back and dorsal Sn, and
the under parts oF the body are furnished with spots of a paler
colour. The ventral fins are yellowish beneath and black above, and
the anal fin is yellowish. The greatest depth of the body is about
in»<iith of the whole length.
Gjfj/phitHa hippurut-
There are seveml other species of this genus, some of which are
found in the Mediterranean, and very closely resemble tbe one just
Caraiu-omorai (Lac^ptde) is closely allied to Coryphitna (properj ;
tho species however may be diBtiuguisbixi by their having the head
less elevated and the eye in a medial position; the dorsal-fin is
shallow and of equal height throughout : the tail is much forked.
C. pelagieuM is about 9 or 10 inches in length, of a bluish colour
above and yellowish beneath ; tbe dorsal and anal Gna are of the aame
oolour SB the back of the fish, and have a whitish margin. It iobabite
the Heditananean,
Cenlrolophm. — The npecies of thiB genus have the body shorter in
proportion than iu either of the two preceding genera, and of a
somewhat elongate-oval form, tha ttul le.a forked, *c (CwrrRO-
AtriiMermiul.Bonu»l1i). — But one species of this aub-genos is known.
The generic characters are :— Bead elevated, mouth bat elightly cleft ;
dorsal fin extending nearly tbe whole Ungth of the body ; ventral fins
very small, and placed on tbe throat ; branchiostegous ntys four.
A. Coryphanoidtt (Ciiv,) is from 12 to 15 inches in length, and of a
pale-rose colour, with five or six longitudinal rows of round black
spots ; the dorsid and anal fins are bhickish, and the pectoral and
caudal fins are oF a red hue. The most remarkable character oF this
fish however consists in the scales, which, instead of folding over each
other in the usual way, are scattered over tbe body and hcBd ; they
are very minute and serrated, and uuder a leoji rosomble amall stars.
It inhaMla tha HBditerranean.
AttndtrmuM (^rypt>enwdtt.
Pirraclii (Cuv,) The species of this group are remarkable for Hm
Dmense uze of the donal.and anal fina, each of which spiingi from
1« CORYPBODOK.
batween two tien of ickIm, which form a protection, Mid pnbably
gin itreogtb to tba biunl portioa of tbe fln-rny*. Theu flna extend
the whole laimth of the body; tho bend »nd teeth tn nearly the
nine la in the true Caryphrm-e ,- the matlet m large.
P. oceUo/iH <Cuv ) ie about 4 inchsB in lenKth. tuidof anlTeiyhue;
the pectoral \ad caudal Gna-Bre yellowiah; the others are bluiah-gny,
■nd the dorsal fin has a large blue spot near ita biRheat part.
Ftinulii mlUtui.
CORTPHODON, a genua of Foaail AninuJi beloaging to the family
of TapiiB. The remaina of this genua haTa beeu found in thia
eoontry ; and althoiigb closely allied to the genus Lophiodon of Curiar,
Profeuor Owen regards its differences as of aufficient importance to
conetitute a new type. The specimen os which thia genua was eata-
bliahed is unique, and was dredged up from the bottom of the sea
between St. (jsyth and Harwich on the Eesex coaat, and now forms
part of the collection of John Brawo, Esq., of Hauway Green, near
Colcheat«r. Tliis specimeu is petrified, coDtaining metallic salts, and
having the appearaiice orfussiia trom the London Clay. There can be
litUa doubt that it was originally imbedded in tbe Eocene Tertiary
Formation of the Harwich coast. It oonsiata of tbe riglit branch of
the lower jaw, ooataining the last and part of the penultimate molar
teeth of Uie lower Jaw. Although thia fragment resembles the same
bone in the ganui Lophiodon, yet a close examinatioa of tbe crown of
the last molar tooth exhibits a smaller antero-posterior diameter in
proportion to its tranBTerse diameter, as compared with the corre-
spooding tooth in that genua It also diffem from the teeth of
AnlAnuollieriun, to which it haa some rewmblance. Frofeasor Otrati
infera from tbiii aod other characters a! theae teeth that " the whole
dental series of tbe extinct Eocene Pachyderms offered modifications
of the Lopbiodont type of dentition, which led towards that of the
Anfhracotherium, more especially of the smaller species ftim Garonne
and Valery. From the closer resemblance which tbe fossil presents
to the true Lophiodona, it must be regarded as a member of tbe saiae
family of Tapiroid Pachyderms; indicaling therein a distinct sub-
genus, characterised by the want of paralleLsm of tbe two principal
tnuerene ri' gea, aud by the nidimental state of the postenor talon
in the last miliar tooth of the lower Jaw. The name Corypkodon, which
1 bale proposod for this sub^renus, is deriveit from xiVV^ a point,
and itaas, a tooth ; and is significative of the development of the
(idges into points. Tbe broad ridged and pointed grinding surface of
the tooth indicates its adaptation to comminute the coarser kinds of
v^tetable aubataneea ; and it is rery probable that the habits snd
food of the Tspir, which is the iiear«t existing analogue of the Cory-
pkodva. are not very dissimilar from those which characterised of old
the present extinct gpecies and tbe true Lophioduns."
Professor Owen gives the species the name of Coryphodon Eaamiu.
He also dirscrii>eB a tooth fouod in digging.for a well at Camber-well^
at a depth of 160 feet in the Plastic Clay. After dncribing this tooth,
Ur. Owen saya, "From its close rosemblaacs in tbe essential characters
of its form to the canines of the great extinct Tapiroid Pachyderms,
and the apparent ipedSc distinctions from sny of the known species
of Lophiottm, I strongly suspect it to have belonged to a Coryphodon."
(Oven, £rilit\ Fouil MammaU and Sirdt.)
COKYSTES, a genus of BracbyurouB or Sbort-TaUed Crutlaeia.
The species have the following chaiaoters :— Exterior antennte longer
than the body, setaceous, with two rows of cilii. Jaw-feet (piiids-
mocboina) having their third Joint longer than the second, stnight,
terminated by an obtuie pointy with a notch upon its internal border.
CORTSTES. 17«
Syea rather distant, boma npon large peduncles, which are nearly
:ylladrictil, and somewhat short. Anterior feet (cbeloi) large, aqiud,
twice as long as the body, and Qearly cylindrical in the males ; in the
females, of about the length of tbe body, and eompressed, enpecially
towards the hand (monus). The other fvet terminated by an elongated
nul or claw, which is strsight, pointed, and channeled longitudinally.
Carapace oblong-oval, terminated by a rostrum anteriorly truncated
and bordered posteriorly. The regions but slightly indicsted, with
tbe exception of the cordial region, the bcanchiai or lateral tigiona
being vary much elongated.
LoBK.^lsveiI Cmb {OarfMta Ounrtlammi), male.
TtiyUft OuttH/atnu, tessle.
C. Cauivtlaitniu (Laach), tbe Long-Gawed Crab ; C. dtntata, C.
dtntaliu, C. iongimanat, of Latreille; Canctr Caaivtiaumu, Catietr
pertonatia, of Herbst; Albtaua deiUata of t'abricius.
This snb has the surfaoe of the canpaca somewhat gianuloui^ with
two denticles bettrcen tbe eyes, and three rhei'p point* dirMtsd
171
COSCINOPORA.
COTTON.
ITS
forwards on each side. The male has but five abdominal pieces ; but,
as M. Latreille obeezres, the yestiges of the separation of the two
others may be clearly remarked upon the intermediate or third piece,
which is the largest of all.
It is found on the coasts of England and France. The specimens
figured by Pennant were dredged up from deep water near Holyhead
and Red Wharf, Anglesey.
M. Desmarest is of opinion that the natural relations of his crustacean
approximate it to AteUcyelus, Thia, and LeucotiOf of which M. Latreille
forms his Orbicular Tribe (Les Orbiculaires). Dr. Leach, he adds, in
his method, placed them near the first two of the above-mentioned
genera, solely because they hare the same number of abdominal
articulations. The LeucoauBf in which the number of those articulations
is less considerable, are remored to a distance.
COSCINOTORA, a genus of Fossil Corals proposed by Goldfuss.
(7. ifrfwndibuliformit occurs in the Chalk of Ireland.
CO'SSONUS (Clainrille), a genus of Coleopterous Insects belonging
to the family CwculionuUe. It has the following characters : —
AntennsB shorty rather thick; funiculus 7-jointed, the basal joints
longer than the following ; club lai^ge and of an ovial form ; rostrum
rather long, thickened at the apex ; thorax truncated before and
behind, and somewhat depressed above ; elytra elongate, moderately
convex above, and covering the abdomen ; tibies dilated towards the
apex, where there is a large hook ; tarsi rather slender, the penul-
timate joint bilobed.
About seventeen species of this genus are known, of which
Schonherr selects (7. linearis as the type. This species is not
uncommon in England, and has been found in Boleti and in old trees.
It is about a quarter of an inch in length, and of a narrow elongated
form, and black or brown colour ; the elytra are punctate-striated.
C. tardui is another British species which closely resembles the last^
but is of a lazier size, being nearly half an inch in length.
COSSUS (Fabricius), a genus of Insects belonging to the section
Lepidoptera Twetwrna^ Moths, and the family H^ialidce (Stephens).
The species have the following characters : — ^AntennsB long, raUier
slender, furnished on the inner edge with a series of transverse
elevated ridges (which when viewed from the side resemble the
teeth of a saw) ; two distinct palpi, thickly clothed with scales, and
each 8-jointed ; head very small ; upper wings longer and laiger than
the lower; body large. Larva lignivorous. Pupa inclosed in a
cocoon.
O. ligniperda (Fab.), the Goat-Moth, is one of the lai^est of the
British moths, measuring from tip to tip of the wings when expanded
from 3 to 3} inches. It is of a gray colour ; the upper wings are
mottled with white, and adomeid with numerous irregular black
lines ; the under wings are almost of a uniform brownish ash colour ;
the anterior part of the thorax is of a buff colour, and there is a
transverse dark mark towards the posterior part ; the body is of a
dark brownish-gray colour, with rings of a silver-like hue.
The larva, or caterpillar, is about three inches in length when full-
grown, and of a yellowish colour; the upper part of the body is oink,
tiie head is black, and the first segment of the body (or that joining
the head) has two irregular black patches above.
This caterpillar emits a very strong and disagreeable odour, and if
touched with the hands the scent cannot be discharged from them for
some considerable time, although they may be frequently washed.
It resides in and feeds upon the wood of the poplar, oak, and aspen ;
but old pollard willows appear to be its most favourite haunts.
These we frequently see perforated with numerous oval holes large
enough to admit the finger, and when the caterpillan are abundant the
trees attacked eventually fall a sacrifice to their ravagesw It is three yean
before attaining maturity, at which time it incloses itself in a tough
cocoon, formed of pieces of wood joined together by a glutinous web.
The moth is common in various parts of the south of England, and
the name Goat-Moth has probably been applied to it from the
property of emitting a disfljg;reeable odour having been transfeired
from the caterpillar to the moth.
A detailed histoiy of the C, ligniperda will be found in the
'M^moires pour servir k I'Histoire des Insectes,' by De Geer; and
for its anatomy we refer our readen to the ' Recherches sur T Anar
tomie et les Metamorphoses dc diffSrentes Esp^ces d'Inaectes,'
by L. L. Lyonet. This latter author has also published a sub-
stantial quarto work, with numerous beautiful plates engraved and
drawn by himself, which is entirely devoted to the anatomy of the
caterpillar above mentioned. This work, which was the labour of
years, must ever stand as a monument of the great skill and perse-
verance of its author, who boasts of having destroyed but one
caterpillar for its completion. It is entitled * Traits Anatomique de
la Chenille qui ronge le Bois de Saule,' &a
CO'SSTPHUS (Olivier), a genus of Coleopterous Insects of the sec-
tion Httemmera and sub-section Taxieomea, The principal character
of this genus consists in the dilated and flattened sides to the thorax
and elytra — a structure also found in many of the NUidultB and in
the CairideB, These insects, if it were not for the dilated portions of
the thorax and elytra, would be of a long narrow form, but with
these parts they present an oval outHne. The thorax is nearly semi-
circular, and its dilated margins as well as those of the elytra are
Bemitransparent .The anteonsa are ll-jointad; the last four joints
are considerably thicker than the preceding, and rather flattened ; the
terminal joint of the maxillary palpus is dilated, and of a somewhat
tiiangpilar form ; the head is completely hidden by the anterior part
of the thorax.
These insects inhabit the south of Europe and the northern parts
of Africa and India. About ten species are known.
C. Hoffnanaegii is nearly half an inch in length, and of a dark brown
colour; the parts of the thorax and elytra which extend beyond
the insect itself are of a paler hue. It is difficult to give an accurate
idea of this curious insect, which appeara as if it were an ordinary
shaped beetle pressed against the under side of a little oval scale of
wax, so that its impression is distinctly visible above, being convex,
whereas the scale itself is concave.
The present genus, with two othen {HtUxua and NUio), form,
according to Latreille, the second tribe of the family Tcueicomet, and
are included under the head CosypkeneB.
COTINGA. [CoRAOiNA.]
COTON EASTER, a genus of Plabts belonging to the natural order
RosacetBf and to the tribe Pomeeg. The st^gments of the calyx 5 ; the
petals 5 ; the styles 2-5 ; the fruit turbinate, its nuts adhering to the
sides of the cidyx, but not cohering at the centre; the stamens
erect, as long as the teeth of the calyx. The species are shruba,
with simple entire leaves, woolly beneath. This genus was separated
from Meipilus by Lindley.
C. vulgaris, the Common Cotoneaster. It has roundish ovate leaves,
rounded at the base, flower-stalks and margins of the cidyx downy ; the
petals are rose-coloured. It is a native of Europe, and is found in North
Wales upon the cliffB at the Great Ormeshead. Previous to its having
been discovered to be a British plant it had been cultivated in this conn-
tiy. Several varieties are met with both in a wild state and in gardens.
C. tomentosa has its peduncles and calyxes woolly. It is a shrub
like the preceding^ and is foxmd wild on the rocks of the Jura and
other parts of the Alps of Switzerland.
C. laxifiora has its flowers in panicled cymes, and its calyxes
quite smooth. It has the same general appearance as C. vulgarit,
and is probably a variety.
O. frigida is an East Indisn species. It is a native of the higher
mountains in the northern region of NepauL
C7. (nfflnis was brought from Chittong, a town of Lower Nepaul, and
is similar in general appearance to the last species. C. acuminata
and C. nummidaria are likewise species from NepauL
(7. rotwidifoUa and O. microphglla are probably varieties of the
same species. They are both from the north of Hindustan.
All the species are adapted for shrubberies, and many of them
are very commonly cultivated in Europe. They are easily propagated
by laying down the branches, or by cuttings, which should be placed
in a sheltered situation under a hand-glass. They may be also
increased by dividing their roots, and by seeds.
(Lindley, Linnean Transactions; Loudon, Arborettun et PrtUiceium
Britcmnicum.)
COTTON, a word derived from. JTvfn, or Kuiun, one of the names
given by the Arabs to this substance, is a filamentous matter pro*
duced by the surface of the seeds of various species of Oossgpium.
[GosSTPiUM.] It consists of vegetable hain, of considerable length,
springing from the surface of the seed-coat, and filling up the cavity
of the seed-vessel in which the seeds lie. Hain are extremely
common on the surface of plants ; frequently however they are
unobserved, in consequence of their small number and minuteness ;
while on the other hand in some cases they give plants, such as the
Mullein for instance, a remarkable hoary appearance. On the surface
of seeds they are uncommon ; and yet in the Malvacece and their allies,
to which the cotton plants belong, they not only exist abundantly on
the seeds of that genus, but in several other species. Vegetable hairs
are one of the many forms in which the cellular substuice of vege-
tation is developed, and they consequently partake of two of the
great characteristics of that foim of tissue, namely, thinness and
transparency. In the cotton they are long weak tubes, which, when
immersed in water and examined \mder the microscope by transmitted
light, look like flat narrow transparent ribands, all entirely distinct
from each other, and with a perfectly even surface and uniform
breadth. At certain distances along the hair, an interruption occurs,
which looks as if it proceeded from the turning round or twisting
of the hair during its growth. On each side opposite these inter*
ruptions a slight indentation is observed. Sometimes a slight traoe
of fine grains is discernible in the interior, but more frequently the
hairs seem empty. If strained singly they have little strength and
readily break, and it is only when many are entangled together that
they acquire any appreciable degree of strength. In all these points
cotton differa from the vegetable matter that constitutes linen ; the
latter consists of woody tissue, in the state of long tubes, but is at
once distinguished by the tubes adhering in bimdles, which it is
difficult under a microscope to break up into their component parts ;
the tubes are thick-sided, and will not acquire a riband-like appear-
ance when viewed in water, but rather resemble extremely minute
thermometer tubes. When they are jointed together the articulation
is oblique, the ends of the tubes being pointed and overlying each
other; and finally, in each particular tube of the woody tissue,
delicate as it may be^ there is a sufficiently approdable degree of
193
COTTON.
COTTUa
174
toughness when an attempt ia made to break it. In short, cotton is
a development of cellular tissue. Linen is a form of vascular tissue.
Henre it is easy to distinguish with certainty linen from cotton
manufactured articles, in cases of doubt ; and hence also the well*
known superiority of linen to cotton in strength : the latter is manu-
factured from the most delicate part of plants, the former from the
toughest [Tissues, yKaBTABL£.J
Cotton is produced by many different species and varieties of the
genns Gotaypium, which consists of herbaceous or nearly herbaceous
plants, vaiying in height from 3 or 4 to 15 or 20 feet, according to
the sort Sometimes the branches become woody, but they always
partake very much of the herbaceous character. The leaves are
downy and ntiore or less lobed, being sometimes however near the
top of the stem undivided; at their base is seated a pair of awl-
shaped stipules. The flowers are either yellow or dull purple, and
have the ordinary structure of the Malvaceous Family ; each is sur-
rounded by three heart-shaped bracts, which are more or less lacerated.
The calyx is a bluntly 5-toothed cup. The seed-vessel is a capsule
opening into from 3 to 6 lobes, and then exposing many seeds
enveloped in cotton, which sometimes adheres to them so firmly that
it is separated with difficulty ; sometimes it parts freely from them ;
in Mme sorts it is long and in others comparatively short, giving rise
to the commercial names of Long Staple and Short Staple.
The qualities of these hairs most valued by the nyinufacturer are
length of staple, strength, and silkiness. In these respects cotton
differs very much, and it is when these three properties are combined
in the highest degree that the cotton obtains the highest prices in the
markets.
Cotton-plants are found wild in both the Old and Kew World.
Herodotus and Arrian speak of the cotton-plant as indigenous in
India, and the cloth found in Peruvian tombs sufficiently attests its
having existed in that country long before it could possibly have been
carried to America by eastern intercourse. In fact the wild American
cotton-plants are specififially different from those of the Old World ;
but at the present day the cotton of the West is cultivated in Asia
and Africa, while that of the East has long since been introduced to
the American plantations.
The situations in which cotton-plants have been advantageously
cultivated are included between Egypt and the Cape of Gk>od Hope
in the eastern, and between the southern banks of the Chesapeake
Bay and the south of Brazil, in the western hemisphere. It has not
been found to succeed beyond the parallels that limit those countries.
In the equinoctial parts of America Humboldt found it at 9000 feet
elevation above the sea ; in Mexico as high as 5500 feet ; and Professor
Royle saw it at the elevation of 4000 feet on the Himalayas. It seems
generally to prefer the vicinity of the sea in dry countries, and the
interior districts of naturally damp climates. Thus, while the best
cotton is procured in Ipdia from the coast of Coromandel, or other
msritime districts, and in the southern states of the American Union
from certain coasi-islands, the coast cotton of Pemambuco is inferior
to what is produced in the interior of that country. These facts
lead to the inference that it is not merely temperature by which the
quality of cotton is'affected, but a pecidiar combination of heat, light,
and moisture ; the most favourable instance of which maybe assumed
to be the coast of Qeorgia and the Carolinas, and the worst to be Java
snd the coast of Brazil.
That this should be so would, in the absence of positive evidence,
be probable, considering thenature of cotton. We have seen that it
is a hairy development of the surface of the seed ; and nothing in the
organisation of plants is more affected by the situation they live in
than their hairs: thus many water-plants which have scarcely any
hairs, when transferred to a dry exposed station are closely covered
with such organs, and vice vend. The quantity of hair is also affected
in an extraordinary degree by local circumstances. The Venetian
sumach-plant, when in flower, has its flower-stalks nearly naked ; a
large proportion of the flower-stalks has no fruit, and becomes covered
with very oopious long hairs, whence the French call this plant Arbre
k Perruque; but those flower-stalks which do bear fruit remain
hairless. In this case the local cause is probably the abundant food
, thrown by the system of the sumach-plant into the flower-stalks for
the nouiishment of the fruit ; and the fruit not forming, the food
intended for it is expended in the formation of hairs upon the surface
of the flower-stalk. This is only an accident^ but local circumstances
conducive to the formation of cotton in excess may be permanent,
snd derived fr^nn the situations in which the plants grow. In a damp
cloudy climate the food procured from the soil may not be concen-
trated upon the surface of the seed, but may be expended in the
production of excessive quantities of leaves, and of proportionally few
flowers ; or it may pass off into the atmosphere in the form of a mere
exhalation, a smul proportion only being consolidated ; or in a dry
climate the soil may not be able to furnish food enough to the plant
out of which to form more cotton than it is absolutely its speciflc
property to produce under any circumstances. Or, lastly, there muy
be a mean where the powers of vegetation are called into their utmost
activity by v^armth and abundant food, and where, nevertheless, the
dryness of the atmosphere and the brightness of the sun, constantly
acting upon the surface of the cotton pods (seed-vessels), may drive
back the juices from the tfuxfiioe of the latter to that of the seeds, and
thus augment the quantity and improve the quality of the cotton
itself : this may explain the action of climate upon this substance.
The question is however rather more complicated ; the different
specific qualities of different varieties of the ootton-plant must be also
taken into account. A considerable number of varieties of cotton ia
certainly cultivated, although little is correctly known about them.
In some of them the cotton is long, in others it is short ; this has it
white, that nankeen-coloured: one may be cultivated advantageously
where the mean winter temperature does not exceed 46" or 48**, and
another may require the climate of the tropics. This is just what
happens with all cultivated plants. Some vines will produce only
sweet wine, others only hard dry wine, and some are suited only to
the table ; some potatoes are destroyed by a temperature of 32", while
others will bear an average English winter ; only one kind of wheat
produces the straw from which the fine Leghorn plait for bonnets is
prepared. But to multiply such instances is unnecessary. There can
then be no doubt that the quantity and quality of cotton will depend
partly upon climate and partly upon the specific properties of parti-
cular varieties.
The Cotton-Plant, or Qozteypiufn, must not be confounded with the
Cotton-Tree, Bombax, or Eriodendron. The latter has also cottony,
seeds, but they cannot be manufactured into cloth.
For further information see Cottok Manufactubb, in Abts and
So. Div.
( Royle, lUiutratiom qf the Botany amd other Branches of the
Natural Hietory of the HivMlayan Movntaine, and qf the JPhra of
Cachtnere, article ' Malvacese.')
CO'TTUS (Linnssus), a genus of Fishes belonging to the section
Acanthopterifgii and family Loricati (Jenyns). The species have the
following chiunu^rs : — Hrad large, depressed, furnished more or leas
with spines or tubercles ; teeth in front of the vomer and in both
jaws, none on the palatines; two dorsal fins; ventral fin small; body
\fithout scales ; branchiost^^ous rays six.
C. gobio, (Linn.), the River Bull-Head, Miller*s Thumb, or Tommy-
Logge, affords an example of this genus. This little fish, which is
found in almost all the fresh-water streams throughout Europe, is
from 3 to 4 inches in length, and of a browiah colour above, more or
less mottled and spotted, and whitish beneath The head is very
laige in proportion to the body, and without spines ; the pre-oper-
cuImS has a single curved spine on the posterior part : the eyes are
small, and directed upwards. The number of fin-rays are— anterior
dorsal 6 to 9, posterior 17 or 18 ; pectoral 15 ; ventral 3 ; anal IS;
caudal 11. The name Bull-Head is given these fishes on account of
the large size of their heads. These fish more particularly frequent
those streams in which pebbles abound. They feed upon aquatic
insects, kc It is foxmd in the brooks and streams of Great Britain.
The remaining British species of this genus inhabit the salt water,
and together with others of the same habits, are distinguished from the
fresh-water species by having the head armed with numerous spines.
C. scorpiua (Bloch), the Sea^corpion, or Short-Spined Cottus, is very
common on our coasts, and is foimd very frequently under stones or
sea-weeds, in the little pools left by ike retiring tide. It is thus
described by Mr. TarrelL "The head large, more elevated than
that of the River Bull-Head; upper jaw rather the longer; teeth
small and sharp; eyes large, situated about half-way between the
point of the nose and the occiput ; irides yellow, pupils bluish-black ;
one pair of spines above the nostrils, with an elevated ridge between
them ; the inner edges of the orbits elevated, with a hollow depression
above, but no occipital spines ; pre-operculum with three spines ; the
upper one the longest ; operculum with two spines, the upper one
also the longest, the lower one pointing downwards ; there is besides
a scapular and a clavicular spine on each side ; gill-openiiigs large ;
the body tapers off rapidly, and is mottled over with dark purple-
brown, occasionally varied with a rich red-brown; the belly white;
the first dorsal fin slightly connected with the second by an extension
of the membrane; lateral line smooth; the ventral fins attached
posteriorly by a membrane to the belly." Length rarely exceeding
8 or 9 inches.
This fish feeds upon small enutacea and the fry of other fishes.
C. &tt6a2t« (Euphraseu), the Father-Lasher, or Long-Spined Cottus, is
about the same size, and resembles the last both in appearance and
habits ; the two species however are seldom found in the same imme-
diate neighbourhood. This species is distinguished from the last by
its more perfectly armed head, the spines of which are longer in pro-
portion, tne space between the eyes is less, the crest above the eyes is
more elevated, and the ventral fins are destitute of the connecting
'membrane observed in the Short-Spined Cottus. Both these and the
last species are remarkable for the length of time they will live out of
the water. Hence Mr. Tarrell concludes that it is not a large gill-
aperture, as has been supposed, which hastens the death of certain
kmds of fish, as these have very large heads and gill-apertures.
C. qttadricomu (Linn.), the Four-Homed Father-Lasher, or Cottus,
another species also foimd off the British coast, though less abund-
antly than either of the foregoing maritime species, may be distin-
guished, as its name implies, by the four tubercles which are situated
on the top of the head, two on the nape, and two near the eyes ; the
pre-operculum is furnished with three spines, and the operculum with
one ; length from 10 to 12 inches.
m COTUNNITE.
Atpidophomt, LaoJpMa, is oomidared bj CuTiar u * xilHgetliu of
Colliu. This gsniu, or nib-gsniu, U thus cliuwiterued : — HMd Urge
uid deprflnod, more or !«■■ arnifld with ipiTiH and tubercles ; both
j&WB fumuhad with teeth, nans on llie vomer; body ftttauuBited poi-
tariorlf , oorered with uigulkr platai ; rentnU uaall ; bnuchioitagoui
raTiiix.
A. EVropatu (CuTier), the Armed Bull-Hewl, Fogge, Lrrie, Sn-
PcAcbar, PUck, or If obis. Thia little fiah, geMrallf about 4 oi 6 inchea
in length, U frequcDtlj augbt in the sbrimping nets, and ■■ oalled b;
tLa fiafacmeu, in some diatricti, ia addition to ita other names, tbe
Hook-Noae. Its general covering ia brown above find white beneath :
there are however most commonly indicationa, m<ire or leaa distinot,
of aaverkl broad dark marks serosa the back ; the nose is fumiahed
with four recurved apinea; the upper jaw exteods beyoDd the lower;
the infra^rbitali have three blunt tiiberoles on their lower margin,
and a shsip apiue dirwted baokwarda ; the pre-operculum is also
armed with a spine ; the brsnchiost^gous membrane and chin
an each furnished with numeroui flesh; fllamenta ; the body is
divided lonj^tudinally byeigbt scaly ridgea, those on the upper part
being moat produoed. The number of Bti-raja are — dorsid G to T;
pectoral IS; ventralS; anal T ; caudal 11.
The habtta of tbia fish appear in uiaay respects to be the same as
those of the C. irorpiw, Ac. It is very freqaent on the aonthem
shores of Omt Britain.
COTUNNITE, a Mineral It is a native Chloride of Leti, ooaa-
ring on Vesuvius in white acicular cryatala.
COTURNIX, [TlmiOBlDi.]
COTYLE'DOy is the leaf of a seed; it is the part preparad by
nature to enable tbe young plant when it first springs into eiistenoe,
and before it has been able to form otgana of digestion and reapiration,
to perform both those functions. Sometimra the cotyledon performs
these functions under ground during the whole period of its activity ;
but in many cases its subterranean IDe extends only to a few days or
hours, after which it ia elevated above the soil, and takes on the
ordinary property of the leaves. [aiBHmATiOH.]
The situation of the cotyledon ia on one tide of the axis, of which
the plumule is the apex, and the radicls the base. In tiie largest
nnmber of known seeds there are two co^ledons on opposite mdea
on tbe same plane ; in a few there are several opposite to each other
in a whorl ; in a conaiderable number (here ia only one ; and among
the lower planta there appears to be an absence of any distinct organ
of this kind. These differences have given rise to the tsmu Dicoty-
ledons, Polycotyledons, Monocotyledons, and Acotyledona.
The &Rt two and the laat of theae fornu will be readily undentood ;
bat the structure of a Monocotyledon is far more puasling to the
student, in consequence of the axis not being found on one side of the
cotyledon, as would have been expected. A common monocotyle-
donous embryo is a nearly cylindrical body, obtuse at each end, as at
fy. t, and its axis of growth is in the iuterior of the cotyledon, so that
it can only be found by cuttiog the organ opsn. The following
diagram will explain this anomaly. Let the upper line represent four
kinds of embryoes seen from the side, and the lower line tbe plan upon
which those embiyoas are constructed, the inner circle being always
the axis of growth, aud the crescent or crescents the cotyledons;
Fig. 1 is a common dicotyledonous embryo, with ita cotyledons equal ;
jt;. 2 is a rare kind of embryo of the same kind, with one of tie
cotyledons exceedingly small If the smaller cotyledon -were abso-
lutely deficient, it may easily be conoeived that such an embryo as
that ttjig. 3 would be the remit, the angles of the crescent being
dtiiwn tf^ther round the axia, just as the edgu of leaves are drawn
together when they roll up in tha leaf-bud. If we now suppose that
the anglaaare not only drawn together, but actually united as atjt?-1,
the preaance of the axia within the cotyledon will no longer appear
inexplicable.
n d
CXJWBANR. IM
It ia also a native of PortugaL Altbougb this plant belongs to bd
order with comparatively inert properties, it has obtained a reputa-
tion in the treatment of nsrvoos diaeaaea, especially epilepsy.
C. lutea hns tbe lower Isavea somewhat peltate, upper leavea crsnats
or toothed, the bracts toothed, flowen ereot. The flowers are of k
bright yellow. It has been found wild in England, but is probably
not a naljve.
Many of the species of this genus hare been separated nndar tha
gsnus VmbUiau, tha trpe of t^ich is the first apeciea name! — which
is called U. erielMt. Tbe species of Umiiiiciu closely resemble thi—a
□f OalslcdoH, In the cultivation of the spedes of both gener>, tliey
should be plaoed in pota well drained, with a soil of sandy loun or
brick rubbish. They may be propagated by cuttings, whioh should
ate planted, as they ai
The best situation for th
(Don, DitUamydioui
. . at the wound if otherwise
B planta is the shelves of a greenhonaSL
P^nti; Babiugton, ManwJ qf Brilitk
con AGO A. [EqniDA]
C0UCH-QRAS3. [TbitIOuh,!
OOUCOO. [CUCDLID*.]
COUMAROUKA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
leguniinoia. It has 8 stsmens, and the lowar segment of the calyx
undivided. TUs genus is also referred to DipterLz.
C odiyrala ia the plant which yields the sweet-scented Tonga Bean
of the parfumsra. It is a native of French Ouyaua, where it forma ■
taige forest-tree, called by the natives Coumarou. The tnmk is sud to
be 60 or 80 feet high, with a diameter of St feet, and to bear a large
head of tortuous stout limbs and branches. The leaves are pinnated,
of two or three pain of leaflets, without an odd one at the extremity.
The flowers appear in axillary bnnches, and consist of a calyx wiUi
two spreading sepals, and five purple petals washed with violet, of
which the three upper are the largest and most veiny. Tbe stamens
are eight, and monadelphous. The fruit iaan oblong hard dry fibroos
drupe, containing a single seed ; tha odour of ita kernel ia extremely
agreeable. The natjvea string the seeds into necklaces ; and tha
Creolsa place them among their linen, both for the sake of their scent
and to keep nwny insecta.
®QQ)Q
COTTLE'DON, a genns of Plants belonging to the natural order
Craitulacia. It baa 6 sepals shorter than the tube of the corolla ;
the petala cohering in a tubular fi-eleft corolla; tha stamcoa 10,
insetted on the corolla ; 6 hypogynous scales ; G carpels. The spocisa
sre anccultnt shrubs, mostly nativea of the Cape of Oood Hope.
C imWt'oiu, Navel-Wort, haa the lower Ieavsa_peltate^ oonoava,
orbicular ; the bracts entire ; flowers pendulous. The flowers are of
a greenish-yellow colour, and the stem ia from 0 to 13 in^s high. It
la found very commonly on rocka or walls in the weat of lilngland.
lafO-
.to).
flower ; *, ths csIti
with a yaant drupe projecUiiK from It.
COimSER. [CaxBacBianx.]
COUZERANITE, a Mineral from tbe Pyreneea. It has a compo-
sition atar to that of Labradoritt. [KamturantM.]
COW. [BoYim]
COWBAIKB, ou« of the oommon names for tha Watai^Hamloo)L
[CtOUtA.]
in COW-BERRY.
COWBERRY, » oomDiDn luune for the Red WhoiilebmTy.
COW-BUNTINO. [MoLOTHnn*,]
COWITCH. or COWAQE, a word of unknown deri AtioD, unlau it
be > corruption of Al Kooabw, tbe Beugftli Dame of one nf the planU
tbAt produca it, coDBUts of the hmin found upon the podi of diSenoit
■p«ifB of Mucuna. They ue eicwdinci; ilender, brittle, and ewdl;
dcUched, uid th» fragroente readil; stick iaio the skin nnd produce
■n intolrmble itching ; hence they are rrequeutl; amplojed for mii-
ehierniu purposea. Cowitch U bIki ueed medicinaltT u a vermifage,
bj being tuized with syrup till of the ooniiatence of hODe;, knd given
iu Hoata of two or three tea-spoon fuU.
The plftuts thst beju' these pods nre large twiniog Bunuiila or peren-
Bisli, with 1b«tp« like thoaeof kidney-beans, beiDgd»rit purple papiliona-
CHus flowers, with a short standard lying close upoa the wings and
kni, and dindelpbons e-.araena, half of which hare round and half
arrow headed authen. The pods cnutaiu fnim one to six seadd, and
are coiered by a very wrinkled shriveled skin, wbich even stands up
in little pUtes. Before they are ripe and their hairs hardened, thu
podi are employed as a vegrtsble, like kidnej-benns, and are described
u being delicious. The species are found in hedges, tiiickets, on
the banks of rivers, and about watercoiiraes in both the Kest and
Vest Indiea, and America within the tropics. Mvama vreiu and
M. prtiriau usually furnish the lubatanoe ; but that from M. moae-
tpmta, called b; the Telingai Enooga dola Qunda, or Elephaat'a
Semtch-Wort, is said to exceed the others in the irritating bunking
prc»rty of it* hairs. Dr. Roxburgh statea that M. prurient was one
of the plants formerly ueeil in India to poison v^lls ; " it has turned
out, however, not to be the poinon it wsa iskHn for, and it is more
than likely that tbe other plants employed !• r the same base ends
an fortunately much leu dangenias Uian those who employ tham
imagine." [SIdcdka.]
Opened pod of Macuna mmoipmiia, cstDnl lia.
COW-FARSLGY, an tJmbeUiferoaa Flaot {Chatvpkyllmm Mnahm).
[Cb^bophi
COW-PLAKT. [Oi*
COWHY. [CmMJD^t
COWSLIP. [PBlMOLi.]
COW-TEEE, a Plant belonging to the natural order Urticacea, and
apparently to the geuug ^ifutmiiin, from which, when wounded,
a milky nutritious juice is discharged in such abundance as to tender
it an iioportunt object to the poor natives in whuse country it grows.
It is described by Humboldt as being peculiar to the Can]illeras of
the coast of Caracas, particularly from Barbuta lo the lake of Mara,-
caybo, near the villsge of Ssn Hateo, and in the valley of Caucagua,
three days' journey east of Caracaa. In these places it bears the name
of Pain do Vaca, or Arbol de Leche. and forms a fine tree resembling
the Star-Apple of the West Indies " Its oblong pointed leaves, rough
and alternate, are marked by lateral ribs, prominent at the lower
surface, and parallel ; they are, some of them, ten inches long." Its
flowers and fruit have not been seen by an; botanist. From incisions
in its trunk flows a glutinous milk, similu' in consistence to tbe first
milk yielded by a cow after calving. It has an agreeable balsamic
smell, is eaten by the negroes, who fatten upon it, and has been found
by Europeans perfectly innocuona. In chemical characters it is
temarksbly similar to the milk of animals, throwing down a cheeay
CRACWM. m
matter, and nodergoiog the same phenomena of putrefaction as
gelatine.
Humboldt supposed the Cow-Tree to belong to the Sapotaceoue
Order ; but, though tittle hsa been added to our knowledge of it since
his visit to the Caracas, it is at least certain that it is either a spscisa
of BroiimHm or very nearly related to it, and consequently a member
of the Urticaceoua Order.
The latter circumstiuice rendeia the Cow-Trse still mora interesting ;
for tbe milky juice of Urticaceoua plants is in other cases highly
poisonous. But botanists are now Hcquainted with many instaooes of
innocuous plants in poisonous orderi | thus the Hya-Hya Tree of
Demerara, for instance, belonging to the deadly Apocynaceoua Family,
yields a thick rich milky fluid destitute of scrimony ; and the Eiria-
ghuna plant of Ceylon is a sort of East Indian Cow-Plant, notwith-
standing it belongs to the Asclepiadaceoiis Order, which is acrid and
dangerous. In tbe absence of precise information as to the circum-
stances under which the Cow-Trees are milked, it is imposiible to eay
what is the cause of their harmlessnese ; but every phypiologiet wiU
eee that it is capable of being eipbdned without difficulty in mora
ways than one.
COYPU. [Htsiiuoida]
CRAR [Cinckr; CnnETACEA.]
CRAB-APPLE, or WILD APPLE. [Praos.)
CRABRO'NlD.iG (Leach), CSotronila (LatreiUe), a family of
Hymenopterous Insects of the section Aculfata and subjection
Pouortt. The species hare the following cbaracten : — Head large,
and appearing almost square when viewed from above ; body oval or
elli[itii»l, narrowed more or less at the base, and joined to the thorax
by a peduncle; antemue short, and generally thickened towards the
'be species of Tripoxi/tim provision their neats with small spiden.
The species of Gorytu are parasitic.
The species of the genus Oralkro are chiefly distinguished by their
having but one perfect cubital cell to the anterior wing ; the mandibles
terminating in a bifid point, and tbe antennte being distinctly genicn-
lated, they are sometimes filiform, and sometimes slightly serrated.
The palpi are short, and almost squsl. The clypeua is frequently
clothed with a Gue down of a glossy silvet^like hue.
These insects are extremely active in their movements, and may be
frequently seen settling on the flowen of umbelliferous plants, on
palings, or on the leaves of plants when the sun is shining upon them,
Iviog wait in such situations for the approach of other insects, which
they seiie snd carry to their nests for the purpose of feeding their
larvta. The larger spooies of this country are mostly of yellow and
black colours, the body being adorned with rings of the former colour,
the smaller species are for the moat part black.
Crabra ctpKalola is upwards of half an inch in length ; black ; the
body isadorned withfiveyellowring^; the baaal joint of the antenna)
and the tibia and ti—' ' "- —
MAT. I
T. W». V
Crabro palelialiu (Panzer), and several other species of tbii genus,
_re remarkable in having a large appendajie attached to the exteraBl
Sart of the anterior tibiae ; this is a thin plate of a somewhat rounded
)rm, convex above and concave beneath, and is undoubtedly used in
removing the soil whilst these insects are forming their burrows in
the ground. Each burrow is stored with flies or other inseets
(depending upon the species of Cratro to which it belongs) ; the egga
are then deposited with these flies, which constitute the food of the
larvn whan batched. Many species of Ondro form their cells in
rotten trees or poste. Much that relates to the habits of these insects
however niisains to be discovered.
CRA'CID^ (Vigors), a family of Rasorial or Oallinaceous Birds
(Satora). Hr. Vigors regarded this family as connected with the
Btrutbious Birds, Struthionida (Ostrich Family), by means of the
Dodo [Doso], generally supposed to be now extinct, the foot of
which, he observes, has a strong hind toe, and which, with the excep-
tion of its being more robust, in which character it still adheres to
the Stnuhionida, corresponds exactly with the Linnaean genus Orax.
" The bird," says Mr. Vigoni, " thus beoomes osculant, and forms a
strong point of junction betwi^n these two conterminous gTOU[M,
which, though evidently approaching each other in general points of
similitude, would not rihiblt that intimate bond of connection which
we have seen to prevail almost uniformly throughout the neighbourinjf
subdivisions of uatura, were it not for the intervention of this important
" The family of Oracida," says Mr. Vigora, " thus connected with
the SirvMonida, are separated from the typical groups of the order
by tbe length and robustness of the hinder toe, and by its being
situated more nearly on a level with those in fiunt These birds,
placed in this manner at the extreme of the preeeat order, assume
more of tbe habits and appearance of the preceding order of Penhera
than the other Auoref, with the exception of the family of Columbtda.
They are found most frequently to make their abode in trees, and to
i«ort to the neighbourhood of forests ; in the leaser number of their
tail-feathers they evince an equal deviation from their more typical
congeners, and they never possess a spur. Tbi* family contains th«
in CRACID^
Oarax of M. Cusiar, uid tho trua Crax, Lion., toRathor with the
Pemlopt «nd Ortalida of M. Marram. The two Imtter ganei» h«V8
th.ir hind toa ftrtieulated on a level with the front toes, and thm
rtcoDduct u» to the Columhida. Their billa also, more lengthoned
Ifasn those of Crax, approach moat naarly to those of the Pigeons,
which, on the other hand, seem to meet them by the atroniter form
and cunature of thabill of finojo, which lieriates in these particulars
from the 1,'enenJ structure of ifci own fumily. Th» gaoua Orlalida, in
particular, tlia feathered cheeks of which sre dialjnguished from the
naked face of Pendope, brings u» in immediatB contact with that
family. Here it is, in this extreme of the order, that I would assign
■ place to the beautiful New Holland genus ifnum. Lath., a group
that haa hitherto afforded more difficulty to the Bystemalio writer
than any other in the class. By modern authors it ia geQerslly placed
among the Perchen on account of the length snd low position of the
hind toe. But its hahits and manners are gallinaceous, as far as we
CAD ascertain, and its generul appearance decidedly eviuces an affinity
to tlie Batata. The deviation in the structure of the foot from that
of the typical Rasorial groups only indicates ita being placed at a
dialance from them, and in that eitreme of the order which connects
itself with the conterminous order of Perohers. The same deviation,
it has been seen, ii found in other groups of ita own family, and in
the adjoining family of Coiambida. A group newly discovered in
some islands of the Enstfm Archipelago, the Megapodiiu of M. Tem-
minrk, semes strongly to illustrate thfsa principles, and to corroborate
my opinion as to the situation of the singular New Holland genus
brfow us. The Megapodiut, brought home to France by one of har
late expeditions, ia ccinfeaiedly gallinaceoua in its habits, and
has been placed, without hesitation, among the trie Kanra, and yet
its foot is preciaely of the same conntruotion as that of Jfmuro. The
bill also "hows uo very material differenoa from those of the oxtre
groups of the Cracida. To return however to the general affinitiei
the frimilj, it may again be repeated that all the latter genera tl
united iimong themai-lves, evince an evident approach to the CVifi
hid'Xt from which, it may be remembered, we commenced our ohi
Tatione on the order. The whole of the groups uf the Raiora, thua
following each other in continued affinity,
socceasion without interruption." [M«[I1;h ._
The following are the charade™ of the Family :— Three toes before,
one behind, the latter touching the ground througbouL Head
feathered, generally orested : there ia oRea a Cere or naked akin at
the base of ths bill.
Mr. Swainnoii, ' Natural History and Classification of Birds,' voL i.,
p. 153, state-, that " in the &mily of the Craada, which connects thi
/nirmru with the RatoTti, the hinder toe is nearly as long as in thi
euokooii, and ia oonBiderably mora developed than in any other grouj
of rwtorini biida. We will aay nothing of the genera Megapodiui
Palamidta, and Menwa-, whose feet are well known to be enormous
or of Opitlhoeomia, because apecimeoa of these larga and rara birds
are not upon our table. Confining ourselves to the genus Penrtopc,
we msy remark that the toes, considered by themselvea, might be
taken for thoiie of a cuckoo, if the outer one was only versatile; it ia
evident also, from the structure of the claws, that these birds are
much more arboreal than tlieir congeners, for their claws are more
curved ; and from their lateral and not horizontal compression, as
well from their acuteness, we conclude that they are very little, if at
all. employed in scratching the ground, their structure being similar
to those of Pereheis, and adapted only for clinging. The foot, in tact,
of the Penilopc. ia not a rasonsl but an inaessorial toot, for it does not
mssess any one of the rasorial characters. Even the hind toe, which
all other rasoriii] birds ia raised above the heel, is here placed upon
toea. That no ambigi ' ' •' ^
CBACID.S. W
a positions a slight tinge of green. Tail-fi-athera tipped with
white. Lags red, claws yellow. Iris brown. Bill bright rod : th»
protuberance with which it if surmounted (which is rounded in the
young birds, and pear-shaped with the narrow end directed forward*
in the adult males) of a liviil alate-colour ; it is more (ban two inches
in length when fully devolopid, hard and bony eitemally, and inter-
nally oellular, the cells communicating with the cavity of thi mouth.
This protuberance is not visible til! after the first moulting, when it
Qnt appears in the form of a small tubercle, and becomes .much
larger in the male than in the female. In other respecti then ii
litUe difference between the seIe^ and the young atfl only diatin-
guiahed by a browner tinge. The windpipe descenda for a consider-
Lble distance in front of the sternum, immediately beneath the akin,
.md makes no lees than three distinct convolutions before poaaiilg
into the cavity of the cheat (E. T. Bennett)
the
9 beg to call the omithologiat's attention to the parCi-
culftr species now before us, the F. Aracuan of Spix, one of the most
common of the same genus. How this remarkable formation in the
foot of the typical Cracida should hitherto have been completely
overlooked, even by those who have speculated so much on the mode
by which ibt SoMrei and lnia»0!tt are united, is somewhat extraor-
dinary. We can only acconnt for it by the custom of examining epe-
ciniena set up in cases, or on branchee, inateail of preserving them in
■kina, in which stale they can be handled in all directions. But how-
ever this may be, the fact itself decides the long-conteated queation aa
to which family of the Satoru mokes the neareat approach or rather
forms the paf sage to the Inttttera ; while, if tbia question be revt
and it is ssked which of the JmenoTa makes '
the Raim-it, we need only direct our search n
legged Brazilian cuckoos, or at once point
Ojnj'Aocumu."
Ourax (/"aaxi, Temm.}.— Bill short, atrong, compressed, vaulted,
convex, dilated at the base of the upper mandible into a homy, oval,
hard, end elevated substance. Nostrils basal, pierced near the fron^
hidden, open beneath ; bead covered with ahoit and close-set feathers.
Feet (tarai) long and amooth. This family conaiata of the following
genera: —
0. Paiui (Cuv.), the Oaleated Curassow. Size about that of a small
hen turkey. Head and neck covered with short velvety feathers of i
rich black. All the rest of the plumage, with the exception of th'
white abdomen and under tail-coverte, brilliant black, exhibiting ii
i singular genus
GelrateiJ CuraHow [Outai Fnui!).
This bird ia a native of Mexico, where the species lives In large com-
paniei perching upon the trees. Nest generally made on tb- ground.
The young are led about by the femali; iu the same manner as tlie
hen pheasant and the common hen lend theirs. The Gist food of th«
chicks conaiats of worms and insects, but as they advance fruita and
seeda are added. Hemandea gives a very good deacription of the bird
a ■ Uistoria Avium Novs Hispanim,' cap. ccixii. The Oaleated
CurasBOW is eoHily domesticsted, and is enumei-ated by M. Temminck
among the birds which brecl abundantly in the menagerie of H.
Ameaboff before the French revolution.
Mr. Yarrell hiu pointed out the peculiarities of the very elongatad
trachea of another apecies, Ourax Milu, Cuvier, Thia organ is pro-
duced between the skin and the muscles beyond the sternum, and
reaches almost to the vent It haa been figured by Dr Lnthsm,
M. Temminck, and others. The stemo-tracheal muscles extend along
the whole of the tube, a diapoaition which, Mr. Yarrell remarked,
prevails with one or two exceptions in all birds in which the fold ol
the tracbM ia not included in the hone. (' Zool. Proc,,' 1B30-81.)
Mr, Bennett (' Gardens and Menagerie of the Zoological Society')
observes that the nostrils in Ourax Pauii are seated behind ths
Erotubarance, and are perpendicuUr in their directiou : the roem-
rauoiu cere which surrounda them, be adda, ia covered with alKirt
velvety feathers.
{>iu.— Bill moderate, long, comprsised, higher than it is broad at
the base, thick, carinated above, curved towards the end, aunounded
at tbo base with a membrane; lore naked; noatrila lateral, longitu-
dinal, pierced in the cere, and partially covered. Head crested with
curied festhera. Tail apread out, inoliueil ; tail-featbersH. Siithquill
the longest Hallux reaching the b:rDuud with the Grst phalanx.
C. AUetor (Linmeus), the Created Curaasow. The plumage of the
Crested Curaasow is of a deep black, vrith a elight gloss of green upon
the head, creat, neck, baok, winga, and upper part of the tail ; it ia
of a dull white beneath, and on the loner Uil-covarta. Ita cnrt ia from
2 to 3 inches in length, and occupies the wl'ole upper surjaoe of the
head ; it is curled and velvety in ita appearance, and capable of being
raised or depressed at nilL The eyes are surrounded by a naked skin
which eiteode into the cere, and there asaumea a bright yellow colour.
Sixe about that of Ourax Paiai. (hi. T. Bennett)
■ " Thia epeciea," aays Mr. Bennett, " ia a native of Mexico, Guyana,
and Brazil, and probably extends itself over a large portion of the
acuthem divlaiou of the American continent In the woods of Ouyank
it appeara to he ao extremely common that M, Sonnini regards it ■■
the most certain resource of the hungry traveller whose stock of pro-
visions ia eihauated, and who has conaequently to trust to bis gon
for fumiahing him with ■ freeh supply. The; congregate together la
unmeroiia flockn, and appear to be under little
en a cansiderable
reat remnin quietly perched upon
if the haroc that bju been com-
CreitcJ Curiuov (Ovi Alittcr).
mitted MUODgit tbem. Tbia conduct ie by no rneana the result of
liniplicity, but pn>ceedB latlier from the natural tameueia and nnaui'
pitiuusneH of their character. Thoee however which frequent the
neighbourhood of inhabite-l places are raid to be much vihler nnd
more mietrustful. heiag kept coustantl; on the alert to iToid Ui*
Eumiiit of the huntere, who destroy them io great numben. They
uild their nestii on the tn^ee, forming them eitemally of brunchea
interlaced with the atalki of herbaceous pistite, and lining tbem inter-
nally with leaFea. They genernlly lay but once a year, during the
lainy aeneon ; the number uf their egga being, accordiag to Socniui,
Gve or ail, and according to D'Aiara aa many an eight. Tbey are
nearly aa larye ae those of a turkey, but lire wbita like a hen's, and
with a thicker ahelL" ('aardena and Menagerie of the Zoological
Society.' Tol, iL)
C. yarrtUii, the Red-Knobbed CuraBaow. The traohea of this
apeciea differs from all Ihoee previoualy known, but most resemblea
that of C. Aleetor, Linnsiua, while in external choractera the bird
approachea C. gtvbicera, Linngnia, from which it ia diatinguiahed by
the redness of ita oere, and by a prominence on each side imder the
baae of thu lower juw, in addition to the globoee knob near the base
of the upper. The tube in C. Yarrdlii ia straight throuf^hout its whole
length, except a short conrolutinn imbedded in a cellular menibraae
pLiced between the shafts of the oa furcatorium. The trachea is
nuTow. and the fold, inrr-Bted uid supported by a membranous sheath,
gives off one pair of muaclea, which are inserted externally below the
apex of the os furcatoriitm. The lower portion ot the tube immedi-
ately above the bone of diTarication aenda off a pair of muscles to be
inserted in the ttemum. The upper pair of mviaclea (furculo-traeheal)
influence the lensth of the tube aboTc the convolution. The inferior
pair < atemo-traoheai) baie the aame power over the bronchial tubes
and that portion of the trachea which ii below the' coqtoIuUod.
(■Zool. Proo,,' 1830-31.)
Ur. Bennett. ApeaklDg of the Zoological Sooiely's Henagerie, eayi: —
" Of all the gallinaceous birds in the collection, the most inlareating
Of* thoee which hold out to ua a prospect of supplying our farm -yards
with oew braada of poultry of a auperior kind. Such are especially
like Cunaaowa In many p^krts of South America these birde have
long been i«cUmed ; and it is really surprising, oonsideriDg the ez-
trrme familiarity of their mannera and the facility with which tbey
appear to pass from a atate of nature to the tameness of domestic
towla, that they have not yet been introduoed into the poullry-ysnls
of Europe. That with proper treatment they would speedily become
habituatsd to the climate we have no reason to doubt; on the oou-
trory, numerous examplfis have shown that they thrive well even in
its nortbem parte; and Temminck informs us that they have once at
least been thoroughly acclimsted in Holland, where they were as
prolific in their domesticated state as any of our common poultry.
The eatabliahuient however in which thia had been effected wae
broken up by the civil commotions which followed in the train of the
FRDch revofutiou, and ail the psins which bad been bestowed upon
the education of these birda were loet to the world by their audden
and complete dispersion. The task which had at that time been in
acme nicaiura accomplished still remaina to be performed ; and it
may not be too much to expect that tbe Zoological Society may be
moee»fixl in perfecting what was then ao well b^;un, and in natural-
CIlAf^ID.*. Mj
ising tbe Curoasow as completely aa our ancestors hnve dune the
equally exotic and in their wild Btate much less familiar breeds of the
turkey, the Ouinea-fowl, and the peacock. Their introduction would
certainly be moat deeirable, not merely oq account of their aize aud
beauty, but also for tbe whitenen and excellence of their flesh, which
is Bsid by those who have eaten of it to surpoaa that of tbe Quinea-
fowl or of the pheasant in the delicacy of ite flavour." (' Gardens aod
Menagerie,' Ac, vol. iL)
Lieutenant Maw. who appears to have shot a Red-Knobbed Curnaafiw
on hiBpieenge from the Pacific to tbeAtlantic down the river Harabon,
says that the native Peruvian name for the bird is Peury.
Penilopr. — Bill moderate, naked at tbe base, entir*, convex above,
wider than it is high, bent at the point] lore and btue of the bill
n^ikad. Under the throat a naked akin which is c.ipsble of being
inflated or awoUen. NoBtrila pierced in tbe cere towarda the middle
of the bill, half closed. Foot (tarsus) slenrler, louger than the inter-
mediate toe ; nails somewhat curved, atrong, compreseed, and pointed.
Fifth and eiith quill longest. ToilfeatheiB 12.
P. crUtala (Qmelin), the Ouan. Length about SO iuches. the tail
being IS or H inches." Upper parts dusky black nr bronze, glossed
witb green, changing to olive in certain ligbts. A blick Bti i|ie pauses
from the under part of the bill backwards, and surruuiids the ear.
Fore part of neck and breast spotti^d with whitish, each of the
feathera being bordered by white ; belly and legs, lower part of tbe
hock, and under tail coverts, reddish. Cheeks a:ikeil aud vidlet-
purplish. Iris reddish brown. Bill bta<'kiah. Feathers of the back
of the head long, forming a thick tufted crest, wliii:h the Idrd con
raise or depress at pleasurtj. Naked part of the throat BCarlot, with
a contractile and extensile fuld of depending skin. Mr, Bennett
observes that this fold retains its elasticity after death. The female
differs from tbe male principally in having Iter plumage, eapeciallj
her under parte, more decidedly tinged with red.
Onan (AihIoik crulalu).
Mr. Tarrell states that the trachea of the Ouaa ia oDiform in eise
and substance throughout its whole length. After descending by the
neck in the usual way, it ia extended, and passes downwards under
the skin, but over the outer surface of the pectoral muscle on the
right side, to the extent of two inches beyond the angle formed by
the junction of the two portions of the os furcatorium. The tube of
the trachea is tbcD reflected, aod, ascending to the cavity of the
thoiai, again turns to be carried to the lungs as in other birda, and ia
provided with one pair of true muscles of voice, which have the usual
origin and inaartioc. The loop or fold of the tube farmed on the
BuHace of the pectoral muscle is imbedded in cellular ti<>aue, and
further retained in its place by a strong ligament, which, firmly
adhering to the loon, passea backwarde to be first attached to the
posterior angle of the sternum ; and afterwards dividing once, and
passing still farther backwards, the two slips are inserted on the two
elongated pubio points of the pelvis. This structure in the Quan, Mr.
Yarrell obaervea, haa been noticed and figured by M, Temminck In
his ■ Histoiie des Pigeons et Oallinac^s.'
Mr, Bennett remarks that the manners of the Ouan have little to
distinguish ^them from those of the Curossowa. Atthuugh to all
introduced into Europe in equal numbers with the Curaaaows, nor has
the same Buccess attended the attempts to propagate them in this
quarter of the globe, " We are told however," continues Mr, Bennett,
"by M, Terominck,that the proprietor of a menjigerie in the neigh-
bourhood of Utrecht had bred them for aeveral years ; and there can
be little doubt that with proper care and attention these birds might
be added to the Etook of our domeetioated fowls. Tbey are spoker
IS! CRiCIDX.
of u fumiihiDg an gxcslleut diah for ttia tabls. In k urUd atkte thajr
inhsbit QuyBDn uid Biszil, aad perhsps eitoivl itilL fu-th«r to the
□orth. Their food coUBUti prindpall; of seeds Kid fruit«, which the;
search far s^d eat upon the ground ; but the grester part o! their
existence ib paeeed upon the bves^ on the tops of which th^y perch,
and in which the; build their neeta. They are often fcuod in large
bands, but generally pair together with tile etricteat eooitano;. The
feinalea la; from two to fire eggs. Their Bight, like that of moat
gaUiaaaeouB birds, in consrqneDoe of the shortness of their winga.
low and heav; ; nnd in the performance of this action tirnj deri
much assistance from their tail, the featheia of which pa; be
axpaDded in the shape of a fati. All the birds of this genus appear
to be known in Brazil li; the oame of Jacu, pronounced Tacou,
deriTnd, acoordiog to Hanzgrave, from their note. Tbir, as might be
expected from the ooDformation of their trachea, is extramel; loud,
insomuch that when a considerable number are collected near the
same spot, the ver; woods, to use the eipreasiou of the scientific
traveller juat quoted, re-echo with their clamorous criea." The same
author obserrea that H. Spii added very conaiderabl; to the difS-
culties that previousl; existed in distinguishiDg the species of this
inlarastinR group b; the publication, in his ' Brazilian Birds,' of
•eriea of ngurea representing apparentl; very sli^t modiflcatione i
the oonunon form, but to each of which he has preGicd a peculia
specific name. Ur. Bennett eipreasea his belief that moat of theae
will be found on further eiamination to be referrible to the present
speciea, which, from its long domestication in tho poultr;-;arda of
S«uth America, must necessarily be subject to very extensive raria-
tions. (' Oardena and Ucnsgarie of the Zoological Society,' vol. it)
M. Lesson, on the authorit; of H. Qondot, meutiooa a species,
Penclopt Abttrri, Gkiud., 2 feet S inches (French) long, the tail being
10 iochea. H. Ooudat states that this speciea seems peculiar to the
mountains of New Qranada, inhabiting temperate and cold districts ;
it is, he says, unknown in the great warm valleys and b; the rivers.
In the eavirona of the cit; of Huio, celebrated for its mine of
emeralds, thia bird, he statea, is known under the name of Pavo-&-
Ouali. The inhabitants of the neighbourhood of Bogota and of the
valle; iif Cauca designate it b; the ttmn Psva Burri, or Aburri
Aburrida, which when alowl; pronounced well aipressaa its ay. The
male does not differ from the female; and thoaa which M. Ooudot
opened had two ctecums analogous to Pttuiope PanJKUta and Paviia
(japernltarii I ). The trachea descended without an; fold to the lungs.
There was no gravel in the gizzard, the walls of wMch were thio, and
nearly entirely covered by the proper muscles. M. Qoudot states
that the species lives soUtaiT, perches upon high trees, files but little,
and suffers the hunter to approach easily within shot. It ia never
seeu on the ground. The berries of tree* compose its food. Its neat
is formed in a mass of dry leaves, disiiosad between the forks of
treea The eegs are three in number, white, and 1 inch 8 lines in
diameter. Thaso birds, adds M, Ooudot, are very common in the
mountsins of Quindiu, between Hague and Cartliagena. Their notes
are the last that are heard on the approach of night, and the first
that announce the dawn uf ds;.
Ortalida. — Ita chancters are the SBmet* tboaa of Paitloi't, except-
ing that the head ia completcl; feathered, and that there is no naked-
neaa about the throat or round the eyea.
0. Uolavit, />AananM Mottnat, OmeL, Phanania Parraqua, Lath.
Colour r«d-brown, brtmied above. Tail modenta; It inhabits
H. Ooudot describes a new
H. L«HBan names Orlali
the same places with the
a new species from Santa-74 de Bogota, which
ida Gondolii. The bird it appears Is found in
the Pmdopt Abmrri. Total lei^ 23 inches.
CRACID.£. IH
of which the tail is S inches. Feet red ; tarsus 2 inches E lines ;
middle toe 2 inches 1 lines, the claw being fit lines (French). The
bill ia blackish, brown at its point; the upper mandible 1 inch
S linM^ cere and naked memlnnne round the eyes blue. All the
upper ^mage brown, with deep green reflections, or rather of a very
deep greenish. Feathers of the throat gray. Bottum of the neck,
hell;, and abdomen, as wall aa the thighe, covered with ruddy. Ko
crest nor nakedneas about the throat. N.o fold of the trachea in either
sex. It ia found in the uiountaina of Quindiu.
U. LesBon observes that this bird approaches nearl; to the last, but
is clearl; dintingulahable from it, especially by the trachea, which does
not descend upon the abdomen.
Opiitlutctmm, Hotfm, ( Hoazin, Buff. ; Orlhocorgi. TieilL).— Bill thick,
robuet, short, convex, bent atthe point, which is suddenly compreeaed,
fumiahed with diverging briatlea at the base, which is dilatwl later-
ally ; lower mandible strong, terminated in an angle ; edges dentelnted
towards the origin. Noatrils mesial on the surface of the bill, pierced
(de part en part), covered above by a membrane; Feet robust and
muscular; tarsus shorter than the middle toe, the lateral toea long,
equal, entirely divided; sole broad; toes bordered with rudiments
of membranes. Wings moderate, the first quill veiy short, the tour
following graduated, and the sixth the Eongeat. Tail-feathen ten.
0. crisfafui. This speciea, which appears to be the only one
belonging to the genus, ii the Hoatzin and Hoactxin of Hemandei;
who deacribea it as an inhabitant of warm districts, where it was seen
Bitting on treea by the aides of rivers, and as having received its name
from a suppoaed similarit; of the shrieking cr; of the bird to the
intonation of the word 'hoatsin.' Heruandez relates some Bb«nge
stories of cures effected by ita bones and b; a sufBtua of ita featheia ;
but Ba;s that the bird is deemed inauspicious b; the natives. Soiinini
states that it is known in Guyana b; the name of Saaa.
Hooiln lOpitthBHmHi triitattt).
The Hoozlns an said to live in pairs or in small troops, consisting
of from aix to eight individuals, in the flooded savannahs, which they
prefer, and where Vimj seek for their food the leaves of the Aram
arboractiu. Their flesh ia not oonstdered good, having a strong smell
of Castoreumabout it.. Theae birds are by no tnaana timorous. In
Stature and gait the; resemble the peacock.
Megapodiiu. — Bill slander, straight, aa wide sa it is high, and
flattened above at the base : upper mandible longer than the lower,
slightly curved at ita extremity ; lower mandible straight, the point
hidden by the edges of Che upper mandible. Nostrils suboval, open,
plaoed nearer to the point than to the base of the bill ; nasal lifoe
long, oovered by a membrane furnished with email feathers. Space
round the eye naked, head and neck well feathered. Feet large and
strong, plaoed &r bBakwardi ; tarsua large and long, and covered
with large scales, compreased posteriorly ; four very elongated toei^
the three anterior ones nearly equal, united at their bases by a small
membrane, which is more apparent between the inner and middle to»
than between it and the outer one ; posterior toe horizontal, touching
the ground throughout ita length ; claws very long, very strong,
flattened above, very little curved, triangular, obtuse at the poin^
nearly like thoae of Jfenaro. Wings moderate, concave, rounded ;
third and fourth quills the longest. Tail small, wedge.ahaped, scarcely
exceeding tbewiogs in length, and formed of twelve feathera. (Quo;
and Oaimard, with slight iteration.)
a. Oapemyii. In size hardly so large as apartridge. Tani !«■
elevated than they are in M. Pftj/cinelii and M. mAnpea The bird
moreover altogether better proportioned. Total length, from the
of the bill to that of the wings, whtdi ar« longer than the
r less than a foot (French). Tarsi strong, coTered with
IK CRACIDA
•odea, and 20 Hum in leogth; middle toa, InoladingUieolftir, IT UDBa;
bind bw II lines; posterior cUw T lioes. Billslightl; swollen tovuda
iU extremity, yellow, 8 liaes ia length. Noatiils luboTkl, oovered
■ith a metnbrans clothed with very smftll rudimeatary fskthei
Space round the eya naked, but leas tbui in the otiier two specie*.
Keck well clothed with feathtn. Iris reddish. A very thick oreat
carm the bead ; the festhers wltioh compose it are raised (s« redres-
■ent) lowerdB the occiput The winjjS ere concaTe, an inob longer
than the Uil, and terminated in * point : the fifth qniil (he longest
Tail suboval, p.intcH, very short, oumposed of 10 small featlie™.
Lega grajieh, and feathered down to the tani ; the clawa sli
curred, pointed at the end, flat below, and of
(Leaaoa.]
slightly
Manfolpe ( Jft^jmHtu I)upim)iii).
" The tutl," Bays H. L«ason, " of our M. Ditptrreyii ii of a browo-
;(11dw ; the neck, the throat, tbe belly, and the lateral parts, are of
■ gntj-slate calotir. The feathers of Uie back ODd the wing-oorerta
la^e, and of a ruddy yellowish brown. Eump. uppw part of the
tail, and TCDt-feathers, ochreous red. Quills yellow without, brown
within, the shafts being ruddy bromL
" Tbe middle toe ia united to the inner one by a membnnou*
border, which is wanting between tbe middle toe and the eiteraal one.
" In comparing our Megapwiiv* with the Mawra of New Holland,
we cannot fail to peroeive that it oonneots the last-mentioned genua
with the gallinaceous birds, by forming a rery natural passage. In
&ct, if we examine the position of the nostrils, the geneial form of
(he bill and li-gs, and the nakedneas round the eyes— tbe membnne
vhich unite* the two external toes, but which is wanting between the
middle toe and the inner one (an arraogemeDt which is reversed in
W^^orfituJ— the same length ot the toes, the analogy in the form
of the claws, the greater length of the posterior one, the concavity
and the smallness of tbe wings — aU these characlen, in Gne, coincide
to eooGrm tbia passage, if we eioept the extraordinary grandeur and
liiiurisDt form of the tail of Memra, a form without analof^ among
the other birds, if qropoifitu would thus belong to a small natural
gn)up,thei.«"/'"c''V'eillot (27th family); the naroeof which, in oon-
•eqaence of its having become improper, would have to be changed.
"Tbe M. Dwperrtsii, the Hangoipe of the Papuans, inhabita the
Dmbrageoiia foreata of Tfew Guinea, in the neighbourhood of the
barbaur of Dor^ry. Tbe bird is timid, runs very fast among the
biubea, like ■ partridge in standing com, and uttera a feeble cluck
(an petit glouaaement}."
U. Lesson statea that he only observed M. Fnt/ciaetii In tbe
Island of Waigiou, and that the attempt to preserve it alive in
n"M vna vain, for the birds sodd died. Tbeir flesh, he says, ia
black, very hard, and not Vi^ry agreeable as food, although posHSsing
a gauiey Sivnur when it is cuuked. The Papuans brought them
CD board the Coquitle daily, snd called tnem (thoae of the harbour
of Oflack at least) Haneaaqu^.
Both PigafettH and Oemelli Carniri apeak of the Tavon (MegO'
fdiiu), and it would seem that this, the Megapadinu of the Philip-
Iiinea, leaves its eggs to the fastertng heat of the sun. The habita of
the Urgapodii of New Qiiinea and tbe neighbouring islands are,
Kcording to M. Lcason, entirely unknown.
ilicthrtia-^^tha characters of tbe genus Mtgapodivt, obserrea M.
Lesson, estnbliahed by Meaan. Quoy and QaJmard in the Zoology of Lbs
voyage round the world performed by the Unute, are in great
CRAO. IM
measure applicable to tbe siib-geoas Attcllulia, formed "bj H. LeSMin
for the position of a bird whioh diffem &oni (he true Migapoda, or '
Tavona, by many distinctive charaotera.
Bill abort, oomprened, pointed ; the upper mandible prolonged,
the lower mandiUe a little swollen and very short; noatrils at the
base of tbe bill separated by a straight ridge; beul and forehead
abundantly DOTrred with featber* down to tbe noatrils ; space round
thu eyes fumished with short and close^et feathers ; innir toe rather
the shortest ; membrane which unites the middle toe to the inner
one almoei absent; no tail; all the foHthers of the body, eioapt
tbuee of the wings, composed ot loose barba, vary finely ciliated on
each of the shafts.
A. Ufviltii, LsHon. It is tbe only species known. Its total lengdi
fWim the extremity of tbe bill to that of tbe wings is e inches 4 line*.
Tain H lines; middle toe 10, bind toe 8, claws 5,bill 6 linea(FTvnch).
The bird is oovered with loose and scanty feathen, but has upon the
occiput a thick bunch of feathers. The general tint is brown,
fuliginoua, deepest aboie; belly and throat bmwn, slightly tinged
with ruddy colour; throat aah-coloured ; wings concave, rounded,
the festhen entirely brown, the second, third, and fourth being
equal; tbe upper part ia brai^n sprinkled with tigiag or irregular
lines, not well defined, of ruddy yellow. Place of the tait-feathsis
supplied by very loose plumes, composed of very fine barba, br^ed
with very slender approximated barbules, presenting much analogy
wl^ those of the Cassowary (No. 6, pi. 67, 'Atlas da Psron'), and
which, implanted in the rump in the same manner, form a feathery
tuft OS in tbe Cassowary ; all the feathei-s ef thia bird, eioept those
of the wings, ore composed of multiple stems, very slender and soft,
fumisbed with equal and very fine borbuies which may be called
multirochid. The biU is greyiih, and so are the feet ; tbe inner toe
is a little more united to the middle one than to the external one ;
the daws are slightly curved, sharp, convex above, ooncavs bdow,
and of a brown oolour; the iri is reddish.
This species, which comes from the Isls of Ousbj, placed imme-
diately under the equator, is, no donbt, proper to the neighbouring
lands such as the great and beautiful Isle of Halnniiva or Qolilo, so
little known and so little studied by naturalists. (Lesson.)
CRAO, the uppermost of tbe distinctly Tertiary Strata of England
— using this term in a sense wliich is perhaps gradually passing
away, to be replaced by tbe larger meaning of Camozoic, suggested
in this work. The Crag of Norfolk and Suffolk is partly a calcareous
moss rich in delicate corsla ; partly a subcajcoreous sand rich in
shells; and partly a rudely Bt[gregated deposit of sand, sbells pebbles,
and bono. To these divisions, whoso origin is due to different local
conditions, snd successive times, Mr. Charleaworth has sseigned tlie
title* of Coralline Crag, Red Crag, and Mammaliferous Cng. The
position of these beds will be best seen from the following table of
the classification of tbs Tertiary Bocka from PiofttMur Autted'a
' Elementary 0>-ology.'
Newer Tertiary, or Fliooane Series : —
1. Upper Oravsl and Sand.
2. -m.
S. Manmialiferoia Orag.
t. Fieah-Watar Sand and OnveL
B. JUd Crag.
Hiddle Tertiary, or Miocene Seriea ; —
fl. OoTamni Crag.
Lower Tortiary, or Eooejw Seriea r —
T. Fluvio-Harine Beds, &□.
187
CRAKE
CRANGONIDiE.
18t
For « further aoooant of the raktion of the Crag Formation to the
other membera of the Tertiary Seriee, see Tbhtiabt Strata. [Sup.]
CRAKE. [Raludjb.]
CRAMBE, a genuB of Plants helonging to the natural order
Orvcifenx, It helongs to the sub-order LwneiUaeea and the tribe
RapkanecB, It has a 2-jointed silicle, upper joint globose, with 1 seed
pendent from a long curved seed-stalk springing from the bottom of
the cell ; lower joint barren, stalk-like.
0, marUima, the Sea-Kail, or Sea-Kale, is a glaucous spreading
pUmt, with broad-toothed sinuated leaves, and dense corymbs of large
white flowers, foxmd occasionally on the sea-coast of England, and
now commonly cultivated in giuxlens for the sake of its delicate
tender shoots. Naturally the flavour of the plant is strong, cabbage-
Uke, and highly disagreeable, but in the state in which it is sent to
the kitchen, it is merely a colourless mass of delicate fleshy vege-
table tissue, with little or no flnvour. This arises from the shoots
that are to be cooked being grown in darkness, and with a little more
speed than usuaL For this purpose a garden-pot is inverted over the
crown of an old sea-kail stock, in the winter before the leaves sprout.
Over the pot is thrown a little litter, or some decajing leaves, or
some old tan, so as to increase the temperature of the earth, and to
exclude light ; after a week or two the pot is examined from time
to time, and when sprouts five or six inches long have been pro-
duced, they are cut ofi^, and are fit for table.
Sea-Kail loves a Kght sandy soil, well drained in winter and richly
manured. It will continue to bear cutting for twenty years together
without suffering much ;*and ia one of the most simple and useful
of all culinary plants for a small garden. It is generally grown in
rows eighteen inches or two feet aparL
CRA'MBUS, a genus of Moths {Lepidoptera no^uma) of the family
TineidcB (Stephens). The type of this genus is the Phalana PawneUa
of LinnsBus.
In crossing dry meadows during the summer time, we observe
numerous little moths fly from the grsss at every step we take;
they soon settle again, and are then not easily detected, owing to
their mode of folding their wings, which when shut almost inclose
their slender bodies, and partly surround the blade of grass on which
they rest ; their form is then long and narrow, pointed at the head,
and somewhat truncated at the opposite extremity. Their colouring
is often brown and white, disponed on the upper wings principally in
longitudinal lines. Very frequently however we find ttiem adorned
with beautiful metallic colours, generally of silvery or golden hues.
Such are the insects which constitute the genus Orambut, and of
which we possess about 40 species in this country. The characters
of this genus are : — Proboscis distinct ; wings convoluted round the
body when at rest ; superior wings narrow ; palpi long, the inferior
the longer ; head furnished with short closely-applied scales.
When the wings are expanded, these moths commonly measure
about an inch in width ; they are called in England the Veneers, and
sometimes Grass-Moths.
CRANBERRY. [OxTCOCCUS.]
CRANE FLY. [Tipulid^]
CRANES. [Gbuid^]
CRANE'S-BILL. [GERAKmic]
CRANGONID^, a family of Cfnutaeea belonginflr to the division
Deeapoda Maeroura, The type of this family ia the Common Shrimp
(Crangon mUgarii), and no other genera are included in itw It has the
following characters : —
Internal antennsB inserted on the same line as the external antennso;
first pair of feet terminated by a subcheliform hand. Although there
are a large number of Onutacea which are vulgarly called Shrimps
which resemble in general form the Common Shrimp, the OrangonidcB
difier too much from all these to be comprised in the natural tribes
formed by theuL It corresponds to the genus Orangon of Fabricius,
which, in the opinion of M. A^ilne-Edwards, has been unnecessarily
subdivided by Dr. Leach and M. Risso into the Crangons, properly
so called, Egeons, and Pontophili,
Orangon comprises those shrimps whose anterior feet are terminated
by a mooodactylous and subcheliform hand.
Carapace much more depressed than in the other shrimps, and
presenting anteriorly only the rudiment of a rostrum. Eyes short,
large, and free. Antennas inserted nearly on the same transversal
line; the first pair dilated at their base, at the external side of which
is a rather large scale ; their peduncle ia short, and they are termi-
nated by two multi-articulate filaments.. The external anteimss are
inserted outwardly and a little below the preceding, and they offer
nothing remarkable. The mandibles are slender, and without any palp.
The external jaw-feet, which are pediform and of moderate length,
terminate by a flattened and obtuse point ; within, they cany a short
palp, terminated by a small flagriform appendage directed inwards.
The sternum is very wide backwards. The first pair of feet are
strong, and terminate in a flattened hand, on the anterior edge of
which a moveable claw is bent back : the internal an^le of this hand,
srhich corresponds to the point of the claw, is armed with a tooth
representing an immoveable rudimentary finger. The two succeeding
pairs of feet are extremely Klender ; the second terminate generally in
a very small didaotylous claw; and the third are monodactylous,
like those of the fourth and fifth pairs ; but these four posterior feet
are much stronger. The abdomen is very large, but presents nothing
remarkable in its conformation. The branchis are only seven in
number on each side of the thorax (Milue-Bdwarda.)
Details of (h-ani^on. a. Mandible.
The genus is divided by M. Milne-Edwards into the following
sections : —
1. Species having the second pair of feet nearly as long as the
third pair. ^
In Uus section are comprised C vtUgarU, Cfateiatutt and C. Boreas.
2. Species with the second pair of feet mudi longer than the third.
Example, C. teptemcarifuUui.
C. vulgariif the Common Shrimp. Carapace and abdomen almost
entirely smooth, with the exoeption of one small median spine on
the stomachal region, and one lateral above each branchial region.
Terminal filaments of the internal antenn® more than twice as long
as their pedimcle. Lamellar appendage of the external antenne large
and elongated (about twice as long as the peduncle of the internal
antennse). Last joint of the external jaw-feet long and narrow.
Two last pairs of feet of moderate size. A strong spine inserted on
the sternum between the second pair of feet, and directed forwards.
Abdomen smooth, and without any keel. Median blade of the caudal
fin pointed, and without a furrow above. Length rather more than
two inches. Colour greenish-gray, dotted with brown.
Common Shrimp {(k'trnpon vulgarU). 0, anterior foot or claw.
It ia common on the coasts of England and Fnmce.
It is the Crevette of the French, and Shrimp of our markets, and
is one of the most delicious (Pennant thinks the most delicious) of
the macrurous crustaceans.
The shoals of these creatures which frequent our coast give employ-
ment to a great number of persons, who are engaged in catching
theuL They are abundant at the mouth of the Thames, from whence
the London market is principally supplied. They are caught by a
large open net, which is attached to a long stick and pushed through
the water. They are most plentiful on sandy shores. They are luied
also for baitw
l« CRAKIA.
C.fataaliu, tha Banded Shrimp, ia fouDd in the HaditvTTMMUt.
tt hu kbo been taken in Eogluid at Salcnmbe Bay.
C.tpiiuaia, the SpiDj Shrimp, It in the PoiUofhilM* fpuxwiu of
Ltuh, ^n>it loncat\tt of Ouerin. This iihrimp hai been taken in
hi«bI placca on the louth cout of EngliiDd.
C. tcitlptut i« a Britith apeciea, deMribad by Profeasor Bell in bis
'HiMoiT of the Britiab Stalk-Eyed Crustacea.' It was taken at
Weymouth by Mr. Bowerbank.
C. IritpinotoM and C. bitpinom are alio Britiah apeciea, and hare
been takt^n an the coiut of Rafltiuga.
CRANIA. rRHicHioroDA.]
CRASSAUENTUM. [Blood.]
CRA3SATELLA. [CancnacEa.]
CRAS3INA. [A«T*aTi]
CRAS3ULA, a genua of Planla, the type of the nataral order
Cniti^acta. It baa a S'parted calyx, much ahorter than the oorolla ;
KfrAi flattiah ; the petala fi, atellate, apreadlng, diatinct ; the itamena
6, Glamenta awl-tihaped ; icalea C, avata, abort; carpels E, many-
Ksled. The apeciea are very Dumeroua They ore luceulent herbs
or ■hniha, and are moatly natiTee of the Cape of Oood Hope. Their
luTca are oppoaite and entire, or nearly ao. Tha Sowara are moatly
vbite, rarely ruee^oloured. Upwarda of Bfty apeciea hare been
dttcriheit ', and many of them, on account of their groteaque appf ai^
•DCS, are cultivated in our gardena. '^'7 *xv greeobauae plants.
One ipwiea, C. Mragima, ia ueed at lie Cape of Qood Hopa as a
nmed; iiT dyientary. Any medicinal propertiea they possess ia
prnlikbly nwing to the presence of tannin.
CRA3SULA^CE£, Boiarrleda, a natural order of Poljpetaloua
Eiogpsoua Plants. It cooiiatB of succulent plants, with herbaceous
or ihrnbhy, and annual or perennial roots, groving in hot dry eipoaed
plicei in the mora temperate parts of tbeOld World chiefly. On the
lun-Korcbed clifft and volcanic soil of the Canariee, aod on thf dry
ittrile plains of the Cape of Qood Hope, they are tnoat abundant.
Tleir flowen are arranged in panicles, apikee, cymes, and corymbs ;
trch has a calyx of several diviaioos, alternating with which ia the
like number Mpetals, alternating with which ia the like number of
tUmens, or ttnce as many, alternating with which are as many
Jiatam; 1, aeslfx of A stviaraa
n, snd adhering 1>t U>e tube oi
g— tlie bjponnoui scide* are
distinct carpels a
a there are segments of the csilyx. The stameDi
tuba uf tbe calyx; there is usually a hypogynoui
tlaod at the base of each carpel ; tbe carpels are often of tha samt
colour aa tbe petala; and sometintea, in moustroas cases, ths anthers
bear ovules aa well as tbe ovarios. The fruit conaisU of a number of
distinct folliclea, each containioa numsrouH minute eeeda ; the embryo
lies in the axis of fleshy albumen. The afGnities of thi* order,
according to Dr. Limiley, are with SamaguiiKta, CaryophgUacuB,
&> '-ifragacat, and Tumeractcs.
Many species of CraiMida, Roclua, Semptreivim, Sedam, ir,, are
cultivated for the beauty of their flower* ; the various annual Tilleas,
Ac, are obscure weeds ; hause-leeks (different sorts of Sanpermmm.)
are grown for tbelr refVigeiant qualities; aod the leaves of 5^per-
vivam arboram possess puwerfiU tanning qualitiea This order
contains 22 gaoera and 460 spoclsa. [Skddm ; SEHrEBvrvuM ; CoTT-
liiion; Ecuiitkhia; Tiu.aj ; Kocuiu ; Uhuiuui;*; tlBYuruiL-
All tbe hardy species may be grown on old wall;, roofs, rock-work,
or other places thoroughly druned of moisture ; tJie greenhouse kinds
require what is called a dry'Stove treatment — that is, they must be
patted in a mixture of lime, rubbish, broken pots, and earth ; in
summer they an freely exposed to the weather in sunny aituationa
without protection, and in winter they are kept moderately coul, and
□early without water.
CRAT.£'QU3, a genus of Plaota belonging to the natural ot^ft
BattKea and the sub-order Fonea. This gonus ia very nearly aUisd
to tbe Apple (i^n-w), from which it differs in the fruit contaming a
variable number of at«nea, u> the Medlar does ; from the Medlar it is
known by its fruit being closed, not spread open, at tbe apex.
Ths Bpeciea inhabit woods and bedgea through put ths northent
hemisphere, from Barbery and Palestine to about 60° N. lat. tn ths
east, and from Mexico to a similar latitude in the west South of
these limits they do not occur tn a wild state. Ths flowers appear in
the greatest profusion, usually in terminal cymes, in t b early munths
of the year, and are succeeded by small round fruita, coloured yellow,
red, purple, or black. Moat of them are merely haws, and fit only
for the food of birda ; a few ara lai^^er and more fleshy, but Done of
them have been found worth cultivating for the fruit, except the
Azarole (i ruloyiu Aiaroiiu), which ia eaten in Italy, and the Aronia,
which is s>'ld in tbe markete of Montpellier under the name of Pom-
mettea It Deux Closes.
Between uity and seventy well-marked species and varieties are
known in tbe gardens of this country. Into extensive collections tbey
are all worth introduction, except C. patvt/olia and those immediately
allied to it; and for tbe ornament of patk-scenery there is prohnbly
no genus of flo.vering trees at all to be compared with Cralirgui for
variety, fragrmnca, and Iwauty. Our limita prevent our notiuiog all ■
these at length; we therefore confine ourselves to a brief indication
of tbnse which are molt vnlviable for ornamental purposes.
C. aryacaatha, the Hawthorn, White Thorn, or May, The leaves
ore obovate, 3-1-lobed, cut and serrate, cuneate at the base ; tba
flowers corymbose; calyx not glandular; styles 1-3. The bnuicbea
are spinaae. Thia plant ia ona of tbe most common in tbe British
Flora, baii^ used throughout the kingdom for farming quickset
hedgea. Babington mentiona two varieties, eipressii;g oi
(Jaoquin), with the peduncles and cuyz villose. The latter is
The Hawthorn not only growa in the form of a thrub or bush in our
hedges, but is not unfrtqueutly seen in the form of a tree. It is of
slow growth, and many mdividuals have attained celebrity for their
antiquity. There are several in Bushy Park said to be above two
centurlea old. The wood of the Hawthorn is bard, takes a fine
polish, and ia uaed by cabinet-makers.
Under the name c^ Hawthorns rnay be comprehended alt the noma-
roue sorts which are either varieties of Cralagru aiyaeanlha or nearly
n-latod to it, They have all deeply-lobed rather shining lesvei, ao
little hairy that their brii^ht i^reen colour ia nut deadened, smsll fra-
grant flowers, and small shining hawa They are distinguished for
the graceful manner in which they generally grow in rich soil and
unharmed by the pruning-knife. Thirty feet is not an unusual height
tor very fine specimeno, and when of that stie their appMtrsuce ia
exceedingly graceful and pictureaque. C. oryaeaniha itself prodncaa
varieties wiUi double flowers, bright crimson Sowers, yellow fruit,
black fruit, and &uit downy when young ; the latter ia called C. oxy-
acaniha erioearpa, and is one of the moat beautiful of the genua
Very nearly allied to these are the Oriental Thorns, spec es which
have their dveply-cut leaves covered so cloatly with hun as to have a
dull gray or hoary aipect, large fragrant fiowen, and loiga succulent
rather angulu' fruit. These are less graceful in their manner of
growth than tbe true Havrthoms, some of them, est>eoially C. tanaetli'
folia and C. odoraluima, having a round formiJ head ; but their
flowers are even more frngrant than the May-bush, and their fruit ren-
ders them striking objects in tha autumn. The Asarole is ons of
them ; but it does not fruit or flower readily, and is the least worth
having of the group. We should recommend C. odoraliMtima, with
its rsd fruit. C. latuKtlifolia with ite yellow fnut, C, arienlalu witli
purple fruit, and C. Araaia with ite light orange-coloured fruit.
The American Thorns are species with leavee but littls lobed,
usually broad, shining, and toothed unequally, often Laving eiceed-
....._)•.__ ._. J ,.._!__ ._-. ii_-r._;_^ — isdjate siaa.
ingly long spines, and having fmit genenlly oif ai
m
CRATiEVA.
CREI^USCULARIA.
18^
They are not qnite so handsome as the species of the two former
groups ; but the following, nevertheless, have suflBciently ornamental
features, namely — C. Cruagallif or the Cockspur Thorn, with very
long strong spines and 8hining deep green l^tves ; of this we have a
bmad-lcaved variety called C. aplmdent, and a narrow-leaved variety
ealted C. talieifolia ; C. prunifolia, C. avalifolia, and C. DougUmi, with
dark handsome leaves ; C, punctata, with large yellow or red haws ;
C. cordate^ with brilliant scarlet fruit ; and U. microcarpa, with very
■mall beautiful vermilion fruit and graceful pendulous shoots.
The Small-Leaved Thorns are all North American : they form small
straggling bushes, and are not worth cultivation.
f^ally, the Evergreen Thorns consist of C. Mexieana and C pyr-
acantha. The former is a small tree with lance-shaped bright g^reen
leaves, and large round yellow fruit ; it is probably too tender for
hardy cultivation north of London. The latter, an iuhabitant of rocks
and wild places in the south of Europe and the Caucasus, has been
long cultivated ic this country for the sake of its flame-coloured berries
and evex^green leaves.
All these plants may be budded or grafted upon the Common Haw-
tiiom, so that persons whose means do not allow them to purchase
the plants may nevertheless ornament their gardens with them by
providing hawthorn stocks, upon which they may work them them-
selves ; or a very small garden might exhibit a good many sorts, if
each of the groups here pointed out were intermixed upon the same
plant This mii^ht be easily effected by a skilful budder. It would
not however .do to intermix the different groups upon the same plant,
because the species would not harmonise, and consequently a bad
appearance would be the result.
(LovLdon, Arboretum et FnUicetum JBritannicum ; Botanical Register,
vols, xxi and xxii.)
CRATifiVA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Cap-
paridacecB. It has 4 sepals; 4 imguiculate petals larger than the
calyx, and not closing over the stamens during SBstivation ; 8-28 sta-
mens ; the torus elongated or hemiBpherical ; the berry stalked, between
ovate and globose, pulpy within ; a thin pericarp. The species are
unarmed shrubs or trees with trifoliate leaves and terminal cymes or
racemes of large flowers.
C. gynandrai Garlic Pear, has 20-24 stamens inserted on the cylin-
drical receptacle, longer than the petals ; the berry ovate ; the leaflets
ovate, acute ; the petals lanceolate. It is a native of bushy pUces
and thickets near the sea-side in Jamaica. The whole plant has a
nau!«eous smell and a burning taste. The bark of the root is said to
blister like cantharides.
C, Tapia, the Tapia, or Common Oarlic-Pear, has 8-16 stamens,
dedinate, about three times as long as the petals ; the stipe of the
ovary as long as the stamens ; the stigma sessile, capitate ; the fruit
globose. This plant is a tree about 20 feet high. Its fruit is the size
of a small orange. It is brought both from the West India Islands
and from South America. The fruit has the smell of garlic, and com-
municates its odour to animals that feed on it. The bark is bitter
and tonic, and has been employed in the ciure of intermittent fevers.
61 Manndoi, the Bilva, or Mahura, is a small tree bearing a large
spheroidal berry with a hard shell, and 10-15 cells which contain,
besides the seeds, a lai^ge quantity of a tenacious transparent gluten,
which on drying becomes very hard, but continues transparent ; when
fresh it may* be drawn out, before it breaks, into threads of one or
two yards in length, and so fine as scarcely to be perceptible to the
naked eye. This plant in now however transferred to the family Auran-
tiacece, tmder the generic name JSgle. It is the Peronia peUucida of
some authors. It is found in all parts of the East Indies. The fruit
is nutritious and aperient, and very delicious to the taste. It is
recommended by European physicians in the East as a valuable
remedy in habitual costiveness, and it is said never to fail in producing
its aperient effects. The root, bark, and leaves are also used in fevers
by the Malabar phyfficiiins.
(Lindley, Flora Medica; Don, DiclUamydeous Planti.)
CRAW-FISH. [AsTACUS.]
CRAX. [CRACIDiB.]
CRAY-FISH. [Abtacus.]
CREAM-FRUIT, a kind of eatable Fruit found at Sierra Leone, and
said to be produced by some Apocynaceous Plant
CREEPERS. [CerthiadaJ
CRENATULA. [Malleaoea.]
CRENELLA. [MTTiLiDiB. See Supplbubnt.]
CRENILA'BRUS (Cuvier), a genus of Fishes b'^Ionging to the
section A eanthopterygii and family Labridce. The species of this genus
have all the general characters of the true Labri, or Wrasses, but are
distinguished by their having the margin of the pre-operculum denti-
culated : the cheeks and operculum are scaly.
C. melops {Labrus melops, LinnsBua), C. tinea of others, the Gilt*
Head, Connor, Golden Maid. This fi^h is found on various parts of
the coaH ; it is about six inches in length, and the depth is nearly
Dne-third of the length. The general colour of the body is obscure
red and green ; these colours are arranged in longitudinal stripes on
the upper parts, and beneath the lateral line the red is disposed in
spots* The Gilt-Head mostly frequents deep water, where the bottom
is rocky ; its food is chiefly Crustacea,
O. Norwegicus (Cuv. et VaL), 0. Oonmbieus (Risso), the Goldfinny or
Goldsinhy, and Corkwing, somewhat resembles the last, but may
always be distinguished by a black spot on each side near the base of
the tail, and situated on the lateral line ; its general colour is yellowish
green, darkest on the back ; the sides are usually adorned with longi-
tudinal lines of a deeper hue. Length about three or fotir inches.
O. gibhus, the Gibbous Wrasse, may be readily distinguished from
either of the known British species of this genus by its comparatively
shorter and more elevated form. The depth of the body is consi-
derably more than one-third of the length : the colours are chiefly
orange and blue; the gill-covers and sides of the body are spotU;d,
and the back is striped. The ventral fins are green, the pectorals are
yellow, with transverse red stripes at their base.
Pennant obtained a specimen of this fish off the coast of Angle^y ;
and this is we believe the only instance on record of its capture off the
British coasts.
C. luscus (Couch), Aeantholabrus Couchii (Cuv. et VaL), the Scale-
Rayed Wrasse, has been caught by Mr. Couch off the coast of Cornwall :
the specimen was 22 inches in length. The tail is round, and consists of
15 rays; "between each ray of the dorsal, anal, and caudal fins, is a
process formed of firm, elongated, imbricated scales. Colour, a
uniform light brown, lighter on the belly ; upper eye-lid black ; at the
upper edge of the base of the caudal fin is a dark brown spot Pectorals
yellow : all the other fins bordered with yellow."
C fmUtidentatus (Thompson), Ihirdvs minor (Ray), Lahrus pusPlvs
(Jenyns), the Corkling, Ball's Wrasse. This fish was originally taken
in the British coast by Professor Henslow at Weymouth. It bas
once been taken in Cornwall and Ireland. Jt is about foiu* inches
in length. Mr. Jenyns says, ** It is quite distinct from any of those
described by other authors. Though belonging to the present section
{Labrus) which it is convenient tc retain, it would seem to form the
transition to the Creniiabri, to which its near affinity is indicated by
the rudimentary denticulations on the margin of the pre-opercle.'*
C. rupestriSf Jsgo's Goldsinny (Selby) It has been referred by
various writers to the genera ScicBua, Labrus, Peiea, and Lutjanus.
Several specimens of this fish have been taken in Great Britain. It
is found occasionally in the Baltic, in Sweden, Denmark, and Norway.
Its prevailing colour is orange, the free edge of each scale being of
light golden-yellow colour ; the colour is darkest over the three or
four Imee of scales along the highest part of the back, and lightest
on the lower part of the sides and belly: the body is indistinctly
marked with five transverse bands. In northern localities it is tinged
with green.
O. microstoma^ the Small-Mouthed Wrasse, or Rock-Cook (Thomp-
son). It is the Aeantholabrus exoletus (Cuv. and YaL^, the Labrus
exoUtus of other authors. This fish is occasionally caught in Com
wall, and has been taken at Antrim in Iiv land. It is immediately
known amongst its congeners by its very small mouth. It is found
on the coasts of Sweden, Denmark and Norway. [Labbidjb.]
CREPIDOTTERIS. a genus of Fossil Ferns, which Preal substi-
tutes for Pecopteris of Bronguiart, in the case of two species, one from
Stuttgardt, the other from Newcastle.
CREPIDULA. [Caltftbjsid^]
CREPIS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Com-
posUce, the division Cichoracea, and section Lactueea. It has many-
flowerad heads ; a double involucre, the inner of one row, the outer
of short lax scales ; the fruit terete, narrowed upwards or obscurely
beaked. Most of the species of this genus are common weeds in the
hedges of Europe. Five of the species are found in Great Britdn.
The most common is the C. virenSf which has the outer involucral
scales adpressed, linear, the inner ones glabrous within : the leaves
lanceolate, remotely dentate, runcinate, or pinnatifid, the uppermost
leaves linear, arrow-shaped, clasping with flat margins ; the stem sub-
corymbose; the fruit shorter than the pappus, oblong, slightly
attenuated upwards, with smooth ribs. This is the C. tectorum of
Smith ; but the true tectorum has revolute mai^gins to its upper leaves,
and other points of difference, and has never been found in Great Britain.
The other British species are — C putchra, a rare plant found in
Scotland ; C biennis, also rare, found in chalky places in England ;
C. succiseefoUa, common in woods in the north of England ; C. palu-
dosa, not uncommon in damp woods and shady places. C. lacera ia
considered to be a venomous plant in Naples, where it growa
(Babington, Manual of British Botany.)
CREPUSCULA'RIA(Latreille), a section of Lepidopterous Insects,
corresponding with the genus Sphinx of Linnaeus. These insects
occupy an intermediate station between the Lepidoptera Diuma, or
Buttei'flieB, and the Lepidoptera Noctwma, commonly called Moths.
They have the following characters: — Antennse growing gradually
thicker towards the apex, at which part they are furnished with an
elongated club, either fusiform or prismatic. Inferior Mrings furnished
with a rigid bristle-like process at their base, which passes into a hook
on the under surface of the superior wings, and serves to retain them.
The larvae are furnished with 16 legs, and many of them have a long
homy process on the last s^^ent of the body. The chrys^ides are
smooch, or sometimes furnished with small spines (but destitute of the
points and angles usually observed in those of butterflies). They are
either inclosed in a cocoon or buried in the earth. The larvae sometimes
feed upon wood, in which case they assume the pupa state within the
tree or branch.
CRESCENTLL
s the ^Mtiffida, Saiida,
IB c*l;i ; the corolla
eunpumlftte, with ■ flwhj tube much ahorter Outa the ventriooae
S-dnft unequal crisped limb ; i KtAmeiu, didjnamcnu^ with the mdi-
meat of ■ fifth ; tha fruit gourd-like, 1-celled, with a, mild iheU, inter-
hmUj pulpy, many-eeeded. The B|MoiaB are luea npiTiling tieea, with
■olituT Sowen rising from the trunk or brandiee.
C. Otiete, Cujete or Common Cakbesh-Tree, hu oblcmg asute or
obtius leaTOB, cuoeate at the baie, and in EtuKJcles. This plaat ia a
natiTe of the Went India lalanda and Spaoiah Main, It ia a tree
about 20 feet high, and ia readiiy distinguiebsd from all others b; its
habit. It eends out Urge hariumtal bnuichsa, wliich bear fascicIeB of
learee at Tahous diatanoea. Theae leavaa ara from 1 to 6 inches long.
The flowen are scattered over the older braDohea j the coTolla is large,
■omewhat campauulale and conatricted below the middle, which girea
the nppcT part a Tantricoae character. It does not wither up M other
eorDllaa, but becomea putrid, giving out a nauseous and intoleiaUe
odour. The form and aiie of the fi-uit ia very variable, being from
9 inches to 1 foot in diameter. lb ia coTOred with a thjn skin, of a
greenisb^yellow colour whan ripe, and under this is a hard woody shell
i^oh oontains a pale yellowish soft pulp, of a tart unplesaant Sbtout,
mrrounding a great number of Sat SBsda. The shell ia of great use
to the inhabitants ; tha smaller oblong ones ara formed into spooiia
and ladles, the larger ones form drinkiag cups, basins, and bowls for
BTery Tariety of domestie purpoaea. They will eran bear fire, and
are used for boiling water io. The Cariba generally carra the out^e
of these Teasels with a variety of groteaque Ggurea. The pulp is
■omatimea eaten by the natives, but it ia not much Bought after. A.
syrup ia preporwl ^m it in the West Indies, which has a great repu-
tation aa a cough medicine The pulp is also used as a poultice in
oases of abeceas or bniises. The leaves and branches and pulp of the
b-uit are eaten by cattle in timea of scarcity. The wood of the tree
ia tough and flexible, and well adapted for the work of the ooacb-
mnker. There are three or four oUier spedea, naUvea of the West
Indies and Soath America, having the same geoeral charaoten aa the
The spedea of Craeeatia will grow in a mixture of loam, peat, and
sand, and woody cuttioga will grow when placed in aand in heat under
a hand-glaaa. They do not howerer blossom in this country, aa they
require nrst to arrive at the full size.
(Don, DiMamydecm Plantt; Iioudon, Snej/dopadia of PUaiU ;
Lindley, FU/ra Midiea.)
CRESCENTIACEiE, a natural order of Fhmts formerly included in
the Solauiaa, allied to Oetaeraeta and Bigaoniaeta. The species are
trees of small sise, with alternate or clustered simple leaves without
stipules. Tha flowers grow out of Uie old stems or brsaohce)
the calyx free, undivided, eventually apUtting into insular pieces;
the corolla mononetalous, irregular, somewbnt 2-lipped, with an
imbricatad nativation. The atamena are four in number, growing on
tlie corolla, didynamoua, with the rudiment of a fiflb between the
poatcrior pair, which are the longest ; anthen 2-lobed, bunting longi-
tudinally ; ovary free, surrounded by a yellow annular disc, 1-celled,
.cumpoaed of au anterior and posterior oarpellary leaf, with 2 or 4
equidistant parietal placentae, which sometimce meet and produoe
additional oella ; ovules 0-Q, horizontal ; style 1 ; atigma of 2 plates.
Fruit woody, not splitting, contuning a multituda of large ajnygda-
loid seeds buried in the pulp of the placautn ; akin leathery, loose ;
embryo atiaight, without albumen, with plaoo-Oonvai fleshy cotyle-
dons, and a thi(^ short radicle next the hilum.
CRESS, the u'Une given to various Flanta with acrid or pungent
loaves. Common Creas is Lepiditim lativam; Water-Crass, Nattitr-
iium offtdiaie ; Belleisle or Normandy Cress, Barhama praeoxi
Indian Creas, TVopmlnni nuvuf. [LEFlDnrM; ITASttritnnil; BailBABBa;
Tropxolcil]
CRETACEOUS GROUP or FORMATION. [Caiii Fowiaiioii.]
CHEU3IA- [CiRBiraDU-l
CREX. [RiLUDE]
CRIBELLA. [SoLASTBHi*.]
CRICACA'NTUUS, a genus of FoasU Fiahen from the Mountain
Limestone of Armagh. (Agassis.}
CRICETUS, tha name of a gsnua of Rodenta, whose economy
tiukea them one of the most interesting of the great Limusan genus
Hum, or the family of Mitrida in its moat extensive sense. The
species have the following characters :^
Molar teeth simple; Uieir crown furnished with blunt tubercles.
Four toes and the vestige of a thumb on the fbre feet ; five toes on
the hind f^t ; nuls robust. Tail short and hairy.
Dental Formula :— Incisors, - ; molars, SzZr = IS.
^2' ^8—8 ■
The species are found over all the north of Europe and of Asia, the
temperate countries of Peixia, and the deserta of Astrakhan. If the
Canada Pouched Rat (Kamater du Canada, Criixltu (wrsaruu of
Deamareat, ifaj bunariut of Shaw) ia to be considered a Hamster,
Canada and the borders of Lake Superior must be added ; and it must
be remambered that tha Tuoan of Hemandes, an inhabitant of New
Spain, ia considered by some to be identical with this Canada Rat
CBICETUa IM
John Richardson thinks on insufBcient grounds). But the laat-
mentioned aoologiet places Desmarest's Canada Uancister under the
genua Oeontj^t, with a note of interrogation ; and Say haa given it a
generic distinction under the name of Pieudoiloma.
C. vyJgarit, the Common Hamster, Miu Cricetui of Falla^ La
amater of BuQbn and the French authora.
Tnlh of Cmmnon Hanutn ICriatia tv'farti). P. Cnvler.
It b reddiih-brown above; black below, with three great whitish
KitB on the ddu ; feet white ; a white spot on the throat, and ano-
lar on tlu breaat. Length abont B inches ; tail 3 inohee. Hales
bigger than femalea Weight of some males trom 12 to 10 ounces ;
-reight of females seldom oxoeeding from 1 to 6 ounces.
CommuB Huniter [Cricitui ralgarU). F. Cuvler.
Variations in colour are not uncommon. Tlftre is one variety
entirely bhwk. Pennant fignrea one which ia entirely block, with the
eioeptioD of the edge of the ear, the muzsle, the under-jaw and feet.
It ia found in the north of Europe and Asia (Lesson), Austria,
Silesia, and many parts of Germany, Poland, and the Ukraine ; all
the aouUiem and temperate parts of Russia and Siberia ; end even
about the river Yeneeei, but not farther to the east. In the Tartarian
deserta, in sandy soil ; thoy dislike moist places. Swarming in Qotha.
(Per.
mt)
The Common Hamsters are ill friends to the fanoen. The quan-
laty of grain wliich the; consume is very great, nor does the destruc-
tion stop with mere satiety of appetite; the animal never forgets its
hoard, and fills its two cheek-pouches till they seem bursting with Oie
booty. They ore also said to be very fond of tba seeds of liquorice.
Their dwellings are under the earth ; their mode of forming tbem,
and the purposes to which they apply them, have been thus
described : — Tbej fint fbrm an eutrsnce, burrowing down obliquely.
At the end of this psassge one perpendioular hole is sunk by the male ;
the female sinks BeveraL At t^e end of theae they exoavats various
vaults, some aa lodgea for themselvee and young, some aa atorehouSRa
for their food, - Every young one ia said to have ita aaparate apart-
ment ; each sort of gnun ita difierent vaull The ' living apartments,'
as they may be called, ore lined with straw or grass. TEe vaults are
said to be of different depths, aooording to the age of the constructor :
a young hamster, it ia stated, makes them scarcely a foot deep, an old
198
CRICHTONITR
CROCODILID^.
196
one Biziks to the depth of four or fiye feet ; and the whole ' curtilage/ bo
to speak, ia aometiinea eight or ten feet in diameter. From the mode
of proceeding in their work, the reader will be prepared for the state-
ment that zke male and female live in separate Itpartments ; and
indeed it appears that, excepting at the short season of courtship,
they haye yery little or no intercourse. Pennant giyes them a yeiy
unamiable character. " The whole race," says that Eoologist, " is so
maleyolent as to constantly reject all society with one another. They
will fight, kill, and deyour their own species, as well as other lesser
animals ; so may be said to be camiyorous as well as graniyorous. If
it happens that two males meet in search of a female, a battle ensues ;
the female makes a short attachment to the conqueror, after which
the connection ceases. She brings forth two or tlurae times in a year,
and produces from 16 to 18 young ones at a birth : their growth is yery
quick, and at about the age of three weeks the old one forces them
out «f the burrows to take care of themselyes. She diows little affec-
tion for them ; for if any one digs into the hole, she attempto to saye
herself by burrowing deeper into the earth, and totally neglects the
safety of her brood ; on tne contrary, if she is attacked in the season
of courtship she defends the male with the utmost ftiry."
The haryest of these animals commences in August . GraioB of
com, ears of com, peas and beans in the pods, all find their way into
their cheek-pouches, which will hold a quarter of a pint English.
This fonige is carefully cleaned in their burrows, and the husks and
chaff carried outb When all is in order, they stop up the entrance
and prepare for their hybernation, whidi lasts during the whole of
the seyere season ; the proyision they haye made haying been col-
lected for the purpose of their support before their torpidity actually
oommeuoefl^ and also in the spring and summer before the season has
produced a supply for them in the fields. If all tales be true, they are
a bold generation, and will jump at a horse if he tread near them, and
hang by its nose so as to be disengaged with difficulty. Th^ yoice
is said to be like the barking of a dog. Fierce as they are, t^ey qujul
before their deadly enemy the pole-cat, which, chasing them into their
holes, destroys tnem unrelentingly. Notwithstanding tins check,
they are said to be so numerous m some seasons as to occasion a
dearth of com.
The fur of the animal is said to be yaluable ; and the peasant, when
he ' goes a Hamster-nesting ' in the winter, not only possesses Umself
of the skin of the plxmderer, but of the plunder, which is said com-
monly to amount to two bushels of good orain in each magazine.
Buffon, quoting Sulzer, says that in Gotha, where these animals were
proscribed on account of their yast deyastations amonff the com,
11,664 of their skins were deliyered at the H6tel-de-Ville of the
camtal in one year, 54,429 in another, and 80,189 in a third.
There are four or fiye other spedes of this genus.
Professor Kaup records Orieettu vtUgarit fottiUi, from the Epple-
aheim sand.
CRICHTONITE. [Titawium.]
CRICKET, FIELD. [GrtllidaJ
CRICKET, HOUSE. [Grtllioaj
CRICO'PORA, a genus of Corals formed by Blainyille out of a sub-
diyision of the MUUporida, including some fossil ^ecies, which chiefly
occur in the Oolitic Formations C* f^romuiea is found near Scar-
borough ; C. ocBapiio§a near Bath.
CRINOIDEA. [Emobinites.]
CRINUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
AmcurylUdawE. It has a tubular long perianth, with a spreading
reflezed or equal limb ; 6 stamens, spreading or declinate, inserted
into the orifice of the tube ; the oyules hardly separable from their
fleshy plaoentn; the capsule membranous, bursting irregularly; the
seeds globose, with a fleshy testa, giying them the appearance of
small tubea. The species are handsome plants, and many of them
form the greatest ornaments of our gardens.
C. AiicUieumf Poison Bulb {Radix toxicaria, Rumph.), has a cylin-
drical bulb aboye ground ; the leayes lanceolate, smooth at the edge,
longer than the scape, flowers on stalked umbels, the segments long,
linear, reflexed ; the oyary inferior ; the style as long as the stamens,
declinate ; the fruit membranaceous, subglobose. The bulbs of this
plant are powerfully emetic, and are used m Hindustan for the purpose
of producmg yomiting after poison has been taken, especially that of
the Antiaris. It is a natiye of the East Indies.
C amabile has a yery large btdb witli a long red neck, the leayes
broad, glaucous, smooth at the edge ; the umbels many-flowered ;
the tube shorter than the limb. This plant is a natiye of the East
Indies, but is now common in our greenhouses. Many of the species
haye been lately introduced. They grow bes^ in a rich loam mixed
with a little rotten dung. They should be potted in large pots, where
they will flower abundantly. They may be propagated by suckers
from the roots, or they may be raised from seed. Should the plant
show any indii^sition to put out suckers it should be cut down near
to the root, when it will put out plenty.
(Lindley, Flora Medica; Loudon, Bncydopcedia of Plants;
Herbert, Anutryllidaeeout Pkmis.)
CRIOCERATITEa The discoidally spiral AmmorUtidw, whose
whorls do not touch each other, receiye this generic title. The spedes
occur in the Oolitic and Lower Cretaceous Strata. [Ammonites.]
CBIOCE'RIDM (Leach), o family of Coleopterous Insects^ of the
sub-section Eupoda and section Tgtramera, distinguished by the fol-
lowing characters : — ^Mandibles truncated at the apex, or presenting
two or three notches ; labium generally entire, or but idighSy emai^gi-
nated; antenna of moderate length, filiform, somewhat thickened
towards the apex ; the joints mostly of an obconic form ; tarsi with,
the penultimate joint bilobed ; femora often thick, especially towards
the apex.
The principal gfenera contained in this family are — Donaeia,
ffcemonia, Ptawrittea, Orioeerit, Zeuffophora, Auchmia, and MegacdU.
The species of the genus Chioeeria haye Uie posterior femora of the
same thickness as the others ; the antennas gradually enlazged towards
the apex, the joints of which are scarcely longer than broad ; the eyes
are emaiginated on the inner side : the thorax is narrower than the
elytra, short, and usually of a somewhat cylindrical form : the elytra
are elongate.
About eight spedes of this genus haye been found in England, of
which the most common is the OrioeerU Aaparagi, sometimes called
the Asparagus Beetle, which is nearly a quarter of an inch in length,
and of a blue-black colour ; the thorax is red, with two black spots ;
the elytra are yellow, with the suture, two transyerse bands, and a
spot at the base, black.
This pretty little beetle is found in abundance in the south of Eng-
land on asparagus plants ; the laryse are of a greenish hue, resemble
little masses of jelly, and inhabit the same situations as the perfect
insect. They subsiBt upon the leayes and soft part of the stalk of the
asparagus plantw
CRIOCERia [Criooeridjs.]
CRISIA. [Cbllarlaa; Poltzoa.]
CRISTATELLA. [Poltzoa.]
CRITHMUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
UmbeUifercB, The mar^ of the calyx is obsolete ; petals roundish,
entire, inyolute, ending in an oboyate segment ; transyerse section of
fruit nearly terete ; mericarps with 6 eleyated shaip rather winged
ribs, lateral ribs a little broader than the rest, and maiginating;
pericarp spongy, with large cells; seed semi-terete, constitutiDg a
free nucleus which is coyered with copious yitt» in eyeiy part.
A sufi&utioose glabrous fleshy herb ; petioles sheathing at the base ;
leayes bipinnate; leaflets oblong linear; umbels compound; inyolucre
and inyolucds of many leayes ; flowers white.
C, maritimvm, Samphire, is a well known natiye of rocky sea-
shores and clifis along the Black Sea, in Tauria, the Mediterranean
Sea ; and of Europe, along the shores of the Western Ocean, from
Spain to Britain, and of the Canary Islands; in Britain on the rocky
sea-shore and diffs. The root is branched and creeping extensively ;
the plant is greenish, salt, and pungently aromatic in flayour;
the leayes bitemate, liie stems ascenmng; the flowers are white,
anthers yellow. Samphire la a fayourite ingredient in pickles. It is
generally gathered in places where it is found wild, and the alludon
to the practice by Shakespere in his description of the diffii of
Doyer is well known. The plant is also used medicinally. Samphire
is cultiyated artificially in many places for the purposes of diet
CROCIDOLITE, a Silicate of Iron of a layender-blue or leek
colour. It is called Blue Asbestus. It comes from Southern Africa
CROCODILK [Crooodilida] '
CROCODI'LIDiE, Crocodile-Tribe, Crocodiles, a family of Saurians,
comprising the lai^i^est liying forms of that order of Reptiles.
Dum^ril and others distinguish the family by Uie appellation of
Aspidiot (shielded) Saurians; while many modem zoologists haye
considered them as forming a particular onier. They form the Lori'
cataof Menem and Fitzinffer, and the Emffdoiouruxna of De Blainyille.
Cuyier in his 'R^e Animal' describee the peculiarities of the
family. The tail is flattened at the udes ; there are flye anterior and
four posterior toes, of which the three inner ones only on eadi foot
are armed with daws; all the toes are more or lees joined by
membranes. There is a single row of pointed teeth in each jaw, and
the tongue is fleshy, flat, and attached yery nearly up to the edges,
which made the ancients belieye that tiie Crocodile wanted that
oigan. The intromittent male organ of generation is single; the
opening of the yent longitudinaL The back and tail are coyersd by
great and strong squared scales, deyated into a ridge on their middle.
There is a deeply dentilated crest on the tail, at the base of which
the crest becomes double. The scales of the bdly are squared,
delicate, and smooth. The nostrils are opened at the end of the
muzzle by two small crescentnihaped slits, dosed by small yalyes,
and lead by a long and straight eanal pierced in the palaUne and
sphenoidal bones to the bottom of the back part of the mouth. As
the lower jaw is prolonged behind the dcull, the upper jaw haa the
appearance of mobility, and so the andents wrote ; but it only moyea
in concert with the whole of' the head. The external ear is shut at
will by means of two fleshy lips ; and the eye haa three lids. Under
the Uuroat are two small glandular orifices, whence issues a musky
secretion. '
The yertebrss of the neck bear upon each other by means of small
fiilse ribs, which render lateral motion difficult. Crocodiles there-
fore change their direction not without trouble, and they may be
easily ayoided by doubling, and escaping while they are employed in
the laborious operation of turning round. They haye no true
clayides ; but their ooraooid apoph^ea are attached to the Btemxmif
i» CnoCODIUDA
*■ ia kll the other Sauriuu. Beude* the ordiouy and the hlae ribs,
than ire m Mt whioh pioteot the abdomen without ra&ching up to
the qiine, and which appgar to be produced bj the OBmficatioQ of the
tAtidinolu portioiu of the reoU muBale& Thoir longs are not sunk
in the abdomen like those of other reptilM, and there are fleahf fibrea
adhering to the part of the peritoneum which coTen the liver, and
vbich preacDt the appaanmce of a diaphragm, which. Joined to their
trilocuUr heart, whrae the blood which comee from the lunga ii not
mingled with that venoui portion of it which comee from the bod;
•a completoly ae it ia in the other reptilea, ilight]; approximates the
Crocodilea to the warm-blooded quadrupeds. The auditory bone
(raJMii] and the pterygoid apophyeea are fixed to the skull as la the
The eggs of the CrocodileB are hard, and aa large aa those of the
goose ; and these reptUea are eoneidei«d to be animale in which the
extremea of aiie, takmg that of the newly-hatched joung and that of
the full grown sdult aa the moat remote polnta, present the wideat
diSerence. The femalea guard their eggt, and when they are hatched
take care of the young during some montha. (CuTiar.)
The dentition of the Crocodilee ia peeijiar. The teeth are
numeroos, large, of unequal length, conical, hollow at the baae,
disposed in a single row, and planted in the thick-
ness of the edgea of the superior and inferior
mazillaTy bonee, in separate carities which may
be couaidered as true alTeoli. These teeth are
hollowed at the base in suoh a manner aa to
aerTs for the case or sheath of the germ of the
tooth destined to replace it, and which is to be
of grcBter volume ; so that, in Crocodilee, the
number of the tasth does not vary with age aa in
many other animals.
Great aolidi^ and strength are tbe reaults of
this double RomphosiB, and the alveoli are more-
over directed obliquely from front to rear. The
bony edges of tbe jawa whence theae insulated
teeth spring, are covered by a kind of gum.
Another peculiaiiw of admirable adaptation to
the neossaitiea of Ute animal, may be obeerved in
the interior of the mouth of the Cnicodilea.
Their palatine vault is neirlv Sat, and ia not
piereed by the extremilaea of the usal totue, aa
in the majority of other reptilea. The posterior
nasal apertures open in the pharynx behind the _ ,. , ^ .„
velum palati. which ia .uffiaentfy long to over- ^^;?'^r™J"':
spread that portion of the roof whioh U in front '^rS~' „Tai
at tbe orifice of the glottis. They are probably hoUowbaaal enw
the only reptiles wbic^ have a true pharynx, that fr„g u,, ttcet et the
ia to say, a vestibule common to tbe posterior rising pnunra or the
noBtrila, the mouth, the larynx, and the oasophagus. sdvunlDg tooth.
This conformation, joined to tbe muscolar sb-uc-
ture of the tongue, and a peculiar expansion of the body of the os
hyoides, produces a kind of cartilaginous diao or valve, which can
be railed and applied to the velum palati above, so aa to protect
the glottia, to which it serves the office performed by the epiglottis
in mammifen, while it confers on the reptile a peculiar power of
degluldtian and respiration, of the greatest consequence to its economy
when it ie below the sorface of the water and has seiied its prey in
that situation ; or, when the muide alone is above the sumos. In
carrying on resptiation.
ThefitUowing is a summary of the oharacteri of the fkmily Oocedt-
hda-SoAj depreseed, elongated, protected on the back with solid
and catiuatad scutcheons or ahielda ; tul longer than the trunk,
Dompeesed laterally, annulated, and furnished with crteta above ;
feet four, short, tiie toes of the posterior feet united by a nstatoiy
membrane : each foot with three ckws only ; he^d depressed, elongated
into a muzsle, in front of which are the nostrils approximated upon a
fieahy tubercle, furnished with moveable suckers (soupapea) ; gape of
the mouth extending beyond tiie skull ; tongue fleshy, adherent,
entire, not protractile ; teeth conical, simpje, hollowed at the base or
towifds the root, unequal in length, but placed in a single row ; male
genital organ simple, having its exit from the cloaca, which opens
hingitudinally. (Dumjril and Bibron.)
No living speciea of this family is found in Europs, nor has any
been yet detected in Auatralasis. The Alligators are peculiar to
America ; the species of Cromdihu are distributed in the Old and
New World; t^ose of Qovialii seem to be limited to the Oonges and
the other large rivers of continental India.
Ana, boudes the Qavial of the Oanges, produces at least three true
crocodiles, via. CrotodUvt m^orti, C. gaitattu {C. Siomauu, Schnaid. ;
C. Siamau^i, Gray I], and 0. inp^catui, Siam seems to be the prin-
cipal, if not the only locality, where the Srst of these has been found |
while the other two appear to he natives of those rivers which have
their mouths in the Indian Ocean and the Oanges.
Africa, where neither Caimans {A Uigator) nor Gavials have yet bean
discovered, ia the native country of the Crocodile & BoucUer, and
CrBa>diltu wigarit ; it may also be the locality of C planintlrit of
Qiaves and of Qray {C. ffmnnt, Bory de St. Vincent); and C.
inJermnf (US of Qtaves and of Ony {C. Jmtmti, Bory de St Vincent),
America is
CBOCODILID^. IM
though their gecgisphicsl position does not seem to be determined :
tiiese may perhaps come from the ooaat of Guinea. The only part of
Afnos whence the Crocodile h Bouclier has been received is Sierra
Leone ; while Crocodilut mlgarit seems to be spread over the whole
of Africa, and ie also an iubabiUnt of Hadanscar. Numbers have
been taken in the Nile, and one in the river Senegal. (Dumdril and
Bibron.)
Amerioa is most fruitful in CrooodHea, and poassses more spedea
than Asia and Africa put together. True Crocodiles have never been
detected on the continent. C ncufut has l>een found at Martinique
and St. Domingo, and C. rhombtftr at Cuba. The northern part of
* " inhabited by one species only, Altigalor LueitH, wlulefanr
Attigator palp^ratta, A. idavpt, A. ptHMMIaMj. and A.
', inhabit tbe south, (Dum^ril and Bibron.)
Cavier says that the Cntodilida inhabit fresh-water, that they
cannot swallow while in the water, but drown their prey and place
it in some nook tmder water, where they suffer it to putre^ before
they eat it. This account seems to require some momfioation. Sir
Charles Lyell, in his ' Principles of Geology,' observes that the larger
Qsngetic species deecends beyond the brackish water of the Delta into
the sea : and other instances are recorded of the true Crocodiles (but
not of the Alligators) frequenting the mouths of large rivers, and
even passing between different ieluids at eonaiderable distances from
each other. [ALuaAtoH.] Thii should be romembered by geologists.
Then, as to uieir inability to ewaUow wtiile in the water, those authora
who describe their collective Gahing expeditione, entirely contradict
it. True it is, according to them, that the Alligators, after Hmt have
seised the fish from below, rise to the eurfaca and toss the fish into
the air to get rid of the water which they have taken in with it,
catching it again in its descent : but it is clear that they swallow it
without resorting to the land, though they go thither fbr the purpose
of devouring those land animals which they have suoceeded in
capturing and drowning, after they have undergone some degree of
decomposition.
" The laying of the ^gs," aayi M. Bicord, " takea place in April
and Hay, and ths number amoimts from 20 to 2G, more or leas, laid
at many times. The female deposita them in the sand irrith little
care, and scarcely covers them. I have met with them in the lima
which the masons had left on the bank of tbe river. If I have
reckoned right, the yonng oome forth on tbe fortieth day, when ths
temperature is not too cold. At their birUi they aro 5 or 6 inches in
len^h. They are hatched alone, and as they oan do without nourish-
ment while coming out of the egg, the female is in no haste to bring
it to them : she Irnds them towards tbe water and into ths mud, and
disgorges for thsm half-<ligeated food. The male takes no aoconnt of
thetn. The young preserve tor some tjme the umbilical mark or
doatrice on the abdomen, whereby the vitellus was absorbed.
The OramdUida aro generallj considered as forming a natural
paasage from the Saurians to tbe Chelonisjis, the last genera of which,
m certain points of their conformation and habits, approximate nearly
to the fhmily under oonsideration.
The following is a synopsis of the species from ths ' Catalogue of the
Speoiee in the British Museum' : —
Fam. L Cbocodiudx (Crocodiles).
Ths lower canines fitting into a notch in the edge of the upper jaw.
The hind legs with a fringe of compressed scales behind.
Synopsis of Qenera.
* Teeth all uniform ; nose of the male very large, inflated.
ITeeistsfit. — Jawa oblong, slender, depressed. Cervieal and dorsal
discs united. Hind feet webbed.
CVoetxMtu. — Jaws oblong, depreased. Nnchal, cervical, and dorsal
discs separated from eaih other by amall scales.
Oanialit. — Jaws very long, subcylindrical, slender, rather dilated
and convex at the end. 'Teeth, canines two, quite anterior, imaM ^
lower caniius shuttmg into a notch in the edge of the upper jaw.
Feet fringed ; toes webbed to the tip. The cervical plates united to
and forming a disc with the dorsal ones. Males mth a large swelling
in front of the nostrils. Native of Aaia.
a. Gangtticm, the Oavial, or Nakoo.
If eeutopt (Gray), Otaiialv (Uliller). — Jaws oblong, slender, ifcpresseJ,
fiat, without ridgea. Teeth unequal, lower canineeSttin^intva notch
in the side of the upper jaw. Feet fringed ; toes webbed to the lap.
The cervical plataa m three or four cross series united to the dorsal
ahield. Hales without soy swelling in front of the nostiila.
M. Batntttii, Bennett's False GaviaL
M. oofapArMM {OneodHnM eaiaplvraettu of Cuvier), like FiIm
GaviaL
IM CROCODILID^.
M. Joumti (.Cracodiliu intermtdiv* of Qraves), Jouraej'B Falie
Qavul.
Oraead^iu. — Jaw» oblong dapresMd, tapering, rather dilated at the
end. Teeth uneau&l, lower canines fitting into a. notch in the eide of
the upper jaw. Feet fringed; toeg webbed to Uie tip. Nuchal and
cervical plataB forming a dieo separated from the danul one by imall
gnumlar ecalsB. The head of the newly hatched gpeoimeiia ia ihort,
but it gradually eloogatee, and after ■ short time attaini the form
proper to the species ; and, through the bones becoming more solid by
increasing age, they only slightly alter the relative proportiona of the
different puts, so tbat the form of the bead, taken with the ehielding
of the back, affords good characters for the determination of the
C. poronu, the Indian Crocodile.
C. bomh^rvai, the Large-Headed Indian Crocodile.
C rkoiMiftr, the Aqua Palin.
C. Jmericantu, the American Crocodile.
C. margirtatut, the Margined Crocodile.
C nigarii, the Epyptiaa Crocodile.
C. paiitilTii, the Muggar, or Goa Crocodile.
C. Irigonopt, the Wide-Faced Crocodile.
(7. pUmirottrit, Oravee'i Crocodile.
C. SiamtTttii, the Siamese Crocodile.
Fam. II. Allioatoridx (Alligators).
Synopui of the Genera.
Canine teeth of the lower jaw fitting into a pit in the odge of
the upper jaw. It is a native of the New World.
/ocarc— Jaws oblong, depressed, with a rii^ auross the face
between the eyes. Hind feet scarcely webbed. Nostrils with a car-
tilaginous aeptiim. EyeUds Seahy.
JJIuj'iCor,-— Jaws oblong, depreesed, with a small longitudinal rib
between the orbits. Uind feet webbed. Nostrils separated by a
bouy septum.
Caiman Jaws oblong, depresaad. Hind feat scarcely webbed.
Nostrils a cartilaginous septum. Syelids with three bony plates.
Jacart. — Head oblong, depressed, with a ridge across the face before
the eyes, rounded in front. Teeth unequal, canlnee of lower jaw
each fitting into a pit in the upper jaw. Toes scarcely webbed.
Nuehal and cervical plates united into one group. Eyelids fleshy,
only partially bony. Nostrils only separated by a cartilage.
/ fiuipa, the Sroad-Headed Yacare.
/. icleropi, the Yacare.
J. nigra, the Black YacBi«.
/. fanaidata, the Spatted Yacare.
/. valiifTom, Natterer's Yacare.
Alligator. — Jaws oblong, very depressed, broad, nearly parallel,
rounded in front Forehead witti a small longitudinal ridge between
the orbits. Teeth unequal, the lower canines received into a pit in
the edge of the upper jaw. Nuchal and cervical plates separate.
Feet fringed behind ; toes half webbed, the outar front toe free.
Nostrils separated by a bony septum arising from the outer edge.
North America. The muzzle elongates by age.
A. ifiirinpcTUit (Qiay), A. Lueitu of others, the Alligator.
Coiiiian.— Jaws oblong, depressed, subpyramidica], rounded, and
swollen at the end, without any frontal ridges or maiillaiy pita.
Forehead flat and smooth. Teeth — , unequal, lower ouiine t«eth
fitting into a pit in the inner edge of the upper Jaw. Eyebrows
defended with three bony platea. Toes scarcely webbed. Nuchal
and cervical plates united into one group (I). Tropical America.
C. Irigonalut. — The Trigonal Caiman.
C. palptbratia. — The Eyebrowed Caiman.
C. gibbicept. — The Swollen-Headed Caiman.
With regard to the diffeiences between the above-named gAiera, Du-
ndril and Bihrcn observe that nothing better distinguishes the Craco-
diliu ft»m the Alligators than Uie narrowness of the muzele behind the
nostrils, a uarrownen which is produced by the deep natch on each side
of the upper maodible serving for the passage of the fourth la wrr tooth.
The Oavuls, it is true, have similar notches, which are destined for
Ihe same purpose ; but at the extremity of the muzzle they have also
two others far the reoeption of the front lower teeth ; in heu of this
the front lower teeth in the Crocodiles pierce the upper mandible
through and through- The horizontal contour of the head of the
Crocodiles rppresents in general the figure of an isosceles triangle
more or less elongated, depending upon the size of the jaws ; but in
no case is the mussle wider than that of the Caimans, nor more slander
than that of the Qavials. The Crocodiles have, hke the fanner, their
jaws fsstuoned, as it were, oa their sides, and their teeth unequal, but
in leas numlier, because they have never been observed with mora
than 19 on each side above, and ]S on each aide below. The cranial
holes are larger than they are in the Ci^imans, and less wi<le than they
are in the Gaviala Their diameter is always found to be less than
that of the orbits. The nssal aperturo is oval or aubciroular. There
is a very small bony plats in the thickncaa of the upper eyelid.
CB0CODII.ID.fi
tOD
The same remark, ns to the length of tiie head in proportion to it«
width at the three piincipal epodis of life, applies to the Cumans M
well as to the Crocodiles.
The greater part of the Sauriana of this group have the hind too*.
the three eitemol ones at least, united up to their extremity^ by a wida
natatory membrane. There are indeed some nevertheless in which it
is shorter, and one species, CroeodUtu rhombifer, wants the membrane
almost entirely, in the interval of the two inner toes. With about
two exceptions, all the Crocodiles have the posterior border of t^o
1^ fumished with a dentilated crest formed of flattened scales. Tb«
two species which are said not to present tl
dilw jiiantnwtrtt and O. rhonbifer.
is character are CVvcO-
b, ikoU of Allifattr ZuiIum,
a, hind KwtoC Caiman 1 », htnd foM of Crecedlle.
Only ona species among the Crooediles (Jftnttoju Btnneltii, C. eala-
pkraelvi) has its cervical scales similar, in regard to the extent which
they occupy on the neck, to those of the Caimans ; that is to say,
they form a long band commencing behind the nape, and prolonging
themselves to the first dorsal olatea. In the olhen, the cervical
armour occupies about the middle of the neck ; so that there remains
before and behind it a considerable space devoid of bony pieces. The
scales which cover the sides of the body are flat in some, carinated in
otbeiB, and there are some wMoh are provided with both aorta. The
cuiuM Bpriu3;iu5 from the toll-platoa to form the creet which sur-
BSi CROCODILID^
mounte that p«rt ■!« in general lower, of lua coanliiUiicB, antt leu 5t
(hui thoM in the Cainiuii. Crocodilut Thombifcr must however
Hccpted; for th» caudal eredt of
Zoologiatii aLuiu to be agreed iu
allowing that then u ncaroely anj
genu of Beptilea the species ot
irhich are so difficult to be disUn-
guiehed ftvm each other aa thoaa
of OneodSMt. CnmdUitt vuigaru,
the Egyptian Crocodile, maj be
takcD a* a ^pe of the gmiis to
«hicb it beloogi and of the whole
fuuilj. It haa the follaving chaiao-
ten :~-JawB not elongated into a , '
pimnr h^k. Hind feet kigely
palmated, and with a feitooned cmt
along their posteiior border. Six
nrrical platea. Boreal scutcheons
or shields quadrangular, and sur-
mounted bj aix lougitudiiial rOWs of
carinas but little elevated.
It ts the CroeadHtu ai^thiiiiit Kntkel and ccrrieil pUlta, ke., at
mUiieru, Loch. ; Le Crocodile du eraaiiiiliirnilfarU.
Nil, Daud. ; Cntvdilut vnigaru.
Cot. ; OneodUiu rulfarv, ^iedm. ; La Crocodile Tulgaire, Cut. j the
ComiDon Crocodile, Qrifil, ' Animal Kingdom ;' Laeerta CrocodU»4,
Una. ; C. Champtei, B017 ; C. IdranonM, Oeoff. ; C. eomplamalut,
Geoff
Hosn. Dumiril and BibtODDuke four varietiM of this ipeeies. The
first TBiiety haa the following ebaiacten : — Hunle a little narrowed,
ntbei flat than arched acroaa, with small hollows and chauneliDgii,
which are now aod then wono-ahaped, on its surfaoe. Table of the
■kull entirely flat Back green, speckled with black ; two or three
oblique bands of the UstrmentioDed oolour on each Bank. The author*
giTe the following ■rnomyni) : —
OncodOuj vy^rii, Qeoff, ' Ann. Mus.' torn. i. p. 67 ; ' Deacript
Ern>-'('Hiat.Kat.')tom. L p. 8; Atlaa, pL 2, flg. 1, 2 : (7. ruZ^ofu,
' Heir. Amph.' p. 37, siiec 0 ; C. Ckampm, Bory de St Vincent,
'Dirt. Claa. tom. v. p. 105; 0. tvlgarit, Geoff, 'Crocod. d'Egypla,"
It 159; C. tonHonw, OeoE, 'Croc d'Egyple,' p. 107; C. wigarii,
way, ' Synops. Rept.' part i. p. (17. ipeo. 1.
lliiB, as well a* the following rariety, la that to wUch those indivi-
dnals wboaa jawi are the least narrowed belong. The jaws bave not
indeed the aame width in all, but it may be said genenlly that their
width, when meaaured at the ninth upper tooth, is only one-aerenth
of the lengUi of the head meaaured from the and of the noae to the
occiput. There are some indinduals of this Tariety wboas upper
nundible praaents a neariy flat aurface ; that ii to aay, the extreme
edge of ita oontonr is the only part which declines towards the lower
jaw. As ao euunple of this group Heani. Dumdril And Bibron refer
to th« indiTidaal brought from Egypt by U. Oeof&oy, and wbicb
both Cuvier and himself haTe- liken as the type of Omtodibi*
CR0CODILID.fi. KB
that hiatocian to the locality of Elephantine alone, nor to any parti-
cular species. OeoSroy obMrvM that the Crocodile still beua ill
Egypt the name of Tenua, which H. Champollian thought he recog-
nised upon many papyri, as mahah, a word which he r^arded aa
formed of tbe preposition ' m,' * in,* and the subatantive ' aah/ ' egg.*
With regard to the Suchus, 1L Champollian, tbe younger, states t^t
tbe Egyptians gave ths name of Souk to a deity which they repr*-
sented as a man with a Crocodile's head. We refer those who wish
to follow out this, part of the subject more especially to the ancient
authon above mentioned, to U. OeofTroy St. Hilaiie, to Curier, and to
tbe Tolmne on Egyptian Antiquities in the ' Library of Entertaining
Knowledge;' obaening only that the EgypUana ornamented their
tame Crocodiles by banging rings of gold and precious stones in the
opercula of their ears, wbiob they pierced for the purpose, adorned
their fore feet with braoeleta, and pnaented them in tbia finery to the
Tenenition ot tbe people. They also fed them well Cake, roaat meat,
and mulled wine were oooaaionally crammed and poured down their
throats. Pliny. £lian, and othen, did little hut oopy what preceding
writers bad written upon thia subject ; bnt wa learn from the former
that the Romans fint saw tbem in the ndilnhip of Scaurua, who
" ■"■ ' " n into an amphi-
idiatora.
:d that CrvcodHia vfjgarit is no longer seen in the Delta, but
that it is found, sometimes in great numbera, in the Thebaid and the
Upper Nile.
The eharaeton of the genua Oavvilit are giTen above.
The upper mandible of the Qaviala ia nevsr pierced for the intro-
mioaion of the teeth of the lower jaw, as it is in CnKodilut; but tbera
are four large notches whiohaarveaslodgmenta for the first and fourth
pair of lower teeth. The Qaviils are beeidea distinguished by the
narrowness and length preeented by the anterior part of their head
and jaWB, which resemble a aort of stnught beak spread out at its
origin, Bubcylindrical for the greateet part of its length, and termi-
nating in a ught circular enlargement at its extremity. These jaws
are rectilinear, and not undulated as in Alligator and Croeodilut. The
number of teeth with which these narrow mandibles are armed is also
greater than in nther of the laat-meutioned ganen, amounting ordi-
narily in OantOu to 118 or 120, all of which are equal, with the
eicsption of thoaa which compose the five or aiz first pain above a*
well aa below. The post^rblto-crBBia] holes are oval, and larger thaa
they are in Crocodilut, for tbeir diameter approaches that of th«
orbits themselves. The eileroal orifioe of the nasal foaasa, or rather
if the long canal, which H. Oeoffivy St. Hitaire haa termed oranio-
tilaginona maaa. Thia prominence ia a kind of sac divided i:
portions internally, the aperture of which ia backwards and a little
below. Aa in the Crocodile^ the eyelid contains in its substance ■
rudiment of a bony plate.
The hind feet of the Oavials are formed for the most part in tbe
same manner as those of the ro^ority of species of CrotodOitt : that is
to say, there are long and wide webs between the toea, and the poet*-
rior part of the leg ia fumiahed with a dentilatad crest. The cervical
platoB of the Qaviala form a long band on the neck, as in the Caimans,
and in one species only of Crocodile. Theacaleaof theflanksareflstand
ZnP'laB Crocodile {Cntoii
The second variety is the C. pattulrii, Leaa., ' Toy. Ind. Orient.' ;
Bell, ' ZooL Bepl' p. 309 : C. vaigaru, tax., E., Gray, ' Synopa. Kept'
p.B8.
The third variety is C. marginalm, Qeoff, ' CrocoJ. d'Egypte,' p.
IBS ; C. vnigaru, vsr., B., Gray, ' Synopa. Kept.' part. i. p. SB.
The fourth variety is the C. tomplanaivi, C. Suchvt, Qeoff
It may be expected that we should notice the nncient hiatoi; of
an fnJTwl held aocred by the Egyptiana, and even elevated by tnem
to tbe lank of a deity, for it was certainly one of the symbols of
Typhon. Herodotus, Aristotle, Diodorua, Strabo, and Plutarch, wiU
be md with interest on Una subject While it waa wonhipped id one
part of Egypt under the name of Suchua or Souchis, it was eaten at
Elephantine. Cuvier observes that the term Zoix", or 3aixii woa
only applied to the sacred individuEl, aa Apis, Unevta, and Facia wera
amellatioDB of the deified bulla of Memphis, Heliopolis, and Hermon-
this respectively, and not intended to designate particular races of
oitn. GeoO^y St. Hilaire ia of a different opinion from Cuvier, who
Conoidered that Champaa,* aa used by Herodotos, was not applied by
• Kaifnm U li ■(•■OiiiUa, aJUt xsf^iu— DdI I1i*r are nDlulltd CroHdils.
"be carina which surmount the bony pieces forming the dorsal
cuiraaa aiw low, but the ciest of the toil is very much elevated
throughout the whole of ita length.
The Caimans and Crocodiles, in tbeir youth, have the head abort in
proportion to the uze which it eihibita at their full growth. Ths
contrary obtains among the Qaviala, for in them the head is propor-
tionally lor,' T in youth than it is in age, ao that it has the appearance
of becoming ahorter as Uie nnimul increases in ai^ (thitndril and
Bibron.)
0. OangOieiu, the Narrow-Beaked Crocodile of ths Ganges, Edw.,
' PhiL Trsns.' It ia the OmcodOtu wuixilii* Itrelibiu siiicy/uKtmeeis,
' OroDov. Zooph. ;' OrMedUui, Herck, ' Hess. Beytr.' ( Laecria OoKgt-
tica, Qmel. ; Le Qavial, Laoip., ' Hiat Quad. Ovip. ;' Le Qavial, Bonn.,
' Encyc Mith, ;' Crocodile du Gange ou Gaviat Fa^j. Saint Fond,
' Hist Uont Saint-Pierre ;' CncodUut Umgiroint, Schneid., ' Hiat
Amph. ;' Le Qavial, Latr., ' HiatL Repl ;' Qangetic Crocodile, Shaw,
' Gener. Zool. ;' Cricodiiui aretiratlrii, C. lonfirotlrii, Daud., 'Hiat
Rent, i' C. lomimtrit, C. (enairosfrit, Cuv., 'Ann. Uus. Hist Nat;'
C. Gangtlicui, C. tttHtimlrii, Tied,, 0pp. und Liboscb, ' Notuig. Ampb. ,■*
O'atiaiii Itityirotliii, 0. ItnuimttiM, Hen., 'Amph.;' Vrocoditut
W3 CROCODILID^
tmu/troitru, C. (mutrw(i-i», Cuv., ' On. Fou.;' Le Orand QiTittl, Le
PeUt Q»rial, Boiy dfl St Vinoant, 'Diet. Claffl, d'Hiit Nat;'
Crocodilta Gangelicui, C. Itnitiroilru, Geoff., ' Mim. Mus. d'Hiit Nat ;'
Le Giivial du GangB, Cut., 'Keg. Anim. ;' (jcmia/ii (mnirDi(rt(,Quer,,
' Icon. Itejr. Anim. ; ' Shampluuloiaa le»Miroiire,WagL, ' NaturL Syat
Amph.;' Gavudit Gangeticiu, Onr, 'Sjaova. Eapt :' the Oavial of
the GBngM, Qriff., ' Aaim. Kingd.'
The head of the Osvial may be considered u franied of two porta ;
one anterior and long, almoat cylindrical in form, more or lea flat-
t«ued ; the other poiterior and short presenting the Ggur« of a
dopressed hexahedron, wider behind than before. The jaws constitute
the anterior pui. or beak, which is long, stnught, aud of eitreme
narrowneaa, but not, properly speaking, ojlindricaL It ie j-aided,
but the angles are rounded. Itspreads out at ita base and terminatoa
in front so aa to recal to the obBerrsr the beak of the SpoonbilL Its
vertical diameter is throughout loaa than its tranaveraal diameter.
CR0CODILID£. im
heak, at a small distance tram its tenmnal border. Tlie ^lertan U
senulunar, at the bottom of whieh may be psroeiTed a oftrtilaginoiia
plate, which dividea it longitudinally id two. The edges of this
opening fom two lipa, which appear to have the power of approaching;
each other, so aa to cloee the aperture hermetically. The anterior of
these is cunilinear, end the porterior rectilinear ; in the femaln and
in young subjects they are very delicate and qnitesoftj but is the
old males tbe anterior lip not only arrives at a caitit^iiuras c<m-
listence, but a development that carries it backwards u &r ai Iha
seventh pair of teeth, and triples the thickness of the muiile. This
pouch, or cartilaginous sac, with two compartmenti, ia of a snb-onl
form, and is notohed behind so aa to form two very thick ronnded
lobea. Above these ia, on the mesial line and in front ■ cordiTonu
Erominenoe, on each side of which is a deep fold in the form of the
itter 8. This sac has ita opening, which is coomon to it and the
nostrils, below. This apparatus ia the nasal pntse or poudi (bouraa
nasale} of H. Oeoffitiy, and in hii opinion performs the otBca of ■
ressrvoir of air for Uie animal whan plunged beneath the maztto» of
The anterior limb ia nearly on^-faalf longer than that part of the
body which Ilea between the anterior and posterior limbs of the same
aide. The hinder limb ia about two-thirda of the same inl«mL The
third toe is longest in all the feet The three middle teas of the fore
foot are united at thur base by a very short membrane : the other
two toes are free, aa well aa tiie first toe of (he portsrior f est ; bnt
id, third, and fourth of these last are nnited by a thick
ill orihe Great aBTiaI((7aiiiatii Oanfflina), bkb rrom mbar*i t, loner
Jaw at Gatlal, anoLhtr inBlridiua ; c, prsflle of the akuU et aaiial ; d, auUine
of Ihe hfetl corr rtd with tb« iDt^untBta.
The hew), properly so called, that is, the part situated behind the
beak, has its sides straight and perpendicular. The upper Burface ia
quadrilateral The poet-orbital portion ia flat and smooth, except
that one can perceive through the ektn the subtriangular or ovoid
holes with which the skull is dotted. The other portion is consider-
ably inclined forwards, and mostly occupied by the eyes, the interval
between which forms a slight gutter-like dsprssaion. The mandible
is not continued from the forehead by a gradual alope as it is in the
Crocodiles, but sinks suddenly to follow a straight and nearly hori-
■ontal direction, on a line with the inferior edge of the orbit At the
extremity of this upper mandible arc the four notches for the passage
of the first and fourth lower teeth when the mouth ia shut Two of
these Dotchea are very deep, and situated quite in front : the other
two are moderate, and placed one on tbe right the other on the left
behind the spatuliform termination of the beak, where it is alightly
constricted.
The division of tbe lower jaw into two branches does not com-
mence till towards the twenty-aecond or twenty-third tooth. The
fint ten upper teeth, among which the two anterior teeth are the
least separated, are implanted in the intermaxillary bone, and the
greater portion of the teeth of the upper mandible are longer than
the correeponding teeth of the lower jaw. Up to tbe ninel«enth or
twentieth pair they are turned a little outwarda, ao that when the
mouth is shut the upper teeth paaa over the sides of the lower jaw,
and the lower teeth over the sides of the upper. The lest six pairs
are straight or nearly ao. so that the points of the one set correspond
exactly with the intervijs of the other. The first the third, and the
fourth above, and the 6rst second, and fourth below, are the longest
Tbey are in general a tittle curved and slightly oompreased from
before backwards, and are veiy slightly trenchant right and left.
Hardly more than the laat eight or nine on each side are nearly
oouic^ Slight vertical ridgea show themselves on the surface of the
teeth of old individuals.
Under the throat about the middle of the brancbe* of the maxillary
bone, are utuated, one on tiie right and Uie other on the left side, the
musky glands.
The external orifice of the nostrila opens on tbe upper side of the
with a free border, which is notched a_ ,.
circularly between the toea. The noils are alightly arched.
The naps supports two strong scutcheons, surmounted by a carina,
more compressed behind than it is before. Their form ia oval, and
their height nearly eaual to their width. There is sometimn a
small scutcheon on eaoh side of these. This ia the case in one of the
largest individuals ; namely, that described by Lac^pide, and flgnred
by F^ujas de Saint-Fond in bis 'History of St Petw's Mountain,' at
Haaetricht, The cervical scutcheons, to the number of four pain,
form a longitudinal band, which eitanda from two-thirds of Ihe length
of the neck to the dorsal ahield. The firet two are triangular, the
Noehal and cerrial pUtcs, Ac., of Iwa IndiTldoBls of Onialll GangtlUat,
ttaa CuTier.
The upper part of the body ia transversely cut by eighlaen faanda
f osseous plates, with equal carina, which consequently form four
ingitudiiuu rows all down the back. The plates of the two lateral
:iWB are squared, and rather smaller than those of the mesial rows,
which are also four-sided ; but their longitudinal diameter is lev thaa
their tianaveisaL A longitudinal row of other carinated acatcheona
borders this doml cuirass on the right and on the left for a part of
length. The Banka, the aidea of tha neck, and a portion of its
upper part are covered with oval fiat ecalos of moderate aixe. Tho
tail is surronnded by from thirty-four to forty scaly circlea, the num-
ber vaiying in di&^nt individuals. The dentilat«d crest does not
'- veiy parceptible till towards the sixth or seventh drcle : its
is delicate and
flexible. The acalea which clothe the lower partji of the body are quadri-
Utera], oblong, and perfectly smooth: there are needy alxty tranam«e
from the chin to the rent, and, like those of the flanks, th^ ars
all pierced with a small pore on (he middle of their posterior border.
Crotected above with rhomboidal scales : th«
eir external edge ; the posterior limbs from ttxe
hock (jarret) to the little toe have a row forming a serrated edga.
The surfaos of the natatory membransa is covered with graunlous
Tbe grooDd-oolonr of the upper part* is a deep watei^firasii, on
which are often toattand mmsTons oblong irregular brown spot*.
W CROCODILID.'E.
In ymuuriuloeetB Uie ImcIc and limb* ua tmurenaly btuidad with
bUok. Tho lowta region of tlia body ia yary pale yellow or whitish.
Tha jawB mrs aprinklcd with brown. Tha luuls u« of » dear honi
eolour. (Dtim^ and Blbcon.)
The OaTial of the Oangsa a luppoeed to be tbe largeat of Uia liying
Sauriaus. The meaBunmaat of the largset maationed by Heaan. Du-
aJrilandBibTfin iigiian atS metree, 40 osntimetna (17 feat 8 iuchea).
CnTiflT waa led to think, principally from the figuree published I^
Ftnjaa de Saint-Pond, that there was mors than one ipecies of
Oanal, and on lubsaquent inquiry dlttinguiihed two, the Oreat
QiTial and the Little Qmal ; but he waa i^rwardi latiifled, from
tha ei«mm>tion of namerou* apecinien^ that age alone made the
diSeranoe betweea them.
Fotnl Orotodilida.
"In the liring ■abf^anaim of <Aa Crocodilean familr." obaerrea
T. Bnckbad (' Bridgewater Treatin,' p. 250), " we aee Uie elongated
IT beak of the Qarial of the Oangea conitruoted to feed on
fiihea ; whilst the ahurter and itrongar inout of the broad-DOsed
ODcoditea and aJligatora give* tham tbe power of Hiiing and
dsTouriug quadnipeda that oome to the banki of riven in hot ooun-
triea to drink. Aa there were scarcely any Mammalia during tha
■Bcondary periods, whilst tha waters were abundantly stored with
fishes, we might, k priori, eipeot that if any crocodilean forms had
then anrted, they would moirt nearly have resembled -the modem
Qariil : and WB have hitherto found only thoaa genera which have
aloBgatcd bxW in formations anterior to and including theobalk;
•rliilst true crocodiles with a short and broad snout like that of the
aiman and the alligator appear for the first time in strata of tha
tertiary periods, in which the remains of MamtiuJia abound."
The ganna Semauaiinu of Oeofl^y St. Uilaire appears to come tha
■Karat in its conformation to the living Gavial, and a general idea of
the structura of tho mnasle and anterior nasal aperture will be
derived from the following cut of a specimen from Ham ; whilst
Huxla at SUruo^mmnu, from Dr. BuoUsnd, who qnoi
in TUrajtmrw* (Geoff), though then is aonsideiable siniilarity In the
genanl contour of the head and jaws, the confarmation of the muzzle
sod naml apertnre is very different from that of the living Saurian,
the anlarior termination of that aperture forming almost a lartlcal
notion of the extceniity of the upper mandibla.
n rroiB above; b, bead of soother
ladl'iidaal of the tana spceies seen from below, ifaawlgf tba lower Jaw ;
louUiT or both, liss In tbe naiglibaarbooil of Whitby ; e, indda view of
inlerier eitreniltT at lower Jsir : localltf. Great OeUM at Enskiw dov Wood-
Modi, Oion. rrom
Anterior aitremitiei of the beak oi
In his moDograpb on ths ' Fosail Reptilia ' of tbe London Clay,
published by the Palieontographical Society, Professor Owen describes
tbe foUowing apedea of extinct Eaydoaaurians.
Oixodtlau TWtOfiifWi. It ia the Crooodile do Sheppey of Cnvier;
C. Spoiceri of Backlandi in hia ■ Bridgewater TreatJae,' and of Boss In
the ■ Beport* of the British Asaociation,' ISll.
It was Fonod originally in the Eocene beds of Sheppey, and waa Brst
dsKribed by Bsjon Ciirier trom a specimen in the collection of H.
Delue of Qeneva. Professor Owaa doubia if the skull figured by Dr. ,
CROCODILIDJL
Buckland (and given below) as C. Spaiceri is identical with a n
perfect specimen of this species now in tha British Museum, £
which he has given his own desuription.
C. Champioida (Owen). This species seems also to have been
included in Buckland's C, Spenceri, and Cuvier's Crocodile da Sheppey.
This species has been eBlabliabed from a skull in ths poeaoaion of
Hr. Bowerbank, and although not to be clearly identified with Buck-
land's C. SpenKtri morq nearly resemblea it than C. Tuliapieut.
"Tha evidences," says Professor Owen, "of Crocodilean Beptilee
from the deposits at Stieppey, less oharacteristio than thoas above
described, are abundant. Hr. Bowerbank posaeasee numerous rolled
and fractured rertebne, condyloid BKtremities, and other portiona of
long bones, with fragmenta of jaws and teeth." In relation to the
two Sherosy spedes he ssys, " Amongst the existing species of Croco-
dile, the C. aevlMi of the West Indies offers the nearest approach to
the C. Ttiiapiau ; and the C. SMigdii of Borneo most resemblea the
C. Clurnqmida."
C, Hailingria (Owen). Tbe specimen upon which thii species i«
eatabllshed was discoTered by the Uarcbtoneaa of Hastinga in tha
Gooene Freah-Waterdepoails of the Eordwell CliA in Hampai^, which
her ladyship has described in the volume of ' Heports of the British
Aasociation' for 1817.
AUigati>r Hantcmiauit (Searlea Wood). The spedmsns of tbia
foaail differ from the last in the exposed oondition of the inferior
canines when the mouth is shut. Although this distinction is rnffi-
oient to separate tbe eiiating species of Crocodiles and Alligators,
Frofesaor Owen is iadiced to doubt whether it may not be In thia
cass a mere accidental variety,
ChitMit Dixmi (Owen). The temains on which this species is
' ' " bed were disoaversd by the late Mr. Frederick Dixon in the
dnraaitBOf Biaeklashun.
[eluding tha monogiaph in which these Fossil Crooodilea aia
dcocrflMd a ■ " " '
minutely d
1 and flgnred, and ths skeletal anatomy of th«
remuns of the Proocslian Cmeoddia that have been discovered in
Eooene dspodta of Enijand, the great degres of cUmatal and geogra-
phical dimge, whioh this put of Europe must have undergone ainoa
the period whan every known generic form of that group of reptiles
flourished here, most be fordbly impressed upon tbe mind.
"At the present day theoonditiana of earth, air, water, and warmth,
which are indispensable to the existence and propagation of tbeea
moat gigantic of living Saurians, concur only in the tropical or warmer
temperate latitudes of the globe. Crooodiles, Gavials, and Alligatura
now requite, in order to put forth in fnll vigour the powers of theb
ooki-blooded oonalitiition, the stimuloa of a large amount of aolar
he»t, with ample veige of watery space for the evolutions whioh thn
nd diqrasal of thaur pr^. Manhes with
laige rivets, aneh aa the Oambia and Niger
tnots of Africa, or thoes that inundate
the country tllToug^ whidi they run, nther periodically, aa thp Ifile
for example, or with boundless forest and savannahs, like thoss
ploughed in evsr vaiying channelaky the force of the mighty Amaxon
or Onnoco, — such fenn the theatres of the destructive eiisteuoe of tha
carnivorous and predacious Crooodilean Septilea. And what then
must have been the extent and configuration of the Eoome oontinsnt
which was drained by the rivers that deposited the ma—is of day
and sand accumulated in some parts of the London and Eampahire
baains to the height of 1 000 feet, and farming tbe graveyard of count-
leas Crooodilea and Gaviala. Wliither tended that great atream one*
the haunt of aUigaton and tha resort of taper-like quadrupeds, the
sandy bed of whioh is now exposed on the upheaved face of Hord-
wsll Clifff Had any of the human kind existed and traversed t^e
land where now the base of Britain risea from the ocean, he might
have vritoessed the Oavial deaving the waters of its native river with
the velocity of an arrow, and ever and anon rearing its long and
ler snout above the waves, and making the banks re«ho with
Qud and sharp anapjung of its formidably armed jaws. He might
watched the dea<fly stmggle between uie Crocodile and Palteo-
thera, and have been himself warned "isj the hoarse and deep bellow-
ings of ths Alligator from the dangerous ricinity of ita retreat. Oor
fossil evidancu supply us with ample materials for this most straaga
S07
CROCOISITE.
CROTALIDiE,
S08
picture of the animal life of anoient Britain ; and what adds to the
singularity and interest of the restored ' tableau vivant ' is the fact»
that it oould not now be presented in any part of the world. The same
forms of Crocodilean Reptile it is true stiU exist, but the habitat» of
the Gavial and the Alligator are wide asunder, thousands of miles of
land and ocean interrening : one is peculiar to the tropical riyers of
continental Asia, the other is restricted to the warmer latitudes of
North and South America ; both forms are excluded from Africa, in
the rivers of which continents true Crocodiles alone are found. Not
one representative of the Crocodilean order naturally exists in any
part 01 Europe : yet every form of the order once flourished in
close proximity to each other in a territory which now forma part of
England." [Sdpp.]
CROCOISITE, a native Chromate of Lead. [Lead.]
CROCUS, a beautiful genus of Iridaceous Plants, oonsiBting of
many hardy species, some of which are among the commonest orna-
ments of gardens. Crocuses are chiefly found in the middle and
southern parts of Europe and the Levant, three only being wild with
us, namely Crwvn nvdi^orutf which is abundant in the meadows near
Nottingham, C. vemva and C, tativus. Botanists have found it ex-
tremely difficult to ascertain by what precise technical marks the
species are to be distinguished. We do not propose to o<Scupy our-
selves with that subject, but shall rather enumerate briefly the names
and localities of such as are apparently distinct ; so that those who
wish to form a complete collection of these pretty flowers may know
where to look for them, and when their task ia accomplished.
* Vernal Species.
C, vemu8. This is the common Purple or White Crocus of our
gardens in the spring. It has produced a multitude of florists' varie-
ties, some of which are extremely beautiful and well marked. Its
root^oats are finely netted, its flowers scentless, and the throat of
the tube of the flower ooveied with haurs. C. albiflonu and O. ohoveAiu
are varieties of it. It is said to be wild in some parts of England,
but it may have been introduced. It is certainly wild on the Alps,
particularly of the Tyrol, Piedmont, Switserland, Sal£bux*g, and
Carinthia, descending to the sesrcoast at FriulL It is also found on
the mountains of the Abruzzi and elsewhere, in similar situations in
the kingdom of Naples, associating itself with oaks, chestnuts, and
similar trees, and not existing at elevations exceeding 6000 feet
C. veraicohr, the common Sweet-Soented Variegated Spring Crocus.
There are not many varieties of it, all of which are recogniseid by the
root-coats not being cut circularly, the yellow tube of the flower
hairless, and the sweet scent. It grows wild about Nizza (Nice), and
in all the eastern parts of Provence.
C. hifloruB, the Scotch Crocus. The beautiful pencilled sepals
and clear or bluish-white petals of this species distinguish it at once ;
added to which the root-coats are cut round into circular segments,
a circumstance that occurs in no other species. It is a native of the
most southern parts of Italy; growing wild in sterile subalpine
pastures in the kingdom of Naples, and in similar situations in Sicily.
Our garden plants are merely a cultivated state of the C. ptuiUus of
the Italians.
C. Impeniti^ This is little known in England. Its leaves
appear long before the flowers, and are glaucous and spreading. The
petals and sepals are a delicate violet inside, but externally white ;
the petals are almost whole-coloured and pale purple, except at the
base ; the sepals are strongly feathered with rich purple. A white
and a whole-coloured variety of it are said to exist. It differs from
C. biJhruM in its root-coats being membranous, and not cut circularly,
and from C. verneohr in the tube of the flower not being haiiy. It
inhabits low hills and woods in the kingdom of Naples, on Capri, on
Mount S. Angelo di Castellamare, and elsewhere. It is supposed that
C. ftMiveo2«iif is at most only a variety of this.
0, IvteuB or nustiacui, the Laige Tellow Crocus. It is charac-
terised by veiy large whole-coloured flowers, and laige roots, with
coarsely netted coats. It is an oriental plant> but its exact locality is
unknovpL
C. aurau, the Small Tellow Crocus, by no means so common as
the lasty of which it is probably a variety. Its flowers are smaller and
deeper coloured, and it has a pale cream-coloured variety. Dr.
Sibthorp found it wild on the hills of the Morea.
C, ttuianuB, the Cloth-of-Qold Crocus. This species is well
known for its coarsely-netted root-skin, and small deep yellow flowers,
the sepals of which are feathered with dark chocolate brown, and are
rolled back when expanded under sunshine. It is a native of the
Crimea, the Ukraine, and the other parts of south-western Russia : it
is also believed to be a Turkish plant; and localities are given for it
' under the name of C. reticttkttuBf on mountains near Trieste, in woods
near Lippizza, in FriuU, and in Hungary, in the lordship of Tolna. A
remarkable variety with deep purple flowers exists, but it is extremely
rare.
O. titdUUua and O. nUphureua are pale and probably hybrid varieties
of C. luteus. They have never been seen except in gardens, and are
the least pretty of the genus.
* * Autumnal Species.
(7. tcUivutt the common Saffron Crocus, an eastern plants culti-
vated from time immemorial for the sake of its long reddish-orange
drooping stigmas, which, when dried, form the saffron of the shops.
Its Asiatic localities are not known ; in Europe it grows i^parenUy
wild in the south of Tyrol, and is said to have been found near Ascoli,
and on the Alps of Savoy. Its British station is in all probability to
be ascribed to accident.
C. odorus, the Sicilian Saffi:on. This species, which has also
been named C, Umgijlorut, is found in mountain pastiures in Cedabri%
and in both mountainous and maritime situations through all Sicily,
where its stigmas are collected instead of those of the true safi&on.
Its blossoms are sweet-scented, and are known at first sight from the
stigmas not hanging out of the flower, but standing upright and
inclosed within it The tube of its flower is very long.
C, Thomatiif a Calabrian plant, found in mountain woodSb It
is said to have coarsely-netted root-coats, fragrant saffron-l^e trun«
cated stigmas inclosed within the flower, which appears long after the
leaves, and has a bearded throat. It exists in English gardens, but is
veiT^ rare.
U. nudi/hrus. The flowers appear without the leaves, and tlie
root-coats are slightly netted. The stigmas aro divided into many
deep narrow segments. The plant is not rare in many parts of
Europe, flowering about the time of the Colchicum, to a small species
of which it at first sight bears much resemblance. C tpeciosut,
C. muUiJidfUf C. meditiSf aro mero varieties or synonymous names of
this plajit.
C. ecrotinus. This requires to be compared with C. odorut, to
which it approaches very nearly, if it be not the same thing.
The Crocus delights in a dry situation and a rich light sandy soil.
In such a place and soil it flowers profusely and produces lai^e roots ;
but in a wet poor soil it dwindles away. Slugs aro the chief enemies
of this plant, which may be destroyed by watering the beds or clumps
with lime-water.
For a florist's account of the varieties of spring Crocuses cultivated
in the gardens of this country, see the ' Transactions of the Horticul-
tural Society of London,' vol. vii
CRONSTEDTITE, a hydrous Silicate of Iron, occurring both
massive and crystallised. Its primary form is a rhomboid, in small
thin hexagonal prisms, and in radiatmg groups. The cleavage is per-
pendicular to the axis, distinct. The colour is black and brownish-
black; streak, dull green. Hardness 2*0 to 2'5. Specific gravity
8*8 to 8*86. Lustra vitreousL Opaque. This mineral is found in
Cornwall, Brazil, and Pndbram in Bohemia. It has the following
composition : —
SiUca 22-45
Oxide of Iron 58*85
Oxide of Manganese 2*89
Magnesia 5*08
Water 10*70
CROSSARCHUS. [Vivbrbidjb.]
CROSSBILL. [LoxiAOJB.]
CROSS-STONE. [Staubolitb.]
CROSSWORT. [QaliuilI
CROTALIDiE, a family of Reptiles belonging to the order Serpents
or Snakes, and including those species known by the name of Rattle-
Snakes. In the ' Catalogue of the British Museum ' Dr. J. E. Gray con-
stitutes Orotalida a family of his sub-order Viperina. The family,
has the following distinctions : — Face with a lai^y^o pit on each side,
placed between the eye and the nostriL The head large behind, crown
flat, coverod with scales or small shields ; the jaws weak, the upper
with long fangs in firont and no teeth. The belly covered with broad
hand-like shields: anal spurs none. The species aro all of them
venomous and viviparous.
The following is a synopsis of the genera and speciaa ."-^
A, Head covered with scales, having small shields on the edge of the
forohead and eyebrows ; tail ending in a spine ; cheeks sody.
& Subcaudal plates two-rowed to the tip. Oratpedoeej^alina.
Crcupedocephah*. — Superciliary shield single, hinder labial shields
laige ; scales lanceolate, keeled. America.
Species — C, BratUieniU; G, lanceoUUiu; C, cUroxj C. eUgant ;
0, trilinetUut,
Tnmtturu9, — Superdliaiy shield single, hinder labial shields
smaUest ; scales lanceolate, keeled. Asi&
T, viridit; T, cUbolabru; T, earincAua; T, purpuretit; T. macw-
UUua ; T. tubannulatua ; T, PhiUppmtU ; T. ilrigattu; T. Sumatranua ;
T.formoitu; T, CtyUmentit.
jParia«.^-Superoiliary shield single, hinder labial shields smallest ;
scales lanceolate, of head and body smooth, of crown unequnl.
Am**-
P, fiavomaeulaiut ; P, omatus; P, variegatus.
Megtxra. — Superciliary shield double, hinder labial shields smallest ;
scales lanceolate^ of head and body smooth. Asia.
M. triffonoeephala ; M, olimtcea,
Atropot. — Superoiliary shields many, forming a prominent arched
series. Asia.
A. cusoiUia.
h. Subcaudal plates four-rowed at the tip. America. ZaditiincL
Lachmi, — Head ovate; crown scaly.
L, muiui; L.pictu8,
tO0
GROTALIDiE.
CROTALIDiE.
210
B. Head more or lewihielded.
c Snbcaudal plfttee two-rowed ; tail ending in a spine ; oheeka not
scaly; head-ahieldB with some additional platea in front Tngono-
eepkaUtuL
Trigonocephalui, — Dorsal scales keeled.
T. ff€Uy9; T. affinit; T, Bromhoffl; T. rhodott<mia; T. ffjfpndU;
T. AMora.
d, Subcaudal plates one-rowed; tail ending in a spine; cheeks not
scaly; head shielded. America. Ceiiehrina.
Ctnehrii.
C, eontortrix; C. atrofiueut; (7. piteivcrus,
e. Subcaudal plates one-rowed ; taU ending in a rattle ; cheeks scaly ;
head more or less shielded. America. Orotaliwt,
Crvialophoru*, — Head with nine laige shields extending behind the
eyos.
a miliaria; C. tergeminuij C KiHlandi,
{TropiopAiML— Head with scales behind; temporal scales and labial
ihield moderate.
U. deeuuui,
Orotalut. — ^Head with scales behind; temporal scales and labial
shields Tery small, convex.
C. horridiu.
The last species, C, horridutf the Battle-Snake, may be taken as a
type of the whole family.
The colour of the head is brown ; eye red ; upper part of the body
yellowiah-brown, transrersely marked with irregular, broad, black
lists. Rattle brown, composed of seyeral homy membranous cells, of
an undulated pyramidal figure, articulated one within the other, so
that the point of the first cell reaches as far as the basis or protuberant
ring of the third, and so on ; which articulation, being veiy loose,
gives liberty to the parts of the cells that are indosed within the
outward rings to strike against the sides of them, and so to cause
the rattling noise which is heard when the snake shakes its tail
(Catesby.)
"TYnorrrrriGQacina^i
•.*>.».i.*>.#»»U. .•i..
4 .V tl t
a. Battle of twenty ^oar Jointa ; b, section of rattle.
It is a native of Virginia, the Carolinas, and other parts of America.
LawBon, in his 'History' (1714), says, "The Rattle-Snakes are
found in all the main of America that I ever had any account of ;
being so called from the rattle at the end of their tails, which is a
connection of jointed coverings of an excrementitious matter, betwixt
the substance of a nail and a horn, though each tegmen is very thin.
Nature seems to have designed these on purpose to give warning of
such an approaching danger as the venomous bite of these snakes is.
Some of them grow to a very great bigness, as six feet in length, tbwr
middle being the thickness of the small of a lusty man's leg. We
have an account of much larger serpents of this land ; but I never
met them yet, although I have seen and killed abundance in my time.
They are of an orange-tawny and blackish colour on the back;
difTering (as all snake^ do) in colour on the belly, being of an sah-
colour inclining to lead. The male is easily distinguished from the
female by a black velvet spot on his head ; and besides his head is
smaller shaped and long. Their bite is venomous if not speedily
remedied ; especially if the wound be in a vein, nerve, tendon, or
Bnew • when it is very difficult to cure. The Indians are the best
physicians for the bite of these and all other venomous creatures of
thw country. There are four sorts of snake-roots already discovered,
which knowledge came from the Indians, who have performed several
neat cuxw. The rattle-snakes are accounted the peaceablest in the
world ; for they never attack any one, or injure them, unless they are
trod upon or molested. The most danger of being bit by these
snakes is for those that survey land in Carolina ; yet I never heard of
any surveyor that was killed or hurt by them. I have myself gone
over several of this sort, and others ; yet it pleased God I never came
to any harm. They have the power or art (I know not which to aUl
it) to charm squirrels, hares, partridges, or any such thing, m such a
manner, that they run directly into their mouths. This I have seen
by a squirrel and one of these rattle-snakes ; and other snskes have
in soS messure the same power. The ratUe-snskeshave many small
teeth of which I cannot see they make any use; for they swallow
everything whole ; but the teeth which poison are only four ; two on
each side of their upper jaws. These are bent like a sickle, and hang
loose as if by a joint. Towards the setting on of these, there is, m
each tooth, a little hole wherein you may just get in the point of a
small needle. And here it is that the poison comes out (which is as
erccn as grass) and follows the wound made by the pomt of their
teeth. They are much more venomous in the months of June and
KAT. HIST. DIV. VOL. IL
July, than they are in March, April, or September. The hotter the
weather the more poisonous. Neither may we suppose that they can
renew their poison as oft as they will ; for we have had a person bit
by one of these who never rightly recovered it, and very hardly
escaped with life ; a second person bit in the same place by Uie same
snske, and received no more harm than if bitten with a rat. They
cast their skins 6V€|>7 your, and commonly abide near the place where
the old skin lies. Ijiese cast-skins are used in physic, ana the rattles
are reckoned good to expedite the birth. The gall is made up into
pills with clay, and kept for use, being given in pestilential fevers and
the small-pox. It is acoounted a noble remedy, known to few, and
held as a great arcanum. This snake has two nostrils on each side of
his nose. Their venom, I have reason to believe, effects no harm any
otherwise than when darted into the wound by the serpent's teeth."
Catesby thus notices this species in 1771 : — '' Of these vipers," says
he, writing of all the American venom-snakes under that name, "the
rattle-snske is most formidable, being the largest and most terrible of
all the rest : the largest I ever saw was one about eight feet in length,
weighing between eight and nine pounds. This monster was gliding
into the house of Colonel Blake of Carolina ; and had certainly taken
his abode there undiscovered, had not the domestic animals alarmed
the family with their repeated outcries ; the hogs, dogs, and poultry
united in their hatred to him, showing the greatest consternation, by
erecting their bristles and feaUiers, and, expressing their wrath and
indignation, surrounded him, but carefully kept at a distance ; whilst
he, regardless of their threats, glided slowly along.
" It is not uncommon to have them come into houses, a very extra-
ordinazy instance of which happened to myself in the same gentleman's
house, in the month of February, 1728 : the servant in making the
bed in a ground-room (but a few minutes after I left it), on turning
down the clothes discovered a rattle-snake lying coiled between the
sheets in the middle of the bed.
" They are the most inactive and slow-moving snake of all others,
and are never the aggressors except in what they prey upon ; for
unless they are disturbed they will not bite; and, when provoked,
they give warning by shaking their rattles. These are commonly
believed to be the most deadly venomous serpent of any in these
parts of America : I believe they are so, as being generally the laigest,
and making a deeper wound, and injecting a greater quantity o£ poi-
son ; though I know not why any of the other kindh of vipers may
not be as venomous as a rattle-sxiake, if as big, the structure of the
deadly fangs being alike in all. The most successful remedy the
Indisns seem to have, is to suck the wound, which, in a slight bite^
has sometimes a good effect ; though the recovered person never fails
of having annual pains at the time they were bit. They have likewise
some roots which they pretend will effect the cure ; particularly a
kind of Atarumt commonly called Heart Snake-Roots, a kind of Ckryt'
ofUAemum called St. Anthony's Cross, and some others; but that
whidi they rely on most, and which most of the Virginian and Caro-
lina Indians carry dry in their pockets, is a small tuberous root, which
they procure from the remote parts of the coimtry ; this they chew,
and swallow the juice, applying some to the woimd. Having, by tntr
veiling much with Indians, had frequent opportunities of seeing the
direful effects of the bites of these snakes, it always seemed and was
apparent to me that the good effects usually attributed to these their
remedies is owing more to the force of nature, or the alightness of the
bite of a small snake in a muscular part, &o. The person thus bit I
have known to survive without any assistance for many hours ; but
where a rattle-snake with full force penetrates with his deadly fangs,
and pricks a vein or artery, inevitable death ensues ; and that, as I
have often seen, in less than two minutes. The Indians know their
destiny the minute they are bit ; and when they perceive it mortal,
apply no remedy, concluding all efforts in vain. If the bite happeneth
in a fleshy part> they immediately cut it out to stop the current of
the poiK)n. I could heartily wish that oil of olives applied to the
wotmd might have as good success against the venom of these snakes
as it hath been found in England to have had against the poison of
the adder." (Catesby, .' Natural History of Carolina.')
LawBon, it appears, was an eye-witness of the fascination, if so the
effect of terror on the victim is to be termed, of the Rattle-Snake ; and
though Catesby never saw it, he thus details the evidence of the fact
known to him : —
" The charming, as it is commonly called, or attractive power this
snake is said to have of drawing to it animals and devouring them, is
generally believed in America. As for my own part, I never saw the
action, but a great many from whom I have hul it related all agree
in the manner of the process ; which is, that the animals, particularly
birds and squirrels (which principally are their prey), no sooner spy
the snake, than they skip from spray to spray, hovering and approach-
ing gradually nearer their enemy, regardless of any other danger ; but
with distracted gestures and outcries descend, though from the top
of the loftiest trees, to the mouth of the snake, who openeth his jaws,
takes them in, and in an instant swallows them."
There can be little doubt that this supposed power is greatly
exaggeiated. That a suddenly-surprised animal should be arrested
by terror and easily fall a victim to the serpent^ is highly probable ;
but that it should descend to its destruction from the top of the
loftiest trees, is almost incredible.
CROTON.
Tlut Uie Mcrelioii of the poison mfty be greatly inewned by loo&l
iiriUtiOD would be expeoted ; and Mr. Bell, in hii ' Hiitory of Briliiili
Beptilei,' ftdducea the fbllowing; aa evidauoa of the bet. Ha waa
diisecUiig very carefully aod minutely the poiBon-apparatiu of a luge
ntUe-snake which bad been dead far some ooura ; the head had beoi
taken off iminediately liler dmth ; yst a* iii. Ball oontinoed hia dia-
aaotioD the poinn oontinued to be aecreted ao faat aa to require to ba
oocaaianallj dried off wiUi a bit of rag or apoDge. Ha atatea hia belief
that there could not have been lets idlagetW than dz or ei^t diopa
UtheleMb
RntUe^nako (tHIoTuf honiiliu].
The Mon* adentifie and ^tertaining author relate*, aa a proof that
the effeol of wouttda inBtcted by venomona awpenta anbaequently to
the (Int la gnttly leeaenad, either bj the diminutian of the quantity
of venom or of lome detoioration of it^ atrengUi, the following anec-
dote i^—i. gentleman of hia aoquaiutance had received a living rattle-
inaka from America. Intendmg to try the effect of its bitelupon
Bome rata, he introduced one of those animnla into the cage with the
aerpent, which immsdifttely abuck the ratj and the latter died in two
miuiitea. Another nt waa then placed m the oag^ and ran to the
&rClie«t oomer from the anak^ uttering criee of diatnea. The serpent
did not attack St immediately ; but after about half an hour, on bong
Irritated, atnick the ratj whioh exhibited no i^mptomB of being poi-
Boned for several minutes, nor did it die till twenty minutea aller the
bite bad been inflicted. A third rat, remarkably Urge, was then intro-
duced into the cage, and exhibited no aigiu of terror, nor waa it appa-
rently noticed by ita dangerouB companion. After watehing forlthe
nat of the evenmg, Ur. Bell's Mend retired, laaving the rattlesnake
and the rat together. He rose euly the next momiiig,'and visited
Oie cage : there lay the.make dead, and the rat hod au^ied upon the
moBciUar part cf its t«ck. Ur. B«U does not remember at what time
of the year this took place, but he expreesea his belief that it was not
during vary hot weather.
The length of time during which a man will linger after being
Utten by one of these deadly snakes was manifested in a very dii-
treenng Mss. Some yean ago a carpenter came to see a rattlesnake
which was poblicly ^own toi money in London. The man endee-
Toured to exdle it, probably to heu ita rattle, with hia rul^ which
he dropped into the aerpant'i cage. As he waa trying to reeorar it
the roalie bit him in the hand. Ha waa taken to one of the hospitals
(81 Qsorge's, if we recollect right), and bore up so long that hopes
were antart^ed of hia reoovaiy ; tint his constitution gave^way at
last, and after many days he fell a victim to the poison. [Vifieiha.]
CROTON, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
St^horbiaeta, comprehending a laiga number of apedea, many of
wtuch have important medical properties. It is distinguished from
other genera of its order by monoecious flowers ; the males with a
E-parted valvular calyx, 6 petals, 6 glands alternate with the petals,
and a definite number of distinct stamens ; the fenudea with a S-parted
calyx, no petals, 3 biSd or multifld styles, 6 glands surrounding
tho ovary, and ■ tricoccous fruit The specien are eitramaly diversi-
fied in appearance, soma being trees, othera busbos, others herbaceous
plants ; many with sarrBted or lobed leaves, many vfith enUra ones ;
BometiineB covered with hair, Bometimes naked ; and now with a small
compact inflorescence, now having it long and lax. The following
are a few of the mora remarkable species : —
0. Catcariila. Leaves lanceolate,, acute, quite entire, stalked,
downy on the under surface. Stem arborescent. A native of the
CROTOPHAQA. lit
aiders that the true Caaoarillk Bark is not yielded by tbla apealea but
by C. EltMhena.
C. Ili^ittm. Leavea ovate, smooth, aaumiDBte, senatad. Stem
arborescent. Flowers in terminal spikes. Fruit imooth, the size of
a hazel-nut. An inhabitant of the Holuccaa, Ceylon, and other porta
of the Eaat Indies. This plant is at once the moat actjva and dangerous
of drastic purgatives; every part — wood, leaves, and fruit — seems to
partidpate equally in the energy. The leaves are so acrid as to
inflame the moutl^ lips, and Enuoes of thoaa who merely chaw them,
bringing on swelling and producing a senjVition of burning aa far oa
the anusb The seeds thrown into water intoxicate flah. Ten or
twenta fruits bruised with honsy have been known to kill a horse by
the violent diarrticea they have produced. Henoe the oil obtained
from the seeds, which is known by the name of Croton Oil, when nsed
medidnally, has to be administend with extreme care.
Cralan ■niUvm.
C. taeciftrta^ Leaves ovite, downy, serrulated, stalked ; calyxes
downy ; Sowers in terminal spikes ; fruits small and velvety. A
native of the Fast Indies. This apedea is said to fiimiah the flnest of
all the sorts of lac, but soorcdj ever to find its way to England. It
is very pure, of a bright red, and fumiabea a brilliant vamish in
this species is that which furnisbee the Coscarilla Bark of
but others ascribe it to C. EUulheria ; and Sohiede suspects that
may be rather the produce of C. Pteado-Chma, which he found to 1
tho real Quina Blanca of the apothecaries of Jalapv Dr. Lindlsy con- 1 of Birds
Draco, a MexicMl plant, with long heart-ahaped woolly leaves,
vrith C i^arocarpum, and C. tanguijluim, yields, when wounded, a
resinous substaooa of a deep red colour, reaembling dragon's blood.
Others are merely aromatic. From C, iaJtfHn^nwa the liquor called
Kau de Hantea ia distilled ; O. aromalicum, C. niveum, C, fragrant,
and C. coriaceun have similar qualities ; and C. Ikurtfenun exudes a
fragrant resin analogous to incense.
The bark of these trees occurs in pieces about a foot long, which
e tubular or overlapping, externally covered with a cutide which
cosily peels ofi', so thatthe liber or bark ia otien eipofwd, in which
:i t..i n. — I ---k-like. The colour extomaiiv is yellowi .,
Uy
)f lichens. The surface is also marked by
irregular deep fongitudinol furrows. The inner surface is a dirty or
rusty-brown colour. Odour faintly aromatic ; taste bitter, not un-
pleasant, and stimulating. No alkaloid has been detected in it ; but
". possesses much volatile oil One pound of bark yields one drachm
ad a half of volatile oiL This bark is Bometimes mixed with the
inchona barks, being called Qray Fever-Bark — a substitution in no
respect hurtfuL
For the medical properties of this genus see CaBOa&lLU and CsOTOX
' Abts abd Sc. Div.
CROTOTHAOA (Linn.), CVotopAfutu (Browne, Briason), a genua
' Birds placed by Lesson imder the third CamilT Hdt^rampne^ of
CROTOPHAOA.
Ilie order Qrimp^un (&an*aret), CuHer; Zygodaetjfii, Temmittek ;
SjIyuhb Zygodactylea, VieiUot.
Ths bill ihort, tbtj muoh eomprasaed, arched, withont deotilatioiu,
elentsd, and Burtnoonted by b vertioel kod trenaluuit onat ; Ooatdli
builar;, open ; roarth and fifth qoUU laiigwt ; tail-featlisre long,
mniided.
TheflB birdfl aro caJled Ani utd Ahqo in Ouyuia and Bruil, and
Anno in Vtn^axj. In Maiico they mre tULmed, woording to Her-
oindez, CecalototoU, aod in the AntillM BoaU de Fatnn, Anwngous,
Diiblee de 8«vbjuw«, and Fertoqaet* Noiiv. In Ca^anns thdr
oommoD name ia BooiUeur de Canaii Their gcdaial oolaor ia blaok,
vilh mora or 1«b> of motallie refleotdona.
A cotuddarkUe portion of die ipecdea are found in America —
pnncipallf the hot and hofflld petta, Ditt Uia louth mon eapedally —
ud the AntiUM.
The Ania lire in Sooka, and are ao Ux &om timid that when they
Me Uieir oompMiioiu &11 betbre the gnn, the lUTrivora S7 but a ihort
w^, and then again aatUa Buah«, the akirU of woods, and the
bordara of Koodnd aaTaonaha, are their favonrite haunta. Thur food
comiita of amaU linrda, inaeols, and leeda. Hanj pairs are add to
tiM the aama neat, bailt on the branchee of trece, and of latge
dimanaiOQi, when oonaidered in relation to die number of ooi^c*
nocupjing it, wbere the; la; and hatch their young in oonoert.
C. Ania V. blaokbird with bronaed tinte in lome lights. Biie
lather larger tban that of the common blackbird ; leaa than that of a
jackdaw. Ifocatlity, nxdat aaTannaha and the neighbondiood of water,
in the Wert India lalandt, Carolina^ Bnsil, Fanguay, &o. It ia the
Ranr-Billed BlaekbiTd cf Jamaica of Cateal^, the SaTannah Blaokbird
utthsEi^iah aolcokti, and <^ Onat KaAInid of Sloane.
Juulea BlukUrd [OvUpliafa Jul).
Browne (' Hiist. of Jamaica ') thua deacribea it ; — " Thia liird Ia
ibant the aise of a Barbery dove, or aomething larger, black all orer,
and aplay-footed like a parrot It haa a long nqoare tail, a broad
comprened bill, and a ahart thin tongne : but the beak or upper part
at t^ bill ia flatted on the aldaa, arched and aharp above, and strugbt
•t the edges below. Thn Utb chiefly upon ticka and other onell
Tcrmin, and msT &eqaenuj be seen jumping about all the oowi and
oxen in the fields ; nay, they are oftm obaerred to fly oo their backs
tmleas they lie down Sat them, which if maoh troubled with ticks
the; generally do when the; aee the biida about them ; but if the
bout be heedless they hop once or twice round it, looking it very
eameatly in the face eveiy time they pass, as if the; seem to know
th«t it was onl; reqnl«t« to be seen tc bo'indulged. They are toij
noisy birds, and one of the moat common aorta in all the pastures i»
' Jamaica. Their flight is low and short."
Sloans thns describee his Bpe<nmen, under tha name of the Qreat
Blackbird : — " This was thirteen inches long from the end of the bill
to the end of the tail, and about fifteen inches troTa the end of ana
ving to the end of the other, both being extended ; the bill was three-
qiuuiers of an inch long, and black, the under mandible being straight,
Uie upper of a dngnlar make, distinguishing it ^m other birds ; for
it was arched or round, raised high, flat and thin on the upper round
edge. .The feet have three toes before and one behind (though
Uarcgrave says oUierwise). The legs ore two inchea long, and black
u jet ; the middle toe before is one inch and a half long, armed with
a pretty ahaip claw, and ths other toes proportionable. The colonr
of the feathers all o
s block. The stomach of thia bird v
pt«tty thicki it was Tery fuU of gnttshoppera, b«etlea,fte., diajdnted
and partly disaolred.
"It haunts the woods on the edges of the savannahs, and Is tot
alarms all the fowls in their neighbourhood, so that they are very
prqudicial to fowlen ; but on ue other htuid, when negroes run
from their masters and are pnraued by them in the woods to be
brought book to their lerTitM^ these birds, on sight of them as of other
man, will make a noise, and direct the pursuers which w» they must
take to follow their blacks, who otherwise might live olw^s in the
remoter ioland woods in pleasura and idlaneao.
"Perhaps Uiis bird may have the toes sometamei two before, at
other times two behind."
Slosne's doubt may have arisen from a casual ezominaldon of dead
specimens. The hot is that the external toe in some soansoriol bird*
' ■" ' 1 backwards, but not * ^
are eaaily tamed, an
have a bad odour.
CROUOEH, a local name tot the Pmsaiaa or Oibal Carp.
[CTPnnrm*;
CROW, [CoavmiJ
CROW-BERRT. [EMmBUJLl
CBOW-FOOT. pLmTBonnrBT]
CROZOFHORA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Euipluirhiaeta. The flowers are moncedoui. Calyx of male flowers 6-
partad ; petals 6 ; atamans 6-1 0, with unequal aoimata filaments. Calyx
of ftanata flowers 10-parted; petals abeent; atylee 8-bifid; oapaole
S-ooccons.
..-__ aboutafootlongrsoft, oTd,alt«nat«s»i— - -,
which are plaited and curled at thdr edge ; small Aowen arranged In
short dusters, and drooping fruit oompoMd of three UaeUahnxigfa
oalla. ItiaanotiveofbanenpUceaaUoTerthesonthofBnrop^andis
cultivated about Montpelier for the aake of the deep purple d^
called Toumesolc^ which It prodnoea. Its properties are amid, emebc,
oorroaiTSt aod drastic, like the meet virulent Guphorbiaoeotu Planto,
I, s male flcver oat open, ihowtcf t^ eUmou
neailj ripe Iralt ; 4, E, dUTtmnt ktodi of itairy loale
CRUCIAN CARP. [CtpbihiiiaI
CRUCITERiE, (Wi/'erj, the Cabbage Tribe, a very exienatve and
meat natural assemblege of Plants, called TVtnidyHafliu) and Omeiatm ttj
Linnnus, and Bratneaeea by others. It comprebenda the Hustard,
Cress, Turnip, Cabbage, Scurvy-Grass, Radish, Hor»i.Radiah, and
.^r . .", . ^ ?_■__!_,- j;iE — . M l«ea in their
Itt CBUCIFEB^.
longolawi, uid their bUdea planed ■omethint; like the ■rtoiafsMiltMa
orou, whence their nkme ; 6 itameQ*, 1 of which nra longtr thui the
Other 3; and > fruit conmBtiiigof 2 eeOt, with a centnl Avine, to which
is fitted a pair of deoiduoiiB nliea, and from the iddBi of wliioh under
the valvaa is itretched a thin doable traoapareot diaphngm. In each
cell an two or more leadi, with an embryo folded upon ilaelf, and
daatitnte of albumen. The form of the frait hi eitceinelf variable :
when it 1b long and slender it ie called a Siliqne, and whan ahrat and
round a Siliole ; hence the two diviiioDa of the JVfrodjnuMui of Lin-
umia into Sili^twa and SUiadoia.
About a couple of thousand speeies an diq»aned over the milder
put* of the world, reftimng alike to exist beneath the leren cold of
the arctie ton* and the exoesaiTe heats of the tropica. A Uxga pro-
portion oonrista of inoonspienous and nsdias weeds; manyanob'--'^-
of beau<T from tile stie and g»7 colours of their p«t^; andUien
already mentioDed show that another part of the order oonsis
planta luriiil to man.
Ouiranlliiil OliM.
■ flovet Irom which Iha peUli litT* ben icn
an ot tb* 0TU7 ; 4, * ripe tinlt, ftom whieb
• wpuaUn^i
Owing , ._. , ..__ .__ ,
between them, the sjrtematjo arrangemont of Cruoi
until late years eioeedinglf unsatisfactory. It has howarer bean di*-
coveied that ths embryo prosenbi the most oaiistant oharacter, and
that by five modifioatioos of the maimer in which it is folded up Bn
preaissly limit«d diviaioiit of the order an secnred. Ths following
out illustTatea them. Let A 1 be an embryo with the radicle applied
to tlie ootyledona in suoh a way m to lie agunst its edgea; then B 1
Qm' '
"=o ||o/<o|io||||||o
will be Um appearance of sueh an embryo iriMn out across, and C 1 1
will be a tigo expressing the mutual poaitiooi of the radicle and ooty-
ledona by a circle end tivo tars : thef e are Plnrm-hiica. Then jlf . A 3
CRUCIFER^ IM
will be the same embtTo with the radiele applied to the back of the
cotyledons ; and B 2 and C S will giie the section and sign of what
an called Natorkiitii. When the ootyledoiu instead of bemg flat am
channeled so as to rectdve the radicle in a kind of groove, as at A S,
it gives ths division Ort^oplix»t. If the Cotyledons an so long aa to
be doubled twice, A 1, the; constitute ^mtobta ; and if, aa at A 6,
the ooMedona are doubled thne timea, they iiidicate the divisl»n
DifleaJotta. Upon theae dlstiaetioa* all reoent arrangamenta ^
OnK^fa^ have been formed.
The affinities of this order are with Papaveraeta, CSttacea, Oappa-
ridaeea, and Fumariacea. There are ITS genera and above 1600
epedes dcaoribed. It is aninently a European order : 166 speeiet
an found in Hortlism and Middle Europe, and ITS on the noHhem
shore or islands of the Ueditertanean ; ii an peculiar to the coast oi
Africa between Mogadon and Alexandria ; 181 to Syria, Alia Minor,
Tauria, and Persia; 90 to Sibeiia; 85 to China, Japan, or India;
T6 to Australia and the South Sea Islsnds ; 6 to Mauridns, and the
neighbouring islands ; 70 to the Cape of Oood Hope ; 9 to the
Canaries or Madeira ; S to St Helena j 3 to the West Indies ; 11 to
South America; 48 to North Amerioa; E to tiie islsnds between
If orth America and Kamtohatka ; and 35 an oommon to varions parts
of the world. This being their general geographical distdbutioa, it
appear! that, exclusive of the species that are unoerti'
aaveral different oountries, about 100 an found i
hemisphere and about 800 in the northern hemisphere ; or 91 ii
Hew and the rest in the Old World. Finally, if we o "
irith regard to tempentore, w
In the frigid lone of ths northem hemiaphera SOS
In all the tropioa (and ohiafly in mountainous regions) SO
In the temperate lone —
Of the northern hemisphere .... 5481 -a.
Of the southern hemisphere . .86/ ^^
Buoh wen the caloulations of De Candolls in 1831. Although («•
quiring oonsiderable modification, especially in the Adatic and North
American numbers, which are much too low, they serve to give a general
idea of the manner in wliiob this order is dispersed over the globe.
The aharaoter of the genera of this order is ontisoorbuUc and stimu-
lant, combined with an acrid flavour. The officinal apeoisa an among
of ail planta, and will he found treated of under their
It. Alatge number of genera ai
The fallowing is a synopaia of the British g
large number of g
— _ - synopsia of the E
Babington's ' Maonal of British Botany :'—
Sub-Order I. SmqvoiM.
' Pod (sllitjue) linear or linear-lanoeolate, opening by two Talraa;
diMepimsnt narrow, but in its broadest diameter.
Tribe I. t»iiiTn«»
Cotyledons aooumbsnt, parallel to tiis dissepiment ; radicle lateral ;
6. IWrifia
6. ArabU.
7. Cardtmiitt.
8. JktUaria.
Tribe IL SuntBUiA
Cotyledons inaunbent, oontrar7 to the dissepiment ; radid* donal
seed oomprested.
9. Haptru.
10. Sinrnbritm.
11. AmaHa.
13. Sryimum.
Tribe Itl. B&AssioKA
Cotyledon* conduplioate, longitudinally folded in the middle;
15. DipUitaxit.
Sub-Order IL Latomt*.
Pouch (dlicle) short, op«ning with two valvea; dissepiment in
broadeet diameter.
TriU IV. At.nsi](K&
Cotyledons aocomhant
18. Alytim.
17. Kaluga.
IS. Draba.
19. CoMtaria.
20. ATmoraeia.
TriUT. Caiolivia.
21.
Tribe VL Vi
u oondnplioate.
S3. VMa.
t"> i£
n7
CRUCIROSTRA.
CRUSTACEA.
218
Sub-Order III. Akoustisepije.
Pouch (silide) short, laterally compressed, opening with two boat-
diaped yalvesy keeled or winged on the back ; disaepiment narrow,
linear, or lanceolate. ^' -.
Tribe YIL THLABPiDKiB.
Cotyledon! aocumbent.
28. TkUupi,
24. StuAinna,
25. Teeadalia,
26. IherU
Tribe YIII. Li?n)zv&&
Cotyledons inoombent
27. Lepidium.
28. CapteUa,
Tribe IX. SUBULABIXJE.
Cotyledons incumbent, long, linear, cunred back above their base ;
cells many-seeded.
29. Sutndaria.
Tribe X. SnriBBniRUL
Cotyledons incumbent^ long linear, ourred back above their base ;
cells one seeded.
30. SeMbrier(i.
Sub-Order IV. Kuoamxntacks.
Pouch (silide) scarcely dehiscent^ often 1-celled, owing to the
absence of the cUssspiment
Tribe XI. ISATis.
Cotyledons incumbent
81. Itatii.
Sub-Order V. LoMSKTAOEiE.
Silide or silique dividing transversdy in single-seeded cells; the
true silique often barrenTi^ the seeds being in the beak.
Tribe XIL Cakilinul
Cotyledons aocumbent.
82. CakUe.
Tribe XIIL Rafbanea
Cotyledons condupUcate.
88. Cframbe,
Si, JRaphamu.
CRUCntOSTRA. [Loxiadjl]
CRUSTA'CEA^ Grustao^ of the French, Krustenthiere of the
Gennans, MoXoic^srpnca of Aristotle and the ancient Greeks, a
diss of Articulated Animals, whose external covering is less solid
than that of the majority of Testaceous Molluslu, but much
firmer and harder than the skin of the Kaked MoUusks; and whose
oonfoiination is essentially distinguishable from other classes, espe-
cially in tiie circulating, respiratory, and locomotive organs. The
Common Crab [Cbab], the Lobster, and Crayfish [Abtaottb], the
Common Shrimp [CbakoovidaI, and the Water-Fleas [Branchio-
foda], may be tiScen as types of different sections of this family.
As in many of the Testaceous MoUusks, the skeleton of the Onutaeea
is extemaL It is made up of the t^gumentaiy envelope, which, in
some of the dass, always continues Bott, but in the greater portion is
very firm, forming a shelly case or armour, in which all the soft parts
are contained. In the more perfect Crustaceans it is complex. The
following description of its component parts is ttom, the pen of
If. Milne-Edwaids, who, in his ' Histoire Katurelle. des Crustac^'
(Paris, 188i, &a, 8vo), and in the article 'Crustacea' in the ' Cyclo-
paedia of Anatomy and Physiology (London, 1886, &c.), has given
the moet complete view of the oiganisation of this family. Taking
the Brachyura, or Short-Tailed Cnistaceans, as his instance of the
more highly developed forms of the dass in whidi the complex
structure is exhibited, he thus proceeds, " The integument consists of
a corium and an epidermis, with a pigmentary matter of a peculiar
nature, desttined to conununicate to the latter membrane the various
colours with which it is ornamented. The oorium or dermis, as
among the VeridfreUcif is a thick, spongy, and very vascular membrane;
on its inner surface it is intimatdy connected with a kind of serous
membrane, which lines the parietes of the cavities in the Oruataeea in
the same manner as the serous membranes line the internal cavities
among the VertebnUa; these two membranes, divided in the latter
order i>y the interposition of muscular and bony layers, which cover
and protect the great cavities, become dosely united when these
layers disappear, as they do in the Ortuiaeeti, in consequence of the
important changes that take place in the conformation of the apparatus
of locomotion. The corium again, among the OruiUicea, is completely
covered on its outer surface 1^ a membranous envelope unfurnished
with blood*vesseIs, and which must be held in all respects as analogous
to the epidermis of the higher animals. It is never found in the
properly membranous state, save at the time of the OrtuUieea casting
their shell; at this period, it is interposed between the corium and
the solid covering z«ady to be oast off, and has the appearance of tk
pretty dense sad consistent membrane, in spite of its thinness. It
forms, as among animals higher in the scale, a kind of inorganic
lamina, applied to the surface of the corium, from which it is an
exudation. After the fall of the old shell it becomes thicker and
very considerably firmer, owing to the deposition or penetration of
calcareous molecules within its substance, as well as by the addition
of new layers to its inner surfisuse. The degree of hardness finally
acquired, however, and the amount of calcareous matter deposited
within it, vary considerably ; in many members of the dass, it remains
semioomeous, in a condition very sixnilar to that of the integuments
of insects, with which, moreover, it corresponds veiy dosely m point
of chemiiMil composition ; in the higher crustaceans, again, its compo-
sition is veiy different: thus, whHst chitine in combination with
albumen is the prindpal dement in the tegumentary skdeton of some
spedes, this substance scarcely occurs in the proportion of one or
two tenths in the carapace of Uie Decapods, wmch, on the contrary,
contains 60 and even 80 per cent, of phosphate and carbonate of lime,
the latter substance particularly occurring in considerably lax^ger
groportion than the former. With regard to the pigmentum, it is
iSB a membrane or reticulation than an amorphous matter diffused
through the outermost laver of the superficial membrane, being
secreted like this by the conum. Alcohol, ether, the acids, and water
at 212° Fahr., change it to a red in the greater number of spedes;
but there are some species in which it may be exposed to the action
of these different agents without undergoing any perceptible change.
The epidermic layer hardened in different degrees is the part which
mainly constitutes the tegumentary skdeton of the Oiurtocea. In its
nature it is obviously altogether different from that of the internal
skeleton of the Vertebrata; still its functions are the same, and this
physiological resemblance has led naturalists to speak of these two
pieces of organic mechanism, so dissimilar in their anatomi(Mil relations,
under the common name of skeleton. The tegumentary skdeton of
the Onuteicea consists, like the bony skeleton of the Vertebratcif of a
great number of distinct pieces connected together by means of
portions of the epidermic envelope which have not become hardened,
in the same way as, among the higher animals, certain bones are
connected by cartilages, the ossification of which is only accomplished
in extreme old age."
This skeleton, or crustaceous frame-work, consists of a series of
rings varying in number, the normd number of the body-segments
being twenty-one. Instances of a larger number are rare, and a lees
number seldom occurs ; one or more rmgs may be appca«ntly absent,
but in such cases they will generally be found consohdated as it were.
In the embryo the segments are developed in succession from before
backwards ; the posterior rings therefore are generally absent when
the number is defective. Each ring is divisible into two arcs, one
upper or dorsal, the other lower or ventnJ. Each arc may present as
many as four dementary pieces. Two of these united in the mesial
line form the tergum ; uie sides of this upper arc are framed of two
other portions denominated flanks or epimeral pieces. The lower
arc is a counterpart of the upper. Two of the four pieces into which
it is divisible constitute the sternum, situated in the mesial line, and
are flanked by two epistemums. These two arcs do not cohere at
their edges, but a space is left for the insertion of the lateral append-
ages or extremities which correspond with them. (liilne-Edwards ;
Audouin.)
The one^md-twenty rings above mentioned are generallv dividble
into three sections of seven each, and may be considered as corre-
sponding with the three regions which zoologists have generally
consented to recognise- in the bodies of the crustaceans, under the
denominations of a head, a thorax, and an abdomen ; but the student
should be on his guard against the false impresdons which, as M. Milne-
Edwards observes, are likdy to arise from these terms, by their leading
the mind to liken them to the grand divisions in the Vertebrata, which
are defined by the same expressions.
The cephdo-thoradc portion and carapace first claim our attention,
and the latter acquirea its greatest development in the Decapods.
*' In these animals," says M. Milne-Edwards, ** the frame-work of the
body does not appear at first sight to consist of more than two por-
tions, the one anterior, formed by the carapace, and representing the
cephalic and thoradc segments conjoined ; the other posterior formed
by the abdomen. In reality, the first fourteen rings of the body are
covered by this enormous buckler, and are so intimatdv conjoined
as to have lost all their mobility ; the whole of the thoracic segments
thus hidden below the carapace are connected with it in their superior
parts ; they are only joined with one another underneath and late-
rally ; and their texgal parts having, in consequence of this, become
useless, are no longer to be found, being ia some sort replaced by the
great cephalic buckler ; thus the whole of these rings, m conformity
with this arrangement, are imperfect and open above."
The subjoined cut represents the carapace of a Brachyurous or
Short-Tailed Crustacean, and the regions of which it is composed,
named after the viscera and oi^gans protected by them.
The succeeding figure represents the carapace of a Macrourous or
Long-Tailed Oostacean.
The abdomen is most fully devdoped in the Macrwra, or Long-Tailed
Crustaceans, in many of which it becomes a very important organ of
motion, and in them there is a comparativdy small development of
the carapace ; while in the ^rocA^ro, or Short-Tailed Crustaceans,
CRUSTACEA.
Cmpu* of Omiiuii mmtai {Omtw iwiut, Liim.]
0, B«fion of th* ttomuh, oi ^utiis Tt(!aB ; t, gmltal ncion ; e, oudlu
Chnpu* or common Cnvfldk {Atlamu fmiaiaui,
a, Outiis ntlm ; t, (oiitil nsloo ; «, OMdiM nfton ) i, postvln oudlio
nfion; i^ f, brucblAl ngloiu.
thii mle ii revenad, th« abdoman being compantiToIy imall, ukd the
great development takiiig pUca in the carapace, IJIustaktiiig the " lol
oe balanoepMutoTguiique" of M. Oeofftx>7 St. HilaireL TheCommoa
Crab and Common Lobrtw affoid sfcriUng ezunpln oT ttda kw of
oiBanio eqniTAlaatt.
Ti(« ol (lie mdn t\i» ol the rcmilg at TMp>tm4t,JhKiatilU, with the UU or
I, (, D, d; (, atenul pleeu; /, f , t, i, litenhiterul ^eeMi t, t, extenul
TtsTs td a>» lOula oi^uu Dl lennMloD ; I,
a (Mt. Tba dedwhtd Ifon rtpneraU —-
ftom Ih* abdoDu
£
now of lb* ludB ilda or the mele of IMjilhiM JturiatilU, with the mule
011*111. The detuhed Agim TepromU DU of tluae orguu.
On tliii lubjeot FrofeMor Bell remark! ■,^~" When we oonaider tiis
■Imoot endleee dlToiBitf of form iiiidsr wliiott tlie 'apeoies compoeing
tllia daw of «"'"■»!" appear, tlie Mtoniahing diacrepancf which eiista
in the forma and relabva proportiaiu of the different ncion* of the
body, and other parte of their orgMliaatioD for the peifonnaDce of
oSmi and funotioiu equ*]l; Tarioiu, aod eee that all dieae diversitiee
■re produced onl; by modifloatiaDB of a trpieil number of part«, we
' but be itruck bj no remarkable and interMtins an illujttratiDD
■a it nur be terraed, dut U
of the great eoonomio^ law, a
t Uc typtcof
„- - — . . - - -Jjb - , ...
Hructvrc of any j/rmp bting pwcK, Ihe differtnt hihiU of it* eompmatl
Ipecit* or minor groupt art prvvided for, not hg tlie creation of not
orgamt or (Ac dafrHCfwii Itf oDtert, &M by U< ntadijlciriwit in fonn,
ttnustmrt, or pUtct, of orgmu (jpicaUy bcZoiwiiw fo lie group,"
One of tiiB nooeaaary ooiuaquenoea of the eon<Ution of theae
animaliinoloaadin ahatdohellii thapowerthnpoeaaaa of throwing
it oE If thia were not the eaae all growth would be itopped,oioept-
iog increase of tbicikneaa in the nhrrll rji mnnnaeinn of aedretjonafrom
bdow. To alloir therefore room for .the ezpaniton and growth of
Uie bodr ukd Ibnba, a proTisfon for their inm«aae ii made by meajia
of moolting, which, aa a general rule, ii more tt^qaant the younger
the animal ii, aa indeed might be Bxpeoted. Thus eight moiilta ii
Cnb. [C^aiii.J
In Aitacru JfnmatHit, the moult, en
la prsoeded by a few dara of fkatin^ , .
the OBiapaoe beoomea loosened from the corium to which it waa
attached. The corium begini forthwith to aeoiete a new ehell, which
b at fint toft and membranous, beoomea gradually harder and harder,
and Ii at but calcareous. When all oonneotion with the old shell ia
broken off; and the corium has oompletsly secreted the new mem-
tnaoons envelope^ the ammal begin* to sat about freeing itaelf from
the old iQoaubnooei ud bMomss very raatloB, the symptoms of
inquietude InoreMJtig in proportion as the time tor emanointion
dram ni^h. It ruba it* legs one againat the other, and finally thniwa
itaelf OQ Its back. In Umt ajtuation it begins to shake itaelf and awell
itaelf out, till it tears the membrana which connects the car^nce
with the abdomen, and begina to niae the former : then it reata a
while. Altematioiia of agttatioa and rot anooeed each other at luter-
vaU of longer or shorter duiatiou, the cai^woe is oompletaly raised,
the head, the eyes, iha anteniue, are extrioatad. The greatest dif-
fioolty oOcors in fiming the eitremitie*, nor oould the; be eidicated
at all did not the old coTenng split longitudinally: and indeed it
frequently hqipena that the Crawfiah leares a limb or two behind ;
and ia somstimea so fettered, that it perishes from inaUlity to aitri-
cate itseli The abdomsQ ia the last diriaitm of the body freed, and
the whole change ganorally takea plaoe in half an hour. Four-aud-
twen^-homa, or tao or thrse ds^ at furthest an necessai; f^r the
oonvenion of the soft and mamravnous integument which aheathei
the corium or Baked body into a firm calcareous case similar to the
last, and resenting the same appendages, eren to the hain ; although
M. Uilne-Edwards has stated tliat tbiiM last organs are not formed
within the old ones, aa suppoBed by Bteumur, but exist rea<^-fonued
in the new entolopo, tuned in towards the interior like the fingan of
a glove tuned in upon itself,
Mr. SpeDCe Bata of Plymouth, who has very suooeaafully studied
the OnMocco, ttatea that he has oonflrmed the original ohserrataoD
of Kdaomur.
H. Milue-Bdwarda obeerve* that tho time oocnpied in the busintM
of throwing off the shell varies oonsidraably in difierant species, and
that it also depends on atmoepheric inSuenoes ; and this obaenatioD
applies equally to the oumbw of days required for giving the new
tegumentary sheath the oonaiatency of the old shell ; and he adda,
that in the whole of the specdee which have been duly watched,
eapedallj thoeefoundrai the French shorea, the period which preoedes
and that which follows the Bodj^ is a pwiod of inquietude and
disorder. The musolea are then flaccid, Um fleeh is soft and watery,
and the animals are conaidetvd unwholesome and unfit for food. An
exception to this remail: occnrs in the Land-Crabs (Amtchmij), which,
according to the teatimonv of all ivbo have spoken and writtsn on the
subject, art never so delimous m during the lossnn of change.
tn
CRUSTACEA.
CRUSTACEA.
233
At the period of Eodysia, roonded flattened calcareouB concretions
(carbonate of lime), commonly called Ocnli Citncrorum, are formed
at the aides of the stomach of the conunon river crawfish. (Prep.
m, Mu& ColL of Suig.)
Every one has occasionally been struck with the difference of siise
in the members of crabs and lobsters. One claw of these, and other
crustaceans which have the daws, when perfect, nearly equal, is often
found of its full volume, while the other is comparatiyely diminutive ;
for the animal, upon the limb receiving any injury, has the power of
suddenly throwing it oS, and the effort does not appear to be attended
with pain, though it is frequently made when the system receives a
severe shock. [Astaous.] The point at which the separation takes
place is always in the. second articulation, near the basis of the
limb, and from the stump, which speedily cicatrises, a new daw buds
forth with all the proper articulations, and with an entire Uiough
miniature resemblance to the rejected member. This new daw is
formed within the dd shell and hee folded up until the exuvia are
shed, when it appears as a part of the new udeton. If one of the
limbs be severed In any other place than the usual point of separation
the stump goes on bleeding, nor does it heaL In such cases the
renovating prooesB does not commence until the animal succeeds in
separating the remains of the member at the proper point, and this
it does by a violent muscular contraction. Some vears sgo there
were some Land-Grabs {Ofecareinut) at the Qaiden of the Zoological
Society, and the apparent ease with which they parted with their
smaller legs in order to escape from any one who injudidoudy took
them up by these members was very remarkable^ They did not seem
to regard the loss at all, and ran awi^ on the remainder of their legs
sa if nothing had happened. Mr. Hairy Qoodsir has pointed out
that this power of renewing the members in the Onutacea depends
on a small glandlike body seated at the base of each limb. This
body oonsiBts of a great number of laige nudeated cells, which are
intezspersed throughout a fibro-gelatinous mass, it is supplied by a
vessel and a nerve. Mr. Spenoe Bate describes the development of
the shell as follows : —
" Immediately above the hearty a pulp consisting of nucleated cells,
areolar tissae, (and blood vessels?), is formed, extending to the
intemd suzfruse of the shell, from which it is separated by a layer of
pigment whidi gives colour to the new formation. Towaids the
base, that is, immediatdy above the hearty the cells are uniformly, large
and disUncty while an areolar tissue ramifies throughout the whole.
As advance is made from the base, cells of less size mix with them,
which increase in number as they diminish, in diameter, untU they
approach the layer of pigment^ immediately beneath which *they
adapt themsdves by mutual pressure into a polygonal fbrm. The
pdp extends over the whole periphery of Uie crab^ immediately
beneath the shell ; the thickness of the p^p decreases with the
distance from the centre; and the larger cells become fewer in
nunber, the mass being maide of the smdler cdls which become the
secreting ozgans of the future shdl, which process conmiences pre-
viously to and is completed after the removal of the exuvlse." {* Annals
of Kat. Hiflt,' voL vu.)
Of the nature of the organs of locomotion developed by the
external skeleton, Milne-Edwards has given the best account :— '
" The kind of solid sheath formed by the tegumentary skeleton of
the Onutacea, and which indudes in its interior the whole of the
viaoera and other soft parts of these animals, is required to be so
constructed as not to oppose locomotion ; consequently there exist,
either between the different rings of the body or the various con-
stttuent elements of the limbs, articulations destined to admit of
motion to a greater or less extent between these different pieces.
The structure of these articulations is of the most simple kind ; the
moveable piece rests upon that which precedes it by two hinge-like
joints, sitiuted at the two extremities of a line perpendicular to the
plane in vhidi the motion takes place. In the internal portion of the
edge of the moveable piece comprised between the joints there exists
a notch of greater or less depth, destined to admit of flexion, whilst
on the opposite or external side the same edge generally glides xmder
that of the preceding piece. This kind of articulation, whilst it is the
most favourable to preddon of movement and to strength, has the
disadvantage of admitting motion in one plane only ; therefore the
whole of ttie rings of the body, the axis of motion beiug entirely
paralle], cannot move save in a verticd plane ; but nature has intro-
duced a kind of corrective of this disadvantage in the structure of
the limbs, by changing the directions of the articular axis, whence
ensues the possibility of general motions being performed in every
direction. Between the two fixed points two opposed emptor spaces
are observed, left by the rings severdly, and destined to admit of the
occurrence of motions of flexion and extendon. The tegumentary
membrane which fiUs it never becomes incrusted or calcareous, but
dwm continues soft and flexible.
** The tegumentary skdeton supplies the apparatus of locomotion
with fixed points of acUon as weU as with the levers necessary to
motion. The immediate or active organs of this apparatus are the
muscles, the colour of which is white, and the stnicture of which
presents no peculiarity worthy of notice. They are attached to the
pieces which they are required to move either immediately or by the
intermedium of homy or cdcareous tendoni^ which are implanted
upon the edge of the segment to which they belong. To the fixed
point they are most commonly attached immediatdy. Thdr struc-
ture is simple, and each segment in fact, as has already been said,
bein^ contrived to move in one fixed and determinate plane, the
muscles which communicate motion to it can constitute no more
than two systems antagonists to each other, the one acting in the
sense of flexion, by which the segment moved is approximated to
that which precedes it, the other in the sense of extension, by which
the segment is brought into the podtion most remote from the centre
of motion. The musdea that produce these oppodte effects, as might
have been conduded, are found implanted into the oppodte arms of
the lever upon which their energy is extended.
" The motions in flexion tend universally to bring the extremities
and the diflerent rings towards the ventral aspect of the body ; it is
consequently upon this aspect that the flexor musdes are inserted,
and these are in general the more powerful On the contrary, and in
accordance with the nature of the motion produced, it is upon the
superior or donul aspect of the segments that the extensor muscles
are attached. In the trench the two orders of musdes generally
form two distinct layers, the one superficial, the other deep; the
former thin and sometimes absent, the second on the contra^ very
powerful wherever powerfril| motions are required. The musdes
generally extend from the arc above to the one immediately below,
passing for the most part from the anterior edge of the upper to the
anterior edge of the lower segment The extent and the du^ction of
the flexion of which any segment is susceptible depend on the sise of
the interannular spaces above or bdow the ginglymoid joints ; and as
these spaces are in general of condderable magnitude on the ventral
aspect^ whilst the superior arcs are in contact^ and can only ride one
over another in a greater or less degree, it is oxdy downwards that
the body can be bent upon itself, while upwards, or in the sense of
extendon, it can hardly in general be brought into tiie horizontd line.
" Thus far what has been said applies more espedallyto the rings of
the body, but the extremities present nothing that is essentially
different, dther as regards the mode in which the tubular segments
are articulated to one another, or as regards the mode in which the
musdes are inserted. Each of these indeed having but one kind of
motion, and even that very limited in its extent, nature has aided the
defidenoy, as has been steted, by increasing the number of articula-
tions, by which extent of motion is confened, and in varying the
direction of the articular axes, an arrangement by which the animal
obtains the ability of moving in every £rection, but at the expense
of power, rapidity, and precision in its motions. Each segment of a
limb indoses the musdes destined to move that segment which suc-
ceeds it^ unless it be too short and weak for this end, in which case
the musdes themselves have their origin at some point nearer to the
medium plane of the body. As a general law the muscles are observed
to be more powerful in proportion as they are nearer to the centre,
which is to be explained by the fact that each motion they then com-
municate is transmitted to a larger portion of a limb, to a lever
longer in that sense in whidi it is disadvantageous to the power.
Occadonally however the two last segments of a member are converted
into a sort of hand, and in this case the penultimate segment some-
times indudes a muscular mass, whidi may surpass in power the
same system in the whole of the limb besides. Those musdes that
put an extremity generally into motion are attached to the ddes of
the thorado cavity, and the apodemata supply them with surfaces of
insertion of great extent, and very favourd)ly dtuated as regards
their action. They occupy the double rank of cells formed by these
laminsD, but they vary too much in their mode of arrangement to
admit of our saying anything generally upon this head The motion
of translation or nrom place to place, the only kind upon which it
seems neoessaiy to say anything here, is effected in two modes,
dther by the alternate flexion and extendon of the trunk, or by the
play of the limbs.
" In those Onutacea which are formed essentially for swimming,
the posterior part of the body is the prindpal sgent in enabling the
anixnd to change its place ; but here the motions, instead of being
laterd, are vertical ; and instead of causing the creature to advance
they cause it to recede : it is by bending the abdomen suddenly
downwards, and bringing it immediately under the sternum, that it
strikes the water, and consequently by darting backwards that the
animal makes it^ way through the liquid. [Abtaoits.] From what
has now been said it may be imagined that the Ormtf»cea whose con-
formation is the best adapted for swimming have the abdomen largely
devdoped, and this is in fact what we dways observe ; the Amphi-
poda and Deca/poda Macrowra are examples; whilst in the walking
Onutacea, such as the Crabs, the Caprella, the Oniaeut, &&, this por-
tion of the body attains but very insignificant dimendons. In the
swimming Onutacea the appendages of the penultimate segment of
the abdomen also become important organs of locomotion, inasmudi
as they for the most part terminate in two broad horisontal plates,
which, with the last segment, also become lamdliform, constitute an
extendve . caudd fin arranged in the manner of a fan. We have
already sud that the thoradc extremities done constitute true ambu-
latory limbs. When destined for swimming only, their segments are
lamdliform, and the pdp, as well as the stem, contributes to form the
kind of oar which each of them then constitutes.
tt CROaTACEA.
"To concludB^ ths (temmatoui portioD of the thorwdo flxtreiaitlsi,
whilit it still prcMTTMi the genenl form which we have ungned it,
u modified ia loms eisee to serve for walking aa well tis iwimming, or
to aid the Buimal u >n initrumeiit for burrowing with hcility, and
making a cavitv fbr ihelter among the aand. Tbua in the Decapods
that buiTow, the last a^ment of ths tanus anumes a lineeolated
form ; and in Uie ■wiimniDg SrscAyuro, the aama segment, eapemallj
of thelast pairof aEtntnitieB(Jfa(Wa, for example), appeara entirely
lamellu'."
Any one who will take the tnmble of gobg orer this exeellent
deecriptioD with a common crab and lobiter before him, will have a
clear idea of the locomotiie system in these ammals.
Wo have only furtbar to add, that in a great number of spraiea one
or eevaral pain of the thoracio extremities are modified so aa to
become lutramente of preheneioD ; sometimes it is the last segment
of the limb which, acquiring more Uian usual mobility, bends in such
a manner as to form a hook with the preoeding aliment ; sometimaa
It is thia pannltimate segment which extendi below or by the side of
tha last^ so aa to form a kind of immoveable finger with which it is
pUced in oppoaitian. In the first instance theee inatrumants are
danomiuated sabcheliform clawa, in the second chelm simply, or
oholiform daws.
Jnw.I^ [fitii nucholrti], be., or n,ilpiua flmiatHii.
1, right tiUTDSl Jiw-nwt ; A, Its Intmsl bisde, ct tig»; a, t, e, d, t, Its
tuiOBM anlaslatiaiu ; B, its Hicraat blade, or palp ; 3, Jsw of the ronrth piir
wlUi iU palp ; 1, ]kw of tht lUrd pair with Its palp ; 4, Jaw oT the seuod
__._ . . ■ — _. .>j jjij p^ . g^ nisndibls wilh Its palp; I, npptr Up; t,
CBPSTACEA. IM
adapted for sucking, and In tbe interior of which are two slendar
poiobsd prooessaa tlut act aa lancata for the piupoae of pcrforatiotl,
m lieu of the true mandiblaa.
The basilar articulations of tlie anterior thoraoio extremitiea in
many apeciea are employed to seise, hold bst, and in a considerable
dwree comminute, tha food ; and Uie moat perfect derelopment of
thia design is manifestsd in the chelifonn clawa of the lobatera and
crabs, with all their admirable modiflcatioiu for powerfol prehension.
The mouth is a mere opening of the short cesophagus ; nor i* it
furnished wilji a tongue — Uie organ to named (langue and laiiguett«)
is no more than a, homy and lamellar pnceaa, performiw in a degree
the functioDS of a lower lip. The ceaophagoi, which terminates
without any interruption in the stomach, and both parts, with one
striking exception in the ease of tha latter, whieh we shall presently
mention, present nothing remarkable, oonaisting, as well as Uia whole
of the Intestinal canal, of two mamtotmoui layers, and preaanting a
considenble reaemblanoe to the same put of tlia organisation of the
hiahfv animals. The stomach Is globular and ouMoioui, oconpying
much of the area of the cephalic cari^. Mid oouMug of two dictiaet
portions: I, the cardiac region, sDTmoanting the tDOvtb and amo-
phagu* J 3, the pyloric, placed behind the oardiao ragioo.
A^und the pylorus is situated that extraordinary apptT«tas of hard
taberolea or ahaip teeth which opeiate as grinding or tearing organa
on tha food submitted to the action of this animal miU ; and though
the different pieces vary ooniiderably in dillhrent specieB, their greater
or less derelopment depending npon the nature of the food tuen by
those apaoiea, they may be tneed in all the Brada/tuv and JfacrMmi.
In Squilla thia mastiratoiy fiwnework ia reduced to two half-horay
pieosa, with rounded projectiona ; and, to make up for thia deficiency,
a bn&ah of each manditde reaehaa down to the pylorio orifice.
From the pyloms the intasUne prooeeda dinct to the Ttnt, there
being no convolution ; but in the higher Cmstaaeans ft b diatingniah-
•ble into two portions, to which the names of duodenum and raotntn
have bean applied, and which are aometimea, in the lobster for in-
stance, separated by a valve, but mora frequently are without defined
Umits. In the lower Cmitaceans the intestine is cylindrical, anJ
oSen no differenoe throughout its whole length from the stomach to
tha vent, which is alwaya situated in the laat ring, and has its orifice
closed by muscular fibres which perform the functions of a sphincter.
The liver is largely developed in many of tha Omilaeta, eepeoially
in the Decapods ; indeed, no one can eat a crab or a lobster without
being struck with the laif^e proportions of this viacus, which in thoae
species is considered so delicioua. In the Bdriophthalmians, on the
contWy, it is almost rudimentary, there being in them only three
pairs of biliary vessels, much reaembling those of insects. The organ,
when well developed, consiste of two symmetrical portions, generally
sepatated from each other, and oompoaed of a collection ot ocuma,
whi^ at one of their eitremitiea dischaiva their ascietion into excre-
tory ducts, which being oonvertad by uiur union into longer and
laiger veasls, pour the bile ultimately through a double channel into
the pylorua. The nature at the whitiah fluid accreted by the two,
and, as it is said, in soma casee three, elongated blind tubular worm-
like oigana—the Gnt two tituatad on each aide of the pylorus and tha
third on the middle of the intestine a ahort way below then — ia not
known, nor is its use.
The two groan glandular organs placed on each aide of the ceso
phagui are supposed to aet in soma degi«e aa aDbstltutat for aalivaiy
Much has been written on the subject of the vMCular sralem of the
Oruitaeta. The following are the conclusiona to which HUne-Ed wards
and V. Audooln came, after a careful study, bb well of the anatomical
disposition of the circulating apparatus ot the Onulacta, as of the
progress of the blood through its interior : —
" The circulation of the blood in these animals is accomplished in s
manner very similar to what takes place in the MoUu*ca. The blood
puahed forward by the heart, is distributed to svray part of tha body,
from whence it is returned into Urge sinuses situated at no greal
distance from the base of the hnnctun; from theee sinuses it is sen'
on to the respiratory apparatus, which it trBverses, and from which i^
finds ite way to the heart, to recommenoe the tame circle anew. Thf>
heart is consequently aortic and single. The heart is always found
in the median line of the body, and lying over the alimentary cnnal,
near the dorsal aspect. Its form is various ; in the Decapods it is
nearly square, and lies in the middle and superior part of the thorax,
being separated from the carapace by tegumenteiy membranes only,
and may be seen in the spaoe included between the two vaulta of the
Banks. In structure it appears to be composed by the interlacement
of numerousmuscular fibres, fixed by their eitremitiea to neighlrauring
parte, and passing to some distance over the aggrwate at either end,
so that tha whole oigan brings to mind such a figure ae would be
formed by the luperposition of a number of stara Uie rays of which
do not correspond. In the other orders this general form of the heart
varies conaiderably, from the figure of an oblong square of rather
inconsiderable aiae, aa it occura in the Dteapoda, to that of a long
cylindrical vessel extending through the whole length of the body, as
it appears in the Slomap«da and the Edriophthalmians. In the
former of these it gives origin to six vascular trunks, three of whi^
issue from tha anterior edge, and three from the posterior sur&ce;
CRUSTACEA.
CRUSTACEA.
SH
etch of the tax openings ui doeed by a valynlar apparataa, which
prarants the ragnigitation of the blood.
** The fint of the thiee anterior yeasela is situated in the median
line, and b distributed to the eyes, in consequence of which we have
entitled it the ophthalmic arteiy. Lodged within the substance of
the general tegumentary membrane, it continues its course without
undergoing any subdivision along the median line through the whole
length of the thorax, until, arrived opposite the eyes, it subdivides
and terminates in two branches, which penetrate the ocular pedundes.
On the two sides are the two antennary arteries. They run obliquely
towards the aatennfiB, sending off numerous branches to the tegumen-
tary membrane, in which tney are at first lodged ; they then plunge
more deeply, sending branches to the stomach and its musdes^ and to
the oigans of generation, between which they insinuate themeeWes
by following Sie folds of the same membrane which parts them.
I^ly, each of these vessels subdivides into two branches, one of
which proceeds to the internal and the other to the external antenna.
" Two hepatic arteries arise from the fore part of the inferior sur-
face of the heart, and penetrate the liver, there to bo ramified ; but
they are only found double and distinct from one another so long as
the Uver is met with divided into two lobes, as it is in the crawfish
and lobster.
*' From the posterior part of the same surface of the heart there
proceeds a large trunk, which, from its importance, might be com-
pared with the aorta. This is unquestionably the vessel which many
oathon have spoken of as a great vena cava ; we have entitled it the
sternal artery. It bends forward, giving origin to two abdominal
arteries, dips into the sternal canal, distributing branches to the
different thoracic rings, as also to the fint five cephalic rings, which
it passes over in its course. Meeting with the oesophagus, it bifur-
cates, but still sends branches to the mandibles and the whole of the
anterior and inferior parts of the head.
"The bulb presented by the sternal artery at its origin, in the
Jfocnmro, is the part which Willis characterised as auricle of the
heart As ooncems the two abdominal arteries, which may be distin-
gmshed into superior and inferior, and which arise from ^e kind of
cross which it forms almost immediately after its exit^ they are in
precise relationship in point of size with the magnitude and import-
anoe dT the abdomen itself. In the Brachyura they are mere slender
twigs ; in the Moicmu/ra, on the contrary, they are capacious stems,
and the inferior of the two sends branches to tiie two posterior pain
of thoracic extremities.
" The disposition of the first three vessels is the same in the Stoma-
poda as in the preceding species ; but the great vessel which represents
the heart being extended through the whole length of the body, sup-
plies immediately other arteriaJ branches in pairs, and in number
equal to those of the rings.
'* The blood returns from the different parts of the body by canals,
or rather TBCuities, among Uie tissues (for they have no very evident
appropriate parietes), which terminate in the venous sinuses situated
dose to the branchiss.
*' In the short-tailed Ikeapoda we find no more than a double series
of these sinuses included within the cells of the planes above the
articulation of the extremities. They communicate with one another,
and they appear to have no parieties other than laminss of cellular
membrane, of extreme tenuity, which cover the neighbouring parts.
Euh of them, nevertheless, receives several venous conduits, and
gives origin at its superior and external part to a vessel, which, tra-
Tcrsing the walls of the planes at the base of the branchiae, conducts
the blood to the latter organs. This is the external or afferent vessel
of the branchiss.
"We find the same lateral venous sinuses in the if acrottra; but
instead of communicating with one another athwart the thoradc
septa, as is the case in the Bf*adiyura, they all empty themselves into
a great median vessel, which is itself a venous sinus, and occupies the
sternal canal. In the SquiUa this sinus is almost the only vessel which
•errcs as a reservoir to the venous blood.
" The blood, after being arterialised in its passage through the
capillaries of the branchise, is poured into the efferent vessel which
nms along the internal surface of each branchia. It enters the thora-
cic cells in the same manner as the afferent vessel passed out firom
them, bends upwardly under the vault of the flanks, and thus takes
its course towards the heart. It is to this portion of the canal that
we have given the name of branchiocardiao vessel"
The anatomical accuracy of the above description is generally
admitted ; but the physiological deductions of M. Lund differ from
those of Messrs. Audouin and Milne-Edwards. He regards the heart
as destined to propel, not only the pure blood from the gills, but also
an admixture of venous blood which enten the cavity of the heart by
four orifices, seated on its dorso-lateral aspects, and distinct fipom
those in which the brandual veins terminate. The French anatomists
have objected that these orifices described by Lund are dosed by a
membrane ; but we find them plainly shown, and provided with the
valvular apparatus for preventing a reflux of the blood, in a prepara-
tion (No. 898 a.) added by Mr. Owen to the Hunterian Series illus-
trating the same subject in the Museum of the College of Surgeons.
John Hunter had long sgo arrived at the same conclusions as to the
mixed condition of the blood which is sent from the heart, and in a
KAT. HIST. Dty. VOt, II.
series of elaborate researches on the circulation in the Onutaeea
and Insects, fint discovered the difiiised state of the venous blood in
extensive and irregular venous sinuses; the general disposition of
which, in the lobster, is well displaved in the four beautify plates
(15, 16, 17, and 18) illustrative of John Hunter^s account of the circu-
lating system of the lobster, in the * Catalogue of the ^ysiological
Collection,' voL ii
With regard to the circulation in the Amphipod^t, Mr. Spence Bate
has pointed out to us that there appear to be no vessels, and that the
fluid circulates between the muscular structure.
The vascular system just described is regarded by most authon as
a true sanguiferous system, but Professor Agassis has stated his rea-
sons for believing that the fluid which circulates is not blood but
chyle, and that this system must be regarded as chyliferous. (' Ann.
Nat. HisV 1851.)
The respiration of the Crutlcieea is carried on generally by means
of branchise. We say generally, because there are some forms where
no special organs have been detected, and where it is presumed that
oxvgen is obtained from the water through the medium of the exter-
nal tegument. But where, as in the great mass of these animals,
brancQal respiration is present, the variety in form and disposition of
the apparatus, and in some cases the complexity of it» are very great
Thus, in the Branchiopoda the lamellar form of all the thoracic extre-
mities and the two external appendages corresponding to the palp
and flabeUum present membranous vesicles, flat in shape, highly vas-
cular and soft, whose office is to facilitate ^e action ox the air upon
the blood. In the Amphipoda and Lctmodipoda we begin to perceive
a gradual departure fix>m this type. In the LoBmodipoda the vesicu-
lar bodies produced by the flabeUiform appendage of a certain number
of pain of the thoradc extromities, only peiform the functions of
branchiee ; and in the laopoda the locomotive extromities cease to act
as respiratoiy organs, the firat five pain of abdominal extromities
being exclusively devoted to those duties. The Stamapoda, which in
some cases aro without determinate respiratory organs, in othen pre-
sent an oiganisation analogous to that of the Decapodous embiyo, and
again in Uie SquUlce and Thytanopoda exhibit a highly-complicated
s&ucturo of branchiie, which, though superior even to the highest
^pe in complexity, still fall short of the perfection manifested in
that type, inasmuch as the branchise float in the water unprotected
by any envelope.
M. Milne-Edwards thus roviews the respiratory apparatus in its
state of greatest complexity, commencing with it in the embryo, and
following it in its progressive development. It should however be
recollected that the larvse of Attacut /luvicUilu undergo no metamor-
phosis, and can hardly be regurled as typical of the QrvMUteea : —
" In the earliest periods of embryotic life of the common Ariaeui
JluviaiUiB we discover no trace of branchise ; but at a somewhat moro
advanced stage of the incubation, though still beforo the formation of
the heart, these oigans begin to appear. They aro at first small lamd-
lar appendices of extreme simpUdty, attached above the three pain
of mudllaxy extremities, and roprosanting the flabelliform portions of
these limba Soon these lamellar appendages dongate and divide into
two halves, one internal, lamellar, and triangular, the other external,
small, and cylindrical; lastly, upon the surface of this, strise aro
observed to appear, whidi aro the rudiments of the branchial fila-
ments. During this interval the thoracic extromities have beoomtf'
devdoped, and above their bases other branchise have made their
appearance, presenting in the beginning the form of tuberdes, and
subsequentiy that of stilete, smooth and rounded on their surface,
but by-and-by becoming covered with a multitude of small tubercula-
tions, which, by Uieir dongation, aro gradually converted into branchial
filaments similar to the preceding. During this period of the de-
velopment of the branchise, these organs aro applied, like the extremi-
ties, to the inferior surface of the embryo ; but they subsequoitly
rise against the lateral parts of the thorax, become lodged within a
cavity situated under the carapace, and thus aro no longer visible
externally.
" The cavity destined to protect in this manner the brandiial appa-
ratus is ndther moro nor less than an internal fold of the common
tegumentary membrane. It shows itself first under the guise of a
narrow groove or furrow, which rons along the lateral psjrts of the
thorax, below the edge of the lateral piece of the carapace. This lon-
gitudinal furrow is not long of expanding, and becomes consolidated
by its superior edge with the internal surface of the carapace, which,
by being prolonged inferiprly, constitutes the external wall of a cavity,
the opening of which, situated above the base of the extremities,
becomes more and moro contracted, and ends bv being almost entirdy
dosed. The space in this way ciroumscribed mcloses the branchise,
and constituteB what is called the respiratory cavity of the Decapod
Crustaceans.
*' From what has just been said, it would appear that the embryo
of AttacuB Jluviatilit presents four principal periods with reference
to the state of the rospiratory apparatus : 1, that which precedes the
appearance of this apparatus ; 2, that during which the branchise aro
not distinguishable from the flabelliform appendages of the extromi-
ties, or in which it consists of simple lamelhu: or stiliform processes,
which appear as mero processes of other oigans especially dedicated to
locomotion or mastication ; 8, that characterised by the transformation
Q
227
CRUSTACEA.
CRUSTACEA.
of these extremely simple appendages into oi^gana of a complex
structure, entirely distinct from the extremities, but still entirely
external ; 4, and lastly, that during which the branchiss sink inwards,
and become lodged in a cavity especially adapted for their reception,
and provided with a particular apparatus destined to renew the water
necessary to the maintenance of respiration.
'* If we now turn to the examination of the apparatus of respiration
in the different groups in which it exhibits important modifications,
we shall, in the series of Crustaceans, encounter permanent states
analogous to the various phases through which we have just seen the
apparatus passing in the most elevated animals of the class. And in
fact the first period which we have particularised above in the
embryonic life of the Decapod is exhibited in the permanent condition
of some inferior Crustaceans, in which not only are there no special
oigans for respiration, but in which none of the appendices occur
with such modifications of structure as would fit them to become sub-
stitutes for the branchiae, in which, consequently, the process of
respiration, that is, the aeration of ike blood, appears to take place
over the surface of the body Mb large. The greater number of the
GEaustellate Onuicteea, of the JSntomottraca properly so called, of the
Copepodiif and even of the PhyllotonuUa, appear to belong to this
type of oigamsation."
The branchial character is so inherent in this class, that it is pre-
served even in certain species that live on the land. The Land-Crab
(CfecareiMu), for example, would die if long immersed in water ; but
this, as W€ul as other land Crustaceans, requires a certain degree of
moisture to enable the branchiee to act, and accordingly they never
remove far from damp situations.
Much light has been recently thrown on the anatomy of the nervous
system and senses in the Onutacect,
The principles derived from the study of the gradual evolution of
the nervous system in the common Crawfish are— 1. The isolated
formation of the nervous centres, independently of one another. The
ulterior junction of the organs comrtdtutes the law of centripetal
development of M. Serretf. 2. A tendency to conjunction by a motion
transversely. 8. A second motion in the line of the axis of the body,
producing a final concentration of a greater or lees number of nervous
centres, originally independent of each other.
The first of these conditions is well seen in TalUrui, On each side
of the mesial line in this genus is a chain of ganglions, cox^oined by
nervous centres of simple construction, flattened, and somewhat
losenge-like in their outline. Thirteen pairs of these correspond to
the thirteen segments of the body, the two nuclei of each pair com-
municating together in the same way that each pair is connected with
its antecedent and succeeding pair, by means of medullary cords in
the first case, and longitudinfd cords in the second. Each of these
pairs in all essentials is a counterpart of the other, the cephalic gang-
lion, which sends branches to the antennse and eyes, not excepted.
In PhyllowfMk the tendency to centralisation is more obvious, and in
Oymothoi the union of the medullaiy nuclei is accomplished, the
approximated chains forming a single longitudinal series from head
to tail.
In the tvpes, as might be expected, the centralising system is per-
fected by the actual cox^unction of the nuclei. This subject has been
fully treated by Rathke, Audouin, Milne-Edwards, and Newport
Hr. Newport's excellent and instructive paper ' On ^e Nervous Sys-
tem of the Sphinx liguttri of IdnnflBus ' (' FhiL Trans.' part iL, 1884),
including beautiful illstrations of the nervous system of the Lobster,
and showing its identity in principle with that of the Sphinx, may be
consulted with advantage.
The conclusion formed by M. Milne-Edwards in his 'Histoire' is,
that "the nervous system of the Onutaeea consiBts uniformly of
medullary nuclei (ganglions), the normal number of which is the
same as that of the members or rings of the body, and that all the
modifications encountered, whether at difforent periods of the incuba-
tion or in different species of the series, depend especially on the
approximation, more or less complete, of these nuclei (an approxima-
tion which takes place from the sides towards the median line, as well
as in the longitudinal direction), and to an arrest of development
occurring in a variable number of the nudeL"
Mr. Newport appears to have been the first who pointed out the
double ganglionic chain in the Lobster, as being composed of two
orders of fi1»es, forming distinct and superposed fasciculi or columns,
designated by him columns of sensation and of motion.
The highest d^ree of nervous centralisation is found in Maia,
according to M. Milne-Edwards, who lays down the following princi-
ples, the result of the experiments made by himself and M. Audouin,
and his deep and elaborate investigation of the subject : —
" 1. The nervous system is the system which entirely presides over
the sensations and motions.
** 2. The nervous cords are merely the organs of transmission of the
pensations and of volition, and it is in the ganglions that the power
of perceiving the former and of producing the latter resides. Every
orgnn separated from its nervous centre speedily loses all motion and
Eensation.
" 8. The whole of the ganglions have analogous properties ; the
faculty of determining motions and receiving sensations exists in each
of these oigans ; and the action of each is by so much the more inde-
pendent as its development is more isolated. When the ganglionic
chain is nearly uniform through its whole length, it may be divided
without the action of the apparatus being destroyed in either portion
thus isolated, — always understood, that botii are of considerable size,
because, when a very small portion only is isolated from the reet of
the system, this appears too weak, as it were, to continue its func-
tions, so that sensibiiitv and contractility are al^e speedily lost. But
where one portion of the ganglionic cham has attained a development
very superior to that of the rest, its action becomes essential to the
integrity of the functions of the whole.
" It must not be imagined, however, from this that sensibility and
the faculty of exciting muscular contractions are ever completely
concentrated in the cephalic ganglions, and it seems to us calculated
to convey a very inaccurate idea of the nature and functions of these
ganglions to sp^stk of them under the name of brain, as the generality
of writers have been led to do, seduced by certain inconclusive analo-
gies in point of form and position.
" It is nevertheless to be remarked, that in these animals an obscure
tendency to the centralisation of the nervous functions is observable
in the anterior portion of the ganglionic chain ; because i^ in the
lobster, for instance, it be divided into two portions, as nearly equal
as possible, b^ severing the cords of conmiumcation betvreen the gan-
glions belongmg to the first and seoond thoradc rings, sensibility, and
especially mobuity, are much more quickly lost in the posterior than
in the anterior half, and this disproportion is by so much the more
manifest as the division is performed more posteriorly ; still there la
a great interval between this first indication and the concentration of
the faculties of perception and of will in a single organ — the brain —
of which every other portion of the nervous systems then becomes a
mere dependency." (' Cycle, of Anat. and Phys.')
The sense of sight is possessed by the whole of the claas at some
period of their fives, and in the gjraat majority the organ is of a
highly complicated structure. The parasitic Onulaeea, which
undergo a land of metamorphosis, possess eyes in the early stage of
their existence, though they are subsequently obliterated ; but the
great mass of Crustaceans are gifted with the power of distinguishing
objects through the medium of light from their birth to their death.
The different forms presented by the visual apparatus are as
follows : —
Smooth or Simple Eyes. — These consist of a smooth rounded
transparent cornea, being a modification of the tegumentaiy mem*
brane, immediately behmd which and in contact with it is the
crystalline lens, generally spherical, and behind this last and in con-
tact with it is a mass of gelatine, which performs the function of the
vitreous humour, and touches the extremitv of the optic nerve. A
thick deep-coloured pigment envelops the whole, and lines the inner
surface of the eye-globe up to the point at which the transparency of
the cornea b^^ns. Limvliu (Molucca Crab, Eing-Crab) affords an
example of this kind of eye. The simple eyes have never been found
to exceed two or three In number.
Intermediate Eyes. — NAaUOf Branchipui, and JOaphnia present us
with the first modification of a visual structure, intermediate as it
were between the simple and the compound eyes. In this organisa-
tion the cornea is stiU undivided externally, but a number of small
crystallxne lenses and vitreous humours, each in its separate pigmen-
tiuy sac and terminating in immediate contact with the optic nerve,
presents an eye consisting of a ooz^unotion of several stemmata or
simple eyes under a common cornea — Apui [Bihoottlub], besides its
pair of simple eyes, has also a posterior compound pair. The second
modification, which is to be found in the Edriophthalmians (Ampki-
thoi, for instance), brings us still nearer to the Ixxdy compound form
with distinct facets. Two transparent laminse form the*ooniea in
these Crustaceans : the external is smooth and undivided, the internal
divided into a variable number of hexagonal facets, each wiUi a
distinct cornea, which are superposed upon the conioal crystalline lens,
which is an ingredient in compound eyes properly so ceJled.
Compound Eyes. — The external and internal membranes, the junc-
tion of which forms the cornea, present simultaneously the division
into facets, each of which forms anteriorly an ocular compartment.
Unlike the facets in the eyes of insects, which are always hexagonal,
these present various figures in different Crustacea, In ScyllanUt
Oalaihea, the common Crawfish, fta, for example, they are square : in
Pagurttt, SquUla, the Crabs, &o., they are hexagons. The crystalline
humour that succeeds them immediately, is, according to M. Milne-
Edwards, " of a conical form, and is followed by a vitreous humour
having the appearance of a gelatinous filament, adhering by its base to
the optic nerve." Each of the columns thus formed is moreover
lodged within a pigmentary cell, which likewise coven the bulb of
the optic nerve. " But the most remarkable circumstance is, that the
large cavity, within which the whole of these parallel columns, every
one of which is in itself a perfect eye, are contained, is closed poste-
riorly by a membrane, which appears to be neither more nor lees than
the middle tegumentary membrane pierced for the passage of the
optic nerve, so that the ocular chamber at large results from the sepa-
ration at a point of the two external layen of the general envelope."
....'' The most remarkable modification of fooetted eyes con-
sists in the presence of a kind of supplementary lens, of a circular
shape, and set within the cornea in front of each proper crystalline
229
CBUSTACEA.
CRUSTACEA.
230
lens. These small lentioiilar bodies exist independently^ and are
p^fectly distinct from the small corneal facets. In some cases they
might be mistaken (in the Idotea, for example, where they may be
peroeiTed singly, and with their distinct circiUar forms), and the
incautious obseryer led to conclude that the corneal facets are merely
these lentieulAr bodies so much enhuged that their hexagonal or
equare forms result from their agglomeration in a point ; but there
are Qnutaeea, such as the Ca^iofUMtcr, in which these two elements
of the external ooniea may be perfectly distinguished, the lenticular
body being of insignificant dimensions, sad occupying the centre of
the ootneai &cet only. In general however the diameter of the lenti*
cular body is equal to that of the oomeaJ facet itself, so that l^eir
edges blend. Further, the lenticular bodies are most commonly
erolTsd in the substance of the comes ; but there are oases in which,
under fsTourable drcumstances, they may be detached from it
Although the existence of these different modifications must not be
oonsidcared as being exdusiye, inasmuch as there are certain Onuitacea
^hich exhibit more than one of them at the same time, for instance,
Btemmata and compound eyes, the latter only are the species of visual
ozgao encountered in the great minority of cases. Their general
number is two ; but these are occasionally united, so as to form a
single mass, and make the animal appear at first sight as if it had but
a single eye. This peculiarity of organisation can even be followed in
the /}aphnia [Bbakohiopoda], in the embxro of which the eyes are
first seen isolated ; with the progreas of the development however
they are observed gndually to approach each other, and fixially to
become united. Stemmata are always immoveable and sessile ; the
compound eyes with smooth oomen however, although in the m^ority
of cases they present the same disposition, now snd then occur move-
able : sometimes they are supported by a pedicle, moveable in like
manner and provided with special muscles. The eyes with facets
present the nme modifications, and even supply important ohacaeters
in das^ying these animals : thus in the Bdi%ophihtUmia the eyes are
always immoveable and sessile, whilst in the Deeapoda and Stoma-
poda they are supported upon moveable stems of very various
lengths, sAd which every consideration leads us to view as limbs or
appendages of the first cephalic ring. It sometimes even happens that
in these animals* between the outer edge of the carapace and the base
of the antemue, there occurs a furrow or cavity, within which the eyes
may be withdrawn or Isid flat, so as to be out of the way of injury ;
this groove or cavity is generally spoken of under the name of the
orbit." (' Cyd. of Anat and Phys.')
Absence of Eyes. — ^Mr. Westwood has recently made known through
the Iiinnnan Sodetv a form of JBdriopMhaltnia inhabiting a deep well,
a spedes in which there is no external appearance of eyes whatever.
Hr. Newport has however, with his accustomed accuracy in dissection,
pointed out that even in this case a rudimentaiy visual oigan exists
underneath the cephalic crust
In some of the rorms {M<Ua, for instance) there is a fringe of hairs
on the inner side of the orbit, so placed as to perform the office of a
brush in wiping the eye when brouffht into contact with it
With regard to hearing, a cavitv full of fltdd, supplied with a nerve
fitted for uie perception of impulses of sound, forms the basiB of the
auditory system in the Onuiacea, This apparatus appears to be
aausted by certain oigans, elastic membranes, and rigid stems, for
7nff*'*?««^ organised so as to vibrate under the action of sonorous
undulations, or to assist sudi vibrations. The long rigid stem formed
by the antenna of the second pair is said to asttst in this function,
and, according to the highly interesting experiments of BL Savart, the
addition of such a rigid stem renders certain vibrations appreciable ;
but in some instances no such stem exists. In many of the forms
{Maia, for instance) there is an ossictdum auditus.
In the Museum of the College of Suigeona (Ghdleiy, No. 1559 A) is
a Hermit Crab (Pagurua MiUb, Oliv.), prepared by Mr. Owen to show
the organ of hearing, which ia compost of a simple vestibular cavity
situated at the under part of the basal joint of the external antenna.
The cavity is surrounded by a dense crustaoeous substance, except at
the internal opening, where the auditoxy filament of the antennal
nerve penetrates it, and at the opposite side, where an elliptical open-
ing or fenestra is left, which is closed by the acoustic membrane : the
membranes of sound affect this membrane, and are transmitted to the
nerve, which is exposed on ihe left side. (Owen, * Cat of Physiolog.,'
series, voL in. part 1.)
Every lobster-pot Uiat is baited on our coasts aflbrds evidence that
the Crustaceans are endued with the sense of smelling, but where the
organ is seated is doubtfiiL H. de Blsinville placed it in the antenna,
where it certainly does not reside, according to H. MUne-Edwards,
who further states that the opinion of H. Itosenthal, who ascribes
thft function to a cavity which he discovered at the base of the first
pair of antenna, requires to be supported by direct experiment
Though the Ontiacea have no true tongue, their selection of food
and the preference exerdsed by Uiem, show that they are gifted with
the sense of taste or a sense analogous to it The seat of the faculty
is most probably that portion of the tegumentary membrane that
hnes the inside of the mouth and OBSophagus.
The more or less calcareous crust wi& which the Oruttacea ere
covered forms a medium not calculated to convey external impresdons
of any delicacy. " Nevertheleaa," says M. Milne-Edwards, "in front
a, right external anteima of
Thelphuaa Jltinatilu ; (, left an-
tenna of the same. Desmarest
of the head there are certain special oigans which all the observations
I have had an opportunity of making upon the oiganisation of these
animals lead me to regard as parts more particularly destined to be
the seat of the sense of touch. These oigans are the antenna — those
slender filaments possessed of a great degree of flexibility, of motility,
and of sensibility. M. de Blsinville was led to regard these oigans as
the;Mat of the sense of smell ; but
direct and condudve experiment
has satisfied us that the destruc-
tion of the antenna has no influence
whatever on the exercise of the
sense of smell : and we are on the
same grounds induced to believe
them destined to the exerdse of
the sense of touch ol oondderable
delicacy, unless we would imagine
them as the instruments of some
quite peculiar sense, the existence
of which would be purely hypothe-
tical. The number and dispodtlon
of these organs vary extremely.
Some of the Crustaceans at the
very bottom of the series are
wholly without antenna, or are
furnished with them in a merdy
rudimentary state. Some spedes
have no more than a single pair;
the normal number however is
two pairs. In speaking of the
tegumentary skdeton we have said to which of the rings these
appendages bdong; we shall only say further here that they may
be inserted on the superior or inferior surface of the head according
to the respective development of the different pieces of which this
segment is composed. They do not differ less widely in their form
and compodtion, and under this double point of view present modi-
fications analogous to those which we have specified as occurring in
the extremities."
As a rule the sexual oigans are separate in the Cnutacea, that is,
they never co-exist in the same individual, and the reproduction is
oviparous. Milne-Edwards has however described a crab in whidi
the oigans were male on one dde and female on the other. Mr.
Spence Bate also informs us that he has in his possession a
specimen of OoryHei in which all the characteristics are female but
with male oigans. The celebrated hermaphrodite lobster also (* Phil.
Trans.,' 1780, p. 290) presented a different sexual oigan on each dde,
and both the mde and female portion were complete. In the more
perfect Crtutaeea the analogy between the male and femde organs is
so great as frequently to deceive the observer at first sight
m the male oigans of the Common Crab tiie testis is grape-like,
the duster consisting of four prindpal lobes formed of numerous
woim-like delicate cuials convoluted into pellets. The first portion
is placed in the front of the thorax, and terminated in a laige coiled-up
vessd dtuated on the dde of the stomach ; behind, and connected
with it, is the deferent vessel, a convoluted canal of some size and
of a milky colour. It is twisted about the thorax, and at last pene-
trates the cell of the last pair of limbs, opening outwardly on the
basilar piece, and again passes into the styliform organs, which are
true intromittent oigans. The intercourse of the sexes only takes
place during the time that the female is moulting.
" The female reproductive apparatus of the (^ruttacea," says Milne-
Edwards, "in the highest state of complication consists of an ovary, an
oviduct, and copulatory pouchesi The ovaries in the Deeapoda brachy'
ura resemble four qylindricd tubes placed longitudinally in the thorax,
and divided into two symmetrical pairs, each opening into a distinct
oviduct, yet communicating with one another by a transverse csjial,
and by the intimate union of the two posterior tubes in a portion of
their length. The oviducts as well as the ovaries are of a whitish colour ;
they are shorty and become united in their course to a kind of sac, the
neck of which extends to the exterior of the animd's body ; there is
one of these on each side, and they are known by the name of the copu-
latory poudies. It is into these reservoirs that the mde pours the
spermatosoa, which are dmple round cells, and are applied to the
ova as they pass in succesdon dong and out of the oviducts. These,
after a course which is never long, terminate at the vuIvsb — openings
formed in the stemd pieces of the segment which supports the thiM
pair of ambulatoiy extremities,
"The Anomowra and Macroura have no copulatoiy pouches, and
their vulva are dtxutted on the basilar joint of the ambulatory
extremities of the third pair. The mode in which fecundation is
accomplished in these genera is consequently much leas apparent than
in the Brachuura, Many writers are of opinion that this operation
takes place in the interior of the ovaries, a process that appears by no
means feadble on account of the inequality of development of the
ova, which is such that the last of them are not in being even long
after the first have been expelled.
"The femde Crustacean does not abandon her eggs after their
extrudon. Those of the Decapods preserve them under their abdo-
men by means of the abdomiud extreiuitied modified in their
131 CRUSTACEA.
■truotura, TheSdriapUkalmia, again, ksop thfau no^br tbair thoiax b;
meuu of the flabtllifonn apptnidagea of ths eitr«miti«a belonging to
the region ; whilst the inTerior ggneni, Buch u the EntonuiartKa, Ac,
hava inipended to the external oriGcea either horn; tubes or a pair
of membTBDOiu laaa which oontain and teaniport them troai place '
plaoe. Theie vaiietiea in the aooeaaorr orgau of geneniion are
many case* aaffleieDt to diiitiuKuiah the aexn ; thuM, among i
Dieapoda (rotAjwa, the fam^w are known at a gluce b; Uudr
wider abdomen, which a aometimes of auch dimennona aa to •
the whole alemum."
The following cute wiU oonTsy some idea of the reUtire poaition of
the parti in the carapace.
B, a, s, o, 1
ImnehlB ; /,/, mu.
At one time it waa auppoied that the young of ths Cnulacta
underwent no change after being hatched from the ova, and this waa
formerly given aa a diatinotion between the loaect* and OwdKco. We
now know however that those anomaloua forma of unimrJ life known by
the name of Zeta, and referred t^ Boao and othera to the Entomostra-
coua OuitacM, are truly the young of t!ie higher forms of Ortulaaa
undergoing metaraorphosiH. jEwiioHlOPODi.] The faots of this pro-
eeoa were first made out by Mr. V. Thompson in the year 1828, and
anbteqnently the instances in which it has been obaerred are ao
numerous that there can be no doubt that mstamorplio«s takes place
in all the Uarina Deoapodcus Cnutaeta. In the Tarious forms of
Maenmra, the metamorphosis is less decided than in the £racA]/ura ;
and in the Fresh-Water Ciay-Fish {AHaeiti JtuvialUit) no change takes
KceatalL Thegehave lodsomaobeervers to doubt the correctnees of
. Thompson's conclusions. One of the last and most importuit series
of investigations conducted on thia subject was by Mr. H. Q. Couch,
at Pensance, Cornwall, who, diBsatisfied with the uncertainty and
contiadiction of former testimony, resulved tu inVHtigsto the matter
for himself. He observed the metamorphoiis to occur in the following
genet* :— Cancer, Zantho, Pilunimu, Cardnyu, PorimHu, Main,
OalaOea, Samaiiu, and Paimunu. The details of Mr, Couch's
observationi were published in the 'Proceedings of tjie Cornwall
FobtMihnia Society' for 1B4S.
nofesBOT Bell says, " Eliminating, therefbre, thii exceptional cue
(tint of AiHum fiuviatilii), it will be found that the fact of a. meta-
morphoma has been demonstrated with mo™ or less suooau in no less
than seventeen genera of the Bracbyurous order ot the Duapada, in
CBUSTACEA. tss
which order the phenomenon ia most decdded and obvions, belonging
to the families i^^odiada, Maiada, Caiueridtx, Portuntda-, Pmnc-
Aeiidce, On^Ma, Qteardnidix. In the Anomourous order it has been
shown in the genera Paguna, PuTceUarm. and Gaiathta, and amongst
the Maenura in Homartu, Patinarat, PaUmum, and Crangvik."
The following is Ur. Couch's account of the cbangrs which take plaoe
in the Common Shore-Crab (Cornnui nHeTU)). Having procured aome
q)ecimena of the Crab laden with ripe oya, he says—" These were
transferred to nq>tiTity, placed in separate basins, and supplied with
sea-water, and in about sixteen hours I hod the gratification of finding
large numbeia of the cresturea alluded to above swimming about with
all the activity of young life. There could be but little doubt that
these creatures were tho young of the captive craba. In order how-
ever to secure accuracy ot result, one of the crabs was removed to
another vestiel and supplied with filtered vlei, that all insects might
be removed ; but in about an hour the aame creatures were observed
swimming about aa before. To render the matter if possible still
more certain, some of the ova were opened, and the embryos extracted.
but shortly afterwarda I had the pleasure of witnessing beneath tht
microsoope the natunl bunting and escape of one precisely nmilar in
'" ~m to uioae found so abundantly in th '" "^ — ■^'--- ■>
doubt tliat these groteoqufr-looking or
then there is
are the young of the
Careintu tnaaat; but how different they are from the adult need
hardly be pointed out. When tliey Arrt escape th^ rarely e*oeed
half a line in length. Ths body is ovoid, the dorsal idueld large and
inflated; on its upper edge and about the middle is a loog epine,
curved posteriory, and rauier longer than the diameter of ttw body,
though it varies in length in different specimens; it is hollow, and
the Mood may be seen circulating through it The upper portion of
the body is sap-green and the lower samitransparent. The eyes an
laige, sessile, and situated in ^nt, and the urcumferance of the
pupil marked with radiating linee. The lower margin of the shield
IB waved, and at its posterior and lateral margin is a pair of natatoir
feet The tail is extended longer than the diameter of the shield
and is composed of five equal annulations besddea the terminal one j
ita extremity is forked, and the external angles long, slender, pointed,
and attached to ths last annulation by joints. Between the external
angles, and on each side of ths median line, are three lesser spine^
also attached to the last ring by joints. Between the eyes and from
near the edge of the shield hangs a long stout and somewhat oom-
prsssed appendage, whioh as the animal moves is reflexed posteriorly
betwssn the claw*. Under eadi eye there ie also another appeodags,
shorter, andilightlj mora compressed. The claws arain three pairs;
each is composed of three jointe, and terminates in four long slender
hair-like appendages. These claws an generally bent on the body,
but stand m relief &om it. If the animal be viewed in fomt the
lower margin of the dotnl shield will be foond to be waved into
three semiciroular festoons, the two external of which sn occupied
by the eyes, and between whioh the middle one intervenes ; the
general direction of the claws will be seen to be at right snglss to die
body. As the young lies indoaed wiUiin the membnines of the egg,
the daws are folded on each other, and the tail ie flexed on t^em so
fv as the margin of the shield ; and if long enough is reflected over
the front of the shield between the eyea. The dorsal spine is bent
backwards, and lies in contact with the donial shield ; for the youn^
when it escapes from the egg, is quite soft, but it rapidly hardens and
Bolidifles by the deposition of calcareous matter in what may be called
ita skin. 'The progress of this solidification may be very beautifully
observed by watching the circulation is the dorsal spine. When the
Qceatore has just effeeted its liberation from the egg, ths blood globules
may be seen ascending to the apex, but as the consolidation advances
the droulation becomss more and more limited in ita extent, and is
finally confined to the base. These minute cmturea, in this early
state of their existence, are natatory and wonderfully active. They
are continually ■dimming from one part of the vesnl to -the other,
and when observed free m their native pools, if possible even more
than when in conflaemenb Their swimming is produced by
IS and extensions of the tail, and by repeated beating moticua
of their claws; this, together with their gretesque-looking forms, gives
a most extrac
appearance
when under ei
shell becomes more solid they get less active, and return to the
sand at the bottom of the vessel to cast their shells, and acquire a
form. They are exceedingly delicato, and require greet care and
lUon t« convey them through the first stsge, for unless the watei-
be supplied very frequenUy and in great abundance they soon die.
Ths second form of bansmutation is equally as remarkable as the
Grsl, and quite as distinct from the adult anioiat. In the spedes now
under consideration this second transformation is marked by ths dis-
appearance of the dorsal spine ; the shield becomes Qatter and more
depreeaed: the anterior portion more horiiontal and pointed, the
three festoons having dimppeared. The eyes, from being sessile, are
now t-levat«d on foot-stalks; the in&a-orbitsl appendages beoome
apparently converted into antennK, The claws undsigo an entire
"— 'olution; the first pair beoome stouter than the others and a
m
ORUSTACEA.
CRUSTACEA.
M
bat ii more oommonly extended. Thia form ie as iiAtatoty as the
first. They are frequently found congregating around floating sea-
weed, the buoys and strings of the crab-pot marks, and other floating
sabstanoes, both near the shore and in deep water. Their genenu
fonn somewhat resembles a Galatketk."
Subsequently to this second change a third takes place, in which
ihe animal loses its tail, and becomes more like to the form it assumes
in adult age. In the various species different forms are aaramed, but
they can ul be referred to departures fh»m the typical form of the
bsmlj. On this point the following observations of Mr. Couch are
very interesting : —
'*So &r as my observation has extended, it appears probable that
tile metamorphoBis of the young in their progress to adult growth is
not universal in all Crustaceans ; but^ on the contrary, that the fSunilies
in which the eyes are always sessile in their adult growth, and which
do not exuviate or voluntarily throw off tb»ir limbs, are in the habit
of producing their young perfectly fonned : and an opportunity that
has occurred to me of obeerring the process of early development in
the common lobster will tend to establish the existence of a law of
nature as applicable not only to it, but probably also to all the genera
of this extensive family or class, that is, the Long-Tailed Onutacea ;
which law is, that the greatest extent of metamorphosis is in those
genera which are of the highest rank in the series, that is, the Short-
Tailed, or Crabs, that even at their birth the Long-Tailed genera, as
the Lobster, approach more closely to the ultimate sice of the parent ;
and, what is still more extraordizmiy than all beside, that so long as
the lobster in particular retains the eyes sessile, the progress of
development and growth is'conformed to what is the perpetual mode
of growth of the permanently sessile-eyed races ; and it is only when
the crust baa become fully extended and hardened, and thus the
exuviation is rendered necessary, that the eyes become elevated on
footstalks^ and the adult form and habit are completely established."
With regard to the arrangement of the Otwtooea, almost every
writer on this class of animals has embodied his own views in their
classification. Among the principal soologiats who have written on
^he subject^ the names of Cuvier, Desmarest, Latreille, and Leach will,
with many others, occur to the observer. We select the arrangement
of M. Milne-EdwardS) because it is founded on anatomical mvesti-
gation, and on actual experiment made in a great many instances by
himself and H. Audouin. He makes .the Chiitocea to consist of two
great diviaiona
1st. Those which have the mouth funushed with a certain
number of organs destined in an espedal manner to the prehension
or division of the food.
2nd. Thoee which have the mouth unfurnished with special pre-
benaile or masticatory oxgans, but surrounded by ambulatory extre-
mities, the bases of which perform the part of jaws. We shall take
this second division first, because it contains but one order, namely,
the XypAoMira. Example, lAminJiM*,
But it is to the first division that the great mass of the Crustaceans
belong, and these are subdivided into two great groups.
Ist The MaxUloeaj or Mandibtdaia, which poesess a mouth armed
with jaws, ftc.
2nd. The Sd€niata, or HoMtieUata, whose mouth is prolonged in
the shape of a sucker.
L Uaullosa.
The Maxilloia are separated into four great sections : —
1. Podophthalmia.
These almost always possess true branchiae ; pedunculated and move-
able eyes; feet or ex^mities vergiform, partly prehensile, partly
ambulatory ; and a thorax covered by a carapace.
The Podophthalmia contain two orders, the Ikcapoda and Stomapoda,
1. The Peeapoda, whose branchiso are fixed to the sides of the
thorax, and are inclosed in special respiratory cavities. The oral
apparatus is composed of six pairs of members. There are five pairs
of thoracic extremities, which are generally ambulatoiy. The
Ikcapoda are divided into Ist^ the Brachywra (Cancer, Portunuif
Grapsus, Podophihalmis, Thdphuta, Gecarcimu, Ocypode, Pinnotherea,
Maia, Leucoiia, Dorippt, ftc.) ; 2nd, the Arunnoura (Dromia, JSantna,
PaffuruM, Hippo, JRemipa, Birgt$9, &c.) ; 8rd, the Macroura {Aitactu,
Scyllanu, Patcemonf Palinwui, Penautf &c.).
2. StomapodOf whose branchiff) are external ; sometimes rudimentary,
or none. Oral apparatus composed in general of three pairs of mem-
bers. Thoracic extremities prehensile, or for swimming ; generally
six or eight pairs. {Myn$, PhyUotomOf SquHlOy Thytanopodeif Alima,
Cynthia, ftc).
2. Edriophthalmia,
True branchiae none, but replaced by certain portions of the extre-
mities modified for tiiis in their structure; eyes sessile; thoracic
extremities ambulatory, almost always consisting of seven pairs ; no
carapace. The BdriophthtUmia contain three orders, namely, the
Amphipoda, the Lamodipoda, and the Itopoda,
1. JflipAtpocta.—- These have the flabella of the thoracic extremities
vesicular, and subserving respiration. The abdomen is very much
developed, subserving locomotion, and is furnished with six pairs of
limbs, the first three of which differ in form and use from the last
three. {Qammamm, TaUUu, ffyperia, Phronima, &c )
2. Lctmodipoda, — ^Abdomen rudimentary. Flabella of the thoracic
extremities vesicular, and subserving respiration. {Proio, Caprdla,
Cyanui, ftc.)
S. liopoda. — ^Abdominal extremities weU developed ; the first five
pairs lamellar, and subserving respiration. Abdomen well developed.
{Jdotea, Spheroma, CyfMthoa, lonct, Bopyrut, &a)
8. Branchiopoda,
No true branohie, but thoracic extremities lamellar, membranous,
and so formed as to be subservient to respiration. The PrancKiopoda
contain two orders, PhyUopoda and Cladocera,
1. PhyUopoda.'^^o bivalve sheU-like covering. Extremities nata-
tory, and in considerable numbers (from 8 to 22). (lAmnadiOt Chiro-
cepkahtt, Nebalia, &c.)
2. Cladoeera, — Carapace in form of a biTalvendielL Thoracic
members five pairs. {Daphnia, Ac.)
4. Bntomattraca,
No branchise nor any modification of oigan apparent to supply
the place of these. Eyes sessile, and commonly umted into a single
mass. The Entomoitraca contain two orden^ namely, the Cbpepoda
and OttrapodcL
1. Cbp^xxlflk— Body divided into distinct rings, neither carapace not
valvular envelope. . Thoracio and oral members in considerable num-
bers. {Cydopi, Pontia, &c.)
2. Okrapoda, — ^Body without veiy evident annular divisions, and
entirely inclosed undeor a large dorsal shield having the form of a
bivalvfrehell. Extremities in very small number. (CyprU, ko.)
IL Edentata.
The Bdentaia contain three orders, namely, the Arcmeiformu, the
SiphomatomioUi, and the LemcBiform/u.
1. Jrcmet/oniiet. — Extremities rod-like, long, adapted for walking.
{PycnogwMin, Nympkon,)
2. StphomoitofMOa, — ^Extremities not adapted for walking; partlj
lamelUf, partly prehensQe. (CaUgut, DiehdatUm, Nieotkoa, ftc.)
8. LtsniaifcTmeM, — Extremities rudimentary, body presenting anor-
mal forms. (Ltmaa, ftc.)
Foufl Cruttaeea.
Various forms of Crustacea have been found throughout the whole
series of fossiliferous rocks. Although their shells are not so well
calculated to resist decomposition as those of the McUutca, and even
the Behmodennata, yet a considerable number of speciee have been
recorded, especially of the smaller forms. Bronn, in his list of extinct
and recent species of the families of animals, gives the following as
the result amongst the OrMttaeea : —
Eztinet. Beeent.
Bntomostraca 568 148
Malacottraca 244 541
These numbers are probably higher for the extinct and lower for the
recent than the present state of our knowledge would warrant.
One of the most interesting groups of extinct Oruttaeect, are those
found in the Silurian Rocks, and which from their meet prevalent
forms may be called Trilobitic. [Chirociphalus ; TBiLOBnn.] The
species in this formation are more abundant than at any subsequent
period, and present greater departures from the types of existing
Cruatacea,
In the Devonian Bocks the Cnutaeea are represented also by Trilo-
bitic forms, some of which, as Brontee, are characteristic and remark-
able. This fossil which was at first supposed to be a fish, has been
rrferred by Agassis to the Cruttaeea, It was not unlike a lobster in
shape, but was four feet in length. Its claws were of gigantic size. The
shield was sculptured with delicate markings, looking like scales. The
tail was continuous, and so laige that a lobster of ordinary size might
stretch its entire length on it.
.The Carboniferous group of Rocks presents us with a considerable
number of species of Cruttaeea, but they principally belong to the
groups of smaller forms referred to the Entomostraoous Cruttaeea*
[Ertomostraca.] We have however, in certain forms, as in those
spedes which have been referred to Aput, Ataphut, Daphniet, Cyprit,
and XAmulut, approaches to the forms which exist at the present day.
Of the Ostracodous Cruttaeea Professor M'Coy has figured, and has
described twenty-two species fh>m the Carboniferous Limestone of
Ireland; M. de Koninck six species in Belgium. The Ottracoda
described in the Carboniferous and Silurian Rocks amount to about
thirty-seven spedes.
The Permian system, embracing the Magnesian Limestone Formation
of England, affords the remains of no other Crustacean but those
belonging to the Bntomottraca or Ottracoda,
In the OoUtic Rocks the species of Cruttaeea are not numerous, but
the forms so closely resemble those more common at the present time
as to afford some difficulty in distinguishing theuL The specimens
discovered in British rocks have all beenrefernod to the genus Attacut,
of which Professor Tennant gives four species — A,leptomanut,A. mitero-
naiu*. A, tcahrotut, A» rottreUut. Tue Lithographic Limestone of
215
CRYOLITE.
CRYSTALLOQRAPUY.
230
Solenhofen, affords several examples of the OruUaeea of this forma-
tion. It contains species of IdiMUuij and also of a genus Ergon
allied to the reoent genua Attiteua.
In the Chalk, specimens of CrutUteea are found representing hoth
the lobster and the crab. The following list of species is given by
Tennant in his ' British Fossils f — Attacua Leaehii, A. longimtmui. A,
Suatexiantu, Orithrya Bechei, Pagwnu FavjmtU, ScyUarua McmteUii.
In the Tertiary biads the remains of Onutaeea are not very numerous,
but their forms are many of them identical with those now existing.
Many forms remain yet to be discovered, especially among the minute
EtUomoatraca [Cttherb], of which only a few have yet been described.
(Bell, ffialary of the BritM Stalk-Eyed Oruataeea; Owen, Leetttrea
on Comparatwe Anatomy ; R. Jones, (hnUwea of Ammal Kingdom;
Cydo^dia of Anaionvy aand Phyaiolog^, article Onutaoaa : Spence
Bate, in Annala of NcUvral Hiatory ; Mihie-Kdwards, ffiatoire Naiu-
reUe dea Orwtaciea ; Rathke, Unteravkchungm ahor die EUdung vnd
Entwiekdung dea Fltua-KrAaea ; J. V. Thompson, Metamorphcaea of
Crustacea; Rupert Jones, Monograph of the EtUomoatraca in the
Cretaceoua Formatione of England — Pal. Soc ; W. King, Monograph of
Permian Foaaila — ^Pal. Soc.; Baird, Eiaiory ofBritiah EtUomoatraca —
RaySoc.; Burmeister, The Organiaation of TriMntea—l^y Soa) [Sup.]
CRYOLITE, a species of Mineral, a fluate of soda and alumina.
It is of a white colour, or reddish, or yellowish-brown, and its streak
18 white. It occurs in crystalline masses, but its primary form has
not been observed ; its cleavage is parallel to the terminal And lateral
planes of a rectangular prism. Its specific gravity is from 2*94 to
2*963. It is not so hard as fluor-spar, is translucent, and by immer-
sion in water beoomes transparent. It fuses by the blow-pipe into a
transparent globule, which becomes opaque on cooling.
It IS found at Arksut-fiord, in West Greenland. According to the
analysis of Vauquelin it oonsiBts of —
Fluoric Acid and Water 47
Soda 82
Alnmina 21
100
CRYPTOCETHALUS (Geoffroy), a genus of Coleopterous Insects
of the section CfycUca and fiunily C^isryaomeUdca* It is known by the
antennn being filiform, nearly as long as the body ; palpi with the
joints nearly of equal thickness ; head deeply inserted into the thorax,
small and vertical ; thorax nearly as broad as the elytra : body short
and cylindricaL
Upwards of twenty species of this genus are found in this country.
The most abundant species is Oryptocephalua aericeaa. This little
beetle is of a brilliant golden-green colour, and about a quarter of an
indi in length ; it is found during the month of July in the flowers of
the Hieraeium and similar plants.
Orvptoe^hdl/ua JLineola is about the same size as the last, and is
found on oak-trees, hazels, &a ; it is black and glossy ; the dy tn are
red, and have an oblong dash in the middle, and the suture and outer
maigin black.
CRYPTOCONCHUS, a name given bv some zoologists to those
Chitonida whose shellv plates are entirely hidden by the investing
border. rCHiTOini>A.J
CRYPTODIBRANCHIATA, De BlainviUe's name for the Cepha-
lopodoua MoUuaca [Cephalopoda.]
CRYPTOGA'MIA, the twenty-fourth ckias of the Linnesan System
of Plants. It includes all those genera the flowers of whidi are either
altogether absent, or formed upon a plan difierent fiK>m that of ordi-
nary plants. Ferns, Mosses, Lichens, AlgcB, Fungi, with their immediate
allies, form the class, which is the same as the Aootyledons of Jussieu
and the Miularea of De CandoUe. It is often employed to distinguish
the Flowerless from the Flowering Plants, which are thence called
Phanerogamia, [Liohbhs; Ltoopodiaoba; Aloji; Fukoi; Diato-
maobjb; Aobooenb; Desmidrb.]
CRYPTOLITE. [Cerium.]
CRYPTONYX. [TBTRAOiriDA]
CRYPTOTHAGUS (Herbst), a genus of Coleopterous Insects of
the family Engidoe. They are minute beetles, which are found in
Fungi and in flowers, and some of the species are common in damp
cellars.
The Cfryptophagi are seldom more than an eighth of an inch in
length, genen^ of a pale brown colour, and more or less pubescent.
They have the antennsB rather thick and 11-jointed ; the basal joint
is thioker than the seven following, and the three apical joints form
an elongated knob ; the terminal joint is somewhat conical, and the
twQ preceding joints are cup-shaped ; the head is nearly triangular,
inserted into Uie thorax as far back as the eyes ; the thorax is nearly
square, and the lateral margins are more or less denticulated ; they
usually exhibit an obtuse tooth-like process in the middle ; the elytra
are elongate ; the sides are generally straight and parallel, or nearly
80, and the apex is roimded.
About sixteen species have been found in this country. Oryptopha-
gna bU^tberculatua is sometimes abundant in puff-balls, and probably
inhabits other Fungi.
CRYPTOPROCTA. [Vivbbbida]
CRYPTORHY'NCHIDES (Schonherr), a family of Coleopterous
Insects belonging to the section Rhynchophorat the species of which
are chiefly distinguished b^ their possessing a groove in the chest into
which the rostrum is received when at rest
This famOy contains upwards of twenty genera, of which the genus
Cryptorhynchua may be considered as tne type. The characters of
this ^enus are : — ^Antenns 12-jomted, short, funiculus 7-jointed, the
first joint rather longer than the rest ; dub oval or oblong oval ;
rostrum moderate, rather arched; thorax often broader than long,
narrower towards the apex, and furnished with tufts on the anterior
part ; elytra somewhat ovaU, covering the abdomen ; scutellum dis-
tinct ; logs moderate, femora often armed with a spine beneath.
Of this genus upwards of ninety species are Imown, only one of
which inhabits England, Oryptorhynektu LapathL This beetle is less
than half an inch in length, and of a dull brownish-black colour ; the
thorax is whitish at the sides, and is furnished on the upper part vrith
five black tufts — ^two on the anterior part near the eyes, and three in
a line a little behind these, one in the middle of the thorax, and one
on each side ; the elytra are brown-white at the base, and white at
the apex, and are studded with numerous black tubercles.
C. Lapathi is found on willows, and is sometimes tolerably abun-
dant in osier-beds in the south of England : when touched, like most
of its tribe, it contracts its legs and falls to the ground.
CRYPTOSTOMA. [CHfiuiOBRAiroHiATA.]
CRYPTURUS. [Tbtbaonidjl]
CRYSTALLINE LENS. [Eye.]
CRYSTAIiLO'GRAPH Y, or the doctrine of the relations of crystal-
line forms, is in strictness an application of solid geometry ; but it is
practically allied to Mineralogy, and may also be regarded as a sub-
sidiaiy department of that soienoe.
Minerals oocur very generally in the state of dystals, that is, in
certain definite and symmetrifm form% and these are regarded as
crystals whether they are transparent or opaque.
A solid figure, of the shape of a common die used in games of
chance, frequentiy occura among mineral^ and is then termed a Cube
or Cubic C^staL
If the comen of this cube wera to be cut off so as to take away
equal portions of the three adjacent edges, a new figure would bo
produced which is said to be derived from the cube.
If the edges were to be all out off so as to produce new surfaces,
making equal angles with the acfjacent sides of the cube, another
derived form would result In these cases the cube would be deemed
the primary form, and the derived figures second^ forms of the
€ube.
Minerals are veiy generally known by their primary forms ; but as
these ara of diffei*ent kinds, and as natiiral ciystals are very generally-
found in secondary forms, from which the prixnary is to be inferred,
a knowledge of the exact relations of the primary and secondary
forms is requisite to enable the minerslogist to detennine the primary
from the secondary, and hence to arrive at a knowledge of the mineral
to which any given crystal belongs.
Our subject may therefore be conaidsred under three heads,
namely : —
1. Primary Forms.
2. Secondary Forms.
8. The Laws Qjf Derivation, or the mutual relations of the aeoondaiy
andprimary.
We must however premise a few definitions.
What we have called the oomen of ike cube will be termed its
Solid Apexes, and so of the oomen or points of all other figures.
A solid uigle, or edge cut off so as to produce a new sur&oe, or
Plane as it is termed, is said to be truncated.
The series of forms resulting from each of the primary forms con-
stitutes a peculiar System of Cmtallisation ; there are consequently
as many Afferent systems as there are different lands of primaty
forms.
A Prism is a solid figure, having any number of sides with parallel
edges, and its two ends paralleL
A Right Priam is one which stands upright when placed on a table ;
if it overhangs the base in the direction of an edge or diagonal it is
termed oblique, and if an oblique prism is again oblique in the direc-
tion of a second edge or diagonal it is doubly obliqua The basea of
doubly oblique prisms are usually oblique-angled paraUelograms.
The edges of the sides, and the side planes of a prism, are termed
lateral, and those of the ends teiminal edges and planes.
1. I^imary Forms.
These are in some degree arbitrarily assumed, as it appean from
the three following figures, showing the relation between the cubes
and angular octahedron.
Fig. 1 is a Cube.
Fig. 2, a Cube, with its solid angles truncated.
Fig. S, an 8-eided figura or octahedron, which is produced when the
solid angles are so deeply truncated as to obliterate all the fiioes of
the cube.
Now it is, mathematically speaking, indifferent whether we take
the cube or the octahedron as the primary form of all the derived
figures of this system of czystallisation ; for it may be readily per-
ceived, from an attentive comparison of the following figures^ that new
planes which might be produced on the octahedron oy the truncation
of its solid angles would correspond in position with the faces of the
S97
CRYSTALLOGRAPHY.
CRYSTALLOGRAPHY.
288
Fir. K
Fig. 2.
7
)
Flf. S.
enbe, and those which would result from the tmnoation of ite edges
woold correspond in {Kwtion with those which would result from the
imncation of the edges of the cube. The cube might therefore be
regarded as the Becoudary form of the octahedron, arising from the
trancation of its six solid angles. Relations of the same nature subsist
among the original and derived figures belonging to each kind of the
primary forms except the riiomboid. The reason for preferring the
one or the other of these as the primary will be considered when we
treat of the relations of the different forms of crystals.
We have, for reasons which we shall then state, assumed the fol-
lowing figures as the primary or fundamental forms of all known
dystaiu.
TheCiibe,/^. 1.
The Square Prism, in which, supposing the base of this prism to be
of the same dimensions as a side of a given cube, end tms and the
cube to be both standing on a table, the upright edges would be longer
or shorter than those of the cube.
A Right Rhombic Priam, fig. 4.
An Oblique lUiombic Prion, fig. 5.
A Double-Oblique Prism, fig. 6.
A Rhomboid or Rhombohedron, fig. 7.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 5.
Fig. 6.
Fig. 7.
The Cube being bounded by six equal square planes, the minerals
which assume this form are not distinguishable by the figure of their
crystals; but minerals which occur under the other forms may gene-
rally be diaUnguished as follows : —
Those which can be referred to square prisms, by the different
proportions which, in each particular case, the lateral edges bear to
the terminal edges ; and those which belong to the other prisms and
to the rhomboid, by the angles at which &eir planes intersect each
other. The ratios oi the edges of square prisms may be determined
by known algebraical formulcs from the aiigular measurement of some
of the secondary forms, and the angles at which the planes of the
other fonna meet, may, in many cases, be ascertained by measurement
with an instrument called a Goniometer, but in others they must
be deduced mathematically from some of their respective seoondary
forms.
These six primary forms stand in certain relations to each other,
which it may not be useless to point out. If the lateral edges of the
cube be supposed to be longer or shorter than the terminal edges, a
square prism, aa we have already seen, would be produced ; if two
opposite lateral edges of a square prism could be pressed towards each
other, the paralleUsm being kept, a right rhombic prism would be
formed ; if this j^riam could be pressed in the direction of either of
the diagonals of its terminal plane, so as to make the figure overhang
the base in that direction, an oblique-rhombic prism would be repre*
sented ; and if again pressed in the direction of the other diagonal, so
that it would overhang the base in both directions, a doubly-oblique
prism would be formed. If we suppose a cube to be made to stand
on one of its solid angles by placing the fingers on an opposite one,
and if, while held in this position, the two solid angles could be
pressed nearer together or drawn further apart, the altered cube
would become a rhomboid.
2. Seoondary Forms.
These might be produced, and are most conveniently described, by
supposed truncations of the solid angles or edges of any of the pre-
oeding forms ; but as in nature the most minute crjrstids appear in tiie
shape of seoondary forms, it is to be inferred that these modifications
of the primary are occasioned by some natural influence operating
upon the first germ of the crystal, and continuing during the period of
ite increase in size.
Secondary Crystals are sometimes altered from the primary only
by single sets of planes replacing some of the solid angles or edges ; in
other oases both the solid angles and edges are replaced by planes in
the same secondary crystal ; and in others, several different sets of
planes appear replacing the solid angles and edges of the same crystals,
and producing very numerous and complicated seoondaiy forms.
Thus it occurs that the solid angles of the cube are sometimes replaced
by three and sometimes by six symmetrical planes, of which several
sets may occur on the same crystal, and perhaps with other plaues
replacing the edges. Similar changes of figure may also occur on
each of the other kinds of the primary forms, thus producing the
different-systems of crystallisation before referred to.
The number of known secondary forms belonging to each system is
alreadv very great ; in one mineral, carbonate of lime, they amount to
many hundreds ; but thousands and tens of thousands more might
occur under the operation of only a few of the laws of which we shall ^
afterwards treat
Among the secondary forms of crystals there are some which differ
in their characters from those already described. Let us suppose two
diagonal lines to be drawn through opposite angles, and crossing each
other on the faces of the cube. It may be observed, by referring to
fig, 2, that the solid angles at the extremities of all Uiese diagonals are
truncated to produce tiie octahedron ; but it sometimes happens that
the solid angles at the extremities of only one of those diagonals on
one plane, imd a transverse diagonal on a parallel plane are truncated,
producing a four instead of an eightHsided secondary figure ; these are
termed hemi forms, from their presenting only half the nimiber of
planes which might be expected from the symmetry of the primary
crystal These defective figures, as thev may be termed, from their
wanting the number of faces which mignt be expected on Uie crystal,
are frequently troublesome to the mineralogist, and occasionally
mislead him; but there is another, of a much more capricious
deviation from the regularity of the simple forms, which is still more
troublesome than the preceding; these are what have been termed
Hemitrope and Twin Crystals. In twin crystals the two individuals
are united in such a manner that if one of them be made to describe
a half-revolution round an axis perpendicular to a plane, which is
either a fisu^ of one of the crystals or which might be one in virtue of
the laws of crjrstallography, it comes into the position of the other.
Twin Crystals are produced by the union of two or more crystals
according to some regular plan, so that if any number of twin crystals
of the same kind of minenJ should be found, they would be fashioned
in the same manner. Hence these apparently capricious composite
figures are subject to definite laws, ana are not the results of merely
accidental sggregation. There are also two other classes of irregular
forms of crystal one of which, termed by Haiiy ' Epigene,' occurs
where a cr^tallised mineral has undergone a chemical change without
disintegration or suffering any change of figure; the form in the
altered state of the minexal not being proper to the new substance,
but remaining that of the original body.
The other class, termed Pseudomorphous, appears as if they had
been produced in moulds resulting from the destruction of crystals of
other substances which had been inclosed or imbedded in them, and
which moulds being filled with some new kind of mineral, the new
and intrusive matter assumes the form of the originally inclosed body,
and one altogether foreign to its proper shap&
3. The secondary forms of crystals are not derived from the primaiy
by accidental and indefinite truncations of the solid angles and edges,
but according to known and definite laws, so that all the possible
alterations ot figure which any given primary form can undergo,
xhight be determined h priori, if the extreme limits of the relative
proportions of the edges considered to be cut off in producing new ^
planes were known. Within well ascertained limits however many
thousand of possible seoondary forms, belonging to each kind of
primary, might be determined with absolute precision.
The laws according to which any secondarv planes are produced
are termed the laws of ^ose planes. To illustrate the nature of
these laws, let fig, 8 represent a square prism, whose edges ah c are
each divided into any equal number of parts, which partis are conse*
quently proportional to the respe^j^ive edges. Now a new plane
239
CRYSTALLOORAPHY.
CTENODACTYLUa
210
Fig. 8.
which Aould cut off one proportion from each of the ^dges ab e,
would evidently be parallel to the plane d e f, whose edges would
coincide with the diftgonnls of the primary planes. It would carry
us beyond the limit to which we must restrict this paper, if we were
to enter upon a geometrical consideration of
these lines, and we shall therefore confine our-
selves to this statement, that if, on any square
prism, we find a set of planes truncating its
solid angles, and if we assume the edges of
these planes to be respectively parallel to the
diagonals of the primary planes, the ratio, or
comparative lengths of the edges a and c, may
be found, and thus the distinction between
prisms of different heights belonging to different
minerals may be ascertained. Crystals be-
longing to the other primary forms may
generally be distinguished, as we have already stated, by measurement
of the angles at which the planes severally incline to each other. But
in order to investigate the laws of their respective secondary planes,
we require to mow the comparative lengths of the latend and
terminal edges, which may be found by means analogous to those we
have just dncribed. The rhomboid however, whose edges, like those
of the cube, are all equal, does not require this preliminary investiga-
tion, but the laws of new planes may be determined from measurement
alone.
When a plane similar to that shown in fig. 8 occurs on one solid
angle of a crvstal, it generally occurs on all the others, establishing
what Haliy has termed the Law of Symmetry. Bu^ as we have
before stated in reference to the cube, this law is occasionally deviated
from by the production of only one-half the symmetrical number of
secondary planes on a square prism. This remark ako applies to such
other kinds of secondary planes as we now proceed to describe.
Besides the plane shown in fig. 8, there are three other kinds
•aifeoting the soUd angles.
Firs^ such as would out off one, two, three, or more portions of the
edges a and 5, but at the same time some other number from the
edge e. Thus if one portion be cut from a and one ttom b, there will
be two, three, four, or some other niimber cut from e; or if three
portions were cut from a and three from b, either one, two, four,
five, or some other number would be cut fr^m c, so that a numerous
series of planes of this nature might occur on each solid angle.
The second kind of planes are those which would cut off an equal
number of parts fr*om a and c, but a different number from b. But
in this case there would be two planes on each solid angle, for if we
suppose one plane to cut three parts from a, and three from c, and
two frt>m 6, a second plane would also be pro-
duced, cutting three parts from b and c, and two
from a, producing two planes similar to those
in fig. 9.
Each of the series of planes of the first kind
would have an edge parallel to the diagonal d e,
fig. 8 ; and each of those of the second kmd would
have edges parallel to the diagonals d f and
e f of the same figure. The planes of the third
class also occur in pairs, and are such as would
be produced by cutting off dissimilar numbers of
pails from, the three edges, such as two parts
from a, three from 6, and four from c, none of the edges of these new
planes being parallel to any diagonal.
The secondary planes on the terminal edges may cut off^any number
of parts from the edges r and b, and the same, or any other number,
from $ and c. Those on the lateral edges, if they cut unequal
Sortions from a and o, and b and n, will be found to occur in pairs,
ingle planes on the lateral edges are such as would i^esult from
cutting a and o-, and b and n, equally ; and the secondary planes on
the other primary forms are produced by laws analogous to those we
have just described.
The reasons for preferring prisms to octahedrons for the primary
forms may be thus oriefly stated.
We have already seen that the octahedron derived from the cube
might be taken as the fundamental or primary figure of that system
of crystallisation. An octahedron derived from the truncation of tiie
upper and lower edges of the square prism, or of its solid angles, by
planes which would intersect the termmal planes parallel to their
diagonals, might be assumed as the primary form of this system ; and
ootahedrons similarly derived from the other prisms might also be
regarded as the primaries of their respective systema And these
figures have accordingly been adopted by Mdhs, as the fundamental
forms of his system of crystallography. From the greater simplicity
however of derivation which results firom the assumption of the
Srisms as primary forms, and the greater niatiiematiciu facilities in
etermining the relations of the derived to the primary, we have been
induced to retain them as the fundamental forms of our system. For
the relations among these primary and their respective secondary
' ''re, according to our plan, dependent only upon the proportions
*hnaij edges required to be cut off to produce given second-
But m taking the octahedrons as primaries, M&hs has
e rflntions of these %o the seeonda^ figures upon the
Fir. 9.
relative lengths of the axes of the derived figures, according to which
view of derivation the lateral planes of the square prism would be
denoted as those of an octahedron with an infinitely long axis, and
the end planes as those of an octahedron with an infinitely short axis.
And for all the various prisms which may occur, ootahedrons must
first be found, from the infinite prolongation of whose axes tiie given
prisms may be produced. From the complexity of this method it
win probably not extend fkr beyond the school of its highly ingenious
author.
The exact relations among primary and secondary forms may be
determined mathematically, sometimes fivm measurement and some-
times from parallelisms between certain edges of tiie seconduT^ figures :
and the mathematical processes may be either those of plane trigono-
metry, as applied by Haiij ; or spherical trigonomet^, as used by
other authors; or analytical geometry, as applied by Professor
Whewell in a paper in the * PhiL Trans.' for 1825 ; or by referring
the planes of the crystal to the surface of a sphere and denoting their
positions stereographically, as shown in a paper by ProfessOTMiller,
of Cambridge, in the 'Lend, and Edinb. Phil Mag.' of Feb. 1885.
Crystallisation and the circumstances under which it takes place
form an interesting subject of inquiry, not only in respect of the
variety of figures under which crystals present themselves, but in
relation to much more comprehensive geological investigations into
the formation of the early crystalline roocs and the various embedded
crystallised minerals, and into the manner in which the numeioua
crystalline bodies found in the metallic and other veins have been
produced.
From the great length of time during which these natural processes
must have been in action, the slowness with which they probably have
proceeded, and the hidden recesses in which they have tieJcen place,
the progress of natural crystallisation can scarcely be said to have
been ever observed; for the production of saline crystals at the
bottom of certain lakes, and even that of iron pyrites, which aro
said to have been observed in a progressive state of formation,
cannot be regarded as belonging to the class of phenomena we are
contemplating.
Not having thereforo the operation of nature open to our inspection,
our only souroes of information relative to the formation of crystals
are those afforded by the processes of artificial crystallisation ; and
hero until very rocently our experiments were circumscribed and our
views bounded by a very few modes of operation : that of tiie deposit
of crystals firom solution in some fluid ; their production while
gradiially cooling from a state of fusion ; and their volatilisation by
heat or otherwise. Latterly however, by the aid of that universal
agent, electricity, new methods of producing crystals have heen
pursued : much of the darkness in wfdch the subject had been pre-
viously involved has been dispdled, and there can now be littie doubt
that tiie phenomena of crystallisation are influenced in a greater or
leas degree bv electric influence.
The crystallisation of salts from solution in fluids generally takes
place when the solutions are sufficientiy evaporated, but the degree of
evaporation is very different for different substancea Some salts begin
to crystallise at the surface very soon after evaporation commences,
and others (for example, sugar) must be evaporated to the consistence
of a thick nrup before any crystals wUl be formed. Hot fluids will
generally dissolve more matter than cold ones, and crystals are
frequently produced during the cooling of the hot solution. Some
soluble substances however cannot be brought to crystallise under
any droumstances hitherto tried; but on the solvent evaporating a
thick pasty matter is left, which by further evaporation becomes a
hard solid mass. Camphor affords an instance of the formation of
crystals by volatilisation. The sides of a bottie containing this body
may fr«quentiy be observed inorusted with brilliant crystals.
The slsgs of furnaces will frequently be found to contain <;iystal-
lised matter; and the common roUs of sulphur when broken will
frequentiy present small cavities lined with thin needle-like crystals.
(Ansted, Blemeniorp Otology; Dana, Manwd of Mineralogy.)
CTENACA'NTHUS, a genus of Fossil Placoid Fishes, from the
Mountain Limestone and Old Red-Sandstone. (Agassis.)
CTENODA'CTYLA (Dejean), a genus of Coleopterous Insects
belonging to the section Oeodephaga and sub-section TrunaUipennes.
It has the following characters : — ^Body but slightiy elongated,
flattened ; thorax longer than broad, truncated posteriorly ; terminal
joint of the palpi almost oval ; three basal joints of the tarsi dilated,
nearly triangular or heart«haped ; claws denticulated beneath.
Dejean, in his ' Catalogue des Col^ptdres,' only enumerates three
species of this genus, all of which are from Guyana. There are
however other species known.
O. Ckeovolatii is less than half an inch in length, of a blue-black
colour above, and brown beneath ; the thorax is rwl, and the legs and
antennn are yellowish-red.
CTBNODA'CTYLUS, a genua of Rodent Animals of the family
Arvi€olid4B, establiahed by Dr. J. K Qray.
Each foot has four toes only, and an obsolete dawless wart in
Slace of the thumb; claws sinall and falculated; toes pectinated
itemally, with small bony appendages. Tail very short and hairy,
2 3—3
Dental formula : — Incisors, j ; Molars, j — «. (Gray.)
Ul
CTENODUS.
CUCULIDiE.
Dr. QtKf ia of opinion th«t this Bab-genus appears to be most
nearty allied to the Lemmings {Zmmus), with which it agrees in
teeth and form, but differs from them in only hsTing four firae toes
on each of the feet and a very obsoure dawless wart in place of the
thumb, and in the claws of all the feet being short and incurved,
those of the hinder ones being ooyered with a tuft of rigid hair, more
especially to be distinguished in the two inner toes, each of which
also has a double, small, deeply pectinated, bony plate on its inner
side. The tail is veiy short, scarcely longer thMi the Air of the back,
corered with long bristly hair. The cutting teeth inouryed, the
lower rounded in front^ the upper ooncayely truncated. The upper
grinders are probably like the lower, which are laminar and with a
2-lobed crown, the anterior lobe being transrerae, narrow, round on
the outer, and narrow and sharp on the inner side ; the hinder lobed,
larger, axul rounded, the lobe of the two anterior ones being rather
wider than long, and that of the last as long as it is wide. (Gray.)
C, Ifosfonu, ICasson's Comb-Rat The fur is soft and sill^; upper
parts fulvous brown ; the hair veiy thin, pale lead-oolouied at the
base, pale fulvous at the end, with very short blackish tips, especiaJly
upon the head ; chin, throaty inner side of limbs, and beneath, whitish,
with the same lead-coloured bsse to the hairs. Head rather small,
and densely haixy ; muzzle very small, black ; mouth rather small ;
cutting teeth exposed, rounded and smooth in front, white; the
whiskers very long, twice as long as the head, rigid, black, with two
or three slender long bristles over the eyebrows; eyes moderate,
rather nearer the ears than the end of the nose ; the ears rounded,
externally covered with dense short fur like the body, internally
rather naked, black, with a distinct helix. Limbs short; the feet
covered with shortish rather adpressed hair ; the fore feet short ; the
toes free, the two middle ones nearly equal, the inner rather shorter,
and the outer shortest of all ; the claws short, subequal, incurved,
black, not so long as the hinder ones; the hinder feet large with
naked soles ; toes free, the three inner equal, the outer rather the
shortest, the two inner toes with two series of four or five bony
lamina placed side by side, forming a comb-like process, and covered
with some very stiff bristly incurved hair ; the tail very short, cylin-
drical, ending in a parcel of rather rigid black-tipped hslrs. Size and
shape about that of a half-grown guinea-pig. Length (stuffed speci-
men) from nose to base of tail 9 inches ; of the tail 1 inch (the
lon^^ bristle extends beyond the tip) ; of the hind feet» 1) inch ; of
the ears, ^ of an inch. (Gray.) Locality, Cape of Good Hope.
"I am not aware," says Dr. Gray, speaking of the comb-like
appendage^ "of the same kind of process being found on the toes of
any of the Miimmaliek It most nearly resembles the pectinated edge
of the daws of the middle toes of we feet of the Qoatsucken and
Herons : it may probably be used for the same purpose to clear their
coats of intnidmg insects, and this idea is strengthened by the fact of
the two living animab in the collection of the Zoological Sodety, said
to come from Barbery, continually scratching thenudves with their
hind claws. Some of the Lemmings, to which these animals are
most nearly aHied, are peculiar for having a very curious conforma-
tion in the claw of the index finger of the hand."
Dr. J. £. Gray refers to two specimens in the British Museum,
one of which is marked in the hand-writing of his late unde.
Dr. E. W. Gray. " C. B. Spei B£asson, 1744, appears to be a variation
of No. 1," which last Dr. Gray thinks is probably the other specimen
in the British Museum, which is rather larger.
The species is named after Mr. Frands Masson, who was one of his
Majesty's gardeners, and published a paper in * PhiL Trans.,' Ixvi
(1775), giving an aoooimt of three journeys from Cape Town to the
southern puts of Africa, undertaken for the discovery of new plants
towards tne improvement of the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew.
The description of this curious animal is taken from Dr. Gray's
' Spidlegia Zoologica,' where there is a figure of the species.
CTE'NODUS, a genus of Fossil Fishes, from the Coal Formation
of Yorkshire and Lancashire, and the Limestone of Burdie-House.
(Agassis.)
CTENOID FISHES* a great division of Fishes, thus named by
Agsssiz, from the pectinated appearance of the rotral edges of the
scales, which are of a homy substance, not bony nor enamelled.
Abundant in the actual creation, they are rare as fossils in all but the
more recent strata.
CTEKO'LEPIS, a genus of Fossil Fishes, from the Oolite of
Stonesfield. (Agassiz.)
CTENOMTS, a genus of Rodent Animsls. [Mubidjs.]
GTENO'STOMA (Klug), a genus of Coleopterous Insects of the
section Oeodephaga and family Oicindelidce, The spedes have the
following distingiiishing characters : — The bassl joints of the anterior
tarsi dilated in the male sex, the third with an obliqudv dongated
portion on the ixmer side ; body narrow and long ; thorax long, some-
what globular in the middle, snd suddenly constricted towards the
base ftod apex ; antennss setaceous ; palpi long and distinct ; mentum
famished with a tooth-like process in the anterior and emarginated
part
CtenoHoma maeUeniwn (Klug), is about half an inch in length, snd
of a brassy-black colour ; the elytra are distinctly punctuxwl, and
have a transverse yellowish farsia in the middle; the legs are
yellowish.
VAX. HI8T. fiXY. VOL. XL
This species is from Buenos Ayrea Eight or nine other spedes
are known, all of which inhabit South America : several are from
Braia
I
Cttnoaoma maeiUntym,
a, denotes the nstoral length.
Under this head may be noticed three other genera whioh are
closely allied to the one just described— 2Wa<e«, Tric<mdyla, and
Oolliunu.
The spedes of these three genera are at once distinguished frt>m
those of Ctenotl<nna by thdr having no tooth-like process in the emar-
gination of the mentum. The principal characters of the genus
TkmUa (Latreille) are as follows :— Tarsi nearly the same in both
sexes, the third joint shorter than the two basal joints, and notched
at the extremity ; fourth joint very short and heart-shaped , internal
maxillaiy-palpi very small, and consisting of one joint only.
The spedes of this genus are of an intemediate form between
OUnattoma and Cidndda : they are shorter and broader in propor-
tion than those of the former, and hence approach the latter ; but the
thorax is of that same globular form (though short) as observed in
CHenosUmuk
Only four or five spedes are known, and these are from Java and
Guinea: their colouring is very brilliant.
Theratet labiata is of a brilliant blue colour, with violet reflections «
the elytra are nearly double the width of the thorax ; the labrum'
femora, and abdomen, are of a reddish-yellow colour.
The spedes of the genus Trieondyla (Latreille) very much resemble,
in form and general appearance, those of Ctenodoma; but they may
be distinguished by their having the joints of the tarn nearly equal
in length, the three basal joints of the anterior tarsi of the males
dilated, the third being prolonged obliqudy on the inner side, snd
the palpi being less conspicuous from thdr comparativdy smaller size.
Of this genus three spedes are known : they inhabit the islands
north of Australia.
The techniosl characters of the genus ColUwui are : — ^fourth joint
of all the tarn prolonged on the inner ude in both sexes ; thorax
elongate, nearly cylindrical, and constricted near the base and apex ;
body elongate, neariy cylindrical, broader towards the posterior part ;
antennsB wort, slightly thickened towards the apex.
All the spedes of this genus as yet discovered (whioh amount to
only four or five) are found in the southern psrts of Asia, and in the
islands north of Australia.
CoUiur%u emarginata (Dejean), is about an inch in length, and of a
dull blue colour ; the elytra are coarsely punctured, and truncated at
their apex; the legs are black, with the exception of the thighs,
which are red.
CUBAN, a native Sulphuret of Copper and Iron.
CUBE-ORE, a native hydrous Arsenate of Uie Peroxide of Iron.
It ciystallises in cubes, and is found in the mines of Cornwall, France
and Saxony. [Pbarmacosidibitb.]
CUBE-SPAR, a name by which Anhydrite is known. [AirHTDBm.
CUBEBA. [PiPBR.]
CUBICITE. [ANiXcncB.]
CUBOIDEa [AoALBFOS.]
CUCKOO. [CuculidaJ
CUCKOaFLOWER. fCAHDAHiNX.]
CUCKOO-PINT. [Aboids&I
CUCUBALUS, a genus of Jelly-Fishes. [Acalsfha]
CUCU'BALUS, a genus of Plants bdon^^ to the natural order
CaryopkyUaeece, It has a 6-toothed naked *MJyx; 6-olawed petsls;
10 stamens; 8 styles; capsule a globose 1-celled beny; roiiform
seeds. There is but one species of this g^nus, 01 &aeet/er, the Berry-
Bearing Campion. It diffen but little from the spedes of 3iUn$
except in its berried capsule, which is black. It is a native of Europe,
and haa been found wild in Great Britain. It has been undoubtedly
introduced, but is scarcely naturalised. (Babington, Manual)
CUCVLLMA. [PoLTODOirTA.]
CUCU'LIDiB, the Cnckoo-TriU, or Cuckoos, a ikmily of Scanaorial
Birds, placed by Ouvierand Lesson next to the Wzynecks, Tunx, and
143
CUCULlDiB.
CUCULIDJE.
241
by Mr. Vigors in the aberrant group of hia Scansoref, between the
CferihiadcB and the Rhamphaaiidcs,
The Cu:.'ulid(8 are placed by Mr. Swainson also between the
Ckrthiada and Ramphattidcs, and these three families constitute what
he terms his thiid and aberrant circle of the Scaruorei. The following
is his definition of the family character : — Feet not strictly scansorial,
very diort, nostiils naked, tail-covers remarkably lon*4 ; and he sepa-
rates the group into the following sub-families : CueuUncB, Coccyzina,
Saurotkerirug, OpUthoeomince, ItuliecUorimg, Of the first subfamily
Cu ii/ttt, Linn., is the type ; of the second Coeqfzut, Vieill. ; of the
third Sawot?iera, VieilL ; of the fourth Oput?tocomu», Hoff. ; and of
the fifth Indicator, Sparrm.
The following account of this family by Mr. Swainson bears the
stamp of actual obsenration. " So faintly is the scansorial structure
indicated in these birds that but for their natural habits, joined to
the position of their toes, we should not suspect they were so inti-
mately connected with the more typical groups of the tribe as they
undoubtedly are. They neither use their bill for climbing, like the
parrots, or for making holes in trees, like the woodpeckers, neither can
they mount the perpendicular stems, like the Certhiadce, or Creepers ;
and yet they decidedly climb, although in a manner peculiar to them-
selves. Having frequentlv seen different species of the Brazilian
cuckoos (forming part of tne f^enus Coeqp^a) in their native forests, I
may safely a£Brm that they climb in all other directions than that of
the perpendicular. Their flight is so feeble, from the extreme short-
ness of their wings, that it is evidently performed with difficulty, and
it is never exercised but to convey them from one tree to another, and
these flights in the thickly-wooded tracts of tropical America are of
course very short : they alight upon the highest boughs, and immedi-
ately begin to explore the horizontal and slanting ramifications with
the greatest assiduity, threading the most tangled mazes and leaving
none unexamined. All soft insects inhabiting such situations lying
in their route become their prey, and the quantities that are thus
destroyed must be very great. In passing from one bough to another
they simply hop, without using their wings, and their motions are so
quick, that an unpractised observer, even if placed immediately
beneath the tree, would soon lose sight of the bird. The Brazilian
hunters give to their cuckoos the genex^ name of Cat's-Tail ; nor is
the epithet inappropriate, for their long hanging tails, no less than
their mode of climbing the branches, give them some distant resem-
blance to that quadruped. I have no doubt that the great length of
tail possessed by nearly all the cuckoos is given to them as a sort of
balauce, just as a rope^ancer, with such an' instrument in hia hands,
preserves his footing when otherwise he would assuredly fall. Remote
therefore as the cuckoos unquestionably are from the typical Scantora,
we yet find the functions of the tall contributing to that office,
although io a very different mode to that which it performs among
the woodpeckers, the parrots, and the creepers. The structure of the
feet, as before observed, is the only circumstance which would lead an
ornithologist to place these birds among the climbers, supposing he
was entirely unacquainted with their natural history properly so
called, or with their close affinity to the more perfect Seantoret. The
toes indeed are placed in pairs ; that is, two directed forward and two
apparently backward; but a closer inspection will show that the
latter are not strictly posterior, and that they differ so very materially
from those of the Picidat (the pre-eminently typical family of the
climbers), aa clearly to indicate a different uae. The organisation of
the external po<«terior toe of all the woodpeckers, parrots, and toucans,
renders it iocapable of being brought forward, even in the slightest
degree ; whereas in the cuckoos this toe can be made to form a right
angle with tiiat which is next it in front, from which circumstance it
haa been termed versatile ; thU term however ia not strictly correct^
inasmuch aa the toe cannot be brought more than half way forward,
although it can be placed entirely backward. Now thia form, which
ia obvioutily the least developed state of the scansorial structure,
accords exactly with the rank of the family, which is that of the most
aberrant group in the circle, and farthest removed from the type.
The cuckoos in fact are half-perching half-climbing birds, not only in
their feet, but, aa we have seen, in their manners. No one, from
seeing them alive, would auppoae they were truly acansorial birds ;
and yet it is highly probable that this singular power of varying
the position of one of their toes gives them that quickness of
motion and firmness of holding which aocompaniea the habit just
mentioned.
*' There is another circumstance in the history of thia family of
birda, which, with one solitary exception, ia altogether peculiar, aa
they contain the only paraaitio birda yet known. This term indeed
haa been applied, I think improperly, to other genera, which, like the
frigate pelicans, the jagers, and some of the eagles, rob other birds of
their food ; but tliis ia a mere act of thieving, for all these feathered
robbers can and do habitually depend just aa much upon their own
industry in procuring food. But with the typical cuckoos the case is
far different, for, by depositing their eggs in the nesta of other birda,
to whom they leave the care of hatching their young and feeding
them afterwarda, they become aa truly parasitic aa any of the Aeari
or Pedieuli ; they faaten themaelvea, aa it were, on the living animal,
whoae animal heat bringa tiieir young into life, whose food they alone
Uve ispom. and whose death woiUd cause theirs during the period of
infancy. Such onlv is a paraaitio animal, and such only, among birds,
belong to the typical cuckoos and their representative, the Molothrut
pecorit," [MoLOTHBUS.]
Warm and temperate dimatea are the diosen haunts of the Cuckoos.
The European apedea — there are but two — ^never ahow themaelvea in
our quarter of the globe, except in the warm weather, quitting it
upon the firat approaohea of a colder temperature. *' So congenial is
warmth to their nature," aaya Mr. Swainson in the memoirs last
quoted, " that even the mild temperature of an Italian winter is not
sufficient to retard their return to the sultry groves of Northern
Africa. There is a fact regarding their structure which appears con-
nected with this susceptibility of oold, and which I believe haa not
hitherto been noticed. All the cuckoos, both of the old and the new
worid, which I have had the opportunity of dissecting, are remarkable
for the thinness and delicacy of their skins, so mnch so indeed as to
render their preservation in an entire state extremely difficult to
inexperienced hands. Every one who haa akinned the common
Britiah apeciea muat doubUeaa have observed this. On the other
hand, as if to compensate for the delicacy of the cuticle, the feathers,
more especially upon the back and rump, are unusually thick-set and
compact." ^
Tropical countries, and those which approach the equator, afford
the greatest number of species.
The food of the Cuckoos, as might be expected from thia geog^ra-
lihioal diatribution, oonaiBta principally of soft fruita and soft inaecta,
especially the latter, and more particulariy when they are in the
larva state.
CfuculinoB indude the genuine Cuckoos. Thia sub-family haa the
following characters :-— BiU wider at the base than it is high, rather sud-
denly contracted behind the nostrils and becoming oomprraaed ; upper
mandible alightly ainuoua at the tip, so as to assume the form of the
dentirostral notdL Wings considerably long, nearly reaching to two-
thirda the length of the tail, and so fiur pointed aa to diminish rapidly
in length beyond the fourth quilL Feet remarkably abort; tarsus
thickly clothed with feathers for nearly half its length, not longer than
the hallux or true hind toe. Upper oover-featiiers of the tail thick-
set, narrow, generally pointed, and comparatively elongated, and in
rigidity only comparable to those of the Cehlq^ifrince, the oorresponding
type in the Laniadcg,
"Popular interest," adds Mr. Swainson, ''haa been so much con-
fined to the paraaitio habita of the cuckoo, that upon many other
pointa of ita eoonomy we are atill in comparative ignoranoe. Henoe it
la that we cannot trace, ao fully aa could be wiahed, the influence
which the atructure just deacribed exercisea upon tiie habita and
mannera of auch birda aa poaaeaa it. We know however that all the
genuine cuckooa fly with strength and rapidity. Most of them, in
fact, are migratory birds. .... The form of the nostrils in the
topical cuckoos ia veiy peculiar, and I believe that future observations
wUl ahew this structure to be intimately connected witii their para-
sitic habits. The nests of those spedes in which the cuckoo deposita
ita eggsj, we all know, are built in the thickeat and most central part
of trees and bushes, to discover which, superior powers of smell have
been given to the toucans (which feed upon the oggs or young), and,
in a less degree, are probably conferred upon the ouckoos, to facUitate
their search after a foster-parent for their young. How far this idea
may be correct future observations will determme. Certain however
it ia, that this peculiar-shaped nostril is restricted to such ouckoos as
are parasitic, for the whole of the Coccytina have the aperture of a
lengthened oval shape, or in the form of a slit, and all we know of
these birda aanetiona the idea that they are not paraaitia The
ahortneaa of the feet, in the typical cuckoos, ia another important
distinction, and leads to the beliof that tiiese members are much lesa
used than those of the ObecyeincB, whose habits we have already
mentioned when alluding to tiie cuckoos of South America, all of
whidi are excluded from the group now under conmderation."
Oucuku, — BUI broad at the base, compresed beyond, tiie upper
mandible obsoletely notched; nostrila circular, with a tumid margin ;
winga long, pointed, the third quill longeat, the aecond and fouru of
equal length; feet slender, very abort, taru feathered poateriorly
almoat to the toea ; rump and upper tail-covers long, thiok-aet, and
rigid. Inhabits the Old World. Parasitia
O. eanonu, the Cuckoo. It is the k6kku^ of the Greeks ; Oueului and
Coccyx of the Romans ; Cucculo, Cucco, Cuco, Cucho, CSuccu, of the
Italians ; Cocuo, Coucou, Coqu, of the French ; Kukuk and Kuckuck
of the Qermana; Ojok of the ' Fauna Suedca ;' Gjoeg of the C^nea ;
Gouk of the Norw^giana ; Cog of the Welsh ; Gowk and Cudcoo of
the Britiah.
Length about 14 inchea, weight about four ounces and a half.
Bill black, yellowish at the baae of the upper mandible ; indde of
mouth red. Iridea yellow. Head, and whole upper part of the bird,
dark aah-colour. Throat, under aide of the neck, and upper part of
breaat, pale aah, the latter aometimea inclining to rufoua Inrown ; lower
part of breaat and belly white, with tranaverae undulating black lines*
Quills duaky, inner weba barred with white oval spots. Tail-feathers
ten, of unequal length ; two middle ones black, dashed with aah and
tipped with white, the rest black, with white spots on each aide of the
shaft. The laterd feathers in some have wnite spots only on the
interior webs, but all are tipped with white. Female, rather leas than
Ut CUCULIDf.
Ewle, uid differiag from him niiullj in tha neck tad breMt bung of
1 tawny brown, bund with diukj bUok, uid the ooierti of tha wingi
mifked with ligbt ferruginous apota. Tkil-teatlisn and quilla mndi
like tlioM of the uukis, but the sdgea oF the apota incline to nddiah-
brown. Lega in both sezea abort and yelloir. Outer tail-feather and
firat quin remarkably abort.
Cuckoo [Cuculm
■")■«
The yontig is «o distinct in ite plumage from tha adult that it haa
been deacribiid M t. distinet spedea (C. rafui, BHf). It ia auppaaad
not to throw off ita nestlinj; feHthen till the aeoond yeiu'a moulting,
for it is stated in Uontagu's 'Dictionar;' {laat edit), that in three
specimene killed the aame aeaioD (twu malea and a female), the
thirteenth and three aacceeding quill-feethera, and the three greater
coTerts impending them, are bured with brown and farniginoua. "
the first year the iridm are gnjiab ; the whole upper plumage
miiture of dusk; bUck and ferruKinoua, in tranaverae bars, exoept
the forehead and a patch □□ the back of the head, -which in thia
specimen deacribed in Montagu was white, and the tip) of the eoapu-
lam pnie ; the feathera of the whole under parts sullied white, with
diitant tranirerH ban of duskj bUcL In general eaoh feather ia
Wred twice or thrice. The aidee of the neck and breast are tinged
with rufous ; lateral tail-feather* and inner webs of the quilla more or
leaa barred with white. Tail coverts, which, as well as the feathers
DD the rump, are unuauall; long, daahed with cineraoua and slightly
tipped with white.
The Cummon Cuckoo arriTea in thia conntij early in spring. In
White's ' Katuraligt's Calendar,' the Cuckoo is noted aa first nsard
April T-26, and iu KUrkwick's, April IS, May 3 ; laat heard June S8.
By the 1st of July it baa almost alwaya taken ita departure, but it is
aometimee later. Hr. Swainson,inhi8 Memoir on the Cuculida,' aaya,
" The common species comes to na svery spring, from northern Afnok
or Asia Minor, and returns in autumn. Tqie we know from persona]
obeerration ; for vast numbers arrive in the epring in Sicily and
Naplea, in company with the beeeaters, orioles, hoopoes, and other
migratory birds; but after remaining a abort time, they appear to
direct their flight narthward, from whence they return in August and
September." Speaking of tbe food, the same author observes, " The
Engliah eui^oo, no doubt, eenrches for ita food among foliage, but ita
nature is ao shy that wa have nerer been fortunate enough to witneaa
its mode of feeding." Montagu however, one of the beat autborit'ea
wa oan dte, says, that " its principal food consists of caterpillani, so
that it not only poaseeses the general cast of coloura, and much of the
itmctun of ita prototypes, tbe CAlqyrina, but actually feeds on the
same deacription of insects." The Editor of the 'Ma^aiine of Zoology
and Botany' adds, "In an open and muirland district where the
cuckoo is Tecy common, we have always found, during May and June,
that their Btomachs were filled with the remains of caterpillan which
fed on the raiioua plants frequent in such localities. Among them
thoae of the Latiocainpa formed a great proportion, and hairy apeciea
seem to be profarred." While, in his 'History of S«lbon\B,' thus
writai : " In July I saw sovera] cuokoos skimming over a large pond ;
and found, after some observation, that they were feeding un the
LibtUala, or Dngon-Fliea; some of which ttaey caught aa they settlud
on the weeds, and Boms as they ware on the wing." Tha following
norratiTe from the laat edition of Hontagu'a ' Dictionary ' will throw
■lime light DD this part of the tul^ect : " A young cuckoo, brought to
Colonel Hontagn in the month of July, juat aa it could fly, was, by
RTeat ran, kept alive till tha fourteenUi of December. It had, during
that time, two or three attacks of dyai^ntery, from which it recovered
by having chalk and ginger given to it ; and during the time it lived
no cliange waa obaarved to have taken place tn its plumage. For two
ths laat moment seemed to prefer being fed by
rather than have the trouble of pi<:king up
ptoking ; and ev
the hand of its . — ^-^
ita food, of which it waa eitremely choice. Nothing appeared to be
acceptable as a substitute tor insects except raw bee£ iHies it would
eagerly devoor ; hut ita ntosi delicloua morsel was any species of hairy
caterpiUanj theae it seiaed with avidity, shook them to dmth, and
softened by paaaing several timea through the bill, till thay were
perfectly pliant^ when it would swallow whole Uie largest of the
eaterpiUars of tha egger or drinker motlia. Of strangers it waa
extremely fearful. Buttering in its csge to avoid their attentions ; but
it wvuld qnietly suffer itaelf Id be handled and oareaaed by a young
lady who had been ita kind benefaotreaa, appearing to like the warmth
of her hand to ita feet"
It ia the habit of the Cuckoo in depotiting her egg in the nest of
another bird that haa made it so much on object of curiosity. Many
strange atories were formerly rife on thia custom, which can hardly be
called abandonment, aa the nast of a bird that feeds its young with
inaecta is always selected. Among others, the hedge-sparrow, the
reed-sparrow, the tit-lark, the water-wagtail, the yellow-hjmmer, *c,
have been recorded aa the hirda to whom the egg haa been committed,
but tha first seems to be most frequently chosen. White saw one
hatched in the nest of the tit-Urk. The nests of the grean-bird, the
linnet, tbe white-throat, and even of the wren have been menttonad as
the places of deposit Dr. Janner's celebrated paper in the • Philo-
sophical Tranaactiona' threw great light on this subject, and many
Dthar observers have corroborated in general that author's ramarka
Some indeed, and among them Dr. Fleming, have declared that in
some oases the Cuckoo constructs its own neat, but there can be lilUe
doubt that there ia no foundation for this assertion, and aa little that
fact, it is akuoat concluiive that she does nut so depoait it in all cases,
for the aperture of the wren's nest is in the aide, and not more than
big enough to admit the wren. Another obiarver haa recorded the
following facta : — " Previous to the above-mentioned publication (Dr.
Jenner'e) I had taken much paiua towards investigating the aeveral
phenomena I had noticed in this bird, and was so fortunate aa to have
ocular proof of the fact, related by Dr. Jeoner, of a young ouckoo
turning out of a bedge-iparrow'B neat a young swallow I had put in
for the purpose of experiment. It is needless to recite all the cir-
cumstances attending thia extraordinary bird, aa that gentleman has
1 amply explained it j I shall therefore only add, that I first saw it
ban a few days old, in the hedge-sparrow's nest, in a garden close to
cottage, the owner of which assured me the hedge-spajrow hsd four
e^s, when the cuckoo dropped in a fifth ; that on ths morning the
young cuckoo was hatched, two young hedge-apsrrowi wera also
excluded ; and that, on hia return from work in the evening, nothing
wae left in the neat but Che cuckoo. At flve or aii days old. 1 took
it to my house, when I frequenUy saw it throw out the young swallow
for four or Bve days after. TUs singular action was perfurmeil by
iixsiniiating itself under the swallow, and with ita rump Fon^ing it out
of the neat with a sort of jerk Sometimes indeed it failed, alter
much struggling, by reason of the strength of tha swhIIow, whii:h was
nenrly full faathei^ ; but, after a amall respite from the seeming
fatigue, it renewed its affurts, and aeemsd contiuually r'^etleaa till it
lucceedad At the end at the Sfth day this didpoittion ceased, and it
luffered the swallow to remain in the neat unmideated-" Thia won-
derful instinct ia absolutely necessair for tha sell-prreervation oF tha
young Cui;koo, which, if it did not dispose of all other cUimanta on
the (Section of the parents, must pensh for want, and, as it ia, the
littie birds to whose lot it falls to supply the demands of their
na and gigantic nestling, have a weary time of it. Indi-ed there
are well recorded inatances of th^ir being assisted by Uthera of their
m species, aud by other insectivorous birds.
The Romans considered the Cuckoo excellent aKting. Pliny (lib. x.
9) says that no bird can be compared to it for sweetness of flesh.
C ofawfanut, ths Great Spotted Cuckoo, ia a native of Senegal
and North Afrioa. It haa been obaerved on the continent of Europe,
and B apecimen is recorded by Hr. R. Ball aa having been taken in
Ox}/Uphu4 (Sw.) — Bill slender, considerably compressed nearly iti
whotu length; upper mandible entire j nostrils ovately round; head
crested ; wings moderate, pointed, shorter than the tail-covers, the
fourth quill longest; tarai moderate, naked; upper tail-cuven long
but not rigid. The species inhabit tbe Old World ; and are paraaitio.
0. LevailianHi. — Head created, the faathera pointed ; plumage
LhovB, black glossed with green ; band at the bass of the quills, end
if the tail, and under parts of the liody, white ; throat striped with
>lack. Winga long but rounded, fifth quill longeat. Total length,
.S inches. Mr. Swainaon, whose description we have given, says that,
unlike the true Cuckooa, these birds rear and provide fur thair young
In the ordinary manner. Locality, Senegal and the western eout of
Brflhvpkrfi (Sw.)— Bill u in Ozybp&tu; hud not owtod ; noi-
trili onl ; wiagi lengtliaaed, pointed, ■itonding b«]road the t^-
ooTsn, tbi thiid qaiU longoat, tha Hcond mach (hortar than tho
foorth ; tatii modenla, naked. They inhkbit Uie New World, and
tear their own Toung.
X. AmtricttMu (OurtiUit CanUiteiuit, WiJaon). — The male bu the
bill u loug t the head, oompraswd, ilightly arched, aouta, aoanelj
more robtut than in many Sgivia ; upper mandible oarinated above,
tit maigiu aoute ftnd entire; lower mandible earinated benekth,
aonte. Ksitrila bavl, lateral, linearelliptickl, balf-cloaed bj a mem-
brane. Feet ihott, tanoa aoutellate before and b^ind ; toe* two
befoie, aajMnted ; two behind, one of whiah ii veraaWe, tha aole fl^ ;
olawa alender, compreawd, arched. Phuna^ blended, aliebtlj gloaaed.
Winga loDgi the fint quill aborl^ the third longealTths primarin
tapering. Tail long, gnduaited, of ten batben, which are rather
m and rennded. Upper mandible brownitb-blaolc, 7*llow oa the
in towarda tha baae ; undsi mandible jellow. Iri* haaeL Feat
ih-bliH> The general ooloor of the upper pwti^ Imdnding tlu
CUCULID^ US
wing-coverfai and two middle tajl-feathen, ia light greeniah-brown,
deeper anteiiorijr. Piimuy quilli with the inner weba brownieh-
orange. Tail-feathen, eiceptiDg the two middle oaee, black, the next
twu eatirel; black, the reit broadlj tipjMd with white, the ontarmoat
whil« DO tlie onter web. The under parte are grayiali-whita. Length,
12( JQchss; eitent of wingt, 16 iuchea; bill ^ng tbe ridge, X inch ;
along the gap, one inch and a third. The female diff^ TSry little
from the maU in oolouring, (Andabon.)
The author whoae speofio deecription we bare gi*on above, thua
gnpbicallj describee the habile of tbe Yellow-Billed Cuckoo. {Otunhu
CaroUmntU of Wilaon, Cocej/tu* Americamu ot the Prince of Canino,
Cueulnt Anerieanm of Linnnua, and Carolina Cookoo of I^tham.
" The flight of tbe bird ia rapid, aUeiit, and boriaontal, aa it movea
from one tree to another, or acroa* a field or river, and ia generally
continued amongit tha tn^nchea of the treea in our woods. When
making ite wa; among tbe branohea, it oocaaionaJlj incline* tbe bodj
to either ride, lo a* altematelv to ahow it* whole upper or under
part*. During its eonthward migration it flies high in the air, and in
■uob loose flocks that the birds might aeem to follow each other,
instead of their keeping company together. On the other hand, early
in March, the greater number eater oar aouthem boundaries ainglv,
the males arriving first, and the female* a few weeka after. They do
not fly in a continued line, but in a lM*aad front, aa, while travelling
with great rapidity in a steam-boat, so as to indode a range of • hun-
dred miles in one day, I have oboerved Ibis ouckoo crossmg the His-
■inppi at many different points on the same day. At tma aeaaon
they reeort to the deepest shades of tbe forests, and intimate their
preaeoce by tbe frequent repetition of their dull and ""'"""'—< notes,
which are not unlike those of tbe young bull-frog. These notes may
be refiresented by the word ' oow, cow,' repeated eight or ten times
with mcreaaing rapidity. In fact, &om tbe reaemblanDe of it* notes
to that ward, this Cuckoo is named Cow-Bird in nearly every part of
the Union. The Dutch farmers of Pennsylvania know it better by
the name of Kain-Crow, and in Louisiana the French aettUrs call it
Couoou. It roba smaller birds of their eggs, which it i
which the Pigeon-Hawk {Falco eolwAiartwi} may be oonudered as its
viduaie remain there, not finding it necessary to go farther south.
This bird ia not abundant anywhere, and yet ia found very far north.
I have met with it in all the low grounds and damp plat^ in Mmss-
chuastts, along the line of Upper Canada, pretty high on tbe Hiiais-
the beginning of Hay, and at Green Bay not until the middle of that
month. A pair here and then aeem to appropriate certain tracts to
tbemselveB, where they rear their young m peace and plenty. They
feed on insects, such a* caterpillars and butterfliee, as well as on
berrie* of many kinds, evincing a special predilection for the mul-
berry. In autumn they eat many grapes, and I have seen them sup
porting tbemaelvee by a momentary motion of their wings opposite a
onneh, as if selectiDg tbe ripest, when they would seiie it and return
to • braneb, repeating their virita in this manner until latiBtfld. They
now and then deaceod to Ibe ground to pick up a wood-auail or a
beetle. They are extremely awkward at walking, and move in an
«mHing manner, or leap along aidewiee, for which the ehortneaa of tbeir
legs la ample excoae. They are seldom aeea perched oonspiouously
on a twig, but on tbe eoutikry are geuerall; to be found amongst the
thickest boughs and foliage, where they emit their notee nntil late ia
autumn, at which time the; dieoontinue (hem. The nest is simple,
flat, composed of a few dir sticks and grass, formed mach like that of
the common dove, and like it futened to a horiiontal branch, often
within the reach of man, who seldom disturb* it. It makes no par-
Uoolar selection aa to rituation or the nature of the tree, but settles
anywhere indismiminately. The eggs are four or five, of ■ rather
dongated oval lotto, and bright green colour. They rear only one
brood in n eeaaon, unlets the tqgt are removed or destroyed. Tbe
young are priompally fed with insect* daring the first weeks. Towards
antnmn they beoome ve>7 fat, and are fit for being eaten, although
few peraona, aieeptin^ the Creole* of Louiriana, shoot than for the
n CWWw- Plumage
4«ble." (' Omitholagieal Bicgraphy,' *oL i p. IB.)
"■ ' ■' ' ganeiu structure ai " "
mdible entire ; no
pointed, the third guill longest, the second much longer than the
murth ; tarsi very short, almost entirely plumed ; rump and npper
tail-oorers solt Inhabits the tropics of the Old World. Pararitia
when we find that there are alrMd; four i
distinguished at first sight by their diminutive aice and their btautiful
golden-green plumsge. On uie other band, their actual structure is
— oouplslely that of an European groupi that 1 must beg to be
» CUCULIDA
mtdsntood a* beiiig hj no m>uu wlufied on tin propriitj of tha
itfuMion. For tha pnaent hawcTer I ihtU adopt thi* ganui,
coneeiTiug that thgsa ipleodid littli birds ma; probabl; constitute
tha t«iaiR«trKl ^pe of the OtnUina, in which cua tbej vill be
uulogoua to ths bununing-birdi, *nd neerl; all thoH f^nen whoM
enga ii onuunanied with metallio cotonn. The attempt that bu
made to define tiie gronp hj its bill, noatrili, ke., u diitinot
tnm the euckooi, ii aineiilarij onjuooentul ; while thoM light ahade*
of diffimnoe raally exiitiug betwMn Chitieim and CW<niJwh>*« been
onopletelr oTsriooked. CMaleita, in tucA, baa the bill, noBtrila, feet,
ud wingi of Oitatliu, with thii difbrence only, that tha tip of the
Eppw maodibla ia without the alighteat indicatian of a notoh ; the
■amd and thlnl qoilla are longer than tha fourth, and tha fsathar* of
Uh romp and upper tail-oonra, inatead of being thick-aet and rigid,
ire of the nme degree of deniitj and eoftnaea u in ordinatr bird*.
Wa hara seen that, bawsTer Hi«inTiiil«f {q their appearanoa the fore'
going groupa of the CVcWwo may be, yet that the Tariation of their
ulanal itruotnre is bat alight Thi> oonrideration has much weight
with ma in the temporary adoptiaa of H. Leeaon'a genua ChalcUa,
lor wa have jnat aean an example in Eiythr^hrjit, where there ia m
equUf alight variation in aitemal form, yet a moat important one in
Nmomy and internal organiaatiou." (' Mag. of ZooL and Bob')
with greeniah-brown. Tha aynonyma of the female are Cjealui Mm-
danmuit, Lbn. ; Couoou Taehetd deUlndanao, 'Enl' 277.; Mindanao
Cuokoo, Lath. (Yigora and Honfield.)
fm^maniyi, Honf. and Via. — Bill atrong, thick, the under mandible
not nured, and angulatad beneath ; upper mandible entire ; wingi
piniited, the fonrth quill laogaat ; tain much shorter than the loogaat
toe; the upp<r part plumed: rump aud teil-^Dfer* aolt. luhabita
the Old Worid.
Ht. Vigora and Dr. HonAeld, who eatabliihed thii genus in their
dMcription of the Australian l^rda in the coUeotion of the t ■!""«««
ScMaety('Linn.Trana.,'vDLxT.p. 803), obaerre that tho true Cuckooi,
or that portion of the family of Oucuiida which constitutea the genus
Otnint of anthora, ia distinguiibed from the remaining groups of
the family by the comparati*e wsaknea* of the bill, in which the
itarca are small and rounded, and situated on an elevated membrane ;
by the winga being strongly aoumioatod, the primary quill-featbers
conaidervbly exceeding the seoondary io length ; and by the feeble-
turn of the legs and toes, the former of which are plumed beneath
the knee, and are generally coTsred by the feathem. £udgTunny$,
th«y state, deriatea Arom these oharaoten, which may be oanddsred
^ica] in the family, by the greater strength of all these membere.
The bill ia powerful, the under mandible more partieularW, which is
marked b7 a strong ascending gony*. The costnls an wide and onl,
ud covered only on the nppar part by ■ membrane. The tarsi and
feet are partioularly etrong ; the former are muoh compressed on the
external side, exhibitiog by this conformation a nearly flattened
■ntfioe in troat. In many of these partioulan the gniap agrees vary
nearly with the neighbouring genera, Catlroyiu, ill., and PluxHico-
liliwi, Vieill., which have equally been separated from the typical
ipecieB of the family. But it may at once be distinguished from
CoOntpm by the absence of the lengthened nail to the hallux ; and it
will be seen equally to differ from Phaaieopka*i in iU stronger,
shorter, and less arcuated bill, in the wings bong longer, and the tail
rounded, not graduated. The oompressed formation of ths sidea of
the lani in fudynomw is also wanting in PhanieafkaM.
Tha speoie* are widdy distributed over the Bast
£ Oritntalit; Citadiu Orisnlaiu, Linn. ; Couoon dee Indea Orien-
taies^ ' EnL' ; Eastern Black Cuokoo, Lath.
The plumage of tlte male ia blaok with metaUio lustre. Bill yellow,
The female is shiniiig greenish-brown above, spotted with white ; tail-
bathers banded with white ; whitish beneath, tranarerselT undulated
aucies,
Mr. Cal
Esstem Black CDtkeo [Ai^FMxri OrimfUt),
Tbeae birds, which now generally an oonaiderBd the sexes of one
^es, appear to be but accidental vluters in tha colony. At leaat
Caley informs us that he never met with more than two indivi-
duals of the male and one of the fomale. The male specimen in the
society's coHection seems to be a young bird changing to the ndult
plumage. It has several pale ferruginous feathers in die lower parts
of the body, and it haa a single ferruginoiu feather streaked with
black among the secoDdary quill-featheie of the right wing, which
forms a striking contrast with the deep black of the rest. I'hs cor-
responding featber on the left wing was loet, as Mr. Caley tells us, by
the shot striking the wing. This bird hod berriee of CmtyUut \a its
stomach. The native name of the male is Cowbat, of the fnmsje,
Belliaging." (Tigurs and Horsfield.)
"All the cuckoos I have yet seen," saja Mr. Swainson in hia
'Memoirs on the Cuculido,' " with more or less pointed winga, and
circular nostrils, and whose habits are parasitic, will aitvige them-
selves under one or other of the foregoing genera. Nor are thera
wanting oonsiderations, drawn from their analogii^l resemblancea in
other groups, which reader it highly probable that the; serra to
indjoate a ciroular group. Erythnphrgt, as the rasorial type, resem-
bles the rufous-winged ecansorial creeper ; and ai it is by this group
that the paraaitic cuckoos lead immediately to those which build
neats, aa we have the external characters of Oxylophut joined to the
economy of Coceyifu. OkaUUet, again, as representing the humming-
birds, may be viewed as tha tenuiroetral type ; while Sudgnamyt,
with its lu^e bill, and bUck glossy plumage, will become the repre-
sentative of Uie toucans, and of the fis^rostral type. It may
be questioned, indeed, whetJier Otuvlut or OiytspAM follows
Emlynarni/t ! but I incline to the series in which they are heN
placed, from the obvious affinity of &ytltn>phiyi to OzylopAw."
(' Hag. of Zool. and Bat')
The family ladicaiorina includes the Honey-Ouidea. There
appears to be but one genus, Indicator (Le Vaillant), which is
thus obaracterieed : — Bill straight, Finch-like, ths base triaogular, the
sides compressed. Culmen and gonyi equally inclined towards ths
tip; gonys anguUted. Wicgs lengUiencd, pointed. Tail moderats,
rounded. Feet short Middle toe much longer than the tardus.
Mr. Swainson is of opinion that the nearest approach to tha
Creepers yet known is made by the African Honey .Quides, whose bill
*~ not unlike Orlhengxj and he adds that theee birds are said to dimb
a more perpendicular manner than any others of this faoiily ; the
me Eoologist has pointed out the affinity of Indicator to Bwpiaga.
The species are not numeroua, The stories told of these birds
indicatiiy the nests of bees and guiding man to them by their motions
and criea, from the time of Sparrman downwards, appear to be per-
fectly authentic, though somo great travellen afTected to disbeltevs
them. Mr. Swainson censures Bruce and Le Yaillant for their soap-
lioism on this subject, and quot^ Mr. Barrow to prove ths univer-
sality of agreement ou this point in the country itsslt He farther
says, " If more evidence was wanting than this aud other similar con-
finnations of Dr. Sparrman's statement, it will be found in ths follow-
ing note hy H. Wiedmann, attaobed by a label to the apscimon bom
S51
CUCULlD-ffl.
cucuMia
253
which the subBequent deBoription waa taken : — '' So soon as thb bird
aeea a man in the woods, where a bees' nest is in the neighbourhood,
he flies before the man, and criM 'shirt ! shirt I shirt I ' " Mr. Swain-
son then proceeds to describe his Indicator leucotis (/. albirotirii,
Temm.). (' Birds of Western Africa; ' 'Naturalist's Library;* 'Orni-
thology,' ToL viiL)
Mr. Steedman, in his ' Wanderings and Adventures in South Africa '
(18S5), says, "The little honey-sucker, or Indicator, kept fluttering
before us with its cry of ' oherr, cherr,' as if inviting us to follow. It
is frequently known to conduct travellers to a nest of honey deposited
in the hollow of a tree. I have however heard many instances
mentioned of its stopping short of the hive, and hovering over a spot
where a lion or tiger hks been reposing, justly establishiDg its chanurter
as an Indicator. Mr. Van der Nes informed me that he was once
induced to follow it in expectation of discovering honey ; and on
pushing through the thick brushwood that enveloped the trunk of a
tree over which the Indicator was hovering, he suddenly came upon a
leopard : at the same instant the animal made a spring in a contrary
direction, and much to his gratification disappeared without attempt-
ing to do him any injury, being evidently as much alarmed at the
intrusion as the Veld comet had been at so unexpected an en-
counter."
The species of this family are natives of Africa.
The other sub-families belonging to the Cv>culidas are, according to
Mr. Swainson, Coccyzince, and CrotophagincB, and LeptottominoB.
The Coccyzinai, or Hooked-Billed Cuckoos, are characterised as
having the wings short and rounded, the nostrils linear, the bill curved,
the margins of the upper mandible dilated, the tarsus naked and
lengthened, and the tul very long and conceaJed.
The genera comprised by Mr. Swainson under this sub-family
are the following : —
Seritomut. — Bill short and strong, the gonys thick, ascending,
and angulated; the culmen thickened and arched; the tarsus
and middle toe equal, the lateral toes unequal, and the claws riiort.
Example, Seritomvs cristaiui, (Sw.) The species are found in
Africa. (Sw.)
Zancloslomut. — Bill much compressed throughout^ gonys curved
downwards, culmen and upper mandible greatly curved, and the
basal maigin considerably dilated ; wings, tail, and feet, as in the last
genus, but the lateral fore toes nearly equaL Found in the tropics of
the Old World (Sw.). Example, Zanclo8tomua Javanicut, Phcenico-
phaui Javanicut (Horsf.). Java.
Coceynu (YieiUot). — Bill moderate, thickened at the base, com-
pressed ; gonys straight ; basal margin of the upper mandible not
curved outwards, and scarcely dilated ; tarsus and middle toe of equal
length ; lateral toes unequal Natives of America only. This genus
haunts the branches of lofty trees, from which it collects the insects
which form its food.
C. Americanut is described by Tarrell as an occasional visiter in
Great Britain. He records four captures of this bird.
Mr. Swainson places the Coucals of India and Africa under the new
sub-genus Leptouna.
Pliloleptut. — Wings very long ; bill intermediate in form between
CocqffsuM and. Centroputj nostrils long and linear ; feaUiers of the
head and neck slender and rigid ; tarsus and middle toe equal, lateral
toes unequal, all the claws curved and of equal sise ; tail-feathers
eight. Habits terrestrial. The species iohabit South America.
Example, PtiLoleptut cristaitu. (Sw.)
Cmtropua (Illiger). — Bill strong; tarsus and middle toe equal;
anterior daws slender, slightly curved ; hinder claw very long and
nearly straight. Native of Africa. Example, C. Senegalcnsit. Mr.
Salt, in his ' Travels,' notices this bird as common in the mountainous
districts (Abyssinia), generally sitting in the thick caper and thorny
bushes, whence it is difl&cult to drive it.
The Crotopkoffina, or Horn-Bill Cuckoos^ consist of the following
genera : —
Crotophaga, [Crotophaga.]
J9(My2opAtu.->Bill rather laxge and compressed throughout ; gonys
angulated ; culmen convex, gradually arched ; frontal fearers incum-
bent and concealing the nostrils ; feathers before the eye erect, form-
ing a double crest. (Sw.) Example, D, wperciliotua, (Sw.)
Phcsnicophaus (Vieillot). — Bill lai^e, very thick, smooth, resembling
that of a toucan in miniature ; face naked ; nostrils basal, oval, close
to the gape, placed in a groove of the bill, and defended by stiff
erect bristles. (Sw.) Example, P. viridit.
The Crotophagince are found in Africa and America.
The Leptottomince, or Long-Billed Cuckoos, consist of the following
genera: —
Sauroihera (Vieillot). — Bill lengthened, longer than the head, and
straight, except towards the tip; the culmen convex, the gonys
straight, the upper mandible with its max^gins finely crenated ; orbits
naked ; wings moderate, second and third quills longest ; feet short.
Example, 8. velata,
Anqdanut. — General structure of Saurothera ; but the upper man-
dible is only notched at the tip, the margins are entire ; wmgs much
rounded, the first four quills graduated. (Sw.) Native of India.
Example, A. rufetcent,
Leptoetotna. — Bill very long and entire; wings very short and
rounded ; tail long and ouneated ; tanros much longer than the toes.
Example, Z. longi^tuda,
Mr. Swainson considers Leptotlotna to be the grallatorial type of the
Cuculida, Centropua he also considers to be a grallatoriiEd type.
The Lepto^omina are found in India and America.
CUCULIN^ [CucuLn>JB.J
CUCULLUS. [AOALBFH&J
CUCUMBER, the name of the fruit of Oucwnis iotivtu, [CuctnoB.]
For its culture and varieties see Cucumber, in Arts akd Sa Dir.
CUCUMBER, SPIRTING. [Momordica.]
CU'CUMIS, a genus of Phuits belonging to the natural order
OueurbitaeecB, comprehending the Melon, the Cucumber, and some
sorts of Gourd. It is distinguished from the neighbouring genera by
its three thick split stigmas, and by the seeds having a thin maigin.
The fruit is in all cases pulpy internally, many-seeded, and divided
into three or six cells when young. The following are ihe principal
species : —
C, Melo, the Melon. The native country of this valuable plant
is imknown. Linneus says Tartary, but his authority is not given,
and in all probability is erroneous ; De Candolle says Asia ; Roxbuxn^h
only knew it in a cultivated state in tropical India ; and Professor
Royle seems unacquainted with any wild station for it in the Himalaya
regions. Cashmere is the most likely to be the country whence it
sprang ; for it seems to be the mother of many of our other culti-
vated fruits, and has from time immemorial been famous for the
excellence and abundance of its melons, which form a staple article of
the food of the inhabitants. For the varieties and cultivation of this
fruit see Melon, in Arts and Sc. Diy. ; we only here observe that all
the melons known in Europe belong to the present species, unless it
be the Winter Melon and its varieties, and that kind possibly origi-
nates fh)m the following species : —
C. fUiliasimuBf an annual, native of the higher cultivated hinds
of India, but generally found in a cultivated state. ** The stems
exactly as in C tativiu, but not quite so extensive. Tendrils aimple,
leaves broad-cordate, generally more or less 5-lobed ; lobes rounded,
toothletted ; above pretty smooth, below scabrous, the liu^est geme-
rally about six inches each way. Floral leaves of the female flowers
sessile, and very smalL Male flowers axillary, pedunded, crowded,
but opening in succeasioxL Female flowers axillary, peduncled, soli-
tary, both sorts yellow, about an inch or an inch and a hiadf in diameter.
Fruit fleshy, generally a very perfect oval ; when young, downy and
clouded with lighter and darker green ; when ripe perfectly smooth,
variegated with deeper and lighter yellow ; from 4 to 6 inches long,
and from 8 to 4 inches in diameter. This appears to me to be by far
the moat useful species of Oucwnit that I know. When little more
than one-half grown the fruits are oblong and a little downy ; in this
state they are pickled; when ripe they ai'e about as la^ge as an
ostrich's egg, smooth and yellow; when cut they have much the
flavour of ^e melon, and will keep for several months if carefully
gathered without being bruised and hung up ; they are also in this
state eaten raw, and much used in curries by toe natives. The seeds,
like those of other cucurbitaceous fruits, contain much farinaceous
matter blended with a lai^ portion of mild oil The natives dry and
grind them into a meal, whioa they employ as an article of diet ; they
also express a mild oil from them, which ihey use in food and to bum
in their lamps. Experience as well as analogy proves these seeds to
be highly nourishing, and well deserving of a more extensive culture
than is bestowed on them at present. The powder of the toasted
seeds mixed with sugar is said to be a powerful diuretic, and service-
able in promoting the passage of sand or graveL The cultivation of
this species is chiefly confined to the Guntoor Circar, where the seeds
form a considerable branch of commerce ; they are mixed with those
of HolcuB Sorghum, or some other of the laige culmiferoua tribe, and
sown together ; these plants run on the surfiuse of the earth, and help
to shade them from the sun, so that they mutually help each other.
The fruit keeps well for several months if carefully gathered ilnd
suspended." (Roxburgh, ' Flora Indies.')
V. $ativut, Uie Cucumber, has rough stems bearing tendrils;
leaves cordate, obscurely 5-lobed, petiolate, the terminal lobe the
largest ; flowers on shurt peduncles, usually 3, of a yellow colour ;
the fruit is long, somewhat triquetrous, smooth or prickly, usually
shining. When very young the Cucumber is Imown by the name of
Gerkin. Tartary is assigned to this species as its native country, but
upon authority equally questionable with that for the Melon. No
modem traveller seems to have found it wild. [Cucumber, in Arts
AKD Sa Drv.]
C. Colocynthit, the Colocynth Gourd. This plant furnishes the
drug Colocynth, so well known for its purgative properties. It is
found wild in tiie Grecian Archipelago, Egypt, and the north-eastern
parts of Africa generally. Burckhardt saw it covering laxge tracts in
Nubia, and Roxourgh speaks of it as common on the coast of Coro-
mandel. It is doubtfm however whether the plant of the latter
botanist is not rather C. Puudo-Colocgnthit. This species grows like
a cucumber, but has cordate-ovate many-cut and lobed leaves, white
beneath with hairs. Its fruit is small, round, deep yellow, smooth, hard
exteroidly, with an intensely bitter pulp. The gourds are gathered in
autunm, when they are beginning to turn yellow ; they are Uien peeled
and dried rapidly in stoves. [Coloothth, in Arts and Sa Diy.]
la CDCnMITEa
C. dtrullut, the Water-Uelon. Its dstplf-lobsd and guhed
Imto, uid its round fruit, with ft apottad rind knd i ooM wktmy
[nok cr iThit« flash, in which lie a numlier of black Madi. (ufficieutlj
mark this apeciea. which i> moat eitmiiTelj' cultiratAd »1\ otot Indik
and the tropics of Africa and America, and gensnlly in hot countrje*.
but which is of do Ta]',;e in the north of Europe, whan high Savour
is nqobrd mors than ooohng properties. This i^ot aerrea both for
food, drink, and phync to the Egyptians. It u asten in abuudaaoe
danug the aaason, which a fromMay to July. It is tha only madi-
eioe ue common people nss in ardent fevers : it is gathatnd wbea
ripe or almoat decaying; the juice is expressed, and mixed with sugar
Bzid roaa water. It is genarallj considared to be the Uelon of the
Jews mentioned in msny pajrta of the Bible.
The other species ara of little moment oompared with the pre-
ceding ; many are eatable, but they are in all reapeots inferior in quality
and nie. C. Dwiaim is aometimea grown under tha name of Quaen
Anne's Packet Melon, but It is a mere curioaity.
CUCUUITES, a gcnni ot Fouil PlantA, from Shappey. (Bower-
hank.l
CnCURBITA, a ganoi of Plants belonging to the natural order
OitmriUaeta. It has moDcedoua Bowers; a campanulate yellow
corolla, the petals joined together and to the calyx. In the male
flowers the caJyx ia hemiapberically campanulate. The stamens S, in
tbrea bimdles, or joiuad at tlte apex ; anthers abruptly carved both
at the baae and the apex, tha rert straight and parnlle]. In the
female flowers the calyx is obovate elavate, narrowed towards the
top or eainpBQulate, and always ciroumoisad under the limb after
flowering! the antheri usoaUy sterile; stigmss 8, thiekish, and
S-lobod ; froit 3-9-ceUed ; seeds ovate, compressed, with hardly tumid
C. maxima, the Common Large Gonrd, has oordat« leaves, very
nigged hispid petioles ; the tabs of the calyx obovate, ending in a
C. Mtloprpe, Squash Oourd, has cordate obtiue leavea, aomewhat
S-lobed ; denticulated tendrils, uaoally transformed into very imper-
fect leaves ; tba calyx hemiapfaerically campanulate, short, having the
throat mnch dilated; the fruit depressed; carpels irregular, rising
beyond tlie throat of the oalyi ; the flash dry, spongy, and white.
The fruit is flattened at both ends. It is of great use in long voyages,
for it csn be kept for several months in afresh state, and is commonly
made into pies like the pumpkin, or bailed and eaten with meat
ioslead of tumipB or potatoes.
C. Prpo. Pumpkin, has oordate obtuse leaves, somewhat G-lobed,
deoticulated, the calyx ending in a neck beneath the limb ; fruit
roundish or oblong, and smooth. It is a native of the Levant. This
is the Melon or Hillon of the early horticulturists, the true melon
being formerly distinguished by the name of Husk-Melon. Though
often grown in gardens for curiosity, it is cultivated in many country
villages in En^snd on dunghills, with the shoots trained a great
length on the grass. When Uie fruit is ripe a hole is often cut in the
nde, the seeds taken out, and the space filled with apples, sugar, and
spice ; the whole being baked is then eaten with butter. On the
Omtiiient the fruit is a good deal used in soups, and also stewed or
fried in oil and butter. Pumpkin pie is also very common in many
parts of llie wotld. There are various receipts given in oookery-booka
for dressing this fruit so as to reader it a palatable and wholesome
article of diet
C. aurantia. the Orange-Qourd, ia rather more tender than the
other species. Ita native coun^ is unknoim. It has hitherto only
been cultivated for curiosity. When trained spirally round a pole or
against a wall, and loaded with yellow fruit, it is very ornamental.
C. owifera, Egg-Bearing Oourd, or Vegetable Marrow, has cordate
sn|nilar leavea, 9-lobed, denticulated, pubescent; the calyx obovate,
ending in a short neck, and cut round after flowering to the neck. It
is a native of Astrakhan. The herb and flowers are very like those of
C. Pej>o, but less scabrous. This fruit is useful for culinary purposes
in every stage of itagrowth. When young it ia good fried with butter ;
when larger, or about half grown, it is excellent either plain boiled or
■tewed irith a rich sauce ; in either case it should be cut in slices.
The flesh has a peculiar tendemeia or softness, from which circum-
stance it received its name ; and this property remains till it ia almost
folly grown, wbeu it is used for pieA.
C. Lagmaria, Conunon Bottle-Oourd (LagenariamilgarU of Seringa),
is s musky-scentod plant clothed with soft pubeacsnce ; the stems
climbing; tendrils 34-cleft ; lesves Cordala, nearly entire; theflowen
tnoDCeeioiii, stellate, spreaHiug much in fascicles; the fruit is pubes^
nnl, but when mature quite smooth ; the flesh white and edible. It
ii a native within the tropica. The fruit is shaped like a bjttle ;
'brn ripe of a pale yellow culonri some nearly six feet iong, with a
roundish bottom aod s neck ; the rind becomes hard, and when dried
it cspable ot containing water. It is then of a pals bay colour. It ii
very important that these bottles should be well and repeatedly washed
DUl, fO as to remove all traces of a bitter principle in which they
ibDund, which ia poisonous. It is said that a sailor was poisoned some
Ks ainoa t^ drinking beer out of one of these bottles which had
improperly prepared. Professor Koyle also mentions, upon good
CUCURBITACE.*. S54
authority, that oasas of poisoning have oocurrad from eating t^e bitter
pulp of this plant, in whioh the symptoms were those of cholera.
There are about nineteen species tt this genus : Uiey are propa-
gated from seeds.
CUC[JRB1TA'CE.£, Cmmr^itt, the Cucumber Tribe, a natural
order of Plants. It consists of climbing or trailing species with
unisexual Bowers, scabrous stems and leaves, a lobed foliage, and a
more or less pulpy fruit with parietal placentas. Nearly all thespedea
chmb by means of tendrila. The greater part consists of annuals,
either wholly, or in so far as their stems at least The petals ara
deeply vein«l, and usually either yellow, white, or greeu.
The order abounds in useful or mmarkable plants, comprehending
as it dues the Uelon, Oourd, Cucumber, Colucynth. Bryony, and all
the many species approaching those types, ^nfa-sor Royle, in his
valuable ' Illustrations,' remarks that " they are chiefly remarlabla
for the power of adapting themselves to tha different situations wh»re
th^ may be grown. Thus wa heir of their affording large and juicy
fruit in the midst of the Indian Desert, where water is 300 feet from
the surface (Elphinstone) ; and they are equally grown in the dry
season on the saudy islands of Indian riven ; b'lt exoess of moisture
does not appear to be injurious, as the great majority are successfully
cultivated in the rainy season ; and Ur. Uoorcroft describea an eiten-
■ive cultivstion of Ueloos and Cucumbers on the beds of weeds wfaieb
float on tha lakes of Cashmere ; they are similariy cultivated in Persia
and in China. ('Hort Trana.,' 2nd aer.. voL I p. 46S, and SUuntou's
' Embassy.'] Being chiefly annuals which a few months suffice to bring
to perfection, we find them succeeding in the summer tamperatnre of
northern climates, and thus extending from tha line to 68° or 80* of
northern latitude, and southwards to the Cape of Good Hope. 3oma
of the spsoiea may be seen in tha most arid places ; othen in the densest
jungles. Planted at the foot of a tree, they emulate the vine in
aaeending its branchsa ; and near a hut they soon C'.ver ite thatch
with a coating of green. They form a principal portioD of the culture
of Indian gardens : the farmer even rears them in the neighbourhood
of his wells."
The afllnittea of this order are irith Dalaautte and Btgoniaaa.
There are Sfl genera and above 270 species.
1 , a •lertlt IIowit ; I, s rrrtlla flower ; S. a kcUdd of a and j 1, Ihs eaibrrOi
Two principles eapecially deserve attention in this order ; the one
saccharine aud nutritious, the other bitter, acrid, and pur^tire ; and
the qualities of tha products of the anecies vary according to the
preponderance of the one or the other. In the Melon, thi' Oourd, and
their allies, the first exists almost exclusively, and hence the edible
nature of their fruit ; but even here its well-known laxative quality
aufSaiently attests the presence of the bitter principle in some degree.
In the Colocynth, the Bottle-Qourd, various species of Lufl^ Bryony,
SS5
CUDDEN.
CUNITA.
266
and othen, the bitter principle is found in a state of oonoentration,
and hence the active and even dangerous qualities of those plants,
from which the Cucumber itself is not exempt : only its bitterness
is destroyed by the peculiar cultivation of that plant The seeds of
some kinds yield oil ; and those of OuewnU Momordica are said to
be ground into a kind of meal [Cncuxis; Cucurbita; Brtonu;
MouordicaJ
CUDDEK [Merlanous.]
CUDWEED. [FiLAOO.]
CULEX. [CuuciDEs.]
CULI'CIDeS (Latreille), a family of Dipterous Insects of the
section Nemocera. It has the following characters : — Proboscis long
and slender, projecting forwards, usually straight, terminated by two
little lip-like appendages ; sucker composed of six slender bristle-like
members; palpi 6-jointed, generally elongated; antemue filiform,
covered with hairs — ^in the male sex resembling little plumes ; eyes
contiguous ; no ocelli ; wings inclined, lying close to the body when
at rest^ and having one marginal and two sub-marginal cells.
The Culicides, according to Latreille, constitutes the first family of
Dipterous Insects, and is the same group as that designated by Lin-
nsBus Ouiex, It is divided into three genera^ distinguished principally
by the following characters : —
Anophelet (Meigen.)— Palpi equal in length to the proboscis in
both sexes.
Oulex, — ^Palpi of the males longer than the proboscis, and in the
females very snort.
(Edet, — Palpi shorter than the proboscis in both sexes.
We are but too well acquainted with the torment inflicted by the
insects of this tribe, which are known in this countiy by the name of
Qnats ; are called in France Cousins ; and in America Mosquitoes.
The pain and irritation are caused by their piercing the skin to
feed upon the blood (by means of the little bristles forming part of
the proboscis), and injecting at the same time a poisonous fluid. It is
said the females alone are the persecutors.
The hmnming noise accompanying their flight is produced by the
vibration of their wings. Qnats seldom appear during the day-time,
except in thick woods, and they always abound most in damp situa-
tions, a circumstance owing to the habits of their larvse, which reside
in stagnant waters.
The female Qnat deposits her eggs (which amount to 200 or 800 in
a year) one by one : and as th^ are deposited they are joined together,
and form a little raffc> which floats on the surface of the water. The
eggs are hatched in about three days' time, and produce little greenish
larvse, which have a distinct head and lengthened body, composed of
numerous segments. The head is furnished with two ciliated organs,
which are in constant motion. This motion appears to be for the
puipoee of creating a current^ by which means minute animalculse, or
other substances which may constitute the food of the animal, are
drawn into the mouth. Two other appendages, furnished with tufts
of hair, appear to co-operate with the former for this purpose.
The breathing apparatus of the larva consists of a tube, terminated
by radiating sete situated at the apex of the body ; through this tube
the air is conveyed to the tracheae, and for this purpose it is brought
to the surface of the water, so that the animal is then in an inverted
position. There is another apparatus also, situated at the tail of the
animal, opposed to the breathing apparatus, which serves as a fin, and
enables the larva to swim and dive with considerable velocitv.
These larvae are full grown in about fifteen days' time ; they next
assume the pupa state ; the animal then appears to have a rounded
form, owing to the apex of the body being recurved. It still inhabits
the water and is active ; the position of its breathing apparatus is
however altered, it being now situated on the antsrior part of the
body, and consists of two little tubes, which, as before, are applied to
the surface of the water for the reception of air. When about to
assume the imago state, the skin which covered the pupa being
loosened from the animal within, and the space between the two being
occupied with air, it floats upon the surface of the water; the Qnat
breaks through the upper part, and stands on the skin it has quitted,
and which now serves as a little boat, upon which it floats untU it has
attained strength to fly.
Oulex pipieni (Linn.), the Common Qnat^ is less than a quarter of an
inch in length ; the palpi and antenna are brown ; the thorax is of a yel-
lowish brown, with two darker lines ; the abdomen is of a pale gray
colour ; the legs are brown, and the base of the thighs yellowish.
The insect which is so troublesome in the West Indies, the Mos-
quito {CtUex Motquito)t is not quite s<^ large as the Common Qnat.
Its proboscis is black ; the palpi are spotted with white ; the head
and thorax are spotted with silvery white, and the latter has a curved
band of the same hue. The edges of the segments of the body are also
of a silver-like colour.
CULM, the stem or straw of grasses.
CULTIROSTRES, a name given by Cuvier and others to a family
of Birds, consisting of those species wluch were united imder the genus
Ardea by Linnaeus, and whose bill is large, long, and strong, and most
frequently pointed also, such as Cranes, Herons, Storks, &c. [Arora.]
CUMBRIAN ROCKa Professor Sedgwick has given this term to
the lowest series ef Slaty Rocks which appear in the ranges of Skiddaw
and Qraamore FeU in Cumberland. They lie below the green slaty
rocks of Scawfell and th» Old Man, which the same writer regards as
coeval with the strata of Snowdon, and ranks under the title of
Cambrian. [Cambrian Rooks.]
The succession of rocks, as pointed out by Profeaior Sedgwick in
the Cumberland hills, is as follows :^-
1. Skiddaw Slate, usually without fossils^ but containing OrtipUilit^i
in one locality.
2. Coniston Limestone, abounding in fossils.
8. Coniston Flagstone and Qrit.
These rooks find their representatives in those called Cambrian in
North Wales. These latter rocks are included by Sir Roderick
Murchison in his ' Silurian System.' As the nomenclature of these
rocks is still a disputed question, we subjoin the account of them
published by Mr. Jukes, in his work on ' Physical Qeology.'
''Cambrian or Cumbrian Rocks. — The word 'rocks' is used here
instead of 'system,' or 'formation,' because we cannot yet precisely
tell the value of the Cambrian division. Cambrian means tne rocks
of Wales ; Cumbrian those of Cumberland and Westmoreland. la
Wales these rocks consist of certain thick sandstones, gritstones, and
conglomerates, with interstratified beds of green or green and purple
slates. It is in the uppermost of the slate beds of this Cambrian
group that the great renrhyn and Llanberris slate quarries are
opened. They contain no fossils. These rocks are found to have a
thickness of upwards of 20,000 feet in some places in North Wales ;
but as the base of them is never exposed we know not how much
greater thickness they may possess, nor what is below them. One
portion of this division has been provisionally called the ' Barmouth
and Harlech Sandstone Qroup.' Their upper boundaxy is a purely
arbitrary line along the top of a certain set of beds drawn oy the
officers of the Qeological Survey of Qieat Britain, under the direction
of Sir H. T. De la Beche, C.B. ; their reason for drawing it being
simply that no fossils have as yet been found below that line, whereas
fossils are pret^ abundant in many places above it It must not be
forgotten that Professor Sedgwick (of whose peculiar department we
are now speaking, he being the one geologist who has single-handed
done far the most to unravel the structure of these older rocks)
dissents from this placing of the boundary of the Cambrian Rocks ;
and himself places it much higher, so ss to include the beds we shall
subsequently speak ot, as Lower Silurian, dividing his system into
Upper and Lower Cambrian. There can be no doubt that if we
nqg^lect the fossils, and look only to the physical structure and position
of the rocks of Wales, Professor Sedgwick is right There can be no
reason for drawing the boundary where it has been drawn, and along
no other geological horizon in North Wales, except the fact that
fossils have been found in all the rocks above that line of division, and
in none of those below. Whether they may not hereafter be found
is another question. If we go to Cumberland, Professor Sedgwick
there describes the Cambrian, or, as he there calls them, Cumbrian
Rocks, as likewise consisting of upper and lower, and gives the
following abstract of them : — ^ ^
^ Feet.
. 1500
300
. 10,000
r Coniston Flagstone .
Cumbrian, Upper i Coniston Limestone
[ Slates and Porphyry
Cumbrian, Lower — Skiddaw Slate
6000
He describes these however as all fossiliferous, which, by the rule
lately mentioned, would exclude them from being considered as
Cambrian at all, more especially as the fossils of the upper beds are
such as palaeontologists seem agreed to consider of Silurian age. It
is highly probable that the Skiddaw Slates are of the same age
as the Barmouth and Harlech Sandstone Qroup of North Wales,
which likewise contains the best roofing-slates of that country. In
that case, according to the classification adopted by the Qeological
Survey, tiie Skiddaw slates would be considered Cambrian, and all
above them as Silurian. The reader will see from these statements
that this part of the classification of the stratified rocks is fiar from
being settled. There is however no dispute about the things
themselves; the rocks are all known, and their order completely
ascertained; the uncertainty is merely as to the name by which
certain portions of them shall be called." [Wales, Qbologt of, in
Qxoo. Drv.]
CUMINQIA [CONCHAOBA.]
CUMINUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
UmbelliferiB, It has 5 calyx teeth, which are lanceolate, setaceous,
unequal, and permanent The petals are oblong, emaiginate, erect,
spreading, with an inflexed lobe. The fruit is contracted at the side.
The ridges of half-frxuts wingless; the primary filiform, minutely
muricated, the laterals forming a border, the secondary more promi-
nent and aculeated ; the channels under the secondary ridges with
one vitta in each. The species are annuals, with multifid leaves,
having setaceous divisions. The flowers are pink or white.
CUMMINQTONITE, an American Minen^ belonging to the Horn-
blende series. It is fibrous, of an ash-gray colour, with a alight silky
lustre. It is found at Cummington and Plainfield, in Massachusetts*
(Dana, Mineralogy.)
CUNITA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Labiatce. It has a ISnerved calyx, ovate, tubular, equal, 6-toothed,
the throat villous inside. The corolla having the tube equalling the
CUKHINQHAMIA.
equal sntica loboi, the middle lobe ntho' the Uif<et uit
The •tanunt S, enet, aisertsd, without en; rmumente of the uppt
two ; GUnenta ^broni, tootUen ; mothen Swelled, oelli parallel, e
it length diTBiicatft The itfls Bhortly bifid at the apex ; the lobsi
Dewlf aqnal, luhiUate, mioatdf atigioatilsmua at top ; Uie aohenia
dl7 ud imooth. The flower* niiail, whits, or purpliib. The epeoiea
*M berb^ ihmb*, or oadanhruba.
C. Matiama, DatiTe of Canada to Caralina, on dry mountain^ ia a
bnndisd herii with ihort ^broua branchea, but pnbeaoent at the
Dodea. The corolla ia about twie« m 1oii|[ aa Uie oalyz, and ia pubea-
ccut inaide, and of a red colour. It ii employed mediomallr,
whcTs it growi^ in tli^t ooldi and fereri, with a view to exoHa
C. Bwroecpbita ia alao naed medioinally tu oougha and colda, in
Bnail, wbar* it growa. It hai a proaumbtnt itam, with aoaroel;
puboaoant bnuohea ; tha Imtm pvtioUte, oblong or oborate, obtuie^
(jiLto anting or aubmnuately wiT^«d, narrowed at (be baie, glabrona,
Bod flat rbe MroUa ia white ; the throat Tilloni inaide.
Than an Mraral special of thi* gvnaa, aoae of which an of any
know n nae aiMpt thoae abora meutioiied.
CDNNINOHAJIIA, a genua of Planta belonxbig to tha natural
nder C«nifwa. C. Smentit i> an ereigrean Chinese tree, formerly
callad Finnu laactolaia. It ha* narrow oral lanceolate atiif pungent
leavea, which, when the plant i* old enoogh, collect Into ooua^ after
Ihc manner of an Anmearia. The plant will lire near London in tha
, _a treea or ihruba, inhabiting Southern
A&ioa, Sonth Amenoa, and vair ipaiingly the Elaat Indiaa. In moat
reapects their flowei* are oonatracted like thoee of Sax\fragaeta, hut
tha itjles u« more oonaolidated, and they hare a denie ipiked or
tacamoae iufloreacenca inatead of a few ]oo*sly.artan^ blonom*.
Tha leaTea are oppo«ite, and foiniihed with iuterpetiolar (tipulea,
ind being pinnated, in most oasei give the plants a peculiar aapect.
Little ia luiown of their properties, except that their barh is BOme-
time* Toy aatringent, and used for tanning putpotaa. There are
12 gmaa and 100 specie*.
O. IFtini
1, a ptttett flOTH ; 1, is OTIrJ ;
rlptfcuit.
CITPRESSIKITES, a genua of FonI Plante troa Sheppey,
CUPRESSUS, a genus of Flints belimghig to the natnnl order
Oon^ftra, diatinguiahad from the Sn and pines by its Imtm bsing
msre scales, ita cones formed of a small nomber of peltate woody
bracta, and the seeds vary small, angular, and sereral to each bract
Botanists mention ssreral Epsoies, bat of these three onlv ar« suited
to the climate of Or«at Briuia.
C ttnptrvireiu, tha Common Upright Cjpreai, is a native of the
wa^er parts of Europe, but hoa long since been tnnsferred to
gardaui for the sake of ita deep evergreen branchee and teares, and
the gloomy air it impatta to tha situations which it occupiM, Its
timber is of great durability ; it ia prob«j)le that Oopber-Wood, which
■oms have rsfarred to the cypreaa, was rather tha timber of Th^a
artimio/o. It is not much cultiTatad in England, tha climate being
too damp and cold for it in summer ; otherwiaa it ia suffidentlr - .
capable of reiisting the cold of wiutar. Its formal mode of growu
moreover i* not to the tatte of tha people of this country. The
cypreas wu anciently, as wall a* at preeant, in south-eaatam Europe,
(diosen as a memorial of the dead ; and they are still the pnn-
cipal ornaments of oemeteries in Oraeoa and all over tha Ottoman
& Itoraontalit, tha Spraading Cypma, ia a far handsomer speciss,
partaking in ill tha excellent quahtiea of the lait, beiog more hardy,
and becraning a baanttfol object with ita graceful spreading branches,
loaded, as they nmallj are, with large round consa. Miller has
rightly pointed out the difference between this and tha last, but it is
uaverthdess exceedingly uncommon in the oollectioni of this country.
Tha Spreading Cypress of the nurseries is nothing but a very alight
varietr of C. Nxtpcrnrflu.
C. jtastfOniM, the Cedar of Ooa, differ* from the two preceding In
its much ftver mode of growth, and in ita leave* baring a singularly
glaucous colour. It is said to be of Indian origin, but htM long linos •
bean naturalised in Portugal, where about Cintia it acqoins a large
rize. In England it will Only soeoeed well in the warm part) of the
southern coast.
CUFULE, B kind of cup or iuTolocra surrounding certain kinds of
&uit, and compond of bracts more or leas grown together. In the
oak the cup of the acom ia tb* cupula ; in the haiel-nut it is the
busk; in tbs beech and chestnut the prickly shell; snd in the horn-
beam the lobed bract.
COPULIFER.E. [CoBTUCtB.]
Tetrameroos Coltaplera as hare club-shaped anteonai inssrted o
prolonged rostrum. In tha twelfth edition of the ' Syatema Natum,'
SS speciss sre enumerated. The progress of entomology hsf con-
vsrtsd the genus, as de6iied bj it* founder, into a fiuaily including
ssveral thousand qtedesi though tha original name is retained for a
taw Sonth American beetlea, of which Curaiiia tpUndidiu is the type.
Tha popular name for these insects, whatever mi^^ be their scientifia
designation, is the Weevil. Tha Weevils are favourites with the
entomologjat on aooount of the sigularitj sud often beaut; of their
forms anaaolours. The splendid Diamond Beetle, tha wing-cases of
which (bmish such gorgeous nucroscopic objects, is a member of th«
tribe. Many of thsm are adorned with the most vivid matallic luitre,
and soms in intensity and brightnesa of hue emulate gems, and have
been used for purposes of ornament The family includes vary
noneious genera and speciea, and they are distributed widely over
to tha agriculturist, deatroying graiig
fruit, flowara, Isave^ and stems, and from their numbers often psrpe-
traUng Berioua misdiief. Their natural history therefore haa been
made an object of special researchee, in the hope of countencting
their lavsgea. We shall here give aome account of the noiioua
1, Weevils attacking the nutriUve otgans of plants. — RkynAila
Bttuleli is a little blue or green beetle, gloiaed with metallic lustre,
•hioh attacks the vine sod tha pear^trea. It is four lines in length,
one-third of which is oocupied by it* snout Short spines on the
thorax i<;«t.mg\ii«li the male &om the female. It attacks the leave*
of the plants mentioned, in order to conitruct its habitation of
them, and with a view to their furnishing food for its ofbpring- It
rolls up tha leaves and deposits its ^gi in tha rolls, where they are
hatched, the nest afterwards supplying the larvm with food. As the
maggot grows, the railed leaf and it* stalk dry ap, and at length fUI
to tha ground on the flrat high wind, by which time the maggot is
fully grown and read; to Isave its house, to bury itself in the ground
and wait for the spring, when it is to appear in a new garb as a
Weevil
Tbeprocaasby which the roll is made i* thai described I» Kular :
" When the female has selected a suitable leaf, she cuts Uie petiole
with bar roitrum almost half through, so that it hang* down, and
is more oonveniently placed for future proceedings. She then begins
' rail the leaf together, generally alone, but somstimes sasisted by
a male. While this operation is going forward, she also laya her
ler, betveen the different foldi, ihe loUi the r
CURCULIO.
CORCULIO.
2A>
part of ih« leaf entirely together, so that it is impondble to diBcorer,
from the outward appearance, in what manner the eggs were deposited."
This beetle is extremely injurious tb Tineyards by defoliating the
vine, after which the grapes will not ripen, and tiie prospect of a
vintage is destroyed. The rolled-up leaves containing its young
should be oareftiUy collected and destroyed before the worms have
time to arrive at maturity. Its operations are often erroneouslT
ascribed to R, Bacons. Ottarhynehut iuictUtu is another beetle which
is injurious to the vine by gnawing off the young shoots. It also
attacks the roots of succulent plants.
NemoicvB ohlonffut is a little Weevil only two lines long, with a
very short beak, a black head, body, and thorax ; and reddish antenna,
feet, and wing-cases. It attacks the young leaves of young fruit-
tree% aboye iJl those of the peach, and is both a glutton and an
epicure; for while it deyours most yoradously, it selects only the
delicate portions of the leaf, the cellular parenchyma, leaving the
midrib and petiole untouched. It appears very early in spring, and
after pairing the female deposits her eggs in the ground, the grub
feeding on the roots of yarious plants until the following spring.
When these insects are on the trees, they must be gathered witiL
the hand.
There is a yery small species of BhynehiUt, the R AUiaria, scarcely
a line and a half in length, and of a steel-blue or green colour, which,
by injuring the shoots of young trees and fine g^rafts, is a source of
great annoyance to the planter, sometimes perpetrating great ravages
m nurseries, without distinction as to the kind of trees. The
following interesting account of the operations of this insect is
extracted from Eollar : —
" When the shoot of the tree or graft ii about a span long, the
'female selects one that suits her, and it does not tagxafy to what
kind of fruit-tree it may belong. As soon as she has reached the
most suitable part of the shoot^ she marks the place first by a prick
or by a small cut, where she intends to cut off the bud or moot.
She then recedes about a Une upwards, and begins (with her head
turned downwards), on the side which is not next the tree, to bore
with her proboscis, until she reaches the middle of the shoot. With
it she also widens the chamber, and prepares it for her ofbpring. She
then places herself oyer the entrance, and lays an egg, whidi is pushed
in by the probosds and conveyed to the proper place. This operation
lasts an hour. Immediately after the female returns to the former
place, to cut off the shoot^ moving it from one side to the other with
ner proboscis, until she has cut it a oertaia depth. She then giyes
some decided thrusts, which she continues, without fatigue, till the
shoot only hangs by the under part When she observes thii^ she
gets up on the point of the twig, to make it fall over by her own
weight. It not imfi^uently happens that it fidls immediately, the
shoot having been previously so cut as to remain attached to the
stem only by the bark. If me beetle howeyer finds that the pierced
shoot does not f ledl, she turns back to labour again at the aame place,
and cuts still deeper through the branch ; and if she is not able to
divide it, she gets up once more to the further extremity, by which
means she generally succeeds in bringing the separated branch to th»-
ground. When tms labour is over, ime feeds upon a leaf, scraping off
the epidermisy which serves her as food." This operation is repeated
day after day for the same puipose until the middle of June, at the
rate of two eggs a day, the insect reposing under a bent leaf at
night. Her work ia interrupted by bail weather. When the egg is
lyitched, usually in eight days, the grub eats the pith of the w^t
which falU off, upon which it leayes its habitation, and buries itself
in the earth, where it makes a subterraneous vault for its winter
residence. When the spring comes, it appears as a Weevil to pursue
the avocations above described. The beetle is timid, and drops from
the leaf when approached, so that, when we proceed to gather them,
which should be done in order to destroy them ^besides collecting
and destroying all fallen and ii\jured shoots where their ^ggs may be),
we must approach with caution to gain our object
There are two species of Weevil which attack the wood of the
pine-tree, namely, the ffylobiut AhiOu and Piuode» TiotaJfm ; the first is
the larger spedes, and usually precedes the latter in its attacks. When
the one is plentiful, the other is also abundant, and yice yersA; the
cause of this correspondence in numbers being, that they usually
only attack such trees as are sickly, but when the supply of sickly
trees fails, they are apt to have recourse to tiie more healthy phmts,
and thus may destroy valuable plantations. They apparently attack
sickly trees in preference, since in such the motion of the sap is
sluggish, and there is not so much resin exuded as to oppose and
impede their operations. The laiger insect attacks both bark and
buds, and dangerously wounds such ramifications of the roots as are
near the sur&ce of the ground. The wound is an ugly bean-shaped
scar. The second species chiefly confines its attacks to the bark and
sickly cones. The wounds it makes resemble pin-holes, and are often
extremely numerous. On account of their caution and timidity, both
these insects, although numerous when present, are yeiy difficult
to find. The best preventiye of their rayages is to root up and bum
such young trees in the plantation as are sickly.
There is a species of Calamdra^ the (7. Pidma/rvm, which in South
America attacks the pith of the palm-tree. Its larva is called by the
oolonists Ver Palmists, and is esteemed a delicacy.
In the third yolume of the 'Journal of the Royal Agricultural
Society of England,' Mr. Curtis has given an account of two little
Weevils, CeuicrhyndiMi aanmiUi and C ediUracftM, which injure turnip
crops by puncturing the leayes of the young turnips, sometimes
causing as much damage as the Turnip-Fly (HdUica Nemorum), They
should be collected from the turnip-flowers left for seed, by shaking
the stalks oyer a bag-net or doth, and sweepiog the insects into a
pidl of lime and water. The insects should afterwards be destroyed
by boiling, as the hardness of their homy ooat renders it no easy
matter to destroy them otherwise.
2. Weevils attacking the reproduotiye organs of plants. — There
is a little brown Weevil which often destroys our prospects of a
plentiful supply of apples. As soon as the spring comes it goes
forth to seek the apple-tree, and when the blossom-buds appear, and
are full of sap, it deposits its eggs in them, so that the grul» are
hatched in the first warm weather, and immediately prooeed to destroy
the generatiye organs of the plant, eating up the innermost first It
is cidled Amhotwrnm Pomomm. The affected flowers swell out, and
form a sort of cup, within which, when we open them, we find the
larva in the form of a small white maggot wi& a black head. The
beetle selects the finest apple-blossoms to be the cradles of its off-
spring. It bores a hole in them with its proboscis, making a canal
eyen to the parts of fructification ; then laying its eggs at the entrance
it turns round and pushes them in with its snout as far as it can.
This operation it repeats as long as it has eggs to lay, walldng from
blossom to blossom, choosing the finest and calmest days for its
labours. Nothing but gathering the beetles and destroying the
affected fiowers can arrest their progress in the orchard, and by doing
BO we may diminish tiieir numbw, though, it is to be feared, hopes of
their extirpation are vain.
There is another Weevil of the same genus, the A, Pyri, yery
similar in appearance, which destroys both blossom and leaf-buds of
the pear, and which, when not too numerous, may eyen inoresao the
crop by preyentmg an overweight of fruit The ascent of both these
beetles up the trunks of the trees may be impeded by circles of
paper coyered with tar.
The fruit of the plum is destroyed by a Weevil called SkYnehUet
eupreutf which sometimes also makes use of the soft spring shoots of
plum and apricot trees. The female beetle attacdos the plums when
they sre about the size of almonds. She has two objects in yiew ;
first, to deposit her egg in the pulp ; and second, to sever the fruit
firom the tree in order that the larva may bury itself in the earth
preparatory to its final metamorphosis. The first purpose die effects
by outtinff the epidermis with her proboscis, raising it, boring a hole
in which her egg is to be laid, and after that has taken place coyering
it carefully over with the raised skin so as to preyent the access of
water. Before die sets about this, die half cuts through the pedun-
cles ; and when the egg-laying operation is completed she seyers the
stalk entirely ; the joint operations occupy fh>m two to three hours.
It takes the grub five or six weeks to deyour the pidp of the plum.
If left undisturbed, the beetle never leayes the tree until it has
pierced and thrown down every plum it can find. The only remedy
or preventiye to its destroctiye industry is to gatiier and destroy the
affMsted plums. Similar ravages are committ^ on the apple by ano-
ther spedes of ShjptehiUt, R Bacchut, the hue of whidi is beautiful
purple and gold.
In the first yolume of the 'Transactions of the Bntomologiea
Sodety,' Mr. W. Christy has made known a Weevil, the CaUmdra
Ttunarindi, which destroys tamarind stones. There are sometimes
thiriy or forty of these Weevils in a dngle stone. He was led to se^
for them from finding that the stones of tamarinds sometimes
crumbled to pieces in the mouth. In such cases the albumen was
perforated in every direction, and the cavities filled with a brownish
powder. Those in which he first found the insect exhibited no trace
of puncture in the epidermis. It would be curious to ascertain, in
what nunner the parent insect depodts her egga If she attacks the
fruit in an adyanoed state die must have to make her way through
the external didl, the intemd acid pulp, and the leathery enyelopo
of the indde, beforo arriving at the stone itsdf.
A more destructive spedes of CaUmdra is the Corn-Weevil, C. gra-
naria. In this case the maggot also is found in the centre of grains
without trace of an aperture. The insect probably lays the egg in the
blossom. It is often yery abundant in old granaries. The bread
made from the affected fiour is supposed sometimes to be unwhole-
some. Perfect yentilation and a constant wliifting of the grain are the
best remedies. Mr. Mills states (' Ent Trans.' voL L) that a heat of
110* Fahrenheit did not prevent the deydopment of the insect, whilst
from ISO* to 140° kiUed them.
The Bruchua granariuB attacks peas and beans, sdecting the finest
seeds in which to depodt her eggs. The bean- and pea-fidds in Kent
suffer sometimes severely from this beetle. It is a Uttle black punc-
tured spedes, gray beneath, with legs of the same colour. B. An, a
laiger spedes, common in peas ftom Germany and Russia, is in Korth
America at times such a pest, that in some States, towards the
beginning of the last century, the cultivation of peas was abandoned
in consequence of its ravages.
The funily of OureiUionidcB, as at present constructed, has been
made the subject of special research on the Continent by M. Schon-
Ml CUBCUUA.
htm, uid 1b BngUnd by Mr, Walton. Th* toimtr aitomolagitt Iwa
pobliifced » work entitfad ' Qenen st Spaoiei CarouUonidum.'
CU'RCDUA, ■ gsDUB of Pluita bolonging lo Uis utund ordw
ZingiAmeta. It luu the tube of ths ooraU gndually enluged
npmrds ; ths limb S-lippsd, each lip S-putad ; tha nnglB Glament
hnxd i tits uither luoimibnit, with two ipnn kt the bus ; tha atjl*
eapilluy ; Ut« otprals S-cellod ; tha neda nnnaioiu. ■rijlita. Tha
■mdea u* •tonilea j^Mlta wiUi tubarooa roota ; IIm Sowan an of a
doll yellow oolonr, lairoQiided by bnoteolK.
d Zmmhtl, Zadoaiy, baa latraal apikea, the tnben pdmate, pals
itnw^«olouTad ; tha laaTsa from 1 to 8 tageth«r, with a long aoma-
what wingad patiolei with a dark purple aloud running down the
eantra ; the flowen ahorter than tha bractealw ; the embryo truncate,
nearly aa long aa tha aaad, the upper half lodgod in the litellua, the
lowar half in the fieriapenn. Thu plant ia the Zedoaria l«nga of the
■hop(^ and hai the Bame property aa tha faUawiog apedea. It ia a
natiie of the Eaat Indies and Jan.
C. Ztdaaria, Broad-LeaTed Tumario, haa the apikea lateral ; bien-
nial teben^ whi^ are yaUow Intenxally; Uie learea petioled broad-
laneeobrte, entire, nndameath oorcred with aoft aeiioeona down. TU«
ia theZadwwiiirMwi^of theahops. F6e haa oonfoandad Oia plant
with Kamgftria rMwida, which baa no aenaible [ovpartiea reaewbling
tha ^ant tn qnesUon. The tuben of thia plant are aromatlo, and
are oaed 1^ tiie Hindoo* not only aa a atimidating condiment and a
medioine, but aa a perfimia. Ita aenaible propratieB are rely like
, The
eztenaiTely.
other parte of Aaia, and of the
C mAaMMU haa lateral apikaa, the taban paaB-oolonred indde ,' the
Inrea faifariDO^ broad-lanoaolate, onapidat^ amooth, atrongjy maAad
with parallel reina, of a nnifbnn daA green with tiie mrrea or ribt
red, 13 to S4inelualong,Sor4inohea broad; the av^MainTeatad with
aarenl daA raddiah ahaathi. It w a native of Bengal AUtbapaita
ef tike flant hava a pleaaant annnatia aniall irfien t£e plant ia braiaad.
The pendnlooa tnbera of thia and aevaral other apemea of Onranta
yield atarch, and are employed by the nativea for preparing arrow-
root. In Trarancore it forma the prindpal diet of the natirea.
C. Aatada, Uango-Oinger, haa fsw-fiowered cenbal apikea ; the
tnbera horiionta], palmate, of a deep orange oolour inaide ; the leaTea
radical, bi&nona, petiolsd above their tbeaUu, laooeolata ouapidate,
amootii an both lideii, from 6 to 18 indue long by S to 6 inahaa broad.
This plant ia a native of Beiigal, and ia aalled t^ the Bengalaea
Anuda. It ia called Hango^inger becatiM the freah root haa the
■mell of a mango. It ia uaed for the aame puipoaes aa ginger.
O. leiKvrftim gnwa tn the foreate of Bi^ior, where it ia called
Tikor. It baa rsnurkably long taben, often ■ foot in length, of a
pale yetlDW inaide, and tbey produce an escelleot arrow-rool^
C. angutUfQlia, with ata^ed narrow lanoeolate leavea, ia a native of
the foreata of India trom the banks of the Lona to Nagpore. Ita
tubera, whioh are foond at the end of fleah; fibrea which meet toge-
titer fonniog a crown, yield an excellent arrow-root, which ia that met
with in the marketa of Benares.
C. tvnga, the oommon Tormerio, ia aultdvated all o*er India, and ia
need aa a oondiment and for dyeing. The root la divided into tevecal
fleshy flngsre, of an oblong form, and aa thick as tha thumb. Tha
leave* apring at once from the crown of the lOot, have a Unoeolate
Sgore, aneaaie each other at ths base, are aboat a foot long, and
prodnoe bma their centre a aho^ thick leafj spike, in the axil of
whose bracia are loUed the iDcanspicaouB pda cream-coloured
flowert. Dr. Roibuigh givea the follawing account of the manner in
which tlie plant is cultinAed : " The ground moat be rich, friable, and
•o high aa not to be drowned in the rainy aeaaoua, auch ai the
Bengtuaaa about Calcutta call Dan^^ It ia often planted on land
where aogar^cane gnw the preoediog year, and ia deemed a meliorating
crop. The aoil must be well plougtied and cleared of weeds, &o^ Il-
ia tiien raiaed in April and Hay, aooording aa the raina begin to fall,
into ridgea, nine or tan inches b%h, and eighteen or twenty broad,
with inteirenieg trenches, nine or ten inchea broad. Tha euttjnga or
aela, namely, aioall pottiona of the &eah root, are planted on die tope
' tlie ridge^ at about eighteen inchea or two feet asunder. One acre
lirea about nine hundred luoh aata, and yields in December
January about two thouaand ponnda weight of the freah rooU"
[ToimRic^ in Art* and 9a Dir 1
CDBLEW. [SooLOPAomx.]
CURIIANT. (RiBM.]
CDBRCCA, a genua of Ina— oiial Birda bdonglng to the tribe
Dtntmilm and family SgUiada. It includes, aooording to Yamll,
tha following Britiah apaciee ; —
Oitmea ttneapiOa, the Black-Oap WarUer.
O. tertnWH, the Oardau-Watbler.
tbe Oonunon Whit»^Throal^
I, the Leaaar White-Thraat. [Buox-CaP; and Stlr
al^Ji
J ..
CUSCUTACEjE.
habit
Aboat SO apecies have bem described.
Aiacttta, Dodder, la a genua met with in moat temperate climatea,
a spaciea Giing themaelvee on the branchee of wood; or other
plania, twiating round them, atriking a number of minato auokera
down upon their bark, and thua attracting from the system of
the plants and from the air the auatenance necessary to their own
support Hsnoe the; are true parasites, although the; do not actually,
like mlatietoe, plunge their roota into tha wood and inootponte
themaelvsa with the tiasue.
Oinata JtHAIinman, twining n
I perfect flower ; I, a oonlla cut open ;
1, the aisbrjo.
a onrr with lis calfi ;
olusten of whits beU-sbaped bloBaoms, each of which has
five scale* at the base of ita tube. The iVuit ia a little membnnoos
le, opening tranarereely like a aoap-boz, and dropping four aeeda
the aoil. There ia a common prqudioe that these wwda actually
sbike root into tha plant ; but Uiat uiia ia a popular error ia aufflcdentlj
ibown by the following obserrationa tranalated &om Da Candolle :
" The seed of dodder dUTera &om that of other Ctnuwlvwlaeen by tha
absence of ootyledona, as the dodder Itaalf diSen trota them "m the
abeoioe of leaves ; tha latter an either entirely absent, or an reduced
to almoat Imperoepljble acalea. The garmination of the dodder is
elleoted, Uke that of plants in gener^ in the earth, and without
nqoiling tha praaenoe of other vagetablea. The embijo, depiivsd of
Ita ootylsdons, ia nouriahed, In ita first develojnnent, at the expense
of the oenbal albumen which it envelopa. The slMlder aitd smipla
radiola deaoenda into the earth ; and the plumule, equally aimple and
cylindrical, riaes like a thread : if it finds no other living nlant near it^
it diea ; if it finds one, it surrounds the stem, and from uie pointa of
oontaot proceed hollow tubercles or suckers which plant themaelna
in the bark, and suck the juice which has been elaborated by tha plant
attacked ; than the loot becomea obliterated and diea, and the plant
lives from that time forward by ita auokera only. Whilst it was not
a parasite, it rose vertically ; as aoon aa it became one, it was no longer
tempted to direct itaelf either vertically, or towards the light. Ita
shoots dart from one plant to the other, and thua aro conveyed to new
victims vriien the old ones are exhausted. Often the seeda germinate
before they quit the oapaulee, and the new plant immediately becomea
a parasite; thia is partioularly observed m the Ouievta mcnojrynit,
which attacks the vinea in Languedoc
"The dodden, called by the French cultivators Teigue, Bacha,
Perru^a, &o., are very dangerous to the fields of leguminous planta
which thsy attadl, and upon whioh they multiply theuuelres wiUt
and the double power whioh
tha; poaaeas of germinating either in the earth or in Uie capsule.
. JL Vauoher deared bis artlfloial fields from dodder pretty well by
CUaCUTA'CE^ Dadibrs, the Dodder Tribe, a amall natural order [ parpetoally braakiog and dividing their stalks with a r*]c& Tha
MI CtI8HA.T.
means whioh app««r to me really efScaoious are immediately to mi
all the portion! of artifioial meeAow whsre dodder bu been leen
develop iteolf, and to do it before it can have produced laed. If
appear in fieldi of flax, the plants attacked must be cut doim, or
rooted up ; and if it appear among Tinea, the branches must be cut
before the seed ia matured. If these precautions have been neglected,
'a portioD of the land ahould be infested with these seeds, the
concealed in the soil, to deyelop themselves, when they may perish
without doing any bairn, aince the soil finds itself covered with plants
whidr oannot nouriih them. Ab to the seeds of leguminous plants
whiolx may be infested by a mixture with those of the dodder, the
best means to get rid of them ij to aift them in a tolerably Sne sieve,
BO that the seeds of the dodder, whioh are very small, m»
through, leaving thane of the trefoil or of the lucerne. la
operation the seed must be shaken rather violently, so as to break the
Oapaulea of the dodder, and to force their seeds out."
C. .^Hlinum, Flax-tkidder, has olusters of bracteated ssasile flowers,
the tube of the corolla ventricoae ; scales adpreesed, fimbriated, distant
below, with rounded apacoi ; the calyx with fleshy amnents, dsltoid
below, neatly as long u ibe tube of the corolla. This speci
parasitical on flax, and very injurioua to the crop.
O. EpHhymwri, Leeiier Dodder, hju clusters of bracteated sessils
flowers : tube of the corolla cjlindiical ; the scales converging, as long
as the tube of the corolla, fimbriated, and rounded at the end, approxi-
mate below, with narrow acute spacea ; the oalyx bell-shaped, shorter
than the tube of the oorolla. It is parasitical on small shrubby plants.
C. Trijolii, Clover-Dodder, has the scaJea converging, half as long as
the tube of the corolla, flmbriated and nianded at 1^ end, distant
below, with rounded spaces ; the calyx narrowed below about aa long
as the tube of tbe corolla. It is paramtical on clover.
(Babington, Mamud of Sritiih Bolmm.)
CUSHAT. [COLOMBIDJS.]
CU8PARIA. fG*LlP«i.1
C0BTARD-APFLE. [AvosiCBX ]
C0TICLK, fSKntJ
CUTTLE-FISH. ra«reaML] ■
CYANITE. fKTiKlI.]
CYA'THEA, a genus of Plants belonghig to the natural order of
Fems. The aori are globose, situated upon • vnn or veinlet, or '
the axil of > fbrk of the vein ; the reoeptade elevated, globose,
columnar ; the involucre globose, inferior, membranaceous, or sot
what horny, at first entire and covering the whole sorus, afterwards
bnritinf frtim the top with a nearly ciroular opening, beooming cup-
shaped, more or less entire, or lacimated, or lobed ; the veini pinnate,
simpis, or foAed, free. (Hooker.) The spedea are arborescent, and
the trunks are oftai beautifully marked with the scars of the lalloi
fronds. The fronds are aunple or pinnate, or decompoundly {linoate.
Tbe stipe is &equBatlj aculeateil The species of this extensive
genus of Fenis are found most highly developed in tropical climates.
They givs a peculiar feature to the vegetation of many distriota of
South America, and specimens have been brought tnm the fMwata of
Brazil, the moiintaina of Kexioo and Peru, tnta the islands of the
Eastern, Wcatem, and Sontbem Oossn^ and from the sooth of AMm
and Uie interior of India and CUna, EUr William Hooker, in the
' Specdes Filicum,' enumentea about forty difibroit ^MoieB. They
are difftcolt to determine when brought to this country. " Thn
have," says Kr William Hooker, " arboreaoent trunks whose appear-
ance, and even external form, are only known to travellers who have
the privilege of seeing them in their naUve aoils. Tbe fronds, gigantio
in most eases, and large in all, seldom reach us in an entire state. We
are but little acquainted with the stipes, whether it bs unarmed or
aculeatad, or with any other charaoleT which may aObrd mail* of
distinction. The shape or outline of the entire frond we have rarely
the means of aioertaming; nor do we know what is the exact nature
of its composition, nor the value to be put upon the more or leas
downy or scaly covering of the pinws, or Uie greater or less breadth
of the pInnM, or pinnulea, or segments, or the more or less dseply
serrated margins. Hsnce, too, their synonymy becomes inextricable;
and without the opportunity of examining authentio specimens of
authors, their speaes in many instancea must be looked upon as
doubtful The difficult is incnaaed by the older authora not cou-
ddsring the nature of the bnotification nor the venation, so that in
faw herbaria do we find the moat eotnmon, and, «s praume, the
origiiial species, the one upon whioh tha genus appesis to have been
nuujly founded, Ofoikea aiiarta, correctly named.
widdea on the nudn raohis snd stipes which are fluently downy;
frond* bipinnate; pinnules lanceolate, elongate, much acuminated,
deeply pinnatifid, glabrous, or with the rvohis and costa hairy, pali
a little contracted
upwards, opening with a beautifully even margin. It is a native of
Jamaica, Hiapaniola, Uartinique, St. Vincent, probably the Weat India
Islands generally, and BradL
In, Hooker's ' Spepies Filicum ' the members of tht* genua are dl»-
tributed according to the districts in whioh they grow. Twen^-ooe
CTCADACK£. IM
apeoles an natives of the West Indies, Mexico, and South America.
Two only are found in South Africa. Eleven are natives of Eastern
India and islands, the Pacific Islands, and New Zealand.
Few of these Fema are used by man, and although very elegant ara
seldom cultivated. One of them, O. tnedMarii, a native of Kew
Zealand, produces a starchy matter, which is used by the natives aa
food, and called Haraagb The starch is fbund in the rooti^ and
theae ara baked and eaton as food.
(Hooker, jbcriu Filieum; Burnett, (hUlma of Batanf.)
CTATHOCRINI'TES, a genus of Fosnl Ormoidea, confined to the
PaheoEoio Strata. fEHoniiTiTM.]
""■"HOPHT'llUH, a gano*
Palnocoio Stimta, especially li
Silnrian and Carboniferous Rooks. In the works of Ooldfus^ Hnrchi-
aon, and PhilUpe, many ipedes are recorded from the Eifel, Salo]^
Devon, Yorkahin, An [madkcfbtujou.]
CY-BIUM, a genus of FossU Fishes, from the London Clay of
Shnipey. (AnadE.)
CTCADA'CE.£, Oseadt, the Cyoas Tribe, one of the natoial orden
of Oymnospermoua Plants. It is essentially ohanoterised by its trunk
growing in a <nrllndrica] unbranohed manner, in oonsequenoe of tha
derdopmsnt of one terminal bnd only, and by it* diaokma flowery
of whioh the males at least grow in cones composed of psltate scales.
In one genus, Zamia, the female flowers also are dispoaed in the same
manner; in ths other, Ogca», they are placed upon the toothings of
abortive leaves, occupying the centre of the tmminal bud. The
leaves of these plants are pinnated, and have a Oertain reaemblance
to those both of fema and palms ; thelc wood is arranged both In eon.
centric circles, which in Cyciutxt numerous, and in anmfusad manner
among the central pith ; so that a Cycadaceous stem partakes in stmo-
tuie of the peculiarities of both Eioeens and Endogens. In tha
manner in whioh their leaves unrol, and hi their terminal sin^ bnd,
Ofiaidafiea reesmble Ferna, with which they may moreover be oom-
pared on account of their &uit proceeding from Isavea ; with Omiftna
iliCT acoord in ths confr-like arrangement t^ Uisir parta of fruotifiaation
and their naked ovules; and with Palms in the aecrstion of a laiga
quantity of fnoula in their stem, in their mode of growth, and in the
of a part of their woody system. Cftadaeta tharefcra,
'™|™« " '*'*' ^° *° ^7™i^»P"'™^ po»esB nearly equal afllni^
or Endogens, and Tree-Fema, or Aciogena. Tbe spedea
of the tropios and temperate parts of America ai ' ' '
They are found at the Cape of Qood Hope and Madanscar, '
ial A&ica. 0ns spedea, Maemamiia tpinSt, Inha
of Anstnlia. Undoubted foedl remains of thMi
•^«tai
•«kaa*>Ai
I-IT
205
CtCADEOIDEA.
CYCLICA.
in the loaa, Wealden, and other formations of England, attest the
fact of their onop having fonned a part of the vegetation of Qnai
Britain. All the species contain staixh, and from many it is separated
and emploved as an article of diet. The species of EncephcUartoi are
called lUimr-Bread. The seeds of Dion eduU yield starch in Mexico.
The same substance, under the name of Sago, is obtained from
species of Zamia in the Bahamas and other West India Islands ; in
Japan from OjfeoM revotuta ; and in the Moluccas the Oyccu cireinalia
yields a ooane kind of flour. This species also yields a transparent
gum. The order contains about fifty spedes.
A fine collection of Cyeadaoeous Plants exists in the Boyal Gkrdens
at Kew. A unique collection of these plants has also been recently
made by the Rev. J. Tatee of Lauderdale House, Highgate.
(Lindl^, Vegetable Kingdom.)
CTCADEOIDEA The fossil stems proved bv Dr. R. Brown to be
of the Cycadeous family, which occur in the Isle of Portland, were
thus named by Dr. BucUand. Brongniart called them ManidUct^ and
they are ranked by Presl as Zamite».
CTCADITES. Fossil remains of Plants allied to the natural
group of the Oycadticta are thus named by various authors, but the
species are now usually ranked under PterophyUum, ZamUet,
Otopterig, fta
CYCLADID^, a family of Lamellibranchiate MoUwea, It is a
group of Fresh-Water MoUusks, whose shells resemble those of KeUia
or of Atiarttf but whose soft parts present structures conspicuously
distinguishing them from the tribes to which either ot those genera
belongs. .
The dieUs are more or less tumid, equilateral or inequilateral, thin, as
in our British forms, or thick, as in the foreign Cyrtna ; smooth or con-
centrically striated and farrowed, and covered with an epidermis.
The hinge is furnished with cardinal and lateral teeth, and the ligament
is external The animals have plain-edged mantles open in front,
siphonal tubes produced, and either partially separated or completely
united to their unfringed extremities, and a large linguiform fool
They live buried in the mud of alow streams, Is^es, ponds, ditches,
and springs. Our native species are all ovoviviparous. They* breed
readily in confinement^ and often exhibit considerable activity, ascend-
ing the sides of the vessel in which they are placed. (Forbes and
Hanley.) This family contains two British genera, CyeUu and
Piaidivm,
CyeUu has the shell equivalve, thin, suborbicular, more or less
inflated, slightly inequHateral, closed, smooth, or concentrically
striated ; cardinal teeth, one in the right and two in the left valve ;
lateral teeth developed ; ligament external •
Crivicc^ has the sheU oval, globose, striated; umbones oblfuse;
dorsal area with a small lunular impression ; ligament manifest.
The ordinary length of the finer specimens is I04 lines, and its
breadth about two-thirds of an inch.
The tubes of the animal are tinged with rose or tawny, and when
fuUT protruded are nearly equal, the branchial, if either, being longest.
The foot ii large, wmte, and linguiform ; the mantle white ; the
labial palps long, triangular, and strozigly striated. It is BluggLsh in
its habits.
Forbes and Hanley give the following localities : — The most prolific
is the river Thames ; it is found likewise in the New River (Baily) ;
the Trent (Jenyns) ; the Lea (S. H.) ; the canals about Leamington,
in Warwickshire (Thompson); streams in Yorkshire (Bean). In a
pond at Enville, Staffordshire, a young specimen ( Jeffipeys). It has
not been taken either in Scotland or Ireland. On the Continent it
occurs in Germany, France, and Belgium ; and as a fossil is found in
the Pleistocene Fresh-Water Beds of the south of England.
O. cornea, Linn. Shell suborbicular, almost smooth; umbones
obtuse; ligament inconspicuous. There is a subglobose variety
(apparently the Stagnicola of Mr. Sheppaid), whidi is flattened
towards the ventral max|gn, and has the peUudd and swollen umbones
peculiarly prominent The dimensions of the larger typical form are
six lines and a quarter in length, and five lines in breadth ; of the
variety five lines and a half in length, and four and three-quarters ui
breadth.
The animal is white, its sub-elongated siphonal tubes tinted with
pale flesh-colour. Mr. Jenyns observes that the superior tube is sub-
conic, with a small aperture, the inferior cylindric and truncate, with
a wider aperture.
This very common species is a general inhabitant of rivers, ponds,
and ditches throughout the country. It appears to thrive equally
well both in running and in stagnant water. (Jenyns.)
It is also generally distributed throughout Europe, and occurs
fossil in firesh-water strata of the Pleiocene age in the valley of the
Thames.
C. caUcuUUa has the shell more or less rhombic ; umbones narrow,
more or less prominent, capped.
This species ia apparently less infrequent in the north than in the
more southern parts of England. Mr. Alder has found it near New-
castle ; Mr. Bean at Scarborough (where it is not scarce) ; Mr. Thomp-
son at Lichfleld ; and Captain Brown records the vicinity of Man-
chester and the lakes of Westmoreland for its localities. Montagu met
with it in Devonshire and Wiltshire ; Mr. Jenyns at Bookham Conunon
in Suireji aad more sparingly in Cambridgeshire; and Mr. H. Strick-
land at Hornsea in Yorkshire. Mr. Jeffreys has taken it in the
Clumber Lake, Nottinghamshire, and in the neighbourhood of Bristol
In Ireland it is also rare. " On the Continent it occurs in Sweden,
Gennany, Belgium, France, and Italy. The C. parUtmeia of Say, in
despite of the ventricosity of the adult, is very closely alHed,
especially in outline, to this species, and may be regarded as its trans-
atlantic representative." (Forbes and Hanley.)
PitidiuM has the shell equivalve, thin, usually tumid, sulM)vaI,
inequilateral, smooth or concentrically striated ; hinge with one tooth
in the right and usually two in the left valve ; a£o lateral teeth ;
ligament external, inserted at the shorter side.
The species are very small bivalves, living in similar localities with
C^deu, and not uncommon even in drains through meadows.
P. putiUum. Shell rounded, ovaJ, not greaUy inequilateral, not
distinctiy striated; valves not swollen, always a little compressed
below ; umbones usually broad, and but littie projecting. This is by
far the commonest of the smaller Pitidia in this country. It is found
abundantiy in ponds and ditches. It inhabits generally northern and
central Europe.
P. pulcheUum, Shell small, striated (not grooved) ; umbones simple
and without appendages. There are many varieties of this shell.
It has a great tendency to assume a multiplicity of forms. The
average size is a line and a half lon|3:, and a line and a quarter broad.
It ii very common in many parts of Great Britain.
The other British species of this genus are — P. ffentlowianum,
P, nUidfun, P. einereum and P. obttuaie.
CYCLA'MEN, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Primulaceo!, It has a bell-shaped half 6-cleft calyx ; the coroUa witii
a short bell-shaped tube, and 6-partite reflexed limb; 6 stamens
inserted at the bottom, on the tube of the coroUa, included ; the
capsule many-seeded, opening with 6 teeth. The spedes are herba-
ceous humble plants witii very handsome flowers.
C, heder^oliwn has cordate angular crenate leaves, and the throat
of the corolla with 5 teeth. The root consists of a large depressed
tuber ; the flowers are nearly white, seated upon long flower«talks^
which roU up after blossoming, and bury the germen. This plant has
been found in Great Britain, at Sandhurst, and near Cranbrook in
Kent. It is rare, and difficult of cultivation. Its flowers exhale a
pleasant fragrance.
C. JBuroptBum, Common Cydamen, has the leaves orbicular, oordate,
crenate, or toothed, the sMiments of the corolla lanceolate. This
spedes is found in the south of Europe. It has been recorded as a
native of Great Britain, but» if found, has probably been an escape
from gardens. It is often confounded with the former spedes. This
plant is abundant in Sicily, where the wild boars pr^er it to any
other kind of food. Hence it is called Sow-Bread. It has been used
medicinally ; it acts upon the system as a cathartic, and was formerly
esteemed emmenagogue. The acrid piindple of the root has been
separated under the name of Arthanatme.
Several other spedes have been described. Most of them are
hardy plants, and may be grown on an open border. They are
peculiarly adapted for pots and for chamber decoration in spring. One
of the peculiarities of the genus is, that the flowers are seated on a
twisted pedicel, which, when the flowers fade, turn round and
round till they bury the capsole which they bear in the earth. In this
podtion the seeds ripen and germinate, and produce other plants.
(Loudon, Bncffclopcedia of PUmte ; Babington, Manwd of Botany;
Burnett^ OutUnet of Botany ; Koch, Plora Oermaniea.)
CYCLANTHACEiB, a group of Plants bdonging to the class of
Endogens, separated by some writers firom the Pandanaeeee. It
embraces the genera Carludoviea, Nipa, CyeUuUhm, and WMma.
For an account of the order see Pakdakagejl
CYCLA'RTHRUS, a genus of Fosail Fishes, firom the Lias of Lyme
Regis. (Agasds.)
CYCLAa [Ctoladidjb.]
CY'CLICA, a family of Coleopterous Insects. According to
Latreille, this group forms a sub-eeotion of the section Tetramera.
The family Cfycliea contains the Linnnan genera iTifpa, Cauida,
and Chfyiomela, the species of which may 'be distinguished by the
following characters: — ^Tard 4-jointed, fumished beneath with a
vdvet-like substance; the penultimate joint bilobed; antemuo of
moderate length, generally finform, or increasing in thiokneas towards
the apex ; body usually of a rounded or oval form, the thorax being
lit the base of tiie same width as the elytra.
These insects are usually of brilliant metallic colouring : various
shades of green appear to predominate. Their larvae have a soft body,
and are furnished with dx legs, attached two to each of the first
three segments, or those next the head. They feed upon the leaves
of plants.
To this group bdong the following families :^^Camdiad<g, CkryiO'
mdidce, and CkUentcida. The principal genera bdonging to the
family Cauidiadce are AlwmtUf Mitpa, Chtdepui, and Caeiida, To
these genera we shall at present confine our remarks.
The genus Oauida has tiie following characters : — ^Body oval or
rounded, depressed; thorax generally somewhat semicircular, with
the anterior portion produced so as to conceal the head ; mandibles
with three notches on the inner edge; external lobe of the maulla
as long as the inner one.
se7
CYCLOBRANCHUTA.
CYCLOSIS.
268
The Caarida are usually of a Bomewhat flattened form, and are
remarkable for their having the external maigins of the elytra pro-
jecting beyond the body ; the outer mazgine it the thorax are also
produced, and conceal the head. Those parts which extend beyond
the animal itself are generally semitranspa^nt and flattened, whilst
the parts which Inmiediately cover the insect are more or less convex.
When the insect is at rest, the legs, which are rather short and com-
pressed, are retracted, and the external margins of the ehtra and
thorax are applied closely to the plant on which it lives. The Isrvso
of the CatiidcB are of a depressed form, and usually armed on the
upper parts with numerous little spines ; these are longest on the
sides of the body and at the tail. The use of these little spines
appears to be for the purpose of holding the excrement of the animal,
which is always deposited upon its back, and probably serves as a
means of defence, by concealing it from its enemies.
C7. vindiSf an insect not imcommon in this country, is about
a quarter of an inch in length, and of a bright green colour above ;
the body beneath is black. This species lives both in the larva and
imago states upon thistles.
Mr. Stephens, in his 'Catalogue of British Insects,' enumerates
nineteen species of this genus.
The insects belonging to the other three genera of the Ccuridiada have
the body of a more elongated form thiui those just described, and
the head is exposed, the margins of the thorax and elytra not being
produced. They are all included in the genus Hitpa of LiniuBus.
CTCLOBRAJSfCHIATA, an order in De Blainville's arrangement
of the dioUiuccL It includes those animals mostly referred to the
Cuvierian order Nudibranchiatck [Nudibbavohiata.]
CTCLOID FISHES. One fteat division of Fishes is thus termed
by Agassiz, from the concentric striation apparent in their scales, of
which the substance is homy, not bony nor enamelled. They are
rare as fossils in all except the more recent strata^ but abound at the
present day. [Fjbhbb.]
CTCLOLlTES, a genus of Madr^hyUioea, mcluding single-celled
species. [Madrefhtllicea.]
CTCLOTOMA, a genus of Fossil Fishes, firomSheppey. (Agassiz.)
CYCLOPS. [BBAKomopoDA.]
CYCLOTTERIS, a genus of Fossil Ferns (Brongniart), remarkable
for the size and orbicular or oval shape of the leafits. To the species
from the Coal-Measures (O. orbietdarii, O, obUpui, &a) this remark
applies better than to those (C7. BeanU, O, dUakUa, kc) from the
Oolites, which are really of a different genus. [Coal-Plaktb.]
CYCLOPTERUS. [Dibooboll]
CYCLOSIS. The regular movements of the contents observed in
the interior of the cells of many plants have obtained this name, to
distinyiish them frt>m other movements to which the vegetable cell
is subject.
l%e fluid contents of the cells exhibit two kinds of movement^
one in which there is observable in each cell a single current ascending
on the one side and descending on the other, and another in which
minute currents, with numerous anastomosing branches present them-
selves. The fluids which move vary in colour, transparency, and
consistency, and carry with them whatever grains or globules of
starch, protein, oil, chlorophyle, or other mattm that may be loose
in the interior of the celL
The existence of these curious currents was first made known by
Bonaventura Corti in 1772, who observed them in the sap of certain
species of Oharaccig and in CauUnia froffUis. Fontana about the
same time confirmed these discoveries. They however excited no
attention, and the facts seem to have been rediscovered by Treviranus
in Qermany in 1807, and Amid in Italy in 1819, and still later by
Varley in England.
The number of plants in which these movements are observed is
verr numerous, and every day is adding to their number. It is not
imder all circumstances that the currents are developed. They are
less active, and sometimes not at all seen, when the oeU is verv young
or very old. When young the currents are not established, when
old they cease. In some instances preparation of the plant is
necessary. In some of the forms of Ohara the bark external to the
cells must be removed. In VaUUneria tpiraUi it is seen best when
the leaf is cut in two. Heat also increases these movements, so that
plants which fail at first to exhibit them, will do so after remaining
a little time in a warm room. The persistence of this motion is ve^
curious in some of ^e plants which exhibit it. Thus in VaUuneria
it will continue in the lotf several months after it has been separated
from its parent plants and although the leaf exhibits the yellowness
of decay. (' Microscopical Journal,' p. 65, voL iL)
Mr. LawBon of Edinburgh gives the following list of plants in
which he has observed this movement of the cell-contents : —
Char(B and Nitdla.
Sagiitcbria aagiUtfoliet,
StratMtei aJUnda,
VaUwMiria tpiralii.
ZannicheUia paiuatris,
Sydroeharii monut-rante.
J^otamogeUm,
Anacharia Aliinatlnim,
ItOMCB (in stinging hairs).
UriiccB (in stinging hairs).
TradeacarUia virgtnica (in hairs of filaments).
Campanula medium (hairs of corolla).
Mardumtia (polymorphat) (radical hairs).
Mosses.
CeratophyUum,
Podoatemacece,
Lemna,
Lichens.
Alga.
Fungi,
These movements are best seen in the plants in which they were
first discovered — in NUella, Eydrocharia, and VaUianeria. Each of
these has its peculiarities, and may be taken as examples of the rest.
In NiieUa the moving stream is very considerable, so that only a
narrow streak remains at comparative rest between tiie ascending and
descending currents. The stream is strong and rapid, and carries
along with it starch granules of considerable size. Its course is not
exactly parallel to the axis of the stem, but forms a small angle with
it. In two contiguous cells, the ciuTente flowing on the partition
between them run in opposite directions ; consequently, thiY)ughout
the whole plant, the ascending streams are on one side, and in fact
owing to their oblique direction form a spiral : this is the case alao
with the descending streams. If the cell be carefully tied across, the
current is in a short time re-established in each subnlivision. If the
cell be cut through, the fluid escapes only on one side, the remainder
of the fluid makiog the entire drcuit of the cell before it comes to
its turn to escape.
Mr. LawBon gives the following account of the movement in the
new Water^Weeid which has just appeared in this country, and is called
by Mr. Babington AnacAam^Innoffrttm. [Udora; Htdrochabidace^]
" The leaf of the Anachtu^a is composed of cells of an oblong form,
but in some parts of the leaf beaming much elongated. At the
margin of the leaf (which is toothed, each tooth consisting of a
sin^e somewhat triangular cell) the tissue consiBts of a single
layer of cells, the latter being more elongated in form than those
towards the centre of the leaf. In these marginal cdls, the green
granules ^shlorophyle^ which they contain may be readily seen in
rotation, tnus indicating the currents of cdl-sap. The phenomenon
is best seen however in those cells (very much elongated) which form
the midrib of the leafl Granules are seen scattered about in the
cells; a few in the centre of each cell are fixed. But there will be
observed another set of spherules, forming a continuous line around
the margin of each cell; these are in rapid motion, flowing along
one side of the cell, generally with great regularity, tUl they arrive at
the end, where they cross over and return by the other side, ^us
forming a continuous rotation in the cell. Although the granules
general^ move on in this way without interruption cTosely following
each other, still a casual interruption occasionally takes place, and
crowding ensues; this is most frequent at the ends of the cells — at
the ' crossing.' But the granules are gifted with even a greater share
of politeness than is usually to be found at a London crossing ; for
when a crowding takes plaoe^ there is never seen an obstreperous
granule trying to gain the prec^ence of his fellows to get over first."
The movements of the minute anastomosing currents are more
difficult to observe than those above described. Thev do not occur
alone in water-plants, but have been principally observed in the
PhtuMTogamia, In the anastomosing currents the movement is always
observed to and from the cytoblast of the cell, which is invariably
present. The fluid is of a mucous (proteinaceous) nature, and mixed
with minute opaque granules. The currents cover the internal surface
of the cell-wall, or traverse the cavity of the cells from one wall to
the other, without minghng with the rest of Ihe oell-fluid, which for
the most part is as dear as water. On this subject Schleiden says,
" Up to the present time (1849) I have found this peculiar form of
circulation m numerous cryptogamous plants, for instance, in
AtMya proUfera, 8pirogyra, and other ffypMmycetea and Oonfervoa; in
almost all the forms of hair in the Pkanerogamia that I have as yet
examined, for instance, in the Solanum tuberoaum ; in many spores,
such as of EqyMeium arveiue, and pollen granules, for instance of
^nQtkera grandi/lora in the immature state ; in almost all immature
endosperm-cells, as in Nuphar ItUeym, and especially in such as are
subsequentlv re-absorbed, as in Ceratophyllum aem^raum; in almost all
stigma-papillae, as in 2\Uipa Ckaneriana ; in the loose cells of iuioy fruits
in the young state, as in Prwnua domutica ; in the pulp which is formed
by the placental corda^ as in MaaMniUariaj less frequently in the
loose juicy parenchyma of many plants in the young state, as in
IVadeacantia roaea, I believe it exists however in all vegetable-cells
as long as the OTtoblast retains its vitality. As instances admitting
of veriflcation, I would mention the fkiiit of Symphorictyrpoa racemoam
(Snowberty^ or of a MmnmiUana," ,j,
In these instances each cell is isolated and filled with an entirely
colourless fiuid. At one part of the wall can be seen the cytoblast
presenting a well-marked nucleolar corpuscle. The cytoblast is always
surrounded by a narrow areola of a yellowish mucoua fluid, thickly
crowded with minute opaque granules, and firom it proceed cunents
of various width and depth. The currents can be seen passing to
CYCLOSTOMA.
CYQKl^M,
270
or from the oytoblwt. In their ootme they exhibit Tuious anae-
tomoBiBg branches. Many "of the Btreama are eo minute that, under
the highest magniMng power, they exhibit the appearance of a line
without any breadth, merely rendered to a dight extent irr^gnhur by
the individual granules.
The cause of these movements in the interior of the cells of. plants
has been the subject of much discussion. Although not obsenred
in every instance, there appears to be reason for the inference that
they are uniyersally present^ and that they are but the result of
the liTing processes going on in the cell, and perhaps the mode by
Ti^ch nutrition is erocted. " After the most careful research,*' *^7^
Schleiden, " with the best instruments, I have been xmable to peroeiye
a trace of the presence of vibratile cilia as a cause of the motion.*'
And indeed if dlia had been discovered, the inquiry would then
assume the form of the cause of movement in dlia. If this question
be answered we get at an ultimate fact applicable alike to movements
in granulesi, cUia, oytoblasts, or cells. One fact presents itself in all
these casesj, which seems worthy of every consideration, and that is
the presence of some form of proteinaceous matter. In the fluid
whioi circulates in the vegetable cell some .form of protein is always
presents The cytoblast or nudeua^' and the primordial utricle in all
cells are composed of protein. Cilia take theur origin in all cases in
a proteinaceous basis, and their movements appear to be but the
result of an irritability, which in every case mids its origin in a
proteinaceous compound. [Cells ; Histoloot ; Tissues, Vkgetable.]
(Schleiden, Prine^Ut of Scientific Botany, translated by Lankester ;
Micro§c<^pieal Journal^ vok. i. and u. ; Huxley, On the Identity of
Structure of Plants and Animals, Froa Boy. Inst, 1868 ; Varley,
Transactions of Microscopicai Society.)
CYCLOSTOMA. [Hblioxda]
CTDIPPK [Aoalbprb; Bkbob.]
CYDO^IAy a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Pomaeca:.
C. vtdgaris. Quince, a small tree with dark smooth branches.
Leaves ovate, obtuse at the base, quite entire, cottony on the under
side. Flowers laige, solitary, with a cottony calyx and bright pink
petalSb The fruit a turbinate or roundish angular ]pome, covered
with a thin cottony down, extremely austere, but havmg a peculiar
fragrance.
There are two varieties — ^Apple-Quinoe and Pear-Quince. The seeds
are the parts used in medidne, on account of the mudlage which they
vield. The seeds are more numerous in the small hard than in the
large fleahy fruits. Thev generally occur in large irregularly-shaped
maiweH, as they easily adnere to each other, owing to the mucus which
invests them. When moistened in the mouth or in water, they give
out a laiipe quantity of mucilage, which is white, and not coagulable
by boraac add. One part of these seeds will render ^0 to 50 parts
of water so mucilaginous that it will possess the thickness of a syrup.
They should be set to digest in cold water, otherwise the mucilage
acquires the odour of hydrocyanic acid. Indeed the actual prssence
of, or tendency to form, hydrocyanic add, may be demonstrated b^
distillation. (Stodonann.) Many seeds yidd a yellow-coloured muci-
lage. If allowed to remain in a fluid state the solution soon spoils,
but by careful evaporation the mudlage may be brought to a dry
state ; or, as proposed by Zier, the mucilage may be precipitated from
its watery solution by alcohoL Ten ounces of seeds yield two ounces
of dried mucilage, two grains of which, with distilled water, produce
one ounce of mudlage of proper consistence for use. In whatever
way obtained, the mudlage possesses demulcent qualities, and may be
employed dther internally or as a lotion, which is especially appli-
cable to the £u:es of those who suffer from the cold wmds of winter
and spring.
CTQNiNiB, a sub-£amily of Web-Footed Birds, belonging to the
family AnatidoB, order Anseres of Lhmseus, including the Swans.
Mr. Swainson makes the genus Oygnus the first of his sub-fkmily
AnserinOy with the following character: — Size larga Base of the
biU tumid, fleshy, and naked. Neck remarkably long. Feet short
Hinder toe simple. (' Clasdfication of Birds.')
The Prince of Canino, in his ' Birds of Europe and North America,'
arranges the Anseres as his fifth order of birdiB. The Anatidcs stand
as the first order of the Anseres, and comprise the sub-fiunilies Cfyg-
nines, AnseHncs, Anatina, FtUi^ina, and Mergina. The Oygninos
consist of the single genus Oygwits, of which ihe Prince records C,
Olor, C, innmutabiUs, U,fnusicus, and C. Beteickii as European species,
and O. Americasnu and C. Buccinator as American spedes. The
Oygnina in the Prince's method are immediatdy followed 'by the
AnserincB.
Only two true Swans are recorded by LinnsBua, and those as varie*
ties of Anas Cygnus, namdy, variety a, C, ftrus, an4 variety jS, C
flMuiMwftis. Since his time the reseazchos of soologists have added con-
siderably to the catalogue.
The peouliarities of oigamaation in this sub-fiunily deserving of
notice are — ^the great length of the neck, consisting of 28 vertebra, and
the cavity in the sternum for the reception of a considerable portion
of the trachea.
The generic character of CygiMs is as follows I'—Beak of equal
breadth throughout its length ; higher than wide at the base ;
\\ bow m
with transverse serrated lamellae. Nostrils oblong, lateral, near the
middle of the beak. Neck slender and very long. Legs short, the
lund toe small and free. (YarrelL)
C.ferus (Ray). Male. — Pure white, with occsdonally a buff tinge
on the top of the head. Bill black, and depressed anteriorly, quad-
rangular at the base, and yellow, which tint extends forward along
eacn lateral margin of the upper mandible beyond the aperture of the
nostrils, which are black ; bare space between the base of that man-
dible and the eye also yellow, which colours the back part of the
lower mandible. Iris brown. Feet black. Length, with neck stretched,
about 6 feet ; across expanded wings, about 8 feet Female. — Similar
to the male, but smaller, and the ne<^ more slender. Toung. — Those
that we have seen, when about a week old, have been covered with a
gray down above and a whitish down below, with flesh-coloured feet,
or rather of a dudky flesh-colour ; the bill flesh-coloured, and rather
dusky above anteriorly. Mr. Tarrell states that at ten weeks old the
bill ii dull flesh-colour, the tip and lateral margins black ; the head,
neck, and all the upper surface of the body, pale ash-brown ; the
under surface before the legs of a paler brown ; the portion behind the
legs dull white ; the legs, like the bill, of a dusky flesh-colour. This
description was taken from yotmg birds in the Qarden of the Zoological
Sode^, London, in the middle of August In the middle of Octo-
ber the same aoologist found the bill black at the end, with a reddish-
orange band across the nostrils, and the base and lore pale greenish-
white ; the general colour pale grayish-brown ; a few of the smaller
wing-coverts wiiite, mixed with others of a pale buffy-brown, and the
legs blade He also observes that the young Hoopers bred in 1839
had almost all tbdr brown feathers at the autumnal moult of 1840,
and that before their second winter was passed they were entirely
white. ('British Birds.')
This is the 0> musicus of Bechstein, and, as there are now more
than one wild spedes well defined, the Prince of Canino and others
adopt that specific name instead of the original C.ferus; but the
propriety of this may be doubted. It is the Cygne Sauvage of the
PVench ; Cigno and Cigno Salvatioo of the Italians ; Singschwan and
Nordostliche Singschwan of the Germans ; Vild Svane of the Danes ;
Hooper, Elk, snd Whistling Swan, of the British ; and Alarch Qwylt
of the Welsh.
deprened at we point]
mandibles furnished slong the sides
Head of Hooper [Cygnus fenu).
This bird is found in the northern regions of Europe and Asia,
redding in summer within the arctic cLrde, Iceland, and Scandinavia.
Winter viuter to the British Islands (where however it has been
known to breed in the Shetland and Orkn^ Islands and in Suther-
landshire), Holland, France, Provence, and Italy, and, according to
Mr. Bennett, going as far south as Barbary and Egypt Eastward it
extends as far as Japan. This spedes is in all probability the Swan
so cdebrated by the andent poets for its dying song.
The note of this Wild Swan resembles the word ' hoop ' uttered
several times suocesnvdy. They fly in a wedge-like figure^ uttering
this note as they proceed, and when heard from above ft is not unmu-
sical. The apparatus for producing these sounds was known to Aldro-
vandi. Sir Thomas Browne, Willughby, Ray, Latham, and others.
Mr. Tairell, who has paid so much attention to the trachess of birds,
has thus well described it : —
''The cylindrical tube of the trachea or windpipe passes down the
whole length of the long neck of the bird in the usual manner, but
descends between tiie two brsnches of the forked bone called the merry-
thought, to a level with the keel of the breast-bone or sternum. The
ked of tiie breast-bone is double, and receives between its two plates or
ddes the tube of the trachea, which, after traversing nearly the whole
length of the ked, turns suddenly upon itself, passing forwards, up-
wanis, and again backwards till it ends in the vertical bone of divari-
cation firom whence the two long branchial tubes go off, one to each
lobe of the lungs. The depth of the insertion is not so considerable
in females or young males.
The Hooper, like the rest of the Swans, feeds on aquatic plants and
insects, can keep the head under water for some time, but never dives.
The large nest is constructed on the ground with flags, rushes, leaves,
and marshy plants. The aggs, six or seven in number, are whitish,
tinged with yellowish-green. Length of egg» 4 inches ; breadth, 2| inches.
«1 mnond to ibow
[.
C. BtieieHi. Indspondent of eiteriud Dhmcten^ tha anatomical
diitiiiotiaDB pointed oat hj Ur. Yurall, who firet proposed to Mpa-
rate the ipeciefl imdar l^a naxDe here given, dearlj point out the
difikrenoa between it and tha Hooper. " The principal and moet
obrloiu difference," uyi Hr. Yarrell, "ii in the trBChen. The tube
of the windpipe m of equal diameter throughout, aud, dncending in
front of the neck, enten tha keel cf tha demum, which is bollaw, m
in the Hooper, tniTeraina; the whole length. Havijig urived at tbe
mid of tba keel, the tube, then mdualljr incUning npwardi and out-
warda, panaa into a cavity in Uie itomum deetjned to receive It,
oaiued by a eaparation of the parallel boriiontal pUtea of bone form-
ing the posterior flattened porticn of the breaat-bone, and producing
a aon*ex protaberanee on uie inner lurfaca. The tube alao changing
iti direction from vertical to horizontal, and reaching witUn half an
ineh of the posterior edge, ii inflected back after mufcing a oonnderable
ODTre, till it ones more reachea the keel, again trareraing which, in
a line immediately over the flrat portion of the tube, it paiaei out
under the arch of the merrythought, where, turning upwardi, and
atlarwarda baokwarde, it enters the body of the bird, to be attaohad
to the lung! in the uiual manner. Thia u the etato of darelopment
in the oldest bird I have yet met with. The degree next in order, or
younger, differs in having the horizontal loop of the trachea oonflued
to one aide only of the cavity in the etomum, both sides of which
cavity are at this time formed, but the loop of the tube is not yet
CTONINA m
maiitima coasts of Pieard7. It is an oooaiional visiter to tbe British
Islands, especially in aavera winterv.
Tbe neat, aooording to Captain Lyon, is oonstruoted of moss-peat,
is naariy 0 feet long, 4] feat wide, and 2 feet high on the outside,
with the cavity a foot and a half in diameter. The eggs, six or seven
in number, are of a yaUowtib-brown, aooording to Tenuninti ;
brownish-whit« alightiy cloaded with a darker tint, aooording to
Lyon. The oill'Dota of this apeoiea ia aaid to be a low-toned whisUe^
according to Hr. Sinolaire, but this was in con£nement Jiz. B\M6kr
wall daaoibes their calls in their wild flights as loud, and aays that a
floek of twenty-nine of them were very clamorous.
O. immmlabilii (Tamil), the Polish Swan, is another wild ^edea,
and its eygnets, unlike those of the other white swans, are pare
white. IttuulMan kept in captivity. Ur, Yarrell states that Lord
DerW purchased a pair of theae swans, and sent them to Knowsley.
The female died. The male paired with a Uute Swan (O. OUrr), and
a brood was the result ; but the hybrids, though old enou^ neither
paired among themielvea nor iritb any of the Huto Swans on tha
The following la Kr. Tairall's deaeription of tbe Polish Swan :—
"In the adult bird the beak is reddish-orange; the nsil, lateral
margins, nostrils, and bate of the upper mandible, black ; the tubercle^
even in an old male, of small size ; the iridn brown ; the head, neck.
„ , . , the end of tha
tail, t>T inches. From the carpal joint to the end of the second quill-
feather, which is the longest in tbe wing, 21^ inches; tarsus i inchea;
middle toe and nail, iS] inches. Its food and habito doaely resemble
those oT the mute swan. Tha organ of voica appears, from one that
I examined, to be like that of the mute swan ; bat Ur. Pelerin has
found considerable differenoes in various parts of the head: 'the
deseription and measurements were given in a paper publiehed in the
'Uagadne of Natural Bibtoiy' for ISSS, p. ITS."
Ur. Tarrell then eitrBcta Mr. Felerln'a comparative measuremenlt
of the crania of adult Uute and PoUsb Swans, and statea that he haa
verified bU his obserratdona.
C. Oiar (Oenns Otor, WagL). Our Hute faalf^domesticated Swan U
too wdl known to require deaeription. The trachea haa none of tha
oomplicated structure of that of the Hooper, and is even more rimpla
than that of the Black Swan. The linra tubercle, or beny, aa tha
Bwanherds term it, at the baae of Uie bul, at once distinguishes tLi*
graceful species from its congenera.
[Ojifaui BndekO}.
"TooDg tdrds," saya Ur. Tatrall, "as they appssr hers in the
plumage of their flrat winter, are gijiyiah-brown. At their second
winter, when they have acquired the white plumage, the iridas are
(Mange ; the head and breast strongly marked with naty red ; bass
of the beak lemon-yetlow ; when oldir, some continue to exhibit a
tinge of rust-colour on the head after that on the breast has passed
off The adult bird is of a pure unsullied white ; the base of the
beak orange-yellow ; the iridea dark ; the legs, toea, and membranes
black."
The anterior part of the bill is black, and, in the males, orsoge-
yellow at the base, which is of a Ismon-oolour in the females-
It is found in the north of Europe end America certainly, and of
Asia probably. It breeds within the arctic drcle, and in Iceland in
Hay, accoiding to Tamminck, wbx) says that it has been found on the
Head of Hut* SwsD {Ow" Oler).
It is the Cygne of the Frmch; Cigno and Cigno Reale of the
Italians; Schwsn and Hocker Sohwan of the Oermans; Tam Svaoe
of the Danea; Tame Swan or Mute Swan of the Engliah; and Alaroh
of theWeldL
This sleguit bird is said to exist in a wild state in Russia and
Siberia. The Piinoe of Canioo, in fais 'Specchio Compaialivo,'
^aks of it as oocurring in tha neighbourhood of Rome ("'raro
awentizio d'invemo ") ; and, in hia ' Birds of Europe and North
Amerioa,' he givea north-eastern Europe as the locali^- Tha Polish
CTMIirUM.
tn
Swui ftbore notioed ihould not ba forgotten in nnrigning th«u
northeni localitia to our Tarns Swan, and ray probably wu not bj
th« akilfiil omithologiHta who have noted theee looditiea. Tem-
minck t^jK, " Habite en ^tat saava^ lea graudea man da I'int^iieur,
Bortout tb™ lea contnSes orientaleB de I'Europe."
In the Thftmee, at preeent, tbe grsateat number of awana belonga to
Uie Queen, and the compaoiea of vintneia and d;an own the next
largest proportion; bat iQebirdsarefar lesa numeroui than the; uaed
to bf. Tbe awan-mu-ka are made upon tlie upper mandible with a
knife or other eharp instrument. The awao-hopping or upplng, that
ia, the catching and taking up the awana to mark the oygueta, and
renew that on the old birda if obliterated, in the preaence of the
royal ■waoherd'a man, ia atill continued by the oompaniea abore
mantioned. Below ia the royal awan-mark uaed in the three laat
reigna and the present, from the cut girea by Hr. TarreU, in whoae
wm
Boyal Snn-nark. Tatrcll.
Sir John Bidtardsan (' Fauna Bareali-Americana ') reoorda only two
Americui iwaoa, C. Bucmuttor and C. Bewideii. Tbe Prince of
Cacino, in hia 'Siieccliio Comparativo,' gave one, iiuu Cygmit
(meaning, apparently, the Hooper). Nuttall noticea three : — lat, the
Wild or Whiatling Swan, C. fena of Ray ; 2iid, the Trumpeter Swan,
C. Bueattator; and 3rd, C. Saeielcii. The Prince, in hia 'Birda of
Europe and America,' recorda two apeciea, C. Amerieania, SharpL
^C. miuimt, Bonap.}, and C. Succi»ali/r ; bnt he doea not record
C. Baeiekii aa an Aiuerican apeciea. Nuttall dedarea that in the
winteroflSlO be aaw two individuals of a/enu(C. munctu, Beehat
and Bonap.) in a itate of domeatication near St. Louia (Uiisouri),
which were obtained, with seveTa] otheia at the aame time, in oonae-
quenee of the eiteeme cold. The Priooe of Canino evidently
conaidera hia C. mtitiau, which he givea la a synooym of C. Anen-
ctBiia, a different epeciea tioia C. Bincinlai, which last atanda oppoeite
to C. Avierieanut in the European column.
C. Bmceinator. According to Sir John Bichardaon, it ia the moat
oammoD awan in the Fur Countriea, and to which the bulk of the
iwan-akina imported by tbe Hudaon'a Bay Company belong.
Colour white, the forehead alone tinged with reddish-orange ; bill,
cere, and lega, entirely black. Bill nearly reeombling that of G.frrva
in form, though longer and rather more depreaaed. Wioga : third
quill the longeat. Tail coDsiatiiig of 21 fealhera. A apeoimen in the
Zoological Huaeum haa the crown and cheeka bright oheatnut. Total
length TO inches. (Bichardaon.)
It bteede aa far aouth as the Slat decree of latitude, but prindpally
within the arctic circle, and in its migrationa it generally precedea
the geeae. Sir John Bichardaon observes that C. Srwictit makes Its
aopeamioe amongst the latest of the migratoir birds ; while
C, BwciTtator ia &e earlieat, with the exception of the eagles. He
states that a fold of its windpipe enters a protuberance on the dorsal
or interior aspect of the sternum at its upper part, which la wanting
both in C. /tni* and C. BewicHi ; in other reBpects, he adda, the
windpipe ia distributed through the sternum nearly as in the latter
of theae apedea. In the 'Supplement' to Sir Edwanl Parry's 'First
Voyage,' Anat Cygtaa, Wild Swan, with refereoceB which leave no
doubt that the Hooper waa meant, ia noted as breeding on the North
Georgian lalanda ; but C. Beieidai had not then been distinguished.
C. alTaivt (Genua Chenapit, WagL), the Black Swan. ThU bird,
the Antu Plutonia of Shaw, haa now become id conunon in our
menageriea, where it breeda freely, aa not to justify the occupation
of apace with more than a cut of its bead, and of the course of ita
tracbea, which ia not unlike that of the Mute Swau.
Hnd of Black Ewan [^vihh alraliu).
It is all black, except the primaiy, and a few of the seoondon
quills, which are white. Bill bright red above, and aomeUmes with
»«. mw. DiT, VOL. a.
a slight turberole at the baa^ which the female wants. The anterior
part of the upper mandible ia crcaaed by a whitish band, and the
under one ia grayish-white. Legs and feet dull ash-colour. Siie lesa
than that of the Hute Swan and Rooper. Irides red. Touog, when
about a fortnight old, covered with duaky-gny down Above, lighter
beneath ; bill, eyes, and feet, duaky-black.
Hr. Yarrell observes that tbe structure of the trachea is inter-
mediate between that of the Hooper and the oommon Mute Swan.
" It quite the neck at the bottom, and descends to 'the oentre circular
portion of the furcula, to which bone it ia firmly bound by ■ tough
membrane : tbe remaining portion then riaea over the IWiut of ■&«
breast-bone between the claviclea, and passea backwards to the lungi.
the last portion of the tube immediately preceding the point of
divarication being flattened boriiontally. The form of the trachea
in our common swan, in which it follows the neck without deviation,
being remembered, and Dr. Latham's figure of the wild awan referred
to, it will be obaOTved that the black swan exhibita an intei
link between the two." ('Linn. Trans,' to], xv.)
eteronn and traohte tt Black Swan {Cftm- alraltii). Tirrell.
It is found in Van Dismsn'a Land, Nsw South Wales, and the west
eoaat of Australia.
In a etAte of nature the Black Swana are generally teeo floating on
some lake in flocks of eight or nine. When disturbed, they generally
fly off in line or single £le ; and are so shr, that it la difflciUt to get
within gunabot. Their note is far from borah, at leaat when uttered
in captivi^.
CYQNUS. [CianrajB.]
CTHBA. [AcALEFBA.]
CTMBCLIA [HTiUuDA]
CTME, an irregular kind of panicle, having a corymboae appear-
ance, and in which each branch Is stopped in its growth after
producing a single Sower, when it ia forced to form lateral btuches,
which are themaelvea stopped after forming one flower. The
common Laiaiuiima or the Eld«r-Bush offeis examples of this sort
CY'MINXTM, or CUMISUM, a ^ua of Planla balonging to the
natural order Umhdtiftra. C. Ojpainum, Cumin, is a plant i^ annual
duration, found wild in Egypt and Syria, and cultivated front time
immemorial /or the sake of ita agreeable aromatic fruilt which, like
■eoHon or tHe Utter, il
that of Caraway, Dill, Aniae, ka., posseaaes well-marked stimulating
and carminative properties. Cumin grows about a foot high, and is
very little branched ; it ia amooth near the ground, but slightly downy
near the and of ita branches. Its leaves ore deeply cut intc long
capillary segmenta. The partial and general involuores conjnst u
175
CTMODOCSA.
CYNICTIS.
976
BimilAr leayc«y but smaller. The flowers are white or reddish ; the
froit is oontraoted at the side, surmounted by a calyx with long bristle-
pointed dirieions, and has each of its halyes marked by nine unequal
elevated ridges, all of which are slightly muricated, especially the
secondary ones, under each of which there is a vitta. Two yitt» are
present on the commissure, and the albumen is not inrolute.
Cumin is said to be employed in flaycoHng Dutch cheese. The
fruits are carminative, but the smell is disagreeable. They are chiefly
used in veterinaiy suivery. Combined with resin they make a warm
stimulating plaster. [CuMiif, in Arts and Sc. Diy.]
CTMODOCEA. usofoda.}
CTMOPHANE. [Chbtbobebtl.]
CTMOTHEA. [Isofoda.]
CTNANCHUM (from ic^y, a dog, and ftyx^y to strangle), a genus
of Plants belonging to the natural order AwlepiadacecB. It has a
6-parted somewhat rotate corolla; a coronet of appendages consoli-
dated, 5-20-lobed, when 5-lobed with the segments opposite the
anthers; the pollen-masses ventricose, pendulous; the stigma usually
apiculate, sometimes blunt, very rarely with a beak inclosed below
the summit ; the follicles smootii. The species are herbs or undor-
shrubs, with opposite leaves and mostly twining stems.
C. Vineetoxieum has an erect stem, a beardless corolla, a simple
umbel with the pedicels three times longer then the peduncle ; Uie
corona 5-lobed. This plant is a native of sandy places in most parts
of Europe, with the exception of Qreat Britain. It possesses emetic
and puigative properties, and was once celebrated as an antidote for
poisons, from which it has derived its specific name.
(7. Montpdiacum, MontpelHer Cynancnum, is an herbaceous twining
glabrous plant, with roundish cordate-stslked leaves, with a semi-
lanceolate contracted point ; the segments of the corolla lanceolate,
bluntish ; the coronet tubular. It is a native of the sea-coast of Itsly,
of Spain, the south of France, and Greece. The juice of this plant is
a dnstio cathartic, and when dried it is used as a medicine under
the name of Montpellier Scammony.
0. ovcUifolium is a smooth twining plant, with oblong oval acuminate
leaves; many-flowered cymes; peduncles not longer than the petiole;
the coronet 10-cleft, about as long as the corolla ; the stigma pointed,
emarginate. This plant ia a native of Penang, where, according to
Dr. Wallich, it is used for the puipose of procuring from its sap
caoutchouc, which is of an excellent quality.
C. Argd has erect, pale, round strais ; the leaves scarcely stslked ;
about an inch long, ovate lanceolate, acute, smooth on each side, and
rather wrinkled, glaucous on the under side; the corymbs small,
axillaxy, with many smooth alternate branches ; the sepaJs lancolate ;
the corolla white, but little longer than the calyx. It is a native of
Upper Egypt The leaves and the whole plant act as a powerful
dnstic puigative. This plant appears to be a native of tne same
districts as those from which the Alexandrian Senna is obtained, and
all the samples of that senna contain these leaves. They do not
however appear to be added for the purposes of adulteration, but are
collected with the leaves of the senna tnrough the ignorance of the
persons employed in their collection. The leaves of Tinnivelly Senna
are not found to contain those of the O. Argel mixed with them.
Much of the unpleasant griping efiect of the Alexandrian Senna is
attributed by some writers on Materia Medica to the mixture of the
leaves of the AigeL Senna leaves are also mixed with those of the
Chmphoearpw fruticoaus, which are in Syria slso called Argel, or
Aighel.
The C. Ipeeacitanha of Willdenow, the Asclepioi oithmatica of
Roxburgh, .is now referred to the genus Tylophorck [Ttlophora.]
CYNANTHUS. [Tboohilida]
CT'KARA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Cbmpo9it(E, in many respects like the thistle, but having an involucre
composed of thick fleshy spiny scales, and a remarkably thick flediy
receptade, covered over with numerous bristles. The two species
most known are the Artichoke and the Cardoon.
C. ScolyvMUs the Artichoke, so long cultivated in our gardens as a
vegetable, came originally from the south of Europe, and though it
has long been cultivated in the regions of the north, it does not resist
the very severe 'cold of winter. Its perennial root is thick, fleshy,
hard, branching, and gives rise to a cylindrical, glabrous, rather
branching stem, from 2 to 8 feet high, to which are attached very
huge pinnatifid leaves, of a pale green above, whitish beneath, deeply
serrated in lobes, and irregularly toothed. The heads stand singly at
the top of the ramiflcations of the stem ; they are as large as the
doubled fist ; their receptacle is very thick, fieshy, concave, furnished
with simple bristles ; the leaflets of the involucre are broad, thick,
and terminated in a spiny point. All the florets are hermaphrodite,
and of a clear violet colour ; the tube of the corolla is very long ; its
limb has 5 very nsrrow segments ; the staminal tube is very promi-
nent, of the same colour as the corolla. The pappus is sessile and
feathery. The root of the Artichoke is rather bitter, the stem still
more so. It was formerly employed as a diuretic, but it has long
been cultivated only as a kitchen-garden plant Everybody knows
that the heads of the plant are gathered before the expansion of the
flowers, and^ that the receptacles or the base of the involucral scales
are eaten either raw or after having been boiled in water. The
Artichoke when cooked is an agreeable food, not very nourishinf
1 spedea.
1 species.
7 species.
2 species.
1 species.
12 species.
1 species.
1 species.
perhaps, but easy to digest The receptacles, or artichoke bottoms,
may bs preserved for winter use by drying them after having blanched
them in boiling water. The Arabians consider the root of the Arti-
choke an aperient ; they cdl the gum of It Kunkirzud, and place it
among their emetics.
O, eardwnedhu, the Cardoon. The country of the Cardoon is the
same as that of the artichoke ; it is found in the southern countries
of Europe and in the north of Africa. Its thick and fleshy leaves cut
into spiny lobes with very prominent ribs, its more slender stems
terminated by heads of flowers three or four times smaller, with a
thin receptacle, and the scales of the involucre armed with sharp
spines, easily *ti«feiwgiil«li it from the artichoke. Some authors how-
ever have endeavoured to prove that the artichoke is only a variety
of the Cardoon. This opinion however does not appear wdl founded ;
for if it were so among the great quantity of Cardoons that are
cultivated in gardeni^ some plants would be found transformed into
artichokes, wMeh has never nappened. In this Bpecies it is the rib,
or the middle nerve of the leaves, which is eaten. When cooked it ia
tender, and its flavour greatly resembles that of the artichoke. It ia
in general a choice duh, and seldom seen except at the tables of
persons in eai^ circumstances.
CYNARA'CE^, or CTNAROCEPHALiE, one of the primary
subdivisions, in the system of Jussieu, of the natural order Compoiitce,
It is induded in the TvJbvliflora of De CandoUe. It is characterised by
an erect seed, the absence of albumen, a hemispherical .involucre, the
florets of the ray of the flower tubular, inflated, and regular. Of the
three subdivisions of CompoHia this is the smsllest. Its type is the
genus Oynara, to which belongs the common Artichoke, C. Scolymut.
The genera of British plants belonging to this subdivision are as
follows : —
Section I. — Carline€B,
SauMswea •
CaHina •
Section II. — Oentcturece,
Centmurea •
Section III. — Oartkunea!,
Arctium
Onop<Mrdum .
Oardwu
Section IV. — 8iM>teB,
SUybum
Section V. — SerrcUulea!,
Serraivla
The Oynaraeea difilar from the Corywhifera in' their active pro-
perties in possessing in a more intense degree the bitter principle of
the whole order. None of them seem to possess a tendency to
develop the narcotic principle which characterises the Cfichcracecg ;
nor is the volatile oil which gives to so many of the Oorymb^fera: a
peculiar aromatic smell developed in these plants. The Cardum
nutans (Musk Thistle) is the only one which possesses any remarkable
amount of odour. The prevalence of the bitter principle renders
many of them useful stomachic, tonic, and febrifuge medicines. For
these purposes Centawrea, CcUcUrapa, (}nicu$ benedietutf Carduus
Umaiutf ataroUvla arventia, and Silylnm Marianum have been used.
Some of them are said to be cathartic, and Bchinopt 9pkcBroc^>halu9,
which has this property, is used in Languedoc as a remedy for
rheumatism. Tne seeds of various species of Onopordum yield a
fixed oil, which in some parts is expressed and used for domestic
purposes. Many of the Cfynarttcea yield colouring-matters. The
Oarthamut tinctoritu yields a yellow colour, and is employed to
adulterate saffiron ; Serratula tinctoria yields a yellow dye of a fine
colour. A pigment of a blue colour is obtained from the fiowers of
Oentaurea eytmtu. Some of them secrete small quantities of tannin,
and are used in consequence as astringents in medicine, as the OnopoT'
dum aeanthium, Qalls also are found on the Onieut arvenm, which
possess astringent properties, owing to the tannin they contain. A
number of spedes yield food. The bracts of the involucre are in
some very large ; and, as they contain stardiy and other alimentary
secretions, are used as diet by man. The Artichoke is a familiar
instance. The heads of the Onopordum aeanthium are often eaten in
the same way. The tender sprouts of the Arctium Lappa are
gathered and eaten in the north of Europe. They are cooked in the
same manner as asparagus. The tubers of the Onieut tuberonu are
frequently cooked and eaten, and many other spedes yidd starch in
their roots. Animals do not generdly like the plants belonging to
the Compotita!, They seem however occasionally to eat them medi-
cinally, and the ass prefers the thistle to most other kinds of food.
(Burnett, Outlinea of Botany; Lindley, Flora Medica; Babington,
Manual of British Botany.)
CYNA'RRHODON, a name given sometimes to the hep of the
rose, which is a fruit composed of a succulent calyx-tube inclosing a
number of hard dry hairy nuts.
CYNICTIS, a genus of Animals bek>nging tp the order Camivora,
established by Mr. Ogilby for an animal connecting the Family of the
Civets with that of the Dogs.
It has the following generic diaracters : —
Dental formula : — Incisors, _; canines, — i; molars, =$8.
6 1 — 1 5-~6
falcnUr claiFB sdnpted for diggiog. Tklllans, bushy.
" Thii BjrteiQ of dentitionl^MTB Hr. Ogilb;, " ii, in
extremely cimilBT to ttut which IB .... — .
md particu "
principtllj .._...
JAw, in hsiiDgthat of the upper jaw in contact wiUt ths canine, utd
in a few other dreonutancHi of tbtj minor importance when compared
with the general character of the organiwUon. From the Ryiana or
Snricate, on the other hand, the dental syatem of Cgniait ±B«xt in
the ptvaenee of the anperior mdinientaiy falae moliir, being thni
direetl; intermediate in point of dentition between thii genm and the
Htrpraa ; and it is not a little singulaT tliat it ahould bear praoiaely
the aame n^Uon to both theae genen in the form and number of it«
tuea. The Herftttet have rodimentary Uw molan both in the appei
and under jawa, and Sra toe* both befora and behind; the OynutU
hai mdiroeutuy falie molan only in the upper jaw, Gtb toes on the
for« and only foor on the hind feat ; the RuKcaa haa no rudimentary
tana molars In either jaw, and faiir toei only, kb well on the anterior
aa on tha poaterlor eitramitiea, Tbeae tndta of aoological chaiacter
Btron^y point ont tho
tme natmal rdalioni of
aB theflfl animaJa, and
demonxtTBte the inla.
tire poaitioas which
Oiey ocoupy in tbe
rmofnatnre. Wtb
■ingla exception of
tha Pmda, there ia no
odier known genua of
the FiPti I n fiunily
which poaaeaaea the
aama nombar of toaa
and complete disiti-
character u
present ignnant of the
adolt chaiacten of tiie
dentition of the Prv-
tda; whan we beooms
better acquainted with
impcfftant part of
betwean it and
pnatpt genua; but in
" " it atiikine ei-
an intermediate atation
C.Tet5 and the tfywiiM. ^^ t«,m .bo- ; 1, proBl. of the «me ; .,
fa addition to theea half of onoiizm «« from b.low,ihowliig Ihe port,
character! the CWKu ti„n o( li. t«Ui in th» upper ]>« ; i, i.lf ol the
may be re«dily diatm- i,„„ j,, Hm ftom aboTo (from Mr. Ogllbj'i
guished by ita external fljore).
form and appearance
from all oonterminoua genera- It ban a short head, contracted
suddenly in front of the eyes, and fcnning a small ni^ed muzzle,
divided by a longitudinal furrow ; the eon are short and elliptical,
naked inside, and directed forwards ; the body long and slender ; tha
tail bushy, and two'thirds of the length of the body, and the whole
external form and appearance not unlike that of a Ferret or
Ichneumon. The temn^ foasee are aeparated tcom the orUta by a
complete rim of bone.
C. Stttdmmmii (Ogilby), named after Mr. Steednutn, to whom
zoologiits ore indebted for ■ knowledge of the snimaL it has the
following synonyms in the 'British Museum Catalogue' : — The
HeeAat, C. LectMatUH, Eerpeita paiit^attu. Cut. ; JAnevmon
albaceiu, J. Oeo&oy ; C. pietfu, A. Smith ; Mangtuta Levaillaniii,
A. Smith; UeeAat^ Barrow; Battel, Swunson; O. Offilbyii, A.
Smith.
The length of the bead from the muzzle to the root of the ear is 2^
incbea ; length of the ear ] of an inch ; breadth of the ear 1 } inch ;
length of the body from the muzzle to the root of tell 1 foot 6 inches ;
length of tiie tail 1 foot ; height at the shoulder T inches ; height at
the croup 7 j inches. Hair moderately fine in quality, much reeembling
that of a dc^, smooth and dote on the body, long and bushy on the
tail The Eraeral colour, as well u tha whole eztenial appearance,
preclaely tj
11 Fox ; bright red oi
:e body, head,
and eitremitioa ; deep and uniform on the back, but mixed with
silvery giay on the cheoka, neck, aidee, and tail, arising from a mixture
of hMTfl tipt with gray, and diapersed tlirough the fur of theae parts.
The breast, belly, and legs unmixed rod i and the tail, which precisely
reaemblei the brush of a fox, oovared with long buahy hairs of a aandy-
led colour at the roots, dark brown in the centre, and gray at the
Mints ; the last two incbea at the tip of the tail uniform £zty white.
Hair of the body not amiulat«d ai in Serpata and the Surioate, and
altogether of a finer and more fuiry quality. EitermJ form and
appearance comparable with those of ths Ferret and Egyptian
Ichneumon, but probably stnnding liigher on tha li^ as being moM
completely digitigrade.
CVnlettf aiadmmttii (Ueerkit).
It is a native of Uytenhage, on the borders of Eaf&aria. (Ogilby.)
Mr. Ogill^ thus concludes his ohaervatjons on this iotereaung
animal : — "In consulting the works of travellen through the colony
of the Cape of Oood Hope I have been able to find but two notiost
which seem clearly to refer to this animal ; one by Dr. Spamnao, tha
other b^ Mr. Burow. The Sist of these authors, in tlu English
translation of bis ' Travels,' voL ii p. ISl, has the following passage :
' Two oilier small animals, whioh probably likewise belongto ue
Yivtrra genus, I had only a hast; gumpea of in this colony. Ths one
we sav and gave chase to between the two Fish Bivers made ita
eaoape from us however by romiiiig into a hole underground, and
seemed to be somewhat lees than a cat^ thoogb loD^ in proportion.
The colour of it was a bright red.' It is true that llus passage records
no observation by which we on with certainty refer Uie animal to
which it alludes to the C, Sittdmatmii, but the siie, odmiT, and
habitat ore so perfectly similar in both cases, as to render their
identity extremely probable. In the following extract however fnnn
Barrow's ' Travel^' vol L p. 18S, the characters are fully reported :
' Upon theae parched pl^ns (thcae of Comdebo, on the eastern oon<
fines of the c<^ony] ore also found sevenJ species of a small quad-
ruped whioh burrows in the ground, and wbioh is known to the
colonists under the general name of Ueerkatt They are mostly of the
.genus of »Tiirfni1» to whioh soologista have given the name of rnwra.
An eagle '■'«V'"e a stoop at one of thase, close to where we were
passing, missed his prey, and both fell a ■aoriSoa, one to the gun, the
other to ths dogs. Both the bird and quadruped appeared to ba
undescrit>ed species, . . . The Vtvtrra woe wholly of a bright
cheatnut colouri the tail shaded willi block hairs, bushy, straight,
and white at the extremity ; ears, short and round ; on the fore feet
five and on the bind four toes ; the body and tail each one foot long.'
" There can be no doubt," continues Mr. Ogilby, " of Uie animal to
which tbis description refeis, a doscription more minute and accurate
than we Eeoeiolly find in the woAs of travellers. It agrees in every
point with the species which forms the subject of tJie present memoir,
except perhaps m the reported dimensioiis of the tAil and body ; but
this difference moet probably arises from the sge or sex of the apeci.
mens, or from the measures of Mr. Barrow being taken in a stisight
line, whilst mine followed the diferent curvature of the head, neck,
and body. The name Meer-kat, by which it appears this anunal is
known to the colonists, signifies a monkey, and is of very general
aooeptation in South Africa, being applied indiffereutlj^ to the present
species, the Cape Serpttlet, Oround Squirrels, and vanoua other small
burrowing anirna-la Both the pBBsagee here quoted confirm the
burrowing habits of the C. SUtdmatam, which I hod already inferred
from the form of the claws."
CYNIPS. [OiLis.]
CYN0CEPHALU3. [BiBOOH.]
CY'KODON, a genus of OrasHe belonging to the tribe ChloridaE.
It has a 1-flowemd fingered spike, with a superior rudiment; tha
glumes nearly equal, patent ; the palen equal, outer boftt^haped,
comprcBsed, etnhraciiig the inner; the styles long, distinct; the
stiKmaa feathery, pntruding below the summit of the floret.
O. Dattylon has 3-S digitate spikes ; smooth uelece, the leaves downy
It isanativeof EDglaiid,ontheilioiea
CTNOaLOaSUJL
Ik Datire o
ths But, and ie
of DoTon and ComwaU. C. Uiuarit
known by the nun* of Durvs-Oram.
(Babiogton. ifanual of £rilith Sotang.)
CYNOQLOSSDH {trom xiur, a dog, uid fXAaaa, a tongue), a
nnui of Planta belongine to the natiu&t order Boraginta. It has B
&«left calyx ; a fuDDel-ihaped. eoroUa nitb the month closed, with
prominent blunt acalea ; the stamem included, filaments vsiy short ;
tlie nuU roundish-ovate, depresaed, muricated, attached b; their innsr
edge. TUe species are herli'S fith aoft leaiea,
C. officinale, Common Hound'a Tongue, haa the leavea downj, acute ;
the lower learea elliptical, contracting into a petiole, the upper leaves
lanceolate, narrowed below, Bubcor£ite, halfclBaping. The corollas
are of a dull red colour. It is a native of Asia, Africa, North Ame-
rica, and Europe. It ia found in Oreat Britain in waste ground.
The whole plant has a diaagreeable mnell, reBembling that from mice-
It is said ta poanetB narcotic propertiea, and was at one time used
as a remedy in scrofula, but it ie not employed it) medidna at the
present day.
C. maataratm baa the leaves slightly hairy, acute, nearly glabrous
and ahuung above, acsbroue beneath, inferior, oblong, narrowed into
a long petiole, upper leaven lanceolate, alightly narrowed below,
clasping. It ie found in Oreut Britain by rood-ddea and in hedges in
About fiftv other species of Oynoglonum have been described,
besides the British ones above named, Tbey are all coane plsnte,
having only imall flow; rs, aa that few only ore deairable for ornamental
cultivation. Tbey are bovever of the most eaay culture, and will
grow in almost any situation and soil The greater number of the
species ai« biennial, and may be propagated by eowing their seed in
spring in Uie opeu border,
(Babington, Manual ; Don, I>idlamyd»u4 Plantt.)
CTNOHORIA'CE Ji:, an obscure order of Rhiiantiis, dlilJnguished
&om Balanophoracta by their distinct stamens, and the imperfect
periaotli of tbe male Sewers. The order ta represented by Cynomo-
rium coceinetm, the Ftrnyut Mditentit of the old herbalists, a plant
once in repute for its astringent properties, but now valued onW for
its rarity, and the botanical interest that attaches to it. Dr. Walsh
t«lli us Uukt " it grows moet plsntiAilly on a detached rock on Uie
south-weat aide of the island of Oozo. It is there much celebrated
for ita medicinal properties : tbe time of the discovery of its virtues
is not known, bat &om some ancient manuscripts it appears to have
been at a very remote period- It had been the usage of Malta to
banish to Oozo all females of dishonest character, and here, aocording
to tradition, tbey found a v^etable substance of an astringent quaKty,
which proved very efficacious va removing the consequences of their
irr^ular life. It waa prepared in earthen pots, some of which have
since been dug up in varioua places, moHied with Fhtsnician charac-
ters indicating their use. Tbe plant was also applied by them to the
purposes of £vination. It was laid between the breasts, and from
some accidental circumstances of position, Ac, they augured good or
bad fortune. This practice wu reproved, and said to be finally
abolished, by a Capuchin missionary. This curious vegetable was
subsequsntly esteemed as a remedy in dysentery, and its curative
powers were long held in very high repute. About the year ITIO
the Knights of Malta set such a very high value on this fungus, that
they interdicted the approach of any person to the place where it
grew, and guarded tbe passage with the strictest jesZousy, In April,'
when tlie fungus waa ripe, it was carefully gathered by persons
appointed for that especial duty, and the precioua morsels were
deposited in a government offioe, whence some portions were sent as
presents by the grand-master to different sovereigns, and the
remainder distribntod among the hospitals of ths island. Even after
the EInglish took possession of Ualta, and succeeded to the territorial
rights of the order, and, amongst otber things, to the poBBeasion of
this rock, a custode waa appointed to take core of it as herctofote,
with a sijary, which always makes an item in the public accounts of
Ualta. The fungus is thus continued to be guarded and regularly
alhered, deposited in the state-oEBoe, and distributed among the
LDSpitals ; and when Dr. Hamilton, through the kindness of an
official pnwin in OoEC, vraa permitted to visit this lock, he was
accompanied by the custode. The rock, as shown by the doctcr'a
sketch, is difficult of approach ; it is an isolated precipice, about SOO
feet in height, detached from the nei^bouring shore, and presenting
very steep and inaccessible sides, in some places projecting conaLder^
ably over the aea, so that the circumference of tlie base is less than
that of the upper parts. It stands on the verge of a noble circuUu
basin, formed by the surrounding cliffi^ into which the sea enters by
tbe chasms at each aide of the fungus rook, the whole presenting tbe
aspect of tbe crater of a volcano, raised from beneath, or extinguiahed
by the irruption of the sck."
.CYNOPTERDa [CHKBOWgai.]
CYNOSUKUS, a genua of Plants belonging to the natural order of'
ficial gimss-land. It grows with a dender smooth stem to the height
of one or two feet, and is terminated by a somewhat cylindrical spike-
like panicle of short dustera of flowers; each duster consist* ot^two
K
CYPERACE.*.
; the palcEB S, of which the lowest is
sharp-pointed. The styles arc feathery ;
the fruit is a small yellow smooth shining
seed-like body, whence the common name
of Qold-Seed.
Although this grass forms so constantly
a portion of all good pastures, it is chiefly
on account of the fineueas and cloaeueBS
of its herbage that it is valuable, the
quantity of hay that it produces being
iuoonsidenble. Ur. SinclBir hence ob-
serves, that "it is inferior for the
purposea of hay, but admirably adapted
for permanent pastures. Tbe roots pene-
trate a great way under ground, from
which circumstance it remains greeit oiler
most other grasses are burnt by a con-
Unuance of diy weather. In irrigated
c^ied tlu ' fbo^rot ' when A
containing a considaMble portion of this
grasa than on such aa are oompcoed of the
_ ,^ n,,™, 11 more tender and BoR-leaved aorta.
grass, found m Quenuey and ianej. It
bas an erect stem, one or two feet high; Uie Boalea of the append^e
with long points. It is eitiemsly rare.
CY'NTHIA, a genus of Aicidian MolUuea. It consists of those
Ascidians whose body is sessile, and which have the branchial sac
plaited longitudinally, and the reticulation continuous ; branchial and
anal orifices opening in four rays or lobes. Their siternal envelope
or test is coriaceous.
Hessra. Forbes and Hanley,' in the ' History of Britiah Uollooca,'
enumerate 18 spedei of this genus aa natives of the seas of Ou
British Islea.
C. nutiea has the body more or less globular or botryoidal, mgcae,
usually of a rusty red j apertures sesmle, placed apart, deeply tinged
with rose-red. E^m half an inch to two inches in length. It is
common on most parts of our coast, and is found attached to variooi
kinds of Bca-weeda
C. tlattdkant has a tuberous body ; the test wrinkled and hurowed
in every direction ; the orifices are small, deeply 1-lohed, and placed
on slightly prominent conical projections. It is about an inob in
height, and is found attached to oyetera.
C. aggmata has a bottle^haped body with t«rminal ai^noximate
orifices. It was found gregarious in vast numbers by Professor E
Forbes and Hr. H'Andnw in twslve fatiioma' water at Dartmouth.
It was found under large stones ; and on many of the blanching root-
fibres there were small, tough, globular, imperforated, orange-oidoured
bodies of various siEea full of granules. Tbis form seems to be intei^
iperforatedtora
'bis form seemi
mediate, and between the single and social Aseidiaoa, and " should
,. EndogenousPlants, havingmuchtheappearance of O:
> >i>liele( BiignlBed ;
!r vllh lu bract ; 3, a
CTPR-EID*.
Uit7 an BomeUmea popuUrly confouiideil Thej AiSer in their itemi
bdnf oituJIy solid, nob hollow, and Bngnlmr, not round ; in the iheetht
of their leeres not opening on one aide, but fonning perfect tubes
vim the Item is puBed through ibem ; in their male norete having
DO pelts nor any coiering to the itsmenii except a tingle bruct, while
the biseiu&l florets hnve DOthicg more thui ■ few hypogjnoue briitlen
sipendded ; Knd finally, in their embija being tncloied In the alba-
men, and not lying at one aide of it. There are other iliitinctioni
bcadea these, but what have been mentioned are the moit remarkable.
A laige proportion of the order bean the name of Sedges, and henoe
the Sedge Family or Tribe it given to these plants as their English
ippellation. They are mostly inhabitants of marshy or swampy
^onda ; a few are met with on dry upland pastures, and a good
miay are alpine plants. Thnr occur in all parts of the world, and
iR genenlly abundant, but Lttle or nothing has been disoorered of
their uses ; their most common application is to the manufacture of
■hat are called amineouily ruah-matd and rnah-bottoms far ahairs.
The plant used in this countfy for suoh purposes is not any kind of
mh, but the cypeisceous species Scirput lacitttrit. It is not a little
nmitkahle tlut, nesrly as these plants are allied to Qraaaea, they
K*nely at all putitripate in the nutritious quality of that useful
otder ; it is only among the ooame bad herbsge of marshw thst they
tn allowed to fonn a coutituent of hay.
The following is a ajaopiui of the British genera of this order : —
Tribe L 0}/peria, Flowers perfect. Glumes 2-ianked.
Ferigone absent.
Cypena S epeoiea,
S^aom nigricaiu.
Tribe IL Scirpia. Flowers perfect. Qlnnes imbricated
on all ndM. Ferigone absanL
Clorfiai
SAyncotpora
ReoeAaril . .
.14.1
Tribe III. Elynem. Flowers diclinous. Fnigone absent^ ui
formed of one or two scales.
Kabraiaa
. 72 SI
{Babington, Mainai of Brituh Botany, 18G1.)
CTPB^'lD.i,theC™ry/\iniay, Cowrie«,or
Porcalluea of the Qermaru; Porcelunee (Porcelain shslls) of the
Fnoeh — a lamily of Mariiis Qistsropodous Molhuea, well known in
commerce from one of the species (C Mvntla) being need in aoms
pwti of tke East as a circulating medium.
This group of shells is characterised by the animal being unisexual,
tlongated ; head distinct, with two conical or subulate tentaonla of
Nine len^fth, at the external base of which are situated the two sessile
tjts on small projections ; mouth vertical, at the bottom of a small
avity, aod containing a lingual riband, or lamina, beset with tentacles
udproloDgsd in the abdomen. Branchial cavity open, situated near (ha
lack of tba neck ; gills arranged in a longitudinal pectinated series on
(he inside of the columella on the left side of the mantle j uphonvery
■hart, aod formed in the mesial line by the edges of the two lobes.
Hutie Irilobated, the lobes very large with extended aliform edges,
apable of being reflected over the back of the ahell ao as to join on
the mcBial dorsal lineL Foot oval, elongated, very large. Tent at the
citnmity of a tube behind the biiuiDhial cavity. Hale organ situated
iiore forward, and communicating with the orifice of tiie deferent
cutl by means of a furrow. AdiUt shell involute, highly enomeUed,
oral or oblong, more or lesa rounded or cylindricaJ, with a amsll and
imbedded spire ; aperture longitudinal, nearly straight, toothed, or
plaited, on each ode, wiUi a ohsiuiBl or groove at each end, innsr Up
fattened or aub-concave, outer lip involute. No operculum.
Ofpraa (TH«ia] PtHctilm.
a, the tolaul teu from above ; t, ilds view ol the isine.
Dr. J. R Qn^, whose arntngement we select as being in our opinion
the best which has UUwrto appeared, thus notices the very great
chuige of form that the joimg snell undeigoea in its progress to per
CYPHXIDM. va
fectlon : — " The shell altera its appearance conuderably according to
the age of the individual, anil eihibita three very distinct stages. In
the f oung or first stages the shell is genraally smooth, of a plain
grayish colour, or with three longitudinal bande, and the upper part
of the inner lip is Hmootb, convex, the lower part flat or concave;
the outer lip Uiin. In the second itsge the ehell begins to assume
mora the character of the genus, as ^e outer lip b^^ina to be in<
fleeted or mther thickened, and approaches Dearer the perfect appeaik
once of the ^Mciea as the second cost of colour is depositedi but
Cfftaa Sxantluiiia, iUnitntinK the atefn ot growth.
B, ■joOBt •hell in the Inl ilsRe, ma rrom aboTe, ileir at the back ; t, the
itare, view or back [the apex ii dreadj eiDklnK, and the Uiiekeiied lipa
CDunelled epolted coat on the eide, hot the IrantTerae lUipea are lUU vUltile] ;
of the Ihlckeoed ipotted eoat ; /, view of under dde of Ilia ftttoA
difiera from it in the want of thickneaa of the shell snd the spire being
more distinct, and in the want of the dorsal line, which ia usually
distinct in the third or perfect state, where the last coat hss bean
deposited, and the apsrture ia moreplaited on both aides. The colour-
ing, or at least the dispoaition of the colouring here, ia a much more
certain characteristic of species thsn either the general outline of
form or use, the latter of which ia exceedingly various. In this
family I have often observed full-grown specimens ot C. Amttca froin
M CYPHMIDJE.
oQa to thTM inchei long ; this psoaliui^ u attempted to be explained
by Lkcnarck uid othan, who auart tlut whan tha animal has formed
a ooTcplete Bbfll, as it bai not the fseult; of enlarging its liie, it ia
obliged to quit its shell and form a new one, in the aama manner as
the J nntUota cut their akins, and by that maani the same animal
fonni Hum; shells ; but I believe then ia not the slightest ground for
this notion."
The Oyprcndtx abound both in tlie Old and New Woild, but tiielr
greatest derelopmeot both in point of size and number of spfldea
takes place in warm climates. A yen fow spedss are inhabitants of
tbe European seas. The famil; are littoral, and are geneiallf foaad
Dnder atones or roUod corals.
* Sub-Oenus 1, Cypraa.—'nM front of the columella broad, deeply
impressed ; shell mostlj smooth.
a. Bhell smooth ; oolumolla-pit transTersel; ridged ; teeth of inner
lip generally long. {Oraj.)
l^der tMs dirisloa of the sub-genus Dr. Gray armngea 2T spedea,
inclading some of the rarest forma — C. awnira (tiie Morning Dawn, or
Orange Cowry), and C. Frmetpt, for example — together wiui C TiifrU
(the Tiger Cowry), and other common species.
C. Mappa, the Map-Cowry. Shell more or less ventrioaae, ovate,
varied with deep brown or yellow lines, and spots. Dorsal line laci-
tiiated. Margin thick, spotted with black ; teeth yellow. It i« found
in the Indian Ocean.
Then are many varietiea, among which the rosy vacie^, the daA
variety bom the Pearl Islands, the dtron variety, and the dwarf
rich-uouttiad variety from the Hanritiui, are the nreat or moat
beautify The jonng shell ia of a fawn oolour with obsolete tftAt
B. Shell smooth ; ooltunella-pit (nearly) smooth ; teeth of Inner Up
short or indistinct.
Under this division of the subi^eiius Dr. Oisy airangea IS Bpooiee.
C. Taipa, the Mole-Cowry ; S«idonyx Cowry of Oray. Shelf oblrag
ovate, suboylindrical, yellowiah, with three darker bands ; the sub-
ingdar b«*« and teeth brown or black ; mouth pale;
Uale-Cowrr ((%pn(a lU^).
Tbare is a variety (£cMtw) ihorter, darker, and with Ihe teeth
smaller and closer.
extremity ; base four-spotted, partly grooved.
Tatch-ConTj [(^ipraa
There is a larger variety which is more oblong, etoaatli, and is
without the dorsal groove (C. gMmlm).
I Shell with transverse nbe. Only two spedss are enumerated by
Dr. Oray, and one of these, O. rageta, Brod., i* foesiL
0. CMidreni, Children's Cowry, Oray.
* Shell with longitadinal and b
0, AeUauonii, Adamson's Cowry, Oray, a very rare ipe^ea, is the
only representative of this group. SheU ovate ; peai-sbaped, white,
brown mottled. It is a native of the Faoifie Ocean (t). (Oray.)
«
AJiiBsan'i Covrj {t^praa AdawUBmH).
** Sub-Qenna S. Aricia. — IVont of the colnmella flat, oi
bo; back of shell amoolb,
a Margin of the ilkell pitted on Uie upper edge. Foartesn species.
C. gtUtoM, OmeL ; Blotcbed C0W17, Gray. Brown, pale apotted,
base ud maigjn white, brown-ridged : a beautiful and ran spedea.
Locality, Bed Sea (!). (Qiay.)
Blotcbed Cowry (Cyprxa {ArMa) fUOala).
B UifEiB entire ; teeth of both lipt extended more <
boas. 71iirty.«evea apedes.
O. Montia, Honey-Cowry, Linn. Shell yellow or
jellawring; maQiin and bus tubercular; teeth of inno
Q'-<$
M CYFBMIDM.
Tha« un two nrisUes : a, without ■ ring) (, irith the mugin and PoroeUaln, the
h»^«.tttlxwoular j .. u. j /« ■ ■ , reiembUnc. of the« ihell»
The 7oang m« whituh with two dwk buidi (0. tdenna).
7 Maig^in ontire; teeth of imiBr Up very niuill, forming a ■lij;ht
ridge; fnct of oalumellft'Iip ilightlj coDeave, produced, uid tootliedi
islcnully. Two species
C. amgtuiata, Qnj, Shell irhitiBh brawn, minutely brown dotted ;
Use wiute ; maigiD dovely bisok dotted, ends blackiah. Worn plain
CTFRXIDX.
ii /ound io AuitraUo.
eae Uiella to pigi, and Tilen to Fabii
Fle>h.Co1aiired Pit (TVinn
P. Month OMTOwiah J outer lip wide ; riba of back Bubequal, linear.
This ieotion oontajiu eighteeu apecin.
7. fupopdM, EoropeaD Pig, Qra;; Oypraa Eimpaa, Lam. Shell
ovate, aubgloboae, ash- or fleah-coloured, with three black dota, and a
, nrhitiab doml s^-eak ; ribs close, rather thick, whitjjji ; base white ;
outer lip wida
CVmra lArieia) onfiWala.
'" Sub-Qenofl 3. ^aria, — Front of the oolumell* oarrow, dilated
into a shaip4oothed ridge ; abell emooth.
This Bub^nus la represented by one species.
C. irrorala, Onj. Shell orate, putplish, jeUov dotted ; base
■hitf, Bat; teeth brge. It ia a natlTe of the South Seaa. Mort
tUied to O. Felina, Tariet; 1.
Oipraa (JTarla) trrtrata.
Qwini iMfOaia. — Shell like Cowry, but front end of the columella-
lip croned by aayenl Irregular lidgei^ without any diatiuot marginal
our, intentoUj narrow, flat ; shell pear«baped, smooth, or croaa-
ri'jbed. There are flve specioa.
L. Algoauit, Algoa Lupon, Oray. Shell pate, brown dotted; haae
■mooth ; toeth of ioner lip Tory small ; margin blaok dotted. Vahe^
*iUi the teeth mora or leas oUiterated. It is a native of the Cape of
OoodHope.
Algoa LnpoB {Lufimia AlfttnfU).
Oiprgovuia. — Like Cowry, but front end of oolumella covered with
regular croaa-ribe, like rtat of base, internally produced Into an acute-
mthed ridge. Shell peau^haped, crosa-ribbed.
C. Capentit, Cape C^prteoTulB, Gray. Pale brown; ribe very thin,
itinued, aharp. It la found at the Cape of Qood Hopev out is
Cape Cfpneomla {Ofprgimila Caprm
TVwio, — Idke Ot/praovula, bnt front of columella intanially oon-
cava, nbbed. 9bell subglobular, croea-ribbed.
a. Month wide ; outer lip slightly infleied ; shell equally ribbed.
In this aedJoD there are five spedea.
T. conwa, Fl«U-Colaured Pig, Gray. Shell obloi^ thio, pellacid,
pure roafr^Hilaurad, with very thin distant continued ribs ; lipa
■lutdsb. Varies with an indisUuot doraal groove.
Dr. Qisy obaerTes that Pig is the common name of these shells on
Ui9 coast, and that they are called Forcelli in Italy. He adds, that
European Fl[ (CVgtnra (IViiia) £iirajittii).
a, adult ; t, jonai.
There la a variety with the back ntoUesa, with an indistinct donal
groove (Cj/praa ArciKo, Mont). TSua ahell is found on the British
ooaat. It ranges from the verge of low water to as deep as GO
fathoms. It ia also found ia tba coralline and red crag.
The young are white and smooth.
y. Mouth narrowish ; the outer lip arched ; the riba enlarged or
tubercular oear the dorsal groove. It contains eeven speciuB.
T. PtdieuXm, Louae-Pi(t Grayj Cypnta Pediettl\ti, Linn. Shell
ovate, pale reddish, with six square black dorsal spots : riba rather
thick, lubrugose, crowded ; donal line narrow ; base reddish. It is a
native of the West Indies.
LoBBC.Plg (7VM.I Ptdieultu).
I. Houlb naiTow ; riba tubercular; doraal line distinct; front of
oolumella smooth. In thia section there are two apeciea.
T. ptMulata, Pimpled Pig, Oiay; Cypraa puitvlata, Lam., com-
monlj called byoolledora lie Small-Poi Cowry. Purpliah-brawn j
ribs studded wHh ted-brown, blaok-edged warta. It is a native of the
Pacific Ocean.
Bmall-Pox Oevry {TrMa futtiOala).
.« finely orenulated ; the
e, siightly rodiatadly plaited or smooth, with two o
nt; Uie anterior canal iti
columella c< . .
three folds in front ; uie anterior canal straight, the hinder indistinct.
This genus includes seven speciea.
E. Kabritacvia, Roughish Tear-Shell, Oriy ; Margmdla Ogfraola,
Sow. Shell ovate, turbinate, livid, porptish, minutely tubercular ;
apire conical ; denial lino impreaaed ; month wide, whitish, inner lip
lai^y plaited ita whole length ; teeth large ; jou^, smooth ; lip
thin, tooUdeaa. It is found in the South Faciflo, St. Helena.
RoagUBh T«r.8lwll (i!rale uairiiiiimla).
tsT CyPRJEWX.
Unthleu ; tha outer toothed or cmuted ; ths utCerior and poiterior
cuiil mora or 1«m elongatad.
a. Tha outer Up braul, ioBeied, rounded, crenulKtad ; extramltiei
short; front of columalts rounded.
In tliu aubdiTifiloTi Dr. Qray enuQienteH two upacies.
0. orum ; Otaia oviformU, Lun. ; BtUla ovum, T.inn ; Common
PoBohed Egg. White ; buck rounded ; inside orangebrOB™.
Common Fnuthed En {OniHiii oniin), idult.
$. Outer lip infleied, bra&d, toothed ; ends ahort, curved, hinder
end with b. tooth on the inner nde ; front of the coliuneUa expanded
beneath. One epeciea oalj,
0. vermcantm ; Ovvla vrmcota. Lam. ; Bvila ttrraeiaa, Linn. ;
Two-'Warted Poached Egg, Qraj. Shell ovate ; beck angular ; extre-
mity rosy, with a depressed wart above. Young cloiely striated j
endi brown-edged. Found in the Indian Ocean.
y. Ontsr Up inflexed, rounded, nairow, toothed; i
gjoboae, white, pointed in front, ventriooee; baaa convex; hinder
tubercle rugose ; front of columella concave ; aater lip rounded.
This with six brown dotaSrtiScially made ii OvWa jniacf Ota of Dndoa.
A natiTe of tiie Friendly Island^
D tha Atlantic Oc«an.
u roached Egf (Onlwn fiUown).
£ Outer lip thickened, inflexed, tootUeu; eitremitiea rather elon
gated \ the hmder conical, itraight ; tha reet like ths former. Foui
spedes are included in tbig eection.
0. IdiiyiroKrottmt, Sow.; Qoodhall's Falsa Spindle, Gray, Shell
fusiform, white, thin ; beak Teir long, ourred ; month linear, rather
expanded in front. Found in the Adiiatic
OoodhaU-i FiIh Splndla (OmImi laitgimtrat
rolva. Lam.; Bulla Volvo, Linn,, Common
Weaver's buttle. Shell oval, flaah-ooloured, itriated ; outer lip
pink ; the beaks long, flexuous. Locality, China.
Ptorl I'ujcLea Tie (Oib/kw J/BifW;"!.
t Outer lip slighUy inflexed, narrow, keeled externally, with edge
shelving inwards ; the rest like the former. This section include*
seven species.
0. pfri/oFMC, Sow. ; Pear-Shaped Poached Egg, Qiay. Shell peat-
shaped, yellowish-white, attenuated in front ; front of oolumella
coneare; outer lip shelving inwftrds. It is anative of Austialia.
reai-SbUr-ca raocbcil En (Orutusi ppi-f/ormt).
f. Onler|{ptliiokened,infieied,tootUeu; eitremitiea short ; front
of the colomella flattened ; hinder part with ■ fold oblit«nt«d by age.
Id this sacUon there an nine spedes.
in WeaT«>> Eliattle (On/m corH).
On the position of this fomilj amongst tha Molhuea, Dr. J. E. Qray
makea the fallowing remarks : — " This family ^>pean to be allied to
the sub-family Caatdea, amongst the SueetiMdta, by means of the
Cauii Tttiietiliu, of which Lamarck obiwrves, 'ce casque a un pen
I'upect de certains Cypraa ; ' but the .'\fflmty is not slight, for in the
shape and form of the apertura, which has a groove or canal at each
end, both of the lips plaited, and tha front part of the oolumella
CYPRESa
CYPRINIDiE.
flttttonad, it aooords with thoee CjfprtBa; but the outer Up U not
mfleeted, nor is the back of the shell coyered witii a ohina-like ooat>
but with epidenaia, and the caqal in firont of the aperture ii recurred.
Tbe Oratoy on the opposite side of the family, DAYe certainly great
affinity to the 3uUiaea (Bullida), sa is pointed out by Linneus, who
places them all in that genua, but BtUla differs most essentially from
them : in tlie animaK by the position of their branohiBB and their
bdng half hermaphrodite, and in the shell, by ^e aperture being
rouxided and quite entire at each end, and the edges not being
thickened, nor the back coyered with a shelly coat, for the shell ia
here covered with the soldered reflected lobee of the mantle; the
connection ia most apparent by means of OmUa patula and BuUa
NoMewm, in the latter of which were are some slight appearances of a
curyed canal at each end of the aperture, aa in the cnaracter of the
Cpyneidete (O^prcgida), but it has not tiie enamelled back.
" This famfly hsa some analogy, in their poUshed coats, first to the
Marginellce, which induced Montagu to caU a species of that genus
Ojfprcta volmta ; and indeed, such is the affinity between the young
of this B|»ecie8, which has been called JBuUa diaphana, that Dillwyn
has considered it as the young of Cfypraa Ewropcta ; in which Montagu
appeals also to haye coincided, until he obseryed a totally different
construction in the animal : but I believe that M, penictUa is the
most analogical species of this genus ; and secondly, to the OHvob,
which differ essentially in haying an operculum, and all the characters
of the BneeinoidecB (Muccinida)"
Messrs. Forbes ana Hanley in their 'History of the British MoUusca,'
place them after the Conidcgf and last of the £unilies of the Oatteropoda
ProKibramchiata,
FotMil Cyprceida.
Fossil shells of this family do not appear to haye been found below
the Supracretaceous Group. Mr. Q. B. Sowerby, speaking of the genus
OypTiEct^ lays, '' Of these," the fossils, ** we haye seyeral species in
Britain, in uie London Clay and Crag ; many others are found on the
Continent^ aa in the Calcaire Grossier in the enyirons of Paris ; si
Laugnan, near Bordeaux, and in Normandy ; also in Italy and Pied-
mont; we haye aeen specimens of a yery fine fossil species, nearly
resembling CVprcsa mm, from the Netherlands: they seem to m
confined to the newer formationa" Lamarck enumerates 18 fossil
species of CyproM^ and two of Ovulvm. Deshayes, in his ' Tables,'
makes the number of living Orttto 18, and the number of foosil (tertiBry)
species 6. Three species, 0. Spdia, 0. hiro9ire, and a new species, he
makes both fossil (tertiary) and Hying in the Mediterranean, the
Indian Ocean, and the Mediterranean respectiyely. The number of
living spedea of Oypnga he makes 188, and the number of fosdl
(tertuffy) 19.
Dr. Gray notes the following as fossil : —
Oypraa Phytit, Brocchi (C. PynUa, Lam.), Plaisantin or Plaoentin;
C. leporina, Lam. ; (7. yibbota, Graj ; C. twniduUi, Konig^ Bordeaux :
and he observes, that (7. anmUaina, Bro^, appears to be an allied
spedea; C. fragUis, Gray; C. Dakayetn, Gray; (hula tuberctilot<»,
Dudoa ; C, ii^fiata, Lam., Giignon, allied to OvtUum ; 0. mtbroth'ata,
Gray, Nehoye ; C fabagina, Lamu ; C. dUuviana, Gray ; 0, ruffosci,
Brod.y Turin.
Lupania eUgant, Gray (O. elegant, Defr.); X. daetylota, Gray;
C. daetylota, Lam. ; O. OervUln, Sow. ; C Qeorgii, Defr.
T^Hfltia Barcinentit, Gray {O. Barcinentit, Konig, Barodona); T.
tpharieulata, Cyp. Lam. (?), Italy ; T, aeutieottata, Gray, Italy ; T. pedi-
evhidet, Gray, Itdy; T. Pwedlut, Gray, Crag(r); T, BromUi, Gray,
Italy ; T. tolida, Gray ; JT. aveUana, Sow., M. C, Suffolk Crag, which,
Br. Gray obeeiTes, appears to be an allied spedes; T, Dudotiaina,
Gray.
Erato venirieoia. Gray, Italy.
Chndwm Lethetii {Leathetii t), Sow., M. C.
The following spedes are described in Mr. Searlea Wood's account of
the Crag Moumca (PaL See.) : — Cypraa avellana; C. affinie; C.
Ajtglice; O. retuta; C. Ewropaa; JSrato Icevit; S, Maugeria,
CYPRESS, [CuPBESSUS.]
CYPRICARDIA. [Subhttilacba.]
CYPRINA. [Vbwbbida]
CYPRINR flDOCBASB.]
CTPRI'NID J:, a &mily of Fishes of the section MaiaeopUrygii
AhdommdUi, the spedes ot which are distinguished by their haying
the mouth small, formed by the intermaxillary bones, and genenlly
devoid of teeth ; the pharyngeans furnished with strong teeth, the
branchiostegous rays few in number, and the scales generally of
large sise.
The prindpal genera bdonging to this family are— Oypri'MU, Barbui,
Gcibio, Tinea, Cirrhmus, Abramie, Labeo, CfUattomut, Leuciaeue, Qono-
rhynehus, Cobitii, AndHept, PacUla, Ldnoi, FundiUut, Molineria, and
Cyprinodon»
Cyprinue, aa now restricted, contains the Common Carp and allied
spedes, which are distinguished from those of the other genera aboye
enumerate by their having one long dorsal fin, a small mouth deyoid
of teeth, the scalea of large size, and the aecond rays of the dorsal
and anal fins large, bony, and more or leas serrated ; branchiostegous
rays three in number.
C. Carpio, Linn., the Common Carp, was introduced into this
country at an early period (probably between the 14th and 15th ccn-
ITAT. HIST. DIT. YOLb IL
tuziea), but neither the date nor the country from which it waa
imported is predady known. In Jenyns's 'Manual of British
Vertebrate Animals' it is sud to be originally from the middle of
Europe; and since it thrives b^ in this part, such is probably the
caae. It now inhabits most puts of Europe, and in some places its
growth is mudi attended to for the purposes of traffia It frequents
lakecf, ponds, and riyers; in the last however it ayoids those parts
where the current is strong, preferring still water.
The food of the Carp conaists chiefly of ycgetable substances, which
are masticated by means of the fiat teeth which are ntuated on the
phar^rngeans; the larvss of insects and worms howeyer alao afford it
nutriment This fish ia of an elongate form, and rather thick : the
bade is oonmderably deyated, and the greatest depth of the body,
which is beneath the commencement of the dorsal fin, iheaaurea rather
more than one-third of the entire length : the head is large, and the
mouth small in proportion ; the lips are furnished with two barbulea
on eadi aide^ situated near the comers of the mouth : the doraal fin
commencea in a line with the end of the pectorals, and occupies a
space nearly equal to one-third of the entire length ; the first ray ia
short and bony ; the second is also bony but long, and serrated on
the hinder part; the third ray ia the longest, and ia fiezible, aa are
likewise the remainder of the rays : the anal in terminates in a line
with the dorsal, and like that has the two foremost rays bony and the
second serrated ; the pectoral fin has its origin immediately behind
the free edge of the operculum ; the caudal fin is forked, and the
longest rays are double the length of those in the centre. The number
of fin-rays are— dorsal, 22 ; pectoral, 17 ; yentral, 9 ; anal, 8 ; and
caudal, 19. The lateral line ia straight.
The general colour of the upper parts is a rich oliye-brown, whidi
is darkest on the head ; the under parte are yellowish white, and the
fine are brown ; the yentral and anal fine are tinged wiUi red.
Aa regarda the size and weight 'of the Carp, we extract a few linea
from Mr. Tarrell's valuable work. " Thou^ not so rapid in their
growth aa some fish," says this author, "carp haye attained three
pounds' weight by their sixth year, and six pounds' weight before their
tenth year. The largest I can refer to are thus noticed in Daniel's
' Bund Sporta :' — ' Mr. Ladbroke, from his paric at Gatton, presented
Lord Egremont with a brace that weighed thirty-fiye pounds, aa
specimens to aaoertain whether the Surrey could not vie with the
Sussex carp.' In 1793, at the fishing of the large piece of water at
Stourhead, where a thousand large brace of killing carp were taken,
the largest wsa thirty inches long, upwards of twenty-two broad, and
weighed eighteen pounds.
"At Weston Hall, Staffbrdshire, the seat of the earl of Bradford,
the painting of a carp is preserved, which weighed nineteen and a half
pounds. This fish waa caught in a lake of twenty-six acres, called
the White Sitch, the largest of three pieces of water which orna-
mented this fine estate."
Carp are in season for the table from October to April
C, gUbdio, Bloch, the Prussian Carp, is another species of this genua
now naturalised in this country, and which is said to haye been mtro-
duced from Germany.
Thia species is considerably less than the Common Carp ; its usual
weight is about half a pound ; it has been knoym howeyer to weigh
upwards of two pounds.
The Prussian Carp may at once be distinguished from the Common
Carp by the absence of barbules on the lipa. The greatest depth of
the body is equal to one-third of the whole length, uie tail included ;
the lateral line descenda in a gentle curve from the upper angle of the
operculum below the middle of the body, whence it is straight ; the
tul is forked ; the longest rays are about one-third longer than the
shortest rays ; the dorsal and anal fina haye a strong bony ray, as in
the Common Carp, but these rays are not so deeply aerrated. The
number of fin-rays are— dorsal, 18 ; pectoral, \i ; yentral, 9 ; anal, 8 ;
and caudal, 19.
The colour of the upper parts is oliye brown ; the belly is almost
white ; the cheeks and gill-coyers are of a brilliant golden-yellow hue ;
the fina are for the moat part of an orange-red colour.
Thia fiah is found in some of the ponds in the neighbourhood of
London, and in other parte of Englann, but is rather local
(7. osrdrftw (Linn.), the Gold Carp. The gold and silyer fish, aa it
is termed, has been long known in this country : it is a natiye of
China, and, according to Pennant, waa. first introduced into England
in 1691, but waa not generally known till 1728. The Gold Carp ia
now completely naturahaed, both here and in other parts of Europe,
where it has been introduced, and breeds fredy, especially in ponds
in warm and sheltered dtuations. In many of the streams of Por-
tu£^ it abounds^ whence they are brought oyer to thia country in the
trading yenels for sale.
This fish is too well known to require description. It is subject to
much variation not only in colour but in the fins, which are sometimes
double, and not unfrequently haye triple tails; in the latter case
however it appears that the tail ia thus devdoped at the expense of
part or the whole of some other fin. When young, the Gold Carp is
of a yery dark colour, approaching to bla&; tms dark colour is
replaced by the golden-red hue more or less early according to the
constitution of the indiyiduaL
Of all fish the Gold Carp is most easily domesticated, and it may be
Ml CTPRINUa
k^ foi jtaa in nnall ^M> well if oue be tak«n to Dtutoge th«
«r»t«T arerj 6kj In the nuDmar, ud tvioe or tliree timei > week in
llie winter. Even thi« ia not neoeBsar; if the; ue kept in Teaeeli in
whioli wnter-plante mre permitted to grow, utd ft few fresh-water
■naili kre ulded. In thin w*f moat of our freeh-weter fiah can be
reered and treatsd, aa petn in the drawiiu'-room. [AqQATiTABiDii.]
0. eariuiitu, iLs Oudaji or Oermui Cup. Thu spedee wu for-
merljr confoundsd with C. gibtiio. The lollowing ii Hr. TamU'a
docnption : — " The Ien{|th of the head ii to the depth of the bodj' u
1 to 2 ; and to the whole length of heed, bod?, and tail m 1 to 6 j the
deptli of the body oompared to the whole length aa 2 to 6 ; the tail
uearlj iqimTe at the and."
Thu &h ii muoh more rare Uuu) the Fruuiai) Cup. Hr. Yarrell
M»JB he hai never aeen thia flah exoept " from the lliamea between
Hammersmith and Windsor, where it attaiaa oonddsrable aize,
■ometimee wcdghing a pomid and a half ; ia one iiutanoe a apedman
bTou(;ht me in October ISSS weighed 21ba. lion. Of ita habita
little ia known."
In addition to the abore epeoiei of Oyprinvt, Uie following Biitiah
S*h belong to thia family ; —
Barbvt nUgaru, CuTiar (C]iprHM4 wigarit, Line), the Barbel .
[BlBBEL.] I
Qtihie JhtriatUii, CuTiec (CVprinw 0(Aio, LiniL), the Qudgeon.
[OOBIO.]
Tinea mUgarii, Cuvier (Oupriiwt Tinea, Bloch.), the Tenoh.
[TraoA-J
Ahraiui hratna, Cavier (OffTtrMt brama, Blocb.}, the Bream, or
Cam-Braam.
A. hlieta, Cut. (Cyfrmit &It«fa, Bloch.), tiie White Bream or Bt«am-
Flat.
A. Suggtnhaggii, Thompson (Oypntna BuggenKaggii, Blooh.), the
Large-Scaled or Pomeranian Bream. {Brbui.]
CYSTINGU.
IM
and cadi cell haa its placenta donUed back from the asia ao aa to
form two platea at right an^eawitli the dissepiment. The apeoiea
inhabit the East Indies cbieSy, a few only being met with in other
warm parts of tlis world. Thej are all beautiful in their flowera, but
thn are of no known oae. In hia ' Tegetabls Kingdom,' Dr. Lindle;
inaludea these planta in the order Oemtracae. [Obshbbioba]
i, Cuvier ^Oj/priiuit leucunut, Linn.), the Dace, Dare, or
Dart.
L. Lancailritatii, Tairell (C^prtnvi Lanautriauii, Bhaw), the
Graining.
L. cep/u^m, Fleming (Ot/priinu ctphatia, Linn.), the Chnb or Skelly.
L. nythrBpthalmu, Cuvier, {Cyprinvt trytHroptkalmHi, Linn.), the
Bed-Bye, or Rudd.
L. canUeia, Tairell, the Aiurine, or Blue Roach.
L. aUmmvi, Cnvier (fyprmui i^tittTnu, Linn.), the Bleak or Blick.
L. plMximu, Cuvier {C^/primu pAoximd, Linn.), the Minnow, Hinim,
or Birk. [Lbdciboos,]
Cobtiu Oarinfu^ Linn., the Loattb, Loehe, or Beardis.
O. lania, Linn., the Spined Loach, or Oronndling. [COBins.]
CYPBINUS. fCTFaiHio*.]
CYPRIPE'DinH, a genus of Plants belonging to the natunl order
Ordadfuxa, and the tnbe Oypripeditte. It has a
■tamena, t^e middle lobe sterile, dilated ; the two lower sepals com-
bined ; the germen straight.
O. eataohu. Lady's Shpper, haa a lea^ atom ; the middle lobe of
the column nearly ovate, obtuse, defleied ; the lip slighth oompresaed,
shorter than the oaljx. Thia plant haa been foond in Qrott Britain,
but >■ extremely rare.
All the epecieo are exceedingly elegant plants. They are moatjy
inhabitants of North America and Northern India. Two new species
have been lately introduced. In their cultivation they require great
care. They will only thrive in a shady border in peat soil. The
American speciea should be covered with some dry straw in very
severe frosts, or if there should be too much wet; they are not eauly
increased, but vrill perfect seeds in favounble situations, partieular^
if puns be taken to apply the pollen to the stigms-
CyPSELDS. [awiiiow-TBiHi.]
CYRENA. rVrsiaiii*]
CTRILLAC£.£, OoriUadt, a natural order of Eiogenoni Plants.
The order oonsista of ahrube with evergreen simple leaves without
stipules. Thaflowennanallyinraoeinee. The calyi 4-B-Mrted. Itliaa
S distinct petals, vritiL an imbrieat«d testiration. The ovaiy is
2-3-1-oelled, always composed of aome aumbar of oarpda different
from that cmT the i^yx, corolla, and stamens; solitary panaoloua omles,
a short sMe, the stigma with ss many lobra as th«« are o^U of the
ovary. The fruit ia a succulent capsule or a drupe ; the seeds
inverted ; the embryo in the axis of a very large quantiW of albnnm,
with a very long superior radicle. This order is relsted to Olaoataa
and Pittotporatta. All the nieciea are inhabitants of Nortii
Nothing has baen recorded of any usee to which they are applied.
CYRTANDRA'CE.^, a small natural order of urt^ular-flowered
Uonopelaloua Exogena, allied to Bigmmituxa and Ganeraeta. They
are herbaceous pbuits, and in many oaaa atemlees, with no tendency
to twine ; sometimes thsy are paraaiticat ; their calyx, corolla, and
at&mena are thoae of Bigrumtatta ; but their fr^t is a long slender
Dod, containing a multitude of seeds, that are often terminated by
Icrg delicate t&i]a, and are destitute of albumen. The pod is 2-celle4
I tha Tips pod, iliowliif the double pUeenlv.
CTBTO'CEHAa, a genus of FoasU (kphalofoda belonging U
species of great beauty and interest. The sapU are pierood by a
subdorsal siphon ; the last whorl finishes in a stiaight extension.
(PhU. PaL, 'Pott. afDeton.')
CYBTI'NQIA, a genus of Tnnicated Asddian JfoUtum, established
by Mr. W. 8. MTjeay, who oleerTea that it comea nearer to Boltmia •
than to any other hitherto deacribed; and that they may prove
eventually to be only two sub-genera, of which we want the mter-
veuing links to ensue us to form an accurate notion of the genus to
which they belong. It has the following characters ; — Body with a
subooriaoeona tes^ afSxed }>j the summit to a very short padidc^
whioh is in the same line with the tare orifices. The branchial orifice
qoadiifid and lateral, the anal inwular and terminal ; both being to
little prominent as not to alter the form of the body. Branchial
pouch membranaceous, indistinctly reticulated, and divided into
longitudinal folds. The tentacula of tha brancloal orifice composito.
Intestinal canal lateral Stomach very large, extending almost the
whole length of the body. Ovaries two, composed of globular ova
disposed in free racemes on each side of the body, with the branchial
pouoh and stomach between them. (W. 5. Mlis^.)
0. Orifilhni has the envelope semipellucid, yellowish. Mantle very
thin, and provided near the branchial end anal orifices with a reticu-
lation of cuinilar muscles neuly at right anglea to each other. Ten-
tacula about 10 or 12, oomprened and lanunatod like thcae of the
geons Boltatia. Branchial pouoh having ita net-work exceedingly lax,
meshes irregular and indistinct, but apparenUv simple, the □errures
being nearly of the tameeiie. llie longitudinal folds of the branch iie,
or T^er (owing to the singular poeition of them in this genus) their
tranaretae folds, about 14 or IG in number. Length of the body, half
an inch. (W. S. H'Leay.) Locality, Winter Island.
#
I, ajisl orlilce i b, Ir
1 OB Uia right an '
Dotdal oiiAce ; j, gr^aa of
GTSTINOIA«
CTTIlSrACE^
3M
under Captain (now Sir Edward) Bury, gives the following details of
its oinoisation : —
** Toe body of this animal, so different in many respeets from all
other 2ta%(B, is pyriform, and attached to a pedide so short as
seuoaly to ourre down farther than the branchial oiifloe. This
pedicle is rather conical at its base, sab-eylindrical, and apparently
▼ery weak at its eztremity. From this apparent weakness and im-
peifcet formation of the pedicle, in coiganotion with the circumstance
of one aide of the oonical part in the only specimen that I hate seen
bfldng incrosted with sand, I 8un>eet that the animal can scarcely be
said to be suspended by its pedide, but rather reposes on the conical
pait of it ; by which means ma folds of the branchud pouch will take
a Tertioal and the stomach a horizontal position, and tiius be more in
conespondenoe with the ordinaiy position of the stomach in the
simple A»eidia, which is reiy rarely descending. The enrelope of
C Ori/khni is exceedingly smooth, and so pellucid as to appear
almost gelatinoua. The original colour I cannot ascertain ; but u it
be the same as that of the specimen in spirits, it is cinereous, rather
ydlowish. The extenial orifices have scabrous yeins, are yeiy minute,
and scarcely at all prominentb The branchial orifice is ouadrifid, and
placed exactly half-way down the side. Tlie anal orince is on the
flame line wiw it and the pedicle, but is placed oppofdte to this last,
so as to be terminal, haTmg its external sur&oe apparently without
rays ; in both respects being totally different from the anal orifice of
Be^iratory System. — " The entrance of the branchial cavity is pro-
vided with a droular range of 10 or 12 unequal tentaoula, which are
componte or divided into Ucinin at the extremity, which ladnitt are
again so minutely divided as to be almost plumate. The branchial
pouch has about fourteen folds, and its net-work is very indistinct and
lax, the transverse nervures being perhaps Uie most visible, particu-
larly towards the brendiial orifice. The folds of the brancmsB are
most easily seen on the inside of the branchial pouch."
Circulating System. — " The heart is situated horisontally between
the lower put of the tunic and the stomach. It is large, ovoidal, and
appears to be composed of several lobes, and is indeed of a structure
diffiatent from that of such Ateidida as are known.
" The dorsal sulcus is remarkably distinct, and proceeds from the
immediate vicinity of the heart, or rather along the back of it to that
of the branchial orifice. It may be seen through the external enve-
lope of the body when this is viewed on the 1^ side, and forms an
aroh inclosing a lesser and more pointed arch, which last appears to
be nothing else than one of the folds of the branchial poudL At the
point where this last arch touches the dorsal sulcus there is in our
specimen an orifice opening internally, and apparently communicating
by a tube with a beautifully diaphanous lonjgitudinal pouch, which
contains nothing but two blackish nodules, one of which is longer
than the other. ' The imperfection of the only specimen wfadoh
M'Leay had for examination prevented him from accuratelv ascer-
taining the nature and use of this part of the organisation, which, he
says,appeanto have nothing similar to it in any of the other jTWi^oto
hitherto observed.
Digestive System. — " The pharynx is situated rather higher than the
branchial orifice; and the cBsophagus, which is about hidf the length
of the stomach, after desoendiog to the highest part of the branchial
vein, descends, and gives rise to a simple but enormous stomach, with
very sli^^t transverse strise, and having a longitudinal division,
marked somewhat deeply, and which runs almost we whole length of
the body in a line between the base of the pedide and the anal orifice.
The intestine is exceedingly short, and apparently descending in a line
with the stomach ; the rectum is eylindncal, and anus simiue. Such
at least is the description of the digestive apparatus of this animal, if
we give the name of pharynx to that end of the intestmal canal
which opens into the branchial cavity, and the name of anus to that
end of it whidi is free ; and there is no doubt that such a description
makes it an animal totally different from SoUenia, and in Uuct from
aU other spedes of Tethyce, not only with respect to the singular form
of the intestinal canal, but inasmuch as the branchial vein is thus
placed, in relation to the pharynx, directly opposite to its pontion in
all other ^miTnaU of tlus group. I therefore am induced in some
measure to suppose that there is a monstrous formation in the intes-
tinal canal of the only specimen which I have had the means of
examining ; a suppodtion whidi must of course for the present throw
doubt on any generic character which might be drawn from the above
description of the intestinal canaL If indeed we could imagine that
were it not for some monstrodty of structure, the intestinal canal
would communicate with the branchial cavity by that end which,
from its being free, I have been obUged to consider the anus, then the
whole of the internal organs of nutrition would have a dtuation
uialogous to that of those of BoUenitk For instance, there would
then be a diort OBSophagus opening near the anal orifice of the enve-
lope, an ascending stomach, a long curved intestine, and descending
rectum, while the branchial vein and heart would take their usual
situation in respect to the phazjmx and stomach. We know more-
over, from those memoirs of Savigny, to which I have in the course
of this paper had occasion to refer, that the digestive organs of the
Tijmcaia are subject to analogous derangements, of which he has
figured two remarkable examples in Cynthia Momtu and PhaUwia
Tureiea.^ It appears indeed to be a consequence of the low rank of
these animals in the scale of bsing, and of their simple organisaUoo,
that the organs apparently most essential to their existence may
undergo the greatest invendons without affecting their life ; for the
monstrous C^hia Momut described by Savigny, as well as the
C^ttingia now under consideration, had its ovaries full of eggs."
Mr. Qriffiths's specimen was taken in Fox's Channel, and two
other specimens were obtained by the expedition under Captain Sir
John Boss^ near Felix Harbour ; but as these were abandoned with
the rest of the collection, it is probable, as Captiun James Boas
observes, that the individual from which Mr. M'tieay's description
and drawings were taken is the only specimen ever brought to
Ezigland.
CTSTIPHT'LLUM, a genus of MadrephyUiaa, proposed by Lons-
dale, to include roedes which have a vedcular internal structure,
instead of clearly defined horizontal diaphragms and vertical lamellss.
It occurs in the Palsdozoic Strata of Shropshire, Devon, and the Eifd.
CTSTOTTERIS, a genus of Ferns bdonging to the trih^ Atpiditas.
It has the indudum attached by its broad hooded base under the
sori, with a lengthened fringed free extremity, at first covering the
thecse.
C. frogUU, Brittie Fern, has bipinnate fronds ; the pinnso ovate-
lanceolate ; the pinnules ovate or ovate-lanceolate, toothed or pinna-
tifid. This is a remarkably variable spedes of fern. Three forms or
varieties may be distingmshed — C, f, dentaici, with obtuse ovate pin-
nules, poinuess, blunt^ toothed or rarely pionatifid, not decurrent ;
O. /. cwMPtcstoto, with pinnules linear, lanceolate, deeply and acutdy
pinnatind or slightiy toothed at the margin; the ultimate subdi-
vidons oblong or liAsaA, not dilated, rounded or ovate, sometimes
notdied at the end. The other form has the pinnules ovate, acute,
pinnatifid, cut^ and serrated, slightiy decurrent. These plants are
common in Qreat Britain, and found on rocks and walls, especially in
limestone districts. They are of a diminutive size, and of a remark-
ably brittie nature, from whidi circumstance they have obtained
their common name.
(Babington, Manual of British Botany ; Newman, Hittory of BriHtk
J^STflf.)
CTTACia [AOALBPHJB.]
CTTHBREA. [VnntRiDA]
CTTHSRE, I genus of Entomostracous OniMacea, belonging to
the legion Lophyropoda, the order Ostracoda, and the family Oytheridct.
The spedes are found very commonly ia Great Britain. [Bbanchio-
PODA.J Mr. Rupert Jones, in his ' Monograph of the Entomostraca
of the Cretaceous Formation of EIngiiand/ describes five fossil species
belonging to this genus. [EKTOMoerRAOA.] The same author describes
ten spedes of this genus as fossil in the Permian Bocks of England.
Oytherei* fa a genus separated frx>m the group of spedes knovm as
Oythere, by Mr. B. Jones. It has the followhig characters : — The
animal is unknown. Carapace-valves or shdl of an almost regular
oblong shape, the dorsal and ventral margins lying nearly parallel to
each other. Surfiftce of a veiy irregular appearance, being wrinkled,
ridged, and beset with tuberdes, and crenulated or strongly toothed
on the margins.
Dr. Baird has described three recent species, whilst nine fossil
forms have been described by Mr. Jones firom the Chalk.
Bairdia is a group of species formerly referred to Oythere, and
separated by WCoj. The valves externally are convex and smooth,
sometimes finely pitted or spined, never ribbed or granulated ; the
hinge is simple.
Tlus genus has no recent spedes. Six spedes have been found in
theChiyuc.
OytkereUa^ a genus separated by Jones frx>m Oythere, It embraces
spedes of Oytherina of other authors. The carapace-valves are oblong,
and vary in the convexity and smoothness of the surfiMse ; the right
valve is laiiger than the left, and its contact margin thicker than ihat
of the oppodte valve. Six fossil species have been described from
theChalL
(Bupert Jones, Momograph ^ the Entomottraca of the Oretaceout
Formatitnu of Bn^fUmd; W. ^iug, A Monograph of the Permian
Fouila of England, both published by the Palseonlographical Society ;
Baird, Natural Hikory ef the British Entomoetraca — Bay Sodety.)
CYTHEBEIS. [Ctthxbb.]
CTTHEBELLA. [Ctthebk]
CTTINA'CEiB, Outut-Bape$, a small natural order of Bhizanths,
the type of which is OytinuB Mypodetie, a paradte found growing on
the roots of certain lunds of Oistue in the south of France. Its stems
are a few inches high, thick, succulent, reddish or yellowish, and
covered by straight flediy imbricated scales which are only abortive
leaves. The flowers are nearly sessile, erect, arranged at the summit
of the stem, yellowish and velvety on the outside. The relations of
this order amongst the Bhizanths. are evidentiy with Baff>etiace(B and
Balanophoracea^ Like the Bhizanths generally they are also allied to
Fungi, whilst their resemblance to certain Endogenous orders, as
BromdiacetB, is evident Griffiths regards the Bhizanths as reduced
or degraded forms of Phsenogamous Plants. The frxdt is baccate,
inferior, leathery, dividble into eight polyspermous lobes. The
inspissated juice is used in French pharmacy as a styptic, but it
is not admitted with us. Along with this genus are associated the
enrioui gvnua Mydnora, Cape of Qood Hope, wliiuli luolu like » gruat
aUr of ths Lueoptrdon ApodtitOvai, a minata panuta apon Qm
bnnohn of tiMs, and tiro other lew known genera.
OtttKia BurtditU.
TtTj mnah mi^nlfled ; S, a femala
£<^iHiiHM)fi& It haa a bilabiata calyx, the apper Up generally cotire,
the lower aomewhat 3-toothed. The TexillmQ orate and broad ; the
carina Tery obtow, inclndiDg the itameni, which are monadelphom.
The legnme ii plano-oompreoed, manv-awded, not f^andnlar. Th»
■peuei ue unall lieaa or ihrabB, wiui temate leases and yellow-
pQiple white flowen.
C. Lobumum, Common Labnrmuii, ui a native of the moont^na of
Savoy uid Switaerland. It ia a noall green branched tree. The
young ihoote are downy ; the learee on long etilke, leafleia rether
glanooui, temate, nearly aeuila, cnl, miicroniila(«, a little downy on
the under eide, the terminal one larger tlum the others ; the petioles
and anbolate etipulea downy. The nceniea are pandnloiu, about
6 inohei long, tsnninal, many flowered, freqaant, and downy. The
calyx campanulate, oblique, piubed uiwardB at the baee, downy.
Th* ooroUa laixe, and of a bright yellow ooIdut. The legumea are
dowiQ', lineal, flat, thickened at each suture, ratlier contracted between
the aeVda. The leedi am oblong, compreeaed, ahining, amooth, and
of a deep greeniib-black. They are (lighly poiaonoiu, poaaenng
narcotic acrid propertiea. The seeds of tAia plant are frequoatly
sown in plantatioiu infested with hates and rabbita, who will toucdi
no other tne as loDg ai a twig of Labnmum lemaina. Though eaten
C. AlpiMM, Al^e Labumam, haa terete brtnebss, petiolate laav«a,
onta lanoeolata laafleU, ronndsd at the baas ; fiaiKlulona iMemea ;
pqItwoIoos pedicels and calyces; glabrcns Isw-aeeded maiginate
ugnmea. It u a native of Cannthu, in grorct. It is nearly allied
to the Labtnmm, but is distinct. The wood of both scwoieB ia
used by cabinet-mi^eia on aooonnt of its hardnesi, donMli^, and
0. scopoTHis, Common Broom, is a large bnahy shrub, with Mpiona
long, stonight, angular, dark-gre«ni, smooth, toogh bnuohes. Tbe
leares are dooiduoiu, scattered, stalked, temate, the upper ansa
genenlly aimple, the leaflets uniform, oborate, obtuse, and entire ;
silky when young. The flowers are sullary, solitary or in paita, on
dmple stalks, longer than the leaves, large and handsome, of a deep
golden ycQlow, sometimes tinged with oni^e. The swelling ovaiy soon
splits the tube of the filament. The legume is bi^wn, flat, above an
inch long, nearly smooth at the sides, but fringed vrith harsh hairs at
each margin. The OffitKi of Virpl was the Medieago arbarta of
botanista. For the medical propertiea of this plant see Soofaaici, is
Asn am) Ba Dit.
CTTOBLAST. In the development of the tiasosa c^ plants from
the blastema, or oyto-blaatema, whidi is a fluid eonmstdng of water
holding in solution sugar, gum, dextrine, &&, some of the gnnnlca
sssume a dafinita form, and become darker than fte sommnding
gnnule*. T)ua» dark spots may be seen in the flnid* of ll» growing
parts of all planla. They Are oomposed of wme form of proton, and
it U to thess that Schleiden has given the name of Cytobliata. The
Cytoblast produces from its surface a cell : when the cell has become
fully grown other Cytoblasts are produced in ita interior, which, by
producing other cells, burst the parent cell and inorsBBe the labetanoe
of the part in which they are found. A growing point of the same
nature has been observed in the tissues of the aniiual kingdom, and
It has been thus demonstaated that in the original growth of their
tissusa there is an identity between the animal and regetabla king-
doms. Although, whsn fint made known by Bchleidell, Uie Cytoblast
wsB supposed necessary to the formation (tf every odl (and thu led to
the obesrvation by Sohwann of itf extandve prssanee in the animal
kingdom), it has smoe been pointed out by Mohl and otheta that the
great mass of ocQls orinnates in the division of a pntoplastio matter,
which is not found in the form of a nndeus, but of a vesicle lioiog
the interior of the oelL This substance has been called by Uohl the
' ptimordiol utricle.' It is composed of the same material, snd per-
forms the same fonotions, a* those attribiit«d by Bchlsiden to tlie
Cytoblast. Hr. Huxley propoaaa to call the proteinaoeous formative
matter originating each cell, nnder whatever form it occurs, tfae
Bndoplast. Thus the terms nucleus, pratoplaam, primordial utricle^
and endoplast may be regarded as synonyms of Cytoblast. [Cuu ;
TmsDXB, TsatraaLE ; Tdbdis, AimuL ; Hstolooi.]
CTTTASIA, a genua of Plants belonging to the natural ordor
.^Mjli. 0ns of the specie*, 0. DantiiHi, growa on the living branehea
of the South Ameriosn beeches, and ia daaaribed by Xr. Berkeley in
the ' TranMotiona of the T.innyan Socde^.' It forms a principal put
of thefeodof theiurtiveiaf Tienadel Fuego during many months of
TVAB. [pLxuBoirsmDA]
-L'dABCBICK. [CoLrnBTO*.]
DAB(ECIA (from St Dabece), a genus of Flaote
natural order Srieaeca. It has a 1-parted calyx ; the
vsntrioose, the limb 4-toothed i S stamens inclosed, the filaments
dilated, glabrous ; the anther linear, sagittate at the baae, the cells
of the anthere parallel, loosened at the apex, dehiscing lengthwise ;
the stigma simple, truncate; the capsule 4-oelled wim a septjcidsl
dehiscence. There is but one species, the D. polyfalia, which is a
dwarf bushy eveiftreen ahrub, a native of Ireland and the lY^eneos.
This plant ia the Ai\dromeda Daiofcia of Linnaus, the Erica babada
of Smith, the Iteyuitiia Dabaeia of De Candolle, and the Mciwtia
volxfolia of JnseiBO. In Ireland, which is its only locality in the
Bntish Islsnds, it is called Irish Whorte, Cantabrian Heath, and St.
Dabeoo'a Heath. It is a pretty shrub, and well fitted tor decorating
tlie (t«nta of shrubberies, or for rockwork. It may be pnraagated by
dividluF tlie whole plant, or bj cattings, or by layen. (IMi, Sdin-
birgk PMh$opii«^ Jaunuil, vol xvii)
DACE. [LaccmoDB.]
DACELC. [BuoiDNlDX.]
DACNIS, Cavlei'B name tor a genua of Birds (the PiM'iU ef
BuSbn} which, he ofaasrves, represent the Carougea {Xamtkormu) la
miniature by their oouioal and sharp bill D. Cayana is of a cerolean
blue ; fbrehesd, shoulders, wingi, and tail, black. It is a native of
This pretty littU bird Is the Elotototl of the Mexicana. Hemandei
tt it lives about the trees of the Teticocan Uonntains ; that it
le ; that it does not sing, and that therefore it ia not kept in
■ss of the inhabitants.
nt-ni (Dosuf OnfaHt).
DACRTDIUU, a gmiu of OTnmagaaDiu PUnta balonsing to the
natunl order Taacacta. One of the ipaciea, D. tiLT^MHim, the
Kikrt«m-Trm of New ZeeUnd, toqairee a. height of 200 fset.
From its branchea may be mumfutared > beTenige rasembling in
utiacoTbatio qoalitiee the weli-known >pruoa-beer. (Lindlej, Tigtt-
tiU StngdoBL.)
DACrrYIX}FOILA. [FoRunsiriSA. 6DPPUMIIII.]
DACTYLIS, B genue of FUnti balongiiig to the natural order of
OruMa. D. glomavta, Cooksfbot-Qnae, ie an eztremelf
n fielda aad waite plaoes, growing and flowering daring a great
f the sammer. It hai in ibi wud itato a coarse blniui m '
bobage, and » Soweretem about three feet high, divided at
part of the
"t
point into a looae panicle, each of whole dinnoD* bean a cliutar of
lowen at ite and. The glume* are 2, ih«i>-poiitled, keeled, and
nlhiT unequal ; they iaeloae &om S to 6 florets, each of which con-
Biia of 3 roogh-ribbed Mien, the lower and outer of whiah ii the
broader, and tipped wita a abort brietle. In ite nncnltinttsd atate
thii ie a oouae hard gnla; neTertheless it ii readily eaten by osUle,
bcnn, and eheep. It atrikee itt roots to a ootunderable depth in the
nil, and on tfaia aooount ia capable of enduring the drought of dij
■ad; cipoaed land. Haoee in mob dtuationa, where acaroelT any
other paatnre can be procured, u in the naked breoka (or nnduJating
downa) of Norfolk, it ia of great TjJue.
Hr. Sinclair aaaiir« m ^t Cocksfoot forms a part of the herbage
oT paatum mcst celebrated for &tteniiig and keeping the largest
i^Dsntity of stock ia Deronshire, Lincolnahire. and the vale of Aylea-
huiy ; and he states that in the most akilfully managed of theae pas-
ture* the foliage of the Cocksfoot wsa only to be distiiigiiished by an
experienced eye from the various Epecies of fine pasture grssses with
which it is combined. We would not however reconmend an; one
Isjiag down artificial gran to employ Cocksfoot where other grawa
can be made to saoeeed, for we have mvariably found it overgrowing
the sorts with which it was mixed, and forming coarse tufts which
neither fending nor mowing has been able to keep down.
CMkaloDt Qi*— IJittfUi ftmHTiria).
I, iBFDtalet BaohBegnlfled; a, a, tlw bIuhh ; 1, sBorel with th* pultn.
DA.CTTL0TTERXJ8 (Lac^pMeJ, a genua of Fishes belonging to
the order AamtlmpUtygii and family Lorimti, It has the foUawing
iiharactera : — Head flattened, large, and long, and rising suddenly from
the moEile, which ia very abort ; inferior angle of the pre-openmlum
fnmiBhed with on elongated strong spine ; operculum without spinee ;
moutb amall; jaws funiished with roaases of minute conical teeth j
bnnchioat^cous rays six in number ; acme of the anterior rays of the
dorsal fin firee ; mbpectoral rays mimeroua, very loDg, and connected
by a membrane ; ventral flna with four rays ; body covered with hard
caiinated aealea.
The Sshea of this genus are classed with the gurnards ; thsy may
however be readily dutioguiahed &om the typiod or true gunisrds
by the immense size of the pectoral fins.
In the true gumBrds we obaerre three detached lays situated under
the pectoral fins, but springing ^m the aajne base : in our present
geaua these rays are very numerous, immensely long, and aonnectod
% a membrane. By meana of these large fins, the length of which is
>knost equal to that of the body of the animal, these fi^ea are enabled
to sustain themselves in the air for several aeconila, which they often
tail a prey to the frigate-birds and albatrossee.
This genoa contains bat two speciea, one of which has been long
known : it inhabits the Uedlterrsneon, and ia the Trigla volitant of
Bcoonnt of theirpowar of soatainii
of the water. The other spedea i
Ihagloplenit orientaliM ot Cuvier.
whidi have obtained lUs name, on
[ig themselves for a few aeoonda oat
nhabitt the Indian Seaa, and is the
Daetj/lopttnu orittitaltt.
Daetylopttria mlitma, the Flying-Qumard, Tories from 1 foot to
IS inches in length, and ia of a brown colour above, with spots of
a deeper tint : the sidea of the body are red, and the under porta ai
oie-coloiir ; the anterior dorsal is gray, witb clouded markings of a
deeper hue ; the posterior doisnl ia transparent, ud ita laya are of
a pale colour, spotted with brown.
DADDT-LONO-LEGa [TiPOLiDa.]
DiDALION. [FiWOiiiDa.]
DAFFODIL, the English name of Nar(navi Ftndo-Ifareutut and
it* allies, to which soma recent botanista have given the generic name
of Ajax. [NiBOiasoiJ
DAFILA. [Doom.]
DA'HLIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Gm-
potUa. Three apedea only are known, all nativea of Mexico. Of
theae, two, B. e/Kxinea and D. Cenantaii, were formerly oultirated
in thia country, but not aporting into varietiei, and being much less
beautiful than D. variabiiii, they are not now seen in gardens.
D. variabiiit itaelf is, in its vrild stale, a buahy herbaceous plant,
T or 8 feet high, with single purple or lilao flowers, and is by no
means remarkable for its beauty. In cultivation however it is ao
readily improved in size and form, and sports into such endless
varieties in stature, leaves, and flowers, that it has become the most
extensively oultivated flonat'a plant of the present day. Ita innumer-
able sorts are the glory of our gardens in the autumn, and ore quite
onrivalled at that season of the year : they are however destroyed by
the earliest froata [DaELU,, in Asib and So. Div.]
DAIST, or DATS EYE, the little perennial plant called B^it
ptrennit by botanists. Like most oompoute flowers, it has proved
produotive of varieties when domesticated ; but they have almoat
disappeared, except from old-bahioned or cottage gardens. [Bellis.]
DiXBEHOlA, a genue ot Plants belonging to the natural order
FtAacnx, named in honour of Nicholas Dalberg, a Swedish botanist
Ithaaa campaoulate oalyi, fi-tootbed; a papiliOQaceoiia corolla, the
petala of the keel connected to the apex; B-10 stamens, sometiDiea
all monadelphoua, with tbe tube or shsatji cleft in front, sometime*
divided into two equal opposite bundles. It has a stipitate mem-
branous compressed legume, which is flat, oblong, and tapera to belli
enda The seeda, which vary i^om 1 to S, are oompreased and
remote. The specin are sometimes trees, but usually climbing
shrubs, with impari-pinnate leaves.
D. Sittim, hia five alternate leaflets, glabrous above, pubescent
beneath. It is a Qatjve of Bengal, where the timber is much prised,
and is known by the name of Sissoo.
D, mondana, another of tbe apedes, yields a reein very similar to
Dragon's Blood.
There are about 22 species of this genus, none of which ai
known use except those mentioned.
DAMA. [Cbrvid*.]
DAMALIS,; [AiiTiLOPXi.]
DAMASK-ROSE. [Rosa.]
DAME'S VIOLET. [HEaPEBS.]
DAMMAKA, Dammer-Pine. [AoaTBls.]
DAMODRITE, a Mineral found ic ■■- '
hydrous silicate of alumioa and potash. I Fbkhhiti.]
DAHSON, or DAMASCENE (from Damascus), a race of plums
cultivated in thia country for tlie sake of their hardinen and proliflo
habita. They are a mere form of the domestic plum, &om which
there are no certain cbaiactars to distinguish them, except the
abundanoe of their late oval &uit, and the property they possess ol
propagating by suckers. All the varietiea ore used for kitchen
I the Uoited States.
t>A.^MACEM,
DAWua
800
purposea principally, and are generally confined io the gardenaof
cottages or faim-houaea, where the quantity of prodaoe ia more
yalura than its quality. Much the finest variety of this sort of plum
is that called the Shropshire Damson, which is extensively multiplied
in the nurseries by grafting. [Pluit, in Arts akd Sa Div.]
DAN JSACEiB, Ikuugwortt, & small natural order of Plants related
to the Ferns. They hare all the habit of Dorsiferous Ferns, but their
spore-cases are ringless and combined in masses, splitting irregularly
by & central clefL The species are all tropicaL It embraces the fol-
lowing geneva : — Kaulfiuria, Angiopterit, Dancea, Ewpodwm, ManUtia,
and about fifteen species. Angiopteris ewcta is said to be employed in
the Sandwich Islands to perfume cocoa-nut oiL The rhizome of a
spedee of MaraUia is eaten by the Sandwich Islanders.
DANBUBITE, an American Mineral It occurs cxystallised. Its
primary form is an oblique rhombic prism. The colour hon^-yellow,
Decoming nearly white by decomposition ; streak white. Hardness
7*5. Lustre yitreous ; translucent, transparent Specific gravity 2*88.
It is found at Danbury, Connecticut. The following is the result of
an analysis by Shepard : —
SiUca S^-
Lime 28*33
Alumina 1'7
Yttria -86
Potash, Soda, and loss 5*12
Water 8- —100
DANDELION, a corruption of the French name Dent de Lion, or
Lion's Tooth, a common weed, with a tapering milky perennial root,
resembling that of succoiy. It is the Lwntodon Taraxctcum of
botanists. [Leovtodon.]
DANEWORT. [SAMBUCua.]
DAPE'DIUM, changed 1^ Agassiz to Dapedvus, one of the first
described British genera of Fossil Ghmoid Fishes. To 2). polUvan of
De la Beche (' GeoL Trans.,' 2nd series, vol i pL vi) six others are
added by Agassiz, all from the Lias.
DAPHNE, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
ThymdaeecB, containing many species, inhabiting the more temperate
parts of Europe and Asia. Among them some are cultivated in
gardens for their beauty or fragrance, others are of medicinal
importance, and a few are emploved in the manufacture of hemp and
paper. We shall briefly notice the more remarkable of these.
The genus Daphne is distinguished in its natural order by having
8 or 10 stamens inclosed within the caljz, a simple stigma, a
succulent fiiiit, and a calyx, the orifice of whose tube is destitute of
appendages.
x). Mexereum, the Mezereon of the gardens, is a deciduous plant,
with white or purple fragrant flowers^ sitting close to the stem, and
appearing on the naked branches before the leaves are unfolded. It
is a favourite in gardens, and succeeds in almost any well-drained
light soil where the air is not poisoned by the smoke of coal-fires. It
is found wild in the mountainous woods of many parts of the middle
and south of Europe. It is met with in woods in various counties
of England. The berries are smooth, shining, and bright red.
All the parts of this and indeed of the other species, as far as
thev have been examined, are extremely acrid and poisonous. If the
bark is bruised and applied to the skin, it produces severe blisters,
and is sometimes substituted for cantharides when that drug cannot
be employed with safety. Taken internally, the bark, leaves, and
fruit, act as eathartics, but require to be administered with extreme
caution ; for they are apt to produce dangerous and even fatal con-
sequences. Linnseus speaks of a person havinjg been killed by a
dozen Mezereon berries; and they are employed in Sweden to poison
wild animals. According to F^e, the very odour of Daphne, agree-
able as it is, is attended with danger ; he says that if kept in sitting-
rooms they will bring on headache and fainting. It is moreover
asserted that Russian and Tartarian women sometimes rub the berries
of the Mezereon on their cheeks to produce a slight irritation, which
of course gives the effect of rouge, only in a more permanent degree.
(Mbzsrbon, in Arts AJsa> So. Div.)
D. Laureolaf the Spurge Laurel, is another British species, found
wild commonly in woods and hedges. It is a handsome evergreen
bush, with the aspect of a laurel The leaves are placed very dose
together ; they are of a leathery consistence, deep green, lanceolate,
acute, and narrowed to the base. The flowers are green, and grow
in little short clusters, which are nearly concealed by the leaves. The
berries are, when ripe, a deep purple black. We have no roecies that
grows more readily beneath the shade of trees ; and as its appear-
ance is highly ornamental, it would be a most useful garden plant,
if it were not for the dangerous berries, which children are apt to eat
An ointment for keeping blisters open is prepared from this plant
2). p<mt%c<L One of the plants which is reputed to have contributed
to the poisonous quality of the honey that was eaten by Xenophon's
soldien, is very like this species, and is often cultivated as a hardy
evergreen.
D. Chiidiumy the Ghurou-Bush, an evergreen with narrow shaip-
pointed erect Ught-green leaves, and brancMng clusters of white
fragrant flowers, is a common plant in dry waste places in the south
of £urope. It will not live in the open air in England, except in the
warmest counties. Both the berries and leaves are employed by the
IVendh as puxgatives. The plant also affords a good yellow dye.
D. (Meorum, a native of grassy places in the Alps of Switcerland
and the rest of Central Europe, with its trailing stems, nuneroiu
small narrow blunt deep-green leaves, and dust^ of rich purple
fragrant flowers, is one of Uie most beautiful of all plants, when it
finds a soil and climate that suit it At Bagshot, for instance, and in
similar situations, it is under good management quite unrivalled by
the other hardy shrubs among which it grows. It will not succeed
where the soil is otherwise than sandy and peaty, nor can it bear the
impure atmosphere of large towns.
x>. eoUmOf D. aipma, D. Neapolitana, and D, TartotHmra are other
species cultivated in gardens. The first has dull purple sweetnicented
fiowers, and is sufficiently common in collections ; the others are rarer.
All are impatient of wet in wioter ; but if at that season kent tolerably
dry will bear considerable frost, and are desirable garden plants in the
muder parts of England.
In addition to the acrid and dangerojis properties which appear
to be common to them all, some species are remarkable for the tou^-
ness of their fibre, and for the economical purposes to which they axe
applied. From D Caimabma is prepared the best kind of writing-
paper in China, according to Loureiro ; but it must be observed that
this statement, if true, is at variance with what is observed in Nepanl,
where the daphne-paper is very brittle and bad.
D. LagetUL, the Lace-Bark-Tree of Jamaica, is most remarkable for
the tenacity of the fibre of which its bark consists, and for the faoilily
with which it may first be separated into thin layers and then into
distinct meshes. If the inner bai'k of tins plant be macerated in
water it may be readily separated into layers no thicker than the
finest lace, and whidi afbur having been pulled a little sideways
resembles in some measure that fabric. King Charles IL is said to
have had a cravat, frill, and ruffles of Lace-Bark presented to him by
his governor of Jamaica.
DAPHNIA, a genus of Entoniostracous Cruttaaa, belonging to the
division Branchiopoda, the order Cladocera, and is the type of the
fiunily Daphniadce, This genus is characterised by Baird as follows :
Head produced downwards into a more or less prominent beak.
Superior antenna exceedingly small, 1-jointed, and situated under the
beak; inferior antennsBlaxge and powerful
Several other genera have been mrmed out of the species that were
fonnerly referred to the genus Daphnia. [Bbanohiopoda.]
D. Pulex (Latreille), the Water-Flea, is the best known species of
this genus. It is known by a multitude of names, the most common
of which Ib the Water-Flea. The whole of the species however have
this designation. The following are some of the synonyms : —
Monoeuku Pvlex, Linnaeus.
Daphne pennaiOf Mtiller.
Daphnia ramosa, Koch.
Pou Aquatique, Joblot
Verma minimi rubri, Bennett
Da^f^tne Puiex, Miiller.
PtUex af^Ktrescent, Swammerdam.
Puceron Branchu, Trembley.
Le Perroquet d'Eau, Geoffroy.
Animaletti Aquatid, Redi
This little creature forms a beautiful object for the microscope. Its
shell or carapace is transparent, and through it can be seen the whole
of its interior oxganisation. The lower extremity of the valves termi-
nates in a sharp spine, which is serrated at the edges. The head is
large; the superior antennsa are ^rerv small, whilst the inferior antennse
are very large. The male Ib mudb smaller than the female, and is
comparativelv rarely met with. It is found commonly in ponds and
ditches round London at all seasons of the year. It is firaquent in
the oistems which supply the houses of London with water.
D. ptiUaeea, Baird. It closely resembles the last species, but Dr.
Baird says, upon dose examination, " The form of the head and the
serrated dorsal margin distinguish it very readily."
D, Schajferif is a larger species than D, PiUx. It is about the
fifth of an inch in length and two lines broad. Their motion through
the water is peculiar, beuig a tumbling wavy sort of movement They
remain at the bottom of the water. They are veiy much infested
with species of Vortieella*
D. vetvla is common round London, and has a smaller head than
2>. Pvlex, It is the Daphnia tima of Miiller and MonoeuluM mmu of
Gmelin.
There are three other species noticed by Dr. Baird in his ' British
Entomostraca.' D. rettcaZo^o, 2). rctwuda, and D, mMcronata. The
last is a rare spedes.
(Baird, Naitural Siitory (f British Entotnottraea)
DA'PSUS, a genus of Coleonterous Insects. [BuxoRPHXTS.]
DAPTRIUS. [FalookidaJ
DATTUS (Fischer), a genus of Coleopterous Insects bdonmng to
the funily ffarpalidcB. It has the following characters : — Mentum
deeply emarginated and without any tooth-like process in the middle ;
antennae rather short, and moniliform ; second joint of the labial palpi
somewhat oval ; four basal joints of the four anterior tarsi slightly
dilated, short, and triangular; body more or lees elongated, the elytra
wi^ their outer maigins almost psfalleL
D. vittatut is of a pale yellowidi colour, with an oblong black spot
on each elytron ; the head and thorax are more or less dcuded with
brown or black in some specimens.
Tbis spedes Is about a quarter of an inch in length, and ii
»i DARNEL.
■nifar dlittioti in the vidnily of water in the Matham parti of RumU
MMln>IlML
D. meroMteltu (Dejean) bu the auae colouring u the leat, but it i*
a(» larger nae, being upwardi of half on ioch in Icogth. It inhabits
Korth Amariea.
DARNEL. [LoLiDM.]
DAKNIS (FebiiduB), a ^ui of Inieot* belongmg to the order
HaupUra and lanulf C'treoptda. The epedei of thie genu* hare the
patarior part of tha pro-Uiorax prolonged eo m totally to cover the
upper part of tiia abdomen and wingi, or uearlf ao : thie portion of
Ihe pro-thoiaz ii of the fbrm of an elongated and arched triangle.
DABOO-TaEE ia the Fitut Syeamona, the Egyptian Sycamore,
[Ficua.f
DASTOENIS. [MiBHUDA]
DASTPROCTA. [Aooutl]
DASTFUa [Armadillo.]
DASTURna [lUBniriATA.]
DATE-FALK. [PBOinx.]
DATHOLITE, a Hineral wbiob oontaini Boracia Add, Silica, ud
Limft It baa been foond at Arendahl in Norway, and a few other
[iioea It oocura both m*agi*e and cryitalliKd in rhombic priinu,
Ui* lateral e<|gea and the aoUd anglea of which are usoally replaced
bj planea. The ooloor of DatluAita a grayiih or greeniah white, and
it ii translooent. Ita apedfio gnvity is about S. It yield* to the
knife. Tbe fnultnre ii imperfeot otmchoidaL The loitre ii aome-
whit Titeaoui. Aconding to the analyiia of Tauquelin, it oondati
Boracia Acid 21-07
Silica ST-SS
lime 84'
Water 6'G
DATISCA'CKX, Datiteadt, a email natural order of Plants allied
to Btgoniaeta and CiteiiTtitacea, and the oUter apetaloua orden in
their vicinity, but diatinguiihed by it4 inferior ovary with parietal
flicoita. it haa unisexual Bowers ; the malee have a oalyz of
Kvenl pieces and from 8 to IS stamens; llie females have anobeolete
DAVILLA. m
a finely netted bag, and contain a itrv^t embryo with-
albumen. The order has S geneia and 1 epecieB. Daiuea
commonest plant of the order, ii an herbaceous
diatdona perannial, with stems about 8 feet hi^ pinnated leave*
with &om S to B ovate-acuminate eoaraaly-aarrated leafleta, and long
racemes of flowera collected in clusters in the azili of long linear
bracts. It is a native of the southern parts of Europe, where, espe-
ciallj in Candia, it ia used on account of ita bitter tonic propeitiei
se a iubatitata for Peruvian bark ; it also aSorda a yellow dye
DATCRA, a genus of Solanaoeous Plants, with a funnel-shaped
angular 6-lobed oslyi, a corolla of a similar form, but much larger,
and a 1-celled capsule, which ia either amooth or muricated ezter-
nally ; the baae of Uia calyx moFaover adherei to the eeed-veewl in
the form of a oirouiar disc
Several speci« of this genus are known in cultivation, the very
Urge eise of their fuDnd-waped flowers rendering them ocmapiouona
otgects ; they have bowerar a nauseous odour, and are only hand-
aome when in flower, for whieh reaeon they are not general &voiirit<a.
They are all exotic^ with the exception of the following^ in whose
pnraertiea they coincide.
R Stramonium, the Thcm-Apple^ is by no means an uncommon
annual upon dunghills, rubbish^eapa, and waate^laces near housea.
It grows about 3 feet high, with a light-green atiff stout stem, which
ia atightly downy near the upper end. The leaves are broad, oval,
stalked, sharp-pointed, sinuous, and angular. The flowen are large,
white, or occasionaUy dull light purple, and grow singly from the aide
of the stem oppoaite the origin of the leaves ; they are erect, and
placed upon a verr short pedunde. Thdr calyx is tubular, elon-
gated, a little swollen at the lower end, with five prominent ribs,
ending in aa many sbar^puinted lobes ; after flowering, it all dropa
ofE| except the bMe, which surrounds the fruit in the form of a cir-
colar disc. The corolla ia muoh laiger than the caJyz, of a similar
form, but its lobea are more taper-pointed. There are flve stamens,
which are iDoloeed in the tube of the corolla. The ovary is covered
with small sharp poiot^ and contains four oells, in each ca which is a
considerable number of ovulee. The style ia cylindrical, amooth, and
enlarged at tlia upper end. The &uit ia a spiny oval capaule of four
imperfect cells, wMoh oommuaicate with each other in pain. The
sewls are brown, kiduey-ahaped, with a acabtons aurfaoe.
Thia plant is wall known, under the name of &raiwi<Mai, aa ■
powerful and dangerooa naivotlo. Its leaves and seeds are tiia parte
employed, and they are found to poeeees properties similar to those of
henbane and belladonna. The leavee are oocamonaUy amoked, eq»e-
dally bj country people, ae a remedy for asthma ; the eeeds an
employed by thieves to dnig the beverage of their victims. In imall
doses they produce lyinptonu of fremy ; in larger quantities stupor
and death. The poisonoua principle of this and other spedaa is con-
sidered a peculiar vegetable alkali, and called Daturiua. [arHaltORniU,
in AAia A»D fio. Div.]
D, arioTta and D. bieabir, beautiful arborescoit South American
plaato, the fbrmer with long white flowers, and the latter with yellow
or icarlet ono^ ore noble objects in the gardens of thia country.
They partidpate In the propertiea of the true Datntas, but they are
not now considered to be genuine ipedv^ on acooant of their caln
slitting on one side, and remaining permanent around the base of the
fruit. Thtnr are stationed in a genus called Sngmamtia.
DAUCU3, a genus of Plants bebnging to the natural order CfltisUi-
fira. It has hispid fruit, of a somewhat oompreeeed ovate or oblong
form, the primary ridges filiform and quite bristly, the seoondaiy
ridgea prqinineiit, winged, and divided at the edge into a number of
fine te«th or hooka. De Caodolle enumerates S3 spedes, chiefly
bienniila, but it ia doubtful whether several of tham are not mare
varjetiea of each other.
D. Oarota, the only one to which general interest attachea, ia the
Carrot. This plant, which grows wild all over Europe in chalky soil,
is believed to be Uie origin of our garden carrot, but there is no
reoord of its having flnt begun to change its hard wity juieelea wild
root for the nutritious suoinilent carrot of the gardena. Da Caodolle
gives for the range of the wild plant the mndowe aad pasturea of
Europe, the Crimea, and Caucasus, whence it has been tranaported
into China, Cochin China, America, and elsewhere. [CiAnot, in
Abis uid So. Div.]
i>. pmmiftr is known by having its radical leavaa ttiwgular. It I*
found on the sea-coast of the south of England, and is also called
DATILLA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Dilleniaeta. It haa S very unequal aepala^ which increase after
flowering ; from 1 to S petids, with linear filainente dilated upwarda
The single carpel ia testaceous, from 1 to 2-seeded, indosed in the two
inner oonoave valve-like eepals. The seeds are solitary, enveloped hi
an arjUns, which is only open at the apex.
H. dl^Hta has a shrubby erect much-branched stem, with hairy
bnuohleta. The leaves are elliptical, obtuse at each end, entire,
between omstaceons and leathery, rough and hairless above, downy and
netted beneath ; the petiole villous on the under aide. The racemes
are haiiy and bracteolate ; the aepaU ailky. The petals from 1 to 0,
Bomewbat obcordate. This plant is an astringent, and f i ' '
vulnerary called Sambaibinha in BraziL
D. maota is alio t. nttlve of the foreaia of Bruil, tad hai t twisiDg
item WW haiiy twigs. The leavea us oblong, ismotelj and obso-
lete^ lemted, rough and hairleu Above, ■hsgg]' beneath aa I'
prrndpal Teini. The petioles are yerj ahaggjr beneatb. The pedi
elei aod pedioeli baiiy. It has two or three petals. Like the former
■paeiea it is an astringent, and is used in swellings of the 1^ and
different pirts of the bodj in South America.
DAVITE, a name given to a Sulphate of Alumina, found in a warm
spring whiijk contains sulphuiio add, near Bogota in Columbia, It
ooonn maaBive, is of a fine fibrous Btructure, a Miite colour, and silk;
lustre. It is verjr soluble, and has a very aatringeat taste.
DATYNE, a Siliceous Mineral, found in caritie* in soma of the
masses ejectad from Teauriua. The primary form is ■ rhomboid, but
n regular heisgonal nriHrna, with the terminal edges tnm-
cuea. lis fraobon is concholoal ; cleans parallsl to the planei of
the heugonal piisio. It ia tnoiparent, colaur white or jellowiah-
brown. Streak white, lustre vitreous, pearly upon the cleavage
planes. HardneBi, E'O to G'5. SpeoiSo gravity, 2'4.
DAT-LILY. [HswiHociLLis.]
DEAD-MAN'3 PINaER3 [Alctohid*.]
DEAD-MAN'a TOES, [AlctonidaI
DRAD-NETTLE. [LiKnuc.]
DEADLY-NIQHT3HAD& TAraOFA.]
DEAL-FISH, [TsioHTPrsRDS.]
DEATH-WATCH. Every one haa Heard of the Death-Watch, and
knowe of the ■uperatitioui notion of the vulgar, that in whatever
boiue its drum is heard one of the family will die before the end of
the year. Thsae terrors in particular itutancea, when they lay hold
of weak minds, especially of rfck or bypoahoDdriao penons, may cause
the event that ia supposed to be prognoatioated. A email degree of
entomological knowledge however would relieve them from tbeir ftars,
and teach them that this heartaiokening tick ia caused by a small
beetle giving a call to ita companion. >
Authors were formerly not agreed aonoeming the insect from which
this soond of terror proceeded, some attributing it to a kind of wood-
louaa and othen to a spider. The earliest acientific acoonnt of it is
probably that by Hr. BeTtJamia Allen, written in 1695, and pabliahed
in the ' Philosophical Truuactiona,' voL zi, p. STS, where the writer
calls it Scaraiau4 gaieattu puUalor ; followed, vol ziiL p. 8S2, by
another aocount from the celebrated Dr. William Dsriiam, dated
Upminiter, Jul; SI, 1701. Swammerdam ('BibL Hat' edit. Hill, I
I2S), and Shaw ('Nat Hiao.' iii IIM}, have also written npon thi*
inseet. It is a received opinion now, adapted upon satisfsctory evi-
dence, that the aound called, the death-watch is produced by cert&in
beetles belonging to the limber-boring genus Anobimn. Latreille
observed AnMtim itriatvM to produce the sound in question ; but
the species whoae proceedings Lava been most noticed by British
observers is Anobinm ttutUainm. When spring is far advanced these
insects oommenoa their tickiug, which, as already mentioned, is only
B call to each other, to which, if no answer be returned, the animal
repeat* it in another place. It is thus produced : raising itself upon
its bind 1(^, with the body somewhat inclined, it beats ita head with
great force sjid agility upon the plane of position ; and its strokes are
so powerful aa to make a considerable impression if they fall upon
any substance solter than wood. The general number of distmct
strokes in successian is from seven to nine or eleven. They follow
each other quickly, and are repeated at uncertain intervale. In old
houses, where these insects abound, they may be heard in warm
weather during the whole day. The noise exactly reeembles that
produced by tappmg moderately with the nsjl upon the table ; and
when familiarised the insect will answer very readily the tap of the
nail- (Brand's 'Popular Antig.'; Eirby and Spence's ' Introd. to
Entomology,' edit. 1828, L 36 ; iL 382; Wallis's ' Hist, Northnmb."
L 887.^ The superstition thst the clicking of this insect ia a death-
omen is mentioned bj Baiter in his ' World of Spirits," p. 203.
This is only one of many instances in which natursd occurrences
have been regarded with aupantition and terror, and is a good illus-
tmtioD of the folly and danger of referring material phenomeoa to
apiritnal oatwea.
DEATH'S-HEAD MOTH. [Sf Hnioma.]
DEC APOD A. [CEcnacKi.]
DEER. [CuTTDs.1
DBER-LIEE ANTELOPES. [AjmLOFB^]
DBLPHINAPTEBUS. [Cnaozi.]
DELPHI'NIUH, a genua of Plants belonging to the natural order
JlaiHHKtilacete. It oontiats of annual Or perennial herbaceous plante,
with irregular spurred flowers, the colours of whiidt are often of the
moat vivid blue. Tbov are ve^ peariy allied to the Aconitaa, ttoio
which they differ merdy in their upper sepal being lengthened at Uie
base into a spur instead of at the baek into a helmet, and in the petals
having no spur at all, but b^sg dafonned stalked bodies dtog«(her
different in form, and often in colour, from the sepals.
The species abound in the tempente parts of the northern hemi-
sphere, and are often cultivated in gardens onder the name of
Ijarkspura.
J), cotuolida ia a hardy annual, of which many Tarietiei are known
as Booket Laikspura. It if found wild in aondy and chalky fields in
Oreat Britain.
le aaasnhatitnte
DEXDRODOA. km
i>. Sarlmini is a magnificent double-flowered perennial hybrid ; and
the Bee-Larkspurs, consiating of i). ^roni^vfonim, A SAiriatm,!}. (3u-
naite, D. fRuofncuni, and many more, are amongst the moat show;
plants of our gardens. These latter derive their name from a striking
I'esembUiLce on the part of the petals to the black body of an humble-
bee covered with yellow hairs ; the head and legs of Uie inseot being
supposed to be immened in the cup of Qie flower.
The only ^eciea that has been applied to any useful purpose is
StavMacre (A Stapkuagria), an annual inhabiting the warmer
countries of the south of Europe, It has an upright branched atem
about two feet high covered all over with close velvety down, and
generally of a greenish purple colour. Its lower leaves are round, on
long stuks, heart-shaped at the base, and divided into 5, 1, or S
deep lobes of an ovsl or lanceolate figure \ they are sharp-pointed,
and either ondivided or cut into a few li^ral inoisiona ; ontlu npper
side they are deep green and almost smooth ; on the under they are '
paler and velvety. The fiowers are a dull grayish green, amnged in
a lax spike at the extremity of the ramificatinns of the stem ; th^
stalk is short and velvety, and has three linear short bracts. The
sepals ars green and vdvety externally, with a short spur curved
downwards. The four petals are separate &om each other and smooth ;
the two upper art oval and rather long ; the two lower have short
stalks and a rounded, irregular, toothletted limb. The fruit is com-
posed of three woolly capsules filled with grayish irregularly-tiiangular
compressed very aoid bittsr oaeds. [Stithbiobu, in Abts and
So, Diy.l
DELPHINORHTNCHUS. [CBTio*.]
DELPHINDS. [CnaoKi.]
DELTHY'RIS. Dalman proposed this g«
for the Spitiftra at Sowerby, but few writers on fosail
have adopted it
DELtlHDDNQ. rPBiOHODOB.]
DEHOISELLK [Obdii>.&J
DENDRO'BinM, an extensive genus of East Indian Epiphytical
Planta, found in the whole of the damp tropical parts of Aaia, and a
little beyond the tropic* in Japan and Australia, but unknown in the
rest of the world. Above a hundred species are enumerated bj
systematic writers : D, Pierardi, D. evevuatvm, D. eXrymiihum, 6.
avrtwm, J), jhniriatum, D. mo$^at%n, D. deiui)U>nm, D. pultMlum,
D. niA\U, and a few more, ara known in the collections of this
country.
DENDROCITTA, [Coavma.]
DENDROCOLAPTES. [Cebthiadx.]
DENDROCOPUa [Cbhthiada]
DENDRO'DOA, a genus of Ascidian JfoElMca, belonging to the
aberrant group, or those which have a branchial pouch with only eight
folds, the tentsimla simple, and no liver.
It hss the body suboylindrical, with both orifices eiceadinj^j
minute, and situated on the apex. Branchial pouch marked with only
eight folds, and having the reticulation continuous. Orifioea t«rm!n^.
Tentacula simple. Liver none. Ovary unique, bianobed, situat«d
beneath the mantle and the branchial pouch. (W. S. H'Leay.)
D. gltmdana. Body snbcylindrical, with a round summit. Enve-
lope whitish, subpellucid, coriaceous, and smooth, having Its base
rough with agglutinated pebhlea : internally it bas a pearly lustre,
and is thickest towards the base. Orifices so little prominent aa to
be scarcely peroeptible without a lens ; aeparate from each other, and
opening with four indistinct rays. Mantle muscular, but of uniform
substance. Tentaculu about twenty-aix, simple, subulate, alternately
long and short Anterior nervous tubercle with many srnrals. Bran-
chial cavity oooupjing the whole length of the animal. Pharynx eitu-
alad at the bottom of the cavitv of the body. (Esophagus descending,
and turning short tound near tlie oardia into a cyUndrical horizontal
stomach, which is striated internally, and occupies with the pylorus
{whit& turns round and lies parallel to it) the whole of the bottom of
the cavity. bitesUne very long. Rectum aaceuding, almost vertical ;
terminated I^ an anna, margined.
a, nstonl lUr, h
liu the sppeanncB
u to ihoir tlig top, i
the right Hdc ; the hue nitnuled with pebbles,
cqp of jtD aoorn ; b, the sune leen ebllquclf, so
■ s IllUe eompruMd, SBd tibiUts four poUiti : the
(Uh orlBca ; lbs two imalleit (vhleh we so imsll
M to be slDUHt IniMbla to the naked eft) art the teal oridoei^ the highest being
A uil, ud the other the hnncbial erlfln.
DENDRODUa
DENTALIUM.
the baaa on one side a foiked bhAoh, on the other a simple one^ all of
the lame thickness. Mr. MlieaT remarks that the oi^gans of digestion
haTO great affinity in eztenuJ struotare and position to those of
Oynihia pantex of Savigny, except that the stomach and intestine are
horizontal, and the anns simply maigined, and that» diflbrent as this
species is in extenial appearance from all other Ateidia, internally it
agrees "with the PcmdocuE in almost everv essential reqpeot but the
OTary. He obsenres that this singular ammal completes the circle of
the genus Ateidia in the most beautiful manner. It agrees with the
first subgenus, OiftUhiOy in the nature of its branchial reticulation and i
of its digestiye apparatus ; but Cywthia has two oyaries, the right one
contained in the intestinal loop, and the left one coating the tunia
The first of these, or the right oraiy, is the only one possessed by Pan-
dado, and the lefb is the only one possessed by bendfidoa, Mr. M'Leay
concludes by stating that the distmction between the aberrant groups
ot Aseidia depends thus upon the nature of their system of gene-
ration, as that which exists between the two normal groups depends
on their system of respiration.
{Anatomical Obtervtiiuma on the Natural Oroup of Tunieata, ftc.,
by W. S. M'Leay, ; Linn. Tram., toL xiy.)
DE^DRODUS, a genus of Placoid Fishes, from the Old Red-
Sandstone of Elgin, Moray, and Russia. Professor Owen has described
fire species, and Agassis a sixth. .
DE'NDROMUS, a genus of Animals belongiDg to the order
Rodentia, estabUsbed by Dr. A. Smith in his ' Contributions to the
Natural History of South Africa,' with the following characters : —
Indsors, — ; Molars,
2
8—8
8—8
16.
The upper incisors with a longitudinal furrow on their anterior
face ; the lower long, slender, with the cutting edge cuneated. .
The upper first molar with six tubercles in a double row, and two
indistinct ones besides, of which one is at the anterior part of the
crown of the tooth, the other near anoti^er tubercle of tne internal
series, behind the transverse incisorial lamina; the second molar
with two or three longitudinal indsorial lamine by the external
margin of the crown, in the middle of which lie three or four obtuse
transYerse tubercles disposed in a row ; the third molar has two trans-
rerse incisorial lamine with an interjacent furrow. Below, the first
molar has six tubercles disposed in a double series ; the second, four
nbtuse tubercles arranged in the same order ; the third is very small,
with some transverse lamin» and fuirows intermingled. No canines.
Rostrum acute. Lip slit Ears oblong, rather naked, and internally,
near the skull, with two transverse membranaceous valvules, of wbidi
the lower lies over the external auditoxy meatus. Tail elongated,
annulated, with scattered hairs. Feet divided, ambulatory; the
anterior with three toes, snd a wart in lieu of hallux; the posterior
five-toed : claws faloular.
2). Typtt$, Above, brown, passing to ferrugineous ; beneath,
reddish-white ; whiskers long, partly black and partly white ; upper
lip white; ears without and within slightly coveied with a fine
short red<^h-white fur ; extremities the same ; tail pointed, consider-
ably longer than the body, and of a fidnt grayish-brown colour;
along the centre of the back, particularly towards the tail, an
indistinct black line. Length from point of nose to root of tail, 84
inches : length of tail, H inches.
It inhabits South Africa, where it is found upon the branches of
trees, &c, in which situations it constructs its nest snd brings forth
its young. Dr. Smith observes that the position of this little
animal among the family of mice is not well determined ; but that
perhaps its puce is after the Mouse. (' ZooL Joum.,' vol iv. p. 488.)
DENDROMUS. [Duok&I
DENDRONII^SA. [DuoKS.]
DE'in)ROPHIS (Fitzinger), a genus of Serpents placed by Cuvier
under the great genus Coluber, and stated by him to be the Ah<ettUla
of Gbray. The species of this genus have, like the J)ip$at of Laurenti,
a line of wider scales along the back, and narrower scales along the
flanks, but their head is not laiger than their body, which is very
slender and elongated. Their muzzle is not elongated, and they are
not venomous. They inhabit India and Africa.
DENDROPHTLLIA. [Madbkfhtllkxa.]
' DE'NDROPLEX, a genus of Birds established by Mr. Swainson,
and placed bv him in the family Certhiada (Creepers), and sub-family
Certhiana, which have the tail graduated and rigid.
The bill is very straight. Wings moderate, rounded ; third, fourth,
and fifth quills longest.
Mr. Swainson observes that he knows not whether the type of this
genus has been described, and states that the living bird has all the
manner of a Pietts. Except in its perfectly straight bill, he adds^ it
differs not from Dendrocdaptet, ('ZooL Joum.,' voL iii p. 854.)
DENTA'LIUM, a genus of Gasteropodous MoUuica, whose place
in the animal series was first satisfactorily determined by M. Deahayea
Rondelet considered the Dentalia as marine shell-worms (vermis-
seaux de mer), though he noticed them as worthy of particular atten-
tion. Lister introduced them at the end of the Limpets (Pa<e2Z(s).
Lang followed in nearly the same steps, separating, after the PaitUtM,
a section wherein he arranged, together with the DtnUUia, aU the
oalearsous tubes of Anndides then known. Breyne placed his genus
TvXndMi, containing the DaUalidk, &c., at the head of his Monotha-
XAT. mn. DZY. TOL. IL
1, Dtndrophi$ AJUBiuUa, one fourth of the natoral alxe ; 1 a, head ; 1 b, diapo-
iitioa of the sealaa ahova and helow the tent. (Iconog.)
lamous Shells, the first of the two grand orders, the Monothalamous
and the Polythalamous, into which he divided the Testaceans. In
this position Dentalium was separated from the Patdla by all the
other univalve shells comprised in the Coehlidia, as well as by the
Polythalamous series ; in uiort, by the entire interval of the Univalve
Testaceans ; Breyne, as M. De^yes observes, having probably con-
sidered the PauJUx as the passage from the univalves to the bivalves,
for he places them immediately before the latter. Toumefort gave
the PaUBoi a position at the head of the univalve shells, and at the
end, before the bivalves, he placed the Dentalia, Enialia, and the
other marine testaceous tubes. D'Argenville, in bis ' Zoomorphose,'
appears to be the first who attempted to give any notion at all
approaching to reality of the animal, the result of a note and drawing
which had been sent to him' frx)m India. Though the materials were
too incomplete to furnish secure data for fixing its position, they gave
information which former authors had not enjoyed, and there was
certainly enough to prevent D'Argenville from placing it in the
heterogeneous third division of his system, denominated by him the
Multivslves. Linn»us arranged it immediately after Patella, and
before Serpula, stating the animal to be a TerebeUa, and the shell to
be univalve, tubular, straight (recta), monothalamous, and pervious at
each extremity. Bnigui^re gave it nearly the same position : but if
both these zoologists were right in making Dentalium follow Patdla,
they were as far wrong in placing it by the side of Serpula, Teredo,
SabeUa, and above all, AepergUlum, I«marck, in his 'Svst^me dee
Animaux sans Yertibres* (1901), arranged Dentalium with TerebeUa^
DENTALIUM.
I •ppatnne*. Id the 'Philotophii
_ . Mofworauof the 'Syitime' into two
other cliw«i, ud rortned the AnnalidM, with the ledioii of Kxtenul
Womu (Veil EitAieon). Ha elerated, obeerree H. DeihaTM, thii
diniioD luffldeDtl; in the tcrice of ttmrlArtUa, the pieaenoa of a
heMt BodadrenlatioiinuikitigltBpproxiiiute totheHolloiki; whilst
the Worn*, totj inferior in oinuJBition, nnuined between the soft
Jladiaia and the In«eats. In t£ii new clue, adds U. Deahayn, we
find the DitOalia in the lune HOlion with Strjmia, apmriii, and
Bitiguaria, Thii anangement wu not alterad in 'L'Extrait da
Coon,' pabliihed in 1811. But, in the great work of the ' Anitnauz
•one Tertibrea,' Lamarck, amiated by the Uboun of Safigny, and
deceived moreoYer hj the oommiinicationi of M. Fleurian de
Bellenie, conaidered ]}entaliiim aa approximated to CHymtm, and
placed it in the UmHy of Mjlilanimn. of U. Sangn^. Bjoteinatio
aulhon ganeiallj, not knowing mora than Lamaiok did, that loiow-
ladge being confiiied to the tube, f&llowad I^inaTck'a opinion. CuTier,
in the Brat edition, placed it among the Anndlidaa Talaoalea, between
Aiptrgilhtm {PeniciUiu, Lam.) and SUtquarta. Savigny, in hia
' 9 jat^e de« Ann^Udea,' gave a aummary deacription of the «nim»i,
but it waa too Incomplete to deoide the qusstioii Snallj, though aufB-
eient to oTerthrow the obMrrataona of M. Flntriau de Belleme. The
D. Sntalit, which waa aent to Savigny by our coimtiTman Leach,
ETC anffldant infonnation to that celsbnted toolwiat to enable
n to la; that the animal had no tnoe of ringa, l£at it had no
hail* (aoiea) on the lateral paita of the body, that it waa eaiantially
ffluacuW, and that it could aa longer remain among the CAaliipodt,
D. SiUidit wu the ipeciea on which U. Deahajei made hia obaer-
Tatlona ; and in a Tory intensting and elaborate paper road before the
Society ot Natural Hiatorjr of Paria, on the 18th of March, 182fi, be
gara the Ik^ wtiieh fed him lo the conolueion atated at the
commancament of thia artiole. Tha following ia a antiunuy of hia
daioription; but wa muat premiaa that H. Deahayea'a apedmana
were forwarded to hjm to apirit, and ware coneequenUy a good deal
ooDtiscted : —
Extamall; the animal ia oonioil and elongated, like the ihelly
InTaatiug tuba (doraa] autfac* oorreiponding with the coDveiity of
the abelt ; ventral anrfica correapondjng with the conoavity) ; tmoeO'
and truQcated obhquely at the anterior end, the centre of tile t. i.-
eatioQ with a small pyramidal proceaa, whidi is the extremity of the
foot. The poatarior parte are leat muaoolar, and the termination '
it ia acaroely perceptible. Thia eipanaitni ia aepanted &om the
of the bod; by a atrongly-defined contnctiou. There ia a mnaoular
ring, broader on the ventral than on the doraal surface, above thia
contraction, and by that ring the animal is attached to tha shell, which
on ita inner auiface preaenta, at about ona-fifth of Ita length &«m the
poatarior axtnmity, a correaponding impraanon in the ahape of ■
borae-ahoe, tha iutermpted portion being on the concave aidei On
the doiaal surface a amall elevation ia perceptible, at about one-third
of ita length from the anterior end, indicating the place of the head.
The whole extent below thia ia occapied by two muaolaa on each aide,
diatinctly obiervable through the abdominal parietee. Theae muaclee
are ^mmatrical, flatteoed, and directed obliqaely from the aides of
the foot Cowarda the donal aurface and tha poatarior extremity of
tbeanimal, giving rise to and becoming commingled wiUi the muscle
of attachmant. Un the abdominal aurface, likewiaa, there are on aaoh
aide, at about one-third of ita length from the anterior end, two
symmetrical organa deeply jagged, and ot a dark brown colour : theae
form the liver. Below tbu point, nearly the whole of the abdomen ia
visible through ita transparent parietea filled by grannlationa con-
tained in the veiy large ovary, and by the atrai^t descending intestine
wliiah terminatea at the expanded extremity in a mesial vent. The
whole oC the anterior part of the animal is invested by ■ fine mem-
brane, which ia fixed poateriorly to the origin of the foot, and is five
In fronts when its circumference ia thickened. It ie perforated in ita
centre, and M. Doihsyea oonaidera thia to be the mantle. Tha
thickened portion ia produced by a circular aphincter, which, when
contracted, wrinkles the akin, oloaely embncea b its opening the
eitremitj of the foot, and thua cnta off any external communication.
U. lyOrbignj, juD., who fumiahed a drawing of the living animal in
an expanded state, makea the dilated lobes of the foot resemble a
flower nhosa undulated and amall corolla auppcrta in its centre a
piatil thickened towards the middle, and pointed at ita free end.
On alittlu); the mantis down the middle of ita doraal surface,
aepantjng it from ita insertion to the rigbt and left, and turning it
downwarda and to the right, the foot, the head, and tlte branchin
The foot is elongated, aubeylindrical, slightly conical, and
flattened from above downwarda, fleshy throughout, and situated
at the interior and anterior part of Uie head, having its upper
and under aurfaces slightly grooved in tha middle. The anterior
extremity ia largeat, and ita centre is occupied by a sort of conioal
nipple, broader at ita base, being there partly covered by tvo amall
notched lateral lobaa, the notchee comspondlng with the grooves of
the foot The posterior extremity haa a bifurcated appearance, owing
to the attachment there of the retractor muacles ; ita middle portion
DENTALIDH. M»
projacti a little into the abdominal oavi^, girtng support to tha
atomaeh aad the othtr prinolpal viaeera.
The head oonaiata only of a mouth, and is dtoated superiorly at
the hinder axtremit; of the foob It is bell-shaped, and flattened
froEH before baokwards. Two black points on ita ndea might be mis'
taken for eyes, but these are the jawa situated within the mouth, and
visible throng the thin aubatance ot which it ii compoeed : they are
apherical, homy, rough on their outer surface, cleft in the middle, and
bearing a considerabte reaemblance to a amall bivalve sheU. There
are two lips deeply deft at the mar^, or, more properly speaking,
furnished each of them with three pairs of labial tentacles, those of
the posterior lip, the middle pair eapecially, being much larger than
. ; 9, exlremltj of ttie foot t
1. Shell of UmlaliMm XkIhUi, Data
longiludinallT, ihowln; tl» ulDul in a nntncted atitei a.
eitromllT pnLongiiiK itHlf into ■ iniill accidental tube. 1. Mignllled, npri
(■nUnK tba inlmsl at the moiDeiit of lu EdTindnE ant of the ihell ; a, », It
fsot, the lobri of vblcli ue dcTcloped In the totm of > eonlli : c. a nut of II
collar, i. The animal nugnlflcd, bbdcmioiil up
t, the collar ; c, c, Uie nuntle i d, d, the Utct ; •
f, the msKla of luHrtion ; j, A, iha pavilion aad it* nack ; i, tha ve:
I. HatnlHed, donal aipect -, a, ntnimltr of the foot j i, the eollu ; i, e, I
nutle ; i, iligbL projcetion produced bf the head and the bruchic ; i,
IntiraU retractile miuclei ; /, /, citenal retnctile muide j g, neck ot 1
piTillon ; k, the piviilan. «. Migclfled ; the nuntla hu been slit in I
dorul and mtai^ line, dctashed in pert from <ti poiterlor laHrtlon, and ton
ulde ahovin;, a, tha ■itremlt)' of the foot wbleta eloaei the apntnrej, of I
__..._ . ._ iho ft»l; c, the foot llHir, i«
englh ; S, 11
aarabralgancUon ; /,/, tl _ _
mamtKusi ; k, A, i, >, the branctalB ] ji, p, ;, j, Um retnetor
mnsele of Iniertlon; t, the n««k of the pailUon. I. tg. •
a. fig, I natoral atM. (Dethafes.)
DENTALIUM.
DENTEX.
810
those of the anterior. There ib a naked apaoe in the 'centre of the
anterior lip indicating the aperture of toe mouth, which is con-
tracted into a ahort fleshy oseophagns, terminating rapidly in a thick
pear-ahaped stomach, supported by and closely adhering to the
extremiiy of the foot, and containing within, near Uie cardiac opening,
a rather complicated tooth-like apparatus. By a distinct yessel from
each of the symmetrical lobee of the liyer its secretion is poured into
the stomach, which terminates below in a slender, transparent, straight,
mesial intestine, opening, as before obserred, at the dilated posterior
extremity.
The heart is symmetrical, situated aboTe the stomach, and con-
tained in a pear^haped pericardium. A vascular trunk issues from
the anterior extremity of this sac, passes in the direction of the neck,
and divides into two luge branches, one being distributed to each of
the branchiaa.
The branchia two, symmetrically situated on the lateral and pos-
terior parts of the neck, and supported on a divided pedicle or bran-
ehiferous membrane, formed of many very fine soft flexible tenta-
colsor filaments with club-shaped terminations, and appearing from
their position to be equally adapted for directiDg nourishment
towards the mouth, and for fiilfllling their important office of aerating
the blood.
The nervous system is apparently ganj^lionic ; the cerebral ganglion,
the only one yet detected, is small, quadrilateral, considerably elon-
gated, and placed longitudinally on the middle of the posterior
surface of the head. Two very minute filaments issue from its
inferior angles and pass to the cesophagus ; they have not been traced
beyond it.
M. de filainville (' Halacologie,' 1825) agrees with M. Deshayes in
the conclusion to which the latter came, namely, that DeiUalium is
a true Mollusk, and he makes it the type of his first order Cfirrho-
branMaia, of his first section of his third sub-class, Paraeephalophora
ffermaphrodUa, placing it next to Patella. M. Rang (1829) follows
De Blainville in referring it to his order Cfirrhobranchiata, of which
Rang makes it the only family, as does De Blainville, and he gives it a
situation between FiuwrtOa and Patella, Cuvier, in the last edition
of the 'Rdgne Animal' (1880), still retains Dentalium among the
Ann^des, placing it immediately after S^hoetoma of Otto ; but he
adds^ that the recent observations of Savigny, and above all those of
Deshayes, render such a classification very doubtfiiL The animal, he
observes, does not appear to possess any sensible articulation, nor any
lateral hairs (soies), but it has anteriorly (en avant) a membranous
tube, in the interior of which is a sort of foot, or fleshy and conical
operculum, which closes its oriflce. On the base of this foot, he adds,
is a small and flattened head, and on the nape are to be seen the
plumose branchiae. If, he con^ues, the operculum recals to mind
the fbot of the Vermeti and SUiqtutrke, which have already been trans-
ferred to the class of moUusks, the branchiae remind us of Amphitrite
and Ter^eUum ; and he concludes by remarking that ulterior obser-
vations on their anatomy, and principally on their nervous and
vascular systems, will resolve this problem. Dr. J. £. Qray, who has
compared the description of the animal given by M. Deshayes with
n)ecmiens in the Britinh Museum, is, he informs us, satisfied with
we correctness of that description, and he censiders that the most
natural situation of DeiUeUiwn is nearest the PiuureUa!, but still Ui
from them. The apices of the British species, he observes, often
appear to be either broken off*, or to have fallen off of themselves, like
the tips of decollated shells ; and he adds, that when the tip is broken,
the animal forms a slight tube within, which is more or less produced
beyond the tip ; and that the late Dr. Turton described a specimen
in this state as a species under the name of D, UAiatwa^ Dr. Qray
thinks that there is only one roedes found on our coasts, the other
so-called species being mere vaneties dependinff either on the worn or
broken state of the specimens. In his ' Spicili^gia 2«oologica ' he has
described a ^phuneulus which inhabits tnese shells, and which, he
believes, has been considered by some authors to be the real inhabitant
of the shell
The geographical distribution of the genus is vexy much
extended; few seas are without some of the species, which vary
much in size. They are found sometimes in deep water, fre-
quently near the shore. Professor £. Forbes has dredged the
British species 2). BntalU and i>. Tarentinvm at from ten to fifty
fathoms^ depth. About 80 recent species have been described, and
70 fossa.
M. Deshayes separates his species into four groups : —
1.
SheU not slit at its posterior extremity.
a. Longitudinal striaa.
Example, i>. jEZepAan^iaum.
(. Ko longitudinal striaa.
Example, JD. EntaUs,
2.
Shell slit at its posterior extremity.
. a. Longitudinal striae.
Example, 2). ttriatum.
h. Ko longitudinal striae.
Example, J), ebumeum.
8.
Shell having a numnal rim ; not slit at its posterior extremity.
Example, D, etranffulatum.
Pouil DeiUalia.
" Of fossil species,'' says Mr. Q. B. Sowerby, " there are many, par-
ticularly in the marine beds of the Tertiary Formations ; the London
Clay and the Caloaire Grossier swarm with several sorts not easily
disiinguishable from the recent species, among which we may particu-
larly remark the fossil species from Piacenza, which so nearly resembles
D. ElephtaUifMim that Brocchi has not hesitated to refer it to that
species, and the D. ebumeum of Lamarck, which be says inhabits
India, and is found fossil at Qrignon. Deshayes in his ' Tables' gives
the number of living species as 23, of the fossil (tertiary) 84, and the
following, 2). ElephaiUxnumt D. deiUalit, 2). novem costeUvm, JD, EnUdia,
2). ebwrneumf D, fiuura, and D, etrangtUatum, as both living and fossil.
Mr. liantell in his tabidar arrangement of the organic remains of the
county of Sussex ('OeoL Trans.' vol iiL, second series, 1829), notes a
species, which he does not name, in the blue clay of Bracklesham ;
A plantunt in the arenaceous limestone or sandstone of Bognor;
J), eylindrictun, in the sand on Emsworth Common; J>. ttrialum,
2). eUipiicum, and 2>. decuaeatum, in tho Qault, or Folkstone marl ; and
one or more, unnamed, in the Shanklin sand (Lower Greenaand).
Dr. Fitton figures one species, 2). mecttttm, from the Greensand of
Blackdown, in his interesting * Observations on some of the Strata
between the Chalk and Oxford Oolite in the South-East of England.'
('GeoL Trans.' voL iv., second series, 1886.) And he notes 2>. elUp-
ticum in the Gault at Copt Point, on the authority of the Rev. G. E.
Smith. In his ' Systematic and Stratigraphical List of Fossils ' four
named species, including D. eUiptieum, 2). medium, and an uncertain
species, are noted from the Gault of Kent, South Wilts, and Cambridge,
and the sands of Blackdown. Dr. Lea, in his * Contributions to Geo-
logy ' (1888), describes two new species, 2>. aUematum and D. turritumt
from the Tertiary Beds of Claiborne, Alabama, and gives the following
summary : — ' In Great Britain 14 species have been obtained from
the Lias to the Crag. M. Deshayes's ' Tables' give 34, of which 18 are
from the Paris baan, the Eocene period. In this countxy (America)
Dr. Morton has observed casts in the Upper Greensand of New Jersey
and Delaware ; and Mr. Say one species, the 2>. attenuatum, in the
Tertiaij of Maryland.' "
DENTA'RIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Oruc\fer<B, the sub-o^er Siliquoace, and the tribe ArabideoB, It has a
lanceolate compressed pod, fiat nerveless valves, a capitate' stigma;
the seeds in a single row, the funiculus dilated, winged.
D. bMifera, the Coralwort, is the only British species of this
genua It has a simple stem, alternate leaves, the lower leaves
pinnate, the upper leaves simple, the axils of the leaves producing
bulbs. It has a thick fleshy rhizoma with tooth-like knobs, hence
its name. The flowers are rose-coloured or purple. It is a rare
plant in England, but it is found in the neighbourhood of Tunbridge
(Babington, Manual of Briiuk Botan^y.)
DENTATI. [AiocoNiTES.]
DENTEX, a genus of Fishes belonging to the family Sparida,
It has the following characters : — ^Body deep, compressed ; dorsal fin
single ; head large ; teeth conical, placed in a single row, four in
the front above and below elongated, and curved inwards, forming
hooks; teeth on the branchial arches, but none on the vomer or
palatine bones; nose and suborbital space without scales; braaohi-
ostegous rays 6. There are several species of this genua.
2). vtUgarie, the Four-Toothed Spams, is regarded as a native of
England. Only one specimen however seems to have been taken in
this country, and that by Mr. Donovan in 1805 off Hastings. It is
a very common fish in the Mediterranean, and is the Jkntex of the
Romans. It is remarkable for the great length of the four anterior
teeth in each jaw. It acquires sometimes a large size weighing from
20 to 80 pounds, and measuring 8 feet in lexigth. Mr. Donovan's
specimen weighed 16 pounds. "A more voracious fish," says Mr.
Donovan, "is scarcely known; and when we consider its ferocious
inclination and the strength of its formidable canine teeth, we must
be fully sensible of the great ability it possesses in attacking other
fishes even of superior sise, with advantage. It is assorted, that
when taken in the fisherman's nets, it will seize upon the other
fishes taken with it, and mangle them dreadfully. Being a swift
swimmer it finds abundant prey, and soon attains to a consider-
able size. Willughby observes that small fishes of this species are
rarely taken, and the same circumstance has been mentioned by later
writers. During the winter it prefers deep waters, but in the spring
or about May it quits this retreat, and approaches the entrance of
great rivers, where it deposits its spawn between the crevices of stones
and rocks.
"The fisheries for this kind of Sparue are carried on upon an
extensive scale in the warmer parts of Europe. In the estuaries of
Dahnatia and the Levant^ the capture of this fish is an object of
material consideration, both to the inhabitants generally as a whole-
some and palatable food when fresh, and to the mercantile interests
of those countries as an article of commerce. They prepare the fish
according to andent cu<3tom, by cutting it in pieces and packing it in
811
DENTIPORA.
DENTITION.
312
barrels with Tin^gar and apices, in which state it will keep perfectly
well for twelve months."
(YarreU, BriHth Fithei.)
DENTIPORA. [Madbxpobxa.]
DENTIROSTRES. [BiRDe.]
DENTITION, the formation and evolution of the teeth. The
varied processes by which the teeth are formed, developed, and
arranged are among the most curions and complicated operations of
the animal economy. The different stages of dmitition, in the human
being, mark distinct epochs of human Ufe, in which many important
changes occur in the physical frame, simidtaneously with which new
mental powers are developed.
The teeth differ in their oiiganisation in several important respects
from all other oi^gans of the body. They are of a bony structure,
and axe placed in the arches of the upper and lower maxillary or
jaw-bones. They consist of two sets, of which the one is intended
to last only for a short time, while tlie other is destined to last
during the whole term of life. The first are called the temporary
and the second the permanent teeth. The temporary teeth, 20 in
nnmbor, are in genenl considerably smaller than the permanent^
have a less firm and solid texture, and their chazvcteristic forms
and prominences are much leas strongly marked. The permanent
teeth, 82 in number, are arranged in pexfect uniformity, 8 on each
side of each jaw, those of the one side exactly corresponding with
those of the opposite. They are divided into four distinct classes,
which present specific differences in size, form, development, articu-
lation, and use ; namely, on each side of each jaw, two incisoree, one
cun>idatus, two bicuspides, and three molares.
For our knowledge of the early lustory of the development of the
teeth we are principally indebted to Professor GkK>dsir of Edinbuigh,
who iQ 1889 published his views upon this subject In giving an
accoimt of his researches and the additionsl £Msts that are known
on this subject, we shall employ the lectures of Mr. Tomes on
' Dental Physiology,' as one of the most recent and complete works
on the subject.
Preparation is made for the development of the teeth at a very
eariy period of festal existence. At the sixth week of the exirtence
of the human embryo, on examining the mouth, a groove is observed
which is called the primitive dental groove, and in it the first germs
of the teeth are observed. At the seventh we^ a slight projection
of the mucous membrane at the bottom of this groove tues place,
and which soon increases in sise and forms a papilla. This papilla is
the first condition of the tooth-pulp, and is composed of a mass of
cells, each containing a nucleus, or cytoblast. No vessels are yet
seen in the pulp, but they pass under it to the mucous membrane.
As the papilia mcreases in size the vessels become elevated, and pass
into its substance. The first papilla thus formed constitutes the
follicle of the anterior temporaiy moUr tooth, those of the upper
jaw appealing before those of the lower. Subsequently the papuln
of the other teeth are developed, and by the tenth week we have in
the dental gxx>oves 20 papil& corresponding to the 20 temporary
teeth. As the papillsB grow the walls of the dental groove increase,
and send out laminee towards each other, which meetings tmite, and
form septa. By these means the papillsB are inclosed in a series of
cells or cavities with open mouths oeJled foUides. The septa are all
developed by the thirteenth week, leaving behind in the dental groove
an open portion.
A chan^ now comes on in the shape of the papillsB, which, instead
of remaimng as hitherto simple round blunt masses, become changed
into special characteristic forms. The papilla, from their more npid
growtn, protrude also from the open mouths of the foUides. "mth
this change in the shape of the papilltt a growth of lids or opercula
to the open mouths of the follicles takes place. At the fourteenth
week the inner Up of the dental groove has increased in sise, and
applies itself in a valvular manner to the outer lip. The relative
growth of the papilUs and follides is now reversed, the former begin-
ning to sink by the increased growth of the latter. At thui time also
a secondary dental groove is observed, which ii destined to furnish
the papillie of the permanent teetiL It gradual]^ appears ia the form
of smidl crescent-shaped depressions immediatdv bc^und the inner
opercula of each of the follicles of the first or milk series of papHlse.
lE^ the fourteenth or fifteenth week, through the adhesion of the oper-
cula in the first groove, the follicles have become sacs, and-the same
change subsequently occurs in the secondary groove inclosing the
permanent teeth. The space left open in the primitive dental groove
at tne end of the sixteenth or seventeenth week exhibits papills
which represent the anterior permanent molar teeth.
From the time of the closure of the milk follicles the pulps
gradually assume their peculiar shape, and those destined for the
formation of the molar teeth are divided at the base for the growth
of their several roots. With these progressive changes, we sac
growing faster than the pulp, an intervening space is formed, in
which is developed a soft granular substance, which for a time
increases in quantity, and is adherent to the inner surface of the
sac, but not to the pulp, though dosely applied to the siurface of the
latter.
At this stage of their growth each sac receives a twig from the
dental artery ; but this does not penetrate the granular substance.
The next step in the general process of development is the appear-
ance of caps of tooth-substance upon the tips of the pulps, and is
accompanied by a diminution of the granular substance, which
entirely disappears when the tooth-substance is perfectly developed.
From &ie last-mentioned period up to the eighth month the cavities
devoted to the ten anterior permanent teeth gradually recede from
their position between the xnilk-sacs and the gums, and are now
poetenor to the milk-sacs. This separation of the sacs has led to
the notion that the permanent sacs are formed from the tem-
porary ones by a process of gemmiparous fission ; but the obser-
vations of Professor Qoodair have demonstrated that this view is
entirely erroneous.
At about the time of birth the fangs of the incisors begin to be
formed. This process is attended with three separate actions: —
1, elongation of the base of the pulp ; 2, deposition of dentine upon
it; 8, adhesion of the contiguous poxtion of the sac to the surface of
this dentine.
The central incisors pass through the gum, or are cut as it is called,
about the eighth or ninth month after birth. The crown of the
tooth bein^ perfected, and the formation of the fang advanced by the
triplex action already described, an action is set up by which the
edge of the tooth passes through the gum. Here then terminates the
saccular stage of the tooth, the sac having been opened by the
passage of the tooth through*the gum. It must be borne in mind that
with the development of dentine for the fang the sac become.!
adherent to its surface, but not to the surface of the enamel A probe
might be passed down the surfiuse of the enamel to the neck of the
tooth so soon as the sac is opened by the edge of the tooth. When
once the tooth is cut growth progresses rapidly. The tooth however
appears to grow more rapidly than it really does, and from the follow-
ing causes: — The sac being opened, and its inner surface thereby
rendered continuous with that of the eum, a strong disposition to
contract seems to come into force in that portion lying against the
enamel, and as the gum constitutes one fixea point, and the adhesion
of the sac to the neck of the tooth the other, the lower is as it were
lifted out of the gum by the shrinking of the sac between these two
points. As a consequence of this movement, the distance between
the unfinished end of the fang and the fundus of the alveolus is
lengthened. The socket now rapidly adapts itself to the neck of the
tooth, to which it becomes accurately moulded. The pulp elongates
itself and diminishes at its base, till at the completion of a tooth it
has diminished to the size of a thread and is constituted prindpally
of the dental vessels and nerves. As the temporary teeth have
advanced towards the surface, the sacs for the permanent teeth have
receded behind them, and have become inclosed in proper bony crypts,
horn each of whicn a foramen proceeds. In we sacs for the
fr^nt teeth these foramina open immediately posterior to the milk
teeth, but those for the bicuspids open into the alveoli of the mUk
molars. From the apex of eadi sac a fibrous cord proceeds through
the foramen to join the g^um near the neck of the corresponding muk
tooth, excepting in those under the milk molars, in which the fibrous
cord unites with the periosteal lining of the temporary alveolus.
These cords, or gubemacula as they are called, are formed of the
obliterated portion of the pi^p foUicle, which it will be remembered
was rendered external to the sac by the development and subsequent
closure of the opercula. It seems the union of the two sides is some-
times incomplete, so that the cord is in fact a tube dosed at its two
extremities. The p^bemaculum lengthens as the sac recedes from
the surfiMe, and disappears only after the tooth passes through the
gum. From observing the position and the disappearance of the
Subemaculum many have supposed tiiat it leads or directs the
evdoping tooth to its proper situation in the alveolar arch. Pro-
fessor Qoodsir, when speaking of the use of the cords and foramina,
says: —
" The cords of communication which pass through these foramina are
not tubular, although in some instances a portion of the unobliteiated
intra-follicular compartment of the original little cavity of reserve mav
be detected in them ; they are merdy those portions of the gum which
originally contained the lines of adhesion of the depressions for the
permanent teeth in the secondary dental groove, and which have been
subsequentiy lengthened out in consequence of the necessarily retired
position in which the permanent teeth have been devdoped during the
active service of the temporary set.
'' The cords and foramina are obliterated in the diild, dther because
the former are to become useful as ' gubemacula,' and the latter as
'itinera dentium,' or, much more pro&bly, in virtue of a law whidi
appears to be a general one in the development of animal bodies^
namely, that psrts or oigans which have once acted an important part,
however atrophied they may afterwards become, jet never altogether
disappear so long as they do not interfere with other parts or
functionB."
The sacs of the permanent teeth are supplied with blood-vessds
first from the gums but afterwards from the milk-sacs. As the sacs
sink deep into the alveolus they receive vessels from the proper dental
canals.
Mr. Qoodsir divides dentition into three stages : " First, the folli-
cular, in whidi stage is induded the papiUn when it existed as a
simple prominence from the mucous membrane, and extends to the
SIS
DENTITION.
DEBMATINE.
814
'dosure of the opercula. Secondly, the B&ooular, whioh commenoes
with the doeure of the operoula, and ends with the passage of the
60oth through the gum. Thirdly, the eruptive, whi<m commenoes
when the tooth appeam through the gum, and extends to tiie period
when the permanent teeth are fully devcdoped. These three stages,
when considered in reference to anv partictdar tooth, are weU defined,
b«t when Tiewed in reference to the whole set, or two sets, they are
intermingled ; thus, when one tooth-germ is in the saccular, another
a in the follicular stage ; again, when the temporary teeth are in the
amptive, the permanent teeth are in the saccular condition."
For an account of the deyelopment of the tinues which form the
tooth, we must refer our readers to tiie article Teitth, in which the
tissues themselves are described.
The age at which the teeth first make their appearance varies con-
dderably, frequently wiUiout aziy apparent reference to the consUtu-
iional powers of tiie child. Instcjices are not wanting in which
children have been bom with two or more teeth. In many other
cases the teeth have not come through the gum until fourteen or
sizteen months, or even as late as two or t£ree years. In general,
however, dentition may be said to commence at the age of from five
to eight months. The following table from Mr. Tomes's Lectures gives
the result of the observations of several writers on this subject : —
Aathon.
Central Inciaore.
Lateral Incisom
Canineii.
IstMolar.
2d Molar.
Honthfl.
HonthB.
Months.
HonthB.
HonthB.
Pox
( 6^ 7, 8; extreme
1 oaaes4tolS
7.8,or9
5to8
f 7th, lower Jftw
1 8th, upper jaw
7, 8, or a
7, 8, or 9
7 to 10
9th, upper jaw
10th, lower jaw
17 to 18
20 to 24
14 to 20
16,17,18
19 or 20
14 to 16
20 to 24
12 to 16
12 to 14
24 to SO
20 to 24
18 to 86
32 to 80
Hunter
BeU
Dr.Ajhbunier
Thew periods are however onlv given as a general rule, liable to
oontinual exceptions, not only in the time at which the diflferent teeth
appear, but also in the relative order of their precedence.
Aoeording to Dr. Ashbumer, who has paid gVP^t attention to this
subject^ and who has had ample opportunities of oDservation, the teeth
of the first dentition commonly cut in couples ; the two anterior
incisors of the lower jaw appear first ; then, m perhaps from fifteen
to twenty days the two anterior incisois of the upper jaw come
through ; to these .succeed the lateral couple of incisors of the lower
jaw ; then come those of the upper jaw. After these the two molar
teeth nearest to the lateral incisors of the lower jaw appear ; then
the first molars of the upper jaw ; after which come the lower two
canine ; then the upper canine ; then the two second molar of the
lower jaw ; and afterwards the coiresponding molar of the upper jaw.
The period occupied in the process is about two years from the appear-
ance of the first tooth.
The first formed of the permanent teeth are the anterior molars, on
which the first point of ossification may be seen at birtiL At about
the age of twelve months the ossification on these teeth has proceeded
to a considerable extent ; also on the permanent incisors, and it has
commenced on the lower cuspidati, the upper ones being generally
two or three months later. About the tune when all the temporary
teeth have made their appearance, ossification is found on the points
of the bicuspids, and the bony shells of the teeth before mentioned
have acquired considerable size.
Most of the permanent teeth are laiger than those which precede
them. They are placed during their progress a little behind them ;
hence they are confined within the segment of a smaller circle ; con-
sequently, 1^ they approach more and more nearly to their ultimate
size, they must bscome very much crowded in the jaw. " The exami-
nation of the maxillary bone of a child of about five years old,"
observes Mr. Bell, " will show this fnct in a veiy striking manner. At
this period the jaws being considerably deepened by the development
of the alveolar processes, the sockets m which the permanent teeth
are lodged will be found placed beneath those of the temporary, some
higher than others, and the bony shells are closely packed in such a
manner as to occupy the least possible space. Thus, in the upper
jaw, the central incisors are situated immediately beneath the nose,
the lateral incisors thrown back behind the points of the cuspidati,
and the bases of the latter scarcely a quarter of an inch below the
orbit ; in the lower jaw the cuspidati are placed at the very base of
the bone, with only a thin layer beneath them ; but the crowding is
much less considerable than in the upper jaw, from the smaller com-
parative size of the incisors.
" At from six to seven yean of age the whole of the permanent
teeth axe more or less ossified, excepting the dentes sapientise; so
that^ previously to the shedding of any of the temporary teeth, there
are at this tune no less than forty-eight teeth in the two jaws;
namely, twenty deciduous, the whole of which are perfected, and
twenty-eight permanent, in difilsrent degrees of development, within
Ihe bones."
At a particular epoch of human life, the temporary teeth are
exchanged for a more numerous set, of a stronger and more durable
structure, and of increased power of mastication. The original teeth
becrime loose in their sockets, their roots are eaten away, their crown
crumbles and recedes from the gums, and at last they fall out. This
chsmge takes place in the temporaiy teeth exactly in the order in
which they were originally formed, and in which they cut through
the gums. Thus, the centnl incisors of the lower jaw fall away first,
then those of the upper jaw, then go the interior lateral incisors, and
so on.
The mode in which this change is effected, which constitutes the
shedding of the teeth, is by a process of absorption. The anterior
parietes of the cavities in which the permanent teeth are contidned
are removed by the absorbent vessels, in consequence of which the
teeth are allowed* to advance ; next the sockets, then the roots, and
lastly the crowns of the temporary teeth are absorbed. This absorp-
tion cannot be solely the effect of pressure produced by the advancing
permanent teeth, for the process goes on when such pressure cannot
possibly have existed ; it xs, in put at least, like the preparation of
the ceU for the reception of the permanent pulp, a true process of
anticipation. Neither do the advancing permanent teeth displace the
receding deciduous teeth ; but the jaw grows and enlarges consenta-
neously with the increasing bulk and number of the teeth which it is
destined to receive.
The change of the temporary for the permanent teeth commences,
in the majority of instances, at about seven years of age ; '' though,*'
says Mr. Bell, " I have occasionally known it to occur as early as five
and as late as eight years and a half" The first permanent molars
usually pierce the gum before the loss of the temporal^ central inci-
sors, and their appearance may be considered as indicative of the
approaching change. The following are about the medium periods at
which the different permanent teeUi are generally cut, but so irregu-
lar are they in this respect that comparatively little dependence can
be pla6ed on such a statement. Those of the lower are here indi-
cated, and they most commonly precede the upper by about two or
three months : —
Anterior Molars 6} years
Central Indsors 7 „
Lateral Incisors 8 „
Anterior Bicuspids . . • . . . 9 „
Posterior Bicuspids 10 „
Cuq>idati. . 11-12,,
Second Molars 12-18,,
Third Molars, or Dentes Sapientise . . 17-19,,
It has been supposed that the permanent teeth are subject to much
irregularity in tne time of their appearance. This however a an
error, as within a limited period the appearance of the teeth in healthy
children is very constant. The following extract from Mr. Saunders's
work on 'The Teeth a Test of Age,' will be found to confijm
this: —
" Thus, then, it appears that of 708 children of nine years old, 889
would have been pronounced on an applicatbn of this test to be near
the completion of their ninth year ; tnat is, they presented the full
development of that age. But on the principle already stated — ^that
of reckoning the fourth tooth as present when the three are fully
developed — a still laiger minority will be obtained, and instead of 889
the proportion^ will be as follows : of 708 children no less a number
than 630 wUl be fully nine years of age. What, then, are the devia-
tions in the remaining 178 ? They are the following : 126 would be
pronounced eight years and six months, and the remaining 52 eight
years of age ; so that the extreme deviations are only twelve monUis,
and these only in the inconsiderable proportion (when compared with
the results obtained by other criteria) of 52 in 708.
" Again, of 888 children under thirteen years of age, no less than
294 noight have been pronounced with confidence to be of that
age. l^e remaining 44 would have been considered as follows:
86 in their thirteenth and 8 near the completion of their twelfth
year."
Such are the main phenomena which relate to the process of denti-
tion when this operation is performed in a perfectly natural and
healthy manner. But this process is exceedingly apt to become
deranged, producing evils in the system often most serious, and even
fatal ; and the preceding account of the natural process will enable us
readily to understand the nature, extent^ and causes of the diseases
which so often result from the morbid progress of the function.
[Dbntitxon DisBAfiEs, in Arts and So. Div.J
(Bell, On ihe Anatomy, Phytioloffif, and JHseata of the Teeth ; Ash-
bumer, On Jkntition and $ome co-incident Dieorden; Meckel, Man,
d^Anat,; Serres, Nouvdle Thicrie de la Dentition; De la Barre,
Seeonde Dentition; Owen, Odontography; Goodsir, On the Teeth;
Edinburgh Med. and Surg, Journal, vol U, ; Tomes, On the Structure
of the Teeth ; Proc, Roy, Soe., 1888 ; Tomes, Lectures on Dental Phy-
siology and Surgery; Huxley, On the Devdopment of the Teeth, in
Q^arteliy Mierosa^pical Journal, vol i.)
DEODARA. [Abibb.]
DERBYSHIRE SPAR [Fluor-Sfab.!
DERC.£A. [Stbkblttba; Hbtbbomeba.]
DERMATINE, a Mineral found in the serpentine quarry neof
Waldheim. It occurs in reniform masses, rarely globular, and in
thin coatings or crusts. Its colour ia dark olive-green or liver-browm
Streak yellow inclining to gray. The fracture ia condioidaL It
feels greasy, but does not adhere to the tongue. Its hardness i«
<15
DERMATOBRANCHUS.
DESMIDIEiB.
316
about 2*0. Lostre somewhat rennocuu Spodfio graTitj, 2186. The
following analysiB is by Fioinus : —
Smca 85-800
Magnesia 28'700
Protoxide of Iron 11883
Protoxide of Manganese 2*250
Alumina 0*416
Lime 0*888
Water and Carbonic Ackl . 25*200
DERMATOBRANCHUS, a genus of Molluscous Animals esta-
blished by M. Yan-Hasselt, and arranged by him among the
Nudibranehiata, It has ihe following characters : — Animal de-
pressed, semicircular, provided with a considerably large foot,
and protected above by an enlarged mantle, rounded anteriorly,
narrowed posteriorly, beset with elongated strin or pustules, which
are branoluaL A pair of shorty approximated, contractile tentacula
situated between the head and the mantle. Eyes none (?). Three
apertures on the right side of the body, the anterior opening near the
head for the generative apparatus, the second for the ven^ and the
third for the urinary oi^gan. It is an inhabitant of the coast of Java.
DERMESTES. [Dermebtida]
DERME'STIDJB, Leach (from Atpfiiicrris, a moth or worm that
eats skins), a family of Animals belonging to the order of Coleopterous
Insects of the section Neerophaga (M'Leay). They have the following
characters : — ^Antennae short, 11 -jointed, terminated by a compressed
club, consisting of 8 or 4 joints ; palpi small ; mandibles short, thick,
and generally dentated ; head deeply inserted into the thorax ; body
generally oval, and more or less furnished with scales or hairs ; legs
short ; tarsi 5-jointed. The species of this family are for the mowt
part of sDudl size : their larvs (at least those wmch are known) are
covered with hair, and feed upon animal substances. It includes the
genera Dermettet, Ctetiiu, Megatoma, Aitagenui, AspidiphonUf Nogo-
derma, AnihrenuSf Globulicome, Limniehtu, and Trogoderma. The
species of many of these ^pnera whilst in a larva state do great
mischief in houses. They are especially destructive to the collections
of the naturalist The perfect insects are harmless, living on flowers.
Thev are found throughout Europe, Australia, Africa, and America.
The distinguishing characters of tiie genus Dermettet are : — Antennn
scarcely differing in the sexes ; the basal ioint thick, the six following
ioints nearly of equal size, the eighth broader than long, the ninth
and tenth very broad and nearly of equal size, the eleventh also broad
but not equal in size to the two preceding; palpi short and thick;
body of an elongated oval shape.
D, lardariut is about a quarter of an inch in length and uf a dull
black colour ; the basal half of each elytron is of an ashy tint, and
has three black spots.
This insect is sometimes very abundant in houses in the neighbour-
hood of London and elsewhere, and when this is the case is very
destructive, since it will devour almost any animal substance^ but we
believe only in a dried state.
2). tulpinut is about the same size as the last, from which it may
be distinguished by the elytra being totally black, and the sides of
the thorax and under parts of the body being covered with white scales.
This insect is brought over in gi'eat abimdance in ships laden with
hides. We have seen them in skins of quadrupeds both from India
and America. The larva is about half an inch in length, and covered
with blackish-brown hairs. Like the perfect insect it feeds upon
dried skins, and hence when abundant is very destructive to this sort
of property. In the 14th roL of the 'Linncoan Transactions' is a
notice of the occurrence of several specimens of this insect, and also
of another beetle {Weerobia vioUicea) in the Egyptian mummy ; and
in the ' Transactions of the Entomological Society,' vol. i., the Rev.
V. W- Hope describes several species of Coleopterous Insects which
had been found in the heads of Egyptian mummies. They are as
follows : — Necrobia Mumiarium, D. poUmctut, 2). jRoct, and D. don-
galiu. Accompanying these insects there were also foiud some frag-
ments of a species of Pimelia — probably the P. tpinulota,
2). murinut ia also about a quarter of an inch in length, and of a
black colour ; the upper parts of the head, thorax, and diytra, are
mottled with scales of an ashy tint ; the scutellum is of a fulvous
colour ; the under parts of the body are white.
The species is oonmion in various parts of England, and is found in
dried animals which have been suspended in the open air by game-
keepers and other persons.
In the genus Cfletiat (Stephens) the two basal joints of the antemue
are thick; the six following are nearly of equal size and rather
slender; the ninth joint is rather long and of an obconic form ; the
tenth joint is shorter than the last ; and the terminal joint is oonical.
These three joints form together an elongated knob.
C. Serra is about an eighth of an inch in length, of a black colour,
with yellowish antennso. It is found under the loose bark of elm-
trees. The larva is covered with long hairs.
Megaiwna (Herbst). — In this genus the two basal joints of the
antennas are thick ; the four following are slender ; the seventh and
eigh^ joints are laiger than the last-mentioned, and the remainder
form an elongated dub ; the terminal joint is twice as long as the
others in the mole, and but slightly elongated in the female.
AtUtgeMU (Latreille). — Antenns with the basal joint thick ; the
second less robust and shorter; the three following joints slender;
the sixth, seventh, and eighth joints gradually increasing in size ; the
remainder forming a 8-jointed club, of which the teiminal joint is
extremely long and almost cylindrical in the male, and of an elongated
oval form in the female.
A. Pdlio is about an eighth of an inch in length, and of a black
colour ; the base of the antennas is yellowish, and there is a round
white spot in the middle of each elytron.
This insect is common in houses, and is very frequently found in
quills, upon the pith of which it probably feeds.
DERMO'CHELYS. [Chelonia.]
DERRIAS. [Baboov.]
DESMANS. [Sobecida]
DESMIDIE^, a group of oiganised beings regarded by some
naturalists as Animals and by others as Plants. The botanists who
have adopted them into the vegetable kingdom have regarded them
as Algctf and allied to the JHatomaeea, Some however who admit
the vegetable characters of Detmidieo! deny them to JHoUomaeea. Dr.
Lindley admits the Detmidiea as a suborder of the Diatamaeea, whi<^
he characterises as crystalline angular fragmentary bodies, brittle, and
multiplying by spontaneous separation. Amongst this group of beings
the Detmidiece are characterised as being ' cylindrical' ThcfoHowiuig
LB the definition of this family as given by Mr. Ralfs in his ' British
DeemidiesB,' a work which has greatly increased our knowledge of
these obscure beings : — "Freshwater figured, mucous, and microscopic
AlgcB, of a green colomr. Transverse division mostly complete, but in
some genera incomplete. Cells or joints of two symmetrical valves,
the jimoUon always marked by the division of the endochrome, often
also by a constriction. Sporangia formed by the coupling of the cells
and union of their contents." it will be seen from this definition that
Mr. Ralfs regards these beings as plants. The principal points on
which he relies for establialung this position are the occurrence of
coigugation and ^warming, and the presence of starch amongst the
DeimidiecB.
The occurrence of a union or conjugation of the two filaments for
the production of spores, has long been known amongst certain forms
of Uot^ervig, This has been seen by many observers to occur amongst
the Detmidiea. In the Swutrum rupettre {fig. 8 represents the genus)
Nageli describes this process. Two individuals are placed dose toge-
ther, and push out short processes, which meet, and by the absorption
of the wall constitute a canal, into which the entire contents of the
two cells thus connected enter, and combine together to form one
mass which constitutes a single cell This process is not always
identical in diflforent species. In Clotterium {fy, 6) the middle of the
cell-membrane dehisces with a transverse fissure, and the entire con-
tents from two contiguous opened cells coalesce into a single round or
angular mass. Siebold says, with regard to the spores or green bodies
which result frx>m the union of the cells, that they are not in all cases
developed into a single Clotterium, like spores ; but that» as in the case
of other Algix, such as Vawiheria and (Edogtmium, there are two sorts
of spore-formations, and that under certain circumstances these green
bodies represent a germ, capsule, or sporangium, in which, by a mro-
cess of division, several young Clotteria come to be perfected. The
union of the cells of Didymoprium Borreri is seen in fy. 1.
The process above described appears to be one entirely confined to
the vegetable kingdom, as it has never been observed amongst uni-
cellular organisms, which are regarded as decidedly animal
The process of swarmibg is one which, although a few years ago
its distinguishing feature would have been regarded as entitling the
oiganism exhibiting it to a place in the animal kingdom, is by Mr.
Ralfii and other English naturalists regarded as purely vegetable. It
has been observed in many species of Coirfervacea, more especially in
AchXya proliftra [Acrlta] and Cot^erva oerea. The following is
M. Agardh's account of this curious phenomenon in the latter plantb
After describing the green matter in the ioints, he says : — " The
granules of which it is composed detach themselves from the mass
one alter another, and having thus become free they move about in
the vacant space of the joint with an extreme rapidity. At the same
time the exterior membrane of the joint is observed to swell in one
point till it there forms a little mami&a, which is to become the point
from which the moving gpranules finally issue. By the extension of
the membrane for the formation of the mamilla, the tender fibres of
which it is composed separating, cause an opening at the end of the
mamilla, and it is by this passage that the granules escape. At first
they issue in a body, but soon those which remain, swimming in a
much lax^r space, have much more difficulty in escaping ; and it is
only after izmumerable knockings (titubations) agaiiist the walls of
their prison that they succeed m finding an exit From the first
instant of the motion, one observes that the granules or sporules are
furnished with a little beak, a kind of anterior process always dis-
tinguishable from the body of the sporule by its^aler colour. It is
on the vibrations of this beak that the motion, as I conceive, depends *
at least I have never been able to discover any cilia. However I will
not venture to deny the existence of these ; for with a veiy high power
of a compound miscroscope one sees the granules surrounded with a
hyaline border, as we find among the ciliated Ifrfueoria on applying a
gUss of insufficient power. The sporules during their motion alwaya
KT
DBSMIDIEf^
prcUDt thia b«d in ft«nt of their body. M if it •erred ta ihaw tiiem
the W9J ; but when the; o«ue to mave, b;^ bending It buik along the
aide of their body, thay resume the ipherical form ; to Uiat before
uid after the motion one aeaa no tnce of thia beak. The motion of
the ipomlea before their exit from this point oonaista principally in
quick dartiogB along the walla of the iffticulation, knocking themaelTei
againit them by innumerable ahooka; and inaomeeaieawe are ahnoit
forced to believe tliat it Li In' this motion of the iponiha that the
m«min« is formed. Eacapcd from thair priaon, they continue their
motion for one or two houiK ; and retiring always towarda the darker
edge of the Tenel, aometimm they prolong thair wandering counea,
(ometimee they remain in 'lia aame pliice, oauaing their beak to vibrate
in rapid drolea. Finally they collect in dense ma»ea, containing inr
marabls graina, and attach themKlvea to aome extraneous body
the bottom or on the lurfaca of the water, where they hasten to deve-
lop filamenta like those of the mother plant." Thia proceaa, to which
the name awaiming has been given, has been observed by Ur. Ralfs,
Dr. TTai—11, and othen in variona ipedea of JOetmidiea, more especially
in i^ihirroplea eritpa and DrapamaiUdia tcnuii. No umikr move-
menta to theea have been anywhere obeerTcd amongst the ova of the
■tiiiTiKl kingdom.
The presence of atarch in the Ikmidita is a third point relied
by Hr. Ralfs aa diitinguishing the vegetable kingdom. The eiiatenoe
of thia substance is easily ascertained by the well-known reaction of ■
iodine upon it Meyon first discovered this aubatance in the Alga,
and Hr. Ralh and others have confirmed the correctnesa of hii obaer-
vations. At the aame time it should be stated that starch, although
not fonnd pieaent in the tissues of the lower animals, has recently
been detected in the brain of man by Ur. Busk (' Hicraacopicid
Journal,' toL iL p. 105). This may lead to the discoveiv of the
existence of thia substance more generally in the animal kiogdi
than hsa been bttherto supposed.
. with the trill aDidni Id lona tl
id acquiring a ii«w Hgrnrnt bj dlTialon.
The following reaaons an given by Ur. DalrTmple, after giving an
account of the structure of Ctotleria, for placing the species of this
genns amongat aoimala : —
Ist. Tbat while Cloileri-am has a circulation of molecules greatly
rrecmbliDg that of plants, it has also a definite organ unknown in the
vegetable world, in which the active molecules appear to enjoy an
indspendect motion, and the parietas of which appear arable of
contracting upon its contents.
Sod. That the green gelatinous body is contained in a membranous
envelope, which, while it is elastic, contracts also npon the action of
certain reagents, whose eSecta cannot be considered purely ehemical
Srd. The camparisou of the supposed ova with cytoUaats and cells
of planta precludes the possibility of our considering them aa the
DESUIDIE^.
4th. Tliat while it was imposaible to determine whether the vague
motiona of ClMtriuta were voluntary or not, jet the idea the aothoi
bad formed of a suotorial apparatus forbade his claaring them with
On these reasons, Mr. Kalb remarks, that the peculiar otgin —
the terminal globules— of the Olotleria are as muoh vwetable as
animal. That the throwing off the contents of the ceU thraagb
chemical reagents, ia aa much v^etable as animal. " If freah water
touches (>^AsiaiefiK«i, the joints burst and spirt out their contenla."
That the supposed ova contain starch, and are therefore vegetable.
Tbat he cannot discover that the orifices at the extremities of some of
the Ikmidiia are tubes, or that they possess a suctorial power.
The Deimidiia are all of an herbaceons green colour, and from thia
circumatonoe are easily discovered amongst the other microscopic beings
with which they occur. They are mostly inhabitants of fteah water.
Hr. Thwaites records two or thiee speciss frum brackish water. They
are remarkable for the very definite outline which their forma assume,
especially in the genera MieroHeriai {Jig, 2), Eitailrum {fig. 3), Xan-
Ihidivm (fig. I), and Pedialrum {figi. 7, B). Their most obvious
characteristic however is their evident division into two valves or
segments. The point of union betweeo the two segmante is in
general very deBnitely marked. In Peduutrun and Stemdetmiu it is
leas obvioua than other genera. It ia at this point of union that the
cell opens and diaohargaa its contents. " An uninterrupted gradation,"
says Mr. Ralfa, " may be ttaced from species in which these characters
are inconspicuous to those in which they are fully developed : thus in
Cimfn-iiwi and some speciaH of Pcniun there is no conatrictian i^n
TiMemonu, in aome Camaria, and in ffyalolhtea, it is quite evident,
although still but slight ; in JMymopriun and DtmidiiOA it is
denoted by a notch at each angle j but ia Sphteroiotma, itKralteriat
(Jig, 2), and some other genera, tbe constriction is very deep, and the
connecting portion forma a new cord between the segments, which
appear like distinct cella, and are so lAneidered by Ehrenbarg and
others." He further adds, " That the frond in Euatlrvm {fig. S) and
allied genera ia really a coostrictad cell, and not a blnata one, will, I
am persuaded, be apparent to any one who traces the gradations
mentioned above."
The manner in which the cells of the Dttmdiat an mtiltiplisd,
means of repeated transverse divisions. This procais may bs
seen in Ewafrvm, tt
w segments appearing at the constricted part
roundish hvaline bodies formed of the substance
necting tube. These lobules increase in size, acquire colour, and
giaiju^f put on the appearance of the old portions. As th«
iuoreasa in aixe the origmal segments are pushed away from each
other, and at length an entire separation takes place, each old segment
taking with it a new segment to supply the place of the old tmt.
This proceaa is seen going on in fig. 6, This process is repeated
again and again, so that the older eegments are united sucoesdvely,
aa it were, with many geneiationa. This multiplication however
has its limits, for the time comea whan the segments gradually
enlarge wlulat they divide, and at length the plant ceases to grow.
Whan thia occurs no more segmenia are produced, llie internal matter
changes its appearance, increases in 'denaitv, and contains starch-
gnnulea. Tbe spore is now formed, which is to givs birth to a new
individual, and tbe old one perishes. The separate cells (brmed by
thesK
first, by the formation of granular contents in the cell, which have
tbe power of moving, burst the cell, and produce the phenomeoa of
swaiming above referred to ; and secondly, by the formation of a
sporangium, or caae oontaining spores, after the union or conjugation
of the cella before described. The sporangia assume a variety of
forma, and ore sometimea covered with spines, and Mr. Ralfs says,
"That the orbicular spinous bodies so frequent in Biot are fossil
sporangia of Dttmidita, cannot, I think, be doubtful, when they ore
imparad with fignrea of reoant ones,"
Hovementa of the cell-contents of Damidiea, similar to the cydosis
of bighsr plants, have been observed by Dalrymple, Bailey, and
othen. These movementa consist of definite currents of the ceil-
contents, passing in two opposite directions, the one along the aide
of the cell, and the other along the peripheir of the gelatinous mass
ia their interior. Labarzewaki, a Qerman obaervar, stales that thsaa
currents are intermittent, lasting each time for about aavea
seconds.
The part fulfilled by the Dttmidita in creatian is little known.
They undoubtedly punf]y the water in which they live in the same
manner aa other plants, and furnish food to a number of freah-water
animals. As they do not attach themselves to external oljects they
are seldom found living in running streams. They are sometimea
found in the beds of large rivers, and several apeeies are enumerated
by Dra, Lankeater and Redfem, in their report on the ' Microscopical
of the Water of the Thames.' The best placsa for
I a,
i10
DESMIDIE^.
DEVONIAN SYSTEM.
S«0
pToenrizig them are email shallow pools which do not diy up in
the tammer. Mr. Ralfe says, however, that the eamd speciea never
oociir in the same pools two years in succession. They prefer open
moors and exposMl places, and are nirely found in woods, shady
placee, or deep ditches. They are seldom found in turbid water of
any kind. In this respect they are the opposite of their congeners
the Diatomacecg, which almost as a rule are found where the Jkitnidiea
are not
The best way of procuring them for examination is to take a
piece of linen, la^ it on the groimd in the form of a bag, and then,
by the aid of a tin box or ladle, scoop up the water, and strain it
through the bag. After this process has been repeated a few times,
the specimens of Damidiea will be found in great abimdance on the
linen, which, if kept moist, will allow of the growth and develop-
ment of these beautiful objects for many months.
The study of this family will imdoubtedly amply repay the
naturalist for years to come. Comparatively little is Known of the
species beyond the continent of Europe. The following is an analysis
of the genera found by Mr. Ralfs in the British Islands : —
Plant an elongated jointed filament. Sporangia orbicular, smooth.
1. Hyalotheea, — Filament cylindrical. Two species.
2. IHdyrMyprivm^ — Filament cylindrical, or sub-cylindrical. Joints
with two opposite or dentate projections. (Fig. 1.) Two species.
8. Ikamidiium, — Filament triangular, or quadrangular ; joints con-
nected by a thickened border. Two species.
4. Aptogtmwm, — Filament triangular or plane, with foramina
between the joints. One species.
5. SphctfOiOima, — Filament plane, margins incised or sinuated;
joints with junction^glands. Two species.
Frond simple from complete transverse division, distinctly con-
stricted at tne junction of the segments, which are seldom longer
than broad ; sporangia spinous, or tubercukted, rarely if ever smooth.
6. Micratteriat. — Lobes of the segments incised or bidentate.
(Pig. 2.) Thirteen species.
7. Euattrum, — Segments sinuated, generally notched at the end,
and with inflated protuberances. (Fig. 8.) Eighteen species.
8. Camarium. — Segments in front view neither notched nor
sinuated ; in end view elliptic, circular, or cruciform. Thirty-three
species.
9. Xanthidivm. — Segments compressed, entire, and spinous. (Figg.
4 and 5.) Six species.
10. Arthrodetmw. — Segments compressed, and having only two
spines or mucros. Two speciea
11. Skmrtutrvm. — End view angular, radiate, or with elongated
processes which are never geminatei Forty species.
12. Didymodadon. — Segments angular, each angle having two
processes, one inferior and parallel with the similar one of the oiher
segment, the other superior and divergent One specie^
Frond simple, from complete transverse division, generally much
elongated, never spinous, frequently not constricted at the centre.
Sporangia smooth.
18. Tetmemanu. — Frond straight, constricted at the centre, and
notched at Uie ends. Three species.
14. Peniutn. — ^Frond straignt, scaix;ely constricted at the centre.
Eight species.
15. Docidium. — Frond straight, much elongated, constricted at the
centre, truncate at the ends. Seven species.
16. QotUriwn. — Frond crescent-shaped or arcuate, not constricted
at the centre. (Fig. 6.) Twenty-two species.
17. Spirokenia. — Frond straight, not constricted at the centre;
endochrome spirally twisted. Two species.
Cells elongated, entire, fasciculated.
18. AnJnttrodetmua. Cells aggregated into faggot-like bundles.
(Fig. 9). One species.
Frond composed of few cells, definite in number, and not forming a
filament. (Sporangia unknown).
19. Pediattrum. — Cells arranged in the form of a flattened star,
their outer margin bidentate. (Fig*. 7 k 8.) Eleven spedes.
20. Scenidetmua. — Cells oblong or fusiform, entire, placed side by
side in a single row, but during division into two rows. Six species.
( Ralfii and Jenner, British Jktmidiece; Siebold, On UnietUvlar Plants
and Animals, in Mic. /oumal,*1853 ; Meneghini, On the Animal Naivre
of iHatomacece, translated by Ray Society, 1864; A. Braun, On
Rfjwoenescmct in the Plant, translated by Ray Societv, 1854 ; Lindley,
VegetalU Kingdom; Nageli, Gattungen eingdliger Aigen physiologisch
und systematisch bearheitetf Zurich, 1849; Cohn, On the Natural
ffittcry of Ptotococcw plv/vialis, translated hj Ray Society, 1854.)
DESMOPHT'LLUM, a genus of Fossil Radiate Animals bekmgiQg
to the Zoophjrtes found io the London Clay of Sheppey. (* GeoL
Trans.' N. S., voL v. t 8, f. i.)
DESVAUXIA'CEiE, Bristleworts, an obscure snd little known
natural order of Plants, consisting of a few Australian sedge-like
herbs, of no known utili^. They are nearly related to Mesticteecs and
BriocatUaeetg, and are principally characterised among other Qlumcse
Endogens by having several carpels placed in the middle of each
flower. The most recent character is the following, given by Endlicher
in his ' Genera Plantarum ' : —
Dwarf Australian herbs with the appearance of a pigmy Oyperus
or Stirpus; the roots fibrous or fasciculated. Culms filifoim, undi-
vided, leafless. Leaves radical, between thread-shaped and bristly,
sheathing at the base. Spikelets hermaphrodite, in two raii^
1-flowered, or terminal and solitary with one or many florets. Qlume
single, anterior, or two nearly opposite each other, coarse. Palea
none, or delicate, single or double, parallel with the glumes. Stamen
single, anterior. Filament filiform, simple. Anthers turned inwards,
1-celled, attached by the back above the basei Ovary either single
and sessile (we would exclude this character) or several attached to a
common axis at different heights, imbricated downwards, 1-oelled.
Ovule solitary, suspended from the apex of the ovaiy, orthotropous,
with the foramen regarding the base of the ovary. Styles filiform,
simple, united to eadi other at the base. Stigmas simple, or with a
feawery beard. UtridleB membranous, dehisdng lengthwise at the
side. Seed orthotropous, pendulous; i^in leathery and rather hard.
Albumen fleshy and abundant Embryo antitropous, lenticular,
applied to the albumen at the extremity of the seed opposite the
umbilicus ; the radicular extremity papillose, and regarding the base
of the fruit (* Genera Plantarum,' p. 119.)
There are 4 genera and 15 species in this order.
DETRITUS and DEBRIS, two words now universally received
into the language, the former of Latin, the latter of French origin.
They are very frequently employed in works of geolosy and physical
geography, when treating of the formation of alluvial deposits. By
Debris, in geological lanjguage, is meant generally the fragments of
rocks, boulders, gravel, sand, trunks of trees, carcasses of animals, &a,
detached from the summits and sides of mountains by the effect of
the elements, or resulting from sudden convulsions at the surface of
the earth. By Detritus we understand the same Debris findy com-
minuted or pulverised by attrition. Debris in general comprises
Detritus ; but Detritus excludes the idea of the lar^r Debris.
Modem Debris seldom extends beyond the foot of the mountains
whence it is derived, the channels of torrents, and the higher parts
of the beds of rivers; Detritus alone, except in the ease of sudi
things as floaty being carried down to the mouths of large streamsi
The boulders which lie strewn over such great extents of land, and
which are found at great depths below the surface-soil, together with
fossil-trees, bones of animals, &c., are the Debris of a former age, no
cause now in action being apparently capable of bringing them to
;nich distances fix>m their original sites.
DEUTZIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
PhUadelphace(Bf inhabiting the North of India, China, and Japan.
The tube of the calyx is campanulate, tomentose, the limb 5- or 6-
clefb. The petals 5 or 6, and oblong. The leaves are opposite,
petiolate, ovate, acuminated, serrated, wrinkled, and veined.
D. seaitra has its leaves covered with stellate siliceous hairs, which
makes them very rough, and renders them of use^to cabinet-makers
as poUshing agents. The siliceous bodies are beautiful objects viewed
by refiected light under the microscope.
DEVIL IN A BUSH, 1 Vulgar names of the gebus Nigdla.
DEVIL IN A MIST, J [Niqella.]
DEVIL'S APPLE. [Mandraoora.]
DEVIL'S BIT, the vulgar name of Scabiosa succisa. [Soabiosa.]
DEVIL'S LEAF, the vulgar name of Urtica urentisnma.
DEVONIAN SYSTEM. A great portion of the Palaeozoic Strata
of North and South Devon has been thus termed' by Sedgwick and
Murchison (' Geol. Trans.'), and also referred to as of coeval formation
with the Old Red-Sandstone of Herefordshire. Further investigation
has shown that a portion of the strata in North Devon belongs to the
Carboniferous System, and is equivalent to the lowest shales and
sandstones thereot The Old Red-Sandstone must certainly be admitted
to be coeval with some parts of the Devonian Strata, which besides
contain several red-sandstone members; but there is reason to think
that the true place of much of the stratification of South Devon, on
the ordinary geological scale, is rather about the upper part of the
Old Red-Sandstone ; and this mode of viewing these rocks barmoulEes
with the distribution of organic remains in the Silurian, Devonian,
and Carboniferous Deposits.
The following table by Professor Sedgwick gives at one view the
relation of the rocks which enter into the composition of the Devonian
Formation : —
Lower or Plymouth T Dartmouth Slate, Plymouth Limestone and
Group. ^ 1 Red Grit, and Li^Lcard Slate.
Middle or Caithness f Hereford Sandstone, Marl, and Comstone,
Group. \ Dipterous Flag.
Upper or PethenrinrPetherwin Slate and Clymenia Limestone;
Group. \ Marwood Sandstone.
m
DEWBERRY.
DEXTRINE,
8SS
The Deroniaii Formation ii represented in Belgium and the
Rhenioh provinoei^ in Roaaia, America, and probably also in Van
Diemen's Land.
With regard to the development of this great system, Mr. Jukes
says — " The history of the production of the Devonian Rocks seems
to be this : — ^At the dose ox the Silurian period, or during its later
portion, great dislocations and elevations took place, by which the
Silurian Rooks, and especially the Lower Silurians of the larger and
more northerly portions of we British Talands, became much broken
and contorted, and in many places lifted up into dry land. Qranite
was protruded into them in the south-«ast of Ireland, and probably
also the granites of the north-east of Ireland and of the north of
England and south of Scotland, were formed at this time. Great
denudations also took place, by which some of the granite of the
south-east of Iraland (if not that of the other districts) was brought
to the surfaoei Upon the uneven ground thus formed, as it was slowly
depressed again, the Old Red-Simdstone was deposited, consisting
laxgely of the detritus produced by this denudation.
*' But in the south-west of Ireland and England neither disturbance
nor denudation took place to anything like the same amount, the
locality remaining probably a pretty deep sea, in which fine-grained
mechanical and some chemical depositions were formed, partly con-
temporaneously with the Old Red-Sandstone proper, and i>artly
subsequent to it.
" If we are allowed to continue this hypothetiaal history a little
longer, we should say that at the dose of the Devonian period a sub-
sidence of almost the whole country had occurred, and in the sea
thus formed was deposited the Carboniferous Limestone, resting in
levd sheets on the floor of the Old Red-Sandstone, that had filled up
and levelled the hollows and inequalities in the older rooks. When
the Carboniferous Limestone had been formed, the Coal-Measures were
accumulated on the top of it^ setting in firist of all as thick sandy
deposits, and then as alteniations of sandy and shaly beds, with an
occasional bed of ooaL The depression being suspended, and the sea,
having been partially filled by the accumulation of the Carboniferous
Limestone, was made still shoaler by the sandstones and shales of the
Millstone Grit and Coal-Measuses, so that, according to some, it was
entirely filled up to its surfiuse, in order to produoe a bed of coal, while
every one agrees that it must have nearly been so.
** Depression then recommenced, allowing the accumulation of
several thousand feet of coal-measures, all successively produced in
oomparativdy shoal water." [See Sufplbkhit.]
(Jukes, Phytiedl Otology,)
DEWBERRY, a kind of bramble, the i?«5«f eanu$ of botanists.
[RUBUS.]
DEWEYLITE, a name for Serpentine. [SERFEivnvB.]
DEXA'MINE, a genus of Amphipodous OiMfoceo, established by
Dr. Leach. The fc^Uowing are its characters : — Antennas 8-jointed,
the last segment composed of a number of minute joints; first
segment shorter than the second; upper antennte longest. Eyes
oblong, not prominent, inserted behind the superior antennsB. Legs
fourteen ; fint and second pairs monodactyle, with a small compressed
hand ; other pairs furnished with simple claws. Tail, on each side,
with three double styles ; above, with one small style on each side.
Body, (including the head) 12-jointed. (Leach.)
/>. fptnoM. Body shining, the ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth
segments produced into a spine ; firont produced and bent downwards
between toe antefinse. The first joint of the upper antennsd beneath,
towards their tips, have a little spine-like process. Length three-
quarters of an inch. (Leach.)
Dr. Leach says that it is very common on the southern coasts of
England, and is often taken by the shore-net, or beneath stones
amongst the rocks at low tid& The legs, he .observes, are easily
broken, which will account for Montagu's having described and
figured it {(Jancer (Qamma/rwi) fptnonw) without the monodactyle
hands.
DEXIA'RI^, a family of Dipterous Insects of the section Oreo-
phila. This family, established by M. Robineau Desvoidy, is com-
posed chiefly of Meigen's genus Dexia. The species may be distin-
guished from those of neighbouring groups by the greater length of
Uieir legs : the body is generally elongated and cylindrical, but some-
times thick, depressed, or rounded. The fore part of the head is, in
most of the spedes, furnished with a ridge situated between the deep
grooves in which the antennie are placed ; the antennso are rather
short, and the stylet is generally plumose ; the eyes are separated in
both sexes, and the males are usually larger than the females. These
flies are of inoffensive habits ; they are xisually seen on flowers, the
juices of which afford them nouruumient.
The chief characters of the genera contained in the Dexiarite are
thrown into a tabular form by M. Macquart^ in the following
manner: —
Genus 1. Protma, St. Fargeau.
PJrobosds long.
Proboscis short
Body oylindiicaL
First posterior cdlule of the wings dosed.
Second and third joints of the antenn» of equal length.
HAT. HDT. Diy. VOL. IL
(}enuB 2. Zeuxia, Meigen.
Third joint of the antennsD longer than the second.
Genus 3. Dinera^ Desvoidy.
First posterior cellule of the wings open.
Antenna not extending to the epistoma.
Genus 4. Dexia, Meigen.
AnteniuB extending to the epistoma. Legs very long.
Genus 5. ScoHptern, Macquart.
Body tolerably broad, depressed.
Fore part of the head arched (colours brilliant).
Genus 6. RutUa, Desvoidy.
Fore part of the head flat (colours, black or yellow).
* Stylet of the antennes naked.
Genus 7. CfymnoatyUt, Macquart
Stylet of the antennse covered with &ne hairs.
Genus 8. Omalogatter, Macquart.
Of the genus Proiena Macquart describes only two species, one of
which inhabits Europe, and the other is from Brazil.
Of the genus Zeuxia but one species is known.
The genus Dinera contains five spedes, one of which inhabits Brazil,
and the others are found in various parts of Europe.
The genus Dexia contains twelve species, almost all of which are
European.
The genus Seotiptera contains two spedes ; they are of condderable
size, and inhabit BnudL
RuHUl — The spedes of this genus appear to be confined to Australia ;
they are generally of large size.
The genus Oymnoaiyla contains three spedes, two of which are from
Brazil and the third is from Surinam.
The last genus, Otnalagaaterf contains four species, all of which are
inhabitants of Europe.
DEXTRINE is a vegetable substance found in the mterior of the
cells of plants. It can be artifidally procured by treating starch with
diastase. Mulder has shown that dextrine may also be obtained from
cellidose both by sulphuric acid and by diastase. The quantity of
diast^iae required is extremely minute ; if too much be used, or the
process continued too long, grape-sugar is produced. It is by these or
similar means that nature converts cellulose into dextrine, and dextrine
or starch into sugar. As in malting barley, diastase is naturally pro-
duced with the starch, there is no reason why it should not in a
similar manner be produced in the g^wing plant, and thus convert
the cellulose into dextrine. [Diastase.]
The sap of nearly all phmts contains a certain amount of dex-
trine, which, having the same diemical composition (0^, H^^ O^^)
as gum, and in many other points resembling it, has been in most
analyses put down as gum. If one equivalent of water (HO) be taken
from one equivalent of cellulose (C.« Hf, O, J, two equivalents either
of gum or dextrine [2 (C„ H,o 0,o)J are formed. Thus a part of the
oeUular membranes may be converted into dextrine by cattdysiB with-
out destroying the ccIIb, if the vegetable sap, while passing through
them, contains only a very minute quantity of diastase, or of, a sub-
stance resembling it
Ghim and dextrine have been frequently confounded. The most
important difference between them is, that the latter mav be changed
into grape-sugar by sulphuric acid or diastase, while the former is
incapable of undergoing that change.
Dextrine bdpngs to that class of matters which are taken into the
blood ; all the starch taken as food being converted by the gastric
juice into it The gums are not taken up ; they become mere ex-
cretions, and are apparently of little or no importance.
There seems every reason for believing that dextrine is the source
of the cellular matter, for it is a universal constituent of all parts
of plants. We are justified in assuming that the sap of plants
must contain the elementary matter of cellulose in a state of solution,
so as to be able to penetrate through the cell-walls, and to supply new
substance to increase the number of cells. No material but dextrine
is fitted for this office, though in young plants sugar also contributes
to it By the production, during germination, of dextrine and sagar,
we are led to believe that the cellulose of the young plant is really
formed from this dextrine and from the sugar in the germinating
cotyledons. Whilst many full-grown plants do not contain sugar, all
contain dextrine, so that the use of the latter in the formation of cells
cannot be doubted.
Dextrine is not merely a source of cellulose, but likewise of starch,
sugar, gum, and perhaps other vegetable substances ; it is almost as
valuable to plants as protein is to animals, for it is a constituent from
which their organism derives its most important producta The com-
position of dextrine being 0^, Hj^ Oj^ , the formation of cellulose is
accomplished by every two equivalents of dextrine taking up one
eqivalent of water. Thus
2 (C„ Hjo 0,o) + HO=:Ca^ Hjj 0,j=Cellulo8e.
Starch and gum contain the same elements in the same proportions
SE dextrine, and hence for their production require merely a re-arrange-
ment of the molecules. For an account of the relation of Dextrine to
ike other secretions of plants, see the article Secbxtiors, Veqbtablb.
DIACOPE.
DIANCHORA.
824
DIA'COPE, a genus of Fiahes belonging to th« seotion Aeantho-
plerygii and fiunilr Ptreidas, and belonging to that section of the
family in which the species haye less than seven branchiost^gous
rays, and an inteirapted lateral line.
This genus is allied to SerronuB, but may be distinguished by there
being a notch or emaigination in the lower part of the preopennilum,
into which is fitted a projecting tuberde.
Many large and beautiful species of this genus inhabit the Indian
seas. Diacope oetolineatct, a yery beautiful spedes^ caught off the
coast of the MaturitiuSy is of a bnUiant reddish-yellow colour, shaded
into white on the belly, and is adorned with four longitudinal blue
stripes on eac^ side of the body ; these stripes are maigined with
black. It is about 10 inches in length.
Some of the species are known to have attained the length of
8 feet and upwards.
DIADE'LPHIA, the seventeenth class in the Linnsdsii system of
arranging plants. Strictly speaking it ought to contain no genera but
those whidi have their stamens united into two equal or unequal
parcels; but as it consists principally of Leguminous genera it is
customary to place in it all the Papilionaceous plants which have
united stamens, whetiier in one parcel or two. This and similar
plana lender the Linntean system more natural, but destroy its use as
an artifidal guide to the determination of the name of a plant
DIADEMA. [CiBBiPEDiA.]
DIALLAQE. [Auarrz.]
DIAMOND, a crystalline gem, which, on account of its high lustre
and extreme hardness, has always been regarded as the most valuable
of the precious stones ; the former of these qualities arises from its
great refractive power, and on account of its hardness its lustre
remains undiminished. It is commonly colourless or grayish, but
sometimes green, yellow, red, brown, blue, and black ; the two last-
mentioned colours are the rarest Its lustre is adamantine ; refrac-
tion single ; transparent, but sometimes rendered opaque by foreign
matter. Hardneas 10, exceeding that of any other, and scratching
every other substance ; owing to its hardness it can be cut, or rather
worn down, only bv rubbing one diamond against another, and it is
polished by the mcUon of portions of the gem itself reduced to
powder : it is broken without difficulty. The specific gravity of the
diamond is from 8*48 to 8*56 ; streak grayish ; fracture conchoidal ;
deavage parallel to the planes of the regular octahedron, which is its
primary form, subject however to numerous varieties, and the feces
are frequently curvilinear. When rubbed it phosphorisee, and
becomes positively dectrical, and is therefore a non-conductor of
electricity. When heated, without the contact of air, it suffers no
diange, but if ignited in contact with it, it is totally converted into
carbonic add gas, proving that it is carbon in a state of purity.
For ornamental purposes diamonds are cut into two shapes:
namdy, Rose-Diamonds and Brilliants, the former being, for the most
part, made out of the octahedral crystals, and the latter from those
with curvilinear facea The weight and consequently the value of
diamonds are estimated in carats, each of which is equal to 8'166 grains.
In the formation of either a brilliant or a rose-diamond so much is
cut away that the weight of the polished gem is not more than half
that of we rough crystal out of which it was formed.
Newton, considering the fact that transparent bodies which are
uninflammable refract light nearly in the raUo of their density, while
those which are inflammable have refhustive powers that are greater
than thdr density, was led to condude that the diamond, on account
of this great refractive power, was " probably an unctuous substance
coagulated."
In 1695 experiments were made at Florence, which proved the
diamond to be dissipated by intense heat in the focus of a burning
lens. Several chemiste proved that diamonds lost no weight when
heated without the contact uf air, and on the contrary, that tiiiey
were dissipated when heated in it; but it was first shown by
Lavoisier that carbonic add was obtained by the combustion of the
diamond, and he concluded that it contained carbon, and had great
analogy with this combustible body.
These researches were not however suffident to afford complete
proof of the nature of the diamond ; but this was aocomplidied by
the succeeding experiments of Smithiion, Tennant, Guyton Morveau,
Allen and Pepys, and Davy, who all amved at the same conclusion,
which i^ that although there exists in many respects so great a
difference between the properties of the diamond and charcoid, they
are identical in their diemical nature. Thus, whenever by combus-
tion 6 parts of charcoal, or an equal wdght of diamond, are combined
with oxygen, the quanti^ of oxygen absorbed always amounts to
16 parts, and the result of their combustion is 22 parts of carbonic
add.
Diamonds occur in India in the district between Qolconda and
Masulipatam, near Pauna, in Bimddcund, also on the Mahanudd^, and
in Ellore. They have been obtained in Borneo, on the west side of
the Ratoos Mountain, with gold and platina. The Brazilian mines
were first discovered in 1728, in the district of Serra do Frio, to the
north of Rio de Janeiro. The largest diamonds are procured on the
river Jequitinhonha, which is odled the Diamond River, also Rio
Pardo. In the Ural Mountains diamonds were detected in 1829, by
Humboldt and Rose, in their journey into Siberia. In the United
States the diamond has been met with in Rutherford county. North
Carolina, and Hale county, Geoigia, Thev have been found on the
river Ginul, in the province of Constantme, in Africa. They have
also been discovered in Australia, and of such size as to render it
probable they may add yet more to the mineral treasures of that
countiy.
The rocks in which the diamond occurs in Brazil are dther a
ferruginous quartzose conglomerate, or a laminated granular quartz
called liacolvmite. The latter rock occurs in the Urak, and diamonds
have been found in it ; and it is also abundant in Georgia and North
Carolina. In India the rock is a quartzose conglomerate.
In most instances diamonds are obtained from alluvial washings.
In Brazil the sands and pebbles of the diamond streams are collected
and washed under a shed by a stream of water passing through a
succesdon of boxe& A negro washer is stationed at each box. When
a diamond is found wdghmg 17i carats the n^gro is entitled to his
liberty.
'' Ilie largest diamond of which we have any knowledge is men-
tioned by Tavemier as in the possession of the Great MoguL It
weighed originally 900 carats, or 2769 '8 grains, but was reduced by
cutting to 861 grains. It has the form and size of half a hen's egg.
It was found in 1550, in the mine of Colone. The diamond wh^
formed the eye of a Brahminican idol, and was purdiased by the
empress Catharine IL of Russia from a French grenadier, who had
stolen it, weighs 198 carats, and is as large as a pigeon's egg. The
Pitt, or Regent Diamond, is of less size, weighing but 136*5 carats,
or 419^ grains ; but on account of its unblemish^ transparen<^ and
colour it is considered the most splendid of Indian diamonds. It was
sold to the Duke of Orleans by Mr. Pitt, an Englidi gentleman, who
was governor of Bencolen, in Sumatra, for 180,0002. It is cut to tiie
form of a briUiant, and is estimated at 125,000^ Napoleon placed it
in the hilt of his sword of state. The Raja of Mattan has in his
possesdon a diamond from Borneo weighing 867 carats." (Dana.)
The great diamond mentioned in the above extract as in the posses-
don of the Great Mogul appears to be the identical diamond which,
under the name of Koh-i-Noor, exdted so much attention at the Great
Exhibition in 1851. Some doubt is thrown on Tavemier^s statement
of its being cut This precious gem has seen a variety of fortunes.
Its early history is mythical From the Great Mogul it passed into
the possesdon of the reigning family of Cabul. When Shah Suja
wa'^ driven from Cabul he became the nominal guest and actual
prisoner of Runjet Sing, who spared no means to obtain possesdon of
the precious gem. In this he succeeded in 1818. After the death of
Runjet the diamond was preserved for a while bv his successors. It.
was occadonally worn by Khunuk Sing and Shire Sing. After the
murder of the latter it remained in the Lahore treasury until the
superoeedon of Dhuleep Sing and the annexation of the Panjab by the
British government, when the dvil authorities took possesdon of
the Lahore treasury, under the stipulation previoudy made that all
the property of Uio state diould oe confiscated to the East India
Company, in part payment of the debt due by the Lahore government
and of the expenses of the war. It was at the same time stipulated
that the Koh-i-Noor diould be surrendered to the Queen of England.
It arrived in this country on the 80th of June, 1850, and on the 8rd
of July was presented to her Majesty. Since its public exhibition in
1851 it has been submitted to the process of cutting, whidi has much
enhanced its beauty and value.
The diamond is cut by taking advantage of its deavage, and also
by abradon with its own powder, and by friction with another dia-
mond. It is a process of great labour, and many hours are spent in
producing a single fieu^t. Diamonds were first cut in Europe in 1456
by Louis Berquen, a dtizen of Bruges.
The diamond is used for cutting glass. [Diamond, in Abts and
So. DiY.l It is also employed for the lenses of microscopes. It has
but little chromatic aberration, but the frequent irregularity of its
structure is a drawback to its employment for this purpose.
(Dana, Manual of Mineralogy ; Catalogue of Great SxhiHiion of
1851, Class xxiii)
DIAMOND-BEETLE. [CuBOULio.]
DIANiEA. [ACALBPHJS.J
DIA'NCHORA, a Fossil genus of Conchifera allied to ^i>ondylu»,
established l^ Mr. Sowerby in his * Mineral Conchology.' It has tho
following characters : — Shell delicate, adherent, regular, symmetrical,
equilateral, subauriculated, inequivalve ; one valve hollowed within,
convex without ; the other fii^ Hinge consisting of two distant
condyles.
Cuvier('R^e Animal') places the genus between PocAytet and
Podopsie, M. de Blainville between Plagioelomt^ and Podoptia, and
M. Rang between Pecten and Pedum, M. Deshayes, in his edition of
Lamarck, after observing that Pachyte$ had been formed at the
expense of PlagtOHomOf states that his examination of the spedes had
satisfied him of the identity of the genera, and that the same exami-
nation instituted with regard to Dianehora had convinced him that
the characters of the last-named genus were identical with those of
Pachytet and Podoptit, A further inquiry terminated in the condu-
don that the so-^Jled genera, Podoptit, IHanehora, and Pachftet^
were only Spondyli, whose internal lamina had been dissolved, and
had left naked tiie external or conical lamina. [Sfondtlub.] Tho
S25
DIANDRIA.
DIASPORE.
8X0
Bubjoined' cut will couvej to the reader the form of one of the bo-
called speciee.
DianeKora itriata.
Four tpeoieB of this genus have been found in the Chalk and Qreen-
Band : — J). UUa, Sowerbj; J>, obliqwt, ICantell; 2). gtriata, Sowerby ;
2). truneaia, Lamarok.
DIA'KDRIA, the second ohun in the LinngBan aystem of arranging
plants. It comprehends all genera with flowers having only two
stamens, proyided the stamens are neither united at their base, nor
combined with the style and stigma, nor separated from the piBtiL
DIANTHUS, a beautiful genus of Suenaoeous Dicotyledonous
Plants, with a calyx closely covered at the base by two, three, or
four opposite pairs of decuBsating rigid sharp-pointed bracts. The
petals are always more or less lacerated at the end, and in some
species are divided into fine capillaiy segments. There are 10 sta-
mens, 2 styles, and the capsule Ib l-ceUed, with numerous black seeds
oontaining a straight emnyo. In all cases the leaves are long, narrow,
1-ribbed, sharp-pointed, and destitute of all lateral reticulated veining.
De CaadoUe enumerates 118 species, of which some must undoubt-
edly be reduced to simple varieties. They are found in all the tem-
pente parts of Europe and Asia, from Ireland to the eastern coast
of China and Japan ; two have been met with in the United States of
America, and fbur at the Cape of Qood Hope. Most of them are
perennial herbaceous plants with permanent leaves and stems, and
nence they ought perhaps to be considered imde]>shrabB; a few
become woody and form genuine bushes.
2>. harbatHi, the Bearded Pink or Sweet William, has aggregate
flowers in bundles ; calydne scales ovate, awl-shaped, equal in length
to the tube ; the petals bearded ; leaves lanceolate and nerved. It
is a native of the south of fVance and Germany, in gravelly or sandy
places. The flowers are veiy variable in colour, from dark purple to
white, or variegated or speckled, sin^e and double. Sweet William is
a very fiivourite and old-fBshioned mhabitant of the garden, and was
much esteemed in the time of Gerarde for its beauty.
2>. CairyophfUu9,ihB Carnation, is a native of the south of France,
and in England on old walls in Kent and Norfolk. It has solitaxy
flowers ; ue calyx-scales broadly obovate, pointed, four times shorter
than the tube ; the leaves with smooth linear mazgins ; the petals
crenate, dentate, ovate, glabrous ; the stem barren, elongated, pro-
cumbent, branching; the seeds pyriform, nearly flat; the flower-
seems are from 12 to 18 inches high; the calvx-teeth not ciliated,
longer than the capsule. The flowers are of all colours, excepting
blue : in the British species they are of a pale pink, and in all cases
fragrant. The flowers of the variety of this species, known as the
Clove*Pink, are uaed to give a colour and fra^vnce to an officinal
syrup used in pharmacy. A small variety of the speciea is known by
the name of Picotees.
D. plvmariuf is the type of the Common Garden-Pink. . It is a
native of Europe, and is found in England on old waUs and ruins.
It has solitaiy flowers, two or three on a stem ; the calyx-scales are
roundish-ovate, shortly mucronate, four times shorter than the tube ;
the leaves rough at the margin, linear, subulate ; the petals digitate,
multifld as far as the middle, with the central entire part obovate,
downy ; the stem barren, procumbent, rooting, much-branched ; the
seeds flat, orbicular, with a point on one side ; the flowering stems are
from 6 to 12 inches high; the calyx-teeth are ciliated at the margin,
slightly shorter than we capsule. The flowers are either double or
single, white, pink, spotted, or variegated, and sweet^Kented.
Of the species of tlus genus six are British, and are described by
Mr. Babington in his 'Manual of British Botany.'
For the cultivation of the Carnation, Pink, &&, see Pink, in Abts
AVD So. DlY.
DIAPENSIA'CEiB, Diapemiads, a very small natural order of
Monopetalous Exogenous PlEmtSy formerly Inferred to CfonvohulaeecBf
but in reality are more nearly allied to Loffoniaeea and SHlbaeeaf,
Only two genera, IHapenria and Pjfxidan&era, are known; they
consist of small depressed half-shrubby spedes, with the habit of a
minute-leaved PMcx. Their calyx grows in a broken whorl; the
corolla has an imbricated sesttvatibn with five lobes, and as many
stamens growing from its margin in the sinuses; the anthers have a
broad connective, and burst transvenely ; the ovary is S-celled, with a
good many ovules growing upon central plaoentca ; finally, the embryo
lies across the hilum, in the midst of fleshy albumen. Ko use has
hitherto been made of these plants. (Ldndley, Veffetable Kingdom.)
DIAPHRAGM (Aid^poyiia), iSHeptum Tronavertum, Transverse Parti-
tiont Midriff a circular Muscle, placed between the thorax and
abdomen, forming a moveable partition between t^ese two great
cavities. Its borders, which are broad and fleshy, are moveable ; its
central portion, which is tendinous, ib fixed and immoveable. When
not in action, its upper sur&ce, or that towards the thorax, is convex,
preBents the appearance of an arch, which reaches as high as tiie
fourth rib, and is covered bv the pleura, the membrane ^niich lines
the cavity of the thorax. Its under surface, or that towards the
abdomen, is concave, and is covered bv the peritoneum, the mem-
brane which lines the cavity of the aodomen. It is perforated by
several apertures, through which important oxgans pass from the
thorax into the abdomen, and from the abdomen into tne thorax. In
its tendinous portion, between what is called its crura, or legs, there
is an oval aperture through which the aorta, or great artery of the
trunk, passes from the thorax into the abdomeh, and the thoracic duct
enters from the abdomen into the thorax. A little above this and to
the left of it, in the fleshy portion of the diaphragm, is an aperture
through which the CBSophagus passes in its course from the mouth to
the stomach. On the right side of the diaphragm, in its tendinous
portion, is a third aperture, through which the inferior vena cava
passes from the abdomen to the hesurt
The diaphragm is a muscle of extreme complexity in its structure^
and next to the heart performs the most important frmction of any
muscle in the body, its most important office is connected with the
function of respiration, and it is the principal agent both in enlarging
the cavityof the thorax in inspiration and in diminishing it in expi-
ration. These actions it performs by virtue of the power of alternate
contraction and relaxation which it possesses in common with all
musdes. When in the state of relaxation, as in expiration, its broad
lateral moveable borders present an expanded arch, the convexity of
which reaches, as has been stated, as high as the fourth rib ; when in
action, as in the state of inspiration, the fibres composing tiie lateral
borders contract, whence this moveable partition descend^ until from
the form of an arch it presents a plane surface, increasing the capacity
of the thorax by all the space that intervenes between the fourth rib
and the lowest point to which Uie diaphragm is capable of descending.
The fibres then relaxing, the moveable borders are pushed up by the
contraction of the powerful musdes of the abdomen, until the dia-
phragm again assumes the form of an arch, ^^immiabing the capacity
of the thorax by all the space that intervenes between the lowest
point to which it descends and the fourth rib. These alternate
actions^ which are performed in regular and uninterrupted succession,
day and night, during our deeping and our waking hours, from the
moment of birth to that of death, constitute the pnndpal portion of
the mechanical part of the function of respiration or breathing, by
which air and blood flow to and from the lungs. During &ese
actions the central portion of the diaphragm, on which the heart
rests, and to which the pericardium is attached, never moves ; so that
though the diaphragm is in constant motion it never disturbs t^e
action of the heart, which it assists in supporting, and ^e function
of the droulation is not disordered by the movements which are
indispensable to the function of respiration.
There is a fixed relation between the action of the diaphragm and
of the abdominal muscles. When the diaphragm contracts the
abdominal musdes relax ; when the abdominal musdes rdax the
diaphragm contracts. The diaphragm is the antagonist of the abdo-
minal muscles in inspiration ; but it acts in concert with them in
vomiting, in the disobazge of the contents of the bowels and of the
urinary bladder, and in assisting the expulsion of the fcstus in partu-
rition. To produce the respiratory movements, and to assist m the
expuldon of the fiseces, the urine, and the fcetus, may be considered
the natural and regular offices of the diaphragm ; but it conduces to
the performance of many other actions. It is the prindpal agent in
vomiting, yawning, coughing, laughing, crying, and in hiccup, which
may be regarded as its more powerful and irregular actiona
For diagrams representing the pomtion of the diaphragm and its
relation to the other organs of the body, see Abdomen and Heart.
DIASPORE, a MineniL It is a dihydrate of alumina, and occurs
masdve and crystallised. Its primary form is a doubly oblique prism*
The colour is dightly greemsh-gray and ydlowiBb-brown. Its hard-
ness is 6*0 to 6*5. It is slightly tranducent. The specific gravity
is 8*48. It is found at Kosoibrod in the Orenburg government of
Asiatic Russia. The masdve variety occurs in slightly curvilinear
lamin» of a shining pearly lustre and greenish-gray colour; dso in
cellular masses, constituted of dender crystals, wmdi have a pearly
lustre, and intercept each other in every direction; of a brown hue
externally, but peneotly transparent and colourless when reduced to
thin lamina. The following is an andysis by Hess : —
Alumina 8514
Water 14'£6
The brown variety, andysed by Children, gave —
Alumina 76*06
Water 14-70
Oxideoflron 7*78
Loss 1-46
S27
BIASTASK
DIATOMACEiE.
DIASTASE, a subBtance formed during the germinatdoxi of plants.
It can be artificially prepared by reducing freshly germinated oarley
into a pulpi with half its weight of water, and then pressing out the
liquor strongly. To the clear liquid just sufficient alcohol is to be
added to destroy its viscidity and allow of its being filtered ; by this
an azotised substance is precipitated, which must be considered as
vegetable albumen, since it coagulates at 167** Fahr. Having sepa-
rated this, alcohol is again to be added as long as the liquid becomes
turbid; the precipitate is to be purified by solution in water and
precipitation by alcohol repeatedly ; the precipitate is at last to be
dried in thin layers upon glass at It temperature between 104* and
122« Fahr.
The properties of diastase are the following: — It is solid, white,
not crystalline, soluble in water, but insoluble in alcohol unless it be
weak; the aqueous solution is nearly tasteless, and without any
chemical action, not precipitating subacetate of lead. The aqueous
solution quickly changes, becoming add : dry diastase undergoes
the same change in a longer time, but when boiled in water the
alteration is immediate. Conmion malt is stated in general not to
contain more than l-500th of its weight of diastase : one part of it
is sufficient to convert 2000 parts of starch, thickened with water,
into a mixture consisting of much dextrine and a little sugar. It has
not yet been obtained absolutely pure. There can be little doubt
that diastase is one of the forms of protein ; and its reaction upon
starch is not different from that which takes place with some other
forms of the same substance. Schleiden includes it amongst the
nitrogenous substances of plants, to which he gives the name Schleim
(mucus). »
(Schleiden, PrineipUt of Scientific Botany, p. 23.)
DIA'STTLIS, a genus of Crustacean Animals established by M.
Say.
It has the following characters. — ^Four antemue placed neariv on
the same line ; the intermediate antennsB bifid, having a peduncle of
three joints, the extemal*simple, with the first joint long, and without
a scale. External jaw-feet very laige, pediform, very much approxi-
mated to the fronts with the first joint long and compressed, and the
others very small, cylindrical, and nearly equaL Corselet smootii, of
six segments, of which the firsts laiger than aU the others together, is
terminated anteriorly by a short obtuse triangular rostrum, crene-
lated on its lateral edges. Six pairs of bifid feet; those of the firrt*
pair tnmcated at the end, and shorter than the eztonal jaw-feet;
those of the second terminated in a point ; those of the third, fourth,
and fifth pairs raised, pointed, without a naO, and terminated by
strong hairs. Abdomen narrower than the thorax, formed of six
segments, the last two of which support the natatory feet Tail
biarticulated, provided on each side of the first segment with a single
bifid style, and on the extremity of the second with a simple cylin-
drical style.
D. arenarim. Length one-fifth of an inch. It is an inhabitant of
the coasts of Oeoi^a and Florida.
M. Say is of opinion that the Cancer acorpkmidei of Montagu, trora
the English coasts, and the C. Esea of OmcOin, from those of Norway,
ought to be refen^d to this genus.
DIATOMACE^, or DIATOME^, a group of oiganised beings
which naturalists have placed in the animal and vegetable kingdoms,
according as they have regarded their structures as most allied to the
one kingdom or the other. These organisms consist of a single cell,
and are remarkable for possessing a hard shell-valve or frtutule,
whidi is composed of silex or fiint, and which remains permanent
after its organic tissues have perished.
The following is a definition of this group of beings by one of the
most recent writers on this subject : — Plant a frmstule ; oonsirting of
a unilocular or imperfectly septate cell, invested with a bivalve sili-
ceous epidermis. Qemmiparous increase, by selfnlivision ; during
which process the cell secretes a more or less siliceous connecting
piembrane. Reproduction, by conjugation, and the formation of
q>orangia. (W. Smith.)
The JHatomaeecB are endowed with the power of motion ; and when
this function was supposed to be peculiar to the in^itwi^l kingdom, it
is not to be wondered at that the first observers of these organisms
referred them4o the animal kingdom. Ehrenbeig, in his great work
on the 'Infusorial Animalcules,' greatly enlaiged our knowledge of
this family, and added to the forms that were already known. He
regarded them, as well as the Destnidiece, and oiher beings which are
now generally referred to the vegetable kingdom, as «\^TiniRlH. The
following are the principal points on which he relied for assigning to
them this position : —
Ist. The Diaiwaacea exhibit a peculiar spontaneous movement^
which is produced by certain locomotive organs. >
2nd. A laige number of them have in the middle of the lateral
surfiBoe an opening about which round corpuscles ars situated, which
become coloured blue when placed in water containing indigo, as in
many of the Polygastric Infiuoria,
Srd. The shells of the JHatomacecB resemble in structure and con-
formation those which are seen in the MoUiuca and other MiimftlH.
These arguments are met on the other side by the statement, that
spontaneous movement is now known not to be specially animal, as
the spores of many Alffce, and their entire fronds are known to be
actively motile. In the next place the colouring of the interior by
indigo also takes place in truly vegetable structures.
The complex structure of the minute siliceous frustules of the
IHatomacece is a fact that has struck many observers. It certamly is
without a parallel in the vegetable kingdom. Schleiden in his 'Princi-
ples of Scientific Botany,' after giving a minute analysis of the siliceous
structure of Navieula viridis {fig. 6 represents this genus), says, " Such
an artificial and complicated structure amongst plants has no explana-
tion and is entirely without significance. In all true plants we find
the silica present in a very different form, as minute scales or drops,
and dirtnbuted through the substance of the cell-walL" Again, in
another place he says, " This curious structure is wholly without ana-
logy in the vegetable kingdom, and cannot be derived from the laws
of vegetation with which we are at present acquainted."
More recently IVofessor Meneghini has come forward as an advocate
of the animal nature of Dialomacea, In a very lucid and remarkable
essay, published at Venice in 1845, he says : —
"If we suppose them to be plants, we must admit every frustule,
every navieula, to be a celL We must suppose this cell with walls
penetrated by silica, developed within another cell of a different
nature, at least in every case where there is a distinct peduncle or
investing tub& In this siliceous wall we must recognise a complica-
tion certainly unequalled in the vegetable kingdom. It would still
remain to be proved that the eminently nitrogenous internal substance
corresponded with the gonimic substance, and that the oil-globules
could take the place of starch. The multiplication would be a simple
cellular dedupUcation (sdoppiamento), but it would remain to be
proved that it takes place, as in other vegetable cells, either by the
formation of two distinct primitive utricles or by the introfleetion or
constriction of the wall itself. Finally, there would still remain
unexplained the external motions and the internal changes, and we
must prove Ehrenbeig's observations on the exterior organs of motion
to be false, fiut, again, admitting their animal nature, much would
remain, to be investigated, both in their organic stmetnre and their
vital functions ; excepting this, so far as we know, we have only one
difficulty to overcome, that of the probably ternary non-acotised
composition of the external gelatinous substance of the peduncles and
investing^tubes. But as the presence of nitroffen is not a positive
charact^ of animal nature, so the absence of it is not a proof of vege-
table. And in order that the objection should really have some
weight, it would be well to demonstrate that this substance is iaome-
rio with starch. For then, supposing all the arguments in favour of
the animal nature of JHatcmea were proved by new and more circum-
stantial observations^ tlus peculiarity, if it deserve the name of objec-
tion, might stUl be regaroed as an important discovery. We should
then have in the animid as well as in the vegetable kingdom a ternary
substance similar to that forming the basis of the vegetable tissue."
Of the chemical composition of the DiatomaeeoB little satisfactory has
at present been made out Professor Fnmkland of Manchester,
according to tiie Rev. W. Smith, whose work on the British Diato-
macta is one of the beet that has hitherto been pubUshed, has found
that a lai^ge amount of iron exists in the state of a silicate or protoxide
in the siliceous frustules, which probablv accounts for the brown or
yellow colour of these oigamsms. On the application of tincture of
iodine the internal membrane contracts on its contents, and converts
these from a golden-vellow to a bright green. On the addition of
su^huric acid they exhibit a deep brown hue.
The fact which is most railed on to support the vegetable nature
of the JDiaUmacetBt by those who advocate this view, does not
appear to have been known to Meneghini, and that is the con-
jugation of the cells of which they are composed in the same
manner as in the Demidieee, [D£aun>iB&] This discovery was
made by Mr. Thwaites, and observed in species of Ewnotia (fig, 1),
in EpitiUmia gUbha and E, turgida (fig, 19), Fragilaria pcetinaliB, and
other species. This process takes place as follows: — Two indi-
viduals dosely approximated dehisce in the middle of their long
diameter, whereupon four protuberances ariee^ which meet four simi-
lar ones in the opposite frustule. These indicate the future channels
by which the endochrome of the two frusttdes becomes united, as weU
as the spot where subsequently tiie double sporangium is developed
(figs, 8, 19). From the sporangium the new individuals are developed.
This process is precisely analogous to what takes place in the Jk9-
midiecB, so that Ihe frustules of the Diatoms must be regarded as cells
of tile same iodividuaL " If we duly consider this fkct^" says Mr.
Thwaites, " how much does it exalt the lower tribes of plants in our
estimation 1 since we may contemplate an individual plant of them
not as the single phyton — ^not as the single frond — ^not as the single
cell — ^but it may be as the aggregate of thousands of these ; — ^view it
occupying as much space and exercising as great an influence in the
economy of nature as the largest forest-tree ! "
The mode by which the cells are multiplied amongst the IHaloaMC€(f
appears to be strictly in accordance with what occurs generally in the
vegetable kingdom. This process is one of self-division. The first
step is the fission or division of the internal cell, " probably by the
doubling-in of its membranous wall, and consequently the sepeiatiou
of the endochrome^ or cell-contents ; the cental vesicle or cytoblast
also dividing into two parts, which remove to a little distance from
each other; thsM movementa being aimultaneotts with a retrooeBsiou
3SS DIATOMACE^
of the epidermal tbItw and the formation of the siliceous connecting-
membrane already deecribed. la the ceotre of the enlanjed frustole,
in exact appodtion to the original valves and cloeelj applied to them,
there are now found two new valves, covering the surface of the oell-
membranes along the line of fioaioD. The divided portioDj of the
endochrame spread themselves along the membrane which ii embiaced
b; tbe new volvoi, and there result two half-new fruBtules boond
together by the conneoting-menibrane, generatsd during the process
we have described,
" During the health; life of the Diatom the procees of self -division
is being continually repeated ; the two half-new frngtnlea at once pro-
ceed to divide again each into two frustulee, and (bus tbe process con-
tinues. I have been unable to ascertain tbe tjme occupied in a single act
of self-diviKon, but supposing it to be completed in twenty -four houtB,
we should have, as the progeny of a single fhutule, the amazing num-
ber of one tbousond millions in a single month ; a drcumstonce wbioh
will in some degree explain the sudden or at least rapid appearance of
vast numbers of these orgamsmt in locslities where they were but a
short Ijme previously eitiiet unrecognised or only sparingly diffused."
(Smith, p. 2G.)
antha Itmffipa.
I. Itrridion CI
I. EuftiiKia Meulpm. J. Trinratm
i, Synaira groeiia, 6. ffavieuta tltfrnnt^ 7,
, portion itpnsenUng ooajsgalion.
- -* — '— - II. Bacillaria forv-
. . . . y Biddvlphia palchrila. IS. Jf(Iub''aniruiii(,
tht tplaTgntwnt If peculiar to the Bvnns ; a, side view. IT. Dickirin uieeidfti
a, frutolfli h, tnnd. II. SakUoiuma SmitXUj n, rmatsle; b, d'
froBd, natural ilni if, tnmd magnlBed. 19. XjiiUnmla turfida, Ilh
the pnwcM of «>ii]U(ati(ni. From a drawing b^ Mr. West.
The structure of tbe siliceous portion of tbe ZKalomocns is the most
Temorluble part of their orgamsation. The following is HeneghiniV
account of this organ ; —
" Every Diatom is formed of a jnliceous shield and n soil sabstonce
DIATOtUCB^ m
NKgell further says that the silica is deposited in tlie outaide of sn
orgsjiio membrane, which he believes to be of s vegetable nature. In
fact, an organic membrane ought to exist, for the silica oould not
become EoUd except by crystailieing or depositing itself on some
-re-existing substAnco. On the other hand, we csnnot admit, with
'iigeli, that it has been deposited extemaliy ; for in many genera,
and especially In the Acknanthidui, the siliceous shield is covered
wiUi B very delicate dilatable membrane, itself containing silica, as
is proved by its sustaining unchanged the action of flie and odds.
Therefore, comparing this shield wiUi other organic formation^
whether animal or vegetable, containing in like manner either silick
la other so-called mineral element, we ma; reasonably consider
be formed of an organic tissue permeated hy silica. This
ation may occur either in the wall of a simple cell, as is seen
the epidermal celU of mai^ plants, or within minute cells, as in
various plants and animals. The action of heat or of acid, in these
cases, destroying the organic matter and leaving the silica untouched,
does not liter the apparent form of the organ, because the skeleton
remains unaltered.
" Eitemallj to the shield Ktltziiig observed a thin stratum which
he denominated oement, which may be made visible either by desic-
cation or by caldnation ; and produoee either a simple opacity, or
lines, points, and maculn, sometime* irregularly disposed, sometime*
regularly. He supposes it to be a silicate of iron or of alumina.
Ind«>endently of the chemical motarials which it may contain, this
outaide integument leeniB to me the moie impartant inoamuchos even
without resorting to the means indicated by KUtcing, I obaerre it to
be constant, not mendj in the spe<nea annmerated by him, but also
in many others, and I oould almost assert that it exists in iIL For to
ma it appears to correspond with that fine membrane of the A.<Aivm-
Ikidia above mentioned, which, according to Eiltong's own observa-
tions, is always visible lAenever the two new indtviduala (into wbioh
every Diatom is resolved in its mi^ltiplication by deduphcation)
(sdoppiamento) begin to aapatate. The lines and points supposed to
belonf[ to the sut^soent aluald belong very&equently to thu kind of
oovenng.
" The shield itseU is formed of at least four pieces, or valves,
united together in a fouc^dded fignre— a tetngoiL The mode t^
union is unknown. Bat the exiitoio* of a kuid of articulalJon
which permits an opemng and dosing, like the valves of a shell-fish
described by Corda in a species of SarN-cUo, hai been denied by otber
obeervers. Be this as it may, whether spontaneous *Aer death or
induced by external means, tbls separation does take place in a regular
manner. Now, if we suppose on organic cell with a wall permeated
by silics, and idth a four-sided figure, we con easily suppose that oil
the udea will mechanically support each other, moreover, we shall
meet with numerous fii«ts by a difierent kind of analogy, namely, that
with solid animal tissues belonging either to the internal skeleton or
the extemal t^umenb
" The four valves are equal inlenath,but inmany Bpeoiesandgenan
one pur exceeds the opposite pair m breadth. In order to establish
an uniform langusge it is conveuimt to term those primary valves or
surfaces which exhibit along the middle the line ot diviuon in the
act of dednplicatioo, which, since it is formed here in a normal
manner, runs parallel to the other two surfaces, denominated lateral,
Alon^ tht primary surfocea we frequency see longitudinal lines, which
termmate at the two extremities m small apertures. From thur in-
ternal surface there project into the cavity linear marks vaiimislj
formed but always longitudinal ; these are termed vittie.
" The Isteral surfaces have frequently a round aperture of greater
or smsller siie in tbe centre, and from this a Gssure extends towards
each extremity. This fissure either loses itself grsduslly or expands
into the regular terminal apertures. When this occurs each of these
surfaces is divided into two distinct valves. On these lateral sur&osa
we observe the strite, lines, and transversa costa, no less admirable
for their beautiful appearance than for their oonstant regularity in
number, direction, and proportioiu When many individuals are
united together to form one compound being, like a polyp for instanffs,
it is always by the kteral surbcas that they t^uoh eaan other; and
since oil other characters sometimes foil, we can affix to them tlie
denomination 'lateral' from this principal one.
" Besides the vittw before mentioned, in some genera {BtddnlfUa,
fig- It>, Clnaacoiphaiia, TVrpiinof) there ore other solid subatancea in
their internal cavities ; these are variously arranged.
'' These essential peculiarities of the shield ma; perhaps be r^aniad
sa indicating a complex structure, very different therefore from what
would be prescribed by a simple cellular vralL Ehrenberg deduces
from it an argument to compare it with the shell of MoUittea. The
JrCfHiiKB may be cilsd among the /n/WHo. Kiitzing states, in reply,
that among vegetable cells there is found a peculiar oonformation of
the walls, with prominences, deprcBaions, points, lines, p^>illtt, . and
perforations, disposed in a resular manner; he refers to grains of
pollen, as an instance. He might have added the mors appropriate
instance of the DtmiidUiE, wMch would be veiy closely allied to the
Dialomea, it the latter, like the former, could be referred to the ven-
table kingdom. If not equal in constancy and regularity, Uia
Danaidea display a greater dwrue of complication ; sod we must
remember the different nature of their substance, fo« iu the v^|«tabl«
831
DIATOHACE^
DUTOMACE^
338
ceO, when lime or silica predominates, the wall beoomea uniform and
regular (?) (uniforme ed trregolare)."
The siliccouB epideim presents an extraordinary variety of forms,
which in every genus ana species o£fer the best possible means of
distinction and identification : striffii or lines frequently moniUform,
dots arranged in a radiate or concentric manner, and minute diyisions
presenting perfectly hexagonal ouUines, are amongst the most frequent
occurrences. Oreat difference of opinion exists as to the nature of
these. Mr. Smith says, " I am disposed to regard them all as modifi-
cations in the arrangement of the silex of the valve, arimng from the
mode of development peculiar in each case to the membrane with
which the silex is combined." He also denies that there are any
perforations in the valve, as supposed by Ehrenberg and Kutxing.
These foramina are also denied by Schleiden. Mr. Smith denies also
that the valves are externally covered with any oiganio membrane.
The delicacy of the markings on many of the JHatotiKicecB render
them objects peculiarly adapted for testing the powers of the objeci-
glasses of the microscope. The following table, drawn up by Messrs.
SoUitt and Harrison of Hull, to whom microscopv is indebted for
having first pointed out this method of testing we powers of the
microscope, was presented by them at the meetiDg of the Brituh
AsK)dation at Hull in 1858 :—
Focal length of
object f IsBs.
Species.
Stria in inch.
Angle of Aper-
ture.
i
i
i
J
<
<
J
Yavieula MtrifiUu . .
^N. HippoeampuM • .
If, Spmeerii . . .
Jf.iiHiata ....
y. aag%ilata . • .
"if. Hripoto (Urge) .
y, $trigo$a (small)
Ceratoneu Ftueiota
Ifavieula sipiundea .
^. areut '
84*000
48*000
50*000
60*000
60*000
90*000
80*000
00*000
105*000
180*000
40*
60*
70'
80*
80''
90'
95*
110*
120*
150*
The DicUomacea possess the power of moving. " The cells have
no special organs tor these movements. But as, in consequence
of their nutritive processes, they take in and give out fluid
matters, the cells necessarily move when the attraction and the
emission of the fluids is unequally distributed on parts of the surface,
and is so active as to overcome the resistance of the water. This
motion consequently is observed more particularly in those cells
which, in consequence of their taper forms, easily pass through the
water ; these cells moreover move only in the dixiBction of their long
axis. If one-half of a spindle-shaped or ellipsoidal cell chiefly or
exclusively admits material, the other half, on the contrary, giving it
out> the cell moves towards the side where the admission takes place.
Bu^ as in these cells both halves are physiologically and mor-
phologically exactly alike, so it is that it is first the one and then
the other half wmch admits or emits, and consequently the cell
moves sometimes in one, sometimes in the opposite direction."
(NageU.)
This is perhaps as satisfiictory an explanation of these movements
as can be given m the present state of our knowledge. All observers
agree that the^r can find no evidence to support Ehrenbeig's notion of
a pedal or motile organ proiected frem the interior of we siliceous
sldeld. The Rev. W. Smith has also detected cydosis in Ihe Dia-
tomacea, ** A distinct movement," he says, " of the granular particles
of the endochrome, closely resembling the circulation of the cell-
contents in CU>9Uriwn Lunula, noticed by Mr. Ralfs [DssKmiiLfi], and
^which I have frequently detected in the same species, has occasionally
*ftllen under my notice in some of the larger forms of JXtUamacece.
He has observed it in Surtrella hiieriata. (Fig, i.) ** This circulation,'*
he continues, '* has not however the regularity of movement so con-
spicuous in the Detmtdisce, and is of too ambiguous a character to
furnish data for any very certain conclusions, save one, namely, that the
Diatom must be a single cell, and cannot contain a number of separate
organs, such as have, been idleged to occupv its interior; since the
endochrome moves freely from one portion of the frustule to another,
approaching and receding from the central nucleus, unimpeded by
any intervening obstacle."
The Diatomaeea are the most abundant and extensively distributed
of unioellular organisms. They are found in the ocean, at the mouths
of rivers, in bracldsh waters, in rivers, lakes, ponds, ditches, pools,
and cistcoms. In fistct, wherever a few drops of water are allowed to
remain exposed to the air, we may expect to find forms of JHcUomacecB,
Their forms are not less abundant than their presence. In the fiist
volume of his ' Synopsis of the British Diatomacen,' the Bev. W.
Smith has described upwards of 220 species, and the second will
contain nearly 100, so that the number of species known in Great
Britain is considerably above 800. The fadlity with which their forms
are preserved, give to these objects a great advantage, and a handful
of sand from the sea oy mud from a river in the most remote district
of the world may be expected to reward the observer with an abimd-
anoe of new forma They occur in great abundance in the river
Thames, and its mud affords a laxge variety of the firustules of those
which have ceased to exist In a report on the ' Microscopical Examin-
ation of the Thames and other Watot,' by Drs. Lankestor and Redfem,
upwards of forty species were observeid.
The mode of collecting living specimens for observation is simply
to allow the water in which they exist to stand for a few hours, when,
by carefully decanting the water, a portion remains at the bottom of
the vessel more turbid than the resl^ and which generally contains in
lan;e numbers the objecte sought for.
£i describing showers of coloured dust which have occurred in
various parte of the world, Ehrenbeig has demonstrated that various
forms of JHcUomaceiB have been foimd present. In some seasons these
organisms occur in such numbers in the waters of rivers as to give to
their banks a peculiar physical aspect. In the autumn of 1841 the
stones and pebbles in the nearly dried-up bed of the Annan, in Dum-
friesshire, presented an appearanoe as though they were white-washed.
The substance which gave the stones this appearance could be scraped
off, and looked like some fonn of calcareous matter. On submitting
this powder to the microscope. Dr. Lankestor found that it consisted
entirely of the siliceous shields of a* species of Synedra. (Pig. 5.) In
the first volume of the new series of tne ' Transactions of the Micros-
copical Society,' Mr. Shadbolt has given an account of the examination
of portions of mud given him by Mr. Busk firom Port Natal. This
mud was recent, and from the nature of the specimens in it, Mr. Shad-
bolt tlunks it probable that it was obtained not far from the mouth
of some river. In this mud he made out fifty-five distinct species of
DicUanKieeoB, twentv of which he has described as entirely new species.
In the 'Microscopical Journal' for July 185S, Mr. Brightwell of Nor-
wich has described nine new species of one geiaaik^-Tnceraiium. Six
of these are recent He sa^s, " We have detected nearly all the
recent species described in this memoir in material obtained from the
surface of the laige sea-shells of the genera ffippc^puB and HaUotis
before they have been cleaned. Many of them in this state are
covered with small zoophytes, minute algse, and other parasites ; and
by a careful examination of these, TriccnUia and other Duttamcieem
have been obtained."
One of the most singular positions in which Diatoms are found is
in the guano brought from America and Africa. Their historv is
curious. They must first have been swallowed by fish and subse-
quently by birds ; their shields however have been able to withstand
this double process of digestion, and they are found in laxge numbers
in every pure specimen of guano. Some of the forms which have
been thus presented to the naturalist are entirely new, and are amongst
the most singular of the family. It has been suggested that the silex
thus introduced into the guano may contribute to ite fertility, as it is
well known that Uiis substance is present in the stems of all our
cereal grasses, and is necessary to their growth.
If they occur thus abundantly in recent depodts, it would be
expected that they fidiould be found in man]r of Uie older formations
of the earth's surface. This is very extensively the case ; although
it may be doubted whether, from the fact of their being occasionally
found in igneous rocks, that they were amongst the first organisms on
the earth's surface. Ehrenberg has been able to detect their presence
in some of the earliest rocks of the PalsDozoic series. How Diaiomaeea
may be present in igneous rocks has been suggested by Dr. Hooker.
During nis voyage with Sir James Boss in the Antarctic Ocean he- says^
« This order occurred in such coimtless myriads as to stain the sea
every where of a pale ochreous-brown, in some cases causing the
suzmce of the ocean, from the locality of the ships, as far as the eye
could reach, to assume a pale-brown colour." This immense mass of
organisms perishing are producing a sub-marine deposit) or bank, of
vast dimensions, resting on the shores of Victoria Land, and hence on
the sub-marine fianks of Mount Erebus, an active volcano upwards of
12,000 feet high. " Knowing as we do that If^utoria, JHatamacetB, and
other organic constituents, enter into the formation of the pumice and
ashes of other volcanoesi, and are still recognisable in those minerals,
it is perhaps not unreasonable to conjecture that the subterranean and
subaqueous forces which kept Mount Erebus in activity, may open a
direct communication between this Diatomaoeous deposit and ite
volcanic fires." »
Ehrenberg has described a laxge number of forms of JHatomacea
from the oolite, cretaceous, and other secondary rocks. A formation
occurring inBarbadoes, and described by Sir Bobert Schomburgk in
the ' Beporto of the British Association ' for 1847, famished him with
an entirely new group of beings apparently related to this family.
The following is Sir Bobert's account of this discovery : —
" In the white marls and other rocks of Scotland district, Professor
Ehrenberg of Berlin discovered a new and great group of siliceous-
shielded animalcules, which, in a report read before tne Boyal Aca-
demy of Sciences, he described as Polycyttina. The regular apertures
and articulation of the minute shells which cover these animalcules
distinctly bespeak an independent animal structure and development
They possess lai^e apertures at the extremity of the body, which has
no analogy among plants, but occur very commonly among animala.
These siliceous loncated oi^ganic forms from the rocks in &urbadoes
differ alike from Pclygattrica and PUythaJUmia, but develope an
important relation to these two groups, which Professor Ehrenberg
considers, not upon conjecture but from actual investigation, to form
two separate types. They approach most nearly in systematic arrange-
ment to PolythtUamia, and would occupy a separate group among
DIATOUAGEiE.
DIATOMACE^
954
i^nim^u poflMiied of Yembhi but without a heart and pulaatioUi and pro •
▼ided with a simple tubular intestinal oanaL The forms deyeloped in
the highest degree in that diviaion would be HoUtkuria and Echinoidea.
** The minute forma of organic life in the rocks of Barbadoes, as far
as investigated by Professor Ehrenberg in February, 1847, consist of
the following groups : —
Species.
Polyeyttina 282
Polygtutrica 18
Phy^olUhtria 27
QeolUhia 27
Polyihaiamia 7
861
Of these more than 800 are new forms.
" The great disooTery of the i'o^ycyif tno, which might be almost
called a new dass, since they amount to upwards of 280 species, a
larger number of specific forms than is contained in some classes of
ifcttimftla^ may guide us to form an idea of the geological sge of the
rocks in Scotland district^ by comparing these forms with similar
fossil animalcules from rocks upon the age of which geolcgistB hare
sgreed. Ehrenbeig considers that the PolycyHina m>m the rocks
of Barbadoes resemble more the animalcules from rooks of the
secondary period than the tertiary."
Amongst the varieties of quartz rock the mineralogist recognises,
under the name of tripoli and polishing powder, certain pulverulent
and earthy forms of silex. On placing these substances under the
microscope they are found to be entimy composed of the siliceous
fmatules of JHtUomaceoe, The polishing powder or slate (polirschiefer)
faund at Bilin in Bohemia is used for the purpose of producing a
polish on fine surfaces. The angularity and hardness of the frustiues
' of the Diatoms well adapt them to this purpose.
Another deposit in which the IHatomaeea have been found in great
abundance is the Bergmehl of Sweden. [BBBaxxRL.] The Diaton^s
found by Ehrenberg in this formation are principally species of
NaviculcL. (Fig. 6.)
Amongst the tertiary deposits, beds of Diatomaeece are very
common. They have been observed in Italy, in Germany, and in
several of the States of America. " The city of Richmond in Virginia
is said to be built upon a stratum of Diatomaceous remains, 18
feet in thickness." (Smith.) Professor Gregonr of Edinburgh has
recently described, in the ' Transactions of the Microscopical Society,'
a Diatomaceous earth, discovered about two years ago by the Duke
of Argyll in the Isle of MulL It constitutes a bed resembling marl
in appearance, lying in a rough piece of ground between Loch Baa
and the sea. The lake is about 80 feet» the land about 40 feet,
above the sea-leveL At one part there is a hollow, which in winter
used to become a small loch, in summer only a stagnant pool, and in
draining this the bed of marl was discovered. The bed rests upon
gravel, which appears to belong to the diluvial period, and the
Diatomaceous earth is probably of recent origin. Professor Gregory
has examined the contents of this earth with great care, and has
given a list of upwards of ISO species, which he has been able to
make out (' Quarterly Microscopical Journal,' January, 1854). Of
these upwards of 20 are altogether new species, or species that are
new in a British locality.
From these facts it will be seen that the subject of fossil
Diaiomaeea promises an almost boundless field for further inqutry.
It appears that we may say of these organisms, what we can say of no
other funily or group of organised beings, that once created they
exist for ever. M3rriadB of species of soft-bodied animals have
perished, never to be recognised, but each individual cell of the
Diatom leaves its siliceous wall as a record of its existence — a record
that the ordinary forces of nature seem to have little or no power in
obliterating.
We now turn to the subject of arrangement. It would of course
be impossible here to give any account of individual species, and
systematic arrangements are being constantly modified by new
discoveries. The following is an arrangement of the families or
tribes by Kiitzing : —
Tribe I. Stbiati!.
Order I. Attomaticce,
Without a central opening on the secondary valve.
* Transverse strise unbroken.
Family 1. Eunotiea.
Family 2. Meridiece,
Family 3. FragiUtriea,
** Stiise broken (interrupted) in the median line.
Family 4. Mdoteirew,
Family 5. Surirdlecs,
Oi*derII. Stomattca,
With the central opening.
a MonoatomcUica,
Having a median aperture on only one of the two secondary
surfaces.
Family 6. Ooeeoneidecg,
Family 7. Aehnanthea,
$ DittomaHeoB,
With a median aperture on each secondary surface.
Family 8. CifmhdUa.'*
Family 9. OomphoheTnetg,
Family 10. NavicfUea,
Tribe II. Vittata
Order I. Attotnatica.
Without central opening on secondary side.
Family 11. Licmophorea,
Family 12. StriatdUa,
Order II. StimcBtiece,
With a large distinct aperture.
Family 18. TabeUariem,
Tribe III. Areolars.
Order I. Discifortnes,
Family 14. Coseinodiscea,
Family 15. Angvhfenx.
Family 16. Tnpodiicece.
Order II. AppendUuUUa*
Doubtful forms.
Family 17. Biddvl^hiea,
Family 18. Angulalt<g,
Family 19. Adinuceee,
The Rev. W. Smith, in his ' Synopsis of the British Diatomaoe»,'
gives the following arrangement of the genera : —
Tribe I. Frustules naked ; not imbedded in gelatine nor inclosed in
membranaceous tiibes.
Sub-Tribe 1. Connecting membrane deciduous ; frustules solitary, or
during self-division in pairs ; rarely in greater numbers^ adherent
or free, dispersed, or aggregated into a mucous stratum.
22 Genera —
EpUhemia (fig, 19)
. 16 species.
Ewnotia (fijf.l).
7 species.
Oymbdla . . . ,
6 species.
Amj^Ktra • . . . ,
8 species.
Coccaneis « . . .
6 species.
CoBcinodUcui .
3 species.
Ei^podUcut (fig. 2)
5 species.
Actinocifdfu . .
1 species.
Ariiehnoditeut
1 species.
Triceratium (fig, 8) .
8 species.
CydoUUa
4 species.
Campyloditcui .
7 species.
SiirirdXa(fig, 4.) .
. 20 species.
TryUimdla . . . .
6 species.
Cyntatoplewra
5 species.
Nitzsehia ....
. 28 species.
Amphiprora .
6 species.
Amphipleura . . .
2 species.
Navie¥ia (fig. 6) .
86 species.
Pinmdaria
. 24 species.
Sta/uroneii
. 10 species.
PUurosigma (fig. 7) .
26 species.
Sub-Tribe 2. Connecting membrane sub
self^ivision attached by a gelatinous
persistent; frustules after
cushion, or dichotomous
stripes.
7 genera —
Synedra (fig. 5) . . .
, 24 species.
Doryphora
2 species. ^
Coeconema (fig. 8) .
4 species.
Gomphonema (fig. 9) . . ,
12 species.
Podosphenia . . . .
5 species.
Rhipidophora . . ,
8 species.
Zicmophora .
2 speciea
Sub-Tribe 3. Connecting membrane evanes<
sent, or obsolete ; frustules
after self-division united into a con
ipressed filament.
12 Genera —
Mendion (fig. 10)
2 species.
Baeillaria (fig. U) .
1 species.
ffimantidfum
7 species.
Odontidium . . . .
4 species.
DentietUa
4 species.
PragUaria
8 species.
Eucampia . . . .
1 species.
Achnanthei (fig. 12) .
6 species.
Diadesmid . . . .
8 species.
JRhabdoTtema . . .
2 species.
Stinatella (fig. 13) .
1 species
Tetracydut . . . .
1 species.
336
DICJELUS.
DICTYOCHA.
Sub-Tribe 4. CozmectiDg membrane BubpersiBtent ; fruBtules after
Belf-diviBion united into a sigzag chain.
6 Qenero —
JDiatoma {fig. 14)
Orammati^hora
Tabellaria
Amphitetroi .
Biddulphia (Jg, 15) .
4 species.
2 species.
2 species.
1 species.
4 species.
lathmia 2 species.
Sub-Tribe 5. Connecting membrane subpersistent as a siliceous
annulus; frustules after self-division united into a cylindrical
filament.
8 Gknera —
Podoiira 2 species.
Mdonra (Jig, 16) . . .6 species.
Orthosira 6 species.
Tribe IL Frustules invested with a gelatinous or membranaceous
envelope.
Sub-Tribe 6. Frond indefinito ; mammillato ; frustules scattered.
1 Genera —
MoitogUna .... 8 species.
Sub-Tribe 7. Frond definite; compressed or globular; frustules
Bcattorea
2 Gknera —
J>ickieia {fig. 17) . . . 8 species.
Berkdeyia .... 1 species.
Sub-Tribe 8. Frond definite ; filamentous ; frustules in rows.
8 Qenera —
Encyontma . . . . 2i^>ecie8.
CdUeUmema .... 4 species.
SchiwMma {fig, 18) . . . 16 species.
Sub-Tribe 9. Frond definite, filamentous ; frustules fasciculated.
1 GfenuB —
Homadadiii** • . . . 8 species.
(Smith, Synopns of Britith JHcUomaeecB, vols, i & iL ; Meneghini,
On the Animal Nature of JHfUomece, translated by Ray Society;
Kiitzing, Speeiee Algarum; Siebold, On Uniedkdar Plamte <md
Animals, trsmslated in Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science,
vol. L ; Pritdiard, A History of Infusorial Animalcules, Living and
FossU; Dujaidin, Histoire NaiureUe des Zoophytes Infusoires ; HassaU,
British Presh'WcUer Algce; Ehrenberg, JHe Jnfusions-Thitrchen;
Hooker, British Flora, voL iL; Agardh, Conspectus Criticus Diato-
macearum; Papers in vols, i & ii of Qtiarterly Journal of Microscopical
Science, by T. BrightwoU, Q. Shadbolt, Professor Qregory, Messrs.
Sollitt and Harrison ; Papers in Annals and Magazine of NaturcU
History, by J. Ralfs, Rev. W. Smith, 0. H. K. Thwaites ; Beports of
British Association; Ph)fessor J. W. Bailey in Smithsonian Contri-
butions to Knowledge.)
DICiE'LUS, a genus of Coleopterous Insects. [LiciNUS.]
DlCMXjyL [CbBTHIAOAS; CiNNTBIDiB.]
DI'CERAS, a genus of Fossil Conchiferous MoUusca, allied in form
to ChamtL It includes species mostly occurring in the upper part of
the Oolitic strata and (D. LonsdcUii) uie lower part of the Greensand.
D'Orbigny ranks the latter species as CaproHna. [Chakacba.]
DICHELASPIS. [CiBBiFBDrA.]
DICHELESTIUM. [Poboilofoda.]
DICHOBUNK [AHOFLOTHBBnrK ; Pachtdbbhata.]
DICHOLOPHUa [gABiAMA.]
DIGHO'TOMT, a term in Botany employed to express a mode of
branching amongst planto by constant forking. The first stem or vein
of a plant divides inio two branches, each branch divides into two
others, and so on. It is onlv in the veins of fern leaves, and of those of
some of the species of Conferee, and in the stems of Ferns, that this
mode of division exista as a general character. It however does occur
elsewhere ; for example, the Doom-Palm {Crucifera Thebaica) of Thebes
is remakable for its dichotomous branches, and the Screw-Pines
(Pandanus) have a similar habit.
DICHROITE, a Mineral, also known bv the names loliU, Pdiome,
SteinheUite, and Cordierite, It is an annydzous silicate of alumina,
and occurs massive and crystallised. Its primary form is a right
rhombic prism, commonly crystallised in 6 or 12-Bided prisms. The
cleavage is parallel to the lateral planes. It has a blue colour in
the direction of the axis, and yellowish-gray perpendicular to it;
sometimes dull yellowish in both directions. The streak is white,
lecture uneven and somewhat conchoidal. Ite hardness is 7*0 to 7'8.
Lustre vitreous. It is transparent and translucent. Ite specific
gravitv is 2'56. The massive varieties are amorphous. Ite structure
is indistinctly granular. It is found at Cabo de Gate in Spain, in
* For the above illostrttions we are indebted to the Bev. W. Smith not only
for thoae publiBhed in vol. i. of his * British Diatomaeee,' but through Mr.
Tnflbk West, the artist, for scTeral ftrom the unpublished volume of that
admirable work. Mr. West has also Aimiflhed some original drawings.
Greenland, at Bodenmais, in Bavftria, Norway, the United Steias, &o.
The following is an analysis by Stromeyer : —
SiUca 50-24
Alumina 88'42
Magnesia 1084
Protoxide of Iron 4*00
Protoxide of Manganese .... 0*68
Water 1-86
DICLIDURUa [Chbiboptbba.]
DI'CLINOUS, an obsolete term in Botany, signifying that a plant
has ite sexes in distinct fiowers. It comprehends all the Monoecious
and Diosoious planto of Limueus.
DICOTTLKDONS, a Natural Class of Planto, deriving their name
from the embryo having in general two seed-leaves^ or cotyledons; a
character to which there are however some exceptions. The genus
Cerat^hyllvm has several : BerikoUetia appears to have none ; in
T^ropasolum and many others they are consolidated into one; and
Ouscuta is certainly destitato of them. Like all others therefore the
character derived from the cotyledons, nearly universal as it is, has
ite exceptions. Hence botaniste associate with the character derived
firom the embryo others derived from the niode of growth, leaves,
flowers, &C., and the whole taken together ^ive the real diagnosis of
the class to which the name of Dicotyledons is applied.
The steins of Dicotyledons are probably in all cases branched,
except when a plant is ttoia ite weakness and minuteness unable to
reach any development beyond that of the first stage finom the
plumule. In herbaceous plante that are called stemless, a sort of
branching takes place by the formation of small short stems upon the
crown of the axis of growth. They have the pith, wood, and bark
distinctly separated, and the wood traversed by meduUaiy rays:
This wood if more than one year old consiste of concentric circles,*
each of which is formed on the outside of that which immediately
preceded it ; the consequence of which is that the oldest part of a
branch will necessuily consist of the largest number of layers, and
will therefore be the thickest : hence the branches of Dicotyledons are
always cones, although usually very long ones [Exogenb], and not
cylindenk But to some of these characters the exceptions are not a
few. It is difficult to trace any distinction of pith, wood, and bark in
the stem of the Water-lily {NymphoM) ; there are no concentric circles
in the wood of Aristolochna, and several other genera; and it is impos-
sible to show by measurement that the stems of many iiregular
tropical dicotyledonous climbers vary perceptibly in diameter for
considerable distances.
The leaves of Dicotyledons are artioulated with the stem, so that at
a particular time they are thrown off, and leave a dean scar behind
them, as in idl the trees, whether deciduous or others, which are
found in the open air in England. Their veins are repeatedly
branched, so as to form a netted apparatus within the parenchyma.
But although by far the largest part of Dicotyledons are thus con-
structod, yet we have conti-adicUons to this also. For instance, in
Dianthus, and a great many other genera, the leaves have no veins
except the midrib, and there are many herbaceous plante whose leaves
never drop fairly off the stems.
The number of parte in the flower of dicotyledonous planto is four
or five ; that is, four or five sepals, four or five petals, and the same
number of stamens, present in either a completo or imperfect stoto ;
or if the number is greater it is some power of four or five. But in
Ranunculus, Ficaria, most Anonaceous plante, and several more, the
parte in the flower are three.
Finally, when the seeds germinate the embryo simply extends the
point of its ladide in the form of a root to seek for nourishment in
the soil [ExoQBNB.] But although this is, as far as is yet known,
a character without exception, nevertheless it has been too little
studied for us to assert that it is more free from anomalies than other
charactors.
Hence it is to be observed that it is neither the two cotyledons,
nor the exogenous stom, nor the concentric circles of wood, nor the
reticulated disarticulating leaves, nor the quinary or quaternary
flowers, nor the exorhizal germinations, which by themselves charac-
terise the dass of Dicotyledons, but the combination of those
characters; and that the absence of some one of them is immaterial ;
so that a plant may be essentially a Dicotyledon, although it has any
number of cotyledons except two.
The Dicotyledons of Jussieu comprehended the plants now sepa-
rated under the name of G^mnosperms, and together with Monoco-
ivledons and Acotyledons, constituted the whole vegeteble kingdom.
They probably consist of at least two-thirds of all Imown plante : in
the stete of trees, shrubs, or herbaceous plants, they are found
wherever phsenogamio vegetation can exist, and they and Gymno-
sperms toother constituto exdunvdy the arborescent scenery of all
cold countries.
DICOTYLES. rSuiDA]
DICRURUS. [Laniasa.]
DICTAMNTJS, the botanical name of the framnt herbaceous plant
called Fr€unndla by gardeners. [Frazekella. J
DICTT'OCHA, a genus of oigimised beings merred by Ehrouberg
to the Na/viculacetje or JDiatomacece, They are diaracterised by an
m DICTTOGEN-*.
mivoUte ipiiunia ihisid, and dlffar •□ nmoli ^m the otlier form of
Dia/anuKta that many luitur&liita han doubtad tha propriety of
pUoiiia them there. The speciee are Domeroiu, the lai^er number
twiiig fouil tnd found with varioiie formi of Oialtnaaeia.
TtlCTYOQEUM, « cIkbii of PUnU, propoeed by Liudln, ud
kdcfitad in hia ' Vesatable Kingdom.' It ambtaoei a mimbn' cu orden
■**T*'"g between tlie larger rleniTH of Eiogeoa aitd Endogmi. Thfly
luT* a monooot^edanooa embryo, bat they have also a broad tiet-
TMiied foliage^ irtiioh nmallj diMrtienlatea with the atem. Th«
foUowing an the natuiml ordan of IHettiogata : —
Ilowen nniwiuaL
I'eriaitth free. Carpels 00 ;
one loeaea
Flowei* urtiHiiuL Perianth adherent. Carpels
oonaolidated ; eevenl weded ....
Flowen bieeiual. Carpeli lereral, quits oonw-
lidated. Flaoentoi aiile. Flowera beiapeta-
loideoua
Flowen btsexuaL Carpeli aereral, quits conso-
lidated. Flacents parietal Ftowers 3-6-
petaloideoua
Flowen biaezual. Carpels eareral, half consolidated.
Triuridaeea.
DICTTOPHTXLUM, „
andHatton {'Foaail Flora') to inoluds a tun ,
nnriiuH) &om the New Bsi-SaDdstotie of Liverpool, and a laum
delicate apedea (D. rugonat) from the OoliUa ihalea of the ToriLshlia
coast The latter is regarded u a fern bj later writers. Its nemires
ore nideiy reticulated.
L It has dicedous flowera, with • deeply S'parted apread-out
calyx, with equal permanent aegments. Tha itamimferoiu flowen
haTB S rows of sterile sbsmena; the 3 outer being perfaotly petaloid,
ehe,3 next pataloideo-nuguicoUte, inflexed at the point, with i pits
below tJis point ; the S inner oompressed, snsile, truncate, with 2 pits
on each side below the point, and 3 glandular protuberanoea at the
back. The fruit is dry, and seated in the enlaif^ fleahj, ihriTelled
calyx, and among the enlai^, hardened, sterile atamans. The
inflorasoenoe consists of single few-flowered laoemn.
i>. caryophyUatwn, Boia ds Boae, has alternate oblnw laavea
tapering to a very fine pointy which is nererthelesa blunliw, aonte
at the base, papery, and smooth-netted on the under side. It is a
tree, and ■ native of the Woods of Brasil and Ouyana. It is called
Licari Kaaali by the Cariba; and is the Liama Aiuiiauts of Aublat
The bark gives out a smell very like oloves, aod has a hot, clova-like,
peppery taste. It is used as a medicine by the natives in the coun-
tries where it grows, and possesses powerful tonic propatties.
(Lindiay, Flora Xtdiea^)
DlDfiLPQlNA, a suVfiunily of Maritpiata. Tha whole of this
gab-bmil* have tha inner toe of the bind foot eonTer(«d into a
thumb, daatitute however of a daw, and this devalopment is appa-
rent in nearly all the spedss which have a scaly praheniile tail
ProGsaaor Owen remarks that in some of the smaller Opossums tha
4nl>«bdomina1 tegumentary folds are nidimental, or merely aarre
to oonoeal tha nipples, and are not developed into ■ pouch; and
in theae the young adhere to the mother by entwiaiag their little
pnhensite taUa around hers, and clinging to the fur of ber bach;
whence tha apeciflo name di>rtigra, applied to one of the spacies.
He further obaervea that few fasts would be more intenating in
the histoiy of the JVarnipiaiu thsn tha condition of tha new-bom
young, and thair degne and mode of aterina development in these
Opoaimnu. Since tha ICaivupisl bonea aervs not, aa is usually
dsKribed, to aapport a pouch, but' to aid in the function of the mam-
mary glands and taatea, they ara, ha adds, of course present in the
skeleton of these small pquchlesa Opoaaums, aa in the more Epical
Marsnpiala. [HABSunATA.]
The term Opossums is generally used to daaignata the ZHidfloKa,
aow confined to the Amerieaa continenta. The former existenoe of
this type in Europe in sasociBtioD with Palaathervim, Anoftalheriiim,
and other extinct paohydennatoue quadrupeds, is proved by the
fossil remaina in the Paris Baain (Eocene of LyaU). Two species of
i>>({e^tehaTe been found foaiil in Oreat Britain. [MaasuFiATA.]
The dentition of these ■oausorial Uaiaupiala bear* more resem-
blance to that of the Bandiuoota {Ptramtla) than to that of the
Damri, if the atructure of tha molar teeth be eioepted.
The following apedes of this family are contained in the ' Britiah
Unseum Catalogue ': —
BitUfkjit VirgMama, the Opoamm. North America.
D. Atara, Aiaia's Opossum. BrasiL
iiAaaKltr »«dio«Kla>, Naked-Tailed Philander. BiaaiL
P. Ofouum, the Philander. Tropical
P. narmfiaiit, tha Crab-Eater. Tropical
P. dm^tnu, Menaii's OpoMum. (Seajtp.).
DAT. van. on. tol. n.
P. eim*r4¥i, Ciaereout Opoasum. South America.
P. wMriwHt, the Hanvise, IVopical America.
X%fUmm ttigant. Elegant Punted Hamoae^ ChiU, Valparaiso.
{Omtio,OnlUOlatt^eiaioni>fthfMaTmpialia,Zi>t^Triaa,yo'Li\.
From the iFeebiKD la the Brlllih MoacDm.
DIDU8. JDmh).]
DIDTMOPKIU&L [DmusiBX.]
DIDTNAIflA, the fourteenth dass of tha Linneau systam of
ranging Planta. It is tha nine as Titrmdria ; that is, it baa alwaya
foar stamens, only two of them are a little longer than the other two.
Under this olsas are comprdiended a large port of the Lamiaceou%
Terbenaoeous, ScropbaUnaoeona, Bignoniacsooa, and Acanthaeeoua
Plants of modem botanists. It is dividad into two orders, OffOMo-
tftrmia and Japiospenma. OyniuiftnKia indudea the geneia whose
ovary is split into four aaiaU seed-like lobes, wtiich in the time of Lin-
ueus were taken for naked seeds ; and^njnoiptnnia, those whiohhave
manifeatly the seeds inclosed in a pericarp of some sort
DIEFFENBA'CHIA, a genus of PUnU belonging to the natural
order Aracei, to which tha CaJadima Stgninvn, Dumb Cane^ belongs.
[CaLASIUK.]
DIEXtYILLA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Cofrifeliatta, eonaiiting of a single North American spedes, by Lin-
nnus oonsiderad a honeyanckle, uid called Lonieera Dtervilla, It is
however obvioualy not of that genus, because its fVuit is a dry capsule
with a papery pericarp, with four cells and several seeds.
D. Taum^orti, or, as it is also called, D. humilii, D. lutea, or D.
CoKadttaii, a a common hardy shrub, growing &om two to three feet
imm the axils of opposite ovate serrated leaves. It is found wild In
tocky woods in the United States, from Canada to the Carolinas,
flowering in Juae.
DIFFLnOIA. [lN?[isoBi*,Cyc; Amctba, Supp.]
DIQENITE, a native Sulphuret of Copper.
DIGESTION, the process by which the food is converted into
nutriment Taken in its whole extent tha nroceas of digestion com-
prehends the entire aeries of dianges In which the crude aliment !a
assimilated into arterial blood. Theee (Ganges are effected by orgaiu
which, viewed collectively, comprise a moat axtansiva apparatus oom-
mandDg at the month and ending at the lungs.
The first changes upon the food are efieotS in tha mouth, where it
d saliva. [Saliva.] Tom to pieces by the
is mixed with m
teeth [Tbxth] in the operation of maattcation, and aoftene.. ., ._.
secretions of the mouu until it ia reduced to a pulp, it is then col-
lected by the tongue [Toasui], and formed hy that oigan into a mata
called a Inlus. The bolus of food thuB prepared is carried bj tha
tongue to a musdular membranous bag called the pharynx [PhasthxJ,
(ituated at tha baek part of the throat. The pharynx, as soon as it
reoeivea the bolus oontracta firmly upon it, and by a proper muscular
action daliven it to the oesophagus, a long muscular tube which
extonds^m the phairnx to tJie stomach. [Stohacb.] The bolus of
food does not dMoend along the cesopbagus by its own weight, for a
Hseon can swallow while standing on bis head, and man; animals
have obviously to oonv^ their food along the ceaopbagua against
I gravity. The food whan it enter* tlie cssophagus is ttansmitled along
DIGESTION.
DIGESTION.
S40
the tube \yr a powerful ooniractioii npon it of the strong fasdouli of
muBCular fibres of which it is oompowd.
By the OBBOphagoa the food ii conveyed into the stomach, where it
ia converted into a fluid tenned Chyme. The chyme when duly pre-
pared in the stomach is transmitted to the small intestines, in the
first portion of which it is converted into a new substance called Chyle.
In its passage along the second portion of the small intestines the
chyle disappears, being taken up by a set of vessels named lacteals,
whidi convey it throu^ a double series of glands, called the Mesen-
teric Glands, to the Thoracic Duct. By the thoradc duct it is conveyed
through the abdomen into the thorax, where it ia poured into one of
the large veins, the Subclavian, which returns the blood from the
upper parts of the body to the right side of the heart, to be, by the
heart propelled into the Pulmonaxy Artery. By the pulmonary
artery the chyle, now mingled with venous blood, is conveyed to the
lungs, where it undergoes its ultimate change, and is converted into
arterhd blood. The large intestines meantime carry out of the body
that portion of the food which has not been converted into chyle.
All solid food imdeigoes the same process. [Food.]
The food torn, as has been stated, into minute fragments by the
operation of mastication, softened and brought into the state of a pulp
by its admixture with mucus and saliva, and raised nearly to the tem-
perature of the blood by the warmth of the mouth, is received into an
extensive chamber, the stomach, where it ia constantly maintained at
a temperature of 100" of Fahrenheit, and kept in a state of gentie but
almost unceasing agitation by a peculiar motion of the stomach,
effected by its muscular fibres, and called, from its striking resem-
blance to the motion of the earthworm, peristaltic The essential phe-
nomena which take place on the introduction of the food into the
stomach are the following : —
The food on entering the stomach is not arranged indifferentiy in
any part of the chamber, but ia detained in the great extremity, or
that portion of the stomach which ia near the entnmce of the oesopha-
gus, termed the cardiac extremity. This portion of the stonoach
during the actual process of digestion appears to be out off from the
rest by a contraction of the circular fibres of the muscular coat, called
the hourglass contraction, by which about a third of the letigth of
the stomach towards its smaU or pyloric extremity is separated from
the great or cardiac extremity. The food received in the cardiac
extremity is slowly dissolved ; this solution takes place at the surface ;
'* in proportion as it proceeds the diaaolved part is rolled off the rest
by the peristaltic action of the fibres of the stomach, and carried to
the pyloric portion," where it accumulatea Thus the undissolved
and the dissolved portions of the food are in different parts of the
stomach ; the undissolved portion in the cardiac extremity, and the
diaaolved portion in the pyloric extremity.
A remaricable change takes place on the inner or mucous surfSeuse of
the stomach the moment a portion of food oomes in contact with it.
This change has been seen to take place in the stomachs of animals
laid open during the process of digestion for the purpose of affording
an opportunity to observe the phenomena, and even in tiie human
stomach, whidi, in more than one instance, has been completely
exposed to view in consequence of wounds accidentally inflicted.
The mucous coat of the stomach, which is of a pale pink colour when
the stomach is empty, becomes of a bright red colour when excited
by the contact of food. Over this reddened surface are visible, more
especially when it is examined through a magnifying glass, innumer*
able minute lucid points, from which distils a pure limpid and colour-
less fluid. This fluid, as it is dischaiged, is absorbed by the aliment
in contact with the surface of the stomach, or collects in small drops
and trickles down the sides of the stomach to the more depending
parts, and there mingles with the food and dissolves it. This fluid,
the true solvent of tiie food, is termed the Gastric Juice or Add. It
has been ascertained to be the efficient agent in digestion, and its
solvent power has been demonstrated by a series ra most decisive
experiments long ago performed by Spallanzani and others. This
distinguished physiologist swallowed a metallic tube perforated with
holes and filled with flesh ; he allowed the tube to remain in the
stomach four hours, and then contrived to throw it up by exciting
vomiting mechanically. The flesh in the tube was found to be tho-
roughly soaked with the fluid of the stomach ; its surface was in a
dissolved state, being soft and gelatinous, and moreover it had wasted
from 53 to 38 grains. Subsequently, Dr. Stevens induced a person
practised in swallowing pebbles, to swallow a hollow silver sphere
containing raw or cooked flesh, or vegetables, and perforated with
holes that would admit a crow-quill : the sphere was voided in about
forty hours perfectiy empty. Next, Mr. Hunter observed that the
great extremity of the human stomach is sometimes found after death
in a softened state and even in a state of partial solution, the coats of
the stomach being dissolved by its own gi^ric juice, and the edges of
the opening appearing pulpy, tender, and ragged, and even the parts
adjacent to the stomach, as the spleen, the diaphragm, and the lungs,
being in like manner softened.
More recently, Dr. Beaumont, an American physician, has performed
a series of experiments on the digestibility of various kin<U of food,
by introducing? food directly into the stomach of a man — Martin St.
^ge — who had a fistulous opening into that organ through the
parietes of the abdomen. The results of his experiments are interest-
ing, and are given in the following table. It appears that the articles
were converted into chyle, that is, digested, in the timet indicated : —
Rice, boiled soft .
Apples, sweet and ripe
Sago, boiled
Bi^ad, stale .
Milk, boiled
Cabbage
Baked Custard .
Parsnips, boiled .
Potatoes, roasted
Potatoes, boiled .
Tumipsi, boiled
Carrots, boiled
Butter and Cheese
Venison
Oysters, raw
B. M .
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
8
8
1
2
0
80
45
0
0
0
45
80
30
80
80
15
80
85
8
Oysters, stewed
Eggs, raw
Eggs, soft boiled
EJggs, hard boiled
Beef, roast or boiled
Beef^ salted .
Mutton, roast or boiled
Pork, boiled
Pork, salt and boiled
Pork, roaat
Veal, roasted
Turkey and Goose
Domestic Fowls .
Wild Fowb
H. U.
8
2
8
8
8
5
8
8
4
5
5
2
4
4
80
8
0
80
0
80
0
80
88
80
30
80
0
80
The solution of the food, which takes place during this process, is
wholly different from the spontaneous resolution which warmth and
moisture tend to produce in it. Exposure of the food to warmth and
moisture decomposes it by the process of putrefaction ; but the goB-
trio juice is antiseptic, and stops the putrefying process even after it
is considerably advanced. The solution of the food by the gastric
juice is a chemical operation, and the gastric juice is a chemical agent^
the exact nature of which ia not yet clearly ascertained. Spallanisani
diacovered that the gastric juice is of an add nature. Some years ago
Dr. Prout ascertained that muriatic add is present If meat and
gastric juice be indosed in a glass tube, and kept at the temperature
of the human body, a product is obtained cloeely resembling the fluid
formed by the solution of the food in the stomach. If meat be indosed
in a glass tube with diluted muriatic add, and kept at the tempera-
ture of the blood, a perfectiy similar product is obtained.
From experiments upon tiie dog it has been ascertained that muri-
atic add is not present in the gastric add of that animal. Its add
reaction is produced by superphosphate of lime. Lactic and acetic
acids are also found present in human diyle. So we may state that
up to the present time chemistry has not been able to dedde whether
the add re-action of the gastric juice depends on free adds, add salts,
or add organic compounds.
In addition to the acid, the gastric juice oontaina a substance called
Pepsins. The properties of this substance have been principally
studied in that form of it obtained from the mucous memlmtne ox the
pig, which is very like to that of man. [Pxfsins.] This substance, when
combined with muriatic or acetic acid, has a very remarkable power in
dissolving albuminous foods. "A liquid which contains only 17-ten-
thousandths of acetate of pepsine and six drops of muriatic add per
ounce, possesses solvent power enough to dissolve a thin dice of coagu-
lated albumen in the ooune of six or eight hours' digestion. With 12
drops of muriatic add per ounce, the same quantity of white of egg
is dissolved in two hours." (Carpenter.) These properties quite
explain the action of tiie gastric juice upon the food.
After the food has undergone the action of the gastric juice, it loses
its sensible properties, and is converted into the homogeneous semi-
fluid mass whidi has received the name of chyme. Specie diffarences
are distinguishable in chyme, according as the food from which it is
formed has consisted of vegetable or animal matter, and according as
it has contained fatty or oily substances, or has been destitute of them.
Usually however it consists of a pultaceous mass of a grayish colour ;
it has a sweetish taste, and is slightiy add. The duuracter common
to it, from whatever kind of food it may have been produced, and
therefore distinctive of it, is its addity.
The state of the food in the chyme has not been dearly made out.
Dr. Carpenter gives the following account : —
" The protein compounds, whether derived from animal or vsgetable
food, are all reduced to the condition of albumen ; a part of which is
dissolved, whilst another portion is suspended in a very findy-
divided state. Gelatine will be dissolved or not, according to its
previous condition ; if it exist in a tissue from which it cannot readily
be extracted it will pass forth almost unc^ianged, but when ingested
in a state of solution it remains so, and if it have been previously
prepared for solution by boiling, its solution is completed in the
stomach. The gummy matters of vegetables are dissolved when
they exist in a soluble form, as in the case of pure gum, pectine, and
dextrine, or starch-gum. The degree in which starch, when its
veddes have not be^ ruptured by heat, is affected by the gastric
fluid, seems to differ in different animals ; the Ruminants and Grani-
vorous Birds apparentiy possessing the power of crushing or
dissolving the envdopes of the staroh globules, whilst they pass
through the alimentiuy canal of other fferbivora unchanged, and
may be detected entire in their excrements. Sugar is unquestionably
taken up in solution, as such, in a healthy condition of the ifystem,
but it may imdeigo a previous change in the stomach in disordered
states of the digestive process. Oily matters, whether of animal or
vegetable origin, are reduced to the condition of an emulsion, being
very finely divided, and their particles diffused through the diyme.
Most other substances, as resins, woody fibre, homy matter, ydlow
fibrous tissue, &c., pass unchanged from the stomach, and undergo no
341
DIGITALIS.
DILLENIACK£.
843
sabseqpient alteration in the intestinal canal; so that they are
discharged among the fseoea aa completelv useless."
The chyme upon quitting the stomach passes into the duodenum,
where it mingles with the Bile [Bile] and Pancreatic Juice. [Pan-
creas.] These fluids are not merely excretions, but exercise an
influence upon the mass of chyme with which they are mingled.
A part of the bile is probably taken up again into the B3r8tem ; and
from the experiments of Barnard it would appear that the function
of the pancreatic juice is to render the oily matters of the food
misoible and fit for absorption.
After mixture with these fluids a roontaneotts change takes place
in the chyme. It separates into a whitidi tenacious fluid termed
Chyle, and into a gray pulp ; the first is the nutritive part of the
food, the second is its excrementitious portion. If fat or oil, whether
of Tegetable or animal matter, have formed part of the aliment, the
chyle is of an opaque white colour, if not, it is of a grayish colour.
It differs in its chemical charactjer from chyme ; for chyme is acid,
chyle on the contrary is alkaline,'
The following is the compositdon of the chyle, according to an
analysis by Dr. Q. 0. Bees : —
Water 90-237
Albuminous Matter (coagulable by heat) . 8*5 1(>
Fibrinous Matter (spontaneously coagulable) . 0*370
Animal Extractive Hatter (soluble in water and alcohol). 0*332
Animal Extractive Matter (soluble in water only) . 1*238
Fatty Matter 3*601
Salts: Alkaline Chloride, Sulphate, and Carbonate^ 1 nTi'i
with traces of Alkaline Phosphate, Oxide of Iron / * " ' ^^
100000
The chyle, together with the excrementitious portion of the food,
is slowly transmitted along the small intestines. The progress of
the chyle is rendered slow, partly by its own tenacity, in consequence
of which it adheres with some degree of firmness to the villi, and its
progress is still farther retarded by the valvule conniventes, which
act as partial valves. [Intsstinbs.] In its oours* through the small
intestines the chyle grMlually disappears, being absorbed l^ the lacteal
vessels, so called from the milk-like fluid they contain. The laoteals
commence on the surface of the villi. [ABaoBBXNT Stbtsu.]
Loaded with chyle^ the lacteals penetrate the coats of the intestine,
pass between the layers of the mesentery [Mkssntbrt], and enter
the first order of mesenteric glands. In the mesenteric glands the
lacteals unite freely with each other, and become exceedingly convo-
luted. On emeiging from these glands the lacteals pass, stiU between
the layers of the mesentery, on to the second order of mesenteric
glands, which they enter, and in which they present the same convo-
luted appearance as in the first order. On emezging from the second
order of mesenteric glands, the lacteals pass on to the receptacle of
the chyle, which forms the commencement of the thoracic duct
[Thoracic Duct.] In the receptacle of the chyle terminates another
q^tem of absorbent vessels, termed lymphatics, from the colourless
and pellucid fiuid, called lymph, which they contain. [Ltmfh.] From
the receptacle of the chyle ihe chyle and lymph commingled flow
into the thoracic duct^ by which tube they are transmitted through
the abdomen and thonuc to the left subclavian vein, where they are
mixed with venous blood. Together with the blood contained in this
great vein, the chyle and lymph are sent by a direct and short course
to the lungs.
The result of the successive changes thus wrought upon the food
by these progressive steps of the digestive process, is to approximate
the crude aliment more and mora nearly to the chemical condition of
the blood. [Bzx)OD.] " This is accomplished partly by the gastric
and intestinal juices, and partly by matters combined with the food,
highly animalised in their own natun, and endowed with assimilative
prop^ties, as the salivary secretion mixed with the food during
mastication ; the pancreatic and biliaxy secretions mixed with the
food during the conversion of chyme into chyle; the mesenteric
secretions mixed with the elaborated chyle of the mesenteric glands ;
and, lastly, organised particles, which have already fonned a part of
the living structures of the body, mixed with the chyle under the
form of lymph in the thoracic duct."
(Valentin, Text-Book of Phynology, translated by Brinton ; Carpenter,
Manual rf Human Phytiology; MUUer, Pkytiolofflft translated by Baly.)
DIQITA'LIS, a genus of Exogenous Plants belon^g to the
natural order ScrophMlariaceas. It is distinguished by its 5-parted
leafy calyx, its irregular funnel-shaped inflated corolla with an oblique
limb, the upper lip of which is short and 2-lobed, the lower S-lobed,
and its ovate acuminate capsule, splitting into 2 many-seeded valves.
The flowers in all the species are arranged in long racemes, are either
yellow, purple, or brown, and generally showy ; the leaves alternate
upon a round herbaceous stem.
D. purpureaf Foxglove, is found all over the west of Europe,
especially in England and France. It is a verv handsome species,
with laige purple or white flowers. It is a biennial, with oblong
stalked scalloped wrinkled leaves, gray with hairs, and a stem about
two feet high, also covered with a close soft nap. The purple or
white pendulous flowers are above an inch and a half long, and are
arranged in one-sided racemes ; in the inside of their coroUa, on the
lower lip, they are bearded with long hain, and gaily spotted with
blackish-purple «pecks. There are four didynamous stamens, shorter
than the corolla, with large smooth anthers, 2-lobed at the base.
The energetic stimulating acrid narcotic properties of this plant
have caused it to be extensively employed medicinally. For its
action and properties, see Digitalis, in Abt& and So. Diy.
There are about 25 species of this genus; most of them are
showy garden flowers. The only one whi& is truly a British plant is
the one described.
DIGITA^IA, a genus of Qrasses belonging to the tribe Panicea,
It has fingered spikes, the spikelets in two rows on one side of a
fiattened rachis, unarmed, 1 -flowered, with an inferior rudiment ; the
glumes 2, lower very small, upper 8-nerved ; the sterile flowers of
one 5-7 nerved palea, resembling the upper glume and equalling the
flower. This genua has obtained its name from the singular form of
its heads of flowers, which look like fingers. Two species are
described as natives of Great Britain. D. sanguinalia was formerly
found in Batteraea Fields, near London, but is not a true native. It
has the leaves and sheaths hairy, the flowers oblong-lanceolate,
glabrous with downy margins. It is a common plant in Germany,
and has obtained its specific name from an idle trick which the boys
in some parts of Germany have of pricking one another's noses with
its spikelets till they bleed. It abounds by the roadsides in Poland
and Lithuania, in which countries its seeds are collected, and boiled
whole like rice with milk, and is esteemed as a pleasant article of diet.
The other species is D. humifusa. It has leaves and sheaths glabrous,
flowers elliptical and downy, with glabrous nerves. This is a rare
plant, and grows in sandy fields. It is a true native in many parts of
England. (Babington, ififantkxZ; liOMdojit Eneyclopcsdia <rf PlaMa,)
DIGITIGRADES. [Cabwivora.]
DIGY'NIA, a systematic name given by Linneeus, in his artificial
system, to such plants as have two styles, or a single style deeply
cleft into two parts.
DILL, the common name of a species of Anethum, The genus
Anethwn belongs to the natural order Umbdlifenji. It has the
following characters : — Calyx obsolete ; petals roundish entire, invo-
lute, with a squarish retuse lobe ; fruit lenticular, flattened from the
back, surrounded by a flattened border ; half-fruits (mericarps) with
equidistant filiform ridge.^, the 3 dorsal acutely keeled, the 2 lateral
more obsolete, losing them^selves in the border ; vittse broad, solitary,
filling the whole channel, 2 on the commissure. The species are
annual plants, with upright smooth stems. Leaves much dissected,
with setaceous linear segments. The fiowers are of a yellow colour,
and there is no involucre.
A, graveoUntt the Common Dill, has the fruit rather more than two
lines long^ oblong, bright shining brown and convex at the back, paler
and again convex at the edge, which is separated from the back by a
deep hollow ; dorsal ridges sharp, filiform, elevated, very distinct but
fine ; the commissure dull grayish-brown, with the tumid vittco only
indistinctly seen.
The fruit of the Dill, like that of many of the order, is carminative
and stimulant* It may be taken with food as a condiment, but is
more frequently employed for making a distilled water, for which
there is a great demand in the nursery. Whether its popularity as a
domestic carminative for child^ is dependent on any specific power
is doubtful, and it is more than probable that other stimulants would
act as favourably.
A. Sowa is a species found in the East Indies. It has properties of
the same kind, but more powerful than the last^ and is employed in
Hindustan as an ingredient in curries.
(Lindley, Flora Medicck.)
DILLENIA, a genus of Plants, the type of the natural order
DUleniacect. The young calyces of D. aecirella and 2>. tpeciota have
a pleasant taste and are used in curries by the inhabitants of Chitta-
gong and Bengal Several species of IHlUnia are large trees, and
afford hard durable and valuable timber.
DILLENIA'CE.£, a natural order of Plants belonging to Poly-
petalous Albuminous Exogens, and related on the one hamd to Magno-
UacecBf on the other to Ranuncvlaceee and to Anonacea. They are
briefly characterised by having 5 sepals in a broken whorl; 5
petals; an indefinite number of stamens; a definite number of
ovaries, which are either quite distinct or more or less consolidated ;
berried or capsular and 2-valved fruits; seeds surrounded by a pulpy
aril ; and, finally, a minute embryo lying in solid fieshy albumen.
Differentially considered, Dilleniaceous Plants are distinguished from
Anonacea by their fiowers being arranged upon a quinary, not
ternary, type, by their albumen being solid, and not ruminated, and
by their want of aromatic properties; from Magnoliacece by their
want of stipules, and the presence of a pulpy aril round the seeds.
The plants of this order are chiefly Asiatic trees or shrubs, and
usually yellow-flowered. A few occur in America. The trees ure
found in the woods of tropical India ; the bushes inhabit Australia,
especially in the more temperate parts, and in China ; the woods of
Brazil contain several kinds, usually climbers or having a trailing
habit. They appear to possess astringent properties, but nothing
further of importance.
The species in cultivation in this country are almost all Austnl-
aaian, and have something the appearance of yellow-flowered Culu»ea»
sit DILUVIAL FORUATJON.
Among ttwse occur specLsa of the curious genua Plearandra, in vhich
Ulb atajaeni are develotied on one aide onl; of the flower, til these on
Uie opposite side being libortiTe. There tre few analogies to this in
the Tcgetable kingdom. Eibbertia voliibilit is > showy twiner, but its
flowers are intolerably offensive in their smelL The Indian ipeciei
are in almost all cases plants of great beautr. They are remarkable
both for the grandeur of their foliaj;e and ^e mugmficenoe of their
flowers. Several apeoiet of DUtmuuitas are Urge trees, and afibrd
Taloable timber.
1, a flawerlat aboM ef SObtrtia r
Um eaatr* ot (tw flowar ; g,Cli*rtp«fn
DILtTTIAL FORUATION. The auperfioial deposits of giarel,
clay, and sand (sometimes containing ahalls and bonu of land Man-
oKUia), which He far &om their onginal sitea on hiUa, and in other
situations to which no fonws of water now in action ooutd transport
them, are thua termed. Tile explanations propoaed by geologiati are
various, and as yet unaatisfactorily demonstrated. Violent floods
passing over the land ; streams flowing formerly at levels and in linn
now impossible ; the littoral action of the sea during the time of the
uplifting of the land ; glaoier 'movements ; and the flotation of ioe-
bngt OTBT the ani&ee while yet it waa oovered by the ooean, have all
been rtmngly proposed for adoption : but the phenomena are veiy
uomplioated, and teem to require many par^ solutions, involving
change of level of aea and laud as the f^damantal condition.
fAu-DTnril.] (Lyell, Prbtctiia of QtoUffg ; Jukea, Pkgiical Otoloffs ;
DIKKBOCRHHTES, a genua itdnnoidm, propoaed by PhiUips
('SiL Syatun,' 1. 17) to include apedea of Orinoidea imarttaUata of
UilUr, with the flngor-jointa in double rows. From (he Wanlook
Limeatone.
DIM0RPHANTHU3, aganus ef PUnta belonging to the natural
ordar Anitiaeea. One of the apectei^ formerly AraHa edtdit, is eaten
in China. [Aralucejl]
DDnrAItlA. [CoHomnBA.]
DINEMOURA. [PooiLoroD^]
DIHETUa, a genus of Hymeuoptsrous Inieoba, of the aeotion
nttortt. [Labbidx.1
DINOO, or JiutraUan Deg. fCi»is,l
DIHODES. [Chlxbidb.]
OIK0P3. [CntBoFTBaA.]
DINORNia, a genua of Birds probably extinct, the remuna of
■eventl speoiea of which have been found in New Zealand.
In November, 1839, Profesaor Owen axhibited. at a meeting of the
Zool^oal Society of London, the iiagmont of the shaft of a femur,
6 ioohea in length, and G^ inches in iU amalleat ciroumferenoe, with
both extremittai broken off This bane of an unknown atruthious
bird of large aiie, preaumad to be extinct, was put into the Profenot's
bands for exstnination, by Mr. Rule, with the statement that it was
finmd in New Zealand, where the natives have a tradition that it
belong to a bird of the esgle kind, which haa become extinot, and
to_ which they give the name Movie or Moa, Similar bonea, it was
said, were found buried on the banka of tha riven.
Alter a minute deeoription of the bone. Professor Owen made the
following atatemsnt :— •' There ia no bone of aimilar nze whioh pro-
aenta a osnoalloiia atructure bo oloaely reaembling that of the preaant
bon^ as does tfie femur of the ostrich ; but thu structure ia intent
rnpted in th« oatrioh at the middle of the ahaft, where the parietea of
tha meduUaty, or rather air-oavity, are amoolh and unbroken. From
thia difi'erenea I oooolnde the atmtbioua bird indicated by tie present
mNORNia tu
fragment to have been a heavier and more sluggish apecdaa than the
oatHch ; its fetnnr, and probably its whole leg, was shorter and
thicker. It ia only in the ostrioh's femur that I have observed super-
ficial reticulate impressiona similar to those on the fragment ib quea-
tion. The ostrich s femar is auboomprened, while the presont is
cylindrical, spproaching in thia respeot nearer to tbe femur of the
emeu ; but its diameter ia one-third greater than that of the laigest
amcu'a femur with which I h&ve compared it. The tiones of the
eitremitiea of the great Talitdo dtphiuopa* are solid throughout ;
those of the crooodile have no cancellous stnioture like the present
bone. The oancellous structure of the mammiferoua long bonea ia of
a much finer and more fibrous character than id the foaail. Although
I speak of the bone under tliis term, it must be obsarved tijat it does
not present the chaiactera of a true fosml ; it lb by no means mine-
ratised ; it haa probably bean on or in the ground for eome time, but
atiU retains meet of ita animal matter. It weighs T ounces 12 drachma
avoirdupoia.
" The discovery of a relic of a large atruthious bird in New Zealsod
is one of peculiar interest, on account of the remaikable character of
the existing Fauna oT that island, whioh still includee one of the moat
extraonlin^7 and aDomsJoos genera of the struthioni ordar ; and
because of the close analogy which the event indicated by the present
relic offen to the extinction of tbe Dodo of the island of the Mau-
ritius. So far >a judgment can be formed of a single &agment, it
probable that the extinot bird of New Zealand, if it prove to
to ila spedfle lonn can only be oonjectotaL The fern
roftheStUt-
. , loua daveloi
msnt of the other bonea of the leg; but so far aa my skill I
interpreting an oaeons fragment may be cndited, I am willing to
risk the reputation for it on the statement that there has existed, if
there does not now exist, in New Zealand, a atruthious bird nearly if
not quite equal in aiia to the ostrich."
It waa not long before an niportunily occurred of toting this very
renuukable statement, and of proving the sagaci^ of the naturalist
who had thua staked his reputation upon his conviction of the truth
of the general principlea of the acienoa of compaiatiTe anatomy-
Professor Owen received a communication from the Her. W. Cotton
describing aeveral other remains of ^"'""fi* of the same kind, and
in 1813 a collection, oompiiaing vertebne and bones cf the hinder
extremities, pelvis, fcc, were tiwismittAd by the Rev. W. Williams to
the dean of Westminater (Dr.Buokland); and inlStOmanynieaimens
were sent to Ehigland by Dr. Mackellar, Hr. Percy Earle, and Colonel
Wakefield. These ware [Jaced in tbe hands of Frof^wsor Owen, and
form tha anbject of bis first and second ' Memoirs on the Dinomis,'
' . the ' Zoological Tranactions,' toL iiL
In Hieae Hemoirt Profeeaor Owcnpointad out that Uie bones which
had been thua aent over from New ^galand contained the remains of
10 Isaa Uian nine apeciea of a remarkable group of birds, which he
A first Buppoaed belonged to th* &mily of SintXionida. Subsequent
ixamination however has led Proteaaor Owen to the conviction that,
although wingless, these birda have aa litUa connection structurally
and phyaiologically with the oetiiches as with any other gronp w
cent birds.
From on examination of the various bones thus colleoted, Profbasor
Owen was enabled to point out that the bagment of bone whioh ha
had first received belonged to a species of the genua not only much
larger than any of the other spedea indicated by these remains, but
larger than any form of existing bird. To this species he gave the
name of Dmontit giganleiu, and found that the height of this bird
must have been from 1 0 feet to 10 feet 6 inches. The other species
described were — D, ingtm, attaining a height of 9 feet ; D, itmlAv-
idaj D. didiformit, i feet; D. dromaoida, G feet; J), ttrvihioidtt
iwards of 0 feet. In addition to these were deaoribed — D. etrttu,
croMw, D. QtidifvnKit, and J), caiwtrimit. Thua these remains
■bowed the existence of a number of birds, varying in aiie from the
almost flwhtleas Bustard to bitds of the aiie of the Dodo, the Emeu,
and tbe Ostrich, and one Uiger than all.
Onasubsequentexaminatlonof theboneaof D.ingcntnaA D. dro-
maeidei, Professor Owen discovered a back toe wluch ha had seen
iwhere in tha other species, and for Iheae he proposed the generic
__ine Pelapltiyx. To these two was afterwards added a thirdapedeB,
P. gtrmtoida. Dr. Mantell gives the following account of a further
'"overr of the remains of birda in New Zealand: —
In 1846 andlSlTmyeldeataon, Mr. Walter HantelI,ofWeUitlgtoD,
who had resided aeverof years in the colony, explored even known
locality of these foeail tiones within his reach m the NotUl laland,
1 went into the interior of the country, and located with the nativea,
... the purpoae of caUacting spedmens, and of ascertaining whether
any of Uieee gigantic birda were still in eiiatence, resolving, if there
appeared to be the teaet chance of auoceaa, to penetrate into the
unfrequented regions, and obt^ a lire Uoa. Tha information
gathered from the nativea offered no encouragement to follow up the
pursuit, but tended to confirm the idea that this raw of colosial
bipeds was extinct, the last individuaLi having in all probability, like
tbe Dodo, been exterminated by human agency vrithin i oomparatively
' period ; or that if any of the specdsa, whose bonea occur in a
SIS
BINORNIS.
DINORNIS.
346
fosail slate, are stiU living, they will prove to be of comparatively
Binall typea, related to the Apttryx, the living diminutive representa-
tive of the stupendous ostrioh-like birds which once trod the soil of
New Zealand. My son succeeded however in forming the most
interesting collection of these remains hitherto obtained. It com-
piised between 700 and 800 bones belonging to birds of various
species and genera, and differing considerably in magnitude and age,
some belonging to very young individuals, in which the epiphyses of
the long bones are distinct from the shaft, while others are those of
adult and aged birds." The chief part of this collection is now
deposited in the British Museum.
The locality from which these specimens were obtained is thus
described by Mr. Mantell : — '' Near Waikoriati, 17 miles north of Otago,
there is a neadland called Island Point, about three-quarters of a
mile in length and 150 feet in height; it consists of sandy clay
distinctly stratified and traversed by dykes of columnar trap, the
columns being at right angles to the sides of the veins. In a little
bight, south of Island Pointy on the side of the bar which unites that
headland to the mainland at the entrance of the River Waikoriati in
front of the native Kaika, named Makuku, is situated the exposed
parts of the so-called turbary deposit, whence bones of Moas and
other birds of various kinds have been obtained in such number and
perfection This bed is about 8 feet in depth and not more than 100
yards in length, and lies immediately on a stratum of tertiary blue
day ; its inland boundary is obscured by vegetation, and appears to be
of a very limited extent ; the bed is entirely submerged, and only
visible when the tide has receded. It consists almost whoUy of
decayed vegetable matter, and its surface is studded with the undis-
turbed roots of small trees, which appear to have been burnt to the
ground at some remote period. It is a light, sandy, elastic earth,
of a blackish-brown colour, and emits a strong fetid odour when
first collected ; fr^m the large quantity of animal matter it contains I
conceive it was originally a swamp or morass, in which the New
Zealand Flax (Phormiwrn, ttnax) once grew luxuriantly. It is now
covered by a thin layer of sand when exposed at low water. . .
Although bones of several species of Moa, especially of the largest
kinds, have been collected from this locality in considerable numbers
and in great perfection, yet as the bed is rapidly diminishing from the
inroads of the sea, there is great reason to fear that it will be entirely
washed away, without yielding to the paheontologist all the desired
information respecting the extinct animals whose relics it enshrines ;
for the natives and whalers are well aware of the interest attached
to the bones by Europeansi, and they seize indiscriminately on any
specimen exposed by the receding tide, and if it cannot be readily
extracted they break it off, and thus many a valuable relic has been
destroyed. Their cupidity and avarice have too been so much excited
by the large rewards iigudiciously given by casual visiters, that the
cost of specimens has increased to an imreasonable amount"
In their general aspect the bones which have been obtained from
these spots closely resemble those obtained from the ossiferous caverns
in Germany. Professor Owen gives an analysis of their chemical
composition, and from this infers that they may have been recently
deposited. Mr. Mantell obtained bones aJso from North Island : —
" On Uie western shore of the North Island, about sixty miles south-
west of New Plymouth, there is a stream called Waingougou, which
empties itself into the sea at about a mile and a half south of Waimate
in the Ngdtir6an<U district. Part of the neighbouring country is
elevated Uible-land, with deep tortuous gillies, through which the
torrents and streams take their course to Sie sea. That of Waingon-
gou, which is as tortuous as any of them, takes its rise in the neigh-
bouring volcanic ridge, and has evidently at a former period discharged
itself £Etr distant from its present embouchure, as is proved by the
existence of a line of olifis which extends inland, and has manifestly
been produced by the corroding action of the river. Driven from its
course probably by a change in the relative level of the land and sea,
the stream has formed its present channel, which cuts through a bed
of loose conglomerate^ 100 feet thick, overlying a deposit of finely-
laminated sand, which covers a thick stratum of blue clay full of
shells. The conglomerate consists of pebbles and large boulders of
an infinite variety of volcanic rocks ; the clay is the lowermost visible
bed ; the sheUs it contains are marine, and resemble species existing
in the South Pacific Ocean ; but I suspect many will be found speci-
fically distinct from any recent fonns. Between the two bluflb near
the embouchure of the river there is a sand-flat about 200 yards
across, and this on my first visit was strewn with bones of men, moas
and oUier birds, and two species of seals. I had some deep openings
made near the foot of the ancient diff on the top of .which is the Pa
or native village of Ohawetokoloko, and at the same level as the flat
on which I had observed the strewn fragments of bones I came to a
regular ossiferous deposit. The bones however though perfect were
as soft and plastic as putty, so that if grasped strongly they dianged
as it were by magic into pipe-clay ; and it was necessary to dig them
up with neat care, and expose them to the air and sun to dry, before
they oomd be packed and removed. . . Unfortunately the natives
soon caught sight of my operations, and came down in swarms, men,
women, and children, trampling on the bones I had carefully extracted
and laid oat to dry, and seizing upon every monel exposed by the
apade« My patience was tried to the utmost^ and to avoid blows I
was obliged to retreat and leave them in the possession of the field ;
and to work they went in right earnest, and quickly made sad havoc.
No sooner was a bone perceived than a dozen natives pounced upon
it, and began scratching away the sand, and smashed the specimen at
once. It was with great trouble, and by watching the opportunity ot
working in the absence of the Maoris, that I procured anything worth
having. *
The renudns thus procured by Mr. Mantell were placed at the dis-
posal of Professor Owen by Dr. Qideon MamteU, who was thus enabled
to supplv many deficiences in his former descriptions of these remark-
able biros. They afforded spedmens of the bones of DinomU ewrtuB,
D. didtformia, and J), catuarinus ; also of Palapteryx ingens, variety
robuttus, and of a new species, P. geranMea. Notwithstanding the
great number of bones that have thus been examined, one fragment
only of the wings or humerus has been detected. This indicates the
rudunentaiy condition of the wings in these birds. The humerus
found Professor Owen regards as belonging to a species of PcUapteryx.
The following is a summary of the nature of this collection by Pro-
fessor Owen : — ''There are not less than 190 phalanges of the toes
referrible to five or six spedes of IHnomis, Palapteryx, and Notonm,
and there are 8 tarso-metatarsals, with the articular surface for a very
strong hind toe, and of a conformation more nearly resembling those
of the Dodo than of the DinomU and Palapteryx, but shorter and
thicker in proportion, and appertaining to the same bird as the tibia
and fibula described in my Memoir of 1848 under the name of D.
otidiformU. The proximal articulation of this remarkable form of
tarso-metatarsal exactly fits the distal end of the tibia figured, and
also that of a corresponding fructured tibia in Mr. Mantell's collec-
tion ; which also contains the proximal end of another tibia, a fibula,
an entire femur, and distal ends of two other femora, of the same
spedes. The large surface for the hind toe; the strong calcaneal
process forming a complete bony canal for the flexor tendons at the
back part of the proxizoal end of the tarso-metatarsal ; the perforation
above the interspace between the outer and middle metatarsals for
the tendon of the adductor musde of the fourth toe, and the more
posterior position of the condyle for the inner toe~-«ll concur to
mdioate the generic distinction of the bird to which it bdonged from
dther JHnomit or Palapteryx; and I propose to distinguish the new
genus by the name of Aptomu and the present spedes A. otidiformU"
{' ZooL Trans.' iiL p. 347.)
With the remains of the bones found on the banks of the river
Waingougou were mixed the fragments of egg-shells. The egfpi to
which the fragments bdonged were supposed to be about the size of
a tea-cup. In connection with this subject the recent discovery of a
large egg in Madagsjscar is interesting.
in a report to the French Academic de Sdences, M. Isidore Geofiix>y
St. Hilaire described three enormous fossil eggs from Madagascar, and
some bones belonging to the same bird The captain of a merchant-
vessd trading to Madagascar one day observed a native using for a
domestic purpose a vase which much resembled an egg, and upon
examination proved to be one. The native stated that many such
were to be found in the interior of the island, and eventually procured
the eggs and bones exhibited by M. St. Hilaire. The lai^gest of these
eggs is equal in bulk to 185 hens' eggs, and will hold two gallons of
water. M. St Hilairo proposes the name of Epiomu for the monster
biped of whidi these marvellous eggs and bones are the first evidence
brought under the notice of naturalists. Casts of these eggs have
been sent to this country, and are to be seen in various museums.
Amongst tho bones sent home by Mr. Mantell, the remains of a
new genus, NoiomU, were found It bdongs to the same family as the
Brachypteryx and the MaUidce, and the interest that attaches to it in
this relation is the fact that Mr. Mantdl succeeded in obtaining a
single living specimen. Many persons had reported the existence of
a wingless bird as large as a fowl, and with red beak and legs, with a
cry sounding like ' Keo Keo.' The following is Dr. Mantell's account of
the discovery of this bird : — "On my son's second visit to the southern
part of the Middle Island (as Government Commisdoner for tho
settlement of native claims), he fell in with some sealers who had
been pursuing their avocations along the little frequented islets and
gullies of Dusky Bay on the south-western shores, and from them
obtained the sldn of a recent specimen of Notomis Mamtellu It
appeared that when frequenting the coasts in search of seals and other
game, these men observed on the snow, with which the ground was
then thickly covered, the foot-tracks of a large and strange bird, and
after following the trail for a condderable distance, they caught mght
of the object of their search, which ran with great speed and for a
long while distanced their dogs, but was at length driven up a gully
in Resolution Island, and captured alive. It uttered loud screams,
and fought and struggled violently ; it was kept alive three or four days
on board the schooner and then killed, and the body roasted and
eaten by the crew, each partaking of the dainty, which was said to be
delidous. The skin, with the skml and bones of the feet and legs, was
preserved, and fortunately obtained by my son while in good condition,
and thus perhaps the last of the race of Mohos was preserved for
the naturalists of Eiu'ope. Upon comparing the head of the bird with
the fossil crania and mandibles, my son was at once convinced of the
specific identity of the recent and fossil specimens ; and so delighted
I was he by the discovery of a living example of one of the supposed
ll
t27
DIASTASK
DIATOMACEiE.
h
DIASTASE, a subBtanoe formed during the germinatioxi of plants.
It can be artificiallj prepared by reducing fresUy germinated oarley
into a pulp, with half its weight of water, and then pressing out the
liquor strongly. To the clear liquid just sufficient alcohol is to be
added to destroy its viscidity and allow of its being filtei^d ; by this
an azotised substance is precipitated, which must be considered as
vegetable albumen, since it coagulates at 167** Fahr. Having sepa-
rated this, alcohol is again to be added as long as the liquid becomes
turbid; the precipitate is to be purified by solution in water and
precipitation by alcohol repeatedly ; the precipitate is at last to be
dried in thin layers upon glass at It temperature between 104** and
122' Fahr.
The properties of diastase are the following : — It is solid, white,
not crystalline, soluble in water, but insoluble in alcohol unless it be
weak; the aqueous solution is nearly tasteless, and without any
chemical action, not precipitating subacetate of lead. The aqueous
solution quickly changes, becoming acid : dry diastase undergoes
the same change in a longer time, but when boiled in water the
alteration is immediate. Common malt is stated in general not to
contain more than l-500th of its weight of diastase : one part of it
is sufficient to convert 2000 parts of starch, thickened with water,
into a mixture consisting of much dextrine and a little sugar. It has
not yet been obtained absolutely piure. There can be little doubt
that diastase is one of the forms of protein ; and its reaction upon
starch is not different from that which takes place with some other
forms of the same substance. Schleiden includes it amongst the
nitrogenous substances of plants, to which he gives the name Schleim
(mucus). »
(Schleiden, PrincipUi ofScietUifie Botany, p. 23.)
DIA'STTLIS, a genus of Crustacean AnimsJs established by M.
Say.
It has the following characters. — ^Four antennae placed nearly on
the same line ; the intermediate antennse bifid, having a peduncle of
three joints, the external' simple, with the first joint long, and without
a scale. External jaw-feet very large, pediform, very much approxi-
mated to the front, with the fint joint long and compressed, and the
others very small, cylindrical, and neariy equal. Corselet smooth, of
six segments, of which the firsts larger than all the others togetiier, is
terminated anteriorlv by a short obtuse triangular rostnuni crene-
lated on its lateral edges. Six pairs of bifid feet; those of the &nt
pair tnmcated at the end, and shorter than the external jaw-feet;
those of the second terminated in a point ; those of the third, fourth,
and fifth pairs raised, pointed, without a naO, and terminated by
strong hairs. Abdomen narrower than the thorax, formed of six
segments, the last two of which support the natatory feet Tail
biarticulated, provided on each side of the first segment with a single
bifid style, and on the extremity of the second with a simple oylin*
drical style.
2>. arenarivs. Length one-fifth of an inch. It is an inhabitant of
the coasts of Geoigia and Florida.
M. Say is of opinion that the Cancer BC9rpwnide$ of Montagu, from
the English coasts, and the C. Etca of Omedin, from those of Norway,
ought to be refen«d to this genus.
DIATOMACE^, or DIATOME^, a group of organised bemgs
which naturalists have placed in the animcJ and vegetable kingdoms,
according as they have regarded their structures as most allied to the
one kingdom or the other. These organisms consist of a single cell,
and are remarkable for possessing a hard shell-valve or frustule,
which ia composed of sUex or fiiint^ and which remains permanent
after its organic tissues have perished.
The following is a definition of this group of beings by one of the
most recent writers on this subject : — Plant a frustule ; consisting of
a unilocular or imperfectly septate cell, invested with a bivalve sili-
ceous epidermis. Gemmiparous increase, by self-division; during
which process the cell secretes a more or less riliceous connecting
piembrane. Reproduction, by conjugation, and tiie formation of
QKirangia. (W. Smith.)
The Diaiomaceo! are endowed with the power of motion ; and when
this function was supposed to be peculiar to the animal kingdom, it
is not to be wonder^ at that the first observers of these oiganisms
referred th6m4o the animal kingdom. Ehrenbexg, in his great work
on the 'Infusorial Animalcules,^' greatly enlaiged our knowledge of
this family, and added to the forms that were already known. He
regarded them, as well as the Deamidiea, and other beings which are
now generally refexred to the vegetable kingdom, as animals. The
following are the principal points on which he relied for assigning to
them this position : —
1st. The DiatomaeecB exhibit a peculiar spontaneous movement^
which is produced by certain locomotive organs. j
2nd. A laxge number of them have in the middle of the lateral
BurfiEU» an opening about which round corpuscles are situated, which
become coloured blue when placed in water containing indigo, as ift
many of the Polygastric Infiuoria,
8rd. The shells of the iHatomacece resemble in structure and con-
formation those which are seen in the MoUutca and otiier <Miitnft]a.
These arguments are met on the other side by the statement, that
spontaneous movement is now known not to be specially animal, as
the spores of many Al^ce, and their entire fronds are known to be
actively motile. In the next place the colouring of the interior by
indigo also takes place in truly vegetable structures.
The complex structure of the minute siliceous fniatules of the
IHatomacece is a fact that has struck many observers. It certainly is
without a parallel in the vegetable kingdom. Schleiden in his 'Princi-
ples of Scientific Botany,' after giving a minute analysis of the siliceous
structure otNavicula viridis {fig. 6 represents this genus), says, ** Such
an artificial and complicated structxire amongst plants has no explana-
tion and is entirely without significance. In all true plants we find
the silica present in a very different form, as minute scales or droi>s,
and distnbuted through the substance of the cell-walL'' Again, in
another place he says, " This curious structure is wholly without ana-
logy in the vegetable kingdom, and cannot be derived from the laws
of vegetation with which we are at present acquainted."
More recently IVofessor Meneghini has come forward as an fulvocate
of the animal nature of IHatofnacece, In a very lucid and remarkable
essay, published at Venice in 1845, he says : —
"If we suppose them to be plants, we must admit every frustule,
every navicula, to be a celL We must suppose this cell with walls
penetrated by silica, developed within andther cell of a <Merent
nature, at least in every case where there is a distinct peduncle or
investing tube. In this siliceous wall we must recognise a complica-
tion certainly unequalled in the vegetable kingdom. It would still
remain to be proved that the eminently nitrogenous internal substance
corresponded with the gonimic substance, and that the oil-globules
could take the place of starch. The multiplication wotQd be a simple
cellular deduplication (sdoppiamento), but it would remain to be
proved that it takes plaoe, as in other vegetable cells, either by the
formation of two distinct primitive utricles or by the introflection or
constriction of the wall itself. Finally, there would still remain
unexplained the external motions and the internal changes, and we
must prove Ehrenbetg^s observations on the exterior organs of motion
to be false. fiut> again, admitting their animal nature, much would
remain to be investigated, both in their oxganio structure and their
vital functions ; excepting this, so far as we know, we have only one
difficulty to overcome, that of the probably ternary non-acotised
composition of the external gelatinous substanoe of the peduncles and
investingf^bes. Bat as the presence of nitrogen is not a positive
charaot^ of animal nature, so the absence of it is not a proof of vege-
table. And in order that the objection should vealj^ have some
weight) it would be well to demonstrate that this substanoe is iaome-
ric with starch. For then, supposing all the arguments in favour of
the animal nature of JHatometB were proved by new and more droum-
stantial observations, tlus peculiarity, if it deserve the name of objec-
tion, might still be regarded as an important discovery. We should
then have in the animfd as well as in the vegetable kingdom a ternary
substance similar to that forming tiie basis of the vegetable tissue."
Of the chemical composition of the IHatomaeeoe littie satisfactory has
at present been made out Professor FranUand of Manchester,
according to the Rev. W. Smith, whose work on the British Diata-
maeecB is one of the beet that has hitherto been published, has found
that a lai^e amount of iron exists in the state of a silicate or protoxide
in the siliceous frustules, which probablv accounts for the brown or
yellow colour of these organisms. On the application of tincture of
iodine the internal membrane contracts on its contents, and converts
these from a golden-yellow to a bright green. On tiie addition of
sulphuric acid the^ exhibit a deep brown hue.
The fact which is most relied on to support the v^table nature
of the JHatomacece, by those who advocate this view, does not
appear to have been known to Meneghini, and that is the con-
jugation of the cells of which they are composed in the same
manner as in the Iktmidiece, [Desmidias.] This discovery was
made by Mr. Thwaites, and observed in species of Eunotia (fig, 1),
in Epithemia gibba and B, turgida {fig. 19), FragUaHa pectinalia, and
other species. This process takes place as follows: — Two indi-
vidual dosely approximated dehisce in the middle of their long
diameter, whweupon four protuberances ariee^ which meet four simi-
lar ones in the opposite frustule. These indicate the future channels
by which the endochrome of the two frustules becomes united, as well
as the spot where subsequentiy the double q>orangium is developed
(figt, 8, 19). From the sporangium the new individuals are developed.
This process is precisely analogous to what takes place in the Des-
micUecB, so that the fruatules of the Diatoms must be regarded as cells
of the same individuaL " If we duly consider this hct," says Mr.
Thwaites, '' how much does it exalt the lower tribes of plimts in our
estimation 1 since we may contemplate an individual plant of them
not as the single phyton — ^not as the single frond — ^not as the single
cell — ^but it may be as the aggregate of thousands of these ; — view it
occupying as much space and exercising as great an influence in the
economy of nature as the largest forest-tree ! "
The mode by which the cells are multiplied amongst the Diaiamacete
appears to be strictly in accordance with what occurs generally in the
vegetable kingdom. This process is one of self-division. The first
step is the fission or division of the internal cell, " probably by the
doubling-in of its membranous wall, and consequently the separation
of the endochrome^ or cell-contents ; the central vesicle or cytoblast
also dividing into two parti^ which remove to a littie distance from
each other; thsM movements being aimultaaeous with a retrooeasion
xo DIATOUACE^
of the epidermal TalTes and the formation of the uliceouR
menfbrane already described. la Uie centre of the enluvHi' jruBLuis,
in emct sppo«itioa to the original tiItbh and cloBoly applied to thsm,
theFH are now found two new valves, covering the aurface of the cell-
membianee along the line of fiauon. The divided portions of the
endochrome spread themselves along tiie membrane wluch is embraced
by the nevr valves, and there result two half-new fruatulea bound
together b; the connecting-msmbrane, generated during the process
we have desoribed.
" During the healthy life of the Diatom the procem of self -division
is being continually repeated ; the two half-new fruatulea at onoe pro-
ceed to divide again each into two fruitulea, and thus the process oon-
tinuH. I have been unable to ascertain the time occupied in a aingle act
of self-division, but suppoaing it to be completed in tweoty-four hours,
we should have, bb the progeny of a single b'ustule, the amaong num-
ber of one thousand miliions in a single month ; a oircumstanoe which
will in some degree explain the andden or at least rapid appearance of
Tost numbers of these organism^ in localities where the; were but a
short time previously either unracognised or only ^aringly diffused."
<Smith, p. 2fi.)
DUTOMACE^ too
Niigeli further says that the silica is deposited in the outside of an
organic membrane, which he believes to be of a vwetable nature. In
fact, an organic membrane ought to exist, for the silica oould not
become solid except by crystallising or depositing itself on some
pre-existing substance. On the other hand, we cannot admit, vrith
Niigeli, that it has been deposited externally j for in many genera,
and especially in the Achnanihidia, the siliceous shield is covered
with a very delicate dilatable membrane, itself containing mlica, as
is proved by its sustaining unchanged tbe action of fire and acida.
Tlierefore, comparing this shield with other organic formation^
whether animal or vegetable, oontsining in like manner either silica
some other ao-oalled mineral element^ ire may reasonably consider
be formed of on organic tissue penosated by silica. This
valfof a
permeation may occur either in
in the epidennol
voriona plants a
a simple
bU, OS is S(
I. Stmalia DiaiMia. 3. SupoHiaa tcatphu, i. Tricrralium Farat. 4.
SVrirfila ^Utriala. A. Sj/ntira graeilit. 0. ifwitvla tltgam^ 7, Pleiirotigwia
anffutiatitm, fl. (hccongma laawvtatum, portion KprtKnting Donjagatlon.
S. Oomphonena ffemuutlvm. 10. IferidioA eireutore^ 11. Suciilario parO'
data. 13. AeinaHthe4 Itmgipel. 13. Slriatrlla \mpvneta(u. H. I>iatoma
rvlgari, the fruatntea united. 19. BIMvlpliia pvlcMla. U. ifrl<itira rariaii;
Ibt cnlar^minit l> pKoUir lo tbB KtBU ; a, ilda rlew. II. DieUela alvaida ^
a, frutale; i, fnod. IS. SMimaim SmliSli; a, fruttnle; t, ditto; t,
rrono, aatonl ri»i d, frond mtgniHed. IS. ^Mitmiia l<irrida, IlliutnUnK
the pnweis of co^Joiatloc. naa a drawing bf Mr. Wtit.
The structure of tbesiliceoas portion of the i>iafoiRii£ni is the moet
*remarkabls part of their organisation. The following is Heneghini'a
account of this organ : —
" Every Diatom is formed of a siliceous shield and a soft substance
therein contained. According toKlitiing, this shield '~'- -'
B cases, perhaps, of sihc
f sihca combined with alut
remains unaltered.
" Externally to the shield Ktltzing observed a thin stratum which
he denominated cement, which may be made visible either by desic-
cation or by calcination ; and produces either a simple opacity, or
lines, point*, and maculEe, sometimes irregularly disposed, sometunes
regularly. Ha aupposas it to be a silicate of iron or of alumina.
Independently of tlie chemical materials which it may contain, this
outside integumant seems to me tha more important inaamuch ss even
without resorting to the meana indicated by Eiltmng, I obssrve it to
be constant, not merely in the speoiea enumerated by him, but also
in many othen, and I could almost assert that it exiate in aiL For to
me it appears to oorrespond with that fine memlnane of the A lAnan-
Ihidia above mentioned, which, according to Eiitzing's own observa-
tions, is always vimble vAenever the two new individuals (into which
every Diatom ia r«eolved in its multiplication by deduphcation)
(sdopplameoto) b^;in to separate. The lines and points supposed to
belong to the subjacent shield belong very frequently to this kind of
covering,
" The shield itself is formed of at Uatt four pieces, or valvc^
united together is a four^ded figure — a tetra^n. The mode of
union is nnimowii. But the eiiateoco of a kind of articulation
whioh permits on opening and dosiog, like the volvea of a shell-fish
deacribed by Corda la a species of SnrireUa, has been denied by other
obaervera. Be this as it may, whether spontaneous after death or
induced by eitemsl means, this separation does take place in a r^pilar
tuanner. Now, if we suppose an organic cell vrith a wall permeated
by sUica, and with a four-sided figure, we can easily suppose that all
the sides will mechanically support each other. Moreover, we shall
meet with numerous facts by a different kind of analogy, namely, that
with solid animal tissuea belonging either to the internal akeleton or
the external t^ument.
" The four volvea ara equal in length, but in many species andgenera
one pair exceeds the -opposite pair m breadth. In order to establish
an unifonn language it la convenient to teim those piimaiy valves or
surikces which exhibit along the middle the line of diviuon in the
act of deduplication, which, since it is formed here in a normal
manner, runs poralld to the other two euilaoe^ denominated lateraL
Along the primaiy sur&ces we frequently see longitudinal lines, which
terminate at the two extremities m small apertures. From their in-
ternal surface there project into the cavity linear marks variously
formed but always longitudinal ; these ore termed vittss.
" The lateral surfaces have frequently a round aperture of greater
or smaller stie in the centre, and from this a fissure extends tovrards
each extremity. This fiasurs either loses itself gradually or expanda
into the regulaT terminal apertures. When this oocurs each of these
surfaces is divided into two distinct valves. On these Utenl surfaces
we observe the striie, lines, and transveive costa, no lea sdminble
for their beautiRil ^pearance than for their constant regularity in
number, direction, and proportion. ^Vhen many isdividuaJs are
united together to form one compound being, like a polyp for instonos,
it is always by the latcnl surbcea that they t^uch each otherj and
since all other characteie sometimes fail, we oan affix to thnu the
denomination 'lateral' from this principal one.
" Besides the vittfo before mentioned, in some genera {Biddtilfiia,
fig. Ifi, Gimacotphmia, Terpriaoe) there are other solid substances in
their internal cavities : these ore variously arranged.
" These essential peculiarities of Uie shield may perhaps be r^ardad
as indicating a complex structure, veir different tJierefore trtaa what
would be prescribed by a simple cellular walL Ehrenberg deduoaa
&om it an argument to compare it with the ahell of MoUuko. The
.AmUtfUEmaybecitedaniongthe/t/woria. Kiitidng states, in reply,
that among vegetable cells there is found a peculiar conformation of
the walls, with prominences, depressions, points, lines, papilUB,.and
perforations, disposed in a r^;ular manner ; he refers to groins of
pollen, as an instance. He might have added the mora appropriata
instance of the Damidieii, which irould be very closely allied to the
Diatomta, if the latter, like the former, oould be referred to the vegs-
table kingdom. If not equal in constancy and regularity, the
Detmidta display a greater d«ree of oomplicaUou ; and we must
remember the diStomt nature of Uieir substMUe, for in the vsgetoUa
m DIIfOTHEItlUir.
Ui«7 atat* tbtt ttia rar; nmakabla form and diipoaitioiia af th«
liinatr part of the iknll ahow it to have boni connected with muBcdn
oT estnutrdisaiT power to giro that Idnd of moYBment to the head
which would admit of the peculiar action of the tuski in digging into
and tMTlns up tie aarti. Th^ fiirther obaaire that my coDJectnrea
(p. US) rapecting the aquatic habita of thii aoimal are eonfirmed by
appnximationa in the form of the occipital bona to the occiput of
Cttaeai; Uie Dinalhtnvn, In thie itnicture, affording a new and
important link betwwsn the Cetatea and tbe Pachydermata." Br.
Baokland, in bhia aecond edition, givea a oopy of the profile of the
entire head and of the reaWnition.
Bicited
Thif head hai been aihibited at Paris, and eeeme to have
cut interest among the French zoologiata; for we find
'Journal des D£bata ' of the 21at of March in the year 1837 that at
the Bitting of the Acad<!mie Royale dea Sciences de Parii on the day
before H. de Blainville read a note detailing hia particular riewa of
the poaition which the animal held in Uie animaJ aeriea— riewe which,
it ia there itatod, were adopted both by M, Dumiril and M. lajdore
QaofTroy St. Hilaire. Tbene views were detailed in ' L'lnatitut" of
the 22nd of March ; and the subject is so interoBting that we here
praent them tc Uie reader, mare especially as they are bo much at
variance with the restoration, a copy of which is above given.
" M. de Bkunville read a note on the fosail head of the DinoAeriui
giganievm recently exhibited at Paris by Mesars. Kaup and Elipiteii
According to M. de BlaiuviUe the Dinolkn-iura constituted a ebdus :
mammifen of the family of the Dngonga and Lamantinn, whtoh family
makes a part of the order or of the degree of organiMtian luuued by the
list-mentioned zoologist Oravigradei, on account of their heavj
gression, and of which the first family is formed by the £]epl
The following were the grounds stated for this opinion : —
" As regsrds the teeth, the molars, Sve in number on each aide of
each jaw, have their crown squared and deeply traversed by
transTerae elevations, the same ai in the Lamantiiu. But as this cha-
racter occurs also in tha Tapin and Kangaroos, sjid even in the
Lophtodons, it would be ikr from sufficient tor deciding the question,
if it were not joined with tbe absence of false molsre and canines
(a formula which produces a conaidenible space between lie Erst
molar and tlie incisors), and with the number and form of these last,
which entirely resemble small tuskii ; only they are implanted at the
extremity of the lower jaw and are directed downwaraa. Whether
or no there existed a pair of incison in the upper jaw ii on uncertain
point, the two extremities of this jaw which have been found being
more or less truncated. It may however be inferred, from the
enlarged and thick form of ■ fragment found some years ago, that it
is possible that the animal might have had upper incisors, but smaller
than those below : perhaps only rudimentary.
" As to the form of the head and its parts It corroborates what the
dental system had established. In fact, the occipital condyles ore
entirely terminal, or in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the
head, as in the Lamantins and the Cetaceous Edentata, icodified for
exutence in the water. The occipital surface is large, subvertical,
and even inclioed from before backwards, with a profound mesial
depression, for the insertion either of a very strong cervical ligament,
or ptiwerfiil musolea for the elevation of the head, and the basilair
part of the akull is narrow in its component parts; while the sycci-
pito^ntal region is on the contrary very flat, very wide, as in the
lamactina and dugonga, overplumbing the temporal fossa, which is
extremely wide and extremely deep, indicating enormous levator
muaelM for the lower jaw, not only for the purpose of
bat adapted besides for the particular action of that jaw with its rake-
like inCESor teeth. This diapoaition of the temporal fossa ia perfectly
DINOTHEBIDM. sn
broken, but which Dererthelsas ofTera the articulating aur&ce of the
eom^onding bone, exactly as in the lamantins; perhaps ho^enr
without the mat enlargement which may be remarked at the jugal
apophTms of Uie temporal bone in the Utter. The orbit is, as in the
animals bat named, very Email and lateral, but very largely open in
Uie lygoDUtic fossa. Tht auditory aperture is small, narrow, and
rather oblique from below upwards. The face is wide and flattened,
prolonged and enlarged a iittie, as in the Oelaaa, anteriorly. It
presents in its middle a very Urge aperture, the composition of which
it has not been possible to study on account of the position of the
head, which is upside-down, but which aperture, though evidently
wider and greater than that of the dugong, has evidently the gteatut
analogy to what exists in that animal The posterior orifice of the
nasal cavity is on the contrary very narrow. The sab-orbital hole is
very considerable, but even leas perhaps than it is in the dugong.
With regard to the lower jaw, that again exhibits the greatest analogy
to that of the dugong, from the manner in which its branches are
curved downwards toirerda the anterior third part of Uieir length;
onlv, that of the Dinetheritim being armed at ifai recurved eitremi^
witb atusk, the aacending romna offer*, in its widUi and ita condyle
which is as tranavene ai in the Camivora, a ooncoi^ant disposition ;
BO that the only motions permitted should be those of elevation and
depression, as in thoae animals. The ethmoid surface of the temporal
bone also is, aa it were, a portion of a hollow tranaverse cylinder,
frith an apaphyaaiy lamina, having an extremely strong ridge — ' nne
lame apophnoire d'arr4t extr^mement forte.' ' With thia element
(says H. de Blainville) we may regard it aa nearly b^ond doubt that
the DaiBtlitriim was an aniinal of the family of the Lamantina, or
Aquatic Oravigrada, its proper position being at the head of the
family, preceding the Dugong, and consequently preceded by the
Tetracauiodan, which ought to terminate the family of the Eiephonta.
In a word, the animal, in our opinion, was a Dugong with Tusk.
Incisors. We must then suppose that it had only one pair of anterior
limbs, with five toes on each. As to the supposition that the animal
was provided with a trunk, which might be presumed from the great
nasal opening, the enlarged surfaces which surround it, and the site
of the suborbital nerve, as for oa may be judged from the size of
the suborbital bole, we believe that this is at leaat doubtful, and
that it is mors probable that these dispositions bear relation to a
considerable development of the upper lip and the necessaiy modifi-
cation of the nostrils in an aquatic aninlol, aa ia equally the case in
the dugong. We think even that the upper lip by its immenie
development embraced the lower one, and tbas hid even the base of
the tusks, and that the lower one was sufflcienUy smaU, as may be
presumed from the chin-holes (trous mentonniers). After this it ia
easy to perceive that of the two principal opinions which have been
broached and discussed concemisg this singular animal, we ara much
further from considering it a great species of Sdtntala, near the
sloths, with Dr. Kaup, than from considering it as a tapir, as Q. Cuvier
did, from an examination of the molar teeth, the only parta then
known. In fact, there is, in our opinion, much leaa distance, in the
natural method, between a dngong and a tapir than between a dugong
and a sloth.' In this note M. de Blainville haa not taken into con-
sideration that the head of the i>in«lA«riiini, as well aa a phalanx
which was found in the same locality, are refeired by Professor Kaup
to the same inimal ; but M. de Blainville does not beliers that thia
nhalanx rodly belonged to the DinolhcrUim. ' In foot (saya he),
r. Lortet found with these same phalanges a portion of a tooth.
of M. de Blainville. He insisted particularly on the transveraal form
and great extent of the condyle of flie lower jaw and of the articalar
fossa destined to receive it. Be much regretted the loss of the lygo-
matic arch, the bases of which only remain on the jugal and temponl
bones. 'The curvatures of this arch,' sud he, would have given
ideas of the volume and force of the mosseter snd temporal muscles^
which must have been considerable. It would be important to know
them to compare them with those of the Lamsntin on one aide, and
on the other with the Megatheriun*, whose skeleton is at Hadrid.
With regard to the phalanges, which are believed to be those of
the i>tnD(AeriUfn, they ara certainly analogous to those of the Sloths :
but in the Lamantin, the ungual phalanx, which is in fact a double
pulley with a mesial projection at the base, offaiB at ita other extre-
lingle point with a sort of hood (capuchon) below; that
, , inverse to that which is found in the great spedea of
Cats (FelU), and very different from those of the filotfaa and the Ant-
Eaters.""
In this statement there ie one position that ie rather staggering ;
and indeed we cannot but think it probable that H. de Blainville has
quite accurately reported. He ia made to observe that the
articulation of the lower jaw ia auch that the only motions permitted
should be thoae of elevation and depression, as in the Camivora.
Now, that with true grindinH leeth, like those of the Dinalheriian, the
should be limited to the motions of elevation and depronion, so
admirably fitted for working the outting edges of the soissor-teeth of
" " ' ■ ■ -. ^ i_.ii_ Without venturing to give
lis intertatins genus in tha
Merve that uie evidsnoa on
the Carmvora, is almost inconceivable.
SS8
DIODONTA.
DIOFSIS.
851
which M. de BUdnTille is stated to haye rested for the oetaoeoue
character of Dinctherinm, appeara to ua to be rather meagre and
hardly Buffident to warrant the oonoluaion. At present the extremi-
ties of this creature haye not been found. They would undoubtedly
throw more light on its true chanwter than the skull alone can do.
In the British Museum is the femur of an animal from Epplesheim,
supposed to belong to the Dinotherium, If this point could be
laUsfactorily determined it would at once clear up the diffictdty, and
constitute the Dinotherivm a terrestrial species.
DIODONTA. [Teluhida]
DICECIA, the twenty-second class in the artificial method used by
Linnaeus in arranging plants. It comprehends such genera as haye
male or stamen-bearing flowers on one plant, and female or pistil-
bearing flowers on anoUier, as willows. Hence all plants haying the
sexes tiius distinguished are called dioedous.
DIOMEDEINiE, a family of Birds to which the Albatrosses belong.
The chsjracters of the genus Diomedea ure giyen imder Albatboss.
In that article three species of this genus are referred to. We now
giye a complete list of the species of this important genus : —
IHomedea exulana, Linn. This bird is abundant between 30** and
60^ S. lat, and equally numerous in all parts of the ocean bounded
by those degrees; its range howeyer extends much farther south,
eyen to withm the antarctic circle.
D. mdanophryMf Temm. It is the most abundant species of the
southern seas ; equally numerous in eyery part between the 80th and
60th degreesL
Z>. catUa, Oould. This species was procured by Mr. Gould off the
south coast of Van Diemen's Land.
D. ehlorwrhynckot^ Lath. It occurs between SO* and 60* S. lat., in
both the Atiajitic and Pacific Oceans.
D. culmituUa, Gbuld. This bird is rather abundant both in the
Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, between SO* and 50* S. lat.
D. ftUiffinota, QmeL It occurs in all parts of the ocean between
80* and 60* S. lat. ; equally common off Van Diemen's Land, Cape
Horn, and the Cape of Good Hope.
D, hraehyvra, Temm. Found in the North Padfic Ooeaa.
D. gihboio, Gould. An inhabitant of the North Padfic Ocean.
D. olivaceorhyncha, Gould. China seas (?).
Mr. Gray, in his ' Genera of Birds,' also giyes D, tpadieea as a spedes.
He also makes D, gibbota (Gould) synonymous with D. niffriptt,
Audubon, ' Om. Biog.,' yoL y. p. 827, and adopts the latter name as
haying the priority.
DION. [Ctcadackje.]
DION^A, a most singular genus of herbaceous Plants belonging
to the natural order DroBeraceee. There is one spedes, the D. mvuci-
puhij which is remarkable for the irritability of its leayes, which,
when brushed against by an insect, will suddenly dose upon it and
hold it fast, whence it is often called Venue's Fly-Trap and the Caro-
lina Catchfly Plant. It is botanically related to the DroHra^ or
Sundew, which has also ^ the property of seizing insects by its yisdd
hairs, but differs so much as to haye led some botanists to doubt
whether it really belongs to the same natural order. Its flower-
branches, for example, are not rolled up before they unfold, but haye
a straight sestiyation; the placentse of the fruit are stationed at the
base of the one-celled capsule ; the stigma is a lacerated fringed brush,
and there are other differences ; but upon the whole it is probably a
genuine portion of the Droseraceous Order.
Dwnaa has broad stalked leayes, spreading in a drcle round the
bottom of the flower<tem. Its flower-stem rises straight to the height
of 6 or 8 inches, and Is terminated by a cyme of small greenish-white
flowers, each of which has a calyx of 5 sepals, 6 wedge-shaped
notched petals, 10 hypogynous stamens, and an oyary shaped like
some of the old German wine-bottles, round at the bottom, and taper-
ing suddenly into a short neck or s^le. The best modem account of
its habits has been giyen by Mr. if A. Curtis, who thus speaks of it
from his obseryations upon the plant in its natiye bogs : — " The
Dionaa mtucipvla is found as far north as Newborn, North Carolina,
and from the month of Cape Fear Riyer to FayetteyiUe. It is stated
moreoyer to grow along the lower biimches of the Santee, in South
Carolina; and it is not improbable that it inhabits the sayannahs,
more or less abundantiy, from the latter place to Newbem. It is
found in great plenty for many miles around Wilmington in eyexy
direction. The leaf, which is tne only remarkable part^ springs from
the root, spreading upon the ground at a little eleyation aboye it. It
is composed of a broad stalk, like the leaf of an orange-tree, winged,
and frx>m 2 to 4 inches long, which at the end suddenly expands into
a thick and somewhat rigid blade, the two sides of whidi are semicir-
cular, about two-thirds of an inch across, and fringed round thdr edges
with somewhat rigid cilise, or long hairs, like eye-lashes. The leaf
indeed may be apUy compared to the two upper eyelids, joined at
their bases. Each portion of the leaf is a little concaye on the inner
side, where are placed three delicate hair-like organs, in such an order
that an insect can hardly trayerse it without interfering with one of
them, when the two sides suddenly collapse and inclose their prey,
with a force surpassing an insect's attempts to escape. The fringe or
hain of the opposite sides interlace, like the fingen of the two hands
clasped together. The sensitiyeness resides only in these hair-like
processes on the inside, as the leaf may be toudied or pressed in any
VAT. HIST. Diy. yoL. II.
other part without sensible effects. The liUle prisoner is not crushed
uid suddenly destroyed, as is sometimes supposed ; for I haye often
liberated captiye flies and spiden, which spol away as fast as fear or
joy could hasten them. At other times I haye found them enydoped
in a fluid of mucilaginous consistence, which seems to act as a solyent^
the insects being more or less consumed by it. This circumstance
has suggested the possibility of the insects being made subseryient to
the nourishment of the plant, through an apparatus of absorbent
yessels in the leayes. But as I haye not examined suffidently to pro-
nounce on the universality of this result, it will require furuer
obseryation and experiment on the spot to ascertain its nature and
importance.
" It is not to be supposed, howoyer, that such food is necessary to
the existence of the plant, though, like compost, it naay increase its
growth and yigour. £ut howeyer obscure and uncertain may be the
final purpose of such a singular oiganisation, if it were a problem to
construct a plant with reference to entrapping insects, I cannot con-
oeiye of a form and organisation better adapted to secure that end
than are found in the JHotuea muteipula, I therefore deem it no
credulous inference that its leayes are constructed for that spedfio
object, whether insects subserye the purpose of nourishment to the
plant or not. It is no objection to this yiew that they are subject to
blind accident, and sometimes close upon straws, as well as insects.
It would be a curious yegetable indeed that had a faculty of distin-
guishing bodies, and recoiled at the touch of one, while it quietly
submitted to yiolence from another. Such capricious sendtiyenesMs
not a property of the y^etable kingdom. The spider's net is spread
to ensnare flies, yet it catches whateyer falls upon it ; and the ant-lion
is roused from his hiding-place by the fall of a pebble; so much are
insects also subject to the blindness of acddent.
We may add, with reference to the American author^s conjecture
that the trapped insects may contribute to the nourishment of the
leaf of Dionaa, that leayes haye actually been fed with chopped
meat, and haye been found to become more healthy and yigorous in
consequence of this artificial stimulus ; but still no argument can be
drawn from this fact in fayour of the suppodtion that the plant
catches flies for nutriment, as most plants would be benefited by
such treatment.
DIOPSIDE. [AuoiTE.]
DIO^PSIS, a genus of Dipterous Insects of the fiunily Septida,
The insects of this genus are remarkable for the immense prolongar*
tion of the ddes of the head. The head itself is small, and appeara
as if it were furnished with two long horns, each haying a knob at its
apex ; these horn-like processes howeyer are not analogous to the parts
usually termed antennsa, but are in fact prolongaUons of the ddes of
the hmd, the knob at the apex of each being the eye of the insect.
They yary in length according to the species. In some they are
almost equal to the whole length of the insect, whereas in othen
they are only about half that lei^ith. The antennse are situated close
to l^e eyes, and are three-jointed : the basal joint is the smallest and
is yery short ; the terminal joint is the bu^est, of a globular form
(or nearly so), and furnished towards the apex with a simple seta ;
there is also a short seta on the pedunde or eye-stalk, dtuated about
midway between the base and the apex of that process, and on the
anterior part. The thorax is somewhat attenuated anteriorly, but
approaches to a spherical form, and is generally fiiniished with two
spines on each dde ; the scuteUum is alM> furnished with two roines.
The body is more or less elongated, sometimes nearly cylindrical but
generdly increases in diameter towards the apex. The legs are toler-
ably long — the anterior femora are generally thick, and furnished
beneath with minute denticulations, and the four posterior femora
are often furnished with a spine at thdr i4>ex.
Diopiii Bykuii, O. R. Gray,
a denotes the natural Bi£e.
The illustration represents the Dvopm Sykeaiif one of the largest
spedes of the genus, and which has been selected as possesdng the
longest eye-stalks ; these processes in this insect are of a pitchy red
colour, and the body is of the same tint. The head and thorax are
black, and the wings are clouded with brown.
But little is known of the habits of these insects Colonel Sykes,
who collected great numben of the aboye species during his reddence
in India, fumidied Mr. Westwood with the following notice respecting
their habitat and habits : —
" Habitat — The hill fort of Hurreechundeighur, in the western
m DIOPTASR
shauli of tha DeoMD, at mn elsrfttJOD of S900 bet abon the level of
the Mt. IB* 2S' N. lat. 78* *0' E. long.
" Thii inwot affecti chaimi or raTinn in the lof^ wooda wltfob
■noircle the mouctBin in belts. In rariouB plmcea, where the bud-
beuD* ooaaionftllf pierce the woodi snd fall upon inUted or B&lieDt
rock* in tJia above looelitiee, thej are aaen in royriadB, either paiMng
themulTOB in the t*^ or repoeing on the apota on nhich the
All tha knovn ipeciei ue from the tropical parta of the Old World.
(WfatwDod, TVonMctunu i^ Limaan &inc(]b}
DI0FTA3G, a Silicate of Copper. [CoffibJ
DIORITE, a rock coniiiting of Albite and Hornblende, aUo called
OrttMone.
DIOSCO'KEA, a genua of PUnta which fumiah (he tropica!
eaanleata cnlled Yami. It ia the type of the natural order Diatee-
rtacat. The genua consitta of pwennial flsahy-rootad or tuberona
dicecioua plants, with annual twming atema, broad alternate leave*
haTiog a somewhat netted arnmgement of their veini, and looee
eliuteia of small green fiowera. The oorolla and tlie calyx taken
together oonaist of 6 small equal sagmeula, which, in the females,
stand upon the top of the ovaiy. The mala Sowers have 6 atameni;
the bmalea 3 itjlca. The sead'Vassel ia a thin oompreued 8-winged
capsule, containing one or two metabisnous seeds.
The beat acoount of the species is that of Dr. Boiburgh, who
cnltivated seventeen sarta in the Botanic Qarden, Cslcutta ) others
aivknown to botaniata, but far from peifectly.
S. alata, the common Weat India Tarn. It is a native of the West
India*, but ia met with in the Bast Indies also, but onlj in a culti-
vated atata. A figure of it U giran in Rheede'a 'Hortua Ualabaricua,'
voL viL t. 38, under the name of Katsjl-kelengu. Its tubers are
oblong, brown externally, white inlemslly, and often of great die,
weighing sometimea as much as 30 lbs. ; Uiey perish after the first
year, if left in the ground, hating fint pn>dnced the young ones that
are to replace them. "Beaides the tubers the proper roots of all
these pUota are Gbroua, springing Imra and chiefly about the union
of the stems with the tubers, and spreading in every direction." The
atema are fumiahed with four creeted lealy wings, and spread to a
great extent twining round trees and bushes; they often bear prickles
near tlia ground. The flnt leaves that appear on the stem are
alternate, the sucoaeiling are opposite^ seated on long atalka, deeply
heart-ahsped at tb* baaa, aha^prantad, amooth, with from five
■even riba The floireia are small and green, and appear in compound
paniclea. The remainder of the species are very nmitar to this in
gen>-ral charactera ; a few ahort note* will aufilcientlj indicate their
diSercDCea.
D. gleiota, eultivated in Bengal nnder the name of Choc-Puree-
Aloo, is moat esteemed of the Indian Tarns. Its flowers are highly
frurant ; the tnbers are white internally ; (he leaves arrow-headecL.
J), misllo, the Ouranya-Aloo, is another Indian sort with large
tnben attuned with red immediately below the cuticle ; it ia mu^
esteemed ; its tuber* are sometime* thi«e feet long ; its flowen are
A puTftma, called Lal-Qunnya-Aloo in Baikal The tuber* are
permanently atained purple throughouL
At Mb1w"-B Is cultivated anothitr purplercoted sort, the D, o/ro-
fUTpitrta, whoae tubara are large and irregular, and grow ao near
the aurfkce of the ground aa to appear in dry weather through the
cracks tiiat they luke in the soil I^ raising the earth over them.
Other eatable sorts are numeroua, but are lea* valuable, and
therefore not cultivated. In Otsheite tbe D. buUiftra, which bears
email fleshy angular tuber* along the stem in the axils of the leaves,
i* the favourite apeciee.
It ia not a little remarkable that while so many apeoiea are nutri-
tious in thia genua, some should be highly dangerous ; but such
ia unqiieationsbly the fact 33. Jkanonum and D, triphvlla, both
temat^lraved species, have very nauseous and dangerous tubers.
OIOSCOREA'CE^, Tamt, the Yam Tribe, a natural order of
Plants belonging to the olasa Dictyogena They are particularly
dietinguiahed by the following characters : —
Flowers dimcious; calyx and cot^ auperioij atamens S; ovaij
8-celled, with 1 or 2-seeded eella; atyla deeply trifid; tniit lesAr,
compreaaed, occasionally succulent; embryo smalt, near the hilum, m
a lai^ cavity of cartiUginoua albumen. The ^oitiPa of thia order
are with Smilacta and AriMolo^iacat. It oontaina 6 geaera and 100
All the specie* are twining shruba, with alternate or spuriously
Opiiosite leaves. They coneiat, with the exception of 7'aaiui, BUck
Bryony, of tropical plants, or at least of auch aa require a mild
froatiea* climate. Some of them pniduce eatable farinaceous tubers,
or yams, ss the various spedcs of DiOMcorta and Teilttdinaria ; but
there is a dangerous acrid principle prevalent among them, which
render* tha order upon tbe whole aunpicious. It exists in aperceptible
degree in Tam\u, and is still more manifest in the S-leaved Dimmrta.
[TaMcs; TnrcmiiAua; DioscoEsa; fiai&iiiA.]
DIOSMA, a genus of Rutaccous Shruba inhabiting tha Cape of
Good Hope. They have alternate simple leaves, strongly marked
with dots of transparent oil, and diffusing a powerful odour when
bruised. Some of the apeciea are offensive
le European taate, c
I, a ahoot of Aibnis e
perUca at a ripe traXi with
the Buckus with which the Hottentots perfume themselves, and which
are ohieSy yielded by J), eraiala sttd J). trratifUia. The flowers of
most are white ; tiiose of a few are red. By most modem botanists
the old genua Diotiaa is bivken up into eight, namely, Adenaadra,
Q^tonema, Diatrna proper, Emjuztit, Aeaiadema, Baryoma, to which
the Buckus belong Agattuttaa, and MaeroUytit.
Tha following are the beat known species of the old genua
D. serrnf^oJia has linear lanceolate leaves, acuminate, serrulated,
imooth, gluidular at the edges, and 3-nerved. Tbe Sowera are lateral,
white, upon short axillary braotaate peduncles. This species it an
erect shrub, amootb in every part, and {^rowing a foot or aa
high ; branches tapering, purplish, long, lax ; branchleta somewhat
nharled, temato or scattered, angular, purple, twiggy, incurred, loose.
Leavea alternate on short atalka, ovate-oblong, blunt, £a^ smooth,
deep green shore, paler beneath, dotted with sunken gisnds, the
mt^b somewhat keeled, the margiu acolloped, glandular-dotted, and
shining. Flowers solitaiy, white, middle aised. Pedunolee filiform,
shorter than the leavea.
D. eremiiata ia an upright ahrub between two and three feet hl^,
with twiggy branchea of a brownish purple tinge. Tha leaves are
decussate, spreading, about an inch long, oval-lanoeolate, on very short
petioles, very obtuse, delicately and minutely crenated, quite glabrous,
rigid and quite smooth above ; the peduncles about aa long aa the
leaf, axillary, and terminal, chiefly from the superior leaves.
D. crenala (Linn.), D. terrati/olia tVent.), and D. ertntilala yield
leavea which at the Cape of Good Hope are termed Buchu, or Bncco,
and which are aometimea used alone, but more frequently mixed.
When bruised tbey emit a Strang peculiar odour reaembling rosemary
or rue. The taste ia aromatic, but not bitter or disagreeable.
Csdet de Oosaincourt analysed the leaves, and found no alkaloid,
but 6'66 of volatile oQ; 2117 extractive; 2'lSreBiD; GSlignin; I'lO
chlorophylle. Brandea considers tbe extractive to be peculiar, and
terms it Diosmin, analogous to Cathartin. The volatile oil and the
extractive appear to be the active ingredients. They ore usually
adminiatered in tbe form of infusion. [BucBO, in Abtb ahd
ScDiv.l
DIOSFYROS (fivm tmi and nplr, which may be translated ' celes-
tial food'), a genua of Flanta beloaging to the natural order Ebtnacea.
They all form large trees, with alternate thick often coriaceous leaves.
The flowers are usually single and axillary, tbe male and female Bowera
■Mjarate or united. Calyx and corolla l-<^e[t, rarely 5-cleft. Stamina
often 8, but varying in difierent apecies. Qerm superior, often 6-CelIed ;
cells 1-aeeded ; attachment superior. Styles 3 or t, rarely S, or I, and
variously divided. Berry from 1- to 1 2-seeded, often Speeded. Embryo
inverse, and furnished with albumen. Male flower frequenUy with
twin anthers. The apecies are found chiefly in tbe tropical ports both
of Asia and America, aa in the Malayan Archipelsgo and Peninauh^
367
DIOSPYROS.
DIPLODACTTLUS.
858
and in almost every part of India. One species extends southward
to Australia ; one, i>. Lotvs, to Switzerlana ; and D, Vin^niwna into
the United States of America.^ As some are remarkable for the wood
which they afford, and others on account of their fruit, it is necessary
only to notice a few of each, though the whole require the labours of
a monographist.
D. EoenuSf the True Ebony, and that which is considered to be of
the best quality, is a laige tree, a native of Mauritius, Ceylon, and
apparently also of Madagascar ; for D. laneeolcU<i, Poir., collected by
Commerson in that island, is considered the same. The leaves are
very smooth, short, petioled, alternate, bif&rious, oblong in shape,
the buds very hairy ; male flowers sub-racemed, with about twenty
anthers, the hermaphrodite solitary, octandrous. Large quantities
of the ebony of this species have been sometimes imported into
Europe.
Ebony is well Imown as a hard black-coloured wood brought from
the hot parts of the world. The Greek name is ffi^yos, from which
the Latin Ebenut and our word Ebony have been immediately derived.
It is first mentioned by Ezekiel, zxvu. 15, but in the plural, hobnem,
where the men of Dedan are described as bringing to Tyre horns of
ivory and ebony. The Persian name, abnoos, is that by which it is
commonly known all over India; it is probate there&re that the
name, like the wood itself, had an eastern origin. From its hardness,
durability, susceptibility of a fine polish, and colour, which has almost
become another name for blackness, ebony has always been in high
estimation, and in the present day is much used for mosaic work and
ornamental iulayings, though cheaper woods dyed black are frequently
substituted.
Herodotus (iii 97) mentions ebony as part of the presents brought
in considerable quantities to the king of Persia by the people of
Ethiopia. Dioscorides describes two kinds — one Ethiopian, which
was considered the best ; and the other Indian, whidi was intermixed
with whitish stripes and spotted ; and hence oonunentators have dis-
puted whether there were one or two kinds of ebony. But ti^e fact
IS that several trees yield this kind of wood, and all belong to the
genus IHoipyroB. Owing to the known geographical distribution of
&is genus, the ancients must have derived their ebony either from
the peninsula of India and the island of Ceylon, or by the coasting
trade from Madagascar; for no species of ZHcupyrod has yet been
discovered by botanists in the upper parts of Egypt or in Abyssinia,
thooffh it is not improbable that some may be found, as the climate
is well suited to their existence.
D. Sbencuter, This is also a tree of considerable magnitude, a
native of Ceylon, of which the leaves are ooriaoeous and smooth on
both sides, and the buds smooth.
2>. reticulata {Teudaria, Poir.) is another elevated tree, a native of
Mauritius, of which the heart-wood forms Ebony.
D. mdanoxylonf described and figured by Rnmph,. iii, ' Corom.
Plants,' 1 to 46, by Dr. Roxbuigh, is the Ebony-Tree of the Coro-
mandel coast. It is found on the mountains of that coast as well as
of Malabar and in Ceylon. It grows to be very large, particularly the
male tree, of which the wood is also most esteemed. The leaves,
which are sub-opposite, oval, oblong, obtuse, and villous, are dedduous
in the cold season, the new ones appearing with the fiowers in April
and May ; as in other species, it is only the centre of large trees tnat
is black and valuable, and this varies in quantity according to the age
of the tree. The outside wood, which is white and soft, time and
insects soon destroy, leaving the black imtouched. The ripe fruit is
eaten by the natives, though rather astringent, as is also the bark.
D, tomentota and 2>. BoyUi are other IncSan species which yield
ebony.
Several species of the genus bear fruit, which, though clammy and
sub-astringent, is eaten by the natives of the countries where the trees
are indigenous. We need name only the most oelebiuted, as 2>. Zo^ut ,
a native of Africa, and now common in the south of Europe, whidi
bears a small yellow sweetish fruit about the size of a cherry, and
which has by some been supposed to be the famous Lotus of the
Lotophagi ; but this is more likely to have been the Jujube, called
by botanists Ziaypha» Latu»,
D. Kaki is celebrated in China and Japan : specimens introduced
into the Botanic Garden of Calcutta were found to be identical with
others from NepauL The fruit is described by Dr. Roxburgh as being
tolerably- pleasant It is esteemed in China, where it attains the size
of an orange, and is frequently sent to Europe in a dried state, and
called the Date-Plum of Chma, and also Keg-Fig of Japan.
2). discolor of the Philippine Islands also bears a fruit which is
esteemed, and called Mabolo.
D. Viryinianaf the Persimmon-Tree, is indigenous in North Ame-
rica, especially in the middle and southern parts of the United States,
where it attams a height of 60 feet, but it does not flourish beyond
42* N. lat The fruit while green is excessively astringent, but when
ripe, and espedally after it has been touched by the frost, it is sweet
and palatable. The flediy part separated from the seeds is inade into
cakes, which are dried and preserved. A kind of cider has also been
made from this fruit, and a spirituous liquor distilled from its fer-
mented infusion.
i>. gUainoaa also affords a fhdt which, though edible, is fn from
palatable, but more valuable as at: article of commerce. The tree is
middle-sized, a native of the moist valleys amongst the mountains of
the Circars, and all along the foot of the Himalayas to 30" N. lat. Sir
William Jones first mentioned what is well known throughout Bengal^
that the astringent viscid mucus of the fruit is used for paying the
bottoms of boats. The unripe fruit contains a laige proportion of
tannin, and its infusion is employed to steep fishiug-nets in to make
them more durable.
DIOTIS (double-eared, from 81f, double, and o&r, »t6s, an ear), a
genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Compontce, the tribe
Senecionidoif and the section Antkemidea, It has homogamous discoS-
dal heads ; florets hermaphrodite, tubular, the tube compressed, with
two auricles at the base ; the receptacle convex with concave downy-
topped scales; the involucre bell-shaped, imbricated; the fruit
is compressed, and is crowned with the persistent aurided tube of
the corolla.
2>. maritima is the only British species. The whole plant is densely
cottony and white ; the stem is about a foot high, recumbent below,
densely leafy and corymbose above ; the leaves sessile, oblong, obtuse,
flat, crenate, persistent; the heads in terminal corymbose tufts ; the
flowers are yellow. It is found on sandy sea-diores, but is a rare
plant. Diotit is adopted by some botanists as the name of a genus of
plants belonging to the Chenopodiacea, the Axyrii ceratoidea of
Linnseus.. It is a shrub of no great beauty, and is found wild in
Siberia, and some parts of Austria. It thrives well in a light soil,
and is easily increased by layers or cuttings under a hand-glass.
(Babington, Manual ; Koch, Flora Cfermanica.)
DIOXTLITE, a native Sulphato-Carbonate of Lead. [Lead.]
DIPHANITE. [Pbbhnitb.]
DIPHUCETHALA, a genus of Coleopterous Insects belonging to
the LanuUicomet, section Pk^lophagi,
This genus appears to be confined to Australia, and the species of
which it is composed are distinguished from those of allied genera
chiefly by their having the dypeus deeply emarRinated ; they are of
an oblong form ; the thorax is attenuated anteriorly, the elytra are
somewhat depressed, and the abdomen is very convex. The antennis
are 8-jointed, and the club is composed of 8 joints; the anterior
tibisB are generally dentated externally; the anterior tarsi of the
males have the four basal joints dilated, and furnished with a velvet*
like substance beneath, and all the daws are bifid.
A rich golden-green appears to be the prevailing colour of those
insects, and we understand that they are found on fiowers.
D, tericea (Kirby) is nearly half an inch in length, of a golden-
green hue, and has a silk-like gloss on the upper parts; the legs are
red ; the anterior tibise have an obtuse tooth-like process on the outer
side, near the apex; the head and thorax are very thickly and
delicately punctured; the elytra are covered with confiuent punc-
tures, which are arranged in longitudinal rows, and each elytron has
two smooth devated striss ; the under parts of the body ai>9 (N>vered
with white scale-like hairs. This is the laigf*st spedes known ; thei«
are however many which are nearly equal to it in size.
{TroMOiAions of the JSrUomological Society qf London, voL i)
DIPHYDiE. rAOALSFRJB.1
DIPHTDEa [ACALEPHJLJ
DIPHTES. [Aoalkpha]
DIPHTLLIDIA. [Ikfbbobbanchiata.]
DIPHYSA. [Aoalbphjl]
DIPLACA'NTHUS, a genus of FoesU Flacoid Fishes, from the
Old Red-Sandstone of Scotland. Agassis admits four spedes.
(Beports of Brttiak Aitociationfor 1842.)
DIPLAZIUM, a genus of Ferns. The rhicomas of <»ie spedes^
2>. eaculentwn, are eaten.
DIPLEU'BA, a genus of T^lobitee, proposed by Qreen.
DIPLOCUNIUM, a genus of Plants belongmg to the natural order
Begoniaeece.
DIPLOCTE'NIUM, a fossH genus of LameUiferous Corals, allied
to ISirbinolia, from Msstricht. [Madbephtllkba.]
DIPLODA'CTTLUS, a genus of Lizards established by Dr. J. E.
Gray, and regarded by him as forming a new genua in the family of
Oeekoi.
Qeneric Character. — Scales sub-conformable, minute, smooth ; the
abdominal scales rather laige ; the caudd scales annulate and larger ;
the labid scdes moderate, distinct, the three anterior ones on each
side much the laigest ; no gular scales. Tail <nrlindrical, ventricose.
Toes 5, 5, simple, subequal, subcylindrical, the points subdilated,
bifid beneath, with two oval oblique smooth fieshy discs; daws
5, 5, small, very retractile. No femoral pores. (Gray.)
This genus differs from Phyllodactylus of the same zoologist in
having the under sides of the tips of the toes furnished with two
rather large oblong tubercles, truncated at the tip, and forming two
oval discs placed obliquely, one on each side of the claw, instead of
haviiig, as in PhyUodactylw, two membranaceous scdes. The scales
of Pifiodactylue are moreover uniform, whilst in Phyilodaetylut Uiera
is a row of larger scdes, extending doug the back.
2). vUtatus, the Tdlow-Crowned Diplodactjle. Brown, with a
broad longitudind dorsal fillet ; limbs and tail maigined with rows
of yellow spots.
There are two rows of rather distant small spots on each ride of
the body ; the spots become larger on the upper surflMe of the taili
d are Mattered OD the limb*. LeogUioftuedandbody two tnchei, i
ftt of the tail >□ inch and kqiurter. It U an inhabitant of Auttnlu
lianoe it wM brought to England b; Ur. Cuaaingham.
The Ttllow.CnnrDed Dlplodutfta (i^ipladibUiilu tiUalai.)
The remaining ipeoiea of thii ntiiu in the 'Britiih Uiuaum
Catalwue' are — O. ornnCw, D. occUoCwt, a natJTe of Aiutnlia, D.
narmoronu, from Aiutnlia, D. bUiitiatia, and J). UneaHu, Ctft ot
Good Hope.
DrPLODON', Bplx'i name for a g«nua of Fneh-Water Conehifen^
:falada of Lea. [H Aland. ]
DIPLODONTA. [LooraniiB.]
DI'FLODUS, a genua of FoanI Placoid Fiahee, from the Coal
FonnatiOD and Mountain Limwtooe. (Agawiii;,)
DIPLOLEPIS, a genua of Inaocta propoeed by Oeof&oj for Bome
of the apedea which produoe OalU [Oalu.]
DIPLOPTERA, a diviaon ot atinging Hymenopleroua loaeota,
indnding the Tariooa apeeiea of Waapa, and ^aluignidied by having
th« upper winsa folded longitodinally when at rest
DIPLOTTBR08, a genua of Foaail Placoid FiahM, from the Old
Red-Sandatona of Sootland, thiee ipedea; and from the ooal ahale
of Leeda, one Rieeiea. (Agaaaii, Seport lo BritM Auoeiatum, 1S12.)
DIPLOTAXiS <&om InrAoiii, double, and roEit, an airangament,
on aooount of (he doable rowa of aeeda ia each oell), a genua of Plant*
belonging to the natural order OnK^fera, and the tribe Bnatitta.
It haa a oomptcMed pod and laboonvei valvea, with one atcalgbt
■ ... _._j 1 __ ^^Jo^g^ jn tworcwB. The apeoisa are
corolla i-fld;
lea^ biandud dabroui it«m, ihrabtn; below ; and D. wralit, with
an Iwrbaoeona ample hiipid atam. The fonnar ia a fetid plant with
laige T^ow flowan, and growa on old walla, and ia not an unoommon
plant in England and BooUand; the latter ia a rare planL (BaUngton,
ifamraJ ; I^don, Bneseiapadia.)
DIPFEB. [Hbruuda]
DIPSACA'CEiG, TeatUvxrra, the Teails Tribe, a suull natural
Older of Exogenoua PUnta, wil^ monopetaloua flowera. nearly allied
to Oom^potila, from which it diSan in the ovule beiiig pendulou*
initead of ervct^ in the eiobiTO being inverted, in the anthen being
diatinct, not efngenesiimB, and in the corolla having an imbricated,
not ralvate Eutivation. In h&bit the apeciea are eimilor to Cimpotila,
having their flowera coiutuitl; arranged in heada. It embracea 6
genera and about 160 apedee. None of the apoci(«aro of any import-
ance except the Fullers Teazle {DipMUMt FvUorMm), whose ptickly
flower-beadi are extenaively employed in cardiog wooL Many of the
qwotea have handiome flowera, eapecially the Scabioaea, and are
cultivated in the gardena of the ciuioua. Purple and Starry Soabioaaa
are common hardy »ptiiiil1ii, [DiraACUB ; Knactia ; SoABloaA.]
DIP3ACn3, a genua of Planta, the type of the natural order
ZUpMeatea. It hai tba followmg charactera; — The calyx ia oup-
ahaped, the involaoet fomung a tluekened manin to the ovsry ; the
" ' "' " 'julle with apinoua acalei ahorter than the
four aidea and eight little dapnoaiona. The
e ereot priokly or piloae luennial hsrbe. The leavea are
laite; the heada of flowera are terminal, and the ooroUaa lilao-
jolourod, yellow, or white
D. t^/lvettru, the Wild TeaiU, haa opposite undivided leaves ; the
ecslea of the reeeptaola itraigh^ at the end longer than the flowera,
invalucre curved upwarda ; the stem ia Sve or aiz feet high, priokly,
lea^, branched. It ia a native ol Oieat Britain, and oonunon m
hedges and by road-aides. The water which coUeot* in the connated
leaves haa a reputation for curing warts, and alao as a cosmetii
amon^ tiie oonntry people ; hence Ray co^jecturea it has one of ib
namee, Labrwit Fmerii.
D. Fidlotam, Uie Fuller*! Teaale, haa tho acalea of the receptacli
hoohed at the end aa long aa the flowera ; iovolucrea reflezed. Thia
plant ia extmaiTely cultivated in Great Britain, espe<nal]y in the
north and west of England, on account of the use of its hard recurved
■piny Bcalee in the preparation of woollen doth. In this way it baa
been probably introduced. The most useful kinds are grown on
the continent of Eutope, where it ia an undoubted native^ [Tsaile,
in Abts and Sc. Div.]
D. pUotui haa the leavee stalked, witii a leodat at Uie base on each
aide. The heads of the flowera an small It growi in moiat shady
plaoea, and ia a native of England and the whole ot Europe.
There are many other epecies of Diptacia, but they are of httle
importance.
1, a flomi with the bard ajilnr bract from wUoli It ipilngi ; 1, a eorella
with two or (be BtameDa, and (he OTarr coataiaing a pcDdDlona ovale nneh
ma^lBtd j S, a longKodlnal aeetioa el a Omit, wllti the pendolou aeed aod the
isTRted embrjro.
DIPSA8 (Laurentj), Bunganu (Oppel), a genua of Serpents, placed
by Cuvier under the givat genua Golubtr. Body oompreaaed, mud)
less than the head ; icalee of the spinal row of Uie back laiger tlian
the othera.
D. Irtdica, Cuvier; Cotaier Bucephaiiu, Shaw. Black, annulated
with white.
Tba cut in the next page, from Querin ('loonog.'} will illustrate the
The tcnn .Dtptot ia also used by Dr. Leaeh to distinguish a genua
of Freah-Water Conchifera ; and he atatea that its aystematio aitustion
ia between Uaio and Anoitonfa (Anodon) ; Unio of Sowerby ; ffaUuUt
ot Lea. nf aIasx.]
DIPSASTR^IA. [Madksphtluiza.]
DITTERA, one of the ordera into which Inaecta an divided.
Thia name was flrat applied by Ariatotle, and haa aubeequantly been
adopted by almost all entomologiata to designate those insects the matt
atiiking characteristic of which is the poaesaion of two wiuga only.
The common House-Fly and Unfr-BoUlfr-Fly afford familiar azamplas
of this order. Some Dipterous Insects however ste destitute of wings
(lucb as the apedes of the genera JfclapAnjriu, tiyeltrobia, &c) ; henoe
it ia nsosaaary that we ahould here notice other peouliarities obeervable
2 palpi, 2 antemue, S oodli, and 2 hdteres, or poisera.
The wings are generally horisontal in their poaition and transparent ;
their □enures are not very numeroua, and are for the moat part longi-
tudinally diapooed, a character in which the wings of Dipterous Insects
differ from thoee of the ordei* Natropttra and iTvmenepltra.
The proboscis, utuated on the under part of tlie head, is generally
short and membranous, and conaii(a of a sheath (or part anucgoua to
the under lip or labium in mandibulate inaeota), which serves to keep
in situ other parts of the mouth, which when they an all preeoit
represent the mandiblee, mazilhc, tongue, and labium.
Then an however considerable modiflcationa in the structure ol
the proboads : in some it ia long, slender, and oomeoua ; and the
number of incloaed pieoee, which are geneially very slander and abarp,
variee from two to nx.
It is evident that thia structun of mouth ia adapted only to tha
DIPTERACEi
citncldon uid treoamauon of flnidi ; uid when Uwae fluids are con-
tuned witlmi any modentely tough anlwtuioe, the puts indoBsd b;
tlie sheath of the proboacis ora luad u Unoete ia woundiiig and
panetnting to u t« iilow the eacapa of the fluid, vhioh b; tbeir
preaanre ii farced t« aaoend and enter the leaaphaguB.
Tba palpi ve ajtuated at the baae of the proboacia. The antaniUB
BTS placed on the fore part of the head, and appraiimate at thair
baae ; they are generally amall and 3-jointed ; the laat Joint however
ia often fumiihed with an appendage called the atjlet, which ia con-
aiderabl; diTanified not only in form but in ita poaitiou.
In aoma of tba inaecta of Una order, the T^^ida [TavuD*] for
inatance, ibe antemiEB are long and composed of numerona joiata;
and in the dUicida [Couamti] they resemble little plumea.
The ejea in Dipteroua Inaeota aie generally large, eapeciallf ia the
male aex, where they often occupy nearly tha.whole of the hmd.
The Httlterea, or Foiaera, are two amall organa of a ileiider form,
and famished with a knob at their apex, aituatsd at the base of the
thorn on each ude, and immediately behind the attachment of the
wingB. Theae organs have been conaidered by many aa analogoua to
tba under winga of four-winged inaecta. Latrralle and oUtera however
have oome to a dillerent opinion, from the circumitanoe of their not
bdng attatdied to the aame part of the thorax. The use of theae
meso-thoraz i
the ptothoraz and c
The acutflllum varies oonaiderabty in form, and ia aomatimM aimed
with tpinea ; we find it developed in an extraordinary manner in the
genua (^tjrphiw (Dalman), where it ia very convex, and covers the
whole ahdomen.
The abdomen seldom presents more than sertn distinct segments ;
ita fonn ia very Taiiable.
DipterooB Inaecta undergo what is termed a complete tranaforma-
tion. Their Uiteb are devoid of feet, and have a head of the same
■oft substance h the body, and without determinate fonn. The parts
of the mouth exhibit two acaly pointed plates. The sUgmata are
nearly all placed on the terminal segment of the bod^. When about
to assume the pupa state, they do not oast their skm (as is tha case
with the larvn of moat inaecta), but this becomee gradually hardened.
and after a time Uke animal ai
the skin of the larva forma as i
There are however eioeptioi
□ thla rule, for many change thur
skin before they assume the pupa state, and aome spin ooooona.
We m» here observe, that in some of the apeciea of the genns Sar-
ci^kaga Uie eggs are hatched within the body of the mother, whence
the insect first makes its appearance in the larva state ; and in tha
Pupipara not only are the eggs faatohed within the body of the parent,
but the hum continue to reside there until their tranaformalian into
puiwo.
As regards the habita of Dipterous Insects, they will be found
under the heads of the several familica and genera; we shall therefore
conclude by noticing the two great sections into which this order ia
divided by Uacquart These are the fftmixxra and tha BraAoeera.
The species of these two sections are distineuished chiefly by the
number of joints of the antenna and palpL Their eharactara are as
follows :^
Section 1. Jftmocera. — Antennie filiform or letaceons, often aa long
aa the head and thorax together, and oompoeed of at least aix joints ;
palpi composed of four or five iointai body generally elender and
elongated { bead small ; proboscis sometimes long and slender, and
incloaing six lancets ; sometimes short and thick, having but two
lanceta; thorax large and very oonvsx; legs long; wil^ long, and
with elongated basal cella.
Section 2. Brachacera. — Antenna short, composed of three joints.
thorax ; proboscis either long, slender, coriaoeous, and protruded, or
short, tmck, and retracted, and aontaining either six, four, or two
lancets ; thorax moderately convex ; legs usually of moderate length ;
wings with the baaal cells rather short.
(Wiedemarm, JXptera Sz^ica, Svo, 1821 ; Ueigen, Sgtiemaiitckt
Baekreibang dtr btiamiltn fufvpdwdtcn aefiJlagtlMge* InddOat,
6 vola. Svo, with figures ; Hsoquart, in the Suilei i Buffon, EMoirt
da Iiueeta, ' Dipt^res,' 2 vols. Svo. ; Kirby and Speooe, Jntrodueiion
to Rttomologf ; Walker, Britidh MMteum (^taligttt, 'Diptera' in
Iiueetn BritanaKO.)
DIPTEIU'CE^, or DIFTBBOCARPE.£, l)ipltradi, aa Important
order of East Indian Exogenoua PolypetaloDs Trees. They nave a
tubular unequal permanent calyx, with five lobes, which after flower-
ing become leafy and very much enlarged, surmounting the fhllt with*
le IsTfa sad Icafr, MfiA very
DIPTERIX.
DITRUPA.
8M
r
•re eTentuftlly abortlTe^ except one, which fonne the interior of a hard
dry leatheiT pericarp. The seed is solitary, contains no albumen, and
hss an emonro with two lai^ twisted and crumpled cotyledons, and
a superior radicle. The leaves are long, broad, alternate, rolled inwards
before ther unfold, with strong straight veins running obliquely from
the midrib to the maigin, and oblong deciduous stipules rolled up
like those of a MagncUa, The affinities of this order are with TiUacea
and Corjflacea! on the one side, and dimacecB and TemstromiaeeeB on
the other.
The different species produce a number of resinous, oily, and other
substances ; one a sort of camphor [Drtobalakofs] ; another a fra^
grant resin used in temples ; a third, Gum Animi ; while some of the
commonest pitches and Tarnishes of India are procured from others.
Rhal, or Dhoona, a resin burned in the temples of India, is produced
by S^orea robuita, Saul, the best timber in India, is furnished by the
same tree. It contains 7 genera and 47 species.- [Diftsbooabfus ;
Drtobalanofs ; Vatebia.]
DIPTERIX. [CSOUMABOUVA.]
DIPTER0CARPU8, a genus of East Indian, and chiefly insular
Trees, the type of the natural order DijOeraeetB. Blume gives the
following essential characters : — "Calyx inegularlv 5-lobed at the
mouth ; the two opposite segments very long and ligulate ; petals
five, convolute when unexpended ; stamens numerous ; anthers long,
linear, terminating in an awl-shaped point ; nut rather woody, and
1 -celled and 1 -seeded bv abortion, inclosed in the enlarged caJyx."
The species are described as enormous trees, abounding m resinous
juice, with erect tninks, an i*sh-c«>loiired bark, strong spreading limbs,
and oval leathexy entire leaves, with pinnated veins. The flowers are
large, white or pink, and delioiously fragrant The pubescence is
always stellate when present The resinous juice of 2>. trinervii, a
tree from 160 to 200 feet high, inhabiting the forests of Java, is made
into plaisters for ulcers and foul sores ; and when dissolved in spirit
of wine, or formed into an emulsion with white of egg, acts upon the
mucous membranes in the same way as balsam of oopaiva. Dry^hor
lanop§ CompAom, the Camphor-Tree of Sumatra, is usually referred
to this genus ; but» according to Blume, is really a diitinct genus.
p)BTOBALAirOP8.]
DI'PTERUS, a genus of FossU Fishes, from the Old Red-Sandstone
of Caithness and Herefordshire. (Valendennes and Pentland, ChoL
Tram,, 2nd series, vol. ilL)
DIPU& [Mubida]
DIPTRE, a variety of Scapolite. It ocours with talc in the Pyre-
nees, and contains—
Silica 55*5
Alumina 24*8
Lime 9*6
Soda 9*4
It has a specific gravityof 2*65.
DIRCA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Thyme-
Uaeecs, It has a campanulate calyx, with an obsolete unequal limb ;
eight capillary projecting filaments inserted into the middle of the tube,
altenately longer ; the style incurved at the apex. This is an Ameri-
can genus, with a smgle species, the D. palwtrit. It U remarkable
for growing in wate^ places, and is called Bois de Plomb by the
French. It is found in the low woods of North America, bearing the
severest cold, and the greatest heat of the various parts of the United
States. It is an irregular shrub, with a tendency to a horizontal
direction in its branches. The flowers are yellow, and appear before
the leaves, and when voung |hey are inclosed within a small hairy
bud, occup^ng a sheath or cavity in the end of each flowering branch.
The fruit IS a small, oval, acute, red, 1 -seeded beny. This plant is
in all its parts very tough, and the twigs are used for making rods,
the bark for ropes, baskets, &c The bark is acrid, and in doses of
six or eight grains it produces heat in the stomach, and brings on
vomiting. It also acts as a vesicatory when applied to the skin, and
in small doses as a cathartic The fruit possesses narcotic properties,
and produces effects upon the syfltem similar to those of Stramonwm,
Snails are observed to be very fond of this plant, when it is culti-
vated. In its cultivation, layers require two years before they
produce roots. It cannot be propagated in this country either by
cuttings or seeds. (Loudon, JSncydopcedia of Plants ; Lindley, Flora
Mediea.)
DISA'STER, a subdivision of SchinodenMlOf including &KUangus
ovoiit of Phillips. From the Oolite. (Agassis.)
DISCARIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order /^Aani-
naeea. One species, D, fArifuga, yields the Quina of BnsU, which
is employed as a febrifuge and a tenia
DISCO'BOLI, the third famUy of the Malaoopteiygious Osseous
Fishes in the arrangement of Cuvier. The distinguishing character
is the presence, on the under surface of the body, of a disc composed
of the united ventnl fins. The fishes of this family aie popularly
known as Suoking-Fidies. The most common and most remarkable
species inhabiting the Britidi seas is the Lump-Sucker {OyclopieruB
ZumiHu). It is a laige-bodied small-finned fish, bearing on its back
^ elevated crest or ridge, and having a powerful sucker under its
throat, formed of the combined pectorals and ventrals. Before the
spawning season it is of a brilliant crimson colour mingled with
orange, purple, and blue^ but afterwards changes to a dull blue or
lead colour. When frill grown it is rough with tnberdes, but when
very young is smooth and beautifu], marked with brilliant stripes of
various hues. In the seas of the Orkneys, in June, numbers of the
young fish, half an inch in length, are seen swimming around fioating
sea-weeds. For a long time they were supposed to belong not only to
a different species, but even to a different genus. In the old fish the
sucker is so powerful that a pail of water, containing some gallons,
has been lifted up by a person holding the tail of a Cychpterus adhering
to the bottonL It fives on young fisL It is brought to market, but
oftener as a curiosity than as an article of food. The Cyeloptena
Lumpui ranges from the shores of Greenland to those of the south of
England, and westward as far as the coast of North America. Another
genus of this family is Lq^adogoiter, consisting of a number of small
shes which ha?e two discs on the under surface of their bodies, the
one formed by the pectoral fins and the other by the ventrala. They
adhere to stones, rocks, and shells by these discs. They have wedge-
shaped defenceless bodies, smooth and without scales, often painted
with the most brilliant and defined colours. The Sea-Snail, or Liparit,
is a thixd genus of this family, the species of which resemble gobies
in form. Thev are found un<^ stones at low-water mark, and are
not so brilliantly coloured as others of the tribe. They are furnished
with a sixigle sucker formed by the united ventrals and pectorals.
DISCOrDEA^ a genus of Bckinodermata, in which axe ranked, by
Gray and Agaasiz, several species generally referred to in works on
oiganic remains under the title of OaUritet, They belong to the
Chalk, Greensand, and Oolite.
DISK, or DISC, a term in Botany signifying any ring or whorl of
glands, scales, or other bodies that surround thebase of an ovary, inter-
vening between it and the stamens. In its most common stite it is a
fleshy wax-like ring as in the orange ; it frequently forms a yellowish
lining to the calyx, as in the plum and cherry ; and not unfreqnently
rises up like a cup aroimd the ovary, as in the tree pseony. The latter
renders it probable' that the disk is nothing but an inner whorl of
rudimentary stamens. Previously to the expansion of the flower the
disk contains fecula, and is dry and brittle ; but after the blossom
unfolds, it perspires a sweet honey-like fluid, and becomes tough,
absorbing oxygen and parting with carbonic acid.
DISSEPIMENTS, the partitions in the inside of a fruit which are
formed by the union of the sides of its constituent carpels. Dissepi-
ments are therefore necessarily alternate with the stigma. When
partitions which do not bear this relation to the stigma occur in the
inside of a fruit, they are called Phragmata, or spuriotu dissepiments,
as in the Cathartocarput fitfula, where they are horicontal, and
in Verbena, where they are vertical
DISTHENE, a name for KyaniU, rKTAKm.]
DI'STICHOUS, a term in Botany, signifies 'arrsnf^ in two tows,'
as the grains in an ear of barley, and the florets in a spikelet of quaking-
grass.
DISTOMA. [BOTBTLLIDJB.]
DITHTROCA'RIS, a fossil genus of Crustaceans, so named by Dr.
Scolder. It occurs in Tyrone and Derry. D, Oolei and J), arbieuiarii
are described in Portlock's ' Geological Report ' on those counties.
DITRUTA, a genus of Annelida, founded by the Rev. M. J.
Berkeley, and which, from its having been previously confound^
with the species of an entirely distinct genus {Dentalium), and 'some
circumstances respeoting its capture in alivixig state, requires parti-
cular notice. It nas the following characters :^
Shell free, tubular, open at both ends. Operculum flxed to a
conical pedicellated cartilsginous body, thin, testaceous, concentrically
striate. Branchise tweuty-two, in two sets, not rolled up spirally,
flat, broadest at the base, feathered with a single row of cilia. ManUe
rounded behind, slightly crisped, denticulated in front, strongly
puckered on either side. Fascicles of bristles, six on each side.
(Berkeley.)
Mr. Berkeley states that a few of the specimens of sand, gravel, &a,
horn diffSsrent parts of the great bank running parallel with the
north-west coast of Ireland, obtained by Captain A. Vidal, R.N.,
during the extensive soundings made by that omoer in the summer of
1830, whilst in search of Aitkin's Rock, were placed in his hands,
when he found among them several specimens of the i^ell of a
testaceous animal, which proved to be we JDentaliwm suhulatuM of
Deshayes, and identical with the Biadeira specimens ; the only points
of difference being a paler hue, and an almost total absence of the
constriction near the orifice, the former being, as Mr. Berkeley
observes, exactly such as might be expected frx)m the occurrence of
the species in a higher latitude, and the latter so variable as not to
throw anv doubt on its specific identity. Having previously been
convinced, from Mr. Lowe's specimen, that the animal was not a
Jkntalium, but an Anuelide, Mr. Berkeley requested Captain Vidal to
preserve in spirit during the following summer, when operations on
the bank were to be resumed, whatever animals he should procure
alive in sounding, and, if possible, specimens of the so-called Jh^lO'
Hum, at the same time noting the depth at which they were taken.
The result was the capture of the shell with the included animal,
which enabled Mr. Berkeley to establish the genus named at the head
of this article. The animals of the Madeira and British specimens
proved to be perfectly identical
It iqspean from Mr. Berkeley's paper, that the sheUs flnt handed
965
DITTANY OF CRETR
DODO.
SAq
to him by Captain Vidal occurred in fine Band, at various distanoea
firom the coast, in lat. 55°, at great depths — ^from 60 to 120 fathoms.
After speaking of the animals preserved in spirit, and stating that
Captain Vidal noted the depth at which each specimen was taken,
Mr. Berkeley remarks that the so-called I>ent<dium did not occur at
any less depth than 684 fi^thoms, and twice (on one occasion off St
Kilda) it occurred at 171 fathoms. Nothing could be concluded as
to habit, from Uie manner in which the shells were imbedded in the
tallow (with which the lead was armed) ; but this was of the lees
consequence, says Mr. Berkeley, because it had appeared, from Mr.
Lowe's information, that the animals are found in great numbers
together, in masses of a conglomerate (if it may be so called) of mud
and various marine substances, the broader end only appearing above
the surfieuie. Mr. Berkeley infers, from the great difference* in the
diameter, tibat the narrow or posterior end is gradually absorbed in
the course of growth.
Mr. Berkeley is of opinion that^ notwithstanding the resemblance
of the shell to that of true Denlalia, it is most nearly allied to
Serpyla ; but evidently distinct^ in having an unattached shell (for
there is no evidence to lead to a suspicion that it is attached, even in
infancy), and especially in possessing a posterior as well as anterior
aperture. He toinks that other species of so-called JhrUalia may be
found to belong to the genus IHirupet, One at least, he observes,
does so belong, namely, DerUaliwn Gachu, Mont. (2>. eoaretatum,
Lam.). He thinks it highly probable that other minute British
Dentalia will prove to possess an animal of like structure, though
possibly, even in that case, it would be requisite to place them in a
ditttiuct genua.
IHtntpa iubulata, msfniflod.
a, the animal ; h, one of the branchln ; e, a portion of the sntirior part of
the mantle ; 4, operovlom. (* Zool. Joum.' vol. r.)
DITTANT OF CBETE, the common name of the woolly labiate
Plant called Origanum IHctamnui or Amarcieui DiclcvMWU.
DIITRIS, a genus of curious Orchidaceous Phmta^ from Australia.
DIVERS. [COLTMBISA.]
DIVIDIVL [C^ALFIHIA.]
DIVI LADNER, the Forbidden Fruit of the Ceylonese. It is
prodnc(*d by a species of TabemoBmontana,
DOCK, the common name of many perennial tap^rooted species of
the genus JRwnex, They do not multiply by division of the root, but
their seeds are dispersed in such abundance that they become a
serious nuisance in cultivated land if thev are not extirpated. The
only two methods of doing this are either by tearing or digging them
up, which is so slow as scarcelv to be adopted in practical husbandry,
or by constantly hoeing up their young shoots ; by the latter means
they usually may be destroyed in a single tunmier. [Rumez.]
DOCLEA. [MiJADA.]
DODDER. TCuscutacba]
DODECAOY^NIA, the name of any order In the Linnnan dassifi-
cation of plants wherein the number of styles is twelve.
DODECA'NDRIA, the twelfth class in the Linniean classification
of plants. It contains species having twelve or about twelve stamens,
provided they do not adhere by their filaments.
DODO ilHdui), a genus of extinct Birds, of whose existence in
the 16th and 17th centuries there is abundant evidence. As this is
one of the few instances in which any history has been left of the
extinction of a race of animals, we proceed to draw attention to
the more prominent facts.
It appears that Vasco de Qama, afler having doubled the Cape of
Qood Hope (Cabo Tormentoso, or Cape of Storms) in 1497, discovered
at 60 leagues beyond it a bay, Angra de San Blaz, near an isle, where
he saw a very great number of birds of the form of a goo^e, but with
wings like those of the bate, which the sailors called Solitaries. On
their return in 1499, the Portuguese touched again at San Blaz,
where they took a great number of these birds, and comparing them
to swans, called ^e island Ilha des Cisnes (Isle of Swans). In the
voyage to the East Indies in 1598 by Jacob van Neck and Wybrand
van Warwijk (small 4to., Amsterdam, 1648), there is a description
of the Walgh-Vogels in the island of Ceme, now called Mauritius, as
being as lai^e as our swans, with laxge heads, and a kind of (lood
thereon ; no wings, but in. place of them three or four black little
pens (pennekens), and their taila consibting of four or five curled
plumelets (pluymken3) of a grayish colour. The breast is spoken of
as very good, but it is stated that the vovagers preferred some turtle-
doves that they found there. The bird appears with a tortoise
near it in a small engraving, one of six which form the prefixed
plate.
In the frontispiece to De Brv (' Quinta Pars Indiss OrientaUs,' ftc.,
M.DCI), surmounting the architectural design of the title^age, will
be found, we believe, the earliest engravings of the Dodo. A pair
of these birds stand on the cornice on each side, and the following
cut is taken from the figure on the left hand.
Dodo {Gallu9 gallinaeeuM pertgrinui,)
In De Bry's ' Desoripiio InsulsB de Ceme a nobis Mauritius dicta'
is the following account : — " Cerulean parrots also are there in great
numbers, as well as other biixls; besides which there is another
larger kind, greater than our swans, with vast heads, and one half
covered with a skin, as it were, hooded. These birds are without
wings, in the place of which are three or four rather black feathers
(quarum loco tres quatuorve penn<e nigriores prodeunt). A few
curved delicate ash-coloured feaUiers constitute the tail. These birds
we called Walck-Vogel, because the longer they were cooked the
more unfit for food they became (quod quo longius sen diutius
elixarentur, plus lentesoerent et esui ineptiores fierent). Their bellies
and breasts were nevertheless of a pleasant flavour (saporis jucundi)
and easy of mastication. Another cause for the appellation we gave
them was the preferable abundance of turtle-doves which were of a
far sweeter and more ^teful flavour." It will be observed that the
bill in De Bry's figure is comparatively small.
Clusius in his 'Exotica' (1605) gives a figure, here copied, which,
he says, he takes from a rough sketch in a journal of a Dutch
voyager who had seen the bird in a voyage to the Moluccas in the
year 1598.
Figure from Closioi.
The following is Willughby's translation of Clusius, and the section
is thus headed : "The Dodo, called bv Clusius QaUiu gaUinaeeuM
peregrinut, by Nieremberg Oygnus cucuUatttt, by Bontlus Ihvnt/' : —
*<This exotic bird, found by the HoUanders in the island called
Cygnsa or Ceme (that is the Swan Island) by the Portuguese,
Mauritius Island by the Low Dutch, of 80 miles compass, famous
especially for black ebony, did equal or exceed a swaa in bigness,
but was of a far different shape ; for ite head was great^ covered as
it were with a certain membrane resembling a hood : beside, its bill
was not flat and broad, but thick and long; of a yellowish cdour
next the head, the point being black. The upper chap was hooked ;
the nether had a bluish spot in the middle between the yellow ^'^
»" DODO.
blaok p&rt. They raported that it Is ooTered with thin and abort
featlun, and wants wingi, inidead whereof it hath only four tfr Sve
long black faathen ; that ths hinder part of the bod; is very fat
■nd fleshy, wherein for the tail were four or fire imall curled feauien,
twirled up together, of an asb-ooloiir, Ite legi are thick rather than
long, whose upper part u far ns the knee is covered with black
featken ; the lower part together with the feet of a yellowish colour :
ila feet divided into four toea, three (and thoea the longer) atanding
forward, th« fourth sad ahortest backward : all fiimiahed with black
elawa. Altar I bad oompoaod and writ down the hiiitary of thia bird
with aa mucb diligence and faithfulness as I could, I happened to
see iii the houaa of Peter Pauwiua, primary professor of physio in
the univenity of La;den, a leg thereof out off at the knee, lately
brought over out of Mauritius bis island. It was not vety long,
from the knee to the bending of the foot, bemg but little more than four
inehea, but of a great thickness, so that it was almost four inches in
compaaa, and ooTer*d with thick-set soalf s, on the upper side broader,
and of a yellowiab colour, on the under (or backside of the leg) lesser
and dusky. The upper aide of the toes was also covered with broad
scales, the under side wholly oallous. The toes were short for so
thick a leg ; for the length of the greatest or middlemost toe to the
Bail did not much eiceed two inches, that of the other toe next to it
■caroe oame up to two inches : the hack toe fell something short of an
inch and a half; but the claws of all Were thick, hard, black, less
than an ineh long; but that of the back toe longer than the rest,-
eioeeding an inch.* The mariners in their dialect gave this bird
the name Walgh-YoEel, that is, a nauseous or yellawiaht bird;
partly because after long boiling its flesh became not tender, but
continued hard and of a difficult concoction, excepting the breast
tui giuard, which they found to be of no bad relish, partly because
they oould easily get many tnrtle-doves, which were much mors
delicate and pleasant to the palate. Wherefore it was no wonder
that in companion of thoae Ihey despised this, and said they could
be well content without it. Uoreover they said that they found
certain stones in Hm giazard, ami no wonder, for all other birds as
Well as theae swallow sUrnea, to asnst them in grinding tiieir meat."
Thus &r Clusius.
In the 'Voyage of Jacob Heemskerk and Wolfert Harmansi to the
East Indies' in 1601, 1602, 1603 (small 4to., Amsterdam, 1618),
folio 19, the Dod^aaneu (Dodoa) ore enumerated among tJie birds of
the Island of ' Ceme, now Uauritius ; ' and in the ' Journal of the
East Indian Voyage of Willem Tsbrantsi Bontekoe van Hoom,
comprising many wonderful and perilous things that happened to
him'— from 1618 to 162G (small <to., Utrecht, 1649)— under the head
of the ' Island of Manritius or Maskarinas,' mention is made (page 6)
of the Dod-eenen, which had small wings, but could not fly, and
were so fat that they scarcely could go.
Herbert, in his ' Travels" (163i), gives a figure or ratlier figures of
a bird that he calls ' Dodo,' and the following account : — " The Dodo
DODO. wa
ba directed by auch small and eamplemeDtoll wins*, a* are unable t ■
hoise her from the ground, serving Only to prove her a bird ; whtc i
otherwise might be doubted of : her bead is variously drest, the on i
halfe hooded with downy blackish feathers; the other perfectly
naked ; of a whitish hue, as if a transparent lawne had covered it:
her bill is very howked and bends downwards, the thrill or breathing
place is in the midst of it : from whicli part to the end, the colour is
alight greane mixt with a pale yellow; her eyes be round and small,
and bright aa diamonds ; her cloaUiinK is of Gnest downe, such as you
sea in goslins ; her trayne is (like a China beariQ of tiiree or foure
short feathers; her legs thick, and black, and strong; her talloDS or
pounoea sharp ; her etdmaok fiery hot, so aa stones and iron are easily
digested in tt ) in that and ahape, not a little resembling the Africk
oeatriches ; but so much, as for their more certain difference I dare
to give thee (with two others} her reprtsentatian."^4th »d,, 1677.)
Nieremberg'a daecription (16fi5) may be considered a copy of that
of CIuuus, and iitdeed his whole nork ia a mare compilation. Aa we
have seen above, he names the bird Cyffnut cucuUatut.
In Tradescant'i Catalogue ('Musceum Tmdeecantianum ; or, a Col-
lection of Rarities preserved at 9outh Lambeth, near Londoo, by John
Tradeacant,' London, 165S, 12mQ.), we And among the ' Whole Birds'
— " Dodar, from the island Uauritius ; it ia not able to flio being so
big." That this waa a Dodo there can be no doubt ; for we have the
testimony of an eye-witneaa, whose ornithological oompetenoy cannot
be doubted, in the affirmative. Willugbby at the end of bis section
on ' The Dodo,' and immediately beoeath his translation of Bontius,
has the fallowing words ; — " Wa have seen this bird dried, or iU akin
atufFbd in Tradescant'a cabinet." We ahall hare^ler trace this
specimen Ut Oxford.
Jonston (16£7) repeats the figure of Cluaios, and refers to his
description and that of Herbert.
Sontiua, edited by Fiso (1968), writea aa follows: " De Dronte,
aliia Dodders." After stating that among the islands of the East
Indies is that which is called Ceme by some, but Mauritius 'a
noatratibos,' especially celebrated for its ebony, and that in the said
island a bird 'mine conformationis' called Dronte abounda, he
proceeds to tall u»— we take Willughby's tronslatioQ— that it is " for
bigness of meui oiie between an ostrich and a turkey, from which it
partly differs in shape and partly agrees with them, eapecially with .
the African ostriches, if yon oonsider the rump, quillo, and feathers ;
so that it was like a pigmy among them, if you regard the ahortness
of its legs. It hath a great ilt-faroured bead, covered with a kind of
membrane resembling a hood ; great black eyes ; a bending, promi-
nent fat neck; an extraordinary long, strong, bluish-white bill, only
the ends of each mandible are of a different colour, that of the upper
black, that of the aether yellowish, both iharp cointsd and crooked.
I
Herbert's fl(ur*.
comes first to our description, here, and in Dygarrois (and no w
else, that ever I could see or heare of, is generated the Dodo). (A
Portuguiie name it is, and has reference to her dmplenes), a bird
which for shape sud rarenesse might be called a Fbtemx (wei't in
Arabia) ; her body is round and eitreame fat, ber slow pace bcgeU
that corpulencie ; few of them weigh lesse than fifty pound : better
to the eye than the stomack : greasie appetites may perhaps cotamend
them, but to the indiflTerently curious nourishment, but prove oOen-
siva. Let's take her picture : her vissge darts forth metanoholy, ss
■ensibls of nature'a injurie in framing so great and massie a boi^ to
0 :— Xne
Iho foUowfr
It or tbe
Di. Gray obHrres that Ihi leg
lUsilljof the meunieiDtnt, the
T, and fflnaUj came to the Britlab
t So in WlUnthby, Iml the print ii K}oewhat indlstlaiit, and
HTOT. Ia the orli^ol the vorda are " Wilgh.Toget, hoc nt. Ban
■ii% partim quod," *o. i the word tbenfOre is on latcrpoUtloa.
ostriches ; in each side instead of hard wing-feathers or quills, it
furnished with small soft-featbered wings, of a yellowish-ash colour;
and behind, the rump, instead of a tail, is sdomed with five small
curled feathers of the same ccloiu-. It hath yellow legs, thick, but
very short; four toes in each foot, solid, long, ss it were scaly, armed
with sbong black claws. It is a slow.paced and stupid bird, and
which sssilj^ becomes a prey to the fowlers. The flesh, eapeciidly of
the breast, is fat, esculent, and so copious, that Ihreo or four Dodos
will someUmea suffice to SU an hundred seamen's bellies. If they
be old, or not well boiled, they are of difficult concoction, and aro
salted snd stored up for provision of victual There ar»-found in
DODO.
DODO.
S70
their Btomachfl BtaDes of an ash cx)lour, of diyen figuroB and mag-
nitudes; yet not bred there, as the common people and seamen
fuioj, but swallowed by the bird; as though by this mark also
natiuv would manifest that these fowl are of the ostrich kind, in
that they swallow any hard things, though they do not digest
them."
It appears from Adam Olearius (' Die Gottorfisobe Kunst Kammer,'
1666), that there was a head to be seen in the Qottorf Museum ; but
the figure (tab. xiii. f. 5) is veiy like that of Clusiua. It is mentioned
as the head of the Walch-VoBe], and Clusius is referred to. In the
plate the head is shaded, and has a more finished appearance ; the
rest of the bird is in outline.
Grew (* Musseum Regalis Societatis ; or a Catalogue and Description
of the Natural and Artificial Rarities belonging to the Royal Society/
London, folio, 1681), at p. 68, thus describes the bird which is the
subject of our inquiry : — " The leg of a Dodo, called Oifgntu cucuUatut
by Nierembergius; by Clusius, OtUlut gallinaceua peregrinut; by
Bontius called Dronte, who saith that by some it is cidled (in Dutch)
Dod-aers, laigely described in Mr. Willughby's 'OmithoL' out of
Clusius and others. He is more especially distinguished from other
birds by the membranous hood on his head, the greatness and
strength of his bill, the littleness of his wings, his bunchy tail, and
the shortness of his legs. Abating his head and legs, he seems to be
much like an ostrich, to which also he comes near as to the bigness
of his body. He breeds in Mauris's Island; The leg here preserved
is covered with a reddish-yellow scale ; not much al^ve four inches
lo^St yet above five inches in thickness, or round about the joints,
wherein, though it be inferior to that of an Ostrich or Cassowary, yet,
joined with its shortness, mav render it of almost equal strength."
At p. 73 there is the followmg notice : — " The head of the Man of
War, called also Albitrosse ; supposed by some to be the head of a
Dodo, but it seems doubtful. That there is a bird called the Man of
War is commonly known to our seamen ; and several of them who
have seen the head here preserved do afi&rm it to be the head of that
bird, which they describe to be a very great one, the wings whereof
are eight feet over. And Ligon (' Hist, of Barbad.' p. 61), speaking of
him, saith, that he will commonly fiy out to sea to see what ships are
coming to land, and so return. Whereas the Dodo is hardly a vola-
tile bird, having little or no wings, except such as those of the
Cassowary and the Ostrich. Besides, although the upper beak of this
bill doth much resemble that of the Dodo, yet the nether is of a quite
different shape ; so that this either is not the head of a Dodo, or else
we have nowhere a true figure of it." Qrew then gives a very
lengthened description of the skull which is figured by him (tab. 6),
and intituled ** Head of the Albitros," as it doubtless was. The leg
above mentioned is that now preserved in the British Museum, where
it was deposited with the other specimens described by Grew, when
the Royal Society gave their * rarities ' to that national establishment.
Grew was a well-qualified observer, and much of this description
implies observation and comparison ; indeed, though he does not
refer to it, there is no reason for supposing that Grew was not familiar
with Tradescant's specimen.
Charleton also (' Onomasticon/ 1688) speaks of the Dodo Lusita-
norumf Cygnu$ cucuUcUus, Willughby and Ray, and asserts that the
Museum of the Royal Society of London contained a leg of the Dodo.
This was evidently the leg above alluded to.
We now proceed to trace the specimen which was in the Musseum
TradescantJanum. There were, it seems, three Tradescants — grand-
father, father, and son. [Tradbscant, in Lit. and Bioo. Div.] The
two former are said to have been gardenera to Queen Elizabeth, and
the latter to Charles I. There are two portraits to the ' Museeum,'
one of 'Joannes Tradescantua pater' and the other of 'Joannes
Tradescantus filius,' by Hollar. These two appear to have been the
collectors : for John Tradescant, the son, writes in his address " to
the ingenious reader" that he ''was resolved to take a catalogue of
those varieties and curiosities which my father had scedulously col-
lected, and my selfe with continued ctiligence have augmented, and
hitherto preserved together." This John Tradescant, tiie son, must
have been the Tradescant with whom Elias Ashmole boarded for a
summer when Ashmole agreed to purchase the collection, which was
said to have been conveyed to A^shmole by deed of gift from Tra-
descant and his wife. Tradescant died soon after, and Ashmole in
1662 filed a bill in Chancery for a delivery of the curiosities. The
cause is stated to have come to a hearing in 1664 ; and in 1674 Mra
Tradescant delivered up the collection pursuant to a decree in
Chancery, and afterwards (April, 1678, some say) was found drowned
in her own pond. Ashmole added to the collection, and presented
it to the University of Oxford, where it became the foimdation of the
Ashmolean Museum. That the entire ' Dodar ' went to Oxford with
the rest of TradescanVs curiosities there can be no doubt. Hyde
('Religionis Veterum Persarum, &a, Historia,' 1700) makes particular
mention of it as existing in the Museum at Oxford. There, according
to Mr. Duncan, it was destroyed in 1766 by order of the visitors,
and he thus gives the evidence of its destruction : —
In the 'Ashmolean Catalogue, made by Ed. Llhwyd, Mus»i
Procustos,' 1684 (Plott being the keeper), the entry of the bird is
" No. 29. Gallus nillinaceus peregrinus Clusii," &c. In a Catalogue
made subsequently to 1755, it is stated that ** The numbers firom
VAT. BIflfl. DIY. VOL. IL
5 to 46 being decayed, were ordered to be removed at a meeting of
the viijority of the visitors, Jan. 8, 1756." Among these of course
was included the Dodo, its number being 29. This is fiirther shown
b^ a new Catalogue, completed in 1756, in which the order of the
visitors IB recorded as follows : " Ilia quibus nuUus in margine
assignatur numerus a Musaoo mbducta sunt cimelia, annuentibus
Vice-Cancellario aliisque Curatoribus ad ea lustranda convocatis, die
Januarii 8vo., A.D. 1755." The Dodo is one of those which are here
without the number. (Duncan, ' On the Dodo ; ' ' 2iOol Jouzn.,' voL iii.
p. 559.)
Upon this solemn sentence, which left to the Museum nothing but
a foot and a head, Sir C. Lyell makes the following observation : "Some
have complained that inscriptions on tomb-stones convey no general
information, except that individuals were bom and died, accidents
which must happen alike to all men. But the death of a species is
so remarkable an event in natural history that it deserves commemo-
ration; and it is with no small interest that we learn from the
archives of the University of Oxford, the exact day and year, when
the remains of the last specimen of the Dodo, which had been per-
mitted to rot in the Ashmolean Museum, were cast away :" and the
author concludes by giving the fatal record at length with becoming
gravity. The head and foot which now constitute the greatest
treasure of the Museum at Oxford were preserved by the curator,
who seems to have had a larger amount of natural history knowledge
than the majority of visitors.
We now come to the celebrated painting id the British Museum,
a copy of which, by the kind assistance of the officers of the
zoological departmeut, who have given us every assistance in prosecu-
ting this inquiry, and who had it taken down for the purpose, we
present to our readers.
It has been stated that the painting came into the possession of
Sir Hans Sloane, president of the Royal Society, and that it was
bought at his sale by Edwards, who, aifler publishing a plate from
it in his ' Gleanings,' presented it to the Royal Society, whence it
passed, as well as the foot, into the British Museum. But Dr. Gray
informs us that the foot only came with the museum of the Royal
Society described by Grew; and that the picture was an especial
'gift from Edwards. Edwards's oopy seems to have been made in
1760, and he himself says, "The original picture was drawn in
Holland from the living bird brought from St. Maurice's Island in
the East Indies in the early times of the discovery of the Indies by
the way of the Cape of Good Hope. It was the property of the
late Sir Hans Sloane to the time of his death; and afterwards
becoming my property I deposited it in the British Museum as a
great curiosity. The above nistory of the picture I had fix>m Sir
Hans Sloane and the late Dr. Mortimer, secretary to the Royal
Society."
M. Morel, Ecrivain Principal des Hdpitaux au Port-Louis de I'lsle
de France, writes as follows in his paper ' Sur les Oiseaux Monstrueux
nomm^s Dronte, Dodo, Cygne Capuchonnd, Solitaire, et Oiseau de
Nazare, et sur la petite Isle de Sable & 50 lieues environ de Mada-
gascar :' " These birds, so well described in the second volume of
the ' History of Birds,' by M. le Comte de Buffon, and of which M.
de Borame has also spoken in his ' Dictionary of Natural History,'
under the names of Dronte, Dodo, Hooded Swan (Cygne Capuchonnd),
Solitary or Wild Turkey (Dinde Sauvage) of Madagascar, have never
been seen in the Isles of France, Bourbon, Rodriguess, or even the
Seychelles lately discovered, during more than 60 years since when
these places have been inhabited and visited by French colonists.
The oldest inhabitants assure every one that these monstrous birds
have been always unknown to them." After some remarks that the
Portuguese and Dutch who first overran these islands may have seen
some very large birds, such as Emeus or Cassowaries, fta, and
described them each after his own manner of observing, M. Morel
Uius proceeds : — " However this may be, it is certain that for nearly
an age (depuis pr&s un si^le) no one has here seen an animal of
this species. But it is very probable that before the islands were
inhabited, people might have been able to find some species of very
large birds, heavy and incapable of flight, and that the first mariners
who sojourned Uiere soon destroyed them from the facility with
which they were caught. This was what made the Dutch sailors
call the bird ' Oiseau de Ddgodt ' (Walck-Voegel), because they were
surfeited with the flesh of it . . . But among all the species of
birds which are found on this isle of sand, and on all the other islets
and rocks which are in the neighbourhood of the Isle of France,
modem navigators have never found anything approaching to the
birds above named, and which may be referred to the number of
species which may have existed, but which have been destroyed by
the too great facility with which they are taken, and which are no
longer found excepting upon islands or coasts entirely uninhabited.
AtMadagas(»r, where titiere are many species of birds imknown in
these islands,* none have been met with resembling the description
above alluded to." (' Observations sur la Physique, pour TAn 1778,'
tom. xii p. 154. Notes.)
Mr. Duncan thus concludes his paper above alluded to : — " Having
applied, through the medium of a friend, to C. Telfiiir, Esq., of Port
Louis, in the ICauritius, a naturalist of great research, for any infor-
I mation he could furnish or procure relating to the former existence
2 B
m
DODO.
of Uio Dodo in Uiat iaUnd, I obtained only the laUoniog portly
nsgittiTe (t&tement ; —
" ' Th&t then) ii a very general impreimoEl unoog Ota Inhalnlaat*
thftt the Dodo did eiirt >t Bodriguei, u well u in the Maorititia
itMlf ; but th&t the oldest inhkbitanta We never seen it^ nor hu the
bird or tnj part of it been preaeired in en^ muMum or eoUedden
formed in thoee iilondi, although Ibme diitinguished anutflon in
natunl hiatory hare paned tlieir lirea on them, and fonnad eitonmTa
ooUeotionB. And vith regird to the euppoaad existence of tbe Dodo
in Uadasuear, although Hr. Telfair hod not received, at tlie time of
his writing to Europe, a reply to a letter on the subject which he
had addreeeed to a gentleman resident on that island, yet he atated
that he had not any great eipectations from that quarter ; as tbe
Dodo was not mentioned in an; of his voluminoua manuscripts
respeoldng that island, which ooatainod the travels of persons who
had traversed Hadagiscar in all directions, many of them having no
other otnect in view than that of extending the bounds of natursl
We close this put of tbe case witii the evidence of one evidently
well qoalified to ^udge, and whoee veracity there ie no reason to
donbl If this evidence be, as we believe it to be, unimpeaohable, it
) keeper was qui
le oaetthem all
[uesdonsd thereia yet I am ooafidant that afterwards
T Cyclo-
^„__, „_ __ ._ , whose early 1
melancholy accident the world of sdencs has to deplore, has publishad
a work on the Dodo and ita kindred, in which he has most diligMitlj
retraced the ground previously gono over by Ur, Brodsrip. With
r^ard to the statement of L'Estrange, Hr. Strickland says :— "I have
endeavoured to find some ooufimiatian from oontvmparary autho-
ritiee of this very interesting statement, but hitherto without ii
The middle of the ITth oaDtmy was moat prolific in pam|
newspapers, broadudes, ' raws of dump; quartos,' and literary
' rubbish mountains,' as Mr. Carlyle designates them ; but the poti-
tical storms of that period rendered men blind to the beauties and
deaf to the harmonies of natim, and ita literature is very barren in
pbyiioid reaearcb."
Id addition to the works quoted in which referenoe is made to the
Dodo, Mr. Strickland gives the following -.-^
Cornelius Hatelief, a Dutch admiral, arrived in the Hanriida* in
IflOfl, and in a journal published in Dutch, and translated into EVeneh,
givaa an account of the Dodo, which he calls Dod-aenen, or Dconten.
DoiId, fVau tbe ])ictuTe In the El
lb Mu'ci
eihlbitod ._ ___
occaaioned by a hole burnt
In Sloane Manuscript (No. 183B, G, p. 108, BriL Hns.) ia the follow-
ing inlereeting aocount by L'Estrange, in his observations on Sir
Thomas Browne's ' Vulgar Errors." It ti worthy of note that the
paiagimph immediately fiillowB one on the ' Estridge ' (Ostrich) ;—
"About 1638, as 1 walked London streets I saw the picture of
a strange fowl bong 'out upon.a cloth vas and myselfe with one
or two more Oen. in company went in to see it. It was kept in a
chamber, and wb« a great fowle somewhat bigger than tbe largest
Turkey Cock and so legged and footed but stouter and thicker and of
a. more erect shape, coloured before like the breast of a yong Cock
Fesan (pheasant), and on tbe back of dunn or deare coulour. 'The
keeper called it a Dodo and in the eode of a chimney in the chamber
there la; an heap of large pebble stones whereof hee gave it many in
our sight, some as bigg as nutm^s, and tbe keeper told UE shee eats
them conducing to digestion, and though 1 remember not how fitrre
In 1S07 two shipa, under the command of Van der Eaagen, stayed
■ome weeks in the Mauritius. *A jonmal was published in Dutch of
this voyage, and translated in the ' Recueil dee Voyages de la Com-
pagnie des Indes Orientalee,' Rouen, 1725.
Admiral Peter Wilhelm VerhuS'en touched at Mauritius in 1611,
and in 1613 au account of this voyage was published at Frankfurt,
entitled 'Eyllfiler Schiffart ander Theil,' Ac, in whioh reference is
maile to the Dodo, and especially to the fact that it attacked its
aggressora, and wounded them severely if they were not careful.
Id a journal by Peter van der Broecke, in which allusion is made
to a visit to the Mauritius in 1817, Mr. Strickland discovered tbe
sketch of a Dodo, but found no reference to it in the tetter-press.
In a work published by Francis Cauche at Paris in 1S61, entitled
' Relations vecitables et curieuses de I'lsle de Madagascar,' be deacribes
birds called Oiseaux de Ifnzaret, which answer to the Dodo. He'says
they by but one egg the size of a halfpenny roU. How he came to
" This eurioni slatemonl la eitncled In the modem edition ol Sir ThoiasB
Broime's works bf Wilkins ; published by Pickering.
>n DODO.
call the Dodo by tliiB Dams, and irhat the lize of > hil^tnmy roll wu
in leSl are difflcultieB.
There ii A traot in ths Aahmolean Uiueum of which thers ara two
•ditiona, the fint without s date, the second printed in London 16SE.
It ia a catAlogue of rarities te be aeen at ' the moaiqae house at the
west end of Paulea,' by R. H. alias Forges, Oentlemon. Here at p. 11
we find " A. Dodo's L^ ; it ii a bird that cannot fly." This is probably
the ipeoinien that passed into the possession of the Royal Society, and
waa desoribed by Qraw.
The last of Hr. Strickland's odditjons is a manuscript, entitled
'i. eoppej of Ur. Benj. Harry's Joumall when he was chief mate of
the Sluppe Berkley Castle, Captn, Wm. Talbot then Commander on a
Toyage to the Coste and Bay, 1679, which voyage they wintered at
the Uaorisshea.' He speaks of the " Dodos, whose Qesh is very
hard."
This Mems to be the last notice of the Dodo. " That the destruc-
tion of the Dodosk" says Ur. Strickland, "wns completed by 1S93
may be inferred finm the narrative of Legoat, who in that year
MDlkiDed several months in Uauritins, and enumerates its animal
^i>dacliolu at some length, but makes no mention whatever of
HLdeBhunviUenys that at apnblio dinner at the Huuitius in 1818
*evenl persona were present &om TO to 60 years old, who hod no
kjwwledge of such a bird from recollection or troditioii. Hr, J. V.
Thompaon also, who resided for some yeort in Uanritius end Hodo-
maoarpnvioua to 1S16, states that no more tcaeea of the existence of
Uia Dodo could then be found than of the truth of the tale of Paul
add Tirijnia, although ■ very general idea prevailed oa to the reality
of both.
Sinoe the publication of the ' Penny Cycloptedia' the pictoiiol
evidence of Uie exiitenoe and characters of thu bird has also in-
. In the royal ooUectlon of the Higue is a psinting by Roland
Savery, which is n^uded u one of that mastei's chef d'muvres. It
represenla Orpheus chamiiiig the animal creatioi) with his music, and
among Inoainersble birds aud beasts the clumsy Dodo is represented
aa apell-bouiid by the lyija bard. Tbis bird waa disoovered in this
pioton tr; FnifeaBor Owen in 1838,
" Whilst at the Ha^s," writes the professor to Mr. Broderip, " in
the sommer of 1888, I was much Btmck with the minuteness and
socuraoy with which the exotic species of iLnimaln had been painted
by Saveiy and Breughel in such aubjeota as Paradise, Orpheus charm-
ing the Ssosta, Ae., in which scope was allowed for grouping together
m great variety of animjl. Undentauding that the celebrated mena-
gerie of Prinoe Haorice hod atfbrded the Uviiig models to these artists,
I sot down one day before Savery's Orpheus and the Beaste, to moke
a list of the speoiea which the pioture sufficienti; evinoed that the
artist had had the opportunity to study olive. Judge of my surprise
aad plaaanra in detecting in a doA comer of the picture (wliich is
badly hong between two windows) the Dodo, beautifully finished,
ahowing for eaomple, though but three inches long, the auricular
drole M feathen, the oealation of the tond, and the loose structure
of the caudal plumee. In the aumbsr and proportions of the toes,
and in general form, it accords with Edwaras^a oil painting in the
British Museum ; and I oonclude that the miniature must have been
copied from the study of a living bird, which it is moM probabl<
formed part of the Mauritian menagerie,
" The bird is standing in profile, with a lizard at its feet. Not any
of the Dutch naturalists to nhom I applied for information respecting
the pioture, the artiat^ and his subjecta, seemed to be aware of the
azlstenoe of this avidenos of the Dodo in the Hague collectioo.
" I think I told you that my friend Professor Eschricbt of C«>en-
hagen had written to inform me that the skull of a Dodo hod been
lately disoovered in the museum at Copenhsfen ; it had before formed
port of the museum of the Duke of Qottorp. '
In 1315 Mr, Strickland was examining Roland Saveir's puntings at
Berlin. "Among them," he says, "1 found one which represents
numsrona animals in Puvdias, one of which is a Dodo of aniut the
same aiie and in nearly the same attitude as the
Thia pioture was pMnted in ISSS, Another picture of the Dodo, also
1^ Roland Savery, date 1629, exists in the imperial coUectian of the
Bellvadara at Vienna. The attitude is vei7 different from that in the
other picturea, giving the impression that Bsveiy must have studied
this lord from living specimens, and probably tiie one eihibiled in
London sat to BaTeiy for his portraits.
The only existing recent remMns attributed to the Dodo are— a leg
in the British Museum, and a head (a cost of which is in Brit. Hub.), and
a leg in the Aahmolean Museum at Oxford, tlie relics of Tndescanfs
bird, and the head referred to by Professor Owen. ■Whether the Ug
formerly in the museum of Pauw be that at present in the British
Museum may be perhaps doubtful, though we think with Dr, Qrav
that they an probably identical ; but that the specimen in the British
UoaeuiD did not belong to Tradeccant's specimen is clear, for it existed
in the collection Jwlonging to the Royal Society when Trodoecant's
'Dodor' was complete. In the 'Annnles des Sciences' (torn. xxi.
p. 103, Sept 1330) will be found an account of an ssssmblsge of fossil
iMmea, thm reoenUy disoovered under a bed of lava in the Isle of
Fianoa niauritiuB}, and aent to the Paris Museum. They almost all
belonged to a la^ living spedee of land-tortoise, called TMudo
dple* of Oeology,' " showed me these valuable remains
assured me that thsj left no doubt in his mind that
of the gaUlnaceous tribe."
and humerua
in his 'Prin-
at Paris, and
the hug« bird
IS British Hnsdua).
_. _. ," says Mr, Strickland, " to combine into
view the results of the historical, pictorial, and anatomioal data
which we possess respecting the Dodo.
" We must figure it to ourselves as a massive clumsy bird, ungraceful
In its form, and with a slow waddling motion. We cannot form a
better idea of it than by imagining a young duck or gosling enlarged
to the dimensions of a swan. It ^ords one of those cascB, of which
we have many examples in zoology, where a species, or a port of the
organs in a species, remains permanently undeveloped or in an Lutan-
tine state. Such a conditiott baa referecce to peculiaritjes in the mode
oflifeof the animal, wliich render certain organs utmeceesBi^ ; and
they therefore are retained through life in on imperfect state, mstead
of attaining that fully-developed condition whii^ marks the mature
Bge of the generality of ""i""*' The Qreenland Whale, for instance,
may be C^ted a permanent suckling ; having no occauon for teeth
the teeth [never penetrate the gums, though in youth they are dis-
tinctly traceable in the dental groove of the jawa. The Proteus again
ia a permanent tadpole, destined to inhabit the waters wliich fill
subterranean caverns ; the gills which in other batracbion reptiles are
cast off as the animal approaches maturity are here retained through
life, while the eyes ore mere subcutaneous specks, incapable of
contributing to tibe sense of vision. And, lastly (not to multiply
examples), the Dodo is {or rather was) ■ permanent nestling, dotbed
with down instead of fathers, and with the wings and tall so short
and feeble as to be utterly unsubeervient to flight. It may appear at
first sight difficult to account for the presence ot organs which are
practioidly useless. Why, it may be ssked, does the whale pooaeae
the germs of teeth which are never used for msstication 1 Why has
the proteus eyes, when he is espedolly created to dwell in darkness 1
and why was the dodo endowed with wings at all, when those wings
were useless for locomotion I This question is too wide and too deep
to plunge into at present. I will merely observe that these apporentiy
anomalous facts are really* the indications of laws which the Creator
hss been pleased to follow in the conatniction of organised beings.
They are inscriptions in on unknown hieroglyphic, wliich we are quite
sure mean something, but of which we have scarcely begun to master
the alphabet. Tliere appear however reaaooabla grounds far believing
that the Creator has assigned to each class of animals a definite typo,
or structure, &om which he has never departed, even in the moat
exceptional or eccentric modifications of form, "Thus if we suppose,
for instance, that the abstract idea of a TimTnmikl implied the presence
of wings, we may then comprehend why in the whale, the proteus,
and the dodo, these organs are merely suppressed, and not wholly
annihilated. And let us beware of attributing anything like imper-
fection to these anomalous organisms, however deficient they may be
in those complicated structures which we so much admire in other
cretitureo. Each n.niiT>R.l oq^ plant has received its peculiar orgajuso-
tioD for the purpose, not of exciting the admiration of other beings,
but of sustaining its own existence. Its perfection therefore consists,
not in the number or complication of its organs, but in the adaptation
of its whole structure to the sitemol circumstances in which it is
deetined to live, and in this point of view vre shsll find that every
departoient of the organic creation is equally perfect ; the hiunbleat
*- ■■
i76
DODO.
DODO.
376
aa man hixnBeIfy wbo claims to be lord of alL Such a yiew of the
creation is surely more philosophical than the crude and profane idea
entertained by Buffon and his disciples, one of whom ctdls the dodo
'un oiseau bisarre, dont toutes les parties portaient le caract^re
d'une conception manqu^e/ He fancies that this imperfection was
the result of the youthful impatience of the newly-formed volcanic
islands which gave birth to the dodo, and implies that a steady old
continent would have produced a much better uticle."
We now pass to the consideration of the place this apparently
anomalous bird ought to occupy in the systems of classincation of
soologists.
Piso, in his edition of Bontius, places the Dodo immediately before
the Cassowary ; and here we may observe that the figure of*fiontius
does not appear to be identical with the picture which now hangs in
the British Museum. Though there is a general resemblance there
are particular differences which go far to show, at all events, that the
figure of Bontius and that in the picture are diiSerent portraits.
Willughby's eighth chapter ti^ats of ' The greatest land-birds, of
a pecuUar kind by themselves, which by reason of the bulk of their
bodies and the smallness of their wings cannot fly, but only walk.'
The Ostrich occupies the first section of this chapter, and the Dodo
the fourth and last, being immediately preceded oy the Cassowary
or Emeu. Ray's section ' Aves rostris rectioribus minusque hamatis
mazimse, singulares et sui generis, ob corponun molem et alarum
brevitatem volandi impotes ' contams the same birds as Willughby's
eighth chapter, namely, the Ostrich, the American Ostrich, the Emeu,
Erne, or Cassowary, and lastly the Dodo.
Moehring, and i^r him Brisson, gives the bird under the ntune of
Haphu a position next to the Ostriches also.
Buflfon places it independently.
LinnsDus, in his last edition of the ' Systema Naturce ' (the 12th,
1766), places the bird at the head of Ms OcMince, the order imme-
diately succeeding the GraUaif under the name of IHdus ineptw, and
immediately before the genus Pavo (Peacocks). The genus Struthio
is the last of his Cfralkg, and JRhea (American Ostrich) the last species
of SirtUhio, so that Diduaineptus stands between Struthio Bhea^ Linn.,
and Pavo cristatua (the Peacock). In a former edition Linnaeus had
noticed the bird under the name Struthio cueulUUui.
Latham in his imiopsis (1782) followed Linmeus, but gave three
Bpedes: namely, the Hooded Dodo, the Solitaxy Dodo, and the
Nasarene Dodo.
Qmelin, in his edition of the 'Systema Naturae' (1789), makes
Paophia (Trumpeter) the last genus of the Linnaean CfraUcef and Otia
(Bustard) the first genus of the Linnasan OallincB, under which last-
mentioned order he arranges the genus Didua, placing it between the
genera Struthio and Pcnfo, which are both included by Qmelin in the
order OaUina, He also gives three species — 1st, Didua ineptua, which
he describes as ** black, clouded with white, with tetradactyle feet."
The following are his synonyms : — Didua, * Syst Nat' zii 1, p. 267,
n. 1 ; Struthio cuevIUUua, * Syst. Nat.' x. p. 155 ; Itaphua, Brisa ' Av.'
5, p. 14, n. 1 ; Oygnua cucuUatua, Nieremb. ' Nat.' 281 ; OaUua gaUi-
naceua peregrinua, Clus. 'Ezot' 99, 1. 10; Clear. 'Mus.' 23, t. 13,
f. 5; Dronte, Bont. ' Jav.' 70; BufC 'Hist. Nat des Ois.' I p. 480;
Dod-aersen, or Valgh-Vogel, Herbert^ it p. 882, t 888 ; Dodo, Raj.
'Av.'p. 87, n.8; WilL 'Cm.' p. 153, t 27; Edw. 'Glean.' t 294;
Hooded Dodo, Lath. 'Syn.' iiL 1, p. 1, t 70. 2nd, Didua aolitariua,
Solitaire, Bufil 'Hist Nat des Ois.' L p. 485 ; Leguat, it L p. 98;
Solitary Dodo, Lath. ' S^' iiL 1, p. 3, n. 2. This species is described
by Ghnelin as "varied with gray and brown, with tetradactyle feet"
Srd, Didua Nazarenua, Oiseau de Nazareth, et Oiseau de Naus^e,
BufC 'Hist Nat des Ois.' L p. 485; Cauche, 'Madag.' p. 130;
Nazarene Dodo, Lath. ' Syn.' iii. 1, p. 4, n. 3. Qmelin describes this
species aa " black, with tetradactyle feet"
Blumenbach followed Linnaeus ; and Dum^ril and Vieillot followed
Tiatham.
Temminck instituted in his 'Analyse du Syst^me Q^n^ral d'Omi-
thologie' the order Inertea for the Dodo and the Apteryx; two birds,
aa Mr. Tarrell in his paper on the Apteryx (' Trans. Zool. Soc.' voL i
p. 71) observes, differinig decidedly from each other in their beaks ;
but in reference to their imperfect wings, as also in the nature of their
external covering, having obvious relation to the species included in
his order Ouraorea. " But," adds Mr. Tarrell, "the situation chosen
for this order Inertea, at the extreme end of his systematic arrange-
ment, leads me to infer that M. Temminck considered as imaginary
the subjects for which it was formed."
Illiger, in his 'Prodromus' (1811), instituted the order Jnepti for
the reception of the Dodo alone, Apteryx not being then known, and
he placed it immediately preceding his Ouraorea, containing the
Struthious Birds.
Cuvier, in the first edition of his ' R^gne Animal,* at the end of his
notice on his family Brevipennea (Les Autruches, Struthio, Linn.), has
the following note appended to his description of the last species,
Jthea: — "I cannot plsuse in this table species but badly known, or,
more, so little authentic as those which compose the genus Didua,
The first, or the Dronte {Didua ineptua), is only known from a descrip-
tion given by the first Dutch navigators, and preserved by Clusius,
' Exot' p. 99, and by an oil-painting of the same epoch copied by
Edwards, pi. 294 ; for the description of Herbert is puerile, and oil
the others «re copied firom Clusius and Awards. It would seem
that the species has entirely disappeared, and we now possess no
more of it at the present day than a foot preserved in the British
Museum (Shaw, ' Nat MiscelL' pL 143), and a head in bad condition
in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford. The biU does not seem to be
without some relation to that of the Auks (Pingouins), and tiie foot
would bear considerable resemblance to that of the Penguins (Man-
chots) if it were palmated. The second species, or the Solitaire
(Didua aolitariua), rests only on the testimony of Leguat, 'Voy.' i p. 98,
a man who has disfigured Uie best known animals, such as Uie Hippo-
Sotamus and Lamantin. Finally, the third species, or L'Oiseau de
fazare {Didua Nazarenua), is only known through Fran9oi8 Cauche,
who regards it as the same as the Dronte, and yet only gives it three
toes, while all other authors give four to the Dronte. No one has
been able to see any of these birds since these voyagers." Cuvier's
opinions subsequently underwent considerable modification. When
he was in this country he had an opportunity of seeing the head
preserved in the Ashmolean Museum, and the foot in the British
Museum, and he doubted the identity of this species with that of
which the painting is preserved in the national collection. Lyell
mentions these doubts, and we must here recall to the reader the
geologist's statement above alluded to, that Cuvier showed him the
valuable remains in Paris, and that he assured him that they left no
doubt on his mind that the huge bird was one of the Qallinaceous
tribe. ('Sur quelques Ossemensi,' &c, 'Ann. des ScL' tome xxL
p. 108, Sept 1830.)
Shaw, as appears indeed 'from Cuviez^s note, made mention of the
Dodo in his ' Naturalist's Misti&llany ' (plates 142 and 143), giving a
figure of the head preserved in the Ashmolean Musexmi, and inhis
' Zooloncal Lectures.'
Mr. Vigors in his paper ' On the Natural Afi&nities that connect the
Orders and Families of Birds ' (' Linn. Trans.' voL xiv.) thus writes
on the subject of the Dodo : — " The bird in question, from every
account which we have of its economy, and from the appearance of
its head and foot, is decidedly gallinaceous ; and, from the insufficiency
of its wings for the purposes of flight, it may with equal certainty be
pronounced to be of the Struthious structure, and referable to the
present family. But the foot has a strong hind toe, and, with tho
exception of its being more robust^ in which character it stUl adheres
to the Struthionidce, it corresponds exactly with the foot of the
Linnaean genus Orax, that commences the succeeding family."
M. Lesson, in his * Manual * (1828), after giving a description of the
Dodo (genus Dronte, Didua, Linn., jRaphua, Moehring, Brisson), says
that the genus includes but one Apecies which may be considered as
at all authenticated, and which exists no longer ; this is the Dronte,
Didua ineptua, described by Clusius, ex. p. 99, figured by Edwards,
pL 294. " They possess," he adds, ** a foot and head of it at London,
figured in Shaw's 'MiscelL' pL 143 and 166." Then comes the
following statement: — "M. Temminck has adopted, after Shaw, the
genus Apteryx, which he thus describes." M. Lesson, after giving the
description and noticing the only known species, Apteryx Auiiralia, pro-
ceeds to make the following queries : " May not the Dronte be the
Cassowary of the East Indies, to which has been added the bill of an
Albatross f It is said that it was once very common in the Isles of
France and of Bourbon, and that the former received the name of the
Isle of Ceme from these birds. May not the Apteryx of M. Temminck
be founded on the fragments of the Dronte preserved in the Muaenm
of London?" To make the confusion complete, M. Lesson places
immediately before the genus Dronte the Emou Kivtkivi, Dromieeiua
Novce Zdandice, Less., which is no other than the Apteryx Auatralia
of Shaw, and which has been so well described and figured by Mr.
Yarrell in the first volume of the ' Transactions of the Zoological
Society of London.'
M. de Blainville, in a memoir on the ' Didus ineptus,' read before
the Aoidemy of Sciences, on the 30th of August, 1880, and published
in the ' Nouvelles Annales du Museum d'Histoire Naturelle ' (tome
iv. p. 1, 4to., Paris, 1835), enters at large into the history of the
bird. After giving the different points on which the claim of the
Dodo to be considered a gallinaceous bird rests, and the reasons for
and against it, he thus proceeds : — "Among the orders of birds which
include the laigest spedes, there only remain the birds of prey with
which the Dodo can be compared ; and it seems to us that it is to
them that the bird bears the greatest resemblance." In proof of this
it is necessary to attend to the following observations : —
1. The eyes are situated in the same part of the bill as in CcUhartea.
2. The nostrils are oval, situated very forward, and without a>
superior scale, as in those birds.
3. The form of the skull, its great width in the interorbitazy space,
and its flatness at the sinciput, are also nearly the same aa in those
vultures.
4. Even the colour of the bill, and the two caruneular folds of the
origin of the curved part, are nearly the same as in those birds.
5. The species of hood which the skin forms at the root of the bill,
and which have earned for the Dodo the name of Cygnua cucuHatua,
has a very similar disposition in Oathartea,
6. The almost entire nudity of the neck, as well as its greenish
colour seen through the few downy feathers which cover it, are also
characteristic of the vtdture.
877
DODO.
DODO.
S78
7. The form, the number, and the disposition of the toes, as well as
the force and corvature of tJie daws, incUcate a bird of that fSeunily at
least as much as a Qallinaoeous Bird.
8. The scaly system of the tarsi and of the toes more resembles
also what is found in Cdthartes than what is observed in the Gallina-
oeous Birds.
9. The kind of Jabot at the root of the neck, and even the muscular
stomach, are foimd in one order as well as in the other.
10. Lastly, M. de Blainville notices the absence of the spur
(I'exffot), which he remarks is nearly characteristic of the Gkdlinaoeous
Birds.
M. de Blainville, after expressing a hope that both the Aye- Aye
{CheiromyM, which has not been seen a second time since the days of
Sonnerat) and the Dodo may be yet recovered in the interior of Mada-
gascar, thus concludes his memoir : —
''1. There exist in the English collections traces of at least three
individuals of a laige species of walking bird (oiseau marcheur), to
which has been given the name of Dodo, Dronte, Didut ineptut,
** 2. These traces exist in Europe since the epoch when the Dutch
began to take part in the discovery of the passage to the East Indies
by the Cape of Good Hope, that is to say, about 1594.
" 3. The name of Dodo is employed for the first time by Herbert,
that of Dronte by Piso, but without its being possible to arrive at the
origin and etymology of these denominations.
" 4. The country of this bird is the Isle of France ; there being
nothing to prove positively that it has been found either at Bourbon
or at Fernandez, as has been thought, owing to the confusion, no
doubt^ between the Dodo and Solita&e of Leguat.
" 5. The Dronte should be approximated to or even placed in the
order of Rapacious Birds, near the vultiires, rather than in that of the
Qallinaceous Birds ; and, for stronger reasons, rather than among the
Orallatoret (Echassiers), or near the Penguins (Manchots).
" 6. It is by no means certain that this bird has disappeared from
the number of living animals. If this is possible in the case of the
Isle of France, it is not probable in the case of Madagascar, the pro-
ductions of which are so little known, and which belongs, up tb a
certain point, to the same archipelago.
" There remains another question to discuss, namely, whether the
incrusted bones which have been lately sent to M. Cuvier from the
Isle of France really belonged to the Dodo, as Bf. Cuvier was led to
believe. It is a question which would be most easily solved by the
immediate comparison of these bones with the pieces preserved in
England. If this was so, which the difibrence of height in the tarsal
bone does not permit us to believe, it would be at the same time
proved that the Dodo existed also at Rodriguez, for these bones have
seen found in this isle in a cave (grotte), as M. Quoy, who saw them
on lus passage to the Isle of France, has assured me ; and not at the
Isle of France imder beds of lava, as M. Cuvier has stated from erro-
neous information in his note read lately to the academy. Then there
would be nearlv a certaillty that the Dodo was a (Gallinaceous Bird ;
but in making the observation that these bones come from the Isle of
Fernandez, and that the description of the Solitaire of Leguat accords
sufficiently well with a bird of this order, or at least wiUi a Gallino-
Gralle, it might be that the bones actually in the hands of M. Cuvier
were no other than those of the Solitary Bird properly so called, and
not those of the true Dronte."
The memoir is illustrated with four plates. The first is a coloured
copy of the head of the Dodo from the Museum portrait, of the size
of Uie original In the painting,*the author observes, the head is at
least a foot long from the occiput to the extremity of the bill ; but
the head at Oxford is only eight inches and a half, or about two-
thirds. The bill, he adds, makes out nearly three-fourths of the whole
length. The second plate gives a profile of the Oxford head from, a
sketch taken from the original, and a view of the same seen frx>m
above, and skulls of the UrvJlm and VvUur Papa. The third plate gives
two views of the foot preserved in the British Museum, and the
remains of the foot at Oxford ; a foot of the Heath-Cock (Coq de
Bruy^), a foot of a Penguin,'and a foot of ViUtv^r Papa, The fourth
plate gives a profile of l£e cast of the head at Oxford, and a view of
the same seen frx)m below.
In the British Museum (1887), in cases 66-68 (Room xiii), are the
Ostrich; Bustards " whidi in many respects are allied to the Gkdlina-
oeous Birds ;" the foot and cast of the head of the Dodo above alluded
to ; the Courser and Pratincole ; and at page 99 of the ' Synopsis '
(1882) we have the following observations : — " Over the door adjoining
the. twelfth room is an original painting of the Dodo, presented to
the Museum by Geoi^ge Edwards, Esq., the celebrated ornithological
artist, and copied in his works, plate No. 294, who says it was
' drawn in Holland from a living bird Inought from St Maurice's
Island in the East Indies.' The only remains of this bird at present
known are a foot (case 65) in this collection (presented by the Royal
Society), and a head and foot said to have belonged to a specimen
which was formerly in Tradescant's Museum, but is now in ihe Ash-
molean Museum at Oxford. The cast of the head above mentioned
(m the same case) was presented by P. Duncan, Esq. The bird in
the shortness of the wings resembles the ostrich, out its foot in
general rather resembles that of tiiie common fowl, and the beak from
the position of its nostrils is most nearly alUed to the vultures; so
that its true place in the series of birds, if indeed such a bird ever
really existed, is not as yet satisfactorily determined."
Mr. Swainson (' Natural History and Classification of Birds,' 1886),
speaking of the birds of prey, says (p. 285) :— " The third and last
type of this^ family appears to us to be iJie Secretary Vulture of
Africa, forming the genus Gypogeramua. At least we cannot assign it
to any other known division of the Raptorea without separating it
much more widely from its congeners than our present state of
knowledge will sanction. It has been thought indeed that this
remarkable bird represented one of the primary divisions of the
whole order, in which case it would stand between the owls and the
Dodo ; but its similarity to the vultures and the falcons in our opinion
is too great to favour this supposition ; while, on the other hand, it
vrill subsequently appear that the circle of the Falconid€e is sufficiently
complete to show that it does not enter into that family." After some
other observations Mr. Swainson concludes his remarks on the Secre-
tary thus : — '* It must be remembered also that the very same objec-
tions occiu- against placing this bird (the Secretary) between the
Strigida (Owls) and the Dvdida (Dodos) as those we have intimated
against considering it as the graUatorial type of the VvUuridaB."
That a bird or birds called by the name of Dodo and the other
i^pellations which we need not here repeat once existed, we think
the evidence above given sufficiently proves. We have indeed heard
doubts expressed whether the Museum portrait was taken " from a
living bird," and have also heard it suggested that the picture may
represent a specimen made up of the body of an ostrich to which the
bill and legs of other birds have been attached; and here it is that
the destruction of Tradescant's specimen becomes a source of the
greatest regret Whatever was the condition of that specimen, as
long as the skin was preserved there existed the means of ascertain-
ing whether it was real or a made-up monster ; and when the vice-
chancellor and the other curators, in making their lustration, gave the
fifttal nod of approbation they destroyed that evidence. With regard
to the picture, we have endeavoured to place it before the reader as
well as our limited means will permit, in order that he may have an
opportunity of judging from the internal evidence as to Uie proba-
bility of the portrait being taken from a living bird, and with tlus
view we have given the accessories as they appear in the painting as
well as the principal figure.
Dr. J. E. Gray, among others, still ioclines, we believe, to the opinion
that the bird represented was made up by joining the head of a bird
of prey approacfdng the Vultures, if not belonging to that family, to
the legs of a Gallinaoeous Bird ; and his opinion, from his attain-
ments and experience, is worthy of all respect. His reasons for con-
sidering the Dodo as belonging to the Jtaptoret chiefly rest on the fol-
lowing facts, premising, as ne does, that it is to be borne in mind that
in the Raptorial Birds the form of the bill is their chief ordinal
character, which is not the case with the OrcUUUorea or the NcUaioru,
where the form of the feet and legs are the chief character of the
order : —
" 1. The base of the bill is enveloped in a cere, as may be seen in
the cast, where the folds of the cere are distinctly exhibited, espedaUy
over the back of the nostrils. The oere is only found in the Raptoiiid
Birds.
" 2. The nostrUs are placed exactly in front of the oere, as they are
in the other Baptoru; they are oval, and nearly erect, as they are in
the True Vultures, and in that genus alone ; and not longitudinal as
they are in the Cathartety all the Gallinaceous Birds, CfralUUorta, and
Natatoret ; and they are naked, and covered with an arched scale, as
is the case in all the Oallinacece.
" 8. In Edwards's picture the bill is represented as much hooked
(like the Raptoret) at . the tip ; a character which unfortunately
cannot be venfied on the Oxford head, as i^t specimen is destitute
of the homy sheaUi of the bill, and only shows the form of the
bony core.
" With legard to the size of the bill, it is to be observed that this
part varies greatly in the difierent species of Vultures; indeed so
much so, that there is no reason to believe that the bird of the
Oxford head was much larger than some of the known Vul turc&
" With regard to the foot," adds Dr. Gray, " it has all the charac-
ters of that of the Gallinaoeous Birds, and differs from all the Vultures
in the shortness of the middle toe, the form of the scales on the 1^,
and the bluntness of the claws^"
But if we grant Dr. Gray's position, see what we have to deal with.
We have then two species, which are either extinct or have escaped
the researches of all zoologists, to account for : one, a bird of prey,
to judge from its bill, laiger than the condor ; the other a Gallinaceous
Bird, whose pillar-like logs must have supported an enormous body.
As to the stories of the disgusting quality of the flesh of the bira
found and eaten by the Dutch, that will weigh but little in the scale
when we take the expression to be, what it really was, indicative of
a comparative preference for the turtle-doves there foimd after feeding
on Dodoa ' usque et nauseam.' '' Always nartridges" has become almost
proverbial, and we find frx>m Lawson how a repetition of the most
delicious food palls. ''We cooked our supper,^ says that traveller,
"but having neither bread nor salt our fat turkeys began to be loath-
some to us ; slthough we were never wanting of a good appetite^ yet
a continuance of one diet made us weary ;" and again : '* By the wajr
S79
DODO.
DODO.
390
our guide killed more turkevB, and two pole-oats, which he eat,
esteeming them before fat turkeys."
With regard to the form of the bill, we must be careful how we lay
too much Btreas on that. Who would have expected to find a biU
" long, slender, smooth, and polished, in form resembling that of an
Ibis, but rather more straight and depressed at the base," on an Emeu-
like body with rasorial legs and feet ? Yet such is the form of Apteryx.
As to the aigument arising from the absence of the spur, it is worth
but little at best ; and it may be said in favour of those who would
place the Dodo between the Struthious and Qallinacious Birds, that
its absence in such an osculant bird wotdd be expected.
If the picture in the British Museum and the cut in Bontius be
faithful representations of a creature then living; to make such a bird
a bird of prey — a Vulture, in the ordinary acceptation of the term —
would be to set all the usual laws of adaptation at defiance. A Vul-
ture without wings t How was it to be fed ? And not only without
wings, but necessarily slow and heavy in progression on its clumsy
feet The Vultvridis are, as we know, among the most active agents
for removing the rapidly decomposing animal remains in tropical and
intertropical climates, and they are provided with a prodigal develop-
ment of wing to waft them speedily to the spot tainted by the corrupt
incumbrance. But no such powers of wing would be required by a
bird appointed to clear away the decaying and decomposing masses
of a luxuriant tropical vegetation — a kind of Vulture for vegetable
impurities, so to speak — and such an office would not be by any means
inconsistent with comparative slowness of pedestrian motion.
Nevertheless we have the following expression of opinion from
Professor Owen, who in 1846 published a paper on the subject of the
Dodo in the * Transactions of the Zoological Society.' He concludes
his paper thus : " Upon the whole then the Raptonal character pre-
vails most in the structure of the foot as in the general form of the
beak of the Dodo, and the present limited amount of our anatomical
knowlege of the extinct terrestrial bird of the Mauritius supports Ihe
conclusion that it is an extremely modified form of the Raptorial
order. Devoid of the power of flighty it could have had small chance
of obtaining food by preying upon the members of its own class; and
if it did not exdusively subsist on dead and decaying oiguused
matter, it most probably restricted its attacks to the class of reptiles
and to the littoral fishes, Onutacea, kc, which its well developed
back too and claw would enable it to seize and hold with a firm gripe."
Mr. StrickUnd, who is the last writer upon the affinities of the
Dodo, and has produced a work quite exhaustive of the subject, refers
the Dodo to the Mumhidce,
" The extensive group of ColnmbicUef or Pigeons," says Mr. Strick-
land, "is very isolated in character, and though probably intermediate
between the Insessorial and Gallinaceous orders, can with difficulty
be referred to either. In this group we find some genera that live
wholly in trees, others which are entirely terrestrial, while the
majority, of which the common Wood-Pigeon is an instance, oombine
bo& these modes of life. But the main characteristic of all is their
diet^ composed almost exclusively of the seeds of various plants and
trees. We accordingly find much diversity in the forms of their
beaks, according to the size and mechanical structure of the seeds on
which each genus is destined to live. Those which feed on cereal
grains and the seeds of small grasses and other plants, like the
Common Pigeon and Turtle-Dove, have the beak considerably elon-
gated, feeble, and slender. But in tropical countries there are
several groups of Pigeons called Nutmeg-Eaters and Trerons, which
feed on the large fruits and berries of various kinds of palms, fig,
nutm^, and other trees. These birds, and especially those of the
genus TVeron {Vmoffo of Cuvier) have the beak much stouter than
other pigeons, the corneous portion being strongly arched and com-
pressed, so as greatly to resemble the structure of certain RaiMicious
Birds, especiaUy of the Vulturine family. This Raptorial rorm of
beak is carried to the greatest extent in the genus Diduneuhu, a very
singular bird of the Samoan Islands in the Pacific Ocean. Very little
is yet known of its habits, but Mr. Stair, a misdonary recently
returned from those islands, has reported that the bird feeds on
bulbous roots. Its first discoverer, Mr. Titian Peale, an American
naturalist (whose aoooimt is I believe still unpublished) saw some-
thing in its form or habits that reminded him of the Dodo, and hence
its generic name. Sir W. Jardine, who first described the bird, under
the name of Cfnathod<m MtrigirostrU in the 'Annals of Natural History,'
voL xvi p. 175, referred it conjecturally to the MegapodicUe, though
he recognised in it several dove-like characters. And Mr. Gould, who
has given two figures of it in his 'Birds of Australia,' part 22, pro-
nounces that the bird approaches nearest to the Pigeons. We shall soon
see that the Didine and Columbine hypotheses, though apparently
incongruous, resolve themselves (as often happens) into one truth.
"Although certain genera of Columbida are thus seen to assume a
form of h&ik resembling that of the Raptwes, yet no two groups in
the same class can be more opposed in habits and affinities than the
'feroces Aquilse' and ' imbelles Columbas.' It is interesting however
to observe that mechanical strength, whether for the devouring of
animal or vegetable substances, is obtained in both cases by a simi-
lari^ of structure.
"If now we rmrd the Dodo as an extreme modification, not of the
Tolturei^ but of these vulture-like frugivorous pigeons, we shall, I
think, class it in a group whose characters are fiur more consistent with
what W6 know of its structure and habits. There is no k priori reason
why a pigeon should not be so modified in cox^ormity with external
circumstances as to be incapable of flight, just as we see a GraUatorial
Bird modified into an Ostrich, and a Diver into a Penguin. Now, we
are told that Mauritius, an island forty miles in length and about one
hundred miles from the nearest land, was when uscovered clothed
with dense forests of palms and various other trees. A bird adapted
to feed on the fruits produced by these forests would in that equable
climate have no occasion to migrate to distant lands ; it would revel
in the perpetual luxuriance of tropical vegetation, and would have
but little need of locomotion. Why then should it have the means of
fiying ? Such a bird might wander from tree to tree, tearing with its
powerful beak the fruits which strewed the ground, and digestiDg
their strong kernels with its powerful gizzard, enjoying tranquillity
and abundance, imtil the amval of man destroyed the balance of
animal life, and put a term to its c::i3tence. Such in my opinion was
the Dodo, a colossal brevipennate frugivorous pigeon."
The first idea of referring the Dodo to the Pigeons seems to have
occurred to Professor Reiohardt of Copenhagen. To Mr. Strickland
however must be given the credit of laboriously working out this
idea. We can here only refer to his volume, 'The Dodo and its
Kindred,' for further ixuormation. In workixig out the anatomical
details he was assisted by Dr. Melville, now Professor of Natural
History, Queen's College, Galway, Ireland. This part of the work is
remarkable fbr the detailed manner in which the subject is gone into,
and the beautiful illustrations which accompany the text.
We have now to draw attention to another part of this subject. In
speaking of the Dodo several references have been made to a bird
called die Solitaire, and many of the writers quoted have confounded
it with the Dodo, or made it a second species. This bird was first
described by Leguat, who was for many yean the oommander of a
murty of French Protestant rofiigees who settled upon the island of
Rodriguez in the year 1691. In his description* of the isle, which is
called either Diego-Rodrigo, or Diago-Ruys, or Rodrigo, he gives the
following account : — " We had also another creek on &e other side of
our cabins, and full of oysters sticking to the rock. We went often
to breakfast there, and brought some home, with which we made an
excellent ragout with palm-tree cabbages and turtle's fat. Of all the
birds in the island the most remarkable is that which goes by the
name of the Solitary (le Solitaire), because it is very seldom seen in
company, though thero are abimdance of them. The feathers of the
males aro of a brown-gray colour ; the feet and beak are like a turkey's,
but a little more crooked. They have scarce any tail, but their hind
part, covered with feathers, is roimdish like the crupper of a horse.
They aro taller than tm*key8. Their ne<^ is straight, and a little
longer in proportion than a turkey's, when it lifts up its head. Its
eye is black and lively, and its head without comb or cop. They
never fly ; their wings aro too little to support the weight of their
bodies ; they serve only to beat themselves and flutter when they call
one another. They will whirl about for twenty or thirty times to-
gether on the same side during the space of four or five minutes ; the
motion of their wings makes then a noise very like that of a rattle,
and one may hear it two hundred paces offi The bone of their wing
grows ffreater towards the extromity, and forms a little round mass
under the feathers as big as a musket-ball : that and its beak aro the
chief defence of this bird. 'Tis very hard to catch it in the woods,
but easy in open places, because we run faster ^an they, and some-
times we approach them without much trouble. From March to
September they aro extromely fiett, and taste admirably well, especially
while they are young. Some of the males weigh forty-five pound.
" The females aro wonderfully beautiful, some fair, some hrown : 1
call them fait because they aro of the colour of fair hair. They have
a sort of peak, like a widow's, upon their breasts, which is of a dun
colour. No one feather is straggling from the other all over their
bodies, being very careful to adjust themselves and make them all
even with their beaks. The feathers on tibeir thighs are round like
shells at the and, and being there very thick, have an agreeable effect ;
they have two risings on their craws, and the feathers are whiter thero
than the rest, whidi livelily represent the fine neck of a beautiful
woman. They walk with so much stateliness and good grace, that
one cannot help admiring them and loving them, by which means
their fine mien often saves their lives.
" Though these birds will sometimes very familiarly come up near
enough to one when we do not run after them, yet they will never
grow tame ; *as soon as they aro caught they shed tears without crying,
and refuse all manner of sustenance till they die. We find in the
gizzards of both male and female a brown stone, of the bigness of a
hen's egg ^ it is somewhat rough, flat on one side, and round on the
other, heavy and hard. We believe tiiis stone was there when they
were hatched, for let them be never so young you meet with it always.
They have never but one of them ; and besides, the passage from Uie
craw to the gizzard is so narrow that a like mass of half the bigness
could not pass. It served to whet our knives better than any other
stone whatsoever. When these birds build their nests they choose a
clean place, gather together some palm-leaves for that purpose, and
* * A new Yojage to the East Indies by Francis Leguat and bis Companions^
containing their Adventures in two Desert Islands,' ftc, 8vo., London, 1708.
aei DODO.
haap them up > foot and a half high troia ths ground, on whiob Oitj
eit, Tbay aerar lay but ona egg, vMidi ii much biggsr thui that of
a goOM. The male and female both oover it !□ their turns, aod the
yoong ie not hatched till at aeveii weeks' end. All the while they are
sitting upon it, or are bringing up their young one, which ia uot able
to pruTide for itaelf in seTsral months, thej will not aofihr any other
l>inl of their apeciee to oome nithln two hundred Tarda nmnd of the
place i but what is very singular is, the malee will never drive awsT
the famsles, unlj when he perceiTea one he makes a noise with lua
pi,
wings to Ball the female, and she drives the unwelcome stranger Bwaf,
not leaving It till it ia without her bounds. The femala does the same
as to the mAles, whom ahe leaves to the male, and he drives them
away. Ws have observed this several times, and I affirm it to be true.
The combats between them on this occasion last sometimes pretty
long, becaose the stranger only turns about, and does not fly directly
from the nest ; hawever the others do not foraake it till they have
quits driven it out of their limits. After these birds have raised their
young one, and left it to itself, they are always together, which the
other birda are not ; and though they happen to mingle with other
birds of the same apeciee, these two companions never disunite. We
have often remarked, that some days after the young one leaves the
neat, a company of thirty or forW brings another young one to it, and
the new-fledged bird, with its father and mother Joining with the
band, march to some bye-place. We frequently followed Ihem, and
Found that afterwards uie old ones want each Uieir way alone, or in
couples, and left the two young oDea together, which we called a
marriage. This puticuluity baa eomething in it which looks a little
fabulous J neTerthelesB, what I say is sincere truth, and what I hare
more than once obaerved with oare and pleasure." The worthy nai^
rator then indulge* in some rtflections on mairiagei in general, and
early Tnajriages in particular. It is worthy of note, with tvference to
the alleged Juilapoaiticn of the bonea of a Lu^a landturtla and tbooe
of the Dodo, to which we ihall have occasion to allude, that the same
author, in the descriptien of Uie same ialaod, speaks of the multitude
of land-turtles ; cf which he says, " I have seen one that weighed one
hundred pound, and had Besh enough about it to feed a good number
BoUlai? Bird of Lcfust.
The preceding ent it copied &om LegnaVs Ggnn of 'the Solitarj
Bird.'
In the frontispiece la represented one in a sort of landscape, and
also land-turtles ; and in ' ' a plan of the settlement ' in tha island at
Rodrigo, many, some in pairs, are placed about. This plan ahows ths
situation of the houses, kc. of Leguat and his compMuons ; there are
also land-turtles and other animals.
Although Rodriguea ia now a British ookmy we hltve no further
testimony about living Solitaries. Persons resident on th> ■?<>( I^^ve
inqulTBd with the same results as have attended inquiries after the Dodo
in Haurittus. Bones, probably of this bird, havs however been found.
In a letter addressed to the Secretary of the Zoological Society by
DODa tn
Charles Telfair, Esq., Corr. Memb. ZooL Boa, dated Port lAuis
(Hauritius), November 8, 1B32, and read before a meeting of the
society on the 12th March 1833, it appeared that Hr. Telfair had
reoenUy had opportunities of making some researchw about the
buried bones of the Dronte or Dodo found in the Island of Rodriguez.
The result of these leeearches he communicated, and inclcaed letters
addressed to him by Colonel Dswkins, military secretary to the
Qavemor of the Uauritius, and by M. Eudes, resident at Rodriguez.
Colonel Dawkins, it was stated, in a recent visit to Rodriguez,
convened with every person whom he met respecting tlie Dodo, and
beoame convinced thnt the bird does not siist there. The general
atstament vras that no bird is to be found there except the Quinea-
Fowl and Parrot. From one pereon however he learned the
existence of another bird, which vras called Oiseau-Breuf, a name
derived &om its voice, which resemblee that of a cow. From the
description given of it by his informant. Colonel Dawkins at first
believed that this bird was really the Dodo; but on obtaining a
specimen of it, it proved to be a Qannet (apparently referrible to the
Lesser Qannet of Dr, Lstham, the Sufa camtida of Brisson, and the
PtUcOBUt i'ucafor of Linnniu). It is found only in the most secluded
parts of the island- Colonel Dawkins vieited the caverns in which
bones have been dug up, and dug in several places, but found only
small pieces of bone. A beautiful rich eoil forms the ground-work of
them, which is from six to eight feet deep, and oontama no pebbles.
No animal of any deacription inhabits (heae cava, not even bats.
H. Eudes suooesded in digging up in the larga cavern various bones,
including some of a large kmd of bird, which no longer exists in the
island : these he fonrarded to Hr. Tel&ir, by whom they were
presented to the Zoological Society. The only port of the <avem in
which they were found was at the entrance, where the darknees
begins ; the little attention usually paid to this part by visiten may
ba the reason why they have not been previously found. Those near
the surface were the least injured, and they occur to the depth of three
feet, but no where in considerable quantity ; whence M. Eudes con-
jectured that the bird waa at all times rare, or at least unoommorL
A bird of so large a size as that indicated by the bonea had never
been seen by M. Gory, who had resided forty years on the island. H.
Eudes addt^ that the Dutch who first landed at Rodriguez leil cats
there to destroy the i»ts which annoyed them : these cats have since
become vary numerons, and prove highly destructive to poultry ; and
he sumetfld the probability that they may have destroyed the large
kind of bird to which ths bones belougad, by devouring the young
onee as soon as they were hatched — a destruction which may have
been completed long before the island was inhabited.
The bones procured by H. Eudee for Mr. Telfair were presented by
that gentleman to the Zoological Society. At the reading of the
letter, ftc, they were laid on the table, and consisted of numerous
bones of tlie extremities of one or more large apecies of Tortoise,
several bones of the hinder extremity of a large bird, and the head of a
humerus. With reference to the metatarsal bone of the bird, which
was long and strong. Dr. Qrant pointed out that it possessed articulat-
ing surnces for four toes, three directed forwards and one backwards,
as in the foot of the Dodo preserved in the British Uuseum,to which
it waa also proportioned in its magnitude and form. (' ZooL Proc'
1833, Part 1.)
The bones belonging to the birds here spoken of, Mr. Strickland
believes were those of the Solitaire. They were lost before he
began to investigate the subject. He however had an opportunity
of examining the bones before alluded to as preserved in the Museum
in Paris, and also a collection of bones made by Hr. Telfair in Rodri-
guez, and now in the Andersonian Huseum at Qlaegow. The bones
from Paris and Qlaagow were found to agree, and were referrible to a
bird having the characters of the SoUtaire as described by L<^at.
Thej however differed from those of the Dodo, but were found to pre.
sent affinities to the ColumMda equally as strong as those of the Dodo.
From occasional notices amongst early travellers, Mr. Strickland
comes to the conclusioo that also in the island of Bourbon there
formerly existed a brevipennata bird or birds, homologous with the
Dodo and Solitaire, that are now extinct. He refera also to a notice
by Flacourt of a large brevipennata bird SB an inhabitant of Hada-
gascar. He thus ooncludea uiis part of his work ; — " On a review of
the various historical and oal«ological evidences which I have now
bronght together, it seems sufficiently dear that the three oceanic
islands, Hauritius, Rodriguez, and Bourbon, which, though somewhat
ranote from each other, may be cxinaidered aa forming one geogra-
phical group. Were inhabited until the time of their human colonisation
by at least four distinct but probably allied species of brevipennata
birds. This result at once reminds us of the analagous case of the
New Zealand group of islands, where the scientific zeal of Messia.
Cotton, Williams, Colenso, Hantell, and others has brought to li|^ht
a mine of oeteological treasures, from which the consummate sagacity
of Professor Owen hss reecnstructed two new genera of brevipennata
birds. Seven species of Dintmit and two d Paiapleryx have been
clearly established and elaborately described by Professor Owen; nhile
in the still surviving genus Apteryx, of which Mr. Qould has very
i-ecently descril>ed a second species, we see an almost expiring mem-
ber of the same zoological group. The extraordinary succesa of the
naturalista of New Zealand in procuring (torn recent alluvial depoails
383
DOO.
DOREMA.
884
. A Beries of oaseouB remaioB which haTemore than doubled the number
of struthoid birds prerioualy known, should encourage the scientific
residents in the islands of the Indo- African Sea to make similar
researches. I feel confident that if an active naturalist would make a
series of excavations in the alluvial deposits in the beds of streams
and amid the ruins of old habitations in the Mauritius, Bourbon, and
Rodri^es, he would speedily discover remains of Ihe Dodo, the two
Solitaires, or the Oiaeau Bleu. But I would especially direct the
attention to the caves with which those volcanic islands abound.
The chief agents in the destruction of the brevipennate birds were
probably the runaway negroes who for many years infested the
primaeval forests of those islands, and inhabited the caverns, where
they would doubtless leave the scattered bones of the animals on
which they fed. Here then may we more especially hope to find the
osseous remains of these remarkable animals. Should any copies of
this work find their way to Mauritius or Bourbon they may perhaps
incite the lovers of knowledge in those islands to investigate further
the subject^ which has been diligently but imperfectly pursued in this
volume ; and I shall feel rewarded for the trouble it has cost, if my
researches into the histoiy and organisation of these birds, aided by
the anatomical investigations which Dr. Melville has introduced into
the second part of the work, shall have rescued these anomalous
creatures fh>m the domain of fiction, and established their true rank
in the scheme of creation." [See Supplement.]
DOG. [Cakis,]
DOGBANE. [ApocYNACEiR]
DOG-FISH. fSQUALiDJS.]
DOG-ROSE. TRosaJ
DOG'S-TAIL-QRASS. [Cynosurus.]
DOG'S-TOOTH-SPAR. [Calcareous Spar.]
DOG-WOOD. [CoRNUs.]
DOLABELLA. [Tectibrawchiata.]
DOL ABRIFORM, a term applied in Botany to certain fleshy leaves,
which are straight at the front, taper at the base, compressed, dilated,
roimded, and thinned away at the upper end at the back, so as to
bear some resemblance to an old-fashioned axe-head.
DOLERITE, a form of BasAt consisting of Labradorite and Augite,
DOLICHONYX. [Bobo-Link.]
DO'LICHOS. Under this name LinnAus included the greater part
of those tropical twining Leguminous Plants whidb bear eatable fruit
like the kidney-beans cultivated in Europe. A large number of spe-
cies, ill distinguished from each other, and differing materiaUy in the
structure of their fructification, were for so long a time collected
under this name that, although ihey are now broken up into several
genera, we shall briefly notice the more remarkable in this place.
Dolichoa itself is confined to the species with a compressed linear
pod, havinff incomplete cellular dissepiments, and ovate seeds with a
small oval hilum. Of these i>. Cafjatig, the pulse of which is called
Boberloo in India, is an annuiJ, and has somewhat deltoid leaves,
angular at the back, few-flowered peduncles, and erect pods. It is
cultivated in the fields in many parts of India during the diy season,
and its seeds are extensively consumed by the poorer natives. D.
lignomu, a perennial, with long racemes of fiowers, broad heart-shaped
leafiets, and linear sharp-pointed pods, is extremely common all over
India, where it is cultivated " during the oold season in gardens and
about the doors of the natives, forming not only cool shady harbours,
but furnishing them with an excellent pulse for their curries," &a
There arc several varieties of it oonstituting the commonest kidney-
beans of India. D. bifioruSf an annual, with oblong pointed leaflets
and scimitar-shaped hairy pods, furnishes the pulse caJled in India
Horse-Gram ; and D. iphteroapermut produces the Calavana or Black-
Eyed Peas of Jamaica.
Za&to6 has a compressed scimitaindiAped pod, rough, with tubercles
at the sutures, and furnished with transverse imperfect cellular par-
titions,'and ovate seeds with a fungous callous linear scar. Lailab
viUgarUf the old Dolichoa LdUab, is a common plant in the hedges in
many parts of India, whence it has travelled into the tropical parts of
America. It is a smooth perennial with showy white or purple
flowers, and laige horizontal pods, containing from three to four
seeds. It has a heavy disagreeable bug-like smell, prefers a rich
black soil that cannot be flooded by rains, and produces a coarse but
wholesome pulse, much eaten by the lower classes in India.
Paehyrhkua has a long compressed pod, with kidney-shaped seeds
and no dissepiments, and is remarkable for its principal species, P,
anguUUue f formerly Doliehot bulbosut), producing a root or the size
and substance of a turnip. It is reported to have been carried to the
Philippines from South America, and thence to have been introduced
into the west of Asia. The side leaflets are nearly triangular, that in
the middle lozenge-shaped, slightly toothed, and shaggy on both
side& The flowers are very beautiful, of a violet-blue colour, and
arranged in axillary nearly erect racemes, from one to two feet long.
Its root is a common article of food in the Malay Archipelago, but no
other part of the plant is eaten.
In PtopKocarpua the pods are oblong, and have four longitudinal
wings ; the seeds are roundish. It oomprehends the Dolichoa tetrth
gonoMma, a twining annual, the pods or tuberous roots of which are
a common Indian esculent.
Canavaiia, with long straightish compressed pods, having three
short wings at the lower vuturei, cellular dissepiments, and oblong
seeds with a narrow hUum, oomprehends the South American Lima
Beans and the Sword Beans of India^ The species have a handsomer
and flrmer foliage than the other genera, and the flowers are usually
large and showy. 0. gltidiata, the common cultivated spedes, has often
pods two feet long, and variee with red, gray, and white seeds.
Finally, the genus Mucuna, known by its oblong puckered com-
pressed hispid pods, includes aU the species from whidi Cowage is
obtained. [Cowitch or Cowaoe.]
DOL lOL UM. [ AoALEPH a]
DOLIUM. [Entomostoicata.]
DOLOMITE, a variety of Magnesian' Limestone, first noticed by
Dolomieu. It occurs mostly massive, and in mountain masses ; it is
usually white, sometimes grayish or yello^rish ; its structure is some-
times slaty ; it is frequently translucent on the edges. It is softer
than common limestone. Sometimes it is met with in veins accom-
panied by quartz, carbonate of lime, &a The Dolomite of the Apen-
nines consists of 59 carbonate of lime and 40 carbonate of magnesia :
it contains a variable quantity of oxide of iron.
Compact Dolomite or Gturhoffian is snow-white, and venr compact
The siirface, when newly broken, is scarcely sbining, and the -frag-
ments, which are sharp, are translucent on the edges ; the fracture is
flat conchoidal, and its hardness is considerable. It oocurs in veins
traversing serpentine between Gurhoff (whence its name) and Ags^s-
bach, in Lower Austria. According to Elaproth, it consists of car-
bonate of lime 70*50, and carbonate of magnesia 29*50.
This rock, having the aspect and general geological history of
limestone, but composed of carbonate of magnesia united to carbonate
of lime, usually atom to atom, occurs as a part of the Oolitic system
of the Alps and Apennines, and of the German Jurakalk ; and it is
perhaps proper to call by the same name the crystaUised Magnesian
Limestone of Nottiiighamshire, Derbyshire, Yorkshire, and Durham.
The best example of this English Dolomite is at Bolsover, in Derby-
shire, from whence the stone is taken to build the new Houses of
Parliament. From the manner in which this rock occurs along the
Lake of Lugano, and other parts on the south side of the Alps, in
direct contact or more frequently in a peculiar relation of propinquity
to augitic traps, Von Buch inferred that Dolomite was a metamorphic
limestone, altered by absorption of magnesian vapours yielded by
volcanic action. There is much to recommend this inference. In
England we frequently find the mountain limestone dolomitised,
along lines of fracture and along the sides of mineral veins ; and these
cases appear to enter into Von Buoh*s explanation. But the broad
Magnesian Limestones of the North of England are certainly due to
original crystallisation together of the two carbonates already named.
Dolomite is usually very deficient in organic remains. In the Alps
and in Franconia its aspect is very picturesque.
The Magnesian Limestone belongs to a system of rocks called by
modem geologists Permian, which includes the Zechstein Kupfer-
schiefer and Roth todte-liegende of German geologists. [Maqne8L\n
Limestone.]
DOLPHIN. [Cetacea.]
DOllfBEYA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural, order
Byttneriaeea, inhabiting the East Indies and the isles of France,
Bourbon, and Madagascar. They have a 5-parted persistent calyx,
siuTOunded by a 8-ieaved unilateral involuceL The petals are 5.
The stamens are from 15 to 20, scarcely monadelphous, five of them
being sterile, with fr^m 2 to 8 fertile ones between each sterile
stamen. The name Dombepa was also applied to the plant now called
Araucaria excdaa. The bark of D. apectabUia is made into ropes in
Madagascar.
DONAX. [Arundo.]
DONAX. tooNCHAOEA.]
DOOM, or DOUM, a remarkable Palm-Tree exclusively inhabiting
Upper Egypt, especially the neighbourhood of Thebes, whence it is
named ffyphane Thebaiea Its stem, instead of growing without
branches like other palms, forks two or three times, thus assuming
the appearance of a Pandanus. Clumps of it occur near Thebes. The
fruit is about the size of an orange, angular, irregularly formed, of a
reddish colour, and has a spongy, tasteless, but nutritious lind. The
albumen of the seed is hard and semitransparent, and is turned into
beads and other little ornaments. Gbertner described it under the name
of HyphcBne coriaceck It is known in Egypt as the Gingerbread-Tree,
because of the resemblance of its brown mealy rind to that cake.
DORE'MA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
UmbeUiferfJB, It luu an epigynous cup-shaped disc ; the fruit slightly
compressed from the back, and edged ; 3 distinct filiform primary
ridges near the middle, and alternating with them 4 obtuse secondary
ridges, the whole enveloped in wool; vittn 1 to each secondary
ridge, 1 to each primary marginal ridge, and 4 to the commissure, of
which 2 are very smalL
D. amnumuKfum is a glaucous green plant with a perennial root,
lar^e leaves 2 feet long, somewhat bipinnate, the pinna; in three pain,
the leidiets inciso-pinnatifid, with oblong mucronulate entire or
slightly-lobed segments from 1 to 5 inches long and half an inch to
2 inches broad ; the petiole very laige, downy, and sheathing at the
base ; the teeth of the calyx acute» membranous, minute ; the petals
ovate, reflezed at the point; the fruit elliptical, oompressed, suj^
TODDded ^ m broad flat edge. This plant fi a tutiva of Penia, in tho
plain* of iMdekalust and Eumiuba in the proTinoe of Irak ; and near
the tomi of Jeiud Kblit in veiy dr; plaini and gravell j soil, expnned
to an ardant ran. Tliia plant ia one <n those which Tielde raia ommo-
niaonm, but it is prababie that then are several species of plaats which
Tleld this as well u the other giun'reains of Uio order Umbtllifira,
{h\iiilt7. Flora Mtdica.)
DORIPFE (Fabriciiu), a genna of Bnchyurous Decapod Cnulacea
.belonging to the aub-diviaion which have the feet of the fburth and
fifth pain elevated oo the back and not terminated with poddlea, and
the ejes supported upon simple pedonclca [Nohpoda). The genua ia
adopted b; Latreille, Lamarck, Leiich, Boec, and Riaso : it is the
Nbtogiulnipui of Vosmaer, and 'nas comprehended under the general
term Caiuer by Linneue, Berbet, Aldrovandus, and Flancus. It haa
the foUowing cbaracters : — External anteonie rather long, setaceoua,
inserted above the intennediate ones, which are folded (pli^eg), but
not entirelj lodged in the cavities where tbej take their insertion ;
third joint of the eitemal jaw-feet (pieds-michoirte) atraigbt^ eloa-
gatad, taiminated in a point; buooal opening triangular; clawe (chelfB)
'1, abort, equal ; the other feet very long and compressed, the
Carapace alightlj depreaiad (the aides wider
posterioriv than they are anteriorlj), truncated, and spinouB before;
truncated, dnuoua, and bordered behind ; the surface marked with
■mall htunpe or tubercles, which correspond exactly to the ngions
proper to the soft parts beneath. Two great oblique openinga, oiliated
on their edges, oommunicating with the branchial cavity and litaated
below the head, one at the right, the other at the left of the mouth.
Inferior and poeterior part ot the body truncated into a kind of gutter
to receive the reflected abdomen, the pieoea of wbioh are nodulous or
tuberculouB. Eyes email, lateral, supported on rather long pedunolea,
placed near the angles of the head, and protected by its angular pro-
jectiona, which form the edgaa of their orbita, (Deamareet.)
The Hoditerranean and Adriatic aeii^, and Manilla, ore amang the
locslitiee in which the apecies hare been found. They bauat great
depths in the sea, nor has it yet been proved whether they make use
of the feet elevated on the )»ok to oover themaelvee like the Dronia
with foreign bodies. It is however ve^ probable that such ia their use.
D, lonola, Latreille, Laniarck ; D. Faeehino, Risso ; Canctr ianatiu,
Linneus ; C. hirialta oZtiu, Aldrovandue.
It has four dentstiona in the front and a veiy itrong lateral point,
foiming at the same time the angle of the head and the eitemiu bor-
der of the-oibit. A short point on the middle of each aide of the
carapace. Anterior border of the thigha ot the aecoad and third pair
of feet vvithoat spinea. Fingera of the cheUo oompreeeed and arched
within, having Uieir internal edge armed with a series of dentilations,
which ara rather strong, oblique, eqiuJ, and white. Bod; often
eovend with reddish down.
Jhrfppi Imata.
s, cilerul left Jtw.tbot.
It inhabits the Uediterranean and the Adriatic aeas. The inhiv-
bitants of Rimini call it Facctuno. (Daamarest.)
Fonil Dorippt.
Desmareat ('Hiitoire Nnturelle des Cmstao^ Foaailea,' 1622)
describes a species, D. Stuvma, which has some rawmblancd to the
species above figured and described, and still more to the orab figured
by Herbst under the name of CoMtr Fraieont: and above all to a
apecies brought from Australia by Pdron, and named D. nodota.
Deamarest observes that be is the more inclined to consider it aa
approaching very near to this last, inaaaiuch as he had thought that
the specimen which he had deaeribed might not be in reality fossa
In fact, he add^ that though brown and shining, like tho fosnl crabs
which come from the East Indiee, it is much lighter, more friable,
and not so much imbedded in tho clay as they are. In his 'Conaidtf-
ratioQs Oin^roles eur la CIbbbc des Cruatacds ' (1825) be describes the
Dorippe h Quatre Dcnta with the syaonyms D. quadridmt, Fabr.
Lair.; D. nodota. Coll. du Mna. : Canixr Friuisont, Herbrt. "This
Dorippt from the East Indies," he adds, " baa latelj been brou^t
DRABA. SM
from Manilla by M. Marion Cm Troo6. It so muoh resembles a speoiea
which I have described with doubt as fossil, that I know not how
piedaely to point out the difference. This speoiea belongs to U.
Defi-anoe, who has stated its characters in tbe article 'Dorippe'
(fossil) of tbe ' Diet, des Sciences Naturellea.' "
DOmS. [NtTEISRANCniATA.]
DORO'yiCUU, a kbdub of Pknts belonging to the natural order
Gomponla, to the loborder CorynJ/^errt, the tribe <SmeciimiilcE, and
the section SnuciaRcai. It has the florete of tlie ray ligolate and pis-
tiliferous ; thoao of the disc tabular, with both stamens and pisbls ;
the involuore hemispherical, of 3 or S rowa of equal scales ; ths pappua
pilose, wanting in tha ray. The species are deoiduona herbaosoua
plants. Two are natives of Great Britain.
D. pardedianehet, with cordate denticulate leaves. It Has a stem
fVom 2 to 3 feet in height, erect, solitary, hollow, and baJry. It la a
rare plant, and found m damp and hilly woods and psatures. It has
its spedflo name from ttiJpJaAit, a tiger, and Syx'"' ^ atrangle, on ac-
count of the use said formerly to have been made of ilia plant for the
purpose of destroying wild aiiimalB. With the ipecieB of .irmea and
other plants of tho order it has the common name of Leopard's Bane.
D. platitagiiKTiHa, the second British spedes, has ovate leaves, and
the stem-leavea clasping. It attaina about the same height H the last,
and its flowers are also yellow. J>. teorpwida, D. Camec^ttm, D. Jut-
triamm, and D. pardaiiandia are natives of the continent of Europe;
(Koch, Flora Gemanka; Babington, Jfonuoi o/ Bolany.)
DORH-HAWK. [GoAmnoKEBS.]
DORS AT I. rAMKONITK.1
DORSIBRAKCBIATA, Cuviec'a appellation for the second order
of Aunelides, which have their organs, and eepedally thdr brnnohite,
distributed nearly equally along the whole of their body, or at least a
part CUoeia (Bavi^y) and CimUvlvt {Lamarck), with many other
genera, belong to this order. [AmfUJSA.]
DOBSTE'NIA, a genua of Plants belonging to the natural order
Urticacta. The roots of several species of thia genua are alt con-
founded under the appellation of Contrayerva Root ; but as they all
possess nearly the same chemical composition and properties, it la of
little importance which particular apecies pelds what is need. Indeed
by the time the root roaches Europe whatever virtues it originally
possessed are lost, so that it has aaaixAj any Bemnble qualities, and
van little effect on the system. It oonsists of volatile oil, extractive,
and starch. The flret of these gives It some power over the nervous
system, should it not have been dissipated by time. Hence It in
recommended in the low stages of fever, especially of children ; but
3erpentaria Boat may at all limes be advantageously sulslituted for
it. Contrayerva Bigmfies antidote, and it was at one time supposed to
be an antidote to all poisons, whetlier animal, vegetable, or mineral,
except mercniy.
DORY, rSooKOTiDA]
DOTO, pjomsEiBOHiiTa.]
DOTTEREL rCBAUSitiADX.]
DOnCEEB. [Coliioida]
DOUM. [Doom.]
DOURA. [BoBoauu.]
DOVEa. [COLUlCBICi]
DOWN, the tine bair of plants, ia a cellular eipaunon of the cutide,
consisting of attenuated thin semi-traiisparsnt haiis, either simple or
jointed end to end, or even branched, as in the Mullein. When
attached to seeds, it enables them to be buoyed up in the air and
transported from place to place. When covering the external lurfaoa
of a plant it ac^ aa a protection agoiiuit extremes of temperature,
and pi^bably as a means of absorbing moisture from the air.
DSABA, a genua of Plants belonging to the natural order Oratifera,
the sub-order laiitepla, and the tribe Hj/mnta. It has an oval or
oblong poach, slightly convex, the seeds many in each cell, not mar-
gined, in two rowB, Uie filaments simple. The spedes are perennial
or annual branched herbs, with linear oblong or ovate leaves, yellow
or white £owen.
D. vcmo, conunon Whitlow-Oroas, has a leafless scape, ghbroua
above, with lanceolate acute attenuated leaves, haiiy below, tLe petals
deeply doven, the pouch oblong, shorter than its pedioeL It ia an
exceedingly oanunon plant, ornamenting old walls and dry banks in
the spring brfore otlwr flowers make teeir appearance. It is found
throughout Europe, and is most abundant in Great Britain. It is the
EropkUa vcrna of De Candolle.
D. ouDOn, Evergreen Whitlow-Grass, has naked smooth scapes,
linear acute keeled stifi' ciliated leaves, the style as broad as the bairy
pod, but one-half shorter. It is a native of Bavaria, Austria, Hun-
gary, Transylvania, and the Carpathian Uoontoina, particularly on
Mount Chocez,
D. aitiiUUt has a leafless glabrous aeape, with linear rigid acute
keeled glabrous oilUtod leaves, the staraiiia as long aa the slightly,
notched petals, the style elongated. It is a native of gravelly aoile in
almoet every country of Europe It is a rare pUnt in Greet Britain,
and has been found on rocks and walls at Pennard OutJe, near Swan-
sea. Tbe ottier British specias are— J), ntpufrif, a rare plant found
on monntaina in Scotland ; D. incana, alao a mountainous species ;
and D. mwo^, found on the iJuMly sides of rocks, walls, and moun-
tains, but it ia a ran plant in Great Britain.
387
DRAC^KA.
DRACONINA.
Above 60 Bpecies of J>raba have been described. They are all
msignificant plants inhabiting the temperate and colder parts of the
world. They are not often cultivated, but are adapted for rock-worL
They are apt to drop ofif in winter when exposed, and the best way
to preserve them is to keep them in pots as other alpine plants.
They grow best in a mixture of sand, loam, and peat^ and the pots
should be well drained with potsherd. They may be propagated by
dividing the roots or by seeds.
(Babington, Manual ; Don, Dichlamydeout Planti,)
DRAC^NA, a genus of Endogenous Plants of the natural £imily
Asparageoi of Jussieu, now arranged as a section of LUiiicecB by Dr.
Idndley. The genus was established by LinnsBus, and named from
one of its species yielding the resinous exudation, familiarly known
by the name of Dragon's Blood, a translation of the Arabic name
Dum al Akhwain, met with in Avicenna and other Arabian authors.
J)racama is characterised by having an inferior 6-partite perianth, of
which the se^ents are nearly erect, and have inserted on them the
6 stamens, with filaments thickened towards the middle and linear
anthers. The style is single, with a trifid stigma. The berry 2- or
S-celled, with its cells 1- or 2-seeded.
The species of Dracctna are now about 80 in number, and found
in the warm parts of the Old World, and in many of both Asiatic
and African iuands, whence they extend southwi^ to the Cape of
Good Hope and Australia, and northward into China, and to the
eastern parts of India, as the districts of Silhet and Chittagong.
Species are also found in Socotra, and the Cauaiy and Cape Yerd
Islands, as well as at Sierra Leone. From this distribution it is
evident that ^e species require artificial heat for their cultivation in
England. They are found to thrive in a light loam, and may be
grown from cuttings stmk in a bark bed.
The species of DraccBna are evergreens, either of a shrubby or
arboreous nature ; and having long slender often columnar stenus, they
emulate palms in habit. Their trunks are marked with the cicatrices
of fallen leaves ; the centre is soft and cellular, having externally a
circle of stringy fibres. The leaves are simple, usually crowded
together towards the end of the branches, or terminal like the in-
florescence ; whence we might suppose that the name terminalU had
been applied to some of the species, if Rumphius had not stated that
it was in consequence of their being planted along the boundaries of
fields. The structure of the stem and leaves is particularly interest-
ing, as the fossil genera Clathraria and Stembtrgia have been assimi-
lated to Draccena, the former by M. Adolphe Brongniart, and the
latter by Dr. Lindley ; and as Rumphius compares the leaves of a
Ihaecma with those of Qalanga, it is as probable that the fossil leaves
called Cannophyllites may be those of a plant allied to Dra^asna, as
that they belong to one of the Connect.
Of the severfd species of DraccBtia which have been described by
botanists, there are few which are of much importance either for their
useful or ornamental properties. Among them however may be
mentioned D. terminali8f a species rather extensively diffused. The
root is said by Rumphius to be employed as a demulcent in cases of
diarrhcea, and the plant as a signal of truth and of peace in the
Eastern Archipelago. In the islands of the Pacific Ocean a sweetish
juice is expressed from its roots, and afterwards reduced by evapora-
tion to a sugar, of which specimens were brought to Paris by Captain
D'XJrville ^m the island of Tahiti (Otaheite). The root is there
called Ti or Tii, and thence no doubt corrupted into Tea-Root by the
English and Americana. M. Gaudichaud mentions that in the Sand-
wich Islands generally an intoxicating drink is prepared from this
root, to which the name Ava is often applied, as well as to that made
with the roots of Piper methpiticwn.
2>. Draco is the best known species, not only from its producing
Dragon's Blood, but also from one specimen having so frequently been
described or noticed in the works of visiters to the Canaiy Islands.
The erect trunk of the Dragon-Tree is usually from 8 to 12 feet high,
and divided above into numerous short branches, which terminate in
tufts of spreadiog sword-shaped leaves, pointed at the extremity.
The most celebrated specimen of this tree grows near the town of
Orotava, in the island of Teneriffe, and was found by Humboldt in
1799 to be about 45 feet in circumference. Sir G. Staunton had
previously stated it to be 12 feet in diameter at the height of 10 feet ;
and Ledru gave even lai^ger dimensions. It annually bears flowers
and fruit ; and though continuing thus to grow, does not appear much
increased in size, in consequence of some of its branches being con-
stantly blown down, as in the storm of July 1819, when it lost a
great part of its top. The great size of this enormous vegetable is
mentioned in many of the older authors ; indeed as early as the time
of Bethencourt, or in 1402, it is described as large and as hollow as
it is now ; whence, from the slowness of growth of Dracaenas, has
been inferred the great antiquity of a tree which four centuries have
so little changed. Humboldt indeed remarks that there can be no
doubt of the Dracctna of Orotava being, with the Baobab (Adanaonia
digUata), one of the oldest inhabitants of our planet; and as tradition
relates that it was revered by the Guanches, he considers it as singular
that it should have been cultivated from the most distant ages in the
Canaries, in Madeira, and Porto Santo, although it comes originoJly
from India. This fact he adduces as contradicting the assertion of
those who represent the Guanches as a race of men completely
isolated firom the other races of either Asia or Afiica. To this it may
be replied, Uiat we know too little of the botany of the interior of
Africa to be able to draw from it any inferences ; while the Dragon-
Tree on the other hand is not known to exist fiarther to the eastward
than the island of Socotra.
DRACO. [Draconhca.]
DRACOCELLA. [Dbaconina.]
DRACONINA, a sub-family of Saurians belonging to the fiimily
Agamidce, the tribe StrobUoeawaj and the sub-order Pachygtoeece of
Dr. J. R Gray's arrangement. The family of Agamas, or Agamidce,
is thus defined by Dr. Gray : — " Teeth implanted on the end of the
jaws. Tongue short, depressed, apex entire or slightlv nicked. Ey»*
lids connivent, valvular. Feet^ for walking. Toes all &ee, unequal ;
the thumb of the hind feet on the same plane as the other toes ; the
little toes lower down on the ankle than the thumb. The thumb is
anterior and internal, and the great toe of the hind feet occupies the
same position, the thigh and foot being bent forwards. This is proved
by analogy ; this toe being the one that is dawless in the Oocko, wldch
have the dawless thumb, and in AnolU, where the thumb and great
toes are simple, and not dilated beneath, like the other toes."
The synopsis of the genera of this fiunily, according to the ' British
Museum Catalogue,' is as follows : —
I. Body compressed. Living on trees.
A. Femoral and pre-anal pores none. Scales imbricate. Asiatic.
a. Ribs elongated, exserted, supporting wing-like lateral expansions.
Throat with 3 pouches.
1. Draco, — Ears naked. Nostril below the face-ridge.
2. Dracocdla. — Nostril above the faoe-ridge.
8. Draewncvlut, — Ears covered with scales.
6. Ribs simple. Back crested.
* Toes 4 or 5. Ears exposed.
4. SUana, — Males with an elongated pouch. Females without any
pouch.
** Toes 5 — 5. Tail with elongated keeled scales beneath. Scales
of back small, often with scattered larger ones.
f Ears hidden under the skin.
5. Lyrioecphahu. — Head lyrate. Muzzle with a round tubercle in
front. Scales unequal.
6. CeratophorcL — Head square. Muzzle with a prolonged horn-like
process. Scales unequal
7. OfocryptU. — ^Head squarish. Muzzle nearly flat^ simple. Eye-
brows bluntly angular behind.
ft Ears exposed.
8. Oonyocephalut. — Scales of the belly smooth, of the back unequal
Eyelids angular, produced.
9. DilojSiyrus. — Scales of the belly smooth ; of the back equal.
Eyebrow rounded, simple.
10. Tiarie. — Scales of the belly keeled, of the back unequal Eye-
brow and parotids unarmed.
11. AcarUhosauriL — Scales of the belly keeled, of the back unequal
Eyebrows and parotids aimed.
*** Toes 5 — 5. Tail with broad rhombic keeled scales beneath.
Scales of back imiform.
12. Bronehocela, — Nuchal crest simple. Scales in descending series.
13. iSoleck^-Nuchal crest double. Scales lai^, in longitudinal series.
14. Calcte9. — Back crested. Scales in ascendkig series. Head swol-
len behind, with one or two ridges of spines.
**•• Toes 5 — 5. Tail with truncated keeled scales beneath. Scales
small, keeled, in cross rings.
15. Chdaeonia. — ^Parotids swollen, armless. Throat lax. The nape
and back with a low crest. Tail rather compressed. Face-ridge
rounded, with small scales.
16. Oharana. — Parotids swollen, with some spines above. The
nape and back with a low crest Tail tapering. Faoe-ridge distinct,
with enlarged imbricated scales.
17. Gindalia. — Parotids rather swollen, with 2 or 8 spines above.
Nape and back not crested. Tail tapering, round. Face-ridge indistinct.
D, Femoral pores distinct
<L Scales rhombic, placed in rings. Toes fringed on each side. Back
crested. Throat lax, folded across.
18. Lophura.—Baxk and tail with a fin-like crest^ supported by bony
rays. Head squarish.
19. Phryngnathu8.-^BMk and tail with a crest of compressed scales.
Head swollen behind.
h Scales irregular, imbricate. Australian.
* Neck with a frill-like expansion on each side.
20. Cblamydotawnti. — Head rhombic.
♦• Neck simple.
21. JTo^teno.— Back and taU crested. Head elongate. Pre-anal pores
numerous. Scales small.
22. Lophognatkui.--Ba€k crested. Head elongate. Pre-anal pores
2—2. Femoral pores 2—2.
BM DRACONDTA.
33. JXporopiDra.— Back itOnd. Hud ihort PtmumlI pora 1—1.
Sola liiotnbia, of bdlj Urgar.
U. Atapkibalirui. — Back orated, with Ira^tudinal wriM of Urgsr
kselad ackloft. Fsmoiml porn nomBroni.
S£. OrammMoriera. — Back not onatsd, with atom rows of luger
■ealia. Fcmonl pore* Qumerooa.
IL Body daprauvd. Bm^ with imbricftts actin. Throkt with n
CTOU fold. TBrreotiul.
a. Pra«iul pons distinot. Femoral poits aone. Ean axpowid.
* Pra4iwl Bod abdomiiul porM In Hreral rowi.
SS. ZandaJcia. — Tiil with rhombio kes1«d walw. Parotids apinoae.
27. SuUi«. — Tail with rings of Uig& ipinoH wslea. Fuatida
" Pl*«ii>] porei in a aingla lina. Abdomen poralau.
SS. Jffoma. — Parotida apinoie. Soalei rhombic, kMlad.
39. SVapafaia. — Parotida nnarmed. Scalaa minute. [Aouu.]
b. Pn-anil and femoral poree noae.
* Elan azpoaad. Body and limba willi higa apiaoae tuberclM.
BO. MeloA, — Nsck with a oodtbi tubarele abova.
** Em hidden. Scales imaU, granular. Back not created.
81. PAryiMe^AohH.-'ADl^e of mouUiumpIe. Toeatootlied on the
SUVvoItdWiH.— Angle of mouth fringad. Toea fringed on Uieiidei^
e. Femoral potei diaUneti Pr»«nal porei none. Ean eipnaed.
Saalei imall, giaiiular. fiitck not orut«d.
83. UroMiutj/x. — Tall broad, depreaaad, with complete ringa of
apinoae aealea.
SI. Saara. — Tail broad, depreaaad, with acalel of tba upper part of
the rings apinoae ; of lower, armlaaa.
3f . LeioUpu. — Tail round, elongate^ tapering, with whorl* of smooth -
The genera and apeciea of the family Drawnina are ai fbllowi : — '
1. Dratc. — Haadsmall. If oatril in a aoale, raUier tubular on ^a dde
of the faoe-ridge. Tympanum of tba aar visible, opaqu^ white. Tbay
lira on bMS, walking with agility with their winga folded on tliaiT I
tide^ but thay expand i^em and use them sa a pancbute when tiiey >
throw UiamselTea f^m the tops of trees. Th^ spread out thrir
pondia* SB they lie on tha trunks of the treaa. Sealea unsqua], aome '
uttger, keeled. Napa oreated.
DRACONINA. sw
tha throat gnnulaf, of the same siia ; the lateral pouches of ths males
modsrate, rounded nt the end, ooTerad with onte koeled sealea ; the
throat blaokHTOottod; wings gray, fulyoua, or brown, spotted and
marbled with black, aomstimea totming four or five oWiquo black
bands near the outer edj^ : the sidea with a seriae of la^ broad
keeled sealea.
D. Timcreiuii, the Timor Flyiog-LiBtrd. It is the S. viridU ZVnop.
auit of Schlegel. It has flat scalaa, rather large, amooth, unaqual,
with a row of rather larger keeled aaalea upon and on eaoh aide <a the
Tartebnl line ; . winga reddiah, brown^potted ; lateral pouehes (oE
male) moderate, rounded at the end, covered with large kaaled ecalea ;
■idea with an intarmpted aariea of large keeled acalee.
J), fimbriattit, Kuhi, the Fringed Flying.Licard. Sealn of tha
back small, equid, mostly amooth ; the throat with many cimular
spaoea, ooTBred with larger granular sealee ; head white, brown-nettod J
latersl pouohea of male efongate, angular, aouta, oorered with large
keeled acalaa ; winga with short wbitidi longitudinal linn ; ddea with
a ssriea of aniall triangular keeled aoales, placed in groups of two or
thras; noatcila lubaaparior.
SkoletsB of • ipeclu of Sraec.
2>. polatu, Linn., tha Flying Liraxd. It ia the J), floyar of Lamarck,
D. viridU of Daudin, D. Baunnieiuit of Lsaaoo, and the i>. Doadini of
DnmML The sotlaa of tha back are mlliet broad, generally smooth ; of
2. DraeocdUi. — Head small, covered with amall unequal scales;
the noatrila roundish, in a acala, craot, vertical on the fiua-ridge;
tympanum azpoaed, and opaque.
* ITapa oreated.
D. Snuuinieri, Duasumier's Dragon, has moderate sealea, raHur
rhombic j the aidea with a aeries of nther larger acalea, placed in
roundish groups ; orbit with a small bony point at back and front
angle j wings with large brawn spots near the body, and largely
marbled near the outar edge ; a black band aoroaa tha throat ; baaa
of the pouch blue-black; the limbs moderate.
** Nape not crested.
D. Ifacuratepogen, the Red-Throated DngoD. The orbit with a
•mall boQj pomt abovc^ upon the front and back edge ; acalea of the
back equal, smooth, tba sides with a aeries of Urge keeled acalee ;
nape not created ; ■ large round black spot on each aide of tha baaa
of tha pouch ; winga brown-epotted ; tlie llmba elongate.
3. Ihaeuitcidiu. — Head quadrangular, covered wiui small unequal
■cslea ; nostrila lateral, on tha faca-ridge ; tympsaum hid under the
•kin, covered with scslea. Weigmann described D. linealia aa having
but five szsartad riba, but tha specimens in tha British Museum, like
the other dragons, have sii on each side.
* Sapt not crested, with a longitudinal fold.
O. giua([U(fiueialfu, the Banded Flying-Liaard. Winga with five
cross bands ; acalea of tha back keeled ; nape with a longitudinal fold,
not crested ; noatiila auparior, erect ; ears covered with many equal
granular scalaa.
■• Nap* crested. Fan slightly ooncsve.
with broad black bajids at tha edge ; ao^ea rbomUc, of the middle of
DEACONTIDM.
the b>ek Uiger, kraled, at the sidca ■mailer, imooth; ew» ooTered
with mukU «qiul gnuiaUr wsIm; toil ileDder, compreued, with Sts
keela alxive and tiro stronggr keda baneatb, rathar depresaed at tlu
bue, with Gve alight kseU aboTe.
D. tMoeulatui, the Bpottsd- Winged Dragou. Gray, blaok-apottad ;
wioga bUck-apottod ; throat gray ; pouch of the male slongate ; icalflH
of the back nther unequal, rhombic, keeled, of the lidee ratliar
amallsT ; aidca with a senea of large keeled aoales ; ein rather aunk,
vrlth unequal £at eoalei ; tail alander, with a cential keel above and
fire more amall anee on On sidea ; baaa dilated, with five nearly equi-
distant equal keala aboTe.
D. ipiloptena, Waigmana'a Flying-Liiard. Winsa reddiA near tha
body, with large brown apota, yellow near the edge ; throat yellow,
blaok-ipotted. Thia may be the aame aa the fanner apedea, but the
wioga are ■ubelliptio, and the eoidea do not exactly agree.
DRA.CONTinH (from ipimtr, a make, beeaoae the stem ia mottled
like the akin of • aarpent), a genua of Plants beloogii^ to the natural
order Araeta. It haa ■ oymbiform apalhe, with a cyundrioal apadii,
quite ooTered with hermaphrodite Bowers, the perianth T'B-parted ;
T-94tament, with oblong 2-oeUed antheia, opening obliquely by a
pore at Ota apex, and distinct &om their SlameDta; the oraiy
2-3-aalled, eaoh odl eoDtaioicig one penduloua ovule; a I-3-ieeded
barrj; ae«da without albumen.
J). polpphyUum haa a tuber resembling a email oake, producing one
or two leaves, with long clouded spotty petialee, resembling the skin
of a snake. The spatha ii laige, of a purple colour, very deep inside,
hooded, aoute, and appearing after the leaves have withered. It
nnells so powerfully on first expanding, tliat pereoiu have been
known to bint fkrom the stench. It ia also said to excite the nerves
of hearing, and even induce a etate of estalepay. It ia a naUva of
QuyauB, Suriuam, and other parte of equinoetial America, where it
ie called Labarrt, and regarded aa a remedy against the bite of the
Labairi Snske, which ite spotted ieaf-atalks resemble in colour. Its
uae in thie respect is doubtful, but its powerful action on tlie system
might tender it available in the treatment of many diacaacs. Tliere
is a nieaiea of iVocmriMtm in India, called by Ainslieby tlie aatnename,
whioh i« a valuable remedy iiLasthma, aoji ia used in htemorrhoida.
The iJroconh'iHK fatidum of Limueua, the Skunk.Weed and Skunk
Cabbage of the United Statea, ia now referred lo the genus Sj/mpto-
eaifU4, It differs from BmeiHiiiavi, in its ovaries being l.oelled, and
in ita spathe being oucullata. It emits a powerful odour. When the
tubers are dried and powdered they are used ss an antispasmodic
in America. It haa been recommended in asthma and chronic
bronchitis, also in certain cases of hysteria, dropsy, and epilepsy.
gindiey, Flora Mtdiea.)
RAGUNCUIiUa (DUOOHIVA.]
DRAOON. [DBAcomr^l
DRAQON-FIiY. rLiBELHji.ini]
DKAGOITS-BLOOD. [Cauudb; DttAOXMA.]
DBAQON-TREE. [Dhac«ba.1
DRAQONET. [CiLUONTuDa.]
DSAKjCA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Omkid-
aeai. -D. daitica haa a aingle flower placed at the end of a elender
smooth erect scape from 12 to 18 inchee long, and ita labeilum, idiich
is hammer-headed and placed on a long arm with a moveable elbow-
joint in the middle, is stated by Ur. Drummond to resemble an insect
suniended in the air and rnoving with eveiy breeie.
DBEELITB, a Mineral, found at Nuiaibe, near Beaujeu, Franca,
occnn d^ystilllaed. Ita primary form is a rhomboid, without any
modifieatuma. It preaenta three cleavages parallel with the &cee of
the piiman djsta]. Ita colour and streak are white. Ita bardneaa
8-26. Its lustre pearly. Ita epeciflc gravity 8'2 to S'*. The foUow-
ing is an analysis by Dufr^noy :-'
Sulphate of BaiytM SH81
Sulphate of Lime 13'271
Carbonate of Lima ..... 8'OGO
Lima 1-531
Silioa ..,,"... 8-713
Alumina i'iOi
Water 2-808
DRILL. [Buoov.]
DRIUTS. [WiHTBRaoubl
DRIZZLK [LoT^I
DBOMEDART. [Camklub.]
SRO'MIA (Fabricius), a genua of Brachyurous Decapod Orvtiaeea,
placed by IL Latreille in the section of Notopoda, and referred by Dr.
Leachtothetamiljofl^dljiopada. In the 'BritiahHuaeum Catalogue'
they are referred to the order Anomoytra and the family Dromiada.
It haa the foUowing characters ;— External anteonee amall, iooerted
below tha ocular peduncles j the intermediate antennce placed below
and a little within the eyes ; external jaw-feet with their tliird joint
neatly square, alightly notched at the eitreniity and within ; claws
(chela) great and strong ; feet of the second and third pair terminated
by a simple joint, and larger than those of the foorth and Gilh pair,
which are elevated on the back and provided with a daw, inaanjuch
aa tha last joint, which is bent and pointed, ia opposed to a apine
nearly of die aame farm, which terminates the penultimate joint ;
feet and ohels j eyea
■mall, supported on aborb peduncles, rather approximated, and lodged
in orbioular or cylindrical tbasee. (Desmaiasb)
The spaciea are found in the aeaa of warm climates. They are indo
lent in their motiona, and live in spots where the sea ia moderately
deep, choosing for their habitation places where tha rocba are nol
hidden under the sand. They are almost always found covered with
a Bpesiea of ^Zcyontum, orwith valves of Conchifets, which they retain
wiui their four hinder feet, and which seems to serve them as a shield
against their enemies The AUyonia, which are in general of the
spedes named Aluyonittm itamwnculo, continue even to develop and
extend themsdves upon their carapace, which they at last entirely
conceal In the month of July, according to H. Risao, the female*
come out of the state of torpor (engourdioeement) in which they
ordinarily are, and betake themselvee to the ahallowB for the purpose
of depositing there a great number of egga. (DeamoreaL)
Dynomme, according to Deemareat, should be placed next toi^ranta,
the former differing from the latter principally in having the feet of the
fifth ptur only instead of the last four elevated on the back. In general
the Dromia bear a great resemblance to the Crabs, properly ao called,
in the general form of the body, the atructum of the parts of the mouth,
the position of the antennie, ka. ; but they dider from them in the
elevated aituation of their four posterior feet and in their msnnera.
Dromia hirntUiima. Carapaoe very convex, with six dentationa
on its lateral bordera, and with a large sinua on each side of the front,
which is nearly trilobated. Body covered with long red hura. It ia a
native of the Cape of Good Hope.
The other species, of which there are specimens in the British
Museum, are — D. vuigarii, Meditemnean j D. Rnv^hii, Japan j D.
Indiea, Indian Ocean ; D. fallax, Mauritius ; D. varucotifo, Ftuhp-
DRONE. [Beb.)
DHONTE. fDoDO.]
DROPWOBT, a poisonous wild Umbelliferous Plant, with fleahy-
fingered roota, inhabiting ditches and wet places. It has been some-
times sold fraudulently by itinerant gardenera as a new speciea of
dahlia. Its botanical name is (Etumthe crocata.
DRO'SERA (fr^m Spisot, dew), a genua of Planta belonging to the
natuTBl order thouracta. It has a calyx deeply G-cleft j 6 petals ; G
atamena; 3<G styles, deeply bifid; a many-seeded 1-odled capsule,
with 3-G valves. The species are herbs inhabiting bogs and moasv
Bwampa. The leaves are fumiahed with reddish gluidnUT hairs, whidi
discharge from their point a viscid acrid fluid. Inaeote are often caught
upon these haira, and hence they have been aupposed to be irritable,
and to resemble those of the Dionaa mMcqiMa, Vanns's Ply-Trap,
a plant belonging to tha same order.
D. rofundt/oEio, Common or Round-Leaved Sun-Dew, has ortamlar
spreading leaves, hairy petioles, erect pedundes, seeds with a loose
diafly ooat. This plant is a native of Europe, in boggy pUcea eape-
dally where the Sphagnum nows. It is found in Great Britain, and
haa many localities near London, eqiecially Wimbledon Common and
Hompstead Beatb. It is employed in Italy for making the liqueur
called RoBsolL It ia an acrid and caustic plant, and haa been suppoaed
to cause rot in aheep. It curdlea milk, and haa a reputation for re
moving coma, bunions, and warts. When distilled with wine a atimn
Lating spirit ia procured, which waa formerly much used aa an excitant.
DEOSEHACEJ.
D. limata bu viidd leftvca ■vrVih ^indular fringes, wtiich cIobb upon
of the apedea of Dritera found near Swan River, in Wrat«m Australia,
might be turned to account Id tliat wkj, for oreiy part of D. gigmUea
Etaina paper of • bnutiful purple colour ; and when SmgmeDtg are
treatfld with ammoniai they yield a clear yellow.
Two oUiBT apeciea, iJ. (on^/ofia toAD.Anglica, are natiTes of Qreot
Britain. The flr*t i> a common bog-plant, but the latter is only
common in the British Islands in Ireland. About 10 speciea of Uiis
genus bare been described. They have been found in boggy places
in all parts of the world, except in the extremes of heat aud oold.
They are all aingularlj beautiful and worthy of onltivation. They
thrive best in amal! pots, which ehould be three-parts filled with pest-
earth, and Spbagniun should bs planted on it ; the Droseras should
be planted in the moss, and the pots placed in pans of water. The
Australian snd Cape of Good Hope speciee will require the stove.
They may be propagated by seeds, but foreign plants should be
brought over in cases, for which purpose those of Mr. Ward are
admirably adapted.
Don, DiMamydtotu PUtaUt ; Loudon, Sncyciopredia itf Plantt.)
BaOSERJi'CEM,Swn-Deiet, a natural order of Albuminous Exoge-
nous Plants, consisting of maru herbs whose leaves are usually covered
with glands or glandular hairs, and whose flowers are arranged in
cirdnate rBCemes. The calyx comdata of 6 sepals : there are C petals ;
C or 10 hypogynous stamens ; a 1-eelled many-seeded capsular &uit ;
and minnte seeds, having an embryo lying at tbe bus of a lai^
quantity of albumen. There are many speciee of the genua Drotera,
(»lled in England Sun-Dews, more remarkable tor the aingnlar struc-
ture of their glandular hairiness than for the beauty of their flowers.
A few other little known genera are associated with it ; and it is
probable that Dionira [Dion«a], whose singular irritable leaves have
much analogy with those of Droia'a, also forms a part of the order,
notwithstandlnx its indehiacent fruit and er»ct vernation.
De CandoUe having inexactly deaenbed the embryo as lying in the
axis of the albumen, the true afflnitiea of the ordei were overlooked ;
the; have once hqirever been mors ooneotlr determined to be itith
(^halotatia and Franttaetti rather than with ViUaeta, Polygat«cea,
or Prariktniaeta.
id.Lnnd SaB.I)ew [Dmtra ntimUfotia),
■.I nugniBed ; 3, a ripe capsule msgnUlM
n between the valTci of the npnils ; ft, I seed Terj maah magnifled — (he
dark ips« In the middle la the nneleiu, the remainder 1* a looee loUgamml
ttail inveiti the seed ; 4, ■ Melioa of the nocleoi aUll mors sucnlfled— ber* the
mianU diootrtedonous embrjo 1> seen at tlie bast of the slbnioeii.
DRUPA'CE.E, the name given by some botanists to tiat division
of Kosaceoua Flants which comprobenda the Peach, tbe Cherry, the
Plum, and similar fruit-bearing trees. Tbey are more generally called
AmjMdaUa. [Ahtosale^]
DRUPE, a close l--celled, 1- or Speeded ieedvesaol, whoae sbeU is
d of three layers ; the outer tnembranoua or leathery, the
DBTOBALAKOPS. Ml
inner hard and bony, the intermediate suooulent or flbrous. A pweh,
a cherry, a mango, ore all fruits of this desoription. A coooa-nut is a
Compound Drupe, being composed otUirse consolidated carpels, two of
which are aborUve ; and a <^te is a Spurious Drape, the bard inner
shell lieing represented by a membrane. In theory the itons or inner
bony layer of the sheE Is equivalent to the upper side of a carpellaiy
leaf, tbe external membrane to the lower surface, and the interme-
diate pulp or fibre to the perenchynia.
DRYAJfDRA, a genus of Australian Shruba belonging to the natural
order Froteaeta, with hard dry evergreen serrated leavea, and compact
cylindrical clusters of yellow flowers, seated upon a Bat reoopticlo,
and surrounded by a common imbricated involucre. It is in tbe latter
respect that the genua- principally differs &om Baniiia, The species
are much esteemed by coltirators for their beautiful evergreen leavea
They are commonly regarded as greenhouse plants, but will in several
cases Burvire an English winter without injury, if protected by a glass
roof in winter, and planted among rock-work high above the damp-
ness of the level of tbe soil
DRY AS, a genus of Plsnts belonging ^e natural order Bataeta,
and to the tribe Dryadea. It has the calyx S-9-cleft, in one row ;
S-9 petals; numerous stamens; the fruit composed of numerous
small nuts, tipped with the peialatont hairy styles, which are straight
at the extremity, and aggr^ated on a dry reoeptocle ; the seeds
ascending. The apecies are herbs or under-shmbs, with tbe stipulea
adnate to the sides of the petioleo.
J), actoptlaia has crenate-serrate obtuse leavea ; the sepals three or
four times aa long as brood, mora or less pointed j the base of the
calyx hemispherical. The plant has white flowers, with a woody
frostnte stem and simple leaves with a woolly pubesoence beneath,
t is a native of alpine districts of Europe, and is found in the moun-
tains of Scotland and Ireland, and in Yorkshire !□ England.
D. depreua has crenate-serrate obtuse leaves, the sepals twice as
long as brood, and blunted and rounded at the end, the base of the
calyx truncate and nearly Sat Thin species has only been found
at Ben Bulben, in Sligo, and has been described by B.-liington in
the 'Annals of Natural History.' Three other spodee have been
described, one a nalive of Greenland, ond two notivea of North
America. They ant all evergreen prostrate plants. When cultivated
they thrive best in a border of peat soiL They may be propagated
by dividing the roots, or by seeds. They may be also planted in pots
as other a^ine plants.
g\iAiai^n,Manwdof BHtiABotmy; Doa, Dichiantgdtout Plant:
RYOBA'LAKOPS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natund
order JXpteraeta, established hj the younger Qeertner from speci-
mens of the fruit found in tbe Banksian coUeetlon, supposed by turn
to belong to the tree which yielded the beat cinnamon ; but Mr. Cole-
brook, from specimens sent to Dr. Roxburgh, which in the absenoa of
tbe latter he received, ascertained that the fruit belonged to the
Camphor-Tree of Sumatra, which ha aeeordingly named Dryibalanopt
eamphora, " until its identity with D. arotiiatiea (of Gnrtnsr) be
established." ('Asiat. Resctmshes,' xii) Dr. Roibur^ had, in bis
manuscript ' Flora Indioa,' already named it Shorea camphBriffra.
Some botanists are of opinion that the genus is not sufficiently
distinguiidied from i>ipteroc(irp«s ; but Blume, the latest author, and
one who has had the fullest opportunil^r of examining the subject,
has, in the article on Diplcntearpta in his ' Flora Javee,' given it aa
his opinion that Drytibalanopt should be kept distinct ; as, like Shona,
it has all five instead of only two of its sepals prolonged into long
foliaceouB wings, while its cotyledons are unequal and rumpled.
Aeoording to Blume the existence of this camphoi^ielding tree
was firat indicated by Grimm in ' Ephem. Nat. Cur.' Kempfer was
BO well acquainted with its distinctness that in describing uie Cam-
phor-Tree of Japan (.towuieampAora) he says, "that natural camphor
of crystal-like appearance, which is scarce and of great value, is fui^
uished by a tree of Borneo and Sumatra, which is not of the Laurel
genus," The flrat notice of the tree is in tha 1th volume of the
'Asiatic Beeearchsa,' where we leun that a tree named Tappaoooly
on ^e west oaast of Sumatra yielded above three pounds of camphor,
and at the same time nearly two gaUona of camphoroC ; that the
tree resembles the bay in leaves, is fond of a rich red loam tending to
a blackish clay, ond that it grows prinripally on the north-west coast
of Sumatra, from the Line to S° N, lat. The fuUot account is given
by Mr. Prince, resident of Tappanoolj, who describea the tree as
growing spoDtoneoxisly in the foreets, and aa being found in abundance
from the back of Ayer Bongey as &r north aa Bacongan, a distuice of
SGO miles: he aays that it ma; be classed among the tallest and
largest trees that grow on this ooost, several within daily view
meaauring 8 or T feet in diameter ; but it will produce camphor wheo
only S( feet in diameter. Tbe same tree which yields the oil would
produce camphor if unmoleeted, the oil being aupposed to be tha
first elate of the secretion, which ultimately changes into ooncT«ta
camphor, as it occupies ttie same otvities in the trunk which the
camph" " ^" '""" ''" "' '- ' "" '"■ '
Boras, from tM port o
.^.^J
805
ijRTOPa
DtJCK&
896
price in China is one hundred times greater than that of the common
camphor of.commerce. (M'Culloch, ' Com. Diet.') In the same work
it ii mentioned that camphorK>il being nearly as cheap as spirits of
turpentine, might perhaps be profitably imported into Engluid as a
substitute for that article, or for medicmal use.
Camphor, which in many respects resembles the essential oils, has
been shown by Dumas to be an oxide of hydrocarbon, identical in
composition with pure oil of turpentine : hence the term Camphene
has been applied to it But Dr. Thomson informs us that its cainphor-
oil differs in some respects from camphene, as he was not able to
produce camphor with the same &cility or in equal quantity by
driving a stream of oxygen gas through highly-rectified oU of turpen-
tine, which Dumas reg^urds as pure camphene.
DRYOPS, the name given by Olivier to a genus of Pentamerous
Coleopterous Insects of the family CUuficomet, The type is the
Ikrme^ea oiuriculaiut of Qeoffroy, a little oblong gray sluggish beetle,
not uncommon in Europe in the neighbourhood of watery places. Fa-
bricius changed the name of this genus into Pcutmu. It mdudes 14
species, of wnich 7 are American and 7 European. The name Dryopt
was applied by Fabricius to another genus of CoUoptern, of which the
(Edtniera femordU»t a Swiss insect^ was the type. Changes of this
kind are highly censurable, increasing as they do the confusion arising
from a oom^cated synonymy.
DRY ROT, a well-known disease affecting timber, and particularly
the oak employed for naval purposes. When dry rot \b produced by
the attacks of- fungi, the first sign of it oonaists in the appearance of
small white points, from which a filamentous substance radiates
parallel with the surface of the timber. This is the first stage of
growth of the spores of the fungus, and the filamentous matter is
their thallus or spawn. As the thallus gathen strength it insinuates
its filaments into any crevice of the wood, and they, being of exces-
sive- fineness, readily pass down and between the tubes frt>m which
the wood is oiganised, forcing them asunder, and completely destroy-
ing the cohesion of the tissue. When the thalli of many fungi inter-
lace, the radiating appearance can no longer be remarked; but a thick
tough leathery white stratum is formed wherever there is room for
its development, and from this a fresh supply of tiie destructive
filamentous thallus is emitted with such oonstanUy increasing rapidity
and force, that the total ruin of timber speedily ensues where circum-
stances are favourable for the growth of the f ungL
It is generaUy stated that dry rot consists of we thallus of Mendiut
lacrjfmans, or Polyporut dettrudor, two highly-organised fungi, whose
fructification is sometimes found upon rotten timber. But it is a
great mistake to suppose that dry rot belongs exclusively to those
two species, or that tney are even the common origin of it : on the
contrary, there is reason to believe that any of the fungi that are
commonly found upon decaying trees in woods are capable of pro-
ducing d^ rot, and it is quite certain that one of the most rapidly-
spreading and dangerous kinds is caused by the ravages of difibrent
species of Sporotrtchum, The latter throw up frt>m their thallus
whole forests of microscopic branches loaded witii reproductive spores,
of such excessive smallness that they may insinuate themselves into
the most minute crevices or flaws even in the sides of the tubes of
which timber consists, and they are infinitely more dangerous than
Menilii or Polypori, which seldom fructify.
The circumstances that are most favounble to the development of
the dry rot fungi are damp, unventilated situationfl^ and a subacid
state of the wooid. The latter condition, especially in oiJ:, is eacdly
produced by a slight fermentation of the sap which remains in the
timber, especially if the latter has not been well-seasoned before
being employed. It has been proved experimentally that fluids
whidi, in their ordinary state, will not produce fungi, generate them
abundantly if ever so slightly acidulated. Dutrochet found that dis-
tilled water holding in solution a small quantity of white of egg will
not gfenerate fiingi in a twelvemonth, but upon the addition of the
minutest quantity of nitric, sulphuric, muriatic, phosphoric, oxalic,
or acetic acid, it generated them in eight days' time in abundance.
Alkalescent infusions possess the ssme property. This observer states
that the only poisons which will prevent tiie appearance of fungi are
the oxides or salts of mercury. A solution of fish-glue yields fungi
rapidly and in great abundance ; but a small quantity of red precipi-
tate or corrosive sublimate destroys this power entirely. It is more-
over an important fact that no other mineral preparation has any
such properties. Dutxochet ascertained that o&er metallic oxides
acted differently. Oxides of lead and tin hastened the development
of fungi ; those of iron, antimony, and sine, were inert ; and oxides of
copper, nickel, and cobalt, although they retarded the appearance of
f^^Wt 7^ did not prevent their growth in the end. These facts are
confirmed by the experience of the use of Kyan's process for preparing
timber, which consists in submitting the wood tc the action of corro-
sive sublimate. Immersing the wood in chloride of zinc also prevents
the attack of fungi, and idso submitting it to the action of the vapour
ofcreaaote.
Dry rot also occurs in animals. Specimens of hymenopterous
insects resembling wasps have been brought from the West Indies,
with a fungus allied to Sphteria miUtarit growing from between their
anterior ooxn, and it is positively asserted by travellers that the
insects fly about while burdened with the plant Upon opening the
bodies of the wasps they are foimd filled with the thallus of the fungus
up to the orbits of the eyes and the points of the tarsi ; the whole of
the intestines being obliterated. In such cases it is to be supposed
that the thallus of the Sphceria first kills the wasp by compressing
and drying up the body, and then, continuing to grow, occupies the
whole of the cavity of the shell of the insect A more common
instance of animal dry rot is the disease in silkworms called La
Muscadine. Silkworms of all ages are occasionally liable to become
sickly and to die, soon after death becoming stiff, and acquiring such
a degtee of firmness as to be readily broken. They then throw out
from their surface a sort of white morescence, which is the fructifi-
cation of the funsus called Botrutu Bcutiana, their inside being filled
bv the thallus of the same plant If some healthy caterpillars are
placed beneath a bell-glsss, along with a small portion of worm killed
oy the BotrytU, they soon catch the disease, exhibit the same symp-
toms as those already mentioned, and eventually perish ; having, no
doubt, been infected either by rubbing themselves against the dead
worm, or, wliich is more probable, having received upon their skins
the infinitely minute seeds dispersed by the BotrytU, If healthy
oysalids are inoculated by the introduction below their shell of a
little of the Botrytis matter upon the point of a needle, th^y also
sicken and die.
In these cases effects are produced upon insects similar to those
upon timber ; that is to say, vitality in the one case and cohesion in
the other is destroyed by the growth of the thallus of certain fungi,
which spread with great and irresistible rapidity, and fructify where
occasion offers.
For other instances of the agency of fungi in producing the
destruction of vegetable and animal tissues, see FuKOi.
DSHIKKETEI (Zikketei). Cuvier writes the word Dtiifguetai,
and Buffon Ihigitkaif the native name for the Sqwu ffemiomu of
Pallas, Asinua Memionut of Gray. [Equidjb.]
DUCK-BILL. rOBNITHOBHTirOHUS.]
DUCKS, Dnck Fcmily, Anatidce, a family of Birds belonging to
the order NakUoretf Atueret, or Palmipedei. They are all Aquatic
Birds, and have webbed feet
Willughby distinguishes the whole-footed birds with shorter legs
into such as want the back toe, and such as have it ; these latter into
such as have all four toes webbed together, and such as have the
back toe loose or separate from the rest ; these latter again he sub-
divides " into narrow-billed and broad-biUed ; the narrow-billed have
their bills either hooked at the end, or straighter and sharp-pointed.
The hook-billed have their bills either even or toothed on the sides.
Thoae that have straighter and sharp-pointed bills are either short-
winged and divers, ciJled Douckers and Loons, or long-wixiged and
mudi upon the wing, cUled Qulla.. The broad-billed are divided into
the Qoose kind and Uie Duck kind. The Duck kind are either Sea-
Ducks or Pond-Ducks." He afterwards, in his section on the Broad-
Billed Birds of the Duck kind, thus treats (chap, i) of the Duck
in general : — ** The Duck kind have shorter necks and larger feet in
Proportion to their bodies than Gkese : lesser bodies. Howbeit, the
iggest in this kind do equal if not exceed the least in that They
have shorter legs than (Hese, and situate more backward, so that
they go waddling ; a broader and flatter back, and so a more com-
pressed body ; and lastly, a broader and flatter bilL Their tongue is
pectinated or toothed on each side, which is common to them with
Geese.
" These are of two sorts, either wild or tame. The wild again are
of two sorts — 1. Sea-Ducks, which feed moatwhat in salt water, dive
much in feeding, have a broader bUl (especially the upper part) and
bending upwards (to work in the slem), a large hind toe, and thin
(likely for a rudder), a long train, not sharp-pointed. 2. Pond-Ducks,
which haunt plashes, have a straight and narrower bill, a very little
hind toe^ a sharp-pointed train, white belly, speckled feathers, black
with lettering green in the middle wing, with a white transverse
line on either side. For this distinction of Sea-Ducks and Pond-
Ducks we are beholden to Mr. Johnson."
Ray divides his 'Palmipedes latirostrce minores, sen Anatinum
genus * into Anatea marino! and A, Jluviatilei, aqwu dulca prcBcipvtii
fremienldniet, A, exotica BroiUiema, and A. dometiiccB, Brisson's
24ui order, consisting of buxis with four toes, the three anterior
being joined together by membranes, the posterior separated, and
with a dentilated bill, includes the genera Harle, Oie, and Canard
(Goosanders, Geese, and Ducks). This order is placed between that
order of birds the arrangement and connection of whose toes is
■imnur to the modifications of those parts in the 24th order, but
which have a bill without denttlations (Puffins, Petrels, Gulls, Terns,
&c), and the 25th order, which is distinguished by the birds arranged
under it having all the toes joined by membranes (the Darters,
Boobies, Pelicans, &&).
Linnsus, under his third class of birds, Amerea, included the
?mera Anas, Mergus, Alca, ProctUaria, JHomedta, PtUeamm, Plolw,
htieton, Oolymhut, Lams, Sterna, and Rynchops; in short, all those
birxls which possess a rather blunt bill, covered with an epidermis,
gibbous at the base, dilated at the apex, and with denticulated fauces,
a fleshy tongue, and palmated natatorial feet The class stsnds between
the Piece and the CfraUce, The senus Anas copaprehends the Swans,
the Geese, and all the Ducks in the general acceptation of the term.
»7
DUCKS.
DUCKS.
Pennant'fl 24th genui» Duck, ia placed between the genua MerguiBer
(Qopiander) and the genuB Coirorant; and it oomprehendB the
Swaofe, the G^eeee, and idl the Daoks, l^e the Tiinniean genus Anas,
Latham, who diyides the birds into terrestrial »id aquatic, makes
his 9th order, Paimipedei, consist of two great sections: Uie first
consisiing of those with long feet — ^Ayoset and Flamingo for example
— and tlM second of those with short feet, comprehending all the
short-limbed aquatic birds with webbed feet.
Lao^pMe's second sub-class of birds consists of those the lower
part of whose legs is denuded of feathers, or have many toes united
by a membrane. The first division of this sub-dass consists of
those which hate three anterior toes and one posterior toe, or none.
The first sub^viaion consists of the Water-Birds (Oiseauz d'Eau) ;
and the 28rd order of Lac^pMe comprehends those genera which
have a dentilated bill, namely, Canard, Anaa; Harle, Mergua ; Priom,
iVsoiK The genus Awu consists of all the birds wMch combine with
the characters above stated a wide bill, rounded at its extremity,
and famished around the mandibles with small vertical laminsa.
Cuvier^s 6th and last order is the Palmipedes ; and the last fieuuily
of that order, Lamellirostres, containa the great genus Des Canards
(^luu, Linn.). Cuvier remarks that they are commonly divided into
three sub-genera, the limits of each of which are not very precise,
namely, the Swans (C^^miM, Meyer), the Qeese {Anur^ Brisson), and
the Ducks, in the general acceptation of the tenn (AnoM^ Meyer).
The other great genus of Cuvier's Lamellirostres is Merffut^ Linn.
Cuvier separates the genus Anai into two divisions. The first
consists of those whose hind toe is bordered by a membrane, whose
head ia laiger and neck ahorter in comparison, and which have also
the feet placed more backwards, the wings smaller, the tail stiffer,
the tarsi more compressed, the toes longer, and the webs more entire.
They walk badly, live more exclusively upon fishes and insects, and
dive more frequently. (Platypus, Brehni; ffydrobctUa, Temminck;
Fvligida, Carlo Bonaparte). This first division contains the following
sul^divisions : Les Macreuses (Oidemiq, Fleming, Anas nigrcty A,
fusca, Linn., &c.); Les Gkmnots (ClangvlOj Leach; A glaciaUa, A,
hiitrumiea, linn., ic) ; Lea Eiders (Eider-Ducks, SomcUma, Leach,
A, moUimina, Linn.) ; Les Millouina {Fuliffula, Leach).
The second division is formed by those Ducks which are without
the membranous border on the hind toe, and have the head smaller,
the feet leas, the neck longer, the bill more equal, and the body less
clumsy (^pais). These walk better> and seek aquatic plants and their
seeds aa much as fish and other animals. It would seem, adds
Cuvier, that the swellings of their trachesD are of a homogeneous bony
and cartilaginous substance. It is to this division that Carlo
Lucien Bonaparte, prince of Canino, confines the appellation Anat,
The following are the sub-divisions : — Les Souchets, Bhyn^aspit, Leach ;
Les Tadomes, A. tadoma, Linn., &a ; those which have naked parts
about the head, and often a boss or convexity on the base of the bUl,
as the Muscovy Duck ; those with a pointed tail. A, cu!uia, Linn., for
instance ; those whose male has curled feathers in the tail, as the
Wild Duck, Boschat, A. Botchcu, Linn. ; those which have a tuft on
the head, and the bill rather narrower anteriorly, as the Summer-
Duck, An<a tponiOf Linn., and the Mandarin^Duck, A, gaUriculata,
Linn., Dendronestfi, Swainson ; those which have the biUs of ducks,
but legs even longer than those of the geese, and which perch and
nestle in trees, A, arborea, Linn., &c One of these Cuvier observes
has the feet only semipalmated, A. semipalfncUa, Latham. Finally,
Cuvier soes on to state that we possess, especially in winter, among
those which have nothing remarkable about them, A. Btrepern, Linn.,
A, Penelope, Linn. ; and many small species which are distinguished
by the name of Sarcelles, Teals, A, qwrquedula, Linn., the Common
Teal, for example.
Mr. Vigors, in his paper ' On the Natural Affinities that connect
the Orders and Famihes of Birds,' read before the Linnseaa Society,
December 8, 1823 (' Trans. Linn. Soc' vol. xiv. p. 895), mi^es his
5th order Natatora consist of the fiunilies stated in the article
C0LTICBID& The fieunily of AnaJtida (Leach), to which he leads hia
readers from the preceding order (ChraXUUoret) by means d the
connection between the BaUidoR and CertoptU, consists, he observes,
of the groups which compose the Limuean genera Anae and Mtrgus,
and with respect to the affinitiea that prevail throughout the famUiea
of the order, he remarka that the more extensive subdivisions of the
Linnaaan Anas which have been acknowledged by all systematic
writers, either under the name of sections or genera, display in con-
junction with MerguM a regular series of affinities conformable to the
principles advanced by him as regulating the order. The first group,
he obs(Brves, upon which we enter in this first aberrant family of tiie
order, has been formed into a sectional subdivision by M. Temminck,
under the denomination of Les Oies; and with equal aic^iification
and more effect has been made into a genus, under the title of Amer,
by M. niiger, who therein followed the older naturalists that pre-
ceded Linnsaus. These birds retain much of the manners of the
Waders. They are endowed with considerable facility in walking,
are found to swim but seldom, and do not dive at alL In these
characters, as well as in other particulars, they correspond with the
family of Larida, which meets them at the other extremity of the
circle of Natatores,
To this diviaion succeeds Cfcnopsia, Latham [Cs&soFSis], strongly
allied to the preceding Ameret by ita ganeFal atraoture, but still more
tvpical in the £Eunily in consequence of the length and nakedness of
the tarsi above the knee : characters which indicate a greater power
of walking, and a greater deficiency in swimming. It joins the third
division, or the genuine Anatet, by means of a group of which Ancu
arbareci, Linn., is the representative. This th&d and most typical
group of the family, which accords with M. Temminck's first section
of 'Canards proprement dits,' still approaches more closely to the
land birds than the birds which follow : the species swim with ease,
and even dive, but the latter faculty they seldom exercise imless
when pursued. Their food is also less exclusively marine than that
of the succeeding groups, being composed of vegetables, grains, and
insects, in addition to fish. This division, consisting of many promi-
nent forms, of which Anas arborea before mentioned. A, tadoma,
Boschas, clypeata, Penelope, and querqttedula may be considered types,
is distinguished from ike remainder of the 'Canards proprements
dits' of M. Temminck bv the hind toe being entire, or free from the
lobated membrane which is attached to the bind toe of these last.
Mr. Vigors proceeds to state that this character of the lobated
membrane, which is of considerable importance as pointing out the
approach of the birds in which it is found to the more typical oceanic
ffimilies, prevails in all the remaining groups of the present family.
It is sUY>ngly conspicuous in Mergus, Linn., the next division that
appears to follow : and we consequenUy find that the species of that
genus carry the powers of swimming and diving to the greatest
extent, making use of their wings also in their progress through the
water ; and at the same time exhibiting a constrained and embarrassed
mode of walking, in consequence of the backward position of the
legs. It thus forms the passage to the succeeding family of Colgm"
htcUe. In the shape of its bill, which is slender and partially com-
pressed, it exhibits a distinct form in its own family : but still, by
means of the bill of an intervening species, if, albdhts, Linn., whi<J^
is intermediate in its breadth and depression, it preserves its con-
nection with the Anates. " We hence, continues Mr. Vigors, " pass
to the 5th and last group of the family which, with the bill of the
Anates, retaina most of the characters conspicuous in Mergus. The
forms most prominent in it, represented by the different Linnean
species Anas ferina, clangula, histrumie<i, and moUissima, possess a
strongly lobated hmd toe; they frequent the ocean for the most
part, wnere they dive with the greatest facility and for a length of
time ; and thc^ live chiefly on marine animals. Their legs are also
thrown behind the equilibrium of their body ; and thus also they
evince their contiguity to the typical NcUatores. By means of the
group which contains A, moUissima, our well-known Eider-Duck and
its congeners, where the bill, with an elevated protuberance at the
base, approaches that of the Anas olor, Linn., we ^d ourselves brought
round to the Oggnus of the present day, which forms part of the
first diviaion. That genua in like manner deviatea partially from
the conterminoua genua Anser, in ita legs being thrown more back-
wurd, and its consequently greater awkwardness in walking. Here
then the affinities are evident which thus establish the perfect return
of the series of the AnatidoB into itself. Before we leave the family
I must indulge myself in observing a most conspicuous peculiarity
which marks ike series of affinities among these groups. The long
and slender neck observable in the GrcdlcUores is preserved in such
groups of the Anaiida as are most conterminous to that order, such
as Oggnus, Anser, Bemicla, and Cereopsis, until it is superseded by the
short necks of the more Oceanic Anatidat, which exhibit all the
expansion and capaciousness of throat observable in the typical
Natatores,**
In the ' Zoological Journal' (voL iL), Mr. Vigors gives a disposition
of the Anatido!, which exhibits a slight deviation from that drawn
out in his paper referred to above. The following is the arrange-
ment.
Obdo V. Natatores, HL (Anseres, Linn.)
1. Family Anatidce, Leach. (Qen. Anas Mergus, Linn.)
*
Sub-Family Anserina.
Anser, Briss. ; Bemicla, Steph. ; Cheniseus, Brookes's M.MS.;
Chenoplex, Steph. ; Plectropterus, Leach.
• *
Sub-Family Cereopsin€h
Cereopsis, Lath.
• • *
Sub-Family AnaHna,
Tadoma, Leach; Catrtno, Flem.; Anas, Auct. ; DaJUa, Leach;
Mareea, Steph. ; Quer^veelttto, Ray ; Bhynchaspis, Leach.
* * • •
Sub-Family t
Clangyda,Y\.em, ; ffareldOf'Ra.y ; Mergus, hisx7i,{Merganser,'BnBM,);
Somateria, Leach ; Oidemia, Flem. ; Bigiwra, Leach.
Sub-Family Cygnina,
Cygnus, Meyer.
The other four families are — 2, Colymbid€e, Leach ; 8. Alcad€e : 4.
Pekcanidee, Leach ; 5. LaHda, Leach.
DUCKa
DUCKS.
400
Mr. Yarrell in hia * Obeeryatioiui on the Tracheae of Birds' (' Linn.
Trans.' vol. xt.), after speaking of the form of the windpipe, amoDg
oUiers of the Black Swan of Australia, Anas cUraick, Linn., and of
that of tiie Semi-palmated Goose, Antu aemvpalmata of Dr. Latham,
goes on to remark that the different species of geese considered
British present nothing remarkable in their tracheae, the Egyptian
Goose alone excepted, the male of which species possesses a bony
enlargement at the bottom of its windpipe ; and he notices the circum-
stance that systematic authors seem to agi<ee in placing this bird at
the bottom of the list of the geese, where it appears to occupy its
proper situation ; and observes that, combining as it does some of the
characters common to those birds and the true ducks, it becomes a
very natural link between them, and he closes his interesting paper
wi^ an 'arrangement of the British species of the latter portion of
this family founded upon internal as well as external conformation.
" The &r8t division of true dudes," says Mr. Tarrell, *' will contain
the Shielduck, Muscovy DucIl Wild Duck, Gadwall, Shovder, Pintail,
Wigeon, Bimaculated Duck, Gaiganey, and Teal, all of which will be
found to have the following chancters in common. Externally they
exhibit considerable length of neck; the wings are also long, reaching
to the end of the tail ; the tarsi somewhat roimd ; the hind toe free
or having no pendent lobe. In habits they may be stated generallv
as frequenting fresh water, but passing much of their time on land,
feeding in ditches and about the shallow edges of pools on aquatic
plants, insects, worms, and occasionally fish, taking their food at or
near the surface ; possessing great powers of flight, but seldom diving
unless pursued. Of their internal soft ports, the stomach is in the
greatest degree muscular, forming a true gizzard ; the intestines long,
the caecal appendages from 6 to 9 inches in length in the loxger birds,
and decreasing only in proportion to the size of the species. Of ti^e
bones it may be observed that the ribs are short, extending but little
beyond the line of the posterior edge of the sternum ; the keel of the
breast'bone deep, affording great extent of sur&ce for the insertion of
large and powerful pectoral muscles ; the enlaxgement at the bottom
of the trachea in all of them is of bone only. The wild duck may
be considered the type of this division."
Mr. Tarrell then proceeds to state that the Eider-Duck, King-Duck,
Yelvet-Duck, and Scoter, possessing some characters common to the
preceding class, and others belonging to that next in succession, appear
to supply the link between these two divisions ; and he regrets that
the extreme rarity of the last-named species had prevented him from
making any examination beyond that afforded by &e external parts of
preserved specimens in collections.
The next division of true ducks, according to Mr. Yarrell, includes
in the following order the Bed-Crested, the Pochard, Ferrugmous,
Scaup, Tufted, Harleopiin, Long-Tailed, and Golden-Eye ; and their
general distinctions, he remarks, internal as well as external, compared
with those of the birds of the first division, will be found of an
opposite character. Externally, they exhibit the neck and wings
short, the latter only reaching to the origin of the tail-feathers; the tarsi
short and compressed ; the hind toe lobated, and on extended web to
the inner toe. They frequent the sea, or the deep parts of the fresh-
water lakes, and have been called Oceanic Ducks ; they are seldom
seen on land ; their walk is embarrassed from the backwadrd iiosition of
their legs, but they dive constantly and with great facility, taking their
prey at various depths below the surface; their food consists of
fish, mollusca, and other marine creatures, but of little or no vegetable
production ; and their powers of flight are moderate. With regard to
their soft parts, Mr. Yarrell states that the oesophagus is capable of
great dilaCation, that the stomach is a muscular gizaud, but that the
intenial cavity increases in size ; the stomachs of the Long-Tailed
Duck and Golden-Eye most resembling the stomach of the Mergansers,
whilst the intestines and caecal appendages are shorter, the latter
diminishing frt>m 6 inches in the first to 4^ inches in the Tufted Duck,
8 inches in the Lonig-Tailed, and but 2 inches in the Golden-Eye. The
ribs of the birds of this division, according to the same auwor, are
elongated ; the keel of the breast-bone gradually decreases in depth ;
the position of the wings is more forward, and the legs are placed
farther bock. The tracheae of these ducks, moreover, are particularly
distinguished ftom those of the others by the enlaigement at the
bottom of the tube being covered with a ddhcate membrane, supported
by slender portions of bone ; the trachea of the Red-Crested Duck is
an example of this form, and Mr. Yarrell is of opinion that it may be
cosidered the type of this division.
'' As the Egyptian Goose," continues Mr. Yarrell, ** has in this
arrangement been considered the link between the geese and the first
division of the true ducks, from its possessing, with the characters of
the former, the bony enlargement of ttie trachea common to the latter ;
and the Velvet-Duck, for similar reasons, supplying the link between
the two divisions of true ducks, possessing, among other characters,
an altered form of the bony enhugement of the toichea of the one,
with the lobated toe of the other; so the Gk)lden-Eye, the last of tbe
series, appears to complete the arrangement, by exhibiting some of the
characters found in tJie Mergansers, which are next in suooeasion."
The first point of similarity is found by Mr. Yarrell in the elongated
foathers of the top of the head, forming a crest ; they agree alsoy lie
adds, in the shape of the sternum, and a particular extensions of its
posterior edge, becoming an ensiform process; and this extension of
the edge of the breast-bone prevails in the genera Cb2ym5icf, Alea, and
Uria : and, with the elongation of the ribs observable in all good salt-
water divers, seems intended as a protection to the important viscera
of the abdomen, and enables them to resist pressure when below the
surface. The GU>lden-Eye, in the opinion of the same author, is also
intermediate in its stomach, intestines, and caecal appendages, the
latter being only 2 inches in length. In the Goosander indeed Mr.
Yarrell found that these appendages reached 8 inches; but, as he well
observes, the size of the bird being oonsidered, they are roduced on a
comparative estimate to less than 2 inches ; in the Ked-Breasted Mer-
ganser he found them to measure but 1 inch, and the Swan he states
is without any. In the form of its trachea, the Golden-Eye, it seems,
more closely resembles the Meigansors than that of any other duck,
by the enlargement in the tube, aiid in the shiq>e of the labyrinth.
" Thus the whole of the numerous species of the Anaiida appear to
descend to the more perfect water-birds by gradations, but with well-
marked divisions throughout."
Prince C. L. Bonaparte, in his ' Tabella Analitioa dei Generi,'
('Specohio Comparativo,' 1827) makes his Ordine Anterea consist of
five families : the JLongifiennes, the LameUotodenUUi, the Steganopodet,
the IMpedea, and the Pygopoda. His Famiglia Lamdiondentaii
comprises the two genera Anat and Mergut, the first of whicO^ he
ohai^u^rises thus — " Beooo depresso, ottuso, con denti lamelliformi ; "
and it comprehends the swans, geese, and ducks in the large meaning
of the term.
M. Lesson, in his 'Manual' (1828), makes the AnaUdee (LamdH-
roHrea of Cuvier) the fifth and last family of the sixth order, Les
Polmipkles, Nataiarea of Illiger and Vieillot. Under the AnaUd/k he
arranges the genera (^gnm, Meyer ; Anaer^ Srisson, witii its sub-
genera ; Cereopaiat liOtbam ; Amu, Linnaeus ; and Mefgua, TJnnfwi^n.
The genus An<u he divides into two sections.
Mr. Swainaon, in his paper 'On those Birds which exhibit the
Typical Perfection of the Family of Anatidae' ('Journal of the Royal
Institution of Great Britain'^, remarks, t^at the most superficial
observer, on looking at the fiunily of the AnaUda, or Daoks, under
which he will include the geese and swans, must be struck by the
remarkable shape and structure of the bill, totally different from that
of all other birds. This, in fact, he adds, is the only group in the
aquatic order wherein. the bill is very considerably dilated in its
breadth, and of a texture tmusually soft In addition to these, a
third and a vexy important character is discerned ; the cutting maxgins
of the bill are provided with numerous transverse l^TnAiUy plaits, so
much developed in some species as to project beyond the bill, t^us
assuming an analogy to the teeth of quadrupeds. This analogy how-
ever is more imaginary than real, since these appendages are destined
for a very different purpose. T^e feet, although in general short, are
adapted to more thui one purpose, since they are not only used for
swimming and diving, but for walking.
Mr. Swainson proceeds to state tnat "the gulls feed indiscrimi-
nately upon marine animals, whether living or dead : they are the
purinera of the waters, as the vultures are of the hmd. The pelicans
and the penguins derive their support from those large fish whidi the
more feeble gulls can neither capture nor swallow, while the terns
skim the ocean in search of small fish which rise to the surface. But
the inconceivable multitudes of minute animals which swarm, as
voyagers assert, in the northern seas, and the equally numerous pro-
fusion inhabiting the sides of rivers and fresh waters, would be
without any effectual check upon their increase, but for a family of
birds destined more particularly for that purpose. In the structure
accordingly of the ducks we see all these qualifications in the utmost
perfection. By means of their broad bill, as they feed upon very
small and soft substonces, they capture at one effort considerable
numbers. Strength of substance in this member is unnecessary : the
biU is therefore comparatively weak, but great breadth is obviously
essential to the nature of their food. As these small insects also
which constitute the chief food of the Anatidce live principally beneath
the surface of the mud, it is clear that the bill should be so formed
that the bird should have the power of separating its nourishment
from that which would be detrimental to the stonoAch. The use of
the laminip thus beoomee apparent : the. offensive matter is ejected
between their interstices, widch however are not sufftciently wide to
admit the passage of the insect food at the same time. The mouthful
of stuff brought from the bottom is, as it were, sifted most effectually
by this curiously-shaped bill ; the refuse is expelled, but the food is
retained. It is probable also that the tongue is materially employed
on this process ; for unlike that of all other birds, it is remarkably
large, tluck, and fleshy. From being so highly developed, it must be
endowed with on unusual degree of sensation ; and indeed, a very
exquisite sense of taste must belong to any animal which has to
separate its food from extraneous substances, without deriving any
assistance in the process from its powers of sight ; against this defi-
oienoy nature has wisely provided, by heightening and increasing the
senses of taste and touon."
In the physiological series of the Museum of the R<wal College of
Surgeons in London — Gallery (817) — is the head of a Huisoovy Duck,
Anaa JHoaduUtt, Linn., showing the serrated character of the maigins
of the mandibles, and the peculiar tuberosity at the base of the beak ;
and a good opportunity of studying the structure of the tongue is
101
DUCKS.
DUCKS.
473
afforded by the preparationfl numbered 1468 and 1469. In the former
are seen ine bones of the tongue and upper larynx of a swan {Oygnut
dor, Bruaon). The glosso-hyal part is broader and longer than it is
in the land-birds, corresponding to the greater development of the
tongue in the lamellirostral swimming birds, but is devoid of the
cartilaginous processes to its posterior angles in the gallinaceous tribe.
In the larynx may be distinguished the thyroid, cricoid, and arytenoid
cartilages, which in most birds are more or less bony : the thyroid
cartilage is the largest, and covers the whole anterior part of the
larynx like a shield : the posterior broad part of the cricoid (which is
not in this class developea in the form of a ring) supports as usual the
arytenoid cartilages which form the rima glottidis ; they have muscles
for opening and closing that fissure, and the larynx is defended by
the latter action alone from the entmnce of food or fluid. No. 1469
exhibits the lower jaw, with the tongue and larynx of the same bird,
and it will be seen that the tongue is so fur developed as to corre-
spond with the form of the lower jaw. It is a thick and fleshy organ,
beeet with four longitudinal rows of homy tooth-like processes, two
at the aides, and two on the dorsum, separated by a mesial furrow :
the base of the tongue is also armed with retroverted spines arranged
in a chevron figure ; similar spines again occur behind the larynx.
The apo-hyal and cerato-hyal bones are dissected on one side, but
covered by the muscles on tiie other.
Mr. Swainson, in the paper above quoted, divides the genus Anat
(which he thus characterises — "bill longer than the head, depressed
nearly its whole length ; the base not enlai^ged, the tip veiy obtuse ;
the laminte of the upper mandible generally projecting ; hinder toe
not dilated, short; claws shorty ti^ck") into the following sub-
genera : —
1. Typical Group. Sub-Qenera.
Bill spatulate, simple ; laminae considierably 1 A^^^ jAnn
projecting • J '
2. Sub-Typical Qrawp.
Bill spatulate, furmshed with a lobed memO ^^^^^^^^^ g^^
brane ; laminsB considerably projectmg . . J 9 »
8. Aberrant Qroup.
Bill of equal breadth; projecting laniin» \ r!&«MZi«i«. Sw
shorty slender, acute, d-owded . . J- OAa«*«ww, »w.
Bill more oylindxical, lengthened ; tail long . Jk^fila, Leaoh.
Bill depressed, of equal breadth; laminsel
distant, obtuse, and generally concealed ; tul V Bacluu, Antiq.
short J
The type of the genus Ana$ is considered by Mr. Swainson to be
the Shoveler Duck ; and he thus speaks of the arrangement above set
forth : — " In regard to the tabular disposition of the five sub-genera,
or types of form, it will be expected that I should say a few words,
since it is at variance with the mode of exhibiting circular affinities
adopted by that distinguished writer who first detected this arrange-
ment. On this point I must refer the reader to the ornithological
volume of the ' Northern Zoology,' now about to appear, where he
will find our peculiar views explained and illustrated. I have, indeed,
chosen to enumerate, in both instances, the subordinate divisions of
the aberrant group, but they are always viewed by me as forming a
distinct circle of their own, the primanr divisions of every natural
group being considered as three and not five. In the present instance,
the three subf^enera of Ckaniiodiu, Dafila, and Botchaa, possess one
common chanujter, in not having the bill conspicuously dilated at its
extremiiy ; while their circular succession can hardly be questioned,
when we find the greatest modem reformers * leave the Qadwall and
the Mallard in the same group ; tiiese writers having overlooked the
modifications of the Luninee, and passed over the difference in the
habits of these birds, as not bearing upon the question. The theory
that the mallard is the typical representation of this fiunily has now,
I trust, been thoroughly investigated, and demonstrated to be erro-
neous ;i* nor can I consider the two circular arrangements ^ that
have been made of the whole family, eadi apparency perfect, but
essentially different, in any other light They appear to me to be the
result of abstract theory, and of a theory misapplied. On the other
hand, I dbem it but justice to the great merits of another ornitho-
logist of our own country to acknowledge the assistance I have derived
from his highly valuable paper on the trachea (trachese) of birds,
and, at the same time, to dedare that if there is any truth in his own
inferences, drawn from internal structure, or in mine, resulting from
attention to external form and habits, he has himself marked out the
true oirde of the AnaHdce, so far as the British species are concerned,
totally unconscious of having done so. There is, and there cannot be,
but one plan of creation. In our efforts to develop this plan we
musty as Mr. Tarrell jtistly observes, ' combine ascertained habits,
external duffacters, and anatomical structure;' and in proportion as
we can do this so may we assume that our arrangement is ' natural' "
Sir John Bichardson ('Fauna Boreali-Americana ') observes that
the Anaiida are " of great importance in the Fur Countries, as they
* Dr. Leach, Dr. Fleming, Steyena (Stephens T), Vigors,
t For the demonstration, see the paper quoted.
t Linn. * Trans.' xir. p.
KAT. BUT. DIV. VOL. IL
499 ; • ZooL Jour.' iU. (li.) p. 404.
furnish at certain seasons iu the year, in many extensive districts,
almost the only article of food that can be procured. The arrival of
the water-fowl marks the commencement of spring, and diffuses as
much joy among the wandering hunters of the arctic regions as the
harvest or vintage excites in more genial climes. The period of their
migration southward again, in large flocks at the close of summer, is-
another season of plenty, bountifully granted to the natives, and
fitting them for encountering the rigour and privations of a northern
winter. The Anatidm have therefore very naturally been observed
more attentively than any other family of birds, botii by the Indians
and white residents of the Fur Countries ; and as they form the bulk
of the specimens that have been transmitted to England, they are
also better known to ornithologists."
We shall now proceed to speak of the genera and spedee of this
family under the sub-families — PhomicoptincB, the Flamingoes ;
AnaerincB, the Geese; AruUincB, the True Ducks; F%Uiffulinaff the
Sea-Ducks ; and MerganincB, the Mergansers. The Swans are
described in the article Cyqvivjl
The PhoBnicopiina include a single genus, Phoenicoptenu, Flamingo
of the English, Flammant of the Fronch, Phcmieoptenu of the ancients
and modems. The position of these birds has been a matter of con-
siderable doubi. The form approaches in some points to Recurvi-
rostra [Avoobt] and PlataUa (the Spoonbills), and in others comes
nearest to the Anterince (Qeese). C. L. Bonaparte places it in a
family, ffygrohata, with lUcvrvirottra and PlakUea, between his
family PinnoHpedet (Phalaropes, &c.) on the one side and the Anserince
on the other. Mr. Vigors, in his paper * On the Natural Affinities
that connect the Orders and Families of Birds,' thus marks its position
among the OnUUUorea : — " Intermediate between Ardea and Oiconia
appear those forms which display so remarkable a dilatation of the
bill, the Oancroma P3oat-Bill] Phoenicoptenu^ and PlataUa of
LinnsBUS. The two last of these groups are equally distinguished by
a greater development of the membrane that connects the toes than
is observable in the other Waders which join them on each side ; and
in one of them, the Phcenicopterfu, this character is carried so fiur to
the extreme as to have occasioned some systematists to place the
birds of this genus among the Naiatora (Swimmers). But the whole
of the family have a membrane, more or less extensive, at the base of
the toes ; and if we compare the feet of the common dconia alba
(Stork), of the PkUaiea, and the Phtmieoptenu, together, we shall see
a gradual increase of this membrane in extent, tmtil it reaches the
extreme in the latter genus." Mr. Swainson places the Flamingo
among the Swimmers. In his * Natural History and Classification of
Birds' (1886), he sajrs, "The Flamingo, which has the longest legs
in the Natatorial order, is so good a walker that it only swims
occasionally."
The genus Phoenicopterut has the bill strong, higher than it is large,
dentilated, conical towards the point, naked at the base; upper
mandible suddenly bent^ curved at its point on the lower mandible,
which is laxger than Hie upper. Nostrils longitudinal in the middle
of the bill, pierced through and through near the dome of the upper
ardte, covered beneath by a membrane. Feet very long ; three toes
in front, hind toe very short, articulated high up on the tarsus;
anterior toes united to the nails by a lunated membrane (membrane
d^up^). Nails short, flat. Wings moderate; flrst and second
quills longest.
Temminck, whose generic characters we have given, says that the
Flamingoes live on the sea-beach or in marshes fbrmed by salt lakes^
where their food consists of testaceous mollusks, marine insects
(crustaceans ?), and the spawn of fish, which they collect by plunging
their long neck into the water and turning the head upside down, so
as to employ with greater advantage the bend of their bilL They
join in large troops and live in societiea Their nest is made in the
marshes, and consists of earth piled up, and upon this nest the birds
sit astride, because their length of limb hinders them ftom. incubating
otherwise. Whether they are reposing or fishing, sentinels are
appointed which keep a sort of guard. If anything alarms the
vedette he utters a trumpeting kind of cry, and the whole flock follow
him into the air. They rarely take their repose in any other than
open places ; and it is asserted that their sense of smelling is so acute
that they scent from afar the himter and fire-arms. Their moult
appears to be simple and ordinary, but the young birds differ much
from their parents. The red or rosy plumage which covers the adult
shows itself gradually, after many moults and a period of about four
years. The females are less than the males, and the colours of the
former want the purity which distinguish the latter. The young, at
their departure from the nest» are white. The body of the Flamingo
has hardly a greater covering of down than that of the other Waders,
the Avosets alone excepted ; and accordingly they do not swim
habitually, like the latter birds, when they wish to go from one bank
to another in deep water. The palmated feet of the Flamingoes
appear to be given them to enable uiem to sustain themselves on the
slimy bottoms of rivers and creeks into which they wade as far as their
long legs will allow them, and to walk thereon. As they fly in flocks
they make an angle like the Oeese. In walking they often apply their
upper mandible to the groimd, and lean on it as a point of support.
M. Temmin<d: positively asserts that the Flamingo of Europe and
2 D
403 DUCES.
that spnul over Uia warm olinutes of Amorioa are differmb He
■tates that hs kDOWB tlis plumage of tha Americsan FlamingQ from its
youth to its adult atate, and decslares that the; are all diSbnot from
the Torioua itatea of the Flamingo of the ancient continent. The
orange-red vhlch peiradea tlie whole uf<the plumage of the American
ipeciee when it baa arriTed at ita complete etata of development is
sufficient to distinguiBh that bird from our European Flamingo, which
in of a roae-flolour with wings of purple-red. The young of the latter
{Phmtieopttnu Antiquorum) has the plumage wUtiah, covered with
brown streaks (mbchea), very distinctly marked and long, principally
on the greater ning-coverts ; the American Flamingo (Plianicoplenu
Tvlber) is covered in ita youth with a dull whitiah.giii,y plumage.
Three Bpedes are given by M. Tern mi nek : —
1. P. AnliguoTvm, the Flamingo of the anoieDla ; Flammant PhiB-
uiooptire of Buffen ; the Flammant and Flamingo of old authoFB.
Locality, south of Europe, Africa, and part of Asia.
2. P. ruber, the American Flaoiingo ; Red Flamii^ of Wilson.
Locality, South America and part of North America.
3. P. minor, Flammant Pygmde, previously described bj Vieillot aa
P. parvni. Locality. South Africa.
III. Leasan ofaaerves that at all events it would be more oonTenient
to retain the original name of LinnEBus, Phanitopltnu ruin', for tha
Flamingo of the old continent, and to allow thai given by Molina to
the American bird, namely, Phimieoptenu CAilensia, to ramun ; although
WilioD, who does not appear to have recognised any specific diSerence,
records the lost-mentioned Flamingo under Uie name of PhiaiicopUnu
Tvier. The latter is used by most of the English Eoologiita to desig-
nate the Flamingo of the Old World ; and we shall, adhering to the
law of priority and to prevent confusion, adopt the nomenclature
■uggeeted by M. Lesson, wishing at the same time that Molina's name
bad not been a name of locality.
For a knowledge of the internal Etructure of the Flamingo we are
principally indebted to Profewor Owen. From the fact of Cuvier
placing the Flamingo amongst the Qrailalora, Professor Owen sup-
poses Qiat an opportunity of dissecting it hSid never oocurmd to Cuvier,
and that probably the absence of any allusion to Cieca in PerraulVs
ana tomiisl description (' Hdmoim de I'Acaddmie,' t. iiL 3 P., p. 462)
may have influenued his aileiice iwarding the internal structure of a
bird which he eonaiden as one of the most eitnordinaiy and moat
isolalsd of ita clasa. Cuvier, in alluaton to tha small tooth-like l-mintf
which are arranged along the margins of the upper mandible, points
out the rdatioo whjoh the Flamingo bears in this particular to the
Anatidte; and Professor Owen etatee that a like correapondenoe is
observable in tha reet of the alimentary canal " The homy denticles
of the upper mandible," he writes, " and tha tiansvene marginal fur-
rows of ue lower mandible form together a sort of filter, and like the
plates of whalebone in the Balana allow the auperfluous moisture to
drain sway, while the small MoUtitcia and other littoral Animaietila
are detained and swallowed. The structure of the gullet is in acoord-
nnoe with the sine of the eubstances which ssrve for nutriment. In
the typical QraUatora, as Ardea and Oicartia, which swallow entire
fish and other food in large morsels, the (esophagus is remarkable for
its great and uniform capacity ; but in Phanieoplenu it is not more
than half an inch in diameter when dilated. At the lower part of the
neck it expands into a considerable pouch, which measured in the
epecimen het« described 3 inches in diametor and i i inches in length.
Jn Perrault's specimen the diameter was only one and a half inch,
and it WBB probably in a alate of oontractioD, as he describes it as fur-
ni^ed internally with many small longitudinal nigEe. The circular
fibres around this part were very distinct. Beyond this pouch the
ccaophagus again contracts to about 4 lines in diameter, and so con-
tinues for 3| inohes, when it terminates in the provantiiculus. This
glandular cavity was 1 inch 8 lines in length uid 5 lines in diameter ;
the gaatrio foUieles were broad, short, and simple, and were arranged
in two long oval groups blending together at the edges, The proven-
triouluB terminates in a small but strong giozard of a flattened sphe-
roidal form, measuring 1 inch S lines in length and the same in breadth ;
the lateral muscles were each half an inch in thlcknesa. The giinard
was lined with a moderately thick and yeltow-coloured cuticle disposed
in longitudinal ridges, the extremities of which projecting into the
pyloric aperture form a kind of valve, as in the gizzard of Uie Ostrich.
In a Flamingo dissected by Colonel Sykes, in which the duodenum
was blocked up by two laige tape-worms, the musclaa of the giizard
were 1 inch in thiolineea The duodenal fold extended towaids the
left side 4 inches from the pylorus. This intesLiue was i inches in
diameter. The pancreas, which occupied its common aituation be-
tween the two portions of the fold, hsd a mare complete peritoneal
covering than usual The intestinal canal soon dimiuishedin diameter
to 3 and then to 2 linee. The small intestines formed an oval mass,
and were disposed in 21 elliptical spiral convolutions, 11 descending
towards the rectum and 10 returning towards the gutzard in the
interapaces of the preceding ; a disposition amdogous to that of the
colon in Bominanta. The villi of the intestines were arranged in
longitudinal idgsag tines. There were two cieca, each about 3 i inches
in length and S inches in diameter. The testes were about the siie
of grains of wheat, and ware situated on the anterior part of the renal
capaules. The latter bodiea were about the size of bs^-nuts. 'Both
^eae frauds were of a bright yellow colour. The &t of this bird is
DDCEfi. ioi
of a ranailahla orange tint. The prindpiJ diseased appeumocva wen
in the lungs, which were filled with tubercles and vomkn. I wsa
much atru^ with finding the inner surface of the latter cavities, and
that of most of the smallar ramifications of the bronoMal tubea,
covered over with a green vegetable mould or liueor. As the indi-
vidual was examined within twenty-four hours after its death, it
seemed reasonable to conclude this Mmcot had grown there during
tha lifetime of the animal Thus it would appear that internal para-
sites are not eiciusivelj derived from the anunal kingdom, but that
there are Entophyta as well as Enttnaa.' [Entophtta.]
" The tongue of the Flamingo ia remarkable for ita texture, mag-
nitude, and peculiar armature. It is almost inlindrical, but slightly
flattened above and obliquely trunoata antarioriy, so as to correspond
with the form of the inferior mandible. The lower port ot tiie. trun-
cated surface is produced in a pointed form, and ia supported beneath
by a small homy plate. The whclo length of the tongue is 3 inches ;
ita circumfereoco 2^ inches. Along the middle of the Qattened supe-
rior surface there is a raoderatelv deep and wide longitudinal furrow,
on either aide of which there ore &om 20 to 25 recurved spines, but
of a soft and yielding horny texture, measuring &om 1 tij 3 lines in
length. These spines are arranged in an irregular alternate aerivg, the
outer ones being the smallest, and these indeed may be considered
a distinct row. At the poatarior part of the tongue there are two
groups of smaller recumbent spines directed towar£i the glottis. The
substance of tha tongue ia not muacular, but is chiefly oompoaed of
an abundant yielding cellular substance, with fat of an almost uily
corndstence. It is supported by a long and thin concave cartilage
articulated to the body of the oa hyoidea by a shallow ginglymoid
joint allowing of a &ee motion. Excepting the straight hyogloesi, the
muBclee all terminate at the base of the tongue. The tendons of tbc
former muscles run along tha under part of the lingual cartilage, and
expand to be inserted at its extremity, where a few fibres again pro-
ceed forwards to the extreme point of the tongue." In the Museum
of the Boysl College of Surgeons in London is a preparation of the
crop, proventiicitluB, and gizzard of a Flamingo (P. ruMr, Linn.}, and
a preparation of the tongue of that bird.
anditiln of Uu Flsmli
'Fongue at FlamiDgo. Fram i apeeimSD in tho Baja.\ Collcgo ol &d:
There were no iAiloioa in the specimen dissected by I
Owen; but ha characterises the apeoiea found by Colonel Sj-.-,
above alluded to, as Tonuo Ianul%eni: length 7 inches; breadth
fi lines ; thickness lline. ('ZooLProc,' 1S32, pp. 141 and 143.)
P. raher. Linn. (P. Anligwntm, Temminck). Its length from tha
end of the bill to that of the tail is 4 feet 2 or3 inches, but to the end
of the daws sometimes more than 6 feet. Bill 4} inches long ; upiier
mandible very thin aud flat, and somewhat moveable ; the under luim-
dible thick, both of them bending downwards from tha middle ;
uostrila linear luid placed iii a blackish membrane ; end of the bil!
as far as tha bend block, thence to the base reddiab-yellow, ivunj
the base, quite to the eye, covered with a flesh-coloiirod cere; neck
slender and of gnjat length ; tongue large, Haahy, filling the cavity of
the bill, furnished with twelve or more hooked papiUea on each side,
turning backwarda; tha tip a sharp oartihig^ous subetaiwe. The
bird when in full plumage wholly of a moet deep soarlet, except the
quills, whioh are block. From the base of the thigh to the oUw 32
inches, of whioh the feathered port takes up no more then 3 inch^ ;
bare part above the knea 13 inohes, and thence to the claws 16
inched ; colour of the bate porta red ; the tues fumished with a web
deeply indented. L^ notstraight, but slightly bent, tha akin nther
projecting. (Latham^
The nest is formed of earth, and in the shape of a lullook, with a
cavity at top; eggs two or three, white, of the size of those of a
goose, but mors elongated.
The Sesh of this Flamingo ia pretty good meat : the young lue
M DUCKa
thongbt by Boms equal to partridge. Tha inlubituita or Frorenoe
howevar are (aid to throw away the Sesh na fishy, and onl; to lua the
festhen aa an ornament to other birds at particular entertainmentB.
Kot «o the Roman apicurei. Apiciua haa left reoeipta for dnwuiDg
the whole bird with more than the minute accuracy of a modero
cookery book, and the ' PhcenicopteniB ingena' appeare among the
luxuries of the table in Javenal'a eleventh Satire. The braina and
tongue figure u one of the laTourite diahei of Heliogabalua, and the
nipenor eioellenaa of the latter wu dwelt upon by the uune Apiciui,
and noticed by Pliny, where he recordi the dootrine of that " napotum
otnniuni altiwimug gurgn." (Lib. z. c. iS.) Neither ha^i it eacaped
tile pointed pen of Martial —
Noalmnplt : qold ■! garrali linena foret t" Uk. illL.— Iiii.
The 'garrula lingua' moat probably alludes to the tongues and bcaine
of singing birds, which sometimea formed one of the mtnutroua diahes
■t the enormoualy^xpenuTa Roman entertainmenta. Datnpier do«B
not forget the deucioua tongue of the Flamingo, obaerring that a dish
of tlieao tongues is worthy of a place at a prince'e table, Tha bird
itHlf ssema to hiTe been held in high repute by the anoienta, for it
appears to have been one of the victims offered to Caligula, who is
said to have been sprinkled while aacrificing with the blood of a
FhmnicDpter the day before ha waa mnrdered. (Suet in 'Caligula,'
22, 67.)
EBicpean
imlngo {Phui
■„■).
' The European Flamingo is recorded as having been aeen everywhere
on the African coast and the adjacent islands quite to the Cape of
Qood Hope. There ie a specimen in the South African Huseum, London.
La Taillant found thousands of pelicans and flamingoce on the river
Klran-Bnk, where tha water is brackiah owing to tha flowing of tba
tide. It haa been occaaionalij observed on ^e coasts of Spain, of
Italy, and on thoie of France which lie on the Hediterranean Sea ; it
has been met with afMaraeille and gome way up the Rb{kne. Prince
C. L. Bonaparto notes it aa very rare and accidentsl in the neigh-
bonrhood of Rome. Li soma seasons it has been remaiksd at Aleppo
and in the parte adjaoent. It haa been noticed on the Pendan aide of
the Caaplan Sea, and thenoe along the west coast aa far aa the Volga,
bnt at uncertain timee, and chiefly in considerable flocks, coming
from the north coast mostly in October and November. Cotond
Sykea records it in bis catalogue of birds in the Dukhun (Deccan) aa
the Rajah-Hmu of the Hindooa. It bieeda in tha Cape de Vetd
Islanda. This Bpedee ia very shy. Dampier killed fourteen at once
by seoreting himself and two more ; they are not to be approached
openly. Eolben speaks of thedr nombera at the Cane, where by day
they resorted to tiie borders of takea and rivers, and lodged at night
U. da la a
] his voyage to Sardinia, givea the foUoi
DDCItB. m
the bastion which forms the promenade of the inhabitants of Cagliari
flights of these magniScent birds may be seen to arrive from AAica.
Disposed in a triangular band they show at first in the heavens like a
lino of fire. They advance in the most regular order, but at the sight
of the neighbouring lake there is a pause in their progression, and
they appear for a moment immoveable in tin- air ; then tracing by a
alow and circular movement a reversed conical sniral figure they attain
the end of their migration. Brilliant in all the splendour of their
plumage, and mnged in n line, these birds ofier a new spectacle, and
represent a amall army ranged in order of battle, the uniroi-mity and
rimetry of which leaves nothing to be desired ; but the spectator
uld content himself with observing this peaceful colony from afar.
Woe to him if he dare to approach the lake at this deadly season.
A group of nine of these beautiful birds are at present (18S4) in tha
Gardens of the Zoological Society, Regent's Park.
P.parcut, Vieillot [P. minor, Flammant Pygmde, Temminek). M.
Temroinck observes that no difiarence is perceptible between Uie
Flamingo of the ancient continent and that of the Hew World in the
form of the mandibles; their upper mandibla shuts on the lower one,
and is so constructed as to offer when the bill is shut a very slight
difference in the height of the two mandibles. In P. part** the lower
mandibla, very deep and atrongly arched, is formed to receive within
the space which aeparatea its inJle the whole of the upper mandible,
which it entirely hides, so that the upper edges of the lower mandible
raise themselves to the height of the surface of the upper jaw.
SmsJl FLamiDfo {PAanie^ferttt portm)-
Tha plnmage of the adolt is pure rose-colour without spot or
streak ; the head, the neck, the back, and all the loiver parts, are of
this beautiful tint, which ia more lively and pure in the living bird
than in the preoerved akin, for the fugitive brilliancy of this tint
becomes tarnished, and passea into whitish frocn eipoeure to the light.
The great wing^wverts and those of the tail are elightly deeper in
colour than the other parts of the plumage. The whole wing is
covered with fsathen of a brilliant scarlet or purple, surrounded by a
wide rosy border ; the tail-feathers are black. Base of the bill, cere,
and region of the aye, deep purple; middle of the lower mandible
onutse-nid, and tha point black. Joint of the knee, toes, and their
memtmnea, of a fine red ; the tarsus has a livid IJnt, Total length
nearly S feet
The young of the year are white or whitiah, marked with amall
brown streaks (michee) spread over tha head, the neck, the breast,
and the ooverts of the wings. The first red tints show themselves on
the wings. BillblacL Feet of a reddish livid Unt
This species inhabits the lakes of Africa. Those reoeived bj
Professor U. Temminek were llatives of the Cape of Qood Hope.
The young bird in the Museum at Paris was brought from Senegal.
P. ChUmtU, Molina (P. nd>tr, Bed FUmingo, Wilson). Thia
species in ita adolt state scarcely differs &om the European Flamuuo :
it is perhaps not so bright. Catssby sayB, " When they feed (which
IJT DnCKS.
in alwsja in shallow water, by bending their neokj) they lay the upper
part of their bill next the ground, their feet heiog in continual motion
up and down in the mud, by which meani tt
round sort of grain raeembling millet, which they p
bills ; and as there a a necewity for their reoaiving into their mouths
some mud, nature hae provided the edge! of their bills with & ail. . ._
teeth lilce a fine comb, with which they retain the food and reject the
mud whioh u taken in with it. This account I had from penoni of
credit; but I never saw them feeding myself, and therefore caur '
alarftutely refute the opinion of others, who say they feed on fii
particularly eels, which seem to be the slippery prey llr. Qrew aeya
that the teeth are contrived to hold." The development of the
giiianl in this genus makes it very probable that vegetable substanoes
form part of the diet of the Flamingoes ; but it is not likely that
large fish, or indeed water«iumala of any great size, an ardmarily
devoured by theae birda The bill is a oolasder, admirably eontrived
for iBpantjng the nutritious parte, whether aniinal or vegetable, from
the mud and other useless parts.
The Red Flamingo inhabits the warmer parts of Iforth America,
Pern, Chili, Guyana, coast of Brazil, and the Weat India Islands, par
ticularlythe Bahamaa, where they breed. Wilaon speaks of it, but
be gives Latham's descriptjon, &0. Prince C. L. Bonaparte, in hii
' Specchio Compantivo,' states that it is va>7 rare and acddentsl in
the neighbourhood of Philadelphia.
The An^eritKS include those birds which are popularly known ai
Qeese. Mr. Swunson, in the ' ClaBnification of Birds,' consider* that
the AmaroKe constitute the rasorial aub-fomily of the whole group of
Anatida. Although much nearer related, in Hr. Swainson's opinion,
to the True Ducks than are the Flamingoes, next to whioh he places
them, thsy are, he remarks, nevertheless much more i^rrestnal in
their habits ; and in their strong and high legs, fondness for grain and
vegetables, and comparative shortness of win^ he traces many of
the chief characters of the rasorial typ& The first form, after
quitting the Flamingoes, seems to him to be the natatiuial genus
Cygnvt [CvainvA], which, by its great length of neck and largo^iied
body, softens down the mt^vol between the Ducks and the PluBni-
et Bemlcu Ooom {Aukt Bmitta). [Bumcu Gooss.]
BID Dt FlfMiia)««ss {Cmopiu), 8iriLu»D. iCii
409
DXJCKS.
BUCKS.
410
eoptnu8. " We nexV' continues Mr. Swunson, " oome to the True
Qeeee, fonning the genus Anser, the typicid division of the whole
group, and whidi contains most^ if not all, of tiie usual sub-genera.
The Tree Qeese (or Duoks, as they have been called) next follow,
among which the sub-genus Chenaloplex (Chenalopez f ) will probably
find a place. Plectroptenu in the rasoriial genus analogous, by its
spur-wings, to the JtaUidas, while the Australian genus Gereopwis
(equally representing the pigeons) appears alone necessary to complete
this drcla" In his 'Synopsis' Mr. Swainson makes the Anatida
consists of the following sub-&milies: — PhtenieopHnce, AngennoB,
AnaUncgf FuligvAma, and MerganidcB (Merganinse ?).
The cuts in the preceding page will in some degree illustrate the
form of the bill in the G^eese : —
The .genus Anter has the following characters : — ^Beak not longer
than the head, conical, elevated at the base, which is covered with a
cers or skin ; under mandible smaller than the upper ; nostrils lateral,
placed towards the middle of the beak, pierced anteriorly ; legs imder
the centre of the body ; the tarsi long, the hind toe free, articulated
upon the tarsua
A, hjfperboreui, Pallas; A,mveut, Brisson, the Snow-Qoose. It appears
to be the A, hyperborea of Ghnelin; A, nivalii, Forster ; Snow-Goose
of Pennant^ Wilson, Bonaparte, and Nuttall ; White Brant of Lawson,
Lewis, and Clark ; WtewsBoo, Wapow-Wseoo (the young Catoh-
catew-Wawaeoo) of the Cree Indians; Kangokh (plur. Kang-oot)
of the Esquimaux ; Wavey of the Hudson's Bay residents ; L'Oie
Hyperborte, ou de Neige, of the French ; and Schnee^Qans of tiie
Dutch.
Sir John Richardson gives the following description of a male
Snow-Goose killed at Fort Enterprise, lat. 65°, June 1, 1821 : — Colour
white ; quills pitch-black, their shafts white towards the base ; head
glossed with ferruginous; irides dark hair-brown; bill, feet, and
orbits, aurora-red ; ungues of both mandibles livid. The Unru^ous
tint occupies different portions of the head in different individuals,
and in some extends to the neck and middle of the belly. An
immature bird has a few feathers on the crown and nape, the fore
part of the back, ends of the scapulars^ some of their coverts, and
the outer webs of the tail-feathers^ grayish-brown, all tipped and
more or less edged with white. Tertiaries and rest of the plumage
as in the old bird. Some individuals deviate from the full plumage
merely in the bastard wing and primary coverts retaining their gray
colour, whUe in vary young birds part of the under plumage is also
grayish-brown ; bill shaped much like that of A, aUtifrong.
The Snow-Gk)ose feeds principally on rushes, insects, &c., and in the
autumn on berries. The rushes, roots of reeds, and other vegetables
it tears up, according to Wilson, from the marshes like tiie hogs,
and here its powerful strongly-serrated bill becomes a most usefrd
instrument Of the berries, the Crow-Berry (Bmpetrum nigrum),
appears to be the &vourita Sir John Richardson states that this
species breeds in the Barren Ghx>unds of Arctic America in great
numbersy and that their oggs are of a yellowish-white colour and
regularly ovate form, three inches in length, and two inches in their
greatest breadth. At the end of August the young fly, and all have
departed southward by the middle of September ; but it is said that
the young do not attain the full plumage of tiie old bird before their
fourth year, and until then they appear to keep in separate flocks.
In common with most of the Tirie G^eese, the plumage of the Snow-
Qoose is available for adding to the comforts of man, and its flesh,
when well fed, is excellent^ Riohardsott states it to be far superior
to that of the Canada Goose in juidness and flavour. At the time of
their departure southward from Severn Fort in October, Dr. Latham
says that man^ thousands are killed by the inhabitants, who pluck
them, and takmg out the entrails, put their bodies into holes dug in
the ground, covering them with earth, which, freezing above, keeps
them perfectly sweet throughout the severe season, during which the
inhabitants occasionally open one of these storehouses, and find the
birds untainted and good. In Sibwia the same mode of preserving
them seems to be practised.
Nuttall states that the Snow-Goose is common to the north of
both continents. He says that eariy in November they arrive in the
river Delaware, and probably visit Newfoundland and the coasts of
the Eastern States in the interval, being occasionally seen in Massa-
chusetts Bay. They congregate in laige flocks, and are very noisy :
their note is more shrill than that of the Canada Gkwse, and they
make but a short stay in winter, proceeding farther south as the
severity of the weather increases. Prince C. L. Bonaparte notes it
as rare and accidental in the winter at Philadelphia. Nuttidl furtiier
remarks that the Snow-Geeee begin to return towards the north by
the middle of February, and until the breaking up of the ice in
March are frequently seen in flocks on the shores of the Delaware
and around the head of the bay. He observes that they are met
with commonly on the western side of America, as at Oonalashka and
Kamtchatka, as well as in the SBstnary of the Oregon, where they
were seen by Lewis and Clark. Aocozding to Sir John Richardson,
they are numerous at Albany Fort, in the southern part of Hudson's
Bay, where the old birds are rarely seen ; and, on the other hand,
the old birds in their migrations visit York Factory in great abund-
ance, but are seldom accompanied by the young. The Snow-Geese,
he addi^ make their appearance in spring a few days later than the
Canada Geese, and pass in large flocks both through the interior and
on the coast.
Mr. Gk>uld, who gives a veij good figure of the adult in his magni-
ficent work on the ' Birds of Europe,' says that the species inhabits
all the regions of the arctic circle, but more especially those portions
appertaining to North America. From the northern portions of
Russia and Lapland, he adds, where it is sparingly diffused, it regu-
larly migrates to the eastern portions of Europe, and is occasionally
found in Prussia and Austria, but never in Holland. To the polar
regions, he concludes, it retires as its congenial locality early in the
spring, to perform the duties of incubation and rearing its young.
A, fertu, the Gray-Lag Goose. The Domestic Gbose is the Oye
Priv^e, and the Wild Goose is the Oye Sauvage of Belon ; Annr ferns
and Afuer of Gesner and others ; An»er dometHeui and Anter peUuttris
nosier, (3ray Lagg dictus of Ray ; Anas Anser ferus of Latham ; Ancu
Anser of LimuBus. It is the Oca (tame), Oca Salvatica, Oca Grossa col
Becco Rosso (wild), and Oca Paglietane, of the Itdians ; Oie Domes-
tique and Oie Sauvage of the F^noh ; Oie Cendr^ ou Premidre of
Temminck; Gans, G^u Gans, and WUde G^neine Gaos, of the Ger-
mans ; Gaas of the Danes ; Gas and Will Gas of the ' Fauna Suecica; '
Gwydd of the Welsh, snd Goose and Wild Goose of the modem
British.
The Gray-Lag, or common Wild Goose, is the origin of the Domestic
Goose of our farm-yards. "It is," says Pennant, "the only species
that the Britons oomd take young and familiarise ; the other two " —
the White-Fronted Goose {Anser aUnfhms) and tiie Bean-Gk>08e {Anas
segetwn. Lath, and Gmel.) are probably the species meant — *' never
breed here, and migrate during the summer." The Gray-Lag Goose,
then, and the Domestic Gk>08e, may be considered identical It is the
Xifp of the Greeks and Anser of the Romans — ^the same that saved
the capitol by its vigilance, and was cherished accordingly. Pliny
(lib. X. c. xxiL) speaks of the bird much at length, stating how they
were driven fr[>m a distance on foot to Rome ; he mentions the value
of the feathers of the white ones, and relates that in some places they
were plucked twice a year. " Mirum in hac alite, a Morinis usquo
Romam pedibus venire. Fessi proferuntur ad primes, ita caeteri
stipatione natural! propellunt eos. Candidorum alteram vectigal in
pluma. Velluntur quibusdam lods Yob anno. Rursus plumigeri ves-
tiuntur ; moUiorque quso corpori quam proxima, et e GeroMnia lauda-
tisaima. Candid! ibi verum minores Ganzso vooantur. Pretium
plums eorum in librae denarii quini," &a
Though this bird is well known, there has been so much confusion,
in consequence of there being three species of wUd goose, namely,
Anas Anser, Lin., A. {Anser) segetum, and A. {Anser) aSnfrons, White-
Fronted Wfld Gkiose, that it may be as well to give Pennant's descrip-
tion.
" This," writes Pennant, " is our largest species ; the heaviest weigh
ten pounds ; the length is 2 feet 9 inches ; the extent 6 feet The
bill is large and elevated, of a flesh-colour tinged with yellow ; the
nail white; the head and neck cinereous, mixed with ochraceous
yellow ; the hind part of the neck very pale, and at the base of a
yellowish-brown ; the breast and belly whitish, clouded with gray or
ash-oolour ; the back gray; the lesser coverts of the wings almost
whitsi, the middle row deep cinereous slightly edged with white ; the
primaries gray, tipped with black and edged with white ; the coverts
of the tail and the vent-feathers of a pure white ; the middle feathers
of the tail dusky, tipped with white, the exterior feathers idmost
wholly white ; the legs of a flesh colour."
In its reclaimed state it varies, like most domesticated animals,
infinitely ; but it is said always to retain the whiteness of the coverta
of the tail and the vent-feathers ; the whiter the plumage, the*moro
it is esteemed.
The seas, the shores, and the marshes of the oriental countries are
the habitation of the Gray-Lag Goose. It rarely advances northward
above 68* ; it is abundant in Gkrmany and towards the centre of
Europe ; in very small numbers, on its passage, in Holland and France.
The domestio races, all sprung from this species, multiply in all coun-
trieSb (Temminck.) " The Gray-Lag is known to inhabit all the exten*
sive marshy districts throughout we temperate portions of Europe
generally ; its range northward not extending &rther than the fifty-
third degree of latitude, while southward it extends to the northern
portions of Africa, eastwardly to Persia, and, we believe, is generally
dispersed over Asia Minor." (Gould, 'Birds of Europe/) Prince
Bonaparte notes it as rather common in winter near Rome.
Aquatic vegetables and all sorts of seeds are the food of this bird.
** The Gray-Lag," says Gould, " assembles in flocks, snd, like the bean-
goose, seeks the most open and wild districts, often descending upon
fields of newly sprung wheat, which, with the blades of fine grasses,
trefoil, and grain, constitute its food." Temminck says that tibe nest
is made in heathy spots (bruydres), and in marshes, upon tussocks
of rui^es and dried herbs; and that the number of eggs is five, six, or
eight, rarely twelve or fourteen, of a dirty greenish-white — Gould says
sullied white. Pennant states that this species resides in the fens the
whole year, breeds there, and hatches about eight or nine young,
which are often taken, easily made tame, and esteemed most excellent
meat, superior to the Domestio Goose. The old geese, which are shot,
are, he says, plucked, and sold in the market as fine tame ones, and
readily boo^t^ the purchaser being deceived by the size, but their
flesh ii couBA Towards winter, he addi, thcj oolleot in gnat flooki,
but in all uasoiu live and feed in the fens.
The tame gooee is vety long lived. " A. certain friend of oars " —
it is Wiilagbby who relates the ttoty— " of undpnbt«d fidelity, told
uB that his father bad onoe a goose that was known to bs SO years old,
which for ought be knew migbt havs Lved the oUier 80 years, had
lie not beau coastraioed to kill it for its misohievousness in beating
and destroying Ha younger geese."
It is one of tha moat useful uf birds to man, whether We conaidsr
itsflaehoritafeatliani "Tame geese," writes Pennant, "are kept in Tart
multitudes in the fens of Lincolnsliire ; a singlapenoD hasfrequently
1000 o!d geaee, each of which will rear aaven, so that towarda the end
of tha season he will become master of SDOO. I b^ leave to repeat
here a part of the histoiy of their economy from my tour in Scotland,
in order to complete my account. Duiing tha breeding season these
birds are lodged in die tame hoDsaa with tiie inhabitant, and even in
their very bed-chambers ; in every apartment are three rows of coma
wicker pens, placed one above another; each bird has its separate lodge
divided from the other, which it kee[« possenion of during the time
of sitting. A person called a QoEiard, Uiat is, Ghmse-HeT^, attends
the flock, and twice a day drives the whole to wator ; than brings
them back to thair iiabitations, helping those that live in tha upper
Btories to their ceabi, without ever misplacing a single bird. The
geeaa are plucked five times in the year ; the Snt pluclmig is at Lady-
Day, for faathani and quills, and the same is renawed tour times more
between that and Uichaelmas for featben only. The old geese
submit quietly to the operation, but the young ones are very noisy and
unruly. * I onoe saw this performed, and observed that goslins of six
weeks old were not spsred ; for their tails were pluMcd, as I was
told, to habituate them early to what they are to come to. If the
with a coarse apron up to his chin. Vast numbers of geese are driven
annually to London to supply the- markets, among them all the super-
annuated geeee and gandeia {called the 'Cagmage'), which, by a long
course of plucking, prove unoommanly tough and dry. The feathers
are a conrnderable article of commerce ; thoee from Somenetsliire
are eeteemed the bmt, and those &om Ireland the worst."
The liver seems to have been a favourita morsel with epicures in
all agea, and their invention appeals to have been active in exercising
the means of increasing the volume of that organ. The pfit4 de foia
d'oie do Strasbourg is not more in requert now than wera the great
goose-livsrs in the time of the Romans. (Pliny, ' Hist.,' lib. i. c
2i, tc.)
A. tcgelum, the Betm-Qooea, one of the wild geese, Anat itgtltun,
Qmelin, Aitier fena, Ray. It is to be distinguished from the last
species by its compoistively small and short biU, which is more com-
pressed towards the end, and also diCTera in colour : for, in the Bean-
Ooose the base of the uttdar mandible, and also of the upper one, as
far as the nostril^ together with the nails of both, an black, the rest
of the organ beiug of a reddish flesh-colour, inclining to orange ;
whercus the bill of the Qray-Lag is an orange-red, with the nail gene-
rally of a grayish white. The wings moreover in the Bean-Oooae
reaoh, wheu closed, beyond the end <^ the tdil.
Tbe Bnp.OooMi {Aiirr w^hnii].
Sclby gives the foUowmg interesting account of its habits from
DttCKS. 411
in large bodies &om its nortJism snmmsr haunta, during Ssptember
Cf the beginning of Ootoliar, and seldom taking ita final departure
before the end of April or b^inning of May. The various flocks,
during their residence in this country, have each their p&rticular
haunts or feeding districts, to which, on each ensuing season, they
invariably return, as I have found to be the case in Northumberland
and the southern porta of Scotland, where wild geese have been known
to frequent certain localitiea for a continued series of yoan. The
habits of this and the preceding species are very aimilar, S4id they
show the same vigilance, and use tha same means of guarding gainst
surprise : their capture is therefore propartionsily difficult, and it is
only by stratagem that, when at rest on the ground or feeding, they can
bs approached within gun-ehoC In stormy weather when they are cum-
pelied to By lower than they usually do, they may be sometimea
intoroepted from a hedge or bank, situated in the route they are
observed to take early in the morning, in passing to their feeding
ground. At night they retire to the water, or else (as I have often
remarked in Northiunberbuid) to some ridge or bar of sand on tho
sea-cOBiit, sufficiently distant fi-om the mainland to afford a seeura
retreat ; and where the approach of an enemy must beoome visible,
or at least audible to their acutfl organs, before it could endanger
their safety. The haunts or feeding-grounds of these birds sre more
iVequently in the higher districts than in ths lower and marshy trmots
of the oountry, and they give ths preference to open land, or where
tlie inciosurea are very large. Thay feed maim upon the tendo'
wheat, sometimea iiy'unng these fields to a great extent ; and th«n
frequent also the stubbles, particularly such ss are laid down with
clover and other grasses. In the early part of ipring they oflan alight
upon the newly-eown bean and pea fields, picking up greedily such of
the pulse as is left an the surface ; and I am inclined to tliink that
their trivial name has been acquired from their apparent predilection
for this kind of food, tmther than from the sliape and aspect of the
nail of the upper mandible, to which it has been generally attributed.
They usually fly at a considarable elevation, uither in a (Uaganal line,
or in two such lines, opposed to each other, and forming a leading
acute angle, like the other apeciea ; and when on wing they iTi»i"t'ln
a loud cackling, in which (As voices of the two saies may be easUy
distinguished. The rate at which they move, when favoured by a
genUe breeze, is seldom less tlian from 10 to 60 miles an hour, a
velocity which enables them to have their rooeting-place far nmored
from the district they frequent by day. The principal breeding ata-
tions, or summer retreats, of ths bean-goose ore in oouiitriea withm ths
arctio oiivle : it ia said, however, tliat great numbers breed annually
in Harris, and some of the other outermost Western Islsnda. The neat
ia made in the molsby grounds, and formed of grasses and other dry
v^etable materials ; the eggs are white, and from eight to twelve
in nmnbar. The trachea of this species increasea in diameter towards
ths middle, and the bronchia are short and tumid. The denticolatod
lominffi of the sides of the bill are similar in formation to those of the
A. paJMfru, and form thin sliarp cutting edgee, and ths manner in
which they lock within each other renders ths bill an instrunieDt
beautifully adapted fur vegetable food."
In bulk, the Bean-Oooae ia generally rather less than the Qray-
XiSg and it is accordingly sometimes called provincially the
SnuU Oray-Goose, but it not untrequently equals the other in siee
and weight
Tha bead and upper part of tlie neck incline to brown, with a
grayiah tings, and the feathers of the latter hue are so disposed as
almost to produce a furrowed appearance. The lower parts of the
body are ash-gray, with ttanaverse darker ahades ; and the back and
scapulars are brown, with a gray tinge, tlie feathers being edged with
white. Wing-oovarta gray ; secondaries brown, edged and tipped with
white; primaries giay-black ; rump gray; upper tail-ooverla white;
tail brown, with ths feathers deeply bordered and tipped with white ;
legs and toea reddish, inclining to orange, the jntsnaity of ths Colour
varying according to ttie bird's age.
A. ^gsftiacut, Brisson {Anat ^gyptiaea, Linnatns), the Kgypluo
Qooee. It appears to be tlie XifvoXcintJ of the Ore^s, and accord-
ingly the modem Eoologists have named it Cheaalejitx ^ffgpliaciu
(Qould, ' Birds of Europe'). Aristotle (' Hist Anim.' lib. viii. c S)
mentions the ChenaUptx as a palmipede bird haunting the banks of
lakes and riiera. Arislophonea names it in two of his oomediea,
namely, 'Birds,' v. 129S, ' LyaiMI-.' v. 9S6. (In the ' Lysistnts ' the
Ravenna Manuscript reads XqnA^vift : bat Bekker prints Xxiya*Ani(,
noticiog the Ravenoa reading.) Alhenieus mentions it with praise on
account of its eggs, as claiming the second plaos in aioellenoe, tboss
of the peaoock holding the first (' Deipn.' lib. ii. o. 16, p. S8). jGliau
(lib. V. c 30 ; lib. iL c 38) notices it, and speaks of ila cunning.
But it is Herodotus who draws our .attention to tha bird as one of
those held sacrad by the Egyptians (' Hist' lib. ii c. 72), and the
researches of modem travellers have fully shown that it was at least
a favourite dish with the priests. It is impossible to look at the
Egyptian paintings and sculptures— many will be found in the BriUeh
Museum, and many more copied in Roa^lini, and other works of the
some kind — without being struck with the frequent occurrence of
geese repraBonted, both alive and plucked, and prepared for the table.
Tliat ooma of these represent the Ckauiapex iben can be no doubt
Tha author of the interesting book on S^Qrptiaa Antiquities (' Library
4U DUCEa
of Entertwning Knowlndge — EgyptUn Aiil4qaitlM,' voL li, Loodan,
lSSS),giT(a a prut conbunlng, as he believei, ill or neaxly all tha
TarietieB of Oa *iiiiii>l forms, exoopt perhaps Iha fiihag, which ho had
bean able to fiad on the gnat saroophagus, the two obaluks, and
■ome othsF manumeDtH in the British Huseom. Among them he
figum a palmipede bird, which he oonaidars to be the Egyptian
Qooae, the Ckmalopac of Herodotus ; and he observes that it is of
frequent ocouiranoe on the sculptuTes, though it was not a sacred
bird ; unless it may hare some dainu to that honour from having
beoi a &Tonrit« article of food for the prieeta. A place io Upper
Kgjpt, he remario, had ite name Chenoboecion, or Chenoboscia
{' gouae-poia '), from these animals being fed there, probably for sale ;
though these may have been eacred geeae, for the goose, ws are told,
was a bird under the oare of Isia. Every one recollects, he adds, the
story in Livy, ot the geese of Judo saving the oapitoL The bird
ntfeirad to, if aocuratel; Egured, aod we are told that the drawing
was executed with great care, seems too short upon its lags for the
Egyptian Ooose of modem authors, and has mora the air of a Bemide.
Belon givee a fitir desoriptioQ of tha Egyptian Qoosa ; among other
observations he says, " Estant de la tonne d'une oys, et le col long,
et la eorpntence plus petite, semble eetre haut eaiambde;" and hs
applies to the binl, whioh he describes, the name of Vulpanta; or
ChtnaUiptx. Ee speaks also of its being kept "es coun des gniid
aeignenrs seulement" M. Qeoflroy St. Hilaire la also of opinion that
the Egyptian Ooose is the Chtnaloptx, or Vaipaiuer, of the aadeats ;
and Hr. Stephens ocofenwl the former generic title on the spedea.
The genus (Aaiatopex has the Ibllowitig chaiscten "'"
miuidibls Sat. Hostrila Bob-basal : upper mandible margined alt
round with brown, reddish fleab'Oolour in the centre ; irides OiBdge.
Wings with spun. Tani elongatod ; the three antdrtor toe* fully
webbed ; hind toe simple. Legs placed in equilibrio wilJi referenoe
to the body.
The seiea are nearly similar ; female rather smallar Uiao the male,
and with the oolooring U« intense. Narrow edging of fcathen
round the base of the bill, a line rmming nearly atnight &Dm that
edging to the eye, and luge patch surrounding Uie eye, cdieatnut;
crown of the head, sidsaofths face, and anterior part of neck, pale
buff approaching to white, gradually passing into rufous-brown on the
back of the neck; lower put of the neck of the same reddish tinge,
whioh forms there a alightly marked ooUar. Upper part of the back
light chestnut-brown, rayed with veiy minute traiisvene irregular
lines of dark brown approaching to black ; middle of the back and
upper part of scapulaia dai^ reddish-brown, minntaly isyed with irre-
gular tnnsrerse lines of blackish-brown and gray; lower part of
■capulan and tOTtiariss reddish chestnut ; leaser wing-coverts white,
except the posterior row of feathers, which are crossed with black
10 aa to form a narrow oblique ■
wing ; piimaiiee, lower part of tha back, nunp, and tail, black ;
secondaries rich green, glcued with purple. In iho middle of the
bresst then is a large patdi of deep chestnut; the rest of the under
pert of tha body, from the slight collar to the thighs, pale buGT witli
fine irregular trausvetse blackish-brown Unas. Vent and under tail-
coverts rich buf£ l,eg» and feet reddish Seeh-oulour.
Egjptlso Ooose {Chmalopa Xffptiaaa).
Ur. Qonld, who glvea an ezoellent portrait of an adult mala In his
' Birds of Europe, states that he has not b9on led to do so by thi
number of half-reclaimed individualB which are yearly shot in oui
island, but btjtn the drcumBtance of ita occasionally visiting the
Mnitheni parti ol the CooHnenl from its native country, Africa. "
DDCES. m
Temminak, he rematks, particularly mentions the idaud of Sicily aa
one of the plaoaa frequented by it ; and he adds that this is the apedea
whioh would appear to have been held in great veneration by the
andent Egyptians, as we frequently find a figure of it among the
monuments of that celebrated people. It is, he aaya, abundant on
tha banks of the Nile, and is distributed over the whole of the vast
continent of Africa.
This handsome species breads fredy in confinement, and is often
seen in the aviaries and near the lakes of those who take pleasure in
collecting and domesticating onuunental wster.birds.
A. Gambentii of Itay and others, Anat QantientU of LiooEBus, PUe-
tnpttrut Qambentit of modem omitbologiets, the Spur Winged Qoose,
or Oambo-Qoose. Thia species was confounded by Willughby, and
afterwards by Bu&on, with tha Egyptian Qoose.
Size nearly that of tha common goose; bat the legs are long, and
placed under the middle of the body. Bill broad and flat, with a
tiiberole at the base like that of the tame awan. This tubercle
sides of the head white ; upper parts of body giosay black, with
matallio reflections ; base of the wings with a white patch mottled
with black spots ; under parts white ; legs alightly tinged with rod ;
spur, which is only visible when the wing is expanded, horn-oolour.
Hr. SwuDson thus obaracCeriaes the genus FtatrapUrut, Leach : —
" Bise large ; wings armed with naked tuberdes or spines ; bill
lengthenecC iride at the tip; tha base witii a naked protubarauoeL
It is a native of NDrihero and Western Africa. One spedmea Wa*
killed in Cornwall in 1821, hence it in enumerated in lists of British
ATtatyda. Here rare in collecliana than the Egyptian Qooae, but has
lived well in the Qardens of Uie Zoological Sodety of London, at the
Hagenfs Park.
A. Canadeaiv of authors, the Canada Ooos^ or CravatrOoose.
This bird in its contour, especially about the neck, saems to approach
Indeed, Hr. T. C. Eyton arranges it under the genus
is the Neescah, or Mistehayneescah, of the Crea Indians ;
itaide ot the French -Canadiaas ; Bustard of the Hudson's, Bay
settlers ; Wild Qoose ot the Anglo-Amcricims ; and L'Oie tl Cravate of
the French.
Cygniu.
L'Untai
Csasdisn Goose lAaitr CanaiauU).
Hearne, Pennant, Wilson, Audubon, Nuttall, and others, give very
intereeting accounts of the habits and cbace of this spedea, whose
annual advent furnishes such an abundant harvest of food to the resi-
dents in the countries visited by it. Our limits will not permit us to
indulge in these entertaining but somewhat lengthened narratives,
and we select Sir John Bichordson's account as being at once clear
and concise : — " The arrival of this well-known bird," aaya Sir John
in the ' Fauna Boreal i- Americana,' " in the Fur Countriea is anxiously
looked for, and hailed with great jo^ by the natives of the woody
and swampy districts, who depend principally upon it for anbalateilM
during the summer. It makes its first appearance in flocks of twenty
or thuty, which are readily decoyed within gun.shot by the hunters^
who set up stales, and imitate it« calL Two or three, or more, ara
so frequently killed at a shot, that the usual price of a goose is B
single charge of ammunition. One goose, which when fat weighs
about nine pounds, !s the daily ration for one of the Company's aar-
vanta during the season, and is reckoned equivalent to two snow-
geese, or throe ducks, or eight pounds of bufhlo and moose-meat, or
two pounds of pemmican, or a pint of maiee and four ounoes of suet.
About three weeks after their first appearanoe the Canada Oe«ae
dispene in pairs throughout the oountiy, between the EOth and BTth
uirallels, to breed, retiiing at the aame time from the shores ot
Hudson's Bay. They ara aeldom or never aeen on the ooasta of tha
415
DUCKS.
DUCKS.
410
Arctic Sea. In July, after the young birds are hatched, the paronte
moult^ and yaat numbers are killed in the liTers and small lakes
when they are unable to fly. When chased by a canoe, and obliged
to dive frequently, they soon become fatigued, and make for the shore
with the intention of hiding themselves ; but as they are not fleet
they fall an easy prey to their pursuers. In the autumn they again
assemble in flocks on the shores of Hudson's Bay for three weeks or a
month previous to their departure southwards.
" It has been observed that in their migrations the geese annually
resort to certain passes and resting-places, some of which are fre^
quented both in the spring and autumn, and others only in the spring.
The Canada Goose generally builds its nest on the ground ; but some
pairs occasionally breed on the banks of the Saskatchewan in trees,
depositing their eggs in the deserted nests of ravens or fishing eagles.
Its call is imitated by a prolonged nasal pronunciation of the syllable
wooi frequently repeated."
The principid food of this species consists of 8edge>roots, herbage,
and dehcate marine plants, such as those of the genus Who. In the
spring they feed on berries which have been preserved by the snow
through Uie winter, such as those of the Silvery Buckthorn {Bleagnus
argentea). M. Audubon found them breeding on the coast of Labra-
dor; the eggs, six or seven in number, of a greenish-white, are laid in
a roughly-nuule nest. Mr. Nuttall says that in the month of March,
1810, many were nesting in the Shave-Rush (Eqw»etum hyemaU) bot-
toms of the Missouri, no fiirther up than Fire Prairie, considerably
below the junction of the river Platte ; so that the breeding range of
the Canada Qoose probably extends through not less than 80 degrees
of latitude. Prince Bonaparte notes it as common in winter near
abundant in pairs throughout the Fur Countries up to a high latiiade.
It associates in flocks only on its first anivaL It feeds on grass and
on all kinds of berries. Early in the spring I have found its crop
filled with the farinaceous astringent firoit of the EUagnui argenUa.
A. Bemicla and A. HtUchinaU breed in considerable numbers on the
shores and islands of the Arctic Sea, but keep near the sea-ooast in
their migrations, and are seldom seen in the interior. They feed on
marine plants snd on the MoUutea which adhere to them, as well aa
on grass and berries. Prince C. L. Bonaparte enumerates A. segetfum
and A. leueoptii in his list of American Qeese ; but they did not oome
under our notice in the Fur Countries. Hutchins and Heame speak
of the Canada Qoose under the name of Common Gray Goose, what
they term Canada Goose being our A. JButchimii,*'
This sort of practical information is not merely interesting in a
phOosophical point of view. The observations which Sir John Richard-
son's opportunities enabled him to make become of great practical
importance when it is considered that upon the habits and migratoiy
movements of this useful tribe depend the comfort, nay, almost tlie
existence, of multitudes of human beings. We shall therefore follow
these birds through Sir John Richardson's ' Table ; ' and we would
earnestly entreat iJl ecological travellers to keep such registers when-
ever their position will enable them to add such valui&le contribu-
tions to natural history. The Table from whidi the following extract
is made embraces the whole of the birds comprised in the ' Fauna
Boreali-Americana.' Sir John Richardson remarks that the fourth
column is taken from Prince Bonaparte's 'Speochio Comparative,'
and that the fifth column is filled up on the authority of that
naturalist^ Wilson, Audubon, and some otheia
Species.
Extreme Northern range.
Distribution in the Fur Countries.
Whether resident or migratory.
Species observed on the Saskatchewan ;
lat. 53' to 54° N., and from 600 to 1000
miles distant from the sea-coast
Species that ftvguent the
vicinity of Philadelphia,
lat 40' N. (Bonaparte.)
Winter Quartezs of the
Spades.
Atuer albifinnu
Anw hpp&boreut ....
An$er Omadeiuii
AfuerBemieia
An»er BuUhintU ....
r 73' N. Lat East of Rocky Moun-
( tains. Migratory.
78' N. Lat. Across the Continent
Migratoiy.
70' N. lAt Across the Continent.
( Migratory.
78'N. lAt East of Rocky Moon-
1 tains. Migratory.
1:00° N. Lat. East of Rocky Moun-
Passage. Spring and Autumn. In
flocks, very abundant
Passage. Spring and Autumn. In
flocks, very abundant
Summer. Common.
Passage. Siirlng and Aututam. Aoel<
Passage. Sprins and Autumn. In
Winter. Aocidentalvisiter.
MHnter. Aocidentalvisiter.
Winter. Common.
Winter. Common.
Middle and Southern
States.
United States.
Middle States.
Southern States.
Philadelphia, and as being an object of chase on the sea-shore in the
autumn.
When it is remembered that the Hudson's Bay residents depend
greatly on the supply of Canada G^eese for their winter provision, and
Uiat in favourable years as many as 8000 or 4000 are said to have
been killed and bairelled up, it is evident that without this aid num-
bers must be in a very forlorn condition. It has been asserted that
on a good day a single native from the ambush of his bough hut will
kill as many as 200. They are preserved in the frost with the feathers
on, and the fiesh is juicy and nutritious, though not equal to that of
the Snow-Goose. The feathers also are of commercial value. The
bird has been long domiciled in Europe^ in France, and in this country
particularly, where it breeds freely, and is a great ornament Buffon
states that it bred with the swans at Versailles ; it will breed aUo
with the Common Qoose. The produce of the latter intermixture are
said to be much more delicious in flavour and quality than the
unmixed progeny of the Domestic Qoose.
The following is the description of this bird : — Head, two-thirds of
the neck, greater quiils, rump, and tail, pitch-black. Back and wings
broccoli-brown, edged with wood-brown. Base of the neck before and
the under plumage generally brownish-gray. A few feathers about
the eye, a laige kidney-shaped patch on the throat, the sides of the
rump, and upper and under tail-coverts, pure white. Bill and feet
black.
Sir John Richardson observes that individuals differ considerably
in dimensions.
The author last above quoted states, as a summary in the 'Fauna
Boreali-Americana,' that the geese feed on vegetable substances,
pasturing by day, and retiring in the night to repose on the water.
This must be taken as a general proposition, for the Canada Gk>ose is
said rarely to sleep upon the water except in very calm weather, their
roosting-place being mostly in the maninea. He says that they swim
well, but dive only when moulting and unable to fly. If pursued at
such times they leave the water, and try to hide themselves on shore.
They fly high and swiftly in flocks arranged in two lines meeting in
an acute angle : they alight on the ground, seldom on the water.
The same author observes that Anser a&ifront and A. hyytrboreu* feed
chiefly on berries, and are seldom seen on the water except in the
night or when moulting; that they frequent the sandy shores of
rivers and lakes in floclu, one of their number generally doing duty
as aentitiol, and that both species breed in great numbers in Arctic
America and on the islands of the Polar Sea. A. aUnfnmi he states
to be rare on the coast of Hudson's Bay, and says that it migrates
over the interior, and chooses its breecUng-plaoes in the vicinity of
woody tracts ; while A hyperhareua visits both the interior and the
coast in its migrations, but resorts to the Barren Qrounds to breed.
"A, Canadentit" writes Sir John Richardson in conclusion, "is
With regard to the further geographical distribution of this tribe
the reader will find A. Indictu, Barred-Headed Goose, Lath,; A.
mdanotoa, Black-Backed Gk>ose, Lath. ; and A. CoromandeHana, Anaj
Oirra, Gray and Hardw. ; Cfirra TetU, Lath., in the catalogue of birds
which were collected on the Ganges between Calcutta and Benares,
and in the Yindhyian Hills between that place and Gurra MimdeLi,
on the Nerbudda, by Major James Franklin, F.RS., &c. (* Zool. Proc.,'
1880-81.) Anter Oirra (Ancu Oirra, Gray), called the Cotton-Teal by
the Europeans in the Deccan, on account of the quantity of white in the
plumage, appears also in the account of Colonel Sykes's collection of
birds from the Deccan. ('ZooL Pro&,' 1832.) An$er inomatus ia
recorded among the birds brought home from the Straits of Magul*
haens by Captain PhiHp Parker King, R.N. (*ZooL Proc.,' 1830-31.)
Mr. Gould, in his ' Century of Birds from the Himalaya Mountains,'
figures A, Indieut as occurring there.
The sub-family AncUinoe, the True Ducks, have a very wide geo-
graphical distribution. Sir John Richardson, in the work last quoted,
states that Anas clypeata and A, {Dafila) acuta frequent chiefly the
clear lakes of the northern districts, and breed in the Barren Grounds,
being found in numbers in the more southern woody districts in spring
and autumn only. A. (Botckaa) domettiea, A. (Chauliodua) strepera,
and Mareca Americana breed in the woody districts up to their most
northern limits, in latitude 68°. A. (Boachaa) crecca is abundant to
the extremity of the continent both in the woody and barren districts.
A. (Boa^cu) diacorg, though very plentiful on the Saskatchewan, was
not observed farther north than the 58th parallel ; while Dendroneua
sponta seldom goes to the northward of the 64th degree of latitude,
and is rare even to the southward of that paralleL
It appears also from Sir John Richardson's * Tables' that Ancudypeaia
was observed in 70** N. lat. migratory across the continent ; numerous :
that it was observed on the Saskatchewan, in 58** to Si' N. lat, and
from 600 to 1000 miles distant from the sea-coast, very common as a
bird of passage in spring and autumn ; that it fr^uents the vicinity of
Philadelphia, rather common in winter (Bonaparte); and that its
winter quarters are in the United States and Mexico. A, (Chauliodus)
ttrepera has been noticed in 68** N. lat east of the Rocky Mountains,
migratoiy ; and on the Saskatchewan (same range of latitude and
same distance from the sea-coast) common in summer ; rare in the
vicinity of Philadelphia in winter (Bonaparte) : its winter quarters
are the Mexican lakes. (Swainson.) A. {tk^/Ua) caudacutOf in lat 70**
east of the Rocky Mountains ; migratoiy ; very common ; and on the
Saskatchewan, as above, in spring and autunm, but not rare ; common
in the vicinity of Philadelphia in winter (Bonaparte) ; and having its
winter quarters in the Mexican lakes. (Swainson.) A- (Botchat)
dometUca, in lat. 68** ; migratory across the continent : common on
the Saskatchewan, as above, in the summer; common in the vicinity
iir DUCKa
of I^kdelpluB in tli« winter (BoDsporte) ; and having iti winter
quarters in the Middle and Sautbam States, Columbia River and
California. A. (SomrAaj) crteca, in Ut 70° ; migratory acroM the
continent; very abundant ; on the Saskatchewan, oa above, abundant
insuinmar; voryconunon near Philadolpbia in the winter (Bonaparte);
and with its winter quarters in the Middle and Southern States
towards the tropioa, A. (BoKhai) dittori, in lat 68° ; migratory
across the continent ; very abundant ; and on the Saskatchewan, as
above, abundant in summer ; very common near Philadelphia in
mmmer (Bonaparte) ; and with the Uaiican Status, Columbia Kiver,
and California for its winter quarters. Mareca Amtrieana, in lat.
fl8° ; migratory ; rather common on the Saskatchewan, as above, in
■utnmer ; common near Philadelphia in the winter (Bonapartu) ; win-
tering in the Middle and Southern States and in the West Indies.
Dendnmeua ipOHtOjia'iaL Bi° i migratory; rare on the Saskatchewan,
ai above, in summer ; common la the vidnity of Philadelphia in
eammer (Bonaparte) ; wintering in the Southern States, Mexico (t)
Wert Indieo.
In the same work we find in the list of epeciea which merely winter
in Peonaylvania, and migrate in summer to rear their young in the
Fur Coontries, A. dypeata, A. {dia^iodtu) itrepera, A. (DajUa) caada-
eiita, A. (Botehat) domeilica, A. {Boichat) crecca, and Marten Amtri-
eana>— in the liat of species which summer (or bread} in the
Fur Countries and Id PeoDsylvania, but winter fkrther to the south-
ward, A. {Boichat) daairi and Dcndrtmaia iponta ; — and in the list
of species common to the Old World and the Fur Countries, A.
dypiala, A. [Ohauliodut) ttrtprra. A, (Z^Ma) aciUa, A. (JtucAiu)
donulua, and A, {Boieltca) ertcca.
The ^TWtiiuE feed on eoft subetoncei, such oa freah-water iosaela
and tender oquatio plants, which they procure near the surface, or,
aided by the length of their necks, at the bottom, in shallow muddy
E laces, and worms and slugs, which they search Sot among the grasa
y day they resort to small lakes and rivers, and in the night retire
to the fields. They are strong and swift on the wing, and are
watchful birds, that seldom dive to escape pursuit, unless when
moulting ; but when disturbed fly away, muiog at the outset a circle
in the air to survey the oooie of weir alarm. (' Fauna Boreali-
Americaao.'} Sir John Richardson gives in a note the following
interesting mformation, derived from on intelligent keeper of a decoy
in the neighbourhood of the Fev. W. Booth of Friskney, in Lincoln-
shire, to whom be eipresset his obligation for the statement ; —
" Skelton is unacquainted with the babits of the gadwoll; but he
tells me that the widgeon and pintail do not willingly dive: of
course, if driven to it, they «>n, but they do not dive for their food ;
and though in pUy they aoaietimes splash under water, they never
remun beneath the surface like the pochard. With reapect to food,
the mallard, pintail, and teal, frequent rich flooded lands, ' swittering
with their nebe in the soil, and sucking out its strength ;' hut tlu
widgeon feeds quite difTereDtly, being ' an amazing fowl to graae, ■
■tronge eater of giaaa.' It is especially fond of ' flutler-gTaaa '
{&9aria aqtialica vd Jltiitaiu t), which it crops on the surbce, but
it likewise eats many other herbs. Whan the decoy hai
full of widgeons tliat they liave devoured every blade on the landings,
Skelton has taken advantage of their absence in the night, when thay
resort to the green salt marahes on the sea-coast^ and laid down sods
pared from the fields, on which they readily graze. In common,
however, with the mallard, tea], and pintail, they are fond of willsw-
weed-eeeds {Bpilobivnt 1), with which he feeds ail the fowl in the
decoy, aa they pnfer it to oats and srery other kind of grain. Mr.
Waterton statea that ' the widgeon feeds by day, eating grass like
a goose ; whilst its congener the mallard invariably refoaes this food,
and seeks for il^ lustenance by night.' "
The genus Atiai has (he following characters ; — Bill about as long
as the bead, brood, dapimsed, sides parallel, sometimes partially
dilated ; both mandibles furnished on tha inner edges with transverse
lamalUe; nostrils small, oval, lateral, anterior to the base of the beak;
legs rather short, placed under the centre of the body ; tarsus some-
what rounded ; toes three in front, ooimected by intervening mem-
branes ; hind toe fres, without pendant lobe or membrane ; wings
rather long, pointed. Tail pointed or wedge-ebaped. The selca differ
in plumage.
A not dgpeala (Linn.), the Shoveler. This is the Souobet of the
French ; Cucchiarone of the Italians ; Schild-Ente and LoBel-Enta of
the Germans; Uimenick of tha Cree Indians; Hwyad Lydanbig
of the Welsh ; BAynehoipu dyptata ot Shaw's Zoology (Leach
USS.) ; i^alAtUea dypeala of Fleming. Tha A. niou of Qmelin is
■aid to be the young male, or a vonety of the young msla. It is
Brovincially termed Blue-Winged Bhovder, Serttutock, and Broad-
iiL
The following is the description of a male killed at Fort Franklin,
Hay, 18S6 : — Colour; head, adjoining half of the neck, medial stripe
to the interacapuiara, the whole back, interior scapulan, and primaries,
nmber-brown ; sides of the head, the neck, and creat, glossed with
duck-green ; rump and toil-coverts above and below, with blackish
green. Lower half of the neck, the breast, shoulders, shorter scapulars,
ends of the graoter coverts, and sidss of the rump, white ; longer
scapulon stripod with beiiin-blue, while, and blocldsh-brown. Lesser
ooverta berlin blue. Speonlom brilliant groatfreen, broadly bordered
DUCKS. 418
above, and narrowly edged below with white ; bounded interiorly
with greenish-block. Belly and flanks deep orange-brown, the latter
undulated poeteriorly with black. Bill block. Lege orange.
The bill is a little higher than wide at the base, much depressed,
loted, and roucded at the end; mandibles furnished with long
slender crowded ismiuEe, the upper ones acute and projeating, forming
an apparatus admirably Stied for sifting small insects from the water
acute, and consists of 1 4 acute feothara ; tonus seoroely oompressed ;
hind toe not lobed, and the outeivtoe shorter than the middle one,
as in the rest of the Anatince.
The female is liver-brown obovs, with brood boarders of pale wood-
brown ; underneath pole wood-brown with obscure liver-brown marks.
She wonts the dark brown and green eolonra of the head, mmp, and
toil-ooverta, the white of the neck, bieast, aides of the nimp, and
Bcopulon, and also the orongfr-brown of the belly ; the lesser oovorta
an alighUy glossed with benin-blue, and the apeeulum is less vivid
than in tha male. Length 21 inches 6 lines, Ac (Bichardaon.) The
wraght is about 2S ounces.
Temmiock states that the young mslss in autumn, and the old
males during their moult, have some of the feothers proper to the
winter-plumage of the mole, and others peculiar to the female, or to
the young male before the moult, imd that these feotbeia are indis-
tinctly mingled. Young and old males in the sununar-ohange on
supposed to be the origin of the Red-Breasted Shoveler.
The trachea of the male is of equal diomeler, excepting towards
the lower larynx, where it is very slighUy enlarged. It forms a slight
bony protuberance on the left side, which is dilated a little below.
The bionchits ore vsry loog. (Tamminck.)
It inhabits marshes, lakes, and riven in Kussia, and o great part
of Asio. It is very abundant in Holland. In France, Oennany, and
England, it is a binl of passage, arriving in the firiti^ Islands gsne-
rally obout October, and departing about March. In England the
principal resorte of the speciee are the fens of Linoalnshire and
(Abridge. Bonaparte (' Specchio Comporotivo') notes it as one ot
those birds common to tha neighbourhoods of Rome and of Phila-
dalphia, and as being rather common in both places in winter.
tlB
DUCKa
AoeordiDK U> LttUiam it inhabits tha CoromuidBl Const and paria of
India. The rorm occucd in Australia (New Holluid Shoveler) ^ and
SminHn eays that tbe geographical distribution of the true Shovelers
in» be deemed univers^
It liva an fiihes and insects, farely planto and teeda. (Tamminck.)
It makes its nest upon the borders of lakes covered with neds or
coppice, and laji 12 to H egga of a bright greenish-yeltow, or oil-
green. It is said to ha*a bred in Fimce, and hai been known to
breed in the nunhea of Norfolk, and in tbe neighbourhood of tha
Tweed. But these may be deemed exceptions to the general place
of nidiScation, which in far north.
Tha fleih is highly eeteemed for the table, and is conridered by
mtnj to eioel that of the mallard, or common wild-duck, in flavour.
JfoIiicwAyncAHt {Swainson). — Hr. Swainson {' Journal of the Royal
Institution,' loo. cit.) obeervea that among the broad-billed ducki of
the southern hemiephero there ts a very remarkable modification of
form. The breadth of the bill and the length of the laminDU are
nearly the same ; but the edge of the upper mandible, instead of
being smooth, as in the European species, is furnished with a thin
membianaceoui skin, which projects considerabiy, and hanga down
somewhat like a wattle on each aide. Hr. Swainson propoaea for
this form the sub^neric name above given, remarking that tha bill
of the European Shoveler is flexible, but that in this group it is
much more so. One species, he adds, described by autfaora under
the name of the Soft-Billed Shoveier, can scaroely exhibit this
debility mora than another before him when he wrote hia paper : i(
oamc^ according to him, from the same country (AuBtralial), and
■eems to be undoscribed.
Okmdiodui (SwainBon).— Hr. Swainson states that the QadwaU
certainly makes as near an approach to the SboTeten as any other
jet known. " The form of the bill, indeed, is no longer Bpatulate, or
perceptibly broader towards the end ; but the l^m'"Fi of the upper
mandible are ■till very fine, distinct, and more numerous than thoae
of any other foim subsequently mentioned, for they project a full
tenth of an inch beyond the margin. The tail now b^uiB to be
lengthened, and in a new species from Africa (C. Capmtii}, which I
have recently received, is so much attenuated, as to avinco an evident
afSm^ to the Pintail-Duck forming the sub-genua A^a of Dr. Leach."
Bill of GsdFidl (Clauluufuil Swatnion
C. ilrtjiera (SwainBon), the Gadwall, or Gray. — This is the Chipeau,
or Ridenne of the French ; Anitra Hontanara and Anatra Canapiglia
oftbe Italians ;8chwatter-£nte and OraveHittel-Ente of the Oermans:
and T gors Hwyad Iwjd of the Webb.
DUCES. IW
The following is the deacription of a male killed on ihe Saskateha*
wan. May 22, 1827 :— Top of the head and nifie livar-broirn, edged
with gray ; head beneath and neck gray, with small brown specks ;
base of Uie neck above and below, anterior part of tbe back, exterior
scapulars, flanks, and aides of the van^ elove-brown, marked with
concentric harsa-shoe-ahsped white lines ; interior aoapularg, lesser
covarts, primaries, tertiarias, and tul,haii^brown; intermediate ooverte
chcatnut-brown J greater ooverts, rump, and upper and under tail-
coverts, bluish-black ; speculum whilt^ ite anterior border black ;
lower jiart of the breast, middle of tbe belly, and under sur&oe of
the wmgs, white ; bill brownish-black, pale beneath ; legs oianga-
Coloured.
The bill aa long as the bead, of equal breadth and height at tlie
rictus ; depressed, but not widening anteriorly ; !«'"'""> of the
mandibles rather stronger and ma<^ shorter than those of the
Shoveier, but finer and more numerous than those of auy northern
speciee. The upper ones project a full tenth of an inch beyond the
margin. Wings nearly equal to the tail ; first and second quills
equt^ and U^eet; tail connsting of 16 feathers, the lateral ones
graduated ; total length 23 incheo, to. (Richardson). Siie rather leas
than that of the widgeon. Temminck makes the length 18 or 19
inchea. The female has the feathers of the back of a blackiah-brown,
bordered by bright ruddy (roui) ; the brast reddiah-brown, mariied
with black spoU ; no zigztga on the fianks ; rump and lower eoverts
of the tail grayish. The trachea of tbe male U slightly enlaiged in
its diameter at about two-thirds of its length, but becomes narrower
aa it approaches the lower larynx : this consiate of a large bony arch,
with a globular or rather pyriform bladder attached to the left side,
being in shape much like that of the common miJbu^ but smaller.
ill (CnnuVudtfi (fi
™).
This bird inhabits the marshes, tc of tha norUi and east of
Europe, and is very abundant in Holland. It is rarely seen m tbe
Brilidi Islands except at the period of its vernal migration, and
then geuarally in the marshes of Norfolk. It is common in winter on
the maritime coaste of Prance; rare in the interior. Bonaparte
(' Specchio Comparativo') ootea it as rather common in the neighbour-
hood of Rome in the winter.
It feeds on Gshee, mollualu (coquUlages), insects, and aquatic plants.
(Temminck.) lusecte and their larvB, aquatic plants, and seeds.
(Selby.)
^_ „ _„ _ Temminck ;
lu to 13 ^ga of a pale oil-gteen. (Selby.)
Hr. Swainaon observes that nature has now so far receded from the
typical form that one of the chief peculiarities of that structure ia
nearly lost, and another considerably modified. The laminn of the
upper mandible, which in C. sfrqiera are so much shorter than those
of the true Shovelers, and are so mnob abbreviated in C. C .
become almost concealed by the margin of the bill in Dqjttd.
most striking cbBracteristic therefore of the genus we are now con-
sidering," continues Hr. Swainson, "has nearly disappeared, predsely
in that form which is farthest removed from tha type. But the shape
of the bill, althDugli essentially modified, has not undergone a total
alteration ; its breadth tonards the tip ii not only as great as at the
base, but is even more dilated ; so that in this respect it resembles
the Shovelers more than tha Qsdwalls, while it differs from both in
being higher at ite base, oonsidersbly more lengthened in proportion,
and much more convex throughout. It aasumea, in abort, a aemi-
cylindricol form, the end boing particularly obtuse and slightly dilated ;
the precise pohit of junction between the Pintails and that group
which waa known to the ancieute by the name of BnckoM."
411 DUCES.
Jl^MacaudacWa, thePintul'Ducik. This Is La Cuuud b Long Queue
ou Pilat of the IVencIi; Anitn CodLlBjiza uid An&trs di Coda Lunga
of tha ItaluDB ; Spiea-Entc and Fuan-Eiite at the OenuuiH ; Aler,
AhlTOgel, of the ■ Fauna Suecica ;' Sea-Ptieaauit, or Cnoker, of Wil-
lughbf ; Eeeueego Yawty-Sheep of the Chippewsf lodiaiu ; Hwyad
OjnObiifkin of theWelA; Ana* eavdaeula of Baj; A. longicavda
of Bruioii ; A. acftia of LitmsBUi ; QatrgueilHlii acuta of Belby.
The followisg ia the deeoription of a mole kiUed on tha Saakat-
chewHs, Kay, 1S2T : — Head and adjoining part of the neck antariori;
iimbet^brown, with paler edgea ; neck abore blackiah-brown ; the
ivhole of the back, uiDrter acapuloTB, aide* of the breaat and flonka,
marked with fine waved tronavene lioea of browniih white and black,
moat regular and broodeat on the long feather* Ijing over the thighs ;
long aoapulora and tertiariea black, the bordera of the farmer and
outer weba of the latter white ; wing-ooverta and primariea hair-brown;
ths piinuuy ahafta white, and the interior cbToiji mottled with the
Boma ; apeculum dark-gTMD, with pniple rafleoUona, bounded abore
by a, famiginona bar, and interiailf and below bj white. Tail and
most of its upper corerta dark-brown with pale bordera. Two long
central upper corerta, veut, aud uuder ooverta, black; the Utter
bordered with while. A lateral atrckk on the upper put of the neck,
the side* and front of it4 lower part, the breast, and belly, white. The
upper mandible bluiah-gray. Feet blaekigb-gray.
DUCKS.
all
at Flnlail-Dock (AvUa tauJaaila), Svahuon.
Tha bill ia much lengthened, folly aa long aa the head, considerablv
hi|^er than wide at the baae ; the upper mandible of equal breadth
to the point ; the laminn not projecting beyond the margin- Wingi
two inohes ahorter than the tjuL Scapulars, tertiariea, tail-feathere
and their ooverta, tapering and acnte ; the middle i>air of tail-ooTerts
having long slender points that project two inchea and a half beyond
Salbj obaervea that the labyrinth of this apecies .. . .
long bladder aituated on the left aide of the arch of tlie lower buyni
ita upper euifaoe being uearly even with the top of the aroh, but ib
lower one reaching much below it, Ita texture very fine, and u
young Inida may be indented by alight preeeurc^ but becomaa brittle
m aduha. Tha weight of the bird ia about 21 ounces,
hair-brown, barred and tipped with white. Mantle and scapulars
amber-brown, barred and varied with pole buff-orange and white.
TertdfllB hair-brown, margined with white. Lflaaer and greater wing-
oovBrta pale brwoooli-brown, edged and tipped with white. Speculum
hair-brown Roused with green, the feathers having white tipa. Quilla
hair-brown. Tail deep hair-brown, with imperfect bom of white and
pale buff-orange ; the two middle feathers eioeeding the roat iu length
about half an inch. Belly and abdomen yellowiah-white, indistinctly
marbled with brocooli-brown. Under tail-coverta white, speckled with
ohaatnut-hrown of different ahadea. Bill grayish-black. Legs and
'"' Bi^fi tinged with brown. (3elby.)
The young malei have the head red-brown apotted with block ; belly
yellowish ; and the speculum of a green, inclining to olire, without
Plnl^I-Dack (SitWa caudaada).
Tti* female is smaller. Forehead and crown pole oheatnut-broWD
atreaked with black. Cheeks and neok pale ochreous yellow, speckled
With black. Chin and throat paUartam-yeUow. Bidea of the bieMt
Selby remarks that^ like many other of the Analidit (particularly
of the spedss belonging to this group), the plumage of the mole Pin-
tail, towards the end of summer, of after the sexual intercouiae is com-
pleted, undergoes a remarkable change, and becomea very like that of
tue female. This appeara to be an actual change of the colour in the
fekthen rather than a renewal of them ; and the some change, ha
adds, ia obaervabla in the Hallord, and the males of the Teal, Widgeon,
&□. It also prevaila, if not in all, at laoat In some species of the
genus Margv, as he noticed it in M. lerraior.
It is found in the north of Europe and America ; very numeroua
at its double pasaage iu Holland and in France ; equally abundant iu
Oermany; in winter in the south. (Temminck.) Selby says, "It
is with us a regular winter visitant, and considerable numbers are
annually taken in the decoys of Liooolnshire, Norfolk, &c Uontagu
says that it is most abundant in the north cj England and Scotland,
and eapecially in the Orkney Islands. This assertion however I must
part contndict, ss the reault of long observation tells me it is of
re oocurrenoe in (he northern counties of England ; and the same
may be said of the southern districts of Scotland, which Dr. Fleming
confirms in his history of British anlmsla. With respect to the Ork-
neys I cannot speak so confidently, olthnugb it appears probable that
what had bean represented to him as tha present specicB was in fact
the Long-Tailed Duck {Itartlda glacialit), which is found iu great
umnbera during the winter in the bays of this group of islands. The
Pintail has a wide geographical range, being met vrith in all the
northern parts of Europe, Asia, and America, and retires in tha
summer to breed in high latitudes. Ila equatorial migration extends
aa fkr aa Italy ; and during its periodical flight to the southward it
occurs abundantly in Holland, Frauoe, Qermany. and other continental
ststaa. The manihes of the interior part of Uie country, and fresh-
water lakes, are ita usual places of roiort." Fainant atates that Hr.
Hoitlib, iu the Appendix to his ' Legacy,' telle us that these birds are
found in great abuudonoe in Connaught in Ireland, in the mouth of
FebruBiv only, and that they are much eateemed for their delicacy.
Prince C. L. &inaparte (' Speochio Comparative ') notea it as not vary
tare in the winter near Rome.
Ita food is similar to that of the OadwalL (Temminck.) Selby sa^
that its food ooualsls of insects and their larvn, the aeeda of aquatic
plants, particularly of some speciee of BpiloHmat, and vegetables.
The seaaoQ of courtship is indicated in the male by anddenly rainng
himself upright in the water, bringing his bill cloae to his breast, and
uttering at the same time a low soft note. This geaUculation is often
fi^owed by a jerk of the hinder part of the body, whidi is then oUo
thrown above the water. The neat is built in nohea and the (hiek
herbage of marshea. Eg^ from 8 to 10, bluiah-white <Selby) ] B or
9, greaniah-blus. (Temminck.)
Selby obaervea that the Pintail is eauly domeatioated, but raiely
breeds in confinement. A hybrid progeny has been produced between
it and the Widgeon ; and to auch an extent do the sexual propensitiea
seem to be affected in this state by difference of food and other causes,
that Montagu mentioua a male Pintail in his menagerie which for wont
of the other sex showed an inclination to pair witJi a female Scaup,
and even with a Bemicle Oooae. He further adds, that one of them
did pair with a tome duck, but that none of the eggs (upwoids of SO
in number) proved to be fecundatad.
Botckat. — Hr. Swainson comprehends under this sub-genus all those
ducks usually dauominated Teals, together with the Mallard, long
domesticated in our poultry-yards. "As this," continues Mr, Swainson,
" is by far the most uumeruue group, so it exhibits agreater diversity of
form among the species. They are. all however characterised by a
bill longer Uiau the head, whose brvodth ia equal throughout ; it is
sometimes indeed a little dilated, but never contracted at ita tip,
while the Wtninfft of the upper mandible ore entirely concealed by the
margin of the bilL The neck and the tail, which in DajUa are both
considerably lengthened, an muoh shorter in this group, which is
further distinguished by the brightness and beauty of plumage
abaervad in nearly all the species. On comparing the bill of the
common Teal with that of the Pintail, we see a close affinity between
the two forms. But as the tul of the first is so much developed in
compariaon to that of the Teal, it becomes easential to discover, if
thaae aulvgenera actually followed each other in nature, what apeciea
unitad them more Dlosely. By the uniform liberality of the toologista
atttuhad to the British Museum, and more pwticalarly Dr. J. E. Qtay,
I am now uiablBd to do this. The beautiful AHai (SMcAto) formeta,
ut DUCKS.
8w., or Baikal Tatl of methodiaU, is praciul; > bird w bioh intertsnei
betwMD thus two Bub-genera. Sauntiall; a Teal, H differa from all
othsn I have yet leen in the mperior length of Ht tail, the feathm of
which are a full inch longer than the under^oovers) while the oon-
Texity of the bill, from being greater Uian in the common Teal,
e cdUier
Tnl or Duaka. The BoiiAat Javemit, Sw., ii mora especially a bird
of this dncriptioii. It ia cIdht allied to the Mallard than to any
other of the group ; this ii iodicated b; the more depreaied form of
the bill, and the nhita collar round the neck ; the nape alao ia tstj
conipicuoaiily created, a pecoliarity found in no other group of the
genua. To thia and to the curl^ tail of the tame duck wa ahall
preaentl; advert. Havizig now reached what appears to be the
^pical form of Boichat, we see that nature as usual agun departe
m>m it. The bill of the Uallard ia throughout more depreeaed than
ttiat of the cammon TeaL Thia depreanon in fact, from being greator
than Uiat of the Qadwull, or of the Pintail, obviously aMtimilatea more
to the Shoveler. Tbe affioit; however appears remote, ainoe the
lamiom of the Mallard are concraled, while those of the Shovelen are
coospicuouat; projecting. If therefore the afflnitr was immediate, it
could only b« demonstrated by a speciee having the bill of the com-
mon duck, but with the lamina projecting. ITow such a specin ia
aotuaUy the Blue-Wingsd Teal of North America, in which theae
ir ducks besidea the Shovelers. IF thia affinity required
any further lupport, it ia placed beyond doubt by the fact mentioned
Id the ' Oeneral HJatoir of Birds,' that the plumage of the Kew Holland
Shovelar, excepting the white facial oreeoent, is predsely the eame aa
OwtoftheBlue-Winged Teal,— the veiybird which tfa
■ub-genua SoidMt
BXat-y/lattd Teil (BMcAot diirDTl).
B. deKuliea, the Common Mallard, or Wild Duck. Both sexea of
tliia beautiful Inrd are eo wall known that either description or Egure
would be auperfluoua. It ia the Canard Sauvage of the French ; Capo
Verde (ths mala), Anitra (the female), Oermano, and Paperone, of the
Ilaliana ; Wilde Ente and Oemeine Ente of the Oermans; Ethin-
oeeaen Sheeaheep of the Cree Indians ; Stock-Duck of the Hudson's
Bay reaidenta : and Con Hwyad, Oaran Hwrsd, and Hydnwv, of the
Welsh.
The weight of the wild Mallard is uaually about two pounds and a
half. The abundance of the bird at oue time in Britain may be
judged of from the following passage in Pennant: — "AmaJdng
numbers of ducka, widgeons, and t«ala are taken : by an account sant
uB of the numbv cau^t, a few winters past, in one aaason, and ia
DDCKB. <M
only ten deooya, io the neighbourhood of WunOeet, it appearod to
int to 31,200, in which are included aereral oiher speciea of
I ; it is also to be obaerred that, in the abore particular, widgeon
and teal are reckoned but as one, and cooaequently sell but at naif
, irioe of ducks. . . . The account of the numbere hare mentioued
relates only to thoaa that were sent to the capital It was cuatomarj
formerly to have in the fena an annoal driring of the young dac^
before they took wing. Numben of people assembled, who beat a
vast tract, and forced the birds into a net plaoed at t^e spot whera
the sport was to terminate. A hundred and fifty doiens have beem
taken at once ; but this practice being aopposed to be detrimental,
haa been aboli^ed by act of psriiament." Selby obserrea upon this,
that Uie same district at the present time doea not produce perhapa
doaen brooda in the year.
BiU of Millard (B«cAai damalica], BwUuon.
Mr. Waterton has pointed out that the duck and the drake ara
clothed in the same plumage only for a rerj abort time in tha
summer. Mr. Selbye obaerrationa on the chuige of plumage ara
referred to under the acoount of the Pintail.
The tncbea of tha Mallard haa at ita lower eztremi^ a labyrintli
much larger than that of the Qadwall, but not unlike it ; the tuba
does not differ much in diameter throughout ita length.
The Wild Duck Is widely spread over a considerable portion of tha
globe. Few of the temperate and arctic regiona are without it.
Temminck placea its habitation in the northern oountciea, and
obserrea Uiat it is known aa a bird of passage nearly throughont
Europe, haunting rivera, lakes, and maivhes. ^inoe C. L. Bonapart*
(' Speodiio Comparativo ') mentions it as very common near Borne in
The Wild Duck feeds on Gshei, fiy or spawn, dug^ wate^'iD■ec^
aquatic plants, their seeds, and all sorts of grain (Tamminofc) —
insects, worms, sluga, and all kinds of graio, &0. (Selt^.)
pairing takes place towards tbe end of February or
March, and they continue associated till the female b
when the male deserts her, joining others of his own
situated ; so that it is usual to see the mallards, after May, ii
flocks by themselves. About this time also they begin to undergo
the changes of colonr that assimilBts them in a great degree to the
female, and which is retained till the period of the autumnal or
general moull The care of the young thus devolves entirely upon
the duck, and is not partaken by the male, aa Wilson nnd otheis
appear to tbink ; and this fact I have had frequent opportunities of
verifying, as many wild ducks annually breed upon tha edgea of our
Northumbrian moors, and the young broods ore of cmurae frequently
under inapection as they descend the rivulets to the lower marshy
parts of the country. The neat of the wild duck is generally mads
m some dry spot of the marehee, and not far from water, to which
she can lead her progeny as soon as hatched. It is composed of
withered grass and other dry vegetable matter, and usually concealed
from view by a thick bush or some very rank herbage, though other
1 similarly
._, are oocastODolly chosen, as several
instances have been recorded where tbey have deposited their eggs on
the fork of a large tree, or in soma deserted nest. Such an instance
once occurred within my knowledge^ and near my own residence,
where a wild duck laid her eggs in the old nest of a crow, at least
thirty feet from the ground. At this elevation she hatched her
young ; and as none of them were found dead beneath the tree, it ia
presumed aha carried them safely to tbe ground in her bill, a mode
of conveyance known to ba frequently adopted by the Eider-Duck."
Montagu {• Omith, Diet' Suppl.) says, " Wo have been aasored by a
pSTson of undoubted veracity that a half.domestiQat«d duck made a
neat in Rumford Tower, hatched har ;o>ng, and brought them down
•W DOCKS.
in ufely to a pieo« of wat«r at a canmdsnibla dutuica. Otbera have
bean known to breed in trees j and wa raooUect the neat of this bird
bung found in the head of an old pollard willow, impending the
water, tuna whence the roung might readily drop unhurt into tbeir
natural element. Mr. Tnnatall maDtiona one, at Etchingham, in
Suaaex, wbich waa found ntttng upon nine eggi, oa an oak-tree,
twanty-Gve feet from the ground : and the autbor of tbe * Rural
Sports ' recorda an inatance of one taking poasaaaion of the nest of a
luwk in a lacga oak. To these we oaa add, upon the testimony of a
gentleman of tbe strioteat veracity, that out of a lai^e flock of balf-
domeaticated ducki, one depoeited bar egge in the principal fork of a
laige tree near his Kouae. The egga aro 10 to 14, of a bluish-
while ; the female, when she quits the neat for food, coven Uiem with
down and other nibetancea.
In a domealioatad state it is most widely distributed. Ail tiie
wietdes that the ftnoy of the breeder caji produce are to be seen in
the Tarioua poultiy-yaids. To say nothing of the Aylesbury and
other breeds, where size and delicacy of fle^ bare beni principally
eonaidared, we End penguin ducks standing nearly erect, hooked-biU
ducks, and even a variety where the caprice of man baa aucceeded in
nearly obliterating the webs of the feet, and curtailing the bill till it
haa loat ita apatulate sliape and ia become a deformity, bearing some
>«semblance to the bill of a common fowl Some of Uieae birds have
lieen shown aa the oS^ring of a cock and a dnck, we need hardly
say, withont the slightest fonndation for the monstrous asaertion.
Seiby obaervee, that in the domesticated varietiee the peculiar apeciSc
distinction of Uie curled feathera of the tail ia still retained. In China
and the other countries of the Bait, numbers of ducks are hatehed
by artificial means.
T,n^h.n. itates tlut tbe male Hosoovy Dubk and common duck will
breed together. The young bou a mater reaembhuiae to t^e
common duck tlian to tiie Huscovy Dudi.
Martea, Stephens. — In 'Fauna Boreali-Amerioana,' Mr. Swainson
places the genera Uartea and DatdmitMa in bit anb-family Anatiaa,
Bill of Wlflgeoa (ICor™).
Selby aaya that the Widgeons are diitinguiahed from the Teals by
much shorter and leai cyUndiical bill ; and from the Ducks, by that
member beooming more contiacted and narrow, instead of widening
towards its tip. The laminiB of tlie bill an aJao broader and set
wider apart, approaching in form nearer to tbose of the aubfamUy
Anterina. These birds, he adds, also vary in their liabits, for inatasd
of aearobing and rifting the mud with their bills for insects, seeds, &i
upon wliich food moat of the other genera live, they subaiat print
pally on gnaeea and vegetable diet, which they pluck in the eame
manner as geeee. Tbeir Sight is strong and swift, and they have a
eiculiar ahrill whistling cul-note. In the shape of tbe tracheal
byrinth they resemble the Pintail more than any other spoeiea "
middle ftothen of the tail are also acuta, and considerably li
Atheakemow-vreeahap of tbe Cree Indians.
Tlie following in a deacription of a male killed on the Saskatchewaa,
Hay, 1S27 ; — A whit« band from Ibe forehead to the nape, bounded
behind the eye by a broad dark-green patch, which ends in the nucha]
crest. Upper part and sides of the bt«aat brownisb-red, gloiaed
gray. Bue of the neck above, inteiBcapulars, scapulars, and B
minutely undulated with browniah-red and black ; hind part of tbe
back undulated in a similar manner with clove-browu and wbite, the
latter oolour prevailing on tbe tail-coverts. Lesser wing-coverts,
primaries, and tail, clove-brown; intermediate and greater ooverta,
sidss of tbe rump, breast, and belly, pure wbite. Speculum velvet-
black below, duck-green above, bounded superiorly with black and
poateriorly with white. Exterior webs of the tertiariea, and lateral
and inferior tail-coverta, greenish-block, the first bordered vrttli wtiite.
Bill b!uisb-gray, bordered and tipped with black.
The bill is particularly short, being not so long as tbe head, armed
acutely painted toil, which oonaiats of 14 feathers. Total length, S3
inches. The female has tiie upper plumage dark liver-brown, edged
and remotely barred with polebrown and white. Tbe inteimedutta
wing-ooverts are merely edged with white, aud there is no green on
the bead. Toil, shorter and not so taperiug. Total length about two
inchea less than the mole. (Ricbardsbn.)
Amcricju Widgeon {ITort
M|.
Wilson aaya thia bird* ia very common in winter along the whole
ooost &om Florida to Rhode Island ; but most abundant in Carolina,
where it frequents the rioe plantationa In Martinioo great flocks
take short flights from one rice.fiald to another during the rainy
aeoaon, and are much complained of by the plauteio. They are said
to be in great plenty in St. Domingo and Guyana, where they are
called Vingeon or Oingeon. Are aoid sometimes to perch on trees.
Feed in company (but little in the day), and have a sentinel on the
watch. Come out from their hiding-places in the evening. Are not
known to breed in any part of the United Statea Are common in
the winter months along the bays of Egg Harbour and Cape May,
and also those of the Delaware. They leave their places in April, and
appear upon tbe ooeat of Hudson's Bay in Uay, as soon as tbe thaws
come on, cbieSy in pairs ; Iny there only from sii to eight eggs, and
feed on flies and worms in the swamps ; depart in flocka in autnmn.
(Wilson bare quotes Uutchins.) Wilson furiiher states, that the
Widgeon is extremely fond of tbe tender roots of that particular species
of aqualdc plant on which the Canvooa-Back Duck, so abundant in
Cbeiapeak Bay. feeds. Tbe Widgeon is ita constant companion ; and
the Widgeon, which t^ever dives, wutchee the moment of the Canvass-
Back's rising with the morsel for which the latter bird has dived, and
before he has his eyes well opened, suatchee it and mokee oB! On
this acoount the Canvass-Backe and Widgeons, or, as they are called
round the bay, Bald Fates, live in a state of perpetual contsntioo.
Jttndnmeua (Swainson).— Head created. Bill aa high at the base
aa it is broad; towards the tip narrow and contracted. Noatrila
placed towards the middle of the bilL Tertial feathers omameated.
Feet aa in Anat. Type, Daidroneita galtricuiata, Chinese Teal.
Edwards, pi. 102.
Mr. Swainson, who thus characteriaes the genus, obserrea ('Fauna
Boreali-Americana') that " this is obviously the Rosoriol type of tbe
Anaiina. The D, ipoiua, tiy the lateral advancement of the bill
towards the eye, ie a more aberrant species, and shows the connection
of the group to Somaltrta."
D. tpmaa (Swainson), tbe Summer-Duck. Thia ia the Wood-
Duck of Andubon, Anaee-awmo of the duppeways, Aixu tpoma at
Linb^ua.
The following is a description of a male killed at Cnmberland
House, tat. S4°; June. 1827. Head above and space between the
eye and bill glossy dark-green ; cheeks and a large patch on the sides
of the throat purple, wiUi blue reflections; pendent occipital crest of
green and auricula purple, marked with two narrow wbite lines, one
of them terminating behind tbe eye. the other eitending over the
eye to the bill ; sides of the neck purpiiah-red, changing on the front
of tbe neck and sides of the breast to brown, and there apotted with
wbite. Scapulars, wings, and tail, eihibiticg a play of duckgrfen,
purple, blue, and ve1vi;t-b1ack coloura; interscapulars, posterior part
of Uie back. rump, and upper tul-coverta, blaikisli green and purple ;
aeveral of tbe lateral coverts reddish -orange ; a bair-like, splendent,
reddiah-purple tuft on each side of tbe rump ; the under coverta
brown. Cbin, throat, a collar round the neck, a crescentio bar on
the ears, the middle of tbe breast, and whole of the abdomen, whiter
Flanka yellowiab-gray, finely undulated with block; the tipa of the
g featliors, ojid oleo tboae o
ite and black. Inner wii^
Almoat all the coloured plumage ahowa ■ play of ooloura with
tDetalUc lustre. Bill red; a apace between the naetrila, ita tip,
margina, aud lover mandible, black. Lege oiaiig*-9oloured.
Tbe Ull shorter than the head 1 ccnaidenbly ouTowed towarda the tip,
like that of the Eider; ita height at the rictue greater than ita width ;
ita frontal angles prolonged. Uondiblee gtronglf toothed. Dnguia
atrong, arahed or hooked. Nortrila large, parrioiia, lateraL Fore-
bead aloping. Ocxiipital creat long and pendent. Wingi ohorter than
tlietjil, which conaieta of 16 wide rounded feathera. Total length
21 inohea. The femaie wants the fine lines on the flonka and the hmii^
like tufti on the aides of tbe rump. She has a shorter creat ; and the
Cmage is leaa virid, eapecl^j about the head, where it is mostly
wn. (Richardson.)
SamjDcrJ>iH;k
AudnboQ atatea that this apedea ranges oyer the whole extent of
the United SUte^ and that he saw it in oU parU, from Louiaiaua to
tlie confines of Uaioe, and from the vicinitj of the Atlantic ooaala
OS far inland as his travels eiteaded. It also occuni sparingly duiang
ths breeding season in Nova Scotia ; but farther north he did oot
observe it. Eveiywhere in thii immense tract he found it an almost
constant reaident ; for some spend the winter even in Uaasochusette,
and far np the waim spring waters of brooks an the Miasouri. It
confines itself however entirely to fresh-water, preferring at all times
tbe secluded retreaU of the ponds, bayous, or creeks, that occur so
)irofuaely in the woods. Welt acquainted with man, ihey carefullj
avoid bun, unless during the breeding season, when, if a cunvenieut
spot ia found by them, they will even locate themselves about the
miller's dam.
Catssby saya that the Sununer-Ducka breed in Vii^inia and
Caroliua, and make Uieir nests in the holes of tall treea (made by
.woodpeckera) growing in water, particularly oyprees tre«. "While
they are young and unable to fly, the old ones carry them on their
badiB from their neits Into the water; and at the approach of danger,
tliey fix With tiieir bill* oU the bocka of tha old onea, Which fly awa,y
DUCKa 4»
with them." Audubon's eridenoa, which wa here gira, differs from
that of Cateaby in some partioulata. " The Wood-Duck breeda in
the Middle States about the beginning of April, in MssaschuaettA a
month later, and in NovaSootia or on ournorthem lakes aeldom before
the first days of Juns. In Louisiana and Kentucky, where I haTO
hod better opportunities of studying their habits in this respect, the j
generally pair about the 1st of March, aometimca a fortnight earlier.
I never knew one of theae birds to form a nest on the ground or oa
the branches of a tree. They appear at all timea to prefer the hollow
broken portion of some largo branch, the hole of our largest wood-
pecker (Piciu prtncipojit), or the daaerted retreat of ths fox aquiirel ;
aud I have been frequency anrprisad to see them go in and out of ■
hole of any one of these, when their bodiea while on wing aeemed to
be nearly half ss large again as the apertun within which timj bad
deposited their eggs. Once only I found a Ue*t (with ten em) in tlia
fissure of a rock on the Eentui^y river, a few milas below Frankfort.
Generally however the holes to which they betake tbemselTss ars
either over deep ewomps, above oane-biakes, or broken branches of
high sycamores, seldom more than iO or CO feet fVom the water.
They are much attached to their breeding places, and far three sacceB-
sive years I found a pair near Henderson, in Kentucky, with eggs in
the beginning of April, in the abandoned neat of su ivoiT-billed wood-
pecker. The eggs, which ore from six to fifteen, according to ths age
of the bird, are placed on dry plants, feathers, and a scanty portion
of'down, which I believe is mostly plucked from the bresat of the
female. They are perfectly smooth, nearly elliptical, of a light colour
between buff and pale green, two inches in length by one and a half
in diameter; the shell ia about equal in firmneaa to that of the
'"^l^"^'' %S> "'^ quite smooth. No sooner has the female oompletaii
her set of eggi than she is abandoned by her mate, who now joins
others, which form themselvca into considenble flocks, and thus
remain apart until the young are able to fly, when old and young of
both sexes oome together, and so remain until the commencement of
the next breeding season. In all the ncsta which I liave exannined, I
have bean rather surprised to find a quantity of feathers belonging to
birds of other spedes, even those of the domestic fowl, and psrticu-
lori; of ths wild goose and wild turkey. On coming upon a nest
with eggs when the bird was absent in search of food, I have always
found Uie egga covered over with featheia and down, olthoo^ quits
out of sight in the depth of a woodpecker's or squirrel's hole. On
the contrary, when the nest was placed in the broken branch of a
tree, it could easily be observed &om the ground, on aooouut of the
feathers, dead stioks, and withemd grsasea about it. If the neat is
placed immediately over the water, the young, the moment they are
hatched, acramble to tbe mouth of the hole, launch into the air with
their little winga and feet spread out, and drop into their favourite
element ; hut whenever their birthplace is at some distance &om it
the mother earriea them to it one by one in her bill, holding them so
as not to injure their yet tender frame. On several occasions how-
ever when the hole was thirty, forty, or more yards from a bayou or
other piece of water, I obaervad that the mother sufbred the young
to fall on the grasses and dried leaves beneath the tree, and aitar-
words led them directly to the nearest edge of the next pool or
D, gaUnaJaia and D. tponta breed freely in captivity. Both
species have produced several broods in the Oordena of the Zoolo^ool
S-rdety in the It^^nt's Park, where moet of the Analina are exhibited.
The latter has also bred in St. James's PaA, where they and other
Analiaa may be always seen.
UsaiUrln Daek [DutdmUHa fattrialUta), nials.
Colonel Sykes, in his ' Catalogue of Birds obaerved In tlie Dokhon '
(Deccan), enumerates the followlni[ British Attalina — Anat ttr^tra,
Linn., moles identical «itJi specuocns in the British Uuseiuot tetn
429
DUCKS.
DUCKa
490
Kent ; no females for comparison ; numerous in Dukhun ; Jihynehatpii
vireiceM, Leach, Manuscripts, An<u dypeata, Linn. ; identical wi^
British specimens of the common Shoveler, but differing from the
description of that bird in Shaw ; Mareca fittidarit, Steph., Anaa
Pendope, Linn., Widgeon, absolutely identicaj with specimens from
Devonshire; QuerqtiedulaOireiaf Steph., ^na« Cireia, Linn., Oaiganey,
identical with British specimens ; Querquedula erecca, Amu creeea,
Linn., Common Teal, identical with male and female British speci-
mens.
Mr. Keith AbboU ('ZooL Proc,' 1834), in his 'List of Trebizond
Birds,' enumerates AnatBotchoM^ Linn., the Mallard, as almost imi-
versal; and A, Qiurqueduia^ Linn., which is noted as inhabiting
India as well as Europe, and as common in the Himalaya range.
The sub-family FvUgvlina includes the genera Somateria^ Oidemia,
FulifffdOf Clangulct, and Hoitdda,
The FuUguUna, or Sea-Ducks, as they have been not .inaptly named,
frequent the sea principally ; but many of them are to be foimd in
the fresh-water lakes and rirera where the water is deep. The plu-
mage is yery dose and thick in comparison with that of the True
Ducks {AncUina), and the covering of the female differs much in hue
from that of the male, which when adult undergoes but Uttle change
in its dress from the difference of season. The young resemble the
female in their feathered garb, and do not assume the adult plumage
till the second or third year. Moulting takes place twice a year,
without change of colour. In the male &e capsule of the trachea is
laigo.
The Sea-Ducks are not good walkers, on account of the backward
p<)sition of their feet, but they run, or rather shuffle along rapidly,
though awkwardly. They swim remarkably well, though low in the
water, and excel m divings whether for amusement, safety, or food,
which last consists of insects, moUusks, the fry of fish, and marine or
other aquatic vegetables. They take wing unwillingly as a security
from danger, relying more coi^dently on their powers of diving and
swimming as the means of escape than on those of flight. Though
they are often strong, steady, rapid, and enduring in their passage
through the air, they generally fly low, laboriously, and with a whist-
ling sound.
This sub-family may be considered to be monogamous, and the
nest is frequently malde near the fresh waters; the female alone
incubating, though both parents, in several of the species at least,
strip the down from their breasts as a covering for the eggs, which
are numerous.
The Korth may be considered the great hive of the Fuligvlina;
though some of the forms are spread over the greater part of the
globe. Large flocks are seen to migrate periodically, keeping for the
most part the line of the searcoast, and flying and feeding generally
by night, though often, especially in hazy or blowing weather, by day.
Somateria (Leach). — Bill small, with the base elevated and extending
up the forehead, where a central pointed line of feathers divides it ;
the anterior extremity narrow but blimt; nostrils mesial; neck
thick; wings short; tertiaries lox)g, and generally with an outward
curve, so as to overlie the primaries. Tail moderate, consisting of
14 feathers.
This genus is peculiarly marine. Sir John Richardson, whose
opportunities of observing the northern birds were so great and so
well used, says that Scmaitria tpwUibUia and S. mdUitaima are never,
as he believes, seen in fresh water ; their food consiBting mostly of
the soft MoUuMca in the Arctic Sea. They are, he says, only partially
migratory, the older birds seldom moving farther soutiiward in
winter than to permanent open water. He states that some Eider-
Ducks pass that season on the coast of New Jersey, but that the
King-Ducks {8, apeetaJbilu) have not been seen to the southward of
the 59th paralleL Audubon however says that in the depth of winter
the latter have been observed off the coast of Halifax in Nova Scotia,
and Newfoundland, and that a few have been obtained off Boston,
and at Eastport in Maine.
^ The genus is remarkable for the high development of the exqui-
sitely soft and elastic down so valuable in commerce, and so essential
to the keeping up of the proper balance of animal heat in the icy
regions inhabited by these biim
& moUimma {Ana$ moUissima, Linn.), the Eider-Duck. This is the
Oie & JDuvet ou Eider of the French ; Eider-Qans and Eiter-Ente of
the Germans; Oca Settentrionale of the Italians (' Stor. degli Ucc.');
the Eider^Sooee, Eider-Duck, St. Cuthbert's Duck, Cuthbert Duck or
Cutbert Duck, Great Black and White Duck, and Colk Winter Duck,
of the British ; Hwyad fwythbln of the Welsh ; Dunter Duck of the
Hudson's Bay residents ; and Mittek of the Esquimaux.
The following is Sir John Richardson's description of a male killed
June 14, 1822, at Winter Island, 66** 11^' N. lat :— Circumference of
the frontal plates, forehead, crown, and under eye-lid, deep Scotch
blue ; hind head, nape, and temples, siskin-green. Stripe on the top
of the head, cheeks, chin, neck, breast, back, scapulars, lesser coverts,
curved tertiaries, sides of the rump, and under wing-coverts, white ;
the tertiaries tinjged with greemsh-yellow, and the breast with buff
Greater coverts, quills^ rump, tail and its coverts, and the under
plumage, pitch black ; the end of the quills and tail fading to brown.
Bill, oU-green. Legs, greenish-yellow.
The bill is prolonged on the lengthened depressed forehead into
two narrow flat plates that are separated by an angular projec-
tion of the frontal plumage. Nostrils not pervious. Neck short and
thick. Wings nearly three inches shorter than the taiL Hind toe
attenuated posteriorly into a broad lobe. The length of this bird was
25 inches 6 lines. The female is pale rufous or yellowish brown with
black bars; wing-coverts black with ferruginous edges; greater
coverts and secondaries with narrow white tips ; head and upper part
of the neck striped with dusky lines ; beneath, brown with obscure
darker blotches.
Bill of Elder-Dack {Somatfria moUistima),
The young at the age of a week are of a dark mouse-colour, thickly
covered with soft warm down.
The young male is like the female ; and does not appear in the full
adult male plumage till the fourth year.
The icy seas of the north appear to be the principal localities of
this species. Colonel Sabine enumerates it among the animals which
were met with during the period in which the expedition under
Captain Parry remained within the arctic circle. He mentions it as
abundant on the shores of Davis's Strait and Baffin's Bay ; but adds
that, deriving its food principally from the sea, it wsjb not met with
after the entrance of the ships into the Polar Ocean, where so little
open water is found. The females were without the bands on the
wings described by authors. (' Appendix to Captain Sir W. E. Parry's
First Voyage,' 1819-20.) Captain Lyon saw the Eider in Duke of
York's Bay. (' JoumaL') Sir James Ross (' Appendix to Captain Sir
John Ross's Last Voyage') notices vast numbers of the King-Duck as
resorting annually to the shores and islands of the arctic regions in
the breeding season, and as having on many occasions afforded a
valuable and salutaiy supply of freSi provision to the crews of the
vessels employed in ^ose seas. Speaking of the Eider-Duck he says
it is so similar in its habits to the King-Duck that the same remarks
apply equally to both. In Lapland, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, and at
Spitsbergen, the Eider-Duck is very abundant ; and it abovinds also at
Behring's Island, the Kuriles, the Hebrides, and Orkneys. In Sweden
and Denmark it is said to be more rare, and in Germany to be only
observed as a passenger. Temminck states that the young only are
seen on the coasts of the ocean, and that the old ones never show
themselves. Sir James Ross, in the 'Appendix' above alluded to,
speaking of the eider-down, says that the down of the King-Duck is
equally excellent, and is collected in great quantities by the inhabit-
ants of the Danish colonies in Greenland, forming a valuable source
of revenue to Denmark. A vast quantity of this down, he adds, is
also collected on the coast of Norway and in some parts of Sweden.
The Eider-Duck is foimd throughout Arctic America, and is said to
wander in severe winters as &r south to sea as the capes of the Dela-
ware. Ftt>m November to the middle of Februaxy small numbers
of old birds are usually seen towards the extremities of Massachusetts
Bay and along the coast of Maine. A few pairs have been known to
breed on some rocky islands beyond Portland, and M. Audubon found
several nesting on the island of Grand Manan in the Bay of Fundy.
Prince Bonapvte notes it as rare and adventitious in the winter at
Philadelphia. The most southern breeding-place in Europe is said
to be the Fern or Fam Isles on the coast of Northumberland.
WiUughby, quoting Wormius, says that the Eider-Ducks "build
themselves nests on the rocks, and lay good store of very savoury
and well-tasted eggs; for the getting of which the neighbouring
people let themselves down by ropes dangerously enough, and with
the same labour gather the feathers (Eider-Dan our people call
them), which are veiy soft and fit to stuff beds and quilts ; for in a
small quantity they diilate themselves mudi (being very springy), and
wann the body above any others. These birds are wont at set time9
i
m DOCKS.
to moult their fwUiere, anriohiDg ths fbwlen with tbia deaiisbia
merchuiduie." WiUughlij also remarka Uiat "when lU yauns one*
txe hatched it takes them to the ses, and nsrer looki at l&cd tiS next
breeding time, nor is >een anywhere about our eotata." This early
Bcoount ia in the main correct, hut there are tno kinda of eider-down
— the live-down, oa it is termed, and the dead-down ; the latter,
which ig coamdered to he Tery inferior in quality, ii that taken from
and elaaticity are such, it ii aggerted, that two or tYree pounds of
aqueeied into a boll which may be held in the hand, will swell out to
■Hch an extent aa to fill a oue large enough for the foot oavering of a
bed. It it collected in the foUowing maimer : — The female ia altered
to lay her five or eii eggi, which are about three inches in length and
two in breadth. Theae, which are very palatable, are taken, and
ahe atripo heraelf a aecond time to supply the subsequent e^B. If
thia aecond batch he ahatracted, the female being unable to supply any
more down, the mole plucka bis breast, and his contribution ia known
by its pale colour. The last deposit, which rarely conaiaU of more
than two or three eggs, is always left ; for if deprived of this their
last hope the bereaved birds forsake the inhospitable place; whareas,
if Buffered to rear their young, the parents return the following year
with their progeny. The quautity of down afforded by one female
during the whole period of layiog is stated at half a pound ncAt, the
quantity weighing nearly a pound before it is cleansed. Of this down
Troll states Uiat the Iceland Company sold in one year (1760) aa much
aa brought 8G0f. sUrling, beudes what was sent to Oliickstadt.
valuable property, and are strictly preHerred.
to indnce the Bidera to take up their position on his own estate; and
when they show a diaposltiou to settle on any islet the proprietor haa
been known to remove the cattle and dogs to the maiidaiid in order
to make way for a more valuable aliick which might he otherwiaa
disturbed. In some cases Brtifidal ioleta have been made by separating
promontories from the continent; and these eider-tenementa aia
handed down from father to aon like on; other inheritanoe. Not-
withstanding all Uiia care to keep the birda uidiaturbed, they are not,
Fam Isleo," writes Pennant (it waa on the l£th of July, 1736), "I
found the ducks silting, and took aome of the nesta, ths base of which
was formed of aea-planta and covered with the down. After separaUng
it careful!; from the plants it weighed only threenjuarten of an ounce,
El"
birds are not numerous on the isles, and it w
that the drakes kept on those most remote from the ntting-ptacea.
Tba ducka continue on their nesta till you come almost dose to them,
and when they rise are very alow flyers. The number of egga in eadi
neat waa from three to five, warmly bedded in the down, of a pala
olive colour, and very larg^ glossy, and smooth." Horrebow declares
that one may walk among these birds while they are Bitting without
Bcaringthem; and Sir George Hackende, during his travels in Iceland,
had on opportunity, on the Sth of June at Vidoe, of observing the
Elider-Ducks, at all other times of the year perfeoUy wild, aasembled
for the great work of incubation. The boat in its approach to the
shore passed multitudes of these birds, which hardly moved out of
the way ; and between the landing-place and the governor's house it
required some caution to avoid treading on the nests, while the drakes
were walking about even mora familiar than oonunon ducks, and
uttering a sound which wns like the cooing of doves. The ducks were
sitting on their nests all round the house, on the garden wall, on the
roofs, nay even in the inside of the houoea and in ths cbapeL Those
which had not been long on the neat generally left it when they were
approached ; but those that had more than one or two egsi sat per-
fectly quiet and suffered ths part^ to touch them, tliough^ey some-
times gently repelled the intrusive hand with titair hills. But if a
drake happen to be near his mate when thus vint«d he beoomes
extremely agitated. Ha psasea to and fro between her and the sus-
picioua object, niaing hia head and cooing.
M. Audubon aaw Uiem in great numbers on the coast of lAbrador
^whei«, by the way, the down ia neglected-^ employed about their
neita, which they begin to form about the end of Hay. They arrive
there and on the coaata of Newfoundland about ^e first of that
month. The eggi ware of a dull greanish-white, and amootb, from
S to 10 in number. The neat waa usually plaoed under the shelter
of a low proattate biuiched and dwarf fir; and aometimes there
were several under the same buah, within a foot or two of each
other. The ground-work of the nesta oonaiated of sea-weeds and
moss, and the female did not odd the dawn till the eggs were laid.
The duck, having at this time acquired aa attachment for her ^ga,
waa esaily approached, and her flight was even and rather alow.
Audubon atatea that, oa aoon aa incubetion has oommenced, the malca
leave the land, and join together in large flocks out at sea : they
begin to moult in July, and soon become so bore aa to be scarcely
able to riss from the water. By the 1st of August, according to the
same auttiar, scarcely an Eidei^Duck waa to be sesn on the ooast of
Labndor. The young, as soon aa hatched, are lad bj the female to
the water, where they remain, except at night and in stormy weather.
Their greatest feathered enemy is the Saddle-Baokad Oull, or Black-
Bacted Oull {Lanu marimu), which devours the eggs and young, but
whose pursuit the young, after they have left the nest, elude by
diving, at which both old and yonng are very eipert.
According to Brunnich and othera, the male utters a hoarse and
moaning cry at the pairing time, but the cry of the female is like that
of the common duck. Both sexes assist in forming the neat, thougU
the female only sits : but the male watches in the vicinity, and gives
notice of the danger. This aaems to be confirmed hy the aocount
given of the nesting-place at Vidiie. Sometimes two fema^ deposit
their eggs in the same neet, and sit amicably together. The gulja are
not their only enemies in addition to man, for the ravens often suck
their eggs and kill their young. At aeo, seTetml hatches congregate,
led by the females, and there they may he seen splashing the water
in the ahallows, to beat up the small crustaceans and mollusks, and
diving in deeper water for the larger marine animala, among which
muscles and other conchifera, turbinated testoceaaa, and occasionally
Sea-Kggs {Jleiini) are said to be taken.
The down above described is the principal tribute paid by the
Eider-Duck to man : but the Indian and Oreenlander sat the flesh,
which is dark and fishy, and their skin is converted into a warm
iimer garment. According to Sir W. E. Parry, ths Esquimaux
Indians catch these birds with springes made of whalsbone, and
take the t^ga wherever they can find them. The skin, prepared with
the feathera on, forma an article of commerce, particularly with ^e
Chinese. M. Audubon is of opinion that if thia valuable bird were
domeatical«d, it would prove a great acquisition, both on account of
ita down, and its flesh as an artide of food ; and he is persuaded that
vary little attention would effect this. Indeed, it appears that the
sipariment was mode at Eastport with auccaaa, but the greater
number of (he ducks were shot, being taken by gunners for wild
birds. The same author says that, when in captivity, it feeds on
different kinds of groin and moistened com-meal, when, ita flesh
becomes excellent. Ur. 3elby succeeded twice in rearing Eiders from
the egg, and kept them alive upwards of a year, when they were
acddaulally killed.
«33 DUCES.
Oidemia (FUming). — Bill broad with dilated maijpns, and ooarse
UmallifonD teetb, gibbous above the nostrili, which' are nenrlj
mOTuJ, largo, and elevated ; tail of 1* faathars.
The Oidimiit leek their food at aaa priucipoll; ; and have obtaioed
the name of Surf-Ducks, from frequsnting ita edga, Tbs prevailing
colour of the tribe ia black in the male, and brown ia tha femals.
The plumage is very thick and close; and, acoording to Audubon,
the down in the Veivet-Duck (Oidemia ftitca) ie similar to that of the
character to the flesh of three species, namely, 0. pertpicUlala, 0.
ftuca, and 0. nigra. Tha two former, sccording to that enterpHsiiig
Eoologist, breed on the arctic coasta, migrate southward in company
with Ctatigula (BarddaJ) glaeialii, halting both on the shores of
Hudson's Bay and on the idiea of the interior, as long as they remain
open, and then feed on tender shelly Molbuca. 0. nigra, he adds,
frequents the abores of Hudson's Ba;, and breeds between the GObh
and 60th parallela. It was not seen in the interior.
0. patpieiltaia, Amu jiertpiailata of Linneus, the Black or Suif-
DucL 'rhia is Uie Macreuse i. Large Bee, on Horchaod, and ,Canard
Uorchand, of the French; tha Black-Duck, of Pennant; and the Qreat
Black-Duck from Uadeon'a Bay of Edwards.
The male ia velvet black, with a reddish reflection ; throat brownish ;
a broad white band between the eyei, and a triangular patch of the
same on the nape ; bill reddish-orange, (he nail paler; a square black
spot on the lateral protuberance ; legi orange ; web* brown ; bill
much like that of the Velvet-Duck (0. fiuca), but the laterJ protu-
berancea are naked and bomy, and the central one is feathered Arther
down; the lamina are distant, and the lower ones partioularly
prominent, with cutting edges. As in the other Oidmia, the biU
and forehead are inflated, causing tlie head to appear lengthened and
the crown depressed ; tha nostrils are rather lai^, and Bearer to the
point than to the rictus. Length 21 inches. (RichardBon)
The female and young are of a black aahy brown wherever the
male is deep black. Head and neck lighter ; bonts! band and great
angular space upon the nape indicated by very bright ashy brown.
Lateral protuberances of the bill but little developed, and the whole
bill of an ashy yellowish colour. Feet and toes brown ; webs black.
(Temminck.) Sir John Richardson observes that the under plumsge
in particular is paler, that the back and wing-coverta arfl narrowly
edged with gray, that the breast, flanks, and ears have some whiti^
edgings, that the bill is black, its base not so much inflated, and that
the nostrils ara smaller than in the male.
This bird is rare and accidental in the Orcades, and in the higher
latitudes towards the pole ; very rare in the cold and temperate
countries betLed b; the ocean ; very common and snmerous in
America, at Hudson's and BaJBn's Bays. Such is Temminck's
account Nuttall says that this spedea of duck, witi other dark
kinds commonly called on the other side of the Atlantic 'coots,' may
be properly considered as an American species; its visits in the
Orkneys and European seas being merely accidental. They breed on
the arotic coasts, and eitond their residence to the opposito side of
the continent, having been seen at Nootka Sound by Captain Cook.
The bird is not mentioned in the notice of the animals which were
met with during the period in which the eipedition romained within
the arctic circle, appended to Captain Sir W. B. Parry's 'First
Voyage,' nor in Captiun James Koas's 'Appendix to Captain Sir John
Ross's Last Voyage.' Prince Bonaparte notes it as very common,
and most abundant in the sea in the neighbourhood of the shore at
Philadelphia.
In oimmer the Suif-Duck feeds principally in the sea, and hauilta
shallow nstuaiies, bars, and bays, whero it may be seen constantly
diviDg for its shelly food. The surf is a fiivourite statioo with it.
Hud^'s Bay and Uibrador are among its breeding places, and the
DUCKa tu
neat is fonned of grass with a lining of down or feathers, on the
borders of fresh-water ponds. The eggs sre whiter and &om four to
six in number. The young are hatched in July, and detained on the
borders of the ponds, whero they were excluded Arom the egg, until
they are able to fly. Their migrations extend to Florida, but they
often remain throughout the winter along the shores and open bays
of the United States. At the end of AprU or early in May they agiun
proceed northward.
Butf-Dack (Oidtmia piripicUlalt), male.
The fleah of the old birds is verydoA, red, and fishy when dressed;
the young are of better flavour. They are however often eaten by
the mhabitants of the coasts frequented by them ; and being diflScuft
to approach, (hey are decoyed by means of a wooden figure of a duck
of the same general appeanuice with themselvea.
The sea, and ita bays and EBstuaries, are the principal hnunta of this
genus. Sir John Richardson states that F. Poluiwio, P. ferina, P.
mania, and P. n^/ltoriuu, breed in all parte cf the Fur Countries,
from Uie SOth puaJIel to their most northern hmits, snd associate
much on the water with the .inoltnix. P. reiiWa, he remarks, fre-
quents the small lakes of the interior up to the GSth parallel, and he
adds that it is very unwilling to take wing, and dives remarkably
well. In swimming, according to the same observer, it carries iU
tail erect, and, from the sherteess of its neok, nearly as high as its
head, whieh, iA a little distaoot^ causes it to i
ishjgb as
If it had t
P. Yalimena {Ana* Koiimeria of Wilson), Canvass-Baok-Duck.
The male has the rt^on of (he bill, top of the head, chin, base of the
neck, and adjoining parts of the breast and back, rump, upper and
BUI of Csnvas».Buk Dock \,¥\^ip,ia raljnurlal.
under tail-ooverta,' pitch-black ; sides of the head and the neck reddish-
orange ; middle of the back, scapulars, wing-coverts, tips of (he seoon-
dariea, tertiariea, fluiks, posterior part of (he belly yA thighs,
grayish-white, finely undulated with hair-hrown ; primaries and their
coveria hair-brown, their tips darkest ; secondaries ash-gray, tipped
with white; the two adjoining tertiaries edged with blact Bdly
white, faintly undulated on the medial line. In soi "
as DUCKS.
white parts are gtawsd vrith ferniginoui. Bill and legs blaoluBh-
brown. Ths bill u lengthenad, the danretsad frontal angle longer,
the aoatrile farUier from the front, nad the unguis diffsrantly shaped
and Binaller than in P. feriaa (the Poohard) ; the upper latnLoEB flat,
cuneate, not promineat, and oonSned within the margin of the
mandible. The bill and head of the Canvasa-Baek approach aome-
wliat to the form of the Pintail-Duoli, being much lengthened, aud of
aqual breadth throughoat. Finb quill the longeak Length, 2i inchee
equal bre
OUnea.
The ftonale has the ground-colour of the upper plumage and flanks
liirer-browD ; sides of the head, neck, and breaat, ferruginoua ;
shouldera, shorter loapylars, and under plumage, edged with tie
some. Middle of the back and wing-corerts olovs-brown, finely undu-
lated with gi»yi»h-wliito. There are no undulated markings on the
l«rtian« and secondari«, and only a few on the tips of the scapulan.
Bill >B in the male; the neck more slender, (Kiclwrdson.)
{Fullgyla Fatitiuria),
It breeds from the 60th paratlet to the most northern limits of ths
For Countries. When the work of incubation is paat, flocks of
CanTan-Baeks pursue their couna to the southward, and arrive about
the middle of October ou the sea-coasts of the United Statea The
Hudson, the Delaware, and the bays of North Carolina, are Tiaited by
•ome of theae Socki ; and it is stated that they are abundant in the
river Neuse, in the vicinity of Devbem, and probably in most of the
other southern waters down to the coast of the Oulf of Mexico, being
•een in winter in the mild climate of New Orleans, at which season a
few pairs arrive in Hasaachusetti Bay, near Cohaset and St. MarUu'i
VineyanL But it is to Cbeupeake Bay, its testuaries and rivera,
among which the Susquehanna, the Patapsoo, James's River, and the
Potomac, may be particularly mentioned, that the great multitude of
CanvaM-Back-DucL« rew>rt <Wilaonj Nnttall.)
The Csnvaae-Backa aswciate with the Pochards, and are waited
upon by the Bald-Patea or Widgeons {ilareea Amtrieana), which rob
them in the manner already described. The; are named in diSbreut
parts of the Union White^aoks and Sheldrakes, as well as Canvass-
Backa. ZoiUnt marina and Utopia marilima form their food, as well
as the ftHh-wat«r Valitatria, which last ia limited in its distribution.
The Sea- Wracks or Eel-Oraas, as the long marine vegetables above
alluded to are called in America, are widely spread over the Atlantic,
and over the mud-Oats, bays, and inlets where salt or brackish water
finds aoceas. The Canvass-Backs dive for and generally pluck up
the sea-wraclE, and feed only on the ' most tender portion near the
root. They are very shy birds, and most ditScult to be approached.
Various itralagems are reaortttl to for getting within gunshot of
them ; and in seven winters artificial openings are made in the ice,,
to which the ducks crowd, and fall a sacrifice to their eagerness to
obtain food. That they will eat seeds and grain as well as sea-wiack,
&a., was proved by the loss of a vessel loaded with wheat near the
entnnce of Oreat Egg Harbour, Mew Jersey, to which great flocks of
Canvsas-Backa vrere attracted. Upon this occasion as many a! " '"
were killed in one day. (Wilson ; Nuttall.)
Tha Canvais-Back, which is lean on its first arrival in the United
Statsi, beoomas, in November, about time pounds in weight, and
hi^ Older for the table ; there are few birds which grace the board
better. Frinoe Bonaparte is eloquent in its praise : — " Came di "
m'T*'™* squioitezza, grandemenU ricercata dai gaetionamL
migliora delle Anitrs. Foree it miglior uocello dAmerica." Any
attempt to introduoe the bird into England would, it is feared, proi
a bilure ; for even if the ordinary difficulties should be got over, tl
absence of the food to wMch it is supposed to owe its ezquisiu
flavour would render the success of the experiment very doubtful.
Glangmla {BoU). — Bill narrow, slevtrted at tha base, somewhat
attenuated at the anterior extremity, and ahori Nostnla inclining
DUCKS. ««
to oval, aubmesisl, or rather anterior to ths middle of tlia hill. T^ .
tmther long, of 16 feathers generally.
Though many of this genus frequent the sea, the species are mor«
eeoerallv met with in the fresh waters than the other Sea-Duck&
Thus, Sir John Hiohardson remarks that C. vJgara (Common Golden-
Eye) and C. aiieola (Spirit-Duck) frequent the rivers and fresh-wator
lakes throughout the Fur Countries in groat numbers. They are, u
he states, by no means shy, allowing a near approach to the spcita-
man : but at the flash of a gun, or even at the twang of a bow, Uiey
dive BO suddenly that they are seldom killed. Hence the nativea
impute supernatural powers to them, as the appelUtions of ' Conjuring
Ducks ' and ' Spirit-Ducks ' sufficiently testify. Kiehardson says that
the manners of C. Bammi (Richardson and SwsiQSOii), described in
' Faurui Boreaii-Americana,' and which bos hitherto been found only
in the valleys of the Rooky Mountains, do not difl'er from those of
the Common Golden-Eye. Ha speaks of C. kutntmiea as haunting
eddies under casosdoa and rapid streams, as very vigilant, taking
wing at once when disturbed, ae rare, and oa never associating, as far
as he saw, with any other bird. The high northern latitudes ma; be
considered generally as the localities of this genus.
C.aiisoia, the Spirit-Duck, .^«aioii«ia of Liunaus. It is the Buffel-
Duck of Pennant; the Buffel's-Head-Dnck of Catesby ; the Little
Black and White Duck of Edwards; the Buffel-Headed Duck of
Wilson ; Wakaishee-Woeeheep, Waw Haiaheep, and Wappano^heep,
of lie Cree and Chippeway Indians.
The male has the forehead, teffoa of the bill, nucbal crest, and
upper sides of the nock, rich duck-green, blending with the resplendent
auricula-purple of the top of the head and throat. Broad band from
tha eye to the tip of the occipital crert, lower half of the neck, tha
shoulders, exterior ecapulars, mtormediate and greater coverts, outer
lbs of five or six secondariee, flanks, and under plumage to the vent,
_re white. Back, long scapulara, and tertiaries, velvet black ; lesser
coverts bordering tie wing the same, edged with white ; primaries
and their coverts browniah black. Tail-ooverts blaokiah-gray ; tail
broccoli-brown. Tent and under tail-ooverts grayish. Bill bluiah-
blat^ L^s yellowish. In many spring apedmena the under plumage
is aah-gt^. The bill smaller in proporidon than that of ths canmion
Oarrot, and the nostrils nearer the base ; but otherwise similar. lead
large, with the upper part of the neck clothed in velvety plnm^e,
rising into a short thick crest. Wings 2^ inches shorter than ihe
tail Tail — UtarBlfeatheragraduated.threemiddlepairaevan. Length
IS iuohei ; hut individuals differ in siia.
of Splrit-Dnsk laamfula aliiela).
The femsle is considerably smaller. Head and donal plumage
dark bUckiah-brown ; tlie fore part of the back, scapuUrs, and ter-
tiaries, edgad wiUi yellowish brown. Fore part of the neck, sides of
tha breast, flanks, and vent-feathera, blnckiah-gray ; breast and belly
white, glossed with browniah-oranRe. White band on the ears and
oodput much narrower tliau in the male. The white speculum is
leas perfect, and tha whole of ths lesser ooverta and scapulars are
unspotted hlackish-brown. Bill and feet brownish. Total length
Iliinchea. Toung males resemble the females. (Richardson.)
This bird is abundant in the summer on the riven and freah-wster
lakea of the Fur Countries. In autumn and winter very common m
the United States, sometimes on the sea-shores. Catesby says that
the Bufiel's-Head-Duck appears in Carolina during the winter only.
On the river Neuse, in North Carolina, tbey have been seen in abun-
dance in February. In April and May those in the south take their
depSftun northward.
Tliifl speciea is a most expert diver, whether it resorts to that feat
as a mode of escape, or as the msazik of procuring the sesrwrack and
laver {Pha lactitca), and oruataceaus and mollu^s,. which, at parti-
cular seasons of tha year when it viaits the sea-baya and salt marshes.
not kiUed outright, it eaa rarely be otptured ; k> quick is tho Spirit-
Ddck in kvoiding tlie shot oltogethar, and lo dexterova in evadiog its
pursuer, if only wounded. About Hudson's Bay they m said to
form their tgeati in hollow trees in wooda idjacent to w»t«r. (Wilson ■
Nuttall.) ■* ^
The flak of the Spirit-Duck is not in high repute, lut the femalea
■nd young are tender and well flavoured in tho winter. Tho bird
becomes so W that, in PenneylTania and New Jereey, it is oommonly
called ' Butter-Boi,' or ' Bnttor-BalL'
Bp1ril-l)iuk {ClBHgula altfolf), mil* ind f«m>le.
C. nlgarit, Anat CSangnta I .inn,, the Common Oolden-Eys, or
Garrot, is an inhabitant of the arctic regions of the New and Old
Worlds, and >• frequently met with in ^is country, and in Europe
geneially. The species is distributed over the Swiss Mcta. Mr. Qauld
Hgurea O. Bamvit sad C hatrioniea among tbe Birds of Europe, the
fonnar having been shot in Iceland by T. C. Atkinson, Esq., and the
latter having been frequently captured in tbo British T«3*^^"
Hardda (Lsach). — -Bill very short, high at the base, Doil broad and
arched. Lamiiue prominent, trenchant, and distant; the upper
Uminn projecting below the margin of the mandible, the lower
lamina ^vided into a nearly equal double series. Nostrils oblong,
laige, and nearly bani. Foreheajl high ; neck rather thicL Tul very
lom, of 14 feathers. Toee abort.
B. glacialii, Amu gla^iaiii, Linn., tbs Long-Tailed Dock. This
is the Canard & Longue Queue, ou Canard de Hiclon, of the fVenoh ;
Eis-Ente, Wintei^Ente, of the Germans ; Ungle, Aageltaske, Tras-
foener, of the Norwegians] Oedel of the Faroe Iilandere; Ha-Old,
Ha-Ella, of the loelandera ; SwaUow-Tailed Sheldrake, Sharp-Tailed
Duck, Catao, Calaw, Coal and Candle Light, of the Engliah ;
Hwyad gynffon gwennol of the Welsh; Old Wife and Swsllaw-Tailed
Dui^ of the Hudson's Bay residents ; Soath-Sontherly of the United
States ; Aldiggee-oreoo of the Esquimaux ; Caoohwee of the Canadian
vtrngers ; and Hahhaway of the Cree Indkna.
The old male in winter has t^etmmmitof the head, nape, front, and
lower parts of the neck, long scapulars, belly, abdomen, aud lateral
tail-feathon, pure white ; cheeks and throat aah-oolour ; a great spaee
of maiDOB-brown on the sidsa of the neck ; breasl, baok, rump, wings,
and the two long feathen of the middle of the taj], brownish ; flanks
•ah-ooloured ; the black of the hill cut tnnsrersely by a red band j
(axsi and toes yellow ; webs hlackiah ; iris orange. Length, comprising
the long tail-feathers, SO to 21 inches.
The old female di^rs muoh from the male. Tail short, the feathers
bordered with white and the two middle ones not elongated ; forehmd,
throat, and eyebrows, whitish-ash ; nape, front, and lower part of the
neck, belly, and abdomen, pure white ; top of the head and great space
at the Bides of the neck blackish ash ; breaat variegated with ash-
colour and brown ; feathers of the back, scapulan, and wing-coverta,
black in the middle, bordered and terminated with ashy-red i rest of
the other parts brown; tho bluish colour of the bill out by a yellowish
band ; iris bright brown ; feet lead-colour. Length 1 S inches.
The young of the year do not differ much from the old female; the
whiteness of the £ioe is varied with numerous brown or sA-coloured
spots ; throat, ftnnt of ths neck, and nape, ashy-brown ; lower part
of the neck, a lam spot behind the eyes, belly, and abdomen, wUte ;
breast and thighs variegated with brown and ash-coloured spots.
(Ten:--— •■ '
]:ui or Loiig.T,
± {Bartlda flMiallt).
The summer dresa of the male is as follows :— The whole upper
, umage, the two central pairs of tail-feathers, and the under plumage
to the fore part of the belly brownish-Wact ; the lesser quilla paler.
A triangular patch of the feathers between the shoulders, and the
scBpuIan, broadly bordered with orange-brown. Sides of the bead
from the bill to the ears ash-gtay; eye-stripe and posterior undel^
plumage pun white. Flanks, sides of the ramp, and lateral tait
feathers, white, stained with brown ; aiillariee and inner wing-ooverts
dove-brown. Bill black, with an onange belt before the nostrils.
Legs dark-brown. Specimens killed a fortnight or thres weeks later
in the aeason at Boar Lake, on their way to the breeding-plscas^
difiered in having a large white patch on tbe hind head and oocipol^
with scattered white feathen on the neck and among the seapulaia ;
the sidee under the wings pure pearl-gray, and the sides of the runp
nnatained white. (Richardson.)
Colonel Sabine (' Supplement to Appendix of Captain Sir W. B.
Pane's First Voyage') notices a male obtained in June, corresponding
precisely with the individual killed in Baffin's Bay io tbe summer of
IS18, which furnished the description of the full breeding plumage
[emoir of the Greenland Birds.' Sir John Richardson observes
that Colonel Sabine describes ths plumage of the specimeos killed at
Bear Lake as the pure breeding plumage; but individuals coloured
like the one killed on the Saskatchewan are, he remarks, often seen at
the breeding staljons. He quotes Mr. Edwards, surgeon of the Fury
(' Sir W. E, Parry's Second Voyage '}, as dewuibing the Long-Tailed
Ducks killed at Melville Peninsula between the lat and 2Eth of June
'"Theyhadall.a dark silky cheatnut-brown patch on the
side of the neck ; a mixture of white in tbe black stripe from tbe bill
and nape either entirely white, or mixed
with black ; scapulan and upper tail-coverta edged with white ;
a broad white collar round the lower part of the neck, in aome
individuals tipped with black or brown ; oocaaionally a white band
- T the breast. The colour of the belt on the bill varied from rose-red
A mature female, killed May !fi, lat. 05*30', had the upper plumage
id sides of the breast pale Uver-biown, with dark centres ; the wing-
coverts, scapulan, and hinder parts, mostly edged with white. Top
of tho head blaolaeh-brown, its sides anteriorly broccoli-brown ; ean
and base of the oeok below clove-brown. A spot at the base of the
bill and a stripe behind the eye white. Throat and collar ash-gny.
Tail-feathers brownish-gray, edged with white, abort and worn.
(Bjchardson.)
Thi. Vi,^ L t.
lie DUCKS.
but EieTer in flcwks, OD the maritime couta of Holland. (Teminiiick.)
Abunduit in Swaden, Lapland, and RusaiL (Qould.) Notad ia the
list of birds seen within the iirctio circle, and u breeding in the
North Georgian Ithmda, but not common there. (' Supplement to
Appendix to Captoia Fury's First Toyage,') Femalei taken in Duke
of Tork'B Ba;. (Captain Ljon'a ' Journal') Abundant on the Arctio
Sea, avociating with tbe OidemifE, remaimng in the north ha long a3
it can find open water, and aasembling in very large flocks before
mi^tatingi halts, during ita progrera BOuthwa^ both on the abords
of the Hudson's Ba; and in tbe inland Ukes, and ia one of the last, of
the birds of pasaage which quita the Fur CouutrieB. Captain Sir James
Rosa describaa it as the most iioi»' and moat numeroiu of the ducks
that itisit the shores of Boothia. The species is abundant in Glreen-
land, Lapland, Rusaia, and Eamtcbatka, and flocks pass the winter
(from October to April) at tbe Orkne; Islaoda. Thej' are seldom seen
in the Bouthem parts of England, unless the weather be very seYere.
In October tlie; visit the United Statef, and abound in Chesapeake
Loni-TiUed Dncli [SareUa floculii }, nale and fenuls.
Livcfy, most Doisjr, and gregarious, the Long-Tailed Dack, with its
■wallow-like appearance in flight, swims and divea with oil the expert-
nets of the Spirit-Ducka. Sir John Richatdaon states that in tbe
latter end of August, when a thin crust of ioe forms during the night
on the Arctic Bea, the female may be often seen breaking a vray with
her wings for her young brood. The aame author rtatee that the (ggs
are pale greenish-Ray, with both- ends rather obtuse, 28 lines long and
IS lines wide. They ore about five in number; and in Spitsbergen,
Iceland, and along the granj shores of Hudson's Bay, near the SM,
this spetiea ia said to form its neat about the middle of Jmii^ Unlng
the interior with the down of the breast Marine produotiona princi-
pally, both animal and Testable, form its food, particularly the
Zoiltra, or Oiaaa- Wrack, for which it dives like others of ita oongeners.
" Late in the evening, or early in the morning," writes Nuttall in faia
' MaDoal of the Ornithology of the United States and of Canada,'
"towards spring more partioularly, vast flocks are seen in the bays
and sheltered inleta, and in calm and foggy weather we hear the loud
and blended naaal call reiterated for hours from the motley multitude.
There is aomething in the aound like the honk of the gooM, and, as
far aa words can express a subject ao uncouth, it resembTes the guttu-
ral ayllablea ogh, ough, (^b, and then ogh, ogh, ogh, ough, egh, given
DOCKS.
in a ludicrous drawling tone; but stjl], with all the a
of scene and season, ttua humble harbinger of spring, obeying the feel-
ings of nature, and pouring forth his final ditty before his deportura
to tbe distant north, conspires, with the novelty of the call, to please
rather than disgust those happy few who may be willing to find ' good
ir tlie table ;
od authority
rerything.
Tbe old birda are not considered as of much valui
but the young birds are tender and juicy,
rted, tbe down which the Long-Tailmi
I lining for tbe nest, is as soft and
Duck, it may be considered aa offering no mean contribution
comforta of man, a oontribution which, however apparently hitherto
neglect«d, deserves the attention of the intelligent and enterpriaing.
Id addition to the genera above mentioned, ^mnsra (Oxyara,
Bonaparte), Macntpiu, and ifiToplemi find a place among the Sea-
Ducka.
The apedes from which the genua Oxyitra ia est^bliehed, is bred,
according to Nuttoll (' Manual '), in the north, and prindpally haonta
fmh-w^r lakes, diving and awimming with great ease, but it is
averae to rising into the air. It ia amall, and ia eaid by the last-named
author to be nearly allied to Anat Uiicoeepluila, vbich inhaUta the
saline lakes and ioland aeas of Siberia, Russia, and tbe eaat of Europe ;
and also to have an affinity to A, JamaKentit of Latham. NuUall
thinka that it is pertiaps identical with A, tpinota of Guyana, if not
also with A, DoninUa of Omelin, a native of SL Domingo, and pro-
bably only resident there during the winter. He also obeerra that
the name of Oiyura having been previously employed for a sub-genua -
of Creepers, it was necessary to alter it; but the atudent should
remember tlat Oymnura had been pnHjcoupied by Sir Stamford
Rafflee for a genus of Mammifem ; and that Spix has named a ^uiilj
of South American Uonkaya Gymntiri. Prince C. L. Bonaparte, how-
ever, corrected himself, and changed the name to EriinnitiHii. Iti.
Oould gave the name of Undina to the genus, and &;ur«a the European
species under the name of ^ndtna Uucocep/u^ The term MaerojHU
has long been applied aa a generic name for the Eacgarooa.
Micnpttnu is the genus containing the well-known Raoe-Horee of
Cook (Jficroptenu iraehyjitenu, Anai brachyplera of authors). Captain
Philip Parker King, R.N., who has added a second species (Jficrop-
tenu PatiuAoniciu), gives these short-winged but rapidly-progressing
Sea-Ducks the f«Tiiili»r name of Steamer-Ducke or Steamers.
The sub-family Xerganina [Mtrgina, Bonap.), consists of the senus
Mtrgtu, Linn., the Goosanders or Mergansers of the British.
the Ptlig<iima, and immediately preceding the Pdtecmida. In the
second volume of Hr. Swainson's ' Classification of Birds,' the nib^
family is placed after the Puiigviina, and imlnediately preceding the
family Cotj/miida.
Mtrgattter (Loach).— Bill straight, narrow, and slender, mb^rrlin-
drioal anteriorly, wide at the base, and abruptly hooked at the tip ^
Foot of th* iaine.
manins of both mandibles aerrsted, the serrations or teeth directed
backwards. Tongue slender. Feet ehort, with the toes fully pal<
giittu- mated, and placed behind the point of equilibrium.
""" Jf. caitor (Mei-giu Xtrganitr and coslor of Linnwus), the Qoosuf
til DUCES.
der. Tliia upeciH U thfl Sugheroce of the Italums ; ths Heei^Rack
and See-Rack of the GeniiBiiH ; Wraktogel, Kjorktc^, Ard, and Skraka,
of the ' Fiuaa Suecim ; ' SkaUesluger of the Danes ; Skiai^And of the
Icebndera, Feksak of the OreenlaodeiB ; Seek of the Cree Indiaiis ;
Hirjul ddanhe-dog of the Welsh ; and J&ck-Sair of the English. It
u Buppoeed to be the KdimpiiT'Owii of the Qreeka; the Fibtr snd
Collar Ala of the Latiiu ; and ia the Bienre of the old French.
The vary old male haa a tufted head (the tuft large and thick), and
part of the neck greeniah-blook, the reSeotion varjing in different
lights ; lower part of the neck, breast, bell;f, abdomen, corert* of the
iringa and scapulars forthest from ' the body, tinged of a vellowiah-
rose-colour (which soon fadea in atufTed specimens to white) od the
under ports; upper part of the back and scapulars nearast to the
body deep black ; qiulls blackiBh ; great coTerts bordered with black ;
rest of the back and tail sah^colourad ; brnitf -spot on the wing whits,
without transTsrae bands ; bill deep red, bUck aboTS and on the
terminal tail ; iris reddish-brown, sometimes red ; feet Termilion-red.
Length 26 to 28 inches. (Temm.)
In this plumage the bird is the ifergtu MtrganKr of Lioiueus and
others ; Le Harle of Bufibn and the French ; the Ooosander or Msr-
Hndar of Latham and Pennant ; Qansen-Sager and Tauchei^Qans of
Bechstein aud the Qennanfl ; Mergo, Oca Marina e Heigo Dominicano,
of the 'Stor, degL UiW. ;' and Dnbbelde Zaagbek of Sepp. and the
Netherlander^
The female has a long' and loose tuft; head and part of the neck
reddish-browa ; throat pure white ; lower part of the neck, breast,
■idee, and thighs whitish-ash ; all the upper parts deep aah ; heautj-
spot of the wing white, without any (lansTsnie band ; bill faded
r«d; iris brown; feet yellowish-red; webs aahy-red. Length VA or
The young males of the year are similar to the Ce
The young at the age of one year are diatinguished by blackish
spots dupoBod on the white of the neck ; the ruddy colour of the
neck is then terminated by a deeper colour; blackish plumes begin
to show thenuelres on the top of tbe head, and white feathers appear
on the coTcrts of the wings.
In this state the bird is the Mtrgti* cmf or of Linnaius and othsri ;
Mer^vit mirieapiUtu of Omelin ; the Harle Femelle of BufbD ; the
Dun Direr or Sparling Fowl of Latham and others; and the Me[{p>
Oca of the ' Stor. degl. Ucc'
Oostuder ( JTnyiu JTwfanHr, Unn.).
Ixiwn flture, mile; nppcr B{ru», remils.
The food of the Ooosander conmsts of small fish, cnistaceans and
molIuskK Temminck says that its nsst is placed among rolled
pebbles on the banks of waters, in bushes or in boUow trees, and that
it lays tweWe or fourteen whitish eggs, which are nearly equally
pointed at each end. The flesh is very rank and bad. QisTee, who
tasted one, prouounoes it to hare been offsnsiTe in the highest degree.
The old French quatrain in the ' Portraits des Oyseaui,' gif es the
following description of its habits and of its quality as food : — '
Le Bieare salt soi etlugs h plopger
Paur Is poiHOB, tuquel est dommagHtile,
Mils qal TooldnilC tvBHJtt no dlsblf,
Fanldrolt un Blnipe «»olr ponr son mimger.
Ur. Qould {' Birds of Europe ') statea that " its nativa locality
appears to be the northern regions of the continents of Earope and
America, where among large and unfrequented lakes it finds an asy-
lum and breeding-place; from Uiese, its summer haunts, it emigrates
southwards on the approach of the seTeritiea of winter, sddom appear-
D1TCES. Ml
ing in our latitudes unless the seasoo indicates an exceedingly low
temperature in the arctic circle : at such times tt frequenbi our
shores and unfrozen lakes either in pairs or in small Socks of sSTsn
or eight ; but the extensive inland waters of Holland and Oermnny
appear to be ila favourite resort." This species was shpt at Fulbam
in the severs winter of 1B3T. It appesrs in Sir John Richardson's
list of birds that they merely winter m Pennsylvania and migrate in
summer to rear their jroung in the Fur Countries; the specimen
described by him was killed on the Saskatchewan. It also occurs in
Colonel Sabine's list of Oreentond Birds. Prince Bonaparte notes it
as rather rare in winter in Rome, and as not common in (lie same
List of the Birds of Europe and North America.' It was
seen in Japan by Dr. Von Siebold and M. Burger.
JferfTHi.— Bill about as long, or longer, than the head, straight,
■lender, rather pointed; the base large, forming an elongated and
almost a cylindrical cone ; point of the upper mandible curved, and
with the homy nail forming a hook ; edges of both mandibles fur-
nished with flaw-like teeth,The points directed backwarda Nostrils
lateral, about (he middle of the beak, longitudinally elliptic Legs
short, placed rather backwards ; three toes iu front, webbed, hind toe
with a lobe or membrane. Wings moderate ; the Gnt and second
quill-feathers nearly equal in length.
M. otfteUui. The old male hoe a gr«at spot of greenish black on
each siile of the bill, a similar coloured but longitudinal one on ths
occiput ; the tufted crest, neck, scapulars, small coverts of the wings,
and all the lower parts, very pure white ; upper part of the back, the
two creacente which are directed under the sides of the breast,
and the edges of the scapulars, deep block ; tail ashcoloursd ; sides
and thigbi varied with osh-coloured dg-sags; bill, legs (taisi), and
toes, bluish-ash; wobs block ; iris browu. Length 15 t^i IS inches.
ifnym atbrllut. 0]>pf r bpne, male ; lowei llgucf, remile. (Goald.)
In this state the bird is M. olicUiu of Ltnnnuo aud others ; Le
Petit Harle Happi ou La Piette of Buffon ; the Weiser ^ger of Bech'
stein and others ; the Witte dod Duiker of Sepp. ; the Hergo Oca
Uinore of the ' Stor. degl Ucc ;' and ths Snieir or White Nun of the
English ornithologists.
^e female has Uie summit of Uie head, cheeks, and occiput, r«ddish-
brown ; throat, upper part of the neck, bsUy, and abdomen, white ;
lower part of the neck, breast, udes, and rump, bri^t ash ; upper
parts and tail deep ash ; wings vaiiegated with white, ash, and black.
Length IG inches.
Toung of the year, nmilar to the female.
The males at the age of one year are diatinguished by the snull
blackish feathers which form the great spot at the side of the hill ;
by some whitish and white feathers scattered on the head ; by the
upper part of the back, which is variegated with black and ash
coloured feathers ; and by indications of the two black crescents on
the side of the brssat. The young of both sexes have the great
coverts of the wings terminated by o large white space, while the old
ones have no white there eicept at the point.
The females and young of the year are the Mtrgut mimttiu, Linn. ;
M. AnalKtu, Qm. ; M. ttiOatui, Brunn. ; M. Pamumieiu, Scop. ; La
Piette Femelle, BuS ; Le Harle Etoild (young mole). Buff. ; Het^ Oca
Idinore (female), and Her^ Oca Cenermo (young mole of the year),
'Stor, degl. Ucc. ;' De Kleine Zaagbek (young of the year), Eiepp. ;
and Red-Headed Smew (young mole in moult), Penn., 'Brit ZooL'
This species is the KreutE-Ente of Ftisch and the Qermans; the
Hviid Side of the Danes; Sugherone Occhialtno of the Italians;
Lleion wen of the Welsh; Smew and White Nun, Tare Widgeou,
and Smes, of ths English.
The food .of the ^ew consists of small cnutaceaos, water-inseota,
moUusks, little fish, and watArplants. The nest, according to M. Tern-
413
DtTCKa
DUFRENITfi.
444
mincky is placed on the borders of rivers and lakes, and the number
of eggs amounts to twelve; they are whitish. The bird is in no
request for the table. *
The countries of the arctic circle in both worlds are the habitations
of the Smew. It is migratory in autumn, but especially in winter, in
England, Holland, France, and aa far aa Italy ; rather abundant in
Holland on the lakes and marshes. (Temm.) It is seldom seen in
Britain except in inclement winters. The species was not observed
by Sir John Richardson, but it is noted by him in the tables compiled
from the 'Specchio Comparative' as one of the birds that migrate
northward from or through Pennsylvania in spring, and may there-
fore be considered as returning to the Fur Countries to breed. Prince
Bonaparte notices it as rather common in winter, particularly the
young, near Rome, and as very rare and adventitious at Philadelphia.
(Specchio Comparative.') The same author, in his ' Qeographical and
Comparative List,' notes it as occurring in Europe generally and on
the northern and central coasts of America. Dr. Von Siebold and
M. Biix*ger found it in Japan.
M. Temminck remarks that the Harles, or birds of this sub-family,
live upon the waters, where they swim, having generally the whole of
the body submexged, and only the head out of the water; but this
is certainly not the case with the Smew, as it swims with a very fair
proportion of its body above the surface. They dive easily and often,
swim with extreme agility ' entre deux eaux', and use their wings to
assist them in this sort of natation. They remain long on wing, and
fly very swiftly. Their walk is very vacillating and embarrassed,
their l^gs or feet, as well as those of the Sea-Ducks, being more with-
drawn within the abdomen than those of the ducks which have the
posterior toe smooth. Their food consists principally of fish and
amphibious animals, and of the first they make great destruction. In
temperate climates they are only seen in winter ; their habitual dwell-
ing is in cold countries, where they breed. They are much wilder
than the different species of ducks, and have not been domesticated.
They moult onoe a year ; but the old males, like those of the ducks,
moult in the spring, whilst the old females and the young moult in
the autumn. The young males, before their first or second moult,
hardly differ at all from the females.
The following list of British Anatidce is made up from the ' Catalogue
of the Specimens of British Animals in the British Museum.' The
catalogue of birds in this collection has been drawn up by Mr. (George
Robert Qray.
Family Anatidis,
Sub-Family I. PUctropterince,
Plectroptenu,
P, Ocmbensis, the Spur- Winged Goose.
Sub-FamUy II. Anaerina,
Chenalopex.
C ^ffyptica, the Egyptian Qoose.
JBemicla.
1. B. leucoptia, the Bemide-Qoose.
2. £. BrefUa, the Brent-Gk>ose.
8. B. rtffieollia, the Red-Breasted Qoose.
4. B.Canaderuis, the Canada (loose.
Atuer.
1. A.fenu, the Qray-Lag Qoose.
2. A. aegttvm, the Bean-Goose.
8. A. hrachyrhynchvs, the Pink-Footed Goose.
4. A, erythropug, the White-Fronted Goose
5. A. cygnoidet, the Chinese Goose.
Sub-Family III. Oygnina,
Cygnut,
1. Cfents, the Whistling Swan. '
2. C. Americanuif the American Swan.
8. C. olor, the Mute Swan.
4. C. immutahilia, the Changeless Swan.
5. C. minoTf Bewick's Swan.
Sub-Family IV. AnattTUB.
Tadoma,
1. T, VfUpanier, the Common Shieldrake.
Coiorha,
1. (7. rutUa, the Ruddy Shieldrake.
Mareea.
1. If. Penelope, the Widgeon.
2. M, Americana, the American Widgeon.
Dafila.
1. J>. actUOf the Pintail Duck.
Anoi,
1. A. Bo8dia$, the Wild Duck.
Qtterqnedula,
1. Q. crteca, the Teal.
2. Q. bimacidata, the Bimaculated Duck.
Pterocyanea,
1. P. circia, the Gaiganey.
Aix,
1. A. aponsa, the Summer-Duck.
ChoMltkumuB.
1. 0, atrepera, the GktdwaU.
Spatidiu
I. 8, clypeata, the Shoveler.
Cairina.
I. O, moaohaiet, the Muscovy Duck.
Sub-Family Y. FvUgulinta.
Branta.
I. B. ruifiaMt, the Red-Crested Whistling-Duok.
Pvdigyi€L
1. F, criatata, the Tufted Duck.
2. F. collaria, the Collared Duck.
8. F, marila, the Scaup-Duck.
Nyroca.
1. N. ferina, the Pochard.
2. N. ferinoidea, Paget's Pochard.
8. N, Uucophthalmoa, the Ferruginous Dud^
OUmgula,
1. C. glaueion, the Golden Eye.
2. C. hiatrioniea, the Harlequin-Duok.
8. C, albeolOi the Buffial-Headed-Duck.
Bfardda,
1. B, gkiciaUa, the Long-TaUed Duok.
Enieonetta,
I. jK Stdleri, the Western Daok.
Somateria.
1. 8. moUiaima, the Eider-Duck.
2. 8. apeiBtabilia, the King's Duck.
Oidemia,
1. O.fuaea, the Velvet-Scoter.
2. 0. nigra, the Common Scoter.
8. 0. perapicdlata, the Surf-Sooter.
Sub-Family YI. Mergina.
Mergua.
1. M. castor, the Goosander.
2. M. aerraior, the Red- Breasted Merganser.
8. M, euctdlatua, the Hooded Mex^ganser.
Mergdlua.
I. 3f. alhtllus, the Smew.
Most of the species referred to in the forgoing article may be seen
living in the Gardens of the Zoological Society, Regent'^ Park. Some
years ago an Ornithological Society was form^ in London, and
obtained permission to place their living collection of birds upon the
waters in St. James's Park. The specimens of Analida. in this collec-
tion are very numerous and worthy the attention of the ornithological
student. We are indebted to the keeper of the birds for the following
list: —
The Bkok Swan.
Bewick's Swan.
Hooper-Swan.
Common Swan.
Common Goose.
Chinese Gk>ose.
Egyptian Goose.
Brent-Goose.
Bemide-Goose.
Bean-Gbose.
Canada Gk>os&
Sandwich Island Goose.
Spur-Winged Goose.
Goosander.
Common Duck.
Aylesbury DucL
Hook-Billed Duck.
Muscovy Duck.
Buenos Ayres Duck.
Tellow-Billed Duck.
Carolina Duck.
CastaneouB Duck.
Golden-Eye Duck.
Pintail Duck.
Pochard.
GadwaU.
Shieldrake.
Common Widgeon.
Common TeaL
There are also specimens of birds belonging to the family
Colymbida in the same collection.
DUCK-WEED. [Lemka.]
DUDLEY LIMESTONE, an equivalent term for the Wenloek
Limestone of the Silurian system. [Silurian Ststem.]
DUFRENITE, a Mineral, occurring in small radiated masses. Its
colour is olive or dull green. It is sUghtly translucent and extremely
fusible. The specific gravity is 8*227. It is found at Anglar, near
Limoges. The following is an analysis : —
Phosphoric Acid 24*8
Peroxide of Iron .... .61
Peroxide of Manganese .... 9
Water ... . 15— M'«
415
DUFRENOYSITE.
DTNASTES.
416
DUFRENOYSITE, a Mineral, conBisimg of an araeniuret and snl-
phuret of lead. It occurs in dodecahedrons of a dark steel-gray colour
in the Dolomite of Si.-Gothard. The specific gravity is 5*55.
DUGONG [Cetacba-]
DUIKER-BOK. [Antilope^]
DULCAMARA. Solanum.]
DULSE. [AloaJ
DUMB-CANK [Aroidsji; Caladium.1
DU>'DIVER [DucKfl.]
DUNLIN. [ScoLOPAOiDJt.]
DUNNOCK. [Stlviada]
DUODE'NUM (from a Latin word signifying twelve, because it is
twelve inches in length), the first of the small intestines in immediate
connection with the stomach. It commences at the pyloric end of
the stomach, and terminates at the distance of twelve inches in the
second portion of the small intestines called the jejimum. Though it
is the straightest of the small intestines, yet the Duodenum describes
in its course various turns. From the pylorus it turns backwards and
upwards by the neck of the gall-bladder, with which it is in contact ;
it then passes obliquely downwards on the right side immediately
before the great vessels which enter the liver. Opposite to the under
part of the kidney it makes a turn to the left side, across the lumbar
vertebroB, and is lodged in the common root of the mesocolon and
mesentery, below the pancreas and behind the superior mesenteric
vessels; it now makes a turn forwardS| and obtains the name of
jejunum.
The Duodenum is much more capacious than the jejunum or ilium,
and is indeed so large that it has been regarded as a second stomach,
and obtained the name of Ventriculus Sucoenturiatus. It is fixed
much more closely to the spinal column than the other intestines,
and does noty like them, float loosely in the abdomen. It is of a
redder colour than the rest^ has a thicker muscular coat, and a greater
number of valvuIaD conniventes.
At the distance of from three to four fingers' breadth from the
pylorus the Duodenum is perforated by the biliary and pancreatic
ducts, by which tubes the bile and the pancreatic juice flow into the
intestine.
The Duodenum is probably an organ accessory to the stomach.
There is evidence that it carries on the digestion commenced in the
stomacK It is certain that alimentary substances which have escaped
solution in the stomach are dissolved in the Duodenum.
The chyme formed from the food in the stomach and received by
the Duodenum, retains the name of chyme until it reaches that por-
tion of the Duodenum where the biliary and pancreatic ducts pierce
the intestine. At this point, and by the admixture of the biliary and
pancreatic juices, the chvme is changed into two portions — ^into a
nutritious portion, which receives the name of chyle and which
flows into the blood [Chtls] ; and into an excrementitious portion,
which is carried along the sznall into the large intestines, where it
receives the name of fteces, and is expelled from the body.
On the surface of the Duodenum the lacteal vessels begin to make
their appearance for the absorption of the chyle. [Lactbalb.] The
Duodenum is likewise provided with a great number of mucous glands,
which more especially abound near the pylorus. [Glakd.]
DURA-MATER. [Bbaik.]
DURA'lf EN, the name given by physiologists to the central wood
or heart-wood, in the trunk of an exogenous tree. It is the oldest
part of the wood, and is filled by the secretions of the tree, so that
fluid can no longer ascend through its tubes, which are choked up by
the deposition of solid matter ; otherwise it is of the same nature as
the alburnum. It is only where plants form solid hard secretions
that heart-wood is distinguishable from sap-wood : in the poplar,
willow, lime, &a, no secretions of this kind are formed; the two
parts of the wood are both nearly alike, and consequently the timber
of such ^^ees is uniformly perishable. Ship-carpenters call the
Duramen the spine : it is always distinguishable from sap-wood by
its deeper colour, and sometimes, as in the yew, the sandarach, and
certftln kinds of deal, the limits of the two are clearly defined. But
in most cases the heart-wood and sap*wood gradually pass into each
other, so that no certain line can be drawn between them. [Albur-
num ; ExooENB ; Tissues, Vsostabls.]
DU'RIO, a genus of Plants of which the name has been derived from
Durion, a well-known fruit of the Malayan Archipelago. The specific
name of ZibethinuM has been applied to the tree which forms this
genus, from the fondness of the Malayan Zibet ( Viverra Basse, Hors.)
for tlds fruit.
The genus Ihirio belongs to the natural family of Bomhaeea, con-
sidered by some botanists to be only a tribe of Sterctdiacea. It is
characteriaed by having its five petals smaller than the five lobes of
the calyx. The stamens, long and numerous, are arranged in five
bundles, and have twisted antibers ; the free germen is surmounted by
a long filiform style and capitate stigma ; the fruit, roundish and
muricated, is divided interzuJly into five cells, and easilv separates
when ripe into five parts ; each cell contains from two to four or five
seeds enveloped in soft pulp.
D, ZtbethiMU is a large and lofty tree, with alternate leaves, which
are small in proportion to its size ; in form they resemble ^ose of
the cherry, or are oblong-pointed, sinalland given above, like nutmeg-
tree leaves, but on the under surface are covered with orbicular
reddish-coloui'ed scales, as some species of Capparis ; the petioles are
tumid, and furnished with a pit towards their base ; the flowers are
arranged in clusters on the trunk and older branches, where of course
is also borne the fruit, as in the Jack and Cocoa trees.
The Durion is a favourite food of the natives during the time (May
and June) when it is in season; but there is usually also a second crop in
November. It is as remarkable for the delicacy combined with rich-
ness of its flavour, as for the intolerable offensiveness of its odour,
which is compared by Rumph to that of onions in a state of putre-
faction, on which account it ia seldom relished by strangers, though
highly esteemed by many European residents. In size it is equal to
a melon, or a man's head, and sometimes compared to a rolled-up
hedgehog (hence it has been called Echintu arboreus) in consequence
of its hard and thick rind, which is yellow-coloured when ripe, being
covered with firm and angular projections. From this appearance has
likewise been derived its Malayan name, 'dury ' in that language signify-
ing a thorn or prickle. (Rumph.)
The seed, with its edible enveloping pulp, is about the size of a hen's
egg ; the latter is as white as inilk, and as delicate in taste as the
finest cream, and should be eaten fresh, as it soon becomes discoloured,
and undergoes decomposition. Excessive indulgence in this, as in other
fruits, is apt to create sickness, and therefore to its abundance has
been sometimes ascribed the unhealthiness of some years ; but as the
crop of fruit is most abundant when the rains are very heavy and follow
great heats, the sickness is probably due as much to the peculiarities
of the season as to the too free use of this fruit.
Tha seeds of the Durion are likewise eaten when roasted, and
have something of the flavour of chestnuts. The wood of the tree
is valued for manv economical purposes, especially when protected
from moisture. Tne rind of this fruit is likewise turned to account
by the industrious Chinese, as its ashes, when burnt, probably from
containing potash, are used by them in the preparation of some
dyes.
Marsden, in his account of Sumatra, quotes a celebrated writer as
saying that ** Nature seems to have taken a pleasure in assembling in
the Malay Islands her most favourite productions." Among these may
be enumerated the Mangosteen, the Jack and Bread-Fruit trees, the
Lanseh, and Durion, witin others which are common in other tropical
parts. These it has not been possible to cultivate in the hot-houses
of England, even with all the skill of its horticulturists ; a circum-
stance which must be ascribed partly to the great size of the trees,
and partly to the peculiarity in cUmate of ' India aquosa,' as this
part of the world was called by old writers. But as it is only within
a few years that moisture has been combined with heat in the present
successful cultivation of Orchideous Plants, it might perhaps be
possible to make some of the above fruits grow in a similar artificial
climate ; and, by grafting, to make them bear when only a few feet
high, as has been done with the Mango in India.
DUTCH WHITK [Babttes.]
DUVAUA. [AnacardiaceaJ
DYKE (in Geology), a fissure caused by the dislocation of strata,
commonly also termed a Fault Dykes are of frequent occurrence,
and often extend several miles, penetrating generally to an unknown
depth. They must have been pr<>duced by some violent disturbances,
and the amount of dislocation of necessity would vary in proportion
to the intensity of the disturbing force. Accordingly there are many
dykes of great width and extent, which materially afiect the face of
the country in which they occur, while there are others so slight
that it requires much care and observation to ascertain their
exiBteuce. The strata are in most cases uplifted on one side of the
dyke much higher (varying many fathoms) than those on the other
side, and produce an apparent irregularity of strata most perplexing
to the geologist. Sometimes it happens that, without any irregu-
larity of surface, two distinct strata appear to form a continuous line,
as in the Black Down Hills in Devonshu«. [Chalk Formation.] In
some cases however dislocation is found without any alteration of
the level of the strata on either side, but the appearance of the
strata immediately adjacent to the fault sometimes affords proof of
the action of fire. [Coal Formation.] Dykes are of two distinct
characters, depending upon the manner in which they have been
filled up, and the substance of which they are composed. Dykes of
the fii^st description are those into which igneous rocks are supposed
to have been iigected in a state of fusion, and now appear as a
consolidated mass. [Basalt.] In the second the fissures are filled
with the debris, sometimes mixed with clay, of the dislocated strata
through which they pass. In some cases the fissure has evidently
remained unoccupied for a long period, and the filling up has pro-
ceeded gradually from the sides inwards. This is observed very
evidently in the carboniferous limestones of England and Wales.
Sometimes, in consequence of the great length of time intervening
between the production of each coating of calcareous matter, the
outside of each is covered with crystals, upon which the next layer
has been formed : in the central portions of such fissures cavities are
by no means uncommon.
DYNA8TES, a genus of Coleopterous Insects belonging to the
section PeiUamera, sub-section LameUtcorMS, and familv DytKutida of
M'Leay. The species have the body very large and tiuck, the outer
W DTNOMEXE.
•dn of tb« j&wa linuated or toothed, and ths lower jawi comeoiu
and tootbad. The genu* Dmailti embraces the Urgent and most
robuit forma of the iniect kiagdam. Tbe; are, oeTerthelese, quite
hanpleia. NoDe of Uie ipecisa are fouod id this coaatry, and only
one In France. The Urseiit famu are found in the tropioil parte of
India and South Amanoa. The habits of theoe insecta are much
tbe same whererer found. Tbe; bur; themselves bj day in holes in
tba ground, or in the decsyiog trunks of trees. At nigbt they ore
Kan flying about the trees. The females are mora numerous than
tbe moles, and do not posseu the horns, which giTe tbe males so
remarkable an appearance. The more remarkable speciea of thii
genus ore tbe Elephant and Hercules Beetles. Tbe latter is of a
gloaiy block colour. In tbe males the tboroi is deTeloped into a
thick and curved horn, wbicb is bent downwanJa at tlis tip, a
■imilar horn projects from below which pointa upwards, so as '
intact with the former. The entire length of this b
DTNoilENE, a genua of Brachyurous Cmdacea belonging to
the diviaion Nolopoaa, founded by LAtreilla. The ocular pedioles
longer than those of Ihrnaia. The shell is wide, nearly beartshaped
and truncated posterioriy, hairy or bearded. The two posterior feet
only dorsal, and much smaller than tbe others.
It, hitpida, the only species known to M. LatrctUe, is found in tbe
bio of I^mce.
DTSCHIMDa rCLmnA.]
DTSCL^ITE, a Mineral canslitiii^ of hydrous silicate of lime. It
ocoun in white flbrousmasses,conuatmgof'delicatefibraof a whitish
or yellowish or bluish colour. It has a hardneBS of 4'S, and a specific
gravity of from S'SS t« 2.SB. It ia easily gelatinised in hydiodilorio
aoid. It is found in tbe trap of tbe Faroe IsUnda. A. varie^ oalled
Menile ii from Oreenlond.
DYSDERA, a genui of Spiders. The ipedea have S eyes, placed
in a curve reaembUng a horse-shoe open in front ; the moQth.<ilBws
vary large, and produced in front ; the maxilln straight, ^d dilated
EAQLE-WOOD.
at the pUce of iiueition of the palpL The type of tha ^na is D.
erythritm, which is not on uncommon spedea-in Great Bntain. It in
mostly found under stones.
DYSLUITE, a Mineral, a Tariety of ^nd. It occnm crystallised
in i^ular oatahedrou. Its cleavage is rather imperfect, paiillel with
the faces of the oetabedron. TheoolonrisyeUowiab-brownorgrayiali.
brown. Fracture conchoidal Hardness i'S. Somewhat translucent,
opaque. Luotre vitreous, inclining to resinous. Specifie gravity,
I'SSl. It is found at Sterling, New Jersey, with AonUtniK aod
Tyaoilitt. Tbe following is an analysis by Dr. Thomson :—
Alumina 30-490
Oxide of Zinc 16-800
Peroxide of Iron 41-9Si
Protoxide of Manganese .... 7-000
Silica 2-904
Mobtture 0-400
It becomes red before the blowpipe, but loses its colour on cooling.
DTSODIL. [Coii.]
DY80P0S. tCHaiROPTEBi.]
DYTrSCID.£, a tribe of Fentamerous Coleopterous Insects,
founded on tbe genus JJjrfUfu* of Linnieus. It now includes the fol-
lowing genera :- — PrAtbiiu, MatMt, Coptolomia, Etumcta, Agabtu,
JiybiuM, Colymbeta, Jctliiu, Bydatiaa, DjiliKM, Oybitlir, OapAUiu,
Anitomera, LaccophUui, Notenu, Bydracanlhut, and SttphU.
Tbe insectB composiug tbeae genera are almoet oil oval and flattened
in form. They are very variable in size, soma being very minute,
othoTB several mohes in length. Their four posterior eitrernities are
longer than the anterior, flattened, and cilialad. They are all aquatic
insects, and organised for swimming, thoosh at the same time capable
of flying through the air with facility. They live in freab water, and
swim with great rapidity, chasinK other water-innect^ and seising
tbem with Uieir anterior feei, Althongh capable of existing a long
time under water, th^ are oblimd to aaeeod at interrala to tbesnr-
face to breathe. This Uiey MM h; remaining ^niet, when their
bodies, specifically lighter than the surrounding fluid, riae to the sur-
face obliquely, their beads downwaida, so that the extremity of tbe
abdomen, at which the stigmata of the tiachen are aitnated, is exposed
to tbe air on reaching the surface. At night they fly from one pool
to another, and hence are often met with m plaoea flooded by tempo-
rary raina The lorvn of the DgtUcida leave the water and bury in
the earth before changing into pu^ Thns they are at first aquatic
insects, next terrestrial, and in theu' final stage amphibious.
The laical genua Dj/lUau has engsged tbe att^tion of Dr. Aub^
who enumerates ten European, one African, and tiz Ajnericaii
DZEOGUETAl. [EqniDJt]
DZEREN, [AST ■•
EAOLE. rFALOOHtDA]
EAOLE^OOD, one of those substances of which the name,
fi-om similarity of sound in a foreign language, has been oobverted
into another having no reference to its original signification. It i* a
highly frogrsot wood, much esteemed by Asiatics for bumiuK as
inoense, and known in Europe by its present designation ever smce
the Portngffese visited and imported the substance direct fh>m the
Hainan islands and the kiogdom of Siom, where it has always been
abundant, and long established as an article of commerce. The
Malayan name is Agila, whence the wood was called Pao-d'Agila by
the Portuguese, and has since been converted into Pao-d'Aguila, and
Fao-d'Aquila, Bois-d'Aigle, Eagle-Wood, and Agel-Hout
From the Malayan Agila baa probably been derived the Sanscrit
Agara, whence we have the Hindoo Aggur, If not f^m tbe more
fuTnilittt- appellation of Qaroo, hj which Eagle-Wood is also known in
the Malayan Archipelago, lu Persian works on Materia Medica in
use m India, we learn from Dr. Royle (' lUustr. of Himal. Bot' Ac.)
that several kinds of fragrant wood are described under tbe Arabic
name Aod (Uaud and Ud of Qarcios), and that he himself obtained
three kinds in the bazaan of India, caLod Aod-i-Hiodee, Aod-i<Chinee,
and Aod-i-Kimoree (evidenUy the Al-Cemericum of Arabian authoia);
and that with the above Hindoo a Oreek eynonym, Agallochee, is also
given, and more capecially applied to Aod-i-Kimaree, which is also
called Aod-i-Bukboor, Incense-Wood. As Agallochee is no doubt a
corruption of the Agallochum of Dioscoridea, described by him as a
fragrant wood from India and Arabia, it is interesting to find that
the translators from tbe Greek into the Arabicof the school of Baghdad
settled these synonyms at a time when they must have been well
acquainted, from their profession and poeition, with tbe substances
to which both the Qreek and Arabic names were applied. Serapion
and Avicenna describe several kinds of this fragrant wood, and the
latterunderboth Agalugen or Agholoojee, and Aod, which in the Latin
veraion is translated Xyloaloe, a name tiiat was applied by the later
Greek medical writen to Agallochum, whence we have lignum aloes,
lign-aloe, and aloea-wood, the origin of which it is difficult, if not
impossible, to oscertoin, unless we suppose it to be a eomplion of
Agila ; for the bitter, scentless, spongy-textured alems of the geans
Aloe could not oQbid any substitute for this bagront wood, or be
thought to yield it, at least by the Arabs, who were well acquainted
with and aocurately describe aloes, and tbe place, Socotro, where the
best kind is found. Though Dioscorides notices only one, which
some supposed to be tbe Tamm of Phny, several kinds of Agallochum
are described by Seropion and Avicenna, which, as it Is not possible
at present to Identify, it is unneoesssry to notice, and therefore we
shidl refer only to the three kinds which have been traced to the tnea
yielding tbem, by naturalists who have visited tbe oountries when
these are indigenous.
An Agmia brava (wild) is mentioned by Qarcdas as produced near
Cape Comorin, in the southern port of the Indian peninsula, and in
tbe island of Ceylon ; but the tree yielding this wood has not been
ascertained. Humpfaius ('Herb. Amb.' ii p. 40), describes two kinds
of Agailochtim tpwitm, found in Borneo and Sumatra, one of which
he colls Goto Tsjampaca, which is described sa having leavee and
fiowanresemblingthoseof the celebrated Cbampa(ifu;AeIiacAanjKiM),
and may be a species of the same geoua. A third kind of spurioua
Agallochum, differing much from tba others as well as from the
genuine, he describes in another part of his work, ii. p. 240, as the
Eroduce of his Arbor excacant, so called from the acridi^ of its juice
linding people, and which is the £xatcaria agalloclia of Linnseus.
Coneidering that Rumphius, in originally describing this tree, has
said ' Lignum hoc tantam cum sgallcdia similitudinem,' and as
afibrding a substitute for that substance, it,ia not eurptieing that It
should be frequenUy quoted as the tree which yields the genuine
agallochum, or aloes-wood. Fie ('Hist. Nat Fborm.') etatea that
he had seen a genuine specimen of the wood of this tree, and that
its fragrance cannot be compared with the agallochum of Loureira.
Dr. Roxburgh mentions that the wood-cuttera of the delta of the
Ganges, though well acquainted with the highly acrid and very
dangerous milky Juioe of this tree (there called geria), do not mention
440
EAGLE-WOOD,
EAB.
460
Of the two kinds of Agallochom which are most valued, and both
considered genuine, one is distinguished by the name of Calambac,
and the other as the Qaro of Malacca.
The first, called Calambac, and Agallochum Primarium by Rum-
phiuB, appears, as far as hitherto known, to be a native of Cochin-
China only, growing on the mountains of that country in about 13" N.
lat., near the great river Lavum, which may be the Meikeng flowing
between Cochin-China and the Laos. This tree was named Aloexy-
him (»ffaUochum bv Loureiro, 'FL Cochin-Chinensis,' p. 327, and placed
by him in Decanaria Monogpniaf and described as a lofty tree with
erect stem and branches, long lanceolate shining leaves, terminal
bunches of flowers, with a woody falcate 1-seeded pod for its fruit,
whence it is referred by De Oandolle to the natural family of Legwni-
rume, Loureiro states that the wood of this tree is white and
inodorous, and that its fragrance is the result of disease, when the
oily portions thicken into resin in the central parts of the tree, and
that no part of the tree ia milky or poisonous, but that paper is
made from its bark in Cochin-China, as in Japan from that of the
mulberry.
The next kind of Agallochum is that commonly called Qaros, and
to which the name of Eagle- Wood is more frequently applied, and
which has long been an article of export from Malacca and the king-
dom of Siam. Specimens of the tree which yields this were first
obtained by M. Sonnerat in his second voyage to India, from which
probably have been given the figure and description by Lamarck.
(' Enc. M^th./ 1. p. 49, Illustr. t. 876.) The plant he named AquUaria
Malctecenaia, This, the G^o de Malacca, was introduced by Dr.
Roxburgh into the botanic garden of Calcutta, and was not to be
distinguished from specimens of a tree called Ugoon, which is a
native of the mountainous tracts east and south-east from Silhet,
between 24** and 25" of N. lat, which flowers in April, and ripens its
seed in August, and which he says there can be little or no doubt
furnishes the real Calambac or Agallochum of the ancients ; adding,
that there seems more reason to think that it was carried to China
from our eastern frontier, than to suppose it was carried from Cochin-
China, or any other ooimtry in the vicinity of China, where it has
always been in great demand. Small quantities are sometimes
imported into Calcutta by sea, from the eastward ; but such is always
deemed inferior to that of Silhet ('FL Ind.' iL p. 423.) As the
Malacca plant had not flowered. Dr. Roxbui^h was unable to decide
that they were positively the same with those from Silhet, and there-
fore named tiiese Aquilaria agaUocha, aa abother species of the same
genus. By this name it has been figured in Royle's * lUustr.' i 86, f. 1,
from a drawing by Dr. Hamilton of a plant which he called AgcUlo-
chum Officinarum, and which he found near Qoalpara^ on the eastern
frontier of Bengal. This drawing is illustrated with dissections by
Dr. Lindley. [Aquilariace^.]
The fragrant nature of genuine Agila or Eagle- Wood is well known,
and that it has from very early periods been employed both by
the natives of India and of China as incense. Mr. Finlayson, in his
visit to Siam, says that the consumption of this highly odoriferous
wood is very considerable in Siam, but that the greatest part is
exported to China, where it is used in a veiy economical manner.
The wood being reduced to a fine powder, and mixed with a
gummy substance, is laid over a small slip of wood, about the sise of
a bull-rush, so as to form a pretty thick coating. This is lighted, and
gives out a feeble but grateful perfume. French authors inform us
that the Eagle- Wood was burned as a perfume by Napoleon in the
imperial palace.
We cannot conclude this subject without inquiring whether the
substances of which we have been treating are the Lign-Aloes of
Scripture, Ahaloth, masc. Ahel, whose plund is Ahalim. It would
be impossible to do justice to the subject in a small compass^ or with-
out referring to tiie numerous dissertotions which have been written
on it ; but it may be observed, that these might have been much
shortened, if the authors had been naturalists, or intimately acquainted
with the natural history and usages of eastern coimtries. Such infor-
mation would at least have prevented any species of aloe being con-
sidered or figured as the far-famed and fragrant Lign-Aloe from a
mere similarity in sound. In the present instance, the difficulty is
increased by the supposed necrasity of reconciling the different
passages in which Lign-Aloes are mentioned, as in Numbers, xxiv. 6,
where it is mentioned as a tree planted ; but in the three other passages.
Proverbs, vii. 17, Psalms, xiv. 9, and Canticles, iv. 14, it is enumerated
with Uie most fragrant products of the east, as cinnamon, cassia, cala-
mus, camphor, frankinoense, myrrh, spikenard, and saffix)n. Here we
may observe, that a substance which was indigenous in a country was
not likely to have been an article also of commerce from a far country
in those early times ; and that therefore, as it is disputed whether the
word shall be translated Tents or Lign-Aloes, the word may perhaps
be used in a poetical sense, as it is thought to be by some commen-
tators In the three passages above referred to, it may be noted
that, except sandal-wood, tbere is no other substance which could be so
well enumerated with those with which it is found in connection as
the Agila- Wood of the East, whether we consider its high price,
delicate perfume, or the long time in which it has been held in
high estimation, while the sinularity of its name is at the same time
remarkable.
KAT. HIBT. DIV. VOL. II.
EAR.^ Many animals unquestionably e^joy the faculty of hearing
to a limited extent, which are found, upon examination, to be unpro-
vided wiUi organs exclusively appropriated to the concentration and
transmission of sound. In fact, the sense of hearing is, strictly
speaking, only a refinement of the sense of touch. The impressions
with which it is conversant arise wholly [Acoustics, in Arts and Sc.
Drv.] from peculiar undulations of the particles of ordinary matter,
propagated m obedience to its ordinary laws through the medium
m which the animal lives, and impinging more or less immediately
upon a sensitive part ; they have no necessary dependence, like those
of sight, upon the agency of the more subtle fluids ; nor have they
any connection, like those of smell and taste, with what may be called
the chemical properties of matter. If to these considerations it be
added that the vibratile substances which are commonly found to
inclose the sensorium are not ill qualified to participate in the undu-
lations of the surroimding medium, and carry them onwards to the
internal seat of perception, the reader will be prepared to learn that
the only essential part of the organ of hearing is a nerve, not
materiaUy different from those of common sensation, lodged at a
sufficient depth to be secured from external injury, and sufficiently
sensitive to be affected by these delicate impulses. This is called tiie
acoustic or auditory nerve.
It is probable that even the lowest animals provided with a
nervous system are able to perceive the notices thus conveyed of
external objects, and turn them to account in the degree necessary
for their security and comfort But to meet the Increasing wants
and minister, to Uin multiplied faculties of the more complete animals,
various subsidiary parts are found to be added in something like a
regular succession as we advance upwards in the scale, each lowet
grade possessing the rudiments of some additional provision more
fully developed in the next above, till the oxgan reaches its greatest
amplification and final perfection in man and the other Mammalia.
The particular use of many of these subsidiary parts has not yet
been explained. We know in general that they must increase the
force and vividness of the impression ; that they afford indications of
its direction, and the means of appreciating minute shades of
difference in its kind and degree, and in the frequency of its repe-
tition ; that some of them add to thd security of the organ without
impairing its delicacy ; and that others serve to adjust its position,
and to adapt it to various changes in the state of the atmosphere.
The Jtduiiata (Sponges, Polyps, &c), which constitute the lowest,
and in point of variety and number by far the most comprehensive
division of Cuvier, appear to be universally unprovided with an
organ of hearing ; many of them have no nervous system, and are
therefore probably altogether devoid of the sense. In some of the
A calepha are bodies very like the otolithes found in the higher animals,
but whether these are the commencement of an ear or not is doubtful.
The ArticvXcUat which form the next division, are all furnished
with a nervous system, and it is likely that they all enjoy the sense
of hearing. Indeed, some of them are able to express their feelings
and wants to their fellows by means of peculiar sounds, of which the
cricket and queen-bee are well-known examples. We find accord-
ingly, that in many of the more perfect species the extremity of the
acoustic nerve is expanded upon a simple kind of auili)x>ry instrument
consisting of a whitish membranous bag of fluid, placed within the
head in a somewhat Iftiger cavity, the space between them being
also occupied by fluid. This cavity is situated near Uie outer feelers,
or anteniue. When the animal lives in water, it is commonly
complete; if in air, there is a round external opening closed by a
thin tense and transparent membrane, showing the white colour
within, to which the bag adheres, and which receives, concentrates,
and transmits the sonorous vibrations of the surrounding medium.
This kind of arrangement seems to be necessary, among other reasons,
for the purpose of indicating the direction of the sound, which is
probably made known in part by the clearer vibration of the
membrane when turned in that direction, and in part by a comparison
of the impressions on the two sides ; for this oigan, like all others
which bring the animal into relation with the outer world, is always
double and symmetrical It may be observed that the nerve dis-
tributed to the membranous bag just described is given on by that
which supplies the antenna with ito exquisite sense of touch : some
have thought, but perhaps erroneously, that the faculty of hearing
resides in Uie antennse themselves.
The parte we have enumerated are all found, with others, in the
higher animals, and may be considered as the most essential parte
of an organ of distinct hearing. The cavity is called the vestibule ;
the soft membranous bag of fluid is the vestibular sac ; the round
external opening is called, from ite shape in man and most other
animals, the fenestra ovalis ; the fluids witliin and without the sac
are called respectively the endo-lymph and peri-lymph (IvSov, within,
ircp}, around) ; the latter, being analogous to the fluid discovered by
Cotugno in the internal ear of MammaUa, is sometimes called, aftw
his name, the Liquor Cotunni
The principal tribes of the Atiiculaia ascertained to possess organs
of this kind are the air-breathing inaecte of the orders Hymenoptera
(Bees), Orthoptera (Qrasshoppen), and ColeopUra (Beetles); the
Aracknida (Spiders), and the Zkcapodatu Crwtacea, such as the
Lobster and Crab. In the common black beetle they are very
2 a
461
EAR
EAR.
4a
oonspiououB, appearing externally in the form of round white points
on the head, a little nearer the middle line^ and somewhat higher than
the base of the long outer antennie. In the lobster they are con-
tained in a small nipple-like prominence or papilla upon the under
part of the moTeable base of the antennae, looking downwards and
forwards. This papilla consists of a sulwtanoe harder and more
brittle and probably more vibritile than the rest of the shell
The MoUtucctf though placed higher in the scale of animals by
Cuvier, do not afford so many examples of animals possessing a
diBtinot oigan of hearing as the Articulata, Such as have been
discovered all belong to the order of the Cephalopods with two
branchin, or gills, wmch approach more nearly to the true fishes in
their structure than the other molluska
In the Sepia, or Cuttle-Fish, which belongs to this order, and
which may be taken as a type of the rest, there is a protuberance
imder the elastic gristly integument at the back part of the head
which contains the ear. It consists of a pair of symmetrical Teetibules,
each containing an oval sac filled and surrounded with fluid. On the
interior surface of this sac the acoustic nerve is expanded in the
form of a white mucous pulp. The sac is supported in the perilymph
not only by an adhesion to the inner side of the parietes of the
yestibule at the entrance of the nerve, but also by a fine net-work
of fibrils which pass from its outer surfiioe to numerous prominent
points on the inner surface of the vestibule. There is no fenestra
ovalis, or membrane, as in the lobster and the air-breathing insects,
but the sac contains a small loose bony or chalky concretion, called
an otoliths {ols Arhs, the ear, and XiBos, a stone), which answers the
same purpone, namely, to indicate the degree and direction of sound ;
for just a4 we estimate a weight by poi-ing it in the hand, or, if it
be nuBpended, by gently pushing it from us — thus measuring in our
mindii the muwular tension necessary to support it, or the foroe
required to overcome itA inertia, and conscious of the direction in
which we exert our muscles — so. convenely (the weight and inertia
of the lapillus always remaining the same), the degree and direction
of a vibratory foroe affecting it from, without through the medium of
the integuments, the parietes of the vestibule, and the fluids within,
may hv estimated by a consciousness on the part of the animal of
the nature of the stress on the sensitive membranes and flbrils which
support it, which by their elasticity restrain and redress the slight
movem nts impressed upon it. This should be borne in mind ; for,
as we shall see further on, it is in some degrse by the exertion of the
muscular sense, as Sir Charles Bell has called that by which we judge
of weight and tension, that the human ear \b enal>led to estimate
the intensity of sound. Other curious particulars as to the function
of otolithes might be enlaiged upon ; but we have said enough to
explain, as we think, the most important of them ; and to correct
the misstatements of authors who tell us that they are intended to
increase the intensity of the vibrations of sound : they appeac to us
rather calculated to diminish it, as the board floating in the bucket
of the water-carrier tends to pevent the fluid fipom dashing over the
aide. They undoubtedly play an important part in the organ of
hearing, espedally in the larger fishes, where they are more numerous,
and attain a considerable sice ; but it is difficult to conceive that they
arepossessed of any intensative power.
The vertebrated classes of the animal kingdom, comprising the true
fishes, reptiles, birds, and the mammals, are all provided with acoustic
oigans, which are very various in their decrees of complexity, but
much exceed in that respect the comparatively simple oxgans of the
inferior divisions.
In the Cartilaginous Fishes, such as the ray and the shark, the vesti-
bule is deeply imbedded in the elastic walls of the back part of the
cranium, near its junction with the spine. The fenestra ovalis, closed
by a tense transparent membrane, fi&ces upwards, backwards, and
towards the middle line. The membrane is placed obliquely at the
bottom of a more superficial flattened tubular cavity, which termi-
nates beneath the integument in a kind of forked extremity, and may
be considered as a rudiment of the tympanum, or middle ear, of the
higher VeriebrcUOf with its Eustachian tube. The inner surface of the
membrane is turned towards three sacculi, one of which is much
larger than the rest, arranged at the opposite side of the cavity of the
vestibule, and containing each an otolithe. The sacs are filled with a
thick gelatinous endolymph, which adheres to the lapilli, and serves,
with minute filamenti^ such as those in the /SSepui> to steady them.
The vestibule is filled with a limpid aqueous perilymph, traversed in
all directions by a fine cellular networic, by means of which its con-
tents are supported in their relative situations. Besides the fenestra
ovalis, other perforations lead out of the vestibule into three arched
cylindrical canals of considerable diameter and dimensions, the diveig-
ing curves of which tak% a wide circuit within the cranial cartilage,
add terminate at both ends in this central cavity. These passages,
from their situation and form, are called the anterior, posterior, and
horiaontal semicircular canals. Within the canals, m which the
vestibular perilymph freely circulates, there are three similarly curved
but more slender membranous elastic tubes: they are nowhere in
contact with the sides of the canals, but are suspended in the midst
of them by means of the cellular net-work above mentioned. «They
■11 swell out at one end like a flask (ampulla) as they enter the vestT-
bule, after which the anterior and horiiontal tubes separately soter
a conmion pouch or sinus; into this their other ends likewise open
by a conduit oommon to both. The posterior tube, which is the
Uurgest and longest, after forming its ampulla resumes its former
calibre, and passing along the floor of the vestibule under the largeat
sac, to which it is connected by the network, returns into itael^ thus
completing a separate circuit
The fluid contents of the several membranous cavities do not com
municate with each other or with the vestibular perilymph ; thou^
as they lie in^ close apposition, their vibrations are mutually inter
changeable.
The acoustic nerve is distributed in two principal branches only to
the sacs and the ampulla ; chiefly to the latter, to which it gives a
white colour. The filaments form a fine network on the outaide of
the ampulla, and then, piermug -their parietes, are raised up within
into a kind of oresoentic screen, in order probably that they may be
more exposed to the impulse of the vibrations deaoending along the
aqueous endolymph of the semicircular tubes. AU the parte we have
described are transparent except the opaque ampulla and the solid
cretaceous otolithes. We have been particular in our account of these
membranous parts, which are found with littie essential variation in
all the superior animals, man included, because in the cartilaginous
fishes they admit of more easy examinaticm from their great sixe and
firmer texture, and from the softness of the cartilage that indosea
theuL In man and the mammals they are not only much smaller
and more delicate, but incased iu the hwdest bone in the body, fr^m
which it is almost impossible to separate them with sufficient accuracy
to be certain that the description is correct.
In some cartilaginous fishes, as the stuigeon, the fenestra ovalis is
not dosed by a membrane, but by a round button-like piece of semi-
transparent cartilage called an operculum, or lid.
The parts are similar in the osseous fishes, except that they have
generally no fenestra ovalis.
In Serpents there is but one saoculus containing chalky matter,
and all tiie semicircular tubes communicate with a cental m§m-
branous sinus, which the anterior and posterior tubes enter by a
common trunk. The fenestra ovdis is closed, not as in fishes by a
membrane, but by the expanded trumpet^haped extremity of a
slender bone (oanculum or columella) attached at the other extremity
by a ligament to the outer end of the intermaxillaiy bone.
Nearly the same arrangement of the internal ear prevails in the
Four- Footed Reptiles (turtie, crocodile^ frog, lizard) ; but a new and
important step is here made towards the ultimate perfection of the
oigan by the development of an air-cavity, called the tympanum or
earKlrum, between the vestibule and the surface of the head. This
addition, which as we said first becomes more than a mere rudiment
in the four-footed reptiles, permits the vestibule to be placed with
equal advantage at a comparatively greater depth, and therefore in
greater security; but it has more important uses in rendering the
sound more clear, and facilitating in several ways (to be presentiy
ex plained) its communication to the auditory nerve. Like the musical
instrument fix>m which it takes its name, the tympanum is provided
with a membrane tighUy stretched upon the maigin of a round open-
ing in the outer part of its bony or cartilaginous wall ; and has an
open vent or passage called after the anatondst who discovered it the
Eustachian Tube, leading forwards from the cavity to the throat or
back part of the nostrils, by means of which the air within it is
adjusted to the variable state of the atmospheric pressure without.
If the animal be amphibious, as many of the four footed reptiles are,
the membrana tympani is still covered entirely by integument ; some-
times, as in the crocodile, by a moveable flap of the scaly hard skin,
which can be raised up when the animal is out of the water. More
frequentiy however the membrane lies entirely beneath the skin, here
thinner than elsewhere on the head, as in the tortoise. The Laeerta
ogiliB, or Basking Lizard, alone, which lives entirely on the land, has
the membrane naked to the air. In this daas of animals the columella
is not directed forwards to the angle of the jaw as in serpents, but is
attached by a cartilaginous extremity to the centre of the membrana
tympani, and thus conveys the collected effect of its vibrations directiy
to the fenestra ovalis : the effect of this arrangement in rendering the
impression of sound more deflnite must be obvious. In some spedea
the cartilaginous portion of the columella is joined to the bony portion
at an acute angle, like the letter V, which adds an elastidty to the
mechanism very serviceable as a protection to the delicate parts within
the fenestra ovalis from the injury they might otherwise sustain by a
blow or \mdue pressure upon the membrana tympani This is the
case with the lisard mentioned above, in which there is also a rudi-
ment of the musde which serves in the higher animals to tighten the
membrane ; a drcumstance which makes this elbow in the columdla
a still more essential provision against sudden changes in the distance
between the centre of the membrane and the fenestra ovalis. It is
worthy of remark that in one class of serpents, the CtBcUia (Blind-
Worms), the ear is ss complete as in any of the foui^footed terrestrial
reptiles ; possessing a tympanum with its membranes, a Eustachian
tube, and a columella bent to an angle. This departure frt>m the
ususJ rule in serpents appears to be one of those compensations so
frequentiy met with in the animal kingdom, the organ of sight in the
CtBcUia being imperfectly developed.
In Birds, besides a greater nicety and tenuity in the conformation
MS EAR.
of tlw parts hitherto dercribfld, the «*r la fumiahed with two addi-
tional provWon*, both probably of great oonuBquBnoe totha perfaotion
of tha organ. The Bret ia a abort meatu" auditoriiu eiteroua. or
outer paaaage, which mnoventhe delicate membruie of the tympanum
to some depth from the aurface of the head, and thus plaoea it more
■eoural;, and at the vine time to greater advantage, for obaarying
the direction of sound. The other additional provision in birds ia an
appendsge to the mecbaniiini of the internal aar- This is a small
conical cavity in the bone, somewhat curved, with a double epiral
ridge winding round the interior, and inclosing a cartilaginous struo-
toie so corresponding in form with the ridge as to divide the cavity
into two partitions. These communimte with another at the apex,
and with (he vestibule and tympanum respectively, at their other
ends. The cavity is termed the Cochlea, from its resemblsnco lo a
spiral shell ; the partition communicating witb the internal ear is the
Scala (winding stair) of the veatihule ; the other ia the Soala TympanL
The opening from the latter inl« the tympanum is called the Forameii
Sotundnm ; it is closed by a membrane to exclude the air ef that
cavity while it permits the transit of vibmtiou to or from the veeti-
bulnr perilymph wiUiin ; for that fluid, passing up the cochlea by the
acala veatiboli, descends l^e scala tympani, and bathes the inDcr aur-
face of the membrane of the f^neatis rotunda. The cartilagiuoiui
N snwl is kept in its place like the semicircular tubas by retiform SIo-
mentB, and is supplied with a separate branch of the acoustic nerve,
which nmifles and expands on its surfoce. The lapilli, which seem
to be chieSy a provision for hearing imder water, and are therefore
large snd solid in aquatic and amphibious animals, appear in birds
only as Sue crystallised grains of chalk in the utricle or sinus of the
Yeetibule, rendering the endolymph somewhat turbid The columella
is Btruigbt, and the membnna tympani pressed outwards by it ia
Donsequentlj oonvex. There is a crescentic fold of akin extending
upwanls from the superior margin of the meatus extcnius. sometimes
famished, as in the homed owl, with a fringe of feathers which can
be ipiead at pleosnre like a fan to catch the sound. This fold of
skin i* a rudiment of the concha, or outer ear, of the Hammaiia.
As we have already laid, it ia only in this last.mentioDed class of
animals that the ear reaches its complete development. It is nearly
the some in oU of them ; the difference being only in the oomparatiira
size and shape of the component ports of the organ, and not in their
essential etructore, number, or arrangement.
We shall therefore describe the organ in one speciea only.
There is even reaaoo to suppose that in hearing, as in seeing, man
has no superiority over many of the lower animals except whst arises
from that intellectual aupremacy which enables him to discriminate
and compare his sensations more justly than they can do. Indeed it
is certain that in the mere perception of sounds ha ia inferior to most
of the Jfommoita, and probably to birds j (ud if the musical faculty
should seem to imply a greater perfection of the oigan, the error, for
such we believa it to be, may perhaps disappear upon reflection. We
therefore select the human ear as the type of the oi^an in ManmuUia,
not because it is in any respect more complete than the rest, but
as the most intereating. The same description, of the more important
parts at least, might he apphed nearly word for word to all.
The parts now to be deanribed fall naturally under a thrafr-fold
diviiion into the internal, middle, and external ear.
1. The Internal Ear, oomprising the Acoustic Nerve, Teetibuls, and
Labyrinth, is deeply placed in uie interior of the head, within the
moat compoot and hardest of the bones, denominated from that
eircomstanoB the petrous or rocky portion of the temporal bona.
This wedgB-like or triangular projeoUon passes obliquely inward and
forward in the direction of the outer tube of the ear, forming a
strongly-maAed knobby ridge within tbo cranium, in the boais or
Soor of that cavity. Near ^e inner point, which nearly meets its
fellow on tile other side, and upon its poaterior declivity, tiiere is a
large bumpst-like hole (meatus audilflrins intenus) into which the
seventh oerebral nerve enters from the meduUa oblongata. [Boaur ;
Neets.] The meatus passes in a direction outwards, and therefore
obliquely, into the petrous portion for half an inch, and then termi-
nates al:Tuptly in two fovea, or pits : from the upper of these there
goes a windiiq; canal through the substance of the bona, which is the
ooune of the motor narre of the face (the portio dura of the seventh
pair), which, hare separating from the auditory nerve, or portio
moliisi we need not follow. The latter, splitting into several sets of
filomanta, flnda its way through ' small sieve-like openings at the
bottom of the lower fovea into the internal nr, and is here distri-
buted in three aeporate portions to the cochlea, the ampulha of the
•smioiToalar tnbea, and the utncU or vestibular sao. The cochlea ia
more complicated than in birds ; it oonsista of a spiral canal in the
bone, gradually diminishing aa it ssoends to a point, wound round a
emtral hollow pillar of bone called the Modiolus, or NeweL From
ila inner snrfaoe, that namely which may be considered aa a groove
in the modiolus, a thin and spongy lamella of bone projects rather
more than half ocrosa the canal, aacendiiig in a similar spiroL From
the edge of this lamella (colled the I«mins Spiralis) a membrane paaaea
to the ODtar surface of the canal, where it ia attached ; thus com-
pletti^ the separatioD of the cansl into two loaln, or winding parti-
tiona, which unite at the inmmit^ and open (aa before), the lower and
IT intoHia veatibula, the superior and larger into tiia tympanum ;
EAa «M
each Bcala taiklDg two turns and a half round the modiolua in ascending
from the base of the oochlss to the Cupola, or inverted cup-ahaped
cavity at the summit, placed over the funnel (Infundibulum) into
whioh the top of the modiolus expsnda The oochlea la on a level
with the vestibule and anterior to it, tha base being turned tovrards
the meatus intemus; the summit looking outwards and a littJe down-
wards, is turned towards the sudden bend of the wide canal in tha
petrous portion of the temporal bone by which the internal oorotid
artery enters the cavity of the head. It is the close neighbourhood
of this artery aa it passes through the compact bone that oocaaiona
tha mahing sound of the pulse to be heard when the ear is placed
upon a pillow, or the attention is led to dwell upon what pnnnm
within, by deafness arising from aoms cause not affecting th- parts
essential to hearing. The modiolos ia hollow to some distoooa from
the base. Up this tubular cavity riaea tlia large ooohlear branch of
tha acoustic nerve, giving ofT lateral fllaniente through minute open-
ings arranged spirally, which paaa through the light apongy bone,
and emerge from difTerent pofnte on the spiral Soon and sides of the
soalse, where they lamify in a delicate pulpy expansion upon the
membrauouB tubes wliit^ line the apiral osseous canals : the rest of
the cochlear nerve pasBes through capillary perforationa in tlie cul-de-
sao of the tubular oari^ ; and aacending in the aubstanoe of tha
central pillar of tha modiolus, la distributed throu>.-h the bona in a
similar way to the upper tunia of the oochlea and the infundibulum.
The two other branches of the ooouatie nerve ore diatribut«d to the
vestibular aao, which lien in a round deprrasioa or pit in the barrel-
shaped cavity of tha vestibule, and to the ampullgg of the semimrcular
tubes. Tha Utter all meat in a membranous sinus, or utricle, whi<i
ocoupips another distinct pit of the vestibule, cslled from ite shape
the Elliptic Fovea, much according to the amngement already
described in other animals. The prinripal opening frum the veatibnls
ia the feneatra ovalia, aituated on the outer side towards tha tympa-
num, which is oloaed by a membrane. At the lower and front port
titere is another opening into the acala veatibuli of the cochlea.
There are Gva at tts posterior sud outer side, which lead into the
semicircular canals, of which the superior and posterior enter the
vestibule by a common foramen. The sac and utricle each contein
a cretaceous deposit called Otoconia, or ear«and, which in aome of the
lower Manmalia has the consistence of soft chslk. The cochlea and
aemiciroulor canala, from their oomplexity, are termed the Labyrin^
With respect to the object of their peculiar arrangement, not even a
probable conjecture faaa been hazarded. Trt they appear with aor-
E rising uniformity in all tjie Mammalia, snd some of them, as we
ave seen, in the more numerous tribes of birds, reptiles, and Gshea.
The bony canala of tha labyrinth and vestibule are atelod to be
invested within by a delicate periosteum, the surface of which
towards the perilymph is thought to be of tha nature of a aeroua
• to aecreto thot fluid.
woftheo*
«(raH
bTilnlh and VBaHhnlo s. they wonld
» In whicb thsT ,
; a, smpi
hlisndlh
BBper
« «n.] enter tbe natllHle ; ^ pes.
SUp«
'r csnsl ; /, eMhlea ; t. iU eapols ;
sUpes
i *, leneitTs rotuatUi I, miUsDs;
■slenla sndltns In litu
The deafneas which arises (h>m cauaea whioh atEsat the fenestra
ovolis, or the nerves and canala within the vestibule and labyrinth, is
seldom or never cured ; and it ia unfortunately very commoo. Then
is a very easy way by which tha nature of the case may be ofteD
sufficientiy tfsted. If the internal ear be affected, aapeciolly the nervea
of it, the ticking of a watch pressed against the teeth or the outer
part of the head on that side, will be very obscurely diatinguishad.
If not^ the aound can be easily heard, as the aolid bones interposed
between the lonorous body and the narre are exoellent ooDducton of
466
EAR.
EAR.
450
2. The Middle Ear oompriaes the cavity of the Tympanum, with
ita oontants ; the celLi in the bony prominence behind the ear, called
the Mastoid Process, with which the tympanum communicates ; and
the Eustachian Tube, or passage leading from the tympanum into the
upper and back part of the throat, where it opens in the form of an
expanded slit on each side behind the posterior nares.
The Tympanum is an irregular cavity scooped in the petrous portion
of the temporal bone between the vestibule and the external meatus.
The principal entrances to it are the fenestra ovalis and the round or
somewhat oval opening at the bottom of the external passage upon
which the membrana tympana is stretched. Between these there is
extended a chain of three small bones, obliquely articulated to each
other with perfect joints, so placed that the ohun somewhat resembles
in figure the letter Z.
These bones are called respectively the Stapes (stirrup), the Incus,
(anvil), and Malleus (hammer), from some similarity in form to those
implements. The base of the stapes is applied to the fenestra ovalis,
exactly fitting it, and is attached firmly to its membrane. The
extremity of the longer 1^ of the incus is articulated toHhe head of
the stapes, and there is a minute bone between them of the size of a
small snot, which is generally considered to be only a process of the
incus. It is however called from its spherical shape the Os Orbiculare,
and is sometimes reckoned as a fourth bone. {F^, S, o.) The Sorter
1^ of the incus {fig. 2, c,) rests against the bony parietes of the
tympanum at the back part, near the mastoid cells. Upon the hol-
low^ cavity in the head of the incus {fig. 2, a) the lateral depression
of the head of the malleus (fig, 2, h) is articulated, and moves easily ;
the long handle of the latter is attached by its extremity {fig. 2, h)
to the middle of the membrana tympani, as well as by a portion of
the side* of the handle, which Ues dose to and parallel with the
membrana The long slender process of the malleus called the Pro-
cessus Gracilis {fig. 2, ^) lies in a slit passing to the articulation of the
jaw called the glenoid fissure.
M I
Fig. 2.
o
^mo
Fiff, 2. Mftiniifled Tiew of the otalenla auditns: M, malleus; I, ineus;
S, supes ; Of ahape of the fenestra oralis ; a, eaTity of the ineoe, whiob is
articulated to the malleus ; <f, longer process of the ineus with the os orbiculare
attached at ft ; «, its shorter process ; «, head of the malleus ; /, its short pro-
cess, or prominent point for the attachment of the tensor tympani ; k, the
depr^sion which articulates with the incus; g, processus gracilis of the
malleus ; A, its handle, or manubrium.
Fig. 3.
^ ^ "^
Fig, S. The same bones of their natural size: m, malleus; i, incus;
1^ stapes ; o, orMcnlare.
At first sight the use of these bones would appear to be to transmit
the vibratioDs of the membrana tympani to the membrane of the
fenestra ovalis, and thence to the intemid ear, but when it is found
that sounds can be heard with distinctness even when the membrana
tympani and the ossicula have been removed by disease, it is evident
that this function can be performed independent of them. They have
evidently another use which would be incompatible with a single
bone passing between those membranes, as in birds and most roptiles;
this is to permit the membrafia tympani to be drawn into a conical
shape so as to tighten it, and adapt it either to resist the impulse of
too loud a sound, or favour a more acute or gentle one. The muscle
which chiefly efibcts this object^ called the tensor tympani {fig. 4, a),
IS attached near the head of the malleus to a point projecting from
it. {Fig. 2, /.) Other muscles, to steady and antagonise its action,
called ^e kaator major and minor tympani are also attached to the
malleus, the former {fig. 4, b) to ihe processus gracilis, the latter
{fig. 4, c) to the handle of the bone. A further description of the
directions and outer attachments of these minute mttacles would be
tedious and unintelligible to the general reader. No muscle is
attached to the incus, but a small one of great importance is inserted
into the neck of the stapes, called the stapideus ; the effect of this is
to counteract the obliquity of traction or tilting of the stapes, which
would otherwise ensue from the movements of the other bones ; by
this means the motion of the stapes it directed either immediately to
or fix)m the fenestra ovalis, the membrane of which is also further
preserved from injuiy by tiie oblique arrangement of the joints of
these minute bones, by means of which, although the membrane of
the tympanum oscillates through a considerable space in passing from
tension to relaxation, that of the fenestra is moved to a much smaller
extent. It is to be observed that the same action which draws the
membrana tympani into a cone thrusts the base of the stapes farther
into the fenestra ovalis.
Fig. 4.
Fiff, 4. Muscles attached to the ossicula auditus : a, tensor tympani ;
6, lazator major ; e, lexator minor ; (f, stapideus.
These small muscles are not under the dominion of the will, being
supplied with nerves in a way peculiarly interesting to a physiologist,
and actuig automatically in corraspondence with &e impressions on
the auditory nerve. Tet the instinctive consciousness we have of the
degree of their contractions in adjusting the tension of the membrana
tympani to ciroumstances, is probably one of our chief means of
estimating the intensity of sounds.
The fenestra ovalis is situated nearly opposite the membrana
tympani, on the upper edge of a prominence called the Promontory;
it fisces outwards and a little downwards ; and beneath it^ concealed
by the promontoxy, is the foramen rotundum, closed by a membrane,
and leading into the cochlea by the scala tympani The object of this
last opening is disputed : some think it conveys in part the vibrations
of the air of the tympanum to the internal ear; but it seems mora
reasonable to suppose, with Sir C. Bell, that the end it chiefly serves
is to give vent and freedom to those of the fluids pent up in the
unyielding bony csnals of the labyrinth. Besides these openings
from the tympanum, there aro othen which lead into the mastoid
cells behind it ; these aro also filled with air, and are supposed to con-
tribute to the distinctness of the tympanic vibrations. There is also
an opening from the tympanum forwards into the Eustachian tube.
This canal is nearly two inches long ; the firat part of its course from
the tympanum is bony : it then becomes cartilaginous, and widens as
it approaches the throat, the mucous membrane of which lines it> and
thence passing into the tympanum, spreads over the surface of the
whole cavity, investing the ossicula and its other contents, as well as
the mastoid cells. ]^m this ciroumstanoe arises the tendency of
the inflammation of cold or sore throat to extend into the tympanum,
producing temporary deafness, ear-ache, and sometimes mischief of a
more permanent kind. From the deafness which accompanies the
closure of the Eustachian tube by that or other causes, the importance
of its functions in renewing and giving vent to the air within the
tympanum may be appreciated. Besides the foramina already men*
tioned, there are othera through which nerves and vessels enter the
tympanum. We have not space to describe them : we shall only
mention that one of the nerves, called the chorda tympani, originally
connected with the portio dura of the seventh nerve, after traversing
the petrous bone in a circuitous course, entera the cavity of the
tympanum, and passing quite across it, is transmitted through the
glenoid fissure to a salivary gland under the lower jaw. The object
of this singular but uniform course of the chorda tympani is not well
understood.
Deafness arising from the closure of the Eustachian tube has been
sometimes cured by dilating that canal by instruments passed for
that purpose into its outer expanded extremity through the nostrils,
or from the back of the throat; or by injecting fluids into it by
means of a syringe with a small curved pipe. This latter plan has
also been success^ in curing deafness arising from chronic inflamma-
tion or morbid secretion within the tympanum. Suppuration within
that cavity or in the mastoid cells sometimes results from high inflam-
mation, and has been attended with fiital consequences by spreading
to the bones of the craniimi, or along the nerves to the brain or its
membranes. Cases of this kind genendly originate, as we have already
stated, in cold with sore throaty and are found to occur chiefly in scro-
fulous habits.
3. The External Ear consists of the Meatus Auditorius Extemus
{fig* 5, m), and Concha. The former, commencing from the membrana
tympani, is an osseous canal in the first part of its course in the adult,
and then becomes nothing more than a tubular continuation of the
expanded cartilage of the concha, or outer appendage of the ear. It
is lined throughout with a delicate skin, covered by a thin cuticle,
which also covera the outer surface of the membrane. Beneath the
skin, and opening through it on the surface, are numerous glandular
follicles which secrete the ear-wax or cerumen. In the fcetua and
new-bom infimt there is hardly any appearance of this tube ; the
membrane of the tympanum being close to the surface of the head,
stretched upon the inner margin of a bony ring (annulus auditorius)
EAR.
which afterwards inonoiea in length and bscomes a tube, In the
kdnlt tlie length of the whole tubs ma; be nearly an inofa ; but from
the obliquity of the membrane, wMch face* a tittle downwardi, it ia
longer below than above. Its diroctian bom the membrane ia out-
warde and a little baokvards, and it !■ slightly convex upwarda, and
rather narrower in the middle than eliewhere. The iaet-mentioned
I>eculiarity ia the reaton why.it ia » much aeeier to introduce beads
and otiier roond bodies (aa children are apt to do) than to get them
out. This however must always be done as soon sa poasible when
Buch an accident happeni ; for the presence of the foreign body some-
timea eicitea great inflammation and swelling, and may lead to Toy
* net to be eoniidt
ilr ■■ I dlsrrsDi, ta I
rml part. ; a, iDperli
oerrtQt deUntaLlon of the orgsn,
'Btnl IdH or the relsliie 111111-
dreuLiT oaaal ; fr, potterlor ditto ;
jmpKiil or the oDchlH opened, to show r, the
serious ooneequencea. The most eaay method and the leaat punful ia
to direct a atrong stream of trarm water into the tube with a ajringe,
which commonly succeeds immediately if resorted to before there ia
much iweUing. Other means will readily suggest themselves ; but if
resorted to, they should be very tenderly used, for the part ia extremely
Beneitive, espcciaUy the membrane itaelf, to roagh contact The wai,
which a very bitter, servee to prevent tiie entrance of insects and to
keep the skill soft. When secreted too abundantly, it is often a caose
of deafhsM, and should be removed as a foreign body by means of a
syringe and a solution of soap in warm water. The commonest kind
of ear-ache is tlmt caused by inflamm&tion of this passage, and ia
generally followed by a copious and fcetid secretion poured out by
Fig, e.
10 cartiLsfe, tKiag compoud
inriele. The sartlliiciaoiis p
1 I, uitl-ln(D> ■ the lota or lobulo*, f, «
1I7 of ikln and a Mtr ccUoIir tlnoe. T
uaptaold (b«Utke) rosu ; and/, the ooochi,
le nbole sppeodife of vhlob It li tbe mi
linous follicles. If this last long, deafaess is sometimea the
ui thickening of the membrane, and has been removed, aa
hat ariung mim closure of the Eustachian tube, by puno-
B mambnne. This part ia sometimes ruptured by the
spasmodic action of the tensor muscle oaused by loud sounds, or by
driving air up the Eustachian tube in a forcible expiration, as in blow-
ing the nose violentlv. This accident is not followed by the degree of
d^nesa that might be expected, unless the stapes beoomes displaoed
from the fenesira ovalis : Uie other ossicula may be lost with ooni-
parative impunity for obvious reasons.
The condia, or pinoa, or auricle (for by alt these names the outer
appendage of the ear ia known), oonaiale of several pieces of elaalie
cartilage expanded in a farm more or less resembling an ear-trumpet
in different ^nirnala, In man it serves the purpose of collecting the
sonorous vibntions and directing them into the meatus extemua
much lese perfectly than in many other animals, which are also pro-
vided with nmsdes for directing it to tbe source of sound, wbioh in
man are but mdimentary. It is marked with various prominences
and hollows, of which the names aie given in the Bgura. It does not
seem neeeesary to deacribe them more particularly. The cartilages
are bound by ligameata to the neighbouring promineooea of bone, and
are covered by » smooth and closely adherent skin.
It may be observed that the Aquatic Mamouiiia (Whales, Porpoises,
to.) an unprovided with this part of the organ ; and have a very
narrow but long and curved meatus extemua, passing obliquely into
the euifaoe of tbn head, sjid in soma instances capable of being closed
1^ a flap of movcsble skin to eiolude the wator. In these animaU
also the cochlea is imperfect, the acalte making but one turn and a half
round the modiolus. For an account of diseases of the ear, see Dsar-
ana, in Avn un> So. Div.
EAI^SHELL. [Hiuorma.]
EARTH-NUT. [Busidil]
EARTH-NUTS are either the fhiit of oertun plants which bnry it
below tbe ground after the flowering is past, as tba Aradiit ifpogaa,
Lalhyna anpkicaiyat, and others, or else the subterranean tubwilea
of flosby'footed planti^ suoh aa BuOocaitMui^, OnUamoi, LaiXgnu
iM&eronu, ApiothtbaVMn, and the like.
EARTH-WORK. [ABJramii.1
EARWIG. [FOHFlCULIDi.]
sepante a
r, of a
thick leatheiv texture, uaually downy on the outaid^ with the ai
number of diviatona as the calyx. Stamens twice or (bur Umes aa
numeroua sa tbe lobea of the ooroUa, adhering to its tube, and usually
in two rows ; sometimea adhering in pairs. Stylaa seveiml Fruit
fleshy, superior, with only one pendulous seed in each calL Embryo
lying in much albumen, with large leafy ootyledona and a long tsner
rsdiclo. The speoiea consist entirdv of bushes or treea, some of whidi
sre of large sise ; tbeir lesvea are alternate, with no stipules, and gene-
rally leatiiery and shining. They are otuefiy Indian and tropicsl
species. A few occur at Uie Cape of Oood Hope and in Australia.
Thia order ia related to Aqu^oiiaeea, Oitaeta, and SapoUteta. There
an 9 genera and 160 species. Diotpj/nti Steniu, and some othen,
yield Ow valuable timber called ebony- The fruit of D. ScJd is about
~ ~ large aa an apricot, and is dried aa a sweetmeat by the Chinese.
>at of the ^ants of this of' '"
3 tropioa, D. Lolut inhabit
atia the Vmi»A Slates. [Di
EBONY.
EBONY. [Di
E BURN A. [ERTOHOeTOKATA.]
ECCREHO CARPUS, ■ geniu of Plants belongii^ to th« natoisl
ordn BigtioniiKea. B. toahtr la a olimbing plant, inhabiting thickets
and h«4ges in Peru and Cbili, and lorambling among the bmncheH
of buahes and sm^ll treee. It has an anjplar cinnamon-browa itam,
with pal«-meti nicculent branches; opposite pinnated trifotiolate
leaTM, with obliquely cordate serrat^ leaflets, and a terminal tendril ;
horiionla] raoetnee of tubular oran^je-ecarlet obliquelj Tentriooae
flow«n, tiis limb or whose ooroUa is narrow and 5-lobsd ; and remark-
able on] eomprassed pods covered all over with short tubflrdes, and
openitig into two thin eonvez volvee, within whioh is planed a number
of thin winged netted seeds. It is a handsome half-ahrubby plant,
whioh will Uve in the open air in the milder ports of EIngland. By
some it is called OaltoApdit teabra.
ECCULKyHPBALI^ a genus of Fossil Oatttropeda, horn the
Mountnin Limestone chiefly. (PortlooL)
ECHENEI'S, a genus of Fishts belonging to the sMticm of Sub-
brachial MaloMpterygii and the family S^eneida. The body is
elongated, corered with very noall scales; a nngle donal Sn placed
opposite the anal; the bead rer; flat, covered with on otU disc
formed hj numerous transvaise cartilaginous plataa, the edge* of
which ac« directed backward ; the mouth wide, with numerous small
ptourred teeth on both jaws, the tongue, and the vomer. (YarrelL)
The species at this genus are not □umerous. Cuviar enumeniea
four, and another baa been deacribiid from the West Indiea. They
are all easily recoguissd by the peculiar adhesive disc on the top of
the head, by means of which they attach themsalvaa to other flahes,
the bottoms of vessels, or other objects floating in tlia sea. The
object ol this oontrivonce ia cot very well oacertained.
E. renufm, the Common Remora, or Sucking-Fish, is found in the
Hediternuisan Sea, and was known to the Oraeks and Romsna. Dr.
Turton once took a spemmen of thia species riding on a oodSah in
Swansea Bay. The following is Mr. Yartell's description of the
sucking appamtua ; —
" The dlio of the adhesive apparatus in the spedmen now
described, with aeventeen transverse laminn, was one-third of the
whole IsDgth of the fish, not including the caudal raya ; the breadth
one inch and one quarter. The margin is free, flexible, and of
eansidenihle breadth, to secure perfect contact with the surface
to which it is oppcaed ; the psrallel lamina are represented as
only slightly elevated: the degree of adhMuon is in proportion to
the poner ased to ruse the inner surface of the disc in a direction
perpendicular to the plana of contact. The figure on the tight
aide represents the inner surface of the posterior half of the disc
The vertical direction of the moveable laminie is effected by sets
of muscles going ofi' obliquely right and left from two elongated
bony processes, ons on each half of each of these moveable diviaious.
The contraction of these muscles acting upon these levers, raises Uie
external edges of the parallel diviaions, increasing the area of the
vacuum ; and it will be observed that the pointa of the moveable
ttansvi-na divisions to whioh the muscles am attached, are nearer the
middle line than the outer edge, by which the chance of interfering
with the perfect continuity of the free margin, and thsrsby destroy-
ing the vacuum, is diminished. All the bony latniius, the ooter edges
of which are famished with rows of minute looth-Hke projections,
are moved simultaneoaaly, like the thin vertical diviaions of our
common window-blinda, by means of the mechanical oontrivanoe on
the framework. The longer musolee placed nearerths outer oval edge
are probably instrumental in presuming the contact of the more
fleiible margin, and the sermted external edges of the parcel Iftn^'w^p
help to pmerve the degree of elevatioa obtamed : the adhesive power
as before obeerved, is in proportion to the area of the vaonum."
ECUEVERIA, a genua of Plants named aft«r H. Echeveri, author
of the drawings in the ' Flora Meiiesna.' It lieloDgs to the order
CrOMiUacete. It has a 5-parted oalyi, the sepals erect, united at the
base. Petals united at the base, ereot, thick, stifflsh, thickest at the
middle nerve, and nearly trigonal at the base, acute. Stamens 1 0,
shorter than the petals, and adnata to them at the bas& Scales 6,
short, obtuse. Coqicls 6, ending each in a subulate ityl& The spe-
cies ore succulent shrubs, natives of Mexico. None of the species are
used in the orta or medicine, but their handsome leaves and showy
flowera give them a place in evet^ collection of plants. The genus is
closely allied to Stdum, and many of the species resemble that genus.
ECHIDNA (Cuvier). TocAjryloinu (llliger), a genus of Monatr«mes,
Monolremala (GeoflVay), the third tribe of the order BdaUiUa
(Cuvier's sixth older of Mammifers) none of which have any incisor
teeth in either jaw.
Dental formula a
The following are the charnctera of this genus : — Muxale elongated,
slender, terminated by a small mouth furnished with an extensible
tongue, eimilsr to that of the anteatets and pangolins. No teeth, but
tbu palate armed with many rows of small spines directed backwards.
Fret rhort, very robust, and formed for digging, eooh armed with
Are long claws. Tail very short. Body covered with spines like
that of the hedge-hog. Stomach ample and nearl; globular; cteoiun
moderate. Leur verge se tannine par quotre tubercules.
Of this curious genus, soobgista are agreed that only one species
ECHIDNA. 4»
has been yet disoovered, though two have been iwordM, namely,
EAidtta BytMx and Echwtaa ittota. the sooalled two spsdea being
the same animal in the clothing of diffinent seasons, or of differcmt
periods of sge. This species is the Mgrmftopiaiia aemitaia Bod
Porcnpine Ant-Eater of Shaw, Oraitkorkynchia amleotwi of Home,
Echidna HyttHx and Ediidita utota of Q. Cuvier, Eekidna A*iMtn-
litani of Lesson, Hedg»-Hag of the oohinists at BydiiS7.
SkDllor.&*U<ia.
The sixs is about that of the common hadge-hc^ The spinoa ar«
dirty-white for the greatest part of their length, and bUck at their
extremity. Hair of a chestnut Colour, soft and dlky, in such abun-
danoe^ at a certain season, as to half cover the spines, whilst, at
soother, the hair entirety disappears.
This animal lives on ants, which it captures with il« extensOa
The habits of the Echidna b a sUte of nature are but little known.
It digs for iteelf burrows, wherein it remains during the dry season,
coming out of the earth only daring the rains. It is supposed to be
capable of supporting a long abstinence, and has intervals of sus-
pended animation (engourdissemens), which continue for eighty honia
at a time, and recur frequently when the animal is kept in coofino-
menb For protection the animal is said to be able to roll itself up
like a common hedge-bog.
LieuL Breton had an Echidna which lived with him for some time
in Australia, and survived a part of the voyage to Bngland, The
animal was captured by him on the Blue Mountains : it is now very
uncommon in the colony of New South Walaa It burrows readily,
but he does not know to what depth. Its strength he considers aa
exceeding, in proportion to its aise, tiiat of any other quadruped in
Previous to embarkation. Lieutenant Breton fed his EMdna on
ant eggs (pupgg) and milk, and when on board its diet ooDsisted of
egg <£opped small, with liver and meat. It drank much water. Its
mode of ealinr wae very curious the tongue being used sometimes in
the manner of that of the chameleon, and at others in that in which
a mower uses his scythe, the tongue being curved laterally, and the
food, as it were, swept into the mouth ; there seemed to be an adhe-
sive substance on the tongue, by wiiich the food was drawn in. The
animal died suddenly off Cape Horn, while the vessel was amidst tha
ice; perhaps in eoosequence of the cold, but not improbahty on
acoount of the eggs with which it was fed being extremely bad.
Lieutenant Breiton concurs with Hesaieure Quoy and Oaimard in
thinking that there would be little difficulty in bringing the Echidna
to Europe, and the following plan is suggested by him fbr effecting
Ha importation : —
Previously to embarkation the animal should be gradually weaned
fnta its natural food (ants). This may be done by giving it ooca-
box, with strong bars over the top, and a door. The box or lage
must be deep, because the animsl constantly triee its utmost to
escape ; and, as it poaseases very great strength, it ia liable to injure
itself in its exertions to force its way thnmgh the bore. Its excie-
ments are so extremely fetid, that it cannot be kept altogether in a
cabin, unless the okge be freqnentiy cleaned. While this is being
done, the EAidna may be allowed ita Hber^, but must be narrowly
461
ECHINABACHARIAS.
ECHINIDiE.
462
mraiched, or it will certainly go overboard. It ia absolutely necessary
that the eggs on which it is fed durinff the voyage ahoold be as fresh
as possible : they can be preserved in lime-water. If milk is not to
be procured, water must be supplied daily ; and ^gg and liver, or
fresh meat> cut small, should be given at Imst every alternate day.
When the weather will permit, it should be fed once a day. Half an
egg, boiled hard, and the liver of a fowl or other bird, will suffice for
a meal. The animal should be kept warm, and should be well sup-
plied with dean straw. It will be as well to nail two or three pieces
of wood (battens) across the floor of the cage, to prevent the animal
from slipping about when tiie ship is unsteady. ('ZooL Proc/ 1834,
Parts.)
It inhabits the Blue Mountains, &a, the environs of Port Jackson,
and Van Diemen's Land.
ECHINARAGHNIUa [Eohinida]
ECHINASTRJSA. rMADBXFHTLLKEA.]
EGHI'NID^, a family of Radiated Animals, comprehending those
marine animals popularly known by the name of Sea-Eggs, or Sea-
Urchins (Oursins of tiie French).
De Blainville makes the Bchinidea, the second order of the class
Eehinodermaia, and he thus defines the order : —
Body oval or circular, regular, sustained by a solid shell, which is
calcareous and composed of polygonal plates, disposed in radiated
order in 20 rows, wluoh are either equal, or alternately and regularly
unequaL The shell supports upon proportionable mamillary projec-
tions stiff spines which are extremely variable in form, and is pierced bv
a series of pores, forming by their assemblage a kind of ambulacra. It
radiides more or less regularly from the snnmiit to the base, and g|ives
exit to tentaculiform oirrhL Mouth armed or unarmed, pierced in a
notch of the shell invariably on the lower side. Vent always distinct,
but offering many variations in its position. Generative orifioee four
or five in number, disposed round the dorsal sammit.
The SeopUrchins are a fomily of considerable interest both to the
soologist and geologist. To the first they ofier the most perfect
examples of the type of radiate animals, whilst their hard covering
and habits of living in the sand, have preserved them in many rocks
of the strata of the earth for the study of the geologist. They are
distinguished from the other Bektnodermata by their form, which is
more or less rounded without arms of any kind. Calcareous matter
is deposited within their integument so as to form a series of regular
plates, which are studded with tubercles, bearing jointed on them
spines of various forms and sizes according to the genus or family.
These spines are scnnetimes small in proportion to the sice of the
body, but in othen they are singularly lox^e, and excite wonder as to
how they can be employed by the animal. These spines have a
beautiful microscopic structure, being composed of cells which are
arranged around a common centre, almost in the same manner as the
zones of wood in a tree. (Carpenter ' On the Structure of Shells.' ) As
in other Eehinodermtant the Sea-Eggs have ambulacra variously
arranged, perforated with pores for the exsertion of suckers, or
feet The ovarian holes are seated on the apex, whence the eggs are
extruded. There are two openings for the digestive apparatus — a
mouth, always placed below and sometimes connected with an internal
dental apparatus, and a vent^ which is very variable in its position.
The intestine is winding, and is attacbed to the inner surface of the
shell by a mesentery, the surface of which, as well as of the membrane,
lining the shell, is- covered with vibratile cilia, and imdoubtedly
serves for respiiatory purposes. The ovaries are placed in the spaces
between the ambulaou. The vascular system is more or less
complicated, having a portion with muscular parietes, and exhi-
biting pulsations. Van Beneden has asserted the existence of a
nervous system in the Echinidcgf but no one has yet confirmed his
observation.
The Sea-X7rchins progress by means of the joint action of their
suckers and spines. Many of theija moor themselves also by* means
of sudLers, and thus adhere firmly to the rocks. Professor Agassiz
denies that they adhere by means of their suckers, or that these
organs serve the purposes of progression. This is however opposed
to the observations of the majori^ of naturalists, and Professor E.
Forbes refers especially to Auis point for the purpose of giving his
unqualified opposition to the assertion of Professor Agassiz. As to
what uses these oigans are applied to, if not for progression. Professor
Agassiz states that *' we are yet unable to solve.
The Sea-Urchins are free throughout their existence, unlike the
AttericKUe, in which we find a fixed condition in the earliest periods of
their development. [Echinodebmata.]
With regard to the classification d the EchimdaSf Professor E.
Forbes remarks that there has been " a tendency to an extreme multi-
plication of genera."
Breyn, Klein, Lonnseus, Leske, Lamarck, Cuvier, Gray, Desmarest,
Goldfuss, Von Buch, Desmoulins, Agassiz, and K Forbes, are the
principal zoologists who have undertaken the classification of the
Echinida, De Blainville observes that the relative position of the
mouth snd the vent, and above all, of the ambulacra, are the prin-
cipal points on which most of these writers have rested ; and as he
considers that this mode of viewing the subject has led to approxima-
tions not very natural, he proposes a system based on the following
grounds :— ,
Subcentral . . . . ^
V
1st. On the general form of the body of the animal, which, at first
subradiated, becomes by little and UtUe completely radiated in all
the parts which oonstitute it.
2nd. Upon the position of the mouth, which, nearly terminal and
transverse, or bilabiated, in the first species, becomes completely
central and circular in the last.
8rd. On the arming of this mouth, which, completely null in a
great proportion of the JBchinidcBf is, on the contrary, very powerful
in the rert.
4th. Finally, on the position of the vent, on the number of ovaries
and their orifices, on the nature of the spines and the tubercles
which support them, as well as on the disposition of the ambu-
lacra.
Synoptical Table of the Genera, according to De Blainville : —
Subterminal . . J SpiUangut,
\ AnanehUes.
f r NucUolUeB,
Echinoclypeus.
Without teeth .... ^JJ*^-*
FibiUctria.
^Echincneta,
Mouth • . . / f Echtnocyamua
Laganus,
Armed with teeth . . < Clypecuter,
Edtinoditctu,
[SeuteUa.
' Infrarlateral CfalerUei.
Centnd;Vent..J riaW«om«<ro.
dentral < Echinus,
lOidaris.
Sub-Family 1. Excentroitomaia.
Spatangm. — ^Body oval, more or less elongated, heart-shaped, wider
before than behind, with a furrow more or less profound at the
anterior extremity. Shell delicate, of little solidity, composed of
large polygonal plates, not many in number. Spines shorty flat, sessile,
and scattered. Ambulacra incomplete, only four in number. Buccal
notch more or less anterior, transverse, bilabiated, circumscribing a
mouth without teeth. Vent terminal, and rather above than below
the border. Genital pores four in number, disposed in two pairs.
The spedes are very numerous, and are subdivided by De Blainville
and others into sections according to their shape, &o. The following
IB De Blainville's method : —
a. Species whose ambulacra are not petaloid, and form scarody
but two lines, a little broken or '''ent at their internal side, and
which have a rather deep anterior furrow, and the month not much
in front.
S, arcuariuB of Lamarck, the Common Heart-Urchin, may be taken
as an example of this section. It is the & pusiUui of Leske ; 8»
eordatut, Fleming ; 8.fiave9cent, MiiUer ; EehiiMu ip<Uangiu, LinnsBus ;
E, putiUus, Gmelin; E. cordatus, Pennant; Ampktdotut puMut,
Agassiz. It is the oommoneist form of Spaiangtu in the European
seas. It abounds in all the bays of Great Britain, and after storms
is cast on shore. Popularly it is called in England the Mermaid's-
Head, the Child's-Head Urchin, the Hairy Sea-1^.
$, Heart-shaped spedes, with five deep and straight dorssl furrows,
in which the ambulacra are hidden. Ex. 8. Atropos,
y. Species whose ambulacra are petaloid, going from a centre,
and which have an antero-dorsal furrow more or less deep, occupying
the place of the fifth ambulacrum ; the posterior pair shorter than
the anterior. This section is divided into sub-sections, according to
the depth of the ambulacra.
8. pwrpurefUf the Purple Heart-Urchin, is an example of this
section. It is found in the seas of Great Britain, and is one of the
handsomest species of the whole family. It grows to the length of
4 inches by 8^ itiches broad. It is of a deep purple colour, with pale
spines ; some of the spines are very long and curved.
9. Species whose anterior furrow is much less deep, or nearly nuU,
and whose ambulacra, more or less petaloid, to the number of four,
occupy the greatest part of a sort of dorsal plate, circumscribed by
a sinuous line without tubercles or spines. This section indudes the
genus Brittut of Klein.
B. lyrifer (Forbes), the Fiddle Heart^Urchin, is a British spedes, and
may be taken as an example of the section. This spedes has heea taken
by Professor K Forbes in various localities in the sestuaiy of the
Clyde, off the island of Cumbrae in Rothsay Bay and the Kyles of
Bute. It IB a handsome and remarkable spedes. It has a red body
with pale yellowish-white spines, and the dorsal and poet-anal
impressions of a rich brownish-purple. It inhabits mud at the depth
of from 10 to 15 fathoms.
c. Heart-shaped species, rather strongly widened and notched in
front, with five distinct and truncated ambulacra. Ex. 8. gil>bH$,
C spedes whose anterior furrow is still distinct ; whose ambulacra,
to the number of four, are maiiginal, and sometimes complete, or
reaching up to the mouth ; and whose genital pores are five. This
463
ECHINIDiE.
ECHINIDiB.
section is subdivided into two, according to the extent of the ambu-
lacra, the fint (ex. & nAghbatw), with ambulacra only reaching the
circumference; the second (ex. S, cordaittg, AnanchiUi cordiuuif
Lam.), with ambulacra reaching to the border.
De Blainville supposes that the SpcUangi are nourished with the
animal matters which are mingled with the sand ; for their intestinal
canal, which is thin as a spider^s web, was always found by him full
of fine sand.
Ananchitea (fossil only). — Body oval in its longer diameter (from
before backwards), rounded and a little wider, but without a furrow,
anteriorly, subcarinated posteriorly, conical, elevated at its summit,
which is mesial, entirely flat below, covered with a very few small
scattered tubercles. Ambulacra, to the number of five, rather large,
divergent^ comprised between double lines of pores but little approxi-
mated, and scarcely overpassing the borders. Mouth and vent sub-
terminal and inferior. De Blamville subdivides this genus into two
sections ; the firsts with the ambulacra prolonged up to the borders
{Anan^iies. Lant), ex. A, ovaiut; the second, with the ambulacra
prolonged up to the mouth {Echinoeoryaf Leske, Gray ; Galea, OaUola,
klein), ex. A. pusttdonu, Behinoeatytes puttvlonu, Leske.
8ub-Family 2. — Paraeentrcutomata EdenttUa,
NueUoliiet (fossil only). — Echinobriirua of Breyn and Grav, adding
the Caniduke. — Body oval or heart-shaped, wider and witn a large
furrow behind, rather convex, the summit sulnsentral and mode-
ratelv elevated above, somewhat concave below ; covered with small
equal and scattered tubercles. Ambulacra, to the number of five,
subpetaloid, open at the extremity, dorsal and marginal, and con-
tinued by as many furrows up to the mouth, which is inferior, sub-
central, and anterior. Vent sub-central, above, in the furrow. Genital
pores to the number of four. Ex. N, depreum, Spatangui deprtuva,
Leske, Klein ; Clypeua lohcUtu, Fleming.
The species are tolerably numerous and are frequent in the Chalk,
but are also found in the beds anterior and posterior to it.
JBchinodypeut (fossil only). — ^Body depressed or conical, circular or
inclining to oval, with a furrow behind, convex and with a sub-central
summit above, rather excavated below, formed of distinct plates and
covered with very small equal tubercles. Ambulacra to the number
of five, dorso-mai^ginal, sub-petaloid ; the double rows of pores united
by a transverse furrow. Mouth sub-central, a little more anterior,
pentagonal, with five converging ambulacriform furrows. Vent
entirely above, behind the summit^ and at the origin of the posterior
furrow. Genital pores to the number of four.
Bekinolampaa, Gray. (Behinanthui f Leske).— Body oval or dr-
oular, depressed, sul>convex above, rather concave below, rounded
and widened forward, rather narrowed towards the anal extremity,
composed of great polygonal plates and covered with spines, probably
very smalL Ambmam, to the number of five, sub-petaliform, not
closed at their extremity, and nearly approaching the border. Mouth
round, sub-central, and nevertheless a little anterior. Vent entirely
maiginid, terminal Genital pores fojir only in number. Ex. R
orienialU (recent).
Cfatndukk — Body oval, more or less depressed, composed of
indistinct plates and covered with small spines. Ambulacra five,
dorsal, rarely maiginaL Mouth below, submedian, in a stelliform
notch. Vent postero-dorsal, or above the border. (Genital pores four.
De Blainville subdivides this genus into the following sections : —
a. Species whose ambulacra form a dorsal star, and whose mouth
is at the bottom of a stelliform impression. Ex. C. Lapia Caneri.
0, Species whose ambulacra are prolonged to the border and not
closed. Ex. (7. Auatralia,
y. Species whose ambulacra are not known to De Blainville. Ex.
CacuUlkL
De Blainville observes that this genus (Lamarck's) ia evidently
artificial Goldfusa unites the genus with Nudeoliiea.
Fibularia. — Body globular, but rather higher than it is wide,
ribbed, as it were, wiw about 20 ribs, formed probably by so many
ranks of polygonal scales^ and covered with very fine spines.
Ambulacra five, very short» and not shut at the extremity. Mouth
round, sub-centraL Vent inferior, and much approximated to the
mouth. Genital pores unknown. Ex. F. craniolaria.
This genus was established by Van Phelsum and by Leske, under
the denomination of Schinocyamua, adopted by Dr. Gray. £,puaiUua
is a British species, and Professor E. Forbes says it is one of the
connecting links between the true Echini and the Spatangacece. It
has the teeth of the former and the spines of the latter. It is the
least of all the British species, and one of the smallest of the family.
Mr. Forbes says, "I believe the Fibularia ovulum and F. tarentina
of Lamarck, and the F, angyUoaa of Deslongohamps, will all prove
to be identical with this species."
Echinontua, — Body rounded or oval, generally excavated below,
composed of plates often distinct and covered with small spines.
Ambulacra five, large, complete, radiating from the dorsal centre to
the mouth, and formed by ambulacral lines, which are very dose and
impressed. Mouth central or sub-central, without teeth, and pierced
in a sub-triangular hole of the shell. Vent towards the border below
or even above, in a longitudinal and sub-symmetrical hole of the
shell. Genital pores four.
De Blainville subdivides the genus into the following sections : —
a. Oval species, with the anal hole longitudinal and below.
E. minor,
0. Circular spedes, with the vent bdow and round. {ZHaooidea,
Gray). Ex. E. aubucultta.
y. Oval spedes, with the vent entirdy marginal, and the genital
pores to the number of seven (I) Ex. E, ovalia.
9, Circular species, which are depressed and have a margino-donMl,
non-eymmetrical anal opening. Ex. E. caaaidularia,
Sub-Family 8. — Paracentraatamata DentatcL
Mouth subcentral, in a regular notch of the shell, and provided
with teeth.
^ Echinocffamtta. — Body depressed, oval, wider behind than before^ a
little excavated bdow, covered with rounded tubercles pierced at
the summit and rather large in proportion, supported internally by
five double inferior ribs, terminating round the buccal notch by as
many simple apophyses. Ambulacra dorsal, not marginal, completely
open at the extremity, a little enlarged, and forming a sort of croes
with dilated branches. Buccal opening sub-centru, regular, armed
with five teeth as in Olypeaater, Vent below, between the mouth and
the border. Genital pores four. Ex. E, minuiua.
De Blainville states that he characterised this genus finom a con-
dderable number of individuals of a very small spedes found in the
intestines of a turbot, and which occurs in great quantity in the
sand of the coasts of tiie English Channd, according to Pallaa, both
on the French and English dbores. He adds that, very probably, it
is the Fibularia ovulwn of Lamarck; and that, without doubt,
Fibularia tarentina belongs to this genus, as well as Eekinoneua
placenta of Goldfuss.
Lagana,QT9Lj {EchinodisGua, Van Phelsum, Leske). — Body depressed,
drcular or oval lengthwise, a little convex above, concave below, with
an entire disc and borders, composed of plates, but littie distinct
and covered with scattered spines* Ambulacra five, regular, petaloid,
shut, or nearly so at the extremity, with the pores of ^bch side
united by a furrow. Mouth median in the middle of a hole, with
converging furrows and furnished with teeth. Vent inferior, pierced
in a regular hole, situated between the mouth and the border. Q«nital
pores five. The genus is thus subdivided by De Blainville : —
a. Circular spedes. Elx. L. orbicularia,
fi. Oval spedes. Ex. L, ovalia,
y. Polygonal specie^ Ex. L, decagona.
The genus approximates to Clypeaater, under whidi Lamarck
arranges the species.
Olypeaater, — Body much depressed, rounded and rather thick on
the borders, sometimes incompletdy orbicular or radiated, enlarged
towards the anal extremity, composed of large and unequal plates,
covered with very small, equal, scattered spines supported on very
small tubercles pierced with a pore. Ambuhuxa constantiy five in
number, dorsal, petaloid, the two rows of pores of each branch
united by a furrow. Mouth central or sub-central, at the bottom
of a sort of tunnd, formed by five grooves and armed with five
teeth. Vent terminal and marginal Gexutal pores to tiie number
of five.
The living species are but few. They inhabit the seas of warm
countries — ^in Asia and America. Ex. C, roeaceua.
The fossil spedes are more numerous and are generally from the
Tertiary Beds.
Echinodiacua. — Body rounded, depressed, sub-quinqiwlobated (the
posterior lobe a little notched in the median line), rather conical
above, concave below, composed of plates in 20 rows, placed two and
two. The ambulacraires narrower and covered with very small, fine,
close-set spines. Ambulacra to the number of five, diverging by the
complete separation of each double line of pores. Mouth median,
rouziid^ towards which converge five straight and stdliform furrows.
Vent marginal Genital pores to the number of four. Ex. Echinua
Parma,
Echinorachnim placent<if Gmelin, the Cake-Urchin of Forbes, is the
Echinodiacua pladnta of Blainville, Scutella placenta of Lamarck. It
is described by Forbes as a British species. It has however been
seldom taken on our coasts.
Scutella (MelUta, Klein ; Echinodiacuaf Leske). — Body irregularly dr-
cular, wider behind, extremely depressed, borders nearly sharp-edged,
sub-convex above, a littie concave bdow, composed of large polygonal
scales, and covered with very small uniform and scattered spines.
Ambulacra 5, more or less petaliform, the two rows of pores of each
branch united by transverse furrows, which makes them appear
striated. Mouth median, round, furnished with teeth, and towards
which converge five vasculiform furrows more or less ramified, and
sometimes bifid from the base. Vent always inferior and at some
distance from the border. Genital pores i.
The recent species of Scutella are arranced as follows : —
a. Spedes whose disc alone is perforated. Ex. ^81 hexapora,
fi, Spedes whose disc and borden are perforated. Ex. S. tetrapora.
y. Species whose border only is notchMl Ex. S, aurita.
h, Spedes whose disc and border are entire. Ex. S, integra,
c. Spedes whose disc is perforated and their border midtidigitated.
Ex. & octodactyla.
4W ECHINTD^.
C Spadw whow duo ii iixiperforata and the border multindiated'
(Demi-SolsiU) Ex. & dmtata.
The living apedea ^hou habitat i> knowu are foreign, and the
South Seaa appaar to be their prinoipal locally.
The foiBil ipeciea are tolerably DumerouB, and ac«or genenll]^ ia
the Calcair« Qrooder of Puis, Orignon, and the eDTiiooi of Nioa.
Sub-Familj 1. OtnlnMonala.
Month quit* oeDtnL Summit mediaa Body leKoIarlf oral or
circular, coTersd with tuberclee and mamills, and conaequently irith
spinea al two lorta. Tent -nuiable, ordinaril; medio-doraaL
OiUtriW ((bvil onl;) ; Oomiiia, Kleio ; E<Ainoamui, De BlaJBrille.— -
Body nearly regnlarly drcuiar or polygonal, entirely flat below, con-
vex and <maD conical, irith the eunimit median above, formed of very
diiwimilarplatei, and eoverad vrith tuberciea of two kinde. Ambutacta
complete, narrow, to the number of 4 or 6, dorso-buccal. Mouth cen-
tral, and probably armed. Tent infero-marginaL Oenital porea to Uie
Dumber of fi. 1^ apeoiea may be placed in two eactiona.
0. 8ped« with 1 ambulacra, and coneequently with 6 eeriea of
plat«. Bi. O. quadrifiueiaiM.
$. gpeciea with 6 ambulacra. Ex. O. vulffarii.
y. Speciea with 6 ambulacra. Ex. Q. tei^atciaiui.
The genua ii often fonnd iiljd£ed and in caate. The greater portion
belong to the Chalk, and a email number to the beds anterior to the
Chalk. None have aa yet been found in the more recent etrata.
BeKinum^ra <Qray).— Body thick, eoUd, ttanflvereely ova], a little
depreeaed, convex, with the aummit (which ia median) flat above and
arched below, oovered with mamillated tuberolea of two aotta, and
bearing diventfona but alwaya strong and large spinea. Ambulacra
5, enlaiging themnlvea below. Buccal opening of the ahell large,
tranaveiBB, with veiy powerful auriclea on ita internal cironmfarence.
Five sharp teeth at the mouth, with a complicated apparatuai as in
Ediinui. Vent mndio-auperal, or oppoeed to IJid mouth. Qsnital porea
to the number off. Ex. £ atrata.
The apeoiea an foaod in the seaa of warm climates. Th^ are
unknown in Uioee of England and fVance.
.SaUmu. — Bodv in general vary regular^ circular or sub-polygonal,
eometimee slightiy transverse, eompoaed of 20 radiated rows, alter-
nately unequal, of polygonal plates bristled with diverraform spines
of two kinda, and aupported on imperforate mamillated tubercles.
Ambul&cia constantly to the number of G, and complete. Mouth cen-
tral, aimed with 5 pointed teeth, supported upon a very complicated
intdmal apparatus. Vent median, superior, or exactly opposite to the
mouth. Oanital porea t« the number of G.
The rood, of the apedea of Scltimu is generally bdiaved to conaili
of mallaiaka and oruatacaana. Tiedemann found m E. taxatUU small
univalve and bivalve sheila entire among the excrements, aa well as
fragmeota of larger ones. Bosc is said to have witncaaed an Edtmat
in Uie act of seizina and devouring a small cruatacean. Dr. Sharpey
usually found in uie intestine of E. acidenlut small moraela of sea-
weed for the moot part encrusted with FUutra ; and he says that tiie
excrements, which are in the form of small round pellets about the
mie of pappeicomj^ oonsiat chiefly of aandy matter with foigmenls of
sheila. But he adds that it would be difficult to say whether tlleee are
the remains of digeated MoiiuKa or merely a portion of the usual
testaceous debris so abundant in sand and mud.
The spedee of this genus are moat abundant in all the seas of
Europe. Several very One speoiea are natives of the Mediterranean.
The following are British epedes : —
B. rphixra, theCommon I^-Urchin, Sea^^, ' Scs'ad Hanshead.' It
ia the E. fnarmuf of Liater \ E. eKuIaKw, Pennant; E. gU^fomii,
Lamarck, It haa the following ohaiacte^ :— Rowa of porea ol^q_uely
parallel, three pairs of porea in each row ; spines thick, conic, longi-
tudinally striate ;
9 broader than the ridges, and tiansvert
s usually of a reddish or purplish colour with
white spines. Theae are io some apedmens Idpped with purple. It
Urea in various depths of water, extending its range from the Uttoral
tone to that of the corallinea. It is found in greatest numbers on a
clean sea-bottom, bat inhabits all the shores of Great Britain and
Ireland. It is saten abroad in the same manner aa Echima ttcuUntv*.
Pennant aaya it ia also eaten amongst the poor in England. The
ancients deemed it a dainty dish, and ate it both raw and cooked in
varioua waya They are best when full of egga, which is in the autumn.
£ niZiont (Leake), the Purple-Tipped Egg-Urchin, has the foUowing
.characters: — It is depreased, the rows of pores not parallel, three
pain of pores in each row; spinea longitudinally stnated, ahining,
smooth; striienarrower than ndgee; primariea lonij. (Forbes.) Tlua
is a small apedea, and ia found in company with Ulo last, from which
it may at once be diatinguiahed by its long purple apinee. It is
abundant in the Irish Sea, aa alao oo the west coast of Scotland.
£. Fletmiigii, Fleming'a Egg-Urohin. It is the £. milium of Flem-
ing, but is undoubtedly a iustinct apedes. It is the largest of the
Britiah apedea, measuring from 10 to 14 inches in circumference. It
baa the following chsracten : — Rows of porea aub-parallel, three pairs
in each row; primary spines thick, mudi fewer uian the secondary,
and nearly thrice as long ; spines longitudinals striata ; strin some-
' ■ ' ■ ' ■ ' row ndges. (Forbes.)
FXHIHOCYAMUS. i t
B. lifidm (Lamarck), Purple Egg-Urchin. It is the £ taxatilit of
Linnnus; £ {ilAopAn^iu of Leach. It bos the rows of porea bent,
Ave pair in each row above and centrally, but diminishing in number
near the mouth; spines atriated; ridgca broad, smooUi; primair
apinaa longer than aeoondariea. (Forbes.) In the British Islce this
sped» ia peculiar to Ireland, where it is chiefly found in the south.
It ia always atationory, never quitting- the cup-like hole which it
appears to form with its apinee.
£ fugiacttu (Lamarck), Mky-Spined Egg-Urchin; £ tt^aagiUani,
Flenaing. Rows of porea ban^ five pairs in each row Oiroughout;
apinee Uiick, conic, glist«ning, longitudinally striate; etrin and ridges
equal, transversely striated ; pnmary spines soarcely longer thaa
aecoDdariea. This species has been taken oo the coaata of Scotland.
All the apedea of Echintu present upon their integument a number
of bodiea (ailed Peditdlaria, Whether they are parts of the animal
or paiaaitic animal a haa not been decided by naturaliata. They are
however curiously oharacteriatic of many forms of BMruit as of other
species of Bckinodermaia. [FaDiOBLLABla-l
For further remarks on the Echinida, and their fossil fono^ in Con-
iction with the other apedes of Stai^Fiahea, see BoHINODBUUxa.
ECHIN0BRI8SUS. JEcmsniM.}
ECHIN0CACTU8, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural
der Cactacea. The stem is of an ovate or spheroidal form, the
sidea being divided into many ribe, upon wboae projecting angles ara
stationed at short intervals little apiny ataiB, which are the mdimenta
of leaves, and from whoae ceutn the flowera appear. The Utter
consist of numerous sepals collected into a tube, an equally laj-gs
number of petoU, numerous atamens, and a filiform style divided into
many lobaa at the point. The apedea are very remarkable for the
singular forma of their atenia, and for the curiooa manner in which
their apinea are arranged. They ore often moreover conspicuous for
the beauty of their large Soweia. The genus is sitremely near Cereut,
from which, according to De Candolle, it only differs in having the
sepals and petals diatinct from each other, not united into a tube.
But as C Iritetgularu has its sepals distinct, and all the £eAinoi;ac(i
have more or leaa of a tube, we condder it better to limit the latter to
auch apedea aa have a depnased or apheroidal form. With such a
limitation the Ceraa Egraii, one of the most beautiful of plants
will really belong to the genus Eehinocactut, of which it has all the
habit; otherwise it would be a Certiu, to which its stems bear but
little resemblance. There are above 30 species enumerated. Most
of them are natives of Mexico and the West Indiea. A ftw ara
foundinBraziL They are known by the nams of Hedgehog Thistles.
than the very ni
ECHIIIO'CHLOA (&om ix!™, a hedgehog, and x^> Ki*"*)' >
■ ■ ■ibs Fanitia. It has eom^und
uh part; spikeleta on one dde of
flattened racbia, 2-flowered, the inlerior flower rudimentary; 3
glumea, the lower small, 3-oarvad, the upper as long oa the flower,
' lerved muoonate; the outer palea of the sterile flower rnembling
_d equalliog the upper glume. This ia a genua of ooarse grasses, ot
which only one species, the S. Crut-QaUi, grows in Oreat Britain- It
is a strong coarse groae, bearing any climate better than most others,
and is found in tiis vicinity of London. (Babington, ifontutl.)
ECHINOCIDABla. [EoHOcma.]
ECHISOCLYPEUS. [EcH^I^)J^^
ECHINOCOCCUS. [Es
ECmNOCONUS. [Eca
ECHINOCORTS. [Scff
ECBlNOCYAMOa [EcntKiDa.]
467
ECHINODERMATA.
ECHINODERHATA.
408
ECHIKODE'RMATA. Lamarck made his Radiaires Ecbinodermes
consist of three sections: — Ist, the Stellirideans (Star-Fishes), in-
cluding Oomatulaf Bury ale, Ophiuraf oxLdAtterias; 2nd, the Bchinida;
and 8rd, the Pittvlidcs, comprehending Actinia, ffolothuria, Fittulariaf
PriapuluSf and SipunciUua,
Cuvier'a Echinodermes form his first class of Zoophytes, and this
class is divided into two orders : — 1st, the Pedicillated Echinoderms,
containing the great genus Asterioi and its sub-genera the Encrinita,
the Eehinidce, and Holothwria ; and 2nd, the Footless Echinoderms,
consisting of Molpadict, Minyat, Priapului, the Lithoderms, 8ipw^
ctUut, BoTieUia, and Thalcusema, with its sub-genera E^iurw and
Stemaspis.
Be Blanville*s EchinoderjMUa are placed as his first class of AeU-
nazoet, and are divided into three orders : — Ist Jlolothuriadea [Holo-
THURiADiS]; 2nd, Echinidea^cuimDJE]; STd,S^ell€ridea[AmsRiA3)a];
embracing the Etuxinites [Encrikites] ; as well as the Free Star-
Fishes, ko.
The Echinodermata belong t% the Cycloneurose sub-kingdom.
They are characterised by possessing a well-oxganised skin, imder
which or attached to it are frequently found plates of solid matter, con-
stituting a kind of skeleton. They have a digestive and a vascular
mtem, and a circular nervous system has been detected in many of
the species. A muscular system is constantly present.
Before speaking of the clsssification of the Echinodermata, we shall
refer generally to their ot^ganisation and structure.
The nutritive apparatus of the Echinodermata is very simple ; pre-
senting in most of the family a single orifice destitute of teeth in the
centre of the lower surface of the body, performing the functions both
of the mouth and the anus ; but in some presenting a digestive cavity
with an orifice for the evacuation of its contents, distinct from that
by which the food is taken in. In the ' Catalogue of the Physiological
Series in the Museum of the Royal College of Sturgeons in London'
there are examples of both these modifications.
Illustrative of the first section, consisting of those Star-Fishes which
have the digestive cavity simple, or without distinction of stomach
and intestine, receiving and expelling its contents by the same orifice,
we find Ko. iS2, a preparation of a Star-Fish {Aateriat pappoici, Linn. ;
Stella dodecactiSf LixuL; Aeteriae helianthoidea, Pennant; Stdlonia
pappota, Agassiz ; and SoUuter pappoio, Forbes). It exhibits the central
onfioe of the digestive cavity, and a portion of the integument has
been reflected on the opposite side of the body, to show the numerous
cseoa continued from the digestive cavity. No. 488 presents a vertical
section of the same species, showing the interior of the same cavity.
In No. 484 the integument has been removed from the whole of the
anterior part of the body of an AeterioB rubent, Linn. {A. glacialis
and A. dathrata, Penn. ; StelUmia rubens, Ag. ; Uraster rubens, Ag.),
showing the membranous digestive cavity, containing some
small bivalves. No. 48& is a specimen of Aiteriaa ditcaidea, Lam.,
from which two rays have been removed, showing the jringnlar
and beautifully ramified form of the digestive cayity. The membra-
nous pouches appear to bo given off in two series, are saoculatedi and
strung, as it were, upon a mesentery.
The second modification is shown in No. 485 A, which presents the
body of a Star-Fish {AUcto glaeialie, Leach). Here the alimentary
oanal is continued in a spiral direction from the central orifice or
mouth, and terminates by a second direct orifioe or anus, situated at
the extremity of a fleshy tube, which projects forward by the side of
the mouth.
De Blainville states that the liver is apparent and rather consi-
derable in the Star-Fishes ; it occupies the circumference of the
stomach, forming bunches or racemi {des espdces de grappes), which
are prolonged mora or less into the cavi^ of the appendages when
there are any ; at lea«t> he observes, such is the opinion of Cuvier,
who is followed by Spix and Meckel. Delle Chiaje, on the contrary,
regards these organs as a kind of stomachal caeca (and sudli an opinion
seems to be strengthened by the preparations above noticed), and
thinks that the liver is an irregular oigan, situated on the upper part
or dome of the stomach, of which no other author, according to De
Blunville, makes mention, and which he himself had not observed.
This oigan is a racemose little hag of a yellowish-green or yellow
colour, and its contents present a similarity to bile both to the sight
and taste.
The very dilatable mouth and gullet of the Star-Fishes is admirably
adapted for securing the testaceous mollusks Aid other animal sub*
stances on which the family feed. When the prey is apparentiy die-
proportioned to the parts into which it is to be conveyed, the oesopha-
gus or gullet, together with part of the stomach itself, can be protruded
and everted so as to draw the desired food into the cavity by the
application of the everted surface to it Thus, the shell-fish is swal-
lowed whole, and specimens still living have been taken from the
cavity. At other times the juices of the prey are sucked out, and the
exhausted bivalve la left dead with its shell gaping. Not that the old
supposition that the Star-Fish succeeded, in this last mode of feeding,
by inserting a ray or finger into the gaping shell, and if it found the
bivalve too strong for it^ got rid of the difficulty and the ray at once,
oonsdous of its power of reproducing another, seema to be at all
founded m fact. Star-Fishes have been detected in the act of sucking
the jmoes of dmchifera through perforations, and also with their
mouths applied to the edges of the yalveii. From the apparently
psialysed state of the biv^ves found in sabh 8itaationJ^ it has been
conicfctured that the Star-Fiah introduces some deleterioua secietioQ
wittiin the yalves, and thus leaves the mollusk torpid and deprived of
the power of dosing its valves against the attacks of its destroyer.
Star-Fishes are considered, and not without reason, as great enemies
to oyvter-beds. But it is not on living prey alone that the Star-Fishes
feed. They seem to assist materially in cleansing the sea frt>m dead
and decomposing animal matter. A. human tooth has been found in
the stomaoa of a Star-Fish.
Although there does not appear to be any special oiigan for respiia-
tion in the Behinodermaieif the oxygenisation of the oiroulating fluid ii
extensively provided for by the exposure of the peritoneal cavity, and
aU the visosFS, to the sea-water, which is freely admitted thiough
membranous pipes, which have tiMnoe obtained the name of respirs-
totr tubes. '* These," says Dr. Shsrpej, " oommunicate at their base
with 4he interior of tiie body, and are perforated at the aummit by an
orifice which can be vsty aoourately dosed. Most of them are placed
in groups or patdiee, and opposite each group the fibrous membrane,
forming the wall of the body, presents on its inside a shallow pit per*
forated with holes, through widch the tubes oommunicate with Uie
internal cavity. The tubes are formed externally of the superficial
layer of the skin, and are lined in the inside by a prolongation of the
peritoneal membnme. This membrane lines the parietea of the body,
and is reflected over the contained parts ; at least it ooren ths stomach
and caeca, and probably also the ovaries and yedolea of the feet ; oppo-
site the perforated pits it sends prolongations through the holes into
the tubes, as may be easily seen on stripping off a portion of it
There can be no doubt that 8e»*water enters the peritoneal cavity.
The animal slowly distends itself with that fluid, and again, but at no
stated interval, gives out a portion of it This is obvious from the
fact that the same animal may be seen distended si one time and
flaccid at another. Naturalists are generally of opinion that the water
enters and issues by the respiratory tubes, and indeed no other orifices
have been disoovored. We must however freely own that we have
never been able actually to observe its passage through these tubes.
The peritoneal membrane seems to be tiie prindpal seat of respira-
tion ; spread oyer the viscera and the parietes of their eontaiiiiiig
cavity, and lining the respiratory tubes, it presents a gnat extent of
surface continually in contact with the surrounding medium ; and we
have found that a beautiful provision exists for maintaining eomnti of
water along the membrane, and thus eflboting that constant renova-
tion of the fluid in contact witii its surfaoe, whieh is required in the
respiratory process. These currents are produced by means of cilia.
Ciliary currents take place also on the external Airfiice of the body,
which probably partakes in the process of nepiretion. We have
moreover observed them within the tubular feet, and on the internal
surfaoe of the stomach and caeca. In this last situation tlMy are pro-
bably subservient to digestion.'* ('CydopsBdia of Anatomy and
Physiology.')
Tiedemann and Delle Chiaje are the authorities from whom a
knowledge of the circulating system of these animals Is prindpally
derived ; but this ^rt of tiieir oi^ganisation is so obsonrs^ that we
need not be surprised at the d^erence which exists in the views of
those obseryexe. Thus, the true sanguiferous system Is, aeoording to
Tiedemann, restricted in a great measure to the alimenterf oi^fans
and ovaries, and he consequentiy supposes that the duots wUch con-
vey the fluid supplied to the feet afford nutrition to other parts of
the body. In other words, he reoogniBes two distinct systems of
nutrient vessels ; one a true sanguiferous system, consisting of veesels
which carry blood, and the other a set of yessels ^those of the feet)
conveying a nutritious fluid secreted from the blood.
Delle Chiaje contends that the two orders of yessds aboye alluded
to intercommunicate, and so form but one systenL
Dr. Sharpey is disposed to conclude, from his own observations,
that the yessels of the feet form a system apart from the blood-yessels,
as Tiedemann maintained ; but he observes that there is eonsiderablo
reason to doubt whether, as that author supposes, they serve as the
nutritious yessels of the parts in which they run ; for, aooording to
Tiedemann's description, it does not appear that they lumiiy in thv
tissues. Moreover, Dr. Sharpey adds, their contained liquid does not
present the usual characters of blood, or of a fluid adapted to nourish
the texturea He admits it to be true that there are floating particles
suspended in it, but he states that the dear fluid, when filtered, yields
no trace of animal matter, but agrees almost entirely in oompoeitton
with sea-wateR Such, at least, was the result of Dr. Sharpey**
examination of it in the AtterioM ; and he proceeds to give an account
of the proper sanguiferous system, following Tiedemann as his leading
authority, but, at the same time, stating the more material points in
whidi Uniaje differs from him, thus —
" In Aeteriatfti delicate vessel runs along the upper surface of each
of the cceca. There ore, of course, ten such vessds In A, aurantiaca
(from which the description is taken), corresponding in number with
the caeca. They commence near the extremity of the rays, and,
receiving branches from the branches and lobes of the ceeca, proceed
to the central part of the animal, where they terminate in a circular
vessel which runs round the upper part of the body on the interna!
surfiace. The circular vessel also receives ten branches from the
90v
ECHINODERMATA.
ECHINODERMATA.
470
oyariea, and five from the stomaoh, wliich, before joining it, unite into
two. The Teasels described seem to constitute the venous system,
and Tiedemann further supposes that the oeeoal and gastric veins
convey the chyle or nutritious part of the food from the alimentaiy
organs. The circular vein opens into a vertical cuial, which descends
along the prominent angle between the two rays, in (dosed in the same
membranous sheath with the sand-canal, and terminates in an inferior
circular vessel The descending canal is dilated in the middle ; its
comparatively thick brown-coloured parietea are smooth externally,
but reticulated on the inside, and composed of interlaced fibres, which
Tiedemann found to possess muscular irritability. He accordingly
considers this canal as the heart The inferior circular vessel (which
must not be confounded with, the circular canal connected with the
feet) surrounds the mouth on tha outside or inferior sm'fSuse ; it sends
out five branches, which pass, into the interior of the body, and are
distributed to the stomacn, c»ca, and ovaries. Tiedemann regards
these branches, with the circular vessel from which they piooeed, as
arteries, uid he thinks it probable that their minute ramifications
open into the radicles of the veins, though from their delicacy he has
not been able to ascertain the fitct by infection. TiedemamTs view of
the function of the respective vessels is derived solely from a consi-
deration of their anatomical disposition ; and while in the same way
it may be inferred that the blood circulates in a direction conformable
whh this view, it musi. nevertheless be kept in mind that no direct
physiological proof of such a course of the blood has been yet obtained.
Besides Uie vessels described, Tiedemann found yet another circular
vessel surrounding the mou^ on the under surface, and placed more
superficially than the last mentioned ; it is of an orsoge colour, ancf
sends a branch along each of the rays in the groove which is on the
middle of their inferior surface. He could trace no connection
between this vessel or its branches and the rest of the vascular
system, and he professes himself at a loss to ooigecture what may be
its function.
" According to Delle Chi^je, the circular vessel into which the canals
of the feet open receives also the' veins from the upper surf^ of the
csdofx and stomach. The cKtme vessel, which he names tiie venous
sinus, gives out — 1, twenty short dental arteries; 2, the mesaraics to
the under surface of the csoca ; 8, five vertebral arteries which open
into the vesicles of the feet ; 4, the radial to the under part of each
ray ; 5, the dorsal arteries to the upper part of the ray, which extend
their ramifications to the external surface of the body." (' Cyolopasdia
of Anatomy and Physiology.')
Professor Owen, in his Preface io the third volume of the ' Descrip-
tive and Illustrated Catalogue of 'the Physiological Series of Compa-
rative Anatomy contained in the Museum of the Royal College of
Surgeons in London,' remarks, that when the nervous system begins
to be distinctly eliminated in the. form of fibres, it is accompanied by
a distinct development of the muscular s^^stem; and the digestive
canal is provided with a proper contractile tunic, and floats freely in
an abdominal oavity. He observes that the nervous fibres in the
classes of animals in which they are first discernible proceed from a
ganglion or ganglions in tiie neighbourhood of the mouth, and extend
in a radiated or longitudinal direction according to the form of the
body, but are not afterwurds brought into commmucation by gan-
glionic masses.
" The Echinoderms, as the Star^Fish and Sea-Urchins," writes the
Professor, " first present these conditions of the nervous, muscular,
and digestive systems. A very gradual ti^ansition from the radiated
to the elongated form is traceable from this class through the SoUh
ihuricB and Sipvtneuli to the OAviUaj JBatozoa or Ocelelmintlui (intestinal
worms having an abdominal oavity), and thence to the Epvtoa and
/2of»/0ra, which make a near approach to the annuloee division of the
animal kingdom ; but at the same time do not possess, that structure
of the nervous system which is its true charaoteristia The four
classes of animals, thus distinguished by a common character of the
nervous system from the Aeriki on the one hand, and the ArtieuUUa
on the other, constitute a second division of the animal kingdom, which
may be termed Protoneurti,"
The preparation No. 1292 A, in the series illustrative of the nervous
system of the N$matonevra is a Star-Fish (AHaiaa pappota, Lam.)
with the membrane removed from the oral surface of the central disc,
to show the simple nervous chord surrounding the mouth and distri-
buting filaments to each ray. These filaments run in the interspace
of the tubular feet, extending from between the spines which protect
the ambulaoral grooves. (< Catalogue.')
Tiedemann, who discovered the nervous system in these animals,
describes it in Aiteriat auraiUiaca as composed of a delicate white
chord surrounding the mouth, in form of a ring immediately on the
external side of the circular vessel into which the heart opezis, and of
filaments arising and diverging from the annular chord opposite to the
rays — three fihuments for each ray— one running along the under sur-
face in the median line, and appearing to send small branches to the
feet ; the other two, shorter, passing between the first and second
segment of the ray into the interior of the body, and probably dis-
tr&uted over the stomach. No ganglia were dlBoovered by Tiede-
mann, but minute ganglia have been described by others as existing
at the points whence the diverging filaments spring. (Grant's ' Comp.
Anat')
All of course agree in assigning the sense of touch to the Star-
Fishes, but many would confine their endowment to that sense.
Professor Ehrenberg however, who is a keen and accurate observer, is
disposed to think that some of them at least are gifted with visual
organs under the form of a single red speck at the termination of each
ray. These specks had been long noticed, but without any determinate
conjecture as to their use in the animal economy, till he, struck by
their outward resemblance to the eyes of the Sntomcairaca and Infu-
BoriOf thought that they might be organs of sight, and he traced the
long nerve of the ray up to the extremity, where it enlarges into a
sort of ganglion connected with the red speck.
Professor Rymer Jones, after noticing the nervous system of these
animals, thus expresses his dissent from Professor Ehrenberg^s views :
"Such an arrangement can. only be looked upon as serving to asso-
ciate the movements performed by the various parts of the animal, for
no portion of these simple nervous threads can be regained as being
peculiarly the seat of sensation or perception. But this inference is
not merely deducible from an inspection of the anatomical character
of the nerves : it is based upon actual experiment. We have fre-
quently, when examining these animals in a living state— Uiat is, when,
with their feet duly developed, they were crawling upon the sides
of the vessel in which they were confined — cut off with scissors suc-
cessive portions of the body so as to expose the visceral cavity ; but
so far from the rest of the animal appearing to be conscious of the
mutilation, not the slightest evidepce of suffering was visible : the
suckers placed immediately beneath the injured part were invariably
fetracted ; but all the rest, even in the same ray, still continued their
action, as though perfectly devoid of participation in any suffering
caused by the ii^ury inflicted. Such apathy would indeed seem to be
a necessary consequence resulting from the deficiency of any central
seat of peroeption whereunto sensations could be communicated ;
nevertheless Ehrenberg insists upon the existence of eyes in some
species of the star-fish, attributing the function of visual organs to
some minute red spots visible at the extremity of each ray, behind
each of which he describes the end of the long nerve which runs along
the- ambulacral groove as expanding into a minute bulb. We must
however confess that the proofs adduced in support of such a view of
the nature of these spots appears to us to be anything but satisfisctory ;
and as we have already stated in the first chapter the physiological
objections which may be urged against the possibility of any looaSsed
organ of sense being oo-exiBtent with a strictly nematoneurose con-
dition of the nervous system, they need* not be repeated hers. The
genend sense of touch in the Asteridag is extremely delicate, serving
not only to enable them to seize and secure prey, but to recognise its
presence at some little distance, and thus direct these animaJs to their
food. A person who has been in the habit of fishing with a line in the
shallow bays frequented by star^fisbes, and observed how frequently
a bait is taken .and devoured by them, will be disposed to admit this ;
yet to what are we to attribute this power of perceiving external
objects t It would seem most probably due to some modification of
the general sensibility of the body, allowing of the peroeption of im-
pressions in some degree allied to the sense of smell in higher animals,
and related in character to the kind of sensation by which we have
already seen the Actiniai and othei polyps able to appreciate the pre-
sence of light, although absolutely devoid of visual organs." (' Gteneral
Outline of the Animal Kingdom and Manual of Comparative
Anatomy.')
Professor Edward Forbes, although he admits that the existence of
ganglions in the nervoua svstem of these animals is generally regarded
as doubtful, seems, from the frequent recurrence of the terms ' eye'
and * eyelid,' to be of opinion that the specks above alluded to are
visual organs. (* History of British Star-fishes, and other Animals of
the Class Eohinodermatab')
Our own 'Opinion and observation are in favour of the views of
Ehrenbe^ ; and we think that those who have accurately watched
the Star-£ishes which are fiimished with these specks on the seanxMuit
will in general be irresistibly led to the conclusion that the organs,
though not eyes in the strict sense of the term, serve the purposes of
vision moiUfied to the exigencies of the animal, enabling it to seek or
avoid objects according to its will. Nor does analogy, in our view of
the case, present any difficulty. We have only to conoBider that the
centre is a head as well as a stomach, a condition that ¥nll hsidly be
denied to it, and the rays proceeding from it may be viewed as so
many antennss — (take those of the snail for example, with their ter-
minal ocular points, as in some degree analogous)-— with visual dots
at their extremities. Thife, at all events, may solve the problem of
the destructive visitation of these animals to the baited line, more in
unison with the analogies than the supposed existence of a general
olfactory sense, of whose presence not the slightest trace has been
observed.
The muscular system is generally present in the BchinodertMUa,
but the organs of motion in them are various. The rays themselves
are moveable, and in the free forma aid in the removal of the animals
from place to place. Thus the common Star-Fish can bend its rays
towards the upper or towards the lower surface of the centre or disc,
and can approximate some while it extends others ; so that they are
widely divaricated laterally, and thus facilitate its advance in the
water, or its passage through small spaces. In the common Star-Fish
471
ECHINODERMATA.
ECHINODERMATA.
472
these motiona are alow, but in Ophioeoma they are comparatively
rapid, and manifested in actiye oontortiona on some occaaionB.
Aooording to M. Sm, the young of Atteriaa aanguinoUnta, which
have four short dub-ahaped appendagea or arms at their anterior
extremity, move alowly but uniformly in a straight line with their
fore arma foremost Yibratile oilia are supposed to form the moving
power in this case : the arms also enable the little animal to creep
at a slow pace along the rocks. When the animal is more fully
developed we power of swimming ceases.
Tiedemann considers that the power of moving the rays resides in
the contractile skin. Meckel states that there are distinct muscles
leading between the calcareous plates which form the floor of the
rays. Dr. Sharpey has no doubt that the motions are partly effected
by the ^i", but he had himself observed a distinct band of muscular
fibres running along the roof of each ray, between the coriaceous skin
and peritoneal membrane when it is stripped o£
But the principal locomotive organs of the Schifiodermata are the
membranous tubes which can be protruded at will through the
ambulacral apertures, and which have been termed the feet. The
dearest description of this complicated and in some degree obscure
apparatus known to us is that by Dr. Sharpey ; and we therefore give
it in his own words.
" These," writes Dr. Sharpey, treating of the membranous tubes or
feet^ '' are very numerous, and are usually disposed in regular rows :
they contain a clear fluid, whiolk is conveyed to them by a peculiar
system of vessels. Each foot consists of two parts, an internal and
generally vesicular portion placed within the body, and a tubulA*
part on the outside projecting from the surface, and continues with
the fint through an aperture in the skin or shelL The tube is closed
at the extremity, and terminates there in a sucker, which has usually
t^e form of a disc slightly depressed in the centre. Both parts of the
foot are evidently muscular, the fibres of the tubular portion being
disposed in a drcular and longitudinal layer ; the cavity is lined with
a transparent membrane, and the tubular part moreover receives an
external covering from the epidermis. The foot is extended by the
contraction of its internal vesicle, which forces the fluid into- the
tube; or when a vesicle is wanting, by the projection of a fluid into
the tube from a communicating vessel The tubular part is thus
distended and elongated ; it retracts itself of course by its muscular
fibres; and when this takes place the fluid is forced l»ck again into
the vesicular or internal part In progression the animal extends a
few of its feet in the direction in which it desires to go, attaches the
suckers to rocks, stones, or other fixed objects immediately in advance ;
then shortening its feet it draws its body in the wished-for direction.
In the star-fish the feet are disposed in rows along the under surface
of the raysy diminishing in size as they approach the extremity.
There are usually two simple rows in each ray, and the vesicular part
is for the most part deeply cleft into two lobes, as in ^. aitrantiaeii.
In other cases, as A, rubmB, there are two double rows in every ray,
and each foot has a round undivided vesicle. The canals or vessels
which convey the fluid to and from the feet are«all connected with a
drcular vessel situated in the vicinity of the mouth. This vessel lies
immediately within the calcareous ring already described as connecting
the rays at the commencement; from it a straight canal proceeds along
the floor of each ray in the median line, and in its progress gives off
lateral branches, which open into the vesicles of the feet There are
moreover connected with the ciroular vessel — ^First, a certain number
of bodies (ten in five-rayed species) which Tiedemann compares to
glands ; they are very small, brown, sacculated organs, each opening
by a small orifice into the ciroular vessel : Tiedemann supposes them
to be the source from which the fluid filling the feet is derived.
Secondly, pyriform sacs : in A, amrantiaea there are four groups of
these ; and each group consists of three or four sacs, which open by a
common tubular pedicle into the circular vessel In some other
apeciea there are five simple sacs. They are muscular, and Tiedemann
oonoeivea them to be the chief agents by which the fluid ia forced into
the vealdes of the feet^ to whi<£ they are placed in a sort of antago-
nism. It would seem however that this purpose may be accomplished
by other means ; for aooording to Meckel's statement, and we may
add our own observation, they are not present in all species. Lastly,
the ciroular vessel receives the singular organ named the stone-canal
or sand-canal by Tiedemann, who describes it as a membranous canal
oontainiog a friable mass of sandy or earthy matter, which commences
hf a wide origin on the inferior or internal surface of the calcareous
disc already described as situate on the upper part of the body,
descends in a duplicature of fibrous membrane, and opens by a
narrow orifice into the ciroular veasel, the upper or wide end bung
dosed by the disa Ehrenbeig has ooirecUy remarked that this organ
is not filled with an amorphous mass of earthy or cretaceous matter :
he describes it as exhibiting a dense net-work of calcareous fibres,
with hexagonal and pentagonal meahee, resembUng in some respects
the cavernous structure of the penis. The result of otir own exami-
nation, in more than one spedes, is different still. We have always
found the earthy matter forming a jointed calcareous tube. This
tube, -whidi is about the thickness of a surgeon's probe, is composed
of rings of calcareous substance connected by membrane, so that
viewed externally it is not unlike Uie windpipe of a small animal
On cutting it across however it ia found to be more complex in struc-
ture than appears externally ; for it contains within two convoluted
laminffi of the same nature as its calcareous parietes. These laminjie
are rolled longitudinally: they rise conjointly, or as one, from the
internal surfa^ of the tube, pass inwardly a certain way, then sepa-
rating, are rolled in opposite directions, something after the same
manner as the inferior turbinated bone of the ox. These internal
laminso become more convoluted towards the upper end, where at
last they, as wdl as the more external part of the tube, join the dorsal
disc, appearing gradually to become continuous with its substance.
The disc is perforated with numerous pores, which open into the
tube. Tiedeman conceives the function of the sand-canal to be that
of secreting the earthy matter required for the g^wth of the calca-
reous skdeton. Meckel considered this view as very improbable,
and the description we have given* does not tend to corroborate it
We must confess ourselves unable to offer more than mere conjecture
as to the use of this singqlar structure. If the fluid contained in
the feet and their vessels be sea-water (either pure or with an admix-
ture of organic partides), which is probable from its chemical compo-
sition, may it not be intex>duced, and perhaps again discharged,
through the pores of the disc and the calcareous tube, the porous disc
serving as a sort of filter to exclude impurities f " {* Cydopeedia of
Anat and Physiol')
The reproduction of the EtMnodermata appears to be monoecious,
of that nature which Professor Owen terms cryptandrous hermaphro-
ditism. Ovaries are, as fbr as we are aware, the only organs relating
to the generative fimotions hitherto discovex^ ; but Fabridus, in his
/Fauna Qroenlandica,' would seem to affirm that two individuals are
necessary for the propagation of the spedes, and states that union
takes place in the month of May — ** congreditur oribus aret^ connexis,
altera supina." The ovaries, which appear to vary in number in
difibrent species, form in general an oblong cluster of tubes branching
from a single stem, by which the whole is attached, and ending in dr>
cular dilated vesicles. In some species, Asterias awrantiaea for instance,
the tubes form numerous bundles (about twenty), each of which is
distinctly attached, so that they are not all connected by a sioglo
stem. In the Museum of the College of Surgeons, London, No. 2236
is a portion of a Star-Fish (A. rfibent, Lam.) prepared to show the
ovaria, ten in number, attached on each side of the base of each ray,
near the angle of divergence ; the ova are not developed in this sped-
men. No. 2237 exhibits an A, pappota, Lam., with the anterior
parietes of one ray and the posterior parietes of another ray, dissected
off, showing tiie ovaria with tiie ova at the commencement of their
devdopment The ovaria are two in number in each ray, as in the
preceding spedes, and are similarly attached on each nde of the base
of the ray, where they may be distinguished from the digestive and
locomotive cseca by their greater opadty and granular structure.
No. 2288 is the same spedes with the posterior parietes of the central
disc removed, showing the commencement of the digestive Aeca and
the ovaries. No. 2289 ia a portion of one of the rays of Oomatnl<i
tolarit, Lam., showing the ovarian receptacles occupying the ianer
side of each of the pinnn, or articulate processes sent off from the
rays. Three of the receptades are laid open to expose the contained
ova. (' Catalogue Physiol Series.')
M. Sars states that the young of A. sanguinoUnta immediately
after birth have a depressed and rounded body, witii four very short
dub-shaped appendages or arms at their anterior extremity, as above
stated. When they are a little more devdoped papUlsB disposed in
five radiating rows on the upper surface may be distinguidied. At
the expiration of twelve days the five rays of the body, which up to
that time had been rounded, begin to increase ; and at the conclusion
of eight days more the two ranges of feet or tentacula are developed
under each ray, and assist in the locomotion of the animal by alternate
dongation and contraction and performing the office of suckers.
The integuments of a Star-Fish are — 1, a leather-like tough mem-
brane in which portions of calcareous matter, which may be termed
the skdeton of the animal, are imbedded ; 2, an external membrane
of a softer texture ; 8, certain appendages. " The calcareous pieces,"
writes Dr. Sharpey, ' Cycle, of Anat and Physiol,' "form inferiorly a
ling round the mouth and a series of transverse s^ments placed in
succesdon along the floor of each ray. The first of tiiese segments is
connected with the ring ; they decrease in size as they approach the
point or distal end of the ray, and openings are left between them for the
passage of the feet In the Aateriat rubenSj which, has five rays, the
central ring consists of ten laxger and five smaller pieces, the former
disposed in pairs opposite the commencement of the rays, the latter
corresponding to the angles between the rays. The segments of the
rays are symmetrical ; in the species mentioned they consist of two
oblong pieces united in the median line, and two smaller ones placed late-
rally. On the sides of the ray the cdcareous substance is disposed as it
were in ribs ; these rise from the floor at first nearly parallel with each
other, and are connected by cross bars, but on approadung the upper part
or toot of the ray they cross in all directions and form an irr^^ular
net-work, the intervals of which are occupied by softer integument
The ribs and bars are made up of small pieces joined by plane bat
oblique surfaces, a mode of construction calculated to admit of their
being lengthened and shortened upon one another, and tiius to allow
the cavity they surroimd being dilated and contracted. A broad
cdcareous disc is dtuated on the upper surface of the body in the
473
ECHINODERMATA.
ECHINODERMATA.
474
angle between two of the rays, which is connected internally with the
sand-oanaL The caloareous pieoea are of a homogeneous atracture
without cells or fibres; they consist^ according to fi^tohett's analysis,
of carbonate of lime, with a smaller proportion of phosphate of lime.
The coriaceous membrane which oonneiBts the pieces of the skeleton
is made up of white glistening fibres. It is contractile and irritable,
for it slowly shrinks on being scratched with the point of a knife, or
when it is cut through. The external membrane is much thinner and
softer than that just described ; in various parts it is coloured, or in
these parts there is a coloured layer underneath it. The appendages
or processes on the surface of the bodv are of three kinds. First,
calcareous spines ; tKese are found over the whole surfiEkce, except the
grooves for the feet They are attached by a moveable joint at their
base to the calcareous pieces of the skin, and are invested by the
external soft membrane nearly as far as their point. Those on the
upper surface are solitary, short, and for the most part club-shaped,
their broader summit being marked with radiating points ; whence
they were named stelliform processes bv Tiedemann. On each side
of the groove for the feet the spines are thickly set ; these in A. rubent
have three rows, in the middle and innermost of which they are
placed three deep. On this part of the surface they are also longer
and pointed. The spines are slowly moved at the wUl of the animal
The appendages of the second kind are of a very singular nature ;;
they have the appearance of pincers of crab's daws in miniature, and
were described by Miiller as parasitical animals under the name of
PedicellaricL Monro gave the name of antennse to analogous organs
which are found on the Sea-Urchin. They probably do not exist in all
species, for Tiedemann makes no mention of them in his description
of ^. awarUiacck In A. rubena they cover the surface generally, and
form dense groups round the spines. Each consists of a soft stem,
bearing on its summit, or (when branched) at the point of each branch,
a sort of forceps of calcareous matter not unlike a crab's claw, except
that the two blades are equal and similar. When the point of a fine
needle is introduced between the blades, which are for the most part
open in a fresh and vigorous specimen, they instantly dose and grasp
it with considerable force. The particular use of these prehensile
oigsnsis not apparent; their stem, it may be remarked is quite
impervious. The third sort of appendage consists of those whidi are
named the respiratory tubes." In the other BchinodermcUa the same
gsneral construction of the skeleton may be observed ; but the modi-
cations differ with the forms. In some it consists of hundreds of
pieces disposed in various patterns, and fitting with the most minute
accuracy. In some these pieces are soldered together, as in the calca-
reous central purse from which the arms of the 0]^wce radiate ; and
in others they are united by ligaments, as in the rays of these Ophiwra,
the OorgonoeephaU, and the Bncrinite$,
The sudden and voluntary act of dismemberment by which many
of the Bchinodermala will save their central disc at tiie expense of
their rays or anns, must have struck those who have observed these
animals in their native seas, as well as the length of time during which
the severed parts still continue to be endowed with motion. This
power of dismemberment seems to be earned to its fullest extent in
Ophioooma and Luidict. The following account by Professor E.
Forbes of an attempt to capture a species^f the last genus is a good
illustration of this property : —
" It is the wonderful power which the Luidia possesses, not merely
of casting away its arms entire, but of breaking them voluntarily
into little pieces with great rapidity, which approximates it to the
OphiurcB. This faculty renders the preservation of a perfect specimen
a very difficult matter. The first time I ever took one of these crea-
tures I Succeeded in getting it into the boat entire. Never having
seen one before, and quite unconsdous of its suiddal powers, I spread
it out on a rowing bench,* the better to admire its form and colours.
On attempting to remove it for preservation to my horror and disap-
pointment I found only an assemblage of rejected members. My
conservative endeavours were all neutralised by its destructive
exertions, and it is now badly represented in my cabinet by a disdess
arm and an armless disc.
• " Next time I went to dredge on the same spot, detennined not to
be cheated out of a specimen a second time, I brought with me a
bucket of cold fresh water, to which article star^fishes have a great
antipathy. As I expected, a Luidia came up in the dredge, a most
goigeous specimen. As it does not generallv break up before it is
raised above the surface of the sea, cautiously and anxiously I sunk
my budcet to a level with the dredge's mouth, and proceeded in the
most gentle manner to introduce Luidia to the purer element
Whether the cold air was too much for him or the sight of the
bucket too terrific I know not, but in a moment he proceeded to
dissolve his corporation, and at evexy mesh of the dredge bis frag-
ments were seen escaping. In despair I grasped at the lax^gest, and
brought up the extremity of an arm with its terminating eye, the
spinous eyelid of which opened and dosed with something exceed-
ingly like a wink of derision. Young specimens are by no means so
fragile as those full grown, and the five-armed variety seems less
brittle than that with seven arms. Like other star-fishes it has the
power of re-producing its arms."
With regard to the power of restoration, few oollecton have not
oome into posseadoin of a specimen with a budding or growing ray
occupying the place of a lost one. [Encbinitbs.] Jussieu, Quettard,
and Gerard de Villars brought to Reaumur specimens of Star-Fish
with four large rays and a small one still growing ; they found others,
he tells us, with only three large rays and two very small ones ; and
others with two large rays and three very small, and, as it seemed,
ver^ young ones. More than once they met with a laige ray from
which four young rays had begun to sprout Reaumur speaks of the
fact as being well known to the fishermen, and in allusion to certain
experiments which Jussieu and Quettard had been carrying on he
remarks that the portions into which they had divided the imin[|A.1a
appeared to go on well, the wounds healed and oonsolidated ; but he
adds that those who made the experiment were obliged to limit their
stay on the coast to about fifteen days — ^too short a period, he
observes, to trace the progress of a reproduction which apparently
requires several months, or perhaps even more than a year for its
completion.
. Although the SehinodermcUa have so gpreat a power of reproducing
lost parts, they present no indications of any power of uoreasing
separate individuals by gemmation as witnessed in the AccUephte and
lower animals. As in the Aealephas, the embryo of the Echinodermata
pass through several forms before arriving at maturity. The fol-
lowing is an outline of the process in \iiQ Asteriada : — "From the
accounts of the development given by different trust-worthy observers,
there can be little doubt that the process takes place after at least
two very diverse plans. The first and simplest of these has been
witnessed by Bars m the Echinaster rvbefu ; and the observations of
Agassiz are on the whole in accordance with those of that industrious
naturalist In the early stages the segmentation of the yoke takes
place as in other animals ; and the embiyo comes forth from the egg
soon after it has attained the state of the 'mulberry mass,' and
swims freely about^ by means of the cilia with which it is covered, in
a sort of marsupial chamber which is formed by the drawing together
of the rays of tne parent around its mouth. Soon after its emersion,
the embryo begins to put forth an organ of attachment, resembling
the stem of a Crinoid ; this at first possesses two tuberdes, then three,
then four, with a fifth smaller one between them. At the same time,
the principal mass becomes flattened, and shapes itself into five lobes
surrounding a central disc ; thus sketching out the body and rays.
When in this state it attaches itself to fixed objects by its oigan of
adhesion ; but if detached, it swims through the water by the action
of the cUia with which the body and arms are dothed ; so thi^t it bears
a strong analogy to the Pentoteriniu in process of conversion into a
free moving Comaivick. At the same time, five double rows of small
tuberdes may be percdved radiating from the centre of what is to
become the ventral surface of the body; these gradually dongate
themselves, and become cirrhi, each funiished with a sucker at its
extremity. A peculiar tubercle is also seen at the edge of each of the
five lobes of the body ; and this is the rudiment of the ocellus, which
is afterwards found at the extremity of each ray. As devdopment
proceeds, the primitive organ of a&esion gradually decreases in sice,
and the animal creeps by means of its cirrhi ; and at last the pedicle
is drawn (as it were) into the body, the lobes of the body lengthen
into rays, the animd loses its ciliograde progression, and the ordinary
characters of the Star-Fish become apparent The progress of the
internal organisation is thus described by Agassis: — 'The earliest
deposit of calcareous matter takes place around the prominent tuber-
des of the lower surface ; at first in the condition of little isolated
crystals, which are formed as nuclei in the cells; and then as a
network formed by the coalescence of several of these. Of these
networks there are at first ten, symmetrically disposed on the ventral
surface, in a manner corresponding to the arrangement of the solid
plates in Crinoids ; but they gradually increase in number, and more
distinctly mark out the rays; new ones bdng interposed in pairs
between those already existing, and small spines projecting from the
older ones. The calcareous deposit in the dorsal surface, on the other
hand, seems to proceed from a central nucleus above the yolk-mass.
The progress of development is obvioudy from without inwards; the
cells on the surface of the yolk-mass being the first to undergo
metamorphosis into the permanent structure. Those occupying ihe
central part of the body and pedicle imdei^o liquefaction, and a
kind of circulation is seen in the latter. Gradually what remains of
the yolk-mass is more distinctly circumscribed in the interior of the
animal, and forms a central cavity with prolongations extending into
the rays ; but it is not until the pedide has contracted itself into a
mere vesicle that the mouth is formed, by the thiiming-away of the
envelope of the yolk-mass on the lower surface, a little to one dde of
the base of the pedicle ; and it is not until after the formation of the
mouth, that the nervous ring can be traced, with its prolongations
extending to the ocelli at the extremities of the rays.'
" The second plan of development seems much more conformable to
what will be presently described as taking place in the Ophiuridce and
Echinidas ; for the body first developed from the embryonic mass is a
larva, of which little remains in the permanent structure, and the
Star-Fish is budded off, as it were, from the anterior extremity of this.
This larva, which has received the name of Bipinnaria from the
symmetrical wing-like arrangement of its natatoxy organs, presents
much more resemblance to an Articulated, or to a Yertebrated, tiian
to a Radiated animal. Its body is elongated, and carries at its anterior
470
ECHINODERMATA.
ECHIKODERMATA.
4Sf
extremity the portion of the yolk-maaB not yet metamorphoBed, from
whi9h the Star-Fish ia afterwards to be developed; and into the
cavity of this a passage is formed, through what may be termed the
mouth of the Urva, which opens in the middle of a transverse furrow*
whilst another tube passing forth from it seems to answer to an
intestine. On either side of the anterior portion of the body are six
or more narrow fin-like appendages, which are fringed with cilia ; and
the posterior part of the body is prolonged into a sort of pedicle^
bilobed towaids its extremity, whioh also is covered with cilia. The
organisation of this larva seems completed, and its movements
through the water are very active, before the mass at its anterior
extremity presents anything of the aspect of the Star-Fish; in this
respect corresponding with the movements of the Pluteus of the
£ehinid<jB, The temporary mouth of the larva does not remain as the
permanent mouth of the Stap-Fish ; for it is on what is to become the
dorsal side of the body ; and the true mouth is subsequently formed
by the thinning awav of the integument (which has completelv
inclosed the yolk-mass) on the ventral surface. The young Star-Fbn
is separated from the bipinnarian larva, by the foixuble contractions
of the connecting pedicle, as soon as the calcareous consolidation of
its integument l»s taken place, and its true mouth has been formed,
but long before it has attained the adult condition ; and as its ulterior
dev^opment has not hitherto been observed in any instance, it is not
yet known what are the species in which this mode of evolution
prevails. The larva continues active for several days after its detach-
ment ; but there iB.no reason to believe that its existence is prolonged
for any considerable time ; and Sis the Star-Fish is not formed by gem-
mation from it, but from a portion of the yolk-mass which remained
unconsolidated after its completion, it is obvious that the larva does
not stand in the same relation to the Star-Fish, as the hydraform
polype to its medusa-bud." ( Carpenter, ' Principles of Physiology/)
Miiller {* Ueber die Larven und die Metamorphose der Eohinoder-
men,' 1848) has also described the process of embryonic development
in the Ophiwrida and ^chinidcs, ia these the embryo issues forth
from the ovum as soon as it has attained by the repeated segmen-
tation of the yolk the condition of the ' mulberry mass,' and the
superficial cells of this are covered with cilia, by whose agency it
swims freely through the water. So rapid are the processes that not
more than 24 hours elapse between fecundation and the exit of
the embryo. Shortly after its emersion the embryo changes from
the spherical into a sub-pyramidal form with a flatteoied base ; and in
the centra of this base is a depression, which gradually deepens so as
to form a mouth that communicates with a cavity in the inside of
the, mass. The pyramid is at first triangulai', but it afterwards
becomes quadrangular, and the angles are greatly pcolonged round
ike mouth (or base), whilst the apex of the pyramid is sometimes
greatly prolonged in the opposite direction, but is sometimes rounded
off into a kind of dome. This body is strengthened by i^frame-work of
thread-like calcareous rods. In this condition the fmbiyo swims
freely through the water propelled by the cilia which clothe the
angles, and the projectLog arms. The creature has at this stage
reoeived the name of Pluteus. The Pluteus of the Ophiura tiod
Mchinut differ but little at first in their general form and structure.
Each species however has its distinctive characters. In this stage
the Pluteus resembles the AcaLephca; its probosoiform mouth
resembling the Meduace and its cilia the Ber&c, [AcALBPHiB.] The
Pluteus gradually loses its Acalephoid characters, the jaws and teeth
and calcareous plates slowly developing ; and it thus passes into its
true EohinodermatouB form.
S^Uematie ilrr«m^f€m«»^.— Most systematists have given olassifica-
tions of the Echintidtriiiaia,
Link, in his volume 'DoStellis Marinis' (foL, Leipzig), arranges
and figures a oonaiderable number of species, in the method of whioh
the outline is here given.
Section L De StdlU FMt.
Class 1. OligactU (Star-Fishes with fewer than five rays).
Qenera, TritactU, TetradU.
Class 2. Pent<ictino€b>§ (Quinquefid Star-Fishes).
Qenera, Pentagonatter, PerUaceratf Astropecten, Palmipea, Stella
coriaceOf Sol marifMU, PerUckcdyloaaster,
Class 8. Polpaetinodot (Multifid Star-Fishes).
Genera, ffexactia, HeptadiM, OcUictitf Enneactis, Decactitf Dode-
cactU, TrUcaidecactU.
Section II. J>e StdlU InUgrU,
Class 1. Stdlarum Vermiformium,
Qenera, Stella lutjibricaiis, Stella acolopendroidea.
Class 2. SteUarum Crinitorvm.
G^era, Decacnemos, TritcaidecacnemoSf Capul'Medusas,
Class 3. Aitrophyton,
Qenera, Araehnoides, AttrophyUm cottotum^ Astrophyton actUatvm.
Linnseus divided his genus Aateriat into the following sections : —
1. Integra, — Example, Aittrioi Luna, the only species.
S. SMakB, — ^ThisBection contained nine species. Example, ilt^cHcu
pappoM,
S. Madiaim Containing nx ipeoies. ExampleB, Aai€ria» Ophwra,
At Otipui'Mtdimf,
Position of the genua between Meduaa and Mckiwrn,
Qmelin arranged the genus in three seotions also, retaining the
names of limueus for l£e last two ; but altering that of the first,
under which he includes fcmr species, to Lumaioi,
Position of the genus, between Phyttophora and Eekimu,
Lamarck, who, according to De Blainvllle, "asuivi h peu prds
les erremens de Link dans la distribution systematique des Stella
rides," arranged them as the first section or family of the Echinoder-
matous Badialta, and separated them into the genera Oomatula, Euryale,
Opkiwa^ and Asierieu,
Ophiura is divided by Lamarck into two distinct sections; lat,
Those species whioh have the rays rounded or convex on the back,
2nd, Those speoiee which have the rays flattened on the back, that is,
above as well as below. Then comes a crowd of species under the
title of " Espies que je n'ai point vuee."
Agassiz divides the OphiurcB into five sections : —
1. Ophiura. — Those species which have the diB6 very much
depressed, the rays simple, scaly, and furnished with very short spines^
and embracing or dose down upon the rays. Examples, Ophiura
texturata, 0. lacertosa, Lam.
2. Ophiocoma, — Those species which differ from the preceding by
having very long and moveable spines upon the rays. Examples,
Ophiura iqtiamataf 0. echinata, Lam.
3. Ophiurella (Fossil only). — Those species whose disc is hardlj
distinct. Examples, Ophiura carinata, Hiinst. ; 0. Egertoni, Brod.
4. Acroura (Fossil only). — Differing only firom Ophiura in having
spines on the sides of the rays instead of scales ; while'the n^ them-
selves are very slender. Examples, Ophiura priica, Mtinst. ; Actoura
Agassitf Miinst.
5. Atpidura (Fossil only). — Having the upper surface of the disc
covered by a ftar of ten plates, whilat the rays, which are propor-
tionally stout, are surrounded by imbricated scales. Example, Uphiura
loricata, Qoldf.
A$Uri<u is arranged by Lamarck under the following divisions : —
1. Those species which have the body soutellated. These are
numerous, and comprise the genera Seukuter, Plata$ier, Pcdmatttr,
and Solatter of De Blainville.
2. Those whioh have the body radiated, consisting of numerotta
species ako, and comprising the genera Soiuter and PetUoMer of De
Blainville.
The StelieridtB, in Lamarck's arrangement, are Immediately followed
by the SehinidcB,
Cuvier makee the Echinodermes the first class of Zoophytes, and
the PMicell^ the first order of that class, observing that Linneus
established three genera of them (meaning apparently the three divi-
sions above stated), which are very natural, but numerous enough,
and comprise species sufilciently varied to be considered as throe
famHies.
Cuvier divides the species into : —
Les Ast^ries {AsUriat, Linn.), commonly called Sea-Stan. He
recognises some of the genera of Leach and Lamarck, and observes
that the Encrinites {Enerimu, Quettard) ought to be placed near the
OomatuUe,
The Oursins {Eehtnutf Linn.) immediately follow the Sea-Stars.
De Blainville divides the Stolliridians into three fkmilies: — 1.
Those with a stelliform body ; 2« those with a disciform body ; 3,
those with a cupuUform body.
I. Astoridians.
Qenus A$terieu, comprising the following divisions or sub-genera : —
A. Species whose body is pentagonal, and but little or not at all
lobated on its circumference ; the angles being fisBuied (Les Oreillers).
Example, A$teria8 Zmiml
B. Pentagonal species : delioato, and, as it were, membranous (Les
Palmast^ries — Pcdmipea of Link).
C. Quinquelobated species, wMch are not articulated on the ciroum-
ference. Example, Asteriai mtnutOf Linn. (Pentaoeroi, Link ; Aite^
rinOf Nardo.) •
D. Pentagonal species more or less lobated and articulated at their
drcumferenoe (Les Soutast^ries, ou Platast^ries). Example, AtUriat
tetteUata. [Astxbias.]
De Blainville remarks that the species of this section, many of
which exist in the European seas, do not appear to him to have been
examined by zoologists with sufficient accuracy ; ' and he thinks that
many species have been confounded under the same name.
E. Species deeply divided into five rays (Pentast4ries).
•
Triangular, depressed, and articulated on the edges {AttropecUn,
Link. ; Orenaater, Llhuyd). Example, Asterieu amncio^o, Linn.
Triangular, rather shorty and rounded above. Example, Asleriat
ruibent Linn. {Vratter, Ag.)
* • •
"Bajb long, strait) and often narrowed at their origin. Examples,
Atiertat wmolata ; A, gramtfera, Lam.
De BUdnTiUe remarks that the species which enter into this seetioD
477
ECHINODERMATA.
ECHINODERMATA.
m
are numerous, but th*t their distixiotion is not yet eufflciently eelftb*
lished. He is certain, for example, that four speoies hare been con-
founded under the name of the Fringed Star (Aet^rie Frangifo).
On the other hand, he thinks that those of the last section may
have been too greatly multiplied.
F, Species which are divided into a greater nimiber of rays than
five or six (Solast^riee). Examples, Atterioi tennupina; A, endeca;
A,pappata.
II. Asterophidians.
Qenera, Ophiura, EurpaU.
Ophiura.
A. Species the spines of whose rays are veiy short, and applied
Qpon the latter. Example, Ophiura texturcUOf Lam.
B. Speciee the spines of whose rays are long, and not applied upon
the latter. Example, Ophiura 8^[uamaia, Lam. [Ofhiura.]
A. Species whose rays dichotomise but little, and far from the root
Example, EwryaZe palmifera, Lam.
£» Speciee whose rayt divide and dichotomiee from the boee.
Example, Airya^ tcufftfa. [OFHtVAA.]
III. AsterenctinidiaQB.
1. Free Aeterencrinidians. Example, Comatula, [Comatula.]
2. Fixed Asterencrinidians.
Qenera, Enerinui ; PkjftoeruMa ; Pentturifwi f ApioerinUa;
Poieriocriniiei ; Agathocriwite$ ; Aetinoerinitet ; Ehodocrinites ; Platy-
crinitaj CaryocrifdteB ; MartapUet; PentremUet. [E^obinitbs.]
Agaedi also divides the StellirideaDsinbo three families or principal
sections, but he gives them difBorent names.
let Asterians, consisting of those speoies which have for their
digestive organ a single orifloe surrounded by suckers, but deprived
of teeth ; a madreporiform tubercle on the back between the two
posterior nys, and deep fiairows occupied by many rows of pedicles,
going from the mouth to the extremity of the arms.
Snd. Ophiiirians, comprising those whose body fonns a flattened
and distinct disc, to which are annexed more or less elongated or even
ramified rays, deprived of furrows on their lower stu&ce.
8rd. The Crinoidians, having two separate, but closely approxi-
mated orifices to the intestinal canal ; and being for the moit part
fixed by the dorsal surface, by means of an articulated pedicle.
Before we enumerate the genera into which this soologist divides
Atterias, we must notice the division of JL Nardo, who had previously
proposed the following: — SteUaria {A. aranciaea — A. ealcUrapa) ;
SteUonia {A. rvben$ — A, glaeialit) ; Atierina (A* exigua — A. minuia) ;
Antenpoda (A, membranaoea — A. roneea); iinkia {A, Icevigata-^A,
variohia).
The following is the division of Agassis.
1. Atteritu {Attropeeten, Link; Creiuuter, Uhuyd.; PenUuler, BL ;
SuUaria, Nardo).
2. Calatter, Ag., differing from the preceding in having the interior
cavity circumscribed by plates disposed like those of the Bchini, at
the summit of which may be perceived a star with ambulacra. A
genus approaching the Crinoidians in its organisation, whilst its
general form is tnat of tiie true Star-Fishes. Example, only one
species, and that fossil, C Couloniy Ag.
8. Oaniatter, Ag. (SctUcuter or Prntutetf BL). Examples, Aiteriat
tetteUaia, Lam., A, eqnettris, Linn.
4. OphidUuteTf^Ag. Example, A. opAsdiona, Lam.
5. Linkia,^ Nardo. Example, A. variokUaj Lam.
6. SteUcmOf Nardo, {Peniaster in part and Sotcuter in part, BL).
Examples, A, rvhtnt : A, glaoiaHs ; A. endeca; A, pappom; A,
ffdianthvi. ftc.
7. Attenna, Nardo {Asterias, sect C, BL ; Pentaeerf», Link).
Example, A. nUfimUk
8. Palmipee, Link {Pahnatter, BL ; Anteropoda, Nardo). Example,
A, memdratutcfa.
9. OuteUOf Ag. {OreiUer, BL). Example, A, diieoidea.
In 1840 MiiUer of Berlin read his paper on the genera of Star-
Fiahes to the Berlin Academy, in which the anus or anal pore is
employed as characteristic of family distinction. This aperture is
described as present in all Star^Fishes, eioepting Aiteri<i$ proper and
ffemichemis, which, according to Kr. Forbes, seems to he identical
with his previously established Luidia, " His genus Cromatter also,"
says Mr. Forbes, " is my SolcMter, published a year before. Several
generic names, previouuy adopted by Agassis and Nardo, are wan-
tonly changed; thus uratter is turned into Atterocanthium, and
Palmipes into Aeteriicui, with which he unites Atterina. In this
paper HiUler maintains that one of the five intermediate inferior
plates of the Ophiuridm bears a madreporiform tubercle, or rather
corroroonds to that body, a view which I am not inclined to adopt."
Witn regard to SoUuter, we have seen how long ago Solast^rie was
used by De Blainville ; but the practice of wantonly changing names
is productive of so much confusion that it cannot be too strongly repro-
bated. Mr. Forbes admits, as all indeed must, that the generic charac-
ters in Miiller^s papen are excellently drawn up ; and no diiference
of opinion can exist as to the great general value of the memoir.
The following arrangement is that of Dr. J. E. Gray, in the 'List of
the Specimens of British Animals in the Collection of the British
Museum.'
Oenironia,
1. Echinodermaia.
Class I. Ditremata.
Order I. Echinida.
Family 1. Oidaridce.
I. Cidarig,
1. 0. paptUata. North Sea.
Family 2. Echinida.
I. Echinue.
1. E. PUmimgiL Falmouth.
2. E. cBCuUntua (B. gpheera, Forbes). Isle of Arran.
8. E. miliarit. Isle of Man.
4. E. lividue. Cork.
II. Echinometrck
1. E. Drabachentie {E. negledfu, Forbes). Shetland.
Family 8. SctUellidce,
I. EchinorachniuB,
1. E. 'placenta, Zetland.
II. EchinocyamvLt,
1. E. putUlus. Berwick-on-Tweed, and Arran.
Family 4. Spatangida,
I. SpaJlangut.
1. S. purpweue, Irish Sea.
II. Echinocardium.
1. E. cordatiu {Amphidotui cordaiWf Forbes). Coast
of England.
2. if. ovatum {AmphidotiU roteue, Forbes). Coast of
Northumberland.
III. Briatiopsis.
1. A lyrifera {Briatut ItfHfer, Forbes). Shetland.
Order II. Bolothurida,
Family 1. Ifolothuridce,
I. Thyone,
1. T, fmuM (T, papitloio, Forbes). Berwick Bay,
Ireland.
2. T, Jtaphanui, Ireland.
IL ffolothuria,
1. IT. nigra, ComwalL
Family 2. Onvieriada,
I. Ptolus.
1. P. phantapui. North Sea.
II. Pwolinug,
1. P, brevie, Shetland.
Family 8. Pentactidce,
I. PentaetiL
1. P. frondosa {Cucumaria frondona, Forbes). Shet-
land.
2. P./tf9{/brm(9((7iicttm«trut/ii«{formt«, Forbes). Shet-
land.
8. P. ffyndmanni {Ovtctmat^ia ffgndmanni, Forbes).
4. P. lactea (Ocnua ladetts, Forbes).
5. P. pentactea {Cttcumaria pentactea, Forbes). South
Coast of Devon.
6. P. Mantagui (Hclathuria pentactea, Forbes). South
Devon.
7. P. NeiUii {ffolothuria peniadea, Forbes). Frith of
Forth.
8. P, diaatmUia {ffolothuria pentactea, Forbes). Leith.
II. ThyronidiunL
1. T. pellucidum {Cueumaria hyaUna, Forbes). Shet-
land.
2. T, Drummondi {Cucumaria DrwnmondU, Forbes)
South Devon, and Falmouth.
Famify 4. Synaptidce,
I. Synapta,
1. S. inherena { Chirodota digitata, Forbes). South Devon.
2. S. ffenaloviana. May be the young of the preceding.
Family 6. SipuncuUda,
L SipwncfUua,
1. 8, nudvs {Syrinx nudua, Forbes).
2. & papHUiaua {Syrinx papilloaua, Forbes). Clare,
Ireland.
8. S, Mftcrorhynchopterua,
4. 8, ffarveii {Syrinx ffarveiif Fofbes). Devonshire.
5. S, Strombi {S, Bemhardua, Forbes). Devonshire.
6. 8, Johnatoni (Sipunculua Johnatoni, Forbes). Ber-
wick.
7. 8, aaeciUua* Teignmouth.
8. 8. (enmcinctua. Ireland, i
9. 8, ForbeaiL Ireland. ^
10. 8. granuloaa. Koundstone Bay<
IL Phaaeoloaoma.
1. P, PaUaaH {StpmeiOM PaUaa, Forbes). CoUt of
Sussex.
III. Priapului.
1. P. etmdaima.
49»
ECHINODERMATA.
ECHINODERMATA.
4S0
IV. TlMlasiema,
1. T. rupiwn (T, Neptuni, Forbes). South Coast of
DoYon.
y. Bchiurus.
1. B. axyurus {E, vulgaris, Forbes). St. Andrews.
Class 11. Sypottwna.
Order L Asleroida,
Family 1. Atteriadce,
I. Asterias,
1. A, rvhem (Uraater rubem, Forbes). Frith of Forth.
2. A, viol<iceu9 (Uratter vioktceua, Forbes). Frith of
Forth, Plymouth Sound, Berwick-on-Tweed.
8. A,glaoialit {Urcuter glacialit, Forbes). Plymouth
Sound.
4. A, hispida (Urcut^r hiipida). Isle of Man.
Family 2. AstropectenidcB.
I. AatropecteiK
1. A. irregularis {Asterias aurarUiaea, Forbes). South
Coast of England.
II. Luidia,
1. L. Scmgnii (L. fragilitsima, Forbes). Isles of Man
and Arran.
IIL Solaster,
1. 8, endeeti. Scotland.
2. S,papposa. Frith of Forth.
rV. Henricia,
1. H, oculatus {Cfnhdla oculata, Forbes). Plymouth
Sound, Coast of Northumberland, Frith of Forth.
2. IT. rosea (CribeUa rc$ea, Forbes). Ayrshire.
Family 8. Pentcuxrotidce.
I. ffippasteria,
1. ff. equestris (Chniaster equestris, Forbes). North of
England.
2. J7. abbensis {Goniastcr (Obensis, Forbes). St Abb's
Head.
Family 4. AsUrinidte.
I. PalnUpes.
1. P. tnemhranaceus. Isle of Man.
II. Porania.
1. P. pulviOus (Chniaster TempUiont, Forbes). Ply-
mouth Sound, Arran, Isle of Man.
III. Asterina.
1. A.gUtbosa, Plymouth Sound.
Oi-der II. Ophiurida.
Family 1. OphiuridtB.
L OphioUpis,
1. 0, ctliata {Ophiura texturaia, Forbes). Dover,
Frith of Forth.
2. 0. albida {Ophiura aOnda, Forbes). Frith of Forth.
8. 0. degans {Ophioeotna negUcta, Forbes). Shetland.
4. 0,punekUa{Ophioc(mapunct(Ua,ForheB). Scothind.
5. 0,JUiformis (OphiocomafilifarmiSfFoTheB). Frith
of Qyde, Frith of Forth.
II. Ophiopholis,
h 0. aeul€ata{Ophio€<maheUis,ForheK), Isle of Man,
Shetland, and Orkney.
2. O.&rocAicUa (QpAtocoma (rocAurfa, Forbes). Devon-
shiroL
8. 0. BaUii {Ophiocoma BaUii, Forbes). Ireland.
4. 0. Ooodsiri (Ophiocoma Chodsiri, Forbes). North
Britain.
III. Ophiocoma.
1. 0. nigra (0. gramlata, Forbes). Devon, Plvmouth
Sound.
IV. Ophiothrex,
1. O./ragUis {Ophiocoma rosula, Forbes). Torbay.
2. 0. minut(L Isle of Man.
Familv 2. AstrophyUmidcB,
I. Astrophviork
1. A, arborescens {A, seutaium, Forbesl North Sea.
Order IIL Orinoidea,
Family 1. PerUacrinidcB,
L AfUedon,
1. A, decameros {Comatula rosacea, Forbes). British
Ocean, Cork, Plymouth Sound.
II. Cfynameda.
1. apulchella, Kent.
Of this arrangement Mr. Forbes says:— "The other memoir to
which I must allude is one by Mr. Qray on the Star-Fishes, which he
c»lls the xslass Hypostoma, and defines somewhat ambiguously, pnb-
lished simultaneously with my two first numbers, in the ' Annak of
Natural Histoxy.' I am afraid I must censure Mr. Gray for changing
namep still more than MMer, and with less reason. It is a pity zoolo-
gists do not take a lesson from their fellow-labourers in the field of
nature, the botanists, in this respect Mr. Gray has increased the
confusion by giving fragments of descriptions instead of genuine and
specific characters, probably fix>m canying too &r a laudable desire
for brevity. His essay deserves praise however for recording ^any
new foreign habitats of the beautiful animals he catalogues." Dr.
Gray's arrangement was first published in the ' Annals of Natuxal
History 'in 1840.
The following is Professor E. Forbes's arrangement of the Echvuh
dermata, to which we have added his table of the distribution of the
British species : —
Order I. Pinnigrada,
OrinoidecB, — First appearance of cirrhi springing from brachial
membranes, which with the true arms form the oigans of motion.
II. Spinigrada.
Ophiuridce, — Disappearance of brachial membranes; cirrhi as before;
true arms clothed wi& spines for motion.
III. Oirrhigrada.
Asteriadce, — ^Arms disappear; body more or leas lobed, and lobes
channeled beneath for drrhi, which act as suckers, and are the oigans
of motion.
rV. Cirrhi-Spinigrada»
'EdwnidoB, — Ghndual disappearance of lobes ; ciirhiferous canals ap-
pearing as avenues where cirrhi act as in Order IIL, but jure iwnigted
by mobile spines clothing the integument.
V. Cirrhi-Vermigrada,
ffolothuriadcB, — Lobes disappear; motions effected by avenues of
cirrhi, assisted by contraction and extension of the soft body.
VI. Vermigrada,
Sipuneulidce, — Cirrhi become obsolete and disappear; motion
effected by the contraction and extension of the animal's body.
"A glance," says Mr. Forbes, "at this arrangement will at once show
that it is most natural There is nothing novel in it as regards the con-
stitution of the groups, saving the recognition of the OphturidoB as an
order equivalent to the other orders ; but as an explanation of Uie true
nature and relation of the Echinodemtatous tribes I prefer it to any
arrangement at present used, and have accordingly followed it through-
out this work. All the JRadiata are greatly influenced in the arrange-
ment of their parts by some definite number. In the Bchinodermata
the reigning number is five. The name of * Five-Fingers ' commonly
applied by mariners to the Star-Fishes is founded on a popular recog-
nition of the number regnant It has long been noticed. Among
the problems proposed by that true spiritedbut eccentric philosopher
Sir Thomas Browne is one — ' Why among the Sea-Stars nature chiefly
delighteth in five points f ' and in his ' G&rden of Cyrus' he obsenres,
' By the same number (five) doth nature divide the circle of the Sea-
Stiff, and in that order and number disposeth those elegant semi-
circles or dental sockets and eggs in the Sea-Hedgehog.' Among
the lower and the typical orden we find this number regulating the
number of parts. Evexy plate of the Sea-Urchin is built up of penta-
gonal particles. The skeletons of the digestive, the aquiferous, and
we tegumentary systems equally present the quinary arrangement ;
and even the cartilaginous framework of the disc of every sucker is
regulated by this mystic number. When the parts of Ediinoderms
deviate from it, it is always either in consequence of the abortion of
certain organs, or it is a variation by representation ; that is to say,
by the assumption of the regnant number of another class. Thus do
monstrousStar-Fishes and Urchins often appear quadrate and have their
parts four-fold, assuming the reigning number of the AcHnoderTnata
consistent with a law in which I put firm trust, that when parallel
groups vary numerically by representation, they vary by interchange
of their respective numbers.
" In this short introduction I have rather given the generalities of
the subject than details of structure, for which I would refer the
reader to the excellent account of the anatomy of Bchinodermata
given by Professor Jones in his ' Outlines of the Animal Kingdom.'
I shall conclude by presenting a tabular view of the distribution of
our native species In the first of the two following tables the
numbers of species of each family known to inhabit the several aones
of the sea is given ; in the second a view of their distribution in the
various provinces of the British seas with such foreign localities as
are reconled. I have divided the marine provinces thus : —
" I. Thulean, including the Orkney and Shetland Islands. II. He-
bridean. III. Scottish Eastern Coast IV. English Eastern Coast
V. English Channel VL St Geoige's Channel VIL Southern, the
District between Land's End and Cape Clear. VIII. South-west,
Irish. IX. North-west, Irish. X. The Clyde Ptovinoe and North
Channel XL Irish Sea.
**T€ihle of Zonal Distribution.
Zones of the Sea.
•
•
1
2
1
t3
1
1
ToUl.
Littoral ....
I.aminariaii . . .
Coralline ....
Dcep-Sea Coral . .
0
1
1
0
4
5
9
S
6
0
11
3
3
4
7
3
1
5
12
0)
3
6
2
0)
16
27
42
0
481
ECHINODERMATA.
ECHINODERMATA.
4S3
" TdhU of the Geoffraphical DiHrUmtion of the Brituh Speciee of
Bchinodermata,
Qenen and Bpeoiei.
Pitmigrada,
L Oomaiula, Lam. .
1. O, roMMto, Link. •
n. Ophittra, Lam. . .
1. 0. Ugturaia, Lam«
S. 0, oOtda, ForbM .
IIL Ophioepma,Agt», .
1. 0. luglMta, JohJkBi,
3. 0. BallU, Thomp. .
S. 0. jNNirtoto, Forbea
4. 0. JUiformU, Mul.
5. 0. l>raehiata,}ioTit,
6. 0. granuUita,lAak,
7. 0. b€lH$, Link. . .
S. 0, Goodtiri, ForbM
0. O, roiula. Link. .
10. 0, wnmOOf Fatbm
lY. .i«<r«!pAsr<on, Link.
1. A, MKtoltim, Link.
OSrrhifrada,
y. ITnuecr, AgaasLi .
1. U. glaeiaiii^ Lin. .
S. IT. nifr«fw, Lin.
8. U, 9Muem, MnL .
4. U. hiapUm, Pen. .
VL CHb0lUt,Agu. .
1. CL oenloto, Pen.
2. C. ra«0a, Hnl. . .
Til. Solatter, Forbes .
1. 3, endeeOf Lin.
5. A ^lyMM, Lin. .
Yin. PaJmipu, Link. .
1. P, mtmbranaMmaf )
Beta . . . /
IX. Atttri$ut, Nardo .
1. A, gihboia. Fen. .
X. Ooniatt^, Affas. .
]. X TempleUmif )
Tbomp. . . /
3. A. 0qu€*trii, Gmel.
XI. AsteriaM, Lin. . .
1. A,awtmHaea, Lin.
XII. Luidia, Forbes . .
1. Xk ^rtlgaimma, )
Forbes • • j
OiirrAJ-4'*'*^^^*
XIII. Oularu, Leake . .
1. CpapUlata, Flem.
XIY. £ekifm$, Lin. . .
1. S, tpharOf MuL .
3. S, wdHMTis, Leske
3. JS. Fhrninia, Ball
4. ^. lividui, Lam. .
5. J?. nepUeivi, Lam.
XY« JlcMfiocyamiM^ )
Leske . . j
1. S,putUtm,Uid. .
XYI. £eAifuiP<wAmii«,
i^sKe ....
1. JS, plaemttOf Omel.
XYII. Spatangui, Klein .
1. 3, purpwtm, Hal.
XVIII. ^riMM, Klein . .
1. B, lyrifir, Forbes .
XIX. Amphidotui, Agas.
1. A, eordatu$. Pen. .
3. A. roseuSf Forbes .
CfirrkL Vtrmigrada.
XX. PMu9, Oken . .
1. P, phantapui, Lin.
XXI. PtoiinuM, Forbes .
1. P,brtvu,Y,8cQ, .
XXIL OkieiMMrta, Blainr.
1. C. ftotidoHt, Omel.
3. O. pentaettt, Hal. .
S. C7.eomMim{f,F.ftO.
4. (7.A«</'onNM,F.ftO.
5. (7. Ayo/ina, Forbes.
6. a DrummondHf )
Thomp. . . j
British Distribution.
I. n. Yi. Yn. X. XI.
LXI.
LXI.
I. in. YI. Yin. XI.
YI.
in.
Ym. X.
Y. X.
L Y. YI. XI.
Lin.
LXI.
YILXI.
LYn.
n. Yn. Ym. x. xi.
LXI.
L lY. YI. Yn. X. XI.
n. m. X. XI.
I. lY. YI. Yn. X. XL
Yn. X.
I. ni. lY. YL Yn. XI.
L— XI.
lY. Yn. X. XI.
n. Y. XI.
lY. Yn. X. XI.
m. lY. Yii.
I. in. XI.
I. in. IV. YII. VIIL XI.
I.
L XI.
L vn. X. XI.
LYU.
Yin. IX.
L
LXI.
L
I. in. lY. YI. XI.
X.
I.— XI.
LIILYI.X.X1.
I. m. Y. X. XI.
LX.
LIU.
III.— Y.'X.
IIL vn. X.
I.
L
X.
Gen. Distribution.
Scandinar., Hedit
Scan^^ Celt. Medit
North Sea.
Norway.
Scandinavia.
f Norway (?), West
( of France.
Seandina-ria.
Seand. and Celtic
Seas, Medit (t),
Asia(T).
f
/ Aretio Seand. and
( Medit Seas.
Celt, and Med. Seas.
North Saa.
All the Europ. Seas.
Norway.
{Aretie, Northern,
and Celtio Seas.
{Med.,Poi
West of
Portngal(!),
France.
{Norway, West oi
France.
Canada, AsU (!).
Seand., Medit.
Northern Seas.
Norway.
Norway.
North, ft Celt Seas,
TabU QmtMued,
Genera and Species.
British Distribution.
Gen. Distribution.
7. 0. Spndmannif \
Thomp. . . j
VUL X.
8. 0,fueioola,Y.&Q,
L
XXni. Omu», F. & G. .
1. 0, ftnffifMttf,Forbes
m. X XI.
2. 0, laeUui, F. ft O.
LIU. X.
XXIY. 7%ffOM, Oken . .
1. T. papUloMo, Un\, .
L ni. vm. X. XI.
Norway.
2. T,PortloelM,Torh.
X*
XXY. CftiVtNioto, £soh. .
1. a diffitata, Mont .
Y.
Vermigrada.
XXYI. Syrinx, Bohadsch. .
1. S, nudtu, Lin. . .
lY. Y. Yn.
Celt Seas, Medit
Yin. XI.
West Indies.
8. S, Sartmi, Forbes.
Y.
XXVn. Sipunculvt, Lin. .
1. 8, Bemhardtu, )
Forbes. . . /
LXI.
Norway, Franee.
3. A JbAiMtofil, Forbes
in. Y. (?)
XXYIU. PrU^ttdva, Lam. .
1. P. eaudatut. Lam. .
L m. lY. X.
Aret ft Seand. Seas.
XXIX. J^alautmOf Cut. .
1. T.iV4rfMiN,G»rtner
lY.
XXX. Sehiurutf Cut.
1. JS, mUgarit, SaTig.
in.
Belglo Coast"
FoetU SMmlermai<i.
Till within a compiiratively reoent period but little attention
paid to the study of the fosail EchinodemuUck, Various forms of
£ncrinitei [Encrinitks] had been described, and the forms of Sehinidee,
especially those presented by the Chalk, had been studied and de-
scribed ; but through the labours of Wahlenberg, Von Budi, K Forbes,
and others, a new ramily of animals, the Cyttidea, have been added to
the group of Bf^tnodenMia, and large additions have been made to
our knowledge of other forms. Previous to referring to more recent
researches, we present a list of the fossil EehinodenMeU^ as given in
Professor Tennant's List of British Fossils.
Testiabt Sebibs.
Crag Formation.
VAT. HUT. DIY. YOU IL
EchAnocffCKmui Sk^okientii, Ag.
JSckinut (?).
SptUangtu (?).
Aeiericu
Amphidetite
■«•
«•
■<»).
Temnopleurut
London Clay.
Qlyptieue (O, Ophiura WeOurdlii, Morr. liaS.
Penlaeriwiu Sowerbii, Sow.
SpMangue — {')•
Remains of this family belonging to t\iT> or three genera have been
found at Sheppey, but are not yet described.
Cretaceous Group.
'J
Ananehytet eonoideui, Qodt
A' hemupharicuB, Brong.
A, ovatui. Lam.
A, etriaiui, Lam.
Apiocrmiu ellipiicuif Mill.
Arbaeia gramtilotii, Qddf.
Caratomut hemitpharicua, Dee.
C7. roetraifUf Ag.
Oidane clamper, Eonig.
C. creiota, Park.
C. marginatOf Qoldf.
Ctuiidului U^^ie-cancri, Lam.
CcUopygut oarinaiut, Ag.
ddairie scucatUu, Park.
O, vesietdoea, Goldf.
Oomptoma elegane, Gray.
Diadema granuioewn, Ag.
D. varidare, Ag.
Diacoidea cyUndrica, Ag,
D, hoMtpkoBriea, Ag.
D. M^ucM^tw, Bronn.
Ckderitee abbreviaifti, Goldt
0, aXbogaUnke, Lam.
0, eontcttf, Ag.
0, vulgarii, Lam.
0. eubrotundut, Ag.
Oomophionu IwMUatue, Ag.
CXenotremiUei parodoxui, Qoldf.
HdUuter ecmplanca%e, Ag.
H. gramUoeut, Qoldl.
M. noduloiUM, Qoldt
H. iubgloboeue, Goldf.
Manupiiee MiUeri, Kant.
MicraeUr Bufo, Ag.
M. eor^angumitm, Brong.
M, cor4etifidinarium, Goldf.
Jli, IcictmoHU, Park.
M. Murchieonii, Eonig.
M. prunella, Lam.
M, roetratus, ICsnt.
NudeolUet laeunosut, Qoldt
Ophiwra terrata, Romer.
Pyrina depreua, Desm.
Salenia peUdtfer<if Ag.
8, ffeoKMirieitf Ag.
8, eeuHgera, Gray.
8. eteUukUa, Ag.
Spaiangue omatm, Defir.
Toiia hmata, Woodw.
T, regulariif Park.
Oolitic Group.
Amphiura Prattiij Forbea.
Apiocrinue Prattiif Gray.
A. fiofimc2tw,*MilL
Aipidmra lorieata, Ag,
Aeteriat Ootteawoldi<g, Buckm.
(Xdarit BUmenbachih Goldf.
O, corofioto, Goldf.
C, crenularit, Lam.
O. degane, Qoldt
a gkmdifeta, Qoldt
2 z
483
ECHINODERMATA.
ECUINODEllMATA.
431
C, gracilis, Benson.
C. maximaf Gfold£
V. moniliporOf Phil.
C. propinqwu, Qoldf.
C, aubanfftUcvnSf Gk>ldf.
Clyptua emargintUvA, PhiL
O, orhicvlariM, PkiL
C. omaivM, Budkm.
C, patella, Ag.
C, wMiuUut, Park.
JHadema Bechei, Ag.
D* priacum, Ag.
D.'vagans, Phil.
DiaaUer ovdlis, Ag.
Oolitio Qroup. — CorUinued,
E. perUUui, Dosm.
NucleoliteB clunicularis,
N. dimidiatuB.
(^hioderma Egertoni, Forbes.
(Ophiura, Bred.)
0. MiUen, Forbes.
(Ophiura, PhU.)
0. ienuibraehiata, Forbes.
Ophiura Mwrami, Forbes.
PeiUaerinua hcuaUiformis, MilL
P, BriareuM, Mill.
P, tccUaris, Qoldf.
P. gubangvkaria. Mill.
P. vidgaris, Schlot.
Pygaster petalliformis, Ag.
P, temiiulcatua, PhiL
JHtcoidea depreata, Ag.
Echinolampat peiUagonalit, PhiL
Bchinui germinaru, Phil.
Carboniferous Group.
Aetinoerinui acuUatm, Ausi.
A. amphora, Qilb.
A, eataphrctctiUf AusiC
A. conttrictut, M'Coy.
A. eostut, M'Co^.
.^. glohosui, PhiL
^. tovit, MilL
A. puriUut, M'Coy.
.i. ^etteZZo^ttf, Phil.
A, tiaeontadactylut, MilL
^^ocr»n«« MiUeri, M'Coy.
^o^AocriniM bursoy Phil.
d. calearatut, Phil.
(7. conicttf, PhiL
a distortui, PhiL
C. maerocheirui, M'Coy.
(7. fnommtUom, PhiL
C. omatut, PhiL
(7. planui, MilL
jSi?A»nocrt»ftf jBenivr^Af , Port. sp.
B, {^aibriapvnaf PhiL ro.
^. Mwuterianui, De Koninch.
^. I79«u^ Flem. sp.
B, veituiuB, PhiL sp.
Buryocrimu eoneamtt, PhiL
^il&ertcocrimw htna, PhiL
61 caZMforfiM, Phil.
O, mammillariif PhiL
&. fimpIfiB; PortL
PakecMwu degana, M'Coy.
P. tUipHcfua, Soouler.
P* gigaa, M'Coy.
P. Kanigii, M'Coy.
P. «pA(sr»ci(«, Soouler.
PeniatrenuUiUa aeulfu. Sow.
P. an^ttZolitt, Sow.
Devonian Qroup.
P. 2>er6t€vm9, Sow.
P. globoaua, Sieiy.
P. tn/o^tu, Sow.
P. oblongva. Sow.
P. or&tctctoru, Sow.
P. pentagomdia, Sow.
PAtUtptocrmM cargoerinoidea,
M*Coy.
PZcUjfcrtmtf anthelionUa, Ausi.
P. eontr<tcttu, PhiL
P. oorono^iM^ Qodf.
P. eUipticua, PhiL
P. dongatva, PhiL
P. ftrpcnuuf, M'Coy.
P. ff»j9<Ki PhiL
P. Mcinia/iw, Phil.
P. Z<nu, Mm.
P. microatyliu, PhiL
P. OTTttiUttf, M'Coy.
P. punctatua, M'Coy.
P. rugoBua, Mill.
P. ««»/«, M'Coy.
P. triacontadactylua, M'Coy.
P. ttii«rcttto<iM| JiilL
Poteriocrinva conicua, PhiL
P. croMia, Mill.
P. graeilia, M'Coy.
P. impreaaua, PhU.
P. temiif, MilL '
iZAocioermiM a&nomiM, M'Coy.
B, verua. Mill.
j^miolA^crimM eonicua, Phil.
ToxocrtniM Egertoni, PhiL
r.fioH/tt.
T.polydadylvaf M'Coy.
^(ieZocnmif hyatrix, Phil.
C^Aocrmtw diatana, PhiL
(7. eUipUeua, PhiL
C7. jvom^nciw, Gold£
C7. macrodactfiua, PhiL
(7. nugcutylua, PhiL
C7. nociii/omw, PhiL
(7. pinnatvaf Qoldf.
(7. «aria&i/M, Phil.
Pentatremaiitea ovaiiaf Qoldf.
Plaiycrinua inieraeapularia, PhiL
P. perUangularia, MilL
TSoMwmniM macrodwiyhu, PhiL
Silurian Qroup.
JHtnerocrinna deeadaetylua, PhiL
i>. icoaidactylus, Phil.
i^ttuMpAcm^ea ^ronttZa^iu, M'Coy.
Bhodocrinua quinguangularia, Mill.
Sauj«nocrtnu« cxpannu, Ausi.
Toxocrinuf <tt66nMilahu, Phil.
jfVocAocrtfMM tevMi PortL
^cti»oert9t«« affAri^tcua, PhiL
^. montZi/ormify Mill.
.i. rettoriitf, PhiL
A. aimpUx^ PhiL
C^fotAocnfUM capittaria, Phil.
(7. ni^ona, MilL
(7. goniodaetyhta, PhiL
(7. pyriformiaf PhiL
But few of the species here recorded belong to the group of the
true Star-Fiahes, or Aateriadat, To Professor E. Forbes we are
indebted for having collected together all the information possessed
on this subject In his paper in the 'Memoirs of the Qeological
Survey of Great Britain, on the British Fossil Asteriadso/ he says —
"The traces of the first appearance of Aateriadm occur in rocks
of the Bala series, or even lower in the geological scale. They were
first noticed by Professor Sedgwick, who found them in beds of corre-
sponding age in Cumberland^ where they were also observed by
Mr. Daniel Sharpe. The researches of the Qeological Survey have
brou|;ht to light similar fossils in the Bala Hocks, near Bala, and in
the sshy slates at Drumcannon, near Waterford, where they were
found by Captain James. These latter beds probably correspond
with the former. It is very remarkable that forms of Star-Fishes,
strikingly similar, have been found in the Lower Silurian Strata of
the United States. .
" The Cumberland, Welsh, and Irish Star-Fishes all belong to one
genus. After a very careful examination of all the specimens I have
been able to procure (and through the kindness of Professor Sedgwick
and Mr. Sharpe evei^ facility has been afforded), I am induced to
refer them to the existing genus Uraater (Aateracanthion of Mtiller
and Troschel), members of which are at the present day the most
abundant Star-Fishes in the British seas and throughout North
America.
« The general aspect of the Palaosoio StaivFishes must have been
strikingly similar to that of the Uraateria, now living.
" Indeed, impressions tsJcen from the latter in clay would so closely
resemble those which we find in ancient rocks, that the critical eye
of a naturalist would be required for the defiidtion of their specific
distinctness. Nor does this arise through the obscurity of imper-
fections of such impressions, for the external characters, so far as
colour and sculpture of surface, and even many points of structure,
are very completely indicated in them, rude as they may seem.
"Aj jet, with the exception of the instances already referred to,
only one other instance of the discovery of & Pahssozoio Asteriad has
come to my knowledge, namely, that of a well-preserved spedes,
apparently also belongmg to the genus UraHer, by M. Thorent, in
the ' Terrains Antluraaif^res ' of the department of 1' Aisne. It is
probable, however, that the progress of research will bring many
more to light. In the older secondary strata not a few have been
found, both in Britain and abroad. A doubtful form {Aaterias o&£tua)
has been figured by Qoldfuss from the Muschelkalk, who has also
made known a true Aateriaa or Aatropeetmt from the Lias of
Wurtemberg. Several species of Aatropeetan have been observed in
the Oolites of Yorkshire, and similar forms in corrasponding beds in
Germany. Where Uraaieria have also been found, a single example of
fossil Luidia has been made known from the marlstone of Yorkshire,
and a (^uw(«r from Oolitic Beds in Germany. In the Upper Secondary
(Cretaceous Bocks) numerous fossil Star-I^es have occurred, espe-
cially of the genus Ooniaater. Representatives of Oreaaler, Aatrapecten,
Aaterina, and Arthraater (n. g.), are also present in the Cretaceous
The few older Tertiary Star^Fishes with which we are
series.
acquainted belong to the genus Aatropectm, Arguing from the
analogy of their associates, there can be no question that Star-Fishes
wore abundant in the Tertiary seas.
" Yet how very rare are the traces of their existence^ In the later
Tertiary Strata, the only evidence as yet procured of their presence
during the deposition of those beds consists in a few minute nagmen-
tary ossicula of Uraateria, Yet when we consider the gr^;arious habits of
those Star-Fishes, especially of the species to which the ossicula pre-
served in all probability belonged, it is very wonderful to remark the
almost total disappearance of their exuviss, and the hc^ should serve as
a caution to those who would unhesitatingly iofer the absence of a tribe
of oigamsed beings, especially of such as present few fiualities for
preservation, from the absence of their fossil remains. Even now,
when dredging, we very rarely bring up any remains of dead Star-
Fishes, whilst the living animals are not only present in the locality
explored, but often so abundant as to fill the bag of the dredge, to
the exclusion of all other creatures.
" Instead of confining this paper to an account of the Palieozoic
Star-Fishes only, I have thought it desirable to embody in it a synopaiB
of all our British fossil species, and a notice of all foreign ones with
which I am acquainted. This is the more necessary as no connected
acooimt of the fossil Aateriadta exists, and as the geologist has no
text at present hj which he may determine the species in hia
collection." (See Table in column 485.)
One of the most interesting groups of Fossil Behinodermaia, is
undoubtedly that to which tiie name CyatidetB has been given.
Remains of these creatures were known to occur in the strata of the
norUi of Europe, as long ago as the time of Linnaeus. The true
nature and relations of these fossils were entirely misunderstood,
till the appearance of Von Buch's illustrated Essay ' t)ber Cystideen/
pubUshed in 1845. Since the publication of Von Buch's Essay
numerous researches have been made in this country and on the
continent of Europe on this subject. One of the most valuable
contributions is the Monograph of Professor E. Forbes, ' On the
CysUdee of the Silurian Rocks of the British Islands,' in the ' Memoirs
of the Geological Survey of Great Britain.' The general characteiB
of this group of animals are as follows :— ^They are more or less
spherical bodies covered with polygonal plates, varying in number
according to the genus, closely fitting together, so as to invest the
entire surface with a .coat of mail, except at four points, namely,
inferiorly where the body unites with a stem ; centrally or above the
centre ; on one side, where tiiere is an opening closed by valves, sup-
posed with good reason to be the orifice of the reproductive system ;
and superiorly where the mouth ia found, usually if not always with
a small perforation, supposed to be a vent^ alongside of it. These
parts, namely, the plates investing the body, the three orifices (for
the fourth perforation, that of the base, is continuous with the canal
of the stem where the latter U well developed), and probably the
stem, are common to all Oyatidect,
485
ECHINODERMATA,
EiCHIODON.
496
There are other parts, apparently of great conaequetice in the
organiaation of the animal, which are common only to certain members
of the order. These are the brachial appendages (arms and tentacula)
and certain curious organs connected with the plates, to which the
name of ' pectinated rhombs ' may be appropriately given. (Forbes.)
The result of Professor E. Forbears labours are given in the follow-
ing Table of Fossil AsteridcB : —
Genus.
t
fUfvMer .
UratUr .
Uratter .
Unuter .
(7nxj(er(0
( ErrafCerCT)
UfxuterC)
UrtuUr .
^UratUr .
UnuUr .
UroiUr .
OmiaHer
Aurcpteun
AitfOptCttfi
Aitfifptcttn
Attnpfettik
A^ropeeten
Attnptdffn
iMidia •
Arthrasler
OrtatUr .
OttatUr,
OrtaMtr,
OreattfT .
Orttuttr.
OrtatUr ,
Oimkuttr
OcnicaUr
OvniatUr
OuniatUr
QcnieuUr
Cfoniader
OinwuUr
QmUatUr
I
Species.
I
Oeniader
Ooniader
Ooniatler
Ocniatter
OofUatUr
OcnioMUr
Qoniatter
Oonioiter
Pabnipet
CDoubtAil sp.
or repetitions)
Chmituter
Ocniiuttr
OoniatterC!) .
Gonuu(cr(?} .
Goniader
\,UraiUr .
COoniatler
Oonituier
MKTOptClt%
AttropecUn
Doubtftil sp.
Attrcpecten
AttropeeUn .
AUropectm .
Formation.
6btu9u$, n. ■.
pnnugvutf n. ■. .
Ruthvtnif n. s. .
kirudo, n. 8.
mahUvnOf Hall .
antiqua, Locke .
aniipia, Trooet .
f'Plve other)
i sp./TrooBtr
conj(rI2cUa,Thor.
Iuni&ricoU«,Gold.
laneeoUUafQoldl.
/«renn«, Qoldf. .
arenieobu. Gold.
H<utinffia,n, B. .
I Buckman )
Oriont n.s. .
PAtUipnt, n. B. .
\ManddBhchi,]
I Monster |
Preanw, GoldftxsB
IJfurdkiwmit, \
WiUiamsonj
Pixonif n. s.
coronattUt n. s. .
tqHamatu$, n. s.
Boyrii^ n. s.
buUf^enu, n. s. .
dUtuui, n.8.
octUatut, n. a
BtuUeri
rugattu, n. s. .
ttneatuMf n. a
tvblunatiu
Parkinuoni
MantMi
Bowerbankii, n.8.
lufuUM*f Woodw.
Cocmbii, n. a
aniputattuff n. a
latut, n.8. .
BmUhii^ n. 8. .
fHomtieuif n. a .
iUffana, Gray
Ckmptoni, u. s. .
&&ii2fsii, ROmer.
propinipnUt Phil.
mtinquieloba, Gol.
C^ratoii, Agaasiz.
poroita, Amsaiz.
jf ra(i/>ra, Deem,
cikilipora, Beam.
puniMaia^ Des.
mfttfiu^ Iiiin.(?).
Slokerii, n. a
ma7i)r{na<ie«, n. 8.
criipatutf n. 8. .
amuUiM, n. a
poritoidaf Dee.
tevM, Desm.
AdriaHcOf Dea .
Lower Silurian
Lowor Silurian
Lower Silurian
Lower Silurian
Lower Silurian
Lower Silurian
Lower Silur. (?)
Lower Silur. H)
( Teminsan-
(tiiraxif^rea
Terrains an- )
thrax litres r
Tenainaan-)
thraxif%re8 j
Terrainsan-
thraxii^rea
l£arlatone
Harlatone
}
LocaUty.
/Ireland,
iN.Walea
westmor.
Weatmor.
Westmor.
United St.
United St
United St
United St
N. of Fran.
Germany
Germany
Wurtemb.
( Yorkah.
I Germa.
Yorkshire
Harlatone
Marlatone
OoUtee .
Lias
Harlatone
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
White Chalk
Chalk Marl
Green Sand
Green Sand
Quader .
Green Sand
Green Sand
White Chalk .
Chalk Harl (?)
Chalk Marl (T)
Chalk .
Chalk .
Chalk
Crag
London Clay .
London Clay .
London Clay .
London Clay .
VTertiariea
Reference.
Hall. PaL, N.Y.
!Proc.Ao.N.8.
Fhil^ vol. lit.
Tr. Geol. Soo.
Pen., vol. L
Ditto
fTr. Geol. Soc.
t voLiU.
Petrif. Germ.
Petrif. Germ.
Petrld Germ.
Petrif. Germ.
Charleaw. Jour.
Yorkahlre
Yorkshire
Aalen
Wurtemb.
Yorkshire
S. of Engl.
S. of BngL
S. of Engl.
8. of Engl.
S. ofEngL
8. of Engl.
S. of Engl.
S. of Engl.
S.of£ngL
8. of EngL
8. of Engl.
8. of EngL
8. OfEngL
8. OfEngL
S. of EngL
8. cf EngL
S. of Engl.
8. OfEngL
8. of EngL
8. of EngL
Blackdow.
Blackdow.
Germany
Sweden
Germany
/ Munat Beltr.
t latHeft
Mag. N. Hist
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Hautell, Medals
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Parkinson
Dixon
J Woodward,
( GeoL,Norfolk
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
Dixon
B5mer, Ter.
Leth. Suedca
PhilLBeitr.
Germ. Ac.
Neuchatel
Neuchatel
V-France
Suffolk .
Sheppey .
Sheppey .
Sheppey .
Sheppey .
S. of Fran.
Petr, Germ.
Neuf. Mem. L
Neuf. Mem. L
Bord., Tr.t T.
S. Wood
Bord. Tr. t v.
The following is an arrangement of the genera of British Oj/itidecB
found in the Suuiian Bocks : —
A, Bodies composed of definite nmnben of plates.
<k With arms and pectinated rhombs. (Tipper Silurian.)
Pteudocrmitet,
ApioeyitUeB,
h, ArmleWy with oval tentaculated and pectinated rhombs.
(Upper Silurian.)
Prunocyttitea,)
c. Aralen, with oral tentacula wanted; pectinated rhombs
present (Upper Silurian.)
E^mo-Enerimu.
d, ArtolesB^ no rhombs; bodies composed of four series of
plates, exclnnTe of the oral plates. (Lower Silurian.)
Hemieo9imUe»,
e. Armless, no rhombs ; bodies composed of more* than four
series of plates, exdusive of the oral plates. (Lower
Silurian.)
CaryocyttUn,
JB, Bodies composed of an indefinite number of plates*
<k With arms, no rhombs. (Lower Siluriaui)
AgdocriniUi.
h. Without armsi no rhombs. (Lower Silurian.)
YariouB views have been entertained by naturalists as to the
nature of these bodies. Linnasus, from the polygonal forms of the
plates with which they are covered, regarded them as minerala l^m
the time however that their animal nature was admitted, they have
been regarded by most writers as belonging to various groups of the
EthinodermaJta, Mr. M'Coy has suggested their resemblance to certain
forms of ABddiOf but Professor bT Forbes regards this resemblance
as one of analogy only. In the Monograph above referred to, Professor
Forbes thus arranges the Cystidea amongst the Echinodcrmata : —
EOHINIDJB. AfiTEBLLDJB. OFHXUBID.S.
ArchceocidariB.
PcUachmut.
Agelocnnites.
Sphoeronites.
Caryocystites.
i
a
PerUacrinitei,
Apiocystites.
Pseudocrinites.
Prunooystites.
Echinoenorinites.
Cryptocrinites*
Hsemicosmites.
Caryocrinut,
Crinoidsjb.
"In this diagram,'* says Professor Forbes, "the word CrsnDSJi
occupies the centre, and around it are the names of the several genera of
undoubted Cystideans printed in small Roman letters, and arranged in
the order of their affimties. Between them, however, and the names
in small Roman capitals indicating the great groups of equal vidue with
the Ctstidsa, are other names of genera printed in italics. These
are the genera which seem to me to link the Cystideans with the
members of the other great sections of EchinodermcUti. The lowest of
these is the remarkable fossil Caryocrimu, admitted on all hands to
afford a distinct passage from the Ciinoids to the Cystideans, as far as
there can be a distinct passage between two great orders." He then
proceeds to point out in detail the relations of the various genera
referred to vdth each other and with the families at the top of Ihe
diagram.
ECHINODI'SCUS. [Echikida]
ECHINOLA'MPAS, a genus of fosaU EcMnida, from the OoHtio
and Chalk Strata. [Echinodsbmata.]
ECHINOME'TRA [Echinida]
ECHINONE'US. [EcHnnDA]
ECHINOTHORA (from ix^ifos, a hedgehog, and ^pos, in composi'
tion signifying 'bearing'), a genus of Plimts belonging to the natuiul
order Umhell^erce, and to the tribe Smymece. It has a calyx of five
teeth, the petals oboordate with an inflexed point, the exterior lai|^
and bifid ; the flowers of the ray sterile on long stalksi the central
fertile and solitaiy ; the fruit ovate terete, embedded in the enlarged
receptacle ; the carpels with five depressed equal striated wavy ridges ;
interstices with single vitta, covered by a oobweb-like membrane. The
E. jptnoaa, the Sea-Farsnip, has been admitted into the British Flora,
but it must be considered a doubtful native. It has been found in
Lancashire and Kent It is mostly an inhabitant of sandy sea-shores,
and has pinnate spinose leaves, and resembles in habit and external
character the Eryngium, Three other speoieB are described. When
cultivated they require a warm situation and a dry soil They must
be propagated by cuttings of the roots or stems. (Don, DidUamydeout
Plantt,)
ECHINORHI'NUS. [Squalida]
ECHINORCDON. [Eohinidjl]
ECHINO'STACHYS, a genus of Fossil Plants, from the Bunter
Sandstein. (Brongniart)
ECHIinJS. [EoHnriDJS.]
ECHIODOK, a genus of .^odal Malacopteiygious Fiahesbeloiiging
to the family Murtenida, The head is oval; jaws furnished wiu
laige cylindrical teeth in front; other smaller teeth on the palatal
bones and on the vomer. Qill-apertures luge ; branohiost^gous mem«
brane with seven rays. Body smooth, without scales, elongated, com*
pressed. Donal and anal flns nearly as long as the body | iJl tht
rays soft; no ventral fins ; anal aperture near we head.
4S7
ECHITEa
EDENTATA-
This genuB was conBtituted to receive a yeir remarkable fiah found
by Dr. J. L. Drummond on the beach, at Camciough, near Qlenann, in
the county of Antrim, Ireland. It was described by the late Mr. W.
Thompson in part iiL vol ii of the ' Transactions of the Zoological
Society.' This fish has anomalous characters, and Mr. Thompson had
some difficulty in aangning it its proper position. The totiJ length
of the fish was 11 inches. As Dr. Drummond's specimen is the
only one on record, nothing is known of the habits of the fish.
(Tarrell, British Fuhes.)
ECHPTES, a genus of twining Plants, inhabiting tropical countries,
and belonging to the natural order Apocyfiacece. They nave handsome
yellow or white coroUas, and are moreover remarkable for the singular
fruit, which consists of two divaricating woody pod-like follicles con-
taining a huge number of silky seeds. There are above 60 species of
this genus. They are dangerous lactescent plants, of no known use.
E'CHItJM (from fx^s, a viper), a genus of Plants belonging to the
natural order Baraginaeece. It has a calyx with five deep segments ;
the corolla sub-bell-shaped, throat dilated, naked, limb irregular; the
stamens exserted, filaments very long, unequal, style bifid ; the nuts
wrinkled, attached by a flat triangular base. The species are rough
shrubby or herbaceous plants, with lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate
leaves, and blue or white flowers.
B. vvlgare, Vipe^^s Bugloss, is covered with hispid tubercles, has an
erect simple stem, the leaves lanceolate, 1-ribbed, the stem-leaves nar-
rowed below, sessile, the flowers in short lateral spikes, the 'stamens
longer than the corolla. It is a native of dry places in Qreat Britain
and throughout Europe. It is a remarkably nandsome plant. The
flowers are at flrst reddish, and afterwards become blue.
B. vioUteeum is a pilose-hispid plant, with an erect branched diffiise
stem, the lower branches prostrate, the radical leaves oblong-ovate,
H talked, the stem-leaves oblong, narrowed from a cordate half-clae^ing
base with lateral ribs, the spike panided, elongate, simple, the stamens
scarcely longer than the corolla. The root of this plant is red, and
when kept in an herbarium stains the paper of a violet colour. It is
a native of Jersey, also of the south of Germany, Spain, France, ItaJy,
and the south of Taurida.
B, giganteum has a branched stem, hoary at the top, with petiolate-
lanceolate leaves attenuated at the base ; the panicles thyrsoid ; the
spikelets bifid. This plant is a shrub, with whitish-blue fiowers, and
attains a height of eight or ten feet, and is one of the laigest species
of the genus. It is a native of Teif eriffe.
B. pUmtigineumf naturalised in Brazil, is used in that countiy as a
pickle. The roots otB, rvbrum yield &red dye, which is used in the arts.
Above 80 species of this genus have been described ; they inhabit
the temperate parts of all quarters of the globe, but are moro espe-
cially European. A large number of the shrubby species are natives
of the Canary Islands, and another entirely different group are inhabit-
ants of the Cape of Qood Hope. The great bulk of the European
species are herbaceous, as well as those which inhabit South and North
America. All the species are worthy of cultivation, and ihe European
species are amongst the handsomest of ^e indigenous plants of
Europe. The shrubby species are all greenhouse plants, and will
grow in a mixture of sand, loam, and peat ; and cuttings will strike
under a hand-glass in this mixture. They may be also propagated by
layering and by seed, which sometimes come to peorxection in this
country. The hardy species will grow very well in any common
garden soil, and may be propagated by seeds sown in an open border,
in the spring ; their general treatment must be the same as other
perennial, biennial, and annual plants. They are well adapted for
flower-borders, and afibrd a pleasing variety by the different shades of
blue which they exhibit.
(Don, Diehlamydeous Plants; Babington, Manual.)
ECHIURUS. [SipaNOULOiDEA ; EoHrNODERX^TA.]
ECPHTMO'TES (Fitzinger), a genus of Saurians belonging to the
family of the IguanidcB. It possesses the teeth, and poi«s of the genus
Polychrus, but with small scales on the body only. The tall, which
is large, has great scales, which are rhombic and carinated. The head
is 4-8ided, and covered with small plates. The form is a little short
and flattened, like that of some of the Agamas, rather than like the
slender shape of Polyehrus. There are four species— i?. Pitzingerii
and B. unduUUus, natives of Brazil ; B. obtusirostris, native of Mexico ;
and B. acutirostriSf a native of Brazil.
ECTOCARPACE^ [Alojl]
ECTOPISTES. [Columbida]
ECTOZOA (from 4ict6s, without, and ^t»6s, living), animals found
living upon the external parts of other afiima]a, This term is applied
to distinguish the forms of animal life which are parasitic upon the
surface of other animals from those which inhabit their interior.
[Entozoa.] Whilst those which inhabit the interior of animaU have !
so much resemblance to each other that naturalists place them
together in an order which is called Bntozoaf those which are found
on the surface are very dissimilar, and belong to distant and dis-*
similar fiEtmilies. The term Bctozoa is therefore not one expressing
any affinity between the ftnimala included in it, but simply refers to
their habitation.
The Bctozoa as well as Bntozoa are found frequently associated with
the diseased states of the animal bodies on which they are found, and
'*h discussion has arisen as to whether they are the true causes of
the diseases which they accompany. Thus much is certain, that
whether they originate or not the diseased state of the body on which
they are found, when allowed to increase they become themselves a
source of diseased conditions, which disappear as soon as they are
destroyed.
This is a general law equally applicable to parasitic plants as well
as animals. So that it would appear that, although their first attacks
may be invited by a diseased condition of the plant or animal on
which they are found, they may be productive of destructive effects
by an unnatural and unhealthy increase. Every species of plant and
animal appears to be subject to the attacks of special forms of para-
sitic plants and animals ; and with regard to the latter they may be
either inside or outside, so that we have not only Betosoa and Bntoeoa,
but Betophyta and Bnitophyta, [Ektofhtta.]
Under tiie term BfUnoa a number of animals have been placed
together whose claims to be regarded as a section of the great family
OiMfacea are now generally recognised. These are found more espe-
cially on the bodies of fish, infesting their skin, eyes, and eill& They
are very numerous^ and the larger number of them belong to the
family Lemeades. [LbrnbadjlJ They must be regarded as the
Betosoa of aquatic atiimals. The bodies of the Cetaesa are frequently
the chosen residence of many species of Oiirripedi€k [Cibbipedia.]
These ecto-parasitic habits seem to be partaken of by some of the
Vertebrate Animals, as we find the Remora (^chbnjcib] and other
fish attaching themselves to the bodies of animals by an apparatus
adapted for &e purpose.
llemd animals are subject to the attacks of various forms of BcUaoa,
more especially^ those belonging to the Articulate tribes of unlmala.
The following is a list of the creatures to which man is subject in
various parts of the world : —
Phthirus ingmnalis (Leach), the Crab-Louse; PecUeuUu Capitis
mitzBch), Head-Louse; Pedie%Uus Vestimenti (Nltzsch), Body-Louse ;
Pediculus Tabescentivm, Burmeister [Aitoflura] ; Sareoptes Seabiei
(Latreille), Itch-Insect [AcaridaI; Jkrmanyssus Boryi (Qervais);
Ixodes AmericatvUs (De Qeer), Tick [Ixodes] ; Argas Persicus (Fischer) ;
Pulex penetrans (Gmelin), Chigoe ; Pvlex irritans (Linn.), Common
Flea [Pulex] ; Cimex leetvlarius (Linn.), Bed-Bug [Bug] ; (EHrus
Hominis (Say), Gad-Fly [Botb].
Other creatures are occasionally found taking possession of the sur-
face of the human body. In diseased conditions the common fly has
been known to deposit its ova in various parts of the body, and many
of the insects which are parasitic upon the lower animals will take up
their abode on the human body. This is the case with the various
forms of the Anopluraf which aze a peculiar species on almost every
n>ecies of animal on which they are found, so i^ with Uie species of
we genera Pulex and CSmex,
(Leidy, in PUtra and Pawna wt^tn Lining Animals.)
EDATHODOK, a genus of Fossil Plaooid Fishes, from the London
Clay and Bagshot Sand, lliree species. (Agassiz.)
EDDOES, the name by which the esculent Caladwm is known by
the blacks of the Qold Coast [Calasiux.]
EDELSFOBSITE, a Mineral consisting of sUicate of lime, && It
occurs fibrous or feathery and massive. Its colour is white or grayish.
Its hardness 6(f). Its lustre shining. Transparent The specific
gravity 2*58. It is found at Aedelfors in Smaland, Cziklowa in the
Banat, and in Norway. The following is its analysis : — Silica, 61*85 ;
lime, 88*15, with small quantities of magnesia, alumina, and iron.
Another compound under this name has also been called the Aedelfors
Bed Zeolite. It agrees in composition with StiUdte, except that it
contains 2 per cent less of water.
EDENTATA, a group of Mammiferous Animals brought together
on account of their agreement in the comparatively unimportant
character of the absence of incisive' teeth in their jaws, and the length
of their claws. Cuvier divided his Bdeniata into three tribes :—
1. Tardiprades, including the Slotha [Bradtpub]. 2. The Edentata
proper, including the Armadilloes {Daiypus) [Armadillo] ; the Aard-
Vark {Orycteropus) [AARi>yARK] ; the Chlamyphore [Chlamtphorus] ;
the Ant-Eaters (Myrmecophaga) [Ant-Eater]; and the Pango-
lins {Manis) [Manis]. 8. The third tribe embraces the MonotremeSj
Bchidna, and Omithorhynchus, These last are mostly regarded as a
group of at least equal value with the Bdentata. [Echidva ; Griti-
TH0RHTNCHU8.] The Bdentata also include the •gigantic toothless
fferhivora of a former period in the world's history, and of which the
Megatherium may be tiuken as a type. n^EGATHBRiDA.]
In the list of the specimens of the Mammalia in the ' Collection of
the British Museum, the species of this group are distributed as
follows : —
Order Y. UNOtLATA.
Family 4. Dastfidjb.
o. Manina.
Manis tetradactyla, the Phatagin.
M, muUiscutata, Many-Shielded Phatagin.
M, pentadactylOf the Badgareit
M, Javanica, the Tangilin.
h, Jkuypina,
Ikuyptu sexcincttts, the Armadillo,
Ta4usia tricinctaf the Apanu
CyJoMsnu didaelgliH
EDlNOTONITE.
T. tepltmciticliit, tbe Pebo.
T. mimtla, the Pichay.
Xmuntt ttntniKtuf, Uie Tatouajr.
Pri»d«nla gigat, the Tatou.
e. JfyrmecopAo^uui.
Orgtitnpia Capenrit, the Aard-Taric
MipiMOtpluigaivbala, the Tanmnoir.
" ' \a telradadyla, the Tamondua.
;(ytw, the Alit>Eater.
d. Omithorhynchina,
Platfptu OMOIiiHU, tbe UutliagoDg.
Sthidna kyilTix, the Echidna.
£ MfoM, Brown Eobidna.
Fatnilj BaASTPms.
Cholaput didadyliu, Unau.
fnufipiu toTTMOMu, the Oipakeiou.
R ipdarit, the Tellaw-Faced Sloth.
B. tndaetyhu, the Sloth or AL
EDItfOTONITE, a Uinenl, ooniiBting of ■<!!«(« of alumina, ftc
It occun in luull right aqiun priama, vith lateral cleavage. It is
nearl; colourisn, uid hu & Titreoui lustre. It has a hudneee of 4 to
i B, and a ipeoifia grarity from 2*7 to 2'TG. It is found ¥rith Thom-
eonita/in Dambartonabire.
EDRIOFHTHALHIA (Leach), a legion of CraaUoeotu Animala
with aeeaile ejte, which are geiMrally componnd, but aomeUmea
■imple, ntnated on the aidaa of the head. The mandiblea are often
^imlBhed with a palp, and the head ia almoat alwaya diatinct from
the body.
Dasniarest makea the Einephtlutlmia oomprehend the Ampkipoda
of Latreills, which, the farmar obaarrea, Leach haa not admitted,
and which ineludee the two Gnt aeetiona of hie legion of Malaeot-
Iraea Sdriepklhalmia, and oorresponda to the goina Oannantd of
FabrJciui.
The Amphipoda are charaetenied as having a head diatinct from
the trunk, and formed of & nngle piece ; mandiblea provided with a
palp ; jiwi to tha numbar of uiree patra, the external pair of which
___D fett, of wliieh the ant«rioT are often terminated ^j
a single finger ; vaaicnloiu branchio situated at the internal base of
tha feet, with the exception [^ that of the anterior pair ; tail compoaod
of from six to seTen artieulationa, and benring underneath Sve pain
of falH f«et in form of filaments, with two very moveable brandiea.
Th^ are thus divided by Daimaieat : —
The firat section conaiita of those ipedea whose antenna) are inserted
one on each aida of the front ; whoee tail is terminated by styliform
Blameuta ; and whose head is large and vertiesl. Example, Pkmiima,
Latr., LsKch, Lam., lo. &c ; Cancer, Herbat, Foiak.
The second (not admitted by Leach) compriaes those with four
antennie ; two flattened leafleta serving for fine, placed at the end of
tha tail, in place of tha atyles; and the head large and vertieaL
Example, Syjieria, Latr.
The third ineludee those which have four antemuB ; the tail termi-
nated by ityliform filaments j the head moderately laip and not
Tertical, and ooutains six divisions, some of which are subdivided.
Tatilr^ Latr.; Atylm, Leach: J)txaniM, Laash; Uelita, Leach j
GamaiarM; Fabr. ; /Weccrtu, Leach; Conphtum, Latr.; Otrapa*,
Say, may be taken as etamplea of soma of the forms of these
diviuons and aubdiviaioDe.
The other ordera arranged t^ Deamareat under the Sdriophthalnia
are the Zamadipoda, Latr., and the Itopoda, Late.
U. Hilne-Edw^ida makes the EdriophthalmJana ooosist of the aame
ordera, placing them as a lemon of tha aub-closs of Uaiillated Crusta-
ceans, next to the lenon of Podophthalmiana. [Cburuv^]
EDWARDSIA. rAcrmiAna.]
EDWABDSITE, a name for MenaxUt. [Cbhiuk.]
EEL. [HoaxiimA,]
EEL, SAND. [AloioDTTES.]
EFT. Tha terms Eft and Newt ore applied slmost Indiscriminately
to all the species of Lisu^ls which ore found in the British Islands.
The word lizard is evidently formed from lacerta, and is comparatively
modem. Eft and Newt are the old Saxon words. Eft seema to be
more usually applied to the land animals, one of the moat common
of which is the ZootiKa vmjiara, and another less common, the Xooerta
agilU. Nevrt ia more oonunonly applied to the ■"'""I" whioh inhabit
ponds, wet ditches, and other damp places, such as the TVitvn cririof lu
(the Great Water-Newt), Liitotrilon pundalut (the Common Smooth
Newt), and other apecies. [Amphibia; Sahbu.]
EQEON, Kisao'a name for a genus of Hacrouroua Decapodoaa
Crvitaeea, whose characters ore genenJly like thoee of tbe Shrimp
[Cruoohid^s], but with the following diSerancea. The fourth or last
viaible joint of the extenial jaw-feet is nearly twice as large ss the
preceding. The feet of the second pair ore extremely short, alender,
and didactyloua ; thoee of the third long, Terr slender, and terminated
by a single nul; thoas of the fourth and fifth pairs Urger, and ending
by a compressed nail. Tha oaiapaee elongated, oylindrieal, spinoua,
and terminated anteriorly by a small roatrum.
The extreme brevity, observes Desmareat, of the second pur of feet,
id the roughneas of the carapace, are the most remarkable of these
; out they do not m hia opinion present charactera sufB-
cient for the eatabliidtment of a genus.
R lorkalut, Riaao; PontophUut tpinotiu, Leach (see 'Trans. Soc.
Linn.' t. xi., p. 316 ; and ' Halac Brit,' tab. ST A) htui a carapace sup-
porting three longitudinal dentelated carinee above ; rostrum very
short; total length about an inch and a haU; PonlophUut MpinotU4
inhabits the coasts of England, those of Nice and the Adriatic Sea.
SgMn iBricalui. a, ltd root of Ih
IrnucniBed.
In bis ' Britiah Craataceo,' Professor Bell his the fallowing remaika
on the synonymy of this species :— " A careful examination," he says,
" of several Britiah apecimena of this speciea {PontopMlut ipinonu),
and of a well-marked one of the Mediterranean form, with which I
believe it has been erroneously confounded, has led me to reject the
alleged synonyms of Rino and Roui, which appear to me to belong
to every distinct specieB. I am not aware of the grounds upon which
Dr. Hilne-Edwards has considered the Sgtoa lorieaim of Riaso as the
male of the Ponlophiiiu ipinonu of Leach ; but I feel very confident
that they belong to different species."
EQERAN, [iDOCRiBK.]
EQE'RIA, a genus of Biochyurous Decapod Cnutooeana eatahlished
by Leach, and tiiua characterised : —
External antennse short, inserted on the sides of the rostmm, having
their second joint much shorter than the firet. External jaw-feet
having their third articuUtioa atraight on the internal border, and
terminated by a point, Clawa delicate, linear, double the length of
tbe body in the moles, nearly equalling it in the females, much shorter
ia both sexes than the rest of the feet, which are very alender, thoss
Desmarsst ohssrvet that this genus, somewhat hastily eaUblished
by Leach, if tha number of articulations of the abdomen m the species
which compose it were seven, would he nearly approximated taitaia,
FUa, Mitirax, and Mieippa, in tbe form of the body ; hut tbe
HI
EGO.
a In tbe delicacy and diiproportLoned lengUi of the feet.
If tbe namber of articulationB compoBtcg it be Bii, u there is roam
for believing, kltbaugb neither Latraille nor Leach say bo poaitively,
it would beu great relationihip to thelQDg-legg«d genei^ Maeropodia,
Ltplopodia, oidDoclea, for example. But it has not thelong.alender,
divided nwtnun, u well aa the long claws larger than the feet^ which
chentcteriae the Grst ; Dor doea it present the very long, vecy slender,
uid entire rostrum, aa well aa the very elongsied and litiear clawB, of
the Beoond ; and finally, it hsa not the globular body and the vary
short and delicate clawi of the last. It la removed from Inachm by
the olaws, which are proportionally ihortflr and len thick than those
of the lut-named oruitacearia ; by the other feet, which are rslatively
longer ttwo theirs ; by the antennK, of which the first two joints of
the base, and not the third, are longer than tbe othen ; aod by the
double floaure of the bottom of the ocbita above,
S. Indita, in siio, general form of the body, and length of the feet,
bears a great resemUance to Inacktu Scorpio ; but besides the generic
difiTerences painted out, it is itill further removed from it in having
> Iitrger roBbum which is deeper incised in the middle, end In having
the points with which the elevated and distinct r^ons of the cara-
pace above are beset diiposed in the following order : 3, 2, 1 and 1.
A rather long Bharp post-ocular point is directed forwards. The
arms are rather short and slender. It inhabits the Indian seas.
Bgtria is also used by De Roiaay for a genus of Conohifers, which
U. Sander Rang considers identirol with CoIofAeo, Brug., and Petit-
tiu>pliiltti, Sow.
EQG. [KirRODUCTios ik AmuLS.]
EGO-APPLES. [SoLimTM.]
EQQ-PLANT. [Solabuil]
EGLANTINE. [Rosi.]
EGRET, the common name of several apecies of Heron. [Abdk^I
EGYPTIAN BEAM, a name eometimee given to the bean-like
fruitfl of Ntlvmhium tpteianm, from the notion that they were the
beans which the diaciplee of Fythagoraa were forbidden to eat.
EHRETIA'CE.£, Ehrcttadi, a nnall natural order of Exogenous
Plants, oonaisting of abruba or trees inhabiting the warmer oountrira
of the world, and having rough leavea, monopetaloua regular flowers,
■ definite number of atamena, a superior ovary, a 2-1abed style whose
divisions are capitate, and a nucAmentaceoua undivided fritit. The
flowers are more or leea gytata, and the order itself, which containB
no apecies of economical value, is ao near Borar/inacea ai to render it
doubtful whether it oucht 1« be separated. The common Heliotrope
is the moat ganarally known representative of EkretiiKeee, fbrming
however the type of a sectional division characterised by the fruS
a ripe halt trith the caljx
EIi£AQNACE>G. tt>
being dry, not moouleni There are 14 genera and 2ST spedea of
this order.
The root of Ekniia buxyfUia ia used In medioine In India. Sane
of the species of the genos £Ar«tt(i bear eatable dmpee.
EIDEH-DHCK. [Doom.]
EI RENE. [AoAt.EFHA]
EKEDEItGITE {Sodaiit), a Uinei«], eonristing of ■ silicate of
alumina, lime, and aoda. It doea not oocur crjautliBed, bnt in com-
pact or finely-GbrouB maiitinn, and occasionally in Uiin bminip. Its
colour is green, gisyiah, or brownish. The lustra is vitreous or rea-
lUB, It is tranaparenb The fallowing ia an anolyais by Bkeberg :—
Silica *8
Alumina 2fl-T6
Lime 1850
Soda . G-2S
Olido of Iron ■ . 0-76
Water 3-25
EL^AGNA'CE.^, OUadert, a small natural order of Apetalooa
Ezogenoui Planta, consisting of treea or shrubs wboae leavn an
either opposite or jtemate, destitute of stipulea, and always pn>-
tected more or lees by acurfy acalee, which ustially give the plant* a
leprous aspect The genera of thia order have a tubular 4-labed
<^7i, the uuide of which is lined with a fleshy disc, that aomatimea
almost closes up the tube; tliere are 3, 4, or 3 stamaoa, and
a superior ovary containing a single erect ovule. The fnut is aoft,
succulent, and would be eatable if it were not for its dryoen and
insipidity. In a few cases, when it is more than usually jnicj and
acidulated, it ia actually considered an excellent fruit. Slaagnui
\tirtaiiit and E. orierUiUii bear a brown fruit about the nae of an
olive, which is brought to market in Persia under the name of
Zinieyd; in qiudity it is like a jujube. The red drupea of *. txmfain,
the lane oliveehaped ones of E. arberta, and the pale orango-ooloared
ones of £ tri/lora are in like manner eaten in India ; another occurs
among the drawings of Chinese fmita. It is not a little cutioua,
nsarly as Blaagnaeea are related to ThymUaiKta, that thev do not
seem to participate in any degree in the acridity of that ddeterioua
order. The only species found wild in Great Britain ia the Eippepkai
rhamnoida, a spiny shrub with dioscioua flowers, email round orange-
coloured add bemes, and narrow leaves like those of rosemary, fonnd
growing on cliSs near the sea; its fruit, when the acidity is anfEciently
covered by Bugar, becomes a rather pleasant preserve. EUtagma
ongMtliftilia, called in the gardens the Olivier de BohKine, a native of
the eaatam parta of Europe, ia one of the most fragrant of all planta.
Its dull yellow flowers, Wdl; remarked among the leaver fill ^is
Eaagma anguiliftKa.
1, a leetlon of the tnlie at tka calTi, Bhewiai tke Besby diss almost ekslDg
up tbe tnbe, Uia sarpel, with Iti itjle and •tisma, and the enet •oUtur otoIc ;
i, a ripe trull ; S, Ute nmt cat aws; to tbow the Binglt forrDwrd sHd.
atmoBphere with a delidoua perfume, the source of vhich is Dot
readily diKovered by the paaeer-by. The genera compriaiiig this
order are Slaagnut, Hippophai, Comdoim, and Sliefktrdia. Thej
embrace about 30 species.
EL.^S, a genua of Palms, to nnmsd &om Blaia, tho Olire-Trea,
' becauae an oQ is Tielded bj the fruit of ita principal if not only
apecies. This ia f bni Ouiatetuit, or Oil-Falm, Mnba, of the nativea
of the Congo. It ia common all along the western coaat of Africa.
The tne is moncecious, aa we are informed that both mala and female
apadicea were obtained from a single plant cut dovra b; Profesgor
Smith. (Brown, in Tuckej'a ' Congo.'} Ths atem ia tall, about teo
inchea in diameter, rough, and bristling with tbe peniatent buses of
the petioles, of which the margina, as in recent leaves, are fringed
with spines. The leaves are pinnate, about IS feet in length, with
two rows of sword^ahaped leaflets, each 1 S inches long. The fruit a
ovoid, about the size of a pigeon's egg, with its outer flesh; covering
of a golden yellon colour ; and like that of the aection Cocoma, to
which it belongB, and analogous to the cocoa-nat, baa the fonuoina of
ita putamen at the apex, and not at tha baae, u repreeBnted 1^
Oicrtner and others,
Mr. Brown baa obsBrred it as remarkable that Ooeoi Indiea and
this palm, which is unirerBallj, and he believes Juatly, oonsideied as
having been imported into the West India colonies from the west
coast of A&ica, should be the only two Bpeciea of an extensive and
very natural section of palma that are not eonfined to America. The
Etaii otddaitatU of Swarti, the Thatch- Tree of Brovm'a ' Jamaica,'
and the Avoira of Aublet, are probably all idsnlica] with the Uaba,
or Oi]-Palm, of the A&ican ooaat.
The oil is obtained by bruiatog tbe fl«hy part of the fruit (and not
the kernel ai aometimea stated), and aubjecUng the bruised paste to
boiling water in wooden mortiuv ; an oil of an orange-yellow colour
■eparates, wliiah oonorsteB when cool to the oonsiatenoe of butter, and
haa when fresh the imeU of violeta or of the root of Florentine iria,
with a veiy alightly sweetish taate. The oil ia used by the Af rioona in
cookery and for anointing the body. It forms a considerable article
of commeroe to Europe, where it ia chiefly employed in perfumery
and medicine. Cocbm bulgraeta (which is refernd by Eonth to tbe
genus Stiru) ia oonaidered by the Edinburgh Collage to be the plant
which yields palmoiL
Mr. Brown (Tuckey's 'Congo,' Appendix, p. iSS) states, '"' '
nmlukla that. Alf^JL. ^l^fZZ. ^f d ■ » - "^ ' ■ '
probable
tMlongs t
speoiea. To thia the above authors in the ' Synopsis Plant. .^Iquinoct.'
rsply, that In SlaU, aocording to the deamiption of Jaoquin, both the
BiH^ enrel^ies an seiiSd, while In Affimtia they are trifld. If this
EL-EODENDROSr. 4M
moreover bu tbe sums as the corozo of Jacquin, aaother- eaaeuUal
difference may be obaei-ved in the structure of the fruit of the two
planta, tbe nut in Elaii being perforated at the apex, while the
corozo boa ita nut perforated with three foramina at ita base ; " but
thia might have been inverted, as that of Elaii waa by Qiertner.
Humboldt and Bonpland moreover found Al/ontia oUifcra always
growing wild, while SCaii Gtiintemi), as Ihej atate, ia never found
except in a cultivated atate out of Africa. The compresaed nut of
the A Ifoiuia, like that of the cocoa-nut, ia described aa yielding an
oil, which ia obtained by boiling in water the Mnnteca del Coroio ; it
is described as a liquid fat employed for ordinary lamps aa well aa
those of churches.
EL,£OCARPA'CE^, EUoearyt, a natural order of diiefly Indian
Treea, having a strong botanical reaembboce to our European
Lindens, but diCTering in having fringed petals, and anthers opening
by two pores at the apex.
In tbe Indian genera, the nuts, cleared of the soft pulp or flesh that
covers them, are curiously sculptured, and being bony and taking a
flne poliah they are frequently set in gold and strung into necklaces.
The nuts of Ganitrut iphirricM, a middle-aized tree, common in
various parte of India, as well aa the' Malay Archipelago, and those
of Xenoctra tvbtrculata, from the forests of Travancore, are what are
principally used for thia purpose. The fruits of Slaoearpm lerraiia,
whiub are very mueh like olives when ripe, are said by Itoiburgh to
be pickled or dried and used in their curdea by the natives of India.
£ tj/anau has pure whit« beautifully-fringed petals, and ia one of the
moat ornamental planta of Australia. Lindlsy, in his ' V^etablo
Kingdom,' places this 01 ' ' ' ■■ ■ ■ .■.■.-
a order aa a sub-order or division of Tiliatca.
A flowHiiig (boot otEliKt
lugnlfied flower ; I, a petal ; }, Uie
It anr to show the wriDkled ued.
genua of Planta belonging to the natural order Cciatlracea. It has a
G-parled calyx ; B expanding linear-oblong petals ; a G-angted very
thick fleahy diao ; G anthers inserted into tiie margin of the diac; ths
filamenta at length recurved] anthers with a thiijc oonneotive,
roundish, opening longitudinally; the ovary immeiaed in the disc,
2-ceUed ; the ovulaa 2 in each cell ; the atyle short, conioal ; the
stigma simple, obtuse ; the fruit drupaceous, dry, or pulpy j tbe nut
1'2-celled ; tbe seeds uanally aolitary, with a membranaceoua or
spongy integument erect. iIib species are amnll treea with opposite
entire glabrous leaves.
E. glauewn has elliptieal serrated leaves, hardly three timea longer
than the petioles ; the cymes loose, nearly the length of the leaves;
the Sowers pentuidroua. It is a small tree, about II feet in height
4M
ELiBOLITE.
ELATERTD^
and is a natiye of Ceylon and CoromandeL The tree has been intro-
duced into Great Britain from Ceylon under the name of Ceylon-Tea.
It has leaves like those of the tea-plant^ but it does not appear to be
used as a substitute for that plant.
E, Ron^mrghii has oblong serrato-orenate, opposite and alternate, hard,
smooth, shining leaves, about 4 inches long and 2 inches broad, with
the petioles tKu^BeH^uarters of an inch long ; the cymes globular, and
three times the length of the petioles. It is a native of the moun-
tainous parts of India. It possesses powerful astringent properties,
but is not used as an internal medicine.
The fruit of all the species resembles that of the olive, and hence
the generic name. E, orientaU is a native of the Mauritius and
Madagascar, where it is called by the French Bois d'Olive. E, Argam
contains in its fruit a fixed oil like the common olive, which is used
by the Moors for the same purpose as olive-oil is used in Europe.
The species of Elaodendron will grow freely in a mixture of loam
and peat, and ripened cuttings will root in sand under a hand-glass.
(Inndley, Flira Medica; Loudon, Encyclopcsdia of PlanU; Don,
Diehlamvdeout Plants.)
ELi£OLITE (FeUttein), a Mineral, consisting of a silicate of
alumina, soda, iron, &a It occurs in amorphous masses, with
cleavages pandlel to the lateral planes, and both diagonals of a
rhombic prism. Its frscture is oonchoidaL Colour dark green,
bluish-gray, or grayish or brownish-red. The hardness is 6*5 to 6*0.
The lustre resinous, frequently opalescent when cuK Translucent.
The specific gravity is 2*54 to 2*62. It is found at Laurvig, Stavem,
and Fredericksvam in Norway. The following is an analysis by
Vauquelin : —
SiHca 4400
Alumina 34.00
Soda 16*50
Peroxide of Iron 4*00
Lime 0*12
Gmelin found also 4*783 per cent, of potash, and only 0*651 per cent,
of peroxide of iron.
ELAND. [Antilopbjs.]
ELANET, a form of Hawk {FdUo mdanoptenUf Daudin) inhabiting
Africa, and aJso India and America. [Falconiojl]
ELAPHUS. rCsBViDJL]
ELAPHRItJM. [Calophtllum.]
ELAPS. [ViPBBiDJi.]
ELA'SMODUS, a genus of Fossil Placoid Fishes from the London
a^. (Egerton.)
ELAmOTHERIUM. [Paohtdebmata.]
ELASTIC TISSUE. The elements of Elastic Tissue are cylin-
drical or band-like fibres with dark contours, very minute, and when
present in large numbers they exhibit a yellowish colour. Hence it
has been called Yellow Tissue. The fibres acquire sometimes little
cavities in particular spots, which give these fibres a striated appear-
ance, as seen in the giinffe. The elastic tissue is rarely found in laxgo
masses, but it is very frequently mixed with areolar tissue, either in
single fibres or in networks of various kinds. [Arbolab Tissux.!
The organs into which this tissue enters, and constitute their special
feature, are : —
1. The elastic ligaments, in which the tissue with only a slight
admixture of coimective tissue and hardly any vessels and nerves
exists, so to speak, in a pure form. Of these we have examples in
the ligamentum subflava of the vertebra, the ligamentum nuchee, the
ligament of the larynx, and stvlo-hyoid ligament
2. The elastic membranes which appear either in the form of fibrous
networks or of fenestrated membranes, and are found in the walls of
the vessels, especially in those of the arteries, in the trachea and
bronchia, and in the &saia superficlalis.
(Kolliker, Manual ^f Huuiogyf translated by Busk and Huxley for
the Sydenham Society.)
ELATE'RIDiE, a family of Coleopterous Insects belonging to the
section SUmoxi (Latreille), and, according to Linnnus, constituting
thegenus EUUer,
The insects of this family are of a lengthened form ; the head is, in
nearly all cases, deeply inserted into the thorax ; ^e Uiorax is usually
of the same width as the elytra, or nearly so, longer than broad, and
the posterior angles are acute, and most frequently produced into a
pointed spine-like process : the elytra are long and narrow, cover Uie
abdomen, and their external margins are often nearly paralleL The
antennn are of moderate length, either filiform, serrated, or pecti-
nated, and when the insect is at rest they are deposited in two grooves
on the under side of the thorax ; at least sudi is the case in very
many of the species. Hie legs are short and rather slender, .and the
femora and-tibiss are generally compressed.
These beetles are found upon flowers and upon the leaves of trees
and plsnts ; some species however are most fluently met with upon
the ground.
When upon any elevated situation, if approached, they apply the
legs and antennas close to the bod^, and allow themselves to fall to
the ground ; if they fall upon theur back they regain their natural
|x>sition by a leap, which is alwavs accompanied by a snapping noise
similar to that which may be made by the finger-xudls. Wnen about
to leap they bend the thorax backwards, so that the body is arched,
or rauier forms an angle, the insect then resting upon the apex of the
abdomen and the fore part of the thorax. The leap appears to be
effected by the sudden relaxation of the muscular effort which kept
the thorax bent backwards, there being a peculiarity in its structure
which causes it to spring forwards.
Even in a dried specimen, upon attempting to bend the thorax
back, we found considerable resistance ; but when allowed, it sud-
denly assumed its natural position, which is a slight inclination
forwards.
There is a strong spine, it must be observed, on the under part of the
thorax, at its base, which, when the thorax is in its usual position, is
deposited in a groove ; and it is said that the leap is performed prin-
cipally bv means of this spine, which is at the time forcibly pressed
against the margin of the hollow, into which it sinks suddenly, as if
by a spring. From this opinion wo are inclined to differ ; for upon
removing the spine we found not the slightest alteration in that natu-
ral spring in the thorax which we before mentioned. Not however
having at this moment the means of investigating the subject, it would
be premature to venture any further remarks.
The larvss of the EUUerida feed most generally upon vegetable
substances : rotten wood affords food to many ; others live in the
ground, and feed upon the roots of plants ; one of them (the larva of
Slater gtriatMt of Fabricius) is said to attack the roots of the wheat
and when in great numbers to do much injury.
These larvn are long, rather slender, generally oylindricsl, and
covered with a tough skin : the head and terminid joint of the body
are of a corneous texture ; the latter is very variable in form, and is
often depressed and produced into two bluntly-pointed processes : the
former is furnished with the usual parts, such as jaws or mandibles,
maxilhe, palpi, labrum, labium, and antennae. The three segments
which constitute the thorax are each furnished with a pair of diort
legs.
Of the insects included by Linnseus under the generic name of
Slater, and others of similar general characters whi<m have been dis-
covered since that naturalist's time, there are upwards of five hundred
species enumerated, and as these species (which are now regarded as
constituting a family) are divided into about sixty genera, it will be
impossible, consistent with the plan of this Cyclopedia, to enter into
the detail of their characters. We will therefore confine ourselves to
some of the more important^ — ^in fisot, to those which are given by
Latreille in the 'B^gne Animal:' these are as follows :—'^a/&a,
EuchemiSt Adelaeeraf Liuotnus, Chehnarwun, Throteut, Oeropkytum,
Oryptatlomci, Nematadet, ffemeripui, Stenieera, SUUer (proper), and
Camphifhu, These genera are divided by Latreille into two sections,
in the first of which the antennie are lodged (when the insect is at
rest) within two grooves situated on the under side of the thorax.
This section includes the first six genera.
The genus Oalba (Latreille) has the antennss filiform, and received
into two grooves situated directly under the lateral margin of the
thorax; the joints of the tarsi are simple ; the thorax is convex ; the
mandibles are terminated by a simple point ; the maxillse are furnished
with a single smaJl lobe; the tenmnal joint of the palpi is globular,
and the body is nearly cylindrical The species are all from BraziL
The genus SucnemU (Ahrens) differs from Cfalba chiefly in having
the mandibles bifid at the apex, the maxilla terminated by two
lobes, the terminal joint of the palpi securiform, and the body
nearly elliptical Species of this genus are found in Europe and North
America.
Adelocera (Latreille).— Here the antennso are filiform ; the joints of
the tarsi are smiple, and the anterior legs, when contracted, are received
into lateral cavities in the under part of the thorax.
Liuomut (Dalman). — The species of this genus have little cushion-
like lobes on the under side of each joint of the tarsi
In the genus Ohdonarium (Fabricius) the form approaches to an
oval, the second and third joints of the antennae are larger than the
following, and of a flattened form, and these alone are received into
the sternal grooves. The head is almost hidden by the thorax, which
is semiciromar, and the anterior legs are laiger than the rest All the
species are from South America. .
Throteus (Latreille).— This genus is readily distinguished b^ the
antennae being terminated by a three-jointed knob ; the penultimate
joint of each tarsus is bifid ; the mandibles are simple.
The species of Throteut are very minute. T. dennatoidet, an insect
not uncommon in this country, is about one-eighth of an inch in
length, of a brown coIouTi and obscurely covered with an ashy pubes-
cence.
The second section of the Slateridct comprises those species in which
the antennae are free, or not lodged within grooves on the under part
of the thorax.
Ctrophyium (Latreille). — ^The principal characters of thisgenus are:—
Terminal joint of the palpi larger than the following, and almost securi-
form ; tarsi with the four bsMl joints short and triangular, the penul-
timate joint bUobed ; antennae serrated in the female, and in the male
branched internally.
The O. Elateroidet (Latreille), an European species, affords an exaK
pie of this genus.
CVyp^oftoffui (Dejean). — ^Tarsi simple, small, and slender; anterior
497
ELATERIUM.
ELECTRICITY OF ORGANIC BEINQS.
extremity of the pnestemum projecting beneath the heed ; the apex
of the third and seven following joints of the antenne prolonged;
mandibles unidentate ; maxiUn with a singte lobe ; palpi very short.
(7. denticmnit (Latreille), the only species known, is from Cayenne.
Nemaioda (Latreille).— -Body nearly linear ; antennn with the basal
joint elongated ; each of the five following joints in the form of a
reversed cone ; the remaining joints almost perfoliate, with the excep-
tion of the lastk which is ov^
Species of this genus have been foimd in Europe and North
America^
ffemtripus (Latreille). — In this genus the parts of the mouth are
exposed, that is, not, as in the last two genera, hidden by the project-
ing process of the prastemum ; the antennco are flabellate at tne apex
in the males.
All the speeiee of this genus are extra-European.
In the genus C^enietra (Latreille), the antennas are pectinated in the
males, and deeply seriated in the females.
The O, peetinicamiSf an insect common in some parts of this countiy,
aflbrds an example of this genua. The spedes is rather more than
half an inch in length, and of a brilliant metallic green or oopper'like
colour : the female is larger and broader than the mala
In the genus BUUer, as now restricted, ih» antenne are simply
serrated.
The B. cBnens of LinnsBus will serve to illustrate this genus. This
species, which is common in some parts of En^and, is genersUy found
under stones on hills of but litUe elevation, and which are more or
less covered with heath. It is about threeHjuarters of an inch in
length, and meet commonly of a brilliant green colour; some speci-
mens however are blue| and others are of a brassy or bronoe hue.
The JK %octiU»eut, according to Latreille, also belongs to this genus.
This spedes is well known in South America, where it is called the
Fire-Fly.* It is rather more than an inch in length, of a brown
colour, and covered with an ashy down : on each side of the thorax
there is a round glossy yellow spot. These spots emit by mght a
light so brilliant as to enable a person to read by it^ and it is a com-
mon practice to place several of tne insects together in a glass jar or
bottle for this purposa This insect (with upwards of twenty other
spedes, all of which emit light bv ni^^t) is now induded in IlUger^s
genus Pproj^onu. The spedes of this genus are, some of them, nom
each of the following localities : — ^Brasl, Peru, Buenos Ayres, Chili,
Cuba, St Domingo, and Guyana.
In the genus Cfompylut (Fischer) the eyes are more prominent than
in the other EkUtrida, and the head is protruded from the thorax ;
the antenns are inserted beneath a frontal projection on eadi mde, and
the body is long and almost linear.
One spedes of this genus is found in England, the C, ditpair^ which is
of a yellowish colour. In some specimens the head, lags, and ^wtmwia^
* are black, and sometimes the dytra are black with a broad pale margin.
ELATERIUM. [Moicokdioa.]
ELATINA'CEiE, Water-Peppen, a natural order of Plants be-
longing to Lindlejr's Calyoose group of Polypetalous Exogens. Hie
sepals are 8-5, distinct^ or alightly connate at the base ; the petals
hypogynouB, alternate with &e sepals; the stamens hypogynous,
usually twice as numerous as the petals ; the ovary with from 8 to 6
aells, an equal number of styles^ and capitate stigmas; the fruit
capsular, 8-5 celled, with the valves alternate with &e septa, whidi
usually adhere to a central axis ; the seeds numerous, with a straight
embryo, whose radide is turned to the hilum, and little albumen.
The spedes belonging to this order are annual plants with fistulous
rooting stems, and oppodte. stipulate leaves, inhabitants of marshy
plapwi.
This order is nearly allied to OaryofhyUaeimf from which it has
been separated by Cunbessedes, on account of the different organi-
sation of the seeds, capsules, and stigmas. It agrees with Hyperieaeea
iu many points, and especially in possessing receptades for resinous
secretions, but differs in having a perdstent central axis in the fruit,
definite stamens, and so forth. The species are found in marshy
places and under water in all parts of the globe. Cambessedes
amnged three genera in this order : —
1. Mtrimaa (named in honour of Prospero Merimes, an old
botanist), with a 5-parted calyx; 5 petals; 10 stamens; 5 stales; a
5-valved, 5-celled, many-seeded capsule, the valve separating, and
bent in at the margins so as to constitute diasepiments. This is a
South American genus, of which but one spedes^ M, arenMrioidetj a
native of Brazil, has been described.
2. Bergia (sfter Peter Jonas Beigius, professor of natural history
at Stockholm, and author of several works on botany), with a 5-parted
calyx; 5 jietals; 5 styles i^tproximate; the capsule 5-valved, 5-cdled
frx>m the edges of tiie cell being bnit inwards. There are four
spedes ; one is a native of Egypt, one of Java, one of the East Indies,
and one of the Cape of Good Hope.
8. BUUine, with a calyx 8-4-parted; 84' petals; 8-4 or 6-8
stamens; 8*4 styles; the capeides 84-celled, many-seeded, the seeds
cylindrioU, terete, straight or bent There are five spedes of this
genua
* Other ioMcta having the Mune power of emitting a light by night are
undoubtedly oonfonnded with the present apeoies under the name of the
Fire-Ply.
VAT. Bm. DZV. YOL, JX»
B. Hydropiper, Water-Pepper, has oppodte leaves shorter then their
petioles, the flowers stalked or nearly sessile, with 8 stamens and 4
ovate petals; the capsule roundish, depressed, 4-celled, the seeds bent
almost double^ pendulous, four in each cell. It has rose-oolouied
flowers* It grows under water, and is very common in ground
subject to inundations throughout France. It is a very rare {Sant in
Great Britain, and has been found only in Wales and Irdand. B.
hexandra is a minute plant having 6 stamens. It forms small matted
tufts under water, and ia common in FVance, but rare in Great Britain.
B, tripetala of Smith is identical with this species. B, tricmdra has
been found in the neighbourhood of Ratisbon. B. aUinattrwm is
found near Paris.
In addition to the above genera, TelradicUtt AmUropa, and TridAa
are now enumerated. There are 6 genera and 22 spedes.
(Don, J)idaaim,yd«fm» PlanU ; Babington, if oik Brit, Bot,)
ELATINE. [Elativaosjl]
ELCA JA, an Arabian Plsnt^ whose firuit is sdd to possess emetic
properties. Botanists call it TrichUia emOtuM. Forskahl describes it
as a large tree, with villous shoots, pinnated leaves, with entire oval-
oblong pedicdlate leaflets, dusteroKd flowers with 5 greenish-yellow
petals, 10 monadelphous stamens, and a downy oapsmar fruit about
an inch long, with 8 valves, 8 angles, and 8 ceUs, having 2 plano-
convex seeds in each cell. The tree is said to be called Koka, and
to be common on the mountains of Yemen. The trait is sold at Bdt
d fiddh, for mixing with fragrant materials with which the Arab
women wash their hair. The fruit called 'Djour dkai' is reputed
an emetia The ripe seeds mixed with Sesamum oil are fonned into
an ointment as a cure for the itch.
ELDER-TREE. [SajfBnou&l
ELECAMPANK [Ihula.]
ELECTRA. rCBLLABLacA.J
ELECTRIC-EEL. Pliotbigitt of Obgakio Buxoa.]
ELECTRICITY OF ORGANIC BEING& Plants and animals
under certain drcumstancea are known to exhibit dectrical pheno-
pMna. These however are not so constant or frequent as is sometimes
imsgined. Conddering the connection that is now known to exist
between the great forces of nature, as Light, Heat, Chemical Action,
and Electrid^, it ii perhaps matter of surprise that so few dectrical
phenomena are exhibited by organised bodies.
In Plants it appears that during growth dectridty is developed.
Pouillet filled several pots with euih, and placed in them di£Ebrent
kinds of seeds, and then insulated them. During the process of ger^
mination no electric disturbance was discovered, but when the seeds
bagan to sprout a gold-leaf electrometer had its leaves separated at
least half an inch from each other. Pouillet condudes that the vege-
tation on the sur&oe of the earth must produce a vast amount of
deetridty, and be an active cause of its phenomena in the atmosphere.
Other observers have found that, by pladng wires in the ban and
pith of a growing tree, they have obtamed dedded indications of the
presence of a galvanic current These exhibitions of dectric disturb-
ance are undoubtedly dependent on the chemical chan^ going on in
the plants and this is one of the many instanoes in which we find one
force in nature representing another. Under the influence of heat and
li^t the chemical and attractive forces are brought into play, and ^e
motile force of the growth of the plant as well as electricd phenomena
are the results
In the Animal Kingdom the same indications of the presence of
deetridty is afforded during the activity of the vital functions.
Matteucd has observed a considerable deflection of the galvanometer
when wirea were connected with it passing from the liver and stomach
of a rabbitu Other experimentera have obtained similar results. It
has been supposed that these phenomena were due to the chemical
changes going on in the body of the ^ntm^l^ but they cease on the
death of the animaL Free deetridty is exdted l)y the movements
of the human body. This is made evident by rubbing the feet on a
woollen rug, when, on applying the hand to a gold-leaf dectrometer,
the presence of electric disturbance is indicated. Some persons are
more liable to this devdopment than others ; and Dr. Carpenter says
there are persons " who scarcely ever pull off artides of dress which
have becm worn next the ddn without spai^ and a crackling noise
being produced, especially in dry weather."
Recent experiments of Matteucd and Du Boi»>Raymond have shown
not only that free deetridty is devdoped in animal bodiea, but that
there is a true galvanic current both in the muscles and nervea^
Gdvani attributed the movements, flnt observed by his wife, induced
in a frog^s leg by plates of copper and dnc, to a purely animal action.
Volta shewed that the movements observed by Galvani were dependent
on the diemical action devdoped in the metals. Matteucd observed
the peculiar sendbility of the nerves and muscles of the frog to gal-
vanic action, and made use of the leg; prepared as a galvanometer, in
many of his experiments. The mode of using it waa simply to take
the leg of a recently-killed frog with the crural nerve dissected out of
the body, but remaining in connection with it. The leg was then
indosed in a glass tube covered with an insnlating varnish, and the
nerve allowed to hang fredy at its open end. When two points of
the nerve thus prepared are brought in contact with any two sub-
stances in a different electrical state, the musdes of the frog^s lag are
thrown into oo||traoti9n. By this ' ga|yaiiscopic frog ' Matteucd M9M
• 2 k
ELECTKICITY OF OBQANIC BEINaS.
ELECTRICITY OF ORGANIC BEINGS.
600
able to detect currentB of electricity in the moBcles of aoimftls, by
catting into them and placing one extremity of the nerre deep in the
ironnd and the other at its Hpa. The ezpetimente of Matteuoci were
followed up by Da Boia-Raymond, who haa arri-Ted at the foUowing
coBclaBions : — 1. That galvanic currents may be obBcrved in any limb
of any animal whether cold or warm-blooded. These currants in some
lunba are directed downwards, in others upwards. They are of dif-
ferent intensity in different limbs ; but their intensity and direction
are always the same in the same limb of different indiTiduals of the
same species. 2. The electro-motive action on which these currents
depend does not arise from the contact of heterogeneous tissues, as
Tolta supposed ; for the different tissue^ the nerves, muscles, and
tendons^ m an electric point of view, ai« quite homogeneous. 3. These
currents are produced by the muscles. If any undlssected muscle of
any animal be brought into the circuit longitudinally, it generally
exhibits an electro-motive action, the direction of which depends on
the position of the muscle. The current of the whole limb is nothing,
but the resultant of the partial currents which are engendez^d by
each muscle of the limb. It is therefore a * muscular currents' 4. The
law of the muscular current may ba expressed as follows : " Any point
of the natural or artificial longitudinal section of the muscle is positive
in relation to any point of the natural or artificial transverse section."
6. By means of tiie above-mentioned law an explanation is afforded of
the muscular cuirent appearing in one instance an upward one, in
another a downward one, which occurs according as the upper or the
under of the two transverse sections is made to touch one of the
ends of the galvanometer wire, whilst the other end is applied to the
longitudinal section of the muscle. This is true even as regards
shreds of muscle consisting of only a few primary fibres, and such as
only admit of observation by the microscope; 6. The nerves are
SOBsessed of an electro-motive power which acts according to the same
kw as the muscles. Whilst still in organic connectbn with the
muscles, and forming part of a droait in which the muscles give rise
to a current) the nerves simply play the part of an inactive conducting
body, provided their own current be prevented from entering tiie
circuit.
There are certain anlroalw which posaess the power of accumulating
electric force within their bodies, and of discharging it at will in a
violent form, and, with the exception oi some insects and MoUutea
which have been said (though this is doubtful) to communicate sensible
shocks, these animals are all included in tiie class of Fishes. About
seven spedes of this daas, belonging to five genens an known to
possess electric properties, and it is curious that these genera belong
to tribes very dtswTnilar from one another, and that, though each haa
a limited geographical range, one species or other is found in almost
eveiy part of the world. Thus, the three species of Torpedo, belongs
ing to the Ray tribe, are found on moat of the coasts of the AtlanS)
and Mediterranean, and sometimes soabundantiy' as to be a staple
article of food. The Oymnatut, or Electric E^ is confined to the
rivers of South America. The Silunta (more correctly the McUa-
fterurut), which approaches more nearly to the Salmon tnbe, occurs in
the Niger, the Senegal, and the Nile. The Triehiwnu, or Indian
Sword-Fish, is an inhabitant of the Indian Seas ; and the Tetraodon
(one of a genua allied to the Diodon^ or Qlobe-Fiah) has only been met
with on the coral banks of Johanna, one of the Comoro Tif?«t«^T,
These fishes have not all been examined with the same degree of
attention, but it seems probable that the phenomena which they
exhibit, and the structural peculiarities with which these are con-
nected, are essentially the same throughout.
The peculiar cbaraoteristic of all is the power of giving, . to any
living body which touches them, a shock resembling in its effects that
produced by the diachaige of a Leyden jsr. This is of very variable
intensity in different species and individuals, and at different times.
The Cfynmohu will attack and paralyse horses, as well as kill small
animals ; and the discharges of laxge fish (which are 20 feet long)
sometimes prove sufficient to deprive men of sense and motion. The
effects of the contact of the Tori>edo are less severe, and soon pass off;
but the shock is attended with considerable pain when the fish is
vigorousi The electrical organs appear to be duuged and disdiarged
to a certain extent at the will of the animals. Their power is generally
exerted by the approach of some other «t«^wifc1^ or by some external
irritation ; but it is not always possible to call it into action, even in
vigorous individuals. It usually diminishes witix tiie general feeble-
neas of the system, though sometimes a dying fish exerts considerable
power. All electrical fishes have their eneigy exhausted by a con-
tinued series of dischaiges ; hence it is a common practice with <xm-
voys in South America to collect a nimiber of wild horses and drive
them into the rivers, in order to save themselves, when they pass,
from being injured by the fish. If excessively exhausted, the animals
may even die ; but ^^7 usually recover their electrical eneigy after
a few hours' rest
The Torpedo, from its proximity to European shores, has been most
frequently made the subject of observation and experiment ; and the
foUowing are the most important results of the investigations which
have been made upon it by various inquirers: — That the shock
received by the organs of sensation in man is really the result of an
electric discharge, has now be^n fully established. Although no one
has ever seen a spark emittted from the body of one of ^ie fish, it
may be easily manifested by causing the Torpedo or Cfymnotue to send
its discharge through a slightly interrupted circuit. The galvano-
meter is influenced by the discharge of the Torpedo, and diemical
decomposition may be effected by it, as well as magnetic properties
communicated to needles. It seems essential to the proper reception
of the shock, that two parts of the body should be touched at the
same time, and that these two should be in different electrical states.
The most eneigetic discharge is procured from the Torpedo by touch-
ing the back and belly simultaneously, the electricity of the dorsal
surface being positive, and that of the ventral negative ; and by this
means the g^vanometer may be strongly affected, eveiy part of the
back being positive with respect to every part of the opposite surface.
When the two wires of the galvanometer are applied to the corre-
sponding parts of the two sides of the same surface, no influence is
manifested ; but, if the two points do not coirespond in situation,
whether they be both on the back or both on the belly, the index of
the galvanometer is made to deviate. The degree of proximity to
the electric oxgan appears to be the source of the difference in the
relative state of different parts of the body; those which are near to
it being always positive in respect to those more distant. Dr. Davy
found that, however much Torpedoes were irritated throu^ a single
point, no discharge took place ; and he states that, when one surface
only is touched and irritated, the fish themselves appear to make an
effort to bring the border of the other surfiMse, by muscular contrac-
tion, into contact with the offending body ; and that this is even done
by fcBtal fish. If a fish be placed between two plates of metal, the
edges of which are in contact, no shook is perceived by the hands
g laced upon them, since the metal is a better condactor than the
uman body ; but if the plates be separated, and while still in contact
with the opposite sides of the body, the han^ be applied to them,
the disduuge is at once rendered perceptible, and it may be passed
through a line formed by the moistened hands of two or more persons,
the extremities being brought into relation with the opposite plates.
The electrical phenomena of the OywuMtw are essentially the same
with those of the Torpedo ; but the opposite electrical states are found
to existy not between the dorsal and ventral surfaces, but between the
head and tail ; so that the shock is most powerful when the connec-
tion is formed between these two extreme points.
It has been ascertained by experiment, that the manifestation of
this peculiar power depends upon the integrity of the connection
between the nervous centres and certain organs peculiar to electrical
fishes. In the Torpedo the electrical organs are of a flattened shape,
and occupy the front and sides of the body, forming two large massee,
which eirtend backwards and outwards from each side of the head.
They are composed of two layers of membrane, between which is a
whitish soft pulp, divided into columns by processes of the membrane
sent off so as to form partitions like the cells of a honeycomb ; the
ends of these columns being directed towards the two surfaces of the
body. The colunms are again subdivided horizontally by more
delioate partitions, which form each into a number of distinct cells ;
the partitions are extremely vascular, and are profusely supplied with
nerves, the fibres of which seem to break up into minuter fibrill« to
form plexuses upon these membranes. The fluid contained in the
constituents,
it seems to be littie else than water, holding one-tenth part of albumen
in aolution, with a littie chloride of sodium. The electrical organs of
Offwnoiua are essentially the same in structure, tiiough differing in
shape^ in aocordance with the confonnation of the animal; they
occupy one-third of its whole bulk, and run along nearly its entire
lengui ; there are however two distinct pairs, one much larger t-hi^n
the other. The prisms are here less numerous, but are much longer ;
for the^ run in tiie direction of the length of the body, a difference
which 18 productive of a considerable modification of the character
of the disoharga In the 8Uuru8 there is not any electrical organ so
definite as those just described ; but the thick layer of dense cellular
tuBue, which completely surrounds the body, appears to be subser-
vient to this function ; it is composed of tendinous fibres interwoven
together, and of an albuminous substance contained in their interstioee,
so as to bear a close analogy with the cdlular partitions in the special
organs of the Torpedo and Ojfmnotut, The organs of the other known
electrical fishes have not yet come under the notice of any anatomist
In all these instances the electrical organs are supplied with nerves
of very great size, larger than any ot^^ in the same animals, and
larger than any nerve in other aninoals of like bulk. They all arise in
the Torpedo from a gan^onio mass situated behind the cerebellum,
and connected with the medulla oblongata, to which th^ name of
* electric lobe ' has been given ; the first two of them issue from the
stomach, after
sending its principal portion to the electrical organ, it would seem
analogous to the eighth pair or pneomogastria
The electrical nerves in the ^mnotne are believed to arise from the
spinal marrow alone ; and those of the SUwus are partiy intercostals
and partiy belong to the fifth pair. The integrity of the nerves iB
essential to the full action of the electrical organs. If all the trunks
Boi ELENCHUa
be cut on one aide, the poirer of that or^ui will b« de»troyed, but
th&t of tha oUiar may remain uninjiired. If tbe uerres be partially
destroyed on aithsr or both iiide», the power it retained by the portion
of the orgaoB itdll in oonnection with the eeotne. The wme sflaeta
afe produced by tying the nerrea aa by catting them. Even slice* of
tha organ entirely leparated from the body, except by a oerrona
fibre, mar exhibit electrical properties. Dischargss ma; be exrited
hj irritation of the brain when the nerves are entire, or of the part of'
the divided trunk diBtributed on the organ ; but on destroying tbe
electric lobe of the brain the electric power of tbe animal ceasee
entirely, although all the other ganglionio centres may be removed
without impairing it It is remarkable however that after the seotion
of tbe electrical nerves Torpedoes appear more lively than before tbe
operatioD, and actually live longer Uian othera not so injured, which
are eicit«d to discharge frequently. Poisons which act violently on
the nervous natem have a striking effect upon the electrical mani-
featationa of these fish ; thns, two grains of muriate of morphia were
found by Uatteucci to produce death after about ten minutes, during
which time the discharges were very numerous and powerfiil ; and
strychnia also excited powerful discharges at first, suoceeded by
w»iker ones, the animala dying in violent convulsions. When the
animals were under the infiueiice of Btryobnia it was observed that
the slightest irritation oocaaioued dischuges ; a blow given to tha
table on which the animal was placed being sufficient to produce this
effect. If the apinal cord were divided however, no irritation of the
C situated below the aection colled forth a ahock. It his also
ascertained by Hatteucci that the electric power is suspended
when the Torpeda is plunged into water at 32°, and is recovered
again when it is immersed in water of a temperature from 58° to 6S°j
and that this altematioa may be repeated several times upon the
same fish. But if the temperature be raised to 8S° tbe Torf^do soon
ceases to live, and dies while giving a great number of violent
discharges. (Carpenter.)
From these facts it is evident that the electric force is developed
as the result of nervoiu sgency. From Uuh it has been sometimaB
hastily inferred that tha electric and nervous force* are ideutical
This however is not more probable than that the contractile fbrce of
the muscles is identical with the nervous foree. The best explanation
of the phenomena appears to be the oonelation of these forces.
They are oonveitibla forcee, the one being capable of generating the
other ; (he force generated being always the representative of the
force generating it The uses of these electric organs it is somewhat
difficult to expluD. The Oymnettu eats veiy few of the Gshes which
it kills by its ahocks, and this is the cose with the Torpedoes. Dr.
John Davy ooqjcotDiea that the electric discharges decompose the
water, and aapplying oxygen assist in respiration. Dr. Carpenter
■nggests that this peciiliar action may assist the digestion of the fish,
as animals killed bf eleotricity are mora digestible. Tha electrical
condition of the anuoal itself he also thinks may conduce to the easy
digestion of itB food.
(Carpenter, Primeipla of Pkynelogn, OenertU and Comparative;
FrafeasoT Hatteucci, SUdro-PKytUl^ietii JtatimAti; Phiiotopkiail
Traniaetiotu, ISEO ; Uatteuoci, Lecturti upon tht Pht/ncai Pheiumaia
of Living Bang; taianalated 1^ Fereira ; Du Bois-Raymond, On 1/ai-
ttuceti Letter to Dr. Bmce Jona, editor of Dr. Du Bois-Baymond's
Baeartha in Airimal Sedricits : H. Bence Jooes.J&tfriKt o/i>u£n>-
Ravmm^e Baearckei m Aiamai ElectricitB.)
ELKNCHUS. [RaipnTKBi.]
ELEO'CHABIS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Cyptracea and the tribe Scirpta. It has fertile glumes, the lower-
most layer with one or- two of the lowest empty; 3-8 bristles. The
nut compressed, orowned with the perristent dilated base of tbe stylcL
There are 3 spedes of this genus, known by the name of Spikfr-Bushes,
found in Qreat Britain.
E. paluttm has a creeping rool^ and tha atam clothed with mem-
branous obtusely-truncate sheaths : it grows in marshy places, forming
BometinieB a large proportion of the peat found in b<^. £ vtuUi'
eaulit has aligbtfy creeping roots, with tha stem clothed with
obliquely truncate rather acute aheaths. £ octciUaria has a fibrous
root, and numerous slander erect stem^ and very small apike*. II
found in damp plaooi upon heaths.
(Babington, Manual of BritiA Botany.)
ELEOTRAQDS. [AstlLOPKA]
ELE0TBI3, a genns of Acanljiopteiygions Fishes belong;;
the family QModa. Like the Goluea the specie* have fiexible spines
in {he first dorsal fin, and on appendage behind tbe vent, but they
have the ventral fins separate and ux gill-reys. The species are
MtantB of the fresh waten of worm conntriea. Mid conceal themselvea
in themnd.
E. dormaMx, the Sleeper, is a large Oah. It is fbund in the West
Indian manhee. Other spedee have been found in AMca, India, and
ELEPHANT (in Latin SUphat and ^tphanbtt, in Greek 'EXiifat,
in Spanish Elefitnte, in Italian Elebnte, in French Elephant, in Oerman
Elephant) in Dul^ Olypbant), tha name of the well-known |
which form* the only living type of the family of true Freboecit
or Pacbydermatou* Hammifais with a Proboocdi and Tuaks.
the laignt of axMing tamatiial animals.
ELEPHANT. Ml
The Proboacia or Trunk, from which the name of the family is
derived, demands some attention prerious to our inquiry into the
net of the structure, habits, and history of the Elephants.
The greet siie of the alveoli necessary for Uie lodgment of the tusks
reodera, as Cuvier observes, the upper jaw so high and shortens the
□Bsal bones to such a degree, uhat in the slwleton the nostrils are
plooed towards the upper part of the bee ; but in the living animid
they are prolonged iuto a t^lindrical trunk or proboscis composed of
thoaaands* of small muscles variously into-laoed, bo as to bestow on
it the moat complicated powers of mobility In all tha variatie* of
eiteuaioD, contnotioD, and motion in every direction. It is of a
tapering sub-oonieal form, and has internally two perforations. On
the upper side of the extremity, immediately above the partition of
the nostrils, ia on elongated process, which may be oonaidered as a
finger ; and on the under edge is a sort of tubercle, which acts as an
opposeable point; in short, as a thumb. Endowed with exquisite
sCDidbility, nearly S feat in length, and stout in pivportdoa to the
massive sise of Uie whole animal, this organ, at the volition of the
elephant, will uproot tree* or gather giasa — raise a piece of artillaij
~r pick up a comfit — kill a man or brash off a fly. It oonveyt the
}od to t^ mouth, and pump* up the enormous draughts of water,
rbich by its recurvatura are turued into and driven down the Capo-
ious throat, or showered over tha body. Its length supplies the
plaoe of a long neck, which would have been incompatible with the
lupport of the large bead and weighty tusks. A glance at the head
if an elephant will show the thicknees and strengtii of the trank at
ts insertion ; and the mssay arohed boB« of the &« snd thid;
muscular neck are admirably adapted for nipporting and working
this powerful and wonderful m*tnunent
The following cuts will convey some idea of the form and action of
of the probosm* ;-
HHH^
Anlerior teitnlni
AcUon of snterior oxlrcmity of prnboKls In gnlhering long her!
Mode ei bolding a root till saongh la collected for a Boatbrnl,
not far short ei 40,000,
AfricuElepliuLt: Inciion, --;Holui,~ = 10.
Adatio Efcpliuit : Incuon, — ; HoUn, - = S.
Danlititni and Onaoni Structure.^The nico«doD of moUr tetth in
Uis alaphkota Ukas plaM in ■ directdan tnim behiad torwmrda ; Mid
tha tooUi lut dsTaloped piuhing igaiiut tb>t which precsdnd il, and
in time replaciDg it, give* as a result that thure are asrsr mora Ihao
tiro moUr teetb on Mch aide of each jaw, and that ■ometimcs thera ia
only one. Tha laat caM happen! immodiateljr after the ihedding of
tha anterior tooth, which has bean pushed oat by ita laaoanor, and
which, in ita torn, ii to be replaced in like manner. This meoanian
happena manv timea during the life of the animal, and Hr. Cone
notiaed it eight timea in an Aaiatio ElepbanL Now, aa theae teeth
show their anterior eitremit; first, long before the other eilremitj
appeara, and aa they begin to ba worn down anteriorly, it followa that
the anterior tooth, wbeo it ia ihed, la infinitely amaller in aiae than it
once was, and that ita form ia entirely changed.
In the moUr teeth of moat eraminiTOronB quadmpedi (hare ia,
beaidea the bony aubalonce and enamf
1 enamel, a third component part,
sthj the name of 'cruata petroaa;' Cuvier calU it
The diatinotion of theaa three anbataooea ia perhapa better asen in
the melar tooth of an elephant than in an; other animal If a longi-
tadinal Teitical aection be made and the anrtaoa be poliahed, the
cmata petroaa wiU be diatinguiahed by a greater y^owneaa and
opaoitj, aa well aa by a uniformity of appearance, there being no
npparent laminsa nor flbrea. " The grinding teeth of the elephant,"
writea Lawrence in hia 'Additiona' to Blumenbach, "contain the
moat complete intermixture of these three aubatancea, and have a
greater proportion of cruata petrosa than those of any other animal
The pulp forma a number of broad flat proceaaaa lying puallsl to
each other, and placed tranareraaly between the mner and outer
laminte of the alveoli. The bone of the tooth ia fonned on these in
f eparate ahelU, commencing at their loose eitramitiea and extending
towards the buia, where they are connected together. The capsule
sends an equal number of membranous productions, which first oover
tha bony shells with enamel and then invest them with cruata petroaa,
which latter aubstance unites and consolidates tha diBbrent portiooa.
The bony shells vary in number from 4 to 23, acoording to the size
of the tooth and the age of tha animal ; they have been desoribed under
the name of denticuli, and have been represented as separate teeth in
the Srat instance. It must however be remembered that they are
formed on prooeaaea of one aingle pulp. When the eniata petroaa is
completdy deuaited, the diSt^ent denticuli are conaolidalwl together.
The bony aheUa are united at the base to tha neighbouring ones ; the
inveatmenta of enamel are joined in like manner ; and the intervals
an filled with tha third substance^ which really deaervea tha name
bestowed on it by Caviar of ' cement.' The p<up Is then elongated
for the purpoae of forming the roots or fanga of the tooth. From the
peculiar mode of dantition of this animal, the front portion of the
tooth has cut the gum and is employed in mastication before the back
part is completely fonned ; even before soma of the posterior denti-
cuh have been consolidated. The back of the tooth doea not appear in
the month until the anterior part has been worn down even to the
fling. A. horiEontal section of the elephant's tooth presents a series
of narrow bands of bone of the tooth, surrounded by oorresponding
portiona of mameL Between these are portions of cruata petrosa ;
and the whole drcumtsrence of the section ia composed of a thick
layer of tha same substance. A vertical section in the longitudinal
directlMi exhibits the prooeasea of bone upon the different denticuli,
rDoning up Aom the fangs ; a vertical layer of enamel ia placed before
and another behind each of these. If the tooth is not yet worn by
maatjcation, the two layers of enamel a» continuous at the part
where Ote bone terminates in a point ; and the ^nt layei
ilauticalas ia continuous with the back layer of the suooeec'
at the root of the tooth. Crusta petrosa intervenes between lue
ascending and descending portjons of the enamel Aa the surface of
the tooth is worn down in mastication, the proceaaes of enamel,
lesiating by their auperior hardness, form prominent ridgea on the
grinding surface, which must adapt it excellently for btuiaing and
comminuting any hard substance. The grinding basea, when worn
aufficiently to expose the enamel, in the Asiatic spades, represent
Battened ovals placed across the tooth. In the Afiicu they form a
series of locenges, which touch each other in the middle of the tooth."
In the Huamm of the Royal College of Surgeons are a seriea of pre-
parmtions (Ifoa. SSO to 354, both inclunve) ilTustntivs of the structure
and ph^:^ologT of the molar teeth of elephants, preceded by an
iateresting extract &om the Hnnterian US. Catalogue. No. 2TG B
ia a portion of the cnmentum of an elephant'a grinder, which has been
Bteaped in an acid, dried, and preserved in oQ of turpentine, for the
puipoae of showing the proportion of ■"■"^■^ matter which it contains.
if OS. SOS to 264, both indiuive, ahow the interartlcular ligamentoaa
subatsuce &om the joint of the lower jaw of the elephant, and the
adaptation of the structure^or applying two convex aurtkct* to each
Teeth of Afrlcui Elepbut, From F. Cniler.
iw; », lower Jaw; c, ortflBa] stale ot the tootb vtan i
■• It ate free ; d, the lamlaa ai Iber ti* ittaelifd is pi
V,
605
ELEPfiANT.
l^L£:PHANt.
M6
Kore than one molar tooth and part of another are nerer to be seen
through the gam in the Elephant. When the anterior tooth is gradu-
1^ worn away by mastication, the absorption of its fangs and alveolus
takes place, wlule the posterior tooth advances to occupy its position ;
then comes a third to take the place of the second tooth, which under-
goes ihe same process, and so on, as we have stated, for at least eight
times. Each succeeding tooth is larger than its predecessor. Thus, the
first, or miUc-grinder, which cuts tibo gum soon after birth, has but
four transverse plates (denticuli) ; the second is composed of eight or
nine, and appears completely when the animal is two years old ; the
thini consists of twelve or thirteen, and comes at the age of six years ;
and in the fourth up to the eighth grinder both inclusive, the nimiber
of plates varies from fifteen to twenty-three. It would seem that every
new tooth takes at least a year more for its formation than its prede-
cessor. As the tooth advances gradually, a comparatively small por-
tion only is through the gum at once. A molar tooth, composed of
twelve or fourteen plates, shows only two or three of these through
the gum, the others being imbedded in the jaw, and in fact the tooth
is complete anteriorly, where it is required for mastication, while pos-
teriorly it is very incomplete. As the laminsa advance, they are suc-
cessively perfected. An elephant's molar tooth is therefore never to
be seen in a perfect state ; for if it is not worn at all anteriorly, the
posterior part is not formed, and the fimgs are wanting : nor is the
structure of the back part of the tooth perfected until the anterior
portion is gone.
Elephants have no canine teeth, but in the upper jaw there are two
incisors, better known by the name of tusks. These enormous weapons
are round, arched, and terminate in a point ; and their capsule is
always free, so that the tusk continues to grow as long as the animal
lives. The structure of the ivory of which it is composed differs from
other tusks ; and a transverse section presents striae forming the arc
of a cirde from the centre to the circumference, and, in crossing each
other, curvilinear lozenges which occupy the whole surfiEice. The
tusk is hollow within for a great part of its length, and the cavity
contains a vascular pulp, which supplies successive layers internally
as the tusk is worn down externally. Blumenbach, in his ' Compara-
tive Anatomy,' observes, that not to mention other peculiarities of
ivory, which have induced some modem naturalists to consider it as
a species of horn, the difference between its structure and that of the
bone of teeth is evinced in the remarkable pathological phenomenon
resulting from balls with which the animal has been shot when
young being found, on sawing through the tooth, imbedded in its
substance in a peculiar manner. Haller employed this fact, both to
refute Duhamel's opinion of the formation of bones by the periosteum,
like tiiat of wood by the bark of a tree, as well as to prove t£e con-
stant renovation of the hard parts of the animal machine. It is still
more important in explanation of that ' nutritio ultra vasa,' which is
particularly known through the Fetersbui^h prize dissertation. Blu-
menbach farther states that the fa^> above mentioned may be seen in
Buffon (4to. ed., tom. xi. p. 161) ; on Galandat ' Over de Olyphants
Tanden;' in the ' Verhandelingen der Qenootsch, te VUssingen,'
tom. ix. p. 852 ; and in Bonn. ' Descr. Thesauri Hoviani,' p. 146. In
all these case^ according to Blumenbach, the balls were of iron ; and
he adds that he possesses a similar specimen. In the cases we have
seen, the balls were also of iron. ** Bnt," continues Blumenbach,
" there is a still more curious example in my collection, of a leaden
bullet contained in the tusk of an East Indian elephant, which must
have been equal in size to a man's thigh, without having been flattened.
It lies close to the cavity of the tooth ; it^ entrance from without is
closed, as it were, by means of a cicatrix ; and the ball itself is sur-
rounded apparently by a peculiar covering. The bony matter has
been poured out on the side of the cavity in a stalactitic form." Upon
this Lawrence well remarks that the facts here recounted have been
Bomatimes brought forward in order to prove the vascularity of the
teeth i a doctrine which is refuted by every circumstance in the
formation, structure, and diseases of these organs. When a bullet
has entered the substance of the body, the surrounding lacerated and
contused parts do not grow to the metal and become firmly attached
to its Bur&ce, but they inflame and suppurate in order to get rid of
the offending matter. " If the ivory be vascular," asks Mr. Lawrence,
" why do not the same processes take place in it ! " " We can explain
very satisfactorily," writes Mr. Lawrence in continuation, "how a
bullet may enter the tusk of an elephant, and become imbedded in
the ivory without any opening for its admission being perceptible.
These tusks are constantly growing during the animal's life by a
deposition of successive lammss within the cavity, while the outer
surface and the point are gradually worn away ; and the cavity is
filled for this purpose with a vascular pulp, similar to that dn wluch
teeth are originally formed. If a ball penetrate the side of a tusk,
cross its cavity, and lodge in the slightest way on the opposite side,
it wHl become covered towards the cavity by the newly-deposited
layers of ivory, while no opening will exist between it and the surface
to account for its entrance. If it have only sufficient force to enter,
it will probably sink Inr its own weight between the pulp and the
tooth, until it rests at the bottom of the cavity. It there becomes
surrounded by new layers of ivory; and as the tusk is gradually
worn away and supplied by new depositions, it will soon be found in
the centre of the solid part of the tooth. Lastly, a foreign body may
enter the tusk from above, as the plate of bone which forms its socket
is thin ; if this descends to the lower part of the cavity, it may become
imbedded by the subsequent formations of ivory. This must have
happened in a case where a 8peu>head was found in an elephant's
tootiL The long axis of the foreign body corresponded to that of the
cavity. No opening for its admission could be discovered, and it is
very clear that no human strength could drive such a body through
the side of a tusk." (< PhiL Trans.,' 1801, part i.)
The great sise to which these tusks grow may be judged of by
examining the table published by Cuvier in his ' Ossemens Fossiles,'
tom. i. p. 57. It is generally considered tiiat the tusks of the African
Elephant are the lai^est ; but with regard to the table, Cuvier observes
that the African tuc^ could not be distinguished from those of the
Indies, and that there is not the certainty tiiat could be wished in the
measures employed. According to Mr. Corse, the tusks of the Indian
Elephant seldom exceed 72 lbs. in weight, and do not weigh beyond
60 lbs. in the province of Tiperah, which produces thousands of ele-
phants. There are however in London tusks which weigh 150 lbs.,
probably from Pegu ; for it is from Pegu and Cochin-Chlna that the
largest Indian elephants and tusks are brought^ The largest recorded
in Cuvlei's table was a tusk sold at Amsterdam, according to Klokner,
which weighed 350 lbs. : this is stated on the authority of Camper ;
and one possessed by a merchant* of Venice, which was 14 feet in
length, and resting on the authority of Hartenfels, in his ' Elephanto-
grapbia' The largest in the Paris Museum is nearly 7 feet long, and
about 54 inches in diameter at the large end. These tusks have different
degrees of curvature.
Mr. Corse, speaking of the Asiatic Elephant, states that the first or
milk tusks of an elephant never grow to any size, but are shed between
the first and second year. These, as well as the first grinders, are
named by the natives ' Dood-kau-Daunt,' which literally signifies
milk-teeth. The tusks which are shed have a considerable part of Uie
root or fang absorbed before this happens. The time at which the
tusk cuts the gum seems to vary. Mr. Corse knew a young one which
had his tusks when about five months old, while those of another did
not cut the gum till he was seven months old. Those tusks which
are deciduous, observes the same author, are perfect and without any
hollow at the root, in a foetus which is come to its full time, and at
this period the socket of the permanent tusk begins to be formed on
the inner side of the deciduous tusk : he gives the following examples
of the progress of this part of the dentition : — A young elephant shed
one of his milk-tusks on the 6th of November, 1790, when near thirteen
months old, and the other on the 27th of December, when about four-
teen months old ; they were merely two black-coloured stumps, when
shed ; but, two months afterwards, the permanent tusks cut the gum,
and on the 19th of April, 1791, they were an inch long, but blacluand
ragged at the ends. When they became longer and projected beyond
the lip, they soon were worn smooth by the motion and friction of
the tnmk. Another young elephant did not shed his milk-tusks till
he was sixteen months old. The permanent tusks of the female are
very small in comparison with those of the male, and do not take
their rise so deep in the jaw ; but thev use them as weapons of offence
in the same manner as the male, tnat is, by putting their head
above another elephant, and then pressing their tusks down into the
animal
In the lower jaw there are neither inciBors nor canines^ and the
molar teeth resemble those to which they are opposed.
Cuvier comes to the conclusion that the &males of the African
species have large tusks, and that the difference between the sexes in
this respect is much less than in the Indian elephants ; but Burchell
attributes the want of success of the elephant-hunters whom he met
with to their having only fallen in with females whose tusks were
smalL
Pursuing our inquiry into the general structure of the skeleton, we
shall find a marked difference in the external appearance of the skulls
of the African and Indian species.
Here we see that the almost pyramidical form of the skull in the
Indian species is strongly contrasted with the more rounded form and
contour of that of the African species. The front of the head is
concave in the Indian species, while in the African it is rather convex ;
there are besides other differenoes.
Internally we find a beautiful provision for increasing the surface
necessary for the attachment of musdes combined with strength and
lightness.
The other parts of the skull most worthy of note are the nasal
bones, of which the elephant possesses only a kind of imitation : the
laohiymal bones are entirely wanting. The cervical vertebrae form a
short and stiff series^ allowing hardly more than a limited motion
of the head from side to side, a more extended action being rendered
unneoessazy by the flexibili1r|r of the tnuk, and a firm support for
the head being the principal object to be attained. The spioous pro-
cesses of the anterior donal vertebra are exceedingly long for the
attachmentof the great suspensory li^^unent of the neck (ligamentum
nuchse, or pax-wax). Blumenbach puts the number of ribs, and
consequently of dorsal vertebrae, at 19 pairs, observing that this, at
least, is the case in the skeleton of the Afdatio Elephant at Cassel.
Blur, he remarks^ found the same number in the individuals of which
he has given an account ; and a manuscript Italian description of the
Al£n;
BkaU at AMcu Elcplut.
Skull of tsdUn EIrpliut.
ELRFHANT.
which died at Flonmoe in 1867 oonfirms
n Uouliiu, on tha contniy (' Asatomieml Account of die Elephant
bunied id Dublin,' London, 18SZ, Ito,), uid Doubsutai), tepMMot
the number of pain u 20. The elepWt in the Uiueum of the
Royal Colitis of Surgeons (Chuaee, formerly of Sxeter Change) baa
16 pain of ribe; and that in the British Uuaeum has the utae
Dumbei; 11 true and G false; but Dr. Gny informs us that in a
ncond specimen of a young one, tite bones of which have not been
eepantted, there are 20 pairs, IS true and fi falK There are only
Uiree lumhor Tertebne; The margin of the scapula, which is turned
towards the spine, and is sboriaat in most of the proper qoadrupeds,
i* the longest in the Elephant, as it is in the CheiropUra, meat of the
Quadrumana, and espeoially in man. There is no ligamentum teres,
snd coiuequentl; no impresiion on the head of the femur or thi^-
Structure of Internal Soft Parte.— The following internal soft parts
ITS more particnkrly worthy of remark in tha Elaphant : — Brain,
he, a portion of the don mater from -an Asiatic Elephant may be
seen in the Museum of the Boyal College of Suneans, in London
(Qallery, Na 1346), where the termination of the talx and the com-
• menoement of the tentorium, or procoas which aeparatei Uie oerebnim
from the cerebellum, are shown. The two fibrous layan of the du(»
mater are eeparated by a softer cellular substsuicB, in whidi the
Tassels ramiiyi and it may be observed that the thickoMs of the
dun mater ii in proportion to the aiie of the skull, and of the entire
animal, but not to the size of ths brain, nhieh does not much exceed
that of the human brain, as will be seen in tlie prniaration of the
bnin of a joung Asiatic Elephant (No. ISBIV For, thoogh ths
absolute siie of the Organ exoeeda that of man, the jiroportion which
the cerebrum bears to the rest of the brain, and eapeciall; that pari
rf tlia hemisphere which forms the roof and sidea of the lateral
Tentriolfl, is mnch leea The hemispheres are broad and short, with
a oonaidenble dsrslopment of the natiform protnberance. The con-
Tolutiona are comparatively amall and numerous. A lateral section
has been removed from the left hemisphere which ehowa that the
anfractuositieB are also deep, extending in some cases more than two-
thirds of an inch into the iiihitance <» the brain. Ths hippocampus
is oomparativelf smaller than in the aas, and the cotpmi striatum
laigsr. The ventricle is seen to be continued into the olbetory bnjb.
The cerebellum is of oonsidenble width, and its surface, as shown
by the lateral seotion, is increased by numerous and complex
anfractuoaities. The tuber annulare corresponda in use to the
development of the lateral lobaa of the cereballum. The coipora
olivaria are remarkably prominenL The origins of all the cenbral
e shown, among which ths olfactory nerrea of the fifth
pair, which supplies the prohoacia, are remarkable for ttieir prodigious
~'ze J whilst the optic nerves, and those which supply the musdca of
le eye, are remarkable for their small siie. The ]na mater is left on
with the vessels at the base of the brain. A bristle is plaoed in the
infuudibulum. (' Cat Gallery,' voL iiL). The bnin in man ia from
''/> 1^ of tha body, that of the elephijit j^s- '^^ stomach is simple,
inlAstinas are very voluminous, and the ctecum enormous. In the
sanguiferous syrtero the heart is worthy of nota, and a aactioa of the
ight auricle and veutriole of that of an Aaiatio E3ephant may be seen
n the museum last meuttaned (Oallerj, No. B2i). In this animal,
which, in some other reapeet^ singnlarly resembles Uie Rodaitia, three
Venn cava terminate in the right auricle. Beddea the Eustachian
valve, which projects between the OTifioes of the inferior and left
superior oavn, there is also, as in the Porcupine, a rudiment of a
superior valve, aitending from the posterior mde of the orifice of tho
right superior cava. The triouspid. valve, and its ohordn tandinete
and^oolumns cameES, are also well displayed. (' Cat Gallery,' voL ii.)
young one sucks, not with the trunk, but with tha mouth. " Hie
young of the elephant, at least all those I have seen," wifta Hr.
Cone, " begin to nibble and suck the breast soon after Urth ; presajng
It with tha trunk, which, by natural instinct, they know will make the
milk flow more readily into the mouth while snoking. Elephants
never lie down to give their voung ones suck ; and it often happens,
when the dam Is tall, that alie is obliged for aome time to bend her
body towards her young to enable ^iin to reach the nipple vriUl his
month ; consequently, if ever the trunk was uaed to lay hold of the
nipple, it would be at this period, when be is nuking laborioDS eSbrts
to reach it irith bis mouth, but which he oould alwmya easi] j do with
his trunk if it answered the purpose. In sucking the yuung dephant
always grasps the nipple (which projects horisontally ffom the breaat)
with tho dde of his mouth. I have very often observed tliis ; and so
sensible are the attendants of it, that with tbem it is a common prac-
tice to nise a small mound of earth, abont S or 8 inches high, for the
Cng one to stand on, and thus save the mother the trouble of
dmg her body every time shegivea suck, which she cannot readily
do when tied to her picket" The maternal aiTection does not sssm
a be very strong in the female elephant, at least in eaptJTitj ; for
be same author states that tame elephants are never suflusd to
emain loose, as Instances occur of the mother leaving her young and
eacaping into the woods ; and he says that if a wild tuephant happou
'lO besepanted from her young, for only two days, though giving audi,
SOB ELEPHANT.
aha never ftfterwuds recogniiei or ackcowledgeB it " This uporatioD,"
oddj Ur.Cone, "oometimei happens imavoidabl/, when they were
enticed aeparatelj into the outlet of the Eeddali. I htve been much
mortified at eaoh muuituial conduct in the mother, particularly when
it was evident the young elephant knew ite dam, and by its plaintive
cries and submissive approaches solicited her osBistoQce."
ELEPHANT. tio
and Herghee is termed Sunkareah {fVom ' sunkarah,' a mixture), or
MergbabauLah (for the most part Hei^hee) ; but a farther mixture
or cFoseiog of the breed renders it extremely diCBoult £br tha hunters
to ascertain the variety. Boaides the Koomaresb, Merghee, and
Sunksreah breeds, seveial varieties, are generally to be found in tha
same herd ; but the noarer an oleph&nt approaches to the true
Bkcleten oT ElephanL.
Tbero are two living speoies of the gsnos ElepAai : —
^ Indiem, the Auatjc Elephant It dif&rs ftom the African
■pedes, not only in its greater size and in the cbaraoters of
the teeth Bad ikuU, but also in the oomparative emallnese
of the ears, the paler brown colour of the elan, and in having
four nails on the hind feet instead of three. The sagacity of this
apedes is also suppoeed to be greater than that of the African
Elephant. But though many wondecfnl storiee are told, aad some
of them are as true as they are wonderfol, of the grateful remem-
bi«noB which it long retains of benefits conferred, or of the
tenacity with which it *' treasurer up a wrong," and though the
instances of its docility, both ancient and modetn, ate very eitts-
ordinary, we agree upon the whole with Baron Cuvier, who observes,
that after having studied these animals a long time, he never found
their intelligence aurpaca that of a dog nor of many other camivoious
animals. It is imposing to see such a mountain of vitality obedient
to the voioe of its keeper, and perfanning feats at his dict^ion ; and
the massive gravity of its pbysit^noiny assists tha impraasion.
The following is Ur. Corse's deeoription of a perfect Asiatic
Elephant : — An dephant is said to be per&ct when hia ears are large
and rounded, not nggad or incJented at the margin ; his eyas of a
dark haiel-oolour, £rae from specksj the roof of his month and his
tongue witliDat dark or blaak spota of any oonsiderable siie ; his trunk
larg^ and hia tail long, with a tuft of hair roaiiiBg nearly to the
ground. There must be five nails on cnch of his ton feel^ and four
on each of the hind ones, making dght«ea in all ; his head well set
on, and «Mtied ntlier high ; tha aroh or curve of his back rieiug
gradually from tha shoulder to tha middle, and tlience desoending to
the insertion of tlie tail, snd all his joints firm and atroug.
The following an> tiie eaatea (Zat) or vabetiaa of tha Asiatic
Elephant noticed by Ur. Corse. Both males and famaUe are divided
into two caates by tha nativee of Bengal, namely, the Eoomareah (of
a princely raoe) and the Mecf^iee (hunting elepbont, &om 'mrigah,' a
deer, or hunting, or from ite slender make), and thia withont any
retard to tha appearance, shape, or siie of tlie tusks in the males >■
Ihess serve merely to chararterisa some vorietieB in tha species. The
Koomareah is deep-bodied, strong, and compact, with a laigs trunk
and short but thick legs. Tha Merghee is generally toller but is not
■o compact nor so strong : he travels (aator, has a lighter body, and
his inmk is both short and slender in proportion to his height. As a
large trunk is coDBdered a neat beauty in an elephant, the Kooma-
reah is preferred, but not only for this, but for its superior atreugth,
and greatw capability of sustaining fatigue. The mixed breed is held
in greater or leas sstUnation in proportion as it paitskea of the quali-
ties of tke EooMueah or Heisfaee. A breed from a pure Koomareah
Koomareah the more he is preferred, eapedall; by the natjvea, and
the higher will be his price ; though Europeans are not so particular,
and will sometimes prefer a female Moivhsa for hunting and riding,
when she has good paces, and is mild and tractable.
Tha variety of mala termed Dauntelah (toothy, having large fine
teeth,) produces the laigsst tusks and the finest ivoiyTnia head ia
strongly contraated with that of the Mooknah (probably trom ' mookh,'
the mouth or face), which can hardly be distinguished in this respect
trom a female elephant ; and the tuska of some of the Females are so
small as not to appear beyond tlie lip, while in others they are alraost
as large as in the variety of male c^ed Mooknah. Tha Dauntelah is
generuly more dsfing and less manageable than tha Mooknah; and
for HUb reason, until ths temper and disposition are ascertained, the
Europeans prefer the Uooknah ; but the natives, who are fond of
show, genenlly take their chance, and prefer the Dauntelah : and
though then is a material difference in their appearance as well as in
the value of theic tusks, vet, if they are of the same caste, sise, and
diapoaition, and perfect, there is scarcely any difference in their price.
There are many varieties between tjie Mooknah and Dauntelali,
and theee are varied according to the variation of the form of the
tusks, from the projecting horiaontal but isthar elevated curve of
the Pullung-Daunt * of the true Dauntelah, to the nearly stralgbt
tusks of the Mooknah, whioh point directly downwards.
Thus the Qonaiah or Qaneao, which is a Dauntelah that ha* never
had but ona tusk and this of the Pullung sort, and which is BO called
&om Qanssa, the Hindoo god of wisdom, who is lepmmted witlt a
head like an elephant's with only one tooth, was sold in Mr. Coree's
time to the Hindoo princes for a veiy high price, to be kept in state
and worsUpped as a divinity. Anotiier variety of the Dauntdali baa
the iBige tiisks poinUng downwards and projecting only a little
beyond the trunk : he ia then said to have Soor or Choor-Daunt (Hog's
teeth). A third is the Puttdl-Dauntee, whcee tu^ are stroie^t Idie
those of the Mooknah, only much longer and thicker. Tbe Ankoos-
Dauntee is a fourth, sod has one tusk gmvriiig neoriy horiioDtal, liko
the Pullung-Dannt, and ths other like the Puttal-I^unt, and thne
are other less disbinct varieties.
Tbe term Oooodsh seems to be used to designate those vnodoing
male elsidiants irtiich are much larger and stronger than the males
genenlly taken with the herd, the Qoondah deporting from it or
returning to it aooording to his desire. The Ooondabs ore su{>
poeed to be rarelr taken with tbe herd: when they are su taken,
their violaDoe and feromty render them most destructive. Mr.
Hllsg » HfOlHlr, ■
L feromty render <
»d orcot, and ■daimf U
tit
ELEPHANT,
cte
which the white be>M hvl trod into tha ground nbUa d^rouiing iti
fleah. Altbough this wu difBonll fivm the want oC proper iiutru-
meat^ I lucooeded in oolleotilig more than a pood (SB ponndi) of h«r.
Id B few daja ths work w«a oompUted, utd 1 found Dwself in poaaes-
Bsn of K treuure which amply Tooompenaad ma for tha fatiguM and
dangets of the joumej, and Uta oonaiderable ezpenaes of the enter-
pri«. The place where I found the Hammoth ii aboat 60 paces dis-
tant from the tbore, and nearly 100 paoea from tlie escarpmant of the
ica from which it had &tllen. This escarpment oocupiee ezocU; the
middle between the two points of the peninsula, and is 3 worsts long
(2 miles) 1 and in the place where the Mammoth was found thin rock
baa a perpendicular elevation of 30 or iO toi»«B. Its substance is a
clear pure ice ; it inolioes towards tha sea ; its top is eoTered with a
layer of moss and friable earth half an arohine (1 i inehea) in thick-
nete. Duriu); the heat of the month of July a part of this crust is
melted, but Uia rest remains froaen. Curiosity induced me to ascend
two other hills at some distance from the sea ; they were of the same
substance, and lass covered with moss. In varioua places were seen
enormouspieeesofwoodof all the kinds produced in Siberia; and also
Mammoths' homi (tuaka) in groat numbera appeared between the
hollows of the rocla ; they all ware of aatonishing freshneaa. How
all these things could bscome collected there, is a question as curious
as it is difBcult to resolTe. The inhabitants of the coast call this kiod
of wood AdamBcliina,'aQd distinguish it from the floating pieces of
wood which are brought down by the lai^ rivers to the ocean, and
collect in masses on the shores of the Frasen Sea. The latter are
called Noachina. I have seen, when the ice melta, large lumps of
of tha ' Memoirs of the ImpetU Academy of Sciences of St. Fetera-
burg,' London, 1810, 4to,
Remains of the Sltphat primigeniui have been found in great
numben in the British lalandi. Mr. Woodward, in his • Qaoltigj ot
Norfolk,' calculates that upwards of 2000 grinders of this animal
have been dredged up by the Ssheimen aS Happislinigh in the apaoe
of thirteen years. Along the coast of Suffolk the remaina of the
Mammoth are acaroely 1e« uameroas, eapecially in the pleistocene
beds at Stutton. At tbe village of Walton, near Harwioh, abondancs
of these recnains have been found, mixed with the bonea of the horrn,
the ox, and the deer. They have also occurred in many other parts
of Essex. They are found at Heme Bay, in the Tallay of the Thames,
at Shoppey, Lewisham, Woolwich, and the lale ot Dogs. TUey havo
been dug up in the streets of London, aa in Oray's Inn Laiie, and
in Charies-BtPBet, St. James's Square. Weat of the metropolis thej
have been dug up at Kensington, Kew, Henley Bottom, Wallingfonl,
and Dorehester. They occur on the south coast at Brighton, Hove,
Worthing, Lyme Regis, and Charmauth. Districts in Worcesteiahira,
Warwick^iire, Staffordshire, Northamptonshire, Yorkshire, the cele-
brated cave at Kirkdale, have all yielded remains of this giganlao
animal, frequently occurring with the remains of the hippopolamo*
and rhinoceros. Not only are these remains found on the dry land,
but they have been dredged up repeatedly in the Oerman Ocean and
the British Channel,
" The remains ot the Mammoth," says Professor Owen, "oceoron
the continent, as in England, in tho superficial depoaits of nnd,
gravel, and loam, which are strewed over all parts of Europe ; and
MuDinath lornid In Siberia. Xtdnoed from the ILtbei
earth detaohed &om the hills mix with the water, and form thick
muddy torrents which roll slowly towards the sea. This earth forms
wed{;ea which M up the spacea between the blocks of ice. The
eacsrpment of ioe was 8G to 40 toiaes high ; and, according to the
report of the Tunguaians, tha animal was when they tint aaw it T
toises below the anrfaoe of the ice, Ac, On arriving with the Mam-
moth at Borcbaya our first can woa to separate the remaining flesh
and ligaments &om the bones, which were then packed up. When
I arrived at Jakutsk I had the good fortune to repurchase the tusks,
and thence expedited tha whole to St. Petersburgh." The skeleton is
now in the Hnaaum of the Academy, and the skin still remains
sttaebed to the head and feet A part of the skin and some of the
hair of this snimsJ were sent by Mr, Adams to Sir Joseph Banks, who
preaented them to the Museum of the Boyal College of Surgeons.
The hair is entirely sepaiated fnim the slun excepting in one very
small part, where it it^l remains attached. It oonsiats of two sorts,
eommon hair and bristles, and of each there are several varieties dif-
fering in length and thicknesa That remaining fixed on the skin i>
of the oolour of the camel, an inch and a half long, very thick set, and
curled in locka. It ia intenpened with a few briatlea about three
inehea long, of a datk reddish colonr. Among the separata paroeli of
hair an some rather redder than the short hair just mentioned, about
four inches long ; and some bristles nearly black, much thicker than
hone-hair, and from twelve to eightaen Inofaea long. The skin when
first brought to the museum was offensive ; it is now quita dry and
hard, and where most compact is half an inch thick. Its colour is
the doll black of the living elepbanU (■ On tha Mammoth, or Fosail
Elephant, found in tho Ioe at tbo Mouth of the River Lena in Siberia,
with a Lithogiaphic Plate of the Skeleton.' From tha fifth volnme
«atar ahondanee in the aama ftmnatdons of
, . aUy ii " ' „" ■ - ......
r matrix la perennially fkwen.
11 great
;her latitudes, where tha soil irhidi forms
" Bemoins of the Mammoth have been found in great abundanee
in the clifb of &oaen mud on the east side of Behijng's Straits, in
Eschacholti'B Bay, in Ruaoan America, 66° N. lat. ; and they have
been traced, but in acintier quantitisa, aa for south as the states of
Ohio, Kentucky, Missouri, and South (^rolina.
" But no authentic relics of (he EUphai primigtniiu have jet beni
discovered in tropical latitude*, or in any put of the soutliCTn hemi-
sphere. It would thus appear ibat the primeval alaphanta fbrmerij'
tanged ovor the whole northern hemiif^ere of the globe, ftnm iho
10th to the eOth, and ponibly to near the TOth degree of latitude.
Here, at least at the mouth of the river Lena, the carcass of a Mam-
moth has been found preserved entire, in the icy cliffs and fMien soil
of that cooat To acoount for this extraordinary phenomenon geolo-
gists and naturalists, biassed mora or leas by the analogy of the
existing elmhanla, which are restricted to otunea where the trees
flourish irith perennial foliagt^ have had recourse to the hypotheaiB
of a change of climala in the northam hemisphere either sudden abd
due t« a great geologieal cataclvBrn, or gradual' and brought about by
pingreanve alternations of land and sea.
" I am fiu- IVom believing that such changes In the external world
were the causa of the ultimate extdnction of the Elej^ua primi^amai
but I am convinced that the peculiarities in its ssoerbined oreaniaatkill
are such as to render it quita poaaible for the sjiima] to have existed
na near the pola as is compatible with the growth of hardy treca or
shrubs. The fkct seems to have been generally overlooked liiat an
animal organised to gain its subsistence from the bnnohea or woo<<y
517
ELEPHANT.
ELEPHANT.
618
fibre of trees is thereby rendered independent of the aeaeonB which
regulate the development of leaves and fruit; the forest-food of such
a species becomes as perennial as the lichens that flourish beneath
the winter snows of Lapland ; and were such a quadruped to be
clothed, like the Rein-Deeri with a natural garment capable of resisting
the rigours of an arctic winter, its adaptation would be complete.
Had our knowledge of the Mammoth indeed been restricted, as in the
case pf almost all other extinct animals, to its bones and teeth, it
would have been deemed a hazardous speculation to have conceived,
k priori, that the extinct ancient elephant^ whose remains were so
abundant in the frozen soil of Siberia, had been clad, like most
existing quadrupeds adapted for such a climate, with a double gar-
ment of dose fur and coarse hair; seeing that both the existing
species of elephants are almost naked, or at best scantily provided
when young with scattered coarse hairs of one kind only.
" The wonderful and imlooked-for discovery of an entire Mammoth,
demonstrating the arctic character of its natural clothing, has how-
ever confirmed the deductions which might have been legitimately
founded upon the localities of its most abundant remains, as well as
upon the structure of its teeth, namely, that, like the Bein-Deer and
Musk-Ox of the present day^ it was capable of existing in high
northern latitudes.
The kind of food partaken of by these creatures in their northern
habitations did not probably differ much from that which they obtain
at the present day in tropical climates. Their peculiar teeth enable
them to derive a great proportion of their food from Uie woody fibre
of the branches of trees, and in this respect the structure of the teeth
of the extinct species was analogous to that of the recent ones.
Forests of hardy trees and shrubs still grow upon the frozen soil of
Siberia, and it is not unreasonable to suppose that at the time the
Mammoth existed in the north of Europe it possessed an arboreal
vegetation amply sufficient to supply the necessities of this animal,
even in districts where the ground was covered during the greater
period of the year with snow.
"We may therefore safdy infer," says Professor Owen, "from
physiologioid grounds, that the Mammoth would have found the
requisite means of subsistenoe at the present day, and at all seasons,
in the sixtieth lutrallel of latitude ; and relying on the body of evidence
adduced by Mr. Lyell, in proof of increased severity in the climate
of the northern hemisphere, we may assume Uiat the Mammoth
habitually frequented still higher latitudes at the period of its actual
existence. It has been suggested," observes the same philo-
sophical writ«<r, " that, as in our own times^ the northern animals
migrate, so the Siberian EHephant and Rhinoceros may have wandered
towards the north in summer.
" In making such excursions during the heat of that brief season the
Mammoths would be arrested in their northern progress by a condition
to which the Rein-Deer and Musk-Ox are not subject, namely, the
limits of arboreal veg^etation, which however, as represented by the
dominating shrubs of polar lands, would allow them to readi the
70th degree of latitude. But with this limitation, if the physiological
inferences regarding the food of the Mammoth from the structure of
its teeth be adequately appreciated and connected with those which
may be legitimately deduced from the ascertained nature of its inte-
gument, the necessity of recurring to the forces of mighty rivers,
hurrying along a carcass through a devious course, extending through
an entire degree of latitude, in order to aocoimt for its ultimate en-
tombment in ice, whilst so little decomposed as to have retained the
cuticle and hair, will disappear. And it can no longer be regarded
as impossible for herds of Mammoths to have obtaiDed subsistence in
a country like the southern part of Siberia 'where trees abound, not-
withstanding it ia covered during a great part of the year with snow,
seeing that tiie leafless trees during even a long and severe Siberian
winter would not necessarily unfit their branches for yielding food to
the well-clothed Mammoth. With regard to the extension of the
geographical range of the EUpkat primigeniuB into temperate latitudes,
the distribution of its fossil remains teaches that it reached the 40th
degree north of the equator.
" Histoiy in like manner records that the Rein-Deer had formerly a
more extensive distribution in the temperate latitudes of Europe than
it now enjoys. The haiiy covering of the Mammoth concurs however
with the locaUties of its most abundant remains, in showing that,
like the Rein-Deer, the northern extreme of the temperate zone was
its metropolis.
" Attempts have been made to account for the extinction of the race
of northern elephants by alterations in the climate of their hemi-
sphere, or by violent geological catastrophes, and the like extraneous
physical causea When we seek to apply the same hypotheses to
explain the apparently contemporaneous extinction of the gigantic
leaf-eating Megatkeria of South America, the geological phenomena of
that oonthient appear to negative the occurrence of such destructive
changes. Our comparativMy brief experience of the progress and
duration of species within the historical period is surely insufficient
to justify, in every case of extinction, the verdict of violent death.
With regard to many of the lai^r MammaHOf especially those which
have passed away from the American and Australian continents, the
absence of saffldent signs of extrinsic extirpating change or convul-
sion, makes it almost as reasonable to speculate with Broechi on the
possibility that species, like individuals, may have had the cause of
their death inherent in their original constitution, independently of
changes in the external world, and that the term of their existence,
or the period of exhaustion of the prolific force, may have been
ordained from the commencement of each spedes."
Associated with the EUphat primigmius in the Tertiaiy Beds of
Eugland are the remains of another gigantic Proboscidean Animal
belonging to the genus Meutodon. This genus possesses two enormous
tusks projecting from the upper jaw, and was provided with a por-
boscis, as may be inferred from the length of the tusks, which would
have prevented the mouth from reaching the ground. Like the
Elephants they were destitute of canine teeth, and provided with a
small number of large and complex molar teeth, successively deve-
loped from before backwardsi The broad crowns of the mohu* teeth
were also cleft by transverse fissures, but these defts were fewer in
number, of less depth, and greater width, than in the Elephants : the
transverse ridges were more or leas deeply bisected, and the divisions
more or less produced in the form of udder-shaped cones, whence the
name Mattodon (jiiurr6s, and S9os), assigned by Cuvier to this genua
of Proboscidean MammiUitk Two other dental charaoters pointed
out by Professor Owen distinguish the genus Mastodon from the
genus EUphas. The first is- the presence of two tusks in the lower
jaw of both sexes in the Maatodon, These are retained in the male
but shed in the female. The second character is the displacement of
the first and second molars in the vertical direction by a tooth of
simpler form than the second.
One spedes of Maatodon has been found in England, the M. anguili'
dent of Owen, the Mastodon It Dents Etroites of Cuvier. Remains
of it occur in the formation called by Sir Charies Lydl the Fluvio-
marine Crag. It belongs to the Older Pliocene division of the
Tertiary System. •
A spedes of Matiodon larger than the M. anguMLtna of Europe has
been found fossil in many parts of the United States. This is the
3f. giganteut, A specimen of the animal nearly perfect was obtained
iu the state of Missouri in 1840. It was exhibited at the Egyptian
Hall, Piccadilly, London, in 1842 and 1848, under the name of the
' Missouri Leviathan.' It was strangely distorted ; but having been
purchased by the Trustees of the Brituh Museum it has been made
to assume its correct proportions, and is now one of the chief objects
of attraction in that national collection. The following are the pro-
portions of this gigantic, skdeton : — ^Extreme length, 20 feet 2 inches;
height, 9 feet 6} inches : cranium, length, 84 feet ; verticsl dimen-
sions, 4 feet ; width, 2 feet 11 inches ; width of pdvis,'5 feet 8 inches :
tusks, extreme length, 7 feet 2 inches ; projection of the same, 5 feet
2 inches ; droumference at the base, 27 inches. It was found near
the banks of the river La Pomme de Tene, a tributary of the Osage
River, in Burton county, Missouri. The bones were imbedded in a
brown sandy depodt full of vegetable matter, with recognisable
remains of the cypress, tropical cane, swampomoes* stems of the pal-
metto, &C., and this was covered by beds of blue-day and gravel to a
thickness of about fifteen feet Mr. Koch, the discoverer, states that
an Indian flint arrow-head was found beneath the leg-bones of this
skeleton, and four similar weapons were imbedded in the same
stratum. This indicates that the formation was more reoent than
that in which the remains of the British Mattodon had been found.
Other. remains of tiiis Mastodon have been found in America, espe-
dally in the Big Bone Lick, in Kentucky, where it is said the remains
of not less than 100 mastodons, 20 mammoths, with bones of the
megalonyx, stag, horse, and biK>n, have been discovered.
Amongfst the remarkable remains brought from the Sewalik Hills,
in Hindustan, by Captain Cautley and Dr. Falconer are the remains
of several spedes of the genus Elephai and other probosddean
MiimftV Dr. Falconer, speakiug of the group of animals thus
revealed by his reaeaitshes, says: —
" This fossil Fauna is composed of representative types of Mam^
malia of all geological ages, from the oldest of the tertiary periods
down to the most modem ; and of all the geographical divisions of
the old continent, grouped together into one comprehendve assem-
blage. Among the forms oontained in it there are- -of the
Paehjfdermaia several spedes of Maatodon, Elephant, Hippopotamus
Rhinoceros, AnoploUuriMan, and three spedes of Eqvata ; of ihe iSnmi-
nantia the colossal genus Sivaiheriumf which is pe<niliar to India, with
spedes of Camelui, Boa, Cenma, and Antilope; of the Candwra,
species of most of the great types, together with several undeseribed
genera ; of the Modentia and Quadmunana several spedes ; of the
ReptUia, a gigantic tortoise {C(do88ochdift), with species of Smjfs and
Tnonyx, and several forms of Gktvials and Crocodiles. To these may
be added the remains of Strutluous and other birds, and Fishes,
Cruata>eea, and MoUuaca,"
The genus Elephaa in this collection which has been depodted in
the British Museum includes six spedes.
E, jdanifrona, distinguished by the flatness of the forehead and the
intermediate character of its molar teeth.
E. Namadieui, with a great devdopment of the cranium, and teeth
doady allied to those of the Indian spedes.
S, fffaudricuat with a turban-like vortex of the skull and teeth,
whose structure approadies that of the African Elephant.
E. Ganesa is the most remarkable of the Sewalik species. A skull
510
ELEPHANTS FOOT/
EMBERIZIDiE.
620
exists with remaizui of the other species in the British Museum. The
total length of the cranium and tusks is 14 feet ; length of the skull
4 feet 2 inches ; width 29 inches ; width of the muzzle 2 feet ; length
of the tusks 10 feet ; circumference of the tusk at the base 26 inches.
The other two species are named E. insignig and E. bambifronM,
The species of Afastodon, in the collection from the Sewalik Hills,
are Af. Perimtntia, M. SvvcUenng^ and M. Uuidetu,
Professor Owen states that a species of Mastodon, nearly allied to
M. anguttidens, has left its remains in the ossiferous caves and post-
tertiary or newer tertiary deposits of Australia. From the conformity
of the molar teeth Cuvier regarded a Mastodon whose remains have
been discovered in Peru as identical in species with the M, angustidem
of Europe. Professor Owen regards the M. longirottri* of Kaup,
found in Qermany, and the M. Arvemensia of Croizet and Jobert, dug
up in Ativex^e, as identical with his M. angtutidena.
In the collection of the British Museum, in addition to the species
which we have mentioned above, will be found remains of Elephaa
priicua and E, meridionaliSf found in Europe. There is also the remains
of a species of Matlodon, M.Andium, from Buenos Ayres. [Sopp.]
(Owen, British Fossil Mammala and Birds ; Falconer and Cautley,
Fauna Antigua SivaUnsis; Kantell, Petrrfaetums and their Teachings.)
ELEPHANT'S FOOT. [Tmtudiwarm.]
ELEPHA'NTOPUS (from 4\4<pas, an elephant, and wois, a foot, on
account of the shape of its radical leaves), a genus of Plants belonging
to the natural order Composites, the subnorder CorymbiferoB, the tribe
Vemoniacea, the sub-tribe Vemonieo!, and the division Elephantopea,
It haa heads containipg 3-4-5 florets, equal flowered, closely collected
into a cluster, surrounded by leaves ; the involucre compressed in
two rows, the leaflets dry, oblong, alternately flat and folded, the inner
usually 8-nerved ; the receptacle naked ; the corolla palmate, with a
6-cleft limb,^hich has acuminate s^^entsand one recess deeper than
the others; thefllaments smooth, the branches of the style half subu-
late ; the achenium rather compressed, many ribbed, oblong, haiiy ;
the pappus in one row consisting of several straight paleae, dilated at
the base, but otherwise very narrow, acuminate, equal, and serrated.
E, seidter has a hairy dichotomous stem, the radical leaves scabrous,
cuneate, and very much narrowed at the base, those of the stem lan-
ceolate. This plant is common in almost all parts of India, in dry
elevated positions. It has a stem a foot high, with the heads of pale-
red flowers on long stalks. The roots are fibrous. Both the roots and
the leaves are reputed to have active medical properties. The natives
on the Malabar coast use a decoction of them in cases of dysuria.
There are other species natives of South America and the West Indies.
(Lindley, Flora Medica ; Loudon, Encydopadia of Plants.)
ELETTA'RIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natund order
ZingiberaeetE, The characters of this genus are the same as Amo-
muM, but the tube of the corolla is filiform and the anther naked.
[Aicomuil]
E. CardamomuiMy True Cardamom, is a native of the mountainous
districts of the coast of Malabar, especially above Calicut» in the
Wynaad district^ between 11* and 12' N. lat, where the best are
produced. It is therefore well placed; for Cardamoms formed a
portion of the early commerce, which subsiBted between this part of
India and Arabia, whence they must have been made known to the
Greeks, as they are described by Diosoorides, and mentioned as early
as the time of Hippoenftes.
The Cardamom plant delights in moist and shady places on the
dedivities of the huls. It is cultivated from partings of the root in-
the district of Soonda Bakghauty but the fruit is veiy inferior; the
best grows in a wild state, at least where no other measures are
adopted than clearing away the weeds from under the largest trees,
which are felled close to the roots. The earth being loosened by the
force of the fallen tree, youns; Cardamom plants shoot forth in a
month's time, and are Weltered by the dbade t>f the branches. The
tree-like herbaceous plants attain a height of from 9 to 12 feet The
root ia as tortuous and tuberous as that of the ginger, and the leaves,
with long sheathing footstalks, are from one to two feet in length,
S laced in two rows, and lanceolate in shape, like those of the Indian
hot {Canna Indiea) common in English gardens. The scapes, or
flower- and fruit-bearing stalks, make their appearance in February of
the fourth year, from the base of the stems, are three to four in number,
and from one to two feet long, lax, and resting on the ground. The
fruit is ripe in November, and requires nothing but drying in the sun
to be fit for commerce. The seeds are gratefully aromatic and pungent
with a flavour of camphor, and are r^parded as a necessary article of
diet by the inhabitants of Asia. They are used in medicine, and
enter into a number of phannaceuticid preparations.
JR Cardamomum medtum is a native of the hilly country in the
neighbourhood of Sytheh, where the plant is called Do Ei»wa. The
seeds of this species are numerous, obovate, with a groove on one
side. Dr. Lindley concludes that this plant yields the Cardamomutn
medium of writers on Materia Medica.
ELEXJSINE, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order of
the Grasses. E coracana is cultivated as a corn-plant by the inhabit-
ants of the Coromandel Coasts and is known by the name of Natohueo.
According toSchomburgk, a decoction of another species, E. Indiea, is
employed m Demerara in the convulsions of infants. E. Tocusso is
an Abyssbiaa corn-plant belonging to this genus.
ELEUTHERIA. [Cbotow.]
ELEDONE. [OcTOPODA.]
ELK. [Ckrvidjb.]
ELLIPSOLPTHES. Mr. Sowerby gave this title to some
(compressed?) forms of Fossil Cephalopoda, from the Mountain
Limestone.
ELLIPSOSTO'MATA, De Blainville's name for a family (the
third) of his second order, Asiphonobranchiataj of his first sub^class.
ParfteephaUphora Dioica, of hk second class, Paraeephalophoraf of his
Malacozoa, The EilipsoatomaJta of De Blainville comprehend the
genera JbTcZania, i2iMoa, PAananeUa,ili}»j»4t^arui, Htlicina (including
AmjHfZ&tm, De Blainv., and (%y^ra, Say), and PUwroeerus. Of these
all but PUwroeerus are included under the Pectinibranchiate Gastero-
poda of Cuvier ; and as the habits of the included genera are by no
means uniform, the genera wUl be treated of imder their several
titles. [Ampullaria.]
ELM. [Ulmus.]
ELODIANS. [CJhblokia.]
E'LYMUS, a genus of Grasses belonging to the tribe ffordeinece.
It has 2 glumes, both on the same side of the spikelet, without awns
or setss, with 2 or more perfect flowers, and the spikelets two or
three together. Several species of this genus have been described.
Two only are natives of Great Britain.
E. arenarius, Upright Lyme-Grass. It has an upright close spike ;
the rachis flat, not winged ; the glumes lanceolate, downy, not longer
than the spikelets. It is a coarse grass, common on sandy sea-shores;
and, with other grssses, it sends down long fibrous roots amongst the
sand in such a way as to prevent its moving about with the winds.
On some parts of the coast immense sandbanks are formed by thia
grass and others, binding down the sands which are thrown up by
occasional and successive high tides. Although this grass, according
to Sir H. Davy, yields a large quantity of sugar, it is not eaten by any
of our domestic animals.
E. geniculatuSf Pendulous Lvme-Grass, has a lax spike bent down-
wards ; the rachis winged ; the glumes awl-shaped, glabrous, l<ftiger
than the spikelets. The stem is 3 or 4 feet high, and the spike 1 or
2 feet long, bent down in a remarkable manner at the second or^hird
spikelet. It has been found near Gravesend. Most of the remaining
Species are natives of America, both North and South.
(Babington, Manual of British Botany ; Loudon, Encydopcsdia of
Plants.)
ELYSIA. [NuDIBRANCHtATA.]
ELYSIAD^. [NUDIBRANCHIATA.]
ELZERINA. [CxLLARiJSA.]
EMARGINULA. [Fissurellidje.]
EMBERIZA. [Emberizid^]
EMBERIZIDiE, a family of Birds belonging to the order Insessorea
and the tribe Conirostres. The most distinguishing genus of the family
is Emberisa, It comprises however other genera. The general rela-
tions of this family are given under Frinqiluda. We shall confine
ourselves here to the British genera of this family known under the
name of Buntings.
Plectrophanea. — Beak short, thick, conical, the edges of both mandi-
bles slightly curved inwards ; upper" mandible smaller than the lower,
with a small palatal knot. Nostrils basal, oval, partly hidden by small
feathers. Wings long and pointed ; the firat and second quill-feathers
of nearly equal length, and the longest in the wing. Legs with the
tarsi of moderate length ; anterior toes divided ; lateral toes equal in
length ; hind toe strong ; claw elongated, and nearly straight.
P. Lapponica (Gbuld), the Lapland Bunting. It is the Emberiza
Lapponiea and E. calearata of other writers. Though a native of the
arctic regions, Mr. Yarrell records five instances of its being taken in
GzBat Britain. It is found in Siberia and near the Un^Qan chain.
Towards winter a few migrate as far as Switzerland. It inhabits the
Faroe Islands, Spitzbeigen, Greenland, and Iceland in summer, and
thence westward to Hudson's Bay. Sir John Richardson says, that
about the middle of May, 1827, it appeared in very laige flocks at
Carlton House, and a few days later made their appearance at Cum-
berland House. The eggs are usually seven, and of a pale ochre-yeUow
spotted with brown.
P. nivalia, the Snow-Bunting. It is the Emberiza glacialia, E. mon-
tana, E. wiveUia, 9ndE. mustelina of authors ; and the Tawny- Mountain-
and Snow-Bunting of English writers. It was at one time supposed
they were difierent species, but this arose from the great variety of
plumage to which these birds are subject The predominant colour
of their plumage is white, hence the name Snow-Bunting. This bird
arrives in this country in the end of September and the beginning of
October, and extends from the north of Scotland to the souUi of Eng-
land. This bird is rather lai^ger than the last ^
Emberiza. — Beak conical, strong, hard, and sharp-pointed ; the
edges of both mandibles curving inwards ; the upper mandible nar-
rower and smaller than the under one, and its roof furnished with a
hard bony and projecting palatal knob. Nostrils basal and roimd,
partly hidden by small feathers at the base of the bill. Wings of
moderate size ; the first quill shorter than the tlurd, which is the
longest in the wing. Feet with three toes before and one behind,
divided to their origin ; claws rather long, curved, and strong.
E. miliariaf the Common Bunting, is the most common species of
I
thii genus. It n
EHBLICA.
in tbs Britiih IsTuidi tlirouglioat the yeat
una on aceouni oi iia very familiar presence in corn-fieldB, is fre
quentlj called the Com-Bunting. It builds its nert in April, and !ay«
four or five eggs of a reddish-white or paJe purple-red gnund, streaked
and spotted with dark purple-brown. It feeds on Uis leeds of the
gruses, of the Polffgcna, of sorrels, and of cereitl plants ; sisa on ColS'
cpteroua Inaeets.
In both seies of this species the upper parts are of alightyeliowish-
brown stresked with blscfcish-brown, each feather being of that colour
along the shaft ; lower parts pale je Ho wish-gray, each feather of the
tore neck tipped with a triangular spot of brownish-black, the fore
partof the bnut and the sides with more elongated and fainter spota.
S. (cAmiKlw, the Reed-Banting. It is lOio called, according to
MacQillivray, Black-Headed Bunting, Reed-Sparrow, Watei-Sparrow,
Riog.Bunting, Ring-Bird, Kiog-Fowl, and Chuck. It frequents marshy
places, where it is seen perching on willows, reeds, sedge, and other
aquatio plants. It feeds on insecte, seeds, and unall Maliaica. The
nest is placed among aquatic plants, and is composed of stalks and
blades of greases, bits of nisbes, and the like. The eggs ore four or
Rve in number, of a yeltowish-gray, n>ith tortuous or angular lines,
and irregular spots of black. This bird is e^ily distinguished from
the other species by its black hood and white thiijat.
E. rifrineUa, the Yellow Bunting, or Yellow Ammer. It is also called
in English Yellow Yelding or Voiding, Yellow Yowley, Yellow Tite,
Yeldrock Skute, and Devil's Bird. It is a permanent naident in Orat
Britain, in cultivated and wooded districts, where it is well known.
The back and wings are bright red, the centnd part of each feather
brownish-hlack. The oest is composed of coars^ grasses and twigs,
neatly lined with Gne grass, fibrous roots, and hairs : it is placed on
the ground or in the lower part of a bush. It lays four or five eggs
purplish-white, marked widt linear and angular streaks and a few
irr^ular dote of black.
£. Cirbu, the Cirl-Bunting. This bird is not so common in this
country as the last, which it greatly resembles. It was first distin-
guished as a British bird by Colonel Montague. It is a native also of
the south of Europe, and is more frequent in the south of BIngland
than in the north.
'£, Kortulana, the Ortolan Bunting. A very few specitnsns only of
this bird have been taken in England. It is common in the southern
countries of Europe, and migrates as lar northward as the Baltic
(MacGillivray, Mmwil of BrilUh BirtU ,- Tarrell, HiHory ef BrUUK
Bird:).
E'MBLICA, a genua of Plants belonging to the natural order
Eaphorbiaceir. It has moncncious fioweta ; ths oalyi 6-parted;
3 stamens combined; 3 styles dichotomous: the fruit fleshy, tricoccous,
fr«s(>ded.
£ offeiimlii is a native of moat parte of India. It is a tree having
a crooked trunk, with branches thinly scattered in every direction i
the male branchee spreading and drooping. The leaves are alternate,
spreading, one or two fnet Ion);, and about one and a half or two inches
broad : uie stipulee small, withering ; the flowers minute, of a greenish
colour ; the fruit a drupe, fleshy, globular, smooth, 6-striated : the nut
oborate, obtusely triangular, 3-celled; the seeds two in each cell.
Ths bark of this tree is astringent, and is used in India as a remedy
for diarrbtea. Ths fruit is acid, and tastes astrinsent, and when
eaten actsai a mild pu native. This plant Is the PksllantAiu Emilica
of LinnKus ; and ifj/rotalania Emblica of Bauhin.
(Lindley, Flora Medica.)
EMBRYO. [RepsoddchohiiiAniham; RimoDncnoti ih Plaxts ;
Seed.)
EMERALD. [Biktl,]
EMERITA. [Hippicia.]
EMERY. [Aduuhtihe Spab ; Cobdnddii.]
EMUET, a name used by early English writers for the Ant.
[FoRKica.;
EMPALEUENT, an obsolete name for the stamen of a flower.
EMPEROR-MOTH. [SiTDRKi*.]
EUPETRA'CEjG, CnicbeiTia, a small natural order of Folypeta-
loue Exogenous Plants, related to Evfhorbiaaa. Thej oonsist of
uniseiusl heath-like plants with minute flowers, having a caln mth
a few imbricated sepals that change into about three membranous
petals, a small number of hypogynous stamens, and a superior ovary
with from 3 to S cells, in each of which there is a single ascending
ovule. The fruit is fleshy and bsfried. Tb^ are small acrid plants,
of no known use, and comprise a few species from the north and
Bouth of Europe, North America, and the Straits of Magalhsens.
Empftmm n^nms, the Crakelwrry or Crowberry, is wild on the
mountainous heaths in the north of England. Its black fruit forms
an article of food in the northern parts of the world, but is reported
to be unwholesome, and to cause headache. A sort of wine has been
prepared from it for many centuries in loeland and Norway ; whence
the report of real wine wliich was used at the sacrament being made
in those countries.
The white berries of the Camarinheii'a (Conma) ace employed by
the Fortugueae in making an acidulous beverage, which the domestio
physicians esteem in fevers.
There are 1 gmeiaand i species of this order.
EMPETRUM. [El
T, much mMmUeil l 1> s plilil ; :
EMU. [Stbd
EHYS. [CaELOtna.}
EMY8AURA. [Chilo»u,]
EKALIOSAURA, a name proposed for the great Fossil Marine
Licards represented by lehlhyotaumt and Pletioiaitrut. [IcHTffTO-
Plbsios*cbu» ; Reptiles.]
' ENCEPHAiABTOS,"'!
rder Cycadacea. The i _
of the other ionns of Cycadaceous Plants they yield starch itt
their stems, which ore prepared by the natives and eaten ;
hence these plants ore known by the name of Caffer-Bread or
Kaffir-Bread.
ENCHANTER'S NIGHTSHADE. [CiBCiA.]
BNCHELIS, a genus of Infusorial Antmalouiea Ths species R
4anffainea and S, pilvitcMlui, ocoording to Ueyen, form the Red and
Oreen Snow-Plants which have been described as f^/ems, and referred
' Protococeiu. [Sbow, Red,]
EN'CUODUS, a genus of Fossil Cycloid Pishes, from the ChaU.
(Agasiii.)
ENCBINITES, the cams by which the petrified radiatad animals
oommonly called Stone Lilies hava been long known in Britain : it ia
also applied generally to the Otimidea, a family of Animals belonging
the order Ecl^nodemata. [EamNODEHKaTA.]
Lamarck arranged the genua fncriMij in his fifth order of Polypes
{Polypi nalanta), Biing its position between Virgviaria and ^ntvllii-
loTKi, and recording but two species, one recent, namely Enermu
CapHt-Mtdntce {[wit Ailtria, Linn.), from the seas of the Antilles; the
other fossil, namely S. liliifiymii (Liliian tapidam, Stone-Lily at
EUlis and othen).
CuTier includes the Encrinites among his Pedlcillated Echino-
derms, considering that they should be placed near the Conutln^;
' ' the ' Rfegne Animal" they are accordingly to be found
the great group of the Star-Fishes and that of the
Ecbinideans.
De Blainville observes that the beautifid work of Quettaid (' Acad.
les 8a.' 1755) upon the living and fossil Encrinites, showed long ago
the great relationship which there is between these and the Comalula,
id he remarks upon the arrangement of Lamarck, who fallowed
innnus and his wlherenta in placing them among the Zoophytes,
notwithstanding Quettard's exposition and Ellis's confirmation.
After alluding to Miller's work on the family, and to Mr. Thompson's
description of the living specimen found on the coast of Ireland, De
Blainville takes as the basis of his terminology the parts which aiist
in Comatuia, and, adopting the views of Rosinus, rejects that proposed
by Miller in bis interesting memoir, objecting to the terms ' pelvis,'
' costal,' ' intercostal,' ' scapula,' ' hand,' ' fingers,' fta, as derived from
animals of an entirely diflerent type of form, and inapphcable to ths
radiated structure.
We find, then, that the ' pelvis ' of Miller ia the centro-dorsal joint
(I'article centro-donal) of De Blainville. The 'costal' is the fint
haailai7 joint of each ray. The 'intercostal' is the second basilaij
joint. The 'scapula' is the third, or that on which the radii are
supported. Tha 'hand' is the port of the ray which is divided but
not separated. Tha ' fiugeia ' are Hif digitations or divi^na of the
tLat Blthaugh the i
m ENCBINITES.
nyi. Finallj, the ' pinnulea ' ore Uie Utenl diTiiioiu of the digita-
tioiu ; uid De Blain^e, like Ifiller, dividea the raji into principal
nya uid acceuory or auiilluy raj^*
Dr. Buckland ('Bridgevater Treatiae'), who uaas Uie phiaaeology of
Hpler, Bpeakji of tbes« «iiTnala aa dectined to find their nouHahment
hy ipreading their nets and moving their bodies through a limited
■pace, from a fixed poaitiou at the bottom of the aea ; Or by employiog
the wme inatrumeata, either wlieo fiosticr singly throag)> the water,
□r attached, like Peattl/umit [Cibbipedia], to floating piece* of wood.
Ha refeiB to Ulller Cor several instances of their power of repajring
canial iiijuriea, and figures a receot Ftntacrinut, one of whoae anni ia
under the proceas of being reproduced, aa crabs aod lobsters reproduce
their lost daws and legs, and nuicy licards their tails and feet, observ-
ing that the amu of atar-Gshea also, wheD broken off, are in the aame
reproduced. [EcHiNODElucATi.1 The aame author remarks,
' ' " aentativM of the Crinoideans in our modem
ce, this family was of vaat numerical import-
ance among the earliest inhabitants of the andent deep. " We may
judge," says Dr. BucUand, " of the degree to which the individuals of
these apeciflB multiplied among the first inhabitants of the aea, from
^le countleaa myriads of their petrified remains which fill so many
limeatone beds of the transition formations, and compose vast stratA
ofontrochal marble, eiteoding over large tracts of country in Northern
Europe and North America. The substance of this marble is ofl«n
almost as entirely made up of the petrified bouee of Enctinites as a,
corn-rick ii composed of straws. Man applies it to construct hla
Salace and adorn his aapulchre ; but there are few who know, and
twer still who duly appreciate, the surprisiug fact, that much of thia
marble ia compoaed of the skeletons of millions of organised beings,
once endowed with Ufe, and susceptible of enjoyment, which, afto
performing the part that was for a while sssignM to them in living
nature, have contributed their remains towards the composition of
the mountain masses of the earth. Of more than thirty species of
Crinoideans that prevailed to such enormous extent in the transition
period, nearly all became extinct before the deposition of the lias, and
only one presents the angular column of the Pentacrinite : with thia
one exception, pentangulur columns first began to abound anions the
Crinoideans at the commencement of tlia lias, and have from thence
extended onwards into our present seas. Their several ipecies and
even genera are also limited in their aiteut ; for example, tha great Lilj
Encrinite {B, monUi/ormu) is peculiar to the Uuschel-Kalk, and tiia
Fear-Enorinjte to the middle region of the Oolitic Formation."
The aame author, spaaking of the joiubs which composed the stem,
says, " The name of Entrochi, or Wheelatones, has with much proprie^
b<^ applied to these insulated vertebra. The perforationa in tha
centre of these joints aflbrding a facility for stringing them as beads,
has caused them in ancient times to be used as rosaries. In the
northern parts of England they still retain the appellation of ' Saint
Cuthbert's beads.'
Od s rock by LindiBfikm
"Each of these presents a similar
strength. tVom one extremity of the vertebral column to the other,
and throughout the hands and fingers, the lurlace of each boue
articulates with that adjacent to it, with the moat perfect regularity
and nicety of adjustments So eiaot and methodical is this armnge-
meet, even to the extremity of its minutest teutacula, that it is just
as improbable that Uje metals which compose the wheels of a
chronometer should for themoelves have calculated and arranged the
form and number of the teeth of each respective wheel, and that
these wheels shoiUd have placed themselves in the precise position
fitted to attain the end resulting from the combined aotion of thsm
all, as for the successive hundreds and thousands of little bones that
oomposa on Encrinite to have arranged themselves in a position eub-
ordinate to the end produced by the combined effect of their united
mechanism, each acting its peculiar part in harmonious subordinBtioQ
to the rest ; and oil conjointly producing a result which no single
series of them acting separatdy could possibly have effected."
(' Bridgewater Treatise.')
De Blainville chaiacterises bis Fixed Asterencrinideana (Attirta-
crinides Fix^a) as having a body more or leas bundform, ■upported
upon a long articulated atem, and fixed by a ladicifonn part '
Qenus, Apicci-iMiet, — Uiller, who established this genus, ohafacter-
iaas it aa an animal with a column gradually enlarging at the apex,
oompoaed of numerous joints, of which the superior is marked by
five diverging ridges, dividing the surface into as many equal portions,
sustaining the pelvis, formed of five suWuneiform joints, supporting
• Itlsoi
at the St
in this put or
Utile pDvsllDf when eonsidernl ss comlnff
as Ua ; Ull the arrival ot Ih* ' KinirrUn Additions' el CmreetlaDi"'
infannatlon that " par nna Ciaaapiialtlan jiDfDUirt dn mnuisilt,
aorle de mALab^ enCre lea parafnpbn qui appartieDneDt aox ffes
*t PtaUirimu." In iboit, odobc oilier mJiUkM, the tltlea 1
FniftriHUI, iDgethei with >bole paiagtaiibii, have been mltpland
a esorailon ani
Tbti WIS not I
high repntttloi
ENCKINITEB. 6M
othara of a figurs neariy aiuijar, from which procaed the arms and
tantooulated Ingera formed of simple jointa having tha figure of a
hanfr«hoa.
Da Blainville thus defines it : — Body regular, circular, for the rest
unknown, contained in a sort of cupula or conical teat (t4t), com-
posed of three superposed rows, each consisting of five scaphoid
plates, united or jomted throughout, the upper one supporting on a
radiat«d surface the r*ys which are formed by a simple scries of non-
pinnated (f) articulationa Btem round, at first as large as the body,
attenuatmg by degreea down to the root; articulations circuIaT,
Bridbrd Paar.Aie[lnlte (4p<«rlaiMt rt^imdm], rsMond
repairint sa Injurr of the Jolau oj
Apiocriuittt rotimdut, ihowinff at '
hoUoii leDtlcnlar ipacea, Iwtween the ceatral porttona el II
the upper portion of Iha vcttebial ootnmn. These gpice
UlUar ai ealsTfemeDta of the sUDtentarj cspal, vhicb di
ails of the aatlre colnnm. The lurfacia of the Jointa of
are itrUtid with rare sn Uie adjacent platen, and allow nl
two roanff Indlvldaala, and the
le haie ; S, pear-ihapnl bad;- of
:tramll7 the internal diapoailioi.
litUi elevBted, pierced bj a ronnd hole, and radiated at tbeir nufiun.
AuxUiai; nja gosttered. Tbia gemu haa oocnured hitherto la a.
foadl state only, and ha* alone beoi fonnd in ttnta portdtior to the
A. rttvndvt, Bonod-Columned, Fear-Hke, Lllrehaped Animal
(Miller). It appean tobethe J<(Mpada<(^^iu(atem) of Defrance. It
is the Bradford Pear-Encrinita of PaAinion, and U deeoribed by Miller
na a crinaidal animal, with a round colamn, oompoeed of joints
adhering by radiating mrfaeea, of which from ID to 11 gradually
enlarge at its apex, sustaining the pslvii, eoit«, aod BOapuln, from
which tha Krms and teatacnlated fingen ptooeed. Baia formed by
exuding calcareous matter, which induntea in laminn, and perma-
nently attaches the animal to extraneous bodies.
It occnn in the middle ragion of the Oolite at Bradford in
Wiltshire, Abbotsbury, near Weymouth, Dbraetshire, Soiaaons,
RochellB, ftt
Miller describea and Sgures a seooud speciee, JpUerinilm tUiptiau
(Bottle-Encriuite, Strait-Encrinite, and Stag-Horn Enorinite of Park-
inson ; Ooldfiss refers to it as J. tUmgaiv), and gives the Chalk-Pits
□f Wiltshire and Kent as ita loca-
lities. Tha bodies, &a. of this
species are the Chalk-Bottlea of
the quanymeD.
H. Ooldfuss, in his great work,
records four additional species,
namely, A. rotacem. A., mttpili-
/omu, and .J. ifiUen(3chloiJiaiin),
and A.jUxuomt, and A, obconicuM
Ooldfun), retaming Miller's A.
eUipfiflu, and referring to HiUer's
description of that species for A.
dongalu* also.
Snerimu (Ermrinita, True laly-
shaped Ammal of Hiller.}— J
Miller characterises hi8 genus I
Sncrinila as a crinoidal animal,
with a column formed of nnmarous
round depressed joints, adhering
by a radiating grooved surface, and
becoming sabpentangular near the
pelvis, which is composed of fire
pieces, giving a lateral insertion to
the first seriee of costal plates, to
which the second series and sea-
pain succeed, whence the tenta-
colatcd aims or fingers proceed,
formed.by double seiies of jointa
He observea that the »"'■"»!« of
this genus have not hithoto
been found in a living stat«,
nor doee he believe that their
remains have been discovered in
England.
M. tilii/ixtnit, Lamarck. This is
the £ »oni^t/i>nnu,Baad-columned,
True Lily-shaped Animal of Uilter,
who describea ths species as a cri-
noidal Boima], with a column
formed of numerous round joints,
alternately, as they approach the
peiviH, laiger and smaller, becom-
ing subpentangulor when nearly
in contact with it. On the pelvis,
formed of five pieces, adhere late-
rally the first series of ooates, on
which the seoond series of costra is
plaoed, Buooeeded by the seapnln,
from which the ten tentaculated
anna or Gngera proceed. Animal
permanently affixed by exuded
indurated matter.
Iter's i
miliform
bably the S, ISiifonait of Lamarck,
tha Encrine and Lys de Mer of the
F^nch, the Ljlium lapideum of
some of the older writers, and the
Stone Lily of the English. It is
foimd in the Muschel-Kalk, Hilda-
sheim, Rakenberg near Goalar,
Obemscheden and AizenhaiiBen,
not Car from Oemendeo, in Lower
Saxony; Scwerven in Juliera, in
Westphalia ; the villsge of Erke-
rode in Brunswick, abouttwo miles
from the town bearing this name, near a wood railed the Elm, tc
In this last-named locality the quarry ia on tba declivity of a hill
QTergrown with wood, on which account the inhabitants oppose the
dig^og after them. The stratum containing Ukcm is hardly fifleen
LDT-Shiped Rnerinlte '{Rterinia
, but mriny hours' digging is necessary before a
good specimen of the superior part, or stone-lily, can be procured
since the moisture in the stone contributes to their rapid destruction,
and their occurring on largs pieces of stone makes them liable tu
separation, which accounts for the many mended specimens. Anothei
and harder stratum under the above contuas numerous crinoidal
but, according to the qunrtymen, no stoae-liliea. (Miller.)
The author last quoted adds Uiat there is good reason to believe that
the formation in which the remains are found near Brunswick corre-
mds with the White Lias of England, as it appears to repose on the
newer Red-Sandstone containing salt and gypsum.
Fine specimens of thla foseil have always been and still are sought
for with great esgemess by collectors, la the ' Beytriige zur Natur-
geschichte,' Allenburg, 1774, it is stated that the Emperor of Qermany
offered 100 dollars for a stone-lily free f^m the matrix, and attached
to ita column.
"The peculiarly fine lily enorinite," writes MiQer, "figured by
Knorr, tab. 11, a, was, it is said, purchased (' Naturforsdier,' Stii^ S)
from the labourera at the limestone quarry at Sehrapland, near Halle,
by Inspector Wilkena, for thirty-two groechen, and given to Professor
Longe, who sold it to Baron Nii^art. However in the same publica-
tion (Stiick 6), it ia stated that it was not bought by Wilkens, but by
Mr. Vildgo, at Farrenstadt, near Querfurt, for two dollsn, and given
to Lange, who sold it for three louis d'or. If my memory does not
misglTe me, I think I saw the specimen about twenty yean ago in
the collection of the Naturfbrschenden Qeaellschaft^ at DuEig. Where
i'eniocnnui {PathKrinilei vel Prntacriiiut, Five-Angled Lily-
shaped Animal, Miller; PaUagomtet Bafinaque). — The fallowing
the generic character as given by Millar : — An animal wiui
column formed of nnmerous pentangular jointly articulating by
snr&ces with pentapetaloiu aemistriated marlungs. Superior colum-
nar joint supporting a pelvis of Sve joints, on which five Srat
oustals rest, succeeded by five second costala and five acapulas, from
which ten arms proceed, having each two hands, oompcaed of several
tentaculated Sngen. Column long, having numerous auxiliary side-
* Rieent Sptciei.
P. Capitt-Mediuix is a crinoidal animal having a column formed of
imerou* pentangular joints, articulating by aurfaoes with pentape-
talons ovate striated markings; five auxiliary side-arms formed of
ronnd joints proceeding from the column at intervals. Superior
columnar joints supporting a pelvis of five plates, to which the first
coatals, second cottals, and scapuls succeed, fW>m which ten arms
proceed, each supporting two bands, subdividing into three fingera
Lower eitremi^, or base, unknown. (Miller.)
It is the Encrmui Caput-Mtdiutix of Lamarck; Irit Atteria of
Linnffius. It inhabits the aesa of the Antilles, and haa been taken
near the island of Barbadoes (Dr. Hunter's spedmen), also off Nevia
(specimen formerly belonging to James Tobin, Em., now in the
Britjih Museum), and Martinique (specimen in the rant Museum).
There is also a specimen in the Museum of the Roynl College of
Suneons in London,and one in that of the Qeological Society of London. '
Mr. Miller, in speaking of Mr. Tobin's specimen, says, "In the
dravrlng it up from the bottom of the sea. the animal has clearly
been broken off, leaving its posterior portion behind ; thus we have
lost the chance of ascertaining the tact, whether it adhered by a fixed
base, or had a locomotive power. The same accident has befallen
the other racent individuals that have been mentioned when speaking
of the locality of this species. However, judging from its analogy to
the Eaerinui motaliformit, from its long column, numerous aniiliacy
side-arms, and the associated manner in which group* cf the following
*pecies are sometime* found preserved on the surface of a single slab,
with the columns all tending towarde the same point, as if issuing
from a oommon base, I conceive that this species also adhered by ■
base to eitraneouB matter. Thia idea gains some further ground,
from all the recent specimens hitherto found having broken abruptly
off in the endeavour to remove them, w not beiAg able to tree them
selves from the points of adhesion, which certainly would have been
the case had the animal possessed a locomotive power." This infei^
ence acquires additional conGrmation iroTa the observations made by
the late J. Tobin, Esq., on another specimen, namely — " Some yean
ago I was in possession of a larger Pentacrinite, which was brought
to ma so fresh out of the sea that at the bottom (where it plainly
appeared to have been broken off from the rock to which itwasfiiad'/
the blood was actually oozing from the vertebns. This specimen i
endeavoured to preserve, but it was totally destmyed by the anta,
who ale every cartilage, so that it fell to pieces." Miller obser/cf
upon this, that the 'blood' was the fluid in the alimentary canal, trad
reusing to admit tha assertion of Walch, that the Pentacrinite iii an
animal crawling along the bottom of the sea, conceives it to have
generally stood more or less erect in the sea, yielding to ths frny oi
the storm in bending down, and adhering for additional securit;/ witb
its side-arms to extraneous matter, or closing them to the o olnmn,
and thus offering the least surface possible to the elemen t Ths
EHCRINITE3.
ENCRINITE8.
Iktter, he thtDke, is the moat probable idea, once he had frequently | anaa or by a moveable articulatsd mull root We confeaa that ws
met with spedineiu in that itjite, but had neier seeu any lide-anna cannot entirely coDcur with tha Frofnur on tbii point. That in
claapiug round extnoeoua matter. The author eliewhere atatai that early jauth the animal may hare floated till it Tound a aubatance fit
he hu in vain endeaToured to trace apertures at the terminatiDg < for it to adhere to, ne do Dot deny ; but wa think that afler it waa
Cts of the fiugen and tentacula, although Quettard alleeea that ' once eatablished and had attained a good aize, it waa fixed For E*er.
orifioea exiated aerring aa moutha to the animal in tating its The great length of the atom and the numeroua aide-amu muat hate
aecoied for it a field of action beyond that of the Pear-Encrinite and
the Lily-Encrinita, both of vbich we know had permaiiBiit roota ;
and if we are to judge by analogy, there ia pregnant evideuoe that the
apecimens of the living apeciea, more especially the laiger one men-
tioned by Mr. Tobin, who aaw it quite freah out of the ua, and tu
whose eiprensiona aboTo given wo refer the reader, Buffered their
atema to be tom aaunder without quitting tiieir moorings.
It ia found io the lower strata of the Oolite Formation, especially
the Liaa : Lyme, Watchet, Keynsham, &a
Mr. Uillergivea three other foeiil species, munelj P, nbangaljiii,
P. bmaitiformii, and P. lubtrc^Ualiu. Qoldfuu has recorded the
following additional ipeciea, namely P. icoiarii (Qoldfua), P. cingu-
lalui (Miineter), P. penlagonalit (Qoldfuss), P. numiltfomii (Uiinater),
P. nituUattu (Mhnster). P. tvilera (Hiinster), J', dviiut (Ooldfuaa),
and P. pritcat (Ooldfuas), and, with a note of interrogatioD, Pmla-
cn'niu(J) paradoxui.
In (be [loDt «[ the Igure I*
of n
nil bad loffcrcd notUi
Ji the rtrteboJ co
lillBij (i
implored iu power
Di^ artlculadng a(
being repiodnced.
difUat liU>
(Miller and
Miller ohaervea that columnar fragmenta, smaller and rather neater
than those of this species, occur in the Oohla at Dundry, the Foreat
Marble at Chippenham, and the Chalk near Lyme, but that it remaina
to be aacertaiued, by the acquisition of perfect apecimena, whether
theae belong to a variety of P. CapulMeduta, or poueaa peculiar
characters sufficient to distinguish them aa a new species.
The only liting British species of animal representing tlus family is
the ComUsla roiacea. [Couatuui.] The young of this animal was
formerly called Penlmrinut EuropatiM.
" PottU Speciti,
P. Bruuttu, the Brianan Pentacrinite, may be taken aa an example.
It is thus chancterised by Miller: — "Acrinoidal animal, having a
large oolnmn formed of numerous pentagonal jointa, alternately
larger and smaller, articulating by surfaces with pentapetalous com-
pressed semistriated markinga ; five auiiliary arms, formed of much
compressed suboval joints, proceeding at intervals from the column ;
Ave jomts of the pelvis, supporting first fire and second five costal
joints, on which the scapula: afBx, from which ten arms proceed, each
having two bands, formed of numerous fingers, sometimes amounting
to sixteen."
Dr. Buckland observes that the root of the Briarean Pentacrinite
wai probably slight, and capable of being witbdrann from its attach,
ment The absence of any large solid secretions like those of the
Peor-Encrinite, by which this Pentacrinite could have been fixed
permanently at the bottom, and the further (kct of ita being frequently
fonild in contact with masses of drifted wood converted into jet, leads
him to infer that the Briarean Pentacrinite waa a locomotive animal,
havin,g the power of sttaching itself temporarily either to extraneous
floatin.; bodies or to rocks at the bottom of the sea, either by ita tide-
numEniiFmrinl of the unu and flnfen. (Figurei sad dwcription from Dr.
Mkland'i ' Bridgewalfr TreaUw.')
PhSlotnnitt, De Blalnville lEiitmiUa, Fleming; Penlaerinut,
Thompaon). — Body regular, circular, covered and surrounded abovn
by a sort of solid cupule, compoeed of a centro-doreal xmdivided
piece, round which are articulated, flnt^ a single row of acoessor;
unguiculated nys, then anotiier row of great didymous and pinnated
in the otha" side of three basilary joints, of which the first only
Hj Suropaut of TbampBoi
eipaaded ud msgnlfled.
63(0
ENCBINITES
ENCRIKITEa
MO
partUUy touch each other. Stem articulated, round, and without
accessory rays. Mouth central in the midat of five acalea, which are
foHaceoua and bordered by a row of tentacular cirrhi ; a large tubular
orifice a little behind the mouth.
P, Europcguty Peniacrmua Europcnu, Thompson. It is now gene-
rally admitted that the obsenrationB of Mr. J. V. Thompson have
proved that this animal is but the yoimg of ConuUula, Ix no other
species of Phytocrinua be found, this genus must be cancelled.
PoteriocriniUt. — A crinoidal animal^ with a round column, composed
of nuiperous thin joints, having in their centre a round alimentary
canal, and articulating b^ surfaces striated in radii. Round auxiliary
side-arms proceeding at uregular distances from the column. Pelvis
formed of five pentagonal plate-like joints, supporting five hexagonal
intercostal plate-like joints, and five plate-like scapulae, having on one
of the intercoetals an interscapulary plate interposed. An arm pro-
ceeding from each of the scapulsa. Base probably fascicular, and
permanently adhering. (Miller.)
The author of this generic character says, " It is with considerable
hesitation that I describe these five plates as belonging to the pelvis ;
the analogy of their lower articulating surfaces seems perhaps rather
to indicate their belonging to the first costal series. I have never yet
had an opportunity of seeing the conhection of these plates with the
first column or joint fiblrly developed, and it seems possible that the
true welvis may be small and almost concealed. Tlus doubt will be
dond away by Uie acquisition of more instructive specimens^ and my
thus stating the case must be considered as resulting from an anxious
desire to check errors. It is not unlikely that the real joints forming
the pelvis are so much abbreviated as not to be visiole extemnlly.
Every one acquainted with fossils must be aware how difficult it is
to tnce always organic details in them correctly, and how many
specimens are sometimes necessary to ascertain a single fi&ct"
De Blainville observes that tms genus does .not appear to differ
from ApiocriniiUf excepting inasmuch as that the stem is not enlaiged
at its superior part, and that the basilary pieces of the rays are less
approximated, and without doubt lees immoveable. The details given
by Mr. Miller point out a form differing strongly from that of Apio-
criniUi, and if his data be admitted there can be little doubt of the
generic difference which he records.
P. tenuit, Thin, Vase-like, Lily-shaped Animal. A crinoidal animal,
with a column formed of numerous round thin joints, surface of arti-
culation radiating and striated. The plate-like joints forming the
cup-like body, articulating by minute strue. One arm proceeding from
each scapula, supporting two fingers. It is found in the Mountain
Limestone of the Mendip Hills and in the Black Rock, the 1 4th bed
of Dr. Blight's series (' Geoh Trans.,' voL iv. p. 198), near the river
Avon, Bristol, belonging to the same formation. (Miller.)
The other species recorded by Miller is Poteriocrinita erasiut, from
the Mountain Limestone in Yorkshire, and the Mountain Limestone
At Bristol, near the river Avon, bed 1 and 14 of Dr. Bright's paper in
' Trans, of Qeol.Soa,' voL iv. p. 198, and in the Magnesian beds of the
Mountain Limestone, Cleredion Bay, Somersetshire. Miller further
states that the rpecimen mentioned in Dr. Woodward's 'Catalogue of
Foreign Fossils' (page 19, 8. 1.) as coming from Syria, is of this spedes,
and that he (Mil*«r) is indebted to the Rev. A. Sedgwick, Woodwardinn
Professor, Oaml ridge, for ascertaining this fact, he having kindly
furnished Mr. Miller with a drawing made from the original, now in
Dr. Woodward's collection, and under his care.
Plalycrinitea, — ^A crinoidal animal, with an elliptic or (in one species)
pentagonal column, formed of numerous joints, having a few side-arms
at irregular distonoea Pelvis saucer-shaped, formed of three unequal
pieces, from Y^hich five large plate-like scapula proceed. Base pro-
vided with numerous fibres for attachment. Miller, who thus cluu^o-
terisee the genus, observes that the want of costs supplied by the
large pl&te-Uke soapulsa gives the superior part of these animals a
pentagonal appearance, and furnishes so conspicuous a character that
they are readily distinguished from all other genera.
P. Ugvity Smooth, Broad-Plated, Lily-shaped AnimaL A crinoidal
animal, with a column formed of very muscular elliptical joints ad-
.hering by a transverse ridge. Round side-arms occasionally proceed-
ing firom the column, whose joints adhere by radiated surfaces. Pelvis
saucer shaped, with tiie five scapuln adhering to it» from each of which
an arm proceeds supporting two hands, having each two finger&
Pelvis and scapulae smooth. Locality in the Mountain Limestone of
the Mendip Hills, the Black Rock (14th bed of Dr. Bright^s series in
• Geol. Trans.,' vol. iv.) near Bristol ; Dublin ; Cork. (Miller.)
Miller remarks that he has noticed in the collection of Richard
Bright, Esq., of Ham Green, near Bristol, numerous joints, probably
apjiertaioing to an animal forming a variety, or a distinct spedes.
They came, he states, from Muirkirk, in Dumfriesshire ; and he adds
that the scapula are shorter in proportion than tiiose of the former
spedes, and that the columnar jomts are finely tuberculated.
The same author recoids the following species : — P. mgomt, from
the Mountain Limestone at Caldy Island, on the south coast of Wales,
and at the Mendip Hills; P, tubercukUw, from the Mountain Lime-
stone strata ; P, granukUus, from the Moimtain Limestone of the
Mendip Hills; P. ttrUUiu, from the Black Rock (14th bed of Dr.
Bright's series) ; and P. peniangtUarii, from the Mountain Limestone
of the Mendip Hills, at Weston-super-Mare, Black Rock near Bristol,
NAT. HIST. DIV. VOL. II.
and at Mitohel-Dean ; also occasionally in Transition Limestone of
Dinevawr Park, and Dudley.
Goldfuss names and describes two additional spedes, namely,
P. deprt$tu8 and P. verUrieoiUi.
Cfyathocrinitet. — A crinoidal animal, with a round or pentagonal
column, formed of numerous joints, having sid&«rmB proceeding
irregularly from it. On the summit adheres a sauc«>shaped pelvis of
five pieces, on which are placed in successive series five costal plates,
five scapulas, and an intexrening plate. From each scapula proceeds
one arm, having two hands. Locality, Transition and Mountain-
Limestone strata. (Miller.)
C, plantu, — ^A cnnoidal animal, with a round column formed of
numerous depressed joints, articulating by radiating surfaces, and
perforated by an alimentary canal, penti^nal near the pelvis, which
becomes round further from it. From each of the scapulss, which
rest on the summit of the cup formed by the pelvis and ooste, pro-
ceeds an arm supporting two hands, eadi being provided with two
series of fingers. It is found at Clevedon, in the tfagnesian beds of
the Mountain Limestone; at Wood^pring, Black Rock (14th bed of
Dr. Bright's series), near Bristol (Miller.)
Miller observes that a spedmen had occurred to him where *tiie
columnar joints wero alternately smaller and laiger, but that he was
not awaro whether it possessed suffident diaractw to be oonddered a
variety of the former spedes. The same author records three other
species, and Goldfriss has added three more, namdy, €, pinnatut,
v. geometricuB, and C. pentagonm.
AeiinocnmUei. — ^A crinoidal animal, with a round column composed
of numerous joints, and perforated by a round alimentary canaL At
the summit of the column is placed a pelvis formed of three plates,
on which five first costals and one irregular oostal adhere, which are
succeeded by the second costals and intercostals and the scapulse,
from whence five arms proceed, forming two hands with several tenta-
culated fingers. Round nde-aims proceed at irregular distances from
the cohimn, which terminates at the base in a fiuKiicular bundle or
root of fibres.
A, triacoifUadactyliUf Thirty-Fingerod, Radiated, Lily-shaped Ani-
mal (Miller) ; Rock-Plant (Beaumont) ; Nave Encrinite (Paikinson).
A crinoidal animal with a round column formed of many joints, on
whose summit is placed a pelvis of three plates supporting five hexa-
|;onal and one pentagonal oostal plate, on which the second costals,
mteroostals, and scapulas in series adhere, the latter sending off five
arms, having each two hands provided with three fingers. Column
sendbig off at irregular distances auxiliary ude-arms, and terminating
at the base in a bundle of fibrous elongations resembling roots. It is
found in Mountain Limestone at the villages of Broughton and Stokes
in Craven, Torkshiro (Lbter, 1674), and in the limestone strata of the
Men<Up Hills (Beaumont), and the Black Rock near Bristol. (Miller.)
(See Figure in coL 531.)
Miller describes another spedes. A, polydaetytiu, from the Mountain
Limestone of the Mendip Hills and Caldy Isluid. De Blainville
observes that among the five (seven) new spedes which Goldfuss refers
to this genua — ^namdy. A, grantdcUv9, A. teueracotUfldaeiyluB, A, ein^
gvlatuf, A, tMiricaiut, A. nodulonu, A, fnowUifenu, and A. te$§eratu» —
A, tea»eracofUad€uiylMt appears to De Blainville to offer a new combi-
nation of the pieces of the test, and even perhaps of the ten rays of
the root, each dividon being dichotomoua.
Metocrinitet (Goldfuss). — Column smooth, perforated by a smooth
or quinqudobate canaL Auxiliaiy arms . . . Pdvis composed of
four articulations or pieces. Primary and secondary costals five hexa-
gonal, alternately placed (dbi invicem impodti). Intercostals five,
hexagonaL Scapulse five, hexagonal, placed upon the costals. Inter-
scapulars four, in the r^on of the mouth five. Arms five. Mouth
at the mde of the vertex.
M, hieroalyphieut, Goldfuss. MeloeriniUi with the articulations or
pieces of toe cup or calyx nodulous. Found in Moimtain Limestone.
Goldfuss records a second spedes, namdy M> IcnU,
Jthodocrinitea (Miller).— A crinoidal animal, with a round and
sometimes slightly pentagonal column, formed of numerous joints
perforated by a pentapetalous alimentary canaL The pelvis formed
of throe pieces sumtorting five squaro plates, in the spaces of whose
lateral bevelled angles five heptagonal first costals ara inserted. From
the scapula proceeds an arm supporting two hands. (Miller.)
R vertw, l^e Rose-like Lily-dumped AnimaL Locality* upper bed.
No. 1, and one of the lower beds, No. 16, of Dr. Bright's series,
ili«f.iiigiii<ihinff the Mountain Limestone formation along the river
Avon, near Bristol, the Mendip Hills, Mitchel-Dean, the Transition
Limestone at Dudley. (Miller.)
Gk>ldfuss adds four spedes, namely, R. gyraJtm, R, qwihqyyqpwriiiUM,
R eanalicultaut, and R eekiniUfu, the last being Enerinfu eehimai%i
of Schlothdm.
BngemacrimUet (Miller). — Superior oolomnar joint subpentangolar,
enlaxging above, having the five plates of the pdvis adhering to it
by a solid anchylosis. Base, column, joints resting on the pdvis, and
fingers, unknown. (Miller.)
R qumquangvlarii (Miller) ; Clove Encrinite of Parkinson ; ChrffO"
phylluM lapideut, Caryophyllite of Enoir. Found in Switoerlind, at
Mount Randen (Knorr) ; also in the canton Zurich and Sohaffhausen.
(Miller.) GoldfuBs rocords the following additional species, namely
2 u
ENCRINITES.
a. AttliuainU— triatmiaictlftai (ndne«d) ; b, bsdy of (lie Mine (nitiinil
•in). (Ulller ud BooUud.)
B. eary«pksUaHu, B. mOaiu, E. eampnmut, R pyrifomu. R mmili-
forma, and B. Bt^eri. (Hdiutar.}
SaiamoeriiHUt (QoIdfiUB).— Column *«7 aliart, prat^oiu], Mr-
fonted b; ■ pMitwoiial mmI, ndiato-rngMe *t tbe Imm, deprened or
hollowed out >t Uia ddst b; the gloioid Okviliel of tha aoxiliair
armi, utioulatad with th« pdvia by dtKhUy prominent rays which
■TO btiehitio and ooadouate. Pelii* witlh Sva wlicniatioiu. SoapuliB,
amu (J). Auziliaiy aimi of lh« aolmnn tbiok and doae-aet. (uold-
Aim.)
8. oMaftii (OoldAua), with a tarblnat«d ooluinii, 10 or IG ribbed
longitndinall;; aitioolatloiu ot tlu palvia linBV. SlUdfed. It ii
Colunm not dilated. Alimentaiy oanal round. Articulating but
of the oolnmnar joints radiated. Auxiliary aida«rnu cylindrical
lJ»o«l irregnJwIy.
C anutm. Costali, foor pentagonal and two hexagonal Column
buaited into a cavity at Uie baM of the pelria. Peliia rather large ;
two of the platea qiudisngnlar, attenuated to the hose, where they
are tnmoated and a little recnrted at the junction wiUi the oolumn ;
dUcs, particularly towards the bue, granolated, with a distinct
elerated interrupted line ; two ntmahilng platea pentangular, atten-
uated to the baae where they sre truncated and a little recurred at
the junction with the oolumn ; diio witb elevated giaoules, and with
two elevated interrupted lines eiteoding to the terminal angles^
Costals, four pentagona] and two heugonal, all with elevated Into^
rupted lino, radiating fW>m the centre t« the angle*, with a leriet
of truncated gianiilss on each dde and a few granules in the inler-
Tening spaces; interscapulars, two hexagonal, situated immediately
above the hexagonal costals ; scapulars aix pentagonal, the upper
sides of which are more or less irregular by prcgsoting a little between
the aoapulo, all with prominent lines granulated, similar to those of
the preceding. Arms six. Capital pUtee witli a hoptagraml one in
the middle, lurnmnded by &tb heptsgohal plates aod two ilrsgular
ones at the month. Houth not promineDt, situated on ooa side oi
the middle, a little within the lin»,of the armi^ doaed by nnall
valvular pieces, its inferior side resting on the inperior angle of one
of the scapulars. Longitudinal diameter from thre^^jiiarter* to one
inch and a half ; transverse diameter flvm seren-tentha to one indi
and two-fifths. "Ux. Say, who gives this description, records and
describes another spedes with one of the costals hexagonal, namely
C. laricatia. It was found by Dr. lUgsbj loose in brown elay at the
foot of the ravine at Lookport, in wMoh vtm Mew Toik Canal monnta
the paiallal ridge of Lake Ontario.
Manupita, Hantell (Marnpiotriitita, De Btainville). — Body
rt^lor, oval, buraiform, rouoded at the donal extremity, truncated
and flattened at the other, enveloped in a sort of shell or teet com-
posed of great polygonal plates, articulated to each other, one oen-
trodonal, and three rews superposed, of which the terminal one
supports ten simple rays. Houth in the midst of four squamiform
piecea. Stem none. This is De Blainville's character. The following
la Uiller'i : — " An unattached animal with a snbgloboae body ooo-
taining the viscsra protected by calcareous' plate^ of which that in
the centre at the base is angular, baring a aenes of eostal plates nating
00 it, admitting interoostals at their supstiar angles, these giving
Ineertiau to the soapuln from which the arms proceed. Space between
ii 1 — avered by an integument, protected by numeroua gmnll
I, Ornamented Purse-like Animal (Miller), Tortoise
Encrinite (Parkinson). A purse-like animal, having the central plate
at the baaa of its subglalwse body containing the visceta ; pentagonal,
supporting at its edge five mmilar costals, which admit ^ their enpe-
rior angles five hexagonal intercoBtats, into the angles of which Bre
scapula: are inserted sending off tho amu. All Ihe plates cmamanted
by ridgoi proceeding from the centre, and forming angular matkingn
near the comers. It is found at OfThain Chalk-Pita, near Leweaj
Clayton Cbalk-Pits, Hurstpierpoint, Sussex ; Preston Chalk-Pits, near
Brighton (Hintsll) ; Chalk-Pits of Kent, and Chalk-Pit^ near War-
iiuter. (Miller.)
Hr. Uiller does not admit Manwfita among the Orimidta, bat
oonsiders It as the immsdiate link between that Amily and Airj«&;
PtnlrtmiUM (Say). — Column cylindriml. perforated; segments
uticulaldng by radiated surfoces, with cylindrical side^rms at irre-
gular intervals ; pelvis of three onequal pieces, two pcota^onal and
tetragonal; iMpulM large, very profoundly emarginate for the
ption of the lips of the radiating ambulacrs, obliquely truncated
le axtremitie* on each side for the recsption of one side of a aub-
rhomboldal plate or interscapular ; ambulscr* five, radiating fhim the
summit, and terminating at the tipa of the emarginatious of the
scspulEB : each with a longitudinal Indented line, and numerous
transverse stris which terminate in a marginal series ot pores, for the
traniimissioo of respiratoiy tubee ; eummit with five rounded openings
(ovaries) and on sngulaled central one (mouth and anus). (Say.)
"This aingulor genus," observea H. Say, "is so remotely allied to
ly hitherto discovered, that 1 do not think it can, with propriety, be
/erred to any family yet instituted. By its columnar support it is
related to the family Crinoidta; but the total absence of arms and
hands excludes it from that very natural group. The superior termi-
nation, in which the ambulacra, the rounded openings, and the
central angulated one, are situated, has some affinity to the family
Echinidm\&BBisio^ but the oolumnor sujiport shows that it oannot
arranged there. Having thus on its inferior portion a reaemt>lance
the Orinoidta, and on its superior lurfiraa a decided analogy *~ "--
' '"i propriety form on intermediate
_. __ characters : Family, Adu'oi'fM. C
arijoulating segments, sapportiagat its Bunniit
~ a numoer oi piaies, so united as to form a calycminn body containing
natunl series their bodies constitute the link between the Ormoidta
and the Echinidta, on the one hand; whilst, on the other, the
former is unquestionably, but not more obviously, connected with the
SteUtridita by the unequivocal intervention of Comatvla and Atarn-
pUtt. Of all the geneia of Orinoidta, it ia to Piatj/critata that
Pentramite seema moet closely related,"
U. S^ dvcribe* three species, namely P. gMlaa, brought fhim
England, and said to havs been found in the vidni^ of Bath ; and
P. pyrtfamit and P. fiomiu, from Koituokj. He gives, as the
533
ENCRINITES.
ENDOGENS.
S94
Gynonyms of the latter, Kentucky Asterial Fossil (Parkinson), and
incriniiei JlorealU (Schlotheim), as quoted by Miller, and thus pro-
ceeds : '* This is extremely abundant in many ]>arts of Kentucky, and
on the maigins of the Mlwiiiwippi in a few places Near Huntsville
they are very numerous ; and on the surface of a fragment of rock,
three inches long by two and a quarter inches wide, sent to the
Academy by Mr. Hiuard of that place, I have enumerated eighteen
specimens of this species more or lees entire, and two specimens of
the preceding (P. pifrtformis). On another still smaller piece of rock
are twenty-one specimens, all in alto relievo, two of which are of the
preceding species. On a third fragment of rock thirty may be
counted, and on a fourth upwards of fifty. That these animals
were pedimculated and fixed, there cannot be any doubt. We see
at the base of the pelvis a small rounded surface, perforated in
the centre for the passaffe of the alimentary canal, and on the outer
margin are very short but distinct radii of elevated lines, evidently
intended for articulation with the first joint of the column. The
column itself is always found in fragments accompanying the body
of the animal, but never attached to it. I think it highly probable
that the branchial apparatus communicated with the surrounding
fluid through the pores of the ambulacra by means of filamentous
processes : these may also have performed the office of tentacula in
conveying the food to the mouth, which was perhaps provided with
an exaertile proboscis ; or may we not rather suppose that the animal
fed on the minute beings that abounded in the sea-water, and that it
obtained them in the manner of Aseidia, hy taking them in with the
water f The residuum of digestion appears to havcT been rejected
through the mouth."
Mr. Q. R Sowerby observes, that all the specimens received in this
country from Kentucky were changed into a sort of chalcedony or
chert, a circumstauce which has perhaps not only prevented British
naturalists from fonning a correct judgment of their natural aflSnities
as a family, but appears also to have had the efieot of preventing them
from recognising tne generic resemblance to the species that occur
here, which, bearing so much greater a similarity to some of the
£chinida^ has caused some of our naturalists to daw them together :
for it is observable, ne remarks, that of perhaps twenty specimens of
the Kentucky Asterial Fossil that he had examined only one indi-
vidual showed the sutures that separate what Say calls we " pelvip
scapular and interscapular plates or pieces." The examination of the
new apecies however suggested to Mr. Sowerby the probability that
part ai the three unequal pieces which Say culs the pelvis, may in
fact prove to be costals, wus evidencing one more relation to the
Orinoidea. Mr. Sowerby records and describes two species, premising
that the circumstance of Say's first species, P. giobata, having been
brought from England, led Mr. Sowerby at first to suppose that Say
might refer to one of those species that had come into Mr. Sowerby's
hand& Say's description, however, in Mr. Sowerby's opinion is so
incomplete^ and the terms he has used are so vague, that Mr. Sowerby
had not been able to ascertain the fitust, but thinks, neverthdess,
that ' Pelvis deep, saucer^haped, convex,' may serve to distinguish it
from bo^ Mr. Sowerby's two species are PentremUea DeHnentit
from Derbyshire (limestone) and P. tUipUca from near Pk^ston in
Lancashire.
In a paper (' ZooL Joum.,' voL iv.) Mr. Sowerby changse the name
to PenUUremoHtet, and reoozds three more speoiee, namely P. amgulataf
P. it^/UUa, and P. cMonga; all from the calamine mines belonging to
the Duke of Buodeuch, on the Lancashire side of the Hodder ; and
in the last volume of the ' Zoological Journal,' he describes three in
addition, namely P. or&tcuJarM, P. acukt, and P. petUangulani ; the
last he considers to be the PlaiyerwUet pentemgtUaris of Miller, the
arms being imaginary in his figure. Oddfuss describes a spedes
from the transition limestone near Dussddoif.
De Blainville places this genus at the end of the Crinoideans.
It appears to be the connecting link between the Orinoidea and the
Eckinida,\nit to have a much stronger relationship to the former
than to t&e latter. MamupUea may be regarded as a connection
between the true Crinoideans and the Ootnatike,
The following is a summary of the distribution of this group of
animals, by Professor £. Forbes : —
" This important tribe had its greatest devdopment during the
palflsosoio and secondary epochs, diminishing materially towards the
dose of the latter, and becoming scant and scarce during the tertiary
and historical epochs. Thsy commence their existence with the
earliest sedimentary deposits, and arrive at thdr maximum of develop-
ment before the dose of the palsosoic periods. In the Lower
Silurian they are frsgmentaiy, but common ; in the upper beds of
that formation many fine spedes occur often well-preserved in
limestone. Admocnmu, Ojfathoerinut, JHmeroorinut, Shodocrimu,
Bugenoerinmgf TaxocHmu^ TrochocruMU, and ffypanikoeriMU are
British Silurian genera. During the Devonian epoch we find the
genera Opaikoerinus and PkUycHmut, Taxocriwut, and Addoenmu,
The limestones of the carboniferous period abound in Crimoidece.
Numerous species of Actinocrinui^ Platyerinus, Oyathocriiviu, Poterio-
crmua occur, with others of the genera Rhodocrinut, SymbeUhocrimu,
CfUberttioarmm, Taxocrinui, &c. The commencement of the secondary
period is marked by abundance of PetUaerini, indicative of a new
series of orinoidal forms. At Lyme Regis, where they have been
found in great numbers, they occur associated with fossil wood in
such a manner, that there can be little doubt that they lived attached
to floating masses of wood, probably in shaUows. Higher up among
the oolitic strata, we find the curious ApiocHntu (the Pear-Encrinit^
whidi appears to have lived attached to ancient banks of coraL
During the cretaceous epoch the free Crinoids begin to appear, and
OotMUttlai seem to have been not uncommon. The genus martupiUa
is a remarkable form of this group, and disappears before the oom«
mencement of the tertiaries. The last of the fossil Pmtaerimta
appear in eocene strata, but as the genus still lives it is probable
that intermediate species will be found. Oomatula existed during all
the tertiary epochs. In Britain however no trace of it has been found
in pleistocene strata. The supposed genera of Eehinidie^ Oanymeda of
Gray, and Olenotremita of Gtoldfuss, are only the cups of OomatulcB.
'* It may be noted generally respecting Fossil Crmoids — 1st., That
all the genera of the family AaUnftcriiSda (induding such as have
cups composed of thin and dightly articulated pieces and having
much divided arms), as Bhodocrinvs, iicttnomnw, QHherUocniMu,
Melocrimu, Seyphoaiwiu, Oyaikocnnfu, PUUyerinut, J^tmerocrtTiutf
HypwUhocriimt, &c, are confined to palseosoic strata. 2nd. That all
the genera of the fiunily PoUriocrinida (composed of sudi as have
their cups made up of large and strong segments, but in general aspect
doselj resembling the members of the first tribe), as Poteriacrinut,
I»ocnnu8, and Symbaihoerinutf are palseozoia Srd. That the genera
of the family Pentaerinida (characterised by the strongly articulated
segments of their cups and head of the column, and by the side4Uins
of the latter) range frt>m the triaadc epoch to our own times, having
their Tnaiimum during the oolitic epoch. 4th. That the genera of
the family Apioerinida (characterised by the pear-shaped and articu-
lated summits of the stem and cup, and the naked column), as ApU*
crmut, OueUardoeriniUBf MiUericrinuif Bncrinutt and Bugenoermua, are
secondflury, and for the most part oolitic. Bncrimu is a genus not
found in British strata, and characteristic of the trias (Muschel-Kalk).
It is the wdl-known Stone-Lily or Lily-Encrinite of collections. The
genus SimiaeratieriMU of lyOrbigny, of which two spedes are how-
ever from the chalk, is an exception to the above rule, if the remains
of a Crinoid, found preserved in the recent blank of the Antilles, be
rightly referred to it. 6th. The Free Crinoids, OomatvUdaf appear to
have ranged from the oolitio period to the present lime; for in
the lithographic slates of Bavaria we find several remains of animals
dcedy al^ea to ComaiuUB. This family appears to have attsined its
greatest development during our own epcoh, and as certain living '
spedes are known to pass through stages exactly comparable to the
adult state of the Stalked Crinoid, we must re(gud the CotMOuUdm
as the most advanced of crinoidal forms."
(Johnston, Phyaieal AUa$.)
ENDEOA'NDRIA, the ninth dass of the Linnsaan system of Botany,
distinguished by having nine stamens separate from each other.
ENDIVE. [OiOHOUiUK.]
ENDOCABP. |Tb0it.]
ENDOQENITES, the name for certain Fossil Plsnt-Stemi^ as B.
erota, firom the Tilgate Beds. (MsntdL)
E'NDOQENa One of the laige primary classes into which the
Vegetable Kingdom is divided bews this name, in consequence of its
new woody matter being constantly developed in the first instance
towards the interior of the trunk, only curving outwards in its sub-
sequent course downwards. That palm-trees grow in this way wss
known so long since as the time of Theophrastus, who distmotly
speaks of the differences between endogenous and exogenous wood.
But that this peculiarity is also extoaded to a considerable part of
the vegetable kingdom is a modem fact, the discovery of w^ch we
owe to the French naturalists Daubenton and Desfontsines. The
path being thus opened, the inquiry has subsequently, and more par-
ticularly of late years, been much extended, especially by Professor
Mohl, in an elaborate essay upon the anatomy of palms.
Mold is of opinion that the first year's wood of an Exogen Is analo-
sous in arrangement to that of an Sndogen, the woody bundles of each
leaf curving upwards and outwards to the base of the leaf, and down-
wards and outwards towards the bark, croosing through those which
have been previously developed.
The phenomena of growth in a palm-tree may be taken as typical
of the endogenous struoture. In the b^ginnin^ wo embryo of a palm
consists of a cellular basis^ in which a certam number of ooras of
ligneous fibre are arranged circularly (Jig. 1), down the radide^
deriving their orighi from the plumule. Immediatdy subsequent to
germinatian, and as soon as the rudimentary leaves of the phuatde
begin to lengthen, spiral and dotted vessels appear in their tissne in
connection with the ligneous cords ; the latter inuease in quantity as
the plant advances in growth, shooting downwards through the cd-
lular tissue, and keeping panlld with the outride of the root At
the same time the cellular tissue increases in diameter to make room
for the descending ligneous cords (or woody bundles, as they are also
called). At last a young leaf is devdoped with a considerable number
of such cords proceeding firom its base downwards, and, as its base
passes all round the plumule, consequently passing downwards alike
on all sides of the centre that it surrounds. Within this a second
leaf gradually unfolds, the cellular tissue increasing horisontally at
the same time; the ligneous cords, however, soon cease to maintain
, _ihM the flrat le^ a little from
tomrda tlia draunfateDoe of tha place or oona of gtowth ; the cod-
aaqaanoe of which ii Uut the ligneoua corda next the base of the first
leu are drawn a little ontwanli, uid form dMcendiiig axea wbioh
heDoefbrwarda are found at fint to curre inwudi towards the centre
of the Tonne item, and afterwarda outwardi towardg ita ciroumfer-
once. In thu manner leaf after leaf ts developed, the horiiontal
cellular ajatetn enlarging all thi time, and every moceaaiva leaf, at it
fomia at the growing point, emitting more woodj bnndlai oorving
downward* and ontwards, and consequently iaterBAotiDg the older
. , iL._ .1 .. ,.,■ ig thrt the Brat formed
ifl pUoe or other ; the reeult of
the ibaighteat; and the appearanee produeed in the etem will be that
of a confuaed entanglement of woodj bundles in the midit of a quan-
tity of cellular tiaaue. Aa the item extenda ita oellular tisaue longi-
tudioallj wliile Uiia ii going on, the woody area are oonaequently in
proportion long, and in &ct uauaUy appear to the eye aa if almoit
parallel, excepting here and tliere, whrae two arcs abruptly intersect
each other. As in all casei the greater number of aroe curve outwards
aa they descend, and eventually break up their ends into a mi^Jtitude
of flne diviuoDs next the droumferenca, where they form b cortioal
integument, it will fallow that-the greater part of the woody matter
of the stem will be collected near the circumference, while the centre
is kept oompaniively open, aud will consist chiefly of cellular tissue ;
and when, aa in many palms, the stem has a limited drcumfereace,
beyond which it is its spedflo nature oot to distend, the density of
the dnnimferance must, it Is obvious, be proportionably augmented.
It is, however, a mistake to suppose that the great hardncaa of the
cirsomferenoe of old palm-wood is owing merdy to the praenoe of
tameaiing matter upon a fixed ciroumfersuoe ; this will account but
liWe for the phaoomeniL We find that the woody bundles next the
oinnimfkrenea are larger and harder than they oiiginalty were, and
oonseqaentlf we mnll supposs that they have the power of inorcMing
their own diameter anbaaquent to their fint formatioQ, and that they
alao act as rsasrvdia of secretions of a haid and solid nature, after
th« nuuinar of the heartwood of Bzogens.
Wben the growth of the stem of an Gndogan goes on in this
r«gnlar naima', with no, power of extendmg horixontally beyond a
spMiSoallj Uoited diameter, a stem is formad, the Irsusverae seotian
of which presenta the appearanos ahown in Vhn following out
Fig. 1.
There are a number of cnrved spot* arowded together In a eoufued
way, most thick and numerous at the oiroumferenoe, compsiatively
small and thinly placed at the centre ; and the only regular structure
that 1b obeerrable with the naked eye is that the curves always
present their convexity to the droiunfbrence.
Vhsn there Is no limited drcumferenee assigned by nature to an
Bndogan, than the curved apota, wl^ch are sections of the wood^ arcs,
an much more equally anuiged, and are less crowded at the circam-
fsrenoe. Kevsr is there any distinct column of pith, or medullary
ray^ or ooncentiio arrangement of the woody arcs; nor doea the
cortical inteeument of the surfaoe of endogenous stems ssanms the
oharactar of baik, saparatdng from the wood below It ; on the ood-
bary, as. the cortical integument consists very much of the finely
divided axtremitiea of the woody arcs, thev necessarily hold it fast to
the wood of wttioh thsy are themselves prolongatioDs, and the cortical
integument can only be stripped off by tearing it away from the whole
aurfiuw of the wood, from which it does not aeparate without leaving
myriads of little Imken threada behind.
'This account of the structure of the Endogenous Stem is identical
with that given by Dr. Lindlsy in his ' Ttgetable Kingdom.' Schlei-
dsn's view of the stracton of the stem, ss given by Dr. Lindlsy, is
soinewhat difleranb The tbllawing passage expounds this view : —
"In tH planta, the woody bundles, whose development
always proceeds from the interior to the exterior, ore either limited
or nnliniitsd in Ihair growth. Commonly evei? Woodj bundle
ESDOOENS. at
oonsiatB of three different phymologioal parta ; fintly, of a tissue gf
extreme delicacy, capable of rapid development, in which new cells
are oontinuBlly generated, and deposited in various waya, in two
difibreut directions, namely, next Uie oironmferencs in the shape of a
peculiar kind of lengtiiened cellular tissue with very thick walls, the
liber, and next the centre in the form of annular, spiral, retimiUte,
and porous veaaels ; secondly of woody cells, which are either uni-
form in appearance or different, . and fbrm wood, properly bo called.
Up to a certain period the development of the vaicular syBlem in
Honocotyledona and Dicotyledons proceeds on the same plan ; but in
Monoootyledfms (Endogsns) the active, thin, solid, dehcate, cellular
tinue suddenly changes ; the partitiona of its cells become thicker,
their generating power ceasea, and when all the surrounding cells are
fully developed they assume a peculiar form, ceasing to convey gum,
mudlsge, and other kinds of thick formative aap." From this cause
all furuer development of vsscular bundles is rendered impossible,
and therefore Schleiden calls the woody bundles of snch planta
' limited.' In Dicotyledons (Exogena), on the oonbary, this tissue
retains during the whole lifetime of the plant ite vital power of forma-
tion, coutioues to develop new cells, and so incresscs the mass, cease-
lesaly augmenting both the exterior (liber) and the interior faces (wood),
for wliiah reason Schleiden calls such woody bundles ' unlimited.'
" This," he continues, " happens according to the climate and nature
of the plant either pretty continuouHly,aB in (7(KMe<«, or by abrupt peri-
odical advances and conationa, aa oocun in forest-treea of Europe. In
the latter, the stem forms an uointempted tissue from the pith to the
bark during every period of life, and the bark is never otganically
separated from the stem ; what is considered their natural separation
in the spring is only a rent, produced by tearing the delicate tissue
already spoken of, which is present even during winter, and oon-
stitutes the foundation of new annual zonea, although compreseed,
and filled with gam, starch, and other eecretioUB. In the spring,
being expanded and swollen by the new amount of asp, it ia deprived
of its contents by their solution," (Lindley, ' Vegetable Kingdom.')
Bchleiden's aooount of the structure of the Endogenous or Monoco-
trledonons stem, aa ^vsn in his ' Prindples of Sdentifio Botany,'
is OS follows ;—
" The m
ssforinst ._
first exhibit definite indications of these ; in Bpirodtla we even find
them combined with spiral vessels, but disttitmted in a plane surface
as the necessary accompaniment of a fiat stalk. Many of the
Naiadea, - as for instance Naia4, Zaait^eUia, Jtuppia, have only a
central vascular btmdla. In the remainder we meet with the follow-
ing modifloatioDS ;-~
"1. Developed Intemodea. — The stslks and stems have always
several rings of vascular bandies, which occasionally inclose a
pith, where a circle of vascular bundles ore connected bj a
ring of thi(iened parenchyma. This is often the most aito-nal
(usually), often a more internal one, as in Pat/tot, A. portion of the
vascular bundle panes through the nodes into the leaf, whilst a part
rises into the next intsmode. Smsll twigs bnach off from all the
vaacular bundles that pass through the nodes, forming a confused
Elexus in the node, which, for (he most part, merges into the axillary
ud. The innermost vascular bundles in the nodes supply the lowest
Isaves, the external bundles the upper ones, as in Oraases, the Cane-
atemmed Palms, and the Commtlinaeta, There are many groups that
have not yet been examined. The whole of the vascular bundles in
the same intemode are simultaneously formed and developed, and the
inteniode itself, when perennial, doea not continue to increase in thick-
ness, whether the plant becomes branched or not The primary axes,
like the secondary, only grow upwards ; in toot they are devoid of a
oambiiuu-Iayer.
" S. nndaveloped Intemodea.— The stslks (in Piitia obomta for
inatonae), and the atoms of Palms, herbaceoos LSiacta, tnilbs of
AOitan, £tlntn, Ac, have a conical terminal bud, sometimes shorter,
in accordance with which the vascular bundles run from bslow and
ths exterior, upwards and towards the interior, and then from thence
upwards and axtflmally, to pass into a leaf The arc, which is convex
towards the interior, is longer or shorter according to the terminal
bud j and the vascular bundle likewioe possee tbiDugh a longer or
shorter portion of the whole axis, according to ths same conditiona
In the full-grown stems of the F^ms, ths vascular bandies connected
with the upper leaves do not reach the base of the stem, notwith-
standing tlie length of the arc In the simplest case the vascular
bundles are wholly isolated ; they are however more frequenUy con-
nected by intermediate bianchee, seldom from within externally, but
often laterally with one another. From this cause, as well as from a
more or less extended vertical course of the vascular bundlea before
they form the arc, ths external part of the stem is composed of a
thicker cylinder of vascular bundles, whilst the inner portion, eom-
pDsed only of arcs, becoming more and more isolated towards the
centre, and cellular tissue increasing in quantity in the inverse^pro-
portion, appears much looser.
"However simple we may consider the course of the vascular
bundles, in the Monocotyledons, in judging of them according to
E. Mohi's researohes, it is in fact but seldom so ; nevertheless H.
Mohl's representation affords the simpleat and clearest delineation.
BS7 ENlXJaiiKS.
Rod giTM the type fMra which all the inaUgons Btnietiir»a mint be
deduced. The Kpftrito vuculu bandlaa, MpeoUlly n fkr u thaj |
form tiie tin, b; no meuii mlir&ji nm In one tad the ume vertical |
plsns, their emergeiioe derikting frequently about GO* find more of I
the circumference of the item, Utenlly Wn the vertioal of thrir I
atarting point, u may be euily obacried for iniUnce in Tueea '
glorioia. The Xanlharhaa AMitralU appoara to me to differ moat
atrikiogly from the simple type of the stem. Hera the fuciclea of
the laacular bundlea emptying into the leaves, evidently have a three- 1
fold origin from three dLQereot aonee of tlie atem. Quite in the
interior another pleina of vaaoular bundlea appean, the course of
which however I could not make out, u the piece in my posseesion
waa not eufSdentW lane for me to have it. Still it appeand to me
that the vsacalar bnn^ea had not quite reached the middle of the
■tem. It wiU at Inut suffice to draw (he attfntioD of more favoured
obaervtra to thii striking sbucture. Perhitpi the history of the
developmeot of Alttrii fragrant will afford wme conclusioDs on the
point. An old stem of about 1-SG Paris inches in diameter consiata
of two parts ; the primary stem about 7 lines in diameter, iu which
the vascular buodlea exhibit the usuaI arc-like ooum and an external
much more solid aone, grKduolly formed by the cambium-layer. The
vascnUr bundlea pssstng from wichin to the Isaf-cicatricea permeate
this eztemal layer in a perfectly hcriEontal direction. The external
layer becomes however divided again into four lOneB, which produce
the appearance of annual rings when seen in the transtverse section.
The three external ones are when token together of about the same
tMckness as the fourth internal one ; tbey differ in fliia, that in the
external ones the fibres do not ascend vertically but obliquely, oon-
wquently in a spiral round the axia, and wind towards the left ; in
the second, iu like manner, but winding towanis the-right; in the
third again, turned towards the left ; and finally becoming gradually
horizontal in the fourth. I may remark here that whilst the paren-
chyma ia arranged in vertical tows in the primary stem, it appeoia to
be iu boriEontal rows between the external vascular, in the manner
of the medullary rays.
" An essential difference presents itwlf here, according aa the forma-
tive layer is limited to the terminal bud, or whether there is a con-
tinuous layer in the whole circumference of the stem below the rind,
which is there bounded internally by it. The latter occurs in the
case of normally branching stems, as for inatance in the Dracana,
Alointa, and Aroidea, the former in oormally aimple stems,. as tar
inatance in the TWipocox and Palms, with undeveloped intemodes.
Beautiful inveatigatiocs an this subject may be found accompanied
by the carefully selected reaulta of earlier observatlona in Uager,
(see hia ' Bau und Wachsthum dee Dikotyledonenstammes,' Peters-
burg, 1810, page. 34). I muat finally make mention of the aingulor
stem-formation in the tropical OrchidiKtCB. A large portion of theae,
anch for instance ai are commonly described aa having tubers, have
not very thick stems (generally branched) vrith abbreviated intemodes.
Those branches hovrever which corns to bloaaom produce a peculiar
form, whidi hu hitherto been knowa as tuber (knoUe). Either one
of the more eantnl intemodes of the blossam-beoriiig branch
swella into a dtaproportionate mass of very varying ehape, or all the
lower intemodes of the luanoh form a longer or shorter, more or leas
thick fleshy mass. In both, aa far inatance in j^ndnujrum tochica-
linn, and Bltlia Taiitertillia, the regular coune of the vascular
bundles may be dialiQCtly observed, but in the case of the Uat-named
Slant (I know not whether the same holds good for all aimilarly
>rmad) there a a peculiar vascular nstem intended for the new,
lateral buds. Little branches pass from the external vascular
bundles, and run together in a horiiontal direction below the i-ind
from both sides Dp to the buds. On cutting vertioally through one
of tkeaa sterna we find a transveiHly-seversd strikingly-Large group
of vaacular bnndlea below the rind, oorreaponding "■- -'^ ' '-
in it* anatomy or its history of development."
QratM* are Badogens with hollow stems streiigthened by
plates at the nodes. This is seen in the bamboo, wbose _,
Qsad as cases to hdd rolls, or in any of our iudigenous speciea. In
this eaas the deviation from habitual structure is owing to Ibe circum-
ference growing (aster tfaan the oentre, the consequence of which is
the tearing the latter into a fistular passage, except at the nodes,
where the arcs of ligneous tissue originating in the leaves cross ovur
from one side of the stem to the other, and by their entanglement
and extensiliility prevent the poaaibihty of any rupture taking pli
That this ia so is proved by the bet that the stems of all OraSKB
■olid, or nearly so, as long as they grow slowly ; and that it is when
the rapidity of thur development ia much aooelerated that they
assume tb«r habitual fistular ohaiacter. Independently ' " '
drcumstance their oiganiaation ia quite normal.
XmUhiirkiBi iaiHlii has been shown by De Candolle to have on
anomaloua aspad When out through transvenely the secti
eihifoita on appesjsnoe of medullary rays proceeding with oonsider-
ahle regulari^ from near the centre to the very drcomfe
('Orgaoogiaplue T j«Aale,' t. 7.) But such horiiontol rays ai
conatmcted of muiiform cellnlu' tissue like real medullary proceeaea,
bnt aia oompoaed of ligneona ooida lying acroaa the oUisr woody
END00EK3. k»
tisaue : they are in fact the upper ends of the woody aroa pulled fVom
a vertical into a horisontol direction by the growth of the stem -and
the thrusting of the leaves to which titej belong from the oentie to
the circumference. Such a case throws great light upon the rasl
nature of the more regular forms of endogenous wood.
Other appearances ore owing to imperfect development, aa in acme
of the aquatic species of this dasa. Laitna, for example, has ita stem
and leaves fused together into a small lentJouUr oavemous body ; and
in ZarmiduUia and otheia a few tubee of lengthened cellular tissue
constitute almost all the axis ; but the examination of suoh cases is
comparatively unimportant, and would lead too much into details of
subordinate interest.
By &r the most striking kind of anomaly in the stem of Endogens
is that which occurs in Barbacaiia. In an nnpubhshed spaoisa of
BarkaeeBia from Rio Janeiro, allied to £. jmrpuita, the stems appear
Biteroally like those of any other rough-barked plant, only that their
' unusually Sbroua and ragged when old, and closely ooated
pole central circle, having the ordinary endosenons organisation, and
of a large number of sm^ler and veiy irregular oval spaces, pressed
closely together but having no organic connection ; between theae are
traces of a chaf^ ragged kind of tissue which seems as if principally
absorbed and destroyed (Jig. 2, A).
Fig. t. A
lition to a pale central endogenouii a
h other or lying parallel, after the m
lue of a pahn stem (fig. S, B), only
A vertical section of the thickest part of this stem exhibits, !n
addition to a pale central endogenouii column, wooily bundlea crossing
" ' *" ■' manner of the ordinary ligneous
, ,. liy the bundles do not adhere to
embodied as usual in a cellular substance.
These bundles may be readily traced to the central column, particu-
larly in the younger branches {fig. 2, C), and are plainly the roots of
the stem, of eiaotly the same nature as those aerial roots which serve
te stay the stem of a Screw-Pine {Pandaniu). When they, rench the
earth the woody bundles become more apparently roots, dividing at
leof tl
:s of the palm-
[lents, and entirely reaemblinj
. Thect
>1 calum
lUloll
imaUer
The age of eudogenoua trees has been little studied. When the
oireumference of their stem is limited specifically it is obvious that
their Uvea will be limited also; and hence we find the longevity of
palms inconsiderable when compared with that of exogenous tices.
Two or three hundred yeora are estimated to form the extreme extent
of life in a Dale-Palm and in many others. But where, as in Draaam,
the d^ree to which the stem will grow in diameter ia indefinite the
age seems, as in Eiogens, to be indefinite also ; thusa&mous Dragon-
Tree, Draama Draco, of Oralava, in Teneriffe, was an object of gtaat
I antiquity so long ago as a.D. 1402, and is atiU aliv&
Important u the ohmder fimubad bf the intenul nunner of
growUi of tin Endogea obvioiuly ii, it ii mutdi mliuioed in valiw br
ita txiiig foimd my gBnanlly ■ocompuiied bj ptoaiiizltM of orgam-
ution in other parti. The learea bace in almoat all oaaaa the veini
placed in parnllel liiMi, merely connaotad by tnukarene aingla or
nearif lingla ban. Struf^t-Tclned foliage ia thwefora an eztemal
iymptom of an endaginoiia mode of growth. When Bucb an appear-
anoe ii found in Eiogeni it i> alwaya faltaeioui, and ia found to be
owing to the sicanire aiza and peculiar direction of a few of the
laiger veiiu, and not to be a general character of all tlie venom
■yitem ; u ia luffideDtly obvioua iu Piantago tanctolala, Otaliaaa
Mea, and many more.
The flnwen too of Endogena baTe in mo«t cbbh their wpala. petals,
and atamena correiponding with the number three, or dearly refer'
rible to that type; and the piatil usually partioipato* in lbs earns
peculiarity. Where euiji a proportion exists in Eiogans it ia mually
confined to tht^«epBlfl and pctale by themeelToa, or to the pietil by
itielf, not eitending to the other orgaoa In Kndogeui it ia almoat
unitemel in all the whorii of the Sower, althaugb Bometimea obacurad
by the abortion, dislocation, or cobesion of particular pnrta, aa happens
in tbe whole of the exteniire natural order of grtuoes.
ENPOOENS. HO
and a plninule from a little above the radicle ; in otlur oaaaa tta
embryo haa a alit on one aide, in the cavity of which the plomale
repoaaa, or, finally, the embryo is a fiat plate aa in QnuMS, with the
plumule and radicle attached to its bee near the boss. In tha lattar
caaa the fiat plate ia a solitary cotyledoo, which in the aecoDd inatanoe
ia folded together bo aa to give the embryo the appearance of baiog
iLit, and which in the fint or moat habitual condition ia not only
folded up but united at its edges into a case, entirely burying tha
Slumule and cotyledon. Hasoe the embryo of an Endogen ia called
[oQocotyledoDoua ; a name that is really UQOiceptiuruible, notwith-
standing tha occodonal appauaaceof a aeoond rudimentary cotyledon,
It his already beeu stated that the radida ia protruded in gnrnina-
tion from within the lubetance cf the embiro j the baae of the radicle
is Mnsequently aurroiioded by a minute ooUar formed of the adgai of
the aperture produced by the radide upon ita egreaa. For thia rtaaon
Henoa tha great naCoral elaai of planta forming the nibject of theaa
remarka haa five moat important, phyaioloaical peouliaritjea, by lU
which oombioed, or usually by each of which eeparately, the cl«s«
may bs characterised :—
Eadogenoni
i^ttMMM, MnilaUiiir of Chtf fapitats (a) ; JfotnEiaria •a»iAra (t] ; Man
IThko*, bf ITua Safimmm (d) ; Ommattm, bf BnUmia anHdiniHa (*) ; i
iroondt are nmpoard of imiU jaimt, tn*sei, nuhes, asd UUsseaiu plants.
Tha eflbct of the maimer of growth in Endogena ia to give them a
very peculiar appearance. Their tmnka frequently raaemble columna
rising m«jeatically with a plome of leaves upon their nimmit; and
the leaTos, often ven lar^^e — ^the fan-shaped leaves of some palma
an (him SO to SO faet wide — have most commonly a lengthened
■m, reaamblinR a sword-blada if ilifl'. or a strap if weak and broad.
(f). The fite oad back
A ludseape coosLsting entirely of Endogena would have luch an
inee aa ia preaeuted by tht
> peouliaritiea
*frr'
ispage.
_neatad with othera belonging to endo-
I vagetaUon in ita moat rudimentary eondmoiL l^e embryo of
an Endogen ia in ita oommcneat atata a amoll undivided eylindar,
whidi protrudea from within ita aubatanc* a ndide from one end
1. The wood is endoganoua.
2. The leaves an straigbt-veinBd.
5. The organs of fructification ore imury.
L The embryo is monocotyledonous.
6. The germination ia endorhi^.
This explaina whj Endogena are also called Uonoootyledona and
Endt/rkitiB; they have moreover faeMt called Ctyptoeotglaitiiita by
iigaidh, AcrtblatUa by BeiMiaabaeh, and Catda^tgta by the aohool of
Oken.
be readily suppoaed that, viewed aa a lai^ dais ol
« eesentully duiaoteriaed only by the oombination
liarities, and that occasional deviations may occoi
Ml
ENDOGEKS.
ENDOQENS.
643
from every one of them. Thus in Nait, Caulinia, Zarmichdliay and
others wmch oonstiiute a part of what Professor Schults names
Homorganous Floriferous Phints, the whole oi-ganisation of the stem is
so imperfect that the endugenons character is lost ; but their true
nature is nevertheless sufficientlv indicated by their straight veins,
monoootyledonous embryo, &c. Again, in Smilax^ the common reticu-
lated leaves" of Exogens are foimd; but the endogenous stem, the
ternary organs of fructification, the embryo and germination of that
order, are all good evidences of its real nature ; ^and so with other
cases. Such occurrences are instances of endogenous development
tending towards the exogenous, and are usually looked upon as cases
of transition from one form to the other — perhaps not very correctly.
Of this nature are the resemblances between the columnar Cycada-
oeous Gymnosperms and Palms, between the livid, foetid, one-sided
calyx oi ArxMtoljochia^ and the equally livid, foetid, one-sided spathe of
Araceous Endogens, or, in another point of view, between such
lenticular plants as Ltmna in Endogens, with the leaves and stems
fused as it were together, and similar forms of stem and leaf among
Marchantiaoeous Acrogens.
With regard to realw intermediate forms of vegetation connecting
Endogens with other (uasses, they are extremely uncommon. One of
the most striking is that which occurs between Ranuncuiacea and
NymphtMcea on the part of Exogens, and Alismacece and Hydrochar
raeece on that of Endogens ; if Jtanunculiu linguck, or better Jt, pamat-
sifoliut, is contrasted with Alisma Plantago, or JDamcuoniumf leaving
out of consideration subordinate differences, it will be found that
there is little of a positive nature to distinguish them except the
albuminous dicotyledonous seeds of the former as compared with the
exalbuminous monoootyledonous seeds of the latter ; and the resem-
blances between Bydropdtu and ffydroeharii in the other case,
are so very great that Schults and others actually refer them to tbe
same class.
Endogens probably contain more plants contributing to the food of
man, and fewer poisonous species in proportion to their whole num-
ber, than Exogens. Glasses, with their flowery albumen, form a
lai^ portion of this class, to which are to be added Palms yielding
fruity wine, sugar, sago; Araeecgt^MaraaitaeetEf some AmaryUidacece,
&C., producing arrow-root^ the nutritious finiit of the Plantains, the
aromatic secretions of ZingiheraeecB, Orehidacece, forming salep, and
JHoicoreaeeie, the mothers of Yams. Among tbe deleterious species we
have little worth notice beyond the poisonous mucOage in the btdbs
of certain AmaryUidacea, and the acrid secretions of AraeetB,
In these, as m all other lai^ groapB> "we find the extremes of
development so exceedingly fi^ apart^ that one would be almost
tempted to doubt the poMibility of their being mere forms of each
other, were it not certain that numerous traces exist in the vegetable
kingdom of a frequent tendency to produce the typical structure of a
natural association of whatever kind in both an exaggerated and
degraded state^ if such figurative terms may be employed in science.
For instance, tiie genus Aeu$ contains some species creeping on the
ground like diminutive herbaceous plants, and others rising into the
air to the height of 160 feet, overspreading with the arms of their
colossal trunks a sufficient space of ground to protect a multitude of
men. The type of organisation in the willow is in like manner repre-
sented on the one hand by the tiny Salix hei^foceOy which can hardly
raise its head above the awarf moss and saxifrages that surround it ;
and on the other by 8aiix aXba, a tree 60 feet high. Then among
natural orders we have the Bosaceous structure^ exaggerated on the
one hand into the arborescent Pomem, and degraded on the other
into the apetalous imperfect SangvMwrbea; the Onagraceous type,
highlv developed in Fftchria^ and almost obliterated in HaLoragea;
the Urticaoeous, in excess in AHoearfutf and most imperfect in Ctra-
tophyUwm ; Grsoses, preseotingthe most stnkine differences of per-
Tection between the moss-like Knappioy and Bamboos 100 feet high;
and the Liliaceous occurs in eqiudly different states of development^
when Asparagus is compared with the Draffon-Tree, or an autumnal
squill with an arborescent Ftteea. So, in like manner, we find at
one extreme of the organisation of the dass of Endogens, palms,
plantains, and arborescent liliaceous plants, and at the other, such
submersed plants as PoUuMgeton, ZannickeUia, and Duckweed, the
latter of wmch has not even the distinction of leaf and stem, and
bears its flowers, reduced to one carpel and two stamens, without either
calyx or oorolla---a)erefore at the minimum of reduction, if to remain
flowers at all — ^in little chinks in its edges.
The classification of Endogens is not a subject upon which there is
soy very great diversity of opinion among botanists ; if the natural
orders are sometimes not distinctly limited, they are, upon the whole,
grouped much better than those of Exogens ; and although it may be
expected, whenever more positive rules for classification than are yet
known shall have been discovered, that great changes will be intro-
duced into this part of systematic botany, yet we do not contemplate
the probability of disturbing the limits of the natural orders them-
selves to any oonsiderable extents
The Intern we have followed in this work is that of Dr. Lindley
as given in his 'Vegetable Kingdom.' In the arrangement of the
Endogens, in the first place, all those species whose flowers are like
GrBsses are placed together under the Glumal alliance. They may
be justly regarded as the lowest point of structure to which Endogens
are reduced. Their flowers are made up of scales or bracts, without
any attempt at the regularity of arrangement which we find occurring
with plants which have a celyx and corolla present. The relation of
the Bullrushes {Typhacea) to these is obvious, but their flowers are
more regular, and hence they are placed with Aracea in the Aral
alliance, and this is followed by the Palms and a small group of water-
plants, the Hydr(de». These aU have the stamens and pistils on
separate flowers, those which follow have the stamens and pistils
together in the same flower. In the following analysis signs are used
for this distinction, thus — ^ indicates flowers bearing pistils alone ;
$ stamens alone; and ^ bearing both together. 0 indicates the
absence of the organ agamst which it is placed.
Alliances of Endogens.
I. Glukales. — Flowers glumaoeous (that is to say, composed of
bracts not collected in true whorls, but consisting of imbri-
cated, colourless, or herbaceous scales).
Qraminoicea, — Ovary l-celled, with 2 or more distinct (or united)
styles. Ovule ascending. Embryo lateral, naked.
Cyperacea. — Ovary 1-celled, with 2 or more (distinct or) united
styles. Ovule erect. Embryo basaL
Detvcuaxiaeece, — Ovary several (sometimes united), with 1 style
to each. Ovule pendulous ; glumes only. Stamens 1-2. Anthers 1-celled.
Embryo terminal.
Buliaoea!, — Ovary 1-2-8-celled, with 2 or 8 styles always. Ovule
pendulous; glumes only. Stigmas 2-3. Anthers 1-celled. Embryo
terminaL
Eriocaiulacece. — Ovary 2-8-celled, with 1 style to each oeU. Ovule
pendulous ; a membranous 8-lobed cup within the glumes. Anthers
2-celled. Embiyo terminaL
II. Flowers petaloid, or furnished with a true calyx or corolla, or
with both, or absolutely naked. ^ $ (that is, having sexes
altogether in different flowers.)
ABALBa — Flowers naked or consisting of scales, 2 or 8 together, or
numerous, and then sessile on a simple naked spadix. Embryo axile.
Albumen mealy or fleshy. (Some have no albumen.)
PittiacecB. — flowers 2 or 8, of which 1 only is 9 • Spadix 0. Ovary
1-celled. Ovules erect Embryo slit
TyphticecB, — Flowers $ ^, on a naked spadix. Calyx scalv or
hairy. Anthers with long filaments. Ovule solitary, pendulous.
Seed adherent to the pericarp. Embryo slit
Arcusecg, — Flowers $ $ , naked on a solitary spadix covered by a
smgle hooded spathe. Aiithers sessile. Seed loose^ Embryo slit^
axile.
Pandaruicece, — ^Flowers $ $ . Naked or scaly, on a spadix covered
by many spathes. Anthers stalked. Seeds loose. Embryo solid,
minute.
Palmalsb. — ^Flowers perfect (with both calyx and corolla), sessile,
on a branched scaly spadix. Embryo vague, solid. Albumen homy
or fleshy. (Some Pahns are 0 .)
PalmaceoB,— Characters as in the alliance.
Htdbaleb. — Flowers perfect or imperfect, usually scattered. Embryo
axile, without albumen. Aquatic. Some are $ .
Mydrocharidacea. — Stamens epigynous. Ovary adherent
Naiadace(e. — Stamens hypogynous. Ovary free. Pollen globose.
ZosterctcecB, — Stamens hypogynous. Ovary free. Pollen oonfervoid.
IIL Flowers ftuniahed with a true calyx and corolla, adherent to
the ovary. 0.
yABOTWATiiEa. — ^Flowers symmetricaL Stamens 8 or 6 or more ; all
perfect Seeds with albumen. Flowers unsymmetrical. Some Brvme-
liaceof have a free calyx and corolla.
Bromdiaeeof. — Flowers tripetaloideous, 6-leaved, imbricated. Albu-
men mealy.
Twcaeece, — ^Flowers half tripetaloideous, tubular. Albumen fleshy.
Mcnnodoracece. — Flowers hexapetaloideous, tubular, scarcely im-
bricated. Stamens 8, opposite the petals, or 6 anthers turned
inwards. Badicle remote from the hilum, which is naked.
Mypojtidaeece, — Flowers hexapetaloideous, much imbricated. Stamens
6. Anthers turned inwards. Badicle remote from the hilum, which is
often strophiolate.
AmaryUidacta, — Flowers hexapetaloideous, much imbricated.
Stamens 6 or more. Anthers turned inwards. Badicle next the
hilum.
Iridaeece, — ^Flowers hexapetaloideous. Stamens 8, opposite the se«
pals. Anthers turned outwarda
Amokalxs. — Flowers unsymmetrical Stamens 1 to 5, some at least
of which are petaloidL Seeds with albumen.
Mfuaeea,'—Siameaa more than 1. Anthers 2-celled. Ko vitellus.
Ztn^eraoeee.— Stamen but 1. Anther 2-ceUed. Embryo in a
vitellus.
Marantaeece. — Stamen but 1. Anther 1-celled (halved). Ko
vitellus.
Orohtdalbs. — Stamens 1 to 8. Seeds without albumen.
Burmanniacece, — Flowers regular. Stamens free, perigynous.
OrehidaeecB* — Flowers irregular, synandrous. Placenta parietal.
ApitttaHacecB, — Flowers regular, half gynandrous. Placenta azileii
643
ENDOPHIiEUK.
ENDOSBiOSIS.
M4
lY. Flowers fumiBhed with a true calyx and corolla, free from
the ovary. 0
Xtbxdales. — ^Flowers half herbaoeouB, 2-8 petaloideoua. Albumen
copious.
Philydracea, — Sepals 0. Petals 2. Stamens 8, of Which 2 are
abortive. Embryo axile, in fleshy albumen.
Xyridacea, — Sepals 8. Petals 8. Stamens 8, fertile. Carpels
opposite sepals. Placenta parietaL Embryo minute, on the outside
of fleshy idbumen.
ChnnmelynacefB, — Sepals 8. Petals 8. Stamens 6 (or 8). Carpels
opposite sepals. Placenteo azile. Embiyo trochlear, half immened
in fleshy albumen.
Mayaceas, — Sepals 8. Petals 8. Stamens 8 (anthers 1-celled). Car-
pels opposite petals. Placenta parietaL Embryo minute on the
outside of fleshy albumen.
JUNCALEB. — Flowers herbaceous, dry and permanent, scarious if
coloured. Albumen copious. (Some Callas have no albumen.)
JuncacMB, — Flowers scattered. Embryo minute^ undivided.
OrontitieetB. — Flowers spadiceous. Embryo axile, with a conspicuous
cleft on one side.
LiUALSs. — ^Flowers hexapetaloideous^ succulent^ and withering.
Albumen copious.
OiUietiacea. — Perianth surrounded by a cslycine involucre, the
inner bracts of which are coloured and petaloid.
MeUnUhacece. — Perianth naked, flat when withering. Anthers turned
outwards ; styles distinct. Albumen fleshy.
LiliacecB, — Perianth naked, flat when withering. Anthers turned
inwards ; styles consolidated. Albumen fleshy.
PorUederaeea. — Perianth naked, drcinate when withering. Anthers
turned inwards. Albumen mealy.
Alibmales. — ^Flowers 8>6, petaloideous, apocarpaL Albumen none.
(Some Alitmaeea are absolutely 9 ^ .)
ButomaeecB, — Flowers 8, petaloideous. Plaoent» many -seeded,
netted, and parietaL
Alitmacea, — Flowers 8, petaloideous. Plaoentsa f^-seeded, simple,
and axile, or basal. Embryo solid.
JuncaginacecB, — Flowers scaly. Placenta few-seeded, simple, and
axile, or basal, slit on one side, with a very large plumule.
The Endogenous Orders probably contain more plants yielding food
for man, and less plants yielding poisons in proportion to their num-
bei-s, than those belonging to Exogens. The OraminacecB are found
all over the world, and are cultivated by most civilised and semi-
civilised nations, and yield a large proportion of the substantive food
of the htmian famUy. Palms are of the utmost importance in ooim-
tries where they grow, yielding fruits, wine, sugar, sago, and other
products. Many of tht^m yield starch from theur root-stocks, as the
arrow-root plants. Arums, Orchises, and the like. Aromatic secretions
are yielded oy the Gingers, and deleterious substances by the Melon-
ihaeea and Articea more particularly.
ENDOPHLEUM. J[Bark.]
ENDORHIZ^ [ENDooEira.]
ENDOSMOSIS, a name given by Dutrochet to the process by which
fluids pass from the exterior to the interior of a celL This process
seems to result from two distinct agencies, which are always brought
into operation where fluids pass tlu'ough a membrane. The one is
the imbibition of the fluid by the porous cell-membrane, and the other
is the mutual diffusion of miscible fluids. From the researches of
Matteucd and others there can be little doubt that the passage of a
gas or liquid through an animal or vegetable membrane is but the
modification of the process of attraction by which fluids are absorbed
by solid bodies. This process is carried on with various degrees of
force in different materials, and seems to depend on the degree of
attraction subsisting between the particles of the solid and those of
the fluid. Matteuoci found that when glass tubes of about three-
quarters of an inch diameter were filled with fine sand previously
dried, and introduced without pressure, and were immersed at their
lower ends into the following liquids, the action of imbibition raised
the liquids in the tubes to the following height : —
Solution of Carbonate of Potash . .85 millimetres.
Solution of Sulphate of Copper . 76
Serum of Blood * . 70
Solution of Carbonate of Ammoni:! . . 62
Distilled Water 60
Solution of Common Salt .... 58
Milk 55
If
It
it
ti
White of Egg, diluted with its own volume of 1 oe
water J^
it
if
In these cases the imbibition took place at first rapidly, then more
slowly, and ceased entirely at the end of ten hours. When thick
solutions of gum, or starch, or fixed oils were employed, scarcely any
imbibition took place, and it was but little more when strong saline
solutions were used. The degree in whidi different fluids pass into
different solids will be seen in tiie following table : —
Alcohol
Water
Sand.
85 mill.
175
$f
roonded Olais.
. 175 milL
. 182
n
Saw-dnst.
125milL
60
Thus showing that water passed more freely than alcohol into sand,
but less fredy into saw-dust, and both fluids passed with equal facfli^
into pounded glass. The sise of the tubes employed in these experi-
ments and the temperature affected considerably the results. The
fluids rose higher in proportion as the temperature increased. Thia
enables us to understand the influence of heat on life by the physical
effects it produces.
Not only is the passage of fluids from the exterior to the interior
of a ceU facilitated by the attraction between the cell-wall and the
fluids, but the fluids on either side of the membrane have a tendency
to mix with each other, which cannot but assist in this process,
l^feesor Qraham has shown that not only have gases an inherent
tendency to mix with each other, independent of the laws of gravity,
but that this law also applies to the misdbiiity of liquids. In a
Memoir on this subject in the ' Philosophical Transactions' for 1850,
he has shown the laws which this diffusion of liauids obeys. Different
substances possess this property in difibrent degrees. Thus, when
solutions of the following substances were used, of the strength of
20 parts to 100 parts of water, the relaiive quantities diffused in a
given time were as follows : —
Chloride of Sodium .
Sulphate of Magnesia
Nitrate of Soda .
Sulphate of Water .
Crystallised Cane-Sugai*
Starch-Sugar (Glucose)
Gum Arabic
58-68
27*42
51-56
69-82
26-74
26-94
18-24
The experiments from which these results were obtamed, were
performed by inverting a phial containing the solution to be diSused
in a large jar of pure water. The diffusion was stopped after seven
or eight days, and the amount of diffusion was determined by evapo-
rating the water of the jar to dryness. There can be little doubt
that the relative diffusibility of tibe juices of plants and animals must
have an important influence on the changes which go on in the cells
during the performance of the functions of the vegetable or animal
body. "Thus," observes Dr. Carpenter, "the low diffusibility of
albumen obviously tends to ti^e retention of the serous fluids within
the tissues ; whilst the high difiusibility of urea will favour its escape
fiom them." The following is an account of the process of Endosmosis,
and some of the conclusions at which we may arrive, firom Dr.
Carpenter's * Principles of Physiology :* —
** If into a tube, dosed at one end with a piece of bladder or other
membrane, be put a solution of gum or sugar, and the closed end be
immersed in water, a passage of fluid will take place from the
exterior to the interior of the tube, through the membranous septum ;
so that the quantity of the combined solution will be greatly
increased, its strength being proportionably diminished. At the
same time, there will be a counter-current in the opposite direction ;
a portion of the gummy or saccharine solution passing through the
membrane to mmgle with the exterior fluid, but in mum less
quantity.
" The first current is termed Endosmose, and the counter-current
Exosmose. The increase on either side will of course be due to the
relative velocitv of the currents ; and the changes will continue until
the densities of the two fluids are so nearly alike as to be incapable of
maintaining it. The greater the original difference (provided that the
denser be not actually viscid, but be capable of mixing with the
other), the more rapidly and powerfully will the process be performed.
The best means of experimenting upon the phenomena is afforded by
a tube, narrow above, but widely dilated below, so as to afford a large
surface to the membrvne, ooiapBxed with that of the superincumbent
column, which will then increase in height with great rapidity. By
bending this tube in the form of a syphon, and introducing mto its
curve a quantity of mercujnr, the force as well as the rapidity of
the Endosmose between dif^srent fluids may be estimated with pre-
In this way it was ascertained by Dutrochet, in some of his
asion.
M
experiments, that fluid might be raised sgainst a pressure of no less
than 4^ atmospheres, or nearly 70 lbs. to the square inch. Although
it is not universally true that the activity of the process depends upon
the difference in density of the two fluids (for in one or two oases the
stronger current passes from the denser to the lighter), it seems to be
so with regard to particular solutions, as those of gummy or saccha-
rine matter. No endosmose takes place between fluids which will
not mingle, such as oil and water; and very little between such
as act chemically on each other. Although an organic meinbranr
forms the best septum, yet it has been found that thin lamina of
baked pipe-clay will suffice for the evident production of the pheno*
menon ; and that porous limestones possess the saine propwty in
an inferior degree. Although it may not yet be possible to explain
all the phenomena of Endosmose upon physical principles, yet these
will go BO &r towards it that the general conditions of the process
may be considered as well understood. Supposing that two mutu^y
diffusible liquids are on the opposite sides of a porous septum, which
is not equally penetrable by them, then the one which is most leadUy
imbibed will tend to occupy the capillary passages of the septum, and
will thus be brought into contact with the liquid on the opposite side.
This contact will permit the diffuaiou of that which has passed through
ENDOSMOSIS.
ENTOMOLOGY.
646
the pores of the neptum ; and as fast as that which occupies these
pores is removod by diffusion, so fast will it be lenewed on the other
side,— just as oil continues to ascend through the capillary channels
in the wick of a lamp, so long as it is bemg dissipated by the combus-
tive process at its summit In this way then an endosmotio current
is produced, the force of which will depend upon the difiUsion-powers
of 'he two liquids, and upon the difference of the attractive power
whi« } the capillaiy tubes of the septum have for the two respectively.
Thub vhen a solution of sugar or gum is on one side of the septum,
and water on the other, the water is the most readily imbibed ; and
consequently the chief mixture and diffVision of the liquids, the one
through the other, takes place at the surface of the septimi in contact
with the more viscid liquid. But at the same time this liquid is
tending to diffuse itself tlurough the water which occupies the capillary
channels of the septum ; and as it is not repelled by the septum, but
is only attracted by it in a less degree than the water, a portion of it
finds its way in a direction opposed to the principal current, and
diffuses itself through the water on the other side, thus constituting
Ezosmose. Thus it happens that the direction of the principi3
current, or Endosmose, will be determined by the attractive power of
the septum for one or the other of the liquids ; though tiie diffusion-
power of the liquids through each other will help to determine its
force. When alcohol and water, for example, are separated by a
septum composed of animal membrane, the endosmotio current will
be from the water towards the alcohol, because the former liquid
more readily 'wets' the membrane, and consequently tends most
strongly to occupy its capillary passages; but, on the other hand,
when the^ separation is made by a thin lamina of caoutchouc, the
endosmotio current is from the alcohol towards ^e water, because the
former is most readily imbibed by the septum. It has further been
ascertained by the experiments of Matteucd, that when an organic
membrane is employed as a septum, the rapidity of transmission is
considerably affected by tiie direction in which the endosmotio current
traverses the membrane. Thus, when the skin of the Torpedo was
employed, with a solution of sugar on one side of it and water on the
other, although there was always an endosmotic current from the
water to the sugar, yet this current was strong enough to nuse the
interior liquid to SO"" when the water was in contact with the inter-
nal surface of the membrane, in the same time that was occupied
by its rise to 20° when the external surface of the membrane was
turned towards tiie water. Again, when the mucous membrane of
the stomach of a dog was us^ as the septum, and its external (or
muscular) stirface was placed in contact with alcohol, the passage of
water from the other side took place with such rapidity as to raise
the liquid in the tube to ISO"" ,* whilst if the internal (or mucous)
surface of the membrane were placed in contact with the alcohol, and
the muscular surface with water, the current was only sufficient to
raise the liquid 6 degrees in the same time ; so that it is evident that
the transudation of water takes place much more readily ftom the
mucous lining of the stomach towards the outer side of the viscus
than in an opposite direction, in virtue simply of the physical proper-
ties of the membrane. In fact, according to Professor Matteucci, the
cases are very rare in which, with fresh membranes, Endosmose takes
place with equal readiness, whichever of the two aides is exposed to
the water.
** The direction which is most favourable to Endosmose through skins
is usually from the internal to the external surfietce, with the excep-
tion of the skin of the frogi in which the endosmotic current, in the
single case of water and ^cohol, takes place most readily from the
external to the internal surface. But when stomachs and urinary
bladdera are employed, the direction varies much more, according to
the nature of the liquids employed. Th^ variation appeara to have
some relation to the physiological conditions in which these mem-
branes are placed in the living animal; thus, the direction most
&vourable to Endosmose between water and a saccharine solution, is
not the same for the stomach of a ruminant as for that of a carnivo-
rous animal : Myet however no positive statement can be made on
this subject. When membranes are employed that have been dried
or altered 1^ putrefaction, we either do not observe the usual differ-
ence arising firom the position of the surfaces, or Endosmose no longer
takes place; thus affording another indication that it is to the physical
condition of the perfectly-oiganised membrane that we are to look for
many of the peculiarities which are noticeable in the transudation of
fluids through them. The exosmotic current does not bear any con-
stant relation to the endosmotic, as may be easily comprehended firom
the preceding explanation ; for if the liquids have a strong tendency
to mutual diffusion, and the difference in attractive power which the
septum has for them respectively is not great, each may find its way
towards the other, and a considerable exosmose may ensue, with very
little change of leveL The amount of the exosmotic as of the endos-
motio current, varies with the direction in which it traverses the
membrane; thus, when sugar, albumen, or gum was employed in
solution, its transudation towards water took place most readily from
the internal towards the external surface of all the skins examined
by Matteucci, a fact which is not without its significance, when it is
remembered that it is in this direction that the secretion of mucus
takes place on the skins of fishes, frogs, &c.
" Applying these considerations to the phenomena of imbibition of
HAT. Bisr. DiT. you xz«
hquida into the tissues and canals of the living body, we shall hare
to inquire how far they are capable of being accounted for on physical
pnndples, which have been now brought forward. It has been
maintained by some that absorption is a purely vital operation,
because it does not occur save during the continuance of lif^. But
this is not true, since imbibition will take place into dead tissues,
though more slowly than into some parts when living; and the differ-
ence of rate seems to be fully accounted for by the difference of the
condition between a mass of tissue, all whose fluids are stagnant, and
another in which an active cireulation is taking place. Thus, as
Matteucci has shown, if the hind legs of a frog rftcently killed be
immersed for some hours in a solution of ferrocyanide of potassium,
it will be found that every part of the viscera is so penetrated with
the salt, that by touching it with a glass rod moistened with a solu-
tion of chloride of iron, a more or less deep blue stain is the result.
Now, the same effect is produced much more speedily in a living
frog; and it is easily proved that the imbibition takes place in the
latfer case into the blood-vessels, and that the salt is conveyed to the
remoter parts of the body by the cireulation, instead of having slowly
to make its way by transudation through the tissues, as in the dead
animal. But further, not only does the movement of blood in the
vessels promote the diffusion of liquid, which has been already
observed, it also increases the rapidity of the absorption itself in a
very extraordinary degree. Thus, if a membranous tube, such as a
piece of small intestine, or of a large vein of ao animal, be fixed by
one extremity to an opening at the bottom of a vessel filled with
water, and have a stop-cock attached at the other extremity, and be
then iminersed in water aciduUtted with sulphuric or hydrochloric
acid, it will be some time before the acid will penetrate to the interior
of the tube, which is distended with water ; but if Uie stop-cock be
opened, and the water be allowed to dbcharge itself, the presence of
the acid will be immediately discovered (by tincture of litmus) in the
liquid which flows out, showing that the acid has been assisted in its
penetration of the widls of the tube by the current traversing its
interior. Thus, the oontinuanoe of cireulation is obviously one of the
most patent of all the conditions of absorption, and the difference in
the rate of the process in the dead and living organisms, placed under
the same circumstances, may be accounted for in great part, if not
entirely, by the stoppage of the circulation in the former. All the
cireumstances which are laid down by physiologists as favouring
absorption are in strict accordance with the physical principles which
have been now explained. These cireumstances are — 1. The ready
misdbility of the liquids to be absorbed with the juices of the body.
2. The penetrability of the tissue through which the absorption takes
place. 8. The absence of previous distention in the tissues or canals
towards which the flow takes place. 4. The elevation of the tem-
perature within certain limits. 5. The vascularity of the tissues, and
the rate of movement of the blood through the vessels. And the
results of experiments upon recently-dead membranes which retain
almost exactly the same physical conditions as those which they
possessed during life, but have entirely lost their vital properties,
seem most decidedly to indicate that the relative facility with which
different substances are absorbed, and the direction most favourable
to their passage through the tissues, are determined in great part by
the physical relations of those tissues (and of the vessels which
traverse them) to the liquid which is seeking to enter them. In this
way, then, many of the phenomena of selective absorption are pro-
bably to be explained, especially in plants and the lower animals.
The special absorbent vessels, however, of VertebrcUa seem to possess
properties which can scarcely be thus accounted for." (' Principles of
Plrraiology.*^ [Absobftion ; Absobbent Vessels.] *
ENDTMiON, a genus of Plants belonging to the class of Endogens,
the order LUiacea, and the tribe HemerocalUdeas, It has a tubular
bell-shaped perianUi, composed of six connivent leaves, with reflexed
points combined below. The stamens are inserted below the middle
of the perianth ; the filaments decurrent.
B, nutixnt, the English Blue-BeU. It is also the SciUa nuXaaM^ the
Hyacinthvs non-wriptvs, and Agraphit nutaru of various botanical
writera. It has linear leaves, wiUi nodding racemes, the flowers bell-
shaped, cylindrical ; the apex of the sepals revolute; the bracts 2. This
is a very common plant, flowering in May in the woods and thickets
of England. It is also common in France and Belgium. The flower-
stalk is about a foot high. The leaves are shorter than the flower-
stalk. The flowera are generally blue. A white variety is however
occasionally seen.
ENORAULIS. [Anchoyt; Glufeida.]
ENQTSTOMA. [Amphibia.]
ENHALUS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
ffydrochand<Ke(g, the fruit of which, according to Agardb, is eatable,
and the fibres capable of being woven.
ENHYDRA. [Lutba.]
ENNEAGONA. [Acalepblb.]
ENTALOPHORA. [Sbbtulabiadjl]
ENTEROMORPHA. [Alga.]
ENTO'BIA, a genus of Fossil Anndida, (Portlock.)
ENTOMOCO'NCHUS, a genus of Fossil Cruttacea, from the Moun-
tain Limestone of Ireland. (M'Coy.)
ENTOMOliOGT, that branch of science which treats upon insecto.
2 N
M7
KNTOMOSTOMATA.
Th« term Entomology literally lignifiei a duconrn upon iiueeta, i
being derired from the two Qroak words "Erroiiar, aa iiuect, and /tiyot
a discourse.
Tbe teim Entoma was first applied to these animals hj AnstioUe,
and is synonymous with tbe Latin word tiuufa (whence is deriTad the
English name ' insects'), both having reference to a striking character
exhibited in the insect tribe, that of having tbe body inaeoted, or, ai
it wore, cut and divided into numerous segments. [Insects,]
ENTOHOSTO'HATA, Da BlainriUe's nams for his second family
of his first order, Siphonobranehiala, of his first sub-c]ass Paraefpha-
lophwa IHoica, of his second class, Parattphaloiiiora, of if alacoBta.
This family appears to be nesjly the same with the gem "
of Liniueus and family Succintda of other naturalista,
characterised by De Blalnville :—
Animal spiral, with the foot, which is shorter than the shall,
rounded in &ont. Mantle pravided in front of the respiratory ckvitj
with a laug canal always uncovered, which the animal uses as an
organ of preheDsion. Head furnished with a single pair of blackish
tealfteula, which cany the eyes on an enlargement (renflement) of the
half of their base. Houlh armed with a proboscis, as in tbe preceding
&niily {Siphonailomataj, without any labial tooth, but with a small
tongue Organs of respiration formed by two miequal pectinated
branchiEB. Organs of generation — termination of the oviduct in tha
females at the right side, at the entrance of the branchial cavity.
Termination of the deferent canal at tbe extremity of a long Sattened
contractile excitatory appendage, utuatad at the right side of the
uecL Shell very variable " '
?' email, is without an apparent canal, or wiUi
y recurved upwards, but always more
deeply notched anteriorly. Operculum homy, unguifor
ludden^
, with the summit a little marked and matginaL
De Blainville observes that this family diflbrs evidently very little
from that of tbe Siplumotlomata, whether in tbe soft parts or in the
dielL The species which it embraces are not all absolutely marine,
though a very great number of them are : some live at tbe moutha of
rivers, and a very small number are eutirely fluviatili.'.
The following are the prinoipal genera of this family : —
* Tnirienlated.
, a depressed proboscidiform muzzle ; tentacula very
distant with large rings, swollen, as it were, in the lower part of
their length, and carrying tbe eyes at tbe summit of this enlargement.
Houth terminal, in the form of a vertical slit, without any labial
tooth, and with a very small tongue fumishsd with regularly disposed
refleied teeth. A. aingla itraight bnnchia.
Animal of OtriMam Telneopiwu, and ihell of OrifKHMi jufuilrf .
Shell more or less turrieulated, tuberculous ; aperture small, oval,
oblique; tbe columellar border very much excavated, callous; the
right lip sharp-edged, and dilating a little with age.. Operonlnm
homy, oval, rounded, sub-spiral, and striated on its external surface;
sunk, and bordered on its internal surface.
Species which have evidently a small oaoal, very short, and obliquely
reourved towards the back.
Ex. (7. VtrU^at. Locality, Indian Ocean and Moluccas. (Lamarok.)
Species which have a stjll smaller canal, hut straight throughout^
and a well-fbrmed sinus at the posterior union of the two botdan.
Ex. C. Alueo. Locality, Indian Ocean and Moluccas. (Lam.)
Species whose aperture is divided into three by the shutting of the
abort anterior tube, and that of the posterior sinus. (Genus,
IWpAoTf, or Tritlomt (Deshayes), THforiit^), Dtthayea.
KNTOMOSTOMATA.
Specica which have a small straight canal, and the whoria of the
Species which have no canal, bnt a simple notch, and whoae right
lip is much dilated in age. (Oenus, Potanida, Brongniart;
Pgranu, De Uontfort.)
Ex. 0. palutlrt. Lotaiiij, ooasts of the East ladiea, in the salt
oaiBhea. (Lam.)
Species whose aperture, without a canal, is a little ootohed in front
and rear, the notch being replaced by a aiaus ; the oolumellar
border curved in its middle ; the right lip not dilated. (Genua
Piraia, Lam.)
Ex. C. Madagaicariaut.
Do BluaviUe makes tha genua Oeritimm, as established by him,
oontain fiS spedes obaraoterued by Lamarck ; adding that the greater
part are manae, but many from the mouths of riveia, and some
entirely lacustrine, and that there is but one belonging to the French
seas, whilst more than > hundred fosail species are found in EVanca
and Italy. AL Defrance's genus Nerinca, be remarks, would be
better placed among the Pyramiddla.
llie speoiea of this gauus with those of Potanada, Xtrineit, Aporr-
Adu, and Stmlhiolaria, are often referred to llie family OerithiadiT,
(Woodward, ' Manual of the Mollusca.'}
Lamarck places CtrilAiam at the commencement of the first ssctiou
(Canslifhree) of his Zoophsgous Tracbelipods, immediately after Turri-
tdla, the last of his Phytophagous (Plant-Eating) Trachelipoda
Cuvier gives it a positiou after Purpura, L'oMU, and To-ctra, and
before Mvrtx. This, as the Rev. M. J. Beiieley and Mr. Hoffman
obserre, in their interesting paper on the anatomical structure of
CerHkitim Tdacopiura, would imply a structure of the parte of the
mouth adapted for boring shells, according to the known haUta of
Murtx and certain allied genera ; but, they mnark, a ungle glaooa at
Adanson's figure is sufficient for conviction that Hie animal is much
more nearly allied to ihe Trochoida : and that Lamarck judged
rightly, according to the evidence before him, in placing it on tbe
confiuea of his two great classes. This is corroborated, they add, by
the little additional information of H. Sander Rang, who describe*
tbe mouth as toothless, but furnished with a small tongue.
M. Sander Hang states that this genug^ so numerous in species both
living and fossil, oontains only nurina animals ; but, nevertheless
ime of them which live at the mouths of rivers, and theoe
" ' "" " ■ has united to form
Zoology, inasmuch
upon sufficiently ma^sd characters. M. Rang
adopte generally the divisions of De Blainville with approbation, but
which comprehends the genus Pirtna,
_ „ [ample of M. de Firussac, places with
MtUmoptit. Rang agrees with De Rloinville in thinking that tbe divi-
contsining Defrance's JVn-insa is perhaps doubtfiU, and that its
ion would be better near tbe PyramultUa. He obeerTu that
they have in France but two or three living Ctrithia, but a great
number of fonil species.
Deshayes makes the number of living species eighty-seven; not
reckoning Triforit, of which he gives three speciea, nor Pirwa, ot
■Uuofpheni. A ipadman of C JVa
a. B. Sowerl^ in Mm-mttT, lired 01
MB GNTOHOSTOMATA.
nliicli 1m also pvet three; of the Utter Lunuck reoordB foui
The number of apeoiea of OenAia at preeent deKribed esoe«d
onebundred.
Adaoaon, tpeakingof Uiebabite of ona of ths ipeciee of Ccrilkwm,
iiaja that it livea in the aand amoiigBt gnua and aaagroTaB, feedine
on ' aoolopendrea ' and othsr amall marine worma. The individual
which fonned ona of the aubjeota of the inveatigsUoD by Hr. Berkel^
and Mr. Hoffhian, and which waa broaiht from Cdoutta, though
placed in freah aaa-water, tha utmoit care being taken to renew it fre-
qasnt];, and though all kiuda of marine aubataaoaa ware auppUed to
the animal for food, refused all nourishment, coateDting iteelf with
simply walking over the substances, and, in so doing, touching them
with its proboscis. As it would net feed, this iodiTiduatwas killed by
immersion in spirit. The other specimen, whieh was anatomised by
the loologisU above mentioned, was brought from Ceylon. Dr, J. E.
Gray (Harch 15, 18MI rend n note to tha Zoological Society of London,
giving an account of the airivsl in Englani) of two living specimens of
Ctritiiiim armalun, which bad been obtained at the Mauritius, aud
had been brought thence in a dry state. That the inhabitants of
land-shella will remain alive without moiatura for many months is,
be remarked, well known. [Bqukus.] He had had oocasion to
observe that various marine MoliuKa will retun life in a atate of to>
pidity for a conaidsiabla time ; aome facts, in illustration of which, he
had communicated to the Sooie^. ('Zool Proa.,' part L p. 116.) The
present instance included however a torpidity of so long ■ continn-
ance as to induce him to mention it particularly. The animal,
though deeply contracted within the shell, was apparently healthy,
and beautifully coloured. It emitted a conndershle quantity of bright
green flnid, which stained paperof a gtnss-green colour; it also coloured
two ur tliree ounoea of pore water. This green solution, after stand-
ing twelve boon in a atoppered bottle, became purplish at the upper
{«rt ; but the pq>er retamed its green colour though eipoaed to the
' 7. TVncopitm, aent from Calcutta Iji Hr.
, ived out of water in a small tin box for
CailAmm haa been found in the sea on various
bottoms, and in tsstnariss at a depth ranging ttoax the amrfaee to
aeventeen fathoms.
FoMtS CerifAuL— Deahayea, in bia tablea, givea the QDmber of foaail
(tertiary) Ctrithia at 220, and of theae he leoords C. vti^iUwit, C.
laireilUi, O. dalidhtim, C. gigaailttitu, C. aliieailtr, C. grmuUetmn, and
C. frtciiKtim, aa both living and fosail He gives two fossil (tertdair)
apedea of Piraui and two of TVi/ona The form is found from the
Supnoretaoeoua te tha Oolitio group, both inclusive. Pctamidta ia
' '1 the Weald-Clay, Sussex (Usnt.); and Iftrmta '
ItlO grOI" •"-"'-' -■ ' n. >. . . > ..r , T...
. . y. Coral
(tferinea O/XKUiallu), Inferior Oolite.
Dr. Lea ('Contributions te Qeblogy') describea and figures from the
Claiborne Beds, in America, a shell which he names pnivisionally
CtritAiuni it) ilriatum; observing that he is by no means satisfied in
placing this abell among the CVrilAia. It has a stronger resemblance in
tha mouth to the genus i/dania, but being a marine ehell, cannot, he
remarks, wiUi propriety be placed in that genua. DeBlainvilIe,headds,
figurea a ahell {' Ifatacologie,' pL 21, bis, fig. 2), under the name of
Polamida fragHit, which certainly ought to belong to the same genus
with this, the mouUi being very nearly Uie same. Until more species
shall be obtained. Dr. Lea has forborne to create for it a new genua
He further atatee that there have been no Ceritkia yet found in the
beds at Claibom^ althongh they abound in England and on the Con-
Unent in the Ternary Formatjim, there being 137 ipeoiea in ^e Paria
Baiin alonat Woodward statea that tha fonfl ipeoiei exceed 4S0 in
number.
Mdanopnt. — Animal furnished with a proboscidifarm muula, with
two contractile, conical, amiulated teotacula, having each at their
external base an oculat«d peduncle ; foot attached te the neck ; res-
piratory orifice in the canal formed by the union of the mantle with
the body. Shell with an epidermis, elongHted, fiiaifonn, or conico-
cylindrical, with a pointed summit ; whorls of the spin ^m S to
IG, Uie last often forming two-thiids of tha shell; aperture oval,
oUong; columella solid, callous, truncated at its baae. separated
from the anterior border by a sinus, the oalloaitj prolonged upon the
convexity of Iba pennltimate whorl, forming a canal backwarda;
■omstimea a sinos at the poateiior part of the right border.
Openmlnm homy, subspiiaL
The genus ia rather finviatile thau marine, eontraiT to CMlAiHm,
according to De Blainville. Lamarck, who givea but two apedea, it.
caiaia and M. lamgaia, apeaks of tbem decidedly aa flnviatJe^ Rang
aaya that tha genua waa eatabliahad by M. da FdruMBO for freah-water
ahella, whoae oaUaaa and truncated colomella did not permit tbeir
arrangement with Ifdonia. The latter, in bis Monograph, dividao
tbem inte two groupa, the Brat oonaistjog of tbcae species which have
a single sinus at the border of the aperture, separating it from the
columella (Metanopti*, Lam. ; M, bfuxinoidea) ; the second consisting
of those species which have two distdnct sinuaea at tha external
border of the aperture, one which aepantea it &om the oolomella, the
Other aituated near the union of this border with the penultimate
whorL (Pirtna, Lam.) De KainnUe giraa the foUowing divinon of
the ganiu : —
BNTOMOSTOMATA.
a. SubtuiriculalAd Species.
Et M. eotata.
Locality, Syria, in the Orontes. (Lamarck.)
ittlamtpri, anlala.
A Oval Species.
Ex. M, buecinoidea.
y. Convex Species (EapAces Roofidea).
Ex. M. Bouei. [Mblahofsib.]
Tha genus Mdania is related to Xtlonoptit, and ia sometimes
included with Paludomu* in the family Melaniada. [MELinia.]
Planaxit. — Animal unknown. Shell oval, conical, solid, trans-
versely furrowed ; aperture oblong ; columella flattered and truncated
anteriorly, separated from the right border or lip bj a sinus; ri^jht
lip furrowed or rayed within, and thickened by a decurrent callosity
-* its origin. Operculum homy, oval, delicate, subeplrsl.
Lamarck established this genus for curtain small shells approxi-
mating closely to the Phatianellce, but diff ring from them by the
truncation of the anterior part of the columcUa. He only reoorda
two spades, namely P. ttdeata and P. vndulata. M. Hang states
that be posseswa six well-distinguished species. Woodward, in his
' Manual of the MoUusca," givea eleven species. They are found in
the We«t Indiea, Red Sea, Bourbon, India, the Pacific, and Peru.
The Ptonaciiii a littoral shall, and is sometimes found under stonea.
M. Rang aija that he bad had occasion to observe tha animal at the
lale of France (Mauritius), where the rocks sre sometimca covered
with them, but, having loat his not«B, ha is unable to give its
principal characters. According to his recollection, the animal differed
very little from that of Pkatiaadia. M. Deahayes^ in hiaTablea, pata
the living speoies at four.
Ex. P. nUcata.
I foeeil in the Tertaai;
Stiiuia. — Animal spiral, Tery muoh elevated ; foot Teiy ehort and
la tacuMa, and last wborl tt tbe shell with the animal and
tsl ENTOMOSTOMATA.
round 1 head nitb eitrsmely ■moll triBnenI&r tentooula, beuing the
eyBi at tbeir ■iiinmit; a long labia! proboaoia without hooka
(crotobsta). at the bottom of nbicb ia the mouth equally uoanned.
Shell without an epidenuii, turriculated, and with a pointed apire ;
wborls amooUi, libaaded, bifid ; aperture oval, imall, deeply Dotohsd
snteriorl J ; exberaal lip thin and iihiu'p«dged ; intanial or oolumellar
Up with an oblique boiurelet at its extremity. Opcnnilum oral,
horny, lamellar, tmd u it were imbricated.
De Blunrille thiu chsrscteriaee a genus whioh he nyi he found
himwif oompelled to eetablish upon examining the animal brought
home by Uenra. Quay and Oaimard, the shell of which had been
hitherto confounded with the Tcrcbra ; and he airanKee under this
new genua all tbo*e species wboee shell ia very much elevated, whose
Bpire ia very pointed, and whose whorls are ribanded ; and conse-
quently the greatest number of the twenty-four living apeciea charac-
terised by Lamarck, and which nearly all belong to the East Indies
and Auatralasis.
Ex. S. mactdala (Lun.), BacHntmi miKulatiun (Linn.).
It inhabits the Uoluccaa and Pacific Ocean, aocoiding to Lamarck,
who apesks of his poneaaion of a ipecimea takea on the ahorei of
Owbyhee-
" Turbinsceous ; or genera whose spire ia moderately elongated,
rarely subturriouUted.
TVrtftm.— Animal spiral, rather elevated ; foot oval, with a trans-
vens anterior furrow and two lateral auricles ; head bordered with a
small fringe; cylindrical tentacula terminated in a point, and very
distant; eyes but little apparent at the origin and outside of the
tentacula ; mouth without a proboscis ; tube of the respiratory cavity
very long. Shell without an epidermia, inclining to oval; spire sharp,
not much elevated or subtumculated ; aperture large, oval, strongly
notched sjiteriorly ; columella with >□ abUque bourrelet at its
extremity. No operculum. (De Blainville.)
U. De Blainville only leaves in this genua, which he thinksought
perhapa to belong to Uia family of non-operculated Sntmnotiomala,
those species of Lamarck's Tertbra which in their general form bear
some resemblance to the Butcaia, such for example as his Via
Buccinfe {TerAra vittata) ; becauee De Blainville auppoaes that the
animal resembles that of the MJran of Adanaon, which ia the ^ypB,
and which difiera much fmm that of the aubulated species to wtuch
De Blainville gives the generic name of fSaiiUa — AUne in French.
AnlDWl Dt Trrttia (S'la MJran} hom Adaason, and ibeU ef linbranaaU.
The species, De Blainville obserree, appear to come from war
climates only, like the Suttdo. Terebra (Lamarck) occurs
depths ranging from the surface to 17 faUioma The apeci.
sometimes creep on reefs out of the water, but within reach of the
spray.
Since the puhUcation of the works of M. De Blainville and of
11. Kang, Dr. J. E. Qray has enumerated 4G species, all of them either
in the British Museum or in liis own private collection. Hu states
that the animal has a smsll foot, and a very Ions proboseia, at the base
of which are seated two veiy small tentacula ; the operculum is ovate,
thin, homy, rounded behind, and rather tapering in front. The shell
is covered by a very thio, pelludd, hom-coloiuvd perioatraca ; it ia
usually whib^ variously struked with brown, the atreaka being often
interrupted or broken mto spots by the two apinl bands of the shell;
one of these bands is, placed near the spiral groove and the other on
the middle of the wborL The apex of the cavity is frequently filled
up by a calcareous deposition ; but this deposition has never been
observed in T. duplitaUt. Dr. Qray divides Uie speciea into tlie three
foUowiog seotiona :^lst "Anfraetibus sulco spirali cingulum poste-
rins effiinnante ; labio interiore, tenui concavo." He observes upon
this Motion that the cingulum is most conspicuous in young shells ;
and lliat the internal lip ia very rarely thickened in adults. To this
section be refers 30 species (T. maeuiata. Lam,, ftc), IG of them new.
^nd. " Anfraetibus sulco spirali cingulum posterius efformsnte; lafalo
inteiiore incrasaato, aubelevato." He obaervea that the apeciea of
this section <T, E of which are new) somenbat resemble the Gaithia
in the aperture. Brd. "Anftaotibna aulco posljoo nullo." These Iiit
be divides into two sub-sections, " * vrith a thiu internal lip," which
be aii1di\ides into (a) thoRe epsciea which have au elongated slender
ENT0U08T01CATA. s S
shell, and (S) those which have a short shell, and " " with tiie inter-
nal Up thickened and elevated, and the shell short ; " and he ohserrts
that theae approximate somewhat to the .yoMi^ but have neither the
internal diMed Lip nor the external thickened Up. This third section
intaina S species, one of which is new.
Dr. Qny does not notice Saiiila of De Blunville, and it may
therefore be considered that he dosa not admit ^e generic distinotion.
Woodward makes SubiJa a synonym of Ttrtbra, and reotnda 109
recent spedea.
Aisnj Subula and TtrAra. — De Blainville refers to his genus Sniida
many of ths foosi] species which had besn considered as Ttrtbra, and
whidi coincide with his definition of the former genus ; but he doe*
not enumerate the species, nor draw any distinct line of demarcation
between the fossils of these respective genera. He remarks that
H. Defranoe makes the fossil species of both these genera IT, of
which 6 are identical, S from Italy, 1 from Qrignon, and 1 from
Bourdeaux. The 'vis scalarine fbasilsde Fames' De BlainvtUe thinks '
should be referred to the genus Ttrtbra. it. Dsahayes, in his Tables,
makes Tir^ra (of BruguiAre and Lamarck we presume, far be does
not notice Subula) consist of 44 Uving species and 1 6 fossil (tertiary),
of which last he considers two new species, and T. Faval, T. itrigUata,
and T. pertuia to be both Uving and fos^ (tertiary). Dr. YiUon, io
his stratigrapbical and local distribution of the fonla of the strata
below the chalk, records T. ParllaHdica aa oecurring in the Portland
Stone in Doiaet, South Wilts, North Wilta, Oxford, and Bucka. Dr.
Lea describes and figurea three additional apeciea of Tenbra (Lamarck)
&om the Claiborne Beds, remarking that 1, apeciea of the genua
have been oheerved in England, 3 in the Oolitic group and 1 in the
London Clay. He refeie to the 16 apeciea given for the tertiary by
M. Deahayes, and aaya that 10 of theae are found at Baden (Miocene)
and T at Bourdeaui (Miocene). Here ia evidently an error in the
number. He adda that Mr. Conrad had observed one species, which
he caUs ' simplex,' in the tertiary of Maryland, " being the only one
heretofore observed," adds Dr. Iioa, "incur formations." Woodward
gives the number of fossil speciu as 21, and states that Uiey are from
the Eooene Beds of Britain, France, and Chili
Ebuma. — SheU oval or elongated, smooth ; spire pointed, whorls
running together as it were without a marked distinction of suture ;
aperture inclining to oval, elongated, widened, and deeply notched iu
l^nt; right lip eotirei columella oaUous posttnorly, umbiUcated,
subomaUculated at its external part.
They are fouod in tbe seas of warm climates. Of the 9 Uviug
species Lamarck refers the locaUty of three to the East Indies and
one to South America and perhaps India.
Foml Sbnma—Da Blainville states in his ■ M alacologie ' (1826)
that no EbtH^a had thsn been discovered in afoesil state. H. Bang
remarks (1S3B) in hia 'Manuel' that there are fcaail spedss. Des-
bayes, in his Tables, records G Uving spedee and 1 (new spedea)
foaail (tertiary).
Bueciaum SheU oval, elongated, with a pointed but moderatelj-
elevaCed apire; aperture oblong or oval, deeply notched anterioriy;
right Up entire, sometimes thick ; columella simple or calloua ; oper-
culum horn^ oval, aubconoentric ; aummiti ~ UtUe marked and
marginal ^dodirom.]
The geomphioal distribution is very wide. Bpedes occur In almost
aUseas. .£. piaciuJe and fi. SsiMM are noted in the 'Supplement to
the Appendix of Captain Parry's First Voysge' as having been met with
during the period in which the expedition remained within the arctio
ranging froi
genus is UttoraL
De BlalnviUe subdivides the spedea into many sections compre-
hending ths true Bueeiiut, induding the genera A UaHm (B. patnOe-
mm) and Cgclopi (B. nerileum) of De Montfort, and the genua Katut,
U3
ENTOMOSTOMATA.
Luturck. H. De F^miau diTidaa ths gmra into two lub-genara,
namelj, the Buecina properly w> called, of which B. undalitnt may be
coiuidend tbs type, and the Sburna. H. Sandier Rtng adopb hii
KCTsngement Wa confine oumlrcs tu ths true Buceina
Ex. B. nndaliim, the Common Whelk. Thia U the ■pedoa
conunonly ejposed for sole u food on the street italic in 1
metropolia.
ShiU of CoDUEon VbtVc {Bucdnimt imdaltm), ud uinial {mtlr) mtping
iritb Iti ihell ind DparcoliuB.
B. ZopiUui (PMTiura) u one of the English shells that produoe
tlie purple dye, analogoui to the Piuyura of the aucianta ; and Hr.
Willuim Cole, of BristaX thus deecribee (1681) the proceia of obtaining
the English AnTHrii: — "The sheila being harder thanmost of other
e to be broken with a smart stroke with a hanuaer, on a plate
ir firm piece of timber (with tbair mouth* downwards), so u
not to cmih the body of ths fi«h within ; the broken pieces being
picked off thare will appear a white vein, lying tranaveraely in a little
furrow or elaft naxt to Uie head of the fish, which miut be digged
out witb tha atiff point of a honehair pencil, being made ihort and
tapering. The letters, flgurea, or what ebeaball be made on the linen
(and perhaps silk too) will presently appear of a pleasant light green
colour, and if placed in the sun will change into the following colours,
that is, if in wmter about noon ; if in the summer an hour or two after
Ji'rising, and so much before setting i for in the heat of the
summer the colours will come on so fast that the sucondou m eaca
colour will scarcely be distinguished. Next to the Brst light green it
will appear of a deep green, and in a few miuut«a change into a sea-
green ; after which, m a few miuutee mora, it will alter into a watohet-
blua ; from that, in a little time more, it will be of a puiplish-red ;
after which, lying an hour or two (suppooing tha sun itm shining), it
will be of a yery deep purple-red, beyond which tha sun csn do no
more. Bat then the last and moat beautifHil colour, after washing in
scalding water and sosfi, will (the mstter being again put into the suu
or wind to dry) ba of a hir bright crimson, or near to the prinoa's
colour, which afterwards, notwithstanding there is no use of but
stiptio to bind the colour, will continue the same, if well ordered, as I
have found in handkercbieCi that have been washed more than forty
times ; only it will be somewhat allayed from what it was aftar the
first washing. While the cloth so writ upon lies in the sun it will
yield a rery strong and fietid smell, as if garlio and asafcetida wsr«
mixed together." ('PhiL Trans.,' Abr. II. 826.)
We faaie inserted this aoouunt here, because the shell which is tlie
subject of it may be more ^"''li»'' to our readers under the Linnoan
name of Bttccmmii LapiiUu than of furjitira XoptlJM, but it U
properly arranged under ths genus Purjmra.
Fouil Buccina.—lS. Deshajee, in his Tables, makes the number of
fowil (tertiary) species 9fi, and he records the following aa both livii^
and foasil (tertiary), Natta not appearing a« a geflna in his list — S.
imdatmm, rttie%Uatinn, montfonim, muhibiU, elatkrai^tm, nerilaun,
Banagerti, primuUicwn, ajixrofwn, BMuimm, iT^/lattim, polygoniun,
IfOrbignii, Liimaei, polilum, and five new speciu, tha names of which
are not Riven, Dr. Fitton notes two species below the Chalk, namely,
B. angiUatim and B. natieoida in the Fordand Stone (North Wilts,
South Wilta. Bucks), and the last-named species in the Portland Sand
(Bucka). Dr. Lea uotM one apeciea (new), B. SmNrtti, in tlie
ENTOMOSTOMATA. ui
Claiborne Beds, Alabama. He oburres that of ths genus 27 species,
including Nana, have been abarrved in Great Britain, several as law
as the Mountain Limestone, but chiefly in the London Clav au<l the
Crag. After repcatiog tha number given by Deshaves, Dr.' Lea says
that the genua appears to ba much more abundant in the upper
formations. The Fliocena of the Sub-Apennines furnishes 27 ipecrea
Bourdeaux (Miocene) 21 species. Paris (Eocene) S spoeiM. In
America, he adds, four species have been found, Ur. Say having
described two from tha older Pliocene, Maryland, andMr. Courad two
from York Town, Vintinia, also older Pliocene. Tha fossil speci't
DOW known, including those of Purpura, are about ISO.
Naua. — Animal very mucb depressAd, with a very large foot
aitending beyond the body on all aides, but eepeciullj in fniiit,
where it is large and ant^ular, whilst posteriorly it is insensibly
narrowed. For the rest like the auim>d of Purpura. Shell globular,
oval, or subturricnlated : aperture oblong, notchi-d autcriorly ; right
lip sharp-edged, often plaited within; columollar lip oovervd witb a
large callous plate, extending more or lens far. Operculum horny.
Dr. Lea {• Contributions to Geology') ssjb, "I have not besiUted to
separate this genua from Buccinun (although Lamarck united them
after having made the division), because Uiey cerlunly form a very
natural group. Cuvier separates it, as De Blainville also doM, into
a sub|geuus^'' De Blaiuville certainly makes one of his sections of
iluccWiwa oonsist of the genua Naua ; but Kang separates it dednvelj.
The species of Na—a have a world-wide distribution, being found
in arctic, tropical, and antarctic seas. The; have been found on
reefs, coral sand, sand, sandv-mud, and under stonae, at depths
ranging from the sui&ce to 15 fathoms. About TO speciee ar« known.
N. rtficulafa is common on English shores, aud called tha Dns-
Whelk by fishermen. *
Fvtnt Nana.— The speoies of Foasil Ifaua are above ao. Thsy
are found in ths Eocene Strata of Britain and North America.
*** Ampullaceous BMoraoMiomala, or those whose shells ars in
general globular,
Harpa. — Animal with a large head, without a proboscis, having
the month opened bdow ; two anterior tentacida, conical, and
very much approiimated, carrying the eyes upon an enlargement
situated externally a little below the middle ; foot lar^e, furnished
anteriorly with a sort of heel; siphon rather large and a little
elongated; branchial pectinations unequal, two in number; orifice
of the oviduct at the entrance of the branchial cavity of the right
aide, orifice in the deferent canal at the extremity of a very volumi-
nous excitatory organ ; vent on the same side.
Shell oblong, mora or less convex, generally rather delicate,
enamalled, furnished with regular longitudinal ribs ; spire a little
elevated and pointed, the last whorl very large; apertura oval,
eloneated, widely noticed aDteriorly. the right lip with an external
swslUng; columella simple, pointed anteriorly. No operculum,
accordiligto M. Keynaud.
BheU of Barfa miriew, ud iniuiul ctavllnE wilh iU ihelL
The genus is found in the seas of warm climates, and is more
pedallj abundant at tha Mauritius and tha neighbouring islands,
henoe Uie finest of the more common species snd tha many-ribbed
Harps are procured. The animal ia ssid to be of a rich vertnilion
red. The fishery is prinaipallj carried on at low water with a luaU
lU BNTOMOSTOHATA.
rake, to wbit;li a net ia ftttftched, an auid-buikB at night, and at lunriM
who] the Harp* an probably out npon tLeir feed. Tier have been
known to take the bait on tlie fialiing-luiea laid for olivai {(Min ,
Haan. Quoj and Oaimard, and aftorwarda H. Raynaud atate, that
die uiimBl of the Harp can lODietimeR, when attacked by an enamy,
diaanbanaaa itaelf of Uia posterior part of the foot, and oomplBtefy
withdraw iteaU into the ■heU. M. Raynaud explain! tbia pbanomenon
by giving hia opinion that the tranverae Iscention whioh «ukb, ii
the moremant of contraction exerted by the acimaJ. tha aeparatiai
of Uie posterior part of the foot, (riaea from the reiiitance whicl
that part, too Toluminooa to enter tba shall alter the snimnl,
sncountei* from tile edges of the shell SL Raog obserTea,
though no operoulutn has been found (aod the animal appears to
been carefully examined), be does not hesitate (o ieare the genua
among those which are provided with one, because, in the first plaoe,
Barpa ia similarly organised, and, in the next, if depriTsd of that
appendage,-it haa, at least, the posterior part of the foot to take, in
soma sort, its place.
Authors ganarally make the number of living apecias sight, and
of theee tba most precious, though lately greatly depressed in valne,
ia the Maoy-Bibbed Harp (tf. mperialii). But acme of the sp" —
are vtrr difficult of definition, though others are well marked.
. in fine conditii^ are great favourites with colleeton,
ENTOHOSTOHATA.
indeed a dra
S'E
■11 the freshness of their beaut]
™:j
is a sight worth seeing. Care ahould ba taken to keep them
their mouths downwanla and trom the sun and light, or their brilliant
colours will Boon fade.
Ex. H. vaUricata. Locality, Mauritius, Ac
Foitil ZToi^Kt;— Four species are recorded, in the Tertiary Formation.
Dotium — Animal generatly resembling that of ^r^mm. Shell
delicate, nearly globular, ventricose, furrowed transversely ; spire but
littla elevated, pointed, the last whorl forming nearly the whols of
the shell ; aperture large, uval, right lip unduUted. Columella often
twisted ; operculum homy.
The species are found in the seas of warm elimatea, e^sdally those
of India. They are also found in AustnJia and the Padfio. One
species, D. galea, inhabits the Mediterranean. The apeciea are often
found on r^efs, s»me of them are very large. Fourteen seema to be
the greatest number hitherto recorded, and Cuvier haa separated the
spsciea into two sections, namely the Tuns (DoUum) and the Partridge
Tans {Perdix of De Hontfort)
Ex. D. galea, and D. perdix.
records as both living and fossil (tertiary). The e
is about ten. Tbey are found in tiie Eocene Beds of Great Britsm and
Oniteia. — A genua separated from Cauidaria by Mr. O. B. Sowerb^,
and considered by him as having its place next to that penus m
the natural system. It differs from Cattit in the ouial not being
suddenly rofiected ; but Mr. Sowerby states that he has seen Cauidri
which very nearly approach Oniina in the form of the aperturf, and
in the short scarcely refiec(«d canaL He thinks that the genus is
intermediate betHPen Caaidaria and Cattit,
Shell oblong, aub- cylindrical, spex generally rather obtuse, spire
short, sometimes very short; bane rather acuminated; aperture longi-
tudinal, elongated, extending at the base into a very short moai:
outer lip thii^ened, denticulated within, and rather contracted in
theoentre; inner lip expanded and oovared with grauulea. (Sowerby.)
The outside of the shell is tuberoulated, oancellatod, or ribbtd. "Of
the animal," says Ur. Sowerby, "we know nothing; but then is
every resaon for believing it to be related Ut that of Xlattii, and that
it has an operculum, though we have never seen it.
Six living species an recorded, fW>m the West Indies, China, and
the Oalapagos.
Ex. 0. eaiutllaia.
OiiiMcia ainrdtata, Idult.
Three fowil spaoiea an recorded, from the Hiooene Beds of the
Tertiarr Strata.
Ouna— Animal said to reeembls generally that of P«rpara.
Shell inclining to oval, ooQvex, with a spin but little projecting,
nearly flat; apartun oblique, long, and narrow, with the aaterior
canal very short and recurved towards the back ; right lip thick, fui^
nishrd with an external baumlet, and toothed within; columellsr
li^ callous, nearly straight, and marked nearly throughout its length
Df DoHm
,0l», SI
(dinlnisticd).
! recorded as fossil. Thc^ a
FouH Dolia, — Seven species
found in the Miocene Tertiary Beds.
Ciuridaru,— Animal supposed to bear a general
that of Btuvinuia and Purpura. Shell ovoid, ventricoas, with the
spin but little elevated ; anertun long, rather narrow, with the
anterior canal recurved ; right lip furnished with a boumlet; colu-
mellar lip covered by ■ large caUoaity, often graoulous or wrinkled.
Operculum horny.
Tha saw of comparatively warm climates. Lamarck gives ths
■editflrreneui as the locality of two species. Rang states that only
one ^leolBa is European. De Blsinville speaks of tb* genos na
Inhabiting all seas sxcept that of the north.
' three an said to be fouod in the Mediterranean.
Tha number of living spaoies is aboilt thirty-four. Tbeae are
divided into -two groups by Lamarck ; the firat consisting of those
spedea whose spin ia marked by bourreleta {(7. (ormta, for example) ;
and the second of t^ose wliose spin is without boumlets (fi. ntfa,
for example).
De Blalnville divides the species into two groups also ; the first oon-
sisting of those whose apertura ia long, and the external Up nearly
-tnight {C. Ivbatta, for example) ; the second of those whose aperture
I aoboval. and the external lip excavated (C^.jtamMeo, for instance).
Ex. C. hAerota. Locality, West Indian Seaa.
FotrU CVuridea— The number of fossil (tertiary) speoie* is S6 ; of
these an C. JIammta, C. granalota, C. ervmena, C. taimniii, C binUeala,
, both living and fossil (tertiary)
ENTOMOSTOMATA.
tuU ot Ouiit IKberaia ; s
•i dtngded o( Ouiu tultn
I (dimlnlilinl].
Tha fimil ipeciea are priadpaU; found in France KDd Chili.
Jiifiaiila. — Animal naarl; entirely reaemhllng tlioM of Bucdnvm
and Purpura. Mantle provided with a tube ; fdot much wider, and
aurioulated, M it were anteriorly ; head eeinilunar, with ooniad tenta-
cala, (upportliig the eyes at the midifle of their exttmal aurfkoe;
oxdtatory organ of the male very large, reourred in t^e branahial
ciirity. Such ii De Blatn*ille'a deioription, who made hii obaarration
on ' la Ri'jitiulo horrible,' R. horrida.
Shell OTul or lub^lobular, thick, bewt with poiata or taberclea,
with a Tery short apire ; aperture namin, long, with a notch (which
ia aometimai aiib-cuiBUctiliited) anteriorly; right lip often digitated,
externally and toothed within ; the UK lip lalloiia and toothed or
wrinkled. Operculuni homy, oval, tranarerae, conoantric De Blaln-
ville deaoribea tlie eleuenta of the operaulom as a little imbricated.
There an 29 spedea of thia genus. They aie from India, China,
the Philippioa^ Auatralia, and the Paoiflo.
ig of those with an evideot canal aateriorly and behind the
aperbira (en arri^ de I'ouvarture), S. digilaia ; the seoond of those
wilhoat a canal and beset wibb ■pines, A jhornda ,■ aod the third of
those without a canal and tuberculoui, JL nunu. He obeerres that
thii grnim ia evidently artiflaial : thus it oantaiDe ooe species which is
a true Murex, whilst others an cloaely approximated tA certain
spacies of TitrbintUa ; in &ot, they hare two or three pl^ls on the
columella ; finally, some of them scarcely differ, ha aajs, from the
Ex. Jt. Aorrida.
Three Fouil Ricinnla have Ijeen recorded.
Caneeilaria. — Animal said to resemble generally that of Purpura
Shell oval or globular, rather convex, reticulated, thick, with s
spire slightly elevated and pointed i aperture deuiiovaJ, notched oi
Bubcanaliculated anteriorly ; right lip sharp-edged, etriatcd within ;
Qolumella nearly straight, with many well-defined plaits. Operculum
The species an all eiotie, and the inhabitants of warm aeas. The
EKTOUOSTOMATA. ks
localitjes of the bulk of those known an said by De Btajnrills lo b«
inhabitants of the Indian and Aftican seas. The species have
been found on sandy bottoms, at a depth tanging from 7 to 16
fathoma
De Glainville observes that the genus as adopted by him is not
entirely the aame as that of Lamank. De BlainviUe withdraws from
the genua the epeciea whoso apertun ia avldeiitly oanalioulated, such
ss C. icnd'casn, wbioh, as it appears to him, ought to remain among
the Murica or the turriculated TurbintUa. Deehavea, in his Tables,
mskes the number of living specieB 13. Mr. Q. B. Soworby (' ZooL
Proc,' 1832) describes 22 new species from the collection of Ur.
Cuming, most of tbem from the warm latitudes of the Paoiflo side of
South America. One of them, C. tmiplicata, dredged in sand near
Panama at a depth of 10 fathoma, is the only species koovu to Mr.
Sowerby with a single fold OD the oolumella. Woodward ('Manual')
gives TO recent species.
Ex. C. micnlala. Locnlity, Southern Atlantjc Ouean, (Lamank.)
Fottil Oanc^tiria. — ^Lamarck records T fossil species. Rang saya
then an a good Dumber. De Blainville observes that, scooidliig to
Defranoe, there are SO apeoies, two of which are identical, one from
Italy, the other from Griguon, and one analogue from Italy, Deahayea
makes the number of fossil (tertiary) species 12, one of which he
notes as both living and fcBsil {tertian). Dr. Lea describes and
flgurea, ia addition, 8 species from the Tertiary Formation of
Aiabaina (Claiborne). He observes that the genus has been observed
in En^and only in the London Clay, whence three species have been
described; and, nferring to Deshayes's Tables and hia 11 species,
remarka that IS an from the Sub-Apenninea (Pliocene), 12 from
Bourdsaux (Miocene), and 6 from Paris (Eocene). In America, he
observes, a single species only, C, tunaia (Conrad), had been tbento-
fon observed. It was from the Tertiary Bsda of Saint Mai/s.
Woodward gives SO species, all Eocene.
Purpura. — Animal rather elongated, widened in front ; head targa
with a very short proboscis ; two tentaculs, generally in front aod
approximated, conical, anil supporting the eyes on an enlargement
situated at the middle of their external part; mouth below, neariy
always hidden by the foot, which is rather large, very much advanced,
and bilobated, as it were, anteriorly ; branchial pectinations two,
unequal ; oriflce of the oviduct at the enhance of the branchial cavity
on Uis right side ; orifice of the deferent canal at the right side of the
neck, at the extremity of the exciting organ, which is generally
voluminoos; vent on the same side.
Shell of Purpura Ptetiea, and
Shell oval, thick, unarmed or tubercular, with a short spire, the
last whorl larger than all the others together; apertun very much
dilated, of an ova] form, tenuinated anteriorly by an oblique notch ;
uo EST0M03T0MATA.
onliimitllft fla'.iun{.(l, fininhing In k pcont Ulteriorly ; rigbt lip ih^irp-
edged, often UiickeDed antl furrowed intemallj, or ■tropgly umed
■nterioii; with a conioJ point Operculum homy, demiatntnUr, tlie
■ummit pottaiior.
Ths form i« widely diatribntod, but the nnmber of European ape-
eiea i> vary nnall ; tns great«b development takea place in warm aeaa,
where the spedeR are laaat abundant, particularly ia South America.
The larger propartion of the apeciei of this geuus are littoral The
true Purpiira have been found at depths rangiDg from the (urface to
25 fathoma, and ths division which forma the geaiu Manoeenu,
geusrally on rocks, at depths ranging from the surfaoe to 7 fathoms.
De Blainnlla states that there are GO living species of ordinary
Ptirpura, of which four only belong to the French sesa. The species
of itfonoceroi he states to ba five, aU from South America. Deshayes,
in his Tsblsa, gives 73 as the number of living speoies of the genua
Purpura (Lam.), and S aa that of the living species of Monocemt.
Dr. Laa states Uut his cabinet has nine. Hr. Broderip deiciibes
two new species, and Mr. Fowys one, from Mr. Cuming's collection
(Port Sb Elena, yalparoiao, and Maldon Island, in ths Pacific), and
Hr. Broderip another, Purpura Gravaii, figured under the name of
Xurex carinifcnu, in Mr. Sowerby's ' Conchological liluBtratiooa."
(' ZooL Proc') Mr. Sowetby describes nine species of Mmocern,
among them M. ptmctulaturn (Qray), from Mr. Cuming's collection.
Woodward puts down ths species at 140.
Da Btainville divides the species into four sections: — Ist. Those
whoa* right lip, near the notch, is armed with a conical horn, or tooth,
which ia pointed, and more or less curved. This section is the genus
Jfanoctmu (Da Montfort), the animal of which, according to M. Rang
and otlters, differs in nothing from that of the other Purpura!. Zod.
The Buccinoid Purpurtr, whose lip ia without a tooth, and whose
aperture is moderately widened. Purpura Lapilliu (BuaAawa
Lapilnt, T.mn ), for example. (See above, BacHrmm.) 3rd, The
Fatolous Pitrpwra, also without a tooth at the lip, and whose aperture
is very wide : Piirpu™ Ptrtica for instance. 4th. The veatrioose
tnberoulated speciesi of which he givea P. ntritaidet as the t^.
ILRuig divides the species into twogroups only. The Grat, consisting
<rf Uloae which have the right lip aimple, or only furrowed internally :
the second, of those whose right Up is always thickened and armed
anteriorly with a conical point
Example of the firat, Purpura Pcriico. Locality, East Indian
Example of the second. Purpura imhrieata (Monaeerot imbritatim,
Lam.). Loealitj, South America.
ENTOMOSTRACA. tm
>uth Aiuerk-a is the locality of Cenchelepat. It ia very abundant
lie ooaata of Peru and ChUi, and sometimea attuna to a rerj
]arra»aa.
OoncluJrpat is only known ss a Uttoisl apecie&
Lamarck first placed Conchaltpai near Purpura. Cuvier gives it
very nearly the same positiou. U. Rang remarks that he might have
well united the genus to Purpura, after the example of De Frimsaac
In fact, he adds, U. Lesson's communicatlou touching the sninul
which the latter bro^ight home from the South Sea had proved to
H. Rang that it differsinnothiagfrom that of Purpura,- ita operculum
alone aSbrda a well-defined character.
There is but one species known j but U. Bang states that there an
iro dislinct varieties.
Ex. C. Ptruviana.
a [«™
rn.).
PoinJ pHrpims.— De BlainTills states (' Halaoologie') that no fosnl
species of ifonocn-ai were then known. Deahayea, inhis Tablea, records
one (tertiary) from Italy. Dr. Lea describes uid figures three new
fossil species from the Tertiary of CLaiboms, Alabama (Eocene of Lyel]).
Of Uis ordinary Purpuric De Blainvilie states that there are nine fossil
■peciaa, one of which ia the analogue of P. LapiUiu (fiwctmim Lapilbu,
Linn.), so common on our coasts, as well aa Uiose of France. Deshayes,
in his Tables, gives the number of fossil (tertiary) epecies aa four, of
which he records one, P. lutituuloBia, sa both living and fosaiL Wood-
ward states the fosail species to be thirty.
"" Fat«lloid Entomiutoma ; that is, one wboae shell ia very Urge
in its totality, veiy flattened, with a spire but little marked, and
without a columella.
CaneJtoUpiu.—Tie Bhunville speaks of the animal aa entirely un-
known ; but according to Lesson it reaemblea that of Purpura. Shell
thick, rude, and wriukled transversely on its external surface : spire
very small, hardir projecting; aperture oval, very large, notched
anteriorly, where there are two dsntiform appendagea ; no oolumella ;
muscular impresaion of a horse-ahoe shape, and very visible. Oper~
culum hoiiiy, tiansparent, trapezoidal, concentric^ with a margmal
above the sea.
ENTOMO'STRACA (Huller), ShM ImtcU, for such is the meaning
of the term appUed to certain Aquatjc Animals forming, according to
Latreille and othera, the second general division of the Cnutacean%
and for the moat part inhabiting the fresh-water. The brain, or rather
the nervous knots which supply its place, conaists of one or two globules
merely. The heart is in the form of a long vesael. The brsnchia,
composed of hair-like processes, which are either isolated or connected
in a beard-like form, a pectinated shape, or one resembling aigrettes,
form a portioD of the feet, or of a certain number among Uiem, and
aometimee mandibles and the upper jaws. [Ctpkis; BaaKOHIOFODl.]
The number of the feet varies, and in some of the genera is abovs a
hundred. These feet ordinarily, are proper for no puipoae but
swimming; and are sametimea ramified or divided, and sometimca
furnished with pinnules, or composed of lamellar Joints. Nearly all
of them have a shell, consisting of from one to two pieoea, very deh-
Cate, and most &«quently almost membranous and transparent or at
least a large anterior thoracic segment, often oonfounded with the
head and appearing to replace the ^ell. The integuments are generally
rather horny than calcareous, a condition which, aa Latreillfl remarks,
Sproximates the Entomostrwians to the Insecta and Arachnids. In
DSe which are provided with ordinary jaws, the inferinr or external
ones are always uncovered, all the jaw-feet (pieda-mlchoires) perform-
ing the offioe of true feet, and none of them being applied upon the
mouth. The second jaws, with the exception of the Pkylloptnia,
reaemble those organs, and Jurine has sometimes designated them
under the name of hands. These characters, says LatrailH dialinguiab
the Masticating EnlomodreKa (Entomoatraces Broyeun) &am the
MalaciMraea ; the other BrUattottraca which oompose his order
PtBciiopoda cannot, he says, be confounded with the MaiaeoitrtMea,
beCBUae they are deprived of organs fit for mastication, or because
thoae parts which appear to perform the office of jaws are not collected
anteriorly and preceded by a labrum aa in the true Onulacia and the
Masticating Insects (Insoctes Broyeurs), but simply formed by Ui-
bannches of the looomotive organs, and furnished, for the purpose of
enabling them to execute that office, with small apinaa. The Paciio-
poda, he obaerves, represent in this class those of the class of insects
which are denominated Suctorial (Suceura). Thej are almost all
parasites, and Beam to lead us by degrees (par nuancea) or shades of
difference to the Lemaa ; but the presence of eyes, tha property of
moultiugor changing the skin, or even of undergoing a metamorphosis
and the faculty of being able to transport themaalves from one plaoa
to anothor by means of feet appear to Latreille to establish a well-
defined line of demarcation between the animals last named and the
preceding. With regard to the matamorphosis, ha remarks, that th*
young of the Daphaia and of aome other nearly allied genera, those
probably also of t^prw and of OyfAertno, differ not at all or scarcely at
all from their parenta, in point of form, at the time of their eiclusjon
from the egg ; but the young of Oyclopf, ot Che PhyUopvda, and of
Argfdut, undergo in their infancy remarkable changes, as well in the
form of the body as in the number of feet These organs indeed ia
aome (in the AryfUi for instance) aufier transformations which modiiy
their UBCB. The same author states that he has consulted, relative to
tbeae transformations, several well-informed naturaliata, who have bad
frequent occasion to- observe the Ltraait, and that thoae oUaervO!!
661
ENTOMOSTRACA.
ENTOMOSTRACA.
663
bad never seen a Ltrwxa change its skin. The antennsa of the
.EMomoafroca, the form and number of which rary much, serve in
many for swimming. The ^es are very rarely placed npon a pedicle,
and when they are bo placed the pedicle is no more wan a lateral
prolongation of the head, and is never articulated at its base. The
last-named oigans are often very much approximated, and even
compose one only. The tail is never terminated by a fiui-flhaped fin,
and never presents the false feet of tiie Malaco8trac<t. The eggs are
collected under the back, or external, and under a common envelope,
having the form of one or two small groups situated at the base of the
taU. They possess the power of preserving their vitality for a long
time in a state of desiccation. [BnrocuLns.] It would appear that
not less than three moults are undergone by many of these animals
before they become adult and capable of propagating their species,
and it has been proved, in the case of some of them, that a single
copulation will fecundate many successivegenerations. [Branohiopoda.]
Br. Baird, in his interesting Monograph on the British Bntomottracet,
gives the following general account of this family : —
" The greater number of these little creatures are furnished with
branchie, either to their feet or maxilUe, and when noticed in their
native habitats, may be seen to have them constantly in motion, their
action being seldom interrupted. One chief use therefore of them in
the economy of nature may be, as MiUler says, to ventilate the water
day and night; and as they chiefly reside in standing pools, they may
thus be of great use in preventing them from becoming soon putrid.
"As this may be considered one of the benefits conferred by these
insects, it may be useful to know the evils to man they may be likely
to produce.
" Though they are most abundant in stagnant water, they yet occur
in considerable numbers in the purer sorts of water that serve as our
common drink, and may frequently be seen even in the drinking
water of London, Edinbuigh, and q^her laige towns; and MiiUer
asserts veiy gravely, that as we thus drink them alive, and with their
eggo, he would not be surprised were we to discover them some day
in the human intestines. 'The time/ he says, 'is at hand, when
the causes of disease shall not only be sought after in the air, in our
method of living, ftc., but in the incautious use of waters often
abounding in innumerable animalcules.' According to MiiUer and
Straus, the greater number of the EtUomastraca, not parasitical, live
upon vegetable matter, and not upon animals ; and the former, in an
experiment-he instituted, says, that in keeping a number of species,
such as the l)aphn%a pennata and longiipina, Cypris iirigcUa and
pilota, LynctHB iphericuB, and Cyclops gvadricomist in the same water
from the 24th of Julv to the 22nd of January, during which time the
water had evaporated from a depth of five inches to that of one, he
frequently subjected small quantities of this water to the microscope,
and he was never able to discover any animalcules in it upon the
most attentive examination, though the intestines of the Entomottraca
themselves were seen to be full, sufficiently proving that they had
not fasted diuring that time. This assertion however I am much
inclined to call in question. The Oyprides particularly seem to be
most -voraciouriy carnivorous ; and I have invariably foimd it exceed-
ingly difficult to keep for a length of time any other EniomoHrcusa
alive in the same vessel with the laiger species of Oypris, In a vessel,
in which I have kept full grown C^irocephali, there were mixed with
them many specimens of the Oyprii trittriata. In a few days the
Chirocephali might be seen to become languid in their movements,
and assume an unhealthy appearance. The Cyprida had become
their deadly enemy. They mig^t be seen ever and anon to fasten
themselves to the delicate feet of the poor Chirocephalif and
wofully impede their course through the water ; and when, either
from these annoyances, or from anv other cause, they ceased to be able
to move with any degree of rapidity, hosts of these little Camivcra
might be observed to attack them before life was extinct, anticipating
as it were their victims' death. Then, when life had fairly ceased,
they rioted upon their flesh, and in ft few hours little but the external
covering was left.
" I have no doubt that most of the Entamottrtica are essentially cai^
nivorous^ and I have frequently seen specimens of Cypria in their
turn, as soon as dead, attacked immediately by quantities of the
Cyclops qwidficomiSf who in a few minutes lutd fastened themselves
upon the dead animal, and were so intent upon their prey that they
were scarcely friRhtened away from it by being touched with a brush.
In a short time uie Cyprit might be seen lying at the bottom of the
vessel, the valves of the ^ell separated and emptied of their contents.
Leuwenhoek and De Geer not only maintain that the Cyclops quad'
ricomis lives upon animalcules, but that it even pre3r8 upon its own
young, a fact which I have also noticed myself Juiine asserts that
the Cyclops quadricomis is carnivorous from taste, and only herbi-
vorous from necessity; while the DapAniaim^, he distinctly affirms,
lives upon animalcules. Place a few ErUomostraca, such, for example,
as the j}aphni(E, ChiroeephcUi, Lyncei, &c., in a vessel with clear pure
water, and only some vegetable matters in it, and they gradually
become languid, transparent, and finally die; but mix with this
water some which contains numerous Infusoria, and the ErUomostraca
will then be seen speedily to assume another aspect. They become
lively and active, and the opacity of their alimentary canal testifies
sufficiently tiie cause of it. "When indeed we consider the amazing
VAT. EIBT. DIY. VOL. XL
quantity of animals which swarm in our ponds and ditches, and the
deterioration of the surrounding atmosphere which might ensue from
the putrefaction of their dead ladies, we see a decided fitness in these
EfUomostraca being carnivorous, thus helping to prevent the noxious
effbcts of putrid air which might otherwise ensue ; whilst they in
their turn become a prey to other animals, which no doubt serve
their purposes also in the economy of nature.
"The fresh-water Oammari seem to prey upon them, and the
Mydracknce are their decided enemies ; ' for,' says MiiUer, 'they seijBe
hold of them whUe swimming by their feet, and daintUy suck the life's
blood out of their captives with their sharp beaka The Hydra also,
and not a few aquatic larvro, lay snares for them ; and many Vorticdlos
frequently grevidusly infest them, for they not only adhere (often in
heaps) to the members projecting beyond the shell, but they overspread
the whole body with their own colonies, not a little retarding the
motion and agility of their host' The larva of the Corethra plumi'
eomis, known to microscopical observers as the Skeleton Larva,
is exceedingly rapacious, more especially of the Daphnug. They seize
their prey with the rapacity of a pike, grasping it with their two strong
jaws and gorging it alive. Pritchard says they are the choice food
of a species of IfaiSf which he calls the Lurco, and which devours
them in great numbers. The Chydorus sphericus is their espedaV
favourite, and I have repeatedly verified Pritchard's observations,
having counted at least ten individuals swaUowed alive, and lodged in
the different stomachs of this glutton. Those in the first and second
stomachs were stiU aUve, while those contained in the inferior ones
were more or less partiaUy decomposed.
"The marine species are also preyed upon by their different
enemies, amongst which are the Berdes, 'The fact of Ber6es feeding
upon smaU Crustacea,* says Mr. Paterson, 'has been recorded by
Fabricius, and at present appears to rest upon his authority. It was
interesting to observe the fact, which I did, without knowing it was
previously known. The Crustacea were almost as visible in the
transparent body of the Berbe as they had previously been, and very
conspicuous by the bright green of their colouring.'
"That the EntomMtraca form a considerable portion of the food of
fishes has been long observed, and it is very probable that the quaUty
of some of our fresh-water fishes may in some d^gr^e depend upon
the abundance of this portion of their food. Dr. Pamell informs us
that the Loch Leven trout owes its superior sweetness and richness of
taste to its food, which consists of smaU shells and Entomostraea, The
colour of the Loch Leven trout, he farther informs me, is redder than the
common trout of other locaUties. When spedmens of this fish have
been removed from the Loch and conveyed to lakes in other places^
the colour remains, but they very soon lose that peculiar delicacy of
flavour which disUoguishes so remarkably the trout of Loch Leven.
The experiment has been repeatedly tried, aud alwa^ with the same
results. The Bansticle devours them with great rapidity ; and I have
seen two or three individuals clear in a single night a laige basin
swarming with DaphnicB, Cyclops, &c"
The foUowing is the arrangement of this famUy adopted by Dr.
Baird : —
Sub-Kingdom Annulosa.
Class Cbustacea. Division Ektomostraca.
Legion I. Bbanchiopoda. [Bbanchiofoda.]
Order L Phtllofoda.
Family 1, Afodidjb, containing'
one genus .....
Family 2, Kebaliad^, containing
one genus
Family 8, Bbakchifodidje, con-
taimng two genera
Apus.
NebalicL,
Chirocephalus. [CHiROCitFHALUfi.]
Artemia. [Bbanohiopoda.]
Order IL Cladooesa.
' Daphnia. [Dafhhia.]
Moina,
Family 1, Daphniadjb, containing I Bosmina,
six genera . . • • i Maci'othrix.
Sida.
( Daphnella.
Family 2, Poltfbemid^, conUm- ( Polypftemus.
ing two genera . . . .\ Evadne.
Eurycercus.
Chydorus, [Chtdobub.]
Family 3, Ltnceida, containing
seven genera ....
V.
Camptocercus,
Acroperus.
AloruL
PUuroxus,
Peracantka,
Legion II. Lophybopoda.
Order I. Ostbaooda.
' Cypris.
Family 1, Ctpridid^, containbg J ^J)^^ [Ctthebe.]
five genern , , . • Cythereis.
I Cypridina^
^ O
603
ENTOMOSTBACA.
ENTOPHYTA,
tM
Order II. Copxfoda.
Fftznily 1, Ctclopxda, contAuiing
four genera
Family 2, DiAPTOiDDiB, oontaining^
three genera ...
Canthocomptui.
Arpactiimt.
AUeiUhcL
IHaptomut.
Temora.
Anomaloecra,
CfetochUua,
Family 8, Cxtochiudis, contain-
ing one genuB
Placed here provisionally, genus . ' Notoddpkyt,
L^on III. PdoiLoroDA. [Posoilqfoda.]
Order I. Siphokostoha.
Tribe 1. Pxltocephai.a.
Family 1, Abguuda, containing
one genus
Ftooily 2, CALiaiDiS, containing^
four genera
*Argvlu9. [Arqulus.]
OaUguB, [Caligub.]
Zepeoptheirut,
Ohalimfu.
jDJiMtnottra.
Family 8, Pandarida, containing _ „.
two genera APandcurus.
Family 4, CxcBOPiDJEy containing f(7ecrof»t.
two genera ,\L(Bmarffus,
Tribe 2. Paohtosphala.
mg one genua . j
Family 2, Eboasilid^i, contamingl jy.. ..^
one genus ,..../
Order II. Lebkeada [Lebnead^]
Tribe 1. AircHOBAfiTOMAOxA.
Family' 1, Chondbaoamthiojb, f (7Aofu2racan(Aii«.
containing two genera . \ Lemmtoma,
Tribe 2. Avcqobacabpacsa.
Family 1, Lebnbopododje, con- 1 > m .i i ij.^
taixung one genus yjjemeopooa,
Family 2, Anchobelladjs, con- ^^ dkordiA.
taixung one genus jAncnoreua,
Tribe 3. Ahohobaobbacxa.
Family 1, Pxvxllada, containing'
one genus
Family 2, LxBuxooxBAPiBy contain-^ '
isg two genera .
Z/emconcma,
Zemeoeera,
Z/cmccL
In M. LatreiUe's second method, the BrUomottraea were treated as
a sub-dasB, with the following chaxncters : — Mandibles naked or none ;
moutii formed of two rows of pieces ; antennae and feet of a branchial
form ; tarsi without a homy nail at the end ; shell dypeaoeous or
ahield-like, uniyalye or bivalve, or with annular homy or membranous
segments of the body ; eyes sessile, often united so as to form one.
1st Section. (Opercul^ shell univalve or bivalve.)
•
Shell Univalve. (Clypeao^)
Ist Order, Xyphosures. (Ex. LimuUu.)
2nd Order, Fneumonures. (Ex. Ozohu.)
8rd Order, Phyllopodes. (Ex. Apw.)
*•
Shell Bivalve. (Ostrachodes.)
4th Order, Ostrachodes. (Ex. Oyprit,)
2nd Section. (Nues, body annulated throuf^out its length.)
6th Order, Ptoudopodes. i^Toyclopi.)
6th Order, Cepfaalotes. (Ex. Potyphmm,)
In the last edition of Cuvier's 'R^gne Animal,' M. Latreille
divides the EwtWKiotiraca into two orders : —
I. BBAlfCHIOPODA.
II. POECILOPODA.
The PosciLOPODA he divides into two families :—
Ist Xyphotv/ra.
This family consiBts but of one genus, namely, Limvlm.
2nd. Siphonottomck.
This family he separates into two tribes : —
1. Caligides.
This tribe contains the genera Ai^tUut, diligtu, and its sub-genera
PandaruSf JHnemowaf &a, and Cecrops,
2. LemtgiformeB.
This tribe consiBts of DicheUsttum and Nic9tho€,
H. Milne-Edwards remarks, that at the first glance the branchial
feet of ApuB and of many other En(omottr<ica would appear to have
hardly anything in common with the ambulatory feet or buccal
members of the Decapods; but, nevertheless, the same parts are
found among the former. In fact, he observes, in the great foliaoeoua
lamins or blades, the structure of which seems as complicated as it
is anomalous^ the analogues of the fiagrum (fouet), palp, and stem
(tige) are easily traced. The first of these appendages constitutes
the flattened veaide which occupies the basikry and external part of
the foot: its form is l^e same as amon^ the Stomapods^ and its
structure further confirms the approximation.
The last-named author proposes the following method, dilFeiiDg
from that of Latieille not only in the number of the orders under
which the difibrent Ormtacea are arranged, but also in the limits
aaaigned to many of these divisions : —
A. Mouth deprived of special organs of mastication.
Orders.
Xyphosures.
Sipnonostomes.
jB. Mouth armed with special organs of mastication, namely, with
one pair of mandibles, and with one or more pairs of jaws.
Orders.
Ostrapodes. Isopodes.
Clsdooeres. Amphipodes.
Phyllopodes. Stomapodes.
Cop^podes. Decapodes.
LsBmipodes.
M. Milne-Edwards further states that Latreille, a little before his
death, was again occupied with the subject, and introduced into
his method many modifications, which made it approach nearly to
that proposed by M. Milne-Edwazds. The latter says that Latreille
in fact admitted into the daas Onut€ieea 1& orders, namely, the Decsr
pods, the Stomapods, the Loemipods, the Amphipods, uie Isopods,
the Dicladopods, the Lophyropes, the Ostrapods, the Xyphosures, and
the Siphonostomes ; and that the Dicladopods very nearly correspond
to the Copepods of M. Milne-Edwards. Tne last-named author, when
speakinff of Latreille's classification in the first edition of the ' R^e
Animal, spei^ of Latreille's not attaching to the distinction of
Malfieofltraea and EwU>moilr<iea an importance- which those divisions
do not deserve ; but M. IQlne-Edwards still retains the term JWtom<»-
Uraca ; for we find in his synoptical table (' Histoire Katuielle dee
Cmstao^s — Suites ^ Bufift>n'), imder the sub-class of MaxiSated
Crustaceans, the l^on of Branchiopods, containing the orders Ottfxk-
poda and PhyUopoda, and the legion of Bntomostraca, consisting of
the orders Cop(^poda and (HadocerfL
The reader who wishes to study the classification, economy, and
anatomy of the Bntomot^ntca, should more particularly consult,
besides the works above alluded to, those of Swammerdam, Need-
luun, Lenwenhoek, De Qeer, Ramdhor, Scholfer, Straus, Hermann, the
younger Fabricius, the Jurines, father and son, Adolphe Brongniart,
SlabMr, Desmarest^ De BlainviUe, Thompson, and Audoum.
Foml Sntomostracti.
The remains of small Cfnuiacea evidently referribJe to this family
have been found in many strata. Setting aside the Trilohiiu, whose
affinities are evidently with the Entomottrctca [Tbilobites], and which
abounded in the earliest Palaeozoic Rocks, species belonging to the
group Ottracoda have been described as occuring in the older Secondary
Rocks. M. Hisinger has figured and described two species from the
Silurian Rocks of Sweden ; Count Miinster has given short descrip-
tions of ei^t species from the Bergkalk of Regnitsstorao near Hof ;
Professor M'Coy has figured and described twenW-two speciea from
the Carboniferous Limestone of Ireland ; M. de Koninck six species
from the Carboniferous System of Belgium, and Mr. Bean one species
from the Newcastle Coal-Beds. Species have also been described by
Portlock, Homer, Hibbert^ and Murchison, making altogether about
thirty-seven distinct forms belonging to the Silurian and Carboni-
ferous Rocks. Ten species have been described from the Ma^^Hnan
Limestone of North Britain, and Mr. Rupert Jones has described
twenty-six species from the Chalk. The fossil speciea mostly belong
to the genus Cythere. [Ctthebb.] Species have also been found in
the Wealden Beds of Ureat Britam and in the Tertiaries of Europe.
The forms of the Entomoatraca have at present been only partially
examined, but the results already obtained lead to the conviction
that in all strata there are deposits of these animals which, when
properly examined into^ will lead to the discovery of many new
and instroctive forms.
(Jones, On the Entomoairaca of the Oretaceoue Formations cf England,
and On Permian FoenU, in Paimontographical Society's Works.)
ENTOPHYTA (from ivrw and ^vt6v), a term applied to plants
found living withm animal bodiea The term Epiphyta has been
applied to those forms of plants which live upon the external parts
of ox^ganised beings whether plants or animals. It is however
difficmt to draw the line between these two classes, because it
frequently happens that a plant whose spores are deposited in the
interior of an animal body, in thd course of growth find their way to
the surfiice. The term Epiphyte has alBo been employed to designate
those higher forms of plants, more especially the Orchidacece which
are found growing on other plants, so that th^ term Entophyte is
666
BNTOPHYTA.
ENTOPHYTA.
more especially used to deeignate those ciTptogamie plants which
grow on the akin or mnoous membranes of aninuls. These will be
more particularly referred to here. At the same time it should be
obaerred that a large number of cirptogamic plants are found in the
liTing tissues of other plants, and claim to be regarded as Entophytes
in relation to the vegetable kingdom.
The study of EnU^jfta has been invested with considerable interest^
since by the aid of the microscope so many of these plants haye been
detected accompanying various diseased conditions of the animal body.
Although they have been perhaps more carefullv investigated in the
human body, it has been for a long time a familiar fact that many of
the lower animals are attacked by these plants in states of disease.
Thus the cultivators of the silk-worm have observed the growth of a
spedes of ^otryttt in the organs of that animal, produeinggreat destroo-
tion amongst wem, and the occurrence of this Amgus is known by the
name of Mus(»tfdine. [MtTSOABDiKB.] Caterpillars have been brought
to this country from New Zealand, Australia, and China, as curiosities,
from the bodies of which a species of Qanaria or Spharxa of consi-
derable sise is found to project. A species of PoUtteSf a kind of wasp,
has been observed in the West Indies to be subjected to the attaoka
of a fungus which appeared on the surface of its body in the ibrm of
a growth as laige as itself. The oommon hous»-fly is often seen in
the autumn of the year adhering helplessly to a jMUe of window*glaas
from the growth of a fungus on its body, whicn has not been free
from the suspicion of producing even so formidable a disease as
(Solera. Qold-fiah, when kept in confinement, as weU as watnrssla
manders and sticklebacks, have been observed to be covered with a
funffus {Acklyapn>lifera) before death.
These faots, and many others, have from time to time attraeted atten-
tion, which, having been followed up by diligent observations with the
microscope, have led to the disoovery of a very large dass of vegetable
bodies takhig up their ordinary residenoe within or upon aaifflal
surfaces.
A question has been raised ss to whether these plants are the
natural products of the bodies on which they are {bund, as other
plants are of the soil in which they grow, or are introduced from
some foreign and extraneous souroei From the observations that
have been made up to the present time, it appears that these plants
are truly in their natural positions in the lo<^ikties In which they are
found, uid that th^ only multiply or become sources of disesse when
the bodies on which they grow eet into a disordered state. In the
same manner the ova of animalcules seem constantly present in the
air and water, only awaiting the proper combination of cireumstanees
to be devdoped in prodigious numbers. The dreomstances which
predispose to the growth of these Entophytes up<m the body, are not
better Imown than those which predispose the body to receive certain
contagionB. A fiulure of the ordinary vital powers to catty on the
healthy processes of life seem ordinarily to be the invitinff cause of
such a development of these plants as would constitute a dJaease.
All the observations thai have been made on this important suljeet
have been brought together by M. Bobin in his worit on tiie ' Natural
History of the Parasitic Vegetables which Grow on Man and en
Living Animals' (Paris, 181^8). The following is a elassifleaition of
these plants : —
L ALO&
Class Itoearpece,
Sub-Class L JHatamecB.
Qenus Psorotpemia, 11 species.
SuM^aas IL Malacopkyceas,
Tribe Oymnoipermea^
Order I. ErtmotpervMce,
Sub-Order I. Mycophycca,
Family Crypiococeea.
Qenus Uryptoeoccut, 2 spedes.
Tribe PcUmdlecB,
Qenus Meriimopctdia veiUrievH, [Saboika.]
Family LepMhricea,
Genus Leptothrix, 2 spedes.
Qenus Cladophytum comatum.
Qenus Arthr(nMtiu, 2 spedes.
Tribe LeptomUecB.
Qenus LepUmUut, 6 spedes.
Qenus Mouliniea, 8 species.
Tribe LaprolegnietB.
Genus SaproUgniaferax.
Gbnus JBnterobryvs, 4 species.
Qenus ^cortno, 2 spedes.
Sub-Order III. Tiloblastece.
FamUy OiciUariett,
Qenus OBciUarUt,
Qenus Zygncema crwicUum,
Order II. OryptoapermecB.
Family Chostopkorete.
Genus Chigtophora meUorHca.
II. Fungi.
Division I. ArthrotporcU
Tribe Tomiwei.
Genua Trickoph^n, 8 species.
Genus Microtparon, 8 species.
Genus Spanndonema musca.
Tribe Oidiei.
Qenus Aehorion Schanleinii.
Genus Oidwm, 8 spedes.
Tribe Aspergillei,
Genus AtperyittuSf 8 spedesL
Divinon IL TriekoBpareL
Tribe OgsydadeL
Genus DaetyUma oogenmm.
Qenus BiAriftu Baatiana,
Tribe BpcTOtriehtL
Genus Spormtri^Mm*
Tribe lioriei.
Qenus Itaria, 12 species.
Division III. Cyttoporei.
Tribe ColumeUati.
Section Aicophorei.
Genus Mucor Mucedo.
Division IV. ChiroaporeL
Tribe Coniopridei,
Section Pkragfmdiei.
Genus PuoHniafaivi.
Sub-Division Endodivei.
Section Spheronomei
Genus LahaMenia, 2 species.
Tribe SareoptideL
Qenus StUbtun Buquetii,
Dividon V. Thecaaporei.
Tribe SphasriaeeL
Genua Sphcnriaf 8 spedes.
Genus KerUroapornMi, 2 spedes.
The following is a list of the distribution of the species of the
above genera in the various localities of the animal body.
I. Man and the Mammalia,
A, The Skin.
Triekophyton tanawam. Malmsten. (On Hairs.)
T, aporuhidea. Oh. Robin.
T. vlcenm, Ch. Robin. (On Ulcerated Skin.)
Microaportm Audouini. Gruby. (Hair FolUdes.)
M, mentagrophytea, Ch. Robin. (Roots of the Hair.)
M.fwrfnr, Ch. Robin. (Skin.)
Mucor m/ucedo, LinnsDus.
Aeharion SchcgiUeinii. Remak. (The Hair and the Hair
FolUdes.)
AapergiUi apeeiea. Pftdni et Meyer. (Auditory Passage.)
Puecmiafavi, Ardsten.
B, On the Mucous Membrana
Oryptoeoecua eereviake, Klitnng. (Intestines.)
a guUulatua, Ch. Robin. (Rabbit)
Meriamopadia ventrieuli. Ch. Robin. [SABonTA.]
Lep4otkrix buecalia, Ch. Robin.
OaeUlaria (1) of the Intestines. Farre.
LepUmitua urophUua. Mont. (Bladder.)
LeptomiUua of Hannover. Ch. Robin. (Pharynx and
(Esophagus.)
LeptomiUua of the Epidermis.
L^iomitua of the Uterus.
Lqttomiiua of Uterine Mnous.
L^ptomiiua of tiie Eye.
Oidium albicana, Ch. Robin. (In Thrush.}
Fungus of the Lungs. Bennett [OimxTM.]
Fungus of the NassJ Mucus.
n. Birds.
il. Of the Respiratory Otgana
Aapergillua eandidua, Michele. (The Air-Cdls and the
Lungs.)
A, gUmcua, Fries.
A, nigmeena, Ch. Robin. [Mould.]
A. BtHx nyetM, J. MiiUet and Retdus.
Mouldineas of the Lungs of the Jackdaw. Meyer.
B. TheBggs.
Dae^iam oogemam, Montague.
Sporoirid^mm (NewuUogonumi Inrwimewm. Sohenk.
UL Reptiles.
A. TheE;ggB.
IV. Batradkiaas.
A. The Skin. ' SaproUgniaferax. Kiitdng {Achlyc^, Nees von
Esenbeck). [Aorlta.]
y. Fidies.
A. The Skin.
Zygnema erudai^im, Agardh.
(^atophora (TVeme^fo) metwrita. Ehrenbei^.
Saprolegniaferax. Ktitsing.
Triekotrmmia dermaU. E. Germain of St. Pierre.
Confervse of Gold-FiBh. Bennett.
ENTOPHYTA.
ENTOPHYTA.
Align of the Stickleback. ICaniciu.
R The Giik and the Cellular Tiasna
PjonofpcrvM'a of the Pike. J. Miiller.
P, of the Synodonlu SehaL J. Miiller.
P. of the Sandie. {iMcioperca aandra). J. Miiller.
P. of the Roach. (OyprinuB ntUuM). J. Miiller.
P. of the Ldheo nOoHevt. J. Miiller.
P. of ihe Pimelodut Blockii. J.MiiUer.
P. of the Piwulodut Sebce, and of Plaiyttama faiei<Uum»
J. Miiller.
P. of the CaUulomut tuberttUaiui. J. Miiller.
P. of the Oadta eaUariaa. J. Miiller.
P. of the A carina vidgarU of Ghnenvilleu Creplin.
P. of the Sdcena wmira. Ch. Robin.
C. The £ggab SaproUffnia ferax, Kiitzing.
YI. Insects.
A. On the Elytra, and on the Articulations.
Botrylii Baatiana. Balsamo. Montagne.
LdbonibcKia Rimgdii. Ch. Robin. Montagne.
It. Gmerinii. Ch. Robin.
Siilbitm Buqudii. J. Miiller and Ch. Robin.
B. On the Caterpillan and Chiyaalises in the Tissues.
Bctrytu BamantL Balsamo. Montagne.
Genus Spkaaria, Haller. [SFHiBRiA.]
Section (krdycepg. Fries.
Spkcaria mUUaria, Ehrenbeig:
8. tpharocephaia, Klein.
&, entomorhizeL Dickson.
S^wholifenL Hill.
8. Sinenau. Berkeley.
S. Bobertnu Hooker.
S. Taylori. Berkeley.
8. Gmmii. Berkeley.
Kemtrwporimm microeepkdlum. Wallroth.
jr. miiraitim. Wallroth.
iMoria eUmtaratcrmm, NeesL [Isaiiia.]
Ljioceoaa. Fries.
L ttrigoaa, Frl^
/. matktyo/pkiJUL Dittmar.
/. leproaa. Friea
/. Tartariea. Wallroth.
/. erosao. Persoon.
/. apkecopkila, Dittmar.
/. e3DoUt€u Fries.
/. artmearwm. Schweinitz.
/. gpkjfngwm, Schweinitz.
1. gigantttL Montagne.
C. In the Intestines.
MouUniea ekrytomeUg. Ch. Robin.
M, cttonia, Ch. Robin.
if. gyrimL Ch. Robin.
LeptQikrix imaecUiTwm. Ch. Robin.
Genus JBecrina, Leidy.
E. Umga, Lddy.
E. monUiformia.
Cladopkffhtm comaimm. Leidy.
AnJAnmU^a erittatut. Leidy.
A. nitidiu. Leidy.
YIL The Myriapoda.
A. In the Intestines.
Enterobryui degamM. Leidy.
E, MpinUia. Leidy.
E, aitemuatuM. Leidy.
K JulirUrrtMiris. Ch. Robin.
YIIL The MoUnsca.
A. On the Yeaicle of Slugs. (Algue ind^terminde, Lebert)
B. The EggsL Sapmltgnia ftrax. Kiitzing.
The most interesting of these species are undoubtedly those
which attack man or the animals which he domesticates and employs.
With the exception of the Boitytia of the silk-worm^ the latter have
not been mudi inrestigated. Those which attack man, and accompany
diseased conditions of his body are better known. They may be
divided into those which are found on the skin, and those which are
attached to or found in the secretions of the mucous membrane.
I. i!klopAy«aof the Skin.— Ten species hare been noted in this locality.
We shall enumerate them in the order in which they are given by
M. Robin.
1. Tri^opkyton tonaurana (Malmsten); TrUhmycea tmmawaa ;
Mfcoderma of the Plica Polcnica; fungus of the haiis in Iferpea
Umaurana, fungus of Porrigo aaUulatci, Achorum LAerfii; fungus of
the Teigne Umdante, Bazin ; Rkixopkytt, Gruby, This fungus was
discovered and described in 1844 by Gruby in the disease called by
the brothers Mahon Teigne tondmUe, hj Casenave Berpea Umawrana,
by Erasmus Wilson Triehoaea furfuraeea (one of the diseases called
Ringwenn and Porrigo acutuiaia in this country); It exists also, as
>Qinted out bv Gunsbeig, in the Plica PoUmica, although the two
lants were formeriy described as different. The Trichoph^im is
formed by oval transparent spores^ which give rise to artienlsicd
filaments. Its anatomical seat is in the interior of the roots of the
haira. The hairs and fungi simultaneously increassL The former seem
laiger than usual, are paler in colour, lose their dasticxty, aoften, and
brttk off when they have risen some one or two lines above the
surface of the scalp. In the short cylinder then left the fai^gos grows
still more rapidly, so that the nonnal structure of the small stomp of
hair soon becomes indistinguishable. Sometimes the hair breaks off
before emeiging from the udn, and the fungus, epidennis, and seba-
ceous matter, M the ends of the piliferous conduits, and form the
littie prominencies which can be seen by the naked eye in this disease,
and give the skin a rough anserine appearance. The spomles and
mycelium of the plants can sometimes be seen, in the form of a white
powder, on the roots of the broken hairs. Sometimes the cutis
becomes congested and thickened, and then the plant is mixed up
with scales of epidermis, with fatty and albumenoid gianules, with
pus, &C., and crusts are formed of greater or less thi<^neas in which
the growth of the fungus can go on. Messra. Robin and Bazin adopt
unreservedly the opinion that the TritkopkgUm is the cause of the
disease known under the various names above given, and each has
given examples of the contagion of the disease by the transmission
of the spores. Bazin has made the veiy important observation thai
the same disease will attack horses, snd csn be communicated from
them to men. Both Robin and Bazin however admit that there is
some condition of the hairs (dependent no doubt on constitutional
causes) which is osnentisl for the growth of the plants as ■^fw^M^w^
the disease disappears, that is, the fungus dies^ without treatments
With respect to the name of the most common disease in which the
TridiopkjfUm Umamraiaa iq»pean^ the term used by Cazenave {Serpea
Umdau) is extremely unfortunate. No doubt veades are sometimes
seen, and sometimes the OTptogamic disease succeeds to true Herpca
eireimaia of the scalp, but in many cases there are no vesicles at all
throu^out the whole course of the disease. The term used in this
count^ Porrigo aeiUuUUa is inconvenient as ii is applied with greater
justice to Pavua. The old tenn of Tinea is after all by Car the bnt»
and the specific affix Umdcna cxprcssys well one feature of the
disease, the baldness arising from the brittleness of the hairsL
2L Trickopkifion {f) aporuloidea (Robin), {JMycoderme of the Plica
Polomea). In addition to the former nedes, Walther describes in the
Plica Poionica oval or dreular flattened sporules^ which have been too
little studied at present to permit their exact diaraeters to be stated.
8. TrickophyUm (/) mUerwa (Robin). Lebert has dewaibed a
fungus in the crusts covering an atonic ulcer of the leg;
4. Microaporon Amdomm {Grubj), This i^t has been studied
by Gruby, and its ftTi»t,ence, though denied bj Cazenave, has been
confirmed by Robin. It is present in the disesse ooomkonly called
after l^^Uan, Porrigo dcccSmcma or AUpacia circwmaaripia, or by
BaziUy ^Vaea ackromaioaa^ It differs from the Trickopkfion of
Tiaua Umdau, by its numerous waved filaments^ and fay the extremely
small size of its spomles. It is not found, like the hiekopkyUmf in
the interior of the rooty but forms round each hair a little tube; the
hair then becomes opaque^ soffceu% and breaks off The Al**!**"*^ is
rapid, with or without vitiligo of the skin. The dermis is not con-
gested, snd the epidermis is thin and smooth. There is an affection
which shoxdd probably b^ distinguished from the Porrigo decalranat
or Alopecia circmmacripiu, and which is characterised by a rapid
disappearance of pigment from both akin and hair, with or without
Alopecia. M. Bazin includes it in his Tinea ocftrosurfoia, but does
not mention the fiurt that Alopecia is not constant. He states that a
naraaitic plant is present, but does not describe it There must
however be something more than a fungus to cause the total
disappearance of pigment from a considerable portion of dermis.
Besides, when the hairs return they are at fint white, and only
gradually regain colour ; but if the vitiligo were owing to a plant
it is probable they would not grow at alL The disease appears to be
allied to those obscure. pigmentary changes which have a much deeper
seat than the suiface of the body.
5. Microaporon mentagropkyta (Robin), {MeniagropkyU, Gruby).
This is a plant resemUmg the preceding, but possessing Itfger
spores and filamentsL It was discovered by Gruby in a caw of men-
tagra, and has been since described by Baan. Its seat differs from
that of the preceding, and from that of the DrickopkgtatL It is
between the bulb of the hair and the follide in whidi the bulb is
seated, and never extends beyond the surface of the skin.
fi. Microaporon fmfm' (Itobin). In 1846 Eichstedt disoovored a
oyptogamic plant in the disease called by Willan Pityriaaia vtrncolor,
and more latdy CSUoomo. Soon afterwards Sluyter described the same
fungus, snd latdy Sprengler has described and figured it It forms
with the epidermic sodes ttie yellowish-brown scurf seen in Piiyriaaia.
7. Ackorion SckondcinU (Remak), (Oidium Sckcmkimii ; Myeo-
derma of Tinea faaoaa; Porrigopkfte (Graby); Fuqgus of Favna,
Schcenlein was tiie fint to suggest that the honeycomb^ or yellow
fiivous crusts in the soHsdled Porrigo Impinoaa (WiDan) and jP. tm-
inUUa were constituted try a vegetable growth. This has been
repeatedly confirmed, and many excellent descriplions have been
given of the disease now called indifferently Pmma, Tinea famooa^ or
Porrigo acuhdaia,
M. Robm believes he has discovered that the primaiy seat of the
669
ENTOPHYTA.
KNTOZOA.
S70
Achorion is in the depth of the hair follicle, against the hair, and, as
weU as we can understand the description, outside the layer of
cvpitheUum which oovers the root of the hair, and which forms the
'inner root-dieath ' of Kolliker. In this ohservation however he has
been anticipated by Wedl, who has pointed out that by using a
concentrated solution of liquor potassffi to make the parts transparent^
the fungus is found in the follicle round the hair at the place where
it passes through the epidermis. In addition to this, the plant is
foimd in depressions on the surface of the skin, forming the yellow
honeycomb-like masses which giye the specific name Favui to the
disease^ and which from their frequent buckler>like shape suggested
the term teutulaia. The development of the Aehcrian in this
situation is described by Robin after Remak and Lebert A cuticulsur
elevation is seen, beneath which is a small favus. When the cuticle is
raised, a drop of pus sometimes issues : hence the error of those who
have considered tiiis disease always pustular. Qenerally however
there is no pus or liquid of any kind. The plant grows, and the cuticle
over it (supposing it has not been forcibly detached) finally separates,
leaviug the favus exposed to the air.
M. Bftzin describes the Famta under three heads, which are funda-
mentally identical, and di£ferent only in respect of form : —
1. Famu Hrceolaria ditsemina : this corresponds to the Porrigo
fwfoio, Favut diapertugf and T^eigne tdveolaire of other authors.
2. F, McuHformU: this is the Porrigo ievtulata, or F, eoi\fertus.
8. F.aquamoio, a form usually ctdled«cti<«2a<a, but distinguished
chiefly by the iiTQgular distribution of the achorion, and by the
furrowed masses fbrmed by the fungus, the hairs, epidermis, and
exudation.
8. Pftecmia Favi, The achorion constitutes, with epithelium and
a little exudation, the mass of the Famu; but it has been lately
(1850) observed by Aidsten, of Chriatiania, that a different fungus, a
species of PuedMo, is occasionally also presenl Robin considers it
to be only an epiphenomenon, and that it is certainly not present in
all cases. The Puecinia is easily recognized. It has one extremity
(the body) rounded, and composed of two cells of unequal size, a
superior and an inferior. The other extremity is prolonged into a
pointed stem or trunk.
There are still three other plants found upon the skin which need
merely be enumerated.
9. Mucor. In senile gangrene, an ill-described fungus, supposed to be
the Mmoot fMteedo of Linnsus, has been seen on the slougldng mass.
10. AipergiUvM. In the wax in the external meatus of the ear,
Mayer many yean ago described a fungus, and Paodni has lately
made a similar observation — Lqptomitui (?) of the epidermis. An Alga
has been seen by M. Gubler in the epidermis of an arm which was
irrigated for a long time to keep down inflammation after a gunshot
wound. No one else has noticed il Not only Messrs. Robin and
Basin, but Simon and others of the best dermatologists of Europe,
have adopted the opinion that the plants are the actual causes of we
disesfles m which they are found. The contrary opinion is generally
held in this country, on the grounds that fungi are gencurally the
pi-oofiB and consequences of decay, but not its causes ; that in the
various forms of Tinea a special condition of the nkia and hairs
appears necessary for the growth of the plant ; and that in Tinea
favosa {Pavui) in particular, a marked feature of the disease occa-
sionally is an hyper-secretion of epithelium and exudation, owing to
an hypenemic cutis, before any tnice of fungus can be found.
Nevertheless, these arguments, strong as they are^ seem to be over-
borne by the two grand fiu^ts that Tinea tondene and Tinea favota can
be communicated by transfer of the plants and that the disease can be
cured with the greatost readiness by the chemical agenta which are
most destructive to vegetable life. That a special nidus is necessary
may very well be admitted by the partisans of this view, since even
in the case of epidemic agents a predisposition is necessary ; yet no
one dreams of confounding the co-operating cause with the special and
peculiar poison.
It may be desirable to recapitulate the diseases of the skin in which
parasitic plants are found : —
1. Tinea tondentj in which the Trichophpion tonaurant is present
2. Tinea favota, in whic& are present the Achorion Schoenleinii,
and the Puccinia Favi in some cases.
8. Mentaga, or 7\nea mentagra, which exhibits itieMieroeporon
fMntagrof^yta,
4. Pityrioiie vereicolor {Ckloaema), in which the Microtporon
fwrfwr occurs.
5. Porrigo decahfane (Tinea aehromatoaa) in which the Micro-
sporon Audouini is found.
6. Plica Poloniea, in which the Trichophyton tontvrant and
Tri4^ophffton apondoideB are presentb
IL Mntophyta on the Mucous Membrane. — The plsnts forming on
mucous membranes, or in the contents of cavities lined by mucous
membrane, are of less interest than those which grow on the skin,
as in most cases they are decidedly only secondary. We shall merely
enumerate them : —
1* CSyptoooccuB CfereviiicBf Kiitzing {Torula Cerevieice), the Yeast-
Flant in the bladder, stomach, intestines, &c.
2. Meriemopcedia veniriculi, Robin (Sarcina), in the stomach,
intestines, &c.
8. Leptothrix bneealis, Robin (Alga), of the mouth.
4. (heillaria of the intestines. (Farre.)
5. Zeptomitut vrophihu, Montague ; an Alga described as forming
in the urine. It has ss yet been scarcely studied.
6. Lqpiomiiue (1), Hannover, Robin; Alga found by Hannover in
the pha^nx and ceeophagus.
7. LejfUnnUut of the uterus.
8. Lq>tomitui of the uterine mucus.
9. Leptomitue of the eye.
10. Oidium albicane, Robin (Cfryptogamics), of diptheritis and
aptha; Aptophyte. (Gruby.)
11. Fungus of the lungs. (Bennett)
12. Fungus in the discharge of glanders.
To this list from M. Ik>bin may be added the so-called Cholera
Fungus of Brittan and Budd. It should however be added that no
confirmation of the view originally taken by the discoverers, that the
fungus discovered in the dejections of those afiected with cholera was
the cause of the disease, has been afforded. The only explanation that
can be given of the occasional occurrence of the spores of fungi or
spore-like bodies on the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines,
is their introduction with the food. It has been stated above that the
spores of certain species of fungi are found naturally on grains of
wheat, and only await favourable conditions for development. Such
fungi may be constantly introduced into the stomach with the flour
of wheat in the form of bread or other kinds of food.
" In the study of the vegetable parasites of animals, particularly
those of the intestinal caiuils, it is necessary to be careful not to
confound the tissues of certain well-known cryptogamic plants, which
may serve as food or adhere to the ordinary food of such animals,
with tme Entophyta. Thus, fragments of fungi, confervse, lichens,
and the spores of these, used as food, or adhering as foreign matter
to food of an ordinary kind, are liable within the intestine to be
mistaken for parasites.
" In mid-wmter I found beneath an old fence-rail an individual ot
Aehiia nigra, or large black cricket, within the proventriculus of
which were large quantities of what I supposed at the time to be a
free floating Sntophyte, resembling in general appearance the ordinary
Teast Fungus, TonUa, but which I now suspect to be an ergot upon
which the animal had fed« The plant consisted of oblong or^ oval
vesioular bodies^ apparently thickened at the poles, and filled with a
colourless liquid ; but this appearance more probably arose from the
oeUs being distended with a single large, transparent, colourless,
amorphous globule^ which pressed a small existing amount of proto*
plasma to each end of the cavity. The cells were single, or in rows,
to eighteen in number. Frequently a single cell of comparatively laige
size had an attached pair of cells, or rows of cells, at one or both
ends. Occasionally they are met with containing one or two small
round hyaline amorphous nudei The isolated cellules, measured
from the «^th to the i^th of an inch in length by the ^jbo^ ^ ^®
gjjijsth of an mch in braadth. The rows measured up to the g^th of
an inch in length." (Leidy.)
(Leidy, A Flora and Fauna within Animale; Robin, Ifietoire
NatureUe dee Vigitaux Paratitee; Basin, Recherchee tw la Nature
dee Teignee, Ac; Parkes, Epiiphytee and Bntophytee; Brit, and For,
Medieo-Chirwyieal Review, 1868 ; Journal of MieroecopicaL Science,
voL iL)
ENTOZO^A, from irrhs, within, and fj^r, an animaL Under this
name are designated the di£forent living bemgs which are produced
and developed within other living beings. It comprehends a series of
animals differing greatly from one another in form and organisation,
and having but one character in common, which is, that they are all
parasitic, or have their exclusive habitation in, and live at the expense
of, the bodies of other untma^lg^ Thqr can scarcely be said to form a
diiatinct class in the a^nitvifti kingdom, some of the species being closely
resembled, both in external appearances and internal structure, by
individuals placed in other classes, and only differing from them in
the localities where they are found ; thus, the xoospenns, or setiinal
animalcules, which are enumerated by' some aoologists with the
Entoaoet, dosely resemble the true Cercaria of vegetable infusions.
Enikuoa are found in most «nima.lg. They have been discovered in
all tibe Mamnalia, from man down to the Oetaeea ; they also occur in
the other classes of the Vertdfrata ; indeed, it seems that a greater
number reside in birds, reptiles, and fishes, than in mammals. The
InvertdfralahKve also their peculiar parasites; and they have been
ascertained to exist in all the Insect tribes^ and in beings still lower
in tiie scale. The best known species are those which inhabit the
intestines of the human subject, and vulgarly go by the denomination
of Worms, which term was probably derived from the resemblance
which the Aecaria lumbricMes bears to the common earth-wonn, as
this spedes is most frequently met with, and was the first described
of the human EnUaoa, being mentioned by Hippocrates, who called
it the Z\fuwt crpvYfiXot, or round worm. The origin of Entozoa is
involved in some obscurity, as weU as the circumstances under which
they are developed.
" Within livmg beings," says Dr. Leidy, " that is, within their
cavities or the parenchyma of the organs, of course all the indis-
putable conditions of life exist, and consequently we cannot wonder
at their being infested with other living beings adapted to theii
671
ENTOZOA.
ENTOZOA.
S72
parasitic position. Neyertheless, although the oonditio&s of life are
necessarily ever present in living beings, yet these frequently do not
contain parasites. There are many circumstanoesy besides those
essential to life in general, which mfluenoe the existence or non-
existence of such forms. One of the most important of these circum-
stances is the convenience or ease of access or of entrance to tiie living
body infested. Within the living closed cxganic cell parasites very
rarely if ever exists because it is liquid n»tter only which can endos-
mose through cell membrane, and therefore solid germs cannot enter,
and hence uie unfrequency of true BiUatoa in vegetablesL BtUotoa
may and do penetrate through living tissuesi but it is entirely by the
mechanical process of boring.
" The intestinal canal of animals is most frequently infested by
entoparasites on account of the ease with which their germs enter
with the food.
"Aquatic animals are more troubled by BiUoxoa than those which
are terrestrial, because the water affords a better medium of access
than the air.
" Terrestrial animals, on the other hand, are more infested by ecto-
parasites because their covering of hair, wool, and feathers, is more
favourable to their protection and reproduction. A low degree of
organic activity and slowly digestible food &vour the development of
entoparasites, and hence they are more frequent in the relatively
sluggish Ha^vora than in the Ocwmvora, Comparatively indigestible
food, and such as contains but a small proportion of nutritive matter,
from its long retention in the aUmentarj canal, fayours the develop-
ment of entozoic and entophytic geims more than that in which the
contrary conditions prevail. Animals subsisting upon endosmosed
pieces of the tissues of other animals and of plants are rarely infested
by parasites, as in the case of the hemipterous insects, aphides, &c.,
because such food is necessarily free from parasites or their germs.
JEntagoa themselves, on this account, are not infested..
" On the other hand, if the, liquid food be open to the air, parasitic
germs may be readily introduced into the animal, as in the case of
the common house-fly, which often contains myriads of a spedes
of Bodo. Food swallowed in large morsels favours the introduction
of attached parasites ; hence these are frequently found in reptiles,
and even in birds, which are among the Vtrtebraia of the highest
organic activity.
" AnitnaU of feeble (»ganic activity, using solid food, which is Tery
slowly digested and contains little nutriment, are rarely free from
parasites. This is the case with the coleopterous insect Ptipaku and
myriapod /«/«& Cooking food is of advantage in destroying the germs
of parasites, and hence man, notwithstanding his liability to the
latter, is less infested than most other MamwuUM, Did instinct
originally lead him to cook his food to avoid the introduction of
parasites?
* ** JSfUoeoa are more abundant than MiUophjfta [Entophtta], because
the power of voluntary movement favours them in their transmigra-
tions, and renders them less liable to expulsion from the intestinal
canaL"
Although it is now a general opinion that the JBniaxoa are intro-
duced from without, it is very certain that with some it cannot be in
their adult form. From some recent researches it appears that, like
many of the Radiate Animals, the EnUmoa assume various Ibtms after
escaping the egg before they attain their final condition. Steenstrup,
in his ' Alternation of Generations^' has shown that BiUo8oa belonging
to the Trematode forms, pass through various conditions of existmioe.
Thus he has traced the species of DitUtma in the higher animals to
the various forms of Cerearia, l£r. Busk has also pointed out
(' Transactions of Microscopical Society,' voL iL) the pzotataility that
one of the Nematoid Worms, the JPiktria MtduHntiit the Ghiinea-
Worm, passes through other forms before it penetrates the human
body, and assumes its characteristic form in the human skin. With
legud to the JSrUoma of the higher animals, their eggs seem to be
produced in that position, but not to be perfected where they have
been* generated. It has been shown that the ova of the ioUuiO'
cephalugf an entoaoon found in birds, never come to perfection unless
the ova are first swallowed by the Sticklebadc, which being eaten by
the bird, the eniosoon takes the opportunity of assuming its proper
form. The QordiMty or Hair-Worm, deposits its eggs in water, but
the eggs are not developed in this position ; they are first swallowed
by insects, and in this position the egg is hatched, producing the
Omtiui, which becomes impregnated, and escapes from the insect
into waters where it deposits its eggs. The ova of a spedes of Ibmia,
Tape- Worm, when svraJlowed by the rat or mouse, vnll not produce
perfect tape-worms in the inside of these creatures, but if tiiey are
eaten by the cat or dog, then the perfect tape-worm is produced.
[QsNEBATioir, Altxsnations of.]
According to the derivation of the word JBntoeoa and the definition
which we have given of it, this term should include every living
creature found in the body of another (which has not been introduced
from without): therefore the smsU microscopic animalcules detected
in the semen of animals, called Spermaiozoa, come under this head ;
and in a very ablo paper on the 'Entoaoa' by Professor Ovren, we
find them placed accordingly in this class, only situated in a separate
group, denominated ProtdmiiUha, and divided from the animals
forming the class JBniOKoa of Budolphi These minute beings, which.
from their size and organisation, rank with the assemblage of ammal-
cules which are collected under the head Infutoria in the 'R^gne
Animal,' have been detected in the secretion of the testidee of
various mammiferotts animals arrived at maturity. When a drop of
the secretion is expressed from a divided vas deferens shortly alter
death, and examined with a microscope^ after being diluted witli
water, it is seen to be filled with minute beings resembling tadpolosy
and swimming about in various directions, with different degrees of
vdodty, guided by the inflection of a dender taiL It baa been
doubted whether uiese are animated beings at all, or are to be
conddered as andogous to the moving filaments of the polkn of
plants ; but leaving this undedded, we may proceed to state that the
body is dways of a compressed form, whidi will distinguish these
animdcules from the vegetable Ii^uaoria, in whidi the body is
dways ovoid or rounded. With regard to their oigaaisation, no
dimentary cand or gastric cavities have been detected, nor ofgaos of
generation; they are said to be fisnparou% the body and tail
spcntaiieoudy dividing, and forming two independent bdnga The
shape of these zoosperms differs in different animda, the luge end,
or body, being bigger in proportion to the tdl in some than in others,
and their size not being dways in fvlation to that of tiie anhnd to
which they belong : thus those of the rabbit are nearly as large as
those from the bulL
In the present group are also induded thoee minute intemd
paradtes which have been detected in the bodies of many of the
JSiUozoa themsdves, and which, from thdr extemd form, are reftnible
to the Ivfutoria,
The TWcAin* apiralis, an entozoon foimd inhabiting the musdes of
the human subject, has been placed by Professor Owen, who first
described it, vrith the preceding animdcules; but Anther observa-
tions on its organisation have dueovered a complexity of structure
which qualifies it to occupy a place in the hig^iest instead of the lowest
group into which the present class of anirnds is divided.
Cuvier divided the true EnUaoa into the 'cavitaires,' or those whidi
have an abdomind cavity, and a dirtinct intestind cand within it,
and the 'parench^ateux,' or those in which no intestind tube is
traceable, and which for the most part consist throughout of an homo-
geneous structure ; but this dassUlcation im anythmg but a nafeurd
one, as worms the most diwrimilar in their generd mpearance are
here pronuscuoudy congregated together. Professor Owen, in the
article which we have before alluded to (in the ' Cydopnd. of Anat.'),
has adopted the arrangement of Cuvier, only inventing new Latin
names derived from the Chreek, instead of the French terms : thus
he denominates the *parenchvmateux' Sterelmlntha, ttoukdmuu^
'a worm,' and ttereot, ' solid ;'^ and the 'cavitaires' Ccdelmintha,
from dmtiM, and ccslos, 'hollow.' Zeder hud the first foundation of a
good classification of these animalH, dividing them into five plnssen,
afterwards called families, at Rudolphi's suggestion ; and these were
again subdivided into genera and spedes. Rudolphi himself doubted
the posdbilil^ of ever redudng all the spedes of Mntoma to absolutdy
naturd and wdl'defined famiUes, but as Zeder's system seemed ths
most perfect, he has adopted it for his own ; and it does not seem
that we can do better than follow the arrangement of this great
entozoologist in the present article.
Aocordmg to this dassiflcation the SiUotoa are divided into five
orders, or famHies, the NematMeaf Aeantkoeepkala, I^remaioda,
Oetioidea, and Chfstiea, The only point in whidi we shall depart frvm
this arrangement will be, that, instead of commeodi^ with the most
perfect^ and descending to the most simple, we shsU begin with the
lowest in the sode of organisatioiL and ascend to tiiose possessing the
most complicated structure, as this is most in aooorcUmce with the
laws of the nnimd kingdom.
Order L Oifatica (from icdrrit, a bladder), Hydatids. The diaracters
are : — ^Body flattish, or roundish, and terminating posteriorly in a
trani^Mrent cyst filled with pelhidd fluid, which is sometimes common
to many individuals ; the head is retractile, and provided with pits
two to four in number, or four sudcers and a dme of booklets, or
with four unarmed or undnated tentades. The organs of generation
and nutrition are unknown. This is not a very naturd nunily, the
spedes bdng doedy allied to those of the next order in the structure
of the heads ; and the Echmoeoceui, or Ghranular Hydatid, though
referred to it, is not hollow.
Order II. Cestoidea (from Kwrhs, a band ; and ^fBos, form), Tape-
Worms. Characters : — Body dongated, flattened, soft, continuous, or
articulated, furmshed with lateral or margind pores, and erectile
papillae pasdng through them, supposed to be the mde organs of
generation. Head generally provided witii two or four pits, or
suctorid orifices, and sometimes with four retractile, unanned, or
uncinated tentacles ; but the head is so dissimilar in difierent genera,
and their diape varies so much, that they do not form a very naturd
fieamly. There is no trace of intestind cand ; unless the vessels
proceeding from the suckers be conddered as such. In some
spedes nutrient vessds and ovaries are to be seen. They are aU
androgynous.
Order IIL Trematoda (from rp^/uo, a foramen), Fluke-Worms.
Characters : — Body soft, rounded, or flattened. Head indistinct, with
a suctorid foramen ; one or more suctorial pores on the under surface
of the body, which fumidi the grounds for their subdivision into
873
ENTOZOA.
ENTOZOA.
674
genera : they haye no intesimal canal, and the oif;an8 of generation
of the two 86X68 coexist in the 8ame individual. This is a very
natural order.
Order lY. Aeanthoeephala (from lUcovOo, a thorn ; and m^dKii, the
head), Hooked-Wonns. Characters : — Body elongated, round, sub-
elastic ; the anterior extremi^ or head has a retractile proboscis,
furaidied with hooks or spicula, arranged in rows. They have no
intestinal oanal, but distinct genital oigans, and a separation of the
sexes. This is a very natural group, and includes the most noxious
of the internal parasites ; there is only one genus, and fortunately no
spe<neB is known to infect the human body.
Order V. Nem/otoidea (from i^/ta, a thread, and •ti6t, form), Round-
Worms. Characters : — ^Body cylmdiical, elongated, and elastic ; struc-
ture very complicated, there being a true intbstinal canal, terminated
by a distinct anus. The mouth, by its varieties, affords generic
chaiaoters ; the sexes are distinct ; the females, which are longer than
the maJes, being for the most part oviparous. They constitute a very
natural order.
Having given the above brief view of the orders into which the class
Ewtoxoa is divided, with the leading or characteiistio differences in
their form and organisation, we will now enumerate the principal
genera contained in each group, and make a few observations on some
of the most interesting spedes. Following the order of dasaification,
we must commence with the most simple group, the Oyttica ; and
here the first parasite which attracts our attention is the common
Hydatid, which consists of a globular bag, composed of condensed
albuminous matter of a laminated texture, and contains a limpid
colourless fluid Ko head or appendices of any sort being attached
to it, it is appropriately denominated an acephalocyst, that is, a head-
less cyst This genus was established by Linnsus, who regarded as
aninutls those productions which before his time had been considered
simply as cysts. Considerable diversity of opinion still exists as to
their nature, and it is impossible to determine whether an hydatid is
an animal or not, till we can agree what is the definition of an animal :
if an animal must have sensation and motion, this is not one, as the
best observers agree that the aoepfaalooyst is impassive under the
application of stimuli of any kind, and manifests no contractile power,
either partial or general. If an aninud is ohaxacterised on the other
hand by independent existence merely, the hydatid is one ; and as
such we shall regard it^ for it is certainly an independent ori^anised
being, growing by intrinsic power of imbibition, and reproducing its
species by gemmation ; the young are developed between the layers
of the parent cyst, and thrown off internally or externally, acooiding
to the spedes. It is a being certainly far inferior in the scale to the
Oiftticercut, but still not the less an independent creature. Its s^nio-
ture is veir similar to that of some of the lowest forms of Alga in the
vegetable kingdom, as the ProtocoeevM MwUi»^ or Red Snow, of the
arctic regions, which consists of simple and minute vesicles, which
propagate their kind by gemmules developed from the external
sur&oe of the parent AcepEaloiTsts have been found in almost
eveiT structuro and cavity of the human body, but particularly in
the liver, uterus, kidneys, and cellular tiasue. The spedes which
reddes in man is- called A. endogena^ the Pill-Box Hydatid of Hunter,
from the gemmules being detached from the internal surface of the
cyst ; and it is thus distinguished from those of the ox and other
ruminating ^TOmalii^ which aro exogenous, or have the gemmules
excluded from the external surface.
2. The next genus is BehinoeoocuM, which, as the name implies^
is a round body covered with asperities. The S. Aomtaif, or Many-
Headed Hydatid, of the Germans, occurs in cysts in the liver, spleen,
omentum, and mesentery ; the cyst, which is extemally yellow and
eoriaeeous, is unprovided with head or mouth, and contains minute
bodies, which aro described as possessing the armed and suotorioas
head c^raoteristic of the CcenvH and Cysticerei, From observations
made on another spedes, the E, veiertnorum, found in animals, the
partides adhering to i^e internal surfaoe of the cyst being examined
with a microscope, appeared to be minute animalcules, moving about
by means of external vibratile dlia, having an orifice at each extromity
of the body, and the eentro occupied by large globular stomachs.
These littie animals aro the Echinoeoccus, The following account of
these bodies is from the abstract of a paper read by Mr. T.H Huxley
beforo the Zoological Sodety. After describing the cysts he says :—
** The contents of the large oysto wero free Mchinococci and
secondary Eekmoeoeeui oysts, contamed in a dear fluid. The former
wero alive, and exhibited distinct contractile motions. Attention was
drawn to two important points hi their structuro ; fintiy, that the
well-known oval corpuscles wero not calcareous, inasmuch as they
wero rapidly dissolved by acetic add without effervescence, and were
oonnderably acted upon by ammonia. The author supposed that
they wero albuminous, and that both in these and the TanuM the
conversion into calcareous substances is an eilM of degradation ; and
he pointed out ^dr xelations with the solid bodies in the integu-
ment of the Tvrbdlaria, and with the so-called thread-cells of these
and the Pdypea ; secondly, that the peculiar wavy cilia characteristic
of a water vascoular system could be seen in motion in the living
JBcMnoeoccL The dlia wero described by Iiebert in 1848, but the
diBOovexy seems to have been fbrgotten. It is however a point of
great importance now that the existence of similar dlia in a ddbite
water vascular system has been demonstrated in the other Cestoid
Worms. The proper wall of the cyst (as distinguished from the lami-
nated capsule) was traversed by a network of afiastomosing vessels, to
the points of union of which the fixed Echinococci wero attached, the
cavity of the pedide of the latter appearing to be continuous with
that of the vessels. It is in the cavity of the pedicle that Yirohow
observed cilia. The secondary cysts varied in size from 1-1 00th to
l-80th of an inch. The contained Echinoeocci wero always of about the
same siae, and all the entailer secondaiy cysts possessed from one to
four Eckinoeoecut heads attached to their outer surface. Tlie wall of
the secondary cysts contains vessels like those of the primary one.
In the larger cysts the external heads wero found gradually disap-
pearing until they wero quite smooth extemally. When the secondary
cysts wero burst, their membrane continued to connect the heads and
formed the pedide described by various authors. The formation of
secondary cysts takes place thus: — Eehinococem heads aro formed
over the whole ixmer surface of the cyst ; this then becomes raised
up at one spot by the development of Eekiikocoeeus heads outdde it
ako, and gradually projecting Inwards, and acquiring a narrower and
narrower pedide it eventually falls into the cavity of the cyst as a
free secondaiy cyst The external heads of the secondary cyst (inter-
nal of the primary cyst) then gradually disappear, the internal ones
(external of the primary eyst) romaining entire and in a normal state.
The process is not eBsentially different from the ordinary germination
of a Tcenia, or Cy»tictrcu», The author then endeavoured to show
that the EekinaeoecuB is nothing' but the ' Soolex-f orm ' — ^to use Van
Beneden's term— of a Taenia rotrocted within itself, then greatly
dilated, and developing Echmocoeciu heads from its inner and outer
surfaces, which aro however, like those of a serous sac, in reaUty both
outer. It is the extreme result of modifications dmilar to tboae
already undergone by the Tenioid type in Canurut and Cyttioercut,
The ooncludon thus drawn on anatomical grounds is strikingly con-
firmed by the result of the recent experiments of Von Siebold, who
fed young puppies on milk containing Echinococci^ and after a short
time discovered Tcenin in their intestines."
8. Antkocephal¥4 is the next genus. — It occurs in fish, in the liver,
mesentery, and peritoneum, and within hydatids in the viscera. Each
animal exists solitaril v in a double bladder, of which the outer layer
is hard and elastic, the inner more thin and delicate. The body is
long, flat, tenninated behind by a caudal veside, and in front by a
head with two or four fossas, and four probosoes furnished with
spicular processes.
4. CcBwu/nu, — This has the terminal cyst common to many bodies
and heads; the former aro dongated, flattisb, and wrinkled; the
latter aro furnished with a rostrum, on which there are hooks and
suckers adhering in greater or less number to the suiface of a bladder
filled with fluid. The best known spedes is the 0. eerebralii, com-
monly devdoped in the brain of sheep, and giving rise to the disease
called the Staggen*
5. Oyaliceretu, — Here there is a dilated cyst formiug the termination
of a shigle entozoon : the head has four suckers, and a rostrum
furnished with recurved processes or hooks. Of this genus one
spedes is known to infest tne human subject^ the O. eelkilomB, It is
developed in the interfiudcular cellular tissue of the musdes, and
is invariably surrounded by an adventitious oapsule of condensed
surrounding substance. This entoaoon occurs much more rsrely in
this country than on the<]!ontinent. It is not confined to the muscular
structures, for several individuals have been detected in the anterior
chamber of the eye, whero they may oocadon so mudi irritation and
inflammation of the organ as to require extraction, which occurred
some years ago in a case in the Glasgow Ophthalmic Infirmary. These
paradtes also occur in quadrupeds, particularly tiie hog, giving rise
to that stato of the muscles which is called Measly Pork.
Of the Cestoid order of Eniotoa Rudolphi has described 8 geneim,
two only of which contain each a single spedes that infest the numao
body: —
1. JBothrioeephalfu, the spedes of which ooour frequently in fishes
and birds, in tiie branchiso, oesophsgus, pyloric appendices, intestines,
and abdominal cavity. The one which affects the human subject^
B, laku, or Tania lata, rarely falls under the observation of the
English entoioologist, but is oommon in the intestines of man in
Switoerland, Russia, parts of France, ice. It may be dlBtinguished
from the Tceaiia Mdium by the form of the segments, which aro
broader than they aro long, and by the position (J the genital pores,
which aro on the under surfiuse of the body, instead of at tiie ddes ;
the head is also very different, lor instead of having four round
osoula, charaotoristic of the true Tamiee, there are two lateral longitu-
dinal fosse or bothria.
2» ToaUa. — ^This genus haa the body flat^ long, articulated, with four
sucken oa the head. It occurs in the intestines, biliary ducts, gall-
bladder, and liver of vertebcato M>imAl«. The T, Molium, common
Tape-Worm, inhabits the human intestines, but not with equal
frequency in all countries, though its distribution seeuks to be much
more extendve than that of the Bothnoe€pkaht$ laiui. It occurs in
England, Holland, Qermany, SwedeUt Ita!^, Groece, and most coun-
triea in Europe, and also in Egypt and the East ; and in aU these
dtuations the other genus is comparativdy rare.
The delicacy of their struotnre^ Mid their so iddom bdng obtained
£76
ENTOZOA.
ENTOZOA.
STB
entire, has thrown great obstacles in the way of their investigation.
The head was for a long while unknown, and it was disputed whether
nourishment was taken in by the latraal pores of the several joints
or by the mouth alone. Budolphi says the latter, and it seems now
pretty clearly determined that the former are mere outlets of the
generative organs. The length to which the T, solium is capable of
attaining is very considerame, but qidte indefinita Those passed
now-a-days seldom exceed twenty feet^ but in former times we read
of much more gigantic specimens ; but whatever may be thought of
some of the accounts which are quite improbable, it indubitably has
occasionally attained a very great length, having been found extending
from the pylorus to within a few inches of the anus, and then by no
means fully stretched out Such cases are however very rare.
The determination of the species in this genus is very difficult :
they may be divided for greater convenience into three sections : —
The first are without a proboscis, the Tcenia inermet; the second have
one, but unanned, T: rottdkUce; the third are furnished with an
uncinated proboscis, T, armcUcB,
3. CaryophyUaniu has the body fiat, continuous ; the head dilated,
and divided into flattish processes ; it is furnished with an upper and
under lip. The species of this genus occur in the intestines of fishes
(carp, &C.).
4. ScoUx, — The body is fiat and continuous; the head has four
foBS» on it. It occurs also in the intestines and abdomen of fishes,
sepias, &c
5. Oymnorh'ifnchvbi. — This genus has the body very long, with a
globulur receptacle at the neck ; head with two opposite foss», and
four naked retractile probosoes. The species occur in the muscular
substance of many fish.
6. TdrarhynetMM, — Body fiat> continuous, head with four fossse and
four retractile probosces, furnished with recurvated spicular processes.
It occurs in reptiles, fishes, Molluaea, in tho'musdesy branchisB,
stomach, and its membranes, the liver, and peritoneum.
7. LigulcL — ^In its first stage of development the body is elongated
, with a lon^tudinal fissure, without any appearance of head, or organs
of generation. In its perfect state there is a simple fossa on each
side of the head, and the ovaries and processes form a single or double
row along the median line. The species occur very frequently in
birds and fishes, but very rarely in Mammalia,
8. Trioenophorua has the body elongated, fiat, sub^rticulated ;
mouth bilabiate, and furnished on each side with two tricuspid
acicular processes. It is found in fishes.
The Trematode order is divided into six genera, which also include
only two species infesting the human body.
1. The first genus is ManoHomaf which has only a single anterior
pore. It occurs in Mammalia, birds, reptiles, and fishes.
2. AmphiMtoma is furnished with two pores, one anterior and
one posterior. Found in the stomach, intestines, and abdomen,
and in the hydatids of the viscera of mammals, birds, and reptiles.
3. JXMtoma. — In this genus there are two pores : an anterior and a
ventral An immense number of species are known, occurring in
Mammaliaf birds, fishes, &c. The D. hepaiieum, or Fluke-Worm,
frequents the gall-bladder and ducts very fiwquently in some animals,
as the ruminating, and is particularly common in the sheep in the
disease called the Rot It has been discovered in the gall-bladder of
the human subject, Uiough very rarely. It bears a considerable
resemblance in its shape to a melon-seed, being fiat, and appearing
lanceolate at each end, as seen with the naked eye, though, when
magnified, the extremities are found to be obtuse, the tail being the
broader of the two. The anterior pore, or true mouth, is round and
small ; the posterior cavity is imperforate, and only subservient to
adhesion and locomotion ; it is situated in the ventral aspect of the
body in the anterior hal£ Between these there is a tlurd orifice,
destined to the generative tytitem, and from which a small cylindrical
process is generally protruded. The Fluke is hermaphrodite and
oviparous : it lives upon the bile^ which is absorbed by the month,
and is at once so digested or modified by the vessels which go off
from thence, as to become immediately fitting nourishment for the
animal.
4. THstoma has three pores, the anterior simple^ and the posterior
radiated. It is found in the gills of one or two species of fisL
5. Pentattoma. — The moutit is here situated between two pores on
each side, through which a spicular process comes out It occurs in
the frontal sinuses, lunp^ and surfaee of the liver of the Mamimalia
(dog, horse, wolf), and in reptiles.
6. PUyttoma. — This genus has six anterior pores, besideB a ventral
and posterior ona It mostiy occurs in the throat and branchi» of
fishes, and the bladder of frogs ; but one species, the P, pinffwiedUt,
was discovered by Treutler in the cavity of an indurated adipose
tubercle, in the left ovarium of a female aged 20, who had died in
child-bed. The tumour, which v^as apparently formed entirely of
indurated fa,t\ was of a reddish colour, and hollow within ; the cavity
was nearly filled by the above-nameid worm, which v^as about hau
an inch in length, and between one and two Ihies in width.
The 4th order, AcafUhoaphaiOf contains but one genus, Bchdno-
rhynchuB, to which belong numerous species occurring in all daases
of vertebrate unlmaU except -man. They are genera]]^ found in the
intestinal canal, fixed between its membranes, and occasionally even
in the peritoneal cavity ; they have also been found in the neck under
the skin.
We now come to the last and most highly-oiganised group of the
EfUotoa, the NeTfuUoideOf which contains a great^ number of genera,
and includes more species inhabiting the human body than any of
the preceding. It has been divided into 11 genera, namely : —
1. FHaria, — These are of nearly equal thickness throughout their
whole length. They occur in all parts of the Veriebrata, though
principally in the cellular membrane ; they are also even found in
insects and their larvae.
2. Trichoaoma. — On its anterior extremity, which is yery thin, is
the mouth, resembling a minute point It is found in Mammalia
biid% KodAmphibui, between the coats of the stomadi, in the intes-
tines, and the urinary bladder.
8. Trichocephalfu. — This genus differs from FUaria in the capillary
form of the anterior part of the body, and in its swelling out behind.
It occurs principally in the caecum of the MammaUa,
4. Oxyuris is characterised by being subulate posteriorly, having
the mouth orbicular, and the penis in a sheath. The Atearit vermi-
culari$ is induded in this genus by Bremser.
5. (THCtiZtoniM is attenuated posteriorly. It occurs in the intestines
and abdomen of reptiles and fifuies.
6. SpiropUra is attenuated at each end. It occurs under the
nictitating membrane of birds, in various parts of fish, and is said to
have been found in the urinary bladder of man.
7. Phff$alopiera is attenuated at both extremities ; the tail of tiie
male is bent downwards, winged, and furnished below vrith a sort
of bladder. The species are found in the stomach of Mammalia, birds,
and reptilesL
8. Str(mgifln$. — This has both ends attenuated : the tail of the
male termintes in what Budolphi calls a bursa, and through this the
penis passes out It occurs frequently in various situations in the
three first classes of vertebrate animals.
9. Aiearia. — This genus, which is the most numerous of the intes-
tmal worms, 80 species having been already described, has the
extremities attenuated, the mouth furnished with three valves or
tubercles, and the penis doubla The species occur in almost eveiy
part of the bodies of vertebrate animals.
10. Ophioitoma is attenuated at the extremities, and has the mouth
furnished with two lips. It is found in the intestines of Mammalia
and fishes.
11. Ifiorhynchut has the mouth at the end of a sort of erectile and
polished tube. It occurs in the stomach and intestines of some of the
Mammalia and of many fishes.
In the above list of the genera of the cavitary, intestinal, or round
worms, we have not made any particular mention of the species
parasitic in man, and as several of them possess considerable interest,
we need no apology for giving a short description of them. We may
b^gin with the genus FUaria, three species of which are enumerated
as human inhabitants, though two 6t them have been only once
detected. The Guinea-Worm (FUaria Medinennt) frequently occurs
in hot dimates, but the countries where it most abounds are Arabia,
Upper Egypt, Abyssinia, and Guinea. Its general habitation is the
subcutaneous cellular tissue, particularly of the lower extremities; but
it is also found in the scrotum, and verv rarely beneath the tunica
conjunctiva of the eye. The length or this worm varies from six
inches to twelve feet : it Ib about as thick as the string of a violin.
Its colour is generally white, but occasionally brown ; it is round, and
of nearly equal dimensions in its whole length, but becomes a little
attenuated towards the anterior extremity. The tail of the male is
obtuse, and armed with a spiculum ; in the female it is acute and
bent The mode of development of this entosoon is unknown. It
seems that it may exist for many months without being detected,
cases occurring where it has not been discovered tiU more than a
twelvemonth after leaving the country where it vras contracted.
After a time it produces imtation ; in some point of the skin a vesicle,
pustule, or small abscess forms, breaks, and then the end of the worm
makes it appearance, which may be taken hold of, and cautiously and
Siidually extracted. If the FUaria is broken, the portion remaining
neath the skin dies, and produces inflammation, sinuous abscesses,
and often great constitutional disturbance, requiring amputation of
the limb. It seems to be capable of slowly shifting its situation in
the cellular membrane. According to Budolphi, its coming out
through the skin is not to be attributed to perforation of that mem-
brane, whic^ it is not at ail capable of effecting, but only to the
iiritation whic^ it excites in approaching the integuments. ^ It seems
sometimes to affect people withm the tropics in an endemic or even
epidemic form, nearly half the men in a regiment having been attacked
at the same time by it This species has been mentioned as having
been found occasionallv beneath the conjunctiva of the eye; but
another, and much smaller kind, has been detected within the eyeball
itself namely the F. OevtU Sumani, which Nordman met with in the
liquor Morgagnii of the capsule of the crystalline lens of a man who
had had the operation of extraction for cataract peifonned. Two
minute worms were discovered coiled up together. This species
differs from the large FUaHa found in the eye of the horse. The third
Ispedes is the F, hrin^ialiM, whidi was once detected in the enlaiged
bronchial g^ds of a loan by Treutler; ita length was about an inch.
S77
EKTOZOA,
BPACRlDACEiE.
676
Recently species of Filaria with Monostomata, Distomata, and Infu-
aoriOf have been found in the blood of animals. Qruby and Delafond
have found Filaria in the blood of dogs. The results at which they
aniyed may be shortly stated in their own words as follows : —
1. The number of microscopic PQaricB inhabiting the blood of
certain dogs may be estimated approximately at firom 11,000 to about
224,000. The mean number, deduced from 20 doRS, was more than
62,000.
2. The microscopic FUaria, having a diameter less than that of the
blood discs, circulate in the most minute oapillarieB whero the blood
discs can find entrance. A drop of blood taken firom these vessels, it
does not signify at what part of the body, nor at what season of the
yew, contains these minute Hemaiozoct,
8. The chyle and the lymph of dogs, whose blood contains micro-
scopic FiUnya, present none.
4. Nor do any of the secretions or excretions.
5. Nor in the dissection of 28 dogs of different sorts and ages, and
whose blood was known to have been verminous for periods varying
fh>m several months to more than five years, and made with the
utmost care, were any FUaria ever discovelred in any of the tissues.
Their proper habitat seems to be exclusively in the blood-vessels.
6. The authors calculate, from the examination of 480 dogs, that
the blood in about four or five per cent, is verminous.
7. It is so more frequently in old and adult dogs than in young
ones.
8. The verminous condition seems to be irrespective of race, sex,
or general habit of body.
9. Even when most abundant, this condition of the blood does not
eeem to interfere with the instincts or musculsur force of the nT^imftl
10. Nor is the constitution of the blood itself slteied.
11. Transfusion of verminous blood, deprived of fibrin, into
Bound animals, was not followed by any result. But>
12. When unaltered verminous blood was thus injected, Fdairia
were found living in the animals experimented on, for more than three
years, or until their natural death.
18. FUairi4Xt transfused with defibrinated blood into two rabbits,
lived in the blood of those animals for 89 days ; after which time
aone could be found.
14. In a similar experiment with six frogs, two of which already
liBAFilaHa in their blood, the canine FUaricB lived for eight days,
during the whole of which time the blood-discs of the dog appeared
unalt^:ed among those of the frog. On the ninth and tenth days the
doflfs blood-discs having become changed, the FUaria had disappeared,
and the frogs died of a scorbutic malady (I).
15. Iigected together with the blood into the serous cavities or
cellular tissue of dogs, in good health,- the Filaria could not Uve in
their new domicile.
16. A verminous dog, of one race, with a female not so affected, of
another, had offspring of which those belonging to the paternal race
were verminous, and the others not.
17. When the conditions were reversed, so was the result.
18. But the Filaria in the blood of the descendsnts coidd not be
detected till the dogs were five or six months old.
The authors have also succeeded in finding in the verminous blood
of a dog which died in consequence of its being fed exclusively on
food composed of gelatine, laige worms, visible to the naked eye.
They found six, of which four were females and two males, and they
were lodged in a large clot occupying the right ventricle of the heart
The worms were white, frt>m 0*5 to 0*75 mSi long, and from 0*089 to
0*058 inch in diameter. They propose for this hematosoon, the name
of Filaria papUlota hcemoHca Cania domeatici.
The TriehocephaUu dUipar, or Long Thread-Worm, is about an inch
and a half or two inches in length, the male being smaller than the
female. The capOlary portion makes about two-thirds of the whole
length of this speoie& This worm is very common in the ceecum and
large • intestines, but does not seem to occasion any inconvooience,
though inflammation of the intestinal foUides and fever has been
erroneously ascribed to it. The existence and history of the following
entosoon are involved in a good deal of mysteiy. 8pw)ptera ffominia
is the name given to some small intestinal worms which were sent to
Rudolphi, together with some other vermiform bodies of an elongated
form and solid homogeneous texture, which were passed from the
bladder of a poor woman then living in Bt Sepulchre's workhouse,
London. There were also dischaiged, together with these substances,
numerous small granular bodies, considered bjr Rudolphi as mere
morbid concretions, but which subsequent examinations have caused
to be regarded as ova. The small nematoid worms, which were six
in number, and of different sexes, are supposed to have been expelled
from the woman at the same time ; they were from eight to ten lines
In length, slender, white, and elastic; the other elongated bodies
varied in length from four to eight inches. Some of the latter sub-
stances and ova are preserved in the Museum of the College of
Surgeons ; but none of the former ErUowa, denominated Spiroptera
Mominit, are to be found among them.
The Stnmgylv* gigaa also inhabits the urinary apparatus. Before
Rudolphi's time it was generally confounded with the Ascarit lumbH-
c<ride$, to which it bears some resemblance. It occurs, though rarely,
in the substance of the kidneys, where it sometimes attains an
jri.T. HIST. DIV. VOL. IL
enormous size, having been met with three feet long, and half an inch
m diameter. The more ordinarv dimensions however are about fifteen
inches in length and two lines m thickness. The common colour is
blood-red, arising from the nature of their food, as they obtain their
nourishment from the contents of the renal VMsels : they occasionally
find their way into the bladder, and are discharged with the urine.
This entozoon occurs much more fr^uently in some animals, as the
dog, horse, &c., than in man. Their presence in the kidneys does not
seem to give rise to any peculiar symptoms differing from those of
other remd diseases.
The A$caris lumbricoida, the Common Round Worm so frequently
met with in children, is so well known as to require a very brief
notice here. It occurs in the hog and the ox, as well as in man, and
chiefly inhabits the small intestines. The male is smaller than the
female, and much more rare ; it may be distinguished by the end ot
the tail being curved, and terminating in an obtuse point, at the apex
of which a small black speck may be frequently observed. In the
female this extremity is straighter and thicker. The anus is situated
in both sexes close to the tuL In the female there \e generally a
constriction in the centre of the body where the oigans of generation
are placed. This worm, when minutely examined, will be found to
condst of integuments, muscles, digestive organs, genital apparatus,
and a nervous system consisting of an ossophageal ring and a dorsal
and ventral cord. It has been supposed to feed on the chyle or
mucus in the intestines, and to adhere to the coats of the bowels, but
on these points there is considerable doubt. They are often found in
great numbers.
The last human species in this group is the Asearia vermieularis,
the Maw- Worm, Thread- Worm, or Ascarides. It is very minute, the
male seldom exceeding two lines, and the female five lines in length,
and being proportionally slender. Their colour i» white ; they are so
small that there is great difficulty in detecting their structure, but
Rudolphi says that he has repeatedly observed the three tubercles
round the mouth characteristic of the genus. Their abode is the
large intestines, particularly the rectum, where they sometimes occui
in inmiense numbers, and occasion great irritation.
We have now enumerated all the genera of Eniozoa described by
Rudolphi and other entozoologirts, but before we conclude oui
subject we will sa^ a few words on the Triekina gpiraUi which we
have before mentioned. It is a microscopic parasite, infesting the
muscles of the human subject belonging to the voluntary class, and
found in greater numbers in those that are superficial than in the
deep seated. Their nidus seems to be in the inter-fascicular cellular
tissue. A portion of muscle affected by these animals appears beset
with whitish specks, which, if examined with a microscope, are found
to be little cysts containing a minute worm coiled up. The cysts are
of an ellipti(aJ shape, and attenuated towards the extremities : their
length is about ^th of an inch, and breadth ^th. By cutting off one
extremity of the cyst, the Trichina may be extracted entire, when it is
generally found rolled up in two or two and a half spiral coils.
Being straightened out> it will be found to measure ^th of an inch in
length and ^^th of an inch in diameter. From the minuteness of the
object it is necessary to employ a magnifying power of considerable
intensity to examine it satisfactorily, and from the difficulty of
managing the investigation, and the deceptive appearances produced
under the microscope, it is not easy to detect its organisation.
Professor Owen never succeeded in discovering an intestinal tube, or
cavity, and therefore, as we have stated, placed this entozoon in ids
first group along with the seminal animalcules. ('2iOol. Trans.,'
vol. i ; and 'ZooL Proceedings,' February, 1885.) Dr. Arthur Farra
observed, by very patient and minute observation with the microscope,
under fiivourable circumstances, that it possesses an intestinal canal
with distinct parietes ('Med. Gki^ette,' Dea 1835), and upon this
ground it ought to occupy a higher station among the nematoid or
mteetinal worms ; but further researches are necessary before it can
be stated with confidence in which group this entozoon Should be
placed. It seems that this parasitical affection of the humiui body is
unconnected with age, sex, or any particular form of disease, ana it
appears that it may exist without giving rise to any debility of the
vital powers, or even without interfering with the enjoyment of
robust health. [8e6 Sdfflkxbxt.]
For an account of the diseases produced by Fntozoa, and their
remedies, see Anthelmintics, in Arts and So. Div.
EOCENE. The lowest of three great divisions of Tertiary StraU
is thus termed by Sir Charles LyelL [Tebtiabt Strata.]
EOLIDiB. [Nudibranohiata.]
EOLIS. [NUDIBRANCHIATA.]
EPACRIDA'CEiB, Fpacrida, a natural order of Monopetalous Exo-
genous Plants, very closely allied to Ericacea, with the small-leaved
genera of which they entirely agree in habits and from which they are
scarcely diBtinguishable by any character beyond their anthers being
in all cases one-celled. Dr. Brown, in founding the order in the year
1810, explained his motives for doing so as follows : — " The family of
Sricea is now so vast that it seems to constitute a class rather than
an order, of which one part, slthough not a very natural one, has
been already separated by Jussieu under the separate name of BhodO'
dendrOf on account of some diversity in the structure of the fruit. I
therefore may be allowed to propose anotherorder {^pacridea), which
2 P
en EPENDYMjL
b truly natural, although it depemlB upon the ainglB chancter of the
nniuual limpliritj of Uis anthen ; a cbnruHer howaier which u of
the greater valae aa op|ioiied to the 2'cclled anthon of Erictte, which
are geoenll; divided and fumiahed with appendagee. The propriety
of the meaiare is moreoTer confirmed not only by tha nuinber of
Epacridta, large aa it ia, but also by tiieir geograpbical dispoaitioD ;
foral], aafaraaweatpreeent know thero, are ii^habitanb of Auatralaaia
or Poljnena, oountrjea iti which not more (ban one or two apeciefl of
■ Eriaa: are found." ('Prodr.' p. 536.)
Uprivlia mtunifllB.
I, a flown widi a calfi ai long aa the ^-fmti oorolla, and Hrtral taraeta
Imbriatlnf the baae I 1, u lather i 9, Iha ■UmcDaanlararf.
Th« apecie* conaiata of ahruba with alternate or oocaaionally
oppoaite leav«a, which are either articulated with the atem, like
thoM of Britea, or broad at the baae and half-aurroondiog the atem in
a kind of hood or sheath. Their flowen vn usually monopetaloiia,
bat aa in the order Erieacea, it ia not unfrequent to find them with
their corolla divided or diviaible into aeveral pieces, and therefore
truly polypetalouB. The size and colour of the corolla are often
atrikins, and the apeciea then become exceedingly ahowy, and are
fkTouiites with gardenen. Nose of them are of any partioular uae,
nnleai those are eonaidared an exception whose lucculent fruit ia
eatable, like lAitatnthe tapida and others, which conatitnte the
Anitralion cnnberriea.
Dr. Brown mentions 21 geoem and Hi species of thia order in bia
work upon the ' New Holliuid Flora.' Dr. Lindlej, in hia ' Vegetable
EIngdom,' givea SO genera and 320 apedes.
EPENDTMA. [EmHELnjK.]
EPERVA, a genua of Plants belonging to the naturml order
PabiKta. It has four thick end concave sepals connected together
into a peTmanent urccolate tube at the base, with the sidee incumbent,
the upper one the broadest. It haa but one pet^ which ia roundiih,
iHnge — "*" >.-j:-i.i...-rajT__**v...i... fni >« .
which are long thickened Stamenta, rather villoua
> a short monodelphoua ring. The ovoty ,
style long and filiform. The legume compressed, dry.
joined into a
— the base, and
monodelphoua ring. The ovoty is atipitate. The
form. Ice legume compressed, dry, coriaceous,
falciform, 2-valvod, 1- to 4-geeded. When young it ia tomontoae.
E.falcata]£ a tree with abruptly pinnate leaves, bearing 3 or S
pain of ovate acuminated shining leofletx. The panicle is penduloua
on a long peduncle, constantly compoaed of numerous distant racemes.
It is the Wollabo-Tree of Guyana according to Sir Robert Schomburgi,
who infonos us that ita wood is deep red, frequently variegated with
whitiah atreaks, hard, hoovy, and shining, aud impregnatwl with on
oily reain which renders it very durable. The bark Is bitter, and is
used bj the Atawaak Indians aa an emetic
U'indlsT, TtgOal^ Kingdom ; Don, iKcWomjrfeoM PlanU.)
EPHEDRA (the Greek name of the Eqv.ititvm, which thii genus
closely reaembles), agenoa of Plants belonging to the natural order
Oattacta. The nxoies are dicscious; the male flowers are amnged in
the fbrm of a catkin, having a bifid calyx, and T atamens, i of the
anthers of which are inferior, 2 aiiperiar ; the female flowers have a
quintuple calyx 2-parted, S ovaries, and 2 seeds covered over bj the
berried cal^ TiM species are not numeioua, and are found in
Europe, Asia, Africa, and America. The branches and flowers of the
Aaiatic species of this genus were formerly kept in the shops as
stypticL The fruit is mucilaginous, eatable, Butnudd, and slightly
pungent.
£. diitaehga has the sheaths of the jointa S-toothed, blunt, the
oatkins 3, opposite, stalked, the peduncles shorter than the catkins.
It ia a nativa of France and some parta of Qermonj, and abounds in
EFILOBIUH. HO
the southern porta of Europe, and thence eastward to Persia snd
India. The berriea, which consist of the fleshy calyx covering
the ovarium, ripen in July ond August Thej have a aweeliali taate,
and contain a mucilaginous juice.
£ monoilachya hoa the aheatha of the joints the same aa the laat,
but the "jtVi"' either solitai; or oppoaite. and the peduncles loiiger
than the catkins. This plant is found in Hungary and Siberia, uid in
these countries the &nit is eaten ss o great luxury.
S. aUittima haa etuatered catkins and spreading branfJie^ and is a
native otBarbMy.
There- is an American necie* found on the bordraa of Lake
Hichigan in the country of the Chippeway Indians- It bean a targe
froit.
(Bnmett, OitiUiia ij BataMj)! London, Eimj/dopaiia <ff PUaiU.)
EPHE1IERA {l^fiufii, living for a day), a ganna of Neuropterons
Inseotfl belonging to the &mily of Siti/iilUorna of Lotreille. They
have long soft tapering bodies, teruunsting in two or three long
setffi. Their wings are placed nearly or quite perpendicularly. Their
ontennie are very Bcoall, and 3-polnted. In the larva state they live in
wet places or under water, and ei^oy an existence of two or tiiree
years; but when they ottom their final stage of metamorphosis and
perfect form, they ore among the most Beating of living creatures,
existing often only a few hours, and propagating their spedna befora
they die. In thia Bt&te they sometimes appear suddenly in myriads,
during fine snnuner evenings, by the water-aide, where they maj be
seen mtting about and balancing themselves in the air, in the mauner
of gad-flies. (Weatwood, InlndnctionUi EntoatoUm^
EPHIALTUa [lUliD*]
EPHIPPOa [CBJETODOK.]
EPHYRA. rAcALwas.]
EPIDENDRtm, an old name for all the Orchidooeous Plants which
grow upon the branches of trees, and which are now called Epipbytea.
[EnrHiTKS.] In its modem sense it is restricted to a conaideiable
genua of the order with the labellum united to the' column, and four
pollen-mssees odbering to as many little atropa bent back upoo them.
9ome of tbem ore showy and interesting, particularly E. SUnatri,
E, ancidioida, B, cockUatUBt, B. aranuificain, B. byfduta, and E. owo-
purpurram ; but many are inconspicuouB, and of no importance
except to botanists. According to Sir R. SchombuiKk (he eipreaaed
jnice of B, hifidma is a purgative, taken in dosee of a tobla-spoonful
at a time ; it ia also reckonni in Tortola an anthelmintic and diureUc
EPIDERMIS (in Animals). [Skis.I
EPIDERMIS (in FUnts). [Babr ; TiBsirB, Tboetablb.]
EPIDOTE, a Mioeral conuiting of silica, ijumiaa, lime^ iron, and
manganese. It crystallises in right rhomboidol prisms, more or le«
modified, often vrith six or more sidaa. It is of a yeUowiah-gresD
colour, with ash- and hair-brown. It is translucent to opaque.
Lustre vitreous, a little pearly; often brilliant on the faces of the
crystals.
There are three prominent varieties of this species : one of a
yeUowish.gTeen colour ; another called Zoititt, of a grayish-brown or
hatr-ltt«wn ; and a third of dark reddish shades, which contains 14
per cent- of oxide of manganese, and is called Manganat Epidet€.
Another variet; of a red colour is colled TAtUtte. The yellowiah-
green vorie^ is often called Pitladtt. BacHandiU ia an iron ^pidoU,
The grean Epidote has a composition aa follows : —
Klica . . .... 87-0
Alumina BB-4
Lime SOil
Protoxide of Iron IS'O
Protoxide of Hauganese .... '6
Water 1-8
S9-0
Epidote occurs in crystalline rocks, and olso' in some sedimentary
rocka that have been heated by the passage of dykes of trap or
basalt. It has been found principally in the Unit«d States of
Amcrica-
(Dona, Uineralo^,)
EPILOBIUH, on extensive genua of Plants belonging to the
notural order Onni/nicefE. It is compoaed of herbs vrith opposite or
alternate leaves ; oiUlary or solitary fiowers, or disposed in terminal
apikca, each flower furnished with a broctea ; the corolloa purple, roae-
colourad, or flesh-coloured. The calyx has four sepals connected in a
long tube ; the petals i ; stomens 8 ; the capsule linear, bluntly
tetragonal, 4-celled, 4'valved, many-seeded, and inseporahle from the
calyx ; the fieeda pendulous and covered with pappus. Abont 4&
spedee of this genus -have been deacribed : they are natives of the
cooler porta and mountainous diatricta of Europe, Asia, and America.
R angu4t\foli«m, Narrow-Leaved Willow-Hert^ c French IVillaw,
has a creeping root ; erect nearly simple stem ; sub-sessile lonceolate
undulated glabrouH leaves, with pellucid veins ; the fiowers bracteatod
in epicate racemes ; the style refiexed, pilose at the base, and shorter
than the stamens- It is found in mountains, woods, ond meadows, in
Europe and Siberia. In Qreat Britain it is found in moist shady
ploces in the north of England and in the south of Scotland. It baa
crimson inodorous flowen, with blue pollen. It is o very omomental
plants and is often introduced into gardens ; but it requires great
6B1
EPIMEDIUM.
EPiPHYTEa
682
attentioii, as its roots spread very rapidly, and are got rid of with
great difficulty. In Kamtohatka tne pith of this plant is dried and
boiled, and on being fermented is converted into ale and vinegar.
The young shoots are said to be eatable, but the matured plant
possesses narcotic properties. As this plant is very common in some
places, two or three varieties have been observed and described.
E, Atmc/tMn, Hairy Willow-Herb, or Codling8-and-Cr«am, has
creeping roots ; branched hairy stems ; lower leaves opposite, upper
ones alternate, ovato-lanceolate, hairy, toothed, half stem-clasping;
stigma 4-cleft> the segments deflexed. This plant is found in wet
places in Europe and Siberia. In Qreat Britain it is a common plant
in ditches, on the margins of rivers, amongst reeds and coarse grasses.
The whole plant is downy and clammy. It exhales a peculiar acidu-
lous scent, which, from its resemblance to that dish, has procured it
the name of Codling^and-Cream. This scent is not unuho that of
hot apple-pie.
The oUier British species of this genus are E. parvifhrum,
B. lanetoUUvm, E. mon/anitm, E. pcUuetre, S. varieffcUumf B. tetraffwtum,
JB. roseum, E. aUinifoliwm, and E. cUjtinwn.
Although this genus is numerous, the species offer no great variety
of . character. * None of them possess active medicinal properties,
which is a character of the family to which they belong ; nor do they
yield secretiona which render them available as food for man or beast.
AH of them are ornamental plants, and may be introduced into gardens.
They require little care in their cultivation, as they will grow in any
common garden soil, and may be easily propagated by sowing the seed
or by dividing the roots.
EPIMEDIUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural 6rder
BerbercteecB, or Berherideas, It has a calyx of 4 deciduous sepals ;
4 petals ; 4 cup-shaped nectaries ; the capsule pod-like, many-seeded.
The species are herbs with creeping perennial roots and annujal stems.
E. ofpmtim, Alpine Barrenwort, has no root-leaves, and the leaves
of the stem twice temate. It is a native of France and other parts
of Europe in sub-alpine coppices, and woods. It has been Ibund
growing in Qreat Britain in Cumberland and Yorkshire, but Mr.
Babington remarks that it has very slender clauns to be considered a
native of England or Scotland. The flowers are red, with yellow
nectaries. The stem is about four inches high. Its somewhat bitter
leaves were formerly r^arded as sudorific and alexipharmic.
E. pinnatum is a native of Persia, and E. hexandrwn of the north-
west of America. The first species is easily cultivated, and will
grow in any common garden soi^ and may be propagated by dividing
the root.
(Babington, Manual of BrUUh Botany.)
EPIPACTIS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Orchidace(B or Orchddeoff and to the tribe LimodorecB or Ardhtuece.
It has the perianth patent, the lip interrupted, the basal division
concave, the terminal one lai^er, with two projecting plates at its
base above ; the stigma nearly square ; the rostelluni short, termi-
nated by a globose appendage ; the anthers terminal, erect, sessile,
2-ceUed, the cells without septa; the column short; the gennen
straight on a twisted stalk. There are two species of tius genus
found wild in Qreat Britain.
E. laiifolia has ovate clasping leaves, the lower bracts longer than
the flowcTB, the terminal division of the lip entire, with a minute
point. Babington observes that there are four or more very different
plants included under this species inhabiting various parts of Qreat
Britain. These are: — ^1. E, latifolia, with the terminal division of
the lip roundish, cordate, obtuse, with a small recurved point.
2. E. medict, with the terminal division of the lip triangular-cordate,
acute, as long as the lanceolate sepals and petaisL 8. E. pwrpwatOf
with the terminal division of the lip triangular-cordate, acute, shorter
than the ovate-lanceolate sepals and petals. 4. E. ova2t>, wiUi the
terminal division of the lip transversely oval and acute.
E. pahutria has lanceolate leaves, bracts shorter than the somewhat
drooping flowers, the terminal division of the lip roundish, obtuse,
crenate, as long as the perianth. It is foimd in Qreat Britain in moist
places, and is not a rare plant.
These plants will thrive in the borders on common garden soil, and
will also grow in pots with a mixture of loam and peat; they require
but little water when not vegetating, and may be propagated by
division of the roots.
(Babington, MamuU of British Botany; Loudon, EneyeUpcedia of
Plants.)
EPIPHE'QUS (from M, upon, and ^^ry^f, the beech, because the
plant is para&itical on the roots of the beech), a genus of Plants
belonging to the natural order Orohanehacea. It has the BteiHe
flowers perfect, and the fertile flowers imperfect ; the calyx short,
4-toothed ; the perfect corolla 2-lipped ; the upper lip emaiginate, the
lower 8-toothed ; the imperfect corolla slender, 4-toothed, deciduous ;
the stamens as long as the corolla ; the filaments smooth ; the anthers
2-lobed, acute at the base, valveless, dehiscent in the middle; the
stigma capitate, and somewhat emarginate ; the capsule gibbous com-
pressed, half 2-valved with four diverging placentae. There is but
one species, E. Virginiana. It is found parasitical on the roots of
beech-trees in the southern states of the American Union, where it is
called Beech-Drops. It is the Orobanche VirginicMa of InnnaBus, It
ia a smooth fleshy branchisg plant, growing finom 6 to 18 inches high,
and clothed with small scales instead of leaves. The corolla is purple
streaked with white. The capsule dilates after it opens into the
shape of a cup. There is in North America a quack medicine called
* Martin's Cancer Powder,' which consists of ec^al parts of this plant
and white arsenic. It is said by some writers to have a beneficial
effect. (Lindley, Flora Mediea; Don, DuMamydeovs Plants.)
EPIPHLEUM. [Babk.] '
EPIPHYLLOSPERMOUS PL ANTS, so called by the old botanists
because they bore their seed upon the back of their leaves. They
are what have more recently been called Dorsiferous Ferns. [Ptlioes. J
EPIPHYTES are plants found growing upon other vegetables,
adhering to their bark, and rooting among the scanty soil that occupies
their surface, in which respect they are distinguished from parasitical
plants, which, like Mistletoe and the various species of LoratUhuSt
strike their abortive roots into the wood, and flourish upon the sap
of the individual to which they attach themselves. In this sense of
the werd, Mosses, Lichens, Ferns, and plants of many other fSunilies, are
Epiphytes ; but as in this country at the present day the woxxl is
principally employed with reference to those Orchidacea wMch grow
upon trees, it is to plants of that description that we propose to devote
the present article.
It had long been known, from the reports of travellers, that Orchi-
daceous Epiphytes were plants of extremely curious organisation, and
that great numbera were also remarkable for the singular beauty and
fragrance of their flowers ; but when imported into tMs country, their
habits were found to be so unlike those of other plants, that no
gardener could succeed in keeping them even alive for any considerable
time, except in a very few instances ; and it was not till about the
year 1820 that the real method of managing them successfully began
to be understood. About that time Mr. OatUey and Dr. Lindley
began to direct their attention to the subject with some success.
Since that period the difficulties of cultivating Orchidaceous Plants
have been gradually disappearing, and at the present day they maybe
said to be almost entirely overcome ; so that in the gardens of the
Duke of Devonshire at Chatsworth, of Mr. Bateman at Knypersley,
of Lord Fitzwilliam at Wentworth, of Mr. Harrison of Liverpool, and
of many other amateurs, they have acquired a beauty quite unknown
to them in a wild state. Species which in their native woods yield no
more than two or three of their curious blossoms in a cluster have
been found to produce ft^m nine to between twenty and thirty, and
the whole order has in short been found willing to submit to domes-
tication with as much advantage as has ever attended roses, hyacinths,
tulips, or dahlias — ^those well-known flowers which we have from time
to time reclaimed from their wild habits, and by the arts of cultivation
invested with a splendour of appearance that never could have been
anticipated from their original appearance in a savage state. Previously
to the year 1820 it is doubtful whether any garden in England could
at any one time have produced twenty species of these plants, but
since that period more than a thousand have been successfully pre-
served in the collections of the Messrs. Loddiges, BoUisson, Knight,
and other nurserymen near London.
We do not propose in this place to give any botanical account of
these curious plants. For such particulars we refer to the article on
Oboridacejs. Upon the present occasion we shall conflne ourselves
to an account of their natural habits, and of those methods of culti-
vation which appear to have met with so much success. In preparing
the following account, we depend in part upon our own experience,
in part upon the information contained in the writings of botanical
travellers, and in part upon the useful communications which within
the few last years have been made to the current hoi^ioultural
publications, especially the 'Transactions of the Horticultural Society '
and the ' Q^xleners' Chronicle.'
Orchidaceous Epiphytes grow naturally upon trees in the recesses
of tropical forests. They establish themselves upon the branches,
and either vegetate amidst masses of decayed vegetable and animal
matter, or cling by their long succulent grasping roots to the naked
branches of trees, from which and the humid atmosphere together
they exclusively derive their food. It appears from the testimony of
Mr. Henchman that they are never found upon dead erect trees in
forests ; but if upon dead wood at all, then only upon fallen trunks,
which, from their situation near the ground, are constantly damp.
Such situations are however said to be by no means favourable to
their growth. They will also flourish upon rocks and stones in hot
and damp climates. Mr. W. Harrison of Rio Janeiro is said, by one
of the Horticultural Society's collectors who visited him, to have
cultivated with the most perfect success above seventy species upon a
wall in his garden at Boto Fogo.
We even see some of them germinate and grow most luxuriently
in damp places, in the stove, upon the sides of the garden-pots, and
among gravel ; some genera, such as Brasavola, are even reported to
prefer stones; and Dr. Wallich found them in all cases growint^
equally well in Nepaul upon trees and stones, provided the latter had
a certain quantity of mould and moss adhering to them. In the
botanic garden at Calcutta they are said to be cultivated with success
in raised beds of solid brickwork, «o contrived as to insure a perfect
drainage ; the soil being rich vegetable matter mixed with at least
two-thirds small pebbles, and covered with a dense layer of moss. A
certain quantity of shade seems, in many cases, essential to then^
MS
EPIPHYTES.
EPIPHYTEa
S64
their natural situation being in forests, or among the branches of
growing trees. In Braril numbers of them occupy damp woods and
rich valleys, among vegetation of the most luxuriant description, by
which they are embowered. Beinwardt describes others as inhabiting
in great abundance those deep shady gloomy forests which form the
lower zone of vegetation in Java, where the air is heavy and damp
with vapours that cannot ascend, and where the thiclmess of the
vegetation is really frightful ; where, in shorty heat, moisture, and a
most extraordinarily deep and rich vegetable soil combine to produce
wood of a fungus-nke softness and an inconceivable abundemce of
Twining Plants and Epiphytes. In those forests more especially
where huge fig-trees constitute the principal part of the timber,
intermingled with the most tropical forms of vegetation, such as
SlerciUiacece, Sapindaeecg, and Artacarpaeea, tufts of Orchidaceous
Plants abound, in company with AraeecB, AcatUhaeem, and Zingi^
In Nepaul Dr. Wallioh states that Orchidaceous Epiphytes grow in
company with Ferns ; and the thicker the forest, the more stately the
trees, the richer and blacker the natural soil, the more profuse the
Orchidckcea and Ferns upon them. There they flourish by the sides
of dripping springs, in deep shady recesses, in inconceivable quantity,
and witn an astonishing degree of luxuriance. It would however be
a great error to suppose that it is only in very shady places that
Orchidaceous Epiphytes appear. On the contnuy, it is probable that
the cases just cited are extreme, and that they more commonly prefer
situations wher^the broken rays of the sun can readily reach them.
Mr. John Henchman states (' Qardeners' Mag.,' iL 139) that he has
observed in Demerara " That Orchidacea appear to rejoice in a light
situation and a free circulation of the atmosphere; but are decidedly
adverse, with few exceptions, to exposure to the intense rays of the
sun. We may except from this remark Onddiwn Iwridwn, the
Catasetums, and a fine pseudo-bulb found on the Spanish Main (which
I suppose to be an Epidendrvm\ which seem not only to exist, but to
rejoice, in exposure to the sun." Mr. Bateman also found, from the
report of his collector, CoUey, that the situations in which they are
most usually seen are those parts of a forest where old and broken
wood occurs, or on the skirts of savannas. These savannas are Urge
open breaks in the woods, covered with fine white sand, which has
at night the appearance of snow. They contain also many low and
stunted bushes. The Orchidttcea.wieni to like an^ airy and exposed
dwelling-place ; being found on the more prominent parts of a tree,
and not in the shade, as is generally supposed. Mr. Colley only found
in one instance an Orchidaceous riant in the heart of a forest, and
this was growing on the prostrate trunk of a tree so rotten as to fall
to meoes when pressed with the foot (* Qwd. Mag.,' il 4.)
This quite corresponds with the statements of travellers in Brazil,
who speak of their occuring most abundantly in open glades of the
forests, and on the faces of daked rocks, or on shaded bulks, although
they are also met with "in sombre glades where heated vapours are
incessantly circulating."
Where the climate suits them, they are sometimes prodigiously
numerous. Descourtilz, in his manuscripts, speaks of a whole tree
being overrun with a single species; and Henchman also assures us that
in Demerara masses of Oncidium ofttMunwn and MaxUlaria Parktri
are to be seen, which would defy any attempt at intrusion ; on the
Spanish Main he saw the Epiphyte commonly called the Spread-
Eagle, clasping enormous trees, and covering them from top to bot-
tom ; and he also met with two or three species, supposed to be
MaxiUarias, which were growing with uncommon vigour. " But," he
adds, " with the above exceptions, I have not found Orchidacece grow-
ing in such quantities as it has been reported they do ; oft^, as Mr.
Bateman justly observes, single specimens only an to be obtained.
This cannot be more strongly illustrated than in the case of a beauti-
ful Oncidium, which I was happy enough to meet with on the Spanish
Main ; its leaves are nearly six inches in width, of a very firm tex-
ture, and possessing an imoommonly strong nerve ; and though the
plants judging from the remains of the original stem, whi^ had
gradually decayed as the plant progressed, must have occupied its
station for nearly half a century, yet I searchea the neighbourhood
in vain for another specimen, nor md I see another plant of it on the
Main."
This altogether corresponds with what we know of such plants in
other countries, and with the general habit of the whole oider, which
is extremely local in the majority of cases. Upon comparing the
Orchidaceous Plants of Java, of Ceylon, and of the Birmese country,
it is quite extraordinary haw few species those countries possess m
common ; and the quantities of species found exclusively in eveiy
large collection are a corroboration of the same factw Mr. Bateman
assures us that in Guyana " a river may be ascended for twenty miles
without an Orchidaceous Plant being seen ; while, on a sudden turn
of the stream, every tree becomes covered with them : yet they do
not appear to have a favourite aspect; for on some of ^e nvers
which Mr. Colley visited he found uiem exclusively on the northern
exposure, while on others they occupied the southern." The part of
the tree on which they are principally found is as uncertain as their
itation. It is said that they love the loftiest branches, and toe hardly
found near the bottom, and M. Descourtilz confirms this statement
by. describing some of them as swinging in the air firom the top of i
the old patriarchs of the forest, or exposed to all the violence of
storms in the most exposed situations. But Mr. Henchman aaaerts
that in Demerara at least they " do not grow in such high sitaations
upon trees as is generally supposed. Twenty or twenty-five feet is
the greatest height, with few exceptions, at which I have seen them
growing. Some of the bulbless Epidendrums, the Spread-Eagle Plant,
and Oncidium p<ipilio, attain a much greater height. The other On-
cidiums I have not seen growing above seven feet or eight feet from the
ground, and generally on some of the small closely interwoven branches,
and not on the stem or main branches of the tree. The various
species of Chmffora, Coryanthu, and Modrigf/Loda, are, almost without
exception, found in the same position; while, again, the genera
McLxiUariii, Femandetici, Epidendrum, Ceratochihu, CaittUya, Zygcpe-
talon, Brauavola, OmUkidi^im, Camatidium PleuroihalUa, JBraana,
Omithocephahu, Tnteuicii, Qaiautwn, and many other genera supposed
to be new, I have found always attached to the trunk or strong limbs
of the tree, which they clasp with surprising tenacity. It may be
also observed that rough ana soft barked trees are favourite habitats
of OrchidactcB, The Calabash-Tree, which has a peculiarly soft and
woolly bark, often possesses many of the more minute species.
Indeed, I sent home pieces of the Calabash-Tree, about a foot long,
on some of which were six and on others seven distinct species of
OrehidactxB**
A high mean temperature throughout the year, and a climate either
constantly humid or at least periodically so, are also atmospheric
elements eminently favourable to the production of these plants. All
those species which simply exist clinging by their roots to the branches
of growing trees, and probably others also, must necessarily derive
their nourishment in a great measure, if not entirely, from the
moisture, in a very elastic state, that surrounds them. And although
nature seems in general to have provided for the scantiness of their
food by the construction of them with a cuticle only capable of parting
by dow degrees with tiie fluid they receive by their roots, yet it is
obviously requisite that they should be so situated as to 1m within
reach of an abimdant supply, not only at the time when they are
growing, but also at all other times to a certain extent. Hence we
find that the hottest countries if dry, and the dampest if cold, are
destitute of them ; while there is no instance of a country both hot
and damp in which they are not plentiful For example, in Africa
they are unknown in its sandy deserts and parched atmosphere,
notwithstanding the high temperature of that part of the world;
yet they abound in Sierra Leone^ where the climate is damp ; and
even at the Cape of Good Hope they occur not unsparingly in all that
jungly district to the eastward of the Cape Town to whicn the name
of Outniqualand is wplied.
In the West India I^ands they exist in great quantities, particularly
in Jamaica and Trinidad ; not however so much on the coast as upon
the lower ranges of hills. This is in conformity with their habits
elsewhere.: in these islands the air of .the level of Uie sea is dry, while
that of the mountains is humid. Captain Sabine found the air of the
level of the sea at Trinidad indicate 5° of dryness, and that of Jamaica
7**; while the atmosphere was saturated with humidity in the first
of these islands at 1060 feet above the level of the sea, and in the
second at an elevation of 4080 feet. At Rio Janeiro the mean
temperature is 74^ 8', and much higher inland ; the woods are so
damp that it is difficult to dry plants ; and in such situations multi-
tudes of Orchidaoeous Epiphytes spring up. But in the immediate
vicinity of Buenos Ayres, where the mean temperature is 67° 6' and
the air dry, they are unknown ; and in the high dxy land of Mendoza,
where the aridity is still greater, the whole oi^er disappears, with the
exception of a single species. On the west coast of South America,
as high as Lower Peru, Orchidaceous Epiphytes are unknown; a
circumstance which is not surprising when we consider the effect of
the currents setting round Cape Horn, which bring the mean tempe-
rature of even Lower Peru itself down to 60° at nighty and how arid
the whole of that r^on is with the exception of a few valleys. No
country however exhibits in a more striking manner than India the
necessity of a hot and damp dimate for the production of Orchidaceous
Epiphytes. In the Malayan Archipelago, the mean temperature of
which is estimated at between 77° and 78° and is very damp, they are
found in profusion. In Nepaul it is upon the sides of ihe lower
mountains that they occur, where they vegetate amongst clouds and
constant showers ; while on the continent of India they are almost
unknown, their place being occupied by parasitical Lofwnthi. The
traveller finds himself in the morning on the dry plains of Hindustan,
where the mean temperature is 80°, and where all the trees are
destitute of OrchidacecB ; and at noon he is at the foot of the first
range of the Nepaulese hills, where every tree teems with that class
of plants. There are however places on the continent of India where
they are not leas numerous than in Nepaul ; at the sestuaries of the
Ganges, the Brahmaputra, the Irawaddi, and the rivers of Martaban,
they esdst in vast quantities; but all these stations are excessively
damp. In the Botanic Garden at Calcutta they grow most vigorously
during the rainy season, but in the fiercely hot season, whi(£ begins
in March and lasts till the 10th of June, they perish notwithstanding
all the care they receive. Madagascar and Mauriti<is ofieD similar
evidence to the same effect.
While however these statements are applicable to a very large
585
EPIPHYTES.
EPIPHYTES.
6M
part of Orchid&ceoua Epiphytes, there are aome Btriking ezcepUonfl
that require to be pointed out, both with regard to atmoepheric
moisture and to the temperature requisite for their production.
Mr. Allan Cunningham has shown in the ' Botamcal Register/ foL
1699, that in Austndia there are three of these phmts which require
a very dry atmosphere, and it is probable that others exist in other
countries. "These are Dendrobium amtdwn, Brown, an Epiphyte
uniformly found upon the rugged trunk of ^Kolyptm reaini/erOf or
Iron-Bark, in the open very dry forest grounds of die older colony at
Port Jackson ; Oymbidium eanalieulatum, Brown, which of late years
has been obsenred beyond the- tropic both at Moreton Bay and still
farther to the southward at Hunter^s Riyer, growing upon the prin-
dpal'limbs of seyeral of the Eucalypti in the dry open shadeless forests
These two Epiphytes flourish most luxuriantly in an extremely dry
atmosphere, and flower usually in the summer season in their native
wilds, the hig^ temperature A which is oftentimes greatly increased
by the blighting hot winds which not unfreqnently prevail at that
period from the north-west. The third is Dendrcibivm wndiuJUUwn of
Mr. Brown, a handsome species, originally discovered by Sir Joseph
Banks at Bustard Bay, and which has been lately found on barrai
hills naturally dear of timber upon the banks of the Brisbane River
at Moreton Bay, where the plant forms tufts on bare rocks exposed
to the fuU heat of the sun, which during nine months of the year is
very considerable on that part of the ooasK"
In many cases a much lower temperature than that hitherto spoken
of is natural to these plants, and there are some instances where they
are naturally accustomed to rigorous weather. In America their
favourite station, according to Humboldt, is in the gorges of the
Andes of Mexioo, New Qranada, Quito, and Peru, where the air is
mild and humid, and the mean temperature is 63° to 67° Fahr. (17° to
19° Cent). In these localities they are so abundant that, according
«/0 the authors of the ' Flora Peruviana,' above 1000 species might be
found in Tarma, Huanuco, and Xauxa alone. It is therefore not
surprising that one species, BpidendrtM^ oonopMum, should advance as
far to the northward as the rice climate of Florida, where it grows
on the bark of Magnolia glauca; nor that others should be found in
the damp maritime parts of the government of Buenos Ayres. But it
is more remarkable that an Oneidium wttbiffenum should occur at the
neightof 14,000 feet on the mountains of Peru, and tiiat other species
should, upon the authority of .M. Descourtilz, be able to bear without
difficulty the cold glacial winds of the high serras of Brazil. The
same peculiarities occur in the eastern wond. Reinwardt speaks of
great quantities of OrehidacecB in the Storax and Laurel woods of
Java, ^wing along with Nepenthes, Rhododendrons, Magnolias, and
Oaks, m a zone of vegetation whose lower limit is 8000 feet above
the sea. Dendrt^tim nobile, Benanthera coccinea, and some others,
bear the periodical cold of Canton, where it occasionally fireezes;
Dendrobiwn ccUenatwn and 2). numUiforme occur in Japan as far north
as 37° or 88°, or the parallel of Lisbon, and are periodically subject
to a very low temperature ; and Dr. Royle met with the deciduous
Ccdogynet and Dendrobivm alpcalre on the Himalaya Mountains at the
height of 7500 feet, where snow sometimes lies m winter for a week
or more. To the southward they not only occur in the latitude of
Port Jackson, where the mean temperature does not exceed 66° 6',
but even in much higher latitudes. The beautiful little Qvmnia
Au8trali$ grows on the branches of shrubs in Emu Bay, in Van
Diemen's Land, id about 41° S. lat. ; and Earina mucronata extends to
45° 45' S. lat, in '' the very permanently damp woods which clothe
the diores of Dusky Bay m New Zealand," wnere it was originally
observed by Forster in Cook's seoond voyage, and where it has since
been met with by Mr. Cunningham, whose words we quote.
Such are the more important data that we possess to guide us in
the cultivation of Orchidaceous Epiphytes ; the result of which is,
that they are kept in this country in stoves the air of which is main-
tained in a state of constant moisture, and at a temperature vaiying
from 56° to 90° or more. The requudte uniformity of their atmosphere
is provided for by keeping the houses but little ventilated, and the
glass of the roof well puttied at the junction of the squares. Shade
ii secured either by moveable laths or by a screen of netting or coarse
canvass, or by some such contrivance ; some even grow ti^eir plants
in a house exposed only to the north, but it does not appear that
this plan is a good one ; for it is an object not only to exclude excessive
lights but also to be able to admit it if requisite, and this cannot
happen in a hothouse with a northern aspect
The soil in which the plants are made to growii peat or some other
kind of decayed vegetable matter, thoroughly dnined, and yet so
compact as not to be liable to become dry by excessive loss of water.
In many cases it is found advantageous to make the plants grow upon
the apex of a truncated cone of earth rising several inches above the
rim of the pot Certain kinds are suspended in baskets,'or in frames
so contrivea as to be filled with moss and decayed vegetable mould
rammed in very tight ; and provided that precaution is attended to,
the caulescent drooping species, especially Dendrobiums and Vanda:
like plants, thrive admirably ; but in general it is found most advisable
to pumt in earth in common garden-pots. Attempts have been made
to grow some species on decayed dead wood, but they are generally
abandoned now ; nor have the trials to cultivate them on the branches
of living trees hitherto proved more suooessfuL The orange-tree was
employed for tlus purpose by Mr. Lance with great success in Surinam,
but in the hothouse it does not appear to suit them.
By attending to the natural habits of these plants, and observing
the precautions just pointed out, the management of Orchidaceous
Epiphytes hss been brought quite within the skill of any good
gardener. There are however two or three capital points about which
cultivators entertain great difference of opinion.
The first ii temperature. Some allow the thermometer to rise to
100° and higher in a summer^s day, and never suffer it to fall below
65° ; the consequence of which is, that their houses are' so unpleasant
that few persons can visit them to inspect the beautiful objects they
contain. Others keep the temperature of even midsummer down to
80° at the most, and permit the minimum heat to be low in proportion ;
their houses are consequently cool and pleasant at all times. If we
must admit that the first practice is eminently successful with some,
so is the other most assuredly so with others ; and we entertain no
doubt that in the end it will be the only method followed.
The second question is the amount of moisture. Some form water-
tanks in their houses, the evaporation from the surface of which keeps
the air continually at the point of saturation ; others simply keep
the air sensibly moist by syringing or similar devices : the first is
accompanied by a high, the latter by a moderate, temperature ; in
this case also we incline to believe that the latter practice is the best
The fact is that it may be reasonably doubted whether it is ri^ht
always to follow nature literally in what we suppose to be her practice,
and whether we ought not rather to adapt the management of our
plants to the new and artificial condition under which they are placed.
Keeping plants in a state of constant excitement by exposure to an
excessive climate is a certain means of weakening them in the long
run, and may be compared to keeping an animal always awake. It
may be very true that tlus may seem to happen in nature ; but does
it really happen ? Is it not probable that tne long diurnal darkness
of a tropical situation may be intended as a compensation for the high
excitement of daylight f and are not we^ with eighteen hours' daylight
in summer, in an essentially different position from what Orchidaceous
Epiphytes from equinoctiiu regions are exposed to in a wild state ?
Moreover, it can ha^ly be doubted that a moderate temperature is suffi-
cient for them, even if they can be made to bear an excessive climate.
The third unsettled point ii of another nature. In our hothouses
we often maintain a high temperature all the yea^ round, keeping
our stove-plants growing from January to December. In nature this
hardly ever happens. If a country has no winter it has its di^y
season, during which plants become more or less torpid. This is
quite the case in all the countries inhabited by Orchidaceous
Epiphytes, with the exception of some of the temperate parts of
Mexioo, where the climate is equal and mild. Should we noC there-
fore give such plants, when cultivated, a similar period of repose ?
About this the opinions of cultivators are so much divided that we
cannot say on which side the majority of votes would go. Mr. Bate-
man calls attention to the fact, in hu account of Colley's mission to
Guyana. ** In oonsequenoe," he says, '' of the unexampled length of
the dry season, scarcely an orchidaceous plant was seen in flower, or
a pseudo-bulb whidi had not lost its leaves. When however the
rains had commenced, tibat is, in the month of July, the OreMdaeem
were pushing rapidly into flower, as were also some of those collected
by Mr. Colley, which reached this ooimtiy in as dry and shrivelled a
state as Dutch bulbs usually come over in. This may afford a hint
for their cultivation."
And Henchman, in like manner, urges the circumstance upon the
consideration of gardeners : —
" The atmospheric changes," he says, " are very great in tropical
climates ; and as I consider that Orchidaeeadesciye their main support
directly from the atmosphere, I think too mueh attention cannot be
paid to the various changes by which they are in their natural state
Uable to be affected. Chie of the princiiMd objects kept in view by
growers of Orchidacea appears to be the keeping up a regular heat in
the stove. Nothing can be more contrary to nature ; for in the tropics,
to a sultry day, with the thermometer standing at from 85° to 95°,
sucoeeds a cool night and a cold morning, the thermometer fidling to
60° or 55° ; effecting in twenty-four hours a change of temperature of
fr^m 20 to 80 degrees. During the dry season, periods of two, three,
and often extending to five or six months, the whole nourishment
derived by the Orchidacece must be communicated through the agency
of the tree to which they are attached, or from the atmospherio
moisture which is the effect of the action of the sun upon the dew
which has fallen during the night and morning; for the situations
generally occupied by Orchidacea preclude the possibility of the dew
reac^g them in its descent; and slight though the mouture be
which is communicated through these channels to OrchidaceoB, it is
nevertheless sufficient to retain the vital principle in the pseudo-
bulb, though not sufficient to rouse it into action. The dry season
then appears to act upon Orchidacea on much the same principle as
our winter acts upon our trees, &c. It is for them a period of rest;
and the pseudo-bulbs having been well ripened are ready, when the
wet season has given them a sufficient stimulus, to push forth
luxuriantly both leaves and flowers." Nevertheless some of our
best gardeners object to the plan of periodical resting \ and, it must
be added, appear to sucoee^ without attending to it
NT EPISTILBITE.
Bo far u Ui« Dpinion of the writsr oF this article ii of mj valoe, it
ii rather in &Tour of the BjBtein of resting theae pluita for tlirea or
four moDtlu annuallj b; lovericg the tempeistura to S0° or there-
■bonti, and Himini^King the moiature ver? oonndsrabl; ; indeed in
ranid to Cata*tivm, CyijtUKha, FKaimi, Bletia, Omdomni, and KimB
othenwith deoiduoiu fsaves, there ia do doabt thatUie plan ia indii-
penwble ; and it would piobably be equally adf antageoua with respect
to all the kinds with Qeahy rtenu or pBoado-bulbe ; but how hr it
mi^ suit nnleacent ipedea with the habit of FiiiuJa and Atrida can
onlj be aaooiained by direct cipenment
EPISTILBITE, a HioerBl occurring maeeiTe with attached
«ry>tali. The primary form is a right rhombic prinn. The oleavage
pualtel to the abort diagonal of Uie priim. Colour white, fitreu
white. Fncture nnersn. Hardneei I'O to 4'S. Lustre Tibreooa.
by Roae it aa followi :— Silica, 5856; alnmina, IT'SS ; lime, T'S6 ;
>oda,l'TS; water, 14-68.
EPITHELIUM. As on the external Borfaoe of the animal body
thera ia covering oier all a delicate layer of cells which is called
Epidermis, ao over the internal Burfaoe of the body tiisre is found a
layer of o^ls which are Mllsd Epithelial Cells, or Epithelium. The
apidermal and e^nthelial cells are homologuea, and are so many modi-
flcatioDS of a similar general arrangement.
The fimctions of the epithelial cells vary according to the surfaces
on which they are placed. They differ from the epidermal celia in
being generElly moist from the positions in which they are placed. The
cells of the epithelium performing, as tbej do, the most remarkable
part of the f unctiona of the organs of which they form a part, vary
touch in form and size. In all oasss they are soft, contain a nuclena,
and are in ahapa rounded, polygonal, fuaif orm, or contcaL Bometimes
thej occur in one layer, aomt^mes in several. In some instances they
are supplied with cilia. The following is Kiilliker's arrangement of
the epithelial cells : —
a. Epithelium in a single Stratum.
1. With rounded polygonal cells. This, called Pavement Epithelium
{Fig. A), presents only a aingle layer. It exists as an investment of
the true serous membranes, of most synovial membranee, of the
cerebral ventricles (ependymn), of the membrane of Demours, of the
tMok of the iria, and of the inner surface of the choroid (pigment
layer) of the capsule of the lens and of the retina, of the internal
ear, of the endocardium of the veins, of many glandular vesicles and
canals, and of the interlobular ducte of the liver.
2. With fuaifonn BuperficiiUly united cells. This is called Fusiform
Epilhehum, and is found in the arteriee and many veins.
S. Willi CfUndricaleells. ThiaistheCylindiioalEpithellum. (fVjr.B.)
It is fuond in theinteHtioaltubeainXiieberkiihn'a glands, in the aicre-
torydncts of the gastric glands, as well as of all the other glands which
open into the in testine,alaoof the lacteal and lachrymal and other glands.
t. With cylindrical or conical ciliated oells. Thia is the Ciliated
Cylinder Epithelium. {Fig. C.) It is found on the finest broncfaiie, in
ths naaal cavities, on the inner surface of the membrana tympani, in
the Eustachian tubs, in the ntarus, and in the Fallopian tuW
fi. With rounded ciliated cells. Thia is simple Ciliated Pavement
Bpitheliom, and occurs in the oenhral cavity of the embryo.
b. Epithelium in many Layers.
1. With cylindrical or rounded cells below, rounded polygonal,
more or less flattened cells above. This is called Laminated Pave-
ment Epithelium. It occurs in the mouth, the lower half of the
pharynx, the ojsophsgus, the lachrymal canals, the conjunctiva, the
tympanic cavity, the bladder, the reproductive passages, ths Iddneys,
and certain synovial membranes.
2. With rounded cells below, more elongated ansa in the middle,
and ciliated conical ones above. This is called Laminated Ciliary
Epithelium. It occurs in the larynx, trachea, and laiver bronchise, in
the nasal cavity, in the lachrymal sne and dnot, and Uie upper hsjf of
the phaiTnx.
EQUID&
In many instances these forms of Bpitheliom pass into e«eli other,
where they are placed upon the same sai&ce.
The functions performed by the Epitiielium are variona. In tbs
instances where the cells are supplied iritb cilia, thedr object snema
to be to give movement to the fluids secreted upon their ■or&cea.
[Cilia.] Those placed on mucous membranes elaboimte the protective
maons which overs these organa. lo tlie caae of those calls whicli
are prolonged into the follioles and tuboli of whicji glaDdoIar slruo-
tnre is esaantially oompoaed, they are the real organs of sscrettan.
'' They mparate lirom the blood, as the malflrials of their
nutrition, tlie peculiar products elaborated by the gland of which ittcj
form a part, ^d bj their death and decay these products sre ttet free
to perform their woA. in the system. Even the cells in vrhiidi the
are developed fOr the fertilisation of the ova ai ,
upon ths Bur&oea of the tabes or foUioleB of the spermstic gtuxlsi
(Kolliker, Mvivtal of Ettman Hittologs, tmulated by BtiBk aoa
Huxley ; Carpenter, Prmeipiet of Plofiiologif,)
EPITHEHIA, [DiATOKACES.]
EPOHIS. rCHi,sincs.]
EPOUOPHORUS. [CaEiBOFTiBA.]
EPSOHITE, Native Sulphate of HsgneoL It occtn msMiTO,
botryoidal, and ranifarm, on ths surface of other bodies, KDd in
solution in sea and mineral watsrs. Colour white. Btreak white.
Structure fibrous, sometimes earthy. Brittle. Taste bitter uid
saline. Found originally in a spring at Epsom. It fiirms a large
bed near Areqnipa in Ptru, and is often in fine orystals and aiiky
EQDID.A, a fkmilj of *inimii.lii to which ths Horse l>eIoQga: They
have but a single finger or tos terminating each extremity ; and this
finger or toe is incued in a homy-boo^ or shoe. But though the
Bqaida possess but one well-developed toe, there are on each stdo o/
the metocarpua and metatarsus two small rudimentary procensM
which represent two lateral toes. Ths following is the form of
dentition : —
. '— ^ .
7— r _
42.
Tarioua Gibulous spedea of these animals are recorded in tho
deacriptjaea and Ggnns of some authors ; such as the Bisuleated
Horse with a nuns extending the whole length of the animal from
head to tail, and figured by Jonston as the jGthtopisch Pferd {Bqitat
jSlhiopimi). The Wald-EssI ia figured by the same author with a
unicom-iike horn in the midat of its forehead. These may be classed
with the figures of moostrous horses collected by Aldrovandus, a
horse with a human head and face tor example, and another widi
hands by way of anterior eitremitiea, which as he says, according to
Suetonius, belonged to Julius Cteaar, and would taHir no one else
to mount him : — " Caius Julius Ca»ar utebatur eqno iniigni pedlbua
prope humania, et in modum digitorum ungulis fiaSis," Ac This
last was probably a case of muformation of the hoof; but the
painter has given the animal two human hands, with fonr fiagen
and a thumb on each, and nails to matcL
Linmcns, in bis last edition of the ' Systema Natura ' (13th), left
the Horae (Stuiu) among his BeUua (the sixth order of Man'malia
in Ijis arrangement), in company vrith the genera BifrpojK^aiaiu, Sat,
and Rhinoceroi. His genus Equvi conaiats of the following species :
K OahaUut, B. Atimit, and S. Zebra, and is thus defined by hitn :—
Incisor t«eth (denies primorea) six above eracto-panllel, six below
mere prominent; canines (laniarii) solitary, included, remote on
each aide. Feet vrith on undivided hoof.
Qmelin, in his edition of the ' Systema Naturs ' (ISth), added to
the above definition, 'Teats two, inguinal,* and divided the genua
into two sections — 1, species with bisuJcated feet ; 2, species with
solidungulous faet^ The first section consists of one specios only, R
binicia, the 'Equua pedibus bisulcis,' Molin., 'Hist Nat, ChiL'
This was most probably a Llama. The second section embraces
the fbllowinr species : — Bjuw Caballia, S. Hcmiimvt, S. Aiiniu,
E. Zebra, and S. Quagga.
Cuvier places the Solipddee at the end of his Uammffi^rous
Pachyderms, and makes this family to coDaiiit of only one genua,
Bquiu, with the tbllowing species :^ Coiaihit, Heniiitnu, Aiiitvt,
ZAra, Qaagga, and Mcmtaniu.
Dr. Gray, in his 'Bevision of tiie Family EijiudK' ('Zool. Joum.,'
ToL i), observea that the older authors speak of the Horse, Uule,
Onager, Aas, and Zebra, the last of which they generally daacribe as
having the body (corpus) striped with black, brown, and white
bands, three inches broad, but take no notice of the colour of its
legs; but in Joneton'e figure they are distinctly banded. After
referring to the other figures in Jonston and to Hotina's Qnemel, or
Huemul.^utwiuulnuof Qmelin, which, if it exists, Dr. Gray considers
to he probably a species of Llama {AtKhenia), he notices the figures
in Edwarda'a ' Qleanings' — the Bpeciea recorded by LinuRua, Pallas,
and Burehell, — the Quogga sent bj Captain Qordon from the Cape to
Amsterdam, where it was first described and Sgured from his drawing
in the Dutch edition of Buffon, and afterwards in the Bupplecoent ^
the French editionsi and L'Ane leabelle of Le VailUnt. With
regard to the last, wiiich is described as being of a plaia Isabella
colour without any bend. Dr. Qray obeervea, that nobody since IiS
,80
EQUIDiE.
EQUID^
Vaillaat's time, as far as he can learn, has mentioned it, and he aaka
whether it may not be an albino yarietj of the Zebra or Quagga, an
the aas ia flometimee found of yellowiah-white, without any orosa, in
ita domeaticaied state.
Dr. Qrav thus defines the &mily oSJBquida ; — " This family (which is
distingoiiuied ftom all other animals by its undivided hoof, formed of
the two anterior toes soldered together, its simple stomach, and its
female having the teat placed on the pubes) may be divided into
two very distinct types ox foaem ; the one, the Asses and the Zebras,
which are always whitish and more or less banded with blackish-
brown, and always have a distinct dorsal line, the tail only bristly at
the end, and have warts only on the arms and none on the hind lags ;
and the true Horses which are not banded, have no dorsal line, are
furnished with warts on their arms and legs, and have long hair on
the tail, from its insertion to its extremity." He further proceeds
with his definition thus : ** Squida ; SolidtMgulaB Antiquorom,
Cuvier, ko, Qenus Mqunu, lannssus : —
a 1—1 A 6
Dentesincisoresr- ; canine (mares), ; molars, — -= 40.
6 1 — 1 6 — 6
Pedes unguU indivisA'* Dr. Gray then divides the family into two
genera, namely : 1. Equut, consisting of the Common Horse and its
varieties, Equut CahaUut ; 2. AtmuB, embracing the following species :
1. R Hemionui; 2. S, vulgaris (and its varieties); 8. JB, Quagga; 4.
R BwckeUiij 5. R Zebrct,
M. Lesson states that the SolipMes, or Equidig, of Qray, comprise
only the genus Equiu, which Dr. Qray has proposed to adyanoe to
the rank of a family under that name, comprising the genera Equu$
and Aiinut; but, adds M. Lesson, there is nothing to induce us to
admit a division which reposes only on superficial characters.
Mr. Bell is of a different opinion, and in his ' British Quadrupeds '
follows Dr. Gray in considering the Ass as belonging to a distinct
genus from the Horse, and he adopts Dr. Gray's fuoUy-name Equidat,
Mr. Bell makes the following remarks on the character of the Ass
and its nearest congeners as compared with those of the Horse, upon
which it had been thought necessary to establish them as distinct
genera in the family. After admitting the truth of the observation
that^ in the absence of any knowledge of the original condition of the
Horse, the question can only be considered with reference to the
characters of a domesticated and probably much altered race, he
reminds the reader, nevertheless, that as the distinctions upon which
the division in question is founded are structural, there is less danger
of error than if they had been only those of colour or of general
form, and thus prooiseds : " The character of the tail is one of the
most striking points upon which this distinction rests. In the horse,
the whole of this part is covered with long hair, totally concealing
its actual form ; wtuXst in the whole of the others, the ass, the zebra,
the quagga, the dzigtai, &a, it is only clothed witii long hair towards
the extremity. The mane of the horse also is long and flowing ; that
of all the other spedes'is short and upright* In the former animal,
the hinder as well as the fore legs are furnished with those warty
callositiefl, which in the others, without exception, are found only on
the forelegs. Waiving some other particulm of minor importance,
there is one character which, if not in itself to be considered of primary
value, is yet interesting, and not unimportant as a collateral
distinction: I mean the general tendency of the coloration and
marking in the two forms. In the horse's coat there is an obvious
disposition to the formation of small round spots of a difiE^rent
shade or hue from that of the ground, and this is the case whether
the general colour be black, chestnut^ or grfty ; in Uie genus ilniMM,
on we contrary, the markings are invariably diq[>08ed in stripes.
The zebra, the quagga, and &e mountain zebra are examples too
familiar to require more than this allusion ; and in the common ass,
not only is the same tendency evinced by the cross-mark on the
shoulders, but in the young ass there are frequently observed some
obscure darkish bands on the logs. . These tendencies to a peculiar
character of coloration and mArtiiw are well worthy of especial
notice in the MammaUa, among wliich will be found numerous
instances bearing upon the distinction of approximating forms. In
birds and insects it is still more general and striking, and has always
attracted the attention of naturaUsts ; but in the present class it has
certainly been too much overlooked."
Geographical Distribution of Ihe EquidcB. — Although the Horse,
the Ass, and the Mule, are now spread over the whole face of the
civilised earth, and although the Horse is found wild, or rather has
reverted to a wild state, in both the New and the Old World, there
can be no doubt that the form which we are now considering was
originally entirely confined to the latter portion of the globe, where
the truly wild species of the fEimily, the Zebrn^ the Quagga, &c are
still to be found in all their native freedom. And this leads us to
consider the time and the place where the Horse was first subdued
by the powerful hand of man. Mr. Bell, who appeals to the sacred
scriptures in proof that the Horse is of eastern origin, is of opinion,
from the same authority, that the Egyptians were probably the first
who broke the proud spirit of this noble animal, and reduced it to
obedience and servitude. The books of Genesis and Exodus abound
with passages which prove that the Horse had been long under the
dominion of man at the date of the events then recorded. It was
expressly prohibited (Deut, xvii. 16) that the king should multiply
horses to himself, or should cause the people to return to Eigypt, to
the end that he should multiply horses. Solomon however £es not
seem to have regarded this prohibition, for his stables were filled
with these noble animals; he had 40,000 stalls of horses for his
chariots, and 12,000 horsemen. (I Kings, iv. 26.)
The grand description in Job (xxxix. 19-25) is familiar to moat,
but Egjpt (1 Kings, x. 28), and not Arabia, seems to have been the
source^ whence Solomon's suppUss were obtained. In vety early
Egyptian monuments the horse is seen in battle, and under circum-
stances which denote long subjugation and experienced training.
It seems to be quite clear that the wild horses of Tartary are aa
much the descendants of a domesticated race as the wild horses of
America, whose ancestors were introduced by the Spaniards; nor
have we any evidence to show the time when the horse existed in a
primitive state of nature.
The EqtUda form two KKum— Equut and Atinut; the species
however freely breed togetner in confinement^ but the produce is
almost always, if not always, barren.
EqvMS has the tail covered with long hair to the base, the fore and
hind legs with a wart (sallenders) on the inner side. The fur is dap-
pled, that is, marked with round pale spots, having a dark net-liko
ground.
E. Oa^aUut, the Horse, is brown, gray, or black, with roundish pale
spots.
The following are the synonyms and varieties of this spedes given
by Dr. Gray in the ' Catalogue of the British Museum : ' — Eqmm
atUiqmrum\QtGBDist). Equm Cb6aU«i (Linnaeus; F. Cuvier; Fischer;
Gray). Eqmtt, Equa (Pliny). Horse (Pennant). Generous Horse
(Pennant). Cheval (Buffon; Cuvier). Pferd (Redinger). Rosa
(Schrank). The Horse (Youatt). The Tarpan Wild Horse, primeval
bay stock (H., Smith). The Andalusian Horse (H. Smith). South
American Horse (H. Snutb). The Parameros of Peru (H. SmiUi).
Mexican Horse and Seminole Horse (H. Smith). Feral Horses of
America (H. Smith). The Arabian Horse (Bewick; Low; Smith).
The Bace-Horse (Bewick; Low). English Race-Horse (Smith).
Hunter (Bewick). The Old Irish Hunter (Low). The Connamara
Horse (Low). Black Horse (Bewick). The Old English Black Horse
(Low). The Cleveland Bay Horse (Low). The Suffolk Punch (Low).
The Clydesdale Breed (Low). Old E^iglish Road-Horse ^Bewick).
Common Cart-Horse (Bewick). Improved Cart-Horse (Bewick). The
Barb of Morocco (H. Smith). The Bomou (white) Race of Africa (H.
Smith). The Dongola (black) Race (H. Smith). The Turkish Race
(H. Smith). The Persian Race (H. Smith). The Toorkee Races
(H. Smith). The East Indian Races (H. Smith). The New Holland
Horse (H. Smith). The Transylvanian Horse (H. Smith). The Mol-
davian Horse (H. Smith). The Greek Horse (H. Smith). The Spanish
Horse (H. Smith). Cheval d'Islande — var., Itlandtcut (Quoy and
Gaim. ; Lesson). Equut Mongdicut (Lesson). Thibet Horse (Hodg-
son). Cheval Ik Port Frisses— ^. fritvut (F. Cuvier). .^^imm OabaUut
fritiut (Lesson). Villous Horse — ^primeval of the white stock (H.
Smith). The White or Gray Horse (H. Smith) ; Marengo^—' Bona-
parte's Arab.' The Crisp-Haired Hone— primeval of the black stock
(H. Smith). The Black Horse— the English Draught^Horse (H. Smith).
The Dun oc Tan Horse (H. Smith). The Decussated Horse, or the
Eelback Dun Horse of Ukraine (H. Smith). The Myautzee, or the
Pied Horse of China (H. Snuth). The Bhooteahs Ponies (H. Smith).
The Pickarrow Pouie^ (H. Smith). The Yaboos of AJQ^phanistan
Ponies (H. Smith). The Hungarian Horse, with slit nostrils (Q.
Smith), The Common. Bashkir Horse (H. Smith). The Morea
Ponies (H. Smith). The Swedish and Norwegian Ponies (H. Smith).
The Shethmd Ponies (H. Smith). The Galloway (H. Smith). The
Dartmoor and Exmoor Pony (H. Smith). Sardinian Wild Horse
(H. Smith). The Tatto, or the East Indian Pony (H. Smith). Tuttoo,
or Mahratta Pony (^kes); sedulously pro|>^sated in the Deocan:
much used to transport luggage, and very vicious. — Sykes. Tattoo,
or Hack Pony of Calcutta (Hsrdwick). The Tangimi Piebald or
Skewbald Horse — Eqwut vaHut (H. Smith). The Tangum, or Tang-
hans— primeval Piebald Stock of Thibet (H. Smith). Skewbald of
Achin in Sumatra ^H. Smith). Tangham of China (Hodgson). Tang-
ham of Lhassa (Hodgson). Tangham of Gyanche (Hodgson). Hubstee
of Deo Dharma (Hodgson). The Eoomrah, or Sqvmt hippangut
(E, Smith). The Koomnh— Equut Lcdisi (H. Smith). Hippaigua
(Oppi&n). Boryes (Herodotus). Bourra of Eoldsgi fRUppell);
Northern Africa : not gregarious. The Kuda or Sanm Horse (H.
Smith). The Javan Horse (H. Smith). The Tamboro or Birma
Horse (H. Smith). Horse with a curled moustache on the upper lip^
of Asiatic Rxissia (Pallas). Horse covered with curled woolly hair, of
Asiatic Russia (Falk. ; Pallas). Naked Horse of a beautiful form, of
Asiatic Russia (Pallas). The Argamaki of Bocharia— a white horse
with very close, minutei, orbicular, brown spots, of Asiatic Russia
(Pallas).
It is questionable as to whether there exist at the present day any
truly wild horses or descendants of an originally wild stock. Dr. Gray
observes that the figure of the Wild Horse, as given by Gmelin, very
much resembles the ponies left at liberty on the commons of Cornwall
and mountains of Scotland ; and it appears very doubtful if these
animals are not rather to be considered as domestic horses which have
ni
EQXTIDJL
EQUIDJS.
escaped and become deteriorated. This is not the case with the wfld
hones which are found on the rich prairies of America, which retain
the size and form of the well-bred horse. In many parts of the world
the Hoise is found in a semi-wild condition. It was introduced by the
French into the Falkland Islands in 1764, and since that time they have
greatly increased. The horses in these islands are always found on the
eastern side of East Falkland, although there is no natural boundazy ;
and that part of the island is not more fertile than the rest The pre-
domfaiant colours of these horses are roan and iron-gray. Mr. Darwin
says they are rather small-sized, but are generally in good condition. In
South America the Horse was fbrst landed at Buenos Ayres in 1537, and
the colony being for a time deserted, it ran wild. In 1580, forty-three
yean alter, they were found wild at the Straits of Magellan. On the
Pampas they now abound in prodigious numbers. The Guachos, a
semi-civilised race of men, live amidst these horses. They early learn
to capture and ride them, and a Quacho is seldom off the back of his
horse. It is said that they can capture and break in one of these wild
horses in the cdurse of an hour. \ The flesh serves them also as an
article of food. The hides are preserved and sold. Wi^ Uie horses
are also herds of wild oxen. The numben of these «tnimftla may be
judged of from the &ct that in a period of five years, from 1888
to 1842, Monte Video and Buenos Ayres jrielded annuidly about
90,000,000 lbs. of oxen and horses' hides^ and 9,500,000 lbs. of horse-
hair. The Horse is now found oyer the whole continent of America.
Darwin says the natives of Tierra del Fuego are well stocked with
horses, each man having six or seven, and all the women and even the
children have their own horse. In his ' Fauna Boreali-Americana^'
Sir John Richardson tells us that the Horse is found amongst the
wandering Indians who frequent the prairies of the Saskatchewan and
the Missouri. They use it for chasing the bufiOdo, as well as a beast of
burden. Amongst the Indians, as well as the Quachos, the Horse is
eaten. It is also eaten by the Calmuck Tartars, and in many parts of
Asia mare's-milk is taken as an article of diet It is also converted
into butter and cheese, and a favourite beyerage amongst the Tartan
is made by fermenting it.
Eveiywhere the horse is recognised as the most useful of the
servants of man, and he yields in intelligence to the dog alone. In
the earlier ages of the world he seems to have been devoted to the
purposes of war cr of pleasure, while the ox was our agricultural
servant; but his beauty, and strength, and tractability have now
connected him, directly or indirectly, with idmost all the purposes of
life. If he differa in different countries in form and in size it is from
the influence of climate and cultivation; but otherwise, from the
war-horse, as he is depicted on the friezes of ancient temples, to the
stately charger of ^olstein and of Spain, or from the fleet and
beautiful Arabian to the diminutive Shetlander, ^ere is an evident
similarity of form and destination which clearly stamps his common
oxigm.
He is naturally and of choice an herbivorous animaL His thin and
muscular lips, his firm and compressed mouth, and his sharp incisor
teeth are admirably adapted to seize and to crop the grass; and
although we know nothing of him in his natural state, yet when
he has escaped from the bondage of man, and follows his own propen-
sities, the grass is his chosen food. In his domesticated state however
he was destined to live partially or chiefly on other aUment^ and that
of a much harder kind — ^the rarious species of com ; therefore while
man and the carnivorous animals can only champ and crush their
food, a provision is given to the horse, in the structure of some of the
bones of the face, by means of which he can comminute and grind
down his food as perfectly as in the best contrived milL
The teeth of the horse require some lengthened oonsideration, not
onl^ from their admirable adaptation to this purpose, but as indi-
catmg, by the various changes which they undei>^, almost beyond
the possibility of error, the age of the anixnal. He may, when young
in yean, be induced neariy to the decrepitude of age by the barbarous
usage of those who ought to be his most zealous protecton ; the
cavity above the eye may be deepened, the under hp may fall, the
limbs may be bowed, and the feet may be battered and distorted, —
but it is not easy to alter the character of the teeth.
The colt is generaUy dropped with the first and second molar and
pinding teeth having forced their way through the gum. When he
IB about seven or eight days old the two central front or incisor teeth,
above and below, appear. At the expiration of five or six weeks the
next two incison may be seen. At three months they will have over-
taken the central ones, and both pain will have nearly attained their
natural level. A third grinder will tfien have appeared; and a little
before or after the eighth monUi the third nipper, above and below
and on each side, wifi be seen. The colt will now have his full
complement of front or cutting teeth.
These teeth are beautifully adapted to their purpose. They have
In front an elevated cutting edge of considerable sharpness. It is
formed of enamel, a polished substance almost too hard to be acted
upon by the file, which coven the tooth. This elevated edge ia bent
somewhat inwards and over the tooth, so that there is a depression
behind it which gradually becomes stained bv the food and constitutes
what is called ' ike mark ' in the mouth of the colt or hone.
This elevated edge of enamel, hard as it is, is gradually worn down
In the act of nipping and cutting the grass ; and as it wean ^way the
hollow behind becomes diminished, and ia at length totally obliterated.
By the degree in which this mark ia eflB»oed, the horseman, not only
with regard to the first, but the permanent teeth, judges of the age
of the ahimaL This obliteration begins to be manifest at a Tery early
age. At six months it is sufficiently evident in the four central
nippers. At a year and a half the mark will be rery faint in the
central nippers, diminished in the other two, and the sur&oe of all of
them will be flattened.
At twelTe months a fourth grinder protrudes, and a fifth at the
expration of two years.
These are all temporary teeth. They were only to last daring a
very early period of ike life of the animal ; and when his jawa were
considerably expanded they were destined to give way to another set,
larger, firmer, and that would probably iMt during lifeu The
permanent teeth had been long growing in the so<^t beneath the
temporary ones, and had been pressing upon their roots, and that
pressure had caused an absorption of these roots, until at length they
lost all hold and were displaced.
^ When the animal is about three years old the oentral pair of
nij^ers, above and below, are thus removed, and two fresh teeth,
easily distinguishable from the first by their increased sise, make
their appearance, so that a three-yeaiH>ld colt is easily recognised by
these two new and enlarged central nippers.
A thrse-yearold colt has his form and eneigies .much more
developed than a two-year-old one, and is considerably more
valuable ; therefore some dishonest breeden endeavour to pass him
upon the unwary as being a ^ear older than he really is, and they
accomplish tlus in an ingemous but cruel manner. This cannot
however be effected until a portion of the second year is past, when
the permanent teelh below are beginning to press upon the roots of
their predecesson, and then the breeder extracts the central mUk-
teeth. Those below having no longer anything to resist their
progress, grow fur more rapidly than they otherwise would do, and
the scoundral gains four or five months in the apparent age of his
colt.
Can this trickery be detected ! Not always, except by him who is
well accustomed to horses. The comparatively slow wasting of the
other nippera, the difference of the development of these nippen in
the upper and under jaw — ^for the breeder usually confines his
roguery to the lower jaw, the upper one being comparatively seldom
examined — ^these circumstancesi, together with a deficiency of general
development in the colt^ will alone enable the purchaser to detect the
attempted cheat
The honest mouth of a three-year-old horse should be thus formed :
— ^the central teeth are palpably larger than the othen, and haye the
marie on their upper surface evident and well defined. They will
however be lower than the other teeth. The mark in the next pair
of nippen will be nearly worn away, and that in the comer nippera
will begin to wear.
At three yean and a half the second nippen will be pushed from
their sockets, and their place gradually supplied by a new pair; and
at four and a half the comer nippen wiU be imdeigoing the same
process. Thus at four yean old the central nippen will be fully
grown ; the next pair will be up, but will not have attained their full
height ; and the comer nippen will be small, with their mark nearly
efihced. At five yean old the nark will begin to be effaced from the
central teeth, the next pair will be fully grown and the bladmess of
the mark a little taken oS, and the comer pair will be protruding or
partly grown.
At this period, or between the fourth and fifth year, another diange
will have taken place in the mouth ; the tushes will have begun to
appear. There will be two of them in each jaw, between the nippen
and the ^prinden, considerably nearer to the former than the latter,
and particularly so in the lower jaw. The use of these tushes in the
domesticated state of the horse is not evident ; but they were probably
designed as weapons of offence in the wild state of the animal
Attempts are too frequently made to hasten the appearance of the
second and the comer teeth in the same manner as described with
regard to the fint, and the gum is often deeply lanced in order to
hasten the appearance of the tush.
At six yean old the mark on the central nippera will be diminished,
if not obhterated. A depression and a mark of rather brown hue may
remain, but the deep blackened hole in the centre will no longer be
found. The other incison will also be somewhat worn, and the tush
fully developed.
At seven the mark on the next pair of indson will have nearly
disappeared, and the tush wUl be rounded at the point and the edges.
At eight the mark will have diuippeared from all the inciser teeth,
and the tush wUl be evidently rounder and blunter.
At this period another piece of trickery is occasionally practiBed.
The breeder had, till the animal was five yean old, been endeavouring
to give him an older appearance than his yean entitled him to^
because in proportion as he approached the period when his powere
were most perfectly developed his value increased; but now he
endeavoun to conceal the ravages of age. The horse is cast, and
with a sharp-pointed steel instniment a little hole is dug on the
surface of the comer incisor, to which a red-hot iron is a^rwards
applied. An indelible black mark is thus left on the tooth. Some
503
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times the rogaery is carried farther; the next tooth is slightly
touched with the engrayer and the cautery ; but here the dishonest
dealer generally overreaches himself, for the form and general appear-
ance of a six-year-old horse can rarely be given to one who has passed
his eighth year. The eighth year having passed, it is difficult to
decide on the exact age of the horse. The incisors of the upper jaw
are then the best guides. At nine years the mark is said to be worn
away from the central teeth; at eleven, from the next pair; and at
twelve, from the comer ones. The tush likewise becomes shorter and
blunter.
■
There are many dreumetances which render a decision as to the
age of the hone very difficult after the marks are effiioed fh>m the
lower incisors, and even before that period. Horses always kept in
the stable have the mark much sooner worn out than those that are
at grass, and it is impotMuble to form any calculation at all as to
criVbiters.
Of the age to which the horse would naturally arrive it is impossible
to say any&ing satis&ctory. Many have exceeded thirty, and some
of them even forty years; but, from ill usage and over exertion,
the majority come to their end before they have seen nine or ten
years.
The Proper Conformation of the Horse. — A very general account
only can be given of this, for it varies essentially with the breed and
destination of the animaL There are some points however which are
valuable in horses of everv description. The head should not be dis-
proportionally large, and should be well set on, that is, the lower jaw-
bones should be sufficiently far apart to enable the head to form that
angle with the neck which gives iree motion and a graceful carriage to
xt» and prevents its bearing too heavily on the hand. The eye should
be lai^ and a little prominent^ and the eyelid fine and thin. The ear
should be small and erect^ and quick in motion. The lop-ear indicates
dulness or stubbomess ; and when it is habitually laid too far back
upon the neck, there is too frequency a disposition to mischief. The
nostril in every breed should be somewhat expanded : it can hardly
be too much so in tbeltaoer, the Hunter, the Roadster, and the Coach-
Horse, for these animals breathe only through the nostril, and would
be dangerously distressed when much speed is required of them, if ti^e
noetril could not dilate to admit and to return the air. The neck
should be long rather than short It then enables the animal to
graze with more ease, and to throw his weight more forward, whether
he is in harness or galloping at the top of his speed. It should be
muscular at its base, and gradually become fine as it approaches the
head. The withers should be somewhat high in every horse, except
perhaps that of heavy draughty and it does not harm him, for there is
larger surface for the attachment of the muscles of the back, and they
act at greater mechanical advantage. A slanting direction of the
shoulder gives also much mechanical advantage, as well as an easy and
pleasant action, and a greater degree of safety. It must not however
exist in any considerable degree in the horse of draught, and particu-
larly of heaw draught. The chest must be capacious, for it contains
the heart ana the lungs, the organs on which the speed and endurance
of the horse depend. Capacity of chest is indispensable in every
horse ; but the form of the chest admits of variation. In the Waggon-
Horse the circular chest may be admitted, because he seldom goes at
any gjreat speed, and there is comparatively little variation in the
quantity of air required ; but in other horses the variation is often
fearfuL The quantity of air expended in the gallop is many times
that required in hard work. Here we must have depth of chesty not
only ais giving more room for the insertion of the muscles on the
action of which the expansion of the chest depends, but a conforma-
tion of the chest which admits of that expansion. That which is
somewhat straight may be easily bent into a circle when greater
capacity is required; that which is already circular admits of no
expansion. A few words more are all that our limits permit us to
add, and they contain almost all .that is necessary to be added on the
conformation of the Horse : — "The loins should be broad, the quar-
ters long, the thighs muscular, and the hocks well bent and well under
the horsei"
General Management of the Horse. — The foal, as soon as it is
dropped, should be turned with its dam into a sheltered and good
pasture, in which there is a hovel for occasional retreat from the wind
and rain. Some hay or com, or both, should be allowed, if it is early
in the season, or the grass has scarcely begun to shoot. There is
nothing so detrimental to the- colt as insufficient food. It should be
regarded as a fundamental principle in breeding, that if the growth is
checked by starvation, beauty and energy and stoutness ¥rill rarely be
displayed in after-years.
In five or six months, according to the growth of the foal or the
convenience of the farmer, the weaning may take place. The colt
should be removed from his former haunts to some distant rick-yard,
or confined to a stable until he becomes a little reconciled to the loss
of his dam.
In the ensuing spring the breaking may commence ; a process on
which will materially depend the temper and value of the horse, and
the pleasure of the rider. The foal should be handled and haltered,
and led about by the servant who has the chief care of him, and whose
conduct towards him should always be kind. ** The principle," says
the author of 'The Horsey' ''on which the after^usefulness of the
KAT. BIST. DIV. VOL. IL
animal is founded, is early attachment to and confidence in man, and
obedience, resulting principally from these."
With regard to the Racing Coll^ the proceeses of breaking and train-
ing are iigurioualy and oraelly completed in the second year, and
thousands of horses are irreparably injured by this early exaction of
labour and speed ; but in the Hunter, the Hackney, the Agricultural
and the CamageHoise, the serious part of tins business is not entered
upon until the third year.
A horse is well broken when he has been taught implicit and cheer-
ful obedience to his ridtr or driver, and dextenty in the performance
of his work. A dogged, sullen, spiritless submission may be enforced
by the cruel and brutal usage to which the breaker so firequently has
recourse ; but that prompt and eager response to the slightest intima-
tion of tile rider's will — that manifest aim to anticipate every wish,
that gives to the horse so much of his value — ^must be built on haUtual
confidence and attachment. The education of the horse should be
that of the child. Pleasure should be as much as possible associated
with the early lessons ; whUe firmness, or, if need be, coercion must
establish the habit of obedience.
The breaking being accomplished, the management of the Horse
will vary according to his breed and destination ; but the good usage
of our domesticated slaves should be regarded as a principle that
ought never to be violated. The Agricultural Horse is seldom over-
worked, and on large farms is generally well fed ; perhaps in many
cases too much above his work. This however is an error on the
right side. A very slight inspection of the animal will always enable
the owner to determine whether he is too well or not sufficientiy fed.
The size of the horse, and the nature of the work, and the season of
the year, will make considerable difference in the quantity and the
quality of the food. The following accounts will sufficiently elucidate
tiie general custom : — ** Mr. Harper, of Bank HaU, Lancashire, ploughs
seven acres per week, the year through, on strong land with a team of
three horses, and allows to each weekly two bushels of oats, with hay,
during the winter six months, and during the remainder of the year
one bushel of oats per week, with green food. Mr. Ellmau, of Olynde
in St^ssex, allows two bushels of oats, with peas-haulm or straw, with
but very littie hay, during thirty winter weeks. He gives one bushel
of oats, with green food, during the summer." * There is vexy littie
difference in the management of these two gentiemen, and that pro-
bably arising from circumstances peculiar to their respective farms.
The grand principles of feeding with reference to agricultural horses
are, to keep the animal rather above his work, to give him good and
wholesome food, and, by the use of the nose-bsg or other means, never
to let him be worked more than four or five hours without being baited.
The horse of quick wnrk, the Stage-Coach Horse and the Poster,
shotdd be allowed as much as he wul eat, care being taken that no
more is put in the manger than he will rmdily dispose of. The
quantity actually eaten will depend on the degree of work and the
natural appetite of the horse, but it may be averaged at about 66 lbs.
of chaff, 17 jibs, of beans, and 77 lbs. of oats per week. When the
work is unusually hard, the quantity of oats may be diminished, that
of beans increased, and a portion of barley added.
During the sporting season the Hunter is well fed, and with that
kind of food which contains a great proportion of nutriment in littia
compass. A small quantity of hay, rarely more than 8 lbs. or 10 lbs.
per day, is allowed, and less than that on the day before work. The
quantity of com may vary f^m 14 lbs. to 16 lbs. daily. There is a
prejudice in most hunting stables, and probably well foxmded, against
diw, and it is seldom that the beans and oats are bruised. A bran-
mash is given after a day of more than usual fatigue, and is serviceable
at other times, when there has not been more than ordinary work,
provided that at least two days are suffered to elapse before ^he horse
IS again taken into the field.
No horse should be uiged on after he has exhibited unequivocal
symptoms of distress, such as a drooping pace, a staggering gait, a
heavy bearing on the hand, a rapid inspiration like a hurried sigh,
and a peculiar convuhive action of the diaphragm, as though tiie
heart were violentiy beating against the side. The loss of blood, the
administration of some cordial medicine, and slow leading to the
nearest stable, are the best restoratives at the moment of distress ;
although the cordial would be absolutely destnictive a few hours
afterwards, when inflammation had commenced.
The hunting season having passed, the horse used to be turned into
the field as soon as the grass had begun fairly to sprout, and there,
with his feed or two feeds of com daily, and his hovel, into which ho
might retreat from the sun or the storm, he remained until the middle
of June, or the flies began to be troublesome. It was delightful to
see how much he enjoyed this short period of liberty ; and weU had
he earned it. Of late yean however it has become the &shion to
confine him to his box, whence he stirs not except for an houi'a
walking exercise on the road, until he is taken into training for the
next wmter^s business.
Nothing can be so erroneous or crael as this. There are few horses
that have not materially suffered in their legs and feet before the
close of the hunting season. There cannot be anything so refreshing
to their feet as the dunp coolness of the herbsge which they tread at
that period, and there is no physic which so s^ely and effectually at
* * AgrlcQlturBl*8ar\'e7 of Siuaez,' pp. 378, S81.
2 Q
£95
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the spring grue carries off every humour that may be lurking in
their frama
The training of the Hunter for his work is a simple affair. It is, by
means of exercise and of physic, getting rid of all superfluous fat and
flesh, without debUitating hinL ^e physio is useful; it is indis-
pensable ; but the chief ^ing is gradually to accustom him to the
exertion of erery power that he posBesses, without too much hurrying
his breathing or overstraining or injuring him.
The training of the Race-Horse is of a similar character, but it is far
more severe, for his strength, his speed, and his endurance must be
tested to the utmost. The hunter has to carry his rider gallantly
and well through perhaps a long bursty and if he tires, and the sports-
man has the good sense and humanity to cease to urge him on, the
greatest evil is some temporary suffering to him, and (^nppointment
to his master ; but if the race-horse breaks down, or if his capabilities
have not becoi accurately calculated, the most serious loss may be
sustained. Thence arises the necessity of straining and of testing
every power in the preparation of the turf horse ; and thence too it
happens, from the strange and impolitic sacrifice of the endurance of
the modem racer to speed during short distances, that so many young
horses break down and become perfectly useless in their traimng.
The watering of the horse is a very important but disregarded
portion of his general management. The kind of water has not been
sufficiently considered. The difference between what is termed hard
and soft water is a drcumstanoe of general observation. The former
contains certain saline principles which decompose some bodies, ss in
the curdling of soap, and prevent the solution of others, as in the
making of tea, the lx>iling of vegetables, and the process of brewing.
It is natural to suppose that these dlifferent kinds of water would
produce somewhat different effects on the animal frame, and such is
the fact. Hard water, freshly drawn from the well, will frequently
roughen the coat of the horse unaccustomed to it, or cause griping
p^s, or materially lessen the animal's power of exertion. The
racing and the hunting eroom are perfectly aware of this ; and so is
the horse, for he will renise the purest water from the well if he can
obtain access to the running stream, or even the turbid pooL Where
there is the power of choice the softer water ^ould undoubtedly be
preferred.
The temperature of the water is of far more consequence than its
hardness. It will rarely harm if taken from the pond or the running
stream, but its coldness when recently drawn from the well has often
been injurious. It has produced coUc^ spasm, and even death. It
ahould therefore be exposed for some hours, either in the stable or in
some tank.
There is often considerable prejudice against the horse being fairly
supplied with wat^. It is supposed to chiU him; to injure his
wind, or to incapacitate him for hard work. It certainly would do so,
if, immediately after drinking his fill, he were galloped hard, but not
if he were susered to quench his thirst more frequently when at rest
in the stable. The horse that has fr«e access to water will not drink
so much in the course of a day as another who, to cool his parched
mouth, swallows as fast as he can, and knows not when to stop.
When on a journey a horse mav with perfect safety be far more
liberally supplied with water than he genendly is. An hour before
his work commences he shotdd be permitted to drink a couple of
quarts. A greater quantity might be probably objected to. He will
perform his task &t more pleasaatly and effectively than with a
nardhed mouth and tormenting thirst. The prejudice both of the
hunting and the training groom on this point is cruel as well as
ii^uriousL ^ The task or Ihe journey being accomplished, and the
horse havinff breathed a few minutes^ another quiurt, or even two,
will be delightfully refreshing to him, and will never do him hann.
His com may then be offered to him, which he will readily take ; and
before he has eaten the whole of it two or three more quwts of water
may be given.
Towards the dose of the day the speed of the traveller should
somewhat abate, and the horse should arrive at his resting-place as
dry and as cool as circumstances will permits If he is hot he must be
wiuked about awhile, or the perspiration will return in the stable. If
he is wet he must be carefully rubbed dry. The sooner this is done
the better; and after he is clothed, watered, fed, and bedded, he should
as soon as possible be left to his repose.
In travelling the horse should undergo some degree of training as
to the pace, the distance, and the burden, "^en ihere has been no
Srepaiation, the stages most at first be short, and the paoe gentle,
'or a jouiney of 800 miles the horse may travel from 20 to 25 miles
a day, resting on the Sunday, and doing the work in two stages, at
the pace of six miles an hour. This requires a seasoned horse, and
the number of working hours per day is about four*
Hunting requires speed and stoutness. The pace seldom exceeds
twelve miles an hour, and the run is short, soon over, or interrupted ;
yet soft sinking ground, hills, and leaps make this pace severe even on
the best horses. The time for preparation varies frt>m two to four
months. On the day before work the horse should have exercise
enough to empty the bowels. If he is a good feeder he should have
no hay within eight hours of starting, nor water within four hours,
nor com within iuree hours; but if he has five or six miles to go to
cover, these restrictions are less necessary. The working days wUl
vary accordiog to his condition and the hardness of the ronning. He
may be able to go out eveiy second day, and sometimes not mora
thim once in six or seven. His spirits and appetite, and the state of
his legs, will decide this. Even on the blank days some exereiBe ahoold
be taken in order to evj^mate the bowels and create an appetite.
Horses are best prepared for coaching by good feeding and gradual
increase of speed and distance. The ordinary length of a stage is
eight miles ; so that a horse is required for every mile^ or a coach
running between two places forty miles distant, employs forty horses
to take itttway and bring it back. The pace being odculated at from
nine to eleven miles an hour, no horse works quite an hour in the day,
and some not more than three-quarters of an hour, except that, occa-
sionally, an able horse may perform a double journey in order to
relieve a sick companion. No horse therefore leads so easy a Ufe as
an English coach-horse in a well-regulated establishments The
muscular exertion iB severe while it ksts, but it is soon over. The
excitement however of high keep and excessive exertion gradually
wears the horse down, and it is rarely that he continues in a fast
coach more than four years. (Nimrod, ' On the Bead.')
Cart-Horses usually work from eight to ten hours, six days in the
week. The pace varies from two miles to three and a half miles per
hour, and the weight rarely exceeds 24t cwt., besides the cait, which
probably is seven or eight more. All beyond this in weight or in
time of work is cruel.
The average work done by a horse in ploughing is about eight
houra ia the day. The severity of it depends on the pace, the nature
of the soil, and the breadth of the furrow-slice. The pace is frx>m a
mile and a half to two miles per hour ; the furrow varies from eight
inches to eleven, and the distance travelled is from 12 to 16 miles.
The horse and the man can well support this as long as the ploughing
season continues.
Asinns. — The species of this genus have the upper part of the tail
covered with short hair, and the lower part covered with longer hair
forming a tuft ; the fur market with darker stripes ; the fore legs
only furmshed with hard homy warts in a similar situation to those
in ihe front l^gs of the hone, but there are none in the lower part of
the hinder legs. We shall follow in our arrangement of the species
that adopted by Dr. J. E. Qray in the 'British Museum Catalogue.'
* Colour nearly uniform, with a dark longitudinal donal stripe ; aome
have a black stripe across the shoulders. — The Asses of Asia.
+ Ears elongated, acute. — The Tame or Domestic Asses.
These animals vary greatly in size and appearance, according to the
climate. They are liuge and smooth-haired in the warmer climates;
small and shaggy in the colder countries.
It is very doubtful if the Domestic Ass is found in a truly wild
state ; the asses which have been described as wild appear rather to
be domestic animals which have escaped, or mules between the Domestic
Ass and the allied wild species ; for when caught they, after a short
time, submit themselves to man, which is not the case with what Dr.
Qray has here considered as the wild kinds.
Pallas justly observes, " In extensis Asisa deeertis primam patriam
esse quserendam Eqni feri et Onagri a nomadibus in domesticos uaus
domatorum, saque ac Hemioni hactenus indomitl" {* ZooL Boss./
A. L 255.) This is equally applicable to Ihe African species. [Ass.]
A. vulgaria, the Domestic Ass. Qray, with a longitudinal dorul
streak and a dark streak across the shouldera ; ean elongate ; facial
line arched. Skull with suborbital foramen as in £ ffeauonus.
The following are some of the synonyms of this animal : —
£quu8 Asinut (Linn.) ; Asinus wUgaria (Qray) ; JSqtuu Asina (Flem-
ing); Atinut (Plin.); Ass (Fenn., Bewick); Asne (BufiFbn); Ane
(Cuvier) ; Annua Onager (Qray, Bonap. 'Index Mam. Eur.'); Atinui
domaticut, Domestic Ass (H. Smith).
Var, Without any cross.
Var. Legs and body more or less banded.
Domestic Varieties.
Qudha of the Mahrattas, very little larger than a good mastiff or
Newfoundland dog (Sykes). Domestic Ass of Ispahan (H. Smith).
Domestic Ass of Beloochistan (H. Smith). Domestic Ass of Tibet,
with a cross-band (Strachey). The Pico of ancient Egypt (H. Smith).
Tasandunt of the Shelluhs (H. Smith). The Djaar of Arabia (H.
Smith). The Lalisiones, or Wild Ass Colts (H. Smith). Lalisio
(Martial). Wild Ass (Lenant ; Hoskins). Egyptian Ass (H. Smith).
The common Domestic Ass is sometimes of the usual gray colour,
without any appearance of the cross. Thev are sometimes bkck, and
at other times white, rarely skewbald ; but this is the common albinism
and melanism of domeatic animals, and when of these coloun the
cross is not apparent, or at least sometimes only to be seen when the
animal is observed obliquely.
ft Ears moderately short, rounded.— The Wild Asses.
A, Onager, the Koulan, or WUd Ass. Pale reddish (in winter
grayish) ; dorsal streak black, rather wider over the small of the
back. Skull with the infraorbital foramen high up, about one-third
the space between the face-line and the back edge of the teeth, far
back, being directly over the front end of the che^ ridge and the back
edge of the third grinder.
ridsDtlr
687 EQUIDA
Thiaipeoieaii thalnntuiylceifru (Plin.); Oii^«i'(PliD.); E.Atinut
Onagrr (achrsb.); £^111 Owiger (Bri«Hni); Wild Aw (B»U, Hebor);
Koului, or WLld An (Pnm.) ; Eq*Mi JfBniojHu, Wild Au of Kutoh
and tba ludui (Sykaa) ; Atinia Hemuima (Qraf) ; £grinu Khia; Ana
Khur (Lesaon) ; WiU A», or aour(Kor PortBrl ; Wild Ah, or Khur,
of (he Peraiani; OnojKr (Xsuophou) ; HemioQe, or DziggtaifLesaoD);
Htdut, or HuiuT of MtaopoUntiti (H. Smith) ; ^nntu Sonar, the
HumtT (H. Smith) ; Chunor of tha Hebrews.
Thii ipeoiee ishkbits the pUin* of Ucsopotamii, Penia, Kutoh ;
■bona of the Indue, Panjiib.
Hr. Idjard uye they ore abundant in HeeopotwiuK, and are evideDtli
the Wild Au o( Senophoo. The adults are rery difficult tc
nitbin rifle nuge. The young are eometimea oaught alive.
The KiKtr inhabits the deaerta of Penia in troops, frequentiiig tiie
hillB in Buntmer and the plains in winter.
Pallas, in a paper entitled ' ObeerrBtions eur I'Asne dans son txai
eauvage, ou aur le veritable Onsgre d« Anciens ' (' Act. Acad. ScL Imp.
Petrop.,' 1777, 3SS. t 11), Ogund a Wild Au which wai aent by ua
from Derbent to Aatrakhan. The Bgure greatly reeemblee the mule
betneen the Hemione and the Au now ia (he Zoological Ganleni, but
the eon appear a trifia longer. ' It is coloured ia the aame manner tt
the Hemione ; that is to say, the more promlnaot parte of the body
are dark, and the middle of Uie back, the &ont of the hauncbee and
thigh, and the under part of the bodr are paler. The Qgure repreeeata
but a veiy indiituict oroae-band on uia ahoulder.
This paper is translated into German, and a copy of the plates with
a aecoDd figure of the baok of the animal is given in Pallsi, ' H. Nord.
Baytr.,' ii. 22, t. 2 ; but in this figure the eroaa-band on the ihoulden
ia not marked. From this description it wonld appear that the animal
which is called the WildAjiia natalways marked with the croes-band
on the shoulder which ii aa penoanent in the domestia kind, and haa
hitherto been ooniideTed ai ita ipedfic ohaiactar.
The chief difbrence between Pallas's figure of the Wild A» and
the Hemione i* the greater length and more acate form of the ears ;
of the latter the mule varies in this character.
Bishop Heber, as quoted by Colonel H. Smith, layi, " No attempt
has been made to break the Wild Ass (of Kajpootana) in fbr riding,
nor did it appear that the nativee ever thought of euch.
" The Wild Aea of Cutch has the cross-strips on the shaulder,
and diff^ in ooloui* and heavier praportion &om the Wild Aas of
Kor Porter."
Colonel Smith confounds the domesticated Qudha with the Wild
Asa of the Deocan deoeribed by Colonel Sykas, and states on the
colonel'a authori^ that " it is not larger than a mastiff'
v in the
the Caspian and the Aru aeaa. A good specimen and a skill ai
Uusenm of the University of Easan.
All these specimens are without the croes-band, and have only the
longitudinal doTBal streak. Eversmann oonddsn that the aross-baud
id either not the character of iha species, or perhaps a eeznal mark, as
he observes that ha ia not able to disoover the specific oharaoter which
sepanttea the £ .ffeniomM from Uie E. Onagtr. He further obeervei
that the Mongolians have no partimilaT name tor the S. Ottagtr of
Pallas i the Tartars no name for E. ffmioiuu ; the Hongt^ius called
the £ Semioniu Dahiggetei, or more properly Tschildtai, meaning long
ear*, and the Tartan call the E. Onager Kulan.
Eversmann remaAs that Pallas ('N. Nord, Beytr.,' ii 81)atateethat
the male H. Hablisl brought from Persia had no cross, but that the
female whicli was shot on the Uureoy had one. He proceeds to
calcnlate the length of the ears of these animals, compared vrilh the
other measurements of them, and he Gads that the ears of the
mala appear to be conridarably (near two inches) shorter in propor-
tion than the ean of the female. (' Bull Soo. Imp. Nat. Moec.,'
1810, 67.)
The Mule with Arimu dmaalieu$ has the short smooth fur exactly
like the siie, but with a short narrow cross-band on the shoulder; the
eara rather longer and black-tipped.
J. .ffniHOSM, the Kisng. Fur short, smooth, bright-red hay. Len
straw-colour (in winter long, mther woolly, grayish, Iws whitiah), wiui
a broad longitudinal donnl streak, broadest over the small of the
back, without any cross-band on shoulders. Skull : the infraorbital
foramen low down, in the centre of the space between the face-line
and the base of the teeth, and placed in a line over the back edge
of the seeood grinder, some distance in front of the end of the
cheek-ridge.
It U the Mulv* Datui«a* ftumidiu (ICaHemohm, MS3.) ; £pM>
iTmioKMi (Pallas) ; Spmt HmiotHit, Kiang (Ogilby) ; Eqwiu Sa»i«»ot
(Bodd.); Aiitnu Stationtit (Qiay); £^nii Oiagtr (Eversmann);
( t) Arinmt Onoffep, Onsger Konhm, or Wild AssofTartar;(H. Smith);
Jnniu£7iiwH{ei(Hods)on,Bl7th); WildABa(Hoororoft);£^rwu£Miv
(Moorcroft); Egmuvariv, part. (B. Smith); .inmu pafyo^(Hodg'
son); Jikta(ahaw); Dshikketee (Penn.) ; Dgiggetai (Cuvier); Diiige-
thai(BnSbn); Wild Mule, Half Ass, or Fecund Hule (Penn.); WUd
Ass ('Engliah in Tibet'); Hemionos (Pltu.)j L'Hemions ('Ency.
Mfthod.') ; the Qhoor, or Ehur (Moororoft, H. Smith) ; Wild Bsel
(Evemnann) ; the Kiang (H, SmiUi) ; Wild Horse (Qorrard).
It is Ibnnd in Tibet
thsrmomater is below zero. They live partly on the plains and partly
on the mountains ; sod the lower surface of the hoof varies considerably
in form and conoavi^, perhaps from that ci~-""-**"-~
!, or VOd Ass [ J16HH HflstaHt).
The Qhoor
about the noee and under the neck, the
light bay and the " ' '
Khur of Ladakh, aocordiog to Hooreroft, is white
belly azid legs; the baok is
They herd in droves, fly at a trot, stop,
I of Tibet, i:
g ^er ooats and with their antalone '
numbers.
Dr. Walker observes— The Kiang neighs like a hone. The Wild
An of Cutch brays like an ass. The Kiang has no lebra stripes, neither
iu the adult nor in the foaL The Wild Au of Cutch : traosvene
aebia stripes are seen on the shoulder in the adult, and still more in
the foal; sometimes also the ehouldeniraeB has been seen. The
habitat of the Kiaag is on the high tablfr-land of Tibet; of the
Wild Ass of Cutch in the sultiy plains near the month of the
The Kiang of Chineee Tartary greatly exceeds that of the Donkey
of Cutch in size; the stallions often stand 11 hands high. Higor
Charlton and Unjor Biddulph state that they neigh like a hone.
When taken young they will beoome so tame aa to be led about like
a horse, and will follow hones almost anywhere. They live in a
climate where thstemperature is below the freedng point in the middle
of the summer ; yet thev throw off their pale woolly coat during that
lason, and beoome bright bay.
The Donkey of Cutch is often domesticated in India.
(II) A. jfjuWeiM, the Yo-to-tite. Yellowish red-clay oolour. Tip
of ears, mane, long hain of tail, well-defined line down the back to
middle o( tail, and crou-band on the shoulder, three or four cron
Btresls on knees and hocks, blacL
lUi Eqvulem, the To-to-tie (H. Smith) ; Asmui Bif-
pargut, the Yo-to-tie (H. Smith).
Dr.J. K"
was alive in ,
have been brought from the Chinese frontier north-east of Calcutta.
It was most probably a Kiang, or perhaps a mule between it and the
Domestia Asa."
** Body with a black dorsal streak and many more or less distinct
tianevene or curved streaks. Ean ratber short and broad-tipped.
—The Zebras of South Africa.
HippMgrit (H. Smith); Hippotigrine group or Zebras (H. Smith).
t Hoofk slightly concave beneath. Legs white, not or only slightly
eross-streaksd.
Living on the open plains.
A. Oingga, Uie Qoagga. Brown ; head, neck, and withen^ or front
of body, blackish streaked; lower part of body, legs, and tail, white.
Hoofr fiattifh beneath.
It is the Atiniu (^tagga (Qray) ; EquDu (iacagga (Leeson) ; B^ittu
Qii<i^a(G)melin); Female ZebralEdw.} ; LeCouagga(Bufibn; Kwsgga,
or Couagga (Bu£) ; Opea^ia, or QuaggaVMasson) ; SiftxHigrii (iuatlM,
the Quwa of Uie Capo Colonists (H. Smith); " "^ — '
Quama 0
Bba(Feim.
Qus^ (Sbaw);
It is am
ra of the C^m of Oood Hopc^ on i^en pi
£. /M&ciKoM, Temm. ■ HSS.' (H. Smith) ; Sippotigrii ItaiOiitHU,
the IubellaQuBggA{H. Smith); Ane IsnbeUs (La Vailimt).
Lcasoa pUoes the Qnun with the true homa, becBiue tha hiir
Qoagga (Aiiaai Qwiiwi}.
La TallUnt, u Colonel Smith obBarrei, oul; uaw, nod did not
pcmMB, tlia Ana IxobalU. The ■pecimeu in the Britiih Hiueiuo,
daHTitMd and figured bj Culanal H. Smith, ma certainlj onlj ■
joimg QuagK* in * '"'7 imperfect cooditioD, hsviog loat naarij die
whale of ita fur before it was atuffed. It waa preMDted by Dr.
BuTchell BB tbe akio of ■ Quagga.
A, BurcSttlii, tha Peatai, or FeechL Fale brown, under aids of
body whitiih; head, body, and upper part of teg, black atreakedj
tail, ioaida and lower part of leg, white. Hoof rather broad, onl;
alighUy coocaia beneath. Skull : lubarbital fonmen aa in £ HaaioTnu.
It U tha f^MU ZAra (Burohell) ; Atiaut SurduUii (Qray) ; Syuu,
ZAtvida ILttana); Bpiiu BurchtaH (Bennett); Eqviu ZOra, malt
(7. CuTier); Eguui monlaaat, the Dauw (F. Cuvier}; Eipfotigi-U
BurAdiii, tha Dauw (B. Smith); BurohaU'a Zob™ (Harria); Striped,
or Bonte Qungga of the Cape Coloniata (Burii}; Peetie; of the
Hatabuli and Bechianaa ; Daiiw (F. Cuvier).
It ia a native of the plaina of South Africa.
It ia found in herds in eTar; diatriot north of the Orangs Rirer. It
admita of being tameii to a certain extent with oonaiderable fiunlitj,
and ocoaaionalfj a half-dotneeticated apecimen is exposed for eale in
Cape Town with a rider on ita back. Even in the most tractable atata
to which it baa ;et bean reduced, it is r^arded aa wioked, treacherous,
obstiQAte, and fickle.
H. F. Cufier haa applied the Hottentot name for tha true ZebiB
thia apeciea, and used for it the name B. moaltrntu that Burohell gave
to that animal, though it only inhabits the plains.
t+Hooft narrow, deeply concave beneath; legs croaa-banded,—
Living on the Mountaina.
A. Ztira, the Zebra. White; head, body, and 1<^ to the hooh,
btaok-bauded ; noae reddish ; belly and inside of Uiigha not banded ;
tail end blaekiah. fioofa narrow, deeply concave beneath. Skull :
auborbital foramen as in £ Semionia,
^Vv?^T-it*
Zebra (^tiiiw Z<^aJ.
It Is the ZAra Indiea (Aldrov.) ; Sqtut Indletu (Jonston) ; Sg*¥i
BnuOi^ntU (Jaoob); Ei/ppoHgriM (Dio Can. 'Hist' L 77). Eipimt Zibra
(Linn.); AiiiHu Zdm (Gray); Z»bre (BuSbn) ; Zebra (Ray); Sebra
(3tubb); BippotigriM eampalrit (H. Smith); JS^ui monduitu (Bur-
shell); Uale Zebra (Edwards); Wild Pnard, or Wild Horaa, of the
Djtch ColoBlata (BurcheU); Wilder Biel (Kolbe); Daow (or True
Zebra) of the Cape Colonists (Harris) ; Zeurs or Zuon (Lobo) ; Wild
Asa (Kolbe) ; Var. (1) Hij^Mtignt ZOrtt, the Zebra (H. Sniith) ; iftppo-
tigru antiqiuymm, the Congo Dsuw or Zebia of Pigafetta (H. Smith) ;
Mippotigrit anCifitonnn, Angola Dauw (H. Smith).
" ' of the mountaina of Simth Africa.
1 Dnmerona. Tha
B weU
known for their symmetry, anraneaa of foot, and unwearied activity,
and are the produoe of a breed of aaws far beyond thoaa of thia
Oounlry in atatqre, abapa, asd general appeaiaoce. The Hinny, whicb
ia the ofiiipring of the Horae and the fentale Aaa, is altogether ^erior,
and is teas esteemed than the Hule. Hybrids have also been produced
from the Horae and the Ass breeding with the Zebra or the Qnagga,
Two mules that belong to the Zoological Sooie^ are the o&faing
of the Ass and the Zebra. The Eari of Morton bred a female hybrid
from a fine male Quagga and a Hare of neuty pure (aeveD-ei^tha)
Arabian blood.
It may be eipeoted that we should here ootioa the queattan aa to
the power of reproduction in mJTn^U eo bred between different
spedea. Ur. Bell, in bia 'British Quadrupeds,' haa treated thia
subject in hia usual luminous manner. After obaerving that the
inquiry how {»x the power possessed by two animals of producing
young on the one hand, or fertile young on the other, beaia upon the
generic or specific identity of the parents, ia one of the greateat interiat
in the investigation of zoological relations, he proceeds thus : — " It has
been supposed, and with very conaidenble probability, that tha pro-
duction of male and female progeny wbich ars fertUe intar as is to
be considei«d in itaalf a poaittve proof that the parents are of tha
same speciea, how much soever they may AiSter in external form and
appearance. It ia well known that thrae are many instances cf
anlmala undoubtedly distinct producing young, which beooms fertile
in conjunction with one or other of tha parent kioda. This has been
proved in the eaea of seraral species both of gallinaceous and nata-
torial birds in a domeatic state ; but there ia not, J believa, on record
a aingle instance of a male and female of a«ch hybrid progeny being
mutually fertile. On the other hand tha production of aberile hybrida
between distinct apeciea of the aame group ia a ctrcumatanoe ao
commonly occurring sa to require only an alluuon ; and a reference to
the present animal [the Hulej ia a auffident illustration of the fact.
But the power of reproduction even of aucb progeny ia oonaidered by
some aa indicativB (rf a generic relation between tJie parent spedai^
and has bem urged as an argument against the aaparation of the
Hons as a distinct genus from the Asa and ita oongenera. Before
thia observatiim however can be allowed to have any weight. It reala
with the objecton to define the precise meaning and limits of a genus;
and ontil this hM been done, whioh haa never yet been aatiafaotorily
attempted, aoeh an aipiment ia a mere bagging of the question. Tha
Utile ba* been oocaaiimally known to produce yonng with tha Horse
or the Asa : theaa eases are however exliemely rare, and serve as
illuatratJoDS of the atatamenla whioh I hare already maida, as there is
no inatance on r«cord of two Mnlea having bred tcgether." Hr. Bell
notieea tha following fact, as one which must doubtless be placed to
the account of this power of reproducing in the Unla^ A small mar*
was turned into a [«ddock in tha Qardens of the Zoological Society
of London (Regcnt'a Park), in company with a mala white Aaa, and a
mala hybrid between the Zebra and tbe Asa. She had a foal which
was distinctly marked with black atripea across tha 1^%
While upon this subject, we may as well advert to the Curions
point, that the oharacteta of tha male parent of .the mother's fint
trogeny show themselves in her aubaaqnent oflbpring by other males,
Dwever different those males may be in form or colour. Ifr. Bdl
observes that this truth has already bean illustrated by him when
treating on the Dog and on the Hog, and he odds that il receives a
remat^ble and intereating confirmaUon from the case of the mara
(belonging to the Earl of Morton) quoted by bim and above alluded
to. In that case the mara was young, and sAer producing tbe female
hybrid by tha Quagga, had first a filly, and afterwards a colt, by a
fine black Arabian Horse, They bath reaembled the Quagga in the
dark line along the back, the stripea Borosi tbe forehead, and the ban
across the legs : in the fiUy the mane was short and stiff, like that of
the Quagga ; in the colt it waa long, but ao stiff as to arch upwarda
and hang clear of tbe sidoe of the neck : in other respects they were
nearly pur« Arabian. Thia and other such cases should not be fbiwotten
by breeders of animals, who ars anxious about the perfection of their
stock, and should make them particulaiiy careful aa
iuSuence whicb firat makes ita impression on tt
il aa to the mala
Foitit Egvida.
Hemaina of Equida occur abundantly in tha third period of tha
Tertiary soriea (Pliocene of Lyell), in tha &eah-water depoail^ in
what ia called Diluvial Detritits, in superficial gravels, sands, and
clays, in tbe Oraiferous Caverns, in the Osseons Breccia, in the
Eppleslieim Sand, ke. Bones of the Horse oecnrred, but not abun-
dantly, among the remains found hj Captain Cautley lying coi ttit
slopsa among tha ruina of foUen din, and partly in aitn in u* Sand-
■tone in the Sewalik MoaQtaina at the eouthem foot of the Him>la;u,
between the Sutlej sod the Oaages. SeTeral species have beeo recorded,
but we must not forget the opinion of Cuvier, who thought there
were not Bufflcient data for specific dirtinctjona. Ho informs ui that
he had carefullj compared the skeletons of many varietiea of horaea^
those of the Hole, the Aaa, the Zebn, and the Quagga, and he never
could find a character suffioientl; fixed to enable him to pronounce on
a species from an iitoUted boae. Size, he remarks, nimishea but
incomplets means of distinction : horses and asses vary much in this
particular, from their state of domestication; and ha adds, that
though he bad not ;et procured the skeleton of a Dshikketee, he
doubted not its reaemblaoce to that of the other apeoiei as much ai
the; resembled each other in the same particular. He therefora
aeems to be borne out in his opiuioD that compaiatire anatomj
cannot folve the question whether the horse whoee remains are found
it) a foaul state reeembled the horses of the present da;. The fossil
species recorded hy authors are EjwufoitUU {E, Adanntictit of
SclilotheimI ; S. (Caballtu) primigtniiu ; B. (Uutta) pritaigentia ; E.
(AnnKi)primigoiim. Professor Owen, in bis 'British Fossil Hsmmals',
has described three spedes of Equtda — Bqfou fbuiliM, E. pluHdem,
end AAam fimitii. Their remains were all found in the Tertiar;
t'onnatioDS of England. He thns conoludea his remarks on the
Fossil Equida:—
"In reviewing the general position and distriimtion of the foeeil
remains of the genus ffuiu, we find that thia very remarkable and
useful form of Pachyderm Bitt made its appearance with the
RhiDocaroB during the Hiocene periods of geology. From tiie pecu-
liar and well marked apecific distinction of the primogenial or
slender-legged horaea {Hippatturi'um), which ranged from Central
Eumpa to the then rising cfaun of the Himalaya Mountaina, it is
most probable that tbey would have been as little avaiUble for the
■ervica of civilised man as is the Zebra or the Wild Aas (Bqmu
Htmimtui) of tiie present day ; and w« can aa little infer the dorality
of the later or Pliocene species, £ pliadmt and E. fomlii, the only
ones bitherto detected in Britain, from any characters dedudhle from
their known fossil remains. There are many specimens however that
th<
nay be
listiug Bpecles,
me sole eiistiog aurvivors of the numerous reprsaentatiTes of the
geuus EniHa in the Europeo-Asiatic continent during the Pliocene
period. The species of Sgutu which existed during that geologioal
period in boUi North and South America appears to have be^ blotted
out of the Fauna of those coutinents before the introduction of man.
The aborigines whom the Spanish conquiatadon found in poaseasion
of Peru and Mexico had no tradition or hierogl»phio indicative of
such a qoadmped ; and the horses that tlis tn'^ers had imported
from Europe were viewed with astonishment and alarm.
" The researchea of Hr. Darwin and Dr. Lund have however indis-
putably proved that the genua Eguiu was repTaseiit«d during the
Fliocens period by a apedes (£ eitrvidtm) which la shown to be
distinct from the European fossils and tbs eiiating apedes. Fossil
remains of the Horse have likewise been discovered in North America.
The geographical range of the genua Eqaut at the Pliocene period
was tSns more extensive than that of the Rhinoceros, of which both
the extinct and existing species are confined to the continents of the
Old World of geography. The Horse, in its ancient distribuljon over
both hemispberaa of ths globe, resembles the Mailadon, and appears
to have become extinct in North America at the same time with ths
if. giganteut, and in South America with the M. Andium and the
MegathB^itm. Well may Mr, Darwin say, 'It is a mfcrvellous event
in the histoiy of Bnim»l< that a native kind should have disappeared,
to be succeeded in after ages by the countleaa herds introduced with
the Spanish colonist.' "
EQUISETA'CE£, Stir$elailt, a natural order of imperfeotly-
formed Plants whose real affinity is uncertain, and ths nature of
whose parts of fructification is not yet understood- By Linnaus and
almost all botaniats they are referred to the Cryptogamic class. With
Ferns their relation is not obvioua In the arrangement of their
reproductive organs they have a striking resemblance to Zamia, and
in their general aspect to Ephtdra or Cataarina. Dr. Lindley regards
them aa a high form of the muscal alliance, and plocea them near to
MarchanHacea. Only one genus is known, the stema of a species of
which are employed iu the abops under the uame of Dutch Rushes.
They are hollo w-etemmed leafless plants, with aouticle composed of pure
Btlrx, Inlieuof leaves they have toothed sheaths, each of nhicU has as
many series of imperfect spiral vessels paasiog into fistulEe of the atom
as there are toothings. Their fructification grows in terminal cones,
consisting of stalked peltate acales, having on their lower aide smsll
cases wherein are lodged minute oval or round green bodiea, auiv
rounded by four elastic hygromatrical yellowish-gray granulated
clavate threads. By ail botanists the central green body is admitted
tn be a seed or spore. The nature of the clavate threada is disputed ;
they are usually called Elatecs, and are compared to the elastic spiral
threads bearing that name in Jangenaanniaeia ; butthsreisQO proof
of such being their nature, and there is an opinion that they
EQUISETniL Ml
medical use ; they are said to bo slightly astringent and stimulating,
but are not now employed. The stems of some of them are used for
polishing furniture and household utensils, owing to their ailiceous .
properties. According to the observations of John of Berlin they
contaJuSO per cent, of siliceous eartJi. The quantity of silei contained
in the cuticle of E hytmaU is so great that Sivright succeeded in
removing the vegetable matter and retaining the form. [EtjOiBBrDic.]
tales ; 4, the same TlewFd from below ; A, two or Uu esses very
, aa ovulB with the four iuppoKd tbthFrii,
EQOISETUM (from 'equuBj'ahorse, una 'seta.'ahair or bristle,
from the character of the lerives), a genun of Plants, the type and
only genus of the order Eqauttacea, The species are teafiess branched
plants, with a striated fiatulsr stem, articulations aheathed at the
twse 1 the sporulea are surrounded by elastic ciavate Glameuta, and
inclosed in thecoe ariaiug from-the peltate scales of terminal cones ;
the vernation is atrai^t, and the cutacle abounds in stlex.
£ hj/emaU, Dutch Rt^, baa a simple stem, very rough, with from
li to 20 slender furrows : the sheatha dose, whitish, but the top and
bottom black i the teeth slender, black, deciduoua This plant is a
native of England, SooUand. and Ireland, as well as the continent of
Europe. It is almost unknown in the middle and southern English
counties, and is only sparingly distributed anynhere. It nas recom-
mended as a medicine by the ancients, and the earlier herbalists
quoted them as suthoritiea for its virtues ; but it is not now need in
medicine. It appears however to poasees tannin, and to act aa an
astringent. It is supposed to be injurious to cows, and is said to
cause their teeth to drop out, but horses eat it with impunity. This
plant more than any other species iaused for the purposes of polishing.
Lightfoot aaya that in Northumberland the milk-maids scour their
eiia with it It is also used for the purposes of polishing wood,
ne, ivory, and various metals, particularly brass, and ia brought
into this country from Holland, where it grows abundantly in large
quantities, and is sold in ths shops of London under the name of
Dutch Hush. Mr. Newman thinks however that the Equuttura
brought from Holland ia a different species from the British E. Aynna/e.
The stems of this plant contain large quantities of silei, and in the
aah left after burning it forms aa much aa 97 per cent. On subjecting
a portion of the cutide of this apedes to the analyus of polariaed
light under a high magnifying power Brewster detected a beautiful
arrangement of the siliceous particles, which are distributed in two
linea parallel to the axis of the stem, and extending over the whole
surface. The greater number of ths particles form simple alnight
lines, but the reat are graupsd into oval forms connected together
like the jewels of a necklace by a chain of pautidea, farming a sort of
currilinear qnadrangle, these rowa of aval combinationa beinj>
803
EQuua
EBICA.
eoi
arranged in pain. Many of these partioles which form the straight
lines do not exceed the 500th of an inch in diameter. Brewster alao
ohserved the remarkable fact that each particle has a regular axis of
double refraction. A very large quantity of starch is found during
winter in the rhizomes, in whose cells during the month of October
the particles may be seen in active motion, passing up one side and
retreating by the other, much in tlie same way as in Chara, This
may also be seen in E. fiuviatiU,
E, Mackaii has a simple, or very slightly branched, very rough
stem, with 8-12 furrows, the sheath dose, tdtimately wholly blade ;
teeth slender, persistent. This plant occurs in the north of Ireland,
and is named by Mr. Newman after its discoverer, Mr. I. T. Mackay,
author of the ' Flora Hibemica.' Sir Wm. Hooker has referred this
plant to the B, dongatum of WHldenow ; but Babington has adopted
Newman's species.
E, variegatwn has a simple stem, or very slightly branched, very
rough, with 6-9 furrows, the sheaths slightly charged upwards,
green bdow, black aBove; the teeth obtuse, each tipped with a
deciduous bristle. The stem is about a foot high. It is found on
sands near tiie sea, or in wet places in mountain valleys in Qreat
Britain.
E. pahtstre has the stem with 6-8 deep furrows, branched through-
out ; the sheaths loose, pale, with acute wedge-shaped teeth tipped
with brown, and membranous at the edges. Thu plant is veiy
generally distributed over Qreat Britain. This species is liable to
alter its characters, and three tolerably permanent varieties have
been described.
EfiwfiatUe, Water Horse-Tail, has a sterile stem, nearly smooth,
with about 80 stri» and branches ; branches rough, doubly angular,
simple; the fertile stem simple, with numerous crowded large
deeply-toothed sheaths. This is the E. Tdmateia of Ehrhart and
Newman's ' History of British Ferns.' Its present name was erro-
neously given it by Smith, which has been adopted by^ Hooker and
Babington. It is one of the most beautiful of the species, attaining
a height of S, 4, and even 5 feet. It is abundant in the neighbour-
hood of London, especially near Hampstead Heath. It is a native
also of the more southern countries of Europe. Although it grows
in water, as its name would imply, it still grows in dry situations ;
and the name fiuvitUUe is more applicable to the original plant of
LinnSBus, the B. limotum of English botanists. Horses sometimes
eat thia plant; and from a passage in Haller he seems to have
supposed that it was eaten by the Romans : he says, " Hoc fuerit
Equisetum quod a plebe Bomanft in dbum recipitur." (Haller,
' Hist' iii 1.)
E. Umoium has a smooth stem, with 14-16 slight furrows; the
teeth of the sheaths shorty rigid, and acute ; the branches erect,
simple, whorled, often abortive^ This is undoubtedly the E. fiwtiaUU
of LinnsDus, but we have given the name of Smith, aa that which has
been followed by Hooker and Babington in their Floras of Great
Britain. This plant is seen very commonly in ponds and ditches, and
sometimes in running streams, the roots and a portion of the stem
being immersed in water. It is a common plant throughout Europe.
Linneus says that in Sweden it is used as food for cattle, in order
that the cows may give more milk, and also that the rein-deer feed
on it. He advises that it should be collected in summer as fodder
for the winter. Cattle in this countxy will sometimes eat it. Mr.
Knapp also records the fact that the common water-rat is.vbry
fond of it. It is probable that in some states of the system of
animals it acts medicinally; but neither this nor any other of the
species of EquUetvm would be fitted for the constant food of
animals.
«E tylvatiewnt Wood Horse-Tail, has the sterile and fertile stems,
with about 12 furrows and numerous whorls of slender compound
spreading or deflezed branches ; the sheaths lax, with 6-10 membra^
nous rather blunt teeth. It is found in wet shady places and moist
woods throughout Qreat Britain.
E. DrwMnondii has the sterile stem, with about twenty striae, vexy
scabrous, with prominent points, particularly above; the branches
simple, with four simple angles, the fertile Aetn. simple, with nume-
rous crowded deeply-toothed sheaths. This plant has not been long
known as a native of Qreat Britain, but Mr. Newman Uiinks it is
probably a common plant, and says it is identical with the
E^vmbrotum of Willdenow.
E. arvense, Com-Field Horse-Tail, has the sterile stem, with few
furrows, slightly scabrous; the branches simple, rough, with four
simple angles, tiie fertile stem simple, with few lax distant sheaths.
This is the most common of all the species, and frequently a source
of serious iz^ury to the farmer and gardener. It is subject to
variation according to the locality in which it grows. It is easily
distinguished from E, umbrosvm, for which it might be mistaken by
its divoplng and compound branches.
(Newman, Hiatory of Britith Ferm and Allied Plants ; Babington,
Manual of Britiih Botany j Loudon, Bncydopcedia of Plants,)
EQUTJa nCquiDA]
ERA'NTHEMUM, a genus of Acanthaceous Plants, with showy
gurple flowers, some of whose species are occasionally seen in hot-
ouses in this country. It haa a salver-shaped corolla with a 5-cleft
nearly equal limb, a 4-parted equal calyx, and only two out of its
I four stamens fertile. Eranthemum pulcheUum and B. hicolor are the
handsomest spedes in cultivation, and when skilfully managed
produce a very striking appearance.
ERANTHIS, a small genus of Plants cut off from ffeUgbarut, in
consequence of its having a dedduous calyx, stalked capsules, an
involucre to the flowers, and a totally different habit. E hyemalit,
or Winter Aconite, is a small stemless tuberous herbaceous plant,
inhabiting shady places in the midland parts of Europe, and rendering
our gardens gay in the earliest spring with its cups of bright ydlow.
It has peltate, many-cut, pale g^reen, smooth leaves, and a single-
flowerea scape only a few inches high.
Another spedes, E Stbirieat inhabits Siberia.
ERQOT, botaiucally considered, is a fungus belonging to the
Qymnomycetous division, and constituting one of two species of
SpermHedia admitted by Fries. He calls it S, damu, and separates
it from the genus ScUrotium, to which it had previously been
referred, on account of its growing in the inside of other plants, and
having no proper fructification.' He defines the genus SpermOedia
as foUows : " Variable, rounded, entophytal, rootless, of a fleshy
mealy homogeneous texture, with a rind concx^ste, scaly, or somewhat
pruinose. ^^>per fructification none." And then he adds " that it
is only a morbid condition of the grain of com, not propagated by
seed, but generated by a partioular combination of external influences
(oosmica momenta)." £hidlioher takes the same view of the nature
of eigot, only with more consistency he does not admit it as a real
fungus^ but only enumerates it as a diseased state of the seed of
grasses, swelling into a fungoid body, and covered externally with
powder. From the researches of iSie late Mr. Quekett it appears
that a true fungus exists in the grain of rye during its early stages
of growth, whidi ^ves it Uie peculiar appearance odled Ergot. He
describes the spondia of this fungus as elliptical, moniliform, finally
separating, transparent^ and sddom containing more than one, two, or
three well-defined greenish granules. Mr. Quekett called the fungus
Ergotetia abortifacientf in reference to its action on the system.
For its action, see Ergot, in Arts and So. Div.
The eigot of rye is not confined to that kind of grass, but attacks
many other spedes. Fries distinguishes it by the lengthened form
and white interior from SpermOedia Ptupali, a Carolina eigot, which
is globose and somewhat compressed, scaly and rough externally,
pale brovm and yellowish inside. A third spedes attacks Indiw
com in Columbia, and has a pear-shaped figure.
ERQTNE. [IsoFODA.]
ERI'CA, a most extensive and beautiful genus of Plants, the type
of the natural order Ericaeece, It is distinguished by its calyx
being 4-leaved, its corolla 4-toothed, and its fruit a dry, 4" or
8-ceued, many-seeded capsule, opening into valves with the
dissepiments projecting from their middle.
Under this character is included a great variety of spedes having
veiy narrow linear leaves arranged in whorls, and so little different
in tiieir vegetation in most cases, that when out of flower they are
often not easily distinguished from each other; but exhibiting a
surprising diverdty in their flowers, in which their great beauty
resides. The richness of colour, the el^anoe and variety.of form,
the delicacv of texture, or the minute microscopic perfection of
their corolla, are such as no words can describe. Lovely as even
our wild moorland heaths are, they rank among the lowest in point
of beautv in this extraordinaiy genus, in which all the hues of red,
pink, and purple vie with each other in the most brilliant manner,
assuming every tint but blue, and fading into the purest and most
transparent white. Some of the spedes have the corolla as much as
two inches long, in others it is not bigger than a pepper-corn ; in
some it is long and slender, in othen inflated like a flask, or dilated
like a vase of the purest form, or as round as an fur-bubble ; and
there are many in which it is split almost to its base, and immersed
in a calyx whose texture and colours are even more brilliant than its
own. Here we have a species the surface of whose corolla rivals in
evenness and polish the finest porcelain; there another appears
covered all over with hairs, exuding a glutinous secretion, which
glitters upon its sides like solid crystals ; and some again have their
colours so dimmed by a loose shaggy coat, that their real tint can
hardly be ascertained. There are even some in which the corolla
assumes the very colour of the leaves, only dearer, brighter, and
richer. This great difference in the structure of the flowers of
different species is accompanied by distinctions in their anthers,
which are either muticous (destitute of appendages), cristate
(furnished vrith two little broad projecting membranes), or aristate
(that is, having a couple of bristle-shaped processes proceeding from
their bfUM). ft has lately been proposed to take advantage oF these
and similar differences for breakmg up the genus Erica, now consisting
of between 800 and 400 supposed species, into a number of new
genera ; and accordingly in Don's ' Qeneral System of Qaidening and
Botany,' we find no fewer than twenty new groups formed at the
expense of Erica,
The genus is confined to the Old World. A few spedes occur in
the North of Europe, and others in the coimtries bordering on the
Mediterranean. In Qreat Britain, Heather {Erica, or CaUana vulgaris)
[Calluna] covers laige tracts of waste Isnd, and is used to thatdi
houses, to make brooms, and even beds^ in tiie northern parts of the
EBICACE^.
ERICHTHUS.
606
ialaiid. There is a double Tariety of UiiB Bpeciee which is extremely
beautiiuL All our Britieh heaths are improred by cultiYation, and
are general favourites where the climate and soil are suited to them.
They will not however thrive in hot dry places and in any common
■oil, but require sandy peat earth, and a situation where they are
moderately shaded fh>m the sun. Erica cameOf one of the few
plants whose flowers bid defiance to the rigour of winter, and appear
as the earliest harbingers cf spring, is fbund wild io Germany and
generally on the mountains of middle Europe.
But it is at the Cape of Good Hope that the principal part of
the species is found; indeed the whole of those which are cultivated
in greenhouses. In their native country they are by no means so
handsome ss when cultivated, but form scraggy shrubby bushes,
with BO little beauty, that the colonist boors have not vouchsafed to
give them.even a name.
ERICA'CEiB, a natural order of Exogenous Plants, deriving their
name from the extensive genus that forms the subject of the last
article. It is readily known from all other orders by its anthers
bursting by pores at their apex, the stamens being hypogynous, the
ooroUa monopetalous, and the ovaiy containing more cells than two.
By this chanoter are combined with the genus Erica the fragrant
richly-coloured Azalea, the shady everereen EKododendron, and the
delicate irritable Kalmia, together with ArbfUut, Andromeda, OauU
theria, and many others equally beautiful; in fact it is probable
that if it were necessary for a botanist to name some one natural
order as pre-eminent for beauty, this would be the one selected. It
is therefore not a little curious that it should also be an order
of poisonous plants; for one would hardly expect danger to lurk
beneath forms so fair. Nevertheless JRhadodendr<m pontiettm, Azalea
potUica, and various Kalmia and Andromeda are notoriously delete-
rious, and even the ArbtUua berries are in no inconsiderable degree
narcotia
The order is unknown in very hot countries, except at considerable
elevations ; it appears generally to love exposed sitttattone^ and, with
the exception of Erica itself, to follow mountain chains, as it advances
from the cool plains of tiie temperate zone to equinoctial regions.
Hence, although we find Befaria, Oayluuaecia, Andromeda, and
others in Peru, Bnudl, Ceylon, Java, Madagascar, and elsewhere, it is
only upon the tops of lofty mountains or upon their sides.
Ericacea are frequently polypetalous, and give rise, along with other
similar cases, to a suspicion that the usual division of Exogens into
polypetalons, monopetalous, and incomplete sub-classes, is essentially
bad. [ExoQENB.]
Sriea lonfijiora,
1, ■Umens and ptBtil; 3, calyx; S, ovary; 4, anther; 5, section of seed,
fthowisg the embryo.
The following are the British species of this genus, with theu*
distinctive characters, as given in Babingtcm's ' Manual of British
Botany:' —
* Corolla globose or urceolate, stamens included, filaments capillaiy,
stigma peltate.
E, Teiralix, with the leaves 4 in a whorl, downy above and on the
midrib beneath; the sepals linear, downy; the ovary downy. Its
flowers are rose-coloured. It grows commonly on boggy heaths^ and
blossoms in July and August
E, Mackaiana, Maoka/s Heath. Leaves 4, midrib beneath and
upper smface glabrous; the sepals ovate-lanceolate, and with the
ovary glabrous. The flowers are purplish. The only locality knawn
for it in the British Islands is between Roundstone and Clifden iu
Connamara, Ireland.
E. cinerea, Fine-Leaved Heath. The leaves are 8 in a whorl, keeled
beneath, with a central furrow ; glabrous flowers in dense whorled
racemes. Flowers reddish-purple. It is found on dry heatha
E. ciUaria. Leaves 4 in a whorl, ovate, ciliated; flowers in terminal
unilateral racemes. It is a rare plant.
** Corollas campanulate or shortly tubular, stamens exserted, filaments
flattened, style capitate.
E. Mediterranean Leaves 4 in a whorl, linear, gkbrous above, convex,
with a central furrow beneath ; corolla cylindrical, urceolate ; anthers
without awns. Found in Ireland, in mountain bogs in the west of
Mayo and Qalway.
E. vagans, Cornish Heath. Leaves 4-5 in a whorl, corolla most
campanulate. Flowers red or white; anthers purple. It is found
in the western parts of Cornwall in England, and on the coast of
Waterford in Ireland.
ERICHTHUS, Latreille's name for a genus of deep-sea Crustaceans,
and placed by M. Milne-Edwards between the genera SptiUerichtkue
and Alima. The last-named author makes the tribe Erichthians
(Erichthiens) belong to the family of Unicuirassiated Stomapods
(Stomapodes Unicuirass^s), the general characters of the tribe being
an undivided carapace and a styUform rostrum ; no moveable rostral
plate ; and branchisa in general radimentary.
The tribe, according to M. Milne-Edwards, is composed of a certain
number of small crustaceans approximating to the SquiUce, but which
have in general only rudimenta^ branchisB, and are often completely
deprived of them. They are easily distinguished by their carapace,
which is large, lamellar, generally transparent^ without longitudinid
furrowB-or distinct lobes, and always armed with a styliform rostrum,
which advances above the ophthahnio and antennular rings. These
first two rings of the head are less dutinct than they are in SquiUa,
but have very nearly the same conformation, and move upon the
succeeding cephalic segmentb The internal antennas are inserted
below and bemnd the ocular pedimdes ; they are rather distant from
each other, and their slender and cylindrical peduncles are composed
of three joints, and cany at their extremity three multiarticulate
filaments. The external antenns are inserted at some distance behind
the preceding, and are directed outwards ; their peduncle is large^
and formed of two joints, of which the first gives origin by the
anterior border of its extremity to a slender and short stem (tige),
composed of two peduncular joints and a multiarticulate filament^
the second carrying at its extremity a laige oval-shaped blade or
lamina with ciliated edges. The epistome is not projecting and
swollen as in SgtuiUa, and the mouth resembles a pear^haped tubercle,
situated near the middle or towards the posterior third of the lower
surface of tiie carapace. The upper lip has the form of a triangle,
with a rounded bsse which is directed backwards. The mandibles
are vertical, swollen at their base, and armed with two branches with
dentilated borders, the upper of which raises itself into the interior
of the pharynx ; tiieir palpiform stem (tige) is either rudimentary or
nulL The lower Up is laige and composed of two swollen lobes.
The jaws are small, and of the same conformation as those of SqtMla,
excepting that those of the second pair are narrower. The members
which represent the anterior jaw-feet^ the prehensile feet (pates
ravisseuses), the three pairs of suboheliform feet.a.pplied against the
mouth, and the three pairs of natatoiy feet, whicn terminate the
series of thorade membem, are formed and disposed in the same
manner as they are in S^uiUa, It is only to be remarked that often
the three pairs of suboheliform feet are less approximated to the
mouth than they are in the Squdlla, and that those of the last three
pain are sometimes rudimentwy. The oarapaoe is prolonged more
or less fisff beyond the last rings of the thorax, or even beyond the
first segments of the abdomen, but without adhering thereto. The
abdomen is elongated ; its last segment is very large, and entirely
covers the appendsges of the preceding ring, which are short, but
formed like those of the SqwUke. Finidly, the fldse feet suspended
from the first five rings of the abdomen are more slender and more
elongated than in the other division of the family, and, as has
already been noticed, present in general only the vestiges of branchiie.
The Erichihi have as yet occurred hardly anywhere else than in
the ocean (haute mer), and have hitherto been found only in tropical
regions. The following are the characters of the genus : —
SqvdUerieklhfte, — Carapace armed with spiniform prolongations and
covering the base of the internal aatennso, but posteriorly it does not
overpass (not comprising the spines) the last ring of the tiiorax. The
rostrum is styliform and very long. The eyes are large, pear>shaped,
and articulated, on a very slender and rather long cylindrical peduncle.
The ophthalmic ring is not distinct from the antennular ring^ as in
the SquiUida but the mode of insertion of the antennss is the same
as in those animala and in the EridUhi. The antenn» of the first
pair are directed forwards, and present nothing remarkable. The
external antenna are directed outwuds, as in the EridUhi, and present
also a hage peduncle, oarrying at its extremity a laige oval-shaped
Umiim ciliated all round, and giving insertion, by its anterior border,
to a very short stemlet (tigelle), composed of two peduncular joints
and a terminal filament. The mouth is little distant from the base of
iddnkdi
■or ERICHTHUa
tile antemua^ uid titiut»d tnwordi Uie middla of the eanpue. The
upper Up is Ui^, demicirculAr, >ad prnjacting. The muidiUee are
directed dowDinirdi u in the Sjuilia, and there it t. Ur^ denticulkted
tooth and a proloDgatlon eqnall; dentilated on ita edge^ which moonti
towai^ the atomacb, but Uie |ntpifbrm etem is null or rudimentar;.
Behind the maodiblet are foond > targe inferior bilobated lip, and
then two pure of jaws, the form of which it the eame ea in tiie
SgniUida. The appendagea that comepond to the jaw-feet of the
.__.. _ _j^ pnaent nothing remarkahla ; they have the form of a long
Ekder eten), and, aa in the other cmatacsaoa of thifl &milj, do Dot
■J) form a part of the buccal appantua The memben of the
fiJlowing pair are ver; lai^e, and conntitute prebBoaile feet (patea
r(iTiseaniiBa\ eiaotlj limilar to thoie of the Squ^la ; thair pennlti-
nute articulation ia eolarged aod spinoua towards the base, and their
termioai claw a abort, and armed with apiniform teeth on the
prebenaile edge. The feet of the three following pain are inaerted
on a trauareroe curred line immediatelf behind the prehensile feet,
and an habttaaltj applied againat the mouth exactly aa in the
BqititlidiB; each of these carriea at ita baae a flattened diao-like
Tencle, and ia terminated by an oral cheltfaroua manua. The three
laat thoracic rings are oomplets, and tne below the au«paae, which
ooTers the first two. The three pain of correaponding feet are of
moderate eiza, and formed aa tiiey are in the S^iiiidtef only Uieir
laat joint ia not setiferoua. The abdomen ia !ai;ge, and much
lt*«mblea that of the SgvUiir, except that the laat eegment is mnch
largWi *ii^ habitually coTsra the members of the penultimate ring.
These last organs are compoaed, aa in the Squillcc, of a pedunculu
joint, irtiich prolonga itwlf inferiorly into a great lunina, and oarriee
two appeadagea inaerted on ita adgea near ita baae. The internal
appendage conaiats of a ^reat ciliated lamina, and the external
one ia compoard of two Joints, of which the laat ia oval, and
the pennltimate joint armed with apinea on the external border.
The falae feet suspaided &om the fint five rings of the abdomen
an large, and formed of a nearly eqoare peduncular joint, and of
two great oral lamina with ciliat^ edges; the internal lamina
bean on ita internal edge a small rudimentaij appendage, and
the external girea inaertion, near ita base, to a large ramose
hnnchia.
X, Hilne-Edwarda, who fonnded this genua, and wboee description
we hare aboTe gi'en, oonsideni that SquilUriclUhui fonoa the paaeage
between the ^Tuiite and the EruAthi.
It haa only been found aa yet in the Asiatic aeaa,
The species (two only are recorded) are amalb
8. typiu. Rostrum advancing beyond the peduncle of the internal
antennK,- a great horiaontal spine on the middle of the poaterior
border of the carapace ; and, on each aide, another and longer apini-
form elongation, springing from the anele of the carapace ; finally, a
rather strong point towards the middla of the lateral border of the
oarapaoe, and another above the baae of the external anteonn Claws
of the prehensile feet armed wiUi four teeth (including the terminal
point). The laat thoracic ring ia not covered with the carapace,
and the abdomen is very large. Ite laat ailment ia much longer
than it la wide, and armed with three pair of marginal teeth.
Length about 15 lines. Found in the seas of Asia. (Hilne-
Ednrarda)
The other H>acles recorded by M. Milne-Edwards, 8. tpiiuxtta, was
taken by H. Dussumler in the Onlf of Bengal.
SrirtiAiH,— Carapace very large, oonvex, and anned with spiniform
elongatioaa. It entirely coven the base of the ocular pedunclea, aa
well aa of the antenns, and extends backwards mon or leaa far beyond
and above the abdomen, which is abort and large. The aye* an large,
pear-shaped, and an not carried on a slender and elongated stem, aa
in the SirtiUerieMhi and Alma. The ontenme preaent nothing remark,
able, except that the atemlet (tigellej of those of the aeooud pair is
often rudimentary, and that those of the Bnt pair an nther short.
The month ia formed in the same manner aa it ia in the SqmUeridUki,
only the external jaws an extremely email, and narrower. The jaw-
feet of the first pair an extremely slender, and of moderate length ;
they are slightly enlarged towards the extremity, and have a mdi-
mentaiy nail or claw at the end. The prehaudle feet are but little
developed ; their claw is nearly atmight and without dentilations, and
the penullimste joint ia slender, elongated, straight, and devoid of
■pioea. The feet of the three following pain an formed in the
same manner as they are in SqitMeritkOMt, but they are inserted
one after the other; the flattened vesicle fixed at the baae of each
of these organs, as well aa of the memben of the two preceding
pairs, is very large. The thoncic feet of the laat three pain an
formed in the same manner aa in Sqtalla and SquilUricUkmi, but
an little developed, and sometimes mnt the atyliform appendage ;
at other times they are entirely rudimentary, and an only com.
poBsd of a small peduncle, terminated by two articulations neariy
liks the false abdominal feet, but mach smaller. The abdomen is
wide and short ; the caudal fin which terminates it is disposed aa
in SqaiUtnthtlna, and the false feet of the fint pair are iaigK, and
terminated by two great oval lamino, on one of which ia a rudimentaiy
branchia.
H. Kilne-Edwarda, who gives the above charaetais, divtdea the nine
■fieciea into the foUoning sections : —
ERICHTHUS.
A Species whoss roatmm ia of moderate length, and passea beyond
ths peduncle of the internal anteniuB without attaining to th«
extremity of those appendages.
Ex. E. arwuUm (Sna^U armala. Leach). Locality, coasts of
a peduncle of the intenial antennn).
Ex. E. Duta*cMiL Looality, Qnlf of Bangal.
Alina. — Catapaoe narrow, straight above, if not altogether so
behind, when it often presents a sudden roof-like elevation ; rostmn
straight and stylifom. The anterior angles of the eaiapace conitltiite
two acute spines directed forwards ; ths posterior auglea are also pro-
longed into the form of pointa direol«d backwards on each aide of Uis
abdomen. Finally, the lateral boiden of the carapace an nearij
sbaigfat Ths optluJmic and antennular rings an not hidden undw
ths carapace as in Eridiihui, but an seen uncovered nndar the rostrum.
Ths eyes are carried on slender long cylindrical peduncles directed
outwarda. There is nothing particular about the antennte. The
mouth la mtoated very far from ths front, towarda the posterior third
of the tower surface of the carapace ; the upper lip, the mandibles,
the lower lip, and the two pain of jaws, have the same form as in
EneAlhtu and S^iUtrichlkiit. The thoradc feet are formed also In
the same manner aa in Erichlhtit, but the three pain of members
which follow the pnheneLle feet an more approximated to the mouth,
as in the Squilia. The poaterior border of the can[«ae is ordinarily
notched, so ss to leave uncorend the two last thoraoio ringi, and the
abdomen ia narrow and elongated, Tbe (alas feet an lai^ but ar*
in general completely devoid of branchia : sometimes veatjgea of these
organs an found upon the abdominal members of the first pair, and
at other times they are represented by a small pediculatsd tubercle
fixed to the external blade of these appendages. Finally, the ooit>
Alima *jia)iHa. a, nsutory Tentml ap[KiuIi(i
formation of the species of caudal fin formed by tbe last abdominal
segment and the false feet of the sixth ring an entirely the same aa
in EritMAtu. If, MUne-Edwaida, whose description ws have given,
states Ujat the Alima bear an eitmnel; strong resemblanca to the
EEIOCAULACE^
(til
eeplj einaata, the upper baoomin^; gndually ODtire, oblong-luiceo-
itc, uid unplezicaul j the florets of tbe ray 1-200, pale purple, slightly
bifid. Thu plant ia a native oF Nortb America, and u u«ed u a medi-
Et-ieUXi, but alwajB have the body more elongated. Thmr manners,
lie addi, are not koown, and he diTlde* the Gto (paciet into the
following aectioni ; —
a. SpedM whidi have the hand of the preheoiile feet uuuTaed with
Ex. A. hyalina (Laach). Looalit;, C^w Terd.
Ex. A. loltcaiu/a. Locality, New Quiiiea. (Quo; and Gaimard.)
M. Hilce-Edwarda obtervea that the speaies S|;ured b; JL Ouertn
under the name at A. IrioeanfAura, belongato this diTieion, and seemi
to be dietinguiehed from the other epeciea b; the brevity of the
rostrum, the shortness of the lateral blades of the caudal Go, &c.
A. loBgiriMtrit of the same naturalist baa Dot, aeoording to H.
Edwards, been described, but seems to approach Tei7 nearly to the
preosding speciits.
ERIOERON, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Compoiitir, the sab-order Ooiymbifera, the tribe Aitenidtcs, the sub-
tribe Ailerinelz, the divisinii Ailerta, the Bub-division Bngerae. It
has many-flowered radiant heads ; the Sawets of the ray ligulate,
with pistils only, and in many rows, those of tbe disc tubular ;
mostly with both stAmena and pistils, the receptacle naked and foveo-
late ; tba involucre imbricated, the pappus pilose in one or many rows,
tbe fruit oom pressed,
E. PhUaddphicum has the stem slightly farrowed, downy, with
spreading hairs; the leaves of the root oiineate-obovate, "
deeply sinaata, the uppc
late, and amplezicaul j the florets of
* lant is a native oF Noi
nited Statea. It poasssses stimulant properties, snil is
given as an emmeuagogue ; it also aob on tbe kidneys, aud is consi-
dered a valuable diuretic. It has a powerful fetid smelL
S. acrit has the stem corymbose, the branohea alternate, bearing
siogle heads ; the leaves linear, lanceolate, entire, spreading ; the lower
leaves narrowed below ; the ray erect, scarcely longer than the disc ;
the inner female florets filiform, □umerous. It has a stem £-18 inches
high ; the flowers yellow in .the disc and pale blue in the ray. The
asbes of this plant contain about B per cent of potasaa, and it is some-
times burned for procuring the alkali. It has a strong scent, and like
many other species of the family is said to keep away fleas. With
specin oF Oonyia [Cohtza] and PuCicaria [PffUcaRlaj, it has the name
of Flea-Bane. It is a native of Europe, and is a common plant in Qreat
Britain. £. CanadaatM and S. iiF|nRu« are alao found in England and
Scotland : the firat^ a rare plant, and is found on waste ground ; Uie
second is a native of highland mountains. The spedea are numerous,
and some of them are ornamental plants
(Babington, Meuutaii Burnett, Outlina of Belong; JAadiej, Flora
Medita.)
EHIKACBU3, a genu* of Animals to which the Hedgehog [H^riawn
of the French) is referred. The HedRchogs are placed by Cuvier at
the bead of the InssctJTorous Hammi^n ; and H. F. Cuvier obsvrveB
that in Chrytockloru the normal system of dentition of the Iniictimra
maybe seen reduced to the narrowest dimensions, whilst in the Hedge-
hogs it appears to be brought to the greatest development.
It has the following charaoten: — Body oovered with sfunea, with
the power of rolling ilaelf up into a ball by means of appropriate
muiclee; mut^le pointed; ean more or less apparent; tul short;
each foot G-toed, and armed with robust claws.
■ of Hedgehog have been recorded aa inhabitsiita of
Dental Formula : — Incisors, — ; canines, 0 j molan, -
rope.
Afric
E, EuropaiH, the Common Hedgehog, is the Riado of the Italians;
Krizo of tbe Spaniiib ; Ooriio of the Portuguese ; L'H^risson of the
French; Igel of the Oermans ; Fegel-Variun of the Dutch ; Pio-Suin
of the Danes; Draenog and Dniea y Coed of the Welsh; Urchin of
the British; £bAifiiu krralf-iiof Geener ; £cAtnui(£rinii«eui)lemMrT(
of Ray ; and AauUAioa vaiyarit of Klein. Theit can be little doubt
that it is the Echiata ('Ex<'oi} of Aristotle.
This indigenous animal is too well known to need a lengthened
description. The length is generally rather more than 9 inobo.
The food of the Hedgehog, which is a nootunial animal, consists
prindpaUy of insects, worms, slugs, and snails. That it will eat
vegetables is shown by White of Selbome, who relates how it eats
the root of the plaiutain by boring beneath it, leaving the tuft of
leaves untouched. In the 'Zoological Journal' (vol iL) is an account
by Ur. Broderip of an experiment made by Professor Bucklaod,
proving that in captivity at least the Hedgehog will devour snakes ;
but there is no good reason for supposing that it will not do the same
in a state of nature, for frogs, toads, sjid other reptiles, and mice have
been recorded as ita prey. From its fondneaa for Insects it is often
placed in the London kitchfos to keep down the swarms of cock-
roacheB with which they are .infested ; and there are generally
Ledeehoga on sale in Covent Garden market for this purpose; It is
■Ji while to refute the idle story that this pcrsecuti'd animal
Ledgeh
hardly
snoka the cows ; but according to Sir William Jardine it is very fond
of eggs, and is consequently mischievous in tbe game-presurva and
hen-house. The Hedgehog hybemates regularly, and early in the
Bununer brings forth from two to four young onea at a birth, which
at ths time of their production are blind, and have the spinea white,
soft, and fleiible. Ths Dent wherein they are cradled is said to he
very artificially conatructed, tba roof being rainproof The mother
has been known to eat her young in confinement,
Tbe Seeh of the Hedgehog when it has htas well fed is sweet and
well-Savoured, and is eaten on the continent in many plaoea In
Britain fewbeaidealhe gipsies partake of iL The prickly skin appears
to have been uaed by the Romans for hackling hemp.
Among the foreign Erinaceada, Erinaceiu »p<Uangn4 and ErinaauM
Qrnyii will be found reoorded in the ' Proceedings of the Zoological
Society' for 1SS2. Both came from the Himalaya Mountains, and
the latter was considered by Dr. Oray to be identical with Erinaeau
coOarii, figured in the ' llluatrationa of Indian Zoology.' Hr. Bennett
however regarded it as a new specie^ inasmuch aa Erinactui Orayii
was destitute of a white collar, and difFered in other particulars from
the figure referred to. A species from tbe interior of South Africa,
farming part oF the collection brought &om that country by Hr. A.
Steedman, Erinacna froBtttiit, is recorded in the same volume of ths
' ProceodingB.'
Dr. Oray places the sub-family SrimKina under the family Talpidicc.
Ths following species are to be found m the list of speoimena of
Matamalia in the British Museum :—£, mm'iiJii, Himalaya; E.aVfntvt,
Siberia; B. frontalit. South Africa; E. eoUarit, India; E. Orajfii,
India ; £ Barapinu, EngUnd ; E. tpatangta, India.
ERINITE, a Mineral cDnsiBting of Arseniate of Copper. It oeeun
in concentric and mammillated layers, between nliich other aneniataa
are found. The layeta have rough surfaces and a fibrous structure.
The colour is a brilliant emerald'green inclining to grass-green. Streak
, Fracture uneven or imperfect concboidaL Ita hardnea is
o S'O. LuBtra slightly resinous. Slightly traniluoent. The
specific gravity I'Q to 4'1. It is found near Limerick. Ita analysia^
by Turner, gives : —
Areenio Aoid SS'TS
Oxide of Copper 69-44
Alumina I'TT
Water 601
ERIOCAnLACE.£, Pipeieorti, a group of Endogenous Plants sub-
ordinate to Saliacea, for tbe most part inhabiting awampy or manhy
plases, or tbe bottom of lakes, and having the flowers collected into
dense heada The seiw are separated ; tbe perianth conaiBtB cF from
2tofldiviaionaimmersedinsoft bracte; thercare from 2 to 6 stamens ;
the styles are 2 or S ; the cells of the ovary are the same number, and
the seeds solitary, with lines of hairs upon their sur&ce. The embryo
is placed on tbe outaide of the albumen at the apex of the seed.
1, a lemala Oawer with ali Rrmenta to its perianth, tba three outermost ol
wbioli sre brotdnt ind fringed with long lialn. The ovarr tias tliTea itiftus,
eiterior to which m three hom-Uke apimidaKIs. 1, a male flower ; a braat
at tbe base, tbe cbree ontcr dlvlBlaa* of tbe perianth sspsrate, tbe tbrte ioaer
□olMd Into a thrse-tootbed onp, and tbres itsmeDa wltbla iti Ixirder.
The flowen are alwna very small and difficult to sxamine on aoeotmt
of Uie thinness and delicacy of their texture. Erioeaulon itself is the
principal genua, consisting of about 120 known spedea, S4 or 96 of
which are met with in Uie equinoctial parts of America, and one
solitary instance, S. leplanffiJart, in the Isle of Skye. Hr. Bongnrd,
2b
who hu i»ritt«n > monogmph of the South Amenotn ip^iH^ states
th«t in that put of th. worid, although thsy prefer marriiy and
inundated pUc«, yet aome sre found upon dwnp laDd, othon among
gnm, and somB in dry and atonj pkcea; thay are alio frequenUy
mot with in alpioo Bitnationa, aomo aa high as 6690 fast aboTB tba
Um summit of Mount ItwnM. Tha proo«ling flguro of
Mlon dauirmdtim mT« a oorreot notion of the appearing of
0. Spedea having the haoda (manua) tuberculoul.
* Front armed vilii spinea.
Et. £. ipMifrmu {Canetr tpintfrmu, Herbstl. It inhabits all Has
(Milu^Edirarda.)
Srioeaalm dendrmdtiiM gina
EWODENDRON, a genus of Plants belonging to tho natural order
Bltrcidiacta, known by the name of Wool-Troee, The wool-treea an
large traea, with a spongy wood which is oaad for little beiideB making
canijesiu the districtewhBTB they grow. The leaves are palmate, and
the flowers are large, red, white, or acarlet, and riaing singly or ui
duaters from the aides or tops of the branohea The ealyi is naked,
ifreoularly 61obed, with the lobw oaualiy twin ; the patalu are 6,
joined together, and are connected with the column of the Blwnens
at the base. The fliamenta of the stamens are joined together into
a short tube at the baaa, and divided into 6 bundles at the apex ;
theae bundlea are fliifonn, and each beam 1, S, or 8 linear or anfrao-
tuoua anthem at the apex, which have the appearance of one anther,
and are either adnata or leraatJle. The stigma is 6- or 8-oleft. Ihero
are 8 apodee of Eriedmdrm, 6 of which are natives of America, and
1 of Aaia and Atrial.
E. anfnKtui)tv.M has versatdlB anfractuoua anlhera ; le»vea witn a,
T. or 8 entire cuspidate le«det^ glaucous beneath and a usually pnoUj
trunk. This tree attains a height oTieO feet or mote. There are two
vaiietiea dewribod, the one growing in the Eaat Indiea and the other
in Guin-" They differ chioBy in tho colour of their flowers. The
Indian variety, E. a. Vndieum, has flowers yellowish inside and white
outaido ; whikt tho Quints variety, B. o. J/Wwmum, has } ' — ™
flowers. In Qninea this tree ia one of the largest and
foreat-b«ee, and the trunk is employed for making the
E. Scmamna haa venatile anfractuous anthera; leaves witll B-T
oblong, quite entire, acuminated leaflets; the petals obovalely
■patulate. covered with glabrous down on the outside. Tho floweia
are CKam-coloured, and are seated on the tupa of the branches The
wool contained in the fruit is used in Bniil for stuffing pillowa.
bolsters, bods, »c It is found in BraaU near tho river Tupura.
B. Jatmmodorvim haa antiactaoua anthers ; a jointed s^le \ leaves
with S ovate, acute, entire leaflets; the petals refloied; Uie tube of
the stamens thickened at the top and entire, with the filamenta
1-antherad. This plant i> a native of Brazil, in the province of Hinas
Novas. It haa white flowers amoUing very like to those of the jasmine.
The wool-trees may bo grown in this country with heat They
may bo propagated by cuttings which will root freely in sand under
a hand -Blase, but tho plants which are produced from seeds thrive
beat, "piay do not usually produce their beautifol flowen till thej
are of lai^ aiie in their native conntriea ; therefore it can hardly be
axncted the* should Bower in this country.
ERIOHTS. rCHIVOHILLID&]
ERIOTHOBUU. the systematic name of the sedge-like Plant
which is called in thia country Wild Cotton or Cotton-Grssa, in conse-
quence of tho long cottony tufts which wave upon its stalks in marshy
aad sedgy heatlu and wastes in all parte of this country. The
is owing to the bypogynous scales, which, in this gluma-
"le ciyiTbeing e***"*!"^ "'' '
It ia not
is that while, in moat of the epecies, these hairs
a,E. oiyinum, bo reduced
„ ^ , . „ neral proportion of floral
•nvelopes belonging to Endogana Professor Eunth enumerates twelve
Species, all inhabiting the oolder parts of the northern hemispht
'dm ailky or cottony substance which clothes the fruit of the spec
of this genus is made into paper and tho wicks of candles ; it is a. .
used for stuffing pillows, Ac The leavea of £ amumtn are in the
Himalayaa extensively employed in tho manufacture of ropea.
ERITHIA, LatreiJle'a name for » genua ot Brachyurous or Short-
Tailed Cruataoaana.
Carapaoa lass wide, and mora qusdrilateial than in the other
CanoeriaDs; length two-thiids mora than the breadth; the ftrmto-
orbital border occuplea more than one-half^ and sometimee more than
three-fourths of its breadth ; and the ktero^nterior borders, directed
nearly right baokwarda, only describe a slight curvature, and prolong
themselves but little. Orbits, as in the geaus RupptUia; but the
space which separates their edges from the baaiiar^ joint of the
Bitemal antenua ia very considerable ; this joint ia but httla developed,
and doea not occupy a fourth of the apace comprised between thr
antennaty foasette and the internal canthui of the eyea; on the con
traiy, the moveable stem of the external antennn ia much more
developed than in the ItufiptUia, and is inserted at a email distance
&om the antannary foss«tl«. For the rest, not differing from the
other Cancsrians.
EripUs ipMAwu.
•• Front devoid of spines.
Ex. E. gonagra (Gtauxr gonagra, Fabridus). Found on the oossU
0. Bpesies having the hands (manns) smooth, not
Ex. E. lavmana. It inhabits the Isle of Fisnoe.
M. Hilne-Edwsrds. whose deeoilption we have given, ans, that the
BriphkB, which he placea among the Quadrilateral Crustaceans,
apptoacji tha Svpptliim Dearly, but that the general form of the body
!1 Iinoe-Edwards obaervea that the Briphia figured by Savigny
{■Egyp'., pL 6, flg. 1), and referred with doubt by U. Audouln ' -
S. tpinifroni, appean to him (Edwards) to be a diatinot nwdi
and that B prumaliea of Sisso has not been described wi
sufSdent details to jostiJ^ its reference to this genus with cer-
tunty. Ca»cer Burywm* (Herbal) appean to M. Edwards to k
an Eriphia.
ERLANITE, a Mineral containing Silica, Alumina, Ac It occutk
massive and amorphous. Its fracture is in aome specimens foliated,
ERKINR
EBBATIC BIXJCKa
in otIi«n tjiVnUrj. The ■Inictuni KTumlar tnd oamp>ot Colour
light greeniali-gTmj. Strmk white, ibtniiig. H&rdaesi 6if to 7*0.
liOatretbeblyihiDiDE, ordnlL Opaque. Theipeciflo gnvit^ 3-D to 3-1.
It is fonod n«v ErU iu the Suod Er^elnrg*, forming > bad ot 100
fkthonu in thickneu. Its uitlfuj^ by Ghnelin, givca : —
Silin eS'18
Aliuniiu 14*08
Lime UM
MuDMia .ESQ
8o<fa S-Sl
Oxido of Iron 7-li
Oxida of Mirig*na«o O'Sl
W»t«r MO
EBUIKE. [HnsiEUDX.]
KBNE. [F*Lcoi(iD«.]
EBATO. iCTFRiilDS.]
KRO'DIUH (froTTi /p<iSiiii, k heron), a ganus of Plantu belonging to
tba natural order Otrani^Kea. It baa G Mpala, 5 petala, 10 monodel-
pboua Btam>-aB, 6 fartile and 5 aterila with glondg at their bau ; the
fruit beaked, Hparating into Bve 1-aeeded oapaulea, each with a long
uttimatelj apinllj-twiated awn, bearded intemallf. The ipsdaa are
herba or onderehrube, having Tarioualy-formed leaves, membianouj
stipulei, and many-flowered peduncles. The ipeciee of thit genus,
like thoae of Oenmiant and Pdargonium, are numerous, upwards of
fifty having been described.
B. eienlariitM, Hemlock-Leaved Heron's-Bill, has a procumbent
haiiry stem, the peduncles maay-Bowered, the claws of the petals
ciliated, the perfect stamens dilated. Dot t<>otbed below, glabrous, tixe
beak hairy, the leavee pinaate, the lesfleta sessile, pinuatiSd, cut.
The flowers are purplisQ or white. It is ■ native tliroughout the
wbole of Europe, and ia found In the north of Africa. It is abundant
on Bandy soils and waste ground in Qraat Britain. There are several
well-marked varieties, soma of which may be really apecies, m tlie
X. e. pitapijitUi^oliuM,
B. utouhalum, Husky HeronVBill, has a procumbent hsjtj stem,
nuny-flowered pedunclee, the claws of the petals not dUated, the
perfect stamens toothed at the base, glabrous, the beak downy, the
fenves pinnate, the ItsSeta nearly sessile, ovate, unequally cut. It
ia found in wiiite places in Qroat Britain, but is an unfrequent
plant. It is a larger plant than the preceding, and emita, when
bandied, a strong musky odour. It is very generally diffused, and has
been found ijl over Europe, at the Cape of Good Hope, and in Peru.
B. noriliniun, Uariue UeronVBill, has a prostrate alightly-hairy
■tem, the peduncles 1.2-flowered, the petals very minute, the leaves
■inpie, ovate, cordate, stalked, lobed, and crenate. It ia a rare plant,
but a native of Qreat Britain, in sandy plaoee near the sea.
Host of the remaining species are natives of Europe ; aome are
found in the north of Africa, two or three in Asia, and the same
Domber in America ; but the mass of them are truly European. The
perennial aneciee an ornamental, and will thrive wall in any kind of
garden aoiL They may be propagated by dividing the roots or by
aaed. Uany of the annual species ore handsome planta, and may be
propagated by seed, which ripens in this country, and only requiraa
to be sown in the open border to spring in any kind of soil.
EHOPHILA. [Dbab*.!
ERPETOLOaY, IHi
EHFETOy, LacripMe's
eii
' for a genua ot Serpenta, placed by
^uvjer nexb lo jyryx. i ae name should be written Herpetvn.
The genus is fumiihed with two soft prominences, covered with
scales on the muZLle. The head is protected by lai^ plates ; those
beneath the belly are not large, and thoae beneath the tail acarcely
differ from the other acalas. The tul however is very long and
pointed. Cuvier, who Speaks of the priority of Lac^pMe, who first
described the genusunder the name of Srpdoa, remarks that Herrem
has ohanged the name (o Skinopirui.
ERKATIC BLOCKS are those weather-worn and more or Ima
rounded l^agmenta of the harder rocks which are fotmd vary widely
scattered over the surface of the earth, and at great diatanoes from
the places whence th» ara sapposed to be derived.
In aize they vary from 10,000 cubic feet and upwards to a few
:hea. M, Brongniart has propoeed to designate the several sizes bj
particular names, as gigantic, metric, cepbiulary, pugillary, Ac But
••^ England we generally oonGae the term Erratic Blockn to the laiger
laases, calling those of middling sisa Bouldere, and arnmging th«
□aller along with gravel : this is however too VKgue. The nature
of Erratic Blocks ia not leas various than their aiie. Every speeies
of rock seems to have contributed a portion of its substance totvards
the moss, though the harder, being better capable of resisting the
disintegrating and oorroding influence of atmospheric cauaea. ara
found m the greatest abundanoe, such as quartz, patrosilei, g
■tone, granite, porphyry, syenite, gneiss, primitive and truu
liroeatone, dolomite, serpentine, slQccous pudding-stone^ ailioeoua
ndatones, tc
The distribution and situatjon of these htoclcs ate also vary
difibrent. Seldom isolated, tfaej are generally found in patches or
roups, as in the environs of Qeneva, the plains of Westphalia, in
Jweden, &c. ; or in long banda or truns, on iu the north of Ueck-
lenberg Streliti, where they run in a direction west-north-west and
eaataouth-east ; or widely spread aver considerable tracta, aa between
Warsaw and Orodno, between St. PetersL'urg and Uoacow, in East
Prussia, &c. Sometimes they cover horixontal plains, as in the nor^
of Oerinany; sometimes they rest on the sloping sides of mountain^
I in the Alps and the Jura, and occasionally on the very tops of
-jfty eminences, sa on the summits of the odcareous mountains of
Rettwick, of Il»daberg, and of Oamund, about 8000 feet above the
level of the sea. Sometimes they are seen in graatest abncdance at
the bottom of vallm where they open into the plain*, and in other
loea they are found collected in the largest quantity ia the
high and narrow parts of Uis volleys, as is observed at Detmold and
' of Lemgo. Attimee they are so abundant as to be accumulated
hills of a particular form, as Is the case in Smaland, in Swediin;
and sometimes they form even mountuns of considerable height, as
Quedlie, in Norway ; and what is remarkable, the
larger blocka are at the top, the others '^'"''"'"Ti'''g gradually towards
the bottom.
Though generally snperScially diapoaed. Erratic Blocks are however
some placea found imbedded in a fine sand wbich haa nothing in
-jmmon with their nature or origin, as in the plains of Westphslia.
Some blocks (and this may depend either on their own particular
nature, or the greater or leas friction to which they bare been
subjeoted, the length of time they have been mpoied to atmo-
spberio influence, or the nstnie of the climate), have their angles
and edgM aa sharp aa though they were just detached from
their native mountains, as is the case in the neigfabouriiood ot
Qroaingen.
When the Ertatk Blocka are not at any g^reat distance from the
apoU whence Ihsy come, th^ may be easily tiaoed up to their
origin. Thus those which ore in the basin of the Bhine some from
the Orieons ; those of the vallay of the Lake of Zurich and of the
Limmat have been detached from the moontains of Olaria ; thoae of
the baain of the ReuM come fnim the rocks at the source of this
river ; and those of the Aar and the Jura from the lofty mountains
in the canton of Berne. Even thoae which oover the widely extended
tract from Holland on the west, to St. Petersburg and Tver on the
east, are auppcaed by Von Bucb, Hausmann, Bnigmans, Alex.
Brongniart, &c. to be traceable to Scandinavia. It is hovrever
remarkable that, contrary to what is generally obaerved of trant-
potfed debris, the blocks are ftequenUy largest as they are fcrtheat
removed from the place whence they came, diminishing gradually
in aize as they approach the parent rock ; thus the blocks found
in Hacklenbeig and Seeland, which are ascertained to be derived
bom the Scandinavian peninsula, are larger than the blocks
of the some rocks in Scania and East Gothland, and they dis^
pear altogether close to the primordial mountaina whence they wan
In oerlain places the blocks are almost exoluuvely of a _
kiod, while in otheta thay vary greatly in their mineral chara
proving, together with the aaoertained situation of the i^
rookain situ, that they muat have been aaaembled from vanona
qnart«r& This u the case wiUi the Erratic Blocks of Yorkshire,
and with thoae of Lithuania, for though the greater port, perhaps, of
Umm in the latter locsUty may be similar to the rooks iu Sweden
and Ncrway, thsM are manr evideuUj derived &om other plaoes.
As tbc the direction in which the bands of Emtio Blocks seem to
C15
ERRINA.
ERVUM.
619
lie, and tho quarter wheuce they seem to have come, they aro very
Tarioufl. We have juat seen that in the north of Mecklenbeiv the
trainB are in a line wesirnorth-weat and eaat-aoath-eaatk Count
Rasoumovaki obaervea that, when numv blocks are accumulated they
form parallel lines with a direction from north-east to south-west.
Brongniart says they have a general direction north and south. Sir
James Hall speaks of those in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh as
coming from tiie west. We have said that those on the north of the
Alps come from the south.
If anything further were necessary to complicate the problem of
Erratic Blocks, it is the immense distance at which thev are some-
times found from the nearest rocks of similar composition; thus
blocks of granite are found on the mountains of Potosi^ while the
nearest granite rocks are in Tucuman, about 400 leagues off. Nor
is distance all ; the detached blocks are found separated from their
parent rocks by intervening hills, broad and deep valleys, as that of
the Aar, and even by straits and seas : thus in the north of Cumberland
there are boulders which have been transported across the Solway
Frith from Dumfries, and the blocks on the low plains of Gfermany
are separated from their parent rocks by the Baltic.
England, as well as the continent of Europe, has many spots
covered with Erratic Blocks, some of which seem to be derived from
Norway, while others are evidently the debris of our own mountains.
For details we refer the reader to the observations and works of
Sedgwick, Conybeare, Lyell, Buckland, Phillips, Hibbert, &c
Erratic Blocks are also common in America and other parts of the
world.
From what has been already said, and from the circumstance of
Erratic Blocks lying on some of the most modem formations, it will
be easily conceived that they present one of the most inexplicable of
geological phenomena. The blocks on the Jura, and from the Alps
genendly, having first attracted notice, have given rise to a great
variety of hypotheses, the most remarkable of which are the follow-
ing : — 1. De Luc was of opinion that these blocks had been projected
into the air by the same force which upheaved the Alps, ana that
they had fallen at greater or lesser distances, according to the strength
and direction of that force, 2. Yon Buch, Escher, &c., attribute
their existence to an immense debacle which swept down the blocks
from the Alps to the foot of the Jura, up the slope of which they
were forced by the impulse they had received, in the same way as a
ball roUed along with force rises up a hillock. 8. Others, as Daubuis-
son, have thought that these blocks, which are almost wholly of
transition rocks, were the remains of a manUe of these rocks, of later
formation than the limestone of the Jura, and consequently much
more recent than is generally admitted, and which, having been
destroyed, left nothing but these testimonials of their former exist-
ence. 4. Dolomieu supposed that the summits of the Alps were
formerly connected with those of the Jura by an inclined plane, which
has been destroyed by the same revolution that precipitated the
blocks from the summit of the Alps to the plateau, and into the
▼alleys of the Jura. 5. Venturi has attempted to explain the passage
of the blocks from the Alps into the basin of the Po, by floating
them down on rafts of ice. 6. Others have upheaved the Jura, which
they suppose to have been formerly on a level with the base of the
Alps, and with it the blocks wnich had rolled down upon this
calcareous plain. 7. Finally, Von Buch, extending his general theory
to the particular phenomenon, thinks that the dispersion of the
blocks is the result of an upraising of the Alps posterior to the
formation of the tertiary rocks.
M. Brongniart very iustly observes that these hypotheses leave
many difficulties unexpliuned : he conceives that as the phenomenon
of ^rratio Blocks is a very general one, it is presumable that the
cause also is general Certain it is that even if it were possible
satisfactorily to assign a cause for the Erratic Blocks found upon the
Jura, the same reasoning would hardly be applicable to other cases ;
and in the utter impossibility of discovering any single cause com-
petent to the production of such different effects, wo must have
recourse to the more probable conjecture of M. Larividre, that the
dinpersion and disposition of Erratic Blocks have been effected in
different ways. The more powerful cause however he conceives to
be the transporting power of icemeers and icebergs, in which opinion
he is followed by Mr. Lyell and others.
Erntio Blocks, like other phenomena, are attended with their
peculiar advantages : thus on not and diy soils, and when not in too
great abundance, they keep the soil cool and moist, sheltering it from
the direct rays of the sun in the day, and thus diminishing the
evaporation of its moisture. On cold soils they tend to maintain an
equable warmth by diminishing radiation at night. In some countries
they are the only bmlding-etones, as in East Friesland and the
neighbourhood of Groningen. In others they supply the necessary
lime, as at Konigsberg, Revel, &c. Those of a convenient size are
used in Russia and Poland for paving the towns : when broken they
are exceedingly well adapted for the repairs of roads.
ERRINA. [MiLLSFOBIDJi.]
ERU'CA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Crucifera,
and to the tribe Brcuticefe. It has an erect calyx, ubovate petals,
distinct^ not toothed stamens; an oval, oblong, two-celled, two-valved,
silique; •smooth concave valves, with.t^an ensiform seedless beak.
scarcely shorter than the valves ; the seeds globosft. The spedea are
annual branched herbs, with erect terminal racemes of flowers, which
are white and yellow, and remarkable for their beautiful reticulaiion
of brown veins.
E. iotiva, Garden-Rocket, has lyrate pinnatifid leaves, with toothed
acute lobes, a hairy stem, the pedicels shorter than the deciduous
calyx. It is a native of cultivated fields and waysides in the north
of Africa, in Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Switzerland, and Greece.
It is very subject to varieties, and many have been described by
various botanists. Although mostly hairy, sometimes its stem is
smooth. In height it varies from three inches to two feet, and the
flowers are very variable in the depth and arrangement of their
colours. When full grown it has an acrid and unpleasant taste, and
a strong, peculiar, almost fetid smell ; but when young and tender
it is frequently eaten as a salad, especially on the Continentw It is
the Roquette Cultivde and La Rocket des Jardins of the French,
Raukette of the Germans, and Ruccola of the Italians. The whole
plant has been used in medicine as a sialagogue. The ripened seeds
are a good substitute for the seeds of the mustard, but not so pungent.
When cultivated as a salad, the seeds should be sown in a warm
border early in February, and again in March and April for successive
crops. The plants should be thinned, after they have produced Uie
first rough leaves, to about three or four indies apart, and they
should be kept clear of weeds. If a supply is required throughout
the year, the seeds may be sown every month. The plants sown in
February should be allowed to produce seed, which ripen in August,
and may be used for all the sowings. B, hispida and E. veticaria are
European plants, and when cultivated as ornament need only to be
sown in the open border and treated as other hardy annuals.
(Lindley, Fhra Medica ; Don, JHchlamydtotu PlanU.)
ERUCASTRUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Oruciferce, and to the tribe Brauicea. It has a square pod, the
valves convex, with ouo straight nerve, the seeds oval or oblong in a
single row. This genus has been formed by Schimper and Spenner
for some of the species of the old genus Sinapis. E. incanum, the
Sinapis incanut of Linnseus, has been found in sandy places in Jersey
and Aldemey, and has consequently a place in the British Flora. It
has adpressed pods, which are tur^d, with a short one-seeded beak.
The stem reaches from one to three feet high. This plant is also a
native of the South of Europe, especially Spain : and is the CaJciU
Bitpanica of L'Heritier; the Hirtchfiddia adpreasa of Moench.
Koch, in the ' Synopsis Flone Germanicae et Helveticse,' gives three
species of this genus as natives of Switzerland and the upper dis-
trict of the Rhine. (Babington, Manual of BrUith Botany ; Don,
IHchlamydeous Planis.)
ERUCIVORA. [Laniada]
ERVUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Legvminoaa and the tribe Viciecd*^ It is known by a 5-cleft calyx, vrith
linear acute segments, about equal in length to the corolla ; glabrous
stigma ; an oblong 24-8eeded legume. Most of the species of this
genus are weeds, two of which, the E, hinutum and E. tetratpermum,
are found in Great Britain. The former is called Tine-Tare, and is a
great pest in corn-fields.
E. Leni is the plant which produces the LentH It has branched
stems ; oblong nearly glabrous leaflets, usually eight in number ; the
stipules lanceolate and ciliated; the peduncles 2-3-flowered, about
equal in length to the leaves ; the legumes short, broad, finely reticu-
lated ; seeds two, compressed. It is a native of corn-fields on the
continent of Europe. Lentils are not much eaten in this country,
but they are consumed in considerable quantities in France, Germany,
and Italy. The Lentil is one of the oldest leguminous plants used as
food of which we have any record. Ever since the time of Esau they
have been eaten in the East In Egypt and Syria thej are parxshed
in a frying-pan and sold in the shops, and are considered by the
natives as the best food for those who are on long journeys. The
Lentil is still cultivated in this country. There are three varieties
known in France and Germany : the smaU brown, which is the lightest-
fiavoured and the best for soups; the yellowish, which is a little
larger and the next best; and the Lentil of Provence, which is almost
as large as a pea, with luxuriant straw, and it might be cultivated
as food for cattle.
In its cultivation the Lentil requires a dry warm soil ; it should be
sown later than tiie pea, at the rate of a bushel or a bushel and a.
half to the acre. It ripens earlier than the pea, and requires the
same treatment and harvesting. The produce of the Lentil in grain
is about a fourth less than that of the tare, and the straw is not more
than a third as much. The straw is however considered very
nourishing, and is used for feeding calves and lambs. Lentils, like
all other leguminous fruits, contain a large quantity of nitrogenised
matters. Einhoff found that 8840 parts of lentils contained 1260
parts of starch and 1433 parts of a matter analogous to animal matter.
In a late analysis made by Dr. Playfair for the Royal Agricultural
Society he found that 100 parts of lentils contained 33 parts of
albumen or gluten and 48 parts of starch, &c. ; whilst the same
quantity of peas contained 29 parts of slbumen, and of beans
31 parts. If the theory of nutrition propounded by Professor
Liebig in his late work on 'Animal Chemist^' be correct, then lentils
constitute one of the most highly nutritious foods in natuta
ei7
ERYCINA.
EUY3IMUM.
618
ERYCINA. [VENKBIDiE.]
ERY'NOIUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
UmbeUifera, and the tribe Sanicuks, It has a calyx of five leafy
teeth» the petals erect, oblong, with a long inflezed point ; the fruit
obovate, covered with chaffy scales without ridges or yittse. The
species are usually perennial spiny herbs, with the lowers congregated
into oblong or roondish dense heads.
JS, vMiritimum, Sea-Holly, has the radical leaves roundish, plaited,
spurious stalked, the upper leaves embracing the stem, palmately
lobed ; Uie leaves of the involucre 8-lobed, spurious, lou^r than the
heads; the scales of the receptacle 8-lobed. The stem is more than
a foot in height, and is branched and leafy. It is a native of Europe
on the sands of the sea-shore, and is found on the European and
African shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is abundant on the
eastern shores of England, and is found in Scotland and Ireland.
The plant is called in England Sea-Eiyngo, Sea-Hulver, and Sea-
Holme. According to Linnfieus the flowering shoots are very good
when boiled and eaten like asparagua The leaves are sweetish, with
a warm aromatic flavour. The root also is sweet to the taste, and
has an aromatic smelL It has been used in medicine as a tonic, and
Boerhaave regarded it as a valuable aperient and diuretic The root
is also suppMed to possess aphrodisiac virtues. It is candied, and
sold in the i^ops of London as a sweetmeat There ia still an
estabUshment at Coldiester, in Essex, where the roots are candied,
in which town this preparation was first made, more than two
centuries since, by Robert Buxton, an apothecary. It is not now
much used by .medical men, but at one time it had a reputation in
many diseases.
Jl eampestr^ has the radical leaves two or three times pinnatifid,
spinous, stalked ; the stem-leaves embracing the stem, bi-pinnatifid ;
the leaves of the involucre lanceolate, spinous, longer than the heads ;
the scales of the receptacle undivided. • It is a more bushy and
slender plant than the last. It grows on waste ground and in dry
sandy fiuds, and is a veiy common plant in the south of Europe. It
is found in England and Scotland, but is a rare plant There is a plant
found on the banks of the Tyne called E, campeatre, but Mr. Babington
thinks this may be a different species. The plant which Ray describes
as growing on the shore, called Friar's Goose, below Melling, in
Yorki^iire, Mr. Babington thinks requires further examination, before
determining the claim of this plant to be considered a true native of
Ghreat Britain.
E, fiziidwn has the radical leaves lanceolate, bluntiBb, narrowed at
the base, spinous ; the floral leaves palmate, sessile ; the leaves of the
involuoK lanceolate, much longer than the heads ; the palea among
the flowers entire. It is a native of Jamaica, Guyana, Bemerara,
Florida, and Brazil, in fields and woods. The negroes and poorer
whites in Jamaica regard this plant as a valuable remmiy in
hysterical fits; henoe it is called in the West Indies Fit- Weed.
It ia administered in the form of a decoction or infusion of the whole
plant
E. oq^aHomikf Rattle-Snake-Weed, has the leaves broadly Unear,
with parallel nerves ; the lower leaves ensiform ; the floral leaves
Lmceolate, toothed; the leaves of the involucre shorter than the
heads of flowers ; the stems dichotomous. It is a native of North
America, from Pennsylvania to Virginia. It is also found in the
Society Islands, California, and Buenos Ayres. It inhabits marshes,
inundated pastures, and the banks of rivers. This plant is employed
in North America as an application to the bite of the rattle-snske;
henoe its common name.
Nearly 100 species of this genus have been described. They are
found in greatest numbers in America, but manv are inhabitants of
Asia, Africa, and Europe. They are most of them handsome and
ornamental plants, and worthy of cultivation. They will grow freely
ixx any common garden soil, but the lighter or more sandy the soil the
better they will grow. Some of the species require the greenhouse or
frame, and they should be grown in pots. They may be propagated
by dividing the roots, or by sowing the seed.
(Don, Dichlamydeous PlanUj Babington, ManwU of Brilikk Botany;
Lindley, Flora Mediea.)
E'RYON, Desmarest's name for a Macrourous Crustacean only
known in a fossil state.
External antennae short (one-eighth of the total length of the body
including the tail), setaceous, provided at their base with a rather
laige Bcide, which is ovoid and strongly notched on the internal side ;
intermediate antennsB setaceous, bifid, much shorter than the external
ones, and having their filaments equal Feet of the first pair nearly
as long as the body, slender, linear, not spinous, terminated by very
long and narrow cbeke, with fingers little bent, but slightly inflected
inwards ; carpus short ; feet of tJ^e other pairs also slender, and those
of the second and third pairs terminated with pincers, like the feet of
the crawfishes (^crevisses). Carapace very much depressed, wide^
nearly square, but little advanced anteriorly, profoundly notc^hed on
its latero-anterior borders. Abdomen rather short, formed of six
articulations, of which the four intermediate ones have their lateral
borders prolonged in angles, well detached, as in the crawfishes.
Caudal fin formed of five pieces, of which the two lateral are entire,
rather laige, a little rounded on the internal side, and the three
middle ones triangular and elongated, especially the intermediate one.
It is found in the lithographic limeatune of Pappeuheim and
Aichtedt in the maigraviate.of Anspach. (Desmarest)
M. Desmarest observes that this genus is entirely anomalous, and
ought in a natural classification to form a section by itself. According
to the method of Dr. Leach it would belong: 1st, to the order
Macrowra; 2nd, to the second section, which lucludeB those Macroura
which are provided with a caudal flabelliform fin ; Srd, to the sub-
section B, which have the peduncles of the internal antennn
moderately elongated; 4th, to the fifth division, whidi have the
natatory blades of the extremity of the tail formed of a single piece,
the second articulation of the abdomen not dilated, and rounded
anteriorly and posteriorly on each side: and, finally, feet to the
number of ten.
M. Desmarest goes on to say that it is to the CaUianaitos, the
ThaJUutina, the Uebios, and the Axii, that Eryan bears relation.
Nevertheless it has not, he observes, the habit of any of them. Its
short depressed carapace, and its little elongated abdomen, approxi-
mate it to Qeyllamu, but its internal antennie with short peduncles,
its external setaceous antenme, and its greater anterior didactylous
feet, widely separate it from Uiat genus. It cannot be confounded
with Palinwrut, which has the external antennas and the peduncles
of the internal ones so long, and whose feet are all monodactylous ;
and, finally, it cannot be referred to the crawfishes or lobsters {Attaeut),
whose shell is differently formed, and which have the external natatory
blades of the tail composed of two pieces ; hut Desmarest thinks that
it Ib to the last-named genus that Et-yon most approximates, taking
into consideration its general character. He rsgrets that he has not
been able to satisfy himself whether the four antennas are inserted on
the same horizontal line or not, a fact which would have assisted him
in his comparison with other genera.
E, Cuvieri, Carapace finely granulated above, marked by two
deep and narrow notches on the two latero-anterior borders, and
finely crenulated on the latero-posterior borders. Length 4 to 6
inches, French.
EryTn Owieri.
The fossil was noticed by Richter, Knorr, and others, before
M. Desmarest, as indeed he states.
ERY'SIMUM (from ip^, to draw), a genus of Plants belonging to
the natural order Crueifera, and to the tribe Suymbrea. It has a
tetragonal pod, the valves prominently keeled witii one longitudinal
nerve, the stigma obtuse, entire or slightly emarginate, the seeds in
a single row, the funiculus filiform. The species are annual, biennial,
or perennial herbs, with variable leaves, and elongated, terminal,
many-flowered racemea
E. AUiaria of Linnaeus, Smith, Schkuhr, and others, is generally
now admitted as the type of a new genus, AUiaria of Adanson. It
differs from Erynmvm in not having its valves keeled with a single
nerve, but having 8 longitudinal nerves, and in the sei^da being
striated, and the funiculus flattened and winged. E. AUiaria is the
A. officinaltM of Andrzeijowski, who is folio wea by De CandoUe in his
' Prodromus,' and Babington in his ' ManuaL' ^och however follows
Soopoli, and places it in SitymbriiMn taS. AUiaria; from which genus
it differs only in its flattened winged fimiculus. It has heart-shaped
leaves, the lower ones being remform and coarse, repando-crenate ;
the pods are erect and patent, much longer than their stalks, and
the seeds are oblong and cylin^caL Tie stem is erect, one to two
feet high, and slightly branched. The flowers are vrhite. It is a
native all over Europe, under hedges and in ditches. It has a strong
smell, and a taste not unlike garlic, for which it is frequently used as
a substitute, whence it has obtained its Latin name AUiaria, from
'allium,' garlic. It is very generally used by the poor people of the
countries in which it grows as a condiment ^th bread and butter,
salted meats, or in salads. In England it is known by the name of
Sauce Alone, and Jack by the Hedge. In German it has several
names, as Das Knoblauchkraut^ Der KnobUuchhederich, Lauohel,
11 A. hroAjairpa,
■U BRTBIPHB.
WkldkoobUnch, Ruofsa, Bauucluliraml, Q«niMl, SdMknut, Bw
kraut. In Frauoh it hu the luniei L'Alliuv, L'Hsrbe >iix Ailleti. Ac.
Although not often foond on tha tablra of the middle or upper qIums,
Ur. If rill i^r*> tlu>t "when nlherad u it approtichee tJie flowering
rtato, boiled onaimtelj, and msa Mten to boiled mutton, it certaiuly
fonn* ft most deunbla pot-harb, uid to uiy kind of ulted makt so
eXMllant green." LiniiBiu eaje that ■hwp uid cows uid poulti; eat
it, but that hor*M and goiUa refiue it. Wben eateu br oows it gives
a diiwreeable flaToor to the milk. Poultry abo whish e«t it have a
bad UTonr vben oooked. The eeedi when powdered produce
■neadng, and bare been employed u a elemutatoiy. The leavaa
were fonnerlj nted ai a diai^oretio, and a poultice of them wm
reoommeoded u an antinptio in guigrenoua and oancennu uloentioiu.
Aaaoond Bpeaiaa of JUtoHabM been desoribed
B. deiraiUlMidtt, Worm-Seed, Treacle - Uuitard, baa oblong-
lan<*t"lwte laaraa, aliifatlj toothed, with atellete Uuee-parted hain, til
narrowed into s alight footitalk, the pedicUa longer than the calyx,
iwo or three timea ahoiier thsn the poila; the poda patent, aacending;
■all, namerooK It is a native of Europe, aleo of North
t ia Rnind not unoommonly in Qreat Britain; it inhabits
oultivated gionnd, waata plaeee, and osier holta. It variea greatly in
■lie acoordiDg to situation. The Sowen are very nameroua, amall,
and yellow. It haa obtained its oame Worm.9eed from the fact of ita
aeeda being sometimea used na a remedj for inteatJoal worma. It wai
aWi fonneriy employed aa an ingredient in the funoua Venioe Treacle,
and henoe the whole genua bare beeu called Treacle-HuaUrd.
BabingtoD marka this and si! other apedea of A^nmutn aa planta that
have been poajbly Introduced into Orest Britain, thoogh now looking
very like tma nativea.
S. virgatwn has linear lanceolate leavea, entire, with atallata two- or
three-parted bain, the lower unea nairowed into a footstalk, the
apper leavea mostly sessile, tha padiclea aa long aa the calyi, nuny
tmtes shorter than tbe pod, the pod erect, the aeeds large. It is fonnd
in Qreat Britain plentifully near Bath. It ia also a native of the Alps
and of Holknd.
entire. This la the Cormgia oriaitalii of Andneijowiki, and £
aipituat of Baumgartnar, and Brattiea a^na of Linneaua. It is a
native of the south of Europe, and ia found in England and Ireland,
in Belda and clifb near the aea. It baa white or cream-coloured
flowers. There are about fifty speciea of Sryriinwm, most of them
nativra of Europe, and a few in the tempente districts of Asia, Africa,
and America. Some of them are omameatal and worthy of culti-
he perennial herbaceous speciea are well adapted for tbe
ler, and may be grown in any common garden soiL Tbe
wiea may be employed for ornamenting rock-work, and
em may be grown in pota with other alpine planta. The
paciea may be propagated by cuttings, by dividmg tie roots,
L The annual and tdennial apedea may be sown in the
on, Manudt of Britiih Botany,- Don, J)itUamydeoiu PlanU;
ingUik AXony.)
BE. [FoBOi.]
ACA, a genus of Birds belonging to tbe family Svlviada,
liuatora, having the following chancten ; — Beak rather
depreaead at the twee, becoming narrower towarda the
1 slightly oompresaed; upper mandible deflected and
KostriJs bssal, lateral, oval, pierosd in a membrane partly
athen and hairs projecting from tbe baae of the beak.
iided ; the three ^tarior quills graduated ; the Grat only
Ig aa the aeoond, whioh ia shorter than the third ; the
It, and aiith longer than the third ; the flflb the longest in
The tanus longer than tha middle toe ; the lateral toes
ibI to each otiier in length j the outer toe united at its
I middle toe ; the claw of tbe hind toe longer and itronger
mio, f^ia nttcvla, MotatSla rubtenla, the Robin
, BoUo-Redstart, Robinet, Ruddock, ia ao generally
1 over the British lalanda, and so univaraal a favourite,
e auffldently intereated in the bird to make themaelvea
with its habits. These may be observed in any garden,
rood, for there is scarcely a hedge without ita Roiiin
and if Robins appear to be more numeroos in winter than
, it ia partly owing to the atate of vq[etaldoa at the former
icb leavea them mora eipoeed to observatioD, and partly
ley reeort to the luibitationa of men for food, when other
apply fail The aonjt of the Robin is sweet and plaintive,
ny powerfiiL Hr. White of Belborne, aaya, " The robin
through the ;ear. The reason that he la called ao
iDgster is, because in the spring and summer his volos
the general chorus, while in the autumn it beoomes
lahle.'*^
ia vary eaaUy tamed, toon becomea bnillar With thoM
EBTTHBONIUM. ao
who UuA it, and oonalMtttT bnUda its oeet in plaoee b«qDea(«d
by man.
Hr. Blaofcwall relatea that a pair of RoUna built their Mat in *
onall nw-pit. Boon after tbe ban had begun to sit the Mwing of
timber was oomnenaed at this pit, and though this noisy ocoopaUoa
was earned on every day oloaa to the nest doring the h*^1^^lT^g of
the eggs and rearing of the young birds, the old l£rds ezUbited no
signs of alarm or interruption. Tbeee Uida eihitiit great attacboiesit
to each other, and many inatancea have bean related to prove that
they pair for life. With all his intereating qoaliliea the Hobla ia
one of the moet pugnadona of birds, and not only Tn«mt»ln« faji right
against all intrudcn, but ii aaid to kill those of hia own family
when thcrr beooma tnmblaaoma to him. BotNna bread eariy in the
spring. The nest ia oompoaed of moaa, dead leaves, and dried grasa,
lined with hair, and sometimea a few feathers ; it is frequently placed
on a bank sheltered by brushwood, or a short distance above tbe
ground in a thick bush or Isne hedge, somstimes in a hole of a wall
partly oovered with ivy. The eggs are ttont flvs to seven in nomber,
white, spotted with pale reddish-brown ; tbe length nine lines and a
half, by seven lines and a balf in breadth. Tlie bird is found all
over England, Ireland, and Wales, it is also an inhabitaiit ol the
moat northern counties of Sootland. It also vialta Denmark sod
Sweden in tbe breeding season ; and so vrall does it bear oold weather,
that among the summer viaitara to the latter conntiy, the Robin ia
one of tha fint to come and the last to go.
It ia a oonataut reddent throughout the year in all the temperate
and mrmer parte of Europe, abundant in Spain and Italy, Bidly,
and Malta.
Id the adult bird the beak and irides are Uaek ; upper part of tbe
head, neok, back, upper tall-oovarle, and tail^eathers, a yellowidi
olire-brown ; qnUl,Aathera nther darker, the outer adgea oUra-
brown ; gnater wing^eoverta lipped with boff, over the baae of the
bask, round the eye, the chin, the throat, and tha upper part of the
breast, reddiah-oraiwe, ensirdhig this red ia a narrow band of bluiab-
gray, whioh ia broadest near tha ahonlders ; lower part of the breaat
and belly white ; aidea, flanka, and under tail-covnt^ pale brown ;
under aorfaoa of wing and tail-feathen dusky gia^; l^a, toca, and
claws, purple brown. The whole length of the bird is G) iaefaea.
The female is not quite so large aa tbe mala, and her colcura are
leea bright The young birds, after thor first autumn moul^
resemble adult femsles ; but the red of the breaat ia tinged with
orange, and the legs are dark brown. The Red-Breast ia anl^ect to
variation in the colouring of the plniruge. White and partly white
varieties are not uncommon.
(Tarrell, BrUUK Bxrdt; HacOillivray, Mamud of BrUiih Birdt.)
ER1fTHR,£A, a pretty genua of annual Planta belonging to the
natural order OttUianaeta, and inhaHting dry aandy plaora in Qreat
Britain and other parts of Europe, eapedally near the aea.
E. puMtUa has an erect, much branched, acutely quadraagnlar
stem ; the leaves ovate, the uppennost obloog-lanceol^ ; fiowen, all
stalked, axillary, and terminal, the «alyx rather sbortar than the
tutie of the opening oonilla, the lobes of the corolla elliptio oblong,
obtuae. The inflorescence is forked, the lateral Bowers diatant from
the floral leaves. It is found in sandy ground in England.
B. OaitautiuM, Common, or Lesser Centaury, haa an ereot branched
atem, elliptic oljong leavea, the upper ones acute; flowers nearly
aeaaile, oorymbceely panided ; the calyx not half ss long as the tofae
of the opening oorolla ; the lobes of the eorolla ovsL It ia found in
dry pastures in Great Britain. It flowers in August, at which time
it Is to be collected. The whole plant is taken up. It haa a squaro
stem, with opposite entire S-nervad leaves. It is devoid of odour;
the taste ia strongly bitter, but not unpleaaant : 100 parts of the
ft-eah herb dry into 47; 10 Iba. of the dry herb yield by a single
decoction 3 lbs. of extract. It contains a principle called Centaurin,
which at preaent is known only aa a daA brown extract-like n
but which, united with hydroohloric add, furnishes an exec
febrifuge medicine. As a bitter, it auita irritable ayatema better
than any article of that class of medicines, and ia thereforo to
be preferred. In other teepeota it haa the general properties of
bitter tonioa.
B. latifotia and B. lUtonUit are both British (pedes of this gtaoM,
found near the sea-ahore. All the apedee aro extremely bitter, and
are oollected by the countty people under the name of Cantauiy aa a
substitute for Qentian in domestic medicine.
ERTTHRI'NA, a genus of Tropical Trees and Tubsroua Herba
belonging to the natural order Z^jrvBiuieiK The apedea have leinate
leavea and ctustera of very lu^e long flowen, which are uauallv of the
bri|^teet-red ; whence the species have gained the name of Coral-
Trees. Frequently thdr stem is defended by stifl' priokln. They
ooour in the wanner parts of the Old and Nsw Worid. An Indian
speoies, B tuenofitrna, ia said to yield gum-lac De Candolle mautiona
33 aped«; of which B. Critia CMit a commonly cultivated in gieen-
houaea for the sake of its splendid bloasoma.
ERTTHRIKUS, a genua of Tropical Fishes belonging to the family
ERTTHRO'IflUU, a genus of Slants belonging to the natural
order iAUatta. B. Dtnt Caiut, a pretty little bulbous plant (wfaoaa
name, Engliihed Dog'a-Tooth Viole^ is derived from the form of its
m ERYTHBOPHYa
Ions alaudsr white bulb*), is ft Dstiva of woody mibalpins plaoe* kmong
bndiOT uid (toDM, in Croatia, Idrit, aad about Lajboch ; it aUo ooours
in SwitHrUod, but mora aoldom, and u alao mrt with in ths uorth of
Ital;. It ia not meationed in the Floraa of ths »uth of Europs.
Two or thne Tarietiea are known ia gardens as ga; haidy fiowera
luppaariug earl; in the spring; one with purple, a second with whit«
floiran, and a third, elanted b; some into a specie^ with a aonuwhat
stronger habit of growth.
£. Aaurieamuna said to be emetjo.
ERYTHR0PHT3. JCoociJDi]
ERTTHROXT'LEf, a group of Exogenous PUnts, ooDsideTed b;
soma Baa distiDct natural order; bjr others as a subordinate diviBian of
llatfigMacea. Thej have alternate stipulate 'leaTss and smidl pallid
flowers. The oal;x is S-tobed; the petals are G, with a retDarkable
appendage at their base, which aSbrd one of the marks of dutiQCtion
between Erythraxi)l«aiidifalpighiaeea; the staineDa are I0,slighCl7
monadelphoua The ovary is eupeiior, 3-aelIed, with S atflee, and
BoUtarj poudulous ovnles. The fruit is drupaoeoua. Bome of the
species of Siytkraij/Um, the only genus, have a bright-red wood,
occasionally used for dyeing ; but the moat extraordinary speoiea ia
the SrylKnxylon Coca, an account of the inebriating effects of whioh
is given undsr Cooa.
S, the ftif, witli the thn
or the ume, ahowbii: ttit
others belaf abontre.
one tmlj of the eeeda <
1 petal wlUi It* appendage ;
nit ; 9, a ttuiTHse HBtian
mus to perleetlon, the two
£oa, and differing from it in having a very short obtuse tail, and the
ventral plates narrairer. The head of Bryx is short, sjid the characten
generally would approximate the form to Tortnx, did not the ooufor-
mation of Che jaws place it at a distance from the last-named genus. The
head besides ia oorered with small scales only. £n/x has do hooks at
the vent.
E3CALL0NI A 'CEM,Eicaamiodt, a small natural order of Exogenous
Plants, related to the genus Riba, in ths opinion of some, but to that of '
Baxifraga, aooording to other botanists. It conaista of shrubs with erer-
greffii leaves, which o[l«D emit a powerful odour like that of melilot ;
their Sowers are red or white, and often are quaei-munopetalous.in con-
sequence of the approximation of their petsls. They bare an inferior
msny-seedad ovary, with two large placentae in the axis, a ctsBnite
number of epigynouB stamens, a single style, and minute chaffy seeds
with a very small embryo lying in oily albumen. All the spedes
inhabit South Amerioa, on tha mauntaioB, especially in alpine regions.
AcoUonia rubra, B. Montemdtimt, E. tUtnita, and others, have now
become common in warm sheltered gardens in this country.
ESCHARA. (Pol
IHO'LTZI
a the naturj order Papave,
tne noTtn-weatom coast of North Amer ,
common to the gardens of Oreat Britain. Thay are known by the
base of their calyx remaining at the base of the siliguose fruit in the
form of a firm fleshy rim, by their calyx being thrown off like a
calyptra when the petals 'unfold, and by the stuuens being insertAd
into the edge of the permanent rim of the i»1yx Otherwise they are
vary near our eea-shore (Jtetuntiin. Two certjun apeclea only, E. Cali-
fomiea and E. emcta, have yet been introduced ; a third, B. eompaettt,
is figured In tha 'Botanical Register,' but it ia probably a mule
betiAen Uie first two. It has been recently proposed to alter this
name, which has a barbarous sound and appearance, for the more
hannooious one of Chryteit, and it is hardly to be doubted that the
latter will be adoptsd (BotanUid RtgUter, 1. 1048.)
ESOX, a genus of Fishes established by Linnteus for ths reception
of the Pike and some allied forma It is now subdivided, and the
resulting genera, with the Flying-Fish {Exoeeln*), oonstitute the&mily
Btodda. The genus Bux, as at present received, has for its type the
Btex Laeiia of Linnimis, the Common Pike. The generic character
is founded on the form and armature of the organs of mairtication.
The jaws, palatine bones, and vomer are furnished with teeth of
various sina. The head is oblong, obtuse, depneeed, and large in
proportion to the body. The dornl fin is placed h-t back and over
the anaL Both these fins are entire, which is also the case in ths
finus Bdont, of which the Oar-F1^ is the type (Sim BeUme of
Innnus) ; but in that fish the head and Jaws are greatly produced,
the latter being linear and pointed. Bcomberaox (the Sau^) is a
third genua of this family, having a head resembling that of Sdtmei
but ^e anal and dorsal fins are divided posteriorly into finleta
resembling those of a mackerel. HmtranRphiu is a curious genus of
Sea-pikes, in which the upper jaw is extremely short, while the lower
one resembles that of the gai^fish. BiOKttvt, the Flying-Fisb, was
distinguiibed from li^oz by Unnnua. [E^ocsTua.1 It has the he«d
comparatively short, the dorsal and anal fins placed much fkrthsr
forward, and the pectoral fine so Isige as to serve the pnipoae of
wings, or rather of panehntea, whitdi suatain the flsh in tha ak for
■ome titae after it has sprang ont of the watsc
E8S0NITR
as
E. Ludm, the True, or Freih-Wftter Pike, Kokerell, Tras Jeek, or
Oedd, is & vall-kiiowii fi<b, esteemed for its food, aod ranurkable for
ila Torsciou* end deatructive habits. It is the loDgeet-Iived and
largffit of (reah-wat«T fishes, and man; wonderfal stories are nanatsd
of it Gamer gives an aocaunt of one, tbe skeleton of which was
preserved at Hannheiin, which weigbed SSOlbs., and was probably
between SOO and SOO jesrs old. Pennuit iaformB us of one 90 yean
oldi and pikes from SO to TO lbs. wrigbt have been taken in
Sootland and Ireland. It grows with great rapidity, attaining a length
of from 8 to 1 0 inahes in its flnt jear. The Humheim pike wae
said to hava been 19 feet in length, and in our own country they
bare beei: token 9 feet long. The Fika eats up eTeryihing eatable
which oomos in its way. Being strong, swift, and ooursgeous, it
masters all other fishea in ila locality. It will also attack birds and
small quadrupeds, if within reach, and has been known to quarrel
with the otter for ite prey, and to Bssanlt man himself. Pikes are
found in Earope, Asia, and North America. In the Unitod States
there are several epecies of Btox.
The habits of the Sea-Pike, or Oar^Piih {Belime vuigarit), and the
Saury {Srontieraox) are not so wall knowiL Tbey are gregarious, and
■wim nntr tbe surface of the water, leaping out of it with great a^ity,
and playiog round bodies which float on the aurfaos of the sea. The
peculiar formation of the heads of these fishea renders the nature of
the food a subject of curiosity among naturalists ; but the question
is net yet settled. On the southern coasts of England and Ireland
they are commoiL The bones of the Bdirne ore green : the Hesh is
Brm and white, and has much the flavour of that of the mackerel
; SOOMBIRISOX.]
f WoxbUli. They inhabit the Indian
species are known by tbe us
Arobipelago and Anstralia.
ETiEHIO is a kind of fruit consisting of achenia, or small closed-
' up seed-like seed-vaeeele, placed upon a succulent receptacle. The
etntwberry and tlie laspberrv are of this nature, and are very
iuoorreotly caUed Barries, in VM botanical eenie of the word berry.
|Tinrii.l
ETUE'BIA, Lamarek'a name for a genna of ConBhiferouaJfaKutca,
placed by many authors among the Clamida,\i\A separated by Deshayee
and othera. [CB.uuCEa.]
Animal cloaaly approximating to that of Unia. Lobeaof tbe mantle
disunited throughout their length, and coOBequaotly without either
tabes or pyphons. Below the foot tbe branchia of the right side
unite tbemeelvaB to those of tbe left side in the medial line, and
leave below them a rather large canal, in which the vent termiuatee.
The hnmchjal laiiflet« are unequal, stroogly striated and festooned
on their free border. Tha mouth is rather Urge, and fumisbed on
eaoh side with a pair of palps like those of the Uniona. Finally
(and, OS Deshiyyes obeervee, it is a great singularity iu an animal
Ihat livee attached to foreign substonoea), it is provided with a very
large foot, which may be compared in rt^gard of its form and position
with that of Unio.
Shall adherent, thick, nacreous, very irt«gular, inequivalve, ineqoi-
lateral ; umbones short, thick, indtstinot ; hinge toothleee, irregular,
undnlatod, callousj ligament longitudinal, tortuous, extwnal, pene-
trating pointedly into the interior of the sbell ; muscular impressions
oval, in-egular, one superior and poaterior, the other inferior and
anterior ; paUial impression narrow and small
U. Deshayee observes that on eiamining the sheUs of this genus,
in which the ligament is not mpturod, it appearu that the ligament is
not entirely internal or subintemol, like that cf the oysters, but
that it has completely the structure of external ligaments. It is
when the shatia are young that the structure of the ligament is most
easily recogoised. There are two muscular impressious, always very
distinct in old individuals ; but in the young ones it sometimes h^pens
that one only can be distinguished, and it woe upon an individual in
this ntate of giDWth that M. da F^russoc established his genua MvUeria,
which, in the o^onion of U. Daehayes, oanuot be retained. With regard
to the crenulations on the hinge adverted to by kL de F<!rus9ac,
H. Deshayee states that he bad seen on the very individual which
M. de F^mnac had in his hands some small fractures rcaulting, oa it
appeared to U. Deahayes, from this cause, namely, that the shell haviDg
been taken with the animal, the valves had been separated by attacking
the ligament with a sharp instrument.
Lamarck conaidered the genua Etktria to be marine, and accounted
for its having escaped the notice of Eoologisti because it wae attached
to rocks at great depths in tbe sea. Hr, Q. B. Sowerby, after noticing
the locality attributed to the genus by Lamarck, remarks that two
eirenmstancea observable in the Elheria {S. itmUunala), Ggursd m
his plate, would have induced him to sunpect that this was a fresh-
water shell, or at least an inhabitant of eestuaries at the mouths of
rivera; 1st, its having an epidermis, which remains only in those
ports least exposed to the action of tha water, tbe greater part
aapecially of the upper valve being eroded in a rer; irregular manner ;
and Sndly, its being partly covered with tha remains r^ those ovate
vesicular bodies, supposed to be tbe eggs of some molluscous animals
so frequently seen on freah-wnter shells, M. Cailliaud wns the first
to moka known the fact that the genus in an iuhabitiuit of the fresh-
ETHERIA. «M
waters, and.M. de F^nuaac (' H^moires de la Socidt^ d'Hiatoii*
Iiaturelle', voL L) published a paper on the eubject fromU. Cailliaud'*
materials, in which the former also made a revision of the spedea.
H. Deshayee, in histrestise on tbe genus (' En<^clopMieH^thDdique'),
states that individuals of tha same speoiea adhere by the one or the
other valve indiSerently, which, he remarks, is not the ease with tike
Oystere or the Chamtc That jQbru may be attached indiSeimtly
by either valve there is no reason to doubt after the assertion 5i
ML Deahayes ; but Hr. Broderip (' ZouL Tians.,' vol. i) observes that
the soma species of Chama is sometimes attaohed by the right, some-
times by tbe left valve. [ChaiuOea.] H. Bang, during a voyage
to Sen^ial, made some interesting observations on Ethetia whidi
live two hundred leagues from die mouth of tha river in the
Senegal, and, together with U. Cailliaud, who received tbe animal
from the Nile, published a memoir (' H^motres du Museum d'Histoiie
Katurelle'} full of interest, in which the animal was described for the
fint time. Tbe rivers of Africa aud Hadigascar appear to have
affonled the specimens (which ore still rauier scarce in cabinets)
hitherto oollectfld. U-de Frirussac, in his memoirs, gives the following
information from M. Cailliaud . — " We firat meet with AVActmb," sni
that zealous traveller, " after passing the firat cataract ; and they do
notappearto exist below j they become vary abundant in the province
of Bebata, beyond tha peninsula of Heriie. The inhabitants collect
them on tbe banks of the river to ornament their tomtM with them,
and they say that they come from the more elevated parts of the
Nile, from Salda, where they are eaten." M. Cailliaud found them as
for OS Faioql, the most distant country into which be penetrated
from the Blue Biver. In Seunaarthe inbabitaots informed H. Cailliaud,
that duriog the summer season, when the river was low, they took
them with the animal ; but notwithstanding all his endeavours
H. Ciulliaud could not obtain acy living specimens, the river being
then always too high. They are eaid to be very oommon in tha
Jabousai, a river which runs into the Blue Nile, and in all appearance
the numerous confluent streams of this great arm of the Nile produce
then '- -"- '--'—' 1-.... .
not have mentioned then
Lamarck recorded four species of Etkeria, which he divided into
two sectiune, eaoh contuning two species. The Grat of these oouaisia
of speciee which have an oblong c&llosity in tha base of the shell ; the
second, of those which have no encrueted callosity at tha boae of the
shell. These four species H. de Fdrussao (with juatioe, in the opinion of
H. DeahayeaJ reduces to two ; so that the sections, ae left by Lomorok,
would eaob, m that case, consist but of one species, namely, tbe Grat
of E, eUtplico, and the second of R nmUunaf a. H. Deahayes remarka
that Lamarcksawbuta very srnall number of individuals, and not being
aware of their extreme varialion,eetabliBhed speoieafrom the form of tht
sheU; and it is ontain, he adds, that if we were to follow the somi indk*'
nt ETHU3A.
tion at tho present dny, we might ertablish ■ spsoiesfor each iudividual.
He notices U. Kang'i judicioiu obHrrktion, that in the wme Biiecin
Uiere ui indiriduiUs armed <*ith spines, and othen dsroid of thou
■ppeDd&ges, and that the ehadea of this character are ao gnuiuat that
it IB imponible to reKard it aa of the Bmallest importance. In fallow-
ing out thia prinoipla, U. Rang ooDuderB £ tub^era of Sowerhy and
£ CaiOicuidi of Fdriuaao aa identical, and £ Cvrttrmti of Uichelin
to be the same aa £ pJumiea of F^nusie. It !■ to the laat-Damsd
■pedes that U. Deahayea thinka that the genua MiMeria ihould be
referred.
EUitria, or, aa aome write it, Sllfria, haa not yet been diaaof ered
in a foaail atate. It should be remembered that Rafioeaque uses
'"■" ' — '"" " fenua of Kacrouroua Cruataceani belonging to the
GTHTJ'SA, a geniu of Braohruroua Cruataceana (tribe Dorippiana),
eatablialied b; H. Roui at the expenaa of the genua Dorippt of
Fabriciua and other natunliaU.
H. Bliltie-EdirardB obterrea that thia nnoa ia eaailj diatin-
guithed from Dorippt by the ooaformation of the aperturea
leading to the raapiratoiy cavi^, which han praaent tha nonnal
diapoaitton.
Carapace naarlj qoadrilatanil, but rather longer than tt ia wide,
and veiT much flaR«ied ; froot luge, oi^tta directed fbrwarda, rery
iooomplete ; eyes carried on a rather long and very projecting peduncle ;
they paas beyond the external aogle of the carapace, and are not
retnctila The internal antenQEe are bent back (ae reploient} forwarda,
in foaaettea plaoed under the front ; the external anteonse are rather
long ; their firat joint ia cylindrical, and separatee the antennary foa-
sette tWim the orbit ; the Uiird ia longer than the aeoond. The buccal
frame (cadre buccal) is triangular, and reachea to the border of the
antennary foaaettea ; the jan-feet are much ahorter, and leaTe naked
the anterior portioo of the jaw-feet of the flrit pair, which complete
forwania the canal of the respiratory caTity ; the third joint of the
external jaw-feet ia shorter than the second. Dearly oval, sharply trun-
cated forwarda, and articulated with the followicg joint by tha middle
of ita anterior border. Tha Pteiygoctomian regiona are nearly quad-
rilateral, and are not prolonged between the base of the external jaw-
fbot and of the first thoracic foot, aa in the Dorippea. The eternal
plastron ia OTaL The anterior feet are short aud slender in both
Kiea ; in bending they form a double elbow, aa in Samoi<^ The
tacceeding feet are long, especially those of the third pair ; those of
the fourth pair are, on the contrary, eitrumely abort, and inserted
below the praoeding ; finally, the posterior feet, longer than the fourth
p«ir, are JiiMTtod above and in front of them, and, like them, are
tenninatad by a very ehort, hooked, and subcheliform taraus. The
abdomen in the male hasaaven diatinot joint* ; in the female it has
only five ; the fint two rii^ are directed baokwaida and on the miot
plane with the carapace.
Ex. £ MoKormt <Boax), Cower Mateartme (Herbal).
AhuaJf«c«w.
ETI'SDS, a genua of Bracbyurotis Cniataoewis (Canoerians of H.
Hilne-Bdwarda).
Carapace leaa oval and wide than in moat of the Arched Canoerians
(Canodri^Ds ArquAa). The front ia large, lamellar, and divided on the
mesial line by a fiaaure, aa in the Xanlhi ; but tha two targe and
truncated lobes which form the prinaipal part are aepanted bya deep
notch of the anterior and auperior angle of the orbit, which ia rounded
and projecting ; thelatera-anteriorbonlanottheoarapaoearBatrongly
ttwthed. The internal antemue am bent back nearly longiludinaUy,
and the baailarr joint of the external autanue, whi^ ia vecj large,
' ' a with the front, and preaanta on the external dde a pr^onga-
remarkable ; the feet of the fint pair are rather large, and the oheUe,
which are much enlarged and rounded at the end, are deeply hollowed
into a Bpoon-shape.
U. Hilne-Edwarda, who givaa the above daaoription, divides this
•mall group, whieh he aODaidarS as forming the paaaage between the
Xmiki and PkUyeartini, into the two fallowing SMtions :—
EUCALTPT03. an
a. Ctiiuijace scarcely knobbed above.
Ex. £ dmbXiu. Lragth three or four inchea; oolour reddish.
Locality, the Indian Archipelago
0. Carapace covered with knoba, separated by deep furrows.
Ex. £ anagigptiu. Lengtk about an inch and a half; oolour
whitiah (T). Locality, Austr^ia.
EUA8TRUM. [De8mide«,]
EUCALYTTUS, a genua of Australian Plants, conaiating of loftv
trees, with a volatile aromatic oily secretion in their leavee, anil
a large quantity of aatringeut resinous matter in their bu^ They
belong to the altera ata-leaved diviiion of Myrtacaa, and are geoeri-
cally known among these plants by their corolla twing abaent, and the
limb of their calyx ooneoudated into a hemispharicaL or conical cap,
which ia thrown ofi' when the atamens expand.
This genua occurs in the Malayan Arohipelago, but ii chieSy Aus-
tislian, and, together with the leaflets Aoacias, gives a moat remarkable
character to the scenery. The spaciea exist in great profusion, and
form the largest tt«ea in the forests of that part of the world. A
modem writer upon the plants of Yan Diemen's Land saya that
Sucalyplut seems as if it had taken undisturbed poaseaaion of those
Australian regions, clothing aa it doea with a atupendoua mantle the
aorface both of Van Diemen'a Land and Auatnuia ; while the intei^
mixture of other plants which this lordly tribe permita is, compared
with ita own great extent, but small and partial Wherever you go,
one apedea or other is consUntly before you.
No trees in the world so oonatantly or npidly atrive at gigantic
dtmsDsions : they often become hollow, and an then used by the
traveller as roomy placee of shelter at night. Frezer found a hollow
Suealyplut at Moreton Bay, used by the natives as a oemetery. Even
at Swan River, where, aooording to the report of Fraaer, the speciss
are stunted, they also attmia a huge aiae. E- ctUoph^Ua at^ins a
height of ISO feet, and a girth of from 2S to GO feet ia not an uncommon
dimenaion of these trees. Their timber i» npreseoted as highly
useful for domestic and other porpoasa ; being so soft at flrat as to
render the felling, splitting, and sawing up of the tree, when green, a
'aiy easy jirooeas, and when thoroughly diy becoming as hard as oak.
^r,
nifera has leaves with very minute and n
IB little data,
wi^ a vein next the margin, ^he lowers are ombellate, oi
preaud peduncle rather longer than the petiole. The lid ia conical,
taper, leathery, twice as long as the capsule. The bark ia so exttmnaly
astringent as to yield a gum not inferior to £ino, and sold as aucb.
The tttrk of this and other epeoiea is ao hard as to oauae them to be
called Iron-Bark Trees by the colonists. The Blue Oum-Tree and some
others have the siDgular property of throwing it off in whits or gray
longitudinal atri pa or ribands, which, banging down trtan the brancnes,
have a singular effect in the wooda.
In many apecies the leaves are ao variable in their form and other
charaotera at different ages of tha tree, or in difibrant aituationa, that
it ia a matter of diffl<nilty to know how they aro to be botanically
diatinguiahed from each other ; and in fact the subject of the distinc-
tion of Bpeoiee has hardly yet been taken up, no botaniat feeling com-
petent to undertake the task without some personal acquaintance with
the planta in a native atats. The leavea, instead of preaenting one of
their aurbcaa to the aky and the other to the earth, aa ia the oaae
with the trees of Europe, aro often artangsd with their Cues vsrtical,
BO that each aide ia equally exposed to the light.
£ nbntla oontaina large oavities in its stem between the annual
concentric drctea oT wood, filled with a moat beautiful red or rich
vermilion-ooloured gum, which fiowa out aa soon as tha saw affordn
an opening.
£ uianniftra exudes a sacoharine muoous substance reaembling
manna in its action and appearance, but leaa nauaeous. It is not pro-
duced by insects, and only appears in the dry sesson. Cthsr speotes
yield a aunilar secretion at Moreton Bay and in Van Diemen's I,and,
Mr. Backhouse says it coagulates, and drops from the leaves in
particlaa often aa large as an almond.
827
EUCHARIS.
EUGENIA.
m9
E. QwmU, when wounded, furniAhes the inhabitants of Van Diemen*B
Land with a copious supply of a cool, refreshing, slightly aperient
liquid, which ferments and acquires the properties of beer. ^
Upon the whole this genus must be considered the most important
that Australia produces. As it occurs so far to the south as Van
Diemen's Land it is almost certain that it might be naturalised in
Devonshire, Cornwall, and in the west of Ireland. Even in the
neighbourhood of London certain kinds bear moderate winters
without shelter, especially E. pvlveruhnta.
It is very much to be regretted that some settled nomenclature is
not introduced, for the colonists apply the same names to different
species in different parts of the country ; this renders it difficult to
tell of what they are speaking. As far as we can collect the evidence,
it appears that the following are, or should be the botanical species
to which the colonial names belong : —
Blue Gum of Port Jackson . , , E, piperita.
Blue Oum of Hobart Town . . E, globvlut.
Stringy Bark E. rohtuta.
Iron-Bark E. resinifera.
Kino-Qum . . . , , , E. resimfera.
Peppermint* Tree E. piperita.
Weeping Gum of Van Diemen's Land . Uncertain.
Mountain Blue Gum of Van Diemen's \ tt^^^^j.^:^
Land I Uncertam.
Black Ghim of Van Diemen's Land « . Uncertain.
Black-Budded Gum of Van Diemen's 1 TTncg-tain.
Cider*Tree of Van Diemen's Land . Uncertain.
Manna-Gum Uncertain.
Manna of Moreton Bi^ . . E. marmaf Cunn.
Blood-Wood of Port Jackson . , , E. eorymbosa.
White Gum of Van Diemen's Land . E, resinifera.
White Gum of Moreton Bay . . E. atU>tilata, Cunn.
White Gum of the S.W. Interior . . E. Leticadendron, Cunn.
EUCHARIS. [AcALEPH^.]
EUCHROITE, a Mineral consisting of Arseniate of Copper. It
occurs cxystallised. Its primary form is a right rhombic prism.
Cleavage indistinct. Colour bright emerald-green. Streak pale apple-
green. Tho fracture is uneven. Hardness 8*5 to 4*0. Lustre
vitreous. Refraction double. It is transparent, translucent, Specific
gravity S'SS to 8'41. Found at Libethen in Hungary. The analysis,
by Turner, gives —
Arsenic Acid 3302
Oxide of Copper 47'85
Water 18*80
99*67
EUCHTSIDERITE (Achmite), a Mineral which occurs crystallised.
Primary form an oblique rhombic prism, of same cleavage and mea-
surements as Pyroxene. Colour brownish-black. Lusl^ vitreous.
Nearly opaque. Specific gravity 8*84. Hardness 6*0 to 6*5. Streak
yellowish-gray. Fracture hnperfect^oonchoidal. It occurs in Norway.
Before the blow-pipe alone readily fuses into a brilliant black globule ;
with borax forms a coloured glass.
According to Berzelius it consists of —
Silica 55-25
Oxide of Iron 81*25
Soda 10*40
Lime 0*72
Oxide of Manganese 108
98*70
EUCLASE, a crystallised Mineral, the primary form of which is an
oblique rhombic prism. It is either colourless and nearly transparent,
blue, or pale bluish-green. It refracts doubly. Lustre vitreous.
Hardness 7*5. Specific gravity 8*098. Cleavage very distinct, parallel
to the oblique diagonal, but indistinct parallel to the terminal plane
and horixoptal diagonal. The fracture is uneven, and the streak white.
It ¥ras first found in Peru, but has since been met with in detached
crystals in alluvial ground in Bradl.
According to Berselius it consists of—'
Glucina 21*78
Silica 43*32
Alumina . , 30*56
Oxide of Iron 2*22
Oxide of Tin 0*70
98*58
EUCNEMIS. [Elatebida]
EUCCELIUM. [Stnoicum.]
EUDEA. [Sfokqiada]
EUDENDRIUM, a genus of Zoophytes belonging to the fEtmily
TuHmtaridoL There are two British spedea^ S. rameum and E.
ramotum^ [Htdroida.]
EUDIALTTE, a Mineral which occurs both crystallised and
massive. The crystals are generally smalL The piimazy form is a
rhomboid ; the colour is red or brownish-red, sna •the crystals are
faintly translucent or opaque. Lustre vitreous, sometimes dull.
Specific gravity 2*9. Hardness 5*0 to 5*5. Streak white. Fracture
uneven. The massive varieties are iipbedded and amorphous. It
occurs at Kandarluarsuk, in West Greenland. Before the blow-pipe
it fuses into a leek-green scoria.
According to Stromeyer it consists of —
Silica 62*47
Zirconia 1089
Lime 1014
Soda 13-92
Oxide of Iron 6*85
Oxide of Manganese 2*57
Muriatic Acid 1*03
Water 1*80
99*67
EUDORA. [Acalephjl]
EUDYNAMIS. [Cucdlidjb.]
EUDYTEa rCOLTMBIDA]
EUGENESITE. [Palladium.]
EUGE'NIA, a genus of Dicotyledonous Polypetalous Plants of the
natural order Myrtaceas, so named in honour of Prince Eugene of
Savoy, who was a patron of botany and horticulture. The genus, as
at present constituted, contains nearly 200 species, though numbers
have been removed to the genera Nelitris, Joanniaf Myrcia, Sizyyiuia,
Caryophyllut, and Ja-mhota, in which are now contamed the Clove-
Tree, the Rose-Apple, . and Jamoon of India, formerly included in
Eugenia. This genus is confined to the hot and tropical parts of the
world, as Brazil, the West India Islands, and Sierra Leone, and extends
from the Moluccas and Ceylon to Silhet and the foot of the Himalayas
in Asia.
Eugenia is characterised by having the tube of the calyx of a
roundish form, and the limb divided into four parts ; the petiJs equal
in number, and inserted on the calyx. The stamens are numerous.
The ovaiy 2-3-celled, with several ovules in each. Seeds 1 or 2,
roundish, and large, with the cotyledons and radicle united into one
mass. In habit and inflorescence the species resemble many myrtles^
Like the family to which they belong, some of the species of E}»genia
secrete a warm volatile oil in their herbaceous parts; abound in
tannin; yield good wood; and a few have fruit which is ediblsi
though not very agreeable, from being impregnated with the aroma of
the oil
Eugenia Pimenta, the Allspice Pimento, or Bayberry-Tree, is a
native of South America and the West India I^ands, especially
Jamaica, and from being cultivated there is often called Jamaica
Pepper. The tree is very handsome, often 30 feet high, and much
resembles the Clove-Tree in the form and appearance of its leaves, as
well as in habit The trunk is smooth, and much brandied towsjpds
the top. The older branches are round, the younger oompressed, and
the twigs as well as the flower-stalks pubescent; the leaves are petiolate,
oblong or oval, smooth, and marked with pellucid dots, forming a
dense evergreen foliage; the flower-stalks are both axillary and
terminal, and are divided into 8-forked panicles ; the flowers are small,
without show, and conformable in structure to the character of
the genus. The berry is spherical and crowned with the per-
sistent calyx; when ripe, smooth, shining, and of a dark purple
colour ; usually 1-celled, occasionally 2-oeUed, containing large roundii^
seeds.
The Pimenta is cultivated with great eare in Jamaica, and abounds
especially on the hills on the north side of the island The trees are
formed into regular walks, and begin to bear when three years old,
but are not in perfection until they have been planted seven yean.
They thrive best in rocky lands, or a rich soil having a gravelly
bottom. Mr. Bryan Edwards says that a single tree has been known
to yield 150 lbs. of the raw fruit, or 100 lb& of the dried spice; but
the crop is uncertain, and plenteous perhaps only once in five years.
The tree has been introduced into and flourishes in the southern parts
of India.
The berries, being the valuable part of the tree, require care
in gathering as well as drying ; the processes for which are described
by Browne in his ' History of Jamaica,' p. 248. They must be picked
when they have arrived at full growth, but before they bc^ to
ripen; they are dried in the sun, on raised boarded floors, and
frequently turned during the first and second day ; they are then put
into sheeta, often winnowed, and exposed to the sun until suflieiantly
dried, which is known by the oolovuc and the rattling of tiie seeds in
the berries. Browne says, " Such of the berries as oome to full
maturity do, like many other seeds, lose that aromatic warmth for
which they are esteemed, and acquire a taste perfectly like that of
Juniper Berries, which renders them a very agreeable food for the
birds, the most industrious planters of these trees."
The leaves and bark participate in the warm aromatic properties
for which the berries are celebrated, and which have received their
name of Allspice from their fragrant odour being thought to resemble
that of a mixture of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Their taste
being warm and aromatic makes them useful as a spice in oookery,
and a stimulant in medicine.
Eugema Michdii is a Braeilian species, cnltiTated in Martinique,
whence it is called Cerisier de Cayenne, as it yields a small edible
firuit
EUOEHIACRINITEa
leKTM cllip
otted; the podunoles are eompreaaed, ucilUry, and temiinal, b^cho-
glkbiou, uw uppor nda reticulated with eUvatod vetiu, fioel; pelludd,
totnoQS, oorymbOM, rather longer than the l(«Tes. The calfx-Umb
Jt-paititei sagmenta roundiih, the Btyls filiform, acute, the barry
globose, 14 aeaded. Thia spedeB is Hometimes confouaded with the
former ipedea, in whoae qualities it partioipktes. E. cauixfiora, the
Jftbutic»b«i or Jabotioaburas, la one of the most igreBablg fruita in
Bnxil, and the taata will be improved b; future aulture. Verj good
wioe, syrup, &o., are made of it. S. dytmteria, E. MidKUii,aaA E. Bratili-
tatit, called respeoliTely Aracea, Pitanga, Orumtxamaire, Cambuf,
Uvaltra, Pitutgueira, te., are aU spoken of by Hartius u eioellaot
denert fruita. The Boae-Applea of the East an produced by spedae
EOQEXIACKINITES {Ooldfusa), a genua of Fosdl Oiuouiia.
[Ehowi«iti»1
KU'UNATHUS, ■ genua of Fosail Phoaid Fishes, from the Liu, of
whicb thrre are tlurtean Britleh speoiee. (AgaHUz.)
EUKAIRITE, a Mineral oonaiating of aeleniuret of siWer and
oopp<ir, disoovered by Berzeliua. It oocuis in thin fllma of a ehimng
lead colour ; opaque ; ita teiturs ia granular. It yields readily to the
knife, aod acquires a Bilrerj luatre. It oocun in a copper mina
m Streden. Befora the blow-pipe it eihalea a atroog BUiell of
selenium ; aod with charcoal fuses into a briUle melallio globule. It
Belenium S9
Silver 38'S3
Copper 2305
Earthy Hatter 8'90
Carbonic Acid and loss .... 3'12
100
LABES. [CoucuB,]
uA'LIA, Bgenua establiahed by Savigoj, and placed by Cuvier
amoDK hia Dorsibranchiiite Annelidei.
EtTLIMA, a gSDus of marine Oaateropodoua JfoUtuea, eatablished
by H, KiBBo.
Shell turreted, acuminated, poliahed, with many whorli [ aperture
ovate, aauminated poiteriorl;; external lip thickened, generally
forming numerous obaoUt« voricaa. Operculum homy, thin, ita
nucleus anterior.
Hr. a. E Sowerby, who g^ves this generic character, says ('Zool.
Proc,' 1B34) that this genus of marine shells sppears to be most
nearly related to Pyramidella and Eitioa, A species, he adda, whiob
has been long known has had the appellation of Turbo palilui among
British Linuean writers ; and a fossil species hss been placed by
Lamarck among the Baiini, under the speciSo name of £. Itrebelialai.
Ur. Sowerby separstea the genus into tbe two dirisions below stated,
which are ooaiacterised by the two apeoiea above mentioned ; one has
a soUd columella, aod the other is deeply umbilioated. All the
qtecies, fae observes, are remarkable for a briUiimt polish externally,
■nd the shells are frequently ilightlj and somewhat irregularly
twisted, apparently In conseqneiice of the very obsolete varices
following each other m an irregular line, princlpslly on one side, from
the apex towards the aperture. He describes sixteen species, chiefly
from Ur. Cuming's collectioD.
The geographical distribution of this genus is wide ; they have
been principally found, aayet, in warm seas (South and Central America
and Pacific Ocean, Australia). Uessia. Forbes aud Hanley iBoord four
Britiah species £ poiiia, £ dwtvrfa, B. niitiiitUa, and E. Irilmeata.
The species found by Mr. Cuming were dredged or otherwise
collected in sandy mud, coarse sand, and coral sand, on motherof-
pearl shells, or on the reefs ; at depths (not including the reels)
ranging from six to thirteen tathonu.
0. Perforated Stilimir,
S. tpUndidula. Shell acuminate-pyramidal, brownish, articulated
with white and chestnut near the sutures; umbilicus large; aper-
ture angulated anteriorly. Length I'lS, breadth D'6 inches. Loca-
lity, St. Elena, South America. Mr. Cuming dredged a single
specimen in sandy mud at from six to eight fathonu depth.
EuUma iplmitMa.
EUHORPHUa BW
R. Imperforated Eulima.
nate-pyramidal, opaque, milk-white ; external
« found in the Calcaire GroBaier n<
. a genuB of Jfoiluico belonging to . ,
metlida, founded by E. Forbea, to receive forms that had I
previouBly referred to Evliina and Odotlrmiia. Tbe shell is elongated,
and conslsta of many whorls, solid, smooth, and polished; the apex
of tbe spine has a persistent aubryonio sinistral shell ; the aperture
subquadrate; periBtome imcomplets ; columella not plicated, straight
nearly so ; cperoulum comeoua, pyrifom. There are four BritiBh
speciea. R iciUa (EiUima eramila, Jeffreys), E. tKimla (jVdonia
aaiaita^ Philippi), S. ngh\u {Eulima afinit, Philippi), E. cfamla
(Tarbindla datnda. Love:.}.
EULO'PHIA (from il, and Xif^t, a crest), a genus of Plants
ilonging to the natural order OrcAuiaeMS. It has an open spreading
rianth ; the sepala and petals ascending, nearly equal, either quite
distinct, or united with the more or leas lengthened bass of the
column; the lip homed or shortly spurred, sesaile, with the veins
crested, bearded, or quite smooth, usually S-lobed, sometimes undi-
vided ; the column half-terete, edged 1 theantberterminal, opercular;
le pollen masees 2, waxy, S-lobed, or hollowed out at the back, with
short linear caudicula, and a transverse gland. The species are
terrestrial plants, with paeudo-bulbous rhiiomata, long membranous
plaited leaves, and radiokl many-Sowerfd scapes. Uost of the rhiio-
lata and roots of the speeias of the family Orekidaeea yield atorch in
peculiar form. Tbe roots of the spsdeaof OrcAuara used in Europe
Oder the name of S&lep as an article of diet, and the same uae is made
of therhisomataof aspedeaof jGUopkisintheEast Indies. Although
specimens of the plant wera brought firam Cashmere by Dr. BovU,
they were not in a atste of preserration to be identifiod. (Lindlsy,
Flora Medico.)
EULYMENR [Acai.epea.]
EUUE'DONUS, a genus of Braohyurons Crustaoeam, the first of
the Partbenopians of IL Mibe-Edwards, and which in hie opinion
establish in some sort the passage betweea the Btenorkyntki, Achtmt,
ide, and EmrytiDrnt, Lamtmt, and ParlAsnope on tbe other.
The form of the oarapaoe is nearly pentagonal as in the latter, but tt
is at the Bome time thrown forwaida, as it were, and scarcely over-
pasaei the line of the feet of the him) pur of limba — a disposition
which recallB the construction of the former. Tbe bodyiadepreesed;
the rcatruQi, which ii very large and projecting, is only divided
towards ita eitnmitj; the eyes are very short, and their peduncle
entirely fills the orbita. whiob ar« airculaiv-a oharacter which again
approximstee these cruataceans to the Stenerhynehi ,• the intvnal
aatemue are folded back very obliquely outwards, and the external
antennee ani but little developed. The epistome is shorter than in
the majority of the Oxjfrhynchi. The external jaw-feet present
nothing remarkable. In the male the thoracic teet at the first pair
are large, aud much longer than the rest ; all these are t little com-
pressed aod their third Joint is surmounted by a crest, which is not
distinotly perooptible on Uie other joints ; the feel of tjia second pair
are rather shorter than those of the thiid and fifth pair, which are
nearly as long as the fourth. The abdomen of ths male fa composed
of seven articulations.
E. nigtf. This small apedes, the only one known, is of a bmised
black oolour, and inhabits the ooaats of Chins.
EUHORPUUB^ a genus of Coleopterous Insects belonging to tbe
SBctioD Tyimeri of Latreille, and being the typical genus ol the fiunily
Pangittla. These insects are chamcterised by having &e antennv
longer than the head and thorax, the body oval, and tbe thorax
irrMularly Bquwe ; the maxillary palpi filiform, or alightlj thickened
at £e end, but not terminated by a large process as in some genen :
the last joint of the tanus is always deeply divided into two lobea.
Latraille (' R^e Animal '} diridsa the genus Evmorphut into
several aub-genera. Some of the species have tbe third joint of the
antennM much longer than any of the other joiote; tb«ie form the
rinna Sm»oriihvt (proper). In which tbe antemue are club shaped.
II the speoiee are natlvM of America or the East IndioB. Kx.
Sitm«rphmimmarBinai¥i. (Latr., 'Gener. Crust, et Insect,' tab. zi
fig. 18.)
(^81
EUNICE.
EUPHORBIA.
Second Sub-Oenus, Dctpaui (Zidg.)* Some of the species have the
antennsB club-shaped as in Ewnorphut proper, but straighter and
more elongated, and with the joints bent laterally: among these
EvimorphuB Kirbyanui (Latr.) is now placed. In other species of
Dapttu the third joint of the antennn is not longer than any of the
others. Many of the species of Daptui are indigenous in ISurope,
living in different Ftuiffi, whence the name of the family {Ftmgicola).
Some of these insects are also found under the bark of the birch and
other trees.
Third Sub-G^nos, JSndomychui (Fab.), has the three last joints of the
antennas bent laterally, lax^r than the others, and forming a triangular
club-shaped mass.
Fourtn Sub-Qenus, Lycoperdina (Latr.), has the maxillary palpi
filiform, and the last joints of the labia are enlarged. [TrxmbblJ
EUNICE, a genus of Dorsibranchiate AnndidM, It is furmshed
with tuft-like giUs ; the trunk is armed with three pairs of homy
jaws ; each of the feet has two cirri and a bimdle of bristles; two
tentacles upon the head above the mouth, and two on the neck.
E. ffigarUta is the largest Annelide knoi^. It attains a length of
from one to four feet^ and inhabits the sea around the Antilles.
EUO'MPHALUS, a genus of (oaalOa$teropoda, from the Palsdosoic
Strata. (Sowerby.) [Tboohida]
EUO'NTMUS {tikiyvfios, literally 'having a good name,* and hence
various derived senses), a genus of Plants bdonging to the natural
order CeUulrticea. It has a flat 4^-lobed calyx with a peltate disc at
the base ; 4-5 petals, inserted in the max^gin of the disc ; 4-5 stamens,
inserted in the disc ; a single style ; the capsule 3-5-ceUed, 8-5-angled,
the dehiscence loculicidal; the seed solitary, with a fleshy arUlus,
not truncate at the hilum. The species are shrubs with tetragonal
or terete branches, and ovate usually opposite leaves, yielding a fetid
odour when bruised, and considered poisonous.
£. EuropcBw, Spindle-Tree, has the petals oblong; the flowers mostly
4-cleft and tetrandrous ; the branches tetragond, smooth, and even ;
the leaves elliptic-lanceolate, minutely serrate ; the capsule obtusely
angular, not winged. It is a native of Europe in hedges and thickets,
and is found abundantly in Great Britain. The flowers are small,
of a greenish-white colour, and give out a fetid odour. Its wood is
tough and white, and is used for making skewers. It has from this
got the name of Prick-Wood; Oerard calls it Prick-Timber. Its
French name is Fusain, in allusion to its use in making spindles. It
is called also in French Bonnet de Prfitre and Bois li Lairdoire ; the
former in allusion to the capsules, which when open bear some resem-
blance to a priest's cap, the latter from the use made of the wood in
making skewers and larding-pina It has, in common with the Oomtu
wangumea, the names of Dog-Wood and Qatteridge-Tree ; the first
name is in allusion to the use of the wood of these trees for making
an infusion with which mangy dogs were washed. It is also known in
English by the name of Louse-Berry, a name which it has got from
its berries being used when powderod as an application to the head
for the destruction of lice. The wood of this tree is also used by
musical instrument makers. When used for skewers, toothpicks, &c.,
the branches are> cut when the shrub is in blossom, as that is the
period when the wood is toughest Linnaeus says that cows, goats,
and sheep eat the leaves, but that horses refuse them. The barries
are poiBonous, and produce when eaten vomiting and purging. Whilst
growing wild in hedges and coppices this pluit does not attain any
great size ; but when planted and allowed to grow alone it becomes a
tree, and reaches a height of twenty or thirty feet Although almost
entirely neglected in the planting of pleasure-gardens, it forms a
singularly beautiful object in the autumn, when its dusters of red
berries are ripe. The seeds are covered with an arillus, which is of a
beautiful orange colour.
R verrucotui has the branches warted with proximate lenticular
glands; the leaves ovate and slightly serrate; the flowers 8 on a
peduncle ; the petals ovate ; the capsule bluntly 4-comered. This is
a deciduous shrub or low tree, a native of Austria, Hungaiy, and
Camiola. It has a singular appeaAuioe, and is worthy of cultivation
on that account amongst collections.
E, kUifoliut has smooth branches ; broad ovate leaves ; trichotomous
many-flowered peduncles ; oval obtuse petals ; the lobes of the capsule
acutely angular and wing-formed. It is a deciduous shrub or low
tree, attaining a height of 10-20 feet^ and is a native of the souUi
of Europe. Its fruit is lai^ge, and of a deep red colour ; the decaying
leaves are also reddish. This is the handsomest species of the genua.
It has broad shining leaves, and its large red pendulous fruits, with
their orange-coloured seeds, which are suspended in the air when
the capsules open, contribute much to the beautiful appeannoe of
this tree.
R Amerieanut, American Spindle-Tree, has smooth branches; the
leaves almost sessile, elliptio-lanoeolate, serrated ; the flowers 1 to
3 on a peduncle ; the petal sub-orbiculate ; the capsules warty. This
is a sul>evergreen recumbent shrub, and is a native of North America
from Canada to Florida. The capsules are of a deep crimson, the
seeds white, and the arillus scarlet They add much to the beauty
of this plant, and have given rise in America to its common name,
the Burning Bush. It is of easy culture in a moist soiL Several
varieties have been described by botanists. E. atropurpureus is found
in English gardens, aud is a native of America. E. BamilUmianut
is a Nepaul species, introduced about twenty years aga R namu is a
dwarf species.
About thirty species have been described. AH the hardy kinds are
easily cultivated in any common soil in the open air. They may be
propagated by seeds which ripen in this country. Cuttings planted
in the autumn will readily take root
(Loudon, EncydopiBdia of Treet and Shrubi ; Don, JHehlamydenu
Planii.)
EUPATORIA'CE^, one of the tribes of composite plants admitted
by De Candolle, who defines it thus : — ** Style of the hermaphrodite
flowers <^lindrical; the arms long, somewhat davate, covered exter-
nally wiw downy papillsB at the upper end. The stigmatic series but
little prominent, and usually disappearing^ before they readi the
middle of the arms of the style." Under this character are arranged
88 genera, the most extensive of which is the genus Ewpaioriumy
including no fewer than 294 species.
EUPATOmUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
ComposUa, the tribe EupatoriaeetB, the sub-tribe Etipaicri€<E, and the
division AdmottyUce, It has 3-100-flowered heads, a flat naked
receptade, the scales of the involucre in one or two or morerows^ equal
or unequal, loosely or closdy imbricated, the throat of the corolla
hardly dilated, the anthers indosed, the arms of the style exserted,
cylindrical, obtuse ; the pappus in one row,- hairy, rough.
E, eannabinumf Hemp-Agrimony, has the leaves in 8 or 6 deep
lanceolate serrated segments, the middle one longest It is a native
of Europe, and is mostly found on the banks of streams. It is a
common plant in the British Isles. The stem is about three feet high,
and has a dightly aromatic smell. The whole plant is bitter, and
was formerly employed in medicine as a tonio and febrifuge. An
infusion of this plant is said to be the common medicine of tiie turf-
diggers in Holland against the ulcerations and diseases of the feet and
legs to which they are subject The expressed juice, when taken in
laiige quantities, produces both vomiting and purging.
R petfoliatum, Thorough-Wort, Thorough- Wax, Cross-Wort, or
Bone-Set, has subsessile opposite linear-lanceolate acuminate leaves,
decreasing gradually in breadth trom the stem, where they are widest,
to the extremities ; serrated, wrinkled, pale imdemeath, and hairy,
especially the veins. This plant is a native of North America, in
meadows and boggy soils. It has erect round hairy stems, branched
only at the top, with a cylindrical imbricated involucre, inclosing from
12 to 16 flowers, the florets of which are tubular. AU parts of this
plant are intensely bitter, and a decoction of the leaves has been
recommended by American physidans as a valuable tonic and stimu-
lant, and used as a substitute for Peruvian bark in the cure of
intennittent fever. In lai^e doses the infusion or decoction of the
whole plant is emetic, sudorific, and aperient It is used with
advantage instead of the infusion of chunomile flowers in working
off emetics.
E. Ayapana has subsessile, opposite, lanceolate, triple-nerved,
acuminate, nearly entire, smooth leaves. It is originally a native of
South America, on the right bank of the river Amazonas, whence
it has been introduced into the East Indies. It has a stem shrubby
at the base, branched, and smooth ; the heads are pedicdlate, and
contain about 20 floreta An infusion of this plant is used in Brazil
as a diuretic and diaphoretic It has also been employed as an
antidote against the cites of venomous serpents and insects. A
quantity of the bruised leaves is laid upon the scarified wound, and
uie fresh juice is administered from tune to time to the patient
The reputation of this plant for the bites of poisonous serpents, like
that of many others, is probably undeserved. Other spedes of
Eupatoriwn possess medicmal properties: E. aromoHcitm and E.
odoratum have very fragrant roots; E, peifoliaiwi^ and E. rotundi-
folwm have been employed in renal diseases and consumption. The
E. Ouaco of older botanists is now referred to the genus Mikania,
[MiKANIA.]
(Burnet^ Ouilines of Botany; JAndiey, Ehra Mediea; Lewis,
HUtory of Materia Medico,)
EUPHEUS. [Ibopoda.]
EUPHOHBIA, a genus of Exogenous Plants, giving its name to
an extensive and important natural order. It has very small
monandrous naked male flowers, crowded round an equally naked
female one, in the inside of an involucre looking like a calyx, and
formerly mistaken for that organ. The species have dther a common
leaiy appearance, with the involucres proceeding from among large
foliaoeous bracts, or they are nearly leafless, with their stem exces-
sively succulent, so as to resemble Cacti, Those with the former
character are natives of most parts of the world, and are the only
kinds found in Europe ; the succulent spedes chiefly appear in the
hottest and driest countries. Barren uncultivated places in the plains
of Hindustan, and the arid regions of Asia and the north of Africa
are their favourite stations; in the Canaries, on volcanic soil, E,
Canarieims and E, laphylla form great bushes with arms like
candelabras. From Cacti, which some of Ihese plants much resemble,
they are readily known by their spines, when they have any, not
growing in clusters, and by their emitting, when punctured, an
abundant discharge of milky juice. This, in a concrete state, forms
what is called the gum-resin, or rather resm, called Euphorbium,
an acrid, corrosive moat dangerous drug, principally furnished by
EUPHRASIA.
tnted in others.
■ppendKgea (■amstJiDcg wsDting), Corolla nitber contistiiig of puUls
or icdBB, sqiial in niiinber to the wpila, or a.t>««Dt, or sometimca morp
numerooj than the lepala ; BOiuatimea mooopetalouB. The stHueiia
definite or indaSaite, distinct, or mauaddphQUS ; uiUiera S-cellsd,
Bomptimei opaning bj porea. Oruy free, Boaoile, or atolked, 1-2-3-
or mora oellecj j ovuln Bolituy or twin, auapended from the ioner
angle of till cell ; «tyles equal io number to the cells, aooietinica
diatiDCt, BomaUmea combined. Fruit geneiall}- tricoccoUB, consisting
of three earpele aplitting and Mparating with elasticity from their
oommoa hxit, ocoesiaQaUf flnh; nnd indehisceiit-
XlitlurUa iiffiananm.
S, Zatkgrit, ■ common weed in oottage girdeoi, where it i> called
Caper, yields from its eeedg an oil of the most riolent purgativa
iiatnre. If it ware leas duigeroua it might be subatituted for Tij;liiim
oH Tie states that with as much of ^a oil as oould be sold for a
frano ninety adulta might be purged
S. TtmeaSi haa .erect naked round branchea, which are succnIeDt,
polished, and ebonnding in milk; juice. The lenves are small, linear,
fleshy, aeanls, and at (he ends of the twigs. The Sowers ore crowded,
■ab-wnaile, terminal, and axillary ; the lobes of tha inToluore ore Btb
in Dumber, roundish, smooth, and peltate ; the tube woolly on the
inside. The capaole is rilloiu. The milk whan introduced into the
tye produces severe infionunatian and even bUnduesa. It ia used
mcdicdnally in India.
S. tribuloida has a stem about two incfaes hifji and one inch
broad, orate, fieshy, quadrangular, having two op|Miaite, stalked, ovate
spathulate leaves growiag from its base. The pricklee are in pairs,
wliitK, dustfi^ on the margin of the angles. It ia said to be a
sudorific
E. onJifwontm is common on barren and uncultivat«d lands all
over India and Arabia Felix. It has a shrubby leafleas eucoulent
stem. The branches are spreading, triangular or quadrangular, the
■nglea ainuated, and armed with double spines at the protuberanoes.
The peduncles ore solitai; or in poire, 3-Sowered. There are only
5 ntamena- The bark of Uie root when bruised in water ia taken ss
a puigativB. Some writers consider that this plant yields tha drug
Euphorl/imnf a resinous substance possessing acrid irritant propertica.
Id all probability however this substonco is chiafiy obtiuned from
S. oficinanim. The Arabs moke up violent diuretjc pills by rubbing
' 'xot S. antiguortHR with fiour, yet their camels will eat
the wild Braralian, with a mortal poison far their arrows. The juice
of the leaves of S. ntrei/olia is prescribed by the native praotitionen
of India intemoll; as a purge and deobetruent, and externally, mixed
with Hargosa ail, in such cases of contracted limb as are induced by
rheumatic aSections. The leevaa have no doubt a diuretic quality.
Of the leafy Euphorbias great numbers are found to possess a milk
with purgative or emetic qualities. The roots of some of the species
According to Deelongchompa tha powdered.root of S. Otrardiaaa is
emetic in doses of 18 or 20 groins. The root of £ Ipieacttanha is
Bjiid by Barton to be equal to the true Ipecacuanha — in eome respects
superior- £ PtrAyuia is esteemed in the Hediterraoean. Rikt/n^folta
ia somewhat aromatic and astringent, and is prescribed in India in
the diorrhcea of children, and as a vermifuge. In the some way is
employed E, hyjieneifolia, a plant of tropical America, which is
latringent and somewhat narcotic. Hevertheleas, E. baltamifera has
uo such qualities, and is eaten when cooked. E, Mauriianica is also
employed as a condiment ; but its acridity is unpleasant. It is said to
be used in adulterating ecammonj. The sap of S. phatpAorta ehines
with a phosphorescent light in a warm night in the onment forests of
Brazil (Lindley, Yigetablc Singdovi.)
EUPBORBIACB.£, SpurgttmrU, a natural order of Exogenous
Plants with definite suspended anntropal ovules, scattered flowers, and
tncoccous fruit. The genera consist of trees, shrutis, or herbaceous
pUnts, oftea abounding in acrid milk. The leavts are mostly opposite
or alternate, simple, rarely compound, often with stipules. The fiowars
are axillary or terminal, arranged in various ways, sometimes inclosed
within an involucre Ksembling a calyx; flowcriimouceciousand dioM:!-
Dus. The calyx inferior, with various gl^mitnlir or scaly internal
This extensive order, which probably does not oontain fewer than
3S00 Bpeciea, described or undescribed, exists in the greatest abund-
ance in equinoctial Amarics, where about three-eighths of tha whole
number have been found, sometimes as large trees, frequently as
deformed bushes, still more usually as diminutive weeds, and occa-
sionally as leafless succulent plants resembling Indiao figs in aspect, but
not in any other particular. In the Westam World they gradually
diminish as they recede from the equator, so that not above GO species
are known in North America, of wluch a very small number reaches as
tar as Canada. In the Old World the known tropical proportion is much
smallsr. arising probably from the species of India and equinoctial
Africa not having been described with the same care as those of
Ameriso, not above an eighth, having been found in tropical Africa,
including the islands; a sixth is about the proportion in India. A
good many species inhabit the Cape, whero, and in the north of Africa,
they often aseume a suoculent habit ; and there are about 120 species
from Europe, including the basin of the Mediterranean, of which
IS are found in Great Britain, and T in Sweden. A large number of
these plants are poisonous. The poisonous principle resides chiefly
in their milky secretion. The haira of aome are stinging. The bark
of man^ is aromatic; and the flowera of some tonic Many are used
in medicine, auch as Craton, Caicarilla, and Suphortiia. The stimu-
lating poisonous principle however appears to be volatile, since the
action of heat is sufficient to dispel it. Thus the etarohy root of the
Hanihot, or Cosssva, wiiich when raw is a violent poison, becomes a
wholesome nutritious food when rossted. Some yield s fixed oil from
their seeds, as the apecies o! Elreococca. Forfurtherparticulon respect-
ing the important and various properties of the species of this onier,
see Pkdilanthds, Ceotoh, Boxna, Cascahilla, Jathopha, Kioinub,
and EuPHOSBiA. The order contains ISl genera, and 2600 species.
EUPHOTIDE, a Compound Rock, consisting of Dialli^ and
Felspar. It is aometimes called Diallage Rock.
BuPHRA'SIA (from ttfpiurla, delight), a genus of Plant* belonging
to the natural order ScrophalariiKea or Scrophuianrua. It has a
campanulata 1-cleft calyx ; the upper Up of (he corolla goleate, einar-
ginate, the lower larger, spreading, witit the middle lobe emarginata ;
i stamens, fertile, the lower cella of the uppiT anthers with a long
spur; the capsules oblong-ovate, oompressed, emarginate, with entire
valves ; the seeds few.
S. tifficiiuUu, Euphrasy, Eyebright, has ovate or cordate-ovate
nearly sessile serrate leaves, tbe corolla glabrous, the lobes of the
lower lip emarginate, of tbe upper lip patent sinuate-dantatA, the
anthera unequally mucronate, hairy. Jt ia from one to four inchea
high, and is a native of the heaths and pastures of Europe, the
"imalaya Hountains, Cashmere, and all the north of Asia. It is
immoa in Qreat Britain. This Bpeciea is peculiarly subject to
uiatioD. The leaves ore ovste, or cordate-ovate, or cordate-
tiiangular, with the teeth acute or obtuse, ascending or spreading.
The capsule also varies much in shape. There is scarcely a character
permanent except the pubescence of the corolla. This elegant little
pinut has a slightly bitter and aromatic flavour, and has been employed
fas EUPHROSINK
much in mediuine, partieululy in diiea«e» of the. sje. Its nw to
thew oamplaiDta aeanu to bare origioaMd !□ its liright kppeanuioe,
and whea the doctrine of Bigni and aeaU prevailed ttuB v»b aupposed
to indicate it« nlue in bn^htemng the eyes. Although it hfts lately
fallen into dieuie its itstrmgent effect is undoubtedly of value ia
the eye. The eipreaned juice and distillad water of this plant have
been the forms in which it baa been emplojed.
R OdmUUa baa the leaves narrowed from the baae, opposite,
UnaBJ^lBnceoUte, remotely serrate ; the floral leaves longer titan the
floweiB ; the corolla pubescent j the lobes of the lower Up oblaag,
obtuse ; the aathers with two equal points, hairy. It is a native of
Europe, and is abundant in CJreat Britam in meadows, oom-fieldo, and
waste places. This plant is the Bartiia OdonliUt of Hudson, and
the Od^lUti rubra of Persoon.
There are several other spades of Buphratia. Although pretty
plants none of them will grow well in cultivation.
(Babinston, Manual nf BritUA Baiany ; Llndley, Flora Medico.)
EUFHROSIIfE, a genua of Dorsibranchiate Atai^^da. It hssbut
one tentacle on its head.
EU'PODA (from tl, and nis, totis, a foot), Latreille's fifth
family of Tetnimerous Coliopttra. The great size of tlie posterior
thighs Id many insects of this famUy gives rise to the appellatioD.
The genus Sagra, many species of which, remarkable for brillinut
red, purple, and green colours, are brought from the East, and the
genus CrioceTU, are types of sub-divisions of the family.
EUPVCHROITE, a fibrous mammillary variety of ApatUe, from
Point Crown, Essex county, New York, United States, [ApaTITB.]
EURIBIA. or Edbihu. [TanoosoMATA.l
EU'RTALE (after onaof theGaigons,in slIuaiDn to the threatening
armed appearance of the plant), a genus of Plants belonging to the
natural order Nymphaaeea. It haa a calyx of i sepals inserted in the
torus, and adhering to it; 16-28 petals; numerous stamens; 16-20
carpels ; the fruit half-inferior, arising from the sepals ; petals and
stamens adhering half-way up. There is bat one species of Uiis genus,
B. ferox, which ia an elegant aquatic, covered all over with pnehlss,
with large peltate orbicular leaves, and bluish-purple orvtolet flowera,
about the size of those of the yellow water-lily, It is a native of the
East Indies in the lakes Oumtoe and Oogra, also in the province of
Kianong in China. This plant presents a vezy singular appearance.
which may be separated as food, or the root may be eaten,
by the inhabitants of the districts where it grows.
In cultivation, this plant must he kept in water in a. hotbed or
stove. It will produce seeds if the pollen of the anthers, when it is
in fall bloom, be shaken on the stigmas. It con only be propagated
by means of its seeds,
(Don, DUfdamydtviu Plant:)
EURY'ALa [AosLiPHa.]
EUHTBIA. [Acalbfba]
KURYDICE. risopODi.]
EDRTLAIMUa [Mosciciraij;.]
EUBT'NOME, a genus of Brochyorous Crustaceans esteblisbed by
Dr. Leaoh, and forming the second genus of the Parthenopions of
H. Hilne-Edwards, who remarks tlut it establishes the passage
between PortAcnDpc or Lambnu and the other Ojyrkyncht. The
general form of the body and aspect approiimatas these crustaceans
ts Parihatopt, whilst the dispoaition of their external anteonEe Is
similar to tite conformation in Maia. The carapace is nearly in the
form of a triangle with a rounded base, and Is strongly tuberculated
and covered with esperities. The rostrum ia horizontal, and divided
EVERGREENS. sje
angle by a slit. The internal autcnuoj are bent back lougiludiuoily,
and the first joint of the external ant«nna9 terminates at the internal
angle of the orbit The epiatome ia nearly squared, and the third
joint of the external jaw-feet strongly dilated externally. The stemal
plastron ia nearlv oval, and its median suture oecupin the two last
thoracio rings. The feet of the first pair are scarcely longer than the
succeeding ones; in the male they are rather long, whilat in the
female they ore very short, but less than those of the second pair ;
the succeeding feet diminish progressively in length. Abdonaen
consisting of seven artlculaUons in both sexes,
B. (Upera. Length about half an inch ; colour lively red with
bluish tints. Locality, the coasts of Noirmoutier and the Channrl
(LaManche), at rather considerable depths. (Leach; Hilne-Ed wards.)
EURTNO'TUS, a genua of FossQ Ganoid Fishes, from the Lime-
stone of Burdie House and the shales of Newhaven. (Agsssiz.)
EURTO'CRINUS, a genus of Fossil Orinoidca, from the Mountain
Limestone. (Phillips,)
EURYPODIUa [MAOROpoDiDa.]
EURY'PTERUS (Harlao), a singular genus of FossU O^laeta,
tmra Korth America aud Scotland. B. Smvieri occun in Carboniferous
Limestone at Kirkton, near Qlasgow.
EORYSTOMID.E. [Cohacias.]
EUSTACHIAN TUBE [Ear,]
EUSENITE, a HinenI, oontojning Yttrium, occnra toassive
without any trsice of cleavage. Its oolour is brownish-black. In thin
»lintera it haa a reddish-brown translucence, lighter than the streak.
The streak ia reddish-brown. Fracture subconcboidal. Hardness,
scratches Thorite. Lustre metallic, greasy. SpeciSc gravity 4 '60.
It is tbnud at Jblster, in Norway. Its analysis, by Boheerer,
gives—
Columbio Acid, with some Titanio Acid . 49'66
Titanic Add T'9t
Yttria 2S-09
Protoxide of Uranium .... 6'Sl
Protoxide of Cerium 3'18
Oiide of Laathanium .... 0-96
Lime 217
Magnesia 0-29
Water 3.97
98-90
EVAQORA. [AcALKPHi.]
EVANIA, [Pdpivoha.]
EVENING PRIMROSE. [(EaOTHEBA.J
EVERGREENS are plants which shed their old leaves in the spriDg
or summer after the new foliage has been formed, and which oonsc-
Siently are verdant through all the winter seAson ; of this nature ore
6 Hoily, the Laurel, the Hex, and many others. They form n
considerable port of the shrubs commonly cultivated la gardens, and
are beautiful at all seasons of the year.
The principal drcumstances in which Evergreens phydolopcally
differ from other plants are the hardness of their cuticle, thethiokness
of the parenchyma of their leaves, and the small number of breathing
pores, or stomates, formed on the bui£u» of those organs. These
peculiarities, taken together, enable them to withstand heat and
drought with more success than other plants, but are often not
sufficient to protect them against such influences in excess. Hence
we find them comparativdy uncommon in those parts of the continent
of Europe where the summers are hot and dry, and moat fiourieluDg
in a moist insular climate like our own. This is rendered more
intelligible by a comparison of the proportions borne by their
stomates, and those of deciduous plants. As far as this subject has
been investigated, it appears that their leaves are usually altegether
destitute of such organs on the upper side, and that those of the
lower are mostly fewer in number and much less active than in
deciduous plants.
The greater pai-t of Evergreens ore raised from ssed ; some are
propagated by cuttings or layers, and the variegated varietJea by
bndding and grafting. The soil in which they succeed best difien
with the kinds ; Ajnerican Evergreens, such as Rhododendrooi,
Kalmiofl, Ac, grow best in equal quantities of peat-earth, sand, and
vegetable mould ; European sorts grow in their greatest vigour in
a fresh hazelly loam, but will thrive in almost any kind of soil.
The operation of transplanting Evergreens may be performed witli
SDCcess at almost all seasons of the year. Midsummer planting has
even been recommended ; it however is a work of necessity rather
than propriety, because its success depends entirely upon the nature
of the weather after the operation ; if it be cloudy and wot for somo
time they may succeed ; but if, on the contrary, it be hot and dij,
they are sure to suffer : for this reason, if the practice may be adopted,
it is not to be reoommsnded. The Common Holly however has been
often known to succeed when planted at this season, either for hed^
or as single plants. The hollies in one very remarkable case were
carefully dug np in the cool of the evening, and removed to Isi^n
trenches, which had been prepared for their reception ; a qnantity of
water was then poured upon the roots, and the soil thrown upon the
t«p of it, which of course was carried down and deposited in all tho
oievicea in the trench, rendering the plants perfectly firm. In tlie
637
EVERGREENS.
EYERGREENa
638
uusUnoe alluded to the weather was very favourable for a considerable
period after the operation was performed.
Autumn and spring are much bettor seasons for work of this kind ;
the plants are not so liable to suffer from the intense heat of the sun,
and are more likely to be benefited by dews and frequent' rains.
But, according to the most experienced cultivators, the winter
months (that is, from October to February) are decide^ily the best
time for tranaplaoting Evergreena Mr. McNab, who is one of the
greatest authorities upon this subject, says — " I have planted Ever-
greens at all seasons of the year with nearly equal success, except
from the middle of June to the middle of August, and even during
this period I have planted some ; but unless the weather is very duU
and moist, it is difficult to prevent the plants suffering considerably,
and in many oases it is years before they recover. Although, however,
I hsxe planted Eveigreens ten months out of the twelve with little
difference of success, yet one season has a preference over the others
with me, and when there is the power of choice I would recommend
late in autumn, winter, or early in spring ; that is, any time from the
middle of October till the middle of February; and in general the
beginning of this period is the best ; that is, from the middle of
October till the middle of December; always providing that the
weather and the ground are favourable ; that is, supposing there is
no frost, no drying wind, nor much sunshine, and that the ground is
not too much saturated with wet, either from continued rain or from
the nature of the soil. O^e of the principal things to be attended to
in planting Evergreens is to fix on a dull day for winter planting, and
a moist day for spring and autumn planting."
It is of great importance to keep a number of the more tender
sorts of Eveivreens in pots, in order to send them to a distance if
required ; and if they are to be transplanted at home their roots are
not so liable to be injured as when they are dug from the ground.
The more tender species of the following genera should be treated in
this way: — ArbutiUf Cupremu, Daphne^ Erica, Junipenu, Laurut,
Magnolia, Phyllirea, Pinvs, Quercut, Bhamnut, Thvja, &c.
In lifting Evergreens particular care should be taken of the young
rootlets, as upon their preservation the success of the operation in a
great measure depends ; especially if the specimens have arrived at
any unusual size. Small Evergreens are planted like other things ;
but the following precautions should be observed in all cases where
individuals of any great size are the subject of the operation.
When the plant has been lowered into the hole dug for its reception,
the soil must be thrown in loosely around it (not trod in), and a basin
made to hold a quantitv of water, which must be filled several times
until the whole is completely saturated ; this will convey the particles
of soil down to the roots of the plants and render it much more firm
than any other method. By this treatment we have seen plantations
of Eveigreens formed without a single failure, which, when finished,
appeared to have been growing for many years.
It matters litUe what size the plants have attsdned, if they can only
be lifted without injuring the small fibres of the roots ; they have
been moved from 10 to 20 feet high, and otherwise laige in proportion,
with complete success. Should however the roots be unavoidably
injured in transplanting, the branches must be closely pruned and
shortened in proportion ; so that when they begin to draw upon the
roots for support they may not require more nourishment than the
latter can supply.
Considering the great importance of Evergreens in a climate like
that of Great Britain, where they flourish in such unrivalled beauty,
and form so much natural protection to bleak exposed situations, thev
cannot be too extensively planted. The following lists will furnish
information as to the principal kinds found in the nurseries and
gardens of Great Britain :—
I. Evergreens whose beauty depends exclusively upon their folisge.
Tbses.
AUei, — ^All the spedes, where the soil is light enough to suit them,
particularly A, Ihuglatii, A,exceUa, the Norway Spruce, A. Ikodara,
the Cedar of Indi% A. Cednu, the Cedar of Lebanon, and A, Zarix,
the common Iiarch, t<»ether wit^ A, halaamea, the Balm of Gilead,
A. picect, the Silver-Fir, and A, Webbiana, the Silver-Fir of the
Himalaya Mountains. [Abies.] The Cedar of Lebanon will grow
well in a swamp.
Arauearia imbricata, the glory of the mountains south of Chili ; it
will hardly succeed north of the midland counties. [Araucabia.]
Cunninghamia hnceolata, the Chinese Fir ; very handsome, but only
suited to the south of England. [CnNiii5aHAMiA/|
Oupreitus iempervirens, the Common Cypress, and (f. horitontalit, the
Spreading Cypress, are quite hardy : and the latter, if to be procured,
forms a tree much more oimamental than the other with its formal
shape. But the nurserymen almost always sell a slight variety of
C. tempervirent for it, [ Cupbessus. ]
Oupranu LusUaniea, the Cedar of Goa, is a beautiful tree, but only
suits the climate of southern counties.
iUx aqw^UiMm, Common Holly. The nurseries contain endless
varieties of it, both green and variegated. The latter are not to be
compared witii the others for bcaut^ul effect. [Ilbx.]
Junipenu, — The /. exctiaa forms a fine tree; J, Virginiana, the
Common Viiginian Cedar, is less handsome; but both are quite
hardy. fJuNiPERUB.]
Pinus.— All the species, where the soil is light and sterile enough, with
that proportion of decayed unfermented vegetable matter which
this genus delights in. The finest, as ornamental plants, ar«
P. pinaster, P. Tauriea, P. Pinea, the Stone Pine, P. ntgricane, P.
haiepetitit, and P. Pallaeiana, which will grow in any soil that is
not stiff and swampy in winter. P. eylvettrit, and P. nigricant are
the hardiest [Pinus.]
Quereut.— The Q. Jlex, or Evei^green Oak, of which there are many
varieties ; Q. Auetrutca, of which the Lucombe and the Fulham oaks
are possibly domesticated forms ; Q. Twrneri, Q.*Svber, the Cork-
Tree, and Q. gramuntict, the Q. Ballota, or Spanish Oak, with sweet
acorns, are all fine species equally handsome when young as bushes,
and when old as trees. [Quebous.]
Taonu baecata, the Common Tew, and T. foitigiata, the Irish Tew.
[Taxus.]
Thvja oecidentalis, the American Arbor Vitse, and T, orientalte, the
Chinese Arbor Yitso. [Thuja.]
Shbubs or Bushes.
Arietotdia Maqui, a Chilian broad-leaved shrub, quite hardy.
Abi^s Clanbranlianct, a curious dwarf fir, only suited to plant singly
upon grass.
Cunninghamia lanceolcUa, the Chinese Fir, rarely grows beyond the
size of A bush.
ArbtUtu Andrachne, the Oriental Strawberry-Tree, and A, hybrida,
[Abbutub.]
Aucuba Japimica, a Japanese spotted-leaf bush. [Auouba.]
Buxue eempervirena, the Box-Tree, will succeed in light soil, especially
if sandy and sterile ; it prefers chalky downs, and will not thrive in
stiff wet soil. [Buzus.]
Junipenu commwiit, the Common Juniper; /. Sueeica, the Swedish
Juniper, much less handsome ; /. Sabina, the Savin Bush, excellent
for undeigrowth, and ornamental as a single bush upon lawns.
Launu nobilie, the Sweet Bay ; quite hardy, though a native of the
warm south; its aromatic leaves employed in confectionary,
pickles, &c. [Laubub.]
L^uatrum vulgare, the Common Privet ; excellent for hedges and for
undexfnK>wth, especially the evergreen variety. [LiausTBUM.]
PkyUirea, — Every variety of this valuable genus should be cultivated :
P. obUqua and P, lattfolia as large species, P. vudia as a middle-
sized one, and P. anguetifolia as a graceful bush.
Piniu pwnilio or Mughtu, the Alpine Pine-Tree.
Xhaimnue akUermu, of which there are sevend varieties, and R, Clutii;
hajndy buahes, which bear pruning cr cutting down to the grotmd
remarkably well. [Rhajckub.]
TwnrEB&
Eederek, many varieties of the common Ivy; B» Canarien$a, the
Irish Ivy ; and JST. ehryaocarpa, the Golden-Berried Ivy. [Hbosba ]
II. Eveigreens whose flowers have a conspicuous appearance.
Tbseb.
Andromeda arbcrea requires peat; grows 40 feet high in North
Americik
ArbiUue Unedo, the Common Strawberry-Tree; of this there is a
bewitiful variety with deep red flowers, and another with double
flowers, much less handsome than either.
Aeaeia affinii grows without proteofcion near Edinbuigh; A, dealbaia,
A, lophanta, and several other Australian species will flourish
without protection in the southem oountiea. [Aoaoia.]
JSueaiyptua perfoliaia, E, ptUvenUemU^ exist in the open air near
Edinburgh ; they and other q>eoies will thrive in the south and
west of England. [Euoaltftus.]
Ligus^rwn hteidumt the Wax-Tree^ a Japanese plant.
Magnolia grandiflora, with many varieties ; they are scarcely hardy
enough to live in this oountjy away from the shelter of a wall,
except quite in the south; unprotected spedmens exist however
near Edinbux^gh. [Magnolia.]
Shbubs or Bubhbb.
Andromeda. — The handsomest species are A, CktteAai, A, anguetifolia,
A, Mariana, which is rather tender, A. pulvertUent<i, A, epcdoea,
and A, fiorHbunda. They require peat soil.
Arctoetaphyloe UvarUrai, a trailing plant. [Abctostapqtlos.]
Ammyreine Lyoni, a beautiful little American bush, requiring peat
Berberie aqutfoliumy B, fcucicularitf B, repene, B, Atititica, B, arittata.
[Bbbbebi&J
Bupleumm fnUicotwn stands the sea breeze well upon chalky difib.
[BUPLEUBUM.]
Ci^ua, all the species. They are quite hardy if planted where wet
cannot lodge in winter^ and exposed to the full sun in summer.
[ClSTUS.]
ChiUtia 9pi0uua.
Cotoneatter miorophylla and C, roiund^foUa, small boshes. [CoTO-
KXA8TEB.]
Cytiaui ecopariut, Common Broom ; there is a double variety, C, albut,
the Portugal White Broom. [Cttisub.]
r39
EVERLASTING FLOWERS.
EXOCETUS.
€^iO
•
iMxphM. — All handaomo, the following the most bo : D. LaureoJa, the
Spox^e-Laurel, grows well beneath treea; D. pontieat with pale
green fragrant flowers ; and i>. Oneorvm, or Qarland-Flower, one
of the most lovely and sweetly-perfumed plants in the world, but
not to be cultivated except in a dry peaty soil and a well ventilated
situation ; late spring frosts injure it so much that it is not worth
cultivating in valleys. [Daphne.]
Duvaua dependent, and some others.
Erica Australia, E, cameo, E. atricta, E. Mediterranea, E, codonodea,
[Erica.]
EacalUmia mihra, E, iXLiniXay E. Montevidtiiaia, handsome South
American shrubs. Bees take great delight in the blossoms of the
last ; the second species smells very strongly of melilot.
Garrya ellipHca, with long pendulous catkins of a yellowish-green
colour. [Garbta.]
Oenitia tinetoriaf the Dyers* Broom, with a few others. [Geiosta.]
ffelianthemvm, of all kinds, to cover rockwork, or ground where the
wet does not lodge in winter. [Helian rHKifOM.]
Kalmia latifoliOf K. anguUifolia, especially the first ; require peat
[Kalioa.]
Lavandula apica and X. latifolia, Common Lavender. [Lavandula.]
Ledum latifidiufn, Labrador-Tea, and L. paluaCre; low bushes requiring
peat [Ledum.]
Mengieaia polifolia, Irish Heath; there is a white variety. [Men-
ZIE8IA. See Supplbmbnt.]
Myrtua communia, and its varieties; lives out ofdoors south of London.
[Myrtus.]
Prunua Lauroceraaua, the Common Laurel ; P. Luaitanica, the Portugal
Laurel. [Prunus.]
Pittoaporvm Tobira, quite hardy south of London; sweet^cented.
[PiTTosFORUH. See Supplement.]
JlMmarinua officinalia, Common Rosemary. [Rosmarinus.]
Ehododendron. — Numerous varieties are to be procured; those of
R panticumf R maximum, and R catavhienae are the must robust ;
R hybridum obtained between the Indian and American species is
leas hardy ; R ferruginetim and R hirautum, dwarf alpine species ;
R campanulatum, a North Indian species. [Rhododendron.]
Spartium Junceum, Spanish Broom ; and S tKuttfoUum, a Turkish
Broom.
Viburnum, — Of the Laurustinus, one of the prettiest of all Eveigreens,
there are three speciec : F. Tinua, the Common Laurustinus, the
hardiest : V. lueidum, with shining leaves, rather hunger and more
delicate; F. atrictum, with upright shoots, more hairy, and the
least hardy of the three. [Viburnum.]
Ulex Europaua, the Common Furze; a double variety, which is
particularly handsome ; and U. atrictua, the Irish Furze, a smaller
species, which does not flower abundantly. [Ulex.]
Yucca, — Several species quite hardy. They only require to be grown
in places where water does not stagnate in winter; T, glarioaa,
T. JUamentoaa, T. J)ra4xmia, T, JUtcdda, and T. auperba, are the
handsomest species. [Yucca.]
Twiners or Climbers.
Bignonia eapreolata, with dull brownish-red trumpet-shaped flowers;
rather tender. [Bignonia.]
Caprifolium Jlexuoaum, C, gratum, C. Japonicum, 0. aempervirena ; aHll
handsome Honeysuckles. [Caprifouacejk.]
Jaaminum revolutum and officinale, the Common White Jasmine.
[Jasminum.]
Vinca major and minor, the Larger and Smaller Periwinkle ; they are
trailing plant& [Yinca/]
EVERLASTING FLOWERS. This name is popularly given to
certain plants whose flowers have the property of retaining their
brightness and colour for many months after being gathered. They
owe this quality to a hardness of their tissue, which has exceedingly
little moisture to part with, and which, consequently, does not
collapse or decay in the progress of acquiring perfect dryness. It is
generally in the scales of the involucre of composite plants or in the
bracts of others that this property resides. Those who wish to
possess such plants will easily find the following in the gardens of
this country.
Hardy Annuals. — Hdichryaum hracteatwn (yellow), Xerantiiemum
annuum (purple or white).
Hardy Perennials. — Antennaria dioica (pink), A. triplinervia and
A. margaritacea (white). Ammobium alatum (white). OnaphcUium
atcechaa and 0, arenarium (yellow).
Tender Annuals. — Rhodanthe Mangleaii (rod), Moma niUda (yellow),
Oomphrena globoaa (purple).
Greenhouse Shrubs or Herbaceous Plants. — Aatelma eximium (crim-
son), Hdichryaum argentewn (white), H, ericoidea (pink), B, aeaamoidea,
H. proliferum, and others (purple).
EVERNIA. [Lichens.]
EVO'DIA (from ctwS/o, a sweet smell), a genus of Plants belonging
to the natural order Rutacea. It has the calyx 4-5-parted ; 4-5-equid
petals ; 4-6-8tamens, smooth ; the filaments subulate ; the anthers
heart-shaped, moveable; the disc cup-shaped, sinuated; the ovary
single, deeply 5-lobed, with two collateral ovules in each cell ; the
style single^ veiy short; the stigma tenninal, obtuse; the cocci I
2Yalred, l-aoeded, with a separable 2-valveil endocarp. The species
are shrubs and trees, with a grateful smell.
E. fdtrifuga is a tree, and has trifoliate leaves, the leaflets lanoeolAise
elliptical, somewhat acuminate; the panicle terminal, downy; the
ovary simple, warted. It is a native of the forests of the province
of Minas Geraes in Brazil. The bark and young wood are bitter
and astringent, and are employed by the mediod practitioners of
Brazil as a tonic and febrifuge.
E, hortenaia has simple or trifoliate leaves, which are pubescent as
well as the branches. It is a native of the Friendly Islands and the
New Hebrides.
E. drupacea has smooth leaflets, and a 4-6eeded drupaceous fruit.
It is a native of New Caledonia^ The last two are shrubs. All the
species are worth cultivation on account of their agreeable scent
They may be grown in a mixture of loam, peat^ and sand, and
propagated by means of cuttings, which should be allowed to strikd
root under a hand-glass in heat.
(Lindley, Flora Mtdica; Don, Dicldamydefma Plawta.)
EXCjECA'RIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
EuphorbiacetB, It has monoecious or dioocious amentaceous flowers;
the sterile flowers nothing but staminiferous bracts ; the stamens 7-9,
united into about three parcels, all connected at the base ; the fertile
flowers with the calyx 8-fid or absent; the style 3-parted; the
capsule 3-coocous.
E. AgaUocha is a small crooked stunted tree, with alternate leaves
about the extremities of the branches, stalked, ovate, or cordate, but
usually acute at the base, smooth on both sides, remotely and slightly
serrate, pointed with two glands at the base, and about two inches
long; the petioles about an inch long, smooth, channelled; the
stipules small, fine-pointed. The trunk of this plant abounds in a
virulently acrid niilk, which acts as a powerful poison. Roxburgh
says that wood-cutters who accidentally injure this tree have
inflammations and ulcerations on those parts of the body where the
milk touches. Rumphius calls this tree * Arbor excsecans,' and says
that the Dutch sailors who were sent ashore at Amboyna to cut
down timber became furiously mad from the pain produced by the
juice of this tree getting into their eyes, and that some of them lost
their sight altogether. This tree is common on various parts of the
continent of India, and in the Indian Islands, especially near the
coast. Its specific name appears to haVe been given it on the suppo-
sition that it was one of the plants that yielded the AgaUoehum, or
Aloes- Wood, but this is not the case, and this wood is yielded by a
different family of plants. [Aquilariacejl]
(Lindley, Flora Afedica).
EXCENTROSTOMATA. [Echinidjl]
EXCRETION in Plants. [Root.]
EXIDIA. [Tremillini.]
EXILARIA. [DiATOMACEiB.]
EXOCA'RPEiS, a small division of Thymelaoeous Plants.
[Thtmelacea]
EXOCETUS, a genus of Fishes belonnng to the Abdominal Mala-
copterygii, forming part of the family Eaocidce, The distinguishing
characters are — ^pectoral fins nearly equal to the body in length;
head flattened above and on the sides ; the lower part of the body fur-
nished with a longitudinal series of carinated scales on each side ;
dorsal fin placed above the anal ; eyes large ; jaws furnished with
small pointed teeth.
The species of this genus are called Flying Fishes. The species
of the genus Dactylopterua [Daottlofterub] are also known by this
name.
The species of Exocetua when in their own element are constantly
harassed by various fishes of prey ; and it is supposed that their
flights are performed for the purpose of escaping from these enemies :
when in the air however they are subject to the attack of various
species of gulls.
Whether these fishes possess the power of flying, in the true sense
of the term — ^that is, by beating the air with their members, or
whether their lai^ fins merely serve as parachutes to sustain them
in the air for a short time, after a leap from the water, is not yet fully
ascertained ; observers having given difierent accounts. The latter is
perhaps the prevailing opinion of naturalists, and is that of the more
recent observers. '' I have never," observes Mr. Geoi^ Bennett, the
author of ' Wanderings in New South Wales,' " been able to see any
percussion of the pectoral fins during flight ; and the greatest length
of time that I have seen this volatile fish on the fin has been tliirty
seconds by the watch, and their longest flight mentioned by Captain
Hall has been 200 yards, but he thinks that subsequent observation
has extended the spaca The most usual height of flight, as seen
above the surface of the wau/r, is from two to three fee^ but I have
known them come on board at a height of 14 feet and upwards ; and
they have been well ascertained to come into the channels of a line-of-
battle ship, which is considered as high as 20 feet and upward<<.
But it must not be supposed they have the power of devating them-
selves in the air after having left Uieir native element ; for, on watching
them, I have often seen them fall much below the elevation at
which they first rose from the water, but never in any one instance
could I observe them rise from the height at which they first
sprang; for <I regard the elevation they take to depend on the
T le&p the; nuks on leaTing thsir nitivs
Jadging from the totegcaog quotation, and >«TertI otbtr looounta
which we bATe peiuied, it woujd appear that something bejolid the
mere leap of the fiih would be required to account lor the great
hsighta (of 11 or SO feat) at which thew flaha h«Te been eeen. If
the J cannot fly (which one would judge to be tbe cue upon eiunining
the atructnre uid poejtion of the fins), it Menu probable that they
take advantage of the wind at timca, and lo adjuat their Gnil that the;
are oarriad upward by it,
Sareral imtaDcss are on record of the appeataoca of Flying Fiihea
off the Britiah coast, but the apecies it douMfuL It ia probable that
both tha ficocettu cxUimi and the E. valUaru ma; have made their
appearaaoa in our seas ; theaa tno speciea being very abundant, the
former in tha Mediterranean Sea (where many Cahea siimlar to those
of our own coast occur), and tha latter in tha Atlantic Ocean.
The S. cxilUtu has Uie ventral fins placed behind the middle of thi
body, and the £ tolUani has the ventrala (which are much smaller
than in £ txilieiu) placed anterior to Uie middle part of Uie body :
theae two species therefore are easily distinguished ; of the latter there
ia a figure in Yarrsll's ' British Fishes.'
The Americsc seas afford as eiunplea of other apadea of this
E'XOQEIfS, the largsat primary class in the vegetable kingdoi ,
are ao named in consequence of their woody matter being augmented
by additions to the outside of that which is first Formed near the centre.
Aa long aa they continue to grow they add new wood to the ontaidB
of Uiat formed in the prevloua year, in which respect they difie
eaaentialty from Endogens, whose wood is constructed by successiv
augmentations from the inaide. [EHDOOiire.] All ^e treai of cold
dimatea, and the principal part of those in hot latitudes, are
exofienoua In many cases they are aaaily recognised by the wood
of each diflerAit year forming a distinct lone, so that a sect'
their wood eihibita a number of concentric circles ; but there
many eiceptions to this rule as to render it necessary to consider
this ohancter as by no means essential to them.
The nature of the exogenous mode ot growth will be best compared
with that of an Endogen, if we purtne Uie same mode of illustration
as in the article which trsata of the latter form. We will therefore
proceed from an explanation of the typical mode of grawth in a
common Eiogen to such remarks as we may have to offer upon
daviationa from it.
n Eiogen of ordinary stmctore the embryo constats of a
*"'"'- =n which there is usually no trace of woody or vascular
uBuo i uu> an soon aa germination commences fine ligneous cords
are seen proceeding from the cotyledons towards the radicles from
ths oppoaite sides of Uie young stem, meeting in the centra of the
embryo, and forming a thread-like axis for the root. As the parts
grow the ligneous cords are increased in thickness and number, and
having been introduced among the cellular basis of the embryo, are
separated fW>m each otber by ■ portion of the cellular substance,
which continues to augment both in length and breadth as the woody
coids lengthen. By degrees the plumule or rudimentary stem becomes
organised, and having lengtbenHl a little, forms upon ila surface one,
two, or more true leaves, which gradually expand into thin plates
of cellular substance treversed by ligneous cords or veina convolving
at the point of origin of the leavea. If nt that time the interior of
the young plant is again examined, it will be found that more
ligneoua cords have been added from the base of the new leaves
down to the ootjledons, where they have focmed a junction witb the
first wood, and have served to thicken the woody matter developed
upon the first growth. Those ligneous cords which broceed from
the base of the leava do not unite in the centre of the new stem,
then forming a solid axis, but pass down parallel with the oulaide,
and leave a small space of celluUr tissue in the middle ; they them-
selves being collected into a hollow cylinder, and not uniting in the
middle until they reach that point where the woody cords of the
cotyledons meet to form the solid centre of the root. Subsequently
the stem goes on lengthening and farming new leavea : bora each leaf
there may be snin traced a formation of woody matter diapoaod
cylindiicaJly aa before, and uniting with that previously formed, a
cylinder of cellular sabatonoe being left in the middle ; and the solid
woody centre of the root proceeds in its growth in a oorreaponding
ratio, lengthening aa the stem lengthens, and increasing in diameter
is this leaves unfold icd new woody matter is produced : the result
of which is, that when the young Eiogen has arrived at the end of
its first yeu's growth it has a root with a solid woody axis, and a
■tern with a hollow woody axis surrounding cellular tissue, the whole
being covered in by a cellular integument. But aa the woody cords
an merely plunged into a cellular basis, the latter passes between
tbem in a radiating manner, connecting the centre with the drcum-
ferenoe by straight passages, often imperceptible to the naked eye,
but always present. The following diagram illustrates this.
Hera we have the oi-igin of pith in the central cellular tissue of the
stem, of wood in tha woody axis, of bark in the cellular integument,
and of medullary processes in the radiating passages of cellular
tissue connecting the centre with the circumference;
Tha woody axis is not however quit« homogenaons at this time.
cellular b<
That part whieh is next the oeatre ccntaini great numbers of veaiath
of diflbrent kinds, particularly dotted vnaels {vaaiform tissae) ; the
port next tha circumfereQoe is altogether deatitute of veaaels, and
consists of woody tissue aiolusivaly: of theae two parts that with
the vessels belongs to the wood, properly aa called, and serves as a
mould on which futura wood ia added ; the other belongs to the
bark, separatea nndec the form of liber, and in like Bumner serves as
a monld upon which futura Ubar is disposed.
At tha commencement of a second year's growth the liber separatee
spontaneously from the true wood, a viscid substance o^ed Cambium
ia aecreted between tbem, and the stem again lengthens, forming
new leaves over its surface. The ligneous cords in the learea are
prolonged into ths stem, passing down among the cambium, and
adhering in part to the wood and in part to the liber of the previous
year, the former again having vessels intermingled with them, the
latter having nont The cellular tissue that connected the wood and
liber is softened by the cambium, andgrawi between them horizontally
while they grow perpendicularly, extending to make room for them,
and consequenUy interposed between the woody cords of which
they each consist, forming in fact a new set of medullary processes
terminating on the one hand in thou of the fir*t year's wood, and on
the other m thoee of the first year's liber. This addition of new
matter takes place equally in the stem and in the root, the latter
extending and dividing at its points, and receiving tbe ends of the
woody cords as they diverge &om the m^ body. The follcwing
diagram illustret«a this, tmd shows,.when compared with the last,
what difference there is in the appearance of the stem of an Exogen
one and two yeare old.
And thus, year after year, the Eiogen goes on, forming zone upon
Eone of wood, which is permanent, and aone withio zone of liber,
which perishes aa the stem increases in diameter, [BaaK.]
If this account ie compared with that given of Endogens, it must
be obvious that tha stem of these two great classes is formed from
ths very beginning in on eesantially different manner. Endogens have
cylindrical column of pith ; their woody arcs are never collected
bark, ao to call their cortic^ inl^ument, is not parallel with that of
tha wood and Bpontaoeously separebte from it : not to speak of
important anatomical difforancea, or of the concentric arrangement
eventually assumed by the wood of Eiogens. In both Exogens and
Endogens ■ cellular substance {■ the basis of tbe whole structure, and
extends boriaontsjly wherever it is necessary to do so ; aod in certain
" IS woody arcs, stated to be like those of Endogens, are found
pith. These coses properly belong to anomalous forms, but
nevertheless may be noticed hm^, in coosequence of their direct con-
nection with this branch of the subject One cose ia that of Zamia ,- *
but OS that gsnus now belongs to the new class of Oymnosperms and
not to Exogens proper, it need not be considered here. The other
cases are Piper, Nyctaguiactnus plants, and some othera. Professor
Schultz states (' tfatiirliches System des Pfianzenreidu,' p. 320, ke.)
"""' '" Piper, JfiroWii.and Boerhaavia, the central part of the stem
I of cellular tissue, amongst which cords of spiral vessels and
woody tissues are placed either without order, or (in Sotrhaavia) hi a
cruciate manner, as in Tree-Fems, and that on the outside of this tha
woody bundles ore arranged circularly into a cylinder, A simllai-
statement had long previously been made by Hirbet, who ascribes to
IfirabUv and soma Umbelliferous plants longitudinal vessels in the
lith (' EWro. do PhysioL Ve^et.,' i. 112), and by Professor Meyer, who
'"■*• the pith of Mirabilu limgijbtra, M. duAatoma, Berrhaavia
id Oxyba^iu Ctmivntttn abounding in many laive bundles
"De Hauttuynia
pith)
of spiral veaaela within the woody radiat«d ante. ('I
M3 EXOQBNa
atque amrureia,' p. iO.) Thi*. if oonwitly described, only «1iowb that
inoertun Eiogena & portion oFthe oentrsl timue ia placed at fint in >
conliiBed maimer, and tliat the wood does not aaiume ■ deSoite circu-
lar diapoaitioD till aftenrarda ; that it doea aasume it eTentualljr ia
admitted. Wb find in Pipa- nigrum and P. LonehUU that from thv
beginoiug the noody hundlea are placed circularly, but the^ are Hpa-
rated by a good deal of cellular tiuue, aod do not uuums m the Gint
Eoue the wedge'lika or triangular form vhich ia moat common Id
Ezogcna, and vhich thay thenualvea at last take on. In Boerhaacia
rrpanda, a specimen of which is now beforo ua, we find the wood
Eilarly diaposed in two nones, and instead of apiral Tessela a irery sin-
LT structure in the pith, which is filled with fistular passngea of
Boft spheroidal cellular tissue, surrounded by smaller, harder, and
more cubical cellular tiaaue which pasaea off into the medullary pro-
oesaea. It is in such plants as Piper incanum that the organisation of
EiDgens most nearl; approaches that of Endogena ; but in the Gist
place the whole race of Pipers forms a sort of tranaitioQ from Exogeos
to Araceous Endogena ; and secondly, it ii probable that when they
an moat endogenoua in appearance they are not reallj' lo in regard
to the final development of their woody tissue.
Let it howcTer bs admitted that in certain eaaes Ezogena are in
the centre of their stem organised less regularly than usual ; this will
oSbr DO argument in farour of their on^ogy with Gndogens. In all
saeh cases it will be fonnd that they erentually assume their typical
conformation. We are acquainted with some striking proofs of this.
Among twining plants oNtropical countries we occasionally find
» like the following : —
Beneath a most irregutarly-compressed and lobed bark there li
mass of wood, apparently so confused and irregular in ita arrangement
in the centre, that nothing symmetrical can be made out by the mort
acute obsener ; but it will be seen that towards the circumferenoe it
diatinctly assumes the radiated appearance of an Eiogsn. In other
cases, where the structure is sufficiently regular, tbia circumstance i>
still more distinctly illustrated.
It is however more commonly at the centre that we look for typical
structure, and at the circumference that we find irregularity ; aa if
Exogens usnally oommenced their growth according to the plan to
By far the most eingular caae of this sort is in an unknown twining
plant in the paaseaaion of Dr. Lindley, from the Malayan Archipelago,
of which the cute H and I are representations. In old stems of this
plant a seolioo exhibits a most irregular combination of wood, looking
like palm wood, broken up into lo^d cords lying amongst stUl more
iiregolar cellular tissue, and inclosed in a common bark ; so that we
donbt whether it would bs possible to tell to which clsis it really
belongs, if it were not for its young shoots and the pith of the old
onea. The latter may be seen lying quite out of the centre towards
one side (near the bottom of our figure, a little to the right) ; and in
the fbrmer (H) the pith ia found with wood radiating around it,
although still with au^cient irregularity.
which nature haa subjected them, and only deviated from it under
the influence of unknown causes coming into operation and controlling
their development after they have advanced to a certain stage in their
growth. Thus, in the singular instances shown in cuts D, E, F, and
O, tbe principal part of the stem is so confused and irregular as to
look more liks on Endogen than an Eiogen, and a fragment might
easily be mistaken for the former ; nevertheless in a young and tole-
rably regular shoot (D) the radiated appearance ia auEBdently well
marked ; and in two others, irregular and distorted aa they are {E and
Q), the oentrsl pith is visible, although far out of the centre ; and in
the fourlh (F) the centre has not only pith, but a radiated atructure
that is quite regular.
a wood being
, ifterent from the condition in which we eeo it
in Europe, and attest the necessity of formiug our ideas of its nature
from a more extended examination than that which is commonly
given to it. Several curious cases have been also published by Dr.
Lmdley in hia ' Introduction to Botany ' (ed. 2, p. 77, &,c.), and others
have been noticed by Schleiden and other writers.
Irrrgularity tn the structure of exogenous wood is usually owing
either to a confused disposition of the tissue at some particular period
of the growth, or to some derangement of the medullary procsssss,
or to the absence of concentric drales, or to the formation of a deep
zone of cellular tissue alternately with each zone of wood, or, finally,
to the production of wood within the hark instead of beneath it. Tlis
first cause has been already sufficiently iSltutivted.
•u
ES0GEN8.
The nDuoaity and p&rtial oblitentioD of ths meilulluy proceaMS u
a prinoipkl oanM of the anomaloiu ftppeanncee at j^. D, E, F, O,
when thej are reduced to flue linoi, only Tigibte beneath a micro-
■cope, and Dot radiating from the oeotre, but diepoeed in no certain
manner, Bometiroea even tranaverselv, owing to the eiceuire diiturb-
ajice of the wood iteelf. In fig. I, ths singularity of structure is
owing in part to the exceaBive irregubuicy with which tbe wood baa
been developed, and in part to the loowDess and iir^ular shape of
the medulliiy rajs, which seem huddled as it were round the woody
coida ; the latter are moreoTer extremely variable iu size, some of
them being as much as half an inob in diameter, and others k> small
■a to oonaiit of no more than a aingle toubI with ile usual coating of
The absence of ooDoantila cinitee is an extremely frequent occur-
renoe in the wood of tropical countries, and it is almost certain that
many bmiliea of Excgena never form them visibly under any
circumstances. We say visibly, becaoae in fact they muit be annually
Ibnned in all cases, although we da not see them. Ths reason why
Imogens have their wood marked by ooocentric circles is, that tbe
ligneous tissue formed at the end of a aaoaon is more compact than
that formed at the beginning, and hencs, ae the two ore in juita-
sviitien, the difference in Uieir density dtatinotly separates the one
fron the other. But if, from any oaase, — whether proper to plants
as spedas, or owing to Uia external inflnence of an equable climalfl —
the tissue of wood formed at all saaaooi is exactly alike, no xone will
be visible, although in fact the formation of the wood is exogenous in
the moat legnlar manner. Such caaes are seen at figi. K, L, S, sad
elaewbare in the illustrations of the present article.
It is not a little remarkable however that while the wood in some
eaaea has no trace of lones, the bark should show them most die-
tiaotly, aa in the instance of j^. K.
When a deep zone of cellular substance is farmed between each
lone of wood, a curious banded appBaranco is produced, ae in the
aiagular Indian climber marked N M O P Q, where extremely eloen-
trieal growth ii combined with this peculiarity. At H we have the
■tern two yeora old, the second sone passing pretty ret^ularly round
the first and cut off from it by a broad deep band. At H the apeciman
is of tiie same age, but the second lone is formed on one side only.
At 0 the specimen is two year* old, with tbe first zone perfect, but
the second broken up into a number of unequal irregular pieces, ajid it
would seem aa if a third growth had commenced on one side (to the left
of tbe cut). At F the growth is of three lones, both the second and
third being much lobed, and the third only extending three quarters
round the second. Finally, at Q, where the irregularity is the
greatest, there is a growth of four xones, the first symmetrical, the
second very much deeper on one aide tban the other, tbe third but
halfst ^
ridges ou the third.
If it happens that, ii
layer between each xoi
thick, an appeaisnce i
atjC?. R.
d, and the fourth foimed only along two
addition to the presence of a thick cellular
0, the medullary processeaa are also very
jll different from Uie last is produced, a«
That wood is sometimes formed in the bark itself has been long
any separate pith, but radiating ^m their fint line of origin. We are
now acquainted with idany such caaes. In jl^. T are tlie commence-
ment of four such oolumnaat son one side; but in that specimen no
further indication of such a atruotura is visible ; but at fg. U, which
647
EXOGENS.
EXOQENS.
049
is the same plant in a more advanced state of growth, four such
columns on one side and one on the other have acquired considerable
size, and each radiates towards the circumference of the stenL As in
the C€dycarUhu», so in these and ail the other instances of the same
kind, whi(^ these cuts represent (see F, El, and S), the woody columns
of the bark are destitute of pith.
Perhaps what we have called the separation of zones of wood at
N, M, 0, P, Q, R, bv thick layers of cellular tissue, are rather to be
considered as other mstances of wood formed in bark, but in a regular
and uniform manner. We are however uncertain how this may be,
and prefer allowing the statement to stand in its present form until
some one shall have examined such plants in their native forests at
Singapore.
In addition to such anomalous kinds of structure 'as those now
described, Exogens, like Endogens, contain species, the oiganisation
of whose stem is so imperfect as to be reducible within no certain
rules. Not to speak of CaUUriche, CercUcphyllumf or MyriophyUwn,
wherein vessels are scarcely developed, and the woody matter merely
foi*ms a simple central axis of growth, we have in this class an exact
Earallel with Lemna among Endogens ; some Podostemaceous plants
ave their leaves and stem completely fused together so as to resemble
a MareKantia or an Alga. Sudi plants are to be regarded rather as
instances of imperfect organisation than as deviations from a typical
form ; and it is by no means a violent supposition to conclude that if
their oiganisation were more complete it would then become such as
is characteristic of the class to which they belong.
Schleiden, in his ' Principles of Scientific Botany,' has treated the
structure of the stems of Exogens in his usual lucid manner, and we
subjoin an analysis of his views upon the subject. He divides the
Dicotyledonous axial organs into two groups^ the stalks and stems. Of
the stalks he says they frequently exhibit no essential differences from
those appertaining to Monocotyledonous plants, since the distinction
of the unlimited or indefinite vascular bundles is often imperceptible
in the growth of one year. But the vascular bundles generally close
in the first year into a simple circle, and the external parts in several
circles to form a ring, so that the parenchymatous masses separating
the individual bundles are compressed together into medullary rays.
In most cases the vascular bundles run from below upward in straight
parallel lines. They form a loop where the leaf begins, the edges of
whidi furnish vascular bundles for the leaf and the axillary bud, and
the pith of the bud is thus brought in connection with that of the
stem by means of their opening, as in the case of Tropceolum, The
vascular bundles supplying the leaves and buds generally separate
from this loop exactly at Uie point where they ent^ the leaf. Some-
times however they first pass through a longer portion of the paren-
chyma of the pith or the bark (as in the Amaranthaeea and Vheno-
jpodaeecB). In perfect nodes loops of vascular bundles are seldom
found passing across the stem ; in general the pturenchyma merely
appears to be tougher and closer at these points. We are here, on the
whole, very destitute of accurate investigations, more especially
with regard to the first year's stalk with undeveloped intemodes.
Stems differ in structure according as the intemodes are developed
or undeveloped. Those with developed intemodes are divided into
several sections : —
A. With a Simple Ring of Vascular Bundles. — Here the vascular
bundles very seldom run parallel, but generally in serpentine lines,
alternately approximating and retreating from each other ; the meshes
thus formed are filled by the medullary rays. Where liber-bundles
lie in front of the vascular bundles they follow the same coiine.
Large and small medullary rays and annual ring^ are formed in the
manner indicated. Wherever there is a leaf, one large or several
smaller loops are formed, from whose circumference the vascular
bundles are given off for the leaf and axillary bud, while the openings
fiimish parenchyma for the formation of the bud. The vascular
bundles of every newly developed intemode stand in immediate
connection with, and are immediate prolongations of, that portion of
the vascular bundle of the preceding intemode still capable of develop-
ment, and thus the cambium of the vascular bundles forms a
continuous net through the stem and branches of the whole plant*
During the developments of the vascular bundles of the stem, and
those connected with them, and belonging to an axillary bud that
grows into a branch, the base of this branch becomes more and more
covered with newly formed wood. We thus see the same condition
established as in the Monocotyledons : an under lateral branch crosses
all the layers of wood passing to the upper parts. The difference is
merely, that in the Dicotyledons they are portions of the continuous
mass of the progressively developing vascular bundles ; while in
the case of Monocotyledons they are discrete parts, new vascular
bundles.
B. With Several Concentric Rings of Vascular Bundles. — This
condition appean to be only met wim in Piper {t) and Pitonia; and,
perhaps, in a few of the CroMuUie^B, as in the Craaulct, The separate
vascular bundles continue to grow, and finally close into a firm
woody mass ; each however retains its own cambium, and likewise a
small portion of parenchyma, not perfectly dislodged : such, at any
rate, is certainly tiie case in Puonto.
O. Stems of Climbing Plants. — The stems of many tropical climbers
(Lianes, Llanos) exhibit a peculiar structure, which has long been
misxmderstood. Even in our own indigenous plants we meet with
some indications of it. In the first year, most of them exhibit
nothing striking, if we do not regard tiie generally square stalk as
such ; and we find that they have a simple ring of vascular bundles,
which doses towards the end of the first period of vegetation into an
ordinary wood cylinder. In the following yean however the peen-
liarities are more and more strikingly manifested, consisting in the
wood not being uniformly developed towards the ^cterior throogfaottt
its whole circumference, but ceasing to grow at definite parts, often
regularly, and as frequently in a fantastically irregular manner,
allowing the substance of the bark to replace it. In this manner
stems are produced, which, in a transvene section, exhibit the most
varied distribution of the wood. We meet with Uie first indications
of this peouUarity in our indigenous species of CUmaiiB forming stems ;
in the strikingly broad and regularly arranged laige medullary rays ;
and in the six narrower portion^ of wood which are not nearly so
fuUy developed towards we exterior as the six broader ones. To
these we may add the BigMmiacea. After the wood has continued
for some time to be regularly developed, it ceases growing in four
different places, so that the bark is no longer pushed outward ; and
on the further development of the wood in the remaining places, the
bark forms, in the transverse section, four septa of variable thickness
between the four portions of wood.
In some species these cortical masses become a definite degree
broader in each succeeding annual ring, so that a sharply marked step
is formed on each side ; in another species all that is formed are four
very thin flat plates, wholly separated (in consequence of drying)
from the wood. Still more striking is the cross-section of many
dimbers of the family of Sa/pindacea, A hasty glance would lead us
to imagine that we had here a cylinder of wood surrounded with bark
in which other stems or branches with their baik had become blended
in their growth. A minute observation however refutes this view at
once from the absence of pith in the exterior woody masses.
Finally, the most astonishing phenomena are seen in the families of
the Arutoloehiaceig, AaclqnadaeeoBf Malpighiaeece, Bauhinia, in which,
in the transverse section, the woody mass appears divided in the
strangest ways by cortical substance, separated into various portions,
and often elegantly lobed.
The great diameter of the porous tubes may apparently be regarded
as a general peculiarity in the ligneous structure of all climbing
plants. These have also strikingly laige pores which (as I have never
yet seen in vessels) form even ramified canals, as is seen particularly
well in Batthinia, «
Of Stems with Undeveloped Intemodes, Schleiden says they have
scarcely been investigated at all in the Dicotyledons. Most of them
remain very short, since they die below as they increase upward.
They belong principally to the subterraneous stems and rhusomes.
The leafless BuphorhtaeecB, Oariea, Theophrcuta, NymphaOf and
Nuphar, as well as many Cadacece, afford excellent materiaL The
most important researches in reference to this point are those of
Schleiden, into the stems of OcmtacecBf especially MctmmiUaria, Behiiuh
cactut, Meloeactui. The vascular bundles at first make an arc of
considerable curvature ; by the gradual development of the pith the
curvature becomes almost effitced, and it only remains in the upper
part, where the vascular bundles pass off to the leaves. The first
succeeding layer developed in the vascular bundle is applied over and
up beyond this, dividing at the point where the primary vascular
bundle goes off to the base of the leaf, and uniting again above to
pass up to the base of a leaf situated higher up. The next layer of
structure forms in the same way, by splitting and reuniting, two
meshes, one for the prinuuy vascidar bundle, and one for the portion
of the first layer of increase, running to the upper leaf, then above
this it runs up to the base of another leaf. This structure is continued
up throughout the whole stem, which thus possesses a form of wood
exhibiting perfectly regular meshes, or areolae, which appear to be
formed by an alternating superposition of vascular bundles, and each
gives passage to a bundle coming from the innermost part of the wood.
Of com'se there is here a perfect crossing of the vascular bundles
going to the lower leaves by all the subsequently formed portions of
vascular structure, and by a little care we may make preparations
not very unlike the structure of a Monocotyledonous stem with
undeveloped intemodes. The whole structure bean great similarity
to that of the arborescent Ferns, allowing for the different nature
of the vascular bundles and the difference of dimension.
Many interesting varieties in the structure of the wood occur here
also ; and the wood of the MammiUantB and Mdoeact% composed
entirely of peculiar spiral-fibrous cells, is particidar worthy of notice.
The stems of the BhuaiUKacta (Blume) appear to be altogether
aberrant and irregular in their structure. As a general rule, we may
say that in the Monocotyledons the vascular bundles are simplest in
their lower part, often, for instance in the Palms, composed at that
part solely of elongated parenchyma (liber); in the middle becoming
more complicated from within outward, exhibiting almost all the
forms corresponding to the varied expansion of the cell ; above they
become simpler again, particularly where they pass off into a leaf or
branch, and consist frequently merely of such elements as correspond
to a considerable expansion in the longitudinal direction after the
appearance of layers of thickening. In we Dicotyledons the vascular
e49
EXOQENa
EXOGENS.
660
'bundles appear to have a tolerably uniform atrueture below and in
^he middle, but toward the upper end the onward developing portion
of each older bundle passes mto the form of a primary bundle, or,
in other words, every primary vasoular bundle of a new intemode
appears as the immediate prolongation, not of the primary bundle of
the preceding internode (which rather runs to a leaf), but of the
layer of increase of this, the elementary portions of which do not
correspond to any expansion in the longitudinal direction.
On the literature of this subject Schleiden says — ** Almost all that
haa been said by isolated authors is wholly useless, either because
they have had no regard to the history of development, or, if they
have noticed this, have spoken so indiscriminately of growth, increase,
and enlai^gement, without distinguishing whether new oells have
originated, cells already existing expanded, or merely become trans-
formed into different tissues by the alteration of the form and
configuration of their walls.
'' Two notions there are especially which have long sadly confused
our science, from which a correct method would have completely
saved us, since both were, at least at the time, and in the species on
which they were built up, wholly unfounded fables, having no con-
nection with any guiding principles, and consequently never should
have assumed scientific perspicuity, much less, as did happen, have
served as a temporary basis for theories pervading the whole science
of botany.
" The first is the idea of Desfontaines of the distinction between
Monocotyledons and Dicotyledons, that the former develop new
structure in the centre of the axis, and grow in the inside {PUuUce
JSndogena), while the latter produce ligneous substance close under
the bark, and deposit it on the inner side, and thus grow on the
outside {Planta Exogma). All this had no greater foundation than
the fact that in the Monocotyledonous axis l£e vascular bundles are
farther apart in the centre ; consequenUy, in the preponderance of
parenchyma, the substance is more lax. It was not ^ ever attempted
to make even a superficial observation of the process of growth ; if it
had been merely observed that the vascular bundles going to the
lower leaves, consequently the older, crossed those going to the
upper leaver which must be the younger, a child might have been
maide to understand at once that a growth of new vascular bundles
in the interior was an absolute impossibility. Nevertheless, upon
this empty fancy, which a child might have refuted, De Candolle
built a grand system of vegetables, which it never did require
the distixiguished and comprehensive researches of Mohl to over-
throw.
'* The second notion is that of Du Petit Thouars, which was not
less ill-grounded, which, as expressed by him, would be upset .by
every even the most superficial observation, and even in its more
refined subsequent statement is by no means established, but has
important and apparently irresistible objections against it. Du Petit
Thouars thought that iHl increase of thickness of the axis resulted
from the descent of roots from the buds. Such a crude notion
scarcely required refutation. On the other hand, it was afterwards
stated that the formless but organisable substance (the cambium)
was gradually organised from the buds downwards. The only
possible foundation for this view, namely, evidence obtained by
thorough investigation of the •hi8t4>ry of development, is still due
from all its assertors, the latest, Qaudichaud, &c., included. There-
fore it is already to be set aside as devoid of foundation. But the
contrary can be made good, that, in the first place, no cambium ever
exists as a formless fiuid in the plant, unless we would so call the
cytoblastema inclosed in the cells ; secondly, that, so far as obser-
vation at present reaches, cells are always formed in cells, that this
cell-formation, according to the observations I have made in the
CacteoBf ftc., progresses from below upward; thirdly, that the
axillary bud is already formed in the terminal bud before the axis
begins to increase in thickness, and that certainly the cells of the bud
are organised into vascular bundles from the Tascular bundles of the
stem upward into the bud, and not in the reverse direction. By
these remarks the whole notion seems to me to be for the present set
aside, and it would require quite other support than tnat which
Gaudichaud's imperfect attempts in anatomy and physiology could
give it.
** Lastly, I must notice the most recent views of Martius on the
structure of the stems of palms, &c. Martius asserts that here the
vascular bundles, the primary structure of which is sketched out in
the conical terminal bud, on the whole, as I have already explained
it (Wiegmann's 'Archiv.,* 1889, 219), do not merely grow upwards
into the leaves, but also downward, by their lower end, in the stem.
These facts I must entirely oppose from my own observations.
Hitherto I have never had an opportunity of investigating living
Palms, or more than small fmgments of dead ones. But from what I
saw I believe I may yenture to conclude that the stem of Palms does
not essentially deviate in such a way from those of otiier Monocoty-
ledons, that one may not transfer to ^e Palms, in the main points,
the laws of structure found there. Now, so far as I know, such a
process of growth does not occur in any Monocotyledonous plant.
According to my observations the newly-produced vascular bundles
merely grow continuously upward. In advancing the distinction of
limited and unlimited bundles Martius follows me, but in my opinion
he has not conceived nearly clearly enough the distinction between
developed and undeveloped intemodes ; and in particular he has not
formed a clear conception of the peculiarities of the stem vrith undeve-
loped intemodes, and the conditions of structure resulting therefrom.
Moreover he has left the meaning of the term growth (fortwaohaen)
of a vascular bundle equivocal. If it means that the already existing
elongated cells become transformed into vascular bundles, it describes
no peculiar process of growth — the vascular bundles were already to
be distinguished in their elementary condition ; but if it means that
the cells themselves, of which the vascular bundles are composed, are
produced subsequentiy, originating above first and proceeding down-
wards, this is I believe e]Toneou& It is necessary to bear in mind
the essential distinction between monocotyledonous axes with and
without a cambium circle, in order to understand these structures.
Where no cambium exists there are no other new cells formed besides
those in the point of the bud ; but where there is cambium, all deve-
lopment, and so also the development of new vascular bundles in the
stem, proceeds upwards and outwards ; never, so fSu* as I have been
able to observe, downwards or towards the interior. The lowest and
innermost oells are always the oldest, never the upper or outer (of
course excluding the bark, to which alone an endogenous growth can
be ascribed). I must therefore distinctiy assert that in the Palms, as
in all Monocotyledons, the lower end of an older vascular bundle never
reaches down into an intemode lower than that in which the lower
end of its first rudiment originated."
The following is a summary, of the nature of axisl structures,
and the names given to the various parts of which they are
composed : —
1. Duration.
A. Annual. Stem {Gavlis),
Intemodes (Intemodia),
a. Only existing in the beginning of the period of vegetation,
fugacious {j-ntemodia fugacia),
h. Enduring the whole period {IrUemodia annua),
c. Only existing in the latter part of the period of vegetation
(fntemodia teroiina),
B. PerenniaL Trunk (TVimcut).
2. Position on the SoiL
A, Above ground {Ep%gfBUi\
B, Under ground (HypogtBiu),
8. Form.
A, Developed Intemodes (/n<«mo<2»a dongaia),
B, Undeveloped Intemodes {Intemodia obbreviaiaY
O, Disciform expanded Intemodes (/iUemo<i«a ditdfvrvwi),
Z). Coucavely expanded Intemodes (I^demodia exmea'ca),
N.B. Rigid, pointed, leafless, or defoliated Intemodes are called
Spines (S^nci) \ soft, curling, and thus climbing round foreign
objects. Tendrils {flirrU, Capreoli),
4. Various Intemodes of the same Axis.
A. Bearing true Leaves and Branches {Caulia and Truncut),
N.B. Sometimes no leaves are developed (Axii aphyllui), or
they fall off from the trtmcui, mostly at tne end of the first year
{Axis denudaint). The stem may grow out from the terminal
bud of an embryo, as in tiie simple stem, or out of a trunk.^ A
stem produced from a trunk might be called Scopus ; but this is
a wholly superfluous term.
B. Bearing only bracts, bracteoles, or flowers. Peduncle {Pedtineult) ;
in a compound inflorescence the intemode bearing a single flower
is called the Pedicel {PedieeUns). lUeeptaculwn is a superfluous
expression in the Synantherete. Peduneulus disciformis, conicus,
&c., is simpler and more correct. Also in Ficus, Pedunculus
coneavus,
C. Intemodes between calyx and pistil. Receptacle (Torus), e. g. in some
Bosaeem, Torus dUeiformis (in PotentilU^, Torus coneavus (in Rosa).
a. Intemodes between calyx and stamens (e. g. in Rubus), or calyx
and corolla (e. g. in Passifiora), the Disc {Discus), e. g. planus (in
Oewn), D. tuhulosiu (in Cereus grandifiorus).
h. Intemodes between coroUaand stamens, Androphore {A ndrophorum),
e. g. A. dongcUum (in CUovm).
c. Intemodes between stamens and pistil, Qynophore (Oynophorum),
e. g. O. conicum (in Rubus),
D. Intemodes between calyx and seed-buds, as a hollow disc inclosing
the seed-buds. Inferior Germen {Qtrmen iiiferum), e. g. in Sgnan-
therect, Orchidacea.
S, Intemodes between stamens and seed-buds, as a plate with the
borders curved inward together, in the cavity of which the
seed-buds occur, Stalk-Pistil {PistiUum eauUgenum). In Liliaeea
and LegummoscB ( f ).
F, End of the stalk in the germen, as support of the seeds, Spermo-
phore (-^ermopAonmi), in Seed-Buds {Oemmula). (For the parts
of these see below, under the Seed-Bud).
5, As to the Nodes.
A, With Imperfect Nodes {CaulU, Truneus),
B. With Perfect Nodes.
a. Stalk (CWmtu).
h. Stem (Calamus),
663
EXOQENS.
EXOQENS.
eM
appearance is to produce the ronnded lumpiah aspect that we recognise
in all the trees natarallj inhabiting this country. In no known ina^ce
does the stem grow by the development of a single terminal bud ; so
tliat we never find in this class the columnar aspect of palm-trees
[QTMNOSPXRais], unless the genus Theophrtuia be considered an excep-
tion. Consequently a landscape consisting of nothing but Exogenous
plants would resemble the imaginary scene that forms the subject of
tlie preceding cut.
The differences between Exogens and Endogens, thus strongly
marked in the stem, leaves, and flowers, are connected with others in
the embryo. [Rsfroduction ik Plavtb; Sesd.] In Exogens of
tihe common kind this organ has two lobes, held together by a minute
central body, the upper end of which, between the lobes, is the
plumule or rudimentary stem, the lower the radicle or rudimentary
root ; the lobes themselves, or cotyledons, are rudimentary leaves.
This structure is readily seen in a hasel-nut or a garden-bean ; the
deviations from it are few and unimportant as compcured with those
of Endogens. Three or a greater number of cotyledons may be
present in a ^vhorl, instead of two opposite to each other. Or one
of the two cotyledons may be much smaller than the other, as in
Trapa; or they may be deeply lobed, as in the garden-cress. But in
all these cases the deviations are obviously reconcileable with the
typical character of being Dicotyledonous.
When the embryo of an Exogen genmnates, the radicle simply
lengthens at its pointy without having to break through the coat of
the embryo ; on this account Exogens have been named ExorhizaL
The result of this examination if, that the great class of Exogens
has five important, and in some measure independent characters^ by
which its limits are settled.
1. The wood is exogenous.
2. The veins of the leaves are netted.
3. The fructification is formed upon a quinary or quaternary
type.
4. The embryo is ^ootyledonous.
5. The germination is exorhizal.
Hence Exogens have received two other names in allusion to such
characters; they are commonly called JHeotyledonet ; Bnd Exorhitce
ia another but less common appellation. Moreover, tiiey are Uie
PhanerocotyledonecB of Agardh, the AnthophytcB and Carpophytcs of
Oken's school, the Dichorgana of Sohults, the PhyUMcuta of
Reichenbach ; not to mention other names still more obscure.
In consequence of Imperfect development^ and the abortion or
multipUoation of parts, many deviations occur from the above
characters. But as in Endogens, so in these, there is not in con-
sequence any real difficulty in distinguishing Exogens from other
plants. Suppose the stem to be so slightly formed, as in PodMtemacea
or the aquatic HaioragecB, as not to amve at a state in which the
exogenous ammgemeat is perceptible, we have the dicotyledonous
embryo and the typical number of tiie floral organs to guide us.
Let the leaves appear as scales, as in LathnBOf Orobanehe, and the
like ; stiU there is the embryo or again the floral proportions. If the
fructification is absolutely ternary as in Men%$permaeecB, the organi-
zation of the stem, leaves, and embryo reveals the true nature of
such plants. Or if the embryo is undivided, as in CfuMctUa, and at
the same time the veins of the leaves deficient, and all this with an
incomplete formation of woody matter, then tiie nimiber of parts in
the flower remains to prevent our fiEdling into error. It is therefore
always to be remembered, that the limits of this great class are not
exclusively determined by one single character, but by a combination
of five; a part of ixrhich may be occasionally exceptional or undis-
coverable.
Like all other natural assemblages, Exogens have many analogies
with otiier parts of the vegetable kingdom. We have already
adverted to the Podostemaceous order of this class representing
distinctiy the Pistiaceous order, or at least Letnna among Endogens.
PiperaeecB are distinct analogies here to the Amceae of Endogens,
Ckenopodiale$ to Olvmosa, and possibly Menitpermacea to SmUaceae,
Whatever uses there mav be in the vegetable kingdom are to be
foimd in this class, which comprehends four-fifths of the natural
orders, and probably not much less than the same proportion of
species. Timber, in particular, is their exclusive produce, and if com
has no direct analogy in Cogens, at least a substitute for it is
furnished by the potato and the cassava.
Considering the very great numbers of Exogens — they may be
rated at 50,000 or 60,000 at a low computation — ^it is not surprising
that it should be here that the systematic botanist experiences his
great difficulties. Comparatively no embarrassment worth notice
occurs in the arrangement of Endogens ; but in Exogens the difficulties
are so great as to have hitherto baffled the most acute writers. We
do not mean with regard to the natural orders themselves, for they
are in general well understood and defined : our observation applies
to a collocation of the orders, or in other words, to the construction
of groups of a secondary value which shall be as natural and as well
defined as the orders themselves. In a recent enumeration we find
no fewer than 281 orders of Exogens. It is obviously impracticable
to study so large a number of combinations without breaking
them into groups, and accordingly various methods have been
proposed.
Jussieu, adopting to a certain extent the views of his predecessora,
considered---lBt, the separation of the petals, 2nd, their combination,
or Srd, their absence, of primary consequence ; and adding to this,
4th, the separation of the sexes in flowers having no petals, he
formed the four groups of— Ist, Polypetalous ; 2nd, Monopetaloxis ;
Srd, Apetalous; and 4th, Diclinous plants. The fint three of these
he agam subdivided according as their stamens or their corolla grew
under the. ovary (hypogynous), upon the calyx (perigynous), or upon
the ovary (epigynous) ; then the monopetalous epigynous group was
subdivided into plants having united stamens and those having them
distinct ; the result being eleven classes, which were placed by Jussieu
in the following order : —
Apetalous «
Monopetalous (
' Stamens epigynous
Stamens perigynous .
Stamens hypogynous
' Corolla hypogynous .
Corolla perigynous
r anthers united
Corolla epigynous <
^ I anthers distinct
r Stamens epigynous
Polypetalous i Stamens hypogynous
I Stamens perigynous .
Didiuous
Clan.
1
2
S
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
This was however so artificial a distribution, that botanists soon
found it as unsatisfactory as it was simple. Various changes have
therefore been recommended from time to time^ some of which are
the following : —
In 1818, De CandoUe, dropping the names of all Jussieu's classes,
and abolishing many of them, proposed to arrange as follows the 118
orders of Exogens with which he was at that time acquainted.
Class.
Apetalous .... {Monochlamydea} . 5
Thus the classes were reduced fh>m eleven to five, which was a
defect ; but those which remained were supposed to be more natural,
which woidd have been an advantage. Five years afterwards, in his
' Kegni Yegetabilis Systema Natunue,' he added the names inclosed
within parentheses, and he broke up the Thalami/iora into five cohorts,
but without stating what orders he arranged under them. We do
not find that he ever pursued the subject farther. Since that period
this great botanist has occupied himself witii the special study of
the natural orders^ and the public has derived no advantage from his
general views, which is much to be regretted.
In 1825, Professor Agardh of Lund, afterwards bishop of Carlsbad,
proposed a great change in the subordination of Exogens, retaining
the principles of primary division recognised by Jussieu and De
Candolle, but forming them into twen^ subdivisions, defined by
various diaraoters analogous to those by which the orders themselves
are drcumseribed. This, we believe, is the first step of any con-
sequence towards putting Exogens into a more natural grouping than
that of Jussieu. In manv respects the subdivisions are, as far as
they go, imobjeetionable ; but they have excited scarcely any attention
among systematic botanists. The necessity however of some better
method of subordination than that of Jussieu and De Candolle has
become evident to everybody; and attempts have been made to efieot
this by Drs. Bartling, Schidtz, Yon Martins, and others on the
continent, and by Dr. Lindley in this country. The last named
author has successively developed his system in his * Nixus
Plantarum,' the ' Penny Cyclopaedia,' article Exogens, his ' Natural
System of Botany,' and his ' Vegetable Elingdom.' We shall here
give an analysis of Dr. Lindl^s arrangement of Elxogens, as given '
in the last mentioned work. Whatever may be its depots they are
rather inherent to the subject than attributable to any want of
knowledge or judgment in the author, as it undoubtedly displays the
largest acquaintance with the details of the structure of this class of
plimts that has yet been displayed by any writer on systematic
botany. The following is an analysis of the class of Exogens : —
Alliances of Exogens.
Sub-Class I. Diclinous Exogens.
Flowers ^ ? , without any customaxy tendency to 0.
I. Ameittaleb. — Flowers in catkins, achlamydeous or monochla-
mydeous. Carpels superior. Embryo small, with littie or no
albumen.
(/oncartnaceee. — Ovules 1 or 2, ascending. Radicle superior.
BetvliieecB. — Ovule 1, pendulous. Radide superior.
AUingiacecB. — Ovules 00. Seeds winged.
Salicaeece, — Ovules 00. Seeds cottony.
MyrieaoecR, — Ovule 1, erect. lUdicle superior.
Ekeoffnaeete. — Ovule 1, ascending. Radicle inferior,
EXOOEKS.
N.R It is eiceedinglj useful to tatA thii diitinetioD bj definite
tenni ; but then we must iuuiib Uie_ stalk of the OmytphylUa,
most Voibdliftra uid Labiata, Ctilmnt; the stem of Bamlnua,
Cbfonw, Pipf, AritiolocMa, ftc., Cataniiu. In other respe<H»
the eipresBuiiui ntimM and caUmiu hsTe no sense, sinoe it could
ddIt b« defined as a stalk, such as oooun in the plants to which
such a stalk is ascribed, the former in some Qrassss, the latter
6. Different Axes of Compound Flanlt.
A. Hain Aits produced from the terminal bud of the embr^r^ (OMtlit
vel Tnmettt prinariiu).
B. Secondary Axis, produced fiom axillary or adTenlitioiis buds
(Caviit id Tnmau uamdariiu).
N.B. Still connected with the main axis, oalled Branch or Twig
{Ramut).
C. Ramification of the Axis {Bamificatio). Bamification of the Ptdun-
eulnt (Injlorticenlia),
D. Seconder; Axis growing along underground, and its secondary axes
alone rising abovsthe soil, Root-Stock, Rhiiome (AAiioma).
N.B. For Secondaiy Axes which lie upon the earth, because
the; are too weak to stand erect, there are some special terms,
but these appear to ma superfluoua : — FlegMvm, Stolo, jiarmendHit,
Runner, Sucker, which are someUmBa to be distinguished b; the
foliation, sometimes by the rooting,nawonaway and now another,
and again mi; be d^erent from the CatUii repeiu, htanifiutu,
pntMlraiui, proctimiflis, dtcumbent, larmeniaeau, and all the reet
of this mannbctorj of words, and jet cannot be separated by
any characters.
£ It is useful to discriminate, according to the ramiteation and
duration,
a. The simple plant, the lateral buds of which are flowers ISerbaita)
e. g. OiuaUa, Sfyommt :
b. The branched stalk. Herb {Stria), e. g. Aruiga^, Ttrwiiea vtrrta.
c With underground stems, stalks above groond, Ondenlirub (Smf-
finUex), e. g. Awttilmn, JViqmUiii, Paetna <tfMitalii.
A Stem branched from below, witliout predominanoe of the main
stem. Bush (l^tUer), e. g. ^runiu ipinMa, Juttipenu Sabbia.
e. Trunk, the lower branches of which soon die, and which only bears
a crown, Tree (Arior), e. g. Pyrut Ifrminalii, Fagut itfivaliea.
N.B. We alsoreckonamong trees thoBestemealsowhicbbninch
Irom below upward, but in which the main axis is developed in
far the greatest proportion, and may readily be traced to the
summit, e. g, Populiu ditatata, Abia exctUa. These mi^t even
be called Anor fniiuota.
If the great mam of Eiogens are distinctly known from Endogens
by their peculiar monaer of giowth and by the arrangement of
their wood; matter, they are not less dearl; defined b; external
Their leavea have the veins ramifying from the midrib, or ribs if
there are saveral, in so intricate a manner as to give the appearance
of irr^fnlir net-woit. Their veins never run parallel with each other
without ramiScaticDS ; for if, as sometimes hsppens, they appear to
do ao, it will be found that the appearanoe is confined to the principal
veins or ribs, and that the aecondar; veins between them ramify in
the usual way. The leavea are moreover in most cases articuUled
with the stem, leaving behind them a clean scar when they die, not
rotting away and hanging upon the stem in the form of a nigged
sheath, aa ia common in Eadogeni. Moreover they are frequently
furnished with atipolea, an unusual circnmstanoe in Endogena.
The flowers of Exogens are usually constructed upon a quinary
type ; that is, they have t> sepals, 6 petals, and 5 stamens, or aonie
power of that number; now and then they vary to a type of 1, or
they eioeed the number S ; but wo very rarely flnd the ternary
■traetureof Gndogens preaentinthem. U,uinAiumaeea,Beibera£ea,
and other orders, the sepals and petsla follow a ternary type, the
number S ia lost in the stamens or the ovaty. The natunu order
iftnitptrmacia is the only one among Exogena in which the ternaiy
regularly parvadea all the parts of the Sower.
. . their manner of growth they rarely resembla Bndogena. The
eoniequenoe of the ramifioation of the veins is to give thdr leava a
broad and rounded figure, the effect of irtiich upon their general
^tJ
£u|eiiaai TcfitaUon.
663
EXOGENS.
EXOQENS.
eM
appearance is to produce the rounded lumpish aspect that we recognise
in all the trees naturally inhabiting this country. In no known instance
does the stem grow by the development of a single terminal bud ; so
that we never find in this class the columnar aspect of palm-trees
[Qtunosfxrms], unless the genus Theophrouta be considered an excep-
tion. Consequently a landscape consisting of nothing but Exogenous
plants would resemble the imaginary scene that forms the subject of
thepreceding cut.
The differences between Exogens and Endogens, thus strongly
marked in the stem, leaves, and fiowers, are connected with others in
the embryo. [Refroduotion in Plaktb; Seed.] In Exogens of
the common kind this organ has two lobes, held together by a minute
central body, the upper end of which, between the lobes, is the
plumule or rudimentary stem, the lower the radicle or rudimentary
root; the lobes themselves, or -cotyledons, are rudimentary leaves.
This structure is readily seen in a hazel-nut or a garden-bean ; the
deviations from it are few and unimportant as compared with those
of Endogens. Three or a greater number of cotyledons may be
present in a ^horl, instead of two opposite to each other. Or one
of the two cotyledons may be much smaller than the other, as in
Trapa; or they may be deeply lobed, as in the garden-cress. But in
all these cases the deviations are obviously reconcileable with the
typical character of being Dicotyledonous.
When the embryo of an Exogen germinates, the radicle simply
lengthens at its pointy without having to break through the coat of
the embryo ; on this account Exogens have been named ExorhizaL
The result of this examination vs, that the great class of Exogens
has five important^ and in some measure independent characters, by
which its limits are settled.
1. The wood is exogenous.
2. The veins of the leaves are netted.
3. The fructification is formed upon a quinary or quaternary
type.
4. The embiyo is dicotyledonous.
6. The germination is exorhizal.
Hence Exogens have received two other names in allusion to such
characters; they are commonly caUed JHeotyledanet ; and Exorhiza
is another but less common appellation. Moreover, they are the
PhaneroeotyledonecB of Agardh, the AiUhophyUs and Carpophyta of
Oken's school, the Didiorgana of Schultz, the Phj^obUutcB of
Reichenbach; not to mention other names still more obscure.
In consequence of Imperfect development, and the abortion or
multiplication of parts, many deviations occur from the above
characters. But as in Endogens, so in these, there is not in con-
sequence any real difficulty in distinguishing Exogens from other
plants. Suppose the stem to be so slightly formed, as in Podaatemaeea
or the aquatic HaloragecB, as not to amve at a state in which the
exogenous ammgement is perceptible, we have the dicotyledonous
embryo and the typical number of tiie floral organs to guide us.
Let the leaves appear as scales, as in Lathrtea, Orobanehet and the
like ; still there is the embryo or again the floral proportions. If the
fructification is absolutely ternary as in MenupermaceeBf the organi-
zation of the stem, leaves, and embryo reveals the true nature of
sudi plants. Or if the embryo is undivided, as in OtuetUa, and at
the same time the veins of the leaves deficient, and all this with an
incomplete formation of woody matter, then tiie number of parts in
the flower remains to prevent our &lling into error. It is therefore
always to be remembered, that the limits of this great class are not
exclusively determined by one single character, but by a combination
of five; a part of ixrhich may be occasionally exceptional or undis-
ooverable.
Like all other natural assemblages, Exogens have many analogies
with other parts of the vegetable kingdom. We have already
adverted to the Podostemaceous order of this class representing
distinctly the Pistiaceous order, or at least Lemna among Endogens.
Piperacta are distinct analogies here to the Aracea of Endogens,
Cheiwpodialet to OlwnottBf and possibly Menupertnacea to SmUacecB.
Whatever uses there may be in the vegetable kingdom are to be
found in this class, whicin comprehends four-fifths of the natural
orders, and probably not much less than the same proportion of
species. Timoer, in partiouUu*, is their exclusive produce, and if com
has no direct analogy in Cogens, at least a substitute for it is
furnished by the potato and the cassava.
Considering the very great numbers of Exogens — they may be
rated at 50,000 or 60,000 at a low computation — ^it is not surprising
that it should be here that the systematic botanist experiences his
great difficulties. Comparatively no embarrassment worth notice
occurs in the arrangement of Endogens ; but in Exogens the difficulties
are so great as to have hitherto bi^ed the most acute writers. We
do not mean with regard to the natural orders themselves, for they
are in general well understood and defined : our observation applies
to a collocation of the orders, or in other words, to the construction
of groups of a secondary value which shall be as natural and as well
defined as the orders themselves. In a recent enumeration we find
no fewer than 231 orders of Elxogens. It is obviously impracticable
to study so large a number of combinations without breaking
them into groups, and accordingly various methods have been
proposed.
Jtussieu, adopting to a certain extent the views of his predecessors,
considered — 1st, the separation of the petals, 2nd, their combination,
or 8rd, their absence, of primary consequence ; and adding to this,
4th, the separation of the sexes in flowers having no petals, he
formed the four groups of— Ist, Polypetalous ; 2nd, Monopetaloxis ;
3rd, Apetalous; and 4th, Diclinous pluits. The first three of these
he agam subdivided according as their stamens or their corolla grew
under the, ovary (hypogynous), upon the calyx (peiigynous), or upon
the ovary (epigynous) ; then the monopetalous epigynous group was
subdivided into plants having united stamens and those having them
distinct ; the result being eleven classes, which were placed by Jussieu
in the following order : —
r Stamens epigynous
Apetalous < Stamens perigynous .
[ Stamens hypogynous
? Corolla hypogynous .
J Corolla perigynous
Monopetalous
1
Corolla epigynous ^
r anthers united
anthers distinct
r Stamens epigynous
Polypetalous < Stamens hypogynous
t Stamens perigynous .
Diclinous
Clan.
1
2
S
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
This was however so artificial a distribution, that botanists soon
found it as unsatisfactory as it was simple. Various changes have
therefore been reoonmiended from time to time^ some of which are
the following : —
In 1818, pe CandoUe, dropping the names of all Jussieu's classes,
and abolishing many of them, proposed to arrange as follows the 118
orders of Exogens with which he was at that time acquainted.
Monop,Ul<..{C^~{}j|^-}a,^<^/
(Monochlamydecl)
Apetalous
Class.
1
2
8
4
5
Thus the classes were reduced fh>m eleven to five, which was a
defect ; but those which remained were supposed to be more natural,
which would have been an advantage. Five years afterwards, in his
' Kegni Yegetabilis Systema Katunde,' he added the names inclosed
within parentheses, and he broke up the ThcUami/lorcB into five cohorts,
but without stating what orders he arranged under them. We do
not find that he ever pursued the subject farther. Since tibat period
this great botanist has occupied hiinself witi^ the special study of
the natural orders^ and the public has derived no advantage from his
general views, which is much to be regretted.
In 1825, Professor Agardh of Lund, afterwards bishop of Carlsbad,
proposed a great change in the subordination of Exogens, retaining
the principles of primary division recognised by Jussieu and De
Candolle, but forming them into twenty subdivisions, defined by
various characters analogous to those by which the orders themselves
are eircnmsoribed. This, we believe, is the first step of any con-
sequence towards putting Exogens into a more natural grouping than
that of JussieiL In many respects the subdivisions are, as far as
they go, unobjectionable ; but tney have excited scarcely any attention
among systematic botanists. The necessity however of some better
method of subordination than that of Jussieu and De Candolle has
become evident to everybody; and attempts have been made to effect
this by Drs. Bartling, Sishidtz, Yon Martins, and others on the
continent, and by Dr. Lindley in this oountiy. The last named
author has successively developed his system in his ' Nixus
Plantarum,' the ' Penny Cyclopaedia,' article Exogens, his ' Natural
System of Botany,' and his ' vegetable Elingdom.' We shall here
give an analysis of Dr. Lindley's arrangement of Exogens, as given *
in the last mentioned work. Whatever may be its depots they are
rather inherent to the subject than attributable to any want of
knowledge or judgment in the author, as it undoubtedly displays the
largest acquaintance with the details of the structure of this class of
plimts that has yet been displayed by any writer on systematio
(x>tany. The following is an analysis of the class of Exogens : —
Alliances of Exogens.
Sub<]llass I. Diclinous Elxogens.
Flowers ^ ^ , without any customaiy tendency to 0,
I. Amentales. — Flowers in catkins, achlamydeous or monochla-
mydeous. Carpels superior. Emlnyo small, with little or no
albumen.
CatuarinacecB, — Ovules 1 or 2, ascending. Radicle superior.
BetulaeecB. — Ovule 1, pendulous. Radide superior.
AUingiacea. — Ovules 00. Seeds winged.
SalieaeecB, — Ovules 00. Seeds cottony.
MyrieactoL — Ovule 1, erect. Radide superior.
EuBa^nacetK, — Ovule 1, ascending. Radide inferior,
Ml &XOQBNS.
N.E It u eicaediogly UBsfuI to tauk thii diatinctJOQ b; definite
terms ; but than we must noma the atalk of the CaryiphyUta,
noBt VnAellifrra axiALahiata, OUmia ; the item of Baminua,
Calanuu, Piper, Arittalaehia, kc., Calamiu. In other mpacta
the eipreiBioDi culmui and eajaniu hiTS no seiue, daee it could
only be defined u a stalk, Buch ae occun in the plutta to which
■acb ft stalk ij> wcrihed, tjie former in «oiae Qrusei, the latter
in some Ogperaeta.
S. Different Aiea of Compound FUnta.
A. Hun Axis produced from the terminftl bud of the embryo (Cmli*
pd Tnmcu* primariuM).
B. Secondary Aiia, produced from aiilLuy or adventitioni buds
{Cavlu vd Tnmeveotadariiu).
N.E Still connected with tiie main uii, called Biuich or Twig
(RmMu).
C. RamificaUon of the Aila (Awi^atKi). Ramification of the Ftdan-
adta {Injtorueailia).
Z>.Secoadsi7 Alia growing along uudergronnd, and ite secondary axes
alooe rising aboTa the soil, Root-Stock, Rhjioma (Attzoma).
N.B. For Secondary Axes which lie upon the earth, because
they are too weak to stand erect, there are some special terma,
but these appear to ma superfluous : — Plagdlun, Solo, SarmtnttHn,
Runner, Sucker, which are someUmes to be distinguiahed by the
foliation, somBtJmea by the rooting, now one way and now another,
and again may be different from the CavlU rrpau, humifuiut,
protlralut, proeumbnu, decumieiu, tarmentattut, and all the rest
of this manufactory of words, and yet oannot be separated by
any characters.
£ It is useful to discriminate, according to the lanuflcation and
duration,
a. The limple plant, the laUral buda of which ate flowera {ffrrbula)
e. g. CitctUa, Sfyommt :
b. The branched stalk. Herb {Serba), e. g. JiiajfoIKt, Vtronita vtma.
c With underground stoma, etalks above ground, Ondenhtub {$>(/•
frvtex), e. g. Aeoniium, NaptUut, Paonia ^fieituUit,
BXOOENa N>
d. stem bnnehed from below, without predominanoe of the main
■torn. Bush {PnUex), e. g. iVunw tpintua, /miperue Soi^Hia.
a Trunk, the lower branches of whioh soon die, and which only beats
a crown. Tree {A rbor), e. g. Pyrtu lemunalit, Fagu* lyivalica.
N.B. Wa aJsoreckonamong trees thoaeatemsalso which branch
from below upward, but in which the main axis is developed in
far the greatest proportion, and may readily be traced to the
summit, e, g. Populia dUtitata, Abia exedia. These might even
be called Arbor fnUiaita,
If the great man of Eiogens are distinctly known from Endogens
Inr their peculiar muiaer of growth and by the arrangement of
their woody matter, thaj are not leas clearly deflned by external
Their leaves have the veina ramifying from the midrib, or ribs if
there are seven], in so intricate a manner aa to give the appearance
of irregnlar net-work. Their veina never run panllel with each other
without ramificationa ; for if, aa aomatimea happena, the; appear to
do so, it will be found that the appearance is confined to the principal
veins or ribs, and that the secondary veins between them raznjfy in
the usual way. The leavea are moreover in most cases articulated
with the stem, leaving behind them a clean scar when they die, not
rotting away and hanging upon the atom in the form of a ragged
sheath, as is common in Endogena. Moreover the; are frequently
furnished with atipulel^ an unusual dronmatanoe in Endogens.
The flowers of Eiogeus are usually Oonstructed upon a quinary
type ; that is, they have 6 sepals, G patois, and S itamans, or sonie
power of tbi^ number; now and then they vurj to a type of I, or
they exceed the number G ; but wo very rarely find the ternary
structure of Endogens preeentin them. If, as in ^tumacai, Aei'fieracnE,
and other orden, the sepala and petdl follow a temaiy type, the
number S is lost in the stamens o
Matitptntacta is the only one among Exogens in which the ternary
tm» regularly pemdea all the parts of the flower.
broad and rounded figure, the effect of which upon their general
Exotenaiu Tcretalion,
663
EXOGENS.
EXOQENS.
eM
appearance is to produce the rounded lumpish aspect that we recognise
in all the trees naturally inhabiting this country. In no known instance
does the stem grow by the derelopment of a single terminal bud ; so
that we never find in this class the columnar aspect of palm-trees
[GTUNOSFXBais], unless the genus Theophrcuta be considered an excep-
tion. Consequently a landscape consisting of nothing but Exogenous
plants would resemble the imaginary scene that forms the subject of
the preceding cut.
The differences between Exogens and EndogenSi thus strongly
marked in the stem, leaves, and fiowen, are connected with others in
the embryo. [Refroduotion in Plaktb; Seed.] In Exogens of^
the common kind this organ has two lobes, held together by a minute
central body, the upper end of which, between the lobes, is the
plumule or rudimentary stem, the lower the radicle or rudimentary
root ; the lobes themselves, or cotyledons, are rudimentary leaves.
This structure is readily seen in a hazel-nut or a garden-bean ,* the
deviations from it are few and unimportant as compflured with those
of Endogens. Three or a greater number of cotyledons may be
present in a ^horl, instead of two opposite to each other. Or one
of the two cotyledons may be much smaller than the other, as in
Trapa; or they may be deeply lobed, as in the garden-cress. But in
all these cases the deviations are obviously reooncileable with the
typical character of being Dicotyledonous.
When the embryo of an Exogen germinates, the radicle simply
lengthens at its point, without having to break through the coat of
the embryo ; on this account Exogens have been named ExorhizaL
The result of this examination it, that the great class of Exogens
has five important, and in some measure independent characters^ by
which its limits are settled.
1. The wood is exogenous.
2. The veins of the leaves are netted.
8. The fructification is formed upon a quinary or quaternary
type.
4. The embiyo is dicotyledonous.
5. The germination is exorhizaL
Hence Exogens have received two other names in allusion to such
characters; they are commonly called JHcotykdona ; and Exorhizce
is another but less common appellation. Moreover, they are the
PhaneroeotyUdonea of Agardh, the AnthophytcB and Carpophyta of
Oken's school, the JH^oryana of Schultz, the PhyUobUutce of
Reichenbach; not to mention other names still more obscure.
In consequence of Imperfect development^ and the abortion or
multiplication of parts, many deviations occur from the above
characters. But as in Endogens, so in these, there is not in con-
sequence any real difficulty in distinguishing Exogens from other
phuits. Suppose the stem to be so slightly formed, as in Podaatemaeea
or the aquatic HaJLoragecB, as not to arrive at a state in which the
exogenous ammgemeBt is perceptible, we have the dicotyledonous
embryo and the typical number of ^e floral organs to guide us.
Let the leaves appear as scales, as in Lathrcta^ Orobanchet and the
like ; still there is the embryo or again the floral proportions. If the
fructification is absolutely ternary as in Menifptrmacea, the organi-
zation of the stem, leaves, and embryo reveals the true nature of
sudi plants. Or if the embryo is undivided, as in CWeuta, and at
the same time the veins of the leaves deficient, and all this with an
incomplete formation of woody matter, then the number of parts in
the flower remains to prevent our fiiUing into error. It is therefore
always to be remembered, that the limits of this great class are not
exclusively determined by one single character, but by a combination
of five; a part of ixrhich may be occasionally exceptional or undis-
ooverable.
Like all other natural assemblages, Exogens have many analogies
with other parts of the vegetable kingdom. We have already
adverted to the Podostemaoeous order of this class representing
distinctly the Pistiaceous order, or at least Lemna among Endogens.
PtpemcecB are distinct analogies here to the Ar<icecB of Endogens,
Chenopodxale9 to Qlwnotaiy and possibly MerUipertnacea to Smilticece.
Whatever uses there may be in the vegetable kingdom are to be
found in this class, whicin comprehends four-fifths of the natural
orders, and probably not much less than tiie same proportion of
species. Timoer, in particular, is their exclusive produce, and if com
has no direct analogy in ^xogens, at least a substitute for it is
furnished by the potato and the cassava.
Considering the very great ntunbers of Exogens — they may be
rated at 50,000 or 60,000 at a low computation — ^it is not surprising
that it should be here that the systematic botanist experiences his
great difficulties. Comparatively no embarrassment worth notice
occurs in the arrangement of Endogens ; but in Exogens the difficulties
are so great as to have hitherto bi^ed the most acute writers. We
do not mean with regard to the natural orders themselves, for they
are in general well understood and defined : our observation applies
to a collocation of the orders^ or in other words, to the construction
of groups of a secondary value which shall be as natural and as well
de^ed as the orders themselves. In a recent enumeration we find
no fewer than 281 orders of Exogens. It is obviously impracticable
to study so large a number of combinations without breaking
them into groups, and accordingly various methods have been
proposed.
Jtusieu, adopting to a certain extent the views of his predecessors,
considered — Ist, the separation of the petals, 2nd, their combination,
or Srd, their absence, of primary consequence ; and adding to this,
4th, the separation of the sexes in flowers having no petals, he
formed the four groups of— 1st, Polypetalous ; 2nd, Monopetalous ;
Srd, Apetalous; and 4th, Didinous plants. The first three of these
he agam subdivided according as their stamens or their corolla grew
under the. ovary (hypogyuous), upon the calyx (peiigynous), or upon
the ovary (epigynous) ; then the monopetalous epigynous group was
subdivided into plants having united stamens and those having them
distinct ; the result being eleven classes, which were placed by Jussieu
in the following order : —
r Stamens epigynous
Apetalous •< Stamens pengynous .
[ Stamens hypogynous
(Corolla hypogynous .
Corolla perigynous
r anthers united
Corolla epigynous <
I anthers distinct
r Stamens epigynous
Polypetalous < Stamens hypogynous
t Stamens perigynous .
Diclinous
Class.
1
2
8
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
This was however so artificial a distribution, that botanists soon
found it as unsatisfactory as it was simple. Various changes have
therefore been recommended from time to time, some of which are
the following : —
In 1818, De Candolle, dropping the names of all Jussieu's classes,
and abolishing many of them, proposed to arrange as follows the 118
orders of Exogens with which he was at that time acquainted.
Class.
1
2
Apetalous . . . .' (Monochlamydeae} , 5
Thus the classes were reduced fh>m eleven to five, which was a
defect ; but those which remained were supposed to be more natural,
which would have been an advantage. Five years afterwards, in his
' Kegni Y^tabilis Systems Naturale,' he added the names inclosed
within parentheses, and he broke up the ThaZami/lora into five cohorts,
but without stating what orders he arranged under them. We do
not find that he ever pursued the subject farther. Since that period
this great botanist has occupied hiinself wiUi the special study of
the natural order^ and the public has derived no advantage from his
general views, which is much to be regretted.
In 1825, Professor Agardh of Lund, afterwards bishop of Carlsbad,
proposed a great chsnge in the subordination of Exogens, retaining
the principles of primary division recognised by Jussieu and De
Candolle, but forming them into twenty subdivisions, deflned by
various diaracters analogous to those by which the orders themselves
are drcnmsoribed. This, we believe, la the first step of any con-
sequence towards putting Exogens into a more natural grouping than
that of JussieiL In many respects the subdivisions are, as far as
they go, imobjectionable ; but tney have excited scarcely any attention
among systemaiio botanists. The necessity however of some better
method of subordination than that of Jussieu and De Candolle has
become evident to everybody; and attempts have been made to effect
this by Drs. Bartling, Schtdtz, Yon Martins, and others on the
continent^ and by Dt. Lindley in this countiy. The last named
author has successively developed his system in his * Nixus
Plantarum,' the ' Penny Cyclopaedia,' article Exogens, his ' Natural
System of Botany,' and his * Vegetable Kingdom.' We shall here
give an analysis of Dr. Lindl^s arrangement of Elxogens, as given '
in the last mentioned wozk. Whatever may be its defects they are
rather inherent to the subject than attributable to any want of
knowledge or judgment in the author, as it undoubtedly displays the
largest acquaintance with the details of the structure of this class of
plimts that has yet been displayed by any writer on systematic
botany. The following is an analysis of the class of Exogens : —
Alliances of Exogens.
Sub-Class I. Diclinous Exogens.
Flowers ^ ^, without any customaiy tendency to 0.
I. Amentales. — Flowers in catkins, achlamydeous or monochla-
mydeous. Carpels superior. Embiyo smiJl, with little or no
albumen.
Ccuwarinacea, — Ovules 1 or 2, ascending. Radicle superior.
BettUaeecB. — Ovule 1, pendulous. Badide superior.
AUingiacea. — Ovules 00. Seeds winged.
Salie<ice(B, — Ovules 00. Seeds cottony.
Myricaoea, — Ovule 1, erect. Radicle superior.
EUeaynctcetg, — Ovule 1, ascending. Radicle inferior,
HI EXOOENS.
N.B. Itia Bxoeedioglf uiafultomarktluBdutiiiotioDbydefituta
terms : bat than w« must aatoB the itAlk of the Caiyoph^Uta,
moit Uf^tUiftra and Labiata, Cuhnm ; the etem of BambuMO,
Catamui, Piper, ArittolocMa, to., Calamui, In other reapeote
the sipresaionB eulmia and calanuu haia no iwnH, ainoe it could
oalv b« deSned as a stalk, such aa occura in the plsjita to which
anch B stalk ia ascrilifid, the farmer in aome Qrassea, ttie latt«i
in aome Cyptracta.
6. Different Axes of Compound PUota
A. Ukin Azia produced from the terminal bud of the embrTO (OsMJii
vd Trtmeiu pritnariiu).
B. Secondary Axia, produced from aiiUar; or advolititioua buda
(Cauiit vd TVunfUi teewtdarvu).
N.B. Still connected with the main axis, «aJled Branch or Twig
(Ramat).
C. Bamificatioo of the Axis (Ram^atio). BamiGcation of the Peditn-
c<dut llnjbirucatiia).
D. Secondaij Aiis growing along imdergRnmd, and its aecondary axes
aloDs rising abova the soil, Root-Stock, RhiEome <Ahuaiiui).
N.B. For Secondary Axes which lis upon the earth, becauae
they are too weak to stand erect, there am aome ^Mcial terma,
but these appear to me superfluous; — flagdinim, SloU, Sarmt^m»,
Runner, Sucker, which are sometimes to be diatlngniahad by the
foliation, sometimea by the rooting, now one way and now another,
aod again may be dmerent from the CatdU reptm, htmi/unu,
frotlralta, proeumbeiu, dtctrn^etu, lannailatnu, and all the teat
of this manufoctory of worda, and jet cannot be sepanted by
any chaiaetera.
£ It is useful to diacriminate, according to the ramification and
a. The eimple plant, the lateral buda of which are flowera (Serbula)
e. g. Cinema, Myatvrvt .'
b. The branched st^. Herb {Herba), e. g. AnagaUit, Vtreniea vtma.
e. With underground stems, (talks above ground, (Jnderehnib (Sh/-
fruta:), e. g. Aconiiwn, Napelitu, Paoaia a^Mnaiii.
EXOOENa SM
d. Stem branched from below, without predominance of the main
atem, Buah (Pmitx), e. g. ^runui ijnnaia, /wtipniu Sniuio.
e. Trunk, the lower branches of whioh soon die, and which only bears
a crown. Tree (^rAor), e. g. /'ynu ttminalit, Fagua tylvatica.
N.R We also reckon among trees those sterna also which branch
&om below upward, but in iriilch the main axis ia developed in
far the greatest proportion, and may readily bs traced to the
summit, e. g. Popultu diiatata, Ahia cxcelta. Theas might even
be called Arbor fmtieovi.
If the great maaa of Exogens are distinctly known from Endogens
In their peculiar manner of growth and Ini the arrangemeat of
their woody matter, they are not less clearly deSned by external
Their leaves have the veina rami^lng &\>m the midrib, or ribs if
there are several, in ao intricate a manner aa to give the appearance
of irregular net-work. Their veins never run parallel with each other
without ramifications ; for if, aa sometimea happens, they appear to
do so, it will be found that the appearance is confined to the principal
veins or ribs, and that Ihe secondary veina between them ramir; in
the usual way. The leaves are moreover in most cases articu'atcd
with the stem, leaving behind lliem a clean scar when they die, not
rotting away and hanging upon tim stem in the form of a ragged
sheath, as is common in Kndogena. Horeorer they are frequently
fumiahed with stipuleA, an unusual circumstance in Endogena.
The flowers of Eiogons are uaoallj constructed upon a quinary
type ; that is, they have G aepala, S petals, and 6 atamens, or some
power of that number; now and then they vary to a type of *, or
they eioeed the number b ; but wo veiy rarely find the ternary
atroctuni of Endogans present in them. II, " ia Awnuuta, Baberacra,
and other orders, the sepals and petA follow a temaiy type, the
number 8 is lost in the stamens or the ovary. The natural order
Xtnitptmacea is the only one among Eiogeni in which the ternary
type tegulailj pervades all the parts of the flower.
In their mannar of growth they rarely resemble Endogens. The
consequence of the ramification of the veins ia to give th«r leaves n
broad and rounded figure, the efiTect of which upon their general
Eiocowiia TcfetatloD.
es3
EXOQENS.
EXOQEKS.
eM
appearaaoe is to prodace the rotmded lumpish aspect that we recognise
in all the trees naturally inhabiting this country. In no known instance
does the stem grow by the development of a single terminal bud ; so
that we never find in this class the columnar aspect of palm-trees
[Qtmnosfebicb], unless the genus Theophrasta be considered an exoep-
tion. Consequently a landscape consisting of nothing but Exogenous
plants would resemble the imaginary scene that foims the subject of
the preceding cut
The differences between Exogens and Endogens, thus strongly
marked in the stem, leaves, and flowers, are connected with others in
the embryo. [Rxfboduction ik Plavtb; Sssd.] In Exogens of^
the common kind this organ has two lobes, held together by a minute
central body, the upper end of which, between the lobes, is the
plumule or rudimentary stem, the lower the radicle or rudimentary
root; the lobes themselves, or cotyledons, are rudimentary leaves.
This structure is readily seen in a hasel-nut or a garden-bean ; the
deviations from it are few and unimportant as compared with those
of Endogens. Three or a greater number of cotyledons may be
present in a ^vhorl, instead of two oppoaite to each other. Or one
of the two cotyledons may be much smaller than the other, as in
Trapa; or they may be deeply lobed, as in the garden-cress. But in
all these cases the deviations are obviously reconcileablo with the
typiail character of being Dicotyledonous.
When the embryo of an Exogen germinates, the radicle simply
lengthens at its point, without having to break through the coat of
the embryo ; on this accoimt Exogens have been named ExorhizaL
The result of this examination if; that the great class of Exogens
has five important, and in some measure independent characters^ by
which its limits are settled.
1. The wood is exogenous.
2. The veins of the leaves are netted.
8. The fructification is formed upon a quinary or quaternary
type.
4. The embryo is dicotyledonous.
5. The germination is exorhizal.
Hence Exogens have received two other names in allusion to such
characters; they are commonly called JHeotykdona ; and Exorhiza
is another but less common appellation. Moreover, they are the
Phanerocoi^donecB of Agardh, the AiUhophyta and Carpophyta of
Oken's school, the JH^organa of Schultx, the Ph^obUuta of
Reichenbach; not to mention other names still more obscure.
In consequence of Imperfect development^ and the abortion or
multiplication of parts, many deviations occur from the above
characters. But as in Endogens, so in these, there is not in con-
sequence any real difficulty in distinguishing Exogens from other
plants. Suppose the stem to be so slightly formed, as in PodaitemaeecB
or the aquatic JIaloragea, as not to arrive at a state in which the
exogenous arrangement is perceptible, we have the dicotyledonous
embryo and the typical number of ibo floral organs to guide us.
Let the leaves appear as scales, as in ZcUhrtBO, Orobanche, and the
like ; still there is the embryo or again the floral proportions. If the
fructification is absolutely ternary as in MenUpermiieea!, the organi-
zation of the stem, leaves, and embryo reveals the true nature of
such plants. Or if the embryo is undivided, as in OutaUa, and at
the same time the veins of the leaves deficient, and all this with an
incomplete formation of woody matter, then tiie number of parts in
the fiower remains to prevent our fidling into error. It is therefore
always to be remembered, that the limits of this great class are not
exclusively determined by one single character, but by a combination
of five; a part of which may be occasionally exceptional or undis-
coverable.
Like all other natural assemblages, Exogens have many analogies
with other parts of the vegetable kin^om. We have already
adverted to the Podostemaceous order of this class representing
distinctly the Pistiaceous order, or at least Letnna among Endogens.
PiperaceoB are distinct analogies here to the Aracea of Endogens,
Chenopodialet to Olwnota, and possibly MenUpermacea to SmiUtcoB.
Whatever uses there may be in the vegetable kingdom are to be
foimd in this class, whicin comprehends four-fifths of the natural
orders, and probably not much less than the same proportion of
species. Timber, in particular, is their exclusive produce, and if com
has no direct analogy in ^xogens, at least a substitute for it is
furnished by the potato and the cassava.
Considering the very great numbers of Exogens — ^they may be
rated at 50,000 or 60,000 at a low computation — it is not surprising
that it should be here that the systematic botanist experiences his
great difficulties. Comparatively no embarrassment worth notice
occurs in the arrangement of Endogens ; but in Exogens the difficulties
are so great as to have hitherto bi&ed the most acute writers. We
do not mean with regard to the natural orders themselves, for they
are in general well understood and defined : our observation applies
to a collocation of the orders, or in other words, to the construction
of groups of a secondary value which shall be as natural and as well
de^ed as the orders themselves. In a recent enumeration we find
no fewer than 281 orders of Exogens. It is obviously impracticable
to study so large a number of combinations without breaking
them into groups, and accordingly various methods have been
proposed.
JuBsieu, adopting to a certain extent the views of his predecessors,
considered — 1st, the separation of the petals, 2ncl, their combination,
or Srd, their absence, of primary consequence ; and adding to this,
4th, the separation of the sexes in flowers having no petals, he
formed the four groups of— Ist, Polypetalous ; 2nd, Monopetalous ;
8rd, Apotalous; and 4th, Diclinous plants. The first three of these
he sgain subdivided according as their stamens or their corolla grew
under the. ovary (hypogynous), upon the calyx (perigynous), or upon
the ovary (epigynous) ; then the monopetalous epigynous group was
subdivided into plants having united stamens and those having them
distinct ; the result being eleven classes, which were placed by Jusaieu
in the following order : —
r Stamens epigynous
Apetalons •< Stamens perigynous .
[ Stamens nypogynous
(Corolla hypogynous .
Corolla perigynous
Corolla epigynous ^
[ anthers disti
r Stamens epigynous
Polypetalous i Stamens hypogynous
I Stamens perigynous .
Didiuons
r anthers united
distinct
Class.
1
2
8
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
This was however so artificial a distribution, that botanists soon
found it as unsatisfactory as it was simple. Various changes have
therefore been recommended from time to time^ some of which are
the following : —
In 1813, De Candolle, dropping the names of all Jussieu's dasses,
and abolishing many of them, proposed to arrange as follows the 118
orders of Exogens with which he was at that time acquainted.
Class.
Apetalous .... {MonochlamydetiB} . 5
Thus the classes wars reduced from eleven to five, which was a
defect ; but those which remained were supposed to be more natural,
which would have been an advantage. Five years afterwards, in his
' Kegni Yegetabilis Systema Naturale,' he added the names inclosed
within parentheses, and he broke up the ThaZamiJlorce into five cohorts,
but without stating what orders he arranged under them. We do
not find that he ever pursued the subject farther. Since that period
this great botanist has occupied hiinself with tiie special study of
the natural orders^ and the public has derived no advantage from his
general views, which is much to be regretted.
In 1825, Professor Agardh of Lund, afterwards bishop of Carlsbad,
proposed a great change in the subordination of Exogens, retaining
the principles of primary division recognised by Jussieu and De
Candolle, but forming them into twenty subdivisions, defined by
various diaracters analogous to those by which the orders themselves
are eircnmsoribed. This, we believe, is the first step of any con-
sequence towards putting Exogens into a more natural grouping than
that of Jussieu. In many respects the subdivisions are, as far as
they go, unobjectionable ; but tney have excited scarcely any attention
among systematio botanists. The necessity however of some better
method of subordination than that of Jussieu and De Candolle has
become evident to everybody ; and attempts have been made to effect
this by Drs. Bartling, Schtdta, Yon liartius, and others on the
continent^ and by Dr. Lindley in this country. The last named
auUior has successively developed his system in his * Nixus
Plantarum,' the ' Penny Cydopsedia,' article Exogens, his ' Natural
System of Botany,' and his ' Vegetable Kingdom.' We shall htm
give an analysis of Dr. lindl^s arrangement of Exogens, as given '
in the last mentioned work. Whatever may be its detects they are
rather inherent to the subject than attributable to any want of
knowledge or judgment in the author, as it undoubtedly displays the
largest acquaintance with the details of the structure of this class of
plants that has yet been displayed by any writer on systematic
botany. The following is an analysis of the class of Exogens : —
Alliances of Exogens.
Sub-Class I. Diclinous Exogens.
Flowers ^ ^ , without any customaiy tendency to 0,
I. Ameiitalvs. — Flowers in catkins, achlamydeous or monochla-
mydeous. Carpels superior. Embryo small, with little or no
albumen.
CatuarimaeetB. — Ovules 1 or 2, ascending. Radicle superior.
BehUaeecB. — Ovule 1, penduloua Radide superior.
AUingiaeecB, — Ovules 00. Seeds winged.
ScdieaeecB, — Ovules 00. Seeds cottony.
MyricacetB, — Ovule 1, erect. Radicle superior.
SuBOffnaeece, — Ovule 1, ascending. Radicle inferior.
EXOQEKS.
N.B. It U fliceedinglj luefiil to mark thii diitinctioD by definite
terms : but then we mart nanie tbe italic of the Caryopliiillta,
moat Uoibellife-iB uid Labiata, Ctilmut ; the Btem of Bambtua,
CUaniu, Piper, ArMolochia, te,, Calaniiu, In other respects
the eipreesianB mltaui and caUmut haie no seiiBe, sinoe it could
only be deGned at s stalk, luch as occutb in the pluits to which
Buch a atalk is ascribed, the farmer in some OrMssa, the latter
0. Different Axes of Compound Flanti.
A. Uain Aus produced from the terminal bud of the embrTO {CaulU
vd Tmnciu prinuiriut),
£. Beconduy Aiie, produced from aiillary or adTentitioua buda
{CaiUi4 vd Tnaunu lecitndariuM).
N.E Still connected with the main ftiis, railed Branch or Twig
{Bantu).
C. Ramification of the Axis (Samtficatio). lUmifiratiou of the Ptdan-
ctltui (InJtoriKtntia).
i). Secondsr; Axis growing along underground, and its secondary axes
alone rising above the soil, Root-Stock, RbiEome {Rhiioma).
N.B. For Secondarj Axes which lie upon the earth, because
they are too weak to stand erect, there are some special terms,
but these appear to me superfluous ; — Flagelltim, Solo, SirjaeB/iim,
Bunner, 3ucker, which are sometimes to be distinguished bj the
foliation, sometimee by the rooting, now one way and now another,
and again ma? be d^erent from the Cattail npou, Aumi^wiu,
priiMiratui, proctanberu, dtcumiau, lamtentaenu, and all the rest
of this manufactory of words, and yet oaonot be separated by
any charactera.
£ It i> useful to discriminate, according to the ramification and
duration,
a. The simple plant, the lateral buda of whidt are flowerB (Btrtula)
e. g. C^KUia, Myoturut ;
h. Tbe branched itUk, Herb {Herhai, e. g. AitagaBii, Vertmita vtma.
t. With underground stems, stalks above groand, (Jndenhrab (£«/-
fnUtx), B. g. AconUnm, NaipeUtu, Pmonia ofieWialit,
d. Stem branched from below, without predominance of the maia
stem. Bush {Rvtex), e. g, PrunvM tpimita, Juh^ktui Sabma.
e. Trunk, the lower branohes of which soon die, and which only besra
a crown. Tree (Artor), e. g. Pyrtu ItrminalU, Poffot lytvalKH.
N.B We also reckon among trees those stems also which hisnch
from below upward, but in which the main aiis is developed in
far the greatest proportion, and may readily be traced to the
summit, e. g, Popnliu dilatala, Abia acedia. These might even
he called Anor Jrutieota.
If the great man of Eliogeni are distinctly known from Endogens
by their peculiar momiar of growth and by the arrangement of
thsir woody matter, they are not less clearly defined by external
Their leavea have the Teins ramifying from the midrib, or ribs if
there are several, iu BO intricate a manner as to give the appearance
of irregular net-work. Their veins never run parallel with each other
without ramifications ; for if, as sometimes happens, they appear to
do so, it will be found that the appearance is confined to the principal
veins or ribs, and that the secondary veins between them ramify in
the usual way. The leaves are moreover in most cases artieujated
with the stem, leaving behind tiiem a clean scar when they die, not
rotting away and hanging upon ths stem in the form of a ragged
sheath, as is common in Endogens. Moreover they are frequently
famished with stipules, an unusual ciroum stance in Endogens.
The flowers of Exogens are usually oonstmctod upon a quinary
type ; that is, they have G sepals, B petals, and S stamens, or some
power of that number; now and then they vary to a type of 4, or
they exceed Hxe number 6 ; but wo very rarely find the temaiy
Btmctnre of Endogens prseent in them. It,tMinAii»nacea,Ba-beractir,
and other orders, the sepals and pet^ follow a ternary type, ths
nnmber S ia lost in the stamena or the ovaiy. The natund order
Meniiptrmacta is the only one among Exogens in which the ternary
Exotanaui Tcretation.
603
EXOGENS.
EXOQENS.
eM
appeanmce ia to produce the rounded lompish aspect that we recognUw
in all the taneea naturally inhabiting this country. In no known instance
does the stem grow by the development of a single terminal bud ; so
that we never find in this class the columnar aspect of palm-trees
[Otmnobfkbms], unless the genus TTieophreuta be considered an excep-
tion. Consequently a landscape consisting of nothing but Exogenous
plants would resemble the imaginary scene that forms the subject of ^
thepreceding cut.
The differences between Exogens and EndogenSi thus strongly
marked in the stem, leaves, and flowers, are connected with others in
the embryo. [Rsfroduotion in Plavtb; Seed.] In Exogens of^
the common kind this organ has two lobes, held together by a minute
central body, the upper end of which, between the lobes, Ib the
plumule or rudimentary stem, the lower the radicle or rudimentary
root ; the lobes themselves, or cotyledons, are rudimentary leaves.
This structure is readily seen in a hasel-nut or a garden-bean ; the
deviations from it are few and unimportant as compared with those
of Endogens. Three or a greater number of cotyledons may be
present in a "vhorl, instead of two opposite to each other. Or one
of the two cotyledons may be much smaller than the other, as in
Trapa; or they may be deeply lobed, as in the garden-cress. But in
all these cases the deviations are obviously reconcileable with the
typical diaracter of being Dicotyledonous.
When the embryo of an Exogen germinates, the radicle simply
lengthens at its point, without having to break through the coat of
the embryo ; on this account Exogens have been named ExorhizaL
The result of this examination itf,' that the great dass of Exogens
has five important, and in some measure independent characters, by
which its lunits are settled.
1. The wood is exogenous.
2. The veins of the leaves are netted.
8. The fructification is formed upon a quinary or quaternary
type.
4. The embryo la dicotyledonous.
6. The germination is exorhizal.
Hence Exogens have received two other names in allusion to such
characters; they are commonly called JHcotyledonet ; taid BxorhizcB
is another but less common appellation. Moreover, they are the
Phanerocotf^dfrnem of Agardh, the AiUhophytcB and Carpophytcs of
Oken's school, the IHchorgana of Schults, the PhyUobUuta of
Reichenbach ; not to mention other names still more obscure.
In consequence of Imperfect development^ and the abortion or
multiplication of parts, many deviations occur from the above
characters. But as in Endogens, so in these, there is not in con-
sequence any real difficulty in distinguishing Exogens from other
plants. Suppose the stem to be so slightly formed, as in Podattemaeets
or the aquatic ffalortigeoB, as not to arrive at a state in which the
exogenous arrangemeBt is perceptible, we have the dicotyledonous
embryo and the typical number of tiie floral organs to guide us.
Let the leaves appear as scales, as in Lathrtea, Orchanehef and the
like ; still there is the embryo or again the floral proportions. If the
fructification u absolutely ternary as in MenUpermaeetBf the organi-
zation of the stem, leaves, and embryo reveals the true nature of
such plants. Or if the embryo is undivided, as in CWeuta, and at
the same time the veins of the leaves deficient, and all this with an
incomplete formation of woody matter, then the number of parts in
the flower remains to prevent our fiilling into error. It is therefore
always to be remembered, that the limits of this great class are not
exclusively determined by one single character, but by a combination
of five; a part of which may be occasionally exceptional or undis-
coverable.
Like all other natural assemblages, Exogens have many analogies
with other parts of the vegetable kingdom. We have already
adverted to the Podostemaceous order of this dass representing
distinctly the Pistiaceous order, or at least Lemna among Endogens.
PipemcecB are distinct analogies here to the Arcieea of Endogens,
Chenopodialet to OfhimoBcs, and possibly Memapermacea to SmiktcoB.
Whatever uses there may be in the vegetable kingdom are to be
foimd in this class, whicn comprehends four-fifths of the natural
orders, and probably not much less than the same proportion of
species. Timber, in particular, is their exclusive produce, and if corn
has no direct analogy in Cogens, at least a substitute for it Ib
furnished by the potato and the cassava.
Considering the very great numbers of Exogens — ^they may be
rated at 50,000 or 60,000 at a low computation — ^it is not sui'prising
that it should be here that the systematic botanist experiences his
great difficulties. Comparatively no embarrassment worth notice
occurs in the arrangement of Endogens ; but in Exogens the difficulties
are so great as to have hitherto bi^ed the most acute writers. We
do not mean with regard to the natural orders themselves, for they
are in general well understood and defined : our observation applies
to a collocation of the orders, or in other words, to the construction
of groups of a secondary value which shall be as natural and as well
defined as the orders themselves. In a recent enumeration we find
no fewer than 231 orders of Exogens. It is obviously impracticable
to study so large a number of combinations without breaking
them into groups, and accordingly various methods have been
proposed.
Jussieu, adopting to a certain extent the views of his predecessors,
considered — Ist, the separation of the petals, 2ncl, their combination,
or drd, their absence, of primary consequence ; and adding to this,
4th, the separation of the sexes in flowers having no petals, ho
formed the four groups of^lst, Polypetalous ; 2nd, Monopetaloxis ;
3rd, Apetalous; and 4th, Didinous plants. The first three of these
he agam subdivided according as their stamens or their corolla grew
under the. ovary (hypogynous), upon the calyx (perigynous), or upon
the ovary (epigynous) ; then the monopetalous epigynous group was
subdivided into plants having united stamens and those having them
distinct ; the result being deven classes, which were placed by Jussieu
in the following order : —
r Stamens epigynous
Apetalous •< Stamens perigynous .
[ Stamens nypogynous
? Corolla hypogynous .
J Corolla perigynous
Monopetalous (
Corolla epigynous <
r anthers united
anthers distinct
r Stamens epigynous
Polypetalous i Stamens hypogynous
I Stamens perigynous .
Didinous
Class.
1
2
S
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
This was however so artificial a distribution, that botanists soon
found it as unsatisfactory as it was simple. Various changes have
therefore been recommended from time to time^ some of which are
the following : —
In 1813, De Candolle, dropping the names of all Jussieu's classes,
and abolishing many of them, nroposed to arrange as follows the 118
orders of Exogens with which ae was at that time acquainted.
Apetalous .... {MonocMamydect}
Class.
1
2
8
4
5
Thus the classes were reduced from eleven to five, which was a
defect ; but those which remained were supposed to be more natural,
which would have been an advantage. Five years afterwards, in his
' Regni Yegetabilis Systema Natur&fe,' he added the names inclosed
within parentheses, and he broke up the ThcUamiflorm into five cohorts,
but without stating what orders he arranged under them. We do
not find that ho ever pursued the subject farther. Since that period
this great botanist has occupied himself with the special study of
the natural orders, and the public has derived no advantage from his
general views, which is much to be regretted.
In 1825, Professor Agardh of Lund, afterwards bishop of Carlsbad,
proposed a great change in the subordination of Exogens, retaining
the prindples of primary division recognised by Jusdeu and De
Candolle, but forming them into twenty subdivisions, defined by
various characters analogous to those by which the orders themselves
are drcumsoribed. This, we believe, is the first step of any con-
sequence towards putting Exogens into a more natural grouping than
that of Jussieu. In many respects the subdivisions are, as far as
they go, imobjeetionable ; but tney have exdted scarcely any attention
among systematic botanists. The necessity however of some better
method of subordination than that of Jussieu and De Candolle has
become evident to everybody; and attompts have been made to effect
this by Drs. Bartling, Schidtz, Yon Martins, and others on the
continent, and by Dr. Lindley in this country. The last named
author has successivdy developed his system in his ' Nixus
Plantarum,' the ' Penny Cydoosedia,' artide Exogens, his * Natural
System of Botany,' and his * Vegetable Kingdom.' We shall here
give an analysis of Dr. Lindley's arrangement of Exogens, as given '
in the last mentioned work. Whatever may be its de^ts they are
rather inherent to the subject than attnbutable to any want of
knowledge or judgment in the author, as it undoubtedly displays the
largest acquaintance with the details of the structure of this class of
plimts that has yet been displayed by any writer on systematic
botany. The following is an analysis of the class of Exogens : —
Alliances of Exogens.
Sub-Class I. Diclinous Exogens.
Flowers ^ ^ , without any customary tendency to 0.
I. Amentales. — Flowers in catkins, achlamydeous or monochla-
mydeous. Carpels superior. Embryo smidl, with little or no
albumen.
Caauarinaeecg. — Ovules 1 or 2, ascending. Radicle superior.
BetvlaeecB,—X)YVLie 1, pendulous. Radide superior.
AUingiaeea. — Ovules 00. Seeds winged.
SalieaeecB, — Ovules 00. Seeds cottony.
Myrieacect, — Ovule 1, erect. Badide superior.
Elteagnacag. — Ovule 1, ascending. Radicle inferior,
HI EXOOBHa
S.B. It ia excaediDgljiuefultamuliUiiidittiiiotioiibjdefiiute
terms : but then we must name the, atalk of the GtryophgUea,
moat UtiiMliftra uid Labiata, Cuhniu ; iJie atem of jBombiua,
Calamut, Piper, Ariilolachia, tc., CaUimiu, In other mpocta
the BiprenioDH cuJmui and cai<mut hiTa no Benae, aiaoe it oouM
only be deSaed as a atalk, Bucb aa c>ccuTi in the pluta to which
■ucn a atalk ij> (tacribnd, the former in eome Qrusei, tho Utt«r
iu some Oxperaeta.
S. Different Axes of Compound Plants.
A. Uain Axis produced from tlie terminal bud of the embrjm (OhJw
vtt TnmCM prinuiriiu).
B. Bacondar; ,*«'■, produced from axillsiy or sdrentitioua buda
(Caviit vd Tnmcut nctaiAirUu),
N.R Still connected with (he main azia, called Branch or Twig
(Amdm).
C. Ramification of the Axis (Ranifiaaw). Bamifioatiotl of the Ptdim-
culut (Itt/loreKenlia).
i). Secoodarf Alia growing nlaug underground, and its aecondary aiea
alone rieing above the aoil, Root-Stock. Rhizome {Rhizoma).
N.B. For Secondary Aiea wbioh lie upon tJie nrth, because
they are too week to Btand erect, there are aomo apecial tenua,
but thaae appear to mesuperfluoua: — PiogtH%m,SloU>,SaiinmtiHn,
Rnnner, Sucker, which are aometimes to be diatinguiahed by the
foliation, sometimea by the rooting, now one way and now another,
and again may be d^ereut from the CaulU rtjMnt, humifittut,
pnttrattu, j/rocumberu, dtcambeni, tarmentateiu, and all the reat
of this manufactory of worda, and ;et cannot bo aeparated by
any characters.
£ It is useful to discriminate, according to the ramification and
duration,
0. The simple plant, the lateral buds of which are Bowers (Btrtmla)
e. g. (Sucnla, Myotumt :
b. The branched it^, Herb (Btria), e. g. A nagaOit, Feronim wmo.
c With underground etems, stalks above ground, Qudenhrub (Su/-
fnOir), a. g. Aamitvm, Napdhu, Fat/nia ^ifMiMJit.
If the great
by their pecul
their woody m
BXOOENB. on
A. Stem bnnched from below, without predominance of the main
st«m, Buah {Pnttx), e. g. Pmnui ipinoio, JunijitTui Sahina.
e. Trunk, the lower branches of wbzoh aoou die, and which only beara
a crown, Tree (Arbor), e. g. JVti» lemiimiii, Pagut tylvatica.
N'.B. We alsoreckonamoag treeathoaeatemaalao which bnnch
from below upward, but in which the main axis is developed in
far tho greatest proportion, and may readily be traced to the
summit, e. g. Poptdia dUalala, Abitt cxcdia. Theae might even
he caUed Aihor fnUieota.
:ogeaa are diitjnctly known from Endogena
iliar maimer of growth and by the arraugement of
. . . , .natter, they are not leaa clearly defined by external
Their leaves have the veina ramifying from the midrib, or riba if
than are several, in so intricate a manner aa to give the appearance
of irregular net-work. Their veina never run parallel with each other
without ramifications ; for if, aa aometimea happens, the; appear to
do ao, it will be found that the appearance ia conSood to the principal
veina or liba, and that the aecondar; veina between them ramify in
the uauol way. The leaves are moreover in moat casea articulated
with the stem, leaving behind them a clean scar when they die, not
rotting away and hanging upon the stem in the form of a ragged
sheath, as is common in Endogens. Moreover they are frequeatty
furnished with stipules, an unusual droumstanoe in Endogena.
The flowera of Eiogsns are usually constructed upon a quinary
type ; Uiat is, they have 6 sepals, 6 petals, and fi etunens, or some
power of tbrt number ; now and then they vary to a type of 4, or
they eioeed the number 6 ; but wo very rarely find Uie ternary
structure of Endogena pment in them. If, as in Artonatta, Brrbtraetir,
and other orden, the sepals and petals fallow a ternary type, tho
number 3 is lost in the stamens or the ovary. The natural order
Maiitftrmaceai is the only one among Exogsns in which the ternary
^pe regularly pervades all the parts of the flower.
In their manner of growth they rarely resemble Endogena The
consequsnoe of the ramifleation of the vans ia to give their leav^ n
broad and rounded flgun, the effect of which upon their general
Eaocniinia Tet*t*''o<>>
es3
EXOQENS.
EXOQENS.
eM
appearance is to produce the rounded lumpish aspect that we recognise
in all the tanees naturally inhabiting this country. In no known instance
does the stem grow by the derelopment of a single terminal bud ; so
that we never find in this class the columnar aspect of palm*trees
[Gtmnosfsbms], unless the genus TTieophrcuta be considered an excep-
tion. Consequently a landscape consisting of nothing but Exogenous
plants would resemble the imaginary scene that fonns the subject of '
the preceding cut.
The differences between Exogens and Endogens, thus strongly
marked in the stem, leaves, and flowen, are connected with others in
the embryo. [Refboduotion in Plavtb; Seed.] In Exogens of^
the common kind this organ has two lobes, held together by a minute
central body, the upper end of which, between the lobes, is the
plumule or rudimentary stem, the lower the radicle or rudimentary
root ; the lobes themselves, or cotyledons, are rudimentary leaves.
This structure is readily seen in a hazel-nut or a garden-bean ; the
deviations from it are few and unimportant as compared with those
of Endogens. Three or a greater number of cotyledons may be
present in a ^vhorl, instead of two opposite to each other. Or one
of the two cotyledons may be much smaller than the other, as in
Trapa; or they may be deeply lobed, as in the garden-cress. But in
all these cases the deviations are obviously reooncileable with the
typioil character of being Dicotyledonous.
When the embryo of an Exogen germinates, the radicle simply
lengtiiens at its pointy without having to break through the coat of
the embryo ; on this account Exogens have been named ExorhizaL
The result of this examination if, that the great class of Exogens
has five important, and in some measure independent characters^ by
which its limits are settled.
1. The wood is exogenous.
2. The veins of the leaves are netted.
8. The fructification is formed upon a quinary or quaternary
type.
4. The embryo is dicotyledonous.
5. The germination is exorhizsL
Hence Exogens have received two other names in allusion to such
characters; they are commonly called JHeotyledonet ; and Bxorhiza
is another but less common appellation. Moreover, they are the
PhanerocotyUdfmem of Agardh, the ArUhophyta and Carpophytcs of
Oken's school, the JHchorgana of Schultz, the PhyUcSlcuta of
Reichenbach ; not to mention other names still more obscure.
In consequence of imperfect development^ and the abortion or
multiplication of parts, many deviations occur from the above
characters. But as in Endogens, so in these, there is not in con-
sequence any real difficulty in distinguishing Exogens from other
plants. Suppose the stem to be so slightly formed, as in Podattemcieea
or tiie aquatic HaJLoragecB, as not to arrive at a state in which the
exogenous ammgemeBt is perceptible^ we have the dicotyledonous
embryo and the typical number of Uie floral organs to guide us.
Let the leaves appear as scales, as in LathnxOf Orobanehe, and the
like ; still there is the embryo or again the floral proportions. If the
fructification is absolutely ternary as in MeniapenfMceo!, the organi-
zation of the stem, leaves, and embryo reveals the true nature of
such plants. Or if the embryo is undivided, as in Ouicuta, and at
the same time the veins of the leaves deficient, and all this with an
incomplete formation of woody matter, then tiie number of parts in
the flower remains to prevent our fiEdling into error. It is therefore
always to be remembered, that the limits of this great class are not
exclusively determined by one single character, but by a combination
of five; a part of «(rhich may be occasionally exceptional or undis-
coverable.
Like all other natural assemblages, Exogens have many analogies
with other parte of the vegetable kingdom. We have already
adverted to the Podostemaceous order of this class representing
distinctly the Pistiaceous order, or at least Letnna among Endogens.
Piptracta are distinct analogies here to the Aracea of Endogens,
ChenopodiaXet to Olwno8CB, and possibly Menispennacea to Smilacea.
Whatever uses there mav be in the vegetable kingdom are to be
found in this class, which comprehends four-fifths of the natural
orders, and probably not much less than the same proportion of
species. Timber, in particidar, is their exclusive produce, and if corn
hjBui no direct analogy in ^xogens, at least a substitute for it is
furnished by the potato and the cassava.
Considering the very great numbers of Exogens — they may be
rated at 50,000 or 60,000 at a low computation — it is not sui'prising
that it should be here that the systematic botanist experiences his
great difficulties. Comparatively no embarrassment worth notice
occurs in the arrangement of Endogens ; but in Exogens the difficulties
are so great as to have hitherto baffled the most acute writers. We
do not mean with regard to the natural orders themselves, for they
are in general well understood and defined : our observation applies
to a coUocation of the orders, or in other words, to the construction
of groups of a secondary value which shall be as natural and as well
defined as the orders themselves. In a recent enumeration we find
no fewer than 281 orders of Exogens. It is obviously impracticable
to study BO large a number of combinations without breaking
them into groups, and accordingly various methods have been
proposed.
JuBsieu, adopting to a certain extent the views of his predecessora,
considered — 1st, the separation of the petals, 2nd, their combination,
or 8rd, their absence, of primary consequence ; and adding to this,
4th, the separation of the sexes in flowers having no petals, he
formed the four groups of — 1st, Polypetalous ; 2nd, Monopetalous ;
8rd, Apetalous ; and 4th, Diclinous plants. The first three of these
he agam subdivided according as their stamens or their corolla grew
under the. ovary (hypogynous), upon the calyx (pexigynous), or upon
the ovary (epigynous) ; then the monopetalous epigynous group was
subdivided into plants having united stamens and those having them
distinct ; the result being eleven classes, which were placed by Jussiou
in the following order : —
r Stamens epigynous
Apetalous •< Stamens perigynous ....
[ Stamens hypogynous
(Corolla hypogynous ....
Corolla perigynous
r anthers united .
Corolla epigynous <
[ anthers distinct
r Stamens epigynous ....
Polypetalous i Stamens hypogynous
I Stamens perigynous ....
Didiuous
Class.
1
2
S
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
This was however so artificial a distribution, that botanists soon
found it as unsatisfactory as it was simple. Various changes have
therefore been reoonunended from time to time^ some of which are
the following : —
In 1818, De CandoUe, dropping the names of all Jussieu's classes,
and abolishing many of them, proposed to arrange as follows the 118
orders of Exogens with which he was at that time acquainted.
"^ ( Petals p«tig7noas {Calye\/U)Ta) .
Apetalous .... (Monochlamydea}
Class.
1
2
8
4
5
Thus the classes were reduced from eleven to five, which was a
defect ; but those which remained were supposed to be more natural,
which would have been an advantage. Five years afterwards, in his
' Regni Y^getabilis Systema Natunde,' he added the names inclosed
within parentheses, and he broke up the ThalamiflarcB into five cohorts,
but wiuiout stating what orders he arranged under them. We do
not find that he ever pursued the subject farther. Since that period
this great botanist has occupied himself wi^ the special study of
the natural orders^ and the public has derived no advantsge from his
general views, which is much to be regretted.
In 1825, Professor Agardh of Lund, afterwards bishop of Carlsbad,
proposed a great change in the subordination of Exogens, retaining
the principles of primary division recognised by Jussieu and De
Candolle^ but forming them into twenty subdivisions, defined by
various diaraoters analogous to those by which the orders themselves
are circumscribed. This, we believe, is the first step of any con-
sequence towards putting Exogens into a more natural grouping than
that of JussieiL In many respects the subdivisions are, as far as
^^ go> unobjectionable ; but they have excited scarcely any attention
among systematic botanists. The necessity however of some better
method of subordination than that of Jussieu and De Candolla has
become evident to everybody; and attempts have been made to effect
this by Drs. Bartling, Schi^tz, Yon Martins, and others on the
continent, and by Dr. Lindley in this oountiy. The last named
author has successively developed his system in his ' Nixus
Plantarum,' the ' Penny Cyclopedia,' article Exogens, his ' Natural
System of Botany,' and his ' Vegetable Kingdom.' We shall here
give an analysis of Dr. Lindl^s arrangement of Exogens, as given '
in the last mentioned work. Whatever may be its de&cts they are
rather inherent to the subject than attributable to any want of
knowledge or judgment in the author, as it undoubtedly displays the
largest acquaintance with the details of the structure of this class of
plimts that has yet been displayed by any writer on systematic
botany. The following is an analysis of the class of Exogens : —
Alliances of Exogens.
Sub-Class I. Diclinous Exogens.
Flowers ^ ^ , without any customaiy tendency to §,
I. Amentales. — Flowers in catkins, achlamydeous or monochla-
mydeous. Carpels superior. Embiyo smiJl, with little or no
albumen.
CaawxrUiacea, — Ovules 1 or 2, ascending. Radicle superior.
BehdacecB, — Ovule 1, pendulous. Radide superior.
AlUngiacea. — Ovules 00. Seeds winged.
SalieaeecB, — Ovules 00. Seeds cottony.
MyrieacetB, — Ovule 1, erect. Radicle superior.
Eknignaceog. — Ovule 1, ascending. Radicle inferior,
EXOGENS.
EXOGENa
IL Vkkcaleb. — Vlowen icaitend, monochUoajdeom. Oupel
giagb, sttpenor. Eqibrjo Urge, lyiog in a mudl qiMBiity of
AlbuifinL
BlUaginaeieB* — ^BadieU rapemr. OtoIm twin, 0ai^)eiid«d. Embryo
•fcnJgbt^ Albumiooufl. AnttMn 2-lobed, with yetiical iUsiiiM.
Urtieaeeee. — BadicU superior, Omle •oliUry, ereet Embryo
ftrtiffbt, alLomJiioaCr JtiiM UmpicL Stipolet wmiXi, flat
(%ra/opAy/Za««(R — Radiola mfenor« Embryo ezalbummouA. Pkmralo
many'lcATad, Ui^.
C3bRfia6ifi«6Ae. — Badiok soperior, Ornle ■oUtary, stupaaded.
Embryo hooked, exAlbamiDouap
Moracea. — Radicle euperior. Ovulei eolitaiy, raapended. Embryo
hooked, albumiDona.
Artoea^rpaceai. — Radicle tttperior, Omle solitary, erect or sus-
pended. Embiyo straight, ezalbuminous. Juice milky. Stipules
LuKS, convolute.
PlakMoeecB, — Radicle inferior. Embryo albuminous. Pltunule
minute. Juice limpid. Stipules large, deciduous.
III. EupBOBBiALis. — Flowers scattered, monochlamydeous. Carpels
consolidated, superior. Placentcs azile. Embryo surrounded by
abundant albumen. (Albumen occaaionally absent.)
SaphorHacea, — Ovules definite, suspended, anatropaL Radicle
superior.
Oyro9tem<m€tB. — Orules definite, suspended, oampylotropaL Radicle
inferior. Albumen mealy.
Scepaeeet. — Ovules definite, suspended, anatropal. Radicle superior,
^ , amentaceous.
Ob/MtWcAactfcs.—OTules definite, suspended, amphitropaL Radicle
Sttjperiot.
Empetraeeee. — Ovules definite, ascending, anatropaL Radicle
inferior.
^o/icto.— Ovules solitary, ascending; f , naked, combined into a
succulent cone.
Nepenthactce, — Ovules 00, ascending. Radicle inferior. Seeds
scobiform.
IV. QuBBVi^LU. — Flowers in catkins, monochlamydeous. Carpel
single, superior. Embiyo lai^ge, lying in a small quantity of
albumen.
Oorylaeem. — Ovary 2- or more celled. Ovules pendulous or peltate.
/if^riafMiaceat.— Ovary 1-celled. Ovule solitary, erect.
V. Gi>RB7ALB. — Flowers monochlamydeous, sometimes amen-
taceous. Carpels inferior. Embryo minute, in a large quantity
of albumen.
Oarryacem. — Flowers amentaceous. Leaves opposite, stipulate.
Hdmngxac^CB, — Flowers fascicled. Leaves alternate, stipulate.
VL HBvnpiBHALSS. — Flowers monochlamydeous. Carpels supe-
rior, disunited. Embryo surrounded by abundant albumen.
ifonimiacea.— Albumen cofjious, solid. Seeds pendulous. Embryo
small, external. Stamens perigynous.
AtherotpermaeecB, — Albumen copious, solid. Seeds erect Anthers
opening by recurved valves.
Myritiicaotm, — Albumen copious, ruminated. Sepals united into
ip.
(MdCMS. — ,
Albumen copious, solid. Seeds parietaL Embryo
a valvate cup.
Lard\
minute.
SchiMandraceoL — Albumen copious, solid. Seeds pendulous.
Embryo minute, internal Stamens hyposrnous.
ifeniifMrmacws. — ^Albumen sparing, soluL Seeds amphitropaL
Embryo large.
VU. CoouBBiTALaa.— Flowers monochlamydeous. Carpels inferior.
Plaoentn parietaL Embryo without albumen.
Oacurftaacscs.— Fruit pulpy. Plaoentn strictly parietaL Honope-
taloua
2>altMac«s.— Fruit dry. Placentn strictly parietaL Apetalous.
B^^ofiMMt<s.~Fruit dry. Plaoentn projecting and meeting in the
axis. Monodidhlamydeous.
VIIL PAFATALls.--Flowers diohlamydeous. Carpels superior, con-
solidated. Plaoentn parietaL ^bryo surrounded by abundant
albumen.
^•poyocsw.— Corolla monopetalous ; ? , without scales,
^oi^friacwi.— Corolla polypetalous ; $ , with scales in the throat
Sub-Class IL— Hypogynous Ezogens.
Flowers f,ov^ $ f . Stamens enturely free from the calyx
and corolla.
IX. ViOLAUBi.— Flowers monochlamydeous. Plaoentce parietal, or
suturaL Embiyo straight, with little or no albumen.
/'(acottrftocMB,— Flowers scattered, apetalous, or polypetalous.
Petals and stamens both hypogynous. Leaves dotless, or with round
dots only.
XMiiiMi«cici.^Ilowers,in catkins, apetalous, scaly, polysamous.
Stamens unilateial. r- -^ ji 4^/6
SamfdaecBt, — Flowers scattered, apetalous, tubular, hennaphnMlitCL
Leaves marked with both round and linear transparent dota. Stamfnn
perigynous.
PiunJUrracta. — Flowers polypetalous or apetalous^ oorooettad.
Petals perigynous, imbricated. Stamens on the stalk of the oTaxy.
Stjlee simple, terminaL Seeds arillate. Leaves stipalatcL
MaUskerinaeece. — Flowers polypetalous, ooconetted. Petals pecigy-
nous, imbricated. Stamens on the stalk of the ovary. Styles sinnple,
dorsaL Seeds without ariL Leaves without stipules.
Marvngaeeof. — Flowers polypetalous. Calyx many-leaved. Petals
perigynous. Anthers 1-ceUed. Fruit stipitate^ consolidated, siliquoae.
Seeds without albumen. Stamens perirvnoua.
Violacea. — ^Flowers polypetalous. Calyx many-leaved. Petals
hypogynous. Stamens all perfect Antiiers crested and tamed
inwards. Fruit consolidated. Seeds albuminous.
Frankmi4iee<E, — ^Flowers polypetalous. Calyx tubular, furrowed.
Petals hypogynous, unguioulate.
Tamartcacea. — Flowers polypetalous. Calyx many-leaved. Petals
hypogynous. Styles distinct Fruit consolidated. Seeds 00, basal,
comose, without albumen.
SawfogetiacecB. — Flowers polypetalous. Calyx many-leaved. Petals
hypogynous. Stamens partly sterile and petaloid. Anthers opposite ;
the petals naked^ turned outwards. Fruit consolidated. Seeds
albuminous.
OrcumlacecB, — Flowers polypetalous or monopetalous. Calyx many-
leaved. Petals ^pogynous. Fruit follicular, apocarpous.
TwrneracecB, — ^Flowers pol^petalou& Petals perigynous, contorted.
Styles forked. Leaves exstipulateu
X. CiSTALES. — Flowers monochlamydeous. Plaoentie parietal or
ButuraL Embryo curved or spiral, with little or no alomnen.
Oiatactas, — Stamens not tetradynamous, generally indefinite.
Flowers ^ or (/. Seeds with albumen. Fruit closed up.
BrastUacea, — Stamens tetradynamous. Flowers 4/<
BuedacecB. — Stamens not tetradynamous, definite. Flowers not
tetramerous. Seeds without albumen. F^uit usually open at the
point
CapparidaeetB, — Stamens not tetradynamous. Flowers 4. Seeds
without albumen. Fruit closed up.
XL Mal VALES. — Flowers monochlamydeous. Plaoentse axile.
Calyx valvate in nstivation. Corolla imbricated or twisted. Sta-
mens definite or 00. Embryo with little or no albumen.
StercuHaeecB.SiBmeDB columnar, all perfect Anthers 2-celled»
turned outwards.
ByUtienacecs. — Stamens monadelphous, in most cases partly sterile.
Anthers 2-celled, turned inwards.
Ftviontotftts.— Stamens free. Disc none. Seeda with albumen.
Embiyo curved. Petals permanent Calyx ribbed.
^fVd^Kso^aceoB.— Stamens free. Disc none. Seeds without albumen.
Embrvo amygdaloid.
Jfa2vac0(S.— Stamens columnar, all perfect Anthers 1-celled,
turned inwards.
^tacscs.— Stamens free, on the outside a disc Seeds with albumen.
Embiyo straight
XII. Safindalsb. — Flowers monochlamydeous, unsymmetricaL
Placente axile. Calyx and corolla imbricated. Stamens definite.
Embryo with little or no albumen. Stamens rarely 00.
IV0ma}M{raee(9.->Flowers complete, partially symmetrical. Calyx
valvate. Anthers 2-4-oelled, opening by pores.
PolygalacecB. — Flowers complete ^irr^gular) unsymmetricaL Petals
naked. Anthers opening longitudinally. Carpels 8. Seeds winged.
(In one case the ovary is adheront)
Vochyctcea. — Flowers complete, unsymmetrical, very irregular.
Petals naked. Anthers opening longltudiniJly. Carpels 8. Seeds
winged.
J^aphyleacea, — Flowers oomplete, unsymmetricaL Petals usually
with an appendage or 0. Anthers opening longitudinally. Carpels 8.
Seeds usuifuly anilate, wingless.
SapindacecB, — Flowers complete, unsymmetrical. Petals usually
with an appendage or 0. Anthers opening longitudinally. Carpels 8.
Seeds usually arillate, wingless.
Pe^vsriocMB. — Flowers apetalous. Carpels solitary.
Aceractm, — Flowers complete, unsymmetricaL Petals naked or 0.
Anthers opening longitudinally. Carpels 2. Seeds without an ariL
if aJp^Atocecs.— Flowers complete, partially symmetrical. Calyx
inibrioated. Petals naked, stalked. Ovules hanging by oords.
Stigmas simple. Embryo usually convolute.
Sijthroxylac9a,—'Flowen complete, partially symmetricaL Calyx
imbnoated. Petals with an appendage. Ovules sessile, pendulous.
Stigmas capitate. Embryo straight
XTTT. QuTnFBBALBB. — Flowers monochlamydeous. Placenta)
axile. Calyx imbricated. Corolla imbricated or twisted. Stamens
00. Emlnyo with little or no albumen. Stamens sometimes
definite in number.
/>ipterao0OL— Leaves simple^ alternate^ with large convolute stipules.
Flowers ^jmmetricaL Petals equilateraL Calyx unequid, permancmt,
winged. Anthers besked. Fnut 1-oelled ; 1-eeeded.
657
EXOQENS.
EXOGENS.
068
Temttromi€KetB, — Leaves simple, alternate, without stipules, or with
very small ones. Flowers symmetrical. Petals equilateral. Anthers
versatile. Seeds few or single. Stigmas on a long style.
BhuobolaeecB. — Leaves digitate, opposite. Flowers symmetrical
Petals equilateral. Stigmas sessile. Seeds solitary. Embryo with an
enormous radicle.
ClHtituecB, — Leaves simple, opposite, without siipules. Flowers
symmetricaL Petals equilateral. Anthers adnate, beakless. Seeds
solitary or few. Stigmas sessile, radiating.
Marcgraviaeeas, — Leaves simple, alternate without stipules.
Flowers unsymmetricaL Petals equilatexaL Anthers versatile. Seeds
innumerable, minut& Stigmas sessile.
Eypericcieece, — Petals oblique, glandular. Seeds numerous, naKed.
Styles long, distinct.
Reaumwiaeea. — Petals oblique, glandless. Seeds few, shaggy.
Styles long, distinct
XIV. Nymphalks. — Flowers dichlamydeous. Plaoentte axile or
suturaL Stamens 00. Embryo on the outside of a very laiige
quantity of mealy albumen. A part have no albumen.
Nymphaaeea — Carpels united into a many-celled fruit, with dissepi-
mental placentcd.
Cahomhacta. — Carpels distinct. Albvmen copious. Torus absent.
Ndumhiaeta, — ^Ca]^>elB distinct Albumen 0. Torus honeycombed,
very large.
XY. Raitaues. — Flowers monodichlamydeous. Plaoentcd sutural or
axile. Stamens 00. Embryo minute, inclosed in a large quantity
of fleshy or homy albumen.
Mttgjioliacece. — Carpels distinct. Stipules lax^e, convolute. Corolla
imbricated. Albumen homogeneous.
Anonacece, — Carpels distinct. Stipules 0. Corolla valvate. Albu-
men ruminate.
DUUnictctct, — Carpels distinct. Stipules 0. Corolla imbricated.
Albumen homogeneous. Seeds arillate.
Banvncukieece, — Carpels distinct. Stipules 0. Corolla imbricated.
Albumen homogeneous. Seeds without an aril.
Sarrcteeniaeea. — Carpels consolidated. Calyx permanent. Placentae
axile.
PapaveraeeeB. — Carpels consolidated. Calyx deciduous. Placenta
usually parietal.
XYL Bbrbbralbb. — Flowers monodichlamydeous. Placenteo sutural,
parietal, or axUe. Stamens definite. Embryo inclosed in a lai^e
quantity of fleshy albumen. '
Droteraeece, — Flowers regular and symmetricaL Plaoentss parietal.
Stamens alternate with the petals, or twice as many.
Fumariacea. — Flowers irregular and unsymmetrical. Plaoentce
parietaL Stamens opposite the petals.
BerberidacecB,— Flowen regular, symmetrical. Plaoentse sutural.
Stamens opposite the petals. Anthers with recturved valves.
Vitacece, — Flowers regular, symmetricaL Placentso axile. Stamens
opposite the petals. Anthers opening longitudinally.
PiUotporeteetB. — Flowers regular, mametricaL Placenta axile and
parietaL Stamens alternate with the petals. Ovules ascending or
horizontal. Corolla imbricated.
(Kaeaeea, — Flowers regular, mametricaL Placenta axile. Stamens
alternate with the petals. Ovules pendulous. Corolla valvate.
OyriUaeea. — Flowers re ular, symmetrical. Placentae axile. Stamens
alternate with the petals, if equid to them in number. Ovules pen-
dulous. Corolla imbricated.
XYIL Ebicalss. — Flowers dichlamydeous, symmetrical in the ovary.
Placentae axile. Stamens definite. Embryo inclosed in a large
quantity of fleshy albumen. Stamens occasionally adherent to
the corolla.
ffumiriacecB. — Flowers polypetalous. Stamens all perfect, mon-
adelphous. Anthers 2-celled, with a long membranous connective.
EpaeridaeecB. — ^Flowers monopetalous. Stamens all perfect, free.
Seeds with a firm skin. Anthers 1-celled, opening longitudinally.
Pyrolaoeas. — Flowers half-monopetaloua. Stamens all perfect, free.
Seeds with a loose skin. Embryo at the base of the albumen.
PraneoaeecB. — Flowers polypetalous. Stamens half-sterile and scale-
like, free. Seeds with a firm skin.
ifiono^ropocAK.— Flowers half-monopetalous. Stamens all perfect,
free. Seeds with a loose skin or wing. Embryo at the apex of the
albumexL
Srieacea. — Flowers monopetalous. Stamens all perfect, free. Seeds
with a firm or loose skin. Anthers 2-celled, opening by pores.
XYIIL RuTALES.— Tlowers monodichlamydeous, symmetricaL Pla-
oent« axile. Calyx and ooroUa imbricated, if present Stamens
definite. Einbryo with little or no albumen. OocaaionaUy
^ 9-
AfircmHacea. — FVuit consolidated, succulent^ indehiscent Petals
imbricated. Stamens free, or nearly so. Leaves dotted.
Ampridacea. — ^Fruit consolidated, hard, dry, somewhat valvular.
Petals valvate. Stamens free. Leaves generally dotted.
CedreUteete. — ^Fruit consolidated, capsular. Stamens deeply mon-
adelphous or free. Seeds numerous, wiitged
NAT. mar. mv, vol. il
Mduieece. — Fruit consolidated, berried, or capsular. Stamens
deeply monadelphous. Seeds few, wingless. Leaves dotless.
AnacardiaeecB, — Fruit apocarpous. Ovule single, suspended by a
cord rising from the base of the carpeL
Cdnnaracea;. — Fruit apocarpous. Ovules collateral, ascending,
orthotropaL sessile.
Rutaeea, — Fruit finally apocarpous, few-seeded, with the pericarp
separating in two layers. Ovules sessile, pendulous. Flowers $,
XatUkojcylacecB, — Fniit finally apocarpous, 1-seeded, with the peri-
carp separating in two layers. Ovules sessile, penduloua Flowers
^ ^ 9- ...
OchnaeecB. — ^Fruit finally apocarpous, 1-seeded, with the pericarp
not laminating, and a succulent conical torus.
SimarubaeecB. — Fruit finally apocarpous, 1-seeded, with the peri-
carp not laminating, and a dry inconspicuous torus. Albumen wanting.
Leaves alternate, without stipules.
ZygophyUactcB, — Fruit finally apocarpous, few-seeded, with the
pericarp not laminating, and a dry inconspicuous torus. Albumen
present Leaves opposite, with stipules.
EUainacea, — Fruit finally apocarpous, many-seeded. Flowers
polypetalous.
PodoatemacBCB. — Fruit finally apocarpous, many-seeded. Flowers
apetalous, very imperfect
XIX. Gerahialbb. — Flowers monodichlamydeous, synunetrioal.
Placentae axile. Calyx imbricated. Corolla twisted. Stamens
definite. Embryo with little or no albumen.
Linaeeat. — Flowers symmetrical. Styles distinct Carpels longer
than the torus. Seeds with little or no albumen.
CfilanixeecB. — Flowers regular, unsymmetrical, with a permanent
cup-like involucre. Stamens monadelphous. Albumen abundant
OxalidacecB. — Flowers symmetrical. Styles distinct Carpels longer
than the torus. Seeds with abundant albumen.
BaUaminacecB, — Flowers very irregular and unsymmetrical, without
an involucre. Stamens distinct Albumen non&
Ger<mi(icece, — Flowers usually symmetricaL Styles and carpeb
combined round a long-beaked torus.
XX. SiLBNALsa — ^Flowers monodichlamydeous. Placentae free, cen-
tral. Embryo external, curved round a little mealy albumen.
Carpels more than one, completely combined into a compound
fruit Some slightly perigynous, others d* ? •
Caryopkyllacea. — Calyx and corolla usually both present and sym-
metrical (4 and 4, or 5 and 5), the latter conspicuous. Ovules
amphitropal. Leaves opposite, without stipules.
IllecebracecB. — Calyx and corolla usually both present and sym-
metrical (4 and 4, or 5 and 5), the latter rudimentary. Ovules
amphitropal. Leaves with scarious stipules.
PortulacacecB, — Calyx and corolla both present and unsymmetrical
(2 and 5), the latter usually conspicuous. Ovules amphitropaL
Leaves alternate, succulent, without stipulea
Polygonacea, — 'Calyx only present, but often coloured. Ovnles
orthotropal. Kut usually triangular.
XXL Chenopodalbs. — Flowers monochlamj'deous. Placentae firee^
centraL Embryo external, either curved round or applied to the
surface of a little mealy or homy albumen. Carpels solitary, or
if more than one distinct Some slightly perigynous, others ^ f .
NyetaginaeecB. — Sepals united into a long (often coloured) plaited
tube which separates from its base, the latter becoming hard, and
forming a spurious pericarp.
PhytolaccacecB. — Sepals separate, flat Stamens alternate with the
sepals, or 00. Carpels several (or 1).
Am€trantaeecB.-—SeiptLlB separate or nearly so, flat Stamens oppo-
site the sepals. Anthers often 1-celled. Ovary 1; often several-
seeded. Flowers scarious, surrounded by imbricated bracts.
CAenopo(ita<»<r.— Sepals separate or nearly so, flat Stamens oppo-
site the sepals. Anthers 2-celled. Ovary 1; always 1-seeded.
Flowers herbaceous, naked.
XXII. PiPERALES. — Flowers achlamydeous. Embryo minute, on the
outside of a large quantity of mealy albumen. Occasionally
PiperacecB, — ^Carpel solitary. Ovule erect Embryo lying in
vitellus. Leaves opposite or alternate, with or without stipules.
CkhranihacecB. — Carpel solitary. Ovule suspended. Embryo
naked. Leaves opposite, with intermediate stipules.
SatiurwacecB. — Carpels several, distinct Ovule erect Embryo
lying in vitellus. Leaves alternate with stipules.
Sub-Class IIL Perigynous Exogens.
Flowers ^ or <? ^ $ . Stamens growing to the side of either the
adyx or coroUa. Ovary superior, or nearly so.
XXIIL FicoiDALES. — Flowers monodichlamydeous. Placentae oentrsl
or axile. Corolla, if present polypetalous. Embryo external, snd
curved round a smaU quantity of mealy albumen.
BaaeUacecB, — ^Petals absent Sepals distinct Fruit indosed in a
membranous or succulent calyx. Carpel single, solitary. Seed erect
2u
M
SXOGfiNd.
E:£oa£KS.
^
MtiembryaeetB, — Petak numeroua, oonspiououB. Carpels BdVeral,
coDflolidated.
Tetragoniaeea. — Petals absent. Carpels severali consolidated.
SeiUratUhaeea. — Petals absent. Sepals united into a tube. Carpel
single, solitary. Fruit inclosed in the hardened calyx tube.
XXIY. DiFENi^us. — ^Flowers monodichlamydeous. Carpel solitary.
Embryo amygdaloid, without albumen*
Thymdacece. — ^Anthers bursting lengthwise. Apetalous or poly-
petalous. Ovule solitary, suspended. Calyx imbricated.
iVofeaoME. — Anthers bursting lengthwise. Apetalous. Ovules
erect. Calyx Talvate.
La/urtueee, — ^Anthers bunting by recurved valves. Leaves perfect.
Fruit naked.
OauffthaeecR, — ^Anthers bursting by recurved valves. Leaves mere
colourless scales. Fruit buried in a succulent permanent calyx.
XXY. RofiALB. — Flowers monodichlamydeous. Carpels more or leas
distinct Placentss suturaL Seeds definite. Corolla, if present^
polypetalous. Embryo amygdaloid, with little or no albumen.
Calycanthacets, — Flowers consisting of numerous imbricated scales.
Co^ledons convolute.
Chry9obalan<icea, — Flowers polypetalous (or apetalous), nearly or
Suite regular. Carpel solitaxy. Style proceeding from ^e base of
le ovary.
F<ibacea!, or LeguminoiCB, — Flowers polypetalous or apetalous,
paphoriaceoua (or leguminous). Carpel solitary, with the style pro*
ceeding from the apex of the ovary.
Druptteea, — Flowers polypetalous, regular, drupaceous. Carpel
solitary, with the style proceeding from the apex of the ovary.
Pomeuece. — Flowers polypetalous, regular. Carpels adhering to the
calyx by their back.
Sanjpii$orbace(B, — ^Flowers apetalous. Carpel solitaxy, inclosed in a
hardened calyx-tube, forming a false pericarp.
jRoMcecE. — Flowers polypetalous. Carpels free from the calyx, and
quite or nearly so from each other.
XXVL Saxifkaoalb. — ^Flowers monodichlamydeous. Carpels conso-
lidated. Plaoente sutund or axile. Seeds 00. Corolla, if present^
polypetalous. Embryo taper, with a long radicle, and little or no
albumen.
SaxifragaewB, — Styles distinct. Leaves alternate.
Hydrangtaeea, — Styles distinct Leaves oppositei without sti-
pules.
CwMniaeea, — Styles diBtinct Leaves opposite, with lax^e inter-
petiolar stipules.
Brexiaeece, — Styles consolidated. Calyx many-leaved. Albumen 0.
Leaves alternate.
Lffthriieece. — Styles consolidated. Calyx tubular, permanent^ with
the petals in the margin. Albumen 0. Leaves opposite.
XXVIL Rbamivales. — Flowers monodichlamydeous. Carpels conso-
lidated. Plaoentea axile. Fruit capsular, berried, or cutipaoeoua.
Seeds definite. Embryo amygdaloid, with little or no idbumen.
PetMBoeea. — ^Flowers apetalous. Ovary composed of 4 carpels.
Calyx tubular, with defimte divisions. Cotyledons consolidated.
AqwktriaeetB. — Flowers apetalous. Ovary composed of 2 carpels.
Calyx tubular, with a definite number of divisions. Cotyledons
amygdaloid.
uhfKieecB, — ^Flowers apetalous. Ovary composed of 2 carpels.
Calyx imperfect^ and irregularly divided at the edge. Cotyledons thin
and leafy.
JUutmTMceat. — ^Flowers polypetalous. Calyx valvate. Stamens
opposite petals. Seeds erect.
CkaiUetioMa, — Flowers polypetaloua Calyx valvate. Stamens
alternate with the petals. Seeds pendulous.
SippocrcUcaeeee. — Flowers polypetalous. Calyx imbricated. Sta-
mens (S), monadelphous.
Cdoilraeete, — Flowers polypetalous. Calyx imbricated. Stamens
i/, distinct.
Staekkoiuti(ice€B, — Flowers monopetalous. Stamens episepalous.
Sapotaeece, — Flowers monopetalous. Stamens epipetalous. Ovules
ascending. Radicle short Cotyledons amygdaloid.
Styracaoea, — ^Flowers monopetalous. Stamens epipetalous. Ovules
in part at least suspended. Radide long. Cotyledons leaiy.
XXVIIL QxNTiANALES. — Flowcrs didhlamydeous, monopetalous,
r metrical. Placenta axile or parietal. Embryo minute, or with
cotyledons much smaller than the radide, lying in a large
quantity of albumen.
EbenacMB. — Stipules 0. Stigmas simple, sessile, radiating.
J (^f/oZuiceee.— -Stipules 0. Stigmas simple, at the end of a mani-
fest style. PlacentiB axile. Seeds definite, pendulous. Corolla
imbricated.
ApoqfnacttK, — Stipules 0. Stigmas collected into a massive head,
expanded at the base in the form of a ring or membruie, and con-
tracted in the middle. Albumen sometimes 0.
l^aniaiua. — Leaves opposite^ with intervening stipules.
JHapemiaeece, — Stipules 0. Stigmas simple, at the end of a
manifest style. Placentie axile. Seeds indefinite, peltate. Stamens
interpetalotts.
Stilbaeea, — Stipules 0. Stigmas simple, at the end of a manifest
sUle. Flaoente axile. Seeds defimte, erect Corolla valvate.
Flowers unsymmetricaL
Orobanehacetg, — Stipules 0. Stigmas simple, at the end of s
manifest style. Placenta parietal Flowers didynamous.
OaUianacea. — Stipules 0. Stigmss simple, at Uie end of a manifest
style. Placenta) pariataL Flowers regular.
XXIX. SoLAKALiB. — Flowers diohlamydeous, monopetalous. Pla-
oentea axile. Fruit 2-3-celled. Embryo large, lying in a small
quantity of albumen.
O2eao0aBL-~Stamens free, 2 or 4.
Solanaeea, — Stamens free, 5. Placentea axile. Embryo terete.
Atdepiadaeees, — ^Anthers and stigmas consolidated into a column.
CordiaeeoB, — Stamens free, 6. PlacentiB anle. Cotyledons leafy,
folded longitudinally.
OonvolviUaeecB, — Stamens free, 6. PlacentiB basal Cotyledons
leafy, doubled up.
OiueuiaeecB, — stamens free, 5. PlacentiB bassL Embryo filiform,
spiral.
PoUmonieieea, — Stamens free, 5. Plaoentn axile. Cotyledons
straight, planoHSOnvex.
XXX. CoBTUBALBS. — Flowers didilamydeous, monopetalous,*Bynime>
trical. Plaoentao free. Central embryo lying among a small quantity
of albumexL Occasionally monoohlamydeous or polypetalous.
BjfdrophyllaceoB. — Stamens alternate with the petals. Styles 2.
Inflorescence drdnate.
PUiimbaginace<B.~-^taineDB opposite the petals. Fruit membranous,
1-seeded. Styles 5. Stem herbaceous.
P^onla^naceee.— Stamens alternate with the petals. Style 1.
Inflorescence straight
PrimulaceiB, — Stamens opposite the petals. Fruit capsular, many-
seeded. Style 1. Stem herbaceous.
MyrtinaeecB. — Stamens opposite the petals. Fruit indehiscent,
drupaceous. Style 1. Stem woody.
XXXI. EomATiTML — Flowers diohlamydeous, monopetalous, symmetri-
cal or unsymmetricaL Fruit nucamentaoeous, consisting of several
1-seeded nuts, or of clusters of them separate or separable.
Embryo large, with little or no albumen. (Very rarely hypogy-
nous.) Regular-flowered orders passing firom Solanals.
JoMtninacetB. — Flowers regular, ^, unsymmetricaL Stamens 2. Fruit
2-lobed. Stigma naked.
SalvadaracecB, — Flowers regular, symmetricaL Stamens 4. Fruit
siinple. Stigma naked.
Areiiaeeee, — Flowers regular, synunetricaL Stamens 5. Stigma
naked. Nuts 4. Confluent inflorescence drdnate.
NolanaeecB, — Flowers regular, symmetricaL Stamens 5. Nuts 5
0T^/. Stigma naked. Inflorescence straight
ioraginaeetB. — Flowers regular, symmetricaL Stamens 5. Nuts
4 or I/. Stigma naked. Inflorescence drdnate.
Br^moniaceoB, — Flowers regular, symmetricaL Nut solitary. Stigma
indusiate. ^tamens hypogynous.) Irroguluvflowered. Orders passing
into Bignoniads.
LamiacecB. — Flowers irregular, unsymme'ricaL Nuts 4. Ovule
erect
VerbeiMcea. — Flowers irregular, unsymmetrical. Nuts confluent
Ovules erect
MyopomcecB, — Flowers irregular, unsymmetricaL Nuts confluent
Ovules penduloua Anthers ^celled.
Selaginacea, — Flowers irregular, unsymmetricaL Nuts confluent
Ovules pendulous. Anthers 1-celled.
XXXII. BiONOViALn. — ^Flowers dichlamydeous, monopetalous, unsym-
metricaL Fruit capsular or berried, with its carpek quite con-
solidated. Plaoentn axile or parietal, or free oentraL Embryo
with little or no albumen.
Pedaliaeea, — Placenta parietaL Fruit bony or capsular. Embryo
amygdaloid. Radide short
Ounaracea. — ^Placenta parietaL Fruit capsular or baccate. Embzyo
with minute cotyledons. Radide long.
Creteentiacece, — Placenta parietaL Fruit succulent, hard-shelled.
Embryo amygdaloid. Radide short
Bignoniacece, — Placenta axile. Seeds winged, sessile, without
albumen. Cotyledons large, leafy.
^contAoeece.— Placenta axile. Seeds wingleas, attached to hard
placental processes, without albumen. Cotyledons large, fleshy.
ScrophMariace<g, — Placenta axile. Seeds albuminous. Cotyledons
scuody larger than or not so large as the radicle.
LentibulariacecB, — Placenta freia. Central seeds minute, without
albumen. Cotyledons much smaller than the radide.
Sub-Class lY. Epigynous Exogens.
Flowers ^ or ^ ^ ^ . Stamens growing to the dde of either the
calyx or corolla. Ovary inferior, or nearly so.
661
EXOQEKa
EXOGEKa
XXXIIL Campakalss. — ^Flowers dlchlamydooufl, monopetolous.
Embxyo with little or do albumen.
CampamdaeecB, — Oywj 2 or more celled. Anthen free, or half
united. Stigma naked. Corolla valvate, regular.
LobeUaeecc—OYtaj 2 or more ceUed. Anthers wpigpnatioMB,
Stigma surrounded by hairs. Corolla valvate, irregular.
Uoodeniaeea, — Ovary 2 or more celled. Anthers syngenesious or
free. Stigma induaiate. Corolla induplioate.
^^Kliaeea.— Oraiy 2 or more celled. Stamens and styles united
into a column. Corolla imbricated.
FcOertanacME.— Ovary l-celled. Corolla imbricated. Anthers freei
Orule pendulous. Albumen none.
DiptoooeMB.— Ovary 1-celled. CorolU imbricated. Anthers free.
Ovule pendulous. Seeds albuminous.
Oalycaraeeas. — Ovary 1-celled. Corolla valvatei Anthers synge*
neaious. Ovule pendulous. £(eeds albuminous.
^jfcraccoL— Ovary 1-celled. Corolla valvate. Anthers syngenesious.
Ovule erect. Albumen none.
XXXIV. Mtbtalbb.— Flowers dichkmydeous, polypetalous. Pla-
cente axile. Embryo with little or no albumen. (Occasionally
monochlamydeous.)
OombretacecB, — Ovary 1-celled.' Ovules pendulous. Leares doUees.
Seeds without albumen. Cotyledons convolute.
Alangiiieea. — Ovanr l-celled. Ovules pendulous. Leaves dotless.
Seeds albuminous Cotyledons flal
Chamalaueiaeas, — Ovary 1-celled. Ovules ascending. Leaves
dotted. Embryo fused into a solid mass.
ffaloragacetB. — Ovary with more than 1 celL Flowers polypetalous
or apetalous. Calyx open, minute. Stamens definite. Oviues pen-
dulous. Cotyledons minute. (Occasionally 1-celled.)
Onagr<teecB. — Ovary with more than 1 cell. Flowers polypetalous
orapetalous. Calyx valvate. Stamens definite. Ovules horizontal
or ascending. Cotyledons flat, much larger than the radide.
Bhw>phoraeea,'—Onry with more than 1 cell. Flowers polypeta-
lous. Calyx valvate. Stamens indefinite. Cotyledons flat, much
shorter thui the radicle, which germinates before the fruit falls.
^e^vifioceee.-^ Ovary with more than one celL Flow^ mono-
petalous, coronated. Calyx valvate. Stamens indefinite, mon-
adelphous. Cotyledons amygdaloid.
MeUuUmacea.—OYKry with more than 1 celL Flowers polypeta-
lous. Calyx imbricated. Stamens definite. Anthers rostrate.
Leaves usually dotless.
MyrtaeecB.—Ovry with more than 1 celL Flowers polypetalous or
apetalous (or valvate). Calyx imbricated. Stamens 00. Anthers
oblong. Lsayes usually dotted.
Zet^AufoceoL— Ovary with more than 1 cell. Flowers polypeta-
lous. Calyx valvate or imbricated. Stamens 00, in part collected
into a fleshy hood. Anthen oblong. Leaves dotless.
XXXY. Cactales.— Flowers dibhlamydeous, polypetalous. Placenta
parietaL Ilmbryo with little or no albumen.
^omoZioeos.— Sepals and petals distinct. Stamens opposite thfr
petals. Styles separate. Ovules pendulous.
ZooMMte.— Sepals and petals distmct Stamens scattered. Styles
confluent Ovules pAdulous. Seeds albuminous.
Cactoceof. — Sepals and petals numerous, indistinguishable. Stamens
scattered. Styles confluent. Ovules horicontaL Seeds without
albumen.
XXXVL Gbo68AI.es.— Flowers dichlamydeous, polypetalous. Seeds
numerous, minute. Embryo smalli lying in a huge quantity of
albumeiL
CfroutUariactCB. — Fruit pulpy. Placenta parietaL
EteaUaniaeea. — ^Fruit capsular. PaoentsB axile. Style and stamens
definite. Calyx imbricateo.
PAiZacfe/pAocea;.— Fruit capsular. Placenta axile. Styles disunited.
Stamens 00. Cidyx valvate.
Barrin0ofUaeece. — Fruit pulpy or fibrous. PlacentiB axile. Style 1.
Stamens 00. Calyx imbricated.
XXXVII. CnrcHONALES. — Flowers dichlamydeous, monopetalous.
Embryo minute, lying in a large quantity of albumen.
VaeeiniaeecB. — Stamens epigynous. Anthers opening by pores.
Ooltmetliaeea, — Stamens epipetalous, bursting longitudinally.
Anthers sinuous. Flowers unsymmetricaL
Cfinekonacete. — Stamens epipetalous, bunting longitudinally.
Anthen straight. Leaves with mterpetiolar stipules.
Obpr{/b2ia««8. — Stamens epipetalous, bursting longitudinally.
Anthen straight Fruit consolidated. Leaves without stipules.
6Uuice0e.— Stamens epipetalous, bursting longitudinally. Anthen
straight. Fruit didymous. Leaves vertieillate, without stipules.
XXXYIII. Umbbllaleb. — Flowen dichlamydeous, polypetalous.
Seeds solitary, large. Embryo small, lying in a large quantity
of albumen.
Apiacea^ — Fruit didymous, with a double epigynous disc, i
AraUaeea, — ^Fruit not didymous, without a doable epigynous disc^
d or more celled. Pentamerous flowerB* Coirolla valvate Leaves
alternate, without stipules. Anthen turned inwards, opening
lengthwise.
Comacece, — ^Fruit not didymous, without a double epigynous disc,
2 or more celled. Tetramerous flowers. Corolla valvate. Leaves
opposite, without stipules.
Mttmamdidaeecei — ^Fruit not didymous, without a double epigy-
nous disc, 2-oelled. Corolla imbricated. Leaves alternate, with
stipules. Anthen with deciduous valves. ^
jSmmaeea, — ^Fmit not didymous, without a double epigynous disc^
8- (or 1-) oeUed. Corolla imbricated. Leaves alternate, without
stipules. Anthen turned outwards, opening lengthwisci
XXXTX. Ababa 1.18. — Flowen monochlamydeous. Embryo small,
lying in a large quantity of albumen.
Sanialtacea. — Ovary 1-oelled. Ovules definite, with a coated
nucleus.
Xorati/AocMe;— Ovary l-oelled. Ovules definite, with a naked
nucleus.
ArUtoloekiaetm.'-OYnrj d-6-celled. Ovules 00.
On this arrangement Dr. Lindley makes the following general
remarks : — *
** The office of reproduction is, after that of sustaining life, the most
essential in the economy of plants and animalfl, and therefore tiie
modifications which are found in the organs of reproduction may be
expected to furnish the best characten for classification, after those of
nutrition. The latter have been already employed as the foundations
of the classes, as far as they appear susceptible of being so applied ;
the former, consisting of the stamens and pistil, have beisn little used
for the classes, and appear to present as many modifications as are
required for secondary divisions. That was the opinion of LimuBus,
who adopted them m the construction of the cianms and orden of
his sexual system ; but he mainly relied upon their number, which is
a dronmstance of little or no importance, and where that was done
his classification proved useless; but in those parts of the system in
which he made use of other circumstances, as in his Monaddphia,
IHaddpkiaf Tdradynamia, JDidynmiUaf Synffenetia, ko., his divisions
ceased wholly or in part to be artificial, and although in some
instances modified, stul correspond essentially with the natural
orden of modem botanists. Nor did the importance of the stamens
and pistil escape the keen eye of Jussieu, who relied upon them very
much in the construction of his ingenious system. In the first place
he separated from all other Exogens those which have the stamens
in one flower and the pistil in another, and he called them Diclinous,
and by this process he brought together a collection of natural orden
corresponding with the Monoecious and Dicscious plsnts of T.mTimw«
No one can doubt that this was a judicious step, and upon the whole
the plants collected in the Diclinous division resemble each other
more than they reeemble anything else ; but he excluded a large
number of truly Diclinous plants, wUch are scattered over other parts
of his classification, and tms has led to the idea that the distinction
itself was a bad one, an opinion in which I formerly concurred ; but
a more careful examination of it sinoe^ and an extensive acquaintance
with the vegetable kingdom, has entirely convinced me that we have
no available characten for breaking up Exogens into primary groups,
or sub-classes, superior to those of separated and united sexes, that
is to diolinism and hermaphroditism. Not that thev are without
exceptions ; to employ the forcible language of Jussieu nimself : — ' Ut
in prsDcedente serie normullas didinis hermaphroditis conmixtas
Elantis admittit exceptsB, sic in diclinum ordines qusedam irrspunt
ermaphroditte ; consentiente aut jubente naturft, qusB stabiliores
interdnm eludit regulaa, nonnunquam instabilis ipsa aut abstrusis
legibus obtemperans.' (' Gen. PL' 384.) But if what are called poljf-
gamous plants, that is to say, such as have a rudimentary pisUl m
the male flowers, and rudimentary stamens in the female flowers, are
regarded as being hermaphrodite, as they surely are, and the idea of
a diclinous structure is limited to cases of a total separation of the
stamens and the pistil, these exceptions are reduced to a small and
unimportant number of no moment in a dassification. For this
reason then the Diclinous sub-class of Jussieu is still preserved and
increased by modem discoveries, and improved by the expulsion of
such plants as Piper, CfnetuMf Ulmut, and others, which belong to
hermaphrodite orders, or have other affinities than those suggested
by Jussieu. In this way Exogens are broken up into two groups, the
one Diclinous and the other Hermi^hrodite. The latter is cuvided
by almost everybody into Polypetalous, Monopetalous, and Apetalous
sub-classes, following the old systematists who knew of little bevond
external characters, and had small acquaintance with any plants
except those of Europe. But all experience shows, what reason
seems to indicate, that no great natural combinations can be eflected
by such distinctions. Exceptions to the constancy of such characten
are endless ; there is probably not one polypetalous order that is not
also apetalous, and many of them are even monopetalous, of which
Rueworts, Houseleeks, Anonads, Leguminous plants, Milkworts, and
many more afford familiar examples. The apetalous orden are
occasionally polypetalous, as in many genera of Buck-Wheats and
Daphnad's. The monopetalous structure becomes polypetalous in
all but a very few cases, even indeed in such naturu orden as the
Primwc»rts ; and it even disappean altogether, as in Olivewortr and
663
EXOGENS.
EXOQENa
6M
Primworts. Nor is it probable that chAraoters derived from the
calyx and corolla should be of the very highest Talue ; for in the
first place those organs are physiologically identical, their distinction
having no real existence except in certain special instances ; and in
the next place the importance of them to the act of reproduction can
hardlv be considerable, when we find that plants are multiplied quite
as well in their absence as in their presence, and even that^ as in the
Yioleti some Leguminous plants, the common Apple, &a, which
habitually produce them, seeds are matured as freely when they are
partially away as when in a state of high development. For this
reason the oalyx and corolla are here rejected as organs suited for
distinguishing the primary groups, or the subclasses of Bxogens. We
are not however justified in assuming that the calyx and corolla are
never of any high importance in plants, and therefore, while they are
objectionable as forming the basis of a classification per se, they are
recognised as having a real value in connection wiUi the stamens.
If the stamens have no adhesion to either calyx or corolla, then it
may be assumed that the latter organs may be dispensed with, and
for this reason the first sub-class of hermaphrodite Exogens is charac-
terised by the stamens standing entirely clear of the floral envelopes,
or being, in the language of Jussieu, hypQgynous. But if there is
any adhesion between the stamens and either the calyx or corolla, it
may equally be assumed that the one oigan is in some way necessary
to the other ; for this reason the perigynous character is admitted as
a valid mark of a sub^slass ; not however a slight and inappreciable
adhesion, but a real and manifest union of the parts ; and it is con-
sidered immaterial whether the stamens grow on the petals or the
calyx, provided they grow on one of them.
" Beyond this we have that further degree of adhesion, to which
Jussieu gave the name of Epigynous^ consisting of a union not only of
the calyx or corolla to the stamens, but of all those organs to the
tides of the ovary. This, in which it may be supposed that a higher
degree of necessity for the incorporation of the floral oigans exists
than in the former case, is taken as the distinctive mark of a third
sub-class of hermaphrodite Exogens, so that the sub-classes are
established on the following grounds : —
Flowers absolutely unisexual ... I. DiouNOua
Flowers hermaphrodite : —
Stamensnot adhering to either calyx or coroUa II. Htpootvous.
Stamens adhering to either calyx or corolla IIL Pkbioynou&
Stamens, oalvx, and corolla all adhering to ) ,^ VprnvvoTra
the side of the ovary . . . . \^^' ^^^<^^^ovh,
« This it may be said is essentially the old plan of Jussieu ; but there
is this material difference between the method now proposed and
that of the great chief of the French school ; that what he treated as
a secondary character is made primary ; while his primary distinction
of polypetalous, monopetalous, and apetalous structure is treated
auHe as a subordinate consideration, as it surely deserves to be. If
tie classification thus obtained be attentively studied it will be found
to offer many entirely new combinations, while others of universally
recognised truth are not disturbed by it. Of these new eombinations
there are few to which any serious objection seems te apply, and it is
believed that the larger part of them are more opposed to our pre-
judices than to truth. Not that I have the presumption to suppose
that they will meet the universal approval of botanists. What method
of classification ever has or ever can be? So long as there are points
of view from which a survey may be taken of the vegetable kingdom,
so long will there be conflicting opinions as to the way in which the
ohjects that meet the eye can best be grouped.
" In former attempts at redistributing the natural orders of Exogens,
I had proposed to throw into one sub-class all those in which the
embryo is very small, as compared with the albumen in which it is
imbedded, and I still think that this peculiarity is of as much
importance amonpf plants as the being oviparous or viviparous among
aainnaW But although I do uot at present see a reason for retracting
my former opinion on that subject, yet I do see that the time is hardly
come for carrying out such a principle satisfactorily ; and therefore,
instead of employing it for the character of a sub-class, it has only
been used as a means of limiting alliances.
'< Although, firom the complicated nature of the affinities of plants,
no hope can be reasonably entertained of securing an unbroken line
of transition from one end to the other of the series in which the
various groups must necessarily be treated of, yet it will be found
that the method here proposed offers very few considerable gaps in
the chain of relationship.
"Commencing with the Amental Alliance, which seems to stand
in near relation to the Joint Firs {Onetacece), among Gymnosperms,
the passage to the Urtical and Euphorbial is too plam to require
explanation ; of the latter the Quemal and Ganyal may be regarded
as epigynouB, forming the first without albumen, the second witli an
abundance of it Nutmegs in the Menispermal Alliance then fit in ;
and the twining Menispermads may be taken as an aticipation of
Cucurbitals, of which the Papayal Alliance is an offiiet a little out of
the direct line of succession. Even to the latter however an analogue
is found among Violala, in the form of Bixads and Samyds ; thence
Tumerads conduct us directly into the Cistal Alliance.
" At this point we quit the debateable ground of affinities, and
passing necessarily through Malvala. Sapindal% and Quttiferals, we
reach the Nymphal Alliance through Tutsans. Here however the
chain is evidentiy broken, and probably the sequence is wrong. The
Water-Shields {Cahomhacea)^ among NymphaJs, pass directly into
the Ranal Alliance by way of the Crow-Foots, whence Poppy- Worts
join Fume-Worts in the Berberal Alliance. At this place Cyiillada
appear to form a connecting link with Humiriads among EricalS) and
the latter pass directly into the Rutal Alliance by the intervention of
such plants as dnrea. From Rutals the passage is easy to the
Geranial, Silenal, and Chenopodal Alliances, which suddenly stop with
the Peppers ; this ia however a doubtful case of affinity, although
such a plant as Batia may seem to justify the approximation. At the
point now reached the perigynous sub-class is penetrated by way of
the Ficoidal Alliance, which might be almost united with the Cheno*
podaL Scleranths, among Ficoidals, seem to present a transition to
Salvadorads in the Dapluud Alliance, of which again a part of the
Rosal Alliance is almost a polypetalous form. From Rosals to Saxi-
fragals, and then by way of Brexia to Rhamnads, is but a step. At
this point the C^entianal AlUance is entered by way of Holly- Worts,
and we quit it by moving trom Gentian- Worts into the Solanal
Alliance. The Cortuaal, Echial, and Bignonial Alliances may be
passed without any obstacle, and thus we readx the end of the
perigynous sub-class. Gesner- Worts in the Bignonial Alliance fit
on to Gk>odeniads, among the Campanals, of the epigynous Bub-dass.
These join Myrtals through Myrobalans on the one hand, and
Napoleon- Worts on the other. From Myrtals we pass to the Cactal
Alliance, which may be theoretically considered a parietal condition
of the former, so near do the Onagrads of the former approach the
Loasads of the latter group. This brings us to Barringtoniads and
other orders collected in the Grossal Alliance. The CinchonaU are
entered by way of Bilberry-Worts, and quitted through the Stellate
plants, which evidently touch Umbellifers in the Umbellal Alliance.
At this point a passage is effected into the last alliance, that of
Asarals, by way of Witch-Hazels and Sandal-Worts, till the whole line
is finally closed by the Birth- Worts. These singular plants with
their ternary flowers seem to have an imcontestable relationship to
Yams among Dictyogens, and thus the circle of affinities eventually
returns into itself.
** Each of the sub-classes consists of alliances which have also in many
instances a strong lateral relation ; so that in order to obtain a dear
idea of their mutual correspondence it is necessary to place them side
by side as well as in succession. This is very obvious in the following
instances: —
iHelinout.
UriieaUt . .
BuphorbiaUt .
MeniapernuUei
Oucurhitaiea .
HypoffTnoot. Perigynoof.
ChenopoddUa . Fieoididei .
MalvdUa . . Daphnalet .
RanaUt . . . SaiifnigeUet
ViokUcM . . . BigwmiaUs
{Cre$caUia),
Epigynoos.
MyriaUM.
CampanaUt.
" This abundantly shows how hopeless it is to express thejreal affini-
ties of plants by any other means than a map or some such contrivance,
and that all sequences will of necessity be inadequate to explain in
any considerable degree the position in which natural orders really
stuid with relation to each other.'*
An attempt at arranging the orders according to the system then
adopted by Dr. Lindley, was made in the ' Penny Cyclopaedia ; ' and
we subjoin it on the next page as a specimen of how complicated
affinities may be expressed upon a flat surface. A series of irregular
solid spheres would perhaps express the affinities of the orders better.
That these groups are all perfect in themselves, or nearly so, is
sufficiently proved by Albuminoice, the sequence of whose orders may
be expressed as follows ; the orders included in the diagram beiug
marked with * : —
1. Awmalet, — MttgiioliaeecB
WintemcecB
DilleniacecB
Bcrb«rcu!eaf
*Anonacea
Monimiacece
Atkerotpermacea
MyrUiicaeea
^SeMaandraeecB
2. BantUea. — NymphoBoeem
J^ydropeUidem
NdmMacea
BanttneuUKea
— PodophylUa
Papwftraceaa
— Fwnariea
Fntncoaoeai^)
Sarraeeniaeeca
Cephalotace€e
Droteraeece
3. PrimvlaUa, — Primviacea
MyninacetB
]U>enaeea{f)
AquifoliaeecBi^)
4. OtrUiamaUa, — Apocynaetm
Spiffdictceee
OmtianacecB
5. Loganiales. — Loganiaceai
Potdliacece
6. CHnchonaUi. — CaprifoliacecB
*Oindu)nacc(B
LygodyaodeaciOi
7. UmbeUalet, — *Apiaeem
Araliaoea
8. PiUa9porale$.'-*VUaee<g
Olaeacea
PiUoaporacea
9. OrouaUt, — OrautUaeecB
Bruniacew
EaeaUomaeem
10. LaJthrcsaUa. — Pyrolacea
*M(m(Urop<ice(B
OrobanehacecB
(?) Q)
11 — *Oarryace<B
12 — ^AriatoiochiaeecB
13. Piperoita. — ^Piperacta
Sawuraeeee
*OhUnranthaceti
EXORHIZ^.
EYE.
AititolodiMoae m* MuootiopMea
Wnr lurtlier infonnation on the subject of natural arrangements the
student should consult Dr. Lindley's ' Vegetable Kingdom.'
EXORHIZJS. [ExooENs.]
EXO'STEMMA (from !{«, without, and (rr^ft^jM, a crown) a genus
of Plants belonging to the natural order dnchofMcea. It has an
obomte 6-toothed calyx; a corolla with a terete tube, and a 5-parted
limb with linear segments ; the anthers linear, exserted ; the capsule
•rowned by the calyx, dehiscing from the apex through the dissepi-
ments into two hau-firiiits ; the seeds girded by a membranous entire
border. The species are trees or shrubs, with lanceolate oval short-
stalked leaves, and stipules solitary on each side of the petioles.
B. OaribtBum, Quinquina Piton, Sea«ide Beech, has oyate-lanceolate
acuminated glblnt>us leayes; axillary l>flowered pedicles, rather
shorter than the petioles ; the calyx bluntly 5-toothed ; the style and
stamens about equal in length to the corolla. It is a tree about
twenty feet Ugh, and a native of the Caribbee Islands, Quadaloupe,
Stb DonungD, Jamaica, Santa Crux, and Mexico. This plant is tiie
Oinehona Caribcea of Jacquin and the O. Jamaicentit of Wright The
capsules before they are ripened are very bitter, and produce a burning
itdiing when appli^ to the nostrils and lips. The bark is also bitter,
and possesses a tonic, febrifuge, and emetic action on the svstem, but
it does not appear to have either quinine or cinchonine in its compo-
sition. The bark is genendly smooth and gray on the outside. Its
flavour, according to Dr. Wright, is at first sweet, with a mixture of
the taste of horae-radiah and aromatic oils, but afterwards it becomes
excessively bitter and disagreeable. When examined by the micro-
scope it presents innumerable shining crystsiline points, which,
according to Guiboiirt, are some principle peculiar to the bark.
B, fioribwndck^ Quinquina of St. Luda, has elliptic acuminated
glabrous leaves; peduncles terminal, corymbose; flowers smooth; the
teeth of the calyx shorty acute ; the capsules turbinate. It is a native
of the West In^a islands, among woods by the side of torrents. It is
the Cinclwna jUmhwnda of Swartz; C, Sanda Lucia of David, C,
mtnUana of ,Badier, and (7. Luciana of Yittmann. The bark is similar
to the last, and used ss a substitute for the Peruvian bark, but
Pelletier and Caventou discovered no quinine or cinchonine in any
part of the plant
B, SovMtmum, Quinquina de Piauhi, has leaves obovate or ovate,
acute, smooth; the corymbs few, flowered, terminal; the capsules
scarcely an inch long) obovate, compressed, the valves usually 4-nerved;
the seeds transversely oblong, with a broad wing all round. This
plant is a native of Brazil, and is used as a substitute for the Peruvian
bark. Buchner found in it an alkaloid, which he called E»eubeckino,
on the supposition that this plant was an E$enhcckia, The alkaloid
was probably cinchonine.
B. Penwianum is the Cineluma Peruviana of Poiret It has ovate-
oblong acute leaves, rounded at the base, the upper sessile nud
cordate. It is a tree ten or twelve feet high, and grows iu the colder
parts of Peru, on the declivities of the Andes, between the river
Chota and the village of Querocotillo, 8000 feet above the level of
the sea. The bark is very bitter, and has a sweetish taste, with a
nauseous smelL There are several other species of Exotlanma, whicli
have also been used as cinchona barks, but the above are those which
are best known.
(Don, JhchlamydeMu Plants; Lindley, Flora Mcdica ; BiBchofl*,
MediciniichrPharmaceutiKhe JBotanik,)
EYE. The organs appropriated to the sense of sight are distri-
buted very extensively, yet with that frugality which always regulates
the operations of nature in the construction of animals. All the
active species which live in the light are furuinhed with them; the
rest are disqualified to possess as well as to profit by them, by their
limited powers of locomotion, or bv constant residence in the dark.
In conformity with this rule, to which there are few if any exceptions,
these organs are occasionally associated with the lowest types of
animal development, and are sometimes absent iu the highest Thus
some radiated anunaU, most of the articulated tribes, and many of
the moUusca, have manifest oi^gons of vision, and some of them are of
the most curious and artificial construction ; on the other hand, the
mole and the shrew-mouse, both vcrtebrated animals, and belonging
to the highest order of that class, the mammalia, ara blind. They
have eyes, it is true; but those of the mole are not, larger than the
head of a pin, and are unprovided with optic nei'ves ; and the
equally imperfect eye of the shrew is covered with skin, from which
hair grows as on the rest of the body. Hence, even in the absence of
further evidence, we might conclude that if these animals have any
perception of light, it can onlv be sufficient to warn them back to
their haunts when by any accident they emerge to the day. But it is
more probable that they do not see at all ; and that these rudimentary
oipms, like the male nipple, exiat only in conformity with the general
model of vertebrated construction.
067
ETE.
ETK
The sinictunl peculiarities of the eye, ob well ob the nremoe of
that oigan, may be inferred with more certainty from tne circum-
Btaaces of an animal than from the place it ooenpiea in any zoological
scale : in fact^ no part haa a cloaer relation to the habits and mode of
existence. The eye may be simple or compound, single or multiplied,
fixed or moyeable : it may be encased in a hard transparent shell ; or
lie deeply imbedded within the protection of a bony socket • or
project from the surface of the head at the extremity of a sensitive
and retractile horn : it may be adapted for near or distant^ oblique or
direct^ vision ; for seeing in a strong or a weak lights in a dense or in a
rare medium ; or it may be form^ so as to accommodate itself to
each of these conditions in its turn ; and theso peculiaritiea will all
be found upon examination to be in strict accordance with the
exigencies of the animal Mere dijOferenoe in bodily size, and the pro-
portionate reduction or increase in the bulk of the eye, is sufficient to
constitute a reason for a difference in its structure, and may suggest
an explanation when such discrepancies are obserred to exift in
animals otherwise alika
Tet with all the varieties in configuration to which we have
alluded, it is rather in form than in substance that the eyes of animals
differ firom each other. The oigan has always a common purpose, and
is essentially the same in all cases : that lb, we find an assemblage of
the same fundamental parts, generally arranged in the same order,
even when our powers of obiervation are assisted by the microscope,
and until all traces of oiganisation are lost in extreme tenuity of
texture and the transparency which results from it. And although
there are refinements m the structure of the organ of which we do
not know the purpose, and certain delicate a(]ljustments in the
exercise of the fiiioulty of which we do not know the instruments, yet
upon the whole we can deduce the principles upon which the eye is
constructed, and assign the uses of its several parts with great
certainty from our knowledge of optical and physiological laws.
The human eye is the most complete type of this organ, and the
struetture and functions of the human eye will be here more parti-
cularly described, with occasional remarks upon the structure of the
eyes of the lower «mima1«-
The object, or what may be called the general problem, of the
human eye, is to combine distinctness and extent of vision with the
security and maintenance of the oigan, and the utmost convenience in
using it. The )>arts associated for tiiese purposes are the orbits, or
sockets, of the eye ; the optic nerve ; the eyeball, or globe, with its
contents, and the external muscles which move and suspend it ; the
eyelids ; the lachrymal apparatus ; the nerves and vessels which supplv
these parts, and the mass of fatty and cellular substance which
isolates and supports them.
Orbits. — ^The eyes with their appendages are lodged in two symme-
trical roomy cavities in the skull, completed in front by the eyelids,
but elsewhere entirely drcumsoribed by bone, the office of which it
need hardly be said is to protect them from iiguiy, and from any
pressure that might embarrass the perfect freedom and precision of
their movements. These cavities are called the Orbits, Orbital Fossa),
or Sockets of the eye. Seven bones of tiie cranium or face, which we
need not enumerate, enter into the composition of each. They are
separated from each other in their whole depiA, which is about two
inches, by the posterior chambers of tiie nose. They are conical in
shape, or, more striotiy speaking, pyramidal, and obscurely quad-
rangvdar. The apex is directed oackwards ; the base, about an inch
and a quarter in width, is directed forwards, with a considerable
inclination outwards or towards the temple. The margin is less
{)rominent at the outer side than ekewhere, so that when viewed
ateiallv it presents a wide semicircular notch, with ^e concavity
forwards. One object of the divexgenee of the orbits, and of this
retreating curvature of the outer margin, is obviously to increase the
extent of vision. If the point of the finger be held before the eye,
and carried gradually baox towards the ear, it will be observed that
in consequence of this arrangement it can be seen long after it has got
behind a vertical plane touching the front of both eyes, which taken
together are thus enabled to sweep over an angle of about 220*, or
20* on each side behind the tangent plane. Above and below, the
edge is undercut as well as prominent and the socket is therefore a
little wider within than at the margin itself, so that it slightly ovei^
hangs the eyeball at these points. The inner or nasal sides pass
direotiy badcwaids and are parallel to each other, and the roof is
horizoutai; consequentiy the conical form of the cavity arises from
the inclination of the outer side and floor. In the angle between
these sides, and in that between the first and the roof, theie are two
long uTQgular slits. The former opens into the deep hollow between
the temple and the back of the upper jaw ; it is ^led the foramen
laoerum inferius, or spheno-maxillary fissure, and gives passage to a
branch from the fifth pair of nerves, which, piercing the bone, passes
beneath the floor of the orbit^ and emeiges upon the cheek through a
hole just beneath the lower edge of the orbit> about a third part from
the inner angle of the eye. The other dit, which is ciJled we sphen-
oidal flssure, or foramen lacerum superius, opens into the cavuy of
the head, and transmits another branch of the fifth pair, which passing
withia the orbit along the roof comes out through an opposite notch
in its upper margin, and is distributed upon the forehead and upper
lid. These branches of the fifth pair, called the sunra and infi*-
orbitaiy nerves, are the most frequent seats of that excruciating
affliction the tio-douloureux. Through the sphenoidal fissure axe
likewise transmitted the ophthalmic veins, and all the other nerves
except the optic destined to the eye and its appendages. A third
opening, which is circular, called the foramen opticum, of the size of
a laige quill, and leading also from the cavity of the skull, gives
passage through the sphenoid bone to the ophthalmic artery and the
optic nerve. It is diracted obliquely outwards and forwards, and is
situated at the apex or back part of the orbit^ in the angle between
the nasal side and the roo£ In the same angle, dose to the margin,
that is, just within the corner of the eye near the nose, there is a deep
groove leading into the lachrymal canal, to which we shall have
occasion to recur hereafter.
Optic Nerves. — ^The Optic Kerves, arising at the back part of the
brain, with which they have extensive and important connections,
not only where they seem to originate in the corpora quadrigemina,
but throughout the whole of the first part of their course wiUun the
cranium, pass horizontally forward above the floor of that cavity,
converging towards each other till they meet^ when they become
closely united. It is probable that they not merely meet but cross
each other, the greater part, if not the whole, of the nerve from the
light side of the brain going to the left eye, and vice versft. It has
been ingeniously supposed hj Dr. WoUaston ('PhiL Trans.,' 1824), in
order to account for some singular phenomena of disordered and
healthy vision, that this decussation or crossing takes place only with
respect to those parts of each nerve which lie towards the other ; so
that each supplies the outer half of one eye and the inner half of the
other. This he conceives would explain, among other things, the
correspondence between the homologous points of the two eyes,
which may be defined as those pointo which see the same object at
the same time. It is scarcely possible to verify such speculations by
dissection, from the softness and apparent homogeneity of the parts.
In fish the optic nerves cross ^eaeh other entirely without toucning ;
and in man, when the sight of one eye has been lost, the nerve beyond
the point of union within the cranium has been observed to be wasted
or diseased on the side opposite to that of the affected eye^ [Braih ;
NsBVX.] Beyond the point of junction the nerves again diverge from
each other, and passing into the optic foramen become invested in a
toagh, flexible, and fibrous sheath, which is a tubular production of
the strong membrane called the dura mater which lines the cavity of
the skull. The outer part of this sheath is reflected off as the nerve
enters the orbit, and expanding, adheres to the bony surface of that
cavity throughout, becoming its periosteum. The nerves, continuing
to diverge, reach the eyeball after a somewhat tortuous course of an
inch in length. The curvature and laxity of the optic nerve give
&cility to the movements of the globe, and preserve the delicate
structures within it as well as the nerve itsdf from the injurious
effects of tension. Its length is such as to allow the eyeball to
project slightiy beyond the edge of the socket in fronts and to afford
space behmd for the action of the muscles which move it^ and a
suitable distance between their points of attachment. InducUng the
thickness of the sheath, it is about one-sixth of an inch in diameter.
It does not consist like other nerves of a bundle of distinct fibres^ but
of a medullary pulp inclosed in minute transparent tubes. The
sheath is pierced half an inch from the globe by a vessel called the
arteria centraUa retinsQ, which accompanied by several small veins
reaches the axis of the nerve, and passes with it into the interior of
the eye. The nerve does not enter the back of the globe exactly in
the axis of vision, but about the fifth part of an iach from it» m a
horizontal line, on the ixmer or nasal side, and subtending an angle of
about 28* at the centre of the eye. At this point the dimensions of
the sheath are suddenly contracted, and it terminates in a thin oul-
de-eac pierced with minute holes or pores^ hence called the lamina
cribrosa (sieve-like plate). Through these pores the pulp of the nerve,
divested of its tubular involucra, paHsee into the interior of the globe
in divided portions ; but immediately re-uniting expands at the back
of the eye into a delicate cup-shaped membrane, with the concavity
directed forwardiw This expansion of the optic nerve is called the
Betina ; it is the most important part of the eye, having a peculiar and
exclusive sensibility to the impressions of lights of which immediate
notice is conveyed from it along the collected nerve to the braixL
All other parts of the mechanism of vision are subordinate to <-.hii» ;
and their whole office, independentiy of the conservation of the organ
as a part of a living body, is to regulate the quantity of light admitted
into the eye, and to distribute it in such a way upon the tnxrboe of
the retina that the impression, which if immediately received would
be confused and general, may be an exact oounterpart of the visible
surface of the object
Mechanisxn of Distinct YisioiL — ^The most elementary foct that we
know respecting light is, that it proceeds in straight lines or rays from
every pomt of a luminous or illuminated body. A sensitive surfiEuse
or retina presented nakedly to such a body would therefore intercept
innumerable cones or pencals of lights each diverging from a different
point of the object But each point of the retina must also be oon-
sidered in that case as the apex of a cone of rays converging upon it
frem every part of the object ; and it is maoufest that the various
impressions thus received upon the same point at the same time
would be undistinguiahable from each other. All therefore that we
069
BYE.
BYB.
670
can conceive to be communicated to the mind by the siim of such
indefinite impressions over the whole retina, is a knowledge of the
preTsiling colour of the object^ and possibly a general idea of its
direction. But if there were more objects tbui one, or that one had
parts or msgnitude, even this inconsiderable addition to the mere
sense of light and colour would be impossible. The confusion resulting
from the simultaneous impressions of a multitude of pencils of light
on the same surface would be partly removed if the seat of perception
were placed at the bottom of a cavity capable of being turned to each
object or each part of the same object in succession, inasmuch as
tms would nrevent the interference of rays proceeding from parts not
actually unaer contemplation ; but an indistmctness would still remain
in proportion to the magnitude of the field of view, only remediable
by narrowing the cavity to a mere capillary tube, upon the incon*
venience of which we need not enlaige.
Let us consider what would be the effect of a very simple addition
to the cavity. We will suppose it to be dosed in front by a dark
screen, perforated with a *small central hole as in the section repre-
sented in /Iff, 1.
A
ments, and may be made evident by looking at a bright object through
a polished metal tube. The colouring-matter is called the Pigmentum
Nigrum, or simply the Pij^ment. [Piqmxnt.]
Fiir.l.
In this case pencils of rays crossing each other from A and B» the
top and bottom of an object, would impinge at a and 6 upon different
puts of the retina. By this means the advantages of a large and
a small field of. view would be combined, a distributed impression of
the object would be produced, and its several parts would be seen
separately and in their proper raUtive situations. The effect may be
easily shown by holding a card, pierced with a smooth circular hole,
near a taper, and throwing the spectrum upon a wall at a little
distance. Such a screen is termed the Iris.
But still the rays from each point of the object would be diffused
over a space instead of being collected upon a separate point of the
surface, and the impressions of contiguous pencils would ^ some
degree overlap and confuse each other. This moonvenienoe might be
lessened by contracting the opening, but another cause of indistinct-
ness would then be introduced in the diminished admiasion of light
Both evils might be avoided if a lens of a proper construction were
fixed behind the screen (se in fg. 2). Pencils diverging from single
points of the object would thus be admitted tiirough the opening,
which we will caU the Pupil, and would be made to converge to single
points on the surface, and ^e impression would now be an exact
counterpart of the object, A being distinctly seen in its true place and
direction from a, and B from d.
But additional provisions would be necessary to bring this arrange-
ment to the requisite degree of perfection. In the first place tiie
retina must be i^justed to correspond in shape with the focal distance
of the lens. This purpose might be accomplished if the walls of the
cavity were composed of flexible materials, by interposing a transparent
fluid between the lens and the retina, which, by its uniform distension,
would oonstiain the latter to take and retain we form of a portion of
a sphere.
Again, although the diagram has been otherwise drawn for an
obvious reason, our arrangement hitherto supposes the object to be
very small, and to be seen direoUy in front of the eye ; but if oblique
as weU aa direct pencils are to be brought to a focus, that the lateral
vision may be uso distinct, a second refracting body, of a proper
form, must be placed in front of the lens. Tins may be done very
convenientiy, with the further advantage of completing the cavity, by
adding a transparent portion to its walls in front of the screen, to be
likewise distended wiUi fluid in order to keep it in the shape of a
sement of a sphere. {Fig, 8.)
It is also desirable that the back of the screen and the interior of
the cavity should be blackened, that the rays may be extinguished
after impact upon the retina^ lest any internal reflection should inter-
fere witti the impressions on other parts. The expediency of this
provision is always kept in view in the construction of optical instm-
The only remaining artifloe to secure the perfection of the' organ
that need be mentioned in this svnopsiB of its most essential provi-
sions, is to endow the pupil with the fkculty of contraction and
enlargement according to the quantity of light. If it were of a con-
stant sise, more light would be concentrated upon the retina from a
bright or a near object than, from one comparatively distant or faintiy
illuminated; and as the sensibility of the retina must remain the
same, the disproportion would occasion dimness of sight in one case
and dashing in the other, and might even impair*the nerve.
We have thus imagined all the parts to be built up in succession
that are of primary importance (as far as we know) in the construction
of an organ of distinct vision, and the figure to which we have arrived
might pass as a tolerably correct diagram of the human eye.
The laws of light and sensation require that there should be a gene-
ral type in the structure of these parts, and a mutual relation among
them as to density, form, and position. But this does not preclude
much variety ; a difference of position, for instance, may be, and fire-
quentiy is, compensated by a corresponding difference in form or
density either of the same or other parts. Hence the problem of dis-
tinct vision has many solutions, each perfect in its kind. In fkct,
nothing can be more diversified in unimportant particulars, or more
uniform in those which are essentia], than the interior constitution of
the eye in different animals : it is jiever precisely the same in any two
species, however closely they may be alUed ; but we constantiy find
the retina, the lens, and tiie pigment, and generally the iris, indoeed
of course in some kind of capsule, transparent in front, and partly
occupied by complementary fluids. To this there are some exertions,
whicm however we believe to be only apparent Thus the larvn of
many insects, some of the microscopic animalcules, and species of
MoUutctt, have red or black spots upon their surface, which are
undoubtedly eyes, and are thought by some to be litUe more than
expansions of an optic nerve beneath a thin coloured membrane to
absorb the light, and in some unknown way to distribute its
impressions ; whilst others consider them as a congeries of extremely
minute but perfectly-formed eyes of the usual construction, of which
the pigment alone is visible from its opacity and abundance.
Globe. — ^The Qlobe, or Eyeball, contains the parts immediately
concerned in vision. It consists of very unequal portions of two
spheres of a di£fbrent sise, which have a common circular intersection
in a transverse vertical plane, much nearer the front than the back of
the eye. The iris, or coloiued screen, perforated centrally by the
pupil, nearly occupies the situation of this imaginary plane, but is,
strictiy speaking, behind it The posterior and larger portion is cir-
cumscribed by tile sderotic membrane, except in front, where it may
be considered as bounded by the iris : it ia rather less than an inch in
diameter, and constitutes about five-sixths of the surface of the globe.
{Fig. 4, a,) The induded space is occupied by the choroid membrane
and retina, the vitreous and crystalline numours, the ciliarv body snd
processes, and a small part of the aqueous humour. The anterior
portion, which forms about a quarter of a sphere, thirteen-twentieths
of an inch in diameter {Jig. 4, h), and occupies the remaining sixth
SeetioB of the spberleal aurfkeei of the bonun eye, twice the natural lize
the dreles eompleted in dotted lines.
a, selerotie ; h, cornea ; e, anterior snrfkoe of torn ; d, posterior snrfttoe of
lena; «, eentre of the ex* ; /, intersection of the axis of direct vision with the
bsek of the eye ; #, entrance of the optic nenre.
CI B7E.
put of tba mirtiuM of the globe, coDtainB the reat of the aquaouR
humour, and is bounded in front bj the trauspareat aad ilightlj'-
prominent dUc let in the sclerotic like a wateh-glau in ite metallic
rim, and known as the Cornea, from its horn; textnjre. Its traoBverse
obord, or tJie diameter of the circle of union between the cornea and
sclerotic ia nine-twentieths, or oearl; half on iniih in length.
The globe derives ite flrmDau to the touch bma the distension of
Uie oontAiaed fluids : its capability to bear that distension, which
iDSures the permanence of its stupe, is due to the flexible bat atrong
and inelnstic outer coTering or tunio, ooDsisting, as we have said, of
the sclerotic and cornea.
Sclerotic. iPig. 5, a.) — The Sclerotic Hembraoe ta so called from
iU toughnen (inATifiJi, hard, rigid). It majr be considered as an
expanded prolongation of the i^eath of the optia nerve, whicb it
reaemblfs in its interwonn fibrous texture. Its inner surface is
contiauoas with the lamina cribroea already mentioned. Immediately
around this part it is about an eighth of an inch thick, and gradually
beoomsa thinner as it approaches the cornea, which it slightly over-
laps. The two structures are not separated by an abrupt line, but
an blended together, and adhere so closely that they cannot be torn
saunder without great force. The thin glisteuing tendons of the
muscles which move the globe, or rather their smooth outer la
are sprend over and incorporated with the scleratic in front,
approaching each other ti]l tbey unila near ita junctioQ with the
soniea. They render it aamewbat thicker in this situation tfa
the spacea between them or behind the line where they htpn
inserted. This front part of the capsule of the eye is oalled the
tunica albuginea, from the whiteness characteristic of all tendinoua
parts. When boiled the selenitic yields gelatine. Dniier the micro-
Bcope it is found to conust of trite coonectivo tissue, the fibrils of
whic:h can be easUy demonstnted by teasing or treating transverse
■ectiona with acetic acid. Numerous Sne eloatic elements pervadi
the connective tissues of the sclerotic, of the same form aa in tendom
and lignmsnts. that is, u a net-work. During life tbe elements of this
e even texture..
le itlDba of th« right eje thronjh the o
Conjunctiva. — The albuginea ia defended from contact with the air
by a transparent mucous membrane, continuous with that which lines
the interior of the eyelids. It ia called the conjunctiva reSeia, or
adnata, to distinguish it from the oonjunotiva propria of the
lids. It is very loosely connected to the solerotic at first to fatnlitate
"■ ' Df ,the globe ; as it advances forward it becotna more
EYE. en
closely attached to the albuginea ; and hence extending to the cornea
adheres intimately to its margin and oviir ita whole surface. The
conjunctiva ia the most sensitive external part of the body to all
painfiil impressions, eicept cold, especially where it invests the cornea.
The smalleat particle of foreign matter iu contact with it gives intole-
rable paio, and makes tbe act of winking to clear it away imperative ;
and hence its chief and most essential use aa part of the delicats
organ of which it may be considered aa tbe guu'dian. If the iierve
which supplies it with sensibility be divided or injured, inoidsntal
causes of irritation are suffered to produce their injurious effeota
unheeded, and the eye soon becomes inflamed, ulcerates, and i*
destroyed.
Cornea. (Fig. 5, E.)— The Cornea is somewhat thicker than the
sclerotic eicept at the back of the eye, is equallv tourh. though
rather mora flexible, and of a much doser and n
Its inner surface is concave, and nearly parallel tc
it is however rather thicker in the middle than elsswhere, and th*
general statement that it has no share in eSecting tbe convergence of
incident rajs on account of the parallelism of ita surfaces is Cherefora
not Cjiiite correct. It is oovered externally, aa we have already men-
tioned, by the conjunctiva, and is lined internally by a delicate elastic
membrane called the Membrane of Deacemet or Demoun. Tha
bulk of the tunic, or cornea proper, oonaiats of several layen which
slide upon each other when the membrane is rubbed between ihe
finger and thumb, and are separated in the natural state by a limpid
fluid contained in a delicate cellular structure. This fluid gives
plumpnesa to the outer surface, which is represented by some autfaor-
iticB to be not exactly spherical, 'but of tlut kind which would ba
formed b; the revolution of an ellipse of small exoeotricity about its
long axU.
The cornea proper consista of a fibroua aubatance closely allied to
connective tiasue, but which, according to Hiiller, yields when boiled,
not gelatine, but oliondrin. Its elements, pale bundles 0-002'"— 0-004"'
in diameter, in which, at least when teased oul^ finer fibrils mn
usually peroeptibl^ sometimes morc^ aometimes less distinctly, sr«
united into fiat bundles. These bundles, which have their flat aidea
always panilal with the aurfaoe of the cornea, dccnasate in varioui
direetiona, sad exhibit, if not complat« lamella, yet a distinctly
laminated structure, owing to which the cornea is very readily torn
and penetrated in the direotion of ita surTaoes, and with great difficult;
in that of its thickness.
The conjunctival lining of the oomea is composed prindpally of a
soft laminated epithelium 0-023'" — 0-OGO"' thick, in which the deeper
layers of cells are elon gated and placed vertically upon the coium,
whilat tbe middle ones are more of a rounded form ; and as the)'
approach the surface paaa into a layer 0-008'"— 0-01'" thick, comi-
aponding to the horOy layer of the epidermis, compoasd of platas
001'"— 0-1*'" in size though still nucleated and soft
The Membrane of Deeaomet or Demours, aa the inferior layer of
the ooroea is oaJled, consists of an elastic membrane rather laxly
attached to the corneal tissue, and of an epithehum on its inner
surface. The former is as clear aa gloss, brilliant, quite structureless,
easily lacerable though tolerably firm, and so elastic that when it '
raised from the cornea by the eoalpel and forceps, by boiling ir
sration in alkalies, under whidi treatment aa
general it does not lose ita transparency,
: by 1,
itrongly and towards tbe ftontL Towards the'bordor'o
" P^^ into a peculiar system of fibres, first described by
Bowman. Tliis set of fibres is continued ft
iris, whero they form the ligamentmn iridia pcctinatum of Huek, the
Sillors of the iris of Bowman. The epithelium of the membrane of
Pemouni, which in man frequently does not retain ita perfect con-
dition, conaiats of a single layer of polygonal cells, with extremely
fine and pale granular contents and round nuclei This layer ceases-
towards the border of the cornea, but isolated indications of iti
existence may be found along the pillars of the iria
Although in the embiyo of man and the aheep a rich capillatr
exua of veasels exists in the coiyunctiva, the cornea in tha adult
iman being is nearly non-TasouUr. It is nevertheless not untavonr-
ably circumstanced for nutrition. Wounds in itrapidlyunite; portions
of the epithelium, or even of the fibrous layer, are speedily reatorad
tovedj and ulcers are filled up from the bottom with new
corneal substance. Fatty deposits in ita tissue, partioulariy
ooUular elements, producing a yellow aone, first accurately dcKribed
by Mr. Edwin Canton, and oalled Arena senilis, or Oeronloion NervM,
have been described in the cornea by Schlemmj they are derived
from the nervi ciliares, and penetrate the sclerotio at its anterior
border, and thence enter tbe fibrous layer of tbe cornea. They ore
readily found at the margin of the sclerotic in the form of 34 — 3S
finer and thicker twigs, but scarcely exceeding 0-02'" in aize.
Chorioid or Choroid Membrane. [Fig. S, c.fig. fl).— We have now
I oonsider tbe internal tunics of the eye, the first of whidi is tiie
Choroid, or more property Chorioid Membrane, so called from some
semblance m the flocoulence of its outer surface to the chorion.
eilemal investment of the ovum. This is a thin soft dart-brown
stmolure in contact with or lining nearly the whole ooncavs surhoe
of the sclerotic It may be said to originate around tha entrance of
the optia nerve. -which paoMB through it befora it expands Into tbe
873 EYE.
reUiu; uid it termiiiatM in tha poeterior mugin of tho dli«7 Ilga-
meot, circle, or mora properlj mmcle (Jtg. 5, ij — t. fiattmed buul of
gnj Qwttiir, about tbs HTanth part of aa inoh in breadth, attached
to tha Bclerotio iataniaU}' oaar ita juuctioo with the oomea. !□ these
■ituationa the two memliranu adh«re with Kimeflniinen; the? are
^iBewhere connected bj Teasels which pierce the outer and niiniry upon
the inner membrane, aud fay the mamenta of a fine intermediate
cellular tissue. But the connection is ao slight tbnt it may be readily
broken by gentle inflation with a blow-pipe insinuated through a
puncture in the sclerotio, without injury to the fragile texture of tho
choroid. The choroid consists almost entirely of a multitude at
minuts vessels, curiously interlaced, and oommunicaWng freely with
each other. It ia supplied with blood by 16 or 20 branches of tho
ophthalmio uierr, which pierce the aclerutic round the entrance of
the oerre, and era at first distributed externally on the post«rior part
of tha sphere ; but they finally pass inwards, and terminate in a dose
and uniform vascular expansion over the whole concave surface. Thia
ii called the tuuio of Buysch, who erroneously considered it as a
distinot membrane. The innomerable veins of the choroid, or vensa
Tortieoate, are arranged wiUi great el^ance and regularity In arched
and drooping branches, like the bougha of the weeping willow ; they
are vety oonapicuoui upon tha outer aurfaca, above the firat exterior
ramificationi of tjie arteriea (Fig. 6.) Thej unite in four or five
common trunks, which emerge through the sclerotic at equal intervals
behind the middle of the eye-balL The outer surface of the choroid
is eomewhat rough and flocculent ; the inner-sur&oe, upon which the
retina is expanded, is delicately smooth and even. Both are abund-
antly covered with the pigment, ntilch is secreted by everf part of the
choroid, and pervades Its loose and poroos texture.
The aclcKiHg psTtly lemored, and tha rest tuned bsek, shovln; lbs Choiold
Cost and Itli. a, oplie bctti.
The choroid may thus be divided into three layers : 1, an external
brown soft lamella supporting the ciliary nerves and long ciliary
vessel, and in front containing the ciliary muscle — the outer pigment
layer ; 2, the leu deeply coloured proper vascular layer, with tha
larger artenea and veins ; and 3, a colourlesa, delicate, internal layer,
containing an extremely abundant capillary plexus, the membrana
choris-capilUris, which however does not extend farther in front than
the oia serrata. The tissue of which the choroid is compoaed, inde-
pendent of its vesHcla and nerves and the ciliary muacls, is inteimediate
between elaatio and connective tissue. Bowman waa tha firat to demon-
strate the true muscular htructure of the ciliary ligament or muscle
as it is now more properly called.
Pigment.— In man this matter is of a deep-brown colour, in most
other animals it is black, and hence is veiy commonly called the
I'igmentum Nigrum. It appears under the microscope to consist of
almost regulnriy heiahedral contiguous cells, 0008'"— 0' 008'" in
diameter, 0001'" thick, disposed in an elegant mosaic manner, in
which the large quantity of brownish-black pigment usually preventa
the nucleus being apparent aa more than a clear apot in the interior.
It adherea very loosely, ao that when the surfaces covered with it are
drawn to and fro in water, it becomes diflused, and may be washed
oS: The choroid tbua treated is found to be of the asms whitish or
gray colour which characterises the ciliary ligament In the natural
alate of the parts, not only the choroid, but the cellular tissue on its
external surface, and the inside of the sclerotic, are deeply stained by
the pigment, which shows through, and occasions the bluish tint of
tha white of the eye in persona of delicate complexion. But on the
inner surface of the choroid the pigment ia retained by an expansion
finer than a spider's web, yet of doee texture, which may be called
after its discoverer tha membrane of Dalrymple. By this means the
transparency of the retina is preserved. It ia probable that thia
membrane of the pigment is of a serous kind, and that it is reflected
at the optic and ciliary margins of the choroid, and passes over the
whole posterior surface of the retina — thus doubly defended from
absolute contact with the pigment. The choroid is not the only part
which secretes this colouring matter. It ia found in equal or greater
abundance upon the back of tha iris, on the surfaces of tlie dliary
proceasas, and in &ct nherever it is wanted to flkcilitata vision. The
pigment cells are absent in the eyes of albinoea, as wall aa, at any
rate partially, in the region of the tjtpetum in «niTn«1a
In many animals, especially the nocturnal and camivorous tribes,
the pigment is deficient at the bottom of the eye, and the sur&M of
the choroid in that aituatJon preaenia a brilliant colour and almost
metallic lustre, ThisiacaUedtheTapetum(tapeati7ofdivenooloura).
EYE.
«T4
:t is of various shadea of blue, green, and yellow ; sometimes change-
.bis like shot silk, and sometimes of a silvery whiteness. The tmt
occupies various proportions of the surface ; it is most brilliant
immediately opposite the pupil, and passes gradually into the dark
hue of the pigment. There is no vestige of a tapctum in the human
eye. The use of it is not well known. It probably causes the animal
to aee better in the dusk and less cleaily in the day, by reflecting the
raysaaecond time through the retina. This reflection fVom a veiy
eflective concave mirror produces a strong convergence of the rays
which come back through the pupil, and is the cause of tha well-
known glare of tha eyes of cata and other animals seen in su obscure
light from that particular distance at which the emerging mys are
most completely brought to a focus upon the eye of the observer.
The breadth of this luminous appearance arises from the great
dilatation of the pupil under the circumstances in which it is seen.
Retina. — Tho optic nerve, having entered the interior of the globe
through the Bclerotic and dioroid membranes, forms a slight promi-
nence at the paint of union of its several portions, and thence spreads
out in the form of a fine transparent membrana over the whole
concave anrface of the choroid, embracing tha translucent body
called the Vitreous Humour. Towards the choroid it appears to
oonsist of a mere homogeneous pulp, not very different from the
nioduUai; matter of the brain ; but it is undoubtedly most elabo-
rately and minutely oi^ani^ed. Towards the vitreous humour it has
the structure of a most delicate vascular web, consisting of innumer-
able ramifications of the centnl artery (which, as we have already
mentioned, accompanies it into the interior of the globe) and of its
associated veins. Its name may have been derived from the net-work
fbnned by the visible branches of these vessels ; at least it is not
otherwise applicable to the structure of the membrane. The distri-
bntioD of Uie central artery may be made visible to an observer in
his own eye by a curious experiment first suggested by Purkinjj.
One eye being steadily directed to a surface of some uniform dark or
neutral tint, such aa a vraB painted of a lead colour, and the other
•ye doaed hj the hand, tha flame of a small wax-taper ia to be slowly
waved round and round, so as to be brought atevary tumatalittla
distance over the front of the aye. The central artery will gradoallj
come into view, at firat obscurely, and afterwards more clearly. Tha
experiment succerda best after the experience of several trials on
succesalTe nighta. The form is suoh aa might be expected from ft
branching net-work of vessels : the lines are dark, with bright edges
on a bintiy illnminated ground. There are other modes of mnhing
the experiment, which show the appearance more distinctly, but they
are leas aimpla. The retina terminates anteriorly in a tbin scalloped
edge, fitting into corresponding irregnlarities called the ora serrata in
the posterior margin of the eiUary body. (^i^. G, 1 ; B, i^) Exact^
opposite the pupil there is a bright yellow spot, fading gradually off
at the edges, and having a black point in the centre precisely whers
the axis of direct vision inteisecta the hack of the eye. ( Pig. 6, n.)
This oentnl point was believed by its discoverer, Soemmering, to be
an actual deficiency of the substance of the retina ; and it is generally
called in consequence the foramen of Soemmering. But it is now
known to be merely a central absence of the yellow colour of that
part of the retina rendered oonspicuous by the pigment seen through
the ordinary transparent texture. These appearances are lost very
shortly after deatii, and are replaced by a minute fold, into which the
retina gathera itself, reaching from the place of the central point to
the promineooe which marks the union of the divided portions of the
nerve. 'The use of this yellow spot and central point, and of the
tendency of the retina to assume a folded shape in this situation ia
not understood.
Ttie microaoopia construction of the retina has been recently
studied by Pacini, Kiilliker, and HtUler, Although of variable Ihlck-
neaa in all parta it may be divided into the five folloiring layers :~
1. The Uyer of rode and conea called the bacilkr layer.
S. The pnnular layer.
S. Tha layer of gray nerve-substance,
4. The expanaion of the optic nerve.
B. The limitary membrane,
"Tha bacillar layer, stratum bacillorum, sen membrana Jacob!,
presents a very remarkable structure, being composed of innumerable
rod.like and conical corpuscles, disposed with the utmost regularity,
and reflecting the light very strongly. With the exception of H.
Muller. this structure in animals has been understood quite erroneously,
and even in man it has been but very superficially known. It consists
of two elements, the rods (baciDi) and Uie cones (coni), which
together constitute a single layer 0-036'" thick at the bottom of tbe
eye, more anteriorly 0024'", and quite in front not more than O'OIS'"
in thickness. In general these bodies aro so arranged that the more
numerous rods have their largest ends directed outwards, whilst the
cones are disposed in the reverse direction, whence the latter when
imperfectly examined appear to constitute an inner, distinct
thinner layer, lying between the inner oilwmitioa of the ' rods,' "
(Kdlliker.)
The gtanular layer la composed of opaque gianiilar corpusdaa,
reflecting the light tolerably strongly, of a round or oval figure, and
0'002"' — 0-004'" in riza, sometimes looking like free nuelei, sometimae
like minute oells almost entirely filled by large nuclei
m ETR
The Iftyar of ciueritiouB cerebral BubaUaoe is pretty sharpl;
dafined on the eide of the granulu' layer, tuul leea so towards tlist of
the fibrea of the optio nerve, between the elements ofi which it
penetrmtea more or lea. It is composed of a finely granular matrix,
conttponding exactly with that of the gray nibstauce on the surface
of the cerebrum and cerebellum, and of numeroui neiTfl-cells
scattered in il
The expftodon of the opUo nerve. This nerve after quitting the
brain and toll it reaches the eje presents the same oontUtioDs as in
the ordinary nerves. Within the canal of the sclerotio and as far
as the coUiculus nervi optici, the optio nerve retains its whitv
colour, and presents dartbordered tubiiloi, but from that point
onwards ita elemeots become perfectly oleor, yellowish or grayish, and
trKnsparent^ liJce the ^est tubules in the ceotral organs, meuuHug on
the avenge oot more than 0'0006"'—0' ODDS'" ; some it is true are
occasienslly larger. What chieQy diatioguiaheB thesa from other
pale DBrvB-termmatians, is the abseiice of nuclei in their coutm, a
■omawh^t greater refmctiva power, and the frequent occurrence of
varicosities, which two latter particuloni would seam to indicate, if
Dot exactly a. nerve-medulla, aa in the common nerves, atlll the
aiiBtenoa of partially semi-Suid and perfaapa fatty contents, and
■aumilato the nerve-fibres of the retina to the moet delicate elunente
of the cerebrum. The nerve-fibres radiate on all sides from the
coUiculus nervi optici, and constitute a coutlnuous membranous
eipansioD, which extends as far as the ora aerrata retime, and preaente
verr conaiderable interruption only in the situation of the macula lutes.
The limitary membrane is a delicate membrane, 0-ODDfi'" thick,
intimately united with the rest of the retina, which whou tiiat
structure is teased out, and on the application, is (Vequently detached
in iBi^e threads, and then appears perfectly etructureleaa. On its
inner aspect towardu the hyaloid membrane, when the retina is folded,
flattened cell-nuclei ore occasionally perceptible, which certainly
cannot be refemd to an opitUelium, and Kolliker thinks not to the
vitreous lens cither, as the latter is always aeparabia from the letina.
The nature of the rods and cones, in the bocillar layer have been
much dijcusaed. It has been euppoeed that they ore the terminations
of the optic fibres. ■ There are however difficulties in the way of this
theoi^ ; " among which," says Kolliker, " not the least is the circum-
stance that although the 'rods ' and 'cones' are certainly fifty timea
more numerous then the fibres of the optic nerve, yet uie radiating
fibres arising from the former, on their passsge into the optic fibiea,
subdivide, and as it must probably be assumed, are oontjnuoui with
•evaral of them." " 1 look upon the ' rods ' and ' cooes,' " he oontinuea,
" which may also be said to correspond in aU chemical ehaneten
with the nerve-fibres of the retina, and the whole of the radiating
fibre-system of the retina, as true nervous elements ; and venture at
the aame time to broach Uie bold suppoaition, foimded upon a leas
established bama, that the ' rods ' and ' cones ' are the true percipients
of light, and that Ihey communicate their condition to the fibres
of the optic nerve, by meana of the direct or indirect conneation of
their fll»ous processes with the former, through which again tho
Impreaaions ore conveyed to the sensoriam." Ha thinks that the
optio fibres in tba nervous sxpanaiou of the retina do not perceive
light, for the following reasons : — 1. Hist the point of the retina,
where those fibres alone are found, ia not sensible to light. 2. The
optic fibrea ore auperimposed upon each other in such numbers
that it is impoasibla they should perceive light, inasmuch as each
luminous impreHmcn, owing to the transparency of the fibres^ must
in any case always aSect many of tUem, and consequently would of
nsoenitygivs rise to confused sensatioos. 3. Becauaa thia part of the
retina in which there ia no coatinuoua layer of nerve-fibres on tbe
inner aui&ce, that ia to say the ' yellow spot,' is the most senaitive to
luminous impresaiona. Under this notion the import of the ' roda '
and their remarkable arrangement would be intelligible, and the
almost inexplicable correspondence iu tha siie of the images of the
■mallsst distinguishable interspaces between two objects, with the
diameter of the 'rods' and ' cones,' be placed in its true light.
VitreouB Humour, (Figt. 5, e ,- 7 A)— The part next in order to
be described ia the vitreous humour, behind which the ratimi is
dispOBsd. It is a transparent fluid of aemi^Ialinous oonaiatence and
high refractjve power, constituting about five-sixths of the bulk of
the globe. It consists of a fluid differiug in no great degree from
watOT, contained in a ceilulated structure called the hyaloid membrane
(EoAoi, glass), from its perfect tranalucency. The minute oella ore
connected together ; for if the external part be punctured, the Suid
contained in them gradually drains away. Thia ceUular atructure is
so delicate and fragile that it ia almost impassible to obtain it
separately; but the membranous partitions are rendered slightly
opaline by strong spirit or diluted acids, and may thus be made
evident^ It is oondenaad inte a membrane of a firmer conaiatenoa
upon the Burface, which serves the general purpose of a containing
capsule for the vitreous humour, and is strong enough te cause it <^
pKserve ite shape in some degree when the stronger tunica of the ^e
are removed. There ia a narrow tubular dimple of aome depth in the
vitrsous humour opposite the entrance of the nerve, lined by a
trumpet-shaped productiou into it of the eitenial membrane, called
the hyaloid oanol. {Fig. S.) It serves to transmit a branch of the
retinal artery and associated veins for the nourishment of the capsule
EYE. Kt
of tha Isna in the fmtua, and perhaps also of the hyaloid membnae,
and (rf' Uie substance of the lans itself. There can be no doubt tfaat
the vitreous humour is secreted by the surfaces of the hyaloid cells,
but this fcatol arteiT is tha only vestige of a TaicuUr anaDge&ieQt
yet discovered in the part.
This llinre, treni the vork Dt Zlnn, irpraHati the Tltreoos nuiunr ia its
bjwlnU membmie. The lens, Imbedded in 11* appcr •ottHH, la anrnHuidad by
the canal o! Petit. Tlie dark border befond Is the pbilled portlea of Uie
hyaloid membnae called tbe lone o( Zlna, atalned vllb the pipnent left b; tbe
cUiarj body, vhloh In tb* oalDral itite oC tbe psna ml* npoa Ihat porlloa of
the iDiface d( lbs bjalold. ~
wltb Iba ora ■
a, er]riUlline lens ; i, einal of Pcti
^ Ibe ciliary body.
le dT Zinn i i, vilreoiu him
Tba Eone of Zina, or sonula Zinnii, ia that portion of the hyaloid
membrane which is continued to the border of the lens, where it
becomes blended with the oapsule of that body. In doing thia it
splits into two lamellie, the posterior of which la blended with tlia
capsule of the leua, and the anterior connected with the ciliary pro-
cesses which are atteahed te the capaula of the lens a little in front of
its margin. Between the two lamellot and the border of the lena there
is left a space surrounding the latter iu an annular manner, and ia »
transversa section of a tnongular form. This is the canal of Petit.
The darker colour of the soue of Zinn appears to depend on Uia
existeuoe of pigmant-cella belonging to the choroid, which are aitnated
principally iu the folds in which tbe processus ciliarei irere ocutainsd,
and give tiie whole zona a striped aspect. On the inner aide of thia
layer lies a single layer of clear very frequently pole polygonal
nucleated cella c^ 0-009'" — 0012'" in sise, but whidi ia never entire
being always partiaUy removed together with the ciliary processes oa
whidi Hsnle and others have noticed it
Leos, or Ciystalline Humour. (IHgi. 6,/;7,<>; 8.) — The crystalline
lens {irpifrTaXAei, oiystal) is imbedded in a deep depression in iba &<out
of the vitreous humour, a little nearer tbenaaa] than the temporal uda
of the globe. It has the form and function of a double convex lens.
The surfaoea may be considered as portions of two unequal spheres,
the anterior being constderably flatter than the poaterior. The
diameter of the sphere of whioh the former is a aegment ia about
eight^waltths, of the Utter five-tvfelfths of an inch. The thickness of
tha lens, measured in the axis of vision, is about tha sixth port of an
inch, and ite tranaverse diameter is about twice that length, (fijr. i,
e e, dd.) In refractive power it la superior te the other transpejent
substances contained in tha eye. Ite eonsieteuce ia geUUuous,
incrensiug in density fi«m the circumference towards a central nucleus,
which haa the tenacity of soft wax. It ia composed of an ioflnite
auooesaion of thin ooucentrio laminn, arranged with the utmost regu-
larity one within another like the coata of an onion ; and every such
stratum or elliptic shell is made up of a series of exquisitely minute
fibres lud aide by aide, forming three septa like the dovea of an
orange, of which the bounding or cleavage planes diverge from the
axis of the lena at angles of 120' in the manner represented in the
annexed figure. {Fig, 8.) If the Ims be hardened in strong spirit,
the result of this curious arrangement is, that it partly cleaves into
three portions mode up of layera which may be peeled off one after
another, each further aeparable to a certain extent into its component
parallel Shres. Tha spirit not only hardens tha crystalline humour,
but renders it opsquo; and the aame effect is produced by plunging
it in boiling water, as every one must have observed in the eyes of
dressed Gab. In hot it consiits chiefly of the transparent subetuice
called albumen found in eggs, and ia coogulatod by heat in tha same
way. The lena is similarly constructed ia the eyes of other Jfoinnalia ;
and analogous, though not identical, arrangements are obaarved in
other classes. In fish the fibres we have spoken of are curiously
hooked together by fine teeth, resembling those of a saw. We chie^
owe the duooveiy of these facte respecting the intimate atructure of
the lena to the labours of Leeuwenhoek, Young, and Brewster, whose
writings may be consulted for much further iotervsting information
on the aubject. Tba crystalline lens ia incloaed in a transparent and
highly elastic membranoua capsule, represented in fig. fi by a white
line, to the regulated preaura of which tha preaervaUon of ite true
shape, so important to the purposes of viaion, is mainly attributeble.
There is no analogous atructure iu the body, except tha iatomal
lining of the cornea akvody menlioiiei< which closely reaeublee it in
er EYE.
its funotion with refamuce to tbe eurfucc of tbe nqucous humour.
Whan tha leni ii huilansd in spirit or boiling watar, thia capaule
Tatuna ila natore ; and H peeled off, ehrivelB up and curU upon itseIC
It may b« aaailj dstaohed with a pin trora the hard Bpherical lana of
a boilad Bah, and will be found atill possesaed of iti peculiar qualities
of tnmapaFancy and elaitioi^. The capBuIe is firmly attached to tha
hyaloid memt»«ne behind, from which it U not eaay to aeparats it
neatly. Whether it haa any further connection than that of mars
contact with ita own contents, ia not eaay to ahow, or to doubt ; but
the nature of that oonnectioD, if any exiita, might be expected to be
obacnre, conaidering that botii the parte are diaphanous, and one of
Ihem almoal liquid at the anrfaoe of oonUct. Indeed it has bean
auppoaed that a amall qoantitiy of limpid fiuid ww aotnally interpoaed
Th« eapaule of tha lena when aiamined under the mieratcope ia
found to oinust of two eUaentB, the proper capsule and epitheLum.
Tbe former is a perfectly stmctureleaa and transparent highly elaatic
tnembnuia, inclosing the lens on alt aidea aa if moulded to it. and
parting it from the neighbouring atraoturea. Tbe epiUielium ia placed
on the inner aurfoce of the capsule towards tha lens, lining the ante-
rior half of tile capsule, with a aingle layer of -baautinilly clear
polygonal calls, of 0-b06"'— O-Ol", with round nuclei. The lens itself
coDSiata entirely of elongated fiat heiebedralelemenla,0'002S"' — O'OOft'"
broad and 0-009'" — 0-OOH'" .thick, of a perfectly transparent aspect,
Tery flexible and soft, andluTing a conaidenibla degree of toughness,
which hBTe uEoally been deacribed aa the fibres of the lena, although
they are nothing more than thin-walled tubes with clear viscous albu-
minoua eonteota, which when the tubes are torn escape from them in
the form of large irregtilBr drops, and consequently might suitably
be described as the tubes of tbe lens. These bodiea become opaque
by the application of all agents that cosgulaM albumen, as nitric acid,
alcohol, heat, chromic acid, and creosote. In caustic alkalies and acetic
acid they are qnickly dissolved. Tbe concentric laminn, which cou-
aiat of these tubes, are not regularly defined layers, and never
ooniist of a single stratum of tubes. The courae of (he tabes in the
aeparata lameUn la in general such that both the superficial and the
deeper in the centra of tha lens radiate towards tha margiua, and
then curve round upon the other aor&oe anterior or posterior, but in
•uoh a way that no fibre extends Uirough the entire semioircunifereQce
o£ the lens, or reachss, for instance, from the middle of the anterior
turface to that of the posterior. More precisely described, tlie tubes
on the anterior and postwior aurfscea of the lens do not proceed
exactly to tha middle, but tenoinata in a atelliform fissure (jl^r. 8)
Aqueous Humoiir.^ — This fluid, in no respect distinKuishabte from
water except in holding a minute proportion of several saline ingre-
dienta in aolution, occnpiea tha apace between the lens and the oomea.
The iria divides this apace into two unequal portions called the
anterior and posterior chambers of the eye, and so olosety approaches
tiie lens that near the margin of the pupil the two surtaoea are sepa-
Ikted by a mere film of aqueous humour. The cavity is lined tbrough-
«ut by a serous membrane, which aecretea and limita the Suid, and
prevents it from acting injurioualy upon subjacent parts of importanoe.
At least a membrane of this kind may be peeled off in some aoimala ;
Ita exirtanoe in the human eye ia rather a matter of inferenca than
ftoot.
Ilia. (f^. 6, h ; 9, (.) — In apeaking of the choroid we have
already adverted to the flattened ring i^ed tbe dliary ligament or
muscle (fig. fi, >), which connects it in front with tba sclerotic Tbe
Itis arises from Uie anterior margin of thia ring, and is extended, aa
we have seen, acroaa the aqueous humour in tiie form of a thin
partition irith a ronnd aperture, or pupil, of variable aiae in tha
centre, or a little nearer Uie inner aide, tha function of which, we
need hardly repeat^ Is to regulate tha quantity of light admitted
into the eye, by oonbacting when it ia in excess, and '<il«ting when it
filla short of the due amount.
The external appearance of the iria is too familiar to need a
partionlar dmcription. It is covered in fhmt with a ^listsning
ETB. m
amootbnesi and transparency are iinpnired by iiiflaiiini;ition. The
posterior surAice of tbe iria ia called the uvea. \Fig. 9, t.) It ia
thickly coated with pigment, which is prevented from diflfiiaing itself
in the aqueous humour by a membrane like that on the choroid.
Such a provision ia particularly needed here on account of tbe quick
movementa of the part in a watery fluid. The colouring matter of
the iris lias much analogy with the pigment. Like that substance it
forma no part of the texture it pervades ; and when the outer mem-
branea are removed by maceration in water it may be washed amy.
Both have a relation in quantity as well as in depth of tint to ttts
complexion and colour of tbe hair. In the negro the iris is of ao
dark a hue that it can searceiy be distinguished from the pupil ; while
in the white rabbit and other albinoes, mcluding the hnman variety,
where the pigment is entirely wanting from Bome original malforma-
tion, the Bu'bstance of tbe iria ia transparent, and reflecta only the
pink colour of the circulating blood. Such eyea are daiilad by a
strong light, and probably see better than otheta in the dusk. Tlie
iris, if minutely injected, appesjB, like the choroid, to be composed
ahnost entirely of vessels. It is principally supplied by tha two tone
ciliary arteries {,fg. S) which pierce tbe acleroUc about half an ini£
from tbe optic nerve on either aide ; and passing between tliat m
btsne and the choroid divide near the edge and in the aubatance or
the ciliary muscle, and are wholly distributed to tha iris. Their
branches are disposed in two eon^cuous circlee on the front surfaoe,
one near the outer or ciliary margiu, the other not far &om the pupiL
Bnt though the iris resembles the choroid in vascularity, it diuers
easentially from it in other respects. It is richly aupplied with
narvea, which proceed to tbe iris and are distributed upon it much in
the same way as the arteries, and are the medium of its sympathy
with the retmB, and the source of its irritability. It also possesses a
peculiar contractile power, which is dependent on smooth muscular
fibres of precisely the same kind as those found in the ciliary muscle
of the choroid. These fibres are disposed circularly in front and at
the fore edge, and in a radiated form behicd (H?- S, i.) (See
Lister on tha Contractile Tissue of the Iris, ' Quarteriy Htcroicopical
Jonrna],' vol. L)
Uifnlled Tin
ad pnccsiH all
s, pnpU ; ». B,
e iiiAt, shawing the ciliary body
7 body, t
afiw
PupiL {Fig. 9, n.) — The pupil in the human eye is bounded by a
sharp well-defined circular edge. In other animals its shape is subject
to many varieties which may often be aiplaiued by a reference to
their habits and circumstances. In fish it is generally crescentio or
imperfectly quadrangular. In herbivorous animals, which often
oontinue to browse during the night, it is oblong and obliquely
transverse, as in tbe hone and sheep. In most serpents and many
rapacious quadrupeds, both aquatic and terrestrial, the pupil though
large and round at night is a mere vertical slit when seen by day,
aapeoially in the smaller species of each geuus, as in the common cai
It is curious that in tbe larger cats, as tha lion cuid tiger, as well as in
some of the larger fourfootfd reptiles, the pupil again becomes
circular. In all birdi, we believe, the pupil is round ; and it may be
observed that, with few aiccptious, they all sleep after night-fall. In
the few noqtumal spades, as tha owls, the pupil ia very large though
rtill round, and these birds always shun the day. The long narrow
pupil is in tact a provirion for a greater variation in aiia than tha
airQular form permits, and ia generally found in those "'"i"'* whicb
roam at night and also aee wall by day. Wben absent in such
animals the bulk of the organ ia commonly aufflcient to secure the
admission (if a suffloient quanti^ of light after sunset without this
provision. In the fcntui the pupil ia closed by a vascular film called
the membraua pupillaria, one function of which is precisely that of
the centering of a bridge to support and extend it during the pracasa
of its oonstruotion. A tubular film of the same kind hu been
lately discovered by MilUer stretched between the margin of tbe
pupil and tlie dliary body. Both thne films are abaorbed before birth.
Ciliary BjJj uJ Pi-ooe4»i«. {Pig: 5, 1; 0, J, <:.)—U\ioa iLo com-
pr«wed antarior (urfnco of the vitreoiu humour whare it ourvei
iDWftnls from the aolarotic towanb tha leoa, nata the ciliu? body, a
thin, dark, uiDular band, about the Gfth port of an inch in brea Itb,
oonudting of a frill of flat couverging plaita, which encircle but do
Dot reach the circumference of the lens. Tha posterior aapect ia
concBTB, and adherea loouly over tha rounded vitreooa humour ; the
front ia convex, and ia fimily attached to the vhols breadth of the
ciliary liganient, and to a amall portioD of the back of the iria near
it! Junction with the ligameat. It appears to be a continuation of
tha inner layer of the choroid, or tiuuc of Ruyech, but ia rather
thicker, and reaemblea it in eKtrema raacularity. The madullaiy
matter of the retina terminates, as we have aeen, at the indented
posterior mat|[LD (ora lerrata) of this membiBDOus band. The ailiary
body is erarynhere thickly coated and pervaded with pigment, except
at tat eitremitiea of about aeventy minute unattached points which
fhnge the inner margin, and radiate towards the lena like the florets
of a marigold round its central disc These are tha ciliary processes,
{Figi. S, k ; 8, e.) Thay are aeparated from the uvea by the fluid of
the posterior chamber, and are received behind lata oorreepondiog
Appendages of the Globe. — The Eyeball, of which we have thus
described Oie contents, ia lodged in the cavity of the orbit, a little
Dearer the inner than tha outer aide. Id front, where the protection
of bone ia wanljug, the two moveable and muscular eyelids supply
a sufficiant defence, and contribute, by their gentje and constaat
pressure, to keep tha ne in that atata of equilibrium between
opposito forces upon which the steadiiieaa and precision of its rapid
motions in a great measure depend. The apace in the socket not
occupied by £e globe and its appendages is completely filled by a
cushion of soft fat, contained in elastic membranous cells, wluch
permits the free movement of the asveral parts, while it keep* them
Beparnts, and afibrds them all, as well as the globe itself, a suitable
and uniform support. Varieties in the quRntity of this aubstance,
in the capacity of the orbit, and in the development of the lids,
determine the different degrees of prominence and of apparent size
observed in the eyes of diff^nt penona; for the globe itself is
nvarly of the same siia in all.
Muscles of the Eyeb.ilL — The movements of the globe are effected
by six muscles arising from the bony surface of the orbit, and
inserted into different parts of the sclerotic. Pour an called recti,
that is straight or direct muscles ; the fifth and sixth are itie obliqui
superior and inferior, so called from the obliquity of thtir insertion,
and tbeir respective i>oeitions above and below the globe. The fifth,
or superior oblique, is also called the trochlearie, ^m the trochlea,
or pulley, through which the tendon passes.
The recti {fig, 1 D, a, £, c, d,) are four flat ribbon-like muscles, each
about half an inch broad, which arise together roimd the edge of
the foramen opUcum, and
embrace the nerve at its exit
ft-om the skulL The; end in
broad thin f;liEtemng tendons,
attached to l^e sclerotic at four
equidistant points, about a
quarter of an inch from the
edge of t^a comes, above,
belo*
either
Hence they are designated ns
the :iuperior, inferior, internal,
and eitamal straight muscles.
We have already explained how
tha outer surfacea of their ten-
dona are blended, and form the
tunica alhuginea. Each tuma
tha pupil towarda the side of
its insertion ; snd it is easy to
seehowby their single actions,
or by a proper combination of ,
two that are contiguous, ths „,
pnpil may be turned in any „g
required dimction. The rectus ,
eitemuB, from its position on ^^
Uie diverging aide of the orbit, mi
ia necessarily the longest of tap
these musclea It has also a {>•)
double origin, arising not only 'ii
in common with the rest from ""
the edge of the optic foramen, *^'
but also from the edge of the '"J
sphenoid fissure, and archea .^
over several nerves which ,^
enter the orbit by that passage
<^). Thn superior oblique or iTOohlesris (e) U a round tapering
muscle, which arises near and on the nasal side of the rectus
IntcmuB {c), and ends in a smooth round tendon. Tha pulley (i;)
through which this tendon passes is a small loop of cartilage fixed
to the roof of tha orbit towards the nasal side, just within the
tnai;^n. In this situation the tendon is enveloped in a lubricated
BYE. AMI
exten^iibja ahe^th calleJ bursa mucosa; thence spreadiug into a thib
fan-like expansion, it ia refiactad ohUquely backwards and outward*
batnreen the globe and ths tendon of tha reetua superior (a), and ia
inserted into the back part of the sclerotic at a point (»} inter-
meiliate between the optic nerve and the insertion (t) of the rectni
externus. and nearer ths former. Ita separate action tuma ths
Eupil downwards and outwards. The inferior oblique (/) arise*
road within the lower edge of the orbit towarda the naasl or
inner aide, and passing obliquely backwards over the tendm of tha
rectus inferior (o), is attached to the sclerotio at tha outer and back
forwards: if the pupil be inclined either way, ti
the temple, the inferior oblique increases that incimsuon, twmg
equipoised as to lateral action when the eye is slightly turned inwards,
aa in reading. But its tendency is always to turn tbe pupil upwards.
To a certain extent the same remark is applicable (mutatis mutandis)
to the action of the antagonist muscle, Uie superior oblique, which
if exerted at the same time would counteract the tendency upwards,
so that both taken together would keep the eye in that assy position
BO often assumed by man and animals in looking without much
effort yet steadily at near objects, aa in taking food, raading, and
most other quiet occupations. Tha poaition we mean is £at in
which the axes of vision are directed slightly towards each other
and a little downwards, and tha eyeballs are gently praased gainst
the lids and by them, and thus are kept in a convenient and itaady
equilibrium. When the oblique muscles act together with foroe, they
hold the eyeball firmly agamst the lids and to the nasal aids of
the orbit. One or both of these muscles, as weU as tbe rectu*
aitemus, are supposed to be endowed with certain automatic oi
involuntary actions, very useful in the eoonomy of vision. Their
functions in this and other respects have given occasion to much
curious disquisition.
The Eyelids or Palpebro. (FigM. II, 12, 18.)— Tha textnra which
enter into the composition of the eyelids are included between a
soft external skin and a moist smooth internal sarfaae, called the
coi^unctiva palpebralis or propria. {Fijf. 18, a a.) The latter is a
membrane of the mucous kmd, which, as wa have alraadv mentioned,
after lining the interior of tbe lids, passes acroas in a fooae circular
scroll or fold to tlie sclerotic, and is rafiected back agun over the
front of the eye, where it is called tha adnata or oaqjunctiva reflexa.
The name is derived from the function thus effected between tb*
ocular and palpebral surfaces. The outer skin of the eyelids, which
is extremely soft aad delicate, yet capable to a cousidarahla extent
of adapting itself to diOureut degrees of extension, is loosely con-
nected to the B^ibjacent parts, except at the margin (where it adherea
more closely), by n moist and abundant celluior tissue, entirely devoid
of fat. By means of this connection, whan the upper lid ia rvsed
and these under-tying parts tx»
retracted under the edge of tha
orbit^ tha snparfluoua skin ia
gently drawn aHar thsm, snd
a disposed of oonvaniantly
under ths brow (aupercilium).
Tha eyelids meet, when closed,
by two namiw flat sDrfaoe*,
accuiateiy applied to each
other, called their dUary or
tanal margins. These epithets
ara respectively derived from
the tarsi, or thm concave and
crescantic ahells of smooth azid
elastic cartilags which giv*
form to the lids, and fiimncM
and outline to their opposed
edges {Jl0. 10, Q; and from
the lashes or oils, which grow
n several rows at the margin*
the rirhl ercball, seen fratn the ouler side, wllh Its mi
ill altered to nuke Uien in<
reflKted undtr
dUfTUn, Iho pnportiani of ths psits taavlaE
■ b^ of both Uds, from their ex-
treme outward verge, and in
irtBs aMlwans, arising *'"' dir^^tioi' of the flat sw
Hob into the eyilnU, f^^ee. The angles In which
ipiriar, a roend snd ^* margins of the eyelids
onKh a pHllFr or iMip meet towarda the nose and
iDd, bcoomlng flsl. Is temple are called the canthL
_^ .,.. ..... . -I, . ogntjmg [j itept ;,
iaftriw from the front and lanci edge al tHe orbii, n«r ths Innu cornir of jts place during tha motions
Bd in«rted inte Lhe wlcroUc o|,i».l« U» Insertion o( the superior oUliiue ; of the port by a tendinous ex-
??'.?!.'"" "J!""';^ •"!""» ".V^* _t«,d«, which la In-rtediBlo [( Ih. „™iJ^*i,neuroais. which.
t ot tlKir GO
;d «Ui jMlr,
^ 1^ pansion or aponeurosis, which,
tk.Wol»;d.ofU«™^«Umu.. The adl>erin?to the thin^ascoitio
edges of both lam on their outer
or convex surface^ attache*
them, and most closely on this (the temporal) aide, to the maigiu
of tbe orbit. It is called the broad ligament of the taraL . The nasal
extremities of the tarsi ara conflued to tha side of the nose by two
slipa which are given off behind tiwa tha tendon of the orbicnlw
muscle.
Muscles of tha Eyelid*.— Immediately beneath th« subcutaneou*
■>!
EYE.
catlultr tiaaua thcrd is ft broad U^r of m-aicular GbrM UTmiiged
«llipticall; Toand tha tnmsrerM finun of the eyalidi, ths ditpoai-
tion of which ii well ihowi) in fg. 12. The office of this miuclfl,
which ii cftll«d tbe orbicuUrii, is to clou tha lida; uid it ii
Mpable of acting under cerlaiii circumttuicei with gnat forca. It
U Qolleetad at tha iuner angle or camthai of tha eje into a round
^lort tendon, which ia attached in that aituatioa to the bone. Elss'
whara it ii connected with the akin and aponearotjc expaniions of
thefaoa and fonthrad. It u alao connected with the ocoipito-frontalie
noiela, which elaTstea the eja-hrowa aod with tha oorrugator
■upeiciiii, which wrinklea and knita them in the act of frawmng. A
VUw
« aid Ud>, ah<»l
■IE Ihtlr ta
ulmarr
int.
nctun luhiTiu
a; », tanala^ra
ortlaai at
tha nppa
dmUaili
tnalHi at the li
a UDlhca, or a
ner of tha
liae el polnti
ntanial to the
Uon oTlfaa *7<laihei, «U<sb are »m«ML
Tlew of Uia orhientar mucl* of the left ayvUd, aa It ippnn »ben dnad ii]
a, tbe (radon ■
dnn la br Um I
•Ida of Ihe oibil.
ol the taiaal caitilac* Ea lb
BYE. Ml
paraon acquainted with mechantca will hiTO no difficalt; in perceiriDg
tha adraatage derived from the oblicgue, or, u it mig^t almoiC be
called, the incidental action of tha orbicularia in oloaing tha lida, to
the adgaa of which ita fibrea are parallel A more direct «[iplic(itii>a
of muMiular force would hara been mora paweri\il ; but the actual
arrangement tacurea a tsptdit; incompanbly mora conductTo to the
function of the ajelida, which ia to cleanaa and moisten the aurface
Lerator Palpebra Supariorit.— Balow the orbicuUria, in the upper
lid, ia the broad tendon of the muaele which eleratea the Dppar lid.
(Figt. 13, d; 10, g.) Thia muaele ariaea fhim the edge of tha optic
foramen, just above the rectaa auperior, and poaaing over it along the
roof of the orbit, forma the thin tendon we have mentioned, which
ia inieited into the inner inrfiue or rather the thin upper edge of
the tarsal aartilag& There is no aucb proTiaion for deprenlng the
lower lid, which ia rendered unnccesxar; by ita inferior aitent.
MoreoTer the muscle we have just described aufficiantly answers the
purpose, by pressing down the globe, and caueing it to elide a little
forwards ; as may be easily felt if a finger be placed at^inaC tha lower
lid when the eye ia close, and luflered to remain while the upper lid
is a] owl J raised.
Meibomian Glands. [Pig. 13, e, s). — Between the tarsus of eillisr
lid and the conjunctira are disposed numerous vertical rows at
minute whitish grains, which appear through the aemi'ttanaparent
mucouB membrane, and occupy an elliptic apace, taking both lida
together, of about half an ioch in width, exactly in front of the
Kbe. Thsae arc enlled the Meibomian glands, from their discoverer.
ey aeciete an unctuoua matter which passea into tubea centrally
platwd in each row, and exudes from aa many minute oriScea on
the ciliary margin of the lid. (Fig. 11, e). There are about forty of
these parallel cluitera in the upper lid : in the lower there ate not
■0 many, nor are tbey individually ao long. We need not dilate
upon the use of thia secretion, which often collecta in a aenaibla
aiiantity upon the edges of tbe lida during sleep, eapecially when
le glandular aotion ia excited by alight iuflamraatory irritation of
the part The palpebral coi^unctiTa, already described, immediately
COTera these glandular corpuaclea. The caruncle, a small red
prominence at the inner angle of the eye {jig. 11, d) conaiala of a
number of aiTnUar bodies.
Lachrymal Apparatus. {Pigt.\%, 14).— At the upper and outer
part of the interior of the eyelid are several minute orificea {jig. 13,
C), generally aaven in number, arranged in a half oirde, which lead
into the secretory ducts of the lachrymal gland. (Figt. 13, h; 11, «.)
Thia ia a white flattened lobulated body, of the aine of a large bean,
lodged in a depreaaion juat witiiin the margin of tha orbit, and
covered eitemally by Uie orbicular muscle. The function of this
gland is to secrete the tears; and is probably always going on,
although not in a degree sufficient to bs remarked, except iu weeping,
to tbe noK ; <, the hchrTDol glaad.
Tbe inroluntary actions of tha rectus extemus and inferior ofaljqae
muarlea, to which we hhve alluded, are supposed to have a relation
to tbe lachiymat aecrction. In the act of « inking, the eye-ball ia
thrown up in an outward direction, aa it would be by the action of
theae muaclea, which not only brings the cornea into the vicinity of
the ducta, but makea proaaure upon tho gland, while it relatively
incraaaea the rapidity with which the lida, drawn in winking towards
the fixed naaal tendon are swept over the aurfiwe of the globe. That
there is auuh a movement however produced la certain ; the notion
approximation of the lids towards the i
several pronsions by which oStading puiiole*
are brought to tha inner csDlhus of the eye to be protruded or
iddenly cloeed.
1 winkinx ia a
or mpwilnonB
683
EYE.
EYE.
eM
f
— - — -
absorbed. In this Bituation there ib a yacant space partly occupied
by the caruncle, called the lacua lachiymallB (Jig. 11, d); it la a sort
of reservoir or rather sink for the tears. Above and below, at the
entrance to this space where the ciliary margins terminate, there is a
small prominence on the inner edge of both (^. 11, a; 14, a), centrally
punctured by small orifices. These are tiie puncta lachrymalia.
Their inward aspect is well shown in fig. 18. They are the emuncto-
ries of the eye ; and their function is to absorb the fluids presented
to them, and convey them by two converging canals {fig. 14, a) to the
lachrymal sac {fig. 14, c), which they enter by a common orifice
(fig. 14, (). This is a membranous bc^ about as laige as a kidney-
bean lodged in a groove in the lachrymal bone, behind the tendon of
the orbicular muscle. The lachrymal sac entering a vertical channel
in the bone at the end of the groove is narrowed into the lacbiymal
canal {fig. 14, d), and posses directly downwards into the inferior
meatus or chamber of the noee, which it enters on the outer side by
a slit in the mucous lining. It is not exactly understood in what
way the puncta absorb — whether by capillary attraction or by some
vital force of suction. The side of the lachrymal sac is connected
with the tendon of the orbicularis, which may aid in producing the
effect by suddenly drawing its membranous surfaces apart. We all
know the effect of repeated winking when the eves are filled with tears.
Nervous and Vascular Constitution of the £ye. — Enough has been
already said, for geneml information, with respect to the blood-
vessels distributed to the eyeball, and it is not necessary to mention
those which supply the appendages. With respect therefore to
vascular arrangements we have only to add, that idthough there are
abundant proofs of the existence of an active absorption within the
globe, no lymphatic vessels especially destined to that fonction have
been hitherto found in it. The optic or second cerebral nerve has
been already described. All the straight muscles, with the exception
of the rectus extemus, the inferior oblique, and the levator palpebrse,
are supplied by the third nerv& The fourth is wholly distributed
to the trochlearis, and the sixth to the rectus extemus. The orbicular
muscle is supplied, like most of those of the face, by the portio
dura of the seventh pair. All these, except the optic, are muscular
or motor nerves. The fifth nerve supplies the whole organ in common
with many other parts with ordinary sensation. Any account of the
intricate nervous constitution of the iris would bo here quite out of
place. The third and sixth nerves are mainly concerned in it. Thus
of the ten cerebral nerves, the second, third,- fourth, and sixth are
wholly, and the fifth and seventh partially distributed to the organ
of Yision ; a fact which may give some idea of the elaborate oigani-
satiou and varied exigencies of the parts which compose it.
Comparative Anatomy of the Eye. — The sense of sight is undoubt-
edly developed amongst the lowest class of animals, but it is difficult
to point out the exact members of the series in which this faculty is
first exercised. The moving zoospores of plants are attracted
towards the lights and Ehrenberg regards as eyes the red spots seen
in some organisms, such as Volvox, which are now regarded as plants.
All anatomists are agreed on reguding the ocelliform spots situated
at regular intervals along the margin of the disc of Pulmograde
MeduiCB as eyes. They are composed of a collection of pigmentary
granules, superposed upon an enlargement of a nervous thread, which
comes from the central circle of nervous matter in the animals.
Similar spots have been observed at the extremities of the rays in
the AtUriadcB by Professor E. Forbes. In many of the lower
Afiicviaia no higher development obtains. In the Bntozoa no visual
organ has been detected. Distinct eye-spots are seen in the Leechesy
the BotifertEf and the Dorsibranchiate AnKdida. Amongst the mass
of MoUuica these organs are not observed. They are hovfever ver^
distinct in the Pectens and other awimming forms of Lamelh-
branchiate Mollusks.
" The eyes of most of the higher articulated animals are constructed
npon the composite type, each of the masses that is situated upon
either side of the head, being made up of an aggregation of simple
eyes, every one of which is in itself a complete visual instrument^
but is adapted to receive and to bring to a focns only those rays
which come to it in one particular dir^ioiL In most insects each
composite eye forms a large hemispherical . protuberance, which
occupies a considerable part of the side of the head, and when
examined with a microscope, its surface is seen to be directed into a
vast number of facets, which are usually hexagonal. The number
of these facets, every one of which is the cornea of a distinct eye, is
usually very great Behind the cornea is a layer of dark pigment,
which takes we place and serves the purpose of the iris in the
eyes of the VeriArcUc^ and this is perforated bv* a central aperture
or pupil, through which the rays of light which have traversed
the cornea gain access to the interior of the eye. When a vertical
section is made of one of these composite eyes, it is seen that each
separate eye is the frustum of a pyramid, of which the cornea
forms the large end or base, whilst the small end abuts upon a
bulbous expansion of the optic nerve. The interior of this pyramid is
occupied by a transparent substance which represents the vitreous
humour, and the pyramids are separated from each other by a
layer of dark pigment which completely incloses them, save at the
pupillary apertures and also at a corresponding set of apertures at
their smaller ends, wher« the pigment is perforated by the fibres
of the optic nerve, of which one proceeds to each separate eye.
Each fiEU>Bt of the common cornea or ' oomaule ' is usually convex
on both its surfaces, and thus acts as a lens, the focus of which has
been ascertained by experiment to be equivalent to ihe length of the
transparent pyramid behind it ; so that the image produced by the
lens will fall upon the extremity of the filament of the optic nerve
which passes to its truncated end. The rays whid^ haye passed
through the several comeules are prevented from mixing with each
other by means of the layer of black pigment which surrounds each
cone ; and thus no rays, except those which correspond with the axis
of the cone, can reach the fibres of the optic nerve. Hence it is
evident that each separate eye must have an extremely limited range
of vision, being adapted to receive but a very small pencil of rays
proceeding from a single point in any object ; and as tnese eyes are
usually immoveable, they would afford but yery imperfect information
of the position of surrounding objects, were it not for their enormous
multiplication, by which a separate eye is provided (so to spei^) for
each point to be viewed. ' No two of the separate eyes, save those
upon the opposite sides of the head which are directed exactly
forwards, can form, an image of the same point at the same time,
but the combined action of all of them may give to the insect, it
may be imagined, as distinct a picture as that which we obtain by a
very different organisation. At any rate it seems certain, from
observation of the movement of insects, that tiie vision by which
they are guided must be very perfect and acute.
" Although the foregoing may bo considered the typical structure of
the eyes of iosects, yet there are various Blight departures from it in
the different subdivisions of the class. Thus m some oases the
posterior surface of each comeule is concave, and a space is left
between it and the iris which seems to be occupied by a watery fluid
or aqueous humour ; in some instances again tiiis space is oocupied
by a double convex body which seems to represent the crystalline
lens; and there are cases in which this crystalline lens is found
behind the iris, the number of eyes being reduced, and each individual
eye being larger, so that the entire aggrogate approaches, both in its
structure and mode of action, to tiiat of Araehnida and certain
Onuiace<i. Besides their composite eyes, insects usually possess a
small number of rudimentary single eyes resembling those of the
Arxuhnida: these are seated upon the top of the head, and are called
stemmata. Their precise use is unknown, but that they haye con-
siderable iafluenoe in the direction of the movements appears from
the fact that, if the stemmata of a bee be covered with paint, on
being let go it will fly continually upwards— a fact whicn seems
related to those already mentioned ia regard to the influence of visual
sensations upon automatic moyements. It is remarkable that the
larvss of insects which undergo a complete metamorphosis only possess
simple eyes, the composite eyes being developed at ihe same time
with the wings and other parts which are characteristic of ^e imago
state during the latter part of the pupa condition. In the higher
Cruataeea the structure of the eyes is nearly the same as in insects ;
but the compound masses are not so large relatively to the bulk of
the body, and the number of distinct eyes is not nearly so great In
the lower Oruttaeea however, as in Myriapoda, the visual organs much
more closely approximate the type of structure which tiiey present
in the Arachmda ; each aggregate mass being composed of a small
number of simple eyes, of which every one has its own separate
cornea as well as its own crystalline lens and vitreous humour, and
these in ftome instances being Altogether detached from eadi other.
Among some of the Suctorial Cryultacta the visual organs are altogether
wanting vn their state of full development, although they are uniformly
present in their early oonditiob ; and the same may be said of the
(TirrAtpedio. Among Arachwdok^ which in this as in many other
respects present an approximation to YtrU^bnaai we find a g^at
reduction in the number of eyes, which are never more than eight in
number (sometimes 'being only two), and are to be compared with the
stemmata of insects rather uian with their compound eyes. These
eyes are sometimes collected into one mass on the summit of the
cephalo-thorax, and are sometimes symmetrically and separately on
the two sides of the median line. In the Scorpions we find two large
eyes placed on the dorsal aspect of the cephalo-thorax near the median
Ime, and three pairs of smaller ones, which are placed on the outer
margins of the same division of the body. The larger eyes are
described by Mliller as each possessing a cornea which is convex
anteriorly and concave posteriorly; and a nearly globular crystalline
lens resembling that of fishes, whose anterior surface lies in the
hollow of the cornea, while its posterior rests upon the vitreous
humour, without being imbedded in it. The yitreous humour is a
nearly hemispherical mass of soft granular matter, being almost flat
in front and very convex behind ; over its posterior surface is spread
the retina, or expansion of the optic nerve ; and this is covered by
a thick layer of pigment which passes inwards in front of the vitreous
humour so as to form a sort of iris, the pupillary aperture of wkioh
however exceeds the diameter of the crystalline lens. Among those
classes which constitute the higher division of the MoUuscous series
in virtue of the possession of a distinct head, the presence of visual
organs is by no means constant ; many GnuAemipttda and PUm/pttdA
being destitute of them altogether, and others possessing ocelliform
spots, which may be concluded to be rudimentary eyes from their
>
J
J
•U EYE.
■imiUri^ In pMitioa to the tjtm of thoM which undoubWlj pousu
Tlmul pQwen. Ths ejea *n atwayB very mioute howsrer in pro-
E>ltioD to Um bulk of the body, abA in do iiutuiM do the; po«s«SB >
gh ^H of itnioture ; their nnenl orgvuutioniiiiieed bean a close
rawmbUnM to that which tuu been dncribad in the eje of the
Booniuiu la the CepKaiopoda we find the riaual orguu prcseDtiog a
inuah luKer nie, and attaining a much higher grade of deTelanmeiit,
in accordance with their greater fuDotionat activity in directing the
npid and energetio moTements practiMd by a luge proportion of
thaae animalf. We hare find nearly all the principal parta which are
oharaoteriitio of the an of higher «"'""'■, namely, a cornea, an
anterior chamber filled with an aqueona Said incloaed in a dintinct
Mpinle, a cijatalKne lena of globular form (u in Sshea), a large
poetarior duuDber filled with vitnooa humour, a tough flbroua or
■derotlo coat, a naeular choroid ooat within thia oorsred by
Uack pigment upon iti Inner aniface aod retinal eipanaiaD. The
ralationt of thia laat to the optic ganglion however are Terj pecoliar.
Thia nnsliou la aituated aljnoat doM to the back of the aye, and
<"■*"" of tranamitting a dngle optio nerre >■ in higher animali, it
girea off a multitude of Slamenta which separately pierce the aclarotia
ooat, and then form a plexua between thia and the choroid, which haa
bean miataken for the retina. The true retina however ia a vary thin
lamella apparently cumpoeed of veaicular nerve-anbetanoe, which ia
found between the pigment and the membrane iudcaing tbe vitreous
kumoor ; but the connection of thia with the net-work of nerve-tribea
on the ontode of the pigmsntary layer haa not yet been made out^
No proper iria exiate in the ayea of the Cephalopoda, but ita place ia
aupmied I7 a partial prolongation of the lolerotia coat over the frost
of the (ryitalhne, a eentcal pupillary aperture being left. The cornea
b not, like the true oomea of higher animala, a tnuiaparent con-
tiuuatioa of the aderotic coat, but ia a modification of the general
Intagnmant^ analogona rather to the eit«nial or ranjundiTal utrer of
tlw cornea of Verltbmta : it is remarkable that in aome Og>luUi>jnda
it should be perforated by aa orifice of oousiderable Aae, through
which the oapnds of the cryatalline lens projects into the external
inedium." (Carpenter, ' Prinraplee of Physiology.')
The eyeballs of quadrupeds and other Mamaalia resemble the
human organ in structure, and differ from it, but not easentially, in
form. Thia is not the case with the appendagea. One of tbe meat
nmaricable additions commauly found to the parte we have dncribed
is that of a strong retractor moacle in the shape of a hollow cone
attached at the apex to the bott«ia of the orbit^ and by the margiaal
base to the sderotio, which it embraces, lying under ^le recti musclea.
Ita uae is to draw bock the ^e in ths orbi^ a gesture wbioh gives
n of bollowneaa to the 01 ~ ' '- -'
We SI
IT expression 0
la organ in beasts of prey.
Theg.
quadrangular bony acalea (Jig. Ifi, a) within the anbatance of the
aderotic, concave on their outer ai^act, and overlapping and accu-
rately fitted to each other. The ligidity thoa communicated to the
' external oass which contains tlia fluid media preventa their prsanira
from (tiatending the eye into a apherioal abape. The ciliary body
IJtg. 15, b) extends over the whole of thia portion of ths surface. A
curious mcmbnuie called the pacten or comb (Jff. IG, e), from aomo
rseemblance to that tmplament, projaota through the choroid into the
Tltreous hnmonr, and in some birda is attached to the ride of the
like the paper of a lady'a Aui. Of ita use little ia known. The
fonmeu of Soemmaring, described in the aooount of the human
retina, is thought to be a radiment of the pe?ten. In birda the retina
has geneTslly the yellow colour seen only partially in man round the
een^ spot mlac^ed a fanunen.
llDilionUl leeUoa of the ejs at tbe Csmnon Owl (Slria tntr}.
a a, boDf platta la tbe Mlarotli ; t, cUlaij bodjr ; t, pteWa.
A.t the back of the globe then aro two musclea which originate
from th« Hlentio, aod are applied to lU ourred adi&oe nund tbe
IFig. IT, b.) It is ceiled the quadratue. Attached by its wider ed^
near the mai^ of thia part of the ederotic, its flbraa conveige to
the narrower edge, and terminate in a narrow tendon (fy. IT, e),
perforated through ita whole length like the hem of an aproo. The
second smallermusde, (ailed tbe pyramidalls from its shape (JF^. n,d),
at an oppotite part of the circumlereuce. Its fibres converge, and are
fixed into a long round tendon (fgt. 17 and 18, e), which pasees
through the loop or hem (cj of tbe quodntue, and henca turning over
the edge of the broad part of tbe sclerotic, ia continued along the
surfaoe of ita bell-ahaped portion, where it jiaasea through several
thread-like loopa or pulleya which keep it applied to the concavity,
and round a bony point wliicb projects from the Burfacc, and is
Fij. IT. riB. 18.
' of tbe quadritm — CurciDf o
niBod apinalanit ban; tabtrele, 1sh«i iatciltd lute tbe alctltiLlDEaieiDbrsaa
attached near the edge of the cornea to the edge of an elastic fold
{fig- 18, /) of the eonjuncUva, which is caUed the third eyelid or
nictitaUug (that is, winking) msmbrane. It will be eoaiiy seen
by the help of the figures, from this description, that tba effect of the
■imultaneona oootracUon of the two muscles will be to draw tbe
membnne with great rapidity, making it sweep over the surface of
the oomea. It returns by its own elasticity with nearly etjaa]
quickneaa. A bird may be seen to use this mechanism twenty time*
in a minute ; in fact, as often as it may be neceasary to cleanse the
surface of the eye. The colour of the membrane is milk; ; and it is
seen to pass from the upper and inner to the outer aod lower comer
of the eye with tbe speed for wbich the act of winking is pi-overbiaL
There is a rudiment of thia third eyelid in the human orgau. lb ia a
small crescentic fold of conjunctiva aituated at the inner canlliiia
behind the caruncle, (/y^. 13,/) The haw is also a rudimen
unprorided with a
Seat of Vision. — The retina in one sense ia not the seat of virion.
It i* neceasary to the peroeptiou that tha impreaaion of light should
be received on another part not endowed willi aensibility, namely
the BurEaoe of the choroid ; and that the vibration or other effect thut
impressed should be transferred to the retina in front of that snrⅇ
for where the choroid ia deficient at the entrance of the nerve, thera
ia no perception of hght. This may be easily shown by a very
common and condurive experiment. If two diaca of white paper be
fixed upon a wall at the distance of two feet from each other, and an
observer, having closed one eye (the left), continues to gaze atten-
tively at the left-hand disc, at the same time riowly retrcaLing troBi
the wall, he will for a time coutioue to aee them both ; tbe rays from
the right-hiand object entering of course lateially, and impinging upon
»7
ETE.
the retixui sewer asd nearer to tbe entrance of tlie nerve aa he goea
iMckwavd. At length when he haa reached the distance of about
04 feet from the wul, the rig^t-hand ohject will suddenly disappear,
and remain imrisible (the oheerver still retreating) till he has gained a
distance of about eight feet^ During this period the spectrum has
been passmg over the circular aperture in the choroid through which
the nerve enteriL The insensible portion of the retina is found to
extend horizontally over five degrees and a half of the angular range of
vision. The eyes are generally unequal in power, and the experiment
succeeds best in the weaker oigan, m whidi the obscuration is more
sudden and complete. In the experiment previously mentioned,
showing the distribution of the central artoy of the retina, the
surface of the choroid is fSuntly illuminated through the transparent
nervous expansion by what is called the dispersion of part of the
light admitted through tiie pupil ; but the rays thus scattered are
locally intercepted by the opaque blood contained in the minute
brandiea of the arteiy ; hence, after several repetitions, when the eye
has become accustomed to neglect the taper, and attend to the fainter
internal illumination, the shadow of the vascular net-work upon the
choroid becomea perceptible in dark lines.
Apparent Direction of Objects seen obliquely. — A body in motion,
as a ball, striking the surface of another, impresses it in a line perpen-
dicul.ir to the surisce at the point of impact This rule appears to
hold good with respect to the action of light upon the retina. Indeed
if impreorions of any kind be made upon it, the eensation is that of
light, and the direction suggested is that of a line joining the centre
of the sphere of which the retina forms a part with the point im-
preseed, — in other words, a line perpendicidar to it. This may be
shown in several ways : if we excite the nerve by pressing far back
upon the eyeball wiUi the finger-nail, especially if the eye be closed
or light otherwiw excluded, a bright ring appears to be seen in a
diametrically opposite quarter.
Erect Vision. — If the sclerotic and choroid be carefully removed
under water from the back of an eye, an inverted picture of any
object held before the cornea is seen upon the now milky surface of
the retina. Hence the celebrated question raised in the age of philo-
sophical barbarism, how is it that we see objects erect when the
imsge on the retina ib inverted ? The question is an idle one, which is
perhaps hardly worth answering. The mind judffes of the apparent
place of objects or of parts of an object hj the direction of the
impressions made upon the retina, not by the part of it which may
happen to be aifected by these impressions. The shadow of the
central artery is an example of an impression necessarily received
always upon the same parts ; yet the apparent, or in other words
the relative, olaoe of the shadow will be found to vary with every
movement of the eye.
Single Vision. — ^Another question, not so trivial as the last, has
been raised with respect to single vision with two eyes, as the im-
presrion must be twofold. But perhaps it will not require an answer
if the reader will try to imagine double virion of the same object,
or rather of the same pointy for the question resolves itself into tiiat.
Let the two supposed images approach each other, still remaining
double^ till they are in contact Another step in the' imaginary
approximation, and thev are one. The truth is, that both eyes see
the object in the same place ; and as two images, no more than two
material substances, can occupv the same place at the same time, the
impressions coincide and are single.
On the Development of the Oigan of Vision. — ^The following remarks
on this sulject are from Professor Kdlliker'B 'Manual of Human
Histology :' —
" The eyeball is not developed from a single point as a whole, but
arises from the conjunction of formations, proceeding on one side from
the central nervous system, on another from the skin, and thirdly
from the parts lying between the two.
" In the Chick the primitive ocular vesicles arise before the com-
mencement of the second day, from the primitive cerebral vesicle or
the anterior cerebrum, in the form of two protrusions at first sessile,
but afterwards having a hollow peduncle — ^the rudiment of the optic
nerve. At the beginning of the third day the formation of the lens
commences, fix>m the skin of the face covering these vesicles by the
thickening on the inner aspect and inversion of the epidermis, in con-
sequence of which the anterior wall of the primitive ocular vesicle is
also inverted, and becomes applied to the posterior wall, so that the
cavity of the vericle Ib wholly obliterated.
'' Now, at first this secondary ocular vesicle encompasses the lens,
which in the meantime has bera separated by constnotion from the
epidermis, and comes into exact apposition with it beneath ; like a
cup subsequently however the vitreous body is developed between
the two in a special new cavity. How the latter is formed has not
yet been ascertained, although, as Scholer observes, it is most probable
that it alK> grows in from the skin, in fact from the region below and
behind the lens, and participates with the latter in the inversion of
the primitive ocular vesicle. According to Bemak, the retina Ib
formed from the inner thicker wall of the inverted or secondary ocular
vesicle, and from the outer and thinner, the choroid, from the anterior
border of which the iris is not produced till afterwards. The scle-
rotic and cornea are applied from without upon the eyeball thus con-
stituted, the former being to some extent a producUon of the skio.
EYE.
An interealing phenomenon is presented in the vessels exisAing in ihm
foetal eye, even in the transparent media. The vitreous body on its
outer surface, between the hyaloid membrane and the retina, presents
a tolerably wide meshed vascular plexus, which is supplied by
branches of the arteria centralis retanae, given off from it at its entrance
into the eye, and anterioriy, at the border of the lens on the sonola
Zinnii forms a vascular circle, the circulus arteriosus llascagnii, from
which again vessels are given off to the membrana capsulo-pupiUaris
presently to be described. Besides this, a special arteria hyaloidea,
also derived from the central arteiy of the retina, runs in the so-called
canalis hvaloideus, in a straight line through the vitreous body to the
lens, and ramifies in the most elegant arborescent manner at very
acute anglea in a membrane closely applied to the poaterior wall of
the lenticular capsule. This is nothing else than a portion of an
externally vascular capsule which at first veiy closely surrounds the
lens, and in its snterior walls is supplied by the continuation of the
hyaloid artery coming round the border of the lena towards the frxmt^
with which branches of the circulus arteriosus IfaBcagnii and of the
anterior border of the uvea are connected. Afterwards, when the
lens retreats from the cornea, with which it is at first in dose appo-
sition, and the iris buds out from the border of the uvea, the antenor
wall of the vascular lenticular capsule is divided into two portions,
one central and anterior, which, arising from the border of the iris,
and connected with that membrane by vessels, doses the pupil, the
membrana pupillaris ; and another external and posterior, extending^
backwards from the same points on the border of the lens, the mem-
brana capsulo-pupillaris. The latter becomes more and more distinct
as the iris and aqueous chambers are devdoped, and the lena retreats
until at last it represents a delicate membrane stretching across the
posterior chamber.
** The venona blood from all these parts is returned through the
veins of the iris and from the outer surface of the vitreous body, also
through those of the retina, and perhaps through a vena-hyidoidea
said to take the same course as the artery, but of the existence of
which many authors doubt, and which I have never myself seen.
With respect to the genetic import of the vascular oqpsule^ nothing
has as ^et been ascertained. I find it to be composed of a homoge-
neous tissue, with a few scattered cells, and regard it as a structure
corresponding to the cutis which in tiie formation of the lens is
detached from the skin, together with a portion of the epidermis, and
remains in the eye. The vitreous body then may be understood as
modified subcutaneous connective tissue — a supposition not at all
incongruoua with the observations above adduced, and the more so
because, as I have shown, all the subcutaneous connective tissue of
the foetus Is at one time perfectiy gelatinous, and, like the enamd
organ, which also bdongs to the same tissue, in spede strikingly
resembles the vitreous body in aspect and consistence.
« Concerning the histological development of the eyes, the following
only need be remarked. At an early period they consist in all their
parte of formative cdls of uniform size, which in process of time are
metamorphosed into the various tissues. In the fibrous ooat in the
second and third month the cells are developed in the mode already
described into connective tissue, and at the same time the distinction
is set up between the cornea and sderotic, which are at first exter-
nally exactly alike, and constitute only a single membrane. In the
uvea the cells are for the most part employed in the formation of
vessels ; another portion goes to the formation of the inner and outer
pigment layers, pigment granules being deposited in them at tiie com-
mencement of the third month, whilst another is transformed into
musdes, nerves, the epithelia and connective tissue of these mem-
branes. The development of the nerven^ls and of the so-termed
'granules' from embryonic cells, may be readily traced. I have
obeerved the aame thing also witii respect to the 'cones,' and I think
that in the Frog it may be assumed with respect to the 'rods' like-
wise, that they are nothing but dongated cells ; whilst in the Mam'
malia the formation of the rods and of the nerve-fibres themselves,
has not yet been traced. The lens, lastly, is originally composed
entirely of cells, which in course of time are transformed into the tubes.
"The predse nature of the processes attending these changes has
not yet been investigated, although I agree with H. Meyer in the con-
dusion, that, since Uie tubes, both in the foetus and child, present only
a single nucleus, each of them is developed out of a nngle celL These
nuclei, taken as a whole, constitute a thin layer extending from the
borders of the lens, through the middle of its anterior hslf, and
dighUy convex in front (' nuclear zone,' Meyer) ; the nuclei being
smdler in the interior portions, and, as it were, in progress of solu-
tion, whence it may certainly be concluded that the lens increases by
the apposition of thin layers from without The formative-oeUs of
the tubes of the lens are those which exist on the anterior half of the
capsule, and the starting-point of the formation of the lenticular
elements, according to my observation, is the entire anterior surface
and the border of the organ. Nudei are vidble in the tubes even in the
lens of theadult) as was known to Harting, though only at its margin."
(Kolliker, Manual <if J/uman liiiiploffpt translated by Busk and
Huxley for Sydenham Society | ValcAtlni 7Var^/?ooib q^ Buman PAy-
tiology ; Todd and Bowman, PhfftMngi^ Anatomy; Carpenter,
PrincipUt of Phytiohgy ; Jonns, Ai:fOHitm Prii$ Sitay on the I^e.)
EYEBKIQHT. [Kui'U&AAXA.]
FABA.
FAHLORE.
eoo
"G^ABA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Leguinino»<B,
-^ It has a tubular 5Ksleft or S-toothed calyx, with the two superior
teeth shortest. The style is villous at the apex. The legume is
lai^ and ooriaoeous, lined with short hairs, and containing several
laxge flat seeds. The leaves are almost without tendrils, and the
stem is erect The flowers are white or red.
F, vulgarii, the Common Bean, has thick leaves with 2-6 broad
oval mucronate leaflets. It has semi-sagittate oval stipules, and the
teeth of the calyx are almost linear.
This plant is much cultivated, and subject to considerable variety.
Its seeds difi^er, being sometimes round and comparatively small, at
other times l<uve and flat The flowers are mostly white, with a
blackish-blue silky spot in the middle of the two latend petals called
wings. The Common Bean is said to be found wild in Persia, not
fiur from the Caspian Sea, but it is one of tiiose plants, which, having
from time immemorial been cultivated by man, may have any-
where been introduced by his agency. It does not occur wild
in the countries of Europe, where it grows most luxuriously
under the care of man. For an account of the culture and pro-
perties of this plant and its uses, see Bbavs, in Abts aud Sa Diy.
FABACE^ Legwminoui PlanU, a name proposed by Ldndley in
his ' VeKstable Kingdom' for the natural order ZegwninoitB. [Lsou-
minobjlI
FABOia)EA, Mr. Bowerbank's generic title for Seed-Veesels found
in the London Clay of Sheppey. (' Fossil Fruits of the London Clay.')
F-fiCULA. [Staboh.]
FAQOPTRUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
PcHygonacecf. It has a 5-parted perianth, 8 stamens, 8 styles, a
1-seeded trigonous nut, a central embryo, and large foliaceous
contorto-plioate cotyledons. There is but one British species of this
plant, the F, eieyientum. This is the Polygonum Fagttpymm of Smith,
and known as the common Buck-Wheat It has an erect stem with-
out prickles, the flowers in oymose panicles, 8 stamens, leaves oordate,
sagittate, acute, a triquetrous acute nut, with entire angles. This is a
viduable plant, ss it grows on the worst and poorest soils, and is often
sown as food for game. Though now admitted into the British Flora,
there can be no doubt that it was originally a native of Persia and
other Asiatic ooimtries. It was introduced into Europe by the Cru-
saders ; and hence in many parts of Finance, where it is commonly
grown, is called Saracen Com ; and so much is it esteemed in Belgium,
that M. Bory St-Yincent says he was shown the tomb of the person
who is reported to have first brought it into that country. [Buok-
Wbeat, in Abv ahd Sa Dir.]
(Babington, Ma/mkol of BritUh Botany; Burnett, (hUline$ of
Botany.)
FAQUS (from ^dytt, to eat), a genus of Plants belonging to the
natural order CorytaceoB. This order is characterised by its male
flowers being arranged in catkins, and the female flowers being
solitary or on spikes, and the fruit surrounded by a coriaoeous
involucre. Thit genus Fagm has its stamens in a globose catkin ; the
perianth 6-6-fid ; the stamens 8 to 15 in» number; the pistilliferous
flowers are 2 together, and contained within a 4-leaved prickly
involtlcre; the stigmas 8; the ovaries 8-comered and 8-celled; the
fruit is a nut, which by the suppression of the ovules and cells is only
1- or 2-seeded. The species are large handsome deddnous trees,
natives of Europe, North and South America, and Australia. The
best known species is the Common Beech, which is a native of Ghreat
Britain.
F, tylvatiea, the Wood-Beech or Common Beech. It has ovate
glabrous obeoletely-dentate leaves, ciliated on their margins. It is a
tree varying from 60 to 100 feet in height It is a native of various
parts of Europe besides Qreat Britain, and a variety is foimd in North
America. Loudon, in his 'Arboretum et Fruticetum Britannioum,'
gives the following varieties : —
F, «. pmTpwrta, &e Purple-Beech, which has the buds and young
shoots of a rose-colour.
F, 9, cuprea, the CoppexOoloured Beeeh, in whieh the young
shoots and leaves are of a paler colour than in the last
F. i. foiiis variegatitf the Variegated Beech, in which the leaves are
white and red, interspersed with streaks of red and purple.
F. s. heterophyUa, the Cut-Leaved Beech, in which the leaves are
separated in various wavs.
F, f. erut€Ua, the Curled-Leaved Beech* The leaves are curled up
in this variety.
F, M, jMNcnrfa, the Weeping Beech, in which the branches are
pendulous.
F, «. Americana, the White Beech. This is the American form of
the Common Beech.
The Beech is remarkable for its smooth thin bark, which becomes
white when fully exposed to Uie air. - In the midst of it those knobs
called embryo-buds, or abortive branches, are more often found than
in any other tree. They arc sometimes used by cabiDct-mnkcrs and
KAT. HX8T. DIY. VOL. U.
turners on account of their hardness. At the Great Exhibition of
1851 a chair was exhibited composed entirely of these knobs. The
leaves are shining and thin, changing to a brown or russet colour in
the autumn, and often remaining on the tree throughout the winter.
Its branches are numerous, and its foliage so dense that other plants
do not thrive under it; so that there is seldom any vegetation seen on
the ground in a beech forest The Monotropa Hypopithyt, Bird's^
Nest Orchis as it is called, is often found parasitical upon its roots.
The fruits contain a nut or seed, which wnen ripe frequently drops
out, leaving the husk upon the tree. The seeds are not disagreeable
to the tastew Squirrels are fond of them, and are often found seeking
them on these trees. The beech-trees in the forests of Germany
generally attain the age of about 200 years. There is one in Windsor
Forest which is supposed to have been in existence before the Norman
Conquest
The wood of the Beech-Tree when green is harder than that of any
of our forest-trees. It is very generally used in the arts for all
purposes where strength is requirmi, and where the action of water u
to be resisted. On the Continent, and especially in France, one of the
most important uses of this wood is for makins wooden shoes called
sabots. They have the property of not absorbing water, and surpass
the sabots of all other wood, except those made of walnut, which are
much dearer.
As fuel the wood of the Beech is superior to that of most other
trees. It is consumed for this purpose to a great extent in France
and Germany. It bums rather rapidly, but throws out a great deal
of heat, and makes a clear bright flame.
The fruit, the nut of which is called Beech-Mast in England, and
la Faine in France, has a taste somewhat approaching to that of the
hazel-nut It forms an excellent food for swine, but the flesh of those
which are fattened upon it does not keep so well as that of those fed
on acorns. Beech-mast is sought after by wild animals, 8U<^ as
badgers, dormice, Ac. Beech-oil, expressed from the nuts, is used in
cooking, also for burning in lamps. For useful plantations the Beech
is not highly priced ; it is chieflv valuable ss an ornamental tree for
the park and the lawn. It is subject to the attacks of comparatively
few insects ; those which do infest it belong chiefly to the Lepidoptera,
and are in the caterpillar state. The fungi which grow on the Beech
in Great Britain are rather numerous : various species of Agariau,
BoUtiu, Polypomt, Peziza, StromatotphcBria, and Stilbum are men-
tioned. The most renuurkable fungi growing beneath the Beech-Tree
are — Oeoglo$ium viridef ffdveUa efctt^en^o, and Morehella actUenta, the
common MoreL The last two species are celebrated luxuries for the
table. MorehiUa ueulenta grows in great abundance In the woods of
(Germany and France, particularly after any of the trees have been
burned down. This having been observed, led in Germany to the
practice of bumiug the trees in order to produce Morels, and conse»
quently great numbers of them were destroyed till it was forbidden
by law.
F.ferrugineafihib American Ferruginous-Wooded Beech, ia a North
American timber-tree, so much resembling the common European
Beech as to be considered by some to be only a variety of it It has
ovate acuminate thickly-toothed leaves, downy beneath, dliate on
the margin. The American Beech is easily known from the European
one by its mudi shorter obtusely-pointed buds, with short roundish
convex scales, which terminate almost abruptly, and are inclosed in
numerous short loose scales. There are two varieties of this species —
F. Caroliniana and F. lai\foli<»,
F. obliqua, the Oblique-LeaVed Beech, ia a native of Chili It has
ovate^blong oblique leaves, somewhat rhomboid, blunt, doubly ser-
rated, entiro at the base, attenuated into the petiole, somewhat
downy.
F. betiUoida, the Birchlike or Evergreen Beech, grows at Port
Famine, Straits of Magalhaens, in the greatest abundance. It attains a
very large siw, trees of throe feet in diameter being common, and
thero being many with trunks four feet in diameter. This Beeeh ii
also a native of Van Diemen's Land, whero it is called the Myrtle
Tree by the colonists. It has ovate^lliptio leaves, obtuse, erenulate,
leathery, shining, glabrous, round at the b«se, on short footstalks. The
branches aro divaricate, tortuous, brownish, the young ones pubescent,
the leaves ciliate, alternate, from 4 to 10 lines long, and from 8 to 8
lines broad. The flowers are axillary. It is an eveigreen tree, and
forms vast forests in Tieira del Fuego, whero it is a native.
F, antaretica, the Antarotic Beech, is a native of Tierra del Fu^go.
F. Dombeyiif Dombey's or the Myrtle-Leaved Beech, is a tall tree, a
native of CUli, whero it is known by the name of Coigu^, and furnishes
excellent wood for the purposes of construction.
F. dubia, the Dubious Beech, is thought only to be a variety o^
F, betuloidet. By some botanists, however, it is considerod a distinct
species, and is described as such.
FAHLORE, FcUiUrZf Gray Copper Ore. Of this thero aro two varie-
ties, the arsenical and the autinionlal : the foi*m(^r occurs crystalli^cii
2 Y
cei FAHLUNITE,
nitd lua^iTe. The primuy form of the cr^etsl IB a cube, but the
rrgulir tetnhedron ia the predominatinfc crystaL Colour steal-gray,
opaqup. Lustre metallic. SpeciGo gnyit^ 4'8 to 5'1. Hnrdness 3 0
to I'd. brittle. Cleavage puellel to the pUuiea of the tetrehedran,
very indintiact. Fracture conchoidal.
Manire Variety. — Amorphoua. Structure gmuuUr to conipact.
It occim in Cornwall, Hungiry, Saxony, Ac A, apecimea from
Freiberg, ■adyMd by Kl^troth, yielded—
Arsenic 2*']0
Copper il-OO
Iron 22-BO
Sulphur 10-00
SUver 'iO
Los 2-00
—100
It frequently contaius a much larger qunutity of silver, and not
imcommoaly Einc
Antimonial Fahlorc — It occurs crystallised in modified tetrahe-
drona. The colour dark lead-gray, approaching to iron-black, both
externally and intemalty : not very brittle.
Aualysia ofa specimen from Eapnio by El^roth : —
Antimony 23-00
Copper 3776
Iron 8-25
Solphur 28-00
Silver, and a tiBCo of Mangaue<<c . . -23
ZiDO G-00
Loss 3-75
100
FAHLUNITE, Tricklaiile, a Miueral couaistin^j of silicate of
alumina and other aubataoc^s. It occurs crystallised and massive.
The primaiy form of the crystal is a ri^ht rhomboid prism, but it
usually occurs in imbedili-d, regular, hciagonal prisms. Colour
yellowish, greeaish, and black ieh-brown. Nearly or quite opaque.
Lustre resinous. Specific gmvity 2'66. Hardness S'O to BS. Streak
grayish-wbite. Geavage perpendicutar to the aiia of the prism.
It is found at Fahlun in Sweden.
Before the blow-pipe alone it becomes gray, aud fuses on its thinnest
edges ; with bnrai it melts slowly into a coloured glass.
According to Hiiinger it consists of —
BUica *fl-7*
Alumina 2673
Magnesia 2-97
Oxide of Iron 611
Oxide of Mangane^o 0-*S
Water 18-60
95-48
PALCIFERI. [Ammosties.]
FALCO. [FiUONlu*.]
FALCON. [Falcohid*]
FALC'ONID.*;, Leach's name for a family of Raptorial Birds, or
birds of prey (Baptores of Illiger). In this family the doatructive
power is considered by all zoolo^iits to be most perfectly developed ;
and we find iti the birds composio; it natural instniments foretriking,
truBsiuK, and dissecting their prey, combined with a power of flight
Rndstreugth of limbsequiYalent to the necessities of the case, whether
the prey be aerial, ^at is, whether it be the habit of the raptorial
bird in question to strike down iU quarry while the htter i» in the
act of flight, or whether the prey be terrestrial, or, Id other words,
captured on the grouud. Of these natural weapons some idea may be
formed from the cuts here given ; aud they are rendered still moi«
lU of the 1
in(i-»(«^r^rta«).
formidable by the organisation of the whole animal, which ta calcu-
lated to givo them the greateat possihle effect The uails or claws, to
be available, must be sharp ; and in order that they may be kept in
this atate and fit for duty, there is a provision to enable the bird to
prevent them from coming in contact witb the ground or other foreign
hard bodies ; for the claws are retractile, not indeed in the ttme
FALCONID^ m
manner as those of the cate [FlUDx], which have the power of with
drawing or sheathing theirs within the integuments, but by a con
formation which gives the bird of prey the power of elevating it;
claws at pleasure. The olaws of falcons when utting on atones oi
large branches of treee have often a cramped appearance; but this
arises in moat instancea from the care of tlie bird so to arrange ita
talons that their painta may not be blugted sgainst the i>eroh.
The power of flight, as Hr. Yarreil observes in his memoir ' On tho
Anatomy of Birds of Prey ' (' ZooL Jouni.,' voL iiL), ia one of the
decided marks of the distinct oiganiiation of birds ; and, aa one divi-
sion of the first genus, Paico, appears to possess thia power in tLe
highest degree of perfection, ha proceeds to consider the conditions
□ecessary to produce such a degree. These, be obaervea, are large
and powerful pectoral musclea ; groat extent of surface, as well as
peculiarity of form in the wing ; aud feathers of firm texture, strong
in the shaft, with the filaments of the plume arranged and ooniwcted
to resist pressure from below. " A certain degree of specific gravity,"
oontinues Hr. Tairell, "is necessarily imparted by huge pectoral -
muscles, sod the power of these musclea may be estimated by the
breadth of the sternum and the depth of ita keel, aa aflbtding extent
of surface for the attachment of the lai^ muscle by which the wing
la depreeeed. As an illustration of this form the breast-bone of the
Peregrine Falcon (Faleo perri/rinm) is represented, which exhibits tho
Brcut-bone of ihs Peregrine Filcen redueed.
□Di i t, tbe keel i e, the rateuli, or oi [nicatc
ic scapula bmkea aJF.
us; d /, the
breadth of the sternum, ilie depth of tbe keel, as well as the strength
of the clavicles ; and the power of flight peculiar to alt the apeciss of
true falcons is still further illuabated by the form and tubrtance of
the OS furcatoriuB, whioh is circular, broad, and strong, affording a
permanent support to the shoulders. That tbe long and acuminated
form of the wing in tie true fsJcons, with each feather narrow, firm
in coonisteDce. the second the longest, and all gradually tapering to a
point, is also best adapted for rapidity of motion, may be inferred
from tbe aiample in the various species of the genera Bimnda, Soo-
hpax, Tringa, Oharadrim, PnttUaria, Sltma, Ac ; but that extent
of surface and thia peculiarity of form in tbe wing are not in them-
selves sufficient nlone to affiird rapid flight, is proved in the genus
Larvi, the Bpeci.:s of which, though capable of exercising their
immense pinions with graceful ease for houn in succession, without
any apparent lassitude, are still incapable of rapid flight, for want of
strong pectoral muscles. The numerous eiamplee also fumiahed by
the Oallioacecua tribe iufficiantly evince that immense pectoral
rousclee an insufficient when coupled with a small round wing, and
afford but a short flight, sustained with great labour, rapid in a small
proportion only to the strength and repetdtion of the impulse, and
accompanied by a vibration too well known to need further remaric
5o material also is the perfectioa of the feather in the genus Paleo,
that when any of those of the wing or tail are broken, the flight of
the bird ia so injured that falconen find it necensary to repair them.
For tliii purpose thay are always provided with pinion and tail-
ros
FALCONIDiE.
FALCONIDiE.
6M
feathers aocuraiely numbered, and the mode of uniting the more
perfect feather to the injured stump is described in Sir John Sebright's
excellent observations on hawking. The reader who is disposed to
go farther back, will find in the ' Booke of Falconrie or Hawking/ &o.
'heretofore published by Qeoige Turbervile, Gentleman/ (London,
small 4 to, 1611), the following chapters : — ** Of Accidents that happen
and light uppon a hawkes feathers, and first how to use the matter
when a feather cannot be ymped." " The way and manner how to
ympe a hawks feather, howsoever it be broken or bruised ; " and four
methods of operating, according to the circumstances, are detailed.
'* How to ympe the traine of a hawke beeing all broken, and never a
feather whole or sound." Mr. Tarrell proceeds to observe that it is
difficult to estimate the comparative rapidity of flight in different
birds, and that our pigeons may appear to poasess this advantage in
a degree little inferior to the true falcons ; but, he adds, the fact is
that these birds are deficient in natural courage, and are unable,
under circumstances, to avail themselves of those powers with wludi
they are gifted.
** The bodies of all the species of true falcons when denuded of
their .feathers are triangular in form, broad at the shoulders and
tapering gradually to the tail, the muscles of the thighs and legs of
great size ; but these charactera are less prominent in the hawks, the
bodies of which are more lengthened, the legH long and slender, the
pectoral muscles smaller, the wing rotmded in form, the fourth feather
the longest, the wing primaries broad in the middle, the inner webs
overlapping the feather next in succession, and emaiginated towards
the end. These two divisions of the genus FcUco, although the latter
are unequal to the former in powers, are remarkable for their bold
character and rapid flight, their invariable mode of striking their prey
on the wing, as well as the instinctive knowledge by which they are
directed to destroy life, attacking the most vital part, and penetrating
the brain with their sharp hooked beak either by one of the orbits
where the bone is very thin or at the junction of the cervical vertebrso
with the occiput.
''On comparing the bones of our two British eagles, the greater
power of flight appears to belong to the AUncilla, that of prehension
to the golden eagle, but both exhibit various indications of great
strength.
** By an extended examination of the different species of buzzards
and harriem it will be found that the characters described as necessary
to produce rapid motion decline gradually. The sternum decreases
in size, the keel loses part of its depth, the clavicles and furcula
become more slight, while the form of the cranium, the loose ruffled
feathers of the neck, as well as the general downy texture of the
plumage, indicate the approach to the genus next in succession. Of
the bones of the different species of the genus FtUco generally it may
be added that they are remarkable for their strength, such as are
cylindrical being furnished with numerous transverse bony processes
within the tubes, and the distribution of air throughout their internal
cavities. The humerus is supplied with air through several orifices
upon its inner and upper surface, and some difference will be fotmd
in the angle at which this bone is articulated with the clavicle to
accomplish the ascending flight of the sky-lark, in contradistinction
to the precipitous horizontal direction of the falcons. The thigh bone
is also supplied with air by an orifice at the situation which answers
to the front of the great trochanter ; the large bones forming the
pelvis, the vertebrae, sternum, furcula, clavicles, scapulsD, and even
the ribs, are all furnished with apertures for the admission of air
supplied from the various ceUs of the abdomen, sides, and thorax.
This distribution of air to the bones does not seem however to be
absolutely necessary for flight, since the young birds of our summer
visitera appear to perform Uieir first autumnal migration with perfect
ease and celerity, at an age when the cavities of &mx bones are filled
with marrow.
"The various characters of the feet are too obvious to require
particular notice." (TarreU.)
In the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons in London the
reader will find a preparation (Qallery, 522 A) of the stomach of the
Gk>lden Eagla It is laid open so as to show the orifices of the
numerous gastric glands of the proventriculus, the smooth lining
membrane of the gizzard, and the valvular structure of the pylorus.
The oesophagus is very wide, so that externally it appears to form one
continued cavity with the proventriculus and stomacn. John Hunter,
in his 'Observations on Digestion' ('Animal Economy'), says, " There
are few animals that do not eat flesh in some form or other, while
there are many who do not eat vegetables at all ; and therefore the
difficulty to make the herbivorous eat meat is not so g^reat as to mske
the carnivorous eat v^etables. Where there ia an instinctive prin-
ciple in an i^wiTn^l^ directing it either to the one species of food or the
otner, the animal will certainly die rather than break through of its
own accord that natural law ; but it may be made to violate every
natural principle by artificial means. That the hawk tribe can ha
made to feed upon bread I have known these thirty years ; for to a
tame kite I first gave fat, which it ate very readily, then tallow and
butter, and afterwurds small balls of bread rolled in fat or butter, and
by decreasing the fat gradually it at last ate bread alone, and seemed
to thrive as well as when fed with meat^ This however produced a
difference in the consistence of the excrements ; for when it ate meat
they were thin, and it had the power of throwing them to some
distance ; but when it ate bread they became firmer in texture, and
dropped like the excrement of a common fowL Spallanzani attempted
in vain to make an eagle eat bread by itself; but by inclosing the
bread in meat, so as to deceive the eagle, the bi*ead was swallowed
and digested in the stomach."
Mr. Yarrell observes that the oesophagus offers nothing peculiar
beyond that of other birds not possessing the power of minutely
dividing their food. It is plicated lengthways, allowiog great exten-
sion, and its separation from the stomach is marked by a zone of
gastric rings. The same author notices an opportunity which
occurred to him of observing the castings or pellets of some eagles,
which had been occasionally fed with dead pigeons. These castings
showed that the vegetable food, such as peas, wheat, and barley, which
had been swallowed by the eagles in the crops of the pigeons, remained
entire, but somewhat enlarged and softened by heat and moisture. In
these cases no part of the bones remained.
The intestines of the Falconidce are in general short and large, but
Mr. Tarrell remarks that the Osprey is an exception to this rule, and
that to the thin membranous stomach of this bird there is attached
an intestinal canal measuring 10 feet 8 inches in length, and in some
parts scarcelv exceeding a crow-quill in size. The canal in most of
the species he adds, is in length, compared with that of the bird
itself, as three to one ; but in the Osprey it is as eight to one ; and he
observes that in the otter the intestinal canal is very long, equal in
size, and without csecal appendage ; the seal too has long intestines
with a small ctecunL Mr. Yarrell inquires therefore if it may not be
concluded that the small quantity of nutriment which fish, as an
article of food, is known to afford renders this c'tent of canal
necessary in oixier that every portion may be extracted. The cssca
of the FtUcimicUB amount to no more than minute rudiments.
In the organs of respiration there is nothing very remarkable
among the FaleomdcB, The trachea is composed of two membranes
inclosing between them numerous bony rings, forming a more or less
perfect tube. The rings are strong and compressed. The point of
divarication, the cross-bone, and bronchia) constituting together the
inferior larynx, are of the most common form, having but one pair of
muscles attached ; and the voice though powerful possesses, as might
be expected, but little variation. (Yarrell.) FeUco musicut seems
however to be an exception, and it would be desirable to examine its
trachea for the purpose of ascertaining whether it is not organised
more after the fashion of that of the singing birds.
It might be expected that in the Falconidce the soles of the feet and
lower surfaces of the toes which come so closely into contact with
the living prey would be endowed somewhat more largely with the
sense of touch than those of birds which have no such habits ;
accordingly we find in the Museum of the College of Surgeons
(Physiological Series) a preparation (No. 1400) of one of the feet of
an eagle, with the cuticle removed, showing the papillsd and cushions
of the cutis on the under surface of the foot.
In the same museum (No. 1482) will be found the tongue, larynx,
and lower jaw of the Oolden Eagle (AquUa chryaaitot). The tongue
is fleshy and large, divided into two lateral portions by a deep longi-
tudinal furrow ; at its base is a series of small retroverted spines
arranged in the form of a chevron, between which and the larynx the
surface is studded with the orifices of numerous glandular follicles :
two rows of retroverted spines again occur behind the larynx. There
is a row of glandular follicles on either side of the frsenum lingus,
and a large cluster of similar orifices immediately anterior to it. The
preparations Noe. 1483 and 1484 exhibit respectively the tongue and
fauces of an Erne {MtUueeius aUfieiUa) and the tongue and larynx of
an Osprey (Pandian kaliaetut),
A longitudinal section of the anterior part of the head of the
Qolden Eagle will be found in the same museum and series (No. 1538).
The preparation shows the turbinated cartilages and cavity of tbs
nose, together with part of the orbit and the air^ell continued from
it anteriorly and situated below the nose. The parts are minutely
injected, and the vasculiurity of the pituitary membrane covering the
middle turbinated cartilage is well displayed. No. 1539 is a transverse
section of the head of an Erne {ffaliaetw aUncilia), showing the con-
volutions of the middle turbinated cartilages, and the disposition of
the pituitary membrane, which is thickest on the convex or mesial
side of the convolutiona The airnsells in the superior maxillary
bones, and their communications with those which are situated in
front of tiie eyeball, are well seen in this preparation. Bristies have
been inserted into the lachrymal ducts, and into the common termi-
nation of the Eustachian tubes, the respective conduits of the eye and
ear for conducting their superfluous moisture to the nasal passages.
An anterior transverse section of the head of the same eagle is shown
in No. 1540, which exhibits the external nostrils, the anterior termi-
nations of the middle turbinated cartilages, and of the lachrymal
ducts, in which bristles are placed ; together with the communications
of the maxillary air-cells with the cancellous structure of the upper
numdible. (' Cat. GbUery/ voL iii)
"The extraordinary powers of vision/' says Mr. Yarrell, "which
birds are known to exercise beyond any other class of animals are in
no genus more conspicuous that in that of Falco. Their destination,
elevating themselves as they occasionally do into the liicrhept regions,
605
FALCONIDiB.
FALCOKIDiE.
eiM
and the power required of perceiviDg objects at very different distances
and in various dilutions, as well as the rapidity of their flight, seem
to render such a provision necessary. The eyes of birds are much
lax^ger in proportion than those of quadrupeds, and exhibit also two
other peculiarities. The one is the marsupium, a delicate membrane
arising at the bottom of the eye, and terminating at or near the edge
of the crystalline lens : the other is a ring of thin bony plates enve-
loped by the sclerotic coat Comparative anatomists do not seem to
be agreed as to the means by whicn birds obtain their power of vision,
whether by an alteration in the form or situation of the crystalline
lens, or by both, either or both of which, the greater quantity of
aqueous humour which birds are known to possess would seem to
facilitate. The existence of muscle attached to the inner surface of
the bony hoop of the sclerotica, and inserted by a tendinous ring
into the internal surface of the cornea, as shown by Mr. Crampton
('Annals of Philosophy,' 1818), by which the convexity of the cornea
may be altered, gives a still greater scope of action, since with two,
or at the utmost three, varieties of powers the sphere of distinct
vision may be indefinitely extended. Whether the five species called
the True Falcons possess, with their exclusive rapidity of flight, any
power of vision beyond their generic companions would be difficult
to ascertain ; but it may, while on this subject, be worthy of remark
that the irides of the gyrfalcon, peregrine, hobby, merlin, and
kestrel are hazel-brown, or still darker, while those of all the
hawks, buzzards, harriers, and kites are of various shades of yellow.
I refer only to adult birds, and do not remember a single exception."
2
1, bony ring of a Golden Eaglo; 2, crystalline lens of the same bird ; a, the
anterior surfaco, somewhat less convex than the posterior one. (Yarrell.)
Mr. Yarrell observes, that the number of bony plates forming this
circle in the Qolden Eagle is fifteen; in the White-Tailed Eagle
there are but fourteen : and he adds, that the external convex form
of the bony ring in the Golden Eagle wiU be found to extend through
all the species of every genus of British birds, except the owls, in
all of which it is concave.
In the Museum of the College of Suigeons are the following
prepaitttions illustrative of this part of the subject. No. 1741. The
head of an eagle, with the eyes in situ. In the left eye the anterior
part of the tunics and the humours have been removed to show the
retina expanding from the oblique line by which the optic nerve
terminates, and the vascular processes of the marsnpium extending
forwards from the centre of the optic fissure. In the right eye a
lateral section of the coats has been removed, together with the
humoun and a great part of the retina, showing the uniformly dark-
coloured choroid, the thin but dense texture of the sclerotica, and
the zone of osseous plates which supports the projecting cornea.
The marsupium is preserved in situ. It is of an unequal quadrilateral
figure, broadest below, and extending upwards and indined a little
backwards, with a slight convexity towards the nartd side of the eye-
ball. The laiige size of the eyes is worthy of notice. No. 1742
exhibits a longitudinal section of the eye oi an eagle, showing the
oblique manner in which the optic nerve perforates the sclerotica
and its extended termination, from which the retina expands in a
))1icated manner: only the folds at its origin are here preserved.
The parts being minutely injected, the vascularity of the choroid is
shown : also the breadth of the ciliaiy zone, the breadth and Uiick-
ness of the bony imbricated hoop surrounding the base of the cornea,
the thickness of the cornea itself, and the laige size of the anterior
chamber of the eye. No. 1743 is the eye of an eagle, with a
portion of the coats removed from one side, showing the folds of the
marsupial' membrane, from which the colouring matter has been
removed. In No. 1538, above alluded to, portions of the eye and
oyelids with the nictitating membrane are preserved, showing the
Fituation of the two puncta lachrymalia, through which bristles are
]»assed along the ducts to the nose; and in No. 1689, at the back part
of the preparation, the left eyeball is laid open, showing the
marsupial membrane. The right eyeball is entire, and the abductor,
attollcns and deprimens oculi, together with the quadratus and
pyramidalis muscles of the membrana nictitans, are well displayed.
See also No. 1540, as referrible to the oigans of vision. No. 1796
exhibits the eyeball, with portions of the horizontal eyelids, the
vertical eyelid, or membrana nictitans^ of an eagle. The quadratus
nictitantis may be observed to have a more extensive origin than in
the ostrich, and both muscles of the third eyelid are relatively lai^er.
The cornea is cut away, and the nictitating membrane raised, to show
the termination of the duct of the Hu^erisn gland, in which a
bristle is placed. Bristles are also placed .through the two pimcta
lachrymalia. The round and slightly concave tanal cartilage of the
lower eyelid may be observed, the upper lid has no tanal cartilage.
In No. 1797 the three eyelids of an esgle are exhibited, tnd tlie
tarsal cartilage, which is raised as in the act of dosing the eyes, is
shown.
Aristotle divided the Falconida into 'Acrof, or AUroi (EUigles),
'Icpeuccf (Hawks), and 'Ikto^oi (Kites), with many subdivisions. Mr.
Vigors is of opinion that the division *Upaii (Hierax) of Aristotle
comprises all the Faleonidce of Vigors which belong to the stirpes
or sub-families of Hawks, Falcons, and Buzzards. Pliny separates
the group into AquUcB (Eagles) and Aceipitret, a general term
comprising, as used by him, the rest of the F<dconi£g, The sub-
divisions of both Aristotle and Pliny do not differ much froza the
subdivisions of tome of the modem zoologists.
Belon, beginning with the Vultures, proceeds from them to the
Eagles; thence to the Qerfault, which he gives as the Morphnosy
Morphna, Nittophonos, Plangos, Plancus, Plangus, and Clangus, of the
Greeks, and Anataria of the Latins; next he places the Orfraye,
which he makes the ffalueetut of the Greeks, the Aguista Piombma
of the modem Italians, and gives Aqwla tnarina as the Latin name.
He then treats of the Ouifragm as the Phinis of the Greeks, A^^uiUa
harhata in Latin, recording it provisionally as a species of Vulture (Petit
Vautour) and next describes the Buzzard (Buse ou Busard) as a kind of
Bastard Eagle, and as the Gypaetos, Percnopterus, or Oripelai^gus, of
the Greeks. Then comes the Goiran, or Boudree, whidi he describes
as living upon rats, mice, frogs, lizzards, &c., caterpUlars, and some-
times slugs and serpents, asserting that it becomes very fat» and
that it is taken frequently in winter for the sake of its flesh, which
is good for food. This he supposes to be the Hierax, called Phryno-
lochos by the Greeks, and gives RvhetaHvs Accipiter as the Latin
name. Jean le Blanc, or Oyseau Saint Martin, which he considers to
be the Pygaigus of the Greeks, follows, and lb succeeded by another
Oyseau Sunt Martin, or Blanche-Queue. Belon then gives an account
of the Birds of Prey employed in falconry. The Sacre and her
Sacret, the Autour and her Tiercelet, the Fan-Perdrieux (Circus ?),
and the Falcons generally, with their Tiercelets. He then describes
the Hobreau (Hobby?), the Esmerillon (Merlin?), the Espervier
(Sparrowhawk ?), the Lanier and Laneret, and the CreBserelle
(Kestrel?). Next follow the Butcher-Birds, then come the Kites
(Milan Boyal, Milan Noir — ^Milvus), and (the Cuckoo intervening
from a supposed similitude to the Birds of Prey) the Owls.
Passing by Gesner, Aldrovandus, and Jonston, we pause to notice
Willughby's arrangement. He separates the carnivorous and rapacious
birds, called Birds of Prey, into the Diurnal (those that prey in the
day-time) and the Nocturnal (those that fly and prey by night). The
following is his table of the Diurnal section : —
(Thm r««.«» f ^* °^^^ generoQB, called Eagles : the Golden Sagle,
«d i«e the Sea-Eagle, the Black Eagle. &o.
either . . . \The more cowardly and alagglsh, called Valtores.
Dlnrnal(
The Leaser,
called in La- (
tin Aeeipu
tret
{ The more generooi,
that are wont to
be reclaimed and
manned for fowl-
ing, called Hawks,
which onr fal-
coners diatingaiah
Into
The more cowardly
and slnggiah, or
else indocile, and
therefore by our^
falconers neglect-
ed, and permitted
, to live at large .
Lmig-Winged, whose wings reach
almost aa far aa the end of their
train, aa the Falcon, Lanner, in*
Short-Winged, whose wings when
closed fall much short of the end
of their trains, aa the Goshawk
and Sparrowhawk.
f The Greater. — The Common Bus-
sard, Bald Boxiard, fto.
^European: Batcher
Birds or Shrikes.
The
Exotic : Birds
Paradiae.
of
Ray, in his 'Synopsis,' follows Willughby, and both Ray and
Willughby place the Cuckoo after their Diurnal Birds of Prey and
immediately before the Nocturnal.
Brisson's third order consists of birds with a short and crooked
beak, and the first section contains the genera Epervier (Hawk),
Aigle (Eagle), and Vautour (Vulture).
Linnaeus makes lus first order, AecipUret, consist of the genera
Vultwr, Falco, Sirix, and Lanitu, The genus Falco contains the
elements of the different branches of the family of FcUconidce,
Without entering into the methods of Buffon, Schoeffer, and Scopoli,
we proceed to that of Latham, who made the Accipitret his first
order of Terrestnal Birds, containing the genera Vulture, Falcon,
and OwL
Pennant makes the Rapacious Birds (his first section) consiBt of
two genera only, namely. Falcon and Owl.
M. de Lac^pMe placed the Birds of Prey (his seventh order) at
the head of his second division of birds. His genera are VtUlwr,
Oypagtoi (Griffon), AquilOf AatWy Nitui, Buteo, (Hrcus, AfUvut, Falco,
and Strix (Owl).
M. Dum^ril divided his first order, Rapacea, into three families :
the first Nudicolles, or PtUoddres, consisting of the genera Sareo-
ramphut and VuUur ; the second Plumicolles, or Cruphod^s,
containing the genera Griffon, Messsger, Aigle, Buse, Autour, and
Faucon ; and the third the Nocturnes or Nycterins (Owls).
e97
FALCONIDJE,
FALCONIDJE.
fiO?
Blumeuboch's first order, Accipitret (Birds of Prey, with strong
hooked bills and lai^ge cmred talons, a membrauous stomach, and
short caeca) consists of the genera VuUur, Faico, Strix, and Laniua,
Meyer's ^rst order, Bapacet, is divided into two sub-orders : first,
the Seleropiera, or Dinrnal Birds of Prey ; second, the McUaeopteras,
or Nocturnal Birds of Prey.
The third order of Illiger, Bapiatores, is composed of the Noetumi
(Strix), the Accipitrini {FiUcOf Cfypogtranus, Oypaiiiu), and the
VuUurim {VmUw, Cathartet),
Cuvier divides his first oider (the Birds of Prey) into Diurnal and
KoctumaL The first are subdivided into the Vultures and the
Falcons (Pedeo, Linn.), which last are separated into the Noble
Birds of Prey, or Falcons properly so ealled {Falco of Bechstein),
comprising the genera Faucon (Falco) and the Gerfaults (Gyr Faloons,
Sier^aleo of Cuvier) ; and the Ignoble Birds of Pre^, consisting of
the Eagles (AquUa of Brisson), which are subdivided into the Eagles
properly so called {Aquilaof Cuvier), the Aigles-Pdcheurs (Fishing
Eagles, with comparatively long wings, Haliceetut of Savigny), the
Balbusards {Panaion of Savigny), the Circadtes {OircMttti, Vieillot,
Jean 4e Blanc, kc.), the Caracaras {Polyborus, Vieillot, and IbycteTf
Vieillot), and the Harpies, or Fishing Eagles, with short wings
(Barpyia of Cuvier); the tribe Cfjfmindia of Cuvier; the Aigles-
Autours {Morphnui of Cuvier, Spizaetos of Vieillot) ; the Autours
(Aatur of Bechstein, Daidalion of Savigny) ; the Milans {Milvua of
Bechstein, SUmtu of Savigny); the Bondrte {Pemit of Cuvier,
Honey Buzzard) ; the Buses {BtUeo of Bechstein) ; the Busards
{Oircua of Bechstein) ; and the Measager or Secretaire {SerpeiUariut
of Cuvier, Oypogeranut of lUiger).
Vieillot divides his first order, Aeeipitres, into the Diurnal and
Nocturnal tribes, making the first tribe to consist of three fomilies : —
Ist, Vantourins, among which he places the Cameara; 2nd, Gypaetes;
Srd, Accipitrins, oomriating of the genera Aigle, Pygargue, BaJbuzard,
Circaete, Busard, Buse, Milan, iSanus, lotinie, Faucon, Phys^te,
Harpie, Spizaete, Asturine, and Epervier.
Temminck's first order, Fapacet, comprises the genera Vautour,
Catharte, Gypaete, Meesager, Fauoon, and Chouette.
Mr. Vigors thus arranges the FalconidcB : —
Beaks shoit, j
■tronffly toothed. \
Prey atrial.
Typical Oboups.
Wings short.
Wings long.
( 8nb.Family, AedpUrina.
\ Hawks.
I 8tib-.Fa]nily, Ftdconina,
\ Falcons,
Beaks long, or
sabloBg, not
toothed.
Prey terrestrial
ABiRBAirT Oboups.
' Beaks hooked (adanca) ttom the
base. Wings long.
Beaks hooked Arom the base. Tail
forked. Wings very long.
Beaks hooked at the apex only
•
Long.Winged.
« •
) Sub-Family, BiUeoni$ia,
] Buzzards.
) Sub-Family, Jfl/Wna.
j Kites.
\ Sub-Fsmily, AptUina,
Eagles.
ShortiWinged.
1
De Blainville divides the Raptatom into the Dinrnal and the
NootumaL The former he divides into the Anomalous (the Secre-
tary, Serpmtariut) ; and the Normal (FalcOf Linn.).
M. Latreille separates his first order of terrestrial birds (Bapacei)
into two tribes — ^the Diurnal and the Nocturnal. The first contains
two families : — 1st, the Vautourins (Vultures) ; 2nd, the Aocipitrins.
The latter oonsiBts of the eenera Aigle, Pygargue, Balbuzard, Harpie,
Aigle-Autour, Asturine, Messager, Autour, Epervier, Elane, Mihm,
Bondrde, Bunrd, Faucon, Gkrfault.
Prince C. L. Bonaparte^ in his 'Tabella Analitica,' divides his
' Ordine AeeipUrtt' into the ' Famiglia VtUtwrifU/ and the ' Famiglia
Jtapacea.' These last he separates into the XKumt, with eyes on the
sides of the head, *' Oochi nei Lati ;" and the Noctwmi, with eyes in
the face, " Ocohi sulla Faocia." His Diurnal rapacious birds consist
of two genera, namely, Oypaitot and Faleo, The latter comprises the
following sub-genera : — Aqtnla, HcMaitoi, Pandion, Faleo, Aghtr,
Milvu$, EkMUi, BuUo, Cfircut.
H. Lesson, in common with other zoologists, separates his first
order, the Birds of Prey, AeeipitrtM or Eapacet, into the Diurnal and
NoctumaL The first embraces three families : — 1st, the Vultures ;
2nd, the Falcons, or Faleonidai, which he subdivides into the Noble
Birds of Prey, namely the genera Faleo, ffiero-Faleo, Phy$eia, and
Oampionyx ; and the Ignoble Birds of Prey, namely the genera AquilOf
ffaUcBehUf Pandion, Cireaitut, Caraeara, Harpya,MoTphnu», Oymindii,
Aiiur, NituB, MUvui, JeHnia, JSUmus, NaticUriu, Pemia, Buteo, Oircut,
Srd, the Messagen, or Serpentarii, consisting of one genus only, Ser-
peiUairiui, the Secretary Falcon.
Mr. Swainson ('Fauna Boreali- Americana') remarks that in con*
templating the Diurnal Birds of Prey, arranged by Limueus under the
genus FaUo, we can be at no loss to discover the two typical forms in
the Toothed-Billed Falcons and the Sparrowhawks. Their pecolia-
ritiee, he adds, did not escape the notice even of the earliest systematic
writers ; and the modems, he observes, have only confirmed the just-
ness of the distinction. But with regard to the remaining groups he
states that much diversity of opinion still exists ; not indeed as r^gardp
the leading divisions, for here likewise the ancients had long ago
anticipated our distinctions between the Eagles, Kites, and Buzzards.
It is not therefore to these groups, taken per se, that any doubts cau
attach on their respective peculiarities, but rather as to their relative
rank with those that are considered typicaL These doubts, in Mr.
Swainaon's opinion, can only be solved by analysis; and from an
attentive consideration of title difficulties arising from the want of
materials in our museums, and other causes, he has been induced to
dissent from several modem writers upon this family. He admits that
it has been sufficiently proved that uie various forms of which it is
composed exhibit, as a whole, a circular succession of affinities ; but
the true series of the secondary groups among themselves has not, he
asserts, yet been made out : he adds however that the inability to
state in what way the falcons or hawks form their own respective
circles cannot militate against the belief that such is their true distri-
bution. "It remains therefore," continues Mr. Swainson, ''to be
considered whether there is presumptive evidence to believe that the
three remaining divisions, namely, the Buzzards, Kites, and Eagles,
form one circular group independent of their affinity to the two
former. The true Buzzards, of wliich the Vulgaris and the Lagopua
may probably be types, are slender long- winged birds; the bill is
small, short, and considerably curved : in this stmcture they agree
with the true falcons, yet they are well known to be distinguished
from them by wanting the toothed-bill, and by the shortness and
graduated abbreviation of the exterior quill-feathers. Now, if nature
had proceeded in a simple course from the buzzards to the falcons,
we eiiould have had birds uniting the diatinctions of both variously
modified. Both these groups being composed in their typical examples
of slender long- winged birds with short bills, any speoiea exhibiting
the reverse of such characters, and intervening between the two forms,
would certainly appear anomalous, on the supposition of a simple
series of affinities being aimed at. Yet that such birds are to be found
even among the few that we are subsequently to notice is unquestion-
able. Let us then take the Buteo boreeUia, which as being paore allied
to the falcons than to the kites mav be considered an intervening
form between the BtUeo wlgaria and Falco. We here see a largo -
sized heavy bird with shortened wings not reaching to more than half
the length of the tail, while the elongated bill, unlike either that of
BiUeo or Falco, obviously assimilates to that lengthened form which
belongs to the eagles. Now upon the supposition that a bird so
constnicted is intended to fill up the interval between BwUo and
F(dco, and at the same time to unite the former with the eagles, the
singularity of its structure is no longer surprising ; but if we consider
it with a simple reference to the passage between Buteo and Falco,
we are almost tempted to suspect that m this instance a real saltus
has been made." While upon this subject we may cite an acute
observation made by Prince C. L. Bonaparte, that " the Borealia is
almost as much an Aalitr of the first section as a BtUeo /* a proof at
least that its affinities to Aatur and to the aberrant eagles adjoining
that group have not escaped observation. Our idea that the buzzards
are truly united to the eagles is still further strengthened by the
Buteo pterodea, Temm. ***. In this species the wings, as in Buteo, are
remarkably loQg; but the bill is so considerably lengthened, that
were we to judge alone from this member we should have no scruple
in placing the bird among the Aquilce, On the other hand, it must
be remembered that as every group, from the highest to the lowest
denomination, when perfect, contains a representation oT the other
four, united to a form peculiar to itself, so we might naturally expect
that one division of the buzzards would represent the tme eagles.
To ascertain therefore whether ihe resemblances above stated are
those of analogy or of real affinity, recourse must be had to strict
analysis. Now this in our present state of knowledge cannot be done,
at least from the resources to be found in this country. We have
thought it advisable to cite the above facts, drawn from the stmcture
of the birds themselves, as likely to awaken the attention of ornitho-
logists to a further investigation of the subject ; they will at least
show that our opinion on uie unity of the three aberrant groups is
not entirely without foimdation. Mr. Swainson considers the relative
value of the whole group equivalent to that of VuUw or Strix in its
own order, and to the families composing the Raaorea, GrallfUorea,
and Natatorea, and he contemplates the five principal divisions as
genera, arranging the subordinate forms as sub-genera ; but in con-
sidering the five forms of the Falconida as genera rather than sub-
families, he guards himself against the supposition that he may mean
to insinuate that the minor distinctions which have been dwelt upon
by several able ornithologists who have investigated this family are
either trivial or that they deserve not to be brought immediately
before us. On the contrary, he recommends to others the plau
adopted by himself, namely, the minute examination of every change
of structure, and the assembling together in minor groups such specter
as agree in certain peculiarities. Further, he would proceed in certain
cases even to impose a name upon such groups, but in a family already
so crowded by generic names he considers it essential to preserve a
distinction between groups of unequal value ; and not to elevate
sub-genera, or forms of transition, to a rank they do not hold.
MiUfogo, Polyborua, Daptriua, and Ihycter are unquestionably, in his
opinion, of the latter description, each confined but to one species ;
ex FAi,co:.'iu.>:.
tiid he BTi that ha bu uiother of tha luae nitainl graap iu his
Mbintt, equally dueerring a palroDTmla name. B; reguding Iheae
M gmerft, eu:h aa he thmka ia made equivalent to the nhols gmiu
of tjpical falcona ; whereas, b; repreBentiiig them as leaser TariatioDS,
which he uoouders them in truth to be, the student immediately
perceivea that th^^ir station is subordiaata.
The genera into which Hr. Swninaon (' Katnral History and Classi-
flcation of Birds,' 18S6) diiidea the Falamida are AUco, Aeeiptter,
Stilto, Oynitidu, and Aqaila; and ha gives the followiog table as '
the ooncaotcation of his remark* in raferenoe to tha sub-geneia of ■
Fala>.-~
1. Typical Oroup.
Bnb-aeneia Otnna of Ihe
lAFaltt. FalctnidK.
{Pre-eminently typical ; billl
acutely toothed ; wlnga V Fako.
pointed, rather long. J
S. Snb-Tjpical Oroup.
r wings shorter, rounded j I
Barfagtu. i tarm with ant^ tiansvene i- Aecipiltr,
I aoalaa. J
K.VLCOSJD-K.
OoBIIMDllJIf-
3. Aberrant Oroup.
Feet short ; head crested,
r Feet small, Terj short ; soles 1
i broad and flattened ; outer t
[ toe and claw shortest. J
r Bill neither notched or (aor) 1
i fastoonad ; head small ; >
CgBiiiuiit.
By throwing each of these columns into their respecttTS drcles,
and attea bringing them into juitaposition (which he does in the work
quoted), the same reanlts, he remarks, will follow. Into the Acdpi-
trine circle he admits Iclinia provisionally, Jeetpiter (type), Ailtir
(Qoahawlu), Haliadva {H. Pondiemaniu), juid no more. In the
Aquiline citols be retains four ' types,' namvly, PoiuUon, Harpgia,
Aquila, and Ibyeter. In the Cymindian or UUvine circle he plaoaa
Poljilxrm, Ogtaindit, Elamu, Nmtdenu, and Circttut, the last with a
query, and in the cut of the drcle it is not mentioned. In ihe
Butconioe circle MUmu, Cirtut, and Butto.
Hr. Tigore, who as we have seen tint proposed the application of
the Quinary System to the FaUotuda, and indeed to Vb.e birds in
general, thus defines the family which is the subject of our inquiry,
aud thus follows ou' ' '
FiUciimida. (Leach.)
Head plumoia. Beak etrong, hooked, with a cere at the base.
Nostrils lateral, mars or leas rounded, open and dtuatcd in the cere.
Eitemal toea eiipecially connected with tha middle toes. Claws or
lum* itroDg, very ebarp, veiy much incurred, and leUactile.
Ist Sub-Family, JguUino.
Btnk long, hooked at the apex only. Fourth quill the longeat.
* Long-Winged Eagles.
7ijF<4er (Viaillot). — Beak oonvax abovej lower mandible notched
at the apex, and subacute ; oere naked ; cheeks, throat (gula), and
crop (jugulum), featherless ; claw* acute.
Hr. Vjgon remaikE that the type of this genua is Faico ofwImHi
of amelin. Petit Aigle d'Amptiqua of Buffon, and that he beUavea it
still stands single in the genua. — Beak Ciirulean ; cere and feet yellow;
orbit* yellow ; irides orange ; body, abov^ cmrulaan ; below, red
going into white; neck purplish to rufoua; claw* blaok. Qmelin
rivea it as tha Red-Thrrated Faloon of Latham. It is a native of
South America.
Daftrimt (Yieillot). — Beak convex above ; lower mandible angular
boieath, notched at the apex, obtuse ; oere with scattered hairs
TIeillot are suffldenUy distinct from each other, or from ^
of the t4aked.Cheeked Eagles, it is not for me to haisrd an opinion,
without the opportanit; of mora accurate examination of the birds
than is at preaent within our power, and a mora accurate knowie ~
of them than a mere deacription aflords us. It would appear bowc
that one group at least, that of Ibytter, is sufficiently distinguished
ftom the other FiUtonida with the naked cheeks, by the differance
of it* food and habits. The acoouuts whioh have reached Earopa
of its mild and gentle manners and vegetable food, have even induoed
some naturalists to refer it to the Qsllinaoeous Birds. I have i
doubts indeed whether tha birds that oompoea this genus ma
belong to quite a diatinet station from the pment, and be refc
to one of thoaa groups which I have elsewhere observed to be wanting
among the Birds of Prey, to pei^sot that chain of affinities which ii
to be found complete in all the other orders. It is impossible
however at present to oome to any decision on tha subjeet. Wtiile
our materials (or daasifleation are so scanty, the most that is in ou>
power is to ooqieoture the place which mora perfaet information
J] enable us to assign any group hereafter.
'-V
need and foot of K«l.Thn»ttd FilcoB lliytltr fuainm).
)fiU.-
D. altr, the Iribb Noir vf Tieillat, and the Caraoua Voir, FaUo
aitrrimM, at Tamminck. Blaok with bluish reflection*; tail whita
at its baas above, and rounded ; beak and claws blaok ; cere blackish-
ash, apace round the eyes naked and of a flesh-oolonr ; feet jallow
Length from li to 15 inches French.
It is a nutive of Brazil and Quysna,
Palj/ionu (Vieillott.— Beak oomnrewed above; lower mandible
entire and obtuse; eare oovered with hairs, Isrge; cheeki and throat
featheilaas ; orop woolly.
P. BratUuntu {P. nigarii, Tieillot), the Bnuilian Caracara Earie
We select Hr. Bennett's d^criptiou and general history of this
71)1
FALCONlDiE.
Epecies u the moat complete. Afl«r giricg the generlo dhtncten,
and obaerrmg that the wings iiBHrly equtd the teS in length, that
tbe; Are of b. roiindeit form with the third and fourth tjuilli longeat ;
that "the legs are rnther long, naked, and reticulated, and the clairi
of modemte lengtb and curvature, but with little acuteneaa or power
of graaping, the Lut-nuned author thus proceedi :-^" Id the Braoliui
Caracara the whole upper surface of the head is black, with the
feathers sUghtlj elongated backwards, and capable of being partially
elevated in the shape of a poiutfld crest. The entire neck is of a
light brownish-gray, which also forms the ground colour on the breast
and shoulders, but with the addition on these pai-ti of numerous
transTerse wary bars of a deeper brown. Nearly all the rest of the
plumage ii of a tolerably uniform shade of blackiab-brown, with
the ezceptioii of the tail, which is at tbe base of a dirty white, with
numerous narrow transverse undulated bands of a dusky hue, and,
in its terminal third, black without any appearance of banding.
The beak is hom.colaured at the tip and bluish at the base ; the iris
hasel ; the oers and naked cheeks of a dull red ; the legs yellow, and
the daws black. Such at least are the colours of the Uviog specimen
in the Society's gardea Sevenl changes however take place in tlie
plumage of the bird as it advances in age, and these are well
lUustiBted by an extensive series of specimens in the Museiun in
Bruton.Btreet," — now in the Onrdens, B^ont's Park. " So great in
fact ii tbe variation of colours in this species that scarcely any two
descriptions of it correspond throughout, and the figures by which
it has been illustrated differ from each other even more remarkably
than the descriptions by which they are socompaoied." ('Oaniens
tnd Henageiie of the Zoological Society ')
w
and root o[ tbe BruUlin Cunun Eagle {PalybBTUi jnuillflulf }.
The same author obserres that Har^mtve was the first
ittoduc
into Europe the name ot Carwara, the vulgar appellation of the bird
in Brmail, derived from its hoarse and peculiar cry. But although
H. Cuvisr regards Harcgrave's Caracara aa identical with the specin
described by Hr. Bennett, the hitter remarks that both the figure and
deaoription are so much at variance with it that be feels himself
compiled to adopt in preference the opinion of Professor Lichten-
stetn, founded upon the original drawing, that they belong to a totally
different bird. Mr. Bennett is consequently unable to trace the history
of iha tfue Canteare beyond the year 1T84, when a figure and
dpsoriplian wera published at Vienna by the younger Jacqmn, from
hla fittbar's papers, onder the name of FaUo Chtrivai/. ThsM Mr.
Bennett baa no hemtation in rsfemjig to the present speoioa. The
prIlMipal diflcnmces between Ihem consist, he states, in the markiogs
on the braast and txaA, which in the figure are more longitudinal
than transvarM ; and In the very awkward foRehorteniDg of the
beak, whkb completely distorU its natural-form. The former appean.
FALCONIDJa »-*
from tbe specimeDS in the Sotdety's Huuiim, to be one of tlio
distinctive marks of the yonn; bird, Cavier, in the last edition of
the ' Rigne Animal,' observes that the PaUo Chrriaag of Joaquin
may be nothing but a variety of aes, Hr, Bennett then notices tbs
17 complete description of the adult Caracara in D' Aian. According
this author, the full-grown bird measures 21^ inches in length ^d
SO in the expanse of the wioga. Its colours agree with the deaoriptian
above given, excepting chat the first six quill-feathera of the wings
are white, marked with rajs and spots of brown, and become blackish
towards the point ; the back is traosversely rayed with brown and
white, the latter predominatiog on its upper half, and vice versft ;
tbe fore part of the neck and breast am traversed by dusky lines
' rith a larger proportion of white; tbe cere is of an orange
id tbe throat and aides of the head are almost white. This
desoription, Mr. Bennett remarks, very nearly coincides with that of
M. Cuvier, taken from specimens in the Paris Museum, and with the
figure of one of thwe specimens given by M. Vieillot in his ' asjeria
des Oiaesui ; ' and Mr. Beonett then refers to the figure given hv M.
Spii in bis 'Birds of Brazil,' as the young of this species, which
resembles M, Vieillot's in its form, except Uiat the l^s are longer
and thicker, and the tips of tbe wings reach to the extremity of Uia
teiL In colour it is rather of a darker brown, approaching ratm
nearly to the Society's specimen alluded to by Mr. Bennett ; the
throat is light brown instead of white ; and the transverse wave*
of the breast and shoulders are replaced by longitudinal brown
dashes upon a light ground. Tbe cere and oaked cheeks ara in both
of a bright yellow j indeed Mr, Bennett states that he has nowhere
met with them of the same hue with those of the Society*! living
specimen, except in the figure and description of Jscquin,
The Caracara is said to live either alone or iu pairs. But D'Asant
states that he has seen them join in companies of four or five to
hunt down prey which a single Caracatn would find a difficulty in
mastering, such as rdd buzzard^ herons, and other large birds i and
it is believed that they will even destroy the American oetrich,
young fawns, and lambs, when so associated. In its food it seems
to be content with any animal substance. Carrion (for if a Caraoara
see a Tulture devour a piece of Beeh he is said to pursue bim and
compel bim to di^oi^ it), toads, frogs, worms, snails, lizards, gmbe,
grasshoppers, winged-ants, snakes, and files, birds — in short tbe
general prey of buzzards, hawks, fidcons, and insectivorous birds — aU
suit its appetite. Two of the specimens obtained by H. Spix wei«
shot in the act of extracting insects &om the hides of oxen. D'Azars
will not allow that the Caracara preys on the smaller birds, becausa,
ha says, that it is unable to catch them ; but Prince Maximilian
found in tbe stomachs of those which ho opened the remains of
small birds and insects, especially grasshoppers, which abound in its
haunts. It is by no means shy, and advances like the vultures to
iohaHtsd places, perching on trees and house-tops and not caring
to coDceal itself. It is seldom attacked, for it rarely moleata domaatio
poultry, but it is stated that it will sometimes carry off the sporta-
man's game. Tbe nrst, ocoording to D'Asara, is built on the tops
of trees, especially those round which tbe climbing plants are most
luxuriant, or in a bushy thicket. It is lar^, and composed of sticks
and twining branches laid nearly flat, and lined, inartifioially, thickly
with hairs. The ^go, which are laid in August, September, or
October, are two in number, pointed at one end, and dotted and
blotched with crimson on a brownish-red ground.
This bird extends over a considetmble part of South America; the
island of Aruba, on the Ooast of Venezuela (Jacqnin) ; BraiU and
Paraguay (Cnvier) ; moat abundant in the south and east of Braiil
(Prince of Neuwied) ; Spix's specimens were from the northern
provinces ; less numerous on the Rio de la Plata than in Paraguay,
where it is almost equal in number to all tbe other birds of prey
It together (D'Azaia); Stnits of Hagalbaens (Captain Phillip
rker King, RN.).
Hr. Bei
founded 0
Qmelin, in an immature state of plumage.
Dr, Smith proposed the genus Potyboroidet for the FiJco Oymntgai^
of Temminck in tbe South African Joursal, in April, 18S0, and
M. Lesson, in the November of that year, separated the same form
under the generic title Ogmnogtnt/t,
From Ibt/cter and i'o^^ortii Hr. Tigon passes to the fishing Eagles,
and particularises as the flnt
Pandim (Savigny). — Beak rounded above ; cere hispid ; nostrils
lunulated and membranaceous on the upper margin ; tarsi naked ;
acrotarsia covered with rigid reticulated scales; toe* free, tbe
aitemal toea versatile ; olaws equsl, rounded underneath ; seoood
quill longest.
P. Baiiatim, the Bald Buxzard, Osprey, or Fishing Eagle; the
Fishing-Hawk and Rsh-Hawk ot the Americans; Aquila Pescatrico
of the Italians; Haliatiu and MorjJtniii of Aldrovandus; Sallnt-
tatdvt Anghnim of Kay; and /"atai Haliatut of IJnneua. Thin
bird appears to be widely diffused. Temmiook obaarvei, thnt
it is generally distributed through Europe, and that it abounds
in Russia, Germany, and Switaerland. It is also found in Egypt.
In the British Islsjids it seems to be comparatively nra, wil-
lughby recinda one that was shot at Penzance with a mnUst in
^ke:
FALCOKID^
FALCOyiD^
nt
itA olawi ; ind WUta mentloDi another Hat was ehot at Fiimbun
Pond, near Salboome, whila it wai aitting on the handle of a ploogh
anil -devouring Bsh. " It used," ervb White, "to precipitate itaelf
into tte water and take its pre; hj aurpriH."
B(ld Bninrd [Pandioa Bullalai).
It baa been aeen at KilUme; in IrBland ; and Kontaeii ipeaka of
ita frequent oocurnmcs in DevoiiBhire. Selby aaja, "1 bare aceti
tbem upon Loch LomoDd, where the; oresaid to breed : but the; are
(ar frain being numerous in Scotlaud." Uontagu corroboratca this;
for he HjH, in hia ' Omithalogical Dictioniuy,' " It ia Bidd to make its
□est genenll; an the ground b; the aide of water, cbmpoaed of flngs
and rushes ; but we once saw the ueat of this bird on the top of n
chimne; of a ruin in an islaud ou Looh Lomond in Scotland j tl was
large and flnt, formed of tticks laid across, and resting on the udes of
tbs cbimusy, lined with flags."
Prince C. L. Bonaparte etatea that it is found near Rome.
In America it is said to be found in the eummer from Labrador to
Florida ; and it is even atated to have been aeen in Cayenne : indeed
Latham givea it the unme of Cayenne Oaprey. But it ia in the more
t«mpetste climate of the new continent that the bird abounds ; and
there its coming is eagerly watched by the fiahermen as the harbinger
of tbn ahoale of fish that approach the shores in the spring.
" Towards the close of Uarch," writes Nuttall in his interesting
'Manual,' "or beginning of April, they arrive in the vicinity of Boaton
with the first shoat of alewivpa or herrings, but yet are seldom known
to breed along the coasts of Uaasacbuaetts." The lame author attri-
butes their departure from New York and New Jersey, as early as the
cloH of September, or at fartbeat the middle of October, when they
■iiigrate farther aouth, to the going of the £ah on which they ore
■ccurtomed to feed ; for they principally live on fish, which they tako
by (lashing from on high into the water with such violence, that, a*
Fsnnant obaerre, the Italians have applied to the bird the epithet
' piombina.'
But the Bald Bunud is haunted by apenecutor that often inatchei
from it the hard-earned pny. Catesbj and others describe ita BuBer-
ings from the piracy of the White-Headed Sea-Eagle, Halicetiiu
laicoixfihalvi ; and Wilson gives the following vivid description of
Buch a Bcane — a description which those only who have deroted
thenuelvea to watching the habits of animals c^n give :— " Elevated,"
mjs that admirable ornithologist, speaking of the Wbite-Headed
Eagle, ae he aaw bim in America, " on the high dead limb of aome
gig:intic tree that commands a wide view of the ocean, he aeems
calmly to contemplate the motions of the various feathered tribes
that pursue their buay avocations below, the snow-white gulls elovrly
winnowing the air; the busy trings couratng along the sanda; trains
of ducks strejuning over the surbce; silent and watchful cranes, intent
and wodiug; clamorous crowa, and all the winged multitudes that
subsist by the bounty of thii vast liquid magazine of nature; High
over all these hovers one whose action instantly arresta his attention.
!!y his wide curvature of wing, and sudden auspension in the air, he
knowa him to be the fieh-bawk, aettling over some devoted victim of
the diep. His eye kindles at the sight, and balancing himself with
half-opened winga on the branch, he watches the reault^ Down, rapid
an an arrow from heaven descends the distant object of bis attention,
the roar of its wings reaching the ear as it disappesrs in the deep,
making the surges foam around. At this moment tho eager loaks of
the eagle are all ardour- and levelling hia neck for flighty be sees the
fish-hawk once more emerge struggling with his prey, and mounting
in the sir with screams of exultation. These are the signals for our
hero, who, launching into the air, instantly gives chace, and soon gaini
on the fish-hawk. Each eierts his utmost to mount above the other,
diaplayiog in these rencontres the most elegant and sublime aerial
evolutiona The unincumbered eagle rapidly advances, and is just
on Uie point of reaching his opponent, when with a sudden scream,
probably of despair snd honest eiecretion, the latter drops his fish ;
the eagle, poising himself for a moment, as if to take a more Certain
aim, deacends like a whirlwind, snatches it in his grasp ere it reaches
the water, and beara hia iU-gotteu booty silently away to the woods."
The Bald Buazsrd is a powerful bird, and the femalm, which arv
the largest, as indeed they are among moat of the birds of prey, some-
times weigh 61ba The plumage, which is very like that of tho
water-fowl, and adapted to resisting the fluid into which it plunges
for its prey, ie white below, with a few brown strealu and speckles on
the throat There ia indeed a patch of brown on the upper part of
the breast in young birds. The crown of the head is hght-brown,
edged with wmle ; and there is a streak of dark-brown from the eye
to the abouldets. The whole of the upper part of the body ia brown.
The feathers on the thighs are close, and the legs short, stout, and
grayish : and in this part of its organisation we see a beautiful inatanca
of aduptation to its habits. The close thigh-feathers resist the action
of the water, while the talon of the outer toe is much larger than the
inner one, and capable of being turned backwards ; the under surfaces
of all the toes are also very rough and covered with protuberances,
which enable it to aecure ite slipper^' prny. The irides nr> nf a lemon
Ofsd and fool of Bald Buiiard {Pat^tm BtKattut).
The Bald Buizard, or Osprey, lays from two to Anir eggs, a little
larger than those of the common fowl, of a reddish or jellowiah
cream-colour, marked with blotches and dots of reddiah-brown.
During incubation the male often feeds the female. Nuttsll, in his
'Uonuol,' gives the following account of their habits in the breeding
" Dniike other rapacioue birds, the ospreys may be almost con-
sidered gregarious, braading so near each other, that, according to
Ur- Qsrdiner, there were on the small island on which ha reaidad, near
to the oastam eitramity of Long Island, New York, bo less thaii 900
□eats with young. Wilson ohst^ed twenty of their nests within half
a mQe. I hare aeen them nenrly as thick about Rehoboth Bay, in
Delaware. Here they live together at least as peaceably as n»ka ;
nnd so harmless are they considered by other birds, that, aocording to
TW PALCONID*.
WilcoD, th« orow blaokbird*, or enklM, are ■ometimea bUohmI refuge
' b; th« (wpniTB, and oonitruct Uieit aattt in tha ven inteniticei of
tbeir syiy. It would appear tometuDu, thai, ■■ <nUi awallowi, a
general assistance ia given in the oongtructing of a new neat; for,
preTitm* to this event, a Sock haie been seen to anernble in the same
tree, squealing, as is their cuatom, when enythiiig materially agitates
Hr. Vigors is of opinion that this group pnasnta us with a decidedly
ebankoteristio difference {ram all the other ipedes of the family, eioept
those of Slantu, !□ the internal parte of the nails being rounded jnatoad
of grooved. Tbe culmen of the bill, be abaerres, is also broader
than usual, and much rounded ; the toea are entirely separated, and
tbe tani are covered with atrang, prominent, and thickly reticuUted
scsles. The same author remarks lliat the Osprey (Folio Halvatut
of Linoteus) is tbe type of the genus to which the valuable researches
of Dr. Uonfield In Java have added a second specie*, P. Ichlhyaetut.
Id this species however, whioh sgrees with Pandian in the more
eeaential character^ Mr. Vlgoie finds a strong approximation to tbe
following genus, ttaliattitt. Ita bill, he adds, is more compressed than
that of Pandion, its acrotaniaareBcutellatad,andthe 4thquill-feallier,
as in Baliaeim, is the longest. It thus stands, ia (he opinion of Ur.
Vigor*, oscnlant between the two groups.
The last group of the Fishing Eagles, according to Ur. Vigors, ia
comprised in tbe next genus,
Halimtitt (Savigiiy), — Beak convex above; nostrils lunulsted,
transverse; care snbbispid ; tarsi semi plumed ; acrotaraia acutellated.
Toea free, the eitemsl toe versatile ; claws unequal.
Mr. Vigors notices the difference of this form from Pandion in the
structure of the nails, and the more compressed culmen of the bill ;
in the tarsi also, which have the acrotaraia scutellsted, and are feathered
half way below the knee. There am several species ; for instance,
Falco Utia)e^halut,P.a&ieinti,P,PmduxrianMt,F. Magrui, F.vetiftr,
tui.to.
B. tneeeepluUtu, tlie Sea-Eagle, Bald Esgla, Wbite-Headed Esgl»—
the ^ubol of the United StatM ot America.
Urn
IB B*s.Eitle [i/sliariM *yeiaiilu.tiu).
Before we proceed to the dcBOriptioa of our example, it may be
necessary, with Mr. Beunett's aaaiatance, to clear up the confusion
which, as he observee,haa existed in the synonymy of Haliaeliu albidllJi,
the difference of the colours of tbe plumage in the various stages of
its growth having induced authors to Teeoid it under aeveia] distinct
FALCONID^ JM
names. Three of theae were almcat umveis^lly admitted till about
twenty-eix years ago, when the reault of F. Cuvtei's obaerrations
oa the indlTiduali kept in the Jardin dea Plantea led Him to unite
Fi^co ottifragyf, P. albicaMdm, and P. albicilla of Omelin under one
name : eubeequent inquiry baa confirmed this conoluaion. In the
earlier atagee of life, the beak of H. albicilla ia of a bluish horn-
colour ; its head and neck deep brown ; the plumage above, brownish-
black mixed with whitish or ssh-ooloured apote on the biu^ and tail
In this state it is Palm ouifra^iu of systematiata. About the third
or fourth year t}ie head and Deck become aahy-brown; the beak
gradually changes from bluish to pale-yellow, the white spots on the
back vanish, aod the toil becomea unifonuly grayish-white. It is now
Palco alixcavdHt of Qmelin, Petit Pjigargue of Buffon, and the Leaser
White-Tailed Eagle of Latham. lu its fifth year it is oome to
maturity, and the change ia complete. The head and neck bave
little of the brown tinge left, the back ia throughout of a dusky-brown
intermingled with ashy-gray, and the tail ia quite white. In thia ita
perfect state it is Palia cUbieiUa, the Orande Pygargue, the White-
Tailed or Cinereous Eagle. In all the stages of this the Great Sea-
Eagle which inhabits nearly the whole of Europe and of Northern
Aaia, the cere and naked parts of the legs are yellow j the under part
of the body ia of a lighter hue than tbe upper, and more thickly
intErsperaed with pale dnereous spots ; the claws are completely black.
(' Qardens and Uenagerie of the Zool. Soc')
Hr. Bennett, in the work last quoted, remarks, that in tbe earlier
stages of its growth there is little to distinKuiah tiis spedes from
the Qreat Sea-Eagle. M, Vieillot indeed, folTowiDg the example of
Daudin, bas united the White-Heoded Eagle to the list of synonyms
of the Qreat Sea-Elsgle. " That such a union," writee Mr. Bennett,
" is founded upon inaufficient data is proved by the gradual develop-
ment in the bird under conaideration of a character which, alter a
certain age, at once distinguiahea it from the remainder of ita tribe.
Tbis chi^acter consists in the pure whiteness of its head and neck.
from
rbenoe it
clothed at fiiiit with a thick whjtiah or cream-coloured a
down, and they became gradually gray as the development of tbe true
plumage goes on. In the third year the white may be traced upon
the head, neck, tail-coverts, and tail ; and by the end of the fourth
year these parts become completely white, or sometlmea tinged
slightly with cream-oolour. The eye, which is at first haiel, otuuise*
to a brilliant straw-ooloiir aa the bead wbitens-^Wilson.) *' Sis
account of the matamorphoaes in colour of tbe Wnite-HeaLcled Sea-
Esgle," says Mr. Beimett, " derived from the penonal absemtions
of the aoeurate author of the ' American Ornithology,' has been in
a great measure verified under onr own inapeotion in the Bpedmea
DOW before us, which remained for several yean in the poneamon of
Hr. Brookes, bafoni it was presented by him to the Society.
" During a considerable part of the time it waa n^[arded as the
Common Sea-Easle; and it waa not until its gradual change of
plnmage bad at lei^th rendered obvious its true character, that it
waa ascertained to be in reali^ a distinct species. Tbe same error
appears frequently to bave exist«d with regard to it ; and M. Tem-
minok obaervaa that the only mark of distinction that can be traced
in it until it has assumed the adult colouring, conaista in the some-
what greater length of ita tail He might however have added ita
■mailer aiia, whioh is probably one-fourth lees than that of the pre-
ceding Inrd, at the same age and under similar oircumatances. From
the obaervationa which we have been raaliled to make upon the
sul^jeot^ we should be led to eonduda that the period in which it
attains ita full growth and perftet colouring is, in this country at lesst
and in captivity, two or three jean longer than that stated by Wilson.
In it* immature state, that is to say about the third year, the upper
Jong the a
their shalls of a pale-bro'
with the
blaok, with
the secondary are conaideiably lighter ;
ana uia nu, wnicn projecis m a trifling degree beyond the eitremitiee
of the wings, ii brown on the outer quille and of a mixed white and
brown on the inner. The under surface, aa far backwaida as the
middle of the belly, is of a much lighter shade than tiie upper, being
of a dull white, with nunusous broad streaks of pale-brown. In the
posterior part it is of a deep brown, the feathere being only alightly
margined with white. A similar hue prevails on the upper parts of
the legs, which are plumed somewhat below the knee*. The beak is
of a dusk; brown ; tha oere and legs of a golden yellow ; the iria
somewhat lighter; and. the talona deep Uackish-lniiwn. The latter
are Umfb atrongly eurred, of coiuidenible power, and extremely sharp
at the point*. The full-grown bird measure* upward* of 8 feet in
length from beak to tail, and mora than 7 feet in the eipsnse of its
wings. Its beak is changed to a bright-yellow; and ita head, a
greater or less proportion of the neck (according as the bird is more
or less advanced in age), and tha entire tail, are become perfectly
white. An analogous change, aa we have before seen, takes plsce in
the plumage of tbe preoeding species; but the head and neck of that
bird always retain more or less of a brownish tinge, seldom ohanging
fully into gray, and never turning completely white. These obser-
FAT.CONID.E.
VfttiouB have been mode upon numerous indiTidualB, many of thnn
placed for upwards of tan fears under the eyes of Tariona ecientiEc
obserrers : tneirnccuracy may therefore bo regarded as unqueatianable.
The remainder of the plumage in this state is of a deep broim,
approaching to black, and itronglf contraated with the bead and taU.
The colour of tbs legs, feet, and taloni remains nearly the same ; but
the ilia generally cooCinues to assume a lighter and a lighter hue.
The ryes, it should be observed, are deeply sunk in the head, and
instead of being placed in a line parallel with that of the cheeks,
are directed forwards, so as to fonn with Uiem a considerable
angle,"
We have already given an account of the robberies committed by
the Bald Eagle on the oaprey ; but ita acts of plunder are not confined
to that Urd, for it will rob the vultures, and even in hard times mntce
them disgorge their carrion to satiate its appetite. According '
Audubon it will strike down a swan and other aquatio birds, a
ind then procure fish for ilflelf by pursuing them in shallow
ra young pig!, lambs, fawns, and putrid flesh of
o»Brj uBscnpuon. iJiagara ia one of its favourite haunts, where it
watohes for the swollen carcasses that the cataract has precipitated
down the falls. Wilson saw one seated on a dead horse, keeping a
whole Hook of vultures at a distance till it had satisfled itself; and
on another occasion, whan many thousands of tree-squirrels had been
drowned in their migration across the Ohio, and had collected host*
of vultures, the sudden appearance of a Bald Eagle sent tham all off,
and the eagle kept sole posaeseion for many days.
Brnjamin Franklin thus Fpeaks of this emblem of the United
Statei of America: — "For my part, I wish the Bald E^e had
been chosen as the representative of our country. He ia abird of bad
moral eharacler; be does not gat his living honeatly. You may have
seen him perched on some dead tree, where, too lazy to fish for hmiself,
he watches the labours of the fishing-hawk ; and when that diligent
bird has at length taken a fish, and is bearing it to his nest for the
support of his mate and young ones, the Bald Eagle pursues him and
takes it from him. With all this injustice, he is never in good case,
but, like those among men who live by sharping and robbing, he is
genarally poor, and often very lousy. Beeides, he is a rank coward :
the little King-Bird, not bigger than a sparrow, attacks him boldly,
and drives him out of the districts He u therefore by no means a
C roper emblem for the brave and honest Cincinnati of America, who
tve driven all the King-Birds from our country; though exactly
fit for that order of knights which the French call Chevaliers
d'Induatrie."
With ngtad to ila peproduotion, M. Audubon saya that incubation
coiomeuce* in the beginning of Jaouaiy. He shot a female on the
ITth of that month, aa she sat on her eggi, in which the chicka had
made great progress. " The nest," saya that author, " which in some
inatanoes la of great size, is usually placed on a very tall tree, destitute
of braiichea to a considerable height, but by no means always a dead
one. It is never seen on rocks. It ii composed of sticks from three
to file feet in length, large pieces of turf, rank weeds, and Spanish
moss in abundance, whenever that auLatance bappena to- be near.
When finished, it measures from five to six feet in diameter, and so
great is the accumulation of materials, that it sometimas rnvsuna
the same in depth, ii being occupied for a great number of yeara in
Bocceuian, and receiving some augmentatioD each season. When
a naked tree, between the forks of the brandies, it is conspi-
— " -> a great distance. The eggs, which sre from two to
KUIU-, uiuio vummonly two or thro^ an of a dull white colour, and
equally rounded at both ends, some of them being oooasioually
grannlatad. Inoubation lasts for more than three weAs, but I have
not been able to ascertain its preoiae dmwtion, aa I have obaerved the
female on diffiirent occauaua sit for a few days in Um nsat belbra
laying the first eig^ Of this I assured mywdf by climbing to the
usat every day m aucceaaioii, during her temporary abosnos."
(' Ornithological Biography,' voL L)
This bird is found in every part of the United States of Amerisa,
aeldom appearing, according to Audubon, in very monntainoui
diatrieta, but preferring the low lands of the aea^orea, thoMi of the
larger lakea, and the borders of rivet*. Mr. Bennett remarks, that
the White-Headed Eagle is usually spoken of as inhabiting the
northern parts both of the old and new oontinent; butthat it appean
to be only a rare and occasional visitant of the former. It ia prebabls,
he adds, that some of the varieties of the Common Sea-Eagle of this
rrter of the globe have been frequently mistaken for it, and remarks,
t throurfiOQt nearly the whole of North America, on the contrary,
where the European species seems to be unknown, it is met with in
great abundance. Sir John Kichardson says that it is the earliert of
the summer visiters to the Fur Countries, and the period of its arrival
has given the name of Meekeeshew Eapeeshim, or Eag!e-Hoon. to the
month of March. " Temminck," says Sir John (' Fauna floiMli-
Americana'), "assims for its habitual residence the regions within the
Arctic Circle ; and Wilson observes, that it is found at all seasons in
the countries it inhabits. Both these assertions however require, I
apprehend, to be taken with considerable latitude. We did not, on
the late oipeditioni, meet with it to the north of the Onat Slave
Lake <63' N. lat.), although it ia commou in the summer, ia the
country eilendiug from thence to Lake Superior, and its breeding-
FALCONin.'E. TOT
plaoea in the latter district are nomeroas. But in the month of
October, whan the rivers from which it draws ita principal supply of
food are frozen over, it cuUrely quits the Hudson's Bay lan<^ ; and
if, after that period, it is to be seen in the northern regions, it can
only be on the sea-coast, and for a limited time, while the sea coDtinnes
unfrosen. . . . It is known to breed as far south aa Virginia, but
its nests do not appear to be so common within any part of the United
Sutes as they are in the Fur Countriea" The bird is not mantioned
in the ' Supplement ' to Sir W. E. Parry's ' First Voyage,' nor in that
to Sir John Rosa's ' Last Voyage.'
This bird ia the Meekeeshew (name for the species), Wapiutiquao-
Heekeeshew (White-Headed Eagle — mature bird), Appisk-Meekeeabew
(Black-Headed Eagle — immature bird), and Meekeeseeseeah (yesu'ling
birds) of the Cree Indiana.
Colonel Sykes notes among the birds of Dukhun (Deccan) Baliattut
Panticeriantit, Ftdco PonlieeriaHtu of Latham, Bruhmuny Kite of the
Europeans in India. The colonel says that it is seen constantly
passing up and down rivers at a considerable height, but prepared to
fall at an instant on its prey. Usually it seiaei while on the ving;
but occasionally dips entirely under water, appearing to rise again
with diCBculty. It ia quito a mistake, he adds, to suppose it feeds on
carrion. On the examination of the stomach and craw of mskiiy
specimens, the contenta were found to be fish, aud fish only, excepting
on one occasion, when a ciab was met with. (' ZooL Proo.,' 1S32.}
Leaving the Fishing Eagles, Mr. Vigors proceeds In
(%rm(tit (Vieillot). — Beak convex above; nostrils lunulate, trana-
varae; cere siibhispid ; tarsi elongated, naked ; aciVitarBta rsticnlatcd;
toss short, the external toe connected with the middle one at the
base ; claws short, subequal. This genus is founded upon the well-
known Jean de Blanc of the European coutioent, Faleo In-atltgdaelylut
of Wolff, F. Oaliicut of Omelin, AquUotto of ths Italians. Here
Mr. Vigors observes, we find the exterior toe united to the middle by
a short membrane, which is the case indeed in the greater portion
of the family, while in the two latter genera ths toes are all divided
to the origin.
C. brachsdaetylKM is, according to Tenuoinck, the Faieo bratJiydiK-
?luM of Wolff; the Aquila bratXyllKt^ at Meyer; Falco OaUiau of
metin ; F. Umxptit of Bechatein ; A qaila UueampMoma, ' Borkh.
Dent. Om.' ; Le Jean le Blanc of Buffbn and the French genemlly i
Aigle Jean le Blanc of Temminck ; Falco Tereo d'Aqnlla, 'Stor. deg
Uoc,' ; and Kiirzzehiger-Adlcr of Meyer.
nearl iui,t rnot Df amariui ira,
foa FALCONJDf.
Old Mxlo. — Head very large ; b«low the ejai a apace cl^Uied with
vMta doWD; lummit of the head, cheeks, throat, breut, and bell;,
vbite, but Tariegsted with a few epata of bright brown ; back and
coverts of the winga brown, but the origin of all the feathers of a
{ure white ; tail Bqiiare,gn(;-browD, barred with deeper brown, wbit«
Blow ; tani long and grapah-blue, aa are the toee; beak black ; cere
bluiah ; irU yellow. Length, two feet.
Female. — Leu white Uibd the mate. Thehead, the neck, the breast,
and the belly, are markt|d with Dumorous brown spota, which are
Tery muoh approiimated.
Young, — Upper parte darker, but the origin of the feathers pore
white ; throat, breast, and belly, of a red-brown, little or not at all
spotted with white ; bands on the toil nearly imperceptible ; beak
bluish ; feet grayish-white.
It feeds on lizards and serpents, to which it gives the preference ;
rarely birds and doraeatic poultry. The nest is built on the highest
trees, anil tiie eggs are two or three in number, of B lustrous gray,
and spotless-
It inhabiti tbe great fir forests of the eastern parts of the north of
Europe ; not c»minon in Germany and Switzerlaoid ; rare in France ;
aever Been in Holland. (Temniinck.) Prince C. L. Bonaparte notes
it as rather rare near Home. Colouel Sykes notes it among the birds
of the Duthun (Deccau).
Dr. Smith's Circaitiu ptctoralii, which undergoes many changes
of plamago before it arrives at maturity (' South African Huseam
and Catalogue'), is stated (' Zool. Froc,' April, 1S»3) to be synonymous
with Circattm Ihoracinui of Cuiier.
Mr. Vigors next proceeds to tbe True Eagles.
Aqaita (of Auiiion). — Beak sub-angular sbove; DOftrils rounded ;
cem aub'biipid ; tarsi plumed to the tora.
Mr. Tigorn obaerve* that the predomiuaot mnrl; of distinction in
thia genua ia the tarai being feathered to the tocS. The culmon of
ths bill appears also to diSer &om that of the other Eagles in being
more angular. The Bpeciea.i;ui'a Ariioca of Savigi]y,/'a[<;D chiyiaeCot,
and Falo) niri'iiit of Linneua, Palm beltieotiu of Daudiu, with aome
others lately made known to na, belong to the group which contains
the moat powerful biids of the family.
A. ckrytattot, the Qolden Eagle; Adler of the OermaoB; Eiyr
Helyn of the Welah.
in age the colours of the plumage bccoiui
tail occupies less space, and traces of the ti
the third year tbe yoang bird put* or "■■ —
Let and fast of Golden Eagle [ijiula chryiatliii).
Old Birds. — Summit of the head and nape with amimiuated
feathvrs of a lively and goldun-red ; all the other parts of the body
obaoure brown, more or leaa blackish, according to the age of tbe
individual ; inside (^ the thighs and feathers of the tarsus dnr
brown; never any white feathers among the Boapulara ; tail deep gray,
barred with tolerable regularity with blackieb-brown, and terminated
nt ths end by a large band of that colour ; beak bom-colour ; iris
always brown; cere and feet yellow. In this state Temminck a
aiders it to be the Arttila fvlva of Meyer j Faito nigtr of Omeli
F. fulviu and F, Canailaiiit of Qmelin ; F. chryiaeloi of Linruei
I/Aigle Royal of Baffon ; U Grand Aigle of Gerard, * Tab, Eien
UAigleCommun and L'Aigle Royal of Cuvier; Ring-Tail Eagle a
Golden Eagle of Latham ; and Aquila lieole di Color Leouato and
Aquila Rapooe, 'Stor. deg. Doc'
Young Birds of one and two years. (Ring-Tail Eagle.)— All the
]>1umsge of a femjg^ous or clear reddiah-brown, uniform on all parts
-f the body ; lower tail-ooverts whitish ; ioeide of the thi^ and
feathen of the tArsos of a pure white ; tail quite white from tbe bosi
to three-fourths of its length, but afterwards brown to the end
iutsmal barbs of the quills and of the caudal feathers pure white —
this same colour oooupies also the greatest part of all the feathers of
the bodj £rom their hose. In proportion as the young Urd advances
Iha nLiteof the
kara appear. In
Golden lUigle lAqaila thrstaetai].
Varieties. — Partially or totally white. (Falto albii$ of Omelin
F. cyfftieitt of Latham ; L'Aigle Blanc of Brisaon.)
The Golden Engte preys on lambs, fawns, Jtc, and often on large
birds. Litr^me hunger will drive it to prey on carcaaaes.
It inhabits the great forests in plains, and in a less degree tboaa in
the mountaini of the north of Europe ; very common in Sweden, in
Scotland, in the Tyrol, Franconia, and Suabia; mora rare in Italy
and Switzerland ; rather common in Fntnco, in tbe forest of Fontain-
bleau, in the mountajna of Auvergne, and on the Pyreneea ; rare in
Holland : leas common in tbe Oriental countries than the preceding
species, that ia, AquUahdiaea of Saviguy, A. imperials of Temminek.
(Temminck.) According to Wilson the Qoldeo Engle iahabils
America, and occura from the temperate to the arctic regions,
particularly in the latter, where it breeds on precipitoua rocka, always
preferring a mountainous country. Sir John Richardson (' Fauna
Borteli-Americana ') mentions it with a query as breeding in the
receasM of the subalpine country which skirts the Rocky Mountains,
and as seldom seen fartlier to the eastward. " It is," ha says, " lield
by the aborigines of America, as it is by almoat every other people,
to be an emblem of might and courage, and the young Indian warrior
glories in his eagle plums as the most tionourabla ornament wiUi
which he can adom himself Its feathers are attached to the calu-
mets, or snioking.pipcs, used by the Indians in the celebration of
their solemn festivals, which has ohtained for it the name of the
Calumet Eagle. Indeed so highly are these ornaments prized that a
warrior will often exchange a valuable horse for the tail-feathers of a
single BBgle." It is the Kceoo of the Cree Indians. Sir John
Richardson observes that the mature British Golden Eagle has a
darkish brown tail and winge, blockish- brown back, clouded with
brownish-black, and a paler and brighter brown head. He had not
seen an American one in thia state, but we do not think that any
reason for a doubt. Many other authors mention ths engle and
ring-taila in auch terms aa to leave the identity of the bird almost
unquestionable; and though Sir John Richardson says thai it is
seldom seen fai-ther to the eastward than the Rocky Mountains,
M. Audubon relates that he saw a Golden Engle on the coast of
Labrador, besides others in various parts of the United Stales. It
inhabits Rusno, Iceland, and Germany, and ia aaid to occur' in
northern Africa and Asia Minor. Mr. Yarrell, in his 'History of
British Birds,' thus sums up its localities in our islands: — "The
Golden E^le, though occasionally seen and sometimea obtuned in
the Boutbem counties of England, is more exclueively confined to
ScotUod and its western and noiihern ielonds. Some years ago a
specimen was killed at Bexhill, in Sussex. It has also occurred, hut
n, TALOOHTDM.
very rsrelj, in Suffolk, Norfolk, DerbjBhire, Durhun, txii Northum-
berUnii. Hr. Uudie, in bu ' Feathered Tribeii of the Britiah laUndi,'
hu Qsmed ' the higher gleiu of the men thut riw on the Kiuth-eMt
of the QrampluiB, the high cliff called Wallace's Cnig dd the northern
aide of Lochlee, eod Craig Mutkeldis on iU >outh aide,' aa localitiea
for UiB Qolden Eigle. Mr, Selbj and hi* party of natoralista
olraei-ved this ipeeiei in Butherlandahire in the aummer of 18S1. Mr.
JU^llivny, in hie dettdled deacriptiona of the rapacious birds of
Great Britain, haa recorded hia own obserrationa of this apeciee in
the Hebrides; and other observen have seen it in the Orkney and
Shetland Islanda, vhsre it i« aaid conatantl; to rear its ;oun^ In a
direction wcat of London the Qolden Eagle haa been obtained or
aeen oo the coasts of Devonshire and CommlL In Ireland a Bilig-
Tailed Eagle (the young of Che Golden) waa aeen W a wiy of
□aturaliats in Connaraara in the autumn of 183JS ; and from William
Thompaon, Esq., Tioe^preaident of the Natural History Society of
Belfast, to whom I am indebted for a CHtalogua and notes of the birds
of Ireland, which will be constantly referred to throughout the work,
I leom that apecimena of the Qolden E^le are preserved in Belfast,
which were obtained in the countJea of Donegal and Antrim." The
longevity of the eagle la almoet proverbiaL One that died in Vienna
is aaid to have lived in confinament 104 years. Colonel Sykea notes the
Qolden Eagle among the btrda of the Dukhun (Deccan). Hia speci-
men differed ao ^htly from the European bird aa not to juatl^ its
separation. <* ZooL Proc.,' 1832.)
In the catalogue of birda collected on the Qangea between Calcutta
M brnng margiaed
r the
and Benares, and in the Vindhyian Hills between the latter place and
Ourrah Hundela, □□ the Nerbudda, by Major Jame* Franklin, F.R.S.,
kc, we find recorded an eagle, AquUa Findkiana, with a query
whether it is the Cawnpoor Eagle of Latham ('ZooL Proc,' 1881),
and among the Dukhun birds, A gttila bifaniaia of Hardwicke and
Qray. (' liid. ZooL') A whole rat waa found in the atomach of one
bii4- A second was shot by Colonel Sykea at the dead carcass of a
royal tiger, bnt it had not fed, for the atomach waa emp^. Dr. Smith
elated ('ZooL Proc,' 18S3) that the easle from the Caps presented to
the Society by the Hon. J. T. Leslie Melville, and in the Sodety*!
neuageria, waa not the young of J. mlfiirina (Daudin), but o
J. CA«a (Smith), .Fnleo rofuc (Temminck). Bpecimena of jl. icJIi
eata and A. rapax are in Hie South African Huaeiun, aa well as o
A. vulfurtno. The flnit ia only found in wooded diatricta, pttiys upon
small quadrupeda, and haa been known to pounce upon amall anto-
lopoa and carry them off entire to its neat A. ropiu-, though it
priQcipally preya on living creatures, does not wholly reject carrion,
being frequenUy one of the first birds that approaches a dead animaL
(■CaUloguB of South African Mnseum.') Hr. Keith Abbott ('ZooL
Proc.,' 1S31) notes among the Trebizond birda A. pmnala, inhabiting
£aatem Europe and the adjaoent parla of Aua and Afirica.
^lETnalomit (Yigors). — Beak rather atrong, sufficiently elongated ;
upper mandible straight at the baae, very much curved at the apex
nostrils oval, plaoed obliquely in the cere. Winga long, subrounded i
the flnt quill rather short, the second and third longer, the fourth
and fifth neariy equal and longeet, the leat gradually decreasing.
Feet rather weak, aubelongated ; tani rough, reticulated with scales;
toea nther short, reticulated ; olawa strong. Tail sufllcisntly lon^
Bomewhat rounded- (Tigora.)
Thia group waa obaerved to bear a near affinity to the genua
Pandion in the shape of the bill, wings, and Hie rugose reticulated
scales of the tarai, but to differ from it in the comparatiTe length and
weakneaa of the legs and claws, as well as in having the nails grooved
underneath, and not convex sa in the latter group. To this g^us
belongs the Faieo Baeha (lAtham) of Africa, end the HanilU bird
then lately described In the ' Prooeedinga ' (page B6) under the name of
Batto holoipUm. These, from the apparent weakneaa of their limbs,
bad hitherto generally been ranked among the bus^fda ; although
from the deaoription of the courageoua habite of the Bacha Falcou,
the only one well known of the group, doubta had been eipreeaed of
the propriety of ranking them with that tribe. Hr. Vigon auggeatec*
Uie But^-bmily of Eagles aa a more appropriate atatioD for them
where, united by many important cbaraetera to Pamlimi, they appa-
leully led off W the length of their tand to the genua Lininailiti
(^■moin of Sir S. BafBea') and othen of the long-legged Eaglea.
The three apeeiea of the group were exhibited, their genem similarity
In ooloor and markinga pointed out, and their spe<nfic difiereneea
•xj^ained. Theae conoiat chiefly in aisa, B. Aotoiptlni being one-third
mallar than H. Bacha ; while H. wkMoOu (whloh is 3 feet T inches
in length) oonaiderably eiceeda the latter. The firat ia spotted all
over we body, the second only on the abdomen, while the third ia
narked by apota on the wiog-coverta, and by ocelli bearing an undu-
lated appearance upon the abdomen, the breaat aJao being croaaed by
ttndulating faadte. A apecimen of II. wiuttiJa^iu waa afterwards
(January 1SS2) exhibited from Mr. Hodeson'a Nepaul cotlectiaL
•greed aoourately with that which bad been previoualv exhibited
except in size, the present specimen being about onfr-third longer-
Aom this diflerence in siie it was coqjectured to be a female. Colonel
Sykea identified a spedmen shot in the Dukhun (Deeoan) with Hamor
Uimit Bacha. ('ZooL Free')
H. tmMatui (male and female probably). Back and wings intense
-own ; head nested, the feathets white at the base, of a dark brown,
nearly sTip»irhlng to black at the end, the hind o
with a hght rufous band at the apex. The wii.,^
carpal joint deep brown, marked with small white apota; qnill-
feathers fuscoua, darker at the apex, and marked with white towards
the baae of the interior web ; the oere, base of the beak, and legs,
yellow ; claws black. (Tigon, ia Gould's ' Century of Birds tnm
the Himalaya Hountuns.')
Short-Winged Eagles.
Barpyia (Cuvier). — Beak above convex ; upper mandible
slightly toothed ; noatrila semilonar, transverse ; tarsi elongated,
very strong, feathered at the base ; acrotarsi* acutellatad ; daws
long, very strong, acute.
Hr. Vigors, in placing Sarpyta next to Jgwta, obaerrea that the
former equals the latter in sise and powers of bodv. Its tarsi, be
remarks, are strong, thick, partly plamed, with acuteUated acrotwsia.
The nares are elongated, appareutly semilunar, and placed transvenely
on the oen. The upper mandible, he adds, aeema to have a notch
■omewhat analogoua to that of the 'True Falcona.
Paht imptriaiit (Shaw). This powerful bird ia the Qranda
Harpie d'Amerique of the Wench ; Aquila Coronada of tbe Spaniab ;
PtUco datrador of Daudin ; Aigle DeatrueCeur of Sonnini ; Qnnd
Aigle de la Ouisne of Hauduyt; Marpyia datruetar of Cuvier.
Hr. Vigors atatet with truth that much confusion has arisen aa to
tbe synonyms of thia bird, and even as to the characters of the genus.
Mr. BNinett has, in our opinion, well cleared this confusion away, and
we therefore select hia synonymy.
"U. Temminck," saja the last-mentioned xoologist (' Qardens and
. IJB tL . .
Menagerie of the Zoological Society'), "the latest writer on this
magmficent bird, positivdy denies its identity with the Vtiitur karnmt
of Idnnisns, and the Crowned Eagle ( 7. coronoJiu) of Jacquin, o
singular ground that those names indicate a smaller bird with longer
and more slender Ins. Now Linnnus, who borrowed his original
description of the Harpy from Hernaodec aaaerta, on the authority
of that writer, that it is equal in aise to a common ram ; and Jacquin
atates bis bird to have measured full two feet and a half in height in
its natural sitting posture, and almost two inchsa in the diameter of
ita legs. It is impossible to read the deacriptions of Hemandei and
Jacquin, ttukiTig in tbe case of the former some UtUe allowance for
aiaggention, without feeling a conviction that they both refte to the
bird now under oonaidaTation. That of the latter author in particular
ia admiisbly characteristic LinnKus originally founded tu* species
on the indication given by Hemandei ; m the tenth edition of his
' Systema ' he suggeated a oomparison between it and a bird aeen b^ a
friend, probably a pupil, in the Royal Hensgsrie at Madrid, which
there Is every reason to believe from the deecription given to have
been juat. It was only in the twelfth edition of his immortal work
that he introduced a slight confusion by adding to the citation from
Hemaodes to the account furnished by his friend, and to somM
particulars extncted from Jacquin'a then unpublished description of
his supposed apeeiea. a aynonym from Harcgn,ve, whioh can alone
justify U. Temminck's criliciam- We restore without hesitation
both these aynooyma of LinnEsus and jaoquln, excluding only from
the twelfth edition of the ' Sjatema Natuns ' the referenoea to Marc-
gtaye and his copyists. With the Yuitur karn/i« of Inniueua and the
ns FALCONID^
V. eoronaliu ofJacqum are cecBnirilf included among tbBjnnouymB
of the Bmrpj Eagle, tha Falta hai-pyia ^ai tbs F. Jacqvini of Qmelm,
b; whom the trinel name uaigoed by Jacquin to hia bird was
chuigsd on account of ite introductioa into a genua in which that
RpiH^tion WBB pn-occupied. In the yea 1T78, Hr. Dilloo obaened
iu th« menagerie of Bqbq Retiro at Madrid, a epedei of eagle which
he imagined to be 'an undeacript Hnd not taken notice of by
Iiinnmiin' This bird, which he figurea in hia ' Travela through Spain '
under the name of the Craated Falcon, ia eTidentl; of the aame
apaciea with the Harpy, although the repreMntatiou ia rudely eie-
outed, and in aome rmects, as for eiampls the length of the beak,
groaaly caricatured. We might almost be tempted to suspect that the
apecimen aaan by kim waa identical with that described b; Linnsui
from the aame menagerie twenty years before, were it not that the
Utter bird la exprea^y called Heiican, while that of Mr. Dillon ia
stated to have come from the Caracas. For Uiia reason Dr. Latham
iotroduoed it into hie ' Synopaia ' under the name of the Caraca
Falcon.
"Qmelin, quoting from Latham, soon after latinised ita former
nnme into FaUo crittaitu, and this may therefore be added to the
BjQOnyinB of our bird, of which Mr. Dillon's was the first published
tigure. The next oiiginal deacriber of the Harpy Eagle was Mauduyt,
who also rq^ardad ui apecimma aa nondeacript, and gave them the
iioioe of Orand Aigle de la Ouiane, from the country whence they
were obtained. To these birds, which formed part of the collection
of the Paris Museum, Daudin, in hia 'Ornithology,' publiahed in 1800,
applied the sdentdfia appellation of Faico detirndor; and ths Dames
given by these two writers have been generully adopted on the conti-
nent of Europe as the only on«a certainly applicable to the species.
M. Sonnini aeema doubtful whether or not to regard the two speci-
mens deacribed by him aa distinct species, and names the one Aigle
DestruotBur, and the other Grand Aigle da la Quiane ; but there seema
no sufficient reaaon [or their oeparation. Dr. Shaw's Fidno mpenaUt
is founded on this indication of Sonnini In all probability the
Crested Eagle of Stedmau'a ' Eipedition to Surinam,' spoken of as a
very strong and fierce Mrd, belongs to the same species. Figures of the
Haqiy are likewise given by M, Cuvier in his ' KJgne Animal; ' by
M. Yieillot, in the second edition of the ' Nouveau Diotionnaire dea
Sciences-, ' and by M. Temminck, in hie ' Planches Colorizes,' Thoae
of the two last-named worka are strikinyly oharaclariatic. That of
the ' DictionnaSro ■ exhibits the orest-feathers equally and stiffly
elevated round the beck port of the hea'l, a state in which we bare
never seen them in our bird, and which on account of their laxity,
andthe lower position of ths middle ones, we doubt their power to
assume. It is right however to remark Uiat Uie creit ia stated by
Linnteus and other authors to poasess this power of eleration round
the head in form of a crovm, an ornament alluded to in the Spaniah
mtme of the bird, Aquila Coronada, and in the trivial appellation,
eonmaftu, affixed to the species by Jacquin. We believe that we hare
now restored to this bird all the original synonyms which unquea-
tionably belong to it. The original descriptions of Heraandes,
LinnBus, Jacquin, Mauduyt, Daudin, and Sonnini, and the figures of
Dillon, Shaw, Cuvier, Yieillot, and Temminck, are such aa leave no
doubt upon our minds of the accuracy of the referencaa to those
authors. We have purposely abstained frora mentioning otheis which
have been occasionally quoted, but which either do not appaar to ua
to be satisfactorily determined, or are evidently founded on mistake.
Of the former class the Owyra-Ouaseou of Lery, or Boyal Bird of
Prey of Bnuil, may serve aa an example j of the latter, the Calqnin
and Tfaaru of Molina."
Adult Bird. — Head with thick downy plumage, of a li^it slaty-
gray colour. Great arising from the back part, of numerous broad
feathers increaeini; in length towards the middle line of the head,
and thus aasuming a rounded form, of a dull black, wiUi the exception
of a sligh^morgin of gray on the lips of the longer feathers, and a
more siteniiia tin^e ot (be same colour on those of the sides. This
crest ia slightly raised above the level of the feathera of the bofk of
the neck^hen the bird is quiet, but ia capable of being elevated at
right aoglea with them upon any sudden excitement. In thia atate,
to an observer placed in front of the turd, the middle feathers of
the creat are rarely visible, on account of their being insertod much
lower down than the lateral ones; while the latter, converging on
either side, form, as it were, two lu oar-tike procesaes. Below the
crest, the whole of the back and wings, together with a broad collar
round the fore part of the neck, black, each of the feathers of the
back terminating in a narrow transverse somewhat lighter streak.
Under surface, from the breast backwards, pure white ; plumage of
the legs white with blackish transverse bars. Tail with four
transverse black bands, of about equal breadth with the fou:
alternating whitish or aah-ooloured spaces; the tip light ash.
(Bennett).
Immature Bird. — Upper parta mottled with brown, gray, and
whitish ; cheeks, occiput, throat, and under parts, light gray, with a
few black feathers in front of the neck, and some large irregular
black apots on each side of the lower auriace of the tail-featlien on a
light ash-coloured ground. (Falco imptriatit, Shaw; Tieillot, young
female 1). Back and wings grayish fawn-oolour, irregularly marbled
and spotted with black ; eollar ashy-fawn, more or leaa spotted with
FALCONID*. 71'
black ; bars crossing ths legs fewer and more irregular ; all the lower
porta whitish-fawn sprinkled with darker spots ; upper surface of
tail osb-coloured, with small blackish spots ; patches of black mark
the places of the future bands, which gradually increase at each
change ; under surface whitish, dotted with fawn. (Temminck.)
Bird farther advanced. — Collar, crest, back, and wing-coverts,
almost uniformly gray; quill-feathere of the wings black; under
surface of body dirty white ; each of the tail-featbers marked beneath
by four large black patches croaaing its shall and occupying about
half its width. (Bennett )
Upper mandible very thick at the base, straight for some distance,
and suddenly curving downwards with a strong arch towards the
sharp point ; lower mandible straight, short, and blunt ; uostrils
transverae and oval ; wings when closed not reacliing beyond the
middle of the tail, which is rounded at the extremity ; legs feathered
very long. Mr. Bennett observes that in aomo of these obaracters,
aa for instance the nakedness of the legs, the Harpy approaches the
Sea Eagles ; but it diSeis from them in many essential points, and in
none more remarkably than in the shortness of its wings, and the
robustness of ita l^s and talons ; the former character rendering it,
like the short-wioged hawks, more adapted for preying near the
surface of the ground on gal liliaceous birds and quadrupeds, and
the latter anahluig it to cairy off a prey ot much greater magnitude.
The Harpy is stated to be a solitary bird, frequenting the thicieai
forests, where it feeds upon the sloths ; it also preya on fawns and
other young quadrupeds. Sonnini observed it sitting motionless and
uttering no cry, on a high tree on the banks of the Orapu. Hernandez
doea not aeem inclined to detract from the powers of the bird, for
be says that it will attack the most fierce beasts, and even man
himself ; and he further states that it may be trained like a hawk to
punue game. Linnsus gives the bird credit for strength sufGcient
to split a man's skull with a single bl^w (unico ictu). lliese accounts
of ita prowess must be taken with some grains of allovrance, but that
the bird is very powerful is without doubt. Jacquin's specimen waa
found dead in the ship that was conveying it to £urape, and its death
was with some probability attributed to the sailoni, whoso monkeys
the eagle had destroyed. When these nnimnls gambolled too neai-
ita cage they were seized by ita talons and devoured with almoat all
their bonea, but not their akin, which the bird invariably stripped
off. One Harpy which waa obtained by Hr. Hesketh, consul at
Haranham, near the mouth of the river Amnzona^ and brought to
England by Colonel Sabine, is uid to have destroyud and eaten a
King of the Vultures (^rcorauipAitJ Papa) while on its piuuige to
England. After its arrival a cat was put into its cage, and the et
with one blow of its immenie foot, broke its hack.
ni FALCOKID£
It inhBbiU Mbucu (Ueniuiju, Lmuwun, aud uthcre); the neigb-
Iwiirhood of ths river Higdaleua, in New Gruudk {JAcqnin};
CuBCu (Madrid apeclmen) ; QuykUk (Souniiii).
Morphnui (Cuner.)— Beak convex above ; noatrUa elliptical ; tarsi
elevated, rather alander; acrotaraia acutellatAd; toes rather ahort;
Ur. Yigora obaervn, that tliia genua diffen from Harpyia in ita
more eleader, lengthened, and Mntellatad 'tArai, and the cnmpantive
weakueaa of ita toes. It ii separated into two sections, as the tani
are plumed or otherwise ; among tlie former U. Cnvier arrsnges
Fatco occipiiaiU, F. onufiu, and F.albiteeM ofDaudin.und F-maetiimx
ot Vieillot ; among the latter, F. Quianaitit of Dandin, and F.
Umbitingit of QmeUn. Spiiaaiu of Vieillot correaponda with this
a. Tarsi naked.
if. DnAUlnga, Pako Umbilima of Omelin, Aipala Sraiilkntu of
BrissoQ, BraailiaD Ettgia of Latham, Urubitinga of Harcgnive,
Willogbbf, Bay, and others. The following is Willughbv'r ;— Thii
liird is like an eagle, of the bigness of a goose of six months old. It
has a thick hooked bUck beak ; a jelLoniah akin (cere) about ths
uustrilai great sparkling aquiline eyea; a great head; jsllov legs
and feet ; four toes in each foot, diapoeed after the osual mumsr ;
crooked, long, black talons ; large wings ; a broad tail. It ia all
liver covered with dusk; and blackish feathers; yet the wiogi ore
waved with aah'Colour. The tail is nine inches long, white for six,
tlio end for three inches being black;' howbeit in Uie very tip there
ii (gain a little white.
Biad and foot of BrsiUiui l^la (Ver]>knH Vrtaillaga),
YoDDg of the Year.— Blackidi-yellow below ; the centre of eaoh
feather marked with bhickish-brown tear-like spots; throat and
checks with brown stiin on a whitish ground. Looali^, Braiil and
Qujana, where it ia said to seek its pre; on inondatad pbMM.
b. Tani feathered.
M, tccipitalu, Fatca oceipilalU of Daudin, L'Aigle Autour Hoir
Huppd d'Afrique, and Bnpparl It is the liit of a crow; bbck,
with a long crest or tuft depsndant from the occiput; tend, edge
of the wing, and bonds on the tail, whitish. It is a native of
CJpnindu (Cuvler). — Beak convex above; noitrils nearl; closed,
rimifoim ; tani short, eemipalmated.
Distinguished by Uiur short, half-plumed, and reticulated tarsi,
and more partioidariy by thnr nostrils being nearly dosed, and
bearing the appearanoa of a narrow slit or channel.
a. Acrotarsia soutellatad.
C. ktimalm, Falc9 hamalmi of Uliger.
i
'-^
Head and foot of Bnppirl lilt.-i hnia attifilatit).
Adult. — Upper mandible extremely hooked; c«n and feat yellow ;
all Uie plnn^s uniform lead colour. Leagth 15 inohii S line*
h. Acrotairia reticulated.
C. Cayeniutuu, .Fnlca Cat/amauU at Omelin, Petal Antonr de
3ayenne.
Snmmit of Uie head aah.ooloured ; back (nunteau) brown, bamd
A^urina (TiaiUot). — Beak codtiz kbore; niwtrili luonUta; tu*[
■bort, aomewbat ilBadsr ; cUitb long, Tery aouttL
A. eintrta. Btuiih uh-colour; whitiih buidi un tha under part
of tha bodf ; UU traiened b; two bUck atripea, white at the paiot;
beak bill* below ; oerebloe; fMitjelloir. It la a natiTa uf Ouj-ana.
FALCONiD^, n«
little noted, and tha oharaoten oa whioh we dgpeiid for forming onr
decinon rtopecting their iifSaitieg being far the moat part puaed
a*er in the descriptiooa given of them, it is only hj eoojectore thet
we can assigu thom a piece in the general arrangement Of thia
nature, be remarki, la tbs genua liut deaaribed. The same diffloulty,
he adda, extendi to aeveral other described ipeoiea of the PtUconiAe,
whioh appear to him to belong to the group of Short-Winged EaclM,
although tbey have been aadgaed a different locality hy Uie authoii
who have daacribed them. Among these ia the FtUco Badta of
Daudin, which baa bean generally mnked with the Buzi>rdi. Ita
abort winga and lengUiened bill however geem, according to Ur.
Vigon, to bring it among tha preaent group of the Eaglea ; and ita
habits, aa deacribed to him by Dr. Horafield, who had an opportunity
of cloaely obeerving them in tha liland of Java, where the birda
are by no means imoommon, do not in any reepect eorreapond with
the Buraard tribe, Mr. Tigora would place it, together with P.
iJhidtu of Cuvier, Dear those apeciea of tha genus Ogmindi* whioh
are diatinguished by the reticulated acrotarsia, if not in that genua
jtHiir. He has indeed some dovibta whether most of the Short-Wmged
Falconida at present placed among the Buamrds, such as P. baton
and P. tathira of Daudin, P. paeUantluM of Cuvier, Ac, may not be
more properly removed to a situation betweeo the Short'Winged
Eagles and the Hawks, with both of which they seem to have a
considerable affinity. Tbero is. continues Mr. Vigon, another iroup
which atao appears allied to the preaent, diatinguished by a rather
feeUa and elongated bill, abort winga, and slender lengthened tarai,
feather«d to the toea. It tncludea P. IimtimfHj of Horafield (' Zooi.
Rea.,' No. 8), P. nivtut of Temminck (PL CoL 12T), and P. MricaftUiu
of Cuvier (PI. Col. 79). Theaa appear to b« atrongly allied, in the
opinion of Hr. Vigora, if not to appert^, to the hefore-meDtioned
genua Morpknta. P. fyranntu of Prince Uaximilian (PL CoL 73)
bears alau, Ur. Vigors thinks, a strong aimilitode to the aame group,
though partially differing in external oharaotera.
2nd Sub-Family Aceipilrii
Beak abort, hooked from the bve ; ivin~i
.<Hawk.).
short, fourth quill lon^e
Head and ftiot of ^bnirfna ciiHHe.
tlieM Bhort-Wingad Eaglaa
Hr. Tlgora obaarras, that It la among tlieae Bhort-Wingad
that the greatest dlflcnltj pmula in deciding on their imn
aBnitiaB. Being for tha moat part eitn-Enropaan, and not
Head sad bet of LmdatUm BacAniuM.
"The Aort wfnga of tha laat group*," writes Mr. Vigors, "lead
ua to the preaent dinrion of Havrka, M of which, » oonaldarably
eitaoalve tribe, are oharaoteriaed by their wings extending no
Airtber than two-thirds of the extent of their taiL The fonrth qnill-
feather ta the longest, tha first, second, and third gi^oallj exceeding
each other in length. In this divi^on we may ofaaerTa that the
upper mandible, t£oagh not Aimiahed with distuiet teeth like the
IVoe Faloona, baa the fsatoon or prominense that gtnnally auppllea
ita plaos more atrong and angular than ia niual amon^.thess tnbal.
Id mum of the A wififnt thia is particularl; ^stingiuab*bl>. The
Jl» FALCOKID^
tub-family wa Iutb just quitted includea all tha birdi of the prawnt
family in wbich the beak ia straight at tha base, and htmked onl; at
Uie apai. Wa noir aatar upon tbe first of those groupa irhare the
bill is curred from tha base, a character that eiteada through the
remainder of tiie Faleonida. It may be observed, that this
character, which thua aeparatea the family into two departments,
WBB aqiully noticed as a mark of distinction between the epeciee
known to the ancienta. Pliny, apparently referring to it as a line
of demarcation between tbem, diTidea the group into hia two depart-
ments of Agtrda and AccipUra. It ia from adopting tbe same viewi
respecting Uia family, that H. Brisson instituted bia two leading
Hr. Vigors adopts the name which waa conferred by U. Sangny on
the whole of the aub-family, for the present dlTision of it.
D. mdanopt. Adult male — white, fiamed with btnck on the Deck
and breast; back, winga, and tail, deep blaok, the last with a white
Btripe, and terminated with white ; there are dots of the same colour
oil Uie ooverta of tbe winga ; cere and tarsi reddish. It is a native of
Quyana. We hare iUuatraled the form by DadaUon eachinnaia.
^((tir (Bechitein). — Beak abort; noBtrila suboral; tarsi moderate ;
ocroUrsia ecutellated.
Hr. Vigors obserrea that Aitvr ia a title which has been applied to
' the whole group, but wbich may be confined to those whose tarsi,
moderate in length, haie tbeir acrotaraia acutellated or covered with
broad and even scales. He conaiderB our European species, Faico
pahmibarifU of Linnnui, as the type ; to wbich may be added F, Nova
HoUaadiet of Latham, and a conBiderable number of corresponding
apaciea from every quarter of the globe,
A. jud^tvAarm. Tiiia ia tbe Autour and Atour of the French;
Aatore (Zinan.) and Qirifalco (Bonaparte), Sparriere da Columbe, and
Sparviere Terxuolo, of the Italians; Qroiser Gepfeiltet^Falck and
Eunerbabicht of the Qennana ; Qoahawk of the English, and Hebog
MarthiD of the Welsh.
A full-grown female measures from 23 to 24 inchea in length; tbe
males one-fouith, and sometimes one third less ; but when adult, the
plumage ia nearly simitar- The beak is bom-colour or bluiab-
blaok ; tha cere and irides yellow ; the top of the head, the whole of
tbe back, upper surface of the wings, and tail-feathen, dark grayish-
brown; in females the colour inolines to doTe-brown; Uie upper
surf^ice of the tail-feathen barred with darker brown ; a band passing
over Uie lore, eyes, cheeks, and ear-coverts; the nape of the necli,
throat, breaat, belly, and thighs, nearly white, with spots, transverse
bars, and undulating lines of dull black ; under tail-coverta white ;
lore, cheeks, and ear-coverts, grayish-brown, forming an elongated
dark patch on the aide of the head.; the legs and toes yellow; the
olawa black.
Young birda have the beak, oere, and eyes. Dearly similar to those
of the old biida ; tbe top of tbe bead, nape, and ear-coverts, ferruginous
white, cKch feathsr darker in tbe middle ; back, wings, and upper
tail-coverts, brown, margined with buff; upper surface of the tail-
feathers with five bands of dark bcown and four bands of lighter
brown, the ends of all tbe feathers white ; wing-primaries dark brown,
barred with two sbades of brown on tbe inner webs: the ohin, throat,
breast, and belly, grayisb-white, each feather with a central elongated
patch of dark brown ; thighs and under tail-coverts with a dark
brown longitudinal streak instead of a brown patch ; under BUrfaoe
of the winga grayish-wbite, with transverBe dusky bars ; under Burfaoe
of the tail-feathen grayiab-white, with five darker grayiab-brown
traosveree ban, the tips of all tbe feathers white ; legs and toes
yellow-browD ; the daws black ; those of tbe inner toe considerably
luver than those of tbe outer. {Yaneil.)
This bird flies low, and pursues its prey in a line after it, or in the
manner called 'raking,' by falconers. If the game takes refuge it will
sit patiently on a tree or stone till it moves, or tUl some other prey
is accessibla Food — hares, rabbits, pigeons, pheasants, grouse, and
partridKes- The female was generally Sown by falconers at fur, and
the male at feather ; but the female was also tiAined to tt^e tbe larger
winged game, the mate being prinaipally flown at partridges.
Turbsrvife says, "You ahal not needs to shew any other game to a
goshawks for her flrst entring than a partridge, because in learning to
flee the partridge they prove most excellent ; and the Gnl yeare you
shall doe best to fiee them to the field, and not to the covert, for so
will they leame to hold ont (and not to tume layle) in the middest
of their flight ; and when they be mewad hawkes. you may make
them doe what you will ; and understand you, that you shall not
Deeds to take such pain, nor to uae aiich art in making of a goshawke
which ii taken a waiicher aa with a Nyasse, for she will alwayes
know of her selfe what to doe." ('The Book of Falconrie;') Nest, OD
a high tree in tbe outakirta of lie forest ; rarely found in the interior,
eioept in those parts which are open and free fmta timber. Eggs
thr^e or four, frequently hatched in tbe middle of Uay. (Hewitson,
ex relatione Hoy.) Hr. Yarrell says that the egga are me, and that
'he few wbichhehasseenwere uniform in siES and colour, 2^tJis inches
length by IJ^th inch in hnadtb, of a pale bluish-white, without
spots or stieaka.
J^ALCONID.E. na
It is found in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Siberia, BusaiB, and
Chinwa Tartary. (Mliller, LinnoauB, Pennant.) Very common in
France, Qsrmany, Ruasia, and Switzerland ; more rare iu Holland.
(Temminct) Rare in tbe south of England. Hr. Yarrell says, " Tha
few that are used for hawking are obtained from the Contin^t-
Colonel Thornton, who kept them constantly in Yorkshire, procured
some of hisspedmens from Scotland. Dr- Uoore, in his 'Catalogue
of the Birds of Devonshire,' says that it is found occaaioDaBy on
Dartmoor, but I can find no record of its sppeannce farther west in
England, nor any notice of it in Irehmd. A fine adult male vraa
trapped by a gamekeeper in Suffolk in Harch, 1833; and Hr.
Doubleday of Kpping has sent me word that he received a young
bird from Norfolk in tbe spring of tlie same year. Hr. Selby mentions
that he had never Been n recent specimen south of the Tweed, but
etatea that it is known to breed in the forest of Rothiemurcus, and on
the wooded banka of tbe Dee. Mr- Low says that this apetdes ia
pretty fVequent in Orkney ; but aa he speaks of it in connection with
aea-heateo rocks without shelter or woods, ia there not reaaon to
suspect that Hr. Low was mistaken, and that tbe birds he saw wen
Feregrine Falcons I— the more so, as several visitors to these northern
ialands have observed peregrines, but no goshawks." (' British Birds.')
Prince C. L- Bonaparte baa noted the goahawk as not common in the
neighbourhood of Rome, aud as rare in that of Philadelphia. Sir
John Richardson ('Fauna Boreali- Americana') dascribea one shot in
company with the female at the nest on the plaina of the Saakatchewan,
and states that another spsciman was killed in the woody country
three or four degrees of latitude brther norUi than the pieceding-
He records another killed uear Jasper's House, on the Rocky Houn-
taina, and a fourth killed at York Factory, supposed to be a young
bird of the season (the apedmen noticed by Mr- Sabine in '^anklin'a
Journey"),
Goahawk {Aitur paJumtartui),
Wilson.
Colonel Sykes describes an Atlw {A. hyder) among his tnrds of the
Dukhun (Deocan), and tberaara specimens of A. ntinnu and A.
ntdanojeitciu in the South African Uuaeum,
Accipiter (of Bay, Brisson, and authors), — Beak short; nostrils
subovid ; tarsi elongated, smooth ; aorotania scutellated, the sutore
scarcely to be discerned. Type, the Common Sparrewhawk
Aceipiler fringiUariut of Ray : Ut which, says Ur. Vigors, may be
added many corresponding species which do not seem to have any
limits to their geographical distribution.
A. fringiUarvu, the Sparrowhawk, is L'Epervier of tha Frandi;
Falco Palombino and Sparviere da Fringuelli of the Italians; Die
Sperber of tbe Oermans ; Sparfhoek of the ' Fauna Suedca;' F^ta
Ifiaai of Linnseus ; Qwepia of the Walsh.
Adult Male.— About 12 inches in length ; beak blue, lightest at the
base ; cere greemsh-yellow ; the irides yellow ; top of the head, nape
of tbe neck, back, vrings, and wing-coverla, rich dark-brown — in very
old males vrith a tinge of bluish-gray ; tiul-feallieia gnkyiih-brovn,
ni
FALCONIDJ!.
irith thneoonspicuouitirnDBTene buidiiof du-h brown; chin, cbMk*,
tbroit, Weaat, be!!;, thighn, and under tail-ooverU, rufoiu, with
numeroiu tnuuvenie ban ot darker rufous brown ; leK> lUid toeB long,
slender, and jellow ; the claws curved, shsrp. nnd black.
FemBle.->^enera]ly 3 inches longer than 4ha male ; beak bluiah
hom-oolour ; cere jellowiBb, the iridea yellow; top of the head,
upper part of the neck, biuk, wings, aod tail-coTeils, blown — th«
base IX man; of the feathers wLite, which, extending beyond the
edge of, the feather immediately abore it, tausea a white spot or
mark ; primaries and tail-feaUien light brown, barred traneveiaely
with darker brown; under surface of the neck, body, widg-coverta,
and thighs, grayish-white, baned transversely with brown; under
surface of the wing aod tail-feathers of the same colour, but the light
and dark bars much broader ; the first six wing-priniariea emarginated ;
the fourth and fifth quill-feathsrs equal and the losgest, the fint quill'
fesUier the shortest ; legs and toes yellow ; claws long, curved, shaip,
and black.
Toiuig Hale. — ReMmbles ths female ; but the brown feathera of
the back and the wing-coverts are edged with reddish-brown ; feathera
of the tail reddiBh-bmwn, jnrticularly towanl the base; with three
conspicuous dark-brown tranflreive bonds. !□ other parUoulaiv like
the fenale : both have ■ collar formed bj ■ mixture of white and
brown, which extendi from the sides of the neck to the nape.
{Ywrell,)
The SpaiTowhawk haunts wooded districts. It is the great enemy
of amall quadrupeds and birds, and is often vei; destiuotiTO to
young chicks in poultiy-yardi in the breeding season. Used in
falconry It is the best of ill hawks for landrails. (Sebright.) " The
Sparronhawk generalt; takes poBwesion of some old or diwarted neat
in a tree, most frequently that of the crow, in which the female
deposits four or five eggs, each about 1 inch 7 lines long by 1 inch
4 hues broad, of a pale bluish-white, blotched and spotted with dark
brown. The young are covered with a delicate and pure white down,
and are abundantly supplied with food. Ur. Selhy mentions having
found a nest of five young aparrowhawks, which contained baudes,
a lapwing, two blackbirds, one thrush, and two n«eD-Iinnet% recently
killed, and partly divested of their featheia." (Tairell.)
It is spread throughout Europe, Japan (Temminck), Smyrna (Mr.
Strickland), Denmark, Sweden, Monvay, Ruaaia, and theooe south-
ward over the European contineot to Spain and Italy. Common
in moat of the counties of England, and naa been observed in Uie
west and north of Ireland; occurs alao in Scotland and it*
northern iilanda. (TarrelL) Very common, migratory, near Home.
(Bonaparte.)
ot ot SparroBlisKk [^BnptoryHiijiUariw).
The fbrm is widely spread. Colonel Sykes records Ace^a
FALCONID.fi, nt
In the Bauth African Museum will be found Aceipirtr polj/amm, A.
polyamoldtt, A. nigtr, A. Oabar, A. Tathira, A. rainutut, and A.
Mr. Vigora remarks that there are some speoioa whioh seem to be
allied to this sub-family and to be intermediate between it and the
succeeding sub-family of Falcons, which, from some peculiarities of
character, cannot well be appended to any established genus. They
poasssa, he observea, a shortaesa of wing which would incline us to
refer them to some of the present groups ; but their upper maadlble,
strongly and doubly dentated, preeents a character that will not admit
of their being included in any of the foregoing genata, in which the
mandibles are entire, or where the place of the tooth is supplied hy
a rounded prominence. These species Mr. Vigors would have wiahed
to arrange m one genus ; but they are found to differ in easential
paints which bring them respectively within the pale of the two
conterminous sub-families now under conaidaration ; and he feels
obliged, for the sake of perepicuity, to adopt the foUowiitg genus of
which the type is Falco bidmiafitt of Latham.
iTarTMi^iu, Vigors (Bident of Spti). — Beakahort; upper mandible
strongly bidentated, lower with a double notch; tarsi moderate;
acrotaiaia scatellated ; third and fourth quills longest, equal
Mr. Vigors observaa that the easential charactariatio of thia group
is the double tooth on both the upper and lower mandible. The wings,
which correspond with those of the other Hawks, in being one-third
shorter than the tail, have the third and fourth quill-feathera, which
are the locgest, of equal length. The tani are of moderate length
and strength, and have the acrotarsia scut«llated aa in the latter
groups of the present aub-family. The nostrils are of a semiolrcular
form and the cere is naked.
B. bidtBUittu. Length, a foot and some lines (French). Slate-
colour above ; throat white ; breast and belly red, undulated with
ellowtih ; lower coverts of the tail white ; tail nearly equal, brownish
~ with wliitiih. It is a native of Brazil and Ouyana.
vellowli)
Head and tail ot Barpafia hidtnUliu.
Mr. Vigors remarki that FiUi» Diodm of Temminok is to be referr«d
to this genus.
QtUH^tanyx (Vigors). — Beak short, mandibles entire ; nostrils
rounded; wings short, aecond quill longest, third generally equal to
the second, and internal wah of the fint and second strongly notched
near the apex ; tail moderate, equal ; feet moderate ; tarsi reticu-
lated, acrotarsia feathered below the knee to the middle. (Vigors.)
"The genus ia founded on a email and beautiful Hawk," writes Mr.
Vigors in ' The Zoological Journal,' vol. iL, " which has been kindly
submitted to my inspection by Mr. Swainaon, one of the fruits of that
gentleman's extensive researches in BraziL This bird decidedly
belongs to the Aodpitrine sub-family of ths Falamida ; but it is
placed at that remote eitremity of it, where the species, gradually
approaching the Falcona, partially assume some of their leading
chantctera. It possesses the bill of the Hawks, and also the shortness
of wing whioh so strongly charaderisea them ; but the structure of
the wing itself is the same aa in Falco, the second quill-feather being
the longest, and the fint and second of these feathers being marked
on the mner web hy an abrupt emargination near the a^ei ; while the
lam alao display the character of the same group in having the
acrotarma mticulat«d. The bird thus exhibits a striking modiGoatioa
of form, at onoe partaking of the chief of the respective characters of
both Uis Hawks and Falcons ; with the former of which it may in
additdoQ be obaarred that it agrees in its general form, and with some
of the Iatt«T, particularly the beautiful group of lerax aenUacau, in
its colours, and in the general distribution of them. To the latter
group indeed it-haa a striking reeemblanoe, and might perhaps be
raferred unconditionally to it^ could we pass over the important
character of 'the untoothed bill."
6. Sieainnmii. Above oinemceon^hlaok, white beneath ; front,
cheeka, sides of the abdomen, and femoral feathers, orange ; a black
spot on saoh side of the breast. Beak black. Feathera of the back
and soapnlars aahy-black, spotted with feixuginons. Lower aide and
nuohal collar wliite, sparingly variegated with orange. Primariea
blackish, internally margined with white at the apex; secondariea
sparingly sprinkled with ferrugiaans, beneath white. Tail-fsathen
Kshj-bUck intertMlly (the ntlddle exoeptecl) margined with white,
9 *
713 FALCONm^
bniMtb white. Feat jellow; cUws black. Length of the bodj B{
inehai; (Vigon.)
It i« a lutiTa of BruiL Hr. Vigon Myl thU Hit following nuna-
•eript note mi upended to thii buil in Mr. SwainBon'i hudwriting :
— " ni*>onl7 faidivjdiul of this ipeciee I erer met with wu ahot on
Om table-land, about ten Isaguca in the interior of Bahia, in a
. weat«ODth'Weat from the ba; of St Salndor. It waa
Srd Bub-Fainil7, PaUoMoa (Faleoiu).
Beak ihoTt, hooked from the base. Wings loog. Seoond qnill
lougeat
Mr. Vigom obaervea that thia, aloaal; allied to Harpoffui by the
doable tooth on ite npper mandible, ia another group for which he
propoaei the name of
fattx (Tigon), — Beak diort ; upper mandible atrcmgl; bidentsted,
lower aimp^ notched ; tarsi moderate ; acrotaraia scuteliat«d. ^oga
aheit ; aaoond quill longeat, alightlj notched near the apex.
Bengal Fileoa {Htirax atmltiteiu).
"Whoever," write* Hr. Vigora, "baa wen that beautifiil apedea,
tiia amalleat of ita race, Afeo cimileKeni of Linnaua, now rendered
lluniliar to ui by the aocurata and apUndid illuitrationa of Dr.
Bonfleld, will at once acknowledge it« Hporation tn>ni every other
aatabludied genua of the fiuoily. Ita upper mandible is strongly and
abarpl; bidsntated aa in Barpofftu, but the under mandible is maply
notob^ ae in the true Faloona. Ite wings, shorter than the it'T, differ
also from those of Harpagui in having the second quill-feather the
longait, thus agun eatabliBhingthe afflnitj of ths eenus to the Falcons.
The tarsi ate Dioderate, and the acrotaraa aouteUated sa in the latter
group of Hawka. From ita thui poneming characten in oommon with
both aub-familiea it is difficult to say to which we ahould refer it ;
hnt J prefer placing it in ita present aituation on account of the
length of the second qaill-faather, a peculiarity which distinguiahea
the true Falcons, and give* a striking character to tiieir flighlFlaced
however at the sttremity of the divinon, it proserves ita affini^ with
tlioee that went before."
H. ctEmbicaru is, according to Dr, HorsGeld, the Allap or Allap-
allap of the Javanese ; PaUo cimUMcau of Linnieua ; F. BmgaUnti*
ofBrlasonj Paitopannu Indictu, 'Qer. Onu' ; Little Black and Orange
at jcngal Taleea (Surax umlMHiu).
Indian Hawk of Edwarda ; and the Bengal Falcon of Latham. Entire
length fl4 Inohea. Upper parts bluish-black and gloasy. Throat,
1 1 ..111 '-■---'"— ^,Bok,forehfl»d,andaliiie contiouedfrom
Kead and fOet of
braiut, aailLa, aides of the ni
FALCONID.*. 7»
ir the eye and along the neck, irfaita, with
■ and
„ . „ ., . „ . -., -- ™»<i
patch extending &om the eye along the side of the head, black ; the
plumes which caver the thighs behind are terminated by long ailky
filaments or radii which are atraggling and pendulous, and by tfapir
laxity and irregularity afford a peculiar character to the bird.
fHorsfleld.) The natives told Dr. Horsaald that this small but raboat
bird was unoommonly bold in the piOTuit of little birda. Seveisl
individuals were brought to him from the range of the southern hiHa,
which are covered with forests, during his abode at Sutak&rta^ Me
obtained one in the eastern dlstricta. In the other parts of the
Island of Java he did not obeerre it. Bengal is also giTem as its
Hr. Vigora {'ZooL Proo.,' 1831) describes another spedea, Ztrax
trylhrogami, the size of /. ceervUMcau, &om the neighbourhood of
Manilla.
Fidco. — Beak short ; upper mandible strongly toothed ; lower
notched ; acrotarria reticulated ; second qnill longest ; first &iid
aeoond deeply notched intamally near the spei.
Thia genus, which inolodea, oa Mr. Vigors observes, the greater
portion of the present sub-family, comprises the topical species.
" The upper mandible of thia group," writes that zoologist, " is armed
with a strong angular tooth ; the lower is notched near the eitremity-
The oaree are rounded. The wings are for the most part ae long as
the tail, the second quill-feathers being invariably the longest. The
first and second quill-feathers are also diatinguiahed by an abrupt
emargination on the inner web near the extremity. In some specia,
as in .F. ftrtgrvnu, the emargination of the second quill-feather ia not
so abrupt as in othera. But in all the species of the true Falcons
that have come under my examination, this emargination of the first
quill-feather at least is atrongly apparent. The toni are moderate in
length and strength, and have the acrotaraia reticulated. Our
Enropean spedea — F. peregrinvt, Linn. ; P. nMntti, Linn. ; F.
^lalm, Linn.; F. ritfipa, Bechstdn — are readily diatinguiahed* as
belonging to this typical genus. Some species belonging to the
grOQp have the wings somewhat shorter than the tao, which in
conjunction with /irax thus evince a gradual series of affinity between
the short and long-winged tribes. Among these we may tuatinguish
P. (HHMmcaJtui, Linn. ; P. rapKoIiUj Daad. ; with some corresponding
, F. pertgrimu, the Peregrine Falcon, is Le Faucon Pelsrin of the
TVenoh; Sparviere Pellegrino and Falco Reale of Uie Italians;
Wander Faike of the Oermans ; Apostro-Keeoo (Little Eagle) of the
Cree Indians ; Hebog Tramor and Commin of the Welab.
PercgrlBC Falcon (AI« jMnyWinx).
Adult. — Length from l."! to 18 inches, depending on the *ex and
age of the bird. Beak blue, approaching to black at the point ; cere
and eyelida yellow, iridca dark haael-brown ; top of the head, back of
the neck, and a spot below the ^e, nearly black ; back and upper
surface blaish-slate or ash colour, becoming lighter at eveiy succeed-
ing moult, the uales usually the moat aoj feathers of bock, wing-
ns
FALCONID^
FALCONIDiE.
726
coverts, aad tail, barred with a darker tint ; primariea brownish black,
inner webs barred and spotted with mfous white ; front of neck white,
with dark longitudinal lines ; breast rufous white, with dark-brown
transyerse bars ; flanks, under taU-coverts, and under surface of the
tail-feathers, barred transversely with dark-brown and grayish-white ;
legs and toes yellow, claws blade.
Toung. — Head and upper surface of body and wing-coverts brownish-
ash, the edge of each father rufous ; the dark longitudinal streaks on
the white under-side of the body more conspicuous, but, gradually
shortening and spreading laterally, they ultimately change their
direction, and become transverse. This change ia first observed on
the belly and flanks. (Yarrell.)
Temminck considers the Lanier (Lanner) of Buffon the perfect state
of the 'male Peregrine. He also adds FeUco Barhartu of Latham as
one of its synonyms.
The food of the Peregrine consists of land and water-fowl, rabbits,
young hares, &c It was highly prized in falconry. Turbervile, in
his chapter ' Of the Haggart Falcon, and why she is called the Pere-
grine or Haggart,' gives the following reasons for the name : — ** First,
because a man cannot find, nor ever yet did any man, Christian or
heathen, find their eyrie in any region ; so as it may wel be thought
that for that occasion they have atchieved and gotten that name and
terme of Peregrine or Haggart Falcons, as if a man would call them
pilgrims or forainers. The second cause is, because these fidcons do
rangle and wander more then any other sort of falcons are wont to
doe, seeking out more strange and uncouth countries, which indeed
may ffive them that title of Haggart and Peregrine Hawks for theyr
ex(^enoy, because they doe seeke so many strange and forraine coasts,
and doe rangle so farre abroad. The third and last cause, I doe thinke,
may be their beauty and excellency, bec&use this word (Peregrine),
or Peregrine, doth many times import an honourable and choice matter
had in great regard. . . . Wherefore I conclude that these Haggart
Falcons are not of Italie, but transported and brought thither ttom
forrame places, as, namely, from Alexandrie, Ciprus, and Candie. And
yet this is for certaine, that in Italie there are taken of these Haggart
Falcons, as in the dominion of the renowned Duke of Ferrara and in
the oountrie near Ravenna, being brought thither by force of weather
and wind. And by that means there are none of those Haggarts
found Eyesses, but they are al either soare Hawks or mewed
Haggarts."
" In the language of falconry," writes Yarrell, " the female Pere-
grine is exclusively called the Falcon, and on account of her greater
size, power, and courage, is usually fiown at herons and ducks ; the
male Peregrine, being smaller, sometimes one-third less than the
female, is called the Tercel, Tiercel, and Tiercelet, and is more
frequently fiown at partridges, and sometimes at magpies. Toung
Petegrines of the year, on account of the red tinge of their plumage,
are called, the female a Red Falcon and the male a Red Tiercel, to
distinguish them from older birds, which are called Haggarts or
Intermiewed Hawks. The Lanner of Pennant is a young female
Peregrine, at which age it bears some resemblance to the true Lanner,
Fatco {attartfu of .authors — a true Falcon also, but much more rare
than the Peregrine, and which probably has never been killed in this
country. Mr. Gould says he was tmable to find a specimen in any
colleetion here, either public or private, at the time he was desirous
of figuring this species in his ' Birds of Europe.' The true Lanner is
only found in the south and south-eastern parts of Europe. The
king of France, Louis XVL, had Lanners sent annually from Malta;
but they were brought from the eastern countries. It exceeds the
Peregrine Falcon in size, being intermediate between that and the
Qyr-Falcon; was much esteemed for flying at the kite, with which
the Peregrine is hardly able to contend." The name of Lanner is
confined to the female ; the male is called a Lanneret, on account of
his smaller size. {* British Birds.') It makes its nest on high rocks.
In Britain Mr. Tarrell states that the Peregrine builds on various
parts of the coast, more frequently in Scotiand than in England.
The eggs are from two to four in number, about 2 inches long bv
1 inch and 8 lines in breadth, mottled all over with pale reddish
brown. Mr. Selby notices their eyrie at St Abb's Head. It was from
this locality that the late Mr. Bakd of Newbyth usually obtained his
cast of Hawks, for each of which he gave the persons who undertook
the peril of climbine the rode one guinea. OUier localities for the
nest in Britain are we cliffs between Freshwater Gk^te and the light-
house near the Needles ; Devonshire and Comnndl, where it is called
Cliff-Hawk ; Holyhead and the Great Orme's Head (Tarrell) ; rocky
coast of Caernarvonshire (Pennant); rodcy situations inland and
marine in Irdand (Thompson quoted by Tarrell) ; Vale of Moffat in
Dumfriesshire ; the Bass Rock and the Isle of May in the Forth (Sir
Wm. Jardine). It is also found in all the mountainous countries of
Europe, particularly on rooks ; very rare in champaign countries ;
never found in marshy districts ; abundant in Germany and Fhmce ;
snffidently conmion m England and Holland; rare in Switeerland
(Temminck); Shetland Isles, where it breeds; Denmark, Sweden,
Norway, Lapland, and Greenland (Tarrell); Uralian and Siberian
mountains (Pennant). Sir John Richardson, who describes an old
nude from Melville Peninsula, 66** N. lat., says ('Fauna Boreali-
Americana')— " The Peregrine being a rare bird in the wooded
districta of the Fur Countries where &e trading poets are estabUshed,
I did not procure a specimen on the late expeditions ; but I have
fr^uently seen it whilst on the mlirch across the Barren Grounds.
Of the two specimens figured by Edwards, one was from Hudson's
Bay and the other was caught off the entnuice of Hudson's Straits.
Sir W. E. Parry likewise brought home several male and female sped-
mens from Melville Peninsula, some of which are preserved in the
British Museum. It is a summer visitor of the northern parts of
America, and frequents the coasts of Hudson's Bay and the Arctic
Sea, with the Barren Grounds, but is very sddom seen in the interior.
It preys habitually on the long-tailed ducks {Anas glacialia), which
breed in great numbers in the arctic regions, arriving in June and
departing in September. Sir W. K Parzy observed it, in his second
voyage, following fiocks of the snow-bunting on the coast of Green-
land, near Cape FarewelL It fr^uents the shores of New Jersey and
Pennsylvania in the winter, and is celebrated there for the havoc it
makes among the water-fowl. Mr. Ord states that the ducks whidi
are struck by it are lacerated from the neck to the rump ; it gives
the blow in passing, and returns to pick up its bird." Port Famine,
Straits of Magalhaens (Captain King) ; Australia (Vigors and
Horsfield) ; Cape of Good Hope (Dr. A. Smith). Prince C. L. Bona-
parte notes it as rare and as seen only in winter near Rome, and as
rare and casual near Philadelphia. Dr. Smith ('South African
Museum,' No. 94) says that the bird so numbered, though it does not
exhibit exactly the plumage of the Peregrine Hawk of Europe, yet
approaches it so dosely that it might be considered as attempting too
great a refinement to dass it as a different species.
Mr. Vigors observes that Cuvier has separated the FaUo I^ndicm
of Latham frx>m the rest of the true Falcons, under the generic title
of ffierofcUcOt which he characterises as possessing no tooth on the
upper mandible, but a rounded prominence in the centre, and in
wmch he observes that the wings considerably fall short of the tail in
length. In this opinion Mr. Vigors does not acquiesce. He dtes
examples of the Jerfalcon in its different stages of growth, and in none
did he perceive any material difference between its bill and that of
the true Falcons. He adds that he feels much hesitation in advancing
the above opinion, not merely on account of the known accuracy of
Cuvier, but on account of Bome facts that had then lately come to his
knowledge. He mentions a specimoi in the British Museum, in which
tiie mandible accords exactly with Cuvier's description — "II n'a
qu'un feeton comme celui des ignobles." In several specimens from
^e arctic regions however in the same collection, he found the tooth.
After referring to the figures quoted by Cuvier, and their discrepan-
cies, he inquires whether it may not be possible that there are two
spedes. He cannot think that the character itself is variable, or that
Cuvier would have adopted one which must have been known to him
as such, even from the plates. " In no specimen of a true falcon,"
says Mr. Vigors, ** have I seen the slightest alteration of the tooth,
except by accident."
Our lunits will not permit us to do more than hint at the other
mdes of FcUeo, F. chicquerOf Himalaya Mountains (Gould), Deccan
(Sykes), South Africa (Smith), seems to be the nearest in typical
points to the Peregrine Falcon. The following species of Faicof
Desides F. peregrimu and F. chicqueraf are in the catalogue of the
South African Museum : — F. hiarmicui, F. rupieolut, F, mpicoloideif
F, «tf6Miteo, and F, Swaintonii,
F, Hnmmeuluif the Kestrel, inhabits Asia and Africa, as well as
Europe, and is very abundant in the Dukhun (Deccan). (Sykes;
Abbott)
4th Sub-Family, Buteanina (Buzzards).
Beak moderate, hooked from the base. Tail equaL
The sub-family of the Buzzards agrees, in the opinion of Mr.
Vigors, with the last in the length of the wings, and the billj[)eing
bent from the base ; and differs from it by a weaker and somewhat
more dongated bill, by the third or fourth quill-feather being longest,
and more particularly by the absence of a tooth on the upper man-
dible A gradation seems however, as Mr. Vigors observes, to soften
down these differences, and there la an approximation to the teeth of
the Falcons in the first genus of the sub-family.
Ictinia (Vieillot). — ^Beak short; upper mandible subdentated,
lower notched ; tarsi short and weak ; acrotarsia soutdlated ; wings
long, third quill longest.
]&. Vigors states that this genus is founded upon the MOan Cresse
rde of M. Vieillot, and has a strong and short bill, the upper mandible
of which is somewhat angularly festooned, and the under distinctly
notdied. The nares are rounded as in tiie Falcons; the tarsi are
raUier short, and feathered bdow the knees, and the acrotarsia soutd-
lated. The wings are of considerable length, extending far beyond
the tail ; a character whidi induced M. Vieillot and others to place
the bird near the Kites. Its strong affinity however to the iMt sub-
family, of which it |)088esses so many of the characteristics, indines
Mr. Vigors to assign it its present situation. In manners, he adds, it
seems also to approach the Falcons ; and he remarks that if we con-
sider the Mississippi Kite of Wilson to bdong to the present group of
VieUlot, of whiok Mr. Vigors has little doubt, we must attribute to
the bird before us, judging from the interesting description in Uxe
'American Ornithology,' much of those spirited and generous qualitiea
which we .admire in tiie typical groups of the family.
FALCONID^
/. plma&ea (Falto plumbau of LkUiud). Bftck ud wing* al^te-blue i
hssd and belly whltiah, spotted with brown. Irii fine twL
It a evd to fly to » great height, where it raniRins ■ long timepoUod
or itatioiurf, and cleavea the ijr with rapidity in order to mIeb the
ffTTBt insecta which are ita prey, independently of reptilea.«ad binU.
It i) > natiTe of America.
Cimu (or Aathon). — Beak moderate ; noetrill iub-onl ; tani
elongated ;, acrotsnia eeutellated ; toee gsaenilly abort ; third quill
longat ; Bides of the head fumiihed with a circle of feathen Tery
like the capital dine of the OvU
" This gODua," says Hr. Vigore, " exhiblta Htill a alight approiination
t» the laat groupa in the atructure of the upper mandible, which has
a ronnded protuberance towards the middle, aimilar to that of the
Hawka. They are diatingniBhsd from the reet of the buiEanla by
their eterated and alender taiej, which are covered with feathen for
■ome apace below the knee, and of which the acrotaraia are acutel-
latad. The narea are anb-OTal and tnuuTerae on the cere, and the
third qoill-feathen are the longaat." It inoludea, aocording to Mr.
Tigore, the Euro|Man apeciea F. amgiaomt of Aldrovandua, and
F. pygargia at LinnEeaa, to which he aaya may be added F. acoli
and P. (nefaneleucoa of Dsudin, together with aome Dewly-deacribed
de Haiaia of the French ; Falco Caatagnolo and Faleo con ta Teals
and White-Beaded Harpy, of the Engliah ; and Bod 7 Owerm of the
Welah.
Adolt Hale (third moult).— Beak bluiah-black, with a alight featoon
I the cutting edge ; cere and iridea yellow ; top of the head, oheeka,
id atipe of the neck, yellowiah-white, tinged with rufoui, and streaked
with dark brown; back, wing-ooTerta, and tertials, dark teddiah-brown,
with lighter maigim ; primaries browniah-black ; seoondariea and tail-
feathen ash-gray.
After the ibM Moult.-^'Wiiig-eoTerts and tertiala become, in addi-
tion, partially or entirely aah-gray ; wiug-primariei alate-gray ; chin
and throat nearly white ; breast nifoos, streaked longituduially with
dark brown ; belly, thighs, and under tail-coverta, rsddiah-brown, each
feather streaked with dark brown; legs long, alender, and ydlow;
toes yellow ; clawa sharp and black.
Second Year. — Head, neck, chin, and throat, dull yellow, with an
occasional patch of the same colour on the carpus, or anterior point
of the wing. (Bewick's figure.)
Toung of the Year. — All 'the plumage chocolate'brown ; feathen
tipped with lighter reddish-brown ; iridea daiker than in the adult ;
legs and feet aa in old birds ; length trma 21 to 2S inches, depending
on the aez. (YarreU.)
The Hoor-Bunard, when in purmit of game, flies low, and will, so
to speak, beat a moor or other piece of ground with the regularity
almost of a well-trained pointer. Toung rabbits, small quadrupeds,
birds, especially water-birda, raptilea, and even fish are ite prey.
Sometimes it will ait on the look-out on a atone or low buah. It
builda ita neat generally on the ground, in a tuft of ruahea or coane
or fuTKe, and oompoaed of ruahea or rank gnue, and small sticks.
ham aaya that it w^ '"~"
tree, but that the inai
pointed at one end, 2 i
breadth. (YamlL)
Xt is found in Denmark, Norway, Swedsn, south of Kna^ Oer-
many, France, Holland, Spain, Italy, and Turkey ; in all countries
where there are marshes ; very abimdsnt in Holland j ran in the
ith, migrator; in the autumn (Temminok) ;
fto. (James EVanklin) ; Europe India, Africa (Qould) ; Smyrna
(StricUand).
The Hoor-Buxutrd may be seen in most parts of England and
Walea bvourable to its babita. It occun in Scotland and the
Hebrides, and Ur, Thompaon notea it as existing in several counties
of Irelnnil from Cork to Antrim.
Mr. Vigors obaerrea that the anb-family of Bnizarda ie that which
of all the Falconidos approaches neareat to the family of the Owls
{Strigida). In their dull and slothful habits, their heavy Bight, and
indeed their whole appearance, these contiguous groups eriuoe, be
remarks, a general resemblance, indicating a correepondiog inferiority
in the qualitiea which distinguish the birds of prey. The soft and
looae texture of the plumage of both presents a similar affinity, and
he adda that Cinva, in particular, fumishee ua with a still further
and more intimate point of resemblance. The fsathere that cover
the cheeks and ears form, aa he saya, a sort of rounded oollar that
rises on each side of the face; thus eihibitiog a oonfcnnity to the
disc or circular erection of the face-feathers so oonapiouous in the
Owts.
Speaking of C. cymuiu, the Hen-Hairier, Ur. Gould, in notjcing
the Trebisond ooUection of birda preeented to the Zoological Sodetj
by Hr. Keith Abbott, says that European, African, Induin, Chineae,
and Nortb American apecimena present no apeciSc diflerenccL O.
cino-ocetu he notes aa European, Indian, and A&ican. ('ZooL Proc,'
1831.) In the South African Huaeum wiU be found G. nuumrttt
(with habits veiy mnch resembling thoae of our Uoor-Buii>rd), C
u^-^. n OuJ--^.*.' —J /T v.:ii^,;i In thj Britiah Huaeum
Ua*fiu, C. Sitamicmii,
Pantit (Cuvisr),— Beak moderate i lore covered with serrated
faathera; tani moderate, aemi-plumed; acrotaraia retjculotttl; third
quilUon|wt
Hr. Vigors obaerrea that PcraU ia diatinguisbed by the mngular
character of the lorum that aurrouoda the eye, being covered with
feathen, ijtstead of being naked aa in the other Palemida, or furnished
only with hairs. In other respecte also, he atalea, the genua differa
from that of Bvteo which followa. Ita acrotaraiB are reticulated, and,
like Cireut, it baa the third quill the longest The naiea are similsT
to those of Buteo. Falco apivomt of Linnms, the Hon^-Buziard,
and a corresponding speciea from Java, F. ptiUrhj/nelau of Temm)n(^
form, he adds, the typical species of the genus.
P. optvorut, the Honey-Buuaid. It is La Bondt^ and Bnae
Bondr^ of the French ; Wespen-Buaard of the Germans ; Froech-
Qeyer of Kramer; Steg-Hok of the ' Fauna Suedca ; ' Huse-Hsegand
Muse Baage of Bruonioh ; and Bod y Mel of the Welsh.
Old Male.— Space between the eye and the brak eoverod with small
■erried feathera. Top of the head veiy pure aaby-blue ; npper parts
of the body'brow&.'niDre or less ashj ; secondaries barred alternately
7» FALCONID^
with bUckiah-blue and gnj-blue ; tul with three bands of blickiih-
brawn, at unequal diatancei; throat jellowish-nhite, with brown
ipota ; neck aad bellv marked with triangular brown ipoti i
whitish ground; oeredGepaih; ioteriorof ti«ak,iriB,andfeet, ye)
Lan^ about two feet
H«d aad foot ol HODfT-Buuid [Firnii a^Mi
Female and Tontig. — Aahy-blue on tlie forehead only j Aront of the
neck marked with great >pata of bright brown ; breut and bellj
jcllowiab-red with deeper ipota ; under nirfaos of the bodj oflvi
whitiah, with reddish-brown apots.
Young of tlie Tear. — Cere yellow j irie bright brown ; head ipottad
with white and brown ; under part of the body reddieh-white, with
gnat brown ipots ; feathera of the upper parte bordered with reddiah.
(TeminiDck.)
The Haney-Buzzard feeds on fleld-mioe, molei, mice, hamsten,
birdi, reptilea, waspa, and other inaeci«. (Temminck.) " Examina-
tion!," aayi Hr. Yamll in his ' British Birds,' " bare usuaUy proved
Uie food to hare been the Ume of beea and waspa, to obtam which
the reeeptAcles conluiiiDg them are scratcbed out and broken up In
tiie manner described by Sir William Jardine. In one iostanc*, in
the oaae of a hoDey-buEEard kept in coofinemeDt, I wse told that it
killed and ate raU, aa veil as birds of considerable siie, with great
ease and (rood aoiieUte." Th
of a
1 a Quge number of green caterpillui of that sort
called Gtcmttra, many also of the common green catarpillan and
others." White's specimen had in its stomach limbs of frogs, and
many gray mails without shells. Willughby aays that it runs Tery
swiftly like a hen. Vieillot states that it seldom Biea, except from
one tree to another, or from bush to bush, and then always low, and
that it nma on the ground with great rapidity like the common fowls.
Nert on a lofly tree in a wood or foreet. Whits mentions one on a
tall slender beech near the middle of Selbome Hanger. Willughby
■ays, " It builds its neat of small twigs, laying upon them wool, and
upon the wool ita eggs. We aaw one that made uae of an old kite's
nest to breed in, and that fed iCa young with the nymphie of waspsj
for in the nest we found the combe of wasps' nests, and in the
stcmache of the young the limba and fragments of waap-maggota.
There were in the nest only two young ones, coTered with wMte
down spotted with black. Their feet were of a pale yellow, their
bills between the noatrils and the head white j their craws laige, in
which were liaards, frogs, A.C. In the crop of one of them we found
two IJEsrds entire, with their heads lying towards the bird's month,
as if they sought to creep out." The same author saye that the egga
are cinereoua, marked with darker spots. The ^g mentioned by
White was smaller and not so round as those of the common Buazard,
dotted at each end with small red spots, and surrounded in the middle
with a broad blood-nd zone. Pennant mentions two blotched over
with two ahadei of red, somewhat darker than thoee of the Keatnl.
'^le esgi of the Honey-Buizard," writes Hr. Yarrell, '
re; I
deKription given by White, the colouring.matter being confined to a
broad band round the middle. One specimen in my collection
resembles those mentioned hy Pennant, being mottled nearly all over
with two ahadat of orange-brown : long dijameter S inches 1 line ;
tianaverse diameter 1 inch 9 linea."
This bird le found in oriental countries ; it is very rare and acci-
dental in Holland; more abundant in France in tJie Tosgee and in
Uie south, a bird of passage (Temminck). Denmark, Norway, Sweden,
Russia, Germany, France, Italy, and Uie south of Europe generally
(Yarrell and authors by him quoted). Skins received ftnm India
(Gould). In Britain the bird has been obtained in Suffolk, Norfolk,
and along the eastern coast as far north as Northumberland, and in
several western counties, including Dorsetshire, Deronshire, and
Worcestershire. Rare in Cumberland, according to Dr. Heysham,
who had only met with one specimen, and waa told that it bred in the
woods at Lowther. Hr. Thompson mentions one killed in the north
of Ireland, and Hr. Uaigillivray two as having occurred in Scotland.
Buflon and others, Beton among the reat, say that it gets vary fat in
winter and is then good eating.
£¥lta (of Authors). — Beak modente, rather weak ; nostrils some-
what rounded ; tand short ; aorotania scutellated ; fourth quill
loneost.
Hr. Tigors remarks that the true Buzzards are known by their
compaimtively feeble bill, their short tarsi, and scutellated acrotarsia.
Their nares are round and their fourth quill-feather the longest.
Their tarsi are either plumed to the toes or half way covered with
feathers. Of those whose tarsi are oompletely feathered, P. lagoptu
of LinnMua is the type, according to Hr. Vigors, and F. dtterlonM
of Daudin appears to appertain to it ; of those birds whose tarsi are
but half plumed he gives BuUo vulgarit, the Common Buzzard, as an
example, and remarks that the genus is very numerous in species, and
that the form is very general^ to be observed over the globe.
B. vnigarii, Palco Bulea of Linnseus ; Bvleo of Oesner ; Falco varie-
galtu of Qmelin; F. glaittopit of Merrem ; La Buee of the French;
Falco Bottaoue and Fojana of the Italians; Mause-Fslk and Wald-
Osyer of the Qermans; Quidfogel of the 'Fauna Suecioa;' Oerne
Falk of Brunnich ; and Bod Teircaill of the Welsh. " The whole
length of the Common Buzzard is from 20 to 22 inches, depending
on the sex — the females, as in the Palconida generally, being the
largest. From the habit of seeking food late in the evening, observed
in this species, and also in the Bough-Legged Buzzard, and in the
softer and mere downy' texture of the featbers, as compered -with the
plumage of the true t^cons, the Buzzards are considered as indicating
an approach to the Owla "The beak is bluish-black, darkest in coloui
tawKnls the point ; the cere yellow ; the irides generally yellow ; but,
as the Common Buizard and indeed all the Buazards are subject to
oounderable variation in the colour of their plumage, the iridea are
observed to vary also, presenting some reference to the prevailing
ComnuHl BDsiird IBhIcq mlgarit).
of the colour of the feathers. The upper part of the head,
oocipul, and cheeks, pal^-brown, streaked longitudinally with darkf
brown ; the whole of the back, win^coverts, upper tail-oovsrts, a-
upper surface of the tail-feathers, dtxk dove-brown, the Utter bar
ccTerii^ b«lly, nnd thighj, gr»ji«h- white, barred trinBTersely
dark wood-broirn ; I^ and toei j«llov - the clwi black."
(TurelL)
The following are yiaietim ■.—Faica albidat, QmsL; F.verncoUtr,
Qmel ; WoiMliohBr Biuaid, Borth. ' Deut Qm.' {Temminck.)
The Bight of tbs Buzzard u slow, and it ganentU; renuiiu perched
on loms tree in the wooded diitricte patieDtl; waiting for its pre/,
namelj, small quadrupeds, blrda, and reptiles, and eyea eartli-woniia
and iuaecb. It maj be Ken aometimea aoaring in drctea, but not
often, and does Dot punue ita game, but pounce* at it when on the
gronnd. It* nature ii slothful and cowuill;, but its pbiloprogeni-
tivenen appears to be great. The Cock Buzzard will hatch and bring
up the joung if tbe hen is killed (Ra;), and among other inatancea
Mr. Yarrell records one of a female buzzard kept ia the garden of the
Chequers Inn, at Uzbridge, which showing bd inclination a few jears
back to make a nest and ait, wag supplied with materials and two
hen's eggs, which she hatched and afterwards reared the chicks. Sinca
that time (be hat hatched and brought up a brood of chickens ereiy
year. Once thej put down chicks just hatched to her to save her the
labour ot sitting, but she killed them alL Hsr famil;, eajB Mr.
Yaireli, ia June 1831, conoisted of nine ; the original number were
ten, but one had been lost. When flesh was given her she was verj
assiduous in tearing and offering it as food for ber nurslings, and
appeared uneasy if, after taking small portions from ber, thej turned
nwa; to pick np grain. ('British Birds,' where there is on elegant
vignette of the bird and her foster family,) Indeed the young remain
with the old binls some little time after they quit the nest, contrary
to the ussge of other birds of prey, which generally drive away their
young as soon ojg they can fly. In Scotland, where the bird is aoid to
be bolder, on rocks or on the edges of steep scars or beds of torrenla.
(UacgilliTray.) In England the Buzzard builds (or sometimes takea
to a nest) in the fork of a tree iu a wood. The eggs are generally
three, oometirues four, abort oval, 2 inches 3 lines in length by 1 in<uk
10 lines in breadth, of a solid white, alightly spotted with pale-brown.
(TarrelL)
The Buzzard is common in nil the wooded countries of Europe.
Very abundant in Holland. (Temminck.) It is well-knowu, says
Hr. Yarrell, over the wooded uaiie of the continent of Europe,
south of Russia, and inhabits Spain and Italy, passing over the
Heditecrancan to Noiih Africa : but Trebizond, Smyrna, and Madeira,
appear to be its limits to the southward. Prince Bonaparte notes it
OS very common near Rome. In several parts of Ireland it is common
(Thompson) ; not very plentiful in Scotland, nor does it appear In the
lists of the birda of Orkney and Shetland, by the Rev. Ur. Low and
Hr. Dunn, though it occurs in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Russia.
Mr. Gould, in noticing the Trebizond birds presented to the ZooL
8oc. by Ur. Keith Abbott, amoug which it was, observea that it waa
not previously observed in Asia, although there is a nearly allied
speeiea in tlie Himalaya Mounlams, and that it had not than been
noticed in Africa. {' ZooL Proa,' 183i.) In England, though lately
more rare, it is stiU far from nucooimon.
Sir John Richardson ('Fauna Boreali-Amerioona') states that the
Common Buzzard arrives in the Fur Countries in the middle of April,
very soon afterwards begins to build its nest, and, having reared its
younr, departs about tbs end of September. It haunts the low
alluvial pomts of land which stretch out under the high banks of a
river, and maybe observed fora longtime motionless on thebough of a
tree watching for Bome small quadruped, bird, or reptile to pass within
its reach. As soon as it espies its prey, it glides silently into the air,
and sweeping easily but rapidly down seizes it in its claws. When
disturbed, it makes a short circuit, and soon settles on another perch.
One of Sir John's specimens had two middle-sized toads in its erop.
It builds its nest, he says, on a tree, of short sUoks, lining it with deei's
bur. The eggs are from three to five in number, and he remarks tJiat it
was seen by the expedition as far north as the GTth parallel, and that
it moat probably has a still higher range. He gives a description
of two 1 one a male, shot on the ITth June at the nest, which contained
three egga, on the plains of tbe Saskatchswan ; and aaother, a fenule,
kUled at the nert idso, near Carlton, May 22.
Sutto Baeka is recorded t^ Major Jamea Franklin among the
collection formsd by bim on the bank* of the Oangea and in the
mountain cbun of Upper Hindustan, In the South African Museum
the B. Jackal and B. TacKard\a are preserved. Tbe former obtains
its name from uttering a ciy somewliat simihu' to that of tbe imall
qaadrupeds called Jackals at the Cape. It aboonds tbroogbout
Bouth A&ioa. In tbe same collection will be found Butatla Ltuonii.
Sth Sub-Family, Milvina (Kites).
Beak moderate, rather hooked from the base. Tail forked. The
length of the wings and the forked tail, instruments of action to which
tbe birds are indebted for their peculiar power and gracefulness
flight, are the characters which more particularly separate tbe Kites
finm tbe rest of tbe Raptom.
Slarau (Savigny),— Beak moderate, weak, compMsied ; tarsi short,
Moiplotned ; aorotania ntioalatad ; claw^ with the exception of
the middle one, rounded internally ; second quill longest ; first and
PifUo eulanopterut of Daudin ; E. camut ol Savigny ; and Le Bine of
Le Vaillont. Size of a Sparrow-Hawk. Plumsge soft and silky;
tail a littie toiked. Above ash-coloured, quills blackish, be»k and
shoulders black BehiT white. Tail principally white. Feet yellow
Black.WiDfed 6ir>Uo«-H
is aspedmsn inthe South African Museum. Savigny spe^ of it as
being in great abundance in Syria, Egypt, and Barbary. Cianeh
(Tansy's Expedition) saw great numbera at the moul^ of the Congo,
and some wero sent home from thence. Lesson says that it occurs in
Australia. It is noticed among tbe birds coUeetad by Msjor James
Franklin on the banks of the Qanges, and in tbe mountain-chain of
Upper Hindustan.
JvauderiM (Vigors).— Beak rather short, weak, compressed ; nostrila
sub-oval, placed in the cere, which is furnished with bristles in an
obhque direction ; wings long, second or third quill longest ; tail lonff,
very much forked; feet short, weak; tarsi reticulated; acrotaraia
feathered below the knee to the middle; claws not cylindrical ; body
slender, elegant.
Mr. Vigon observes that yaacUriu is distinguished from tbe true
Milna by the greater development of the character of the forked
tail ; by tke relative proportion of the wing-feathen, the fourth being
the longest in Sliitiu ; and by the reticulation of the acrotarua, thoea
of Miltut being covered with even scales or scutallated. He divides
the genus into two sections.
1st. With the seoond quill longest.
JV. Siocimni may be given as an cuunplo.
2nd. With tbe third quill longest.
N.foTcatiu {Falco farcMvt, Linn.), tbs Swallow-Tailed Hawk.
Whole lengtb 20 inches ; beak bluish-black, cere lighter blue, irides
dark ; head, neck, breast, belly, under surface of the wings, sides of
the body, thighs, and under tail-coverts, pure white ; l»ok, wing-
primaries, secondaries, upper tall-coverts, and tail-feathers, black, with
a purplish metallic lustre ; tertials black on tbe outer weba, but patched
with pure white on the inner ; tail vey deeply forked ; l(^ and toee
greemsb-btue ; claws faded orange. (YorreU.)
We select Mr. Audubon's account of the habits and locality of this
graceful bird :—" A sobtary individual of this species has once or
twice been seen in Fennaylvania. Farther to tbe eastward the Swallow-
Tailed Hawk tiaa never, I believe, been observed. Travelling south-
ward along the Atlantic coast, we find it in Virginia, although in
very small numbers. Beyond that state it becomes more abundant.
Near the falls of the Ohio a pair hod a neat, and reared four young
ones in 1S20. In the lower parts of Kentucky it begins to become
more numerous ; but in tbe states farther to the south, and particolarly
in parts near the sea, it is abundant. In the large pndrias of the
Attacapas and Oppellousas it is extremely common. In tbe states of
LouiaiBiia and Hiasissippi where these birds are abundant, they
arrive in large companies in the banning of April, and are heard
uttering a sharp plaintive note. At this period I generally remarked
that tbey came from the westward, and have counted upwards of a
hundred in the space of an hour, paasing over me in a direct easterly
course. At that season and in the b^inning of September, whan
they all reUra from the United States, tbey are easily approached
when they have alighted, being then apparently fatigued, and busily
engaged in preparing themselves for continuing their journey, by
73]
FALCONID^
drBsging and oiling their feathers. At b11 othe
oitremely difficult to gat near them, fia thCT a
through the day, and at night rest on the higher
bordering the riyer blu%, the lakea, or the aw
of country. They always toed oa the wing,
weather thoy aoar to an immetiBe height, puim
called Muaquito-Hawk a, »nd performing the mo
that ean.be conceived, using their tail with ai
U'.to themaelTee. Their principal foi
hoppon
■e generally on wing
pinea and cypreaaea,
icapa of that diitrict
In calm and vaim
ing the lai^ ioaecta
it singular evolutiona
eleguica of motion
>weTer in large grau-
boppoTB, gTaaa-catorpiUarB, amall snakes, lizards, and frogs. They
Rweep cloBs orer the fields, sometimea aeeming to alight for a
moment to secure ■ snake, and holding it fast by the neck, carry it
off and dSTOuT it in the air. When searching for grasshoppera and
csterpillatB, it is not difficult to approach them under cover of a
fence or tree. When one ia then killed and falU to the ground, the
whole flock come over the dead biid, as if intent upon carrying it
ofil An sxcellent opportunity is thus afforded of shooting as many
BB may be wanted and I have kiUed several of these hawks in thu
manner, firing as fast as I could load my gun. The SwallowTailod
Hawk pairs itnmediataly,after its arrival in the southern atateii ; and
as its courtshipB take place on tho wing, its motions are then more
beautiful than over. The neat is usuallv placed on the top branohea
of the tallest oak or pine tree, aituated on the margin of a stream
or pond. It, reeemhles that of a carrion crow oitamallj, being
fanned of dry sticks, intermixed with Spanish moaa, and is lioed
with ooarse grassea and a few feathers. The ^gs are from four to
ail, of a greenish-whito colour, with a few irregular blotches of dark
brown at the larger end. The male and femala sit alternately, the
one feeding the other. The young are at first covered with huff-
coloured down. Their next covering sxhibita the pure whits and
black of the old birds, but without an; of the gloaay puipUah tints
of the latter. The tail, which at first is but alightly forked, becomes
more so in a few we^, and at the approach of autumn oihibits
little difference from that of the adult birds. Tho plumage is oom-
pleted the fint spring. Only one brood is raised in tbe season. The
species leavee the United States in the bw[inning of September,
moving off in Socks, which are formed immediately after the breeding
Tbe SwaUow-TaUed Hiwk IKami'm fia-eatvi).
This sped<«, according to Ur. Nutbill, will, like the Honey-Buu>rd,
prey upon locusts and wasps and their larne, and make a regidar
attack on their nesU M. Vieillot stata that it visits Fern and Buenos
Ayrea. Hr. Tarrell gives it a place among the British birds on the
authority of two speciraens, one killed at Balachosliat in Aivyleshire
in 1772, and another taken alive in Shaw-OiU, near Hawes in Wens-
lejdale, Yorkshire, in 1805. Apparently to avoid the violence of a
tremendous thunder-storm and the clamorous persecution of a flock
of rooks which attackeditatthesame instant^ on the 6th of September,
it took shelter in a thicket, where it was seised before it could
eitricato itself. The person who caught it kept it a month ; but a
door being acoidentallj left open, it made its escape. It-fint sUgbtad
on a tree at no great distance, from which it soon ascended in a
spiial flight to a great elevation, and then went staadilj off in a
FALCONID.^ 734
southerly direction aa far as the eye could trace it. (' Linn. Trans.,"
vol. I
'.}
Mitmit (of autbots).— Beak moderate, weak, eubangular above;
nostrils oblique, elliptical; tarsi short; acrotursia scutellated; wings
veiT long, fourth quill longest ; tail forked.
M. icd'nttt, Falco Milvia of Linntcus ; 3f. vul^arii of Fleming and
Qould.
This is tlie Milan Royal of the French from Belon to BuSbn ;
Pojsna, Milvio, Kicchio, and Ifibbio, of the Italians ; Bother-Hilan of
the Oermana; Qlenta of Brunnich ; Qlada of the ' Fauna Suecica;'
Kits, Fork-Tailed Kito, Olead, or Glede (Pennant says from the Saxon
'Qlida'), of the English; and Barcud of tbe Welsh. In some
of the counties of England it is called the Puttock, a name also aome-
timea bestowed provincially upon the Common Buzzard. In Essex it
is called tbe Crotched-Tailed Puddock.
Length about 2fl inches ; beak bom-colour ; cere and irides yellow;
feathers of the head and neck grayish-white, streaked along the shaft
with ash-brown ; feathers of the back and wing-coverta dark brown
in the centre, broadly edged with rufous ; inner web of some of
the tertials edged with whito ; primaries nearly black ; upper
tail-coverts rufous ; tail-feathers reddish-hrown, the outer webs of
one uniform colour, the inner webs barred with dark brown ; the
outer tail-feather on each lada the darkest in colour ; tail deeply
forked ; chin and throat grayish-white, streaked with dusky ; breast,
belly, and thighs, rufous-brown, each feather with a centnl longitu-
dinal atreak of dark brown ; un^er surface of the winga near the body
rufous, with dark brown feathers edged with red-brown towards the
outer part of the wing ; under tail-coverts plain rufoua-whito; under
Burfacs of the tail-featbera grayish'white, with the dark bars <if the
upper surface showing through ; tarsi and toes yellow ; clans black.
(Tarrell.) The females are larger thnn the niaJoa.
Site (Jfitnu tci
.iu).
The Kite sails gracefull; in the air, now describing circles, and
anon with outspread tail remaining stationary. It pounces on its
prey, consisting of moles, mios, Isverets, rabbits, unfledged birds, and
the young of the Gallinaceous tribe especially. It was, when more
plentiful than it is at prosent, a great scourge to the poultry-yard It
will eat frogs and snatee; and in the' ' Magazine of Natural History'
an obaerver bears witness to its taking fish from a broad river near
which he resided. The nest, made of sticks and lined with soft
materiale. Is usually built on the fork of a tree in a thick wood.
The eggs are two, sometimea three, short oval, 2 inches 2 lines in
length by 1 inch 9 lines in breadth. They are of a dirty white, with
a few reddish-brown spots at the large end. The female lays early in the
season, and sbe often makes a vigorouadsfence when her neet ia attacked.
The Kits is found in Fnnos, Italy, Switierland, and Qermany ;
leas abundant in Buaaia ; more rare in Holland ; migratory in autumn.
(TemmincL) Very common near Rome, especially near the herds of
cattle. (Bonaparte.) It also occurs in Siberia, and the country about
Lake Baikal ; and has been obsarred in Egypt, and ssveral parte of
A&ioa noitli of lbs equator. In Ireland it does not aeem b
known. In Britain, ssiMcially in tbe soathem connties, it is be
fS5
FAIiCONIDA
FALCONID^
739
rare, though at one time it was evidently abundant. Clusius states
that when he was in London an ^maKing number of Kites flocked
there for the offals which were thrown into the streets. They were so
tame that they took their prey in the midst of crowds, and it was
forbidden to kill them. In falconry it was used both as pursuer and
pursued, and is very docil& Louis XVI. flew at the Kite with power-
ful falcons ; and Sir John Sebright tells us that " Fork-Tailed Kites
were much flown some years ago by the Earl of Orford in the neigh-
bourhood of Alconbury HllL A great owl, to the leg of which the
falconers usually tie a fox*s brush, not only to impede its flight, but
to make it, as they fancy, more attractivei is thrown up to draw down
the Kite."
Colonel Sykes notes MUvtu govinda as occurring both in South
Africa and India. In the catalogue of the South African Museum
is the following account of MUvtu paratitieut, the Cape Kite, there
pres^erred: — "This bird is the Kuicken Deif, or Chicken-Stealer of
the Dutch colonists, and only appears in South Africa during the
summer season. It resorts to inhabited places, and as its name
implies, is very destructive to yotmg chickens. Everywhere it is
bold ; but it is especially so in districts into which fire-arms have not
as yet been introduced, where it will pounce down and seise pieces
of flesh from the hands of children, or even grown persons. It feeds
in part upon carrion, and many individuals are often seen congregated
together upon dead carcases."
General Geographical Distribution of the FdUonidcB. — ^Wherever
birds and small quadrupeds are to be found, there is the bird of prey,
whose office it is 'to keep their number within their proper bounds.
Thus as Mr. Vigors writes (' Zool. Joum.,' voL I p. 829 — ' On the
Groups of the Falconid» '), there seem to be no limits affixed to the
geographical distribution of the true Falcons. This indeed appears
generally the case in the laxger groups of this fieunily. The Naked-
Cheeked FalconidoB alone seem to be confined to the southem_parts of
the New World, and to Australia, if we are to r^er F, Nova
Zcelandioi of Dr. Latham to the genus Polyborut, according to M.
Temminck's opinion. But the renuuning groups appear to be
dispersed in every diviuon of the globe.
The FalconidcB described and figured in Mr. Swainson's 'Birds of
Western Africa,' before alluded to, belong to the two most typical or
X)erfect divisions of the family, namely, the Noble Falcons (Falcowid<e)f
and the Hawks (Aceipitrina).
Some of the best illustrations of the Faleonida will be found in
Audubon, Bewick, Gould, Le Yaillant, Temminck, Savigny, Swainson,
Vieillot, and YarrelL Some of Frisch's figures are good. Then are
many fine and expensive works (the 'Planches Enlumin^/ for
example), which contain figures of these noble birds, but they are
sadly deficient in character, and look like what thev were mostly
taken from — ill-stuffed specimens. There is more to be learnt from
the wood-cuts of the heads by Swainson in ' Fauna Boreali-Amerioana'
and the ' Classification of Birds,' than from the most gorgeously oolound
ill-shaped engraving. The magnificent works of Audubon and Ghmld
are full of the chancter of the respective species : Swainson particu-
figures ^,« «„
excellent, and charming examples of the perfection to which wood
engraving can be carried.
The following^ is an arrangement of the species of Falcwida
specimens of which are to be seen in the British Museum :-~
Family Falookidjb.
Sub-Family L AquUincB,
I. Aquilct.
a. Aquila.
1. A, ehryiogtoi, the Golden Eagle.
2. A, Mi^ilnikf the Imperial Eagle.
8. A. fuma, the Rough-Footed Eagle.
4. A, ncBvMdet, the Tawny Eagle.
5. A, Bondlii, BonelU's Eagle.
6. Uroailut,
6. A, audaXf the Bold Eagle.
e. PUroaitus,
7. A. vuUurina, the Vulturine Eagle.
d, JHeraiivM,
8. A. pavnatOf the Booted Eagle.
e. BeUroput.
9. A. Malayentit, Reinwardt's Eagle.
II. Spitagtut,
a. Spitaitut,
1. & omaiUB, the Crested Goshawk.
2. 8. hellieoius, the Martial Eagle.
3. S. cororuUuB, the Crowned Eagle.
h. Spigattur.
i, 8. fneUmolencut, the Black and White Eagle,
c X/ophoittu^
6, 8, oecipUalis, the Occipital Eagle.
d. Pttrwra,
0. & Tynmnui, the lyiant Eagle,
e. LymnaituB,
7. S. eirrhatiu, the Crested Indian Eagle.
8. 8 BomeonmsUf the Crested Bomean Eagle.
IIL fferpetatheres.
1. ff. eachinnans, the Laughing Falcon.
IV. Circaitfu,
a. CireaSlus.
1. C7. OeUlieut, the Jean-le-Blanc Eagle.
2. C. thoracicuif the Black-Breasted Eagle.
8. C. faaciolatui, the Banded Falcon.
b» 8pilomi9.
i, C. B<tcha, the Bacha Eagle.
5. C. ChedOf the Cheela Eagle.
6. C, ffoiospilus, the Spotted Bacha.
c. ffarpykaliaitut,
7. 01 coronattu, the Crowned Eagle.
V. Thraaagtut,
1. T. Ifarpyia, the Crested Eagle.
VI. Marpknut,
1. M, ChUanennt, the Guyana Goshawk.
2. M, UrvbiHnga, the Brazilian Eagle.
8. M. meridionalis, the Rufous-Headed Falcon.
VIL Pandion,
a. Pandion.
1. P, HfUiaitut, the Osprey.
2. P, leueocephalui, the White-Headed Osprey.
b. PoUoaitut,
8. P, Ichlhyaituf, the Marine Eagle.
4. P. hwnilUf the Small Marine Eagle.
VIII. ChmcwMi.
€L Ownewna,
1. C. Macei, Mace*s £agl&
2. a leueoaatter, the White-Bellied Eagle.
8. C voci/er, the Piscivorous Eagle.
h. Qtranoa€tui,
4. C7. melanoleucua, the Black and White Eagle^
IX. Eaiiaetut,
1. ff, aibiciUa, the Cinereous Eagle.
2. ff. leucocephaluB, the Bald Eagle.
X. ffdatartui,
1. M, ecaudattUf the Short-Tailed Eagle.
XI. ffaliaatw.
1. ff» Indus, the Pondicherry Eagle.
2. 2r. leueottemus, the White-Headed Rufous Eaglet.
3. ff. SphenunUf the Whistling Hawk.
Sub-Family II. Polyhorinoi,
I. IbyeUr,
1. /. Amerieanus, the Red-Throated Falcon.
2. /. cUeTf the Black Caracara.
II. MUvago.
a. Milvago,
1. M. ehimcuihima, the Chimachima Falcon.
2. j9f. chimangOf the Chimango Caracara.
5. PhaloobOfgnus.
8; M, megaloptenu, the Long- Winged Caracara
c. AiMriorchis.
i, M. auttralis, the Southern Caracara.
IIL Polybonu,
1. P, BrasiliensU, the Brazilian Kite.
Sub-Family III. BvJteonince,
L Bvteo,
a. Bmteo,
• \. B. vulgaris^ the Common Buzzard.
2. B, Tachardus, the African Buzzard.
8. B. n^niM, the Long-Legged Buzzard.
4. B. Jackal, the Jackal F^oon.
5. B. auguar, the North African Buzzard.
6. B. plimipet, the Half-Booted Buzzard.
h. PcecUopteriut»
7. B. harealu, the American Buzzard.
8. B. lineatut, the Barred-Breasted Buzzard.
9. B. Penntylvanicus, the Broad- Winged Falcon,
c Tachytriwckfu.
10. B, erytkronotut, the Red-Backed Buzzard.
11. B, pterodet, the Banded-Sided Hawk.
12. B, albonotatut, the White-Spotted Buzzard.
IS. B. leueops, the White-Faced Buzzard.
d. BvieogaUvM,
14. B. CBquinoetialia, the Equinoctial Eagle.
15. B, nigricoUit, the Pamena Eagle.
e. LeuGopteruu.
16. B, mdanopi, the Streaked Falcon.
17. B. aXbicoUit, the White-Necked Falcon.
18. B, icotoptertu, the Brazilian Buzzard.
19. B, polionoitu, the Gray-Backed Buzzard.
IL ArehilnUeo,
1. A, Lagoput, the Rough-Legged Falcon.
2. A. San^i Johannis, the StTJohn's E«igle,
i^i^a^Ma^
787
FALCONIDA
VALCOmDM.
7S8
V 8. A,fermgineu8, the Cacique Bosrard.
4. ii. <rropAia^««, the White-Breasted Buzzard.
Sub-Family IV. MUvince.
I. £ata,
a. iirtcecia.
1. ^* euevloidet, the African Baza.
5. Baxa.
2. ^. lophotet, the Ck>hy FalooxL
8. B. m«6<TiKa<a» the Small-Greeted Baza.
4. B. nuignirottrit, the Laige-Billed Baza.
II. Pemit.
1. P. optvoriM, the Honey-Buzzard.
2. P, erittcUa, the Created Honey-Buzzard.
IIL MUvuB. I
a. Milvui, <
1. M. regtUis, the Kite.
5. Hydroietinia,
2. if. OfovindOf the Qovinda Kite.
8. if. ni^, the Black Kite.
4. if. affinit, the AustraUan Kite.
5. M. ^gyptius, the Arabian Kite.
IV. ElanoHdet,
a, Elanoidei,
1. E. fitreaiui, the Swallow-Tailed Falcon.
h. CheUdopttryx,
% B, Siocourif the Riocouria Falcon.
1. B, mdanopttruB, the Black-Winged Falcon.
2. B, oxillariB, the Azilhuy Falcon.
8. B. icriptui, the Letter-Winged Falcon.
4. B. leucunu, the White-TaHed Hawk.
VI. Oampwnyx.
1. O. Swaintoni, Falcon-like Hawk.
YII. Bostrhamw,
1. R aociabUit, the Hook-Billed Falcon.
VIII. Oymmdis.
a. Cfymindit.
1. C Cayanentis, the Cayenne Falcon.
6. RegerMnvt,
2. (7. vnctnoftu, the Crook-Billed Falcon.
IX. /c<mta.
a. /eftnto.
1. /. Mimatippentit, the MiwriHwippi Kite.
(. PceeUapteryx.
2. /. ;);iHn50a, the Spotted-Tailed Hobby.
Sub-Family V. jPaleontfUE.
I. Fako.
a. ffierofaleo.
1. i^. Cfyffalco, the Jerfalcon.
2. iil MC&n^cr, the Black Falcon.
8. F, peregnmUor, the Sultan Falcon. I
4. P. peregrinuB, tiie Peregrine Falcon.
5. (f) P. mdanogenyBt the Black-Cheeked Falcon.
6w (?) F, anaiwn, the Duck Falcon.
7. F. peregrino^det, the Salakoo Falcon.
b, Oennaia*
8. i^. cervialii, the Double-Bearded Falcon.
9. F, lanairiui, the Lanner Falcon.
10. F, Jugger, the Jugger Falcon.
II. B^motriorchis,
a. jBypotriorehii.
1. ff. aubbuteo, the Hobby Falcon.
2. ^. aeverus, the Severe Falcon.
8. ^. rtf^rukH*^, Uie Red-Neoked Falcon.
4. IT. .^Wotutf, the Paramatta Falcon.
b, jEtaUm.
5. ff. eoncohTf the Uniform Falcon.
6. If. JBsaUm, the Merlin.
7. ^. eo^um&artiM, the Pigeon-Hawk.
8. J7. Ckiequera, the Chiequera Falcon.
9. B.fetnorcdis, the Bed-Thighed Hawk.
III. lertieideck
1. /. 6«r^ora, the Cream-Bellied Falcon.
2. /. Nova ZecUanduB, the New Zealand Falcon.
IV. Tinnunculfu*
a. TinMincidfii.
1. 31 o^iktoriitf, the Kestril Falcon.
2. ^. rupicolutf the Rufoua-Backed Kestril.
8. r. rMjpicotolcitf, the Rock-Falcon.
4. T, punctcUttSf the Spotted Falcon.
b, TichomtM.
6. r. cenchrit, the Lesser Kestril
6. T, cenehroid€$, the Nankin Hawk,
c Brythropua.
7. T. vespeWtniw, the Ingriaa Falcon,
d. Paeilamii.
8. ^. fparvmtu, the Little Falcon.
9. (!) T. ciimam^meui, the Cinnamon Falcon.
KAT. BXBT. Diy. YOL. IL
V. Harpagut.
1. H. diodon, the Two-Toothed Faloon.
2. iT. bidentijUut, the Notched Falcon.
VL /eiwc.
1. /. earuleseenSf the Bengal Falcon.
2. /. ButolmuB, the White-Naped Falcon.
8. /. MTJcetM, the Silky Falcon.
Sub-Family VL AccipUrinoe,
L Aatvr.
a, Aatwr,
1. A. jMiZitm5<w*»ta, the Gkxihawk.
2. A, mdanoUueuif the Pied Goshawk.
8. A. radiaiutf the Radiated Falcon.
b, Spuageramu,
4. ii. vnicinctui, the One-Banded Hawk,
c Lmootpiaa.
5. ii. iVbvce HoUandia, the New Holland White Eagle.
d, Lophoapiia.
6. ^. tnvw^cUtu, the Three-Streaked Hawk.
7. A, nkidtUf the Plumbeous Falcon.
8. A, poUogaateTf the Qray-BeUied Falcon.
9. A, Uucorrkouif the Spotted Falcon.
10. ii. magniroatrit, the Qreat-Billed Falcon.
iL Poliomis,
1. P. Teeta, the Teesa Hawk.
2. P. Ztwn^cr, the Pale Hawk.
8. P. Indicui, the Qray-Cheeked Hawk.
4. P. pyrrhogenys, the Dark-Cheeked Hawk.
IIL Cferanoapigcu
1. (7. ^aci{»i, the Slender Hawk.
lY. Mierctttwr,
1. if. 6racA^fen», the Pied Sparrow-Hawk.
2. M. xanthothonur, the Tellow-Neoked Hawk.
8. M. eoneentricua, the Concentrical Sparrow-Hawk.
V. AeeipUer.
a. Accipiter,
1. A. niaua^ the Sparrow-Hawk.
2. A, erythronemia, the Red-Thighed Sparrow-Hawk.
8. A, tachiro, the Speckled Sparrow-Hawk.
4. A, rufivtntria, the Red-Bellied Hawk.
5. A.fuaetta, the American Brown Hawk.
6. ii. piUatfUf the Hooded Falcon.
7. il. ifa(i<^a«carten«My the Madagascar Hawk.
b. Biertupita,
8. A, tinua, the Tmy Falcon.
9. A. miaMua, the Dwarf-Falcon.
10. il. virgatua, the Streaked Hawk.
c. l^rofpuo.
11. ii. ctrrAoc^AaZttf, the New Holland Sparrow-Hawk.
12. A, approxmana, the Australian Goshawk.
VL Mieroniaua.
a. Tachyapixa,
1. M, Sdoenaia, the Soolo Falcon.
b. SedoapiMo,
2. M, Franceaii, France's Sparrow-Hawk.
c. if MToninit.
8. if. bitdiua, Brown's Hawk.
4. M. aphenurua, the Short-Toed Sparrow-Hawk.
5. M, Oabar, the Red-Legged Falcon.
6. M, fnonogrammicuSf the Single-Streaked Hawk.
VIL Mdierax,
1. if. tnuaieuaf the Chanting Falcon.
Sub-Family VIL Oireina,
I. Serpentariua,
1. 8. aecrdariua, the Secretary.
IL Polybcroidea,
1. P. rcKita(««, the Madagascar Falcon.
IIL Oircua.
a. Strigicepa,
1. C. cyarteua, the Hen-Harrier.
2. C. melanoUucua, the Black and White Indian Falcon.
8. C, woli, the Long-Legged Falcon.
4. C, einereua^ Quoy s Buzzard.
5. C, ater, the Black Hen-Harrier.
b. Olaneopteryx,
6. C cinereacenaf the Ash-Coloured Falcon.
7. C, Swainaonif the Pale-Chested Harrier.
c Spilocereua.
8. 0. Jardinu, Jardine's Hen-Harrier.
d. Spizacireua,
9. (7. macropteru^ the Salvador Falcon.
e. Pygargua.
10. (7. oru^'noMx, the Moor-Buzzard.
11. (7. a«9tmf/i«, the Allied Moor-Buzzard.
12. C. ranivorua, the Raniyorons Falcon.
8a
739
FALCONRY.
FAMILIES OF PLANTS.
740
We subjoin a list of the British specieB of Faleonida from Mr.
YarreU's * British Birds' :—
Aquila ncevia, the Spotted Eagle.
A, ehrytaitoi, the Qolden Eagle.
H(dimetu$ albiciUa, the White-Tailed Ei^le and Cineroua Eagle.
Pandion ffaliceeiut, the Osprey, or Fishing-Hawk.
FeUeo Oyrfaleo, the Gyr-FalcoD.
F. peregrinu8, the Peregrine Falcon.
F. tvbbuteOy tiie Hobby.
F, rufipetf the Red-Footed Falcon.
F. jBiiUon, the Merlin.
F, tinntmculuif the Kestrel or Windhover.
Attw pcUumbariut, the Gbshawk.
Accipiter nutu, the Sparrow-Hawk.
MtifHu vtdgaris, the Kite, the Fork-Tailed Kite and Glead.
Nanderutfurcatus, the Swallow-Tailed Kite.
BtUeo vulgaris^ the Common Buzzard.
J3. lagoput, the Rough-Legged Buzzaixl.
Pemia apivoruSf the Honey-Buzzard.
Circua ceruginotua, the Marsh-Harrier.
C. cyaneva, the Hen-Harrier.
C. Montftgui^ Montagu's Harrier.
A very fine collection of the Falwnida, unequalled in the number
of species, is at present to be seen in the (hardens of the Zoological
Society, Regent's Park, Loudon.
• FALCONRY, or HAWKING, the art of training and flying hawks
to take other birds. Julius Firmicus, who lived in the middle of the
4th century, is the first Latin writer who speaks of falconers, and the
art of teaching one species of birds to fly at and catch another. The
ai't however had been in all probability practised in the east from
remote ages, whence it certainly came to Europe.
From the Heptarchy to the time of Charles II. falconiy was the
principal amusement of our ancestors in England. A person of rank
scarcely stirred out without a hawk upon his hand, which, in old
illuminations and upon ancient seals, is the criterion of nobility.
Harold, afterwards king of England, is thus represented in the Bayeux
Tapestry, when visiting the court of William, duke of Normandy.
Florence of Worcester (4 to edit 1592, p. 310) states that King
Alfred had his falconers among the persons whom he encouraged for
their skill in different professions ; and a metrical treatise on the art
of falconry, still extant, is ascribed to King Edward the Confessor.
In Domesday Book the practice of falconry is illustrated by nume-
rous entries. In several places we find a sum, no less than ten pounds,
made the optional payment instead of finding a hawk (' Domesday
Book,' torn, i foL 134, b. 172, 230) ; and once, at Worcester (tom. L
172) a Norway hawk is specified. Aeries, or places destined for the
breeding or training of hawks, are entered in the Survey, in Bucking-
hamshire, Gloucest^nhire, Worcestershire, Herefordahire, Shropshire,
and, more frequently than in other counties, in Cheshire ; as well as
among the lands between the Ribble and the Mersey. (' Domesday
Book,' tom. L fol 144, 152, 163 b, 172, 180, 252 b, 256 b, 257, 264,
265, 265 b, 266 b, 267, 267 b, 268 b, 269, 270.)
Nor were hawks less prized at subsequent periods. According to
Madox (' Hist. Excheq.' L 273), in the 14th Hen. II., Walter Cnot,
one of tae king's tenants, rendered his rent at the exchequer in three
hawks and three girfaloons. King John had also his hawks (' Pat.' 4,
' Job.' m. 2) ; and upon the Patent Roll of the 34th Hen. III. a oopy
occurs of Uie letter which the king sent in that year to the king of
Norway for hawka Bray, in the * History of Surrey ' (voL iii. p. 82),
relates a curious anecdote of Henry IIL's anger with one Roger Belet,
who, by reason of sometlung he had done or omitted about a spar-
hawk, was disseised of all his lands and 40i. rent in Bagshot. In the
34th Edw. III. it was made felony to steal a hawk ; to take its eggs,
even in a person's own ground, was punishable with imprisonment for
a year and a day, bendes a fine at the king's pleasure. In Queen
Elizabeth's reign the imprisonment was reduced to three months;
but the offender was to find security for his good behaviour for seven
years, or lie in prison till he did. (Pennant ' Brit. ZooL' 8vo, Lond.
1812, voL L p. 212.)
Edward IIL, according to Froissart ('Chron.' i. c. 210), had with
him in his army, when he invaded France, thirty falconers on horse-
back, who had charge of his hawks; and every day he either hunted
or went to the river for the purpose of hawking, aa his fancy inclined
him. Queen Elizabeth is represented enjoying this sport in a wood-
cut in Turbervile's ' Falconry,' published in 1575 ; and it was the
favourite amusement with King James I.
By an entry upon the 'Originalia Rolla' of the 35th Edw. III.
(' Origin.' voL IL p. 267), it appears that a falcon gentil cost 20«. ; a
tersil gentil, 10«. ; a tersil lestour, 6«. 8d ; and a lanner, 6«. 8c2. :
these were the prices which the sheriff was to give for hawks for the
king's use. In an account-book of the 20th Hen. VIII. a goshawk
and two falcons are prized at 3/., and fiwe falcons and a tersil at 82.
Bert, in his ' Address to the Reader,' prefixed to his ' Treatise of
Hawkes and Hawking,' published m 1619, says he " had for a gos-
hawke and a tarsell a hundred marks."
Falconry was attempted to be revived by George, earl of Orford,
who died in 1791 ; and in Yorkshire Colonel Thornton had a hawking
eetaWshment at a rather later period. Sir John Sebright and a few
other gentlemen also practised it in Norfolk at the beginning of the
present century. As a rural diversion however, principally in conse-
quence of the inclosures, it haa gone into disuse.
A list of the hawks which were most used by sportsmen in the
time of Charles I. is given in Walton's ' Complete Angler ;' and an
explanation of the words of art in hawking will be found in Latham's
' Falconry,' 4to, Lond. 1633.
The earliest printed treatise on hawking in English ifl the ' Book
of St. Albans,' fol. 1481, ascribed to Juliana Barnes or Bemers, abbess
of Sopwell. There are numerous other and curious treatises upon
falconry both in French and English, some of them of very nune
occurrence. ' Le Miroir de Phebus, avec I'Art de Fauconerie,' pnb-
lished at Paris in 8vo. without date, was the first work upon the
subject printed in the French language.
For further information upon falconry and its practice the reader
may refer to Spelman's 'Glossary,' v. 'Acceptor,' edit, fol., Lond.
1626, p, 7; Warton's 'Observ. on Spenser's Fairy Queen,' voL ii.
pp. 171-173 ; Strutt's ' Sports and Pastimes of the People of England,'
4to., Lond. 1810, pp. 21-3^; and Haslewood's < Literary Researches
into the History of the Book of St Albans,' 4to., Lond. 1810, pp.
21-48.
FALCOPERN. [Falconida]
FALCUNCULUa YLaniada]
FALLOPIAN TUBES, so called from Fallopius the anatomist,
who first accurately described them. They are tortuous and slender
membranous canals, about three inches in length, which proceed on
each side from the two upper comers of the flattened triangular or
pear-shaped body of the uterus. They communicate with its cavity
by minute openings capable of admitting a large bristle. As they
diverge outwards, from their origin they enlarge, and, curving back-
wards, terminate obliquely in open fringed extremities directed
tbwards the ovaries, wnich lie bciow and somewhat behind them.
They are included, as are likewise the ovaries, in the duplicature of
the peritoneal lining of the abdomen, called the broad ligaments of
the uterus, by which that body is itself invested and attached laterally
to the cavity of the pelvis. A production of this membrane sheathes
them to their loose trumpet-shaped extremities, and turning over the
edge is continued for some distance up the interior surface, finally
blending with the mucous lining which accompanies them in their
exit from the uterus. This is the only instance in th^ body of the
continuitv of a serous and mucous membrane, and probably has some
concern m the spreading of inflammation from the interior of the
uterus to the peritoneum, which constitutes one of the forms of
puerperal fever.
Before the period of conception these tubes are observed in the
lower animals to become more full of blood, and to have a writhing
peristaltic motion like that which impels the aliment along the intes-
tinal canal. Certain prominences are also observed at this time on
the surface of the ovaries, produced by the maturation and swelling
of the Graafian vesicles, which are the ova or germs of the future
progeny. The Fallopian tubes then become attached by their open
fimbriated mouths over these prominences; and receiving the vesicles
as they burst through the peritoneal covering of the ovaries, convey
them by the peristaltic motion we have mentioned into the uterus.
These germs are sometimes fecundated before they reach their
destination, when what is called extra-uterine conception occurs. In
these cases the germ never reaches the uterus at all, but remains in
the intermediate canal, aiid becomes attached to its surface ; in tins
position it may attain its full sise, expanding the tube as it grows, till
at length it gives way, and the foetus escapes into the general carity
of the abdomen. Such oases are not necessarily fatal ; the fostus, dead
of course, sometimes becomes indosed after a certain period in a
membranous cyst, gradually extended around it from the parietes of
the abdomen ; and may remain for many years without exciting much
irritation. In other instances abscesses form and break in suooession,
discharging the bones and other unabsorbed parts of the foetus, and
the case eventually does well. But such results are rare ; and nothing
but the CsBsarean operation affords much prospeet of saving lifis.
FALLOW-CHAT. [Saxioola.1
FALLOW-DEER. [CirvidaJ
FAMILIES OF PLANT& The word Family in Botany is mostly
applied to a group of Plants of the same value as a Natural Order. In
this sense it has been mostly employed throughout the pages of this
work. At the same time, in the arrangements of some writers, a FamUy
is made a group of less value than an Order ; whilst in the writings of
others the term is loosely applied to distinguish any group of plants
of higher value than a single species. It is thus sometimes employed
synonymously with Genus. The names of natural orders, being mostly
those of a genus, which serves as a type for the rest of the gronp, ar«
easily Englished by adding the word Family. Thus the Order Gm-
tianacea is called in English the Gentian Family, and so on. By this
means the word Family is sometimes restricted to the i^>ecies of s
genus. Another word used synonymously with Natural Order by Dr.
Lindley is Tribe. . In his Natural System, all the orders having typical
genera with English names have been called Tribes, with the £ngliih
names attached. Thus, Cinchonaeea, the Coffee tribe ; Piatiacect^ the
Duck-Weed tribe ; Enphorbiactm^ the Euphoriuum tribe. At the ssme
time, Tribe is frequently used to express a group of less ▼alue than so
741
FARINA.
FELWM.
743
Order, as in the Uiger orders, UmbeUifercB, Legwminow, Chmpontce,
Oruciferce, Ac. More recently, Dr. Lindley has endeayoured to give a
single English word to express each natural tribe or order: thus,
Magnoliaeeas are called Magnoliads ; Serophulariaeetg, Figworts ;
OaUaetCBt Stellatea. We have added these names after each order in
the ' English CyclopsBdia.'
The following plan will give an idea of the relative value of terms
ased in the subdivisions of Plants : —
Class.
SubXIlass.
Group.
AlUance.
Order, or Family.
Sub-Order, or Sub-Family
Tribe.
Sub-Tribe.
Division.
Sub-Division.
QenuB.
Sub-QenuSy or Section.
Species.
Variety.
The divisions, groups, and alliances between the sub-class and oider
are adopted by Lindley in his Natural System, and frequently occur
in this work. It is only a few orders, such as Oompotitce, that require
the subordinate divisions above, and only the laiger genera require to
be divided into sub-genera.
FARINA. [Starch.]
FASCICLE, in Botany, is, strictiy speaking, that kind of infloies-
cence in which the flowers are arranged in a flat-headed raceme or
corjrmb, and begin to expand in the centre sooner than at the circum-
ference. The term is however constantly applied to any oolleetion of
flowers or leaves in clusters at the end or on the sides of a branch :
thus, the leaves of the larch are called £ueiculate.
FASCIOLA, a name given to various forms of Trematode Worms.
[Entozoa.]
FASSAITE. [Ptroxene.]
FAT. This substance varies in properties according to the m^imaliy
producing it In all cases however it is composed of three different
kinds, wUch differ as to their melting point : these are termed Olein,
or Elain, Stearin, and Mai^garin. It is not however to be considered
that the substances to which these names are given are in all cases
absolutely identical; they vaiy as to smell, taste, solubility in alcohol,
&c. ; but all fats agree in being insoluble in water, and in not contain-
ing any asote, which is a common constituent of most other animal
matter. Olein, Stearin, and Hargarin are composed of adds called
oleic, stearic, and maigaric acids, combined with a base called Glycerine.
Glycerine is the oxide of a compound radide called Lipyle. [Adifosk
TnsuB.]
Human Fat varies a little aooording to the part of the body producing
it : that from the region of the kidneys, after it has been melted, is
yellowish and inodorous ; it begins to concrete at 76** Fahr., and is
solid at 64** ; it dissolves in forty times its weight of alcohol of 0*821
when boiling, and on cooling stearin is deposited, which, after pressore
in bibulous paper at 78% is colourless, fusible at 122', and may be
cooled to 106** before it begins to congeal ; its temperature^ on account
of the evolution of latent heat» then rises to 120** : 21*5 parts of this
stearin are soluble in 100 parts of boiling anhydroiu alcohol, the
greater part of which separates in adeular crystals on cooling.
The Olein of human fat is a colourless oily sweetish fluid, and
remains so at 40' ; at 60' its spedfio gravity is 0'918 ; 128 parts of
this Olein are soluble in 100 parts of boiling alcohol ; on cooling to
170' the solution becomes turbid.
Ox Fat— When this has been fused it begins to soUdify at 98', and
the temperature then rises, for a reason already mentioned, to 102'.
Forty parts of boiling alcohol, of spedfio gravity 0*821, dissolve one
part of it ; and it contains about thrae-fourSis of its weight of stearin,
which is solid, hard, colourless, not greasy, and of a granular crystal-
line texture ; it fuses at about 112*', and may then be cooled to 102',
when, on congealing, it rises to 112'. It bums like white wax. Of
this stearin about 15'5 parts are dissolved by 100 parts of anhydrous
alcohoL
The Olein of ox fat is colourless, nearly inodorous, and its specific
gravity is 0*913 : boiling alcohol dissolves nearly one-fourth more than
its weight
Sheep's Fat (or Mutton Suet) greatly resembles that of the ox ; it
is however whiter, and 1^ exposure to the air acquires a peculiar
odour. After fusion it congeals at a temperature varying between
98' and 102' ; it dissolves in 44 parts of alcohol of spedlc gravity
0*821. The Stearin is white, translucent^ and after fusion but imper-
fectly crystalline ; about 16 parts are dissolved by 100 parts of boiling
anhydrous alcohoL The Olein of mutton suet is colourless ; its specific
gravity is 0*918 ; and 80 parts of it are dissolved by 100 parts of
anhydrous alcohol at 168'.
Hog's Fat, or Hog's Lard, is a soft colourless solid, which fuses
between 78' and 86' ; its spedfic gravity at 60' is 0*988. By powerful
and long-continued pressure at 42 , between folds of blotting-paper, it
is stated to yield *62 its weight of colourless olein, of spedfic gravity
0^16 ; of this, 100 of boiling alcohol dissolve 123 parts. The Stearin
of hog's lard is inodorous, solid, and granular, which, after fusion,
remains liquid down to 100', and then, on congealing, the temperature
rises to 109'. It becomes acid by exposure to the air.
Goat's Fat contains a peculiar fat, termed Hircin by Chevreol, and
to the presence of this its peculiar odour ia owing, and which remains
to a great degree with the olein when this ia 8ei)arated from the
steann : by particular management thia fat yields hiroic acid.
The Fat of Birds.>-Goo8e Fat ia oolouriess, and of a peculiar taste
and smell; after fusion it congeals at 80' into a soft solid of the con-
sistence of butter. When subjected in bibulous paper to pressure at
30', 100 parts are separable into 68 of olein and 32 of stearin, fuaible
at 112'. The Fat of Ducks fuses at 76', and yields 72 olein and 28
stearin, fusible at 120'. Turkey's Fat is separable into 74 olein and
26 stearin, fusible at 112'. [OiM ; Adipobb Tissue.]
FATHER-LASHER. FCottus.]
FAUJASITE, a Mineral, consisting of a hydrous silicate of alumina,
with lime and soda. It occurs crystalliaed in the form of an octahedrou
with a square base. Its colour ia white, sometimes brown. Fracture
vitreous or uneven. Fragile. Lustre brilliant It la so hard as to
scratch glass. It is found with Augite at Kaiaerstuhl in Breiagau.
Analysis, by Damour : —
Silica 49-36
Alumina 16*77
Lime 5-00
Soda 4-34
Water 22*49
9716
FAULT. [CoAL-FoBMATiOK ; Geoloot.]
FAUNA, a term employed by natural^ to express the whole of
the memben of the animal kingdom living in a particular district
or at a particular time. Thus all the animals living in Great Britain
constitute the British Fauna. Those inhabiting the land form the
Terrestrial Fauna; those found in the seas constitute the Marine
Fauna. It is often applied collectively to all the animals of the
world, the extinct species constituting the Fossil Fauna, and the
living species the Recent Fauna of the world. The word is derived
from the Fauni, who were supposed to be the patrons of wild
animals.
The word Flore ia also applied in the same way, to comprehend
the whole of the plants of a district, and admits of the same appli-
cations as the term Fauna. It is derived from Flora, the goddess of
flowers. [Flora.]
FAUVETTE. [Stlviadjb.]
FAVASTRiEA. [Madbbphtlliosa.]
FAVOSI'TES, a genus of Fossil Zoopkyta, common in the Silurian
strata of Norway and Wales. (Murchison, 'Sil. System.')
FAYULA'RIA, a generic title of certain Fossil Plants aUied to
SigiUana, as P, iesiellattt, from the Coal-Formation. (Sternberg.)
[Coal-Plahts.]
FEATHER- ALUM, a hydrous sulphate of alumina, not mixed
with any other sulphate. It occura more frequently than the true
Alums, which are double salts.
FEATHER-GRASS^ or STIPA. [Graminaobjb.]
FEATHER-ORE, a Mineral, consisting of sulphuret of antimony
and lead. It occun in fine capillary crystalliaations like a cobweb.
Its colour is dark lead-gray. It is found in the Eastern Harz. Its
composition is —
Antimony 31
Lead , . 47
Sulphur 20
—98
FEATHERa [BiRM.]
FECULA, or F^CULA. [Starch,]
FECUNDATION. [Reproduction.]
FEDIA. [Valbrianella.]
FEELING. [Nervous System; Touch.]
FE'LID.£, or FELINA, a Family of the Cat kind, of the order
Camivora^ in which the organs of destruction reach their highest
development. They are, among the quadrupeds, what the FcUconidas
are among the Birds. Sometimes this family 13 made to include the
Dogs, Hyaenas, Wolves, and smaller Camivora. We shall confine
ourselves here to the membera of the tribe Ftlina of Dr. J. E. Gray,
comprising the Cats, Lions, Tigers, Leopards, and Lynxes.
The principal instruments of the destructive energy of these
animals are the teeth and claws.
The dental formula then in these animals is the following : —
Incison, -. : canines, -I^ ; molars, '= 30.
'6 1—1 8—3
The formation of these teeth is beautifully shown in four prepara-
tions in the museum of the Royal College of Suxgeons in London.
No. 829 is the anterior part of the right ramus of the lower jaw of
a young Uon, exhibiting the teeth, together with the gums in which
they are imbedded, and the border of soft parts, or lip, with which
they an surrounded. No. 880 is the anterior part of the upper jaw
of a young lion injected, in which the body of the second or
0 expow the cayity conUining tiie pulp on
which it WW forming. There is one of the molart in the act of
being shad, wad the adult or pennBiieut tooth ia poahing into the
Cn. No. 331 ia the counterpart, or opomte aectian of the nme
iM7 ; and No. 332 ia the kniarT of the jaw of the oppoaito aide
af the Bame lion, shoning the whole of the pulp on which it wu
FELIDf. 7(t
The Criat* OooipitBliB, which ia moat atrougl; marked in the
cats, ia a ahirp a>d promiaant bony ridge riaing from the upper and
hind portion of the bIcuU. Ita chief use ia for the attachment of
the temporal muiwle, and the aiie of the temporal foaaa, and the
■trength and extent of the lygomatic arch depend upon the magnitude
of that muada In no animala ia thie fooaa larger than ia the
CarMVora. It not onlj ocoupics the whole of the aidea and upper
part of the alroll, hut ia atill further iocreaaed by the prominent
bony oreata proOMdiig &om the frontal, parietal, and occipital bonea.
The temponl muaelea would indeed almoat completely cover the
cnnium m many of theae animal*, were it not for thmr ■aparation
tlia parietal tidga.
», lower Jaw; a, talanial »l*w ; t, eilemal t1«w ! J, ttelh when the Jan
•hat Men In proBIe. Fiom F. Cajiti.
The aitjcolation of the eondylea of the lower jaw in which thia
formidable apparatua ia aet ia ao contriTod aa to oaue ita opention
in the moat stBcient manner. Tbeae proceaaea are ritoated in the
lame atraigbt horiaautal line; they are oylindrical, and firmly looked
in the traniTeniel; elongated glenoid caiitiea, the marpna of whiiA
are ao eitauded both before and behind the condyle that rotatory
motion ia impoaaible. The crowna of tha molar or rather laoarating
teeth are compreaaed, and covered with enamel, aa indeed are tbcae
of all the othera : the molara terminate in painted proceaaal^ and
the lower teeth abut between the upper. Thna, when called into
action, the teeth and jaws operate like the antogooiat bladM of a
pair of iciaaon upon the aubatanoe aubmitted to their cutting edgea.
The canine teeth, the principal prehensile weapon! of the head, are
Tery long and larce, eapeeially m the larger Cata. If we sxamine
the cranium of a lion or tiger we ahall be at no Ion to diaooTSr the
machinery by which thia dantal apparatua if worktd.
s from abore, ihowlBf the eiMnl of the
Bkoll of Una Men in proflle, ^lewtni the prominent boof etecta.
The cygomatia suture ia ao oblique that tha temporal bone forma
the whole aupeiior maigin, and the oa mala Uis interior edge of the
lygoma.
In oonMqnenoe of tha conitmction which we have endeaToorsd
to explain, the lower jaw ia capable of motjon only upwarda and
downwarda, and anUrslT ino^iable of that motion in a horisonUl
direction, which ia neoeaaaiy to maatioation, properly ao called.
Aoooidinj^y the Cttt out and laoerate their food ooaraely, and tranamit
it in large portiont to the atomach, there to be acted on by tha gaatrio
The moBclea of the neck and tare quarter of the Cata are cape-
oially powerful to give full eOeot to thia part of the organiaation,
and to enable the awmal to drag or carry away ita prey.
We muat nsit turn our attention to the other organa of
ptehengEoD, tbe olawa.
Tha fire toaa of the anterior and four toea of the poaterior
eitramitiea of the Cata are armed with very atrong, hooked, aab-
oomprtnad abarp dawa. Theaa extremitiea, the anterior onea eapa-
dally, thua become powerful inatruments for aeiiiog and rending the
prey. The muacles that are to wield these weapona are of great
atroigth ; thoae of the fore arm eapsoially, which m the lion and
tiger offer the aame arrangement for flexion, eitenaion, pronation,
and anpinatian, aa la obaarred in man, are highly developed, and the
blow w>ne which the animal can deal with thia limb i* frequenllj
btaL It ia aaaerted that the Bengal Tiger baa bean known to
Aaeture the akull of a man with one atroke of ita heavy paw. The
dawa, by a beautiful conformation, are alwaya preaerrad without
effort from coming in contact with eztumal bodiea, ao aa to keqi
them aharp and rvady for action. There are acme intereating
apeoimena in the Muaaum of the Boyal Collie of Surgeon! in
London, which will illuatmta thia proviaion. So. 2S7 of tha
'Phyaiologiaal Seriee' ia a toe from the right fore foot of a lion,
with the Uat phalanx retracted on the ulnar (which from the prone
atate of the toot ia the outer) aide of the aecond phalanx. This atate
of retraction ia oonitantly maintained, except when overoome by an
extending force, by meana of elaatio ligaments, two of which nave
hriatlea placed beneath them in the preparation. The principal one
ariaea ttiim the outer Me and diatal extremity of the aecond pnalani,
and ia imerted into the laperior angle of tha laat phalanx ; a aecond
ariaea from the outer aide and proximal end of the aeoond phalanx,
and pa«a«a obliquely to be insertMl at the inner aide of the bau el
the laat phalanx ; a third, which ariaea from the inner aide and
proximal extremity of the aecond phalanx, ia inaerted at the aame
point aa the preceding. The tendon of the fieior profundua perfonni,
which ia tha antagonut of the ligaments, has been divided. No. 3ST
A ia a toe from the left fore foot of a young lioneaa, with Ibe laat
phalanx drawn out, aa in the action of the flexor profundua. The
aame ligamenta are ahown aa in the preceding preparation, together
with the inaertion of the flexor and axtenaor tendona. In oider to
produce the foil effect of drawing out the daw, a comapondiig
action of tha sxtenaor muade ia neoeaaaty to support and fix the
aeoond phalanx ; by ita ultimate inaertion in the terminal phalsni,
it aervea alio to reatrain and regulate the actions of the flexor muaclt.
A bristle is placed beneath that part of the eitenaor tffiidon which
paaaea under one of the alastia ligamenta to be inaerted into the
baae of Uie laat phalanx immediatdy above the articulation. In
both preparatioDl lateral ptooessea of tendon may be observed going
to the under part of the base of the phalanx, which ore portly ineerted
there, and partly loat in the integument : they are given off from tbe
•xtenaoc tendon aa it paaaaa over the proximate phalanx, and are
joined by ligamentoot fibna from the «id«a of the aame phalanx.
7*1 TZLTDM,
Ka S8S in > to« from the right bind foot of t, lion, with tha Ust
phRluii drawn out, and the elutic ligamenfai put on tha ■tratah.
A> tha phalangM of tbe hind foot are rstrect«d in > difTerent !
diraction to those of the fore foot, that is, diractl; upon and not b; ^
the aide of the second phalanx, the elaitic ligunenta an ditTarentl;
diipoBed, II ma; be lecn bj comparing this with the precediog;
prepantion. The outer ligament is of a flattened triangular form ;
it arisea from the whole outer ude of tha middle phalanx, ia atrongeat
at the anterior maigin, and ia inserted at tha auperior angle of tbe
last phalanx ; the inner ligament is of a rounded farm, ariici fVom
the inner aide and distal end of tbe lecond phalanx, and is also
inserted at the superior angle at the Ust phalani, which ia necessarily
drawn back in tha diigoaal of the elastic forces. No. 286 A ii the
innermost toe or poUex of the right fore foot of a young lioness,
exhibiting a disposition of tbe elastic ligaments and mode of retraction
similar to the toe* of the hind foot ; but here the inner ligament ia
of the flattened triangular form, aiid the outer one rounded. The
latter panel between a division in the extensor tendon, one part of
which ii inteited in the base of the last pbalani juit above tbe
articulation ; the other part into the outer aide of tbe base of the
phalanx, and into the intc^uoient {' Catalogue, Physiological Series
Gallery,' toL L) " It seems scarcely neoessary," adds the able autJior
of the foregoing description, "to ulnds to the final intention of these
beautiful stniotures, whioh are, with some alight modifications,
common to the genus Feli$. The claws being thus retracted witbin
folds of Uie intwument, are preserved constantl; sharp, and ready
for their deitined fimcUans, not being blunted and worn away in the
ordinary progreiaive motions of the animal ; while at the same time,
as soft parts only are brought in contact with the ground, this
circumstance oontnlnites to ths noiieleia tread of the feline tribe."
CQslleiy.'J
FELIDiE. 7W
draw It baekwards direcUy upon, inst«ad of by the udc, of the
penultimate phalanx j c ii a process of lateral indaetio tendon ; and
d the tendon of the Beior profundus, which is strongly strapped
down by an «.nmil>p ligament t,
Tbe claw is lapported on tha lait phalanx, which is of a vecj
I>eculiar form. Its two portioss are united to each other at nearly
right angles. The base of the claw is received into a groove in the
body of tbe bone, to prevent its being pushed backwarda in the
violent action of the paws. The two partsoF the bone form a epeciea
of hook or crotchet. The anperior end of the phalnnx in this state
of repose ii placed almost vertically ; while the other extremity lies
nearly panllel to the second. The articulation ii at the upper end
of the vertical portion, and the flexor tendons, passing over tbe
upper part of the bone, are strongly flied to the other portion.
Tlie action of the flexor profundus causes the whole bone to n
SInietiirg of the ippantDB tor rstruUiiK and atsndlBi thi eliwi or the Cats,
u nniipllfled in the Inn foot ind hlod (dot a[ the lion.
Tha alaatia ligaments which retain the lart phalanx and olaw in s
state of nitraotion are not the same in tha fore and binfl foot.
In j^. 1, which ia a toe from the left fore toot of a young lion,
represented in a state of extension, a points to ths two elastic liga-
menta ; b, the tendon of tbe extanior muicle ; e, a proceas of inelastic
tendon j d, the tendon of the flexor moacle, which panes over the
Upper extremity of the last phalanx at «, as over a pulley, and thu*
assute the powerful action of that muscle.
In Jtg2, a toe from ths hind foot, the two etaitie ligaments
converge to b« ioserled into the apper angle of the Utt phalanx,
through 90 degrees rouiid the end of tbe s
TrailL)
Having laid before the reader the mechani
(Dr.
I parte more
flesh, we must notice ano^er argui which in the Cats is
for other purposes than those of mere toate and deglutition. Ths
roughness of a domestio cat's tongue is familiar to every one, aa
well as the action of lions and tigen in licking tha bonea of their
prey in order to detach any remnants of flesh uat may be adhering
thereto. This is efleoted by numerous homy papillae, vhioh are
differently arranged in diSereut spedes, some having them in straight
rows, othen in alternate lines ; hut in all the points are directed
backwards. In the Huseum of the Royal College of Surgeons are
preparations well illuatrating the atruature of ^e tongue in these
animals. No. 1608 exhibits the tongue and iaryni of a young lion
injected. The tongua ia of eonddanble length, in consequence of
the distance at whidi tbe latyni and oa hyoidea are placed behind
the btoiy palate. The soft palate is of a proportion^ extent. All
that part of tbe totigua which corresponds to the aufl. palate ia
amooth ; as it advances forward! it is covered with large soft papilhe
directed hackwarda ; then there are four large foasulate papilln,
snterior to which the simple conical papillm eontinae increasing in
siia to near ths tip of the tongue : the strong cuticutar apines with
which they are armed have been removsc^ ehowing the vascular
secreting surface beneath. With the larynx there are preserved
the thyroid glands and part of the wide trachea. No. 1510 is a
portion of the outicular oovering of tbe smaller posterior conioal
papillie, from tha [ireceding tongue. No. 1611 shows a portion of
t^e cutioular covering of the anterior papilla of the same tongue.
At the fore port of the base of each of the lai^er spines ma; be
observed a group of uaall guilatory papilhe. No. 1512 is ths
extremity of the tongue of a lion, with the cuticular covering of
the papilla) removed &am one side; and No. 1613 )s the anterior
part af^the tongue of a lion, with this cuticular and spiny covering
Profeaaor Owen remarka, that in tbe Cats generally the coimectian
of the OB hyoidea with the cranium is not by a long elastic licament,
as in ths lion, but by an uainterrnpted series of binies, and that this
latter structure exists in Uie Cheetah {Feli* ji^ala).
This leadi us to the other digestive oisana. Inths J'tfiiJiethesaliTatT
glands are small, as might be euerted where it can hardly be said
that mastication ia exercised. The stomach of the lion is divided,
b; a slight contraction in its middle, into two portions. Its coats,
particularly the muscular coat, are very strong, aa in most of the
Gamivora. Blumenbaoh observes, that in moit carnivorous quadru-
ped^ particularly thoie of a rapaciooa nature, tbe stomach bears a
considerable resemblance on the whole to that of the human aubjeoi
Mr. Lawrence, in his notes, remarks, that tha food of oatniv
.niU..i. appK«ohing in ita oonatitunii elemental more nearly to
747
FELID^.
FELIDJE.
74S
of the animal than that of the herbivoroua tribes, is more easily
reduced into the state which is required for the noiuishment of the
body in the former than in the latter case. In the Camivortt, the
stomach, which is of a cylindrical form, has no cul-de-sacs; the
OBSophagus opens at its anterior extremity, and the intestine com-
mences from the posterior, so that eveiythmg fitrours a quick passage
of the food, whidi receives no mastication, and is retained a rery
short time in the stomach. The intestine has no valves, is small in
diameter, but muscular, and the whole canal, when compared with
the body, is extremely short, being as 3 or 5 to 1. It is worth
noticing, that in the Domestic Cat they are as 5 to 1 , but in the
Wild Cat they are only as 3 to 1. Some of the Camivora have no
cfBcum, and in those that have this appendage it is constantly small
and uniform in its cavity. In the Museum of the College of Surgeons
are four preparations. Numbers 693 to 696 (Qallery), both inclusive,
showing the structure of the intestines of a lion. No. 724 shows the
termination of the ileum of a lion, with the csacum or caput coli
injected. The csecimi is simple, resembling that of the Suricate
{Ry2aBna tttradaetyla of Illiger), with its apex similarly occupied by a
cluster of glands ; the terminal orifice of the ileum is also of a
circular form, but it is situated on a valvular prominence in the laige
intestine. No. 730 is the injected colon of a lion. The longitudinal
muscular fibres are very strong, and are disposed aroimd tne whole
circumference of the intestine, which consequently is not drawn up
into saoculL The lining membrane is smooth, and is thrown into
zig-zag rugsB. No. 736 is a portion of the rectum of a lioness,
showiog the strong roimd fasciculi of longitudinal fibres forming the
outisr stratum of the muscular coat, part of which has been turned
down to show the inner circular fibres. The intestinal glands of the
ileum in the lion are shown by No. 757. No. 806 shows the liver of
the Domestic Cat, and its subdivision, as in all carnivorous quadrupeds,
into a great number of lobes. The second lobe from the left side, or
cystic lobe, is deeply cleft for the insertion of the suspensory ligament ;
to the right 'Of this cleft it is perforated for the lodgement of the
gall-bladder. No. 807 is the cystic lobe of the same species, showing
that the gall-bladder is situated in the middle of the substance of
the large lobe. \* Catalogue, Qallery, Phys. Series,' vol i) Blumen-
bach remarks that the ductus choledochus forms a pouch between the
coats of the inftestine for receiving the pancreatic duct in the Cat.
No. 821 in the Museum of the College of Surgeons displays a portion
of the duodenum, with the termination of the hepatic and pancreatic
ducts of a lion. A black bristle is passed into the ductus communis
choledochus, and a white one into the pancreatic duct ; the mucous
ooat of the intestine is laid open to show their junction. The orifice
of a distinct pancreatic duct is preserved. No. 887 is the spleen,
with a portion of the duodenum and pancreas of a domestic cat.
The spleen is of an elongated trihedral form, attached to the stomach
by a duplicature of peritoneum inclosing its vessels ; this duplicature
passes off from the angle formed by the two lesser sides. The splenic
vein is seen passing from the spleen along the pancreas, which extends
from it to the duodenum. No. 840 exhibits the stomach and duo-
denum, spleen, pancreas, and great omentum of a small carnivorous
animal, apparently of a oat. The parts have been injected, and show
remarkably well tiie principal peculiarities in the form and disposition
of these parts as they exist in the feline tribe. A part of the oeso-
phagus has been inverted, to show the transverse rugOD of its lining
membrane, near its termination. The stomach exhibits the broad
dilated cardiac and the narrow tubular pyloric divisions, which are
acutely bent upon each other ; in the duodenum may be observed its
regular extended curve, and its broad mesentery, by which much
greater freedom of motion is allowed to this portion of the intestinal
canal than in the human subjects The small omentum is seen
attached, not in a regtdan line along the lesser arch of the stomach,
but advancing in an irregular scolloped manner upon its anterior
surface ; an analogous process of peritoneum is attacmed posterior to
the lesser curvature. The great omentum anteriorly is continued
from the greater arch of the stomach, from the left end of which it
is continued down the spleen, and posteriorly along the pancreas,
which is thus seen to have an entire investment of peritoneum ; from
the pancreas it extends to the pylorus, where it beisomes continuous
with the anterior layer, completing the drde, and leaving a large
aperture behind the lesser arch of the stomach, which leads into the
omental cavity analogous to the foramen WinslowL The form of
the pancreas and its division into the transverse or greater lobe and
the circular or duodenal lobe are well shown, and also the form
and situation of the spleen. ('Catalogue, Gallery, Phys. Series,'
voL i)
The terrific roar with which the larger animals of this family rush
on their prey is well known, and well calculated to paralyse the
nervous system of the victim with fear. Stealing on the victim with
noiseless tread till couched within the proper distance for their spring,
these destroyers leap on it with a homd sotmd which salutes its ear
in the same moment almost that it feels the blow of the deadly talons
and the murderous gripe of the teeth. The cartilages of the larynx
of a lion, the large size of the vocal organ, and the rounded contour
of the epiglottis, may be seen in preparation No. 1172 (Gallery) of
the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. From the narrowness
of the thyroid cartilage anteriorly, there is a considerable interval at
that part between the thyroid and cricoid cartilages, a structure which,
as the ' Catalogue ' tells us, obtains in all the feline animals. No.
1129 consists of the heart and lungs of a kitten, and shows principally
the subdivision of the lungs into many lobes, and more e^>ecially
the small azygos lobe of the right lung, filling up the space which
intervenes between the heart and diaphragm in this and most other
quadrupeds. Vicq-D'Azyr and Blumenbach notice the two delicate
membranes lying under the ligamenta glottidis of the cat, which
probably cause the purring noise peculiar to it.
** The structure of the kidney in MammaHOf** observes Mr. Lawrence,
in his notes to Blumenbaoh's ' Comparative Anatomy,' ** displays two
very opposite varieties, which may be called the simple and the
conglomerated kidneys. In the former there is a single papilla,
which is surrounded by an exterior crust of the cortical substance.
This is the case in all the Feroe, and in some other animals, as many
Rodentia," " In some animals," says John Hunter, " t'he Iddney is a
very oblong body, extending in length for a considerable way, and
rerv narrow, as in some fish, while in other animals it is almost
globular, as in the leopard. ... In the lion kind, cat kind, as aLto
m the hysena, we find that perhaps one-half of the veins get on th<
external surface, and are either strongly attached to or pass in a
doubling of the capsule of the kidney, and then pass along like the
veins of the pia mater, afterwards joining the trunks fh>m the inside
just as they pass out. . . . The veins of the kidneys have in
general nothing particular respecting them. They in common attend
the arteries, or at least ramify similarly to the arteries, excepting in
the lion and cat kind, as also in the hyama, where some of the veins
ramify on the surface, while the others are attending the arteries."
The reader will find in the Museum of the College of Surgeons some
beautiful preparations illustrative of the kidneys, &c, of the Felida :
they are numbered 1200 to 1205 both inclusive, 1218 to 1221 both
inclusive, and 1284. (Gallery.)
Blumenbach observes that in some species of the Cat kind the
glans is covered with retroverted papillee, which, as these animals
have no vesicula seminales, may enable the male to hold the female
longer in his embraces. Most of the Cats are retromingent, but not,
as haa been so often and erroneously repeated from the time of
Aristotie, retrocopulant.
Brain, Nervous System, and Senses. — ^Blumenbach observes that
the bony tentorium cerebelli constitutes in most species of the Cat
kind a uniform bony partition which leaves a quadrangular opening
in the lower part of &e cranium. In the cat the brain forms ^ of
the body; the proportion of the weight of the cerebellum to the
cerebrum is as 1 to 6, and the breadth of the medulla oblongata behind
the pons Varolii is to that of the brain as 8 to 22. In the Museum of
the Royal College of Surgeons, No. 1324 (Gallery), is the brain of a
tiger. The pia mater has been removed from the medulla oblongata,
showing the transverse tract of medullary matter posterior to the
tuber annulare, called corpus trapezoideum ; this is travened by the
corpora pyramidalia. The development of the cerebrum is such as
not only to cover the optic lobes or bigeminal bodies, but also the
anterior half of the cerebellum itself; and the surface of the cerebrum
is augmented by convolutions, of which one is analogous to the single
convolution in the agouti, and extends parallel with the fissure
dividing the hemispheres ; a second runs parallel with and external to
the preceding ; a transverse one proceeding from the mesial fissure
marks>>ff what may be regarded as the anterior lobes, which, together
with the lateral regions of the hemispheres, are traversed by otiier
anfractuosities. No. 1325 is the brain of a lion, closely resembling the
preceding in general form and disposition of the convolutions. No.
1326 is the brain and part of the spinal chord of a young lion, with
the vessels of the pia mater minutely injected. The left lateral
ventricle is exposed, showing the pes hippocampi and the choroid
plexus. The fourth ventricle is also laid open, and contains a similar
plexus of minute arteries. Bristies are ins^iied into the hollow olfac-
tory and the optic nerves, and black threads are tied round the origins
of tiie remaining oerebral nerves of the right side. A small quill is
placed in the infundibulum ; but the pituitary gland, which may be
seen in both the preceding specimens, is here removed. The union of
the vertebral arteries to form the baisilar artery, the great length of
that vessel, and its division to join with the internal carotids in the
formation of the circle of Willis, are well displayed. No. 1326 is a
portion of the basis of the brain of a lion, prepared to show the
form and relative proportions of the bigeminal bodies or optic tubercles ;
of these, the posterior, though smaller in longitudinal diameter, are
broader, and rise above the level of the anterior pair. No. 1372 and
No. 1373 are two highly interesting preparations of the spinal chord
and Cauda equina of the lion. ('Catalogue,' voL iiL)
Bltmienbach, enumerates the Cat kind among the animals remarkable
for their acuteness in' the sense of smelling, and as affording examples
of a very complicated fonnation of the ethmoid bone, both in regard
to the elegant structure of its cribriform lamella, and to the wonderful
convolutions of ito turbinated portions, which procure as laige a
surface as possible within the confined space of the nasal cavity, for
the application of the Schneiderian membrane. The conchse narium
inferiores are also much convoluted. There is in the Museum of the
College of Surgeons (Gallery) a preparation (No. 1552) of a longitu-
dinal vertical sectioh of the head of a leopard, showing the turbinated
749
FELID^
FEUDM.
760
bones of the left side in situ ; and another, No. 1558, of a longitudinal
section of the side of the head of a young lion, showing the ossa
turbinata in situ also. The following luminous description of the
latter is given in the Catalogue {* Physiological Series/ vol iii.) : — "The
superior bone is of a conical form, extending along the whole of the
roof of the nasal cavity, with its base opposite to the frontal sinus
(which is here exposed), and its apex terminating above the anterior
extremity of the inferior turbinated bone. It presents a smooth or
uniform surface towards the nasal cavity, as may be seen in the
preceding specimen ; but the lamella forming this surface has been
partially removed, showing the subjacent lamella, which is folded
longitudinaJly : the more complicated disposition of the exterior
lamella of the same bone is exhibited on the opposite side of the
preparation, where the surface for the extension of the olfactoxy
membrane is augmented by a series of deep arched folds, having their
convexity upwards. The middle turbmated bone is also of a
pyramidal form, its broad basis being applied to the cribriform plate
of the ethmoid bone, and its apex extending between those of the
other two turbinated bones, but not reaching so far forwards. The
nasal or mesial surface of this bone is complicated by numerous deep
furrows, two of which extend longitudinally, parallel with the superior
margin of the bone, while the others radiate in an irregular manner
from the lower point of attachment The lateral surface of the bone
is less complicated and extensive. The inferior and anterior turbi-
nated bone is of an elongated form, and contracted at both extremities.
Its posterior and inferior extremity is attached to the outer parietes
of the nasal passage, below the middle of the turbinated bone : from
this point it extends obliquely upwards, enlax^ing as it crosses the
anterior extremity of the middle bone, and then diminishing in size
to its anterior and superior attachment behind the external nostril :
from its position therefore the odorous particles in inspiration must
first impmge upon this bone. Its nasu surface is pretty uniform,
presenting only one curved groove, parallel with and near to the lower
margin of the bone, in this respect differing widely from the lower
turbinated bone in the hare : its exterior surface is similarly charac-
terised. In the preparation the outer lamella has been cut away to
show the subjacent fold. The whole being minutely injected, the
vascularity of the pituitary membrane extended over this vast and
complicated surface is well displayed. The pituitarr membrane is
evidently thickest and most vascular at the anterior part of the
cavity, where it must receive the first impression of the external air.
A portion of the pituitary membrane ia reflected from the base of the
middle turbinated bone, showing the fibres of the olfactory nerves
spreading over it. In No. 1554 (the opposite section of the same
head) and No. 1555 (the intermediate section) this part of the organi-
sation ia still further illustrated.
The sense of hearing is acute in most of the Cats. There is, in the
greater dumber of mammiferous quadrupeds, connected with the
tympanum, another cavity which Blumenbach compares, with regard
to the situation of the bony organ that contains it, to the mastoid
cells in the temporal bone of man. In several animals (and the cat is
one of them) this organ is a mere bony cavity. The ossicula auditila,
considering the lenticulus as only a process of the incus, are three,
as in the human subject. In the Museum of the College of Surgeons
there is a preparation (No. 1600, Gallery) of a section of the cranium
of a young lion, including the organ of hearing of the left side. A
part of the meatus is preserved with the membrana tympani, aiA the
cavity of the tympanum is laid open, showing the convexity of the.
membrane tumea towards it^ as m most M€anmalia, (' Catalogue,'
vol. iii.)
Sight is acute in the FdicUs, and they have the nictitating membrane
very large and moveable. The pigment, as far as is known, is gene-
rally speaking of two colours, and the anterior perforation of the
iris is formed of two segments of large drdles joined, giving it a long
and a short axis, the long axis being verticaL In the Museum of the
College of Surgeons (No. 1710, Qallery) is the eye of a lion minutely
injected by the ciliary arteries, and the sderotio coat transversely
divided, and reflected from the choroid, to show the vascularity of
that tunic. No. 1730 is a preparation of the eye of a lion, showing
the broad patch of tapetum lucidmn below and also a little above the
insertion of the optic nerve. The succeeding numbers to No. 1788
inclusive are also illustrative of this part of the organisation in the
lion and the leopard. John Hunter, ' Observations on Certain Parts
of the Animal (Economy,* remarks, that when the pigmentum is of
more than one colour in the same eye, the lighter portion is always
placed at the bottom of the eye, in the shape of a half-moon with
the circular arch upwards ; the straight line or diameter passing
almost horizontally across the lower edge of the optic nerve, so that
the end of the nerve is within this lighter coloured part» which makes
a kind of semicircular sweep above it : and he observes that the
shape is peculiar to the Cat, Lion, Dog, and most of the carnivorous
tribe. Professor Owen observes that the Cheetah has the circular
pupil of the Lion, Tiger, Leopard, and Jaguar. (' Zool. Proc,' 1888.)
The osteology of the FelidcB presents little for the distinction of
species except size, and in no animal does specific character depend
upon size and colour more entirely than it does in this family.
Tnere are indeed differences : such for instance as that pointed out
by Professor Owen between the skull of the lion and that of the tiger;
but taken as a whole the skeleton of a cat is very nearly the minia-
ture representation of that of a lion or a tiger. We accordingly find
that the disposition of many leading zoologists has been to bring all
the numerous species under one genus. Linnseus arranges them under
Felia, the third genus of his order FertB, placing them between the
Dogs {CanU) and Viverr<i, Illiger assigns to them a position in his
order Falenlata, with the title Sanguinaria. Cuvier places them
under the name of Les Chats {FdUf Linn.) among his Carnivores, the
third family of his Camassiers, between the Hyaenas and the Seals.
Temminck regards the genus Felit as an indivisible group zoologically,
but separates them into two sections, the first comprising those which
are found in the Old Continent and its archipelagos, 18 species in
number ; the second those which occur in the New World, of which
he enumerates 9 species. Prince C. L. Bonaparte admits into his
family Fdina the genera ProCetes, ffycma, and Prionodan, a very
questionable admissidn. Dr. Leach gives the Lions a generic distinc-
tion with the name of Leo. The Lynxes are separated as a genus by
Dr. J. E. Gray, imder the title of LyTichvs ; and the Hunting Leopard
(Fdi9 Jvibaiaf) is characterised genexidly by Wagler as Oynailunu, The
whole family may be popularly divided into Lions, Tigers, Leopards,
Lynxes, and Wild Cats, or Cats properly so called — the two latter
terms being more particularly appUcable to the smaller forms.
Under the articles Mtjenina, Cakis, Yvlfidx, Viverrida, Bkabs,
MusTELiD£, Pbocida, will be found other families of Camivora, some
of which have been occasionally referred to the Fdidce.
Before proceeding to any description or illustration of this family,
it will be advantageous to the student to be put in possession of
M. Temminck's well-considered and digested monograph of the
genus Fdii, divided into two sections, according to their geographical
distribution.
Section 1.
This comprises the Fdidce of the Old Continent and its archipelagos.
Spedes.
Fdis Leo, including the three varieties of Barbary, Senegal, and
Persia.
F, Tigris, the Royal Tiger.
F, JvJbaiti, the Hunting Leopard.
F, Pardua, the Panther. Of this M. Temminck gives the following
character : — ^When adult, less than the Leopard. Tail as long as the
body and the head, its extremity when turned back reaching to the
tip of the nose ; colour of the fur deep-yellowish fulvous, its internal
part marked with rose-like spots of the same hue as the ground-colour
of the fur ; the numerous spots closely approximated ; the rose-like
spots from 12 to 14 lines at the utmost in diameter; caudal vertebras
28. — N.B. The number of caudal vertebne assigned to the Leopard
by M. Temminck is 22. It would appear that there is no correct figure
of the true Panther.
The Black Tiger, Felit meUu, Rimau Kumbang of Sir Stamford
Raffles, is considered as only a dark variety of the Leopard.
F. Uneia is considered as also to be erased from the list of species,
as it is only the young of the Leopard or Panther.
F, macroedii, the Rimau-Dshan.
F. Served, comprising F. Serval and F. Capentitf Linn., the Chat-
Pard of Desmarest^ and the Caracal of Bruce.
F. eervaria, the Lynx.
F, Catfu.
F. maniculata,
F, fMMAa, identical with the F. JavaneiuiM of Horsfield's ' Zoolo-
gical Researches in Java,' and therefore not to be adopted.
Section 2.
This comprises the Fdidce of the New Western World.
jP. conco2or, the Puma.
F, Onca, the Jaguar.
F, Jaguanmdi,
F. cdidogader. Bought by M. Temminck at the sale of Mr. Bullock's
collection tor the Museum of the Netherlands.
F. rufa, Quldenst, Bay-Cat of Pennant. With this M. Temminck
describes also a specimen brought from Mexico, which may prove
distinct. Bought by M. Temminck at Mr. Bullock's sale for the
Museum of the Netherlands.
F, pardalis, the Ocelot.
F, macrowa, — ^N.B. These two last confounded together by Linnseus
under the name of F, pardalit. The Mexican Tiger of Pennant is said
to be representative of F. macrowrcL
F, mitii, the Chati, F. Cuv.
F, tigriiuL
This monograph, as far as it goes, has been of great benefit ; but the
student should examine the menageries and museums, as well as the
works of other authors, and he will find several Cats noticed both
before and si^ce the publication of M. Temminck's Catalogue. Among
other authorities the publications of I^Azara, of Sir Stamford Raffles,
of F. Cuvier, of M. Desmarest, of Dr. J. E. Gray, of Dr. Horsfield,
and Mr. Vigors in the 'Zoological Journal,' of Dr. Horsfield in the
< Zoological Researbhee in Java»' of Prince Maximilian, of M. Lesson,
of Sir William Jardine (' Naturalists' library,' ' Mammalia,' vol. il»
iWino), uid of Mr. Darwin (' Zoology of tho BeBgle') nwy be wiwultea
with adTuita«a.
Dr. Horafield and Mr. Vigors (' ZooL Jour.,' vol. it. p. 880) remark
thai Oitj UK Dot of H. Teraminck'a oidoion, that the delerDunitioD
of speciea in ouch groapi u these rest* upon Biij examination, how-
ever acute, of prt»erTed BpecimenB in cabinet*, or in any reoeoreb,
hovercr eiten^ve, into the Etorea of furriers. Such eiamination,
they think, leads to conjecture ; probable and plausible conjecture, it
may be true, but atill conjecture, and not facta. They odd that we
ore in thia way as likely to fall into the error of confounding true
speciw OS into that of creating nominal ones, and they eipreaa their
opinion that the truth can be natiafactorily attaitied only by diligent
reaeorcbea in the nativs eountiy of these animiJBi or by accaral«
obserrations on their changes and differences as to aex, age, and aeaooa,
when in a Uring atate and ia confinement.
M. Temminck, in his ' Tableou Hdthodique ' (1827), states that then
there were known SO distinct spedes of Ca^ and 7 or 8 oth«r doubtfol
indications.
I. The Lioira.
Lion is the English name for the form in which canuTorous
deTelopment is generally considered to be the moat perfect : Aittr
of the Qroeka (AAuiu, Lioness) ; Zee of the Romans (iea and Itana,
Lioness) Leone of the Italians (Leoneaaa, Lioness); Leon of tie
Spanish J Lion of the French (Lioone, Lioness; Linoeao, whalp);
Laws of the Oermoni (Lowinn, Lioneaa). The male is, sa a general
rule, ornamented with a mane ; the female has no such ornament
There are, it appeon, distioguiahing oharoctcristica markingthe
differences between the ekulls of the Lion and Tiger. Profsosor Owen
explained these to a meeting of the Zxioio^ai Society of London
(1834), when several crania of these two apedSB were exhilnted. He
adverted to the dis-
tinctions pointed
out by Cuvier in
the ' Ossemens Fo>-
silea,' and remarked
on the first of them;
namely, thestmighb-
neas of the ouUine
in the lion Arom the
midspace of the post-
orhiUI processes to
the end of the nasal
bones in one direc-
tion, and to the oc-
ciput in the other,
as not being in all
cases available ; but
he regarded the
aeoond distinotion
— the flattening of
the interorbital
apace in the Uon
ud its convexity
in the Tiger— aa
being mora con-
stant and appro-
oiable. He pointed
out however a dis-
tinction which had Skilitoi
never, ocoording to
hia belief, Iraen published, which is, ha observed, well marked,
and whidi appears to be constant; for he found it to prevail
throughout the whole of the akulla of these animals which he
had examined, including ten of the Lion and upwards of twenty
of the Tiger. It consists in the pmlongation backwards in the
OTBnium of the Lioo, of the nasal pmceaaM of the maxillary bones
to the game tranareroe line which ie attained by the ooroDsl or
superior ends of the naaol bonea; in the Tiger the nasal pro(
of the maiilloiy bones never extend nearer to the trsni
plane attained by the nasal bonea than one-third of an inch, and
sometimes foil short of it by two-thirds, terminating also broadly in
a absight or angular outline, just as though the rounded and some-
what pointed ends which these processes hare in the Lion hod been
cut cC Professor Owen noticed also minor differences in the form
of the nasal aperture, which in the Tiger ii disposed to narrow down-
wards and become somewhat triangular, while in the Lion its tendency
is towards a square ahape ; in the deeper ainking in a longitudinal
depression of the coronal extremities of the nasal bonea in Uie Tiger
than in the Lion ; in tho hounding of thia depression above in moat
of the Tiger's crania by a small but distinct semilunar ridge, which
is not found in those of the Lion . ■ .■ . - .-
die, chiefly ■
in the Lion. Professor Owen remarked that it was curious that these
fonmina were double either on one or both oidea in the only four
aknlls eiamined of lions which were known to be Aaiatii^ whilst in all
the othen the foismen was single on each aide.
Another communication to the aame aodety becomes interesting
fZLtDM. fa
from its being Msociated with the popular belief that the Lion lashes
his aides wiUi hia toil to stimulate himself into rage. There waa
exhibited at one of the meeting! a claw obtained from the tip of the
toil of a young Barbary Lion praeented to the Saciety*! menagerie by
Sir Thomas Reade, than hia majeatVa consul at TripoU. It waa
detected on the living animal by Mr. Bennett, and pointed out to the
keeper, in whose banda it came off whilat he was examining it. The
specdmen having bean anbmitted to Mr. Woods for description, that
gentleman commenced by referring to the ancient writen quoted by
Blumenbaoh, (Homer (' IL' xx.), Lucon (' PhoisaL/ L 20S), Pliny
(' Hist.' Tiii^,among others), who hod described the Lion (erroneously)
OB Tmhing himoelf with his tail when angry, or to proToke himself to
rage. None of these writers however, he remarked, advert to any
peculiarity in the Lion's tul to which ao extraordinary a function
might, however incorrectly, be attributed ; but Bidymui Aleian-
drinus, a commentator on the ' Iliad,' cited by Blumenboch, having
found a black prickle-like horn among the hair of the tail, immediately
conjectured that he had aacertaioed the true cause of the otimulua
when the animal flouriahes his tail in defiance of hia enemies,
Ur. Woods then
subject fell for centorieg, tiU
Blumenbach, who obaerrea also that the later commentatois, Heyne
for instance, had notioed the opinion above stated, revived it, Btmnen-
bach having venfied the accuracy of Didymua Aleiandrtnus ss to the
foct, though he did not admit the oommentator'a iaference.
Blumenbach described the prickle aa small, dark-coloured, bard as
horn, placed in the very tip of the Lion'e tail, aurrouuded at its base
by an annular fold of the skin, and adhering Qnnly to a singular follicle
of a glandular appearance. But Blumenbach remarked that these
porta were w minute, and ths small homy apex so buried in Uie tuft
of hair, that the use
attributed to it by
the ancient scholiast
con only be re-
garded as imagin-
ary. Again, accord-
ing to Hr- Woods,
the subject appcora
to have elumbered
till 1829, when M.
Deshayea announo-
ed ('Ann. dee ScL
Nat,' vol. va) that
he had found (he
prickle both of a
lion and lioneaa
and deacdbed it as
a littie noil or homy
production, about
two lines in length,
presenting the fona
of a smMl sane, a
little recurved u^
itself, and adhering
by its base only to
the akin and not to
of Uon, the hat Caudal vei^
tebra, from which it
waa separated by a space of two or three lines. From that
period Mr. Woods suffered no opportunity to escape him of eiamm-
mg the tails of every lion, living or dead, to which he could gain
aooeaa ; but in no instance had he aucceeded in finding the
prickle till the specimen which was then before the committee was
placed in his hands, within half an hour after its removal from
the living animal, and while yet soft at ita base where it hod
been attached to the skin. He described it aa formed of corneous
matter like an ardinory noil, and solid throughout the greater part of
its length towards the apex, where it ia oharp; and at the other
extremity oa hollow, and a little expanded. Its shape was rather
singular, being nearly straight for one-third of its length, then dightly
and aftsrworda swelling out like the bulb of a briatie to its termi-
nation. It waa laterally flattened throughout its entire length, which
did not amount to quite three-eighths of en inch. It was of a hom-
coLour, but becams darker, nearly to blackness, at the tip. Ita
appearanoe, Mr. Woods obawred, would lead to the belief that it was
deeply inserted into the akin, wiUi which however from the readiness
with which it became detached, its connection must have been very
slight. It ia to lhi« Blighlneaa of adhesion that K. Deshayes attributes
its usual absence in atufiM specunens ; and the aame cause will
aocount for its absence in by su the gieeler number of living indi-
viduals ; for, oa Mr. Woods remarked, ita presence or abaence does
not depend upon age, because the Paris lions in which it waa found
were of considerable tiae, while that belonging to the Society waa
very email and young ; nor upon sex, for although wanting in ths
femala onb of the wmc litter kt Uia Sooiaty'* Oardeni, it uiftKl in
the lionm tA the Jsrdin du Roi.
Mr. Wood*, thiokiDg it probable that theu priokle* might aiiit In
other ipeoiet of Ptlit, b»d preriouely eiKmined the toili <if nearly the
-whole of the rtuffed ikini in the Society** Muwum, but feUed in
d«tMting it in eiery insUnM but one. This wu an adult Ariatio
I-oopArd, in which the nul wai evident, although extremely amiill. It
w»* abort and rtraigbt, but perfectly conical, with a broed baie.
Mr. Woodi obeerred that it wm ttatcd in a note in the ' Edinburgh
PhiloKiphiol Journal,' where * txantlation of BlumBobach's paper
bad bean given, that a claw or priokle had also been obwfrved by the
editor of that work on the tail of a leopard. Ko nuch lb
however waa detected by Mr. Wood* on a living individual .„ ™=
Society"! Menagerie. In the Loopwd therefort. iw in the Lion, it
appcan to be only oerauiooally preaent. In boUi it ii reated at the
extreme tip of the toil, and is altogethrr unconnected with the
terminal oiudal vertebra. Frum the narrownesa and ahapn of ita baae,
the circumference of wbich ia by hr too amdl to allow of ita being
fitted like a oap upon the end of the tail, it appeared to Mr. Wooda
ivther to be inaerted into the akin, like the bulb of a briatls or
vibriua, than to adhere to it by the margin, ai deacribed by
M. Deahayea. Neither the publiahed obearvationa of that zoologiat
nor the diacovery then communieatfd to the Society could, it waa
obeerved, throw any l%ht on tiie eiiitenoa or at " "
■nppoHd glandalar follicle noticed by Blumenbach.
Mr. Wooda concluded by remarking that it ia difficult to conjacture
the uie of tbeee pricklea, their application aa a atimalua to anger
being of course out of the quaation ; but ba obaerved that it could
not be very important, for, to say nothing of their amall aizo and
envelopment in the fur, the majority of individuals, in conafqucnce
of tbe readinesa with whioh the part is detached, are
for the remainder of their Uvea. (' ZooL Proo.,' 1832.)
FELID.l'.
The True Liona belong to the Old World excluaively, and they
were fonnarly widely and plentifully diffused ; but at pment they
nre confined to Aaia and Africa, and they are becoming every diy
more and more scarce in thoae quarten of the globe. That lions
were onoe fiund in Europe there can be no doubt. Thus it is
recorded by Herodotua that the baggage camels of the army of Xerxes
to Therme, afterwaida Thassalonica (now Salonikt) : the camels alone,
it ia stated, ware attacked, other baaets remaining untouched as Well
aa men. The same historian also obserVH that the liniila in Europe
within which Uons were then found were the Nenus or Naitus, a
Tbracian river running through Abdera and the Achelous, which
waters Acamania. (Herod., vii. c 125-l!e,ScbweighsiujKr.) Aristotle
{vi. 31} says that the lion ia in fact an animal but little known. "In
the whole of Europe, for example, there ai'e no lions except between
the Achelous and the Nessus." Again, the aame author (viiL, xxviiL
33 of Scalic-er's division) mentions Europe as abundant in liona, and
especially in that part whiuh is between the Achelous and Nessus ;
apparently copying the statement of Herodotus. Pliny (viii. Ifl) does
the same, and adds that the liona of Europe are stronger than those
of Africa and Syria. Fausanias copies the same story as to tbe attack
of the lions on the camels of Xerxes ; snd he states moreover that
lions often dascended into the plains at the foot of Olympus, which
aeparatea Macedonia from Theeealy; and that Polyilamas, a oelebraled
atlilete, a oontemporary of Darius Nothus, slew one of them, although
he waa unanned. The pasasgo in Oppian (' Cyneg ,' iii. 22) wliich
some have oonsidered as indicating the existence of lions up to the
banks of the Danube, fails as an authority for placing the Lion in
that locidity, becauae, as Cuvier oboerves, the oonteit shows plainly
that the name of later is there applied to an Armenian river either
by an error of the author or of the tnnscriben.
Nor ia Europe the oaly part of the world From which tbe form of
the Lion bsa disappeared. Lions are no longer to be found in Egypt,
PaleBtine,or8yria,whor ■' ' " '"
The frequent allusions
Palestine, or Syria, where they once were evidently far from
The frequent allusions to the Lion in the Holy ScriptU-._
various Hebrew terms there used to distinguish tbe diffsrent agea aud
of tbe animal (see particularly Jar., IL 3S ; Ezek., xix. 2 ; Nah., it.
13; Eiek., xix. 2, 3 ; Tsalm ici. 13; Frov., lii. 12, Ac; Nah„ ii. 12,
Ac; Job,iv. 10— 1.16; Pn)Y„ixvL 13; Hosea, v. H— xiiL 7 ; Prov.
XII. 30) prove a familiarity with the habits of the race. Even in Asia
generally, i
Persia, and
.. with the exception of some countries between India and
'oTua, and some diatricta of Arabia, theae msgnifloent beasts have, aa
Cuvier observes, become onmparatively rare, and **''' ia not to ba
wondered at. To say nothing of the immense draughts on the taoa
for tbe Roman arena — and they were not inconsiden^le, for, as Zim-
merman has shown, there were a thouaacd lions killed at Home in the
apace of forty years — population and civilisation have gradually driven
them within narrower limits, and their deatmction baa been rapidly
worked in modern times when fire-arms have been used against tbem
instead of the bow and the spear. The African Lion is annually
retiring before the persecution of man farther and futher from tbe
Cape. Mr. Bennett ('Tower Menagerie") says of Uia Lion; " Hia
true country Is Africa, in the vast and untrodden wilds of which,
from the immense deserts of tbe north to the trackless foresta of the
south, he reigns supreme and uncontro'led. In the sandy deaerta of
Arabia, in some of the wild diBtricta of Persia, and in the vaat jungles
of Hindustan, he still maintains a precarious footing ; but from Iha
classic soil of Qreece, as well as from the whole of Asia Minor, both of
which were once exposed to hia ravages, ha hsa bean utterij dialodgsd
and extirpated."
Liona of tbe Old World. — Zoologists generally distinguish the Lion
by its uniTorm yeUew colour, the tuft of bair at the end of tbe t^
and tbe mane coverioE the bead and shoulders of the male. Thia hurt
ornament, as we sh^l presently see, is very much reduced in on*
vnriety with which we ware msde well acquainted some years ago by
Captain Smee ; indeed so scanty is it that it hardly deserves the nams
of a mane at all.
If we go back to an early period, we shall find varieties of this
great oat, usually considered as thestrongeat of the family, depending
on the greater or less inteoaity of colour tor the most part, mentioned
by ancient writers on natural history. Thu^ Aristotlo (ix. ii) dJM-
tinguiehes two kinds of lions, one rounder than the other (irrpiiYyv
X^tpBv), and' which haa the mane more curled (s&AoTpijc^tpor), whidt
be states to tie the most timid (liixirtpiiy) ; the other longer and with
■ welMeveloped mane (((rrpixar), which he aaya is more oourageona
(ifSptufrfpev). Ptiny (viiL 16) remarka that the Lion is most nobla
when a mane coven hia neck aud shoulders ; and he also (loo. cit)
alludca to a manelesa lion, the ofbpring of a monatroua oonneotioil.
(" Leoni pnecipua generoaitaa, tunc cum colls armosque vestiunt jubta.
Id enim slate contingit e leona oonceptis. Quos varo pardi genara-
vere, insigni boo carent.") In Africa, he goee on to remark, auoh oon-
□ections are frequent: "Multiformea ibi animalium partus, vaiia
fieminis cujusque generis mares sut vi aut voluptale fniacenta;"
whence, he adds, the Greek vulgar aaying. that Africa is always pro-
ducing something new. In the same chapter, Pliny, after alluding to
the European liona and their comparative boldnesa, as above atated,
repeats the observation of Aristotle, that there are two kinds of liou^
one compact and short with curled mane, which are mote timid than
those with a long and simple one (" longo simplidque villo ") j whieh
last deapisa the wounds inflicted on them. In the ITth chapter of tha
same book, Syria is stated to t>e the locality of a black lion ; " cntaria
inua ci^uaque generia color est. Leonum tantnm in Syria uiger."
£lian (xvii. 26) distinguishes ths lions whioh coma from India &om
>ther liona, atating that the skin of the Indian lions ia black. Oppian
,iii.), towards the beginning of that book, notices the difibrancei
between the liona of Armenia, Arabia ('Eptfifiw' V>V)> ^^fS '"'^
Ethiopia.
Theae distinctions are altogether rejected by Bufibn, who denies that
lere are different kinds of Uona. He denies, also, that any lion haa
curled mane, which, by the way, Aristotle does not assert, for ha
only aaya that one kind haa the mane mors curly than the other.
Buflbn further affirms that the lions of A&ica and Aua entirely
resemble uch other ; and deolarea that if the lions of the mountains
differ from those of the plains, the diSerenca in leas in the oalour of
the skin than in the siie of the respective animals.
LLnnaus, in bis last edition of the ' Syst. Nat," notices no varieties :
he placea Fdii £ca at the head of his genus Felit, with Africa only M
ths habitat. Neither doea Qmelin distinguish any varietiea, but h*
much increasea the distribution ; for he speaks of the Lion aa inha-
biting Africa, especially in the interior, aa being rater in the deeerta of
Persia, India, and Japan, and aa having formerly occurred in othar
warmer parte of Aaia, in Palestine, in Armenia, and in Thrace.
Pennant (' Hist. Quad.,' 3rd edition) appears to coincide in opinion
with Buffon, Linueaus, and Qmelin ; for he mentions no distinotiona,
and describes the Lion as " an inbabitant of most parte of Africa, and
rarely of tbe hot parts of Asia, such as India and Persia ; and a few
are still met with in the deserta between Bsgdat and Bsssorah, on tba
banks of ths Euphrates. Mr. Niebuhr also places them among tlka
animals of Arabia ; but their proper country is Africs, whale thor
a the largest, their numbers greatest, and their rage more ti»
ouB, being inflamed by the influence of a burning sun upon a
arid soiL Dr. Fryer says that those of India are feeble and
cxiwardly. In the interior parts, amidst the scorched and deaolata
deserts of Zaan, or Biledulgerid, they reign sole masten ; tbej lord
it over every beast, snd Uieir courage never meets with a check, where
the climate keeps mankind atadiatanoe; the nearer they amroaoh
:ants of Uia human race, the less their rage, or rather the
greater ia their timidity i they have ollen experienced the unequal
760
FELID^.
VELIDJEL
oomba\ and Boding that there exists a being superior to them, commit
their ravages with more caution. A cooler climate again has the same
effect ; but in the burning deserts, where rivers and fountains are
denied, they live in a perpetual fever — a sort of madness fatal to every
animal they meet with."
Dr. Leach raii<ed the form to the rank of a genus tmder the name
of X«o.
- M. Lesson, in his ' Manuel' (1827), gives four varieties, namely, the
lion of Barbary, the lion of Senegal, the lion of Persia or Arabia, and
the lion of the Cape.
Cuvier (' R^gne Animal,' 1829) places at the head of the great genus
Fdia, " Le Lion {Pelis Leo, Linn.)," and describes it as diffbinguished
by its uniform yellow colour, the tufb of hair at the end of the tail,
and the mane wluch covers the head, neck, and shoulders of the male.
" It is," continues Cuvier, " the strongest and the most courageous of
the animals of prey. Spread, at one time, over all the parts of the
ancient world, it would appear at the present day nearly confined to
Africa and some neighbouring parts of Asia."
M. Temminck, in his * Monograph,' includes three varieties under
Felts Leo, namely, the lions of Barbary, Senegal, and Persia, and these
are retained in Dr. Fischer's ' Synopsis.'
Mr. Bennett {* Tower Menagerie,' 1829) notices the Bengal Lion,
the Cape Lion, and the Barbary variety (figuring the two former), and
observes upon their distinctions.
Sir William Jardine (* Naturalists' Library,' * Mammalia,* yoI u.,
FeUncB, 1834), in addition to other plates, haa given a figure of the
Asiatic varie^ from a specimen in the Surrey Zoological Gardens,
and, after noticing that the lions of Africa and India have been
described as varieties, states his strong suspicions that future observa-
tions will prove these animals to be in reality distinct species, and
notices them separately under the names of Leo AfHcanua and Leo
Asiaticus ; he also alludes to the Maneloss Lion.
Mr. Swainson (' Classification of Quadrupeds,' 1835) places the
African Lion {Leo Africantu, Sw.) at the head of the Felida. In his
arrangement at the end of the volume he notices tiie form under the
designation of *' Leo Antiquorum {Lions). Head and neck furnished
with a mane of long hair ; tail tufted." The next genus. Felts L,
(Cats), he charactei-ises thus : " No mane ; tail long, not tufted." In his
* Animals in Menageries,' 1838, the Lion does not appear to be noticed.
Of the African Lions Temminck notices two varieties — that of Bar^
bary and that of Senegal M. Lesson adopts these two varieties, and
adds Uie Lion of the Oipe, of which he gives two varieties.
The Lion of Barbary. — This lion is described as having a deep
yellowish-brown fur, and the mane of the male is stated to be very
much developed.
The Lion of Senegal is characterised by a fur of a more yellow tint,
the mane in the male being less thick, and nearly wanting upon the
breast and insides of the legs.
The Lion of the Cape presents two varieties, one yellowish and
the other brown : the latter is regarded as the most ferocious and
formidable. The Dutch colonists speak of the " blue and the bhiok "
kinds, and it- seems indeed that there is a black-maned lion, one of
which, accompanied by his lioness, Mr. Burchell appears to have
encountered in his travds in Africa.
Mr. Burchell well observes, that ' King of the Forest ' is a title not
very applicable to an animal which he at least never met but on the
plains ; nor did he ever meet with one in any of the forests where he
had been. The low cover that creeps dong the sides of streams, the
patches that mark the springs, or the rank grass of the valley, seem
to be the shelter which the African Lion for the most part seeks. Of
the strength of this variety we have most extraordinaiy examples on
record. To carr^ off a man — and there are dismal accounts of this
horrible fact, which there is no reason to doubt — appears to be a feat
of no difficulty to this powerful brute. Indeed, when we find that a
Cape lion seized a heifer in his mouth, and, though the legs dragged
upon the ground, seemed to carry her off with the same ease as a cat
does a raty leaping over a broad dike with her without the least diffi-
culty— that another, and a yoimg one too, conveyed a horse about a
mile from the spot where he had killed it— and that a third, which
had carried off a two-year old heifer, was followed on the spoor, or
track, tor five hours by horsemen, when it appeared that throughout
the whole distance the carcass of the heifer was only once or twice
discovered to have touched the ground (Sparrman) — the asportation of
a man shrinks into insignificance as a demonstration of strength.
There seems to be an idea that the Lion prefers a human prey ; but
be this as it may, the inhabitants of certain districts have, it appears,
been under the necessity of resorting to a curious expedient to get
rs,.^ of their reach. Messrs. Schoon and M*Luckie, in 1829, penetrated
-s> the eastward of Kurrichaine, situated about 200 miles to the north-
east of Litakou. They discovered, east of Kurrichaine, or Chuan, as
it is more properly named, the river Moriqua, which rises in the south
between the 25th and 26th degrees of latitude, and 29th and dOth
de^g;rees of longitude, taking a north-easterly course, and about 100
miles from the ford enters a high ridge of mountaina From hence,
according to the natives, it flows into Uie sea, through the country of
the Mantatees. About 70 miles to the eastward, the range of moun-
tains takes a direction north and south. At the distance of 14 miles
to the south, along the base of the motmtains, is a place called Ongo-
rutoie-Fountain, where there ia a large tree containing seventeen
huts. These are used as dormitories, being beyond the reach of tiw
lions, which, since the incursion of the Mantatees, when so manj
thousands of persons were massacred, have become very numerous in
the neighbournood, and destructive to human life. The bran^kee of
these trees are supported by forked sticks or poles, and the^e are three
tiers or platforms, on which the huts are constructed. The loweflfc is
nine feet from the ground, and holds ten huts ; the seoond, aboict
eight feet high, has Uiree huts ; and the upper story, if it may be so
called, contains four. The ascent to these is made by notches cot in
the supporting poles, and the huts are built with twigs, thatched with
straw, and will contain two persons conveniently. The trsTeUers had
previously visited several deserted villages, similarly built, beiweee
the Moriqua and Leutlecan rivers, as well as in oUier plaoes; but
these were erected on stakes about eight feet above the ground az»d
about forty feet square, larger in some places, and containing aboot
seventy or eighty huts. The inhabitants sit, it is stated, under tbe
shade of these platforms during the day, and retire to the devated
huts at night.*
The general prey of the African Lion consists of the laiger herbi-
vorous quadrupeds, verv few of which it is unable to master, and it
is a severe scourge to the farmer, who is consequently ever on tbe
look-out for lions, and generally a most imperturbable and unerrio|^
shot. Though mortal accidents frequently happen in these hunting8»
the cool sportsman seldom fails in using his nfle vrith effect, laaa
when roused, it seems, walk off quietly at first, and if no cover is near,
and they are not pursued, they gradually mend their pace to a trot,
till they have reached a good dLstance, and then they bound away.
Their demeanour upon these occasions has been described to us by
eye-witnesses to be of a careless description, as if they did not want a
fray, but if pressed were ready to fight it out. If they are pursued
closely, they turn and couch, generally with their faces to the adversary;
then the nerves of the sportsman are tried. If he is collected and
master of his craft, the well-directed rifle ends the scene at once ; but
if, in the flutter of the moment, the vital parts are missed, or the ball
passes by, leaving the lion xmfaurt, the infuriated beast frequently
charges on his enemies, dealing destruction around him. This
however is not always the case, and a steady unshrinking deportment
has, in more instances than one, saved the life of the hunter. Mr.
Burchell gives an interesting account in his African travels of his
confronting one of these animals. "The day was exceedingly pleasant^
and there was not a cloud to be seen. For a mile or two, we travelled
along the banks of the river, which, in this part^ abounded in tall
mat-rushes. The dogs seemed much to enjoy prowling about, and
examining every bushy place, and at last met with some object among
the rushes which caused them to set up a most vehement and deter-
mined barking. We explored the spot with caution, as we suspected,
from the peculiar tone of their baric, that it was what we suspected
it to be, — lions. Having encouraged the dogs to drive them out, a
task which they performed with great willingness, we had a full view
of an enormous black-maned lion and lioness. The latter was seen
only for a minute, as she made her escape up the river, under the
concealment of the rushes ; but the lion came steadily forward, and
stood still to look at us. At this moment we felt our situation not
free frx>m danger, as the animal seemed preparing to spring upon us,
and we were standing on tbe bank, at the distance of only a few yards
from him, most of us being on foot and unarmed, without any visible
possibility of escaping. I had given up my horse to the hunters, and
was on foot myself; but there was no time for fear, and it vras useless
to attempt avoiding him. ... I stood well upon my guard, holding
my pistols in my hand, with my finger upon the trigger ; and those
who had muskets kept themselves prepared in the same manner. But
at this instant the dogs boldly flew in between us and the lion, and
surroimding him, kept him at bay by their violent and resolute
barking. The courage of those faithful animals was most admirable :
they advanced up to the side of the huge beast, and stood making the
greatest clamour in his face, without the least appearance of fear.
The lion, conscious of his strength, remained unmoved at their noisy
attempts, and kept his head turned towards us. At one moment, the
dogs perceived his eye thus engaged, had advanced dose to his feet^
and seemed as if they would actually seize hold of him ; but they paid
dearly for their imprudence, for, without discomposing the majestic
and steady attitude in which he stood fixed, he merely moved his
paw, and, at the next instant, I beheld two lying dead. In doing this
he made so little exertion, that it was scarcely perceptible by what
means they had been killed. Of the time which we gained by the
interference of the dogs, not a moment was lost: we fired upon
him ; one of the balls went through his side, just between the short
ribs, and the blood began to flow, but the animal still remained
standing in the same position. We had now no doubt that he would
spring upon us: every gun was instantly i-eloaded; but happily we
were mistaken, and were not sorry to see him move quietly away,
th<>ugh I had hoped in a few minutes to have been enabled to take
hold of his paw without danger." Even where the hunter has been
* See < South African Joamal,' September, 1880 ; and Steedman's * Wander-
ings and Adventures in the Interior of Southern Africa, where the reader will
find a drawing of tbe inhabited tree above described, taken by Mr. Moflkt of
Litakou, who also visited this ipot.
?57 FELID^.
seized with & panic ud punued, a tiiuelf recoveiy of wlf-pOBMesioD
has Baved him. SparmiMi relates that Jacob Kok of Zee-Koe-Itivier,
one day volking over bis lands with bia loaded gun, uneipectadly met
a lioD. Being na Bicellect shol^ he thought himself pretty certain,
from the poaition in which he was, of killing it, and therefore fired
bia piece. Unfortunately he did not recollect that the chaive had
been in it for some time, and congequeotly was damp ; so that his
piece huQg fire, and the ball falling short, entered the gmmid cloae to
tile lion. In consequence of thia ne was seized with a panic and took
directly to hia heels ; but being soon out of breath and doaelj ptusued
by the lion, ha jumped up on a little heap of stones, and there made
a stand, presenting the butt end of his gun to his adTetsary, full^
resolved to defend his life aa wall as he could to the utmost. This
deportment had such an effect on hia pureuer, that he also made a
atuid, and lay down at the distance of a few pscea from the heap of
StoneB seemingly quite □nconcemsd. Jacob, in the mean time, did
not stir from the spot ; besides he had in hia Sight unfortunslely
dropped Ills powder-horn. At length, after waiting a good hslf-bour,
the lion rose np, and at first went very slowly, and step by step only,
as if he had a mind to ateal oS; but as soon as he got to a greater
distance, he began to bound away at a great rate. There is hardly a
book of African travels which does not teem with the dangers and
bair-breadth escapes of the lian-huntere, and hardly one that does not
include a fatal ianie to some engaged in this hazardoua sport ; but
our limits will not allow us to enter into further details on this part
of the subject, and we must refer to such works for acoonnta-^and
they are very intereating— of the different modes of destruction
employed againat thia powerful beast^ &om the poisoned arrow of the
Bushman to the rifle of the colonists
A&icaa Uon (£« JfiiaanH). (Barbarj.]
The following aitraols tnm an anonymous work entitled ' Zoolo-
gical Anecdotes' embody some of the observations made by Hr.
Cuming, whose collection of stufibd '"iii'li from Afiica wete so long
■ihibiMd at Hyde Park Comer : —
" The followmg powerfully-drawn picture convevs a most aocnrate
idea of the fearful banquets held in the primsvsl forests of Africa,
and at the same time la full of intereat ^m the light it throws on
the habits of the Oarnivora. Ur. Cnmtng had shot three rhinoceroses
near a fountain, sod soon after twilight had died away he oame down
to the water to watch for lions. With him wsa his Hottentot
Kleinhoy. ' On reaching the water I looked towards the carcass of
the rhinooerca, and to my Bstoniahment I beheld the ground alivs
with laige oreaturea, aa though a troop of sebrsa were approaching
the water to drink. Kleinboy remarked to me that a troop of sebras
were atanding on tba height. I answered ' Yes ;' but I knew very
well that ubraa would not be oapering around the carcass of a rhino-
ceros. I quickly arranged my blankets, pillow, and guns in the hole,
and then uy down to feast my eyes on the interesting dght before
me. It was blight moonlight, aa clear as I need wish. Thgrs were
ail large lioae, about twelve or fifteen hynnas, and from twenty to
thirty jackaJls, feasting on and around the caroasses of the three rhino-
ceroses. The lions feasted peaceably, hut the bysenas and jackalls
fought over every mouthful, and chaaed one another round and round
the carcasses, growling, laughing, screeching, chattering, and howling,
without anj intermission. The hyBnas did not seem afraid of the
.!._. _i.i .. .1 . . . ^^j before them; for I obsBTvad
t dijffespactful manner, and stood
FELID.*.
laughing, ana or two on either side, when any hons oame after tl
comrades to eiamiae pieces of skin or bones which
away.' The following account of an attack by one' o
eaters, aa they'are called (for having once tasted human flesh tboT
will eat nothing else if it can be obtained), makes the blood run coliL
Mr. Cumuig and his party had, unknown to them, pitched their camp
in the proximity of a lion of this description. All had retired to rest,
when (says Mr. C.) ' suddenly the appalling and murderoos voice of
an angry bloodthiraty lion burst upon my ears within a few yards of
us, foUowad by the shrieking of the Hottentots. Agun and again tha
murderous roar of attack was repeated. We heard John and Buyter
ahriek, ' The lion t the Hon I' Still for a few momenta wa thought
he waa but chasing one of the dogs round tha kisal, bat the next
instant John Stofulus rushed into the midat of us, almost speechless
with fear and terror, his eyes bursting from their socketa, and shrieked
out, ' The lion I the lion I Be hae got Hendrick t He dragged him
away from the fire beside me, I struck him with the burning brands
upon hia head, but he wouldn't let go his hold. Hendrick is dead )
0 Qod 1 Hendrick is dead t Let ua take fire and seek him.' The
rest of my people ruabed about shrieking and yelling as if they were
mod, J was at once angry with them for their folly, and told them
that if they did not stand still and keep quiet the lion would have
another of us, and that very likely there wss a troop of them. I
ordered the dogs which were nearly all fsat to iw made loose, and tha
fire to ha increased as fiu- as could be. I then shouted Hendrick's
name ; but all was stilL 1 told my men that Hendrick was dewi, and
that ■ raiment of soldiers could not now help him; and hunting mj
dogs forward, I had everything brought withm my cattle kraal, when
we lighted our fire and loosed the entrance as well aa we could. It
appeared that when the unfortunate Hendrick rose to drive in tha
ox the lion had watched liim to his fireside, and he hod scaroelv lain
down when tha brute apiang'npon him and Buyter (for botb lay
under one blanket) with liis appalling murderous roar ; and roaring
as he lay, grappled b™ with bis fevful daws, and kept biting bim
on the breast and shoulder, all the while feeling for bis neck ; liaving
got hold of which, he at once dragged him away backwards round tha
bush into the dense shade. As (he lion lay on the unfortunate man
he Wntly cried, ' Help mo I help me I 0 Qod I men, help ma I '
After which the fearful beaat got hold of hia neck, and then all was
still, except that hia oomrades heard the bones of his neck cracking
between Uie teeth of the lion.' It is satiefactor; to know that on the
following day Hr. Cuming took revenge on the lion, whose huge grisly
hide is to be seen in his collection at Hyde Park Comer."
Of Asiatic Lions three kinds are mention ed-^the Bengal Lion, the
Persian or Arabian Lion, and the Maneless Lion of Quzerat.
The Bengal Lion. — Mr. Bennett points out the characteriatics by
which the Asiatic race is distinguished from that of Southern Africa,
as consisting principally in the larger size, the more r^ular and
graceful form, the generally darker colour, and the less eilensivs
mane of the African. He gives a beautiful cut of the Bengal Lion,
executed by Harvey, in the ' Tower Menagerie,' from a very fine
specimen little more than five years old, then in that collection, but
called by tJie keepers ' The Old Liou.' The magnificent development
of the mane ia very striking in this figure.
eiUbitaJ iu Englnni] aa Fenian Liooe certaiolv bear out thu remark ;
Inb CapUin Smea obaerrw that the Ferwan Lioa formerly szhibited
at the Surrey ZooIogioU Qnrdens aeemed to him to differ but little
from fndividuala known to b« brought troat AAiok
■s»/i:
;>/
« Lion of Ouzerat — The reader nill bear in mind the
paaaage quoted from Pliny (liil 16}, touching liona which have
BO mane, and of ths origin attribut*d to tbam. Cuvier notjoei the
itatement that tnaoeleiiB liona had been found on the confine*
AnbiifUuI merely refen to OliTJer, obMrriog that there i> no detailed
description giran of them. A loological deacription ie doubUt
to be found in Ohvier; but ha enten Bomawhnt minutely is
mbject.aa the reader will here see, " The lion," aaje Olivier ('VoTage
duia I'Empire Othoman, I'Egypte, st 1& Psne,' torn, iv.), " which
inhabits the part of Arabia and Famia near tbe river of the Anbe,
ftom the Peraian Gulf to the environs of Hella aod of Baghdad, is
probably the apeciee of lion of which AriatoUe and Pliny have spoken,
and which they regarded oe a difFferent apedea from that which ti
of Africa. The Lion of Arabia haa neither
lurage, nor the etaturo, nor evan the beauty of the other. When
he would aaiEe bia pray be haa recourse to cunning nther than force ;
he crouchea among tha reeda which border the Tigria and Guphntes,
and springe upon all tha feeble animata which come there to quench
their thirst ; but he dares not to attack the boaj, which is very com
moD there, and flin sa aoon aa he perceivea s mau, a woman, or evat
a child. If he catchaa a aheap, he makes off with hia prey ; but hi
abandons it to save himself, whan an Arab runa after him. If be ii
hunted by horaemen, which often happens, he doea not defend himaelf
nnleas be is wounded and haa no hope of safety by fligbl In s
a caae be will fly on a man, and tear him to pieces with his clawa,
it ia courage more than strength that he wants. Achmed, paaha of
Sagbdad tmm 1T24 to IT4T, would have beeo torn by one after
brnking hii lance in a hunt, if his slave Suleiman, who succeeded
him in the paahalik, bad not come promptly to hia succour, and
piaroed vrith a blow of hia yataghan tha lion slreBdy wounded by hia
" We saw," contmnea Olivier, " five indifiduala of thia race in the
nenagerie of the paaha of Baghdad ; they had been there five yeare,
and had been taken young in the environs of Baasora. There were
three malee and two femelea ; the former were a little larger than the
latter ; and all mach reaembled the African speciea, excepting that
thej wer« smaller, and had no mane. We were assured that they
never bad any, and that no lion of these countriea had one. We have
often ttgitttei that we did not ask tha paaha for two of them, in
order i« • oloea oompatison vrith the African speciea, and to satisfy
ODTMlvMiriuther the Lion of Arabia ought to be regarded aa a speciea
difUnot from the other, or aa a degenermted race."
In Deoember 183S, Captain Walter Smee aihibited to a meeting of
tha Zoological Society of London the skina of a lion and lioneas
UUed by £m in Ouierat, and selected from eleven obtained there by
Urn, eight of which he had brought to thia couoti^. Thia lion, he
■tated, ia diatinguished from thoae previoosly known by the sbsenoe of
a mane (that ia, it is maneteaa as compared with other lions) from
the eidaa of tba neck and ehonldera, the middle line of tbe back of
Of aeok being alone fninished with longer halra, which are erect, like
thoae in the aame situation in the Cheetah IPHitJutata). The under
■nrfac« of Uis neck boa long loose silky- huira, and there !a a tnft at
the angle of the anterior legs. Besides tbe abevnce of the exteouve
me, the tul ia shorter than that of ordinary liona, and ia foniisbad
its tin with a muiji larger brush or tufL In thiatoA there existed
the oldest of Captain Smee's liona, eubsequently to the arriTal ol
e akin in England, a abort homy claw or nul, similar in form l<^
but somewhat larger in siie than that described bj Mi. Wooda, aad
abovealluded to.
Captain Smee, ('Transactions of the Zoological Society,') aiten
to a very minute description of the arrangement of tha hair in this
..iriety, both in the mala sjid tha female, obeerving that both the
Afrioon and Ouierat Lion ore subject to considemble vaiiationa in
intensity of colouring. In both the colour is fidvoua ; but in aDiiK
individuals, he eays, this is much paler than in othera, vid io the
darker epecimens there occurs a tinge of red. The middle of tbe
back is the most deeply coloured part, and the under snrfaoa ia much
paler and almoat whits. Among the bain there ia an intermiztiirc of
some which are entirely black, aod the greater or leaa proportioo
which these hesr to the paler ones is ^e principal c»aBS ot tbe
variations in depth of colour that occur in different tndividiuh. Ot
the Qusorat Liona tha oldest individual ia the lightest in colour. The
tail beoomes gradually paler towards its extremity, .pasaing into
grapsb white ; its terminal bmeh consieting of block baira slightly
tinged with brown. Above each eye is a pale space, in which is
included a darker-coloured apot for the implantation of tfao suprk-
eiliary vibrissas, flrom twelve to fifteen in number, and of whicb the
longest reaches nearly to the ears. In the A&ican Lion thaee
Tibrisan are implanted in a darker spot, but this spot ia loa defined,
and ia only partially bounded by a paler space. Ia both the points
of insertion of the moustaches are darker than the surrounding parts.
Captain Smee does not speak with certainty of the comparative form
of these two varieties ; but he statee hie impreesion to be that the
Lion of Ouierat is oomparatively more rounded and bulky in its body,
and rather shorter in its limbs j and that its head especially ia ehortor,
has leaa of the square form which distinguishee tbe open tion of the
male African Lion, and is more rounded on the forehead. But, aa he
observes, this difference may be chiefly owing to tbe long hairs whidi
conceal the forehead in the one, while that feature is defined and
visible in the other. The cranium of the Lion of Ouierat genenlly
resembles that of tbe African race. Professor Owen had remarked
that the infra-orbital foramina were double in tbe only lions known to
be Asiatic examined by him j in one, killed in North Ouierat, this
occurs on both sides ; in the other, killed near Aeaand, it ia found on
one side only. Captain Smee states that in a young skuU of the
Maneless Lion there exiata on one side a double infra-orbital foramen,
and thatthe existence of tba same struct ure in another akuU contained
in one of the skina had been ascertained. A male Hansleaa Lion
killed by Captain Smee measured, including tha tail, 8 feet 91 inches
in length, and hia total weight, exclusive of the entrails, waa S5 stone
(li Ibe. to the stone); the impression of his paw on the sand maanted
61 inches across, and his height waa S net S inchea. A female
killed at the same time waa 8 feet 7 inches long and S fact 4 toehea
high.
These Maneless Lions are, aooording to the author laat qnotad,
found in Qiuent along tlie bonks of the Sombermuttea near
Ahmedabad. During the hot months they inhabit the low bnaby
wooded plains that skirt the Bhordsr and Sombermuttea rivers from
Ahmedabad to the borders of Cutcb, being driven out of the large
adjoining tracts of high grass jungle (called Bheers) by the practice
annually resorted to by the notivea of aetting Sre to the grass, in
order to clear it and ensure a suooeaslon of young aboots for tbe food
of the cattle upon the first fall of the rains. They extend thnmgh a
range of country about 40 miles in Isngth, including various villagEs,
and among others those of Booroo and Goliano, near which Captain
Smee killed hia finest specimens. They were so common in thii
district that he killed no fewer than eleven during a raaideDce of
about a month; yet ecarcely any of the natives, except the eattle-
keepere, had seen them previously to his coming among them. Tha
cattle were frequently carried off or daatroyed, but this they attributed
to tigers. Coptain Smee howsrer observes, that the tiger doea not
exist in that port of the oountiy. Those natives to whom tbe lions
were known gave them the noma of Ontiah Bang, or Camel-Tiger, sn
appellation derived from their resemblance in colour to the cameL
They appear to be vary destructive to the domesticated cattle, and
the remains of a considerable number of carcassea of bullocks ware
found near the place where Captain Smea's apedmois were killed
About ten daya previoualy, four donkeys had been destroyed at the
village of Coahwoh. Captain Smee could not leam that men bad
been attacked by them. When etmck by a ball, they exhibited
great boldneaa, standing aa if preparing to remst their puiauers, and
then goiug off alowly and in a very sullen manner; unlike the tiger,
which on anch occasions retreats springing and inariing^ Captain
Smee states that these lions are also found on the Runn nearRonpODr,
aod near Futtun in Oiuerat, and that some persona who aaw them ii
Bombay aoid that they olno occur in Sinda and iu Persia. Ha further
observsa, that should aubsequent inquiriea prove that Olivier wsi
correctly informed as to the locality from which ths Uaoslesa Liou
seen by him at Baghdad were obtained, and prove also their identity
with (hose of QuzaFsl, a more extenaivc geograpbioal range will M
}«l
felid.t;.
t':<tiibliBbed for UiiB curious roue tbim Cftptnin Sine* u oA present
dispOBcd to regard u prob&ble.
CaptHin Smee remarks that he is &wftn that the exiitenea of thiwa
MuieleSB LioDS in OuxeratliBd been previously olthoufth by no means
^nerslly known, and quotae Colonel Sjkea aa hoTiug this kuowledge.
Sir Charles Malet had also seen lions on the banks of the Somber-
muttee, ssd though he makes no mention of tba absence of the mans,
CaptaiD Smee thinks that the; in all probability belonged to this
iDBneless nee, and indeed Sir Charles attributes to his lion the natiTe
niune noticed by Captain Smee aboTe.
Oiir author makes the following remarks on the paaaage* la he
found in the andent writers bearing on this subject : " Having
Klluded in the commenoement of this communication, to the opinion
that a maneleaa lion was known to the ancients, it might be expected
that I should hera bring forward and discuss the several passngn
which hare been looked upon as supporting this view. Where how-
ever the critics are at fault,'it would be presumptuoas in me to
attempt to decide. I own that I do not find in the passages usually
referred to any evidence at all satisfactory as regards the eiiatence
of lions destitute of mane ; and I am even far from willing to admit
that the crisped haira noticed by Aristotle as distinguishing one race
of lions from another, in which the hairs wore either dense or atraight,
must of neoesaity be considered as those of the mane rather than
of any other part of the body. The language of Oppian is equally
obeoure, and even the expressions nsed by him are warmly contested
by the critics. Another Oreek writer, Agatharchides, the Peripatetic,
speaks of the Arabian and especially the Babylonish Lions, in terms
Uist recall Olivier'i descnption of those of Bsghdad, hut still with no
deGnite application to the want of a mans. Phny alone, so far as I
am aware, mentiona the absence of mane as a distinctive mark of
one race of liona; but to thia race ha attributes a monstrous
generation, and he was probably altogether mialad with respect
We may here remark that a manelea* lion ia said to be represented
an the monumente of Upper Egypt.
Captain Smee thus characterises bia Hanaleas Lion : —
Ptiu Leo, Linn., var. GtKyrateniit. — Hane of the male short, erect ;
tuft at tha apex of the tail very large, black. (' ZooL Proa,' I6S3;
and also ' ZooL Trana.,' voL i.)
u LlDIl of U
The habits of the Asiatio Lions do not differ mncb from those of
Africa, excepting that the former, from the state of the country
frequrnt jungles. In India the elepbant is generally employed in
tha chace, which is eren now conducted with mora pomp and
drcumatanoe than in Africa. The gnnd Aaiatio hunting! of former
times, thoaa of Genghis Khan for instance, will occur to many of
our readers. The accounts of most Asiatic modem sportsmen give
a moat courageous bearing to tbe liona in theae encounters. One of
these Btatas that the liona in India, instead of mnnijig away when
punued through a jungle, seldom take to cover as a refoge at all.
On the approach of their enemies, thej spring out to meet them
opeD-mouthed in the plain. They are thus easily shot ; hut if they
are misMd or only alightly wounded, they are most formidable
adveraaiies. They are even said to have spmng on the heads of
tba largest elephants, and to have fairly pulled tham to the ground,
riders and alL
Tha lioness is said to go with young five months, and prodnces
generally from two to three or four at a litter, which are bom blind.
Three, two males and a fe
whelped in the Tower on the
FELIDjK. Hi
20th October 1827, the day of the battle of Navariuo ; but the number
seems generally to be tico. In ciptivity the lioness usually becomes
vsry savage as soon as she becomes a mother ; and in a stats of nature
both parents guard their young with the grenteet jealousy. Mr, Bennett
relates that In the commencement of the year 1823, General Waleon,
then on service in Bengal, being out one morning on horseback armed
with a double-bamlled rifle, was auddanly surpriaed by a large male
lion, which bounded out upon him from thathiclijungleatthediatanoe
of only a few yards. He instantly fired, and the shot taking com-
plete effect, the animal fell dead almost at his feet Nii sooner bad
the Hon fallen than tbe lioness rushed out, which the general alao shot
at, and wounded severely, so that aha retired into tha thicket. Think-
ing that the den could not be far diatant, be traoed ber to her retreat,
and there dispatched her, and in tbe den were found two beautiful
Cuba, a male and a female, apparently not more than three days old.
ThesB the general brought away; they were suckled by a goat and
sent to England, where they arrived in September 1823, ss a present
to Qeorge IV., and were lodged in tha Tower. The male waa tbe
animal from which Mr. Bennettgivea his figure and description oFtha ^
Bengal Lion, and the female waa tha mother of the cube whelped in
tbe Tower, above alluded to. (' Tower Menagerie.') Tha young are
at first obecurely striped, or brindled, and somewhat tiger-like in tbe
coat There is generally a blackish stripe extending along the back,
from which numerous other lnoda of the same colour branch off,
nearly parallel to eaoh other on the sides and tail. The head and
limba arB generally obecurely spotted. When young they mew like a
cat ; as they advance the uniform colour is gradually assumed, and
at the age of ten or twelve months the mane begins to appear in the
males ] at the age of eighteen montha this appendage is considerably
developed, and they begin to roar. (Bennett.) F. Cuvier states
that it is nearly the third year before ths mane and the tuft on the
tail apnear, and that they are not fully developed before the seventh
or eigEit year. It should however be borne in mind that the Bengal
Lion mentioned by Ux. Bennett, and figured by him, waa magnificently
maned, and he was little more than five years old. The period of
shedding tbe milk-teeth is very often fatal to the young '"imtU in a
state of captivity. The natural period of a lion's life is gsnerally
supposed to be 20 or 22 yeoia. Such ia BufTon's limitation, but the
animal will it seems live much longer. Fompey, the great lion which
died in 1760, waa aaid to have been in the Tower above TO yeara; and
one from the river Gambia ia atatod to have since died there at tha
age of 93.
Ths lion, from its power and supposed geoarosity of disposition,
ha* been popularly bailed as the King of Beasts, and considered as
the emblem of majesty and might. It is the symbol of the British
nation, and is borne in tha royal arms, of which it forms one of the
sopporten, afld which it sunnonnta aa the crest. Csptain Smee
remarks, in allusion to the hybrid mentioned by Pliny, that it is by no
means improbable that the manelesa feline beast which occurs in the
older armorial bearinga may have been intended to represent a lion
leoparded. This term, he ohserras, is still in use among the heralda
of France, but is employed by them with reference only to the
poaition of tha head ; if the full face is shown, the animal, whether
maned or manelesa, is in their language a leopard; if tha aide face
alone ia seen, it is a hon. Hence with them the liona pasaaul and
__ . . ruda tricking, would indeed reduce them to leopards,
and as such they were originally regarded. The emperor Frederio II.,
in choosing his present of three leopards to our Henry III., was
aotuoted, according to Matthew Paris, by the bearing in the royal
ahield of England, " in quo trea leopard! transeuntea figurantur."
(■ Zool. Trana.'}
The genrroaity of disposition so libsrally acoordad to this powerful
beast has been much and eloquently praised. It seems almost sacri-
legions to dissipate the glowing vision which BufTon hsa raised ; but
if there ia any dependence to be placed on the observations of those
travellers who have had the beat opportunities of judging, and have
the hiaheat character for veracity, ws must be compelled to acknow-
ledgeUat BuETon's lion is the lion of poetry and prejudice, and very
unlike the cautioua lurking savage that steals on its comparatively
weak pray by surprise, overwhelms it at ones by the terror, ths
weight and the violence of the attack, and ia intent only on the
gratification of its appetitea "At the time," Bays Mr. Burohell,
" when men first adopted the lion aa the emblem of courage, it would
seem that they regarded great aiae and stiength aa indicating it ; but
they were greatly mistaken in the character they had given of thia
indolent animal." Tha fact of tbe lion aparing the dog that waa
thrown to him, and making a frieod of tcie little animal t^t waa
destined for hia prey, has been much dwelt on ; but theae and other
such acts of mercy, aa thay have been called, may be very eaaily
accounted for. If not prened by hanger, the lion will seldom be at
the trouble of killing pray ; and the deaire for a compamion haa created
much stronger friendships between aninu'" ' ° ' '' """'
between a Uon and a litUe dog.
The lion is esaily tamed, ud eapable c
rtory of Androdus, frequently called Androoles, is too well known to
need more than allusion, and we learn from Bell's ' Travels' that the
mooarali of Persia had od days of audieDce two fcreat lioni ahained
0 each nde of the pamage to the atala-room, led ther« b; beepers '~
it will mfTar, geDsrall; ipea^iuR, from nooe but him. All these
eihibitdoiu however wore entii^y eclipsed by the feats of Hr.
Tan Ambutgh, who exerciaed a complete coDtrol over the Uodb and
other great Fclida which he had subjected to bii will. The imitaton
of Ten Ambuish howSTer hare not been to succeaaful, and Inatancee
have occurred in which peiaons hare forfeited thcdr livea by their
temerity. An iiiBtajice of this kind occurred a few years ago in
England, in which a young wonum, who wu called the Lion Queen,
loet her life in thie way.
Hybrids. — The Ldoo and Tigress will, under certain oircumatancei,
S reduce young. This has happened twice in England. Sir WiUiam
ardine gives the figure of one of a litter so bred, and exhibited in
Atkins's collection, where they were whelped, in 1 827 : they died
young. Sir Willlajn Jardine correctly describes the colour of the
whelps as brighter than that of the Lion, and the bands as better
marked than they generally are in the true-bred young lion. The
spedmeu figured by Sir William is in the Ediobuj^h Museum.
Another litter &om aimiiar parents was whelped at Windaor; but
these also died before tbey came to maturity. Tbers does not Mem
(o be much difficult; in promoting this unioD.
Uon-Ttget Cub*.
Ths Puma, or Ameriun LioiL — The uufonnit; of oolour Id this
great cat, combined with coniideiable ferodty, were probably the
rourans which induced early trarellers in America, who heard of it
perhaps with drcumstanoes of eia^eration, or caught hasty glimpses
of it not unacoompauied with terror, t<i atate that there were lions in
Americ*. Thus John de Laet {16SS} saya, (hat lions are found in
P«ni, though they be f^, and not to ferocioua u they are in Africa,
and that they are called in the nativa tongue Puma. In an old tract
(1619), entitled ' A Perfect DesoriptiDn (^ Virginia,' we find among
the " beasts great and small," " Lyons, Bearea, Leopards, Eikes,"
Ac ; and OaroiLuso tells us of the Puma, or Lion of Peru. In
Hemandei (RomEe, 16S1) there is a long account of the animai
under the name of 'Puma, aeu Lto Avuricamu ;' and reaaons are
given to show that it is not a true lion. In Piao Uie animal is noticed
•s the Cuguaouara, and by Harcgrave aa the Cuguacursna of the
Braiilians ; henoe Uie Frenoh name Cougnar. Charlevoix describea
It clearly enough under the name of Caro^ou, or Quincajou; this
name Pennant thinke that Charlevoix gives by miotake. In d'Azara's
QouaEOuar* of Paneuay we again ^aoe the French name of this
animaL Lawson and Catesby both describe it under the name of the
Panther, by which designation it is known to the Anglo-Americans up
to this day. It is the Ftli* ameol*r of Schreber and of aoologista
generally, and though Ljoncens is often quoted as the author of the
name, it will not be found in his last edition of the ' Systema
Natune.' In Omelin's edition it appears aa Ptiit amdor (an error
for eotieolor), with Bchreber's description. It is the FMi Pwma
of TrailL
The reader will find in the ' Proceedings of ths Zoological Society
of London' a detailed account of the disaectlon of a Puma that died
at the Society's Garden. In one point the Puma diffiin oonsiderably
from other oats. This point ig t^t part of the atructure which is
connected with the oi^ane of voice, and, as Ur. Martin observea, some
according modifioatian must necessarily produoe the deep-toned roar
of the Lion, the snarl of the Jaguar, and the hissing cry of the Puma.
" The dislanoe between the tongue and the larynx in the Lion," says
Hr. Hartin, "has been brought more than once under the notice of
the society ; in the Jaguar this distance, comparatively speaking, is
nearly as great ; but in the Puma, an animal equal, or nearly so, in
nis to the Jaguar, the distance is reduced to an inconaiderable space,
an inch or an Inch and a half, aocording as the tongue is more or less
protruded. In addition to this it is worthy of obeervation that the
ciroumf erenoe of the larrnx in the Puma is also very inoansJderable ;
compare, for example, the larynx of the Jaguar witJi Uiat of the
present animal, both natives of the wilda of the American ocntinsnt.
In the Jaguar we find a larynx indicating, &om its general magnitude,
e depth in the intonations of the voice ; whereas in the
'e take either its diameter or it* distance from ^ termi-
FEL1D.£. 7*i
nation of the palate and base of the tongue, we are led to expert
neither the roar of the Lion nor the growl of the Jagnar, but tta
shrill tones of an animal, terooioua indaeil, but of all otliBrB of the
genus perhaps the most stealthy and insidious."
The adult male bos no mane. Silvery fawn above, •OEoetima
reddish, the tawny hairs of the upper parte whitish at the tipi;
nearly white beneath, and on the inside of the limbs, whitish on the
throat, chin, and upper lip. Head black and gray irreguUrly mixed ;
ears on the outside, and particularly at their base, sides of the miuzl!,
whence the wbiskeni spring, and end of the tail (which has no tuft|,
black. Length from nose to tail about 1 feet ; tail rather more than
2 feet. Female coloured like the male. Head small when compared
with his.
Toung. — Back marked with three chains of spots, whioh are generally
of a blaekish-brown ; diapeiaed spots or markings on the ned,
shoulders, and sides. As the animal advances in age these marldngi
become more and more obsoure, till they are at last lost in the
uniform colour.
A specimen of a young Puma, exhibited at a meeting of Uie Zoolo-
gical Society in 1831, was, Lke Uie young of the other qteoies of /"eU^
variously spotted and striped, the depth of its markings approaching
nearly to black, and being more intense than that observed io the
Lion. The mu^e was neariy black, as was also the greater part o(
the tail This young one had been reoenUy brought forth at the
Society's Garden, but died immediately ; it was strongly oontiaBtad
with a specimen of the adult placed ou tbe table for oomparioon-
This animal is found in North and South America. There is reason
to think that it was formerly to be found from Canada to Patagonu^
with an extensive range to the east and wes^ but its geagrsphical
area has been very mudi diminished, and is daily beooming more and
more contracted before that civilisation which is in oor own times
obliterating more spedee than one. Mr. Washington Irving (' Astoria ')
mentions it as being about the mouth of tlie ColumUa Eiver.
LawBon (Carolina) gives the following cbarscterixtie aooount of the
Puma. "The Panther is of tbe cat's kind; about the height of a
very large graybound, of a reddish colour, the same aa a Lion. He
climbs trees with the groatest agihty imaginable, ia vary atreng-
limbed. catching a piece of meat from any creature he strikes at. His
tail is exceeding lon^ his eyes look very fierce and lively, are la^g•^
and of s grayish colour ; his prey ia swine's fleeh, deer, or aoythmg
be can take ; no creature is so nice and clean as this in his food.
Whsn he has got his prey he SIls his bally with the slaughter, and
carefully lays np the remainder, covering it very neatly vrith leaves,
which if anything touches he never eats any more of it. It puns aa cats
do ; if taken young, is never to be reclumed from his wild nature.
He hollows like a man in tbe woods when kilted, which isby making
him take a tree, as the least cur will presently do ; then the huntsmen
shoot him ; if they do not kill him outright he is a dangerous enemy
when wounded, especially to the dogs that approach him. This
beast is the greatest enemy to the planter of any vermin in Carolina.
His flesh looks as well aa any shamble's meat whatsoever ; a gnat
many people eat him aa choice food, but I never tasted of a panther,
so cannot commend Uia meat by my own experience. His akin is a
warm covering for the Indians in winter, though not esteemed among
the choice ftlra. This skin dressed makes fine women's ihoeaor men's
gloves."
We may here observe, without throwing doubt on other parts of
Lawson's description, which is, generally spesldng, confiirned \tj
others, that, like many other writers, be has been too hasty in
speaking of the irreclaimable nature of his animal We can t«ttff
to the amiable qu^tin of tbe late Ur. Edmund Sean's 'Tom.'
The Puma so called which belonged to this extraordinary actor was
perfectly tame, and Ibllowed him about like a dog. Xor is this the
only instance of the docility of this species. Mr. Bennett observes
that In captivity the Puma readily becomes tame, and that his
mannen closely resemble those of the domestic cat ; " like it,"
continues Mr. Bennett, " he is extremely fond of being noticed, raiws
his bock and stretches his limbs beneath tbe hand that caresses him,
and eiprenes his pleasure by tbe same quiet and complacent purring.
Tbey soon become attached to those with whom they are bmiliar;
and numerous instances might be mentioned in which they have
been suETered to roam almcat at large about ths house without soy
injurious reaulti." (' Tower Menagerie.'}
Charlevoix (' Jonmal,' voL i.) gives a rather enriont account of ths
Camion going a hunting with tbree foxes ; and of his lying In wsit
on a tree for the elk, and let^iing down npon him as he puses
It seems to be generally agreed that the Puma is a most destrucliTe
speoies ; for when it meets with a herd of nn'^i"!* it will stay in aS
curections, sucking only a small portion of blood from each victim.
To sheep, fifty of which it is said to have been known to kill in one
uight, it is most destructive, and ths s<)uattar irell knows the ravines
that it will make among his hogs. Though an expert climber, it it
said (o haunt in South America the maishy meadow-ianda bordeiing
on ths rivsiB, rather than the forest In the Pampas it muit
affkot the comparatively open oountiy ; fortiiere, as we shall presently
•e«v it is oommoikly taken by the lasso. In the northern districts
the swamp* and prairies are its principal haunts ; and its prey,
7as FELID^
vthere flockl aad herda are not, dear prindpaUjr, opon whiah it u
said to drop in the nuuuier described b; CbHrlSToiz vitb regard to
tba «11t
The cbaoe of thi* tnimal ii oonducted, in different parU of the
Ameiicui oontinent, kccording to the prevailing muiDen of the
people who go forth to liunt it. Thui Captain Head relatca that u
soon aa the doga unkennel a Lion (Puma) or Tiger (Jaguar) thef
pursue him uatil he stopa to defend turned. If the doga By upon
nim, the Ouacho jumpe off his hone, and whilet he is engaged with
the dogi, knocki him on the head with the balla ; but if the doga
bay and do not go boldl; in, the Quaoho throws his lasso over him,
and gallopa off, dragging him along tlie ground, while the hounds
riiah upon him and tear htm. In the north he genarally falls by the
riSa, after he is 'treed' bj the hunting party. Audubon gives a
moat UtcI; socount of an expedition of ibis kind, headed by a
aquattST on the banks of the Coldwater Rivar, which ended in the
Puma'a death. The 'ooagar/or 'panther,' as Audubon terms him,
wan driTen 'to tree' twica, and each time received balls in that
aituntion. Saieral go in company generally, for when the mfiiriat«d
animal hai had to deal with one hunter only, the consequences have
been soroetimea fatal to the Intter.
YELIDM.
Poiaa [iVKi e«iiwler).
Cuvier remirks, that as it would appear that this animal eitenda
or did BZtand &om California to Patagonia, he haa been careful in hia
nwearchei to discover wbether there were not many species, or at
leaat varieties, in this great extent of counts; ; the oonetaaioD at
which he arrived was, that one species only existed.
Tbfl reader must hear in mind that there ia another Cat of a
uniform colour, PelU anieolor, Traill, which is laid to inhabit the
forests of Demeraro, and ia one-half less than the Puma. The Black
Couguar (P. diKolar), is allowed fay some loologiaU and rejected by
others.
Sir William Jardine describes as the Black Puma an animal about
loDO, without including the tail, which is about IS inches
ch he (^ves a figure taken from a specimen brought in a
:hant reasel to OreenocL He givea aa aynonyois £1 2f^ro of
33(
and of which Ke (^ves a figure taken from a specimen b
merchant resBel to OreenocL He givea aa aynonyms ',
D'Amru and the Black Cat of America (Griffith's 'Synopsis'), both
with a Dota of interrogation. Sir William adopts Pumn as a geaus,
anii gives the following species \^P. concoUir, P. nigra, P. Yaguarujidi,
P. Eyra, P. Pa^ia, and P. chalybtata. Figures of P. Yagtumauli
and P. Pajtrot aro given in the 'Zoology of the Voyage of H.M.S.
Beijle,' edited by 2ar, Darwin.
IL TlQBBH.
Although there is but one species of Tiger, propaily ao called, the
Tiger-Cate, or those species of the genus FtlU in which the tigerioe
character predominate, may be alao treated of under the title
The Royal Tiger, Fdi* Tigru, claims our Gret notioa ; and although
poefs and poetical EoologisU have Joined to Dlarats the lion with bis
majeitic mane to the aovereignty, it may be doubted whether the
Tigcc is not the type o[ Uie ferodous and blood-thirsty genus
t^me have thought that this spedes was but little known to the
socienta; but, we think, with no sufficient grounds. Tha nameniiu
pennies in which the word TigrU {jiyfa) occurs in Oreek and Latin
authon leave Uuts room for doubting this knowledge ; and Hyicania,
with which it ia ao frequently associated by the Roman writeia, is a
r know of it* geographioal
locality wall suited to what ^
distribution.
When Aristotle ('Hist. Anlm.,' viii. 2S), treating of hybrid animals
which spring from an ioterzniiturs <^ different races, sayg that
people pretend that the dogs of India are bred from the Tiger (reE
t(7pioi) and a hitch, notindeed at the first union, but at the thiid,
we see no reason, conaidering the locality which he assfgna to the
Tigrit, and ths opportunities which the conqueata of Alexander gave
him of knowing the animals o( India, why the woid should be
rendered otherwiae than by Tiger in our present acceptation of the
term. " The tiger," writes Pliny (' Nat HisL,' viii 18), " is produced
in Hyrcania and India ;" following this up with an ^umon to the
'tremendous swiftness' of the animal, and the strong attachment
which the tigress, notwithstanding accidental exception, ia known
to manifest for her cube. Again (' Nat. Hist' vi. 20), he notices the
Indian nations as abounding in wild tigers. Of couna he does not
omit the story of the origin of the Indian doga from the Tiger, and
the rejection of the two first litters as too ferocious, while the third
is taken and brought up. (' Nat. Hist./ viJL 10). But furUier, it it
quite clear from the same authority, that the Tigrii had been
eihibited at Rome, and that Pliny and others well knew tha
distinction between that species and leopards and panthen. Aflar
mentioning the last two, and referring to an ancient decree of the
senate that African beasts should not be Imported, but slating tiiai
the tribune Cneius Aufidius caused a plebiseiCum to be paaaed which
permitted their importation for the Circeoaian games, be states tha
numbers brought first by Scaurus, and then by Pompey the Great
and Augustus ; adding tliat Augustus was the first who showed a
tame tigress (tigrin) in a den at Rome, upon tha dedication of tha
Theatre of Harcellus, during the consulship of Q. Tubero and Fabioa
UaiimuB, and that the emperor Claudius showed four together.
('Nat Hist,' viii 17). Eiuetonius ('Aug.,' xlilL} states that it waa
the habit of Augustus, besides tlie exhibitions at the gnat spectacles,
to show to tlie publio any rarity that was brought over, "ut rhino-
cerotem apud aepta ; tigrim in aoeoa; anguem quinqusginta
cubitonun pro comitio :" and Dion remarks tbat the tigers (vlyiMit)
fint seen by the Romans, and as he thinks by the Qreeks alao, were
those sent by the Indians as gifts when they were suing for peace
tram Augoatua. The emperor Philip on one occasion eihibit«d tea
tigers, together with thirty-two elephants, ten elks, sixty liona, thirty
leopards, ten hynnat, one hippopotamus, one rhinooeroa, forty wild
horssa, twenty wild asses, and numbers of deer, goats, antelope^ and
other beaatsi the brutal exhibition being crowned by the mortal
oomWt of 2000 gladiators.
Oordian III. idso exhibited ten tigers, and they were preaent in
the ahowa of Antcnintu and Elagabalua. Aurelian, in his triumph
over Zenohia, ahowed four, togetW with a girafia, on elk, and other
Opplan cannot be mistaken when he writea (' Cyueg;,' iii 180) —
HapttUili Tt ^ool, aal ttypm iioA^mrai ;
for here we have leopards and tigers in the same linc^ and the
epithet ouA^mni (having a variegated back) is quite a[^cable to
the latter.
for though Virgil in hia fourth ' Qeorgic ' (L 107), appliea the epithet
' atra ' (black) to ' ttgria ' in the paasage where C^nrene is warning
Aristieua aa to the forms into which Proteua will tranaform himself
CsaeasDS, ^yrconcrw admAnuit Dbera tifra."
The tjgera of Bacchus may be considered more doubtful. In the
' Qemmie et Sculptuiw AntiqnO) ' there is a representation of a large
female Fdit with the tbyrsus from a camelian (cortpola), with the
superecription, 'Tigre di Bacho;' but though Uie figure generally
might pass for a Tiger, the tall of the animal Is terminated by a
sli>gS7 tuf^ ■^d no tiger's tail la. Claudian comea much nearer to
the mark where he describee laeehus aa marching crowned with ivy,
and clad in the akin of the Parthian Tiger, tnien Viigil describee
Orpheus, aa ' mulcentem tigrea' aa 'soothing tigers' ('Qeorg.' It., L
510}, and Horace, with nearly the same thought, addrsssea Uerenry —
'* Ta pot«f tl^es eomltesqae ijUss
Doiien "
(' Carm.,' iii., ' Ode,' ii) ; and again, in bis epistle to the Pisoa (' Da
Arte FoetJcH,' L 39S), says of Orpheus—
" Dlcliu ab hoc IcDire tlgies, isbldrHqua Innes ; "
they make the Tiger personify the grsateat ferority, and they
certainly could not have chosen a more apt repreaentative.
Hattial speaks of tha Tiger in the time of Titus and Domitian.
('Spect,' £pig. IS.andlib. i., Epig. 105,)
To conclude this branch of the subject, we shall advert to one
more literary proof, and one pieoe of pictorial evidence ; and we
think that no doubt can exist that, although the Boyal Tiger waa
not so abundant in the Roman shows, porticiilariy the earlier oner.
[ram uie ouer gnac ok*, were u wbu uia iiuniiiwiy anuwu ui uimt
ninT, in hit ctukptcr 'De Aduith ATborilmi at Cedrioi* Umsii,'
io. (' Hkt. Hilt/ ziiL 15), i|»kitlK of the grain or ntt«m of tbua
UbiM, nji that nhere it tru oblong or IcngthsDsd, ttnf WBre called
tigrine, but where it ma wreathed or curled (intorto), tbey ware
tomed pantheriDe.
The pictorial etidanoe (lo to apeak) wai rumiihed by the idomJc
found at Roma near the arch of Qallienua In this work of art.
executed not improbably in oommsmoratian of tha exhibition of
GsudiuB above noticed, four RoTal Tigers, eaoh devouring hi> prey,
■re well repreaanted.
Our Eoological aooietiaa and taanBgerisa have ao increaaad ill
number during a long period of peace, that it bacomca aJmoat
■operflnoua to describe a form ao well known. But as a deacription
of an aaimal holding so important ■ rank in the animal kingdom nin;
b« expected, wa select that of Hr. Bennett, who remarks that th«
Tiger, oloaely allied to tha Lion in aiie, in power, in eitemal form, in
internal itruoture, in loologioal charact«n, in prowling habits, and In
languinary propenaitiea, ia at once diatinguianed from it, and from
every other of their common genua, by the peculiar marking! of itc
ooat. " On a ground which exhibits in diSerent individiiala Tarioui
shadai of yellow," laya Hr. Bennett, "he ii elegantly striped by a
■eries of transverse black bands or ban, which occupy the sides of his
head, Deck, and body, and are continued upon his tail in the form of
rings, the Ust of the series uniformly occupying the extremity of that
oi^an, and giving it a. black tip of greater or leaa extent. The under
part* of hia body and the inner sidsa of his legs ara almost entirely
white ; ho has no msne ; and hia whole frame, though leas elevated
than Uiat of the lion, is of a alenderer and more graceful make. Hia
head is also shorter and mora ronBded,"
There is a paler variety, almost approaching to whitish, and with
the stripe* viaible only in patticuiar lighta : this has been exhibited in
this country. Accon^ng to Du Halde, the Chinese Tiger (Lou-chu,
or Lau-bu) Tlriaa in oohiur, aome being white, atriped with block and
The «M of the Tiger varies alao ; bnt the dimenrioni of the form,
when fully developed, are, if wa are to give credit to some accounta,
Vbe veracity of which hsa not been impugned, moat formidable.
Bufibn notices an individual which was (tsjl icoluded) 15 feet long?;
and it is on record that Hyder Ali presented to the N^bob of Arcot
one which measured 18 ^t in length. The average height varies
from about four feet to about three feet, and the length from about
eight or nine feet to aii feet^
The Tiger is met with in Aaia alone, and not in the soudl of Africa,
o be found in the deserts which aepwate Cfaina from Biberia,
and as far as ths banks of tha 0^ ; and in the south of China, and
the lai][er E!aat Indian Islands (Sumatra, for instance), it is common.
Pennant atatea that it is found as far north as China and Chinese
Tartiry, and about Lake Aral and the Altaic Mountains. " It inhabits
Mount Ararat," aaya the same author in continuation, "and Uyrcanis,
of old famoua for ita vrild beasts; but the greatest numbers, the
largest, and the moat cruel, are met with in India and its islands. In
Bumatra the natives are ao infatuated that they seldom kill them,
having a notion that they are animated by the eouis of their anceators.
They are the scourge of the country; they lurk among the bushes on
the sides of rivers, and almost depopulate many places. They are
insidious, blood-thirBty, and malevolent, and seem to prefer preying
on the human race." Hindustan may be oonsidered the head-quarters
of this destructive animal ; there it is that be reigns unawed even by
the lion, with which he diaputea the mastery, and which is compara-
tively rare in that peninsula.
The hound with which the ambushed tiger throws himself upon
his prey is as wonderful in ils extent oa it is terrible in its eSecta.
Permant juitly observes that the diitance whioh it clears in this
deadly leap is scarcely credible. Man ii a mere puppet in hia gripe ;
and the Indian Bufiolo is not only bcme down by the ferocious beaat,
but carried off by his enormous strength. If he fails, it his been said
that he makes off. This may be true in eertaio instances, but in
gensrol he does not slink away, but puraues the afinghted prey with
a speedy activity whioh is seldom exerted in vain. This leads us to
the obaervation of Pliny celebrating its swiftness, for which the
Soman loologiat has been censured, most unjustly, appareutly ; nor is
he the only author among the ancients who naticos iU speed. Oppian
('Cyneg,,' i 323) speaks of the swift tigers as beinj; the offspring
(■yt»W*ii) of tha lepbyr. "Pliny," says Pennant, "has been frequently
taken to taek by the modems for calling the tiger " animal tremendte
yelocitatjs i" ibey allow it great agility in ita bounds, but deny it
awiftnaaa in pursuit. Two travellBra of authority, both eye-witnoaaea,
confirm what Pliny says : the one indeed only mentions in general
vast fleetness ; the other anw a trial between ons and a swift horee,
whcse rider escaped merely by getting In time amidst a circle of
armed men. Tha chase of this ammol waa a farourit* diversion with
the great Cam-Hi, the Chinese monarch, in whose company our
countryman, Mr. Bell, that faithful traveller, and the Vhn
Qerbillon, aaw tbeae proofs of the tiger's ipeed." BeU's ' Travels,'
Du Halde.
In tiie "EKaTMTdt, aeo Centoria Imaginum HieroglypUearom '
{do. lac. xiiiL) b a wood-cat (here oopied) that may refer ia mcb a
Ti|« porsnlng a man on honflbaak.
Ferocious as the tiger is, and much as it may daserre the odiuin
heaped upon it, ths general chorus of the herd of authors who eulogise
" the courage, greatness, clemency, and generosity" of the lion, coo-
traating it with the unprovoked ferocity, unneoessary cruelty, and
poltroonery of the tiger, becomes ridiculous, though led hy suoh
names oa Buffon and Pennant The lion bos owed a good deal to his
mane and hia noble and dignified aspect ; but appearonoea ar« not
always to be trusted. Hr, Barrow, with mucli more truth, charsc-
tcriaes tha king of beasts aa powerful but treacherous. "Happy,"
saya that traveller, " for the peasantry, the Hottentots, that tfaoae
animals that are Uie objacta of its destruction, were its nobis and
generous nature, that ao oft baa fired the imagination of poets, realiaed,
and that his royal paw disdained to stain itaelf in the blood of any
sleeping oreature I The lion, in fact, is one of the moat indolent of
all the beasts of prey, and nsver gives HJTiimlf the trouble of a pursuit
nnleaa hard pnaaed W hunger."
Pennant girea Uis fallowing as an initaoce, after slating that then
il a sort of cruelty in ths dsvostations of the tiger unknown to the
generous lion, aa well as poltroonery in its sodden retreat on any
disappointment: "I waa informed by very good authority, that in
the beginning of this century some gentlemen and ladies, being on a
party of pleasure under the shade of trees, on tbs banks of a river in
Bengal, observed a tiger preparing for its fatal spring ; one of the
ladies, with amaring presence of mind, bud hold of an umbrella
and fnrled it full in the animal's face, which instantly retired, and
gave ths company on opportunity of removing from so terrible a
neighbour."
Thia is a very prstty atory, and the heroins dcaerves all praise,
though it is not very clear what is meant by furling an umbrdla, so
as to make the alleged act square with the context, and the tiger waa
undoubtedly very polite. But tigers spring from a oonaidenbla
distance, Ifi or 20 feet, and from ambush ; and we suspect thst a
cross-examination of the parties concerned might have slighUy damaged
ths anecdote. Granting however that this bold lady walked up to a
crouched tiger, and suddenly opened an umbrella in its face (for that,
ws preaume, ia the action meant), we may easily conceive that the
aurpriae may have utterly oonfounded bim ; buttbis is not poltroonery.
Indeed the same author immediately afterwards givea a toleratde
proof of the animal'a daring : "Another party had not the ssm*
good fortuns : a tiger darted among them while they were at dinner,
seized on one gentleman, carried bim oflT, and he never waa mors
But thers is another atoiy, a very sad one, whioh is pregnant with
Sroof of the tiger's hardihood ; we allude to the distressiitg death of
ir Hector Monro's son. Mr. Wood ('Zoography') relates the horrible
oocurrenee in a ftaw words : —
" This unfortunate gentleman," says Hr. Wood, " aocompanied by
three of his friends, went on shore, December £S, 1TB2, on Bawgar
Island to shoot deer. They continued their sport till the afternoon,
when they retired to the edge of a jnngle to refresh tbemseliei;
where they had not remained long before oiIb of the party, who was
leaving tbs rest to shoot a deer, heard a dreadful roar, and saw a large
tiger spring on poor Monro, and ruah with him into the jungle wilh
the greatest ease, dmggiug bim through everything that obstructed
his course, as if all were mads to yield to bis amasing slrangth. All
that his companions could do to rescue their friend bom this ahooking
situation was to Sre at the tiger ; and it is evident that their shota UxA
place, since, in a few minutes after, Hr- Uonro staggered up to them
covered with blood, and fell Every medical assistance that the ship
afforded waa procured for lii'ii immediately, but in vain ; he expirsd
in the oourae of tweuty-four hours in the greateat sgoniea. His head
was torn, his skull fractured, and hia neck and shoulders covered with
wounds msde by ths claws of the savage beast. It ia worthy of
obaarvation, tlist neither the large Sre that waa blaring close to thsm,
nor the noise and laughter whicb it aeems they were "■-^■"g at th*
time, could divert this determined animal &cm hia porpoae." This
story may be contrasted with ths one related by Sparrman, sod
referred to above, of the lion retreating when boldly confronted and
768
FELIDiE.
FELID.fi.
770
certainly one animal cannot more than the other be chax*ged with
poltroonery.
But if any doubt as to the courage of the tiger be entertained,
Father Tachard's account of a combat between that beast and two
elephants at Siam will be sufficient proof. He relates that a lofty
bamboo palisade was erected, occupying an area of about 100 feet
square. Into this inclosure two elephants were introduced with their
heads and trunks shielded by a kind of mask. A Uu*ge tiger was now
brought from its den, and hold with cords till one of the elephants
approached and inflicted two or three blows on its back with his
trunk, so heavily laid on that it fell stunned, as if dead. Then they
loosed the tiger. No sooner did he recover than he sprang with a
dreadful roar at the elephant's trunk stretched out in act to strike
him ; but the wary elephant drew up his trunk, and receiving the
tiger on his tusks, hurled him into the air. This checked the fury of
the tiger, as it well might, and he gave up the contest with the
elephant; but he ran several times round the palisade, frequently
springing at the spectators. Afterwards three elephants were set
upon him, and they in turn dealt him such heavy blows that he again
lay senseless, and would have been killed, if the combat, as it is most
incorrectly called, had not been stopped. Nothing could be more
imfair towards the tiger than the whole of this proceeding ; and we
will venture to say that no quadruped except a British buU-dog could
have shown more ' pluck,' to use a common but expressive term, than
this shamefully treated beast.
The older authors generally state that after the tiger has secured
its prey it plunges its head into the body of the animal up to its very
eyes, as if to satiate itself with blood till the corpse is exhausted,
before it tears it to pieces. The best modem accounts tend to prove
that the tiger is not more bloodthirsty and has no more blood-sucking
propensities than the other great Cats ; and that this blood-drinking
habit is grossly exaggerated.
The tigress brings forth three or four, or four or five cubs at a
time ; and she is a very fond mother, braving every danger for them,
and furiously attacking man and beast in their defence. The ancients
knew this welL See Martial (lib. iiL Epig. 44) :—
"Non iigris catulis ciUta raptis," &e. ;
and Juvenal (' Sat' vi) : —
••Tunc graris ilia Tiro, tnno orl» tigride pejor : '»
and though it is on record that a tigress in modem times devoured
her cub, one should remember that this unnatural act was done in
captiyily, and that rabbits, sows, and cats, have done the same. But
that in a state of nature the maternal feeling is very strong in the
tigress, there can be no doubt. Captain Williamson, for example,
relates that two tiger-cubs were brought to him when he was stationed
in an Indian district. The countiy-people had found four in the
absence of the tigress. The two brought to the captain were put in a
stable, where they made a loud noise for several nights. The bereaved
mother arrived at last, replying to their cries with fearful bowlings,
and the cubs were let loose under the apprehension that the infuriated
tigress might break in. In the morning it was found that she had
carried them away.
Various devices have been put in requisition to take or annihilate
this destructive quadruped, ana we shall mention one or two of them
before we advert to the chase of the animal upon a grander scale.
Ten rupees were formerly offered by the Esst India Company for
every tiger destroyed within the provinces where their power
and influence extended: a small reward, but sufficient, conjointly
with the depredations of the animal, to stimulate the poorer classes
to destroy it.
A kind of spring-bow was formerly laid in its way, which discharged
a poisoned arrow, generally with fatal effect, when the animal came
in contact with a cord stretched across its path; and this method is
said to be still in use in some places. Again, a heavy beam was
suspended over the way traversed by the tiger, which fell and
crushed him on his disengaging a cord which let the beam falL A
Persian device is said to consist of a large spherical strong interwoven
bamboo cage, or one made of other suitable materials, with intervals
throughout three or four inches broad. Under this shelter, which is
picketed to the ground in tiie tiger^s haunt, a man provided with two
or three short strong spears takes post by nighty with a dog or a goat
as his companion, wra]>s himself in his quilt and goes to sleep. A
tiger arrives, of whose presence the man is warned by the dog or the
goat^ and generally after smelling about, rears himself up against the
cage, upon which the man stabs him resolutely with his short spear
through the interstice of the wicker-work. It seems ludicrous to
talk of taking a tiger with bird-lime : btit it is said to be so captured
in Oude. When ji tiger^s track is ascertained, the peasants, we are
told, collect a quantity of leaves resembling those of the sycamore,
and common in most Indian underwoods ; these they smear with a
kind of bird-lime, which is made from the -berries of an indigenous
and by no means scarce tree, and strew them with the adhesive
substanoe uppermost in some gloomy spot to which the tiger resorts
in the heat of the day. If he treads on one of the limed leaves he
generally begins by trying to shake it from his paw, and not succeeding
proceeds to rub it agslnst his jaw in order to get rid of it. Thus his
eyes and ean become agglutinated, and the uneasy animal rolls^
KAT. mn. DiT. VOL. n.
perhaps among many more of the smeared leaves, till he becomes
enveloped : in this state he has been compared to a man who has been
tarred and feathered. The tiger^s irritation and tmeasiness find vent
in dreadful bowlings, on which the peasants hasten to the spot> and
shoot him without difficulty.
The plan of the box-trap and looking-glass, a device to be found
in ancient sculpture, according to Montfaucon, is said to be practised
among the Chinese at the present day.
So much for the trapping of the tiger. The tiger-hunt is perhaps
the grandest and most exciting of wild sports. Upon such oocasions
the whole neighbourhood is on the move, and two nundred elephants
have been known to take the field. From ten to thirty of these
gigantic animals, each can7ing sportsmen armed with rifles, have not
unfrequently started for the jungle.
Captain Mundy fives a short but spirited description of a tiger-
hunt. The party, ne tells us, found immense quantities of game,
wild ho^s, hog-deer, and the neilghie : they however strictly abstained
from firmg, reserving their whole battery for the nobler game of which
they were in pursuit. They had to pass through a thick forest, and
the author gives a very interesting description of the power and
dexterity of the elephants in overthrowing trees to make a road : —
"On clearing the wood," says he, "we entered an open space of
marshy grass not three feet high ; a laiige herd of cattle were feeding
there, and the herdsman was sitting singing under a bush, when, just
as the former b^an to move before us, up sprang the very tiger to
whom our visit was intended, and cantered off across a bare plain
dotted with small patches of bush-jungle. He took to the open
country in a style which would have more become a fox than a tiger,
who is expected by his pursuers to fight and not to run, and as he
was flushed on the flank of the line only one bullet was fired at him
ere he cleared the thick grass. He was unhurt ; and we pursued him
at full speed. Twice he threw us out by stopping short in small
strips of jungle, and then heading back after we had passed ; and he
had given us a very fast trot of about two miles when Colonel Arnold,
who led the field, at last reached him by a capital shot, his elephant
being in full career. As soon as he felt himself wounded l^e tiger
crept into a close thicket of trees and bushes, and crouched. The
two leading sportsmen overran the spot where he lay, and as I came
up I saw him through an aperture rising to attempt a charge. My
mahout had just before, in the heat of the chase, dropped his ankors,
or goad, which I had refused to allow him to recover, and the
elephant being notoriously savage, and further irritated by the
goading he had undergone, became consequently unmanageable ; he
appeared to see the tiger as soon as myself, and I had only time to
fire one shot when he suddenly rushed with the greatest fiiry into the
thicket, and falling upon his knees nailed the tiger with his tusks to
the ground. Such was the violence of the shock that my servant,
who sat behind, was thrown out, and one of my guns went overboard.
The struggles of my elephant to crush his still resisting foe, who had
fixed one paw on his eye, were so energetic that I was obliged to hold
on with all my strength to keep myself in the houdah. The second
barrel too of the gun, which I still retained in my hand, went off in
the scuffle, the ball passing close to the mahout's ear, whose
situation, poor fellow, was anything but euviable. As soon as my
elephant was prevailed upon to leave the killing part of the
business to the sportsmen they gave the roughly-used tiger the
coup-de-grace. It was a very fine female, with the most beautil'ul
skin I ever saw."
In the ' Asiatic Annual Register ' for 1804, a gentleman who had
been present at the killing of above thirty tigers gives an account of
a hunting-party of the Nawab Asuf-ud-Dowli^. After describing
the immense cavalcade of the nawab he says: — "The first tiger we
saw and killed was in the mountains. We went to attack him about
noon ; he was in a narrow valley, which the nawab surrounded with
above two hundred elephants ; we heard him growl horribly in a thick
bush in the middle of the valley. Being accustomed to the sport, and
very eager, I pushed in my dephant ; the fierce beast charged me
immediately ; the elephant, a timid animal, turned tail and deprived
me of the opportunity to fire. I ventured again, attended by two or
three other elephants ; the tiger made a spring, and nearly reached
the back of one of the elephants on which were three or four men ;
the elephant shook himself so forcibly as to throw tliese men off his
back, and they tumbled into the bush ; I gave them up for lost, but
was agreeably surprised to see them creep out unhurt. His Excel-
lency was all this time on a rising ground near the thicket looking on
calmly, and beckoning to me to drive the tiger towards him. I made
another attempt, and with more success ; he darted out towards me
on my approach, roaring furiously and lashing his sides with his taiL
I luckily got a shot and hit him ; he retreated into the bush, and ten
or twelve elephants just then pushed into the thicket, alarmed the
tiger, and obuged him to run towards the nawab, who instantly ^ve
hun a warm reception, and with the assistance of some of his omras,
or lords, laid the tiger sprawling on his side. A loud shout of ' wha !
wha I ' proclaimed tiie victory."
There is in Bishop Heber's 'Journal' a most graphic description of
a tiger-hunt, but our limits will not permit us to mdulge in more oi
these stirring accounts.
Those who have represented the tiger as untameable have no
8 c
FEIAVM.
graiuid fof tin , J, , -
sunt, ereo to fbndaesa, for its keeper as uiy other uumsl of its kind.
We hare wen mui; iDstancee of this mutual good understtnding
between the nuui and the beut, and Mr. Bennett mentions a rsmark-
kble example in his ' Tower Meniigerie.' A tigress of great beint;,
in tiie Tower when he wrote, and nc&rcel; a year old, had been during
her passage from Cslcutts allowed to range about the vessel unre-
etricted, utd had become perfectly ^miliar with the sailors, showing
not the eligStest aymptoma of ferocity. On her arrival in the Thames
the iiritatioD produced by the sight of strangers instant]; changed
her temper, rendering her irascible and dangerous. So sulky and
laTsge was she that Uj. Cops, who then kept the lions in the Tower,
coiJd hanll; be prevailed on by her former keeper, who came to see
her, to allow him to enter her den ; but as soon as the tigress recog-
nised her old friend she fawned on him, lioked him, caressed him, and
manifested the most extravagant signs of pleasure ; and when at last
he left her, she cried and whined for the remainder of the day. The
tame tigen of the mendicant prieats, or &kira, of Hindustan are well
But whilst there can be no doubt of the tameable qualities of 1^
tiger, and indeed of all the great Cats, they are not to be incautionaly
trusted. The natural disposition is always read; to break ont ; and
the mildest of them, thou^
" Ne'er >o tune, ao eherijh'd, and lock'd up,
Tin hm B wild Crick of hia ucMlon."
Thus Bontlus states that in 1628 a tiger at Batavia, which had been
brought up from a cub, and accustomed to men all its life, escaped
tronx its cage, fastened on a hoise which was feeding near, and killed
it,' BO tiiat tiie eitiaeos rose upon the tiger with fire-arms, and slew it
In iti tun to prevent further mischief.
II07UTI
r (JWii njrii).
We conclude this part of our sketch with the acconnt pran byJolin
Mason, who formerly kept the beasts in Exeter 'Change, to Hr. Wood,
of hia fearful encounter with one of these captives.
About the year 1803 a tiger had been purchased irr Hr. Alpey to
tend to the Emperor of Qermaoy, and placed in the Tower, thero to
nmun for a few days till the ^p destined to convey the animal
abroad was ready. The Ijeaat was confined in a large suSciently-
Tentilated wooden case, lined with iron hoops, some of which be
ripped off during the first night of his confinement, and gnawed the
ease partiy through. This being perceived, the next day the caee
was repaired by the addition only of a strong piece of wood nailed on
the outside, "The consequence," saja Mr. Wood, "might well be
expected. The tiger renewed hu efforts, and in the course of the
following night made his escape, and Bpnmg upon a wall ten feet
high, whero he remained till Mason came in the morning. The fear
of losing such a valuable animal induced this poor fellow, for a reward
of ten guineas, lo hazard bit life in an attempt to secore the tiger.
For this purpone he engaged a sergeant and some other peraons to
asaist him, whom he placed in a room, the door of which opened upon
the leads, from whence be could reach the animaL He then provided
himself with a strong rope, one end of which he gave through the
window to bia eompanioiu, and with the other, having a running
nooes upon it, he slowly approached the tiger, and throw it over its
neck. Tbia was the critical moment : the people within were directed
to poll the rape and secure the beasts Unfortunately the nooee slipped
off, and the enraged animal immediately sprung upon the keeper, fixing
his teeth into the fiethy part of his arm, and tearing his breast and
hand in a dreadful manner with his claws. lathis shocking situatjon
the poor man lay under the tiger; while the sergeant cut a bullet
into four parts, aud, having loaded bis musket, he fired through the
window at the auimal, who the moment he received tbo shot quitted
his hold, and after staggering for a few minutes expired. The bullet
however which destroyed the tiger had nearly been equally fatal to
the man, one of the quarten having glanced against hia temple, and
deprind him of all sense and taot'on for a considerable time. Never-
FELID-E. 7TI
theleaa, after keeping hin bed a fortmght, he gradually recovered, and
is now (1S07) perfectly well, though he vrill cany Uie marks of his
enemy abont with hitn as long as he lives." (' Zoography,' ToL L)
In the East the Tiger is asaooated emblematically with power, ^us
the Chinese mandsrins covered their seats of juatice with its skin.
In plate IT of the atlas to Sir Geoi^ Staunton's 'Embassy to Chins,'
representing a military post, two swordsmen aro halnted and riiielded
BO as to eiMbit a tigerine aspect. The tigersoldieTS of Hyder A£
and Tippoo Sajb were amongst the choiceat of their troops. Tbs
tiger's head, gorgeoua with jewels, that formed the principal orna-
ment of the throne of Hyder and TimKio, and was taken by tht
British among the BpoUa of the latt«r at Seringapatam, is well known ;
aa is the automatic representation, clumsy enough it must be admitted,
of a royal tiger tearing to pieces a soldier in the pay of the British,
Tiger-Cats. — We now proceed to speak of those species of Filu
whi<£, on account of their reeemblance to the tiger, an called aflvr
that animal Tiger-Cats.
Asiatic TigarCata.
Fdit iVepobiuit, Horsfield and Vigors. Size of the F^it JavaiuiuU,
Horaf., but its habit more alendsr, the tail and neck proportionally
eionnte. Qround-eolour gray, with a very slight admiiture of tawny ;
baniu and spots of the head, back, neck, throat, abdomen, and thigh%
deep black ; superior longitudinal bands resembling those of P. Jara-
•Mtita. Oround-colourof throatand abdomen nearlywhite; thelower
fianka marked with a faint tawny longitudinal streak. Cheeks etnaked
with two parallel longitudinal lineB,at the termination of which follows
a transverse lunar mark which passes with a bold curve to the angle
of the mouth, near which a vetr narrow band crossee the throat.
Sides of the neck appearing marked with two broad waving banda,
at the temuDation of wht^ stands an oblong T(^larly bvnavene
band. Neck underneath nearly immaculate. Shoulder and fianks
exhibiting irregular diversified marka, the anterior oblong, the poste-
rior angular, of a mixed tawny and black, and, individually, above
or posteriorly with a broad dash of saturated black : they are scat-
tered over tbe sides without any regular longitudinal dispositian, but
they have generally an oblique direction. Abdomen marked through-
out with uniform oval apota; anterior thigliB within exhibiting one
broad black band, the posterior thighs two. Bump and Uugbe marked
externally with roundish or oblong apota ; tail above, to within alwnt
an inch of the tip, with uniform ronndiab spots, arranged posteriorly
in regular transvene bands: Head above and ears agreeing generally
witb those of F. Javanentit, Length from extremity of nose to root
of tail, 1 foot lOJ inches. Length of tail, 101 inches, (Vigors and
Horsfield.)
Keninl Tlftr-Cat {Fitit Sipaltiuu).
Dr. Hoisfield and Hr. Vigon observe that the distinguishing
characters of this species are its comparatively lengthened habit ;
tbe alendemrss and proportional length of the tul ; the disposition of
the marks on tbe Sanks, and the character of these marks as far aa
regards their diversified form ; and the saturated black patch with
which they are individually marked at their upper or posterior edge.
" In the Bengal Cat," say those soologists, " these marks have a
difierout diapositioD ; tJiey are oblong, and arranged on the fianks in
regular auocasaion longitudinally. The materials contained in the
museum at the India House have enabled us to make this statement,
which is founded on the examination of a apecimen brought by General
Hardwicke, and on a careful drawing propared under the eyes of Dr.
Hamilton. We have thus two distinct epedes of small oats from
lodia, and the elucidation of this point is of some importeuce, as it
appears from the following remark in M. Temminck's monographs,
'I'existeuce de cette espbce dans I'lnde n'eat pas constat^,' wat ha
entertained some doubts on the existence of tbe Beiwal Cat It is
not our intention, at present, to give a comparative ans^raia of all the
species which resemble our »niTnml The discriminatioa o imany
apedes of Fdit is at all times a difficult subject ; and on many eC
tliem naturaliata still di«^;ree. Our immediate object ia to indioata
m
FELIDM.
■ now fbim of FtlU frmn tha vppac prariDoa* ot Indin, diifbring
easentially from Uiat which ii found in the plum of Bengal ; and lo
direct the attention of naturalialA in that country to a more oareful
inTaBtintkon of ths Tarioui oriental apeciBe of thii interattug
Tha same anthon stats that a cpeeinien waa preianted bj Captain
Fairer, of the Eart India Ccmpan;'* lerrioe, to the Zoological Socdatr
of London. It same immediate^ from Calcutta, whera it waa laid
to hare been lent from NepauL It lired lome time In tlia Soeiety's
Garden, but wa* eztremaly wild and lav^a. It generally ranained
in a aitting posture, like that ot Uie eommon domsatic cat, and never
paced iti den in the manner of moat other aninuJa of the group.
'ZooL Joun.,' ToL it.)
African Tigsc-Cata.
Fdi4 Serval, the SerraL Upper parta dear yallowiBh, with black
apota ; lower parts white, wiui black ipota ulao, b^t the; are leaa
numeroue; Upon the bead and neck the markinga are most oonspi-
ououB, and form aymmatrioal linea on each aide directed towards tha
ahouldera. On the other parta of the body they are placed irregularly.
On tbe back they are lengthened, and show a diaposition to form four
Tona ; on the body and thigha thay are larger and round, and they
are Bmaller but. equally round on tlie eitremitiaa. Upon the face
and muzale Hiey are minute. Back of the eara black at the baae,
aucceeded by a transTerse nhita bar; tipa of the ground-colour of (lie
body. On tiie inaiile of the fare limba two conapicuoua black trana-
verae bars ; tlie bind Umba with similar markings, but lew deGoed ;
lost joints of the limbe of a paler tint than the reat of the body, the
spots on them round and very amalL Tail with eight black ringa ;
tip of tbe same colour. Length, eiclusiTB of tail, 1 foot 11^ inches ,
tail 9 inches. Height, when atandiog erect, about 12 inches at Ute
shoulder, and 15 inches st tha hind quartara, (F. Cuvier.)
The animal from vhich (he above deaeription was taken was a very
joong male. Its temper Was mild and gentle, and ita diapoaitian
aportive. It played liia a domeitio cat, or rather kitten, /'^■iiiHg its
tail, and amuaing itaelf with anything that it oould roll with ita paw.
The Serral is a native of Southern Africa. There are generally
some living apecimens in our menageries. It haa been exhibited in
that of tha Zoological Society of London.
American Tigar-Cata,
It is in America that the Tiger'Cata are most numerous and
beautiful, and there their manneia have been beet noticed by com-
petent obaerTers. We select three examples of tbe varietiea of form
and colouring exhibited by tbis group in that quarter of the globe-
Ftlu pardaOi (Linn.), tie Ocelot. This, the most beautiful perhapa
ot all the Tiger-CatB, almost defies deacriptjon. Hr. £. Bennett baa
however giveii a very faithful account from two living apecimens, o
existing, when he wrote, in the Tower of London, and the other
the Garden of the Zoological Society in the Begent's Park. Hia
description ia as follows - — ■
" Body when full grown nearly three feet in length ; tul rather
more than one foot ; medium height about IS inches. Ground-colour
of fur gray, mingled with a slight tinge of fawn, elegantly marked
with numerous longitudinal banda, tbe dorsal one continuous and
entirely black, tbe lateral (aii or seven on each side) consisting for the
most part of a seriea of elongated apota withblack margins, sometimes
completely diatinct, aometimea running together. The centre of each
■pot of a deeper fawn than tha grouod-oolour external to them ; " '
deeper tinge is also conspicuous on the head and neck, and oi
outside of the limbs, all of which parta are lir^ularly marked with
full bUok linea and spots of varioua aiaea From the top of the head
between the ears, there pass backwaida, towarda llie ^ouldera, two
or more ftoquently four uninterrupted diverging banda, whioh are
full Iilaok anteriorly, bat generally bifurcate poateriorly, and ineloie
narrow fawn-colour spaoe with a black margin ; between tbeae there
Is a single longitudinal, aomavrhat interrupted, narrow black line,
occupying tbe oentre of the neck above. Earn short and rounded,
externally margined with blaok, surrounding a Isirge central whitish
spot. Under parta of tlie body whitish, spotted with black, and the
tail, which is of the same ground.caloar with the body, also covered
wilJi black spots." (Bennett, ' Tower Ueuagerie.')
'i^:^^^
Ocelot (APittwAiIli).
Ur. Bennett remarlts that he has, in the above deaeription, stated
the lengtli of tha tail at more than a foot ; and that in all the known
Ocelola, aa well aa in all the species (of which there are aaveral) that
approach it in form and colouring, the proportionate length of the tail
ia at laaat equal to that wl^ch he has given as ita average measure-
ment. Tha tail however of the Tower specimen did not exceed six
or seven inches ; ita extremity was oretgtown with hair, and there
waa no cicatrix. Still, ita equality throughout and ita abrupt atumpi-
neas indnced the belief that thia abbreviation waa purely acddental ;
and he felt by no meaua inclined to regard that specimen as a new
apedea, to be distinguished by Uie excoasive shortness of that append-
age, by the unusually pale colour of its markings, and by some slight
peculiarity in tha mode of thair arrangement, which, be observes, Varies
in every individual that he had seen.
This animal is a native of Mexico, Paraguay, and probably Feni.
The Ocelot remains in the deep forests during the day, sallying
forth at night in quest of small quadrupeds and birds, the latter i^
whioh it successfully chases in the trees, for it is a vary expert
timber. If it be, aa ia generally supposed, tbe TlacooaeloU, Tlalo-
oaloU, Oattu Pardia MexUanui of Hernandez, it ia said to stretch
itself out aa if dead on the limb of some tree when it apiaa monkeys in
the neigbhourhood. They, uiged by curiosity, proceed to examine
the supposed defmtct, and fall victims to their curiosity.
The Ocelot has been so completely tamed as to be left at liberty,
and it ia said to be capable of strong attachment to its master. Mr.
Bennett atataa that the specimen in the Tower, a male, was parfecUy
good-tampered, exceedingly fond of play, and had much of the chanc-
tar and manners of the domestic cal Its food consisted principal^
of rabbits and biiila ; tiie latter it plucked with great dexterity, and
always oommencad its meal with the head, of which it seemed par-
ticularly fond ; but it did not «t with the ravenous avidity which
characterisaa nearly all the animals of this tribe.
Fdi* mitU (F. Cuvier), the Chati ; Cbibiguazu of D'Azarn (I) ; Fdit
Chibiffwuit (Deam,). About a third larger than the domeatio cat :
langtji, excluaive of t^l, rather more Uian two feet ,' tail, 1 1 inchea ;
height to middle of back, about 1 foot 2 iochei. Qround-oolour of
fur on the upper parta, pale yellowish ; on the lower, pure white ; at
the roots, dull gray, and very thick and close. Body covered with
irregular dark patdiea ; those upon the back entirely black, and dis-
poaed longitudinally in four rows ) those upon the sides surrounded
with black, with the centres of a clear fawn, arranged in nearly five
rows, ^xits upon the loner part of the body, where tbe ground-
colour of the fur ia white, full, and arranged in two lin« composed of
six OT aevsn patches on each side. Limbs covered with nearly round
spots of smallar dimensions : on the fore legs, near the body, two
transverse banda. On the throat a sort of half-collar, and on the
under jaw two crescent-ehaped spots. Behind each eye two bands
about two inohea long, termmati[;g oppoaita the ear. ForohCBd bor-
dered by two Lines, between which are numaroua spota, and, at their
origin, a blackish mark from which the whiakera apring. Outside of
the ear block, with a white spot upon the small lobe. Base of the
tail spotted with small blotohea, which towards the end run into
half-rings, whioh aro broadest on the upper surface. Fupil round.
(F. Cuvier.)
Thil animal, a female, was extremely gentie ; and if those with
whom it was familiar passed its cage or did not approach it, it would
express ita discontent by a abort cry. It manifested great delight
when it was oarevad. It lived in the Faria' menagerie, and waa
procured from a dealer in Brest. The Chati ia a native of Sonth
ChlU (AJu mitit).
D'AiBn'a deaeription oomei very near to that above given, e
u colouring u ooDcerned ; but he given the averaf^ length at 3 feet
6 inohea : the individual which he deecribed, the laigeat male he had
*MD, wae i feet all but an inch in length ; tail, 13 inohee j height at
ahauldara, 1 foot 6 iocheB, and behind 1 foot Tf inohes. It ma >o
fat, that iaunadiatety after death it weighed 3S Iba. : the female*, he
■ays, are ntlur leoi.
The aune acute observer, speaking of hie ChibignaEU, retcarka that
■ome of the Quaranese call the domeatic cat Chibi, and athen Mbra-
cni. In the aame maEmer, he eajs, eome give the wild animal of
which he ia treating the name of Chibi-Quuu, and othen that of
Hbracaji-Quazu ; both appellatlona aigni^dag Qmt Cat. Huy
Spaniardi, be adds, call it Onza (Ounce),
Ha itatea that the apeciee is so common that hia friend Hoeeda oan-
tored sixteen individuals in two yean, within two league* of hu
village; but he adds that, nctwithstandiDg thia abundance, few are
acqnaiiitad with it, the huDtaman and dogi never falling in with it,
and bi^g unable to penatrata it* haunts : ha very much doubt* whe-
ther any quadruped bidea itself mora aSbctually. He dsacribea it aa
remainiDg by day in the most impenetrable placee, and as ooming
fortii after duak, eepecially on dark stormy nighta, whan the chibi-
guama dsringly enter the corrala and court-yards, though no inatance
is known of their detection by the dogs. When the moon shines they
abatain from viaiting inhabited spots, and uevar are trapped : to lie
in wait for them with a gun ia hopeless, so aharp a look-out do they
Iteep. They carry off domeetic fowla from tree* which tbay climb,
tomeljme* *ii in one nigbt, and often leave several dead. Hen and
dop are avoided by them with oitrsma caution, and each pair is
anppoeed to live in a separate diatriot, for a male and female, and no
more, are alwaya caught in the same place. Noaeda formed a trap of
drong atakea, with three diviaiona : m the middle be placed a white
fowl, w> that it might not only ba heard but seen at a diatanoe : the
other diviuoOB were so framed a* to ahut by the falling of the planks
M soon aa the cbibiguaiua enterod. This trap waa set in the placea
to which they reaortad for pray, and those caught were turned into a
'great den in Noaeda's court-yafd. Some of these got away, and ware
.taken again two or three timea in the aame trap ; they were recagniaad
by ear-marka and other proofa. D'Axars infara from this that the idea
of danger waa obliterated &om their recollection by their deaire to
poaseaa the fowl He remarked that all which were kept in the dan
deposited their eicremoDta in their drinking-place, and when he sub-
stituted a narrow-necked jug to prevent thia, they mounted to it*
'edge for that purpose, and never misaed the vessel or ita immediate
D^ghbourhood. Nearly the whole day waa spent by them rolled tip
in a ball, and when a chibiguami wiahed to atratch himaelf, he firat
licked tha one at his aide. When straw was put into their den, or eo
that they could reach it by thrusting thair pawa through the bars, it
was always found that on the day following they bad plawd it in a
heap, after having divided it into bits some quarter of an inch long,
and on this they reposed. The amall aldcka and twiga with which the
inside of thair den waa furnished were broken and torn to pieoea in
like manner. Twilight and night were paaaed in paoing to and fro
close to the sidea of their den ; and if croaaed or interrupted by
another, they MTed and gesticulated like an angry cat, but without
titing their paws. They never quarrelled, udIhh they were vary much
irritated, and then they struck at each other with thair fore paws. They
devoured five pound* of flesh per day whan fitat caught, but aftei^
laarda three sufficed. A portion was prepared for each of the twelve
or fourteen inditiduala confined, and they took it with their pawa
according to the Length of time they had been there, without any
interference on the part of tha others. If however the animal whose
turn it waa did not take his portion, or disreganled it, anotbar imme-
diately snatched at it without any defanoa on the part of the rijfat
owner except by snaeaing, and aometimea by blows with ita fore pawa.
PELID.fi. 77*
A walk waa made for them, Incloaed by a sort of hurdle, so that rati,
fowls, ducks, or young dog* oould be introduced into it : upon opening
the cage it waa obe^ved that oaually one only went oat for each
victim, and almost alwaya according to the order of their conQnement,
Cata and doga they seized with their mouth by the nape of tiie aetk,
overlaid them, and than kept them so that they oould not stir, tin
they were dead: Cats' flesh appeared b* produce the mange, fi-ettii^
the chibiguaEUB, making them mew like cata, and at last destroying
them. Bnakea, vipara, and toads were aleo eaten by them, but thii
dietooeasioned violent and continued vomiting; they wasted to skela-
tona^ and died in a few daya If the dog introduced equalled them in
tiie, ttuT touched him not, for it appaara that they do not aaaiBt each
other. If a chibiguazu cannot maater any prey alone, he leave* it
Birds ware caught by tha head and neck, and thoroughly stripped of
their feather* before they were eaten. No unneceaaary cruelty wai
maoifeated. Ifoaeda ohaerved that one did not kill a fowl put into
his dan till the third day. D'Aiara and hia friend frequently closed
the doors of the yard, and opened tha den that tha chibiguaiua might
leave it : thoaa lately caught went first ; and aomatimea the old ones
would not go out even when their den was entered that it might be
BwepL Tbay were left at liberty for several hours, during wbi^ thay
examined every crevioe, and then lay down to sleep When boya
persecuted tham with sticks, they retreated to their den withoiit
turning on their peraecutors, even when aeverely beaten. A male on
one occaaion becoming very lazy, on catering hia den he naa abuaad
and bitten by hia female, as if to ptmiab him. Some individuala were
incarcerated for more than a year without eibibiting any sign of love-
in the night their ayea ahona like thoaa of a dotneatic cat, and they
reaemblad that animal in thair form and habita. in lyiog down, licking
and cleaning thamaalvea, wa^iiDg their facea with tT^eir paws, fuffin^
aneeiing— in fact, in every way. D'Aiaja condudoa by etating that
his friend caught a young one. and it became ao thoroughly tame Out
it elept in the akirts of lua clerical gown, and went about loose. He
affirmed that no animal could ba mora timetable : but it davonrad the
poultry of hia neighbcura, and thf y killed it.
Fdit Pajttot, the Fampaa-Cat. Pajaro, or Jungle-Cat Fur of
great lengUi ; longer hairs of Uie back upwards of 3 inchea, and
those of the binder part of tha back from ^^ to 4J inchea in length.
Qaneral colour pale yellow-gray ; numerous irregular yellow or
aometimea brown stripes running obliquely from tha back along the
aidea of the body. On each aide of the face two atripea of yellowish
or cinnamon commencing near the eye, and extending backwirda
and downwards over Uie cheeks, on the binder part of which they
join, and form a single line, which encircles the lower part of the
throat. Tip of the muEzle and ohin white ; a apot in front of the
2 re, and a line beneath the aye, of the aame colour ; belly, inner
de and hinder part of fore lega, white also. An irregular black
line running aeroas the lower part of the cheat, and extending over
the base of tha fore lega externally ; above this line two other trans-
verse dark markings more or leas deSned on the cheat. On the for*
lega three brosd black banda, two of which encircle the leg; on
the posterior lags about five black banda eitemally, and some
irregular dark spots internally. Feet yellowiah, and under aide of
taraus of a slightly deeper hue. On the belly numerous large
irregular black apota. Eara moderate, with long white hairs internally;
eitemally of the aame eoloar a* the head, except at tha apex, where
the haiis are black, and form a alight tuft. Tail ahort sotaewbat
^^^^^^^^
Funpai-Cat (Fi;iii>r;j«nii). 'Zoid, of the Btagla.'
bushy, snd devoid of dark rings or spots — tha haira are in &ct
' ired aa thoaa on the back. On the upper part of Uia body each
brown at the baae, then yellow, and at tha apex black. On
the hinder part of the back the haira almoat black at tha base, and,
on the aides of the body, each hair gray at the baae ; there ia then
a conaiderable space of yellowiah- white colour: towarda the apex they
are white, and at tha apex black. The greater number of the haiis
of the mouatachea white. Length from nose to root of tail 26 inches;
of tail (fur included), 11 inches. Height of body at shoulden^
777
FELIDiS.
F£LIDi£.
773
13 inches. Size about equal to that of the oommon wild-oat of
Europe ; but the Pampas-Cat ii stouter, its head smaller, and its tail
shorter. (Watorhouse.)
Mr. Waterhouae (' Zoology of the Beagle ') observes that the mark-
ings of this animal vary sughtly in intensity : those on the body, he
remarks, are generally indistinct ; but the black rings on the legs are
always very conspicuous.
D' Azara says that he knows not, nor has he heard, that this species
exists in Paraguay, although it formerly may have been seen ^ere ;
but as the countiy became telerably well peopled, and there were
fewer plains, the inhabitants probably extirpated it. He caught four
in the Pampas of Buenos Ayres, between 85* and 36" S. lat, and three
others on the Kio Negro. He says they are found on both sides
of the La Plata.
Darwin (' Zoology of the Beagle') gives as its habitat Santa Cruz,
Patagonia, and Bahia Bianca. He states that it is common over the
whole of the great plains which compose the eastern side of the
southern part of America ; and he says he has reason te believe,
from the accounts he received, that it is found near the Strait of
Magellan, which would give it a range of nearly 1400 miles in a north
and south direction, D'Azara having steted that it extends northward
as far as 30** S. lat. One of Mr. Darwin's specimens was obtained in
50'' S. lat., at Santo Cruz.
D'Azara says that the natives call this animal Gktto Pajero, because
it lives on the plains, concealing itself in jungles, without entering
inte the woods and thickets. Ouinea-Pigs {Aperea), according to
him, form its principal food. Mr. Darwin states that it takes ite
name from 'paja,' the Spanish word for straw, from its habit of
frequenting reeds. The specimen taken by him at Santo Cruz was
met with in a valley where thickete were growing. When disturbed
it did not run away, but drew itself up and hissed.
III. Leopabds.
The larger Spotted Cato are known by this name. They are found
in both the Old and New Worlds.
The form seems to have ite most perfect development in the
ancient continent and the islands of the Old World, though it
must be admitted that the American Jaguar, in point of size,
strength, and sturdiness of make, excels the Leopards of Asia and
Africa.
Felia Pardua (Hie Panther) of Linnsus first claims our notice. It
has been a question whether the Leopard and Panther are distinct
species, or only varieties. Linnseus, in his last edition of the ' Systema
Naturse,' included under the specific name of Fdit Pardut the
Pantkera, Pardalitf Pardtu, and Leopardua of Greener ; Pardtu mas.,
Pantliera femina of Alpin (Egypt); PardoZw of Ray; Tigria Mexicana
of Hernandez ; and Pinuum Dcuyputj Nieremb., ' Nat.' Under the
specific name of Oncahe includes PardtUf seu I/ynx Bnuilienait of Bay,
and the Jaguara of Marcgrave. He has no species named Leopardm ;
but Gmelin has, and in. his edition we £nd the following species : — 1.
F.pardua — F. cauda elongate, corpore maculis superioribus orbicu-
latia; inferioribus viigatis — (the description of Linnaus) Schreb.,
' Saugethiere,' iii. p. 884, t. xcix., with the following references and
synonyms : — Fdit oz albo flavicans, maculis nigris indorse orbiculatis,
in ventre longis, Biias. ' Quadr.' ; the names of Qesner and Ray as
quoted above ; Pardus maculis seu scutulis varus, Ludolf, iEthiop. ;
Panthers of Bufifon. 2. F. Vncia, Once, Buffon. 3. F, Leopardua —
F. Cauda mediocri, corpore fusco maculis subcoadunatis nigris. Erxl.,
'Syst. Mamm.,' p. 509. n. 5 ; Schreb., 'Sdugeth.,' iii. p. 387, t. cL;
Uncia, Caj., ' Op.,' p. 42, Geen., ' Quadr.,' p. 825 ; Leopard of Bu£fon.
4. F. Onfo, the Jaguar.
Cuvier separates the Panther from the Leopard specifically. The
Panther, La Panth^re, he makes the Fdia Pardua of Linnaeus,
and the Pardalia, ti n^aXit of the ancients. He describes the
Panther as yellow above, white beneath, with six or seven rows of
black spots in the form of roses, tiiat is to say, formed by an
assemblage of five or six small simple spots on each side ; the toil of
the length of the body not reckoning the head. This species he
speaks of as being spread throughout Africa and in the warm
countries of Asia, as well as in the Indian Archipelago ; and he stotes
that he has seen individuals where the ground-colour of the fur is
black, with spoto of a still deeper black {Fdia mdcu, P^r.), but that
they do not form a species, observing that both yellow and black
cubs have been seen sucking the same mother (1829). Pennant
('Hist. Quadr.,' 1793) figures a Black Leopard, and describes the
variety as follows : — " In the Tower of London is a black variety,
brought from Bengal by Warren Hastings, Esq. The colour
universally is a dusky black, sprinkled over with spots of a glossy
black, disposed in the same forms as those of the Leopard. On
turning aside the hair, beneath appears a tioge of the natural
colour."
Fdia Leopardua (the Leopard) of Linnaeus, as he quotes it (but it
is not mentioned by Linnaeus in his last edition of the ' Syst. Nat^ ; '
it appears, as we have seen, in Omelin's edition), Cuvier assigns to
Africa, remarking that it is similar to Uie Panther, but with ten rows
of smaller spoto These two species, he adds, are smaller than the
Jaguar; and he says that there is a third, a little lower on the
legs, with the tail equalling the body and head in length, and
with more numerous and smaller spoto (Fdia ehalyheata. Herm.
Schreb., 101).
Cuvier does not notice the Panther, 6 nii^p of Aristotle (' Hist
Anim.,' vi 35), and indeed this animal is supposed by many not to have
been one of the Leopard kind. In a note to Fdia chalybeata Cuvier
stotes that it is to that species M. Temminck applies the name of
Panther ; but the former adds it is certoin that the Panther so weU
known to ilie andento, and which appeared so often in the Roman
shows and games, could not be an animal from the recesses ('fond')
of Eastern Asia.
Cuvier does not insert in the text of his 'R^gne Animal' the
Ounce of Buffon ; but in a note to the second edition he speaks of it
as differing from the Panthers and the Leopards by more unequal
spots, more irreg^ularly scattered, partly notohed or ringed, Ac., and
as appearing to be found in Persia ; adding that his knowledge of it is
only derived from Buffon's figure, and from that which Mr. Hamilton
Smith has inserted in the English translation of the ' R^gne Animal '
from an individual which had been seen living in London.
The Panther and the Leopard were once regarded by M. Temminck
as varieties of the same species, F. Leopardua, but he has sepantted
them specifically in his ' Monograph.'
Colonel Smith's Ounce was detected by him in the Tower when
that fortress included a menagerie among ito attractions. The animal
is said to have been brought from the Gulf of Persia, but we only
learn that it was very distinct from all other species in make,
markings, and general appearance.
The same author describes the Panther of the anciento as standing
higher than the Jaguar, and as approaching in ito form, which is
slender, to that of the Hunting Leopard (F, jubata), though much
lai^r in proportion.
M. Lesson enumerates the following Leopards as belonging to the
old continent : —
F, PanUkire, F, Pardua, Linn., Temm., 'Monog.' Less than the
Leopard ; tail as long as the body and head. LooUity, Bengal ; and
probably does not exist in Africa.
F, Lmpard, F. Leopardua, Linn. (GmeL), Temm. ; F. Pardua, Cuv. ;
Faahd of the Arabs. Rather less than a lioness. Tail (22 vertebrae)
of the length of the body. Locality, Africa and India.
F, jubata, the Cheetah, or Hunting Leopard. Locality, Southern
Asia.
Among those Fdidoe which are distributed in the Polynesian group
of islands (lies Asiatiques de la Polynesie) M. Lesson notices —
F. melaa, P^ron, observing that this animal, which M. Temminck
believed to be a variety of the Ijeopard, constitutes, on the contrary,
a species entirely confined to Java, and especially in the moat isolated
eastern districts, such as Blambangan (Brambananf). The size of
the animal he stotes to be that of the Panther ; ito fur of a deep
black, on which are traced zones of the same colour, but less lustrous.
This leopard, which is called Arimaou by the Javanese, is used for
the singular combato of the 'Rampok,' for the details of which
M. Lesson refers to the 'ZooL de la Coquille,' t. i. p. 189. He adds
that he saw a beautiful specimen belonging to the resident of Soura-
baya, and he was assured that F. mdaa was not rare in the island.
He also refers to F. mcicrocdia, Horsfield. Localities, Sumatra and
Borneo. (1827.)
Mr. Bennett (' Gardens and Menagerie of the Zoological Society,'
1880) says, " Whether the Leopard and the Panther are in reality
distinct species, and if so on what particular characters the specific
distinction depends, are questions uiat have been so variously solved
by writers of the highest eminence that we cannot, without better
opportunities for comparison of specimens than we at present possess,
adopt the conclusions to which any one of them has come upon the
subject. Linnaeus, not perceiving any sufficient grounds of distinction,
referred both names to one and the same animal ; Buffon added a
third, that of the Ounce, and increased the confusion by describing
as the Panther of the anciento and an animal of the old continent
the Jaguar, which is now known to be peculiar to the new continent;
Cuvier subsequently founded a distinction upon the greater or smaller
number of rows of spoto disposed along the sides of the body ; and
Temminck, rejecting these characters as unimportant, has lately fixed
upon the comparative length of the toil as affording the only sure
means of discrimination. In this uncertainty the question remains
for the present ; but there can be no doubt of the complete distinction
between both the animals involved in it and that which we have
figured, the mistaken Panther of Buffon, the Jaguar of Brazil, and
Fdia Onga of systematic writers. It may not however be useless to
observe, that of the figures given by Buffon as Panthers and Jaguars
that which is entitled the made Panther is in all probability a Leopard ;
the female is unquestionably a Jaguar ; the Jaguars of the original
work, and of the supplement, are either Ocelots or Chatis ; and that
which purports to be the Jaguar or Leopard, although probably
intended for a Cheetah, is not clearly referrible by ito form and
markings to any known species."
Mr. Swainson, in his 'Classification of Quadrupeds' (1835), leaves
the question untouched. In his ' Animals in Menageries ' (1838) he
gives the following species : —
The Leopard; Leopard, Cuvier; F, Leopardua, H. Smith, in Gri£
Cuvier.
m FEUCiC
The Pautber, F. ParAtt, Linn., Hamilton Smith ; Faathire, Cutut.
Panther ot the Aitcisnti^ F. PardiM Antiqiumat, Hamilton Smith,
in Sjoopiia of Griff, Cut.
Under tha title 'Leop&rd' Mr. Swolnaonwi, "AlQiongh the munea
of Leopard and Paatber Lava beau long ramiU&r in common language,
and baro convened tha idea of two diidnct spetnei, yat it ii pecTectl;
dear that no acientific writer of ths lut ganention aither deacribed,
or Indeed appeared to know, in what reapeota the «niTnaU differed. It
■eema that numeroua apecimana of what ia called the Leopard are in
the Zoological Qaideni, and one haa bean figured in the book ao
entitled ; but Hr, Bennett hai not made the alighteat attempt to
inreatigata the aubjeot, or to thiow any light upon thia difficult
question. In thia duemma we ahall therefore repoae on the opinloni
of M^or Hamilton Smith, whoae long experience and aocun^y of
obaervation are well known, and whoae authority in thia department
of nature deaerredly ranka above that of any other naturaliat of thia
country. The Leopard, aa denned by Major Smith, when compared
with the Jaguar and the Panther of naturaliata, ia uniformly of a paler
yellowiah colour, rether smaller, and the dota roae-formed, or con-
aiating of levenil dota partially unilfd into a circular figure in aoma
instancea, and into a quadrangular, triangular, or other leaa determi-
nata forma in others : there are alao aeveral ungle iaolated black apota,
which more aapecially occur on the outaida of the limba. The
Panther, according to Profeaaor Lichtenatein of Berlin, 'reeemblaa
the Jaguar in having the aame number . of rowa of apota, but ia
diatinguiahed by having no full apota on the donal line.' But, aa
Major Smith otMrree, it dosa not appear that full apota on the donal
Une alwaya make a specific charactar of the Jaguar; and the Aaiatic
Leopard ia aometimea diaticguiahed by thia peculiarity, though it
doea not in other reapecta resemble the American *ni'Ti«l. Whan
therefore it ia aaid that the Panther much resemblea the Jaguar, it ia
alwaya to be atrongly auapect«d that the type whence tjie obaervationa
have been taken ia m r^ity an American animal." Mr. Swainaon
Qien, after copying H^jor Smith's acientifio description of the
Leopard, proceeda to aay, "Our own opinion of ths apecifio diaaimi-
larity between the Leopard and the Panther, judging from what haa
been writtea on the aubject, is in perfect nniaon with that of Major
Smith ; while the following remark of that observing natutaliat,
incidentally inaartad in hia account of the Panther of antiquity,
aaema to us almoat concluaive : — ' The open apota which mark all the
Panthera have the inner aurface of the ■"tihIi or rings more tiilvoua
(in other woida darker) than the general colour of the aidea ; but in
the Leopard no aoch diatinction appeara, nor la there room, aa the
small and more coagregnted dota are too close to admit it.' In truth,
if there ia aay relianae to be placed in ths most accurate figures
hitherto publiabed, the lunall spots of the leopard and the large ones
of the Panther moat strike even a caaual observer, and lead him to
believe that the two aninuU were called by different names,"
Leopard (Fitit Uopariiu). SnCBal.
In the ' Oemmie et Seulpturss AntiquES ' of Qronoviua there ia an
engraving of a boy driving a car drawn by two Panthera, rather high
on their lega, from a camelian, headed ' Cairo di Bacho ; ' but
Oronoviua Uiinks that tiiough tjiia 'reda' may be attributed to
Bacchus, it may nevertbeleaa be taken tat a repreaantation of one
from the Circenaian gamea, for which opinion he gives hia reasons.
Captain Symth, R.N., in hia interesting 'Descriptive Catalogue of a
Cabinet of Roman Imperial Large Braaa Medals,' notices a medal of
VELa>X.
Commodus, on the reverae of which ths emperor on 1
galloping aoroaa the field, with a chlamya floating beliiiid Mm, ia in
the act of easting a dart at a Pantiier, which is ' ahowing fighf Ha
alao refen to the figure of a Lyni or Panther on ib» revsree of oca
of Septimiua Severus, and to that of a Panther (among othor animala)
on the smaller coina of Qallianua.
With regard to the P. Pard%4 Antiqvitnan of Smith, Hr. iwaiiuaa
remarka that the epeoiea, if moh it really be, ia supposed to bo tlu
animal known to ancient writers In the name of PoMUero. It a
however, he adda, now ao imre, or has been ao little '<'^J''g"'**-*-*,
Uiat Major Smith la only acquunted with one example, iriiieli ia i*
the muaeum of the elector of BeBe Caaael, in whose menagerie it
had probably lived. Nothing was known of ita native oountiy or zl
its manners. (9ae H. Smith's dcacription, including cdiar&ctan
intarmediat« bet?veen the Jaguar of America and tha Panthsrm uid
Leopards of the Old World.)
Hr. Swainaon alao notices the Ounca In the saow work, refrBnii^
to Major Smith's description, and regretting tliat that able ■oologjai
bad not entered into further particulars. Mr. Swainaon atatee tha^
judging &am the figure engraved from Mr. Smith's dniwing, he ahoohl
term it a lower and mare thickset animal than the Panther ; the
spots latger, mora irregular, and much fewer, but differing mora
especially in having the tail decidedly annnlated with black ring^
while those of all Uie Panthers are spotted. The body, he adds, is
dsscribsd aa whitish ; while ysllow or fawn-colour ia the onivaaW
both of the Panthers and Leopards.
1 June, 1837. I>r. Gray brought befora
the Zoological Society of London some 1
lately purchased for the British Muaeum from a collection nude hj
the iMi£ Colonel Cobb in India, among which was an adult apacimBn
of the Once of Buffon (' Hist Nat'), on which Schreber formed hia
P. Vnuia, which haa been regarded by Cuvier, Temminck, and mod
succeeding authors aa a Leopard, but which, continued Dr. Qray, " is
as a distmot speciee, easily known by the thicknea of its for, the
u of its colou
, the irregular form of the spots, and e
Oonce {Ftlit Vntia). From ttic tpeclmen In the Britiih Mukdid.
I Of Uie manners of ths true Leopards in a state of nature not
much aeema to be known. They are vary active, olimb well, and
take their prey by surprise. In captivity they an playful, but apt
to be treacheroua. Mrs. Bowdioh won the heart of a Leopard by
kindneaa, and by presenting him with lavender-water in a card-tray,
taught him to keep hia clawa sheathed. Tha luiuriooa asiraal
revelled in the delicioua essence almost to ecstaoy; but he never was
suffered to have it if ha put forth his claws. We r^ret that our
limita will net allow na to give this lady's graphic account of ber
amiable favourite 'Sai,' which the reader will find in Londoa'a
Among the larger Spotted CaU of the Old World we mnst notice
t}ie Biman-Dahan, P. naerocdit, Temm,, Horafield ; P. ndmtota (T), H.
Smith, QrifBth.
This species partakes in some measure of the markings of both
the Tiger and Leopards, though it seems to be more nearly allied
to the latter than to the former.
Probable aiae when ^11 grown about 4 feet from ^a nose to the
root of the tail, which may be reokoned at 3 feet S tnchea ; height at
shoulder about 1 foot 10 incbea. Colour whitiah-gray, with an
inclination to ashy or brownish-gray, no yellow or red tint Stripei
and spots dark, oblong, irregular, and broad on the ahouldera, inte^
rupted and angular on the sides, posterior edges of the broad epots
sad stripes marked by a line of deep velvet black ; limbs stout, fM
and toes robust; tail veiy long, large, and lanuginous.
It inbabita Sumatra. M. Temminck thinks it is also found on the
continent of India, having received mantles belonging to the Diakkei*
made of the skin of this apeciea.
The specimen brought to England alive by Sir Thomaa StomlMd
Rafflea waa taken when very young in the foresta of Benooolan, sod
Loigtli of the bod/ laid head, from ilie estremi^ of
tfae DOM to the root of the tMl . . . .30
Length of the tail 9 S
Height at the shoulden 14
Height at the rump 13
Circumfenoce of the Kbdomen 2 0
Circumference of the neck 12
Sir StAmford RafBcH gives the foHowing uconnt of the mannen
of Ihe Bpede* from personBl obeerration mftde on two iadividuelB :—
"Both BpeoimecB, while in & ateta of conSnement, were remarkabte
for good temper and plajfiilnMa ; no domeHtio kitten could be more
BO : tbflT wera aJwaja cnurtiag intercoiirw with penooa puling bj,
and in the eiprestdon of their countenance, which waa always open
and amitiiig, showed the greatest delight when noticed, throtnng
themflelTee on their baoke, and delighting in being tickled and rubbed
On bonrd the ehip there waa a small Huai Dog, wbo used to play
round the cage and with the animal, and it waa amuaizig to obaerre
the plajfulnese and tendemesa with which the latter oame in contact
with hia inferior-siaed companion. When ted with a fowl that died,
he Beized the prey, and after Bucking the blood and tearing it a little,
he amiieed himnlf for hour* in throwing it about and jumping after
it in the manner that a cat plaja witb a mouas before it is quite
dead. He nerer >eemed to look on man or children as prey, but aa
companions; and the natives assert that when wild, tbej live
principally on poultry, birds, and the smaller kinda of deer. They
are not found in numbers, and may b« considered rather a tare
animal, oren in the aoutbam part of Sumatra. Both specimens
were procured from the interior of Benccwien, on the bank! of the
Bencoolen JUver, They are generally found in the liointtf of
Tillages, and are not dreaded by the natives, except a* far aa they
may destroy the poultry. The Datives aaaert that they sleep and
oflaii lay wait for their prey on trees ; and from this circumstance
ther derive the name of D^sn, which ngniSei the fork formed by
the branch of a tree, across which they are said to r<et and occasionally
stretch themselvea. Both specimens constantly amuaed themadvea
in Arequeotly Jumping and clinging to the top of ibeir cage, and
throwing a Bomerset, or twisting themeelves ronnd iu the manner of
a squirrel when confined, the tail being extended and showing U>
great advantage when so expanded." ('Zool. Jonra.,' toL 1)
Klmin.Dihin (lUJi '
Dr. Horsfield, in the work above quoted, conflrma the aceoti&t of
Sir Stamford from hie own observation on the individoal that waa
lodged on its arrival in Exeter 'Change, The Doctor, who dose not
appear to acquiesce in the Identity of F. ntlmlota with the Rimaa-
Dahan, gives in the same paper a most elaborate and aceumte
description of the latter, to which ne must refer our readeia. He
alio giTM a figure (pL xii) from a drawing nude hy the late William
Daniell, Esq., RA., a few days after the animal had been placed i;
Eieter 'Chuge,
We now coma to a *Bry intensting form, one of those gradation
by which If ature appesi* to pais from one type to another. The Ptlit
riiata of Sohreber, Cbetab, Cheetah, or Hunting Leopard, exhibito
both in iti external form and habits inch a mixture of Uie Feline
and Canine trlbei aa to justify apparently the appropriate
Ofuailiim, employed by H. Wagler to deaigiute it as a genua. Thm,
asHr.fiennatt obeervea ('Tower Menagerie'), the Hunting Leopard,
uniting to the system of dentition, the general iiabit, and many of the
most striking peculiarities of the oat^ some of the distinguishing
features, and much of the intelligence, the taachablenea^ and ihe
fideli^ of the dog, becomes a sort of (onneoting link between two
groups of animals otherwise completely separated, and exhibiting
scarcely any other character in common than the camivorons propen-
atlea by which both are in a greater or less degree actuated and
inspired, t" InlermBdiate," continues Mr. Bennett, "in size and shape
between the leopard and the hound, he ia alenderer in his body, more
elevated on his legs, and less flattened on the fore part of hii head
than the former, while be is deficient in the peculiarly graceful and
lengthened form, both of head and body, whioh characterises the
iatter. Hia tail ia entirely that of a cat ; and his limbs, although
mors elongated than in any other apaciea of that group, aeem to be
better fitted for sli^ng muiculsr exertion than for active and long-
continued speed." From these and other indications Mr. Bennett is
of opinion that the animal approaches much more nearly to the cats
than the dogs, and continues it among the former. The anatomy of
the Cheetah, as subsequently demonstrated by ProfesBor Owen at a
meeting of the Zoological Society of London, ahowa indeed that, in
intemiJ structure, this leopsni is nndonbtedly feline : of its habiti
we shall hereafter have occasion to speak. In the paper last above
alluded to, ' On the Anatomy of the Cheetah, /Wis jvbata, Schreb.,'
Professor Owen commenced by remarkuig on Fdu as a truly natural
The principal deviation from the common type waa stated to be that
which obtains in the organe of voice of the Lion (and, o Hr. Hartin
haa observed, in those of the Jaguar also), where the laiyniis situated
at a oonaiderable distance from the poaterior mar^ of the bony
palate, the soft palate and the tongue being proportionally lacr«ased
m length, thus forming a gradually expanded passage, which lead*
from the glottis, where the air is rendered so sonorous, to the mouth.
Thia stni^ure, Professor Owen remaiks, may oontribi^ in the Lion
produce the peculiar roar of that sniinaL
Cliertali(Al>(>i>»a(>,' C^HaaiintMalmt,Wt\.^
Ia the Cats generally, it waa atated, the connection of the os hyoides
to the cranium is not by a long elastic ligament, as b the Lion, but
by an uninterrupted series of bones. Tliis latter atructure exists in
the Cheetah. The Cheetah has also the circular pupil of the Lion,
Tiger, Leopard, and Jaguar, and is perhaps the most diurnal of the
genus. In the form of the ceaophagus, and in the transTaree rugso of
Ita lower half, the Cheetah waa stated to agree with the Lion ; and,
as in it and in the other speoiei of Ptiii, the (Bsophagus was not
prolonged into the abdomen, hut tarminated immediately after passing
throu^ the diaphragm in the atomach. This organ, according to
Profeaaor Owen, has m the Cheetah all the peculiaritiee which are
found in the genus Fdii. The intealJues also agree in character with
those of that group ; and the c«cum, aa usual in it, ia simple, having
none of the convolution which ia found in the Dog, The liver,
pancreas, and spleen leaembled those of the Cats generally; aa did
also the kidneys in the arbore*!ent form of thair auperflci^ veins — a
form however equally common. Professor Owen remarks, to the Ft'wr-
rida and the Pdida, whioh also agree in having spiculn on the tongue.
The viscera of the thorax in the Cheetah agreed with those of the
Cata. The lytt«, or rudiment of the lingual bone, so conspicnoua in
the Dog, is reduced in i^ as in the other feline animals, to a small
TMtlga. There was no bone irT the penis, and the glans had retrovarted
papilTiB. The elaatio ligamenta of the ungual phalangea existed In
783
FEUD^
FELIDiC
794
the same nmnber aod poBition as those of the lion ; they were however
longer and more slender, their length alone occasioning the incomplete
retraction of the claws as* compared with the rest of the Fdida,
Professor Owen concluded by observing that in the drculating,
respiratory, digestive, and generative rvstems, the Cheetah conformed
to the typical stmctore of the genos FHis. (' Zool. Proc.,' 1833.)
Mr. Bennett gives the following description of the Cheetah : —
Oronnd-colour bright yeUowish fawn alx>ve; nearly pure white
beneath ; covered above and on the sides by innumerable doselv
i^prozimating spots, from half an inch to an inch in diameter, whi(i
are intensely black, and do not^ as in the leopard and others of the
■potted cati^ form roses with a lighter centre, but are full and com-
plete. These spots, which are wanting on^e chest aod under part
of the body, are larger on the back than on the head, sides, and
limbs, where they are more closely set : they are also spread along
the tflol, forming on the greater part of its extent interrupted rings,
which however become continuous as they approach its extremity,
the three or four last rings surrounding it completely. The tip of
the tail is white, as is also the whole of its under surface, with the
exception of the rings just mentioned ; it is equally covered with long
hair throughout its entire length, which is more than half that of the
body. The outside of the ears, which are short and rounded, is
marked by a broad black spot at the base, the tip, as also the inside,
being whitish. The upper part of the head is of a deeper tinge;
and there is a strongly marked flexuous black line, of about half an
inch in breadth, extending from the inner angle of the eye to the
angle of the mouth. The exti*emity of the nose is black, like that
of a dog. The mane not very remarkable ; consisting of a series of
longer, crisper, and more upright hairs which extend along the back
of the neck and the anterior portion of the spina Fur with little
of the sleekness which characterises that of the cats, but exhibiting
on the contrary a peculiar crispness not to be found in any other of
the tribe. (' Tower Menagerie.')
According to Mr. Bennett the Cheetah is found in Asia and Africa.
He says, ** Chardin, Bemier, Tavemier, and others of the older
travellers, had related that in several parts of Asia it was customary
to make use of a large spotted cat in the pursuit of game, and that
this animal was called Youze in Persia and Chetah in India ; but the
statements of these writers were so imperfect^ and the descriptions
given by them so incomplete, that it was next to impossible to recog-
nise the particular species intended. We now however know wiUi
certainty that the animal thus employed is the FelU JubeUa of natural-
ists, which inhabits the greater part both of Asia and Africa. It is
common in India and Sumatra, as well as in Persia, and is well known
both in Senegal and at the Cape of Good Hope ; but the ingenuity of
the savage natives of the lattw countries has not> so far as we knew,
been exerted in rendering its services available in the chase in the
manner so successfully practised by the more refined and dviliaed
inhabitants of Persia and Hindustan."
Mr. Swainson stotes (' Classification of Quadrupeds,' 1885) that the
Hunting Leopards appear to be of two species— one inhabiting Africa^
the other India ; and that it deserves attention that one of these
possesses a sort of mane, of which the other is said to be destitute.
The mane however, in specimens from both localities, seems to be
much the same. The animal figured by Pennant as the Hunting
Leopard was brought from India by Lord Pigot Three others,
captured at Seringapatam among the effects of Tippoo, were presented
by Lord Harris to Oeox^ge III., who placed them in the Tower. The
couple from which Mr. Bennett made his accurate description came
from Senegal The Cheetah was indeed, as the last-mentioned xoolo-
■gist remarks, very imperfectly known in Europe till of late yearsL
Xiinnseus does not appear to have been acquainted with it, and
Buffon's Gudpard was described from the skin only. Gktdpard is the
name by which the skin of the animal was known commercially in
veference to the Senegal market ; and Mr. Bennett is of opinion that
^uffon described it without suspecting its identity with the Asiatic
«nimal, " the trained habits of which, misled prolwbly by the autho-
rity of Tavemier, he erroneouslv attributed to his imaginary Ounce.
(Subsequent French soologists had rectified this error, and it was
Igen^rally believed that the tamed leopard of Bemier, the Youee, the
'Gudpard, and Taremier's Ounce, were one and the same animal ; but
^t was not until a year or two ago " — Mr. Bennett wrote the passage .
quoted in 1829 — "that the possession of a living specimen, brought
froni Senegal, in the menagerie of the Jardin du l£oi, enabled M. F.
Cuvier to ascertain its characters with precision. The comparison of
this African specimen with the skins sent from India, and with the
notes and drawings made in that cotmtry by M. Duvaucel, at once
puts an end to all doubts of the identity of the two animals.*'
In 1831 Colonel Sykes observed that Felii jubata, Linn., and Fdu
menatica, H. Smith (Cheeta of the Mahrattas), appear to be identical,
ithe specific differences deduced from the hair originating in domesti-
cation. A skin of the wild animal, according to the colonel, has a
rongh coat in which the mane is marked, while domesticated animals
fitvm the same part of the country are destitute of msne, and have a
smooth coat (' Zool. Proc')
In the East, where tiiese beautiful animals are employed in the
chase, they are carried to the field in low cars whereon they are
chained. Each leopard is hooded. "When the hunters come within
view of a herd of antelopes the leopard is unchained, his hood ia
removed, and the game is pointed out to him ; for he is directed in
the pursuit by his sight. Then he steals along cautiously and crDuch-
ingly, taking advantage of every means of masking his attack, till he
has approached the herd unseen, within killuig distance, when he
suddenly latmches himself upon his quarry with five or six vigorona
and rapid bounds, strangles it instantaneously, and drinks its blood.
The huntsman now i^proaches the leopard, caresses him, wins him
from his prey by placing the blood which he collects in a wooden ladle
under the nose of the animal, or by throwing to him pieces of meat ;
and whilst he is thus kept quiet hoods him, leads him back to his car,
and there chains hinL If the leopard fiuls in consequence of the hetd
having taken timely alarm he attempts no pursuit^ but returns to liis
car with a dejected and mortified air.
The skin is an article of some importsnce in the trade of Senegal,
but appears to be n^lected at the Cape of Good Hope, where the
animal is called Luipud by the Dutch colonists ; indeed it seems to
be of rare occurrence there, for Professor Lichtenstein notices one of
the skins as being worn by a Kafiir chief as a badge of distinction.
Of the habits of the Hunting Leopard, in a state of nature, not much
is known ; but it may be surmised that it captures its prey much in
the same way as it does when employed in the chase. Mr. Bennett
gives a very pretty picture of the manners of the two that furnished
his description, and as it would be spoiled by abridgment we here
insert it : — " They are truly," writes Mr. Bennett, " an elegant and
graceful pair, having, when led out into the courtyard in their couples,
very much of the air and manners of a brace of grayhounds. When
noticed or fondled they purr like a cat, and this is tiieir usual mode of
expressing pleasure. If, on the other hand, they are uneasy, whether
that uneasiness arises from cold, from a craving after food, frx>m a
jealous apprehension of being neglected, or from any other cause,
their note consists of a short uniform and repeated mew. They are
extremely fond of play, and their manner of playing very much
resembles that of a cat ; with this difference however, that it never,
as in the latter animal, degenerates into malicious cuiming or wanton
mischiefl Their character indeed seems to be entirely free from that
sly and suspicious feeling of mistrust which is so strikingly visible in
the manners and actions of all the cats, and which renders them so
little susceptible of real or lasting attachment The Cheetahs, on the
contrary, speedily become fond of those who are kind to them, and
exhibit their fondness in an open, frank, confiding maimer. There
can, in fact, be little doubt that they might with the greatest facility
be reduced to a state of perfect domestication, and rendered nearly
as familiar and faithful as the dog himself." ('Tower Menagerie^'
London, 8vo., 1829.)
Most of the Hunting Leopards brought to England died in no
long time after their arrival, and the ]^nch seem to have had no
better success. The Zoological Society of London succeeded in
keeping their specimens very well : the principal food given was lean
mutton.
Fdit Onpa (Liimseus), the Jaguar, or American Panther, is the form
of the Leopard found in the New World. It is the Onca of Marcgrave
and the Panther or Great Panther of the furriers.
In form the Jaguar is robust, far stouter than the Leopard, and is
very strongly, not to say clumsily,' built. The body is thicker, the
limbs shorter and fuller, and the tail scarcely reaches the ground
when the animal is well up on its feet The head is laiver and rather
shorter than that of the Leopard, and the profile of the forehead more
prominent. When fhll grown the animal is said to measure from 4
to 5 feet from the nose to the root of the tail. " These differences of
form," says Mr. Bennett (' Gardens and Menagerie of the Zoological
Society*), "are accompanied by differences in colour and markings
equally decisive. The general appearance is at the first glance the
same in boUi ; but the open roses of the Leopard are scarcely more
than half the sise of those of the Jaguar, and they all inclose a space
of one uniform colour, in which, unless in some rare and accidental
instances, no central spots exist ; while in the latter animal most of
those which are arranged along the upper surface, near the middle
line of the back, are distinguished by one or two small black spots
indoeed within their cirouit The middle line itself is occupied in
the Leopard by open roses intermixed with a few black spots of small
size and roundish form ; that of the Jaguar, on the contrary, is marked
by one or two regular longitudinal lines of broad, elongated, deep
black patches, sometimes extending several inches in length, and
occasionally forming an almost continuous band from between the
shotdders to the tul. The black rings towards the tip of the latter
are also more completely circular than in the Leopard.'
But the skin of the Jaguar is subject to much variation, and Sir
William Jardine (' Natunlists' Library,' ' Mammalia,' vol il) gives
three figures from different sources illustrating strongly marked
differences in the spots.
It is a native of South America — ^Paraguay and the Brasils princi>
pallv — but it is said to have been found firom the southern extremity
to the Isthmus of Darien.
Mr. Martin, in his anatomical description of a Jaguar that died in
the Gardens at the Regent's Park ('ZooL Proc.,' I8S2), notices the
immense volume of thte diest as contrasted with that of the abdominal
cavity, a droumstanoe which mighty he thinks, be considered as
furnuhing an indtx to the habibi tod vital eneiCT of Uda triba of
■ciJvB Bud ferociona qii>dmp«ds. That the Jaguar is an animal i '
great power and fiaquentl; of ■ dariiig diapontion there can be t
doubt 1 but the balauoe of the evidence ia agsinit ita equalling, if m
exceeding, the royal tiger of the e«t in ferocity. Of ita powi
D'Azaragiveg thefollowingmneodDto. A Jaguar had atrudi down _
horse; and lyAEara gave iDitructiona that the latter ahould be drawn
within muiket«hot of a tree wherein he intended to paaa the nigbt,
in expectation that the Jaguar would return for hia prey. While
D'Azua waa gone to jmpare himaelf, the Jaguar retuiiied &om the
oppoajte aide of a river broad and deep, lejied the horea in ita mouth,
drew it to the water aome 60 paeea, awam acroai the river with it,
landed it, and drew it into a wood hard by. All this wiu witneaaed by
the person whom D'Aiara had placed in concealtnent to watoh till
hia ratum.
JigoBi (AUt Oafa).
The Jagnar ia a moat expert diinbar. Sonnini aaw the iciatohea
left by the dawa of one on the amooth bark of a tree aome 10 feet
high without branchee. He traced the marks of aereial alipa made
by the climber, but the animal had at lart reached the top. Humboldt
heard the Jaguar'a yell from the tope of the treea followed by the
■harp ahrill long wtuitia of the terrified monkm, aa they aeemed to
flee. None of the living quadrumanea or qna<&upada aeem to come
■miaa to it, and birda and Sah, which laat it ia aaid to tale in ahallowi,
are eacrificed to il« vuraciona appetite. The Jaguara will openly eeiia
cattle, bonea, and aheep from the enclDaurea ; and the havoc made
by them ia great, aa will be easily imagined when we learn fntm
Humboldt that their numbers are auch that 4000 were killed annually
in the Spanish colontn, and 2000 ware exported every year from Buenoa
Aytea only. Kor are Che reptiles free from its attacks. The aheUa
of , turtles wer« pointed out to Humboldt as having been emptied of
their ooatents by the Jaguar, which, it seems, wati^ee them aa they
come to the sandy beeches to lay their eggs, niahes oa them, and
turns them on their backs. He then inainuatoa his paw between the
■hella, and acoopa out the oontenta aa clean aa if a sninon'i knlfs
had bsen employed. As the beast turns many more Uian he can
devour at one msal. the Indians often profit by his dextrous
cunning. He will, it is atatsd, punue thia peneeuted race into
the water where it ia not vet; deep, and will dig up and devour
thaegga.
Wiu all this the Jaguar doea not seem to be vei; dangerous to
man, when baldly confronted, though D'Anra recoida frsqusnt
instances of bis attacking the lord of Uie creation. The Jaguar will
indeed often follow trav^era, according to Sonnini and Humboldt,
but the latter celebrated naturalist and obaerver only heard of one
instance where a Llanero was found torn in hia hammock, and that
happened opposite the Island of Achaguas. He lelataa, on the other
hand, a story of t«ro Indian children, a girland a boy, (he one about
seven, and tiie other nine years old, who were at play on the out'
■kirts of a village, about two o'clock in the afternoon, when a large
Jaguar came out of the wooda bounding towards them playfully, hia
bead down and his back arched, like a cat. He approach^ the boy,
who was not sensible of bis danger, and began to play with him, tUl
at last the Jaguar struck him ao hard on the head with his paw as to
draw blood, whereupon the little girl atniok him amartl; with a
small switch, and he was bounding back not at all irritated, when the
Indiana, alarmed by the cries of the girl, came up.
Whan Hr. Waterton (' Waoderinga ') waa sncomped on ~ ~ '
n» t)i> ITauniilhr, >>• _u ^Mt-A \,j (,„, fy[ tjjofo prOwIoTa.
of the Essequibo, ha w
" Whsn-
inaun renewed it, na retired abruptly; sometimes he ■
within twenty yards, and then we had a view of him, sitting
lege like a dog ; aometimee he moved alowly to and fro ; a
tjmes we could hear him mend hia paoe, aa if impatient.
and at other
r — . — ipatiant. At last the
idian, not reliihing the idea of having suoh company, set up a meat
usmendoua yslL The Jaguar bounded off like a race-horse, and
returned no more. It appearedby the printof hisfoetnext mciniag,
that he waa a full grown one."
The Jaguar is said to make ila attacks on quadrupeds by springing
upon the neck of hia prey ; than placing one of his paws upon the
back of ita bead, while he tnina round the muzsle with the other,
he dislocates the neck and deprives it of life.
He, in hia turn, biii a victim to man. The Spaniarda and Tmlinna
hunt him in various vrays. Sometimes he Is driven by dogs ' i
in which eaae he is despatched with the muaket or luice ; soi
the pack force him amon^ the bushes, and then is exhibited, some.
times a daring feaL A single Indian, with hia left arm enveloped in
a sheepekin, and with a fi-fset lanoe in hia right, goes boldly in to
him. The hunter parries the onset of the furious beast with his
shielded arm, and at the same time deals him such a thrust with hia
lanoe as seUlom requires repetition. The lasao is also used with the
best effect upon the plains.
There is a blaok variety of the Jaguar, Le Jaguar Noir of the
French, Fdii nigra of Erxleban, and probably uis Jsguarett of
Tut aeema to have been Uie animal noticed by Lientenanb Uaw, R-If.,
(' Journal of a Paaoase from the Pacific to the Atlantio,' Svo., London,
I8SS), at Paia, SB a "block onjs, or tiger.' It had been procured up
the rivers by Hr. Campbell, and, when Ur. Uaw aaw it, waa a
formidable animaL " I am not sure," aaya that gsntleman, " that it
had the length of limb of a Bcg;^ Tiger, but it was thiaker, and,
I think, it would have weighed more. When lying down, there
appeared to be scarcely any leg, but ita thigh waa like an immense
bam." Lieutenant Uaw r^tea some «ffi"Ti|ig aneodotea about thia
animal, fur which we refer the reader to his interaating book.
IV. Thi Lthiis.
The name of Lynxes is applied by xoologiats to a aubdiviaion o(
the gnat genua Pdit, or Cata, well marked externally, and elevated
by Dr. Qray to the rank of a genus, under the appellation of Zyaoiu.
There does not appoar to be any conaiderable differenoe between
the organisation of the Lynxes and that of the other Cata ; but it is
extremely probable that there is soms modification about the bones
of the tioigue, and the organ of the voice generally, to produce the
peculiarly powerful noise analogous to what ia called ' spittiDg ' aod
' swearing ' in the domestic cat.
LinDBua, in his last edition of the ' Syatema Katurs),' reooida but
one Bpedea, P. Lynx, to which he aaugns the woods and deaerU of
Europe and Canada aa looalitiaa. Thia was probably the European
Lynx, and the descriptions may have been founded on Lynxee Rom
Canada aa well as Europe.
Omelin, in his edition, adds thres other species, F. Chaui, F. Caracal,
and F. nfa ; and givea two vsrietiea of F. I/gnx, with Europe,
msrica, Sorthsm A^ia, and sven Japan, aa the habihttiona.
Pennant noUoes seven speoiea of Lynxes — the Uountain Lynx,
Cat-a-Uountain of Ray (Korth America), the Serval, the Lynx, the
Bay Lynx, the Caspian Lynx, the Persian Lynx, and the Libyan
Lynx. He atatea that the third iuhabita the vast forests of the north
if Europe, Asia, and America; "not India, though poets havs
lamessed them to the chariot of Bacchus, in his conquest of that
ountry." The fourth, he says, ia an inhabitant of the inner parte
if the province (now the state) of Ifew York. To the fiiUi he
aaigni tiie " reeds and woods in Uie marsh; parts that border on the
reatem aides of the Caspian Sea, particularly about the Castle KisLar,
in ths rirer Terek," and the Peiaiau provinoea of Qhtlan and
Uaaanderan ; adding that it is frequent about the mouth of the Kur,
the ancient Cyrus. Persia, India, and Barbery at« the countrisa
which he states to be the looalities of ths sixth; and Lit^ and
Barbory are mentioned by him aa the ccnntries of the seventh. It
' doubtful what animals Pennant meant to deaignate undsr some of
lese names. The Serval ia not conaidorad to be a Lynx.
Cuvier observia that there are known in commerce, under the
une of Loupe Cerrien (Lupm etrvarva), four or Eve aorta of
Lynxes, which had long been confoundad by naturalists, and whoee
■peoiSo limita were not perhaps well fixed whan he wrote. We aludl
proceed to noliae the arrangement of U. Temminck, and then ratum
'e what part of it ia adopted by Cuvier.
nmind givea the following as specdes ; —
M-Ten .
1. F. ctrvaria; deaeribed as nearly equalling a wolf in sise, and
poHdbly the EatUo of LinnKua and the Swedes ; but it has been
ramarksd that no akina of it are contained in the cargoea that arrive
tiom the Baltic. In commerce the akina of F. ctrvaria are aaid to
be only obtained from the markets of Uoaoow, to which they are
brought from the provinoea of Asia. It ia oonaidered oa probable
'' ' ' ' 'its been confounded, under the name of the
s intermediate in size bstwcen the fox and
787
FELID^
FELID^
the wol£ This comprehends the CanadUn but not the Miwiaaippi
Lynx of CaTier, and is aaid to inhabit the north of both the old and
the new continents : its fur, less valuable than that of F, eervaria,
is stated to be received equally from Sweden and from Hudson's
Bay.
3. F. Lynx (true Lynx), different from, but nearly allied to F.
cetvaria, F. doreoZif, F, rufa, and —
4. F. pardina. Size of a badger, but the^ legs longer, resembling
F. rufa in form and size ; tail short, but linger in proportion than
that of F. Lynx. F. pardina is the Loup^rvier of Perraulty and is
found only in the south of Europe, the centre being the looJity of
the true Lynx. On this npedes Colonel Sykes makes the following
statement: — "Although Temminck, in his 'Monographie de Mam-
mal^e,' p. 116, in a note, savs the skins of this European Feli$ is
well-known amongst the fumers as the Lynx of Portugal, I have
nowhere been able to meet with a specimen in London; and as
amongst my friends scarcely any one appeared to be aware of the
existence of a Spanish Lynx, I thought it might be acceptable to the
members to exhibit specimens in a state of maturity and nonage.
In Andalusia, whence the specimens come, it is called Gtato Clavo
(davo meaning the pupil of the eye), illustrative of the spotted
character of the skm. Some peasants in Andahiwia make short
jackets of the skins. The animal inhabits the Sierra Morena. I
bought both skins at Seville for thirty reales, about 6f. Sd, Neither
the British Museum nor the Zoological Sociely has specimens.
'< Temminck describes the Pardina as ' Toutes les parties du corps
lustre, a peu prds de la mdme teinte que dans le caracal' This is
certainly not the description of my animal, the oolour of the adult
being reddish'gray, and that of the non-adult lig^t fawn; never-
theless there are so many other points common to both, that it would
be unadvisable to consider them distinct." (' ZooL Proa,' 1888.)
6. F, Caracal, Nubian Caracsl, and Cat of the Desert of B^ice;
Persian Cat (Lynx) of Pennant.
6. F. auraia. Rather less than the CaracaL Country unknown.
Skin purchased from a London dealer.
7. F, Chaut {Giddenstedt), figured by Schreber. The other animals
described under this name are considerod to be referrible to —
8. F, califfota. Booted Lynx of Bruce; F, Libyeut (Olivier);
Libyan Caracal of Buffon.
G^ these Baron Cuvier notices F, eervaria as the finest and laigest ;
F, borealit; F, Lynx (which has almost entirely disappeared from
populous countries, but is still to be found in the Pyrenees, tiie
mountains of the kingdom of Naples, and even it is said in Africa) ;
F, pardina, Oken, from the south of Europe ; F, nrfa, Gidden. ; and
F, C'kam, or Lynx of the Marshes of Caucasus, Persia, and EJsypt
Cuvier further observes that it is believed at present that the Booted
Lynx, F, caligaia, Temm., may be distinguished fiK>m F. ChoMM ; but
he remarks that F, caiigata is at least very nearly approximated to
it, and that it has the same habits.
F. Caracal (Persia^ Turkey, &c.), which he considerB to be the true
Lynx of the ancients, closes Cuviei^s list of species ; but he alludes in
a note to LynxfttscitUut, L, Floridamu, and L. montawiu of Rafinesque ;
and to F. a^rata of Temminck, as belonging to this tribe.
Dr. J. K Gray places his genus Lyneui (sub-fiunily Fdina) between
the genera Felii, Linn., and Prionodon, Horsfield.
M. Lesson gives the following species: — 1. F. Lynx, the Loup-
Cervier of the froriers, Qoupe of tne Norwegians, and Waigelue of
the Swedes, who recognise three very different varieties of it He
states that the whole of Europe is its habitat^ where it has become
vexy rare, and he says that they point out a pale varietur F. rufa,
Pennant (?), and that ' Le capitaine Brooks en mdique trois,' which
may be, in his (the captain's) opinion, regarded as species. 2. F.
pardina, Oken, Temm. ; Loup-Cervier of the French A(»demicians ;
to this Portugal, Sardinia, Si<nly, and Turkey are assigned as locsllties.
Next follows F, Serval, which cannot be considered a Lynx. 8. F.
eervaria, Temm. 4. F, boreaUe (Chat du Canada, Geoff.), to which
the northern cotmtries of America and Asia are given as its distri-
bution. 5. F. Caracal, the Lynx of the andents (Africa, Penda, and
Arabia). M. Lesson describes the differences of the Caracals of
Algiers, of Nubia, and' of Bengal 6. F, Chryeotkrix and F. amrata,
Temm.; country unknown. 7. F. Cha/tu, GHilden. (Egypt^ NuUa,
and Caucasus). 8. Booted-Lynx {F, eaUgata, Bruce, Temm.; F,
Libycui, Oliv.). To this a rsnge is given itom Egypt to the Cape of
Good Hope in Africa, and the south of Ana. M. Lesson also notices
as specifically different the F, Mawul of Pallss and Desmarest^ a
species not admitted by Temminck, but which has, according to
Pallas, the appearance of the Lynx. (' Mongolian Tsrtary.')
Sir William Jardine ('Naturalists' Library,' 'Mammalia,' vol iL
1884), who adopts the genus Lyncue or Lynehue of Dr. Gray, as the
fifth genus of the FeUna, enumerates the following species : Lynckut
Caraoai; L,amrala;'L. Ckelidogaaier, inhabits Chili (Temm., Mus.
Leyd.); L, ealigata, Bruoe; L. nigripee, Burchell, inhabits South
Africa; L. Ckaut (Giilden., Bilpp.); L. Canadensit; L, rufa. Bay
Lynx, inhabits banks of Colombia River, United States, not Canada
(Temm.) ; L. faeciaia. Banded Lynx (Richardson), inhabits North
America, woody countries in the neighbourhood of the Paoifio (Lewis
and Clark); and L, Lynx,
Sir William Jardine remarks that there is yet considerable oonfruion
among the Lynxes of America^ and that, except the Canada Lynx,
the npedes are perhaps not well determined. He observes that
Mr. vigors and Dr. Horsfield describe one under the title of F.
fnaeuUUa from Mexico.
Sir William fiirther states that another Asiatic Lynx may be
perhaps added in the Felis affinie of Dr. Gray, figured in his ' Dlustra-
tions of Indisn Zoology.'
It may be necessary also to call the readei^s attention to two
species of Felii, one in the volume of the ' Naturalists' Librmzy,' F.
SarvalitM, figiued as F. amata, which Sir W. Jardine at first consi-
dered as identical with Dr. Ghay's species with the last-mentioned
name, but whidi Dr. Qrvy considered to be distinct. The figures of
both F. omala. Gray ('Illustr. Ind. ZooL*), and F. Servalina^ Jardine,
have small tufts on the tips of their ears, and are otherwise inclined
to be lynx-like ; as if they formed the passage between some of the
smaller Spotted Cats and the Lynxes.
Mr. Swainson (' Natural Hist, and Classification of Quadrupeds,')
having compared the two Wpical forms of the Fera and Faptartgj
observes that it remains to be ascertained which group amon^^ the
FercB may be likened to the Owls, and he fixes upon the Lynxes,
because Lynxes and Owls are both nocturnal animals, both have
short tails and comparatively large heads; and because the Owls "are
particularly remarkable for certain appendages or tufts whidi rise
above their ears," whilst in the Lynxes the " ears are long; and from
the tip of each arises a tufb of lengthened hairs, perfectly analogous
to the tufts of lengthened feathers on the Homed Owls, the most
t^ical birds of the family of Strigida,** His only notice of Lynx in
the ' Classification ' at the end of the volume is '* Lynx Antiq., ears
tufted with hairs, tail short ;" and it appears as the fifrh and last sub-
genus of Fdie, Idnn., the other four being * — 1. " Leo Aniiq[uorum,
Lions, head and neck fumished with a mane of long hair, taU tufted.
2. Fdie, Linn., Cats, no mane, tail long, not tufted. 3. Cynail%iru$, Wag.,
Hunting Leopards, claws semi-retractile ; and, 4. Prionodon, Horsf.,
affinities uncertain."
The Lynxes may be divided into two groups : the first consisting
of those species whose bodies are comparatively slender, and whose
tails and tufted ears are comparatively long; the second of those
whose bodies are thicker and stout, and whose ears and tail axe
comparatively short The Caracal is an example of the first sub-
division ; and the European and the Canada Lynxes of the second.
Sir William Jarome considers the tufts of hair at the tips of the ears
as somewhat inconstant, and only present in spring, or at the com-
mencement of the breeding season, like those adorning the ears of
many squirrels.
Several forms of Lynx are found in the Old World.
Fdie Caracal, the Caracal M. Temn^inck describes this spedes, which
is the Siyah Ghush, or Black-Ear, of Charleton and others, as having a
pale reddish-brown fur with a vinous tinge, the red becoming paler as it
reaches the lower parts. Two spots of pure white above the eyes, the
uppermost on the inner side of the eye, the Iowpjt at its external
angle. Termination and edges of the upper lip, chin, breast, belly,
and imddes of the 1^, pure white; piuts whence the whiskers
spring, black ; back of the ears at the base, deep black, more gray
towai^ the tips, which are tufted with long black hairs. Lei^th,
2 feet 10 inches, of whioh the tail measures 10 inches : average height
about 14 inches.
Mr. Bennett (' Tower Menagerie') describes the Caracal as larger
than the Fox, and the whole of the upper surface of the body as of a
deep and uniform brown, the hairs being for the most part slightly
tipped with gray; the under and inner parts nearly white; and the
chin, lower lip, and two spots, one on the inner side of and above the
eye, and the other beneath its outer angle, completely white ; neck
and throat of a lighter and brighter brown than the rest of the fur ;
the ears long and upright, tapering graduallv to a fine tip, surmounted
by a pencil of long black hairs, and black externally and whitish
within ; whiskers wort, taking their origin fr^m a series of black lines
which occupy the sides of the muzzle ; at some distance behind them,
in front of the neck on each side, a short and thick tuft of lighter
coloured hairs ; tail 8 or 9 inches long, of the same uniform colour
with the body fix>m base to tip.
The Caracal is found in Persia, India, Barbary (Pennant) ; Persia,
Turkey, &a (Cuvier) ; the whole of Africa, firom Egypt and Ba^baiy to
the extremity of Kafirsria, and the southern half of Asia, at least as
far eastward as the Ganges (Bennett). The specimen from which
Mr. Bennett took his description is noticed by him as a native of
Bengal, and he observes that there is no difference of any importance
between it and the African variety. Cuvier, to whom M. Duvaucel
sent drawings of the animal from Calcutta, was convinced that thia
is the case. He refers to the Caracal ^ Longue Queue of Bufibn'a
' Supplement^' iiL pL 45, and observes there is no difference between
that and the others, and that the first Caracal of Bufibn had a
mutilated taiL Localities, Africa, Arabia, Persia (FiBcher) ; Africa,
Persia, Arabia (Lesson) ; Southern India and Africa (Jardine).
This species is said to follow the lion and other laige beasts of prey,
most probably for the purpose of feeding upon what fAiey leave. Bat
in addition to this it feeds on small quadrupeds and birds, the latter
of which it IS said to pursue actively on trees. It has obtained the
name of 'lion's provider,' most probably from its dogging the footsteps
of the lioHf uid luTuig been found preying upon the
tha fanner tus lefl. According to H. Temminck, the Cankoli bunt
in picks like the wild doge, uid bo run down their prey. Pennuit,
quoting ThiSv^Qot, notices their feeding on the remuns of tha prey
which the lion leaveB, uid leeDii to eonfirm tha account given by
U. Temminck, for he itateti that they 4re often brought up tame, and
oaed in the cbua of leaser quadrupeds and the larger aorta of birda,
BucL Hs cranea, pelicana, peacocka, &c. VHien the; seixe their prey,
thej hold it fut irlth their mouth and lie motionleai on it. Pennant,
quoting Hyde, olao atatei that tha AmbJan writers, wbo call it Acak
el Ard, aay that it hunts like the panther, jumps up at cranes as they
fiy, mid covers its steps when huoting. In captivity the Caracal u
generally very ill-natured and irritable, and doea not Be«m to bold
out much promiae tor domestioation ; but we are awam that it ia not
■afa to come to coDcluaions of this aort upon the evidence of an
unhappy irritable animal abut up in a cage, when Datura intended
it for unlimited roaminga. A young Caracal in the Oardan of the
Zoological Society at the Regent'a Park was van familiar and aniions
to be noticed, pleased with being careaaad, and playful aa a kitten.
Dr. Charleton however gives evidence of the fieroanau and strength
of this species, for he relatss that he saw one fall on a hound, wUah
it killed and tore to pieces in a momcQl, though the dog defended
itself to tha utmost
CirBCal [Alii Oaracal).
This animil dsrivsi its name of Canoal &om tlis Torkiah woida
' kara,' black, and ' kulach,' eai' : and the Petaian name ' Sijah'^Jluh'
or 'Sift^usch' {'sia,' black, and 'guaeh,' ear) ii dceired from Uie
same charaotsristic markings.
AuUiore seem to concur in holding that thta is tha Aiyi, Lynx, of
the ancients, and thou;^ we lean strongly to this opinion, the reader
should bear in mind that the lattar evidently unad uia term to denote
various animala, as Gesner well remarked. The 'lynoes Baoohi
varisB' of Yirgil ('Oeorg.' ill 2S1) and the akin 'maeulosta lyncia'
alluded to by the same author (' .£neid,' L S23>, can hardly ba bald
to apply to the Caracal, though Ovid'a line (' Hat.' iv. 413}
may. Tha truth aeems to ba that tha ancients themselves had do
very praciae ideas of the animal which wis accorded to Bacchus aa
one of hia attributes. The terma Lpi, Panther, and Tiger seem to
be all employed to designate this ammal or these ajiimala ; and if we
refer to gems or coins or other anoieDt monumaut«, the Lynoea, to
play somewhat unpardonably periuu on Virgil's expreaaion, will ba
found to ba iuffioantly ' varic.' The animals repreaanted on tha
ancient aculptures have generally the roood ear of tha Lion, Tiger,
and Panther or Leopard ; and their general oontont is that of the
Lion, Lioness, or FanUier, and Leonrd. Sea, for inataoce. No. 8D,
No. 3T, in Koom i. ; Fragmenta of Temcottas in Boom x. ; No. 8
{Bacohns and Ampolua), Room iv. ; No. 10 (Libera, or Female
Bacchus), Boom ri, ; No. 12, Room iii. ; and No. T, Room ii., of tha
Townle; Qalleiy in the British Huaeimi, aa represented in the
'Library of Entartaioing Knowledge' :—British Huseumi Townley
Oallery,' vols. L and u. The Lloa'a akin, with whioh, aa well
aa that of the Panther and Roe, he was rspreseoted, appears on
the ooImmI statue of Bacchus in the Elgin oollectioc in the Britiah
Huseum. <' Libraiy of Enl«rtaining Knowledge ' t— Biitdah Uumum —
Elgin and Phigaleian Uarblea, vol. ii.) In the edition of the 'QenunH
at Sculptura Antiqua,' by Otonoviua, wo find In the ' Cairo di Bsccho,'
as mentioned above, a child in a chariot driving two round-^wd
■Dotted great cats ; and in the next gem, Ggured ' Tigre di Bacho,'
also a oamalian, we have a round^ared spotless female great oat with
* *"" ~' "" end of Ih* tail, whioh no panther, leopard, or lyni
In tha coin of Septimios Serems, noticed in Captain Smyth's
' Catalogue,' between Uie figona of Harcules and Bacchus is a lynx
or panther, illustrating the vena of Pfopertius ; —
Nor does there occur to us any ancient statue, gem, or coin wbareoQ
the Lynx of Bacchus is represented with pointed ears tufted at tha
summit, the characteristic mark of that subdivision of the cala
denominated Lynxes by modem zoologists ; though we by no means
feel sufficient reliance upon our limited experience to consider this
uegative evidence as conclusive. Tbo animal in the Palestrine
Mosaic, with the word ■ Lynx ' below it, is rspreaented with a tail of
oouaidarable length, and cannot be miatakan for one of the animals
now called Lymes ; indeed, if we do not err, the Abb^ Barth^lemi
observes that this animal bears a strong resemblance to a hone.
Hiat the Aiyi of Aristotle, .£lian, and Oppian was not one of the
doubtful animals above alluded to, but one of^ the Lynxes of modem
Eoologista, there can be, in our opinion, do doubt
^3ian (xir. 6) gives such a description of bis lynxes, with the tips
of their ean tufted, tlieir leaping on their prey, and their tenacity in
holding it, aa cannot be miatakan; and he quotes two lines of
Euripides to abow that the animal ha is describing is tha lynx of that
fioet Oppian (' Cyneget,' iii. v. 81) also gives such an account of hit
ynxes as can ba referribla to no other animaU than those on which
wa are traaling. He speaks of two kinds, notices their preying on
hares, sad leaping upoD stags and oryxes.
Pennant conceived that the European Lynx was the A^ of jdian
and Oppian, and the Cliaui of Pliny ; with r^ard to the former, we
think, without due consideration. The Cancal comea much more
within Oppian'a description than the European Lynx. Oppian
aipreaaly notices the ruddy and yellow coloura of his two kinds, but
mentions no apota. The locslities of the Caracal, combiaed with the
other evidence, make it much more probable that it should be the
aninial deaignated aa a Aiy( by Aristotle and .flian, and one, at least,
of the two kinds mentioned by Oppian, if bis diSerencss were Dot, aa
they well might be, thoae of climate, aei, or age. Ki. Bennett
('Tower Uenagarie ') tbiuka that tha Caracal is unquestionably
identiod with Uie Lynx of the ancients, thou^ the name baa been
usurped in modom timea for an animal of northern ongin utteriy
unknown to the Qtaeks, and known to the Romans by a totally
different appellation.
P. caligata, Bruce, Temm., the Booted Lynx ; F. IiUnieu*,
Olivier J P. Chaut, Thumb, Geoff, (part); Ljnx das Hanui (part),
Cut. (Fischer).
SnuU, total length about three feet, of which the slender tail
maanirM rather more than ons.tblrd, or IS} inches ; ean latge, red
within, tipped with a pencil of brown Aort hun ; solo and posterior
part of the foot (lag, in common parlanoa) deep black ; upper parta oT
.1. L_i_ i.i..:.i. _ — ■_ Tpedmens (Ulvoua, clouded With graj
the body bluish-gniy, in some spedmena fulvoua, clou
hgray
Booted Lrnx (AHt Mt^ofa).
sua sprinkled with black burs; lower parte, including the tmdar
CIS of the neck and breast, reddish ; thighs marked with indlstinot
da of rather bright brown ; two rather bright ruddy bands on
the cl)ecks ; tail at its base oolour of the back, black at the tip, and
rai FELTD^
with tliTM or four inoomplate ringi >boTa it, irhioh riugi ue wipanted
tn intflrr^ of b more or 1mi pura white. The female hu gmienlly
tibe tiuta more jellow. The young luve weU-deOned did b<uid« upon
Ihair lidee.
It ij ■ nitivs of Afiioa, from Egypt and Bu-buy to the C«pe of
Qood Hope, and of tbe louth of Indis.
The Boated Lynx preys upon birds and imall quadrupedi ; of the
former the guinea-fowl i> much wu^t after by the African Tarietiea.
Like other* of the labdiTiiion, it will make a good meal on earrioD,
aod fnat on theremainiof larger quadrupeds whioh hare fallen before
the great bstata of prey.
Ptlii ChMH (Qaldenst), the ChauB ; Lyni dee Maraia (paH), CuTier ;
Hot* fiahn Uanjur, or Larger Wild Cat, of the Hahrattu (Colonel
Syk.i).
Dr. RilppelVa figure and deecription haye diuipated the confuaion
that formerly reigned with regard to thia and the preceding epeoiea,
He statee that tJie Chaiie ie well covered with hair aU oTer, and of
this covering that which forms the grouod-work is woolly, very soft,
and plentifully developed ; the hairs are not thickly set. The colour
of the woolly hair is of a dirty palish ochre-yejlow, darker on the
back and lighter on the under pflrt« ; the hairs or hrirtlei are of the
same colour at bottom, have a dark-brown ring in the middle, and at
Uie tip are of a grayish-yellow, whitiah, or sa&OQ-colour ; »o that the
appearance produced is a mixed colouring of grayish-yellow and dirty
white. Han; of the hairs have a black point, and on the sides, where
many lie together, they form pale black perpendicnlar or oblique
spiral lines, and here and there single black points. The hairi of the
back are of a light ochrfryellow, with points almost of a saffron-
colour, and form from the shouldera to the tail a yellow stripe, which
is darkest on the cross. The nose ia black : above the eye is a large
white apot, and below it a smaller one of the same colour. A black
itmk runs from the inner comer of the eye to the nose. The edgee
of the tips are bordered with black, and a fine white ring encirclea
them. The eyebrows, cheeks, and bristles of the whiskers, are white,
and among the latter are a few hairs of a shining black. The inner
surface of the ear, towards ite outside, ia bordered by tufts of hair
which are white and yellow ; the hack of the ear is gray-brown, anif
the tipa are brown, with terminating black tufts, half an inch in length
the cheeks, lower jaw, throat, neck, and chest are ochreous-yellow, and
the belly inclinea to whitjahyellow with darker spota. Eitemally
the anterior and posterior eztremmea are of the general colour down
■to the ankles (which are dirty ochreoua-yellow, and black behind), and
barred with four or more black transvetea hands. The inside of tbr
limba is yellowish, and there is a large round black apot on the fan
l^s. The tail ia nbout one-fourth as long as the body, of a gnyiah
colour, hlunt and black at the point, towardi which are two black
rings between two grayish-white ones ; but neither of these ia very
dia^Dct. (BilppeR)
of a dull reddiah-gray above, with oblong ipota of reddjah-gra^ upon
the sidea, the spots i " ""' "*
mottled with black.
. _ „ , S apota ol J,- ,
the aid V, the spoU <m the litoba rounder and amallar ; whitiilt b«low,
' Length abont thn* feet
%<-&
"^y^lrf^m^
itu
Chim [Filil Oltam
f the north of Africa (how far
9 Nile ii
Mcertained), in the morassea and bnshy lowlands that border tht
Caspian Sea, and on the backs of ita tributaiy rivsia. Said to be mare
DUmeroul in Perais. Noticed in Deooan by Colonel Sykes. The female
that aerved for Dr. Kilppel's description and figure was killed at
the lake of Heniale, in the DelU of Egypt
This species haunta manhes and boggy regions, and goes hunting
during the night after birds, small rodents, and fishea ; it soldcim
chmha trees, and is not easily tamed. (Ruppell.)
The Chaus of Pliny (' Nat. Hiit.,' viii. 19), which the Oauls called
Raphiua, with the flgure of n wolf and the spots of a pard, first
ibowQ at Pompey's games, can hardly, wo think, have been this
"tlitl^/nx (Linn.', the European Lynx ; Le Lynx (Buff.).— Furlong
EuTcpeu Ljnx {Feiit J'V^x).
This species varies much. In winter the fur is much longer than it ia in
the summer, and has a hoary appearance in the former aeaaon, owing
to the long hair being then tipped with grayish- white. The tail, which
is black at the end, is abort, not more than six Or seven inches long.
Some authora confine the locality of this speciea to Europe ; others
are of opinion that it increaaes in numbers as it approachea the borden
of Aaia, which it also inhabita, and abundantly. Fiance ia considered
ita most northern range. It does not seem to he quite clear that Fciii
etnaria of Temminck is not a variety of this species ; but F. oerearia
inhabita the north ot Asia, and skine are sent tram Moscow. This is
supposed to be the ECttlp of the Swedes hy some, white othen con-
eider P. Lynx to he the Ooupe of the Norwegians and the Waigelue
of the Swedea If theae differencee should prove to be wall founded,
it may be that there are two European species, or at leaat varieties,
one inhabiting Southern Europe, not h^er than Fiance, and (he
warm parta r^ Asia, and the other inhabiting the north of Europe
This ipedea is Buppoaed hy many to be the Zupui cereorMit of Pliny
{'Nat Hilt,' viii. 22), and the Chaui (viii. 19) above alluded to.
Both are aptjun of aa shown in the arena by Pomp^, and aa coming
&om Gaul. Dr. Fischer, who is of this opinion, auppoaea it also to be
the Lynx mentioned by Pliny in his ohaptar ' Da DnguUs ' (viiL 46).
The European and northern Asiatic Lynxea and the Canadian
Lynx produoe the grwt supply of fun known by the furriers under
Uie name of ' lynx.' The colder the climate the fuller and the more
valuable is the fur.
Fdii CanadauiM (QfoC), the Canada Lynx. Sir John Ricfaaidson
(' Fauna Boreali Am^cena') states that the early EWnch writers on
Canada, who ascribed to this speciea the habit of dtopping tnm
treea on the backs of deer, and destroying them by tetuing their
throats and drinking their blood, gore it the name of Loup Cerrier.
The French CanadianE, he adds, now term it indiSerently Le Chat, or
Le Peesboo. He remarks, that the mistake of Charlevoix in applfing
to it the appellation of Carcajou, which is proper to the Wolverine,
has produced some confusion of synonyms amongst anbsoquoul
writco^ Other writers however consider that Charlevoix intaided
to designate the Puma by the name of Carcajou, thou^ he used the
term improperly. If the following be the passage alluded to, it can
hardly be applied to the Canadian Lynx : — "The elk has other enemies
besides the Indiann, and who carry on full as cruel a war against him.
The most terrible of all these is the Carcajou, or Qnincajou, a kind of
cat with a tail so long that he twists it several times round its body,
and with a skin of a brownish-red. As soon aa this hunter comes up
with the elk, be leaps upon him, and fastens upon his neck, about
which he twute his long tail, and then cuts his jugular," Ac is.
(' Letter' vii^ Now, though there may be a little exaggeration about
the length of the tail, and the use which the animal makes of it, the
description is generally applicable to the Puma, and not to the Lfiu,
which has a mere stump of n tail, whilst the Puma has a remarkably
m FELID^.
As there Is eome quertion about thia ipedn— for Penouit notice*
it M ideoCical with tbe European lijJix, and H. Temmjnck dwcribee
the ipedea u the suns io both hemiBphem under the muDe of Pdii
bortalU, whilet M. Geoffroy hu nBinod it u a diiUnct »pecie»— we
■lull give the descriptioD of Sir Jobn RicliuilaoD, who adopte M.
Oeoflroy'e came, at length : —
" The hrad i> round, tbe naee obtuse, «nd tbe fnce hai much of the
farm of that of the domestic cat, but the facial line is more conTex
between the ejn. Tbe can are erect, trisngiilar, and tipped by an
npright slender tuft of coane black bain ; tbey are placed about
their own breadth apart, and on their posterior surface they hsTB a
dark mark beneath the tip, which is continued near both margins
dowDwarde towards tbeir bases. On the body and eztremltjsa the
fur ie hoary, most of the baire being tipped with white ; on the crown
of the head and for a broad space down the middle of the back there
is a conaiderable mixture of btsckiih brown, nnd on the sides and
tegs of pals wood-brown. In some specimene these colours produce
an indistinct mottling, bnt in general there are no deflned markings.
i. rufous tinge is also oecaaionUly present about the nape of the neck,
and on the posterior parts of tbe thigh. The tail is coloured like tbe
back, except the tip, which is black. The fur is close and fine on
the back, longer and paler on the belly. When blown aside it shows
OD the middle of the back a dark liver-brown colour from the roots
to near the tip ; hut on the sidea it is for the greatest part of its
length of a pale yellowish-brown, being merely a little darker near
the roots. The legs are thick, the toes very thick and f^rry, and am
armed with Tery sharp awl-ahaped white clsws, shorter ttum the fur.
There are four toes on each foot, those on the bind foot being rather
the largest, but both feet are much spread. Length, 3 feet 1
Sir John SiGhardson gives tbe following Bynonyms, ic :— Loup-
CerTier<Anarisqua), Sagard. Theodat; Loup-Cerrier, orLjni.Dobbs;
Cst-Lynz, Pom., 'Arct Zool. ;' Cat, or I^ihu, Butchins; Lynx, or
Wild Cat, Haacne, Hackenxie ; Fdii Canadentii, Oeoff., 'Aim. du
Hob.,' Sabine, Franklin's 'Joum.,' 'Zoological Husemn,' No. 72;
Peeshoo, Crea Indiana and Csuadian Voyagers.
This is the only species of the genua existing north of the Great
LakM and eastward of tbe Rocky Mountains. It is rare on the tea-
coast ; does not frequent the Barren QrouDds ; but ie not UDCommoa
in the woody diBtritts of the interior. Found on tbe Mackeniie RiTer
ss far north as fle°. (Richardson.)
Timid, incapable of atlaeking any of the larger quadrupeds, this
animal is well armed for tbe capture of the American hare, its nrin-
dpal prey. "Its large paws, dender loins, and long but thick hind
lege, with large buttockj, searoely reheTed by a short thick tail, give
it sn awkward clumsy appearance. It makes a poor fight when it
is surprised by a hunter in a tree ; for though it spita like a cat and
■eta its hair up, it it easily destroyed by a blow on the back with a
■lender stick, and it nerer attacks a man. Ita gait is by bounds,
■trsight forward, with the back a little arched, and lighting on all the
feet at once. It awima well, and will cross the arm of a lake two
miles wide ; but it is not swift on hmd. It breeds once a year, and
has two youi»g at a time." (Richardson.)
The "V'" of the Csnada Lynx forms a considerable article in the
fur trade ; tbe annual importation by tbe Hudson's Bey Company is
stated at from 7000 to 9000. Sir Jobn Richardson says that the Datires
eat its Bnh, which is white and tender, but rather flavourless, mnch
reaembling tint of the American hare.
V. Thi Caw.
Among the smaller specie* of the great feline family our attenti
i* naturally first directed towards that domestic animal which
found ijl almost every house. " In this case," sayi the author of that
Interesting little hook 'The Henageriea' (I,ondon, 12mo., 1830).
ike that of tbe dog, thei« is no doubt wbich ia the original head
of the domesticated stock. The wild cat of tbe European tontta is
tbe tame cat of the Enropsan houses ; the tame cat would become
wild if turned into the wooda ; the wild cat at some period baa been
domeatioated, and its species has been established in ajmost every
family of the old and new continent." There is good authority for
this assertion ; but tbe origin of the domestic cat has been attributed
to a very different source, and there are not wanting loolagiats who
even now hold that the parent stock of that useful animal is still
Riippel during his first travels in Kubia discovered a cat (Klein-
protige Katae, Pilii maaiculala) of the size of a middle-dxed domestic
cat, and one-third smaller than the European Wd-Cat {FdU Caltit
ftnit, Linn.). All tbe proportions of the limbs were on a smaller
scale, with the exception of the tail, which is longer in Feli* laaniiru-
Xata. The woolly or ground hsir ie in general of a dirty ochreous,
darker on tbe back and posterior parts, and becoming gradually lighter
on tbe anterior and lateral parts ; longer hair of a swiuiby dirty white,
so that the appearance of the snimsl is grayiah-yellow. Bkin of the
edges of tbe lips and of the nose bare and black. Beard and bristles
of the eyebrows shining white, brown st tbe roots ; edges of eyelids
black ; iris glaring yellow. From the inner comer near the eye there
is a dark-bruwn streak running in the direction of the nose, and there
is a white streak as far up as the arch of the eyebrows ; between these
two streaks is another grayish one extending on the forehead by the
side of the ears and ui^er the eyes. Outside of the ears gray, inside
white, and without tufts of hair. Eight slender black undulating lines
arise on the forehead, run along the occiput, and are lost in the upper
part of the neck. Cheeks, throat, and anteriorpartof the neck, shining
white. Two ochreous-ycllow lines spring, the one from the outer
corner of the eye, the other from tbe middle of the cbeek, and meet
both together under tbe esr; and two rings of the same colour
encircle the white neck : below the rings there are spots of ochreous-
yellow. Chest and belly dirty-white, with similar spots or semicircular
lines. A dsrk streak tdong the back becomes lighter as it rises over
the shoulders, and darker on the cron. This streak is gradually lost
on the upper part of the tail, the lower surface of which ia wbi±a-
yellow. The tail is almost of an equal tbickneta, rather slender, and
with two dark i^ngs at ita point The eitremitiea, which have len
hair in proportion on tho outer side, are of the general colour, with
beside* live or six blackish semiciroular bands on tbe foro legs, snd
six distinct dark cross-streaks on the hind legs. The inner sides are
lighter in colour, with two black spots or streaks on tbe upper parts
of the fore legs, and the hind, eitremitiej show the cross«treaks
winding around the thlsfas towards the inside. Foot, sotes, hind
part«*af anklee, and wnsts shining black. Length 2 feet 6 inches,
the tail being about 0 inchea : height at the shoulder about S^ inches.
The description was taken from an aged female. H. Rilppell, who
£(TPllu Cat (iVIii
Ita).
found this eat west of the Nile, near Ambukol, in rocky and bushy
regions, is of opinion that there can be no doubt that it is deeoended
from the domestic cat of the ancient Egyptians, now to be traced in
the cat-mummies and their representations on tbs monumenta of
Thebes. In tbe ' De«ription de I'Egypte, Hypog^ dee Thobea,'
vol. ii. pL 15, "So. M, is the represeutation ofa cat Plate 61, No. 8,
shows a cat's mummy, and plate fil. No. T, the skeleton of a cat's
mummy which in size of body, form of head, and length of tail, acoorda
perfectly with FdU mani'mlafa. The question then arises whether
this domestic cat mi^t not have been transferred or bequeathed to
the contemporary civilised Europeans by tbe Egyptians ; and the
superintendents of the Frankfort collection agree that the general
796
FELIDiB.
FELIDJS
7M
acts strongly fkyour the opinion that F, HMUuciilata is the type of
our Domestic Cat. M. Temminck concurs in opinion with M. RUppell
that this Nubian species is the stock from which it sprang. Sir
William Jardine, in his able 'Natural History of tiie Felinse'
C Naturalists' Library/ ' Mammalia', voL ii, small 8yo, Edinbuiigh and
London, 1834), states that the opinion generally accepted before this
by most naturalists was, that the Wild Cat of Europe was the original
stock ; but, he adds, that although, since the introduction of our
House Cat to this country, there may haye been an accidental cross
with the wild natiye species, an attentiye examination of the greater
numbers will at once show a yery different form from that exhibited
by the Wild Cat ; the most prominent distinctions being the shortness
of the legs, and shortness and thickness of the tail in the latter.
" The domestic cat," continues this author, " is the only one of this
race which has been generally used in the economy of man. Some of
the other small species haye shown that they might be applied to
similar purposes ; and we have seen that the general disposition of
this family will not prevent thdr training. Much pains would have
been necessary to effect this, and none of the European nations were
likely to haye attempted it. The scarcity of cats in Europe, in its
earlier ages, is also well known ; and in the 10th and 11th centuries
a good mouser brought a high price. Although, however, our opinion
coincides with that of the aboye-menti<med autiiorities, and we think
that we are indebted to the superstition of the ancient Egyptians for
haying domesticated the si^ecies described by RUppell, we haye no
doubt that since its introduction to this country, and more particularly
to the north of Scotland, there has been occa^onal crossing with our
own native species, and that the results of tiiese crosses naye been
kept in our houses. We have seen many cats veiy dosely resembling
the wild cat, and one or two that were very tame, which could
scarcely be distinguished from it There is perhaps no animal that so
soon loses its cultivation, and returns apparency to a state completely
wild. A trifling n^lect of proper feeding or attention will often cause
them to depend upon their own resources ; and the tasting of some
wild and living food, wiU tempt them to seek it again, and to leave
their civilised homa They then prowl about in the same manner as
their congeners, crouching among cover, and carefully concealing
themselves from all publicity. They breed in the woods or thickets,
and support themselves upon birds or young animals. Few extensive
rabbit-warrens want two or three depredators of this kind, where
they commit great havoc, particularly among the yoimg in summer.
They sleep and repose in the holes, and are often taken in the snares
set for their prey. I once came upon a cat which had thus left her
home : she had newly kittened in the ridge of an uncut corn-field.
Upon approaching she showed every disposition to defend her progeny,
and beside her lay dead two half-grown leverets."
Before we quit this part of the subject we must not forged that
among the animals seen by Riippell in fcordofan, he discovered a new
small species of Cat
Mr. Bell ('History of BritUh Quadrupeds,' Lond. Svo., 1827), first
addresses himself to the question whether the common wild cat is
the original from which all our domestic cats have sprung, according
to the general opinion of the older naturalists. He states that there
are many reasons for believing that this opinion is entirely erroneous.
In the mst place, he observes, the general conformation of the two
animals is considerably different, espedally in the length and form of
the tail, which in the wild cat is strong, robust, and at least as laige
towards the extremity as at the base and middle, whilst that of the
domestic cat tapers towards the apex. The fur too of the former, he
remarks, is thicker and longer ; and although the colours are some-
what like those which occur in some in<Uvidual8 of the ordinary
species, there are, even in this respect, distinctions which can scarcely
be considered otherwise than as essentially specific ; as for instance, the
termination of the tail in a black tuft, which invariably marks the
wild cat To these distinctions may be added the difference of
length of the intestinal canal ; though domestication might account
for much of that
But to return to Mr. BelL With regard to the alleged crossing
between the wild and the domestic breeds, " it is not without much
reflection on the matter" that he has '* come to the conclusion that this
opinion of their intermixture, repeated and transmitted from one to
another till it has become an uncontested dogma, is erroneous, and
has its foundation in mistaken facts." Mr. Bell then notices Biippell's
FdiM mofMcviaXa above described, and comes to the conclusion that
" this species, to which the high authority of Riippell has assigned
the origin of our house cat, is stiU farther removed from it in
essential zoological characters than even the British wild cat^ to
which it had been previously so generally referred ; and that, as in
the case of so many of our domesticated animals, we have yet to
Beek for the true original of this useful, gentle, and elegant
anunaL"
We must confess that we do not see much difficulty in coinciding
with the opinion of Riippell, Temminck, and Sir William Jardine
upon the evidence at present known. It is not attempted to be
denied that the Egyptians had a domestic cat, and we think that
there can be little doubt that the Domestic Cat of the Egyptians was
identical with F maniculata. Tlus extraordinary people, whose
existence is now only to be traced in their wondenul and enduring
monuments, were, when in their high and palmy Mate, the centre ot
civilisation, and we can see no reason why other nations, who borrowed
BO laxgely from them, should not have also received their domestic
cat among other benefits of civilisation. This animal, when intro-
duced, would be liable to all the usual consequences of domestication
and of intermixture, according to the localities of the various nationa
who obtained it We can see no reason why the domestic cat, from
whatever source derived, should not breed with the wild cat in Great
Britain, and we believe that it has so bred.
The azguments derived from the difference between the tails of the
Wild Cat, of the Domestic Cat, and of F, manicfdata, do not seem to as
to carrji^ much weight We cannot shul our eyes to the effect of
domestication on this organ among the Dogs, which gives us every
variety, from the well-clothed tail of the Newfoundland dog, setter,
and spaniel, to that of the grayhound, which is so scantily fumiehed
as to owe one of its excellencies to being * tailed like a rat ; ' nay, in
some varieties, that long tail is reduced to almost no tail at all
There are also tailless cats, as Mr. Bell himself notices.
Still the doubt thrown on the question by a zoologist of so mudi
experience and skill as Mr. Bell is deserving of the most serious con-
sideration, and should stimulate those who have the opportunity to
investigate the subject upon every occasion offered to them.
The Domestic Cat is Le Chat of the French^; Qatto of the Italians ;
Qato of the Spanish and Portuguese ; Katze of the Qermans ; Cyperse
Kat and Huyskat of the Dutch; Katta of the Swedes; Eat of the
Danes; Cath and Gwr Cath of the Welsh; and Fdi$ domes^tco, ten
Catus of Ray. It is worthy of remark that all these names are the
same as the Latin CaUu, whence the diminutives Catulut and
CaUUui ; and this is somewhat in favour of all northern and western
Europe having received the Cat through Roman civilisation. We are
thus Drought nearer to Egypt, its probable origin. The Qreek word
'altiros' {ekKovpos) is an odd one, and helps us nothing, beiog appa-
I'ently a descriptive term. There seems to be a word in Sanscrit for
cat, leading to the supposition that amongst the early Indo-Gennanic
races the cat was not domesticated.
The varieties of the Common Cat, as in all cases of domestication,
are endless : among the most noted are the Tabby, the Tortoia^ell,
the Chartreux, which is bluish, and the Angora Cat with its long
silky hair. The Domestic Cat is but too famous for its attainments in
the art of ingeniously tormenting, and it is difficult to say what end
JB answered by the prolonged agonies of fear and torture which tne
poor mouse is made to undeigo before it receives the coup de grace.
This refined cruelty appears to be confined to mice, young rats, and
small quadrupeds : if a cat strikes down a bird she does not trifle
with it, but, conscious of its chances of escape, bites off its head or
wounds it mortally at once.
We insert the following from Pennant, though it has been often
quoted, not only as illustrating the manners of a period so distant as
that of Howel, who died in the year 948, aftei* a reign of 88 years
over South Wales and of 8 yean over all Wales, but a£o on account
of the reflection at the end, which we think worthy the consideration
of those who are interested in inquiring whence the stock of the
Domestic Cat was derived. " Our ancestors," says Pennant^ ** seem
to have had a high sense of the utility of tlus aniinaL That excellent
prince Howel Dda, or Howel the Qood, did not think it beneath him,
amoug his laws relating to the prices, &cr, of animals (' Leges WallisD,'
p. 247, 248) to include that of the cat, and to describe the qualities it
ought to have. The price of a kitling before it could see was to be
a penny ; till it caught a mouse, twopence. It was required beodes
that it should be perfect in its senses of hearing and seeing, be a good
mouser, have the claws whole, and be a good nurse ; but if it &iled
in any of these qualities the seller was to forfeit to the buyer the
third part of its value. If any one stole or killed the cat that guarded
the prince's granary he was to forfeit a milch ewe, its fleece^ and
lamb ; or as much wheat as when poured on the cat suspended by its
tail (the head touching the floor) would form a heap high enongh to
cover the tip of the former. This last quotation is not only curious,
as being an evidence of the simplicity of ancient manners^ but it
almost proves to a demonstration that cats are not aborigines of these
islands, or known to the earliest inhabitants. The large prices set on
them (if we consider the high value of specie at that tune) and the
great care taken of the improvement and breed of an animal that
multiplies so fast, are almost certain proofii of their being little known
at that period." (< British Zoology.')
Fdit Catus of Linnaeus, the Wild CtX, is Le Chat Sauvage of the
French ; (Hto Montis of the Spaniards ; Wilde Katze and B^mritter
of the Qermans; Yild Kat of the Danes; Cath Qoed of the Wehdi;
Caiut tylvetins of Klein ; and Felda Mlvatiea of Merrett
Head triangular, strongly marked ; ears rather huge, long, trian-
gular, and pointed. Body strong, rather more robust &an that of the
Domestic Cat Tail of equal size throughout its length, or rather
larger towards the extremity. Fur soft> long, and thidc; colour of
the face yellowish'gray, with a band of black spots towards the
muzzle; whiskers yellowish-white; forehead brown; head gray,
marked with two black stripes passing from the eyes over and behind
the ears; back, sides, and limbs gray, darker on the back, paler on
the sides ; with a blackish longitudinal stripe along the middle of the
back, and numerous paler curved- ones on the sides, which are darker
m FELID^.
towards tba hxck, and heoome obiio1et« toward* tba belly, whjdi is
neariy white. Tail annulated with light gnj and black ; tip of the
latter colour. Feat and insides of the lega yellowiih-gnf ; soIih
□lack, at least in the male, of which aei Tamminck declares it to be a
EBCuliaritf. Coloim of the female paler, and markings len distiacL
limeniioiia diiferiDB gresUy tocording to the atatement of Tarions
DAtutaliata. Hedium aixe of full-grown male : —
Foot. la. Unci.
LoDgtii of head and body . . 1 10 0
Length of head 0 3 6
Length of ears 0 2 3
Length of Uil 0 112
Female rather imalliM-. (Ball.)
Temminok gives the average length m three feat.
The Wild Cat is fouiid in all the wooded conatries of Europe,
Oennai^ eapedally ; Ruuia, Hungsry, the north of Ana, and If epsnL
The anim^ la lar^ in cold climates, and ite fur ii there held in
higher eatinuition.
wild Cat iFilii Oitm).
In Britain It was formerly plentiful, and was a beast of chase, ai
we learn from Richard the Second's charter to the abbot of Peter-
borough, giving him permissiaD to hmit the hare, fox, and wild cat.
The fur in those days does not seem to have been thought of much
value, for it is ordained in .Aichbiahop Corboyl's canons, a.ii, 1127,
that no abbess oi nun should uie more coetly apparel Uian such ss is
made of lambs' or cate' skins.
The Wild Cat is Dow rarely found in the south of England, and
evea ia Cumberland and Westmoreland iU numbers are very much
reduced. In the north of Scotland and in Ireland it is etill
abundant,
Amongtlie fbieign Wild Catamay be enumerated ^elMC7Aaut, Quid.;
the Hota Hahn Uaqjur, or Larger Wild Cat, of the HahrstUs (a
lynx) ; and Ftii* torquattu, F. Cuv. -, the Lban Rahn Hanjur, or Lesser
Wild Cat, of the Idahrettas ; Pelii Uoormtruu, the Hoormi Cal^
Hodgson, from the Moormi Hills in Nepaul (' Zool. Proa' January,
1824). Afii pfonicipt, Vigors and Uoraueld, departe in many points
from the true cats, and approaohes Prumodon in others. Ftlit
Temmiiidcii of the same loologista, which ia near the Domestic Cat in
size, comea nearer in form— it is uniform in colour— to the true
Tiger-Cats, We must not omit te notice the Pili* Caffra, a specimen
of which is to be seen in the South African Museum (No. 2S}, speci-
mens of which have been met with, as the ' Catalogue informs us, in
whatever direction South Africa has yet been explored. " It exhibits
certain fixed peculiarities which unequivocally constitute it ■ distinct
■pecieH from the Domeettc Cat, whiim is occasionally found wild in
the colony, and with which the former has sometimes been erroneously
confounded. It possesses a full shore of the ferocity of the feline
tribe ; and dogs which have once had a specimen of its pugnacious
will and power show a considerable degree of caution in encountering
it a second time. It is frequently found in such Sate as chance to be
covered with long grass or with a moderate growth of brushwood ;
snd when disturbed by the approach of men or dogs, usually seeks
shelter in thickete, or the burrows of other animals. It preys upon
■mall quadrupeds and birds, and is an especial enemy to those of the
latter which have their nests upon the ground." ('Catalogue of
South African Museum.')
We sabjoin a list of the speumcna of Fetiiui in the callection of
the British Museum, arranged according to the views of Dr. J. EL Qray.
FeiiniB.
1. Lee Barbarmt, the Lion; FtUt Lea, Linn.; Lea AMtaitui,
Swains.; F. Lm Bmri<mi, Fiteba. ITorth Afrits,
FELID.£. 7M
2. ZeoQiKgnUlmtit, iia Maneless Lion ; Leo Pcnicw, Swains, (t);
Filu Lea GooJTaUetmt, Smee,
3. Lto CTaBiiianiu, the Qambian Lion ; Lion du Seo^al, ' Mam.
Lithog.'; P. LtQ SentgtUeatii, Fischer. West Africa, interior of
Qamlna.
i. TigrU rtgalit, the Tiger ; Pttii Tigrit, Linn., Button. India.
5. Laapardui tariut, the Leopard or Panther ; Petit Leopardut and
P. varia, Schreb.; P. Pardui, Linn. (?), Cuv.; F. minor Ehrenb.; P
Panlhera, Enl, ; F. Antiqaonm, Fischer; F. mtlat, P^n; F
cAaigbiata, Herm. ; F, /tuea, Meyer. Nepaul, snowy region.
e. Leopatdue Uncia, the Ounce ; Felit Undo, Schreb., BuSbn ; P.
Pardta, Pallas ; F. Irbit, Ehrenbeig ; F. PatUhtra, ErxL TibetL
7. Liopardtu tiegleettu, the Oambisn Leopard ; Pttit mglMa, Oniy ;
P. lerwalina, Ogilby ; F. SenegalemU, Lesson ; P. cdidttgoMlei; Temm.
Gambia, Weateni Abies.
8. Laipardvt Onfa, the Jsguar ; PeU$ Oafo, Linn. ; F. Tagtiar,
Orifflth. ) F. nigra, Bchreb. ; P. Panthtra, Schreb. Tropical America.
9. Leopardftu Senal, the Serval ; Fdit Serval, Schreb, ; P. Captntit,
Foreter j P. OaiepardMi, Desm. ; Tiger BoschJuitte, Cape ooloniata,
Cuie of Good Hope.
10. Zcsporilw JHoormnuu, the Hirrini j Alit if oormoiju ; Hodgson.
11. LaaparduM concoli>r, the Puma; Ptlie ameolor, Linn.; P. dit-
CoIiHvSchrab. ; ,^,/Wui, Shaw; Cougouar, BuSbn ; Gouasoura, Anus ;
P^ma, Hemand. Canada.
12. Leopardut Tagouarondi, the Ysgouarondi ; Pelie Yagouarondi,
Lacep. ; P. Danmnii, Martin. French Guyana.
13. Leopardtu vuatnoralut, the Marbled Cat; Fdit nuirmorata,
Martin ; F, IHardii, Jardine. Malacca.
H. Leopardni pcuxlaiit, the Ocelot; Petit pardjdii, Linn., Sohreb.,
Buffon ; F. CMbigwm, H.,Smitb (t) ; F. SnilMi, Swains. (F) ; P. I/amU-
tonii, Fischer, Tropical America.
15. Leopardia mitit, the Chali ; Fdii mitii, F, Cuvier ; F. OnfO,
Sohreb., Bufl'on; P. Chati, Griffith; P. Wiedii, Swains. Tropical
Amraica, Guyana (').
1 6. Leopardta stacrDurus, the Euichua ; Petit mocrouro, Fr. Max.
P. Wiedii, Sching. Meiioo.
1 7. Leopardtit griieut, the Gray Ooelot ; FeUt amiUata, F. Cnvier
Tropical America.
18. Leopardut pictut, the Painted Ocelot, Orsy. Tropical America.
19. Leopardiu Tigriaiu, Uie Ma»av ; Ptlii Tigrina, Schreb., Button ;
P. itargay, Griffith ; P. UuiffiM, Uolina. Tropical America.
20. Leopardiu vartc^us, the Variegated Leopard, Tropical
America,
21. Leopardut tigrituiidet, the False Margay. Tropical America,
22. Le(iaTdui ncen-iniu, the Wagati Cat ; Pclit viverrimii, Bennett,
Gray; Wagati, Elliot. India.
23. Leopardut Javanemit, the Kubouk; Petit Javanentit, Honf. ;
P. ninula, var., Temm. ; P. Diardii, Griffith ; P. vtidaia, Fischer ; F.
undulala, Sching. Java.
24 Lmpardui Sumatramti, the Balu ; Fdit Sutaalrtma, Horsf. ; P.
■ainMo, var., Temm. ; F. undata, var., Fischer.
2S. Leop^^dut CUnenni, the Maou ; Petit Chinmtit, Gray. Chins.
2S. Xcopnnjw AsEverit, the Chinese Butu, China ; Leopardut SHiotli,
Elliott's Cat, Gray ; Pelie IfgiaUiuit, Hodnon. Madras.
27. Leopardut Mimalaj/anut, Warwick s Cat ; Petit Simatafianut,
Warwick, Jardine. India.
28. Leopardut ineontpieimt, the Waved Cat, Gray ; Fdit lorqualut,
F. Cuv. ; F. Petgideniit, Desm. ; P. Nepatentit, Vigors and HoraC
India, Qangootri.
29. Petit CaiKt, the Wild Cat, Lion,, Button. Scotland.
80. Fdit dometlica, the Cat, Briason ; P. Catut Domttticut, Schreb.
31. /'eUp^nicqw, the Flat-Headed Lynx; Chaus(l); P. Diardii,
Crawford, Sumatra.
H2. Ckaut Ljfiieut, the Chaus ; Felii afflnit. Gray ; P. Chaut, QtU-
denst, Humb., V. Cuv, ; P. Dottgol^Mt, Hemp., and Ehr. ; P. caiigata,
Bruce; ,^. ,£yiiiciM, Oliv. ; P. Catolfnx, Faltsa; Lgnchtu erythratut,
Hodgson; ,F. JTMcu, Pearson ; P. R^ipeUii, Bmat NepauL
33. Chaut putcluUiu, the Smaller Chaus; PdU piUcheUa, Gray.
^pt>
31. Ckaut tervalinuM, tlie Servaline Chaus ; Feiit omata, Jardine ;
P. lervalina, Jardine. India.
36. CInut Cnger, CtSn Cat; PditCngra, Desm. (t). Capeof Good
36. Garaeai uelanotit, the Caraoal ; Fdii Caraeai, Buffon. Cape of
Good Hope.
37. Ljfocut Ceinadtnnt, the Peeaboo, or Canada Lynx; FlUt Ctma
dmtit, GeaK, Rioharda. ; P. borealit, Temm.; Cat-Lynx, Penn. »
Caroagout, Charlevoix. Canada.
38. Lyneut pardimtt, the Southom Lynx; Fdit purdina, Okeo;
Loup-Cvvisr, Pemult, Sardinia (I), Spain, Sierra Morena.
8S. <?H«pardaj«6a(a, the Youie or Cheetah; i'elu >ub<Wa, Schreb.
F. guttata, Herm. ; P. Pearomt, A. Smith (I) ; F. teaatica, H, Smith
Hunting Cat, Fenn. Cape of Good Hope.
Fottd Pelido!.
In the saoond or Hloosne period of the Tertiary Formations
we have hitherto found the Ont traces of large Foail Cat*. There
799
FELIDM.
FELIDiE.
800
are no less than four spocies of these great cats, some as large as
a lion, enumerated by Professor Eaup from the Epplesheim sand
near Altsey, about twelye leagues south of Mayenoe. These remains
are preserved in the museum at Darmstadt The professor names
these Felit aphaniita, F. pritca, F. ogygta, and F. atUedUuviana, In
the third and fourth (or Pliocene), divisions of the Tertiarj periods,
we find that the number of terrestrial herbivorous quadrupeds become
more abundant ; and, with their numerical importMice, the Camivora,
whose agency was required for keeping them down, increase also.
Br. Buckland in his 'Beliquio Diluvians' mentions tiiat Ouvier
found the tusks of an extinct lion or tiger in the Breocia of Nice, and
that Mr. Pentland had discovered the tooth of the same extinct tiger
in the Breccia of Antibes. Bavard, the Abb^ Croizet, and Jobert, in
the work on ' Fossil Cats,' found, among the remains oontained in the
Ossiferous Rocks of Auvei^e (Puy de DAme) the following species :
Fdi$ Imdorientit, F, hrevirottriti F. PardinentU, F. ArvemmtU, and
F, Meganterton.
The following Fossil Cats are enumerated by Yon Meyer : — PdU
tpelcBa ; F. txntiqwi, Cuv. ; F. ItHodoreruu, Croiz. and Job. ; F. hrevi-
rotiris, Croiz. and Job. ; F. Pardineruit, Croiz. and Job. ; F. Arvem-
entUf Croiz. and Job. ; F, Megantereon, Brar. ; F. cuUriderUf Brav. ;
F, aphanitteSf Kaup. ; F, ogygia, Kaup ; and F, pritca, Kaup.
Dr. Limd, in his ' View of the Faima of Brazil previous to the last
(Geological Revolution,' remarks that the Huntmg Leopard {Fdii
jubata^ Linn. ; CynaUunUt Wagl.), which difTers from the rest of the
Cats in many essential characters, has been very properly formed
into a separate genus ; for its claws are not retractile ; it is gregarious,
and of so mild a diroosition that it is frequently tamed and employed
in the chase. But, he observes, as a remarkable contrast to this, that
its dental system is upon a more murderous plan than that of the true
FtUi, not b&ving the flat projection on the liuge tearing molar of the
upper jaw, which is found in all the other predaoeous genera, and the
development of which is in inverse proportion to the animal's
carnivorous propensities. Dr. Lund recognised this form of dentition
in a small animal of the extinct Fauna of the Bradlian region, which
was the scene of his valuable labours, not exceeding a domestic cat in
size ; and he has named it OynaUvnu minutus. Besides this he disco-
vered the remains of two species of the normal feline form, one as
large as the Long-Tailed Tiger-Cat {Fdii macrouraf Pr. Max.), the
other larger than the Jaguar {Fdia Onfct, Linn.), and comparable to
the Tiger and the Lion, the largest species of the Old World.
In his 'British Fossil Mammals,' Professor Owen describes four
forms of FdidcBi—l, Fdit tpekea, the Great Cave-Tiger; 2. F, Par-
doidet ; 8. F. Caiut ; 4. MachairoduB latidem.
In his account of the first Professor Owen says : —
" It is too commonly supposed that the Lion, the Tiger, and the
Jaguar are animals peculiarly adapted to a tropical climate. The genus
FdU is however represented by species in high northern latitudes,
and in all the intermediate countries to the equator ; and there is no
genus of Mammalia in which the unity of organisation is more closely
maintained, and in which therefore we find so little ground in the
structure of a species, though it may most abound at the present day
in the tropics, for inferring its special adaptation to a warmer dimate.
A more influentia], and indeed the chief cause or condition of the
prevalence of the larger feline animals in any given locality, is the
abundance of the vegetable-feeding animals in a state of nature, with
the accompanying thickets or deserts unfrequented by man. The
Indian Tiger follows the herds of Antelope and Deer in tlie lofty
Himalayan chain to the vex^e of perpetual snow. The same species
also passes that great mountain bamer and extends its ravages, with
the Leopard, the Panther, and the Cheetah, into Booharia, to the
Altan chain, and into Siberia as fiir as the fiftieth degree of latitude,
preying principally on the wild horses and asses. It need not
therefore exdto surprise that indications should have been discovered
in Uie fossil relics of the ancient Mammalian population of Europe, of
a large feline animal the contemporary of the Mammoth, of the
tichorine Rhinoceros, and of the gigantic Cave-Bear and Hytena, and
the slayer of the oxen, deer, and equine quadrupeds that so abounded
during the same epoch.
"Theseindications were first disooveredin thebone-cavesof Qennany ;
and Cuvier in his usual mastorly review of the materials whicli were
accessible up to the period of his ' Memoir ' on the Cave Caminora
in the 'Annales du Museum' for 1806, concludes that the most
charactoristic of the fossils of the great feUne animal could be referred
neither to the existing Lion or Lioness, nor to the Tiger, still less to
the Leopard, or Panther, but that it more resembled in the curvature
of 'the lower border of the under jaw the Jaguar.
" Mr. QoldfoBS having subsequently obtained an almost entire fossil
cranium of the large extinct feline animal, described it under the
name of Fdit tpdcBa, which name Cuvier adopted in the later edition
of his great work, adding to the distinctions which Gk>ldfuss had
pointed out between the fossil and the skulls of the ftTisting Felines,
including the Jaguar, Hxai the suborbital foramen appeared to be
smaller and placed further from the margin of the orbit than in the
existing Lion or Tiger. Although in the uniform and gentle curve of
the upper contour of the fossil skuU it resembles mare that of the
Leopard than any of the larger Felines, Cuvier subeequeiitly tpesJu of
the extinct species as a lion or a tiger. There ia a constafit and weU-
marked character, of which Cuvier appears not to have been aware, by
which the skulls of the existing lion and tiger may be distinguished
from one another : it consists in the prolongation backwards in the
Lion of the nasal processes of tiie maxillary bones to the same trans-
verse line which is attained by the upper ends of the nasal bones ;
whilst in the Tiger the nasal processes of the maxillary bones nerer
extend nearer to the transverse line attained by the upper ends of the
nasal bones than one-third of an inch, and sometimes fall short of it
by two-thirds of an inch, where they terminate by an obtuse or trun-
cated extremity, whilst in the Lion they are pointed. It is yery
desirable that this character should be determined if possible in the
continental specimens of the skulls of the Fdit tpdcea. If the nasal
processes of the superior maxillary bones do not extend as &r back-
wards as the nasal bones, it may be concluded that the species was not
a lion ; but as the shorter processes of the superior maxillary bones
are present in the skull of the Jaguar and Leopard as well as the Tiger,
the approximation of the fossil to the striped or the spotted species of
the genus Fdit will depend upon other characters."
Portions of the skeleton of F, tpdaOt mor« especially the teeth and
jaws, have been found in the caves at Kirkdale, Kent'a-Hole, Sandford
Hill, Hutton, Bleadon, and North Cliff in Yorkshire.
The second species was indicated by Professor Owen from the
specimens of a tooth obtained by Mr. Colchester from the Red Crag
of Newboume, near Woodbridge in Suffolk. Teeth of tiie Bear, Hog^
and Deer have been obtained from the same locality. This species
seems to have the same antiquity as the F. aphanitta and F, antedilwt-
viana of Kaup, both of which were discovered by Dr. Kaup, associated
with Dinotheriums and Mastodons in the Miocene of Epplesheim.
F. Cattu, the Wild Cat. Fossil remains of a feline animal about
the size of the Wild Cat were first noticed by Dr. ScJimerling in his
description of the caverns in the province of Li^ge, where they were
found in tolerable abundance. He assigns the right ramus of a lower
jaw, which exceeds by a few lines the specimen figured above, to a
species or variety whidi he calls Fdit Cattu magna ; and the greater
proportion of the fossils, whkii include some entire skuUs, to the Fdit
Caitu mintUa. These however do not vary from the standard of the
existing Wild Cat, more than the varieties due to age or sex are now
observeid to do.
French naturalisto have also enumerated a cousiderable collec-
tion of bones of the Wild Cat^ discovered in the caverns of Lunel
Vale.
" The most authentic specimens of the Fdit Catut, in relation to
their antiquity, which appear yet to have been obtained from British
localities are Uie right ramus of the lower jaw, retaining the canine
tooth, discovered in the brick-earth at Qrays, Essex, and a corre-
sponding part of the lower jaw, almost identical in size and diape,
but retaining the three molar teeth, from the cave of Kent's-Hole^
Torquay. The Essex jaw of the Wild Cat, which was found in the
same deposit that has yielded so many remains of the Mammoth, was
in the usual condition of the bones of that period ; and the specimen
from Kent's-Hole, now in the British Museum, precisely accords in
colour and chemical composition with the fossils of the extinct quad-
rupeds from the same cave. The outlines of the pre-molar teeth pre-
served in this jaw are added above the corresponding empty sockets
of the paw figured, with which they quite agree in size ; and both are
undistrnguishable frt>m the analogous parts of the still existing species
of Wild Cat. We seem therefore here to have another instance of
the survival, by a smaller and weaker species, of those geological
changes which have been accompanied by the extirpation of Uie
larger and more formidable animals of the same genua Our house-
hold cat is probably a domesticated variety of the same species which
was contemporary with the spelsaan Bear, Hysena, and I^ger. It
appears, at least from an observation recorded by M. De Blainville,
that Grimalkin cannot be the descendant of the Egyptian Cat, as
M. Temminck supposed. The first deciduous inferior molar tooth of
the Fdit maniculata has a relatively thicker crown, and is supported
by three roots ; whilst the corresponding tooth in both the Domestic
and Wild Cate of Europe has a thinner crown and two roots. The
tail of the Domestic Cat is more taperixig, and a little longer than in
the Wild Cat ; but the extent to which &is part is shown by a curious
propagated variety of tailless cat to be susceptible of modification,
ougnt to warn us against inferring specific distinction from slight
differences in the proportions of the tail." (Owen.)
Machairodut UUident. In this island, anterior to the deposition of
the Drift, there was associated with the great extinct Tiger, Bear, and
Hyaena of the caves, in the destructive task of controlling the num-
hen of the richly-developed order of the Herbivorous MammcUia, a
feline animal as large as the tiger, and, to judge by its instruments of
destruction, of greater ferocity.
In this extinct animal, as in the Machairodut euUrident of the Yal
d'Amo, and the M, MegaiUerton of Auvergne, the canines curved
backwards, in form like a pruning-knife, having the greater part of
the compressed crown provided with a doubly-cutting edge of serrated
enamd ; that on the concave margin being continued to the base, the
convex margin becoming thicker there like the back of a knife to
giye strength, and the power of the tooth being further increased by
the expansion of its sides. Thus, as in the MmalotaMr%u, each move-
ment of the jaw with a tooth thus formed combined the power of the.
i
{
801 FBLID^
knife and uw, wbilst the &pei la making the firnt incision acUd Uks
the two-edged point of & aabre, the backward curvatare of the full-
grown teeth enabled them to retain like barba the prey whoas
QuiTeriug fleah they peueti'aied. Three of these caniDe teeth were
duooTered by the Uev. Hr. Mac Enery in Keofa Hole, Torquay, and
were recognised by Dr. BucklEicd sa beanog a cloae reBemblanoe to
the caniaea of the Urtiu caUridrni of Cbe Val d'Amo. Profeaaor
Neati, til whom Dr. Buckland tranimitted caata of these teeth,
recogiiiaed the >ame reaemblance, but noticed tlieir proportionably
S eater breadth. The caat of one of the largest of the caninaa of the
achatrodiu ctUlrident from the Val d'Amo, preeented to Profeaaor
Owen by Mr, Pentland, measures eight iaohes and a half in length along
the anterior curve, and one inch and a halt in breadth at the baae of
the cmwn. 'The largest of .the cantnee of the XachairDdvi from Kent'a
Hole meaanres six inches along the anterior curra and one inch two
lines acroBB the baae of the crown. The English specimens are also
thinner or more eompresaed in proportion to their breadth, eepecially
■t the anterior part of the crown, which is sharper than in the
Xachaindta aUlridenr, (Owen.)
These difierencee ere ao constant and well marked in the British
■pedmens that Profeaaor Owen has propoaed for them the above
ipedSc name.
We here figure a tooth of SftgaUnaunu, a tooth of SfiKAairodKt
P. Bira, Deamareat Paraguay (I) . . . Eyre.
FELIS. [FiUDAj
FELSPAR, a Uineral which occnra in every part of the aartb, and
one of the conatituenta of granite.
It occura cryatallino and maasive. Tbe primary form ot the crystal
an oblique rhombic priim. Colour white, gray, green, red, of diffe-
rent shades. Transparent, transtucent, or opaque. Lustra vitreous.
Specific gravity, 2'S to 2'6. Hardneee, 60. 8tr«ak gtayifih-wbit«.
rage parallel to the terminal plane and oblique diagonal Frac-
conchoidal, uneven. There are seveial Tarietiee. That known
hy the name of Adularia occurs in laige crystals, especially in Hont
St Gothard. MomuMie is a Taiiety which haa a pearly lustre, and
when cut and poliahed is chatoyant; the fineat specimens of this are
from Cevlon. Suntlont is similar, but oontsjna minute acalea of mica.
Avenluntt Felapar often owea ito iridescence to minute oiyatals of
specular or titanic iron. The maasive varieties are amorphous.
Structure granular, compact, A green varie^ haa bean found in
Siberia. The several varieties (Offer but little in composition.
.icfitiaru, which ia one of the purest varieties, according to Vauquelin,
Hitherto no parts of the skeleton of Sf. talidtiu have been found in
England ao as to throw any additional light on tbe orgsnisation of
thi« once formidable beast of prey. It must have however equalled,
or nearlj equalled, in bulk the Spelssan Tiger. " When we are
informed," aays Professor Owen, "that in some diatricta of India
entire villagea have been depopulated by the destructive incuraions
of a single species of large feline animal, the Tiger, it ii hardly con-
caivable that man in an early and rude condition of society could
have renated the attacks of tbe more formidable Tiger, Bear, and
JfadUtirmftu of the Cave epoch. And this coniiderBtion may lead ua the
more readily to receive the negative evidence of the abaence of well'
authenticated human fossil remains; and to conclude that man did
not exist in the land which wae ravaged simultaneously by tbr«e
such formidable Camivora, aided in ^eir work of deabnotion by
troopa of savage hyienaa." {3<e Sdfflbhiiii.]
Ttia following ii a list of the apeciaa of Felit to be seen ii
Zoological Gardens, Regent's Park : —
P. Ti^ra, Linn. Qoa, Baroda, Bengal
P. Onfo, Linn, Orinoco, Amazon. . . j^unr.
P. Pardiu, Linn. Western Africa, South 1, .
Africa, Ceylon, India, Malacca . . . ,{^^1*^
F. Ltopardnt, Schreber. Morocco . . Panther (T).
P. juhala, Bch. Nnbia, South Africa . Cheetah.
P. pardtdit, Linn. South America . . Ocelot
P. mifu, F. Cuvier. South America . Ocelot.
P. melantira. Ball. Demerara Ocelot,
P. (I), Peru Ocelot
P. vutefocetit. Java Kmau-Dahan.
P. Tierina, Schraber. South Amarieu Ooeloi
P. S^val, Schreber. South Africa . . SorvaL
F. Sermlina, Ogilby. Gambia . Weatera Serv^I.
P. nverrina, Bennett Bengal .... WsgatL
P. Ckaui, Onldanstedt 'Egf^t . Manih Cat
,P. Conical, Schraber. Gambia, Bombay, Nubia Caracal.
P. Canadentil, Geoffroy. North America Canadian Lyui.
P. eoncolor, Linn. North America, Chili, I -n,,-,^
Silica
Alumin
Potaah
64
—100
Felspar is distinguished from Seapolili by its mora difficult fusi-
bility, and by a alight tendency to a fibrous a[ipearance in the cleavage-
surface of the latter, especially in msssire varieties ; from Spodumene
by tta blow-pipe characters. Felapar is one of the eonatituente of
granite, gneiaa, mica-alate, porphyry, and basalt, and often occurs m
these rooks in crystals. Dana Bays St Lawrence county. Now York,
attbrda fine crystal* ; also Orange county. New York ; Haddam and
Uiddletown, Connecticut ; South RoyaUton and Barte, Haaaachusetta ;
besides numerons other localities. Green Felspar occurs at Mount
Desert, Maine ; an Aventurine Felspar at Leyperrille, Pennsylvania ;
Aduiaria at Haddam and Norwich, Connecticut; and Parsonsfield,
Maine. A Fetid Felspar (aometimea called Ntcronite) is found at
Roger's Rock, E™ei county; at Thomson's Quury, nearl9Gth-street,
New York city, and twenty-one miles from Baltimore. Carlsbad and
Elbrogen in Bohemia; Baveno in Piedmont; 8t Gothard; Ai^endal
in Norway ; Laud's End, England ; and the Mourn Mountains, Ireland,
ate some of the mora inter«ting localitiea. The name Felspar ia a
German word, 'feld' meaning field.
Felspar is used eitenaively in the manufacture of porcelain.
Moonstone and Sunatone are often set in jewellery. They an
polished, with a rounded surbce, and look somewhat like cat's-ejaa,
but ara much softer.
Sa«lin. — This name ia applied to the clay that resulla from the
decompoaiUon of Felapar. It ii the material used for making porce-
lain or china-ware. The change the Felspar nndergoea in producing
Kaolin oonaiata principally in a removal of the alkali-potaab, with part
of the ailica, and the addition of vatar. Composition of a specimen
from Schneaberg (Bertbier) : — ._
Alun
43-6
37-7
120
beda il
_ _ _ _ granite regions, where it has t>een
deriV^"fti>m the deoompoBition of this rook. A granite containing
talc seema to be the moat common source of it [Rocks.]
FENESTE'LLA, a beautiful and abundant genua of Foaail Zaapkyta,
allied to Sitepora, which occurs in the whole Paloorolc series.
(Lonsdale, ' SiL Syatem,' fto.)
FENNEC, the name of a i^e
M of Caoii, the C. Ztrda of Qmelin.
S V
803
FENNEL.
PE8TUCA.
Si^^
FENNEL. [FcENicuLUM.]
FENUGREEK. [Triooitella.]
FEBJRf the third order of Maihmaluly according to LiDnssus. The
foUowing is his character of the order : — Upper incisor teeth (primores)
aizy rather acute (acutiusculi) ; canine teeth solitary. The order con-
tains the following genera : — 1. Phoea (the Seals) ; 2. Cani9 (the Dogs,
WolyeSy Foxes, Hyssnaa, and Jackals); 8. Fel%$ (the Cats, Lions,
Tigers, Leopards, Iiynxes, and smaller cats) ; 4. Viverra (the Ichneu-
mons, Coatis, Skunk {PfUorini), Civets, and Genets) ; 5. Muttda (the
Otters, Glutton, Martens, Pole-Cats, Ferrets^ and Weasels, including
the Ermine, kc) ; 6. Umu (Bears, Badgers, and Racoons) ; 7. Didd-
phi8 (the Opossums) ; 8. Talpa (the Moles) ; 9. Sorex (the Shrews) ;
10. Erinacem (the Hedgehogs). Linnieus places the PeroB between
the orders Bruta and Olirea.
FERGUSONITE, a crystallised mineral, which is principally a
Columbate of Yttria. It has been found only in Greenland, near Cape
Farewell, imbedded in quartz.
Its primary form is a square prism. Colour brownish-black. Opaque,
except in the splinters. Lustre slightly metallic. Specific gravi^
5'8S8. Hardness 5*5 to 6'0. Streak {Mile brown. Fracture concnoidaL
Before the blow-pipe becomes of a greenish-yellow, and does not fuse,
but with a phosphate it dissolves completely. According to Hartwall,
this mineral consists of
Oxide of Columbium 47*75
Yttria 41-91
Zirconia 302
Oxide of Cerium 4*68
Oxide of Tin 100
Oxide of Uranium 0'9{|
Oxide of Iron 0*34
99-65
FERNS, the common name for a group of Cryptogamous Plants.
[Fnjcss ; Dakaacs^ ; Ltcofodiaceis ; Poltfodiacks ; Mabsileacea;
OPHIOGLOSSAC&fi.]
FERO'NIA, the name of a genus of Plants belonging to the natural
order Aurantiacece. The flowers are often polygamous. The petals
are usually 5 in number, occasionally 4 or 6, spreading. The calyx is
flat and 5-toothed. Stamens 10 ; filaments duated and united at the
base ; anthers linear-oblong, tetragonal The ovary is seated on the
elevated disc, 5- or occasionally 6-oelled ; ovules numerous in each cell.
It has scarcely any style and an oblong stigma. The fruit is inclosed
in a hard rind, 5-celled and many seeded, which seeds are inmiersed
in a fleshy pulp. The leaves are pinnated with from 5 to 7 leaflets
nearly or quite sessile, very slightly crenulated, with pdlucid dots
along the margin, inconspicuously dotted elsewhere : the racemes are
axillary, terminal, and few-flowered.
F, BUphantum is the Elephant- Apple or Wood-Apple of the Coro-
mandel coast, where it is very generadly eaten. The brandies of this
tree are armed with small spines. The leaflets, which vary in number
from 5 to 7, are small, obovate and smooth ; when very young they
are thin, and when bruised have a most fragrant smell resembling
anise. The native practitioners of India consider them stomachic
and carminative. After a certain age however the leaves become
tough and almost coriaceous. The fruit is fleshy, and extremely acid
before it arrives at maturity ; but when ripe, it contains 91 dark-brown
agreeable subacid pulp. In appearance the fruit is laz^ge, spheroidal,
rugged, and often warted extemaUv : the seeds are in five parcels, and
ore flat and wooUy, adhering to toe branched placenta by means of
long cords.
A transparent oily fluid exudes from the trunk of this tree when
an incision is made into it, which is used by painters for mixing their
colours. A clear white gum may also be obtained from the tree very
much resembling gum-arabic. The wood is likewise valuable on
account of its durability, whiteness, and hardness.
P. pellucida has leaves full of transparent dots ; the common petiole
round, pubescent ; this tree usuiJly attains a height of 20 {eet, and is
a native of the East Indies, where the fruit is generally eaten. The
flowers are white.
In cultivation these trees thrive well in a mixture of turifv loam and
peat : and ripened cuttings will strike root in sand under a glass
exposed to heat
(Lindley, Flora Medica; Don, JHchlamydeoui Plants.)
FERRET. [Mubteuda]
FERRO-TANTALITE. [Columbitk.]
FE'RULA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Umhellifera, whose species often yield a powerful stimulating g^m-
resin employed in medicine. It differs from PoMtinaca and Pence"
danum by its fruit having several vittso in each channel, and from
OpoponaXf which it otherwise resembles, in the margin of the fruit
being thin and flat, not thickened and convex. The fruit is in appear-
ance extremely similar to that of a parsnip ; it is compressed from
the back till it is extremelv flat> and it thins away at the edge. Then
are three approximated filiform dorsal ridges, and the two lateral ones
are distant^ obsolete, or lost in the edge. In each channel there are
three or more vittse, and on the commissure four, or a great many.
The flowers are always yellow, and the stem BoUd, its cavity being
filled with a spongy substance, in which fibres are vaguely dispersed.
The drugs called Sagapenum and Assafcetida were supposed to be
produced by species of this genus, but by which in particular it was
not known witn certainty. Dr. Falconer has shown that Aanfoetida at
least is produced by another genus, which he calls Narthex.
F. AetafaHia is found in only two districts of Persia, namdr,
the fields and mountains of Hera^ the capital of Khorassan, and th«
range of mountuns in the province of Lar (Laristan), extending from
the river Cur as far as the town of Congoon, along the coast of the
Persian Gulf. Ksempfer states that even here the plants do not
always yield the drug ; that it is only those of the desert near Herat
and of the mountains round Diwuun in Laristan that fiimish it ; and
he fiigures a plant, with a naked simple stem, clothed with leafless
sheaUis, umbels without involucre, a coarse woody root risings above
the ground, and pinnated leaves with pinnatifid segments and obloog
obtuse lobes. This plant is the Fenda A8iaf<xtida of Linnaeus and
De Candolle ; what is supposed to be it has since been met with in
Beloochistan, and Lieutenant Bumes saw what he calls Astetfaetida
growing in great luxuriance in the mountains of Hindu-Koosh at an
elevation of 7000 feet. He states that it is an annual, and grows to
the height of 8 or 10 feet, when it withers and decays. Ttte milk
which it exudes is first white, and then turns vellow and hardens, in
which state it is put in hair bags and exported. Sheep browse upon
the tender shoots, which are believed to be highly nutritioua
('Travels,' iL 243.) It is however by no means certain that this was
true Assafcetida. Indeed if it was, as Lieutenant Bumes states, an
annual, it must have been some other plant ; for Ksempfer expressly
describes the root of Hingis^, or Assafoetida, as " ad plures annoa
restibilem, magnain^ ponderosam, nudam," and in fact it is from
wounds in this root that the gum-resin flows. It is probable that
Assafoetida is yielded by different plants. Professor Royle obtained
seeds of two kinds from the bazaar of Tpdia ; and it appears from a
communication made to Mr. Macneill from a medical gentleman at
Soomeeana in Beloochistan, that in that province a kind of Fenda called
Hooshee yields a similar product^ which however is not collected.
The F, AtaafcBtida is said to arrive at as great an age as man himself^
and in consequence its roots sometimeB attain a considerable sice. It
is from wounds in this part that the drug is obtained. The roots are
not wounded before they are four years old ; the greater their age the
better the quality of their produce. There were four operations each
year when Ksempfer visited the countir ; the first in the middle of
April, the second at the latter end of May, the third ten days later,
and the fourth in the beginning of July. The gatherers on the first
occasion only cleared the hard sandy or stony soil away from the root
to the depth of a span or so, pulling off the leaves, replacing the earth
about the roots, and then heaping the leaves on them, pressing them
down with a stone. On the subsequent occasions they slice the
roots transverselv, beginning a little below the top, and collecting the
■juice that fLoyn from the wounds. After every operation they cover
the root with the old leaves to screen it from the sun. After the
last gathering the screens are thrown away and the roots are left to
peridi. Dr. Falconer believes his Narthex Assafoetida to be identical
with Ksempfer^s plant.
F, Peraica, a perennial species with a glaucous stem and suprade-
compound leaves with linear cut segments, has been reported to yield
assafoetida. Dr. Hope entertained this opinion, from which Nees and
Ebermaier do not dissent. Treviranus found it yielding a sabstanoe
extremely like assafoetida in the botanic garden of Breslau ; and the
same ^ thing has offcen occurred in the Apothecaries* Garden at
Chelsea. Nevertheless, F^ suspects, after W^Idenow, that it is
rather the origin of sagapenum. Olivier believed it to produce gum
ammoniacum ; but acconling to Professor Don that drug is yielded by
his Dorema ammoniacum,
F. orientalit has also been quoted as the BOvroe of gam
ammoniacum ; and it appears that such a substance is really pro-
duced, either by that plant or a nearly allied species, in the empire of
Marocco.
F. fendaffo has been taken for the plant which furnishes galba-
num ; but Professor Don states that this drug is radly yielded by
quite a different genus, called by him Oaibimfiim^officinaU, [AasAFOSTiDA,
in Arts and Sa Div.]
FERUSSI'NA, a genus established by M. Qrateloup for a Foasa
Turbinated Shell from Dax, which seems at first view very near the
Anottomaiaf but which M. Orateloup thinks, from the examination of
its aperture, approximates more to the Cyeloatomaia, an opinion m
which M. Rang concurs, adding that the species, three or four, are all
fossil.
Animal unknown. Shell oval, globulous ; aperture round, bordered,
oblique, simple, toothless, "retoum^e du cOtede la spire;" umbilicuB
more or less lai^e ; operculum (F).
FESCUE-GRASS. [Pe8TUCa.J
FESTU'CA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order of
Grasses, containing several species of agricultund importance. It is
known among British Grasses by havmg many-flowered spikeleta^
the lower palese of which are neither awned as in Bromtu, nor blunt
as in Poa and its allies, but terminated gradually in a hard sharp
point
F. prateniie, or Meadow Fescue, is about three feet high, with a
nearly upright bnmched l-sided panicle and broad coarse leaves. It
I
B06
FETTBOLL.
FIBRIN.
sua
is a native of moist meadows, and forms a portion of most good
meadow herbage. Mr. Sinclair states that in point of early produce
this grass ranks next to Meadow Fox-Tail {Alopecitnu pratetuia), and
is much more productive.
F, (mna, F. rubra, and F, duriuaciUa are other agricultural grasses,
much smaller than the last, and contributing greatly to the value of
pastures. F, ovina has a fine succulent foliage, and, according to
LinnsDUS, sheep have no relish for hills on which it does not abound ;
it is however unproductive. F, rubra is more abundant in its produce,
but less nutritious ; and its creeping root-like stems are said to impo-
verish the soil very much. F. duriiucula is preferrible to both the
preceding ; it withstands dry weather better than most grasses, and
in combination with F. praiensis and Foa irivieUii forms excellent
pasturage. It is most pi'evalent on light rich soils. F. dumetorum,
another species, will thrive in dry sandy situations, to which property
its value is chiefly owing ; but its nutritive qualities are slight^ and it
is altogether an inferior species.
(Babington, Manual of £rUith Botany.)
FBTTBOLL, a soft hydrous Silicate of Alumina allied to Halloy-
llte. [Hallotlits.]
FEUILLEA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
(htcurbUacecB, and named in honour of Louis Feuillde, a traveller in
Chili, the author of several works on botany. The flowers of this
genus are diodcious. The staminiferous flowers have the calyx 5-cleft
beyond the middle ; 5 petals rather joined at the base ; 5 stamens
inserted with the petals, and alternating with them ; sometiAes there
are 10 stamens, but when this occurs 5 of them are always sterile.
The pistilUferous flowers have the tube of the calyx adnate to the
ovarium, with a 15-cleft limb. They have 5 petals, oustinct or joined
at the base, and oblong ; 3 styles. Stigmas broad and bluntly bifid.
Fruit globose, fleshy, with a circular scar round the mid(He and five
other scars, S-celled, with a solid bai;k, and a large fleshy trigonal cential
axis. The ovules are numerous, standing erect upon the axis. The seeds
oval and compressed. Cotyledons flat and rather fleshy. This genua
is a native of the tropical regions of America, and most of the species
are fi-utescent climbing herba They have alternate, stalked, cordate,
smooth leaves, and small flowers. The tendrils are axillary, spirally
twisted, in place of peduncles. The seeds are oily and of a bittw
taste.; their unctuous matter causes them to be used for burning, and
their excessive bitterness renders them good anthelmintics ; they are
also cathartic.
F, punctata has 8-lobed or temate leaves, beset with glandular dots
on both siir&ces along the nerves, but more especially beneath. The
lobes of the leaves are lanceolate and rather out. It is a native of
St. Domingo.
F, trUobata has leaves which are rather glandular on both suifaoes,
3-parted or trifid, the lower lobea obtuse, the upper ones acutei
This species ia a native of BrazU. It is the F, scandeng of some
authors, and the celebrated Nhandirhoba or Qhandirhoba of South
America, where it is held in great repute as an antidote to various
poisons, animal and vegetabla The natives employ it not only against
serpent-bites but also to coimteract the baneful effects of the Maaihot
and MancidneeL M. Drapiez, after having made experiments eicpressly
to test it« power, states that animals poisoned wiUi hemloci^ nox*
vomica, JRhua, Toxicodendron, &a, were restored by the administration
of the seeds of this plant. He recommends that the seeds be bruised in
a little water, and asserts that it is equally efficacious as an antidote
whether taken internally or applied to a poisoned wound. These
seeds act with great rapidity as emetics and puiip;atives. The oil
expressed from them ia used as an application in pams in the joints.
F, cordifolia has glandless cordiate acuminate leaves, somewlUit
3-lobed and rather serrated. It is a native of the West Indies, and
has likewise a reputation as a preventive of the ill effects of vege-
table poisons, and as an emetic and purgative.
F. JarnUa . has glandless roundish leaves, sinuately cordate, and
acumhxate. It is a native of New Granada in the woods near Turbaco^
where it is known by the name of JaviUa. The seeds have winged
margins; hence this species agrees with the genus Zononto.
The fruit of the FeuHlea is as large as an i^le, and from a faooied
resemblance it is oalled the Shaving-Box.
A light rich soil is found to suit best the species of FeikQlea, and
cuttings will easily take root in a hot-bed or glass frame exposed to
heatw Being creeping plants they are well adi^ted for tnoning up
rafters in stoves.
(Don, IHchlamydeouB Flantg ; landley, Flora Medka; Burnett^
OutlincM of Botany.)
FEVERFEW. [Matbioabia ; Ptbsthbum.]
FIBER. [Bbaveb.]
FIBRE, ANIMAL. [Fibbin; Fibboub TiaauK.]
FIBRE, VEGETABLE, one of the most elementary forms of
veppetable tissue. It oonsistB of exceanvely delicate thready twisted
spirally in the interior of a oell or tube. It ia uncertain whether the
fibre is solid or hollow, its tenuity being such as to baffle aU micro-
scopical observers who have yet examined it It is this ^mentary
fibre which, being turned spirally round a long delicate tube with its
spires in contact forms the elastic spiral vessel It ooouzs in the
interior of common oeUs, when its turns cross each other and produce
a netted appearance. It is frequent in the cellular tissue which forms
the lining of an anther, and is supposed to have some connection with
the opening] of that organ. In its naked state, uncombined with
membrane, it is supposed to be very rare. On the surface of some
seeds, as CoUomia linearis, it has been observed in this condition in
great abundance, in the form of spiral threads of a highly elastic
nature.
Vegetable Fibre should not be confounded with the woody fibre of
plants, which consists of tough straight tubes either single or adhering
m bundles. It is this which forms the thread of hemp, flax, and the
like. [TiBSUBS, Veqetabus.]
FIBRIN, an organic proximate principle found in both plants and
animals. When obtained from wheaten flour it is called Gluten. It
has the same properties whether obtained from vegetable or animal
sources. In the animal kingdom it is found in the muscles and the
blood. [Blooo.] The fibrin of the blood is best obtained by what 1b
called whipping the blood, that is, by rapidly stirring a quantity of
freah-drawn blood with a spoon or a piece of stick. Duiing fehia
process the blood coagulates, and the coagulum adheres to the spoon
or stick. The red particles which are mixed with this coagulum may
be removed by wasning it in large and repeated portions of water ;
the substance that remains is Fibrin nearly in a state of purity.
During the state of life the fibrin is contained in solution in the
fluid part of the blood, the liquor sanguinis. Professor Muller
obtained fibrin in a state of purity from £n>g's blood by Qpening ono
of its large arteries, or by laying bare and incising the heart itself.
This blood being received into a watch-glass and the process of
coagulation watched, it was observed that previously to the complete
coagulation of the blood there formed a small colourless coagulum
clear as water. ** Having brought a drop of pure blood," says Muller,
'*' under the microscope, and diluted it with serum, so that the blood
corpuscles lay completely scattered about and separated from each
other, I observed that in the interval between the blood-corpuscles a
coagulum of previously dissolved matter was produced, by which the
whole separated blood-globules were connected together. I was then
able to remove at the same time all the blood-corpuscles, notwith-
standing their wide distribution and the size of the intervals between
them, b^ raising with a peedle the fibrous coagulum occupying the
intervening spaces. As the blood-corpuscles of Uie frog are rendered
by a microscope uncommonly laige, this observation admits of the
greatest distinctness, and allows no ambiguity to remain on the
subject. There is still however an easier and more convincing method
of proving that fibrin is dissolved in frog's blood. As I showed from
experiment that the blood-corpuscles of the frog are about four times
laiger than the blood-corpuscles of men and MoM^maUa, I concluded
that perhaps the filter would keep them back, while it allowed the
corpuscles of men and Mammalia to pass. This is the case. The
experiment may be made on a small scale with the blood of a fiog
alone : a small glass-funnel and a filter of common white filtering-
paper, or thick printing-paper, are Uie only requisites. The paper
must previously be moist, and it is well to add an equal quantity of
water to the fresh blood of the frog. The liquid whi<m flows through
the filter is an almost colourless dear serum diluted with water, with
a slight tinge of red, from the colouring matter dissolved by ^e
water. As however the solution of the o(^ouring matter of frog's
blood by water requires a considerable time, the filtered fluid can
scarcehr be termed reddish, and is sometimes quite colourless. If
instead of water a solution of sugar in water (one part of sugar to 200
or more of water) be employed, no colouring matter will be dissolved
during me filtration, and tiie filtered liquid is quite colouriess and
without the slightest trace of mixture. If the filtered serum be
examined under the microscope no trace of corpuscles can be detected.
In this dear serum in the course of a few minutes a colourless
coagulum is formed, so clear and transparent that it is not even
detected after its formation until it is raised out of the fluid with a
needle. It gradually thickens, and becomes whitish and fibrous ; it
then assumes gradually the appearance of the coagulum of human
lymph. In thui way the fibrin of the blood is obtained in the purest
sU^te, and this has not hitherto been done."
Purs fibrin is of a whitidi colour, inodorous, and insoluble in cold
water; it is a solid substance, tougfa^ elastic, and composed of thready
fibres.
The relative quantity of fibrin contained in the blood varies greatly,
according to the state of the system at the time it is obtained.
Fibrin and Albumen, if not identical, are very closely allied, and
appear rather to differ in organisation thaii in essential chemical
character. For an account of the relations of Fibrin and Albumen
seePBOTUN.
That variety of fibrin which constitutes muscular fibre is so inter-
woven with nerves^ Tessels, and cellular and adipose tissue, that its
properties are probably always more or less modified by foreign
matters. " To obtain the fibrin of a muscle, it must be finely minc»d
and washed in repeated portions of water at 60* or 70° till all colouring
and soluble sabBtaacee are withdrawn, and till the residue is colour-
less insipid, and inodorous; it is then strongly pressed between folds
<^ lin^, which renders it semi-transparent and pulverulent. Berzelius
observes that in this state it becomes so strongly electro-positive
when triturated, that the partidee repel each other and adhere to
the mortar, and that it still retains fat, which is separable by alcohol
007
FIBROFBRRITE.
Ficua
or ether. When long boiled in water it shrinks, haidensy and yields
a portion of gelatine, derived from the interstitial cellular memlnvie ;
the fibrin itself is also modified by the continued acti<m of boilii^
water, and loses its solubility in acetic acid, which when digested with
it in its prerious state forms a gelatinous mass, soluble in water, but
slightly turbid from the presence of fiit and a portion of insoluble
membrane, deriyed apparently from the vessels which pervaded the
original muscle. It is soluble in diluted caustic potass, and precipi-
tated by an excess of muriatic acid, the precipitate being a oompound
of fibrin witii excess of muriatic acid, and which when washed with
distilled water become gelatinous and soluble, being reduced to the
state of a neutral muriate of fibrin.
'* When the fibrin of muscle is mixed with its weight of sulphuric
fcid it swells and dinolyes, and when gently heated a little fat rises
to the surface, and may be separated : if the mass is then diluted with
twice its weight of water, and boiled for nine hours (occasionally
replacing the loss by evaporation), ammonia is formed, which
combines with the acid; and on saturating it with carbonate of
lime, filtering, and evaporating to drjmess, a yellow residue remains,
consisting of three distinct products : two of these are taken up by
digestion in boiling dcohol of the specific gravity of *845, and are
obtained upon evaporation ; this residue, treated with alcohol of the
specific gravity of *880, communicates to it (1) a portion of a peculiar
extractive matter, and the insoluble remainder (2) is white, soluble in
water, and.crystidliMible, and has been called by Braconnot leucine.
It fuses at 212'*, exhaling the odour of roasted meat, and partly
sublimes : it is difiloultly soluble in alcohol. It dissolves in nitric
acid, and yields on evaporation a white dystalline compound, the
nitro-leucic acid. The portion of the original residue, which is
insoluble in alcohol (8), is yellow, and its aqueous solution is precipi-
tated by infusion of galls, subacetate of lead, nitrate of mercuty, and
persulphate of iron. It appears therefore that the products of the
action of sulphuric acid upon the fibrin of muscle are, 1, an extractive
matter soluble in alcohol ; 2, leucine ; and 8, extractive, insoluble in
alcohol, but soluble in water." (Brande.)
FIBROFERRITE, a Mineral consisting of Sulphate of Iron. [Iron.]
FIBROLITE, a name for Bucholzite. [Bucholzite.]
FIBROUS TISSUE. The tissue specially called fibrous consists of
the membrane that covers the bones and car&lages (the periosteum and
perichondrium) ; the membrane that is spread over or that forms a
part of certain muscles, constituting the muscular aponeuroses or
fascia ; the membrane that forms the sheaths in whidi tendons aro
included ; the outer membrane that envelopes the brain and spinal
chord (the dura mater and its continuatiou down the spinal canal) ;
the firm membrane in which the more delicate muscles and the
humours of the eye are contained (the tunica sclerotica) ; the outer
membnne forming the bag that contains the heart (the pericardium) ;
the membranes by which the bones in general are tied together and
the joints in particular are secured, called ligaments; and the firm
cords in which many muscles terminate and which form their moveable
extremities, termed tendons. Though these substances are exten-
sively diffused through Uie body, and are apparently independent of
each other, yet they are closely connected together, and form a peculiar
system. The firm and resisting threads which constitute the basis of
these different oigans are composed of condensed cellular tissue.
The peculiar animal substance of which they oonrist is coagulated
albumen and gelatine, intennixed with a small quantity of mucous
and saline matter.
All the proper fibrous oigans possess, in the language of anatomists,
a low oiganisation ; that is, they receive but a oomparathrely small
quantity of blood, and their blood-vessels are so minute in sice, that
they are generally incapable of admitting the red particles of the
blood. They reosive few nerves, and these are so smiJl that some
anatomists have doubted whether they are supplied with any nerves
at aU ; but their sensibility in certain states of disease proves that they
are not absolutely destitute of sentient nerves. In lixe manner, few
absorbents can be traced to them ; yet the ravages of disease in the
neighbourhood of joints, the sloughing of tendons, and the destruction
of tiie periosteum by the pressure of aneurism, abundantly testify that
they are supplied with absorbent vessels. But the office of all the
fibrous organs is mechanical; they are adapted either to contain,
support, and defend more delicate oigans, or they constitute strong
and unyielding bands which tie joints firmly together. A high degree
of organisation, great vascularity, great sensibility, would have
disqualified them for their office. What they principally need is a
power of cohesion sufficient to enable them to resist rupture, and to
sustain the opposing shocks to which the joints are exposed in
the violent movements of the body ; the less sensibility they have
the better, and accordingly they are so organised that while their
physical properties render them by far the strongest parts of the
anmial frame, they are endowed only with just a sufficient degree
of vitality to constitute them integrant parts of the living system.
[Arioulr TiastJB.]
FI'BULA. The Fibula (p^ron^, Fr., ircp^ny, a bodkin) is a long
slender bone swelling out at both ends, by which it is firmly attached
to the outer side of the tibia, or main Done of the leg. The lower
extremity forms the projection of the outer ancle : it is received into
a deep longitudinal groove at the side of the tibia, to which it is con-
nected by a ligamentous union; and is firmly knit to the fo«>t by
strong bands d; ligament, which spread like the sticks of a fan from
the tip of the ancle to the bones of the heel and instep. The upper
extremity slants a little backwards, and is articulated with the sida
of the tibia below the kneie, by means of a true joint, having cartib-
ginous surfaces and a synovial membrane as well as external Ugamenta.
The tendon of the biceps flexor cruris, or muscle of the otxter ham-
string, is implanted into this part of the fibula, which is called its head,
and spreads over the adjoining bony and muscular surfiaoee, connecting
and supporting them in tiie double capacity of a ligament and as
aponeurosis. There ia no greater degree of motion between the tibb
and fibula than is sufficient to give some elasticity to the play of the
ande-jointy which is secured on the outer side chiefiy by the projectitm
of the fibula beyond it. The shaft of the fibular — ^nearly straight,
triangular, hard, a little twisted, and of great strength for its aise —
is about as thick as the middle finger, and extends like a bowsteing
across the arch formed by the gradual enlargement of the tibia towardi
the knee. A strong sheet of fibrous membrane, called the interosseous
ligament, tightly stretched from one bone to the other, fills np the
greater part of the interval between them, and gives surface for the
attachment of muscles and strength to the limb, without aAlmg
inconveniently to its bulk or weight Nine muscles are attached to the
fibula. The biceps cruris, already mentioned, bends the leg back
towards the thigh ; three on the fore part raise and extend the toes,
the remaining five unite in raising the heel, and press the toes and the
ball of the foot against the ground ; at the same time turning the sole
outwards by lifting its external border. The muscles chiefly con-
cerned in the last-mentioned action are the peroneus longus and
breviB ; their tendons pass behind the ancle, lying in a groove of the
fibula^ which acts as a fixed pully to change the line of their traction,
and are inserted into two bones on the outer and inner edge of the
sole near ihe base of the toes. They are very powerful mujBcles ; and
when they act with sudden and spasmodic force, in oonaequenoe of
the foot coining unexpectedly to the ground, are capable of breaking
the fibula above the ancle by pressing the foot against its projecting
end. This accident happens not unfrequently from the foot sUpping
unawares over the edge of the curb-stone, and is- complicated with
various degrees of lateral dislocation, and with severe sprain of the
b'gaments of the inner ancle. The force may be sufficient to break off
the Up of the inner ande ; and if the sharp edge of the broken tibia
be driven through the skin, which sometimes happens, the cavity of
the joint is exposed, and the injury becomes a compound dislocation
of the ancle-jomt. These accidents are sometimes secondary, the foot
being in the first instance foroed by the weight against the inner ancle,
with sprain of the external ligaments, and then drawn up with a jerk
by the peroneL However produced, the injury is a very serious one,
and often requires much good management to prevent permanent
lameness or even worse consequences. Minor degrees of it have a
general resemblance to simple sprains of the ligaments, and the
fracture of the fibula may be overlooked. It may however be easily
detected, notwithstanding the swelling, by the unusual position of the
foot^ and by pressing the bones together higher up the leg ; for if the
fibula be fractured, this cannot be done without a sense of yielding of
the otherwise solidly compacted parte, and increase of pain to the
patient from the pressure of the broken end of the bone against the
soft parts. From the name of the eminent surgeon who first deline-
ated and described this injury, it is called ' Pott*8 Fracture.' [Ski-
LBTOV.]
FIBULARIA. [EcHXKioJs.]
FICARIA, the genus to which Banuneuiut Ficaria, the Pilewort,
has been referred. [Ranunculus.]
FICEDULA. [BB0GA7IC0.]
FICHTELITE, a form of Fossil Resin found in coal.
FICOIDE^. [Mebembbtaoxa.]
FICUS, a laige genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Urticaoea, having the flowere, both males and females, mixed indis-
criminately on the inside of a fleshy receptacle, which is so concave
that its edges are drawn together into a narrow opening; This is
illustrated by the common eatable Fig, the receptacle of Ficut Oariea,
which, although resembling a fruit as simple as a gooseberry, is in fact
a collection of a large number of minute unisexual flowers growing to
a succulent base ; at its apex will be foimd the narrow opening wbero
the edges of the receptacle are drawn together, and when its interior
is laid bare the flowen are seen closely packed all over its surface,
divided from each other by soft colourless brisUe-like bracts or scales.
What are called the seeds in the ripe fig are the pericarps, each of
which contains a single seed. The ctdyx is variable in the number of
its segments, sometimes having only 8, sometimes 7 or 8. The stamens
are solitary in many species, 8 in others, and 5 in someu The pistil
consists of a single ovary terminated by an awl-shaped style, ending
in a 2-lobed stigma.
The number of spedes of Fieui is very considerable, perhaps as
great as that of any arborescent genus. They are all either tropical
or inhabitants of wann countriea Some are small plants creeping
upon the surface of rocks and walls, or clinging to the trunks of trees
like ivy ; othen are among the largest trees of the forest All trayellen
in the woods of South America speak of the noble aspect of the fig-
trees (meaning species of FicuB not of the cultivated sort), of their
609
FICUS.
FILAGO.
810
gigantic dimenBionB, and of the thick delightful shade cast by their
leafy heads. They are especially remarkable for throwing out roots
{h>m their branches, which, after they have reached the ground and
established themselves there, increajse rapidly in diameter, produce
other branches, and thus contribute to extend an individual over a
considerable space of ground. Frazer speaks thus of what he saw
of their habits in the forests at Moreton Bay in Australia: — "I
observed several species of Fieua upwards of 150 feet high, enclosing
immense iron-bark trees, on which originally the seeds of these fig-
trees had been deposited by birds. Here they had immediately vege-
tated, and thrown out their parasitical and rapacious roots, which
adhering dose to the bark of the iron-tree had followed the course of
its stem downwards to the earth, where^ once arrived, their progress
of growth is truly astomslung. The roots of the Fkut then increase
rapidly in number, envelop &e iron-bark, and send out at the same
time such gigantic branches that it is not unusual to see the
original tree, at a height of 70 or 80 feet, peeping through the fig, as
if itself were the parasite on the real intruder. In the smgular angles
or walls, as they are here termed, which are formed by we roots of
these trees, and of which I observed many 16 feet high, there is
room enough to dine half-a-dozen persons. The firuit is eagerly
sought by Regent Birds {SerieulMi chrytoe^haku), blue pigeons, and
Swamp Pheasants {Oucuhu PKananut), and the spreading and massy
bougha support a number of superb parasitical plants." Reinwardt
assures us (' Ueber den Charakter der Vegetation auf den Inseln des
indischen Archipels') that he observed on the island of Semao a large
wood whose trunks all proceeded from one single stem of a
F. Benjamina, all united with each other by their branches though
the trunks were distinct The well-known F. Indica, or Banyan-Tr^,
is another instance of this peculiar habit
The species abound in a milky juice containing caoutchouc, and
there is every reason to believe tliat what of this substance comes
from Java is exclusively procured by tapping different species of
Fieus. The best known on the continent of India is yielded by
F, ekutica.
Although the fruit of F, Carica and some others is eatable, yet the
whole genus abounds in an acrid highly dangerous principle, diffused
among the m^ky secretion. This is perceptible even in Uie common
fig, wboae milk produces a burning sensation on the tongue and
throat ; but when the fruit of that species is ripe, the acridity is
destroyed by the chemical dements entering into new combinations.
In some species it is so concentrated that they are among the most
virulent of poisons. F. toxiearia, a Sumatra species, and F dxxmonat
from Tanjore, derive their names from this circumstance, in which
many more equally participate.
FicuB Indica, the Banyan-Tree, is a native of most parts of India,
both on the islands and the maijiland. Roxburgh states that it is found
in its greatest perfection and beauty about the villages on the skirts of
the Circar Mountains. The leaves are ovate, heart-shaped, 8-ribbed,
and entire; when young, downy on both sides; when old, much
smoother; they are from 5 to 6 inches long, and from S to 4 inches
broad ; at the top of tho leafstalk on the und^ side is a broad, smooth,
greasy-looking gland. The figs when ripe grow in pairs from the axils
of the leaves, are downy, and about tne siise and colour of a middle-
sized red cherry. The wood is light, white, porous, and of no value.
The Brahmins use the leaves as plates to eat off; birdlime is manu&c^
tiu!ed from the tenacious mill^ juice. If the seeds drop in the axils
of the leaves of the Pahnyra-Tree {Boraatui fldbelliformii), the roots
grow downwards, embracing the hnnk in their descent ; by degrees
they envelop every part except the top, whence in very old specimens
the leaves and head of the Palmyra are seen ememng from tne trunk
of the Banyan-Tree as if they grew from it The Hindoos regard such
cases with reverence, and call them a holy mairiage instituted by
Providence. The Banyan-Tree, covering with its trunks a sufficient
space to shelter a regiment of cavidry, and used as a natural canopy
for great public meetings, has been so often described by vrriters on
India as to have become familiar to the reader. The branches spread
to a great extent, dropping their roota here and there, which as soon
as they reach the ground rapidly increase in size till they become as
large as and similar to the parent trunk, by which means the quantity
of ground they cover is almost incredible. Roxburgh says that he has
seen such trees full 500 yards round the circumference of the branches,
and 100 feet high, the principal trunk being more than 25 feet to the
branches, and 8 or 9 feet in diameter* Qum lac is obtained from this
tree in abundance. The white glutinous juice is ^>plied to the mouth
to relieve tooth-ache; it is also oonsidned a valuable application to
the soles of the feet when cracked and inflamed. The barx is supposed
to be a powerful tonic bv the Hindoos. An excellent account of such
a tree will be found in the ' Oriental Annual ' for 1884 ; and a graphic
description of the mode of growth in Rumf 's * Herbarium Amboinense,'
vol. iiL D. 126. See also ' Anatic Researches,' voL iv. p. 310. It
is caUed Yuta in Sanscrit^ Bur or But in BengAli, Bagha in
Cingalese.
Ficut eUutica, the Indian Caoutchouc-Tree, is now a common
tree in the hothouses of this countzy. It has large, shining, oval,
pointed, thick leavesi, small axiUary uneatable fruits the size of an
olive, and long pink or red terminal buds, composed of the stipules
rolled together. This species inhabits the Pundua and the Juntipoor
Mountains, which bound the province of Silhet on the north, where it
grows to the size of a European sycamore, and is called Kasmeer, It
is chiefly found in the chasms of rocks and over the declivities of
mountains among decomposed rocks and vegetable matter. It pro-
xluces when wounded a great abundance of milk, which yidds about
one-third of its weight of caoutchouc. It grows with great rapidity ;
a tree is described as being 25 feet high, with the trunk a foot in
diameter when only four years old. The juice of this valuable plant
is used by the natives of Silhet to smear over the inside of baskets
constructed of split rattan, which are thus rendered water-tight Old
trees yield a richer juice than young ones. The milk is extracted by
indsions made across the bark down to the wood, at a distance of
about a foot from each other, all round the trimk or branch up to the
top of the tree, and the higher the more abundant is the fluid said to
be. After one operation the tree requires a fortnight's rest, when it
may be again repeated. When the juice is exposed to the air it sepa-
rates spontaneously into a firm elajstic substance, and a fetid whey-
coloured liquid, fifty ounces of pure milky juice taken from the trees
in August yielded exactly 15^ oimces of dean-washed caoutchouc.
This substance is of the finest quality, and may be obtained in large
quantities. It is perfectiy soluble in the essential oil of Cigeput
(Roxb., * Fl. Ind.,' iiL 545.)
F, rtUgiotctf the Pippul-Tree, is a laz^e tree common in every
part of India, eroedally near houses, where it is planted for the sako
of its extensive dark grateful shade. It is held m superstitious vene-
ration by the Hindoos, because their deity Vishnoo is fabled to have
been bom under its branches. The leaves are heart^haped, long,
pointed, wavy at the edge, not unlike those of some poplars ; and as
the footstalks are long and slender, the leaves actually tremble in the
air like those of the Aspen-Tree {Populus tremvla). Silk-worms pr^er
the leaves next to those of the Mulberry. The leaves are used for
tanning leather by the Arabs, who call the tree Mudtfh or Yudtfh,
and also Uadi Zebid. See * Asiatic Researches,' iv. 809, for further
information concerning this.
F. Syeamorui, the Sycamore-Fig, is a laige tree found in Egypt,
where it is planted extensively by the road-side, near villages, and on
the sea-coaat, for the sake of the shelter of its very widely-spreading
branches. The Arabs call it Djummeiz. Forskahl states that ita
head is often forty yards in diameter. The leaves are broadly ovate^
repand, or somewhat angular, rather blunt, nearly smooth, heart-
shaped at the base. The figs are not produced upon the young
branches, but in clustered racemes upon the trunk and the old limbs.
They are sweet and delicate, and eaten by the Egyptians. The timber
appears to be of littie value, for Forskahl excludes it from the lists of
carpenters' wood, and places it among the trees which are used for
firewood. It can hardly therefore have furnished the wood of which
mummy-cases were made, as has been supposed. Professor Don, with
greater reason, conjectures that they were made frt>m the timber of
Cordia Myxa. When old this tree becomes very gnarled and broken,
as is shown in a plate in Salt's ' Abyssinia,*' where it is figured under
the name of Daroo-Tree, but it is so bare of foliage as to be hardly a
picturesque obiect
F» CoHeOf the Common Fig, is a small crooked tree or laiige bush
with round green or russet branches, covered with a coarse short
down. The leaves are rough on the upper side, coarsely downy
beneath, cordate, 8- to 5-lobed or almost entire,' oocunely serrated. The
fruit is solitary, axillary, more or less pear-shaped, or almost round,
succulent, sweet and pleasant to the taste. All the parts aboimd in
an acrid milky juice, which produces a burning disagreeable sensation
in the fauces.
FIDDLE-FISH. [Squalid^]
FIELDFARE. [MsRULiDiiJ
FIO. [Fioos.]
FIGURE-STONK [Aoalsiatolite.]
FIQWORT. [SOBOPHULABIA.]
FILA'OO, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
CkfmpotUiB, tribe Senecionidea, sub-tribe Qna^kaUea, division JEfe^i-
ehrytit^ The outer florets are female, filiform in several rows, the
outermost ones intermixed with the inner scales of the involucre or
paleea ; central florets few, hermaphrodite, tubular. Pappus capillary.
The reoeptade conical with a scaly maxgin. Involucre sub-oonioU,
imbricated, the scales lanceolate, and longer than the florot& The
spedes of this genus were formerly referred to Qnaiphalvum,
F, CkimoMea is a cottony plant with yellow florets, the stem
proliferous at the summit from 4 to 12 inches long. It has lanceolate
wavy leaves, heads in axillary and terminal globose dusters, the outer
involucral scales cuspidate, cottony, with glafrous points. It is a native
of Oreat Britain, as well as the following spedes : —
F, minima is distinguished by having its stem dichotomoudy
branched, and the outer involucre scales bluntish, cottony, with
glabrous points. The florets are yellow with very small heads. Lika
the other spedes it is found in dry, sandy, and gravelly places.
r, Qallica has linear, acute, revolute leaves, the heads conical in
axillary and terminal clusters, shorter than the leaves. This spedes is
veryrareu
F. apieuUUa has a cottony stem proliferous at the summit, the
leaves all oblong, blunt, apiculate, the heads prominentiy 5-angled»
half-sunk in tomentum, forming lateral, axillary, and terminal dusters,
811
FILAMENT.
FILICES.
8U
sarrounded and overtopped hj one or two blunt leaves. It amells
like tanBey. The stem Ib mostly erect, with short branches below.
The heads are rather large, 10 to 20 in a cluster.
{Bahingtou, Manual of British Botany.)
FILAMENT, in Botany, the part of the stamens which bears the
anther. It is sometimes long and slender, hence its name filament.
In some plants however it is nearly or altogether absent, and not
unfrequently flat and broad. [Stamxhb.]
FILARIA. {Entozoa.]
FILBERT. [C0ETLU8.J
FILE-FISH. [Balistes.]
FI'LICES, or FiLICA'CEiE, a natural order of Plants, being the
highest group of the class Cryptogamia, or Acrogens. The species are
flowerless plants, consisting of leafy fronds, which are produced from
a rhizoma unfolding in a spiral manner, and traversed by veins which
form definite parts on the under sur&ce, and produce unilocular, rarely
multilocular, cases containing reproductive sporules.
The parts of these plants which require most attention in their
study, and on modifications of which modem classifications depend,
are the veins and organs of reproduction. The veins are either
produced equally from both sides of a midrib, or they radiate from
the base or axis of development, or from one side of an eccentric or
^inilateral costa. They are either simple, or once or repeatedly
dichotomously branched, or the primary veins are pinnate; the
branches either simple or forked. Their apices are either free or
they are combined by various forms of anastomosis. The organs of
reproduction consist of a sporangiferous receptacle, which is a thick-
ened point or lengthened portion of the ultimate venules or veinlets.
It is generally superficial, sometimes immersed in the substance of
the ft^nd, or considerably elevated, and then globose or columnar.
The sporangia, thecas, or spore-cases, are transparent, globose, oval,
or pvnform unilocular cases, each girded by a more or less complete
elastic articulated ring, or destitute of a ring ; then sometimes oblong,
opaque, and multilooolar, and usually pedidllate. The sori are col-
lections of sporangia, and have the same form, position, and direction
as the receptacles. They are either naked, or each aorus is furnished
with a membranaceous covering of various forms which rises from
the receptacle. This covering is called an indusium, and is a plane,
or vaulted, or cup-shaped membrane, produced from the receptacle
of each sorus, and is generally deciduous as it becomes replicate.
Often the entire margin (or lobules of the frond) is changed in texture,
and forms an acoessorv indusium. Sometimes the whole of the sori
of each segment are Included within a universal indusium which is
formed by the revolute maigin of fertile contracted fronds.
The following account of the reproduction of the Ferns is given in
a Beport to the British Association in 1851, on the higher G^toga-
mous Planta, by Mr. Henfrey. Speaking of the Ferns, Mr. Henfirey
says: —
** This class formed for a long time the great stumbling-block to
those who sought to demonstrate the existence of sexuality in plants.
The young capsules were generally considered to be the siislogues of
the pistilUdia of the Mosses, and the young abortive oa|)STiles which
frequently occxir among the fertile ones were supposed by some authors
to represent the antheridia. Mr. Glriffith noticed a structure which
he was inclined to regard as the analogue of the antheridium in certain
of the ramenta upon the petioles.
" In the year 1844 Professor Nageli published an account of his
obeervstions on the germination of certain ferns, and announced the
discovery of moving spiral filaments closely resembling those of the
Chanx, on certain cellular structures developed upon the pro-embrvo
or cellular body first produced by the spore. It is not worth while
to eater into an analysis of his observations, as they have since been
clearly shown to have been very imperfect ; it is sufficient to state
that he only described one kind of organ, and firom his description it
is evident that he confounded the two kinds since discovered, regard-
ing them as different stages of one structure. The announcement of
this dxsoovery seemed to destroy all grounds for the assumption of
distinct sexes, not only in Ferns but in the other Cryptogams, since it
was annied that; the existence of these cellular oi^gans, producing
spiral filaments, the so-called spermatosoa, upon the germinatifi|^
fronds, proved that they were not to be regarded as in any way con-
nected with the reproductive processes.
''But an essay published by the Count Suminski in 1848 totally
changed the face of the question, and opened a wide field for specula-
tion and investigation on this subject, just as it was beginning to fidl
into disfkvour. Count Suminski's paper gives a minute nistory of the
oourse of development of the Ferns, from the germination of Uie spore
to the prodnction of the regular fronds ; and he found this develop-
ment to exhibit phenomena as curious as they were unexpected. The
cellular organs seen by Nageli were shown to be of two perfectly dis-
tinct kind^ and moreover to present characters which gave great
plausibility to the hypothesis that they represented reproductive
organs ; moreover, this author expressly stated that he had obtained
absolute proof of sexuality by observing an actual process of fertili2ia-
tion to take place in Uie so^alled ovules, through the agency of the
spiral filaments or spermatozoa. The main points of his paper may
be briefly sutumed up as follows :— The fern-spore at first produces
a filamentary process, in the end of which cell-development goes on
until it is converted into a 3iarchantia-like frond of small size and
exceedingly delicate texture, possessing hair-like radicle threads on its
under side. On this under side become developed, in variable nuxxk-
bers, certain cellular organs of two distinct kinds. The firsts which
he terms antheridia, are the more numerous, and consist of somewhat
globular cells seated on and arising from single cells of the-oellolaf
Marchantia-like frond. The globular cell produces in its interior a
number of minute vesicle^ in each of which is developed a spiral
filament, coiled up in the interior. At a certain epoch tae globular
cell bursts, and discharges the vesicles, and the spiral filaments moving
within the vesicles, at length make their way out of them, and swim
about in the water, displaying a spiral or heliacal form, and conaistixig
of a delicate filament with a thickened davate extremity; thi% tho
so-called head, being said by Count Suminski to be a hoUow vesicle,
and to be furnished with six or eight cilia, by means of which the
apparently voluntary movement of the filament is supposed to be
effected.
** The second kind of organ, the so-called ' ovules,* are fewer in
number and present different characters in different stages. At first
thev appear as little round cavities in the cellular tissue of the pro-
emoryo, lying near its centre, and opening on the under side. In the
bottom of the cavity is seen a little globular cell, the so-called
* embxyo-sac' It is stated by Count Suminski that while the ovule is
in this state one or more of the spiral filaments make their way into
the cavity, coming in contact with the central globular oelL The
four cells bounding the mouth of the orifice grow out from the
general surface into a blunt cone-like process, formed of four parallel
cells arranged in a squarish form, and leaving an intercellular canal
leading down to the cavity below. These four cells become divided
by cross septa, and grow out until the so-called ovule exhibits exter-
nally a cylindrical form composed of four tiers of cells, the uppermost
of which gradually converge and close up the orifice of the canal
leading down between them. Meanwhile the vesicular head of one of
the spiral filaments has penetrated into the globular cellule of the
embryo-sac, enlarged in size and imdergone moltiplioation, and in
the oourse of time displays itself as the embryo, producing the first
frond and the terminal bud, whence the regular fem-etem is deve-
loped. In considering the import of these phenomena, the author
assumes the analogy here to be with the process of fertilisation in
flowering plants, as described by Schleiden, regarding the production
of the embryo from the vesicular head of the spermatoaoa as
representing the production of the phanerogamous embryo, frt>m the
end of the pollen tube after it has penetrated into the embryo-saa
** The promulgation of these statements natundly attracted great
attention, and since they appeared we have received several contribu-
tions to the history of these remarkable structures, some confirmatory,
to a certain degree, of Suminski's views ; others altogether opposed to
them.
"In the early part of 1849 Dr. Wigand published a series of
researches on this subject, in which he subjected the assertions of
Suminski to a strict practical orifciciBm ; the conclusions he arrived at
were altogether opposed to that author^s views respecting the supposed
formation of the organs^ and he never observed the entrance of the
spiral filaments into the cavitv of the so-called ovula About the
game time M. Thuret published a series of observations on the
' Antheridia of Fems.' in these he merely confirmed and corrected
the statements of Nageli respecting the antheridia, and did not notice
the so-called ovules.
" Towards the dose of the same year Hofxneister confirmed part of
Sun)inski*s statements, and opposed others. He stated that he had
observed distinctly the production of the young plant (or rather the
terminal bud for the new axis) in the interior of the so-called ovule;
but believed the supposed origin of it from the end of the spiral
filament to be a delusion. He regards the giobnlar cell at the base of
the canal of the ovule as itself the rudiment of the stem, or embryo-
nal vesicle (the embryo originating from a free cell produced in this),
analogous to that produced in the piatillidia of the Mosses. He also
describes the development of the ovule difiinently, saying that the
canal and orifice are opened only at a late period by iiie separation of
the contiguous walls of the four rows of cells.
** About the same time appeared an elaborate paper on the same
subject bv Dr. Hernmnn S(£acht> whose results were almost identical
He found the young terminal bud to be developed in the cavity of
one of the so-called ovules, which were developed exactiy in the
same way as the pistillldla of the Mosses. He stated also that the
cavity of the ovule is not open at flrs^ and he declares against the
probability of the entrance of a spiral filament into it, never having
observed this, much less a conversion of one into an embrra In ^e
essay of Dr. Mettenius, already referred to, an account of the develop-
ment of the so-called ovules is given. His observations did not decide
whether the canal of the ovule, whicli he regards as an intercellular
space, exists at first, or only subsequently, when it is entirely closed
above. Some important points occur in reference to the contents of
the canal. The contents of the canal in a mature condition consist
of a continuous mass of homogeneous tough substanoe, in which fine
granules, and here and there laj^e corpuscles, are embedded. It reaches
down to the globular cell, or embryo-sac, and is in contact with it
This mass either fills the canal or diminishes in diameter from the
{
81»
FILICEa
FILICES.
811
blind end of the canal down to the embryo-sac; in other cases it
posRcssea the form represented by Suminski, having a clavate enlarge-
ment at the blind end of the canal, and passing into a twisted filament
below; in this latter shape it may frequently be pressed out of
isolated oTules under the microscope, and then a thin transparent
membrane-like layer was several times observed on its surface. In
other cases the contents consisted of nucleated vesicles, which emerged
separately or connected together.
* " The embryo-sac consists of a globular cpll containing a nucleus,
and this author believes that the commencement of the development
of the embryo consists in the division of this into two, which go on
dividing to produce the cellular structure of the first frond.
" With regard to the contents of the canal the author says, ' Although
I can give no information on many points, as in regard to the origin
of the contents of the canal of the ovule, yet my observations on the
development of the ovule do not a)low me to consider them, with
Suminski, as spiral filaments in course of solution; just as little
have I been able to convince myself of the existence of the process
of impregnation described by that author. It rather appears to me
that the possibility of the entrance of the spiral filaments and the
impregnation cannot exist until the tearing open of the blind end of
the canal in the perfectly-formed ovule, as after the opening of the
so-called ' canal of the style' in the pistillidia of the Mosses.'
"Another contribution has been furnished by Dr. Hercklin, the
original of which I have not seen, but depend on analyses of it
published in the ' Botanische Zeitung,' and the 'Flora' for 1851, and
further in a letter from Dr. Mercklin to M. Schacht, which appeared
in the ' Linnaea ' at the close of Is^t year.
" He differs in a few subordinate particulars from M. Schacht, in
reference to the development and structure of the prothallium, or
pro-embi^o, and of the antheridia and spiral filaments ; but these do
not reqmre especial mention, except in reference to the yesicular end
of the spiral filament described by Schacht, which Mercklin regards
as a remnant of the parent vesicle, from which the filament had not
become quite freed. The observations referring to the soKialled ovule,
and the supposed process of impregnation, are very important ; they
are as follows : —
" ' 1. The spiral filaments swarm round the ovule in numbers, fre-
quently returning to one and the same organ.
** *2. They can penetrate into ovules. This was seen only three
tinies in the course of a whole year, and under different circumstances;
twice a spiral filament was seen to enter a still widely open young
ovule, then come to a state of rest, and after some time assume the
appearance of a shapeless mass of mucilage ; the third case of pene-
tration occurred in a fully developed ovule through its canal; it
therefore does not seem to afford evidence of the import of the spiral
filament, but certainly of the possilnlity of the penetration.
** * 8. In the tubular portion of the ovule, almost in every case,
peculiar club-shaped granular mucilaginous filaments occur at a
definite epoch ; these filaments, like the spiral filaments, acquiring a
brown colour with iodine. These mucilaginous bodies sometimes
exhibit a twisted aspect, an opaque nucleus, or a membranous layer,
peculiarities which seem to indicate the existence of an organisation.
" ' 4. These club-shaped filaments are swollen at the lower capitate
extremity, and have been found in contact with the embryo-sac, or
globular cell, which forms the rudiment of the future frond.
" ' 5. The spiral filaments, which cease to move and fall upon the
prothallium, are metamorphosed, become granular, and swell up.'
" Hence the author deduces the following conclusions : —
" ' That these davate filiform masses in the interior of the ovule
are transparent spiral filaments, which at an early period, while tHe
ovule was open, have penetrated into it; which leads to the pro-
bability that— -
" * 1. The spiral filaments must regularly penetrate into the ovules ;
and 2. They probably contribute to the origin or development of the
voung fruit frond (or embryo). In what way this happens the author
knows not, and the details on this point given by Suminski remain
unconfirmed facts.'
" An important point in this essay is the view the author takes of
the whole process of development in this case. He regards it as not
analogous to the impregnation in the Pkanerogamiot since the essen-
tial fact is merely the development of a frond from one cell of the
prothallium, which he considers to be merely one of the changes of
the individual plant, while all the other authors who have written on
the subject., with the exception of Wigand, call the first frond, with
its bud and root, an Embryo, and regard it as a new individual; or
at all events, even a distinot member of a series of forms, constituting
collectively the representatives of the species.
" Finally, Hofmeister, in his notice of this essay in the ' Flora,'
declares that the development of the so-called embryo, or first frond,
commences not by the subdivision of the globular cell, or embryo-sac,
but by the development of a free cell, or embryo vesicle in this, like
what occurs in the embryo-sac of the Phanerogamia ; and he asserts
that this is the first stage of development from the globular cell in
all the vascular Cryptogams, includmg that found in the pistillidia
of the Mosses."
The position of the Ferns in a natural system of classification has
not been a matter of much difference. Their imperfect organs of
reproduction have at once led to their being placed by most botanists
among Cryptogamia ; nevertheless Bory St.- V incent elevates Ferns to
the rank of a class intermediate between Monocotyledons and Acoty-
ledons, or Oryptogamict j at the same time he rejects the view of
Jussieu, who, from the mode of germination of their sporules, placed
the Ferns among the Monocotyledons. Their relation with the flower-
ing plants is seen through Cycadaeeoe, with which order they agree in
their gyrate vernation and their pinnate leaves. Their afl^nity with
Cryptogamic Plants is obvious in the Bgrnsetacece and LycopoaicicecB,
The order of Ferns may be divided into the following sub-orders,
which Lindley regards as of the rank and value of orders : —
I. GLEiCHEyiACBJS. The thecso with a transverse or obliquely trans-
verse complete elastic annulus or ring, bursting vertically. The species
are tropical, or extra-tropical only in the Southern Hemisphere, of a
harsh and rigid texture, simple or generally with copious dichotomous
branches and gemmaa in the axils ; the ultimate branches pinnatifid.
Kone of the genera of this order, as understood by Hooker, are British.
It includes about forty species.
II. PoLTPODiACBJi, with the son dorsal, often near or at the margin,
various in form, sometimes constituting an uniform linear or spreading
mass, naked or furnished with an involucre, the thecsd 1-celled, with
a longitudinal or oblique elastic articulated generally incomplete ring,
bursting transversely and irregularly. This is a very extensive sab-
order : the species inhabit almost every part of the world, from the
tropics to the arctic and antarctic r^ons ; they are exceedingly vari-
able in size and appearance, including the largest tree-ferns and the
smallest herbaoBoud species. It contains by far the largest number
of genera of any of the sub-orders of Ferns. Many of these are vexy
extensive, and have no British representatives, as Oyathe<i, ffemiielia,
AUophila, JHcktonia, &c.
III. OsMUNDACEiB has the thecs with an operculiform ring, or
without one, reticulated, striated with rays at the apex, bursting
lengthwise, and usually externally. The species of this sub-order are
not numerous.
IV. Danaacbjs. The thecss sessile, without any ring, concrete
into multilocular sub-immersed masses, opening at the apex. This
is also a small sub-order, with three genera — Danaa, MarcUtia, and
KatUfiuaia,
y. OPHiOQLOfiSAOEA The thscso single, roundish, coriaceous,
opaque, without ring or cellular reticulation, half 2-valved, with a
straight vernation. It embraces the genera Ophioglossum, Hdminih<h
atachySf and Botrychium.
The following is an arrangement of the British genera of Ferns • —
Sub-Order Polypodiaeea.
Tribe PolypodiecB. The sori nearly circular, without aa induriunk
Qener*, AUownu, Potypodivm, Wocdtia,
Tribe Atpidiea. The sori nearly circular, covered by an indusium.
Genera, Lastrea, Polystickumj Cyatopteris.
Tribe Aspleniea. The sori oblong or linear, covered by an indusium
opening longitudinally on one side.
Genera, AthyHumf Atplmiumf Scoloptndriwn,
Tribe Grammitidece. The sori elongate, without an indusium.
Genus, Ceterach.
Tribe AdiantaHa. The thecas covered by a maiginal or sub-margnuJ
elongated part of the frond, or by a separated portion of the
cuticle, resembling an indusium.
Genera, BUchnum, Pterii, AdiatUum.
Tribe pymenopkyUecB. The thecse opening irregularly ; the ring oblique,
eccentric, tmnsverae, complete; the receptacle terminating a vein
at the maigin of the frond.
Cknera, Tricho7nane$f ffymenophyUwn,
Sub-Order Osmundacea,
Tribe OsmWKUa, The vernation circinate ; the rachis solid; thethecsB
stalked.
Genus, Oamunda,
Sub-Order OphtoglosBocea,
Genera, Ophiogloitum, Botrychium.
The Ferns have a wide geographical distribution. The herbaceous
and shrubby kind being found towards the north and south poles :
whilst the tree-ferns rival the gigantic palms in the forests of tropical
climates. It is these last which give a peculiar character to the
vegetation of the coimtries where they grow, as their foliage and items
differ altogether from any that are observed amongst flowering plants.
The proportion which they bear to other plants varies much in
different parts of the world. In Jamaica they are in the proportion
of 1 to 9 ; in New Guinea as 28 to 122 ; in New Ireland as 13 to 60;
in the Sandwich Islands as 40 to 160; on contbents they are less
nimierous ; in equinoctial America 1 to 36 ; in Australia 1 to 37 ; in
France 1 to 63 ; in Portugal 1 to 116 ; in the Greek Archipelago 1 to
227; in Egypt 1 to 971. In the north their proportions are greater;
they form in Scotland 1 to 31 ; in Sweden 1 to 35 ; in Iceland 1 to 1$ ;
in Greenland 1 to 10 ; and the North Cape 1 to 7.
The properties and uses of the Ferns are not in proportion to their
numbers in the vegetable kingdouL Many of them deposit starch in
their rhizomata, from which food may be prepared. The roots of
Ill
FIN.
Keplirodiui
ucuUnlHnti»t».tea in Nepaul ; thoseof in^top/tni nerta
ITS a>M in ths nms nuimer in the Sandwich laluidB. DiplazHtm
etadmltim, (^hta mtduHarit, Pltrit anienta, ud Qlachaiia dida-
Uma, all yield itarch, uid ue employed u food in different eouDtries.
[Ctathia.] The Adiaatitia OapUlia Vaurii yields utriugant uid
uomatia aecretioni. [Adiaiituh.] Soma of Uis Americui polypo-
diomi are uid to poneai powerToi medicinal effect!, and u« used a*
•nti-rheiun«Uo, anti-venereal, and febrifugal remodioa. T\a Attgiopttrii
etwfoyialda aa aromatic oil, which vi lued in the Sandwich lalanda
to perftime the 6ied oila, ■■ cocoa-nut oiL The atems of many apoci™
contain bitter principlea, and have hence been uaed aa toaica, Speciea
of Atpidiam and AtfUniitin bare been used in European medicine,
(Ajpidiuu ; AsPLESiuu.] 'Ilie Brazilian aegroea form tnbea for their
pipea from the sterna of Mtrltntia dichotoma. Otmuada rtgatit had
at one time a great reputation in medicine.
(Babington, ttanual of Sriliih Botcms ; Lindley, NtA^rai Si/ilem ;
Hooker, Spnitt Filicun ,- J. Smith, Tht Onura of Perm; Jourtial 0/
Aitanji, ToL It. ; Sewaian, HiHorif of Brilith Ptrm ; Burnett, OiKiina
of Botany; liejeo, Pjtaram-Otograpkit.)
FIN. JFisH.]
FIKCH, [Btilltincb; CsAFFinca; Coccothbiubteb; Fhinoill^]
FINOER. [SEiLrroN.]
FINOERLINO, the young of the Salmon. rSiLUONiDA.
FINSCALE. [Letrcr- -'
FIR. [Abies; Pimub.
FIRE-FLAIRE. TRf
FIREFLY. (^Eurr
FJHE-STONE, a local term for the Upper Oreeniand, aa it occun
■long the edgee of ths chalk-hills south of London, aa at Heateriiam
and Peterafi^d, (Fittou, 'On Greenaand,' in ' QeoL Trans.')
FIROLA. [NDOLEOBBAKOHLlTi.]
FISH (French, Poiason ; aerman, Fiach), a name applied to all the
■peeiea of a chaa of aniioals occupying the lowest station of the four
great diviitoni of the section Vcri^riUa,
A Fiah may be defined as a Vertebrate Animal, breathing through
the medium of water by means of bnmchjse, or gills, having one
auricle and one ventricle to the hearty cold red blood, and eitremitiei
formed for iwimmiag.
In consideriog fiahea, perha{» the most important thing wbich
offera itaelf to our attention ia the apparatiu called the Braachiie, or
Gilla. This appantui is situated on each aide of the neck, and conslsta
o( numelMua buninte fixed on arches. These laminaj are covered with
innamerablc blood-veflaels, and are so constructed aa to present a con-
siderahla surface to 4be water, ao that the blood may receive a
tufficient portion of the oxygen contained in that element. As the
water in contact with the gilli beoomea deterioratsd, it ia nni miij
that a constant curreat be caused to flow over them. In most fishes
this ia effected by their taking the water in at the mouth and expelling
it from under the giU-corera. The blood, wbich is constantly seat to
the bnnchiie from the heart, ia distributed by meane of the arterial
to every part of the body, whence it retuma to the heart by toeuu of
FISH.
the fore leg) conttitutji^ what is termed the Pectoral Fins (jfj. 1. .
and the posterior extremities the YeutraJ {Jig. I, b); besides tfaoe 6l>
ordinary fishes are famished with one or two Dorsal Elna (Jig. 1, c
an Anal Fio (fy. 1, d), and a Caudal Fin, or taiL
All these fins are not alwaya preaent, nor when present are C ,
always in the same relative positions ; and we shall hen>afl«r find
that both the abaence of certain fins, and the peculiar poaitioo of
these organs, afbid characters inthe claaufication of fiahea. The fiai
consist of a thin elaatio membnuis aapported by rays. The rsys art
of two kinda — tboae wUeh oonaist of a singls bony piece, nsoallf
hard and pointed, ace tsrtned spinous nys ; and when the rays an
formed of numeroua portions of bone united by artjcnlmtions, and
frequantly divided longitudinally into several fllameuls, thej are
called Seiible raya. The principal organ of motion is the tail ; the
dorsal and ventnl Eoa apparently serve to balance the fiah, and tl»
pectoisls to arrest its progress when required.
The Bones of fishes are of a leaa dense and compact natnre than in
the higher orders of animals, and always remain in an isolated state,
similar to that of the embryo of the Mammalia. The skeleton may
be divided into four chief parts — tie vortahrml oolumn, the head, the
lall, but in some of the Chondropterygiana it ia so large that
bodies of the vertebrEe are mure rings. To the vertebra are attach»l
the ribs ; in fact ths ribs are the main support or all the other bonea.
The head variee more in forro than in any other class of vertebrate
animals. The same honea as thoaa found in othar oviparons animals
are almost always traceable. We shall confine our obaemtiona to
those which are most frequently refemd to in technical dcKriplioiu.
; /, BuiillarT bcaw.'
tig. >, (mt vla« of Ika moutli of a Trout ; I, ths vooar (omlalud ■
Htb ; ■ ■>, palaUna Umw also lamiihsd with leath ; m, the toncne <
I, Bkdcton of Common Parch.
<1 d, Ui* aaal fln;
iS inlenaaxlUar]' bone ; /, II
nuillarj Ix
I spenulaa ; k, Ui
Aa the breathing apparatus in the fish is suited to aqnatio habits, so ; stituto the chief portion of the upper jaw, the maxillary bones
likewise is evet^ part of its structure. The body is generally of an ' {Jig. 1, f) being placed behind and paiallet to them and articulated to
elonnte oval compreaaed form, oovered wil^ scales directed back- | the vomer. (,Frg. S, L) In the aalmon tribe and some other fishes how-
wwds, and furnished wiUi Bns ; ^us being beautifully adapted for ever the intermaxillary bonaa {Jig. 2, <) are amaller in proportion, and
swimming. Many fishes moreover have a bladder filled with air ' form a continuous line with Uie fore-part of the maxillary honea.
aituated immediately beneath the spina, by the dilatation or compres- ' (A'ff- ^. f) 1° *'^ Chondroptery^ans the maxillary and intei~
sion of which their specific gravitr is said to be varied. The thoracic ' muillary bones are rsduced to msre rudiments, their functions being
psit of tha body is thrown forwards towards the head (so that fishes . performed by the hones analogous to the palatdnea, and sometimes by
may be aaid to have no neck), and thus the hinder part of the body the vomer.
is more free and fitted for motion. Th« limbs are formed into fins, | The lower jaw is genandly composed of at least two bones on
817
FISH.
FISH.
aia
each Bide, the dental portion in front, and the articular portion
behind.
The Palatines (Jig. 3, mm) are extended longitudinally on each side,
and form part of the roof of the mouth ; they are often ftimiahed
with teeth.
The Opercular Bones. — The chief portion of the sides of the head
behind the eye consists of the opercular bones : these are generally
four in number, and are termed the operculum (Jig. 1, g), the sub-
opercttlum (fig. 1, h), the pre-operculum (fig. 1, i), and the interK>per-
culum (fig. I, k). The first of these coyers the gills.
The BranciiioBtegous Rays (fig, 1, o), which are often mentioned in
descriptions, are situated under the opercular bones.
The Teeth in fishes are almost entirely osseous ; they are usually of
a simple spine-like form, and recurved at the tip. Teeth are found
in almost every bone in the interior of the mouth ; in the superior
and inferior maxillary, and intermaxillaxy bones; likewise on the
branchial arches, pharangeal bones (which are situated in the throat),
and on the tongue. There is considerable variety in their structure,
as will be found in the various descriptions of fishes found in other
parts of this work.
The Scales are composed of two substances, one resembling horn
in its texture, and the other of a harder and bone*like nature; they
are generally attached to the skin by their anterior edge, and consist
of numerous concentric laminae (secreted by the skin), the smallest of
which is first formed. Certain scales, forming a continuous series, in
a slightly waved line from the head to the tail of the fish, are pierced
in or near their centre, and furnished with a tube through which a
slimy matter is poured, which serves to lubricate the body of the
auimaL This series of tubes forms a line visible on the sides of the
body, and which is termed the lateral line.
The structure, form, and position of the scales of fishes are very
variable, and have furnished M. Agastis ('Recherches sur les
Poissons Fossiles') with characters for a new classification of these
animals.
As regards the senses, those of taste and touch appear to be but
slightly developed in fishes. When we find the tongue thickly covered
with teeth (as is often the case), and used as an organ of prehension,
and when we consider the quick manner in which the food is swallowed,
it would certainly appear that their sense of taste is very slight. The
sense of touch is probably most developed in the cirrhi attached to
the mouth of those fishes that have them. The long filaments with
which the fins of some fishes are furnished also perhaps serve, through
the sense of touch, to indicate the vicinity of weeds, or other objects
in the water.
The eyes are difierently placed in the various species of fishes, in
accordance with their habits: for the most part they are placed
laterally, and in some (those that live at the bottom of the water) we
find them directed upwards. In some of the species of sharks (those
of the genus Zygcena) they are situated at the end of an elongated
lateral process on each side of the head.
The sight in fishes is acute ; the range of vision however is probably
somewhat limited. The eyes (which are furnished with a spherical
lens) are generally large, but in some species they are very small,
whilst others appear to be destitute of them.
Although fishes appear not to possess certain portions of the auditory
apparatus, observed in animals of a higher grade, they nevertheless
possess the sense of hearing.
There are reasons for the belief that the sense of smell in fishes is
tolerably acute : their olfiu^ry nerves are of laige sise, and disposed
over«a considerable extent of surface.
By fsr the greater number of fishes are of carnivorous habits;
there are some however which feed upon vegetable substances, and
we find the stomach modified accordingly as in other animals.
The sexes of fishes, if we except the sharks and rays, o£Per no very
decided external characters by which they may be diistdnguiBhed : as
in the higher animals however, observes Mr. Tarrell, ''the respiratory
organs occupy more space in the males than in the females ; and, on
the other hand, the abdomen is laiger in the females than in the males :
the males may therefore be known from the females bv their some-
what sharper or more pointed head, the greater length of the gill-
cover, and the body from the dorsal fin downwards bemg not so deep
compared with the whole length of the fish."
The sexual organs of fishes are in the generality of the species of a
more simple nature than \b observed in the higher orders of the
Yertehraia^ " consisting, as will be found, towards the season of pro-
ducing their young, of two elongated oval lobes of roe, one on each
side of the body, placed between the ribs and the intestinal canal ;
the lobes in the female, called hard roe, contain a very large number
of roxmdish grains, called ova or eggs, which are inclosed in a delicate
membranous tunic or bag, reaching to the side of the anal aperture,
where an elongated fissure permits egress at the proper time. In the
males, the lobes of roe are smaller than In the females, and have the
appearance of two elongated masses of fat, which are called soft roe ;
they remain however firm till the actual season of spawning, when
they become by degrees more and more fiuid, and the whole is ulti-
mately voided by small portions at a time under slight abdominal
pressure
" At the season for depositing the spawn, which varies with almost
VAT. HIBT. DIV. VOL. H.
every genus, some species repair to the gravelly shallows of riven,
and othen to the sandy bays of the sea. This movement in called by
fishermen ' going to hiU,' or ' roading;' other species resort to bunches
of weeds. In many instances, when ready to deposit her spawn, a
female is accompanied by two males, one on each side — a provision
of nature which seems intended to secure the impregnation of the
largest quantity of ova, and the range of the infiuence of the male
fluid is enormously increased by diffusion in water. The adhesive
nature of the surface of each egg supplies the means of attachment
to any of the various substances near which it may happen to be left ;
and the time required for the appearance of the young fish is very
variable, depending upon the species, the season, and its temperature.
The young fish is first apparent as a line wound round the central
vitelline portion of the egg, and ultimately escapes by rupturing the
external capsule with its tail."
We now proceed to give an outline of Cuvier^s classification of fishes,
shxce it is that which is perhaps most generally adopted : it is never-
theless in many respects very artificial.
Fishes are divided by this author into two series, that of Ordinary
FLshes, or Otfet, distinguished bv having the skeleton bony; the
osseous matter being disposed in fibres ; t£e sutures of the cranium
distinct; maxiUary and intermaxillary bones, either one or both
present : and that of the CartUaginei, or Chandroptetygii, distinguished
by having the skeleton cartilaginous ; the bones destitute of fibres ;
sutures of the cranium indistinct ; maxillary and intermaxillary bones
either wanting or rudimentary, their place being supplied by the
palatine or vomer.
These two series are subdivided as follows : —
Series 1. Otsei.
Section 1. Pectinibranehii.
Order 1. Aeanthopterygii.
FamUy Pereida. Family Theuiyti.
Loricati, Pharyngieiu labyinnthi-
Scitsnida. formes.
Sparidte. MiigiUda.
Mcenida. Oobiadte.
Squam^nfuUi. Lophiadce.
Scombrida. ZabridoB.
Toenioida. Centritcidct.
Order 2. Malacopterygii.
1. Ahdomindki,
FamUy Cyprinida.
Stocidce.
SUuridce.
Salmonidcg.
ClupeicUe,
2. Suibraehiales.
Family Qadida.
Pleuronectid€F.
DUeoboli.
EcheneididcB.
Order 8. Apodet.
Murxenid(e,
Section 2. PUctogncUhi.
OymnodorUidte.
Sderodermi.
Section 8. Lophobranehii.
Syngnathida.
Scries 2. CartUagineif or ChondropterygiL
Order 1. Meuiheropomi,
* SturionidcB.
Ohimarida.
Order 2. Plagiattami.
Squalidce.
RaiidcB.
Order 8. Cychttomi.
Pteromytidas.
The characters of the two great series or sections into which fishes
are divided, it has been shown, are taken from the nature of the
skeleton. It remains for us now to make a few observations upon
the minor subdivisions.
In the Osie% or bony fishes, there are three sections. Those of the
first, the Pectinibranehii, possess the following charactera : — Branchiae
in continuous pectinated ridges, furnished with an opercular and
branchiostegous membrane; jaws complete and free. Section 2,
PUctogncUhi : — Branchiae with the pectinations continuous ; opercule
and rays concealed beneatii the skin ; external aperture a simple cleft ;
jaws incomplete ; maxillary firmly attached to the side of the inter-
maxillary, which alone forms the jaw ; palatine arch united to the
cranium by suture, and immovable. To this section belong the globe-
fishes, file-fishes, ftc. Section 8, Lophohranckii : — Branchiae in small
tufts ; opercule large, confined on all sides by a membrane, with only
a small hole for the external aperture; branchiostegous rays rudi-
mentary ; jaws complete and free. To this section belong the pipe-
fishes, hippocampus, ko.
The two latter sections contain but a limited number of species :
the Pectinibranehii, on the oontrarr, contain all the ordinary and
typical fishes, and, as is seen in the foregoing list, is subdivided
into three orders. The fishes of the first of these orders, the
8 Q
bio
FISH.
PISH.
820
AcarUhopterygiif ars d Jtinguished by their baying the anterior part of
the dorsal, anal, and yentral ftna furnished with mmple spinous rays.
[AcAWTHOPTEBTorL] The perches, mullets, gurnardiB, mackerels, &c,
belong Ut this order. In the second order, the Malaeopterygn, all the
fin-rays are flexible, with the exception sometimes of the first ray of
the dorsal and pectoral fins. The three principal divisions of the
Malacopterygii are founded either upon the position of certain fins or
their absence. In the first division, the AbdominaU$, the ventral fins
are situated for behmd the pectorals ; as in the carp, tench, bream,
tlace, roach, pike, salmon, 4c. In the second group, the SubbrachiaUs,
the ventral fins are situated immediately beneath the pectorals (or
even a little before them) ; as we find them in the cod-fish, haddock,
and whiting. The flat fishes also belong to this group — such as the
plaice, flounder, turbot, sole, Ac. To the third and last of these
greater divisions of the Malacopterygii belong the eels, which have
received the name Apodea, from their posseasing no ventral fins.
In illustration of the three orders into which the CartUaginei are
divided, the Sturgeon will serve as an example of the first, or the
EUutheropomi. The Plagiottami contain the Sharks and Rays ; and
the Lampreys and Myxines chiefly constitute the CycloitomL
Mr. M'Leay, to whom Natural History is so ligely indebted for
methods of claosification, has given a new arrangement of fishes.
The basis of this method is the quinarian system. He bases his
clasnification on three generally admitted facts, which he holds to be
incontestable. The first is the near approach of fiahes to Batrachian
Amphibia, which, with Swainson, he considers to be made by means
of Lophius and MaUhe. 2nd. The near approach of fishes to the
Cetaceous Mammalia, the viriparous sharks constituting the con-
necting link. 8rd. ** Ae the grand character of fiahes as a class is
their being the most imperfect of VeriebraUi, the most typical of
fishes ought therefore to be the most imperfect of them, namely, the
furthest removed from the type of VerUbraia/* a position which
many naturalists will be inclined to combat. He reganls as examples
of such fishes the Cyclo$tomi, Bearing the above ' fundamental facts '
in mind, ho constitutes the following primary divisions : —
Aberrant Group, Ctenobranchiu Gills pectinated.
1. PUtgiottomx, Cartilaginous Fishes with fixed branchiad, lead-
ing to Mammalia,
2. SturUmet, Cartilaginous Fishes with free branchiae.
3. Oslinopterygii, Bony Fishes with firee branchisc, leading to
Amphibia,
Normal Group, Actenohranehii. Fish breathing with gills, not
pectinated.
4. Lophobranchii. Bony Fishes breathing by tufts arranged in
pain along the branchial arches.
5. Cyclostomi, Cartilaginous Fishes breathing by a series of
cells.
Mr. M'Leay has not preMnted an analysis of the families and
genera included under the above five orders, with the exception of ^
those of the third, Oitinopterygii, a term by which he proposes to
denominate the osseous fishes having pectinated gills. The following
table of his subdivisions of this important order will convey to the
naturalist a clear idea of his system.
Ottinopterygii.
A,
Aberrant Group, Acanthopterygii. Spines in the first dorsal fin
hard.
Tribe 1 , Balittina, Maxillary bones soldered to the intermaxillaries,
and both to the palatine arch ; opercula and gills concealed beneath
the skin. Includes the families Baliatidce, Oatr<iciontidcB, Cephalatpit,
Orthagoriacidoi, Diodwtidce.
Tribe 2, Pffcina. Bones of the jaws free and complete. Operculum
distinct. Operculum or pre-operculum generally wiUi dentated edges,
or with spines. Includes Chatidontida, Percidce, Scorpcmida, Cirrhi-
tido!, Sparidce.
Tribe 8, FittularifM. Bones of the jaws free and complete^ Oper-
culum distinct. Operculum and pre-operculum generally with smooth
edges. Scombridae, FistularidcB, Oobioida, Lophiidce, Labridai.
B,
Normal Group, Malacopterygii, Spines in the dorsal fins soft.
Tribe 4, Pleuronectina. Ventral fins, when existing, inserted under
the pectorals, and directly suspended to the bones of the shoulder.
AnguUlidoe, £chcneid(c, Cyclopteridce, PUuronectidie, Oadidas.
Tribe 5, Abdominalcs. Yentrals suspended behind the pectorals,
and not attached to the bones of the shoulders. Siluridce, Cgprinida,
BsocidcB, Ciwpcida:, Salmonidce.
Geographical Distribution of Fishes. — This branch of ichthyology
is beginning to attract the attention and research which the interest
of the subject demands. Within the last twenty years the example of
Yarrell has been followed in many countries, and valuable local mono-
graphs published, with excellent illustrations. In the north of
Europe, besides the writings of Nilson and Eckstrom, the fishes of
Denmark have been illustrated by Henrik Kroyer. Those of Belgium
have been carefully examined by M. de Selys Longchamps. In
that naturalist's 'Faune Beige' fifty-three fresh-water fishes and
forty-one species inhabiting the sea are enumattted. Of the former,
forty-three Uve only in freah-water ; six in fresh-water, but go to the
mouths of rivers in winter; and four live in the sea, but migr&te to the
rivers in spring or summer. Of the sea-fishes thirty pass up the Schelde
as far as Antwerp. The fresh-water fishes of Central Europe have
engaged the attention of Agaasiz. Freyer has published an account of
those inhabiting Camiola, amounting to thirty-two spedea. Italian
ichthyology has been admirably Ulustrated by Prince Charles Lucien
Bonaparte. In Ana the fishes of the Caspian have been described by
Eichwald in his ' Fauna Caspio-Caucasica,' published in 1841. Thoee
inhabiting the rivers of Syria have been enumerated by Heckel (1843)
from the collections of Kotschy. Fifty-seven species inhabit the riven
Orontes and Euphrates, of which no fewer than forty-five are Cgprimda.
Indian ichthyology has received valuable contributions from McClel-
land, whose papen have been chiefly published in the 'Calcutta
Journal' In Siebold's 'Fauna Japonica' (1842) are accounts and
figures of Japanese fishes by Temminck and SchlegeL The most
valuable contribution ever made to our knowledge of the ichthyology
of Eastern Asia was communicated to the British Association at
Cambridge in 1845, in the form of a report on the ' Ichthyology of
China,' by Sir John Richardson. From his researches it would
appear that the fishes of that region are not only very numerous as
regards species, but also very valuable on account of Uie extensiTe
fisheries there carried on. His remarks on their distribution are
highly interesting. It would appear that chains of islands or coasts
having an east and west extension determine the extent of the range
of species and groups of species. For example, to take the inter-
tropical zone of the ocean, we find a great number of fishes common
to the Red Sea^ the coasts of Madagascar, the Mauritius, the Indian
Ocean, the south of China, the Philippines, the Malay Archipelago,
the northern coast of Australia, and the whole extent of Polynesia,
including the Sandwich Islands. As regards the generic forms of the
fresh-water fishes, China agrees with the peninsiila of India. Were
the vast zone in question, embracing more than two-thirds of the
drctunference of the globe, to be suddenly elevated, we should find
the remains of fishes similar everywhere throughout, the species which
have a local distribution being few and unimportant. This result of
Sir John Richardson's researches is of the highest importance when
brought to bear on geological considerations. Sir John Richardson
has sdso been engaged in the special investigation of the ichthyology
of Australia, and his many valuable memoin on that subject may be
consulted in the ' Transactions of the Zoological Society,' and in the
'Annals of Natural History.' In Dieffenbach'a 'Travels in New
Zealand ' (1843), the same indefatigable and philosophic zoologist has
published, in cosgunction with Dr. Gray, a list of the fishes of New
Zealand. Ninety-two species are there enumented. In Smith's
' Illustrations of the Zoology of South Africa,' figures and descriptions
are given of the fishes of the Cape of Good Hope. The researches of
Dr. Peten on the eastern coast of Africa, have made us acquainted
with the ichthyology of that interesting region. With those of the
northern part of Western Africa we have had ample information in
the valuable memoin of Lowe on the fishes of Madeira. (' Zoolo-
gical Transactions and Proceedings.')
The laboun of Jenyns on the fishes collected during Captain
Fitooy's voyages have contributed materially to our knowledge of
the ichthyology of the southern extremity of South America, whilst
that of Guyana has been illustrated by Sir Robert Schomburgk, in
the ' NatunJista' Libraiy.' De Ka/s ' Zoology of New York' (1842)
has made us acquainted in detail with the fidies of the United States.
They amount, so far as known, to 440 species, distributed tlttvugh
166 genera and 82 families. In the State of New York there are
126 AcanthopUrygii, 115 Malacopterygii, 8 LophobraneMi, 18 Plecto-
gnalhi, 3 species of sturgeon, and 27 cartilaginous fishes.
The disteibution of fishes appean to be determined by the same
laws which regulate that of other aquatic animals. Climate, compo-
sition of the element in which they live (whether salt, brackish, or
&esh), and conformation of the sea or river bed, on which the depth
of water depends, are the great regulating influences. The great
distinctions of form and colour between fishes of tropical and those of
temperate regions, evince the influence of climate ; the fact of the
fisheries for certain species commonly used for food being invariably
conducted in deep water, whilst othen can only be maintained among
shallows, shows the influence of depth ; the fact pointed out by Sir
John Richardson that the seaa^ by ranges of land or reefs extending
for great distances under the same climatal parallel, are peopled by
the same species of fishes, ia an instance of the action of the combined
influences of climate and depth. The distinctness as to genera and
species of the greater number of river and lake fish from those inha-
biting the sea depends on the second of the three great influences
enumerated — that of the composition of the element in which they
live. Great depths cut off the range of species even when climatal
conditions are similar. Hence the fishes of the coast of the United
States are for the most port distinct from those on our own side of
the Atlantia Some fishes have very limited ranges in depth com-
pared with othen, and, generally speaking, it may be assumed tiiat
those having the greatest vertical range (that*ii, range in depth) have
also the widest horizontal extension, a fact depending on the capacity
of such species for living under a greater variety of conditions.
821
FISH.
FISH.
822
Barriers of land, as chains of mountains, determining the courses of
riyers, are often the boundaries between two distinct specific assem-
blages of fresh-water fish, and in like manner a very narrow strip of
land may divide two yeiy distinct marine faunas. The distribution
of marine vegetables, afiecting the distribution of numerous marine
Inv€rtd>rata which feed on thoee vegetables, and*in their turn serve
to furnish food for fishes, will materiaUy afiect the distribution of
many species of the latter. So also will the presence of ciurents, and
even the agency of man, assisting often unintentionally in the con-
veyance of ova from one country to another. Distant regions, pre-
senting similar conditions, such as the arctic and antarctic seas, are
inhabited by species representative but not identical, and presenting
a general aspect very similar, depending on characters of form and
colour, &a It is probable also that the fishes inhabiting the greater
depths of tropical seas resemble those of temperate climes, and that
those of the latter in like manner approach arctic forms.
A brief glance at the range and dUstribution of the principal genera
will best serve to illustrate the above positions.
The lowest and most anomalous of all the species of fishes, the
JBranchiostomaf is generally distributed through the seas of Europe.
Only one species is known, yet we cannot but hope that the researches
of uie many active naturalists now occupied with the study of marine
zoology will bring to light forms connecting the Lancelet with other
genera. The Myxine, or Glutinous Hag, almost equally strange in form
and structure, is confined to the most northern and most southern
seas, and is replaced in the higher parts of the southern hemisphere
by the equally curious and nearly allied genus ffeptairema. The
Lampreys inhabit the fresh-waters of Europe and North America,
but Uie species in each are quile distinct. LepicUmren, the connecting
link between fishes and reptiles, so dubious in organisation that its
position is still disputed, is an inhabitant of the west of Africa, and a
genus closely allied has been discovered by Dr. Peters on the eastern
coast of the same continent.
The Rays and Sharks are imiversally distributed, but many ,of the
genera and species are very local and apparently regulated in their
range by climatal zones. The seas of Europe can boast of the greater
number, though fortunately the most formidable of the species are
exotics. The laigest species, as the great Silachus maximvs, the
Basking Shark, are harmless, and have their favourite habitats in the
temperate zone. Size among fishes does not appear to bear any
relation to latitude. Chimaera is northern and southern, extending
from the frigid zone. The Sderodermi are for the most part southern
and tropical, especially the curious forms of Cestracion and Astracion,
Monacanthua inhabits the American and Chinese seas ; Triodon, the
Indian Ocean; Tdrodon, Diodon, and Batistes have wider ranges.
The typical genus of Pipe-Fishes {SyngruUhus}^ is cosmopolitan, and has
a very wide geographical distribution. Six species are found in the
British seas, two on the coast of the United States, and Mr. Jenyns
has described new forms from Valpanuso, Tahiti, and Patagonia.
Bippocampus is of the temperate zones of both hemispheres, and in
the tropical seas is replaced by Solenostoma and Pegatus. The
Sturgeons inhabit the Western European seas, the Caspian, the Black
Sea, and the Mediterranean. Three species are NortJi American.
Of the Eels, AnguiUa, Conger, and Murctna are typical and cosmo-
politan. Oymnarchut is Egyptian, Oymnottif (the Electrical Eel) South
American, both inhabitants of fresh-water. The osseous flat fishes are
veiy geherally distributed; the largest species are inhabitants of
northern seas. The Mediterranean boasts of many species of PUu-
ronectea. Species of Sole are found in both northern and southern
hemispheres. The Cfadidce are inhabitants of northern and temperate
seas, and certain species, as the Tusk^ do not range farther southward
than Norway and Scotland. LepidosteuSf one of the few remaining
genera of Sauroid fishes, which appear to have played a most im-
portant part in the waters of ancient geological epochs, \s confined to
the rivers of America, and some allied forms to northern Africa. The
herring tribe, Clvpetda, has a wide distribution, and forms of the
typical genus Clupea are found in the southern as well as in the
northern hemisphero. The species however are locally distributed ;
thus the true Herring is unknown in the Mediterranean, where its
place is taken by the Sardine, and the herrings of the South American
coasts are quite distinct from those of the north. Even within very
limited areas, as in that of the British seas, the species have peculia-
rities of distribution, as we see in the prevalence of the herring,
properly so called, on the coasts of Scotland and in the Irish Sea, while
it is replaced by the Pilchard on the south-west coasts of England
and south of Ireland : the Whitebait is also a remarkable instance of
%local distribution. Mormyray Exoccetiu, and Etox are the typical
forms of pikes ; the first is North African ; the flying fishes are
oceanic and Mediterranean, and the pikes proper are inhabitants
of the temperate zones. The restricted'genus E90X is confined to
fresh water.
The important family of SalmonidcB has its most valuable members
in northern regions, some with a wide range, the same species of trout
occurring in Lapland and in Switzerland. In North America the
Trouts are represented by very similar but distinct species, ^ jM'Clel-
land has described a true salmon from India inhabiting the tributaries
of the Oxus. This instance however does not afiect the essentially
temperate and subarotlo character of Uie distribution of the Sdlnionidar,
for this Indian species was found at an elevation of 11,000 feet,
where we must expect to find temperate forms prevail. Jenyns has
made known a peculiar genus of Salmonida, which he has named •
Aplochiton, inhabiting the seas of the Falkland Islands and Tierra
del Fuego. Bajore is a geniia constituted by De Kay, and confined to
the United States. The Argentines are MedLiterrauean, and Stemoptyx
is oceanic
Among the most characteristic fishes of the fresh waters of tropical
countries are the SUwicke, which abound in the regions of Centred
Asia, where almost all the species of the typical genus Silunu occur.
A single ofi&et finds its way to Europe. Pimdodut and CaUicHthys
are American genera of this family; the electrical Mtdapterurtu,
North African ; Loricaria, South American. Equally interesting and
well marked in distribution is the fresh-water family CyprinpdaB. The
true Carps are characteristic of the Old World; CcUastoma and
Anableps of the New World.
Of the Acanthopterygious Fishes the genera CetUrUciu and Fistu-
laria are, with the exception of a single Mediterranean species,
tropical. The genera of Labridce have well-marked provinces. Thus
the numerous species of Scarus are grouped together in tropical seas,
being replaced in temperate regions by Labrua ajid OrenUabnu. There
areofisets however of each. The frog-hBhes Lophius Bixd Chironectea
are chiefly represented in Africa and South America. ' A single
Lophius is a native of European seas. De Kay enumerates seven
LophiadcB as inhabitants of the United States, and Richardson has
described some Australian species. The Gk>by tribe prevails in Europe
and Asia. Some of the species of Oobius are remarkable for the
depth at which they live. The Blennies are truly European, with
very few exceptions. The Qunnels are mostly of northern seas.
Some species of the Goby tribe inhabit fresh water, as the genus
Tcenioides, which is found in marshes in India. Comepttwua lives
in Lake Baikal, and one or two species of Oobitu proper live in rivers.
The MvgHoidce are very generally extended. They have been said
to be absent from North America, but this is incorrect, four species
of Mugil inhabiting the United States. Atherina is also a cosmopo-
litan genus.
The Labyrinthiform Fharyngeana are essentially tropical, being all
natives of the eastern regions of Asia. Their organisation is pecu-
liarly adapted to their climatal range. The TetUkyes are fishes of
warm clinaates, aud many species inhabit the Australasian seas. The
Mackerel tribe includes a number of genera, which have very various
areas of distribution. Among them the Dolphins (Coryphasna) are
Mediterranean and oceanic; the Dories (Zeus) mostly European;
Vom/er, exotic ; Not€tcarUlws, arctic ; Lichia, Mediterranean. Scomber
and the allied typical genera of the tribe are mostly cosmopolitan.
The Chffitodons are essentially equatorial.
The feunily of Sparoideas gives the most prominent featui'e to the
ichthyology of the Mediterranean and seas of Southern Europe.
Pagrua hajs a wide range, but chiefly through warm regions. The
Scienoidea, very numerous in species, are mostly equatorial. The
important family of TriglidcB, of which the Gurnard is the type, has
a very extensive distribution. The true Gurnards are mostly Euro*
pean ; Scorpcsna ranges from Europe to Atistralia. PlcUycephalut is
peculiarly Indian. Sebaatea is a genus of the Old World, witii one or
two exceptions.
The Percida, chief of the Acanthopterygious families, is partly
composed of marine and partly of fresh-water genera. The genus
Perca is characteristic of the northern temperate zone. Meaoprionf
Diacope, PUctropowiUf and Serranua are cosmopolitan. MtUlut and
ParaUpia are European genera. HoloeeiUria, Myrvpriatia, PriaeasUhua,
and Dulea are represented in both hemispheres. A nUxjtaaia is an Indian
fresh-water genus. Percophia, Pingmpea, CerUrarchtta, and Pomotia
are American. Beryx, TVachichtea, Hdoiea^ Pdotaa, and Chironema
are Australian.
Poaail Fiahea. — In the study of extinct fishes the structure of the
scales is of first importance, and according to their particular cha-
racters the whole of the fossil species have been divided. M. Agassiz
makes four orders, each of which contains fishes having a cartilaginous
skeleton; in each there are genera the species of which have
spinous rays in the dorsal fin, and other genera where all the rays of
the dorsal fin are soft. There are likewise in each order both apodal
and abdominal genera ; and in two of the orders there are in addition
certain species in which the ventral fins are thoracic, and others in
which they are jugular. These four orders are named by M. Agassiz
PlacQvdea, Oanoidea, Otenoidea, and Oydoidea.
The name Plawidea (from irXa^, a plate or slab) was applied to the
first of these orders on aocoimt of the irregularity which the solid tegu-
mentary parts present They consist of masses of enamel, which are
often of considerable size, and sometimes minute. To this famUy
belong the CeatradonUa, of which there is but one existing genus
(the genus Ceatracicn), the SquaUdcSy BaiidcB, and Cydoatomi,
The second order, Ganoidea (from yayhs, splendour), are distin-
guished by the angular form of the scales; these are composed of
layers of corneous or osseous substances, disposed one ^pon the
other and covered by a thick coat of enamel, and consequently
resemble teeth in their structure. This order contains the following
families ;—Xepuioufe«, all the species of which are fossil; the Sau-
rtfidea, which are sJso fossil, with the exception of two genera, Lepidosteus
823
FISH.
FISH.
and Polyptenu; the Pycnodonta, likewise foBsil; the ScUrodermi,
OymnodofUet, Lophohranehii, Goniodontet, SiluridcB, and Sturiones.
In tile third order, Ctenoidet (from lertvos, a oomb)| the scales consist
of laminsd whose posterior and free margin is pectinated. A struc-
ture vexy evident in the Chaetodons and Flat-FiBheB {PUuronectida),
which M. Agassiz thinks oi^ght to be placed close together. In this
order are also arranged the Percida, Polyacanthes, Seianida, Sparidce,
Scorpcenidce, and Aulostomes,
Order four, Cycloidea (from k^Aot, a circle). The families which
belong to this order have the scales formed of simple laminsB, with
the posterior mai^gin smooth. The scales of the lateral line are
formed like the others, but instead of flat laminas thev consist of
ducts placed one within the other, of which the retinng portion,
which is applied against the disc of the scale, forms the tube through
which flows the mucous secretion which covers the fish. This tube is
sometimes bifurcate, or even ramified. The Labridce, Mugilidce,
AtheriruEf ScombridcBf GndidcB, Oobiada, Mwrcenida, Lucwidet, Salmo-
nidcB, ClupeidcB, and Oyprinida belong to this tribe.
In his work entitled 'Recherches sur les Poissons Fossiles'
M. Agassiz hss employed this arrangement in his description of Fossil
Fishes. At the request of the British Association for the Advance*
ment of Science, M. Agassiz has drawn up a list of fishes occurring in
the British strata, and we subjoin an abstract of this report The
geological classification is that developed in the articles Gboloot, Old
Red Sandstone, and Bed Sandstone.
Table I. — General DUtributian of the Orders of Fostil Fithet.
Cainozoio Strata
Mesozoie Strata
PaliDozoie Strata
•a
1
«
2
o
9
o
*
*
•a
•••
o
o
«
«
Hence it appears that the two orders of Ctenoid and Cycloid Fishes,
which are the most abundant in existing nature, have no representa-
tives yet discovered in the Palsdozoic Stnta.
If we divide the two groups of Mesozoie and Palnozoic Strata into
'.heir constituent parts we shall have additional results.
Table IL — IHttrHnUion of the Orders of FottU Fishes in Mesotoie and
PalcBotoic StrtUtk
Misoxoxc :
Upper
Middle
Lower
Fauboxoxc :
Upper
Middle
Lower
..4
*
*
*
i
0
*
*
o
0
I
Hence it would appear that the Plaooid Fishes (Onchus, &c.) are,
geologically speaking, the most ancient of the finny races ; that the
Ganoid Fishes, Moloptyehius, fto., begin in the middle PalsBozoic
series, and the Ctenoid and Cydoid only in the upper Mesozoie
(Cretaceous) group. It is however very possible that this last statement
may be modified by further research in the Oolites. At present the
distribution of Ctenoid and Cycloid Fishes in the Chalk is thought to
favour the notion of the almost Cainozoic character of that deposit
In the next four tables (Tables III., IV., V., and VI.) we give the geo-
logical distribution of the several families (some are merely provisional)
under which M. Agassiz has ranged the British Fossil Plaooid Fishes.
Table IIL—Diiiribvtum of the Families of Placoid Fishes.
Caxkosoxc :
Upper
Middle
Lower
Mnoaoxc :
Upper .
Middle
Lower
TkisMOKOic :
Upper
Middle
T^jwer
I
I
•g
0
*
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
9
I
»
I
s
0
0
0
0
I
0
0
0
0
>
Hence the most prolific periods for Placoid Fishes seem to be the
upper PalsBOzoio^ the middle and upper Mesozoie, and the lower
Ciunozoic strata.
Table 1Y, —DielribfUion of the Families of Ganoid Fishee.
1
9
•
•
I
a
Caikozoio :
1
•a
1
1
K
0M
a
u
<
•a
1
Upper . .
—
— _
>—
—
—
Middle
—
— —
_—
„—
_
—
Lower . .
—
9
0
—
s
Mbsozoic :
s
Upper
*
0
0
0
—
0
•a
a
Middle . .
•
4^
Hf
1^
#
^M
Lower
0
»
f -
Paljbozoic :
o
Upper . .
0
0
0
—
>—
— .
•§
Middle .
0
•
0
—
^ t
Lower . .
—
- 1 "
The Ganoid Fishes (singular forms however) begin to abound in the
middle PalsBozoic series, and become rare above the lower Cainozoic
series. They are also rare in existing nature. M. Agassiz once
included the Glyptocephalus of Sheppey among the Ganoids, but in
his later catalogue he has joined it to the Cycloids.
Table V. — Distribution of the Families of Ctenoid Fishes.
*
Caikozoic :
1
i
a
•
1
Upper
Middle
—
— —
—
0
Lower
MsBoxoxo :
0
r
0
0
—
Upper
Middle
0
—
—
Lower
— .
— .
— ^
__
Paljbozoic :
Upper
Middle
—
—
—
—
Lower
—
The account of the Ctenoid Fishes in the lower Cainozoic Strata is
fropi the report of M. Agassiz to the British Assodation in 1844.
Table YL—IHetrihiUion of the Families of Cycloid Fishes.
Acantbopterygians.
Malaoopterjgians.
•
Caxhozoxc :
Upper
Middle . .
Lower
Misosoxc :
Upper . . .
Middle
Lower , . .
Palaozoxc :
Upper
Middle . . .
Lower
f
j
0
i
1
0
0
■
1
0
1
0
1
0
•
1
0
0
s
0
o
0
0
•
•a
1
o
0
1
0
0
ill II 0 0 1 1 Undetermined, j
To complete this view of the geological distribution of Fossil Fishes
we append an abstract of the catalogues of M. Agassiz, which have
been already referred to.
SUwrian System,.
Placoid Fuses.
Ichthyodorulites.
Onchus, 2 species.
Family unknown.
Thdodus, 1 species
Sclerodus, 1 species.
Pleetrodus, 2 vpeoM.
Sphagodus, 1 species.
PterygotuSf 1 spedes. (This
probably a Crustacean.)
Devonian System.
Plaooid Foebs.
Ichthyodorulites.
Onehus, 2 species.
Parexus, 1 species.
Ctenaeanthus, 1 species.
Ptychacanthus, 1 specie
Clematiiis, 1 species
14
825
FISH.
FISH.
826
CentrAciontea.
Ctenoptychnu, 1 species.
Qasoid Fibres.
Lepidoides.
Diptenu, 1 Bpecies.
Otteolepis, 4 speoies.
AcanthodeSf 1 species.
IHplacanthuB, i species.
Cheir(Kanthu$, 8 species.
CheiroUpiSf 8 species.
CephOiUupit, i species.
Pttrichthyi, 8 species.
CoccosteuBf 3 species.
Ckdonichthya, 2 species.
Sattroides.
IHplopieruif 8 species.
PlcUygnathut^ 8 species.
DendroduSf S species.
LamnoduSf 2 species.
Oricodus, 1 species.
Afegalichthytf 1 species.
Ccelacanthes.
IfolaptychiuB, 6 species.
Olijpto8Uu8, 2 species.
PhyUoUpit, 1 species.
GLyptol^iif 2 species.
(7ar6(m«/!srotM System,
Placoid Fishes.
Ichthyodorulites.
OncAtWy 6 speciesb
Ctenacanthut, 6 species.
PtychacanthvMt 1 species.
i^enocoii/AttJ, 1 species.
AtteropiychiuM, 2 species.
PhytonemuMf 1 species.
(^oeanMiM, 4 8peoie&
Chracanthut, 4 speoiea.
Lept€tcafUhu9, 2 species.
TWflyeAittt, 1 spades.
Claditeanihui, 1 spedes.
Crieocon^AiM, 1 species.
OrtAoean^Aiif, 1 spedaa.
Pleuraeanthui, 3 spades.
Cestradonies.
Orodut, 2 species.
Ifelodtu, 9 species.
Ch4ymatodus, 8 spedee.
Qakoid Fishes.
Lepidoides.
ilc(inlAo<2e«, 1 species.
Amblypterus, 8 species.
PotootiitCflWy 6 spedes.
EurynoHu, 2 species.
P^o/ytomfif , 1 species.
PUctrolepis, 1 spedes.
Sauroides.
Megaiichthya, 2 species.
JHpioptenu, 2 spedes.
Pygopterui, 8 spedes.
^croJepify 1 species.
Oro^noMitt, 1 species.
OraptolepiSf 1 spedes.
PadoduB, 1 spedesL
Codacantlies.
CcdacarUhut, 2 species.
ffoloptychiiu, 8 species.
IfoplopyffiUf 1 spedes.
Ui'ontmuSf 1 species.
PkylloUpiSy 1 species.
Permian System.
Placoid Fibheb.
Ichthjodorulites.
(?y2*apri«fu, 1 spedes.
Oanoid Fibheb.
LepidoidesL
Paf<B(miBCHtf 5 species.
PliUyiomuB, 3 species.
Sauroides.
.icro2epUp 1 spedes.
Pygoptenu, 2 spedes.
CoalacaDthea.
CodaeanihuBf 1 spedas.
TWotfie SyHem.
Placoid Fibheb.
Ichtliyodorulitea.
ITyiociM, 1 spedea.
iVismacantAttf, 2 spedes.
LeiacanthuM, 1 species.
Cestradontes.
ilcroctttj, 1 spedes.
CercUodus, 10 spedes.
Hybodontes.
ffyhodutj 1 spedes.
Ganoid Fibheb.
Lepidoides.
Gyrolepis, 8 species.
PaloKmiscut, 1 species.
Sauroides.
iSat»rtcA/Ay«, 8 spedes.
(N.R Agassiz indudes the Bone-
bed at the base of the Lias in
the Triassic System.)
Oolitic Syitem.
Placoid Fibheb.
Ichthyodorulites.
Leptficanthug, 3 species.
Nemacanthut, 1 spedes.
Myriaecmthut, 8 species.
AstertteanthuB, 6 species.
Hybodui, 13 spedea.
Prietacanthut, 1 species.
Oochliodu8, 5 spedes.
Peammodua, 4 spedes.
Paeilodua, 6 species.
Pleuroduif 2 species.
C^cnoptyoAuM, 8 spedes.
Ctenodui, 3 spedes.
^efa^(KiM, 8 spedes.
Hybodontes.
Cladodui, 8 spedes.
J)iplodut, 2 spedea.
SqualidesL
Cbrc^ropfif, 1 spedes.
Cyclarthnu, 1 spedes.
SqualorcUct, 1 spedes.
Chimeridea.
C%tnMsra> 11 spedea. (This in-
dudes sereral generic groups of
Egerton.)
Gafoid Fibheb.
Lepidoides.
Dapeditu, 7 species.
Tetragonolep%9, 14 spedes.
CentroUpii, 1 spedea.
AmblywruB, 1 spedes.
Semionotui, 1 spedea.
L^idotui, 13 spedes.
Pholidophorut, 12 species.
iVb^Aofomttf, 1 species.
Ophiopiiif 2 species.
Sauroides.
Eugnathue, 18 spedes.
Ptycholepit, 1 spedes.
CbiuKiiM, 1 spedes.
PachycormuB, 9 spedea.
CcUurut, 3 spades.
ThriMsonoiua, 1 spades.
^tnd{yMn»i«Sy 1 spedes.
Sauropait, 2 spedea.
Leptdepiaf 4 apeciea.
iSatfrostomiM, 1 species.
Aapidorhyndvm^ 2 spedes.
.fiJonoffomtM, 8 species.
Macroaemi^Ut 1 spedes.
Gcdacanthes.
Ctenolepia, 1 spedes.
Gyroateua, 1 species.
Pycnodontes.
Oyrodua, 6 species.
Sphearodw, 3 spedaa,
(^ronc&itt, 1 species.
Microdtmt 2 spedes.
Periodua, 1 spedes.
Pyenodua, 18 spedes.
Acipenserides.
ChtmdroatetUf 1 spedes.
6Ve<accotu Syatem.
Placoid Fibbeb.
Ichthyodorulites.
Ptychodua, 5 species.
ffybodua, 1 species.
ChimcBraf 1 spedes.
i%>tnaj?, 1 species.
Cestraoiontea.
PfycAo<iiM» 5 spades.
Aerodua, 1 spedes.
Sirophoduaf 2 spedes.
Squalides.
ScyUiodua, 1 spades.
iVo^uianiw, 2 species.
Cbror, 1 species.
Otodua, 1 species.
Oxyrhina, 1 spedes.
Zamno, 3 spedes.
Chimerides.
Chimcera, 5 species.
Ganoid Fibheb.
Lepidoides.
Lepidotua, 1 species.
Sauroides.
Catvruaf 1 spades.
CoalacaDthea.
Mcicropomaf 2 spedes.
Pycnodontes.
Acrotemnua, 1 spedes.
Oyrodm, 4 species.
Pyenodua, 5 spedes.
^AcerodiM, 1 species.
Sderodermes.
Dercetia, 1 spedes.
Cestradontes.
Aerodua, 8 spedes.
Ceratodua, 1 spedes.
5^ropAo<f itf, 6 spedes.
Hybodontes.
ffybodua, 10 spedea.
Sphenonehua, 8 species.
Squalidea.
^n^yetttna, 1 spades.
Oxyrhinti, 1 spedes.
Arthropierua, 1 speoiea.
Ctbvoid Fibheb.
Perooidea.
Beryx, 8 spedea.
Cycloid Fibheb.
Hypaodcn, 1 spades.
iSbdlMxiiia, 1 spedes.
Sawrocephalw, 2 spedes.
5iitcrocfeii, 1 spades.
TetreipUrua, 1 spedes.
ilcro^nalAiM, 1 spedes.
AuMqpia, 1 species.
Oameroidea, 2 spades.
T€rliaf3f Syatem,
Placoid Fibheb.
Myliobatea, 16 spedes.
Zygobatea, 1 spedes (Crag.).
^e<o6a<et, 2 spedes.
Prii<w, 8 spedes.
Raia, 1 spedes.
Squalides.
Notidanua, 1 spedes.
CHyphia, 1 spedes.
Carckarodon, 2 spedea.
Note. — ^In the preceding Lbts
M fiTei^ by AfMsis.
Olodua, 2 apeciea.
Zfomna, 1 species (Crag.).
Chimerides.
Nioamodua, 1 spedes.
Edaphodon, 3 spedes.
Paaaatodon, 1 species.
Paaliodua, 1 species.
Ganoid Fishes.
Pycnodontes.
Pyenodua, 1 species.
Periodua, 1 species.
6^ro<2tt9, 1 species.
PhyUodua, 6 spedes.
Pisodua, 1 species.
Acipenserides.
Acipenaer, 1 species.
Ctenoid Fibheb.
Percoides.
MynpiHatia, 1 spedes.
Cbilaptfrca, 1 spedes.
jSiwygmalAM, 1 spedes.
PodoepfhcUua, 1 species.
Synopluya, 1 spedes.
^racAy<gmaMit«, 1 spedes.
Pereoatoma, 1 spedes.
Sparoidas.
Scitenurua, 2 species.
Teuthies.
Ptychocephalua, 1 spedes.
Pof»apArac<f»y 1 species.
Calopomua, 1 species.
CrcLom (Aoanthoptebtoioub)
Fibheb.
Scomberoides.
Cybiwn, 1 spedes.
Ckdopoma, 2 spades,
^ot^roff^ettf, 8 spedes.
Phalaerua, 1 species.
iZAoncAiif, 1 spedes.
Echenua, 1 species.
Scomhrinua, 1 spedes.
(XocepAo^, 1 species.
Navpygua, 1 species.
XiphioidesL
T^rapterua, 1 spedes.
OopZorAyneAiM, 2 spedes.
Phaagamia, 1 apedea.
.ioeftma, 1 spedea.
Sphyrssnoidea.
Sphyrcenodua, 2 spedes.
Labroides.
Auchenilahrua, 1 spades.
Blannioides.
Zaparua, 1 spedes.
Cycloid (Malaooftebyoioub)
Scomberesooen.
ffypaodon, 2 spedes.
Labrophagua, 1 spedes.
Clupddes.
ffaleeopaia, 1 spades.
Megalopa, 1 species.
Charadns.
Sryeketua, 1 spedea.
Gadoidea.
Hhinocephalua, 1 species.
JferZtnfMy 1 spedes.
Ampkeriatua, 1 spedes.
(ronioi^fiaMiM, 1 species.
Anguilliformes.
Phynchorhinua, 1 species.
(Doubtful Family.)
PachyeqihcUua, 1 spedes.
Phiptdol^a, 1 spedes.
Qlyptocephdlua, 1 species.
Oadopaia, 1 spedes.
ZoxoilOfiMif, 1 spedes.
the Fzeaeh titles of the fsmiUef are retained.
8t7
FIStt
FISH.
833
The following deecription of some of these fiahes, fingtm Professor
Ansted's picturesque 'Sketches of Creation/ will give the general
reader an idea of the forms assumed by some of the extinct fishes
of our own island : —
** The tribe of ftTJating Pkcoid Fishes most resembling those whose
remains are found fossil, is that of which the Sharks are the well-
known representatives. These powerful and rapacious animals, which
are at this day the tyrants of the deep, seem to have been, when first
introduced, of small size, and were accompanied by some few species
of the next or Qanoid order. Only nine species of these Shark-like
monsters have yet been determined with certainty from the Silurian
and Devonian rocks, and of these two only are from the former. It
'is chiefly the Ghmoid Fishes whose remains are handed down to us in
the Old Red-Sandstone and other rocks of that period. Sixty distinct
species of these fishes have been mentioned; and almost all of them
are known from British specimens. Most of them are remarkable for
exhibiting strange peculiarities of shape, approximating them in some
instances to the s^cture of the lower orders of animals, combined
with some apparent affinities to the class of reptiles. The most
remarkable group of these fishes contains several genera, three of
which will require special notice : they are the Cephalaspit, or
Buckler-Headed : the PtericfUhySf or Wing-Fish ; and the Ooccosteui,
so called from tne berry-hke tubercles with which its bony scales are
covered.
" The most extraordinary part of the first of these fishes, the
Buckler-Headed, is the head, from which its name is taken. This
has been compared to the crescent-shaped blade of a saddler^s cutting-
knife, the body forming the handle. It is extremely broad and flat,
extending on each side considerably beyond the body, and the bones
appear to have been firmly soldered together, so as to form one shield,
tne whole head being thus apparently covered by a single plate of
enamelled bone, and when seen detached from the body, hardly to be
distinguished from the head of a trilobite. The body, compared with
this singular head, appears extremely diminutive ; the back is arched,
and gradually recedes in elevation towards the tall, which is of mode-
rate length ; the fins are few in number, and not very powerful, but
appear to have possessed a bony ray in front, the rest of the fin being
more fibrous. The whole body was covered with scales, which varied
in shape in different parts, and seem to have been disposed in series.
This fish never seems to have attained a large size, the best preserved
specimen having only a length of seven inches, with a breadth of Uiree
inches between the points of the crescent-shaped buckler. It has
been supposed by Professor Agassiz that the singular shape of the
head served as a defence to tnis animal in case of attaek ; and one
c^n readily imagine that the soft substance of the Orthoceratites,
probably the largest and most formidable of its enemies, would be
mjured by any attempt to swallow so singular and knife-like an animal
as the one before us. Like many and indeed most of the spedes
belonging to the (Ganoid order of fishes, and common in the older
rocks, the bones of the head and the scales of this strange monster
were composed internally of a comparatively soft bone, but each was
coated with a thick and solid plate of enamel of extreme hardness,
and almost incapable of injury by any ordinary amount of violence.
The detached scales, the buckler head, and sometimes the complete
outline of the anioial have thus been able to resist destruction, and
are found in sandy rocks composed of such coarse fragments that
their accumulation would seem to have been accompanied with vio-
lence sufficient to have crushed to powder almost any remains of
organised matter, and from which indeed we never obtain any frag-
ments of shells or other easily-injured substances. The remains of
this fish have been found in Herefordshire and many parts of Wales,
as well as in Scotland, and lately also in Russia ; but the animal was
strictly confined to the period of the Old Red-Sandstone, though it is
not easy to guess what may have been its habits, in what depth of
water it preferred to live, or in what way it obtained its food.
" The Pterichthui is even more strikingly different from anj existing
species of animal than the singular monster we have just been
describing. Reverting to the graphic description of Mr. BiiUer, we
find it compared to tne figure of a man rudely drawn, the head cut
off by the shoulders ; the arms spread out at fi:dl length as in the atti-
tude of swimming ; the body rather long than otherwise, and narrow-
ing from the chest downwards ; one of the legs cut away at the hip-
joint, and the other, as if to preserve the balance, placed directly
under the centre of the figure, which it seems to support Something
of this appearance is indeed presented in the fossil remains of these
creatures, once the tenants of the sea in our own latitude ; but we
are now able to describe with more minuteness, if not so vividly, the
real nature of the animal It was of small size, not more than a few
inches or a foot in length ; its head and body were defended by strong
plates of bone, coated with enamel ; and its shape and proportions
were singularly unlike those of ordinary fishes, the head being small,
and the body much flattened but swelling out immediately at the
junction of the head and neck, and gradually tapering thence towards
the tail From the junction of the head and bodv there extended
that pair of singtdar paddles, or wings, from which the genus has
been named, and which have been supposed to answer the same pur-
pose as the horns of the orescent-shaped shield of tho CepkaUupitf
and to defend the animal from the attacks of its soft-mouthed enemies.
Besides those paddles, which were hard and pointed, and nearly as
long as the body, at least some species of Pieriehtkyt seem to have
been provided with another smaller pair extending from the part
where the body is attached to the tail ; and it is thought that this
second pair of wings mav be the remains of anal fins, the other pair
representing the pectoral fins. The body, like the head, was certainly
covered on the upper side by hard plates, accurately fitting one
another, but the lower part boUi of the head and body was probably
defended by tough skin, capable of distension, and enabling the crea-
ture to swallow prey of large size. The position of ike mouth is not
known with certainty, but it may have been formed by a transverse
slit, covered by thick fleshy lips, situated ix)und the edge of the plate
which defended the head ; this position, and the abaence of teeth,
readily accounting for the difficulty there is in discovering remains of
it in imperfect specimens. The eyes and the apertures of the nostrils
were pr6bably extremely small, and placed on the edge of the broad
plate, the only indication of the head hitherto met with. The tail
was not long, but seems to have been thick and conical, and covered
with scales overlapping each other like the tiles on the roof of a
house.
"The departure from the general form of most fishes in this
animal is so remarkable, that, when first discovered, it was looked
upon by some naturalists as an insect, by others as a crustacean, and
by others again it was thought to be connected with reptiles, owing
to the singular resemblance of one small species to the shell of a
tortoise. Strange as it undoubtedly is however in all respects, this
genus forms one of an extinct family of fishes, and it is allied to the
other genera of its olaas by the genus Coccoiteut, which at one time
was thought still more anomalous. The Goccostetu is entirely with
out the wing-like projections which characterise the PUrickJthyt, and
while when seen, as in ordinary specimens, lying on its back and crushed,
it appears to bear no resemblance to any fish or other animal, either
recent or extinct ; it was not in reality much unlike many well-known
fishes in its general outline, although so oddly coated with large broad
plates, which were studded with enamel instead of scales.
" The head of the Coccotteua was large, broad, and high, nearly cir-
cular in shape, covered by several plates, and attached to the body by
a very small articulating surface, ],*esembling in this the insects, and
departing widely from the fishes. The jaws are large in proportion,
and armed with very strong pointed teeth ; the mouth opened as in
the cod and other well-known fishes, and no doubt rendered the
animal sufficiently formidable ; and the lower part of the head seems
to have been covered with a tough membrane capable of distension,
and enabling the animal to swallow very large bodies ; the upper part
of the body was chiefly covered by one large plate, and the lower
part by four plates of rather curious shape. The tidl was large, and
much longer than the body, and was provided with two small fins.
The detached plates, more especially those which covered the body,
are frequently found fossil in certain localities of the Old Red-Sand-
stone. The fishes just described form together one of several groups
characteristic of the period we are now considering. But another
group also, containing four genera, is worthy of notice, as contrasting
strongly with the OephaleupideB (as the former are called), and instead
of being clothed with lai^ge plates, these are recognised by the
extremely minute scales with which the fish belonging to it are
covered. These scales give to the skin ui appearance very strikingly
resembling shagreen.
" The size of the fishes thus brought together is generally small,
and their shape is squat and awkward, the head being large, and the
body dwindling away to a very small tail They have however lafge
teeth, and must have been powerful if not very rapid fishes. Their
fins offer some peculiarities, being formed of a multitude of delicate-
jointed rays, generally terminated by one very powerful ray or spine,
sometimes simply planted in the flesh, sometimes articulated to bone.
Both this group and the former are entirely confined to the first
epoch, and almost entirely to the particular period of the Old Red-
Sandstone.
** Another group of these ancient fishes (Dipterians) is remarkable
for the great magnitude to which the fins were developed, and the
fact that in all of them the fins on the back and below the tail are
double. The jaws of these animals were provided with sharp pointed
teeth ; the head inclosed as if in a box of cartilage coated with enamel,
and the scales of the body are in some species so large as not to hare
required more than half a dozen to reach from head to tail. This
however was by no means a general character ; and the presence of
prominent spines supporting and defending the fins is probably more
essential It is probable that almost, if not all, the fishes of this
family of Dipterians were more rapid swimmers and more voracious
than those of the former two families. They are all however of small
size. Besides these there is another family, chiefly developed .in the
latter part of the period, and attaining a larger size. One of the
members of this gronp has been named MohptychiMi, and is confined
to the Devonian period. Its head was small compared with the size
of the body, whose proportions were so robust, and its covering of
large, rounded, deeply-wrinkled scales, on so grand a scale as almost
to deserve being called gigantic. The actual measurement of the body
in one complete specimen is 80 inches by upwards of 12 inches. The
jaws were of bone coated with naked enamel ; a row of thickly-set
i
FISSURELLID^E.
8S0
E dinted te«th frioged the lipg, uid wiUiiD tiua row another, vhoie
ulk wu at leut twsDt; timei u gnat. The other geoiu, Mtgalieh-
thyi, vfM porhapi ttiore strikingly ch»r»ct«ri»tic of th« Qeit »ueoeoding
period, during which the CBrboniTeroiu Limealone juid Co>I were
''eing deposited; vid it may therefore be &e well to poHtpooe for the
present any description of it."
(Owen, Ledwei on Comparative Anatomy, vol. ii.; YamjII, BritUh
Puha ; Agaasiz, SecAerchn nir lu Poiaom PouiUt ; Agssriz, Etpori on
the Pouil FiA of tkt Devonian Syttem ; Itnuo^ioiu of Britiih Ato-
ria(Mn, 1842; RicbordKin, £qior( on t\t pratnl Slatt of tht Ickihyology
of New Zealand, ib. ; Agassif, Sgnoptieal TabU of Brilith Fouil Fiiha,
ib. ISIS ; Agaaaiz, Sar Ut Poittom FettiUt dt FArgUt dt Londra, ib.
1844.)
FISH-LICE. rCilJQDS.1
FI8HE3, FOSSIL, [FiaH.]
FI3H1NQ-FROO. [LoPHnJi]
FISSIROSTRES, the Swallow Tribe of Birds, distia|uiahed bj a
very broad bill with a verj wide gups, and amall and feeble feet
Thejr belong to the order Inieuora, or Ferchera, add take their fbod
on the wing. [HiBCTNiiniiDS ; IiraEsaoBBS.]
FISSURELLID.¥:, a family of Prosobran chute OaateiopodouB
Uollatea. This family constitutes a very natural transition iVom
Iho Limpets [Patkllids], to the completely spiral umTalve ahelk.
All the species of this family are remarkable for some solution of
continuity in the shell, either a perforatioD or a slit in the region of
the Tsnt The form of th«ir shells Is more or less comcal, with
indications of a rudimentary spire at the apox, whidi often diiappean
with increming age. The ntumala hare well-developed heads, with
short muzzles and subulate tentacles, at the eitemal bases of which
are the eyes placed on rudimentary pedicles.
This family embraces the genera Piuirella, Emarginnla, Pnocfu-
relta, Ptavtoplutnu, and Bimnla,
The Puturetln, wBich Cuvier places among the Scntibranches, his
seventh order of Oasteropods, have a large Ssahy disc or foot
beneath the belly, like the Patella, and a conical shell &ied upon
the middle of the back but not always antirely covering it, for this
shell is pierced at ita summit with a small aperture, ganenilly oval,
which, according to Cuvier, serres at the same time as a passage for
the water □eoessary (o respiration and as an outlet for the excrements.
This aperture penetrates Into the cavity of the branchlfe rituated on
the fore part of the back, and in the bottom of which the vent
discharaes itself. This cavity is, betides, vridel; opened above the
head. There ia on each aide, symmetrically disposed, a pectinated
bnnohia or gilL The tentacula are conical, at the external baaea of
which the eyes are situated. The sides of the foot are fri^pied with
Jrfty says, "
"In the young state of the ^uurtllte,
I hole by which ^e fffices pass out of ihe shell is placed a little
in front of its recurved and spiral apex ; in tSis state it haa been
formed into a genua under the namaa of mmvla sod Pmetur^la.
But as the aniiml grows, the hole anlargaa in size baokwardi, and
the true apex being absorbed, the hole appears in the adult thell
to be placed on the tip. and in some species even to extend
The muscular impression is in the form of a horae^oe, with the
opening in front.
ebtll of KiiKTctla.
De BUnrille thui arranges the genus : —
a. Spedea which hare the middle part of the borders of the
opening exoavated as it were, so tbat when placed upon a flat
Burface, they railj touiji it at Uieir extrsmiues. Ex. Piuvniia
Deshaysa obserrss that the synonymy of this species ha* been
veiy faulty from the time of LiODSiua downwards ; and he remarks
'hst three species are confomided under Patella nimboia in the 12th
lition of the 'Systama NKturss.' Deshayea adds that the species
'US named in Lamarck's collection, and that ha has seen it, and
therefore knows what Lamarck meant by his Fiuurella nimboea.
The Egure from which our cut is taken, that of Martini I. t. xi.
f. ei.E>2, is one of those references which Daahayes ' would leave
untouched as Indicating the species.
B. Spaciae more depressed, &c., so that when ptaoed upon a
Burfaoe, Uie extremities are raised, forming a Und of oanaL
Pitturdia rota. Locality, Guyana, Ac.
Locality, Hediterranean and Atlantic.
The distribution and habits of the Fiuurdlidoi an the same as tiioie
of Patdla. Like that genus, Pittnrdla is littoral, and has been found
at deptha ranging from the sur&ce to 26 fathoma
The following species are described as British by Messrs. Forbsa
and Hanley : Puna-Ma retietHata, Punaurdla Soaehina, SnargmvUa
HiaUata, S. roKO, S. cnuso.
Ofoen, Mmargmula and formopAofiu.— Cuvier obaervBH that the
EmargimUa have exactly the same structure as the FutureUiF, with
this exception, that the former, instead of the aperture at the apex
of the shell, have in their mantle and shell a small slit or notch at
thrir anterior border, which opens into the branchial cavity. The
borders of the mantle envelop and cover a great portion of those
of the shelL
The eyes are dtnated upon a tubercle at the external baasa of the
conical tentacula. The edges of the foot are furnished with a cow o(
filamenti. Q. B. Sowerby observee that " the animal of the Fitnrttta
is very nearly related to that of Smarginvta, as the shell is to the
EmM^iinUa itself; the fissure in the anterior maivin of the latter
serving lor the same purposes as the perforation in the vertex of the
torraer. One difference however is peculiarly observable, which is that
in BmargimUa the vertex ia directed poeteriorly, contniriwise to that
of FittitrtUii ; for Lamarck is mistaken in spwjdng of the notch o
branchin and the rest of ^e organs are tho same as they are in the
two preoeding genere. Q. B. Sowerb; thus writes upon this point
( 'Qonera of Slwlls ') ; — " EmargintUa la more nearly related to Pitiu-
rtUa than to PalMa, inasmuch aa ita branohira are not external, and
the little fissure or notch in the anterior edge is only the termination
of a narrow canal, that aervas the same purpose In this shell as the
perforation in the summit of Piuartua. It is obeervabls that
ijunarek has placed EmarginiUa next to Farmiqihona, without
seeming to have remarked the very great resemblance of the animals
to each other; we have thought ouiselvse Justified, both by the
cbaiBcters of the shelln and of the an'ii«l«, in uniting them ; this may
be objected to periiapa on account of the great difiereuce in general
form ; but we answer that there are some species of Lamarckian
Ematymuio!, one of which we have figured, which approach very
nearly to Blainville'a .PanjiopSoms in shape. Anotier objection may
raise from the apparent want of the anterior fissure in PornupWlM
but it will be Men tlut the uitoior edge of the ahell ii almys aome-
what smu^inale, while id the littutioD of the btanehue, the anterior
Sman in the mantle of the «"tTn«i, and in the podtkm of the vertex
in tba Bhell, thej exactly roemble each other ; we therefore coaaider
the /'amopAeri of BlajnTille and lAmaick aa elongated and com-
ptewt d Stuarffinala.' ' Deahayea,inbl>editionof Laiuarck(183S),thua
axjiieaaea hii a{iiiuoii : — " CuTier wm the fint who gave anatomical
detaila of the gsniu Emargiimla, and he loade it appear how much
analog; eiiited between it and ^unrcUo, Then ezuta, neTertheleas,
batmvD theaa two genera aafflcieat diffeieacea to warrant their con-
tinuance in ajalematic UTaagement. But it ia not so with regard to
Pai mttpkana. H. de BlainTille, to whom we owe thia laat genua,
and who waa the flrat to make the animal known, had juiliiaoiialy
pmoonoeiTed the neceanty of ita junction with EmargiiuJa. In
fac^ not only hare the animala oT the two genera a perfect
analogy, and not only can they be with difficulty diitinguiahed
in acnna caaea and in aome ipeciei, bat the aheUa thsmeeWei,
aa might have been luppoeed h priori, ofiiir aome [laaamiia from
tba one genua to the other, the number of whidi will be aug-
mented by new reaearcheo. Whenws hara bafon oa a Uriy complete
aeriea of liring and ftiaail ipeciea betongisjr to the two gaoara the
following ohwrration* occur : — The two foaail ipedee of Parmopiona
hare no trace of a marginal notch; ParwuplLona AtutraliiiiMa the
anterior border a little dapraaaed in the middle, and within the ahell
ia to be aeen, correaponding with thia depraaaion, a imall creat indi-
cating the aapaiation of the mantle. Amongthe apedea of EmiW]fitnJa
brought home by Mi mm Quoy and Qaimard there ia one whiidi they
name Pamopiabia, and whidi would atvm to be entirely depiiTod
of a nuu^naj notch. In the SuiemargimUa of U. de BlunTiIle the
■hella have no longer thia notch, but thn hare within a deep ridge
<(illon) io the place of it. Id other apeoiea, aa in Bmtnyini^ rafrra
of Iiamarck and E, degmu of H. Defranoa^ the email interior ridge ia
temdiiated on the border by a very abort notdi ; and from thia
commenconent to the termination of the aeriea of apedea we lee
thia notch become deeper and deeper, and change at laat into a deep
ipjing one half of the height of the ihelL" After dwelling
a dioerenoea of the ahella in other pointa of eitemal form,
tenda to fnae them into one, and thua concludea ; — " U. Sawerby haa
come, aa we Iuto before aaid, to thia coaolnaion, and in hia ' Qenera
of-Shella' baa united the PamoplMn to the Smorfiinla. Thia
example will without donbt be fallowed by other loologiata."
We entirely agree in thia coacludon, and conaider the fallowing
arrangement of Emargiimia by De BlainTille ae merely arbitrary,
and oaleulatad to aaaiat the coocihologtat and foaail toologiat in hia
aabdiviaion of thia moUuacoilB form.
FISSURELLID.£.
SheU of Xmrnr/iuiiU [K »«iai).
a. Spedee whoae notoh la in the middle of the back of the ahell, and
far fh>m rewshing the edge. (Rinula^ tii SitKjiiain 1 tst Defrance.)
i', p —'a BlaittviUii.
fi. Comprcaaed apeciea, wboas antotior border ia deeply no
tiw aummit ataimgly marked: (Lea Entaillea.) Ex. i
t- Speciaa atill more comprened, whoae anterior border ia only bent
into a gutter, and whoie aummit ia itill evident (St^emaiyinvla.)
Ex. BmarginuUi anaryinala.
s
DiMial tla ; h, aufnUed ; c, BagniOed, the
aalmal in ^In.
d pnamedian, with a imall
Pttrmopkenu (Senium of Da Hontfort).— Ex. P. Aiulrali; syn.
eltn^vi (PotcUa auMgwi, Linn.)
Localiliea, a«M of Anilralia and Kew Zealand.
SmargiiMila and Parmiiphonu are littoral ahella like PaltSa, and
their habita are aimllar to thoee of the last-named genua, i^ryi-
mda haa bean found at deptha ranpng &om tba aurlaee to 11
Pettil Piu<tTdlida.-~0. K Sowerby aaya that a few fossit epeciea
are found In the truly marine forma^na abore the ChalL Deahayea,
in hia Tables eoomaratea 3S liring apeciee and 6 fneail (tertiary).
Of these, F. Qnrca, P. mttaria, and F. tiegUcta, he atatea to be both
living (the two former in the European and Indian oceana, and the
latter in the Hedilemnean) and fouil, in the pliocene (all three) and
miocene (the two latter) periods of Lyell (Sicily, Italy in the aub-
Apeimine bed^ Engliah Cng, and Touiaine). He meations three
Sicilian apecie^ three Italian (sub-Apenuine beds), one in the Engli.'b
Crag, two at Dax, two io Touiaioe, two at Angara, and four at I^s.
The Fimtrdla yoadtina of DeahayeB, Palilla tfoachina of Lyell, it
living in the northern seaa, and found foaeil in Sweden and Norway.
It appeals to be between a Pimrtila and an Smarffintda, and it is not
impoaaible that it may be a FitmrtUa in a young state.
O. R Sowerby (' Genera of Recent and Fosail Sheila ') obaerrea that
the foaail EnuirgiiiiiUa are scarce. " They occur," adds that author,
" in the caleaire groerier and ita contempomry strata ; in the crag of
Suffolk, Eaez, and Norfolk ; and in the Bath oolite. They are very
elegant LtUe foanla, particularly Lamarck's S. clypeata. We cannot
consider hia P. ilmtgatrnt aa a spedea of thia genus, for ita vertex ia
anterior, aa ita muscular impreaaion demonatntca; oonaequently wa
find in it no mad of a canal at either end ; it mnat therefore be
classed with PattOa."
Deahayea, in hia Tablea, girea T living epede* of Stuoyiaula, and
1 1 fossil (tertiary), one, S. jtmni, an inhabitant of the European and
833
FISTULARIA.
FLINTY-SLATE.
834
Mediterranean Boaa, foasil in the Crag at Bordeaux and Dax, and at
Paris (Pliocene, Miocene, and Eocene periods of Lyell). De la B^che
enumerates two in the Blue Marls of tne south of France, namely, one
cdosely approaching^, fitawra of Lamarck and E. reticuUUa of Sowerby.
In the Cretaceous group he gives two, E. Sanckg Catherina and
JE. pdagicOf both from Rouen. In the Oolitic group ho records one
species, R sccUarit, Sowerby, from the great oolite at Ancliff, Wilts.
Deshayes, in his edition of Lamarck (1886), enumerates 11 living
rcies, and 5 found only in the fossil state, namely B. costtUa and
elypeata, Lamarck, from Qrignon; R radiola, Lamarck, from
Fames ; and E. elegans and E. clcUhrcUa, Deshayes, the first from Paris
and Vfdognes, and the other, a rare species, from Pamee.
Deshayes, in his Tables, gives 2 living and 2 fossil species of
ParmophoTUB (tertiary), one from Touraine (Miocene period of Lyell) ;
and he enumerates 2 from the Crag, 8 from Touraine, 8 from Angers,
5 from Paris, and 2 from Valognes. In lus edition of Lamarck he
notes 2 species only as fossil, one, P. eUmgisiutf Lamarck, with a variety,
from Qrignon, and the other, P. anffuatust Deshayes, from Paris.
Woodward in his ' Manual of the MoUuaca,' gives the following
numbers of the fossil species of FisaureUidce : —
FiuurdlOf 26 species. Qreat Britain and France.
Puncturellaf 2 species. In the Qlacial Formations of North Britain.
Emarginula, 40 species. Triassic, Britain and France.
ParmopkoruM, 8 species. Paris Basin.
FISTULA'RLA, a genus of Acanthopterygious Fishes, remarkable
for the extreme elongation of the anterior part of the head, forming
a tube, at the extremity of which is the mouth. The Fuiularia tqba-
carta of the Antilles is the type. It lives on little fishes and OnutaeeOf
which it draws out from the interstices of stones and holes in rocks
by means of its long trunk or beak. Two other species are known, the
F. aerrata and the F. immaculaia. They are all small fishes^ not
reaching two feet in length, slender, and eel-shaped.
FLABELLA'RIA, a genus of Fossil Plants. F. horatnfolia is
found in the Coal Formation. (Sternberg.)
FLACOURTIA, the type of the order FlaeowtutcecBf was named in
honour of Etienne de Flacourt, a director of the French East India
Company, and the commander of an expedition to Madagascar in 1648,
of which he gave an accotmtb This genus is dicecious ; the staminiferous
flowers have their stamens densely crowded, a hemispherical receptacle,
and are glandless at the base; the pistilliferous flowers have the
calyx 4-6H:left» dedduous; the stigmas 4-9, each furnished with a
longitudinal furrow above ; the seeds long. The species are thorny
shrubs, with whitish sepals and yellow stamens.
F, Bamcntehi has roundish ovate acute crenated leaves. This shrub
attains a height of 8 feet, and is a native of the island of Madagascar,
where it is cfdled RamontchL The fruit, which is edible, is about the
sise of a small plum, is red when ripe, at length becoming violet-
coloured. It has a sweet and acid taste. There is a small island ofif
the coast of Madagascar which is covered with these trees. This
island is called by English sailors Plum-Tree Island ; by the French,
Isle aux Prunes.
F. $apida has elliptical leaves, serrated, bluntiah at both extremities.
It is a native of the mountainous districts of the East Indies. The
fruit is about the sise of a common currant^ and of a red colour.
The fruit is eaten by the natives, and the tree is called by the Telingese
Pedda Caurew.
F. inermia has elliptical crenato-serrated leaves, with short axillary
racemes of hermaphrodite flowers. It is an unarmed tree, attaining
a height of 80 feet. It has reddish-purple berries of a pleasant acid
taste. It is a native of the Moluccas, where it is also extensively
cultivated for the sake of its fruit There are several other species
of FlaeourttOf all of them yielding edible fruits. The young shoots
and leaves of F. caiaphracta, which have the taste but not the bitter-
ness of rhubarb, are considered astringrait and stomachic, and are
prescribed' in the Circars accordingly. The infusion of F, aqpiaria ia
thought to be useful as a remedy for the bites of snakes.
FLACOURTLA'CEiE, or FLACOURTLA'NE^, Bixada, a natural
order of Plants belonging to Lindley's parietose group of Polypetalous
Exogens. It has from 4-7 definite sepals cohering slightly at the base ;
the petals equal in number with the sepals, and alternate with them,
sometimes wanting ; the stamens hypogynous, equalling the petals, or
twice as many or some multiole of them, and sometimes appearing
as scales forming a nectary ; tne ovary roundish, distinct^ sessile, or
slightly stalked ; the style absent or filiform ; the stigmas equal in
number to the valves of the ovary, more or less distinot frY)m each
other; the fruit 1-celled, sometimes indehiscent and fleshy, some-
times capsular, 4-5-valved, filled with a fine pulp inside ; the seeds few,
thick, usually enveloped in a pellicle formed by the withered pulp,
the albumen fleshy, somewhat oily, the embryo straight in the axis,
with Uie radicle turned to the hilum, and therefore usually superior;
the cotyledons flat, foliaceous. This order consists of shrubs and
small trees, with alternate simple coriaceous leaves on short stalks,
and axillary many-flowered peduncles.
The afSnities of this order are with Samydacea, LacittemacecBf
PangiaeetB, and TtLiacea, They may be distinguished frt)m all other
plants by their unilocular fruit having their mside wholly covered
with the placentsd. About 81 genera and 85 species are referred to
this order.
KAT. HIST. DIV. VOL. IL
These plants are natives of the hottest parts of the East and West
Indies and Africa. Three of the genera — Flacowrtia, HydTMcarput,
and Chmilmoogrc^—yvAdi plants used by man ; few, if any, are cultivated
for ornament.
Bydnocarpua (from SSroy, a tuber, and KdfnroT, a fruit) has dioecious
flowers, the staminiferous ones with 6 stamens, 5 sepals, the two outer
ones being ovate, 5 petals with villous margins furnished with a scale
on the inside; the berry is spherical, terminated by four reflexed
tuberdes. There is only one species of this genus, which is a tree
about 80 feet in height, the ff, venenata of Oertner, and JEf. indfriana
of VahL It is a native of Ceylon. The fruit when eaten produces
sickness, giddiness, and a dangerous form of intoxication. It is
greedily devoured by fishes, which become stupified, but when taken
in this way they produce poisonous effects as food.
ChatUmoogra {Gynoearaia) is a dioecious genus ; the staminiferous
flowers with a 4-5-lobed calyx, 5 petals with a scale at the base of
each ; the pistilliferous the same, except the stamens, the ovary supe-
rior, 1-celled, with numerous ovides, and 5 parietal plaoentsd, 5 styles ;
the fruit succulent, dry, 1-celled, many-seeded.
C. odorata has short-stalked, alternate, bifarioos, drooping, lanceo-
late, entire, acuminate, smooth, exstipulate leaves, 6 to 10 inches long,
li to 2i inches broad. It is a native of Silhet THe seeds are
employed extensively by the natives of India as a remedy for
cutaneous diseases. In those cases they are applied externally ; the
testa being removed from the seed, the perisperm is beaten up with
clarified butter into a soft mass, and appUed to the part affected three
times a day. The Indian names of this plant are Chaulmoogra and
Petarkura. [Pakoiaoko.]
Other genera belonging to this order are — Ryancea, named by
Vahl after John Ryan, who collected plants in Guyana; Pairiaia,
named after M. Patns, who collected plants in Quvana ; JZoiunea, after
Philippe Rose Roume de St Laurent, an agent of the French govern-
ment at St Domingo, who was of great service to Poiteau, who
travelled there; Eiggelaria, after FranoiB Kiggelar, a Dutdi botanist
of the 17th century ; Stigmarota, MeUeytua, Erythroapermwn, Pcmgivm,
and Vareca.
(Don, DichlamydeovM Plania; Lindley,' iVolura* Syatem; Lindley,
Flora Medica; Burnett, Outlmea of Botany.)
FLAG. [Iris.]
FLAGSTONK A variety of Sandstone in which the lammated
structure prevails is thus termed. Other laminated or thin-bodied
rocks, as certain limestones and some argillaceous beds oi the Silurian
series, receive the same title. The laminations of flagstone arise
from peculiarity of deposition ; the laminations of slate (properly so
called) arise firom a new structure superadded to that of deposition,
and possessing a certain symmetry and relations to lines and axes,
which are at least analogous to crystalline arrangements.
FLAMINGO. [DuoKk]
FLAX. rLiNUM.1
FLEA. [PuLBX.1
FLEABANE. [Conyza.]
FLEXUOSL [AuMONiTEB.]
FLINDERSLA. [Ceobklacsjl]
FLINT, a mineral substance composed prindpally of Silica.
[SnJOA.] It is found mostly in the Chalk Formation. The true
origin of thiB mineral substance — as it occurs in the Chalk of Europe
especially — has been, and still is, the subject of much discussion
among microscopists and geologists. Mr. Bowerbank believes gene-
rally in the origin of flints (and some allied minerals) from sponges.
In confirmation of this view spioula, such as characterise the Siliceous
Sponges (H<dxapongia)y are found in flint, and on the surfaces of flints
peculiar marks of organisation referrible to spongeous texture.
Ehrenberg, finding in some flints abimdance of Infusorial Anitnalcuia^
suggests the origin of flint from aggregations of these siliceous-shielded
MicroaoarUi, Mr. Charlosworth has recently fotmd flint occupying the
dosed pulp cavity of a tooth of Moaaaaurua, and regards this fiust as
opposed to both speculations.
* There can be little doubt that, whatever substances are found in the
flint, or it ma^ be found in connection witii, it has been depo-
sited from solution in water. Not only is flint found in connection
with sponges and Infuaoria, but also with Echinodermata and other
animal remains of the Chalk. The substance called Chert has the
gencpd characters of Flint, and frequently contains in its interior loose
partides of sand. [Agate.] From this droumstance there can be little
doubt that the chert has been formed from the deposit of silica upon
rolled masses of sand. In the same manner it appears probable the
siliceous matter has been deposited in the cavities left by sponges and
other animals after they had been covered up by the chalk at the
bottom of the ocean. It has been supposed, in the case of sponges^
that this process poes on at the bottom of the sea, but this is hi^y
improbable, and it is much more likdy that the flint is formed by a
process of percolation long after the animal remains with which it is
found in contact have been buried up by the chalk. That silex is
readily made to assume this form is seen in the cases of silicifled wood,
in its deposit in vegetable structures, in its existence around the
locality of geysers, and in ike very ready manner in which it is predpi-
tated in an insoluble form from its solutions.
FLINTY-SLATE, or SILICEOUS SCHISTUS, is a substance
8 H
836
FLIXWEED.
FLOWER.
638
which is found chiefly in beds in transition mountuns. It occon
in Saxony, the Harz, Bohemia, &c. It occurs also in Scotland, in the
Pentland and Muirfoot Hills, in the Isle of Skye, &c.
The substance is of various colours, gray, bluish-gray, and red ; its
structure is rather slaty ; on the edges it is translucent; it is dull, or
only glimmering; hard, and broken with difficulty.
It contains about 75 per cent, of Bilica, the remainder being lime,
magnesia, and oxide of iron.
The Basanite, or Lydian Stone^ is considered to be a variety of
flinty-slate ; it has not however a slaty structure, and is not so hard
as flinty-slate. It occurs in Bohemia and Himgary, but was first
brought from Lydia in Asia Minor, whence its name. It is employed
when polished for trying gold by a comparison of colours, and has
thence obtained the name of Touchstona
FLIXWEED. [SiBTXBBiniL]
FLOAT-STOKE, a variety of Quartz found in the Chalk Format
tions of Menil Montant, near Paris. It conaiBts of fibres or filaments
aggregated in a spongy form, and so light as to float in water.
npLOOK, or FLUKE. [PLBURONECTiDiB.]
FLORA. The collective vegetation of a country is called its Flora,
in the same manner as the animals are called its Fauna. Thus we
speak of the Flora of Great Britain, the Flora of Europe, meaning
tnereby all the plants growing in those parts of the world. The term
is also applied to books, or lists, descriptive of the ulants of a country.
FLOS FEBRL [ABRAaoNiTB.]
FLOUNDER. [Pleuboneoiida.]
FLOWER, that part of a plant in which the organs of reproduction
are placed. The flower originates from a bud, and is nothing more
than a particular modification in the perfecting of the parts contained
in the bud; namely, the several foliar oigans and intemodes. Only
two essential processes of development can exist, aod from those only
two essential organs, as fundamental organs, can be formed in the
plant ; namelv, &e Ajob and the Leaf. All the several parts of the
nower must therefore be referrible to these fundamental organs, and
be traced back to them. Since Oothe's time this tracing back has
been termed the Metamorphosis of Plants. Originally tmis mode of
considering the flower rested solely on Comparative Morphology, and
the obserration of cases in which the interruption of the usual pro-
cesses of development^ in some or all parts of the flower, caused those
parts to reassume forms in which it was not difficult to recognise the
nature of the ftmdamental organ from which they had been produced.
This latter has been termed Retrogressive Metamorphosis. As examples
of it^ we may mention the dififorent monstrofdtiee, the doubling of a
flower through the tnmsition of the stamens into petals, the transition
of the petals and sepals into the common leaves of the plant, ftc.
This mode of establifuiing the foundations of the doctrine of meta-
morphosis has however two essential faults : since, in the first place,
it#seeks to obtain individual facts by means of hypotheses and com-
parisons ; while, secondly, its progress depends entirely upon favour-
able circumstances. The only correct and sure ground on which to
rest this doctrine is the history of development
In Phanerogamic Flowers the followmg parts are distinguished,
proceeding frt)m without inwards : — 1. The Floral Envelopes, as the
£xtemal Calyx (Epiealyx), of which the parts are Leaves (PhyUa) ;
the Calyx, the paits of which are Sepals ; the Corolla, the separate
~ )rtions of which are Petals ; or, instead of these three, the Perianth
'erianthium), whose separate parts are Leaves (Phylla) : 2. The
Stamens (Stamina), around and within which some stunted accessory
foliar organs appear under very various names : and lastly, 8, in the
centre of the flower, the Pistil (Pistillum), the separate foliar organs
of which are Carpels (Carpella). In the stamens the lower thread-
like portion, which is termed the Filament (Filamentum), is distin-
guished from the upper thick and hollow part, containing the Dust
(Pollen), called the AjiHier (Anthera). In the pisti], the lower part sur-
rounding the Ovules or Seed-Buds ((stommulne) is called the Qermen ;
the upper free part, which is usually covered with papillso, is termed
the Stigma, and between these two frequently a stalk-like elongation
of the germen occurs, called the Style.
The flower of Phamerogamia is the only physiologically determinate
organ of the plant, since it contains the apparatus for the regular
propagation. But to this only two parts contribute — ^namely, the
stamens, as generators and receptacles of the pollen ; and the seed-
bud or ovule, as the place in which the pollen is developed into tJie
embryo. All the remaining parts of the flower — namely, Uie envelopes
of the whole perianth, the calyx and corolla, the receptacles con-
taining the se<d-bud (the germens, styles, and stigma), are not, in a
physiological sense, essential, and tiiey may be absent, without the
flower losing its correspondence to the character by which a flower
isdeflned.
In the correct (morphological) view of the flower, there is no dis-
tinction between essential and inessential forms, and therefore it is
necessarily more proper to divide it into axiaJ and foUar organs.
The following relations should be borne in mind : — ^The axis and its
modifications are the basis of the fiower, because to them the foliar
organs are attached. Attached to the outer part of the axis of the
fiower occur several forms of true foliar organs^ the floral envelopei^
accessory leaflets, and stamens. The innermost part is occupied by
organs which are formed from true axial organs, or an intimate blend-
ing of these with foliar organs, which are termed the female apparatus,
or better, the rudiment of the fruit. At the same time the parts of
the flower are usually grouped together and treated generally, accord-
ing to the relations of number and position, as weU as of duration.
Thus we obtain this plan for our following investigations : —
A. The Axial Oi^ans of the flower.
B, The number, relative position, and duration of the parts of the
flower.
O, The true Foliar Organs of the flower.
a. The Floral Envelopes.
b. The Stamens.
c The Accessory Foliar Organs.
2>. The Rudimentuy Fruit.
a. ThePistiL
h. The Spermophoro.
c. The Seed-Buds.
The Anthers have been called the male organs of a plant (with the
superfluous collective term Androeceum); the Seed-Buds and their
receptacle the Pistil, the female parts (together the Gynoeoeum). A
flower that contains both parts is termed Hermaphrodite (Floe Her-
maphroditus). Flowers that contain only one of those kinds of organs
are termed Unisexual Flowers (Flores Unisexualee, Dicllni). Wlien,
in the last case, male and female flowers (mas et femina) appear on
the same individual plants such plant is termed Monoecious (Planta
Monoica) ; when they appear on separate individuals the plant is termed
Dioecious (Planta Dioica). An Inflorescence which contains both male
and female flowers, also is termed Inflorescentia Androgyna. Hers
again it must be distinguished whether the male and female blossoms
are formed upon difiSarent plans, as in the OvpuUferm (Didines) ; or
whether, through the suppression of one or other part, a pseudo-
diclinous condition appears in a flower formed on the plan of a
hermaphrodite. This latter condition, which is never found to run
through all the examples of any species of plant, brings monoecious
and dioecious species into hermaphrodite genera, and suggested to
Linnaeus the establishment of his 28rd class, PUygamia, where in
one and the same species male, female, and hennaphrodite flowers
arepresent.
There are very few flowers of so simple a structure that they
consist only of one simple essential part^ so that no formation of inter-
nodes is possible within the flower ; and the extremity of the pedioela
immediately supports the floral parts existing. This is the case in
the male flower of the EttphorbuBt where the end of a pedicel beara
one single stamen ; also in the niale flower of the AbietinetB, where
one single foliar organ, converted into a stamen, constitutes the entire
flower. It is also the case in tiie female flower of Taxua, where the
small pedicel, clothed with bracts, terminates immediately in the
naked seed-bud. In the generality of flowers however several parts
are united which do not stand at equal heights on the axis, and thus
more or fewer undeveloped intemodes take part in the structure of
the flower. The original condition of the intemodes, is here also
most frequently permanent ; and the pedicel, after the detachment of
all the parts of the flower, frequently ends in a small slightiy
thickened knot, which represents the collective intemodes of the flower
in an undeveloped condition, — ^the simple base or receptacle of the
flower (Torus). Examples in which individual intemodes become
elongated are rather rare. In some &milies they are elongated
between the inner floral envelopes and the stamens (Androphorum),
and between the stamens and the germen ((^ynophorum). The latter
is generally termed Oermen Stipitatum. There are examples of both in
ih.e Pcmi/lantceas and the Oapparidacece.
A considerably longer part, without elongation of the individual
intemodes, frequently occurs as a gynophore m flowers which contain
many germens (as in the EoaacecB, the Rawtnculaceat, MagnoUacM,
&C.) ^ A^ain, the gynophore is often presented as a hemispherical or
cushion-Uke part> as in some other JRatcioea! and BanwhetdaoetB. A very
rare form of it is that of a reversed cone, which bears the gemiens
upon a base turned upward, as in Ndtmbivm, In the rarest instances^
with the exception of this case, the axis of the flower is elongated
within the floral parts even without ending as a germen ; but this
does sometimes occur, as in the male flowers of some Palms and
other plants; for example Chamcedona, where the points of the petals
unite with the apex of the axis of the flower which passes up through
them.
In very crowded inflorescences, the torus of an axillary bud
developes obliquely, and rises up on one side, especially beneath the
germen, so as to appear as a part of its side-wall; this happens with
most of the Qrasses. A siznilar circumstance, arising from a similar
cause, happens when many single germens are present in one flower,
by the division of the torus^ which forms the basis of each of those
germens, and thus assumes the appearance of forming a part of the
wall of the germen (as in PakmoffeUm and JDryodaoea),
But the developement of the intemodes into a Disc, or in a hollow
cup, is far more frequent in the flower. If the collective intemodes
of the flower form a hollow body, or even a cylindrical elongated
tube, which indoees only seed-buds, and bears all the floral parts
upon its upper edge, all this is the so-called Inferior Gkrmen or (/vary
(Germen Inierum).
Every other similar expansion of the Intemodes of the flowers
837
FLOWER.
FLOWER.
838
which does not immediately bear seed-buds, is called the Disc (Discus).
This may be situated beneath the rudiment of the fruit (Discus Hypo-
gynus), and then may be flat^ as in PotetUtUa and Frctgaria; or oup-
shaped, as in Botok, Populus {wuu), ftc. ^ This latter may be free
{Rom), or may be blended with the germen'situated inside it (Pyrtu) ;
or it m^ pass off from the middle of the (half-inferior) germen
(Discus Perigynus), as in many MyrtaeecB ; or, lastly, it may rise above
the (inferior) germen, and stand upon it (Discus Epigynus). Here it
is very rarely (or never f) flat, but funnel-shaped, as in Chdetia; in the
form of a long tube, as in (Enothera; or resembling a style, as in the
OrehidaeetB and Arittohehiaeea. In all these cases, the foliar organs
of the flower may be situated in vexy difibrent planes. Usually,
indeed, they coUeotively fbrm a zone around the edge of the flat or
concave discs ; Uien the discs may be said to correspond to as many
discs lying one above another as there are intemodes implied by
the number of foliar organs. Frequently the true foliar organs stand
around the edge of the disc ; and upon its inner or upper sui&ce the
germens are arranged in one or more circles (as in Bosa, Punica,
Onagraeeas). More rarely the floral envelopes alone stand on the
border, while the stamens are then at a distance from them, upon an
internal prolongation of the disc, as in the OrehidaeetB.
The disc is by no means always regularly developed, but sometimes
enlarged at one side only, whereby the whole flower appears oblique,
thus in Reseda, The most remarkable structure is in Pelargoniwn,
where the disc forms a cavity to one side of the pedundci and in
Tropaolvm, where the spur is formed solely by the disc.
There are but few special observations to be made respecting the
structure of the intemodes of the flower ; it is in general like that of
annual stems; but it should be remarked that they often possess
fewer vascular bundles, and these of simpler development. The inter-
nodes (as also some of the foliar organs) within the flower, frequently
do not have the epidermis developed, but, instead of this, a delicate
soft cellular tissue, somewhat yellowish in colour, and often con-
taining a saccharine secretion, forms the investment of the surface
(Nectarium).
It is very rarely that a flower consists of one part only, as in the
male flowers of 3uphorbiaf Lemna, and Wolffiot, which are formed of
one foliar organ, the anther ; or the female flower of Taxut, which is
formed of one axial organ, the seed-bud. Usually more parts unite to
form a flower : thus the female flower of most of the Aracece consists
of one or more seed-buds, and a carpel surrounding theuL The male
flower of the SalicaceeB consists of a scale-like disc and several stamens.
In the generality of cases, male and female organs are both present in
the same flower : they are seldom naked, as in ffi^ppuris, but usually
surrounded by floral envelopes.
In axillary flowers, those parts which are turned towards the
peduncle are termed the upper, and those turned towards the bract,
where it is present, the lower. Some plants exhibit the peculiarity
that the pedicel, until the time of the blooming, makes a half turn
(analogously to the twining stem), and it may be the true pedicel, as
in Calceolaria and some Orchidaiece; or the inferior germ, as in most
of the OrchidaceaB, By this curve, ^e upper parts of such a flower
(in those plants the lip) become apparently the under; and such
flowers are termed Flores Resupinati The term is sometimes falsely
applied to those Orchidacece in which no such twisting takes* place,
but in which the lip stands regularly as the upper part of the flower,
as, for example, in Epipogium.
The individual organs of the flower taken generally, according to
the common view, and known by collective names, may originally
consist either of one piece or of more than one : in the first case they
are partes monomeree; in the second case partes di-, tri-, or polymerie.
In the latter case the parte may be entirely separated and inde-
pendent of one another, or they may be grown together in various
ways. These coherent sets were formerly also caUed partes monomerse.
De Candolle better termed them partes gamomersQ ; as, for example,
JTiemerocaZ^ts = perianthium gamo- (mono-) pfayllum, hexamerum;
Salvia, corolla gamo- (mono-) petala, pentamera; Rota, corolla penta-
petala, &c.
The coherence occurs here in the same manner as in the stem-
leaves, but on 'account of the crowded position in the flower-bud,
much more frequently. It happens either that a single foliar organ
grows together by its edges into a tubular or cup-like organ, as for
example occurs frequently in the so-called monomerous floral
envelope (Bracteole) ; or that several foliar organs grow together by
their edges : this commonly affects all the edges of a circle of leaves,
but sometimes two edges remain ununited, as with the calyx of
Geniiana luleck So, again, this process is usually simultaneous in
development at all the edges of a circle ; but it sometimes happens
very much later — a, on two uppermost leaf-edges, whereby the single-
lipped forms arise, as in the corolla of Teucrium and the flores ligulati
of the Composite; or, h, with each pair of leaf-edges at the side of the
leaf-circle, whereby the two-lipped forms (partes bilabiatae) of descrip-
tive botany arise. Another kind of blending also occurs in the flower,
of which no example occurs in the stem-leaves, and only one in the
bracts and bracteoles, namely, the cupula of the Cuputifero!; this is,
the blending together of two or more circles, as in the two circles of
the floral envelopes of many Lilicuea; or In these and the two circles
of stamens, in the cirole of petals and stcuuens, in the LabiakBf &c. ;
and in general in aU flowers to which are ascribed stamina periantfaio
vel ooroUse (not calvci) inserts.
The coherence of the stamens of one or more circles has been well
termed, since Linnsdus's time, fraternity (Adelphia) ; and, aocordmg to
the numbw of brotherhoods in a flewer, Monadelphia^ Diadd^ia,
Polyadelphia. When the foliar organs of the flower are coherent the
blended part is termed the Tube (Tubus Perianthii, Calycis, Gorollse^
&a) ; the free parts, the Limb (Iambus) ; and the boundary of the two,
the Throat (Faux). One of the most striking examples of coherence,
which also has no analogue in the stem-leaves, is found in the blending
of the foliar organs of the flower at the point only, the union never
extending fiirther; so that the foliar oxgans are connected above, but
fne below, as in the corolla of the male flowers ol Chamcedwta^
(Jaeuarina, and in the androphore of Symphyonema mojUawum (?).
Abortion in the flower means that some part present in the rudi-
mentary condition is arrested during the development and gradual
perfecting of the flower, and thus at last retires frt>m observation.
There is no other kind of abortion. So soon as the individual parts
of a flower become distinct members, the foliar organs appear arranged
around an ideal and real axis of the flower (the anal organs of the
flower), and in the rudimentary condition always regularly. Through
subsequent unequal development of the single parts, the flower fre-
quently becomes xmsymmetrical, or, as it is called, irregular. This
irregularity is always such that the upper part of a flower .becomes
developed differently fr>om the under. Such irregularity very seldom
afifects the germen, which almost universally remains regular even in
unsymmetrical flowers ; yet there are cases in which thu is the only
^mmetrical part, as in many of the Serophularacece, Acanthaeece, and
Oryptoeoryne §piraiie. If the unsymmetrical flower, with or without
coherence of its parts, is divided into two halves, an upper and under,
developed in different ways, they are generally termed bilabiate ; but
if only one single foliar organ is developed in an aberrant form, that
leaf acquires the name of Labellum, or Lip. Rare indeed are the cases
where the entire flower is unsymmetrical, as in Chodyera ditocior.
It is not possible to state in general terms the number of parts
which may imite to form a flower. We flnd of foliar organs alone
sometimes as many as fifty or sixty xmited in one flower. Certain
combinations, on the contrary, are rarely met with : no monomerous
flower possesses double floral envelopes. When the various parts of
the flower are present in large nimibers, these arise universally in one
or more circles (Whorls) at the same height on the axis, and at the
same time. When circles containing members of equal number follow
in succession, the members of the one circle usually stand opposite
the interspaces between the members of the preceding circle (the
circles and their members alternating) ; they seldom stand precisely
before them (the circles and their members opposite). But it by no
means is to be assumed that the members of each circle are always of
equal number in a flower. The number of members often increases
up to the stamens, and thence diminishes ; it is rare for the circle of
the carpel to contain the greatest number, as in the Malopeai and
Malvacece. The generality of monocotyledonous plants with perfect
individual flowers have regular homomerous circles through the entire
flower: in dicotyledonous plants this is relatively rarer; the outers
most and innermost circles have usually fewer members. Again,
respecting the number of circles which follow one another, no general
statement of importance can be given. Seven different forms of foliac
organs may possibly exist in the same flower, namely, the epicalyx,
calyx, corolla, accessory corolla, the stamens, accessory stamens, and
the carpels ; but there is no flower in which all occur m conjunction.
All these foliar organs may be present in one or more circles, with
the exception of the epicalyx, in which there is no example of a double
circle. Perianth, calyx, corolla, accessory corolla, and carpels occur
in one, or more rarely in two cirdea Stunens may be present in one^
two, three, or possibly even four circles ; more circles than this are
not exhibited in the normal condition of the flower. If the number
is increased, which seldom happens except in stamens and carpels, as
in RanunctUace(e and Dryadacete, the MagnoUacece, ftc., they stand no
longer in circles but in a spiraL In monocotyledonous plants with
peifect individualised flowers, with the single exception of some
SdUuninacecB, five trimerous circles of foliar organs of the flower
appear to be formed in those where a second circle of petals exists.
The greatest multiplicity of forms occurs in the dicotyledonous plants.
Lavatera, for example, nas an epicalyx, calyx, corolla, stamens, and
carpels in five circles, with increasing numbers of members ; those of
the calyx and corolla alone are equaL Onidia vireacens has perianth,
stamens, accessory stamens, and carpels, but in eight circles, which
are throughout composed of two members each. It is by no means
necessary that all the parts of a circle of floral foliar organs should be
ultimately developed in the same manner ; and many floral structures
which have hitherto been apparently inexplicable may probablv, by
keeping this truth in mind and following out the history of the
development) be readily traced back to the original type.
The duration of the individual parts of the flower is very various ;
the axial organs, so fSur as they support the rudiment of the fruit or
aid in its formation, persist naturally at least until the ripening of
the seed, then fall away with it; or if it becomes disengaged from
them, die away with the remainder of the plant When axes bear
only male organs or flowers their duration is different ; sometimes
830
FLOWEll.
FLOWER.
810
they are cast o£P at a true artioulation, aometiines they remain upou Uia
parent plant, and gradually die away. The foliar oigana of the flower
, are equally yarious in their duration. Perianth, corolla, and accenoxy
corolla commonly pexish soon after the perfecting of the flower ; either
they are caat off by true diaartioulation, or. Uiey wither upon the
parent, plant. The epicalyx and calyx frequently share the fate of
the axiiu organs supporting the rudiments of the fruit ; the carpels
almost invariably. The carpels are rarely destroyed before the per-
fecting of the seedy as in Leantice, and according to Robert Brown in
Pdiotanthes Theta. The stamens die away almost immediately after
the dispersion of the pollen ; either they are cast off, or they dry up
and die away within the flower.
The terminology in use is as follows : — Those parts which fall away
immediately, when their perfect formation is but scarcely completed,
are termed caducous or fugacious (partes caducss) ; those which endure
somewhat longer are termed, if they are cast off by disarticulation,
deciduous (paites deciduae) ; if they retain their position, and die by
gradual withering and drying up, marcescent (partes marcescentes) ;
those parts which remain long, still yegetating, are termed persistent
(partes pendstentes) ; if they change their forms by further growth
tney are termed excrescent (partes excrescentes).
As among the floral envelopes are usually reckoned the perianth,
the calyx, and the corolla, we may also include here the epicalyx.
Under the term perianth, in its narrowest sense, only those foliar
organs faU which, at least two in number, are applied closely to the
flower and upon one level ; so that all individual foliar organs on the
axis of the flower, which only inclose stamens or germens, may be
termed bracts. All these bracts have this in common, that they are
merely foliar organs peculiarly modified; and consequently all the
peculiarities of form which occur in the latter naturally appear in the
former also. It is not often that the leaves of the floni envelopes
have great thickness ; thev are almost always more or less flat^ But
the forms analogous to the pitchers or pouches are here frequent^
much more so than is the case with the stem-leaves ; and these are
termed, according to their various resemblances to objects, cup-shaped,
as in the lower petal of Pclygala ; hood-like, as in tlie upper lesf of
the perianth of Aconitwn; and so on. If a long sao-like appendage is
formed at the basis of a perianthial leaf expanded above, it ia called
a spur (calcar), as in OrchUf J)elpk%nium, Fumaria, &a The formation
of the spur is frequently conjoined with the formation of a symme-
trical flower, where one upper or lower foliar organ forms a spur.
The flattened expanded form, which is connected with the axis by a
linear prolongation, frequently occurs in the sepals (?). This expanded
surface is termed the limb or blade of the leaf (lamma) ; the narrowed
base is not termed petiole but claw (unguia). True articulation is
frequent between the floral envelopes and the axis, but it never occurs
ki tiie continuity of these leaves (?) ; therefore there are no true com-
pound perianthial leaves, though a simply divided limb is fr«quent>
as the petala palmatiflda in Beteda, the petala pinnatifida in SchieO'
peialum, ko. An indication of true articulation may probably be
afforded in the separation of the upper part of the tube of the flower
in MtrabUis, of the calyx of the Daiwra from the lower, and in some
^]Tni]Rr cases.
True stipules are not met with in the floral envelopes, but appen-
dages analogous to the ligula appear, to which indeed a part of the
structure described as the corona belongs. As in the Narciuua and
the Lycknity the scales of the throat of the Boraginacece also belong
here. These parts are formed in very various fashions on the floru
envelopes, and such appoidages are sometimes exhibited standing
upon the surface of the foliar organ, in three or more rows, one above
another. Almost all parts recognised as corona and accessory corolla
(paracorolla) belong nere, in particular a part of those elegant forms
exhibited in the StapeliacecB and the P<u9^fioracecB ; so also does a portion
of the so-termed nectaria, as, for example in the petala of BanunctUtu.
All these are mere dependent appendages of the foliar organs, which
are developed originally simple and flat, all these parts being produced
from them subsequently. Here also occurs the one-sided development
of a foliar organ : this is seen frequently in the petals of the Apocy-
naeece {Vinca, Neriwn, and CerberJ^,
The collective form of one or more circles, whether coherent with
each other or not^ is more accurately designated according to further
peculiarities, as tubular (tubulosum), bell-shaped (campanulatum),
funnel-shaped (infundibuliforme), sidver-shaped (hypocrateriforme),
rotate (rotatum), &c.
Five kinds of floral envelopes are easy to be distinguished. When
all the foliar organs are similarly or nearly similarly developed in a
circle of one evident form, colour, and structure, they are described
under the general name of perianth, the single organs of which are
called perianthial leaves. If in the floral envelopes of one flower we
can distinguish two circles differing in form, colour, and structure,
the outer is named the calyx, its oompooent organs being sepals ;
while the inner is termed the corolla, its single parts petals. Then
if three circles of forms are distinguishable the outermost is called
the epicalyx, the leaves of which may be denominated phylla.
When between the simple or manifold floral envelopes and the
stamens other independent foliar organs occur whiui exhibit a
structure very imperfect and abnormal compared with the true
envelopes, these are called a paracorolla, of which it will be
necessary to speak further on, among the accessory ports of the
flower.
The Perianth consists, according to the preceding oonsiderataons,
of one or more circles of leaves, which are developed so as to be
similar in colour, form, and structure. The following series of its
forms may be more minutely characterised : —
The individual foliar organs are always expanded in a flattened
form, seldom divided into limb and daw, and, at least when they are
not coherent, usually oval or lanceolate. They may be green, aa in
the male flower of UrtiecicecB, or of various colours, as in Thjfmeliaeete ;
they may be firm and solid, and that especially when green, aa in
BlcBognacecB ; or of delicate texture, as in Ariatolochiacea ; or they
may be developed as delicate sapless scales (palese), or bristles and
hair, as in the Typhacecs and Oyperacetg, The perianth is almost uni-
versally regular, rarely (in some BoMunculacea and Orchidacecg)
symmetrical ; in these cases never (?) 2-lipped, but often with one lip,
as in the Orchidacea* This is then not unfrequently developed,
hollow (cucullatum in Aconitum^ calcaratum in OrchidacttB)^ and it is
commonly the uppermost leaf of the perianth. Its foliaoeous por-
tions may be free, as in Juneacea ; or coherent, sa in Funiia, B^emero-
ealliSf &c. ; they may consist of one circle, as in Urticacecs ; or of
more, as in lAlictcecR. The parts are frequently blended with the
stamens : in the coherent perianth the tube is sometimes straight, as
in Narcisiut ; sometimes curved, aa in ArittoloclM. The mouth is
mostly naked ; sometimes, but seldom, as is the case in Narcititu,
furnished with appendages which form a corona, which however are
rare in the perianth, and in free foliar organs only (?) occur on the lip :
the inner circle often has a beard.
The structure of Perianthial Leaves, is on the whole, that of very
simple leaves, which exhibit no specal peculiarities, particularly if
they are green. The ramifications of the vascular bundles are there-
fore simple ; the separation into an upper and under parenchyma layer
is seldom exhibited ; but the epidermis usually. In the coloured and
delicate parts the ceUs of the parenchyma contain colouring matter.
In general the parenchyma is very loose and almost spongy, with
homogeneous transparent fluid contents, and large intercellular cavi-
ties filled with air ; hence the white colour. The epidermis is less
developed in coloured leaves, and more resembles the structure of
epithelium; stomates are sometimes present, especially upon the
under surface, but the epidermal cells of the upper surface are often
raised in shorter or longer papillae, which give the upper surface a
peculiar velvet-like appearance. It is very frequent here to find the
secreted layer of the epidermis (cuticle) regularly and delicately
striated (aciculatus), which certainly contributes to heighten the
brilliancy of the colour, and perhaps, by its effect upon the rays of
lighty to the production and modification of the peculiar tinta.
Occasionally, especially at the base of hollow parts, no epidermis is
produced at certain points, and the parenchyma assumes a peculiar
structure, to perform the function of secretion of a juice containing
much sugar ; as, for instance, the nectary at the base of the perianthial
leaves of FritUlaria, very various parts on the labellum of tiie
OrchidacecB, &c. In rare cases the texture is hard and almost woody
from the interspersion of many thickened porous parenchymatous
cells, as in the species of Bamktia and Dryandra (?). In paleaceous
perianths the spiral and other vessels are not found in the usually
simple vascular bundles, and in hair-like perianths even the vascular
bundles themselves are wanting.
The Calyx only exists when a corolla occurs with it ; it therefore
can never be confounded with it. It is always Uie external of two
dissimilar sets of envelopes. Its series of forms very much resembles
those of the perianth; perhaps it is not so frequently delicate in
structure and colour, as in the Sdtaminacta, Musacect, Butomaceaf
Batmncului, TropcBolvm, &c Usually it consists of one circle of
sepals, more rarely of two (as in the Berheridaeea). These sepals are
always very simple, oval, or lanceolate, seldom piimatifid, very
frequently broad at the baise and tapering to a point, or very small
(dentes calycis obsoleti) ; sometimes they appear only as dry scales,
or as tufts of hair (the pappus of the Compotitas). Appendages
seldom occur upon the sepals, but they are frequently of hollow or
concave form. The number of the sepals in each circle is in Mono-
cotyledons frequently three, more rarely four or two; in the
Dicotyledons it is most frequently five, but also two, three, or four,
and perhaps sometimes more. Coherence of the sepals with one
another may occur in every way, but never with the corolla and
stamens, nor with the germens ; that which is so called being quite
another condition. Both in free and in coherent septals, regularity
and symmetry are met with ; the latter often exhibit the bilabiate
structures.
That which has been said of the structure of the perianth applies
also to the calyx, only that here green foliaceoua sepals are the
more frequents
The Corolla, which only exists as the inner set of floral envelopes
accompanying a calyx, may be compared to a very delicate and
colour^ perianth. No true corolla occurs perfectly green and
resembling the leaves; its series of forms is gi'eater than that of
any other of the floral envelopes. In tiie Monocotyledons it presents
in g^eneral only simple, round, oval, or lanceolate leaves, very seldom
having daws. In the Dicotyledons the forms are ixifinite^ as are
841
FLOWERINa-FERN.
FLYINO.
JMM
aUo tliu variety and spleudoar of the colour. The following are the
main points in the stnietore of this oi^gan : —
The individual petal exhibits, on a reduced scale and in a delicate
condition, almost every rariety of form of the leaf, with the
exception of the truly compound. Concave forms are here frequent^
such as the hood-shaped, pitcher^shaped, or spurred petals, ftc. ;
these latter v^ory often on individual petals of an otherwise regular
corolla as in jrumarta. Fringed and feathered forms, as well as
variously lobed petals, are also by no means rare. The limb and
the claw are often clearly to be distinguished. Parts analogous
to the ligule, and every imaginable form of appendage, with the
exception ooJy of the stipules, occur frequently, and characterise
genera and families.
On this account it is indispensable to distinguish the simple
appendages of the petals fxx>m the independent foliar organs. To
the former belong the scales (fomices) of the BoraginaceoB, the
scales of the corona of the SUencicece, the formations generally
described ss coronao in the StapdiaeeoB and some other AtcUpiadacecBy
the nectaria of Sanuncvluit Pamamaf &a
The corolla consists of one circle, rarely of two (three series in
Berberit), or more (four series in Nymphaa), In Monocotyledons the
number of members is equal to those of the calyx ; in Dicotyledons
the number of five in a circle predominates, though it is ^ome*
times composed of two, of four, or of a greater number in JDrya*,
The number of members is equal to that of the calyx, or greater ;
very rarely indeed it is smaller; this last case occurs vnth HibtMcus,
Suppression is not inffequent, and sometimes involves all the foliar
organs of a corolla at once, as in the summer flowers of many
species of Viola, in Lepidium ruderaU, and in some species of Acer,
The coherence of oigans in every way is still more fhequent ; never
indeed with the calyx or the germens, but frequently with the
stamens.
The corolla, whether with free or with coherent petals, may be
regular or only symmetrical. In the latter the bilabiate formation
is the most frequent^ especially in five-membered circles, in such a
way that, according as the odd petal is on the upper or the \mder
side of the flower, the upper lip consists of three or of two petals.
In the latter case these two are very often little or not at all
coherent, as in Teucrium, the so-called radiated flowers of the
CompotitcB (floribus ligulatia vel radiatis). Peculiar forms of sym-
metrical flowers are, for instance — ^the personate flowers (corolla
personata), in which the upper petals of a coherent corolla are so
curved inward that they close the entrance of the tube (as in
Antirrhinum), the incurved portion is termed the palate (palatum) ;
the true bilabiate or moutn-like corolla (corolla ringens), in the
ZabiatcB, in which the two petals forming the upper lip often present
a concave form overhanging the lower lip, termed galea ; the so-called
papilionaceous flowers of the Leffuminoice, in which the uppermost
leaf, which is broad and large, surpassing the others, is termed the
standard (vexillum), whilst the lateral petals, as wings (alse), are
usually dissimilarly developed, and the two undermost, very frequentlv
coherent, also developed unequally at the two sides, approach eacn
other in a concave form, so as to form the keel (carina). Sometimes
all the petals of the papilionaceous flowers become coherent at the
lower part, and form a tube, as in Trifoliwn ; or individual petals
are abortive, &a The most irregular of all the forms have hiUierto
received no names ; such as appear for instance in the Polygalacea,
the BaUovminacea, TropaolaeecB, &c.
All that was said respecting the structure of the perianth holds
idso for the structure of the corolla, remembering only that this is
more delicate. The contents of the cells vary much in colouring
matter, and their distribution in groups is sometimes very remark-
able. Very dense texture, in consequence of the presence of much-
thickened porous cells, ss in the Amarantaeea, is infrequent. The
structure of the epidermis, and its development into papillse, hairs,
&c. is very manifold. Development into surfaces secreting nectar,
both at the bottom of concave forms and upon the appendages, is
especially common. The petals also occasionally secrete a viscous
substance, in consequence of which they adhere together, as happens
at the points of the inner petals of the Fumaricusea,
The Epicalyx is seen where three separate series of foliar organs
are distinguishable in the floral envelopes, and it is the outermost of
these. There are not many plants which exhibit an epicalyx. In
form and structure it much resembles the calyx. It occurs with
free leaves (as in Poitiflora), and coherent leaves (as in Ldvatera). Its
leaves are seldom delicate, such as are seen in the corolla, but are
often dry and membranous (as in Seabiota), but generally green and
leafy (as in the Malvacea),
For an account of the other organs of the flower, see Stamsn ;
Fruit ; Pistil ; Seed. For the functions of the flower, see Repbo-
Ducnoir nr Plakt&
(Schleiden, Principles of Scientific Botany.)
FLOWERING-FERN. [Osmunda.]
FLOWERING-RUSH. [Bdtomaoea]
FLUCERINE, the name given to the native Deutofluate of Cerium,
which occurs at Finbo and Broddbo, near Fahlun, in Sweden. It
occurs both massive and crystallised. The crystals are either six-
sided plates or prisms; they have a yellow or reddish colour;
fracture uneven ; dull ; translucent, in very thin fragments : when
heated by the blow-pipe on charcoal it becomes slightly brown, but
does not fuse; in we reducing flame it becomes colourless^ and in
the oxidating flame, with borax and a phosphate, it yields an orange-
coloured globule : when heated in a tube with an acid, the glass is
corroded.
FLUELLITE, a compound of Fluoric Add and Alumina, which
occurs at Stenna-Qwyn, in Cornwall, in octahedral crystals, the
primary form being a rhombic prism : the crystals are colourless and
transparent, with a vitreous lustre. It is extremely rare.
FLUKE. [Pleubonectidjb.]
FLUKE-WORM. [Entozoa.]
FLUOR. [Fluor-Spab.]
FLUOR-SPAR, Fluor, Fluate of Lime, Derbyshire Spar, is a well-
known mineral, which occurs in many parts of the earth, but
especially and in great plenty in Comwidl, Derbyshire, and Durham.
It occurs both crystallued and massive. The primary form of the
crystal is a cube, the cleavage is parallel to the planes of the regular
octahedron, distinct, but seldom with perfect surfaces : it assumes a
vast number of secondaiy forms, as the octahedron, rhombic
dodecahedron. The late W. Phillips mentions his possessing at least
70 beautiful varieties of form, and he has figured a fragment of a
crystal from Devonshire which, if it were perfect, would exhibit
322 planes. It occurs colourless, and of ahnost every colour, as
gray, purple, black, brown, red, yellow, green, and blue : in Derby-
shire the last is the prevailing tint, and the massive Fluor of that
county is termed by the miners 'Blue John.' It is frequently
transparent, but more commonly only translucent; its lustre is
vitreous. Specific gravity 3*14. Hardness 4*0. Streak white, or slightly
coloured. Fracture conchoidaL When powdered and thrown on a hot
coal, Fluor-Spar exhibits a phosphorescent light, which is blue, green,
purple, or yellow ; when thrown in mass into the fire, it decrepitates.
The massive varieties are nodular or amorphous : the structure of
the former is laige fibrous, or columnar, with divergent fibres : the
structure of the amorphous variety is crystalline, granular, earthy,
compact, and occasionally straight or curved laminar. The aystallised
varieties are more common in Cornwall and the west of England ;
the massive varieties in Derbyshire and the north of England. It
occurs in many places on the Continent also. In the United States
of America a variety called Chlorophane is found at Huntington,
Connecticut.
Fluoride of Calcium is found in the teeth, in bones, and in the
ashes of plants. It is used for obtaining Fluoric Acid, which is
employed in etching. [Fluobio Aoid, in Abts and So. Diy.]
Fluor-Spar is, strictly speaking, to be considered as a Fluoride of
Calcium, composed of —
One Equivalent of Fluorine
One Equivalent of Calcium
18
20
Equivalent . . .88
The blue and variegated Fluor-Spar of Derbyshire is turned into
various ornamental forms, candlesticks, ko,; that of Cornwall is
used as a flux in the reduction of copperore.
FLUSTRA. [Cellabusa.!
FLY, a name applied almost indiscriminately to all insects
possessing wings ; by many however restricted to the various species
of Dipterous Insects, an account of which is given under the head
DiPTEBA.
FLY-TRAP, VENUS'S. Piokjba.]
FLYING consists in the power which many animals possess of
raising themselves in the air, and in moving through it m various
directions, supported by the atmosphere alone.
In the article Swimmivo it is shown that man and many of the
lower animals are very nearly equal in weight to an equal bulk of
river water; consequently a man's weight is very nearly or quite
supported when he is immersed in water. But the case is widely
dinerent when he is in the air, as the density of this is to that of
water very nearly as If to 1000 ; hence it follows that a man should
1{
be Tqqq loBS in weight than he is at present, in order that he might
be supported in the air with ss little effort as he is in water. The
physical constitution of the air is also very different from that of
water, and presents other obstacles to the efforts of a man to raise
himself in that medium.
The air is compressible, and consequently much heavier near the
surface of the earth than it is in the elevated regions of the atmo-
sphere ; and it appears fxx>m numerous experiments that as the height
increases in an arithmetical, the density decreases in a geometrical
progression. Thus, supposing an animal to ascend in the air 84, 7,
1 4 miles, the density at the surface, being unity, would decrease in
the ratio of the numbers i, i, ^ ; so that if the animal were as light
as the air itself at the surface of the earth it would continually
increase in weight with respect to it as it ascended, and could not be
supported unless a force equal to the difference between the weight
of the animal and its own bulk of air were properly applied for that
purpose.
It appears from an elaborate investigation of K. Chabrier that the
■u.
FLTINQ.
qtuntitf of foTO* expended, it the vel^t of the body be called W,
. b proportionBd to ^^ W direoUj, and iuTenel; aa the aqoare root
of the demity of the lir.
Then Bra viriotu methods of ■scertaining that the air diminishee
in weight M we ucend in it. We know that the barometer &S» when
taken to the top of an elevated hill ; and it is owing to this droum-
stanoe that the baroraeter in lued to measure the heights of mouotaiDs.
The difbrenoe between the epecifio gr&vit; of air and that of most
■nimaU u go neat that there are but a few speoiea amongst the whole
nnge of the MamsuUia that are capabls of flying, and these poHsess
Teiy modified organa for that office.
Attempts have been made to oonitract mechanism that voold
enable man to propel himself in the air, and fly by means of his
muBcolar moTsments. This howerer is not likely ever to be efi'ected,
in consequence of the great weight of bis body with respect to that
of the air which it duplacee. We know that when adrenturoiiH
persona have deseended from the car of a balloon by means of a
parachute the surfacv of the tatter which is presented to the wind
must be very great to prevent too rapid a descent. The unfortunate
termination of the life of Hr. Cocking arose from his not having
estimated more acourately the quantity of surface, and consequently
the strengtb of materia! that waa necesaary to prevent hia falling
with too great velocity. Indeed we may diimisa the subject of a
man attempting to fly by the application of bis muscular force to any
machinery at preaent known ; but seeing how extremely difficult it is
for any heavy body to be supported in the air, much more to fly, It
must be a matter of curiosity at least to ioquira into the means
employed by «nim«U vhich are naturally endowed with the power of
flight.
Amongst the higher orders of Manvnalia we find the Bats
pOBsessing the greatest power of flight. The figure of the Bat
resembles in some degree that of a bird. In order to render it fit for
aerial progression the body is small, and the bones of the skeleton an
extremely light. The arms are long, and peculiarly constructed : the
fore arm has its motion reatricted to flexion and extension, and cannot
rotate upon its long axis like that of a man. This gives the arm a
much greater degree of firmness during Sight The hand moves out-
wards and inwards horizontally, in the same manner as that of birds,
sod cannot move npwaids and downwards on the fora arm, which
would weaken the force of the wing in flight
Fit. 1. — KaloBi Bat.
passing from tlie neck to the taJL In order to increaae the surfa
the wing the Iwnes of the flngers are vety long; the thumb is not
inclosed in the memhrane, but lies in front of tlie win^ and termi-
a strong hook for prehension. In the Bat the area of the
move the wingsoreextremely powerful, and these animals are enabled
to keep on the wing during a period of many hours. They appear
also to be endowed with an extraordinary and peculiar aensihility,
and can fly through an intricate labyrinth even when deprived of
eight. The velocity of some species ot the Bat tribe is very great
Thej chase and ca^^ure the insects on wlkich they pre; whilst on the
wing.
There are some other species of Mammalia said to be capable of
flying, such aa the OaUoinlKtau, or Flying Cat, and the Ptentmy
Atpmtu, or Flying Sqnirrel, but the notion is entirely without founds,
tlon. They are certainly provided on each side with an expanded
memhisne, ss seen in fig. 2, but these membrann have hy no means
the lurfsce requisite to enable them to fly ; neither are they capable
of moving tike the wings of birds. They may be useful as panohutes,
to braak their velodty of descent in falling or leaping from trees,
but oould never raise Uie body again from the ground into tlie air.
Fi|. 1. — TXjiat Equhrel [Pfirssijri ^(;ii«ii).
Most Bhds are capable of flight, but their facility of flyii^ vsrin
in diiferent orders; and some, as the ostrich and osssawaiy, sn
devoid of the power of flight ^together ; hut this defect is compm-
sated by their great speed in running. [Looohotioh.]
In the Ostrich and Cassowary the wings are vary smsll and the body
extremely heavy, both which circmnstsncss an unfsvounible to Eight;
but in birds which an endowed with grast velocity the converse of
this is found, the body being very light and the suriace of the wingi
largo.
In order to adapt birds for flight the moat refined mechanism hu
been bestowed upon them. The skeleton is extremely light, and tht
bones hallow and filled with air : the body is traversed by si^
cavities. The figure of a bird is such as to present a very small
amount of surface to the wind in the direction of its motion, so that
during its flight the animal is retarded as little as possible by ths
Tosistauee of the air. In birds of passs^, such ss woodoocks, &0,
which an known to cross the sea £00 mSes at one flight. Sir Qeorge
Caylay found the length of the wing to be three and a half tinxs
that of its greatest transverse eection. The feathers keep the body
warm and tend to increase its surface without adding materially tu
it< weight. The muscles which move the wings are very large sod
endowed with great power. In some birds they are capable of con-
tinued action during many successive days. The figure of the wing
is nearly trianRular, and the suriace decreases ss the distance increasa
from the shoulder joint, which is the axis on which the wing mora.
{Pig. S.) Tliia figure of the wmgs is of great importance for rapid
flighty as it enables the muscles to more them with greater velocity
than they could do if the surface increased with the distance frop
the body of the bird. The wing is also concave below and convd
above, so that the down stroke is much mora e&ectual than the up
stroke. The bones of the fore arm and fingers which support the
wing are jointed, so that the wing unfolds itself outwards horizoctslly
after it has been raised in the air, as in the Bats ; and by these mesoi
the wing is prevented from yielding, both in the up and down etroks,
to the resistance of the wind. The Uil of the bird performs the
office of a rudder, and tends by its elevation or depreeaion to elerate
or depress the head. The elevation of the tail raises the head, sad
The mechanical sBbcls of the t^ have been demonstrated by
Borelli, and also by Hr. Bishop in the ' Cyclopwdia of Anatomy
and Physiology,' article ' Motion.' The tail is also turned obliquely
to alter the course of the bird, but the cflTaots of this organ are not
very powerful in directing its path to ttie right or left.
The number of fiappings which any bird must make in order ts
fly depends on the weight of the bird, the surface of the wings, and
the specific gravity of the atmosphere, the earth's gravity beiiig
"« FLTINO.
indeed br too great
wings of tha diminut
Buffiaieot lapidity to emit m hummiiig sound ; lienco lU Dai
we can be satufied that it is the Dumber of fUpplags of the wings
which detennines the pitch of the soimd produced, we have a ready
method of aacertaimiig the number made in a giren time, because
ire can eaail; Gnd in an? work on acoustici how man j osciUationa aie
neoeoiaiy to produce the required tone.
Fil. S.— The Grvt Ibljan.
The Tolodtv with which any bird movee depends on the ntiinber of
flappings made by ^e wing in a unit of time, each flapping being
supposed to constitute one eleration and one depreosion of the winK
It ia ntimated by U Cbabrier that the swallow eipeuds as n)a£
force merely to initain itself in the air as would be sufficient to rvae
its own weight ST'5 feet per second, aad that its number of flappings
ie about IS per eeoond. Thia estimate of the number of flappings is
bowsTer obriouBlj greater than the bird employsj and notwith-
standing all the care and attention which U. Cbabrier has bestowed
on the snl^eiit it is found that birdi Sy with much less expenditure
of mosoulu' feme than would appear to be
uialyaijk*
luch less eipeni
HU7 by moUien:
lenutticsl
Fig. 4. — HuDBilBg.Blid.
The velocity of some birds ia very ooniideniblek It has been sud
that the Eider-Duck can flj 90 niiles in <>n honl', and the Hank 1 CO
• Sir 0«rg« Cajlej hii wtlmaled Ui»t s (on* (qnlTslenl to one-bon*
powtr (nIsliiK ttollis. oee foot hicb in a BceDnd), It applied to spproprlate
- '-'-mr, wonld sulaia Illlba. Id the tii. Tbia tievim he coDsidns
1 sppioilmsW Yalu, bnt peilupt net tut team the Iruth.
FLYING. m
miles in the aame time : there is kowerer reason to euspeot the
accuracy of theee accounts. With regard to the Pigeon the cue il
difierent. It is well known that these birds are tnuiied to transmit
intelligenoe on special oooasionB in which great speed is required ; and
their Telocity has in conaequeuce been more accuiutely taken. Soma
yearn ago two trained pigeons were started from Brighton at the
same time : one arrived in Loudon in TO minutei, the other in 7B
minutei. Now, if we estimate the distance traversed bj the birds in
question at 49 miles, it follows, by the rule of three, that the bird
which accomplished the journey in 70 minutes travelled at the rate
of 42 miles per hour, and the other at that of 38 miles; and itil
frobable that the former is about the maTimiim velocity of the
igeon. It appeare that in general pigaooa make about 23 flappings
of tbe wing in 6 seoonda. The Rook, which has a large suriaoe of
wings, makes from about 10 to 16 effective atrokea in a aecond.
Some birds, the Lark for instance, ascend vertJcall; in a right Iin»
into the air to such heights as to became quite invisible, during wliiah
movement they pour out their well-known joyous song, n pleadng to
the ear in consequence of ita peculiar melody and puri^ of tons.
The warbling of thia bird ia distinctly beard even when the little
songster itself appears in the zenith (owing to its great altitude) as a
"HarkI buki the lark at Heaven's iateilnE>I"—CtnWM*.
When birds poiae themaelvea in one poeition in the air, their wings
oscillate in verj small arcs oomparod with the arc through which thej
sweep when in rapid motion.
Many of the small, and indeed some of the larger birds, nieh for
example as the Woodpecker, move from one place to another by «
series of jerks, produced by three or four strokes of the wings made
in rapid sucocaaion ; immediately after which they close their wings,
whilst the body is forced forwanis like a projectila, in the path of a
parabolic ourve. Of all known birds the Oreat Condor of South
America appean to have the greatest power on the wing. It is said
to be capable of elevating eheep and other animals into the air, aad
of carrying them to the mountains to feed upon them at leisure.
The greatest weight it is ol^lable of supporting in the air ia not
aocuiatdy known, but it is doubtlen very considerable.
Fishes being adapted by their structure to move and respire in the
dense fluid of seas and rivera, are not constitnted for flying. There
appear to be only two spedea of fish endowed with the power t^
auapending themselves above the surface of Hie water j namely, the
IkKlj/Upltrvi, and the Sxoctttu, or Flpng-Fish.
Tig. i. — PI]dig-FIsh (AmsMi).
In the SMCdul we observe that the pectoral fins aaiimilafe verj
Sin figure, situation, and dimensioni to the irings of birds :
with the Telocity and inclination of the tatter, they possessed
the power of oscillation, there seems to be no reason why they should
not keep in the air aa long aa they could respire in that medium.
But this does not appear to be the case. Their motioni have been
oheerred by Mr. Bennett, who states that he never aaw them austain
themselves in the air for a longer period than about 30 seconds, and
that they made no vibratory movemente of the flns. According to
Captain Basil Hall, their longest flight is about 200 yards ; and thsy
have been known to raise themselvea aa high as 20 feet above the
surface of the water. From these statements on estimate may be
made of the amount of force required to project the body into the
air to such an amaiing height and distance. At least it must be
concluded that the muscular force employ^ is very great.
Amongst the numerous tribes of Insect there are vast multitudes
endowed wi^ the power of flight. Now, although the mechanical
prindples on which this power depends are the same as those in
birds, yet there is a considerable diSerenca in the mechanism
'lyed to eflect their aerial progression.
e bodies of insects are traversed by ur-tubes, which render
light and buoyant. The jointed structure of their frame
enables the animal to curve, shorteo, or elongate the body on itself.
The wings present various forms 1^. 6, a, b, e, d,t,f), which eiart
a material influence on the votooity and mode of their flight. It ia
well known that soma insects are provided with one pair of wingi^
and others with two. If wa examine the surface of the winga, we
perceive cords, which are composed of hollow tubes passing aoroaa
the disc; these are called neune, and when' filled with fluid, confer
on the wing itreiiglh and reaittanos, in the nine nunner u
oordtge itrengtbeni die nilB of k ahip. The winga sre aleraM tad
depnaaad b; meana of the expansion and oontnotion of the thorax,
and are connected with the rapifalorj moTementa of the aninwL
The Diplcra have one pair of wlnga, which are elliptical
and connected with the meaothoiu. Amangat the DipUra, wa are
&miliar with the Houafr-Fl?, and the Blue-Bottle Fl;. The tocmet
of these, it is wsll known, almoat iwarm in our houaee, whererer
■ugar or rips fruita are to be foond. If an attempt be mode to
oaptore thsm b; the hand, it ia neoeasarj that Che movementa ahould
be made with the greateet lapidit; in order to eflect the object, M
they are vary watchful and agile.
The wings of the JHpltra move far too rapidl; to render it poeaible
to count the number of strokes efiiMted by them daring flight. The
Bouae-FIy moTea with oonsiderable velocit)' ; it ia frequently observed
to play round the ears of horaee, when traTalling at the rate of 10
or IS miles an hour. The aoimd by which the flight of inaaota ia
accompanied doee not arias, as ia generally flnppoeed, from the
oacillationa of the wiug : if auch were the case, there would be no
difficulty in aaoertaiuiag the number of atrokea.
The weight of the large Blue-Bottle Fly ia leas than one grain, and
it haa an area of wing amounting to about one-twelfth oC a aquare
inch, which is a much greater surTace than ia to be found in moat
FlJ. >.— Himible.Bea, Hg. 8,— Sppliua.
The Diplera are prorided wilh two poisers, which are small bodies
ooonpying the ntuatiou of the posterior winga of four-winged ioaecta,
and fliart a conaiderable influence on their flight. It ia said that if
one poiasr be cut off, the insect flies but a short diatancs with great
difBculty, aod then (one dds being rendered lighter than the othsr)
loaes ita balance, and falls to the ground. If both polaers be removsd,
it fliee very unateadily. The Crane-Fly makes use of its Ion? lega
to direct ita moTementa in flight ; the two anterior lega being directed
forwards, and the poaterior lega backwards. Hr, Kjrby consideni the
former to represent the prow, and the Utter the ateru of a ahi|i.
In those inaecta which ars provided with four wings, the anterior
pair are attached to the meeothomi, and the posterior pair to the
metathorai. In the Oal«opt<ra, the elytrum, or aheath muat be
elcTated before the winga can be nnfolded. The sheath adda weight
to the insect, without contributing to aid ita auapenaion in the air;
indeed, in fljing against the wind, the progreas of the animal ia
rather retarded than accelerated by the aheath j but by the inclination
of ita surface the head is elerated so as to render the axis of the body
nnrly vertical during flight.
In the Stog-Bestts, the weight of the body is very great compared
with the area of the wing, being about 10 grains to 1'26 square
inch. In consequence of this diaproportion, and the additional
impediment of the elytra, the Oaltaptera are unable to fly agoinat a
strong wind. Some entomologists maintain that none of the
OoUiilera can flj against the wind, but Ur. Kirby confutes this
opiiuon, and menlioiis a species {MdoUmtAa Soplia) which, he says,
can fly in an direotious.
The Dermaptaxt, such as the Earwiga, expand their winga like ■
bn. They t^e tlieir flight ^arolly toirards the evening. The
QryllMi doMotiau, or House-Cnoke^ fliea with an undulatory motion
like the woodpecker.
The Diurnal Ltpidi^era, or Butterflies, fly with a peculiar undu-
latory movement of Uie body, and have an enormous surfaoe of
wing compared with their weight. In tfaa down stroke the two
winga on aach ude lock together, producing by their combined action
a greater efibot. Theaa wings spread out like a &n, and their surface
rstber inereaaes than decreases as the distance from the axis oa
which the wings move increases. {Fig, 9), It is this fonn of wing and
Fit- 8.— BntteTSIfi {Lepidtpltra).
Although in the Diurnal L^ldt^tra the anrface of the wings ia »>
gnat with respect to the weight of the body, these inaecta do not flj
with proportionate velocity; biit ars, nevertheless, endowed vitk
sufficient speed to outstrip the schoolboy, when eng^ed in the chac*
of these beautiful insects.
The Ifoctumol Lepidoptera, the Uotha, poasea considerable power
of flight. The areas of their wings, instead of increasing vrith llw
distaaos from the axis of motion, decrease, as seen in fy. 10. Thej
more nearly reaemble the triangular figure of the winga of birda.
The anterior wing is much larger than the posteriur, but they act
in uoiaoD with each other. The volume of the trunk of the Ucthi
ia uaually much greater than that of the Diumat Lepidoptva, and thej
S~ F with greater predaion and Telocity. Some spedea, the Silkworm-
oth For instance, ia said to travel upwards of 100 miles a day.
Ths Dragon-Flj affords a good Example of the locomotive orgiM
of the NewnpUra. They are furnished with four wings of a peon-
liartydelicate texture, the neuraresemUing net-work. (Fig. II.) Unlib
•» FLTIKO.
the Itpidopttra, the two winga on either lide, being provided with
tk diatinct tet of miuolw, lot indepeiidently of euh other, and are
detached. Tha ulterior uid poitiriar wing an newly equal in aiie,
and the aurf&ce of tht four winga, comparsd with tha weight of the
body, ii grsftter thui in Cojtopltra and Sj/ttuuopttra. The Telooity
of me Dngon-Flj ia very Rreat, and necewary on aocount of ita
pradaceoue habits. They chaae and capture the inaaot on which
they feed with gnat 'eaar, and the beauty and rapidity of their
eTolutioDS in the chaoe an worthy of attentive conaideration.
Leuwenhoek observed ooe of thi> tribe in a mensgerie SDQ feet in
length, ohased by a awallow. The insect flew iri<£ auch velocity,
and turned to the right and left in all directiona ao iaatantaneausly,
that the swallow, with all ita powers of flight and tact in the chaoe,
waa unable to capture it .the insect always keeping about 6 feet in
advance of the bird. Tht winge are attached to Uie upper part of
the bod;, about the cenCre of gravity, by whicb the animal >s kept
steady during flight.
Fit- 1 1 . — Dnreo Fly.
In the Synttnopttra (Jig. 12}, the ratio of the area of the four winga
to the weight of the body is loss than in the Dragon-Fly ; and they
are consequently' obliged to make a far greater number of atrokea in
the aame interval of time; becauae, boUi in birds and inaecta, when
all other thinga remain tiie aame, the number of itrokss made by
the wing! will vary as the aqnara root of the weight direotlj, and aa
the area of the winga inveraely.
The area of the anterior and upper wings IJlg. T, a) is much
greater than that of the posterior. The Humble-Bee has about
1.12th of a square inch of surface of wing to each grain weight of
iUbody.
F<£NICULUU. ua
themMlves with the greatest amount of room in the hive, whilst
ooeupyiog the least possibts apace, but they are also known to fly
'wtween two distant points by the ahorteat road— that ia, by tha
itnight line. Id consequence of the small amount of the surfaoa
of wing in the nj/ntnopltra, the Humbls-Bae, Wasp, and Hornet,
oanaot fly with much apeed agaiust a strong wind; and in that
directioD the fleet aohoolboy is enabled with ease to outstrip them.
The Ichnamumea are provided with a larger aurface of wing, aa
compared to the weight of the body, than the Beaa.
The mechaniam of the locomotive organs of birds and insect*
providea u> with all the data necesaary for the study of aerial
progreaaioD. It aflfords ample proof that to render a man whoea
weight is ISO lbs., capable of supportlog himself in the air by means
of a pair of artiScial wings, with the tame facility aa birda and iasect*,
would require an extant of surface far beyond the control of bia
muscular force; and hence ws conclude that the art of flying by
means of muscular siartioo. however applied, is denied to man.
FLYINQ-DRAOON, or FLTI NO-LIZARD. [Dbacobdi*.]
FLYINO-FISH. [DAOTTLorrEBna ; Eioonna.]
PODIA, a genua of Xoliutea eatabliahed by Bosc, and generally
arranged by zoologiats at the end of the aimple Asddians, and next
to Sipapiilaria ; It is not better known than the last-named genua.
re celebrated, not only for tha gaometrie inrtinot which they
■ ■ ■ if tieir hexagonal oeUa ao n» to ptovido
J'^u ruJ.,
It has the following characters :— Animal oval, mammillated, divided
throughout ita length by a vertical [wrtitiDn, which contains the
itomaeh, into two unequal tubes, opening at each eitremity by aa
jrifioe, the upper one being a little eunk, and irregukriy dantat^
and the lower edged by a drcular border forming a kind of sucker
' eotouae), and serving to Si tha aninuL
BoBO founded the genua upon a inoUusk found on the ooaata of
Xorth America.
F(EN I'd! L UM, a genus of Eiogenoua Plants belonging to the natural
order UnJuUi/tra, to which the common herb called Fennel belonga.
B formerly conaidsred a apooie* of Anethum, but aince the re-
111,1 g of the natu^ order Apiaeea by Koch, it has been'onivera-
ally looked upon aa a distinct genua. Antlhum in fact belongs to the
sub-division Pntcedatua, with thin flat fruit, while Fameulitm forma
part of Saiiinta, the fruit of which ia tapering or vaij little oom-
pressed, and by no means Bat. . , , ,„
P. vulgare, is a biennial plant with leaves out into hau-Uks
B^ments, yellow flowers, and glaucous stems. The fhiit is ovate, not
quite two lines long, pale bright-brown, smooth, the ridgea sharp with
but little apace between each, tha lateral ones rather the broadest,
terminated by a permanent conical disc Common on chalky cUft in
the Bouthem parts of England, and evemihsre cultivated for the
sake of the agreeable aromatic quality of its leaves. Oil of fennel la
obtained from the fruit , _, t. v
F. duUt, the Finocchio Dolce of the Italians, ia an annual sort which
Is cultivated in Italy aa celery with us ; and iU blanched atems are said
to be an eicellent vegetable, resembling celarr, but more t«ider and
daUcate, with a slight flavour of common fenn^ Tha summer. o(
Kngland are not warm enough to render it posaible to onltinta tiila
successfully. , ,.,,.„■_
F. piperitwn U a wild Fennel, occurring on dry elevated lulls In
Sidly, wber* it is called Finocchio d'Asino. It is known from Commoa
Fennel by its long slander stem, short rigid leaves, and vsry hot
Uting fruit. Y. 1 J 11.
F. Patuaoritm ia cultivated in various parts of Bengal, undra tha
name of Panmuhur«e, or Mudhoorika in Sanscrit. Ita friutbas m
warmish very awaet taste, and aromatic smell, and ia much uaed'by
tiie natives witii their betel and in their curries. The root is white,
nearly fusiform, and almost simple ; the stem ia erect, branched from
the base to tha top. from 2 to 4 feet high, the branches erect, round,
and smooth, with a uniform pale^lauoous tinge and not striated.
The umbela are tflrminal, rather conoave, but not regular ; the flowers
small, bright deep-yellow, the petals long, ovate, •"" *^"'''. P°"™
rolled in. Tha stameos longer than the petals. Tha fruit is used
medicinally in IndU as a warm aromatic and carminative.
F. Capente is a apocie. Uttle known, with a thick («ulent aromatia
Motfoundin the interior of the Cape ot Good Hops.
P^,«j(to«isanative of Africa, in t^a province of Tsngie™. It h«
a tapaTbranched stem ; the leav« are suprnieoompound and shining ;
thei^ent«oblonghmoaolate,outandt^th.d;theupperp.tiolesl™
and^heathing. ttia umbal ia terminal on a short stalk ; "» 1^»^
SowanTarehw, the msle on longer stalks. SpreDg«l«m.^«r.th-th.
B51
FCETTJS.
FOOD.
E£l
Silphion of the ancients, from which the La»tT Cfyrenaicwn, or Asa
dticit was procured, but Yiviani asserts that F. tvngetana does not
grow in the country of Cyrene, but only occurs more to the
westward.
FOSTTJS. [RsFBODUcmoN in Animals.]
FOOD. The materials taken into the system of oi^i^iaed beings,
and by which their functions are maintained, and out of which their
bodies are formed, are called Food. Food in its widest sense is the
raw material out of which plants and animals are manufactured. We
shaU confine ourselves here to the consideration of the Ibod of animals^
and of man in particular.
The great cause of the necessity of a constant supply of new matter
or food to the body is the waste of the materials of which the blood
and organs are composed, during the performance of their functions.
The result of this waste is seen m the form of the various excretions
which are thrown off from the body by the skin, liver, kidneys, and
bowels. We shall find, then, that the food, the blood, and the excre-
tions, represent each other, that they contain substances of the same
nature, and are all composed of the same ultimate elements.
If we take a portion of human flesh or blood, and seek for its
ultimate elements, we shall find that^ on accurate analysis, they will
yield the following elements : —
Carbon.
Potassium.
Aluminum.
Hydrogen.
Sodium.
Copper.
Nitrogen.
Calcium.
Chlorine.
Oxygen.
Sulphur.
Magnesium.
Fluorine.
Iron.
Silicon.
Phosphorus.
Manganese.
Few or none of these elements occur in the human body in their
pure form, but are combined variously with one another, forming
compounds having very different physical properties and chemical
relations. These elements may be divided, for physiological purposes,
into two classes ; the first four, carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitro-
gen, being called Oiganic, whilst the remainder are caJled Inoxganic
elementa The first are called oiganic elements because they are
found universally present in plants and animals, and because no animal
cell and no vegetable cell can grow unless the whole of these elements
eodst. Hence, as they lie at tiie foundation of all oiganic existence,
thev are properly designated by this term.
The inorganic elements, though very generally present in large
classes of animals and plants, are not universal Man requires phos-
phorus and calcium in the form of phosphate of lime for his bones ;
but many of the lower animals contain no phosphate of lime. Sea-
animals and plants will not live without chlorine and sodium in the
form of common salt ; but fresh-water plants, and plants away from
the sea-shore, do not require this constituent. The term inorganic,
then, is applied to these elements to express their different relation
to plants and animals, and will also point out their frequent occur-
rence in the mineral world. The elements of man's body however
are all derived from the mineral world, and are identical with the
■ame bodies in inoiganic substances. The carbon foimd in the human
body is identical with that which forms, in its pure state, the diamond
— ^which enters into the composition of graphite and various kinds of
ooal, and is foxmd in limestone and chalk, forming a part of the car-
bonic acid of the carbonate of lime, of which these rocks are composed.
The hydrogen of the human body is the same as the gas which, united
with oxygen, forms water, and when combined with nitrogen pro-
duces ammonia. The oxygen of the animal is identical with the gas
which, with nitrogen, forms a fifth part of the atmosphere, and which,
combined with the metals, forms oxides, of which the greater portion
of the earth's surface is composed. The nitrogen of the oiganic world
is identical with that which constitutes so laige a portion of the
atmosphere. Nor are these elements alone identical in and out of the
human body ; but we find that they possess the same chemical proper-
ties, and that their agency in the human body depends on these
properties. Thus, carbon and hydrogen are inflammable bodies, and
have a great afiSnity for oxygen, with which they unite, forming car-
bonic acid and water, giving out heat during the process of union.
This very process goes on in the animal body, and constitutes one of
the most important functions of the body. The charactexistic features
of the functions and properties of animal and vegetable bodies depend
on the chemical rela^ons of the four organic elements.
These elements never enter the system in their pure form. Carbon,
however needed in the anhnal frame, cannot be appropriated pure ;
and a man would starve with the Koh-i-noor diamond in his mouth,
were he not allowed to exchange it for more digestible forms of'
carbon. The gases hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen, would, any one
of them in their pure state, destroy human life ; and even when the
two last are mixcMcl with the atmosphere, they will not support life in
that form. Again, we may mix them in various ways, and not be
more successful. Carbon combines with oxygen to form carbonic acid,
and hydrogen combines with nitrogen to form ammonia, and these
two compounds unite together to form common smelling-salts, or
carbonate of ammonia. But smelling-salts, though they contain all
the oiganic elements, will not serve for human food. ^Nevertheless
what is not food for man is nutriment for plants. Carbonic acid and
Ammonia supply pLmts with materials of growth. It is from these
two bodies that the vegetable kingdom elaborates all the secretioca
which give to plants elegance of form, beauty of colour, delicioiisneM
of scent, deadliness as poisons, and nutritiousness as food. The plant
stands between the mineral and animal kingdoms, preparing the former
for the service of the latter. Without plants there could be no animah.
In the whole range of natural history we are presented with iv)
instance of an animal existing directly on mineral matter. It is true
that many animals are carnivorous, and live on the flesh of lower
animals. The lion and the tiger prey upon the deer and the ante-
lope ; but if we go one step further we still arrive at the vegetaUe
kingdom as the source of animal nutrition. The deer and the ante-
lope are herbivorous creatures, and the flesh of their body is formed
directly from the plants they eat. So with the animalB eaten br
man ; they are all grain or herb-eating animals, and supply to man
the materials they nave obtained from the vegetable kingdom. At
the same time the best standard we can take of food ia mi]k« which
is derived from the animaL When human milk is examined, it give-*
the following results in every 1000 parts : —
Water 870
Butter 62
Sugar 63
Casein .10
Salts 5
1000
These five constituents of milk may be regarded as typical of all
kinds of food, whether obtained from the animal or vegetable kingdom.
Henoe, we may class alimentary substances according as they are
represented by one or other of these constituents of mUk.
1. Aqueous, Water is required not only as the medium of convey-
ing the other substances into the body, but it forms a prominexit
constituent of the body itself. Blood contains 790 parts of water to
210 parts of solid matter in every 1000. Muscles contain 770 parts of
water to 230 parts of solid ingredients. The brain and nerves cortain
about 800 parts of water in 1000. If food does not contain water
naturally, it is taken into the system in the form of tea^ coffee, beer,
and also in its pure state. The quantity of water taken with the food
should be about in the proportion of four to one, as we find it in milk.
We cannot however judge of the quantity contained in solid food till
we know its composition. Thus many substances which appear soliJ
contain laige quantities of water. In potatoes, for instanoe, there are
75 parts of water in every 100.
2. Oleaginous. The butter of the milk represents oily and fatty
matters in general, which seem to enter into the composition of all
healthy food. They are taken by the inhabitants of tropical coun-
tries in the seed of the cocoa-nut, as well as by those of the polar
regions from the fat of the seal and many kinds of fish. They are
obtained from both the animal and vegetable kingdoms, being known
by the name of suets, fats, and lards, from the former source ; and
oils and butter from the latter.
8. Saeeharine, The sugar of the milk represents seversl substances
obtained from plants and used as food. Sugar itself varies in ita
composition according to its sources; hence we have cane-sngar,
grape-sugar, maple-sugar, &a Sugar hu also a composition neu^y
approaching that of starch, and this substance is very generally found
in the vegetable diet of man ; pure in the form of arrow-root, tapioca,
and sago ; combined in the flour of wheat and other cereal grasses.
Of all the animal products used as food, sugar is found alone in
milk.
4. Proteinaceou*. The casein of the milk, which, when separated,
is known by the name of cheese, has, in common with two other
vegetable and animal substances, called fi brine and albumen, a prin-
ciple for their basis named protein. [Protein.] These substances
form the chief part of the fabric of the body, and in their capacity of
food perform a very different function in the body to the butter and
sugar before mentioned.
5. Inorganic. The salts of milk are the saline substances which,
entering into the composition of various parts of the human body, are
necessary to its integrity and health. The importance of the presence
of these substances is frequently overlooked in food, and many diseases
of the human frame arise from their absence. They are conveyed
into the system in both animal aud vegetable food ; but in common
salt we have an instance of a substance belonging to this clam taken
directly from the mineral kingdom as food without the intervention
of an oiganic body.
In addition to these forms of dietetic substances found in milk, the
food of the adult human being constantly contains certain principles
which do not appear to be represented in the milk. Thus, the sub-
stances called condiments, as the various spices, contain volatile oils,
which, although not essential to the diet of man, seem to exert a very
beneficial influence when taken into the system. In tea and coffeu
there is a principle called theine, which seems to be the active ingre-
dient of these substancea In the fruit of plants also, we have acids,
as the citric, tartaric, malic, and oxalic acids, which seem to act very
beneficially in certain states of the system. As these substances seem
to act medicinally rather than dietetically, they may be properly
called, as a class, the medicinal constituents of food. The folloi\iDg
classification wiU give an idea of the kinds of food : —
en
FOOD.
FOOD.
854
Glass I. Alimentary SnbstOMcet,
Group A. Aiiuews, containiDg water as a principal ingredient. Exam-
ples :— Tea, coffee, beer, wine.
Group 6. Carbonaceous, containing carbon as a distinguishing
ingredient.
1. Saccharine, Examples :— Sugar, starch, cellulose.
2. Oleaginotti. Examples :— Oil, butter, fat.
Group C. NiirogeMme, containing nitrogen as a distinguishing feature.
1. Vegetable. Examples :— Flour, oatmeal, maize.
2. Animal. Examples : — Butoher^s meat, cheese.
Group D. Inorganic
1. From organic sources. Examples : — Potash in fresh vegetables,
phosphate of lime in flour and flesh.
2. From the mineral kingdom. Example : — Common salt
Class II. Medicinal Snbttancee.
Group A. Acids. Examples : — Citric acid in oranges, tartaric acid in
grapes, oxalic acid in rhubarb-leaves.
Group R VohuHe Oils, Examples : — Mustard, pepper, nutmeg,
cloves.
Group C. Alkaloids. Examples : — Theine in tea and coffee, theobro-
mine in chocolate.
We shall here make a few general remarks on the nature of the
substances in the groups indicated, referring for special information
on the plants and animals yielding food to the various articles devoted
to these subjects throughout the ' English CydoptBdia.'
Under the head of Wateiis, Mineral, wiU be found an account of
Water and the substances it usually holds in solution. In taking it
as an article of diet, the following general remarks should be borne
in mind : —
First, It may be taken in too large quantities to be carried off bv
the other emunotories, and then it remains in the system to impoverish
the blood, and to reduce the amount of solid matter that is necessary
for the performance of the functions of the tissues of the body. This
is one of the results that take place from what is cdled the 'water
cure.' Unless persons have sufficient vigour to take the exercise neces-
sary to throw off by the skin the water that is taken into the stomach,
serious HI effects must necessarily arise. The good that is effected by
this system of the treatment of disease must be atMbuted more to
the exercise it renders necessary than to the unnatural quantities of
water taken into the system.
Secondly, Water may not be taken in sufficient quantities to carry
on the healthy functions of the system. If the food is taken too dry,
it is only imperfectly digested, and many important constituents,
such as the salts, are not taken into the body in sufficient quantity.
A deficient quantity of water in the blood will also prevent the
healthy process of nutrition, and wasting and degeneration of the solid
parts of the body will occur. It would be difficult, perhaps, to lay
down any law with regard to the quantity of water individuals should
take, and perhaps it is safer to rely on the instincts of the body,
which seem to point out how much we ought to take by the feeling of
satiety that comes on after enough has been taken. We may however
get at something like an approximation of the proportion of solids and
fluids required by the system in food, by examining the composition
of milk, in which we find the proportion of water to solid parts is as
870 to 130 in 1000 parts, or about as seven to one.
Thirdly, The good effects of water may be destroyed by the sub-
stances with which it is taken. Although the stomach has the power
of separating water from the food in which it existsj, it yet often
happens that the fluid articles of diet are injurious. Water itself
may contain so large a quantity of saline matters, or of organic
matters in a state of decomposition, as to cause serious disease. The
taking habitually water in the form of fermented liquors, as beer and
wine, as also the admixture of distilled spirits, may cause irritation
and congestion of the mucous membranes, and derangement of the
nervous system.
We now proceed to speak of the Carbonaceous Group. This class
of substances is sometimes called Respiratory and Combustible. l*hey
are called respiratory because it is through the function of respiration
that they become useful in the system. They are called combustible
because it is through the process of combustion that their effects upon
ihe system are developed. This class of foods does not^ in fact, con-
tribute directly to the nutrition of the body, but they are consumed
in maintaining the animal heat The temperatuze of the human body
is always a fixed one ; and if we place a thermometer upon the tongue,
or imder the arm, or in any other unexposed part of ihib body, we
shall find that it stands at the point in the jmdez of FahrmheiVs
thermometer marked 98^ [Heat, AimcALb] This heat the human
body maintains equally at the poles and under the tropics. No
external temperature alters it, and we have thus condusive evidence
that it is produced from within. The cause of this heat is the com-
bustion of the carbon and hydrc^en contained in the carbonaceous
group of foods. Starch, sugar, and oil are conveyed from the stomach
mto the blood, and whilst in the blood they are brought in contact
with oxygen gas, which is taken in during respiration, and the conse-
quence of this contact is the union of the carbon and the hydrogen
with the oxygen, the formation of carbonic acid gas and water, and
the giving out of heat
The human body is preserved at the same temperature by the
regulating action of the skin. When large quantities of heat are
generated in the body, by exercise or other causes, then the extra
heat is carried off by the perspiration from the skin ; but when the
body is exposed to a low temperature, and its heat is rapidly oon-
ducted away by surrounding cold, the heat is maintained by increased
supplies of food belonging to the carbonaceous group. The animal
heat of the lower ftTiimiJa yaries according to the drcumstanoes of the
creature. Those performing great muscular exertions, and living in
cold climates, have a higher temperature than man; whilst those
which are not active in their habits, and live in hot diinates, have a
temperature lower than that of man.
The substances belonging to this group which enter into the food
of man are cellulose, starch, sugar, and oil.
Cellulose forming the external membrane of the cells of all plants
is foimd in all food derived from the vegetable kingdom. It has a
composition almost identical with starch, but differs in being insoluble
and indiffusible in water. There can be little doubt however that it
is taken up extensively into the system in the food of the lower
animals, especially of the Herhivora. When cells are very thick with
cellulose they are indigestible, and this will account for many articles
of 'food as carrots, turnips, radishes, uncooked vegetables, &c., not
being readily digested. Ccdlulose is converted into starch bv the
addition of sulphuric add, and it is not improbable that some change
of this sort may take place when it is taken into the stomach. It is
however seldonf taken by human beings alone, although^ recom-
mended by no less an authority than Benjamin Franklin, who
showed by example that saw-dust puddings might be used as an
artide of diet
Starch enters very largely into the diet of man, and of the lower
animals. It is distinguished from cellulose by its ready diffusibility
in water. [Secretions, Yeoetablb.] On this account it appears to
be much more readily absorbed from the stomach or converted into
the forms in which food is taken Mp into the system. Its property of
uniting with water and forming with it at a high temperature a
gelatinous mass, explains the change which takes place in boiling the
flour of the grains in which it is contained.
Starch is found in some plants in greater quantities than in others ;
it is however very generally found in perennial roots and rootstocks,
in the stems and in the seeds of plants. There are few or no vege-
tables or parts of plants that are eaten that do not contain starch. It
is foimd in turnips, carrots, potatoes, cabbages, parsnips, beans, peas,
wheat, barley, oats, and the rest of the CtreaJUa; in chestnuts, walnuts,
hazel-nuts, and all other seeds ; in the apple, the pear, the plum, and
cherry, and all other fruits. In many of these things however it is
not the distinguishing alimentary ingredient, but it is often separated,
and is used pure as an artide of diet The substances in which it
occurs pure are arrow-root, sago, and tapioca.
What is sold under the name of arrow-root in the shops, is a form
of starch procured from the rootstocks of various species of plants
belonging to the family Marantacece. There are three kinds of arrow-
root known in the shops, the West Indian and the East Indian
arrow-roots, and Tons les Mois. [Maravta.]
Although there is much difference in the price of arrow-root, its
composition is always the same. Even the substances used to
adulterate arrow-root, as potato and sago starch, are of the same
composition ; and though the appearance and flavour of the arrow-
root may be impaired, its idtimate dietetical action is the same.
Although arrow-root, sago, tapioca, and potato starch, are all
composed of the same constituent, their flavour is very different;
hence the preference given to arrow-root as an article of diet This
flavour depends on some peculiar principle which is produced in the
plant from which the starch is obtained, and by very careful preparing
can be entirely got rid of. Arrow-root is used tor making cakes,
puddings, and a thick gelatinous fluid in great request in the side room.
It Ib a property of starch to combine with water at a temperature of
180°, and form a gelatinous compound. This property of starch
renders it very useful in cookery, and seems to increase the digesti-
bility of the starch itself.
Arrow-root is frequently regarded as nutritious; but it will be
seen that it is not nutritious in the proper sense of that word. Those
foods can alone be called nutritious that contribute to the building
up of the fabric of the body by adding those materials to the tissues
wnich are being constantly removed by the wear of the body. Now
starch does not perform this function, and is entirely consumed in
the body in maintaining its animal heat Arrow-root however and
the other forms of starch, are firequently mixed with nutritious
matters, such as milk and bread ; and in this way the food into which
they enter becomes nutritious.
Another form of starch is Sago. It is starch obtained from the
inside of the trunks of palms, and other trees. Many plants yield
starch in their stems, which, on being prepared, is called sago by
Europeans. The sago which is sold in the shops of England is prind-
pally imported from the islands of the Indian Archipelago, and is the
produce of a palm called the true Sogo-Palm, or Sagua Icevie. There
u* FOOD.
ia howenr amoUwr p>1bi beloDging to Ui« uins genua, the S JIi(»|iA»
(tlie Prickly Sago-Palm), which yields the Mgo thtt is coiuutiied b;
the nrntiTCt of lodiL
Sago is Dot geneiKlljr to cuefully pre)«red M arrDW'Tfwt, knd it ia
ft much cheaper ulicla of diet It* ultimate action is perfectly the
mma aa arrow-root. It ia now often emplojed by ataroh.makera to
procore the finer kiuda of etuoh used by manufacturer*. When thua
prepared, it ia uiied to adulterate nn^w-root.
Tapioca ia another form of starch. It i* brought to Europe from
BouUi America, and ia iba produce of a plant known to botaniata by
tlie name of janipha ManVuA. It ia a poiaonoua plant, and the
Indiana in the countriee where it growa extract a poiaon from it,
vhjch they uae to poiaon their arrowa, before they obtain the ataroh.
Ca^Ta, which ia eaten by the nativM, ia procured from the miae
plant, but ia prepared in a differeot way from tapioca. The ataroh of
tapiooa doee not differ in chemical compoaition from that of aago
and arrow-root, and it ia need in the aame way, and for the aame
purpoMt.
There are many other wall.kncwn plaote which owe their dietetical
properties to the ataroh they contain ; amongat theae we may mention
the potato, the carrot, the turnip, the parauip, the cabbage, the Jeru-
Bitlem artichoke. Trom any of these atarch might be prepared.
The roots of ^ rvm mofuia^Hm, Uiough acrid, contain much atarch.
When cooked, the acridity of the plant ia got rid of, and they are
eaten with impunity. Theae rooU are employed in making the
Bubstance callad Portland aago, whioh ia the aturch aepaiated from
the rest of the matter of the plant. This aigo is uaed for the aame
purposea aa the other kinds of aago.
The rootaof Orchi» moKida, which is acommon plant of Our neadowa,
form the subatanoe called aalep. When it ia boiled, it forma an
agreeable article of diet, which, before the introduction of tea and
coSea, was reiy generally uaed in thia country. It ie now almost
entirely diauaed in Great Britain.
Starob diffbra in aome of its chemical and phyaieal propertiea
according to the plants whence it is obtained. In thia way chemiata
have distinguished aerenl kinds of starch. Inuline ia a form of atarch
obtained from the Ituda Hdinium, a plant not uncommon in our o'
nelda. flxULi.] Lichen-starch is another form, which is found _
almoet all kinds of .Al^aswellas Lichens. Thia starch has the same
power of thickening water at a high temperature aa arrow-root and
tapioca; and hence, when any of theae plants are boiled in i
they form a thick mucUaginouB decoction. The thickneai of the fluid
thus obtained, under the emaeoua notion of its being nutritious, baa lei
to the use of many ipeciea of aea.weedaand lichans aa articles of diet.
One of the plants of this kind, which hu been ueedmoat eitsnaively
and ia still largely employed, ie the Iceland-Hosa (Ctlraria Iilandica].
It beionga to the family of Lichens, and ia a native of the northern
parte of the world. This and other lichens probably contain other
dietatioal aeoretions besides atarch, as we find they are capable of
supporting animal life. The Rein-Deer-Moia [Clntomyos ranffiferina)
la an initanca of this. In the northern parte of the world as well as
*-'-- a districts this lichen grows in great abundanoe, *tid
FOOD. «M
during the winter aeason is the principal support of the rein-deer. Is
■pite of the oitreme cold to which it ia eubjected Uiis pl^nt grows
with vigour,and therem-deer, in order to obtain it as food, ia obliged
remove with its noae the anow with which it is eometjmea oorered
■many feet. The Cup-Moss {Oenomyct pyxidata) of our own moon
longe to the aame genus as the rein-deei^moas, and is alao uaed is
article of diet in Uie aame my as the Iceland-mosa. The Tripe di
iche is another of these lichens which haa been ueed as an arbcle of
diet. It haa a melancholy interest attached to it, as it haa ao oflai
formed the chief articla of diet of our erotic navigatora. Two e^tecia
of lii^ens, the Gyropkora prDbotcidea and 0. eroen, afford the Tnpe da
Roche. Although they are aaid to be nutritious, they ara deacribed
having bitter, naueeoua, and purgative propertiea.
Amongat the aeo-weeda which have been uaed aa articlee of diet
none is better known thau the (JAondru critptu, which under the
name of Caingeen-Moas, IHsh Haas, and Pearl-Hoas has boea for a
long time used in Europe, [Ai/n] It grows on the rocky eea-ahons
of Europe J and when washed and dried, and then boiled with water.
makes a mucilaginous decoction, which, like the same preparation of
the Iceland-moaa, haa been recommended in conaumption, congtu',
diarrhiea, and other diaeaaaa. It haa however no bitter principle,
and is probably less tonic than the lichen. This and other B»-weedi
have b«D occasionally had recourse to by the poor inhabitaota of the
aea-ahcrea of Europe, more eapecially Ireland, when the ordinary com
or potato crop haa failed. They contain however but little nutritioui
matter, and peraons soon famish who live upon nothing else. Theie
are oeitain forms of aea-weed which are often eaten aa an addition to
other kinds of food. There is in all of them a oertain flavour of the
Bsa, ari«ng probably from the saline matter they contain, whkh
renden them very otij actionable to some persons as articlea of food,
and which will probably always form an objection to their general
use. Of those which aro eaten in rarioua parts of England we may
1. Laver, Bloke, Slokam {Porpiyni laciniata). It ia on all our sea-
ahoree ; and when employed as food is aalted and eaten with pepper,
vinegar, and oil.
2. Oreen Laver, Qreen Bloke, Oy■te^0^een {Utva latimima). The
Ulva is not eo good to eat as the Porjihjfra, and ia only had recoune
to when the latter ia not abundant.
S. Tangle, Sea- Ware, SeaGirdles, Sea-Wand, Red Ware (ixiniiuna
digiiata). It ia cooked by boiling for a long time, and adding^pper,
butter, and lemon-juice. Cattle are fed on it when young in some
parta of the Britiih lelanda.
4. Badderlocha, Hen-Ware, Honey-Ware, Uurlins (AlariaactilaUii).
The part of the plant which is eateu ia the thick middle rib which
runa through tho frond. It is sometimes called the Eatable Fucoa
G. The Duhw of the aouth-weat of England is the Irid«a tduUt of
botanists. It ia eaten by the fiahennen of the eoulh-weat ooasla of
England, who before eating it pinch it between red-hot irona. In
Scotland it is cooked in the frying-pan. It ia said to reeemble in its
flavour roasted oysters.
Dulse of the Scotch, Delltak, Dellish, Duileiag, Watar-L«af
ioaieiaui palnufa). The HigblanderB and the Iri^, before the
introduction of tobacco, were in the habit of drying thia weed and
using it aa a masticatory. The laeLmdars uae it aa an article of diet
undo'thanameof theSugai^Fucoa. In the islanda of the Hediterranean
Archipelago it ia employed as an ingredient to flavour aoupa, ragoata,
and other diahea.
Several other aea-weeds have been employed as food, but theae are
the principal that ara at present used in this country. In China the
people are very fond of aea-weeds, and many kinda an collected and
added to aoups, or are eaten alone with sauoe. One of theae, the
Piocaria tenax, is aomeUmes brought to thia country under the name
of Chineae Mom. The decoction it makes ie so thick that it is used
aa glue. Tlie Coraican Moss, which has a reputation in medicine sa
well as a diet, ia the Plocaria Hdmintlmxrm, and ia found on the
coaata of the Mediterranean. Another aea-weed was reoently imported
into London under the name of Australian Moaa ; but although afford-
ing a ven thick jelly, it taatee too atronglj of the sea to be rendend
pleasant by any kind of cooking.
The next diet«tical substance of which we have to apeak la Sugar.
Sugar ia diatinguished readily frmn starch by many propertiea
Sugar is soluble in water, whilst starch is only diShaiUe through it
Sugar is susceptible of " ' ' ■ " ....
alcohol, whioh atarch is i
starch is insipid. It is on account of the solubility
never, or very seldom, find ----'*
always diaaolved in the wat
which it exists. Sugar *
and of being converted into
■ - ■ whilst
irthat V
plants in a aolid condition. It is
iturally contained io the plants in
eo frequent a product of vegetable
change as atarch; but ia, neverthelese, very generally found during
aome period of the growth of the m^'ority of plauta. [SooAlt.]
Sugar, like atarch, ia not nntritiooa, but ia taken into the ayatem
with the ohject of maintaining animal heat. Persons may even get
fat on Bugar, but the living tiBues an not nouiiabed by any of the
carbonaoeous productions of plants. It is true, that m oountriea
whan the aogar-ane is grown, slaves and their children, during the
period of ita gathering, partake of it in large quantities, and are
ID it ; but the sop of the sugar-cane, and the cane itself
Bi7
FOOD.
FOOD.
658
contaiji other alimentary principles besides sugar, which assist in the
nutrition of the bodv.
Sugar, being readily soluble in water, is more digestible than starch.
Of the substances which maintain animal heat, it is the most easily
digested ; and hence we may see a reason why it is supplied to the
young of the higher forms of animals. For this purpose it is secreted,
by the female of all the Mammalia, in the milk, which is furnished
imiversally to their young during the first months of their existence.
Tlie instinctive Ioyo of sugar, so w^ known as a distinguishing character
of the child, seems to point out its adaptation to the wants of the
infant system. Readily digestible however ss sugar is, it is one of
l^ose substances which speedily undergoes decomposition. When
taken into the stomadi and the system, its elements seem to enter
into secondary combinations, which are very injurious. This is why
so many persons find it necessary to lindt the quantity of sugar which
they take in their diet. The changes however which it so frequently
undergoes in the adult system, do not appear to take plivoe in children ;
hence tiie child may eat sugar with impunity, although its parents
may notb
Although there are various kinds of sugar, having a different com-
position, tiiey seem all to act dietetically in the same way upon the
system. The most oonmion form of sugar in plants, and that which
is most frequently eaten in diet, is Cane-Sugar, so called from its being
yielded by the sugar-cane. It consists of —
Atoms.
Carbon
Hydrogen
Oxygen
Water
12
9
9
2
The other kinds of sugar which are eaten, are milk-sugar, C^^Hj,
0,a + 6H0 ; and grape-sugar, Cj, ili, Oj, + 2H0. It will be seen that
cane-sugar resembles starch in its composition, and it is probably
formed in the plant from that body. Although cane-sugar is found
in the sugar-cane, the beet, and the maple, it is not so frequent in
plants as grape-sugar, whicli is the form in which sugar is found in
the fruits and other parts of plants which may be sweet
The sources of sugar, as an article of diet, are of course very
various; it is only separated however from a limited number of
plants. Of these the principal is the sugar-cane {Sacdtarvm
officinarum).
The sugar eaten by the inhabitants of France is principally
obtained from the Beet (Beta vtUgaris). In tropical countries it is
obtained ftx)m the juice of palms, as frx>m the Jaggary Palm
(Caryota weru), the CoooarNut Palm (Cocot nudfera), and others.
It exists in the stems of all grasses, and is prepared in America from
Maize (Zea Mays). The Birch (Betula oUkl) in this country, and the
Sugar-Maple in America (Jeer soccAartnttm), also yield it in Uieir sap.
Grape-sugar, also called Qlucose, is found in the fruits of most
plants. It seems to act on the system in precisely the same way as
cane-sugar.
The result of the fermentation of grape-sugar is the production of
Alcohol, which does not differ much in composition from sugar.
The following is the decomposition : —
C. H. O.
2 Atoms of Alcohol . . . . 8 12 4
4 Atoms of Carbonic Add . . . 4 0 8
2 Atoms of Water 0 2 2
One Atom of Orape-Sugar . . 12 14 14
Alcohol is taken as an article of diet in the form of beers, wines,
and spirits. Although resembling sugar in its composition, its effects
on the system are very different. It acts on the nervous system as
a stimulant and narcotic, and might perhaps be regarded as one of
the medicinal forms of food. A question has arisen amongst
physiologists as to the action of this substance on the systeuL Liebig,
and with him many others, maintain that like starch and sugar
and oil, the elements of the aJcohol unite with oxygen in the system,
and thus by combustion assist in mAinfAintng anunal heat. On the
other hand Dr. Carpenter, and those who repudiate the use of alcohol
in diet, maintain that it is not destroyed during respiration, and
consequentiy does not promote animal heat any further than as it
stimulates the heart's action.
Alcohol when taken as an article of diet not only acts upon the
nervous system, but on account of its chemical action on albumen
exerts an ii^urious influence when taJcen in large quantities upon the
mucous membrane of the stomach. It is thus that when indulged
in, it becomes a source of indigestion, and lays the foundation of
serious diseases. Taken in small quantities in the form of wine or
beer, it seems to exert a favourable influence on the digestive function,
and to belong to that class of foods to which spices and condiments
are referred. Taken medicinally it is often capable of exerting
powerful effects, on account of its rousing action upon the vascular
system. It does not seem to be necessary to health, as there are
many nations that never use it^ and individuiJs, in countries where
it is habitually taken as an article of diet, find their health not
materially injured by debarring themselves from its use.
The quantity of alcohol contained in fermented beversges varies
very much.
With regard to wines, when the juice of the grape contains laige
quantities of sugar in comparison with the water, and the fermen-
tation is complete, then the alcohol is abundant, and strong wines
are produced ; whilst, when the sugar is in small quantities, or the
fermentation is incomplete, weak or thin wines are the result. Ports
and sherries are strong wines, whilst those of the Rhine are genendly
weak.
Sweet wines are those in which all the sugar is not converted into
alcohol. This is mostiy the case with wines made from other fruits
besides grapes. Hence the well-known sweetness of what are called
British wines. This does not however arise from an imperfect fer-
mentation, but from the acid contained in other fruits not being
tartaric acid. One of the most remarkable properties of tartaric acid
is that it forms an insoluble salt (the cream of tartar) with potash,
which is generally found in fruits ; and in wines made from the grape
this salt Sdls to the bottom of the cask, forming the tartar or lees of
the wine. But other acids, as citric, malic, and oxalic acids, are not
thus precipitated from their solutions, and they remain in wines,
giving them a very acid flavour, which would render them unpleasant,
unless sugar was added to cover their acidity. Sweet wines are
objectionable as articles of diet, on account of the sugar they
contain, which, when held in solution in wine, seems more likely to
decompose, and thus prove injurious to the system, than when taken
in its pure form. In wines made frt>m other fruits besides grapes,
the add is also liable to objection.
Effervescing wines are those which are bottied before the fermen-
tation is complete, so that a lai^e quantity of the carbonic add, which
would be otherwise got rid of, is retained in solution in the wine, and
escapes when the bottie is uncorked. Such is champagne. Effer-
vesdng wines are more liable to disagree with delicate stomachs than
others, *on acooimt of their imperfect fermentation rendering them
liable to further change in the stomach ; and this state of change is
probably communicated to the substances used as food contained in
the stomach.
The skins and stalks of the grapes, if not the juice, contain tannin.
This substance is a powerful astringent, and its presence seems to be
the cause of the astringent character of many red wines, as port,
claret, and others. There is also a difference in the quantity of free
tartaric acid contained in wines ; and those which have the lai^est
proportion of this constituent have an add flavour. Some of the
wines made from grapes are so sour as to be very unpalatable : this
is more especially the case with the poorer white wines of the Rhine.
The quality in which wines differ from each other most is what is
called tiieir bouquet, or flavour. It differs in wines made from
different kinds of grapes, and differs in the same grape in different
districts and in different seasons. It is well known thiftt the vintage
of one year produces a better or worse wine than that of another, and
this depends on the development of the peculiar flavour of the wine.
Ldebig says that the bouquet is dependent on an acid which he calls
osnanthic, and which, combining with the alcohol, forms an ether
which gives the odour and flavour to wines.
The quantity of alcohol contained in wines differs very much. The
ports and sherries consumed in England contain the largest quantity
But then much of this is added. It is added in the form of brandy.
Brandied wines keep best, but are not the best to drink. Unless
wines are naturally strong, th^ will not keep without the addition of
alcohol Clarets, hocks, and Moselles, are seldom brandied. Some
of the hocks do not contain more than seven per cent, of alcohol,
whilst port and sherry contain twenty-five per cent.
Ardent spirits, distilled liquors, differ from wine in their having
been submitted to distillation after the fermentation, whidi produces
the alcohoL Brandy is distilled from wine; and peach-kernels, or
other vegetable matter containing oil of bitter almonds, are added to
give it a flavour. All the parts of the plants belonging to the division
of tlie order Ro8<tce(B, called Amygdaias, contain oil of bitter almonds.
Rum is distilled from molasses or treacle in the West India Islands,
and pine-apples are added to give a peculiar flavour. Gin is distilled
in Holland, from rye; in this countxy from wheat, the grains of which
are allowed to become saccharine, and then fermented. Juniper
berries are employed to give the peculiar flavour to gin. Whiskey is
distilled from wheat, barley, or oats, treated in the same manner as
for £^ Nothing is added to flavour it ; but the smoke of the peat,
by the aid of which the distillation is effected in both Ireland and
Scotiand, gives a characteristic flavour to this liquor. Liqueurs
belong to this division; they are distilled spirits containing lax^ge
quantities of sugar, and are flavoured with all kinds of substancesj, as
celery, bitter almonds, gentian, wormwood, ftc.
Beers, Ales, and Porters, differ from wines in the addition of a
bitter prindple, most frequently the hop, to the fermented liquor.
The saccharine matter for fermentation is obtained through barley.
The grain of barley is steeped in water, and allowed to germinate.
Wben the starch of the grain is converted into sugar, it is submitted
to heat, and malt is formed. The malt is placed in boiling water,
and hops added ; when cooled, the process of fermentation is allowed
to take place, and the beer is completed. When the malt is slightly
charred during the process of diying, it gives a dark colour to th«
8o9
FOOD.
FOOD.
m
beer. It is then called porter. These fluids Twry muoh in strength
and bitterness, according to the quantity of malt and hope employed.
Beer is the safest of these beveniges for habitual uae ; but even this
may be indulged in too freely, and disease may be the result. Of the
various kinds of beer, that which is to be most commended, is the
weak form of bitter ale, which ia now so generally employed in the
households of London and its neighbourhc^. Beer acts as a tonic
on account of its bitter principle, as well as a stimulant^ and is
fre(}uently, on this account found to be a valuable addition to the
ordmaiy dietb
The Oleaginous Group of foods is somewhat peculiar. They are
taken in various forms from both the vegetable and animal kingdoms,
and are known under the name of butter, oil, lard, suet, fat, &o. The
following formula will express the composition of this class of
bodies: —
Carbon 11
Hydrogen 10
Oxygen 1
It will be seen that the oxygen is in considerably less proportion
than in the 'foregoing substances of this group, and we may conse-
quently conclude that the hydrogen as well as the carbon is consumed
in the system in maintaining the animal heat. This is an important
point, as it firequently happens that the value of the heat-giving
group of foods is estimated by the quantity of carbon alone. That
oil has more power in maintaimng animal heat than sugar or starch,
is seen in the fact that it is eaten in laiger quantities by men who
live in cold regions than by those who live in the warmer parts of
the earth. Just as we pass north or south from the tropics, man
adds oil to his food according to the degree of cold to wluch he is
exposed.
Oil seems also to be deposited in the tissues of man and other ftnimftla
as a source of combustible materials when these hiL in their natural
food. l*hus the Jtuminantia get fat in summer to supply them with
their winter^s store of fueL Hybemating animals, which are £&t when
they commence their sleep, wi^e up quite thin. Their fat has been
exhausted in maintaining their animal heat during hybernation.
[Adipobb Tisbux.]
Oil performs another function in the system. It is veiy evident
firom its general presence in every tissue of the body that it has an
action in connection with the development of the proteinaceous
tissues. It seems to assist their development, to act as a kind of
preparation fbr their growth. In this way its curative action in
certain forms of disease may be explained. There is no doubt of the
beneficial action of cod-liver oil in scrofulous diseases, and its action
can only be explained on the above supposition. In connection with
the use of cod-liver oil it may be stated that animal oils appear to be
in a different phvsical condition of aggregation from vegetable oils,
and are certsunly more readily digested and appropriated by the
system.
The vegetable oils chiefly used as food are those obtained from the
Olive (OUa Ewqpata) and the Almond (Ampgdalua dulcit). Many
seeds, as the Cocoa-Kut (Cocot wuc^fera), Almond (Amygdahu), Chest-
nut (Coitanea), Walnut {Jttgkuu), Hazel-Nut {OoryUui, Bradl-Nut
{BerUu)lleHa)f contain oil.
The fat of animals is the great source of oleaginous food from the
animal kingdom.
We now come to speak of the Nutritious, Proteinaoeous, or Nitro-
genous articles of diet. The substance called Protein [Psoteir] is
the basis of these. It is the first element that appears in the develop-
ment of the vegetable celL It is consequently universally present in
plants. It also constitutes the chief material of the tissues of animals.
It assumes in both kingdoms various forms, and is called albumen,
fibrine, and casein, according to its physical and chemical properties.
Some animals derive this constituent uf their bodies directly from
the vegetable kingdom, as all the herbivorous and graminivorous
creatures; others derive it indirectly from the plant through the
animal, as the various forms of Camworeu Man obtains his supply of
Srotein from both sources. Aa a sect has arisen of persons who
eny the propriety of man's taking animal food, it may be well to
examine tne evidence on which his claim to be regarded as a flesh-
eating animal rests. We shall dinniss the sentimental objection, that
life ought not to be taken as imworthy of serious refutation, as every
one must feel that for camivoroua animals to prey upon lower animals
is a natural law.
'* In the first place, the experience of the races and nations of men
who partake of animal food is decidedly in its favour. Amongst the
northern and European nations this practice is tuuversal ; »ud it is
predselv amongst tnese people that we see the gi-eatest amount of
physical power, and moral and intellectual development eidsting.
Amongst these nations, those individuids and classes who partake
most largely or exclusively of a v^etable diet, are aUke physically,
intelleot^Jly, and morally degraded. It is a well-established fact,
that amongst those classes who get the least animal food, as also in
those public establishments where meat is only sparingly allowed,
mortahty is greatest, and disease is most rifei One of the most
common forms of disease generated by an exclusively vegetable diet
fa aqrofolay and when traceable to this cause, the most speedy remedy
is the addition of animal food to the diet There are also many
other forms of disease produced by the want of animal food, wh^
require for their cure but an abundant supply of the needed material
I need not^ I am sure, specify facts to verify this statement. Tl»
experience of every medi<»l man would confirm it ; and there is no
surgeon or physician connected with the great medical charities of
this country, but has eveiy day, unfortunately, ample opportunities
of witnessing the ill-effects of a vegetable diet, and the benefit, ic
such cases, of the administration of animal food*
" Nor are we at a loss in accounting for the beneficial acticm d
the flesh of animals as food. From what I have before aaidy it wh
be recollected that the muscles and other tissues of AJiimala ue
composed principally of protein ; so that they truly oonstitute iht
most nutritious kind of diet. It has also been found, not alone as a
matter of general personal experience, but by direct expeiimeat, that
animal food is more digestible than vegetable food. The experimeiits
to which I allude are those performed by Dr. Beaumont of America,
on a man that had received a gun-shot wound in such a position as
to form a perforation into his stomach. This wound never healed,
and enabled Dr. Beaumont to perform the experiments allnded to.
By placing various kinds of food in the stomach of this man, he was
enabled to ascertain how long each required to digest ; and it was
found that the flesh of animals was much more digestible than any
of the more nutritious forms of vegetable food, aa bread, and the
preparations of flour.
** Could we not find reasons for partaking of animal food in its
nutritiousness and digestibility, we might find ample justificaticn
from the structure of man as compared with some of the lower
animals. To the comparative anatomist it is sufficient that he knows
the structure of the teeth, jaws, or stomach of an animal, to tell
whether it fed on vegetable or animal food ; and when he finds the
structure that characterises the one or the other combined, he like-
wise knows that the animal will require both kinds of food. Let us,
then, for one moment glance at the structure of the teeth, jawsj, and
stoniach of vegetable-feeding animals, and compare them with
creatures feeding entirely on animal food. We may take the
ruminant animals, as the sheep and the ox, as specimena of pure
vegetable-feeding animals. On examining their teeth it will be found
that they have broad sur&oes, made rough for the purpose of nibbing
on each other, and between those teeth the grsas and grain they eat
are well ground before they are swallowed. In order that these teeth
may be moved with ftdlity over each other, the jaw, in addition to
the up and down movement, which is essential to the reception of the
food mto the mouth, has a lateral movement, by which the trituration
of the food between the teetii may be effected. The food thus
prepared passes down a long oesophagus, or gullet, into a complicated
bag or stomach. In the ruminanti^ tiiough not in all vegetable-
eating animals, a process of digestion or maceration ia carried on
previous to the final mastication of the food between the teeth, and
its ultimate digestion in the stomach
'* If we turn now to the structure of fleeh-eating MiimRln^ of whidi
the Comtvora, embracing such animals as the hon and the tiger,
mav be taken as the type, we shall find that instead of teeth furnished
with broad surfaces, they have teeth with sharp points for holding
and cutting their food. Their lower jaw haa no lateral movement,
but a powerful up and down action, by which their i^arp teeth are
brought over each other and made to act in dividing their food, some-
thing in the way of the blades of a pair of scissors when used in
cutting. In passing to the stomach, we find the gullet short, and Uie
stomadi small and simple in its form, adapted for food that is readily
digested and speedily conveved into the system.
« On an examination of tnese organs in man, it will be found that
they are a true mixture of these two claases. His teeth are partly
adapted for grinding, whilst some of them are supplied with the sharp
projections which are characteristic of the Carmvora ; thus evidently
adapting them for the mastication of both vegetable and animal food.
A slight lateral movement of the lower jaw with the up and down
action is expressive of the subserviency of his structure to a mixed
diet In the stomach also we find indications of the same interme-
diate position in its structure ; and the same conclusion is forced upon
us, that it IS part of the apparatus of an animal intended for subsisting
upon a diet composed of animal and vegetable substances.
" That man can live on food derived entirely from plants, or entirely
from animals, is a well-known fact The natives of many parts of
Asia never eat animal food, whilst the Hudson's Bay hunter, some tribes
in the northern parts of the world, and the GKubchos of the Pampas
of America, seldom or never have vegetable food ; but neither the
physical, moral, nor socdal condition of either the one or the other
would prompt the suggestion that man attains his highest develop-
ment exclusively on either vegetable or animal diet In the various
positions in whidli man ia placed in the world, there can be no doubt
that the relative quantities of flesh to food derived from plants, may
vary much with great advantage ; but there seems to be no position in
which man in health can be pronounced to be the better with abstinence
from either the one or the other kind of food. That man does subsiat
on either exclusively only proves the great range of his adaptation to
the varying conditions in which he may be placed on the surface of
the earth; but certainly it ia no proof of his labouring under a
661
FOOD.
FOOD.
882
neceBaity for the supply of one to the exclusion of the other."
(Lankester, ' Letters on Diet')
Of the three forms of protein referred to aboYe, flbrine is found in
the flesh and blood of all animals, as gluten in wheat, barley, oats, rye,
and the other CerealicL Albumen is found in the juices of many plants,
as cabbage, cauliflower, asparagus, &o. ; it is also found in the nervous
system and blood of animals. Casein is present in milk, also in the
seeds of leguminous plants, as peas, beans, and lentils.
In the animal body is found a substance called Gelatm, which
appears to be formed out of the proteinaoeous tissues. [Qklatin.]
Tlus substance is necessary to the existence of the animal body, and
what cellulose is in the vegetable kingdom, gelatin appears to be in
the animal kingdom. Al&ough often taken into the system with
animal food, especially in soups and jelliea, there appears to be no
evidence that it is even converted into a proteinaoeous tissue. Experi-
ments on this subject have been performed both in France and
Belgium on an extensive scale, and the conclusion arrived at was the
same, that gelatin is not used for forming any of the proteinaseous
tissues of the body ; at the same time it is not improbable that the
gelatin may be appropriated for the purpose of renewing the gelati-
nous portions of the tissues, which are veiy extensive in the animal
body.
It will be thus seen that although gelatin cannot be said to be
nutritious in the sense of nourishing the actively vital parts of the
body, it may assist in keeping up certain parts of the fabric. It need
not then be rejected from our food ; but it cannot be too widely known,
that, as the basis of soups and jellies, it may be administered under
the supposition of its being nutritious, and thus lead, if used alone in
diet, to disastrous results.
Of the forms of protein which occur in food. Casein demands a
short notice. Although, as dissolved in milk, it is very digestible, it
becomes, ^hen separated and known by the name of cheese, very
indigestible. When milk is deprived of its butter, and the pure
casein made into cheese, as is the case with some English cheeses, as
those from Suffolk, it becomes so hard as scarcely to be digestible.
[Cheebb, in^ABTB and So. Div.] But in most cases the casein is
curdled with the butter, and a large per-centage of this substance is
found in all good cheeses. Stilton cheese is made by adding the
cream of one milking to that of another, so that this cheese has double
the quantity of butter that other cheeses possess. The indigestibility
of separated or insoluble casein will perhaps explain the neglect of
beans, peas, and lentils, as articles of diet^ although they contain a
much larger quantity of nutritious ingredients than most seeds.
In concluding these genered remarks upon diet, we present our
readers with a summary of the conclusions on this subject arrived at
by one of our most recent physiological writers. Dr. Carpenter, in
his ' Principles of Qeneral and Comparative Physiology,' thus concludes
this part of his subject : —
" The waste of Uie tissues, of which gelatin is the basis, may be
supplied either by albuminous, proteinaoeous, or gelatinous compounds,
since there is no doubt that albumen may be converted into gelatin,
although the reverse process cannot be performed. As gelatin does
not exist in plants, it must be formed in herbivorous animals at the
expense of the albuminous elements of their food ; whilst in carnivo-
rous animals it is probably derived immediately from the gelatinous
components of the bodies on which they prey. The materials of the
adipose tissue, and the oleaginous particles which seem requisite in
the formative operations of the system, generally are derived in the
carnivorous races from the fatty substances which the bodies of their
victims may contain ; whilst the herbivorous not only find them in
the ^eaginous state in their food, but have the power of producing
them by the conversion of farinaceous and saochanne matters.
** The foregoing statements are applicable to all tribes of animals
' cold-blooded ' as well as ' warm-blooded.' We have now to consider
the special case of the latter. In the carnivorous tribes the waste of
the tissues is so great, in consequence of the restless activity which is
habitual to them, that it appears to furnish a large proportion of the
combustible material required for the maintenance of their proper
temperature. The remainder is made up by the fat of the animals
on which they feed ; and it is to be observed that the amount of this
is much greater in the bodies of animals ii^iabiting the colder regions
of the globe than in the inhabitants of tropical countries. In the
herbivorous tribes the case is different : they are for the most part
much less active ; and the waste of their tissues consequently takes
place in a less rapid manner, and is far from supplying an adequate
amount of combustible material, especially in cold clunates. Their
heat is in great part sustained by the combustion of the saccharine
and oleaginous elements of their food, which are appropriated to this
purpose without having ever formed part of the living tissues ; and
the demand for these will be lai^er in proportion to the depression of
the external temperature, a greater generation of caloric being then
required to keep up the heat of the body to its proper standard.
Hence, cold-blooded animals can usually sustain the privation of
food longer than warm-blooded, and this more especially when they are
kept cool, so that they are made to live slowly, and death when at last
it does ensue is consequent upon the general deficiency of nutrition.
On the other hand, warm-blooded ^n^"^"^!", whose temperature is
uniformly high, must always live fast^ and deprivation of food Is fatal
to them, not only by preventing the due renovation of their tissues,
but also by destroying their power of sustaining their heat. The
duration of life under these circumstances depends upon the amount
of fat previously stored up in the body, and upon the retardation of
its expenditure by external warmth, or by the indosure of the body
in non-conducting substances ; and there is evidence that if this be
duly provided for, and all unnecessary waste by nervo-muscular
activity be prevented, the life even of a warm-blooded animal may
sometimes be prolonged for many weeks without food."
It will be gathered frx>m the forogoing general remarks that food
may be divided into two great classes — ^the heat-giving and the flesh-
forming ; and we now present a table of some of the more ordinary
kinds of food, in which one or the other, or both, of these daases ol
substances are found mixed : —
Table of Oompoaiiion of Food in 100 part$»
Food
Quantity of
Nitrogenous
Quantity of
non.Azotised
•Quantity of
Mineral
Quantity of
Flesh-forming
Heat-giving
Mntt^r
Curbon.
Ingredients.
Principles.
Milk .
4-30
7-90
0-60
0-94
Buteher'8 Meat)
free from bone j
22-30
14-30
•50
21-56
Baoon, Pork . .
B-36
62*50
0-50
53-92
FUh .
14-00
7*00
1*00
9-15
Floor . • .
17-00
6600
0-70
45-50
Barley Meal
1400
• 68-50
2*00
40-50
Oatmeal • •
1S'60
70-80
8-30
44-10
Indian Meal .
10-71
72-25
1-04
36-41
Peas . •
29*40
60-00
2-50
85-70
Eioe • • .
5-43
84*65
0-52
3600
PoUtoes
1-41
22-10
1-00
12*20
Carrots . • •
1-48
11*61
0-81
5-40
Turnips .
1*64
10*00
1-62
5-20
Parsnips . .
2-10
17-70
0-80
8*63
Mangel Wnrzel .
1-60
12-26
1-14
5*50
Cabbage
1«75
4*05
2*20
2*65
Cocoa (nibs) • •
9-50
85-76
2*70
68*56
Sagar •
0-00
100*00
0*00
42*58
Suet, Fat, Batter .
0-00
100*00
0*00
70-00
Bread . • .
C-83
48*65
1-51
2519
Cheese
31-02
25-30
4*90
86*80
Beer • • .
•83
9-17
0*20
4*33
Vinegar
100 grains of Tea give in an infusion 6 grains of theine and 26*5
grains of non-nitrogenous substances. (Peligotb)
By adding the first three colunms of Uiis table together, and
deducting the [sum from one hundred, it will give the quantity of
water contained in each article of food. Thus, taking butchor^s
meat: —
Nitrogeneous material 22*8
Carbonaceous material 14*8
Mineral Hatter *5
871
Water 62*9
100*0
The quantify of carbon expresses the relative heat-giving power of
the food. Vv ith foods contMning fut the quantity of hydrogen should
also be taken into consideration.
Such a table as this will be found useful in constructing dietaries
for large institutions, which are very often erroneously constituted,
and a large waste thereby entailed. The table on the next page
contains examples of dietuies, drawn up by Dr. Lyon Playfair, from
various sources. This table accompanied an abstract of a lecture by
Dr. Lyon Playfair on the 'Food of Man,' delivered at the Royal
Institution in May 1853. The following extracts from this lecture
will explain some of the valuable results obtained by Dr. Playfair : —
** It was now admitted that the heat of the body wsa due to the
combustion of the unazotised ingredients of food. Man inspires
annually about 7cwt. of oxygen, and about l-5th of this bums some
constituent and produces heat. The whole carbon in the blood would
thus be burned Away in about three days unless new fuel were
introduced as food. The amoimt of food necessary depends upon
the number of respirations, the rapidity of the pulsations, and the
relative capacity of the lungs. Cold increases the number of respi-
rations and heat diminishes them ; and the lecturer cited well-known
cases of the voracity of residents in arctic region/i|, although he
admitted, as an anomaly, that the inhabitants of tropical climates
often show a predilection for fatty or carbonaceous bodies. He then
drew attention to the extraordinary records of arctic dietaries shown
in the table, which, admitting that they are extreme cases even in ihg.
arctic regions, are nevetheless very surprising.
" Dr. Playfair then alluded to the second great class of food
ingredients, namely, those of the same composition as flesh. Beccaria
in 1742 pointed to the dose resemblanoe between theie ingredienta of
M3
FOOD.
POOD.
881
fluBh, and asked, ' Is it not true that we are oompoeed of the same
■ubstancei whioh serve as our nouiiahmentf ' In fact the Bimplioity
of this yiew is now generally acknowledged ; and albumen, ^uten,
casein, &a, are now recognised as flesh-formon in the same sense that
any animal aliment is.
"The old mode of estimating the value of dietaries, by merely
giving the total number of ounces of solid food used daily or weekly,
and quite irrespective of its composition, was shown to be quite
erroneous ; and an instance was given of an agricultural labourer in
Gloucestershire, who in the year of the potato famine subsisted
chiefly on flour, consuming 168 ounces weeKly, which contained 26
ounces of flesh-formers. When potatoes cheapened he returned to a
potato diet, and now eats 321 ounces weekly, although his true
nutriment in flesh-formers was only about 8 or 10 ounces. He
showed this further by calling attention to the six pauper dietaries
formerly recommended, to the difierenoe between the salt and fresh
meat dietary of the sailor, ftc., all of whioh, relying on absolute
weight alone, had in reality no relation in equivalent nutritive value.
** Takiug the soldier and sailor as illustrating healthy adult men,
they consumed weekly about 35 ounces of flesh-formers, 70 to 74
ounces of carbon, the relation of the carbon in the flesh-formers to
that of the heat-givers being 1:3. If the dietaries of the aged were
contrasted with this it would be found that they consumed less flesh-
formers (25 — 30 ounces), but rather more heat-givers (72 — 73 ouucei») ;
the relation of the carbon in the former to that of the latter b«izig
about 1 : 5. The young boy about 10 or 12 years of age consomed
about 17 ounces weekly, or about half the flesh-formers of the adult
man ; the carbon being about 68 ounces weekly, and the relations of
the two carbons being nearly 1 : 64. The drcumstancee under which
persons are placed influence these proportions considerably. In
workhouses and prisons the warmth renders less necessary a large
amount of food fuel to the body; while the relative amount of
labour determines the greater or less amount of fleah-formezs.
Accordingly it is observed that the latter are increased to the
prisoners exposed to hard labour. From the quantity of flerii-
formers in food we may estimate approximately the rate of change
in the body. Now, a man weighing 140 lbs. has about 4 Ibe. of
flesh in blood, 274 lbs. ^ ^^b muscular substance, &a, and about
5 lbs. of nitrogenous matter in the bones. These 37 lbs. would be
received in food in about eighteen weeks ; or, in other words, that
period might represent the time required for the change of the tissues,
if all changed with equal rapidity, which is however not at all probable.
"All the carbon taken as food is not burned in the body, part
of it being excreted with the waste matter. Supposing the reepin-
tions to be 18 per minute a man expires about 8*59 ounces of carbon
daily, the remainder of the carbon appearing in the excreted matter."
Examples ofJXetariet,
DlBTAKIKS or SOLUIKBD AMD SaXLOBD.
English Soldier
Bngliab Soldier In India . • . .
English Sailor (Fresh Heat) .
English Sailor (Salt Meat) ....
Dutch Soldier, in War ....
Dutch Soldier, In Peace . . . .
Frenea Soldier
Bararian Soldier
Hessian Soldier
DisTAUss or Tna Youno.
Christ's Hospital, Hertford . . . .
Christ's Hospital, London
Chelsea Hospital, Bojs' School . . .
Greenwich Hospital, Boys' School .
DnTAuas of tbx Aqkd.
Greenwich Pensioners . . . •
Chelsea Pensioners
Gillespie Hospital, Edinhorgh . . .
Trinity Hospital, Edinburgh . . •
Old Pavpss DixTAaixs.
Class 1
Class 2
Class 8
Class 4
Class 5
Class 6
Arerage of all English Counties in 1851 .
St. Cuthbert's, Edinburgh . . . •
City Woxkhouse, Edinburgh . . .
EifOLZSH Paifloir DrerABXXS.
daas 3. Males
Glass 8. Males
Class 4, 8, and 7. Males . • . •
Class 5. Males
BbNOAL PbISON DiKTAltlES.
Non-Labouring Ck>nTicta . . . .
Working Conricts
Contractors' insufficient Diet . . .
BOMBAT PbISOM DntTABXTJ.
All Classes of Prisoners not on Hard Labour
Prisoners oa Hard Labour . . .
Aacnc ahd othxb DisTAxm.
Esquimaux
Tacttt
Bosjesman
Hottentot
Agricultural Labourer, England . . .
Agricultural Labourer, England
Agrienltoral Labourer, India • . •
Weight
in oas.
per
week.
878
261
302
290
198
383
347
242
423
216
242
245
281
269
332
156
192
175
107
206i
276
271|^
326
224
296
1671
182
224
Nitro.
genous
Ingre-
dients.
168-6
114-6
218-0
36-15
34-15
34-82
40-83
35-21
24-52
33-24
21-08
23-60
17-16
17-27
12-89
18-43
24.46
29.95
21.02
19.63
20-21
14-96
15-78
19*22
15*49
14-67
22-00
14-80
13-30
15-28
18-26
20-97
20-29
18*43
28-16
12-70
28-00
35-68
250*00
99900
574-00
424-00
26*64
20*89
14*02
Sub-
stances
fk«e
from
Nitrog.
127-18
103*19
102-89
132-20
102-08
106-80
127-76
102-10
136*00
61-27
76-82
93-28
86-73
122-21
112*64
92-32
97-34
88-61
89-59
99-88
116-84
96-51
88-03
99-00
89-37
49*99
111*85
123-60
125*98
130-57
103*16
191*12
135-95
101*50
128*80
1280*00
640-00
868*00
400-00
106*57
72*46
138*27
Mineral
Matter.
4*92
2-39
3-17
6-03
1-85
415
4-62
3-32
2*47
2-84
5-93
2*62
3-54
4-65
2-35
3*38
8-27
2-89
8-91
8*96
3-58
2-84
8*31
1-74
3-46
4-05
5-03
4-23
2-08
2-97
1-80
2*08
2*45
Carbon.
1*10
1*18
2*41
71-68
66-32
70-55
87-40
7408
70-77
85-25
62-45
77-00
3918
46-95
67-67
52-87
72-43
78-03
71-39
67-30
64-30
61*10
66-43
67-87
64-72
49-57
68-00
46-98
81-48
59*23
67-58
69*88
78*31
76*35
91 07
61*33
68-81
87-22
1125-00
96600
655-00
004-00
74-70
61-72
61-54
Proportion between
Carbon
in Flesh-
formers.
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
Carbon
inHeat-
glTers.
8
8<
8<
8
8-
6-
4'
6'
66
58
70
94
87
32
72
47
6*16
4*21
6*02
8*29
6-29
6-46
4*80
6*26
5*38
4-95
6-81
6*50
6*50
6-58
6-25
4*85
6*85
4*36
7*13
6*81
6*18
6*65
7-62
5-96
8*88
4*52
4*50
BEMARKS.
> Public Dietaries.
I Mulder.
Special Betum obtained.
Liebig.
> Special Eetums obtained.
> Special Betums ootalned.
The 6 dietaries recommended as equlTilent by \
the Poor-Law Commissioners.
Specially reduced from all the Unions in 1851.
Special returns.
' ConTicted Prisoners exceeding 7 days, but not
exceeding 21 days.
Convicted Prisoners, Hard Labour, exceeding 21
days, but not more than 6 weeka.
ConTicted Prisoners, Hard Labour, aboTC 6
weekSf and not more than 4 months.
' ConTicted Prisoners, Hard Labour, for terms
exceeding 4 months.
From information supplied flrom the India
House.
'Boss, 1836, p. 448. Parry,
1828, p. 418. Cochrane,
p. 255. Saritcheff. Bar-
row, pp. 152, 258.
Biehardaon. See * Agric.
Cyo.,' article * Diet.'
( Gloucestershire ) -^ , . ^. p«,i«„-^,. ,
Dorsetshire / ^^ ^^"- Cyolop»dU.»
Dharwar, Bombay— Betum in Bombay Prison
Dietaries.
These probably re*
present extreme
cases mentioned (
by the following
authorities : —
865
FOOD.
FOOD.
S(M
The aubstonces lued as food which we have called medicinal are
very numerous. They include acids, volatile oils, and the vegetable
alkaloids.
The acids are eaten in fruits, such as the citric, malic, tartaric, and
oxalic acids. It is possible they may be decomposed in the system,
and furnish the materials of animal heat They seem however to
perform a more important part in dissolving up the mineral ingre-
dients taken into the system as food. This seems one way in wmch
carbonic acid acts beneficially when taken in wines, beers, and
effervescing waters. Acetic aci^ or vinegar, acts probably in the same
manner as the other acids.
The volatile oils are added to other kinds of food, and, as condi-
ments and spices, form a conspicuous feature in diet. We may class
these, with alcohol, as stimulants of the mucous membrane of the
stomach.
The use of tea, coffee, chocolate, and Paraguay tea [Thea;
CoFnx ; Ilex ; Thsobboma] in infusion constitutes a curious class
of alimentary substances. In tea, coffee, and Paraguay tea, a principle
is found identical in eveiy instance, to which the name Thein or
Caffein has been given. A substance very similar. Theobromine, is
found in chocolate. It is uudoubtedly upon the action of these
substances that the dietetical uses of these plants depend.
Two theories have been advanced to explain the action of this
principle. Liebig suggested that the taurin found in the bile was
formed from the waste tissues of the body carried into the blood; and
that this taurin was necessaiy for the production of carbonic acid gas,
or rather to get rid of the carbonaceous matter in the system in the
form of carbonic acid gas. The taurin must be constantly formed,
otherwise the heat of Uie body is not maintained, the carbonaceous
matter not got rid of, and disease is engendered. If persons have not
sufficient food, or if the digestive organs do not enable them to cany
a sufficient quantity of nutriment to the system, the tissues of the
body are consumed to form taurin. Liebig found that thein had a
composition identical with taurin, or so nearly as to render it a suffi-
cient substitute for taurin, and thus by the use of thein he supposed
we were actually preventing the waste of the body, and so maintaining
health at less expense than we could by taking more solid food.
Persons who cannot consume a sufficient quantitv of food to
yield the carbon necessary for generating animal heat, have recourse
to tea, and find it actuidly a nutritious article of diet ; and it is
only, says Liebig, "by such means as this that it can act as a
nutritious agent" But another theoxy has been advanced by Dr.
Playfair. He says thein has a composition very similar to nervous
matter. Now, seeing that every operation of the mind must be
attended with a loss of nervous matter, there is a necessity for s
supply of that nervous matter to enable the mind to carry on its
operations. A large quantity of proteinaceous matter would be
required to be supplied to form the nervous matter with proper con-
stituents if taken in by means of meat or bread. But these alkaloids at
once become a constituent of nervous matter ; and this accounts for
the agreeable stimulus and permanent effect on the mind produced
by the use of tea and coffee, particularly by studious persons, as
well as those whose nervous systems are exhausted from various
caupes.
In any just estimate of diet the mineral ingredients should be consi-
dered. The forms which they assume in the system are not well-known,
but we have a capital instance in the phosphate of lime, which, forming
a part of the bones, we know must be supplied through the diet
This substance is foxmd in the cereal grasses, and perhaps one reason
that man takes these grosses every where for the substantive articles
of his diet is the possession of this substance. Iron is another sub-
stance which is frequentiy deficient in the blood. It is naturallv
supplied in the food ; but this failing, iron is given medicinally. Potash
in combination with vegetable acids seems to have the power of
preventing scurvy. [Sourvt, in Arts and So. Dit.] Chloride of
sodium is another well-known instance of the necessity of mineral
ingredients in the food.
A few plain rules for taking food will properly conclude this
article.
In the first place, food should be properly cooked. Many substances
which are very indigestible when in the raw state are rendered
perfectiy digestible by cooking. Although the stomach is capable of
digesting fruits and some kinds of seeds without any exposure to
heat, yet, as a general rule, the breaking down of the tissues which
occurs in cooking greatlv facilitates the digestion of both animal and
Vegetable food. But whilst that cooking is proper which enables the
stomach more easily to reduce the food to the condition of chyle,
there are extremes of preparation which however palatable are to be
avoided. Food that is much prepared, so as to reduce it to a fluid
condition, as soups, stews, and various made dishes, do not present
sufficient solid matter for the healthy process of digestion to be
carried on. When the object is to prevent the stomach from doing
duty such food is proper. It may idso be taken occasionally with
advantage as a variety in diet, but food taken long together in this
form is injurious.
Much indigestible food at a time should be avoided. Many of the
articles of our diet are less digestible than others, and when taken in
small quantities are not injurious. It is when such substances are
NAT. HIST. DIT. VOL. U.
made the principal constituents of a meal that danger is likely to
arise. To mention only a few of the less digestible kinds of foods :—
Unfermented bread and biscuits, uncooked vegetables eaten as salad,
unripe fruits, cheese, pie-crust, fat meats smoked, as bacon, and the
fat of meat, some kinds of fishes, especially the Cnutacea^ crabs,
lobsten, &c. Heavy meals of any one of these articles of diet, or
mixtures of them, may be very injurious, and produce serious attacks
of indigestion, if not other diseases.
Solid food should be well masticated before it is swallowed. The
teeth are organs given us on purpose to perform this function, and its
accomplishment is attended also with the mixture of the saliva with
the food, which seems to be an important step in the process of
digestion. Although by hasty mastication persons in business hope
to save their time, they should know that at least it is a loss of food,
if not immediately a loss of health. Much more food is digested
when it is well masticated than when it is swallowed very hastily in
large masses. Food that is imperfectly masticated is digested with
difficulty, and remains sometimes so long in the stomach as to produce
irritation of the stomach, and remaimng unacted upon it putrifies,
producing pain and taintiug the breath.
Even where mastication is very complete it is always better to
swallow slowly, as by this means every part of the food is brought
more fully under the mfluence of the gastric acid of the stomach, by
which it is prepared for absorption into the blood.
Full and heavy meals should be avoided. It is better to get up
from table with an appetite than to feel tiiat no more food could be
taken. It is always difficult to say how much should be with pro-
priety taken. Some systems will bear twice as much food as others,
whilst there are those who require twice as much food as others.
Scales and weights are dangerous instruments at table, as some men
will starve on what others will thrive. There is an instinct which, if
obeyed, constantly cries " Hold, enough ; " which if men would listen
to would always guide them right The feelings after eating should be
those of refreshment and comfort — feelings that are not often present
when too large a meal has been eaten. All food taken into tiie sys-
tem and not wanted is likely to be in the way, and the processes
adopted by nature for getting rid of the incubus are not unfrequently
attended by disease and deatL
Persons who habitually over-eat are frequently obliged to have
recourse to medicines to correct the errors of their indulgence. Such
an unnatural way of correcting the evils of an unnatural habit is itself
likely to produce disease in the system.
Active bodily exertion should not be taken immediately after the
principal meaL The stomach requires a supply of blood to perform
its functions. If the current is diverted to other oxgans digestion is
prevented. On this account reading at meals is an objectionable
practice. The brain in this process gets the blood which the stomach
requires. Long walks and hard study should both be avoided after a
full meal.
Long fasting is bad. It is bad when the body is resting; it is much
worse when the body, is actively engaged. The stomach, IUls all other
oigans, performs its functions in virtue of the stimulus afforded it by
the blood. If the blood is allowed to go a long time without a
renewal of its constituents it no longer supplies the nervous system
with energy ; the stomach, and even other oi^ns, flag in the perform-
ance of their duty, and as a consequence digestion is imperfectly
performed. How often should man eat in the day f In the morning,
at noon, aqd at night, is the answer given by the instincts of man.
The body can go longer without food whilst resting than when
awake ; hence persons may with safety go a longer number of hours
between the night and morning meal than between the morning and
noon, or the noon and night meals.
There are no rules without exceptions in certain cases, and there
are many circumstances which must modify the application of the
forogoing rules, as well as in other ways regulate the taking of food.
^e is a perpetually modifying influence. The new-bom infant
requires the food which nature has provided for its use every hour or
two. As it grows older 4 the intervals at which it takes its food
become longer ; but it should be always recollected, that as a rule
children should have more eating times than adults. Grown-up
people are too apt to assume that what is good for themselves is good
for children ; hence as great an amount of suffering is entailed on
children by restricting the quantity and times of taking their diet
amongst the rich as comenipon them from absolute want amongst the
poor. The craving appetite of children is no vice of fallen human
nature, but the incessant demands of an ever-wasting yet ever-growing
human body. Bread and butter, or treacle, or common cake, should
always be allowed if asked for by rapidly growing boys and girls
between the hours which adults find convenient for their meals. An
evil however arisizig out of the healthy appetite of youth should be
guarded against; it is, that whilst growing a habit is acquired of
eating lax^e quantities of food which are no longer required when
growtii has ceased. If the appetite is not checked by reason at this
period of life, the habit of eating more than is necessary may bo
productive of evil resulta
Old age requires a more frequent recourse to food than the adult,
though not in so large a quantity. " A littie and often ** is a maxim
that enables many aged persons to continue their influence iu tho
3 K
667
FOOL'S-PARSLEY.
FORAMINIFERA.
8«a
world, whilst an attempt to maintidn the habits of youth and middle
age has cost many declining ones their lives.
The mode of life influences the diet. The sedentary, the inactiye,
do not consume so much muscle and nerve in their existence as the
active and laborious, and accordingly require less food. The tailor
ought not to eat so much as ihe day-labourer ; and the lady all day
in her drawing-room or carriage cannot expect the appetite or the
enjoyment of food which is bestowed by the laws of nature on her
housemaid.
Other things being the same, more food is required in winter than
in summer, more in cold climates than in hot ones. This arises from
the greater consumption of certain parts of the food in maintaining
the animal heat in order to keep off i;he external cold. Hence, to
bring the appetite of Christmas to the Midsummer meal is to run the
hazard of a surfeit ; whilst the traveller who carries the eating habits
of the north to countries under the line frequently perishes of fevers
brought on by repletion.
(Moleschott, Phytioloffie dea NaJi.rung» Mitttl ; Ward, Science of
Health ; Food of Man, in Knight's Shilling Volumes ; Lectwet on the
Food of Man, by Dr. Lsnkester; Letters on Diet, by Dr. Lankester;
Pereira, On the Diet of Man; Liebig, Chemistry of Food; Liebig,
Letters on Chemistry; Archer, Popular Economic Botany; Carpenter,
Principles of Physiology.)
FOOL'S-PARSLEY. [.^Sthusa.]
FOOT. [Skklbton.]
FOOT-PRINTS, impressions of the feet of Reptiles, as of Cheirothe-
rium [Amphibia], and Birds (Omithiehnites), are now become recog-
nised evidence of the existence of particular races of oiganic beings,
in certain geological periods, though no other traces of them remain.
By this evidence, the air-breathing Vertebraia appear to be of higher
antiquity than was formerly supposed, and to date from the lower
parts of the Silurian system.
FORAMINIFERA {Foramen, fero), a group of minute Marine
Animals of low organisation, consisting of a slimy transparent jelly,
invested with a hard, usually calcareous shell; found in sea-sand
and amongst marine refuse dredged up from deep water. Owing to
many of their shells having a spiral form, these creatures were long
thought to be highly organised MoUusca, allied to the living NatUUus
— an error into which most naturalists fell until recently, when these
animals became the subject of a more rigorous and searching inves-
tigation than they had previously undei^one.
Though usually very minute, their elegant forms early attracted
the attention of naturalists. They were noticed by Qualtieri, Planchus,
and LedermtiUer, prior to the appearance of the ' Systema Natures '
( f Linnaeus. In the latter work they are included amongst the
Nautili, the animal, as well as that of the recent Nautilus pompiliue
with which Linnaeus associates them, being alike unknown to the
Swedish naturalist. In the 1 2th edition are descriptions of 15 species.
Between 1780 and 1800 Soldani, an Italian, wrote two elaborate works,
abundantly illustrated, and largely devoted to the recent and fossil
forms of ForaminiferouB Shells. He divides them into groups (such
as Nautili, Hammonim, and Orthoceraia) in the most arbitrary manner ;
but the works are monuments of his labour and per8evei*ance. In
1784 some of the British species were figured by Walker in his
' Testacea Minuta Rariora.' The ' British Conchology ' of Montagu,
1808 (and 'Supplement,' 1808), contained a still larger number of
British forms, respecting the majority of which the error of Linnseus
was still followed ; but some were shown to be so different from the
true NoMiili as to require removing from that genus. In 1803 Flchtel
and Moll figured many of the spiral forms, which they included amongst
the NauUli. In 1808 De Montfort attempted to subdivide the group
into a number of separate genera, but still regarded them as Cephalo-
poda, ^in which view he waa followed by Fleming and other more
recent writers.
In 1825 the study of the Foraminifera received a fresh impulse
from the labours of M. D'Orbigny, a French naturalist, who in that
year presented his first memoir on the subject to the French Academy.
This memoir embraced the classification of the whole of the Cephalo-
podous MoUuseck, or animals allied to the Cuttle-Fish ; with which
group of organisms D'Orbigny, like his predecessors in the study,
imagined the Foraminifera to have the closest afi^ties. He divided
the latter into five great families, which were again subdivided into
a number of genera, most of them new ; the various forms being thus
thrown into natural groups in a way that had not previously been
attempted even by De Montfort Though D*Orbigny retained the
erroneous idea of his predecessors as to the zoological relation of the
Foraminifera, this error did not affect the value of his subdivisions
of the class, which constituted an important step in advance of all
that had been done by others. Indeed tiie value of his classification
is shown by its retention in the writings of all who have succeeded
him in the study. He distributed the species into 55 genera, intro-
ducing into the catalogue an enormous number of new forms, which
he discovered in sands brought to him from various parts of the globe.
The views of D'Orbigny and his predecessors respectmg the Molluscous
character of these animals weru sanctioned by Cuvier in an edition of
the 'Animal Kingdom/ published in 1828.
In 1835 M. Dujardin presented a memoir to the ' Annales des Sciences
Nuturelles,' baaed upon an examination of ihe recent auimals of the
Foraminifera, in which he rejected the ideathatthey had any affinities
with the MoUusca. He pointed out the fact that the animal which
tenanted the calcareous shell was a mere animated slime, having no
visible oi^ganisation, and consequently very different from the highly
organised Cephalopoda, with which they had previously been asso-
ciated. He considered their true zoological position to be near the
Ama:ba, commonly known as the Proteus Animalcule, and that they
constitute part of a larger group, to which he assigned the name of
Rhizopoda. In 1888 and 1889 Professor Ehrenberg presented two
memoirs to the Academy of Berlin, in which he advocated the opinion
that the Foraminifera were polype-bearing animals, allied to the
Flustrce and other Moss-Corals, by nim termed Bryozoa, and of which
they formed the first order, Polythalamia. He also assigned to them
internal organs which no other observers have been able to discover:
but notwithstanding these errors he did good service by the discoverr
that the White-Chalk Rocks were principally composed of the aggre-
gated shells of Foraminifera, which by their gradual accumulation
had thus produced widely-extended masses of calcareous strata, muir
hundreds of feet in thickness. The existence of numerous Fossil
Foraminifera in the Chalk had been demonstrated by Mr. Lonsdale
in 1835 ; and still later, the rich harvest of beautiful forma to be
obtained from these Cretaceous strata was further demonstrated by
M. D'Orbigny in his monograph ' On the Foraminifeia of the White
Chalk.*
In 1845 Professor Williamson published a memoir in the ' Transac-
tions of the Literary and PhilosopMcal Society of Manchester,' in which
he further demonstrated the entire absence of any real resemblance
between the Foraminifera and the Cephalopoda, and the consequent
necessity of arranging the former in an inferior portion of the zoolo-
gical scale. At first he adopted the idea of Ehrenbeig, but in a
subsequent memoir (1 848) he came to the conclusion that they were
not polypiferous, but that they approximated to the Sponges on the
one nand, and, as had been asserted bv M. Dujardin, to the AnCotba on
the other : their true position in any linear arrangement being imme-
diately above the former of these classes of objects. In another
memoir, read in 1851, describing the complicated structure of some
forms of the genus Orbiculina, Professor Williamson says, " Looking
at the structure of the shell of the Orbiculina adunca, and especially
at the large orifioes which communicate between its various cavities,
we cannot fail to observe that it is a reticulated calcareous skeleton,
whose proportionate relation to the size of the soft animal has differed
but little from that of the siliceo-keratose network of many sponges
to the slimy substance with which they are invested. The attempt
to isolate the various portions of 0, adunca, and raise each portion to
the rank of an individual animal, even in the limited sense in which
we should admit such a distinction in the polypes of a Seriidaria or
of a Gorgonia, appears to me wholly inadmissible. If the soft
structures of Orbiculina are as devoid of visible organisation as thof>e
of our British Foraminifera, and I have very little doubt that such
will prove to be the case, the whole animal will be very little raised
above the Po2ypi/era, only possessing asymmetrical calcareous skeleton,
which is at once both external and internal." (' Transactions of the
Microscopical Society of London.')
In 1846 M. D'Orbigny published his work ' On the Fossil Fora-
minifera of the Tertiary Basin of Vienna,' in which he abandoned
the views advocated in his earlier writings. He now recognised the
inferiority of these objects to the Cephalopods, with which he had
previously arranged them. He rejected the idea that they were
aggregated creatures, as held by Ehrenberg, as also the existence of
the intestinal canal and organs of reproduction described by the
illustrious Prussian ; but he arrived at the conclusion that they
held a position intermediate between the Polypifera and the
EchinodermatCL
M. D'Orbigny says, " After what has preceded upon the character-
istics of the Foraminifera, the comparison demonstrates that they
cannot be arranged in any of the known Zoological Clssses. Much less
complex than the Echinodermata or the Polypifera as to their internal
organisation, they have through their filaments (^seudopodia) part
of the mode of locomotion of the former, and are by their isolated,
non-aggregated, free existence, more advanced in the scale than the
latter. This individual existence of the Foraminifera^ the liberty
which they enjoy, and their mode of locomotion, are characters
which deserve to be taken into consideration. Although less complex
than many Polypifera, they have not a common aggregate life. A
multitude does not imite to form a regular body as amongst the
Polypifera. They are locomotive, which the others are not. Their
means of locomotion are complex, and the great regularity of the
testaceous envelope of their segments places them far above the
Polypifera. On the other hand, much less perfect than the Echino-
dermata, they are vexy inferior to them in all respects. We believe also
that, because of the radiation of their filaments, the position of the
Foraminifera is in the interval (embranchement) of the radiating
animals of Cuvier, between the Echinodermata and the Polypifera, as
an altogether independent class." (* Sur les Foraminif^rea Fossiles du
Bassin Tertiaire de Vienne,' p. 19.)
There can be no doubt of their great inferiority to the Echinodermata,
which possess a distinct alimentary canal, a nervous circulating and
sex'.ial system ; and connecting with the defined digestive cavity of
Srs VUBAUINIFEltA.
the polvpa recent ducDTeries reipectinK itn reproducUon bj ova,
through' the igancr of mcdiuirorm bud*, ve must cancluila that
the» latter Km equally remoicd from the ■tructurel*aa uiimitls of the
Paramini/era. In the preooding arRumant M. D'Orbignj forgets llat
the freedom, uoUtion, ind independence, upon which be l»ji so much
iitre?B. are the oharacteristica of the fixed comnouiid Polypifera, ia
tlieir embiTonic or larval state*. Conaeqiientl; this fsnture, which in
the Poramimfera a norms! uid peraietent, betokens inferioiit; rather
than Buperiorit; to the Polypifera, m which sggregation and fixation
indiiMte msturit; and a higher development. The ar|:ument drawn
from their njmmetry is of no TaJue. Nothing; can be more sym-
metrical than many of the sponge spicula; and in the vegetable
king<lDm the syiDmetncal plants {Dtimidta) are amongst the
An additions! memoir by Profeasor Williamson, in 1861 (' Quarterly
Journal of Microscopical Science,' vol. L), afforded other and still
more striking evideaca of the probable correctness of the views
previously enunciated, as furnished by the strucluTB of a species
of Paujaiiita, and especially showed tbnt the new growths which
added to the thickness of the shell were all applied to its exterior
and not to its interior, appsrently indicating that the gelatin-
ous acimal had the power of extending itself orer the exterior
of the shell, or of retreating to its interior at will, reminding us of
the movementa of the gelatinous envelope in some of the leas highly
organised t'uagiform Corala (FCymer Jones, 'Animal Kingdom,'
L19.) Id ISIS Dr. Cftrpenter laid before the Oeologioal Society of
adon an elabomto memoir on the structure of soma interesting
fossil forma belongii^ to the genera Orbiloiitt and Jfimmulina,
which, with th« publication of M, D'Orbigny on tha Foraminifera of
Cuba, constitute the chief additional works that have appeared on
this subject.
The fallowing is the latest cInssiGcatioD of the PoranBiiftra adopted
by U. D'Orbigny, and though marked by some eerious imperfections,
it is the best that baa beeu hitherto published. The five principal
divisions are chiefly bused on the rariations in the arrangement of
the successively added legmeats.
Order 1. Jtfonailtffa. — Animal conaiating of a ungle segment. Shell
composed of a nngle chamber. Genera: Oromia, Dujardin;
Orhulina, D'Orbigny ; (Wina, D'Orbigny.
Order 2. awAoWepo.— Animal consisting of aegmsnta arranged in
single line. Shell composed ' ' ' ~"~ "
on a siugle straight
(Banjul im, D'Orbigny. Jlimidma, lyOrb.
Nadotaria, Lamarck. Yaginulina, D'Orb.
OMhaeeriwi, D'Orb. Marginulma, D'Orb.
DtBlaliita. D'Orb. Cim,aina, D'Orb.
PrtmdicHbina, Defranoat Pavenina, D'Orb.
Lingitlina, D'Orb. WMina, D'Orb.
Order, 8. n<tiei>ilega. — Animal cennsting of aegmsnts arranged in
a spiraL Chambera piled Up or auperimpoaed on one aiia,
forming a spiral volute :
FORAMINIFERA.
BTO
consisting of aegmsnts arranged in a
1 of chambera superimposed linearly
id axis. No spiral growths : —
Orindlaria, D'Orb.
FlaMlina, D'Orb.
Jtobalina, D'Orb.
PtuiUina, Fischer.
JVoBioKiiw, D'Orb.
NummiUma, D'Orb,
Auilina, D'Orb.
Sidfrolina, Lamarck.
Hautrina, D'Orb.
Oferadina, D'Orb.
VerUbralina, D'Orb.
PilyttamtHa, Lamarck.
Penero'plii, Lamarck.
Dendrilina, D'Orb.
Spirolino, Lamarck.
CyW.-iitt, D'Orb.
Ijiiuola, Lamarck.
Orbiculina, Lamarck.
Order 1. Entenoitega.-
Alveolina, J)' Orh.
Sotalina, I^marck.
OtoWgrnm, D'Orb.
PUauriulina, D'Orb,
TnttKotuliiui, D'Orb.
Anonalina, D'Orb.
Soiaiima. D'Orb.
Valv^dina, D'Orb.
Vrmeuilina, D'Orb.
Biiiiiitiiia, D'Orb.
Utiigerina, D'Orb.
Pyrulina, D'Orb.
Panjatina, D'Orb.
Caudtriita, D'Orb.
Ckryialidina, D'Orb,
CtawUna, D'Orb.
Gatuiryna, D'Otb.
Botapoeed of alternating ragmenta
farming a spiral Chamben piled up or superimposed apon twi
alternating axes, forming a spiral: —
PaUrtina, D'Orb. Htlenttegma, D'Orb.
AUtrigcriM, D'Orb. I Cauidalina, D'Orb.
D'Orb.
Order E. BuaUoiltga. — Animal eompoiBd of alternately ana „
■egmenta without formiog a apliaL Chambera disposed alternately
along (wo or three distinct axe*, not forming a ipiiml t— .
DtmorpKiua, D'Orb. TtxtUaria, Defrauea.
OiUliilina, D'Orb. 7^dvviina, D'Orb.
/■oiynurpAiMa, D'Orb. Botiin-na, D'Orb.
Virgidiaa D'Orb. Sagriiut, D'Orb.
Bigttierina, D'Orb. Cuneolina, D'Orb.
Gemmulina, D'Orb,
Order 6, Asarhtitcga.—Aaimii compose
an nxia Chambers wound round a common axif, eocn oue
investing half the entire ciroumfereuca :;—
Uuitoe«litut, D'Orb. Orueaoeulina, D'Otb,
Bilociditut, D'Orb. ArlUtdina, D'Orb,
Ft^ularia, D'Orb. Sp/ueroidina, D'Orb.
^lirotoculina, D'Orb. Quinqiidaculina, D'Orb.
TrilociUiiui, D'Orb. Addotina, D'Orb.
The simplest type of the I^iraminifera {StoKottega) presenta but a
single segment, and is illustrated by the Orbulina untvtrta (Jig. 1),
which is a small spherical shell with a lateral apertun, the interior ot
which has been occupied by the living jelly to which the shell owes
its existenea. The beautifully symmetrieal Xojrn", or yiaak Animals
(fy' ^), ttie British species of which have been figured by Profeaaor
Williamaon in the 'Annals of Nat. Hist,' also belong to this type.
In the order Stiehosltga, as for example the yodotaria, Dtnia'
Una (fig. 3), the shell advances beyond the nmple type of the
MvnoVega by a process of linear budding. The flrat cell is usually
spheric^, as in OtbfUitia, but through the orifice in this primary call
there protrudes as a growth from the contained *niTn*1 segment, a
second segment, usually a little larger than the first, which speedily
iucaaas itself in a shelly covering. This new growth is suceesaivelj
followed by others developed in the same way, until ihe organism
attains to ica maturity, when it exhibits a aeriea of cells arranged end
to end in a straight or but slightly curved line.
In the HtlicoHega, a large and conspicuous group, the gemmation
takes place with a spiral bias, producing the nautiloid form of shell
which misled the earlier microscopista Sometimeii all the convo-
lutions are visible, (Optraiina, fig. i.) In others the outer convolation
embraces those previously formed, and conceals them (OtifeUoria,
fig. 6). In a third type all the spiral coDvolutions are visible on one
truncated half of the shell, whilst they are embracing on the others
(/'aiv'uina, jl^, 6), thus combining the oUier two typeo. Somegenera,
like the Stichost^^us and Belioategous orders, develop on the
plan of the latter, up to a certain stage of their growth, when the
arrangement of the cells ceases to be spiral and becomes straight,
^Spirolma,fig.^),aa\It the A wio«in'ie. 'The orifices penetrating the
septa and coanecting the contiguous aegmeuta are sometimes single,
and at others more numerous.
co-inl».u,' Chs-.H. *. OrvnMna. *, Ctillillnria i^oiHii ; Cbalk. 0, >■««.
>Kiria. T, Spiroli„a.
In the Ealomoiitga the shall ia spiral, as in the Hclito^ga, bat
instead of each cluimber being equilateral, it has a larger and a
smaller side, the position of whii^ ta alleniately reversed aa the
segments are multiplied, {Cauidulina.Jig, 8.)
la the Enalloiliga the new segments are arranged alternately on
opposite sides of a centntl liue. so ss to form two parallel, uoaspiral,
alternating series {TcxlHaria, fig. 9), the segments being connected by
a single orifice.
The Agalhiticga present an entirely difi'erent aspect, as well as
structure, from the rest of the Poraminiftra. They are much less
transparent Uian the minority of tbe other orders, being composed of
a material resembling white porcelain, and which presents a rich
amber-browD hue when viewed by transmitted light. They are
usually more or less oblong, and as each new segment is equal to the
entire'length of the shell, it follows that the terminal orifice presenla
itself atteruately at its opposite eitremitiea Sometimes the new
segmenta are spread out in one uniform plane {^roloetdina, fig. 10),
at other times each new segment instead of being exactly opposite its
neighbour, ia a little ou one side of iti consequeutly tha chain of seg^.
871 FORAMINIFEBA.
meuUiawnuud niiiudths primarj ceutral oiie,u tbebbrud i> orouud
a bkll of waratsd. (Quinqiitloealina, TrUoealina.)
Id the great m^uriiy of the species the interior oF euh chamber ia
■iniple and uaiJiTided, but there are Bome famu, especially amongst
the Ifdicoitega, in whic^ the newer and mare eztenial ehamben are
■ubilivided rather by trumBna pillars or by oomplsta partitiana
perforated by one' or more apertuim. through irhiah pnlongatians ot
the. gelatinous eubrtonce unite the vanous segmenti of the softanimaL
iOriteulina, fy. 11.) Ordinarily but one snch chain of commuuica-
tiani'eiiat(snitiiat of JbMOJtna,;!?. 12); but in the cases just referred
to, there is a great increaas io the number of such orifices, so tbat
the aepta become completely cribriform. The distribution of these
apertures aSbcts the gemmatioa or mode of growth, ainoa it !■
through them that the new segments are sucesiisiTely Formed, the
gelatinous substance being extended by a procen of badding or
■prouting. An increase in the number of such orificea \a most
common where the consecutive segments pretsot a rapid increase in
their siie. In the genus Orbietdina, this growth ii sometimea so
remarkable that the new seguienti soon Form concentrie circles,
embracing all those previously formed. (Orhicidina complawUa, J^ll.)
In such examples the conuectiug apertures are distributed round the
entire peripheir, and gemmation most probably takea plaoe simulta-
neously through them all; so that the soft animal, irdecaloified by an
add, would preaent a suocession of rings, inclosing one another, and
connected together by transverse radiating bars.
The memoin of Professor WiUiBmsou lave shown that the shell
inclosiDg each new segment is at first very thin ; but as additional
calcareous chambers are formed, each such addition not only encases
the new gemmation of the soft animal, but extends over all the
exterior of the previously-formed shell. The exact way in whioh this
i* acoomplished is doubtful ; but it is probable that the soft animal
has the power oF diffusing itself over the shell, and depositing npon
ita enrfoce additional layers of calcareons matter.
t e ID lu
FOHAMINIFERA.
». OuiUiilfM. B.
Tiililarla.
I. OrKmdtaa torn
•n Ord'cWin
ftgtule
H, •lewid ■■
showlocthetorsialiis.
14. Horl«
»l«Clil
I of Fit. a, 1
STStem of ti.h«. 11
Posdl JfH.
taJies.
SKtigii of Fig. li
the Chalk. 19. M
VMf^H. «■
. K-is);
at otben tbey are so small tbat their existence is only to bo demon-
strated by means of high magnifying poworo. Through theae fora-
mina, long delicate processea of the soft mim»l, termed paeudopodii,
are protruded. The exact use of these, whether for tactile, preheotile,
and locomotive purposes, or for the imbibition of nutritive fluid, is not
very clear ; but they very probably FiilBl in some degree each of these
fuQctiODS. They may be regarded as analogous to the prolongatiou
which the Proteus Animalcule {J maid) extends in various directioni;
only in the Foraminifera tbess organs are more delicate as well si
more uniform in thickness than in the shelleas creature referred to.
Professor Williamson has also demonstrated the existence in aevenl
species of a curious system of interspaces and branching tubes, wtuek
ramify amongst tbe cslcareous layeia forming the walls of the sheUa
(Horizontal section of FaajaMtna, fig. 14.) Theee aiw eapecisllf
obvious in the genera Pavjasiiut, C^iercuZiita, and AKpkUUffina. The
tubes open at the exterior of the shell, especially at the poripbenl
margins, either by a few targe or by numerous unall apertures;
These canals are probably designed to admit water to the interior
segments of the animal, with which they communicate through the
mioute foramina. In aome cases the pseudopodia are protruded
through such of these canals as are situated in tbe umbilical region ;
but theae appear to be eiceptionsl instances.
The relations of tbe Foramini/era to Palnontelogy render then
intflresting objects to the geologist. Many of the more recent ealo.
roouB strata chiefly owe their origin to the accumulation, through
■ucceaaive ages, of these minute atoms. The White Chalk Rocks ue
maiuly composed of them ; vast ranges of Tertiary Strata preaeot the
same characteristio features; and though tbe older Limeetonee bare
been so altered by pressure and chemical ageuta that their origin is
less clear, there are many indications Hiat they have primarily resem-
bled tbe rocka of more recent age — an inference that is rendered
probable by the great extent to which sediments now accumulating
In the bottom of the sea are chained with these little organisms, snd
In some cases entirely composed of thsm.
The Fossil Foramin^ftra are chie&j diatingniihable from recant ones
In the greater prevalence of specimens of comparatively large site.
Though one recent species was brought from Borneo by Sir EI. Belcher
measuring more than 2 inches in diameter, tbe living forma usually
range from the Jth to the -^th of an inch. But the Tertiarr StraU of
the nrtb abound in examples of the fossil genus Nummulite {A'sn-
mu/tno, fig. 1 5), so called frem their resemblance to coins, which vaiy
from the (th of an inch to the sixe of balf-a-crewn. Theee are oda
so abundant aa to form mountain masses, extending through tlieAliis,
Northern Italy, Greece, Syria, Egypt, and Northern India, "nie
Mokkadam Mountains in Egypt, where the stone used in building the
pyramids waa obtained, cMefly consist oF th|se Nummulitra, which
are known to the natives by the name oF Pharoah'a Fsnca.
The structure of tbe Nummulites has been investigated by Uesars.
Jolie and Leymerie, and especially by Dr. Qupenter, whilst the spedSe
forma have been stndied by H. D'Archiac The genus belongs to tbe
group of the order HditotUga, in whioh the outer convolutions com-
pletely embrace the earlier- formed ones ; hence it is only by making
microscopic sections, or tbiu slices, tbat their structure can be fully
seen. When such a section is carried horirontally through the centre
of tbe shell the segments present a spiral omngement ; they as well
as the convolutions being remarkable for their small sin and conse-
cjuent great number. In other respects they present Fewer no easenldal
" " ' iguishing them from more reoent forms. AstiUm
s genus, knon _
Switzerland, and Indz
le of OrbiUiidtt, occurs in Ameri
ily to represent the Nummuli
'- Carpenter have revealed
out one that appeara to have son
Forms of Foraminiftnt hafe
the Silurian to t" "
and silts which
the former of which countries it amxars
of the Old World. The laboun
isrkable stnioture in this genoj^
ant representatives.
found ill every focmatioD fiwn
Tertiary. In moet countrin the superficial marls
- associated with peat are Found to be full of the
liliceoiis shields of iKalotaneen, and with tiieee are found the calcareons
shells of Foraniniftra. They diminish in numbers as we pass below
the Chalk ; perhaps also they recede more from the forms of exist-
ing minute Polytialamacta, bat this is a point requiring further
investigation. The most abundant forms in the Chalk belong to
Rotalia, Bpirolina, and Ttitilaria. In the Oolites and Uountaic
Limestone the Forms generally resemble those ot'Textilaria.
673
FORAMINIFERA.
FORGET-ME-NOT.
87i
The following table exhibits a summary of the difltributian uf the
genera :—
In Cainozoio Strata of Britain, according to Morris'B Catalogue.
AnomeUina, Polffmorphina.
SiloeuUna, Polygfomella,
Orittellaria, QuinquelocvUina.
JkwUUina. Jloialina,
Olandulina, Riualina,
6U)bigerina. Rotalia.
Marginulina, Spirohevliruk
Nodotaria. TextUaria.
Nonwnina. TrilocvliiM.
OparctUina. 7\^ncatulina,
PUmorhuUna,
In the Cainozoio Strata, taken generally, Bronn enumerates 46
genera, and Ehrenbeig has augmented the number.
In Mesozoic Strata. Chalk
of Maestricht, Meudon,
Wilts, &C.
(Morris's Catalogue.)
In Mesozoic Strata. Oolite
of Caen. (Bronn.)
Oolite of Stonesfield. '
Oolite of Yorkshire.
In Palseozoic Strata. Moun-
tain Limestone of Bristol.
BvUimilitM,
Cfriitdlaria,
DenUdina,
Gaudryina,
Olobigerina,
Lituila,
Marginttlina,
NummulifM.
Jiotalina.
Rotalia (7 species British).
Siderolina.
Spirolina.
TextUarict.
TrunccUtUina,
TurbinuliiM,
CrideUaria,
Planularia,
TextUaria {f).
RaUdia {f),
Rotalia (;).
TextUaria if), frequent.
TextUaria (J).
Limestone of South Devon. Qenus (?).
In a fossil state the shells of Rotalia show the minute perforations
through which the pseudopodous tentacula passed, and by a careful
examination of the remains of those bodies embalmed in flint Dr.
Mantell (' Medals of Geology,' toI. i. p. 2S2) has shown the general
internal arrangement of the diell, and generai form, if not the minute
Foramin^mr of the Mountain Limeatonp, forming the centre of an oolitic grain.
Power ISO. (Original.)
^
IbramiH^fera of the Chalk, obUined by brushing it in water.
Power 120. (Original.)
organ imitiou, of the animal inhabitant. In a comumnication to the
Geological Society of London this author has expressed his opinion
that the soft body of Rotalia is actually siliciiied, and distinguishable
by colour from the clearer flint which has replaced the shell.
The relation of the Fossil Poraminifera to the recent types is perhaps
closer than that of most other tribes. It appears not only that seTem
Tertiary forms are identical with living species, but further, according
to Ehrenberg, that no less than nine or ten Poraminifera of the Chalk
are undistinguishable from existing species. The following is the list
of those species and the localities where they occur in real Chalk : —
1. Olobigerina buUoides Denmark.
2. CHobigerina kelicina .... . Cattolica.
8. Rosalina globularie Gravesend.
4. Rotalia ocellata . Cattolica.
5. Rotalia gMndota Riigen.
6. Rotalia perforata . . • . . Cattolica.
7. Rotalia turgida Gravesend.
8. TextUaria aciculaia .... . Brighton.
9. TextUaria globiUota Riigen.
10. Spirolina cylindracea ... . Paris.
Even if some doubt must remain as to the exact identity of the
specific forms thus declared to occur, both in recent and in cretaceous
beds, the analogies are too close and too numerous to allow of hesi-
tation in admitting that the Foraminiferous races of the Mesozoic and
Cainozoio periods have mora decided afiinity than appears in any
other group of organic life. As some of the Polypiaria of the Silurian
series pass upwards into the Devonian era, some of the Poraminifera
of the Chalk, with Terd>ratula vitrea and T. Caput Serpentie, appear to
reach our own day ; and thus by feeble, but not to be neglected links,
the systems of ancient and modem life are united into one only
partially discontinuous series ; the seeming interruptions being in the
higher grades of life, the less striking connections being formed by
the simpler marine organic structures, which might better survive
great physical catastrophes, and better endure successive variations
u the condition of the sea. [See SuPPLCMtiNT.J
FORBIDDEN FRUIT. [Ckrus.]
FOREST-FLY. [HippoBosciDiB.]
FOREST-MARBLE, one of the upper beds of the Bath Oolito
series. [Ooutb.]
FORFICU'LID-^, a family of Insects belonging to the order
Ortkopteraf and, according to some authors, constitutuig the order
Dermaptera,
To this family belong the various species of Earwigs. They are
distinguished from the Orthopterous Insects (excepting the Blatta
and the MaiUis tribes, which with the Porficvla constitute Latreille's
family Cweoria) by having the posterior legs formed for running.
Their wings, when folded, are almost always disposed horizontally on
the body. The females have no corneous ovipositor. Both sexes
however are furnished with two corneous forcep-like appendages at
the hinder extremity of the body. The antennoD are slender, filiform,
inserted before the eyes, and vary considerably as to the number of
their joints; the Uiorax is generally of a rounded form, and but
slightly convex.
The family Porficvlida is divided by Dr. Leach into three genera,
the principal characters of which are taken from the number of joints
to the antennse. This first genus, that to which he restricted the
name of PorfictUa, is distinguished by having 14 joints to the antennas.
In the next genus {Ldbidowa) the antenna have 80 joints ; and in the
last, the genus XoMo, the antennae are 12-jointed.
To the first of these genera belongs our common Earwig {PorJUvla
aurietdariaf Linn.), an insect too well known to requke a description.
Earwigs appear to prefer damp situations ; are found under stones
and under the bark of trees, frequently in great abundance. They
are also found in flowers, which thev destroy by eating the leaves, &a
A reinai-kable fact connected with the habits of the Earwig is, that
the female sits upon her eggs in the manner of the hen ; and the
young (which resemble the parent, except in being of a paler colour
and having neither wings nor elyti-a), as soon as they are hatched,
creep under the belly of the mother for protection.
The wings of the Earwig are transparent, of large size, and when
expanded are shaded like a fan : the principal nervures radiate from
one point near the anterior margin. These organs when not in use
are folded beneath two small homy wing-cases, and hence to the
common observer the animal appears wingless.
The male and female common Earwig differ considerably in their
anal forceps, those of the female being leas curved and destitute of a
tooth-like process which is observed on the inner side at the base of
the forceps of the male.
There is in this country another species of Earwig almost equally
common with that we have just noticed, but which is of a much
smaller size. It is found about hot-beds and dunghills, and diflers
from the common Earwig somewhat in its habiu as well as m its
structure. This belongs to the genus Labia. , . ^ , , . ^
One species of the genus Labidoura is also found m England, but
is of rare occurrence. It is of a much hirger size than the common
Earwig. .
FORGET-ME-NOT. [Myosotis.]
675
FORMATION.
FUACTURR
B7C
FORMATION, a geological term sabordiiute to 'system/ aud
includiog special ' groupv/ or assemblages of strata ; in a looser sense
it applies also to pyrogenoos rocks and mineral veina.
FORMICA a genus of Insects belonging to the family Formicida.
It is distinguished by having the footstalk of the abdomen composed
of a single joint, the mandibles triangular, and denticulated at the
edge. The females are destitute of a sting. This genus comprises
about a dozen British species, the largest of which is the Hill- Ant or
Horse-Ant, F. rufa. The neuters in this species are about one-third
of an inch long, of a black colour, with the thorax, abdominal scale,
and a hu^e part of the head, red. It makes its large conical nest in
the open ground in woods, &c., amassing together large quantities of
•ticks, straws, &c. For a description of these nests see Ant.
F. tanguinea is of a blood-red colour, with the eyes and abdomen
black, and the wings 'dusky at the base. The neuter is similarly
coloured, except th&t the head is darker. The male is black, with
red legs. This species burrows in wood, and is one of those
which steal the young of other species, rearing them to perform the
duties of the nest Two of the species subject to these marauders
are F, eunieularia and F, futca, both of which are inhabitants of this
country. The latter species is of a shining black colour, with a slight
■shy tinge; its form is rather long, and it is nearly smooth; the
three or four basal joints of the antenna are of a red colour, as are
also the legs; the abdominal scale is large and triangular; and the
ocelli are distinct. It establishes its nest under stones, moss, &c.,
and at the foot of trees, the nest being entirely under ground.
Among the exotic species of this genus are to be found many
whioh are extremely injurious or annoying in their habits. Of these
the Sugar- Ant of the West Indies is "perhaps the most extensiyely
prejudicial. F. saecharivora, as it is called, establishes its nest at the
root of sugar-canes, lime-trees and lemon-trees, where it loosens the
earth so that the trees are either blown down by the violent gales, or
so completely deprived of nourishment at the roots that they soon
die. Some years ago the injuries committed by this insect were so
great that a reward of 20,000/. was offered by tne planters to any one
who should discover an effectual mode of destroying them, yet nothing
could be found to stay their ravages. The aid of fire was even
resorted to in vain; the insects rushing into the flames in such
myriads as to extinguish it. Heavy torrents of rain at last effected
their destruction.
F, indrfesaa, another exotic species, is described by Colonel Sykes as
being an extraordinary instance of the operations of instinct in so low a
form of animal life. The fondness of these insects for sweet substances
is very great^ and their attacks on such things were resisted in every
possible manner, yet although the table, on which the oonfectionaiy and
sweets were, was placed with its legs in water and removed a short dis-
tance from the wall, they succeeded in reaching them, to the great
astonishment of all, until the mode of access was discovered. Colonel
Sykes says, " I observed an ant upon the wall about a foot above the
level of the sweets ; it fell, and instead of passing between the wall and
the table and alighting upon the ^und it fell upon the table." Others
followed its example with similar success; and it was no longer
a matter for doubt as to how they continued to swarm in such
numbers about their favourite food, however carefully guarded.
FORMICID.^, an extensive family of Hymenopterous Insects,
belonging to the section AeuUata, and to the sub-section Betcrogyna
of LatreUle, comprising the Linnsean genus Formica^ or the numerous
tribes of Ants. The family is distinguished by the wingless state of
their abortive females, by the great length of the basal joint of the
antenna) in the females and the neuters, in which they are elbowed at
the extremity of this joints and by the first or the first and second
joints of the abdomen being knotted ; the upper lip of the neuters is
lai^e, horny, and perpendicular, falling between the jaws ; the eyes
are rounded, or oval and entire ; the jaws are large in many of the
species, the form of these organs varying greatly in many of the
species. In their structural character the Formicida resemble the
TiphicB and Dotyli belonging to the section of the Sand- Wasps. The
neuters are smaller than the males, and these are smaller than the
females ; the abdomen in the first and last of these sexes is composed
of six segments, in the male of seven. The females and neuters are
furnished with a sting in many of the species. Those species which
have stings emit an irritating fluid into the wounds which they mtUce,
while the stingless species discharge a red transparent fluid on to the
skin, causing painful blisters.
The various genera of this family, according to Latreille, are : —
Foirmic€if Folyerffua, Foner<i, Mjfrmtea, and Atta. This last genus
differs from Myrmica only in having Tery short palpi ; the head of
the workers is generally rery thidL Aeephaloia is the Visiting
Ant of the West Indies. [Aitt; Fobmioa; Poltbrous; Ponera;
Mtrmica.]
F01iST£RITE, a Crystallised Mineral, the primary form of which
is a right rhombic prism. The crystals are colourless, translucent,
brilliant, and small; they are harder than quarts. This substance
occurs at Vesuvius accompanied by pleonaste and pyroxene. It has
not been accurately analysed, but contains silica and magnesia.
FOSSIL COPAL was first found in the Blue Clay at Highgate,near
London ; it occurs also at Wochlow in Moravia.
It oooun in irregular pieces or small nodular masses. Its colour
is yellowish or duil bruvrn; nearly opaque. Lustre resinous. Fractttre
oonchoidaL Specific gravity 1*046. When heated it yields as
. aromatic odour, and melts into a limpid fluid ; it bums with a yellow
flame and much smoke. When strongly heated in contact with the
air, it is totally dissipated.
FOSSILS. The term ' Fossil,' in its general acceptation, signifies
that which may be dag out of the earth. In this senses antiquities,
as well as natural metallic and mineral bodies, may be said to be
fossils. But the word is generally used among geologists and mine-
ralogists sometimes to designate simple and componnd mineral
bodies, such as earth, salts, bitumens, and metals, but more generally
the petirified forms of plants and animals which occur in the strata
that compose the surfdcse of our globe. Most of these fossil species,
many of the genera, and some of the families, are extinct; and all of
them were considered in the darker ages to owe their origin to the
Slastic power of the earth. They were named Zapides idioaiorpAs,
t. figurtUif and, as their organic nature b^;an to be suspected, L.
diluviani. Superstition was, in old times, busy with some of them,
the Belenmites and Ammonites for example.
The appellation P^rifaeta^ 'Petrifactions,' soon became common in
books and catalogues of cabinets, and then Sir John Hill's proposition
to denominate such petrified bodies extraneous or adventitious
fossils, was adopted by many naturalists, Parkinson objected to
'Petrifactions' as a general term, and diBtinguished 'Fossils' by em-
ploying the expression 'Primary Fossils' to denote those mineral
substances which are supposed to have been native, or, in other words,
to have existed primitively in the earth ; and by applying the appel-
lation 'Secondsiry Fossils' to the petrified exuviss of plants and
animals. Though the terms of this last-mentioned writer are now no
longer adopted, he must always be considered as one of the fathers of
this branch of geology, a branch which William Smith first effectively
used as the key to the stratification. In tbe steps of Smith the first
writers on this subject have since trod ; and the study of ' Organic
Remains,' by which name the animal and vegetable bodies penetrated
by or converted into mineral substances are now known as a whole,
has become of first-rate importance in deciphering the history of the
lithological structure of the earirh's crust. The well-known Eocene,
Miocene, and Pliocene periods of Lyell, for instance, depend in a great
degree upon the proportionate absence or presence of living species
among the organic remains which have hitherto been discovered iu
certain groups of strata of comparatively modem origin.
Some notices of the fossil plants and aninuds^ when such are
known, are given in the articles which relate to existing families,
genera, or species; and extinct families, genera, and species aic
treated of under their respective heads.
FOSSORES,a family of theaculeatedjGTymetiop^era. [Htmxnoftera.]
FOUQUIERA'CE^, a natural order of Plants belonging to
Lindley's syncarpous group of Polypetalous Exogens. The species
are trees or shrubs, with entire oblong fleshv clustered leaves, seateil
in the axil of a spine or a cushion, with scarlet flowers arranged in a
terminal spike or panicle. The sepals are 6, imbricated, ovate, or
roundish ; the petids 5, regular, combined in a long tube, arising from
the bottom of the torus or calyx ; the stamens 10 or 12, arising from
the same line as the petals, but distinct from them, exserted ; the
anthers 2-celled ; the ovary superior, sessile ; the style filiform, trifid ;
the ovules numerous ; the capsule 5-coraered, 3-oelIed, 3-valved ; the
valves bearing the dissepiments in the middle; the seeds in part
abortive, eompressed, winged, affixed to the axis ; the embryo strait,
in the centre of thin fleshy albumen ; the cotyledons flat. This order
was separated by De CandoUe from PortiUacea for the following
reasons : — " 1, because the petals were in a long tube of the same
nature as that of gamopetalous CrasstUaceat ; 2, because the capsule
consists of three loculicidal cells, that is to say, which separate through
the middle, forming three septiferous valves; and 8, because the embryo
is straight) with flat cotyledons, and stationed in the centre of fleshy
albumen." (Lindley, ' Nat. System.') In the structure of their flowers
FouquieraccB resemble OrassfUticecB ; and in the character of their firuit,
Zocuacecs, Tutmeraeea, and Staekhautictcete.
There are only two genera comprehended in this order : Fou4fuifrat
named after Dr. Peter Edward Fouquiere, a professor of medicine at
Paris ; and Bronnia, named in honour of Henry George Bronn, who
has written on leguminous plants. Each of these genera has a single
species : both plants are natives of Mexico. Of their properties little
is known.
F. formoia is a showy shmb, and may be grown in a light rich soil,
and propagated by means of cuttings, which will root freely in sand
under a hand-gUuBS in heat. Bronnia has been referred by some
botanists to TamarieaeecB.
(Lindley, Natural Syttem ; Burnett, Outlinet of Botany; Don,
Dichlamydeout Plants.)
FOX. [VULPIDJt]
FOXGLOVE. [Digitalis.]
FOX-GRAPES, the name for Vitit fudpina,
FOX-TAIL-GRASS. [Alopkourus.]
FRACTURE, in Mineralogy, means the irregular surface which
appears when a mineral is broken, so that suifaces do not constitute
a Cleavoge. The kinds of fracture are detemuned by tbe aspect and
forms of the surface presented by the mineral. Werner divides the
877
FHAOrLARIA.
TuriatiM of fraotnre into compuct, fibroin, radUted, ftDd folinted.
Tbe compact 111117 be splintarf, even, cODcboidkl, untTcn, eHrtby, or
hackly. The fibrous may ba ccmrBe or delicate, straight or curved,
parnlUI or dlTerging ; uid the diTcrging again is either BtelluUr,
Bcopiforni, or promiacuoiii. The radiated fracture ii braid or oairow,
■trnight or curred, diverging or jiromiacuoua ; and Btreaked or smooth.
FRAGILARIA. [Di*TO«iCRJt]
FRANCOA'CE^, Francoadi, > very smallnatural order of Eiogens,
consistinR nf tbe geoen. Francoa and Tttilla. They are South American
hprbaeeous plants, with lyrate radical Irnvea and ascnposeinfloreweuce.
The sepils and petals nre four ; the stamens four times as numerous
and hjpogynoin, half of tbeni being ruilimpntary. The pistil consista
of four carpels adhering by their interior angles, with a sessile
4-lobed stigmn. The seeds are numerous, and contain a minute embryo
lying in a muss of fleshy albumen. Oreat differences of opinion haTo
eiinted among botanists ns to the aflinities of this order. Dr. Lintlley
stiites that its neoreit nfSnity is with Dumira, which chiefly diflers
in its unilocular fruit, anisomcrouB flowers, and the want of sleril*
atamens. lu seeds are absolutely the same in all essential respects.
FRANCOLIN. [PEBDicma.]
FRA'NKENIA, a gnius of Plants, the type of the natural order
Frankcniacetc, and named in honour of John Pronkenius, a proftssor
of botoQj at Dps*], and the first enumerator of the Swediiih plants
in 'Speculum Botanioon.' It has a 5-cleft style, the lobes oblong,
-with the stdgmaa within. Capsules 1-ceIled. with three or four Tolres,
and msjiy seeded. These plants are small and heath-like, with
proatrats stems; the flowers usually rise from the forks of the stem,
or are disposed in terminal oorymbs.
F. pulvcrulenla, the Powdery Ses-Heath. has Its leaves opposite
in whorls, obovate, ratuse, glabrous, and the under surface powdery,
with ciliated petioles; a slender root, and axillary terminal fiowera
of a pale red-colour. This plant grows in the sand by the aeo^hora
in many parts of Europe and Aaia ; it is occosioaally found on the
coast of Sussex in England, but is Tery rare.
F. tavit has clustered, linear, glabrous leaies, with revolute margins,
ciUated at the base; proatrata downy stem, and terminal axillary
■olitsiy flowers. It is a native of the muddy oalt-marshes by tba
sea-coast, in many patta of Europe and the Canary lolei. In England
it is found principaUy on the eastern coast, and flowers in the months
of July and August The Sowers ai« generally flesh'Coloured, but
sometimes white, with yellow olaws.
Don enumerates Ifl species of this genus, besides those already
nnmed as being found in Qrcat Britain. Of those not British plants
tho majority occur in Africa and Australia, and some aro found
FR.VXIXKLI.A. B78
in South America. F. Mtptdagrowt on the rocks extending from tha
island of Cyprus to Siberia. Tbe hsrdy species of this beautiful
evergreen genus are well adapted to ornament rock-work, and may be
easily cultivated. They may he propagated by cuttiuRs or by dividing
tbe roots, and may also be Brown from seed uiiuer n hnnd-glaas.
[Don, Dichiam'jdtout PlanU j Babington, Manaal of Fn/iih
FllANKENIA'CE-E,/VantCT;orfj,B small natural order of Eiogeos,
allied to Violaeta and Sausagefiacne, with a procumbent habit, small
leaves, and very often minute fl.-wers halt hidden among tho leave*.
They are all furnished with a tubular ribbed ealyi, and thit, together
with their having 5 petals, a definite number of hypogynuua »tam^;n^
and a 1-cellcd capsule bursting into valveii, to Tthose edges the seeds
adhere, gives them a distinctly limited character. The e|>ecies are
chiefly found in the south of Europe snd north of Africa ; they how-
ever occur in various other parts of the world ; four species from
Australia ; two are natives of the Cape of Good Hope ; one of South
America ; and three nf temperate Asia, Endlicher sijs they are
mucilaginous and slightly aromatic. Tha leaves of i(ei(»oiiia porltt-
lacifulia are used in St. Helena as tea. Franhenia pauAfiora,
remnrkablB for tbe siie of its flowers, is a Tery pretty greenhouse
sU niignlSHl.
FRANKINCENSE, a rainaus subatanoe, ita produce of the Abiet
arctlta {De Candolle), the Piniu abia {Linn.), Common Spruce-Fir,
from which it either exudes spontaneously or more abundantly from
incisions of the bark. Wben it first flows out it is liquid, but on
exposure to ths air concretes, snd ia collected during autumn and
winter. It occurs in two states, in tears (TAtu, or OlOanvm lyhatrt),
and in large irregular lumps or compressed cokes. When recent tha
colour should be white, or only inclining to yellow, subdiaphanous,
aott, tenadous. and glutinous : by tbe action of time it becomes hard,
and even ftiable, the colour having deepened into on orange hue. By
the beat of ths band it softens, and by a higher temperaturs liquifies.
It posasases a turpsntjns-like odour and taste. It is insoluble in
water, but compleC^y soluble in alcohol with the aid of heat.
It oonsists of two kinds of reain mixed with oil of torpsntins. By
melting it in water, and straining it throu^ strong cloths, it is
deprived of much of its oil, wben it is termed Fix Aiida, or Burgundy
Pitch.
For the genuine Thus, or Fnnkincense of the ancients, see Boa-
WELLIA ; also Olibandu, as tbe substaneee distinguished by this name
{lierived from the Arabic Loobsn) were of diflerent kinds, and
procured probably from Africa and Arabia, as well as &om India.
FRANKLINITE, a Mineral which occurs in attached crystals,
granular, and massiva The primary form of ths crystal is a cube ;
its colour is deep irou-blsck. Opaque. Lustre metallic Specific
gravity t-3T to 1-09. Hardness d*0 to 6'5. Streak deep red-brown.
Cleavage parallel to the planes of the regular octahedron, but ver;
indistinct Fracture conchoidal. Magnetic, but without polarity,
Tbe moaaive varieties are amorphous. Structure granular, compact
This mineral is found at Franklin, New Jersey, North A
According to Berthier it consists of
Peroxide of Iron
Oxide of Zinc
Bed Oxide of Uanganese
FEATEBCDLA. [Adk-I
FRAXINELLA, the common nan:
genus DKlamnut, which ia referred U
has a 6-parted, unequal, deciduous calyx ; 6 unequal unguiculate
petals; 10 diclinato stamens with awl-shnped filiform unequal
Giainents, having glandular tubci'dn at their apex, and roiuidisli
■ ' J, If* " '" r"'" o avn. •*«* ■" cOTerofl
— 'r hlln. *!«■"■ ■'■ "T*'^ i, ,rt>lKiB« und«r thfl
■"■' ^Ti^, [if- ; •■■" ■•■•■'""^ (,hUJ««1 Btomujiio,
-■• ".rs---- — -i,;:* T.J^ « " "•'" .'"
■•"*,' ,. ,- »— ■■" ^„ V_ |,rt» i»*» =""*™ ■°*"'™'^'
^lWn'"_^^^_^_,^ , , .-I '" _,.,^ (,nt, uid »meoorrhii».
(bf "^IT^^ >i i' '" '''"^ " 'Ilsr ..im' of i*ie*«'ii>'* CVdicm,
t»**'7^*\^„ 1. ^•-•■""- "'" ^^^ j\fttr-l "*' T-JTiTinii* [Ori-
•»■ ^"*''' " , , u.M9t, ilWlW^ o™t*-l«noeol»t8,
*■"■''' _■■'-■*• '^ ■'■' ** .h *.v«i«t)ns;t'>*o'Jj*'''''^*l"*l-
•"■■"■"!", - ^'' '"■ '^'"'^"' n«i«iri/« found in girdciu, with
' V. *■ rT.— ni»T wUI grow in any commcm
^ .— •-' """J ..i,;.j l■>^•»™i"*'''*"""'''7■
'^.,l .■ "■"''.- ''■— * P>Mttta,Oii'ltnt» nf Solans; Lowit,
. . '' ,„.d A t^dU batanging to the natund order
v. v' '' "^ ^'j ,1^ iXimnioti Ash is compreheadwi. Thaj
■ - " '* « , -W M>m trmpante regioni of the northern
.. - " " *' ,^ i, ,Vj \VJ Mhl New World, but are unknown in a
i_ ., ■' — ''^* _„.ijrti Alliough, if itrictly liniitod, the specie*
■■ - ^ ' ~,,.-n j»> the geniii doeg, in fact, belong to tlio
' ' .IV ,.2,^ anil Ijlae, a traniition to whteli ia &ffbrdsd
• --'■ "^.^^ v*lM FJowering AahM, the Omi of modern
■ •■ "' ,V,>»» .vmiHa eiiate in the form of four long narrow
^ - ' 'n !i ^.-» **••<• h""" ^' ^"^ "^ ^""^ called a key, or
' . - nMaHii* that ia, n ieed-vaaael which does not open,
" ■^' ^ ^^^^ M two oell*, and which ia prolonged into a thin
« ^-^^ ^^'* i« iltrtT an all called aahofl in the nrdena. hnd
Ann'ow, or True Aahes.
■ .k.w *»!• »••' Import"* ■• ^* Common Ath {P. txeeUior), a
*^ i!l|iitiii)! ♦'•• cool"' P**** of Europe, from Oreat Britaio to a
*"'* "L«iW» ittrtaiwa through Aeia. It la aaid to eiiat ia Japan in
'"""vi «••. l»'* *^'" requirea confirmation; it doea not ooear in
' ' i iiurri.*. but iipeoiM aimilar to it in appearance are common
V'^** *_^^j^„j, The aah ia one of the moat luatul of onr British
'"" w aiHiiUBl of the eioellenoe of ite hard tou^ wood, and the
"""^■iv «<f It" growth. In ita appearance too it is singularly graceful
"'* Kiio'l*'" *■»•' "'*"' "••"'•'''"K "* '*■ slender sterna and thin
■*" *fiJi»»i Iha acaciaa of tropical regions. ETery one who has Been
rj»ful rfW of the ashe. mS|gled with the nims of Netley
J. Iihev near Southampton, must have bean struck with thia pecahan ty.
vkTi^iiulral objertion to the aah j« the injury it doea to the plaaU
llifrow In lu neighbouAood, by rapidly exhausting the soU of
*>■' 11. ^anisable materials. In oonsequeaoe of thii, few plants will
iri«. « "'an grow near it; and hence the Impmpriety of the
«Ii.iiii.ui liragtioa of planting the ssh in hedgerowa ; the eitenl of its
rixta may alwaya be distinctly tnced by the langour and palenesa of
the Mu|>* that atand near it Many varietiea, or suppoMd varietioa
-r It, are known to oultiratora, and many more might eaailj be ool-
ImMI If it were worth the while ; for it aporta very much m a wild
* reputed varietiea are the following : —
Aah ; with all the character* of the
the bmncbea grow downwards inatead
ipoD ■ lofty stem the head will soon
latural artraur. Thia is said to haTe
1 at Qamlingay, in CambridgeaUre.
with all ita leaTca simple, broad, otate,
I. Nothing can well be more unlike
hich ueTerthetess appears u|>on good
ag variety. Out of leaf it is hardly
from ita prototype.
afed Aah ; with vary abort stunted
pled leaves. If thia is, as it ia said to
of F. BicaWor, it is one of the moat
ra acquainled. It has a particularly
> thick, and its ehoota so abort, that
dcd tree of the Bmallest dimenaiuns.
ell as the Orttitt, ia sometimes called
FBilXINUS. ' M
i. F. vtrmeMO, the Wart«d-Barked Aah. Id this the Btema ace
coTered over with a great number of little grayish brown tuberdea ;
ntberwiae the plant haa the appearance of the oommon-aab.
Beaides thia, the only European ash that deaerres notice is tbe F.
parr^folia, Small-Leaved *»», Ita foliage is much finer mad tui-
rawer than in F. eieelnor ; the leafleta are narrow and finely aeirsud,
the bnrk ia rugged, the growth alow, and instead of the tou^mea* sc
chanctenatiu of the Utter species, the bnuchea are so brittle mm taht
liable to ootutant injury from high winds. It ia haworer m tttj
beauliful tree, and for ornamental purposes whan aiae is no obj«t,
it ahould bs planted, aepeciall; as a single tree. It ia poaaible that
F. mirala may be a variety of it : but nothing can be mors cmnieDBB
than the idea that it is itself a variety of F. cxednor. It is fosnd
only in the southem parts of Europe.
In the Lsiaut occur* the P. laUitcifUia, Lentisk Aah, » most
graceful species, with long narrow leaves, oompoaed of five or aii
pain of small, distinct, sharply aerrated, ahioing leafleta. It inhabis
"le country about Aleppo, and is hardy in tEiis country, where it
rma a tree of the moat elei;ant appearanoe, intermediate, aa it wart,
appeanmce between a willow and an aah. The branchea are deqi
Eh purple. It is often called P. <7Aineiini in the nurscnea.
With regard to the species of Americsin Ash we have, in th« fint
place, to rstnark that they are not well adapted to thia climate^ being
in geneial too ill preparad by our short cold sumtnan to bear our
winters, and moreover injured by spring froats ; ciraamstaiicea much
' be t«gretted, because some of the species prove very handsome
MM. In the second plnce, the number of apeciea has do doubt beai
greatly exaggerated by writen upon garden botany ; we casnat how-
ever nt all agree with a modern writer upon these subjects, who
bsllevea all the American ashes to be one and the same speciea. The
following are, we think, undoubtedly distinct: —
P. pt£€tctiu, the Black American or Downy Ash, with thrwe or four
psirs of leaflets^ which are nearly entire, fiat, downy beneath, as well
aa the brauchea. A. swamp tree in the middle states of the Ameiicu
F, Araericana, the White Amerloan Aah, with seldom mora than
three pairs of leaSets, which are amooth, flat, nearly entire, and
glsueoua on the under aide; the brancbea amooth. Alsrgetraeia
Canada and tbe northern atatea of America.
F. tambaeifolia, the Wato^Ash, or Elder-Leaved Ash, with three or
four paira of leaflsta, which are rugose, oonstantly acnated, hairy at
the aiila of the leaves underneath ; when bruised smelling a little
like elder ; buda deep blue. A common tree in forsata in the northern
parta of North America.
F. quadranjfiUida, with the shoots distinctly and sharply quadnn-
gular. A tree from Ohio, among the moat unauitable of tJia Ameriian
ashes for this climate.
P. qnpftro, the Wing-Topped, Seeded, or Two-Coloured Aah. with
the keja very broad and wedgeahaped at the upper end and taper at
the base. The young branobes are green, covered with white dola
A small tree, found all ihrough tbe American Union.
All tbe foregoing can be procured in the English nurBetiea, and
they perbap* form tbe only distinct species of the genus. A groat
many auppoaed speciea were distinguished by the lata Hr. Boac, whose
names are current in oollectiona ; but they can aoaroely be detomined
with praeiaton. A fine collection of Ashes exists in one of ths
icloauies in Kensington Gardoia.
F. Caroliniana, the Carolina Aah, has 3 or 3 paita of leaflets, ovsl,
petiolate, serrated, glabrous, and shining above. The flowers are
dyoulate. The branches glabrous and, like ths buds, browniah.
he rsoeme* loose, an inch and a half long, often twin from the
me bud. The pedidea numerous and umbellate. The calyx
small snd campanulate. It i* a tree from 30 to 60 feet high ; natiTe
from Pennsylvania to Carolina. It is a vsry Temarkatdo vsrirty,
readily disbnguiabed by the sise of ita leaflet^ which are nearly
round. In America it ia entirely neglected as a timber-tree^ and in
Europe it is solely considered as ornamentaL
There are a great many varieties of the spedes F. ezodtier, some »f
which undoubtedly deserve to be considered distinct species. Savenl
' " im yield the aweet reainoua laxative substance known byltie
of Manna. F. ext^tior not only produoes it in the warn
e of South Europe, but ia reported to have a tonic febrifugal
bark and leaves almoat as cathartic ss those of Seoiia, producing
lequivocal action on the system.
The speciee of thii genua which most ezlensivel; produce Uanns
a now described under the genus
Ontut, or Flowering Ashsa.
0. Saropaa, or Common Hanna^Asb, ta a smsll round-headed tne,
with leavea reaemblmg thoae of the Common Ash, only the lasAeti
are elliptioal, abruptly aouminated, and have a oonsiderable oollectioa
of hairs at the base of the midrib nndemaath. In the summer vhea
the leaves are full grown the tnos become omamented with a pro-
fusion of white delicate bloseoms, which give them a strikingl;
beautiful appearance. The species iuhsbita the southern parte of
Europe, especially the woods of dilsbria and Apulia, and iu Umta
oountrics Sowers in ApriL
681
FRAZERA.
FRINGILLID^.
89S
O. r^iundifolia is uniyermlly diiitiDgoUhed aa a aeoond siMciei of
thia genua ; difibriDg in ita leaTaa being much longer, the leafleta
roundiah, ovate, acute, not eoapidate, coaraely aerrated, entire, and
rather cuneate at the baae, and not at all hairy underneath. In flowero
it is much the same. It ia a native of Calabria and elaewhere in the
south of Europe.
These two planta are interesting aa producing the sweet laxative
aubatance known in the apothecariea' shopa under the name of Manna.
It ia a secretion from the leavea and branchea ; and, according to F^,
is caused either by artificial wounda or by the puncture of an inaect
Both species yield the substance, but, according to Tenore, that from
O. rutundifolia ia of better quali^ than the other.
*' In CaUbria and Sicily," says this phyaidan, " in the hotteat part
of the summer months, the Manna ooxes out of the leavea, and from
the bark of the trunk and larger branches of the FreuewMUf or
Calabriaa Aah. The Omui likewise affords it, but firom the trunks
and larger branchea onlv, and that chiefly from artificial aperturea;
whereas it flows from the Fraximu Uirough every little cranny, and
burata through the large •porea spontaneoualy. The diffsrent qualitiee
of the Manna are from different parte of the tree."
The sweetness of this substance ia not due to the presence of sugar,
but to a distinct principle called Mannite, whidi differs from sugar in
not fermenting with water and yeast. Some trees yield the Manna
apontaneoualy ; theae only grow in the most fiivourable situations,
and the sap nms out during the greatest heat of summer. It begins
to ooze out about mid-day, in the form of a clear liquid, which soon
thickens, and oontinuea to appear till the oool of the evening, when
it begina to harden into granules, which are scraped off the following
morning. This kind is called ' Manna in Tears,' and is aa pure and
white aa the finest sugar. Inferior qualitiea are obtained by making
inciaiona in the treea, which forma the principal part of the Manna
aold in our shops.
(Loudon, Arboretum BrUannioum,)
FRAZEHA, a genua of Planta belonging to the natural order
OentianaeecB, named after John Fraaer, a collector of North American
plants. It haa a 4-cleft deeply-parted calyx. The corolla 4-paited,
rotate, deciduous, with a bearded orbicular gland in the middle of
each segment. The stamens 4, inclosed; Slamenta filiform; the
capsule compressed, partly mailed, 1-celled. The aeeda few,
imbricated, elliptical, winged, and fixed to the margina of the valvea.
F, Candinentis, the F. WaiUri of Miehaux, is the only species of
tlus genua. It haa a biennial root ; stem from 8 to 6 feet high, erect^
sub<iuadrangular, and smooth ; leavea oppoaite aiMl verticillate,
oblong, lanceolate, the lower ones a foot long and more than 3 inchea
broad; flowers in aggregate dusters. This plant is indigenoua in the
swamps of the Carolinaa, and ia found on the borders of lakes in
Pennsylvania and New York. The whole plant haa a very stately
appearance, and in character approachea ao near to Sttertia that,
without evamining the fruity it might be miataken for a apeoiea of
that genua. The root yielda a powerfiil bitter, nearly aa pure aa that
of quaaaia, and wholly destitute of aroma. It is fiillv equal in its
medicinal effects to gentian, and when freah is said to be emetic and
cathartia The roots have been imported into Europe aa a aort of
Columba, and hence have acquired the name of American Calumba.
Thia plant requirea moisture, and flouriahes beat in a peat aoiL It
should be protected the winter alter being raised from aeed or that
preceding ita flowering.
(Bon, JHchlamydeout Pkmtt; Lindley, Flora Medico.)
FREESTONE. [Sansstomk^ <Sto Sufp lucbmt.]
FREGILUS. [GoRTWA]
FRENCH BERRIES. [Rhamkub.]
FRIGATE. [Pklboanidjb.]
FRINGE-TREE, the English name of the American shrub
Chuma/nthut Virginicc^
FRINOILLA, a genua of Birda belonging to the order Fri»gilUda
and the division Inseuoreg. The beak ia atraight, longer than deep,
conic, and pointed ; mandiblea nearly equal, cutting edgea entire,
forming a atraight commissure; nostrila basal, lateral, oval, partly
hidden by the frontal plumes. Wings with the flrst quill-feather
longer thim the fifth, but a little shorter than the aecond or third,
which are equal, and the longest in the wing. Legs with the tarsi of
moderate length ; toes divided, and adapted for hopping and perching ;
claws curved and sharp.
F. ccdehif the Chaffinch. [CHArmrcH.]
F. montifrinffilla, the Mountain Finch, Brambling, or Bramble
Finch. This bird is a visiter to this country only in winter, coming to
UB from the north, but at different times, according to the temperature
of the country from which it emigratea. They have not been known
to breed in any part of thia country ; those kept in confinement
under the most favourable circumatanoes have never done so. It is
not an uncommon bird in Denmark. Mr. Hewitson saw them at one
place in the southern part of Norway, where they were breeding.
It is deacribed aa buUding in fir-trees ; the nest formed of moss, and
lined with wool and feathers; the eggs four or five in number, white,
tinged with yellow, and spotted with dark red, like those of a chaf-
findi. The call-note of thia bird is a single monotonous chirp.
FRINQIXLIDiS, a tvxuiiy of Birda belonging to the order
trmttorei and the division Cvniro^rut This famuy is eonunonly
KAT. mST. DIV. YOt. lU
known by the name of Finches. According to Mr. Vigors this family
embraces, in addition to AloMda [Alaudina], to which Embtriza
(the Buntinga) [EMBERiziDiS] and its affinities seem nearlv allied, the
greater part of the Linnsaaa FringilkB, together with the Limuoan
TanagrtB [Tan aoeb], which approach them in their external charactera
and in their habits, as far as naa hitherto been ascertained. These
latter groups contain many natural genera which may be traced, in
his opinion, ftx)m the point of their connection with the T.innnfiiin
FrmgiUa back, by a gradual increase of the base of the bill in
breadth and height, to the family of Loxiada [Loziadjb], which
unitea with them at the opposite extremitv of the series of fiimilies
which compose the tribe. The FrittgilUace again, according to the
same author, by means of the sharp-pointed and lengthened bill of
CardueUif and by the extension of the culmen of the upper mandible
in an angular form for aome extent upon the front of the head,
conduct ua on the other aide to the genus letenu (Brias.), which
commences the succeeding family. Here Mr. Vigors thinks that the
genus Ploetut of Cuvier alao seems to hold an intervening station
between the two groups, so aa to render it difficult to decide in which
of them it should be placed. There is also, he states, another decided
line of relationahip between the two fainiliea, namely, that which
some species of the TiinniBan Alauda, particularly J. Capen*%s, bear
to the Stumui Ludovicianut, or Crescent Stare, of Dr. Latham. Thia
latter bird is well known as the Alavda magna of Linnaeus and of the
American omithologista. But ita still stronger affinity to the Stumi
and Ideri necessarily plaoea it among them. The former relationahip
appears to Mr. Vigors to be one of analogy, not of affinity ; while the
direct passage between the familiea u found in Ploceu$ (the Weaver
Birds). [PLOCBiNiB.] Mr. Vigors makea FringilUda the first» and
Loxiada the last fainily of the Oomroatrei. Mr. Swainson makes the
FringUiida (including Loxia, apparently ; for hia Coniro9tret oonaist
of the Corvtda, Stumidte, FrvngiUida, Miuophagida, and BueeridcBf
omitting LoxiadtB) the third family; and the order of the namea
given will show the position he assigns to it. " No group in the
ornithological circle," writes Mr. Swainson in his ' Claasification of
Birds,' voL L, ** ^libits this powerful structure (strength of the bill)
so much aa that of the FringiUidcB, where the bill is short and
nearly conic ; both mandibles are equally thick, and when closed their
height and breadth are nearly the same. In many of the Finchea (aa
in Uie aub-genera AmadinOf Coe€othra/utte$, &c.) the thickness of the
bill at ita Immc in oompariaon to the aize of the head is enormoua ;
but in Zoxia ottrina of VieiUot, a rare and most extraordinary bird
from Western Africa, the bill is not much inferior to the siae of the
head. It ia well known that all these ' hard-billed ' birds, as the old
writers aptly called them, feed entirelv upon seeds and nuta ; and the
harder these are the stronger are the bills of such species as are
appointed to derive nourishment ftom. the different sorts ; whenever
an insectivorous and frugivorous diet is united, as is the case with
most of the Tanager Finches, the upper mandible is notched for the
obviouB purpose of more firmly securing that part of their food
which can escape."
M. Lesson, in his ' Table M^thodique,' places the FringiUida as the
third family of the ConiroUrUf and mi^es it consist of the following
genera : — Emheriza of Linnieus, Emberiaoides of Temminck, FringiiUa
of Linn»ua— namely, PyrgitOf FringiUa, and Carduelit of Cuvier;
Linaria of Beohstein; Vidua of Cuvier; CoeoothrauiUt of Bzisson;
Pgrrhula of Brisson ; Loxia of Brisson ; Ptittirottra of Temminck ;
Oorythui of Cuvier; Coliug of Brisson and Linneua; Phytotoma oi
MoUna ; and Phceui of Cuvier.
Cuvier, in his ' R^ffne Animal,' arranges the Buntings {Bmberiza of
LinnsBus) immediately after the Titmice (Partu of Linnaeus); and
next to the Buntings he places the Sparrows, Les Moineaux {FringiUa
of Linneus).
Cuvier designates the Buntings as possessing an extremely diatinct
character in their conical short straight bill, the narrower upper
mandible of which, entering within the lower, haa on the palate a
hard and projecting tubercle ; and as granivorous birda which ha^e
little caution, and readily enter the anares prepared for theuL Those
Buntings which have an elongated nail on the lund toe, like the larks,
are distinguished by Meyer under the generic name of PUctrophanea.
The Sparrows (rrvngtUa) are characterised by Cuvier as having a
conical bill more or less large at its base, but not angular at the com-
missure. They subsist principally on seeds, and are subdivided by
that zoologist as follows : — The Weavers {Ploceut, Cuvier), a form
found in both the old and the new continents. Those of the Old
World make a nest by interweaving very skilfully the fibres of vege-
tables, whence their name. Such ai*e the Toucnam Courvi of Uie
Philippine Islands {Loxia PhiUppina of Linnaeus), with its penduloua
nest, having a vertical canal opening below, which communicates
laterally with the cavity where the voung are laid ; and the Repub-
lican. (Zoxta tocia of Latham), which buUda in society, and whose
conjoined nests form one large continuous mass with numerous
compartments. Among the Weavers of the new continent Cuvier
pkces Le Mangeur de Riz, Petit Choucas de Surinam, de la Jamaique,
Cassique Noir, &c. {Oriolm niger, Oriolut orgzivonu, Corvua Surinam'
enaii, Gmelin), which in countless flocks lay waste the fielda of many
of the warm parts of America. Next to the Weavers are placed the
SparrowBi properly so called {Pifrgila of Cuvier), of which the wel^
8 Xi
« •*.•
87tf
FRAXINUS.
FRAXINUS. •
anthers ; the style single, didmato, striated lengthwise, terminated
by a blunt papillose stigma ; the capsule itipitate, composed of 5
carpels, which are connected on the inside, compressed, S-seeded.
D, Praxinella, Bastard or False Dittany, False White Dittany,
Fraxinella, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, cordate at the base, acute at the
apex, finely serrulated; the racemes long; the calyx imequal. It is
found wild in the south of Europe, especially in (Germany, France^
Spain, Austria, and Italy.
The leaves, flowera, and stem of this plant, when gently rubbed, emit
a strong lemon odour, and when bruised the scent is more powerful
The volatile oil which gives it its peculiar odour is secreted in the
laigest quantities in the pedicles of the flowers, which are covered
with KtUe glands of a rusty red colour, which exude a viscid resinous
juice. The volatile oil from this plant is evolved in so large quantities
that it will bum when a light is held near it, and, in a dark place,
may be seen to take fire. It was formerly used in medicine under the
name of JHctamyiut albtu, and the root was considered stomachic,
anthelmintic, and aperient. Stoerck, to whom we are indebted for
the re-introduction of so many European plants into modem medicine,
recommended it in epilepsy, intermittent fever, and amenorrhcea.
The plant used in medicine under the name of JHctamnua Creticuit
the Dittany of Crete, is the Origanum JDidamnut of Linnseus. [Obi-
OAVUM.]
D, angugttfolia, has 4-5 pcurs of leaflets, alternate, ovate-lanceolate,
acuminated, finely serrulated ; the racemes long; the calyx nearly equaL
It is a native of the Altai Mountains.
There are several •varieties of Fraxinella found in gardens, with
white, red, and purple flowers. They will grow in any common
garden soil, from seods, which ripen well in this country.
(Don, JHchlamydeotu Plantt ; Bumett| Outlinet of Botany; Lewis,
Hutory of Materia Medico.)
FRA'XINUS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
OUacets, under which the Common Ash is comprehended. They
inhabit various parts of the more temperate regions of the northern
hemisphere, both in the Old and New World, but are unknown in a
wild state in the southern. Although, if strictly limited, the species
are destitute of corolla, yet the genus does, in fact, belong to the
natural order of the olive and lilac, a transition to which is afforded
by what are commonly called Flowering Ashes, the Omi of modem
botanists, in which a corolla exists in the form of four long narrow
petals. Both these genera have the kind of fruit called a key, or
technically, a ' samara,' that is, a seed-vessel which does not open,
which contains one or two cells, and which is prolonged into a thin
wing at the apex. As they are all called ashes in the gardens, and
are exceedingly nearly related to each other, we notice &em both in
this place.
Fraxinut, or True Ashes.
Of these the most important is the Common Ash {F, exeeltior), a
tre^ inhabiting the cooler parts of Europe, from Great Britain to a
considerable distance through Asia. It is said to exist in Japan in
a wild state, but this requires confirmation; it does not occur in
North America, but species similar to it in appearance are common
on that continent. The ash is one of the most useful of our British
trees, on account of the excellence of its hard tough wood, and the
rapidity of its growth. In its appearance too it is singularly graceful
for a European tree, often resembling in its slender stems and thin
airy foliage the acacias of tropical regions. Eveiy one who has seen
the beautiful effect of the ashes mingled with the ruins of Netley
Abbey, near Southampton, must have been struck with this peculiarity.
The principal objection to the ash is the injury it does to the plants
which grow in its neighbourhood, by rapidly exhausting the soil of
all its organisable materials. In consequence of this, few plants will
thrive, or even grow near it; and hence the impropriety of the
common practice of planting the ash in hedgerows ; the extent of its
roots may always be distinctly traced by the langour and paleness of
the crops that stand near it. Many varieties, or supposed varieties
of it, are known to cultivators, and many more might easily be col-
lected if it were worth the while ; for it sports very much in a wild
state. The most striking of the reputed varieties are the following : —
1. F, pendulaf the Weeping Ash ; with all the characten of the
common wild tree, except that the branches grow downwards instead
of upwards, so that if grafted upon a lofty stem the head will soon
reach the ground and form a natural arbour. This is said to have
originated accidentally in a field at Qamlingny, in Cambridgeshire.
2. The Entire-Leaved Ash ; with all its leaves simple, broad, ovate,
coarsely serrated, and puckered. Nothing can well be more unlike
the common ash than this, which nevertheless appeara^ upon good
authority to be merely a seedling variety. Out of leaf it is hardly
distinguishable by its branches from its prototype.
8. F, crispa, the Curled-Leafed Ash; with very short stunted
branches, and deep green crumpled leaves. If this is, as it is said to
be, a mere monstrous variety of F, excelaior, it is one of the most
remarkable with which we are acquainted. It has a particularly
dark aspect; its leaves are so thick, and its shoots so short, that
it forms a blackish round-headed tree of the smallest dimensions.
Its origin is unknown; it^ as woU as the Omut, is sometimes called
F. Thoophratti,
4. F. verrucofo, the Warted-Barked Ash. In this the stems sn
covered over with a great number of little grayish brown tuberdes;
otherwise the plant has the appearance of the commou'ssh.
Besides this, the only European ash that deserves notice is the F,
parvifolia, Small-Leaved Ask Its foliage is much finer and nar-
rower tlum in F. exctUior; the leaflets are narrow and finely serrmted,
the bark is rugged, the growth slow/and instead of ti^e toogfaneas so
characteristic of the latter species, the branches aro so brittle ss to be
liable to constant injury from high winds. It is however s very
beautiful tree, and for ornamental purposes whero sise is no object^
it should be planted, especially as a single tree. It is possible that
F. roitraia may be a variety of it : but nothing can be more erroneooa
than the idea that it is itself a variety of F, exceltior. It is found
only In the southern parts of Europe.
In the Levant occura the F, Untiscifolia, Lentisk Ash, s most
graceful species, with long narrow leaves, composed of five or six
pain of small, distinct, sharply serrated, shining leaflets. It inhabits
the country about Aleppo, and is hardy in this country, where it
forms a tree of the most elegant appearance, intermediate, as it were,
in appearance between a willow and an ash. The branches Are deep
rich purple. It is often called F. Chinemit in the nurseries.
With regard to the spedes of American Ash we have, in the first
place, to remark that they aro not well adapted to this nlima^iaw^ being
in general too ill prepared by our ihort cold summen to bear our
winten, and moreover injured by spring frosts : dnmmstances much
to be regretted, because some of the species prove very handsome
trees. In the seoond place, the number of species has no doubt beoi
greatly exaggerated by writen upon garden ootany ; we cannot how-
ever at all agree with a modem writer upon these sabjects^ who
believes all the American ashes to be one and the same spedes. The
following aro, we think, imdoubtedly distinct : —
F, pvbe$C€ntf the Black American or Downy Ash, with three or four
pain of leaflets, which aro nearly entiro, flat^ downy beneath, as well
as the branches. A swamp tree in the middle states of the Ainericsa
Union.
F, American<if the White American Ash, with seldom more than
three pain of leaflets, which aro smooth, flat^ nearly entire, and
glaucous on the under side ; the branches smooth. A large tree in
Canada and the northern states of AmericiL
F. tamhucifolia, the Watei>Ash, or Elder-Leaved Ash, with three or
four pain of leaflets, which aro rugose, constantly serrated, hairy at
the axils of the leaves underneath ; when bruised smelling a little
like elder ; buds deep blue. A common tree in forests in the northezn
parts of North America.
F, quadranfftdata, with the shoots distinctly and sharply quadran-
gular. A tree from Ohio, among the most unsuitable of toe Ajneiican
ashes for this climate.
F, epiptera, the Wing-Topped, Seeded, or Two-Coloured Ash, with
the keys very broad and wedgendiaped at the upper end and taper at
the base. The young branches aro groen, covered with white dots.
A small tree, found all through the American Union.
All the foregoing can be procured in the English nuneries, and
they perhaps form the only distinct spedes of the genus. A great
many supposed species wero distinguished by the late Mr. Boec, whose
names aro curront in collections ; but they can scarcely be detennined
with prooislon. A fine collection of Ashes exists in one of the
enclosures in Kensington Qardens.
F. Carolinianei, the Carolina Ash, has 2 or 8 paire of leaflets, oval,
petiolste, serrated, glabrous, and shining above. The flowera an
calyoulate. The branches glabrous and, like the buds, brownish.
The raoemes loose, an inch and a half long, often twin from the
same bud. The pedides numerous and umbellate. The calyx
small and campanulate. It is a troe from 80 to 50 feet high ; native
from Pennsvlvania to Carolina. It is a vezy romarkablo variety,
readily dirtmguished by the size of its leaflets^ which aro nearly
round. In America it is entirdy neglected as a timber-troe, and in
Europe it is solely considered as ornamental
Thero aro a great many varieties of the spedes F, exceltior, some of
which undoubtedly deserve to be considered distinct species. Several
of them yield the sweet resinous laxative substance known by the
name of Manna. F. excelsior not only produces it in the warm
dimate of South Europe, but is roported to have a tonic febrifugal
bark and leaves almost as cathartic as those of Senna, producing
unequivocal action on the system.
The species of thift genus which most extensivdy produce Manna
aro now described imder the genus
Omut, or Flowering Ashea.
0, Europcea, or Common Mannar Ash, is a snudl round-headed tree,
with leaves resembling those of the Common Ash, only the leaflets
aro elliptical, abruptly acuminated, and have a considerable collection
of haira at the base of the midrib underneath. In the summer when
the leaves aro full grown the tMOs become ornamented with a pro-
fusion of white deUcate blossoms, which give them a strikingly
beautifvd appearance. The species inhabits the southern parts of
Europe, especially the woods of Culabria and Apulia, and in those
ooimtries flowen in ApriL
681
FRAZERA.
FRINOILLIDiE.
89S
0. rotumUfolia is unlveniiUy dutingniahed as a second species of
this genus ; differing in its leaves being much longer, the leaflets
roundish, ovate, acute, not cuspidate, coarsely serrated, entire, and
rather ouneate at the base, and not at all hairy underneath. In flowers
it is much the same. It is a native of Calabria and elsewhere in the
south of Europe.
These two plants are interesting as producing the sweet laxative
aubstance known in the apothecaries' shops under the name of Manna.
It is a secretion from the leaves and branches ; and, according to F^
IB caused either by artificial wounds or by the puncture of an insect
Both species yield the substance, but, according to Tenore, that from
O. reiiundifolia is of better quali^ than the other.
'* In CaUbria and Sidly,'^ says this physician, " in the hottest part
of the summer months, the Manna oozes out of the leaves, and nom
the bark of the trunk and larger branches of the Fraximu, or
Calabriaa Ash. The Ormu likewise aflbrds it, but firom the trunks
and larger branches onlv, and that chiefly from artificial apertures;
whereas it flows from the FraxitMU through every little cranny, and
bursts through the large spores spontaneously. The different qualities
of the Manna are from different parts of the tree."
The sweetness of this substance is not due to the presence of sugar,
but to a distinct jnrinciple called Mannite, whidl differs from sugar in
not fermenting with water and yeast. Some trees yield the Manna
spontaneously; these only grow in the most £&vourable situations,
and the sap nms out during the greatest heat of summer. It begins
to ooze out about mid-day, in the form of a dear liquid, which soon
thickens, and continues to appear till the oool of the evening, when
it begins to harden into grannies, which are scraped off the following
morning. This kind is called ' Manna in Tears,' and is as pure and
white as the finest sugar. Inferior qualities are obtained by making
incisions in the trees, which forms the principal part of the Manna
sold in our shops.
(Loudon, Arboretum BrUanniewn.)
FRAZE'RA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
OeniianaeecB, named after John Frazer, a collector of North American
plants. It has a 4-cleft deeply-parted calyx. The corolla 4-puied,
rotate, deciduous, with a beardeid orbicular gland in the middle of
each segment. The stamens 4, inclosed;' Slaments filiform; the
capsule compressed, partly margined, 1-celled. The seeds few,
imbricated, elliptical, winged, and fixed to the margins of the valves.
F. Carolinauis, the F. Walteri of Miehaux, ia the only species of
this genus. It has a biennial root ; stem from 8 to 5 feet high, erect^
sub-quadrangular, and smooth ; leaves opposite and verticillate,
oblong, lanceolate^ the lower ones a foot long and more than 3 inches
broad ; flowers in aggregate dusters. This plant is indigenous in the
swamps of the Carolinas, and is found on the borders of lakee in
Pennsylvania and New York. The whole plant has a very stately
appearance, and in character approaches so near to Sutertia that,
without axamining the fruity it might be mistaken for a species of
that genus. The root yields a powerful bitter, nearlv as pure as that
of quassia, and wholly destitute of aroma. It is »iUv equal in its
medicinal effects to gentian, and when fresh is said to be emetic and
cathartia The roots have been imported into Europe as a sort of
Columba, and hence have acquired Uie name of American Calumba.
This plant requires moisture, and flourishes best in a peat soU. It
should be protected the winter alter being raised frt>m seed or that
preceding its flowering.
(Don, Dichlamydeout Pkmii; Lindley, Flora MedietL)
FREESTONE. [SANsnrovBy <Sto Sufp lbmrmt.1
FREOILUS. [CoRVinA]
FRENCH BERRIES. [Rhamnus.]
FRIGATE. [Pklicawidjb.]
FRINGE-TREE, the English name of the American shrub
Chionanthtu Vtrginica.
FRINGILLA, a genus of Birds belonging to the order Fringillidci
and the division /fuesioret. The beak is straight, longer than deep,
conic, and pointed; mandibles nearly equal, cutting edges entire,
forming a straight commissure; nostrils basal, lateral, oval, partly
hidden by the frontal plumes. Wings with the flrst quill-feather
longer tlum the fif^, but a little shorter than the second or third,
which are equal, and tbe longest in the wing. Legs with the tarsi of
moderate length ; toes divided, and adapted for hopping and perching ;
claws curved and sharp.
F, ccdehif the Chaffinch. [Chaffinch.]
F. monHfringiUa, the Mountain Finch, Brambling, or Bramble
Finch. This bird is a visiter to this country only in winter, coming to
us from the north, but at different times, according to the temperature
of the country from which it emigrates. They have not been known
to breed in any part of this coimtry ; those kept in confinement
under the most favourable circumstances have never done so. It is
not an uncommon bird in Denmark. Mr. Hewitson saw them at one
place in the southern part of Norway, where they were breeding.
It is described as building in fir-trees ; the nest formed of moss, and
lined with wool and feathers; the eggs four or five in number, white,
tinged with yellow, and spotted with dark red, like those of a chaf-
finch. The call-note of this bird is a single monotonous chirp.
FRINGIXLIDiS, a family of Birds belonging to the order
trmuoru and the division ConWotirti* This famOy is eonamonly
VATi msT. 2>iV. vot. XI.
known by the name of Finches. According to Mr. Vigors this fiimily
embraces, in addition to Alauda [Alaudina], to which Emberiza
(the Buntings) [BxBERmniB] and its affinities seem nearly allied, the
greater part of the Linnsaaa FringilUBf together with the Limuean
TanagrtB [Tanaoxb], which approach them in their external characters
and in their habits, as far as bas hitherto been ascertained. These
latter groups contain many natural genera which may be traced, in
his ojunion, ftx)m the point of their connection with the Linnaean
Frmgillas back, by a gradual increase of the base of the bill in
breadth and height, to the family of Loxiadce [Loxiadjb], which
unites with them at the opposite extremity of the series of fiimilies
which compose the tribe. The FringilUda again, according to the
same author, by means of the sharp-pointed and lengthened bill of
Cardudia, and by the extension of the culmen of the upper mandible
in an angular form for some extent upon the fr^Dut of the head,
conduct us on the other side to the genus Ictenu (Briss.), which
commences the succeeding family. Here Mr. Vigors thinks that the
genus Ploeeut of Cuvier also seems to hold an intervening station
between the two groups, so as to render it difficult to decide in which
of them it should be placed. There is also, he states, another dedded
line of relationship between the two fainilies, namely, that which
some spedes of the Tjinngean Alauda, particularly ^. Capentis, bear
to the Stumui Ludovicianus, or Crescent Stare, of Dr. Tiatham. This
latter bird ia well known as the Alavda magna of Linnaeus and of the
American ornithologists. But its still stronger affinity to the Stumi
and Jeteri necessarily places it among them. The former relationship
appears to Mr. Vigors to be one of analogy, not of affinity ; while the
direct passage between the families is found in Ploeeui (the Weaver
Birds). [PLOCEiNiB.] Mr. Vigors makes FringilUda the first, and
Loxiada the last family of the ChniroHrei, Mr. Swainson makes the
FringiUidtB (induding Loxia, apparently ; for his Conirottret consist
of the Corvidoe, Stumida, FrinffUlUkt, Mutophagidaf and Bueeridce,
omitting Loxiada) the third family; and the order of the names
given will show the podtion he asdgns to it. ** No group in the
ornithological drde," writes Mr. Swainson in his ' Classification of
Birds,' vol. i, " exhibits this powerful structure (strength of the bill)
so much as that of the FringiUidcB, where the bill is short and
nearly oonio ; both mandibles are equally thick, and when dosed their
hdght and breadth are nearly the same. In many of the Finches (as
in Uie sub-genera Amadina, Coccothrauttet, &c.) the thickness of tiie
bill at its base in comparison to the size of the head is enormous ;
but io Loxia otirina of Vieillot, a rare and most extraordinary bird
from Western Africa, the bill is not much inferior to the use of the
head. It is well known that all these ' hard-billed ' birds, as the old
writers aptly called them, feed entirel v upon seeds and nuts ; and the
harder these are the stronger are the bills of such spedes as are
appointed to derive nourishment from the different sorts ; whenever
an insectivorous and frugivorous diet is united, as is the case with
most of the Tanager finches, the upper mandible is notched for the
obvious purpose of more firmly securing that part of their food
which can escape."
M. Lesson, in his ' Table M^thodique,' places the FringiUida as the
third fSunily of the Conirostrea, and makes it consist of the following
genera : — Emherua of Linnseus, Emberizoldes of Temminck, FringiUa
of LinnsBus — ^namely, Pfrgita^ FringiClaf and CardusliM of Cuvier;
Ztnortaof Beohstdn; Vidua of Cuvier; CoccoihrausUt of Briason;
Pyrrhula of Brisson; Loxia of Brisson; Ptittirottra of Temminck;
CorythuB of Cuvier; Coliug of Brisson and Linnaeus; Phytotoma' oi
Molina ; and PCoceui of Cuvier.
Cuvier, in his * R^gne Animal,' arranges the Buntings {JEmberita of
LinnsBus) immediately after the Titmice {Panu of Linnseus); and
next to the Buntings he places the Sparrows, Les Moineaux {FringiUa
of Linnseus).
Cuvier designates the Buntings as possesdng an extremely distinct
character in their conical short straight bill, the narrower upper
mandible of which, entering within the lower, has on the palate a
hard and projecting tuberde ; and as granivorous birds which haye
little caution, and readily enter the snares prepared for theuL Those
Buntings whieh have an elongated nail on the hind toe, like the larks,
are distinguished by Meyer under the generic name of PUctrophanes.
The Sparrows (FringUla) are characterised by Cuvier as having a
conical bill more or less laxge at its base, but not angular at the com-
missure. They subsist principally on seeds, and are subdivided by
that zoologist as follows: — The Weavers {Ploeeut, Cuvier), a form
found in both the old and the new continents. Those of the Old
World make a nest by interweaving very skilfully the fibres of vege-
tables, whence their name. Such ai*e the Toucnam Courvi of tiie
Philippine Islands {Loxia Philippina of Linnseus), with its pendulous
nest, having a vertical canal opening below, which communicates
laterally witii the cavity where the voung are laid ; and the Repub-
lican. (Xoxta tocia of Latham), which buUds in society, and whose
conjoined nests form one large continuous mass with numerous
compartments. Among the Weavers of the new continent Cuvier
places Le Mangeur de Riz, Petit Choucas de Surinam, de la Jamaique,
Casuque Noir, &c. {Oriolus niger, Oriolua orytivorut, Corvua Surinam-
enai$, Gmelin), which in countless flocks lay waste the fields of many
of the warm parts of America. Next to the Weavers are placed the
SparrowBi properly so called {Pyrgiia of Cuvier), of which the well-
8 Xi
m -tf
87tf
FRAXINUS.
FRAXINUS.
anthers; the style single, dielinato, striated leogthwise, terminated
by a blunt papillose stigma; the capsule itipitate, composed of 5
carpels, which are connected on the inside, compressed, 2-seeded.
2>. Fraxinella, Bantard or False Dittany, False White Dittany,
Fraxinella, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, cordate at the base, acute at the
apex, finely serrulated; the racemes long; the calyx unequal. It is
found wild in the south of Europe, especially in Qermany, France,
Spain, Austria, and Italy.
The leaves, flowera, and stem of this plants when gently rubbed, emit
a strong lemon odour, and when bruised the scent is more powerful
The volatile oil which gives it its peculiar odour is secreted in the
largest quantities in the pedicles of the flowers, which are covered
wiUi httle glands of a rusty red colour, which exude a viscid resinous
juice. The volatile oil from this plant is evolved in so large quantities
that it will bum when a light is held near it^ and, in a dark place,
may be seen to take fire. It was formerly used in medicine under the
name of JHctamnut albtu, and the root was considered stomachic,
anthelmintic, and aperient. Stoerck, to whom we are indebted for
the re-introduction of so many European plants into modem medicine,
reconunended it in epilepsy, intermittent fever, and amenorrhcea.
The plant tised in medicine under the name of JHdamntu Cretieut,
the Dittany of Crete, is the Origanum JOidamnut of Limueus. [Obi-
OAVUM.]
D. angtutifolia, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, alternate, ovate-lanceolate,
acuminated, finely serrulated ; the racemes long; the calyx nearly equaL
It is a native of the Altai Mountains.
There are several •varieties of FraxvMlla found in gardens, with
white, red, and purple flowers. They will grow in any common
garden soil, from seods, which ripen well in this coimtry.
(Don, DtcMamydeout Plants; Bumett| OuUinea of Botany; Lewis,
Hittory of MaJtena Medieei.)
FRA'XINUS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natmral order
OUacea, under which the Common Ash is comprehended. They
inhabit various parts of the more temperate regions of the northern
hemisphere, both in the Old and New World, but are unknown in a
wild state in the southern. Although, if strictly limited, the species
are destitute of corolla, yet the genus does, in fact, belong to the
natural order of the olive and lilac, a transition to which is afibrded
by what are commonly called Flowering Ashes, the Omi of modem
botanists, in which a corolla exists in the form of four long narrow
petals. Both these genera have the kind of fruit called a key, or
technically, a * samara,' that is, a seed-vessel which does not open,
which contains one or two cells, and which is prolonged into a thin
wing at the apex. As they are all called ashes in the gardens, and
are exceedingly nearly related to each other, we notice them both in
this place.
Fraxinut, or True Ashes.
Of these the most important is the Common Ash {F, exeeliior), a
tre^ inhabiting the cooler parts of Europe, from Great Britain to a
considerable distance through Asia. It is said to exist in Japan in
a wild state, but this requires confirmation; it does not occur in
North America, but species similar to it in appearance are common
on that continent. The ash is one of the most useful of our British
trees, on account of the excellence of its hard tough wood, and the
rapidity of its growth. In its appearance too it is singularly graceful
for a European tree, often resembling in its slender stems and thin
airy foliage the acacias of tropical regions. Eveiy one who has seen
the beautiful effect of the ashes mingled with the ruins of Netley
Abbey, near Southampton, must have been struck with this peculiarity.
The principal objection to the ash is the injury it does to the plants
whicn grow in its neighbourhood, by rapidly exhausting the soil of
all its organisable materials. In consequence of this, few plants will
thrive, or even grow near it; and hence the impropriety of the
common practice of planting the ash in hedgerows; the extent of its
roots may always be distinctly traced by the langour and paleness of
the crops that stand near it. Many varieties, or supposed varieties
of it, are known to cultivators, and many more might easily be col-
lected if it were worth the while ; for it sports very much in a wild
state. The most striking of the reputed varieties are the following : —
1. F. pendida, the Weeping Ash ; with all the characters of the
common wild tree, except that the branches grow downwards instead
of upwards, so that if grafted upon a lofty stem the head will soon
reach the ground and form a natural arbour. This is said to have
originated accidentally in a field at Gamlingny, in Cambridgeshire.
2. The Entire-Leaved Ash ; with all its leaves simple, broad, ovate,
coarsely serrated, and puckered. Nothing can well be more unlike
the common ash than this, which nevertheless appears^ upon good
authority to be merely a seedling variety. Out of leaf it is hardly
distinguuhable by its branches from its prototype.
8. F, critpa, the Curled-Leafed Ash; with very short stunted
branches, and deep green crumpled leaves. If this is, as it is said to
be, a mere monstrous variety of F. txceUior, it is one of the most
remarkable with which we are acquainted. It has a particularly
dark aspect; its leaves are so thick, and its shoots so short, that
it forms a blackiih round-headed tree of the smaHest dimensions.
Its origin is unknown; it, as well as the Omutf is sometimes called
F. Tkeophragti.
4. F, vetmeoaa, the Warted-Barked Ash. In this the stems are
covered over with a great number of little grayish broini taberdes;
otherwise the plant has the appearance of the common^oah.
Besides this, the only European ash that deserves notice ia the F.
parvifoUa^ Small-Leaved AsL Its foliage is much finer and nar-
rower than in F, excelsior; the leaflets are narrow and finely semied,
the bark is rugged, the growth slow, and instead of the toughness so
characteristic of the latter species, the branches are so brittle ss to be
liable to constant injury from high winds. It is however a ▼cry
beautiful tree, and for ornamental purposes where sise is no object^
it should be planted, especially as a single tree. It is possible that
F. rostrata may be a variety of it : but nothing can be more enoneoua
than the idea that it is itself a variety of F. tzcelsior. It is found
only in the southern parts of Europe.
In the Levant occurs the F, lentiseifolia, Lentiak Ash, s moit
graceful species, with long narrow leaves, composed of five or tax
pairs of small, distinct, sharply serrated, shining leaflets. It inhahiti
the country about Aleppo, and is hardy in this country, where it
forms a tree of the most elegant appearance, intermediate, ss it were,
in appearance between a willow and an ash. The branches are deep
rich purple. It is often called F, Ckinensis in the nurseries.
With regard to the species of American Ash we have, in the first
place, to remark that they are not well adapted to this climste, being
in general too ill prepared by our short cold summem to bear our
winters, and moreover injured by spring frosts : cireomstsnoea much
to be regretted, because some of the species prove very handsome
trees. In the second place, the number of species has no doubt been
greatly exaggerated by writers upon garden botany ; we cannot how-
ever at all agree wiUi a modem writer upon these sabjects, who
believes all the American ashes to be one and the same species. The
following are, we think, imdoubtedly distinct : —
F, jmbesctns, the Black American or Downy Ash, with three or four
pairs of leaflets, which are nearly entire, fla^ downy beneath, as well
as the branches. A swamp tree in the middle states of the Ajnerican
Union.
F, Amerieancif the White American Ash, with seldom more than
three pairs of leaflets, which are smooth, flat^ nearly entire, and
glaucous on the under side; the branches smooth. A large tree in
Canada and the northern states of AmerioiL
F. sambuetfolia, the Water* Ash, or Elder-Leaved Ash, with three or
four pain of leaflets, which are mgose, constantly serrated, hairy at
the axils of the leaves underneath ; when bruised smelling a little
like elder ; buds deep blue. A common tree in forests in the northern
parts of North America.
F. quadranffulattt, with the shoots distinctly and sharply quadran-
gular. A tree from Ohio, among the most unsuitable of tne Ajnerican
ashes for this climate.
F, epipterti, the Wing-Topped, Seeded, or Two-Coloured Ash, with
the keys very broad and wedgeehaped at the upper end and taper at
the base. The young branches are green, covered with white dots.
A small tree, found all through the American Union.
All the foregoing can be procured in the English nurseries, and
they perhaps form the only distinct species of the genus. A great
many supposed species were distinguished by the late Mr. Boac, whose
names are current in collections ; but they can scarcely be detenniaed
with precision. A fine collection of Ashes exists in one of the
enclosures in Kensington Qardens.
F. CaroUniana, the Carolina Ash, has 2 or 8 poire of leaflets, oval,
petiolate, serrated, glabrous, and shining above. The fiowers ars
calyoulate. The branches glabrous and, like the buds, brownish.
The racemes loose, an inch and a half long, often twin from the
same bud. The pedicles numerous and umbellate. The calyx
small and campanulate. It is a tree from 80 to 50 feet high ; native
from Pennsvlvania to Carolina. It is a verr remarkable variety,
readily dirtmguished by the size of its leaflets^ which are nearly
round. In America it is entirely neglected as a timber-tree, and ia
Europe it is solely considered as omamentaL
There are a great many varieties of the species F, exeelsiorf some of
which undoubtedly deserve to be considered distinct species. Several
of them yield the sweet resinous laxative substance known by the
name of Manna. F. excelsior not only produces it in the warm
climate of South Europe, but is report^ to have a tonic febrifugal
bark and leaves almost as cathartic as those of Senna, producing
unequivocal action on the system.
The species of this genus which most extensively produce Manna
are now described under the genus
Omus, or Flowering Ashes.
0. Fwropcea, or Common Mannar Ash, is a snudl round-headed tree,
with leaves resembling those of the Common Ash, only the leaflets
are elliptical, abruptly acuminated, and have a considerable collection
of hairs at the base of the midrib imdemeath. In the sumzner when
the leaves are full grown the tvees become ornamented with a pro-
fusion of white delicate blossoms, which give them a strikingly
beautifvd appearance. The species inhabits the southern ports of
Europe, especially the woods of Calabria and Apulia, and in thoas
coimtries flowers in ApriL
681
FRAZERA.
FRINOILLIDiE.
89S
0. ntiw^ifclia is tuiivemiUy diiitingiushed ae a seoond species of
this gjBDus; differioi: ii> its leaves being much longer, the leaflets
roundish, ovate, acute, not cuspidate, coarsely serrated, entire, and
rather cuneate at the base, and not at all hairy underneath. In flowers
it is much the same. It is a native of Calabria and elsewhere in the
south of Europe.
These two plants are interesting as producing the sweet laxative
substance known in the apothecaries' shops under the name of Manna.
It is a secretion from the leaves and branches ; and, according to F^
is caused either by artificial wounds or by the puncture of an insect
Both species yield the substance, but, according to Tenore, that from
O. ^'^^ndifoUa is of better quality than the other.
*' In CaUbria and Sicily,'^ says this physician, « in the hottest part
of the summer months, the Manna ooses out of the leaves, and from
the bark of the trunk and larger branches of the Fraaemw, or
Calabriaa Ash. The OmuM likewise affords it, but firom the trunks
and larger branches onlv, and that chiefly from artificial apertures;
whereas it flows from the Fraxinui through every little cranny, and
bursts through the large spores spontaneously. The different qualities
of the Manna are from different parts of the tree."
The sweetness of this substance is not due to the presence of sugar,
but to a distinct principle called Mannite, which differs from sugar in
not fermenting with water and yeast. Some trees yield the Manna
spontaneously; these only grow in the most fiivourable situations,
and the sap runs out during the greatest heat of summer. It begins
to ooze out about mid-day, in the form of a dear liquid, which soon
thickens, and continues to appear till the oool of the evening, when
it begins to harden into granules, which are scraped off the following
morning. This kind is called ' Manna in Tears,' and is as pure and
white as the finest sugar. Inferior qualities are obtained by making
incisions in the trees, which forms the principal part of the Manna
sold in our shops.
(Loudon, AAoretwn BrUannicwoi.)
FRAZEHA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
GentianactWf named after John Frazer, a collector of North American
plants. It has a 4-cleft deeply-parted calyx. The corolla 4-puied,
rotate, deciduous^ with a bearded orbicular gland in the middle of
each segment. The stamens 4, inclosed; filaments filiform; the
capsule compressed, partly maigined, 1-oelled. The seeds few,
imbricated, elliptical, winged, and fixed to the margins of the valves.
P, Carolinenais, the F, WaiUri of Miehaux, is the only species of
this genus. It has a biennial root ; stem from 8 to 5 feet high, erect^
8ub<iuadrangular, and smooth ; leaves opposite aiMl verticillate,
oblong, lanceolate, the lower ones a foot long and more than 3 inches
broad ; flowers in aggregate dusters. This plant is indigenous in the
swamps of the Carolinas, and is found on the borders of lakee in
Pennsylvania and New York. The whole plant has a very stately
appearance, and in character approaches so near to Swertia that,
without examining the fruity it might be mistaken for a species of
that genus. The root yields a powerful bitter, nearlv as pure as that
of quassia, and wholly destitute of aroma. It is AiUy equal in its
medicinal effects to gentian, and when fresh is said to be emetic and
cathartia The roots have been imported into Europe as a sort of
Columba, and hence have acquired ihe name of American Calumba.
This plant requires moisture, and flourishes best in a peat soil. It
should be protected the winter alter being raised from seed or that
preceding its flowering.
(Don, IHchlamydeout PUmtt; londley. Flora Medico,)
FREESTONE. [SANsnrovB^ <Sto Supp lucbmt.]
FREQILUS. [Gortwa]
FRENCH BERRIES. [Rhamnus.]
FRIGATE. [PKLBOAiriDA.]
FRINGE-TREE, the English name of the American shrub
Ckwmanthut Virginica.
FRINGILLA, a genus of Birds belonging to the order FrinffUUda
and the division Insettom, The beak is straight, longer than deep,
conic, and pointed; mandibles nearly equd, cutUng edges entire,
forming a straight commissure; nostrils basal, latexiil, oval, partly
hidden by the frontal plumes. Wings with the first quill-feather
longer thim the flfth, but a little shorter than the second or third,
which are equal, and Uie longest iu the wing. Legs with the tarsi of
moderate length ; toes divided, and adapted for hopping and perching ;
claws curved and sharp.
F. calebtf the Chaffinch. [Chaffinch.]
F. moniifrinffiUa, the Mountain Finch, Brambling, or Bramble
Finch. This bird is a visiter to this country only in winter, coming t-o
us from the north, but at different times, according to the temperature
of the country from which it emigrates. They have not been known
to breed in any part of this coimtry ; those kept in confinement
under the most favourable circumstances have never done so. It is
not an uncommon bird in Denmark. Mr. Hewitson saw them at one
place in the southern part of Norway, where they were breeding.
It is described as building in fir-trees ; the nest formed of moss, and
lined with wool and feathers; the eggs four or five in number, white,
tinged with yellow, and spotted with dark red, like those of a chaf-
finch. The call-note of this bird is a single monotonous chirp.
FRINGIXLID^, a lamiW of Birds belonging to the order
tn§euorei and the division CUntrottrti* This famUy is eommonly
VATi &IST. DiV. YOU It
known by the name of Finches. According to Mr. Vigors this family
embraces, in addition to Alauda [Alaudina], to which Emberiza
(the Buntings) [EMBBRiziDiS] and its affinities seem nearly allied, the
greater part of the Linnsaaa FringilkB, together with the Liniuean
TanagrcB [Tanaobr], which approach them in their external characters
and in their habits, as far as bas hitherto been ascertained. These
latter groups contain many natural genera which may be traced, in
his opinion, from the point of their connection with the T.inpffiiin
FringiUa back, by a gradual increase of the base of the bill in
breadth and height, to the family of Loxiadce [Loxiad;b], which
unites with them at the opposite extremity of the series of fiimilies
which compose the tribe. The FringilUda again, according to the
same author, by means of the sharp-pointed and lengthened bill of
Carduidii, and by the extension of the culmen of the upper mandible
in an angular form for some extent upon the friont of the head,
conduct us on the other side to the gentis Jctertu (Briss.), which
commences the succeeding family. Here Mr. Vigors thinks that the
genus Ploetut of Cuvier also seems to hold an intervening station
between the two groups, so as to render it difficult to decide in which
of them it should be placed. There is also, he states, another dedded
line of relationship between the two farnilies, namely, that which
some spedes of the Tjinngean Alauda, particularly il. Capensii, bear
to the Stumui Ludovicianus, or Crescent Stare, of Dr. Latham. This
latter bird is well known as the Alavda magna of Linnaeus and of the
American ornithologists. But its still stronger affinity to Uie Stumi
and leteri necessarily places it among ^em. The former relationship
appears to Mr. Vigors to be one of analogy, not of affinity; while the
direct passage between the families is found in Ploceut (the Weaver
Birds). [PLOCSiNiB.] Mr. Vigors makes FringilUda the firsts and
Loxiada the last fkmily of the (hmroalret, Mr. Swainson makes the
FringiUidcg (induding Loxia^ apparently ; for his Conirottra consist
of the CorvidoB, Stvmida, FringilUdig, Mutophagid(Ef and BueerideB,
omitting LoxiadcB) the third family; and the order of the names
given will show the podtion he asdgns to it. " No group in the
ornithological drde," writes Mr. Swainson in his ' Classification of
Birds,' vol L, " exhibits this powerful structure (strength of the bill)
so much as that of the PringiUidcB, where the biU is short and
nearly conio ; both mandibles are equally thick, and when dosed their
height and breadth are nearly the same. In many of the Finches (as
in Uie sub-genera Amadina, Coccothrau»te$, &c.) the thickness of tiie
bill at its base in oomparison to the size of the head is enormous ;
but in Loxia ottrina of Vidllot, a rare and most extraordinary bird
from Western Africa, the bill is not much inferior to the use of the
head. It is well known that all these ' hard-billed ' birds, as the old
writers aptly called them, feed entirel v upon seeds and nuts ; and the
harder wese are the stronger are the bills of such species as are
appointed to derive nourishment from the different sorts ; whenever
an insectivorous and frugivorous diet is united, as is the case with
most of the Tanager Finches, the upper mandible is notched for the
obvious purpose of more firmly securing that part of their food
which can escape."
M. Lesson, in his ' Table M^thodique,' places the Fringillida as the
third fSunily of the Cmnrostrea, and makes it consist of the following
genera : — JSmb^riga of Linnaeus, Emberizoldes of Temminck, FringiUa
of LinneBus — ^namely, Pyrgita, FringiUa, and Carduelis of Cuvier;
Linariaot Beohsteln; Vidua of Cuvier; CoccothrauBtei of Brisson;
Pyrrhula of Brisson; Loxia of Brisson; PHttirottra of Temminck;
Corythut of Cuvier; Colius of Brisson and Linna}us; Phytotoma' oi
MoUna ; and Phceui of Cuvier.
Cuvier, in his ' R^ffne Animal,' arranges the Buntings {Embtrita of
LimuBus) immediatdy after the Titmice {Panu of Linnaeus); and
next to tiie Buntings he places the Sparrows, Les Moineaux {FringUla
of Linnseus).
Cuvier designates the Buntings as possesdng an extremely distinct
character in their conical short straight bill, the narrower upper
mandible of whidi, entering within the lower, has on the palate a
hard and projectixig tuberde ; and as granivorous birds which haye
little caution, and readily enter the snares prepared for theuL Those
Buntings whieh have an elongated nail on the lund toe, like the larks,
are distinguished by Meyer under the generic name of Plectrophanea.
The Sparrows {FringtUa) are characterised by Cuvier as having a
conical bill more or less laxge at its base, but not angular at the com-
miwure. They subsist principally on seeds, and are subdivided by
that zoologist as follows: — The Weavers {Ploceut, Cuvier), a form
found in both the old and the new continents. Those of the Old
World make a nest by interweaving very skilfully the fibres of vege-
tables, whence their name. Such ai*e the Toucnam Courvi of Uie
Philippine Islands {Loxia PhUippina of Linnseus), with its pendulous
nest, having a vertical canal opening below, which communicates
laterally witii the cavity where the young are laid ; and the Repub-
lican.(Xoxia tocia of Latham), which buUds in society, and whose
conjoined nests form one large continuous mass with numerous
compartments. Among the Weavers of the new continent Cuvier
places Le Mangeur de Riz, Petit Choucas de Surinam, de la Jamaique,
CJasdque Noir, &c {Oriolue niger, Oriolut oryzivorut, Corvut Surinam^
eneit, Gmelin), which in countless flocks lay waste the fields of many
of the warm parts of America. Next to the Weavers are placed the
Sparrows^ properly so called (Pyrgiia of Cuvier), of which the well-
8 Xi
•^ . % • m-Jf
87»
FRAXINUS.
FRAXINUS.
anthers ; the style single, dielinato, striated lengthwise, terminated
by a blunt papillose stigma ; the capsule stipitate, composed of 5
carpels, which are connected on the inside, compressed, 2-seeded.
D. Fraxindla, Bastard or False Dittany, False White Dittany,
Fraxinella, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, cordate at the base, acute at the
apex, finely serrulated; the racemes long; the calyx unequal. It is
found wild in the south of Europe, especially in (Germany, France,
Spain, Austria, and Italy.
The leaves, flowera, and stem of this plants when gently rubbed, emit
a strong lemon odour, and when bruised the scent is more powerfuL
The volatile oil which gives it its peculiar odour is secreted in the
laiigest quantities in the pedicles of the flowers, which are covered
wiUx Httle glands of a rusty red colour, which exude a viscid resinous
juice. The volatile oil from this plant is evolved in so large quantities
that it will bum when a light is held near it, and, in a dark place,
may be seen to take fire. It was formerly used in medicine under the
name of JXciamuut alhutf and the root was considered stomachic,
anthelmintic, and aperient! Stoerck, to whom we are indebted for
the re-introduction of so many European plants into modem medicine,
reconunended it in epilepsy, intermittent fever, and amenorrhcML
The plant used in medicine under the name of Dictamntu Oretieiu,
the Dittany of Crete, is the Origanum JHdamnus of Tiinngns. [Ori-
OAVUlf.]
D, anguttifolia, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, alternate, ovate-lanceolate,
acuminated, finely serrulated ; the racemes long ; the calyx nearly equaL
It is a native of the Altai Mountains.
There are several 'varieties of Fraxinella found in gardens, with
white, red, and purple flowers. They will grow in any common
garden soil, from seods, which ripen well in this country.
(Don, IHchlamydeout Plants; Burnett, OtUlinet of Bota/nyj Lewis,
Hittory rfMcUeria Medico.)
FRA'XIKUS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
OUaceeCt under which the Common Ash is comprehended. They
inhabit various parts of the more temperate regions of the northern
hemisphere, both in the Old and New World, but are unknown in a
wild state in the southern. Although, if strictly limited, the species
are destitute of corolla, yet the genua does, in fact, belong io the
natural order of the olive and lilac, a transition to which is afforded
by what are commonly called Flowering Ashes, the Omi of modem
botanists, in which a corolla exists in the form of four long narrow
petals. Both these genera have the kind of fruit called a key, or
technically, a ' samara,' that is, a seed-vessel which does not open,
which contains one or two cells, and which is prolonged into a thin
wing at the apex. As they are all called ashes in the gardens, and
are exceedingly nearly related to each other, we notice them both in
this place.
Fraxinut, or True Ashes.
Of these the most important is the Common Ash {F. exeeUior), a
tre^ inhabiting the cooler parts of Europe, from Great Britain to a
considerable distance through Asia. It is said to exist in Japan in
a wild state, but this requires confirmation; it does not occur in
North America, but species similar to it in appearance are common
on that continent. The ash is one of the most useful of our British
trees, on account of the excellence of its hard tough wood, and the
rapidity of its growth. In its appearance too it is singularly graceful
for a European tree, often resembling in its slender stems and thin
airy foliage the acacias of tropical regions. Every one who has seen
the beautiful effect of the ashes mingled with the ruins of Netley
Abbey, near Southampton, must have been struck with this peculiarity.
The principal objection to the ash is the injury it does to the plants
which grow in its neighbourhood, by rapidly exhausting the soil of
all its organisable materials. In consequence of this, few plants will
thrive, or even grow near it; and hence the impropriety of the
common practice of planting the ash in hedgerows ; the extent of its
roots may always be distinctly traced by the langour and paleness of
the crops that stand near it. Many varieties, or supposed varieties
of it, are known to cultivators, and many more might easily be col-
lected if it were worth the while ; for it sports very much in a wild
state. The most striking of the reputed varieties are the following : —
1. F. pendulOf the Weeping Ash ; with all the characters of the
common wild tree, except that the branches grow downwards instead
of upwards, so that if grafted upon a lofty stem the head will soon
roach the ground and form a natural arbour. This is said to have
originated accidentally in a field at Qamlingny, in Cambridgeshire.
2. The Entire-Leaved Ash; with all its leaves simple, broad, ovate,
coarsely serrated, and puckered. Nothing can well be more unlike
the common ash than this, which nevertheless appears upon good
authority to be merely a seedling variety. Out of leaf it is hardly
distinguiiBhable by its branches from its prototype.
3. F, critpa, the Curled-Leafed Ash; with very short stunted
branches, and deep green crumpled leaves. If this is, as it is said to
be, a mere monstrous variety of F, exeeUioTf it is one of the most
remarkable with which we are acquainted. It has a particularly
dark aspect; its leaves are so thick, and its shoots so short, that
it forms a blackiih round-headed tree of the smallest dimensions.
Its origin is unknown; it, as well as the Omut, is sometimes called
F. Thiiphraiii.
4. F. verrueota, the Warted-Barked Ash. In thia the stems are
covered over with a great number of little grayish broini tuberdBs;
otherwise the plant has the appearance of the commcm'sah.
Besides this, the only European ash that deserves notice is the F,
parvifolia, Small-Leaved AsL Its foliage is much finer and nar-
rower than in F. exceUior; the leaflets are narrow and finely serTSsed,
the bark is rugged, the growth slow, and instead of the tonghnww se
characteristic of the latter species, the branches are so brittle as to be
liable to constant injury from high winds. It is howerer a veiy
beautiful tree, and for ornamental purposes where sise is no object^
it should be planted, especially as a single tree. It is possible that
F, rottrata may be a variety of it : but nothing can be more enoneooa
than the idea that it is itself a variety of F, exceUior. It is found
only in the southern parts of Europe.
In the Levant occurs the F, lentiteifoUa, Lentisk Ash, a most
graceful species, with long narrow leaves, composed of five or six
pairs of small, distinct, sharply serrated, shining leaflets. It inhabits
the country about Aleppo, and is hardy in this country, where it
forms a tree of the most elegant appearance, intermediate, as it wei«,
in appearance between a willow and an ash. The bran<^ea are deep
rich purple. It is often called F, Ckineniit in the nurseries.
With regard to the spedes of American Ash we have, in the first
place, to remark that they are not well adapted to this climate^ being
in general too ill prepared by our short cold summers to bear our
winters, and moreover injured by spring frosts : circnm stances mudi
to be regretted, because some of the species prove v^y handsome
trees. In the seoond place, the number of species has no doabt been
greatly exaggerated by writers upon garden botany ; we cannot how-
ever at all agree with a modem writer npon these sabjects, who
believes all the American ashes to be one and the same species. The
following are, we think, undoubtedly distinct : —
F. pweecentf the Black American or Downy Ash, with three or four
pairs of leaflets, which are nearly entire, flat, downy beneath, as well
as the branches. A swamp tree in the middle states of the Americsn
UnioiL
F. Americana, the White American Ash, with seldom more than
three pairs of leaflets, which are smooth, flat, nearly entire^ and
glaucous on the under side ; the branches smooth. A large tree in
Canada and the northern states of America.
F» 8ambnci/^li€^, the Water-Ash, or Elder-Leaved Ash, with three or
four pairs of leaflets, which are rugose, constantly serrated, hairy at
the axils of the leaves underneath ; when bruised smelling a little
like elder ; buds deep blue. A common tree in forests in the northon
parts of North America.
F. qwndrangvlata, with the shoots distinctly and sharply quadran-
gular. A tree from Ohio, among the most unsuitable of tae American
ashes for this climate.
F, eptptero, the Wing-Topped, Seeded, or Two-Coloured Ash, with
the keys very broad and wedg&ehaped at the upper end and taper at
the base. The young branches are green, covered with white dota
A small tree, found aU through the American Union.
All the foregoing can be procured in the English nurseries, and
they perhaps form the only distinct species of the genus. A great
many supposed species were distinguished by the late Mr. Boso, whose
names are current in collections ; but they can scarcely be detconuned
with precision. A fine collection of Ashes exists in one of the
enclosures in Kensington Gardens.
F. CaroUniana, the Carolina Ash, has 2 or 8 paini of leaflets, oval,
petiokte, serrated, glabrous, and shining above. The flowers are
calyculate. The branches glabrous and, like the buds, brownish.
The racemes loose, an inch and a half long, often twin from the
same bud. The pedicles numerous and umbellate. The calyx
small and campaniuate. It is a tree from 80 to 50 feet high ; native
from Pennsvlvania to Carolina. It is a verr remarkable variety,
readily distmguished by the size of its leaflets, which are nearly
round. In America it is entirely neglected as a timber-tree, and in
Europe it is solely considered as ornamental.
There ara a great many varieties of the species F. excelnor, some of
which undoubtedly deserve to be considered distinct species. Several
of them yield the sweet resinous laxative substance known by the
name of Manna. F. exceUior not only produces it in the warm
climate of South Europe, but is reported to have a tonic febrifugal
bark and leaves almost as cathartic as those of Senna, producing
unequivocal action on the system.
The species of thift genus which most extensively produce Manna
are now described imder the genus
Omus, ox Flowering Ashes.
0, Furopceaf or Common Manna-Ash, is a small round4iesded tree,
with leaves resembling those of the Common Ash, only the leaflets
are elliptical, abruptly acuminated, and have a oonsideiable collection
of hairs at the base of the midrib underneath. In the summer when
the leaves are full grown the tvees become ornamented with a pro-
fusion of white deUcate blossoms, which give them a strikingly
beautiful appearance. The species inhabits the southern ports of
Europe, especially the woods of Culabria and Apulia, and iu those
countries flowers in April.
681
FRAZERA.
FRINGILLIDiE.
89S
0. rot^mdifclia is umyermlly duttinguisbed as a second species of
this genus; differing in its leaves being much longer, the leaflets
roundish, ovate, acute, not cuspidate, coarsely serrated, entire, and
rather cuneate at the base, and not at all hairy underneath. In flowers
it is much the same. It is a native of Calabria and elsewhere in the
aouth of Europe.
These two plants are interesting as producing the sweet laxative
substance known in the apothecaries' shops under the name of Manna.
It is a secretion from the leaves and branches ; and, according to F^
is caused either by artificial wounds or by the puncture of an insect.
Both species yield the substance, but, according to Tenore, that from
O. i'9jtundifclia is of better quality than the other.
*< In Calabria and Sicily," says this physician, « in the hottest part
of the summer months, the Manna oozes out of the leaves, and from
the bark of the trunk and larger branches of the PraxmiUf or
Calabriaa Ash. The Ortkut likewise affords it, but firom the trunks
and laiger branches onlv, and that chiefly from artificial apertures;
whereas it flows from the Fraxi^MU through every little cranny, and
bursts through the large spores spontaneously. The difibrent qualities
of the Manna are from different parts of tibe tree."
The sweetness of this substance is not due to the presence of sugar,
but to a distinct principle called Mannite, whidi differs from sugar in
not fermenting with water and yeast. Some trees yield the Manna
spontaneously; these only grow in the most £&vourable situations,
and the sap nms out during the greatest heat of summer. It begins
to ooze out about mid-day, in the form of a dear liquid, which soon
thickens, and continues to appear till the cool of the evening, when
it begins to harden into granules, which are scraped off the following
morning. This kind is called < Manna in Tears,' and is as pure and
white as the finest sugar. Inferior qualities are obtained by making
incisions in the trees, which forms the principal part of the Manna
sold in our shops.
(Loudon, Arboretvm BriUxnnicwn,)
FRAZEHA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Omtianaeeaf named after John Frazer, a collector of North American
plants. It has a 4-cleft deeply-parted calyx. The corolla 4-parted,
rotate, deciduous^ with a bearded orbicular gland in the middle of
each segment. The stamens 4, inclosed; filaments filiform; the
capsule compressed, partly mailed, 1-oelled. The seeds few,
imbricated, elliptical, winged, and fixed to the margins of the valves.
F. Carolinauis, the F, Walteri of Miehaux, is the only spedee of
this genus. It has a biennial root ; stem from 8 to 6 feet iiigh, erect^
sub-quadrangular, and smooth ; leaves opposite and vertidUate,
oblong; lanceolate, the lower ones a foot long and more than 3 inches
broad ; flowers in aggregate clusters. This plant is indigenous in the
swamps of the Carolinas, and is found on the borders of lakes in
Pennsylvania and New York. The whole plant has a very stately
appearance, and in character approaches so near to Sttertia that,
without evamining the fruity it might be mistaken for a species of
that genus. The root yields a powerfid bitter, nearlv as pure as that
of quassia, and wholly destitute of aroma. It is fullv equal in its
medicinal effects to gentian, and when fresh is said to be emetic and
cathartic. The roots have been imported into Europe as a sort of
Caiumba, and hence have acquired the name of American Calumba.
This plant requires moisture, and flourishes best in a peat soiL It
should be protected the winter after being raised flrom seed or that
preceding its flowering.
(Don, DiekUmydetmi Pkmts; Lindley, Flora Mediea.)
FREESTONE. [SANDsroHBy <Sto SuFPLsmMT.]
FREQILUS. JCORVIDA]
FRENCH BERRIES. [Rhamnub.]
FRiaATE. [Fblboawidjb.]
FRINGE-TREE, the English name of the American shrub
Chionanthui Virginica.
FRINOILLA, a genus of Birds belonging to the order FHngillida
and the division Inse$tore§, The beak is straight, longer than deep,
conic, and pointed; mandibles nearly equal, cutting edges entire,
forming a straight commissure; nostrils basal, lateral, oval, partly
hidden by the frontal plumes. Wings with the first quill-feather
longer thiim the fifth, but a little shorter than the second or third,
which are equal, and ibe longest in the wing. Legs with the tarsi of
moderate length; toes divided, and adapted for hopping and perching ;
claws curved and sharp.
F, calebif the Chaffinch. [CHArmrcH.]
F. morUifringilla, the Mountain Finch, Brambling, or Bramble
Finch. This bird is a visiter to this country only in winter, coming t-o
us from the north, but at different times, according to the temperature
of the country from which it emigrates. They have not been known
to breed in any part of this country; those kept in confinement
under the most favourable circumstances have never done so. It is
not an uncommon bird in Denmark. Mr. Hewitson saw them at one
place in the southern part of Norway, where they were breeding.
It is described as building in fir-trees ; the nest formed of moss, and
lined with wool and feathers; the eggs four or five in number, white,
tinged with yellow, and spotted with dark red, like those of a chaf-
finch. The call-note of this l»rd is a single monotonous chirp.
FRINOIXLID^, a faaxu^ of Birds belonging to the order
ttmuorei and the division vwir^rut This family is eommonly
iTATi &XST. 2>IV. VOL. It
known by the name of Finches. According to Mr. Yigora this family
embraces, in addition to Alauda [Alaudina], to which Emberiza
(the Buntings) [Embbrizida] and its affinities seem nearly allied, the
greater part of the LinnsBan FringUkBf together with the LimuBan
TanagrcB [Tanagbb], which approach them in their external characters
and in their habits, as far as has hitherto been ascertained. These
latter groups contain many natural genera which may be traced, in
his opinion, frvm the point of tiieir conneotion with the Linnaean
FrimgiUa back, by a gradual increase of the base of the bill in
breadth and height, to the family of Loxiadce [Loxiadjs], which
unites with them at the opposite extremity of the series of fiimilies
which compose the tribe. The FringilUda again, according to the
same author, by means of the sharp-pointed and lengthened bill of
Cardudia, and by the extension of the oulmen of the upper mandible
in an angular form for some extent upon the front of the head,
conduct us on the other side to the gentis letenu (Briss.), which
commences the succeeding family. Here Mr. Vigors thinks that the
genus Ploeeut of Cuvier also seems to hold an intervening station
between the two groups, so as to render it difficult to dedde in which
of them it should be placed. There is also, he states, another dedded
line of relationship between the two farnilies, namely, that which
some spedes of the LinnsDan Alauda, particularly A. Capentis, bear
to the Sturmit Ludovicianut, or Crescent Stare, of Dr. Tiatham. This
latter bird is wdl known as the Alauda magna of Linneaus and of the
American ornithologists. But its still stronger affinity to the Stvmi
and leteri necessarily places it among them. The former relationship
appears to Mr. Vigors to be one of analogy, not of affinity; while the
direct passage between the families is found in Ploceua (the Weaver
Birds). [PLOCBIN2B.] Mr. Vigors makes FringUUda the first, and
Loxiada the last family of the (hmroalrei, Mr. Swainson makes the
FringiUidcB (induding Loxia, apparently ; for his Coniroatret oonsist
of the CorvidoB, Stumida, FringiUUkt, MutophagidcBf and BueeridcB,
omitting Loxiadce) the third family; and the order of the names
given will show the poution he assigns to it. " No group in the
ornithological drde," writes Mr. Swainson in his ' Classification of
Birds,' voL L, ** exhibits this powerful structure (strength of the bill)
so much as that of the FringUlidoB, where the bill is short and
nearly oonio ; both mandibles are equally thick, and when dosed their
height and breadth are neariy the same. In many of the Finches (as
in the sub-genera AmaduM, Ooecothrauttei, &a) the thickness of the
bill at its base in comparison to the size of the head is enormous ;
but iD Zoxia ottrina of Vidllot, a rare and most extraordinary bird
from Western Africa, the bill is not much inferior to the size of the
head. It is well known that idl these * hard-billed ' birds, as the old
writers aptly called them, feed entirely upon seeds and nuts ; and the
harder these are the stronger are the bills of such species as are
appointed to derive nourishment from the different sorts ; whenever
an insectivorous and frugivorous diet is united, as is the case with
most of the Tanager Finches, the upper mandible is notched for the
obviouB purpose of more finnly securing that part of their food
which can escape."
M. I^esBon, in his ' Table M^thodique,' places the Fringillidce as the
third family of the Conirostrea, and makes it consist of the following
genera : — Emberiza of Linnseus, Emberizoides of Temminck, FringiUa
of Linnseus — ^namely, P^rgUa, FringUZa, and CarduelU of Cuvier;
Idnariaot Beohstein; Vidua of Cuvier; CoecolhrauBtei of Bzisson;
Pyrrhula of Brisson; Loxia of Brisson; Piiitirottra of Temminck;
Corythut of Cuvier; Coliua of Brisson and Linnasus; Phytotoma' oi
Molina ; and Ploeeut of Cuvier.
Cuvier, in his ' R^gne Animal,' arranges the Buntings {Emberiza of
LinnsBus) immediatdy after the Titmice (Parua of Linnsous); and
next to tJie Buntings he places the Sparrows, Les Moineaux (FringiUa
of Linnseus).
Cuvier designates the Buntings as possessing an extremely distinct
character in their conical short straight bUl, the narrower upper
mandible of whic^, entering within the lower, has on the palate a
hard and projecting tuberde ; and as granivorous birds which haye
little caution, and readily enter the snares prepared for them. Those
Buntings which have an elongated nail on the hind toe, like the larks,
are distinguished by Meyer under the generic name of PUclrophanea,
The Sparrows (FringUla) are characterised by Cuvier as having a
conical bill more or less laxge at its base, but not angular at the com-
missure. They subsiBt prindpally on seeds, and are subdivided by
that zoologist as follows : — The Weavers {Ploeeut, Cuvier), a form
found in both the old and the new continents. Those of the Old
World make a nest by interweaving very skilfully the fibres of vege-
tables, whence their name. Such are the Toucnam Courvi of Uie
Philippine Islands {Loxia Philippina of Linnaeus), with its pendulous
nest, having a vertical canal opening below, which communicates
laterally witii the cavity where the voung are laid ; and the Repub-
lican.(Xoxia tocia of Latham), which builds in society, and whose
conjoined nests form one large continuous mass with numerous
compartments. Among the Weavers of the new continent Cuvier
places Le Mangeur de Riz, Petit Choucas de Surinam, de la Jamaique,
C!aa8ique Noir, &c. {Oriolut niger, Oriolut orgzivorut, Corvut Surinam'
entit, Gmelin), which in countless flocks lay waste the fields of many
of the warm parts of America. Next to the Weavers are placed the
SparrowBi properly so called (Pgrgila of Cuvier), of which the well*
8 Xi
«•«•
87tf
FRAXINUS.
FRAXINUS. *
anthers; the style single, dielinato, striated lengthwise, terminated
by a blunt papillose stigma ; the capsule stipitate, composed of 5
carpels, which are connected on the inside, compressed, 2-seeded.
jD. FrcucineUOf Bastard or False Dittany, False White Dittany,
Fraxinella, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, cordate at the base, acute at the
apex, finely serrulated; the racemes long; the calyx unequal. It is
found wild in the south of Europe, especially in (Germany, France,
Spain, Austria, and Italy.
The leaves, fiowera, and stem of this plant, when gently rubbed, emit
a strong lemon odour, and when bruised the scent is more powerful
The volatile oil which gives it its peculiar odour is secreted in the
laigest quantities in the pedicles of the flowers, which are covered
wiUi Kttle glands of a rusty red colour, which exude a viscid resinous
juice. The volatile oil from this plant is evolved in so large quantities
that it will bum when a light is held near it, and, in a dark place,
may be seen to take fire. It was formerly used in medicine under the
name of JHctamnut <Ubvs, and the root was considered stomachic,
anthelmintic, and aperientl Stoerck, to whom we are indebted for
the re-introduction of so many European plants into modem medicine,
recommended it in epilepsy, intermittent fever, and amenorrhcoa.
The plant used in medicine under the name of JDictamntu Creticut,
the Dittany of Crete, is the Origanum J>iciamnu$ of Linnaeus. [Obi-
OAVUM.]
2>. angtutifolia, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, alternate, ovate-lanceolate,
acuminated, finely serrulated ; the racemes long ; the calyx nearly equaL
It is a native of the Altai Mountains.
There are several •varieties of Frcucinella found in gardens, with
white, red, and purple flowers. They will grow in any common
garden soil, from seeds, which ripen well in this country.
(Don, JHchlamydeoui Plants; Burnett, OuUinet of Botany; Lewis,
Butory ^ Maieria Medica.)
FRA'AlNUS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
OUacea, under which the Common Ash is comprehended. They
inhabit various parts of the more temperate regions of the northern
hemisphere, both In the Old and New World, but are unknown in a
wild state in the southern. Although, if strictly limited, the speciea
8 re destitute of corolla, yet the genus does, in fact, belong to the
natural order of the olive and lilac, a transition to which is afforded
by what are commonly called Flowering Ashes, the Omi of modem
botanists, in which a corolla exists in the form of four long narrow
petals. Both these genera have the kind of fruit called a key, or
technically, a ' samara,' that is, a seed-vessel which does not open,
which contains one or two cells, and which is prolonged into a thin
wing at the apex. As they are all called ashes in the gardens, and
are exceedingly nearly related to each other, we notice them both in
this place.
Fraxinut, or True Ashes.
Of these the most important ii the Common Ash {F. exceliior), a
trek inhabiting the cooler parts of Europe, from Great Britain to a
considerable distance through Asia. It is said to exist in Japan in
a wild state, but this requires confirmation; it does not occur in
North America, but species similar to it in appearance are common
on that continent. The ash is one of the most useful of our British
trees, on account of the excellence of its hard tough wood, and the
npidity of its growth. In its appearance too it is singularly graceful
for a European tree, often resembling in its slender stems and thin
airy foliage the acacias of tropical regions. Every one who has seen
the beautiful effect of the ashes mingled with the ruins of Netley
Abbey, near Southampton, must have been struck with this peculiarity.
The principal objection to the ash is the injury it does to the plants
whicn grow in its neighbourhood, by rapidly exhausting the soil of
all its orgamsable materials. In consequence of this, few plants will
thrive, or even grow near it; and hence the impropriety of the
common practice of planting the ash in hedgerows ; the extent of its
roots may always be distinctly traced by the langour and paleness of
the crops that stand near it. Many varieties, or supposed varieties
of it, are known to cultivators, and many more might easily be col-
lected if it were worth the while ; for it sports very much in a wild
state. The most striking of the reputed varieties are the following : —
1. F. pendulaf the Weeping Aah ; with all the characters of the
common wild tree, except that the branches grow downwards instead
of upwards, so that if grafted upon a lofty stem the head will soon
roach the ground and form a natural arbour. This is said to have
originated accidentally in a field at Qamlingny, in Cambridgeshire.
2. The Entire-Leaved Ash; with all its leaves simple, broad, ovate,
coarsely serrated, and puckered. Nothing can well be more unlike
the common ash than this, which nevertheless appears^ upon good
authority to be merely a seedling variety. Out of leaf it is hardly
distinguishable by its branches from its prototype.
8. F. critpa, the Curled-Leafed Ash; with very short stunted
branches, and deep green crumpled leaves. If this is, as it is said to
be, a mere monstrous variety of F. exceUior, it is one of the most
remarkable with which we are acquainted. It has a particularly
dark aspect; its leaves are so thick, and its shoots so short, that
it forms a blackiih round-headed tree of the smallest dimensions.
Its origin is unknown; it, as well as the Omut, is sometimes called
F. Th^^raati.
4. F, vetrueoaa, the Warted-Barked Ash. In this the stems are
covered over with a great number of little grayish broini taberdes;
otherwise the plant has the appearance of the common^aah.
Besides this, the only European ash that deserves notioe is Uie F.
parvifolia, Small-Leaved AsL Its foliage is much finer and nar-
rower tlum in F, excelHor; the leaflets are narrow and fijaely serrssed,
the bark is rugged, the growth slow, and instead of the toughness se
characteristic of the latter species, the branches are so brittle sa to be
liable to constant injury from high winds. It is however a very
beautiful tree, and for ornamental purposes where sise is no object,
it should be planted, especially as a single tree. It is possible that
F, rottraia may be a variety of it : but nothing can be more erroneous
than the idea that it is itself a variety of F, tzcelnor. It is found
only in the southern parts of Europe.
In the Levant occurs the F. leniiseifolui, Lentisk Ash, a most
graceful species, with long narrow leaves, composed of five or six
pairs of small, distinct, sharply serrated, shining leaflets. It inbabits
the country about Aleppo, and is hardy in this country, where it
forms a tree of the most elegant appearance, intermediate, as it wei«,
in appearance between a willow and an ash. The brandies are deep
rich purple. It is often called F, Chinemit in the nurseries.
With regard to the species of American Ash we have, in the first
place, to remark that they are not well adapted to this cUmate^ being
in general too ill prepared by our short oold summers to bear our
winters, and moreover injured by spring frosts : ciron instances mudi
to be regretted, because some of the species prove voy handsome
trees. In the second place, the number of species has no doubt been
greatly exaggerated by writers upon garden botany ; we cannot how-
ever at all agree with a modem writer upon these subjects, who
believes all the American ashes to be one and the same species. The
following are, we think, undoubtedly distinct : —
F. pubetcint, the Black American or Downy Ash, with three or four
pairs of leaflets, which are nearly entire, flat, downy beneath, as well
as the branches. A swamp tree in the middle states of the Ajnericsn
Union.
F. AmericanOf the White American Ash, with seldom more than
three pairs of leaflets, which are smooth, flat, neariy entire^ and
glaucous on the under side ; the branches smooth. A large tree in
Canada and the northern states of AmerioiL
F, sambueifolia, the Water-Ash, or Elder-Leaved Ash, with three or
four pairs of leaflets, which are rugose, constantly serrated, hairy at
the axils of the leaves underneath ; when bruised smelling a little
like elder ; buds deep blue. A common tree in forests in the northon
parts of North America.
F, qnadranffulata, with the shoots distinctly and sharply quadran-
gular. A tree from Ohio, among the most unsuitable of the Ajnerican
ashes for this climate.
F, epiptera, the Wing-Topped, Seeded, or Two-Coloured Ash, with
the keys very broad and wedge-shaped at the upper end and taper at
the base. The young branches are green, covered with white dota
A small tree, found all through the American Union.
All the foregoing can be procured in the English nurseries, and
they perhaps form the only distinct species of the genus. A great
many supposed species were distinguished by the late Mr. Bosc, whose
names are current in collections ; but they can scarcely be determined
with precision. A fine collection of Ashes exists in one of the
enclosures in Kensington Oardens.
F, CaroUnianei, the Carolina Ash, has 2 or 8 pairs of leaflets, oval,
petiolste, serrated, glabrous, and shining above. The flowers are
calyculate. The branches glabrous and, like the buds, brownish.
The raoemes loose, an inch and a half long, often twin from the
same bud. The pedicles numerous and umbellate. The calyx
small and campaniuate. It is a tree from 80 to 50 feet high ; native
from Pennsylvania to Carolina. It is a verr remarkable variety,
readily distmguished by the size of its leaflets, which are nearly
round. In America it is entirely neglected as a timber-tree, and in
Europe it is solely considered as ornamental.
There we a great many varieties of the spedes F, exeeUioTf some of
which undoubtedly deserve to be considered distinct spedes. Several
of them yield the sweet resinous laxative substance known by the
name of Manna. F. excdsior not only produces it in the warm
climate of South Europe, but is reported to have a tonic febrifugal
bark and leaves almost as cathartic as those of Senna, produciog
unequivocal action on the system.
The species of thifl genus which most eztensivdy produce Miima
are now described imder the genus
Ornust or Flowering Ashes.
0. Fwropoea, or Common Manna- Ash, is a small round-headed tree,
with leaves resembling those of the Common Ash, only the leaflets
are elliptical, abruptly acuminated, and have a considerable collection
of hairs at the base of the midrib underneath. In the summer when
the leaves are full grown the tmes become ornamented with a pro-
fusion of white ddicate blossoms, which give them a strikingly
beautiful appearance. The species inhabits the southern parts of
Europe, especially the woods of Calabria and Apulia, and iu those
coimtries flowers in ApriL
681
FRAZERA.
FRINGILLID^.
89S
0. rottmdifclia is umvennlly dilitmgiiUhed u a seoond siMcies of
this genus; differing in its leaves being much longer, the leaflets
roundish, ovate, acute, not cuspidate, coarsely serrated, entire, and
rather cuneate at the base, and not at all hairy underneath. In flowers
it is much the same. It is a native of Calabria and elsewhere in the
south of Europe.
These two plants are interesting as producing the sweet laxative
substance known in the apothecaries' shops under the name of Manna.
It is a secretion from the leaves and branches ; and, according to F^
is caused either by artificial wounds or by the puncture of an insect
Both species yield the substance, but, according to Tenore, ^t from
O. rejtundifolia is of better quali^ than the other.
*' In CaUbria and Sicily,'^ says this physician, " in the hottest part
of the summer months, the Manna coses out of the leaves, and from
the bark of the trunk and larger branches of the PrtUBmiu, or
Calabriaa Ash. The Orwu likewise affords it, but firom the trunks
and laiger branches onlv, and that chiefly from artificial apertures ;
whereas it flows from the Fraxima through every little cranny, and
bursts through the large spores spontaneously. The diffsrent qualities
of the Manna aro from different parts of the tiee."
The sweetness of this substance is not due to the presence of sugar,
but to a distinct principle called Mannite, whidi differs from sugar in
not fermenting with water and yeast Some tress yield the Manna
spontaneously; these only grow in the most &vourable situations,
and the sap runs out during the greatest heat of summer. It begins
to ooze out about mid-day, in the form of a clear liquid, which soon
thickens, and continues to appear till the cool of the evening, when
it begins to harden into granules, which aro scraped off the following
morning. This kind is called ' Manna in Tears,' and is as pure and
white as the finest sugar. Inferior qualities aro obtained by making
incisions in the trees, which forms the principal part of the Manna
sold in our shops.
(Loudon, Arbordwn BriUnuiicum,)
FRAZE'RA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Omiianaee(Et named after John Frazer, a collector of North American
plants. It has a 4-cleft deeply-parted calyx. The corolla 4-paiied,
rotate, deciduous^ with a bearded orbicular gland in the middle of
each segment The stamens 4, inclosed ;' filaments fiUfonn; the
capsule compressed, partly margined, 1-oelled. The seeds few,
imbricated, elliptical, winged, and fixed to the margins of the valves.
P, Carolinams, the F, Waiteri of Miehaux, is the only species of
this genus. It has a biennial root ; stem from 8 to 6 feet high, erect^
sub-quadrangular, and smooth ; leaves opposite and verticiUate,
oblong, lanceolate, the lower ones a foot long and moro than 3 inches
broad ; flowers in aggregate dusters. This plant is indigenous in the
swamps of the Carolinas, and is found on the borders of lakes in
Pennsylvania and New York. The whole plant has a very stately
appearance, and in character approaches so near to Swertia that,
without evamining the fruity it might be mistaken for a species of
that genus. The root yields a powemd bitter, nearlv as puro as that
of qusssia, and wholly destitute of aroma. It is nilly equal in its
medicinal effects to gentian, and when fresh is said to be emetic and
cathartic. The roots have been imported into Europe as a sort of
Calumba, and hence have acquired the name of American Calumba.
This plant requires moistnn, and flourishes best in a peat soiL It
should be protected the winter after being raised from seed or that
preceding its flowering.
(Don, IHehlamydeout Pkmti; Lindley, Flora Mediea,)
FREESTONE. [SANsnrovBy <Sto Sufplbmimt.]
FREOILUS. [GoRyin&l
FRENCH BERRIES. [Rhamnub.]
FRIGATE. [PxLiCAiriDJB.]
FRINGE-TREE, the English name of the American shrub
C9U<manthui Virginica.
FRINOILLA, a genus of Birds belonging to the order FringUlida
and the division /iwatores. The beak is straight, longer than deep,
conic, and pointed; mandibles nearly equal, cutting edges entiro,
forming a straight conuniasuro; nostrils basal, lateral, oval, partly
hidden by the frontal plumes. Wings with the first quill-feather
longer tlum the fifth, but a little shorter than the second or third,
which aro equal, and Uie longest in the wing. Legs with the tarsi of
moderate length; toes divided, and adapted for hopping and perehing ;
claws curved and sharp.
F. Calebs, the Chaffinch. [CHArFiKCH.]
F. monHfringiUa, the Mountain Finch, Brambling, or Bramble
Finch. This bird is a visiter to this country only in winter, coming to
us from the north, but at different times, according to the temperaturo
of the oountry from which it emigrates. They nave not been known
to breed in any part of this country; those kept in confinement
under the most favourable ciroumstances have never done so. It is
not an unconunon bird in Denmark. Mr. Hewitson saw them at one
place in the southern part of Norway, where they were breeding.
It is described as building in fir-trees ; the nest formed of moss, and
lined with wool and feathers; the eggs four or five in number, white,
tinged with yellow, and spotted with dark red, like those of a chaf-
findk. The call-note of this bird is a single monotonous chirp.
FRINQIXLID.£, a hxoi^ of Birds belongixig to the order
/nsKMoref and the division OonW^tirui This famJy is eommonly
KAT. mST. DIV. VOT. XI.
known by the name of Finches. According to Mr. Yigore this family
embraces, in addition to Alawda [ALAUDiNis], to which Emberixa
(the Buntings) [Embbrizida] and its affinities seem nearly allied, the
greater part of the LinnsBan Frinffilkg, together with the Limuean
TanoffrtB [Tanaoer], which approach them in their external duunacters
and in their habits, as far as bas hitherto been ascertained. These
latter groups contain many natural genera which may be traced, in
his opinion, from the point of their connection with the Linnaean
FringiUa back, by a gradual increase of the base of the bill in
breadth and height, to the family of Loziadce [Loxiadjs], which
unites with them at the opposite extremity of the series of fiunilies
which compose the tribe. The FringWida again, according to the
same author, by means of the sharp-pointed and lengthened bill of
Cardwiit, and by the extension of the culmen of the upper mandible
in an angulsr form for some extent upon the frvnt of the head,
conduct us on the other side to the genus Iderut (Briss.), which
commences the succeeding family. Here Mr. Vigors thinks that the
genus Plooeut of Cuvier also seems to hold an intervening station
between the two groups, so as to render it difficult to decide in which
of them it should be placed. There is also, he states, another decided
line of relationship between the two faooilies, namely, that which
some species of the Linnsean Alawi<$f particularly il. Capentis, htaac
to the Sturmu Ludovicianut, or Crescent Stare, of Dr. Tiatham. This
latter bird ii well known as the Alauda magna of Linnaeus and of the
American omithologirts. But its still stronger affinity to the Stv/rni
and leteri necessarily places it among them. The former relationship
appeara to Mr. Vigors to be one of imalogy, not of affinity ; while the
direct passage between the families ie found in Ploceui (the Weaver
Birds). [pLOCEiNiB.] Mr. Vigors makes FringiUidtB the fint» and
Loaeiada the last family of the Oomrotiret. Mr. Swainson makes the
FringiUida (indnding Loxia, apparently ; for his Convrottret oonsist
of the Corvtd(Bf Siumidas, FringuUd(g, Mfuophagidce, and BtteeridcB,
omitting LoxiadcB) the third family; and the order of the names
given will show the position he assigns to it " No group in the
ornithological cirde," writes Mr. Swainson in his ' Classification of
Birds,' vol. L, " exhibits this powerful structure (strength of the bill)
so much as that of the PringUlidoB, where the bill is short and
nearly conic ; both mandibles are equally thick, and when closed their
height and breadth aro nearly the same. In many of the Finches (as
in Uie sub-genera AmaditM, CoecothrauMte$, &c.) the thickness of the
bill at its base in comparison to the size of the head is enormous ;
but in Lascia otirina of Vieillot, a rare and most extraordinary bird
from Western Africa, the bill is not much inferior to the size of the
head. It is well known that all these ' hard-billed ' birds, as the old
writers aptly called them, feed entirely upon seeds and nuts ; and the
harder these are the stronger are the bills of such species as aro
appointed to derive nourishment from the different sorts ; whenever
an insectivorous and frugivorous diet is united, as is the case with
most of the Tanager Finches, the upper mandible is notched for the
obvious purpose of more finnly securing that part of their food
which can escape."
M. Lesson, in his ' Table M^thodique,' places the FringiUida as the
third family of the ConiroUrt*, and makes it consist of the following
genera : — Embervsa of Linneeus, Emberizoides of Temminck, FrmgUla
of Linnaeus — ^namely, PfprgUa, FringiUa, and Carduelis of Cuvier;
Idnariaot Beohstein; Vidna of Cuvier; Coecothraustei of Brisson;
Pyrrhvla of Brisson ; Loxia of Brisson ; P$ittirottra of Temminck ;
Corythut of Cuvier; CoIhu of Brisson and Linnaeus; Phytotoma oi
MoUna ; and Ploceua of Cuvier.
Cuvier, in his ' R^gne Animal,' arranges the Buntings {Emberixa of
Linnaeus) immediately after the Titmice (Parut of Linnaeus); and
next to the Buntings he places the Sparrows, Les Moineaux {Fringilla
of Linnaeus).
Cuvier designates the Buntings as possessing an extremely distinct
character in their conical short straight bUl, the narrower upper
mandible of which, entering within the lower, has on the palate a
hard and projecting tuberde ; and as granivorous birds which haye
little caution, and readily enter the snares prepared for theuL Those
Buntings which have an elongated nail on the hind toe, like the larks,
are distinguished by Meyer under the generic name of Plectropkanee,
The Sparrows (FringiUa) are characterised by Cuvier as having a
conical bill more or less laxge at its base, but not angular at the com-
missure. They subsiBt principally on seeds, and are subdivided by
that zool<^t as follows : — The Weavers {Ploceut, Cuvier), a form
found in both the old and the new continents. Those of the Old
World make a nest by interweaving very skilfully the fibres of vege-
tables, whence their name. Such are the Toucnam Courvi of the
Philippine Islands (Loxia Philippina of Linnaeus), with its pendulous
nest, having a vertical canal opening below, which communicates
laterally wiUi the cavity where the voung are laid ; and the Repub-
lican. (2oxta iocia of Latham), which buUds in society, and whose
conjoined nests form one large continuous mass with numerous
compartments. Among the Weaven of the new continent Cuvier
places Le Mangeur de Riz, Petit Choucas de Surinam, de la Jamaique,
Caasique Noir, &c (Oriolue niger, Oriolut oryzivonu, Conmt Surinam^
eneit, Gmelin), which in countless flocks lay waste the fields of many
of the warm parts of America. Next to the Weavers are placed the
SparrowBi properly so called (JPjfrgita of Cuvier), of which the well*
3 Xi
87^
FRAXINUS.
FBAXIKUS.
anthers; the style single, dielinato, striated lengthwise, terminated
by a blunt papillose stigma ; the capsule stipitate, composed of 5
carpels, which are connected on the inside, compressed, 2-seeded.
D, FraxtneUa, Bastard or False Dittany, False White Dittany,
Fraxinella, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, cordate at the base, acute at the
apex, finely serrulated; the racemes long; the calyx unequal. It is
found wild in the south of Europe, especially in (Germany, France,
Spain, Austria, and Italy.
The leaves, flowers, and stem of this plant, when gently rubbed, emit
a strong lemon odour, and when bruised the scent is more powerful
The volatile oil which gives it its peculiar odour is secreted in the
laiigest quantities in the pedicles of the flowers, which are covered
wiUi httle glands of a rusty red colour, which exude a viscid resinous
juice. The volatile oil from this plant is evolved in so large quantities
that it will bum when a light is held near it, and, in a dark place,
may be seen to take fire. It was formerly used in medicine under the
name of JHctamnut cUbtu, and the root was considered stomachic,
anthelmintic, and aperientl Stoerck, to whom we are indebted for
the re-introduction of so many European plants into modem medicine,
recommended it in epilepsy, intermittent fever, and amenorrhcea.
The plant used in medicine under the name of Dietamntu Oretieut,
the Dittany of Crete, is the Origanum IHciamnit$ of Tiinnieniu [Obi-
OAVUM.]
2>. anguttifolia, has 4-5 pairs of leaflets, alternate, ovate-lanceolate,
acuminated, finely serrulated ; the racemes long; the calyx nearly equal
It is a native of the Altai Mountains.
There are several •varieties of Fraacinella found in gardens, with
white, red, and purple flowers. They will grow in any common
garden soil, from seods, which ripen well in this country.
(Don, JHchlamydeotu Plants ; Burnett^ OutUnet of JSotany; Lewis,
History ofMcUerta Medica.)
FRA'XINUS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natmral order
OUaceas, under which the Common Ash is comprehended. They
inhabit various parts of the more temperate regions of the northern
hemisphere, both in the Old and New World, but are unknown in a
wild state in the southern. Although, if strictly limited, the species
sre destitute of corolla, yet the genus does, in fact, belong to the
natural order of the olive and lilac, a transition to which is afforded
by what are commonly called Flowering Ashes, the Omi of modem
botanists, in which a corolla exists in the form of four long narrow
petals. Both these genera have the kind of fruit called a key, or
technically, a * samara,' that is, a seed-vessel which does not open,
which contains one or two cells, and which is prolonged into a thin
wing at the apex. As they are lUl called ashes in the gardens, and
are exceedingly nearly related to each other, we notice ^em both in
this place.
Fraxinut, or True Ashes.
Of these the most important is the Common Ash {F, exoeUior), a
tret inhabiting the cooler parts of Europe, from Great Britain to a
considerable distance through Asia. It is said to exist in Japan in
a wild state, but this requires confirmation; it does not occur in
North America, but species similar to it in appearance are conmion
on that continent. The ash is one of the most useful of our British
trees, on account of the excellence of its hard tough wood, and the
npidity of its growth. In its appearance too it is singularly graceful
for a European tree, often resembling in its slender stems and thin
airy foliage the acacias of tropical regions. Evexy one who has seen
the beautiful eflbct of the ashes mingled with the ruins of Netley
Abbey, near Southampton, must have been struck with this peculiarity.
The principal objection to the ash is the injury it does to the plants
whicn grow in its neighbouihood, by rapidly exhausting the soil of
all its organisable materials. In consequence of this, few plants will
thrive, or even grow near it; and hence the impropriety of the
common praotioe of planting the ash in hedgerows ; the extent of its
roots may always be distinctly traced by the langour and paleness of
the crops that stand near it. Many varieties, or supposed varieties
of it, are known to cultivators, and many more might easily be col-
lected if it were worth the while ; for it sports very much in a wild
state. The most striking of the reputed varieties are the following : —
1. F, pendulay the Weeping Ash ; with all the characters of the
common wild tree, except that the branches grow downwards instead
of upwards, so that if grafted upon a lofty stem the head will soon
roach the ground and form a natural arbour. This is said to have
originated accidentally in a field at Qamlingny, in Cambridgeshire.
2. The Entire-Leaved Ash ; with all its leaves simple, broad, ovate,
coarsely serrated, and puckered. Nothing can well be more unlike
the common ash than this, which nevertheless appears^ upon good
authority to be merely a seedling variety. Out of leaf it is hardly
distinguishable by its branches from its prototype.
3. jP. critpa, the Curled-Leafed Ash; with very short stunted
branches, and deep green crumpled leaves. If this is, as it is said to
be, a mere monstrous variety of F, exceUior, it is one of the most
remarkable with which we are acquainted. It has a particularly
dark aspect; its leaves are so thick, and its shoots so riiort, that
it forms a blackiih round-headed tree of the smallest dimensions.
Its origin is unknown; it^ as well as the Omut, is sometimes called
F. Th^^ratti,
i. F, verrueoaa, the Warted-Barked Ash. In this tbe stema
covered over with a great number of little grayish brown tubevcieB;
otherwise the plant has the appearance of the common^aah.
Besides this, the only European ash that deserves notice is the ^
parvtfolia, Small-Leaved Ask Its foliage is much finer and nar-
rower tlum in F, exctUior; the leaflets are narrow and finely aerxated,
the bark is rugged, the growth slow, and instead of the tongliness ac
characteiistio of the latter species, the branches are so brittle as to be
liable to constant injury from high winds. It is however a vetj
beautiful tree, and for ornamental purposes where sice is no object,
it should be planted, especially as a single tree. It is pooaible that
F, rottrata may be a variety of it : but nothing can be more erroneons
than the idea that it is itself a variety of F. exceUior, It ia found
only in the southern parts of Europe.
In the Levant occurs the F, letUiicifoUa, Lentisk Ash, a most
graceful species, with long narrow leaves, composed of five or six
pairs of small, distinct^ sharply serrated, shining leaflets. It inhabits
the country about Aleppo, and is hardy in tms oountry, where it
forms a tree of the most elegant appearance, intermediate, aa it were,
in appearance between a willow ana an ash. The branchea are deep
rich purple. It is often called F, QUnemit in the narseiiea.
With regard to the species of American Ash we have, in the firtt
place, to remark that they are not well adapted to thia climate^ being
in genexal too ill prepared by our short cold summers to bear our
winters, and moreover injured by spring frosts : cireomstancea mock
to be regretted, because some of the species prove rirj handsome
trees. In the second place, the number of species has no doubt been
greatly exaggerated by writers upon garden botany ; we cannot how-
ever at all agree with a modem writer npon these snbjecta, who
believes all the American ashes to be one and the same apeciea. The
following are, we think, undoubtedly distinct : —
F, pubetcsnt, the Black American or Downy Ash, with three or four
pairs of leaflets, which are nearly entire, fla^ downy beneath, aa well
as the branches. A swamp tree in the middle states of the Ajnerican
Union.
F, AmerieanOf the White American Ash, with seldom more than
three pairs of leaflets, which are smooth, flat» nearly entire, and
glaucous on the under side ; the branches smooth. A large tree in
Canada and the northern states of AmerioiL
F, tanUmeifalitkf the Water-Ash, or Elder-Leaved Ash, with three or
four pairs of leaflets, which are rugose, constantly serrated, hairy at
the axils of the leaves underneath ; when bruised smelling a little
like elder ; buds deep blue. A common tree in forests in the noxthera
parts of North America.
F, qnadrangulatOf with the shoots distinctly and sharply quadran-
gular. A tree from Ohio, among the most unsuitable of the iLmerican
ashes for this climate.
F, epipterOf the Wing-Topped, Seeded, or Two-Coloured Ash, with
the keys very broad and wedgendiaped at the upper end and taper at
the base. The young branches are green, covered with white dots.
A small tree, found sll through the American Union.
All the foregoing can be procured in the English nurseries, and
they perhaps form the only distinct species of the genus. A great
many supposed species were distinguished by the late Mr. Boac, whose
names are current in collections ; but they can scarcely be determined
with precision. A fine collection of Ashes exists in one of the
enclosures in Kensington Gardens.
F. CaroUniana, the Carolina Ash, has 2 or 8 pairs of leaflets, oval,
petiokte, serrated, glabrous, and shining above. The flowera are
calyoulate. The branches glabrous and, like the buds, brownish.
The raoemes loose, an inch and a half long, often twin from the
same bud. The pedicles numerous and umbellate. The calyx
small and campanulate. It is a tree from SO to 50 feet high ; native
from Pennsvlvania to Carolina. It is a vezy remarkable variety,
readily distinguished by the size of its leaflets, which are nearly
round. In America it is entirely neglected as a timber-tree, and in
Europe it is solely considered as ornamental
There ara a great many varieties of the species F. exeeUior, some of
which undoubtedly deserve to be considered dirtinct species. Several
of them yield the sweet resinous laxative substance known by the
name of Manna. F. exceUior not only produoea it in the warm
climate of South Europe, but is reported to have a tonio febrifugal
bark and leaves almost as cathartic as those of Senna, producing
unequivocal action on the system.
The species of thiB genus which most extensively produce Manna
are now described imder the genus
Omui, or Flowering Ashes.
0, BwropcBOf or Common Manna- Ash, is a small round-headed tree,
with leaves resembling those of the Common Ash, only the leaflets
are elliptical, abruptly acuminated, and have a considerable collection
of hairs at the base of the midrib underneath. In the summer when
the leaves are full grown the tmes become ornamented with a pro-
fusion of white deUcate blossoms, which give them a strikingly
beautiful appearance. The species inhabits the southern parts of
Europe, especially the woods of Gilabria and Apulia, and in those
countries flowers in ApriL
681
FRAZERA.
FRINGILLIDiE.
89S
O. roiimdifolia is tmiyermlly dutingolihed aa a aeoond apeciea of
thia genua ; diffDiing in ita leavaa being much longer, the leafleta
roundiahy ovate, acute, not euapidate, coaraely aerrated, entire, and
rather cuneate at the baae, and not at all hairy underneath. In flowen
it ia much the same. It is a natiye of Calabria and elsewhere in the
aouth of Europe.
These two plants are interesting aa producing the aweet lazatiTe
aubstance known in the apothecariea' abopa under the name of Manna.
It is a secretion from the leavea and branchea ; and, according to F^
is caused either by artificial wounda or by the puncture of an inaect
Both Bpedea yield the aubstance, but, according to Tsiiore, that from
O. i-ciundifolia ia of better quali^ than the other.
" In Calabria and Sicily,'^ saya thia phyaidan, '* in the hotteat part
of the summer months, the Manna ooxea out of the leaTca, and from
the bark of the trunk and laiger branchea of the FraximUf or
Calabriaa Aah. The Orwui likewise afibrda it, but firom the trmika
and laiger branchea only, and that chiefly from artificial apertures ;
whereas it flowa from the FraxiMU through eyery little cranny, and
bursts through the large spores spontaneoualy. The di£RBrent qualitiee
of the Manna are from different parte of the tree."
The sweetness of this substance ia not due to the pnaence of sugar,
but to a diatinct principle called Mannite, which dirora from augar in
not fermenting with water and yeast. Sbme trees yield the Manna
apontaneoualy ; theae only grow in the most fityourable situations,
and the BKp runs out during the greatest heat of aummer. It begina
to ooze out about mid-day, in the form of a clear liquid, which soon
thickcau, and continuea to iwpear till the cool of Uie evening, when
it begina to harden into granulea, which are acraped off the following
morning. Thia kind is called ' Manna in Tears,' and ia aa pure and
white aa the finest sugar. Inferior qualitiea are obtained by making
incisiona in the trees, which forms the principal part of the Manna
aold in our shops.
(Loudon, Atiorelwn BrUanniewn.)
FRAZERA, a genua of Planta belonging to the natural order
OentianaeeeBf named after John Frazer, a collector of North American
plants. It haa a 4-cleft deeply-parted calyx. The corolla 4-parted,
rotate, deciduous, with a bearded orbicular gland in the middle of
each segment. The stamens 4, inclosed; Slamenta filifonn; the
capsule compressed, partly maigined, I-celled. The aeeda few,
imbricated, elliptical, winged, and fixed to the maigina of the yalvea.
F, Carolinentu, the F. Waiteri of Miehaux, ia the only species of
thia genus. It has a biennial root ; stem from 8 to 6 feet high, erect^
sub-quadrangular, and amooth ; leavea opposite and verticillate,
oblong; lanceolate, the lower ones a foot long and more than 3 inches
broad; flowera in aggregate duatera. This ^ant is indigenoua in the
swampa of the CaroUnaa, and ia found on the borders of lakea in
Pennsylyania and New York. The whole plant haa a very atately
appearance, and in character approachea so near to Sttertia that,
without eyamining the fruity it might be miirtaken for a apeciea of
that genua. The root yields a poweifid bitter, nearij aa pure aa that
of quaaaia, and wholly deatitute of aroma. It ia ndly equal in its
medicinal effects to gentian, and when freah is said to be emetic and
cathartic. The roois have been imported into Europe aa a aort of
Calumba, and hence have acquired mo name of American Calumba.
Thia plant requirea moisture, and flouriahes beat in a peat soiL It
should be protected the winter after being raised from aeed or that
preceding ita flowering.
(Don, IHchlamydeout Pkmti; Lindley, Flora Mediea,)
FREESTONE. [SAMsaTOVK^ iSto Sufplbmrmt.]
FREGILUS. [CoRTinA]
FRENCH BERRIES. [Rhamnub.]
FRIGATE. [Pklicanidjb.]
FRINOE-TREE, the English name of the American shrub
Qiumanthut Virgimcci.
FRINQILLA, a genua of Birda belonging to the order FringiUida
and the diviaion Inseuoreg, The beak ia atraight, longer than deep,
conic, and pointed; mandibles nearly equal, cutting edgea entire,
forming a straight conunissure; nostrila basal, latenil, oval, partly
hidden by the frontal plumes. Wings with the first quill-feather
longer thim the fif^, but a little ahorter than the aecond or third,
which are equal, and the longest in the wing. Legs with the tarsi of
moderate length; toes divided, and adapted for hopping and perching ;
claws curved and sharp.
F, ccddn, the Chaffinch. [CHArFiKCH.]
F, montifringilla, the Mountain Finch, Brambling, or Bramble
Finch. This bird is a visiter to this country only in winter, coming to
us from the north, but at different times, according to the temperature
of the oountry frem which it emigratea. They have not been known
to breed in any part of thia country ; those kept in confinement
under the most favourable cireumatanoes have never done so. It is
not an uncommon bird in Denmark. Mr. Hewitson saw them at one
place in the southern part of Norway, where they were breeding.
It is described aa building in fir-trees ; the nest formed of moss, and
lined with wool and feathers; the eggs four or five in number, white,
tinged with ydttow, and spotted wi& dark red, like those of a chaf-
findk. The call-note of thia bird is a single monotonous chirp.
FRINQIXLIDiS, a famijk of Birda belonging to the order
/nsetioref and the division CUnirgtfrtit This famOy Is commonly
VATi mST. 2>IV. YOU XI*
known by the name of Finches. According to Mr. Vigore thia family
embraces, in addition to Alauda [Alavdivm], to which Embtriza
(the Buntings) [EMBERXziDiS] and its affinities seem nearly allied, the
greater part of the Linnean FrmgiUai, together with the Limuean
Tanagra [Tanager], which approach them in their external charactera
and in their habits, as far as baa hitherto been ascertained. These
latter groups contain many natural genera which may be traced, in
his opinion, from the point of their connection with the T.iniiflBMi
FringiUm back, by a gradual increase of the base of the bill in
breadth and height, to the family of Loxiadce [LoziADiS], which
unitea with them at the opposite extremity of the series of fiunilies
which compose the tribe. The FrtngUUdtB again, according to the
same author, by means of the sharp-pointed and lengthened bill of
CardutUa, and by the extension of the culmen oi the upper mandible
in an angular form for aome extent upon the front of the head,
conduct UB on the other side to the gentis Icterus (Brias.), which
commences the succeeding family. Here Mr. Vigon thinks that the
genua Ploetut of Cuvier also seems to hold an intervening station
between the two groups, so as to render it difficult to decide in which
of them it should be placed. There ia also, he states, another decided
line of relationahip between the two fanoiliea, namely, that which
some species of the Tjinngean Alavda, particularly A. Capentis, bear
to the Sturrnu LwhvicianuSf or Crescent Stare, of Dr. Latham. This
latter bird is well known aa the Alauda magna of Linnieua and of the
American ornithologists. But its still stronger affinity to the Stumi
and Ideri necessarily placea it among them. The former relationahip
appeara to Mr. Vigors to be one of analogy, not of affinity ; while the
direct passage between the familiea is found in Ploeeu$ (the Weaver
Birds). [PLOCSiiriB.] Mr. Vigors makea FringUUda the firat, and
Loxiada the last fainily of the Oomroairea. Mr. Swainaon makes the
FrtfigUlideB (including Loxia, apparently ; for hia Oonirottrea consist
of the Corvtda, Siumidte, FringtlUdtg, MuaophagidcBf and BueeridcB,
omitting LoxiadcB) the third family; and the order of the namea
given will show the position he assigns to it. " No group in the
ornithological circle," writes Mr. Swainaon in hia ' Claasification of
Birds,' VOL i, " exhibits this powerful structure (strength of the bill)
so much aa that of the FringiUida, where the bill ia short and
nearly conic ; both mandiblea are equally thick, and when closed their
height and breadth are nearly the same. In many of the Finches (aa
in Uie sub-genera AmadinOy CoccothrauUet^ &c.) the thickness of tiie
bill at ita baae in oompariaon to the size of the head is enormous ;
but in Itoxia oatrina of Vieillot, a rare and most extraordinary bird
from Western Africa, the bill is not much inferior to the size of the
head. It ia well known that all these ' hard-hilled ' birds, as the old
writers aptly called them, feed entirely upon seeds and nuta ; and the
harder these are the stronger are the bills of such species as are
appointed to derive nourishment from the different sorts ; whenever
an insectivorous and frugivorous diet is united, as is the case with
most of the Tanager Finches, the upper mandible is notched for the
obvious purpose of more finnly securing that part of their food
which can escape."
M. Lesson, in his ' Table M^thodique,' places the Fringillidce as the
third family of the Oonirostrea, and mi^es it consist of the following
genera : — Bmberiea of Linneaus, Emberizoldes of Temminck, FringiUa
of Unnaeus — ^namely, Pgrgita, FringiUa, and Cardudia of Cuvier;
Linaria of Beohstein; Vidua of Cuvier; Coecothrauatea of Brisson;
Pgirhula of Brisson; Loxia of Briason; PaitHroatra of Temminck;
Corythua of Cuvier; Coliua of Brisson and Linmeua; Phytototna' oi
Molina ; and Ploceua of Cuvier.
Cuvier, in his ' lUffne Animal,' arranges the Buntings (JEmberiaa of
LinnsBus) immediately after the Titmice {Parua of Linnaeus); and
next to the Buntings he placea the Sparrows, Les Moineaux (FringiUa
of Linnaeus).
Cuvier designates the Buntings as possessing an extremely distinct
character in their conical short straight bill, the narrower upper
mandible of which, entering within the lower, haa on the palate a
hard and projecting tubercle ; and as granivorous birds which haye
little caution, and readily enter the snares prepared for them. Those
Buntings which have an elongated nail on the hind toe, like the larks,
are distinguished by Meyer under the generic name of PUctrophanea.
The Sparrows (FringiUa) are characterised by Cuvier as having a
conical bUl more or less laicge at its base, but not angular at the com-
misBure. They subsist principally on seeds, and are subdivided by
that zoologist as follows: — The Weavers (Ploceua, Cuvier), a form
found in both the old and the new continents. Those of the Old
World make a nest by interweaving very skilfully the fibres of vege-
tables, whence their name. Such are the Toucnam Courvi of Uie
Philippine Islands (Loxia PhiUppina of Linnaeus), with its pendulous
nest, having a vertical canal opening below, which communicates
laterally with the cavity where the voung are laid ; and the Repub-
lican.(JLoona aocia of Latham), which buUda in society, and whose
conjoined nests form one large continuous mass with numerous
compartments. Among the Weaven of the new continent Cuvier
places Le Mangeur de Riz, Petit Choucas de Surinam, de la Jamaique,
Cassique Noir, &c (Oriolua niger, Oriolua oryzivorua, Corvua Surinam-
enaia, Gmelin), which in countless flocks lay waste the fielda of many
of the warm parts of America. Next to the Weavers are placed the
SparrowBi properly so called (Pyrgita of Cuvier), of which the well*
8 Xi
m-V
FRINOILUDiB.
FRINOILUDDiB.
known Common or HonaeSpMrrow {FrimgUla damettiea of aathorsy
Pjfrgitm damettiea of CttTier), the eompanion of eiTiliaed man on a
kige portion of the globe^ nm Mrre ae the type. CuTier aakea the
Vmdkm, Lee FiB9ona (JMmgiUa of Cnyier), fc^ow. Theee hare the
hill ntiier Urn anhed than the epanowB, and a little longer and
■trooger than the linaeie. Their hahita are mere gay and tlMir eong
more Taried than thoee of the sparrowa ; and the CSudSnch^LePinoon
Ordinaire {FringiUa Msfeftiof LimMras), may be taken aa an illaatration
ef the genua. [Cbatitkgb.] The lanneta and Goldflnohea (Lea
Linotte% Linaria at Bechetein), and Chardonnereta {Omrditdi§ of
Cavier) eome next» and the Serina or Tarina, Canary Birda, for
eoounpla. TCajiabt Bibiv] Then come the WMdah Finohea, Widow-
Birda, aa tney are popolarly called {Vidua of Briaaon and other
aothora); and next to them the Oroabeaka> Groa-Beca (CoecMrmuiei
of Briaaon and othera), to whidi Cimer oonaidera there ia a gpradual
paaaage from the linneta without any aaaignable interral, and whoee
completely conical Ull ia only diattngoiahaible by tta exceaiiTe aiae :
of theae the Common Qroabeak {Loxia Ooeeoikramiei of Linnaua) may
be eonaidered aa the type. Piiffku, to which Corier aairfgnn eertain
foreign apedea, aacoeeda. It haa, aa well aa OoeeoOirmtBletf a hurge
biU, which ia atifl^tly compreeeed, azched abov% and aometimea haa a
aalient angle in the middle of the edge of the npper mandible. The
Bollfinchee (PytrkMla) eondnde the tribe.
After the Spairowa Caviar plaoea the Cioaabilla {Loma of Briaaon),
and the DmOieoa {Carythu$ of CuTier, SiroHtoj^Utga of Yieillot),
obaerring that they cannot be placed at a diatanoe fiom the bnll-
finchea and croBabiUa. The bill of Cory^ut, convex all round, haa ita
point curved above the lower mandiUa OdHug he cooridera aa nearly
approaching the preceding.
M. Temmin^ thua de&iea the chameter of the Buntinga (Bmberiaa
of Limwua): — ^Bill diort, atrong, conical, comjareaaed, 'tavnchant^
without a notch; mandiblea having their edgeamduded (tibe upper
mandible being amaller than the lower), and a little diatant from eadi
other at the baae. Noatrila baaal, rouxided, aurmounted by the frontal
foathera which partially cover tiiem. Feet with three anterior and
one poeterior toe, the anterior toea entirdy divided and the poaterior
toe with a diort and curved nail : in a amall number of apeoiea thia
nail ia atiBight and long. Winga with the first quill rather ahorter
than the aecond and third, which are the longeat Tail forked or
diffhtly rounded.
It mil be obaoved that in thia generic chamoter H. Temminok haa
omitted the projecting tubode on the palate^ and he givea aa a reaaon
for thia omiadon that it ia not vimble externally.
The prindpal food of ihe Buntinga conaiata of forinaceouB aeeda, to
which maecta are ooeaaionaUy added. The gxei^er number haunt
wooda and gardena, and build their neata in buahea. Thoae which
have the poeterior nail or daw long live among tiie rodca^ or in the
plaina, and do not frequent the wooda. In abnoat all the apedea the
aexea preaent a marked diiftranoe, the malea bdng variegated with
lively and well-defiiied coloura. The young may be diatinguiahed
from the femalei^ whidi they mudi reaemble, by their more aombre
colouring, and a greater number of deep apota. None of the indi-
genoua apedea moult twice, but the greater part of tile foreign apedea
do ao rogularly, and the coloura of tiie malea change contdderably in
theae two moulta : in tiie aummer they are adorned witii briXhant
coloura ; in the winter they put on the modeat liveiy of the fomalea.
(Temminok.)
The aame oxnithologiat dxvidea the Buntinga into two aectionB : —
L The Buntinga properly ao called.
Theee have the poeterior claw abort and curved, and live in the
wooda and gardena. They appear to moult but once a year. Some
parte of thdr plumage, which are coloured with livdy tinta in the
aummer, are clouded in winter by the aahy ahading with whidi the
feathera are terminated; theae coloura are without mixture in the
apring, eapedally the deep black, till it becomea douded with leddiah
aiter the autuimuJ moult. The common Ydlow Hiammer (Smberita
eiirineUa) may be taken aa an example of thia aection, whidi alao
containa, among other apedea, the OrtoUm {Bmberka hortulama of
Linnseua, Ortolan Bunting of Latham) and the Cirl-Bunting {Bmberka
OHuM of Unnasua).
IL The Spur-Buntlnga (Bruaoa Bpeionnien, Pleotiophanee
of Mayer).
Thia aection haa the back daw long and but very elightly arched.
The^ apedea compoaing it live alwaya on the ground in open placea.
Their moult ia aimple and ordinanr, but the coloura of tiie plumage
change oondderably by rubbing and the action of the air and light, so
that their auinmer dreaa appeara veiy difRsrent from that which theae
birda aaaume in the autumn.
The numeroua genera into whidi, aa we have aeen, the aenua
FrmgiOa of Illiger haa been aubdivided, do not accord witii M.
Temminck'a viewa ; and aa thie excellent omithologiat haa aa much
practical experience aa any of thoae who have made thia intereating
branch of natural hiatoiy their atudy, and perhapa more, we think
it tif^ to put the atudent in poaaearion of hia opiniona on thia
aubject.
H. Temminck, then, thua definea hia genua Qroa-Bec {FrwgUta of
DUger) : — ^BiU abort, atrong, convex, atraj^t, and completdy cooicd ;
upper mandible awoUen aa it were, a littie indined towaida the
point, without any arMe, and with the upper part deproaaed, often
prolonged into an angle between the frontal fealaeiB. Noatrila baaalp
roondy placed near the front, behind the homy elevation of tha
BwoUen part of the bill, partially hidden by the feathera of the froai.
Feet wiui the taiana ahorter than the middle toe; the anterior toea
entirely divided Winga abort ; the aecond or thivd quflla gradaated»
the third or fourth longeat Tail varying in form.
Theae birda, according to H. Temminek, feed on all aorta of aeeda
and graina, whidi they open with the bill, at the aame tune rejecting
the nude ; it ia only very rardy that inaeota are added to thia diet
They inhabit all the oountriea of the globe, but particalarly tiie
legiona of the torrid lone and warm latitudeai They raiae many
brooda annually, collect together in numeroua flodu, and migrate in
MBodated flighfaL Of all tiie winged daae they are, after the Pigeona
and GhdUnaoeoua Birda, the moat eaaQy domeakice^ed. The greater
number of forei^ apedea and aome European undergo a double
moult. When thia takea plaoe^ the male aaaumea in winter the Ifvery
of the female. The young of the year dilfor from the old onea
before the autumnal moult; but alter that period it beoomes
impoanUe to diatingniah them.
Upon thia extendve genua H. Temminek proceeda to ramaxk that
methodiata have eaaayed to daae theae birda in many genen^ onder
the dedgnationa of StrobOopht^fO, Cfoeetftkrtmlei, FrinSffiUm, Patter,
Pyrgiia, Ftefaa, lAn&na, and Chfrdmdii, The mannera of all theae
birda bejn^, with aome dight diadea of diffinmnoe, abaolutdy tiie
aame^ it ia impoadb]e,in hia opinion, to have racouree to the invantion
of new namea aa the meana of anbdividing thia great group. IL
Temmin^ dedaiea that he took the greateat peine to compere mora
than a hundred foreign apedea with our indigenona apedea^ and the
reault of thia examination confirmed him in the condudon that there
exiata a gradual paaaage, without any demarcation, from one apedes
to another. Thia natural aeriea haa, he obaervea, been recognised by
Illiger, who unitea all theae birda with a thidL and oonioal bill ('k
bee groa et conique' ) in one great genua under the name of FrmgSIa,
compriamg the Bullfinchea (PyrtMa) therein. H. Temminek, how-
ever, thinka that theae laAt ought to be rlaaaert in a diBtiiiot.genui^ in
conaequence of the f<»m of the bill, certain habita, and perhapa alao
with reforenoe to the conntriea they inhabit. The genua Zo^m^ he
ramaika, haa been reatored by Illiger to the limita aaajgned to it by
Briaaon; and he adda that he (M. Temminok) haa aeparated from the
genua Loxia of Limuraa a apedea aingwlariy diaraoteriaed by the
form cf the bill, under the name of PtiUirottfVk M. Cnvier, he goea
on to ebaerve, haa^ in the 'Bdgne Animal,' indicated, rather thm
eataUudked charaetetiaticaUy, many genera aiui aub-genenL M. Cuvier
allows that there ia a gradual poaaage^ without any aangnable
interval, frvm the Linneta to tiie Ghroabeakai The apedea of hia
genua Vidua, or Widow-Birda, are diatingniahed l^ aome of the
up]^ coverta of the tall bdng exceadvdy elongated in the malee.
Thia diatinction, available for racogniaing tiie mdea only, diaappean
in the moult ; for in winter they have no conformation of the tail
diffining from that of the fomalea ; and at that aeaaon it would be
difficult to pronounce whether they were Linneti^ Sparrowa, or
FLnchea (Pinaona). M. Temminek agreea that to frwilitate the
methodical arrangement of the great number of apedea ccxnpoaing
thia genua, it ia neceaaaiy to have recouree to an artiildal daadficaticn,
by the dd of which the apedea may be eaaily found. The aimpleet
method, in hia opinion, ia to form tiirae aeotiona in tiie genua
FiingiUa, under indicationa which have mora or leaa reforenoe to the
three diflforent groupa of billa, which may be aeparstad into Latiamet,
Brevieonea, and Lonfficonet, In the firat aection may be eompiiaed,
he thinka, the greater number of the pretended Xoancr of authors,
aome aoi-diaant Bengaliea, and the Sparrowa (Moineaux), which
reaemble oura in the coloura of thdr plumage; in the aecond, aome
&Mrrowa (Moineaux) of authora, the Finchea (Pinaona), the Linneta
(Linottea), and thoae indicated aa Widov-Birda (Vidma), BengaUee,
and SenegaUea; in the third the Tarina, aome Senegaliea, and the
Chardonneretai
Bin large, convex, more or leaa awoUen on the ddea.
The Qroabeak, Haw-Groabeak, or Hawfinch {Laxia ObceolAraattet
of LiniuDua, Frikgitta Ooecothramtet of Temminek), ia placed by that
author at the head of thia aection, which containa, among other
npedea, the Gkwen Qroabeak or Greenfinch (Loxia chloria of TJnnp»^ip^
PringiUa chhriM of Temminek) and the Common Sparrow.
II. JBlTBVICOIMa.
Bill in the ahape of a cone, more or leaa ahort^ atraight, and
cylmdrical, oftoi conical throughout
M. Temmindc oommencea thia aection wit£ the ChalBnch. The
Linneta dao belong to it
IIL Longiamet.
Bin in the form of a atrai^t oone^ long, and ooBapreaed;
pcjnta of the two mandiUea diaip.
The Cittil Finch (PHmaiUa Oiirindla of Luinaraa) ^vpearv at tiie
head of thia aection, whi^ alao oompiiaea^ among other apedea, the
•86
FRINOILLID^
FRUIT.
880
Sisldii {FrinffUla 9pinui of Lixmnut), the Lener Radpole, and the
QoMfindu
In the second Tolnme of hie ' Clattification of Birds,' Mr. Swiliison
makes the Ooceothrauitina! the typical gronp, a sofeHTamily composed
of the Hawfinches, Wearers, Gotdfinohes, aiid Linnets. They live
entirely upon trees, and hare the bill very strong and entire. Qenos^
Coccotkraiuttea ; sub-genera, Pyr€tuite$ (Sw.), O^eobonu (Sw.), Cfoceo-
thrmutea (Brisft), Spermopkaga (Sw.), DertrMa (Sw.). Genus, Ploeeu9 ;
sub-genera, Vidua (Cut.), EupUeia (Sw.), Ploceui (Cur.), SympUetti
(Sw.). Genus, ^iiuMftna (Sw.) (Bengaly); sub-geners, Biitrdda (Sw.V
Amadina (Sw.), SpermetUt (Sw.), Erytkwra (Sw.), Pytdia (Sw.).
Genus, Tiaru (Sw.) ; Genus, Ceerduetw (Sw.) ; Gmius, lAfMnia (Bliss.) ;
sub-genera, Linariaf LeucMtiete (Sw.), OMorit (Sw.). The second or
sub-typical group he makes to contain the 7hiuiffrin<B. Genus,
Tardivola (Sw.) ; Genus, Timagra (Uzm.) ; sub-genera, PilyhiM (Cut.),
Tanagra (Linn.), JtamphopU (Yieill.). Gtenus, Pheemtwna (Sw^; sub-
genera, Lamprotn (Sw.), Phcmitoma (Sw.), Tackypkonus (Yieill),
Leueopygia (S^). Genus, Nemotia (YieilL) ; Genus, AglaUt (Sw.) ;
sub-genera, Bnphoma (Sw.), Tanagrella (Sw.). Genus, PipiUo (YieilL) ;
sub-genera, Arremon (Yieill.). 'fb» third'consists of the FringilUna,
or True Finches, differing materially firom the two former; their
bills are generally smjdler, out more perfectly conic; seeds form their
food almost entirely ; and they chiefly lire appn the ground. Genua,
Pyrgita (Antiq.); sub-genera, Aimapkila (Sw.), Leucophryt (Sw.).
Genus, FringUla (Linn.) ; sub-genera, PattertUa (Sw.), PHngiUa,
Zonotriehia (Sw.), Amtnodramtu (Sw.), ChondetUa (Sw.). Genus,
Efnberiza ; sub-genera, Bmberixa (Linn.), FringiUaria (Sw.;. Genus,
Ijeptcnyx (Sw.); sub-genus, Mdophut (Sw.). Genus, Plictophiranea
(Meyer) ; sub-genera, MiliaHa (Sw.), PUetropKaniM (Meyer). Genua,
AgropkUus (Sw.). The fourth contains the Alaudina. BUI much
more slender thian in any of the preceding ; hind daw always more
or less lengthened. G^us, Alavda (Linn.) ; Genus, Calendula (Linn.) ;
sub-genera, Myafra (Honf), Braeonyx (Brachonyx T) (Sw.). Genus,
Agrodroma (Sw.) ; Genus, Maeronyx (Sw.) ; Genus, (ir^ilauda (Sw.).
Mr. Swainson considers that the Alaudince pass into the flfUi, the
Pyrrhuliwe (Bullfinches). Genus, Pyrrhulauda (Smith); Genus,
Pyrrhula; sub-genera, OtUhagra (Sw.), iS^ermopAiui (S^. Genus,
PsUtiroatra (Temm.); Genus, Oorj/ihut (Cut.); Genus^ Bannorrkou$
(Sw.). ; Genus, Loxia (Linn.).
In Mr. Darwin's collection is a series of Ground-Finches, so peculiar
in form that Mr. Gk>uld was induced to regard them, as constituting
an entirely new group, containing fourteen species, and appearing to
be strictly con&ed to the Gh^pagos Islands. He proposes the
following generic names for them : Geoapiea, CfamarhyncMU, Oaetomit,
and Oertkiada. Mr. Darwin remarks that these birds are exdusiyely
confined to the Gallapagos Islands; but their general resemblance
and their indiscriminate association in large flocks rendered it almost
impossible to study the habits of particular species. In common with
nearly all the birds of these islands, they are so tan^e that the use
of the fowling-piece in procuring specimens was qoite unnecessary.
They appeared to subrist on seeds deposited on the ground in
gjeat abundance by a rich annual crop of herbauDre. (' ZooL Proa,'
1837.) .
Haying thus endearoured to give the student a general sketch of
this family of birds, and the views of some of the leading ornitholo-
gists with regard to them, we conclude with a list of the species
found in the British Islands as given in Mr. Tarrell's work on ' Kritiah
Birds.'
PantT monlonw, the Tree-Sparrow; Frvng^XLa montasia, Penn.;
PyrgUa, Fleming; Pauer fnohtomif, Selby; FrinqiUa monlcNMi,
Jenyns; Pyrgita^ (3toxXdi\ FringiUa, TeiaaxL {Fasbxr!}
Patter dametlicue, the House-Sparrow ; FHngUla dometUca, Penn. ;
Pyrgita, Fleming; Pamr dametUeui, Selby; Pyrgiia, Gould.
[Passkb.]
Ooceothra/usUi chlorit, the Green-Eineh or Grosbeak; Loxia
ehlorit, Penn. ; Chceoihraueles, Fleming ; PringiUaf Jenyns. [Coooo-
THRAX7STE8.]
Coceothrauttei vulgarii, the Haw-Finch ; Loxia Ooecotkrauetei, Penn. ;
PrvngiUa CoeeothrwuUif JenjDB; Caecotkrauttei vulgariif Gould;
[COCOOTHRAXTBTSB.]
Cardudii elegant, the Goldfinch; FHngilla Oardudit, the Gold-
finch ; Carduelit elegant, Selby and Gould. [Casdublis. j
Cardudit tpinut, the Siskin; FrtngUla tpinm, Ptom.; Cardudit,
Selby and Gould; FnngiUa, Jenyns and Temm. [Abibdxyihi.]
Lmota canmabina, the Common Linnet; PringtUa Linota, Linnet-
Finch of Penn. ; P, caiina5ina Red-Headed Finch ; F, Linota, Brown
Linnet; P. eannabina, Ghreater Redpole; F. Linota, the Linnet of
Bewick; Linaria, of Selby; FringiUa, Gros-Bec Linote of Temm.
[Linota.]
Lin/Ota eaneteent, the Mealv Redpole of Gtould and Bonimarte ; L,
homdit, Macgillivray ; FringiUa, Gros-Bec Boreal, Temm. [Lzvota.1
Linota linaria, the Lesser Redpole, or Common Redpole ; Pringiua
linaria, Lesser Red-Headed Kneh of Pennant; Rose-Linnet of
Fleming; Linaria minor. Lesser Redpole Linnet of Selby and
Gould ; Gros-Bec Slcerin of Temminck. [LnroTA.]
Linota montium, the Mountain Idnnet^ or Twite; PringtUa montana^
Twite-Finch of Penn. and Gbuld; P, monlitun of Montague and
Jenyns; Mountain Linnet of Bewi^ [Livota.1
Pyrrkula vutgarit, the Bulfinch. It is Loxia pyrrkula of Pennant,
Montague^ and Bewick; Pmrkfda vulgaritoit Fimning, Selby, Jenyns,
and Gould. [Btrtx.moK.]
iVr&Kkiemictsalor, the Pine Grosbeak; XocMisiNielea^orof Penn.;
Uorythmi, Common Hawfinch of Fleming and Gould ; PyrrhmUt, Pine
Bulfinch of Selby and Jenyns.
FRITILLAHIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
LUiaeecB. It has a perianth of 6 leaves with a nectariferous depresidon
at the base of each ; the style trifidatthe apex; the seeds flat Of this
genus the Common Fritillaiy, P. mdeagrit, is a native of Great Britain.
It has a single-flowered leafy stem, the leaves all alternate and linear-
lanceolate. It inhabits meadows and pastures, and is found through-
out Europe. It has fleah*coloured flowers, with numerous dark and
sometimes white spots. P. montana, grows in the mountainous
districts of Europe. It has the 2 ibral leaves, opposite, and distinct
fipom those of the stem. P, pyrcenaica of Sibthorp, the P, tuUp^olia
of Bieberstein, Is found in Greece. The spedes are often cultivated
in gardens on account of their flowers. Thiry blossom in April and
May, and wiH grow in any common garden soiL (Bablngton, Manual
of Briiith Botany; Koch, Flora Gerimniea,)
FROG. [Amphibia.]
FR0G66IT. [HTDBOOHABIDACliB.]
FROND, a botanical term intended to express sudi oigans as are
composed of a stem and a leaf combined. The leaves of ferns and
palms were thought to be of this nature. It is not now however
applied to the leaves of palms, but is still employed to express those
lesf'like expansions of the Oryptogamia which bear the organs of
reproduction.
FRONDICULARIA. [Foramikifbba.]
FRONDIPORA. [Milliforida.]
FRUIT. In botanical language, that part of the plant which in the
early stages of its growth is called the Pistil [Pibtil], and which
contains the ovules or seed-buds, becomes the Fruit, when the ovules
by the presence of the embryo, are changed into seeds. The Sfyle and
Stigma, when they still remain, retain their names, but the (iermen
is called the Pericarp. In this sense, there are of course some plants
wfaidi have no Frui^ because they are not provided with a Germen ;
these therefore have naked Seed-Buds, or Ovules, and also naked Seeds
(Semina nuda); such are Coniferce, Cyeadaoeet, and Loranthaeea.
But there are some plants in which the germen is easily destroyed, so
that the seed-bud is developed without an envdope to the seed : these,
in order to distinguish them from the former, are termed Semina
denudata, as in Leontiee and Pdiotanthet,
Fruits may be divided, according to the analogy of the flower, into
Naked and Covered (Fructus nudus et Fructus tectus), according as
the germen only appears to exist, as in LUiwn, eras this is surrounded
by other flonl parts, as in Nicandra, When one pistil is developed
into a firuit it is called a simple firnit (fructus simplex), a# in Nigella ;
when several, a compound or multiple fruit (fructus multiplex),
as in FanwwdmM^
The parts of the Fruit are the Pericarp, the Spermophore^ the
Funiculus, and the Pulp.
The Pericarp is the transformed germen : sometimes it is united
with the other persistent parts of tiie pistil, style, and stigma. The
latter are sddom of particular importance ; and all that need be said
of them is that they are sometimes retained, as in Papantr, or they
are more devdoped, as in PvltatiUa, The forms of the pericarp are
exceedingly diverdfied, but admit of no general definition : they fre-
quently exhibit hairs, prickles, protuberances, and membranous
expandons (d»), prombient ribs (oosta or juga), and pits in their
interspaces (valleculn), &c. The pericarp essentially deteimines the
varied appearances of the fruit, by its diverdty of structure. The
parendiyma of the germen is devdoped in various ways. In the
simplest cases, we find in the mature pericarp only the epidermis of
both surftces, and between these a uniform layer of parendiyma,
without vasccdar bundles, as in the lower Araeea, or traversed by a few
simple bundles. In other esses only the epidermis of the extemal
surntoe is perceptible, whilst the entire parenchyma, with the epider-
mis of the inner surbce, is succulent or fleshy, as in Atropa; or it
may be^ tiiat under the epidermis of the outer surface some layers
of cellular tissue are woody, whilst the underlying are fleshy; in
both cases veiy frequently passing without determined boundaiy into
tiie pulp.
In many other 'eases four layers are distinctly discernible, and
have been named, counting from without inward, Bpicarp, Mesocarp,
(also Sarcocarp, or Flesh, *caro') ; and the two inner unnistingnished
coats^ the Enoocarp. Those varieties of structure in the fruit are
most important wMdi cause the peculiar solutions of the continuity
In the ftuly mature condition, nenoe we obtain two oomprehendve
dannpfl of ouits, according as their construction causes a separation
into individual parts or not. The latter may be termed the bniT-like,
and the former the capsular. The capsular are again divided into
two groups, according as the pericarp either opens and suffsrs the
seed to escapch— Capsules with thdr portions called valves; or sepa-
rates into IndividuiOparts, whidi do not again open, but firmly Inclose
the seed— Splitting bruits (Sdiisocarps), and their jMtfts called Meri-
oarps, The Beny-like Fruits are also sub-divided mto three groups,
according as the Inner layers are the more tough and solidt and the
• ^T= t.
887
FRUIT.
WtUIT.
outer the more fleshy and juicy — Stone Berries (Dmpee); or the
rererM — True Berries (BeccsB) ; or, lastly, all the layers appear thin
and dry, or leathery (AchsDnia). All these forms may, with the
germen from which they arise, be superior or inferior, one- or many-
celled, or one- or many-seeded : which only require to be noticed when
deviations in the structure of the geimen have arisen through abortion,
being otherwise self erident.
a. The Capsular Fruits occur in the most diyerse familiffs. The
mode of bursting (Dehiscence) is especially to be observed. The
rimplest process is an apparent wholly irregular tearing; open at any
place, as m Nieandra : usually however the form of this dehiscence is
verv regular, even though it may be confined to a small part of the
fruity as in Papwoer, Anlirrhinumf &c.
The solution of continuity is either vertical or horizontal : in the
latter case, the upper part forms a kind of cover upon the under, and
the capsule is termed circumsciaaile. In the first case, the pericarp,
&c. falls away in more or fewer separate pieces, which are termtfd
valves. In many-celled fruits the valves may separate entirely from
the persistent septa, as in Cobaa BcandertM (dehiscentia septifraga) ; or
the septa may split into two lamellse, and each valve may bear one of
these lamellffi on each of its margins (dehiscentia septicida, valvulse
margine septiferae) ; or the septa may remain undivided, adherent to
the middle of the valves (dehiscentia loculicida, valvulse medio septi-
ferse). If in any of these kinds of dehiscence a stalk-like mass of
cellular tissue remains standing in the axis of the fruit, it is called
the Columella.
From what has been said, it is sufficiently evident that these
solutions in the continuity are not at all depenaent upon the original
composition. Such a relation has been assumed ; and to the line in the
external circumference of the pericarp, where the edges of real or
pretended carpels have become blended, the term 'donal suture,'
has been applied, while the term 'ventral suture' designates merely
the line where the margins of one and the same carpel or similar
part have become blended.
In the generality of capsular fruits, the above-mentioned four
layeA of the pericarp may be distinguished from each other; but
they are ususJly very thin and membranous or leathery, or more
rarely woody.
h. The Schizocarps, or Splitting Fruits, are usually distinguished
chiefly according to the direction in which the defl occurs. This is
either parallel with the axis of the fruit, or perpendicular to ity that
is, the solution of continuity is either vertical or transverse. In
both, the separate parts are usually only one-seeded. In the first
case the separate parts are sometimes named Cocci or Mericarps, in
the last case Joints or Articulations ; and they are distinguished,
according to the texture of their layers, as dry, coriaceous, and succu-
lent. The first (the mericarps) are proper to the families Rvhiaceae,
JEupfiorbiacece, Labiata, BoragmacecBf Oeraniacea, Trapoeolacecef
MatvactaSy UmbelHfercBf &c, &o. ; the last (the joints) to some of the
Legwminotoi and Orucifera. In tiie first a columella is not uncommon.
e. The Stone-Berries, characteristic of the AmygdaUa, but also
presented in other families, owe their peculiarity to the remarkable
diversity in the structure of their layers, and indeed of the paren-
chyma layers, the inner of which are always hard, and often woody;
whilst the outer are fleshy or coriaceous : both are developed in a
greater thickness than usual.
d. The True Berries, predominating in the families of Orostularlacece,
Pcuaijlaracece, Cucurbitacea, and the Arncea, and occurring occa-
sionally in many other families, depend essentially on the fleshy or
juicy texture of the inner layers of the pericarp : this condition often
exists to the extent of a dissolution into single cells, tumid with
fluid, whilst the external layers afe solid, and sometimes even woody,
as in Lagenan'a,
e. The Achsnia, with always thin dry layers, not usually distin-
guishable, characterise the families of the Grasses, Cyperacea, Oupuli-
ferre, CompotitcB, and Diptacece, predominate in the Dryaeea and
Ranunc\d<MC€(Xf and occur singly in other cases. They are one-celled
and one-seeded, generally originally, but sometimes, as in the
Cupulifera, through abortion of cells and seed-buds.
With regard to the Spermophore it may be remarked, that in the
dehiscence of the fruit portions of cellular tissue are separated from
the valves or septa, to wnich the seeds remain suspended, and which
have been termed Spermophores. In these separations sometimes
actually independent organs become solved from their union with
others, as in Oructferce, and sometimes merely pieces of independent
organs become detached, as in the A sdepiadacea.
The Pulp in the fruit assumes two conditions ; on the one hand it
passes into the loose cellular tissue of the pericarp in ihe true beiries,
as in SoUmum ; and on the other into the subsequent products of the
funiculus; namely, into the aril in its widest sense, as in Arwn, and
probably into the toue aril, as in Ribet,
The Funiculus exhibits manifold varieties, such as hairs, vrarty
expansions among the seeds, membranous, continuous, or lobed enve-
lopes of the seed (arils), and so foHh.
^ There are often parts external to the germen, which are persistent
till after the maturation of the seed [Ssbd], and they often undergo
many changes ; and when they become fleshy they assume the appear-
ance of fruits. They are called Spurious Fruits. The most remarkable
example of this is seen in the case of the fruit of the Fig {Fieut), in
which the peduncle or receptacle swells up and incloses the true fruits.
The pedicel in ffovenia dulcit also swells up and assumes the form of
a fruit. In the Pine-Apples (Ananatia) the bracts enlarge and become
the part eaten. In the Mtdbeny {Monu) the perianth is the fleshy
part ; in the Bladder-Campion (CSteubaimt baeeifer) the calyx enlarges ;
in MirabiUa it is the ooroUa ; and the hipe of the Rose ( Awa) are the
dilated disc, whilst in the Strawberry {Fragaria) the sweet juicy part
is the receptacle.
The terms applied to the fruits of plants by botanists are very
numerous. The same kind of fruit has frequently several names,
whilst the same name has been applied to several different kinds of
fruits. The following enumeration of some of these terms is given
by ScUeiden in his ' Principles of Scientific Botany,' whose remarks
on this subject deserve careful attention from those interested in the
further development of this subject : —
Enumeration of the Various Forms of Fruit
I. Seed naked (Semen nudum),
A, Seed solitary.
1. Sacca, Seed inferior. Ex. Viscum,
2. Sphaleroearpium, Seed with a fleshy ariL Ex. Taxus,
B. Fructifications.
8. Strobilut, Spikes with woody spermophores. Ex. Pinus,
4. QaJhului, Capitula with confluent fleshy bracts. Ex.
Junipenu,
II. Simple Fruits (Fru<Aiu iimpler),
A, Capsule (C7afMuZa).
i* Superior.
6. Capnda eireumaeUttL
6. Utricnhu, Gartner, No. 5. One-celled, originating from a
caipel ; few-seeded. EIx. Chenopodium.
7. Pyxidiumf Ko. 5. One- or many-celled, formed of several
carpels ; many-seeded. Ex. ffyoaeyamui.
8. FoUiddui, One-celled, or many-celled, one-valved. Seeds
on the two margins of the valve. Ex. PceonicL
9. Coneepteicula, Two disunited /o22fcu2» with one separating
spermophore. Ex. A§cUpiaa,
10. Legumen, One-celled, l-seeded, or many-seeded, two-valved.
Seeds on the two borders of one fissure. Ex. Puum.
11. Siliqua. Two-celled, two-valved, separating from the
persistent spermophore, forming a Septum (Replum)
Ex. Matthiota.
12. Siliculek A very short SUiqiia. Ex. Thlapei.
13. Ceratium, A SUiqua in some FumariacetE and Papaveraeea.
14. FheffTML Elastically two-valved (?), dehiscing from a Coitt-
mella. Ex. Fupkorbia.
15. CapnUck One-celled or many-celled, many-seeded, dehisc-
ing by valves or pores, Primul<i, Antirrhinum.
tr Inferior.
16. Diploiegia, Desvaux. Inferior capsule^ dehiscing by pores.
Ex. Campanula.
B, Splitting Fruits (SchitoearpiwaC).
17. Cremocarpiwn (?). In UmbMifercBf RuHacete.
a. Mericarpia. The separate parts of the Schixocatyium.
18. Carcendut, In TropcBolacece, Malvacece,
19. Ackceniwn, In Boraginacece, Lamiaceae.
C, Stone Fruits (2>rupa).
20. J)rup<L Ori^fdly one-celled, 1 -seeded, 2-seeded. The Meto-
cai7>ittro fleshy, the Endocarpium woody. Ex. Amyg-
dalus.
21. Tryma, (imsgined to be) one-oelled by suppression in
Juglant.
V, Berry (Bacca).
22. Baeca, Many-celled, inferior. Ex. Ribet.
23. Nuadanivm. Many-celled, superior. Ex. Vitis.
24. Pepo. One-celled, inferior. Ex. Pepo.
25. ffetperidium. Coriaceous portion, strictly separated from
the pulp. Ex. Citrut,
26. Amphitarca. Woody toward the exterior. Ex. Oreieentia.
E. Closed Fruit (AcKoenium),
27. Achomium (AwAorum), Cypsela (Lindley). One-celled,
one-seeded, not blended with the seed. Ex. Oompogita,
28. Olant. Through abortion one-celled, one-eeeded. Ex.
Corylui,
29. Caryoptit, One-celled, one-seeded (imagined to be) blended
with the seed. Ex. the Grasses.
30. Samara. Two-celled, winged. Ex. Acer.
31. Carceruhu. Many-celled, not winged. Ex. TUta,
III. Multiple Fruits {Fructut multiplejc).
A. Several Achsenia.
32. Etaerio. If wholly free. Ex. Ranunculus.
33. Syncanpium. If connected. Ex. Magnolia.
B. Several Berries.
84. Etario. Connected. Ex. Ruhm.
IV. Fructifications {Frudnt compoaitui).
A. Capitnla. With a flat or cup-shaped fleshy peduncle.
35. Syeonui. Ex. Ficut, DorHenia,
FUCACELfi.
FUCACE^
890
S, Spikes with fleshy bracts and perianths.
36. Sorong, Ex. Anantuia, Bforut.
C. CL Spikes with woody bracts.
37. Strobilus, Ex. BettUa.
b. Spikes with woody bncts and perianths.
38. Strobilua, Ex. Camtarina.
y. Spurious Fruits {Fntctui tpurvus).
39. Ojfnarhodon. Free one-seeded Achnnia, surrounded by a
fleshy disa Ex. Romo.
40. Pomum. Hanv-seeded Achsenia in one circle, blended with
the fleshy disa Ex. McUus,
41. Balauda. Ksny-seed Aohaenia in two circles^ blended
with the fleshy disc. Ex. PunictL
42. Didenum» Achssnia enclosed in a hardened perianth or
corolla. Ex. Spinacia, MWabUii,
43. Spluileroearpium. Achsenia inclosed in a drupaceous
perianth. Ex. ffippophde,
FUCACE^, a natural order of Alga, or o1i\rc-ooloured inarticulate
Sea- Weeds, whose spores are contained in spherical centres, immersed
in the substance of the frond. The root has almost always a conical
disc, rarely branching or creeping The fronds are of an olive-brown
or olive-green colour, becoming darker in drying ; of a tough leathery
substance, and fibrous texture, tearing lengthwise with facility;
dichotomous or pinnate; rardy irregularly branched, but very
variable in habit. In the simpler kinds (Splanenidium) there is no
distinction into parts (as stem, leaves, receptacle), but tiie fructifica-
tion is equally dispersed through all parts of the plant; in others
{IhtrviUaa, Sarcophycut) there is a stem ending in a phyllo-caulon or
leaf-like frond, through which the fructifications are scattered; in
others {HimarUhalia) there is a simple frond of small ame, and a
branching receptacle of fructification resembling a frond ; in others
{Fwnu, Cjfatoteira) there is a branching or imperfectly leafy frond,
some portions of whose branches finally swell ind are converted into
receptacles of fruit ; and, finally, in the most perfect kinds (5!iir^aMttifi,
Marginaria) there is a branching frond, with well-formed mostly
distinct and nerved leaves and receptacles, from their origin set
apart as organs of fructification (not formed by swellings of the old
branches), developed either in the axils or along the edges of the
leaves or branches. Air-vessels are present in almost all, either in
bladdery swellings of the stem and branches^ as in Fticut, or as distinct
organs, as in Sargastumf stalked, and mostly springing from the same
part as the fructification. Receptacles of the fruit, mostly more or
less distinguishable from the barren portion of the frond, swollen, succu-
lent, often filled with slimy mucus, either formed from the metamor-
phosed ends of the branches, or evolved from the axils or sides of the
branches or leaves. These receptacles are pierced by minute pores,
which communicate with small spherical chambers formed by an
introflexion of the walls of the receptacle at the points where they
occur. The little chambers (called Conceptades by some writers,
Scaphidia by others) contain sometimes spores, or reproductive bodies,
analogous to the seeds of more perfect plants ; sometimes antheridia,
supposed to be analogous with stamens ; sometimes both organs in
the same chamber. The spores spring from the sides of the chamber.
One of the surface-cells being fertilised, gradually enlaigee, projects
from the wall of the chamber, becomes more or less obovate, and
finally is converted into a perispore, or membranous transparent
case, in which is contained the spore or spores. These last are
formed from the matter contained within the enlarged oelL At first
the contents are nearly fluid, of a pale olive colour ; gradually they
acquire densitv, become darker, and at length are consolidated into
a single sporule, as in Cystoteira, Hcdidryt, Ac, or formed into two,
four, or eight sporules, as in Pucub, Hiaianliialia, &c The antheridia
are borne on branching jointed threads, called Paranemata, which
rise, like the spores, from the waUs of the conceptacle, and com-
monly fill the greater part of its cavity. Each antheridium is on
oblong cell, forming the terminal articulation of the branches of the
paranemata, and is filled with minute orange-coloured bodies called
Sporidia (by J. Agardh), closely resembling the zoospores of the
lower AlgcCf and like the latter endowed with spontaneous move-
ments. The motive oigans are vibratoiy hairsj or cilia, with two of
which each little body is furnished.
The Fucacea are easily known from all other Olivaceous Sea- Weeds
by a character at once natural and easily ascertained, namely, the
position of their spores within little hollows sunk in the substance of
the plant, and communicating with the surface by a pore. The*order
is represented in most climates, from high northern and southern
latitudes to the equator. Veiy few species vegetate in the polar
regions of either hemisphere. In the north the species of Puctu and
Himanthalia alone reach to the Icy Sea ; and in tne Antarctic Ocean
the order is limited to DurvUlaa and to Scytothalia Jaquinotii, a fine
Alga allied to sub-tropical forms. The British species, excluding
three doubtful natives, are but fourteen ; yet from the stnctiv social
habits of several of them, they cover more surface of tidal rocks than
all the other Algte put together. It is these plants which impart the
deep brown colour to the belts of rocks exposed on the recess of '
the tide.
The following is a synopsis of the British genera of these plants : —
Sargoititm. — ^Branches bearing ribbed leaves. Air-vessels simple.
ffalidryg. — Fibnd linear, pinnate, leafless. Air-vessels divided into
several cells by transverse partitions.
Oj^loteira. — Root scutate. Frond much branched, bushy. Recep-
tacles cellular.
PyenaphffeuL-^'ELoot branching. Frond cylindrical. Receptacles
cellular.
Fuetu, — Root scutate. Frond dichotomous. Receptacles filled
with mucus, tn^versed by jointed threads.
HinumihaliiL — ^Root scutate. Frond cup-shaped. Receptacles
(frond-like) very long, strap-shaped, dichotomously branched.
I. Saboabbuic. — Frond furnished with distinct, stalked, nerved leaves,
and simple axillary stalked air-vessels. Receptacles small, linear,
tubeiculated, mostly in axillary clusters or racemes. Seeds in
distinct cells. The generic name is from Satgazo, the Spanish
term for masses of sea-weed found floating in the ocean in some
latitudes.
1. S, vulgare; and
2. & baceiferum, though both of them have been found cast on
our shores, have no just claim to a place in our British Flora, being
natives of the tropics, occasionally driven, with other tropical pro-
ductions, by the force of the western currents on our Atiantic coasts.
The species of this genus are found over a wide extent of ocean, and
have been generally called ' Qulf-Weed.' They appear like floating
meadows in the midst of the ocean, sometimes for miles in extent,
and probably support a laiger number of living creatures than the
most productive pasturage in Great Britain. Myriads of Mollusks,
Badiatit, Fishes, and Onutaeea may be seen playing about in these
masses ; and the abundance of Zoophytes which find shelter in such
situations can hardly be estimated. The weed is eaten in China. In
the East it is used in salads, and forms a pickle.
II. HAiiiDRTS has compressed linear fronds, pinnated with disti-
chous branches. The air-vessels are lanceolate, stalked, divided
into several cells by transverse partitions. The receptacles are
terminal, stalked, cellular, pierced by numerous pores, which
communicate with immersed spherical conceptades.
R, iiliquoia has linear veiy narrow branches, compressed linear
lanceolate air-vessels, slightly constricted at the septa, mucronate.
It is found on rocks and stones in the sea, at and below half-tide
leveL
III. Ctstobeira has a frond furnished with branch-like leaves,
becoming more filiform upwards. The air-vessels are simple,
arranged within the substance of the branch-like leaves consecu-
tively. The receptacles are cylindrical, more or less lanceolate,
tubereulated, and terminaL The seeds in distinct cells. The
name is derived from two Oreek words, signifying a little sac and
a chain.
C. erieoidei has a thick woody short stem, cylindrical, and bese^
with numerous slender filiform branches, variously divided, and
densely clothed with small spine-like awl-shaped ramuU (or leaves).
It is found on rocks in the see, and has the property of being iridescent
when under water in a growing state. In drying it becomes nearly
black, and does not adhere to paper.
The other British spedes of this genus are — O. grantdcUa, C,
foeniculaeeei, C, harhtUa, and C. Jibroio.
IV. Ptcnofhtcus has a root composed of branching fibres. The
frond is cylindrical and dichotomous. The air-vessels, when
present, innate and simple. The receptacles terminal, cellular,
pierced by numerous spores, which communicate with immersed
spherical conceptades, containing in the lower part of the recep-
tades parietal simple spores, and in the upper tufted antheridia.
The name is from two Qreek words, signi^ing thick sea-weed.
P, tmbercnlaiuM is found in rock-pools, on the reoess of the tide, near
low-water marlu. It is better known by the name of Pueui tuberet^-
kUvM. It is very different in many respects from Fuetu proper. When
dry it becomes very brittie and black.
V. Fucus has a plane compressed, or cylindrical frond, linear,
dichotomous, coriaceous. The air-vessels, when present, an
innate in the frond, simple, and large. The receptacles terminal
(except in Fucua nodonu), tuigid, containing tuberoles imbedded
in mucus, and dischaiging their seeds by conspicuous pores.
F, veticuUmts is common on all our sea-shores. It is the Sea-
Ware, Bladder-Fucus, Kelp-Waro, Black-Tang of Scotland, and
sometimes Lady-WradL In Oothland, according to Linneus, it is
Swine-Tang, because boiling it and mixuig it witii a little coarse flour
they give it to their hogs. In the Hebrides, cheeses aro dried without
salt^ being covered with the ashes of this plant, which abounds with
salt. In Scania it is used as thatch and fuel The root is a hard flat
disc. The fronds aro from 2 to 3 feet in length. The air-vessels,
as large as nuts, aro in purs ; the roceptades, in pairs, and often
forked, terminate in brandies. There is a variety of this which is
often called Fucua BaUicua. It is found among grass and moss in
marshy ground occasionidly overflowed bv the^ tide. Ldghtfoot men-
tions that during the snow-storms in the Highlands, tiie red deer
descend from the wild mountains to feed on this sea-weed. He
801
FUCHSSA.
FULGfORA.
meutions also that the saponaoeoua mueoB of the veuolee has been
recommended to remoye glandular twellinga, and the calcined powder
of the plant u said to be valuable as a dentxfirioe. The great use now
made of thia weed, as well as of others, is in the manufaoture of kelp
and iodine.
F, eeranoidet is sometimes called the Homed Fucus. It resembles
the preceding species, but is much thinner and more transparent, the
midrib is more distinct, and the leafy pait is narrower, altiiong^ it is
a more graceful plant than F. veneviomiu,
F, aerratut, Serrated Sea- Weed, is Teiy common on aU our sea-
shores. It is perenniaU 'The frond differs from the preceding by
being serrated. In Scotland it is called Black-Wrack, or Prickly
Tang. It is not so rich in kelp and iodine as the others. It is useful
as manure. £i Norway it is used as food for catUe, mixed with meaL
The Dutch use it to cover their crabs and lobsters, to keep them alive
and moist^ preferring it to any oUier because it is destitute of that
mucus whidi causes them to ferment and putrefy. It is a handsome
spedes, the fronds on both sides being dotted with pencdl-Uke clusters
of whitish capillaiy fibres, and the fronds being oft^n broad.
jP. nodonu, Enobbed-Wraok. The root is .a large hard conical
mass, from which spring several branches, from 2 to i or 6 feet in
length. It is called m some places Yellow Wrack. In England it is
often called Sea- Whistle, in consequence of the custom among children
of converting the vesides into whistles. The air-vessels are called
crackers; for when thrown into the fire they make a slight
explosion.
jF, Mackqii is found on muddy sea-shores, usually in land-locked
bays and among boulders. The frond is from 6 to 10 inches long,
densely tufted ; branches crowded, spreading) compressed at the base,
cylin^cal upwards. The vesicles wider than the vond. In substance
leathery ; when dry somewhat homy.
F. cdmalieulaivt, Channelled Fucus. This is abundant on rocks on
the sea-shore near highrwater maik. It is perennial. Catde are
exceedingly fond of it^ and never fail to browse on it in winter as soon
as the tide leaves it within their reach.
VI. HiMAiVTHiJJA has coriaceous orbicular top-ehaped fronds. Very
long strap-shaped receptacles, repeatedly foikedi spring from
the centre of tlie frond, filled with mucus, traversed by jointed
fibres, and pierced by numerous pores, which communicate with
immersed spherical conceptades, containing dther parietal spores
or antheridia.
iT. lorea is common on rocky sea-shores. It seems difficult to deter-
mine as to the duration of this plant. Some regard it as Minwai^ lui
the thongs are produced every year ; but others say the long thongs
are only receptades, that the cup-shaped disc is perennial, and that
this part is truly the plant The cup-shaped frond which adheres
firmly to the rock is more than an inch in diameter. The Inandies
or receptades are in Scotland about 6 feet long. In Cornwall they
are sometimes 20 feet long. The name in "Rnglf^n signifies sea-thongs.
The fruit consists of tuberdes immersed in the fronds, and these
tubercles disclu^ge their seeds by pores, which give the thongs a
spotted appearance. This is remarkably the case when, after lying on
the^ shore fbr some time, every pore is covered with a yellow dot^
which is the mucus of the plant dischaiged in the death-struggle
which goes on, when, torn from the ro(^ and tossed outbv the waves^
it lies withering in the open air. Dr. Neill mentions that m the north
of Scotland a kind of situce for fish or fowl, resembling ketdinp, is
made from the cup-like or fungus-like fronds of this sea-weed.
(Harvey, BrUi^ Marine Alga ; Landsborough, BrUith Sea-We&ds.)
FUCHSIA^ a genus of Plants belonging to the natural older Ona-
graeea. This genus was named after Leonard Fuchs, one of the
earUset of modem cultivators of botany. He was bom at Wembdingen,
in Swabia, in 1501, where he kept a school, but was made a professor
at Ingoldstadt in 1521, whence he removed to An^Mich, and sub-
sequently to TtLfaingen, where he died in 1556. He wrote a great
work on Botany, with the title 'De Stirpium Historia Commentarii
Insignes,' whidi was published in folio at Basle in 1542. This woik
was Ulustrated with wood-cuts executed by Spacklin of Strassbuif^.
These engravmgs are admirably done, and some of them would bear
comparison with the wood-engravings of the present day. This woik
has been translated into almost every Buropean language, and many
editions of the original Latin have been published. It was however
only a part of a great work whidi the author had on hand ; and when
he died he left about 1500 drawings, with which he had intended to
illustrate a second and third part.
The genus Fuehiia has the tube of the calyx adhering to the ovarium
at the base, and drawn out at the apex into a cylindrical 4-deft tube,
whose lobes soon fall off; four petals alternating with the lobes of the
calyx, and inserted in the upper part of the tube, very rarely wanting ;
eight stamens ; the ovary crowned by an uroeolate gland ; the style
filiform, crowned by a capitate stigma ; the beny oblong or ovate-
globose, 4-valved, 4-celled, many-seeded. The spedes are shrubs,
usually with opposite leaves, and axillary 1-flowered pedicels, which
are sometimes disposed in racemes at the tops of the branches. The
flowers, which are very elegant, are usually drooping, of a red colour,
rarely white, sometimes 5-defty and decandrous. There are few
genera of plants in whidi, under cultivation, there is a greater
tendency among the flowers to sport; and thus thej frequently
afford the most interesting and important illustrations of the doctrines
of morphology.
F, micropkylla, the Small-Leaved Fudiaia, has pubescent brandkea^
with opposite, small, elliptic-oblongs acutish, tootiied, glabrous, a little
ciliated leaves ; the pedicels axillary, shorter than the flowers ; the
calyx funnel-shaped, with ovate«oianinated lobes^ retuse toothed
petals. This plant is a native of the volcanic mountain JoruUo, is
Mexico. It has a scarlet calyx, with deep red petals, and blossoms
from June to September. It was first described by Hnmboldik
Bonpland, and Kunth, in their work on American Plants, and was fint
introduced into England in 1828. It is now one of tiie most commonlj
cultivated of the spedes in the gardens of Gbsat Britain.
F. eoecinw, the Soariet Fuchsia, has glabrous branohes, <^iposite leavea,
or three in a whorl, ovate, acute, denticulated, on abort petioles ; the
pedicels axillary, drooping, longer than flowers ; the lobes of the calyi
oblong, acute, exceeding the petals^ which are obovate and convolute.
It is a native of Chili, in marshy districts, and is found as &r south aa
the Strait of Megalhaens. It is one of the spedes earliest intcodoeed
into the gardens of Ghreat Britain ; and was flrstdescribed by Aiton in
the ' Hortus Kewensis.' It has a scarlet calyx, with vi^daoeoos petals.
In ita native countries the wood is used for obtaining a bladk colooring-
matter, and the leaves and young brancfaee are used as Baediflinei It
grows and blossoms in the open air in the summer, but requires
protection in the winter.
F, eorymb^flora (corynft5{fera, Walpers), the Corymbose Fuchsia, his
brandies some?^iat tetragonal; leaves opposite, petiolate, oblosig-
lauceolate, almost entire ; tiie pedicds three, neariy terminal, noddiog,
shorter than the flowers ; the lobes of the caiyx lanoeolate-ttcnte, twice
the length of the petals, which axe oblong-lanceolate. This el^gaot
shrub is about 5 feet in height, and is a native of Peru about Chineao
and Muna, in shadjr groves. It has scsriet flowers 2 inches long,
which hang down m beautiful coiymbs. The berries are ovate-
oblong, of a reddish-puiple colour. This plsnt^ although described
by Ruiz and Pavon, was only introduced into our gardena about
the year 1888, and is now justly considered the most ornamental
spedes of this beautiful genus.
F, arftomeefu^ the Arborescent Fuchsia, has glabrous branches, the
leaves three in a whorl, oval-oblong, acuminated at both ends, petio-
late, quite entire; the panide terminal, trichotomous, nearly naked;
the cfdyx fiinnel-shaped, with the lobes ovate^ acute, and spreadingiy
reflexed, also the petals. It is a native of Mexico, and has been intro-
duced into this country sinee 1824. It is a laiger plant than most of
the qwdes, not unfrequently attaining a height of 16 feet.
F. praeUu, the Sender Fuchsia, has the branches findy pubescent ;
the leaves opposite, glabrous, on long petioles remotdy denticulated;
the pedicels axillaiy, nodding, as long as the calyx ; tiie lobes of the
calyx oblong-acute, exceeding the petals^ which are convolute and
retuse ; the stigmas ufadivided. This plant was first described by
Lindley, and has been grown in this country since 1828. The flowcn
have a scariet calyx and purple petals.
About fifty spedes of Pucktia have been described, and many mora
than those named above have been introduced into the gardens of
Europe. Th^ are all American plants. They thrive well in a lidi
light soil ; and young cuttings of them strike root readily in the same
kmd of soil when covered over with a hand-glass. Many will grow in
the open air in this country throughout the winter with a very sUgfat
protection. When planted in dumps on lawns or borders they should
be mulched at the root to preserve them through the winter. In the
spring, when the ground ia cleared, the stems of the preoeding yesr,
which are generally dead, should be cut off quite dose to the ground,
to sllow the young shoots to spring from the root
(Don, IHMmjfdeous Planit ; Walpers, iZep<
aykemaiiccB, voL iL ; Bischoff, XeAr&Hcft der B&kmUt,)
FUCHSITE, a Qreen Mica ftom the Zillerthal, containii^ 4 per
cent of oxide of chromium. F^m the crystallisation of mica, two
additional spedes have been made out of tiie old qpedes so called.
The common mica has an oblique prism for its primary. Many micas
when in perfect crystals have the form of a hexagonal prkm, and
but one axis of polarisation ; this last fact proving tiie primary te
be a regular hexagonal prism. This spedes is propa4y dtstingniahed,
and has been calleid hexagonal mica.
FUCOID.fiA. [PunTDOzoABiA.]
FUCOIDES, the vague titie for many Fossil Marine Plants, given
by Brongniart They are mostiv referred to other genera by later
writers. There is a peculiar geologicel interest in the distribution of
Fucdds, since Dr. Forchhammer ('Reports to the British Asso-
ciation,' 1844) has shown tiie probability of their influence in the
metamorphism of rocks.
FUCl/S. [Fuoacba]
FnL(K)BA, a genus of Hemipterous Insects, popularly known as
Lantem-FUes, on account of their power of emitting nght in the
dark. The Fidgora laiemaria of linxueus is the type. It is a native
of South America. The form of this insect is very remarkable, on
account of the regular inflated and enormous head, out of which the
phosphorescence was said to proceed. The celebrated MademolseUe
jferhn was the first naturalist who observed this property, and ia
her great work on the insects of Surinam she gives an account of her
BM FULOORITEa.
<lUco*err, Stnnge to ujr, homvw, nuaT tnvdlcn dmr >ltog«thw
tha lunmioaitf of tlie Itatem-Vlj, whiUt others u itnngl; anart
It. It U prolwblj k uxtul peculiari^, and oul; exliibited 'kt oartain
pariodB in the uuin^t Ufa.
FULGURITES *m vitriflad Bod-tobaa, aoppoaed to lure origiiwtod
from the aotioD of lightoiBg ; tiiaj ara nllad bj . tlie Qaniuuu
Blitirolm.
Theoe tubal ware ^aooroad in the yiar 1711 \ij tha paabor
Bemiui, &t HmmI, in Siladk; sod tbej mm agun diaaorerad in
1805 bj Dr. Hantaan, in the heath of Padarborn, commonly callad
the Saime, and h« ftnt attribotod their formation to tha aganoy of
lightning.
Theaa tnbea hne since baan found in great numban at PUUti,
□ear Konigabeij, in Baatam Pnuaia ; at Nietlebeu, naar Halla on
the Baale ; at Dngg in Cnmberluul, and aome other plaoaa.
At Diigg, the tubea irere tbond in the middle of aandbanka, 10 feet
high, and yarj near the aea. la the Sanne thej were moat commonly
found on the deoliTitiaa of monads of aand, about SO feat high ; but
eomatimes in csTitiM, which ars stated to have been hollowed in
the heath, in the form oF bowb, 200 feat in eireumferanoe, and 13 to
15 faat in daptfa.
Thaeo tub
waa 2i itiohi ,
from one quarter to oaran Unaa internal dinmoter ; but they nainnr
aa they daaeend lower, ani] fraqoantlj terminate in a point : (St*
thicknaaa of the tube rariea from hail a line to an inch.
These tubes are naoally ptaoed vartieaUy in Um sand; but they
hare been found at an an^ of W degieca. Thedr entire length,
judging from thoee which bare been extracted, is from SO to SO feet ;
but frequent transTsrae fisanras diride them into portiona from half
oQ inch to 6 inches in length.
Usually there is only one tube found at a place ; sometimea how-
BTer, at a certain depth, this tube divides into two or three bnnchea,
eitch of which girea Hsa to naaU lateral brancho^ from an inch to a
foot in length ; these an oonieal, and tamiionte in poiota, iodining
gradually to the boHwn.
The iulemal port of the tnbea ii a perfect g^an, smootli and rtrj
brilliant, reaomUing hyidito. It aaratchaa glass, and gina Ars with
ateeL All the tubea, whaterar may ba their form, are anrrounded by
a crust composed of aggtutinatod grains of quarts which have tha
appaaranea^ when examined by a glass, of htrrog undorguna incipient
The colour of the internal mass of the tnba^ and eapedally that
of the eitamal parti, depanda upon the nature of the aandy strata
which thsy ttaveraa. In tha superior beds, wliich contain a little
aoil, tha extarior of the tubas is frequently black ; lower down tha
colour of the tube ia of a ysllowidi-giay ; atill lower, of a grayish-
white ; and lastly, where the sand is pore and white, tha tnbea are
almoat peifcctly coIaurleiB.
That the cauaa of tbcae tubas ia cofTootly attributed to li|^tning is
shown by some obaarrationa presented to ib9 Royal So^ety, in ITSO,
by Dr. withering. On opemng the ground whore a man had been
Ullad by li^tnin^ the soil appeared to b« blackened to tha depth
of about 10 inches ; at this depth, a root of a tie« presented iMf,
whidi was quite blink ; but tbia blacknaai was only — — s-i-i —a
— '— ' '-- -'"Tg it About two inehca '
a aj^Msr, and oontinDad in
, _ ._ ji; within tie hollow pai ...
IS so perfect, that the melted quarts nn down the hoBow,
and soaianad nearly a globular figure.
ri'ofnaaur Esgen, of Konigsberg, haa made a similar obserratiou.
In the ynr 1833 the Hghtumg struck a birch-tree at the villiga of
Kanschan. On cautiously removing the earth, Profsnor Hig«n found,
at tha depth of a foot, the oommeDoemeDt of a viMfied tubs, but it
could not be extracted from tbe sand In piaoei of mare than two or
thica incbea in length ; tbe interior of theaa fngmmts was Tltrifled,
as usual ; sevsrat were flattened, and had slgng projections.
It is alio to be observed, that Sanaaura fetuid on the itaty horn-
blende of Mont Blano inull blaofciah beada, eridcotly 'ritnoni,aud
of tbe aise of a hemn«ead, whu^ were alearly the efftaiM of light-
ning. Hr. Ramond haa also remarked on the Pic du Hidi, in the
Pyrenees, soma rocks, l^a entdra face of which is nnushed with a
ooating of ename], and oarered with beads of the aixe of a pea j the
interior of the rock is tot^ly unchanged.
HTLtCA. [RaLUDA.]
PULiaULA, FDLIOuLIN^ [Ddok&]
FULLERS' EARTH, a Mineral product, farmaHy much used in
the fulling of cloth, whence it deriTes its name. It occnra maBaira,
and ia usually of a greenish-brown or dull gray oolonr ; somstimas it
is nnriy of a shAe colour. It is opaque, doll, and its speciflo graritv
is 1-8 to 3-2. Oreasy and soft, yielding to and polished by the naiL
Fracture anevsn, earthy ; in water it breaks down into a soft pulpy
mass. Before the blow^pipe it fuses into a white blebby glass.
It is found at ITutfield, near RcigatA, in Surrey, and occurs In
regular beds near the summit of a hill, between beds of sand at
sandstone, containing fcsail wood, ooisua amraoeis, Ac There are
did not «ztsnd far along tt. About two inehca deeper, th
qoartioaB matter began to aj^Msr, and oontinDad in a tSopbag aireooon
to the depth of IS mehea ; within the hollow part of one man, the
FUMAMA. Ml
tiot, and is 11 fset thick; fn these beds, but eapemally in the latter,
than are found oonsiderable manaa of sulphate of barftea, freqasotlj
in regular eryatala. Fulleiaf Earth is also found in Kent, Bedford-
shire, Bath, Hottinghanishirs, and fiuHex. It ia mat with alao in
Styria, Suony, and some other places.
AcootdiBg to Dr. Thompaon's analysis, this aubstanoe ocniiits of —
Silica it
Alumina 23-06
Lime - 4 '03
Magnada 2
Protoxide of Iron 3
Water 8*-96
100-09
Dr. Thomson obserres that, allowing the limc^ magnesia, and
protoxide of iron to be in the state of dlioataa, and as mare occi-
dental constituents, Fullers' Earth is a hydrous bisilioate of alumioa,
conaiating of two aquiralents of silica, one equivalent of alumina,
and two equiralanla of water.
FUMA'RIA (from tha Latin Fumut, amoke, in allusion to tha
unpleasantsmsll which iteihalea ; the French, with the same meaning
call it Fumaterre, and hence our English word Fumitoi?), a genui of
plants the type of the natural order Amonaceir. It has i petals, tlie
upper one spurred at tbe base, 3 sepals, diadelphoos itamani, fruit inde-
huraentand 1-aeeded. Theraan about 13 apcolea of Anuria, which an
smooth slender herbs, with small racamoee white or purplish flowers.
mgiOatd.
P. caprtolata, Kampsnt Fumitory, has ovate acute sspsls, toothed,
as broad as the oonillB, and half its length j globose emarginate fruit ;
bracts about a third ihorter than the bnit-stalks. It is a climbing
plant, and haa oresm-eoloured flower* tipped with red or purple.
F. ajlenuijt^ Common Fumitory, has orate luiceoUta aapals,
narrower and two-tturdi shorter than the corolla, broader than the
pedicel ; fruit globose, truncate, aliEbtly emarginate ; bractB two or
three times shorter than the fruit-stalki. It grows in corn-fields and
cultivated land throoghout tha world, and is plentifol in Britain. The
flowan are of a pale-red Colour, deep-red at the summit, with a
green keel to the upper and under petijs. The leaves are aucculeat,
saline, and bitter, and the expressed juice is recommended as a
remedy in caiaa of hypochondriuis and cachectic states of the body.
It is said to correct addity and itrengthen the stomach. Boerbaave
used to preaeribe it fn blaek jaundice and Inlious aiftctions. It has
also gained some reputation ai a cosmetic. Dr. Cullan rseommends
an infiiiion of the laavea in cutaneous disorders, and he also advises
the use of it OS a tonic whenever bitter lemediee are desirable.
F, nia-antha is distinnushed by ita sepals being orbicular dentate,
broader than and nearh half as long as the corolla ; fruit globose,
slightly pointed ; bracts longer than ^e fMt-italks. This species !•
found both in England and Scotland, and haa pale purple flowers In
dense spikes.
F, parv^hra bss ovate sepals as broad as the corolla and about two-
thirds shorter. It greatly resemblaa F. a.]|lf{n<ilu, but is smaller in all
its parts. The flowers are of a pale-red colour. It is found in
Kant, and [a also very common in the East Indies, where it ia used
aa a mediains. The leaves harea bittertaste, and Dr. Whitlaw Ainslie
mantionsltiahis'HateriaUedicaof Hindostsn.' The Hohammedans
employ tt ss a diuretie, and In maniacal oases.
FUHARIACEiSL
FUKQL
F, Taillaniii h^s ita sepak Durrower than the pedicels, and many
times shorter than the corolla. Qloboee fmit, scarcely pointed;
bracts about as long as the pedicels. The flowers are mostly white
with a purple Up. This is a British species, and is also found in
sandy fields in the neighbourhood of Paris and Montpelier.
With the exception of one or two spedes, this genus seems hardly
worth cultivation, having but a weedy and insignificant appearance.
Such however as have a climbing tendency, look well if sown under a
hedf^e and allowed to twine amongst the stems and branches.
(Don, Dichlamydeout Plants; Babington, Manual of Brit, BoL)
FUMARIACE JS, FutneworUf a small natural order of Exogenous
Plants, consisting of slender-stemmed herbaceotis plants, many of which
scramble up others by aid of their twisting leaf-stalks. They are
rather succulent, with watery juice. Their leaves, which have no
stipules, are repeatedly divided till the terminal lobes become smnll
ovate leaflets ; their flowers, which are extremely irregular, consist of
2 membranous minute ragged sepals, 2 exterior distinct linear petals,
and 2 others, which hold firmly together at the points ; there are 6
stamens united into two parcels, and the ovai7 ^ ^ 1 -celled case with
1 seed or many seeds, whose placentation is parietal; finally, the seeds
consist principally of albumen, in which there ripens a very small
embryo. Fumaria oficinalit is OAe of the commonest of weeds.
Many are objects of cultivation by the gardener for the sake of their
showy flowers : all are reputed diaphoretics. They only inhabit the
cooler parts of the world, alike avoiding extremes of heat or cold.
Two species are found in the Cape of Good Hope. The afiSnities of
the order are with Drotercieece, Papaveraeece, BerheridacecB, and
BrauicacecB. There are 15 genera and 110 species described.
FUMITORY. [CORTDALis; Fumaria.]
FUNA'RIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Mutd,
or Mosses. It has terminal fruit-stalks, with an oblique double
peristome, both the outer and the inner having each 16 teeth,
the inner ones opposite to those of the outer. There are three
British species of this moss : F, hygnmetrica, F, MuMenbergii, and
F. hiUmica.
F. hyffromdrica has the leaves very concave, ovate, apiculate, entire,
the nerves excurrent ; the fruit-stalk curved, flexuose. It is a native
of Great Britain, and is found by waysides and under hedges, especially
on spots where a wood-fire has been burning on the ground. It may
be thus constantly found on the site of gipsies' encampments. It has
obtained its specific name hygrometriea from its fruit-stalk having the
property of twisting in diflerent directions when moisture is applied
to it. On taking a dry fruit-stalk into the hand and moistening the
lower part with the finger, the capsule will turn itself from the right
to the left by making two, three, or more turns ; on moistening the
upper part in the same manner, the capsule turns itself more rapidly
in an opposite direction. Under the microscope the stalk exhibits an
elongated cellular tissue twisted in a spiral form. The cellular tissue
is not however turned uniformly, but at two-thirds of the length of
the stalk it commences to assume a straighter form, and at the upper
part it again turns itself, but more acutely, in an opposite direction
to that of the lower part The cause of the turning in two different
directions depends on this st|mcture of the cellular tissue. The
capsule turns itself in an opposite direction to the spires which are
moistened, and the circumstance of its turning more rapidly on the
upper end being wetted, depends on the more acute angle made by
the upper spires. The dryness of the fibres is not the cause of this
phenomenon, as the green fruit«talks, although perfectly dried, do
not turn when moistened. The movements in this case are probably
owing to the shortening of the v^etable fibre by the contact of
moisture. In the green stalk the thick fluid contents of the cells
leave a precipitate when they are dried, which fills them up and
prevents the action of moisture upon them. In the ripened stalk this
precipitate is dissolved and absorbed, and otherwise applied; and thus
the cells, being empty, act like hollow tube&
(Lankester, On the Structure of Funaria Hygromeirtea ; Ann, of
Nat. Uiit. vol. iv. ; Link, Rupert on ike Progreu of Botany, 1841,
translated for the Bay Society, voL i. ; Hooker and Taylor, Museologia
Britannica,)
FUNGI. Under this name botanists comprehend not only the
various races of mushrooms, toadstools, and similar productions, but
a large number of microscopic plants forming the appearanses adled
mouldiness, mildew, smut, rush, brand, dry-rot, kc Notice has been
occasionally taken of these plants under their respective heads ; in
this place some general account will be given of them as a large
natural order.
Nothing can well be more difilerent than the extremes of develop-
ment of Fungi, if the highest and the lowest forms are contrasted ;
as for example, the large fleshy Boleti, which grow on the trunks of
trees, and the microscopic mould-plants, composed of threads much
too delicate to be distinguished by the naked eye. Nevertheless, it
turns out upon inquiry that the latter is only a simple form of the
former, or, in other words, that a BoUtui is merely an enormous
aggregation of the vegetable tissue constituting a mucor, developed
upon the same plan, subject to the same iniEluences, possessing a
similar chemical character, and propagating by means which are
Utogether analogous.
Viewed with reference to their whole extent| the plants of this
order may be described as cellular or filamentous bodiesj, having a
concentric mode of development, often when full grovm almost
amorphous, nourished through their thaUus ^spawn or m jceHum),
living in air, propagated by colourless or brown spores, and some-
times inclosed in asci and destitute of green gonidia.
That they are cellular or filamentous may be easily aaoertaiiied by
examining them with even an indifierent microscope ; perii&pa they
might be even simply described as cellular, for their filamentoua tisKe
seems nothing but c^ls drawn oul Sometimes, as in the genua Urtdk,
they consist of spheroidal cells, having little coimectiQn with each
other, each cell containing propagating matter, and all aeparatii^
from each other in the form of a fine powder when ripe : the smnt ia
com is of this nature ; or, as in OyUmS/rovpofium^ the oella are trun-
cated cylinders not adhering, so far as we can see, and aepara^ng ia
like manner when ripe. In plants of a more advanced origaniaatiog,
as the genus Monilia, the constituent cells are connected in aeries,
which preserve their spherical form, and also contain their own
reproductive matter; while in such plants as Atpergilius the oeUs
partly combine into threads forming a stem, and partly preserve their
spheroidal form for the fhictification. {Fig. 24.) From adhering is
smaple series, the structure of Fungi advances to a combinatioa of
such series into strata, whence result the various kinds of dry-rot —
tiiick leathery expansions developing amidst decaying timber ; a more
complicated form is thence produced in the form of puff-baUa, truffles,
sderotiums, and the like, in which a figure approaching that of a
sphere is the result, the reproductive cells being indiscriminately
confused in the interior of such plants ; and finally, the organisation
is so much complicated that, independently of a mere aggregation of
tissue, we find envelopes of various kinds for the protection of the
propagating mass, as in Agaricut and Oeattrumf and special receptacles
for the propagating matter, as in BoletuM and numerous others.
It is probable however that in all Fungi, and certain that in most
of them, the first development of the plant consists in what we here
call a filamentous matter, which radiates from the centre formed by
the sporo (or seed), and that all the cellular spheroidal appearances
are subsequently developed, mora especially with a view to the dia-
peraion of the species. We purposely say dispersion, not multiplication ;
for it is certain that the filunentous matter ia quite as capable of
multiplying a fungus as the cellular or spheroidal This is partly
proved by the common Mushroom {Agaricut campcttrie), whose fila-
mentous matter is commonly sold under the name of spawn for the
artificial multiplication of that species in gardens ; and more com-
pletely by some rocent experiments of M. Audouin, who found that
the Botrytit Btuiiana would inoculate caterpillars and other larvae as
readily by minute portions of its spawn as by its spores or seed-like
spheroidal particles. Although however there seems so much reason
to ascribe die presence of a filamentous spawn to all Fungi, yet it is
seldom seen by the ordinary observer; for it develops out of sight,
under ground, in the midst of the decaying matter on which Fungi
so often appear, or through the very substance of living matter ; and
it is oxdy the aggregation of spheroidal matter which we see. It
would appear that for the growth of the former darkness ia necessary,
and that the latter is stimulated into existence by the action of a
feeble quantity of light To apply to these parts familiar and equi-
valent names, we should say that the stalk or stem radiates in dkrk
damp situations where it is buried from sight, and that the spheroidal
part or fructification alone is able to develop beneath the light of day.
The spawn of the mushroom is its stem ; the mushroom itself is the
fructincation of the plant.
It is generally beUeved that spiral cells are unknown in Fungi ;
Corda however, in his microscopical work on these plants, figures
them in the genus TViehia, calling them Elaters, and thus asfrigning
them a nature analogous to that of the organs known by the same
name in Jungermanniacece and Ma^rchantiacea, They were first
detected by the younger Hedwig. Berkeley has also detected them
in the genera Baiarrea and Podaxon.
The concentric growth of the filamentous stem or spawn of Fungi
may generally be witnessed in damp cellars, when they begin to grow
without impediment upon the walls or decaying wood. Nothing is
more common in such situations than to see a beautiful white flooeu-
lent matter, which a breath almost will dissipate, spreading from a
centre nearly equally in all directions ; such appearances, formerly
called Byssi, have been ascertained to be the spawn of various kinds
of Fungi, the fructification of 'which is probably never developed.
Evidence of the existence of a similar mode of growth may be found
when the spawn itself is not visible, as in fields where Fungi so often
spring up in circles or rings ; this arises from their stem having origi-
nally spread circularly firom its point of origin, and thrown up its
fructification at the oiroumference of the drole so formed.
As Fungi spring up in great numbers where there is decaying
animal or vegetable matter, it has been supposed that the cells of
vegetables or animals grow into these forms of life^ But that they are
not equivocally generated is sufficiently proved by each species haviitg
its own particular kind of seed or spore ; a provision that would be
perfectly vmnecessary if the species sprang up out of decaying matter
by the mere action of particular combinations of external forces. To
assert the existence of fortuitous creations in this class of plants v
contrary not only to analogy but to the plainest svideacsr The
a
897
FUNGI.
FUNOL
experimental obeeirer may indeed disooVer that Fungi will rwolarly
develop in one kind of chemical mixture and not in another. Dutro-
ohet) for ex&mple, found that» if he acidulated a weak solution of
white of egg, different species of Monilia rapidly formed upon it ;
while, if he rendered such a solution slightly alkaline, the genus
BotrytU made its appearance ; and that the solution in its simple state,
neither alkaleseent nor acidcdated, produced no Fungi — ^a remarkable
circumstance enough. But it would be too much to infer from such
an experiment " that invisible germs of a filamentous plant may be
created by the chemical action of an acid or an alkali on organic
matter dissolved in water, and that they develop by virtue of the
vital action which would be the necessary attribute of the chemico*
organic molecular compound." On the contrary, the experiment only
showed that the seeds of Fungi, like those of other plants, require
special soils in which to grow ; that Botryiit will not grow in acid
mucilage, nor MoiwUia m aUcaline, nor either in muoUage in a neuter
state. This is only what happens in plants of a more highly-oiganised
nature. Who ever saw the horned-poppy of the sea-uiore growing
spontaneously in on inland field, the manh-morigold on a dry heath,
or tiie reindeer-lichen of Lapland on a heath in Italy f Let any one
take a few different kinds of seeds, and commit them all to the ground
in the same place ; some will spring up and flourish, others will just
appear above ground and then peridi, others will make an attempt to
germinate. This, an every-day event, is a sufficient explanation of
the fact elicited by M. Dutrochet's experiments Every kind of seed
has something specific in its nature, in consequence of which it requires
I)articular kinds of soil, and some special combination of heat, lights
and moisture, to be roused into a state of vegetation. As to the
presence of the seeds of Botrytit and Monilia in the vessels in which
M. Dutrochet's experiments were coiMucted, it is perfectly easy to
conceive that the seeds of such common plants exist everywhere sus-
pended in the air or adhering to the cleanest vessels ; they are so
numerous as to baffle all powers of calculation ; they are so minute
as only to become visible when aggregated in masses of many
thousands; and so generally dispersed that it is difficult to con-
ceive a place in whida they may not be reasonably supposed to exists
The veiy general existence of dzy-rot is no weuL evidence of this.
[Dbt-Rot.J
^ttii^ are among the most numerous of all plants in regard to
genera and species. Mr. Berkeley gives the number of genera as 598,
and the species as 4000 ; but new forma are constantly being added
to those already known. It is generally asserted that they are uncom-
mon in tropical countries, but it is doubtful whether this is true, as
recent travellers have brought home collections as well as indicated
the existence of many forms in tropical climates.
They usually prefer damp, dark, unventilated places, such as ceUars,
vaults, the parts beneath decaying bark, the hollows of trees, the
denser parts of' woods and forests, or any decaying matter placed in
a damp and shaded situation ; and are most especially averse to dry-
ness and bright light. Even when they appear upon the live leaves
of trees, the stems of com, or in similar situations, it is either at the
damp and wet season of the year, late in the autunm, or in damp and
shaded places; and M. Audouin has shown experimentally that when
live insects ore attacked by them it is only when they are confined in
damp unventilated places. (' Comptee Rendus,' 1837.) In stations
&vourable to their multiplication they often commit extensive ravages,
attacking and destroying timber, and producing decay in all kinds of
vegetable matter of a soft and succulent nature ; nor is it to dead
matter that their ravages are confined. They sometimes fix them-
selves upon live insects, producing great havoc among the silkworms
in the manufactories of Italy, and ore probably the cause of a more
extensive destruction of such animals than we at present have any
idea o£ Under the name of mildew and blight they commit excessive
damage among living plants, as the £armer and orchardist know too
well to their cost.
There is frequently considerable difficulty in distinguishing Fvngi
from the other forms of Cryptogamic Plants. Thejr are distinguished
from Lichens by their more fugitive nature, their more succulent
texture, tiieir want of a thallus or expansion independent of the part
that bears the reproductive matter, but more particularly in their
never containing germs distinct from the fructifying bodies of a
v^etable germ so constant in Lichens.
From some forms of Alga they differ very little, but the most
obvious distinction is their mode of growth. The Alga like the
Lichens do not derive their nutriment from the bodies on which they
grow, which is the case with all the Fungi. There are however
certain free forms of Fungi which it is difficult to distinguish from
Alga by this character ; such are the moulds which ore developed in
ink, milk, and other liquids.
It has been stated that Fungi are distinguished from Alga by the
absence of spontaneous movements. It is no doubt true that the
condition of the protein which is the motile agent in all plants is
different in Fungi from what it is in J Iga, but this is no {general
distinction. In those Fungi whidi are developed^ in water, in one
instance at least, the Achlya proUf era, or Saprolegniaferax [Aohlta].
The movements of the spores are as active as in any of the A^cb,
Similar motile spores occur in Vaucheria,
** In the simplest form Fungi are little articulated filaments com-
KAT. HIST. DIY. VOL. IL
posed of simple cellules placed end to end. Such is the mouldiness
that is found upon various substances, the mildew of the rose-bush,
and in short all the tribes of Mucor and Mucedo. In some of these
the joints disarticulate, and appear to be capable of reproduction; in
others spores collect in the terminal joints, and are finally dispersed
by the rupture of the cellule that contained them. In a higher state
of composition Fungi are masses of cellular tissue of a determinate
figure, the whole centre of which consists of spores attached, often
four together, to the cellular tissue, which at length dries up, leaving a
dust-like mass intermixed more or leas with flocci, as in the puff-balls,
or sporidia, contained in membranous tubes or asd, like the thecss of
Lichens, as in the Sphssrias. In their most complete state they con-
sist of two surfaces, one of which is even and imperforate, like the
cortical layer of Lichens ; the other separated into plates or cells and
called the hymenium, to whose component cells, which form a
stratum resembling the pile of velvety the spores are attached by
means of little processes, and generally in fours, though occasionally
the number is either less or greater." (Lindley.)
The following is Schleiden's account of the development of the
organs of reproduction in the Fungi : —
" The most simple {Hyphomycetet, filamentous Fungt) form, at the
end of the thread-like cells, narrower protuberances, in each of which
a spore is developed : this at length separates, having consequently a
double membrane, the cell of the spore itself and the covering
(sporangium) arising from the parent cell, as, for instance, in Pent-
cUlium and Botrytit. In others the thread-like cells form a spherical
swelling at the extremity, from which project a number of such
prolongations, each of wmch contains a spore, while the whole forms
a divided sporangium, as for instance, in Mucor and PeniciUium,
"In others (Qatteromycetes, the ventricular jPun^i) the thread-like
cells combine into pointed, or non-pointed, variously-shaped sporo-
carps ; in or upon which are spores, of the development of which we
know nothing. After the scattering of the spores, the thread-like
cells often remain as tender wool, as in the Trichiacea, or as a delicate
network (capillitium), as, for instance, in StemoniHs, Oribraria ; and
the external capsule (uterus peridium) generally composed of fine
filamentous cells, is then dissolved, or Dursts in different regular
ways, as in Areyria and Oeattrum.
« In the most highly developed Fungi (HymenomyeeUt, membranous
Fungt), elongated pouch-like cells (prooably only the ends of the
interwoven filiform fungus-cells, developed into the sporocarps, or
cells formed at the ends of these cells) combine by arrangement side
by -^de so closely as to form a membrane (hymenium). Some of the
cells of this membrane enlaxge considerably (sporangia), and send
out from one to six points at their free extremity, in each of which a
spore is devdoped. The filiform cells of the fungus then eithecform
round masses, closed in all round (sporocarps), with cavities in their
interior, the waUs of which are clothed by the hymenium, or they
form definitely arranged columns in MerUma, tubes in Polyporut, or
lamella in BcedaUa and Agaricut, which are clothed by the hyme-
nium, as in the ffymenomycUet. Of the latter we only know, with
any amount of accuracy, the law of development relating to the Toad-
stools, and more especiallv that of the Agaricinea, In these latter
there aie formed, at defimte parts of the flocculent mycelium, small
hollow heads (volvss), at the bottom of the cavity of which there grows a
corpuscle, shortly pedunculated below, and enlarged into a spherical
form at the top. In the lower part of this protuberance a horizontal
circular cavity is formed, to the upper surfSace of which are attached
the tubes, lamellse, &c., which beiur the hymenium. The bottom of
the cavity is only formed by a membrane (indusium), which is either
separated from the pedicel on its further development, or, loosening
itself from it and the upper part at the same time, remains as a
membranous ring (annulus) upon the stalk. The upper part, which
supports the hymenium on its lower surface, dilates subsequently,
and appears as an umbrella-like expansion, called the cap (pUeus).
The whole then breaks through the volva, which is very soon
dissolved."
During their growth the same Fungi assume very different fonns
and appearances. It thus happens that the same species has not only
been described under different specific names, but even referred to
different genera. fVies states that he has traced no less than eight
genera of different authors to mere degenerations or imperfect states
of Thdephora tuiphurea. Kees von Esenbeck also states tiiat the same
fungoid matter which produces ScUrotium tnycetotpora in the winter,
developes Agaricut voLvcLceui in the summer. Professor Henslow has
also shown that some of the supposed species of Urtdo are forms of
Puccinia, Aregma, &c Kiitzing, in an essay on the ' Transformations
of Plants,' carries his views on this subject very far, and maintains
that according to different circumstances the same species will
produce AlgcB, Fuaigi, Lichens, or Mosses.
In the article ^tofhtta will be found an account of the plants
growing on man and living animals. Many of these are Fvngi^
Profeosor Balfour, in his 'Class-Book of Botany,' gives the following
account of diseases in plants produced by Fungi : —
" The attacks of Parasitic Fungi cause extensive injury and disease
in plants. Some think that the spores of Fungi coming into contact
with the plant act both as the predisposing and exciting cause of
disease ; others, perhaps more correctly, thmk that some change is
8 M
Sftd
FUNGI.
FUNGI.
n
first produced in the oellfl of the plant, which enables the spores to
find a nidus, and then the disease goes on rapidly, assuming a peculiar
type on account of the presence of the Aingus : in the same way as
vegetable oi^ganisms found in diseases of the skin are not to be looked
upon as the origin of the disease, but as being developed in textures
previously morbid, and as giving often a peculiar character to the
disease. Many of the diseases of cultivated crops are attributed to
Fvngi, The spores of Fungi are very minute, and are constantly
floating in the air. They can easily be applied to the surfaces of
plants. When they find an appropriate soil they send out extensive
filiform ramifications, which spread imder the epidermis of plants,
raise blisters, and finally burst forth in the form of orange, brown,
and blade spots, constituting the fructification. They attack the
stem, leaves, flowers, and fruit. Difierent species are restricted to
different plants, and even to different parts of « the same plant. The
forms which the same fungus assumes seem to vary sometimes
according to the plant on wmch it grows. The disease called Bunt,
Smut-Balls, or Pepper-Brand, is occasioned by the plant called Uredo
cariet by De Candolle, and Uredo faetida by Bauer. It attacks the
grains of wheat, and may be detected in them in their earliest state.
It consists of extremely minute globules of a dark colour, at first
attached to a thread-like matter or mycelium. Bauer estimates the
diameter of each of the globules at l-l 600th of an inch, and conse-
quently a grain of wheat (reckoned at leas than 1-lOOOth of a cubic
inch) would contain four millions such spores. The spores, or
powdery matter, have a disgusting odour ; nence the specofio name
given to it. The disease is propagated by contact. Steeping the
grain is recommended by some as a means of prevention, and alkaline
solutions have been suggested as a remedy. Uredo linearis, which is
met with also in this disease, is considered as being a young state of
the Mildew-plant. Another disease called Smut, or Dust-Brand is
caused by a fungus called Uredo eegetum. It resembles the Bunt-
fungus in colour and shape, but its spores are not half so large, and
it does not possess a fetid odour. This fungus destroys the ear of
com by first causing the innermost parts of the flower to become
abortive, while the pedicels on which these are seated swell and
become very fleshy. The fungus then consumes the whole of this
fleshy mass, and at length appears between the chaff-scales in the
form of a black soot-like powder. It is said also to attack the stem
and leaves. When ripe the spores burst through the epidermis, and
are dispersed in the form of a black powder like charcoal The spore
is l-2800th of an inch in diameter. Smut is rare in wheat ; it is
common in barley, and more so in oats. It is also seen in many
grasses, such as ArrhentUherum avenaceum. The disease denominated
Rust, Red Rag, Red Robin, and Red Gum, is caused by a fimgus
called Uredo rubigv. It forms yellow and brown oval spots and
blotches upon the stem, leaves, and chaffs' The spores burst through
the epidermis and are dispersed as very minute grains. The disease
is common in com and in grasses. Mildew is a disease caused bv a
fungus denominated Pt^cdnia graminit. The ripe spore-cases of wis
plant are small dark brown dub-shaped bodies, their thicker end
being divided into two chambers, each filled with minute spores, and
their lower end tapering into a fine stalk. The soil, or dusters of
spore-cases, burst through the epidermis sometimes in vast numbers.
The minute spores seem to enter the plant by the stomata. Some
think that they, as well aa other minute spores, are absorbed hj the
roots. The disease attacks wheat Sprinff wheat is leas liable to this
diseajse than winter wheat, and heavy worn are less subject to it than
light ones. Manv have supposed that the Barberry is in some way
connected with the production of Mildew. This idea has been proved
to be erroneous by the experiments of Standmger, near Hamburg,
and of Homemann at Copenhagen. Unger entertaina the idea
that blight, mildew, and smut are to be considered as exanthe-
matous diseases of plants caused hj the spores of Fungi entering the
stomata.
" Henslow has shown by experiment, that if the diseased seeds of
wheat be steeped in a. solution of sulphate of copper they will not
S reduce diseased grain, and that the sulphate of copper does no
ijury to their germination. The solution used if one ounce of
sulphate of copper to a gallon of water for every bushel of wheat.
Grain alao steeped in hot water does not reproduce these fungoid
diseases. In East Lothian, with the view of preventing smut, seed-
wheat is often steeped in stale urine, and afterwards some newly-
slaked lime is sifted on it Sometimes a solution of salt is used aa a
pickle. Fourcroy and Vauquelin ascertained by analysis that blighted
wheat contained an acrid oil, putrid gluten, charcoal, phosphoric
acid, phosphate of ammonia and magnesia, phosphate of lime, and no
traces of starch. As regards Bunt or Pepper-Brand, Henslow remarks,
that upon simply immersing the grain in water the infected seeds
float, and on the water being poured out, nothing but the sound
ones remain in the vessel. This simple process of separation is not
however perfectly effective, because in thrashing the wheat many of
the infected grains are crushed, and the spores are dispersed in the fomi
of fine powder which adheres obstinately to the sound grain, by
means of an oily or greasy matter found in tiie Fungi, In order to
detach them thoroughly it has been considered useful to add some
alkaline ley to the water in which they are washed. The alkali
unites with the oil and forms a .soapy matter. Lime has bem used
for this purpose, common potash, substances containing junmofna,
and the liquid £rom stable dung have also beoi employed ; o4bcr
matters, as sulphate of copper, act by destooyisf uia T^getati^
powers of the An^ ^
" Mr. Ellis, of Baming, Kent, says that the invariaUa prercntia
of smut in wheat is accomplished by scalding the blackest ^irlieat ia
boiling water, and afterwards drying it with lune. The wheat plaoed
in a colander or in a basket* is immersed in boiling water for a (em
seconds, just loog enough to wet it completely, it is then mass-
diately dipped in cold water, afterwards dried with lime, mixed witk
other wheat, and sown. By this means the wheat was always iofoai
to be cured of smut, while the vegetating principle waa imiojurBd
great care being taken that the water was boilm§^ and the wheat
taken out of tiie water as soon as completely wetted. Mr. EZIii
tried an experiment on a bushel of the blackest wheat he eoaSd
procure, which he divided into sixteen equid pArts, sowing them aJI
the same day, but with different treatment The result at hsrreet
was .that the wheat sown without preparation produced 33 blad
ears out of every 100, while that dipped in boiling water ai^
limed had not a black ear in several thousands which were examxDAL
Many other species of Uredo as well as UtHlago give rise to diseaaea
They receive their names from the plants on which they are pamxtx^
and it seems probable that the same species presents ▼sriotis fonsi
according to the situation in which it grows. UMago Ma^it, a
maize smut, is a fungus which gives rise to protuberanoes on diflleRst
parts of the maize. The stem, upper leaves, and eepedslly tba
bracts become immensely swollen when attacked by this diaesae, aad
the ovaries, ovules, and male blossoms are not exempt. The pans
affected are at first white tinged with red, smooth, and juicy. The
cellular tissue increases in volume, and is permeated by ladiati^
hues consisting of mycelium and spores. The spores are twice aa
lazve in linear measure as those of the oat smut At first the amafi
balls contain a dark strong-smelling fluid, but tdtimately the muNi
become dr^ and present a quantity of dark dust mixed with irreguhr
threads. UtHlago vittaia causes disease in grasses in India. Th*
spores of Ustileigo hypodylea also cause disease in grasses. The spam
are black and round, and the disease they ooossion is denominated
grass*smut The plant is described by Tulasne. According to
Leveill^, the immense quantity of black dust resulting from it m
the hay-fields of France produces injurious effects on the haynaakeis.
A species of Deposea or Septoria sometimes produces disease in t]»
knots of wheat Various species of Br^phe, such as K guttata,
B. peniciUata, B, gramime, B. adunea, and B, bieomia give rise to
kinds of mildew. Erysiphes are often met with in common pea* cropa
Some say that Oidiums are merely particular states of Eiysipbei
The plant producing mildew in the vine is Oidiwm Tudeeri U
Berkeley. Other species of Otdtttm probably cause mildew in the
peach, rose, hop, pea, and onion. For destroying the mildew in
vines sulphur is recommended to be dusted on them. Some also um
a solution of hydro-sulphate of lime, made by boiling sulphur and
lime in water. A fungus called Rkitadoma Mali is said to grow oc
the roots of apples, pears, and quinces, and to cause destraction to
the trees. Ergot is a monstrous state of the grain in which the
enlaiged and diseased ovary protrudes in a curved form resemhlisg
a cock's spur, hence the name from the French 'eigot^' meaning a
spur. The ovary is black externally, spongy intemaUy, and contaim
much oily matter. Some consider it as produced by tiie attach of a
Aingus, which induces a diseased condition in (he ovarian ceUa. The
disease is usually met with in ry% and the name of spurred lye
is applied to it It sometimes occurs in wheat and in barley, aod
it has also been noticed in Lelimn pvtime, JL arvenae, Feitm€a
prtUentii, Phleunn praUnte, Daetylii glomeraia, Anikoxa$Ukmn odon-
him, PhaiaHt aryndinaeea, and Alopeeunu ogreHia, Ergot oonsisia
of a very dense tissue foitned by polygonal cells, united xntimateij
with one another, and filled with an oily fluid. It ia developed in
the unimprognated ovule of ire, for although extremely dilated by
the entophvte and rendered difficult of recognition, the integumentB
of the ovule increase without completely losmg the form which th^
would have assumed, if they had grown into a true grain, imitatiii^
in this respect the ovaries of wheat, in which TiUeiia Canea (Bant)
has repkced the seed. The solid mass which has been called SeUr9'
Hum davui by De Candolle, and the filamentous portion called
Sphacdia by Leveill^ and F^, and BryoUetia by Quekett, are onfy
properly speaking organs of vegetation. The fungus destmed to
grow from this apparatus is an elegant Spharia, probably that
called by Fries Cordyfieepa jpwrputrea. This plant has been seen bgr
Schumacher in diseased cereal grains, and it has been detected bj
Roussel mSderotium clavue, growing on^romueayhatieutmnd Anmde
calamagrotiis, and by Dumenl in Ergot of Rye. Tulasne has shown
that this Oordylicepa is produced from the Ergot when it is allowed to
vegetate. Eigot of Grasses and Ergot of Vyperaoetg, according to
Tulasne, do not belong to the same vegetable speciea Rye affected
with this disease, when used as bread, is very prejudicial. The Abb^
Tessier showed that Ergot caused gangrene in animals that fed on it,
and many instances are recorded of gangrene of the extremitiei
occurring in persons who had lived on diseased lye. Eigot is aid
to prevail in rye grown on wet and stiff land.
'' The diseasewhich has recently attacked the Potato in various parts
i
801
FUNGI.
FUNGL
808
of the world is by numy attributed to ihe attack of Fungi, This
Tiew ham been strongly adTocated by Berkeley, who deecribes the
fungus as BoiryUt inftttcoM, The spores are supposed to enter the
stomata and to cause disease in tne leaves in the first instance,
which afterwards extends to the tubers. The effects produced on the
leaves resembled much those caused by poisonous gases, such as
hydrochloric, sulphuric, and nitric adds.
"Berkeley attributes the Potato disease entirely to Fuingu Ho
states that Uie disease commenced in the leaves. They were attacked
by the mould, which ran its course in a few hours ; and from the
rapidity of the action, the period for examination of the leaves has
often passed over. The fungus generated does not live on decayed
or decaying matter, but is one which produces decay, and renders the
plants unhealthy. The fungus acts by feeding on the juices of
plants, preventing the elaboration of the sap in the leaves, obstructing
the admission of air and the emission of transpired fluids. The stem
is thus overcharged with moisture, and ultimately rots, while every
source of nutriment ib cut off from the half-ripe tubers. The atmos-
pheric conditions during the late disease mMle' the fungus spread
rapidly.
'* While there is no doubt that the Boirytii is developed in the
progress of the Potato disease, the question arises whether or not it
IS the originating cause. The view which seems to be most consonant
with the phenomena is, that changes are induced in the oells of the
potato by cultivation which render the leaves liable to disease^ Atmos-
pheric influences are thus enabled to act upon them, so as to cause
alterations in their cells ; and the attack of a fungus, such as the
BotrytU, accelerates the morbid action, and causes it to assume a
peculiar form. In this way high cultivation, atmospheric influences,
and FvngifjBM contribute to cause diwase. In the Potato disease of
1845, Harting says that brown granular matter was deposited in the
cells, first in those near the epidermis, then the cellular walls lost
their tnmsparenoy, and the cellules could no longer be isolated by
boiling water ; next the cell-wall was destroyed, ud small cavities
wore formed in the midst of the tissue, in which were agglomerated
grains of starch, and finally parasitic organisms appeared in the
cavities. The vegetable parasites developed were PolyacUs aUta.
FMiitporimmSolani, F, iidyvMim^ F, candtdMii, and Oufium v»o2ac0tMk
When the disease had advanced insects were also presentb
" Crum attributed the disease of the tubers of the Potato to rupture
of the starch-cells^ and mixture of their contents witibi nitrogenous
matter, thus causing fermentation, as in the Apple and Grape. Solly ob-
jects to the funcn^s theory of the Potato disease. He says that decaying
organic matter is necessary for the growth of Fungi, He thinks that
the disease is caused by the presence of putrifying aaotised matter in
the stem, just below the surface of the soil ; thsi this is carried to
all parts of the plants causes a struggle between vital and chemical
forces, and induces decomposition by a process of fermentation. The
asotised matter, in a condition to act as ferment, is produced by the
state of the season, hy defidenojr of light, and by other meteorological
causes. Analyses show that tne constituents of the diseased potato
undergo a rapid and important change. Dr. Lyon Playfair and Mr.
Phillips found that the amount of albumen and gluten decreased from
2*34 in the sound potato to *82 in the diseased ; and when the disease
advanced they finally disappeared.
" Mitscherueh says that the change which cellulose undergoes by
the action of a peculiar ferment is characteristic of the substance.
This fermenting agent is obtained when half putrid potatoes out up
into pieces are placed in water, with portions of freui potatoes, and
allowed to stand till the cells of the nesh portions begin to be easily
separable. It is also formed, though more slowlv, when firesh potatoes
cut up are set aside covered with water ; the liquid is filtered, and
fresh potatoea, cut in slices, added to it; when these are decomposed,
a portion of the liquid may be treated with water, and more slices
of potato added, which soon become decomposed, and in this manner
increase the activity of the liquid. Hence, just as in the fermentation
of an infusion of malt, the yeast, the fermentative fungus, becomes
augmented, so does the ferment increase. It only acts upon the
cellulose, which forms the walls of*the starch-cells of the Potato ; first
the cells separate from each other, so that it furnishes us with a con-
venient means of obtaining the dells with their contents in an isolated
state, and facilitating their examination ; the walls of the oells are
subsequently also dissolved, and the starch-particles fall out : in this
manner, in 24 hours, a slice of potato is rendered so soft to a depth
of two lines that this portion can be removed by a pair of forceps,
the hard mass of the potato lying beneath the softened layer, so that
this process takes place successively from the outside towards the
interior; not by the whole of the potato being simultaneously per-
meated by the ferment to the innermost portion. Exactly the same
process as that which we can produce spontaneously, he says, oocurs
in the Potato disease, which during late years has done so much
mischief. In this also the cellulose, and not the starch, is decomposed ;
and the liquid, which the author had kept for a long time in contact
with one of the diseased potatoes, immediately produced the decom-
position of a sound one. This deoomposition is therefore, he says,
not the disease itself but merely the result of it Its cause undoubtedly
depends upon the dying or the previous death of the entire plant,
and just as it is well known in the case of other plants that they die
when the apices of their roots are too strongly cooled, so may a sudden
cold rain following a long warm winter px>9duoe a similar condition
of the potato plant It is only after decay has commenced that
Fungi and insects attack the plant.
" Ldebig attributed the Potato disease to diminished or suppressed
transpiration, depending upon the hygrometric state of the atmo-
sphere. He refers to Hale's accurate researches in regard to the Hop
blight, in which the disease is traced to the want of correspondence
between absorption and transpiration, and a consequent stagnation
and decomposition of the juices. The same thing, he thinks, takes
place in the potato in consequence of cold and an atmosphere loaded
with moisture ; and he shows that in 1845 and 1846, when the disease
overran Europe, damp^ cold, and rainy weather followed heat and
drought just at the period of the most luxuriant growth of the
potato. The vessels and ceUs became charged with fluids ; and, owing to
the checked transpiration, there was stagnation of the sap and death.
** Fungi and putrefaction are, according to him, the consequences
of the death of the pl&nt. Klotzsch proposes to check the Potato
disease by pinching off the extreme points of the branches and twigs
to the extent of half an inch downwards when the plants have
attained the height of six or nine inches above the soil, and to repeat
this on every btmnch or twig on the tenth or the eleventh week. This
check to the stem and branches, he thinks, will direct the nutrient
matters in the direction of the increase and multiplication of subter-
ranean as well as -aerial branches. This leads to increased development
of tuber, and strengthens the leaves and stalks. Tombelle Lomba, of
Namur, says that he has saved potatoes from disease bv cutting off
the stems after flowering with a very sharp sickle, and then covering
the ground with earth to the depth of not less than an inch and a
hall The top dressing thus applied was not disturbed till the
potatoes were ripe. The haulm was removed after being cut. It is
said that the tubers acquired a good sice and were of excellent
quality. If these facts are true^ it would appear that while leaves are
necessary to the development of tubers tne latter on acquiring a
certain sise can continue their growth by their own proper and
unassisted vitality. The general conclusions to be drawn from all
that has been said relative to the Potato disease are, that changes are
induced in the cells and vessels of the potato by certain obscure
meteorological and epidemic causes ; that an alteration takes place in
the cellulMe and in we contents of the cells, which speedily leads to
decay; that parasitic Fungi find a nidus in the decaying organic
matter, so as to accelerate and give a character to the disMse ; and
that, as yet^ no remedy has been devised."
For an account of the Fungi supposed to produce Diy-Bot in
timber see the article Dbt-Rot.
In many parts of the world the Fungi afford a supply of food to
the inhabitants, although not more than half a dooen species are to
be found in tiie markets of London, and only the common Mushroom,
Truffle, and Morel are eaten in Paris; in Italy aqd other parts of
Europe a large number of species are consumed. [AaABicua.J
Dr. Badham, in his work on the ' Esculent Funguses of ^agland,'
gives descriptions and drawings of the following species of British
yungi as those which may be used as food : —
AgaricuB acrit vitnor, A, alukiceuSf A. alrc^meniariut, A, eamputrit,
A. caitoneut, A, eaudicinu$, A, wmatuSf A, ddiciotui. A, etneticut,
A, exquititutt A, futipetf A, heterophyUut, A, melleut. A, nebularii,
A, oredUi, A, oreadet, A, otireatui, A.penonaiut, A. pipmUui, A. pro-
cenu, A, prunmlus, A, ruber. A, rubeteeni, A. tangwineui, A, vaginatutf
A, violaUut, A, virucena, A, virgineua. A, ulmariuB, A, Ccuarea,
Bolelug edulit, B. Ituridua, B, seabcr, Caniharailua cibariua, Clavaria
ooraUoidei, Fi$(nlina AspoKco, HdvtUa criapa, H, 2acimof a, Hydnum
repandum, Lgcoperdon BoviHa, L. plumbeum, MorduUa semilibera,
Peeim acetabula, PUypwrut corylinui, P. frondonu, P. tuJbenuter,
Verpa digitaiiformii.
Too great caution however cannot be employed in distinguishing
the edible from the poisonous species. In the markets of Rome an
inspector of Funguses is appointed, whose duty it is to examine all
Fungi exposed for sale, and none are allowed to be sold but with his
express sanction. But it would appear, from a case quoted in lindley's
' Vegetable Kingdom,' that Fungi which are usually inocuous may,
under certain circumstances, become poisonous. The fungus con-
sumed in this instance by a fiumily in Cambridgeshire was the
Agaricut penonatui, a species sold in Covent (harden under the name
of Blewitts, and wMch all writers agree in regarding as perfectly free
from danger.
The poisonous principles produced in the Fungi have sometimes
been employed in medicine, an instance of which is given above in
the Ergot The action of a species of Bovitta has been found similar
to that of chloroform. [Boyibta.] The AtnanUa miMcarta possesses
an intoxicating property, and is employed by northern nations as an
inebriant The following is the account of Langsdorf, as given by
Dr. Greville :—
" This variety of Amanita mmoaria is used by the inhabitants «f
the north-eastern parts of Asia in the same manner as wine, brandy,
arrack, opium, &o., is by other nations. Such Fungi are found most
plentiAilly about Wischna, Kamtchatka, and Willowa Dereoona, and
are very abundant in some seasons and scsroe in others. They
are collected in the hottest months, and hung up by a string to dry in
908
FUKGL
]?TJNat.
Mi
(he air; 0ome dry of themaelyeB on the gromid« and are said to be
far more narcotic tiian thoie artifidally preaenred. Small deep-
coloured spedmenB thickly covered with warts are also said to be
more powerful than' those of a lai^ger size and paler colour. The
usual mode of taking the fongus is to roll it up like a bolus and
swallow it without diewing, which the Kamtehatkadales say would
disorder the stomach. It is sometimes eaten fresh in soups and
sauces, and then loses much of its intoxicating property. When
steeped in the juice of the berries of Vaeeinum Hiffinoiuin its effects
are those of a strong wine. One laige or two small Fungi are a
common dose to produce a pleasant intoxication for a whole day,
particularly if water be drunk after it, which augments the narcotic
principle. The desired effect comes on from one to two hours after
taking Uie fungus. Giddiness and drunkenness result in the same
manner as from wine or spirits : cheerful emotions of the mind are
first produced, the countenance becomes flushed, involuntary words
and actions follow, and sometimes at last an entire loss of conscious-
ness. It renders some remarkably active, and proves highly stimu-
lating to muscular exertion. By too laige a dose violent spasmodic
effects are produced. So very exciting to the nervous system in many
individuals is this fungus that the effects are often veiy ludioi'ous.
If a person under its influence wishes to step over a straw or a small
stick, he takes a stride or a jump sufficient to dear the trunk of a tree.
A talkative person cannot keep silence or secrets, and one fond of
music is perpetually singing. The most singular effect of the
Amanita is the influence it possesses over the urine. It is said that
from time immemorial the inhabitants have known that the fungus
imparts an intoxicating quality to that secretion, which continues for
a considerable time after taking itb For instance, a man moderately
intoxicated to-day will by the next morning have tlept himself sober,
but (as is the custom) by taking a tea-pup of his urine he will be more
powerfully intoxicated than he was the preceding day. It is there-
fore not uncommon for confinned drunkards to preserve their urine
as a precious liquor against a scarcity of the fungus. The intoxi-
cating property of the urine is capable of being propagated, for every
one who partaxes of it has his urine similarly effected. Thus, with a
vexy few Amanita a party of drunkards mav keep up their debauch
for a week. Dr. Langsdorf mentions that by means of the second
person taking the urine of the firsts the third of the second, and so
on, the intoxication may be propagated through five individuda."
Fungi are often phosphorescent The light given out bv species of
JRhiwmorpha [Rhziohobpha] in the coal-mines of Dresden is described
as giving them the appearance of an enchanted castle. Agarieut
Oardueri, which grows on a sort of palm called Britada in Brazil, is
highly luminous. The same phenomenoti has been observed in A,
oleariui in the south of Europe, and in two species of Fungi at Swan
River. Dr. Hooker describes a luminous ituigus as growing upon
decaying wood in the forests of the Sikkim Himalaya.
It is generally stated that Fungi diflbr from the rest of the vege-
table kingdom, in the absorption of oxygen and the disoigagement of
carbonic add gas. In experiments which have been peiformed, this
has been the result ; but it is well known that the tistaes of Fungi
are easily decomposable, and it is more probable that tiie absorption
of oxygen and the giving out of carbonic add gas is the result of
decay, rather than of the true growth of the plant The following
substances were found by Payen in his analysis of Fungi : — 1. Water ;
2. Cellulose; 8. Three Nitrogenised Substances; 4. Fatty Matters;
6. Sugar ; 6. Volatile Matter ; 7. Sulphur ; 8. Salts, containing Silex
and Potadi. These substances are analogous to the ordinary products
of the decomposition of water, ammonia, and carbonic add by deoxi-
dation, and must dther be fonned by that process in the fungus
itself or taken directly up firom the substances on which they grow,
by absorption.
A cunous fact connected with the devdopment of Fungi is the
occurrence of vegetable cells, referred to this order, in liquids under-
going fermentation. During the oonverdon of malt into beer, plant-
cells are constantly observed to be present, and these have been
described as a plant, under the name of Saeeharemyeet CereviticB.
During the preparation of flax, as now carried on at Belfast, Professor
Allman has obMrved present cells resembling those of Saceharomyca,
Whether these are true plant^iells or not, is stUl a question ; and it is
still more a question as to whether they have anything to do with the
changes going on in the solutions in whidi they occur. This point is
alluded to in the artide EnTorBTTA. They are probably a result^
and not the cause, of fermentatioiL These cells have not escaped
the observation of Schldden, and the following is his account of
them: —
"In the last place, I must mention a highly interestmg analogy,
which, when more accurately examined, may perhaps one Say lead to
the most satisfactory explanation of the process of cell-formation — I
mean vinous fermentation. We have here a fluid in which sugar and
dextrin, and a nitrogenous matter, as a cytoblast, are present At a
certain temperature, whioh is perhaps necessary to the chemical
activity of the mucu% there originates, without, as it appears, the
influence of a living plenty a process of cell-formation ^the origin of
the soHsdled fermentation-fungus), and it appears that it is only the
vegetation of these cells which produces the peculiar changes that
occur in the fluid. Whether this organism is really a fungus, is a
matter of indiffarence ; but whether it alone, through tlie activity of
its vital processes, determines the process of fermentation, deserves to
be accurately determined.
" I will here add my own observations on these fennentaiion-celk
I bruised some currants with sugar, and, having pressed the juioe
through a doth, diluted it with water and filtered through folded
paper. The fluid waa bright red, quite dear and transparent, and,
under the microscope, showed no trace of granules, hut presented a
number of little drops of a pure dear oiL At the end of twenty-four
hours the whole fluid was opalescent, and presented, under the micro-
scope, a number of granules susi)ended in it On the second day
these granules had greatly increaaedi and there appeared amongst
them perfectly-formed ferment-cells. There idso appeared, now uid
then, veddes of carbonic add gas. On the fourth daj fermentat»m
was very active. At the bottom of the vessel and on the surface d
the fluid, veast had formed ; but these yeasts consisted of single ceQi,
or several attached one to another. In the solitary oeUs oonld be
observed the way in which one cell was formed from another. The
ferment-oells do not in this state permit of a distinction between tbe
contents and the membrane of the oelL In the midst of the ceB
there is a transparent spot ; but whether hollow, or a solid nuclena,
I could not decide. The remaining parts appeared entirely homoge-
neous, yellowish like a nitrogenous substance, sometimes mixed wiili
small solitary granules. In a nmilar way, a solution of sugar witk
dder^flowers was examined, and gave dnular results. Other results
were obtained in the following way : — Pure white protein (albusuii)
firom the white of an egg, was dried, and rubbed down with sugar,
and left to ferment : the fluid at first was perfectly dear. Ote tbe
third day, the smsll portions of protein, whidi at the eommenee-
ment exhibited a sharply angular aspect, assumed partly a grandsr
aspect^ and some a more or less rounded form. These globdes
showed an active molecular movement^ and some appeared strong
together. On the fourth day there was seen between these granules
round or dongated odls, which were either solitary, or arranged
together in a line with a tendency to the formation of branched fibna
These cdls were not xfiore than one-third <tf the diameter of ordinaiy
ferment-cdls. An active fermentation went on, and gas-bubbles wen
given out from the protdn-granules and the linear oeUai IVoper
ferment-cdls did not make their appearance. Fluid albumen, mixed
with sugar, snd filtered, became thid^ened on the second day, and
contained little granules of albumen (coagulated?). The fiutber
phenomena were aimilar to those exhibited by the preceding, except
that there were developed a few true ferment-cdls. Protein moistened
with water displayed the same appearances as when mixed with sugar
and water; ultimately putrefaction came on, and the devdopment of
It^ummOf but the vegetable formation preoeded. There appean to
be two vefy different types of ferment-cdls, according as tna floid
contains organic adds and essential oils or not From the phenomena
exhibited by the ferment-oells, one might be inclined to regard them
as similar to animal-cells, which are formed through a cavity in the
cytoblast) and which afford indicationa of the nudedi in their Uj^est
development But this snalogy is not tenable, and ike above obeerra-
tions must be regarded as imperfect If we take fuUy-devdoped
ferment-cdls, and treat them with ether, alcohol, or caostio alkalies,
there will be found in the fluid a number of globular delicate cells,
with thin but deariy distinguishable walls, which contain a dear fluid,
with here and there very small granules, which, alone or in groups,
are attached to the inner surfsoe of the oell-wdl, and (aUnost?)
always a \ar^ round flat body ^a cytoblast f )."
The dassiflcation of Fungi nas occupied the attention of many
observers. That of Fries is the foundation of most of the systems
adopted by modem writers.
Fan in the flrst place divides the ^ole order into four Cohorts,
distinguished by the following characten : —
Cohort I. Htmzkomtobtbb. A Hymenium present; that is, the
AingOB opened out into a fructifying membrane, in which the
- spores (seeds) are placed, usually in the indde of asd (transparent
simple cases). The texture wholly fllamentoua.
Cohort II. Ptbkkoictoites. A Perithedum present; that is, tbe
fungus closed up ; then perforated by a hole or irreguhu: laceration,
and inclosing a distinct kemd holding asd. Textura obscurely
oellular ; that of the stroma (reoeptade) somewhat filamentoua
Cohort IIL Gastbboktokteb. A Peridium present; that is, tbe
fungus at first dosed up, and containing loose spores having no
asd. The texture oellular.
Cohort lY. CoKioirroBTBBi Spwes naked ; that is, the fungus in its
elementary state, eventually having the spores quite naked,
although they may have been covered at first The texture
between filamentous and cellular; and the thallus often apparent^
absent
He then subdivides these cohorts each into four Orders^ as followi :-
Cohort I. — ^Htmbnoktoitxl
Order 1. PiUtUi, The Hymenium on the under dde^ and having asd
(Fig, I, Agarieut^
Order 2 ShdlaeeL llis HymcDium on the upper dd& snd having
asd. [Fig.%Morchetta.)
tog fUHQt
Order 3. Clavati. Tha HjiUMiiain on boUt dd«^ Hid having aad.
(Fif. 8. (Savaria.)
Order 4. IWmcUi'nfc Amorphoui. Th« HjiiMtiiiim oonfoimdsd iritb
th« reeepUcla. Aad noDS. MMnbtwraut or gsUtinoiu, with &
filunmloiu texture {Figi. 4, G, awrynyMi.)
I. J^orinu sdmi, rtdDced in itie ; 1, tfertMla iievltnia, ndnted in i
S, Ctmeria tintrtr, reduced In iln ; 4, DocryiifiM iliHstiu, fnmlni In ir
Cohort IL — PiHiNOMioms.
Ordarl. Spltariacei. Tbe kemal Blled with uci, and daliqnaaoant
(ffja 8, 7, CucurbHaria.)
Orders. Fhaeidxaeti. The kernel (Ulad with aaoi, and dry. (Figt.S.O,
Order S. Ofti^orei. Tbe kemal filled with ukad Bpor»^>M«t, and
diaintegimtJiiB. {F'B- ^ ^, ^liicraneina.)
Order 4. Xglomacri. The kernel SUed with naked apoie-casee, and
dry. {«>, 11, 12, Aainolkyriim.)
i
CnMH
3, Jiliiutkrriiim fnniMit, maiuUed.
Cohort IIL— OunBOVTORM.
Order 1. Angiotpulra, Spore-caaee intmereed in a re<»ptaole diitinst
from the peridiuni.
Order 2. Triticiptrmi. Sporo^MM naked, among fllameDta diatinct
from the peridiim. (Figt. 17, IB, Scterodernui ; figt. 13, 14,
Order 8, TVieioiermaeti. Spore-caaee naked, covered by filamenta
conititntinR a peridintn. (Pxgi. IG, 10, Spumana.)
OuteroniTeeUhia Fvnfi,
iStoi\t,Arcpiapiailea,mmfiiata; IS, lA, Sfumaria murilafo, mairnilled;
1}, 1>, Sdtroitfiiia Crpa, maftilfied ; It, 3D, Clutliiimiui tlatum, nuiniil'rd.
Cohort IV. — CoSIOMTCETES.
Order 1. Tuhereutarini. Spore-caaea plunjed in an entangled recep-
tacle, upon a free receptacle. {Figi. 21, 22, Fuiarivm.)
Order i. MiKorini. Spore-caaea upon a filatceatoua ri^ceptacle, at
fint inclosad in a little peridium. (f i>. 26, 26, Stilbam.)
Order 3. Maadinti. Spore-cuaee at Grat concealed by Glamenta. (J^jr*-
28, 24, AiperfiUtii.)
Order 4. Hgpodermi. Spore-caaea aprioging from under the cuticle of
treea. Figi. 23, 29, EnapOTium.)
CcBlaiDjcelDiu W\utgi.
11, 33, fWarfmi IrtmttMdtM, mafnlfled; 3A, a fttrm ot gnu
Ainrgitlia jMlallatu; 34, the fangQi lUelf, magnlllcd ; ii,
tatitm, fTDidnr CD a piece of wood ; 30, a hlfhlf mo^LllKl tt
tet, lUll Dore Bugalllad.
> given in Lindley'a
AgarieacB
Spores generally qnartemate, on diatitiatSporo- \ Oasteremjictta, or
phorea. Hymamum indoaed in a Peridium. ■/ Lgeoptrdacea.
Spwreeingle often w^itato, on more or l«ia 1 ^^..^^ ^
iliatmct Sporophorea. Flooci of the fruit obfolete, V l/rcdtnacea.
or mare fNKtunclea. J
Bporei naked, oflai aepUte. Thallua Boecoae.}^^*^^^ "'
907
yUNGIA.
GALANGA.
be B Bpeci«B of Berberit, of which geam all the epeciei have jeUow
wood.
Old FmtiOy the 'Bois Jatme ' of the French, is aa the oontnxy the
produce of a laige troe^ Marua iinetona, the Djer's Molbenyy of the
natural family of Urtieaceas, a native of Tropical America and the
West India Uanda The tree attains a height of 60 feet; the wood
is yellow>ooloured| hard, and strong, but eadly splintered, and is
imported in the form of large logs or blocks. The yellow colour
which it affords with an aluminous base, though durable, is not very
blight. M. Chaptal discovered that glue, by precipitating its tannin,
eniu>led its decoctions to die yellow almost as bright as those of
weld and quereitron bark. The Fustic from Cuba is preferred, and
fetches the highest price, varying from 82. to 9L lOr., wnile that from
Jamaica or Columbia varies from 5^ 10<. to 02. lOs. per ton. The
tree is figured by Sloane, and noticed by Marcgreve and Pisow Browne
describes it as a native of Jamaica, and deserving the attention of
planters, as it is only propagated by birds, who are fond of its sweet
roundish fruit
The several countries from which Fustic was imported, and the
respective quantities received from each, were in 1886^
Tons.
Italj and the Italian Islands 4
Ionian Islands 79
Morea and Greek Islands .... 18
British Korth American colonies lOS
British West Indies 2058
United States of America . . . 226
Mexico 172
Columbia 1013
Brazil 856
or
or
Sporidia contained (generally eight together)! ii«comyc«fc«,
in Asd. J HdvtUaouK,
Spores surrounded by a vesicular veil or Sporan- 1 Phywm,ycete»f
gium. ThalluB floccoae. j AfueoraoeCB.
(Fries, Syttema Mycologicwn ; Greville, Oryptoffamie Flora ; Neua
Syttem der Pike; Corda, Icona; Endlicher, Oenera Plantarwn;
Hooker, Britith Flora ; Sowerby, Fungi ; BuUiard, Figwrt» of Fu$igi ;
Lindley, Vegetable Kingdom ; Berkeley, Papert in Annal$ of Natural
Hittory.)
FUNGIA. [Madrephyllkka.]
FURNARIUS. rCKBTHIADAj
FURZE. [Ulbl]
FUSTIC. This name appears to be derived from Fustet, the
French name of a yellow dye-wood, the produce of Venetian sumach.
A wood similar in colour and uses, but larger in size, having been
subsequently imported from the New World, had the same name
applied to it with the addition of Old, while the other, being smaller,
is called Young Fustic ; but these, so far from being the produce of
the same tree at different ages, do not even belong to the same genus.
Young Fustic, or as it is sometimes called Zante Fustic, is the
produce of Rhui CoHwrn (AiMcardiaeofB), a native of Italy, the south
of France, and of Greece ; much of it is exported from Patras in the
Morea; and it also extends into Asia. It \b supposed to be the
Cotinut ot Pliny, being stlU called Scotino near Yalcimara, in the
Apennines, where it is cultivated on account of its uses in tanning.
The root and the wood of this shrub are both imported, deprived of
their bark, and employed for dyeing a yellow colour approaching to
oranp^, upon wool or cottons, prepared either with alum or the nitro-
munate of tin with the addition of tartar. The colour is a beautiful
bright yellow, and permanent when proper mordants are employed.
Only small quantities of this kind of Fustic are imported.
Dr. Sibthorp was of opinion that Bhamnw infeaoriat or R oleoide$t
of which the berries are called French and Persian Berries, yielded
the Fustic of commerce, and informs us that its yellow wood is
called b^ the Greeks ' chrysoxylon.' He also thought that it was
the Lycium of Dioscorides, but this has been shown by Dr. Boyle to
Total
4917
In 1850 the quantity imported into Liverpool was 9808 ions, of
this 1771 tods were re-exported.
(Simmonda Tke Ckmmercial ProdikCte <tf tht VegetaibU KingdowL)
FUSUa [SlFHOROSTOM^TA.]
G
GAD-FLY. [BoTs; (Estbida]
GADID^, a family of Fishes, genendly arranged as the flnt of
the sub-brachiate division of the MalaeopterygO. Tins family
embraces the whole of the species of the TJnny^^ii genus Oadut.
They are easily known by the position of the ventral fins under the
throaty and the pointed character of these fina The body is rather
long, a little compressed, and covered with small soft scales. The
head is well-proportioned and naked. All their fins are soft The
jaws and front of the vomer have unequal pointed teeth of middle
or small size, and dispoaed in several rows like a card or rasp. The
gill-coven are laxge, and they have seven raya Most of the spedes
have the dorsal fin contained in two or Uuve bundles ; they have
also fins behind the vent, and a distinct caudal fin. The stomach is
large, and the intestine long. The air-bladder is laige and strongs and
in some cases notched on the maxgins.
The greater number of the species of Oadida live in the cold or
temperate seas, and furnish the greater portion of the fi/di obtained
in the fisheries of Europe and America. The flesh of most of the
species is white, easily separable into flakes, is agreeable to the taste,
and easy of digestion. They are probably more useful to man than
any other family of fiahea Their reproductive powen are very
great, and the numbers in which they exist in some parts of the ocean
is perfectly incalculable.
A detailed account of these fish is given under their generic namea
The following are the British species of this genu? as given m the
' British Museum Catalogue ' : —
I. Morrhwu, [Mobbhua.]
1. Morrhua Callariaa, Common Cod.
2. M, jEgkfinua^ Haddock.
8. M, lutcOf Bib and I'out
4. M. minuta, t^oor.
II. Merlangui, [Meblahous.]
1. Merlangue vulgarit, Whiting.
2. M. albutf Couch'B Whiting.
8. M, carbonarim, Coal-Fish.
4. M. Pollaehiui, Pollack.
III. Merluciut, [Meblucius.]
1. Mtrlueiue vulgaris, Common Hake.
IV. Lota. [Lota.]
1. Lota molva, Ling.
2. L, vulgaris, Burbolt*
V. Motdla, [MoTELLA.]
1. Motella tricirrata, Three-Bearded Rock-Ling.
2. M. eimbriOf Four-Bearded Rock-Ling.
3. M, fMutela, Five-Bearded Rock-Ling.
4. M, argenteola, Silvery Gade.
VI. Brosmius. [BBOSMniB.]
1. Brosmius Brosme, Torak.
VII. Pkycis, [Phtcib.]
1. Phyeis bifwrcus. Forked Hake.
VIII. Raniceps, [Raniosfs.]
1. Baniceps fascus, Tiifurcated Hake.
The genus Brotula is found in the West Indian Seas, and
doleprus in the Mediterranean and Atlantic Seaa [Bbotula ; Lefx-
DOLXPBUa]
GADOLINITE, a Mineral, containing Tttrium. [Titbiom.]
GADWALL. [Daoxa.]
GA'GEA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order X«/iacea^
and the tribe Asphoddecs. It has a perianth of six patent leaves,
the stamen adhering to the base of the perianth ; the anthen erect^
attached by their basea The flowen of the species are coiymboae
or umbellate.
O, lutea (the OnUihogalum luteum of many botanists) has the
radical leaves usually soUtaiy, linear-lanceolate, flat ; the bncts two,
opposite; the peduncles umbellate, simple, glabrous; the segments
<^ the perianth oblong, obtuse ; the bulb ovate, solitary. The stem
of this plant is about 6 inches high, and diorter than the leavea
Its flowen are yellow. It is a native of England and Scotland in
woods, but is a rare plantw It is a native of Europe, and is found on
the Alps in Switserland. Koch describes 10 species of thii genus as
natives of Germany and Swit&rland.
(Babington, Manual of British Botany; Koch, Flora Oermamea.)
GAHNITE, a Mineral, also called Automolite, It is a variety of
Spind, containing 84*8 per cent of oxide of zinc. It has a dark
green or black colour. Its hardness is 7'5 to 8, and specific gravity
4'26. It is infusible alone, and nearly so with borax. With soda it
forms at first a dark scoria, and when fused sgain with more soda, a
ring of oxide of sine on the charooal.
GALAGO. [Lxmubida]
GALANGA, or GALANGAL, is usually supposed to have been
introduced by the Arabs, .but it was previously mentioned by JStiua
The Arabs cidl it Kholingan, which appean to be derived from the
Hindoo Koolinjaui or Sanscrit Koolunjuna^ indicating the oountiy
obtuoed Uuir iDfonnstioD rapecting ita uwb. The pUnt
yieldsd thin root iru long unkaowo, and It «u mippoaBil to be um
ot a Pepper, of *ii Iria, of A eonu Calamtu, or to b« the Aeonu of ths
ancieala. Kcmj^eria Oaianga mi >o okUad from its kromatio looti
beiDg luppOHid U> be the true QaiaingiU. The tab«n of Oi/ptnu
Icmgui were ■ometlmee nbetituted, and oalled Engliili GalangaL Two
kinds, the laige lud the amaU galangal, are deacrib«d ; thsM are
usoally conaideied to be derived from Uie aame plant at diSiBMDt
■tagee of ita growth, but Dr. Ainalie, in hit ' Materia Indiea,' itiaiitt
upon the greater value of-the Isuor, M thia if wBrmar and mora
fragnnlv ud therefore h^Hlj prised in India. It is ■ natiira of China,
and the plant produciiiB it ia Duknowit. Dr. Ainalie doea cot proTB
that It ia the QaUmga minor of Europe.
The Qnater OalangBl hu long been known to be the prodaee of a
Seitamiueoiu plant, the Qidanga major of RumpMua (' Herb, Amb.'
6. t. 63), which ii the A Ipinia Gaianga of Wildenow, and a native of
China and the Hainan Archipelago. It ia full; deacribed by Dr.
Roxburgh, in biR ' Flora Indioa,' ToL L p. 2S, ed. Walt. The rooti,
perennial and taberoue, like thoee of the ginger, were aioeriained bj
Sir Joaaph Banks and Dr. Comb to be identieal with the Galaiiga
mi^or of the ahopi. Thin ia oylindrical, of^n forked, thick aa the
thumb, reddiab-brown attamal^, marked with whitiah drcular ringa,
intenall; lighter ooloured, of an agreeable arom&tic emell, and a hot
apio; taate, like a mixture of pepper and ginger, with lome bit-
ternoB. The item la perennial, or at leaat more durable than thoaa
of herbaceous planta. When in flower, about S or T feat in length;
lie lower half inieited b; lenfleaa Bheatha. The leavea aro two-ranked,
lanceolar, from 12 to S4 inchea long, and from i to S mchei braad.
Panicle terminal, crowned with numeroua branohea, each supporting
from two to five pale greeniah-wliite and aamewhat fragrant flowera
in April and ttaj in C^cntta, where the aeeda ripen, though rarely,
in November,
Several ipeciea of this genus have roota with aomewhit similar
Sopertiea, Thua Afptnia tUba and A. ChineniU on much used by the
alajs and ChinCM ; the former has hence been called Galaaga alba
of KtBuig ; and the latter baa an aromatic toot with an acrid burning
flavour. The fngrant root of JlpintanuJani is sometimes brought
to England, according to Dr. Roxburgh, for Oalanga major. Ita
leaves, when bmiaed, have a strong smell of cardanioinB, and the
CarJnmoDHiM plant ia frequently placed in this genus, but has been
described nnder Elktiabu.
QALANTHDS, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
AmarsUidacta, couautiug of the Snowdrop and another species. The
former plant is a native of aubalpine woods in various parts of Europe;
the second, which is the O. plicattit of botanists, inbabita the Asiatio
provinces of the Russian and Turkish empires.
Qidanthut is thus characterised : — Perianth S-parted, S outer aeg.
ments spreading, S inner shorter, erect, emarginato. Stamens equM,
subulate.
Q. ntvoiir, the Snowdrop, haa white drooping Bowen with the inner
segments greeoiab. The scape l-Sowered, the leaves 3, keeled,
broadly liimr, glaocoul. It grows in thickets, and blossonu In
February and Haroh.
QALATHEA. raALXTHWDJL]
aALATHEID,a!, a group of Crustaceana corresponding with the
genua Qolatlua of Pabricius, and establishing, in the opinion of M.
Hilne-Edwards, a paasage between the Anomiirons and Uacrurous
Crnstaceana, being more particularly approiimated to the PorttUana,
[PoBCILLUlSi] Dr. Leach divided the genus established by Fabri-
cius into four ; namely, the tnie Qalathta, Muaidea, Orimatbta, and
^gUa. H. Uilne-Edwordi thinks that three of these genera should
be preserved, but agrees with H. Deamareat in coming to the con-
cluaioa that the genus M^tnUta hoa not satBoient ohaiacteristics to
admit of its adoption in a natural olaaiification. With regard to
jSgUa, H. Hilne-Edwarda considers it as approximating more to the
PoruUdius than to the Oalatlua, and aa occupying a plaoe in the
The (To^Andz, then, aocording to the reviaion of M. Hilne'Edworda,
are Uiua distinguished : — Carapace depreeaed and wide, but still
longer than ita width, terminating anteriorly by a roatrum
leas projecting, which oovere the place of the ocular pedum ,
presenta on ita upper surface many furrows or wrinkles, among which
Okie deeper than the reet defioea the giosterior pert of the stomaohic
regioEL AntemuB inserted on the tame tranaveraal line; internal
anteimB but little elongated, placed under the ocular peduniJes, and
terminated by two small, multiarticulate, very short fllamenta ;
external antennse with no trace of palpiform appendagea at their bate,
but with a cylindrical peduncle and a long and slender terminal flla-
Eitemol jaw-feet (potes-mtcboirea) always pe^orm, but
distinct. Anterior feet Urge, and terminated by a well-formed claw ',
those of the three following pairs of limbt rather atont, and terminated
by a conical tusua ; fifth pair very slender, and folded above the
others in the branchial cavity ; these last do not asaiit the locomotion,
and ate terminated by a rodimentarr hand. Abdomen nearly
wide as the thorax, and longer, vaulted above ind armed on each li
OALATHEID,^ 910
with a row of four or five large teeth formed by the lateral angle of
the superior aroh of the different rings composing it, and tenninatsd,
as in the greater part of the Uaoruroua Crustaoeana, with a large
fan^haped tamelliform fin. The number of abdominal fnlse feet
variee ; in the mole there are five pairs, the first two of which are
slender and elongated, and the last throe are terminated by an oval
lomirM ciliated on the edge ; in the female, the first abdominal ring
without appendage*, but the four fallowing tegmenta have each a
pair of ftlsa feet ocmpoaed of three joints placed end to end. and
fringed with hurs for the attachment of ths eggs.
flhfatton. — The whole surface of the oarapaoe covered with trans-
veiaa fiirrowB fringed with sn:iall brush-like hairs. Hepatic regions,
in general, wall diatinguished from the branchial, and occupyiog with
the stomachic regionnearly half of theBpaceofthacarapaoe. Rostrum
projecting and spiny; ayes large and directed downwards; no trace of
an orbit A spine above the insertion of the external anteonn, and
two others on the anterior part of the stomachic region. Ba^tai;
joint of the internal antenme cylindrical and armed at its anterior
extremity with many strong spines ; the two following joints slender
and nearly as long as ths first Fedunole of the external ODtenue
compoaad of three small cylindrical joints, the last of which is much
smaller than the others. Bitanud jaw-ftel moderate, the two last
joints neither foliaoeoua nor even enlarged. Anterior feet long and
deprsaeed. (Uilne-EIdwaTdi.}
a Third joint of the external jaw-feet shorter than the second.
O. ttrigna (6. ipmigtra. Leach ; Cancer ttrigam*, Linn,). It hat
the rostrum triangular and armed with seven strong projecting spilli-
form teeth. Lateral edges of the carapace with strong spinilorm
teeth. Three long tpines at the anterior extremity ot the fint joint
of the external antennie ; a great spine under the auditory tubercle,
two smaller ones on the Qist joint of the external antenme, and one
on their eecoud joints External jaW'feet short, hardly overpassing
the rostrum when they are extended, their third joint much shorter
than the aecond, and armed beneath with two strong spines. Anterior
feet long, depressed, and very spiny ; the hand very large, edged
with spines and ornamented above with small piltferoua furrows
resembling imbricated scales; claws abort, large, and with a spoon-
shaped termination. Feet of the second and third pair of the same
length. Abdomen furrowed transversely, but without a spine; the
seventh segment a httle widened and rather narrower behind than
before. Colour reddish, with some blue lines on the carapace. Length
about five inchea. It ia found in ths Mediterranean, and is not
uncommon on the coasts of Qreat Britain. Hr, Couch says it It
common on the whole of the south coast of ComwalL It fraqumta
poolt between tdde-maHu where there are loot d itonet and tond.
911
GALAXAURA.
QALEOPITHECUS.
nt
fi. Third joint of the aztemal jaw-feet much longer than the
' second.'
G. sqwimifercL It is found on the coftsts of England and Franoe.
••
Spedes whose external jaw-feet have no dentilation on the internal
edge of their second joint.
O. Mfmodcn. It inhabits the coasts of Chili
O. nexa, a new species described by Dr. Embleton, is found on the
English and Irish coasts.
Orimothefi. — Differing but little from Oalathea, and hardly sufficiently
distinct for separation. General form of both essentially the same,
but the basilary joint of their internal antennas is claviform and
hardly dentated at its extremity, and the external jaw-feet are very
long, and have their three last joints enlaiged and foliaoeoua. (Milne-
Edwards).
M. Milne-Edwards observes that the crustacean figured by M.
Gu^rin under the name of Grimoth^ Sodale (' Voyage of La Coquille : '
Crost., pL 8, fig. 1) differs from 0. ffregaria in the form of the caudal
fin, the middle lamina of which is less than the lateral onesL M.
Edwards proposes therefore to name it QrivMthea Duperreii, in honour
of the navigator whose voyage made the species known.
GALAXAURA. [Pseudozoabia.]
GALBA. rELATERIDiE.1
GA'LBANUM. Though the drug known by this name is one of
those which have been the longest known, the plant which yields it
still remains undetermined, though it is stated by old writers to be a
native of Syria^ The Greek name ChiUbane {xdKfidni) is evidently
the same as the Hebrew Chelbenah, by which the same substance is
supposed to be alluded to in the book of Exodus. Arabian authors
describe it under the name Barzud. The Persians call it Birzud, and
give Birceja as its Hindoo synonym. That the same substance is
intended, is evident from Khulyan and Metonyon, as stated by Dr.
"Royle {' lUustr. Himal. Bot.,' p. 23), being given as its Greek syno-
nyms, which are evident corruptions of Chalbane and Metopion, the
names of this substance in Dioscorides. The plant yielding this sub-
stance is called Elinneh and Nafeel by Arabian and Persian authors,
by whom it is described as being jointed, thorny, and fragrant. Under
the first name it is noticed in the original of Avicenna, but omitted in
the Latin translation. D'Herbelot ('BibL Orient') however states,
that the plant yielding Galbanum is called Ghiarkust in Persta.
7hese names are interesting only as showing that both the plant and
gum-resin appear to have been familiarly known to both Arabians
and Persians, and that therefore the former is probably a native of
these countries, though usually stated to be only a native of SyriiL
But if so, it could hiudlv have escaped the notice of the numerous
travellers who have visited that county.
One plant, often described as yielding this long-known gum-reain,is
Bubcn Oalhanvm, a native of the Cape of Good Hope^ which Hermann
describes as yielding spontaneously, by incision, a gummy, resinous
juice, similar to Galbanum ; but Mr. Don has observed that this plant
possesses neither the smell nor the taste of Galbanum, but in these
particulars agrees better with fennel ; and its fruit has no resemblance
whatever to that found in the gum. The fruit, commonly called seed,
was early ascertained by Lobel to be that of an Umbelliferoua Plant,
broad and foliaceous, which he picked out of Oalbanum, and, having
sowed, obtained a plant, which he has figured under the name of
Ferula galbanifera. This has been lost or become confounded with
other species ; but it is probable that it was the plant yielding
Gklbanum, as Mr. Don has recently obtained fruit in like manner,
and something similar, which he has determined to be allied to the
genus SUer, but differing in the abeence of dorsal resiniferous canals,
and the commissure being fuinished with only two. The carpels
are about 9 lines in length and 4 lines broad, flat internally and
somewhat convex externally. As the plant is still unknown, it is
well worthy the investigation of travellers in the East, who mi^ht
otherwise suppose, from the name, assigned from the seed, havmg
been adopted in the ' London Pharmaoopoeiay' that the plant was as
well known as its product
Three sorts of Galbanum are distinguished : — 1. Galbanum in grains
or tears; 2. Galbanum in masses; and 8. Persian GalbanunL The
two former come from Africa, especially iEUiiopia ; the third sort
from Persia. Galbanum in tears is most likely the spontaneous
exudation from the plant ; and that in masses, obtained by incisions.
The first sort occurs in irregular generally oblong grains, mostly
distinct, but sometimes agglutinate together, about the size of a
lentil or small pea, of a colour verging from whitish into yellowish-
brown, more or less diaphanous, opaque, or shining with a resinous
lustre. The odour is strongly balsamic, and disagreeable. The taste
is resinous, sharp, bitter, and disagreeable. Specific gravity, 1'212.
It is partiallyisoluble in alcohol, and the solution, as well as the
strong white smoke which is evolved when Galbanum is melted in a
platinum spoon, reddens litmus paper. It consists chiefly of resin,
gum, volatile oil, and a trace of malic acid.
Gklbanum in masses consists of irregular pieces of a yellowish or
dark brown colour ; the odour is stronger than that of the preceding
kind, which, in its general characters, it much resembles, except that
it can be powdered only during the low temperature of winter.
Geiger says that when this variety is pwe% it is not to be reokonod
inferior to the former. Persian Galbanum, being very soft and teoA-
dous, is sent in skins or chests. It often oontains many fragments <^
plants.
Galbanum, like other umbelliferous gum-resins, is anti-spasmodic,
expectorant, and externally rubefiusient It is inferior in power to
assafoBtida, but usually associated with it in pills and plastei&
GALBULA. [Halotonii>&]
GALE, SWEET. [Mtbioa.]
GALENA. [LxAD.]
GALEOLARIA. rAOALBPHJi.]
GALEOPITHECtfS, a genus of MimmaUa, having relations to the
LmnwritUs and Cheiropiera, It is often formed into a fiunily, and is
then called Pletuvptera or OaUopithecidte. They are commonly
known by the name of Flying Lemurs, and are sometimaa oalled
Flying Cats and Flying Foxes. They are generally anmnged under
the order Camassiers, and some authors place them in the division
Cheiroptera; but they differ from the Bats inasmuch as the toes of
tiieir anterior extremities, which are all fiimidied with sharp olaws,
are not more elongated than those of the hind feet^ so that the mem-
brane which occupies the interval between the extremities to the
sides of the tail can hardly operate in executing mora than the
functions of a parachute. The dental formula is as followa : —
Incisors, ^; Canines, ^; Molars, g,
84.
This is the formula given by M. LetM>n ; but Cuvier, in his ' Rigne
Animal,' states that the canines are dentilated and short like the
molara He states that the two upper incisors are also dentilated
and much separated from each other; and that the six lower ones
are split into narrow strips like combs, a structure peculiar to this
genus.
F. Cuvier's formula is similar to that of M. Lesson, and was
probably copied by the latter. F. Cuvier describes the 12 molan
In both jaws as consisting of 4 false molars and 8 molara. He teUs
us that in the upper jaw, tiie intermaxillary bone, though verr exten-
sive, has no teeui in its anterior part ; in tne porterior part uiere sre
two on each side, The descending line in the upper part of the lower
figure marks the extent of the intermaxiUaiy bone. The dentition, at
it appears to Mr. Waterhouse, is as follows : —
Incisors,
2—2
OWninfT,
4—4
4-^
0—0
1—1
False UoUn^
2—2
2—2
True Molan
= 84.
The aame author observes that the six foremost teeth in the lower
jaw of the Lemur (four only of which are, in Ids opinion, incisors ; for
he agrees with GeoSroy in considering the remaining two as canines)
togeUier bear a remarxable resemblance to a single incisor of CfaU^
pithecui. He compares the two canines to the outer laminn of one
|^y^5^^
Teeth of OahopUkseyM, oae-thlrd larger than natnre. (F. Cavler.)
of these incisors. Like one of these laminss, the Lemur^s canine is
dilated inmiediately above the base, and has a longitudinal ridge on
the upper side ; whilst the incisors, like the intermediate laminse, are
SIS OALEOPITHECUa
grooTed on tbe ODter tida cur the apsx. In their alnirMt horiioatitl
direction there ii alao a rewmblsQce. In the number of teeth the
GalropMeci ngree with the Lemura, eicfpting that in the former
the upper cuiiiH ue vanting. In both tbeee groupa of ftnimRls
the iooijo™ of the lower jew are, ha obaetrea, opposed to *
toothleaa portion of the intennaiiUeriaa. {' Zool. Traii«.,' vol iL
p»rH.)
Cuvier and othen atnte that the OaleopUhtci live on treei in the
iaiuidi of the Indian Archipelago, and there puniue iiuecta. and perhaps
birda, ea their prej ; judgiog from the dctritioo of the teetb with
age, he thinlu that they muat alio feed on fruita. The; hare a
very huge ceecum. In their teeth they present many analogies to the
Dr. Qray makaa the OaltopMteidit the fourth family of the
(quadrupedoid) Primata, and plaoea it between the Laaurida and
\ttptniliimida!. (' Outline,' &c, in 'Ann. of Philoaophy,' 182£.)
Speaking of the QaUopiUucut of Pallaa, Hr, Swainaou obsenrei : —
" To give ita moat striking chnracter in a few worda, it ia a lemur,
with tbe limbs connected with a bet-Uka membrane, or, in other worda,
aurrounded b; a thin skin which they support, as the framework of
an umbrella aupports ita covering. Uy this singular structure tbe
animal ia aupported in the air ; yet without the power, like the bats,
of sustaining a continued flight. Linnccua places this rema^ablo
genus with tbe lemurs, while every one muat perceive its intimate
afiinity to the bala; like them, also, theae bat-lamurs ar« nocturnal
and insectivorous. The rnamtnm are pectoral ; and they ateep aus-
pcnded by their hind lega with their heads downward. H. OeoflVcy
at. Hilaire therefore jUBtl; considers them as the form by which the
lemurs and bata are connected; while their greater reacmbhince to
the former induces us to consider GaltopilJi/cm as one of the abermat
types of the Lemurida," among which Mr. Swainson arranges the
grnus, in the third part of hia volume, b«tweeo AbltM and CheirogaUui.
<' Natural History and CUssiScstion of Quarlnipedx,' 1836.)
Three species have been recorded :~1. Gahoyilhcoii rv/>u, Oeoff.,
Audubon (Zflnur rolani, Linn.) ; S. Galeopil/iicta nariegatat, Cuv,,
Oeoff, ; 8. GaUopilhetvt Tematraiii, Qeoff. : but the general opinion
aeema to have been that one only, the Lemur tolaiti of Linnnus, had
been aatisfactorily made out. In October, 1B3S, some specimens of
FIviug Lemurs were upon the table at a meeting of the Zoological
Society of London ; and in reference to them Hr. WatarhuUM pointed
actera which appeared ta him to indicate the exiatenoe
of two
in thoHs
ipecim
He remarked that in systematic works three species of tbe genus
Galtopilhec%i are described, founded upon differences of siie and
colour. Aa regards the latter character, ha had never seen two apeci-
meoB which precise!; agreed ; and with respect to siie. the dimensions
given of two out of the three apeciea are, ha observed, evidently taken
from eitremely young animals. Hr. Waterbouee then proceeded ts
iliitinKuiab tbe two apeciee on tbe table, and proposed for them the
specific namee of Tonmiiiatii and PkilippinmiBi.
TimminMi.
The fiiat and hirgir species measured about two feet in total length,
and its akull was 2 inches 11 i lines in length. The anterior iooiaor
of the upper jaw is broad, and divided by two notches into three
distinct lobes; ths neit incisor on each side has its anterior and
poaterior margins notched ; and tbe first molar (or the tooth which
occupies the situation of the canine) has its posterior edge distinctly
notched. This tooth is separated by a narrow space, anteriorly and
posteriorly, from the second inciwr in front and tbe aecond molar
behind ; the temporal ridgM converge towards tbe occiput, near
GALEOPITHECUS. >it
which however, he observed, they are separated ususUy by a apace of
about four linca. This is probably the GaitopUhecut xotant of authors ■
but tha identity cannot be said to be certain.
. [Walerhou«.
The aecond apeciea, Q. Philippinemu, was deacribed by Mr. Water-
bouae aa beiug usually about 20 iuohea in length, end iU akull as
may be distinguished from O. Temmindcii by the proportionsloly larger
ears and the greater length of the hands. The skull too he deacribed
QALEOPITHECL'S.
a lengtli, tbe muzElB aa brotuleF and
im^Hr. Tbe temporal ridges, he
e occiput, or mre Hpantad by a very
u uarrower in propoctioQ Ic
more obtiua. and the orbit
obaerred, generally meet imr
narrow ipace. The anterior inciiior oi tos upper jaw ib narrow, uia
bai but one notch ; the Beit incisor on each sida ia considerably
larger, longer, and atrooger than in 0. Tmrnindcii, and diffan more-
OTer in having ita edgea even : the ume remark applies to the firat
faUe mobr. In thi* apeciea the inciaora and icoIbtb form a oootinuoua
series, each tooth being in contact with that which precedes and that
which ia behind it. But Hr. Waterhouse concladed b; observing
that the most important diETeranoe perhaps which eiiets between the
two species in question coDsiita in the much larger size of the molar
teeth in the smaller skull, the five posterior molars occupying a space
often linea in length, whereas in O. Tanmtnctii, amuch larger animal,
the same teeth only occupy nine lines. Several minor points of dis-
tinotdoD existed baiidea those here mentioned. ('ZooL Proo.,' 1839;
and sea further 'ZooL Trans./ voL iL p. S3S.)
QALIPEA. »K
aitnatad in the intermaxillary bone, and are therefore incison.
He adda that it ia worthy of obsarratioD, that the poatcrior of thaw
:wD teeth (on each side) has a double fang.
QALE0PSI3 <&om yoX^, a weasel, and 6fa, sight, aspect, the
mouth of the coroUa gaping like that of a weasel), a genua of PlanU
helooging to the natural order XoAiolfT or ZoniacAE. It has the
anthen approaohing in pairs, apposite cells bursting by two tsItcs
transversely ; the upper lip of the corolla arched, and the lower lip
3-lobed, unequal, with two teeth on its npjMr side ; a tabular 5-toothed
calyx, with equal teeth, or the two upper ones longest. Tbe nutsare
rounded at the end. The spedea of this genus are annual diraticately
brsoched erect herba, and rarely decumbent at tbe baa*. The flowera
are red or ore»im-colourad, or varied with both these colours. Thu
genus ma; be easily recognised by the peculiar formation of ill anthen,
which diCFen from any other of the Labiala.
0. ochTOieuea, the Cmun-coloured Hemp-Nettle, has a softly pcbec-
oent stem with daflexed hairs, not thickened below tlie joints, oblong
or oblong-lanceolate leaves, clothed with soft villi on both surfacK
The calyx is shaggy and glandular, and the upper lip of the comtla
deeply cut. This species ia found in the sandy com-fielda of middle
Europe, and also in England and Wales. The flowers an of a pale-
yellow or eream-oolour, and Uoom during the montha of Jnlj and
August.
ir Oalnplllttaai Pltli,
i is found plentifully in tbe aandy com-fielda of Qn>t
Britain. The floweia are of a purple colour, vari^ated with orimsoii
and white. A variety of this species, with flowers half the usnal siif,
Is the O. inltmudia of Reichenbacb, and the Q. parvijiora of Lambert
0. lelrahit, the Common Hemp-Nettle, has a hispid stem, thickenel
below the joints, with oblong, ovate, acuminate, semta leaver Th«
calyx has tubular teeth, and a tube nearly equaL The tube of th;
corolla ia aa long aa the calyx, and has an ovate upper lip. It is of
a purple colour, and is a native of cultivated ground thn>ughouI
Europe and Middle Asia, and ia plentiful in Great Britain.
0, vtriieolor has the tube of tbe corolla much longer than the calyx.
The flowers are very large, yellow, and have a broad purple spot un
the lower lip. It ia not easily distinguished by description from
0, MroAif, of which it is regarded ss a variety by many botanists.
(Don, DiMamydtmiM Planli ; Bibinglon,iliniaalofBniithBiila»).)
OALEKITES. [Cokcldb; Echihid*]
QALEU8. fSQDALim]
QALIA'CE^ Steiiata, a natural order of Exogenous Plants called
SicUata by Linnteus, and merged in CincK^rucca by the school of
JuBsieu. It consists of herbaceous usually squarfr^temmed plants,
with a scabrous surface, verldcillate leaves, and monopetaloua flowFis,
with an inferior didymous fruit inclosing a ooupis of seeds containing-
an embryo lying in a great quantity of homy albumen. Some yirld
a dyeing substance in their roots, as the various apedea of Madder,
but the greater part are uaelasa weeda. One of our common British
■peciea of Qalnim, namely, O. varum, is astringent, and was formerly
used by farmei* to curdle milL
(Waterboc
Mr. Waterhouse nmarlu
ortmoat teeth of the upper jaw.
The spades are natives of the northern parts of the northem
hemitphere, where they are very common weeds. The order ia related
to CmehoiMCtiE, OonKKta, and Apiaeta. There are 8 genera and
SSO spedas. [Oauuii; Rubia; Aifebdi.lj
QALIPE'A, a genua of Plants belonging to tiie natnral order
'.atacca, inhabiting the Rarmer parte of South America. Thdr lenvei
917
GALIUM.
GALLING
ci^
ire often simple, occasionally 3-4-5-leafleted, not divided at the edge,
covered with pellucid or glandular dots. The flowers are small,
white or pink, often fragrant, in azUlary, extra-axillary or terminal
. racemes, corymbs, or panicles.
G, euaparia is a tree from 60 to 80 feet high, erergreen, with an
ash-coloured bark and a pale yellow box-like wood. The leaves are
nltemate, long-stalked ; toe leaflets 3, sessile, unequal, ovate, lanceo-
late, acute, smooth, entire, bright-green, gratefully fragrant, with
scattered glandular dots. The flowers are in axillary and terminal
racemes, on a peduncle as long as the petioles. The calyx and corolla
are white, with fascicles of hairs seated on glandular bodies on the
outside. The anthers have two short appendages. This species is
eaid by Humboldt to produce Angostura Bark, but this is denied by
Dr. Hancock, who assigns it to the following species.
Q. officinalis is found in the higher lands of the missions of Carowy.
It is well known in the southern and back missions of the Orinoco.
The bark is smooth. The leaves alternate, 8-foliate ; the petiole about
the length of the leaflets, slightly channelled, the leaflets ovate, acute
at the base, acuminate at the ap4x, smooth, glossy, brightrgreen,
smelling when bruised and fresh like tobacco ; from 6 to 10 inches
long, 2 to 4 inches broad ; some of the leaflets are marked with small
whitish round spots. The panicles are cylindrical, contracted, stalkod,
longer than the leaves, with the branches about 8-flowered. The
calyx is campanulate, 6-toothed, hairy. The corolla white, somewhat
curved before expansion ; nearly an inch long, downy on both sides ; of
the 5 petals two are larger than the others. There are 5 sterile stamens,
tipped with a pellucid watery gland. The fertile stamens 2 in number,
5 carpels or fewer, becoming villous as they mature ; 2-fleeded, with a
strong elastic separable 2-valved endocarp. According to Dr. Han-
cock, this, which he found to yield the true Angostura, or Carowy
Bark, is essentially diflerent from the Ouspariafebrifuga of Humboldt.
An excellent account of that bark is given by Dr. Hancock in the
* Transactions of the Medico-Botanical Society.' " I am fully con-
vinced," says he, " from ample experience of the virtues of this bark,
that it is one of the most ' valuable febrifuges we possess, being
adapted to the worst and most malignant bilious fevers, while the
fevers in which Cinchona is administered are chiefly simple inter-
mittents, for the most part unattended with danger. The natives use
the bruised bark as a means of intoxicating fiiSies, which afibrds a
very singular coincidence with what is mentioned by Dr. Saunders,
by the same use being made of Cinchona Bark by the Peruvian Indians.
Malambo Bark is supposed to be furnished by some plant allied to
OcUipea,
GA'LIUM (from TiiaA, milk), a genus of Plants belonging to the
natural order OcUtacece or RtUnaeece. The corolla is rotate, 4-parted ;
the fruit dry, not crowned with the calyx, and composed of two
indehiscent 1 -seeded mericarps. The species are branched herbs with
variable infloresenoe.
0, cruciatwn, Crosswort, has elliptic oblong hairy leaves, four in a
whorl; the flower-stalks lateral, coiymbose, bracteated; terminal
fertile flowers, mostly staminiferous ; the fruit-stalks deBexed, and the
fruit smooths It is a native of Europe, and is commonly found in
Great Britain.
O. moUugo, Great Hedge-Bedstraw, or Wild Madder, has about 8
leav«i in a whorl, they are lanceolate-obovate or obovate-oblong ; the
mai^ns rough with prickles pointing forwards ; the branches of the
panicle many-flowered, the lower ones spreading horizontally; the
fruit glabrous. This species is a native almost throughout Europe
and the Caucasus, and is found in Britain. The flowers are white,
and sometimes yellowish. The roots are creeping, and yield a red
dye like the true Madder, but of a brighter colour; they also have
the property of colouring the bones of animals red that feed upon
them. This plant has been extolled by M. Jourdan, the director of
the hospital at Tain, in Dauphiny, as an effectual cure for epilepsy.
It is however to be feared that the cases he details, which are certainly
very marvellous, will not justify his reliance on this remedy.
0. /tnc/OTMim, the Dyer's Bedstraw, has smooth decumbent stems ;
linear-obtuse leaves, scabrous on the margin and keels; elongated
axillary terminal and many-flowered peduncles. The corolla has
4 obtuse lobes, and the fruit is smooth and glabrous. This species is
a native of North America, in loyr marahy places, especially in Canada
and Newfoundland ; it is also found in the Straits of De Fuca. It is
very nearly allied to Q, trifidum, but is distinguished by the stems
being smooth and the flowers always 4-parted.
0. paliutre, a native of Great Britain, nearly resembles O. tinctorium
when the leaves are more numerous than usuaL It is said that from
the roots of this plant the Indians extract the red dye with which
they colour their leathers and the ornaments of their dress.
u. septenirianale, the Northern Bedstraw, has erect tetragonal
smooUi stems ; oblong lanceolate leaves, 4 in a whori. The fruit is
beset wi^ hooked bristles ; the flowers are numerous and of a milk-
white colour. The Oree women use the root of this plant to dye
red. It is a native of North America, about the lakes of Canada and
the United Statea
O. venufi, Ladies' Bedstraw, or Cheese-Rennet, it distinguished by
having its leaves about 8 in a whorl, linear-setaceous with revolute
margins, channelled above, downy beneath. The flowers in numerous
small dense panicles of a golden-yellow colour. On loose sandy soils
the flowers are sometimes solitary and the stems much more branched,
but agreeing in other respects with this species. It is a native of
Europe and Siberia, in meadows, woods, and among bushes, and is
found in Britain very commonly in dry soils. The stidks and flowers
of this plant have been used in the cheese counties for the purpose of
curdling milk, and also for colouring it. Mathiolus says it produces an
agreeable flavour, and makes the cheese "eat sweeter." The French
formerly used to prescribe the flowers in hysteria and epilepsy. The
roots afford a rich red dye, superior in colour to madder. It was
grown at one time as a substitute for the true Madder, Rubia Tineto-
rvm, but the roots are too small to render its culture profitable.
This plant seems to be the ydXtoy of Dioecorides.
0. aparine, the common Goose-Grass, or Cleavers, has from 6 to 8
leaves in a whorl ; they are linear-lanceolate, with marginal prickles
pointing backwards; axillary 3-flowered peduncles; reflexed granulated
fruit. It is a native throughout the whole of Europe, norUi of Asia,
and North America, in hedges, fields, and most cultivated places ; it
is plentiful in Great Britain. This plant, according to Burnett, was
fancifully called bv the Greeks Philanthropes, as they attributed the
readiness with which it cleaves to our habiliments to a love of the
human speciea A mechanical cause will however fully account for
this tendency. It is thus it has acquired the names of Cleavers,
Catch-Weed, ftc, and from being a favourite food or medicine of geese
that of Gk>ose-Gras8. Diosoorides relates that this phmt was us^ by
the shepherds of his^time as a sieve to strain milk, and Linneus tells
us it is still made use of in Sweden for the same purpose. It is the
iMopitni of Theophiastus. The expressed juice of this herb taken in
doses of four ounces or a quarter of a pint night and morning, during
several weeks, is said to be a very beneficial remedy in cutaneous
disorders, and is believed by the country people to be a purifier
of the blood and an antiscorbutic. The seeds have a corneous
albumen, and when roasted have been used instead of coffee. We are
not aware that they have been analysed, but it is not improbable that
they contain a principle similar to ^ffeia, and if this be the case they
would form a valuable substitute for coffee. The roots of this
species, like most of the genus, afford a rich red dye, and birds that
feed on them have their bones tinged with the colour. The roots of
(7. iuberoiuM are fiuinaceous, and in China are cultivated as a dietetic
vegetable. Loureiro says that when boiled they are both wholesome
and nutritious. Don enumerates 164 species of ChUiwnf which are
distributed in every quarter of the world. The common name
Bedstraw given to all the species is from the verb to 'strew,' anciently
written 'straw.* Before the introduction of modem luxuries beds
were made by strewing with various herbs, and doubtless this was
one used for that purpose, and has thence acquired its common name.
These plants are very easily cultivated and propagated; they will
grow in any common soil, care being paid to the situations in which
they are placed, which should as much resemble their natural positions
as possible; those brought from marshes and bogs should have a
moist soil, and the natives of warmer climates should be protected
during the winter. None of them however are worth cultivation
unless in botanical gardens.
(Fraas, Synoptis Plant, Flora Clasnea ; Don, JHchlamydeoui
Plants; Burnett, Outlinet of Botany; Babington, Manual of Britith
Botany.)
GALL. [BiLB.]
GALL-BLADDEB. [LiTSB.]
GALLI'COLiE, a family of HymenopterouB Insects of the section
Pupivora, Distinguishing characters : — Posterior wings having but
one nervure ; anterior wings with two branchial cells, a radial cell of
a triangular form ; two or three cubital cells, of which the second
(where there are three) is very small, and third large, and bounded
by the apical margin of the wing ; antennie of equal thickness from
the base to the apex (or with the latter portion slightly thickened),
and consisting of from 13 to 15 joints. The males with one joint
more to the antennra than the females. Palpi long; the maxillary
usually 4-jointed, and the labial 3-jointed. Ovipositor lodged in a
groove on the under side of the body.
Latreille enumerates but three genera belonging to this family.
Those which have the antennss filiform, the abdomen much com-
pressed, the radial cell of the wing long and narrow, the two brachiaLi
very distinct, and the first two cubitals small, constitute the genus
Jbalia.
The species of the next genus {FigUet) have the abdomen thickened
and rounded above, the antennse gradually thickened towards the
apex, but one brachial cell, the radial very distant from the apex of
the wing, and the second cubital wanting.
In the genus Cynipa the abdomen is similar to the last, but the
antennee are filiform ; there are three cubital cella to the wing, the
first of which is laige ; the radial is elongated, and there is but one
complete cell at the base of the wing. [Galls.]
QALLPN JB, Gkdlinaoeous Birds, the fifth order of the class Avu,
according to Linnaus, who thus characterises it : — ^Bill (a reaping
sickle, ' Harpa coUigens') convex ; the upper mandible arched oyer the
lower; nostrils over-arched by a cartilaginous membrane. Feet
formed for running ; the toes rough below. Body sebaceous, mus-
cular, delicate (purum). Food : grain collected on the earth and
macerated in the crop (iDgluviefl). Neat artless and placed on the
919
GALLINSECTA.
GARCINIA.
9^
ground; <»gg8 numerous; food pointed out to the young by their
parent. Polyeamoua. Analogoua to the order Pecora in the claBS
Mammalia. [Rasores.]
GALLINSECTA. [Coccidjb.]
GALLINULA. [Rallida.]
GALLIONELLA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
DifUonMcece^ and to Kiitzing's family Mdoaeirea. [Melosirsjs.]
GALLS are the result of a morbid action excited in the leaf-buds of
several species of the genus Quei^cus, or Oak.
The galls of commerce are chiefly those which occur on the Querctu
ir^ectoria (OUivier). They vary in size from that of a pea to that of
a nutmeg.
They originate in the puncture of an insect, Oynipi gaUastinctoria,
The puncture is effected by the oripositor of the insect, and an egg
is at the same time deposited. An interruption in the oixlinary func-
tions of l^e tissues of the plant takes place at the spot where the egg
is inserted ; the consequence is an excrescence of vegetable matter,
principally tannin, formed round the egg, and furnishes a nidus for
the grub or larva when hatched. When this takes place the grub eats
its way o«t through the side of the gall ; after which the vitality of
the excrescence either decreases or ceases altogether. The surface
has irregular elevations or lines, with the interspaces generally smooth.
The colour is white or yellow in one variety ; green, gnj, or black
in another. The white variety, which is the largest, often has a hole
in the substance of the shell by which the larva has escaped. This
kind is the least powerful and least esteemed. The best Galls come
from Aleppo and Smyrna, but are often mixed with those from Syria
and Cyprus. In 100 parts of Aleppo Galls Sir H. Davy found gallic
acid, 6*2 ; tannin, 26 ; gum and insoluble tannin, 2'4 ; lime and other
salts, 2 '4 ; woody fibre, 63. Braconnot also found ellagio acid. Galls
are devoid of smell, but have a disagreeably bitter taste, with a
powerfully astringent action. The whole of their soluble matter is
yielded to forty times their weight of boiling water ; ether dissolves
about half their weight, alcohol considerably more.
They yield a fine black colour with any of the salts of iron, and
are used in the preparation of writing ink. The quantity imported is
annually about 700 tons. A kind of gall has lately been imported
from China. Dr. Pereira describes it in the * PharmaceuticalJoumal'
under the name of Woo-pei-tze; they are of very irregular shape,
more bulky than the common galls, and hollow, the external shell
being only about i^ of an inch in thickness, very brittle, and of a
brownish-yellow colour. Mr. Doubleday says that the producing
insect in this case is one of the Aphis tribe. They are extremely
astringent, but have not yet been used in dyeing.
The infusion possesses all the valuable properties of the gall, as does
an idcoholic tincture ; but decoction is an objectionable preparation.
For internal use the infusion .is preferable to the powder, which, like
all substances containing much woody fibre, irritates the stomach.
Galls may be employed in powder to form an ointment, which with
opium and campnor is of great service in painful haemorrhoids. As
a tonic in intermittent fever, and as an astringent in hssmorr-
hagic or other discharges, galls are occasionally employed. But
the most extensive use is made of them in tiie arts, and as a
chemical test.
GAMBOGE, GAMBOGIA. [Garcinia ; Hkbradendron.]
GA'MMARUS, a genus of Animals belonging to the Amphipodous
Crustaceans, the Crevettes or Chevrettes of the French. It has the
following characters : — Antennse inserted in front of the head between
the eyes, moderate, composed of 'three principal joints and a fourth
which is setaceouH, multiarticulate and terminal ; the upper antennas
with a small, setaceous, multiarticulate appendage at the internal
extremity of their third joint. The four anterior f^et terminated by
ajarge compressed hand provided with a strong hook or moveable
finger, which applies itself upon the lower edge ; the next four feet
terminated by a single joint, or slightly curved nail ; the lost six
longer, raised on the sides of the body, and with a delicate and straight
terminal joint. There are long bifid very moveable filaments on each
side under the tail, which is terminated by long, ciliated appendages,
which are extended nearly in the direction of the body, and which
constitute a sort of spring, by means of which the animal executes
considerable leaps, or aids its swimming by a backward impulse on
the water. Body oblong, very much compressed, arched, divided
into thirteen segments (including the head) ; each segment fumiBhed
above with a orustaoeous, delicate, semi-transparent, transverse lamina
or blade, and the first seven also furnished with a lateral crustaceous
piece which covers the base of the feet (Desmarest)
O. PuUXf Fabricius and Latreille {Cancer PuUx, Linnseus ; SquiUa
PtUeXf De Geer; SquiUa fiuviatUit, Merrett; Cfammurua aqucUicuSf
Leach; Crevette des Ruisseaux, Geoffrey), the Fresh- Water Shrimp. This
crustacean, which abounds in springs and rivulets, always swims near
the bottom on its'side, and its progression is principally performed by
the rapid jerks of the appendages of the tail. The animal is oami-
vorouB and feeds principally on dead fishes, and often on the carcasses
of its own species. The male may often be seen swimming coupled
with the female, which is much smaller, and \^ hich he holds between
his legs. She keeps her eggs till they are hatched, and the young for
some time seek shelter under her abdomen and the lateral appendages
of hor body.
There are some marine species; and Desmarest obeervea that the
genus bears the strongest analogies to those genera which have been
separated from it, in his opinion on sufficiently slight grounds, under
the names of LeucotJi&€f Dexamine, Melita, Mcera, Phentsa,Amphitkdei
OrchettiOy Ac. The greater part of these, M. Desmarest states, have
not been adopted by the more recent authors on the natural history
of the Crustaceans; and the only ones which had been generally
admitted when he wrote were Talitrus and Corophium. Cerapu* oif
Say he considers to be founded on sufficient cliaFsctera. K. Latreille
however, in the fourth volume of Cuvier's 'Rdgne Animal' (ed. 1829},
admits them all
Fresh-Water Shrimp {OamHtarus Pules).
a, animal, magfuificd ; ft, the head and antennae of the siune, bigbl j magaifed.
Oammanu {Amphipoda) is noticed by Mr. Westwood as one of the
types of each of the great groups of the typical Malacoetraoous Crta-
tacea, which have been ascertained to undergo no change of form
sufficiently marked to warrant the employment of the term metamor-
phosis. (• Phil. Trans.,' 1835.) [Cobophium.]
GAMPSONYX. [Falconida]
GANGA. [TETBAONIDiB.]
GANNET. [SULA.]
GA'NODUS, a genus of Fossil Ganoid Fishes from thd Oolite of
Stonesfield ; 7 species. (Egerton.) Referred to Chimera by Aga^aiz.
GANOID, a grand division of Fossil Fishes in the classification of
H. Agassiz. [Fish.]
GANYME'DA (Gray), a genus of Radiated Animals allied to tlie
Echinidte and the Aiteriadce, and which is thus characterised : —
Body hemispherical, depressed, thin, chalky, hollow. The buck
rounded, rather depressed, flatteneid behind, with a rather sunk qu^d
rangular central space. The sides covered with sunken angular
cavities, with a snudl round ring, having an oblong transverse 8ab>
central hole in their base. Underside sinall, rather concave, with five
slight sloping elevations from the angles of the mouth to the angles
of the rather pentagonal margin. The edge simple. The mouth
centraL Vent none. Cavity simple. Parietes thin and minutd;
dotted ; centre of the dorsal disc pellucid.
The genus, in Dr. Gray's opinion, is very nearly allied to Goldfuss'j
Glenotremites paradoxus {* Petrifact' tab. 49, f. 9, and t. 51, f. 1), bat
Dr. Gray points out the differences, and is induced to consider these
two genera as forming a £&mily or order between the Echinidct and
Asterittdas; allied to the latter in having only a single opening to the
digestive canal, and agreeing with the former in shape and oonsistence,
but differing from it in not being composed of noaay pUteei
Dr. Gray only knew of two specimens of Ckmymedtt, which ha
believes wore found on the coast of Kent, as he discovered them
mixed with a quantity of J)i»copara P€Uina, which he collected several
years ago from fuci and shells on that coast Size of specimens one-
eight of an inch in diameter. QanymedapulcheUa (Gray) is the name
of the species. (' Zool. Proc.,' 1834.)
GAR-FISH, GAR-PIKE. [Bblonb ; Esox.]
GARCI'NIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
GuttifercBf named in honour of Dr. Garcin, who travelled in the East
Indies. It formerly consisted of few species, but no less than 21 are
enumerated by Dr. Wallich, 10 of which he considers new. These
are distributed over the islands of the Indian Archipelago, in the
southern parts of China, in the Indian and Malayan peninsulas, in
Asam and Silhet, with one species (G. Cowa) extending as far north
as Monghlr on the Ganges. They are all ti'ees of considerable eize,
with opposite coriaceous shining oval leaves ; numerous flowers, w^bich
are monoecious or dicecious ; in the male, stamens numerous, inserted
on alazge fleshy 4-lobed receptacle, anthers bursting longitudinally;
in the female, stamens numerous but imperfect, ovary 4-10-c«llt^,
ovules solitary. The fruit fleshy and juicy, crowned with the pelt:\te
stigma, is edible in many of the species.
O. Mangostana is the most remarkable species, being the far-famod
Mangosteen (Mangoes, Marsden) of the Malays, reckoned one of the
most delicious of all fruits, and not alone of the countries where it m
indigenous^ but, as Marsden says, *' is the pride of the Malay laland^
and perhaps the most delicate fruit in the world." It is a native of
the Malayan Peninsula and of the islands to the eastward of the Bay
of Benged, forming trees of considerable size, with a straight trunk
and numerous spreading opposite branches forming an elegant conical
head. The tree is considered one of the most ornamental in Batavid
for gardens, also as affording an agreeable shade. Bon tins compan-i
their appearance to that of citron-trees. It is in flower and fruit -a
9'il
GARDENIA.
GAUKYA.
ff.'i
great part of the year, according to Roxburgh, but Marsdeu says
" the returns of its seasons are very irregular." So wedded is it to
its indigenous soil and climate, that the innumerable attempts made
to cultivate it elsewhere have uniformly failed. Dr. Roxburgh says,
" For these 85 years past I have laboured in vain to make it grow and
be fruitful 'on the contineut of India. The plant has uniformly
become sickly when removed to the north or west of the Bay of
Bengal, and rarely rises beyond the height of two or three feet before it
perishes." The male and female flowers are sometimes on the same,
but usually on separate trees. The germ is superior, round, from 6-
to 8-celled, with one ovule in each, attached to the middle of the
axis. The ripe berry is spherical, of the size of a pretty large apple,
having the surface even, and crowned with the permanent peltate 6-
to 8-lobed stigma. The rind is thick, finn, though somewhat spongy,
of a dull-crimson colour, sometimes compared to that of the pome-
granate. Seeds as many as 8 in number inclosed in a very abundant
soft fleshy envelope which is delicately white, forming the edible part
of the fi-uit, described as delicious to the taste and as dissolving away
in the mouth. It is also extremely innocent in its nature, as almost
any quantity of it may be eaten without detriment, and persons sick
of almost any disease are allowed to partake freely of it without incon-
venience. The fruit before ripening is slightly acid. The rind is
powerfully astringent, and its decoction is employed in dysentery and
as a gargle in aphthse of the mouth. The bark of the trunk and
branches is also considered astringent, and said to be employed by
the Chinese in dyeing.
0. cornea has oblong elliptic leaves, solitary and umbellate flowers,
lateral, terminal, and drooping ; the stigma entire ; the berry the size
of a plumb. It is a native of the East Indies in the high remote
mountains of Amboyna. The trunk of ibia tree is very lofty, but
not very thick, it is covered with a black bark. The branches extend
wide, and divide into many short branches, which have a pair of leaves
at each joint, these are large, from 11 to 15 inches long and 4 inches
broad, but on old trees shorter, smooth, firm, and shining. The
flower rises between the upper leaves, di-ooping, having the form of a
small rose, of » yellow colour. The fruit is crowned by the entire
stigma, which appears like a wart. It is of a dusky-brown or smoky
colour on the outside, and within it has a mucous pulp, in which lie
a few seeds . in the shape of a half-moon. It has a resinous smell
when fresh. The wood is heavy, and very hard like horn ; it is used
for the handles of tools, and the young ones in building, the (^d ones
being too hard to work.
0. Camhogia has elliptic leaves tapering to both ends, terminal
solitary flowers, yellowish corollas, an 8-lobed stigma, the beny 8-
furrowed. It is a native of Malabar and other parts of the East Indies.
It is a tall tree with a trunk as thick as two men can compass, with
spreading opposite branches. The leaves are 5 inches long and half
that in breadth. The fruit is about 2 inches in diameter, drooping on
peduncles, 1 inch in length ; the rind is thin, smooth, and yellowish,
the pulp is yellow, succulent, sweet, and eatable. It is very common
about Siam and Cambodia, where incisions are made in the bark, and
a quantity of gum-resin, c$l\ed Gamboge, flows out, and is exported
to foreign countries.
It is called by the natives of Travancore Gharka PuUi, and
is therefore inferred to be Carca PuUi of old writers. In Ceylon
the fruit is called Goraka, and much used by the natives in their
curries ; when ripe it is said to form a fine fruit as large as the Man-
gosteen. Mrs. Colonel Walker, in her letters to Dr. Graham, describes
the outer husk of the fruit as being prepared by the natives by taking
out the pulp and seeds, bruising and then heaping it up until the
whole is soft It is then smoked and kept within the influence of
smoke, being much used as a favourite ingredient in their curries and
also for preserving, along with salt, a small kind of fish, which thus
cured will keep for six or seven months.
The name Camhogia is derived from the province Camboja, or
Cambodge, whence it comes.
G. Camhogia^ O. Cowa, Q, lanceafolia, Oj>Kydia, O. pedunctUatOf and O.
'panieulaia^aXL yield a kind of edible fruit, but of theeethe last is most
like the Mangosteen. From incisions made in the branches a yellow juice
exudes, and soon concretes, having a close resemblance to, and in fact
forming an inferior kind of gamboge ; whence it has been inferred
that the commercial gamboge is. yielded by the species. Later
investigations have proved the incorrectn^s of the opinion, and the
true gamboge-tree of Ceylon has been determined to belong to a new
genus named Hebradendron, [Hebradendbok.] Q, ZeyUna, 0. corti€a,
and O. pictoria (the last also supposed to be a species of Jfebradendnm),
all yield an inferior kind of gamboge.
GARDE'NIA (named after Dr. Alexander Garden of Charlestown,
South Carolina, . a correspondent of Linnseus), a genus of Plants
belonging to the natural order dnchonacea. It has the calyx usually
ribbed, with a tubular truncate limb divided into several lobes or
teeth ; the corolla funnel-shaped, or approaching salver-shaped, with
a tube much larger than the calyx, and a contorted spreading
5-9-parted limb; the anthers 5-9, linear, sessile in the throat; the
stigma clavate, bifid, or 2-toothed, with thick erect lobes ; the dissepi-
ments of the ovary 2-5, incompletely dividing it into cells; the berry
fleshy, crowned with the calyx, with a papery or bony lining,
incompletely 2-5-celled ; the seeds immersed in fleshy parietal plaoent»
The species are armed or unarmed trees or shrubs, wiUi axillary or
terminal, usually solitary, white and fragrant flowers.
0. eampanuUUa is a shrubby plant with short branches, spiny at
the apex, the spines solitary ; the leaves lanceolate, smooth, acumi-
nated at both ends ; the flowers on short pedicels in terminal and
lateral fascicles ; the limb of the calyx campanulate, with a short
acutely 5-toothed border; the corolla sub-campanulate, 5-lobed ; the
berry, roundish, ovate. This plant is a shrub 5 to 10 feet in height,
and is a native of the East Indies, in the forests of Chittagong. The
berry, is about the size of a golden pippin apple, and is employed by
the natives of India as a cathartic and antheunintio.
0. arborea is an unarmed tree with ovate-oblong leaves, terminal,
almost sessile flowers, usually arranged in threes ; the corolla with a
filiform tube and a 5-parted limb; the berry drupaceous, smooth,
containing a 4-5-valved shelL It is a native of the East Indies. The
fruit is eaten by the natives of India. It is one of the most bcAutiful
species of the genus, and deserves a place in every collection.
There are about 50 species of Oardenia, which all bear elegant
sweet-scented flowers. They thi-ive best in a mixture of loam, peat,
and sand. Under the name of Cape Jasmines, double-flowered
varieties of O. fiorida and Q. radicant are extensively cultivated.
Their flowers are very fragrant, and the best way of getting them
to bloom freely is to set them in a dose frame with a gentle bottom
heat in the spring. In the winter they may be placed in the green-
house. They may be increased by cuttings.
(Lindley, ^lora Medica ; Don, JHcJUamydeout Plants.)
GARLIC. [Allium.]
GARLICPEAR. [Oratibva.]
GARNET, a well known precious stone, of which there are many
varieties. Some of them are probably distinct species ; but agreeing
in form, and some other properties, Uiey are classed together. This
mineral occurs crystallised, massive, and granular. The primary
form is a cube, but it occurs in the form of a rhombic dodecahedron.
The colour is various, and accordingly, as will be seen below, it has
received di£fereut names. It is transparent, translucent, rarely
opaque. Lustre vitreous, resinous. Specific gravity, 3-6 to 4*2.
Hardness, 6'5 to 7*5. Cleavage parallel to the planes of the rhombic
dodecahedron ; fracture uneven.
This mineral occurs in the mountainous parts of most countries.
The massive varieties are amorphous, structure granular, compact.
The crystalline varieties, according generally to their colour, have
received various names. Precious Garnet, Almandine; black,
Melanite, Pyreneite; greenish-yellow, OrossulaHa; yellow, crystal-
lised, 2^<^azoUte; granular. Succinite; brownish-yellow, granular,
Colophonite; greenish, compact, AllochroUe ; red, Pyrope, Carbuncle;
reddish-brown, EuoniU, Cinnamon-Stone, Romanxtmte; magnesiao,
RothoffiU,
The following are the analyses of the Almandine^ by the authors
named, and from the places mentioned : —
Silica
Alumina
Oxide of Iron .
Oxide of M&nganese
Lime .
Bohemia.
33-75
27-25
36
0-25
New York.
42-51
19-15
33-67
5-49
1-07
97-25 Klaproth 101-79 Wachtmeistcr.
It appears that the essential ingredients of the Garnet are silica,
alumina, and oxide of iron ; these are frequently partially replaced
by oxide of manganese, lime, and magnesia.
Garnet occurs abundantly in mica-slate, hornblende slate, and gneisfi,
and less frequently in granite and granular limestone. It is found
sometimes in serpentine and lava.
The best precious Garnets are from Ceylon and Greenland.
GroMularite occurs in the Wilin River, Siberia, and at Tellemarken in
Norway ; green Garnets are found at Swartzeuburg, Saxony ; Melanite
in the Vesuvian Lavas ; Ouvarovite at Bissersk in Russia ; Topazolite
at Mussa, Piedmont ; Aplome in Siberia on the Lena, and at Swartzeu-
burg. Garnets also occur in several parts of the United States.
The Garnet is the Carbunculus of the Romans. The Alabandic
Carbuncles of Pliny were so-called because they were cut and polished
at Alabanda. "Rtnce Hxe name Almandine.
The clear deep red Garnets make a rich gem, and are much used
for ornament Those obtained from Pegu are most valued. They
are cut quite thin on account of their deep colour. Cinnamon-Stoiie
is also used for the same purposes. Garnet when powdered is used
for the same purposes as emery.
(Dana, Mineralogy.)
GARROT. [DucKa]
GARRULUS. [Cobvida]
GARRY A, the only genus and type of the natural order of Inoom*
plete Plants, Oarryacea. It was named bv Mr. Douglas in compliment
to Nicholas Garry, Esq., secretary to the Hudson's Bay Company.
The flowers of this genus ai« unisexual, the staminiferous and
pistiliferouB flowers being upon distinct plants. The staminiferous
flowers are in pendulous catkin-like racemes, within connate bractes.
They have a 4-leav6d calyx and 4 stamens. The pistiliferoua flowers
^^^■^^MM^^a
rs
GARRYACEiE.
GASTEROPODA.
tji
are in pendulous racemes like the others, but with a 2-toothe(l calyx,
connate with the ovary, which is 1-celled. They have two setaceous
styles, two pendulous ovules, with funiculi as long as themselves.
The fruit is a berried pericarp, not opening, and containing two seeds.
The embryo is very minute in the base of a great mass of fleshy pulp.
The leaves are simple, opposite, exstlpulate, evergreen, serrated or
entire. The species are shrubs, natives of California and Mexico.
Only two species of this genus have been introduced into Great
Britain ; they are very ornamental and grow best in a loamy soil, and
may be propagated by layers.
Q. elliptica, the Elliptic-Leaved Garrya, has, when young, soft
pubescent purplish branches ; when older, they become smooth and
grayish. The leaves are dark-green, shining above, hoary beneath,
with simple twisted interwoven hairs. The flowers are of a greenish
or yellowish-white, and are in bloom from November to February.
Only the stamen-beaiiug plant is in this country. Durlnsr the season
of blossoming this shrub presents a striking and beautiful appear-
ance, with its delicate pendulous catkins, which are from eight inches
to a foot in length. It is easily cultivated in our gardens, and is as
hardy as the common lauruQtinus.
O. laurifolia has elliptic oblong leaves either entire or very minutely
dentate. Both the staminiferous and pistiliferous flowers are solitary,
sessile, and opposite, having one in every bract. This species, like
the former, is an evex^green shrub or low tree, and grows on the
mountains of Mexico. According to Loudon there is but one speci-
men of this very beautiful and desirable shrub preserved in the
garden of the Horticultural Society. It was brought over in the
year 1839. There are some other species of Oarrya recognised by
various botanists: 0, Lindleyi, considered by Mr. Bentham as a
variety of 0. laurifolia '; Q, macrophyUoy G. obUmga, and 0. ovata are
desciibed in Bentham*s ' Planted Hartwegianae ' from specimens col-
lected by Mr. Hartweg in different parts of Mexico.
(Loudon, Enoyclopadia of Trees and Shrvhs,)
GARRY ACE^, Garryadt, a small natural order of Plants related
to JuglandaeecBf Caprifiliacea, and Ifelioingiacea. The species are
shrubs with opposite leaves wiUiout stipules. The flowers are arranged
in pendulous amentaceous racemes within connate bracts. The
wood is without distinct concentric zones or dotted ducts. The
flowers are unisexual and amentaceous. There are four stamens
alternate with the four sepals, not elastia The pericarp is berried,
indehiscent, 2-8eeded; the embryo very minute, in the base of a fleshy
albumen. The two genera of this family are Garrya and Padgtnia,
They are found in North America in temperate latitudes, or in the
West Indies. They have the appearance and habit of viburnums or
dogwoods.
GARVIE, a local name for the Sprat [Clupxidj!.]
GASTEROMYCE'TES, a sub-ordeT or cohort of Plants belonging
to the natural order Fvmgi, [Fungi.] It is distinguished from the
higher forms of Fungi [HtmenohtcetbbJ by the reproductive organs
being included in a case of some kind or another.
The first tribe of the Gatteromycttea is Angioga»(re8. Of this tribe
there are four sub-tribes or sections. The first, Phalloidei, has a dis-
tinct receptacle at length bursting through the excipulum. Of this
section the genus Phallus is the type. [Phallds.]
The second section is Tubertuea. [Tuberace^.]
The third section, Nidulariacece, has a receptacle filled with free or
elastically pedicellate sporangiau The type of this section is Nidularia,
or Bird' s-N est Pczizo. There are three species o^ this genus found in
Great Britain. [NiDULABiACEiE.]
The fourth section, Carpoholi, have a solitary sporangium protniding
from the receptacle. The genera belonging to it are CarpoboluSf
Sphcerobcius, TheUbolut, Pilobolus, Atraetobolus.
A species of the last named, A. ubiquilarius, is found on wood,
stones, and other things, after rain, appearing like scattered meal
The Rev. M. J. Berkeley says however that he is convinced that it is
of insect origin. Spluirobolus stdlalus is found on rotten wood and
sticks, in the autumn. In its early state it is covered by a fine woolly
or cottony web, which is very fugacious. When the young plants
have pushed through this web, they have the appearance of mustard-
seeds. Each plant consists of an outer and an inner membrane. At
the time of the opening of the outer membrane, the inner one, which
is then concave, and with its mouth uppermost, projects the ball of
sporules which it contains, like a bomb from a mortar, to a distance
of several inches. The cracking noise occasioned by this phenomenon
is so great as to be distinctly audible at some distance. *' This is
unquestionably," says Dr. Grevule, " the most wonderfully constructed
plant which it has &llen to my lot to describe. That so great a degree
of force should exist in a body not lai^ger than a pin's head, and that
force exerted in defiance of considerable resistance, seems to surpass
the power of anything to account for it satisfactorily."
The tribe Pyrenomycetet is frequently regarded as a sub-order or
cohort [FuKOi.] It consists of genera having more or less the
characters of Sphceria. [Sphjbria.] Mo»t of the species are found on
the decaying leaves of other plants, and varv with the species of the
plant on which they grow. The senera in which the greatest number
of species have been described by British botanists are Oytitpora,
Phoma, Diithidea, Astertma, Mytitma, Phaeidiitm, Jlysterium, and
Leptottroma,
The third tribe is Trichospermi [Tbiohospsbiq] ; the fourth, Trt^a-
dermacei. [Triohoderhaoe^.^
The fifth tribe, Perisporiaea, has a peridium scarcely distinct froa
the nucleus, and the sporidia immersed in pulp, free or included b
peridiola. The genera in this tribe are not numerous. RiMeodiirsi,
the Mou8e*Skin Byssus, is placed here by some authon ; by Fries ia
ByMsaceoB, [BTsaAOBJS.]
The most extensive genus is Eryiiphe, the spedes of whidi prodoee
various forms of mildew. It has a fleshy peridium opening at tb«
collapsing apex, sub-gelatinous within ; the sporidia included in oas
or more peridiola^ often including sporidiola; the thallua floocose,
effused, free.
£. pannoia, the Rose-Mildew, is found on the leaves of the 'vmom
species of rose. It is easily known by its shining dothy asfpect, whie^
is very different from the rest of the genus. On this account it ii
referred by Fries to Burotium, *"
K communis is an extremely common fungus, and is found <a
various kinds of herbaceous plants. It is not improbable that the
various forms of Brysiphe, which have been described according to the
species of plant on which they grow, have a common origin. The
same may be said of the forms of Uredo, jBcidium, and Pmxiaia.
[MlLDBW.l
The sub-order Byphomycetes of Berkeley and others includes manr
of the genera that are referred by Fries to the fourth order, Conitmi-
cetes. The first tribe, Cephalotrickei, includes the genera Isarm,
Anthinaf and Ceratium. The species of the first two are not numerous
or common. C^aHum hydnmaa is not uncommon on rotten wood.
The tribes Mucori, Demaiiei, and Mueedines consist of various gener«
of plants forming' moulds, mildews, blights, brands, &a [MiZdew;
MouLOiNESs ; Sfobbndonema.] Some of the spedes placed in th«^
tribes by Berkeley are described under Btssacbjs.
The tribe Sepidoniei indudes the genera SepidomiutUt Epochutai,
Psilonia, and Fusitporium. They have all a floocose myc^dium, with-
out any distinct sporidiferous filaments; and the sporidia, h»p&i
together, lying upon and in general springing fh>m the matrix. Tfa«
spedes of Fusisporium are found in decaying fruits and vegetables.
[Fungi; Entophtta.]
The last sub-order, Coniomycetes, embxaoes those Fungi whose spo-
ridia are produced beneath the epidermis of plants, and which in many
instances appear to be rather diseases of the tissue than indepen4ieflt
existences. The first sub-section or tribe is TubereulaHni* [Tcbeb-
cularinl] The second tribe, StUbosporei, consists of sporidia gload
together into a nucleus, without any covering, under iiie cuticle af
plants, at length burstiiig forth together with the gelatine or free
The genera of this tribe are Nemaspiyra, Septoria, Stilbospara, Didyma-
spariumf and Mdaneorium,
The third tribe, l^fXiridesmiei, have their sporidia chained together
into flood. The genera are Aregma^ Torulaf and SpiloececL
The fourth tribe, Bypodermii, includes those species'of Fungi which
are found underneath the cutide of living planta They ore said \fj
Fries to have " no proper vegetation, their sporidia arising from aa
anamorphosis of the cells of living vegetables." To this definiyon
Berkeley objects, and regards the species as distinct plants. The
principal genera are Puccinia, ^cilium, and Dredo. [JScidium;
PlJcoiNU; Funql]
GASTERO'POliA, the third class of Molluaks, according to the
system of Cuvier, who remarks that it is very numerous, and that xi
idea may be formal of it from the Slugs and Shell-Snails. Beforo ir«
proceed to the sections, or rather orders, into which Cuvier has sub-
divided this extensive congregation, it will be necessary to put the
reader in possession of his views of the conformation neceasary to
bring a molluscous animal within the class of Gasteropoda.
These moUusks generally creep upon a fleshy disc placed under the
belly ; but which sometimes takes the form of a fun-ow or that of a
vertical plate. The back is furnished with a mantle, which is mare
or less extensive, presents diverdties of form, and, in the greatest
number of genera, produces a shell. The head, placed in front, sbowi
itself more or less, according to its greater or less retirement under
the mantle, and is furnished with small tentacles, which are above
the mouth, and never surround it Their number ranges from two
to six, and they are sometimes altogether wanting. Their proper
use is only for touching, and, at the most, for smelling. The eyes are
very small, sometimes adhering to the head ; sometimes at the bsse,
or at the side, or at the point of the teutade ; and sometimes these
organs are altogether wanting. The podtion, the structure, and the
natm-e of the reftpixatory organs vary, and afford grounds for dividing
tho animals into manv families ; but they never have any other thsn
a single aortic hearty that is to say, placed between the pulmonary vein
and the aorta. The site of the apertures by which the organs of
generation come out and that of the vent vary ; but they are nearly
always on the right side of Uie body.
Many of the Gksteropods are absolutdy naked ; others have only a
concealed shdl; but the greater number cany a shell, which ii
capable of receiving and shdtering them.
These shells are produced in the thickness of the mantle ; some of
them are symmetrical, consistix^ of more pieces than one; others are
symmetrical, but formed of a single piece ; and there are also some
non-symmetrical, which in species where they are very concave, and
9S5
GASTEROPODA.
GASTEROPODA.
920
where they grow a long time, neceaaarily produce an oblique spire.
If the reader will imagine an oblique cone in which other cones are
Buccessively placed, always larger in a certain direction than in the
others, it wUl follow that the whole rolls itself upon the side which is
leasl The part on which the cone is rolled is called the Columella,
or Pillar : this is sometimes solid, and sometimes hollow. When it is
hollow, the open end of it is named the Umbilicus. The whorls of
the shell may remain nearly on the same plane, or may extend
towards the base of the columella. In the last case, the preceding
whorls are raised one above the other, and form what is called the
Spire, which is pointed in proportion to the more rapid descent and
small enlargement of the whorla Those shells with an elongated or
projecting spire are termed Turbinated Shells. When, on the con-
trary, the whorls remain nearly on the same plane, and are not
enveloped one within another, the spire is flat or even concave.
These are called Discoid Shells. When the upper part of each whorl
envelops the preceding ones, the spire is said to be concealed. That
part of the shell from which the animal comes forth is termed the
Aperture. When the whorls remain nearly on the same plane, the
animal, when it creeps, carries its shell disposed vertically, the
columella lying across the posterior part of the back ; and its head
passes under the border of the aperture opposed to the columella.
When the spire is elongated it is directed obliquely to the right in
almost all the species : a small number only have it directed to the
left when they creep ; these shells are called Reversed or Left*Handed
Shells. The heart is always on the side opposite to that where the
spire is directed. It is therefore ordinarily on the left side ; in the
reversed or left-handed shells it is on the right. The contrary of this
disposition holds good with regard to the organs of generation.
The organs of respiration, which are always situated in the last
whorl of we shell, receive the ambient element under its edge, some-
times by means of the mantle being entirely detached from the body
along the whole length of this edge, sometimes in consequence of its
being merely pierced by a hole. The border of the mantle is some-
times prolonged into a canal, so that the animal can advance to seek
the surrounding fluid without exposing either its head or foot beyond
the shell. For this purpose the shell, in such cases, has also on its
edge, near to that end of the oolumena (the base) which is opposed to
that whereto the spire tends (the apex), a notch or a canal for the
lodgment of that of the mantle. The canal is consequently on the
left in the ordinary species, and on the right in the reversed shells.
The animal being very flexible is able to vary the direction of its
shell, and most frequently when there is a notch or a canal it is
directed forwards ; the spire is thus behind, the columella on the left»
and the opposite border, or external lip, as it is termed by some con-
chologists, on the right. A directly contraiy disposition is manifested
in the Reversed Shells, and these, in consequence of this contrary
disposition, turn towards the left instead of turning towards the right,
as in the normal structure. It follows as a consequence that the
aperture of the shell, which is formed principally by the last whorl, is
more or lees large in proportion to the other whorls, accordingly as
the head or foot of the animal, which is to be constantly protruded
therefrom and retracted thereunto, is more or less voluminous com-
pared with the mass of the viscera which remain fixed within the
shelL The aperture is moreover wider or narrower in proportion as
the same parts are more or lees thick. There are shells whose aper-
ture is narrow and long; the foot^ in such cases, is delicate, and
doubles together for the purpose of re-admission. The greater
number of aquatic Gasteropoda with a spiral shell have an Operculum,
or separate piece, which is sometimes homy, sometimes oalcareous,
attached on the posterior part of the foot, and which shuts the shell
when the animal has r6-entered it and is entirely retracted within.
Cuvier, in continuation, remarks that there are Ghsteropods with the
sexes separate, and others which are hermaphrodites : of these last
some have the power of reproduction without the aid of a second
individual, while the others require a reciprocal copulation for the
continuation of the species. He adds that the organs of digestion
present as many dtfierences as those of respiration, and he divides the
class into the following orders : —
1. Les Pulmonis, PtUmonifera {Pulmobrcmchiaia of De Bkinville).
This order is distinguished from the MoUusks inasmuch as they
respire the elastic atmospheric air by means of a hole opened under
the border of their mantle, and which they dilate or contract at their
pleasure. They have consequently no branchise, or gills, but only a
net-work of pulmonary vessels, which creep around the walls and
principally upon the roof of their respiratory cavity. Some are
terrestrial, others aquatic ; but these last are obliged to come to the
surface of the water from time to time, in order to open the orifice of
their pectoral cavity for the purpose of respiration.
The Terrestrial Pulmoniferous MoUusks have all four tentacles ;
two or three only, of very small dimensions, have not permitted the
observer to see the lower pair. They are divided into those which
are naked, and those which are protected by a shell They axe all
hermaphrodites.
Those which have no apparent shell formed the great genus Limax
of Linnajus ; and of these every one may find examples in the common
8lug& [Ldllz.'I
ParmaeeUa and Tettaedla lead the way to those which hare a com-
plete and apparent shell, the borders of whose aperture, in the
majority of instances, are reflected into a little roll (bourrelet) when
the animal is adult These were placed by Linnasus under his great
genus Helix. The shell varies much in form*; being for instance sub-
globular or Bubdiscoid, as in many of the shell-smiils; or elongated
and pyramidal, as in BitUmutf &c. [Helioidje.]
The Aquatic Pulmoniferous MoUusks have only two tentacula, and
always come to the surface to breathe ; they da not therefore inhabit
deep waters, but live for the most part in the fresh waters or salt lakes,
or at least near the sides and mouths of rivers.
Cuvier goes on to give Onchidium, Buchanan {Ptrtmia of De Blain-
viUe) [Limax]. as an example of the Aquatic Pulmouiferous MolIii.<«ka
without shells.
Those with shells, which are sometimes discoid, as in Planorhitf or
elongated and pyramidal, as in Limnaa, ftc., he Ulustrates by the
genera Phyta, Scarabxus, AurictUa, and ConovtUut,
2. Nudibranchiata (Polybranchiata — Tritonia, kc, of De BlainviUe).
The MoUusks composing this order have no shell nor any pulmonary
cavity ; but their branohisB are naked, and placed upon some part of
the back. They are all hermaphrodites and marine. They often
swim reverseil, with the foot concave like a boat, at the surface, aiding
their progression with their mantle and tentacles as with oars.
8. Inferohranchiata,
This order presents nearly the same form and organisation as the
Dorides and Tritonia : but their branchis, instead of being placed
upon their backs, are arranged in two long rows of leaflet-Uke append-
ages on each side of the body under the projecting border of the
mantla Phyllidia and DiphyllidiOf Cuvier, belong to the Infenh
branehiata.
i, TectihranchicUa {Monophurijhranchtata of Do BlainviUe).
This order has the branchisB attached either along the right side or
upon the back, in the form of leaflets, which are more or less divided,
but not symmetrical The mantle covers the branchiae more or less,
and almost always contains in its thickness a small shell. The Tedi-
htwMhiata approach the PeetinibranehitUa in the form of the organs
of respiration, and Uve like them in the sea ; but the Tectibranehiata
are aU hermaphrodites, like the NudibranehicUa and Pulmonifcra,
The genera PUvrobranehm, Cuv., PteurobrcmcheBo, Meckel, PUuro-
branchidiumf De BlainviUe; Aplytia, Linn.; DolabeUaf Lam.;
Notarchus, Cuv. ; BuncUella, Blainv. ; Akerct, Mull. ; BulUea, Lam. ;
part of Bulla, Linn. ; Oasteroptera, Meek. ; Umbrella, Lam. ; Oattro-
pUx, Blainv.; — belong to this order. [Bubsatblla; Buludm;
TeCTXBRANCHIATA; PATSLLIDiB.]
5. ffeteropoda, LauL {Nectopoda, Blainv.).
Distinguished from aU the others, inasmuch as their foot, instead
of forming a horizontal disc, is compressed into a muscular vertical
plate, which serves them as a fin, and at the edge of which, in many
species, a dilatation, in form of a hollow oone, represents the disc of
the other orders. Their branchin, formed of feathery lobes, are
situated on the posterior part and left side of the back, directed
forwards ; and immediately behind them are the heart and a liver of
no great suse, with a part of the viscera and the internal organs of
generation. Their body, lined with a muscular coat, is elongated,
terminating most frequently by a compressed talL Their mouth is
formed by a muscular mass, and is furnished with a tongue beset with
smaU hooks. The oosophagus is very long, the stomach deUcate in
texture, and two tubes at the right side of the packet of viscera give
exit to the excrements and to the ova or to the proUfic fluid. They
geueraUy swim with the back downwards and the foot above, and
they can swell out their bodies by filling them with water by means
which are not as yet weU understood.
To this description Cuvier adds, that the method of swimming
above described having induced P^ron to believe that the natatoiy
plate was on the back, and the heart and branchiss under the belly,
nas given rise to many errors as to the proper place of these animitlV
Cuvier adds, that the examination of their nervous system led him to
the opinion expressed in his memoir on the MoUutca, that they were
analogous to the (Jasteropods. A more complete dissection, ho observes,
made since, and that given by PoU, in his third volume, have com-
pletely confirmed this ooiyecture, and he states that the £ict is that
the ffeteropoda differ but Uttle from the TecUbranchiata. M. LauriUard
beUeves that the sexes are always separate. Cuvier also remarks, that
M. De BlainviUe makes of his (Cuvier^s) ffeteropoda a famUy which he
names Nectopoda, and unites them with another &mUy which he
names Pteropoda, and which comprehends none of Cuvieris Pteropoda,
except LimacvML To this, Cuvier observes, M. de BiainvUle refers
ArgonaitUa, upon what conjecture Cuvier knows not.
Forskal places aU the ffeteropoda of Cuvier under his genua
PUrotrw^ea, [Cabinabia ; Atlanta ; Hstxbopoda.]
6. PecUnibranchiata {Paraeephalopkora Dioica, Blainv.).
This order is by far the most numerous division of the Qasteropods
for it embaoes nearly aU those which havc'spiral univalve shells, and
many of those whose shells are simply couicaL Their bronchiao
w
GASTEROPODA.
OASTEROSTEUS.
%Si
composed of numerous leaflets or fringes (lani^res) ranged in panllel
order like the teeth of a comb (whence their name), are attached upon
one, two, or three lines, according to the genus, to the roof of the
pulmonary cavity, which occupies the last whorl of the shell, and
which forms a large opening between the border of the mantle and
the body. Two genera only {Cydottoma and Hdicina) have, in the
place of brancmsB, a vascular net covering the roof of a cavity
similar in other respects : these are the only genera which breathe air ;
iW. the others respire water.
All the PectinihrandiioUa have two tentacula, and two eyes some-
times carried on their proper peduncles, a mouth in form of a
proboscis, which is more or less elongated, and the sexes separate.
The intromissive organ of the male, which is attached to the side of
the neck, cannot ordhiarily be retracted into the body, but is reflected
in the bnnchial cavity, and is sometimes very lazge, as may Se seen
in the figure of Buccinwn undcUum [Entomostomata ; Buccinum],
which will give agenexvl idea of the form of a marine Pectinibranchiate
Testaceous HoUiuk with a turbinated shell PtUvdina, indeed, can
cause this organ to re-enter the body by an orifice pierced at its right
tentade. The rectum and oviduct of the female creep also along the
right side of the branchial cavity, and between them and the branchis
is a particular organ composed of cellules containing a very viscous
liquor, serving to form a common envelopment or case, which includes
the eggs, and which the animal deposits with them. Several of these
deposited ovaries present very complicated and wingular forms, and
may be often found on the sea-beach.
The tongue of the Fectinibranehiata is armed with small hooks, and
files down the hardest bodies by slow and repeated friction.
The greatest diflf^renoe among these animals consists in the presence
or absence of the canal formed by a prolongation of the border of the
pulmonary cavity of the left side, and which passes by means of a
similar canal, or py a notch in the shell, so as to enable tiie animal to
respire without leaving the shelter of its shelL Some of the genera
again are without an operculum ; and the species also exhibit differ-
ences in the filaments, fringes, and other ornaments exhibited on their
head, their foot, or their mantle. These mollusks are arranged under
many families, according to the form of their shells, which, generally
speaking, present a sufficiently constant relation to the form of the
animaL But the student should remember that this is not a rule
.without exception, as Dr. Gray has pointed out in his interesting
paper in the ' Philosophical Transactions.'
In this work the reader will find the numerous genera — ^the leading
ones at least — of this most extensive order, principally under the
tities of the different families into which they have been separated by
Eoologists, and sometimes under tiieir generic appellations.
7. TybtUtbranchitUa,
Cuvier considers that this order should be detached from the
Pectinibranehiataf to which they nevertheless bear great resemblance,
because their shell (which is in the form of a tubo more or less
irregular, the commencement of which only is turbinated or spiral) is
fixed to different foreign bodies ; they have in consequence no true
copulative oi^gana, and fecundate themselves. VenMtiu, MoffUut, and
Siliquaria (all marine) belong to this order.
8. Seuiibrtmehiata (Paraeephalof^ara ffermaphroditieitf with
exception of tiie Chitons, De Blainv.).
This order consists of the Gasteropods which bear a near relation-
ship to the Pectinibntnchiata in the shape and position of the branchiae,
as well as in the general form of the body, but which have the sexes
united in the same individual The shells of this order are always
without an operculum, very wide in the opening (some of them may
be said to be almost all aperture), and many of them have shells
without any turbination, so that they cover the animal, and especiaUy
its brsnohite, like a shield. The heart is traversed by the rectum, and
receives the blood by two auricles, as in the generality of Bivalves.
Under this order Cuvier, in his last edition of the ' R^gne Animal,'
places the ffaliotida (Ear-Shells), 8i(maiia, PisHtreUa, Emarginula,
and Parmophorut. [Fosubellida ; PATBLLiDiS.]
9. Cydolranchiata (Cervicobranchiatti, Blainv.).
Branchio in form of small leaflets or little pyramids, attached in a
cordon more or less complete under the borders of the mantle,
nearly as in the InfembranddiUaf from which the CycUibrcaichicUa are
distinguished by their hermaphroditism ; for they have no organs of
copulation, and can reproduce the species without having recourse to
a second individual The heart does not embrace the reiotum, but it
varies in situation. [CHiroif ida ; Patbllida]
A general view of the structure and relations of the Shell-Fish is
given under Mollusca.
The following is a synopsis of the families and genera of GatUriipoda
as given in Mr. Woodward's 'Manual of the Mollusca' : —
Order Pro60bbakc7Biata.
Section A. SiphonottomcUa,
Family 1. Strwnhida,
Genera, Strombvs, Pterocerat, JioiteUaria, Seraphyt,
Family 2. MwicUUe.
Genera, Murex, PUania, Jlanella, Triton, Foiciolarict, TwbintUa,
CaneeUaria, Trichotropis, Pyrvla, Fusua,
Family 3. Buccinida.
Genera, Buccinum, Pteudoliva, AnoUue, Halia^ Terebra, Ehunu,
Natta, Phoi, Bingicula (?), Purpura, Purpurina. Monocerog,
Pedicularia, Ricinula, Planaxit, MagiluM, Casris, OntMcia, OUharg^
Cauidaria, Dolium, ffarpa, Columbdla, OUvetf AnciUaria,
Family 4. Conidas,
Genera, C<mu9, PUurotomcL
Family<5. VoltUidce,
Genera, Valuta, Oymba, Mitra, Volvaria, MarginMa,
Family 6. OyproHdce.
Genera, Cyprcea, Erato, (hndum.
Section B. HolottomcUa,
Family 1. Naticidce,
Genera, NcUica, Sigardus, Lamellaria, Narica, Vdulina,
Family 2. Pyramiddlidce.
Genera, PyramideUa, Ododomia, Chcmnitzia, StgUna^ LaroncMia,
Machroeheilut.
FamU^ 8. CerUhxada,
Genera, (7en//uttm, Poiamides, Neriucsa, FadiffiellOf Aporrkau,
Struthiolart<L
Family 4. Mdaniada.
Genera, Melainia, Paludomut, MdanoptU,
Family 5. Turriidlidce.
Genera, Turritdla, Adit, Cacum, Vermdua, Siliquaria, Scalaria.
Family 6. Liiorinidce.
Genera, Litorina, Solarium, Phortu, Lacuna, Litiopxa, Rittoa^
Skenea, Truncatdla, Lifhoglyphut,
Family 7. Paludinida,
Genera, Paludina, AmpuUaria, Amphibola, Valvata^
Family 8. Neritidce.
Genera, Nerita, Pileolru, Neritina, Navicdla.
Family 9. Turhinida;.
Genera, Turbo, Phatiandla, Imperator, Trochut, Rotdloy Mono-
donta, Ddphinula, Adeorhit, EuompfMlus, Stomatdla, Broderipi<L
Family 10. Baliotida!.
Genera, Ifaliotii, Stomatia, ScitaureUa, PUurotomatna, Ifurckiioni'i
Trochotoma, Cirrui, lanthina.
Family 11. Fitiurellida,
Genera, Fiuurdla, Pundurdla, Rimula, Emarginula, Parmopikoni,
Family 12. Calyptrceidce.
Genera, Calyptrasa, Crepldula, Piltopiia, liifponyx.
FamilvlS. PatdlidcB.
Genera, Patella, Acmcsa, Gadinia, Siphonaria.
Family 14. J)aUaliad<e.
Genusy Dentalium.
Family 15. ChitcnidcB.
Genus, Chiton.
Most of the families and more important genera are given und<;r
their proper names in this work.
GASTeROSTEUS, a genus of Fishes, with hard bheeka, belonging
to the division Aeanthopteryffiu The common name of the species
in this country is Stickleback. This genus is distinguished by the
following characters : — ^Anterior dorsal ropresented only by free spines;
body generally scaleless, but protected moro or less at the sides by
shield-like plates ; ventrals reduced to a single spine ; head without
spines or tuberoles ; branchiosteg^us membrane with three rays.
Several species of Stickleback are found in the ponds and streams
of this country, and one species is found in the salt-water ; they are
very active and voracious, and live upon aquatic insects and wormsi
The most common species is the Three-Spined Stickleback (Gadtr'
otteui aculeatut, Linn.), which is distinguished by the body being pro-
tected at the sides with shield-like plates, and the possession of three
spines on the back. It is of an oUve-colour above and silveiy-white
l^neath, and varies from 2 to 8 inches in length. In the breeding
season the males assume a pink hue on the under parts of the body,
and the general colouring of the upper parts is brighter, and often
green. According to Bloch this species spawns in Apnl and June ; and
according to Cuvier in July and Augusts
The number of scaly plates varies in the sides of the body, and is
supposed by some authors of high authority to afford specific charac-
ters. The following are the principal varieties or species establi^ed
by Cuvier and Yarrell chiefly upon this character.
Q.trachuruB, Rough-Tailed Stickleback. (Yarrell, 'Brit Fishes,'
vol L p. 76.) The scaly plates extending the whole length of the
sides ; in number about 80.
Q. Bemiarmaius, Half- Armed Stickleback (Yarrell). Lateral plates
extending to a vertical line joining the vent and commencement of the
soft dornd ; in number from 12 to 15.
a IduruB, Smooth-Tailed Stickleback (YarreU). Lateral plates
extending only as far as the ends of the rays of the pectoral fins,
where these last are laid back.
O, hrachycentruB, Short-Spined Stickleback (Yarrell). Lateral plates
not extending beyond the pectorals; dorsal and ventral spines very
short
The above are regarded as varieties of the Gaderodeut aenUatut,
Linn., by Mr. Jenyns, who observes that that species " is subject to
920
OASTRIC JUICK
GASTROCH^NA.
sso
great yariatioD, not only in the number of lateral plates, but in several
other less obvious respects. The former may occasionally be found of
every intermediate number between that which characterises the
Q. IHurut, Cuv., smd that which appears in the O, trachunu of the
same author. This number moreover is sometimes found constant
in specimens which differ remarkably in other respects ; at other times
varying, when all other characters remain the same. From these
circumstances combined, I feel satisfied that the above are mere
varieties, notwithstanding the high authorities on which they stand
recorded as distinct species." (< Manual of British Vertebrate
Animals,' p. 849.)
A writer in the 'Magazine of Natural HiBtoiy/ voL iii p. 829,
relates some interesting observations illustrative of the habits of these
little fishes whilst in confinement in a tub. " When a few are first
turned in, they swim about in a shoal, apparently exploring their new
habitation. Suddenly one will take possession of a particular comer
of the tub, or, as it will sometimes happen, of tiie bottom, and will
instantly commence an attadc upon his companions ; and if any one
of them ventures to oppose his sway, a regular and most furious
battle ensues; Uie two combatants swim round and round each other
with the greatest rapidity, biting and endeavouring to pierce each other
with their spines, whidi on these occasions are projected. I have
witnessed a battle of this sort which lasted several minutes before
either would give way ; and when one does submit^ imsgination can
hardly conceive the vindictive fuiy of the conqueror, who, in the
most penevering and unrelenting way, chases his rival from one part
of the tub to another, until fairly exhausted with fatigue. They also
use their spines with such fatal effect, that^ incredible as it may appear,
I have seen one during a battle absolutdy riphis opponent quite open,
so that he sank to the bottom and died. I hare occasioniJly known
three or four parts of the tub taken possession of by as many other
little tyrants, who guard their territories with the strictest vigilance ;
and the slightest invasion invariably brings on a batUe. These are
the habits of the male fish alone; the females are quite pacific;
appear fat, as if full of roe ; never assume the brilliant colours of the
male, by whom, as fiur as I have observed, they ai« unmolested."
Dr. James Stark discovered near Edinbui^gh a new species of the
present genus, which greatly resembles the common species, but is
rather smaller, and has four spines on the back. It is the O, tpinvlonu
(Four-Spined Stickleback) of Tarrell and Jenyns.
A still smaller species— the Ten-Snined Stickleback (G. pungitius,
Linn.) — is distinguished, as its English name implicvi, by the possession
of ten spines on the back, and these are short and of equal length.
This, as well as the other species of the genus, is occasionally found
in the salt-water. It appears to be pretty generally distributed
throughout England.
Lastly may be noticed the Fifteen-Spined Stickleback (O, apinachia,
Linn.), which is also found in England, a comparatively large species,
being 5 or 6 inches in length, of an elongated and slender form, and
having the snout much produced. The fifteen spines on the bac^ are
small and short ; the fins are proportionally large.
This species appears to be confined to the salt-water, and feeds upon
small Onutaeea, as well as the eggs and fry of other fishes. It
constitutes the subgenus Spinachiti, and is the Spinaehia wlgarit of
Fleming.
OASTRIC JUICE or ACID. [Diokbtion.1
GASTROBRANCHUS. [Pbtromtzida ; Mtxinb.]
GASTROCHiE'NA, a genus of Acephalous MoUusca belonging to
the order LamdlibranchicUa, It was established by Spengler. Lamarck
places it between Pholas and SoUn, and Cuvier between Fiiivlana and
Teredina. M. Deshayes, in his edition of the ' Animaux sans V ertibres,'
says that it is evident that Lamarck came to rery erroneous conclu-
sions as to this genus. The animal, observes M. Deshayes, has two
posterior very short siphons when it is contracted ; the lobes of the
mantle are united up to the gape of the valves and even a little higher;
this gaping of the valves as well as the divarication of the lobes of the
mantie, gives passage to a great short cylindrical foot, like that of the
PholadtM ; but this opening is not at all destined for the passage of
the siphons, as Lamarck supposed.
Mr. G. B. Sowerby (' Genera of Recent and Fossil Shells') remarks,
that the genera PKolas, Mya, MytHut, and Chama, have by turns
served as a receptacle of the shells of lliis genus. He observes that
Lamarck has adopted Spengler^s name, but has placed it next to
Pholcu, apparentiy not having known that the animal forms its own
testaceous tube, either as a miing to the hollow it has previously per-
forated, or as a covering for its shell in those instances in which it
has not perforated at aU, but in which it has taken up its abode, as it
frequently does, within some spiral univalve. Mr. Sowerby is farther
of opinion, that the fact of the shell being inclosed in a testaceous
tube of its own depositing, renders it proper to remore it into
Lamarck's family of 7V&teote, to which indeed it appears to Mr.
Sowerby to be mors nearly related, though he notices a very consi-
derable analogy between the shelly tube of Lamarck's Tubicoke, and
the coriaceous epidermis, whicdi not only in a great measure covers
the sh*U, but also indoees the tubes of the animal of Lamarck's
Phoiadaeeaf and Mr. Sowerby oonsequentiy thinka that the two
families might rery properly be united.
Professor Owen, in his paper on ClavofftUoy remarks how closelj that
HAT. BISf. DIY. VOL. II.
form follows the modifications which have been observed in Ooitnh
choena. [Clayagslla.]
Cuvier says that it appears that the Ocutroehana constanUy have a
calcareous tube, and quotes Dr. Turton, M. Deshayes, and M. Audouin,
as having observed it.
M. Rang savs that all the Oattroehcma have not a calcareous tube,
though all of them burrow in stones idfler tibe manner of Pholades.
If this is to be taken literally, it does not exactly accord with the fact ;
for sometimes the animal does not burrow at all, at others (and very
frequentiv) it burrows in marlrepores. M. Rang adds that two of the
species which belonged to the genus Fittvlana of Lamarck are now
arranged in this, and that this arrangement is due to M. de Blainville.
These two species, he says, are Fiatuiana clava and F. ampuUaria.
Of these, Fuiulana elava is referred among the synonyms to Oaatnh
ehtgna by Lamarck, and FuttUana ampuUaria is declared by M. Des-
hayes to be a true FisttUanOf but remarkable in this, tiiat, according
to circumstances, it forms a free tube sunk in the sand, or perforates
calcareous bodies, and its tube serves as a lining to the cavity which
it inhabits ; this species therefore, he observes, would belong to the
FiUulana in the first case, and to tike genus Oa$irochama in the second,
if indeed that genus be preserved.
M. Rang states that M. Charles Des Moulins, who a long time ago,
and before the observations made upon this subject, had discovered
the existence of a tube in the Ocutroehamee, had shown him this tube,
not only in the living species on the French coast, but in the fossil at
Merignae. Following De Blainville, M. Rang would divide the genus
Oattroehtgna into the two following groups : —
0. Species whose shell is smooth and without a distinct tube.
Example, OoMtrochcena cuneiformU, &c.
fi. Species whose shell is striated from the umbo to the
base, and contained in a distinct tube.
Example, Ocutrochema dava.
M. de Blainville states that the animal of Gattrochana has evidentiy
the greatest relationship to that of Scueicava ; but as it is not entirely
contained in its shell, it often supplies the deficiency by forming an
artificial tube adhering to the waUs of the cavity which it inhabits in
calcareous stones.
This tube, in the opinion of M. de Blainville, offers only an acci-
dental character, and would thus make of species, or even of individuals
which are provided with it, FittiUana of Lamarck. Thus, he observes,
M. Deshayes has proposed to suppress the genus Oattroehcma, but he
would consider it more convenient not to admit the genus Fitttdana ;
firsts because it is founded upon the presence of a tuhKB ; and secondly,
because it was established some time after Oeutrochcma. He would
however prefer its restriction as he has restricted it in his ' Malacologie.'
In uniting the species characterised by the true shell, whether it have
an external tube or not, there exist already, he remarks, many species
of known Oatirockamte, both living in the seas of warm climates and
fossil in his country. M. Defriince, he states, nevertheless quotes
one fos^ species only at Grignon, and an analogue ; and he concludes
by observing that Otutrochana diuva would perhaps, if it were better
known, form a small distinct genus.
Mr. G. B. Sowerljv (' ZooL Proa,' 1884) describes five new species
brought home bv lur. Cuming ftvm South America aad the Gallapagos
Islands and Lord Hood's Islands,
The following is M. Bang's definition of the genus : —
Animal oval, havii^g the mantie closed with a vei^ small anterior
rounded opening for the passage of a small, conical, or linguiform
f<>pt : the tubes dongated and united throughout.
Shell delicate, oblique, oval,.ouneiform, equivalve, veiy inequilateral,
gaiping ezt^itt^y at its antero-inferior part ; umbones well marked ;
hinge straight and linear, without teeth ; an apophysis often showing
itself below the'hinge in the interior of each valve ; ligament external ;
muscular impressions distinct, obnneotad by a slightly marked pallial
impression excavated posteriorly.
Sometimes a calcareous tube, ampulliform, short, with a rounded
aperture, enveloping ibe shell and lining the cavity of the stone.
O. modiolxna nas been found on the English usd Irish coasts. It
is a common inhabitant of the Mediterranean.
< Messrs. Forbes and fianfoy adopt Goiiroekama ns the type of a
faihily, Ooitro^anidcg, in which they include with M. Deshayes not
only .tiie genera Aapergilium, Clavagdla, and OattrochanOf but also
^aiietLva; aad express the opinion that Petrieola, and probably
Vtinerypii, have strong claims to a similar position. The following is
tile defini^on given of this fkmily in Forbes and Hanley's ' British
MoiluBca' : —
r
"Th^ animals of this fiunily are oblong or daviform, and often
provided with veiy long siphons, united ahnost to their extremities^
where their orifices are ornamented with drrhi The mantle is dosed
in front, except a small opening for the passage of a vexy small
digitifon^ foot, very different from that of the Pholoi tribe. The
maxgin of the mantie around this opening is plain. The shell is
equivalve, and often gaping, with vidves often verir inequilateral,
united by a simple rumment^ or in some oases a tootiied hinge, often
variable, even in the species of a single genus. They have no spoon-
shaped apophysis under the beaks, nor accessory plates behind them.
A calcareous tube sometimes protects the valves, and in certain genera
f 8 0
fjl OECARCIITUa.
eoUectian of the lata Bit. lAndnloim Quildin^ Ooe ol Uie bottlaa
in whicli one of thma was depoiited wu latwllad bj ths Uat-mentionod
gautlemaii, ' Eggs and Toung of > Land-Cnb cot uudec^oing Hsto-
marphoMS.' From thU specimea Mr, WBatvrood obtuned (%gs, ui<i
young orabe evidently juirt hutched, and othera at a rather later stage
af tbeir growth. The eggs were of a dark reddish colour, showing
through the outer integument the rudimentAl limbs of ■ future
anim^ of a paler colour. On removing the thin transparent pellicle
which surrounded one of tli«a eggs, the eyes were most conapicuous,
the tail was seen extended as a oarrow plate, nearly reaching to the
eyes, and along its nides lay the large anterior cheliferoui and the
four following simple pain of limbe. The eiisUng organs, although
perfectly discemible, occupied only a amall portion of one aide of Uia
egg, ita greater part being filled with hardened matter composed of
minute molecular graios. The animal was in a suffloiently forward
state of deTelopment not to allow the least doubt to be eotertained
aa to the nature of these limbi, nor did any organs appear answering
to the two large split pain of natatory organs of Zoia. The branohiie,
in 1 Sesh; and unorganised state, were also found at the base of the
l^a The eggs were 1 ( lines in diameter.
Hr. Westwood gives in his ' Memoir ' Gguraa of the %g, and of the
young crab in progreeaiTe stages of growth.
As an article of food soma of the Land-Crabs, when in season and
veil nourished, may ba considered as combining the qualities of
wholesomeness and delicious flavour. We have converaed with men
of various tastes who have partaken of this luxurious food, and all
agree in describing it as exquiait«. Indeed it appears that when
■imply cooked In its own juioes, in its own shell, it requires do con-
diment but a sqiieeia of the fVagiant lime (o make it one of the best
of dEahea. " When the Black Crab {OecarcinuM raricata) is bt," says
Dr. Patrick Browne, " and in a perfect state, it surpasses everything
of the sort in flavour and delicacy ; and ftequently joins a little of
the bitter with ita native richness, which renders it not only more
Sfreeable in general, but males it sit extremely easy upon the stomach.
They are frequently boiled and served np whole ; but are commonly
stewed when served up at the more sumptuoua tables." Land-Crabs
have been brought alive to this country, and have been exhibited in the
Zoological Gardens in the Regent's Park, London. The question haa
been asked why are not these craba imported for our tables aa
regularly oa turtle I Barrels with grass and other vegetables, such
as they are generally kept in, when there is no better convenience, in
their native oount^, would not take much room on the deck of
vesseh ; and if the crabs were collected at the proper time and allowed
sufficient moisture, and only sufficient to keep them in health, an
ordinary voyage would bring them to ua, most probably, in very fair
condition.
M. Hilne-Edwards separates the Oecordnians hito tha following
Ufa (Latreille).— Carapace much wider than it ia long, of a anb-
oval shape, and very mudi elevated ; front narrower than m the other
Qocarcinians, very much inclined, and nearly semicircular; orbits
rather large, and open externally below their external angle; anterior
fu«et(« suhoval, small, and separated by a small triangular prolon-
gation from tha epistome ; the external antenna occupies Uie orbitary
internal canthus; the buccal frame it of a rhomboidal form; the
aecond and third joint of the external jaw-feet are quadrilateral,
nearly of the same size, and terminate on the internal side by a
straight border ; the fourth joint ia inserted at the external angle of
tha preoeding, and is applied against ita anterior border; tha feet
present nothing particular, except that the pincers area little widened
at the end and slightly spoon-Bhaped, and that the tarsi are flattened,
not Bpinous, and nearly of the same form as in Ocspodt; thoracic
branchife five ; the membrane which lines tha vault of the branchial
cavity ia folded below and within, so as to form at its lower part a
•ort of gutter or troujjb. (Milne-Edwards.)
OGCAKCITTUS. Kt
Ufa luu {Han^rave). — M. Milne-Edwardi conaiders this to be tha
Cancer Ui^'amnd Oanctr eardatug ol Linninus, Cancer cordattu of Herbat,
(kfpode cardaia of Latreille (' Hiat. Nat. doi Crust et Ins.'), and Ufa
v,na of the same aathor (' Encye. Method.'), and OKarcinni JJfa of
Lamarck. He observes that M. Latreille cites his Oci/poiU ftMor as
one of the synonyms of Ufa una, but that he (M. Milne-Edwards)
is inclined to believe that it is rather rsferrible to Vf<t imii.
Tba lateral edges of the carapace in this spedea are furnished with
a amall projeding and finely-dentilated crest. Ptarygoatomian regions
very gimnulons. Manua spiny above and within. Feet hairy below,
moderate in length ; the Ihird pair rather looger than the otiiera.
Siie, 2 inches (French). The Ufa una is a native of South America.
CbnJuoma (Latreille). — Carapace more elevated and square than in
the greater part of the same tribe. Buccal frame in the diape of a
long squared figure, with its lateral edges straight The second joint
of the external jaw-feet narrowed anteriorly, and the third, which is a
little shorter than the preceding, widening from behind forwards, so
that these organs leave between them, in the middle at the buccal
apparatus, a wide space with nearly the form of a lozenge ; the third
joint, which is neariy oordlfcrm, is notched on its anterior border, and
gives insertion at its external angle to the fourth joint, which like tha
euocaeding ones always renuuns exposed. Front very large and nearly
straight. Antennary foasettes transversal, and separated by a Bemi-
circular and very vnde surface. Feet of tha third and fourth paire
longest ; the tarsi quadrilateral and very spiny. BrKnohin placed
under the vault of the aidea, aevan on each side, the first being
ordinarily very small and the iaat two very long.
The species of this genus live in the woods, and dig deep and
oblique holes, whence they come not forth except at night. (Milne-
Bdwarda.)
C. Camiftr. This, according to If. Hilne-Edwards, is the Cancer
Camifex of Herbst ; Ocypodt eordata, Oeeam«v4 Camifex, and Oardi-
tomaCam^tx of Idtreille; and he cites also ^Korcintu hirliptt at
Lamarck, as a synonym, but with a query, — Carapace very much
elevatsd, and its BUrnice very much curved from before backwards,
hut nearly horixontol tranaversaly : its lateral edges marked by a pro-
jecting and elevated line. A small tooth behind the external orbitary
angle. Four rows of spinas upon the tarsi ; the two lower not nume-
rous. Pincers lar^ on one side. Manus very large. Fingers touching
nearly Uiroughout their length. Length, 2 Inches (French). (Milna-
Ed wards.)
It is found in the neighbourhood uf Pondicherry .
Canotr Sydromvi of Herbst, in the opinion of M. Milne-Edwards,
is avidentl^ a species approximating closely to tha preceding, if indeed
it can ba distiognishcd from it.
Carditoma Gitaniuini, which inhabits the Antilles, is mora than
three inches in length, and the claws of the mole are larger than tha
body, very much curved, and not touching except at their extremity.
OscorcAdwi.— Carapace more oval and less elevated than in tiir pre-
ceding genera. Front of moderate length, straight, and very much
inclined. Antennary fossaties rounded, and separated by a small
triangular prolongation of the ^nt. Orbits small ; their inferior
border much less projecting than in the preceding genera, and leaving
between its internal angle and tha axteinal antenna a luve and deep
notch. Buccal frame nut so clearly drcumacribed as ordinarily, and
rather circular than square. External jaw-feet with a wide apace
between them ; their third joint much less than the second, nearly
quadrilateral, Uttle or not at all narrowed backwards, and deeply
notched at its anterior edge, at the middle of which ia inserted the
■ucceeding joint, which is exposed.
G. Lalandii. Carapace inclining to oval, and without a creat on ita
M . QKCKOTID^
Utenl ad^ Feet itioDgj piticen Urge, cjlindne*.!, taberculous,
iDd tonohuig throughout tbeir length; raterior edge of the unu
Dodoltnu ; inoeeeding feet dentilmtad on the edges, thoaa of the third
p»ir the longest. Six rows of dent^tians od the tsrsL Colour
brownishred. Length rather mora than three inches. (Uilue-
EdwKrfs.)
It is fouDd it) BniiL
lidet. EVont rerj strongly oiirred below. OrUts deep, inalining to
oval, ud without t. natiii on the eitartuU side. Interns] sulwnv
DMrty hidden under the front, which hu » oasll proUuigatiou thkt
goes to join the epistome. The dispoettioti of the sxtemBl antenoB
uid thAt of the canthni of the orbit nearly the Mum as in the praoeding
genni. Bnocel frame nearly dronUr, and not elaarlj sepanted from
the pterygostomian regions. Extenud jaw-fbet verr wide, but with a
s[au)e between tham ; their second joint completely corers the loo-
c»dingjoint^ which are ioMrtad CO Itsintunalsarfaoe. The eitemal
appendage of then organs is hiddttl ondsr their Moond joint, and its
extremity scarcely orerpawQi it Feet presentiiu[ noOiing remarkable,
excepting that their edges are armed with spinlform (aaUu
It is an inhabitant of the Antilles and Australaaia.
a. mrieola ; Oanctr tetrtitru, Saba ; CaiKtr mricolo, Linugus ; the
Laud-Crab, Sloane; the Black or Hountain-tSrab, Browne; Cnbe
Violet (f), LabaL Tani artned with sii rows of spiniform teeth.
lotetnal edgs of the third joint of the jaw-feet without any remark-
able fiinira. Carapace rery large. A few teeth c
of the carpui, Length lather mora than three inches.
purplish or reddish-riolel^ or yellow washed with red.
Edwaida.)
It is found in the Antillea.
Lutd-Tnli {Guareinua mrieola).
Fouil (leraraniatu.— H. Dennaraat, In his ' Hiatolra Naturelle dea
Cruitac^ Fossilea,' describes and figures a spedes which he notion aa
being snfflcieiitly common in collectlona under the name of 0«ar-
ciiwt (rupinofiu. The aame author, in hii ' Considdiatiogi O^n^nles
aur la Clasae des Crustac<ie,' alludes to this figure and deacription;
and obeerres that he has arranged the fossil, with doubt, under the
H. Milne-Edwarda (' Histoire Naturelle des Cms-
mate more to the genus Pit%idogTt^itui.
OECKOTID^ a natural family of Saurian Reptiles, belonging to
Dray's sub-order Packf^oua, and the tribe Nyditaura,
Their head ii wide and fiatteued, with the mauth wide ; the nostrils
are dirtlnct and lateral ; the eyes large, hardly aumunded by ahort
lids, the lower edge of which in the greater number of species does
not project outwards, the pupil sometimes rounded, but moat tm-
quently dentilatsd, linear, and lightly fringed ; and the anditory
opening bordered with two folds of the skin. The teeth are small,
equal, compressed, sharp at the point, entire, and plantfld in the
internal edge of the jawa : there are none on the palate. The tongue
Their neck is apparently little, in oonsequence of Uie width of the
back part of the head and the squareness of the shouldsis. Their
body la thick and short, deprsssed, and low on the legs, with a belly
fiat below, dragging on the ground, and largest in the middle. There
is no crest on the huk. The tail Taries, but ia not long, and often has
*_ij oironlar depressions, biit nerer a doraal — '
and fumiahed with
imbricatod platei ; the nails *aiy, hut
GECKOTIDiG. na
•urfMea in ereiy direction, or to remain atatlonary on them with the
back downward^ after Uie manner of a common houacfly.
The ikin is defended by equal granular scales, moat frequently
interspersed with other tubercular scales, the pointa blunt or angular.
There are femoral pores, or pom in tmnl. of the vent, on the same line
in the mqority of species, and mart frequently in the malef only.
The limbs and sides are sometimes bordered with fringed membranes.
Skeleton. — The akuU of the Qfdeolida ia marked by aonie peculiar
charaoters. The bones are well defined, nor do the sutures seem to
be oblitented by age. In general oontour it approai^es the skull of
the CrocadiUda by its width, its flatnesa, and its length ; its particular
nesmblanoea to the same f»xt in that family are to be found in the
disposition of the orbits and in the articulation of the jawa. The
exoavationa for the eyes are vary large and apparently mcomplete,
insamuoh as the orbital ftmme is not entirely bony in its back part,
nor has It, so to speak, any flooring, su that when deprived of the
softer parts the canty oom^unicatea with the mouth. The articula-
tion of the jaw ia quite baokwarda, and the os quadiatum or intararti-
oulap bona is wide, abort, and hollowed on its posterior surface, for
the purpose of noeiTing the muade, whose office it is to open the jawa
and keep them open. The skull difieia from that of ths other limrds
generdy in the extreme smallneas of the jiiga] and temporal bones,
aad In having the parietal bones divided longitudiually into two.
a,eranlam; »,lov>Tja*; i, a lootb SDUTRed. [Car., 'OBs-Fni.')
The vertebra) vary in number, and, according to Meckel, their body
is hallowed into two conical cavities, very neany like those of flahes:
the spinal column ii without any spinous praceaaes or projsotioas.
The drit three or four oenical vertebra only are without &lse ribs or
traiuTarse articulated apophyses. These are gradually developed, and
go on increasing in length and curvature to the fifth or seventh, but
none of them are actut^y joined to the great anterior portion of the
sternum. Those which follow reach and are articulated with that
bone. They are succeeded by the ftm or abdominal ribs, which nearly
equal in number the vsrtebno which precede the pelvis, at leaatin the
Banded Oecko.
The sternum in the Common Qecko {Platydactylut gvUaiut of
Cuvter; ftcjto vena at Herrem and Qrayj, consiBta of a very solid
plate, which receivea anteriorly and laterally In two angular notches -
the coracoid bone^ which ara wide and delicate, and the clavicles,
which are narrow, elongated, and Battened, mora especially at their
eternal extremity. The rhomboid and backward portion of this
atemal plate affords attachment on the two posterior facings to three
pain of riba. From the posterior or abdominal angle of this bone
two smalt parallel bones or sternal prolongations are given ofi', along
which threx other pairs of ribs are affiiad by ligaments. AAer these
ail pairs of sternal ribs come aeven other ii»i.n, which are curved at
their free or abdominal extremity into an obtuae angle, so that Muj
are at this end directed forwards without any junction to a mesial
line, as in the Chameleons. H. Dum^ril saya tbat generally he has
only cinmted 17 riba, but he observn that theiv are 24 in the Banded
Gecko (Plofydocfyhu vittatut of Cnvier; Gtcka viUatut of authors).
Hence M. Dumdifl ooncludea that the number of ribs vsriea according
to the spetnea.
individuals eoDseausntly loss their taila. When these are n^neratei ,
cartilage ia generally found in the place of the former bone, and the
tail then presents a variety of forms.
The bones of the limbs do not differ from those of the other Saurians
so as to require any particular description, with the exception of thos«
of the feat, and there the difference is striking with relation to the
greater portion of the class. In the OtelMtidtt the bones of the feet
ara so disposed aa to reoeire the five toes of equal or nearly equal
length, and which radiate as it were from a centre ao as to form a
neariy oompletv drde ; for the eitemal or great toe cannot separate
itself from the others to extend itself backwarda The toea are not
alwaya fumiahed with nails ; but they are often provided with very
ramulable ones, whiah by their molality and retractility remind the
observer of the organisation of the same parts in the Gate (Ptlida).
as9 QECEOTIDA
HoseuUr Syatem. — The mumlai of the Oeclcotida ire highly initable,
aa might be expected in ntch nimble creatum. Their power cf
adhering to gmootb mrfacei makea it neceeaaiy that the raistance
produced by the adheaion ehould be inatantaneoouy OTercome in case of
danger; and we acoordingly Qnd tb&t a Geoko which at one nioment
is Gied motionlaaa to a apot^ Taniebe* aa it were in the next from
under the hand Btretohed forth to capture it.
The brain and nervous oyatem are coiuiderably developed in the
Qeckotida, and the greater part of the aeiisaa are acute.
Sight. — The orbita, aa we have leen, are large and without any
flooring or baae, and aa the eye in this family ii very Urge in propor-
tion to the aiza of the ammal, the projectioo of the pocterior part of
the globe may be Been ia the iuaide of the mouth much in the aam*
way aa ia obaerTable in aome fiahea. Then ie acarosty any lid, and
what there ia la ao amall that an additional appeannce of prominanoe
ia giTCQ to the eyeball Thia lid ia Hinipl% ciroular, and adherent to
the globe of the eye by an iatemsl fold. There ia a nictitating mem-
brane. Uoat peraons hBTe aeen that an epidennio scale which aeema
to be the external layer of the oomea cornea off in aerpenta with the
rat of the skin, and in the Qeckos alao the integument pasaea oier
the ^Dt of the eyabalL The eye in eucb animala never appeara
humid. U. Julea Cloquet baa ihown that in the eerpenta the tean
probably are diffused between the epidermic aoale and oomea in order
to arrive at the noatrila. The pupil ia aometimea rounded, but moat
Freqaentl; pmenta a linear aht, the edges of which are fringed, ao
that the animal can at ita pleasure dilate or diminiah the opening
through which the light and the imagea are to be admitted to the
retina. Like the C^ therefore, the Oeokoa, though aaid to be
nocturnal in their habits, can alao aea perfectly well in broad dayl%ht.
Hearing. — The auditory aperturoa in thia family are somettmea in
the form of alita, sometimes in that of oval or oiicular boles, and the
edges are ofl«n rounded and somstimee dentilstad. Wagler statsi
that these aperturea can be closed in Ptytdaotylui and Sphtriodact^itt,
and it ia extremely mvbable that the rims hare a power of approxi-
in generally. The tympanum liea deep, and the auditory cavity
lunicatea with the back of the mouth or throat for the admiamon
of air, as in moat puhnoniferoua animals. H. Dum^ril aayi, that he
haa .proved the sensibility of these animala to the least noisea, and
that their sense of bearing is very fine.
SraolL^Tho structure of the nostrils in this family would not
lead to the concluaion that their sense of smelling la very aoutt^
though it is probably more highly developed than it is in the Froga.
Taste, — The Qetkotidii swiSow tbetr prey living, or nearly so, and
almost entire, but the presence and form of the tosth render it pro-
bable that tbey can masticate ; and thia power, combined as it ia with
the form and structure of the tongue, which is soft, moveable, vary
fleshy, and furnished with papUlffi, seems to indioste ■ certain degree
of the sense of taata.
Touch and Intagumenta. — The akin of the Geckos is generally
delicate, and adherea but little to the musclea, from which it ia eaaily
detached. In the middle of the back, and sometimes od the airjas,
granular tubercles rounded on their edges, with others which project
at the centre, and are even fashioned into facets, are to be detected ia
the great«r number. When the akin is detadied and held up to the
light it is seen to be regulaiiy furnished with small delicate rounded
. eacutcheoQ-like bodiea, set in the thickneas of the akin. The form and
distribution of these bodies vary according to the different speciea in
the regions of the beUy, of the neok, of the thighs, of the hesd, and of
the tuL H. Dum^ril, who givea us this information, goea on to state
of their bodies, and that it is even said that tiuta of red, blue, and
yellow may be distinguished, which the animal causes to appear and
dis^pear neariy aftar the manner of the chamalecnBi Some travellen
assured Wagler that certain Indian Geckoa became luminoua or
phosphoreaoent during the night.
In some of the species the skin ia prolonged on the aides of the
body and tail into membranes regularly festooned or fringed, and the
Geckoa generally monitor change their skina at cartaju perioda of the
rt, when their colours, aa is usual in such oaac^ become brighter.
Dom^ril Bays that he has himself observed this in living individuala
c^tured in their wild state at Cordova, in Spain, in the middle of the
summer. There can be little doubt that ibare it considerable aenai-
bility where the skin la ccnatruoted aa it is in the Geckos; but in
considering the sense of touch, the curious organisation of the feet
and toea demands our particular attention. These are the greatorgans
of station or fixation and progreaaion, and the manner in which Ursy
perform their ofBce is very intereating. H. Dumdril, after referring
to WagWa reflections on this subject in his remarks on the Platy-
gloui, givca his own observationa on thia part of the organisation of
the Geckoa. He refers to the oomparative shortness and general
structure of the faet above given, and then proceeds to notioe the
particular conformation of the toes in the greatest number of apedea.
The lower snifoce of these, and the aola, ore very much dilated,
widened, and fumiahed with smalt plates or lamelln, following or
overlying each other (lamellea plac^es en recouvrement) in a regular
manner, but in a mode which varies in the different speoisa. ""
naUs, which are sometimea wanting on all the toea, are
frequently pointed, hooked, and more or less retractile, oonitituting a
sort of claws, which remun constantly sharp. TLt torn are aome-
timea unit«d at their baae, and, aa it ware, aemipalmated. In aome of
the epecies, Fluodadi/lui and Splieriodaetsitu of Cuviar, for instance,
the aitremity of the toes exunds, and widens considerably in form of
a fan or semi-diac, as in the Tree-Froga.
The membranoua and aoft platea with which the lower surface of
the toes of the Geckoa are fumiahed present a variety of modifications
in the difierent genera. Sometimea they are simple, or continued
from one edge to Uie other, and those of tnis class offer distinctiona in
the furrows themselves, and in the curves described by the lines
which mark them ; sometimes they are aeporated longitudinally by a
groove ; aometimea they are complete or continued throughout the
length ; sometimea they exist on Uie last phalanges only ; and lastly,
in Uie aberrant genera tbey are hardly distinct. The rnodificationa of
this carious spparatus, ss well aa the absence or presence of the naili^
afford the leading characters on which herpetologiata have esta-
blished the different genera, and we here preaent tbe various forms
oolleotad by H. Dum^ril.
Form and stTBCture
marked wtth tbe name
added l»tt«r a, rspreae
dmtf lut Otpidimtm : S, Fllfi
ft [Aari ar lb* ta« of C«ahMU*. The tgan
- srked with the
toe. t,FUlj-
, Pltlfiaitylm gutlaiiH
King.'] ; 1, StmUnelflui OwmIbuU
ttat pari* aa Dmj do In the nppe
Bpir*, with the eueptlon of ?, t, whlah repreeenta a elaw la prolle. 1, TVce-
doefVlw nwrnyi; I, FlfeiaM^iii JToiHlfiiMJf (P. ^aCMMt, at BItppall,
Hoiue-aMka, Orlff. ' Aelm. King.'); 1, Ft^aimilrlmt Jtm^rMui (Ofnta
Jtntnatu cf anthors ; Fimbrlaled Geelio, Oriff., ' AnJn. Kliif.') ) S, PknUo.
dactylia ptrpk^aiu: S, OywiaiaeWIiu lealitr [BmrnUieMMI Itaitr of
RQppdl; C^rtodaetylui, ot OrajT); I, OymKudaelfliu fuMi,
941
GECK0TIDJ5.
GECKOTIDiE.
913
dinal furrow on the internal edge of the jaw by the external toxfaoe
of their roots. The enamelled crowns are cutting, and their base is
rounded. From their position in the jaw, Wagler has derived his
designation Pleurodonts, the teeth being attached laterally while they
are free intemaUy, or in the furrow destined for their reception. In
the greater number the crown increases from aboTe downwards.
These teeth are so closely set that they seem to touch each other, and
altogether form a very trenchant dentilated blade, thotigh not long
enough for cutting up substances of any thickness, nor does the bite
of the animal inflict a wound.
The cQBophagus is very wide, and M. Dum^iil notices an extraordi-
nary appearance therein, when it is remembered that the part is not
exposed to the light In many species, both living and dead, which
he examined, he found the interior of this canal strongly coloured
with different but imiform shades, sometimes of an orange-yellow,
but principally of a deep black. There is no distinct limit between
the oesophagus and the stomach ; the crop (jabot) is continuous, and
the whole forms a kind of longitudinal sac, which appears to be sud-
denly narrowed at the point corresponding to the j^lorus, wHch is
not to be detected except by this diminution of diameter and its
position on the free and lower edge of the liver. The intestine is
arranged in sinuous folds, and about three times the length of the
OBsophagus and ventriculus taken together, it turns to the left, and is lost
on the side of a true and huge casoum, fomished with an appendage^
and terminating by a large tube which has its opening in the doaca.
The triangular Uver is placed in the mesial line, but its upper angle
is so much elong^ied, that in some spedes it forms a conical point, at
least twice as long as the base. This point lies in front of the stomach
in the space left by the two lungs when they are filled with air.
Below, the liver enlarges, and is divided into many lobes or indistinct
strips, with the exception of that on the left^ which is longest The
gall-bladder is situated under the mesial lobe. M. Dumdril states
that there does not appear to be a pancreas, but he observed in the
Common Gkcko and m the Fimbriated Gecko {PtyocUidyluB fimbriatut)
a very small spleen situated on the left side of the stomach.
Circulating System. — ^The shape of the heart variest In the
Common Gecko it is large and flat^ but has nevertheless a tolerably
regular conical form, we point of the cone being below, and the
hue, which is slightly not(»ied, leaning on the root of the two lungs.
In the Fimbriated Giecko, on the contrary, M. Dum^ril states the
heart to be proportionally smaller, and apparently formed of three
distinct but approximated portions, the two upper rounded and oval,
resembling aurides, and the other and lower portions small and
conical He acknowledges that he has not followed out the vascular
system, but presumes that it resembles in its distribution that of the
other SaurianSi
Respiratoiy System, and Organ of Voice. — ^The glottis consists of
a longitudinal sHt with two large lips, which form a sort of tubercle
behind the posterior notched portion of the tongue, the movements
of which it foUows, and can consequently be lifted up and applied
to the concavity of the palate. The trachea is very lai^ge, and the
rings, which are cartilsginous anteriorly but membranous on Uie
side next to the oesophagus, cause it to be considerably flattened.
The lungs form two sacs, as in the Salamanders, and are nearly
equal in volume and length. Their internal cavity is simple, but
there are polygonal cellules on their internal membranous lixiingB,
and in the lines forming these the arterial and venous vessels are
ramified. The OedBOtida are without any goitre, and M. Dtundril is
unable to account for Uie production of the voice, but he inquires
whether the cry which they emit^ and which is supposed to be in
some degree imitated by their names of ' Gecko,' ' Geitje,' fta, may
not be assisted by the movements of the tongue, and its reception
in the concavity of the palate ; analogous, we suppose, to the pro-
duction of the sound with whidi a coachman or groom stimulates
his horses by applying the tongue to the upper part of the mouth
and suddenly withdrawing it.
Urinary and Genital Oigans. — ^There is no urinary bladder, nor do
the rounded kidneys, whose ureters are not long and open direcily
into the cloaca, require particular notice. The organs of generation
in the males (wMch are smaller, more agile, and more brightly
coloured than the females) are double, and lodged on each side of
the base of the tail, which has consequently a swollen ai)pearance.
The eggs, which are often deposited between stones, are quite round,
with a rather soUd, slightly rough, calcareous shell, of a uniform
dirty white. M. Dum^ril has seen these oggs produce the young
ones, which were well-formed and very nimble.
The author last ni^ned states that he has observed in many species
some peculiar organs, sometimes double, sometimes united in a single
flattened elongated mass imder the abdominal parietes in front of
the pubis, in place of a urinaiy bladder. They appeared to be of a
fatty nature, and were sustained in one part by the os pubis, and on
the other possessed vascular or membranous single or double
prolongations, rising in the thickness of the peritoneum as far as the
liver. Though he knows not the office of these oigans, he thinks it
probable that they may be destitted to afford nourishment to the
animal in a state of hybernation. The pores of the thighs, &o. secrete
a thick humor; and M. Dum^ril observes that these pores afford no
generic character.
The OeekotidcB are none of them large in size, and the greatest
number feed on small animals, such as insects, their larv89 and pupffi.
These they catch either by lying in ambush or by pursuing their
feeble prey in the holes and dark crevices to which it r«tu«s. The
structure of their feet enables them to run in every direction over
the smoothest surfaces, and thev can even remain suspended beneath
the laige leaves which- a luxuriant tropical v^tation so frequently
puts forth. The sharp and retractile nails wiUi which the feet of
the^ greater number are armed, enable them to cling to and make
rapid progress on trees with ^e smoothest bark, to penetrate the
holes of rocks, and to climb walls. Of sombre or varying colours
adapted generiilly to the locality where tiieir lot is cast, they will
oft^ remain for hours in positions as extraordinary as the flies and
insects for which they watch, the wonderful apparatus with which
their feet is furnished enabling them to overcome the general law of
gnivity, and without which they would instantly fall to the earth.
The hues of their skins thus render them less objects of suspidon to
the little animals for which thev lie in wait, and also serve to dodge
even the acute eye of the bird of prey that seeks to destroy them.
Their eyes, as we have seen, enable them to discern objects in the
dark, and are at the same time capable of bearing the rays of a bright
sun ; for many insects are nocturnal or crepuscular, while the great
mass of them are diumaL The pursuit of their prey leads them
near the habitations of man, whose dwdling always attracts certain
kinds of insects, and they sometimes fall victims to their appear-
ance, which frequently inspires terror, and often dh^gust A Gecko,
confident in his powers of flight, appears boldly to await his adver-
sary, and his sudden disappearance at a nearer approadi adds to the
horror which his uncouth torm inspires. The poor Geckos too have
a bad name. They are supposed to poison whatsoever they touch,
bo it animate or inanimate, and their saliva is said to vex the skin
of those on whom it fidls with foul eruptions. Many of these
euUcular irritations, when th^ have actually existed from the interven-
tion of these animals, may nave arisen from the extremdy sharp
claws of a Gecko running over a sleeping man, or small blisters
may have been raised by the adherent apparatus at Uie bottom of
its feet
The QtckotidtB are found in all the four quarters of the globe, and
are widely distributed in warm climates. In this distribution, Europe,
as far as observation has yet gone, claims bv fax the fewest number.
Two species only have yet been found in this quarter of the globe,
and even these are common to the northern coasts of Africa. Prince
C. L. Bonaparte has noticed them in the 'Fauna Italica,' under^the
names of AtcalahGta Mauritcmicus and Ifemidactylut triedrut. The
former is a PlatydactyUu of Dum^ril and others.
Systematic Arrangement — There can be little doubt that the
*hffKaXiafi^njit of Aristotle and of the Greeks generally was a Gecko.
Aristophanes and Theophrastus, as GJesner has shown, speak of tiiose
lizards which the Italians called Tarentola, whose bodies were short
and thick, and which clambered about the walls in the interior of
their edifices for the purpose of catching spiders, on which they fed,
under the names of AicaLahotu and QaCuiteB. That the SteUio of
Plin^ was no other than a Gecko, Sdmeider has shown.
Lmnseus placed the Geckos under his great genus Laeertc^ and
recorded but three spedes (1766).
Laurenti (1768) seems to have been the first modem who established
the Geckos M a genus. Gmelin (1789, 18th edit of ' Syst Nat') intro-
duced a section in the genus Lacertct, consisting of five species, under
the name of Oddeonei, and the term Gecko was used as a generic
appellation for these Saurians by Lac^pMe (1790), Schneider (1797),
Cfuvier (1798), and Brongniart (1801).
Daudin (180d> divided the genua Cfecko into three sections, taking
for the basis of nis division the number ahd connection of the toes,
the form of the tail, and the diapodtion of the scalea These sections
consisted of the G^kos properly so called, the Geckottes, and the
Geckos with a flat taiL M. Dumdril, who has written so much and
so weU on this subject^ and to whose writings we are so much indebted,
states that in 1806 he profited by the foregoing works, and establishes!
in the 'Zoologie Analytique,' and in his public lectures the genus
Urcplatut (1806), and he says that Oppel, in his 'Prodromus' (1811),
established the family OeekotidcB after his (Dum^ril's) indications.
M. Dumdril, who established also the genus Dratomua, adopts in great
measure the system of Cuvier, and separates the Oeckotiaa into two
great dividons, each embracing subdivisions. These dividons take
the structure of the toes for their basis; the first consisting of those
Oeckotickg which have dilated toes, the second of those whose toes are
not dilated. The subdividons depend upon the variation in the
structure of the lower pari of the toes. The genera are — AsccUabotet,
PUUydactylutt Jffemidactylus, Ptyoilactyku, Thecadaciylu$, Steno-
dactyUUf and Qymnodactyl'uai{^%%%).
Cuvier (1817-1829) placed these Saurians under his great genus
Qeeko, which he divided into the following sub-genera: — Platydactylui,
Hemidactylutf Thecadactylutf Ptyodaelylui, /^hcerwdtictylut ; at the
same time arranging those Geckos which have retractile daws, but
dender or rather not enlu^ged toes, in three groups, under the names
of StenocUtctyhu, Oymnodactylutt and Pkyllura, ihe latter embracing
those with a horizontally-flattened foliated tail.
Merrem (1820) places the Geckos in the first tribe (Oradicntia) of
9i3 GECKOTID^
thB class PMidoli The Hiib-triba AMcalabotti, Moording to hilD,
embraces the Iffuanida be well as Qockos.
U. Lstreille (180M825) saeme lo have adopted ths views nnd
descriptions of Lac^p6de in the first instance, and not to have gona much
beTond a change of nomenclature in the last work published b; him.
H. Fitzinger (1820) makes his Ascalabotolds oonsist of the genera
SamAvi, Uropialti, Plj/aHaciylta, }/emidaetyltu,Thei:adaclyhu,FtyeKo-
lOon, Plaiydadgha, Aiealabola, Slijiodaclytut, and PAyUunit,
Dr. J. B. Oray (1827-1834) ammges the fallowing gBuers under the
fnmilj Qectoliaie : — Banidaclyliu, Platydaetglu*, Oecko, PterapUttra,
"Hucadactyliu, Ptyodactytv, Phyllami, EnbUpharii, Cyrtodact^iu,
FhyHodactylut, Diplodactylut, and Gchyrii.
Wsgler (18S0), under the famil; name of PliUmlom, Taik.a the
Otdcotida consist of the following genera -.—PlyiAoiSm (Kuhl),
Civunu (Vftgier^Unplaliu of Damdriiin part), RSametta (Wagler —
one of Dumdril's Uroplall), ITucadaaylm (CuTior), Plalydactyliu
fhant (Qmj), (hnyodaeliitai (Kuhl), and Oymnodacti/liu (Spii).
qeckotidve:. mi
Dr. Cocteau (1835) arranges the Oeokos into six diTisioiu : —
I, PiatydiKtyliu, containing Sra subdivisions, represented in part bj
AnopUpiu of Wagler, Phtiiama (Cooteao), Pachydaetylut (Wiegmannj,
Plydiaum (Kuhl), and Pttrojleara (Gray), with othen resting princa-
pally upon the absence or presence of porsa before the cloaca, and
the development of the claws ; 2, those Oeckos which correspond to
Thecadaetylat of Cavier ; 3, Semidaelyltii ; i, comprehending Ptyo-
daclyliti(^l!rop!atiu,J)am6n];Ilhaeotaa,'VTas'^er; Oiuntriu, Wagler) ;
E, Sphimodaetyliii, comprehending DiplodaclyluM (Gray) and Pkyuo-
daetytta (Oray) ; 6, Slmodactyltu IBubltpliarit, OanyodaclyliiM, Oymso-
dai^iyhu, Cyrtodaetyliu, Priilitrui, Pkyllunit).
M. de Blainvilte ('Nonvelles Aonalea du Hnsdum,' AprU, 1S36)
plaoee the family of Geckos at the head of the family of Sanrophisos.
The species forming the genus Platydaetylyu of Cuvier he deaignates
sa Geckos ; those ranging under Htmidantylat as Demi-Qeckos ; the
PtyodlwCyli as Tien^Oeckos ; the Stenodactyli as Quart-Oeckoa ; and
the OyirMOdaayli as Sub-OeokoK
The foUowiog cats will convey an idea of the Conn of some of the
rialytattyln lLemaUKtpl,ahu {PtyOmAM, KiiU j Fttnrkim, Oray),
\, Platyiactyliu Btym
u giran in ths ' Biitit
Synopaii of thB
L Toei dilated, with 2 rows of membnuiaceaua plates bensatli,
andsr tbe dilated port.
A. Lut joint of tbe tooi short, inflsied, iliMthsd in tbe notch
betwsen Its front of the 2 seriss of pUtai. Clam E'6.
a. Toes dilated, ovate, with 2 series af tnnaTarsa equal pl&tes
beneath.
1. TheeadiKisUa.—Toa half webbad, Famoral pores none.
Tail vinifonaly graoular.
b. Toes linesr, truncated, middle of the to« with 2 lows of
aqoan platea beneath, the 2 terminal pktM larger.
2. (£iiiini.—Tu]Bubcjlindrical,wiUi>qnare>(»]M,UDarmed.
Toea all with 2 Vows of small plates beneath.
8. <8(ri3))il«ra.— Tail oylindrica], with 2 iowb of ipinei abore,
tip reTolute. The S middle toes with 3 tows, the rest
with 1 row of plates beneath,
c Toes linear, truncated, middle oftoea with a single seriea of
plate* beneath, 2 tenninal plates larger.
d. Toes slander, dilated et the end, with 2 diverglDg series of
pUtea beneath.
6. Ptyodaayhu. — Toes free. Bo<^ simple. 'Tail roaod.
7. UropUOa.—Tott webbed. Tail and side* of the head and
wd J fringed.
8. Cavdiverbtra. — Toes webbed. Tail and back wit^ a
membranous oreat
B. Toes, laat joint slender, compressed, elongate, produced,
clawed, free from the dilated peoultimate joints,
a. Thumb with a oompressed clawed terminal joint, like the
free.
10. FeIn-netHi.-~Tail rather depressed, angular above, with
croM rings of spines, lower edge dentioulated. Toes
half webbed. Skin of sides and lUnba lax,
11. Di>ryura. — Tail depressed, untfoimlj granular, dmtiiiu-
lated on the edga Toes troh. Side* and limbs aimple.
12. jPIofjmnu-^-Tail depressed, unifoiml; granular, denticu-
lated on the edge. Toes half webbed. Side* and limbs
with A thin membranous expansion.
13. Leianu. — Tail cjlindrioal, uiufbrml; gnnular, tapering.
Toes ilightl; webbed. Side* and limbs mmple.
\^. Cronwvt.—'iKX ojlindrioal, grannlar, iritli a festooned
fringe on each side.
h. Thumb with a eomprsssed, clawlssi, terminal Joint
IS. B')Ualia.-~TDn trw.
XAT. BUT. DtT. VOU D.
e. Thumb without anj compKsaed terminal joint, clawless.
IB. Pmpta.— Toea all free.
17. Percplsf.— T««i two middle united et their baae.
IL Toes mora or less dilated, with a single series of transverse
platca beneath.
(7. Toss dilated, the last joint (only) compressed and rather
produced or wuitiiig, the plates beneaba the toes membra-
naceous, smooth.
0. Claws £-5. Thumb witli a compressed, free, clawed lut
18. rAecnnyz.— Toes free, diUted. Sides simple.
19. Paitadactyl^.~1o<a tree, base slender. Sida simple.
20. Plalyilactrliu.—T<tBi webbed. Sides with a mai^in.
b, Qaws it. Thumb without any compressed, free, clawed,
last joint.
21. OMio.— Toes free, last joint short BwJc tubercular.
22. Qekyra, — Toe* free, last joint raHer elongate, very com-
preseed. Scales granular.
23. Amydotaitnu. — Toes half webbed. Back granular.
Limba and body simple.
24. LyptroKotna.—'ioea half webbed. Back granular.
Hinder edge of legs with a slight fold of thin mem'
brane. Tail with a slight fringe.
2fi. J^yatD«wn.— Toes webbed. Head, body, and tuil with
membranes on the side.
e. Claws 2-2. All but the two middle toei without any
oompressed last joint
25. TarenMa. — Lower roatral shield veiy long,
(1. Claws none. Toes all without any compressed laat joint
27. PAsbtMUL— Toes dilated, orate. Tall rather contracted.
28. Padtydttctyliu—Tota slender, short, apex rather dil&ted.
29. SplucndiKtylui. — Toes slender, with a single rouuduJ
disc at the tip.
D. Toes and thumbs dawed, slightly dilated below at the base,
the two or three laqt joint] compnusd, augutarly bent, the
membranoua plates beneath the toe* tnusvene, smooth.
a. Toes nther thick, tapering. Tul round.
30. JVauIttnsM. — Tail cyfindrica], tapering, gnmnlar. Preaaat
pores in 2 oi 8 cross series. Back gimnular.
51. EtAUpJuirii. — Tail cylindrical, ringed with cross series of
tubercles. Back tubercular.
52. HoBumota. — Tul oylindrieal, tapering, granular. Preanal
pores none. Ba(i scaly.
53. Priitvrm. — Tail comprensd, dentated above.
h. Toes elongate, slender, compreased, vsrsatile, joints bent at
angleL
81, Amiodocfjiliu. — Tail round, tapering, gTanatar. Scales
granular. Preanal pore* none.
8S. (V^odocfyliu. — Tail round, tapering, with rings of
tubercle*. Back . with rowa of tubercles. Preanal
pores in S parallel rows.
30. SOtronofa. — Tail round, tapering, with rings of tuber-
dea. Back tubercular. Preanal pore* in an arehed
'
917
GECKOTIDJE.
GELATIN.
87. Cuhina,—TBS1 round, tapering, with rings of tubercles. \
The back tubercular. Preansd and femoral pores none.
88. Oymnodactylus. — ^Tail rather depressed, tapering, with
rings of tubercles. Back tubercular. Preanal pores in
a curved series.
89. PhyUurut.—Ta3l depressed, cordate, end round, tapering.
F, Toes and thumbs clawed, cylindrical, tapering, toothed on
tiie side, the plates beneath tnuuverse^ many-keeled,
denticulated.
40. SUnodaetylMM,
Lifit of the species of OeckUidcB, with the Localities they inhabit
ThtcadactyluB rapicaudue, the Turnip-Tailed Oecko. Tro-
pical America.
(Edura marmoraia, the Marbled (Edura. North Australia.
(E, rhambifer, the Lozenge-Spotted (Edura. West Aus-
tralia.
Strophttra spinigeraf the Strophure.
Diplodactylus vittatus, tiie Tellow-Crowned Diplodactyle.
AustraUa.
J), omcUuSf the Beautiful Diplodactyle.
2>. ocdlattu, the Eyed Diplodactyle. West Australia.
J). marmoratuSf tibe Marbled Diplodactyle. Australia.
J). hilineaiu8f the Two-Lined Diplodac^le.
D. lineatut, the Lined Diplodac^le. Cape of Good Hope.
D. Gerhopygus, the Naked Diplodactyle.
Phyllodactylua pulc?ier, the PhyUodactyle.
P. tvbercuiattUf the Large-Tubercled PhyUodactyle.
Ptyodactyluf Gecko, the Fan-Foot Egypt
Uroplata fimh^attu, the Famocantrata. Madagascar.
U, iinecUvs, the Sharp-Tailed Famocantrata.
Caudiverbera Pfruviana, the Caudiverbera. Peru.
ffemidactyl/us trihedrw, the Triangular-Tuberded Hemi-
dactyle.
IF. maculatut, the Spotted Hemidactyle.
ff, Broohii, Brooke's Hemidactyle.
£!". depreatits, the Groove-Tailed Hemidactyle.
ff. verruculattu, the Warty Hemidactyle. Shores of the
Mediterranean; Egypt
B", fatciattu, the Banded Hemidactyle.
M, Mabouia, the Brazilian Hemidactyle. BrasiL
M, merccUoriuif the Wandering Hemidactyle.
Jf. freruUtu, the Streaked Hemidactyle. Ceylon.
M, LetchenavUii, Leschenault's Hemidactyle. Ceylon.
JET. vittattUf the Streaked-Cheeked Hemidactyle. Borneo.
M. SeUii, Bell's Hemidactyle.
ff. Peruvumtta, Wiegmann's Hemidactyleu Peru.
Vdemaia Richardtonii, the Velemesiab
Dwytwa Bowringii, Bowring^s Hemidactyle.
D. Gamotitf Gamot's Doryure. South Sea Islands.
Platyunu Sehneideriantu, the Platyure. Java.
Leiurut omcUtu, the Banded Leiurus. West Africa.
Croatwnu caudiverbera^ the Crossurus.
BoUalia aublcevU, the Boltalia. India.
Peripia Peronii, Peron's Peripa. Mauritius.
P. variegata, the Variegated Peripa. Australia.
Peropu$ mutUattu, the Peropus. Manilla.
Theconyx SeycJielletmt, the Seychelle Gecko. Island of
Seychelles.
Pentadactylui Duvaucelii, Duvaucel's Pentadactyle. India ;
Calcutta.
P. Leachianui, Leach's Gecko.
Gecko verua, the Gecko. India.
G. Beeveni, Reeve's Gecko. China.
G. Chineniie, the Japan Gecko. China and Japan.
G. MofUiTchuSf the Amboyna Gecko. Borneo.
G. Smitkii, Dr. A. Smith's €bcko. Prince of Wales Island.
G. vittahUf the Streaked Gecko. Cape of Good Hope.
G. bivittalui, the Double-Streaked Gecko.
Amydoaaurus litgvhrU, the Sombre Gecko.
Gthyra oceanica, the Oceanic Gehyra. Islands in the
Pacifia
G. Auttralis, the Swan River Gkhyra. Swan River.
JLyperotaunu Owningii, the Luperosaure.
Ptychozofm homalocepliaia, the Fringed Tree-Gecko. Java.
Tarentoia Mauritania, the Tarentol& Egypt
T, JBgyptiaca, the Egyptian Tarentoia. Egypt
T, DeUUandii, Laland's Tarentoia. Madeira ; West Coast of
Africa.
T* Americana, the American Tarentoia. North America.
T. Bomeentia, the Bomean Tarentoia. Borneo.
T. clypeata, the Shielded Tarentoia Glasgow.
PheUuma Cepedianw, Lac^pMe's Phelsuma. Mauritius.
P. Madagaacartemii, the Madagascar Phelstuna. Mada-
gascar.
P, U^^eaHimii, the Lined Fhelsoma. Madagascar.
Pachydactyhu ocelUUua, the Eyed Gkcko. Cape of Good
Hope.
P. macuUUui, the Spotted Pachydaotyle. South Africa.
P. degane, the Elegant Pachydaotyle. South Africa.
Spharodaetylut aputator, the Banded Sphserodactyle. South
America
8. punckUiaaimua, the Lined Sph»rodactyle. Martinique.
8. fantaaticua, the Black-Headed Sphasrodactyle. South
America.
S. nigropvMCtatua, the Black-Dotted Sphserodactyle. South
America.
8, Biehardaonii, Richardson's Sphsrodactyle. America.
JyauUinua pttcifieua, the Pacific Naultinus. New Zealand.
N, elegana, the EakarikL New Zealand.
N, Grayii, the Long-Toed EakarikL New Zealand.
N. punetatua, the Black-Dotted EakarikL New Zealand.
Eublepharia ffardwickii, Hardwiok's Eublephaxis. Penang ;
Chittagong.
ffomanota Guidichaudi, Guidichaud's Sealed Gecko. Chili
Priaturua flavipundatua, Ruppell's Pristums. Abyssinia.
Goniodaei^ua Timorenaia, Boie's Angular-Toed Lixard.
India.
G. Anatralia, the Australian Angular-Toed Lizard. Aus-
tralia.
G. aXbwmgvlaria, the White-Throated Angular-Toed Lizard.
South America.
G. oeellatua, the Eyed Angular-Toed Lizard. Tobago.
G, Mawitanicua, the Algerine Angular-Toed Lizard.
Oyrtodaotylua marmoraiua, the Marbled Cyrtodaetyle. Java.
Philippine Islands.
O. pulchdlua, the Beautiful Cyrtodaetyle. Singapore.
Seteronota KendaUii, the Bornean Heteronote. Botnea
B. Binoei, the Australian Heteronote.
Oubinafaaciata, the Banded Cubina. Martinique.
a jyOrbignii, D'Orbigny's Cubina. Chili
Gynmodactylua Geckaidea, the Gymnodactyle. Shores of the
Mediterranean.
PhyUuruaplaturua,Vnn\»*Bl?hf)Xvate. Australia.
P. MUinaii, the Thick-TaUed nLyUore.
P. inermia, the Spmeless Phyllure. Australia.
Stenodactylua guitatua, Wilkinson's Stenodactyle. E^gypt
GEDD. [Esoz.]
GEDRITE, a Mineral oecurring in ciTBtalline masses having a
fibrous radiated or lamellar structure. Its colour is clove-brown.
The streak gray or yeUowiah. The lustre submetallic, feeble.
Hardness not above 5. Bough. Specific gravity 8*26. It oocort
in loose stones near GMre in the Pyrenees. It has some re-
semblance to AnihophylUte and Hypensthene. It has the following
composiiion : —
Smoa 88-811
Alumina 9'809
Protoxide of Iron 45*884
Magnesia 4180
Lime 0666
Water ^ . . 2801
GEESE. ^noKS.1
GEHLENITE, a Mineral ooonning in square prisms. It has a
gray colour, and is nearly opaaue. The hardness is 5 to fi'6. The
specific gravity 2*9 to 8*1. It has the following composition : —
Silica 29-0
Alumina 24*8
Lime 85*8
Protoxide of Iron 6*0
Water 8*8
It fusee with borax with difficulty. It gelatinises with muriatic acid.
It comes from the Jassa valley in the Tyroi (Dan% Mineralogy.)
GEHTRA rGsoKOTiDJS.]
GEL A'SIMUS, a genus of Brachyurous Crustaceans. [Ogtpodianb.]
GELATIN, an animal substance composed of Carbon, Hydrogen,
Oxygen, and Nitrogen, found present in all parts of the body, and
constituting the walls or external investment of the cells of which
tt^nimalfi are composed.
Amongst the component parts of all organised bodies the most
frequent is the cell Modified in an infinite variety of ways, it gives
rise to ^e innumerable varieties exhibited both by plants and animals,
in the external form, the structure, and consequently the functions of
their organs. In the vegetable kingdom the substance employed in
the oonstruotion of these cells is cellulose combined with a little
protein. In the animal kingdom it is gelatin. The case is yery simi-
lar, altiiough the elementwy form oT the tissue and its chemical
characten are different In animals we must distinguish between the
persistent and the original cellular substance. The original in all
probability varies in different cases, while the persistent exhibits a
constant and general character. The persistent tissue is consequently
a secondary product^ and in this respect differs from the oellufar sub-
stance in plimts, which is a primary or original one ; neither hai it
010
OELDER ROSE.
GENERATIONS, ALTERNATION OF.
050
an actual cellular form like the latter. There is however a resem-
blance between the two in several points, especially in relation to
the large proportions in which they both ezist> and to the several
functions which they perform.
GkUUgenous substance is so widely di£fused over the body that it
would exhibit the entire shape of the principal oigans, even if all other
constituents were sepaAted. It constitutes the skin, the serous mem-
branes, the cellular uieaths of the musdes, the organic portion of bone,
and many other substances. It is insoluble in oold water ; acetic acid
renders it transparent and bulkv ; tannic acid renders it solid, and
prevents its putrefaction ; and when botled it forms a jelly. It is in
consequence of the last property that it has received the name of
Gklatm. The gelatigenous substance (as in skin, areoLur tissue, serous
membranes, &c.) is insoluble in cold water, and on boiling is merely
phydcaUy and not chemically altered. In the process of boiling
nothing is taken up and nothing separated ; the alteration being similar
to that undergone by starch when heated in water.
The composition of Gelatin is represented by the formula —
C,, H,o N, 0,
whether obtained from hartshorn, from isinglass, or firom silk. Both
boUed and unboiled cellular tissue (after its conversion into glue)
combine with tannic acid, and produce compounds which are insoluble
in water and resist putrefaction ; hence the power of all medicines
containing this substance to heighten the tone of the system. The
protein-compounds in a similar manner form hard and coherent com-
pounds with tannic acid. Peruvian and wiUow bark, catechu, and
many other astringent medicines produce oompoimds of this nature
in the organism.
On boiling Gelatin in water for a long time we obtain a hydrate of
gelatin, which no longer gelatinises : its composition is 4 (C^, H^^ N,
0,) + aq.
This peculiarity should be remembered, for the compound is likely
to be fbrmed in the preparation of broth, and in the application of
Papin's Digester to cooking ; and it is regfurded by Mulder as doubtful
whether thla hydrated gelatin can be again converted in the organism
into nutrient matter, and whether it may not produce noxious sub-
stances in the body. [Food.]
As Gelatin has never yet been discovered in the vegetable kingdom,
there is every reason to believe that it is solely produced in the animal
body. It is most probably formed from the decomposition of the
protein in the blooc^ through the action of the alkali in the serum,
and the oxidising influence of the atmosphere.
We are likewise imperfectly acquainted with the products of the
decomposition of the gelatigenous tissues in the body. Out of the
body we know that by the influence of oxidation on gelatin prussic
acid is formed, and that, by the action of alkalies, gelatin-sugar, leucin,
and extractive matters are produced, while ammonia is disengaged,
and an alkaline carbonate formed. Finally, when boiled in dilute
sulphuric acid, it yields extractive matters with either gelatin-sugar or
leucin. Since leucin is also produced from albumen when decomposed
by potash, we perceive an intimate connexion between that protein-
compound and gelatinous matters.
Besides the gelatin obtained from cellular tissue and serous mem-
branes there is another kind which has many of its properties, but
differs from it in composition. It was first described by Muller under
tiie name of Choudrin. It is obtained froia the cornea, and from those
cartilages which do not ossify by boiling them in water. Its compo-
sition is 10 (Ca, H,^ N^ OiJ + S.
Gelatin is extensively employed in the arts in the form of glue, and
constitutes the basis of leather. It is foimd pure in the air-bladder
of some fishes, and on being cut up constitutes isinglass When
purified it can be formed into plates of almost glass-like transparency,
and when coloured is employed for Inaking artificial flowers and many
other ornamental objects. Its relation to the other substances in the
anim&l body are considered under Pbotein.
GELDER ROSE, or rather, GUELDRES ROSE, a double variety
of the Viburnum OpuUUf a nuunh shrub, common in this country and
all the north of Europe. The name of this variety is supposed to
indicate its origin in the Low Countries : it is also osdled the
Snowball-Tree, in allusion to its large white balls of flowers.
[VlBUBNUM.]
GELIDItJM. [Aloa]
GEMMASTREA. [Madrbfhtllkea.]
GEMMULINA. [Fqhamuiifera.]
GEBiS-BOC. [Aktilopeje.]
GENERATIONS, ALTERNATION OF. During the course of
the development t>{ many of the lower animals from the ovum to
their adult condition, they not only pass through various forms, as is
seen in the Insect tribes [Inbeoib], but at certain stages of their growth
they possess the power of multiplying themselves. The individuals
which exhibit this phenomenon have been called ' nurses,' and the
whole series of phenomena connected with this mode of reproduction
have been called by its first expounder, Professor Steenstrup, an
' alternation of generations/ This phenomenon has been particularly
observed in the AcaUphcBf JBntozoa, Polypifara, Salpce, and VwrticeUcs,
In the various articles on these families of animals, their mode of
development is described. As however this subject is one of general
interest^ and very imperfecUy understood, we taxe the opportimity of
reproducing here Professor Steenstrup's general remarks on this
subject, from a translation of his work published by the Ray
Society : —
" The mode of development by means of ' nurses,' or intermediate
generations, is thus seen to be no longer an isolated phenomenon in
nature. The circumstance of an animal giving birth to a progeny
permanently dissimilar to its parent, but which itself produces a new
generation, which either itself or in its offspring returns to the form
of the parent animal, is a phenomenon not confined to a single class
or series of animals ; the vertebrate class is the only one in which it
has not vet been observed. It would conse(^uentiy appear that there
is sometning intrinsic in this mode of development, and that it occurs
as it were with a certain necessity ; on which account it will undoubt-
edly soon be recognised to a greater extent and more generally. It
should no longer be considered as something paradoxical or anoma-
lous (as we have hitherto been too much inclined to deem both it and
the pnenomena in which it is exhibited), it must be in harmony with
the rest of development in nature, in which the fundamental principle
of this course of development must also be elsewhere expressed,
although it may be displayed in a form under which we shall less
readily perceive and recognise it. This is seen when we trace the
mode of development in question more widely through nature ; and
whilst contemplating it through the phenomena in which it is mani-
fested, we comprehend it in its true light.
" If we collect and regard in one view the whole system of develop-
ment by means of 'nursing' generations, as it is exhibited in the
Bell-Shaped Polypes {Campanularia)^ the Claviform Polypea {Coryne),
MedutcBf SalpcB, Vorticdlce, and Entozoa, it appears as a peculiar and
consequently as an essential feature in this course of development,
that the species (that is, the species in its development) is not wholly
represented in the soUtary, full-grown, fertile individuals of both
sexes, nor in their development; but that to complete this repre-
sentation, Bupplementaiy individuals, as it were, of one or of several
precedent generations are requisite. Thus, the distinction between
this course of development and that which is generally recognised in
nature, in which the species is represented by the individual (of both
sexes) and its development, is the want on the part of the individuals
of a complete individuality as representatives of the species, or of a
specific individuality, if I may so express it. If now we agree to
regard such an incompleteness m the individual as the essence of this
development, we shall comprehend its significance in nature when we
thoroughly consider this course of development in its various periods,
throughout the above-mentioned families, how it begins and advances,
BO that at last we discover to what it tends. I believe, also, that we
might trace even now this development by means of precedent, pre-
paratory generations of 'nurses' in its peculiar course and advance,
notwithstanding the paucity of instances adduced in the foregoing
pages, and the many gaps in the series of observations. Thus we see
the greatest incompleteness and the highest degree of mutual depend-
ence in the CampanularioB and sitxdlar Polypes, in which the genera-
tions representing the unity of the species are very unlike each other,
and in which all the individuals are fused, as it were, into an outward
unity, or into a set of Polypes. They exist, organically connected
with each other, and are normally free only in their first generation,
and indeed only in their earliest stage of development, and only for a
short time, since the free-swimming ciliated embryo swims about in
the water at most for some hours, in order to find a suitable place for
the foundation of a new polvpe stem. In the Corynce, or claviform
Polypes, the organic connection between the individuals and genera-
tions is rather more lax; the perfect gemmiparous or ovigerous indi-
viduals are usually quite free, often even at an early age {Coryne
/ritUkuria, Corymorpha), so that they do not attain their-full develop-
ment until after their separation from the ' nursing ' generation. 7<dn
the MeduscB and Salpa, the generations which are connected together
into one whole, become more like each other ; the first generation of
the MeduscB is still fixed but more active and mobile in its parts; the
individuals of the perfect generation leave the 'nursing' ammal while
still very small, and undergo remarkable changes after they have
become free and are swimming freely about ; both generations of the
Salpa, finally, are free, and free swimmers, only the individuals of one
of them are organically connected with each other ; they have how-
ever no common organs (in the full-grown state), and if my expluiation
of the alternate generation of the compound Ascidians is correct, we
have in that instance precisely the development of the Salpce at a
somewhat lower stage; the individuals of the one generation are
organically connected, without having a common organ ; but both
generations are fixed.
"In the class of Eniotoa a similar progressive attempt at becoming
free and accomplishing a perfect growth appears evident to me.
"In the Oestoidea the generation of perfect individuals, constitutes
externally a unity; thev are only successively detached from each
other as the term of their existence approaches, and their whole
existence is throughout connected with the 'nursing' 'animal In
some of the TrenKUoda, the later generations remain within the earlier
until they have attained their full development ; in others they forsake
them in an earlier condition, are free, and {roe swimming, and undergo
a complete metamorphosiB ; in some of these latter, the earlier gene-
rations are transformed into tnotionlessi and, as it were, lifeless cysts,
051
GENERATIONS, ALTERNATION OF.
GENERATIONS, ALTERNATION OF.
051
whilst in others they remain free and actiye (the ' nunes ' and ' parent
nurses ' of Cercaria ephemera and (7. echifuUa)f but retain during their
whole life a form which, at most, resembles the larvse of the more
perfect generation. In this way an advance in a certain direction
may indisputably be observed. At first all Uie generations constitute
a unity, not merely as regards the interior, but also with respect to
the exterior : they form a stationary colony ; after which the genera-
tions are detached more and more from each other, and become at the
same time more free ; and, finally, all the individuals constituting the
generation are separate from each other, and acquire the power of
free locomotion. In this latter stage, or that of freedom and perfec-
tion, we found the development of animals which are certainly no
longer attached to inanimate objects at the bottom of the sea, but live
buried in other animal organisms, and belong not to the sea but to
fresh water. In a still higher and more free stage than this we observe
the development of animals which do not belong to the water, but to
the air, as in that which occurs in the Aphides. The propagation of
these creatures through a series of generations has been already long
known. In the spring, for instance, a generation is produced from
the ova, which grows and is metamorphosed, and without previous
fertilisation gives birth to a new generation, and this again to a third,
and so on, for ten or twelve weeks ; so that in certain species even as
many as nine such preliminary generations will have been observed ;
but at last there always occurs a generation consisting of males and
females, the former of which, after their metamorphosis, are usually
winged ; fertilisation and the depositing of eggs takes place, and the
long series of generations recommences in the next year, and in the
same order. All the individuals are free, and enjoy the power of free
locomotion, and undergo a metamorphosis. Here, however, we have
before us aerial animals, and which are no longer parasites inhabiting
other organisms ; at most they are only externally parasitic, and on
plants alone ; the phenomena of this mode of development are no
longer exhibited by ErUoma, but by Bpiphyta, Nevertheless, the
course of development is in itself similar ; but in the external, more
free, and nobler form in which it is now exhibited, the endeavour to
attain something higher is manifest. Each link or generation certainly
brings its offspring nearer to the perfection aimed at; but this
approachment towards perfection is' effected only by means of the
' nursing' by special animals, and is committed to the still and quiet
activity of an organ, without the nursing animals themselves being
conscious of it ; it is a function merely, and not an expression of the
will. In all parts of the animal kingdom we see Instances of the
still, quiet, and unconscious activity of the animal being developed
into voluntary actions, which are undertaken by it from an internal,
obscure, and irresistible impulse (or artificial impulse), as is the esse
in this instance. The development and mode of feeding or nourishing
the young, exhibited in its course, of Bees, Wasps, Ants, and Termitei,
affords a direct example of the mode in which the care of the young
is provided for, by the voluntary action of numerous individuals
devoted to that object. Those of the young whidi are to be developed
into the more perfect, fertile individuals are not protected in the
body of the foster-parents, nor is their nourishment secreted by one
of the organs ; both protection and food are afforded them by means
which are brought about by the conscious activity of the 'feeders.'
The Wasp, for instance, or the Wild Humble-Bee, which has been
impregnated in the autumn, and hias afterwards sought a shelter to
protect itself against the cold of winter, prepares a soUtaty habitation
in which it builds cells and deposits its eggs. From the egss proceed
larvse, but the insects into which these larvas are metamoipiosed, are
not fertile ; they are barren, and all their faculties are directed to the
assisting of the parent animal in the better nourishing of the ftiture
brood, to which end some of their external organs are transformed,
and to the erection of a better habitation and cells, into which they
convey the ^ggs of the female, and the food of the larvas to be developed
from them. Other cells, which contain a better sort of food^ are
erected for a later and less numerous progeny of eggs ; and again in
others, which are more roomy and provided with the best kind of
food, but of which there are only a few, is the last brood of the female
deposited. From the first kind of cells proceed the barren individuals,
from the second the males, and from the third the females ; after
undergoing a metamorphosis, the males and females fly away, impreg-
nation takes place, and the males die ; the females however return,
and the whole multitude of barren individuals, which at the same
time perform the duty of feeding the young, build cells for their
various pTOgenv of eggs, and nourish the three forms of larvse which
proceed from them. In this way the inhabitants of the colony become
very numerous ; nevertheless they all die off in the winter : the fertile
females alone remain alive, and propagate the species the year follow-
ing, under the same development of alternating broods, the earlier of
which is always by four the most numerous, and assists in the develop-
ment of the latter. In the colonies of Bees, Ants, and Termiiet, the
same thing occurs ; the many thousand individuals which constitute
one of these colonies are principally ' feeders,' or individuals which
have originated in the precedent divisions of tiie eggs of the females,
and in these is exhibited, even with greater precision, a more marked
division of labour in the feeding of the progeny ; so that, out of the
various precedent divisions, individuals apparently arise which assist
in the development of tiie more perfect progeny in various ways.
Thus there are in a hive of bees, individuals which are employed
almost wholly in the feeding of the larvse (foragers), whilst others do
scarcely anything else than collect wax and build cells (workers). In
ant-hills, one set of the feeders is constantly employed in conveying
the larvsd from one place to another, according as they require a
greater or less degree of warmth, &c., whilst others are engaged in
building the passages or earth-cells, and in making excavations around
the habitation. Among the Termites also we are acquainted with
several forms of ' feeders,' constituting particular tribes or classes ;
the description of labour, however, which each of these classes per-
forms, is imknown. It is known, however, that a form with a large
head and strong jaws is always posted at the entrance of the artificially
constructed dwelling, and keeps guard there as soon as any disturbance
is remarked, and thus constitutes the safeguard not only of the young
but of the whole community.
" Now in the cases in which the more perfect development of the
progeny is promoted, either by means of ' nurses ' or of 'feeders' (under
which latter term we understand special individuals devoted to the
actual care or nourishing of the young, which office they fulfil by a
conscious activity), we see that nature always has in view the produc-
tion of a multitude of individuals to whose life or care is then com-
mitted the perfecting of a later generation or progeny, consisting of
less numerous individuals. This previous or preparatory multitude
seems to consist invariably of females, the xxuJes being apparenUy
excluded firom any participation in the office, on which account tiie
males of all the animals among which the system of 'nursing' or of
' feeding ' obtains, constitute a very subordinate number. That the
'nursing' should be committed to females alone appears to us vexy
natural, since we are acquainted with an organ in them whose natural
function would be to perform that office. The generative organs are,
indeed, in perfect (female) individuals divided, as it were, into two
parts of very distinct natures ; the ovaiium for the preparation of the
germ and the production of the egg, and the oviduct and uterus, in
which the ova are, as it were, incubated, and the germ and embxyo
sufficientiy developed to allow of its being bom. Now, it is actually
the case that no true ovary has been discovered in the 'nursing'
generations ; on the contrary, the germs, as soon as they are percep-
tible, are situated in oigans whiq^ must be regarded as oviducts and
uteri, as, for instance, in the most perfect ' nurses ' we are acquainted
with, the Aphides. In the ' nurses' of the trematode larva, the Cer-
cturia echinatck^ I have remarked that the germs in their earliest
condition are collected into an organ at the root of the tail, which
may probably be regarded as a uterus, and that they appear to distend
this organ ^:^ually to the size of the whole body. The accurate
anatomical researches of Professor Eschricht on the SaXpee also show
in the most precise way that the associated brood of the Salpce does
not originate from ova, but thaty as germs which are arranged in a
definite manner between the walls of a hollow organ, it is contained
in what can in no case be an ovary, and which the auUior has termed
a ' germ-tube.' This organ lies in a cavity which may probably be
considered very nearly a uterus, which is however always, as it were,
a secondary receptacle for the germs ; but in the present instance it
cannot be shown that they have occupied any previous receptacle or
place of formation.
"From what we at present know, we may probably assume with some
degree of certainty that the ' nursing' individuals are never themselves
gemmiparous, but that they are bom with germs in the organs in
which the embryos are afterwards nourished; and ftom. all this it
appears as if the female generative organism were always divided in
those cases in which development by means of ' nurses ' occurs, so
that as in the more perfect females an ovary especially is formed, so
in the 'nursing' individuals a much-developed uterus is presented,
in consequence of which, they, as individualised uteri, have assigned
to them, as the object of their existence, the performance of ti^enme-
tions of a uterus, and their complete formation must thus necessarily
raeoede that of the germs which are committed to their fostering care.
We carmot readUy perceive the reason, that because all 'nursing'
individuals must be of the female sex, it should follow that all those
individuals which feed the young should also be of that sex, and yet
this seems to be the law. Anatomy shows us that the 'feeders'
among bees, wasps, &o., and probably those of all insects living in
regular societies, are females, whose sexual oigans remain in an unde-
veloped state. They present scarcely tiie vestige of an ovary ; the
uterus is rudimentaiy, and all propagation consequentiy in the mate-
rial way, so to say, is rendered impossible ; the impenection of the
organ does not even allow of their acting as ' nurses,' and the propa-
gative instinct in a physical, corporeal sense passes into a will for tiie
propagation of the species, into a nitus impelling to the feeding or
nourii^iing of the young; and the fulfilment of these impulsive duties
is favoured by the peculiar transformation which some of the organs
undergo at the expense of those intended for propagation, in order
that &ey may become adapted to the bringing up of the young.
Whence it foUows that the development of the species in this case
does not take place by means of several generations, but through
several broods of the same generation. The reason of the great
number of ' feeders,' and for the common good of ' workers,' so that
they often constitute thousands, whilst the fertile individuals scarcely
amount to hundreds, may be readily understood when we consider
063
GENET.
QENTIANA.
964.
more closely the regular societies of bees and antSj and witness the
labour required for the oourishment of the young. But» on the other
hand, how the deTelopment of the species is promoted by the multi-
tude of ' nursing' animals of which we often see' thousands for each
single fertile one^ appears to us difficult of ezplantion, sinoe, even all
of them can only be regarded as animated organs, which do not appear
to act for or with each other. It does not howeyer seem to me impro-
bable that even the ApkideB, trematode nurses, and other parasites,
which are so immediately injurious to the organisms in or upon which
they live, are not destined merely to promote the extension of the
species, but that they also induce in the organisms themselves condi-
tions necessarily more and more favourable to a later generation ;
plants also and animals afford us many instances that to a certain
abundance of parasites there usually succeeds a complete over6ow of
them.
" I conclude with the remark that, inasmuch as in the system of
' nursing' the whole advancement of the welfare of the young is effected
only by a still and peaceful oiganic activity, is only a function of the
vegetative life of the individual, so also all those foims of animals in
whose development the * nursing' system obtains, actually remind us
of the propagation and vital cyde of plants. For it is peouUar to
plants, and, as it were, their special characteristic, that the germ, the
primordial individual in the vegetation or seed, is competent to pro-
duce individuals which are again capable of producing seeds or indi-
viduals of the primary form or that to which the plant owed its
origin, only by Uie intervention of a whole series of generations. It
is certfunly the great triumph of Morphology, that it is able to show
how the plant or tree (that colony of individuals arranged in accord-
ance with a simple vegetative principle or fundamental law) unfolds
itself, through a frequently long succession of generations, into indi-
viduals, becoming constanUy more and more perfect^ until, after the
immediately precedent generation, it appears as calyx and corolla,
with perfect male and female individuals, stamens, and pistils (so that
even in the vegetable kingdom the grosser hermaphroditism does not
obtain, which is still supposed to take place in the animal) ; and after,
the fructification brings forth seed, which again goes through the same
course. It is this great and significant resemblance to the vegetable
kingdom, which in my opinion is presented by the BrUozoa and all
' nurse * generations, and to which I have alluded in the preceding
Essay : 1 might almost say that the condition of continued dependence
incidental to the animal life, is to a certain extent one of less perfec-
tion than that which is presented in the progressive elevation in
development effected by the sgency of the vegetative life." [Sufp.]
GENET. [Vivbrrida]
GENISTA (the Latin QenUta), a genus of Pknts belonging to the
natural order Leg%iminoice, The calyx is 2-lipped; the upper lip
' bifid, the lower trifld. It has a subulate ascendmg s^le ; a terminal
oblique introrse stigma. The species have yellow flowers, and most
of them yield a yellow dye. The Planta Oenitta, or Whin, the Gen of
the Celts, and the Gdnet of the French, was the badge of a long race
of English kings, hence called Plantagenets. Upwards of eighty species
are included in this genus, but few are applied to any important uses.
They are foimd principally in the south of Europe, and some few are
natives of Great Britain.
O, pihia, has a smooth procumbent stem, and obovate lanceolate
obtuse leaves; ovate blunt stipules. The peduncles, calyx, and
underside of the leaf are silky, and the pods hidry. It ib% native of
the south of France, and is also found in Suffolk and Cornwall in
England, in sandy places.
0. tinctoria, Dyer's- Weed, or Woad, has a depresssed stem, with
erect branches, without thorns ; lanceolate leaves, hairy at the edges ;
minute subulate stipules ; racemose flowers ; and glabrous corolla and
pods. The branches are from one to two feet high, glabrous and
downy above. This plant is a native of Europe, and is found in
pastures, fields, and thickets in England. The flowers yield a yellow
colour, which ia much used for dying wool. When cows are allowed
to feed on this plant their milk becomes bitter and disagreeable, and
the unpleasant taste of cheese and butter is often attributable to
this cause. 0. tinctoria has also a medicinal reputation. The seeds
act as a mild purgative, and the ashes are also said to be a valuable
diuretic.
0. anglictif Needle -Whin, has a spinous ascending stem, leafless
below ; unarmed glabrous flowing branches ; ovate-lanceolate leaves ;
and glabrous stems and corolla. It is a native of Europe, in
France and Denmark, and is found in Britain on moist boggy
commons.
G, accmlhoclada has trifoliate leaves, nearly sessile ; linear, compli-
cated, silky leaflets ; stiff and spinose branches. The flowers almost
opposite, and disposed along the branches in a kind of interrupted
spike. It is a native of the Levant in exposed places, and in the
island of Melos. This plant appears to be the M^Xoura ^i(a of
Hippocrates, 2/rofnriof of Theophrastus, and the 'AoirdAa^of of
Dioscorides.
Q. ffiapamca has lanceolate villous leaves; branched stiff spines ;
terminal racemes, somewhat capitate. It is a native of Spain and the
south of France. Fraas states that this species is the 'genista' of
Roman writers (VirgU, ' Georg.' ii 494 : Pliny, xxvi. 9. 1% ?2. 9^ 9;
ColumeUa, 4, 81).
O. pvrgan» is an erect branched shrub with very few leayes, and
axiUsxy flowers on short pedicels. It is a native of France, on hills,
especially in the Cevennes, where it ia used by the villagers as a
cathartic.
0, manotperma has erect branches ; very few linear oblong leaves,
clothed wiUi a depressed pubescence ; and h^ral few-flowered racemes.
It is a native of Spcdn, Portugal, Barbary, and Egypt. On the shores
of Spain it is found to be very useful in binding the otherwise drifting
sand, and by its beautiful fragrant blossoms it converts a barren waste
into a lovdy garden. The goats feed on the leaves and young
branches,, of which they are particularly fond. The Spaniards call
both the plant and the districts over which they grow Betamas, from
the Arabic word Rietam. The species of this genus tibrive well in
a mixture of loam, peat, and sand, and young cuttings will easily
strike in a potful of sand with a bell glass over them, which must
be taken oJQTand wiped occasionally, lest the cuttings absorb too much
moisture.
(Don, jDiehlatnydeout Plants; Babington, Manual of British Botany;
Fraas, Synopsis Fkmtarum Florcs Classiea; Burnett, Outlines of
Botany.)
GENTIANA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Cfentianacook It has a 4-5-parted calyx. The corolla is variously
divided, twisted to the right in esstivation, often with accessory lobes
between the principal ones, without depressed glands upon Uie petals.
The filaments equal at the base ; anthers not changing. The stigmas
are terminal on the ovary or style. The placentso united with the
endocarp and overspreading the valves of the capsule.
O. CatesbiH is found in wet grassy meadows in the southern parts
of the North American Union. It has a branching fleshy root. The
stem ia simple, erect, and rough. The leaves opposite, ovate, or
lanceolate, slightly 8-nerved, acute, rough on the margin. The flowers
crowded, nearly sessile, axillary, and tenninaL The s^ments of the
calyx linear lanceolate, varying in length, exceeding the tube and
sometimes more than twice its length. The corolla is large, blue,
ventricose, plaited, its border 10-cleft ; the 5 outer segments roundish
and more or less acute, the 5 inner bifid and fimbriate. The stamens
are 5 in number, with dilated filaments, and sagittate anthers. The
ovazy ia obloi^, lanceolate, compressed, supporteid by a sort of pedicel.
The style is absent, stigmas 2, oblong and reflexed. The capsule
oblong, acuminate, 1-celled, and 2-valved. The dried root is muci-
laginous and sweetish, then intensely bitter, approaching to O, lutea.
It is said to be the best substitute for that species.
O. AmartUa has a salver-shaped 4-5-cleft corolla, bearded in the
throat ; the calyx-lobes 5, nearly equal, lanceolate ; the leaves sessile,
ovate, lanceolate ; the radical leaves obovate. It is very variable in
size and in the number of the flowers. It is from 8 to 12 inches high,
erect The stem square, much branched. The flower is of a pale
purple colour, barely an inch long ; the mouth of the tube is crowned
by a fine erect purplish fringe rather shorter than the limb, and rising
much above the stamens. The stamens answer in number to the
divisions of the calyx and corolla, being almost always 5, awl-shaped,
with roimdish separate anthers. The styles are very short; the
stigmas ovate. This species is a British plant, and is onet of the
substitutes for the true Gentian sold in shops.
Q, campestris is rather paler than the last species and of more
humble growth, varying greatly in luxuriance. The stem is somewhat
corymbose, with simple flower-stalks of various lengths. The leaves
are ovate, acute, and 8-ribbed. The flowers are somewhat larger than
in Q, Amarella, 4-cleft, essentially distinguished by having the twc
outer and opposite segments of the calyx ovate and very broad,
covering the two inner, which are narrow and lanceolate, or even awl-
shaped, all deeply serrated, and minutely fringed. This species is
foimd in Great Britain and in elevated pastures in many parts of
Europe. It is used as a substitute for the officinal Gentian.
O. purpurea is native of Swizerland, Savoy, the Pyrenees, and
Norway. It has a simple and subdivided root^ many-crowned, taper,
thickish, long, yellow outside, white inside, intensely bitter. The
stem is obscurely 4-comered, green or greenish-purple, from 1 to 2 feet
high. The radical leaves are ovate, or ovate-lanceolate, apiculate;
those in the middle of the stem ovate-lanceolate, scarcely acuminate,
the uppermost sessile, broad, lanceolate, uniting and sheathing at the
base, ul 5-nerved, flexible, and bright shining green. The flowers are
terminal and axillary on (diort stalks. The cslyx is oblongs scarious,
semi-transparent^ sUt longitudinally on the loner side. The corolla is
large, rather coriaceous, vrith a few scattered dots arranged in rows in
the inside ; the tube yellow and striated, the limb 6-cleft, with broad
obtuse segments distant at the base. The seeds are brown, orbicular,
and winged. It ifi employed with the next species in continental
practice.
0. Pannoniea has a tapering root^ little branched, many-crowned,
rugose, as much as 2 feet long, thick, yellovnsh-brown outside,
whitish inside. The stem is round, green, or purplish, from I to 2
feet high. The leaves are ovate, somewhat apiculate, 5-nerved, the
petioles running down into a sheath, those on we middile of the stem
ovate-lanceolate, long; those at the top acuminate, about 8-narved;
all somewhat coriaceous and bright green. The flowers are sessile, or
on very short stalks (the upper whorl many*flowered), laige, an inch
and a half long. The calyx is campanulate, obsoletely 5-oonieredy
QENTIAHA.
kbout S-olefl, Taried with xtA and green ; tlui KgmanU almoat leoff
and unequal, divided by a wide sinui, Hometimea aermlated, Bhorter
than the tube. The corolla la ooriacsoug, membrasoiu, [rarjje, with
• fellowiih tube, marked all over into roni of deeper ipots, the aeg-
menta orate, rather blunt, thrice ■■ ihorb u the tnbe. The aeada are
brown, winged, and round. The roots are eztremelj bitter, and are
uwd eitennrely in Baiaiia and Aoitria in medicjne.
0, Kwrroa ii found-in varioni parts of the Hinialayu. Ithu a
it«m about 1-floweted, obtuse leavea, the radical long, lanoeolate,
thoae on the atema linear. The teeth of the oalyx are long and
nibnlat& The condla ia funnel - shaped, with an intense blue
ipreading 10-lobed limb, the principal lobes of which are .ovate and
aoute, the intanmdiate onea scaleJike teeth. The root is used like
Oentun ia the noitii of Italjr.
0. ImMo, the Common Gentian, ia found in alptne meadowa throngh-
oat the middle of Europe. It has a cylindrica] root, wrinkled, ringed,
thiek, fbikad, brown externally, yellow within. The stem i* 3 or 4
fact high, hollow, and stout. The radical leaves are orata-obiong,
K-nerved, 2 or S inches broad, thoee on the stem aeeaile, ovate, amite ;
those next the Bowers cordate, nmptexieanl, concave, all a pals bright
green. The Sowen are bright yellow, in manv-&owerod whoriii,
stalked. The calji ii of a papery texture, and Beml-tranaparent, S- or
i-olsft, with abort lanceolate unequal eegmeota. The corolla with a
veiT lUiort tube, and 6 or 6 green glands at the base, S- or 6-parted,
wiui oblong acute vriny lobes. The anthers are subulate, eotne.
what united, beoomingdistinct. The stignua revolute. The capsule
oblong and gt&Ued. The seeds roundiah, compressed, with a mem-
bianoiu broimiah border. The root of this apeoiea f\iniiahea the
Qentian of commerce, a valuable bitter drug employed extensively in
oeitaiu fonna of dyspepus, in intermittents, and aa an anthelmintic
jn foil doaes it is apt to relax tba bowls, and it does not always agree
with the stomach, in fact, it possesses a volatile principle capable of
produoing nauaaa and a kind of intoxication. The root contains a
good deal of lugar and mucilage which enables the Swiss to prepare
bom it a liqueur held la high esteem among tbs people
' - - • ' arealldeeci
Q. PumuKonaniht are all described aa British
The Ibllowing is an BrrangBment of the European apedes of this
pnns:—
A. Tnbe of the corolla short or greatly enlarged at the mouth.
Throat naked ; segmenta not fringed.
L Plowers in whorls or beadi.
h. Corolla with Bcoaaaory plaits.
1. Calyx a sheath deeply divided on one mds.
O. Burttii ; Q. jmrpurta ; 0. nacnphyUa.
2. C>lji campBQulata, with nearly equal teeth.
0. Pamumica ; 0. punctata ; 0. entciata.
n. Flowers solitary or in pairs. Corolla with accessory plat«e.
a. anJepiadta; G. Pngmnonantke ; Q. FraltehU; 0.
frigida; O. acatUu; O.txeita.
B, Tube of the corolla oyliodrical, or somewhat barreled. Throat
naked. Segmenta not fringed.
L PcrenniaL Stems nnmsreus, simple, 1-flowertd.
Q. Barariea/ O. brachyphyHa; Q. vema; Q. aitiva,-
0. inibritata ; 0, pHmila ; 6. Pyrenaica.
IL AnntuJ. Stem single, bnucbed, many-flonered. No barren
shoots, styles cloven.
0. pretlrxila ; O. vtriculota ; 0. ixitalU.
C. Throat or corolla bearded. Boot-leaves obovate ; stalked.
I. Calyx tubular, i- or G-toothe4
e. eompttlrit : a. Oermanka; G. AmariUa ; Q-abtHufolia:
IL Calyx 4- or G-partite. Stem branched only at the base.
Flower«t«lkB long and naked.
G. ttn^a; G. •Mm.
Aa oraamental objects tiiese plante are Misariubla for the bril-
liant eoloon and beantiM forms of their flowers. The speoies are
extrvnaly numerous, inhabiting the temperate parts of Europe, Aaia,
and America, chiefly in mount^ons sjtuAtjona, where they tmeathe a
pure Mid imiifled air, are exposed to bright light during the short
if snch regions, and although Gied during vrintOT In places
as to suffer no injury. Theoe alpine plants are consequently difficult
to cultivate, or even uneultivable, from the impossibility of imitating
tlMdr natural atmcaphere ; and benoe it is only a very smaQ number
that are ever sesn in gardenia The prevailing eolonra of their flowen
are other en intones pure blue, or a bright dear ydlow : some idn
may befonnedof the brilliancr of the former from that of 0. aceuiit,
a ooounoa spedea in gardens, where it is much employed for tnakiDg
OENTIANACEiE. en
edging to bordere j the yellow species are equally represented by
G. iMlta.
The ornamental speoiea that are found easilT capable of cultivation
are G. lulea, with yellow, and 0. <udq>iadia, G. taptmaria, Q. erudata,
G, t^ilanjUa, G. aciaUit, and G. FntumonanlAe, with blue flowers. Of
these all require a good American border of peat^earth to grow in,
with the exception of G. aemilu, which pi«fsn the hardest and
itifiest clay. Hany other species are named in gardaning books, but
they generally perish aa soon as they are brought under the hands of
the cultivator.
(Lindley, VtgtlaUt Kimgitm ; Wood, Tovritt* Flora; Batnngtan,
belonging to the MoDopetalous Exogens, and connsting of herbaceous
plants, with oppodle ribbed leaves, and flowera whoee corolla is
imbricated ; the stamens alternate with tiie petals ; the ovary supe-
rior, with tiro cells standing right and left of the axis of growth ; and
seeds cont^ning a minute embryo lytog in a mass of albumsn. They
are generally eraisidered to be m the closest alliance with Scropkuta-
riaeea, but It is possible that their reaemblanoe to that order is one
of analogy rather than affinity. Along with Onb<mckaeta and
MoHotrapatta, they seem rather to belong to the albuminous group
of Bxosens, as has already been shown. [EiOalKS.] The flowers of
these pianta are usually coloured vrtth pure bright yellow, red, or
blue, and in many cases they are on this account among the most
beautiful of Sowers ; but if we have a tuKb development of form and
colour in tbs majority of the species of ^is order, so we also have in
the Ouayana and Heiioan pisjits belonging te Uie genus Vogra or
LeifkaMMt the brown leafless habit and low development of Orobameht.
This order ia famoos for ite bittemees, which seems to pervade all
the speoiea. Gtutiana ilaelf furnishes all the officinal kinds ; but
BrstlMtxa OaUavTwkiR [Ebtthbaa], ■ beautiful wild flower common
in many parte of England, ia advantageously employed byoouDtry
people aa a eubatitute ; and the root of Fraxtra W(dten [Faissttaj
lias been used as a means of adulterating Che bitter Calumba-root.
Cktrayta, a Himalayan annual, is remarkable for the purenesa of , its
bitter. The whole plant is pulled up at the time the Bowers begin
to decay, and dried for usev There are 60 genera and 4fiO spades of
Uibr order.
BHtton otamaenilied iMd. i . t
This order extends over almost all parts of the world, fium the
regions of perpetual snow upon the eummits of the mountains of
Europe, to the hottest sands ot South America and India. They
however do not appear in the Flora of Helvills Island j nd they
957
GENUS.
GEOLOGY.
938
form part of that of the Straits of HagellAn. The moat oommon genus
is Oentiaua, than which few genera display so full a series of oolours
in the flowers; red, blue, yellow, and wmte are all eidiibited in it,
with many of the intermediate compound tints. For the properties
of the genera of this order see C^oendia, Culora, Mektanthes,
ViLLARHTA, AOATHOTSS.
GENUS, an assemblage of species allied by common characters, and
subordinate to an order, family, tribe, or sub-tribe. A genus is fre-
quently a natural assemblage, but almost every naturalist has his own
particular yiews with regard to the propriety of uniting or separating
particular groups of species; it is therofore often an arbitraiy group.
It is thus that the synonymy of genera becomes every dav more
oopiou% and it is one of the dMculties with which the naturalist has
to contend in his studies. At present there are no generally reoogmsed
rules for the oonstmetion of genera amongst plants and ammaU.
[Faiolubb or Plahts ; Orders ; Sfeoie&]
GEOBDELLA. [Annelida.]
GEOCICHLA, a genus of Birds established by Mr. Gould for a
pretty species resembling the Redbreast {ErUhaeut RuheciUa, Swain-
son). It belongs, he obsenres, to an interesting group wbidi was
first characterised by M. Euhl, and of which the ooUeotion of the
Zoological Society possesses four well-marked species. ('Zoological
Proceedings,' 1880.)
GEOCOGHLIDES, LatreiUe's name for the Shell-Snails. Traoh^
tipodes Colimac^ of Lamarck ; Limadn^iof DeBlainville; Iiima9ons
of De F^mssao.
GEOCRONITE, a Mineral occurring amorphous without cleavage.
The fracture is lamellar in one direction, and in the other granukr
and conchoidaL The colour lead-gray ; streak the same. Hardness
b<>tween mica and calcareous spar. Lustre metaJlic. Opaque. Specific
gravity 5*88. It is found in the silver mine of Sala in Sweden, and
in the provinoe of Qalida in Spain. An analysis of the mineral from
the Sala mine by Svanbeig gives —
Lead 66-452
Antimony . 9*516
Anenic 4*695
Copper 1-514
Iron 0-417
Zmo '. 0*111
Sulphur 16-262
GEOEMTDA [Chelonia.1
G£OFFR.£A, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
LegwninouR, One of the species, G, inermia, sometimes known as
Andira inermU, is a native of Jamaica, Trinidad, Miurtinico, Porto
Rico, St. Domingo, and Guyana, in woods and on river-buiks. It has
18 or 15 ovate-lanceolate leaflets, acute, glabrous on both surfaces,
(he flowers pannided on short pedicles ; catyx urceolate, clothed with
rusty pubescence. The flowers are arranged in terminal and axillary
ferruginous panicles, very showy, vrith reddish lilac petals. The
legume is the size of a laige plum.
• The bark of this tree ii of a grey colour externally, but black and
foxTOwed on the inside. The powder looks like jalap. It has a
mucilaginous and sweetish taste, and a disagreeable smell. Its
medical eflSects are ^:reat. When properly exhibited it operates as a
powerful anthelmintic. It is given in the form of a powder, decoc-
tion, syrup, and extract, but should always be given in small doses ;
in large doses it ia poisonous, producing violent vomiting, with fever
and delirium.
GEOLOGY, the science of the earth (as the Greek words yri and
x6yof may be translated), includes, in a lat^ sense, all acquired or
possible Imowledge of the natural phenomena on and within the globe ;
whether these be now of frequent occurrence, the result of the exist-
ing combinations of physical agencies, or remain as monuments and
measures of those agencies in earlier periods of the history of the
planet.
Some of these phenomena are witnessed in oonnection with inorganic
bodies, and depend in a great degree on the laws of force which apper-
tain to and distinguish from each other the particles of matter ; others
are exemplified in organised structures endowed with vital functions
related to those structures; and there may yet be distinguished a
third order of effects, influencing and combining with both of the
former, and depending on laws of force which affect the whole mass
of the globe^ as gravitation, or derived from extraneous agency, as
light.
If at any certain epoch (as the present time) the phenomena thus
classed were known m detail, and reduced to general laws which
truly expressed the individusl cases, the actual condition of the earth
would be really known ; if further it were possible to collect sufficient
evidence from monuments preserved in the earth of its exact state at
some former epoch, the variations to which terrestrial phenomena are
subject would be disclosed ; and bv the comparison of several such
survm, taken at distant times, the laws of these variations would be
revealed with an exactness proportioned to the certainty with which
the intervals of time were determined. These laws of the variation
of the condition of the globe at successive epochs, combined with the
laws'of chemical, vital, and mechanical action, which are assumed to
be essential and constant, independent of time, and exempt from
change, will furnish one, and only one, satisfactory general contem-
plation or theory of the origin, structure, and successive changes of
the globe, considered as part of the planetary system revolving round
the sun.
To reach this general theory is the ultimate object of modem
geology. ^ The discovery of the right method of proceeding in this
attempt 1b of modem date ; and all the most important steps of the
advance towards this ' high point of knowledge ' have been taken
within the* memory of the generation now passing away. If, as Sir
John Herschel tells us (' Discourse on the Study of Natural Philo-
sophv'), "geology, in the magnitude and sublimity of the objects of
which it treats, tmdoubtedly ranks, in tiie scale of the sciences, next
to sstronomy," it owes this distinction to the fact that its modem
cultivators have sought within the ranks of inductive sdenoe better
methods of research and purer models of reasoning than those alforded
by the treasures of ancient philosophy which have been preserved to
our time. Nor is this the peculiar boast of geology, ^very braiibh
of the study of nature was equally transformed by the introduction
of the Baconian methods of interpretation of nature ; all the natural
sciences have advanced together ; the knowledge of the constant laws
m the visible creation has been continually perfected; and ti^us^
while the study of the long-past operations of nature has been imbued
with tiie exactness of chemical, soological, botanical, and physical
researeh, the dry annals of one era in the history of tiie wond have
been enriched into a long, instructive, and eventftd history.
Among tiie ancients the notices of geology are few, and the interest
belonging to them is of a peculiar duuvoter. When chemistry, whose
operations manifest the existence of peculiar laws of force among the
particles of matter, was wholly unknown — ^when the living wonders
of creation were but slightly considered by philosophers intent on
abstract principles — ^no accurate survey could be taken of the con-
dition of any one part of the surface of the earth. But a small part
of that surface was known to any one people, and only ill a few
situations were the changes in the aspect of nature so extensive as to
arrest the attention of tiie geographer, or so yiolent as to excite the
philosopher to search for the cause.
Among the ancientiy peopled and commercial states of the eastern
shores and islands of tiie Mediterranean both these droumstanees
concurred, and there first awakened the powerful intellect of Greece
to speculation on the varying condition of the laad and sea. Lower
Egypt is the gift of the Nile, and the learned people which possessed
it were compiled by the circumstances of their situation to study the
nature and efibcts of the annual floods of the river. Herodotus (bom
B.O. 484) estimates (ii 11) that the Nile, if diverted into the Red Sm,
would fill that long gulf in less than 20,000 or even 10,000 years.
The notion of change thus distinctly impressed upon the minds ot
the Egyptian priests was developed in a general and philosophical
form, and illustrated by special references to an extended series of
geological phenomena by their pupil Pythagoras (bom B.O. 586).
According to tiie summary of their doctrine, and the tenor of the
iUustrations of it which aro given by Ovid, we cannot avoid seeing^
even through the injurious ornament of verse, that I^ythi^ras had
acquired a dear conception, a ' distinct idea,' of nature as existing by
the concurrent action of many complicated powers, which were subject
to continual or sudden variation in their relative intensity. Chax^ges
of the relative level of land and sea, and divulsion of islands from the
mainland by the action of earthquakes, are distinctiy aimounced ; the
displacement and limited duration of volcanic vents, such as JEtoA;
tiie degradation of luid by the action of atmospheric agency (' et eluvie
mons est deductus in soquor ;') the submersion of land which had
been formerly peopled —
81 queerat Helicen et Barin, Achaidas urbea,
Invenies sab aqais. — (Orid, * Metam.' xt., 1. 293.)
the production of new land, and the occurrence of marine shells far
from the present seas ; — these phienomena, distinctiy observed and
analysed, and dearly produced in proof of a general propositaon,
justify a higher degree of admiration for the Samian philosopher
than is due to any of the merdy speculative writers of antiquity.
Similar observations appear to have served as the ground-work of
Aristotie's exposition ('Meteorologica') of the perpetual fluctuation
of natural phenomena; the alternate exdtation and rest of parts of
the earth's surface. But it is in Strabo that we find the most
sensible views of the causes of the occurrence of marine shells far
from the shoro, the displacements of land and sea, the rising of
islands, the formation of straits, and other great geological phe-
nomena.
Having stated the views of Eratosthenes, as to the general fact of
the cartas globular form, and the production of the numerous minor
inequalities on its sur&ce, by correspondingly numerous ' proximate
causes,' such as the operations of water, heat, concussions, vapours^
and the like, he examines the opinions of Xanthus and Straton,
which Eratosthenes had preserved. (Strabo, Casaub* 49, &c.)
The explanation of Xanthus (derived from an historical &ct) that
the phenomena in%question were due to great droughts which had
diminished the originallT greater expanse of the sea^ is regarded as
insuffident ; and Strabo s hypothesis of a4jacent but disconnected
seas, one of which being raised to a higher levd by sediment on its
bed, had fordbly opened itself a passage to the other, the Euxine to
the Ph>pontis, the Meditezranean to the Atlantio, is shown to contradict
H^
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
MO
received physical theorems. Strabc proposes to account for these
and other phenomena by the general speculation that the land, not
the sea, is subject to changes of lerel, and that such changes more
easily hiippen to the land below the sea, ' because of its himudity.'
The action of iBtna in moving the shores of Sicily and IteJy is
spoken of in a familiar manner, and a long description of phenomena
beazing on the discussions succeeds, in which the opinions of many
authors are quoted.
Fifteen hundred years elapsed after the era of Strabo, without
adding anything material to the stock of geological facts, or the
limited range of rational theory ; for, ezceptmg tine work of Omar
(10th oentury), in which the phenomena of ' new lands,' and marine
shdUs found inland, are refeired to a * retreat of the sesy' there is
not, on the subject of geology among the Arabian writers, even the
uaiial amount of comment on the writers of Greece and Rome which
cfaaracterises ike literaiy efforts of the learned Moslems. (Lyell,
• Principles of Geology.')
In modem times Italy, the fruitful mother of modem physical
science, offered in her volcanic cones, ranges of mountains, and shelly
marls at their bases, the most attractive pomts to the iutelleotuid
activity of ^he precursors and contemporaries of Galilea
So recent are sound views of the true nature and relations of the
oigisnio forms buried in the earth, that it is not veiy difficult for
Knglish geologists to imagine the fierceness of the contest in which
Fracastoro (1617) was involved, to defend his opinions that the
'formed stones' (as they were afterwards termed in England) were
not 'luBus natune' produced by a 'plastic force,' but really the
remains of fishes, moUusca, &c. ; and that they had not been rudely
scattered over the surface by the Noachian flood, but buried at great
depths by a more regular operation of water. These important
assertions were the subject of controversy for nearly two centuries
in Italy ; and in establishing the true nature of the organic remains,
Gardano, O>lonna (1666), and Scilla (1670) overlooked or disregarded
the more serious and more seducing error of ascribing their inhu-
mation in the earth to a general deluge. Geoi^gius Agricola (1546)
adopted the wrong view of the origin of organic fossils : but Steno
(1669) of Gopenhagen, opened a new line of inquiry, by noticing the
succession of rocks; disttDgmshing some as having been formed
before the creation of Anim^la and plants ; insisting on the original
horizontal 30sition of the strata ; the proof of violent movement of
the crust of the globe, afforded by the now inclined position of such
strata in mountainous countries ; and the variations of condition to
which the surface of Tuscany had been exposed, by repeated over-
flows and retirements of the sea. (Lyell, ' F^nciples.')
Scilla's masterly work on the organic remains of Galabria, pub-
lished both in Latm and Italian (' La Vana Speculazione disingannata
dal Senao,' 1670), may be considered as closing the long dispute in
Italy, among men of philosophical minds, on the subject of the
nature of organic fossils. Its course was comparatively very short
in England, K>r Plot (in 1677) is almost the only writer who really
and heartily embraced the doctrine of an occult cause, to escape
from the consequence of admitting the true origin of the 'formed
stones,' and Scilla's work was abridged for the 'Philosophical
Transactions' in 1695-6, by Dr. Wotton. Lister's early views on
the matter (1678) express a doubt, arising from knowledge ; he saw
that the fossil-shells were different from the living types, and pro-
posed the alternative of a terrigenous origin, or an extinction of
species. Ray (1692) on ' Chaos and Creation,' Woodward's ' Natural
History' (1695), Scheuchzer's 'Herbarium Diluvianum,' of the same
date, afford proof of the victory gained by the observations of
naturalists over the closet speculations of metaphysicians, on the
origin of fossil-shells in most ports of Europe ; and indeed, in France,
Palissy's lectures and writings (his last publication bears the date of
1580) may be said to have established the truth contended for.
The victory was unproductive. In consequence of coupling with
the obvious truth a fitital and fundamental error, the shells and other
exuviae of the sea were maintained by Woodward and a host of
contemporaries and followers to have been brought upon the land by
the ' universal deluge,' as all writers except Quirini (1676) agreed to
term the Noachian flood. This error might speedily have been swept
away by the early arguments of Palissy, the investigations of Steno,
and the striking generalisation of Lister; but that, unhappily, from
a philosophical question, it became a theological argument 'The
fonU-shellB far from the sea were held to be physical proofs of the
truth of the Mosaic narrative ; and the occurrence of these shells at
various depths and heights, and in rocks of different kinds, only
furnished additional arguments in favour of the violence of that
flood, which not merely was supposed to have covered the mountains,
but to have entirely broken up and dissolved the whole frame-work
of the earth, and to have deposited the materials according to their
relative gravity. In vain hod Hooke, Ramazzini, and Ray, previous
to 1700, protested against the absurdity of this hypothesis, which
Leibnitz appears to have despised ; it was reserved for Moro (1740),
Buffon (1749), Linnseus (1770), and Whitehurst (1792), to hasten its
banishment from philosophy ; but even at this day there are persons
who from time to time revive the discussions of the 16th century, as
a point of importance in Christian theology.
To account for Ihe dryness and elevation of the countries where
fossil shells occnr, there are but two hypotheses : the shelly bed of
the sea has been raised, or the ocean has abandoned its ancient place.
Many of the Italian geologists adopted the former view, and in con-
sequence repeated the opinions and reasonings of Strabo, with the
advantage of referring to the elevation of Monte Nuovo near Puzzuoli,
in 1588, and Santorino, 1707 (Majoli, 1597 ; Vallisneri, 1721 ; Lazzaro
Moro, 1740). The better order of English writers (Hooke in 1668,
Ray in 1692 — earthquakes were then frequent in Europe) adopted
the same views ; and Hooke in particular presented the phenomena
of earthquakes and volcanoes in the form of a general specnlatioD,
which sefved to direct the opinions of subsequent systematists liker
Whitehurst
None of the philosophers who were concerned in establishing the
truths connected witii organic remains were seduced by their success
into the vanity of proposing any general hypothesis on the formation
of the earth. But this creditable modesty, so characteristic of the
spirit of induction which animated Fracastoro, was not at all imitated
by the fandfril diluvialists, who followed in the wake of Woodward,
Burnet, Whiston, Catcott, and others. To determine whence came
the water which held at once in suspension the whole of the exterior
parts of the globe, and whither it retreated, was necessary to help
out their extravagant proposition.
No ordinary hypothesis would meet these formidable problems,
and if we recollect that in answering them it was further required
to adopt views which should not trench on the arbitrary notions then
entertained as to the meaning of certain passages of Scripture, we
shaU be disposed to regard even the monstrous violations of physical
truth which appear in the hypothesis of Bumet» Woodwsrd, and
Whiston, without surprise. Omitting minor drcumstanoes which it
would be useless to particularise, Burnet^ Woodward, and their
followersy agreed in adopting the notion of an interior abvas below
the crust of the earth, as uie general reservoir from, whence the
waters rushed to cover the earth, and into which they again with-
drew after the diluvial devastation was completed. Whiston, who
was fkr better versed in physical science thui either of the others,
introduced in addition the notion of extraneous force ; he brought a
comet to envelop the earth in its misty tail, to cause violent rains,
raise vast tides m the intemsl abyss, and thus effectually destroy the
external crust of the planet It appears probable that mankind
seldom permit their imaginations to take such dangerous ^ghts
without necessity ; the hypothesis is made to suit ike conditions of
the moment^ and the chief error consisted in including among these
conditions a narrow and unreasonable interpretation of the Mosaic
narrative.
The diluvial hypothesis has been sufficiently traced to its natural
consequence-Ht monstrous violation of the laws of nature; another
general view, first distinctly stated by ViJlisneri (1721), has been the
source of long-continued errors. Struck by the general diffusion of
marine fossils, he supposed the ocean to have once extended over all
the earth, and to have gradually subsided, leaving everywhere the
traces, not of a violent flood, but of the quiet super-fluctuation of
water. Perhaps Vallisneri found this notion in hu travels ; at any
rate, the notion of a universal subsidence of the ocean appears to be
the German element of geological hypothesis, for Werner made it the
basis of his so-called theory of the earth, and thus obscured with a
physical improbability the important truths which he had establi^ed
concerning the succession of strata.
Starting from an entirely different pointy Leibnitz (in 1680) pro-
posed one of the most general contemplations which has ever
appeared in geology. He commences with the concentration of the
mass of the globe in a state of greajk heat ; accounts for the funda-
mental primary rocks by the refrigeration of the surface, and explains
the violent action of water upon them by the coUapse of this crust
on the contracting nucleus. Sedimentarr strata are the natural
consequence of these watery movements subsiding to rest^ and by the
repetition of the phenomena such features are imparted to the earth
as to insulate many of the later deposits, and render it necessary to
be pmdent in determining whether local or general agency has been
concerned in producing them. It would be (Sfficult in general terms
more clearly to announce views now prevalent among those ^ho
contemplate geoloQr in connection with physical science. Cordier,
Von Buch, and De Beaumont have endeavoured by this speculation of
Leibnitz to explain some of the principal phenomena of geology —
the elevation of mountains ; but the merit of Leibnitz's theoretical
views was little regarded in England tiU Mr. Conybeare explained his
views to the British Association at Oxford at its first meetmg in that
city in 1833.
The effect of Laplace's and Fourier^s theorems on the operation of
interior heat have been augmented by Mr. Hopkins's labours; and
the grand views of Sir W. Herschel as to the constitution of the
universe have been applied to the history of the earth by Sir Henry
De la Beche.
In the works of Ray (1692), and Hooke (1688), we may trace the
revival of another general speculation (that of Pythagoras), which,
instead of deducing the leading geological appearances from some
primal condition, with Leibnitz, supposes the essential condition of
the world to be one of continual change, and assigns to modem
causes in action a measure of force capable of producing, in a sufficient
COl
OEOLOQY.
GEOLOGY.
993
lapse of time, phenomena aa important as those of anoient geologioal
Lazzaro Moro's yiewa (1740) have the same tendency to recall
speculation to the employment of real causes seen in daily operation ;
Buffon (1749) appears to have unsuccessfully attempted the union of
the fondamental view of Leibnitz and the rogud for existing agencies
shown by Ray ; Dr. James Hutton, of Edinburgh, rejected i3l inquiry
as to the begkming of the world, and gave himself up entirely to an
explanation of the phenomena visible in the crust of the earth, on
the principle of a continual degradation of land by atmospheric
agency, the consequent formation of sedimentary strata on the bed of
the sea, and the periodical compensation of these effects by the action
of internal heat raising the bed of the sea, with the stratified
deposits therson. A continual destruction of the existing land
through the agency of water, and an occasional uplifting of new
continents from the ocean bed — these are the most striking points of
the Huttonian theory of the earth. Sir Charles LyeU differs from
ftr. Hution chiefly by recurring to the original form of the speculation
as we may conceive it to have existed in the mind of Pythagoras or
Aristotle, could either of those men have become acquainted with
:nodem science. For, instead of the occasional occurrence of a
violent upward movement of the bed of the sea, the author of the
' Principles of Gteology,' contends for a continual compensation among
the agencies of nature, the perfect equality of modem and ancient
physical forces, and the possibility of explaining all, even the grandest^
of ancient geological phenomena by causes now acting, ami acting
with their present intensity. No more definite or general proposition
has ever been advanced in geology, and its effects have been every-
where evident in the advancement of geologioal science.
Geological appearances are usually of a complicated character, and
must be analysed into their elementary parts before the inductive
process, which requires the comparison of facts agreeing or differing
with respect to a certain quality, can be usefully apjSied. Fossil
shells must be distinguished into fluviatUe or marine, identical with
or different from recent kinds ; rocks must be considered as to their
chemical nature, mechanical structure, geographical and other cha*
racters, before any vsluable inferences can be gathered from them.
Though this kind of labour is not discoveraUe among the works of
the Greeks which remain to us, we must not hastily deny that they
attempted it. In modem times Fracastoro, Palissy, and Steno, by
distinguishing the groups of strata; Lister, by discriminating recent
and fossil species of diells, and by noticixig the geographical relations
of rocks ; Woodward, by his industrious collection of specimens and
methods of arrangement ; Packe, by his remarkable ohorographicskl
map of Kent ; Lehman (1756) and Arduino, by their classification of
rocks, according to the relative periods of their production ; and
Mitchell (1760), by his masterly determinations concerning the rela-
tion between the ranges of mountains and the inclinations of the
neighbouring strata — have stronger claims to grateful remembrance
than are due to those who with much labour have merely produced
volumes of empty speculation.
John Gottlob Lehman (1756) may be considered as having the best
claim to a clear enunciation and proof of the different age and relative
position of classes of stratified rocks. In the French translation of
his work (' Traits du Physique, d'Histoire Naturelle, de Mineivdogie,
et de Metallurgie ') he says, " Nothing is more natural than to group
all mountains in three classes. The first includes mountains which
are coeval with the formation of the globe ; the second class was
produced by a revolution co-extensive with its surface ; the third
consists of mountains which owe their origin to particular accidents
or local revolutions." This was not a mere speculation of what
might be convenient, for he adds, " The mountains of the first class
are high, sometimes insulated in the plains, but generally connected
in a chain, traversing considerable parts of the earth. They differ
from those of the second class by their elevation and extent, by their
interior structure, by the mineral substances associated with them."
Pallas (' Journal de Physique,' 1779), in addition to these general
views, maintains that the granitic rocks, then taken as primary, were
never formed by water, because they do not occur in beds,' nor contain
organic remains ; that the secondary mountains were produced from
the disintegration of granite ; and the strata of later date, by the
wrecks of the sea elevated and transported by volcanic eruptions and
subsequent inundations.
To these distinguished authors Werner, professor of mineralogy in
Freyberg (1775), was a worthy successor. The first important addition
made by him to our previous knowledge on the subject was contained
in his 'Kiirze Elaasifikation und Beschreibung der verschiedenen
Gebirgsarten ' (1787), where the mineralogical distinctions of rocks
may be viewed as a completion of the labours of the earlier Swedish
writers, Cronstadt, Wallerius, Linnseus, jtc., all of whom had glimpses
of the geological relations of the rocks they classified. It does not
appear that Werner proposed any views as to the geological relations
of rocks in advance of those of Lehman or Pallas till 17U0 or 1791,
when the doctrine of * formations' was explained in his lectures, which
indeed was a powerful mode of ri^flftiaing instruction ; for his amiable
manners, disinterested enthusiasm, and various knowledge gave him a
strong ascendency over the numerous pupils who, from various
countries, flocked to Freybez^ In 1795 Werner had matured his
KAT. HIST. DIY. VOL. IL
views as to the classification of all the stratified rocks, and fix>m this
it is ea^ to estimate the real claim of Wemer to a high place in the
ranks of modem geology. The great advance made by Wemer
consists not in propounoQng the distinctions of great daases of rocks,
for this had become a oommon idea in Europe, but in practically
analysing these classes into their constituent groups, tracing the
order of succession among them, Maignmg their mineralogical
characters to each, and generaUsing this local truth into the doctrine
of formations universally succeeding one another in a settled order of
time. Parting from Freyberg wi& a better method of mineralogy,
and a more developed system of the succession of rooks than was
previously known, the pupils of Wemer carried the influence of Us
name and opinions over the world, and, imfortunately, the crude hypo*
thesis which was connected vrith the rich truths he taught was
embraced with an ardour very disproportionate to its value.
In France Rouelle (about 1760) had acquired ideas apparently aa
general, and fully as well supported by local knowledge, as Lehman.
His views on organic remains were quite in advance of the time. In
England the notices of stratification by Mr. Strachey (' Phil. Trans.,'
1719), the Rev. a HoUoway (1723), and the Rev. John MitcheU (1760)
are of great importance. Strachey presents an accurate section of
the coal strata of Somersetshire, with reflections on the strata above
them, and their geographical boundaries ; HoUoway describes the
geographical relation or the sand-hills of Wobum and Shotover,
yielding fallers'-earth, to the chalk hills on the east, and Uie oolitio
tracts on the west ; but Mitchell enters into a general and masterly
discussion on the relation between geological structure and the^
geographical features of the surface not to be paralleled for fully
fifty years.
Whitehurst must here be mentioned with honour. His * Inquiry
into the Original State and Formation of the Earth,' 1778, is of small
value for the purpose he proposed, but it contains important facta
towards a right conception of the stmoture of the earth. His 16th
chapter, entitled 'The Strata of Derbyshire and other parts of
England,' is full of information, principally derived from the minersy
but evidently well methodised m his own mind. How could the
geologists of England neglect such passages as these following; which
are merely the scientific exposition of truths known for hundreds of
years previous by skilful miners in all regions of stratified rocks ? —
" The arrangement of the strata in general is such that they invariably
follow each other, as it were, in alphabetical order, or as a series of
numbers, whatever may be their different denominations. Not that
the strata are alike in all the different regions of the earth, either
with respect to thickness or quality, for experience shows the contrary;
but that the order of the sUata m each particular part^ how much •
soever they may differ as to quality, yet follow each other in a regular
succession, both as to thickness and quality — ^insomuch that by
knowing the incumbent stratum, together with the arran|;ement
thereof in any particular part of the earth, we come to a perfect
knowledge of all the inferior beds, so far as they have been previously
discovered in the adjacent oountiy." (Edit -of 1792, pp. 178, 179.)
In p. 186 is the following remark in capitals : — " N.B. No vegetable
forms have yet been discovered in any of the limestone strata."
From these notices it is very clear that a distinct peroeption of a
fixed order in the succession of strata was so prevalent in the mining
districts of England as to attract the attention of the well-informed
classes of society. But it is extraordinary that Mitchell, who waa
appointed Woodwardian professor in 1792 (according to Farey), and
by his physical and mathematical knowledge seemed especially able
to work out the whole system of English stratification, should, on his
retirement from Cambridge to his rectory of Thomhill in Yorkshire,
have contented himself with tracing the succession of strata in the
north of England, or rather between Cambridge and Thornhill, and
communicating the document to Smeaton, without giving it even to
the Royal Society, which had published his early papers. Had this
been done, or had Smeaton known the value of the paper put into
his hands, it could not have happened, that of all the able engineers
who before 1790 were engaged in surveys and executing canals, not a
man should have attended to information of such singular value in
his profession; nor would Dr. WUliam Smith have been occupied in
re-discovering some of the truths which constitute the foundation of
English geology.
The progress of Dr. Smith's discoveries in geology is easily traced.
Conlmencing his career as a surveyor of land, and afterwards acquiring
great employment as a civil engineer, his attention was drawn in 1787
to the obvious distinctions in the soils and the subjacent strata of
certain parts of Oxfordshire and Warwickshire, which occupied, with
regard to one another, a certain geographical relatioiL In 1790 and
1791 the same relative position of the same strata was forced on his
attention in Somersetshire, with the addition of a series of cool strata
below the oolite, lias, and red marls with which he was previously
familiar. Assured by his own observation that the local knowledge of
the mines of SomerseteJiire which Strachey had published in 1719
was only a part of the truth, he set hunself not to frame a hypo*
thesis, but to determine the extent of the re^ar succession of strata
in the vicinity of Bati^, drew accurate sections of the strata in the
order of superposition, ascertained amongst them a general dip to the
east, marked their ranges on a map of the luxfaoe^ aad in 1794, in the
8q
963
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
064
course of a profeesional journey from Bath into the north of England,
examined impartially whether the general features of stratification in
other parts of England coiresponded with the impression fixed in his
mind oy abundant evidence, near Bath, that one general order of
Bucoession of the strata could be traced throughout the island, with a
general dip to the east or south-east. The result confirmed Ins view,
and excited him to devote time, professional income, and unequalled
labour to produce proof satisfactory to others. The result was a
geologicflJ map of England and Wales, drawn previous to 1801, when
proposalB were issued for the publication of it.
The strong conviction in nis mind of the regular, orderly, and
successive deposition of the strata, led him to a more minute analysis
of the oharaoteristio marks of the several deposits than had ever been
oonceiyed before. The remarkable resemblajtice and occasional proxi-
mity of many rocks near Bath, belonging to dififerent places in the
section of strata, and which (to use a favourite expression of Dr.
SmiUi) ''had been successively the bed of the sea," prevented any
merely mineral distinction from being effectual ; and he was thus
forced to study with care the method of distribution of the fossil
oiganio remains in the rocks for the purpose of discriminating these
similar deposits. This was not long pursued before the local pecu-
liarities of the strata in this respect were connected to a general law ;
and it was found that throughout the district in question the fossils
were definitely located in the rocks ; each stratum had its own peculiar
Bpedra, whereTcr it occurred, and could thus be identified when in
detached masses and in distant localities. This great discovery was
recorded as a thing fully determined in a table of the Order of Strata
in 1799, of which copies were distributed beyond the British Islands.
The dear idea of each stratum being successively the bed of the sea
is apparency the germ of that happy expansion of geological truths,
unmixed with hypothesis and unfettered by a formula of merely
local stratification, for which English geology is indebted to Dr. Smith.
Such an idea immediately suggests, not a speculation in cosmogony,
but TariouB yet harmonious researches in the fuU spirit of inductive
science. The history of successive geological periods, all character-
isable by their chemical or mechanical products and contemporaneous
organic existence, was thus placed in a concentrated light as a general
problem for inquiry, and the effects were immediately obvious in the
employment of organic remains, and sections and maps of strata, to
determine the true condition of the land and sea firbm the earliest
periods to the present hour.
Against the hypothesis of Woodvrard, that the fossil exuvia) in the
rooks were lodged in them by the 'universal deluge,* it was objected,
that though the fossil shells, corals, fish-teeth, ic, resembled t^e
recent kinds, they were not the same. The question thus raised
could not rest Lister affirmed that in general the fossil species of
shells were entirely distinct from living forms ; Camerarius inquired
to what marine genus of animals Woodward referred the belemnites,
and received for reply that it was a mere mineral ! The ammonites
were admitted to be not nautili, but were declared to be ' Pelagian
shells' not likely to be thrown on the present sea-coasts by the
moderate force of tides and storms, which do not influence the deep
parts of the ocean. Linnaeus continually points out the species of
corals and shells to which no recent analogue is known ; and Solander,
by giving suitable names to the extinct shells of Hordwell Cliff,
figured by Brander (1766), opened the way to the researches of Martin,
Parkinson, Sowerby, Brocchi, Deshayes, Goldfuss, and more modem
writers.
Llwyd and Scheuohser commenced the study of fossil plants^ which
has lately been so much advanced by Sternberg, Adolphe Brongniart,
Lindley, and Joseph Hooker. But by none of those writers who com-
pared the fossil and recent worlds of life under the aspects of zoology
and botany only could any clear notion be formed of the existence
and destruction of a iucceasion of different races of animals and
plants. Lister had noticed the constant occurrence of a certain
nelemnite in the red layers at the base of the chalk ; Morton had
dirtinguiahed the geological position of some fossils in Northampton-
shire ; and Uwyd and Woodward had some knowledge of this Idnd.
Boaelle and Werner have daima to attention, but certainly it is to
Dr. William Smith that we owe the introduction of the important
doctrine, that during the formation of the stratified crust of the earth,
the races of animals and plants were often and completely changed,
so that each stratified rock became in his eyes the museum of that
age oi the world, containing a peculiar suite of organic exuvia, the
remains of the creatures then in existence.
In France the same truth was put in a bright light by the successful
labours of Cuvier and Alex. Brongniart in the vicinity of Paris ; tiie
former of whom, by his great anatomical skill, succeeded in restoring
the vanished forms of many quadrupeds, different from those whi<£
now live ; while the latter, collecting materials with great judgment
from a wide field of research, brought the most convincing proof of
the almost total dissimilitude between the forms of life of the secondary
and tertiary periods of geology, while both were for the most part
distinct bxm those of the actual land and sea.
The general doctrine of many successive creationa of life in the
globe, ^UB firmly establiahed in England and France, was speedily
acknowledged in every country where accurate observationB could be
mad^ and it only remained to trace oat its consequences^ and apply
them to particular problems. One very successful effort of this kind
has been made by M. Deshayes and Sir Charies Lyell, who, observing
among a vast number of the tertiary fossil shells which are different
from existing types, some few of which are identical with them, pro-
posed to determine what variation there might be in the proportion of
yet existing species among the tertiary fossils.from differeiit localitiea
and deposits of a dififerent geological age. Aa a general result (subject
to exceptions) it may be stated, that the more recent the stnta the
greater the amount of resemblance between their fossil contents and
the existing creation — a result in harmony with general views of the
whole subject of the analogy of recent and fossil forms. Hence arises
a method of olaasification for these strata of peculiar interest and
power, though its successful application may for a time be deLayed^
till the philosophy of organic remains be more perfectly developed.
Without maps and sections of particular districts, representing the
extent, thickness, and order of superposition of Uie several component
rocks, the abstract truths 'of geology could never become of general
interest or public value. Until the whole of the land be thus surveyed
and described geological inferences mav be insecure ; it is therefore
gratifying to reflect, that since Dr. Smith first proposed to publidi a
geological map of England (1801), a considerable part of Europe has
been thus delineated. The first idea of such a map waa given by
Lister in a communication to the Royal Society in 1683 ; Mitchell's
descriptions in 1760 are such as to make it surprisiog that no map
came from his hands. The Wemerian school of geognosy produced
none, we believe, so early as those few maps of the Board of Agriculture
in England (1794), which contained delineations of soils, and occaaion-
ally of the rocks which gave them their distinctive quidities. In thia
respect Dr. Smith had no precursor ; and when his map of the strata
of England and Wales waa produced, in 1815, it had no rival Since
tluB time maps of England have been published by Greenough, Phillips,
Murcbison, Knipe, and others. The geological survey of Great Britain
is also going on. Mr. Griffith has 'published a map of Ireland; Dr.
M'Culloch a map of Scotland; Von Buch's great map of Gtormany is
published; the Mining Engineers of France are completing their
survey of that countiy ; the United States of America have made
great progress in a similar labour ; and the number of topographical
works illustrated by maps and sections is innumerable. Before many
veara havf^-passed, the whole accessible surface of the land will have
been mapped by geologists.
We may conclude this historical sketch of the progress of geology
with the following remarks from Sir Charles Lyell's ' Prindples of
Geology : —
** A dutinguished modem writer has with truth remarked, that the
advancement of three of the main divisions of geological inquiry have
during the last half century been promoted succeasivdy by three
different nations of Europe — the Germans, the Jgngliati^ and the
French. We have seen that the systematic study of what may be
called Mineralogical Geology had its origin and chief point of activity
in Germany, where Werner first described with precision the mineral
characters of rocks. The classification of the secondary formations,
each marked by their peculiar fossils, bdongs in a great measure to
England, where the labours, before aUuded to, of Smith, and those of
the most active members of the Geological Sodety of London, were
steadily directed to these objects. The foundation of the third branch,
that relating to the tertiary formations, was laid in France by the
splendid work of Cuvier and Brongniart^ published in 1808, ' On the
Mineral Ghaography and Organic Remains of the Neighbourhood of
Paris.' We may still trace in the language of the sdenoe, and our
present methods of arrangement^ the varioua countries where the
growtk of these several departments of geology was at different times
promoted Many names of simple minerals and rocks remain to thia
day German, while the European divisions of the secondary strata are
in great part English, and are indeed often founded too exdusively
on Enghsh types. Lastiy, the subdivisions firrt eatabUshed of the
succession of strata in the Paris basin have served as normal groups
to which other tertiary deposits throughout Europe have been com-
pared, even in cases where this standard was wholly inapplicable.
No period could have been more fortunate for the discovery, in the
immediate neighbourhood of Paris, of a rich store of well-preserved
fossils, than the commencement of tiie present century; for at no
former era had Natural History been cultivated with such enthusiasm
in the French metropolis. The labours of Cuvier in comparative
osteology, and of Lamarck in recent and fossil shells, had raised tiiese
departments of study to a rank of which they had never previously
been deemed susceptible. Their investigations had eventually a
powerful effect in dispelling the illusion which had long prevuled
concerning the absence of analogy between the ancient and modem
state of our planet A dose comparison of the recent and fossil
spedes, and the inferences drawn in regard to their habits^^aocustomed
the geologist to contemplate the ear& as having been at successive
perioda the dwelling-place of animala and plants of different races,
some terrestiial and others aquatic^ some fitted to live in seaa^ others
in the waters of lakes and rivera.
" By the consideration of these topics, the mind was slowly and
insensibly withdrawn from imaginary pictures of cataatrophea and
chaotic confusion, such as haunted the imagination of the early
oosmogonists. Numerous proofb were discovered of the tranquil
965
OEOLOGiY.
GEOLOGY.
96)
deposition of Bodimentary matter, and the slow development of organic
life. If many writers, and Cuvier himself in the number, still con-
tinued to maintain that 'the thread of induction was broken/ yet in
reasoning by the strict rules of induction from recent to fossil species,
they in a great measure disclaimed the dogma which in theory they
professed. The adoption of the same generic, and in some cases even
of the same specific, names for the exuvia of fossil animn.1ii and their
living uialogues, was an important step towards famiharismg the
mind with the idea of the identic and unity' of the system in distant
eraa. It was an acknowledgment^ as it were, that part at least of the
ancient memorials of nature were written in a living language. The
growing importance then of the natural history of organic remains
may be pointed out as the characteristic feature of the progress of
the science during the present century. This branch of knowledge has
already become an instrument of great utility in geological classifica-
tion, and is continuing daily to imfold new data for mnd and anlaiged
views respecting the former changes of the earth. When we compare
the result of observations in the last fifty years with those of the three
preceding centuries, we cannot but look ioxirard with the most
sanguine expectations to the degree of excellence to which geology
may be carried, even by the labours of the present generation. Never
perhaps did any science, with the exception of astronomy, unfold in
an equally brief period so many novel and unexpected truths, and
overturn so many preconceived opinions. The senses had for ages
declared the world to be at rest, until the astronomer taught that it
was earned through space with inconceivable rapidity. In like manner
was the surface of this planet regarded as having remained imaltered
since its creation, until the geologist proved that it had been the
theatre of reiterated change, and was still the subject of slow but
never-ending fluctuations. The discovery of other systems in the
boundless regions of space was the triumph of astronomy to trace
the same syatem through various transformations — ^to behold it at
successive eras adorned with different'hiUs and valleys, lakes and seas,
and peopled with new. inhabitants, was the delightful meed of geolo-
gical research. By the geometer were measured the regions of space
and ^ the relative distances of the heavenly bodies — ^by the geologist
myriads of ages were reckoned, not by arithmetical computation, but
by a train of physical events — signs which convey to our minds more
definite ideas than figures can do of the immensity of time."
Geology is distinct from cosmogony. The history of the successive
phenomena happening on a planet revolving round an orb of light
and heat may be treated without reference to the condition of the
same material particles while they were subject to entirely different
conditions. Yet as in tracing the progress of a colony reference may
often be made with advantage to the previous history of the same
people in another region of the globe, so, in prosecuting geological
science in a just and Uberal sense, it is advisable to take into aoooimt
the discoveries of collateral science, so far as these tend to give sure
indications of, or even to fix certain limits to, speculations concerning
the origin of the planetary masses.
For the successful prosecution of this inquiry geology must appeal
to two entirely distinct branches of collateral science, chemistry, and
astronomy ; which indeed agree in this, that they are both directed
to the elucidation of the properties of material substance ; but the
former is occupied with a study of its elementary constitution, the
latter contemplates the relations of its congregated masses.
Chemisty, by analysis of the different sorts of matter visible near
the surface of the earth, teaches us that almost everything is of a
compound nature, and formed by the union of two or more elementary
particles, endowed with distinguishable properties, and capable of a
separate existence and of entering into new combinations. When
thus freed from their combinations by processes of art the elementary
E articles or atoms, of the same kind, form, when reunited, solids^
quids, or gaseous expansions, according as they are affected by tempera-
ture, pressure, and perhaps other less general influences. Oxygen,
the most abundant of all the elementary substances yet discovered,
expands immediately on being freed from union with solid bodies, to
a gas whidi occupies 2000 times the space it previously did; and as
nearly half the ponderable matter of the globe consists of oxygen,
we must admits as a plain consequence of this analysis, that upon a
general resolution of the compound rocks and minerals into their
constituent elements, nearly half, the weight of the exterior parts of
the globe would expand into gas, and augment the atmosphere till the
accumulated pressure shouldliquify the gas, or prevent further decom-
position. What happens to treo oxygen with the temperatures and
atmospheric pressures which now prevail at the surface, would (we
know by trial) happen to chlorine and other substances similarly
released from combination, under other temperatures and pressures.
As these conditions are now variable, and may be supposed to have
passed through all possible grades, it ib not improbable that all the
substances which exist in the crust of the globe might be converted
into gaseous expansions of freed from combination. The great
antagonist force to the concentration of matter is heat; by augment-
ing Uus agent some substances are decomposed and the parts rendered
volatile; in other oases combinations take place which are also
volatile; and there are others in which gaseous substances combine
with BoUds at partioulsr temperatures omy. Now, as the substances
known in the outer parts of the globe are about 60 in number, as they
all separately stand in different relations to heat, pressure, electricity,
Sk,, it is conceivable that imder particular conditions the mutual
forces of the various particles might be so arranged, and so balanced
by the influences of heat and other general conditions, that all sensible
solidity and liquidity should vanish, and the whole globe dissolve
into an expansion, where the particles would be, if not iJl free, yet in
very different combinations from those we now see. This is con-
ceivable as an hypothesis, and chemistry can teach us no more ; for
as we have not ascertained for each substance, taken singly, what
must be the conditions for its appearance as a solid, liquid, or gaseous
body, nor have the means of computing what variation in this respect
might, result from particular admixtures of the substances, it is
impossible to deny thiat the hypothesis may be true, and it would be
equally unphilosophical to asdOrt that it is. In this dilemma we must
turn to the contemplation of phenomena which may serve to guide
us to a just decision. Omitting for the present all considerations of
geologioil phenomena, we must accompany the astronomer in his
survey of space, in order to discover if any masses of matter exist
which are oi the nature of the gaseous expansion assumed ; if this
be the case, we must further inquire if there be gradations in the
appearances they present such as to justify the belief in the possibility
of a gradual conversion of a planet into an expansion, or the contrary.
To these inquiries the far-seeing eyes of Herschel supply a positive
answer. Through various parts of the heavens are scattered luge
expansions of attenuated matter, called nebulas, which are irregularly
reflective of light, various in figure and degree of condensation. The
latter circumstances being car^ully studi^, it appears that many of
them are of a globular or elliptical figure, as if the parts were
collected by a general attraction toward a centre; that others in
addition, appear to grow continually denser toward a centre, while
not a few objects show in the centre the brightness of a soUd star
surrounded by a thick and extensive haae. Occasionally two or more
points of condensation appear in a nebulous mass, thus affording a
great analogy with what may be supposed to be the origin of our
planetary system.
Comets, which are to' be regarded as nebulas attracted to some one
or more systems, supply another and strong analogy with orbitual
planets. But it may be reasonably expected that in addition to the
graduated appearances of expansion, condensation, and nebulous
solidity, there should be proof of corresponding gradations of density*
This proof, as far as relates to the nebul» far distant from our system,
can perhaps never be given, though appearances are in favour of the
view ; even with respect to the comets which enter the solar qrstem,
further researches must be made ; but the planets themselves supply
such a proof, for their density varies exceedingly. The planets
nearer to the sun are denser than those farther removed ; Mercury,
being the heaviest^ is almost thrice as dense as the earth, while
Jupiter, one of the distant orbs, is about one-third as dense as our
earth ; and Saturn, which, excepting Uranus, is tiie most remote, is
only cme-eighth or one-tenth as dense, and may be oonndered as light
as cork. (Herschel, ' Introduo. to Astron.,' p. 278.)
Finally, this general idea of the origin of the mass of the earth
from a nebular expansion, suggested by chemical fiusts, and supported
by the appearances in the visible heavens, is confirmed by the matiie*
matical researches of Laplace, who has by this supposition ooimeoted
together the most strilong phenomena of the solar system ; the
general parallelism of the orolts of the planets, the consentaneous
direction of their' movement round the sun, of the satellites round
the planets, the anomaly of Saturn's ring, and otiier important ciroum-
stances. We have therefore only one test more to wnich the hypo*
thesis can be subjected, namely, its accordance with what is known
of the actual constitution of the earth. This is still no question of
geology, but of astronomy. . It appean however very certain that
neither the figure of the earth, wmch is that of a spheroid of revo*
lution on its axis, nor the density of the earth, which is greater
toward the centre than at the droumference, and so arrsnged that
the surfaces of equal density are symmetrical to the axis of figure,
are at all opposed to the doctrine in^question, but rather confirm it.
From astronomical and chemical considerationa, then, it is probable
that the mass of the earth once existed as a part of a diffused nebu]%
like some now visible in the heavens ; and as no merely geological
evidence as to the changes operated on the condensed planet can be
of the smallest vslue in a question relating to the condensation of a
nebula, we must adopt we conclusion as a limitiiig condition of
geological theory.
But however firmly we may admit the truth of the speoolation of
the condensation of planets from a nebular expansion, it can now
have but little influence on the progress of geology. For it cannot
be employed as the origin of deductions which might disclose circum-
stances hidden from observation in deep parts of the earth, and
explain complicated fSMsts visible at the surfsce ; and this for want of
adeqiute knowledge of the successive effects which must happen
among the elementary particles or msHses of a nebula during its
condensation, as well as of the necessary consequences which such
effects must entail on the physical conditions of a planet.
There is however one point of importance which this speculation,
if adopted, may assure us o£ The condensation of nebuliB is gradual ;
the densi^ of planets various; the larger ones in general having the
067
GEOLoar.
GEOLOGY.
fM9
least relative weight ; the earth must therefore be supposed to have
passed through a long range of condensation ; and this implies a con-
tinual change of intensitj among some at least of the physical
rdes which belong to it. Whatever was the antagonist force to
central attraction of the nebular mass, the gradual decline of this
force must have been felt^ more or less, bj all the natural agencies
related to it by oppositioR or sjrmpathy. Even the extraneous
influence of light is not independent of the change of conditions
produced.
The continual condensation of the mass of a planet necessarily
brings with it a change in the relative intensities of the agencies at
work among its parts, because they operate under continually varying
conditions. Some would lose and others gain in strength, and thus
the aspect of the earth must have been continually changing, or
subject to periodical renovation. By those geologists who accept the
doctrine of the earth's continual condensation, from whatever cause,
the uniform intensity of natural agencies taken separately, the con-
tinual compensation of their antagonistic effects, and the production
of equal effects in equal times, must inevitably be rejected.
Tet though, in strictness, the preceding reasoning forbids assent to
Sir Charles Lyell's general principle, tbat the former changes of the
earth's surface '' are referrible to causes now in operation," it by no
means follows that other causes (that is, other combinations or
measures of natural agencies) than those now in operation must be
appealed to for explaining the monuments of past revolutions of
nature which are preserved to our days. For if these monuments go
but a short way back on the scale of time, compared with the periods
which elapsed in the condensation of our planet, the causes may not
have sensibly varied during the whole course of phenomena traceable
in the crust of the earth. This must be decided by a study of the
monuments themselves, upon the general and acknowledged principle
that effects are proportional to the causes. Still leas is it to be
imagined that the study of the effects of modem causes in action is
unfruitful in illustrations of the phenomena due to ancient causes ;
on the contrary, there is no other way of learning either the kind or
degree of physical agencies concerned in geological operations of early
date than the comparison of these with the results of the daily action
of the modem powers of nature.
The knowledge of the condition of the earth with respect to tempe-
rature is one of the most important steps which can be taken toward
a right general contemplation of the history of the revolutions which
ii has undergone. This knowledge cannot be gathered by geologists
labouring as such ; it cannot be obtained by meteorological obseira-
tions, however accurate ; nothing short of a mathematical theory of
heat, supported by a variety of data concerning the physical consti-
tution and relations of the earth to the sun and space, will be at all
available in grappling with the inherent difficulties of tibe subject
For this theory we are indebted to Fourier.
The heat of any point on the surface of the earth regularly varies,
from hour to hour, with the rotation of the globular mass on its axis ;
ttom day to day and from season to season, with its revolution round
the sun ; and from year to year, with any change in the dimensions
or form of the earth's orbit There are however several causes of
irregularity or fluctuation of temperature not demanding notice in a
general view.
If in its long course roimd the sun the earth passed through parts
of the planetary spaces of unequal temperature, this would cause a >
modification of the periodical, annual, and daily variations.
The atmosphere and the ocean by their various movements modify
all these circumstances, but not so as to disguise the results when an
average of many periods is taken.
In consequence there is for each point of the earth's surface a cer-
tain mean temperature, depending on the causes above stated ; and
the parts under the surface continually tend to acquire very nearly
the same temperature as the surface, but not at the same time. The
extremes of simmier heat and winter cold are not felt till after they
have passed away from the surface; and in proportion as we descend,
the influence of the daily, monthly, and annual variations grows less
and less, because of the slowness of the conduction of heat through
earthy substances.
At a certain depth below the surface these variations become wholly
insensible, and the temperature is constant^ and nearly the same as the
mean temperature of the surface.
^ If the temperature of the interior parts of the earth be now very
different from that constant heat which would result by communi-
cation from the surface (heated as before, and subject to the stated
variations), this difference would exercise a corresponding though
insensible effect on the surfiEuse heat, and be more or less sensible at
small depths below the inner surface of constant temperature.
Whatever may have been the proper or original temperature of the
inner parts of the earth, it is easy to conceive that in a very long time
the equilibrium of heat should be reached, and the earth receive from
the sun and radiate into the ethereid space equal quantities of heat
in equal times ; while the temperatures at points situated at very
great depths below the surface (many miles, ^r instance) would not
sensibly vary from that of the mean heat of the place vertically
above them.
But if this equilibriom be not attained, the original stote of the
earth as to heat may be ascertained, so far as to determine positively
whether it has formerly been hotter or colder than at present^ by
merely trying at many points exempt from volcanic action, what is
the amount df heat at various depths, on the same or different vertical
lines, as compared with the tsorresponding points of surface.
These triids have been made at various depths, under different
circumstances, in salt-pits, coal-works, and mines of different metals,
in the British Isles, France, Germany, Mexico ; and in all situations
where the external influence of the air and the artificial effects of
light, respiration, &c, could be guarded against or justly appreciated,
they agree in proving that after descending below the limit of variable
heat, a continual augmentation of temperature constantly occurs
(1** Fahrenheit for 15 yards is a common ratio.) The mine of Fahlun,
supposed to be an exception to this general truth, is extremely ill-
suited for experiments. (See Thomson's and Clarke's ' Travels in
Sweden.')
The consequence is obvious. The interior masses of the globe are
incomparably hotter than the parts at the surface; must formerly
have been still hottef ; and though now the interior heat is almost
wholly masked and stifled by the non-conducting stratified masses
which form the crust of the earth, it must formerly have influenced
in a decided manner the temperature, and with it all other phenomena
at the surface of the earth.
The same conclusion as to the existence of great heat in the central
parts of the earth has been drawn from considerations of the density
of the interior masses as compared to the superficial parts. While
the surface rocks are twice and a half as heavy as water, the mean
density of the whole globe is five times as great as that of water ;
moreover the density augments towards the centre with so much of
regularity, that the imaginary interior surfaces of equal density are
symmetrical to the same centre and axis as those of the exterior
spheroid. (Conybeare's ' Report on Geology to British Association,'
1832.) Now, if the interior masses of the earth are compressible
even to a far less extent than the rocks near the earth's surface, the
pressure to the centre would have made the inner parts much more
dense than they are : the whole mass of the earth would have been
included in a much smaller volume were it not for some antagonistic
force, such as heat is known to be. Unless therefore we venture to
suppose the central and surface matter not subject to similar laws of
force, it must be admitted that the interior parts of the earth are still
very hot
This great truth established, we may inquire further into the state
of the interior masses. If the heat of the globe wero increased its
diameter would be augmented ; there is a degree of heat which would
liquefy nearly all the substances of which it consists, taken singly,
and still more easily when in their usual combinations. Beyond this
degree of heat gaseous compounds would mix with or idtogether
replace the liquid rocks, and the globe would be lost in a nebulous
expansion.
Turning to observations of phenomena, we find the interior rocks
to be such as were cooled from igneous fusion : they are extensively,
perhaps universally, spread below our feet ; and thus we gather the
conviction that originally the whole or great part of the exterior
masses of the planet were in a melted state. The figure of the earth
is such as would result from revolution on its axis, provided the
whole or a very large part of the mass were in a state of fluidity or
viscidity ; to this figure the surfaces of equal density correspond both
as to centre and axis ; and thus strongly corroborate the specula-
tions of Leibnitz, that the earth is to be looked on as a heated and
fluid globe, cooled and still cooling at the surface b^ radiation of its
superabundant heat into space.
To determine whether it is now solid or partially fluid within is a
problem of high interest, and one which we may perhaps despair to
see completely solved, unless certain astronomical phenomena (pre-
cession, nutation) should be found, when analysed by a rigorous
mathematical deduction, to furnish interpretations which geology
alone can never attain to. As however Mr. Hopkins has presented
some simple views of the possible conditions of a cooling globe (as
the earth may be considered), we shall here briefly state them.
If the earth were originally a hot fluid mass cooled by radiation,
the cooled parts would descend towards the centre, and be replaced
by others in a perpetual circulation. The tendency to solidification
in such a mass would be directly as the pressure, inversely as the
temperature, both which are at a maximum at the centre : solidifica-
tion would therefore be determined near the centre by the superiority
of pressure over temperature ; . and at the surface by the rapidity of
external refrigeration overbalancing the iiitemal conduction of heat
The numericiJ relations of these qualities are unknown. It cannot
therefore be decided by mere calculation whether the solidification of
the surfisce by radiation would precede or follow that of the centre
by pressure. Let us suppose, for simplicity, the relations of pressure,
heat, circulation, conduction, and radiation to be such that all the
mass goes on cooling till every part of its fluidity is lo6t> and the
whole is reduced to such a degree of viscidity as to prevent the
circulation of heated matter, the further distribution of heat must,
under these conditions, be determined by conduction and radiation
only ; a large part of the interior would assume equality" of tempe-
rature: tEe solidification of the surface by cooling would be the
I
I
OfO
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
970
first new phenomenoD, to be immediately followed by oondexuation
through pressure about the centre ; and thus two solid masses woul 1
be produced and continually augmented — a spherical nucleus, and a
spherical shell — while between them would remain a large but
diminishing cone of viscous matter, subject to some oha^pes of
temperature through the conyersion of its surfaces from a liquid to a
solid state.
If, on the other hand, the effect of pressure to the centre became
superior to the expanding agency of neat, before the circulation of
liquid matter had ceased in the superficial parts, the centre would
solidify first; and the induration might proceed through a laxge
part of the globe, so as eren to approach the surface before that
could be consolidated. If these conditions were rcTersed, consolida-
tion might proceed from the surface downwards, and would ultimately
reach the centre, and the whole mass be a stony globe.
It IB important to remark that upon neither of Uiese suppositions
is it required to admit the continual augmentation of heat to the
centre; to whicU M. Poisson objected, and instead of which he
proposed to account for the phenomena of tiie earth's interior
temperature, by supposing that the solar system had once passed
through other ethereal spaces than those which it now occupies, and
there experienced much higher temperature at the surfaces of the
planets. This hypothesis may be perhaps not very different in its
development from the more general theory of the nebulous origin of
the planets; but it appears unnecessary to discuss the speculation
after what has been said of the cooling of the earth.
We may now proceed to examine the modem causes of changes on
the surface of the earth. The never-ceasing activity of the powers of
nature may be viewed as an inextinguishable add imavailing effort to
restore an equilibrium which is incessantly disturbed. The protean
changes of tiie atmosphere ; the varying effects which its <memical
and mechanical energies occasion among the masses of dead matter
and the forms of life ; the flowing of Uie ocean ; tiie subterranean
fire and wide wasting of the earthquake, are all efforts to obtain rest
consequent on a succession of perturbations. In this sense, not the
earth only, but all the solar system, and perhaps all the extent of the
heavenly spaces, conceivable rather than visible by man, is in the
condition of instability described in the Pythagorean Philosophy,
" Nihil est toto quod perstet in orbe."
These changes on the surface of the earth affbct the geographical
boundaries of land and waiter, the relative level of land and sea, and
the forms, proportioDS^ and distribution of animal and vegetable life.
In a popular sense they may be classed by their proximate agencies,
as depending on chemical and mechanicad powen originating from
atmospheric action, rains, springs, rivers, &c. ; as depending on similar
powen residing in the ocean ; and as affected by volcanic forces. We
may also venture to contrast the effects of the watery agencies,
whether of atmospheric or oceanic origin, with the products of
volcanic fires. For the general effect of the watery agencies is to
abate the high and to raise the low, to equalise the level of land and
sea by abrading the former and filling the latter; but volcanic
efiTecta are directly the reverse. They augment the original inequality
of the surface; in some parts they raise matter fi^m within the
earth, and form new hills to bear the ravages of the atmosphere ;
and elsewhere cause tremendous depressions of land, and sink in
deeper hollows the original basias of the ocean.
The external influences, thus contrasted vrith the interior powers
of the globe, are far more various in their aspect and more general in
tbeir visible operation ; yet they may all be reduced to one or two
variable forces, independent of the terraqueous svstenL It is to the
unequal accession of heat from the sun, upon a globe whose distance
varies, whose parts are variously presented to the radiating beams,
and to the imequal abstraction of heat by the cold ethereal spaces
in which the earth circulates, that we may refer all the variations of
corpuscular and mechanical phenomena on the globe ; while in the
varying diffusion of light we recognise the prime element of change
in the animal and vegetable world.
Minute as is their momentary impression, the sum of their effects
in a long time is prodigiously great ; heat and moisture by alternate
influence weaken ; &ost bursts ; carbonic acid eats with cankering
tooth ; rains, swallowed up by the fissured rocks, abstract parts of
their substance ; land-slips, avalanches, and glaciera heap the valleys
with detritus, till swollen riven or bunting lakes sweep away the
burden towaids lower ground, or convey it even to the se& Thus
chemically dissolved, mechanically suspended, or roughly rolled along,
the substance of all the rocks and mountains yields to a slow but
sure destruction, and those who, adopting the notion that ' time costs
nature nothing,' take as much of this as pleases them, may easily see^
in the effect of these operations, the total disintegration of the
existing continents and islands, which is so conspicuous a. feature in
Dr. Button's hypothesis of the decaying and renewing earth.
Nor is the sea less a theatn of change than the land. For, inde-
pendent of its receiving the spoils of the land, and distributing them
on its bed, the untiring agitation of its waves undermines the clift
which are above its level, grinds away the rocks which are covered
and uncovered by the tides, and distributes the materials in various
ways, here making dangerous sandbanks, there adding to the low
shores a valuable heritage.
Nor even below the deep water of the middle ocean is ail at rest.
There multitudes of sea animals, the Infosorial Animalcules, the
Zoophytes, and Mollusca, by their mere exuvis tend to fill up the
depths; and certain tribes (the lameUiferous corals in particular), by
their peculiar growth and mutual adherence form calcareous islands
and reefs, similar in some important particulan to the ancient lime-
stone rocks. These coralligenous rocks are however not reared from
the extreme depths of the sea, but based on the summits of submarine
hiUs^ OS the crests of volcanic cones, and thus, in a general expression,
we may say that in modem nature most of the deposits of solid
matter in the sea are joined to the shores or ahallows of the
previously formed land.
The sediments transported by rivers, and gathered by the wasting
of the elevated coasts, being for the most purt deposited along the
sea-shores, and almost wholly below the level of high water, it is
obvious that from this cause alone the bed of the sea is filling up,
and its depth diminishing toward the shores ; but as the quantity of
water on the globe must be supposed sensibly constant, it follows
that the oceanic area must expand, or its surface rise a little. But
since the land is wasted by the waves, as we may suppose the aug-
mentatsou of area which results from this caase sufficient to balance
the elevating tendency of the littoral deposits of sediment, and that
upon the whole the effect of the watery agencies on the globe is
insensible in altering the level of the surface of the sea, as compared
to the deeper parts of its bed ; it follows, as a strict consequence,
that the area of the ocean is enlarging. This appean also probable
from observation; for the small addition of manh-land on particular
shores, by the influence of rivers, winds, and storms, m raising
littoral sediments above the reach of all but the extremely high tide,
is not enough to balance the continual waste of Und along many
thousand miles of perishing clifb. By the mechanical agency of
water considered alone, the limd is certainly losing in area continually.
The accumulation of xnarine exuviie on the bed of the sea acts in the
same direction, and the growth of coral principally concun in the
same result. Left to watery agency alone then the land may be
imagined to be continually diminishing, as Dr. Button and Sir Charles
Lyell suppose. If the shores of the sea did not waste away, the
annual additions of sediment brought from the uplands would every-
where cause the water to rise in level ; if the land were supposed to
overhang its base at a certain angle dependmg on the diameter of
the earth, the area of the ocean would remain invariable ; but as
neither of these conditions applies, it is certain that the area of the
ocean is extending, and probable that its level does not materially
change.
Volcanic phenomena^ the earthquake, and the ignivomous'mountain,
are to be viewed as cases of critical action. Whether the heat of the
interior of the globe be the residual portion of its original tempe-
rature (chaleur d'origine of Arago), or generated by the access of
water, or other bodies containing oxygen, to certain chemical
substances, it is to the disturbance of its equilibrium that the violence
and the tumult of volcanic excitement are owing. But there are
other and mora gradual effects of the distribution of heat in and
upon the globe which require notice. The most important of these
is the gradual change of level of certain parts of the land, as com-
pared with the general level of the ocean, one instance of which is
supposed to occur on the shores of the Baltic, where certain tracts
appear to be slowly rising above the sea. (Lyell, in ' Philosophical
Transactions,' 1835.)
Concerning this ' secular inequality ' (as it may be termed), of level
of land and sea, it is unfortunate that nothing at all important is
known towards determining the important question whether the
elevation of one tract of dry land or sea-bed is balanced or over-
balanced by the depression of another. Lyell assumes that the
depression of land from this cause exceeds the elevation, but it is
difficult to find sufficient evidence for this important postulate ; and
to adopt it merely as a consequence of another unproved assumption
of a continual compensation of the agencies of nature is altogether
inadmissible.
If there be in the earth a pervading high temperature, which
diminishes from the interior toward the surface, in consequence of
the radiation from the surface, it appean from Sir John Berschel's
reasoning (given in Mr. Babbage's ' Ninth Bridgewater Treatise ') that
along the shores of the sea the isothermal lines of the interior of the
glolKB should rise, because of the continual deposition of imperfecUy
conducting sediments there. For thus the radiation of heat along
these lines would be diminished until the interior heat had come
nearer to the surface. By the consequent expansion of the subjacent
earthy substances the sea-shore should rise, and thus the addition of
sediment from watery action, and the effect of the efibrt to restore
equilibrium in the cusposition of the interior temperature would,
upon the whole, coincide in minutely raising the surface of the sea.
It is chiefly near the sea-coast, on the land or in the ocean, that
volcanic phenomena are at this day seen in activity, -and this appa-
rentiy because the admission of wator to some depth below the
surface is necessary to the excitement of the imprisoned forces of
heat. The elevated cones and large areas of melted rock, or accumu-
lations of scorise and ashes, mark one of the prevalent effects of the
volcanic forces to be the withdrawal of matter from the Interior to
071
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
073
heap it on the iurfaoe of the earth. Bat the caTities left by this
opention below the crust of the earth must often cause depression of
masses of land during the concussiou and displacements occasioned
by earthquakes. In this manner it may easily be understood that
the Tolcanic islands of the »South Seas hare been raised up from the
■ea-bed there, and it may be supposed that under large tracts of the
ocean volcanic agency is employed in a similar way, and by a
superiority of elcTation over depression raising in^gularly the bed of
the sea, and by consequence extending the area of its suiface. If all
the cavities left below the surface by the heaping of volcanic matter
on the land were completely balanced by corresponding depressions
of the crust of the earth it would depend upon the proportion of
submarine subsidence corresponding to terrestrial elevation whether
the sea-level should fall and its area contract. Eveiy sinking of the
sea-bed corresponding to an elevation of the dry land would tend to
lower the level of water and to augment the area of land. Along
searcoasts such correspondence must be admitted occasionally to occur.
If the cavities alluded to were not compensated by the sinking of the
superincumbent crust volcanic phenomena on the land would hardly
affect the area or level of the sea ; but similar eruptions in the sea
would nuse its level and cause it to encroach upon the land. If it be
admitted as the most probable basis of reasoning whether subter-
ranean cavities exist or not, that the continual elevation is upon the
whole balanced by continual subsidence, submarine and continental
volcanic vents may be left out of consideration ; but the littoral and
insular volcanoes act in one certain way, and give as the general
result of all volcanic action a partial deepening and a general con-
traction of the sea, which counterbcdances in kmd the general effect
of the aqueous agencies ; but whether these completely antagonist
principles are equal in dogree cannot be safely inferred from any data
now accessible to geology. Nor does it appear prudent to rest so
important a conclusion on the mere fact of the constancy of the
earth's dimensions, indicated by the invariable length of the solar
day ; the experience of 2000 years is as nothing in a question of such
infinitesimal^differences of diameter as might be occasioned by changes
in the relative position of the really small quantities of matter raised
or sunk by volcanic powers.
Moreover it is impossible to avoid doubting whether even the
quantity of water on the globe is constant ; for so many combinations
of earthy substances require certain proportions of water for their
completion, and so much of volcanic excitement appears due to the
decomposition of water, that it would perhaps be safer to suppose
the water continually diminiBhing in quantity; nor is it at all unukely
that such may be the case with the atmosphere.
The question of the comparison of the effects of natural agencies
in modem and ancient times is one of considerable importuice in
relation to geological enquiries.
The statement of the effects of modem causes must necessarily be
received as true and applicable to other eras of the world, at least
in its general features ; because the chemical, mechanical, and vital
forces of nature are admitted as individually constant, though their
manifestations to our senses be ever so various in kind or degree, in
consequence of change in their combinations, the quantities of matter
operated on, extemal influences, &a Fixed laws and variable
conditions are certainly recognised in existing nature, and they give
rise to extreme inequidity in local results and combinations. It is
conceivable, by extending this idea, that the A-giafcing laws of nature
should be productive not only of results which, taken locally or
periodically, appear unequal in desree or diverse in kind, but that
under the influence of a general diange of conditions they should
manifest a gradual decay or increase of strength, or spring into extra-
ordinary activity after long periods of apparent slumber. Let, for
instance, the sun's rays be supposed to fall upon the earth in smaller
quantity through the augmentation of the minor axis of the earth's
elliptic orbit ; let the temperature of the ethereal spaces rise : who
does not see that all the effects depending on the extemal excitant
forces would immediately change? In like manner let the earth's
internal enei^gjr of heat be supposed to die away, whether for lack of
fuel, incrustation over metalloias, or a loss of eeneral warmth in the
globe, the volcanic phenomena would be weakened, and no longer
balance the effects of water.
Now, as these great conditions cannot be afiBrmed to be constant^
but^ on the contrary, as one at least of them is known to be variable
(the earth's orbit), how "baseless as the &bric of a vision" is the
assumption that t^e physical agencies on the globe have always
produced "equal effects in equu times," and that modem causes
acting with their present intensity have produced all the older phe-
nomena of geology. But it would be equally unjust, as observed
before, to assume that they have not ; the question, if capable of'
determination, can only be settled by ample observation and logical
induotion.
Among the andent phenomena of nature we equally reoognise the
contrasted action of water and heat, as at this day : by the former
the solid land was wasted, and stratified rooks were deposited along
the searshores (as sandstones) and in the depths of the sea (as some
Limestones), while the letter manifested itself in the production of
onstratified crystalline rocks, and the elevation and disraption of the
itiatified bed of the sea. [Rookb; Stratihoatioh.] The materials
arranged by the aotion of water in the stratified rocks of ancient date
are the same as those now carried by rains^ suspended by the tide, or
separated from sea-water by the vital functions of invertebrata; they
are, to a certain extent, similarly associated: the oiganio exuvis
buried in them are not very differently arranged or grouped from
those which now lie in the bed of the sea (Donati's ' Researches on the
Bed of the Adriatic' may be quoted in proof of this) ; Uie physical
conditions of their accumulation were therefore in a oonnderable
degree similar.
On a careful consideration of the facts, it appears obvious that the
long series of stratified deposits was not accumulated without great
and even sudden changes of thoee physical conditions : thidL deposits
of sandstone are followed by others of day or of limestone, for which
different agencies and conditions were required. Over the same
spherical area of the earth's surface the predominant physical con-
cUtions varied from time to time, and many times, so that the actual
state of the globe, as far as regards watery agendes, represents not aU
its previous conditions, but is to be compared with each of them suc-
cessively. The same is true of the igneous products in the crust of
the globe, which similarly varied from time to time in the same
spherical area.
Succesdve phases of the aqueous and igneous agendes over the
same region appear, dther contemporaneously or successively, to have
affected all parts of the earth's surface accessible to man ; so that
everywhere there is proof of great revolutions in the condition of
land and sea. Moreover it appears [Obganio Rkmaihs] that to each
general system of stratified rocLs, indicative of a corresponding g^reat
system of physical agendes, peculiar races of plants and animals
belong: — vrith new physical conditions new forms of life came on
the globe, vanished with those conditions, and gave place to others
equally transitory. If now we compare the modem survey of nature
with any similar work, executed on the same prindple, for any one of
the earlier epochs, it is certain that the earth has undergone many
vexy extensive revolutions in all that respects its aqueous, igneous,
and organic phenomena, before arriving at its present state : it ia
equally certain that between the epochs of these revolutions the state
of the earth was not extremely dissimilar to that which we now behold ;
yet^ because the organic beings preserved in the earth in each of these
Bvstems are peculiar to it, and differ from the others, and from those
Aa,t now live, we cannot possibly doubt that the points of difference
were numerous, general, and important.
To determine the cause of the change of phydcal conditions between
one system of stratified rocks and another is not difficult In existing
nature ^uch a change might be easily produced in almost every region
by a disturbance of the level of some particular tracts of land, by
one great movement or many successive displacements. For exampl^
let the Isthmus of Sues or the Isthmus of Darien sink one hundred
or a few hundred feet (perhaps scarcely beyond the range of the power
of an earthquake), what mighty changes would be occasioned in the
Indian, Mediterranean, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans, over areas which
would appear considerable even when compared with many andent
Bvstems of strata— changes of stratified depodts and phydcal condi-
tions, and consequent variations in the relative abundance and geo-
graphical distribution of oiganio beings. Now, though at this day
no such mighty dianges are witnessed, we have only to enlaige our
conception of the actual effects of volcanic agency to see dearly that
this is the power whidi was employed in producing them.
The analogy of the effocts of aqueous and igneous agendes in aU
past periods of the earth's history being assumed, we may proceed to
gather inferences as to the measure of the intensity with which they
have operated, and the time which has elapsed during their opention.
This requires at least a brief summary of the characteristic features
of the phenomena of succesdve steps of the earth's formation, in the
order of thdr occurrence. Observation can only guide us to a know-
ledge of the crust of thetearth for a depth of a few miles at most;
and from what we there behold it is probable that a much greater
extendon of the power of observing would really hdp us but little
in tracing the history of the revolutions of our globe of which monu-
ments remain for inspection. For at some moderate depth below the
surface all marks of lamellar increase, indicative of periodical forma-
tion, cease ; all monuments of life and watery action terminate ; and
we behold the effects of heat alone. The general basis' of all the crust
of the earth, in whidi we trace the combined results of igneous,
aqueous, and vital energies, ia a mass of crystallised rocks, the
fruit of great and very general heat ; which limits all inquiry in
that direction.
From the surCitoe of these interior ozystalline rocks, mostlv of the
nature of granite, the monuments of phydcal changes left in the rocks
are capable of interpretation by the application of the knowledge we
have gathered of chemical, mechanical, and vital forces, but bdow it
all appeaan at first sight dubious and dark. Were these rocks of igneous
origin anterior to the whole crust of the earth now placed upon them f
Or' does the interior heat dowly reconvert to granite the masses of
sedimentary strata Idd upon it by extemal watery agendes f In the
former case the monuments of nature are coniplete so &r as any
thing analogous to the present system of surfiiwje agendes is oonoemed ;
but according to the latter suppodtion, the earlier strata, with what-
ever of organic exuvisD lay in them, have been reabsorbed and mdted
To unune the truth of
dther of thcM fiewi ii
kltogither 0<mtnu7 to tha
prudent ipiiit of miMleni
phUosophf : no uupeotion
or uialyna of vw old
gnmtio muwa ; nomendj
uialogic&l compariaaD of
them with tha floid oom-
pounda of existing Tolok-
Doea ; no & priori reuomug
will Bolve the quaation.
Tet it appeara capable of
■olution hj a full and im-
■tntifled cnut ^t^earUi
itaelf,whiiih ought to ahoir
in the nature and condition
of the tower atraCa aa oom-
par«d with the upper, and
in the nature and abund-
ance and mode of oonaai^
vation of organic renciainB,
eTLdenca not onlr of tha
tdrcumatancM under which
the; were accumulated,
but indications of the na-
ture and extent of the
ohangea which hare siuce
occurred to them. This
mode of iniiuirj wa ahall
endeaTour to follow.
Thi* firat ■ diagram ii
intended to ihow how
verjamall is theauppoaed
depth of the cruat of tha
oarth, and of the meat pro-
found parte of the ooean,
aompand to the radiua
of the globe. The thick-
neiB of the crust of the
earth, here taken at 15
milea, 1* perbapi on a ge-
neral average not bo much
aa 5 milea. To thin mere
film on the surface of the
globe InductiTe Qeoiogy is
confined ; though by help
of ool lateral acience we
have learned many trutha
ai to the constitution of
the hidden interior maaaea.
The differeace of the
diameters of tha earth is
nearly 20 nkUw. If the
axis of the globe were
diaplaced 90 degrees, the
level of tbe sea would rise
at the old poles and link
at the new poles about
half that quantity, or 13i
milea ; and at other point*
intermediate quantitiea,
according to Uieir rela-
tjani to the great circle
paaaing through the new
and old poles of rotation.
At the polea of this great
circle there would be no
alteration of leveL
By imsgialng the depth
of 1000 milea, in tlie flnt
diagram on the fcjlowing
page, to ha repeated thre«
time*, and tbe three radii
to be at tbe same time pro-
longed till they meet at a
point, which would repre-
sent thecentreoftha earth,
the reader will easily form a
notion of what is intended.
The arc includoa 20 degrees from tha Adriatio to the Atlantis,
paaaing over the Apenninoa, the Alpa, lie Engtiah Channel, the Welsh
Mountains, and the Irish Sea, tha depth of the narrow laas bdng lem
Ii
•iii
■Pi
I tS
I i
lit
- j-.i
Hi
I'll
i
The general
British strata which
'<«? ') *ill
with the
(Jig. 8), combined with the oc
fallows (extracted from Fhillips't
aference to the reader who may
of the acntified rooks in the
Croat of the earth.
•76
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
0/6
Seria ofBritith Sifxsta, hegUimng at the 8mfaee,fr<m which all Water-Moved Orawi and River SedimeiUe aire mt/fpoeed to le rmaeed.
The MftriM Stnta are marked by Flgnrea ; the Ftesh-Water and JEstiury Beda by Lettera ; the namea of aome dharacteriatio Foaaila are In Itallca.
TEBTIART STRATA.
(A gmall number of the Fouils are identical with ezisiing speoiea.)
Names of Formations. ®°* Yarda. Bemarka.
I 4 waler-drifted maaa of marine ahella, pebblea, fte., resting on more regular ahelly beda o!
1. cUj 16 I sand or sandj limestone. About 40 per oent. of the sheila ue sapposed to be identical
( with existing species.
a. Frtsh. Water Marls 8S Thej include a bed of astnary ahella, and ooeor only in the lale of Wight.
London Clay . . . . 100 to 200 Mass of clay rich in marine shells, of which S| per oent. are identical with recent kinds.
2. { », ., ^ i/vA « ^AA / Variously coloured sands and olara, the latter containing OKanio remains identical with, cr
Plastic Clay ^^^^ ^ *<>M much allied to, those of the London cUy.
BKOONSABT STRATA.
8
(All the Fossilfl belong to extinct species. They are different from those in the Tertiary Strata.)
9 • f 8. Chalk •
|l
S ^ I 4. Greeenaand
b. Wealden
6. Portland Oolite
6. Oxford Oolite
. ?oo I
. 160
300
ISO
150
7. Bath OoUte (near Bath) 130
8. Lias •
850
Of unequal hardness, soft abore, marly below, with interatratifled flints ; extinct Zt^phyta,
Anandtjftetf and other EehinodemuUa,
Upper Oreensand, Tery fossiliferous, in general chalky.
Gault, a blue marl, or clay, often Tery fossiliferous. BeUmnitM mmiUiM.
Lower greensand, or iron-sand, Tery fossiliferous in places.
Weald clay, with fresh-water shells. Oypridn,
Hastings sands, with land.plants, and bones of IgManodon,
Purbeck beds of clay and limestone, with fresh-water shells.
A Tsriably locally oolitic limestone ; some beds full of fossils.
Kimmeridge clay, with layers of Otirea dsltoidea.
Upper calcareous grit.
Coralline oolite, with beds and masses of eoral; Xehinida; many ahella.
Lower calcareous grit. AmwumiUt eattna, Piuna lanctolata.
Kclloway*TOck. } ^"*^»'«» Oallovimtit, Grypkma dOaUta,
Combrash, thin, impure, shelly limestone. Avieuia tehinata.
Forest marble. Shelly oolite, with concretionary sandy Umeatone.
Bath oolite. In aereral divlsiQaa, shelly, oolitic, compact, and aandy beda. JCyalcsMno^
ApioerinuM,
Fullcrs'-earth. A series of calcareous and argiUaceoua ahelly beda.
Inferior oolite. Fkoladomya. Drigonia striata.
Sand, with concretionary masses holding shells.
Upper lias shale. Full of characteristic saurians, of AmmonUeM^ BelemniteSf and other shells,
Harlstone, replete with Ters^atuia, Pectinida, Avieula inuequifMlvit,
Middle liaa shale. Containa Orffphma, AwunonitM.
Lias limestone, with Orypkaa imeturva, Ammonil4t Cbnyftsori.
Lower liaa shale and coloured marla.
8s/
1^
9. New Red-Sandstone
10. Magneaian Limealone
Few or no organic remains.
{Coloured marla, gypsum, and rock salt
Red and white sandstones and marls.
Conglomerate and aandatone.
f Knottingley limestone. A few biTalree in the lower beds.
J Gypseous red marls. Ko fossils.
100 ( Magneaian limestone. Shells, corals.
Marl slate. Fishes of remarkable forms.
Bed-eandatone. Planta of the aubjacent coal aeriea occur in it.
oo
e. Coal
1000 <
&
I
(
11. Carboniferous or Moontain-Limestone
13. Old Bed*Sandstone
The aubdiTiaions of the coal aeries are only locally aaoertained. Gritstone and shales constitute
the principal mass. Flagstone and iron-stone are among the most characteristic layen.
Fresh-water limestone and marine limestone are exceedingly rare and local. The shells are
mostly of festuary origin. The plants are mostly of terrestrial tribes and extinct genera.
Millstone grit, series of sandstone, shales, coal, and thin limestones, forming a transition
group between the coal and the carboniferous limestones.
Yoredale rocks, consisting of fire or more beds of limestone, with alternating flagstones and
other gritstones, shales, thin coal, iron-stone.
Lower or scar limestone, in the north of England and Scotland, subdiTidsd by sandstones,
shales, and coal seams. They yield characteristic CnnoidM, Produetat, Spiri/err,
OrthoeeratOt BelUrophon, OoniatUei.
Alternating limestones and red-sandstones, forming a traoaition group between the carbo-
i niferous limestone and red-aandstone formations.
! Conglomerates and sandstones. No fossils yet noticed.
Coloured marls and concretionary limestones, called * oomstonea.* A few foesils.
TUestonea, or flagstone beds. A few fishes.
800
PBIMABT STRATA.
All the foesils belong to extinct species, and often to extinct genera and families. They are different from those in the Secondary and
Tertiarr Strata. It has been usual to class the upper systems under the title of Transition Strata, and to confine the name of Primaiy to the
mica-schist and gneiss systems. The following view of the Silurian Strata results from Sir Koderick Murchison's researches : —
18. Ludlow Bocks
660
8
0
U 0
%,^ (14. Wenlock Limestone 600
15. Caradoc Sandatone 830
10. LaadeUo Rocks 400
Sandstones.
Limestone.
Shale.
Species of Or^cula, lAngvla^ Terebratula, Spirifera.
PentamtnUf Homoiwloi%u,
limestone.
Shale.
(Corals and Crinoidea in rast abundance.
Euomphalif Produeta depreMia, Orthocerata, CalymeM Slvmenhackii, and other
Trilobltes. ~
{ Vartoul^^tSJi'ea. ) ^«^'"^. Terebratula. Orthi,, Trilobltes.
Calcareoos flaggy beds, inolading Aaqphu BttcMi, and other Trilobltes.
J
t —
GEOLOGY.
GfiOLOOr.
978
The stratified ai^gillnceoufl rocka below, from the rarity of oi^ganic remains and other causes, aro not so perfectly undentood. The
following arrangement, baaed on the labours of Sedgwick, is however correct, with reference to the succession of deposits in the Welsh and
Cumbrian districts. The thicknesses are not exactly known.
17. Plynlymmon Rocks / ArgiUaceouB indurated slate, sandy slatea. No fossils yet found in it Caleareons and
g r I argiUaocouB rocks, with Orbicular Zoophyta, and other organic remains.
i I J !*• B*i* Limestone Calcareous and argillaceous rocks, with Orticula, Zoophpta, and other organic remains.
^« I ^** ^"*"'^^^^^' Variously coloured and indurated argillaceous slate. A few fossils hare been obserred in Wales.
GUySUte Soft dark slate. No fossils known.
Sdf
1 1 J Chlastolite Slate Soft dark slate, with chiastollle. No fossils known.
^ ^^ Hornblende Slate Soft dark slate, with hornblende. No fossils known.
No organic remains. The beds of mica-schist, composed of mica and quarts, alternate with
gneiss, chlorite-schist, talcschist, homblende-^chist, clay-slate, quartcrock, and primary
limestone.
Gneiss System .... f^^ organic remains. The gneiM beds, composed of mica, quarts, and felspar, alternate
* locally with mica-schist, quartz-rock, and primary limestone.
Mlca^htst System
Prima/ry Periodi, — Gneiss and mioarschist, two of the most abun-
dant of the oldest steatified rocks, appear, as to tiieir substance, to be
composed of the same parts as granitic rocks, namely, felspar, quartz,
and mica, with great variations of proportions, and some admixtures
and substitutions of other minerals, constituting alike granite, gneiss,
mica-schist, kc But the ingredients are not in the same condition ;-^
in the granite all are crystadlised ; each mineral is independently a
crystal, or moulded in the cavities left between crystals ; in gneiss and
mica-schist the felspar, quartz, and mica are rolled or fragmented
masses. The character of worn surface of the ingredients, combined
with the lamination or stratification of the mass, assures us that
aqueous ageudes have determined the aggregation of gneiss and mica-
schist : the character of the lamination, especially the minute flexures
which abound in these sncient rocks, suggests somewhat of pecu-
liarity in the condition of the water; and the internal crvstallisation of
the attrited felspar reveals its origin from the disintegration of granite.
On the other hand it has been contended that the similitude of
the mineral composition of gneiss, or mioarschisty to granitic compounds
ai^ee a similitude of origin ; and by some writers gneiss, mica schist,
&a, are regarded even as igneous rocks; by others it is thought that
gneiss and mica-schist are intermediate products between sandstone
and granite, retaining the lamination and bedding which indicate
their original aqueous origin, but assuming a new mineral composition
in consequence of the agency of heat. Neither of these views appears
satisfactoxT ; to give a merely igneous origin to ^eiss is evidently to
leave out naif the phenomena ; to suppose the mineral composition of
gneiss the effect of heat operating on a common sandstone will never
be allowed by those who have studied the rock as it appears in Zet-
land, Scotland, or Norway ; for in all these places it is clear that the
granular minerals have not derived their external figure from con-
cretionary but really firom mechanical action, while their exterior
structure is truly crystalline. There is however one mineral fre-
quently fotmd crystallised in gneiss and mica-schist, namely, garnet ;
and the history of this mineral leaves no doubt that the rocks in
which it lies have been pervaded by a general high temperature,
enough to affect such a fusible substance as garnet^ but not enough
to melt any one of the regular constituents of granite. Here then
appears decisive testimony as to the degree of heat which the gneiss
and mica-schist have experienced. By Uie operation of this pervading
heat the particles of calcareous rocks associated with gneiss and mica-
sdiist have undei^gone a great change : they have been converted to
crystallised marble of various colours and qualities.
The arguments above advanced, conclusive as we deem them on
the subject of the origin of gneiss generally, are not intended to
apply to cases where, by reason of this rock being buried at great
depths below the surface, extraordinary effects of heat may be expe-
rienced. There, no doubt, the gneiss such as we see it^ clearly
revealing the history of its formatiou, may be wholly melted and
re-crystallised, so as to lose entirely all traced of its origin. Some
such cases may occur, perhaps even we may admit that evidence for
them exists in uplifted granitic regions; and thus some of the
monuments of the earths early history may have been lost: but
that this cannot be the general rule almost every mountain-chain
bears testimony.
In these, the most ancient rocks which exhibit to us the combined
effects of aqueous and igneous agency, no traces of animal or vegetable
life occur, and the conclusion we adopt on the subject is, that few
or none of the organised wonders of nature were then in existence,
because the physical conditions of the globe within which the
existence of animiJs and plants is limited were not then established.
Only one other view of the subject is worthy of notice. According
to the hypothesis of the slow reconversion of stratified rocks to
granitic compounds, the want of traces of organic forms in the
gneiss and mica- schist is ascribed to the destroying agency of
heat on the calcareous matter of shells, corals, &c., and the car-
bonaceous substance of plants. That heat will affect such calcareous
and carbonaceous compounds in the manner assumed is certain.
Perhaps it might be difficult entirely to reject the hypothesis in the
case of the primary limestones, whose alteration to crystallised masses
KAT. mST. DIT. VOL. IL
may be thought to have wholly destroyed the stnictnre of the shells.
Yet as in the limestone of Teesdale, similarly altered by contact with
trap rocks, crinoida,! stems retain their forms ; and as near granite,
trap, &c., vegetable remains are recognised, if not in substance, yet
at least by their impressions in the shales or grits ; and as, finally,
among some rocks of the same mineral nature as gneiss and mica-
schist, shells and phmts of many sorts appear in the Col du Char-
donnet in Dauphin^, the balance of evidence is decidedly against
this extreme application of the theory of metamorplusm of rocks.
^ Upon the whole then the evidence afforded by a careful examina-
tion of the oldest strata, in regard to their mineral composition,
structure, and absence of organic remains, supports, we will not say
establishes, the opinion that these are not only the most ancient strata
which man can trace, but the oldest products of watery action on
the globe, and in a great degree anterior to the origin of oiganic life.
The general results to which the study of the earliest systems of
strata lead are these : —
1. They are the oldest aqueous deposits vinble on the crust of the
globe, and rest on masses which have received their present aspect
from the action of heat.
2. They furnish no proof of the contemporaneous or previous
existence of dry land.
3. They are equally destitute of evidence of the contemporaneous
or previous existence of plants or animals in the sea.
4. The rocks of this ancient system are peculiar in their aspect,
and though doubtless derived from disintegrated granite, &c., the
constituent particles appear to have undexgone much less attrition
than those which compose rocks of later date.
5. These rocks are of such great extent as to approach nearer to
universal formations than any of later date.
As a general inference, it appears that the circumstances which
accompanied the accumulation of these rocks were greatly different
from what we now behold, since nowhere on the sea-shores are any
such products found, nor can we suppose anything analogous pro-
ducible in the bed of the sea, unless where some peculiar agitation of
water may hasten the disintegration of granite. The impression was
very strong among early writers of the entire want of accordance
between the causes of those early strata and those now in action.
De Luc (' Lettre ' ilL) more reservedly says, " We have no reason
to expect that the operations of those times can be explained by
specific analogies with what we observe in the present state of the
earth."
And as one general hypothesis, we may say with the followers of
Leibnitz and Fourier, that the proper internal heat of the earth was
then only just so much reduced as to allow of a peculiar watery
action upon its cooling crystallised masses, but not enough diminished
to allow of the conditions within which the existence of ozganic
beings is restricted on the earth.
This hypothesis is independent of the consideration already pre-
sented as to the original condensation of the globe, and caonot, we
believe, be objected to on the ground of anything known concerning
the present state of the interior of the globe ; on the contrary, the
temperature of the earth augments as we proceed downwards, and
this fact, being general, has been shown by Fourier to be inexplicable
except as a consequence of a general high temperature now existing
in the earth. The planetary spaces round the earth are colder than
any part of its surface (Fourier), and continually abstract heat from it :
the globe is continually growing colder though at an insensible rate,
and must have formerly been hotter, and then must have lost heat
more rapidly. The obvious conclusion from the mathematical theory
of the heat of the globe, coupled with observations of the tempera-
ture below the surface, leads to the adoption, as an inference from
facts, of the view above proposed as an hypothesis to explain other
facts. [Gneiss; Mica.]
Skiddaw, Cambrian, and Silurian Systems. — These aigillaceous
rocks of the primary series of strata bear the same relation to the
gneiss and mica-schist as common clays bear to common sands in
modem nature. Some clays are not really more distinct Arom par-
ticular sands in their mineral nature than in the comparative finencRa
8 B
979
aEOLOQY.
GEOLOGY.
980
of their oonstituent particles. In consequence of differences of mag-
nitude and density, particles of clays and sands which are derived by
watery action from the same searcliff, avalanche, or glacier, are soon
separated, carried to unequal distances, and deposited in distant
massea Such, in many cases, is the true origin of the sandstones and
shales of the secondary strata, and processes somewhat analogous
may perhaps be supposed to have occasioned the remarkable dislanct-
nesB and even reciprocity of occurrence of the gneiss and mica-schist
on the one hand, and the slaty rocks on the other. It is seldom that
both of these types of primary strata abound in the same geographical
region, though there is little doubt that both are derived from a
granitic basis. In some cases we may best conclude that the mate-
xials of the slaty rocks were obtained from the wasted gneiss and
mica-Bchiat.
Enormously thick as these argillaceous masses are, and extensive aa
is their geographical distribution, they offer in all countries a general
charaeter of aspect which easily arrests the attention and impresses
the memory. The colour usually approaches to blue, gray, green, or
purple ; the texture is usually fine-grained, but portions are included
not very different from sandstone or conglomerate (grauwacke, or
olasmoschist of Conybeare) ; the structure is laminated and bedded
more or less perfectly, and often in addition complicated with r^ular
symmetrical joints; there is another entirely distinct set of such
(Svisional planes called ' cleavage,' traversing the planes of deposition.
All these drcimistances give to the primary argillaceous rocks a deter-
minate aspect. The limited limestones which interlaminate the mass
are seldom so crystalline as those in gneiss and mica-schist, and they,
as well as the upper and some other parts of the slaty rooks, generally
yield organic remains, occasionally in gi-eat abundance. These are
almost wholly marine (local deposits of land-plants occur), and the
animals belong to invertebrate tribes — Zaophyta, Conchiferci, Cruttctcea
— and augment in number and variety as we pass from the lower to
Che upper parts of this series of rocks. [Obqanio Remains.]
From a contemplation of the slaty rocks it results : —
1. They not unfrequently rest on the granitic rocks with scarcely
any interposition of gneiss or mica-schist (Cornwall, Cumberland, ftc.)
2. The proofs which they offer of the existence of dry land are
chiefly (or wholly) derived from the oi^ganic remains of plants, which
are not certainly known among the lower groups, but become tolerably
plentiful in the upper parts of the systems.
8. The marine organic remains, shells, corals, Crwlacea, &c., are
very scanty in the older systems, and grow more and more numerous
and varied towards the upper strata.
4. The forms and structure of ^ese earliest known fossil races of
animals have no extraordinary degree of simplicity, nor are they con-
fined to the lowest or least complicated tribes of Iwoertel>r(U€L
6. The alterations which the rocks have undergone by the action of
heat are general, sufficient in most countries to superinduce new
structures (slaty cleavage), but not to destroy the traces of oiganic
remain&
A greater resemblance appears among these fine-grained strata to
the deposits from modem waters than is found in tiie earlier rocks :
there is less of peculiarity in their laminar and stratified structure ;
they are more varied; and the alternations of deposits indicate
greater variety of natural processes and new conditions, such aa the
elevation of land, the wasting effects of the atmosphere, and littoral
agitation, might occasion.
We may suppose, in order to account for the origin and gradual
augmentation of the traces of organic life, that the flow of heat from
within the globe to the surface was retarded by the effect of previous
cooling, and by the addition of the older sedimentary rocks above the
granite ; and this is in harmony with the fact that generally the lime-
stones of this system are less crystallised than l£ose which are of
older date. [Cambrian Rooks ; Cumbrian Rocks ; Silurian
System.]
Passage from the Primary to the Secondary Period of Geological
Time.— Before the close of the Primary period we find that some
limited tracts of land were reared above the waters, so as to nourish
the plants which occur in the grauwacke slates of North Devon and
the banks of the Rhine (supposing, with the general opinion, that the
foBsiliferous rocks of Baden, &a, are of this age). The sea had become
entirely fit for the residence of marine Zoophyta, which abounded so
as to constitute reefs and islands ; Conchifera and Oasteropoda forming
extensive beds ; Trilohites of many kinds, and a few traces of fishes.
These however are chiefly in the uppermost of the primary series,
and would be ranked as transition deposits by all geologists who use
that now neglected and somewhat hypothetical term. Yet it is
Impossible not to be struck by the gradation of character which con-
nects into one long series the granitoid gneiss and the arenaceous
Ludlow rocks ; the fine-grained gneiss and mica-schist with the fissile
Snowdon slat^ and ai^illaceous Wenlock shale. In proportion as the
deposits on a great scale resemble in character of accumulation those
of modem times, so the organic remains appear more and more
abundant. Some general change of physical condition, such as per-
haps only a change of heat will explain, must evidently be admitted
as an hypothesis to coxmect together this series of phenomena.
After the deposition of the primary strata, the interior forces of
heat, no longer operating by a gradual metamorphosis' of the pre-
viously deposited strata, and by a regulated change of the condition
of the sea, appear to have been thrown into a state of critical action^
and to have operated on the aqueous deposits of ancient date, as at
this day the volcanic fires below affect the sedimentary strata accumu-
lated from water above. There is hardly a mountain-range of much
importance throughout the world where the effects of great convulsive
movements affecting the primary strata cannot be seen : frequently it
is ascertained to be the case that these movements happened before
the production of any of the secondary rocks ; and upon the whole it
is evident that the crust of the globe was broken up and disturbed,
and the relative geographieal distribution of sea and land materially
changed by the disturbance. The effects immediately appear : the
introduction of a new order of sedimentary deposits, with new geo-
graphical relations ; the extinction of old and the creation of new
groups of organic beings; the commencement of a new act (so to
speak) in the great history of the earth.
What relation do the great convulsionB here alluded to bear to the
movements of a modem earthquake 7 They are unquestionably due
to the same general force, namely, internal heat : a disturbance of the
equilibrium of this force ia in each case to be admitted — ^the causes
and effects are analogous — but is the modem earthquake due to a
physical agency of equal intensity with that which occasioned the
ancient convulsions of the earth's crust ? The uplifting of a mighty
range of mountains is a common event> a characteristic occurrence of
early geological periods : minute and partial changes of level accom-
pany some modem earthquakes., There is no possibility of explaining
the former by the latter, except by taking them as differentiid quan-
tities, proportioned to the time elapsed, assuming that they always
(or on an average) operated in a certain direction ; and thus summing
an almost infinite series of minute changes to make one decided revo-
lution. This is, and must necessarily be^ the view of the advocates of
the invariable constancy of the measure of natural agencies.
It is enough, in reply to this speculation, to point to the phenomena
which require explanation : they are too mighty in extent, and have
too much simplicity and even rarity of character to allow of the
faintest belief that this hypothesis can be true. On a minuter inspec-
tion this conviction is deepened by the want of any proof of the
occurrence of these thousands of smaU movements, whica must have
succeeded one another for the production of the given effect On the
contrary, the enormous and simple displacements, 100 to 4000 feet in
a vertind line, and ranging 10 or 100 miles in length; the mutual
connection of such famts ; the laws of their relative direction, and
other phenomena, utterly reject such an imaginary representation of
the measure of primeval igneous agency. A much less improbable
view, that the whole movement of a great mountain-chain was accom-
plished by gradual elevation or depression, operating through long
time in one direction, is apparently difficult to reconcile with the
narrow and steep ridges produced, the numerous and powerful flexures
of thick rocks, the sudden and great fhtctures, and other characteristic
phenomena.
We are therefore driven to believe that the igneous effects of earlier
date were far more powerfully and generally excited, at particular
epochs, than is now observed to be the case. We may be satisfied
that the present aspect of the earth is to be viewed as a period of
comparative repose ; a period of ordinary and regular action, and
frequent compensation among the agencies of nature ; and may satis-
factorily compare it with the whole or some part of the primary
period, but not use it as a measure of the violence which accompanied
the transition from one early period to another, and thus, amidst great
local or general disorder, restored the equilibrium of the interior and
exterior agencies of natural changes. This being supposed, the volcanic
excitements of modem date being taken as the terms of a series of
effects of partial and local disturbances, and re-establishments of
equilibrium, there may yet remain residuary phenomena not so com-
pensated, till some critical combination of events opens a wide access
to the interior energies of heat. It is even probable that such do
remain. The cavities left by the ejection of lava under the Andes are
probably not all compensated by the sinking of the earth in the
vicinity, because of the resistance of the coherent crust of rocks above ;
yet such resistance is limited, and it is at least conceivable that some
part of that mighty range may fall in, as did a great portion of Papan-
dayang in Java (1772).
What is here concluded to be tme at this day for volcanic regions
taken singly, may easily be assumed to be probable for large portions
of the earth, when the igneous energy was capable of more genco^
results, because not determined to many local centres of continual or
intermitting effect But we must not leave out of consideration the
gradually diminishing force of heat in the globe, whether this be due
to a gradual lowering of its proper temperature, or a gradual stifling
of calorific chemical processes. The loss of that heat by mere radia-
tion'^into the cold planetary spaces is a residual phenomenon of
infinitesimal value indeed, but of general application to the whole
globe, and capable in long time, and independentiy of local volcanic
action, of amounting to a tremendous force.- For the heat of the
surface of r the earth being determined by the heat of the sun and the
cold of its planetary path, the exterior crust would contract less than
the interior nucleus, and it would depend on various considerations
wnether at all, and after what intervals, a violent crushing of the
k
081
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
98a
orost should happen to relieye the extension of the solid or fluid
nucleus. During the earlier periods of refrigeration such critioal
disruptions may have been frequent ; at later times they would occur
after long internals, with greater violence ; and finiilj, when solidi-
fication had gone to a oertdn depth, there might be no subsequent
paroxysm, so long as no external agency came to aid the interior
tension.
It may perhaps be worth remarking that the atmosphere of the
earlier eras of the world known to geology most be supposed to have
transmitted lights much as happens ai present^ else we should not
find the eyes of fossil trilobites constructed as are those of analogous
Onutacea at this day. (Buckland, ' Bridgewater Treatise.')
Secondary Periods of Qeology. — On the undulated bed of the sea,
round the ranges of primary rocks raised in insulated tracts by great
conyulsion, secondaxy strata were formed, sometimes evidently derived
from^ the waste of the primary strata, through the influence of atmos-
pheric agency, or the wearing of the sea on its shores. But a consider-
able portion of these strata is of purely marine origin; the calcareous
strata may be considered as derived from chemicid decomposition of
the sea-water, separated from it by the vital functions of MoUuBcaKDidi
Zoophyta, or generated by springs rising in the sea and loaded with
carbonate of lime. Of idl these modes of formation modem nature
offers illustrations, some of them so extensive as to admit of com-
parison with many of tho andent limestone rocks. Others of the
secondaxy rocks appear to have been formed of ejected volcanic matter,
ashes and scoriae, which by diffusion in water have settled into deposits
of considerable extents The total thickness of the secondary rocks
is but small when compared with that of the primary groups, nor are
they, it is probable, spread over such extensive areas; but in the
variety and number of alternations of the different sorts of rocks
and in the diversity of their imbedded organic fossils they are alto-
gether superior. There is among them far more of the differences
which separate oceanic from littoral deposits ; and we see abimdant
proof that during their aggregation the arrangements of nature were
extremely analogous in general features to what we now see, however
great and numerous the points of difference may be.
On an attentive consideration of the several systems into which the
secondary strata are grouped, namely (injkhe order oreuperpoaition), —
Cretaceous System ;
Oolitic System ;
Saliferous, or New Red-Sandstone System ; and
Carboniferous System,
it will be perceived that to each of them belong littoral, marine, and
oceanic deposits ; sandstones having been chiefly collected amid the
agitation of the shores, days accumulated in quiet bays or gulfs, and
limestones aggregated in deeper water ; and in each system, each of
these claases of deposited rocks contains somewhat characteristic, if
not entirely peculiar: sandstones, more or lesirfelspathic, dark bitu-
minous shales, and gray limestones occur in the carboniferous system
• — ^red or blue colours belong to the sandstones and days, and magne-
sian combinations to the Umestones of the next incumbent rocks;
light-coloured sands and pale-blue clavs, with yellowish limestones,
mark the oolitic system ; and green or ferruginous sands, marly days,
and soft white limestones distinguish the cretaceous rocks.
These distinctions are important^ as guiding us to a right general
view of the changes of physical conditions which occasioned them.
These it is probable related chiefly to hydrography, and when we have
geological maps complete enough to make the required comparisons
as to the extent and distribution of the rocks, it appears possible that
the direction of oceanio currents, the lines of ancient boundary of
land and sea, may become sufficiently known to determine the par-
ticular subterranean movements which introduced new conditions and
produced new deposits in a given basin of the secondary ocean.
Each of the great systems alluded to is characterised by the plants
and animal remains which lie in it : the Lepidodendra of the carboni-
ferous sandstones and shales yield place to the Vdtzuje of the red-
sandstone, and the CyeadoLce<B of the oolites ; the Productce of the
carboniferous limestone are never seen among the oolites, which
abound with Trigoni<B, Pholadomytx, &c., nor in the chalk, from which
these forms are absent ; ammonites belong to all the systems, but the
groups differ in each; belemnites are confined to tne two upper;
hamites, scaphites, ftc, are scarcely met with out of the cretaceous
rocks.
These statements might be enormously multiplied [Oboanio
Remains], but enough is said to show that the great features of
lithologioal distinction are accompanied by striking characters of
organic remains. These characters, so far as marine life is concerned,
may evidently be understood by the same inference of a change of
oceanic currents ; but the differences of the vegetable world seem to
bespeak a general change of the characters of dimate.
Reviewing the four systems in succession, we shall find drcum-
stances in each strongly indicative of peculiar combinations of the
physical agendes of nature.
Carbon&erous System. — To what shall we ascribe the abundance of
vegetation which furnished the materials of our coal strata? — an
abundance so great as, upon any hypothesis of accumulation on the
spot where the plants died, or in the sea to which currents drifted
them, appears to nave no parallel| unless amongst the most umbrageous
forests of Tropical America. B^ the gradual decay and periodical
transport of the woods on the Mississippi or Orinoco we may perhaps
best understand the accumulation of many beds of ooal, alternating
with a far greater number of much thicker earthy sediments; but
even these aboriginal forests seem unequal to produce such enormous
ooal deposits as we find in Britain and other parts of the northern
zones of the globe. The circumstances, whatever they weie, which
favoured this development of vegetable power, were never repeated^
at least in these sones, though deposits of a similar nature to the
series of ooal Btratl^ and likewise containing fossil plants and thin
beds of coal, diversify the sand and sandstones of the oolitic^ oreta-
ceous, and tertiary eras.
As a general inference we may observe that all the great thiokneaa
(2000 or more yards) of the carboniferous system (excepting perhaps
part of the old red-sandstone series) is clearly derived from wasted
lands or sea-ooasts, or from a decomposition of the sea-water by vital
or diemioal agency. [Coal; Coal Fobmatioit.]
Whatever was Uie length of time which elapsed during the accu-
mulation of the carboniferous strata, it appears to have passed with
little disturbance of the level of land and sea; for not a single
example (we believe) is mentioned of any real unconformity of strati-
fication in the whole series, from the base of the old red-sandstone to
the uppermost line of the coal strata. The ordinary agencies of the
atmosphere and the waves were in full employ, and some traces of
volcanic eruptions appear in the trap of Derbyshire and the north of
England ; but there is not in the accumulation of the often repeated
altOTnations of limestone, sandstone, shale, &c., of the carbon^erouf
systra:!, anything to require the supposition of greater general convul-
sions. It was a period not of repose, but of regular and orderly
action among the agendes of nature, so far as the parts where now
Europe and North America are situated : and the mineral deposits
and organic remains are to be compared with existing operations of
nature, in order to leam the physical condition of the andent land
and sea.
After the formation of the carboniferous strata was ended in Europe
and America, the long tranquillity of the ocean in these parts waa
broken by extensive and violent concussion, so that hardly a single
square mile of country can anywhere be found whidi is not fuU of
finustured and contorted strata, in oonsequenoe of subterranean move-
ments which mostly preceded the accumulation of the next system
of strata.
The rdations of land and sea were so greatly changed by these
transient convulsions, that the new ridges of land and islands appear
to have been variously scattered in the ocean which flowed round Uie
already uplifted Grampian, Scandinavian, and Welsh mountains. An
equal or greater extent of land appears to have been elevated in
Iraland, but with less violence and concussion ; and it is remarkable
that some of the greatest faults produced at this epoch were almost
wholly unaccompanied by the irruption of any igneous rooks, or any
other signs of merely volcanic action (Craven faulty great dyke of
Tynedale, South Wales coal-field, &a)
The Red-Sandstone System, which is deposited upon and around the
broken tracts of the carboniferous system, presents us in some respects
with new oondusions, which however seem almost equally to apply
to the old red formation. No doubt the sands and days of thiii
system were collected from wasted land and sea-coasts, and deposited
in shidlow waters. But whence came the red and greenish oolours
so characteristic of these strata and the anslogous old red formation?
The grains of sand which compose much of the rocks are not red, but
white rolled quartz sand, surrounded by red peroxide of iron l^e a
varnish. From none of the older rocks could this abundant red
pigment be derived so as to stain the whole sea^bed for 1000 feet or
yuds in depth. It has been thought that volcanio action alone can
explain the occurrence of this iron. It is not hovraver improbable
that the oceans which deposited the red-sandstone may have held
protoxide of iron dissolved in carbonic add ; and that from this
solution the peroxide of iron was predpitated, as is seen in iron-
springs at the present day.
Instead of the great quantity of vegetable matter buried in the ooal
tracts, we have in the prindpal part of the red-sandstones hardly a
few insignificant traces — so few in England that scattered fragments
are valued in geological reasoning ; ndther are the marine reliquiss of
the magnesian limestones in the midst of the red rocks at all plentiful,
except in a few spots. Even taking the richer German series as a
type, the red-sandstone rocks must be pronounoed singularly defident
in organic fossils ; and as, generally speaking, the same defidency of
organio life bdongs to the older red-sandstone below the mountain
limestone, it is at least a plausible supposition that the causes of the
red colour and paudty of animal life are somehow dosdy connected.
If we imagine that by reason of the great convulsions which foUoi^ed
the carboniferous era new currents were brought into the same areas
of the ocean from tracts yielding abundance of new sediments, the
extinction of organic life would be the natural consequence, to be
followed afterwards by a gradual revival — which is nearly the truth.
In the magnesian limestones of this system expire many of the forms
of the older carboniferous period, and at higher levels (as in the
MuscheUodk) we find a strong resemblance of the marine Zoophyta
shells and Oruttacea to those of the yonn^ oolitio system. Upon
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
984
the whole there Mems reason to think the new red-eandetone system
oould not have occupied a long time in its formation compared to
other deposits of equal thickneaa [RbDhSaitdbtonb Fobmatiok.I
Oolitic System. — Into the same European and Asiatic basins which
reoeiyed the red clays, red sands, and magnesian limestones of the last
system, subeequent agencies brought blue days, sands more or less
oohraceous, and limestones characterised by an oolitic texture. These
deposits are parallel to the old rooks below, and no trace of any change
of level in the region where they occur has been noticed in England —
perhaps not in Germany. Must we refer to some distant convulsion
zor an expUmation of tiie change of sediments, and for the equally
great change, or rather sudden development, of organic life, which
comes in wiUi the oolitic era ? New and more abundant forms of
plants {Oifcadea), with many varieties of ZoophytOy MoUtueaf Crvstacea,
fishes, and gigantic reptiles of the land, rivers, and the sea, mark the
oolitic rocks, and render them justly comparable, as a system, to the
great carboniferous assemblage of strata. Locally indeed the oolitic
rocks yield coal among the interpolated grits and shales, just as
happens among the roNsks interstratified with the older mountain
limestone.
The resemblance of the oolitic to the carboniferous limestone tracts
is extremely great in general features ; and the reason is that both
are essentially sea-deposits, characterised by calcareous rocks formed
in the deep sea, and liable to admixtures of sandstone and shales along
the shores. In such situations each is carboniferous. Both are highly
rich in oceanic life, but during the formation of the oolitic rocks there
is no proof that anywhere such excessive richness of vegetation was
renewed on the land as that which yielded the mass of ooal-plants
in an earUer period. [Oouno Stbteil]
Cretaceous System. — The last portion of the series of secondary
strata was deposited in the same oceanic basins as the earliest as far
as Europe is concerned, but this is not the case in America. Generally
in Europe the cretaceous rocks have their stratification parallel to
that of the oolites, though some uncomformity in this respect occurs
in Yorkshire and Dorsetshire ; and in the south-east of France dislo-
cations affected the oolitic strata before the production of the creta-
ceous rocks. But these comparatively slight movements of the bed
of the sea appear totally insufficient to account for the complete
change in the chemical and mineralogical character of the rocks, and
the new orders of Zoaphyta and MoUtuca which date from the
commencement of the cretaceous era.
Sands coloured green by silicate of iron, white sofb limestones with
beds or nodules of flint, seem to bespeak an origin from the waste of
other lands than those which dischaised other sands into the ooliti-
ferouB sea* and other modes of chemictd or vital action in the sea ; yet
a scrupulous analysis of the oolitic system shows in its upper part
analogies to the cretaceous rocks so strong and so various as to render
it probable, if not certain, that the new conditions characteristic of
the new system were graduaUy or partially introduced till they entirely
predominated — ^for greensands alternate with the uppermost of the
oolitie limestones in the Alps, flinty nodules lie in the calcareous grit
and Portland oolite, and chalky limestones constitute the great portion
of the latter rocks in some situations of England. It is to be regretted
that we are so little able to determine upon good evidence what the
new conditions influential on Uie deposits of the cretaceous rocks
were ; for their effects are very simikr along a great range of the
Atlantic coast of North America from New Jersey to the Musissippi,
and tliroughout the interior of Europe.
The cretaceous period was not ended in England by dislocations
situated in or even near that part of the surface. In Ireland eruptions
of basalt of enormous extent cover the chaJk, and indicate a crisis of
Tolcanio disturbance. In France, Elie de Beaumont refera to the
concluding part of the cretaceous period dislocations which range
north-north-west in the Jara» and traverse the primary mass of Mont
Viso. After the chalk formation was completed in the south of
France the Pyrenees were uplifted to a great height, so as to limit
the tertiary basins of the south of France ; and it is supposed that at
the same time the Apennines and the Carpathians experienced an
upward movement. Conjecture has even joined to these the Allegha-
nies ; but it may be gathered from Professor Rogers's reports on the
geology of America (* British Association Reports'), and accordant
notices of Featherstonhaugh and other competent geologists, that an
earlier date should be allowed to that mountain range. [Chalk
FOBMATIOir.]
Tertiary Periodi. — In general no contrast can be more complete
than that between the secQndaiy and the tertiary stratified rocks : the
former retaining so much uniformity of character, even for enormous
distances, as to appear like the effect of one determined sequence of
general physical agencies ; the latter exhibiting an almost boundless
local variety, and relations to the present configuration of land and
sea not to be mistaken. The organic bodies of the secondary strata
are obviously and completely distinct from those of the modem land
and sea ; but in the tertiary deposits it is the resemblance between
fossU and recent kinds of shells, corals, plants, &a, which first arreets
the judgment In general there is a decided break between the two
groups of rocks — a discontinuity which is nowhere completely filled.
Yet, besides the pseudo-tertiary or transitiou chalkv rocks of Maastricht
and the Pyrenees, and the conchiferous marls of Gosau, we have in I
England and France above the chalk a prevalence of green and ferru-
ginous sands extremely similar to those below. Perhaps they have
been derived from the waste of these older rocks : Sir Charles Lyell
supposes the tertiaries of the London basin to have been formed
from the waste of the secondary strata of Kent, Surrey, Sussex, and
Hampshire.
With the tertiary system came into existence (if we may trust the
negative evidence which the earlier strata present) many races of
qiuidrupeds, some birds, reptiles, and fishes, extremely analogous,
Uiough for the most part specifically distinct from the modem denizens
of hmd and water ; thousands of corals, shells, Orutteieea, Ac., which
present with living races quite as great analogy as obtains between
the tribes of the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans of our day ; the
general features of land and sea as they now exist begin to appear,
and there can be no doubt that in a philosophical study of the revo-
lutions of the globe Uie tertiary era of geology cannot be properly
separated from the existing system of nature.
Yet during the deposition of these rocks the relations of land and
sea were greatly altered in Europe by the rising of the Pyrenees
beyond the height they reached after the cretaceous era, and by the
uplifting of the Alps from the Mediterranean towards Mont Blanc
In England we may believe the upward movement of the southern
counties, connected with Uie Hamp^iire axis of elevation and the Isle
of Wight convulsion, was ended before the dose of the tertiary period.
The eastern range of the Alps frx)m Mont Blanc to Vienna is of later
date, and may be viewed as the most marked phenomenon of elevation
which accompanied or preceded the dispersion of erratic rocks in
Europe. [Txbtiabt Stbtbil]
The following table, from IVofessor Ansted's 'Elementary Geology/
gives a summary view of the various strata of the earth, arranged
according to the latest authorities, and also gives the foreign equiva«
lents of the various British rocks : —
Table of Ckueificaiian of Bocke,
Tbbtiaby Efoch.
British.
Modern DepoaiU : —
Baised b««ohes .
Peat bogs .
Submerged forests .
Deposits in caverns
Shell marls
Newer Tertiary, or Pliooene
Series: —
1. Upper grayel and saud .
3. TIU
3. Mammallferous crag
4. Fresh water sand and
grayel
Foreign Equivalents or Synonyms^
and chief Foreign Localities.
gjjnilar appearances in Northern Europe,
Siberia, and America.
5. Red crag
• . • •
Middle Tertiary, or Miooene
Series: —
6. Coralline crag
Lower Tertiary, or Eocene
Series: —
7. Flurio-marine beds . *^
8. Barton clays . . .
9. Bagshot and Bracklesham
sands
10. London clay and Bognor
beds . .
11. Plaster and mottled elays,
sands, and shingles .
>
These beds or their eqalTalents axe known
in yarions parts of Northern Europe or
America. Other but yery different de.
posits are the newer beds of Sicily.
Others again are found occupying a
large part of South America.
Subappenine beds.
Brown coal (of Germany).
Belgian tertiaries (crag).
The Siralik beds (India) are supposed to
belong partly to this period.
Touraine and Bordeaux beds.
Part of the Molasse of Switaerland.
Vienna basin.
Certain European, Asiatic, North African,
and North American beds.
Paris Basin.
Central France.
Molasse of Switaerland (lower beds).
Belgian tertiaries.
Various beds in Western Asia and India.
Various beds in North and South America.
Nummulitic bed«.
Seoondabt ErooB.
Cretaceous System : —
12. Upper chalk with flints
13. Chalk without flints
14. Lower chalk and chalk
marl .
15. Upper greensand .
16. Gault
. ^17. Lower greensand .
^] ^' Kentish rag
e S ft. Atherfleld clay
^ I Speeton clay
Scaglia limestones of the Mediterranean.
Maestricht beds.
Senonian diyision of D'Orbigny (Craie
blanche).
Turonian beds of D*Orbigny, (Craie
tttfau) ; Quadersandatein of Germany.
Albian beds of D'Orbigny.
Pl&nerkalk uf Germany.
Neocomian of Switzerland and France.
Hilsthon of Germany.
Pondicherry beds.
Bogota beds. South America,
(t) Aptian beds of D'Orbigny.
(I) Ilils-conglomerat of Germany.
FSj
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
996
Wenlden System :—
18. Weald eUy .
19. Huttings sand .
SO Porbeokbedi
Oolitio System : —
^21. Portland stone .
a. Limestones with olsy and
cherty bands
ft. SilieeoQs sand • •
22. Kimmeridge beds
S< 24.
Coral rag and oaleareons
grits .
Oxford olay •
a. Stiff clay .
b, Kelloway's rock
'25. Combrash
26. Forest marble
27. Bradford clay .
28. Great >ooUte
29. Stonesfleld slate
30. Fullers' earth
^31. Inferior oolite .
Liassic System :—
82. Alnm shale .
S3. Hailstone
34. Lower lies .
85. White lias
Kear Boulogne.
North of Germany.
Jura limestone is the usual continental
synonym of our oolitio series.
LiUu^raphio limestone of Blangy.
Honfleur clays.
Solenbofen beds.
Beds in South of Bussia and in India.
Nerinean limestone.
Argile de Dives.
fitage Bathonien is the name given by
D'Orbigny to our lower oolites.
Caleaire k polypiers.
Calcaire de Caen.
Caleaire 4 gryphites.
or
Upper New Ked-Sandstone,
Triassio System :—
86. Bone-bed of Anst Cliff .
87. Variegated marls, with
salt and gypsum .
88. Yariegated sandstones .
Kenper marls, or Mamea Irishes.
Musohelkalk.
Bunier sandsteln, or Grte Ugarr^.
Pal2K>zoio Efooh.
Magneslan Llmestonei or Permian
System:—
39. ICagnesian limestone
40. Dolomitio conglomerate .
41. Lower new red- sand-
stone ....
Carboniferoua System :•*
42. Coal measures . •
a. Gritstones . . .
ft. True coal-measures . .
e. Fresh-water limestone of
Burdie House, near
Edinburgh . .
43. Millstone grit . . .
a. Coarse gritstones .
b. Laminated shales , .
44. Carboniferous limestone
a. Bands of fossiliferous
limestone . . .
ft. Shales (calp, culm) . .
Devonian, or Old Bed^Sandstone
System :—
45. Quartsose conglomerates
(old red - sandstone)
in South Wales and
Scotland; represented
by coarse red flag-
stones and slates in
Devonshire and Corn-
wall ....
46. Comstone and marl of
the old red-sandstone.
Calcareous slate, lime-
stone, sandy beds, and
conglomerates of De-
vonshire and ComwalL
Upper Silurian Series :>«
47. Tilestone . . .
48. Ludlow group .
a. Upper Ludlow shales
ft. Aymestry limestone .
e. Lower Ludlow shales
49. Wenlock group
a. Wenlock limestone
ft. Wenlock limestone .
Zechstein.
Kupfer Sohiefer and other
Bothe-todte-liegende.
The eoal-messures occupy an important
place in various parts of the eontinent,
in Belgium, Franee, the Khine, South
Russia, and also in North America ; in
various parts of Asia, and in Australia.
The foreign synmiyms are, Steinkohlen-
gebirge, terrain houilller, terrain ear-
bonifdre, and terrain anthraxif&re.
The millstone grit ia generally a bed of
subordinate importance out of the
British Islands.
The Klesel Schiefer of Germany is an
equivalent of the carboniferous lime-
stone.
The Belgium limestone beds and others
in Northern Bavaria are^ in the same
part of the series.
Devonian beds are well known In Belgium,
the Eifel, Westphalia, and North Ba.
varia. In Russia the old red-sand-
stone appears, and contains similar
fossils to those found both in the
corresponding beds in the BritLih
Islands, and also in Devonshire and
Herefordshire. The palflsoaoio beds of
Australia are supposed to be contempo.
raneous.
Silurian strata extend over much of the
northernmost parts of Europe, and cor-
responding latitudes in America. They
have been found in Brittany, in West-
phalia, near Constantinople, and in Asia
Minor. In South AfHca, the southern-
most parts of South America, Australia,
and China, different contemporaneous
rocks have been determined. In
mineral character they are generally
distinct from the English beds, but
offer no marked characters uniformly
present.
Lower Silurian series :—
50. Caradoc sandstone . .
51. Llandeilo flags
We may now turn to the comideration of the present aspect of the
globe.
According to every view of geological causes and effects, the
present aspect of our planet u Uie result of all its preyioua changes;
these changes cannot be completely imderstood if we leave out of
consideration the daily variations which occur in the condition of the
earth, nor can the operation of existing agencies be completely repre-
sented to our minds without calling in aid the inferences derived from
a study of earlier phenomena.
One of the most important things ascertained by geologioal
investigation is the certainty that tiie operations by which stmtified
rocks were formed in the sea-bed, and the igneous rocks uplifted
from below, were repeated nearly in the same succession over most
parts of the globe. Some of the formations are very extensive : in
all countries the lower strata are of the character of gneiss, mica^
schist, slate-rocks, &c. These primary strata may almost be termed
universal: the organic forms which they contain, though few, are
very similar, or exactly identical, over enormous areas; and there can
be no doubt that during the deposition of these ancient rocks the
earth enjoyed an uniformity of conditions over its surface never since
repeated. There is no proof that land existed anywhere in the earlier
psfft of Uiis period — no probability that any part of our continents
or islands then stood above the water. At the close of the primary
period the effect of elevatory forces was manifested by the existence
of some narrow ridges and peaks of rocks, corresponding to some of
our present mountiun tracts, as the Qrampian and Cumbrian moun-
tains, and of others now vanished, which nourished the forests and
herbs Vhose destruction has yielded coaL
Through the secondary period this elevation of land proceeded
gradually, or by intermitting action, till at the close of that period
some of the principal features of European geography were visible;
the ocean was contracted and divided into many basins and gulfs,
some of which remain, as the Adriatic, English Channel, German Sea,
&a ; while otiiers, as the Vale of the Danube, Sea of the Rhine, fta,
have been dried by further elevation.
The same elevatory action continued through the tertiary eras
completed the geographical features of Europe, and though we cannot
trace so minutely in other parts of the world ^e contemporaneous
changes, enou^ is known to assure us that the same causes have,
withm the same general limits of time, produced, in all quarters
where dxy land appears, the same phenomena.
In the preceding pages we have spoken of the elevation of land
from the sea as a thing perfectly well understood, and admitted as a
basis of reasoning. It is so admitted by geologists of every shade of
opinion who wish to explain effects by real causes. We shall here
present a short sketch of the reasons which have produced on this
important point so general an agreement among geologists.
1. In existing nature the combined influence of the exterior and
interior causes of change cannot materially affect the level of the sea
(as estimated by the mean radius of its surface). Within sensible
limits the sea-level is now permanent. 2. The land now above the
waters was formerlv below them, and could only have been laid bare
by the elevation of parts of the sea-bed, or by the abstraction of the
ocean to other regions, either through depression of its bed or through
a displacement of the axis of rotation, or by an universal diminution
of the quantity of water on the globe, or by a change of the oceanic
level through great alterations of temperature at tiie surfiaoe or through
the mass of the globe.
In examining these possible modes of desiccation of land, geology
must have recourse to collateral science. The two last hvpotheses,
namely, of a change of oceanic level, without change ox external
form or axis of rotation, are insufficient for the purpose. Sound
reasoning rejects the supposition of an indefinite waste of oceanic
waters for miles in depth, because the position of our planet in space
yields no escape for the water; nor is there any ground for believiog
that the quantity fixed in mineral compounds since the date of the
earliest strata is of much importance. A general change of tempe-
rature of the globe would certainly alter &e relative level of land
and water, because their rates of expansion and contraction are
unequal Between the boiling heat, 212", and what is probably below
the mean temperature of the actual seas, 40**, the contraction of the
water would be about *042 of the whole quantity. The land certainly
would contract less, and thus by a general cooling of the globe the
ocean-level would relatively sink. To put the case to extreme, we
shall suppose the contraction of the land = 0, the area of Uie water
to remain unchanged, and the mean depth of the sea ten miles ; tlie
reduction of level of the ocean would he -^ of a mile = 739 yards.
Now, as all the conditions of the problem have been taken in extreme^
as the deepest part of the sea probably does not exceed ten miles, as
one quarter of tha spherical surface is land, and the area of the sea
must diminiah as its level sinks, it is very obvious that the greatest
possible change of oceanic level from this cause could only go to one^
two, or three hundred yards at most ; and therefore it is impossible
by such means to explain the desiccation of land from 1000 to 10,000
or 20,000 feet high.
Moreover, during this cooling of the land and sea the whole globe
would contract; and from this cause the mean radius of the ocean
diminish and its mean depth augment, so as to reduce stUl more the
possible extent of land that could be drained by its change of
dimensions.
The attraction of the ocean to other regions would lay dry parts of
its bed ; and if astronomical science permitted geologists to change
KJ OEOLOOY.
■t their pleamra the poution of the sxli of rotaldDa of tile earth, few
difficulties need stop the ouesr of Bpeculation ; but the earth in a
■pharoid of rercdution, and if the attractioii of the beaieul; bodlea in
the ruiaiu poaitioiiB which it takeg with regard to them doei not
diflturb it4 axis of G^ure, neither can it be thought tjiat the Tolcanic
fbrer of it4 surfooe can lo alter the interior denaitiea oa to cause any
Benaible change in this respect.
But that tbe bed of the tea mav have sunk, that other cautinenta
than oitra may have (alien belaw their ancient level, ma; be aaaumed
aa readily u the rising of the existing land, hut with tlua restriction,
that the ninking of the bad of the sea requires to be far greater than
the rising of the land, because three-quarters of the globe are covered
by water, and Uliia a small difficulty is overoome by introducing a
greater.
OBOLOOT. OM
Frequently however this depeodenoe of the form of the existing
land upoD the ranges of mountaiui is disguised by the extent of com-
paratively plain country which aeparatas the mountains titnu the saa.
Thus, all the eastern half of England might seem to have its form
independent of the narrow ridgee of the western monatains; and'it
is but B vague relation which links (he Baltic, the Black Sec^ and the
Caspian to the Harz, Saxon, Carpathian, Caucasian, and Uralian
chains. Id these and many other cases it is neceamy to admit that
the general level of the sea lias subsided, or that lai^ bacta of land
have been raised gradually, or by BDOOMiive movementa round the
mountains, which in earlier times man uplifted by more violent
effects. The diagroma, figi, 2 and 3, illustrats the fact of the general
slops of the English strata from the western monntaini; but this
cauDot be explniuoJ by tl^o violent elevntioD of theae mountains, for
Anally, on turning
; t, Uai Umtitons ; t, liu cUt' ; ',
eouiBeted with monn-
tain chains, it is per
fsctly oartain from
the position of the
atnta— often vertioal
or contorted in the
sides of chains, highly
inolined near them,
•nd gently sloping at
greater distaaoes —
that these rooks have
been displaced by an
elevating foroa acting
fnaa below. The
direoUon of the foroe,
the geological time
of its Qoeuirenoe, its
sudden or gradually
acoumulatad inten-
sity, and many other
cliaracteriBtie droum-
Btaneas, can be detat'
mined ; and upon the
whole no doubt re-
mains that slevotiog
moTements have Pis- S— a, i. ', d. •./. bate (be Mntnuoiilng m In JV«. 4; j 1 1, ■• ■ ■ viUejrs wblcb deusnd vLtb th
raised the land, and '^f *>' "" •Irsla, beie •upputd lo dip south ; NK, ud P, limglnidlDal vnUeys, or nub ss run parallel I
there is no rsaaon to "" eotirop of tbe itnta ; T, a tranidise nlle;, tmltlnir tlu lonEitDdliuI odm.
deny that depressing
movements may have
sunk the bed of th
land and sea depend
principally on the dis-
position of mountain
chains and groups,
which in every in-
atanee yet known are
eortaiolj shown to
have been raised by
mechanical agency,
generally with a de-
gree of violence so
great as to require
the auppoaition of
great and general ex-
citement of tbe sub-
terranean force* of
heal America, for
inatance, derives ila
form from tlie chaina
of the Andes and
ng. t. — The lettirt b»vi
a httorol range of
Biuil, the Allegha-
probably of very unequal antiquity. The Ohauta define the westeni
side of India, aa the Alias mark the north-weateni border of Africa ;
the Pyrenees and Sierras give the form of Spain; the Cornish,
Webb, Cumbrian, lAmmennuir, end Ommpian ranges explain the
figure of EngLmd and Scotland.
g, KimmHidge day ;
this happened prind-
paUy before l£e de-
position of the oool
round theae moun-
tains has since been
gained from the aaa
by more gradual
changes of leveL
present themaalvea in
detached areaa all
aver tlie world ; but
in veiy unequij de-
gree^ nod with un-
equal difierenoes of
level above the ocean,
even in neighbouring
traeta. It appears
therefore more ' pro-
bable that particular
r^ona have risen
roond the same points
and lines which once
experienced a violent
upward movement.
There is no reason to
deny that the ocean-
level may iiave been
somewhat lowered
by the subsidenoe
of a port of it* bed;
ready shown that no
reasonable (perhaps
no pcBsible} »inting
of the ooean-bed could
explain the pheao-
mana of the desicca-
tion of even the
flatter parte of the
land.
The Interior fea-
tures of every coun-
try, in like manner,
depend upon recog-
nised geological agen-
cies- The unequal
elevation of mountain
ranges above the sea
which will be found
of great importance
in geological theory.
It appears to ha true,
at least in Europe,
that the most ele-
vated chains of moun-
I (IgnlllHtlon M la J'yi. 4 snd I. tains ore those whose
elevation was not
ended (if, bdeed, it be yet ended} until the tertiary or later
epochs. Thus, the Alps, which bear on some of their heighta
(Diablcrelfl) caps of tertiary strata, ascend to 16,680 feet above the
sea ; the Pyrenees, whose pi-incipal elevation appcats to have followed
soon after the chalk, to 11,270 ; the Carpathians, nearly of th* s«4M
969
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
090
date, to 8675 feet : while in the Harz the older mountaiDs (Brooken)
riae to 87S9 feet; in Wales (Snowdon) to 8675 feet; in the Grampians
(Ben Nevis) to 4850 feet. The highest point of Norway (Schnee-
Haten) is more than 8000 feet above the sea, but there can be no
donbt that violent as well as gradual upward movements affected the
Scandinavian ridges to a late geological era.
Raised in this manner by violent or gradual movements out of the
sea, the dry land has since been subjected to waste by atmospheric
action ; and there is no doubt of the truth, that to different sorts* of
rock belong some difibrenoes of aspect, some characteristic scenery.
The forms of the hills and valleys are not the same in the gneiss and
mica-schist of the Grampians ; the clay-slate ranges of Wales ; the
limestone of Derbyshire ; the oolites of Gloucestenhire ; the chalk of
Wiltshire ; even single rocks and waterfalls have distinctive charac-
ters, and the whole aspect of a country changes with its geological
structure. It thus appears that the nature and structure of the rocks,
their elevation above the sea, and the manner in which they attained
it, and the intensity and duration of the atmospheric agencies which
have since affected them, are the elements which determine in every
instance the physical aspect of a country.
No question in geological theory has been the subject of so much
debate, with so little of correct reasoning, as that of the origin of
valleys. By Dr. Button it was contended that atmospheric agency
and running waters had excavated valleys ; by De Luc the subsidence
of the crust of the earth was invoked ; Omalius D'Halloy introduced
the consideration of dislocations on the line of the valley; and Dr.
Buckland appealed to the overwhelming force of a general flood.
None of these views is entlrelv wrong ; each contains partial truth ;
and the complicated problem oi the inequalities of the surface of the
earth can be solved by combining them.
By violent elevation from the sea, rocks of whatever nature or
structure, must have been variously broken and fissured. It is oon-
oeivable that some of these fissures might descend below the level of
the water. During the elevation some considerable effect on the
forms of the ridges and hollows would be produced by the agitated
water, but the smaller modifications which they have experienced
must be ascribed to atmospheric agency. In these few words we have
the history of the rough hiUs, abrupt valleys, and deep lakes which
belong to mountain chains like the Grampians, Alps, and Pyrenees.
By gradual risings or interrupted lifts of the bed of the sea, other
phenomena would arise ; the action of the sea upon the rocks, succes-
sively brought within the sphere of its littoral movements, would
concur with the form of pre-existing land, and the entrance of its
drainage waters, in exten^ng ^e old and producing new vnUeys.
^ In the next diagram {fig* 6) the same country is represented as
rising out of the sea, which penetrates by the transverse vaUey across
th^ ridges of rocky hills, and flows round them up the vales of clay;
its waves wasting the clayji imder the cliffs, and causing the top to
£Btll, exactly on the same principle tibat waterfalls at this day, by
wasting the aigillaceous basis, break down the crowning limestone beds
throughout all the north of England.
The Giesbach, on the lake of Brienz, compared with the Staub-
bach ; Hardrow Force in Yorkshire, or Ashgill Force in Cumberland,
contrasted with the Fall of Lodore, near Keswick, are in this respect
very instructive ; nor should the cases be neglected where, as on the
coast near Scarborough, Robinhood's Bay, and Whitby, the sea now
flows among the lias and oolitic rocks, and wastes their argillaceous
parts on a small, scale, almost exactly as in the above explanation it
is supposed to have wasted the similar but thicker clays, when the
whole system was rising above the waves. Pleasing illustrations of
this kind of action occur in the Medlock at Manchester, the Greta
near Ingleton, the sea-coast near Heysham, Sunderland, Berwick, &a
In the Isle of Wight the fresh-water limestones and clays, and the
various beds of the plastic clay series about Culver, offer abundance
of curious examples.
The same mode of action is traced in the forms of mountains and
hills which are composed of strata of unequal resisting power; as
mountain limestone and shale in the Yorkshire dales, oolite and
clay in the Gloucestershire Hills, Normandy, or the Jura mountains.
The diagram (fig. 7), given below, represents a cross-section of Wensley
Dale, which for a great part of -its length exhibits, wherever a consi-
derable rock of limestone comes to the surface, a decided projection
and terrace on the hill side, and below every such rock a slope formed
in the alternating shales and thin sandstones.
How much of this appearance is due to atmospheric action and
ndn since the river Yore has been running in its present bed, and
how much to the influence of water bathing the hill-breasts at higher
levels, is not easy to determine ; but the correspodence of the strata
on the opposite sides is such as to leave no doubt that all the vast
space of the valley has been really excavated out of continuous
strata; and the survey of the whole line of this and other rivers
appears to refute the opinion that the existing drainage waters have
carried off much of the detritus.
To conclude this brief notice of the origin of the principal inequali-
ties on the earth's surface, it may be proper to remark that the view
here given of the excavation of valleys at the time of the rising of
rocks from the sea, explains the otherwise imintelligible phenomenon
of dry valleys in chalk, oolite, and other calcareous strata, which
The greater number of these extended or new valleys would be
directed at right angles to the axis of elevation in progress, and there-
fore, on the dry land, the greater number of valleys originating in these
circumstances will be found to run with the dip of the strata. How
exactly this agrees with the general character of the. drainage channels
of the secondary strata of England above the red-sandstone requires
only to be mentioned ; and it has been already shown that in aU the
south-eastern parts of England where these strata occur there is suffi-
cient evidence that the elevation of these rocks was due to gradual
and long-continued, not violent and transitory movements. While
such gradual movements occiured, and strata of unequal hardness
and different structure (as limestone and day, or sandstone, in diagram,
fig. 4), were brought within the range of littoral action, these would
be imequally affected by the tidal and other currents ; the softer parts
would be worn away, the harder remain ; and thus the red marl
would be wasted parallel to the coast-line, or to a certain depth in
the water, below the cap of lias limestone ; the lias clays would yield
beneath the crown of lower oolite ; the Oxford day be excavated
below the middle oolite; and the Eammeridge day form a vale
between the middle and upper oolites.
The exact conformity of this with the appearance in nature is well
known. The general character of the actual drainage, as Dr. Smith
has often and elegantly explained, may be represented in diagram,
fig. 5, where III and mmm are valleys descending on the slopes of
the strata, K N and P, valleys formed in softer strata paialld to the
coast ; T a transverse valley uniting the others.
wind and imite like the branches of a river, and have slopes and
features such as to prove their origin from moving water, but contain
no trace of a stream, no mark of a spring, and often no alluvial
sediment.
It appears also necessary to remark that, independent of the fiusts
here stated, there must be some importance attached to the effects
likdy to be produced by the violent agencies, whatever they were, to
which the origin of diluvial phenomena is ascribed. The essential
thing however in this case being a relative change of level of land and
sea, the result of the watery agitation could only be to modify in a
greater or less degree the more considerable effects of previous
agendes of longer duration. Gravel heaped in particular places
conceals some of the earlier dopes of land, and covers with irregular
hillocks an original sea-plain, but the great features of the country
remain comparatively luaffected by these transient disturbances.
Lift <m the Okhe. — Geology enables us to behold, in the present
varied and complicated arrangement of land and water, the result of
many- and repeated actions of causes which are not yet extinct, but
continually occupied in similar operations, in different situations, and
under different circumstances. The land which has been raised from
the sea by internal expansion seems to be dowly wasted away by the
action of water, and again restored to the deep. But new laoid is
formed by these ruins, and volcanic fires are yet competent to raise or
depress the bed of the sea.
The land is not all of the same antiquity; some regions must have
been covered by trees, perhaps or rather certainly traversed by quad*
Ml
GEOLOGY.
GEOLOGY.
992
rupedi!, before the Bubstanoe of others was laid on the bed of the
sea. Since life was developed on the globe, if geology has rightly
interpreted the monuments of nature, there has never been any con>
siderable period during which the land orjsea was wholly deprived of
organic beings ; but as the condition of the globe changed, the forms
of life were altered, old races periBhed,new creations were awakened,
the sum of animal and vegetable existcDce was continually augmented,
and the variety of their forms and habits continually multiplied, as
the conditions of land and sea were diversified, until man was added
to the wonders of creation, and historic time began.
If then, through all past geological time, oiganic life has changed
its aspect as physical conditions varied — if the present physical
aspect of the globe ia derived from previous physical revolutions,
must we IooIl on the present system of oiganic being, adapted to the
present physical conditions, as similarly derived by corresponding
revolutions from earlier systenu of life, corresponding to earlier
states of the land and sea ?
If the physical aspect of the globe is now changing, does its oi'ganio
enrichment vary likewise ; or is the relation of oiganic life and
physical condition one of coincidence merely— one of those adjust-
ments independent in its nature, though associated in time and
situation, which offer the most convincing proof of continual super-
intendence of the divine lawgiver of nature ?
Though we cannot here enter at large on a subject which requires
the detuls which are found under another head [Oboaitio Remains],
there are points of too general importance, in reasoning on the present
condition of the globe, to be wholly omitted: — 1. The relation of
form and structure between the living and extinct worlds of life ;
2. The distribution of the existing forms of life,, in reference to the
geographical features and geological history of different parts of the
globe.
The relation of living to extinct races of plants and animals is
various. In number, the Recent Flora is perhaps 100 times as con-
siderable as the Fossil Flora, and though this is in some degree owing
to the circumstance that land-plants, insects, &c., must necessarily be
comparatively rare in marine strata, yet the vast number of individual
plants accumulated in coal tracts does not appear to justify a very
high estimate of the variety of specific forms of plants in early
periods. The same is true of the marine races of shells, Cru^acea,
fishes, ftc. ; for both the total number of species, and the relative
number to a given thickness'of strata, augment from the early towards
the later formations, and are greatest of all in the tertiary strata,
which in character of oiganic life most nearly resemble the modem
productions of nature.
On comparing the living with the vanished tribes of plants and
animals, we are struck with the fact that hardly one species of the
fossil kingdom ia so peculiar in its structure that nothing at all like
it is now in existence. Recent analogies of extinct forms are con-
tinually and unexpectedly presented to us by the attentive voyagers
who now explore the most remote and unknown regions of the land
and sea, and continually revealed to us by the discoveries of compa-
rative anatomy, which detects in common forms traces of analogies to
extinct creations formerly altogether unsuspected. Thus the belem-
nite, the trilobite, the ichthyosaurus, are reduced to their proper
station among MoUtuca, Crtutcicea, and ReptUiOf and the whole
extinct and living world of nature becomes united into one general
system.
But this indubitable affinity between the plants and animals now
living and those which adorned the world in earlier ages does not
require us to adopt the speculations of LinnsBus, Oken, Lamarck, St.
Hilaire, and the anonymous author of the ' Vestiges of the Natural
History of Creation,' that specific forms of plants and animals are no
further permanent than the circumstances which surround them;
that as these change those vary ; that the immense variety of organic
structure may have been derived from a few primitive types — the
living gavial from the fossil Tdeotavrus, the living cuttle irom the
fossil BdemnosepiOf the living from the fossil Equitettk This doctrine,
plausible as it seems, and flattering as it is to that propensity in man
to derive everything from a beginning of which his own senses may
give some notion, must be rejected for three reasons : —
1. In existing plants and animals the experience of mankind, for
2000 or 8000 years, has shown no essential change.
2. There is no proof, drawn from examination of fossil reliquiae,
of this assumed change from one species to another, much less from
one genus to another. On the contrary, it is a very striking truth,
illustrated in almost every group of fossils, that while the same species
retains through many deposits of different age its essential charac-
teristics, new ones come into view in many of these strata^ not by a
gradual change, but by a sudden development.
8. The destruction of old races and the introduction of new
appear in many cases to have been sudden and complete, at least
locally.
In considering the distribution of existing forms of life, with
reference to the geographical features and geological history of
different parts of the globe, we cannot avoid l^ing struck with the
fact that each species, each genus, and often each family, of plants
and animals, is especially abundant in and often exclusively confined
to jMurticular pazis of the land or sea, even among those itrnm^la
whose powers of locomotion are the greatest. Among fishes, birds,
and Bwift quadrupeds, this attachment to locality is scarcely less
remarkable than among Plants, 2k>ophytes, and Molluaca, which have
no means of diffusing their races, except what winds and currents
give. It has therefore become an admitted truUi in the philosophy
of natural history, that there are certain r^ons of the land and
tracts of the sea for which particular groups of plants and animals
were specially create, and to which for the most part their existence
is still confined.
The living species of plants and animals which most nearly resemble
fossil races are variously distributed over the globe. Tree-ferns,
gigantic Bquiaetacea, and other plants iltustrative of the Flora of the
carboniferous period, may be found in Brazil, the Indian Islands, and
Australia ; coniferous plants occur in colder latitudes, or at greater
heights in the tropics, as well as in the lias; Cfyeadacea occur in
South Africa and Australia, and tropical America, as well as in the *
oolites. The recent Trigonia and CkrUhium gigarUewm are found on
the Australian shore; Pholadamya was washed on the island of
Tortuga : and CucullcBa belongs to the Indian Ocean. Lingula is
found in the Moluccas; but Terebratula in all seas: the nearest
living form to the old fossil crocodiles inhabits the Ganges ; while
the bony pike, whose scales resemble those of MegaUchthy^, lives in
Lake Ontario.
Qtological Time, — There \& perhaps no more difficult problem in
geology than the determination of the length of time which has
elapsed during the formation of the whole or any definite part of
the crust of ti^e earth. Time, as measured by generations of men,
fails to cany us back to remote geological epochs ; man ia but a
recent visitor of the globe ; compaxvsd even to the secondary strata
his date is of yesterday, for all the existing forms of life cease with
the lower tertiary rocks, only small proportions of them occur in the
middle of that series, and traises of men have nowhere been seen in
any but the most modem parts of the stratified mnnsen of the globe.
If then the histoij of the human race does not commence till after
the deposition of at least the greater part of the tertiary strata*
by what rules shall we attempt to compare the few thousand
years of his existence with the earUer periods of the lustoiy of the
globe?
In a vague senses nothing appears more obvious than the conclusion
universally admitted among geologists, that the earth is of vast
antiquity, yet nothing more eludes the gnup of reasoning than the
seemingly easy task of computing its age. The rocks are indeed full
of monuments of time, '* rudera longinqui sensim pneterlapsi ssvi,"
but we have not yet learned fully to decipher them.
When we behold thousands of strata piled on one another in a
regular series, each distinct by some peculiarity from the others ;
when we find among these the original products of chemical action
(sa limestone), the slow sediments from gentle motion (clays), rough
sand and pebbles implying greater agitation ; how can we refuse to
admit that long time elapsed during the often repeated change of
chemical and mechanical agencies of water over the same portions of
the bed of the sea ?
When among these strata we observe the remains of plants and
animals, various in their kinda^ regular in their distribution, so as to
prove that at successive times the same part of the sea nourished
successive races of animals, and buried in its sediment distinct races
of plants, where in modem nature is it conceivable that such repe-
titions of change, in all the ranks of creation, could take place except
by the aid of almost immeasurable time?
Descending to minuter inquiries, we find some particular strata
composed of fragments derived from a more ancient rock, which
after being deposited in water, was indurated, raiwd to the surface,
wasted by dnunage, and again collected in rolled fragments on the
bed of another sea. The trees which are imbedded in certain rocks
(coal-measures, lias, Portland oolite, &c.), are often known by their
rings of growth to be some decads of years old, and in particular
cases (Dirt-bed of the Isle of Portland) it is supposed that their
whole existence passed between the formation of two beds of
stone.
Every country affords examples of certain fossil shells confined to
even a thin layer of shale, sandstone, limestone, or ironstone, and in
some instances (near Leeds and Bradford) the youngest embryo
Ckmiatita and the oldest full-grown shell are found in one bed of
6 or 12 inches thickness, in that alone, and apparently in the place of
their quiet existence, so as to indicate that the lifetime of that
OoniatUe (0. Listen) was consumed during the accretion of one
calcareous bed, whidi is about ^nbis^^ P"^ ^^ ^® thickness of the
ooal-messures whose history it enriches.
If again, among those strata produced by watery action we find
altemations of volcamc rocks, and learn that at particular epochs in
the series of deposits mountains were raised from the sea, land
clothed with forests was submerged, and the physical geography of
particular r^ons entirely changed, we see clearly that such repeated
revolutions of nature agree with the history of Uie oiganic creations
in refuting the narrow views of those who would limit the age of
the world to the short annals of mankind.
But how are we to proceed further, so as to clothe with a more
philosophical chaiaoter these almost poetic notions of the immensity
QEOLoar.
QEOLOGY
9M
of post geological periods f Three orders of effects are in this respect
important : —
1. The deposition of stratified rooks. 2. The changes of oiganic
life on the land and in the sea. 3. The displacements of land, and
changes of physical geography.
The phenomena of stratification are at this day repeated, and on
a very considerable scale, in most parts of the world. White great
rivers sweep earthy materials and vegetable reliquin to the sea, as
in the case of the Missinippi, Amazonss, Rhine, the Po, and other
rivers, littoral aggregations take place, and new land is formed ; tides
and currents throw np sand-banks, or disperse the finer sediment far
from the shore over the quiet bed of the ocean. From the growth of
new land on the Adriatic and Egyptian coasts, by the action of the
Po and the Nile, some notion may be formed of the great quantity
of sediment annually transported by rivers to the sea, and both
reason and experience show that the materials are there accumu-
lated in the same manner as the ancient strata were.
But are they now accumulated with the same, with greater, or
less rapidity f If equal deposits are now formed in equal times, the
calculation of the age of the visible crust of the earth is as easy as it
would be philosophically useless ; but to assume this principle is to
nullify the conclusion from it. Unless it can be shown, & priori,
that atmospheric influence must have been constant through all past
geological time, the assumption will not be accepted. This cannot
be satisfactorily shown, for the external excitants on which the
atmospheric actions depend contain vsriable elements. No certain
conclusion then can be rested on the comparison of the mere thickness
of the stratified rocks, as to the lapse of time, unless there can be fbund
an independent scale of time which may help to interpret the other.
Such a scale of time is perhaps contained in the series of oiganic
beings imbedded in the earth. These belong to manv successive
systems of life, which may be compared with the existmg forms of
nature, and could we establish from history any rate of change in
organic life, any per-centage of species destroyed, or created in a given
series of years, some considerable steps might be laid for further
advance. But two or three thousand years appear to have made no
change on quadrupeds, birds, reptiles, fishes, shells, or conspicuous
plants. As far as can be known by study of old writers on natural
history, sculptured monuments, coins, and mummies, no change of
external form or internal structure has been experienced since the
earliest historical era ; the loss of a very few species is all that can
be safely admitted ; and no proof is offered of a single newly-created
form, though the distribution of the different groups of plants and
animals has been varied by sea-currents carrying seeds and ova,
and altered by man, who has learned to conquer by obeying nature.
As far therefore as the more obvious and chi^acteristic forms of
animals and plants can be admitted to yield satis&ctory evidence,
the period of two thousand years since the days of Ai*istotle would
be insufficient even as a unit of measure by which to estimate the
intervals of geological time which elapsed during the deposition of
strata. TMs condusion is strengthened by some and weakened by
other considerations. It is weakened by we circumstance that the
changes of oiganic life appear to have been sudden ; it is fortified
and illustrated in a powerful degree by comparing existing nature
with the tertiary era, for thus the ten or more thousand shells of
this day appear to be joined to an equal number of others, into one
long series of definite oiganic formsj which, since the date of the
chi^, have admitted new and lost old species continually. Whether
these new species, in any particular bMin of strata, were parts of
one or more new creations there, or, as may perhaps be thought
probable, transferred from other centres of oceanic life, is quite
unimportant for the argument as to time. The effects resemble tiiose
noticed among the older strata, the causes must be assumed to be
correspondingly similar, and the times must be in some degree
proportionate. Uniting therefore the tertiaiy and modem eras into
one great geological period, we may compare the unknown quantity
of thne which it includes with other equally unknown and older
intervals in the history of the globe, corresponding to similariy
complete series of organic forms. This comparison is facilitated by
the remarkable fact of the almost total distinctness of the oiganic
beings of successive geological periods. Had the shells of. successive
systems of strata been gradually changed by substitution, we should
have been compelled to compare not systems but formations, or
even individual strata; and the conclusions might have become
irremediably obscure.
The systems to be compared are : — Tei*tiai7, Cretaceous, Oolitic,
Saliferous, Carboniferous, Fossiliferous, and Primary.
The following table, extracted from Professor Phillips's ' Guide to
Oeology,' gives the proportionate thickness and number of oiganic
forms of these systems : —
Komber of speeies of organio
Strata.
General thickness.
romalni to 100 fL thicknew.
Tertiary .
. 2000 feet
. 141
Cretaceous
. 1100 feet
. . . 70-7
Oolitic
. 2500 feet
45*6
Saliferous .
. 2000 feet
8'2
' Carboniferous
. 10,000 feet
4-7
Primary .
. 20,000 feet
20
HkT, BIST. DIT. VOL. IL
Hence it is very obvious that any conclusions as to time, drawn
troTXk the mere number of species which were developed and destroyed
with any system of strata, will be totally opposed to others based
on the observed thickness of the strata. The inferences are obvious
and important ; the numerical relations of organic life to the amount
of stratified deposits are variable ; one cannot be used as a measure
of the other ; the variety and abundance of organic life has been
augmenting from the primary to the tertiary eras, or the deposition
of strata was in the early ages of the world fifty times as rapid as
in the tertiary period. This latter conclusion can never be allowed,
since the fossiliferous primaries show clearly their origin from land-
floods and littoral currents, and these depend on influences which
cannot be supposed to have varied in any such proportion.
It thus appears that neither the numbers of organic fossils nor the
thicknesses of strata afford a perfectly satisfactory scale by which to
measure past geological time ; but whichever of them be preferred,
the age of the world cannot be estimated at less than several times
the whole tertiary period, and compared with this the historical
portion of time, which dates from the birth of man, contracts to a
point.
By uniting the two considerations above stated, it will appear
certain that the rate of organic development has been augmented,
and probable that the rapidity of sedimentary deposition diminished
since the primary era; and it is no slight argument in favour of the
hypothesis of a gradually cooling globe, that both these phenomena
are natural consequences of it — {or that the greater influence of the
earth's proper heat in the earlier epochs would favour the mechanical
but limit the vital activity of nature seems to require no proof.
If however independent proof were required of this change of
ratio among the agencies of nature, we must appeal to a third order
of phenomena most certainly characteristic of disturbances of the
eqiulibrium of the earth's proper temperature : the fractures, con-
tortions, and other marks of the violent elevation and depression of
the crust of the globe.
From what has been already stated it is very clear that the
principal phenomena of this description occurred specially at particular
intervals during the long periods of geology ; for example, after the
primary period, after the carboniferous era, before and after the
accumulation of the cretaceous strata, after many of the tertiaries
were produced. Now, on comparing the amount of disturbance
effected at these epochs respectively, we are unable to perceive that
the efficient causes have diminished in force ; for the elevation of the
Alps in the tertiary period is apparently quite as conspicuous a
phenomenon as can be found among older geological monuments.
M. Elie de Beaumont^ to whose speculation as to the geographical
characters ot subterranean movements allusion has already been
made, supposes that as many as twelve distinct epochs of mountain-
elevation may be recognised. The following is a brief summary of
the classification which best suits the geology of England : —
Geologieal Period.
1. After the deposition
of the Skiddaw roeks.
a. During^ the deposition
of the Snowdon rocks.
*3. After all the primary
strata were deposited.
Effects noted.
Beds of argillaceous con.
glomerates.
Porphyry, greenstone,
and trappean conglo-
merates.
Principal elevations of
primary rocks.
Localities.
Derwent-Water.
Under IXelrellyn, in
Snowdon, ftc.
Grampians, Lammer.
mnirs, mountainB of
Cumberland and
Wales.
Conglomerate Eocks follow in the old red-sandstone.'
*4. After the deposition Immense faults, anticli-
of the ooal strata. nal axes, &o.
The great faults of
Tynedale, the Penlnc
chain, Craren, Derby,
shire, Flintshire, South
Wales, and generally of
the coal districts.
Conglomerates follow in the red-sandstone.
5. After the oolitic pe-
riod.
*6, After the London
clay.
Unconformity of
stratification between
oolite and chalk system.
Anticlinal axes and ver-
tical strata.
Yorkshire, Dorsetshire.
Isle of Wight, Axis of
the Wealden.
At the three epochs marked by stars, the most considerable move-
ments and greatest changes in physical geography appear to have
been produced. Such changes also occurred about the same epochs
on the continent of Europe : the most universal of the phenomenn
seem to be the two earlier ones ; but it is almost impossible in any
case to prove that the occurrence of convulsions was synchronous at
distant points. Since then we can neither affirm anything with
respect to the change of force of the subterranean monuments at
different geological epochs, nor can ascertain, except by reference to
the phenomena of stratification and organic life, whether they occurred
more frequently in one period than another, it is impossible to draw
from the evidence of these disruptions any certain conclusion either
as to the change of the earth's proper heat or the extent of geological
timcb If indeed the actual effects of earthquakes were to be placed
against the mighty wall of the Penine fault, the vertical beds of" the
Ide of Wight, or the concealed dislocation of the coal-fields of Yalen-
8 s
GEOLOQT.
GEOLOGY.
996
(nenn60» there would be no doubt of the decay of natural agendes ;
but thiB 18 not allowable, for the great dialocationa alluded to are to
be viewed as phenomena of a short intenral of violent movementa
between long periods of ordinary action such as now obtains on
the globe.
It may be supposed that the number of these oases of very great
and extensive disturbance is in proportion to the time elapsol ; but
as none such has occurred within the reach of hirtory for at least 4000
years, we see how very ancient is the earth ; and further, we have no
data for aocurately computing in numbers the vast periods which
have elapsed in jwoduoing the stratified crust changing many times
its vegetable and animal races. On the whole, it appears that the day
is not arrived for theory to trust itself with the attempt- to assign
definite values to the symboU of duration which remain m the earth.
Long, undoubtedly, perhaps as long as the periods which the study of
planetary motions htf revealed, must be the whole range of geological
time; but until we know at this day what is the average rate of
deposition of sediment in the sea, or the usual age of marine MoUutca,
until we can determine the numerical or structural relations between
organic forms and physical conditions, or can convert the irregular
eflfocts of volcanic fires into a calculable series of changes of tempera-
ture, there is little hope that the invitation of the Royal Society, to
assign the antiquity of the crust of the earth, will be accepted by
prudent and competent geologists.
Scwumieal Applieationt of Choloffieal Science.— "VnMoe,*' says
Professor Whewell, " has ever been the nurse of theory : art has ever
been the mother of science, the comely and busy mother of a daughter
of far higher and serener beauty. But the benefits are reciprocal;
geology, at leasts is capable of well repaying the large debt which it
owes to the experience of the miner, the engineer, and the agricul-
turist, and indeed some of its truths are already largely productive of
public benefits
** There is hardly a district in this island where the reasoning of
geologv has not checked extravagent expenditure in search of oou or
metallic ores where such are not to be found, and conquered the
credulity of ignorance ever ready to listen to the delusive and almost
superstitious notions of me'relv working oolliers and miners. The
false and deceitful promise of finding good coal by going deeper, will
not often again lure the landed gentry and respeotable companies to
such adventures as sinking for ooal in the oolites of Oxford, the sand-
stones of Sussex, or the silurians of Radnorshire. But it is not
merely by preventing foolirii and wasteful expenditure, in searish of
imaginary treasures, that geology has aided the mining interest : it is
within our memory that the eminent practical men of the great
northern coal-fields doubted or denied even the exigence of ooal
under the magnesian limestone^ Tet now the Hetton colliery, and
(in consequence of Dr. William Smith's geological opinions) the South
Hetton colliery, send enormous quantities of excellent coal to the
London market from benealh the dreaded magnesian limestone. The
almost universal preiudice of colliers that * Red rock cuts off coal,'
has been vanquisned in Lancashire, Staffordshire, and Somersetshire,
and reasons have been given by Conybeare and others for believing
that under the red rocks of the midland counties great tracts of coal
remain for the public advantage and the triumph of geology." ('PhiL
Mag. and Annala')
Some years ago, Lord Dartmouth, guided by geological reasoning, in
opposition to the views of the local colliers, sunk a trial pit for coal
near Birmingham, and found it below red-sandstone rockSb It
was faulty near the pit bottom ; but thb has not prevented the
establishment of a colliery, nor discouraged further attempts in the
vicinity.
Ooal^wcrking. — In the practical department of coal-working, geology
can as yet render little aid, because the experience of the cou districts
has hardly yet been turned into science. The subject of the ' faults'
(' troubles,' as they are often and justly called), from which no coal-
field is exempt) and which by their effects on subterranean drainage,
and the disarrangement of the subterranean works, their influence on
the qtiality of the coal, and other oircumstanoes, are of the highest
importance to the collier, is vet almost wholly unknown as a branch
of science. One general fact known concerning them (the corre-
spondence of the dip of the fault to the depression of the strata), may
be illustrated in the subjoined diagram after Professor Phillips's.
h t Fig. 8. V
are said to ' rise to an upthrow, and dip to a downthrow ;' in the
latter they ' rise to a downthrow, and dip to an upthrow.' If these
circumstances wero carefully recorded by surveyon of collieries,
science might eventually combine the detached facts into general
laws, show their dependence on other conditions, and thus put an
instrument of discovery into the hands of practical men.
It is a common thing to find valuable ocMd-beds at first injured, and
ultimately rondered worthless, by the interposition of a wedge or
band of rock, r, in some part of the tbiokneiB of the ooal ; thus the
Fig. 9.
In this figuro the faults o, (, and x, decline variously from the
horizon h h ; and they aro most firequently found to dip or deoUne
under that portion of the divided strata which is relatively depressed,
as a and 6, not as x, which ropresents a raro and exceptional oase.
By the sides of faults the strata are often slightly or considerably
bent) sometimes in the direction tending to unite their disrupted parts,
as a ; sometimes in the contrary way, as i. In the former cose they
High Main Coal of Newcastle is split> and in a partienlar direction
ruined by the 'Heworth Band.' The upper part of the Great Staf-
fordshiro coal-beds goes off in ' the Flying Reed ;' and the ten-feet
bed of Banisley in Yorkshiro divides into almost unknown parts. If
the details of colliery working wero moro completely recorded, the
law of these phenomena could be moro aocurately traced, so as to
answer the anxious questions which such intrusive band- suggest to
coal proprietors.
The variations of qualify in ooal, whether of differont beds in the
same district (a common case), or of the same beds in diffisrent dis-
tricts (as in South Wfdes, whero good furnace coal is found in the
east) and anthardtio coal abounds in the west), aro not now known in
a scientific form ; and theroforo science can give no help to piuctioe.
Notlung but the union of the parties interested in coal-working can
furnish the data necessary for the establishment of general rules.
[COAIrFOBMATIOir.]
The beneficial results which mining operations have derived from
geology aro in proportion to the degree in which the experience of
miners has been reduced to the form of science. On the subject of
the situation of metallic treasures, already enough u known to show
that the occurrence of mineral veins is a droumstanoe depending on
conditions which aro moro or less ascertainable. For example, thero
is not, and perhaps has never been, in the British Isles, a single mine
of any metal worxed in any stratum moro recent than the magnesian
limestone ; it is a general truth that rich vnns of lead, copper, tin,
fta, abound only in and near to districts which have been greatly
shaken by subterranean movement; in Derbvshiro, Alston Moor,
Flintshiro, and, in particular tracts, especially Cornwall and Devon,
it is very apparent that near the great masses of granitic rocks the
veins aro most richly filled. The same facts aro almost equally trae
on the continent of Europe, and in other parts of the world, though,
occasionally, as in the I^fronees, Auvergne, fta, the presence of
igneous rooks may cause the exhibition of mineral veins in strata moro
recent than any of those which in England j^eld metallic ores.
In all cases where new mining ground is to be attempted, roles
such as those above noticed are valuable; but even in districts
partially known, or long worked, many problems occur which time
and combined registration of phenomena observed might easily solve.
These geological problems, as to the relation between the contents of
a vein and the nature of the neighbouring rock, the oocurrenoe of
certain cross-veins, the depth of the workings, &&, usually present
themselves to the practical miner under the general question of the
probability of the vein being productive, and though the mining
experience of 2000 years has been found insufficient to answer it,
thero appears no reason to doubt that it is capable of solution by the
progress of geology. It is known that in a country of limestone,
gritstone, and shale, equally broken by the same fissures, the former
is generally most prc^uctive of lead (Alston Moor) ; that certain
porphyritic rocks in Cornwall and Saxony appear directly influential
on the deposits of particular metals ; tliat argentiferous lead ore is
moro fluent in primary than in secondary strata ; salts of lead
moro plentiful in the upper parts of veins (Lead Hills, Caldbeck
Fells) ; but the precise nature of the connection of the phenomena is
yet a desideratum, and it will be long ere the dim and wavering light of
experience can be replaced by the steady beams of the toroh of
science. In the recent discoveries of gold in California and Australia
we have an instance in which geological knowledge pointed success-
fully to these districts as being likely to contain uie precious metal
[MiNEBAL VeINB.]
In planning the lines of railways, canals, or common roads, the
engineer will often be benefited by the records of geological surveys.
In looking at the geological map of England, for example, it must be
evident to any one acouainted with the geographical characters of the
different formations, tnat no canal can Im made from London to the
western or north-western counties without a tunnel or summit level
on the chalk hills (as at the Rennet and Avon, between Wilton and
Devizes, and on the Grand Junction, at Tring). The oolitic range of
hills, with its basis of lias, presents a similar and parallel obstftcle,
conquered by tunnels on the Thames and Severn at Shepperton,
the Oxford Canal at Claydon, the Grand Junction at Braunston and
Blisworth.
Since then these and other ranges of hills compel the formation of
summit levds and tunnels, it is of importance that the whole of a
MT OEOLOOT.
comitn Bhanld lie knomi to tba engineer, u to Ita minsnl itrictnTe
na veil u iU elevBtioD, in order that the utoatioa of these mey be
properlj fixed. Jt wu uiooDTemeiit to mika the Thamca and Savcni
tunnel at ita present level, often much ehore Ois IstoI of the ipring
-which ie called the eouroe of the Thaniei, uid In the tbirstj oolitic
rocke; for thiutbe ooit of muntainiiig the auppl; ofwiter by puddling
the canel, and engines for pumping, haa been found Tsr; opprauTe.
Tunnels and summit IsTels for cuiali should certainly be made in
nrgillaoequa roelcs, and geological iuTeatigationa will oflan point out
■itoatious where, from particular diiplacementa of the rocks, this is
practioable, even in a range of hills so continuous and so calcarsoui
as the ehalk or the oolites.
The mme rules do not ap||Iy to railroads, which, on the oontraiy,
maj oft«a be benefidally earned {hrongh dry rocky hilla which would
absorb all the water of a caaal.
In the execution of the works of canals and railroads, a good geolo-
gical map would often be found more serrioeable as a guide to the
engineer than a great number of borings, unless Iheaa were placed in
actuations corrBaponding to the variations of the strata, which such a
map would indicate.
In some favoured countries the laboun of the sculptor and the
architect are acoresly injured by exposure to the atmospheie for 2000
years ; while in our damp aijd changeable olimale evm tie interiors
of cathedrals show, by tbe decay of their marbles and (he deatruction
of the atone walls, the nacesaity for an architect to atndy the dura-
lulitj of his materials. It is remarkable ihat the Romans ware
more prudent or more fortunate in their choice of stone for buildings
in Baui and York than their succeseois have been. Tha ralioa in tbe
Institutiou at Bath abundantly prove that the rag beds of the oolite
are more durable than the finer and handsomer freestone which the
enterprise of Allen Gnt introduced to common use. The magnesian
limestone in tbe Roman walls of Tork is in far better cuoditloa of
preservation than most of that whi(^ is of only half Iha age in the
&ce of the catbedraL
The Saious in tbe north of England used the ooarse and durable
lnillstoQe.gnt, which on the browi of the high monstaiiis of Derby-
shire and Yorkshire stands conspicuous for ita bold defiance to the
elements. In choosing fh>m any given rock tbe parta which are moat
fitted for permanent edifices, the examination of nature ia perhaps
I even a study of buildings. Not every sort of
more springs (c) along the line of aucb Eiult, F.
In sinking deep pits it i> geneiall;- found that argillaoeons itrabt
are quite dry within ; for example, in tbe diagram above referred to,
tbe well a, auppossd to be sunk in the London clay, yields no water ;
but the otjier strata, alternating with tbe cla^a, yield water in greater
or lass quantity, and of quality correspoading with the nature of tha
rock. Thus the well b, sunk down to tbe sands, lignites, &c., of the
plastic clay, yields aama water, not always of good quality ) but when
the wall, aa c, ia made to reach to and penetrate the chalk, a great
body of good watorcammonlvriaeefhim that rock. [Waiib ; Abtc-
KUH Wkll, in Anra and So. Dit.]
o interwipt tbe natural springs : this can never be
Tod
surface-line of junction of the strata, as at x
often accomplished the complete <
distriota of England, which had been in vain guttered in all directions
by the usual hollow drains.
Tbe same principle applies, but not with the same ease of buccbbs,
to the draining of districts where gravel and clay are muoh inter-
mingled. The gravel acts as a porous rock, but its irregular distribu-
tion renders the operation of deep draining costly and leaa effectual.
PVom the same principles it follows that apringa may be regulated,
and the subterranean reeervoirs employed to store up water in tlia
winter, when it is little wanted, for the pnrpoae of supplying tha
demand in summer. This has actually been done by Dr, W. Smith,
who opened, in the sandstone rocks near Scarborougl^ a subterrsiwan
reservoir on the site of a little spring, closed ib with a dam, and regn*
lated the discharge for tbe benefit of the town. [Watsb.]
(Lyell, PrindpUt of Gtotogi/ ; Lyell, SeaxniarT) Otology; Ansted,
Otology, /iiirodtKtory, Dttcriptitt, oad Practical,- Ansted, fEnunfory
Comt of Otology ; Phillips, QviAt to Qaiogy : Jukee, Popular Phytieal
Btoloffy i Do la Beche, Srm U) Obterve in Otolngy ; Forilook, A Rvdi-
ntntary Tnalitt on Gtology.) [Sit Soppluunt.]
Kclli ; L, London ols< ; F, plastic clay and aanda ; C, ohalk ; f, ganlt; O, tower (leentand ; W, wnldan ; .
s tanlt, W.
granite reaiste the carbonic amd and moisture of the air ; but while
the rolled Uocka from Shap-Fell retain, after thousands of yean' expo-
sure on tbe surface, their surfaces of attntion, the granitic top of
Csatle Abhol, in Arran, is ao rotten that it may be easily beaten to
fragments by a hammer- Tbe millatone-grit of Brimbam ia almoat
wasted away over a hundred acres, wMIe that of Agra Crags appears
to be more capable of withstanding the same agouciea ; and the
Uruidical stones of Boroughbridge haja stood the storms of SOOO
years, with little more injury than a few rain-channels which scarcely
reach the ground.
To the agriculturist geology has rendered some services, and pro-
bablv may in future be appetded to for fortber aid. Lister's propoeal
for the construction of a map of soils was only partially executed, after
a century, in aome of the county reports maide to the Bond of Agri-
culture. The principal use, as it appears to ua, of such a map (and
this is in fact snpplied by tbe maps of strata), is to aid the statiatica
of agriculture by fumiahing a baaia for comparing the agricultural
pmcticea on similar and diaaimilar soils.
But geological aciance wiU appear more intimately connected with
agriciiltuial unprovementB if we consider it as tha basis of all sound
knowledge of apringa and the subterranean distribution of water.
Tbe rain which falls from the besveua upon all aoils and rocka
indiBVrently, runs off the ctays, but sinks into the limestonea, aand-
Btones, and other rocka, whose open jointa act like eo many hidden
rraervtHTS. Owing to the complicated intercommunication of tbe
flisures, these reservoirs are alowly filled and slowly emptied ; both
the supply from rain and the discbarge from spring may and gene-
rally do go on together; and the jointed rocks may be viewed aa
equalising tbe supply and expenditure.
But below the level of the springs thus formed, a gteat body of
OEOUALACUS (Allman) agsnuaofHolluscoas Animals belonging
to the fiunQy Limacida. (Iauaqidm.]
QEOUYB. [Udhida]
Q£'0FH1LA (from 7-?, the earth, and fiJ^ love), a genua of Plants
belonging to tbe natural order CitK^onaeta. It baa tbe limb of the
calyx 6-parted, with linear spreading segments ; tbe corolla tubular,
wiUi a piloae throat and fi rather recurved lobes, with 6 antbeta
incloaed ; the itigma bifid ; tbe berry ovoid, angular, crowned by tha
calyx, 2-celled, 2-seeded.
The apedes are creeping herbaceous plants with stalked cordate
leaves, like those of a violet ; the stjpulea are solitary, undivided ;
tbe flowera sub-sessile, umbellate, aurrounded l)y bracts, which are
ahorter than tbe flowers.
O. rtni/ormU has the petioles hairy above ; reniform obtuse leaves,
with the lobes at the Imae approximate ; the bracts linear ; the
peduncles 1-6-flowered, shorter than the leaves. It is a native of
moist shady places in the better parts of America, as Uavanna,
Jamaica, Puerto Rtoo, Brazil, and the basin of tbe Orinooo. Tbe nrat
of this plant ja emetic, and may be used with advantage as a substi-
tute for ipecacuanha.
0. nelaeea has cordate reniform leaves, otituse, glabrous, with the
linear-lanceolate. It ia a native of Guyana, in woods, and of the
lathmua of Panama, It differs fh>m O. reni^mu bv the petioles
being shorter, the umbels hardly pedunculate^ the oorollaa vtolaoaoua,
and tha berries blue.
There are several other specin of this genua, all of which were
fbrmeriy teferrad to tbe geoua Pif/eholHa. Thsy are G. divftifolia,
8, vioUtfolia, 0. taaeropada, and O, graciiit.
QEOPHILUS.
inipropsrl;.
OEO'RYCI
iVCHUS, niiger'B name for the Lemaiugi of Cun«F.
[MUWD*.]
OEOSAURUS, Cafior'a name for a suI^gaauB of Saumnii, fouad in
d fonil state only, and considered bf him as iiiterniediat« between the
Crocoditca and the Uonitora. The remiuDs of this aaimal were firat
obtained from the wbit« liaa at Hoabeim, iu Fraaooniti, b; Sbmmering,
and named by liim Laeerta giganlea. Id a paper in the ' Noti Acta
phyiico-mcdica Academiie Cicearete Leopoldino-Carolins) Natune
Curioeorum/ Dr. Kitgen has proposed a new name for this with
aeTertJ other fouil animala. On thiapBper a writer in the ' Zoological
Journal' has the following remarkB :—" The flnt ori>r. Rilgen' a animals
is the Lacetia gi^^antea of Sbmmering, MoiaiaiHvt of Conybeare and
Parkinson, for which Dr. Ritgen, without asaigning a single reason for
the change of name, is pleoBed to adopt llie mote than sesquipedalian
title of Halilxmaoiattnu crocodiUniUi. Tbis appellation honeTer maf
serve, in sorne degree, to explain bii viewa of ita affinities iind original
habiUtion, inasmuch as it showa that he T^arda it as a Iscertine
animal resembling a crocodile and inbabttiug salt-water manhea,
intermediale tberefore between the extinct EniJioiatiri, or Sea-Lizards,
and the living Crocodiles of fresh-water atreams. It in, moreover, the
Aoiaui-ui of CuTier's ' Oasemena Fosailes.' There is some little
obscurity here, wluob we will endeavour to dispel That Cuviei's
name, Geo$attrvM, ahould be retained according to the laws of nomen-
clature, there on be no doubt ; and it appears that this provisional
name was given, not in reference to the habits of the extinct lizard,
but, to use Cuvier's own words ('par alliuton It Terre, m^re des
O^ans')— by an alluaiou to Terra, the Earth — Oe (Fn) of Che Oreeks,
the fabled mother of the Oinnts. Indeed the sclerotic plates still
remaining in the portion of the cranium figured by Cuvier in his
' Ossemena Fossilee,' could not have escaped the observation of that
acute zoologist (who was so eminently alive to the laws of co-existence),
as indicating aquatic habits. That he considered it subgenerically
different from Monuaunu appears from the following observations :
Immediately after the allusion to the origin of the name, Cuvier says,
'I cannot retain for it the epithet Oigantttu (Je ne peuz lui laisser
I'jpithUe gigantesque) ; for, in the great genus Laeerta we hare
already the animal of Haestilcht, or JfMoiaunu, which greatly iuf-
passed it, and there is also another {the MtsalMoum) which is very
superior in site — (nous avons d'nbord I'animal da Haestricht, on
Jfoaiuaunu, que le surpaue de beaucoup, et nous idlons en voir un
autre — le ifi^ninsaiiriis^qui lui est aussi trie supdrieur).' "
AgaiD, in a note to the previous article in the ' Ossemens Fosailes,'
on ^Miuaunu : — " With regard to the fossil animal of Monheim
{Qtoiam-ut), which M. de Sbmmering has also regarded as identical
with that of Haestricht (ifomiaunu), we shall see in a succeeding
article that it di&era from the Haestricht animal in many respects.
H. Hermann von Ueyer, in his most useful work ' Paltcologica
aur Goiohichte der Erde und ihrer Geschopfe' < Bvo. Frankfurt,
1832), widely aeparatea the two sub-genera. The first, Qntavrv*, he
exemplifies by OtoiaMrvM Sommeritirfii, syn. Laeerta giganlea, Soa-
mering, llaiiiimnataMnu craciidilaida of Itilgen. The sacODd,
ifonuaurtu, Conybeare, Sauroehampia, Wsgler, he eiempliSes by
Moeatauitii Camperi, syn. 3t. Hofmanai, Laeerta ffigaolta, Sbmmsr-
ing, zum Theil (in part). In his 'System der Fosailen Sauiier,'
which fossil Sauriacs he divides into four sections, denoted by the
letters A, B, C, and D, he places OrtMumit under section A — (Saurier
mit Zehen iihnlich deoen an den lebenden Snuriern), and AfoxMOunu
under section C— (Saurier mit 9oasArtigen Oliedmaaaen)."
The remains upon which Cuvier founded his sub-genus were found
in the canton Heulenhardt, at the depth of 1 0 feet, nnd a few paces
from the crocodile described by Cuvier (Onvinl of Monheim and of
Boll; 'Oss. FosB.' torn. T.pp. 120-12f J Crocodiliu priieut ot Bomtaer-
iug; jfioleclon pii'tcHs of Uermann von Heyer), by the labourers
QtMtanu Stmrntriifii, (Prom Covin's flcnns.)
a, t, pail ot the head, wlileh hit bHn comiireaMd ; Bonis of the selenilii
pistes in still left within the otblt, si scm In Fig. » ; c, i, r, teeth Ihich iii
prtsemd their bsrd ihlDlaB- inwu essmel ; /, f, veHebns ; / eiUUta i paR
of the colomn ; nnr ths last vertetirss are the roziaiDS of the pelvis and femon ;
f, Bve Tirtebna like the lnt e( Ihoss in ¥lg, /. FngmtaU at ribs in disordn
■re seen neai both sets.
employed to work the mmea of graniUar iron (fer en gnuns) which
fills the fissures of the stnta of calcareous schist,
Sbmmering, to whom the Count of Reysach gave these precJODS
li^igmentB, to use Cuvier's expression {for in consequenoe of the
nature of the bed in which they were discovered tbej were not well
preserved], published an accurate account of Ibem in Uie 'Uemoirs
of Munich' for 1813, accompanied by a lithographic illustration.
lODl OERAKIACE^.
which Cunar raduced, uid publlahed in hii ' OaaemetiB FossilH ;'
Stimmering however thought that the bonee belonged to a young
iudividuiU of the Hoantricht animnl (ifataiauTiu.)
The boaaa wero nearly calcined. Near the remoini of the Saurisn I
were n flat ■mmonite 4 inchea in width, a fragment of blui^ shell, ;
and a great quantity of Bmollacalea, vrhich, acoardingto Sommering*! I
eocijecture, belonged either to fishes or perhaps to the animal itielf, if
it was a Monitor, or Bome other tiEard with smBll sciilea. I
The localities given fay Hermann von Heyer are the Flbti ; Solen-
bofen slata (Schiefer von Solenhofen} ; and, with reference to another
Bpecimcn (with a query), for which ha refan to Dekay, ' Ami. of the
Lye. ot New YoA," vol. iii, the marl of the Qreeoaand in New Jersey
(Mergel de« OriinsaiidBa in New Jersey).
The original gpeoimens figured and described by Sommering are
now in the collection of the British Museum (WoU-casa A. B., 'Mantell
FoBsila of the British Museum,' p. 17S).
QERANIACE.^, CranabiUi, a natur&l order of Eiogenoua Plontl,
consisting chiefly of herbaceoue plants or ehrubs. They have tumid
stems separable at the points. The leaves ore either opposite or
alternate j in the Utter c&ae oppooite the peduncles, with membranous
stipules. The flowers ore white, red, yellow, or purple. The sepals
S, persietent, ribbed, more or Irss unequal, with on imbricated lesti-
vation, sometimes saccate or spurred at the base. The petals 6,
seldom 4, to consequencaof one being abortive, imguiculate, twiited in
Ecstivation, equal or unequal, either hypogynouB or perigynous. The
stamens usually monadalphoui, hypogynoua, twice or thrice as many
■s the petals ; some occniionally aliortive. The ovary composed of 5
carpets, placed roimd a long awl-shaped torus or glowing point, each
l-oelled, 2'seeded ; styles 6, cohering round the torus, and separable
from it; ovules semianntnipa], adhering to the torus. The fruit
formed of five ehells, cohering round a long beaked torus, each piece
containuig one seed, having a membranous pericarp, and tenninated
by an indurated style, which finally curls back from thebaaa upwards,
cnrtying the pericarp along with it. The seeds solitary, without
albumen. The embryo curved and doubled up, the radicle pointing to
the base of the cell ; cotyledons foliaeeous, convolute, and pl«ted. The
long beak-like torus round which the carpels are arranged, and the
presence of membranous stipules at joints which are usually tumid, are
true marks of this order, and all plaate not possessing these peculiarities
must be excluded. Among them is a South American genus called
Rhynchiilktca, which has been even elevated into a natural order, but
wluch, according to Lindley, LB surely an oialid without petals, for the
beak observed in its fruit belongs to the carpels and not to the torus.
It is clear that in this order the ovules do not spring from the margins
of the carpellary leavee. The species, about GOO in number, are very
unequally distributed over various parta of the world. A great pro-
portion IS found at the Cape of Oood Hope, chiefly of the genus
Pdargonium. Srodiam and Qaimiani are chiefly natives of Europe,
North America, and Northern Asia. Pelargimittni, a found in Aus-
traJia. An astringent principle and an aromatic or resinous flavour
are the choracteriJitics of the order. QcraniTim and Ervdiurn are used
in medicine. Pdargoniuni, is remarkable for its beautiful flowers ;
it is nevertheless astringent in ite properties. The affinities of
Geramaota are with iaisammawte, O-mlidacta, and TropaoUKea.
(Lindlej, VtgetahU Kingdom.)
GERMINATION. lOM
Flante the type of the natural order Oeraniaixa. The flowers have
b petals and S sepalti, 10 monadelphoua stamens, alternately larger,
and with glands at their base. Thsre are 70 species of this genus
enumerated, of which 13 are British ; of these only two are applied
petals ; very long jjlabrous claws ; transversely wrinkled
downy capsules, smooth seeds, temate acuminate leaves, and etalked
trifid inciso-plnuatifld leaflets. This plant has small bright crimson
flowers, and is found on waste ground, walls, and banks in Oreat
Britain, in Brazil, and CbilL The whole herb has a strong disagree-
able smell, which is sud to be a preventive against bugs. A decoction
of the plant is recommended as likely te give relief in calculDua cases.
It contains toonia, and exerts an astringent action on the system, and
is given to cattle in some diseases.
0. naadatvm. Spotted Cranesbill, has a rather angular stem
covered with retrograde pubescence; 3-6-psrted leaves with daeply-
toothod lobes; aborate entire petals; the fllamenta of the stamens
hardly cilialsd at the hose. This species is a native of North
America, from Canada to North Carolma. The flowers are of a pale
lilno colour. On account of the astringent nature of this plant, it a
known in some parte of North America as Alum-Root^ and is employed
successfully as a remedy in dysentery among children, a disease very
prevalent in the parte of the country where it grows. The tinolare
is recommended in cases of ulcerated sore-throat and soreness of the
gums, &C. Dr. Bigelow discovered the presence of large proportions
of tannin and gallic acid in this plant. The quantity of taoniu
appears to be greater than that of any other constituent.
The other British spedes are : —
transversely wrinkled above ; seeds punctete, striate. It is f<
woods and thickets, rarely.
O. nodotum has obcordate long petioles, awned sepals, even downy
carpels; leaves 3- to 6-1 obed, lobes ovate, acuminate, serrate. It is
fotmd in Cumberland and Hertfordshire.
0. tylvatimm hss 2-flowered peduncles, obovate slightly-notched
long petals, awned sepals, dotted seeds, palmate T-lobed leaves. The
filamente of the stemena subulate, fruit-stalks erect.
Q. piiUaite has 2-flowered peduncles, the carpels even, hury, the
hairs spreading, glandular ; seeds minutely reticulated ; the filamente
of the stamens ^orm, with a triangular ovate base; the &uit4telk
defleied.
G. ian^in«iHn has peduncles mostly single-So wered; carpels smooth,
crowned with a few bristles ; leaves nearly round, 7-lobed ; stem
diffiiae, hairy — the hairs spreading horizontally.
Q. pyrenaicitm has obeordate petals, twice as lo _
sepals ; claws densely ciliated ; stam erect, viLose.
Q. puii'Iumhas bifid petioles, about equalling the mucronate sepals ;
claws slightly ciliated; carpels with adpressed hairs ; seeds smooth;
etein diffuse, downy.
O. du4tclvm has smooth carpels with erect haira, reticulated seeds ;
stem diflHise, hairy; leaves divided almost to the base, longer than
the peduncles.
0. eolambinHm has obovate emaisiuata petioles, ciliated claws ; the
carpels smooth, with a few minute seatt«[«d hairs; the peduncles
longer than the leaves ; pedicels very long.
O. rolitndlfoliiiin has spathulate petals, entire, obtuse, rather lon^r
than the shortly-awned sepals; claws glabrous ; carpels smooth, with
spreading hairs ; seeds reticulated.
a. moSc has oblong deeply-bifid petioles, ciliat«d ebws ; eaipels
transversely wrinkled, glabrous ; eeeda smooth ; flowers small and
tf.lueidum has obovate entire petals; claws glabrous, very loDg,
nearly equalling the trausvetsely rugose pyramidal calyx ; oorpcb
reticulated, triply keeled.
(?. (ufterorum, a plant growing in the south of Europe, particularly
in Itely and Silesia, is the ytpdyior of Dtoscorides (iii. 121), and the
OrraTiiam trrtiara of Pliny (uvi. 11).
The hardy perennial kinds of 6'erani'uin are very beautiful plant^
and well adapted for ornament^ cultivation. They will thrive in
ony common garden soil with ordinary care.
{Don, lUclilami/dtom Planti; Bihmglon, Mana<^<!f SriliA Botany ;
Fraas, Synojwu Plaataram Flora CToiiictr.)
GERBILLUa. [MuRiDi,]
GERFALCON. [FaLOONlBi]
OERMEN. [Piani,]
GERMINATION, the first growth of a seed, the act by which it
exchanges the condition of an embryo for that of a young plant. The
embryo of a plant is fulded up in the in^de of a seed, and is either
a short double cons on which two or more cotyledons are flced, or a
simple more or lees cylindrical body having no apparent distinction
between the cotylstlons and the axis. [Seed.] It has moreover
little other than a cellular organisation, very often not possessing a
trace of the complicnted vascular and tubular structure afterwards
developed. The act of unfolding, breaking through the integuments
of the seed, and acquiring a vascular and tubular as well oa cellular
organisation, is germination. When a seed is placed in a moM
ig as the mucronate
lOB GERMINATION.
utuation infficuntljr warm, and with acceu to lir, the following
pheoolQCDB, Hccorduig to Uie reseorchw of De Sauuure, uid the
■DON recent ouea of BouniDgault, tike pUce: — I, abeorption of oijgsu
from tbe atmoaphera; 2, a diungagement of carbonic acid; S, ■
diiengsgeineiit of ammonia; 4, convenion of ataich into daitrio,
gnm, Bugu-, &C. ; S, increaae in bulk — growth of the embryo.
All these phenomena were supposed to be connected with the
growth of the embrjo, and the aWirption of oxygen and the disen-
gagement of carbonio acid gae were regarded ae an act of life nnd aa
neceagaij to the prooesji of germination. From this point of riew
germinntion and vegetation, the growth of the plant, were stated to
be antagonising processexs ; the one being a respiratory, an oxidating
procesa; the other H decomposing, a deoiidatiug process. At the
same time the albumen of the seed n-ss regarded as the sole source of
nutriment for the growing tissues of the young plant. In a paper
readatlhemoeticgoftlie Britiah Asaociation, July, 1S16, Dr. Lan-
kester proposed a new tbeotj of tbe plienomena of germination. It
is obvious that the only essential process of germination is the growth
of the young plant or embryo. The prociss of developcaent of the
emiiryo from primitive ejtoblaats, is precisely the same as that of every
other part of the plant, and from an identity of structure Dr. Laakester
infeired there must be an identity of function. But tbe or<liDai7
theory of germination gives a different function to the tissues of the
embryo from that of the other parts of the plant. This Dr. Laukester
considers uuuecessary, and attributes the absorption of oxygen, and
tbe disengagemeDt of the carboDic acid gas and tunmonio, to the
result of the decomposition of the starch and protein contained in
the perisperm of the seed, whilst tbe growing celts of the embryo
appropriate the carbonic acid and ammonia with wnter, just in the
same way as all other cells in the vegetable kingdom. The facts b;
which ttus theory is supported, and which are not explained by tbe
old theory are, aa follows : —
1. In many plants there is little or no perisperm or albumen
developed, and the conditions required for germination are those of
2. Uany plants with homy and hardened perispenns, aa the Ptiift-
tUpha4 tnacrocarpa, the Phtenix dmiyUftra, and species of Baelrit,
Coeot, and ittrocaryvm, germinate, without consuming an; appreciable
not according to the number, but according to the mass of the
seeds, proving that it arose from tbe deoomposition of the starch
as a chemical process, and not from the growth of the embryo aa a
process of life.
4. De Sausmre found that the relation between the oxygen con-
sumed and the carbonic acid gas giren out Was different in different
plants, but this relation ought to be constant if the theory of oxidation
or combustion during germination be correct.
6. Boussingault observed that the changes suppoeed to be peculiar
to germination went ou in the perisperm aJFter the young plant liad
developed ill radicle and plumule, and was capable of an independent
existence.
6. The changes which take place in the chemical compoeilion of
the perisperm of the seed during germination can be artiScially pro-
duced by mixing starch and protein (diastase) together, and expoaing
them to the action of the atmosphere.
This theory modiSee the view which is mostly taken of the use of
the albumen. It does not appear to be deposited entirely for the use
of the young plant, but in many caaes is merely an organ of support,
and beara tbe same relatioa to the embryo thai the wood of a biimch
does to the buds which grow upon it.
The progreea of development in the embryo is usually first for the
radicle to lengthen, then for the cotyledons to unfold, and then for
the plumule to extend into a stem (fig. 8) ; but in Endogena, tbs plu-
mule of which is often inclosed in the very substance of the cotyledon,
a somewhat diOerent process takes place.
In Potamogtloa lacaa ^fig. i) the radicle generally swells and
lengthens, and at laat produces from within its apex a papilla which
becomes the root ; the cotyledon, which is spiral, at the aame time
lengthens, and at last tbe plumule pierces through one d
embryo. In Canna Indica (fig. 1) the cotyledon alwaj
inclosed in the albumen, merely swelling ; the radicle and cauhculua
are protruded from the seeds ; the former turns downwards and
emita a number of Gne roota, the latter produces from
■ubstance a conical body, consisting of several sheaths one within the
other, which are the rudimenta of leaves. The Cocoa-nut differs from
Canna chiefly in its cotylsdoD swelling exceedingly and
spongy, filling tbe whole cavity of the seed, and absorbing the milky
Quid. Qrasses offer only a slight modiScation of tbe same form.
The embryo of maize, when divided vertically {fig. 2) appears like a
fleshy plate lying on one side of the fiowery albumen ; at its back
next the albumen is the ootytedon, next the sluD is a cone of sheaths
(aa in Conna) forming the plumule, and at the base of the plumule
another cone constituting the radicle. When such an embryo germi-
nates, the radicular cone pierces the soil, emitting from ita interior,
through a kind of theath, a few slender roots, and protruding others
tram ita surface; and the other cone, representffag the plumuli
at the same tine lengthens upwards in the fonn of a grce
QERTILLIA.
spire, leaving the orif^nal external part of th
base {fig. S).
Many anomalies in the development of the ambryt
and Endogens might be pointed out, but they an of
any but profeasional botanists. Among the most
foUowing : — In tbe genus Pimu the cotyledons an
placed in a whorl {fig. 6); in the Cyclamm the cs
'^to a roundish turnip-like mass, from the apex of ^
iavea and flowers, and from the base the roots {fig.
parasitical plant {fig. 6), the radicle becomea a flat ■
the under side, by which it adheres to the bark of
upon, and from which the singular roots proosed,
insinuate themselvea through the bark between thi
la ahekth at ita
> of both Exogeni
little interest to
striking are the
> numerous, and
luHculua enlarges
which spring Uie
1 ) ; in mistletoe
plate, concave gn
iie plant it grows
which eventually
plates of living
tanner in which the radicle protrudes itself is diflbmit in
and Endogens. In the fonner ita point gradually lengthens
mes a new root; this ia called 'exorbiial' germmatjon : in
the latter the point of the radicle opent and allows the true root
'} escape from within it^ a phenomenon to which the term 'endorhizal'
I applied.
Attempt! have been made to expedite the proceaa of genniliatjon
by steeping seeds in a weak solution of chlorine, hut no practical
adTBntage Das been derived from the eiperimenL A more effectual
plan has been found for hard-shelled seeds, such as those of the
Aeaeia, namely, boiling the seeds for a period between one and five
minutes. This has certainly, in some cases, had the efiect of i
mm
attempts of the embryo to eeeape from within tl
— attempts which reqidred no inistance when the embryo was in full
activity and the seed-ooat comparatively soft, but indispensable when
theoa conditjans are reversed fay the loss of vigour in the embryo and
OERVILLIA, a genus of HoUusoous Animala belonging to the
Chnchifrra, or Bivalves, hitherto oiJy found in a fosul state. M.
Defrance first noticed the genus, which he named after IL de CJerrille,
who discovered in the Baculite Limeetone of Normandy the spades
on which the genus was established. M. DesloDgohampa (' lUmoirea
de la Soci4t^ LinnAenoe de Calvados,' IZU) proposed several mod)>
Scations of the character, ao as to allow the senus to embrace four
other shells in addition to the first-desorited species, Qmtiiia
$olaio%det, vis.; — OerviUia pemoidu {Perna avieulmda. Sow., 'Uin.
Con.,' t. 66), Sitiqua, ntonolii and cattaliUa, which are figured and
described in the memoir. H. De&ance thought that the bivalve wss
iumished with a byssus,butM. Deslongchampe conceives that Oernllia
has no opening for the passage of that appendage, " Should this
5 rove to be the case," writes the reviewer of ^e memoir ('ZooL
oum.,' voL L), "which we are rather inclined to doubt, it will
effectually separate the sbells of this from those of the other geners
of the MaUeacea, Their nearest afEioity is with those of Ptrna, &om
which they may be at once distinguished by possessing an apparently
inner additional hinge, formed of several oblique teeth, variously
disposed, according (o the species," Mr, G. B, 3owerby ('Oenera of
Beceot and Fossu Bheils,'} who judges the genus to have been
marine from ita aaaociates, and who states that there is good reason
for presuming that it was adherent by a byssus, gives the
following :—
It has the following ehaiscten :^-Shell oblong, nearly equivalve,
very inequilateral, and oblique ; binge-line rather long, Huear, oeaTly
straight, with many irr^ular rather tiansvecse little pits, and teeUL
placed helow the dorsal edge.
Ur, Sowerby regards it as an intermediate genus between AvKiUa
and PaiuL It resembles, he observes, the former in its general
form and external appearance ; whilst its hinge is somewhat like
that of the latter, though sufficiently different to enable ua to point
OEBVILUA.
oat withant diSoultf Uia paooliuituB by which it mtf at onco ba
CoTlar, {n hU Uit adition of th« 'Rtgca Animal,' plaoai i( under
Lm Fernaa {Ptma of BruRuiire), bctwrnii Ortnalula and Inoeeranui.
U. De BlaiDTillfl Kmagn tliB genua under hia family MargarUacta
(the third of hil AeepKid^hiira LamdlibnuKlUata), betwsea Puinnila
and Afrienla. He notioea that the ahell gapea ooteriorlf . perhaps for
the paaaage of a bjaan^ and deacribea the ligament m multiple aid
inaerted in manj oonieal foaaa forming a row within the hinge.
Ha alao daaoribM tha abdominal impreaiion aa ainglo, and at tathcr
aatoior.
a, Omillla iBlmoidt ; h, OcrtllUa avkuhija. (Fram Bawatb)'i Otnen.)
M. Rang ginj OerviUia a place under the MaiUaetm of Lamarok,
between tfoUttw and Inoetramtu. In hia deacription be noticai the
alight anterior opening aa being doubUeaa ('una doata') for the
paaaagaof a bfwia.
U. Oeahajea, in hia edition of Lamarck, notdoai the memoir of U.
impreaaian pUoed towardi the middle of tha
length of the ahell and do the aide of the dorval edge, and remarki
that, lika the Ptma and other genera of the family. Sfalltaeea, the
Gervtilia are covered eitemallj' with a delicate layer of Gbroua
matter, and that they may be regarded aa PenuE with an articulated
binge. The place auigTien to them by H. Deahayaa la between Ptma
and Catillut.
Ur. Q. B. Sowerby obaervei that many ipeciea have oecnired at
TiriouB geological perioda from the Liaa upward to the Baculite
Limeatone of Normandy. U. De Blainville mentiona the apedea aa
found in the departmeat of La Hanohe. The genua occnra in tha
Crel«)aoua Group (Groeniiand), and largely ia the Oolitic Group.
QEaVI'SIA (Zoology), a name given by Ueiiar& Quoy and
Ga'mard to a genua of amall Molliuks approxunatJDg nearly to
PUvrobranchuM.
GESNERA'CE^, (%tn«rworf^ a natural order of Honopetalotu
Exogena, allied to Ser^hulariatta, and with them farming a portion
of the DicarpouB group. They are principally charaeteriaed Ire having
on ovary more or laas inferior, and a parietal placentation. The leavea
are mgoee, without atipulea, generally oppoaite or whorled. Flowen
in pnnicl« or raoemea, seldom ■olitatj. The calyi ia half-adherenl^
d-pnrted, with a valrate or open mtivation. The corolla monopetaloua,
tubular, more or leia iiregular, fi-lobed, with an imbricated astivation.
Stamens 2 or 4, didynamoUB ; anthers oflan oohering, S-oelled, innate,
with a thick tumid connective; the rudiment of a fifth atamea ia
present. Ovai; half-iuperior, 1-oeilsd, with 2 fleahy 2-lobed parietal
poJyipermoua plaoentte placed right and left of the aiii, aunounded
at ita ba» by glanda or a fleshy ring; style continuoua with the ovary ;
stigma capitate, concave. Fruit capsular or succulent, auperior,
£-celled, with 2 opposite lateral plaoenta, each consisting of 2 platea;
Seeds very numerous, minute ; ambijo erect in the aiia or deahy
albumen, with the cotyledons much shorter than the mdicla ; testa
thin, with very cloea floe oblique veins, sometimes extended into long
hairs, or even flattened into a wing. Th«y inhabit the hot and damp
pirta of South America, and in some cnsea ovemm trees with their
rjoting atema in the manner of ivy. The prevailing colour of diair
flawera ia acarlet; aome however are purple, aa the Oloxiniia, and
o'.hers pale^reen, ai Sinningia and Dryaxonia, Many beautiful kinda
are known in our gardena; and several other nuguifloent apecies are
figured in Von Manius'a ' Nova Oeneia et Species Plantarum,' ToL iii.
Ltavea and Bove
calyi, *itb the prajHtlng
1007
QEUM.
GETSEBa
lOOB
OEUM, a genus of PUmtiB belonging to the natural order Ruacea,
It haa a flat permanent calyx ; a limb in 10 acute deep iegments, 5
alternate onea much the imalleat. Petals 5, rounded, undivided, or
cloven, attached by their claws to the rim of the calyx opposite to ita
smaller segments, being about equal to the longer onea. The filaments
are numerous, awl-shaped from the rim of the caljrx, shorter than the
corolla. Carpels superior, ovate, compressed, very numerous, in a
round head. Styles long, lateral, with a joint above the middle;
lower part permanent, upper deciduous. Stigmas simple. Achenia
ovate, compressed, hairy, each with a long lateral tail, formed of the
enlarged hardened lower part of the style, terminating in a hook.
Receptacle cylindrical, dry, haiiy, seated on the permanent reflexed
calyx.
0. rivale, Water-Avens, is found in meadows and wooda throughout
Europe, and in Great Britain. It has a root somewhat woody,
blackish, creeping, and running deep into the ground; astringent,
with the flavour of cloves. The herbage is hairy, and of a deep green.
The stem from 8 to 12 inches high, slightly panicled, otherwise simple.
The radical leaves are stalked, their terminid lobe very large, rounded,
lobed, and sharply crenate. The stem-leaves are few, stalked, temate,
or 8-lobed ; stipules of the latter ovate, acute, cut, purplish. The
flowers are almost pendulous, singularly elegant, growing upright as
the fruit ripens. The calyx of a rich purplish-brown, erect, subse-
Juently reflexed. The petiole is erect, cloven, and of a tawny brown,
t is considered to be a stomachic, and is said to be useful in diarrhcBa,
and is also employed in the United States in diseases of the bladder.
0. «r&an«fii, Wood-Avens, is common in Great Britain and through-
out Europe. The root consists of many stout brown fibres, astringent,
and in some degree aromatic ; it is said to give an agreeable flavour to
beer, and even to wine. The stem is 2 feet high, erect, round, rough,
*and finely hairy ; branched at the upper part, bearing several flowers.
The radical leaves are on long stalks, mterruptedly pinnate, somewhat
lyrate; the odd leaflet rounded, often deeply 8-lobed. Stem-leaves
ternate, stalked; upper ones simple, 3-lobed, wedge-shaped; all
variously notched and serrated, grass-green, veiny, and hairy. The
stipules of the stem-leaves very large, round, lobed, serrated, leafy.
The flowers terminal, solitary, stalked, commonly small, bright yellow,
erect. The'calyx spreading, reflexed as the fruit advances. Achenia
in an ovate head, numerous, downy, besides a few long coarse hairs
about the summit, each tipped with a ripe purplish deflexed awn
or tail, which is quite smooth, ending in a sharp small hook.
O. Canadenae, Chocolate-Root, Blood-Root, is valued in Prince
Edward's Island for its leaves and root, which are used as a mild tonic.
O. iniermecliwn is found in damp woods in England. It haa erect
or nodding flowers ; petals roundish, with a wedge-shaped daw ; calyx
oftbe fruit patent ; carpophore 0 ; lower joint of the awn longer than
the hairy upper ioint ; radical leaves interruptedly pinnate and lyrate ;
stem-leaves 8-loDed ; stipules round, toothed ; stem from 1 to 2 feet
high. The flowers are larger than those of O. urbanum, less than
O. rivaU, yellow; calyx purplish. The upper joint of the awn is
covered with long hairs, but with rather a long glabrous point.
(Lindley, Flora Medica; Babington, Manual of British Botany.)
GEYSERS. This name is applied to a series of intermittent hot-
springs, situated in the south-western division of Iceland, where
nearly one hundred of them are said to break out within a circle of
two miles. These springs are evidently connected with the volcanic
phenomena which so remarkably characterise the whole district of
Iceland. A recent investigator of the eruptive phenomena of
Iceland thus describes its more prominent physical features : —
" The surface of Iceland slopes gradually from the coast towards
the centre, where the general level is about 2000 feet above the surface
of the sea. On this, as a pedestal, are planted the Jokull, or Icy
Moimtains of the region, which extend both ways in a north-easterly
direction. Along this chain the active volcanoes of the island are
encountered, and in the same general direction the thermal springs
occur, thus suggesting a common origin for them and the volcanoea
From the ridigcs and chasms which diverge from the mountains
mighty masses of steam are observed to issue at intervals, hissing and
roaring, and where the escape takes place at the mouth of a cavern,
and the resonance of the cave lends its aid, the sound is like that of
thunder. Lower down in the more porous strata we have smoking
mud pools, where a repulsive blue-black aluminous paste is boiled,
rising at times into huge bladders, which on bursting scatter theii*
slimy spray to a height of 15 or 20 feet From the base of the hills
upwards extend the glaciers, and on their shoulders are placed the
immense snow-fields which crown the summits. From the arches
and fissures of the glaciers vast masses of water issue, falling at times
in cascades over wiUls of ice, and spreading for miles and miles over
the country before they find definite outlet. Extensive morasses are
thus formed, which lend their comfortless monotony to the dismal
scene already before the traveller's eve. Intercepted by the cracks
and fissures of the land a portion of these waters is conducted to the
hot rooka underneath ; here, meeting with the volcanic gases which
traverse these underground regions, both travel together, to issue at
the first convenient opportunity either as an. eruption of steam or as
n boiling spring.
** The origin of the water which feeds the springs is here hinted at.
That origin is atmospheria The summits of the Jokull arrest and
mix the clouds, and thus cause an extraordinary deposition of snow
and rain. Thia snow and rain constitute the source from which the
springs are fed. The nitrogen and ammonia which occur without
exception in every spring, exactly as we find them in rain water,
fumiah the proof of this; for the known deportment of these
■ubstaaces preclude them from being regarded as real volcanic
producta."
The springs which feed the G^eysers, and which are poured out
from them again boiling hot, probably take their rise in Mount Hecla,
the Bununit of which ia not more than 80 miles from the Gevser
district It is here that the rushing water is sometimes heard in
chasms beneath the surface, and it has more than once happened that
after earthquakes some of the boiling fountains have increased or
diminished in violence and volume^ or entirely ceased, or that new
ones have made their appearance.
The phenomena of the Geyaers of Iceland have for a length of time
arrested the attention of naturalists, and many explanationa of Uiem
have been given. No one haa however so successfully investigated
the subject as Professor Bunsen, of Gieesen. A summary of these
views, with experimental illustrations, were presented to the Royal
Institution by Professor Tyndall in June 185^. After referring to
the general eruptive phenomena of Iceland he described the Great
Geyser. " We have here," he says, " a tube 10 feet wide and 70 feet
deep ; it expands at ita sunmiit into a basin, which from north to
south measures 52 feet across, and in the perpendicular direction
60 feet. The interior of the tube and basin is coated with a beautiful
smooth plaster, so hard as to resist the blows of a hammer. The
first question that presents itself is, how was this wonderful tube
constructed? How was this perfect plaster laid on? A glance
at the constitution of the geyser water will perhaps furnish the first
surmise. In 1000 parts of the water the following constituents are
found : —
SiUca 0-5097
Carbonate of Soda 0*1939
Carbonate of Ammonia .... 0*0083
Sulphate of Soda 0*1070
Sulphate of Potash 0*0476
Sulphate of Magnesia 0*0042
Chloride of Sodium 0*2521
Sulphide of Sodium 0*0088
Carbonic acid 0*0557
" The lining of the tube is sHica, evidently derived from the water;
and hence the conjecture may arise that the water deposited the
substance against the sides of the tube and basin. But the water
deposits no sediment, even when cooled down to the freezing point.
It may be bottled up and kept for years as clear as crystal, and
without the slightest precipitate. A specimen brought from Iceland
and analysed in this mstitution was found perfectly free from sedi-
ment. Further, an attempt to answer the question in thia way
would imply that we took it for granted that the shaft was made by
some foreign agency, and that the spring merely lined it. A painting of
the Geyser, the property of Sir Henry Holland — bims^ an ^e-
witness of these wonderful phenomena — was exhibited. The
painting, from a sketch taken on the spot, might be relied on. We
find here that the baain rests on the summit of a mound ; this mound
is about 40 feet in height, and a glance at it is sufficient to show that
it has been deposited by the geyser. But in building the mound the
spring must atso have formed the tube which perforates the mound ;
and thus we learn that the geyser is the architect of its own tube.
If we place a quantity of the geyser water in an evaporating basin
the following takes place : — In the centre the fluid deposits nothing,
but at the edges where it is drawn up the sides of the basin by capillary
attraction, and thus subjected to a quick evaporation, we find silica
deposited ; round the edge we find a ring of silica thus laid on, and
not until the evaporation is continued for a considerable time do we
find the slightest turbidity in the central portions of the water.
This experiment is the microscopic representant, if the term be
permitted, of nature's operations in Iceland. Imagine the case of a
simple thermal spring whose waters trickle over its side down a
gentle incline ; the water thus exposed evaporates speedily, and silica
is deposited. This deposit gradually elevates the side over which the
water passes, until finally the latter has to choose another course; the
same takes place here, the ground becomes elevated by the deposit as
before, and the spring haa to go forward— thus it is compelled to
travel round and round, dischai^ng its silica and deepening the shaft
in which it dwells, until finally, in the course of centuries, the simple
spring has produced that wonderful apparatus which has so long
puzzled and astonished both the traveller and the philosopher.
"Before an eruption the water fills both the tube and basin,
detonations are heard at intervals, and after the detonation a violent
ebidlition in the basin is observed; the column of water in the pipe
appears to be lifted up, thus forming a conical eminence in the centre
of the basin and causing the water to flow over its riuL The deto-
nations are evidently due to the production of steam in the subter-
ranean depths^ wluch, rising into the cooler water of the tube,
becomes condensed and produces explosions similar to those produced
on a small scale when a flask of water is heated to boiling. Between
1003
GEYSERS.
GIANT.
1010
the interval of two eniptions the temperature of the water in the
tube towardfl the centre and bottom gradually increases. Bunsen
succeeded in determining its temperature a few minutes before a great
eruption took place; and these obserrations ftimished to his clear
intellect the key of the entire enigma. A little below the centre the
water was within two degrees of its boiling point, that is, within two
degrees of the point at which water boils under a pressure equal to
that of an atmosphere, plus the pressure of the superincumbent
column of water. The actual temperature at SO feet above the
bottom was 122° centigrade, its boiling pomt here is 124". We have
just alluded to the detonations and the lifting of the geyser column
by the entrance of steam from beneath. These detonations and the
accompanying elevation of the column are, as before stated, heard and
observed at various intervals before an eruption. During th^e
intervals the temperature of the water is gradually rising. Let us see
what must take place when its temperature is near the boiling point
Imagine the section of water at 30 feet above the bottom to be raised
six feet by the generation of a mass of vapour below. The
liquid spreads out in the basin, overflows its rim, and thus the
elevated section has six feet less of water pressure upon it ; its boiling
point under this diminished pressure is 121*"; hence in its new
position its actual temperature (122**) is a degree above the boiling
point. This excess is at once applied to the generation of steam ;
the column is lifted higher, and its pressure further lessened ; more
steam is developed underneath; and thus, after a few convulsive
efforts, the water is ejected with inmiense velocity, and we have the
geyser eruption in til its grandeur. By its contact with the atmo-
sphere the water is cooled, falls back into the basin, sinks into the
tube through which it gradually rises again, and finally fills the basin.
The detonations are heard at intervals, and ebullitions observed ; but
not until the temperature of the water in the tube has once more
nearly attained its boiling point is the lifting of the column able to
produce an eruption.
" In the regularly-formed tube the water nowhere quite attains the
boiling point In the canals which feed the tube, tiie steam which
causes the detonation and lifting of the cohmm must therefore be
formed. These canals are in fact nothing more than the irregular
continuation of the tube itself. The tube is therefore the sole and
sufficient cause of the eruptions. Its sufficiency was experimentally
shown during the lecture. A tube of galvanised iron six feet long
was surmounted by a basin ; a fire was placed*undemeath and one
near its centre to imitate the lateral heating of the geyser tube. At
intervals of five or six minutes throughout tiie lecture eruptions took
place ; the water was discharged into the atmosphere, fell back into
the basin, filled the tube, became heated again, and was discharged as
before.
" Sir George Mackenzie, it is well known, was the first to introduce the
ideA of a subterranean cavern to account for the phenomena of the
Geyser. His hypothesis met with general acceptance, and was even
adopted undoubtingly by some of those who accompanied Bunsen to
Iceland. It is unnecessary to introduce the solid objections which
might be urged against this hypothesis, for the tube being proved
sufficient, the hypothetical cavern disappears with the necessity which
gave it birth.
** From the central portions of the geyser tube downwards, the water
has stored up an amount of heat capable, when liberated, of exerting
an immense mechanical force. By an easy calculation it might be
shown that the heat thus stored up could generate, tmder ordinary
atmospheric pressure, a column of steam having a section equal to
that of the tube and a height of nearly 1800 yt^ds. This enormous
force is brought into action by the Ufting of the column and the
lessening of the pressure described above.
" A moment's reflection will suggest to us that there must be a limit
to the operations of the Gkyser. When the tube has reached such an
altitude that the water in the depths below, owing to the increased
pressure, cannot attain its boiling pointy the eruptions of necessity
cease. The spring however continues to deposit its silica and forms a
' laug,' or cistern. Some of these in Iceland are of a depth of 30 or
40 feet Their beauty is indescribable; over the suzfiAce a light vapour
curls, in the depths the water is of the purest azure, and tints with
its own hue the fantastic incrustations on the cistern walls; while at
the bottom is observed the mouth of the once mighty Geyser. There
are in Iceland traces of vast, but now extinct, geyser operations.
Mounds are observed whose shafts are filled with rubbish, the water
haviug forced a way underneath and retired to other scenes of action.
We have in fact the Geyser in its youth, manhood, old age, and death,
here presented to us : — in its youth as a simple thermal spring, in its
manhood as the eruptive spring, in its old age as the tranqml laug,
while its death is recorded by the ruined shaft and mound, which
testify the fact of its once active existence.
" Next to the Great Geyser the Strdickur is the most famous eruptive
spring of Iceland. The depth of its tube is 44 feet It is not how-
ever cylindrical like that of the Geyser, but funnel-shaped. At the
mouth it is 8 feet in diameter, but it diminishes gradually, until near
the centre the diameter is only 10 inches. By casting stones and
peat into the tube and thus stopping it, eruptions can be forced which
in point of height often exceed those of the Great Geyser. Its action
was illustrated experimentally in the lecture, by stopping the gal-
If AT. UIST. DIV. VOL. IL
yanised iron tube before alluded to loosely with a cork. After some
time the cork was forced up and the pent-up heat converting itself
suddenly into steam, the water was ejected to a considerable height —
thus demonstrating that in this case the tube alone is the sufficient
cause of the phenomenon." (' Proceedings of Royal Institution.')
The results of the researches of Professor Bunsen on the Geysers
of Iceland seem to throw great and unexpected light on the pheno-
mena of volcanoes. Sir Charles Lyell closes his account of Bunsen's
researches with the following remarks: —
" In speculating therefore on the mechanism of an ordinary volcanic
eruption, we may suppose that large subterranean cavities exist at
the depth of some miles below the surface of the earth, in which
melted lava accumulates, and when water containing the usual
mixture of air penetrates into these, the steam thus generated may
press upon the lava and foroe it up the duct of a volcano, in the same
manner as a column of water is driven up the pipe of a Geyser. In
other cases we may suppose a continuous column of liquid lava,
mixed with red-hot water (for water may exist in that state, as Pro-
fessor Bunsen reminds us, under pressure), and this column may have
a temperature -regularly increasing downwards. A disturbance of
equilibrium may first bring on an eruption near the surface, by the
expansion and conversion into gas of entangled water and other con-
stituents of what we call lava, so as to occasion a diminution of
pressure. More steam would then be liberated, canying up with it
jets of melted rock, which being hurled up into the air may fall in
showers of ashes on the surrounding country, and at length, by the
arrival of lava and water more and more heated at the orifice of the
duct or the crater of the volcano, expansive power may be acquired
sufficient to expel a massive current of lava. After the eruption has
ceased a period of tranquillity succeeds, during which fresh accessions
of heat are communicated from below, and additional masses of rock
fused by degrees, while at the same time atmospheric or sea-water is
descending from the surface. At length the conditions required for a
new outburst are obtained, and another cycle of similar changes is
renewed." {* Principles of Geology,' p. 658.)
GIANT, a man of great or unnatural stature. In the following
article we shall mention those deviations from nature which sometimes
occur in the proportions of the human form, both as regards the arrest
or excess of development, and thus include the description of Dwarfs,
or men who are unnaturally small, and beneath the usual size, as well
as of Giants, who exceed the ordinary proportions of the human race.
In considering this subject we will nrst allude to the question, —
whether the size of man generally was ever different from what it is
at the present time. Secondly, we will inquire if it is probable that
races or nations of giants or pygmies ever existed. Lastiy, we will
state the ordinary proportions of the human frame, and enumerate
a few examples of men who have much exceeded or h^ve fidlen fiur
short of the common standard, an^l inquire whether these peculiarities
of stature can be accounted for in any satisfsMStory manner.
It is a very common opinion, that in the earlier ages of the world
men in general possessed superior physical properties, and were of a
greater size than they are at present ; and this notion of diminished
stature and strength seems to have been just as prevalent in ancient
times as at present Pliny observes of the litiman height (viL 16),
that " the whole race of mankind is daily becoming smaller ; " a most
alarming prospect if it had been true. Homer more than once makes
a very disparaging comparison between his own degenerate contempo-
raries and the heroes of the Trojan war. But all the facts and circum-
stances which can be brought forward on this subject tend to convince
us that the human form has not degenerated, and that men of the
present age are of the same stature as in the beginning of the world.
In the first place, though we read both in sacred and profisme history
of giants, yet they were at the time when they lived esteemed as
wonders, and far above the ordinary proportions of mankind. All the
remains of the human body (as bones, and particularly the teeth),
which have been found unchanged in the most ancient urns and
burial-places, demonstrate this point dearly. The oldest coffin in the
world is that found in the great pvramid of Egypt, and Mr. Greaves
observes tiiat this sarcophagus hardly exceeds the size of our ordinary
coffins, being scarcely six feet and a half long. From looking also at
the height of mummies which have been brought to this country, we
must conclude that the people who inhabited Egypt two or three
thousand years ago were not superior in size to the present inhabit-
ants of that country. Lastiy, all the facts which we can collect finom
ancientt works of aft, from armour, as helmets and breastplates, or
from buildings designed for the abode and accommodation of men,
concur in strengthening the proofs against any decay in nature. That
man has not degenerated in stature in consequence of the effects of
civilisation is clear ; because the inhabitants of savage countries, as
the natives of America, Africa, Australia, or the South Sea Islands,
do not exceed us in size. It has been supposed that before the Deluge
men might have been of a larger form than they are at present, as
they are said to have lived to a much greater age ; but this is a mere
assumption, unsupported by any evidence whatever.
When investigating the subject, whether any peculiar races of men
have ever existed who have greatiy varied. in size from the ordinary
proportions of our form, we need not allude to the finbulous stories of
the giants and pygmies of antiquity, the former of whom are said to
8 T
1011
GIANT.
GIANTS' CAUSEWAY.
1013
have made war agamst Jupiter, and the latter to have been not more
than a foot high, and to have carried on war against the cranes which
used to come and plimder them. Mention is made of giants in several
places in Scripture, before the Flood, in the sixth chapter of Genesis,
and more plainly after it (Numbers, xiii.); but, as Dr. Derham
observes, the ancients vary as to the signification of the Hebrew word
'nephilim' in Genesis. Some translate it by a word signifying
' violent men,' and think that instead of giants in stature, monsters of
rapine and wickedness were intended to be represented; and Dr.
Johnson says that the idea of a giant is always associated with some-
thing fierce, brutal, anil wicked. With regard to the giants in
Numbers, who are more particularly mentioned, it is probable that
the fears of the spies magnified their dimensions. Races^of giants are
■' *" ' ' "^ - . - . Germans
and by
- , - -,, „ o We have
no data for determining their exact stature, but there is no proof that
it exceeded that of the tallest of the present German races, many of
whom, as the inhabitants of Saxony and the Tyrol, are very large
men. The notion of the existence of giants in former times, has in
many instances been founded on the discovery of the bones of different
laige animals belongiiig to extinct species, whic^ have been ascribed
to human subjects of immoderate stature. (See the stoiy in Herodo-
tus, i. 68.) The bones of an elephant have even been figured and
described by Buffon as remains of human giants, in the supplement to
his classical work (tom. v.). The extravagance of such suppositions
has been completely exposed by the accuracy of modem investigation.
Descending to more modem times, the people who have excited the
most curiosity and given rise to the most conflicting statements are
the Patagonians. The first navigators by whom they were observed
represented them as being of colossal stature ; but though more recent
and accurate accounts describe them as being a very tali race of men,
yet the highest does not much exceed 7 feet. Captain Wallis measured
several of them carefully, and found that the stature of the greater
part was from 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet. The height of the Patago-
nians was also measured with great accuracr^ by the Spanish officers
in 1785 and 1786 : they found tiie common height to be from 6^ to
7 feet, and the highest was 7 feet 1^ inch.
It was once supposed that a nation of white dwarfo existed in the
interior of Madagascar, called Quimos or Eimos, with very long arms,
but the report is now believed to be perfectly fabulous, and the only
fact adduced in support of it was that the Count de Modave, the
governor of the French settlement at Fort Dauphin, purchased a
female slave of light colour, about 8^ feet high, wiUi long arms reaching
to her knees. Blumenbaoh thinks that this was merely a mal-formed
individual. fVom these and similar observations we may conclude
that there is no truth in the existence of giants or dwarfs, except in
peculiar individual instances ; at any rate, as Dr. Pritchard observes
('History of Mankind'), "every variety of stature which has been
found to occur, as the general character of a whole race, is frequently
surpassed by individuid examples among the inhabitants of Uie same
country."
There is no fixed law by which the human stature can invariably
be determined, though there is an average standard from which the
deviations either way are not very considerable. The human race
varies mostly in height from 4^ feet to a little more than 6 feet,
though men are occasionally met with of a much greater stature.
Taking away the disposition to deal in the marvellous, we may pro-
bably assert that no man ever existed of the height of more than 8 or
9 feet. This may be supposed from what we see at present, and
ftom the deviations whidi occur in the ordinary course of nature in
animals. A skeleton was dug up some years ago on the site of a
Roman camp near St. Albans, beside an um inscribed ' Marcus Anto-
ninus.' Mr. Cheselden, who has described it in the < Philosophical
Transactions ' (No. 888), judged that it was 8 feet in height Goliath,
Og (king of Basan), Maximinus the emperor, and others mentioned in
sacred and profane history, were also probably very tall men, whose
height has been magnified, but who were no bigger than some now
occasionally met with. There are many authentic instances of men
who have mudi exceeded the ordinary height, which have occtured
in our own times : one of the King of Prussia's gigantic guards, a
Swede, measured 8^ fbet ; and a yeoman of the Duke John Frederick,
at Brunswick-Hanover, was of the same height (Haller, * Element
Phy.,' lib: xxx. sea 1. Several Irishmen, measuring from 7 to 8 feet
and upwards, have been exhibited in this country; the most cele-
brated, whose skeleton is in the museum of the College of Surgeons
in London, was Charles Byrne, who went by the name of O'Brien : he
died at the age of 22, in 1788, and measured 8 feet 4 inches. The
skeleton is 8 feet in height Many examples of dwarfs might also be
mentioned. Buffon says that Bebe, the dwarf of Stanislaus, king of
Poland, was 28 inches (French) high, and well-proportioned : he died at
28. But of numerous other instances on record most seem to have been
rickette and diseased individuals. Thus, in ^e skeleton in the museum
of the College of Surgeons, of Madlle. Cradiami, the Sicilian dwarf, who
died at the age of 10 years, and which is only 20 inches in height, the
bones appesr to have undergone hardly any change alter birth. There
seems to have been a complete arrest of development, the epiphyses
of the bones renudning unossified. One of the most perfect specimens
of a dwarf was the individual exhibited in London under the name of
General Tom Thumb. He was 28 inches in height, and his head and
limbs were remarkably well proportioned. Two dwarfs from South
America were exhibited in London in 1858, and called Azteca Their
heads were small in proportion to their bodies. They exhibited the
deficiency of intellect indicated by the small development of their
brains.
We may remark that the ordinary size of man is particularly well
adapted to his wants and uses ; and we generally observe that thoee
individuals who deviate greatly from the common standard, either
one way or the other, are neither well-proportioned nor healthy. The
head in giants is commonly too small for the rest of the body, and in
dwarfs too large.
Both giants and dwarfs have frequently offspring of similar dtature
to their own, so that a race of men might [>OBsibly arise of extraordi-
nary smallness or gigantic size. Of the propagation of giants we have
an experimental proof in a fact related by Dr. J. R. Forster (' Obser-
vations on a Voyage Round the World '). It is well known that the
king of Prussia nad a corps of gigantic guards, consistiag of the tallest
men who could be drawn together from all quarters. A regiment of
these huge men was stationed during fifty years at Potsdam. "A
great number of the present inhabitants of Uiat place," says Forster,
"are of very high stature, which is more especially striking in the
numerous gigantic figures of women. This certainly is owing to the
connexions and intermarriages of those tall men with the females of
that town." Dr. Pritchard is of opinion that peculiarities of stature
may in some measure be owing to peculiarities of climate. In his
' History of Mankind' (vol ii), he observes, that " there are many nations
of very considerable stature in South America. The Patagonians are
the most remarkable example, but nearly all the xutions of this great
country, though distinct from each other in language, maimers, and
descent, are taller and stouter than the average standard of Uie
human speciea . . In Ireland men of uncommon stature are often
seen, and even a gigantic form and stature occur there much more
frequently than in this island : yet all the British Isles derived their
stock of inhabitants from the same sources. We can hardly avoid
the conclusion that there must be some peculiarity in Ireland which
gives rise to these phenomena." Again : " The tall, lank, gaunt, and *
otherwise remarkable figures of the Vii^ginians and men of Carolina
are strikingly different from thoee of the shorty plump, round-faced
farmers in England, who are of the same race." Lawrence {* Lectures
on Man') thinks that the source of the deviations from the ordinary
stature in man is entirely in the breed, and that they are quite
independent of external influences. In endeavouring to account for
the diversities of stature which oocur we must make an observation
which ia equally applicable to differences of colour, features^ and
other particulars, in which individuals and particular races differ
from each other, namely, that the law of resemblance between parents
and ofibpring which preserves species, and maintains uniformity in
the living part of creation, suffers occasional and rare exceptions ; but
that under certain circumstances an offspring lb produced with new
properties different from those of the progenitors.
GIANTS' CAUSEWAY, a remarkable columnar basaltic forma-
tion on the northern coast of the county of Antrim, in Ireland,
situated about midway between the towns of Ballyoastle and
Coleraine.
The trap district with which this formation is connected occupies
almost the whole of the county of Antrim, and a considerable portion
of the eastern part of Londonderry, comprehending an area of about
800 square miles on both sides of the valley of the Bann. The surface
rises gradually from the channel of this river till it attains a consi-
derable elevation on each side, when it breaks down in precipitous
escarpments, sloping abruptly to the primitive district of London-
derry on the west, and overhanging the coast on the east and north
in a series of striking elevations commencing near Belfast, and termi-
nating west of the embouchure of the Bann. Throughout this area
the basalt is found capping all the eminences, and constituting the
general super-stratum in beds of an average thickness of about 500
feet , Beneath the basalt occurs a series of secondary formations
peculiar to this area, which has led to the supposition that they may
have been eUewhere removed by some denuding force, " to which,
in this quarter alone, an effectual resistance was opposed by the
firm and massive superstratum of basalt which cpvered and pro-
tected them." (Rev. W. Conybeare, in 'Trans. Geological Soc.,'
vol. iil p. 127.)
These formations, which are similar to those underlaid by the
coal-measures of the south and east of England, consiat, in descending
order, of thick beds of indurated chalk, the white limestone of
Antrim, succeeded (unless where the series is broken, as it frequently
is, by the superior stratum extending beyond the outgoings of the
inferior, as at Fair-head, where the basalt r«sts immediately upon the
coal-measures), by mulatto or green sandstone reposing on blue
argillaceous limestone, which again rests on the red-sandstone of the
c(^-formation, which appears to underlie the greater part of the
basaltic tract
The mass of basalt Ib considerably thicker towards the northern
extremity of the area, and it is here chiefiy that the series of columnar
formations occur. There are three distinct beds of such formations.
1013 GIBBON.
the uppermoBt of which u perhaps traoeable in the olifb of the Cave-
Hill over Belfasty and ia diatinotly observable at Fairhead, on tiie
north-eastern extremity of the ooasty where the mural precipice of
greenstone is articulated into columns of enormous dimensions but
rude structure, some of them measuring 250 feet in length by 6 feet
on the side. The same fonnation appears occasionally to recur
along the vei^ge of the precipice which trends westward hence to
Dunseverick, at a short distance from which the two lower beds
emei^e from the sea, and, rising along the escarpment of the rook,
form colonnades of the most striking appearance for a distance of
nearly three miles, when the upper one is lost in the surrounding
masses of basalt, while the lower stratum sinks again under water,
its denuded extremity forming that particular group of columns
known as the Giants' Causeway.
A section of the cliff at Bengore-Head, immediately adjoining the
Causeway, gives the following arrangement : —
Feet.
1. Basalt, rudely columnar 60
2. Red Ochre, or Bole ' . . .9
8. Basalt, irregularly prismatic 60
4. Columnar Basalt 7
5. Intermediate, between Bole and Basalt 8
6. Coarsely Columnar Basalt 10
7. Columnar Basalt, the upper range of pillars at Bengore-Head 54
8. Irregular Prismatic Baultb In this b«d the wacke and wood
coal of Port Noffer are situated 54
9. Columnar Basalt, the stratum which forms the Causeway by
its intersection with the plane of the sea . . .44
10. Bole, or Red Ochre 22
11, 12, 13. Tabular Basalt, divided by seams of Bole ... 80
14, 15, 16. Tabular Basalt, occasionally containing Zeolite . . 80
488
It is observable that the dimensions of the columns diminish and
the perfection of their structure increases as the strata descend. Thus
the most perfect arrangement is found in the lowest stratum, of
which arrangement the Causeway affords the most perfect specimen.
The upper part of the strstum being here denuded for a distance of
about 800 yards, exhibits an irregular pavement formed of the tops
of polygonal columns, so closely arranged that the blade of a knife
can with difficulty be inserted in the interstices. The columns are
chiefly hexagonal, but polygons of five, seven, and eight sides are of
frequent occurrence; and there is one instance of a triangular prism.
These columns are divided into joints of unequal length ; each joint
is formed by the adjacent extremities being relatively convex and
concave, an arrangement which is further secured by the overlapping
of the external angles. These convexities and concavities are seg-
ments of spheres, Uie base of each of which occupies a circle inscribed
in the polygon of the pillar; the intervals intercepted between the
peripheries of these circles and the sides of 'the polygon are all in the
plane perpendicular to the axis of the column. The stone is the
most oompact and homogeneous variety of basalt, and is more or less
sonorous when struck with a hard substance. The entire mass of
these columns, of which about thirty feet are exposed above the
surrounding shingle at the highest point of their denudation, bears
a strong resemblance to an artificial mole projecting from the base of
the cliff into the sea.
It is probable that the columnar beds of which the exposed edges
present these remarkable appearances along the coast underlie the
capping of tabular basalt to a considerable distance inland, as columnar
fa^Ides break out on the seaward slope of the entire line of elevations
extending from Ballycastle to Bushmills, and indications of a columnar
tendency hxve been observed in beds of tabular basalt as far inland as
Glen Rovel, near CushindaU, and at the Cave-Hill, near Belfast Along
the coast at Ut^ethaven, Roanscarave, and Thivigh, are several
smaller causeways nearly as perfect as the one described. The colum-
nar strata of the isUrnds of Rathlin and Sta& indicate the extent of
the same formation northward and eastward.
The vicinity of the Giants' Causeway affords numerous appearances
confirmatory of the opinion that the basalt when superinduced over
the secondary strata was in a state of fusion from heat : such are
the conversion of old red-sandstone into homstone, the conversion of
clay-slate into flinty-slate, the conversion of coal into cinders, and in
numerous' inwta"^^^ the conversion of chalk into granular marble, all
arising from the contact of trap dykes with the altered strata^ At
Kenbaan, near BalUntoy, the basut is found inclosing detached masses
of chalk, as well interspersed through trap dykes as in the mass of
the formation. Similar instances occur near Uie Cave-HilL
Although this is the most important trap district in Ireland, yet
basaltic formations are not altogether peculiar to it, columnar fa9ade8
having been observed in the county of Limerick. [Basalt.]
(PkUotophieal TranaaetionM ; TranMOCtiom of the Oeological Society,
ToL iii ; Ouide to the CHanti Cauieway, Dublin.)
GIBBON. [HTLOBATE&]
GIBliSITE, a Mineral consisting of a hydrate of alumina. It
occurs in small stalactitio shapes, or mammillary, and incrusting.
The colour is grayish or greenish-white. The suxface is smooth but
nearly dull. Structure sometimes nearly fibrous. Its hardness is 8
GINSENG.
lOU
to 8'5. Specific gravitv 2*8 to 2'4. It occurs in a bed of iron ore at
Richmond in the Umted States of America. This mineral results
fr«m the decomposition of felspar, and oondsts of little else besides
water and alumina.
GIESECKITE, a form of JSUeolUe from Greenland. [EuaoLm.]
QIGANTOUTB, a Mmeral which occurs erystaUised in six- and
twelv»«ided prisms. Its cleavage is parallel to the six sides of the
prism. Colour greenish to dark steel-gray. Lustre between vitreous
and waxy. Hardness about 8'5. Specific gravity 2*862 to 2*878. It
is foimd near Tammela in Finland. The following is its analysis by
Waohtm^ister : —
Silica 46-27
Alumina 25*10
Peroxide of Iron 15*60
Magnesia 8*80
Protoxide of Manganese . . . .' 0*89
Potash 2*70
Soda 1*20
Fluorine, a trace
Water with Ammonia . . . 6*00
101*56
GILBERTITE, a Mineral ooouning in plates lying irregukrly
together. Its colour is ^hite with a shade of yellow. B^rdness 2*75.
Lustre silky. Translucent. Specifio gravity 2*648. It is found near
St. Austell, Cornwall The following is its analysis by Lehunt : —
SiUca 45*155
Alumina 40*110
Lime 4*170
Magnesia ....... 1.900
Protoxide of Iron 2*480
Water 4*250
98-015
GILBBRTSOCRINXTS, a geaos of foosil JSchinida, torn the Moun-
tain Limestone. (Phillips.)
GILLCOVERa [Fish.]
GILLENIA, a genus of Plants belonging to tiie natural order
Roweeee, and the sub-order Spirece, It has a tubularly campanulata
5-clefb calyx, 5 linear lanceolate petals, 10*20 stamens, very shorty
inclosed in the tube, 5 carpels almost united into a fivoHselled capsule,
and 2 seeds in each oelL There are only two species of this
genus.
O. trifoliaia has several stems from the same root, a foot or two in
height, alternate trifoliate, leaves, the flowers, which are few in
number, forming a sort of' panicle. The calyx sub-campanulate, or
tubular, with the lower half narrowest, the border divided into 5
refiexed acute teeth. Petals 5, the two upper ones separated from the
three lower ones, white with a reddish ^i^ on the edga, lanceolate,
unguiculate, contracted, and approximated at the base. The stamens
about 20, in a double series within the calyx. Capsules 5, divex^ns^
oblong, acuminate, 2-valved, 1- or 2-seedod. It is a native of Norw
America in shady places, from Florida to Canada. The root is
emetic, and possesses properties similar to those of ipecacuanha. It
must however be administered in laiger doses, and is not so certain
in its effects. Some authors attribute a tonic power to this plant
when taken in small doses.
O. ttipulacea is distinguished by its foliaceous ovate deeply-cut
stipules. It grows inhumid woods and damp places fr«m Tennessee
to Kentucky, in North AmericiL The medicinal properties of this
species are the same as those of 0. tr^foliata.
The species of Oillenia are elegant and hardy i)lant8, and are
therefore worthy of cultivation. They ^w best in a peat soil,
and may be readily propagated by dividing at the roots early in
the spring.
(Don, iHchlampdeous Planti; Lindley, Flora Medioa.)
GILLIESIA'CEiE, QUUtiadt, a very singular natural order of
Endogens, with the habit of the Scilleous division of LUiacem, but
with extremely remarkable fiowers. In the first place there are
several bracts at the base of each fiower, resembling a calyx, and in
reality constituting an involucre ; and secondly the calyx is either an
urceolate 6*toothed body, or a single lobe resembling a labellum*
Of the two known genera, QUUsia and ifiersto, one has six perfect
stamens, the other has only three perfect and the remainder sterile
and nearly obliterated. They are natives of Chili (* Botanical
Register,' folio 992.)
GILLa [Fmel]
GILLTFLOWJ^RS, the common name of the Garden Stock, M<a-
ihiola incana, [Matthiola.]
GILT-HEAD. [Chbtbophbts; Cbbkilabbvs.]
GINGER. [ZiNOiBiBACSii.]
GINSENG, a root found in China, to which extraordinarjr pro*
perties have been ascribed: it is not only considered a universal
remedy for all maladies, but is spoken of in the highest terms as a
specific in particular circumstances. Volumes have been written in
Chinese upon the supposed virtues of this root. It is affirmed that it
wards off fatigue, invigorates the enfeebled frame, restores the
exhausted animal powers, makes old people young, and so on. The
lois OIRAFFA.
weight Id gold luu baen preD b; the Chineis for this root, which we
KTQ told grows only in tlie most remota and inuceudble puts of
ChinoH Tartary, when itn coUectioD ii mttendsd by dongen luffi-
deiit to appal the Btouteet man. Ifcrarthelesa botaoiabi belisre the
Qinung to b« nothing more than ■ pluit called Panax quinqu^tlium,
■lie found in North America, where no auch qualitiei ai thoie spoken
of by the Cbineae are reoogmaed.
OIBAFFA (Camelopard of Feaaaot and aathora), a gemu of Rumi-
nanta, with pereiatent home common to both aexee, oompriaing the
tallest of the known quadrupada. Dr. J. E. Gray makea thia genua
the type of the tribe Oiraffina. BotDE covered with B hairy akin,
with B tuft ol h^ at the tip. He givee Uie following ajnonyms : —
Camelopardina, Oray, ' Ann. Phil.' 1S26 ; ■ Cat. Uamm. R H.' xxtL
OamdopaTiaii*, Cuv. • Tab. Elam.' 1798,
Qimffida, Onj, ' L. H. Rep.' it. SOT, 1321; H. Smith, OrifBth,
' A. K.' T. ; J. Brookea, ' Cat. Hua.' S3, 1S28.
I}emm, niiger, ' Prod.' 10*, 1811.
Pteitieoraia, b, Latr. ' Fam. Hat.' 1821.
Camulopardalida, Selya Longchampa, 18*2.
Elaphiwu, part., ' Fomet.' L o. 184.
Bttmiaalia iltrtocria, part., 'Rafin. Annl. Nut.' 56, 181S.
Ramiitantia B. FygnoctraU, part., Bronn, ' Index Paliooat' iL 709.
Omuli, ft Waglar, • N. Syet. Amph.' 4—31, 1830.
Cervida, vtA, OgUby, ' P. Z. S.' 18*. 1886.
Onvtecnwa, (, Sunderall, 'Pacora,* 62.
Ungutigrada, part, SundevaU, 'Peooi*,' B2.
Ommrma, RUppell, 'Vera. Senck. SammL' 183, 18*5.
CamiiopaTdalma, BundeTall, ' Paoon,' 52.
CamOopardinta, Leaaon, 'N. Tab. R A.' 168, 18*2.
Lea Oirafea, F. Curier, ' D. BcL Nat.' lU. 613.
Qirafa haa the following charaotera : — Lip not grooved, entirely
oovered with hair, maoh produced before the nostril ; tongue very
eztenaile; neck vary long; body abort; hinder l%a ehorti false
hoof none; tail elongate, with a tuft of thick luur at the end,
Q. OamiiopardalU, the QicaB'e or Camei-Leopard, ie the only apecies.
It ia the Ccrnit Camtlopardali; Linn.; C. Ci^miit, Oeoff., Ogilby;
ObrndoportlalufTtra/a, a, Sunderall; Oiraffa CamilopardalUj'Bnmoa;
(UuadopardiUit Oirafa, Gmelin.
There ia a pale variety, which haa the following synonyms : —
Cantlopori^ilit Oirafa, 0. jSlkiopica, Sundevall ; Camdopardalit
Sennaaremu, Qeoff. ; Camtlopardaiii jElhiopiait, Ogilby ; CanuJo-
pardiUit, FliD. ; Caiado-pardalUM, Jonat ; Camtltu Jndictu, Joust. ;
Oyn^e, Baloo; Tragui Girafa, Klein; Camelopard, Fenu. ; Kamel
paard, Voamaer; Qirafib — Thavet, Buffon, LevailL, Shaw, Lichtauat.;
Oirafia, or Cameleopard, Harria.
The structure and hiatoty of this eztcBordinBry Boinul have a high
interest for the naturaliat. We shall first speak of the anatomy of
its bonee.
The akeleton of a Qirafie arreats the attention of the obaerver
onoe : — the head lilled □□ high upon the extremely elongated neck,
the high withers, and the Blender length of limb, t^en together, con-
trast strangely with the bony fabiica of tha other quadrupeds A
man who looks up at such B skeleton for the fiiat time, and without
praviouB knowledge of ita structare, must be struck at finding that
tha towering neck consists of exactly the same number of bonae that
form hia own. The akuU is light and thin. The boms are considered
by Dr. RUppell {who during his travels in Northern Airioa obtaiaed
in Nubia and Kordofan three specimens, two males and one female)
BB conatituting the principal generic character, th^ being formed by
diatiQot boBBB, united to the frontal and parietal bonea by a vary
obvious suture, and exhibiting throughout the aame atruetore aa the
other bonea. In both aeiea, he observes, one of theae abnonnal bonea
is situated on each branch of the coronal auture, and t^ male possesses
an additional one, placed more anteriorly, and occupying the middle
of tha frontal autura. The eiiitence of this third appendage is oon-
ndered to fumiah a complete refutation of Camper's theory with regard
to the oniooin, namely, that such an ooourrsnce ii contruy to nature,
and to prove at least theposaihility of tha existence of such an animaL
Thia appendage ia conspicuous in the piste containing the crania
('Atlaa Eu der Baiss im NiirdUohan Afrika,' von Eduud Riippell;
pi, 9, fig, tt, a) ; and, aa it is there represented, risea abruptly from
the oa frontis with all the appearance of a thinl horn. Cuvipr, in hia
laat edition of the ' R^e Animal ' (182B}, foUows Dr. Riippell ; and,
speaking of the homa, saya their bony core (noyau osaeux) is articu-
lated in youth by a autura on the frontal bone. In the middle of the
chanfrein is a tubercle, or a third horn, larger and much shorter, but
squally articulated by suture.
The well-known aoouracy of Dr. BUppell demands every degree of
respect ; and if the figure alluded to be a correct repreeentation of
the ordinary state of the adult Nubian male Oirafie, tad not an acci-
dental deformity, the third ham would form a good ground for specific
distinction. There aro skulls of the Cape Oirafie, both male and
female, in the museum of tbe College of Surgeons, and that of the
mala, which ia an adult with the persistant teeth, haa nc such horn ;
but there is a considerable gtadually-risiug protuberance, which ia
more strongly develop<-d then tbe same part in the female cranium.
la all tbe oraoia which we have seen, and in all tlta living specimens,
GIBAFFA. WIS
the females poaacM this protubeianes aa well as tha males, though
not in eo high a degree of development ; and the true homa, at least
the bony cone, are mnch latter in the male than in the female. It
be said that the living and dead specimens which were at first
Ived from North Africa were comparatively ^oung, though aome
. lem were not so very young. In the girafiea in the Garden of the
Zoological Society at the Regent'a Park the protuberance will be seen,
thou^ '!"' of uie female is not quite so highly marked perhaps as
those of tha niales. In a paper read before the Zoological Sooie^ of
London, Profeasor Owen haa ahown that thia middle protnbeiwiM
ariaing from tbe head ia not a true born articulated by a sntara, bat
meraly a thickening of the os fi^ntia, Thia position FroFssaor Owen
is enabled to lay down fVom the section of the skull of a male
(Northern) GiraflTe, and from tha eiaminstion of varioaa oi»nia of
botii Nubian and Cape (male and female) old and yomiR giraffes.
There appears to be no evidence to lead to the conclusion that there
ia anything at any time in this part of the structure nsturallf that
Hkull of the male Giraffe, trom RDppell's Bgnre.
can he considered more than a mere frontal protuberance oocaaioned
by tha thickening of the bone — a protuberance which will not aepa-
rate upon maceration as tbe two horna will, in the young animal at
laaat. The lightness of the cranium is owing in great measure to tbe
sinuses, which are minutely described by Professor Owen in his paper;
these run along the whole upper part of tbe cranium, and the occiput
is raised by their extension. He shows that a principal object of
theae sinuses is to increase the surface of the attachment of the ligv
ment aupporting the bead, and draws attention to the remarkable
vertical extanaion of the condylea of the occiput — a atnicture whiidi
enables the animal to tilt its head back, and giaoafully and easily to
raise it till it ia on a line with the neck. Tha reader will find the
aection of the head above alluded to in the muaeum of the Royal
College of Surgeons. In the aame museum he will find entire crania
of the Cape Giraffe (male and female), with other detached bonyparts,
and a perfect skeleton of the Nubian Giraffe, though it is that of a
comparatively young animaL The position and appearance of the
elastic cartilages on the posterior edges of the scapuUe are here exhi-
bited, a beautiful provision for tha easy springy carriage of the body,
which is principally auapended ^m the muaclea there attached, and
slung as it were between these points and the sternal and lumbar
regiona In tha British Husaum and tha museums of tbe Geological
S<Kisty and College of Suigeona, London, are Bpe<umana of the diela-
FrofesaoT Owen found the ligamentnm nudue immanss, consisting
of two bilatenl moieties ; it oommenoes at the sacrum, gaina freah
acoeaaiona from each dorsal vertebra, the spines of which are remark-
ably elongated fbr that purpose, ia inserted into all tbe cervical
vertehna, with tha exception of the atlaa, and attaohed to the extended
we must refer to the dentition, whioh oS^ tiie nme formula as that
oharaoteristio of the deer, goat, antelope, sheep, and oz, namely,
Incisors, — ; cnuinen, — ; molars, = 33.
8 0 6 — 8
In the ' Nova Acta Phyaico-medica Academic Ciesarea Leopoldtno-
Carolinea Natiune Curioeorum,' tom. xiL, part 1, is a paper by Dr.
D'Altaii on the teeth of tha Giraffe, written, it would aeem, princi-
pally with a view to correct the notion apparently entertained by Dr.
Bojanus in a preceding paper in the same part, not only that the
dentition of the ifa-yeotAs-ium has certain points indicatory of that
animal being intermediate between the oam^ and the sheep, " camel-
inum inter et ovillum genus," but that it might possibly be the Giraffe.
Dr. D' Alton figures the teeth of the latter, and shows, by a compari-
son with those of the iferyiMhermm, their diacrepanoy both in aiae
and atructure from thoae of the fossil auimal.
The tongue of the Giraffe rsquirea pHrUcular notice. Sir Everard
Home remarks, tliat baitidee being tha organ of taste, it haa many
properties of tha proboscis of the elephant, one being an eiongatioa
of the organ of amell, the other of taate. The proboacis is incapable
loif
aiRAFKA.
eite^sd tu
a( elDDgntioii, ho observoa, bejond oua inch in eiteat, in i
of its cartilaginouB tubes ; while the tongii*
IT inches after death, and can in the hving bodj he so diminialled .
iJEeaa to be inclosed within the snimal's mouth.
Some mechaniflm^ he remarks, muat exist by which this elongntion
may be perfonned, as in the tongue of the rein-deer ; hut he states
thnt a poet-mortem examination would be necessary to decide thin.
He Dotices tbe organ as being very smooth ; that is, it is smooth wbon
the papiUsB are not raised, as they can be at pleasure, but rougher
' when the; are, aod slightly adhenre; it is spotted, but ths ■
not raised, and there ia a
black rete mucosiim, to pre-
vent, as he thinks, tbe sui^
^e from being blistered by
tbe exposure to the sun.
" la the absence of an op-
CUDity," coDtinues Sir
-ard, "of«iBminiDgthe
intrmal structure oF tbe
Xariffa's tongue after death,
I was tsd to the opinion
that tbe change of sise is
effected by the organ con-
tMOitg a reserroir, out of
Uie course of the circulation,
which can be filled with
blood at the will of the
animal, so as to give it
rigidity, and enable it to
eitrnd itgelf tor the per-
formance of the different
actions in which it is em-
It c
me at the sami
whater
be the means by which the
Xariffa'B tongue is able to
apply itself to such variooa
purposes, whether that
which appeared to me pn-
bable, or any other, some-
thing similar would be met
with in other animals, par-
ticularly in the tongue of
the direr, which, after death,
readily admits of being
drawn oat to the extent of
S inches, although when
immersed in rectified spirita
it contracts to G inchsB.
For the purpose of auch
an eiamiuation, a deer's
tongue, recently after the
antmnl'a death, was injected
with minute red iujcction,
so as to distend the art^rJes
and show the course of the
1 then
greatest advantage. This
tongue was afterwarda di'
Tided longitudinally in a
perpendicular direction, also
m B horizontal one, to ahow
the muscles of which it
is composed, as well as the
other parta that It con-
tained. From this examination, the atructure of the tongue
of quadrupeds in general ia described by Sir Bverard aa being
longitudinally divided into two equal portions by a middle line ;
the muscular structure occupies tbe whole of the interior Hub-
stance, receiving a large supply of nerves and bloodvessels from a
lateral nerve and artery that pass along the outer edge^ these are
imbedded in a very loose cellular tissue, the texture of which admits
of tbe bloodvessels being distended to a very great degree, so ss to
enlarge tbe volume of the tongue; and beyond this tissue, surround-
ing and forming a case for the whole of the upper and latenl part of
the organ, is a strong very elastic covering of some thickness, which
jields when the musclei and the trunks of the arteries are distended
with blood, ao as to give both extent and rigidity to the organ, and
admit of the different actions in which it is employed. Sir Everard
then adds, that therecan be no doubt of the structure of theXariffa'a
tongue being tbe same ; its actiona depending upon the combined
powera of muscular contraction and elasticity ; its increase and dimi-
nution of aize arising from the bloodveaaels being at one time loaded
with blood and at another empty.
The chief modification in the muscles of the tongue ia in tboae
GIllAhT.V, ■ lois
destined to retract it. Professor Owen, in a note to hii edition of
'Hunter's Animal (Economy' (Svo., London, 1S37}, says, "A. moat
beautiful and forcible example of Uie use of tendon in limiting tjie
length of a muscle to the extent of motion required to be produced
in the pert to be moved, occurs in the stemo-thyroide! of the airaffe.
Had these musclea been continued fleshy aa usual from their origin,
through the vrhole length of the neck to their insertion, it is obvious
that a great proportion of the muscular ihrea would have been
useless, bec»uae such a condition of the muscle would have been
eqoal to have dnwn down the larynx and os hyoides more
than one-third of the ex-
tent of the neck, which is
neither required nor per-
mitted by the mechanical
attachments of the parts.
The stemo-thyroidei there-
fore proceed from the head
of tbe atemum blended
together in one fleshy fasci-
oulus for about B incba^
and end in a tendon wliidt
ia continued for S inches ;
this then divides, and the
muscles proceed again
Besby for about 10 inches,
when a seoond tendon in-
tervenes in each between
the preceding and the next
fleshy portion, which is
finally inserted into thft
thyroid cartilage, aod by a
oOQtinued fascia into the os
hyoides : thus tbe quantity
of DOntractile fibre is propoi^
tioned to the requ Ired extent
of motion by intervening
tendons ; the atemohyuidei
being wanting, or their
place supplied by the itemo-
thyroidei, aa in some other
ruminants. The analogue
of the omo-hyoideus is in
the same animal adjusted to
ita office by a different and
more simple modification ;
ita origin is removed from
the sboulderblade to the
nearest point (the third
cervical vertebra), from
which it oould act with the
requisite force and extent
Upon the OS hyoidea"
SirEverardHomeiknoled
that tbe Qiraffe on which
he made hia observations,
the individual belonging to
Qeorge IV,, preferred lick-
ing the hand of a lady to
that of a man. Hr. Davia,
who saw a great deal of the
animal, never observed this.
It may be eaiily believed
that the animal distin-
guished the fair hand
&om which it received
tbe psaliiiaT edge of the acipuls ihows (hs gifts and attention; but
LTLUagi abate altDded to. certainly the giraffes in the
Zoological Garden at the
Regent's Park exhibit no auch preference. "Tbey appear to use their
tongues generally as organs of examination, and the power of
prehension is so great that we have eeeu the tongue, when extended
to the utmost, grasp an ordinary lump of sugar, of which the animals
aeem very fond, and convey it into the mouth. We have also obeerved
the giraffes retrovert the tongue for the purpose of cleaning the
nostrils, an office which its flexibility enables it to perform in the moat
perfect manner. The utility of such a power of prehension and
extension to an animal whose principal food conaists of the leave*
Giraffe, it is true, wants the receptairie for water wtioh the camel and
dromedary possess There are no water-cells belonging to the rumen
as there ara in Camdidic ; and this part of the structure ia, as
Profeaaor Owen points out, fashioned according to the homed rumi-
nant type. But he oIki shows that the reticulum is not, aa stated by
Sir Everard Home, " destitute of tbe ceQular structure met with in
other ruminants," but that it has cells, though very shallaw ones, r- ■
ia tlw rein-deer. Professor Owen further s*-'" '*•-' "■- ~"- -* *'
N lliat tlte ooils of tha
colon )□ tha Qiinffe are apinl, aa they an in tbe deer and in the
ftnt«!opaa ; mnd Uut Ilka them it hu a umple oecum, which is 2 feet
2 inches in length. Tha first girȣfe (femiile) diaseoted by ProtaMor
Owen hftd a double goll-bladder, each bladder ot the lUuaJ size : this
is praserrcd in spirit in the museum of the College. The other two
giraffes (males) were without a trace of gall-bladder. He bdievea
therefore that absence of tha gall-hladder, M in the deer (the antelopei
hsTe it), is the rule.
Ucsul of Olrafle (Nubian) w
1 ol Giraffe (proBla), ibowhic the froi
(Nubian.)
si protttbersi
and the nuns.
The kidneys in the giraffes eiaminad by Professor Owen irere
not lobulatei) aa in the oi, but simple, u in the deer and antelopes.
Profesaor Owen found the male organi to agite with tbe hornet
ruminant type ; that is, the prostate is divided, not single as in thi
camel. There is a peculiarity in the termination of the urethra ; foi
it ie continued as a membranous canal dds inch and a half beyond
the eitremity ot the glans, adhering to the prepuce. The temoJe
organs differ also from those of the camels, and agree with those of
the true runtioaiita, exhibiting processea for the cotyledons in the
iDtarior of the comna.
Ibesa are the principal obserrations tnade by Frofeawr Owen
GIRAFFA. lOM
ices ODe beautiful proviaion in
the structure'of t^e animal which we must not omit. The nostrils
of the Qir^e aro.proTidod with cutaneous sphincter muscles, and
be shut at will like the eyes. Professor Owen suppoaea that the
abject of this mechanism is to keep out the sand when the storms of
the desert arise.
Bveiy one must be struck with tbe beautiful large eye of the
Giraffe; and it will be found upon further examination that it is
so placed that Uie animal can see much of what is paating on
all aides, even behind it^ without turning the head. Thus it is
approached with the greatest difficulty ; and if surprised, or run
down, it can direct the rapid storm of kicks bj which it defends
itself in the most accurate manner. We need hardly add that the
bomv hoofs are divided, and that the two small tateial toel genenlly
— the true rominapts are wautdng.
iDw proceed to speak of the history and ammgement of tlie
Giroffo : — In Deut., xir., where there is an enumeration of meats,
clean and unclean, we find (verse G), among the beasts which the
Israelitea are permitted to eat, " the hart, and the roebuck, and tha
fallow dear, and the wild goat, and the p;garg, and the wild ox, and
tbe chamois." So it stands, or with very slight variation, in tbe more
modem English translations. In the black-letter Bible "imprinted
London by Robert Barker, printer to tbe king's most exoellent
LJestie (131S}," we find the some verse thus written: "The hart,
and the roebueke, and the bugle, and the wilde goate, and the
unicome, and the wild oxa, and the chamois." In the ' Pbysica
Sacra,' the vene is thus given in Latin : — " Cervum, Capresm, Ibicem,
(a) Hlrcocervum, ' {b) Unioomem, Unim at Tarandutn ; ' " and a note
adds, " (n) Alii legunt Bubalum aut Bovem Sylvestrem, (ft) TrsgEla-
phum." Opposite to this stands the fallowing versian of the same :
Uiat Hieronymus, many inteitireters, and many versions render the
word by CtmeUipard<Uu, which is the Zurspha, Zerafet, and Zurofet
(plur. Zerafi and Zeroif), of the Aiabisus ; Siimapa, Ziimspa, Zumepa,
of the Turks ; an interpretation which renders the Arabians and
Jews doubtful whether the flesh, which is said to be bard and
difficult of digestion, be permitted by the law. Bochart rejects tha
term Cameli^nUUit, because that animal is not an inhabitant of
either Arabia or PaleBtine, but of Nubia and Ethiopia, and therefore
was long unknown to Europeans. Scheuchier odds tiai ArietotJe
says nothing about the Csmelopord or Cameleopord — "de el nil
proisus habet Aristotelee"^ — and that the £rst of the Greeks wbo
described it was Agatharchides, who lived in the time of tbe sixth
Ptolemy (Philometor). This animal, he continues, was not seen at
Rome before the time of CESsar : " Unde inferre licet, aon ignutam
fuisse duntaxat Hosis tempore, sed et Aleiandri, qui Mose posterior
eat annis 1200." Wherefore the commentator biii recourse to the
Cervine or Caprine genus, and selects (he Rapicapra (Chamois),
observing that 'our two versions' read Tarandun (the reindeer,
which, he says, iu M eninzk. Lei. has the cognomen of SUnuspa and
Oirifffa). In Scheuchzer's plate (ccuii.) of tbe clean and unclean
animals (Levib, xi. 2), the Giraffe does not appear, but at pL
cocili. (Deut, xiv. fi), he figures a CameleapardalU and Tarajuiut
— 'Cameel-Pardel' and 'Rennthler,' tha former with shnrp sntelope-
like boms, and the Istter with a spotted skin and somewhat eitim-
ordioary antlers. With the exception of the head and homa, that
part of the Camelapard which appears — tha hind-quarters are hidden
by the other figure — is not bad. Both figures appear to be copies
from JoQstaa, who seems to have copied one of his Camelopsrds
from Gesner. Scbeuchser introduoea the body and bead of a Came-
lopard with the same antelope-like homs, but rather more curved in
the background of pL xxxii. (Gen. iiL 21). The commentator
in tbe ' Pictorial Bible,' where a good cut of the Oinffe is given, ssys,
with reference to the wonl 'chamois,' "Tbe Anbic version under-
stood that the Giraffe was meant here, which is Terr likely to have
been the case; for tbe Chamois is not met so far to the southwsrd as
Egypt and Palestine, Tbe Giraffe or Cameleopard {Canulopardalii
Oir^ffa) is a singular ss well as beautiful creature found io tbe central
parts of Africa. The Jews had probably many opportunities of
becoming acquainted with the animal while in Egypt, as hod also the
Seventy, who resided there, and who indicate it in their translation
of tbe Hebrew name."
Belsoni notices tha Comelopord on the walls of the s«ko« of tbe
Memnonium, and on the back of tha temple of Ermenta. In Gsu's
' Nubian ' (pL 16) is the representation of a relief, for the general
chaiactor of which we refer to the work itself, and to the interesting
account published in the ' Libraiy of Entertaining Knowledge -.
British Museum — Egyptian Antiqmties,' vol. i. In the procession
appears, among other ammols, a well-eiacuted figure of a Giraffe led
by a man dressed in skins. The suthor of the useful and amusing
book last quoted supposes the relief to represent the boot; obtained
after a victory.
Rosellini, in his great work on Egypt, gives the coloured engraving
of a Pompo, wherein a Giraffe (' ILC.,' No. xxii., fig. 2), the spots on
which are vetj dose, is depicted as led by two men, who hold cords
1021
GIRAFFA.
QIRAFFA.
1023
tied to the fore legs below what ia called, in ooxmnon parlance, the
knee. A green monkey with a red £iice, ko,, and a long tail, is
dlimbing up the Qirafife's neck. The subligacula of the leaders, who
appear to be Nubians (?), are different ; those of the one are spotted
like a leopard-skin, and this man has a dark blue close cap on his
head ; those of the other show a sort of reticulated pattern, and he
wears a close cap with a light ground and light blue spots. And here
it is worthy of note that we find in the enumeration of the rare
animals exhibited in the Pompa of Ptolemy Philadelphus at Alex-
andria, described in so lively a manner by one of the Deipnosophists
(Athenieus, lib. v. c. 8, s. 82), one oamelopard — KOfoiKowdpiaKis fxia.
Whether the bnrdpiios (Hippardius— HoraePard) of Aristotle (lib. il,
c 1) be the Giraffe appear to be doubtful, and the prevailing opinion
seems to be that he meant by the word some species of Deer. The
passage which mentions the Imr^Kcupos (Hippelaphus — Horse-Stag or
Horse-Deer)* states that both these aniinals nave cloven feet and the
head armed with horns, but that the female of the Hippelaphus has
no horns ; thereby intimating that the female of the Hippardius had.
This however would be equally applicable to the rein-deer.
The celebrated Pnenestine pavement, said to have been made by
the direction of Sylla, who had held the office of quawtor in Numidia^
represents the Giraffe both grazing and bfowzing, and it seems to be
a good opinion that the artists employed to work in mosaic even in
Italy and Spain were Egyptian Greeks. Still the animal itself does
not appear to have been seen in Italy before the time of Julius
Caesar, who exhibited it among other ^n''^'^^* in the Circensian
gBmes.+
In his description Pliny appears to have taken the darker parts of
the skin of the animal as forming the ground colour, and relieved by
the lighter tint This is probably the same animal as that mentioned
by Varro, who alludes to a CamdopardtUiSf as having been lately
brought from Alexandria, in figure like a camel and spotted like a
panther. The Giraffe afterwards became a not un frequent and con-
spicuous part of the Roman shows. Thus the third Gordian had ten
at one time. We trace the animal in the writings of Artemidorus,
Strabo, Oppian, Heliodorus, and others, till the great blank of
literature intervenes.
After the revival of letters, we find in Belon a good description
upon the whole, and a very tolerable figure. In the small 4to.
entitled 'Portraits d'Oyseaux, Animaux, Serpens, Arbres, Hommes
et Femmes d' Arabic et Egypte, observes par P. Belon du Mans, le
tout enrichy de Quatrains, pour plus facile cognoissance des Oyseaux,
et autree Portraits ' (1557), the figure is given with only the following
notice and quatrain above and below it: — 'Portrait de la Giraffe,
nomm^ en Latin Camelopardalis : les Arabea Tappellent ZumapiL'
The quatrain h
" Belles de oorpe les Giraffes, et donlces,
Ont en maintien da Chemeau la maniere.
Leurs pieds sont haults devant et bas derriere ;
Poll blano et ronz ; eomea oourtes et mousses.*'
Gillius states that he saw three at Cairo, and gives a description of
the animaL Prosper Alpinus relates that he saw a CamdopardalU,
"quem Arabes Zurnap, et nostri Girafbm appellant," and likens it to
a very elegant small horse.
Gesner, who among other synonyms, enumerates Oiraffa (alias
Oyrapha, Oirapha) as the name of the Camelopardalu, or Cameio-
pardusj or Camdus Jndicaf gives also Zirafoy as well as Nahit
(^Ethiopian), Oimaffa (Persian), and Serapha (Arabian). His figure,
which he says is taken from an Italian printed book, by an anony-
mcAis author, is evidently made up principally from the descriptions
of the ancients. It has antelope-like subrecurved sharp horns, and a
short sharp-pointed tail with something of an upward curve, in which
may be traced the ' caudam Dorcalidis, id est Capreoli,' as the text
has it, attributed to the animal by Oppian. In the 'Additiones'
(Icones, &C.) is presented a much better figure, as far as the horns are
concerned, but with a neck, and of a height, generally out of all
proportion. The drawing is said to have been diligently taken at
Constantinople, where the animal had been sent as a present to the
emperor of the Turks, and transmitted to a friend in Germany, a.d.
1559. The figure is without spots.
Aldrovandus gives a figure of the animal with its elongated tongue
protruded and browzing upon a tree, which, awkward though it be,
would be not very far wrong, were it not for the flowing mane and
little sharp horns with a curve forwards.
Jonston gives no less than five figures, three with and two without
spotfi, some with and some without manes, under the names of
Camelopardut, Camelopardalis, Gierafi'a, and Cameli Jndid, but all
with sharp horns of various degrees of curvature, besides two long-
* Mr. Ogilby says (*Zool. Proo.' 1836) that Tragtlaphut BippeUphw
[Antilope pieta of authors}, the Nylghau [Axtilopbjk] or Neelghae, and not
the Saumer Deer of India, is the animal described by Aristotle under the name
of Hippelaphus.
t "Nabin (Pliny, lib. viii. e. 18) JEthiopes vocant, eollo similem equo,
pedibua et criuibus bovi, eamelo capite, albis maculis rutilom eolorem distin-
§[uentlbua, nnde appellau Camelopardalis, dictatoris Csssaris Circensibus Indis
primum visa Bonus. Ex eo snUnde cemitnr, aspecta magis quam feritate
conspicua : quare t tiam ovis ferte nomen invcnit."
necked hornless spotted quadrupeds, one designated as Camtlus
Indicia versicolor, the other as alius CamdvLS,
It is not to be wondered at that some of the figures and descriptions
given by such writers as the author last quoted cast a doubt upon
the very existence of the animal, and it may not be uninteresting,
before we proceed to the later writers on the natural history of this
extraordinary anim^, to note some of the other evidences preserved
in old or uncommon books. In the ' Historia del Grand Tamerlane'
(Madrid, 1782), "The ambassadors sent by the king of Castile,
Henry III. (1403 — 2nd embassy), to the great Tamerlane, arrived at a
town called Hoy, now Khoy, on the confines of Armenia, where the
Persian empire commences. At that town they fell in with an
ambassador whom the sultan of Babylon had sent to Tamerlane. He
had with him as many as twenty horsemen and fifteen camels, laden
with presents which the sultan sent to Tamerlane. Besides these
there were six ostriches, and an animal called Jomufa (Giraffe), which
animal was formed in the following manner : — In body it was of the
size of a horsey with the neck very long, and the fore legs much
taller than the hinder ones ; the hoof was cloven like that of the ox.
From the hoof of the fore leg to the top of the shoulder it was
sixteen hands (palmos) ; and from the shoulders to the head sixteen
hands more ; and when it raised its neck it lifted its head so high as
to be a wonder to alL The neck was thin like that of the stag ; and
so great was the disproportion of the length of the hinder legs to
that of the fore legs, that one who was not acquainted with it would
think that it was sitting, although it was standing. It had the
haunches slanting like the buffalo, and a white belly. The skin was
of a golden hue and marked with laige round whit^ spots. In the
lower part of the face it I'esembled the deer; on the forehead it had
a high and pointed prominence, very lai^e and round eyes, and the
ears like those of a horse ; near the ears two small round horns, the
greater part covered with haii*, resembling the horns of deer on their
first appearance. Such was the length of the neck, and the animal
raised its head so high when he chose, that he ootild eat with facility
from the top of a lofty wall; and from the top of a high tree it
could reach to eat the leaves, of which it devoured great quantitiea
So that altogether it was a marvellous sight to one who had never
seen such an animal before." (* Library of Entertaining Elnowledge
— Menageries.')
In the ' Principal Occurrents in John Leo (Leo Africanus) his Ninth
Booke of the Historie of Africa' (Purchas, . lib. vL a 1, see. 9), we find
among the animals of Ethiopia, ** The Giraffa, so savage and wild
that it is a very rare matter to see any of them ; for they hide them-
selves among the deserts and woods where no other beasts use to
come ; and so soon aa one of them espieth a man it flieth forthwith,
though not very swiftly. It is headed like a cameli, eared like an
oxe, and footed like a * ; neither are any taken by hunters
but when they are very young." In the index of the same book we
find " CamclopardaliSf a huge wilde beast ; " and a reference to page
1183, where we find (Purchas, lib. vii. a 8, s. 2) in the same paragraph,
where mention is made of the Abassine soil ( Abassia, from Fernandez),
this sentence: — "Hares, goats, harts, boars, elephants, camells, buffols,
lions, panthers, tigres, rhinocerotes, and other creatures, are there
scene, and one so huge that a man sitting on horsebacke may pass
uprighte under his belly ; his shape is like a cameli, but his nature
divers, feeding on leaves which he reacheth from the tops of trees
with his necke stretched forth." In the margin is printed, " This
seometh to be the Camelopardalis ; " and, indeed, the description will
do very well for it, with the exception of the hofse and his rider
pcuBsing " upright under his belly."
Again, in the fifth volume, * The Sixt Booke, chap. L, of Africa, and
the Creatures therein,' and s. 2, " 0^ the beasts, wild and tame," is
mentioned ** the Oiraffa, or Camelopardalis, a beast not often seene,
yet very tame, and of a strange composition, |nixed of a libard, hart,
buffe, and cameli, and by reason of his long legs before, and shorter
behinde, not able to gr.<uee without difficultie ; but with bis high head,
which he can sti-etch forth halfe a pike's length in height, feeds on the
leaves and boughs of trees.
In a note is added, " P. Bellon, lib. iL o. 49, doth largely describe
him. (See his description in Moreson and Sandys.) Also Master
Sanderson saw one at Cairo, and hath described him in his ' Voyage,'
which I have printed." (Tom. i. lib. 9.) Upon turning to the passage
nib. ix. c. 16, s. 2) it appears that Sanderson saw the animal at
Constantinople. " The admirablest and fairest beast I ever saw was a
Jarraff, as tame as a domestical! deere, and of a reddish deere oolour,
white brested, and cloven-footed ; he was of a very great height, his
fore legges longer than the hinder, a very long necke, and headed like
a cameli, except two stum pes of home on his bead. This fairest animall
was sent out of JBtbiopia to this Great Turke's father for a present.
Two Turkes, the keepers of him, would make him kneele; but not
before any Christian for any money. A>n elephant that stood where
this faire beast was the keepers would make to stand with all his four
legges, his feet close together, upon a round stone, and alike to ub to
bend his fore legges." t
• Here there is a word wanting in the original.
t c. xvi.
** By the permission of Almightie God,
Snndrie the personall voyages performed by John Sanderson, of London,
GIRAFFA.
\m
loss
OIIIAFFA.
In the «HuMum TwdeacaiitUnum ' (1656), at th« •«£'*{^?e?^^
hide., horoei., hoofes.
the
■Bcuon, "j>ouiMootea Deasta, witn eomo x"w"-» Vtfributed to the
find *- diver, horn. i^Bwerinp: to those by »uiborB j^ ^^^
Ibex, OateUa, HippdaphfU, Troffdaphus, Certms jHUmMus,
pardaiU, Ac" , . . _ rturioua tranislation,
la Ludolf's '^thwpi.,' of which thew m • ounoriM vnm
'made "*
in the
pardalis, oi P"^®*"?!? ^Mm'Trtiilliiew. ' For'thi. beaefc i. .o very
k?cS.,^*tlitTlU--%i7 cx^Uble Wis reported, that a man on
ho^SJwkrSttiDg upright on hi. Mddle, may ride under hw beUy.
He dwirti h» n«m« ^^ni hence, that he ha. a long head and a long
neck like a camel, but a skin spotted all over like a panther. The
Romans, when they first beheld this beast, called it a wild sheep,
tbo' being more remarkable for its aspect then (than) its wildness or
fierceness, as we read in Pliny. By the Abissines, by reason of the
small ne.. of his tayl, he is called Jerata-Kaein, that is, Slender
Tayl; by the Italians Qirafiis from the Arabian word Zucaffa
(ZuraflFat)."
Hasselquist, who travelled in the years 1749-50-51-52, mentions, in
bis ' Voyages and Travels,' the Cervm CamdopardcUU, The Camel-
Deer, Belon. ; CamelopardalU Oiraffa, Alpin., Egypt, Zumap, Arab.
" The colour of the whole body, head, and legs of this animal is
yariegated," says the traveller, " with dark brown spots ; the spots
are a. large as the palm of a man's hand, of an irregular figure, and
in the living animal are of various shades. This deer is of the bigness
of a small camel ; the whole length from the upper lip to the tail is
24 spans. It i. met with in the shady and thick woods of Senaar
and ^Uuopia. N.B. This is a most elegant and docile animal ; it ha.
been seen by very few natural historians, and indeed scarcely by
any except Bellonius; but none have given a perfect description
or good figure of it. I have only seen the skin of the animal, and
have not yet had an opportunity of beholding it alive." In the
' Act. Upsal.' the same zoologist gives a very minute description of
the animaL
Briwon gave ii ft generic station, under the name of Giraffa, in the
£rBt section of his fifth order, consisting of those quadrupeds which
have no incisor teeth in the upper jaw, but eight in the lower, and the
hoof divided. This first section contains those genera which have
simple horn.; and, besides the Giraffe, compriMS the goats, the sheep,
and' the oxen.
Our countryman, John Ray, places the Oifaffe under his Cervinvm
genus, the fourth of his ruminants, with the deer, as the title implies.
Linuseus, in the last edition of his 'Systema Natur»' (1766), gives
the Giraffe as the first speeies of his genus Ctrvu»t or Cervut Catnelo-
pardalitf and describes it as being a Cervui with very simple horns,
and the fore legs or feet longest. " C. comibus simplidssimis, pedibus
anticis longisnmis." The habitat he gives as Etniopia and Senaar,
and adds, tiiat the animal even then was obscure, and that it is
sprinkled with white spots like fawns: "Animal etiamnunc obscurum,
adspersum maoulis albis, ut cervi juniores." He alludes to its grazing
with divaricated legs, but says that its principal food consists of the
leaves of trees.
A drawing, which appears to have been a mere rude sketch, nothing
worth, together with a notice of the Giraffe, was brought under the
observation of the Academic dee Sciences (1764). This drawing and
notice related to one of these animals which had been found during a
journey made in 1762, as far as two hundred leagues northward of the
Cape of Good Hope. Buffon nptices this as extending the geogra-
phical .distribution of the Giraffe, which had been confined to Ethiopia
Dy Thevenot and the majority of writers ; but this is the principal
contribution to the history of the animal in the count's article, which
is indeed learned and eloquent, but erroneous in many points, and
unnecessarily severe on Hasselquist for the dryness and imperfection
of his description. Buffon gives the description of the Swedish
naturalist in a note, and though there may be some obscurity in the
part relating to the horns when read by one who had never seen the
animal — and of this Buffon particularly complain. — ^that very part
shows the accuracy of Hasselquist For instance, Hasselquist, after
describing the hairs round the edge of the top of the horns, says,
** Apex oomuum in medio horum pilorum obtusus, nudus " (the apex
of ike horns in the midst of these hairs is obtuse and naked), thus
conveying in a few words the real condition of that part of the
structure, and showing the acuteness of his observation. But Buffon
had no very great love for Linnaeus or his pupils ; and Sparrman, in
his ' Voyage to the Cape,' attacks the French zoologist in no measured
terms, exposing with a rough hand hi. blimders, and appearing
resolved to appease the manes of the meritorious Hasselquist for the
insult of the count Buffon's figure i. bad, particularly about the
horns, and the mane is too long.
merchant, begun la October, 1564, ended in October, 1603, with an hlstorieall
description of Conitantinople." The second voyage to Constantinople appears
to have commenced In 1591, and Sanderson arrived there on Palm.Sanday,
" where," says he, " then I remained sixe or seven yeerev, in which time I bad
the view of many animals." After enumerating some, he commences the
IMtiagraph which we have given in the prcccdinir pice.
The description of H. Allamand, in his supplement to Buffon's
account, taken from the specimen sent by M. Tulbagh, governor of
the Cape of Good Hope, and preserved at Leyden, well supplies the
defects of Buffon, and he gives accurate measurements. We would
particularly call attention to the following observations of H. AUa*
mand : — *' Although the horns are solid like those of a deer, I doubt
whether they are shed like them : they seem to be an excrescence of
the OS frontis, like the bone which serves for the core of the hollow
homs of oxen and of goats, and it is scarcely possible that they can be
detached. If my doubt is well founded, the Giraffe will be a peculiar
genus (un genre particulier) differing from all those under which are
comprehended the animals who shed their homs and those whose
homs are hollow but permanent." Again, he says,' ''the adult giraffes
have in the middle of their forehead a tubercle which seems to be the
conmiencement of a third hom : this tubercle does not appear upon
the head of our specimen, which probably was as yet too young to
show it" M. Allamand also remarks that in this young specimen the
height of the posterior legs equals that of the anterior, and that the
maue is three inches in length.
In *PhiL Trans.' (voL U. p. 27) is the following 'Letter on a
Camelopardalis found about the Cape of Good Hope, from Captain
Carteret to Matthew Maty, M.D., Sec. R. S.,' dated on board of the
Swallow, Deptford, April 20, 1769— read January 25, 1770:—
" Sir, — Inclosed I have sent you the drawing of a Catnelopardalit
2'ab. 1), as it was taken off, from life, of one near the Gape of Good
ope. I shall not attempt here to give you any particular description
of this scarce and curious animal, as it is much better known to you
than it can be to me ; but from its scarcity, as I believe none have
been seen in Europe since Julius Caesar's time (when I think there
were two of them at Rome), I imsgine its drawing and a more oert^dn
knowledge of its reality will not be disagreeable to you. Aa the
existence of this fine animal has been doubted by many, if you think
it may afford any pleasure to the curious, you will make what use of
it you please.
*' The present governor of the Cape of Good Hope has sent out
parties of men on inland discoveries, some of which havt) been ab.<ieat
from eighteen months to two years, in which traverse, they have
discovered many curiosities, which it is to be hoped they will in con<
venient time communicate to the world. One of these parties crossed
many mountains and plains, in one of which they found two of
these creatures, but they only caught the young one, of which the
inclosed is the drawing, as it was taken off by them ; they endeavoured
to bring it alive to the Cape Town, but unfortunately it died. They
took off his skin, which they brought as a confirmation of the truth,
and it has been sent to Holland. These particulars, as well as the
drawing, I got from Mr. Barrawke, first secretazy to the Dutch Com-
pany at that place, in the presence of the governor. I am, Sir, your
most humble^ most obedient servant^
" Ph. Cabteret."
To this is appended the follovpog note : —
"The animal described in this letter is now in the Cabinet of
Natural History at Leyden, where I have seen it this year.
«M. Matt."
Then comes the figure, and opposite to it, p. 29 : —
"Dimensions of a made CamelopardalUf killed in a journey made
in the year 1761, through the countiy of a tribe of Hotteutotd ciiUcd
the Majuaoquas : —
Ft. In.
''Length of the head 18
Height of the fore leg, from the lower to the higher
put 10 0
From the ui)per part of the fore leg to the top of
the head 7 0
From the upper part of the fore leg to the upper
part of the hind leg 5 0
Fi-om the upper part of the hind leg to the tail . 1 0
Height of the hind leg from the upper to the lower
part 8 5"
Pennant, in the first edition (1771) of his 'Synopsis of Quadrupeds,'
shows to what extent the doubts of the animal's existence had been
carried ; for, after adverting to its locality, " the forests of Kthiopia.
and other interior parts of Africa," and its habits, he proceeds : — *' I
saw the skin of a youn^ one at Leyden well stuffed and preserved ;
otherwise I might possibly have entertained doubts in respect to the
existence of so extraordiuary a quadruped. Belon*s figure is very
good." The specimen here alluded to was most probably th&t men-
tioned by M. Allamand and in Captain Carteret's letter.
The travels of Dr. Sparrman occupied a period from the year X772
to 1776. He gives Allamand's description, and adds the following :
" This animal, when it goes fast, does not limp, as some have imagitxe^i,
but sometimes paces and sometimes gallops. Eveiy time it li£ta up
its fore feet it throws its neck back, which on other occasions it boldLs
erect ; notwithstanding this, it is by no means slow when pursued, as
M. de Buffon supposes it to be, bu^ on the contrary, it requires a* fleet
horse to hunt it. In eating the grass from off the ground it etoaiG-
times bends one of its knees, as horses do; and, in plucking^ leaves
and small branches from high trees it brings its tote feet about & Toot
1026
GIUAFFA.
GIRAFFA.
1026
and a half nearer than usual to the hind feet A CamdapardaliM which
Major Gordon wounded In the leg, bo that it could not raise itself
from the ground, nevertheless did not show the least signs of anger or
resentment; but, when its throat was cut, spumed against the ground
with a force far beyond that of any other animaL The viscera
resemble those of gaselles, but this animal had no poms oeriferus.
The flesh of the young ones is very good eating, but sometimes has a
strong flavour of a certain shrub, which is supposed to be a species of
Mimoio. The Hottentots are particularly fond of the marrow, and
chiefly for the sake of this hunt the b^ist, and kill it with their
poisoned arrows. Of the skin they make vessels, in which they keep
water and other liquors."
Le YaiUant did not meet with the Giraffe till his second journey into
the interior of Africa from the Cape during the years 1783-84-85. But
at the end of the second volume of his first journey, which commenced
in 1780, he gives figures of a male and femaJe Giraffe, and a compen-
dium of his observations, remarking that it is a kind of anticipation
which is owing in some measure to solicitations which he ought to
consider as commands. As Le Yaillant appears to be the first well-
informed zoologist of modem times who saw the animal in a state of
nature, and as he hunted it and brought it down with his own fusil,
his account is worthy of particular attention.
'' If," says Le Yaillant, " among the known quadrapeds precedency
be allowed to height, the giraffe without doubt must hold the first
rank. A male which I have in my collection, and of which a figure
is given in the eighth plate, measured, after I killed it, 16 fbet 4 inches,
from the hoof to the extremity of its horns. I use this expression
in order to be understood ; for the giraffe has no real horns, but
between its ears, at the upper extremity of the head, arise in a per-
pendicular and parallel direction, two excrescences from tiie cranium,
which without any joint stretch to the height of 8 or 9 inches, termi-
nating in a convex knob, and are surrounded by a row of strong
straight hair, which overtops them by several lines. The female is
generally lower than the male. That represented in the following
plate was only 18 feet 6 inches in height ; and her incisive teeth, which
were almost all worn away, incontestibly proved that she had
attained to her full growth. In consequence of the number of these
animals which I killed and had an opportunity of seeing, I may
establish as a certain rule that the males are generally 15 or 16 feet
in height, and the females from 13 to 14 feet. Whoever should judge
of the thickness of these animals from the above dimensions would
beigreatly deceived. The eye indeed that is accustomed to the long
full figures of Europe, finds no proportion between a height of 16 feet
•nd a length of 7 feet, taken from the tail to the breast. Another
deformity, if it may be called so, makes us contrast the parts before
with those behind. The former have a considerable thickness towards
the shoulder, but the latter are so thin and meagre that they do not
seem formed the one for the other. Naturalists and travellers who
speak of the giraffe all agree in making the hind legs only hidf the
length of those before ; but did those who assert so really see the
animal, or, if they saw it, did they considor it attentively] An
Italian autiior, who certainly never saw it, caused a figure of it to be
engraved at Yenice, in a work entitled ' Desciizioni degli Animali,'
1771. This figure is formed exactly from the descriptions which had
then been published of the animal ; but this exactness renders it so
ridiculous, that we must consider it, on the part of the Italian author,
as a severe criticism on all the accounts which had appeared, and
which have been so often repeated." Le Yaillant then goes on to
remark that of all the old authors who have treated of this animal,
Gillius is the most accurate, who expressly says that the Giraffe has
its four legs of the same length ; but that the fore thighs are so long
in comparison of those behind that the back of the animal appears
inclined like the roof of a house. ''If," says Le Yaillant, "by the
fore thighs Gillius means omoplate or shoulder-blade, his assertion is
just, and I perfectly agree with him." In a note it is added, that
among the modems the most exact engraving is without doubt that
which was executed under the inspection of Dr. Allaman, from draw-
ings fumished by Colonel Gordon. After observing that the account
of Heliodorus is far from being correct, Le Yaillant continues thus : —
" The horns, fbrming part of the cranium, as I have already said,
can never fall off. They are not solid like those of the stag, nor com-
posed of any substance analogous to those of the ox ; much less do
they consist of hair united, as Buffon supposes. They are simply of
a bony calcareous substance, divided by a multitude of small pores
like all bones, and are covered throughout their whole length with
short coarse hair, which has no resemblance to the soft down that
covers the young homs of roe-bucks or stags." The French traveller
then notices the defective figures of Buffon and Yosmaer, observing
that the defects disgrace and render of no utility to science such false
representations, which people very improperly confide in on account
of the reputation of the authors who publish them. He states that
the Giraffes, both male and female, are spotted in the same manner ;
and that) without paying attention to the inequality of size, they
may easily be disUngmshed from each other, even at a distance. The
male, on a grayish-white ground, has laige spots of a dark-brown
colour, almost approaching to black; and the female, on a like
ground, has spots of a tawny colour, which renders them less
striking. , The young male9 are at first of the colour of their
XAT. HIST. DIV. you Q.
mother, but in proportion as they advance in age and uxe tutiy
become browner.
The Giraffes feed upon the leaves of trees, and particularly on those
of a MiffiMa peculiar to the districts which they inhabit Bf eadow-grass
also forms part of their aliment; but they are not under the necessity
of kneeling down to browse or to drink, as some have improperly
believed. They often lie down to ruminate or to sleep, which causes
a considerable callosity on the sternum, and mi^es Uieir knees to be
covered with a hard skin. " Had nature," says our author in conclu-
sion, ''endowed the giraffe with an irascible disposition, it certainly
would have had cause to complain ; for tiie means with which it is
provided either for attack or defence are very trifling. It is indeed a
peaceful and timid animal ; it shuns danger, and flies firom it^ trotting
along very fast : a good horse can with difficulty overtake it. It is
said that it has not strength to defend itself; but I know, beyond a
doubt, that by its kicking it often tires out, discourages, and even
beats off the lion. Except upon one occasion I never saw it make use
of its homs : they may be considered of no utility, were it possible
to doubt the wisdom and precautions employed by nature, whose
motives we are not always able to comprehend."
Gmelin, in his 13th edition of the 'Systema Natursd' (1789),
elevates the Giraffe to a genus under the name of Camdopardalis,
with the following generic characters : — Homs very simple, covered
with skin (simplicissima pelle tecta), terminated by a fasciculus of
black hairs. Lower incisor teeth (dentes primores inferiores) eighty
spatulate, the last deeply bilobated extemallv. He gives one species^
CatndopardcUu Oiraffa^ and says that it inhabits ^nnaar, between
Upper Egypt and Ethiopia, where it has been now seen : that it is
rare in Abyssinia, and most rare in more southern Africa ; that its
haunts are leafy woods ; that it is wild, timid, very' swift (celerrima),
and elegant ; that it reposes prone like a camel ; that it feeds on grass
by divaricating the fore legs, but that its principal food consists of the
leaves of trees.
In the third edition of Pennant (1793), several additions are made
to the description of the Giraffe, but he does not notice Le Yaillant,
though the first nart of the travels of the latter, containing the
account which we have already given, was published before the issue
of the edition and before it left Pennant's hands ; for the preface
with his signature is dated ' Downing, December 1792.' He alludes
to the measurement in the ' Journal Historique,' and, quoting Pater-
son, describes the homs as one foot and half an inch long, ending
abrupt^ and with a tuft of hair issuing from the summit, adding that
they are not deciduous.
"The height of that killed by Mr. Paterson," he continues, "was
only 15 feet. The head is of an unifbrm reddish-brown ; the neck,
back, and sides, outsides of the shoulders and thighs, varied with
large tesselated, dull rust-coloured marks of a square form, with
white septaria, or narrow divisions ; on the sides the marks are less
regular ; the belly and legs whitish, faintly spotted ; the part of the
tail next to the body is covered with short smooth hairs, and the
trunk is very slender ; towards the end the hairs are very long, black,
and coarse, and forming a great tuft hanging far b^ond the tip of
the trunk ; the hoofs are cloven, 9 inches broad, and black. This
animal wants the spurious hoofs. The female has four teats. Mr.
Paterson saw six of these animals together ; possibly they might have
been the male and female with their four young." Pennant Uien goes
on to say that the animal inhabits the forests of Ethiopia, and other
interior parts of Africa, almost as high as Senegal ; but is not found
in Guinea or any of the westem parts, and, he believes, not farther
south than about 28' 10' lat., ('Journal Historique'), among the
Nemaques (Namaquas) on the northern side of the Orange River, and
that it is very timid but not swift. He says, after alluding to the
necessity for the animal to divaricate its logs veiy widely if it would
graze, that it therefore lives by browsing the leaves of trees, espedaUy
those of the Mimosa and a tree called the wild apricot *' When it
would leap," he adds, " it lifts up its fore legs and then its hind, like
a hone whose fore legs are tied. It runs very badly and awkwardly,
but continues its course very long before it stops. It is very difficult
to distinguish this animal at a distance, for when standing they look
like a decayed tree, by reason of their form, so are passed by, uid by
that deception escape." Immediately after this. Pennant repeats
verbatim the sentence from the first edition, stating that he had seen
the skin of one at Leyden, otherwise he might have entertained
doubts, &c. The figure given in this edition is evidently taken from
a stuffed specimen, but comes much nearer to the animtj than any of
those we have hitherto mentioned, except Le Yaillant's. Mr. Paterson
who \b here mentioned was sent to the Cape as a botanist bv Lady
Strathmore, and he brought to this country, on his return, the first
entire specimen of a Giraffe recorded. Lady Strathmore gave it to
John Hunter, in whose museum it long was, and the Trustees of the
Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons transferred the skin to the
British Museum when that of the collie was cleared of the stuffed
sl^s to make way for preparations more in unison with its general
zootomical character. This skin, now almost entirely hairless, is still
to be seen in the British Museum, where there are also four other
specimens and an entire skeleton.
The animal, after Uiis, still continued to be noticed in books of
Katural History, but nothing worUiy of notice occurs to us, though
8u
1027
GIRAFFA.
aiRAFPA.
loss
the render may be referred to the 'Zoography ' of Wood, and especially
to Shaw's 'Zoology/ for the information there collected.
CuWer, in the first edition of his 'R^gne Animal/ (1817), speaks
of the Girafife, CamelopardcUU, as having for its characters conical
C latent hoins in both sexes, covered with a hairy skin, and as
g one of the most remarkable animals on account of the length
of its neck, the disproportioned length of the fore legs, the osseous
taberole on the chanfi?ein, &c., but dismisses it witJh a very brief
notice. He places it between the Beer {Cervus) and the Antelopes
{Antilope),
Major (now Lieutenant-Colonel) Hamilton Smith, who has devoted
■o much attention to the Cervine and Antelopiue groups, observes
that the Giraffe stands isolated among the Ruminating ammals in
family, genus, and even species : its characters, he remarks, offer a
mixture of several genera; among which the followers of the
quinaiy system may select whether to class it, with Illiger, among
Cameline, or, with other naturalists, amongst Cervine or Antelopine
animals. The same zoologist points out its assimilation with the
camels by the length of the neck, the callosities on the sternum snd
knees, and the want of spurious hoofs, an approximation so obvious
that it did not escape the notice of the ancients ; but, he adds, that
the pedunculated form of the frontal process, in the shape of horns,
recalls that character in the Huntjak Deer, while the stiff hairs which
crown.their summits seem to want only the gluten to cement them
into true horns and embody it in systematic arrangement with the
Cavicomia. From a comparison of the characters which Colonel
Smith institutes, he thinks that the Giraffe appears most naturally
placed immediately after the Muntjaks, and before the family of
Cavicomia, or those Ruminants which are distinguished by the
possession of true horns.
M. Lesson, in his 'Manuel' (1827), places the Camelopardin^es
between the Cervules (Cervtu Muntjaky Cermu fnaschus or motcIicUus,
and Cenmt tubeomuiua) and the Tubicomes (Antelopes, &c.).
Cuvier, in his last edition of the 'R^gne Animal' (1829), appears
to take the same view of the case as Lieutenant-Colonel Smith, for he
there places the Giraffe between the Muntjak and the Ruminants h
Comes Creuses, the first genus of which is A ntUope. The character
assigned to the genus, in this edition differs somewhat from that given
in the former one, for Cuvier, who seems to have been acquainted wiUi
Dr. Riippell's interesting memoir above alluded to, adds tnat the bony
core (noyau osseux) of the horns is articulated in youth upon the os
frontis by a suture, and that in the middle of the chanfrein is a
tubercle or third horn, lai^er and much shorter, but equally articulated
by a suture. He still keeps the observation as to the disproportioned
height of the fore legs.
Fischer, in his ' Synopsis,' introduces the Giraffe {Camelopardalis)
between Cervua (Cervtu Guineentis, Linn., C. minu/fu, Blainv.) and
Antilvpe {A. cervicapra). He notices the opinion of M. Geoffroy, that
the Giraffe of Senaar differs in species from that of the Cape, and he
alludes to the following names of the animal: — JirataJla Amhar;
Deba of the Ethiopians ; Naip of the Hottentots ; Impatoo of the
Bosjesmans.
Mr. Swainson, 'Classification of Quadrupeds' (1835), appeals to the
opinion and views of Colonel Smith, as confirming the station assigned
to the CamdoparcUg, in his tabular exposition of the families of
Ruminants, namely : —
Tribe Jluminani^, The Ruminating Quadrupeds.
1. r Horns sheathing : form gra- 1 j ^., .
Sub-typicaLt cile, slendeT^ ^ ^Anithpu
( Horns solid, deciduous. CervidoB,
Typical
Antelopes.
Oxen.
Stags.
Musks.
8. Horns wanting; fore legs 1 ;|^ , . ,
Aberrant / shorter than the hinder. J^^'^^^^'
Group. [Hon« verj^hort, covered j Camelopard<B. Giraffes.
The following is Mr. Swainson's definition of his family Camda-
parcUe: — " Frontal processes (in -both sexes) prolonged in the shape of
horns, covered with hairy skin, which is continued from the scalp, and
terminated by long hard bristles." " CamelopardaUi, Ant, cutting
teeth, -. ; canine none ; grinders^ — . Head long ; upper lip entire ;
o 8
lachrymal^ sinus wanting ; neck enormously long, with a short mane ;
the anterior parts much elevated; back sloping; logs slender, the
hinder ones shortest ; tail tufted. 2. Sp. Africa. 1. C. antiquonm,
Sw., Northern Giraffe. 2. C, auetralis, Sw., South African Giraffa
The ruminants are united by this genus and Camehu to the Solipedes"
The family is accordingly placed in this part of the work, between the
MoBckida and the tribe SoUpeda (single-hoofed quadrupeds), the first
genus of which, in Mr. Swainaon's arrangement, is CamdMi, Mr. Swain-
son adds, that there seems good reason for believing that a third
species of Giraffe exists in the interior of Africa.
In December 1836 Mr. Ogiiby divided the Ruminaniia mto the fol-
lowing families : — 1, Camdida; 2, Cervidce; 8, Maachida; 4, Capridce;
6, BovidcB, The genus CamdopardaliM is placed by this zoologist, to
whom we are indebted for much and valuable information concerning
the Ruminants, as the first of the Cervidce, with the following charac-
ters:— Horns, in both sexes, persistent (perennia), simple, covered
with skin. Rhinaria, none. Lachrymal sinuses, none. Interdigital
fosssB, small Tngiiiniil follicuU, none. Teats, four. Two species are
recorded under the names of C JSthiopieut and C. Capentit. The
other genera admitted by Mr. Ogiiby into the family Oervidoi are
Tarandui, Alees, Cerwu, Caprea^ and Prox,
The main result of Professor Owen's observations (1888) is to agree
with Cuvier in placing Camdopardalii between Cervu$ and Antilope,
and he U^nks somewhat nearer the deer. He finds that the organs
of relation are those chiefly modified in correspondence with the
peculiar geographical position and habits of the Giraffe, the oxgans of
nutrition differing but little from those of other homed Ruminants.
Dr. Gray places his tribe Oirafina after the Bovina and before the
Oervina, in the order UngvlaUu
We must now trace the reappearance of the living animal in Europe.
M. Lesson states that the first were an offering by the Prince of
Damascus to the emperor Frederick IL, and described by Albertus
Magnus, under the name of Sereph and Anabula. The author of the
' Menageries' remarks that, till the year 1827, when a Gimffe anived
in England and another in France, the animal bad not been seen in
Europe since the end of the 15th century, when the Soldan of Egypt
sent one to Lorenzo de' Medici This individual was represented in
the frescoes at Poggio Acajano, a villa belonging to the grand duke of
Tuscany, between Florence and Prato. It was, the author adds, very
familiar with the inhabitants in the former cit^, living on the fmits
of the country, particularly apples, and stretching up its long neck to
the first-floors of the houses to implore a meaL Of the comparatively
late arrivals, another was at Venice in 1828, and a fourth was sent to
Constantinople, but died there. These animals, according to the same
authority, were all presents from the Pasha of Egypt The Giraffe
sent to the French menagerie did well : that presented at the same
time to George IV. was the shortest and weakest.* [The consuls of
each nation drew lots for the choice.] She was never in good health
and had been roughlv treated, and tnough she had grown 18 inches
up to June 1829, she sank gradually and died in the autumn of
that year.
The Zoological Society of London had entered into a contract for
the purchase of Giraffes, and in 1886 four of these animals (three
males and one female) were safely brought ficom the south-west of
Kordofan, where they were captured, to the gardens of the society at
the Regent's Park. The following account of the capture of these
animals is given by the author of ' Zoological Anecdotes :' —
" M. Thibaut quitted Cairo in April 1884, and after sailing up the
Nile as far as Wadi Haifa, the second cataract, took camels and pro-
ceeded to Debbat, a province of Dongolah, whence he started for the
desert of Kordofan.
" Being perfectly acquainted with the locality, and on friendly terms
with the Arabs, he attached them still more by the desire of profit.
All were desirous of accompanying him in the pursuit of the giraffes,
for up to that time they had treated them solely for the sake of their
flesh, which they ate, and the skin, of which they made bucklers and
sandals. The party proceeded to the south-west of Kordofan, and in
August were rewarded by the sight of two beautiful giraffes ; a rapid
chase of three hours, on horses accustomed to the fatigues of the
desert, put them in possession of the largest of these noble animals ;
unable to take her alive, the Arabs killed her with blows of the sabre,
and cutting her to pieces, carried the meat to their head-quarter^
which had been established in a wooded situation — an arrangement
necessary for their own comfort, and to secure pasturage for their
camels. They deferred till the following day the pursuit of the
motherless young one, knowing they would have no difficulty in again
discovering it. The Arabs quickly covered the live embers with sUoes
of the meat, which M. Thibaut pronounces to be excellent.
"On the following morning the party started at daybreak in search
of the young giraffe, of which they had lost sight not far from the
camp. The sandy desert is well adapted to afford indications to a
hunter, and in a very short time they were on the track ojf the object
of their pursuit ; they followed the traces with rapidity and in silence
lest the creature should be alarmed whilst yet at a distance; but
after a laborious chase of several hours through brambles and thorny
trees, they at last succeeded in capturing the coveted prize. It was
now necessary to rest for three or four days, in order to render the
giraffe sufficient! v tame; during which period an Arab constantly
held it at the end of a long cord ; by degrees it became accustomed
to the presence of man, and was induced to take nourishment, but it
was found necessary to insert a finger into its mouth to deceive it
into the idea that it was with its dam ; it then sucked freely. When
captured its age was about nineteen months. Five giraffes Were
taken by the party, but the cold weather of December 1884 killed
four of them in the desert on the route to Dongolah ; happily that first
taken survived, and reached Dongolah in January 1835, after a sojourn
of twenty-two days in the desert
" Unwilling to leave with a solitary specimen, M. Thibaut returned
to the desert, where he remained three months, crossing it in all
directions, and frequently exposed to great hardsbdps and privations ;
but he was eventually rewarded by obtaining three giraffes, all smallcz
than the first. A great trial awaited them, as l^ey had to proceed by
water the whole distance from Wadi Haifa to Cairo, and thence to
J
lOM aiRAFFi,
AleiaDdrU and Holts, beeides the vojage to England. The; mffoied
coosiderab); at b<h, duriug a pusags of twenty-four days io Tery tem-
peatuoua weather, and on reaching Malta in NoTflmW they were
detained in quarantine twentj-Sva daya more ; but despite aU these
difflculUes the; reached- Ecgknd in eafety, and on the 2Sth of Hay
ware conducted to the gardens. At daybreak the keepers and aevsnd
gentlemen of aoieDtifio distinction amved at the Biunswick Wharf,
and the animjla were handed over to Ibem. The distance to the
gardens waa net leaa than six miles, and some curiosity, not muningled
with anxiety, was felt as to how this would be accomplished. Each
giraffe was led between two keepers by means of long reins attached
to tlie head : the animals walked along at a rapid pace, genenlly in
advance of their conductors, but were perfectly tractaUe. It being
so early ia the morning few peraona were about, but the aatoniahment
of thoae who did behold tbe unlooked-for proceaaion was ludicroua in
the extreme. As the girafTes etalked by, followed by H. Thibaut
and otbeiB in Eastern costume, the worthy polioemen and early
CDtTee-sellera stared with aatcniahmeDt, and a lew revellen, whose
reeling steps proclaimed their diaaipation, evidently doubted whether
the strange figures they beheld wore real flesh and bone, or Sotions
conjured up by their potations ; their gaze of itupid wonder indi-
cating that of the two they were inclined to the latter opinion.
" When the giraSes entered ths park, and firat caught sight of the
green trees, they became excited and hauled upon the reins, waving
the bead and neck from side to aide, with an ocoaaional caracole and
kick*out of ths bind legs, but U. Thibaut contrived to coax Uiem
along with pieces of sugar, of which they were very fond, and he had
the aatisracUaD of depositing his Taluabls charges without aooideat
or misadventure in tbe sanded paddock prepared for their reoeption.
The sum agreed on with M. Thibaut was 2501. far the first ginfle
he obtained, SOO/. for tbe second, l£Of. for the third, and lOOJ. for the
fourth — in all TOOI. ; but the actual cost to the social amounted to
no less than 23861. S(. lit, in consequence of Iha heavy expenses of
freight, ooQveyanco, Ao."
One of these animals {a nude) died shortly after its arrival In
18SS the following were Uie measurements of the thies survivors : —
Hclfhturarainaeh. Wlcbn. Enmii.
Feci. laclif*. FHt. lacbei- Feet. Inchn.
Qulb Allah (male) . . 13 B 7 11 6 11
Selim (male) ... IS 0 7 fij 6 T
Zaida (female) ... 12 11 7 4 e T
When they arrived at tbe gardens on the 241& of May 1836, Quib
Allah could reach only to 1 1 feet fl inches, so that he has grown since
that time 2 feet 2 tnchea. The othera hare grown in proportion.
Tbe length of the mane in one of Uie males and in the female is
23 inches, and in the other male 2^ inches.
Since this time the female has produced several young ones, which
have been sold, and are still living in various parts of the world.
They seem to bear confinement very well, although it should be
remembered that their apartments in the Society's gardens are very
sJry and well ventilated. Two females have since been added to the
collection in the gardens.
They are fed principally on the best hay, placed in high tacks ;
they like a carrot, and are very fond of onions ; lump-sugar ia also a
favourite treat to them. They each eat about ISlba. of food a day,
and drink four gallons of water.
The erroneous statement that the fore legs are longer than tbe
hind legs has been repeated so frequently and so lately by auUiorities
which deservedly have weight, that it becomes necessary to give the
result of examination of tbe skeleton. In reality the hind l^s, taking
tbe limbs only &om tbeir setting on, are longer than the fore legs by
about one inch. A measurement taken from ths head of the humerus
to the end of the ungueal phalanges in ths fore foot, gives an inch less
in length than a measurement taken from the head of the femur to
the end of the ungueal phalanges in the hind foot.
KetUier Hr. Swunson nor Hr. OgUby gives any specific characters
for the two species named by them, and but one species is recognised
by Dr. Gray. If, as Professor Owen's observations tend to show, there
ie no tbini horn in the forehead of the northern male giraffes, we do
not exactly see on what the specific character ia to rest. The dark
colour of the adult male of Southern Africa, if It should prove
differ from that of the northern male, would not, it is submitt«d,
sanction more than variety. The specimens presented by Mr. fiurchell
to the British Huseum came from Eosi Fountain, and tbe difference
between tbe dark spots of the male and the tawny epota of the female
B xtrongly marked. Tbe specimen frcm Central Africa presented by
Colonel Denham is very young, and the spots are bright yellowish
tawny. Hr. Steedman, in his 'Wanderings and Adventures in the
Interior of Southern Africa' (183S), says that the giraffes are foond
on the open plains several days' jonmey to the north of Litakou in
email troops of six or ten individuals, and that th^ feed prineipall;
upon the various dwarf species of Anacia' which grow abundantly in
the arid dsserta. The writer adds that, though formerly found within
' 91r Bverard Home italH that the fivaoi'lte iptdei li Acada XartfflaBB,
years past been known to pass the Qareep, 0
aeparates it from the Qriqoa and Coranna country ; and he ni
tbeir moving the fore and hind feet of the nme udc^ and then the
opposite iiair alternately, exhibiting the paoe which is wiuallf colled
ClraOt {tJMHlgparAiKi air<t^).
Those who wish to obtain fiirther information on the Qitkffe
should consult the works of Etein, Schreber, Vosmaer, Zimmerman,
and Lichtenstein ; also Sir W. C. Harris's ' Portraits of tbe Oama
and ^ild Fowl of South Africa,' and Captun Qordon Cuming'*
' AdventnreB.'
QIZZARD, the muscular or pylorio division of the stomach in larda.
In these an? mala the stomach IS divided into two parts. The lower
msophwus (ths canal which is continued from the crop to the stomach)
first diktee into a cavity called the proventriculus, or glandular divi-
sion of the stomach ; tins has a very vascular lining membrane, and
is furnished with numerous lai^ follicles, or glands, placed bttween
the mucous and muscular coste, which secrete a solvent fluid very
umilar to the gastric juice in Mummalia. This first division of th«
stomach mostly terminatea immediately in the giEiard, which ia
situated below the liver, on the left side of the abdomen, resting oa
the intestines. This organ has more or less a lengtliened form, and
is fumiahed at its upper part with two openings, the cardiac and
pyloric, which are cl^se together 1 the farmer communicates with the
proventriculus and the latter wiUi the intestines. Below thoee open-
ings the gizzard dilates into a pouch, in the middle of the anterior
and posterior sides of which ia a tendon to which muscular fibres ara
attached. In birds of prey, whose food is eaaily digested, the giiaard .
is a mere membranous cavity ; but in graminivorous birds it is fur-
nished with muscles cf great power, which are arranged in four masses:
the two largest, which ara situated anteriorly aud posteriorly, are
connected with the central tendons, and are called the digastric
muscles ; between these are two thinner onaa
The lining membrane of the gizsud is very hard Bod thick, and
opposite to the digastric muscles two callous spots are formed by the
pressure and friction. The muedee take up so much room in the
stomach of grsminivoroua birds that ths crop is a neceaaary appendage
to the gizEU^ and transmits tlie food, little by little, to be digeslfld.
The food is triturated in the giziard by the immediate agenc? fflT hard
K31
GLACIERS.
GLACIERS.
1032
foreign bodies, as sand and gravel, which the birds swallow ; these
bruise the grains of com by the action of the muscles, and deprive
them of their vitality, when the gaatrio juice acts upon and. dissolves
them. The pebbles thus perform the vicarious office of teeth.
Hunter inferred that the action of the great digastric muacles of
the stomach in birds was rotatory, and says, " Although the motion
of the gizzard is hardly visible, yet we may be made very sensible of
its action by putting Uie ear to the side of a fowl while it is grinding
its food, when the stones can be heard moving one upon another."
The pyloric or intestinal orifice of the gizzard is furnished with a
valve, which is of considerable size in those birds which swallow large
stones, as the ostrich ; it prevents them from passing into the intes-
tines, and it also keeps the food in the stomach imtil it has undergone
a sufficient degree of trituration or mastication to fit it for nutrition.
GLACIERS, a French word received into our language, and
which must not be confounded with Glaci^re, which has a difierent
signification.
The glaciers, as defined by Saussure, are those eternal masses of ice
which are formed and remain in the open air in the valleys and on
the slopes of lofty mountains.
In speaking of glaciers we generally refer to those of the Alps, as
being the best known, though there are many in other places. The
glaciers of the Alps have been frequently described by travellers,
geographers, and naturaliBts, but by none in so much detail as by
Saussure and Gruner.
I^ says Saussure, a spectator could be placed at a sufficient height
above the Alps to embrace at one view those of Switzerland, Savoy,
and Dauphin^, he would see a mass of mountains intersected by
numeroua valleys, and composed of several parallel chains, the highest
in the middle, and the others decreasing gradually as they recede.
The central and highest chain would appear to him bristled with
craggy rocks, covered even in summer with snow and ice in all those
places that are not absolutely vertical ; but on both sides of the chain
he would see deep and verdant valleys, well watered and covered with
villages. Examining still more in detail, he would remark that the
central range is composed of lofty peaks and smaller chains, covered
with snow on their tops, but having all their slopes that are not very
much inclined covered with ice, while the intervals between them
form elevated valleys filled with immense masses of ice, extending
'down into the deep and inhabited valleys which border on the great
chain. The chain nearest to the centre would present to the observer
the same phenomenon, but on a smaller scale, beyond which he would
zee no more ice, nor even snow, save here and there on some of the
more elevated summits.
From what precedes, continues Saussure, I recognise two kinds of
glaciers, quite distinct from each other, and to whi(£ all their varieties
may be referred. The first are contained in the valleys more or less
deep, and which though at great elevations are still commanded on
all sides by mountains higher still ; while the second are not contained
in the valleys, but are spread out on the slopes of the higher peaks.
The distinguishing features of the two kinds are the greater extent
and depth of the former, and the greater compactness of the mass ;
but as these drcumstanoes seem to depend on the situation of the
glaciers, as is proved by the insensible passage of the one kind into
the other in many localities, the diatiuction of Saussure seems to have
little foundation.
The formation of the glaciers, whatever are their position and
appearance, is due to the great quantity of snow which falls in the
high and cold regions of the moimtains, and which ihe heat of summer
can but partially thaw. When the slopes of the lofty peaks are very
rapid, the snow, being unable to rest upon them, ^ps down into the
▼alleys in the form of avalanches ; and this being added to what falls
directly into the valleys, there is accumulated an enormous quantity
that becomes compressed by its own weight This snow is subse-
quently converted into a kind of ice by the following process : — The
rains which occasionally fall, and the water resulting from the partial
melting of the snow in the warmer months, percolates the mass,
steeping it throughout; and in this state, being seized by the cold of
the succeeding winter, it is consolidated into a glacier. It will how-
ever be easily conceived that the ice so formed is very difierent from
that found in ponds or lakes ; it has neither the hardness, the com-
pactness, the solidity, nor the transparency of the latter, but is, on
the contrary, porous and opaque. The water in filtering through the
mass not being able to drive out all the air lodged in the interstices,
this air, together with that which is liberated during the subsequent
congelation, collects into bubbles of various forms and sizes, destroying
the transparency and coheeiveness of the mass. With regard to the
snow which rests on the slopes, it is evident that it will l^ subject to
the same effect of rain and warmth as that in the valleys, but, from
the very position in which it lies, the water in great part runs off, or
is only retained towards the bottom of the slope, whence it results
that the glaciers so situated are in general of much looser texture
than the glaciers of the valleys. It is only towards the bottom, where
the water accumulates, that the ice of the former acquires a consist-
ence equal to that of the latter. This solidity decreases as you ascend,
till towards the top there is nothing but snow.
The surface of the glaciers depends entirely upon the ground on
which they rest. When the bottom is even, or but slightly inclined^
the surface of the glacier, though rough and granulated, is also even,
presenting but few crevices, and these not wide ; but in proportion as
the bottom is inclined or rugged the surface is abrupt and uneven.
Ebel, who follows Saussure, says, that wherdVer the slope exceeds 30
or 40 degrees, the beds of ice bresk into fragments, which get dis-
placed, upheaved, and piled together in every variety of fantastic
form, and exhibit immense chasms many feet in breadth, and often
more than 100 feet deep.
The splitting of the ice on a change of weather, or in consequence
of unequal pressure on an uneven bottom, shakes the very hills, and
produces a noise which, reverberated from the mountains, sounds like
thunder. The breadth and depth of the chasms thus occasioned vary
considerably according to circumstances. Sometimes their dimensions
are rapidly increased, either from the slipping away of the lower mass
while the upper remains stationary, or in consequence of the erosion
of the water running down them from the thawing of the surface ;
and at other times they are suddenly closed up by the descent of the
upper portion against the lower, which is fixed. The ice at those
fissures down which the water flows freely is generally transparent,
and is observed to' be of a greenish colour towards the top and bluish
towards the bottom. These clefts are frequently hidden by a
covering of snow, which renders them exceedingly dangerous.
Along the anterior edge and lateral margins of some of the larger
glaciers there are masses of debris accumtdated into the form of long
dykes or parapets, which in the Tyrol are known by the name of
'ux>ckne muren,' and in Savoy by that of 'morain,' which has more
generally prevailed. In Iceland, where the glaciers are called ' jokiil,'
the moraines are named ' jokiilsgiarda' The formation of the moraines
is easily conceived. When the rocks bordering the glaciera are
themselves baro of snow or ice, in consequence of the rapidity of the
slope, and are schistose or stratified, they are easily disintegrated by
the alternate action of wet and frost, heat and cold, and the fragments
thus detached roll down to the lateral edges of the glacier, where the
greater part is stopped, while some isolated blocks are urged farther
towards the middle. The general inclination of the glacier and its
progressive motion downwards also collect a quantity of these debris
along the anterior boundary of the ice-field, so that in some cases the
whole glacier is entirely surrounded by a moraine. Wherever the
mountfun-slopes are protected by a glacier of their own, or where the
rock is of compact indestructible granite, no moraine is formed.
Thus it happens that some glaciera have a moraine on each side,
othera on one side only, and some none at alL Occasionally also a
moraine is found where none could have been formed, in which case
it is one that has been brought down from a higher station by the
motion of the glacier, as is evident from the nature of the debris.
These moraines sometimes attain a height of a 'hundred feet. It is
observable however that when the glaciera have diminished in size,
the moraine is above the ice-field ; and when, on the contrary, the
glacier has increased the moraine is lower than the ice, and in some
cases the moraine and the ice are on a level.
H. Agassis, of Geneva, in a paper on glaciers, moraines, and erratic
blocks, published in the < Biblioth^que Universelle,' No. 24, 1837, has
called attention to the existence of moraines at the height of several
hundred feet above the bottom of the superior Alpine valleys, where
there are no lonf^er any glaciera ; but in descending into the lower
valleys they are found in succession as high as twelve, fifteen, and
eighteen hundred feet They may even be observed at two thousand
feet above the bed of the Rhdne, in the neighbourhood of St. Maurice,
in the Vallais, and can also be traced at a great height i-ound the Lake
of Geneva : from this &ct and other collateral ciroumstancea M. Agassiz
concludes that at one time the glaciera covered the whole of the plains
of Switzerland to a height of 3300 feet above the level of the sea, or
2155 feet above the present surface of the Lake of Geneva, and
extended as far as the Jura. To account for the existence of such
masses of ice he supposes the alternate cooling and heating of the
globe at distant but given periods. He appeals to fossil remains in
confirmation of his theory, and tries to explain the existence of the
erratic blocks of the Jura by supposing them to be the transported
moraines of his immense glaciers.
Besides the bordering moraines there are long and high ridges
formed of fragments of rocks, bouldera, sand, and earth, in the middle
of the glaciers, and at a considerable distance from the margins, to
which however they are generally parallel. These banks, which in
the German cantons of Switzerland are called ' guferlinien,' are some-
times numerous and high. Thus, in traveraing the great ice-field
above Montanvert, Saussure crossed four or five of them which were
80 or 40 feet high, an elevation due in part to the quantity of the
d^ris, and in part to the sinking of the surrounding ice, which thaws,
while that under the heap, sheltered from the sun, remains unthawed.
The glacier of Rosboden is said to exhibit the greatest number of
these ridges, and of the largest dimensions. The formation of these
banks is thus explained. The glacier progressively slipping down
upon the inclined bottom of the valley recedes from the sides, carry-
ing part of the lateral moraine along with and upon it. This retreat
often leaves a considerable space, particularly in the wider valleys,
between the foot of the mountains and the edge of the glaciers, which
space, during the succeeding winter, becomes filled up with fresh
snow, which is converted into ice by the process already described.
i
1033
QLACIERS.
GLACIERS.
1034
and on which a new monine is collected. This recedes like the first,
and so on ; BO that were it not that the moraines of the opposite
sides sometimes become confounded into one, and because the motion
of the ice on the irregular slopes of the valley disturbs the order and
parallelism of the banks, they might serve to determine the age of
the glaciers.
In winter, as well as in summer, there is continually a quantity of
water flowing out from the lower parts of the glaciers, though much
less abundantly in the former than in the latter season. This water
proceeds from the thawing of the under surface of the glacier, occa-
sioned by subterraneous heat* In the winter it oozes from under the
ice in small streamlets ; but in the spring and summer months, when
it is greatly increased in quantity, it bursts away the ice from before
it, and gushes out in plenteous streams from the cavems it has exca-
vated ; some of these grottoes are 100 feet high, and from 50 to 80
feet wide, presenting very various and sometimes highly picturesque
appearances. The torrents of the glaciers are remarkable for the
whitish-blue colour of their waters, which they maintain for a
distance of some leagues.
There is a phenomenon, which the Germans call ' gletschergeblase,'
which results from the sudden escape of the air imprisoned beneath
the glaciers. On a change of temperature this escapes through the
crevices in strong currents of uisupportably-cold wind, driving like
snow-dust the fine icy particles with which it is loaded.
All the Alpine valleys being inclined planes, it is natural to suppose
that the glaciers must slip down by their own weight, whenever any
circumstance destroys their adhesion to the sides and bottoms of the
valleys. This adhesion is constantly diminished, even in the depth of
winter, by the natural warmth of the earth, which thaws the under
surface of the glacier ; but as this takes place only in those parts
where the great thickness of the ice protects the soil from the efiects
of external cold, the mass by this action lb but partially disengaged,
and therefore still maintains its position. But when the warmth of
summer heats the soil all around, and thaws the ice at its surface and
edges, the liberation of the glacier goes on with rapidity, aided as it is
moreover by the erosion of the underflowing currents, and the abra-
sion of the lumps of ice and the stones which they bear along. Then
it is that the whole mass, obeying the impulse of gravity, slips down
and invades the fertile valleys below, presenting the singular spectacle
of an ice-field terminating on flowery meadows and contiguous to rich
harvests. The limits which the descending glaciers attain are subject
to variation. .
Great attention has been lately given to the causes of the descent
of glaciers. The hypotheses by which the descent of the vast masses
of frozen snow down the valleys of the Alps and other mountainous
regions has been explained, or attempted to be explained, are essentially
two. First, the original notion of Saussure, put in its most original
form, that the g1acier*masses descended the valleys by the force of
gravity ; and secondly, the later notion of Charpentier, that the icy
masses were pushed down the valleys by an internal expansion caused
by congelation of water in their internal cavities. Each of these
original notions takes at least two forms. Saussure's hypothesis,
indeed, appears in three modifications of importance.
1 A. The view of Mr. R. Mallet, communicated to the Geological
Society of Dublin, recognises the descent of the glacier by gravity,
but adds the hydrostatic pressure of water below the glacier — upward
and forward; and it is impossible to deny to this speculation the
merit of removing some considerable difficulty in the reception of
the general hypo^esis of Saussure.
1 B. The view of Professor James Forbes, who, besides noticing
peculiar structures (the blue bands) in the glacier ice, and measuring
the velocity of glacier movements in different parts of the valley,
and in the central and lateral parts of the ' ice-current' (if we may so
speak), has proved the bending of the ice from a straight transverse
line during its movements ; and has, by means of artificial prepara-
tions, imitated some of the peculiar glacial structures. Hii view is,
that glaciers descend the valleys in consequence of so much mutual
yielding and adjustment (plasticity) of their parts as to entitle them
to be regarded as viscous or semifluid masses, flowing slowly imder
the influence of gravity.
1 C. Mr. Hopkins, recurring to the original notion of Saussure,
maintains the mechanical probability of the glaciers sliding down
their containing valleys, as solid bodies; that is to say, sliding in
consequence of the general slope of the valley, and not in consequence
of the internal displacements and readjustments of the icy mass.
Displacements and readjustments happen in this view no less than in
Mr. Forbes's hypothesis. The icy mass is subject to extension, to
flexure, and fracture under tension, and a variety of accidents, which
Mr. Hopkins has employed to explain the unequal rates of move-
ment, the varying forms of fissures, &c. in glaciers. Ice may be
regarded as in a certain degree plsstic, since it is flexible ; but none of
these things interfere with the essential condition of this hypoUieslB,
namely, the sliding of the whole ice-mass on its bed. This sliding is
in a great measure due to the perpetual slow fusion of the lower
surface of the ice, which leaves it in a constant state of disintegration,
&C. Mr. Hopkins has made experiments on the sliding of ice ; from
which it results, that even at angles of inclination from the horizon
much below 1 degree, the movement of the ice masses on a rough
flagstone, while the lower surface was subject to slow fusion, was
very discemible, and found to follow a simple law proportioned to
the sine of the angle of inclination.
2 A. The second branch of the hypothesis alluded to, originating
with Charpentier, has further ramified into two forms. Charpentier
thought the congelation of water in many fissures of the glacier
must necessarily urge portions of it forward in the direction of least
resistance. But as the glacier ia sliding by day and by night, in
summer and in winter, sliding unequally in different parts of its
descent, and not with such an order of inequality as fits to the
hypothesis ; and as there is no assignable reason (in this hypothesis)
for the formation of new fissures, and the continuation of the
process, this whole speculation (the dilation hypothesis) has been
abandoned.
2 B. Another form has been given to it by M. Agassiz. This
eminent explorer of the Alpine glaciers ascribes, their onward move-
ment to congelation of water, not in the cavities of Charpentier,
but in minute capillary fissures and spaces among the granular
constituent masses of the glacier. WiUi such a power of expansion,
altogether independent of gravity, M. Agassiz esteemed it possible
to sllow of the movement of glaciers, even across level countries,
and thus to account for many geological phenomena difficult to be
otherwise explained, as erratic blocks and other diluvial phenomena.
Mr. Hopkins has, however, exclusively shown that by the means
supposed no such power of onward movement can be exercised. Mr.
Forbes has proved the actual phenomena of glaciers to be incon-
sistent with the assimiption of such congelation as a cause and with
the effects ascribed to it by Agassiz. It is clear from all experiments
and mechanical reasonings, that gravity causes the descent of glaciera ;
but there remain some further researches to be made into the true
internal structure of ice, and the true state of the lower surface of
glaciers, before we can regard the inquiry as complete.
The most recent writers on the phenomena of the glaciers are the
Messrs. Schlagintweit, who have published a work on the 'Physical
Geography of the Alps.'
The investigations of Agassiz and others into the history of the
glaciers of the Alps, &c., and their former greater extension, have
rendered it very probable that this enormous ice-power has been
actively at work in early geological periods in situations where now
no fields of ice ever occur. Observations of effects such as glaciers
are known to produce on surfaces which they traverse ; smoothed
and rounded rocks — grooved surfaces — striation parallel to the grooves
— appear to require the existence and movement of glaciers down
some of the valleys which intersect the Snowdonian, the Cumbrian,
and Irish mountains. One of the effects attendant on glaciers is the
transport of detritus on the surface of the ice till it melts, or in
the case of the glacier meeting the sea, breaks off in an icebei^ to
be drifted by oceanic currents. It is believed by Agassiz that the
immense single blocks of stone which lie on the Jura, opposite the
valleys of the Alps, have been deposited there by glaciers, not
drifted by water-currents, and this speculation he has applied to far
greater areas and more difficult cases, such as the accumulation of
erratic blocks, g^vel mounds, and diluvial heaps in level regions like
those which margin the ancient tertiary Bay of Dublin, or abound in
the central plains of England. From so great an extension of this
speculation, founded as it is on an erroneous hypothesis of glacial
movement, Mr. Hopkins's demonstrations warn us to dissent ; but if,
as may be easily believed, the ancient glacier streams of Cumberland
delivered the detrital blocks of Shap and Carrock into the sea by the
breaking off of icebergs, these may have been drifted by currents to
Staffordshire, to the mouth of the Tyne, and the valleys of York and
Holdemess.
. It may be objected that for such an icy covering to Snowdon and
Skiddaw, a great reduction of climate ia necessary, and that this is
not consonant with the general tenor of geologiced inferences, which
point to more elevated temperatures in early periods. But the reply
is easy. The evidence of warm climates in northern zones relied on
by geologists applies to far earlier periods; and in respect of this
comparatively late period, a reduction of temperature to the extent
required for the production of glaciers on the mountains of Wales
and Cumberland is perfectly possible by a mere change of the dispo-
sition of land and water — since in fact the temperature of the
British Islands is now in excess above the mean of their latitude by
5**, 10**, 15**, and more, and this excess is merely due to oceanic
currents and other conditions which vary with the distribution of
land and water.
Notwithstanding the immense accesnon of snow and ice which the
glaciers receive every winter, and which is much greater than what
could possibly be thawed by the mere effect of a short summer in the
higher Alpine regions, it is found that they have not sensibly increased.
If for one or a few years in succession some of the glaciers are observed
to descend lower than usual, they are found in the following years to
recede proportionably ; thus they are confined within certain limits
by a compensating process of nature. The evaporation from ice, and
particularly from snow, is considerable even in winter, and goes on
with great rapidity in a dry and rarefied air ; and subterranean heat^
as we have already observed, produces throughout the year a certain
diminution of the glaciers at their under surfoce. In the summer the
1035
GLADIOLUS.
GLAND.
1036
general thawing of all the parts exposed to the direct rays of the sun,
to the-warm atmosphere, and to Uie heated soil at the edges of the
glaciers, tends greatly to diminish the quantity of ice — an effect
increased by the mechanical action of the torrents which this thawing
occasions. But all these causes, powerful as they are, would be insuf-
ficient to prevent a constant though gradual increase of the ice, were
it not for the advance of the glaciers into the warm atmosphere of
the lower valleya The greater the increase of the preceding winter
the greater the pressure from above, and the lower the glacier slips
into the thawing region. The farther it slips the greater space is left
l^hind to be filled up, and consequently the greater time must elapse
before the mass can again be m^^ forward. During this time the
lower extremity, subjected to the heat of two or uiree summers,
recedes as mucn as or more than it had before advanced ; and thus an
admirable compensation is established, by which the cultivated lands
of the lower valleys are secured against ike unlimited encroachments
of the glaciers.
The number and extent of the Alpine glaciers is veiy considerable.
From Mont Blanc to the borders of the Tyrol there are reckoned
about 400 glaciers, of which a very few are only 3 miles in length ;
the greater number range from 10 to 15 miles long, and from a mile
to 24 miles broad. The thickness of some of the glaciers is also very
considerable, being from 100 to 600 feet.
It is calculated that the glaciers of the Tyrol, Switzerland, Pied-
mont, and Savoy form together a superficial extent of 1484 square
miles. Such are the great reservoirs whence some of the principal
rivers of Europe draw their inexhaustible supplies. It is observable
that there are but few glaciers in the direction of east and west.
The above account refers chiefly to the glaciers of the Alps ; but
as all glaciers, wherever they may be, have the same origin, it is
presumable they are also subjected to like influences, and present
■imilar phenomena.
The Pyrenean chain, as also the Sierra Nevada, have glaciers,
though they are almost all on the northern slopes, there being none
on the southern declivities, except in such places as are sheltered from
the sun and south wind by other and more advanced mountains. In
the mountains of Norway there are several glaciers. Spitzbezgen has
its eminences covered with snow and surrounded by glaciers.
In Iceland the glaciers are both numerous and extensive; they
generally hang on the rapid slopes of the mountains, and sometimes
wholly encase them. These ice-clad elevations are termed Jokiils,
the principal of which is that named Klofa Jokiil, in the eastern
quai4er of the island, and which, according to Henderson, forms, with
little or no interruption, a vast chain of ice and snow mountains not
less than 8000 miles square. Another, ^called Blafell's Jokiil, extends
from near Tindafiall 100 miles across the island in a westerly
and northerly direction, and near the Lake Hvitdrvatn presents the
most magnificent elaciers. There are numerous other glaciers ; many
of tbem, besides the usual phenomena, exhibiting marks of the extra-
ordinary couvalsiouB occasioued by volcanic action and the emission
of hot water from the sides of the mountains.
Greenland, as far as is known, contains innumerable glaciers, many
of great thickness ; and the inhabitants of both the east and west
coast are persuaded of their continual increase. It is remarkable that
although Graah, in his account of Greenland, describes the glaciers as
formed in the same manner with those of the Alps, yet he and all
travellers notice the beautiful transparency and consequent compact-
ness of the northern glaciers, and of the icebergs which have been
detached from them; a circumstance which seems to denote some
peculiar modification of the process of their formation.
Along the south-west coast of South America there are extensive
glaciers, as also in the Strait of Magalhaens, and in Tierra del
Fuego.
In the Himalayas glaciers have been observed, and all the phenomena
presented in Europe have also been found there.
(SausBure, Voyages dans Us Alpes; MaUet, in Trans, of the Jhiblin
Oeol. Society; Forbes, in Jameson's Journal f and Tour in the Alps;
Hopkins, in Cambridge Trans, and PhiL Magazine ; Lyell, Principles
of Geology.) [See Supplement.]
GLADIOLUS, Corn-Flag (from ' gladius,' a sword, referring to the
shape of the leaves), a genvis of Plants belonging to the natural order
JridactcB. It has a tubular 2-lipped corolla ; segments undulate and
unequal ; stigma trifid ; seeds with an arillus ; root a coated bulb ;
leaves ensifonn, sheathing. The species in the gardens are bulbous,
and are chiefly brought from the Cape of Good Hope.
O. segetum has about 10 flowers in two rows. The upper division
of the corolla is divaricate, the lower segment nearly equal and lanoeo*
late ; anthers longer than the filaments ; capsules with 8 furrows. It
has been suppos^ to be an aphrodisiac, a reputation obtained from
its acrid qualities, which are however common to the whole of the
order. The Hottentots eat the tubers or conns of several species of
this genus, the starch they contain rendering them nutritious.
G. triphyUus has about 8 flowers in one row ; the anthers much
shorter than the filaments. It is found in the mountains of Carrara.
Q. pahistris has 3 or 4 flowers, secund ; the tube twice as long as
the seed-vessel ; the claw of the middle division curved and remote ;
the lobes of the stigma papilloso-ciliate almost from the base; anthers
shorter than Uie filaments; auricles at the base obtuse, parallel;
capsules oblong, obovate, rounded at the top, marked vrith six equal
furrows. It is found in Germany.
G. communis has secund flowers ; the filaments half as long again as
the anthers ; auricles at the base obtuse and parallel ; the tube half
as long again as the germen ; lobes of the stigma gradually broader
upwards, papilloso-ciliate almost from the base; capsules 3-edged,
obovate, impressed at the top ; the seeds'broadly winged. It is found
near Stettin and Frankfurt-on-Oder.
G. lUyricus has secund flowers ; the tube three times as long as the
germen ; division of stigma linear from the base to the middle, and
with a smooth maigin suddenly enlai^ed at the top with a papilloso-
ciliate margin ; the capsules obovate, 3-edged. A native of lUyzia.
G. imbricatus has secund approximate flowers; the tube nearly
three times as long as the germen ; the division of stigma gradually
broader upwards, papilloso-ciliate almost from the base ; tiie capsules
with 3 rounded angles. Found in Bohemia and Silesia.
G. infesius has a lax spike ; flowers 4 to 14, obliquely alteniate ;
division of corolla alternately pink and purple, uppermost very broad,
covering the 2 lateral ones, the 3 lower imequal ; anthers about as
long as the filaments ; seeds globose, prolonged downwards. It is a
native of Sicily.
G. Byzantinus has numerous flowers in two rows ; the upper seg-
ment of the corolla covered by the lateral ones ; the lower division
lanceolate, the middle lazgest ; the anthers longer than the filaments ;
seeds winged ; leaves long, ensiform, and linear. Found in Sicily.
GLAND, a term applied to cells and collections of cells in the animal
body, which have the power of absorbing or separating the various
substances which pass into or are separated from the circulating
fluid. In one sense all the cells of the animal act as glands, for they
separate from the blood the peculiar substances of which they are
composed. The term gland however is only strictly applied to special
forms of tissue which separate peculiar matters. " A true gland,"
says Dr. Carpenter, ** may be said to consist of a closely packed col-
lection of follicles, all of which open into a common channel, by
which the product of the glandular action is collected and delivered.
The follicles contain the secreting cells in their cavities, whilst their
exterior is in contact with a network of bloodvessels frY>m which the
cells draw the materials of their growth and development."
In a wider sense however the term gland has been applied to those
parts of the body which are engaged in absorbing the food or carrying
to the blood the materials of used-up tissues. [Abso&bxnt Ststbx ;
Absorption]. In all cases the cell is an active agent whether of absorp-
tion or separation. The agency of the cell in absorption is seen in
the way in which the chyle is token from the intestines and carried
into the lacteols.
Professor Goodsir has recently shown that there is a coniinnal
development of cells at the extremity of each villus in the small
intestine, and that these cells are the agents by which the secretion
of the nutritious fluid is accomplished, and by which it undergoes its
first preparation for the purposes it is subsequently to fulfil. The
nature of this process we give in Professor Goodair's own words,
omitting those portions which do not bear specially on the point.
"As the chyle begins to pass along the small intestine, an increased
quantity of blood circulates in the capillaries of the gut. In consequence
of this increased flow of blood, or from some other cause with which I
am not yet acquainted, the internal surface of the gut throws off its
epithelium, which is intermixed with the chyme in the cavity of the
gut. The cast-off epithelium is of two kinds, — that which covers the
villi, and which, from the duty it performs, may be named protective
epithelium ; and that which lines the follicles, and is endowed with
secreting functions. The same action then, which in removing the
protective epithelia from the villi prepares the latter for their peculiar
function of absorption, throws out the secreting epithelia from the
follicles, and thus conduces towards the performance of the function
of these follicles. The villi, being now turgid with blood, erected,
and naked, are covered or coated by the whitish-gray matter already
described. This matter consists of chyme, of cast-off epithelia of the
villi, and of the secreting epithelia of the follicles. The function of
the villi now commences. The minute veaides which are interspersed
among Uie terminal loops of the lacteals of the villus, increase in size
by drawing materials from the blood through the coats of ,the capil-
lary vessels, which ramify at this spot in great abimdanoe. While
this increase in their capacity is in progress, the growing vesicles are
continually exerting their absorbing function, and draw into their
cavities that portion of the chyme in the gut necessary to supply
materials for the chyle. When the vesicles respectively attain in
succession their specific size, they burst or dissolve, their contents
being cast into the texture of the villus, as in the case of any other
species of interstitial cell. The ddbris, and the contents of the dis-
solved chyle-cells, as well as the other matters which have already
subserved the nutrition of the villus, pass into the looped network of
lacteals, which, like other lymphatics, are continually employed iu
this peculiar function. As long as the cavity of the gut contains
chyme, the vesicles of the terminal extremity of the villi continue to
develop, to absorb chyle, and to bursty and their remains and contents
to be removed along the lacteals. When the gut contains no more
chyme, the flow of blood to the mucous membrane diminishes^
the development of new vesicles ceases, tho lacteals cpiptythemselrea^
loar OLAND.
and tbe Tilli become Skcoid. The fuDction of tha villi now cchm till
Ihay ar« umd rouwd ioto kction b; uiothar flow of chTHie along the
gut. DunDg the iotctTaia of abMrption, it becomea necennr; to
protect tbe Tilli from tbe matten oontaiued in the bowel. They had
thrown off their protoatiTe epitbelium when required to perform
their foDctioDS, juit aa tha stomach had done to afford gaatnc juice,
and tha intMtinal folliolea to aupply their peculiar aecretiona. In tha
interrala of digeaUoD the epitheliom ia rapidly reproduced."
lined.
The rCMarchn of Professor Qoodair ttava HkewiH thrown much light
on the general proceaa of aecretion. He ■hown, b; an adaiirably
■elected eeriee of obserratioiis (chiefly on the lower ajumala), that
aecretioD li a fuDctioD of tbe nucleated celL
If tbe membrane which llnee the eecieting portion of tha internal
surface of tha ink-bng of Lotigo tagittata (Lamarck) be oarefuUy freed
from adhering secretion by washing, it will be found to consist
almDet entirely of nucleated cells, of a dark brown or block colour.
Tbeee cells ar« spherical or oroidaL Their nuclei coneiat of cells
grouped tu^ether in a mass. Between these composite nuclei and the
walls of their containing cells is a fluid of a dark brown colour.
This fiuid resembles in erery respect ^s secretion of the ink-bag
itself. It renders each cell prominent and torgid, and is the cause of'
its dark colour.
The dilated terminal extremities of the ducts in the liver of Belix
aiprria (MiiUer) contaja a moss of cella. If one of these cells ba
isolated and examined, it presents a nucleus consisting of one or
more cells. Between tbe nucleus and the wall of tha containing cell
is a fluid of an amber tint, and floating in this fluid are a few oil-
globules. This fluid differs in no respect from the bile as found in
Uie duets of the gland. The liiec of Modiola vulgarii (Fleming)
contains masses of spherical cells. Between the nucleus and Ute wall of
each oftbese cells a Ught- brown fluid is situated, bearing a close resem-
blance to Ibe bile in the gastro-hepatic poucbea. Tbe nucleated cells
which ore arranged around tbe gaatro-hapatie ponchos of Ptclen
opfTcvJaru are irregular in shape, and distended with a fluid resem.
bling tbe bile. Tbe bepatio organ which is situated in the loop of
intflstine of Pinna prvnum (Flaming) oousial* of a moai of nucleated
celln These cella are collected in groups in the interior of larger
cella or yeaicles. These nucleated cells are SUed with a light-brown
bilious fluid. Tbe hepatic organ situated in the midst of the repro-
ductive apparatus, and in the loop of the inteatiue of Phalhuia
vulgaris (Forbes and Ooodsir), consista of a number of vesicles, and
each vesicle contains a dark-brown bilious fluid.
Tbe hepatic cteca in tha liver of P<i(<Ua nt^Mta contains vesictea
inclosing a body which constate of a number of nucleated cells full of
a dark fluid resembling the bile. Tha kidney of Selvc arperta
(Muller) is principally composed of numerous transparent veaiales.
In the centre of each vesicle is situated a cell fuU of a dead white
granular mass. This gland secretea pure uric acid. The ultimata
elemecU of the human liver are nucleatsd Dells. Between tbe nucleua
and tbe cell-wall is a light brown fluid with one or two oil globules
floating in it Tbe vesiculnr csca iu tbe testicle of Squaias comubieut
contain nucleated cells, which ultimately exhibit in their inC
bundles of eparmatoioa. Tho generative acea, of Suhianu tnU_
(Lamarck) contain cells full of minute spermatozoa. Aplyiia jnuictala
secretes from tbe edge and int«mal auiface of ita mantle a quantity
of purple fluid. The secreting suriitoe of the mantle consists of an
arrangement of spherical nucleated cells. These cells are distended
with a dark purple matter. The edge and internal surfocs of the
mantle of the Janthina fragilu (Idmarck), one of tha animals which
supplied the Tyrian dye, secretes a deep bluish-purple fluid. Tha
secreting aurfoce consista of a layer of Ducteated cells, distended with a
dark purple matter. If an ultimata acinus of the mammary gland of
the bitch be eiamiced during lactation it ia seen to contain ■ mass of
nucleated cells. These cella are generally ovoidal, and rather transpa-
rent. Between the nucleus and the cell-wall of each a quantity of
fluid ia contained, and in this fluid float one, two, three, or mon
oil-like globules, exactly resembling those of the milk.
Tho secretion within a primitive cell is always situated betweei
the nucleus and the cell-wall, and would appear to be a product of
the nucleua.
Tbe ultimate seereting structure then is tha primitive cell, endowed
with a peculiar organic agency, according to ths secretion it is destined
OLAND. w»
produce. Mr. Ooodsir nsmea it tbe primary secmtiag cell, ii
asists, Uka other primitive cells, of three parte — the nucleus, tha
cell-wall, and the cavity. The nucleus is ita generative organ, and
I, according to circumstances, become developed into
young cella The oavity ia the receptacle in which the aecretion is
■ lined till tbe quantity bas reached ita proper limits, and till the
iod has arrived for its discharge. Each primary secreting cell is
endowed with its own peculiar property, according to tbe organ in
which it is situated. In tbe liver, it secretes bile ; in tbe mamma,
milk, ftc The primary secreting cells of some glands have morely to
separate from the nutritive medium a greater or less number of
matters already aiiating in it. Other primary secreting cells are
endowed with the more exalted property of elaborating from the
nutritive medium matters which do not exist in it. Tha discovery of
the secreting agency of tha primitive cell doea not remove the
principal mystery in which this function has always been involved.
One oell secretes bile, another milk ; yet the one oell does not differ
• if the
more in stmcture from the other than tha lining membrane of tha
duct of one gland from the lining membrane of the duct of another.
Tbe general fact however that tbe primitive oell ia tb'e ultimate
rreting structure is of great value in pbysiological acience, inasmuch
it connects secretion with growth, as phenomena regulated by tha
ne laws. Tbe force, of whatever kind it may be, which enables
e primary formative cell to produce neme and another muscle, by
orrongBment within itself of tbe common materials of nutrition,
identical with that force which enables one primary secreting cell to
distend itaelf with bile and another with milk.
instead of grovrth being a apeciea of imbibing force, and secretion
tbe contrary, a repulsive, the one centripetal, the other centrifugal,
they are both centripetoL Even in their latter stages the two pro-
cesses, growth and secretion, do not differ. The primary formative
cell after becoming distended with its peoulior nutritive matter, is
some instances changes its form according to certain laws ; and then,
after > longer or shorter period, dissolves and disappears in the inter-
ceUular space in which it is situated ; its materials passing into ths
circulating system if it be on internal cell, and being merely thrown
off if it be an external cell. Tha primary secreting cell, again, after
distenwon with its aecretion doee not
intents either into ducta or glnnd-ci
The general fact of every secretion being formed within cells
explains a difficulty which hss hitherto puEzled pbyeiologiatx. namely,
why a secretion should only be poured out on the free aurface of a
gland-duct, or secreting membrane. Wa have attempted to illuatrete
Hr. Qoodsir'a views by tha accompanying figures : —
iff or Stlix niptru.
Tha contabied •enetion Is dead.
(he Ink-bic of LiUifo •OfUla,
>. Cells riom the liver ot the Faltlla mlgata. Tp this insUnce the bile i*
untalnnl to (he cavlUca of tbe seaondary celts, wbieh cossUtDte the nuleDi of
the prlmsry eell.
4. Cells from the nunma of a Uloh. In addition to thtlr Doelel Ihise cells
coDtatD mUk-ilebule*.
After describing the development of glandular tiaaua Professor
OoD<Uir concludes his paper on this subjeoC with tha following
" It appears to be highly probable tberoforo that a gland ia origi-
nally a mass of nucleatml oelia, the progeny of one or more parent
cells ; that the membrane in connection with tha embryo gland may
or may not, according to the eaae, send a portion of the membrane in
tbe form of ■ hollow cone into the mass ; but whether this happens
or not, the extremities of llie ducts are formed as closed vesiclea, and
then nucleated cella ore formed within them, and are the parents of
the epithelium cells of ths perfect organ. Dr. Allen Thomson has
aacertaiued that the faUiclea of the stomach and largo intestines are
originally closed vesicles. This would appear to show that a nucleated
cell ia the original form of a folliole, and the source of the germinal
spot, which plays so important a part in its future actions. The
ducta of ghuids are therefore intercellular paasagea. ^ This is ao
category vrith the intercellular passages and secreting receptacles o(
vegetables.
" Since the publication of my paper on ths secreting atmcturea, iu
the ■ Transactions of the Royal Socie^ of E<lin burgh,' in 1843, 1 have
satisfied my»elf that I was iu error in attributing to the oell-watl tha
important function of separating
preparing
ths aecretioa o
cell-cavity. Tha nucleua is the put which e^cts thia.
1039
GLAPHYRIA.
GLAUCOPIS.
1010
The secretion conttiined in the cavity of the cell appears to be the
product of the solution of successiTe developments of the nucleus,
which in some instances contains in its component vesicles the
peculiar secretion, as in the bile-oells of certain McUwca ; and in
others becomes developed into the secretion itself, as in seminal cells.
In every instance the nucleus is directed towards the source of
nutritive matter; the cell-wall is opposed to the cavity into which
the secretion is cast. This accords with that most important obser-
vation of Br. Martin Barry on the function of the nucleus in cellular
development. I have also had an opportunity of verifying — and to
an extent which I did not at the time fully anticipate — ^the remarkable
vital properties of the third order of secretion referred to in the
memoir to which I have just alluded. The distinctive character of
secretions of the third order is, that when thrown into the cavity of
the gland they consist of entire cells, instead of being the result of
partial or entire dissolution of the secreting cells. It is the most
remarkable peculiarity of this order of secretions, that, after the
secreting cells have been separated from the gland and cast into the
duct, or cavity, and therefore no longer a component part of the
organism, they retain so much individuality of life as to proceed in
their development to a greater or less extent in their course along the
canal or duct before they arrive at their full extent of elimination.
The most remarkable instance of this peculiarity of secretions of this
order is that discovered by my brother. He has observed that the
seminal secretion of the decapodous crustaceans undei^goes successive
developments in its progress down the duct of the testis, but tiiat it
only becomes developed into spermatozoa after coitus, and in the
Bpermatheca of the female. He has also ascertained that, apparently
for the nourishment of the component cells of a secretion of this
kind, a quantity of albuminous matter floats among them, by absorb-
ing which they derive materials for development after separation from
the walls of the gland. This albuminous matter he compares to the
substance which, according to Dr. Martin Barry's researches, results
from the solution of certain cells of a brood, and affords nourishment
to their survivors. It is one of other instances in which cells do not
derive their nourishment from the blood but from parts in their
neighbourhood which have undergone solution, and it involves a prin-
ciple which serves to explain many processes in health and disease.
"1 conclude therefore, from the observations which I have
made, Ist, that all the true secretions are formed or secreted by a
vital action of the nucleated cell, and that they are first contained in
the cavity of that cell; 2nd, that growth and secretion are identical —
the same vital process under different circumstances."
Having thus examined the nature of the process by which the cell
secretes, we may now refer to some of the more prominent modifica-
tions of the organs called glands. The simplest condition of a Gland
is the simple inversion of a secreting membrane called a follicle.
These occur in the skin, as in the sebaceous follicles, and also in the
mucous membrane of the stomach, where they are called gastric
f^Alicles. In these cases we have simply a pit in the membrane covered
with secreting cells. In the early stages of the development of all
glands we have this simple condition, and in the permanent condition
of the more complicated glands, when occurring in the lower animals,
we have the same simple development. Thus the liver in some of
the Polypes and lower Mollusca consists merely of a series of separate
follicles placed in the walls of the stomach. The chick whilst in the
egg presents the same condition of this organ. The same simplicity
is seen in the commencement of the development of a mammary
gland in the Mammalia. In the Omithorhynchua this organ consists
of a mere cluster of blind sacs. In the same way in many fishes the
pancreas begins its existence as a mere group of blind follicles. The
next stage in the complexity of a gland is where a number of follicles
open into a single tube. Such a condition of the gland is seen in
what are called the Meibomian glands of the eye. The larger glands
of the body, as the pancreas, liver, and parotid gland, are but mere com-
plicated stages of this process. Innumerable follicles empty them-
selves into tubes which again empty themselves into other tubes until
the whole contents of the gland are thrown out from some common
outlet.
For further information on the subject of the Glandular System
see LrvER ; Pancreas ; Bile ; Parotid ; Digestion ; Secretion ;
Absorbent System ; Saltva ; Kidnbtb ; Urine ; Skin.
GLAPHYRIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Myrtaeta. The limb of the calyx is 5-lobed, petals 5, berry 5-celled,
many seeded ; seeds fixed to the axis, 2 rows in each celL The species
are small Indian trees, with alternate minutely-stipitate leaves, and
few-flowered axillary peduncles.
0, nitida is called by the Malays ' the Tree of Long Life,' probably
from its maintaining itself at elevations where the other denizens of
thb forest have ceased to exist It affords at Bencoolen a substitute
for tea, and is known by the name of the Tea Plant Various species
of Zeptoipermum and ifekUeuca bear the same name in the Austra-
lian colonies.
0. sericea has lanceolate acuminated leaves. It is a native of Pulo
Penang and on the west coast of Sumatra. The calyx, pedundes,
bracts, and young leaves are silky ; the petals and cells of ovarium
5 or 6 in number.
GLAREOLA. [Chabadhiada]
GLASSWORT. [Salicornia.]
GLAUBER SALT, native Sulphate of Soda. It is monoclinate,
and occurs in oblique rhombic prisms. It is found in efflorescoit
crusts, of a white or yellowish-white colour, also in mineral waters.
Its taste is cool, saline, and bitter. It is distinguished from Epeom
salt by its coarse crystals and the yellow colour it gives to the blow-
pipe flame. The artificial salt was first disoovex^ by Glauber, a
German chemist It ib found in sea-water, and is obtained from this
source for use in medicine and the arts. At Eailua, in Hawaii, one
of the Sandwich Islands, it is found abundantly in a cave^ where it is
constantly forming. It is also found in Austria and Hungary, and
the United States of America.
GLAUBERITE, a native Sulphate of Lime and Soda. It occurs in
oblique crystals, which are usually flattened, with sharp edges;
nearly transparent, and yellowish-gray in colour. The taste is weak,
and dightly saline. It is found in rock-salt at Villa Rubia in Spain,
at Aussee in Upper Austria, and Vic in France.
GLAUCIUM (from y\avK6s , ' sea-green, or glaucous,' in allusion to
the colour of the plant and its habitation by the sea-side), a genus of
Plants belonging to the natural order Papaveraeece. It has 2 sepals,
4 petals, and indefinite stamens ; elongated 2-vidved capsules, a bi-
lamellate stigma, and ovate reniform s^ds. The species are evergreen
glaucous biennial or annual herbs, abounding in a copper^coloured acrid
juice, said to be poisonous and to occasion madness. The flowers in
yellow or crimson ; and the English name of the genus, Horn-Poppy,
originates in the horn-like shape of the pods.
0. lutetm, Yellow Horn-Poppy, has a smooth stem and a tuber-
cular scabrous pod. The fiowers are large, and of a golden-yellow
colour. It is found on the sandy sea-shores of Great Britain, and also
in the Carolinas and Viiginia. It is the uiffKuy Kepartris of Theophrastus
(* Hist Plant,' 9, 13).
G. phceniceum is regarded by De Candolle as a variety of O. cormcu-
IcUum, It is a native of the south of Europe, and is occasionally
found on the coast of England. It is however oonsideied by Babing-
ton to be a doubtful native. The flowers are crimson, and have an
elegant appearance. Don enumerates six species of Olaueium, none
of which however are applied to any useful purposes. The species of
Horn-Poppy thrive well in any common garden-soil, and may be easily
raised from seeds, which ripen in great abundance.
(Don, Dichlamydeom Plants; Babington, Man, Brit. B&t.)
GLAUCOLITE. [Labradorite.]
GLAUCONIE, a French term used principally by tL Brongniart,
to signify some stratified deposits associated with the chalk, which
correspond to the greensands of English geologists. The Glauconie
Crayeuse is considered by M. Brongniart to be the equivalent of the
upper greensand, and the Glauconie Sableuse of the lower greensand.
The same author uses the term Glauconie Grossi^re for a deposit
above the chalk.
GLAUCONOME {OUmeonome, Nereidis filia), is used to denote a
genus established by Goldfuss, for species of Celluliferous Polyparia
found in the chalk of Westphalia.
Olauconome is also the name of a fi-esh-water genus of oonchifers of
the familv VeneridcBf established by Dr. Gray in his 'Spicilegia
Zoologica.
GLAUCOTIS, a genus of Birds established by Foxster (OaltBot of
Bechstein and Vieillot), belonging to the order Imestoret.
It has the following generic chai^acter: — Bill moderate, strong,
robust, thick, with the baae enlarged towards the commissure ; upper
mandible convex, vaulted, curved towards the end, and without any
notch ; lower mandible following the curvature of the upper, straight
below, hidden in part by the sides of the upper mandible. Nostrils
basal, lateral, round, partially closed by a large membrane, and entirely
hidden by the curled and velvetty feathers which advance from the
forehead. Feet strong, robust; tarsi longer than the middle toe;
toes nearly all of a length, the external toe united to the middle one,
and the internal toe soldered (soud^) at the base. Wings short;
the first quill short, the three following graduated, and the fifth
longest Tail long, graduated. (Temminck.) The above character
is adopted in Lesson's ' Manuel,' and the following three species are
there arranged under the genus, namely, 0. cinerea, O. leua^tera, and
0. Temnura.
M. Temminck describes O. Ihnnvra as one-third larger than O. Temia
{Corvvs variant of authors), or the Pie Temia of Le Vaillant's ' Birds
of Africa.' He observes that the striking character in O. Tannwv
oonsistB in a very graduated tail (queue tr^ ^tag^e), all the feathers
of which are truncated and cut, as it were, transversely at tbeir extre-
mity. The whole of the plumage is black, a litUe lustrous op the
wings and tail Bill and feet black. Total length 12 inches. It is
found in Cochin China. M. Lesson observes t£at this species will
form a new genus.
In Mr. Swainson's ' Classification of Birds,' vol il, part 4, O. Tem-
nura is referred to Orypwrina, and the following generic character is
given by him : some of the characters, not inserted in his own notes,
rest on the authority of the ' Manuel d'Omithologie.'
Olaiicopia (Forster). Bill short, strong, robust ; the culmen elevated
and curved from the base ; upper mandible destitute of a notch ;
under mandible straight (on the gonys), the margin covered by that
of the upper and furnished at the bsse with two fleshy wattles.
i
loa QLAUCOPia
Kortrih banl, latanl, pwtl j olowd b; k Urge tnsmbruM. Feet Ten
itTonR, formed for walking. Tho teniu longer than the middle toe ;
bter^ ton ehort, of (qnal length, eod divided to their beae ; hind
toe itrong, armed with a long curved claw. Wiog* ehort. Tail rather
leDgthenn), rmmded ; the fe&then eDding ia aetAceoui point*.
OlmoBpit ThHnura, (Tana.]
In the third part of the 'ClaaaificaUon of Birda,' In the same vol.,
Ur. Svainaon (tatea Uiat the aiatieo]Ana, or Raaorfal Crowe, form the
onlr dtfiaion of the familjr which he had then analysed with » view
to deteimina its chief generio tjpea. Aa a whoU he thinka that the;
are dletin^obhed Irom all other birda by their ehort flnoh-like bill,
the commuatirs of which ie alwaya arohed, and lometimei limiated
like that of a FritiffUia. The ganns Olatieopit, which ho eoniiden
related, according to m. Temminck, with Me G)rv*t ffymnoetphalt-.
[Cobtida] " Upon tbii authority we conjecture the laat-mentioued
bird may prove the grallatariBl type. TbeiingutargeQuafiracAytfonta,
from New Holland, long ainoe noticed by ua ae connectiiig tlua bird
wiA the jajB, Irada at once to tho Finch Crowe of India, all of
whicb. In our opinion, ore merely variations of that typo named
CrypnTina by H. Vieillot. Some of these, frain theirclosa neemblanee
to Glatieopit, have actually been placed in that genua by M. Tom-
minck, who seenu to have overlooked the entirely diflbrent structure
of their l^a. The circle ie thus closed, and we find that these Ave
typea represent the primary diviilone of the whole dasa."
The iollowiog are Mr. Swainson'4 views of the position of the
Corvida .* — He ia of opinion that the Contda are nearest allied to the
HomlnllB,a]thongh the intervening forins are few. The geaiis Ffigillui
{Fngitia I) ie the only reprewntativB he at present knoira of Ibat
sob-family which intervene between the Buetrida and the Corvina.
He oTwervee that the whole family has never yet been analysed, ao
that the leadiog diviaioiui alone can yet be made out or stated vrith
any degree of certainty ; and sayi that the little TsJue which can be
attachwl to speculations on the rank of the present genera, founded
upon mere ^ntheaia, will beet appear hj looking to thoae artificial
arrangementa that place ahort-legsed Hollers close to the long-legged
and powerfully oonetructed QraUe {Oramla rtligiota), two genera
moreover which aoalysie has convinced hjin do not belong to this
family. " Nothing in short," continues Ur. Swaittaoo, " is more easy
than to divide a group lite this into three, five, asven, or any other
given nuniber; but the diviaiona must always be considered as tem-
porary, mitil confirmed by analysis. We have not yet carried our
mvestigations so far as to Jay before tho resder an aimngament of all
the genera of this family; nor vrill our apaoe admit of an attempt to
demonstrate those groups in it whjdi we have already marked out.
XAI, HOI. DIV. VOL. u.
'e CLceeive to be the only
______^_ ^QLAUCUa
We shall theretbre merely intimate what w - .
natural series, by arranging the genen, in 0
foUowing sub-families: — ], FrtgUlina (FreffUitia J)'; % Carvina;
8, Qarmiiiia; *, Crgptirina; and 6, Coraciita."
He eicludoa from the family Bpiniii(;Atu,aa belonging to the Suctorial
Krds ; OiTaciat, as being completely united to £vtyUomia by two
Bp*nea; and Omaila, aa united to Potior among the Stumida. The
Paradjae Birds, hitherto arranged with the Crows, form, in hia opinion,
the most aberrant group orhia Tenuimttra, and one placed between
the Hoopoes and the Honey-Suckers. From the Crowa he proceeds to
the StarUogi (Sfumidn).
In the ' Svnopsis of a Natural Arrangement of Birds' (part iv. of
Uie aame voL), Sir. Swainson observe* that " there are a few altera-
tions in the arrangement of the groups from what they appear in the
foregoing part : this has resulted from further analysia, and by incor-
porating our reaearobes up to the lateit time." We here find the
Corvida thus anmnged : Sub-family Corn'mr, Typical Crows— CtorwH,
Pico, Nudfraga, Barita, Tanpa, Platyhphiu, Piwygama. Sub-family
Gatrulinn, Jaya— ffainJiu, Cj/murut, DyiomiUua. Sub-tamily fiiaa-
ooptna. Wattle Crows— (>yp»i™a,/Viio*(era»«,Srart(f»(onia,Oiau«jpu.
Sub-fiimily C<«veiaa, Fruit Crowa— Ctroctna, Cepluiloplmu, Gifmno-
eepialut. SuWamily Frigiltvue (Frtffiiituel) which, he remarks,
contains at present but two European birds (P. PyrrhocoriLC and
P. ttTifhropiii), which almort appear to be types of aa many genera.
The cbaractere which he gives are, he observes, more strietly applicable
to the first [CoBTlDa; Cobaciba.]
OLAUCnS, a genus of Molluscous Animals named by Forster, and
placed by Curier among bis NvdOn'aiKhiala ; by De BWnville under
his PoIy&rwicAtaJa (Family TttToctrata) ; and by Rang made the ^ype
of a funily. Lea Qlanquea (Olattcida), which together with QlawMi
oompriaea the genera iMruogtnu, De BLainville ; Briaraa, Quoy and
Qaimard; Eoltdia, Cuviei; Cavolina, K^guiiro ; and Ttrgiptt,
It has the following generic oharaotara ;— Animal gelatinons, elon-
gated, ahghtly flattened, and terminated backwards in a point. Foot
very narrow and almost rudimanlary. Head distinct, furnished wiUt
fonr very short flattened and triangnlar tentacula ; the mouth sub-
terminaL BranchuB disposed in pi^ra on the sides, and fitted for
swimming;, being formed by oblong prooeaaea (palettes oblonguea)
surrounded by digitated appendagea. Teimination of the oigans of
gsnaratlon in a oommon tube at the anterior part of the right side ;
vent on the same sid^ more backwards. (Rang.)
^*r*
ua tubemle or Ihi oriina of
nuBnlflsd. ( De SlalnTille. ]
Ur. Bennett.
Dcahayea, in hia edition of Lamarok (who made Olaucat the fint
„ nus of hia family Tritoniana), remarks, that, notwithatandiug tho
researches of leveral aooomplished naturalists, there still exists uncei^
■a to many points of theanatomy of this genua. The description
De BlftinviUe, he obaerves, leaves doubts oonoaming the organs
of respiration ; nor ia it^ he adds, certain that thp digitations of the
fins are branclme ; in the opinion of U. Deabayee they are not
H. Quoy, he oontinnes, sa^ that these digitations are very caducous
living animal, which detaohea tbem when they are touched ;
ia not to be believed that thia would take place If theae porta
were destiued for so important a function as that of respiration,
imts out the necessity of new researchea aa
lee animala The same zoologiat itates that
of naturaliata are now convinced that aa yet but one
species is known ; and ha adds, that it must be oonfeseed that the
figures given are very ineiact, with the eicention of that given by
Hessn. Quoy and Qaimard (* Toy. de I'Aatr.,' Zooi. t. 2, pL 21, £ S to
li), which oonveys a good idea of thia elegant animal.
Mr. Q.Bennett states that during a voyage from England to Sydney,
in i° 26' N. lat., 16° SO' W. long., with light ain and calms prevailing
at the time, a number of damaged and perfect apedmens of the ffloufiit
hexaptaygviu (Cuvier), were caught in the towmg-nrt, and placed in a
glaea of sea-water, where they resumed their vital actions and floated
about, exhibiting a brilliancy of colour and peculiarity of form that
excited admiration. The back of the animal, as wall aa the upper
■orfluw of the fins and digitated prooeaaea, and, the upper portion of
"■-"■■■ ' tail, were of a vivid purple colour, Twying oooadonally
H. Deshayes therefore p
JOtt
OLAUX.
OLOBULARIACEiE.
1011
in its inteusit^', appearing brighter in oolonr when the animal was
aofciye or ezdted, and deeper when it remained floating tnnqnilly
upon the snrface of Uie water. The abdomen and under sarfiioe of
the fins were of a beautiful pearly white colour, appearing as if it
had been enamelled. The usual length of Mr. Bennett's specimens,
measured from the extremity of the head to the tail, when extended
floating upon the surfaoe of the water, was one inch and three-quarters^
sometimes one or two lines more or less. Mr. Bendett describes the
body of the animal as suboylindrical, terminating in a tail, which
gradually becomes more slender towards the extremity until it finally
terminates in a delicate point ; the head is short, with very small
conical tentaoula in pairs, two superior and two inferior; three (and
in O. octopterygivt, Cuvier, four) branchial fins on each side, opposite,
palmated, and digitated at their extremities, the number of digitations
vaxyiog, the central digitations being the longest^ and the first branchial
fins, or those nearest &e head, larger and more dense thsa the others.
The body is gelatinous, and coyered, he says, by a thin and extremely
sensible membrane. ''When taken in the hand,'* continues Mr. Ben-
nett^ " the under surface of the animal soon becomes denuded of the
beautiful pearly white it preyiously had, and at that time appears
like a small trsnsparent bladder, in which a number of air-bubbles are
observed together with the yiscera. On the abdomen being laid open
a large quantity of air^bubbles escaped ; and perhaps a queij may
arise how fiEU* they assist the animal in floating upon the surraoe <n
the water. The figure of Olaueui hexapterygiua in Cuyiei's work
'Sur les Mollusques' is tolerably well executed, but no engraving
can convey to the beholder the inconceivable deUcacy and beauty of
this moUiisk. In the engraving alluded to there is an inaccuracy, at
least as compared with the specimens before me, in the digitated pro-
cesses of the fins not being sufficiently united at the base : in the
living specimens before me &ey were united together at the base, and
then branchhig off became sradually smaller until they terminated in
a fine point. Again, in me engraving in Cuvier's work the anal
orifice is placed on the right side, whereas in my specimens it was
situated on the left; for in all the specimens I examined I found the
anus was disposed laterally, and could be plainly distinguished situated
on the left side of the uiimal, a little below the first fin. This I
consider also the orifice of p^eneration, as in some of the speoimetts
examined a rather long stnng of dots resembling ova was seen to
protrude from it. One of the snimals discharged firom this oxiflee a
large quantity of very light brownish fluid ; Uiis no doubt was the
fieces.'
Numbers of the same species were taken by the same zoologist
towards the end of the same month in 2" 26' K. lat, 19" 51' W. long.,
light airs, nearly calm. Often when at rest the animal would drop
one or more of the fins, but on touching them they would be imme-
diately raised to their former position, and the fin was turned back as
if to throw off the offending objectw From Mr. Bennett's observations
it appears that the Olauei actually feed upon Porjnta, and probably
upon VMla and Janthinte; that Uie animal shows more sensitiveness
on the back than it does when touched elsewhere ; that it does not
seem to be disturbed by the contact of another Olaueut ; that the
fins have an undulating and a twisting movement ; and that a circu-
lating fluid could be perceived by means of a glass through the semi-
tranqiarent membrane of the back, dose to Uie surface, flowing in
two directions — one taking a course downwards and the other upwards.
It appears moreover, from the testimony of Mr. Bennett and others^
that no means have yet been discovered for preserving these evanescent
creatures, which lose their beauty end form even when taken alive
out of the water and laid upon the hand. *< The digitations of the
fins fell off, the least movement destroyed the beauty of the a«im^l •
It speedily lost all the deep purple and silvery enamelled tints, and
became a loathsome n^ass." ('Zoological Proceedings,' 1886.) Spirit,
it is to be feared, would never preserve them in a state available for
examination. We mention this to induce those observers who may
have the opportunity, to follow out their researdies on the animal s
oiganisation, by watching it narrowly with good glasses whilst it is
alive.
GLAUX, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Pnmu-
la€ea. It has a bell-shaped calyx, 5-parted, coloured, and without
any corolla, by which peculiarity it is distinguished from all other
plants of the same order. There are five stamens inserted at the base
of the calyx; the cuvules are few-seeded, openiog with 6 valves.
There is but one species of this genus.
0. mariiima, the Black Saltwort, has a procumbent stem, opposite
ovate glabrous leaves, axillarv sessile pink flowers with obtuse seg-
ments. It grows on the sea-shore and salt-marshes, and is a native of
Great Britain.
(Babington, Mamual of£riUih Bolany.)
OLEAD. [FALOONIDiLl
GLECHOMA. [Nspieta.]
GLEDITSCHIA, a genus of Plants named in honour of Gottlieb
Qleditach, a professor at Berlin, and author of a work on the sexual
system of Lhtnieus entitled ' Oonsideratio epioriseos Siflgesbeokiaose
in Linnaei systema plantarum sexuale et methodum botanicam.'
(BischoiS; p. 562. ) He was a good botanist, and contributed a valuable
paper on toe repvoduetive organs of the Fungi to the 'IVansaotions of
the Berlin Academy 'in 1748. This genus belongs to the natuxal order
LeguminotcB and the sub-order Oauiea» The flowers are
the calyx has 84-5 equal sepals, whidi are connected together at the
base into a oupule. The petals are equal in number to the sepals;
two of them are oormected into a carina. The leaves are abruptly
pinnate and bipinnate on the same tree. The flowers have a greenish
colour, and are disposed in spikes.
0, triaeanihoi, the Three-Homed Acacia or Honey Locust^ is a
large tree, native of the Carolines and Virginia, and attaining a height
of from 50 to 80 feet. When the tree is young, the tronk and
branches are covered with small prickles, which become hard as it
increases in sge, and form a formidable defence. The foliage is of a
liffht shining green, and is particularly elegants In the neighix>urhood
of London uie leaves do not appear until late in the spring, and drop
off early in Uie autumn. The seeds are covered wita a sweet pulp,
which, when infused and fermented, forms an intoxicating liquor
which was used by the American Indians.
0. monoipermaf the One-Seeded Gleditschis^ Is a native of the
Carolinas, Horida, and Illinois^ in damp woods. It attains a height
of from 60 to 80 feet> and mudi resembles the former spedee. When
none of tiie seeds ripen it is imposdble to distinguish them. There
are 8 spedes of CReaitichia enumerated, all of which possess the same
general characters. As ornamental trees they are mudi esteemed,
both on account of their elegant folisge and the varied and picturesque
forms assumed by ^e tree, together with the singular ^pearanoe of
the spines. They require a deep ridi soil in a dtuation not exposed
to high winds.
(Loudon, Bncffdopctdia qf Tnet and ShnUu; Bon, Dicklamydeout
Planti,)
GLEICHENIACE^ sa order of Plants constituted by Von Martins,
and forming part of Lindley's alliance FiliccUet in the ' Natural System.'
In the ' Vegetable Kingdom' it is reduced to the rank of a tribe under
the order PolypodiaceiE, and with the name OUi^enea, The spedes
have the following charaotexs : — Sporfroases dorssl with a transverse
ocoadonally oblique ring, nearly sessUe, and bursting lengthwise
internally ; the spores obloi^ or kidney-shaped. It indudes the genera
Cfleichmia, Mertenna, Stichmu, Platytomct, Oalymdla,
GLENOTREMITES (yk-hni, srticular cavity, rpnt*^ a perforation),
a genus of BcMnodermata, with only one opening in the crust ; estab-
lished by Goldfuss, and by him compared to CiaariteB ; found in the
chalk of Westphalia. (' PetrifacU Germanin.')
GLIRES, the fourth order of MammuUia in the ' Systema Natuns '
of TJnniBUB, who thus characterises it: — Incisors (dentes primores
indsores) two above and bdow ; Canines (laniarii) none. Feet ungui-
oulate; progresdon ssllent (cursu salientes). Food obtained by
gnawing the bark of trees, roots, vegetables, &c. This is the character
given in the ' Synopsis' of the mcuMnalia, In the course of the
work the dental formula is thus stated : — Indsors (dentes primores),
two (bini) above and below, approximate, remote from the moWs ;
no laniarii The genera placed by Linnous under this order in his last
edition are, Hyttrix (Porcupines), LtpuM (Hares, Babbits, &c.), Coitor
(Beavers, koX Mum (Rats and Mice, Guinea-Pigs, AgouUs, Marmots,
Lemmings, Hamsters, Dormice, Jerboas, the Paca, &a, and the
American Flying Squirrel (Sciurut Americanut volant, Ray), SctMrui
(the Sqi^prrels), and Noctilio (one of the Bats). [Chxiborsba ;
RODSNTIA.1
GLOBBA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Zinge-
heraeetB, indigenous in the tropical parts of AjEoa. especially in Uie
islands of the Indian Ocean and the continent of India, where they
extend as far north as 80** along the forest-dad base of the Himalayan
Mountains, and even ascend them to elevations of 2000 and 8000 feet;
coming into flower in the rainy sesson. In a family abounding in
highly ornamental plant^ man v of the species of Cfhbba are likewise very
showy ; for the cultivation of which, in European latitudes, a climate
and culture are required similar to that so successfully adopted for
OrchidaeecB, The herbaceous parts yearly die down to the root-etocks ;
the leaves are distichous^ lanceolate^ with the dieaths split; inflores-
cence temunal, loosdy panided or racemose, flowers mostly yellow.
In Cflobba is now induded the genus MatUina, which was so named
from the resemblance of its flower to the, Mantis insect; and the
species 0. saUcUoria, commonly called Opera-<>irls, from the supposed
resemblance of the flowers to dancing figures. The fruit of Q»
twt/ormif is said to be eatable.
GLOBE-FISH. [Tbtsodon.]
GLOBE-FLOWER. JTbolliub.]
GLOBIOCEPHALUS: [Cetacba.]
GLOBULARIA'CEiE, Sdaginacea, 8damd$ of Lindley, a very small
natural order of Exogens, nearly allied to biptacwB, AiUracecs, Verhm-
aeea, and Myoporaeea. The species are herbaceous plants, or small
branched herbs. The leaves are alternate, generally sessile, toothed
or entire, without stipules^ usually in dusters; flowers sessile, spiked,
with large bracts; calyx spathaoeous, or tubular, persistent^ with s
definite number of teeth or dividons, rarely consisting of two sepals ;
corolla tubular, hypo^ous, more or less irregular, with 5 lobes,
imbricated in ssstivation; stamens 4, usually didynamous, arising
from the top of the tube of the corolla, sddom 2 ; anthers 1-celled,
usually adnata to the dilated top of the filament^ rardy versatile;
ovary superior; style 1, filiform; stigma nearly capitate; ovulee
solitary, pendulous, anatropal ; disc hypogynous, fleshy ; fruit 2-celled,
KM OLOIOCI.ADIEA
tlw oaDa cither Mpanbla or inoeparable, l-aeeded, mambnoous; Mod
solitaTj, pcndnloui ; unbrjo in the axia of e little fleahy albmnen ;
ndiele lUBeiior. The chief put of tUa order ootnea fhim the Cape
of Good Hope. The apecuei ore of bat little importeDoa. Some am
■weet BoaDtad. Olobularia Alymum la a blttar diaatao pnncative, aaet
■nppoaed to be Ute AA'iim' of Dioaooridea, and henoa eaUed FnUac
IotMH*. 0. vn/jrani hM ailDiUr propsitiea. Both are eoietia
A tall of aiahilaria itufifolHi, In Oowcr.
1, the alri. eonlU, and (tunea* in thdi utsnl podtioa; 1, aninilli,
MpuiU, with the ituBHU ud itjla ; 1, the onrj moliaBl In Iha (bIji, bmU
at Tbldl ii imt nwiy to eipOM It. All BUcnlfled.
-. ■ „ ' immenad
araonK the fllatnent* of the peripheiy. It smbncea the following
Onaria. — Frond crtutaoeoiu, akin-lik&
NaixaTvL — EVond filiform, aoUd, oellnlar ; the ramuli only oompoaed
of ndintiiig &«e Slamenta.
(7ImM>pAMM>i Frond tubular, holloir, the mlla of tlie tube oom-
AinwoittM. — Frond filiform, aolid, elastic, filamentons; tlie tuda oom-
poaed of doael; packed fllamant^ the periphery of monUiform free
Dmdrwuaa. — Frond filiform, aolid, gelatinoiu, filameotooi, tho
ui* oompoaed of a net-vo A of anaatomoaing filaments ; the periphery
of mooUiform free filunenta.
Cn%aiua. — Frond filiform, coniiiting of a pointed fllamoit^ whorlad
at the polata, wiUi mlnnta multtSd g^atinous ramuli,
(HurvCT, Britiih Sea- WhbU)
QLOH&HID^, a aub-fauiil; of Inaeota belonging to the fkmily
Chiiopoda and the order Stj/riapoda,
GLORIO'SA, a genus of Fluite belonging to the natural order
Liliatta, tribe IWipacMi, lo named from the splandid appearance of"
ita fiowem. One ipeciea, 0. wfwrio, ia iodigenous in most parts of
India, wi& a ipeciei, or Tariaty, Q, twtpbz, at moderata eleTatious on
the Himalayas, while O, vireteau ia a Qative of Senegambia. The
root ia fleshy, the stem climbing, the leavea lanceolate, undulated,
and tennlnatmg in a tendril aerring to support the plant. The six
petals are undulated and leflaled, bat pendrat before flowering. The
nearly horiaontal stamens and deolinata and oblique atylagiTe the
flowera a very peouliat ^peannce, while their large size and the red
and yellow colour of those of 0. nvptrba make it wt^thy of cultivation.
This ia lucceaifully cEEected in hothousea. The finhy root has a
bitter and aarid diiagroeable taste, and by some ia said to be poiaonoua,
but probably without mfficient foundatdou.
OLOSSOPETRA (f^wrsa, a tangua, and wttpa, rock), the name by
which many early ioquirers into tbe hiatoiy of organic remains
desiguated ft great nuiuber of fosail teeth of flahes allied to tha ahork,
whidi are found abundantly in tbe upper secondary and tertiary
strata of England, France, Germany, Italy, &c They were also called
Lamuxhnla, Odtrntopdra, tu.
Amidst tha difficulties which embarroseed the naturalists of the
ISth century in their attempts tc eatablieh the true nature and origin
of the organic remoini of plouta and animala found in tha earth
[OEOLoaTJ, the obviouB memblance between the fossil and reoent
teeth of fidies wu.a valuable and powerfol argument. Fabio Colonna
(' De GloBBopetiia Dise.,' 1S3T) and AgoeUno Scilla (' La rana Spacn-
lacione,' ^, 16T0) pointed out the close ngrecment, in sereral oasea.
QLOSSOPBTBA. UM
between the foadl teeth of Malta, Calabria, fta, and the teeth of living
oolour of the fo«D specimena. Bcilla's flgnna aiaaxeallent
Ray, in a letter to Dr. Eobiiuon (1684), uakea the same use of Ute
GlonapOra.
"Soma other bodies bendee shalls, eommonly esteemed atones,
there are found in the earth, reeembling the teeth and other bonea ^
fishes, which are so manifestly the very things they are thought only to
resemble, that it seama to me great weakneas in any man to deny it.
Such are tbe OUtopttra dug up in Ualta in such quontitiea that you
may buy them by meaaore and not by tale ; and alio the vertebree of
thombeicks or other cartilaginous Sahes there found, and sold for
stones, among tbe BUmopttra, which have no greater disaimilituda to
the teeth of a living shark, or the vertebree of a quick tbomback,
Ulan lying so long in the earth, as they must needa have doua, will
necessarily induoe. Now in this same Isle of Malta we found also
many shul-Iika stones, which why we should not esteem to have been
origuially the ihallg of fiahes I see no reason ; for if in one and tbe
soma plooe wa find many teeth and bones of fishes entire and uupetri-
fiod, and likewise atones exactly imitating tha ahells of other fishea^ a
great presumption to me it is that these ware origioatly the thit^
whoee shape only they now eeem to bear. Neither are these Olotto-
pttnx found only In Malta, but also in many places of Qarmany, for
remote from tbe sea j in a hill near Aken, in so great plenty, that
Ooropius makes it an argument they oould not be ue teeUi of sharks,
' In collo illo (eaith he) qui Aquis-grano imminel^ tantum id g«uua
fuisse pisdum quis crederet quantum de Qlaesopetrarum copiA con-
jecturi deberot I ' "
Uwyd (ISBS), whose opuuoBs on the real nature and origin of
organic fossils were turned in a wrong channel by the apparent impoe-
sibilily of understanding, how the varicua animal and vegetable
exuvisg could be placed in their aubteiTanean repositories by the
Koaohian flood, a proposition which hie judgment rqected, deseribes
a considerable nambor of fish teeth aeonding to the following
method: —
/(JUA|iodoH(a e*u|>ul<ifi (considered to be inolaar teeth of fiahes.)
Suoh of thaae as are triangular in figure (sagittati), flat with keen
and often serrated edgee, are called Otonopetra,
Others which are mora nearly round, elongatad and pointed, he
colls Pltclrtmita [nK^vrpen, a cook's spur).
IcUkyodonUt itulMati (supposed to be molar teeUi of fishes). Of
these such as were round, nmbonate, or scaphoid, were termed
The angular ones were oalled .fiAosiiiMM.
The Oattened pod^haped tseth were called SiUgwulra.
InHetwing's oarions work, ' Lithogis^hia Angeiburgica' (171T),
the state of knowledge ' on the subiact in Oenoany appears little
advanced, since he ta^sa the trouble to reject the aappositioii that
tha (7ioa*Dpe(rit were serpents' tonguee. He describea seveial apecies
of aharks' teeth under the titles of CXoaopelra and Od<mt<iptira.
Until a very reoent period there was little progress made in tiie
atady of the parts of fossil fiahesbeyond the views of Llwyd. Neither
the alouaptlra nor tha Bvfimita were at sU better undeistood in
England, till the suDCesaful researches of Mautell in Suaei re-
awakened the seal of oollectota ; and Cuviar, besidee renovating the
whole subject of reoent ichtl»olog^, announoed his intention of com-
poaing a aystemaUc history of foMtl fishes. The drawing* which that
-. nan had oolleetsd for the pnrpoM were pot into tlie hands of
gMrii, whose extraordinary aeal and snocess have made a new
1 fossil ichthyology. Aooording to the views of this distiiiKuished
naturalist, all, or nearly all, the fl^ teeth known to the eariy ooTleotora
as Glntn^ra belong to the family of sharks, wUch must formerly
have been more numerous and inoludad mora varicua structures than
the living mcea. The Siliqiuulra and other of tlie eoutellate ichthyo.
donlee of Llwyd are likewise teeth of sharks.
The following short imiopsis may be oonvenisnt to eolleotota (see
also Dr. Buckland's 'Bndgeiratar Treatise') :—
Family of Shaika.— Oronp I, Ceatraoionte. {SUiqtfotlra, IAmMkiu,
&a. of Llwyd.) Teeth having a broad grinding surface.
2, Hybodonts. {PlcclnmUa and Olotiopetra of Llwyd.) Teeth
poiated, striated on Iwth udes.
S, True Sharks. (Olottopdra of Sdllo, Llwyd, &o.) Teeth
triangular, striated on one side only.
Many of the Bufimila of old writer* belong to the eitdnot genera
PycHOaw and ^rodis of Agassis ; though they have often been com-
pared to the teeth of Anarrhicai lufnu, from which, acoardiog to
Cuvier, they diflar eeeentioUy in structure. ('Rigna Animal')
The geological distribution of these fish teeth is curions. Llwyd
mantiona that eoutellate ichlhyodontes bad not occurred to him in
the maritime regions of England, but were found not la itplentifully
thrtn the cuspidate kinds In the interior counties, as Oxford, North-
ampton, Oloucester, Berka, Bucks, to. This is in agreement with
oonolusicns of later date, for U, Agassis has found that the whole
groap of Catiadonta is confined to strata of tita bonaition andseoon-
dsjT series ; while only one of the rooe {(Mraeim Philifpi, or Port
Jackson Shark), is now living.
1017 QLOSSOFHAGA.
Dr. Buckluid iDgenioudj remarks, tlut " the gmitar atraDgth And
Battened coadition of the teeth of the Eunilics uf ahu-lu t^ pre-
Tailed JQ the IbrmatioDi beneath the chalk bad relation, moat
prababi;, to their office of anuhing the hard eoreringa of the Gnu-
tacta, and of the bonr enamelled scalea of the fiahee which fonned
their food." (■ EridifewBter Treatiae.')
QLOSSOPHAQA. [Chkbopieiu.]
OLOSSOPOBIS, a geaoi of Aiiimala belonging to the order
Annttida, and placed commonly near the Leoehes. It has i
poaterior diac, hut it ia not euotoiial.
OL0930TTERIS, a genua of Foaail Fenu, propoaed b; IL AdoIph<
Brongniart to include apecdea whoae elongated leaves or fronda are
coiered hj fine arched dichotomouB often onaatomoaing nem
Example* occur in the Carboniferous end Oolitic ayatenu of ati
[CoAL-FLANnJ
OLOTTALITE, a Hinend belongiog to tho group of Zenlilat.
oocars ciTatalliaed ; the cryatala appear to be cubic and ootahedraL
Hardneaa 3'5. Brittle. Colour white. Luatre Titr«oaa. TraiMlucenti
Specific graritf 2181.
Before the blow-pipe it awella and melta Into a white enamel. With
cwbonatv of aoda it gives an opaque white bbad, and with boru a
tnuuIucvDt glaaa.
It baa berai found near Port Qloagow, Scotland.
Aeoording to Dr. Thomaon'a anoljaia it yields : —
■ SiUca 3T-014
Aliimlnn 18'808
Lima 28-S27
Peroxide of Iron 0-500
Water 21-250
J8-999
GLOTTIS. [LiHTHi.1
QLOW-WORk [LiMPTBiB.]
GLDUACEOnS PLANTS are what are mora cotnmonly oalled
Oramiaacta and (^furacta, to which JuiKoceai and a few other
ordera ore ooeomonaUy added. They derive thur name from the
flowera consisting of glumaa onlr.
QLUUALES. [EaDoaKNS.]
aLUUIFElL£, a aubdiviaion of Endogenoua Flanta, embradng
the ordera with glumacaoua flowen, Oi/peracta and Oromiiuwaz.
[Cttibice£; GBaxurAOix.]
GLUTTON, the leruacular name for Uie Wolvervu. [GuLO.]
QLYCETilA (from -/Aunpi., aweet), a genua of Planta belonging
to the natural order OraMiiiaoea and tiie tribe FatiKmea. It has
unequal acuta aub-membranoua gluinea, the outer palea with 5-7
Htroug prominent distinct and tmisllei riba, and a acarioua margin,
■ubcyliudriool, luiarmed ; the a^Iaa termioaL The apaolea are htuid.
soma glaiaea with long gtema, and moalJy inhabit wateij plaoea.
The fdlowing are the British species of this genus :—
Q, o^uiittea baa an erect puiiole, repeatedly branched and spreading
rachia aamiterete, brsuchea acabroua ; apikaleta linear, oblong, of S-10
flowery outer pale, obtuse ; leaves amooth, with alightly compreased
aheatha. The root is creeping ; item three to six feet high, smooth,
and slight]; compreased ; ahaatha very long ; leaves long, rough on
the edges and ko«l ; ligije short ; panicle Urge. Branches angular,
slender, branched ; outer pale, with the central nerre eitenduig to
the summit.
0. Jtnitani has a second paaicle, alightly branched, very long ;
braocbee nearly simple, roughish; apikeleta Unear, of 7-1 2 ; adprened
lanctolate oblong acuta floirers, outer pale, nearly thrica as long as
broad ; sheaths comprvsaed; stem aacanding, roating below or fioating ;
sbeatlui uesrly smooth, striated ; leaves pale gr«en, acute ; ligiHe
elongate; panicle remarkably elongated, often nearly aimpla. Branches
' wiUiout calloBitica, ascending, lowermoit in paira ; spikelets
adpreaaed; outer pole, rather shorter than the inner, with a trian-
gular cendal point ; anthete about five timai aa long as brood,
purple, pale yellow when empty.
0. plicata has a compound panicle; branches compound, oearly
amooth, erect when in flower, divaricate with fruit ; spikelete linear,
of 7-20 i OTol-oblong rather acute flowers, outer pale, twice as long as
broad, sheaths compreased. The aheathi are rough and furrowed.
Leaves glauoose, bluntish, plicate when young ; Ugule shorter ;
panicle much branched ; brancbea with ooUoaitlea at ijie base, lawermoet
about in fives ; outer pale, with throe teeth at the end ; anther about
three timea as long oa broad, cream-coloured, fuscous when empty,
(Babington, Manual of Brituh Bolaim.)
GLYCERINR [Adiposb Timni]
0LYCEKI3, a genus of DonibraDchiate Annelids. Itia distin-
guished by the form of Its head, which teTminates in a oonical flaahv
hom-like point, which is divided at the top into four very small
tentecleB.
GLYCINE. rWiBTARii.]
OLYCYMEHia. [PiLOHniiiHs]
GLYCTRHI'ZA, a genua of Planta belonging to the natuial order
FabiKea, or Ltguminoia, oonaisting of herbaosoua planta with
pimiatsd leaves, small flowers in axillary spikes, and roota running
very much in the soil in which tbey fpow. The technioil character
of *1" genus ia given by Da CandoUe thus :— " Calyi naked, tubuhu-,
6-clefl^ bilabiate; tho two upper Icbei grow together beyond the
GLfefBHIZA. 1019
otheim. Standard ontta-Ionosolato, straight ; keal Miaadad or
2petalled, atrai^t, acute. Stamana diadelpl^us. Style fllifimii.
Legume ovato or oblong eompreaaod, 1-oalled, 1-1-seedad.
O. ifiabra, the common SmM>th liquorioe, haa ovato rather retnae
leafleta, somewhat clammy beneath, aa well as the branchea ; atipulaa
wanting ; spikes or raoemes of flowers pedunculate^ shorter than the
leaves ; flowers distant ; legnmes glabrous, S- or 4-aeaded. It ia a
native of the south of Europe from Spain to Taurio, also of China,
and ia cultivated in France, Italy, Germany, and Bngland for the sake
of it* roots. The fiowera are of a pale blue colour. The name
Liquorioe, aooording to Du Theis, is said to be a corruption ofitha
French word 'regliaae,' which is itself a corruption of O^ywrtuo. The
roots abound in a saccharine mucilaginous matlar, which is alightly
bitter, and readily soluble in water. A powder, and the well-known
oommon extract, are prepared from it. The decoction in diffemt
forms ia a oommon remedy for cougha
Coniuiia Hmwlli Liqi
:<! (Clyr^,
The Common Liquorice-Plant ia cultivated in many porta
of England, especially about PontefVact, whence the name of
Pomfret cakes, applied to a fine preparation of liquorice. Though
commonly grown in the field it requiroa very superior culture ia
order to produce fine rooU for sale in the market. The aoil in which
it delighta to grow is rich black mould, but when this cannot be
procungd a fresh loom will onawar the purpose^ provided then is not
muoh wet clay in its composition. It must be at leaat three feet
deep to allow a free passage for the roots, ai they are generally
expeeted to be a yard in length, and as the straight onea ore more
highly prised than those which an crooked. On thia account the
spade is mar« useful than the plough in cultivating the ground, and
though at fint it may be eipensive, yet the husbondmon will in the
and be well repaid for hia trouble.
After the ground ia fixed upon it must be well covered with good
rotten dung, trenched three feet in depth, and left in this atata
during the winter to ba mellowed by frost. About March, if the
weather is One, the plantation should be formed. iWts an either
raised from aeeds or, as ia more commonly Uie ease, from o division
of the old roots, tvbioh on cut into piecea eight or ten jiiohea long.
Choioe should be mode of thoae which, as piontora term i^ have
good eyes, that is, buds, and which an mon l&ely to puah and grow
A garden line must then be set for the first row, and holes made
with the setting stick about a foot and o holf apart ; into which the
seta must be dropped and covered about two inches with soiL The
rows must be at least three feet apart, and the plonta In one row
should be altemato with those of the other; this will not only give
them mora room, but will have a neat appearance, forming ngulor
rowB from whotever part the field i< viewed.
_ " For the firat yeor," soya Abaroromby, " you may eultivoto a light
1010
GLYPHlS.
ata^LINITE.
1050
crop of lettuce or omona between the rows. Daring summer keep
the ground free firom weeds, and when the subordinate crop comes off
hoe and dress the ground. At the dose of autumn, or as a winter
dressings fork or dig between the rows to stir and refresh the surface ;
and cut down the decayed stems. After three or four years' growth
the main roots will be of a mature size, and fit for consumption or
the markets It is an excellent plan to cover the crowns of the plants
in winter with good rotten dung, as it not only preserves them from
severe frosts, but is washed down by the rain and becomes yaluable
nourishment to the roots.''
O. cefttnolo has oral lanceolate leaflets, mucronate, glabrous;
stipules oblong, lanceolate; spikes of flowers capitate, on yery short
peduncles ; legumes oval, mucronate, 2*seeded, echinated by bristles.
It is native of Apulia, on Mount Qardano, and in the norUiem pro-
yinces of China and of Tartary. The whole plant is glutinous to
the touch. The roots are horizontal, in taste like the Common
Liquorice.
(Don, JHchlamydefnu PUmta ; Lindley, Flora Medic<i,)
QLY'PHIS, a genus of Fossil Placoid Fishes from the London
Clay. (Agassis.)
GLTrHISODON, a genus of Acanthopterygious Fishes belonging
to the family Scumvidce, The gillHX>yen are entire, and they have a
single row of trenchant and sometimes notched teeth. The species
are found in the Atlantic, bi\t are more abundant in the Indian Sea&
QLTPTOCETHALUS, a genus of Fossil Cycloid Fishes from the
London Clay. (Ag^assiz.)
QLTPTODON (Owen, so named from the fluted character of its
teeth), a genus of extinct Fossil Animals belonging to the order
SdenkUct, and allied in form and structure to the modem Armadillos.
The first notice of the discovery of the remains of the skeleton of a
laige edentate animal, with fragments of a tesselated bony armour,
similar to that of the Armadillo, appears in the note appended to the
end of Cuviet^s chapter on the Meffatherium, in the 4th edition of the
' Ossemens Fossilea,' published in 1823. This notice occurs in an
extract from a letter addressed by D. Daniasio Larranaga, curd of
Monte Video, to M. Auguste St-Hllaire. The fSeusts stated in this letter
are as follows : — A femur was discovered in the Rio del Lance, branche
du Saulis Grande^ which weighed 7 lbs. ; it was short, but might be
from 6 to 8 inches in width ; it resembled in eveiy respect the femur
of an Armadillo ; with it was found a portion of tesselated bony
armour, of which the curd promises to send one of the component
pieces to M. Auguste GheoffroL The tail was very short and veiy
stout ; it had in like manner a bony armourj but this was not verti-
cillate or disposed in rings. These fossils were stated to haye been
met with near the surface of the earth, in alluvium or strata of
transport, indicative of a very recent epoch. Similar fossils are said
to occur in analogous strata near the Lake Nirum, on the frontier of
the Portuguese colonies.
These remains were supposed to belong to the MegcUherium, and
Cavier does not appear to suspect that Uiey belonged to anything
else, as he merely remarks that the MegcUherntm 'had pushed its
analogies with the Armadillos so fiur as to be covered like them with
A scaly cuirass.
Subsequently remains of this kind were sent to England, and in
the meantime M. Laurillaud and Mr. Pentland, on comparing these
with those originally sent to England, came to the conclusion that
they belonged to the genus Datypui, lliis howeyer was doubted by
Mr. Clift and Professor Owen, seeing that the conformation of the
alveoli of the jaw indicated a dentition differing more widely from
that of the existing subgenera of Armadillos than their respective
dental characters differ from one another. '* It was at this conjuuc>
ture," says Professor Owen, " that Sir Woodbine Parish received the
inteUigence of the discovery of an entire skeleton, covered with its
tesselated coat of mail, about 6 feet below the Bur£etce, in the bank
of a rivulet near the Rio Matanza, about 20 miles souUi of the city
of Buenos Ayres ; and with the account of this remarkable discovery
there was at the same time transmitted a drawing or sketch of the
whole animal, which has since been lithographed, and one of Uie teeth
of the fossil itself. This tooth Sir Woodbine Parish obligingly sub*
mitted to my examination. Its general structure proved it to belong
to an animal referrible to the Edentata of Cuvier ; but its character
was so peculiar that I had no hesitation in pronouncing it to differ from
that of any known edentate animal, recent or fossil, and from its
intimate texture, to be indicative of a new sub-genus of the Armadillo
fiunily, for which I proposed the name of Olyi^odon, in reference to
the plated or sculptured character of the too£."
The Qlyptodon differs from the Megatherwm not only in the form
and structure but in the number of its teeth, which appear to be
eight on each side of each Jaw, as in the section of Armadillos called
Cabatwus by Cuvier. It cQffers from the An^adillos in the form of
the lower jaw, and in the presence of a long process descending from
the zygoma, in both which respects it resembles, and evidently indi-
cates a transition to the Megatherivm,
Numerous remains of this curious and interesting ^i^itnul have been
found in various parts of the country, and a very fine specimen, with
the coat of mail almost entire, is to be seen in the museum of tlw
College of Suigeons. Portions of this animal are also to be seen in
the collection of the British Museum.
Although, when the remains of the Qlyptodtm were first brought
to Europe, it was not thought improbable that the Megatherium also
was inclosed in a gigantic suit of armour, no remains that could be
re^^uded as the tesserae of such a covering have yet been discovered.
It is always difficult however to establish a negative, but the follow-
ing aiguments have been adduced by Professor Owen against this
supposition, and yriU be probably regarded by most naturalists as
conclusive : —
I' 1. The opinion of Cuvier and Weiss, in favour of the Megaiherium
being so armed, rests on no better ground than the mere fact of bony
armour of some gigantic quadruped and the skeleton of the Mega'
therivkm having been discovered on the same continent.
" 2. The skeleton, or its parts which have been actually associated
with the bony armour above mentioned, belongs to a different and
smaller quadruped.
" 8. No part of the skeleton of the Megatheri'ttm presents those modi-
fications wnich are related to the support of a bony dermal covering.
" 4. The proportions of the component tesserse of the bony armour
in question to the skeleton of the Olyptodoii, are the same as those
between the dermal tessem and dLcleton of existing Arma-
dillos, but are vastly smaller as compared with the bones of the
Megaiherium.
** 6. No bony armour composed of tesseres, having the same relative
size to the bones of the skeleton of the Megatherium, as in the
Olyptodon and existing Armadillos, has yet been discoyered.
*' 6. The skeleton of the Megatherium has never been found asso-
dated with bony armour of any kind, neither haye its parts been
found associated." [See SupPLEicBirT.]
(Owen, Proceedingt of Geological Soetety, vol yil, 2nd series.)
GLTPTCSTEUS, a genus of FossU Ganoid Fishes, from the Old
Red-Sandstone of Elgin and Clashbennie (Agassis) : two British species.
GMELPNA, an Asiatic genus of Plants named after Gmelin, the
author of ' Flora Sibirica,' belonging to the natural order Verbenacea,
of which only one species was formerly known, but five are described
by Dr. Roxburgh, and a sixth (with some doubtful species) noticed
by Dr. Wallich, in his ' Indian Catalogue.'
The genus is characterised by having a small i- sometimes 5-toothed
calyx, the corolla large, obliquely campanulate, the border irregularly
4-parted, something like those of foxglove in shape, but mostly yellow
in colour. Stamens i, didynamous^ with the anthers 2-cleft. Germ
superior, 4-dblled; cells 1-seeded; attachment sub-superior. Drupe
with a nut, from 1- to 4H3elled. Embryo erect, without perispenu.
All the species of Chnelina form shrubs or trees, of which the latter
are valued for their timber. They are found in the islands of tlie
Indian Ocean, extending thence into the Malayan and Indian penin-
sulas. O. Atiatiea and O, parvifolia are common in yarious parts of
India, and 0, arborea extends from Prome and Martaban even to the
Deyra Valley, in SO** N. lat.
The leaves of Q. parvifolia are remarkable for rendering water
very mucilaginous, and are employed medicinally in India; but Q,
or&orea .(Goombar and Koomhar of the natives) appears to be the
most yaluable for its timber, as, besides being spread over a wide
extent of territory, it attains great size. Dr. Roxbui^gh mentions it
squaring into logs of from 18 to 24 inches, which are occasionally
nearly 30 feet long. Tlfe wood resembles teak, the colour being the
same ; the gnun rather closer, but it is somewhat lighter. It seems
particularly yaluable for situations where it is exposed to both the
mfluence of air and of water. One experiment was made by placing
part of an outside plauk in the river Hooghly, a few miles below
Calcutta, " a little above low-water mark, exactly where the worm is
thought to exert its greatest powers." Dr. Roxburgh states, thai
"after remaining three years in this situation, though examined from
time to time, the piece was cut, with the view of carrying a
specimen of it to England; and to my great joy, I found it as sound
and every way as perfect throughout as it was when first put into
the river." (' FL Ind.,' iii. p. 85.) In another experiment this wood
remained good for seven years, while teak, similarly placed, required
to be replaced after six years. Hence Dr. Roxburgh suggests experi-
ments on and employment of this wood in ship*building.
GMELINITE, or HYDROLITE, a Mineral belonging to the group
of ZeolUee. It occurs crystallised. Its primary form is a rhomboid ;
usual form an hexagonal prism; cleayage parallel to the primary
planes. Fracture uneven. Hardness 4*5. The colour white, passing
mto flesh-red; streak white; lustre vitreous; translucent Specific
gravity 2*05.
Before the blow-pipe it increases in bulk, and assumes the appeal -
ance of an enamel, but does not melt into«a glass. It is found in the
Vicentine; at Glenarm, county of Antrim, in cavities in amygdaloidal
rocks ; and also in North America. [Chabazite.]
The following is an analysis by Council from Glenarm : —
SUica . 48-56
Alumina . 18*05
Lime . 5*13
Soda . . ..... 3*85
Potash 0*89
Peroxide of Ii-un 0*11
Water 21*66
W75
/
1061
QNAPHALIUM.
aNBTACBJBL
1062
GNAPHA'LIUM (from yvdupaXop, wliioh mgnifies the wool whioh
the fuller cats off in fulling the cloth), a genua of Plants belonging
to the natural order CompatUce, to the Bu1>order Corymbiferat the
tribe Seneci(mideep, the sub-tribe Onaphaliitef the division ffelichrytea.
It has the ray-florets pistilliferous, the centre with both stamens and
pisUls, all of them tubular; the pappus capillary; the receptacle
flat, naked ; the involucre hemispherical, imbricated ; the scales
equalling the florets, but not mixed with them. The ooroila of the
outer florets is often obsolete. The species of this genus have a soft
pubescent foliage with dry flowers, which keep for a long time
without perishing, and like those of some species of Hdiekryniim
and Xtranthemumy are called 'everlastings' or 'immortal' flowers.
The species are numerous. Fiye are British. Of these (7. fdiginoaum
is the most common, growing in wet and sandy places. Q, ItUeo-
edimm, O. tylvcUicwn, 0, tupinum, and 0. piuiUum are all rare planta
Several of the species of the old genus Onaphalimm are referred to
new genera as Anteimaria and Filago, Q. dioicvm is ArUennaria
dioica of Qsertner. It grows on mountain heaths in Qreat Britain,
and is commonly called Cotton- Weed, and by the older herbalists Pes
Cati Its flowers were admitted into the older pharmacopoeias under
the name of 'Flores hispiduli Pes Cati' They are astringent^ and were
employed in the cure of hooping-cough, phthisis, and haemoptysis.
0, atmarinm (Hdiehrytwn arenarium) has been employed as a remedy
in dyspnoea. O. Stachas of Linnseus, Gk)Idilooks, the ffelichriftum
StcBchaa, is mentioned by Theophrastus ('Hist PL' 9, 21). The
flowers of this plant were formerly much used in medicine, but are
seldom employed at the present day.
(Babington, Manual of Britith Botany; Burnett^ OnUineB of Botany;
Fraas, Synoptit Plant. FL ClatHcce,)
ONAT. [CnuoiBES.]
QNA'THODON, a genus of Conchiferous MoUwea with the
ligament inclosed in the cartilage pit, established by Dr. Qray. This
peculiarity of structure is also found in a new genus Mulinict,
GNATIIO'STOMA (71^09, a jaw, and <rr6fui, the mouth), a genus
of Kematoid Bntozoa [Entozoa], discovered by Professor Owen in the
stomach of the tiger. These worms, the largest of which are about
an inch in length and a line in diameter, were found in the substance
of sevend small cellular ttunours situated immediately beneath the
mucous membrane of the stomach, and apparently formed by the
condensation and thickening of the submucous cellular tissue, which
was probably owing to the irritation of the BntoMoa, OiSly a judr of
these animals was found in each tumour, and they always consisted of
male and female, the former of whioh was about one-fourth smaller
than the latter.
In both sexes the body is round, elastic, and attenuated at both
extremities ; the tail is more obtuse and bent in the male ; the head
is obtuse and truncated in both of them. The integuments are trans-
parent, and, from the intestinal and genital tubes showing through
the surfiM^e of the body, appear to be striated transversely. The
anterior two-thirds of the body are covered with a circular series of
minute reflected spines, each furnished with three points. The mouth
is surrounded by a tumid circular lip, and armed with several rows
of spinous processes of a rimilar structure to those on the body. The
orifice of the mouth itself is bounded on each side by a jaw-like pro-
cess (whenoe the name of the genus), the anterior margin of which is
formed into three straight homy points, or processes, directed for-
wards. The male organ of generation consists of a slightly-curved
slender spioulum, not fumidied with a sheath as in the Strongylut,
and surrounded by eight distinct pointed papillie.
The most interestiog point in the internal structure of this entosoon,
and which does not appear to have been hitherto detected in any other
animal of this class, is the existence of a distinct salivary apparatus,
similar to what is found in the HoUikwria and other EminodermaJla,
" This apparatus," says Professor Owen, " consists of four elongated
straight blind tubes, each about two lines in length, which are placed
at equal distances around the commencement of the alimentary canal,
having their smaller extremities directed forwards, and opening into
the mouth, and their closed obtuse ends passing backwards into the
abdominal cavity. When examined with a lens of a quarter of an
inch focus, the parietes of these salivary tubes present very distinct
oblique or spiral decussating fibres ; their contents are semi-pellucid
in the recent worm, but become opaque in spirit of wine." The
existence of this salivary apparatus along witli the more perfect
oigans of mastication, as the jaws, in this entozoon is highly interest-
ing, as it shows an approximation to the structure of the digestive
ot^gans in the higher classes of animals.
Professor Owen has since found the QnaihotiOfMk in the stomach of
other animals of the Cat kind, as the leopard.
Beautiful preparations of both the xnale and female worms dis-
sected are preserved in the museum of the College of Surgeons in
London.
QNEISS, a Qerman term for the lowest series of stratified primary
rocks, ths introduction of which marks the obligations which British
geologists owe to the school of Werner; while such terms as lias,
combraah, gault» &c, record the original discoveries of Smith and
other English writers. As there are no oxganic remains in the gneiss
strata, and the variations of its composition and structure appear
independent of the relative antiquity of the deposits, it is impossible^
except by the help of the included limestoneB, quartz-rocks, day-slates,
&a, even to attempt the division into formations of the yast thickness
of the gneiss strata which appears in the Highlands of Sootland, the
mounWns of Scandinavia, so.
Qneiss is generally a compound of the same three minerals as
granite, namely, quarts, felspar, and . mica. In the same manner as
granite varies in the proportion of its ingredients, the magnitude of
the component crystals, the absence of mica, or the snbstitation of
other minerals for it, so gneiss exhibits corresponding yariationa.
I>r. M'Cullooh, whose examination of the gneiss traots of Scotland
was very complete, presents an extended synopsis of the varieiiee of
gneiss which he had observed. His table includes indeed a gi«at
number of mineral compounds different from the general charaotes of
gneiss, but is nevertiieless valuable to the geologist Heoonaideis
gneiss in three divisions : first, of regular composition, oontainiag at
least three of the four minerals---quarti, felspar, mica, and hornblende ;
secondly, of irregular composition, containing compact felspar ; and
thirdly, of irregular composition in other respects. (' Treatise on
Rocks.')
The following is a synopsis of the first division : —
Granitic OneisB. — This is always huge grained,
a. Composed of quarts, felspar, and mica.
6. Composed of quarts, felspar, and hornblende.
e. Composed of quarts^ felspar, mica, and homblendet.
Schistose Qneiss.— The structure is foliated like mica^chist, or
granular like quartz-rock.
a. Composed of white felspar and quartz in minute grains,
with rare scales of mica (resembles quartz-rock).
5. Composed of felspar and quartz as above, but with abund-
ance of mica (so as to resemble mica-sdust).
c In this the»mioa is extremely abundant^ so as to form
continuous laminsei
d. In this the mica is predominant, and there are large inter-
spersed crystals of felspar.
e. Composed of large grains of quartz and felspar with litUe
nuca.
Laminar Qneiss. — Each substance occupying a distinct lamina,
a. Composed of quartz and felspar.
h. Composed of quartz, felspar, and mica,
c. Composed of quartz, felspar, and hornblende,
d Composed of felspar and hornblende.
e. Composed of quartz, mica, and hornblende.
All the Tarieties of rock comprised \mder the titie of gneiss are
stratified, the 'beds varying mudii in thidmess, and betng most
remarkably subject to contortions both on a large and small scale,
espedally where granite veins cross the Uminse.
Gneiss is an interesting rock for study to the TCnglifth geologist
Over a considerable portion of the mainland, and in the western
islands of Scotland, gneiss is the predominant and fundamental
rock. It is also found abundantly in Ireland. The picturesque
features of gneiss preseut almost every imaginable variety, a broad
expanse occupied by this rock sometimes extending over considerable
tracts, and being <mly relieved in its savage monotony by oooasional
pools of water or patches of bog; while in other distriots it forms
wild and rugged hUls, assuming a mountainous character, and
displaying broken and craggy faces of rock. (Ansted.)
Gneiss admits of considerable variety by the substitution of other
minerals for dther the quartz, felspar, or mica of which it is usually
composed. The miol^ for instance, may be replaced by talc, forming
what is called Stratified Protogine. In some cases hornblende is
superadded to the ordinary materials, forming a syenitic gnoi— .
GN£TA'CE.£, Joini-Pin't, a natural order of Plants bdoQging to
the smsU class of Gymnosperms. The spedes consist of smaU trees
very much branched, or of sarmentose shrubs with oppoaite or
clustered branches, and thickened separable articulations. The leaves
are opposite, entii'e^ with pinnate veins, sometimes very minute and
scalesBhaped. The ligneous tissue of the wood is marked with
circular discs. The flowers are monoecious or dioedous; the stamens
are contained in a 1-leaved calyx; the ovary is perforated at the
apex, containing in a single cavitv a solitary erect ovule ; the ovule
pointed by a style-like proq<98s, tormed from the membrane of the
nudeus; were is no trace of a style or stigma.
This small order of plants has been formed by Blume, whose
memoir in the ' Annales des Sdences Naturelles ' contains the prin*
cipal knowledge we have of this order. "This littie family,^ he
days, ''constitutes a part of that natural class of vegetables in which
th0 fertilisation of the ovule takes place immediately, without the aid
of style or stigma, through the foramen of the ovule itsel£ Through
Bph^itra, which has hitherto been placed w91i CwMfera, the order is
dosdy connected with the latter : and, '4m the other hand, it tends
towards Catnarinacec^ plants of a" hijgher degree of organisation ;
since Qnetacea is beyond all doubt -an instance of a more perfect
kind of evolution than dther Ovniiftrm or Oyeadaceai, From both
these orders Qnetacea differ in the greater per^otion of their sexual
organs, especially of their stamens; and at the same time tiieir
ovules are not absolutely naked, but covered with a pericarpial
integument pierced at the summit In the male flowers the perianth
ion
GNU.
QOAT-SnCKERa
30M
is tubuUtr; at fint ooHe eloied ap, in the manner of certain Arlo-
carpea, bat eyentualW it is ruptared by the rising of the stamen.
There is no trace of a perisnih of this sort in the neighbooring
orders; bat in Cbnf^^irar a totally different otganisation of anther
occurs, that part not opening, as in Oneteieea, by transverse pores of
the apex, but always at the side, and generally longitudinally/'
The species of this family are natives of the temperate psrts of
Europe, Asia, and South America. Onetum is sn inhabitant of the
hottest parts of India and Quyana.
Some of the spedes of Cfntium are used as food. The seeds of
(7. Oneham are eaten in Amboyna, and are roasted, boiled, or fried.
The green leaves are cooked and eaten like spinach. The inside of
the frnit of O, urem is lincil with stinging hain; the seeds are,
however, eaten ; the stem exudes a transparent gum, and when out
across yields a laige quantity of transparent water, which is drunk.
(Lindley, Naiuriai SjftUm of £otany,)
GNU. [Ahtilopejl]
GOAT. [Caprxa]
GOATS-BEARD. [Traqofooon.]
GOAT-MOTH. [CosBua.]
GOAT-PEPPER. [Capsxcum.]
GOATSUCKERS, the English name of those Ni^t^wallows
commonly tenned Night-Jars; whence the name OaprtiMUgicUg, by
which the family is generally known among ornithologists. Mr.
Rennie changes the name of the European Night-Jar to Nyetichdidon
(Night^wallow), objecting that the name Goat-Sucker, which it has
received in all laimiages, and which, he thinks, has been most
absurdlv continued by systematic naturalists in the term CaTprimvlg%i»,
shows the opinion of it entertained by the vulgar. Now we cannot
admit this great absurdity, though we entirely agree with Mr. Rennie
that "it is as impossible for the night-jar to suck the teats of cattle
(though most birds are fond of milk), as it is for cats to suck the
breath from sleeping infants, of which they are popularly accused."
If every aoolcigical name that has not a sure foundation were to be
changed, there would be no small alteration in nomenclature and not
a little confusion ; as it is, the perpetual change of names is quite
sufficiently perplexing. Nor are we at all sure that such names as
CaprimtUffus are not of some value as showing, in connection with a
true history of the habits of the bird, how the errors and super-
stitions of old times have vanished before the light of modem
investigation. Thus much as an apology for not changing the family
name CitprimtdgicUg,
Mr. Vigors remarks that when we search among the Perdhers for
that point where they approximate the Owls, we at once li^t upon
a group, the Caprimvlgiu of Lionsdus^ whose genera] appearance and
habits point out the affinity. " The noctuxnal and predatory manners
of this genus," says Mr. Vigors, "the hawking flight the legs
feathered to the talons, the lu]^ ears and eyes, the very disc that
surrounds the face, and the pectmation of the external qaill*feather8^
observable in some of the species, the general softness of the plumage,
together with its peculiarly striking colour and maridngs, produce a
similarity between it and the Strix that has attracted the eye of the
common observer no less than the naturalist. The provincial names
of this genus have generally a reference to this resemUanoe; while
the earlier scientific deseribers of the different spedes have for the
most part ranked them with the owls. I know not whether the
singular character observable in some of Uie species of this £unily,
the serrated nail of the middle toe, may not be cited as an addi-
tional proof of their approach to the birds of prey. The strong toes
of the latter are lost in CaprimiUffUi : but a construction of similar
import (for the serration of the naU appears capable of being applied
to the purposes of seizure only), preeerves, though faintly, the
resemblance. May we not almost venture to affirm that this appar-
ently trivial appendsge is an instance of that beautiful shading by
which nature softens down the extremes of her neighbouring groups
— one of those minute and delicate touches by which she marks at
once an affinity and a deviation ? But while we may discern at a
glance the general approximation of these two families, we must at
the same time acknowledge that they stand in need of an intermediate
link to give them a doser connection. The weidmess of the bill and
of the legs and feet of the Caprimulgtu still keeps it at some distance
from the owls, in which the same members are comparatively
strong; while the wide gape of its mouth serves to divide the
lamilies still further. A connecting link has been however supplied
by an Australian group, the Podarffut of M. Cuvier, which harmonises
these discrepant characters. We have an opportunity of observing
among the specimens in the collection of the Linnean Society, how
hr the bill of this extraordinazr genus combines the di^rent forms
of that of the two genera, and how far the legs, atill maintaining
the characteristics of OaprimulffvM, such as the unequal length of the
toes, are related to those of Strix by their superior robustness. Here
indeed there is a beautiful gradation of aifimties. All the front toes
of CapriiMiUgut are united by a connecting membrane as far as to the
first joint; those of Strix are divided to the origin; while those of
Podargua partake of the characters of both, in having the middle
toe connected with the outer, but divided from the inner. Again, as
I have already remaiked, Cdprimulgu$ has the nail of the middle toe
dilated and sexrated : Strix has it^ generally speaking, undulated and
antire at the margin ; but in Podargm the same part displays the
sfngiilar dilatation of the one and the maiig^nal integrity of the other.
It is difficult to say to which of these groups it comes nearest, imtil
further and more aocurate accounts than we at present possess of its
food and eoonomy may determine its actual situation. At present it
remains osciUant betrween the two families, and may decidedly be
pronounced the immediate passage from the birds of prey to the
perohers." Mr. Vigors adds in a note that he had latterly obtained
aocoonts fbom actual observers of some of these Podargi in Australia,
stating their manners to be generally conformable to those of the
Oaprimulgi,
Mr. Vigors further observes that the union between the two families
of Caprimulgidof and Mirundinidce in the most essential particulars,
in the habits, economy, and general conformation, is too evident to
the common observer, and too universally acknowledged by scientific
writers, to need any further illustration. But he remarks that it is
gratifyUig to observe how, even in minute particulars, a gradual
succession of affinities imperceptibly smooths the passage between
conterminous groups; nor does he pass over without remark the
chrcnmstance of the hind toe of OaprimMiffm being usually retractile,
iriiich enables it to place all its toes in finont, in a similar position to
that which they mamt4Mn in Oyptdm, where the family of the Hirwi^
dinidcB terminates. He notices also ihe conformation of the tail in
the two lunilies as showing a similar affinity, observing that some
species of Caprimulgui, then lately arrived from Brazil, exhibit the
forked tail of Birundo, one of which, indeed, the O. p$€Uurua of
Temminck, has this character developed to an almost disproportionate
degree. "Leaving those typical &miliee," continues Mr. Vigors,
" with the short bill, and taking a general survey of the tribe^ we
may perceive that the CaprimulgSda unite themselves to the longer-
billed fiunilies, by means of the Linnean Todi, which preserve the
broad base of the bill of the latter, but lead on, by comparative
length of that member, to the succeeding family of lialcyonidcB, If
we compare the bill of the type of the last-mentioned genus, the
ToduB viridit, Linn. [Uvscioabidm], with those of Caprimulgm and
Halcyon [HALOTONiDiil, we shall perceive that it stands exactly mid-
wa;^ between them in the relative proportions of strength and breadth
wmch it bears to each. In the length also of the tail, an important
character in the groups that feed on the wing, it maintains a middle
station between them." For the group whidi forms the immediate
connection between the present fami^ of Todida and the preceding
Oaprinulgidcg, Mr. Vigors observes that we are indebted to Dr. Hors-
field, since in the depressed and broad-based bill and wide gape of
JSurylaimuB we recognise the characters which unite those nmilies
rMusoiCAFiDii], and Mr. Vigors refers to the valuable plates of the
' Zoological Researohca in Java ' as exhibiting the intimate approach
of the Dill of this latter genus to that of Podargut Javanentii. Near
to Furykumm, which in the opinion of Mr. Vi^^ors is united to Todta
by some species now referred to the former genua, but which were
ori^nally included in the latter, he would place the genus, j^ttryj^otiitw
of Vieillot [Mbbopida], which in the essential characters of the bill,
and from all Mr. Vigors could ascertain of its general habits and
economy, seems to him to bear a striking affinity to the present group.
Here also the same considerations would incline him to arrange the
Calyptomena of Sir Stamford Raffles, which differs chiefly from the
groups now mentioned in its comparatively shorter bill and the
singular covering of plumes that project over the upper mandible.
All these and some other corresponding genera will be found, Mr.
Vigors makes no doubt, on more accurate knowledge of their economy,
to belong either to the present family, which is placed at Uie extre-
mity of the Fisnroitret, or to that of Piprida, which forms, in the
system of Mr. Vigors, one of the aberrant groups also of the neigh
bouring circle of J)enUi'09trea, and thus comes in contact with the
Todidit, Mr. Vigors admits that more extensive knowledge respecting
these birds will determine the line of demarcation between Uiem ;
but the general affinity by which they approach each other, at least, in
continuous families, may at once, in his opinion, be decided without
hesitation. (* On the Natural Affinities that connect the Orders and
Families of Birds,' ' Linn. Trana,' voL xv.)
Mr. Swainson ('Classification of Birds') considers the order of
Fiatiroatra to be best represented by the Swallows and Goat-Suckers ;
observing at the same time that the former are the most isolated,
whilst the latter, above all other birds, show the nearest affinity to
the Owls. " No species indeed," says Mr. Swainson, " has been yet
discovered which would perplex a naturalist to decide to which of
these families it belonged, but that is not material; we do not uphold
the injudicious theory that every one of nature's links is so pofect,
or rather so well known, as to leave no unequal intervals in the series ;
on the contrary, we maintain that such interruptions are frequently
found, and in this manner are the Goat-Suckers detached by a slight
interval from the Owls." The same author remarks that the Fissi-
rostral Birds, as a whole, are peculiarly distinguished by having the
powers of flight developed in the highest degree ; all ihe eneigies of
their nature, he observes, seem concentrated in this one perfection ;
for their feet arc always very short, weak, and generally so imperfect
as to be of use only to rest the body after fl$it ; their food being
exclusively insects captured upon the win^. '' To accomplish this^**
proceeds Mr. Swainson ''nature has given to their mouth an
OOAT-SUCKERS.
i width, bj iriiioh, laperaddad to their trntiiog Si^t and
rapUitr of mOTMnant, thay an almoat ■org to e»tar« timr praj.
Wlw that baa watchad tha iwalloir or tha goalranckBr has bilad to
raeopiiaa thaM paoullar parfaotioiu } Ai tha Dootunul goat'Rickani
ftaqnantl* pnr npon bMtlaa and Ui^ motha, tho montli, in meh
■paoiM, U dabndad bj aliff briitlea ; but thesa appendago an
randarad nimaoaaaaiT to tha awallow* ; their g»mc oontuAiag entlrd j
of thoaa littla aoft hiaeota aean in the air on a aummar'l erauiiig or
apartinc on tha flowari of a aunn; field. Tha goat'iuoksn ahooae the
twilight, and catoh their food pnoiadr in tha aame waj, escaptjog^
indaad, that their little ahort feet are aametimea uaed for the aame
pnrpoae, > moat alngoUr part of their aconomy, flrat notiaad by our
oonnttjman White. Some of theae noctnmal birdB (Pogardiu,* Cut.)
hare a biE nearly a* itrong u an owl's ; others ara famiahad with
foAad taila of ezceasiTe Iragth; and one apaciea, diaoovend during
onr raasarchea in Bnail (Caprimtilgiiu diHrmu, Tanun.) quita tha
nootnmal habitl of it* oonganara, and in oloody days may ba aaen in
troops of t( or 20 ikimmfng orar tha anrboa of poDda, praciaaly in
tha maonar of awallowa." Ur. Swainaon than remarka that tha
Swallow* and the Ooat'Snoketa ara, in fact, oonueotad Iw oartain
awifti, for the Balaaaiaa Swift ia deainibed aa a nootnmal Urd, appear-
ing at smust and going to reat at aunriae ; and thua he enloi the
UmUj BirtuuUnula. [ElBDHDIHniM.]
The CapHmalgida, aoaording to Mr. Bwainaon'a classifloation, eotidat
ofthe foUawiagsenaraandanb^anara. But It should be ramambered
that he tlAtea that ha haa thon^t it beat not to attempt a natural
arrangemant until the family ia better andantood.
Tha following an the chaiaotara of the family :~Plumaga lax, aoR.
Bill •zoaeding^ small ; gapa enormoua ; fMt yary short, weak; tho
lullui directed farwarda. (Swainaon.)
Podargiu, CuTier. — Slia larga ; the middle okw not aerratad ; tha
hallux not directed forward.
Sub-genera, Pudiirgjtt proper. — Bill large, very strong, tha tip and
margina of the upper mendibte fblding orer those oF tha lower ; oul-
men eleratad and arched ; true rictol biiatlea none ; tongue Tar; thin,
entire ; tataus short. (Svraiuaon.)
Seveial spenica of this aub-genus have been found in Auatnlia, and
we ulect as an example of these —
P. AuMcmiu. — It is Tariegated abore with aahy brown and dirty
yellow ; head and sides of the bank eonspieuously strined with black -
QOAT-SUCEERS.
e howerer that Dr.
forahaad and dorsal ptumsge lightly dotted and banded wiUi white ;
taaseletad beneath with btaek stripe* and spproxlmaUng dir^ y("~~
bMtds. Length o( the body 20 indie*, and of the tall B^ inonea.
Celd-RlTIT Ooit-Saglur {etiarpit kumrrvtit).
Mr. Tlgora and Dr. HoraEeld obserra that tho birds of this ganui
In tha oolleotloD of the Linneon Society bear such a general i«aem-
blanoe to each other, that they felt socie haaitation in deacribing them
aa different apectee. The careful eiamiuation of many individuals in
their own country will, in the opinion of these loologiata, alone detei^
nine with oactaiuty whether they are diatinct or merely nuietJM of
'■*"'*", aa irall aa themaelTo
the name of the Cold-RiTSr . . ._ _. . „_ _
Ooat-Saakart^odofyu SuaiUtamu\ Mr. Sw«inson idao dtes it
P. Jawutauit of Horafield, the Chabba-Wonno of the JaTaneae, ia
an A^atic example of this genus. In general colour it ia fomginoua
or rufous, with a tint of isahella, Tsried by undulated tranaTaraa bands
of dark brown ; a collar of pale whitiah iaahalla, Tariegatad with two
TB17 narrow handa of deep bcowii, paaaca ronnd the lower part of the
neck, and from tikis collar eerenl large irregular white maAa are
disposed in an interrupted series from Uie axilla to the middle of the
baA ; on the breaat and belly several white feathen are acattned ;
the tnuuverae banda are strongest on the rounded taSi feet rafbus;
daws blaekiah 1 bill obscure yellow and rather ahinlng; middle toe
not dentated. Length, 9 inches.
ChatOa-Wonna {Poiartui JmaatntU).
The babita of this bird are not known. It la nootnmal, and oonoeals
itaeir In large fonata.
The other two aub-genera arisnged by Mr. Bwaiiwon under the
genua Podarffut are jSgothOa, Honfield and Vigors, and IfMlibiut,
Vieillot.
Hr. Allia haa stated that the ederotio ring of the ^reat Pod^gm
doei not present the slightest appearance of diatinct plat^ being
aimply a bony ring.
IL Laaaon is of opinion that Antf emit [Quachabo Bim] fOn&a tha
paasaga between the d^mulgi and the Crowa.
Caprimnigiti, LinnreuB.— Bill remarkablr small and weak ; Uie lidea
infiezed and aometimea gaping; taraua short ; all the toea directed
forwarda ; tha inner and outer toes equal ; the middle claw peotinatad.
(Swainaon.)
Hr. Swainaon lubdivldas the genua Into the following eub-
Cdpn'nuZ^iu.— Oapa strongly briaUed ; taU lengthened, munded ■
lateral toea equal (Swainaon, } .
CfiirapfEtie, the Common Ooat^ucker. Tha male haa ita plumage
above and that of tho throat ash-gray, thickly atnoksd and spotted
with brown moeUy of a yellowish tmge ; head and neck with longitn-
dmal blaokiah atreiks ; a white stripe beneath tbe base of the towai
mandible axtenda along each side of the lower part of ibe luul, and
there ia a central patch of white upon the throat ; quills with tha
outer wabs blotched with reddiah-bnwn, and the three exterior
feathera with a large white patch near tbe tipa of the inner wabs ; tail
irregularly marked and indistinctly barred with blackiah-grcy and
yellowiih-brawn J the tw» eitenial feathers on each aide white at
their tenninstlon ; plumage of the under parte yallowish-brown, with
transreraa bUckish bun; bUland irides dark brown; tarai paler
Female with the plumage of the mate generally, bnt she wants the
white i[>ole on the quills and tail-feathers.
ThU U most probably the Aiyt6i,\ai (or Ooatfiucker) of Arirtotle
and the Qmks, and the Caprinmlgiu of Pliny and the Romans.
e IS indeed, as we shall preaenUy see, anoUier Boropean
^ , ^J*"',." ",."»? ™~ '^'" Caprimulffiu £«n>}>OH is the
Calcabotto Pi.ttaElioQe, Porta Qusglie, Boccaccio, and Cova-Tena,
of the Italians; Chotacabraa of tha Spaniards; Tette-Cherrr
Kngoulevont Ordinaire, and Crapaud Volant, of the French ; MUoh-
wuger, Oeisemilcher, Naoht Rabe, Nacht Sohwalbe, and Tag-Suhlafer
of the Qenoana ; Natakimfb, Natskam, and Quallknamn, of the
'Fauna Soeciov;' Nat-Bavn, Nataade. and Aften-Bakke, of Braonieh ■
Muckenatadur and Kachlrabb of Eranur ; Adeiyn j drooll, Rhodwr,
^ GOATSUCKERS.
of tha Welih; «nd Goit-Suckor, Nigbt-J»r, Jir-Owl, Chan-
Owl, PflniOwl, Dor-H.wk, Night-H»wk, (nd Wheel-BW, of the
Engluh.
OOA.T-SUCKEBS.
Comnum Giwl-Snrk>r (i
Tlia *bmrd etor; of tbe goat-Buckiug habiU of *hi« bird mftf be
trued back as fu u the time of ArUtoUe, and is probably of much
older dato. It hafl all the a-ppearaaco of a daap-rooted popular preju-
dice, which WHS BO eitenaively believed when that EoologiBt wrote, --
to demand, in h'la opinion, insertion in his ' History of AjiiinaJs.'
the ninth book of that history (c ixi.), Aristotle «ay«, •' The bird
vallad ^gothUcu ia a mountalD-bird, a little larger than tha blackbird
{•ffrri^u), and a little lew tban the cuckoo. It layi eggs to tha
number of two or three at most, and is of a slothful nature (^Auiui^i).
Flying upon the ^oats, it sucks tham {»rtki(n Ji t4i atyia rpetrwi
riiimt), wbence it hne its name. Thej say that when it ha.
Rucked the t«at it becomes dr7,*and that the goat baoomea blind. It
ia not aharp-iigbted by day; but it sees by night" j£ljan'>
version of the effect of the bird's luckinR is confined to the part
BUcked. Be Bays that the operstion makes the teat diy or blind (tv^c~
luieeir), and eo the Sow of the milk is stopped. He speaks of th.
great audacity of the bird, obecrring that it ia fearless of Uie rengeance
hsTB been so Buokod."
false BocusaUoD made against the ]
informs us that the coimtrypoople have'a notion that the fern-owt
or chum-owl, or eve-jsrr, which they also call a puokeridge. is vetr
injurious to weanling oalves, by inflicting, as it strikes at them, the
tUitl distemper known to cow-laaches by the name of puokeridge.
"Thus," says White, " does this hartnleaa ill-fated bird fall under a
double imputation, which it by no means deserveg; in Italy, of
sucking the teaU of goats, whence it is called tha Caprimalgiu, and
nith us, of oommunioting a deadly disorder to the cattle. But the
truth of the matter is, the malady ia occasioned by the (Eitnu bovit, a
dipterous insect, which lays its em along the chins* of kine, whete
the maggots, when hatched, eat their way through the bids of the
beaat into tha flesh, and grow to a yery Urge size." (White, ' Sel-
bome.'} Belon, in his folio edition (IGSS), gives no figure of this
species, but appears to confound it with an Owl, 'L'Effraye' or
'Fnt*je.' In the small Ito. 'Fortnuts d'Oyseaui,' *c. (1657), a
figure IB given at the end of the owla, which, though bed, cannot
be mistaken for anything but the OoatSucker, wiUi the titlea of
'AiTsAiAoi, Sirix Ct^rmuigut, Pur nocdimw, Effraye, Frezaje," wilh
the following old quatrain : —
Head and Ibot o[ CommDa Goat-Eneker [Cafrimiilpii Xurepmu).
of the goatherds (iiL 3B). £liaD also refers to its goat-Buoktng pro-
pensity in c. 22 of book xvl. Plinj; <• Nat Hist,' ix. lb) states that
the " Cofrimitlgi are nocturnal thieves : for tbey cannot see by day
(inlerdiu enim Tisa carent). Thej enter the folds (atabula), and At
to the udders of tbs goata in order to sock the milk, ^m which
lDJai7 the adder diee away, and blindness falls npon the goats which
CelQj qui I'oll : elle Tola is nulct,
Et a tetter la ehprrcs pmd dedulet
rabshlhlni'dleHsomEIIrijel"
The food of the European Ooat-Sacker oonsists chiefly of night-
flying and erening-flying moths and beeUee,PAa2imiz,if«lBJontila^ Ac
aoh of one which WUluriiby opened wan seeds as well
The Fem-Chafar, MdcioiUha loUtUialu, seems to be a
favourite food, and hence the bird is frequently found in those neigh-
bourhoods where fern abounds. It spends tiie summer in the tem-
perate ooontries of Europe, but on the approach of winter retires to
the south of the HediteiTsnean Sea. Its arrival in these islonda may
looked for from the middle of Hay to the end of that month, and
departure takea place towards the end of September or beginning
of October. The earliest appearance of the bird m White's ' Calendar'
is dated on the 1 at of Hay, and the Utest on the 26th of that month.
The last-named natimliat paid particular attention to the habits of
this apeciea. "There is no bird, I believe," writes that delightful
observer, in a letter to Pennant, " whose manners I have studied more
tban that of tha CaprimtUffut (the Oost-Sucker). as it is a wonderful
and curious creature ; but I have always found that though some-
tjmrs it may chatter aa it flies, as I know it does, yet in general it
utters its jarring note sitting on a Iwugb j and I have for many an
half-hour watched it as it aat with its under mandible quivering, and
partjcnlarly this summer. It perches usually on a bare twig, witli
Its bead lower than its tail, in an attitude well expressed by your
dnughtaman in the folio 'British Zoology.' This bird is moat uunctual
in beginning its song exactly at tiie close of day ; so exacuy that 1
have known it strike np mora tban once or twice just at the report of
the Portsmouth ereuing gun, which we can hear when the weather is
stUL It appears to me past all doubt that its notes are fonned by
oiganio impulse, by the powers of the psrts of its windpipe, formed
for soood, just as cats pur. Yon will credit me, I hope, when I
■asore yon that^ as my neighbours were assembled in an uermilage
of a steep mil, where we drink tea, one of these chum-
owls came and settled on the cross of that little stnw edifioe and
began to chatter, and continued his note for many minutes; add we
were all struck with wonder to find that the oigans of that little
animal when put in motion gavo a sensible vibistion to the whole
building I Thu bird also sometimes makee a small squeak, repeated
four or five times ; and I have oboerved that to happen when the
cock has been pursuing the hen in a toying way tbrou^h the boughs
of a tree," A^in ;— " On the 12th of July I had a fair opportmutjf
of contemplating the motions of the Caprimulgtu, or Fem-Owl, as it
was playing roond a large oak that swarmed wi^ Scarabiei KMitialn,
or Fern-Chafers. lie powers of its wing wera wonderful, ezceedinft
if possible, the various evolutions and quick turns of the awallow
genus. But the oireumBtance that pleased me most was, that I saw
it distinctly, more than once, put out its abort leg, while on the wing,
and by a bend of the head deliver somewhst into its mouth. If it
takes any part of ita prey with its foot, ss I have now great reason to
saneae it does these charen^ I no longer wonder at the use of ita
middle toe, which ia onrioosly Aimialiea with a serrated claw." llr.
Vigon( loo. dt) remaps that the Common Barn-Owl (Strix JUiinmta)
possesses the same chaneler of aenated nnguis : and that some otber
spedea of the Sirigtda exhibit somewhat of the rudiments of it ; thus
establishing more doaely the affinity of the Owls and the Capri-
tnlffi. Hr. Vigors adds that Us oonjeoture as to the use of the
serrated oUw— that is, ita being devoted to the purposes ot seiiure —
ia considerably corrobormted by Uie paasage from White aliave quoted.
At the same time he refers to WilsOD, who in bis sccount of the
CapriMuIgm Car^wtntit (AMrMftwiw Caralinauii of Prince C. L.
Bonaparte} assigns a different use to this semted claw. Of this
spedea Wilson saya, "Repodng much during the beat of the day,
they ate much inhatad with vermin, particuhirly about the head, and
are provided with • comb on the inner edge of the middle claw, with
which thsy ara often employed in ridding tbemaelvea of these pests.
106B OOAT-SDCKERa
at leut wben in > atate of oaptivi^." Upon this Hr. Vigor* absi
th&t luali can be at beat but an accidental me to whioli tba HinaUan
am be applied. Thera an many other gronpa oF birds, ba adds, po»-
Muiog tba ume oharacter, to whicli tbe samo application of i(
nerer be auigned — for inetauce, tbe greater port of the genua Ptle-
eamu of Linnama. Many of theae birdo, wboae foet, Mr Vigora ob-
aerTBB, are natunJIy ill adapted by their webbed atruoture for laying
hold of ODj object, are yet found to incubate among treea, where tht
•errated claw may give them a further power of prebeiudon ; they an
also, he remarks, anerted to seize their prey oocaaioiully with the
foot; In which acta the structure of the nail, ai in the case cited by
White reapectiag the Caprimidgiti, may be peculiarly niefuL " *"
family of the A rdeida among the wading birds equally exhibit," says
Mr. Vigors, in concluiioD, "an aaalogous construction in the middle
Da^. Here again this character seems adapted to their mode of life
in enabling them to hold their prey more firmly in thoas slimy and
muddy mtuations where it might otherwise elude them ; while, at the
same time, it may aaaixt their feet{which, likethoaeof the Peiaanida,
are naturally ill auiled for grsaping) in their hold among the trees,
where, like wme alio of the latter family, they build their neeto."
Mr. Ihllon is of opinion that the chief uae of the aerrated claw
ii simply to comb out or dress the Tibrinte which eurround the
gape. Mr. Swainaon oppines this view, obaeriing that then ia an
American group of this family which hars no bristles round the bill,
and yet have the serrated clawa ; and another group in Australia
which have hristlea round the bill, and yet with the claw sn:
and simple. He also obssrres that the Heron tribe bare the gape
smooth, but the claw lerrated. Ifr. Rennie remarks that the passage
in Wilson " appean to settle the question ;" but he givM no salisfiui-
tory reason why.
OOAT-SDCKERS.
1K<
ftattmi mMnftaniM (o
it is observed to perch not across s branch, but on its longitudina,
dir«ction. These birds affect the neighbourhood of oake, where in
Hay they find the MeUiontha vulgarit, and at Midsummer the M. lol-
tlilioju. White graphically describes the eiolutiona of one round his
' grent sprtading oak,' where it was hawking after a brood of soma
porticulu' Phtdana belonging to that tree. On this occasion be says
It exhibited a command of wmg superior to the swallow itself. The
same author statn that when a penon approaches the haunts of this
speciflfl in an evening tiiey continue flying round the head of the
obtrudar ; and by striking their wings together above their backs, in
the manner that the [dgeana oallea Smiters are known to do, make
a ^ort anap ,' perhapa at that tims, hs adds, they are jealous of their
?oung, and their noise and gestures are intended by way of menace.
'he ^Xh ^^0 '" number, oblong, white or duaky, and streaked some-
what ^e the plumage of the bird, are equal in size at each end, and
are laid on Uie b^ ground, generally among fem, heath, or long
grass, someUmea in furse-hrakea or woods, but always near the latter.
Montagu describes the noise made by the male during incubation
when perahed, and with his head downwards, as not unlike that
of a spinning-whael, and notices its uttering a sharp squeak as
Tha other European apecies, Caprinailgu* mfieoUiM, which is very
rare, haa been ahot in the oak-woods some miles distant from Alge-
liraa, and also in the volley of the Rio del Mel, near that aXj. The
Spiuiiah name for it is Samala. Mr. Qould has no doubtthat its natural
habitat la tforthem A&ica. Prinos Bonaparte notes it as occurring
in south-weatam Europe during the summer.
Mr. Qonld has eatablished a new genus for some of the American
Caprmutgi, under the name of AntmUmiu. [WmF-PoOB-Wiu,]
AuJiinHfSw.). — Qapa strongly bristled. Tail exoeasively long, and
Ten deeply forked,
A macroplemt. A bri^t ruddy demi-coUar onamenla the back
part of the neck, and the two external tail'featben in the male ace
much longer than the others. Tha tul of tha female is much shorter.
It is a native of Fnraguay and BraiiL
ChordtOtt (Sw.). — Qape perfectly smooth. Wings very long, equal
to tha tul, which U slightly forked.
C. ^^nericanM. Qround of plumage above, sides of tha head, and
front of Iha necic, dark liver-brown, glossed with greenish. Head,
neck, and upper rows of leaser wing-covarla, spotted with yellowiahr
brown; back, scapulais, and tertiaries, mottled with brownieb-wbite
and a Uttle wood-brown, the pale colour farming speckled bora on the -
tail and ita oorerta; intermediate wing-coverts more thickly mottled
with a purer white; greater coverts spotted with brewn on the
margin ; band on middle of quills, beginning on the inner web of the
first and ending with the fifth, and a broad arrow-ehaped mai^ on tha
throat, pure white. A white dotted superciliary band reaches to tha
nape. LaUral tail-feathers bonded with white. Plumage below and
inner wlng-ooverta barred alternately with brewaish-white and liver-
brown. Bill blackish. Legs pale. Tail forked. Middle toe, which
is longaat, with a serrated claw.
Thu is the Caprim^J^tu Amencanui of Wilson, and. tha 0. FiQTiai-
aniu of Prinoe Bonaparte, who notices the bird in his ' Geographical
and Comparative List,' as CHordeila Firyinianvj (Bonap.), and
CofrimuUgiu Popettit (VieilL). It is the Peaaquaw of the Cree
3ir John Richardson saya that few birds are better known in tha
Fur Countries than this, which rangea in summer even to the most
remote arctic islands. Colonel Sabine notices it, in the appendix tc
Captain (now Sir Edward) Parry'a ' First Voyage,' as tha Musquito
Hawk, and stataa that a female was found on Melville laland, lying
dead on the ground about a quarter of a mile bum the aea. Be adds,
that theae birda are known to breed and inhabit as far north as
Hudson'sBay; but aa they live principally in woods, and feed on
musquitoea and other winged insects, which are very rsre in the
North QeorgioD T«lanH«, it ia more than probable that the individual
found dead was an aocidental visitor, and had perished for wont of
food. It was extramely thin, but the plumage was in good preeerva-
tion. Fabrieius does not mention it, he obserraa in conclusion, u
known in Qreenland. Sir John Richardson states that its very pecijior
noise is most frequently heard in the evening, and often saema to be
inade close to tha listener, though the bird that producea it la so high
in the air aa to be nearly imperceptible. Ha describes this sound a>
rBBOmbling that produced by tha vibration of a tense thick cord in
a violent guat of wind, and saya that the Pisk (the common name for
the bird) considerably resembles some of the Palcoiiida in ita evolu-
tions in the air. It often remains stationary, fluttering its wings
rapidly, and then auddenly shoota off a long way by a glidijog motion :
at that mameut the loud vibratory noise is heard. " It also traverses
the air baokwardsi and forwards, quartering the sky as regularly as the
Hen Harrier auryeya a piece of ground. The female depoHits her eggs
on the ground without making any neat, generally selecting the border
of a cultivated field or an open glade in the forest, and during incu-
bation tita ao oloas that she may be almost trodden down. Wheu any
pMMU appioaoliaa her the male sallies from the adjacent thicket aod
■toapa at the Intruder, paaaing within a foot or two of his head, then
riaing again and whedmg round to repeat tha same maucsuvre. In
tha meanwbiia his mate fintten &om tha nest along the ground as if
1001 OOAT-SUCKEBS.
dU&bled, and hidei henelf at > sbott diatuice uupDg tho gn,j grow,
boia wtiich she can hardlf ba diitinguished. Ths H>k m*kw its
fint appBirenco at Great Bb» Lake getierally about the last day of
Ua;, and waa obeerved hatching on Uia Saakatcbevan on ths 8th of
June. Ita egga are narrower than thorn of Caprintilgiu voci/cnu, bnt
of the aame coloun, rather diflereatly dutributed; thef meaiura
M«rly 14 linea is length." (' Fauna Boreali- '
GOAT-SUCKERS. loss
ia entirely black, without any rofoua, their tjpa only being freckled
with gnj ; but tiev are croaaed ia the middle by a anowy-whita broad
band beginning in tjie inner web of the fint Bud terminating on the
outer web of the aixth quill : the remaining quiUa are varied with
black and nifoua and tipi*d with white. The tail ia rariegated in the
usual manner, the middle pair of feathen baving about twenty vary
^lender traii»y«r»e ban, but muoh undulated, while the outer margin
of ths exterior feather, and the tips of Uiat and of the next are pure
while. No gray in ths plumaga. Total length, including tail,
ISinohet (Sw.)
It 11 a native of Africa, and is common in Senegal.
Pltk lOherdtila Amiriaamii),
Upper fignre, male ; lower tgtm, remale. wiUi an egg.
Sir John Kichardaon atatea the extreme northern range of thii^ird
as A3° N. lat. (east of the Rocky Hountaina, migratory), and he notices
It as obsenedin the summer, when itia common, on theSaakatchewan,
lat. S3° to E4° N., and from 600 to 1000 miles diatuit from the aea-
coaat; u Tery common in the viciuity of Philadelphia, lat *0' N.
fBonaparte), but aa not haTing ila wintflr^^^«rte^^ m the Dnited States.
It alao appears in Sir John's list of apeciea which summer or breed
in the Fur Countries and in Pennsylvauia, bnt winter farther to the
southward. In Prince Bonaparte'a ' Oeographioal and ComparatiTe
List.' ths Bontliem and central part* ot North Amerioa are reoorded
as the localities of tbe apeciea.
iStcrarnu (Sw.).^^eneral atructure^f l7<it>rHiiii^NU; but the oater
toe ia shorter than tlie inner.
Subgenera, Scolomit.—^ctaa strongly briatled. Tail lengtiened,
graduated, or rounded. (Sw.)
S. clmalvnu, African Long-Tailed Ni|^tJar, Its sise ia lather
amaller than Uiat of Maerodipttryx, aluiough. From the develop
msnt of its tail, it is much longer. The Iniatlea eonsiderabfy
exceed the length of ths bill ; the third quill ia longeat ; the
first ia rather shorter than the fourth, while ths fifth ia -fijiht of
an inch ahorter than the fourth. The tail is very long, meaiuring
from the base 9 inches, of which 3^ inches are occasioned by the two
middle tail-featlierB exceeding the other*; the outer latraal toe ia
shorter than tbe inner. The ground colour of the plumage is light
ferruginouB-brown varied widi dark freckles. The chin and rictal
atripe white ; the lesaer wing-ooverta have at their tips a broad band
of white, and the greater have a terminal spot of ore*m.oolour, much
amaller than ths former. The ground oolonr of the five piimaij quills
African LeDg.Talled Nightjar (SMltmit dimalurtii). (OipHmiiltut
M. Africauui, Pennant.Winged Night>Tar, or Long-Shsiled Ooat-
Sucker, It haa wings, for the small aize of the bird, very long, rather
exceeding, or at least equalling, the tip of the tail, which ia quite even
and conaiata of ten feathers. Of the flrvt three quilla, which are much
the longeat, the first ia shorter than the third, which is slightly buc-
ceeded by the second. The long-<bafted feathers are ineerted imme-
diately between the primary and aecondary quilla. The briitlea
of the mouth are strong and squa! to the length of ths bill, which ia
weak. The middle toe ia lengthened, and the lateral toes are equal.
Colour of the plumage mixed, as iu others of the family. Upon each
web of each of the primary quilla is a row of nine rufous and nine
black spate : the rufoua bara become very amall towards the tipe,
where the black predominates. The leaser quilla are black, with four
rufous bands, the tJpa black. The middle tail-featherw are gray,
speckled with black points, andcroaaedby six black bara. all of which
ore irr^ialar, excepting the laat^ which, aa on all the other feathers,
ia r^ular, well defined, and placed just behind the tips; the outer
web of the eiterinr feather is fulvoua while, with about ten
black spots, at equal distances from each other. Some of the
scapulars have a bt^^ad cream.coloured stripe, which forma a con-
nected series when ths feathen lay over each other, but tbose
which are jnuapicuous on the supposed female can scarcely be
discerned in the male ; this latter however baa a few obacnre white
mottles on the chin, throat, and round the ean. Total length
about 8 inohea.
Mr. SwainaoD, from whcee ' Birda of Weatem Africa,' ths above
deaeription ia taken, obaervea that the ffcmale ia entirely destitute of
the long-ahafted or aupptementary feathers. " Now thia," aaya Hr.
Swainaon, " ia a very important fact, for it goes far to prove that tbn
are not essential to the economy of the apedee ; for if otherwise, boui
sexea wcaid possess them, nnleas it be contended, a supposition
highly improbable, that the male feeds in one manner and the female
in another. In the absence of all information upon this point, we
are led to oondude that they are more ornamental than nsenil, given
to the male sex as attractive decorations to the female, in a similar
manner as the flowing fathers of the Paradise Bird are known to
distinguish the male sex. V^ether or no these ornamsntal phunes
ar* lost after the season of incubation ia a subject for future inqoiry ;
106S QOAT-SUCKERS.
but thoy «ro certainly of Terr nnmm
We hsTfl Men them ia one bird only 7 inchai long, while
before na the; mea>Qr« in extreme fenglJi 1 7 inchas ; the webe occupy
eiftotly nz, while all the rest of tlie thati U naked, the rudimentafy
P»nB»nt.Wli.»»d NljhUir,
lUEuokR {IToerKiipltm
Afrieamut).
bain on each aide merely indicating the poaitjon of the lamlme, bad
they been developed. We cannot aubacnbe to aa opinion we have
heard ezpieaied, that theae latter have bean rubbed or worn off.
OOLD, iot4
featfaen. Id their texture they are remubbly flazible, moving about
with the leaat breath of wind. The inner web ii au broad, that tha
laminn in the middle meaaure £( inchea; tha outer web, on tiis
oontnry, ia Tei; narrow, and the longest lominn are hardly half
Thia ii the Coprinmlgiu JUaerodipiem^ of Afzeliui, and ths Capri-
muJffMt lon^ipeimu of Shaw.
It ia a native of Sierra Leone, Africa.
FnUhtra (Sw.). — Riotua almoat smooth ; wiaga very long, equal to
the tail, which ia short and even ; taniua laj na^ad.
P. diuma (CaprimulffHi ditxnuiM, Wied., Niunmda, Temm.). The
plumage of Uie female is above a mixture of giay-to>wn, yellawiah-
red, and browniah-black, marked with great apota of blackiah-
brown, with wide borders of yellowiih-red ; chin pale-yellow, atiiped
with gray-brown ; tail marbled with browoiah-black and bright-
yellow, with nine or ten tnuuverae banda speckled with browniah-
black. Plumage beneath white lineated with gray-brown ; middle of
the bellj white, apotleaa. Length rather more than 10 inchei.
It ia a native of Brazil and I^raguay.
OOArS-THORN, [AaraiaitDa]
GOAT-WEED. [.SaopoDiDU.]
OO'BIO, a genua at Fiahea bslon^g to the aectton Malacopletyffii
Abdoninaiet and family Cyprinida. The epeci« of thia genua differ
ohieSy from tha true Carpa in having the anal and dorsal fina abort
and deatituteof ban; th;b. O. JluviatUii (Ray), the Common Gudgeon,
ofTorda the best eiample of thui genus.
The Gudgeon ia a Biitiah fiah, and ia found in many streams that b
their coune flow over gravell; aoila. The Thamea, Heney, Colue,
Kennet, and Avon, produce Sne Qudgeona They swim together in
ahoala, feeding on worms, aquatic insects, and their larva, amall
mollnaoous animals, ova, and fry. The; afford ample amuaement to
those aportamen who are aatisfied with numbera rather than weight.
The Gudgeon rarely exceeds 8 inches in length. It spawns in Hay, and
the young are about an iuch long in Augusts
OO'BIUS, a genua of Acanthopter;gioDB Oaaeoua Piahea belonging
to the family Ocbioida. AH the species have two dorsal fiua, scaly
bodieo, aud a diao beneath the throat formed by the united ventral
fina. By meani of thia disc they have the power of attaching them-
selvea to rocks. Several epedea of Goby are mat with on the Britiah
coaat. Tha largest ia the Oobtiu nigtr of LinnieuB, which attaina tha
length of 6 inchea, and ranges from Comwall to the Orkneys. Mr-
Conch haa inquired into tha habiti of the Black Qob;, and Enda that
when it has aeised its pre; it carriea it off alive in its mouth to its
raating-plaoe, which is among rocka The other British Oobies, O.
iipvnetaiiu, O. minufur, 0. giitcilit, and G. tuiipnaetiUtii, are moetl;
inhabilanta of sandy ground. On the shores of the Mediterranean
Qobiea abound, aud are also found in deep water, even to a depth of
SO Csthoma. liie deep-water spedea are distinct from those freqaenting
the coMst-line.
The species of Ocbiiu ore very tanacious of life, and are capable,
like their neighbours, the Blenniee, of living some time out of water.
The moat remarkable fact connected with the history of these fishes
is their nidiflcation. That the Goby built a neet was known to the
ancient Greeks. Thia neat they construct in spring, of aeaweedi^ &Q.,
and in it the female deposits ber eggs, wbilat the mala watchea over
them until the; are hatched. Tbe neat of the Qob; ia var; well
built, and haa of lata been ohaerved on our own cooata. True Gobies
occur in the sesa of the southern hemiapheree as well oa in those of
the northern.
GOLD, one of the precious metals. It di&rra remarkabi; from
other metals, with a ver; few eicoptiona, in the fact that it ia found
in nature in its metallic state. It is oocasionally found mineralised
by tellurium. Native gold is Monometric, and occurs in cubea
without cleavage, also in grains, thin laminte, and masses, sometimes
filiform or reticulated. The colour voriea in ahoda, sometimea being
a bright yellow, at others almost silvery white, from the quantity of
silver vrith which it is mixed. It is very ductile and malleable.
Hardness 2'S to S. Specific gravity 12 to 20, varying according to
the metals alloyed with the gold. Native gold uaually contains silver,
and in very varioua proportions^ The finest native gold from Russia
yielded— gold 98'Se, silver 016, copper 0'36. iron 0-06 ; specific gravity
19099. A gold from Harmato afforded onl; 73'4S per cent, of gold,
with 26-48 per cent, of silver: apecific gravit; 12-S6S. This Isst is
in the proportion of 3 of gold to 1 of silver. The following pro-
portions have also been observed : — 3} to 1, 6 to 1, 3 to 1, 8 to t ;
and this is the moat common ; 12 to 1 also iii of frequent
occurrence.
Copper is often found in alloy wlQi gold, and also Palladium and
Rhodiuin.
A Rhodium Gold from Mexico gave the s|w<ufic gravity IG'5 to
le-e, and contained 81 to 48 per cent, of rhodinm.
eaaily cut in alioes and flattening under a hammer. He pyrites
when pounded an reduced to powder : iron pyrites ia too hard to
yield at all to a knife, and copper pyritea affords a dull greenish
1065
GOLD.
OOLD.
lOM
powder. Moreover the pyrites give off sulphur when airongly heated,
while gold melts without any such odour.
Native Gold is to a large extent obtained from alluvial washings.
It is also found disseminated through certain rocks, especially quartz
and talcose rocks, and it is often contained in pyrites, constituting
the auriferous pvrites ; the detritus affording gold-dust has proceeded
from some gold-bearing rocks.
Gold is widely distributed over the globe. It occurs in Brazil
(where formerly a great part of that used was obtained), along the chain
of mountains which runs nearly parallel with the coast, especially
near Villa Rica, and in the province of Minas Geraes ; in New Granada,
at Antioquia, Choco, and Grion ; in Chili ; sparingly in Peru and
Mexico ; in the southern of the United States. In Europe it is most
abundant, in Hungary, at Konigsberg, Schemnitz, and Felsobanya,
and in Transylvania, at Kapnik, Yorospatak, and Offenbanya; it
occurs also in the sands of the Rhine, the Reuss, and the Aar ; on the
southern slope of the Pennine Alps, from the Simplon and Monte
Rosa to the valley of Aosta ; in Piedmont; in Spain, formerly worked
in Asturias ; in Uie county of Wicklow in Ireland ; and in Sweden at
Edelfors. In the Ural Mountains there are valuable mines, also in
the Cailles Mountains in Little Tibet. There are mines in Africa at
Kordofan, between Dar-fur and Abyssinia ; also south of Sahara, in
the western part of Africa from Senegal to Cape Palmas ; also along
the coast opposite Madagascar, between 22* and 28° S. lat, supposed
to have been the Ophir of the time of Solomon. Other regions in
which gold is found are China, Japan, Formosa, Ceylon, Java,
Sumatra, and the Philippines.
Until lately nearly all the gold of commerce came from Asiatic
Russia and Mexico, but recent discoveries of gold in California and
Australia have opened new and vast sources of supply.
From 1600 to 1700 the entire supply of gold for Europe was
obtained from America, whose mines are estimated in the one hundred
years to have produced 337,500,0002. worth of the precious metal.
During the 18th century the supply of gold and silver was still
mainly derived from the Americas, the great mine of Yalenciana,
producing 125,0002. sterling per annum for 40 years, and the district
of Zaccat«cas adding largely to the amount, althoi^^h these were
rapidly failing towards the end of the century. A (pneat increase of
gold was produced from the mines of Russia, which are still very
productive ; they are principally alluvial washings, and these washings
seldom yield more than 65 grains of gold for 4000 lbs. of soil, never
more than 120 grains. The alluvium is generally most productive,
where the loose material is most ferruginous. The mines of
Ekaterinburg are in the parent rock — a quartz constituting veins in
a half-decomposed granite called Beresite, which is connected with
talcose and chloritic schists. The shafts are sunk vertically in the
beresite, seldom below 25 feet, and thence lateral galleries are run to
the veins. ^These mines afforded between the years 1725 and 1841
679 poods 'of gold, or about 80,000 lb& troy. The whole of the
Russian mines yielded in 1842, 970 poods of gold, or 42,000 lbs.
troy, half of which was from Siberia, east of the Urals. In 1848 the
yield was nearly 60,000 lbs. troy; in 1845, 62,000 lbs. troy; and in
1846, 75,353 Iba.
In the five following years to 1851 nearly 296,932 lbs. troy weight
of gold have been raised in Russia.
At the Transylvania mines the gold is obtained by mining, and
these mines have been worked since the time of the Romans. The
annual yield of Europe exclusive of Russia is not above 250,0002.
The sands of the Rhdne, Rhine, and Danube contain gold in small
quantities. The sands of the richest quality contain only about 56
parts of gold in 100,000,000. Sands containing less than half this
proportion are worked. Africa yields annually at least 4500 lbs. troy,
and Southern Africa 1250 lbs. The mines of the United States have
lately produced about 1,000,000 dollars a year.
In South America the gold region of Califomia extends along the
valley of the Sacramento and the valley of San Joaquin, immediately
south. The gold occurs in flattened grains, or scales, and occasionally
in lumps of large siza The yield is enormous. The amount
received at the mint in the United States in 1851 was at the rate
of 32,000,000 dollars a year. The aggregate production of gold in
South America does not appear to have increased within the last five
years. The rate of produce in the Australian mines is as follows :^
The Sydney district produced from 29th May 1851 to 31st October
1851, 67,152 oz. gold, value 214,8862., or to November 1851, 79,840 oz.
gold, value at 257,8552. 7«., and to December 81, 142,975 oz. gold,
value 464,6682. 15«. In the Victoria district to the end of December
1851, Ballarat produced 25,108 oz., value 75,3242. ; Mount Alexander,
30,007 oz., value 96,0212. In December there was shipped from
Victoria 145,116 oz., on the 8th January, 75,188 oz. Only about two-
fifths of the gold realised is sent by the Government escort, hence
there is much difficulty in aniving at the actual amount. But the
imports to this country may be safely relied on as representing the
maximum produce of our colonial gold-fields^ and the auriferous
districts of America.
From November 1850 to June 1851 the Bank of England issued
0,500,000 sovereigns, being at the rate of 18,000,000 a year, and so
great is the increasing demand for gold coins, that the rate of
production can scarcely keep pace with it.
It may be interesting to know that from the account kept at the
Bank when the light coin was called in, in 1842, that 12,000,0002.
were received light, and 36,000,0002. still circulated of full weight ;
40,000,0002. may therefore be regarded as the quantity of gold coin
in circulation, allowing from 8 to 4 per cent, for the natural wear of
the coin. The following table gives over an extended period the
Coinage of Oreat Britain,
Reign of
James I. .
Charles I.
Charles II.
James II.
William and Mary
Anne .
Oflorge I.
George II. .
George III.
George IV. .
William IV.
Victoria, 1837 to 1841
Victoria, 1842 to 1847
No. of
Years.
32
85
22
4
12
13
14
37
61
9
7
4
5
Gold.
3,666,889
3,465,188
4.177,253
2,113,688
2,314,889
2,484,531
8,492,876
11,662,216
75,753,448
36,147,700
14,600,000
4,991,210
29,886,457
BilTer.
1,807,277
9,776,544
3,722,180
2,115,115
7,093,074
618,212
233,045
304,360
6,996,765
2,216,168
2,800,000
889,102
2,440,614
ToUU
5,473,666
13,241,732
7,899,433
4,228,753
9,434,963
8,102,743
8,725,921
11,966,376
82,750,206
38,363,868
(T)
5,880.312
82,277,071
Total coinage of 32 years ending 1847 :— Gold, 90,029,8832. ; Silver,
18,390,0002. ; Copper, 248,2102.
A large quantity of gold is consumed every year in arts and manu-
factures, and thus reguhirly removed from the stock of our circulating
wealth. In Birmingham not less than 1000 oz. of fine gold are used
every week, and the weekly consumption of gold leaf is as follows : —
Ooaees.
London 400
Edinburgh 35
Birmingham 70
Manchester , . . 40
Dublin 12
Liverpool .15
Leeds C
Glasgow 6
Total , 584 weekly,
of which not one-tenth can be recovered. For gilding metals by the
electrotype and the water-gilding processes not leas than 10,000 oz.
of gold are required annUally. One establishment in the Potteries
employs 85002. worth of gold per annum, and nearly 20002. worth
is used by another. The consumption of gold in the Potteries of
Staffordshire for gilding porcelain and making crimson and rose-colour
varies from 7000 to 10,000 os. per annum.
The Indus and the Euphrates were the earliest spots whence man
obtained the precious metal gold — ^Nubia and Ethiopia on the south,
and Siberia on the north next opened out their auriferous treasure to
gratify human necessity and to indulge human luxury. Europe then
began to unfold her golden stores, and Illyria and the Pyrenees,
together with the land of the Hungarians and many parts of Ger-
many to the Rhine, were sought successfully for gold. Our islands
yielded something to the store, and then the New World of the
Americans opened by Columbus a source from which the Old World
was to supply its golden waste. On and on still westward rolled the
golden balC until at length it rested in Califomia ; Europe and Asia
rush equally to that new El Dorado, and the man of China is found
at the side of the English gold streamer. Then, as if to double the
girdle, the islands of the Pacific and our own Australia open their
exceeding stores. (Hunt)
Australia is undoubtedly the most important gold-bearing district
in relation to Great Britain. Her shores are now being crowded vrith
emigrants from the mother country seeking the precious metal, and
in proportion to her population she is now undoubtedly, in this point
of view, the richest country of the world. For the purpose of guid«
ing those who are seeking Australia on account of its gold, the
professors of Natural Science, in the Museum of Practical C^logy,
delivered a course of lectures in the summer of 1852. These lectures
were as follows : —
1. ' The G^logy of Australia, with Especial Reference to the Gold
Regions,' by J. Bsete Jukes, M. A. F.G.S., Local Director of the Geolo-
gical Survey of Ireland ; author of ' Sketch of the Physical Structure
of Australia.'
2. ' On our Knowledge of Australian Rocks as derived from their
Organic Remains,' by Edward Forbes, F.R.S.
8. ' The Chemical Properties of Gold, and the Mode of Distinguish*
Ing it from other Substances resembling it/ by Lyon Play fair, C.B,
F.R.a
4. 'The Dressing or Mechanical Preparation of Gold Ores,' by
W. W. Smith, M.A. F.Q.S.
5. ' The Metalluiigical Treatment and Assaying of Gold Ores,' by
John Percy, M.D. F.R.a
6. 'The History and Statistics of Gold,' by Robert Hunt| keeper of
Mining Records.
1067
GOLD.
GONIATITES.
1068
We subjoin an acoonnt of the auriferous rocks of Australia from
the lecture of Mr. Jukes : —
"Sir R Murchison, in his address to the Qeographical Society in
1844, alluded to the possibly ' auriferous character of the Great
Eastern Chain of Australia, being led thereto by his knowledge of
the auriferous chain of the Ural, and by his examination of Count
Strzelecki's specimens, maps, and sections. Some of Sir R. Murchi-
son's observations having found their way to the Australian papers, a
Mr. Smith, at that time engaged in some iron works at Bemma, was
induced by them in the year 1849 to search for gold, and he found it.
He sent the gold to the Colonial government^ and offered to disclose
its locality on payment of 5002. The governor however not putting
full faith in the statement, and being, moreover, unwilling to encourage
a gold fever without sufficient reason, declined to grant the sum, but
offered, if Mr. Smith would mention the locality, and the discovery
was found to be valuable, to reward him accordingly. Very unwisely,
as it turns out, Mr. Smith did not accept this offer; and it remained
for Mr. Hargraves, who came with ti^e prestige of his Califomian
experience, to re*make the discovery, and to get the reward from
government on their own conditions.
" This first discoveiy was made in the banks of the Summer Hill
Creek and the Lewis Ponds River, small streams which run from the
northern flank of the Conobalas down to the Macquarrie. The gold
was found in the sand and gravel, accumulated especially on the
inside of the bends of the brook, and at the junction of the two
water-couraes^ where the stream of each would be often checked by
the other. It was coarse gold, showing its parent* site to be at no
great distance, and probably in the quartz yeins trayersing the meta-
morphic rocks of the Conobalas. Mr. Stutchbury, the government
geologist, reported on the truth of the discovery, and shortly after-
wards found gold in several other localities, especially on the banks
of the Turon, some distance north-east of the Conobalas. This was
a much wider and more open valley than the Summer Hill Creek,
and the gold accordingly was much finer, occurring in small scales and
flakes. It was however more regularly and equably distributed
through the soil, so that a man might reckon with the greater
certainty on the quantity his daily labour would return him. At the
head of the Turon River,' among the dark glens and gullies in which
it collects its head waters, in the flanks of the Blue Mountains, the
gold got 'coarser,' occurring in laiger lumps or nuggets, but these
being more sparingly scattered. The reason of these circumstances,
which are common to all auriferous regions, has been given in the
former part of this Lecture when speaking of the power of moving
water.
" With the subsequent history of the 'gold diggings ' of Australia,
the discovery of many rich auxiferous districts, both in New SouUi
Wales and Victoria, you must all be more or less familiar.
"In Mr. Arrowsmith's map, appended to the Parliamentaxy Report
just issued, all the auriferous spots are marked in yellow. They occur
at intervals along the flanks of the Great Eastern Chain, or on its lata*al
spurs and subordinate ranges through an extent of country about
1000 miles in length, about as ikr as from London to Gibraltar or the
confines of Turkey, or as fr^m London to Iceland in a straight line.
The principal localities marked on this map are Grafton Range and
Burnet River, north of the Condamine ', Stanley Creek and Canning
Downs in the Moreton Bay district ; seyeral spots in the neighbour-
bood of Liverpool Plains; the Turon and Conobalas on the Mao-
quarrie, below Bathurst; the Abercrombie River at the head of tibe
Lachlan ; some spots on each side of Breadalbane Plains ; the Braid-
wood and Anluen diggings in the Shoalhaven district; Lake Eimeo
in the Australian Alps; and Ballarat, and Mount Alexander and
Mount Blackwood, north-west of Port Philip.
" In every one of these localities granite and metamorphic rocks
occur, and quartz yeins are frequently spoken ot This is an impor-
tant fact to bear in mind.
" In scarcely any of them do we find mention made of the gold
being seen in Uie actual rock, but in the drift clay, sand, and gravel,
or lying loose on the surface of the ground. The hundredweight of
gold, indeed, found by Dr. Ker north of Bathunt^ is described as a
block of highly auriferous quartz, lying among a lot of other loose
blocks, evidenUy derived from a broad quarts vein running up the
hill behind them. Such a mass, indeed, could hardly be transported
far fr>om its original site by any conceivable current of water.
"The superficial drift in which the diggings have been carried on
varies in thicknees from a few inches to 20 or 80 feet. The following
is an extract from a lecture given by a Mr. Gibbon, in Melbourne, and
reported in the ' Melbourne Argus,' giving an account of the Ballarat
diggings : — ' On the surface of tiie eurth was turf in a layer of about
a foot thick, below which was a layer of rich black alluvial soil, and
below that gray clay; below that again was a description of red
gravel, which was sometimes yery good ; then red or yellow clay, in
which gold was found ; and then a stratum, varying in thickness, of
day streaked with various colours, and scarcely wor& working ; and
the next stratum was of hard white pipe-olay, which was a decided
barrier. Immediately above it however was a thin layer of chocolate-
coloured clay, tough and soapy. This was the celebrated blue clay,
and was very rich.
" ' The ground or which tho diggings were situated was a sloping
bank. The blue clay is found near the surface on the brow of the
hill, that is, at the depth of about a foot; but it is sometimes
necessaiy to dig 20 feet before arriving at it.'
" Mr. LatrolM, governor of Victoria, describes the Ballarat diggings
as carried on through —
" ' 1. Red ferruginous earth and graveL
" * 2. Streaked yellowish and red clay.
" ' 8. Quartz gravels of moderate size.
"'4. Large quartz pebbles and boulders; mosses of ironstone set
in yery compact clay, hard to work.
"'5. Blue and white clay.
"'6. Pipe-clay.
" ' In some workings the pipe-clay may be reached at the depth of
10 or 12 feet, in othen not at 80 and upwards.'
" To enter farther into the details of the several diggings would be
alike tedious and useless. I must refer you for them to the two
Parliamentary Reports published, the one in February and the other
in June, and to the many small publications with which the shops are
now swarming.
** My object to-night has been to give you such a rough sketch of
the geology of Australia, and of the geological facts and principles
that ought to guide any one in his search after gold, as may be of uso
to those intending to emigrate there.
" In conclusion, I may perhaps be allowed to utter one word of
advice.
" Gold-digging is yery hard work — ^just such work as you see navi-
gatore at in a railway cutting, or brick-maken in a brick-pit Tou
must work hard all day, lie hard all night, with but little shelter,
often with scanty food, and with nothing of what you have probably
been accustomed to consider necessary comfort If you find you have
no luck at the diggings, or if your health, or strength, or resolution
fail you, do not therefore give up or despond altogether. You go out
to dig for gold ; do not be ashamed to dig for anything else. I speak
to those now who have been hitherto unaccustomed to manual labour.
Recollect, it is the avowed object of your yoyage, and the only thing
you have to trust to. If you fail to dig up gold there are lands to be
ploughed, sheep to be herded and sheared, cattle to be tended, com
to be sown and reaped — every one of these fully as honourable occu-
pations as digging for gold. Go, then, with a bold and resolute heart,
determined to get your living by the strength of your own arms and
the sweat of your own brows ; and be assured, that industry and
perseverance lead to fortune in Australia with fewer impediments
and uncertainties in the way than in any part of the world."
Since the above was written, other districts in Australia have yielded
the precious metal, and every day is adding to our knowledge of the
wide extension of this metal on the surface of the earth. A few
months ago it was announced that gold had been discoyered at
the Cape of Good Hope; and at the beginning of the present year
the late Dr. Stanger delivered a lecture at Natal, in which he pointed
out the probability of gold being found in the neighbourhood of that
colony. For an account of the Salts of Gold, and its applications in
the arts and sciences, see Gk>LD, in Abts and So. Diy.
(Leelwrta on Qold delivered eU the Muteum of Practical Geology:
Dana, MiVMial of Mineralogy,)
GOLD-CARP. [Ctpbinidjs.]
GOLDFINCH. [Cabduzlib.]
GOLDFINNY. [Crkhilabj.us.]
GOLD-FISH. [Cyprikida]
GOLD OF PLEASURE. [CAiiBLnfA.]
GOLDSINNY. [Crenilabbub.]
GK>LT, or GAXJLT, an argillaceous deposit, separating the upper
greensand (also called firestone, malm-rock, &c.) from the lower green-
sand (also called Wobum sand, iron-sand, ftc). In Kent, Sussex,
Surrey, the Isle of Wight, Wiltshire, and Cambridgeshire its geological
situation and organic contents may be well studied. The clay of
Speeton, on tho Yorkshire coast, unites the characters of Golt and
^mmeridge Clay. [Chalk Fobmation.]
GOMPuOLITE, a name given by M. Brongniart to conglomerate
rodffl of the Tertiary series, which in Switzerland are called
Nagelflue.
GOMPHONEMA. piATOHACBiB.]
GONGYLOPHIS. [Boida]
GONIATITES, an extinct group of fossil shells, belonging to the
division of Cephalopodous MoUueeck The species which it contains
are usually arranged, by writen on organic remains, as a section of
Anomonites ; but their appropriate charactera were never completely
given till M. Von Buch, following Haan of Leyden, published his
' Gkneral Essay on the Sutures of Ammonites ' (read to the Academy
of Sciences at Berlin in April, 1880; translated in the 'Annales des
Sciences Naturelles,' 1888).
The families or genei% of Nautili and Ammonites are seldom well
understood by the conchological student, because the resl distinctions
between them are not the most apparent The most constant of all
the charactera of Ammonites is the situation of the siphon, which,
instead of perforating the disc of the transverse internal plates as in
Na/utilfu, touches and lies parallel to the inner face of the shell on the
dorsal line. There is another obvious and generally complete di^
tinction in the form of the sutures, or intersections of the tranjByerse
\oe» OONUTITK.
internal platei {aepta) with tlie inner aurfoce of the ihelL Id Ammo-
nites thii Butura is UDduiatad or ajigolari; bent into lobes sod liausea j
in NaulUui, even or gently waved. The eiceptioua to this are few, | Oojilatitea *i
but reninrkabie. yattlUut ziaac of Sowtrby (Dr. Buokland's ' Bridgo-
water Treatise,' pL iliiL fig. S) hu Buturea waved aa muob as some
true QoniatiteB, and there ia ia fnot every degree of sinuosity in the
edges of the aepta of the nautiloid uid Bmmonitic Cunilies,
M, Ton Buch Bupposes the sinuous edges of the septa of Anunamtaa
to be Deceesarily derived from the dorsiU poeitian of ths aiphuncle.
"All the other diEforenoes," says be, " are derived from this capital
distinction. The NaulUtu, whidt pasaes a very large siphon through
the middle of the septa, appears sufficiently attached by thii mem-
brane to the bsBia on which it rests. There is nj need of any oiler
lupport, and ths septA remain in general smooth and concave without
sinuOBitiea on the edgea. The amall donal lipbon of the Ammonites
would not suffice to secure the animal from diaplaeement on the
surface of its celL" Other Bupporta are neceaaary, and they are found
in the marginal lobes which the form of the aniiUBl impreasas on the
partitiona of Uie cbunben. These ore generally bIi in number ) one
ventml V, one dorsal D, and two on each aide L, L'. (See fig, 1 ; and
Dr. Bucklaad'a ' Bridgewater Treatiae.')
M. Von Buch, viewing Ooniatites m a section of AmmoDita^
presented the following charaoteni of ths group in 1S30 1 —
The lobea of the septa are completely depnTed of lateral dentiou-
lationa or ayra metrical orenalures, so that their oontour presanta
always a continuous uninterrapted line. The siphon, compared to
that of other Ammonites, is aniall and delicate ; the Btriie of growth
are aigmoidal on the sides (as in fy. 2), inflexed from ths aperture on
the bock, BO SB to form a sinus there in the aperture, thus reaembling
Nautili; whereas in Ammonitea generally the atria advance along
the donal line supported probably by the siphon. The laat chamber
of Ooniatitee extends, according to Count Hiinater, more than one
turn beyond the concomerationa, but in Ammonites only thrae-fouitbs
Later inTeetigatianshaye scarcely mmiUSed these fundamental t
except by showing a greater variety in the forma of the autures
WHK at first expected.
Eighteen species of Ooniatites are distributed by Von Bach io the
following manner : —
Sutures with rounded lobea : —
a. Dorsal lobe aimple i speciea.
b. Doraal lobe double ... .1 apeciea.
Suturea with pointed lobea : —
a. Doraal lobe aimple S species.
b. Doi-aal lobe double ... .7 species.
Count Miinsler {'Ann. dea S<d. Nat.,' ISSOgiTes 22 aaoertamad
and 4 doubtful apeciss (moatly different from Ton Buch's) &om the
Ficbtel.Qebiige. His arrangement is diSerent, namely :~
1, With umple lobes slightly ainuoua and
rounded i apedea.
S. With angular or linguiform lobea : —
a. SbeU entirely involute, auturea with one
lateral angular lobe ... .8 apeoiea.
h. ' Shell entirely involute, sutures with two
lateral lobes . . . . i . 4 spedsa.
e. Shell evolute, three Interal lobea . . 6 spsoies.
Doubtful apeoiea 4 spedes.
Uartin, in ' Fetrificata Derbienda,' 1809, figured two species of
Ooniatites ; Sowerby, in the ' Hinenl Condiology of Qreat Britain,'
added two others ; and Professor Phillips, in the second volume of
the ' Ulu9tratioDB of the Qeology of Yorkshire,' 1836, hss raised the
number of British apedea from the carboniferous limestone, mill-
stone-grit, and coal- formations, to 33 apedea, the septa of which are
completely ascertained.
Beyrich (' De Oonistltds in Honljbus Rhenania Occuirentibus,'
1BS7} deaoribes 18 epeoias (8 of them aupposed to bs new), and
preaeota a general claasificatjoa of all the Contineutol apecies sup-
OONIATITES.
lea at preseat known is .about ISO.
Id external form Ooniatjtes present an almost complete series ol
gradaUonB from the involute sub-globulsr figure, common among
Nattttii, to the discoid spiral shape of the flattest Ammonil«s. The
following Qgurea, from Fhillipa'a ' Geology of Yorkshire,' ToL ii. pL 19
and SO, will illustrate this :—
iMltri. {Sonttij.)
(PUlUps.) Oooiatila OOwni. (Fbilllpt.)
Host of the Goniatjtea have rounded backs ; a few an carinaled, as
Q. viuiger and 0. mtifonnit, Phillipa.
In nearly all the Ooniatitea the aurfaca is marked by transverse
aigmoidally-bent lines of growth; a few have merely annular striai;
in some these strite rise into tubercles on the inner edge of the whorls
(0. Luttri, Bow. ; G. tubnodona, MUnst). The striie are occadonally
reticulated by spiral lines. Radiating undulations occur on some of
the Sattar spedea ; in a few {Q. OSuoni) there are ribs divided after
the manner of many Ammonites ; and 0. binodimtt, Hunater, has
two rows at tuberelw. In all theae particulars the parallelism of the
series of Ooniatites to that of common Ammonites is very remarkable.
This analogy with the usual forms of Ammonites is augmented by
the oocurrence of constrictions on the cost of the interior of the
shells. {Fig. 8, c.) These constrictions, oorreapondiag to internal
thickeoings of the shell, are moat remarkable in the involute Gooio-
tites. (See PhilHps's ' Geology of Yorkabire/ voL il pi. xii. fig. 1, 3,
24, 26;pl.u.fig. 1; Uiinater, in'Ann. des ScL Nat,' pL v. fig. 2;
and Beyrich, in his ' Deseertation,' tab. ii. fig. 8.) They are panllet
or nearly so to the lines of growth, and cross the sutuivs without any
definite relation. They may be viewed as periodioal thickenings of
the edge of the aperture, and as contributing to strengthen the last
chamber of the enlarging dielL They vary as to number and position
in individuals of the same . speciea. The aperture of many Qoniatitaa
rsaambles that of the recent NautUia Pampilitu.
The sutures of ths Ooniatites are extremely various, beautiful, and
characteristic of ths species. Individuals of several of the apeofaa
have been compared almoet from the nucleus to full growth without
any great change being viuble in the form of the septum (as for
instance, 0. ZuKrt), but in others this ia not the case. The follomng
amuigemsnt and accompanying figures will show the prindpu
1071
GONUTITEa
GONIATITBS.
1072
▼amtionB of the Bntures. The arrow ia in each case suppoeed to point
towarda the aperture.
Diviaion 1. The dorsal lobe simple ; one lateral lobe.
a. Lateral lobe single and rounded. O, expanntt, Von Buch,
fig. 6,
5. Lateral lobe single and angular. O, wMcevU, Hunster^ fig. 7.
Division 2. The dorsal lobe simple ; more than one lateral lobe.
a. Lateral lobes linguiform, and nearly equal 0. Hendowif
Sowerhy, fig. 8.
h. Lateral lobes rounded and nearly equal O, ierpentinnt,
Phillips, fig. 9.
c. Inner lateral lobes yery much the lai^gest. O. Mumteri, Von
Buch, fig. 10.
d. Lateral lobes very unequal and oblique. 0. Hceninghauai,
VonBuch,j%r. 11.
Diviaion 3. Dorsal lobe divided ; lateral lobe single.
ck Lateral lobes and sinuses rounded. O, bidortaUa, Phillips,
fig.1%
h. Lateral lobes and sinuses angular. O. Mtriatus, Sowerby,
fig. 13.
Division 4. Dorsal lobe divided or oomplicated ; lateral lobes more
than one.
O, qfclolcbua, Phillips, fig. 14.
9
^^nM\/(i^
♦
^^--^mw^
+
It.
"^VXkN^
t
The same transition rocks which contain a laxge portion of the
continental species of Qoniatites yield a cognate group, from which
they are with difficulty distinguished. These were first separated bv
Count Munster, under the name of ClymefU^* If Goniatites are co|isi-
dered as of the ammonoid, Ctpmenias may be included in the nautiloid
t3rpe. Their siphon is always on the inner maigin, and the septa,
instead of a reflex wave on the dorsal line, have there a bend forward
toward the aperture. The Clymenia have all the same yariations of
form and surface which have been mentioned with regaxd to Gonia-
tites Figs. 15 to 18 represent the forms of septa of Clymmia, for
comparison with those of Goniatites.
Fig. 15.
* Clymenia lavigala. (Mdnster.)
Fig. 16.
Cljfnaija eompre$ta, (MUnster.)
Fig. ]7.
Clynenia pUmorbifiirmii, (MOaater.)
Fig. 18.
Oljfmehia strata. (MOnster.)
Compared with ordinary Ammonites, the diffensnces of the goturci
are easily seized ; but by the group of Ceratiia of Haan, which is
supposed to be peculiar to the muschelkalk, the transition is not
difficult) as the subjoined figures show.
Fig. 19.
AmmcmtcM pkmieostatui, (Soworby.)
Fig. 20.
Ceratitei nodoitu, var.
OoniaiiteSf and their allies, the Clmnenia:, appear entirely confined
to the rocks of the carboniferous and older systems of strata. Only
one species {Ooniatita Listen, Sowerbv) is mentioned as occurriog in
the coal-formation, and that in the lowest portion (near Bradford,
Halifax, and Sheffield, Torkahire).
In the strata presumed to lie below the old red-sandstone occur
many other species ; at least so is the fact on the continent of Europe^
though in Great Britain and Ireland they are but rarely met with in
the primaiy and transition strata.
The Goniatites yet described are almost entirely from European
localities. Von Dechen quotes O. Liiteri from India. ('Handbuch
der Geognosie.') Kone are mentioned in the slaty rocks of West-
moreland or Wales ; none occur in the Silurian Rocks : they are not
rare in Devonshire (occurring about Barnstaple and near Launceston).
It is in the North of Engluid, from Derbyshire to the Tweed, and
in the limestooes. of the carboniferous system of strata, that they
specially abound. About Enniskillen, and near Castleton, in the Isle
of Man, the same rocks yield a considerable number of species.
The following is a list of the British species as given in Tennant'a
' British Fossils,' 1847 ;—
Cabboiiitebous Group.
GoniatUet hidonalit, Phil, 0. carina, Phil.
O. hifenu, Phil. O. crmistria, Phil.
O. JBrotonii. O. cyclolobus, PhiL
0, calyx, Pbil, 0. ditcvs.
Q. doTMlu, Brown.
Q. nxWtiOM, PhiL
G. e3xonal,v*, Phil.
Q. erpoiutit, BuoL
G. fateictUtUiu.
a/oKUKMOMU, Phil.
a. Gibmai, Phil.
a. GOberUmi, Phil.
O. graiwtiu, PortL
a Haulevi, Sow.
(7. inplieatiu, Phil,
(7. wKerawdiiii, Phi
(7. nfa-nn/itu, Srown.
0. nitidui, PhiL
a oituM, Pha
O. paradaxicu, BrawD.
G. parvut. Brown.
O. pawUob^, PhiL
G. plalyMnu, Pbil.
O. pro<mi, Brown.
a. rtticulatat, Phil.
ffi roliformU, Pha
tf. Jcrpn^tnui, PhiL
9. SmitAii, Brawu.
0.
Sow.
O. tpharmdaliM.
a. ipinriit, PhiL
G. ^endidui. Brown.
a. tenolobiu, PhiL
G. ifriafw, Phil
a (frtDloftif, PhiL
(7, fuiwicatu, Brown.
O. tmnealiu, PhiL
f7. wirJiJafuf^ Brown.
0. fenyoni. Brown.
(7. lalut.
0. LUleri, Sow.
(7. Longtlmmi, Brown.
G. Zoaiuigi, Pbilipi.
O. mu-mudu, Philipi.
0. niBSfiMinw, BrowD
G. mixol<ibiu, PhiL (>. raiea, FUl
O. amtalnlU. O. viiiigtr, PhiL
Detohiah Obodp.
OmJiKita bifenu, Phil. (7. IiRtsni, Hiinet.
G. carbonariai. Sow. (7. nizoloiiw, PhiL
O. ermuiria, Pbil. G. urpattinta, Phil.
<?. eminifuf, PhiL G. tpiralit, PhiL
(7. fflntanu, Hunat. (7. (ptnirtu, Phil.
a inconilam, PhiL <7. tratuitorini, Phil.
& HUijTnii, Phil. (7. rinffHni, Sav!.
OONIODUS. [SoCiLlDi.]
OONIO'DCfATHUS, a Benin of Foanl Cycloid Fiahci, from the
London CUy . (Agusii.)
00NI0TH0RU8 (Ag««iz), a ganui of FomU Schinida, from the
Greenmnd. (Morrii, CataXague.)
GONIOPORA. [MiDHEPoft**.]
OONOPLACID-E, OotKplaciam, an order of Brach»urou» Cnuta-
ceana, whoie carapacn ii either aquare or rhomboidal, and much
wider than it ia long. The poatmior border, nioaaured between the
baie of the fifth pair of feet, equala, uearlv alwayi, the half of ita
tranBTorM diameter ; while in the tribe of OoTpodianB, u well aa ia
the Cjclomctopea, uid the greater part of the Oj^grhynchi, the length
of thu border !e only about a fourth of the greatest width of the
canpace. The front ia but little inclined, and very wide; it doea
not curre downward! ao as to unite itaalf throughout nearl; ita whole
width to the epiitome, aa in the Oeypodlane, and it ia e^ual to two-
thirda of the buccal frame mraaured at the point of ita grealeat width.
The ocular pedunoln are in general very much elongated and rather
■mall ; their length often equals &Te or lix times that of their dia-
meter, and the oomea which terminates them Ia always smalL The
external angle of the orbit ordinarily oooupies the lateral extremity
of the carapace. The internal anteonce are always horizontal, quite
expoasd, and lodged in little pita (foaaettea) distinct from the orbita.
The external antennse are diapoeed nearly aa in the Ocypodians. The
efnetome ia ofl^en placed at aome distance behind the infenor orbitary
border, a character which ia alwaVB met with in the Cyclometopea, and
exists but rarely in the family of Catametopea. The buccal frame Is
generally wider at ita anterior border than at ita poaterior part, and
the fourth joint of the external jaw-feet is inserted nearly alwaja at
the internal angle of the preceding articulation. The sterna] plistroa
ia rery wide, and is sometimea perforated for the paiHge of the intro-
miaaiTe male organ* (lea vergea) ; but in genei^I theae organs are
inserted, as in other families, at the "baailaLry joint of the posterior
feet, and are lodged in a small tranareraal canal hollowed in the
sternal plsatron at the point of union of ita two laat aegments, a canal
which aervea them for a sheath till they arriTe under the abdomen.
The length of the anterior feet lariea ; it is sometimea very ooosider-
able, and those of the third or fourth pair, which are alwaya the
longeat among the eight laat, have nearly two and a half times the
length of the poat-frontal portion of tbeoarapaca : they are all slender,
and terminated by a styliform tanus. The abdomen of the female ia
Teiy wide, and ooTeia nearly the whole of the sternal plastron ; but
that of the male, on the contrary, is very narrow, and instead of
extending to the baBilar7 joint of the poaterior feet^ leaves exposed
a considerable portion of the Memal plastron between its external edge
and the base of those feet. In the greater number of cases its second
ling is entirely linear, while the other* are sutBdeotly well developed.
Such is the character given to this tribe by H. Milne-Sdwards, who
places it between the 'Ocypodiaos and the Qrapsoidiana, and divides
it into the four following genera ; —
PtetidorlumbUa (Milne-Edwatda). — U. Hilne-Bdwards etatee
that the crustacean which is the type of this new genus is very
remarkable, inaamnch aa it hold* a nuddle place between the Csnoe-
rians and the Oonoplaxes. The farm of its carapace approaches that
of the Panopea, and of some other Cancerians, for it Is sUghtly arched
in front, and between thft orbits and the lateral borders a considerable
GOKOPLACID.^
later&anterior border of the carapaoe of the Cyclometopea ; but nev««^
theleei ita general form is that of a rhomb, and its poaterior border
occupies mure than the third of iU diameter. The body is very
thick, and much elevated anteriorly. Front nearly horiiontaJ, and
divided into two truncated very large lobea Eyes, antennc, epis-
tome, and external jaw-feet, preaentlng the same disposition aa in the
Crabs. Sternal plaiatron much wider than long, and very strongly
curved from before backwards ; at ita poaterior part, which is very
wide, may be remarked on eaoh aide, in the male, a canal of oonsider-
able calibre, whioh lodges the intromiaaive organs, the origin of which
nay be seen at the base of the posterior feet. The anterior feet are
ery strong, and very long in the male ; the succeeding feet preaent
othing remarkable, except that those of the seoond pair are nearly
of the same length aa. those of the third pair, and that these last are
rather shorter Uian the following one^. The form of the abdominal
appendages differs but little from the form of those of XoHlJtiu.
P. qvadridtnlata. Length about 2 inches ; colour rosy. Locality
unknown.
M. UilneEdward adds that the crustaceans figured by De Haan
under the name of Cancer {Curlonolat) toitgimaatu (' Fauna Japonica,'
Crust., pL vL £g. 1) appear to bim to come ve^y near the preceding
species ; but aa the description was not pubfiahed, be could not
pronounce upon their identity.
(7Dno)>faz (Leach). — Carapscu more than one and a half timea as
wide aa it is long, and rather strongly narrowed backwards; the
fronto-orbitscy border extends the whole of its width, and the front
itself ia lamellar, slightly inclined, and terminated by a straight border.
The ocular' peduncles equal mora than a third of the width of the
carapace ', they are of mudium size, and present no notable swelling
'sir extremity. The internal antennee are large and of ordinary
; the l»silary joint of the external antennK is email and cylin-
drical hke the fullowiag ones, and their terminal stem ia very long.
The epistome ia much lass advanced than the lower border of the
orbit; the buccal frame is much wider than it is loDg, and a little
lartowed backwards ; the form of the external jaw-feet is the same as
u the cnba. The dispositiou of the sternal plsatron is nearly the
lame aa in PMeadorhombda, but it ia to bo remarked that the tiana-
lersal caual which lodges each of the intromisuTe organa ia not
nmpletelj shut below. The anterior feet are extremely long and
learly cyliudrtca] ; those of the secocd pair are longer than the
recotid or the third; and those of the laat pair are nearly of the same
engtb asthe second. The abdomen of the male presents seven distinct
joints, like that of the femide.
Q. ThombaidtM. M. Milna-Edwarda remarks, that M. Latreilla
believed that this apacies could not be distinguished from Q. anguUila,
and aaye that perhaps it m^ be only a variety ; but he at the asms
time retains it aa a species, and points out certain diSerencea between
and O. anffutala. Length about an inch ; colour yellowish mingled
with red.
Oaiwplax rhamtoUa.
It inhabits the Mediterranean and the Ocean, and keep* among
rocks at oondderablo depths, and seems to live solitary. Aocoiding to
H. Riaao it awima with facility, and rises oft«D to the rirfaoe of tlM
water without ever coming out
It feeds on small fiah and radiated animala.
Profesaor Bell, in his ' British Crustacea,' says O. angvlata U a
British species, and states hi* oonviction that Q, rhomMda ia only a
urn
OONOPLAX
MacropliiluilwHH (Latr«iUe). — A geaiuKith the gga«nd eootoar of
Qonopla^, but diatin^uhod bj th« form of the jmw-fHt, and above
tH by tbe length of the ocuIht peduncln. Cu^piuse rhomboid^ mud
tot; wide; the truunverBo diameter ii eometlmea twice u long ae the
hmgitudinol diuDet«r, uid the enterior border oocupiee the whole
langtb of it ; Btomaclul region imall uid nearly quadnlatend ; bran-
ohikl ngioDS large uid nearly of the mae roim ; fnot curved down-
wudj, ret; nurow, and reeembUag that of Ocifpodt ; it only oooupin
aboat the fifth of the limnavenBl diameter of the eanpjuie, uid doai
not eniirel; cover the baailary portion of the ocular psdaaclea, whiah
are very long, slender, and terminated by ■ Bomewhat oval and TB17
■mall cornea. The orbite have the form of a tranivsnal groove
bolloved out nnder ths aaterior border of the carapace, and directed
obliquely up ; within, their inferior bolder ia much more projecting
Uian their superior border, but below the eitamal angle it ii inoam'
plete, eo that their oivity U not closed at this point The internal
antenno are lodged under the front, and their stem, of a fair length,
It beot tmuversely ; the dispodtioD of the eiteriul autennoB is nearly
the nme aa in Ooiwplax. The epiatome ia linear, and is oontioued
with the lower orbitary border. The bnocal frame is wider than it is
loog, aod arched (cintrd) in front. The eiteiroal jaw-feet do not meet
(' ne SB renoontrent paa touth-fait ') ; their aecond joint is very widc^
and the third much leas, eapecially anteriorly, aupporta at the eitenul
angle of its anterior border the terminal atemlet ('tigells tenmnale').
The Btemal plaatroa ia nearly of the same form aa in Omoplax, but
much wider ; and, in the male, instead of preaeatiog tranaversal
grooves for the lodgment of tbe intromiaaive organa, which in the
^enua last-named come out at the base of the posterior feet, it is
Itself perforated at a diataaoe from the border to give a direct passage
to these appendages of the apermatio oonduita. The disposition of
^M feet is nearly the same aa in Oimoplax.
M. tratmiertut. Length about ten lines ; some haiii on the feet
It haa been taken at Pondich^. (Milne-Ed warda.)
(Xtitotimit (De Hun}.— Front much wider than in MacrophtkaimM,
oocupying about ths th^ of the anterior border of the carapace, and
a littie inclined; ocular pedunclaa large, and of moderate length;
orbita of the ordinary form ; buccal frame at leaat aa wide ia front na
behind; third joint of the aitemal jaw-fset nearly of the same
use aa the second, and nearly square; anterior feet short in the
LB above. Length four lines.
1) very
; thi^ „_ _
It ia found in the Red Sea.
H. Milna-Edwards thinks that Oaypodt {Cleittotoma) dUatata (De
Haan, 'Fauna Japonica,' Crust, pL viL fig. 3}, the figure only of
which ia published, comes very near to C. Leachii ; and he is also of
opinion that the crustacean figured by M. Savigny, pL iL no. 2, and
designated by tt. Audouin as Macrophlhalnut Botcii might he
referred to this genus. H. Uitne-Edwarda however had not examined
the buccal apparatus.
Ponii OoBoplaeidai.-^M, Deamaraat ('Hist Nat dea Crustao^
Foasilea ') enumerates the following Foaail species of the geaui Oon«-
fiax. Leach : — Q. LatrtUlii, generally incrusted in an orgillacsous,
grayidi, rather hard limeatone, which does not soften in water
(calcaire amieux gris&trs aaaai dur, et qui ns sa ddlaie pas dans I'eau) '
from the Eaat Indies. 0. mcita {Cancer lapidetcau of Rumphius),
inonisted in a gray, calcareous, argillaoeous, and sandy stone; from
the Indies, rather frequent, Q. emargiaata in an aipUaoeous, aandy,
calcareous atone, of a yollowiah-gniy ; frequent in oolleotiona, and
noted as coming from the East Indies. Q. imprtaa, approaching
very near to the other species from the East Indies in its ooloor and
■in the incrusting stone, whence M. Deemarest ia much inclined to
think that it came from the same stratum. At the same time he
■ays, that it should be stated that the apecimen oame to him from
the Mueium d'Histoire Naturelle in a wrapper narked ' From Mount
Marius, at Rome.' 0. inarta, locality not mentioned ; the Bpooiman
belonged to the Marquis de Dr^.
_ M. Milne- Edwards observes, that the Uat-mentioned species, which
u referred by M. Deamarest to the genus Gmoplax, approaohea the
recent species in form, and may well belong to the group ; bnt its
oarapace is square instead of trapeioidal, and the Utetal bordera are
not arched. M. Milne-Edwards is further of opinion that the greater
part of the Fossil Oonoflanda described by M. Desmareat ought to
be referred to the genua Maerophtliaimat rather than to Oano^ax,
for the form of their front, and even that of the corapaoe in general
IB entirely that of the MaaroplUhalni, and diffom remarkably from
the shape of the same parte in Oonoplax ; and he records the following
species r— if oeropAtJWmui LatrtiUii (OawpUu LainMii, Dasm3;
if. inctnu (Canar laptdtKtnt, Bum ph. ; Q. ineita. Deem.); M.
mormniMiu, Deam. Of ff imfrtua U. MUne-Edwarda remarks that
It comes very near tbe preceding species, but ought not to be referred
to the nme genus, because its carapace ia nearly aa long ns it is wide,
and its anterior feet are very short and convex (renflios).
OONOPLAX, a genus of Brachyurous Decapodous Cnutaaa.
^'X^L^ apeolas, G. angulala, ia found on tha British ooaata.
GONTOCEPHALUS. [Draconwa.]
^^WODBNIACE^, OMdaiad,. a sm^ natural order of Exogenous
OOHGONIA. ima
The spedee are herbaceous plants, rarely shrubs, without milk,
with simple or glandular haira, if any are present ; leavea sestterod,
often lobed, without stipules, very rarely opposite ; inflorescence
terminal, variable; flowers distinct, never capitate, usually yellow,
blue, or pink- The calyx is usually superior, rarely inferior, equal
or unequal in from three to five diviaions. Corolla always mora or
luperior, monopetolous, more or leas irregular, withering, il«
iptit at the back, and sometimes capable of being aeparated into
When the calyx only coheres with Uie base of the
ovary, ita limb S-parted vrith one or two lips, the edges of the segments
being thinner than the middle, and folded inwuils in nstiration.
Stamens 5, distinct, alternate with the segments of the corolla ;
antheni distinct or cohering, 2-celled, bursting longitudinally ; pollen
simple or in foun; ovary I- or S-oelled, rarely 4-cellsd, with definite
ovules. The fruit a 1-, 3-, or 4-oeUed capsule, with many solitary or
□umeroui seeda attached to the axis of the dissepiment, which ia
usually parallel with the valvaa, isrely oppoaita to them. The great
peculiari^ of tUs order resides in the stigma, which is seated at the
bottom of a cap or covering called an induslum ; imknown in
Bellworts or Lobeliods, to which the genera might otherwise be
referred. It is of the same nature as what is found in Bnuumiads
and Btyleworts, and ia to be regarded as nothing mora than Sh remark-
able exaggeration o( the rim which aurrounds the stigtnalio aurfaoa
of Heathworta, and of the plates which cover tha style of Cnuiea-
bills and Balsami. These plants beloog to Australia and the islands
of the Southern Ocean, or only advance into lodia in the form of a
Seavola. There are 11 genera and ISO species. The order is allied
to LobtUaeea and StgUdiiKta.
OOODTBBA, a genua of Plants bakinging to the natural order
OrcMidaoem, and the tribe Limtodorta. It haa a ringeat poianth ; ths
lip* entire, included, eaooate at the base ; the stigma roatellated, sob-
cordate; the rcetellum erect, bipartite, with a large squarish
^pendage lietween its slander segmenla. One apeoies of this genus,
G. repent, ia found in Scotland. It has a atem 6 to B inehea high,
with ths radical leavea ovate, stalked, reticulated, and the whole
upper part of the plant covered with minute stalked glands. It ia
found principally in fir-fonata. (Babingtoa, Manual)
OO03ANDER. fDnoxs.]
aOOSEBERRT. '[Ribd.]
aOOSE-QRASa. [OujniL]
QORAL. [AHnLOPRA]
OORE-BILL. [BaujHK.]
QORCK)XIA, a genua of jt iiirni*h belonging
Polgp^era, and the type of t^ ' " "
following generic charocten : — ]
aiating of a oentral axis backed witt a polypifan
homy, oootinuous, and flexible, branched m co-equality with the
polype-masa; the crust when recent soft and fleshy, when dried
porous and friable; the orifices of tlie polype^ialla moM or leM
S-otuberant. Tha apeoies of Oergonia thu« defined are not Dnmerooa.
r. Johnston enumeratea four speoiea aa being bond on tha British
, the Warted Sea-Fan, is somewhat fan-ahapsd, much
and irregularly blanched, ths branches oylindrical, flexaou^ baaked
when diy with a wtkite warted crust ; segments of the Delia unaqoal.
1077
GORLANDITE.
GOSSYPIUM.
1078
obtuse. ThiB polype is found abundantly on the whole of the south
coast of England. It liyes in deep water.
O, piwMUc^ branched and pinnated, the branches compressed;
polype-cells in regular rows on each margin, mammiUate, unarmed.
This species was dredged by Professor E. Forbes and Mr. M'Andrew
in the sound of Skye, where they found it attached to stones in 80
fathoms water.
(7. plaeommt, irregularly branched, the branches disposed in a
dichotomous order and a flattish form, cylindrical, w«rty; cells
TOTotubersnt^ conical, surrounded at top by little spines. This is the
Warted Sea-Fan of Ellis, and is found on the Gomish coast, but
is rare.
O. aneeptf the Sea-Willow of Ellis. It is branched, sub-dichoto-
mous ; branches with the flesh flat on each side, with a row of little
mouths slong both the margins. This is a rare species. It was found
originally by its describer Mr. Dale, near Margate. It is of a violet
colour when fresh. It is a'doubtful natiye of our seas.
(7. Jlabellym has been found on British coasts, but it has been
undoubtedly accidental
(Johnston, British Zoophytei.)
OORLANDITE. [Lead.]
OORSE. rULBZ.]
GOSHAWK. [FalconidjlJ
GOSSYTIUM, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Malv<ie€(Bj common to both the Old and New World, and which, from
the hair, or cotton, enveloping its seed being so admirably adapted
for weaving into cloth, is, after those affording food, one of the most
important groups of plants. There can be no doubt that it is indige-
nous in America, ss, besides the distmctneos in species, specimens of
cotton Btm attached to the seeds, as well as cloth fabricated firom the
former, have been brought by Mr. Gumming from the Peruvian
tombs. Some of the cloth, consisting of chequered squares of black
and white, very nearly resembles some modem patterns. Humboldt
has moreover stated that it formed the only clothing of the natives of
Mexico, and is one of the plants they most anciently cultivated.
With respect to the Old World, the almost universal use of cotton as
clothing in the East is well knowh ; and as the spedes, so far as ascer-
tained by botanists, appear to be Indian and Chinese, the historical
investigation is interesting as proving an early communication between
the civilised nations of remote antiquity. Though Kossellini incorrectly
states that cotton was employed as mummy-doth, it must have been
known to the ancient Egyptisna, as he found some of the seed in
one of the monuments of Thebes. In later thnes, we learn from
Arrian that muslin was exported from India to the Arabian Gulf,
and firom that country cotton was no doubt first made known to the
rest of the world.
The Sanscrit name of the Cotton-Plant is ' karpasi,' and the Hindoo
' kupas;' the cotton itself is in the latter language called 'root' ' The
former is interesting, as 'karpasus' occurs in the 'Periplus' of Arrian,
and is rendered by Dr. Vincent ' fine muslin.' It is derived from the
Sanscrit ' karpasi, from which probably, as indicated by the editor of
< Harris's Dictionary,' the Hebrew word ' karpas,' employed in the
book of Esther (chap. L v. 6), is also derived ; so likewise the Latin
'carbasua.' Dr. Royle, in his 'Essay on the Antiquity of Hindoo
Medicine' (note, p. 145), infers, that as in the above passage of Esther,
white, green, and blue hangings fastened to pillars of marble are
describ^ in the court of the garden of the king^s palace ; the practice
appears similar to what is now adopted in India, where calico cur-
tains, usually in red and white stripes, and stuffed with cotton (com-
monly called 'purdahs'), are employed everywhere in India, and at
Delhi even in the king's hall of audience. This consists of colonnades
of pillars supporting a light roof in the court before the private
apartments of the palace. On the outer rows of pillars these purdahs
are suspended ; hence, the author infers, we may understand the use
to which were applied the rows of pillars in front of the palace in the
ruins of Persepolis.
Cotton was no doubt in later times cultivated and manufactured
into doth. Pliny ( lib. xix. c 1) sUtes that Upper Egypt produces
a small shrub which some caH * gossypion,' others ' xylon, bearing
fruit like a nut, from the interior of which a kind of wool is produced,
from which very white and soft cloth is manufactured. Had it been
common in E^^l^t in the time of Herodotus, it could not have
escaped him ; as he says spedally of the Indiazis, that they possess a
kind of plant which, instead of fruit, produces wool of a finer and
better quality than that of sheep : of this the natives make their
dothea Nearehus describes the dress of the Indians as being made
of flax from treses (' Library of Entertaining Knowledge,' Egypt. Antiq.,
iL p. 125). Theophrastus (lib. iv. c. 9) clearly describes the cotton
with leaves like the vine as being abundant in the Islsnd of Tylos in
the Persian Gulf. Heeren, in his work on the ' Commerce of the
Andents,' comes to the conclusion that these plantations of cotton in
the Island of Tylos were the result of the commerce with India, the
true country of tiie cotton. The inferences from these quotations of
the original introduction of cotton from India into Egypt are in some
measure confirmed by there being no species of Cfostypium indigenous
and peculiar to the latter country. In conclusion, it is necessary to
refer to the fiadlity with which cotton is distinguished from linen to
controvert the assertion of Rossellini that it was always employed
for mummy-cloth ; as the result of numerous obticrvations by Bauer,
ftc, with the most powerful microscopes of modem times, and every
variety of mummy-doth, hss proved that it is invariably composed of
linen, and not of cotton cloth. The one fibre is easily distioguished
from the other; that of cetton having a flat tape or riband-like
appearance, while the fibre of the linen hss a round tubular and
even-jointed structure. (Egypt. Antiq., 'Library of Entertaining
Knowledge,' vol. ii. p. 182.)
The genus Oauypium is characterised by having a double calyx,
of whioh the inner is cup-shaped, obtusely 5-toothed, the outer or
involucre tripartite, with the leaflets united at the bane, cordate, with
the mai^gins irregularly cut Stigmas, 8-5. Capsules, 8- or 5-ceUed,
many-seeded. Seeds clothed with wool-like hairs, or cotton.
The spedes of Oostypium occupy naturally a belt probably
exceeding the torrid zone in breadth, but in a cultivated state we
have cotton now extending on one hand to the south of Europe, and
Lower Viiginia and even Maryland in the United States of America ;
while on the other we have it as far south as the Cape of Good Hope,
and in America to the southern parts of Brazil Within these limits
it may also be seen cultivated at considerable elevations. Baron
Humboldt mentions having seen it even at 9000 feet of elevation in the
Equinoctial Andes, and in Mexico at 5500 feet. Dr. Royle states that it
is cultivated in small quantities at 4000 feet of elevation in 30** N. lat.
in the Himalayas. The localities suited for the production of "cotton
depend as much upon the climate as the soil, and also upon the specific
peculiarities of the different kiods of cotton plants. That the pro-
duction of cotton is so much influenced by external circumstances is
not more remarkable than in many other cultivated plants ; indeed,
we might expect it to be more so from the susceptibility of this hairy
devdopment to the influence of situation. Humboldt has remarked
that 0. BarbcuUnte, Q, Atrtufttm, and Q, religiotum flourish in a climate
where the mean annual temperature is from 82** to 68** ; but that
O. her^cieevm is successfully cultivated where, the summer heat being
75" or 73% that of winter is not less than 46" or 48*. The cultivation
of this cotton however does not depend so much on winter cold as on
suffident length of suitable summer heat. The thermometer in
Upper Vii^ginia is sometimes as low as zero of Fahrenheit in winter,
and yet cotton can be cultivated during the long summer.
It is remarkable that a genus so important for its product, and so
long known, and with comparatively so small a number of species,
should yet have these undetermined. The celebrated De CaJidolle
states, that no genus more urgently requires the labours of a mono-
graph from a careful botanist who could have the opportunity of
seeing the species in a living state. The confusion has in a great
measure proceeded from botanists absurdly n^lectiog the cultivated
in their search for new species ; and cultivators being incompetent or
unwilling to distinguish varieties from spedes, frequently raising the
former to the rank of the latter, because the produce, in which alone
they are interested, happened to be more or less valuable. In the
proceedings of the East Indian Committee there is an interesting
letter from Mr. Spalding, where he informs us that the American
cultivators confine their attention to such plants as are of annual
growth. Ist The Nankeen Cotton, introduced at an early period,
l^is is abundant in produce ; the seed covered with down, the wool
of a dirty yellow colour, and usually low priced. 2nd. The Green-
Seed Cotton with white wool, which, with the former, is frown in the
middle and upland districts, whence the latter is called Upland
Cotton, abo Short Staple Cotton, and, from the mode in which it was
cleaned, Bowed (Seoigut Cotton. 8rd. The Sea-Island or Long Staple
Cotton, which is distinguished by the black colour of its seed, and
by the fine, white, strong, and silky long staple by which it is sur-
rounded. This is grown in the lower parts of Geox^ia and South
Carolina, near the sea, and on several small islands which are not
very distant from the shore.
The spedes admitted by botanists are not yet clearly determined.
M. De CandoUe admits 13 spedes, and notices others. Two have
since been described by Dr. Roxburgh, one by Roeusch, and another
in the ' Flore de Senegambie.' Of varieties Mr. Bennett says he knows
more than one hundred kinds, and that they appeared to him never-
ending. Dr. Royle, the most recent author who has treated expressly
of the genus, admits eight spedes, in which are absorbed some of
De CandoUe's; whUe others are avowedly unnoticed for want of
materials for satisfactory determination. But from his own observa-
tions, Dr. Roxburgh's 'Flora Indies,' as well as from Swartz, 'Observ.
Bot' for the West Indies, and the specimens, though few, in the
British Museum, it is probable that several of the cultivated spedes
are correctly determined.
O, Afrdaceum (Linn.), which is herbaceous in temperate, and
usually with bi-triennial stems 4-6 feet high in tropical countries, is
no doubt the Xylon s. 0. antiquorunif and includes also the O. IwUcwn
of Lamarck, which would indeed be the preferrible name for this
species. The younger parts of the stem, as well as the fiower- and
leaf-stalks, hairy and marked with black spots. Leaves hairy, palmate,
3- (generally) 5-lobed, lobes broad and rounded with a little point, or
in the woody varieties sub-lanceolate and acute. Stipules falcate,
lanceolate. Flowers of a lively yellow colour, with a purple spot
near the claw. Segments of exterior calyx dentate, sometimes
entire. Capsules ovate, pointed, 8- or 4-Qelled. Seeds free, clothed
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GRALLATORES.
GRALLATORKS.
1083
oiada on the ground; sexual congress vaiying ('nuptiis yariis').
Analogous to the BnUa.
The same author divides the order into two sections : —
♦ Feet four-toed.
Phanieopienu, Plaitdea, Ptdamedea, Mycttria^ Ta/aialfu, Ardea,
iSeeurvtuMtra^ Seolopax, Trinffo, FuticOf Parra, Ralhu, Piopkia,
CaticoffKi.
** Feet cursorial, that is, 8-toed.
ffcBmatcpua, Ckaradrwa, Otis, Struthio.
In the body of the wox^ Linnsus gives the following definition of
the GfraUa : — Bill subcylindrical, rather obtuse. Tongue entire, fleshy.
Thighs naked above the knees. [Grallatobeb.]
GRALLATOOIES (IlUger), the fourth order of Birds according to
the system of Mr. Vigors, the RatortM being the third, and the
Nataloret the fifth.
Mr. Vigors considers the GfraUitiorei as one of the aberrant groups
of the class, and as exhibiting an equally circumscribed sphere of
action as the RtuoreB, Holding an intermediate station between the
Gallinaceous Birds, which are restricted to the land, and the Nata-
torial groups, which are confined to the water, their typical groups
appear to Mr. Vigors to be those which partake most equally of the
advantages of both elements; and the aberrant groups those which
discover a more predominant inclination to either. " Of the five
families," continues Mr. Vigors, '* into which the order before us
branches out, we mav, in this point of view, pronounce those two to
be most typical which inhabit the land, but derive their support from
the water, or, to speak more correctly, which derive their whole
support from the latter element, without possessing those powers of
swimming or diving which are peculiar to the true water*fowL The
exclusive food of such groups will be fish, water reptiles and insects,
Motttuea, and animalcules ; and their distinguishing external charac-
ters, length of legs and bill, the former for the purpose of wading,
the latter for that of seizing their prey, or of extractmg it by suction
from the waters or marshes. Of the three remaining famUiee, two,
as I have observed in an early part of this inquiry, will be found to
deviate from the more typical, in their food and manners being more
terrestrial, and their general appearance and structure more conform-
able to that of some groups of the preceding order of Roiorea : while
the third, by its capability of swimming and the rudiments of the
natatorial membrane that connects the fore toes of some of its species,
equally deserts the same type, and goes off, on the other hand, to the
Natatoret. Taking these peculiarities into consideration, we may
venture to view the order according to the following arrangement,
placing, as usual, the more typical families in the centre : —
CfruideB,
ArdeidcBphetKih.
Scohpacidce.
BaUidcB, Leach.
CharadricidaB, Leach.
** The following disposition distinguishes the normal and aberrant
families : —
Normal Group.
BiUs long, principally fitted for suction . . < Scolowuida,
Aberrant Group.
\BaUid(B.
Bills short, and fitted for capturing, not sucking •< CharadrvadoB,
{Orwd^r
The species that enter into the different families are noticed in the
articles which treat of them, as well as.tiie mode of union between one
family and another.
Mr. W. S. M'Leay, in his paper ' On the Comparative Anatomy of
Certain Birds of Cuba,' observes that the relations of analogy pointed
out by Linneus between Mammalia and Birds are, as Herxnann has
observed, not always correct; and that his errors have arisen from
the misfortune of lus not detecting the natural group of Aristotle and
Ray, which the latter has called UnguUUa, " Having," says Mr.
M'Leay, " only been able to seize Aristotle's subdivisions of Tk ft^y
ouK &fi^H>i6rra, he lost the parallelism of analogy, and fell, as I shall
hereafter show, into very glaring mistakes. In the ' Systema Naturo '
however he has mentioned that very striking analogy which appears
between the groups of OralUe and BrtUa [Gralljs], that is, accord-
ing to the parallelism of analogy, between the order of OraUatoret
and VngtUata, since the BrtUct, as we have seen, do not forxn an order,
but only a natural subdivision of the Ungulata. That this analogy
is demonstrably true, I deduce from the following facts. Of their
respective classes, the orders of Ungvlaia and OraUaUnta contam
examples of the lonrnt legs in proportion to the body — ^witness
Camdopardalii KodMcnnaniopua {ffimaniopw of authors ?). Both
orders present us, in groups not exactly aquatic, with instances of the
toes being soldered together, as the Horse; or connected togethei
with a web, as the Flamingo. Both orders present us with the
greatest elongation of muzzle or facies — witness Myrmeeophaga [Ant-
Eatbb], or AntUopt ^particularly A. Bubaiui) [AzniLOFEiB], and
ScoUpax; and also with the most depressed form of muzzle — witness
^tppopo^onMU and PlataUa^ which gent-ra also afford us the truest
specimens of wading VerUin'otct, In both orders we have the most
elongated^ claws — witness Megalonyx and Poura, Both orders afford
us the swiftest animals in running — as the Horse and Taxihydnm,uM ;
and the most pugnadous on account of love — as the Bull and Afcichetet,
The Bull moreover and the Butor (or Botawus, for hence comes the
bird's name) [Bittxrn], afford us the loudest and hoarsest voice of
their respective orders; where we have also the most remarkable
instances of the upper and under mandible touching each other
merely at their base and point, as Myrmeeophaga, or the whole of the
Tk fi\v oifK iLti(poi6ifTa of Aristotle, and Anattomut, lUig. Both orders
exhibit ornamental appendages to the head — as the antlen of the
Stag and the crown of the Crane; and both afford us the only
instances of true horns, as Bat, or Jthinocerot, and Palamedea, Linn.
To see a hundred such instances of resemblance it is only neoessaiy
to walk into a museum. I shall therefore only further say, that both
orders contain polygamous animals, are generally gregarious, and
more graminivorous than granivorous, being essentially iidiabitants
of marshes and savannahs. Thus then with Linoseus I place the
BriUa, or rather the whole order of UnguUUa, to which they belong,
opposite to the CfraUatarei.'*
Mr. M'Leay then proceeds to observe that four orders in each class
being disposed of, it follows by parallelism of analogy that the Oliret
ought to be placed opposite to the Rcuores. But he asks, setting
theory wholly aside, is this position true in fact? Limueus, he
remarks, from the above-mentioned error in his series of affinity con-
sidered the Batorea to be analogous to his group of Peeora. But this
group, according to Aristotle and Ray, is only a subdivision of Un-
ffuitUa, which have, Mr. M'Leay considers, been now proved to be
analogue to the ChraUaioreM, If therefore, he concludes, Linnaeus be
right m making his BruAa analogous to the order of Wading Birds, it
follows that his Peeora must be so also.
In the same paper therefore Mr. M'Leay gives the following tables
of analogies between the Mammalia and Area : —
Animals typically
1. Feras carnivorous .... 1. Raptorea,
2. Primatta omnivorous .... 2. Inaeaaorea.
3. Olirea frugivorous .... 3. Baaorea,
4. UngtUala . fi-equeuting the vicinity of water . 4. GraUatorea.
5. Oetacea aquatic 5. Natatorea,
ScaiiBorcs.
Paittaeida representing the .
RhamphastidtB Joining the
ChtculidtB forming part of the
Otrthimdti Joining the ... .
Pidda representhiff the . . •
InscMorcs. Ares.
Dentiroitre$, and therefore the . . . Raptore*.
Oi>niro9trei, and forming part of the Inteuore*,
Seantorea, and Joining tiie Momotm,
TentdrottrtM, and representing the . Grallatorea,
FiaairottreM, and therefore the . . . NaMorta.
^ The latter table, Mr. M'Leay observes, will express several analo-
gical relations of the utmost value, and the reader will find them fuUy
explained in Mr. M'Leay's memoir. (' Linn. Trans.,' vol. xvi. p. 1.)
Mr. Swainson (' Classification ef Birds,' vol. i) remarks, that the
grallatorial or tenuirostral type is shown in birds, as in quadrupeds,
by a sreat slendemess and elongation of the jaws, muzzle, or bill —
for all these, he states, are merelv different terms to express nearly
the same thing ; " The notch in the bill, when it exists, is very slight,
and the feathers of the front are considerably advanced upon the
base of the upper mandible. The opening of the nostrils is very long,
often tumid, but never round. Great swiftness either of foot or of
wing is a constant indication of this type. Sometimes, as in the
Snipes, both these characters are united ; at other tinges, as we see in
the Humming-Birds, this swiftness is confined only to flight ; while
in some few, as in the Flamingo, the wings are short, but the feet very
long. The aperture or gape of the mouth is generally very small, as
in all suctorial animals, — witness the whole of the typical Orallatorea,
or Waders, and their representatives the Trochilidte. The smallest
birds, no less than the smallest quadrupeds, are of this type, which is
again represented by the little gliriform Mammalia.**
Mr. Swainson gives, in the same volume, the following table of
analogies : —
Primary
Orders
Typical
Orders of
Types.
of Birds.
Characters.
Quadrupeds.
1.
Typical
Inaeaaorea
Organs of prehension and general
etruotore highly developed.
Quadrumana,
s.
8uh.typical
Rnptoraa
Carnivorous ; claws retractile.
Ttra.
3.
Aquatic
Jfaiatorea
Live and feed in the water ; feet
very short or none.
Oetaeea,
4.
Suctorial
Orallatorea
Jaws much prolonged ; hurrow for
their food.
Glirei,
5.
Rasorial
Jtasores
Head with crests of horn or fea-
Ungulata,
thers; habits domestic ; feet
long, formed for walking.
Mr. Swainson considers that " these analogies are so perfect, and
the series so completely in unison with those of all other animals,"
that he deems it unnecessary to go into any long details.
In further support of the relation between the' OraUatorea and
Cflirea insisted on also in the ' Natural History and Claesificatior '^^
1088
GRALLATORES.
GRAMINACEiG.
1081
Quadrupeds,' Mr. Swainspn adverts to the elongation of the upper
jaw or mandible of these animals, a peculiarity which is more con-
spicuous, he says, in them and their representativee than in any other
groups. " If/' continues Mr. Swainson, " we examine, for instance,
the bill of the woodcock family, we find that its termination in regazd
to the contour gives an almost ludicrous resemblance to the muzzle
of a rat, particularly if we fancy that both were of the same size.
Now it is perfectly dear, that as these two animals when feeding
generally insert their muzzle in the ground, so there can be no doubt
that this particular formation is essential to that propensity. The
only quadrupeds, again, which have the snout inclining upwards, are
of tiie gliriform type ; and the only birds in which the bill takes the
same direction are typical of the OraUcUora. The Sorex, JOagypui,
&c, are all types of the gliriform quadrupeds, as those of TroehUui,
AvotettOf Tringa^ are of the grallatorial structure in birds : so that
the resemblance oif the snout of Ncuua and Avoietta are as like as it
is possible, considering that one is a quadruped and the other a bird.
To the same type also belongs the JSIcAtdno, or Porcupine Ant-Eater,
the American genus Myrmecophaga, and the Indian Manu : all these
are pre-eminently characterised by that great prolongation of muzzle
whidi constitutes, as before mentioned, one of the chief characters of
the type we are now illustrating." We have given Mr. Swainson's
own words, that the reader may have an opportunity of forming his
own opinion as to the premises and conclusion ; and we must further
add, with reference to this volume, that Mr. Swainson considers that
the typical structure of the wading foot "is found in the Sandpipers
{Tringa), Tatlers (Totanut), and Snipes (Seolopax)"
In the second volume of ' The Classification of Birds,' we find that
Mr. Swainson considers that the families under which the Waders are
naturally arranged are these : — " 1, the ArdeadcB, or Herons ; 2, the
Charadriada, or Plovers; 8, the Tringida, or Sandpipers; 4, the
SaUida, or Rails ; 5, the TantalidcB, or Ibices (Ibises)." Mr. Swainson
is of opinion that Uie 2nd and 8rd are the typical groups. In the
same volume, farther on, we find the families of the OraUataret in the
following order .- — Ardeada, TamtdUdcB, BdUida, SeolopacidcB, Chora-
driadcB, and at pages 28, 82, ftc., will be found other analogical tables
and explanations regarding the order.
PouU OraUalares.
The fossil remains of the families of this order will be noticed
under the articles which treat of them. But we may here state that
the remains of Wading Birds occur in various strata. For instance,
in the gypsum of the Paris Baain (Tertiary— Eocene period of Lyell)
the bones of birds referrible to the genera Scolopax, TringOf and Ibis
have been found ; and, in the fresh-water formation of Tilgate Forest
(secondary series^ Dr. Mantell found the remains of a Wader larger
than a ciSmmon Heron. But this bird must have been a pigmy when
compared with those gigantic Waders (apparently) whose footsteps
Professor Hitchcock records as being preserved in the new red-sand-
stone of the valley of the Connecticut^ The professor refers these
fossil footsteps to at least seven species of GraUatorti with very long
legs, and ranging firom the size of a snipe to twice the dimensions of
an ostrich.
These footmarks, which Professor Hitchcock names OmilhiehniUif
were found at various depths beneath the actual surface in quarries
of laminated flagstones, at five pl&c« i^cfur the banks of the river,
within a distance of 80 miles. The inclination of the sandstone is
from 5" to 80*, and the tracks appear to have been made on it
before the strata were so inclined. Seven of these tracks, which
the professor figures, are considered by him to have been xnade by
seven different species, if not genera. The footsteps appear in
regular succession on the continuous track of an animal in the act of
waking or running, with the right and left foot always in their proper
plaoea There is occasionally a variation in the distance of the
intervals between each footstep on the same track, but to no greater
amount than the slteration of its pace by the bird would explain.
Many tracks of different individuals and different species are often
found crossing each other, and the footsteps are sometimes crowded
together in the same manner that impressions of the feet of ducks
and geese are left on the muddy shore of the stream or pond where
they resort. The professor remarks, however, that none of the foot-
steps appear to be those of web-footed birds ; they most resemble,
he states, those of Oratta (Waders), or birds whose habits resemble
those of Cfrallce. The impressions of three toes are usually distinct,
except in a few instances ; that of the hind toe is mostly wanting,
as in the footsteps of modem OralUe. But we must now draw the
reader^s attention to the most remarkable among these footmarks,
hitherto found in one quarry only, at Mount Thorn near Northampton,
where were discovered four nearly parallel tracks of a gigantic bird,
whose foot measured 16 inches in length, exclusive of the largest claw,
which was 2 inches in length. All the three toes were broad and
thick. In one of the tracks a regular succession of six of these
enormous footsteps appeared at a distance of 4 feet from each other;
in others the distance varied from 4 to 6 feet, and it is supposed
that the latter was the longest step of this bird-giant whilst it was
running.
The footsteps next to be noticed are those of another enormous
bird, whose toes were however more slender than those of the last
(OmithichmUt giganieua), but measured from 15 to 16 inches in length,
exclusive of a remarkable appendage extending backwards from the
heel 8 or 9 inches, and apparently intended to sustain the animal
when walking on a soft bottom. The impressions of this appendage
bear a resemblance to those of wiry feathers or coarse bristles, which
appear to have sunk into the mud and sand nearly an inch deep ; but
the toes had sunk much deeper, and the mud was raised into a ridge
several inches high round their impressions, similar to the elevation
round the track of an elephant in clay. Six feet sometimes seem to
have made the length of this bird's stride. Other tracks indicate
shorter steps ; and the smallest impression tallies with a foot of only
an inch long, with a step ranging from 8 to 6 inches. It is to be
noted that in every track the length of the step increases with the
size of the foot, and is much longer than the steps of any known
existing species of birds. A greater length of leg is thence inferred
than t£at of modem Wading Birds; and it is considered that the
steps which are 4 feet asunder probably indicate a leg of 6 feet in
length.
The maigin of shallow water subject to changes of level, and in
whish sediments of sand and mud were alternately deposited, appears
to have been the locality where these ancient birds congregated. The
inferred length of limb would have been well adapted for wading in
such a place.
The lx>nes of fishes only {PcUcBOthritsum) have yet been found in
the rock that has transmitted to us these footsteps, " which are of the
highest interest to the palaeontologist, as they establish the new fact
of the existence of bircu at the early epoch of the new red-sandstone
formation ; and further show that some of the most ancient forms of
this class attained a size far exceeding that of the laxgest among the
feathered inhabitants of the present world, and were adapted for
wading and running rather than for flight."
(American Journal of Science and Arts, vol. xxix. ; Buckland,
JBridgeuater Treatiu.)
QRAMINA'CEiE, or GRASSES, ara a very extensive and important
natural order of Endogenous Plants, comprehending many of the
most valuable pasture plants, all those which yield com, such as
wheats barley, and maize, the sole source of colonial sugar in the
sugai^cane, and the most fragrant of all plants in the form of Andro-
pogons. Their structure is among the most simple of the perfect
forms of vegetation; a stem clothed with alternate leaves whose
stalks are universally thin, and constituting as many sheaths to guard
the young and rapidly growing shoots, a few rudimentary leaves
collected at the ends of the branches of inflorescence, and c<mstituting
flowers, a very small number of stamens, and a single seed inclosed
in a thin pericarp, are all that nature provides to enable these plants
to preserve their race and to distinguish their numerous kinds from
one another. Tet, with such a simple apparatus, many thousand
species are so precisely characterised that the natural order of Grasses
is perhaps one of the easiest to study and arrange, provided the task
be commenced upon right principles. The floral leaves, called glumes,
palese, and scales, offer a prodigious number of different appearances,
according to the manner in which they are combined or modified ;
and the inflorescence, the number of stamens, the texture of the
parts, or the relation of the sexes to each other, afford additional
means by which the distinctive characters are varied.
This is, no doubt, one of the wise provisions of Providence by
which man is enabled to distinguish good from evil, the useful from
the useless, the profitable from the unprofitable. For in no class of
plants is it more necessary than in grasses to know how to choose
between different species. For instance, most grasses are saccharine
and nutritious to cattle, but the species of Holcui, Bromus, Ac, are
as frequently worthless. There is a great difference between the
value of grasses for pasture ; certain kinds suit the meadows, others
marshes, others upUmd fields, and others bleak and sterile hills, where
they furnish valuable food for sheep : these kinds will not grow indis-
criminatelv, or are not equally suitable for different soils and situations,
and it is therefore essential for the husbandman that he should be
capable of discriminating between them. Some indicate the quality
of soil : the species of Daet^lia, ffoleut, and Bromue are inhabitants
of sterile land; the FtstuecB and Alopeevtri of better soil; while
various PocB and Oynoiunu are found only in pasture-land of excellent
quslity. Most grasses are perfectly harmless, if not nutritious ; yet
the single species Lolium temulentum is a deleterious species in the
midst of harmless Lolia; and £romiu jmrgant and Featuca quadriden'
tau, afford limiUr instances of this singula exception to ordin«y
rules.
For these and similar reasons, classification, which at all times is so
necessary, here becomes the very foundation of all correct knowledge,
and it has accordingly very particularly excited the attention of syste-
matic botanists from the time when the general term Oramen was
broken up by Linmeus into a number of different genera. It is not
desirable in this place to show by what degrees tiie knowledge of
botanists upon this subject has advanced from the days of Linneus
up to the present time. Those who are desirous of gaining this
information should consult Palisot de Beauvois' 'Agrostographie,'
publidied at Paris in 1812, and the subsequent writings of Brown,
Kunth, Nees von Esenbeck, and Trinius. We shall confine ourselves
to a general technical description of the order, partly founded upon
lOBS ORAUINACR£.
th< ' Agratognphia ajnoptica ' of KubUi, tod to brief aharaolan of
its tribH w tbey staod in tha ' Qanera PluitArum ' of EadlichoT.
aeneral Cbamiter.^Roota in all obhi fibrous; stam, oaUsd oulm
by Bome authors, oylindrical, rarely (MmprsMed, Torying in Joogtli
from s fow inches, aa in Snappia agrttiiiiUa, to 80 or BO foat, aa in
tbe Bamboo ; usually flstular, except at tha joints, where it is always
solid ; sometimes aoUd throughout, aa !□ tha Sugar-Cana ; coated with
■ilex, which is also secrated occaaiOQally in lumps in Uie hollotrs of
tfaastem under the ronn of tha opalescent lubatance oalled 'tabaibaer;'
in most caaea only of aonual duration, but sometimes shrubby or
arborescent. Leares ace to each node, with a, sbeatliiog petiole, the
limb membranous, usually narrow ; the sheath quite surrounding the
stem, slit on one aide, usually with ■ ligula at the apai. Spikelets
terminal, pasicled, raoemoee, or spiked ; sometimea immeraed in the
thickened racbis; very seldom several fascicled, or united together,
and aunounded by a general spaths. Flowers hermaphrodite.
spikelst of oi
I, very rarely dicadous, destitute of
rolls, surrounded by a double set of bracts, tbe
g the glumes (or calyx of some authors), tha ionar
r corolla uf others); all together forming a distichous
-r la or more florets, filumes alternate, the outer usually
the largest and meet distinctly ribbed, and often having its midrib
extended into a beard or awn ; sometimes both awned ; aome-
times the lower glume only present ; occasionally both absaot ;
these glumes are only found at the base of the spikeleta, sod may
belong to one floret only or to many. Patera usually in p^rs, and
alternate with each other; the lower and outer l-S-maay-veined,
usually keeled, awned or awnless ; the upper and inner usually two-
veined, mora membiaoous, amaller, awnleea, sometimes absent.
EypogyoouB soaln regarded by KunCh as remaina of the ligula ; by
most other botanists aa the rudiments of a corolla, usually two on
each side of the base of the inner palea ; sometimes a third ia added
in front of tha inner patea ; sometimes united with each other, somo-
times deficient. Stamens liypogynous, usually definite, very rarely
indefinite ; if six or three, placed all rouud the ovary ; if fewer than
three, placed next tha outer patea ; filamanta long and Baooid ; anthers
versatue, linear, bifid at each eod. Ovary solitary, simple, with two
styles (rarely three), each having a feathered or branched stigma,
one-celled, with a single ovule attached to the pericarp by the whole
aide, or Uie lower part of the side next the upper pslaa. Fruit a
caryopsis in most cases, occasionally an utriculus ; the pericarp thiu
end membranous, in the former case adhering firmly to the seeds, in
the latter distinct from iC Seed containing a large quantity of fioury
albumen, on one side of which (that next the lower palea) there lies
a leoticuiar embryo, composed of a tbiu cotyledon, whose edges are
doubled outwards over the plumula and radicle, which therefore press
upon Uie side of the pericarp next the outer palea. Tha plumula ia
fine, and consists of several aheatha overlying each other ; the radicle
is oomposed of several tubercles which break Uirough the sides of the
embryo as soon as germination commences.
Under this character M. Kunth assembles about S5D0 species, a
number far below tha real amount, which is probably near 4000, and
H. Endlicber 234 genera (now increased to 201), which are classified
by the latter botanist as foUows : —
Tribo I. Qttzoe.^ Spikeleta sometimes 1-fiowered, with the glumes
frequeotly absent ; sometimes 2-3-fiowered, with the lower florets cou-
sisting of but one palea, and neuter, the upper only being fertile. Palem
of a stiff papery texture. Flowers often uaisexua( usually hexandrous.
This tribe inoludea the following genera ; —
Ltenia, BltpkarotMoa.
Potamoehlea. Oryta.
PaltuncpMla. BydraMoa.
Ziaaaia, Eygrarym.
OaryoMoa. Ltmtla,
j^rkarta. Ttlrarrltna,
iticnltaia. Diplax.
Pharvt. Z^tupti.
OBAUIKACE^. lOM
rudiment of an upper florat ; or 2-Bowared, witli both florets dthsr
hermaphrodita or male; or 3-S-flowered, with the terminal floret
fertile, tha rest iocomplete. Qlumes usually equal. Pale« often
abining, hardened in tha fruit. Styles or stigmas mostly long. It includes
the followiag genera : —
Zygnim. Zea.
(Sir. Chiimatiche.
Sclerachnt. Polytoca.
Oomwxipia. Oj^wit.
Mibora, A^ptcunu.
Ztfaniu. .Bcatmannia.
PhUum. Pingtrkuthia.
Chondrolima. Bilaria.
PhaiarU. Digraphit.
Holcv». Titynaudia.
Tribe III. Panitea. — Spikelets 2-flowBred, the lower floret being
incomplete. Glumes thinner than the paleca, the lowermost often,
ccasionally both, bemg abortive. Falets more or leas ooriaceous or
.lapery, usually awnlees, the lower ooncavs. Caiyopeis comprsosed
:rom the back. It includes —
Btimaria.
Miliom.
Olgm.
Thnuya.
UroeUwi.
A mpAuar)nim.
Sirephiiim.
Srioehloa.
RiyntMs/tntm.
Thyianolawi.
Optitmeniu,
ChamarAaphii.
AerathtruM.
Melinit.
StrthliUdia.
.TnutisefHrn.
OjpnnvArix.
CauAnu.
Anthtphora.
LophoUpit,
Thouarea.
Ifmtracknt.
Tribs IV, Stiptit. — Spikelets 1-Sowered. Lower pales rolled
inwards, awned at the apex, and usually indurated in the fruit ; awn
simple or trifld, oiually twisted, and articolated at the base. Ovary
stipitate. SquamuLe usually three. Under this tribe are included —
(MAoropAtwn.
Orj/iojmt.
Piptathtntm.
JUckdadmt.
MacnMoa.
Sriocama.
ArUtida,
Slipa.
Streptadme,
Stipagmtii.
Tribe T. J^roMuba.— Spikelets l-flowared, vary rarely wEtb the
awl-shaped rndiment of an upper flower. Olomea and palew 3,
membranoua-harbaceous ; Uie upper palea usually ariitate. Stignua
usually seiaUe. This tribe includes —
low
GRA-inHACBA
QRA.UiyACE.£. lOSi
MUiltnbirgia.
Clomaw.
r «wned, the former perma-
Lgcarut.
CV>2<a>i(Aw.
ncnt on the raohi*. end the enberior on
n^P^
CWpoditim.
other. SpikoedigiUteorpanioled.nrely
■olitftry. Raohia continuoni^
Cn«o.
not jointed. Itinoludeii-
iV<w«Jioor»ly«.
Polypogon.
UiaoMoa.
Chlerit.
Oiaturut.
.Egapogon.
BUatint.
Pertiltma.
V
BarpoeUca.
^.
AriUiditm.
!2}nplaihera.
Paaarkaphii.
Truma.
PUaraphit.
Triaihtra.
Polyodtm.
TriploMU.
Bnmidium.
Stip^
V
^;«-..
A
/
TriboVI. Amndinta.^
-Spikelabi either 1-Bowerad, with or with-
m J
f
out tba nidiment of >n
upper floret,
or miny-flowerod. Floreta
^ /k^
j
uiuillj «mTounded or c
Tercd with loDK >oft huriL Qlumes uid
V\ #//d
r
p«le» 2, nmobniaoufrlierbaceoua, the to
■mer uiually m, long u the
Wc^
flonlj or longer, of the latter tho lower
ttwncd or awnUw. Uaually
T^mr
tmll gnwea. It includea—
vBr
Smeut-a.
Ni^
Deymria.
iT
Arymde.
Tribe IX. Jw»«E-apikeIe1>2.m«.r
flowered; the tenmnilBoret
Oraphephor^,^
4
a.fon<vr«>Iit
^ ■
the lower pale* tnortly awned ; the awi
Itinclade»—
Ataxia.
Tridiata.
Avena.
Chatobromot.
Triadia.
ueually doml ud twirted.
Ain.
AMraHo.
AirkeiathtruM.
Anitopcgm.
iWocAne.
2-maaT-fl(iwerad, the upper
j5L
withering. Glun.« u»1
p&leii wiUi 3 or more inUi
jftt
JXplop<v(Xi.
IWrA^JwI
Pappopluinim.
fi.-^^
Polyrhaphi,.
ftirapftii.
OoUaa.
BcAi-ai-io.
Catiatecnm.
TriU X. ^mKkim.— Spikeleta rneny
latter niually himiehed with an awn whieh u not twirted. Inflope»-
cence almott ftlwaye peaieled. It indudei*—
Bnmidir.
Saltria.
Poo.
jBiunqmi.
JVfMJuu.
fflyema
Satonia.
OatabrOM.
miiktenl -irikee, l-mwir-
CalaeltM.
Brim.
flowered; the upp« Aoreta nithmnE.
Qlumet md pales 2, metn-
ClaKriirtnw.
OalellimM.
aRi.MIKACE.E.
ORAMINACE^
jr»l»ia
WiMgenliamia.
Meliea.
Ainehloa,
SehUtMU,
Daetyiit.
UnxhUna,
Ckrynrvi.
Lophalktntn.
PlagiaijIlriiHa.
Amiphioronia.
Orthoclada.
Diarrhena.
Anmdinaria.
Phjfilottatky.
In thii tribe are collected the Cercalia, nimBly, whe*
i7«, 4e. It inolnde* —
Lolium. Tritiemn.
Secale. JfjBHiJ.
OgmnetKktin. Sordmm.
AgOapt. Polj/anauTix.
PuHana.
wiiigad.
Tribe ZII. SoUboeUea.—loAoTiatMace spiked ; the rscuUi in most
cues jointed. Spikeleta 1-2- or Tery rare); Saowered, lodged in
hollowa of tba ncbia ; aithsr Kilittu? or in pun, one beiDg stalked
and withering. One floret of e&ch sptkelet, either the upper or the
lower, tuukll; incomplats. OlumBi 1-2, wimetime* altoguther wanting,
awned. St;le IS
include) —
Sardui.
Itptwna
Prilana.
StmartAria.
Voitia. Mnaithm.
Sottboilla. Xaiitbitrgia.
XerDcUoa. Triptao^m.
Manimrii.
TribcZIIL JndropoffOBeiE— SpikelBlBa-flowered; the lower floret
tiainfT almolt alwaja inoompleta. Palea thinner Uiui the glumai,
(uually tiwuparent. It inoludeo —
Ptrolu. Leptolhrium.
Zoytia. Ihmeria.
Artkrajcon. Eryochrytii.
Saccharum. Imptrata.
PogmMkemm. Erianthtii.
Eultdia. Ze^hrram.
Apoatpit. Btumunu.
Anlkuliria. Perotaehtie.
DUaimi*. Jpiudo.
Balrailtenaii. Hologamiuni.
Leptocerdt. Anathentm.
Traeiypogon. Andrepogim.
" ■ — Aeitomum.
Tkdq>ogim.
Zeitgita.
BlflUa.
PogonoptU,
Arthr^vgvn.
AUMtrcplit.
FoftitalStriim.
The following lirt of Britiah gsnen i* from Babiogton'a ' Manoal
of Britiih Botany :' —
Digitaria. AAhiocUmi,
Sttaria. Phaltrit.
Anthtxanlhnm. Biertchlet.
PUmm. AU^mrui.
Knappia. OoMridMrn.
Palypogon. Miliim.
AgrMU. Aftra.
Ootyiiepkortu
Poo.
Triodia.
XtHta.
CatabrMO.
BracHypodimm.
T mst Ur VOL D
Tritiaim.
JlyMKf.
Nardot. Ltplina.
"The family i» vety DumerouB. Pet«oon'i ' Synopaia " containa 813
n>acie^ l-Sfltb part of all the plants therein enumorated. In Uie lyitem
of Roemer and Sohulte. there are 1800, and ainco this work, were It
brought to a conclualon, would probably oontain iO.OOO m all. it may
be a^umed that the waseea form a 22nd part It a ino™ than
probable however that m future the graaaea will Inoroaae in a UrgOT
ratio than the other phanerogamic pknt^ and that P^a'P?,™^ J"f
proportion will be aa 1 to 20 or aa 1 to 18. Oreater «iU wll be tidr
proportion to Tegelation in general when the number of indinduala
iata^en into account, for in thia reipect the greater number, nay
.itapa the whol^ of the other clasaea ara infenor. With regard to
--'itj in each a large family, very littU can be advanced.
Itoodity
1091
GRAMINACE^.
GRAMINACE^.
1093
"Among the grasses there are boUi laad and water, but no marine
planto. They occur in every soil, in society of others and alone,
the last in audi a degree as entirely to occupy considerable districts.
Sand appears to be less faTOurable to this dass, but even this has
species nearly peculiar to itselt The diffusion of this family has
almost no other limits than those of the whole vegetable kingdooL
Grasses occur under the equator, and AgrosHt algida was one of the
few plants which Phipps met with on Spitsbergen. On the mountains
of the south of Europe Poa ditHcha and other grasses asoend almost
to the snow line, and on the Andes this is aliM the case with P.
fMhtlentit and P, daetyloidet, Dejfeuxiarigida, and Fettuca datyantha.
The greatest differences between tropical and extra-tropical grasses
appear to be the following : —
" 1. The tropical grasses acquire a much greater height, and occasion-
ally assume the appearance oftrees. Some species of Bambusa are
from 60 to 60 feet high.
« 2. The leaves of the tropical grasses are broader and approach
more in form to those ot other fanulies of plants. Of this the genus
PcMpcdw affords many examples.
'' 8. Separate sexes are more frequent in the tropical grasses. Zea,
Sorghum, Andropogtm, Olyra, Anthiatirui, I»chamvm, uBgUopa, and
many other genera which only occur in the torrid zone, and are there
found in perfection, are moncacious or polygamous. Solcw is
perhaps the only extiu-tropical genus with separate sexes.
"4. The flowers are softer, more downy, and elegant.
" 5. The extra-tropical grasses on the contrary far surpass the tropical
in respect of the number of individuals.
*' That compact grassv turf, which espedally in the colder parts of
the temperate cones m spring and summer composes the green
meadows and pastures, is almost entirely wanting in the torrid zone.
The grasses tnere do not grow crowded together, but like other
plants, more dispersed. Even in the southern parts of Europe the
assimilation to the warmer r^ons in this respect is by no means
iooonsiderable.
" Arwndo (ionarbv its height reminds us of the Bamboo, Saceharvm
l^Uxveana, S. Tentriffa, Imperataearundincbcea, Lagwrtu otmiua, Lygtwn
9pa/rtwn, and the species of Andropogon, jSgilopt, &c., by separate
sexes exbibit tropical qualities. The grasses are also less gregarious,
and meadows seldomer occur in the south than in the north of Europe.
The generalitv are social plants.
'* The distribution of cultivated grasses is one of the most interest-
ing of all subjects. It is determined not merely by climate but
depends on the civilisation, industry, and traffic of the people, and
ofbon on historical events. Within tiie northern polar circle agricul-
ture is found only in a few places. In Siberia grain reaches at the
utmost only to 60*, in the eastern parts scarcely above 55", and in
Kamtschatka there is no agriculture even in the most southern parts
(51*). The polar limit of agriculture on the north-west coast of
America appears to be somewhat higher, for in the more southern
Russian possessions (67* to 62*) bariey and lye come to maturity.
Only in Eurone, namely in Lapland, does the polar limit reach an
onuBually high latitude. Beyond this dried fish, and here and there
potatoes, supply the place of grain.
" The grains which extend farthest to the north in Europe are barley
and oats. These, which in the milder climates are not used for bread,
afford to the inhabitants of the northern parts of Norway and Sweden,
of a part of Siberia and Scotland, their chief vegetable nourishment
Bye is the next which becomes associated with these. This is the
prevailing grain in a great part of the northern temperate aone,
namely in the south of Sweden and Norway, Denmark, and in all the
lands bordering on the Baltic, the north of Germany, and part of
Siberia. In the latter another very nutritious grain, buckwheat^ is
veiy frequently cultivated. In the sone where rye prevails wheat is
generally to be found, barley being here chiefly cultivated for the
manufacture of beer, and oats supplying food for the horses. To these
there follows a sone in Europe and Western Asia where rye disappears,
and wheat almoet exclusively furnishes bread. The middle and the
south of France, England, part of Scotland, a part of Germany,
Hungary, the Crimea, and Caucasus, as also the lands of mid<Ue Asia,
.where agriculture is followed, belong to this zona Here the vine is
also found, wine supplants the use of beer, and barley is oonsequently
less raised. Next comes a district where wheat still abounds, out no
longer exclusively furnishes bread, rice and maize becoming frequent
To this zone belong Portugal, Spain, part of France on the Mediter-
ranean, Italv and Greece, further, the countries of the East» Persia,
Northern India, Arabia, Egypt» Nubia, Barbery, and the Ca^oaiy
Islands ; in these latter countries however the culture of maize or
rice towards the south is always more considerable, and in some of
them several kinds of Sorghtm (Doura) and Poa Aiyttiniea come to
|be added. In both these regions of wheats rye only occurs at a con-
nderable elevation, oats however more seldom, and at last entirely
disappear, barley afibrding food for horses and mules. In the eastern
■parts of tiie temperate zone of the old continent^ in China and Japan,
.our northern kinds of grain are veiy unfrequent, and rice is found to
predominate. The cause of this difference between the east and the
(West of the old continent appears to be in the manners and pecu-
liarities of the people. la North America, wheat and rye grow as in
Europe bat more sparingly. Maize |s more reared in the western
than in the old continent, and rice predominates in the southern
provinces of the United States. In the torrid zone, maize predomi-
nates in America, rice in Asia ; and both theee grains in nearly equal
quantity in Africa.
** The cause of this distribution is, without doubt, historicsl, for
Asia is the native country of rice, and America of maize. In some
situations, eepecially in the neighbourhood of the tropics, wheat ia
also met with, but always subordinate to these other lunds of grain.
Besides rice and maize thei^ are in the torrid zone several kinds of
grain as well as other plants which supply the inhabitants with food,
either used along with them or entirely occupying their place. Such
are, in the new continent. Tarns {bUucorea tUata), the Manihot
{Jatropha Manihot), and the Batatas COonvolvtdtu Batataa), the root
of which and the fruit of the Pisang {Banana Muta) furnish universal
articles of food ; in the same zone in Africa, Doura (Sorghum), Pisang,
Manihot, Tams, and Arcidiu hypogcea; in the East Indies and on the
Indian Islands, Bleunne ooracana, B. stricta, Panicnm frumeniaeeum,
several Psims, and Oycadacecs which produce the Sago, Pisang, Yams,
Batatas, and tlie Bread-Fruit (Artocarput incita). In the islands of
the South Sea, grain of every kind disappears, its place being
supplied by the bread-frxdt tree, the pisang, and Taeea pmnatifida. In
the tropiccd parts of Australia there is no agriculture, the inhabitants
living on the produce of the sago, of various palms, and some species
of ilnini.
" In the high lands of South America, there is a distribution
similar to that of the degrees of latitude. Maize indeed grows to
the height of 7200 feet above the level of the sea, but only predomi-
nates between 3000 and 6000 feet of elevation. Below 8000 feet
it is associated with the pisang and the above mentioned vegetables,
while from 6000 to 9260 feet the European grains abound : wheat in
the lower r^ons, rye and barley in the higher, along with which
Chenopodium ^uinoa as a nutritious plant must also be enumerated.
Potatoes alone are cultivated from 9260 to 12,800 feet To the south
of the tropic of Capricorn, wherever agriculture is practised, consider-
able resemblance with the northern temperate zone may be observed.
In the southern parts of Brazil, in Buenos Ayres, in Chili, %jb the
Cape of Good Hope, and in the temperate zone of Australia, wheat
predominates ; barley however and rye make their appearance in the
southernmost parts of these ooimtries, and in Van Diemen's Land. In
New Zealand the culture of wheat is said to have been tried with
success, but the inhabitants avail themselves of the Acrottichum
furcalwn as the main article of sustenanoei Hence it appears that in
respect of the predominating kinds of grain, the earth maybe divided
into five grand divisions, or kingdoms — the kingdom of rice, of
maize, of wheat, of rye, and lastly of barley and oats. The first
three are the most extensive ; the maize has the greatest range of
temperature, but rice may be said to support the greatest number of
the human race." Schouw, in Jameson's ' Philosophical Journal'
The uses of this most important tribe of plants for fodder, food, and
clothing, require UtUe illustration. The abundance of wholesome
fecula contained in their seeds renders them peculiarly well adapted
for the sustenance of man ; and if the Cereal Grasses only, such as
Wheats Barley, Rye, Oats, Maize, Rice, and Guinea Com, are the kinds
commonly employed, it is because of the laxge size of their grain
compared with tluit of other grasses; for none are imwholesome in
their natural state with the exception of LoUvm tem/ulen^wn, a
common weed in many purts of ^igland, the effects of which are
undoubtedly injurious, nromut pwrgcmt and cotAarf tcia are said to
be emetic and purgative ; Bromvs moUit is also imwholesome, and
Feihica quadridetUata is said to be poisonous; MoUnia fforia is
injurious to cattle ; and some other species are supposed to affect
the milk of cows which graze upon them.
Among corn-plants not generally known may be mentioned EUutine
carocono, called Natchnee on the Coromandel coast, and Nagla Ragee,
or Mand, elsewhere in India; Setaria Germanica, yielding German
millet ; and Panicftm frumentaceum. There are many other species.
The value of grasses as fodder for cattle is hardly less than t^t of
com for human food. The best fodder-grasses of Europe are usually
dwarf species, or at least such as do not rise above four or five feet
from the ground. The most esteemed are Lolium perenne, Phleum,
and Feftuea pratentia ; Cfynoaurue criUatut, and various species of Poa
and dwarf Featuea. The foddergrasses of Brazil are of fur more
gigantic stature, and perfectly tender and delicate. In Australia
the favourite is Anthiatiria auttralia, or Kangaroo Grass; in India
A. cUiata is also in request ; but the most common Indian fodder-
grass is Doorba, Doorwa, or Hurry alee {Ognodon daciylon\, Gama
Grass (Triptacwn dactyloidea) has a great reputation as fodder in
Mexico"; and attention has lately been directed to the Tussac Grass of
the FalUands {Featuea flabellata), a species forming tufts five or six
feet high, and said to be unrivalled for its excellence as food for cattle
and horses.
The finigranoe of our sweet Vernal Grass is by no means confined to
it ; other species possess the same quality, which is connected with
the presence of aromatic secretions, which have in part reconunended
grasses to the notice of mediod practitioners. Sugar is a general
product of grasses. It exists in great quantitiefl in" the Suffar-Gane
{Stteehaavm officinarum). Maize so abounds in it^ that its omtivation
has been proposed in lieu of the sugar-oane.
V09
ORAMMATITR
GRAPSID^.
1091
For economical purposes Graases are often of much importance.
The strong stems of the bamboo are employed instead of timber and
cordieige. The cuticle of some species contains silex, which occurs in
l%rge masses after the burning of a heap of com or a stadc of hay in
the shape of a colourless glassy mass.
For an account of the diseases of this tribe of plants see Entofhtta,
Eboot, and Fukgl The uses of various spedee are described under
AWATHEBUM, CoiX, ELRU8INlB,CTK0D0ir, ArUNDO, ElTMUB, HoBDEUM,
Obtsa, Poa, Seoalb, Sorohum, Zba, and Tritiooh.
(Lindley, Vegetable Kingdom ; Babington, ManwU afBrUitk Botany.)
GRAMMATITK [Hobnblbnde.]
GRAMMATOPHORA. [DbacokIka.]
GRAMPUa [Oetacba.]
GRANADILLA. [^assifloba.]
GRANA'TK^), a natural order of Plants separated by David Don
firom MyHacea [Mtbtaosje], and containing only the species of the
genus Pvmiea, [Punica.] It differs from Myrtacea in the leaves being
destitute of glands, and in being wiUiout the intramaiginal vein, as
also in the nature of its fruity its pulpy seeds^ and convolute cotyledons.
(G. Don, Dichlamydeoua PlarUt.)
GRANATUM. [Puwica.]
GRANITE, one of the most abundant rocks seen at or near the
surface of the earth, and, from the variety of discussions to which it
has given rise, one of the most celebrated. Wherever the stratified
rocks, which were deposited by water, are seen to their very base,
they are in all quarters of the world observed to rest on other unstra-
tified rocks of the nature of granite. This rock appears in many
instances to have been in a fluid state since the deposition of those
strata which cover it, for it is seen to penetrate into their oracks and
fissures, just as iron enters in veins the cracks of the sandstone which
forms the sides or bed of the furnace. The fluidity of granitic rocks
is now almost tmiversally attributed, and with sufficient reason, to
the effect of great heat analogous in its origin to that which supplies
the energies of volcanoes, but probably more general in its distribution
and more uniform in its action.
It is impossible to say how much of the maas of the earth is
composed of granitic rocks, though from the m^^^ter thrown up by
volcanoes we see that mineral compounds in some degree analogous
exist to considerable depths. To what extent it can be demonstrated
that the sedimentary stratified rooks have been derived from disinte-
|pnted granites is yet uncertain, and Sir Charles Lyell has recently
introduced the consideration of the more difficult question, whether
granite has not been produced and may not still be forming by the
remelting of such sedimentary aggregates into the general mass of the
interior of the globa The bare mention of su<£ expanded views
shows the high interest which attaches to the contemplation of
granite. [Geoloot.I
Granite is one of the most beautiful of rocksy and viewed mineralo-
gioally its composition is remarkable. Mica, felspar, and quarts, in
distinct crystalB, or else filling interstices between crystals, constitute
the typical varietieB, and the most abundant masses of granite ; but
it is impossible so to limit the signification of the teruL Hornblende
must be included among the legitimate constituents of granite, if we
are to use the term in a manner at all consistent with geological
experience or the variations of granitic compounds. Other minerals,
especially actinolite, chlorite, talc, compact felspar,. steatite, garnet,
sircon, &c., enter into and sometimes considerably modify the aspect
of granite. The colours vary : the felspar is red, gray, yellow, white,
green ; the quartz is usually clear white or gray; the mica is black,
gray, white, brown, and in various degrees silvery ; the hornblende is
dark green or black. The mica and felspar are mvariably, and often
(especially in cavities) beautifully crystalUsed ; the quarts commonly
fills the interstitial spaces left by these minerals, but small pyramidal
crystals of quartz in great perfection mity be sometimes seen imbedded
in the faces of the prismatic felspar crystals, which are also sometimes
penetrated by the filmy plates of mica.
Except in the veins which ramify into stratified rocks, and there
grow fine-grained and even compact (like the base of some porphyries),
granite, as its name implies, shows the grains of -its component parts :
the size of these varies extremely. The mica in the granite of Rubies-
law, near Aberdeen, forms laminae some inches across ; but in that of
Cornwall, Skiddaw, &c., it exists in small plates; the felspar in
graphic granite is almost one huge crystallised mass ; large detached
crystals in the granites of Shap and Ben Nevis make those rocks
porphyritic, but in some of ihe building granites of Aberdeen all the
ingredients are in small grains.
The proportion of the ingredients in typical granite varies 8][^^y •
the mica is sometimes absent, or replaced by hornblende. The fol-
lowing is a general view of the most remarkable granitic mixtures, to
which some authors apply distinctive names, but we think with little
advantage to geology. Some of tiiese, mineralogically speaking, are
identical with rocks of the trap fiunily [STEmrEl, but certainly occur as
parts of a granitic series, viewed geologically. (M'Culloch, 'On Rocka')
Binary Granite, composed of two ingredients : — as felspar and
mica, quartz and felspar, either equ^ly blended (as in Muncaster
Fell, Cumberland), or in segregated portions (as the graphic
granite) ; quarta and hornblende (M'Culloch) ; felspar and
hornblende.
Granite of three ingredients (the typical varieties) : —
Quartz, felspar, and mica, uniformly blended, or with distinct
additional crystals of felspar, then oJled Porphvritic Granite.
Quartz, felspar, and homblenda (Syenite of authors.)
Quartz, felspar, and mica. (Instead of the mica, chlorite or talc
sometimes appears.)
Granite of four ingredients : —
Quartz, felspar, mica, and hornblende, or actmolite. (Syenite of
some authors.)
Quartz, felspar, mica, and compact felspar, or porcelain clay.
Quartz, felspar, hornblende, and chlorite, or steatite. tSee Svp.l
GRAPE-HYACINTH. [Musoabi.]
GRAPE-VINE. [ViTTS.]
GRAPHIDACEA [Liohekb.]
GRAPHIS. [Lichens.]
GRAPHITE, Plumbago, Blach Lead, This substance ocoun frystal-
lised and massive. Primary form a rhomboid. Occurs in imbedded
hexagonal prisms. Cleavage parallel to the terminal planes of the
prism, very distinct, and the lamine flexible. Fracture granular and
uneven. Hardness 1*0 to 2*0. Colour steel or blackish-gray. Sireak
black, shining. Lustre metallic and glistening. Unctuous to the
touch. Opaque. Specific gravity 208 to 2*45.
Found in Greenland and in the neighbourhood of Philadelphia in
the United States.
The massive varieties occur amorphous, in reniform masses and
irregular nodules. Structure foliated, granular, oompaoi
Found in various parts of the world. That of Borrowdale in
Cumberland is of the best quality for what are called black-lead
pencils ; while the commoner sorts are used for making melting-pots,
for diminishing the friction of machinexy, and for protecting iron from
rusting. That which is imported from the East Lidies is remarkably
soft. Plumbago conducts electricity, is infusible, and very difficult
of combustion.
Professor Vanuxem has analysed several varieties of Graphite.
Na 1 was a pure specimen from Borrowdale, and No. 2 from Bustle-
town, Pennsylvania. ^^ j^ ^^
Carbon 88*37 9W
Silica 5*10 26
Alumina •• . t • 1*00 •—
Water 1-28 0*6
Oxides of Iron and Manganese . . 8*60 1*4
99*80 990
It was at one time supposed that Graphite was a carburet of iron,
but, in the opinion of Berzelius, the experiments of Karsten have
proved that it Is a peculiar fbria of carbon, and that the substances
which it contains are in a state of mixture merely and not of chemical
combination.
According to Dr. Thomson, Graphite is found usually in primary or
transition rocks. At Borrowdale it occurs in nests in a greenstone
rock, which constitutes a bed in clay-slate. In Inverness-shire it
occurs in gneiss; at Arendal in Norway, in quartz-rock; and in the
United States, in felspar and mica-slate, but always in primary rocks.
The material for lead-pencils, when of the fiinest quality, is first cal-
cined and then sawn up into s^ps of the requisite size, and commonly
set in wood (usually cedar) as they appear in the market. It is much used
no w in small cylinders, without wood, for ever-pointed pencil-cases. Gra-
phite that cannot be thus used for pencils is reduced to a powder, and
on being submitted to pressure it is made to adhere into a solid mass,
which is subsequently cut up in the way referred to above. Graphite
is also added to day forlnaking a kind of pottery. It is also exten-
sively employed for diminishing the friction of machinery, also for
the manuiacture of crucibles and furnaces, which withstand a great
heat For this purpose it is mixed with half its weight of clay. It
is also employed asa wash forgiving a gloss to iron-stoves and nulings.
GRAPSID^, OraptoidioM, a tribe of Brachyurous Crustaceans
belonging to the famUy of Catametopee, placed by M. Milne-Edwards
between the Gonoplacians and the family oittxe Oxy8tomes,and approach-
ing in his opinion nearer to the tribe of Gonoplacians than to the Ocypo-
dians. He gives the following as the characters of the Grapsoidians : —
Cmpace in general less r^^arly quadrilateral than in the Gono-
placians and Ocypodians : its lateral borders are nearly always slightly
curved, and its fronto-orbital border frequently does not occupy more
than about two-thirds of its transversal diameter. The body is nearly
always compressed, and the sternal plastron but little or not at all
curved firom before backwards. The front is nearly always strongly
recurved, or rather bent down, and veiy wide, occupying about Uie
half of the anterior border of the carapace, and exceeding on each
side the edge of the lateral borders of the buccal firame. The orbits
are oval-diaped and of moderate size ; and the lateral borders of the
carapace are slightly curved and nearly always trenchantb The ocular
pedicles are large and short; their insertion is below the front, and
the cornea occupies one-half of their length. The internal antermsa
are sometimes vertical and lodged in distinot pits (fossettes), which
are open at the upper surface of the carapace; but in the great
majority of instances these organs are entirely transversal and com-
pletely coveted above by the front; their tenniDal stem is nearly
lOM
GBAPSIDifi.
QRAPSIDifi.
1036
always of the ordinary length, and terminated by elongated and
multiarticulate appendages which are very distinct The external
antennto here fill the gap which exists between the front and the
inferior orbital border, and which forms a communication for the
antennaiy pits with the orbits. Their first joint is nearly always
shorty but raUier large, and nearly entirely covered by the front
The three following joints and the terminal stem are very little
developed. The anterior border of the epistome is always placed on
the same line as the inferior border of the otbit^ with which it is
continuous. The buccal frame is but little or not at all narrowed in
fronts and the terminal stemlet of the external jaw-feet always springs
trom the middle of the anterior border, or from the external angle of
the preceding joint, and is never hidden below it The palp of these
jaw-feet presents nearly the same form as in the crabs ; it is large, and
terminated by a multiarticulate appendage bent back inwards under
the third joint of those members. The sternal plastron is not very
wide backwards, and gives insertion to the intromissive organs. The
disposition of the feet varies ; those of the first pair are in general
shorty and those of the four last pairs are very much compressed ;
these, last are sometimes natatory, a character which is not met with
in any other crustacean of this family. The abdomen is composed of
■even joints, and its second articulation extends nearly always, in both
one and the other sex, as far as the origin of the posterior feet The
thoracic branchis generally amount to seven on ea<ui side. The epimere
of the last thoracic ring is nearly as much developed as that of the
preceding ring, and concurs to form the vault of the flanks ; thus the
superior or epimerean cellule of this penultimate ring does not cover
the cellule wnich ooiresponds to the posterior foot^ as is the case in
the (3ecaroiniansL
The greater numbers of the tribe, as far as the manners of the
crustaceans composing it are known, live on the shore, or on the rocks
which border the coasts; they are very timorous, and run away with
much swiftness.
1£ MUne-Edwards, who gives ihe above definition and account of
the (H«psoidians, divides the tribe into seven genera, namely : —
Saarma (Say). — Carapace quadrilateral, nearly equilateral generally,
and very much elevated in front ; fronto-orbital border occupying its
whole width ; lateral borders straight^ and posterior border very long.
Front nearly always suddenly bent down, and its length very consider-
able, exceeding half of the transvenal diameter of the carapacei
Eyes large and of mode^te length ; orbits inclining, to oval, with
generally at their external /tngle a large gap, which is continued with
a horiaontal gutter situated immediately below the lateral border of
the carapace, a character found in Macrophtludmiiiy but which does
not exist in the majority of the Qrapsoidians ; lower border of the
orbit horizontal and directed forwards ; a very strong tooth is directed
towards the front from its internal part Antennary pits transverselv
oval, and the space which separates them generally very laxge. Basi-
lary joint of the external antennse more or less cordiform, giving
insertion to the succeeding joint in a notch situated in the middle of
its internal bord^; its width is considerable, although the front
exceeds it laterally. Epistome very short and projecting, like all the
surrounding parts ; it is continued with the inferior orbitary border,
and below that border there is a horizontal gutter which terminates
at the angle of the buccal frame ; there are also other furrows under
the pteiygostomian regions, the surface of which is granulous or
reticulated ; it is generally divided into small squares of great regu-
larity, and this character alone would suffice to distinguish the greater
part of the species of Saarma from nearly aU the o&er CcUametopa.
The disposition of the external jaw-feet is also very remarkable ; for
there is always a wide lozenge-uiaped space between them, and their
third joint longer than it is wide, and longer than the second, is
rather oval, and but little or not at all truncated anteriorly. It is also
to be noted that there exists on the surface of this lamellar portion
of the external jaw-feet a projecting line or crest which is carried
obliquely from its external and posterior angle to its interior (anterior f)
and internal angle; this crest is generally furnished with hair, ana
there is a deep furrow near its external border. The sternal plastron
is generally convex from behind forwards, and in the male the anterior
portion of the cavity which receives the abdomen is rounded and sur-
roimded with a smaU border. The anterior feet of the male are
nearly always much longer than those of the second pair, and ter-
minated by a strong and convex hand. Sometimes it is the same with
the female. The feet of the second pair are shorter than those of the
third, and terminate, like all the succeeding feet, by a laige rounded
•tyliform joint which is more or less distmcUy canaliculated, generally
downy, and almost always completely devoid of spines. The second
ring of the abdomen is in general nearly linear, and the last is much
more narrow at its base than the penultimate ring, so that at this
point the abdomen is abruptlv narrowed. In the female the last joint
of the abdomen is verv small, and in general lodged almost entirely
in a notch of the preceding ring.
The spedes of this genus are found upon the coasts of America,
**ica, and Asia.
Say, who first separated these crustaceans under the generic
StMarmOf afterwards reunited them to Orapttu; but M. Milne-
;rds, who has entered into the details of the construction of
na above given, in order to point out its distinctions, is of opinion
that it ought to be distinguished, and to be ^considered as constituting
the type of a rather numerous genus, which the latter divides into
the following sections : —
A. Species whose carapace is at least as wide as it is long, and but
little or not at all narrowed posteriorly.
a. Lateral borders of the carapace armed with two or three teeth
(comprising the external orbital angle). Body very thick,
especially before.
8, taragona {Cancer Mragonut (f), Fabr. ; (7. faseicularia, Herbst ;
Ocypode tetragona, Olivier; Orapnu tetrctgonti, Latreille). Length
28 lines. Locality, Indian Ocean.
a Ow Lateral borders presenting no tooth behind the angle of the
external orbit Body depreued.
8. quadrata {Cctncer qttadrcOni, Fabr.; Ocypode pUeata, Bosc.)
Length, 8 lines. Locality, the neighbourhood of Pondieherry.
B. Species whose carapace is much longer than it is wide, and
strongly narrowed backwards.
8, PieonU {Arata pinima of Piso). Length, 8 lines. Locality, the
Antilles. M. Milne-Edwards says that Latreille has confounded this
species with Orapnu cruerUatut. M. Milne-Edwards is also of opinion
that O, ffueardii (Deamarest) and Cancer JSiapanm (Herbst) belong to
this genus.
CydograptvM (Milne-Edwards). — ^Body much less flattened than in
Qn^^euM and wider, the transversal diameter of the carapace much
exceeding its length. Front inclined, but fkr from being vertical.
Lateral borders of the shell elevated, delicate, and very much curved,
and its lateral walls forming ordinarily a neariy stnught angle with
its upper surface. Eyes nothing remarkable ; orbits directed
forwards and presenting almost always below their external angle a
wide and deep notch, which, as in ^l^rma, is continued backwards
with a transversal gutter hollowed out in the pteiygostomian regions
of the carapace below its lateral border. Antennary pits much less
narrow than in Orapautf and the basilary joint of the external
antennae much less wida External jaw-feet much resembling those
of Orapeue : their third joint shorter than the second, wide as it is
long, enlarged anteriorly and strongly truncated at its anterior border;
a small projecting and piliferous creist runs obliquely from the anterior
and interior angle of this joint to the posterior and external angle of
the preceding joint, so as to form with that of the opposite side a
triangle, the base of which is backwards ; the external appendage of
these jaw-feet nearly reaches the anterior border of the third joint of
their stem, and terminates by a multiarticulate appendage. Feet of
nearly the same form and disposition as in Orapnu, except that the
tarsus ii not so laige, and has no spines.
The species are distributed in the seas of Asia exclusively.
(Milne-Edwards.)
M. Milne-Edwards divides the genus into the following sections:—
A, Species having the lateral border of the carapace entire.
a. A deep gutter springing from the external orbitid ga^ and
directed f orwardsL
C pundatut. Length, 15 lines. Locality the Indian Ocean,
a Ow No well-marked post-orbital gutter.
C inieger {Orapetu integer, Latx^le). Length, 4 lines. Locality
BraoL
B, Species the lateral border 6f whose carapace is dentated.
6. External orbital gap but little marked. Orbits directed forward.
C. quadrident€Uua» Length, 10 lines. Locality, Australia.
h h. External orbital gap very wide. Orbits very oblique.
(7. LatreiUii (Oraptue venoeut, Latreille). Length, 4 lines.
Locality, Mauritius.
Paeudograpsut (Milne-Edwards). — M. Milne-Edwards observes that
one of the characters pointed out with reason by M. Latreille as
distinguishing the natural groups of Orapttu and Plaguiia is the
having the external jaw-feet narrow and notched on their internal
border, so that these* organs, instead of closing the mouth completely,
leave between them a vacant lozenge-shaped space; but he remarks
that this disposition is not met with in all the species which are
usually arranged under the genus Orapnu ; and as these modifications
of the buccal apparatus coincide with other characters, and seem to
indicate a natural division among these ^niTn'^l^^ he has taken it as the
bssis of their classification, and proposes for those walking Qrap-
soidians whose mouth is completely closed by the external jaw-feet
the name of Paeudograpnu, with the following generic character : — -
General form approaching that of Cyclograpnu mors than that of the
other Qrapsoidians, the body b^ng thick, and the carapace, convex
above, being rather regularly rounded on the sides. Basilary joint
of the external antennse nearly square and joined to the ttont, its
external border being in contact with a vertical tooth which elevates
itself on the floor ^lancher) of the orbit, as in MacrophthaJbnv*
and the Ocypodians. Internal border of the second and third joint
of the external jaw-feet straight, and this last joint, remarkable for
being much wider than it Jm long, presents in the middle of its
anterior border a notch whence springs the terminal stemlet (tigelle).
Sternal plastron nearly circular, and slightly curved from before
backwards. Anterior feet of the male veiy laige, and much longer
than any of the succeeding feet, which are rounded and terminated
by a haky tarsus, and completely deprived of spines. Abdomen of
1(M7 ORAFSID.&
Qie mala axtcndiiig quita to the bu« of the potterior feet, ud its
MuoQil joint lineer. The apeciea ue found in tba AaUtic leei.
P. peneiliger (Cuneer Kfonu (t), Fabridus; Graptui pmeiliijitr,
LatreiUe). Tba fi^et u« rounded and fumiabed vith a thiok-eet
(loirn. Length, rutber morn than an inch. Locnlity, uu of Asia.
I'lnidafrapiut fmcilliftr.
OrapnH (Lamarck, in part).— M. Uilne-Edwardi rataina In thia
gsDuB tlioH apeciea which an, for the moat put, remarkable for tha
extreme Satneaa of the bodj, and preaent the futtowiog chanctan : —
Upper lurfiLaa of the carapaoe always nearly horiiontal and nearly
Bquue ; iCa anterior border rarely occupies itji whole width, but the
difTerenoe i« not conaidarable, and in general its posterior ptit is not
narrowed — the lateral borders are delicate, and ordinoiilT a little
curved Stomachal region rery large, and branchial regiona vary
extended, and nearly alwuya marked with salient oblique Unas. Front
very wide, and inclined or even completely bant down ; the upper
part, in genenil, divided into four lobes, which often become very
projwting. Orbita dacp, and their inferior border at leaat as aalient
as tha superior border, but the external extremity doea not open into
a bortEontal gutter situated under the lateral border of the carapaoe,
oa in Sennna, and presenta one or two small Dotcbes at moat; the
tooth which elevates itself from their tower wall, beneath the articu-
lation of tha eye, is in generid very a^ng. Disposition of the
antenoEB nearly (he same sa in tbe preceding genua, except that (ha
antennary pits are in general less wide, and separated by a narrow
space between them. External jaw-feet itrongly notched within, so
as to leave between tbem a lai^ vaeant luxanga-shaped apace ; their
third joint is trapaxoidal, and
Ulteriorly
■ly of the
length of the second joint, and
carries the succeeding joint at
iU external angle, but it ia
sometimes rery abort, iLrongly
dilated on the eitemal aide,
and gires insertion to the
fourth joint towards the middle
of its anterior border. PWry-
goitomian regions smooth, or
very (lightly graniiloue, and
never preeentiug the disposition
aoremarkableinScaamia, Feet
of the fint pair short, the arm
enlarged and epiny within,
hands short but ratiier stout
in the maleo. The succeeding
feetremarksbtyflattened; their
third joint entirety lamellar
below m its external moiety,
ita superior border delicate and
elevated, and the tarsus larg«
and very spiny. Second pair of
feet much shorter thaji the
third, which, in their turn, ore in general much shorter than the
penultimate feet. Abdomen of tha male triangular ; that of the female
very wide, ita Uat joint large, and not inclosed in a notch (^ the
preceding joint, aa in Saama.
Graptut, sa above modified, ia spread over nearly all porta of the
world. The known siwcics gcueiolly iahablt rocky coasts, and nin
A. Species having tha third joint of the axtenud jaw-feet longer
than it is wid^ and without any remaikohle dilaUtion towaida
the external angle.
0. pidut (Pagitnu mooiZaltu, Cateaby ; Cangrqo de Arrecifa, Parra ;
Oanetr lOMicriitatiu, Herbst ; Caneer jrajnM, Fabrieius ; Orap4ttt
pietui, Latreille). Length, latber more than 3 inches. Colour nd,
with irregular yeUow stuna. Locality, the Antilles.
Cateaby gives the foUowiog account of the habits of thia spedea
under the name of Pagitnu maealafua, the Rad-Hottled Crab :—
" These crsbs inhabit the rocka banging over the sea ; they are the
nimblest of sit other crsbs; they run with surprising agility along
the upright side of s rock, and even under rocks that huig horizon-
tolly over the sea; this they are often neoesaitBtod to do for escaping
the assaults of rapacious birds which pursue them. These cr«ba, so
far OS I could observe, never go to land, but frequent mostly thoae
parte of tha promontories and islande of rocka tu and near the sea,
where, by tbe continual and violent agitation of the wavea against
the rocks, they are always wet, ooDtinually receiving the spray of tha
sea, wbich often washes them into itj but they instantly return to
the rock aoain, not being able to live under water, and yet requiring
more of that element than any of the onutooeoua kinds that are
not fish."
H. Milne'EVlwarda remarks that Muaeia. Quoy and Qaimard brought
from the Sandwich Islands a Ompnu which bean a strong analogy
to Onmut picfua, but which, it appean to him, ought to be tuih
ticguiahed from it, on oooount of the grait number of litUe conical
haiiB disposed in Email transversal ranka on tike branchial and
stomaclial regions, the greater extent of the front, and soma other
a bod aCAte of preservation, and as OraptuM picftu preaents cousidar-
ahle indiridual differenoea, ha cannot pronounce on the distinction
decidedly, but notes the fact on accoimt of ita interest in rtgord of
aoological geography. He observes that in the collection of the
Paris Husaum ha hsa designated this cruatscean under the name of
Oraptui rudii, and that it is probably the species figured by Messrs.
Quoy and Qaimard undar the name of the Painted Qrapsus. (' Voyage
de M. Freycinat,' pt. 76, flg. 2.)
B. Third joint of the external jsw-feet oi wide aa it ia long, and
dilated outwards towards the anterior angle.
0. rariw (Concre MadrS (!), Rondelet; Cancer mamonUw, Fabri-
oiua; Orapnt varivt, Latreille). Length about IS lines. Colour
vicbkoeoua-red, variegated with small irregular yellowish stains.
Locality, the rocky parta of the coosta of Bretogne, Italy, ka. (vary
f/aulilagrapiut (M. Edwards). — Differing but little from Graptiu.
Carapace, izisteod of being wider than it is long and nearly fiat, oa in
Orapnu, ia longer than it ia wide, and convex shove. Kegiona not
distjnct Front advanced, lamellar, and simply inclined. Lateral
borders curved and long. Internal border of the secoad joint of the
jaw-feet nearly strMght, and the third joint even longer than in
Oraptm varitu, but nearly of the same form. Faet much shorter
than in Orapnu. The intromiasive organs of the male traverse a
simple notch of the border of tha atemol plastron. For the rest
resembling the Qrapti of th«
second division.
The si
with far st sea, often floating
on /Whs nofun^ or on loige
marine animals.
JV. fnfnifw {CanctUiu mari-
RUf quadiaiut, Sloane ; Turtle-
Crab, Browne; Can^xminutui,
FsbciduB ; Oraptui minttdu,
Latreille ; Orapm cinertat.
Say ; Orapse Unie, I*marck —
(M. du Uua.). Length from i
to 8 lines, varying much in
colour. M. Milne-Edworda saya
that he sees no sufficient reason
for diistingnishing this species
from (Trapwi tMndiaum,
Pllx^iuia <L«treille). — Be
■emblingCTrapauigeneislly, bat
distingmabed at onoe by a sin*
gular disposition of the internal
antemus not met with in any
other brochyurous decapod,
according to H.Uilns-Edwarda.
These organs, instead of being bent back under the front, are
each lodnd in a deep notch in this part, so ss always to be
unoovered superiorty. Curspace broad and flattened, its anterior
border oocup^^ng only one-half of its width, which is moat extended
towards the level of the last pair of feet but me. Portion of tha
front between the antennary pits trianifiiUr and curved downwards.
EysS short and large; orbita dirootud foiwnrds aad upWHrds, and
OHAVEL.
lino
■cpantod from th« uileiuiar; pita. InUrual utiteaiue vertical;
flzteniftl uitQiuiB occupjiiig tli« inteniftl an^s of the orbit, and
nnrl; of the a*ms form u in Oraptat. Antetior border of the buccal
fiuDO very projecting, and coDtjnuouB with the lower orbital border.
Ibn eztenul Jaw-feet cloee the month oompletely, and are not
tMtidied within aa in Om^tta ; the; ore ia form general!; vei^ nearly
the nme u in the CnAia and PaTtumu; the third joint u much
■hort«r than the preceding one, nearly square, and notched at ite
anterior and intenial angle for Uie instntiou of the succeeding joint.
Stacnmn vaiy wide and deepl; notched backwards for the reot^ion
of the abdomen. Anterior feet genenlly moderate in the male and
■null in the female ; cUwa ordinaril; with a apoon-ehaped termi-
natdon ; enoceeding feet diapoied aa in Qrapmi ; eometimeB the thbd,
Bometimee the fourth pair loDgest ; they are in general ciliated on the
■uparior border, utd the taniu ia always armed with atrong epinea.
Abdomen and branohiv u In Oroftyu.
Plagiuia belonga mors particularly to the Indian Ocean, and a
fcnmd &om the Cape of Good Hope to ChilL (U. Edwards.)
A . Speciea haTiug the superior border of the last eight feet armed
with teeth nearly throughout its length.
P. davitaana {Canetr pZoniaimui, Herbst). Length rather mora
than an inch : antepenaltimata ring of the abdomen aoldered to the
pmceding ring in both wxei. li i* found in AoatraUa, and Taniooro,
tlagnla tlartmmta,
S. Spedel whoH last four pair of feet ara not armed abore with
more than a aingla tooth placed near the aitramtty of the upper
border of their third Joint.
P. d^reua {Caneer depranu, RerbA ; Orapna dtprtutu, lAiimUt ;
P. imtaaculata, I^marck ; P. deprata, Latreille). It is a native of
the Indian Ocean, aeas of China, Kew Quinsa, fto.
M. Uilne-Edwwds obeerres that the ipedflc name of thla Plagiuia
is badl; chuaan, inasmuch as it is lea flrtteoed than the greater part
of the ipecieB. He is also of opinion that P. dnniM of Say (' Acsd.
Fhilad., torn. L p. IIHI} appear* to be nearer to P. iqaamoia than the
■pedes here mentioned, but ha thinln that it ought probably to be
distingnlshed from it.
Vantna (M. Edwarda). — Carapace very ' much depressed and
nearly quadnlataral, but the lateral borders arched. Front wide,
■b-aight, and trenchant. Orbita approaching to oval ; a Bssura on
their superior border, their external angle very salient, and hardly
any inferior border. Internal antemue bent back a little obliquely
outwards, and their pita completely separated from the orbita by the
baailaly joint of the external antennie, which joina the ftont, and
presents nothing remaricable. Epiatometai^er than it is in the greater
part ,oF the Ch«psoidians, and external jaw-feet nearly joinmg it;
their internal border is nearly straight, and the third joint, very
much dilated externally, carries the following joint towards tlie
middle of its anterior border, which ia very large and notched-
Anterior feet large ; and the succeeding feet, instead of temuoatiug
by a huge and cylindrical or styliform tarsus, as in the other
bapsoidians, with their last Joint wide, flattened, ciliated on the
edg^ and lanoeolate. Abdomen of the male with seveo distinct
joiata.
V. liUerala (Omeer liOtnUvt, FabHcius; GroptM liUeraltu, Boio.).
LooaLty, Indian Ooean.
ORAPsna raBAFsiDA.]
aSAPTO'LEPIS, a genua of Fosul Gsnaid Fishe^ from the
Carboniferous syatsm of Carluke. (Agaaaiz.)
ORAPTO'LITHUS (Uterally ' writton*tone '), a name nsBd_ by
Unnaaus chiefly to include appearancea in atones reaembling drawinga
—as of mapa, ruins, vegetable fbrma, Ac. Thus the Florentine, or
Bnin Haiblev the dendritical lamifleations on many limeatonea, and Uia
movlika fotuu In s^tee, fto. wan ranked m Oraptolite^
Among the species included by Linnieus is one reaembliug Alyx,
from the Transition Strata of Gothland.
QRAS8H0PPER [GuTLLTDJt]
QRAS8H0PFER-W ARBITER. [SALKUBtA.]
GRA83-M0TH3. [CRAMBUg.]
OKATELUTIA, a genus of Conohiferoua MMutea, eetAblished bj
U. Charles Deemoulins, for a fossil bivalve which had been oonfonnded
by H. do Basterot with the genus Donax, under the name of Donax
irr^nlaru. But one spedes, QraU^tpia donacyfanaU, was known
(ftom Bordeaux, Miooene Formation of Lyell), till Mr, Lea diaooverBd
a second in the Claibome Tertiary (Eocene of Lyell), which ha baa
named Qr^dtpia MmUmtii, after the founder of Uie ganus. Diametar
1 inch, length X'i, breadUi 1*0. It has the following characters: —
Animal unknown. Shell snbtrigonal, equivalve, regular, nearly
equilateral, a litUe attenuated at its posterior part, and presenting at
the poatero-inferioT border a slight ainuDsity. Umbones veiy small,
projecting but littlc^land hardly inclined forwards. Hinga consisting
of three cardinal tUvergent t«etii in each valve, and of from three to
six cardini-eeiial teeth converging towards their summits, lamellar,
with their edges finely dsntUated, and situated a Uttle behind the
summit, under the ligament; a ungle lateral anterior tooth under
the lunula in the Ic^ valve, corresponding with a pit almilarlj
aitoatad in the right valve ; external ligament long, convex, over-
passing the aerial teeth. Muscular impressions nearly equal, oval,
united by a pallial impression largely and very deeply excavatad
backwards.
The genua ma named by IL C. Deamoulins after Dr. Orateloap.
UouUtaii. (Lta.)
QRAUWACEE (or Oraywacke, at it Is often written in English
works on gaolcgy), a Oarman ham applied to some of the ancient
stratified rooks, which has bean with edme unwillingncB admitted by
E^lish geologists, either in the original senee, rignifying a particular
kind of rook, or aa typifying a gnup or series of stiata in which eucb
rocks form a conspicuous portion.
, In the former senaa Orauwacke Roi^ may be oonaidsred a* having
almost the same relation to clay-slatea that argillaoeona sandatonea
and con^omerataa bear to eommon days ; for argillaceous elate, by
including rolled fragment* or minute gr^s of quarti-eand, with or
without mica, beoomes the gnnwacke and grauw&eke slate of Werner
and his followen. When the sand or gravel predominates so «s nearly
to exclude the argillaceous eament, the distinction betweco grauwaoka
end sandstone is almost imaginary, just as, on the other hand, indu-
rated shale and aoft clay-elate are not always certainly dlstiuguiahable.
In the pass of Lennie, above Callender, in the Ldimmermuir Hills, fn
the primary eeriea of rooks near Cavan in Ireland, and in Snowdon,
the atudent may study eiample* of the genuine granwaeke of tha
German writers ; while flnt^giained sandy rocks, eorraaponding to Hia
titie of gnuwacke alata, are common in Westmoreland, Cumberiand,
Wales, the Isle of Man, the Lammermuir Hills, Ac
Tiewed g^logioally, the Gnuwacke Rocks lie in the midst of th«
primsjy argillacaous stntta, and constitute a part of the 'transition
seriee' of the oontinental seolcnista. The 'granwaeke group' of
Sir Henry De la Beche includes ^e Silurian Hooks of Sir Roderick
Unrohison, and a portion of the older strata designated as Cambrian
Bocks by Professor Sadgwiok. [Oioloot.] It is uncertain whether
the teem 'grauwaoka' wUl in futura be used merely to characterise
racks of a certain kind lying in the Cambrian or other eeriea of argil-
laoeous schist^ or be allowed collectively to represent a geological
group of strata.
Ur. Con^bean ('Bapotts of the British Anodation') ia deairoua
of substituting for this somewhat rude term the more learned name of
olaamoachist (jcAiEa/ia, a fregmsnt). SL Brongniart Includes many
varieties of grauwacke sad grauwaoka alate under the term peammitfl
(^fllfmoi, aand). [0«olo(jt; Rocks; SrRiTiriciTTOH.]
ORATEL The anall ftagmenta of rooks which have been drifted
by any force* of water over the auifacs of the earth ara usually
designated by tliis general term, which is happily free fh>m any
hypothetical meaning. Hanv parts of the surface oF the eartii are M
covered. Fiom the geographical phenomena, mode of accumulation^
and othac dronmstancea, the mods of action erf the water may be often
oompktelj detennined. It i* certain that much of the undulated
IIOI QRAYHOTJND.
■UT&ce of tha liod lus been tiSTened b; powerful ourrenti of water
In direotioiui diSbrent from those of the fmh-vater itnMimi now ruQ'
"'"g ; thftt in other cues the >bb his Bcted on the land at greater heighta
and under different cironnutancea from what we now behold ; and aa
a great part of the evidence far (Lis ia to be aolleoted from the etudy
of graTel depoeits, we see how important la a right knowledge of the
&ota conoamiiig thew in repreiaing vain apeoulation and direotlDg
■ound inferancai. Whether the grarel obeerred at anj spot wu Iraoi-
ported along the Datunl drainage hollowi of the lurfioe m»j be often
certainl; known by inapeotion of the nature of tlie fngmenta and
the examination of the phyiical geograpln' of the oountry in wbioh
they occur. Whether Uie watan deaoending theae valleya performed
GREENSAND. iiM
qualities which lome, without anj good reason, have denied to thil
Dobte race. [Cahib,]
TheQrayhouad aeema to have been a distinct variety of the Cog from
a very earl; period in the biitUiry of this apeeiea. It eiiata at present
in Egypt, and eeema to be represented in the old Egyptian pamtinge.
It ia probable also that this was the farm of dog witJi whish the
aadent Hebrews were beat acquainted. We annex a repieoenlation
of this dog ttom a drawing by Colonel Smith.
It will often be thus found that the gravel was not transported
down the existing drainage hDUows,but aorosa hills and valleys, lakes,
action of nature can occasion such effects ; it is therefore a question of
great importance whether in ancient timea the draumstaacca of phy-
aical geographv were so diffarent aa to allow of the effeota being per-
formed by ordmaiy action, or whether an extraordinary aotion must
be appealed to. The latter opinion has been held by diluviaUits,
reasoning on the distribatien of gravel and large bot^dera of rock
diapersed from the Alps and the Cumbrian Hountaini ; but varicnu
attempts have been made to explain the phenomena by supposed
ohangea of physical geography, the aid of icebergs, &,o. For deter-
mining this and such questions it should be examined — whether the
gravel, &c, contains remains of organic beings ; whether these are of
land quadrupeds, land shells, land plants, or marine shells, bones of
Vrhales, dolphins, J^c, in oi:der to ^ow whether the currenta of water
were derivM from surface drainage or the movement of tha sea. It
ia important to find out whetiier the gnvet was deposited in still or
agitated, in deep or ahaUow water, in lakes, flolKl•ohanneL^ or the
sea: whether it DOW reats in included hoUowa, or in iniular hills; —
whether marine depeaita of gravel alternate with others attributed to
fresh-water curranta ; — wheUier gravel of local origin lie* over or under
other gravel brought from a diatance.
ORAYHOUND, a variety of Dog remarkable for the kaennen of
its aigbt, the symmetrical strength and beauty of its form, and its
Ct swiftness in the chase. There are many varieties of the Qray-
id, from the Irish Orajhound and Highland breed (the latter
made familiar to us by the pen of Sir Walter Soott and the pencil of
Sdwin Landsecr), to the smootlied-haired southem breed, and that
pretty pet, the Italian Qrayhound.
In auoieut times the Qrayhound was one of the three jujttijIj whose
presence marked the possessor to be a nobleman or gentleman ; and
we find it recorded as being accepted by kinga in payment, sa in tie
esse of the fins paid to King John, consisting of "£00 marka, 10
horses, and ten leashes of Qrayhounds."
Formerly this hound was principally employed in chasing tha stag.
Thus Queen Elizabeth was gratified one day, after dirmer, by seeing
from a turret sixteen deer polled down by Giayhounda ^lon Uie lawn
at Cowdrey Park in Suasex ; and the old ballads, ' Chevy Chase '
among others, speak of their being used for the same sport ia earlier
yoiud If ke a oille,
TsTllHllTluaralM;
Hyded If Ite b brems,
And eb jned Ijke a beine,"
In modem time^ many distinguished sportsmen (the earl of Orford
in particular, who is said to have died on the field where his favourite
biteh Old Czarina won a great match) have paid much attention to
the breed, and hare been rewarded by some of the best dogs ever
seen. Uajor Ost)alde8ton, Major Topl^, and Colonel Thornton were
among those who were celebrated for the pure blood and admirable
powers of their Qrayhounds. The names of Czarina, Jupiter, Claret,
Snowball, the Miller, Schoolboy, and Major, together wiUi many
others of note, are still &miliar to those who attend the great oonising
meetings. We refer the reader who is interested to ' The Bportaman'a
Cabinet,' 'Bural Sports,' 'The Courser'a Manual,' 'The Sporting
MaRazina,' and similar works, for further infonnation.
The Qrayhound is supposed to have reached hia full growth when
two years old, and to be on the decline from hii fifth or uxth year,
when he is apt to begin to ' run cunnmg' Dame Juliana Bemers gives
a greater latitude, making nine yean the point at which he beoomee
too old for service :—
" And when he comts to tlist yere.
For tbe best •rhelp enr Utch hid.
Arabian Gra^hoDud.
aRAT-LAG. pncKi]
QRATLINQ, a Sab of the Salmon tribe, inhabiting many of the
streams of England, in some of which it is abund^t. It is also
found in Sweden, Norway, and Lapland. [S&LMONtDA]
QRA7ST0ME, a term proposed by Mr, Poulett Sorope to include
certain volcanie rocks composed of felspar, augite, or hornblende,
and iron; the felspar being sometimea replaced by leuclte, or
melilite.
QBATWACKK [aaiDWiOKK.]
GREBE. [CoLiMBiDi]
OREEtiBONE, two of the common fish of our ehores (the Gar-
Fish {Bdone vvigarU), and the Viviparoul Blenny (Zvtrct* vivipamf},
[Belobi ; Zo*.BCEg.]
QREEN-PINCH, [CooooTEHADSTEa.]
GREEtf-IROX-EABTH, also cilled Hypochlorite, ia a Mineral
ocauring in reniform, botryoidal, aud globular maasea. Its colour is
green, passing into black and yellow. Lustre resinous and dulL
Brittle. Found at Schneeberg in Saxony. Tha fallowing is its
aaalyaisby Sehiiler: —
Silica . . ...... 60-21
Oxide of Bismntk 1S*08
Alumina ■•>■•■■« 14-S5
Oxide of Iron lOEi
Phosphorio Aoid with traces of Uanganesa 963
QREENOCEITE, a Hlueral, consisting of Siilphuret of Cadmium.
It occurs crystallised in S-sided prisms, with 6-sided pyramids.
Hardness 275. Lustra vitreous, sometimes almost adamantine.
Translucent to transparent, SpeciSo gravity i-H% Found at Bishop-
town, Renfrewshire, and on the Cochno-Bum, on the north aide of
the Cly^ The following is its analysis by ConnsU : —
Sulphur 23-66
Cadmium , . • . ■
77-30
-»»-86
GREEKOVITE, a Mineral, occurring in email amorphous orysW-
line masses. Primary form a doubly oblique prism. Colour deep
rose-red. Hardness greater than that of fluor-spar ; does not scrntoh
glass. Some of the faoes are brilliant, others often doll and tarnished,
SpeoiGa gravity 3-li. It is found at Bt-Haroel in PUdmont
Analy^, by M. Delesae :—
Silici
Oxide of Titanium .
Protoxide of Hanganeae
42-
— -100-60
1108
GREENSHANK.
GROSSULARIACE^.
llOk
QREENSHANK, the oommon name for a well-known Wading
Bird, referred by some oniiiholQgiste to the Qodwite ; by others to
the Snipes. [SGOLOPAcmA]
GREENSTONK Rooks in which felspar is combined with horn-
blende, or less commonly angite, the miicture being evident and the
ingredients distinct, are usually called Greenstone. In such rocks
the felspar is usually white or greenish, and less completely crystal-
lised than in sienite ; grains of pyrites frequently occur ; the masses
have a rude prismatic figure (CotygiUs, Isle of Airan) ; and by decay
show a globular interior structure as in basalt [BAaA.LT.] If augito
and hornblende be in effect the same mineral generated under
different circumstances, and hypersthene be analogous, if not identical,
it is perhaps probable that geologists may hereafter be disposed to
adopt a suggestion of Dr. M'Culloch, and divide sienites, greenstones,
and basalts according to the substance united with felspar, which is
present in alL We shall then have homblendic sienite, greenstone
and basalt^ augitic sienite, greenstone and basalt^ hypersthenic
sienite, greenstone and basalt, the distinctions between sienite, green-
stone, and basalt being chiefly founded on the aggregation of the rock
and the character of the felspar. The geological histoiy of green-
stone is very similar to that of basalt^ and in the same tract of
country one quarry may give fine-grained basalt and another distinctly
marked greenstone. [Rocks; Basai/t; Auoitb; HoBNBLEirDE; Trap.]
GRES. This French equivalent of the English word gtit, or
sandstone, includes several rocks, which may be thus noticed : —
Gr^ de Fontainebleau .
Grte de Yienne 1
Gr^ des Carpathes j
Gr^ de Luxembourg .
Gr^ bigarr^
Gr^i Yosgien
Grte rouge
(Grte rouge)
Grte houillier .
A tertiary rock.
Equivalent of the greensands.
Between the lias and the variegated
marls.
Equivalent of the bunter sandstein
(German,) and new red-sand-
stone (English).
A local red grit rook on the
flanks of the Yosges Moun-
tains.
The sandstone below the mag-
nesian limestone (termed rother
sandstein in some parts of
Germany, also called rothe todte
liegende).
Grits of the coal formation.
GRENGESITE, a Mineral, conusting of hvdrous silicate of iron.
GREYILLEA, a genus of Proteaceous Plants named by Robert
Brown in honour of Dr. GhrevUle of Edinbuigh.
GRE'WIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
TUiaeecB, so-named in honour of Dr. Grew, celebrated for his work
on the anatomy of vegetables. Though the family takes its name
from the European genus TUiei, its species are distributed chiefly
through tropical countries. Cfrewia now consists of upwards of 50
species of moderately-sized trees or shrubs, wluch have leaves
. resembling those of ihe elm, yellow or white flowers, and many of
them pleasant-tasted subacid fruit The calyx consists of 5 coriaceous
sepals, which are coloured internally. Petals 5, each provided with
a gland or scale at the base, inserted with the numerous stamens
into the elevated receptacle ; germ superior, generally 2-celled; style
single ; stigma 4-lobed; drupe with from one to four 1- or 2'eeeded
small nuts. The species.of Orewiek are found in the tropical islands
and the hot parts of the Old World, extending west to the west coast
of Africa, and south to the Gape of Gkiod Hope. In India they are
common in every part> both m jungly forests and the diy open
plains ; some of the same species extend from the southern to the
most northern parts ; a few even ascend the Himalayas to moderate
elevations. Species are also found in Arabia and Egypt
The species of TUiaceee are noted for their mucilagmous properties^
as weU as for the remarkable tenacity of the inner fibre of their
bark, as exemplified in the Tilia, or common European lime-tree :
that of Chrewia oppontifoUa is employed for making ropes with in
the Himal^as; and O. e/(M<tca, figured by Dr. Rovle in 'Illustra-
tions of mmalayan Botany,' t 22, and called ^Dhamnoo by the
natives, is valued for the strength and elasticity of its wood. Cattle
are fed on the leaves of some species, as O. didprna, at moderate
elevations in the Himalayas. The pleasant-tasted subacid fruit of
several species is eaten by the natives of India, but principally used
for makmg sherbet Ortewia anatiea^ or phattOf is that principally
emjpleyed and cultivated in their gardens.
GRlASy a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order MyrtacecB,
It has the tube of the calyx adhering to the ovarium ; the limb
small, 4-cleft^ obtuse ; the petals 4, coriaceous ; the stamens numerous,
inserted in a square disc ; the filaments joined into 5 series at the
base ; the inner ones very short ; the anthers kidney-shaped, small ;
the style wanting; the stigma cruciate, hidden in the incurved
stamens ; the fruit ovate, 8-f urrowed, cro?nied by the calyx. There
is but one species, 0. caul^flara, the Anchovy Pear. It is a tall little-
branched tiee with very long oblong leaves, and large white flowers
seated on short many-flowered peduncles. It is a native of subalpine
districts of Jamaica m boggy places. The fruit is an ovate berry the
size of an alligator^s egg, and of a brownish russet colour, and is
pickled and eaten in zSb same way as the mango. It is readily
gropagated by seeds, and the young plants must be kept in a moist
eat It grows best in a loamy soil, and may also be propagated hj
lane cuttings placed under a hand-glass in heat
y)on, JHehlamydeouB Planti.)
GRIFFON. [YuMUBiD-s.]
GRILSE. [SALMOKIDiB.]
GRIMOTHEA. [Qalatbktdm.]
GRI'SLEA, a genus of tropiou Plants belonging to the natural
order Lythriieeciy or Sdlieariacea, The genus is characterised by
having a tubular calyx, which is from 4- to 6-toothed; the petali^
4 to 6 in number, are inserted between the divisions of the calyx ;
the stamens, twice as many, arise from the bottom of the calyx,
and have their long filaments extending with the style beyond its
tube ; the capsule is superior, 2-oelled, many-seeded, and covered
Ir^ the persistent calyx. The plants of this genus consist of shrubs,
with opposite, very entire leaves, dotted on the under surface with
dark-coloured glands. The peduncles are axillary and many-fiowered;
the fiowers reddish-coloured. The species are not more than three
in number, of which one, O. §ecwitda, is found in the warmer parts of
South America, and the others in India. Q. tomentota, the best
known and most useful spedes, ia found in the islsnds of the Indian
Ocean, in China, and in every part of the continent of India, espe-
cially in the jungly tracts at the foot of its several ranges of
mountains. In sucn situations its bright red calyx, retaimng its
colour till the seeds are ripe, gives the whole plant a very showv
appearance, and points it out to the collectors of its flowers, which
form an article of commerce. These are much employed by the
natives of India for dyeing a red colour, and having some degree of
astringency, are also employed in Indian medicine. The plant is
known by the names of Dharee, Dhaee^ kc., and the flowers by tiiat
of DhaeephooL
GRISON. [GuLO.]
GRISTLE. [Cabtilaob.]
GRIT. Hard sandstones are called (Mts in the north of England,
and indeed many soft sandstones are so termed. In paracular
districts some distinctive terms are applied, as millstone-grit, red-
grit, white-grit^ grindstone-grit^ kc Almost universally in the north
of England the term 'freestone' belongs to such gritstones ss will
work easily and to a good face; 'calliard' stones are intractable,
close-grained, almost flinty grits ; in Aldstone Moor, Cumberland, the
term 'hazel' is given to some hard. grits; at Kewcastle the word
'post' signifles a 'bed,' and is generally associated with gritstone
rocks.
In geology the most remarkable rocks to which the word grit is
applied, are— the calcareous grit (in which however there is often
little of calcareous matter), a part of the middle oolite formation ;
the millstone grit> which contains beds of quarts pebbles, and is
altogether a coarse irregularly laminated rock.
GROFYRITE, a Mineral consisting of hydrous silicate of alumina
allied to Halloysiteu [Hallotutb.1
GROMWELL. [LrrR0BPERin7K.|
GROSBEAK. [Cocoothbaubtbs.'j^
GROSSULARIACE^, Ourrant-WorU, a natural older of Exo-
genous Plants, consisting of 2 genera and 95 species. The genera
consist of shrubs, either unarmed or spinv. The leaves alternate,
lobed, with a planted vernation, often wiw a membranous edge to
the base of the petioles. Flowers in axillary racemes, with bracts at
their base, rarely unisexual by abortion; the calyx superior, 4- or
Mibei Groianlaria,
1, a flower magnified ; 2, the ovarj and styles, trom wbieh the calyx, petals,
and stamens have been cut off; 3, a calyx laid open, to show the petals and the
insertion of tho stamens; 4, a transrerse section of a tnit exhibiting the
parietal plaoenUtlon ; 5, a longitudinal aecUon of a seed, with the minute
embryo at the end of the albumen.
5-parted, regular, coloured, imbricated, or somewhat valvate in
SBstivation; petals 5, minute, inserted in tiie throat of tiheodyx;
stamens 5, inserted alternately with the petals, very short ; ovary
l-celled^with 2 opposite parietal plaoentsB; ovules numerous^ on short
1105
GllOSSULARlTE.
GRUID^.
llOfl
stalks, anatropal, style 2- 8- or 4-oIeft. Berry crowned with the
remains of the flower, l-ce11ed, the oeJl filled with pulp ; aeeds nume*
rous, suspended among the pulp by long filiform cords; testa
externally gelatinous, adhering firmly to the albumen, which is homy;
embryo minute, with the radicle next the hilum.
Nothwithstanding the great dissimilarity in the appearance of these
plants snd Indisa Figs, the two orders were formerly confounded,
and are still accounted by many writers conterminous, chiefly on
account of their both having inferior pulpy fruit and parietal placentae.
They are natives of the mountains, hUls, and woods and thickets of the
temperate parts of Europe, Asia, and America, but unknown in Africa.
In North America they are particularly abundant^ and on the moun-
tains of Northern India they oontribnte to give a European character
to that jpemarkable region. In the tropics of Asia and the South Sea
Islands they occur in the form of Polyotma^ a genus which derives its
name from the excessiye frsgranoe of its flowers.
To this order belongs the genus J2t5et, of which the Gooseberry
and Currant are different speeies. The Black Currant is tonic and
stimulant, and has fragrant glands upon its leaves and flowers. [Ribbs.]
GROSSULARITE. [Garnet.]
GROUND-HOG. [Aard-Vabk.]
GROUND-IVY. [NxPBTA.]
GROUNDLING. fCoBiTia]
GROUNDSEL. This commonest of annual weeds is the plant
called Seneeio wlgarit by botanists, which was originally a native of
Europe and the north of Asia, but which has followed the stens.of
man m his progress of colonisation till it has established itself in
almost every place where there is a European settlement. It forms
one species in the lax^gest genus of plants yet known, no fewer than
five hundred and ninety-five others being distinguished by M. De
Candolle in his 'Prodromus.' Although in the eyes of man a worth-
less weed, Groundsel contributes largely to the support of small birds,
which feed upon its fruit, or seeds as they are commonly but
incorrectly called. [Sbnboio.I
GROUSE. [Tbtraokid^ ; Black-Cock.]
GROUSE, RUFFED. [Bonasia.]
GRUB, a name applied to the chrysalis or pupa state of insects;
it is also sometimes applied to the larva state. [Pupa ; Iitsbota.]
GRUID^, a familv of Birds, including those known by the name
of Cranes, and closely allied to the ArdadcB, a family embracing the
Spoon-Bllls, Herons, Bitterns, and Storks.
Willughby thus generally defines his section of Cloven-Footed
Piscivorous Water-Fowl : — " These have very long necks ; their bills
also are long, strong, ending in a sharp point to s&ike fish, and fetch
them from under stones or brinks : long legs to wade in rivers and
pools of water : very long toes, especially the hind toe, to stand more
firmly in rivers ; lai^ crooked talons, and the middle serrate on the
inside, to hold eels and other slippery fishes the faster, or because they
sit on trees. Lean and carrion bodies, because of their igreat fear and
watchfulness." He makes the section to consist of the Herons,
Bitterns, &c.. Storks, '*the IhU of Bellonius" (Belon), and the
Spoon-Bill&
Ray places at the head of the Avet Aquatica, the " JRUtipede$
(Cloven-Footed), ** quie circa aquas versantur, iis tamen non innatant
(which haunt the waters, but do not swim in them). The first section
of these, consisting of the "Maximeo, singulares et sui generis," con-
tains the Cranes {Ortu, including the 0, Indica and 0. BcUearica, the
JabiruBf the (^ortamo, and the Af%himo^, Then come the "Aves
aquaticao, fisaipedes, piscivono, ranivone, et serpentivone," the Storks
and the Ihu nigra. Next to these are arranged the Ardearum genus
(Herons and Bitterns), and then the Ardea BxoticcB, including the
Soco, &a, and the Spoon-Bills.
The Stork, the Heron, the Spoon-Bill, kc, with a heterogeneous
crowd of other birds, are brought under Brisson's 17th order.
The genus Ardea, in the 12th edition of the 'Systems Natures,'
embraces the Herons, the Bitterns, and the Cranes (including the
Balearic Crane and the Demoiselle, AtUhropoidei) ; the Jabiru, Boat-
Bill, and Spoon-Bill are generically diBting\iished imder the names of
MyeteriOf CancromOf and PUxtaUa, They form part of Linnd's 4th
order, GraUcB,
Dr. Latham's 7th order, Qralla, embraces the Ardeida and Oruida
among the rest of the Wading Birds.
The same families are scattered through M. Lacdp^de's Oiseaux de
Rivage (QraUatora),
K. Dumdril's 5th order of birds, ^chassiers (Waders), contains his
16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th families. The Oyster-Catcher is included
in the 16th (PresHrottret, or Ramphost^es) ; the Open-Beak, Beo-
Ouvert {AnoMtamnt of lUiger), the Heron, the Stork, the Crane, the
Jabim, and IbitJTanUdiu), form the 17th fieunily, the CiUtirottres, or
Ramphoeopes. Tne Spoon-BiU and Boat-Bill belong to his 18th family,
the Laiiroitrei, or RamphopUUea.
Among the OraUaUtret of Illiger the Herodii contain the genera
Qrui, Cioonta, Ardea, JBurypyga, Seopiu, Oaneroma, and Anastomui,
The genera Tantahu and liii form the Faleati, and PkUalea is placed
among the Hygrobata,
Cuvier's ISchassiers comprehend the Brevipemetf the Preatiroitrei,
the OuUiroriret, the LonginMrea, and the Maerodadylet,
The CuUiraitrea consist of the Cranes, the Boat-Bills, the Herons,
VAT. BIST. OIV. VOL. IL
ff
tt
the Storks, the Jaiirut, the Ombrettes, the Open-Beaks, the Tamkdu
and the Spoon-Bill&
M. Yieillot's Kchassiers are divided into two tribes : the Ist^ the
Di-tridaotylous ; the 2nd, the Tetradactylous. The 6th family of
these Waders(Za<ir(Mere8) consists of the Spoon-Bills and Boat-Bills; the
7th (Herodions) comprehends the Ombrette, the Open-Beak, the
Herons, the Storks, the Jabirw, kc ; and the 8th (.^rophanei), the
Cranes (Orut and ArUhropoidea).
The Ardeida and Qrvidm are placed by M. Temminck under his
2nd family of OraUee (Waders).
In K. De Blainville's method the Ardeida and Qruida are compre-
hended under the Ciconiens, his 8rd family of QraUatorte, and in
the same method as further developed by M. Lherminier, the 28rd
family (first sub-class, or Normal Birds) consists of the Cranes {Orue
of Pallas) ; and the 24th family (same sub-daas) of the HttodU of
Illiger.
Mr. Vigors considers that the QraJUatorea are naturally di^ded into
these five families : — Oruida, Ardeida, Scolopacida, SaUida, Charor
driada ; and he places the Ardeida in the normal group and the
Oruida in the aberrant group. He remarks that the species that
enter into the family of OrtUda, most of which were comprised
originally in the genus Ardea of Linnseus, are separated from the
remainder of that group by their food, which is chiefly vegetable ;
by their manners, which approach nearer to those of the land-birds ;
and by the formation of their bills and feet, the fonner of which
are more obtuse at the end, and the latter shorter than is observable
in the true Ardea. In these characters, Mr. Vigors observes^ as well
as in their general appearance, more particularly with respect to their
plumage, they have a near alUance with the Sirutkionida. Paophia
[Agaxi] of LinnsBus is the first genus of this family to which
Mr. Vigors calls our attention. This genus, in the comparative
shortness of the bill, is considered by Mr. Vigors to be connected
with the AfUhropoida of M. Vieillot^ the Numidian Demoiselle;
while he regards the Crowned Crane of Africa (the Balearic Crane of
authors, Ardea pavonina of LinnsDus) as uniting this genus to the
true Orua of the present day. " If the genus Dichoktphua of M.
Illiger," continues Mr. Vigors, "be found to belong to the Wading
Binds, of which I have little doubt, its situation wiU most probably
be in the present family, to which it bears a nearer resemblance in
plumage and general structure than to any other divinon of the order.
In this case it will form a more immediate link than any group at
present known in the family with the (^radricuia, w}nch. meet it at
the corresponding extreme of the order; its shorter and more elevated
hind toe forming the passage between the fully tetradactyle foot of
the Oruida and the tridactyle foot of the Charadriada." We have
seen [^ariaha] that the habits of Dicholophua are not those of the
Wading Birds, although in the whole of the visceral arrangement a
close affinity may be observed to the Oruida,
Mr. Vigors remarks further that Cuvier has noticed the union that
takes place between the last groups alluded to by Mr. Vigors and
those of the Ardeida by means of the genera Aramua of VieiUot and
Ewrypyga of Illiger. These, he observes, lead to the extensive
assemblage of species contained under Ardea (Linn.) and Ciconia
(Briss.), both of which groups are connected by their general form
and habits, but differ by some minute yet strongly-marked generic
distinctions. Intermediate between Ardea and Gieonia appear those
forms which display so remarkable a dilatation of the bu^ namely,
Oaneroma, Phameopterua, and Platalea of LinnsBua The two last of
these groups, continues Mr. Vigors, are equally distinguished by a
greater development of the membrane that connects the toes than is
observable in the other Waders, which join them on each side ; and
in one of them, the Phanicopterua, this character, he remarks, is
carried so far to the extreme as to have occasioned some systematists
to place the birds of that genus among the NeUatorea, [DuOKS.]
" But," says Mr. Vigors in conclusion, " the whole of the family have
a membrane more or less extensive at the base of the toes ; and if we
compare the feet of the common Ciconia alba, of the Plat<Uea, and
the Phanicopterua together, we shall see a gradual increase of this
membrane in extent until it reaches the extreme in the latter genus.
Among the groups that are allied to Ciconia there are msny that
resemble it in general character, but deviate from it in the form of
the bill Among these we may particularise Seopua (Linn.), distin-
guished by its more compressed ana furrowed mandibles; the Myeteria
(Linn.), where the point of the bill turns upwards ; and the AnaaUh
fMu (IlL), where the mandibles, united at the base and at tiie pointy
leave an open space in the oentrei The genus Tanialua (Linn.) bears
an evident affinity to the same group, and has consequently been
united to it in tiie arrangement of every syBtematic naturalist It
differs chiefly by the downward curvature of the bilL To this genus
may be united the /6w of M. Lao^pMe, which, in its mors slender
bill, bears an affinity to Euirwyga, from whence we commenced our
inquiries into the fkmily." The same author unites the Scoiopadda
with the Ardeida by means of NmneniiM of Brisson, as approaching
Ihia most closely in its bill
Prince Bonaparte makes the Herodii the 8rd £unily of the order
OraUca, and includes under it the genera Orua, Ciconia, Ardea, and
Aramua: his 4th fiimily (Polcati) consists of the genera Tanialua
and /6m. (< Specchio Comparative.')
4 B
OKDID^.
olTyrncd
dtnidedlv
Ur. Sminson (' Natural Hintoiy tad CbumSoatlon of Birda,' ToL iL)
U of opinion that tbe Ardeada, or Herons, b}^ means of the Cronee,
■how the strongeet affinity to the Ontrichea, ajid thus unit« the raaorial
with the wading order. "Neirl; all the Cranes," writes Ur, SwainBon,
" ftre laige birdi, witli short and powerlesa winge, long and frequently
naked necka, and more teireatrial In their habita than any of their
MDgBnan. The beautiful gsnua Phalphia {Ptophia J), if tmly belong-
ing to thia Camilj, is aore of a gallinaceoiu than a wading bird."
After nfecfing io tbe geous AnihmpoiiUi, Mr. Swainson Ums oon-
tinnet : — " Tha more typical cranM {Gnu, Pallas) are large birds, few
indeed In speeiee, bnt dispersed oier Europe, Amerioa, and Asia :
they wem to praTer. the seclusion and secunty of marshes, and feed
' ' . upon seeds, herbage, worms, and email reptiles. Tiie Ardeada,
ypioal Herons, differ (Vom Uie lost in beiog composed of birds
ddedly camtTorous ; they are Inown by a larger and mora pointvd
bin, and by the luperior length of the legs. The herons, ■■ a whole,
■re the most beautiful of all the waders, not so much from the coloors
of their plumage, sa from the elegant crests and prolonged fe&thsn
which ornament nearly all tbe species. Tbey build in sotuetisa, bat
generally feed and live soUUry. Like the kingfishers and many of
the flaairostnl birds, .the greater part watch for their prey IVom a
flied itatlon ; a sheltered nook by the side of a river, or a projecting
rook by the sea-side, over deep water, f^aently serree them as a
convenient post ; hare tbey watch for passmg fish, which they dax-
terously ipear or tranaSx by their long sad sharp bilL Some of these
birds are of a gigantia size ; others are very smsJl, but have all a very
long neck, covered mora or le« by strong and leose feathers. Tbe
Tigep-Bittems {Tigritonm, Swainson) are eicluaively found in South
America, bat the true bitterns eeem restricted to no particular olimBte.
^e Boat-Bills (Concronid, Limuens) differ most euenUally from the
herons, aince Uiey have a ehort and veir broad bill, shaped some-
thing ^e a boat with it< keel uppermmt. [BoiisBill.] . . " The
Bpoon-Bills (PlataUa) show a different but a no less singular form of
beak, from which their came has been derived. The Btorki {Oicoaia)
are among the largest of the heron tunily, one ipeoiea (Scania
giganlta) measuring, when standing erect, near GJ feet; Uiey are
social and useful birds, and from dcotroying vast numbers of reptiles
and other vermin are encouraged in many countriee to build on the
habitations of man. The chin and eyoi are bare of feathers, but in
Mgclrria, which poaaibly enters into this family, the greatest part of
the head and nerk is entirely bare : one species inhabita Amenoa, one
Asia, and one Australia. The toiled umbre forms the African genus
Set/put, and is tha only species known ; the plumog* is particoiarly
Bof^ and tha back of the bead fumisbRl with a lax tufl of feathert :
thia Is obvionslj allied to tha Open-Bills {Anailomtu, III), a mngnlar
form, remarkable for a thick and vary powerful bill gaping in tha
middle. . . These are the principal genera which appear to enter
this family, of which the heroDJt and cranes form the two most typical
groups"
In ths'Synopaia* (same volume), Hr. Swunson places the Anlsodts
M the_ first bmily of tbe GraUatcra, or Waders, with the following
definition . — " SSis large ; bill long, conio, veij hard, straight, and
compressed ; bind toe moderate, and placed on the same level as the
others." The family, according to this author, inoludes the foUowing
genera and sub-genen; — ArdM=Ardta, Egrttta, Bittor (Bitterns},
Tigrittma (Tigei^Bitterns), Ngctiardta, Bwainson (Night-Herooa) ;
Cancrcma: Plalalta; Cicimia (including Myeteria ai a sub-genus);
Btrmatoptiti and Scopm.
Species of thefamilles A-auIaand AnfoJoaKtobefoundlnallthe
four quartersof tha globe. They seldom occur in tbe veiy cold regions.
We now proceed to give tbe characteni of the genera of Oruida : —
Orut (Fallaa).— Bill of the length of the head or rather longer,
strong, straight, compressed, the point in the form of an elongated
cons, obtuse towards the end ; lateral base of tbe mandible deeply
channelled ; base of the bill elevated. Noetrila in tbe middle of the
bill, [Herced through and through in the groove, and closed backwards
by a membrane. Region of the eye* and base of the bill often naked,
or covend with warty aicrescencee (mamelons). Feet long and atrong,
a large naked space above the knee; three anterior toea, the middle
one unit«d to the external by a rudiment of a membrane, interior
toe divided, posterior toe articulated higher on the tarsus. Wings
moderate ; firvt quill shorter than the second, which lait is nearly aa
long aa the third, and that is the longert ; secondariea neanat to the
body, arched, or very long and subulate in same foreign specie*.
.CtBn*(OrMn
In the greater part of the species the trachea of lie male forms
olrcnmTolations upon itself ; in the other sioiilar sinuosities occur in
bodl sexes, which do not differ in external appearance. Ifoult onoe
bt the year. (Temminck.)
ORUID^. 1103
Gnu cintrea. The general plumage is ashy gray ; throat, front of
the neck, and occiput, very deep blackish gray, ['orebead and space
between the eyea and bill f omiiued with black hairs; top of the head
naked and red. Some of tbe secondaries arched, longer, and loose-
barbed. Bill greenish-block, hotn-coloured towards the point, and
reddish at the base; iris red-brown. Feet black. Lraigth from the
bill to the end of the tail 3 feet 8 or 10 inches. The old birds have
a large whitish space behind ths ey«« and along the lal«ral part of the
npper portion of the neck.
Tonng Birds before their second'^
mnal moult — No nskedneM
ible. The blackish ssh-
_ jon-exiatent, or only
indicated by longitudinal spots. ^^
This is the Hpanr of the Qreeks ; Om of t0i>£omans ; Orue
and Qrua of tha Italians; Gme of the Fnnch;^%nl]a °f ^
Spanish ; Eranich and Aschgnuer Eranich of the Qerm^^J Trane of
the Danes ; Qoran of the Welsh ; and Crane and Commo:^^''*''' °'
the English.
The habita of the Crane are migratory and gregarious. Mr.^*l''f
remarks that in its contour and gait it bean a oonsiderable resembli^
to some of the Stnit\iimida, and that we are reminded of the ostr>
by the long Sowing planes that overhang tha tail He is of opinio,,
that through thia and other familiea ita affinity to the Rasorial Birds
is readily traced ; and he observes that in its internal conformation it
diSere very essentially from the more typical familee of the OraUatom,
and that its etrong and musoular stomach indicates a different general
economy from tbat of the Ardeida. This is quite true; but whilst
the Crane fVeqaente open and cultivated lands for the sake of newly
sown com and seeds to he found in such tracts, it iaf ar from aveno
to email testaceous moUusks, worms, frogs, and other reptiles.
Temminck says that tbe nest is plact^ amongthe rushes, tc., and
sometimes on the walls of isolated hoasee. The pale bluish-green
eggs, marked with brown, are two in numlwr.
Temminck statee that this crane inhabita tbe manhy plluns of the
Oriental countries ; that it is common in the north, migrates regularly
in spring and autumn. Is rare in ita paaaage in Holland, and only in
very severe wintera. Asia is one of the tracts of country much fre-
Suented by it. Dr, Ton Siebold notices it in his list of birds killed at
apan. Mr. SelW states that its equatorial migrations extend to
India, Egypt, and other wann parts of Asia and Africa, but that it
retires in summer to the northern and eastern parts of Europe to
breed. The migrations are performed high in the air, and the pro-
gress of the flock may be traced by the loud cries of the birda When
they are beyond tbe reach of sight The ni^ttime is frequently
choaen for these changce of -locuity. Prince Bonaparte notes it aa
very rare and accidental near Kome ; Willughby however saw msay
of Uiem in the poulterers' shops in winter. But it is in England that
the alteration of the country by drainage and enclosure haa caused
periiapB the most remarkable absence of these fine birds. They were
numerous in the time of our ancestors, and highly esteemed by thein,
both as objects of sport and as fnmishing a dish fit for the table of
princto. By 25 Henry YIII., o. 11, oonfirmed by 3 and i Edw. VI.,
c T, twenty pence was the forfeiture for each e^ of the Crane taheti
and'dertroyed. WiUoghl^ says, "Thayoomeoflan toBsio England;
111!
QRYLLOTALPA.
ud whan aot in uM H« folded longitudiiuill; ; the femaUa ue
fumiihed with ■ long oripotitor.
(Jrylliu domatiau (Lina), the Common Hoiue-CiiokBt, kffordi in
eiunpls of thin genui. This insect uabout three-qiurtan at m iooh
in length, and of a pale-browa oolour, with blaukiui markitigB on the
head and thorax. It ia found throu|^out Europe ; frequent* hoiuea,
and prefen the vldnltj of the fire. The mala mi^ei a ihrill noiu,
whieh ia earned by uie friction of the slftra agiiiniit each other.
Thee* inwota are of noaturnal habiti, take to the wing reatUlj, and
can leap a oondderable diitanca. The wtnglea ipedmena are the
larra^ and tboae which have only rudimentary wioga are the pupte.
There ia another apeciee which ix tolerably oommoD in eame paita
of England and in various parte of the continent— the Field-Cijcket,
or Qreiahopper ((7. eanpflrit, lino.). Thia iiuect ia of a larger aiie
than the hou».cricket, and of a black oolour ; the inner eide of the
hinder thigha ii red, andtheelytnt are brown, withayellowiahbaodat
the baae. The Geld cricket ganerally frequenta dry aandy dislriote ;
it burrows in the ground and preya upon other insects. The female is
said to lay about 300 eggs. 0. nndunmw ii the Common great
Qreen Qrasshopper. [Locusta.]
The speeiea of the genua OryUotalpa are remarkable for the Urge
eise of Uie auteriac pair of legs and their fitness for burrowing ; th«e
legs are very broad, and flattened, notched beneath at the eitnmity,
and bear a great resemblance to the fore feet of the mole — hence the
name of Ifole-Cricket has been applied to them.
QryUtOai^ 9\dgant (Lot, J, the Uola-Cricket, is common in some parte
of &igUiid, but appears to confine itself to particular diatnota. It
U upwards of S inches in length and uf a brown oolour ; the Isga ore
yeUowish. This insect sxotvatee subterraaean gailDriee of ooniider-
able extent, and in so doing throws up small mounds of earth, after
the manner of its prototype, among the Mavum^ia. It is said to do
mnch mischief in gardens and plaotations by injuring the roots at
plants. As yet it is doubtful whether these insects prey upon worms
or other insects, or whetiier they feed upon roots. Iiatreille
Buppoeea the former to be the case. We understand that the Duke
of DsTODshire'i groundi at Chiswick are much infested by this insert.
In TVidocfyliw the antennM are short and 1 0-jointed ; the tarsi are
S-jointad; the females have no distinct ovipositor, but the apex of
the abdomen is furnished with four small appendages, of which the
two upper sre 2-jointed. In lieu of tani to the posterior legs there
ore some small moveable hooked appeodagee (three in the lypioal
apeoies) ; the elytra ore shorter than the abdomen, and of a triangular
form ; the wings eioeed the elytra in length.
The small insects belonging to this genui are highly interesting, not
only on aooouat of their poiiuliar atruoture, but alio in their habiU.
The species as y«t disoovered are very limited in number, and have
been found only in the soulh of Europe and in North Africa ; they
Invariably live near the margins of rivers, lakes, or other pieces of
water, and it appears essential that the soil should be damp and consist
of fine aood. In this sand they burrow, first vertioally to the depth
of a few inches, and then tJiey form Dumeroui small horiioatal
galleries. In the construction of these gallerios they are probably in
search of food. Sand is eaten and voided by these insects, and it ia
supposed that thej reoeive their mitriment from the minute animal-
Cnlie left in the saud by the retii 4g water. For a detailed acoount
of the habits of these insects see 'UiatoireNatureUadeslnseOtea,' by
Ueesn. Audouin and Brulld, torn ii. p. 192.
The genus BtpipUryx of Hr. Newman (' Entomological Uagosiae,'
ToL ii p. 204) is closely allied to the Isst-meotioned inseolo. The
species upon which that entomologiBt founded the genus is &om Fata
in South America.
In the family OryUida are also included the genera ^coafAu,
Phaiangopil, PUttydactyiiu, SpKuriwm, and CyUndroda. The species
upon which the lost mentioned genus is founded ia figured in Qrimth's
Cuvier's 'Animal Kingdam—lnaeata,' voL u. pL 181. It is remark-
able for its slender and cylindrical form, but in many lespeote
approaobas the genus OryUotaipa.
QRYLLOTALPA. [Qhylud*.]
ORVLLUS. [Qbillida]
ORYPHjEA, a genus of OoiuAiftrt sumeMyaria (I^a.) closely
allisd to the oyster, and vsry abuniunt in the secondary itrota of
Europe from the lias upwaids to the Chalk, b>t scaieely known in
tertiary strata. [Oart^ctm; TExrtiaiDM.]
ORYS-BOC. [A»iiLO?u.]
QUACUA'RO BIRD {SUalontii, Humboldt; PocUumu, Cut.,
Temm.), aKrd which has been oonfounded with Podormu, but which,
according to the acoount of its food and habita by Hiunboldt, and to
the opiniou of some ornithologists, may be considered a genus distinct
from the true Podargi. It has the fallowing generic oharactera : —
Bill hikrd, homy, much wider than it is high, nearly equalling the
head in length ; uppermaodibleserongly beat downwards iuto a rather
sharp houk, and armed near its middls with two small teeth. Nostfils
t.iiim.l ii.o.-i.oiosed by a plate placed'
e rather oleodsr, diiated
cousidaraiila, and extending to the posterior part of the ete i bsM of
Uke bill fnimshed with stiff hairs directed forwardo. Feat shor^
weak, with four toss sen«rsted up to their base ; olawaorched tad
weak, not deotilated j;^|^ quill longwt. (Humboldt.)
OUACHARO BIRD. lilt
SUatemit Cariptim, (Hnmb,), the Ouocharo Bird, is the type of
the genua. It is the size of a common fowl; pIumaRS eombia,
brownish-gray, mixed willi small itrin and black dots ; urge whits
heart-shaped spots bordered wiUi black on the plumsge of the hsod
Baron Alexander de Humboldt, in his ' Penonol Narrative^' give*
a lively deecription of the locality and habits of thia rsmarkme and
uaeful bird, and we shall endeavour to select (ha chief point* of hia
aocount
The euava, or cavern, of the Quoohoro, and the coolness of the
climate, give celebrity to the valley of Caripe. The people lore the
marvellous, and are never tired of discussing the subject of a cavern
that gives birth to a river and is haunted 1^ thousands of nocturnal
birds, whose fat is employed in the Hissiones for culinary purposss.
The traveller on his arrival at Cumaoa soon hears of the sloae of
Araya for the eyes— of the labourer of Areoas who gave suck to his
infant — and of the cavern of Qutcharo, said to be several leagues ia
length — even to w«riness. The cavern, called by the natives ' a miue
of fat,' is not situated actually in the valley of Caripe, but at ih»
diitonoe of three short leagues from the conrent, towards the weat-
south-weat, and it opens into a lateral valley terminated by the Siem
del OuashanL Humboldt and his party, accompanied by the alc^da,
or Indian magistralee, and the greater port of the monks of the
sonvent, set out for the Starrs on the IBth of September ; and they
at first travereed for an hour and a half a narrow P'th towoids the
south, across a plain oovered with beautiful turC They then turned
westward, tracing up a email river which issues from the oavem.
The ascent oontmued for thrsMuartan of an hour, during which
they went sometimes in the shallow water and sometimes between
the torrent and a rocky wall, on a very miry and slippery soil This
port of the road, with its incumbrances of falling earui, scattered
trunks of trea, over which the mules oQuld hardly pass, and a pro-
fusion of creeping plants that ooveied the ground, was verT btigmng.
When they arrived at the foot of the lofty mountain of Guaohoro
they were only 400 paoes from the cavern, without yet peromving the
entrance. The toirent rmis iu a hollow excavated bj| the waters :
and they went on under a ledge, or cornice, the projection of which
prevented them from seeing the sky. The path winds like the river,
and at the last turning they suddenly atood before the immenss
opening of the cave. Humboldt, who had already been familiar with
that the reahty far exceeded his expectationa.
and 73 feet high — on elevation but a fifth less than that of the Louvrs.
The rook surmounting the cavern was covered with trees of gigontio
height, and all the luxuriant profusion of an intertropical vegetation.
Our space prevents on snnmsiVtion of the beautifiil and curious ptsnts,
among irtiiah the OrtlUdaeea are not forgotten, reoorded b^ the Baron,
and dwelt on by lum with a pardonable raptDre ; but it u worthy d
observation, that this luxuiisfice penetrated even into the vestibule
of the cave. The tiaTeller* aaw with astoniohment plaintain-lravad
Haliooniw 18 feet in height, the Piaga Palm, and Tree Arums, follow
the banks of the river even to the subterranean places. Thisre the
vegetation coDtinuee, as in the deep orevioee of the Andes, half shut
out from the light of day, nor does it disappear till a distance of 80 or
iO paces from the entnnce. The party went forward for about
130 feet without being obliged to light their torches. Where ths
light began to toil, they heard from afar the hoarse erica of the
Ouaidiaro Birds. These birds quit the cavern only at nightfall,
eapecially when there ia moonlight; and Buinboldt remarks that It
ia olmoat the oiUy frugivorons nocturnal bird yet known. It feeds
on very bard fruiU, ana the Indians asSored tuu that it doca not
1111
aUAIACUH.
punue either tlie lammellicorD inieoU or those Phaiana which larve
u food to the geataucken. He ataCsa that it is diffioult to form ma
idea of tlie horrible naiBe made b; thotiBuids of these birds ia the
dsrk recesses of the csrem, whence their sbriU aail piercing cries
■triks upon the vaulted rocks and are repeated by the echo in the
depths of the grotto. By fixing torches of copal to the end of a
long pole, the Indians showed the nests of these birds 50 or 60 feet
above the beads of the explorers, in funnel-shaped holes, with which
ths aavem-roof is pierced like a sieve.
Onoe a year, near JOdsammer, the Ghiaoharo cavern is entered by
the Indians. Armed with poles they ransack the greater part of the
nests, while the old birds hover over the heads of the robbers, u if
to defend their brood, uttering horrible cries. The young which fall
down are opened on the spot. The peritoneum is found loaded with
fat, and a layer of the same lubHtanca reacbss from the abdomen to
tho vent, forming a kind of cushion between the bird's legs. Hum-
boldt here remarks that this quantity of fat in frugivarous animals,
Dot exposed to the li^ht, and exerting but little muscular motion,
brings to mind what hu been long observed in the fattening of geese
and oien. It ia well known, he adds, how favourable darkness and
repose are to this prooeas. At the period above mentioned, which is
generally known at Caripe by the doaignation of ' the oil harvest,'
huts are built by the Indians, with p^-leaves, near the entrance
and even in the very porch of the cavern. There the bt of the young
birds jost killed ia melted in elay-pota over a bruahwood &re ; and
this &t ia named butter, or oil (manteca, or aceite), of the Ouaeharo.
It is half liquid, transparent, inodoroua, and ao pure that it will keep
above a year without becoming ranoid. In the kitchen of the monu
of the convent of Caiipe no other oil ia used, and Humboldt never
found that it imparted a disagreeable taata or smell to (he aliments.
The quantity of very pure manteca ooUoeted does not exceed ISO or
160 battles, each being 60 cubic inches ; the rest, which is len trans-
parent, is preserved in large earthen vessels : the whole hardly seems
to oorreaponii with the immense annual carnage of birds. The use
of the Ouaobsro oil ia very ancient, and an Indinn family, bearing
the name of Uorooom&s. pretend to be the lawful proprietora of the
Oavarn, as desoendante tram the Srat colonista of the valley, and li^
claim to the monopoly of the fat; but, when Humboldt wrote, the
monka had taken care that their rights were merely honorary. The
Indians ware obliged, in conformity with the system of the mission-
aries, to furnish oil of Guacharoes sufficient for the church lamp ; the
rest, Humboldt waa assured, was purchased from them. He observes
' thatthe race of Quacbara Binis would have been extinct long aince
if several circumstances bod not contributed to its preservation. The
natives, withheld by superstitious feaia, aeldom dare to proceed far
into the recesses of the cavern. Humboldt had great difflculty in
persuading them to pass beyond the outer part of the oave, the only
portion of it which they visit annually to collect the oil; and the whole
authority of the Padres was neceassry to make them penetrate as far
aa the spot where the Soor rises abruptly at an inclination of sixty
degrees, and where a small subterranean cascade ia formed by the
torrent. In the minds of Che Indiana this cave, inhabited by nocturnal
biida, is aaaociated with mystic ideas, and they believe that in the
deep recssaes of the cavern the souls of their anceatora Bojoum. They
Bay that man should avoid places which are enlightened neither oj
the sun nor the moon ; and " to go and join the Quachoroes" means
to rejoin their fathers — in shorty to die. At the entranoe of the oave
the magiciana and poisoners perform their eiordBms to ooqjure the
chief of the evil spirits. It appeoiB.also, as another cause of preaarva-
tiou, that Ouaeharo Birds inhabit neighbouring caverns too nanow
to he accessible to man, and from theae perha[« the great cavern is
repeopled ; for the missionaries declared that no sensible diminution
of the birds had been observsd. Toung birds of this apeciea have been
■eat to the pott of Cumana, and have lived there several days, but
without taking an^ food ; the leeds oBered to them not suiting them.
The crops and guzards of the young birds opened in ths cavern
contain all sorts of hard and dry fruits, which are conveyed to them
by their parents ; these are preserved, and, under the name of ' semilla
del Ouachaiv" (Quacharo seed), are considered a celebrated remedy
Ogainat intermittont fevers, and sent to the sick at Carioco and other
low looaiitirs where feiar prevails. Our limits will not allow us to
pursue Humboldt's deacription further; and we most content
ouraelvea with referring the reader to the,' Narrative' for many inte-
resting details reepeoting the csvem itself and the surrounding
scenery, giving only in cainolusion, the situation, elevation, and tempe-
rature of thia extraordinary grotto.
The Cueva del Quachaiv, then, is aituated nearly in 10° 10' Ut,
and consequently in the centre of the torrid aone. Its elevation is
BOa toises about the level of the Oulf of Cariaco, Humboldt found,
in the month of September, the temperature of the interior air in
every part of it between 61° 6' and 66° of Fahrenheit, and the external
atmosphere 61° 2'. At the entrance, the thermometer in the air gave
63° T ; but wheu it was immersed in the water .of the little subterra-
neous river it stood, even to the end of the cave, at 62° 2'.
QUAIACUU, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
ZygapkyUacaa, and inhabiting several of Uie West India islands, in
low pliuas near the sea, Ths most remarkable species is O. ofimtak,
from whioh the hard oompaot black-green wood called Lignum Vitn
GOANO. uw
is obtuned, which is so heavy that it ainks in water, and from which
pestles, ship-blocks, rollera, oaston, Ac. are turned. This plant
BTOWB abcut twelve feet high, with round knotty bronohea. The
leaves are equally pinnate, with abcut three pairs of opposite, amooth,
roundish ovate or obovate obhque leaflets. The flowers are a beau-
tiful bright blue, growing in small aiillaiy clustan. The petals ara
oblong, downy in the inside, about thi«a tixam as long aa the aeptji.
There are teu stamens, and an ovate eompreased ovary, whidk beOMSsl
on inversely heart-shaped succulent yellow capaule, with from two to
Ave cells, and a aiiigle roundish comprassed seed in each oelL TUs
plant produces the gum-resin known m medidne under the name ol
Quaiacum, whigh ia bitter, acrid, and stimulsnt, partly soluble Id
water, and wholly in aloohoL It is employed as a diaphoretia and
alterative [OcxumiM, in Ahtb Aim 8c. Div.] The foliage is very
detersive, and is used in the West Indies to scour and whiten floors
which it is said to do bettor than soap. Spike cylindrical, elon-
gated; brocta 3-nerved. Flower rone-purijle and frairant. Pollen-
eella open iu front and below, stopped below by oblong glutinous
valves quite distinct from tbs stigma, and to the broader ends of
which the glands of the pollen mosses are attached. It is found
in hilly pastures.
a msraiAed vl
0. nl&ida haa a 9-lobed lip, the lobea UDeqnal and entire, the middle
lobe iottgast and broadeat ; aepals and latenl petals oonnirent, spur
much shorter than the germen, root-knoba clustered. The stem ia
from 6 to 13 inches high ; leaves oblong-obtnse, nppcr ones lanoeo-
late-acute ; the spike elongated, cylindrical ; the wood, according ia
Hemandes, ia internally blue. It is called in some of the West Indian
Islands Bastard Lignum Titra.
O. arborcitn ia a large tree terminating in a beautiful head, with
very hard wood, and U called by the natives of Cumana Ouaiacim,
but they give tbia name to all hard woods. The leaves have T to
14 pairs of oval-oblong blunt leaflets, which ore unequal at the
base, and are usually alternate, the petioles and brancbleta somewhat
pubescent ; the petals nnguieulate, and orange-ooloared ; the stamens
with short anpendagea at their base ; capsules atipitate, E-winged.
GUAN. fCBAOiDS.]
OUANITli. a native Phosphate ofUagnesia and Ammonia, found
by Tesoheuroher in Guano. It haa a spedfio gravity of 1-G, and a
hardness of 20. It oocura in brillirat ihomhio prisms.
OUAyO, the Peruvian name for the droppings of aaa-fowl. In
some of the islands off the ooasta of America and Africa this subetanoe
has accumulated in such immense quantities as to have repaid the
labour of colIeoUng'it and bringing it to Europe, where It ia used aa
a manure. It is now universalty admitted to be one of the most
valuable of manurea, and althoogh it obtains a high prioe it is increas-
ingly employed in the agriculture of Europe. CUa of the advantages
IIW
anATA.
of this muiara «B(nTu to trim from the fact that It ij produced by
■nimiJi in wbioh tha eicntiaus of both tha kidneTa and ioteatiiiM ut
miied togstbar, aiid thiu oontuDB » Urge Tsriatj of tboBS mtttera
wbioh rue neaimaTj to the eiutance of plonta on which num
fredi. The fallowing mnolyna fWim Liabig'a ' ChemiEtry tn ita Appli-
otion to Agriculture ud Fbjaologj,' wiUgiTe on idea of its ultimate
coDititnanC* - —
Sample froiD SainplB from
LlTcrpool. Llm*.
1. Muriate of Ammonia . . • • fl'SOO i'2
2. Oialate of Ammonia .... IS'SSl 10-6
S. Urate of Ammonia .... S'2U SO
4. Phoephate of Ammonia .... 6-3Sa 60
5. Waxy aubatanoe 0-SOD „
6. Sulphate of Potaab 4-227 S-6
7. Sulphate of Soda 1-119 S'S
S. PhoaphateofSoda 6-291
e. Phonphate of Ammouia and Magoeaia . 4196 26
la Chloride of Sodi.mi .... 0100
11. PhoaphBtaofLime S'SIO 14'3
12. Oxalate of Lime IS'SdO TO
IS. Alumina 0104
14. Reaiduum inaolnble in Nitric Acid S'SOO 4-7
15. Loaa 22-918 S'3
100-000
OtJAVA. [pBinruM.]
GODOEOH. [GoBicl
QUELDER-ECBE. [Vibcbsch.]
QDENONS, the French name for a group of MonkeTa belonging to
the anoient oontiuent and ita islaDda, the tjpa of which may be cooat-
deicd to be the Green Monkey {Ctrwttinu tabmu, Geoff.).
0UEN0N3. ins
LiniL; S. Cephta, Linn.; S. Pttauruta, Omel.; £ meHrani, Gmel.;
S. Natica, 3chr. (the Proboacia Monkey, or Eabau); and S. ittment,
Linn. (OmeL f).
In hia last tHliUoD of the same work he makea the group coDaiat of
S. rufrro, S. JSthiapt, S. fvliginota, S, labaa, S. PaHniu, S. tryOtro-
pyga, S. ladarliina, the Mona, S. Diana, S. Pftawitta, and S.
tiUtittnt, and he placea theae GuenonB between the Oibbona {Hylo-
lala, Illig.) and the Semnopxlheci. M. F. Cuvier, in hia. 'Hiatoire
dea MunmLfiree.' had eipreaaed hie doubta of tha propriety of placing
tbfl Entallua Mouke; among the Qucnona, and in hia work ' Dea
Denta dea UammifSres' (18EI>) had aeparsted the .SmmcpMAeci from
Ur. SwafnaoQ ('ClaaiiGcatioD of Quadmpeda,' 1835) excludes Han
[rom the aoalogical circle, and makes the Quadrwanwi, FourHanded
Quadrupeds, tbe Grst order of the clasa jramtnoJia. Of tbia uriler tha
Bimiada, Ape-Honke^i, form, according to him, the first family, which
conaiat of— 1, "iSmia (Linn.), Oran-Outang," = Simia, Troglodyltt,
Hylobattt, Prahyfr*, Pilhtcut .- 2, " Ctreopitlueu», Pouched Monkoyi,"
= Latiopyga, Semnopilheciu, Colobtu, Ctivopilhtau, Cerrvcebui, ffa-
mlu. The other genera are Inuat, Macactu, and Papio. In the
table of ' Typical analogical Cbaracten,' CtrcopitAcma ia placed
opposita to Para.
For Mr. Ogilby'i arrangement, see Chzibofoca.
In this article we shall confine DorselTcs to H. F. CuTier'a second
dirision of the true Queaona.
Dental formuU : — Incieon, i ; canines, ^—Z ; moUra, ^H^ = 32.
Tbe true Gaenons comprise the genera CtrcopUkteia and Cercoe^ut
of Qeo&oy. Nearly similar in manners and in their deotition, parti-
cularly with regard to their canine teeth, these genera appear to be
□aturally allied to each other, though the facial angle aud more
elongated muisle, the large cheek-ponchea, and ahortar tail of the
aecond Bub-diTision {Ctrcetxbvt) seem to lead gradually to tha bsbaona.
CtrcopiOiecru. — Nearly allied Xo 3aanop\ilitcu»* [SsimoplTHJKnw] in
form and manners, but differing from bctli Stianopithtciu and Cerco-
ediut not only in the dcTelopment of the dentition, but ia tbe siie of
the facial angle, which ranges from G0° to S5°, in the flat nose, in the
rounded bead, and long posterior extremities.
C. Mona, tha Varied Monkey of Pennant, Le Singe Tarid of Briason,
La Mone and GueDon Mono of Buffon and tha more modem French
Eoologial*.
y
Cnrier, in the fint edition of hia 'Rtpne Animal,' makes tbe
Gueniine (CtraipitAeeui of Enleben in part), which he places between
lliB Chimpanife and the Baboon {Papio), eonaiat of tbe following
rdeai — Simia BnMltu, Dufr. ; S, mbra, Ome!.; 3. ^thiopt, Linn.;
/W^HMM, Geoff. ; S. Jf aura, Linn. (Gmel. t) ; S. labaa, Linn. ; S.
FamM, QmeL;theirt>na(&ifonaBnd4tiiwiHKAa,Sohr.);&I>i(ina,
.a Monkey ( Cercopith
u Uitia). P. C
Buffon Is of opinion that this spemea is the KnSoi of Aristotle, on
what ground it is difficult to iroagine.for Ariatotle only aaya — "EmX
V iiiir in,0oi, Ttfurot tx" ilfir—" the CIcfrw ia a Pilhteiu (or Apa)
bansg a tail." (' Hlal.' lib. ii c 8.) Peonant indeed givea ' Kfi^oi I*
(with an interrogation) among thr synonjma of the Varied Monkay;
hot in bia text he shows that he was aware upon what slender data
Buffon assumed ita identity wiUi the KnjBat of tbe Greeka. Buffon
refers also to Ludolfa curious account (' Hifton^ of Ethiopia ') as
applying to this monkey, with as much probability as diatinguishea
his reference to Ariatotle. "Of apes," saya Ludolf, or rather hia book
•made English by J. P. Gent' (1682), " there are Infinite flocks up
and down in the mcuntaina themselTes, a Uiouaand and more toge-
ther; there they leave no stone unturn'd. If they meet with one
that two or three cannot lift they call for more ayd, and all for tha
sake of tbe worms that lye under ; a aort of dyet which they reliah
exceedingly. They are rery greedy after ammeli Bo that baring
found an emmatbUl, they preaently atuTound it, and laying their fore
• Fonil lenulni of Btmmpittneif SiUtttu, the EataUoa Honkay, bsTo been
pawl with tha hollow downwud upon tha uit-h«>p, u Cut u the
cmtaeta creep into their treifherouB palmaa ikej tick 'am off with I
great comfort to tbsir (toniacha ; uid there the; will lie till there is |
not u] emmet left. They ere alao pemicioiu to fruit and apples, *od
will deetroj whole fields and gardeiu, unlen tliey lie oarefullr looked
after. For they are rary cunning, and will neTer venture in till the
ratum of their ipiaa, which they send alwayi before, who giriiis
informatiaii that all thing! are ufs, in they ruah with their whoK
body, and make a quick diepatch. Therefore they go very quiet and
iiloiit to their prey, and if their jonng onea chance to make a noiae
they chaatiee them with their fiats ; but if they Sod the coaat clear,
then e<at7 one hath a different noise to eipr«e hii joy. Nor could
there te any way to hinder them from further multiplying, but that
thej fill Bometimm into the mder hands of wild beasta, which thsy
have D.> way to avoid but by a timely Sight, or creeping into the cleft*
of the rooka. It thpy find no aafety in flight they make a virtue of
neceaahy, atand their ground, and filling thair paws full of dnit or
Band, f ing it full in the ayes of their aaaaUant, and then to their heels
again," Such is the account upon the strength of which Buffon
makea hta referenoe ; hut that is not all, for the tranalatian at least ii
graced by a lai^ plate illustrative of these wonderful ecenes, and
there li not the veatij^ of a tul among tha whole party of apes,
twcn^-sii in number.
Tbu species has the foUowing chsractera i—Top of the head greenish-
jellow mixed with a slight tings of black ; neck, back, and sides of a
deep chestnut browDf passing downwmrda aa far as the shoulders and
haunches, where it change* into a dusky slate-colour oontinued on
the limba and tail, which laat is considerably longer than the body,
and baa on each side of its base a remarkable white spot. Under
surface of the body and iuide of the limbs pure white, Baparated from
the neighbouring colouni by an abrupt line of demarcation. Naked
Dpper psit of tha boa, comprehending the orbiti and cheiike, bluish
purple. Lipe, and eo much of the chin as is without hair, Beah-
coloured. On the aides of the hce large buihy whiskers of a light
straw-oolour mixed with a few blackish rings advance forwards and
cover a considerable portion of the cheaka. Above the eyebrows a
transverse black band, extending on each side as far as the ears, and
surmounted by a narrow creaoent-sbaped stripe of gray, which ia
sometimes scarcely visible. ESars and bands livid flaah-colour. (Ben-
nett, ' Qardens and Menagerie of tha Zoological Society of London,'
YoLL)
Hr. Bennett renurks that the name of Uona appears to be of Arabian
origin, and ia indiscriminately applied, under various modifications, by
the Moors of Northern Africa to all the long-tajled moolieyB without
•xceptioo. From tha langusga of tha Hoo[B,he observeB,ithas passed
into those of Spain and Portugal, in both of which it has precisely
Uie same signification. Ur. Brnnett however doaa not agree with
Felinaat and Buffon, who consider it, in its Egyptian fann of Honicht,
to have bam the origin of the English word monkey, which appwra
to him to admit of a much mora obvious, though not very fiatt«ring
derivation, tram the parent-stock of our native tongue. He ahio
eipressea his doubts oi tbe accuracy of Buffon in referring the C^mt
of tha ancients to thia particular speoias, to which principally, on
account of its being a native of the north of Africa, tha latter has
lestrioted tha previoualy generic name of Hona.
Barbary ia generally supposed to be the native plaoe of thia monkey.
They are brought from Africa, and bear a European climate weU,
whence it la conjectured that they inhabit the north of A&ica, or
dwell in mountainous distriola.
In a state of nature it ia not known ; tbr Ludolfs account, lo which
BuSbn refers, oannot, as wa have endeavoured to show, be applied
with any degree of oertainty to thia spadea. M- F. Cuvier gives a
TelT entartainitig aocouot of its mannaia in captivity. The individual
which he figures and describes from the Paria managarie appears to
have bean most amiable and inteUigent, and to have bMD diatjnguiahed
for ita dexterity in unlocking cheats or drawers, ontying knots, eearoh-
ing pockela, &c Tbe individual in tha poss«asioa of the Zoological
Society from which Mr. Bennett's description was taken waa capricious,
eavsga in temper, and altogether of a wona chamctar.
Crrcoccinu,— Reaemblicg CcrcopiUieeut in some points, but difibring
in otfaen. Facial angle about 46°. Head inclined to the triangular
farm; muazla ratherlengthened; nose flat or convex ; thumbaofthe
anterior hands slender, and placed near the fingers ; those of the
binder extremities larger, and plaoed at a greater distance^ F^gal
ealloaitiee lane.
It is the O. sodnu. Singe Yert, of Brisson ; Samia laiaa of Lin-
sriuled appeacMice on the sides of the t>ody and outer aidee of tha
umhs, whi& become gradually darker towards tbe handa The fsoe,
ears, and naked parte of the hands jet black, the face triangular,
bonndsd above tha eyes by a straight Ime of stiff black haiia, and on
tha sidea by spr^ing tufts of light hairs with a yallowiah tinge,
meeting in a point beneath the chin. Neck and cheat white ; under
parts of the body of a yellowish tinge; inside of the limba gray.
Jjeiijth of head and body 16 or 18 inches; that of the tail somewhat
GUILLEUOTS. lUO
more. (Bennett, ' Qardena and Menageiie of tha Zoological Society,'
vol L)
In Adanaon's 'Voyage aa Senegal ' wiU be found a good aeoonnt of
tha habits of the speciaa in a state of natun^ and Uieir silent and
unfiinching endurance of wounds sod death fh>m the ^un. They
asaociate in large troops, and are scarcely to be trsoed among the
bonghs except when they occasionally break aoma of them in their
gambols, which are performed in sUenoe, though marked by great
agility. When shot at they make no noisa, but gather together ia
companies, knit their brows, and gnash their teeth, as if they meant
to attack the enemy. In captivity their disposition in general is not
amiable, and they are con^dend captious and malicious ; but, as Hr.
Bennett ohaerves, mnoh of their charaetsr, as in other species ,dspends
thedr age and education.
Cieen Uonkty (<VreK<iiu islieNt].
■e found in Africa (forests of Uauritanis) and the Ci
islthat
Th« ai
Terd Iilaads. Bdwsrda figured his Bpedmen from an indiridnal
was brought from St. Jsgo, Brisson appears to have been the firat
describer of the species from a spacimen in Che museum of R^umur.
Pennant says tliat it ia also found in Iha East Indies, and that Sir
Ashton Lever had hie specimen &om thanca. [Simuda]
GUEVI. [Abtilopm-I
QUEVINA, [PKOTKaOB*.]
QUILLEU0T3, the common name of the species of Uria, a genua
of Sea-Birds which some omithoiogiate place among the family of
Divera, or Coljpabida. LinnEens placn tha apedss Orj/Ut and Iroile
at the head of his genus ColfnAut. Cuvier anangea t^e genus under
hia family Flongeurs, or Brachyptires. Prince Bonaparte arrangM
them in the second section of his family Pygopodaa, tba genua
Colymhut forming tha first section. Lesson makes them belong to
the family AUada, which ha aeema to conaider as synonymous witli
the Plongeum of Cuviar.
Mr. Vigors, on leaving the (Mynibida, sntais the family of AleadtM
by means of ths genus Uria (Briss.), which was originslly included
In the CUjnnfttu of LinnEBus, and iii>m which, he obeervea, it has been
separated ohiefiy on account of tha tridaotyle oonformation of its
foot This character diatingnithes the greater part of Mr. Vigors'a
group of AUadat which, in addition to Uria, cootoius the genera
jiiea [Auk], and Aptaiodyta [PehoCii'] of Linuseus. The latter
genua, Hr. Vigors remarks, apparenUy carries to tbe extreme the
typical chaiBctar of those groups in which the wings, becominc
gradually shorter, and less furnished with feathers, lose at length
all their powers of fiight, and assume the functions of One, instead
of winga, to asaist ths bird in its progress through the water. The
whole of tbe family, united by ths form of the foot, is Beparat«d
into generic groups by the different shape of tha bill " And hare,"
contiaues Mr. Vigors, " a beautifully progreasive series of aESnitiea ia
apparent throughout the whole group. Banning from the true
Aplaiodjfitt, we may observe that the bill of that genns is long,
rather slender, and somewhat curved ; while that of Catairluiatt
(Brisa.), which succeeds, is ehorter and more eleval«l at the ridge;
thna leading the way to Sphtnitcfu (Briss.), where the sides are
oompresssd, and tha culmen elevated into a sharp edge. Thia
structure approaches tbe form of the same member In the troe Aleo
[Auk], In which the sides are still more strongly oompi«ssed, aad the
cnlman more elevated. The ^■alereula (Briss.), the wdl-known
Puffin of our rod? ooaats [Auk], toWowiag AUa, exhibits the eztrama
of this singular conitruatioa ) and there cannot be a mora intanating
subject of eoDtamplation to him who may wish to witoes* the mode
IISI
GUILLEMOTa
GUILLEMOTS.
ins
the long and slender bill of AptenodyU%. A similar gradation of
affinities between oonterminous groups leads us back again to the
point from whence we started. Borne species of the Linnoan Alca^
which M. Temminck has united under the generic title of PhaUrii
[Auk], with bills less elevated at the culmen, and more tapering than
that of FrcUercula, lead us gradually to tibe MergtUui of Raj, the
Little Auk of our cabinets. [Auk.] This genus, strongly and dis-
tinctively separated both from Alea and Uria, in the former of which
groups it has been placed by Linnaus, and in the latter by M.
Temminck, may be considered as intermediate between them. It
thus brings us to Uria, where the pointed and tapering bill, again
discernible, reconducts us to Aptenodytu," (' Linn. Trans.,' vol xiv.)
Mr. Swainson, in the first part of the second volume of tibe
' Classification of Birds,' appears to differ from Mr. Vigors, for he
arranges the Quillemots, together with the Divers and Grebes, under
the Cotymbidas, The Alcidce (Alccutcg) include, according to the same
author, the Penguins and the Puffins, and ''all those singularly
constructed groups where the wings are abortive, or in other words
assume more the appearance, as they perform the office of fins ; " but
he remarks that the natunJ series of the genera have been com-
menced by some with Una ; by others, with some of the Alcte, or
Puffins. In the ' Synopsis ' however, at the end of the volume, we
find Uria the first genus of the 'family Alcada: Auks,' with the
observation that the individuals in this group are so few that the
author has not considered it expedient to adopt the sub-genera,
particularly as their natural series has not been marked out. The
genera which Mr. Swainson here places under the family Alcadce are
— Uria, Briss.; Alca, Linn.; Mormon, UL; Chimeritia, Esch.;
PhaUris, Temm. ; Aptenodytet, Forst
Uria. — Bill moderate, robust, straight^ acute, and compressed ;
upper mandible slightly curved towards the point ; the lower mandible
forming an angle more or less open. Nostrils basal, lateral, concave,
longitudinal, pervious, half shut by a large membrane covered with
feathers advancing on the bill. Feet short, plunged as it were in the
abdomen, so that the lower end of the tibia only is perceptible, and
placed beyond the equilibrium of the body very far back ; tarsi
shorty slender; three toes only, all anterior and entirely webbed:
nails compressed, rather curved and sharp ; wings shorty narrow, and
acute, the first quill longest; tail very shorty rounded.
Bill of Common Guillemot {UHo IMU).
Foot of Common Guillemot [Uria 3Vot7«).
The Quillemots seem especially framed for existence in the arctic
and even polar regions, and are seldom, comparatively, found in the
warmer latitudes. In the north they swarm on all the rocks and
islets of the chilling seas. In the short but bright summer that gilds
some of their northern haunts, they make haste to deposit their eggs,
sometimes only one, on the bare rock, without wastmg the precious
days in making a nest On the naked ledge that overhangs the sea
the young Guillemot is hatched, and as soon as it is able to bear the
shock, is conducted or rather tumbles from its hard nursery into the
bosom of the ocean, where a plentiful harvest is spread for it. Here
the Guillemots are indeed in their element ; plying their way with
wings and feet beneath the waves and even beneath the ice, they
make prey of the small fish and crustaceans, which form their prin-
cipal food. Their native rocks or the ice-caverns shelter them from
the storm, and it is only when the winter is more than hyperboreally
severe that some of these species are driven for a temporary resort
to more temperate climates. Their fiight is shsj^ and rapid, though
of no long duration, and generally directed just above the surface of
the sea. The eggs, which aro reckoned palatable, notwithstanding
their fishy diet, are thick in the shell, which has a dull appearance.
Sir John Richardson notices Uria {Mergultu) Alle [Auk], among
the species which merely winter in Pennsylvania, and migrate in
summer to rear their young in the Fur Countries— CWa BrunmehU,
U. Qrylie, and U, AlU in his list of birds detected in the North
KAT. ITT8T. DrV. VOT.. IL
(Georgian Islands and adjoining seas, in 73* to 75" N. lat, on Sir
Edward Parry's first voyage — and U. Brunniehii, U, TroiU, U Grylle,
and U. AUe in the list of species common to the Old World and to
the Fur Countries. U, AUe, U Brunniehii, and U. OryUe occur in the
list of 'Greenland Buds' by CoL Sabine.
In the table published by Sir John Richardson in ' Fauna Boreali-
Americana,' the following interesting information is given : —
Species.
Uria TroiU . . .
Uria Srtmniehii
Uria Orylle . .
Uria AlU . . .
Extreme Northern
range. Distribution in
the Fur Countries.
Whether resident or
migratory.
Lat. N.
61**. Arctic 8ea and
Hudson's Bay.
75^ Arctic Sea and
Hudson's Bay.
75°. Arctic Sea and
Hudson's Bay.
Tb", Arctic Sea and
Hudson's Bay.
Species that
frequent the
vicinity of
Philadelphia.
C.Bonaparte.
Accidental
visiter.
Accidental
tisiter.
Accidental
visiter.
Winter.
Rather rare.
Winter Quarters of
the Species.
Principally at sea,
in high latitudes.
Principally at sea,
in high latitudes.
Piincipally at sea,
in high latitudes.
United SUtes.
Captain Sir James Boss (' Supplement to Sir John Ross's Last
Voyage') says that Uria Brunniehii abounds in Baffin's Bay, and is
found in most parts of the arctic seas, and that he has also met
with the species at Uist, the northernmost of the Shetland Islands,
and in several parts of Scotland ; but he observes that it has always
been confounded by authors with U Troile, which it so .nearly
resembles. He further states that Uria AUe (Little Ghiillemot,
Little Auk of authors) collects during the breeding season in vast
numbers along the north and east coast of Baffin's Bay, but is seldom
to be met with far to the westward of Lancaster Sound. A few
were seen by the expedition near Leopold Island, and two or three
specimens were obtained.
U. Troile, the Common Guillemot, WiUock, or Tinkershere.
Description of both sexes (old) in their winter dress. — Summit of the
head, space between the eye and the bill, longitudinal band behind
the eyes, and all the upper parts, of a velvety black slightly inclining
to ash : all the lower parts and the extremity of the secondaries pure
white : white is sJso found between the band behind the eyes and
the back of the nape, and advances towards the occiput, where it
forms on each side an open angle. The ashy blackish colour of the
lateral part of the neck seems to form towards the breast a kind of
collar, feebly indicated by bright ash. Bill ashy black ; inside of the
mouth livid yellow; iris brown; feet and toes yeUowish-brown ;
posterior part of the tarsus and membranes black. Length from the
bill to the claws rather more than 15 or 16 inches. N.B. The female
is rather less than the mala In this state Temminck, whose
description we have given, considers the bird to be U Suarbag and
Ringuia of Brilnnich ; Colymhui minor of Gmelin ; Lesser Guillemot
of Pennant ; Der Dunune Lumme of Bechstein ; and Troillumme of
Meyer.
Summer or Nuptial Plumage. — Head, region of the eyes^ throat,
and all the upper part of the neck of a velvety brown ; inside of
the mouth bright yellow : the rest of the plumsge as in winter.
Thus clad it is Uria Lomvia of Brilnnich; Colymbut TroiU of
Linnaeus and Gmelin ; Le Guillemot of Buffun ; Foolish Guillemot of
Latham ; Uria Maggiore, ' Stor. degL Ucc.' (Temminck).
Toung of the Tear. — Principally distinguished from the old birds
in their winter plumage, by the comparative shortness of the bill,
which is ashy and yeUowish at the base ; the black of the upper
parts is clouded with ash-colour ; the stripe or longitudinal band is
not distinct, and mingles by means of ashy spots, with the white of
the sides of the occiput. Ashy-brown predominates on the lower
parts of the neck, >and the white of the lower parts is not so pure ;
the tarsi and toes are of a livid yellowish hue. It is then ColymbuM
macidd nigrd pone oculoe, 'Sander. Natur£ GmeL,' L p. 584, va. /3.
(Temminck).
Accidental Varieties. — No white on the secondary quills. M.
Temminck states that he killed an old Guillemot in the spring, which
had the whole of the back and the caudal feathers mottled with
yellowish-ashy stains.
This species is the Gwilym and Chwilog (the latter term applicable
to the state in which Pennant calls it the Lesser Guillemot) of the
Welsh, and is called Willook in the South of England, Skout in
Yorkshire, and Eiddaw in Cornwall. The number of provincial
names is very great.
This bird is found in the arctic seas of the Old and the New
Worlds ; migratory in winter in large companies along the coasts of
Norway and Englimd ; very common at that time along the shores
of the Baltic and the maritime coasts of Holland and fVance ; more
rarely found " upon our seas and great lakes of the interior." (Tem-
minck.) Spitsbeiven, Lapmark, and the White and Icy seas as
far as Kamtschatka. Along the whole coast of Hudson's Bay,
Labrador, and Newfoundhmd. (NuttalL) The great body of
the American birds of this species winter in the Bay of Fimdy.
(Audubon.)
4 a
112J GUILLKUOTa
In the Britiih lebuid* the; are DumcToua (among other locsimei) in
tlia Orkns}!, on the Bou Rock, the Fun or Frm lata, ths cliffa at
Scarborough, (he Nesdiee and cUffii of the lals of Wight, the OoodeTa
Rocka Qot far from Bt. lies in Commll, and the lals of Frieathobn
eoDtiguouB to the laland of Anglcaej, tc.
Aa adult and a jvong bl
the; leave their clifl^ and there thej seek their food, coniiatiog prin-
cipally of amall Gah, unall marine onutaceaiia, and naall biralrei^
diiiiig with the greatest fadlit;. Thej are with difflcult? rouaed to
flight Earl; in April and Ha;, or at the end ot March, the; begin
to aaaembteyin their faToarite cliffi ui Britain, and la; their eiuele
tmprotected ^g on the flat bare ledge of rock. Thia egg ii generall;
of a pale green, blotched and alained with black and da» brown
(umber). Sonietimfa the egg is while, with or without a few spot*,
it ia a remarkable aight to aee theae birda, where the; abound, aittipg
upon their rgga on their rock; Bhelrea. often in line, and ao close
that the; nearl; touch eaoh other. Aa aoon aa the ;oung nre capable
uf migrating, which ia in A-iiguat, or by ths ecd of that month, the;
are aaid to dinppaar from our ahorea, Mr. Selb;. whoie obeerrationa
are alwa;B valuable, gires the following iutereating acoount of theae
birda: — "Incuhatjon laaU for a month, and when the ;oung are first
eicluded the; are covered with a thick down, of a hladdah-grn;
colour above, and white beneath. Thia graduall; g^vei place to the
regular plumage, and in the courae of five or ail wcrka from the time
of hatching the; are capable of taking to the water. During the time
the; remain upon the rock the parenta auppl; them plentifuU; with
the ;oung of the herring and barring-apratB, whioh form the prin-
dpal food of thjaand other gpeciea belonging to the .4Ica(J<e. Upon
the Northumbrian coast these Guillemota breed in great numbeia on
the Fern lalanda, a locahtj that has afforded me ample opportunitiea
of attending to their eoonom; and watching the changee the; undergo.
The; have aelooted the summita of throe fine isolated pilUrs, or
maaaea of 'whinatone" (trap-rook), that riie upwarda of thirt; feet
above the level of the aea. Upon theae the egffi are laid as oloae •■
poaubia, merel; allowing room for the birds to rit upon them, whioh
the; do 1q an upright position. The appearance the; make in a dense
masi ia mitioua, and the interest Is incresaed b; the number of Kitti-
w«ksa (Lanu tridaOf/hu) whioh hover around, and which breed in
the amsU aide olefta, or on the projeoting angles of the rock; and b;
the oeata of two or three Crested or Green Cormorants, which, from
the imiiBnal oonfidence the; di«pla; in oontinuin^ to ait upon their
agg^ even when overlooked from the opposite precipice at onl; a few
UU1LLEM0T3. JM
jvrds' distance, aeem to bo well aware of the securit; of the atntion
the; have choaen. The great bod; of the breeding birds arrivca
towarda the and of March, or the beginning of April, at which time
most of them have aci^uired the perfect nuptial plamage. 1 have
however obtained them much earlier, and when the white upon the
throat waa only giving place to the pitch-ooloured black that distin-
gniafaea them till after the aeinal intercourse. At this time they
often lose so man; of their qui U-fea there as to be totall; incapable of
Sight; but these are soon reproduced, and the colonies which had
made the Engtiah ooasts their aammer quarters retire to more
aonthem latitudes to pass the winter months. Their place in this
countr; is but sparinglv tnpplied b; a few stragglers from the groat
bodies that, being bred m still higher latitudes, make the firths of
Scotland and its isles the limit of their equatorial migration." (' lUus-
tntions of British Omitholog;,' vol. iL)
Much cannot be said in favour of the flesh of the Foolish Ouitlemot,
though the peo|de of Kamtechatka kill nnmbera of those birds for
food. The principal reason however for the attack upon them arises
from the value of their skins aa an article of clothing to the inhabit-
ants of those cold regions. The eggs seem to be generall; accounted
t'.fjryj/^ the Black Guillemot. Description of both saies incomplete
winter plumage. — Summit of the head, nape, and all the upper pnrta,
with the exception of the middle of the wings, of a rather deep
black ; the w^nI^;overta forming a large white space, or speculum.
Cheeks and all the lower parts from bill to tail pure white; irides
red.* Bill block ; interior of the mouth and feet bright red. Length
from hill to claws about 18 inches. In this FtateH. Temminok, whose
deicription we have selected, sa;B that U. minor ilriala of Brissoii,
U. Baitiai and V. Grylleidtt of Briinnich, are individuals in different
stages of moulting, passing from winter plumage to that of siimmer;
that the Spotted Qreonland Dove of Edwards (' Olean.,' t. GO) is a
very exact figure of a moulting individual; and that the Spotted
Guillemot of Uie 'British Zoology' and Latham ('Syn.') are varieties
or different states of the autumnal and spring moults.
Black OnilleBut ( JTHa OrylU).
An sdoll and a jtiaat bird.
Young of the Year.^Throat, breast, and the 'lower parts, white ;
summit of the head, nape, lower part of neck and aidea of the breast^
blackish, spotted with gray and white ; back and rump of a dusky
black, some of the scapulan and feathers of the rump terminated
with whitish ash ; wings black, with the exception of the speculum,
which ia white, but marked with ash; or blackish stains ; inside of the
mouth and feet livid reddish; iris blackish-brown.t In this Btat«
• TemmiDck h^s brown; but Ur. Oonld (• Birds of Europe') describes and
BruTs them as red in tlie ailolc, and tU* ve believe to be rigbt.
t In out eop7 of Friub the iila is eoloDTed red. Ia Mr. Oeold's • BItda ot
Esrape • the Itlt 1* bnnrnlsb, IseUniot ta oUve, snd the feet are jsllowisb.
1125
GUILLKMOTS.
GUILLEMOTS.
1136
there is a very fKitUful figure of the biixi in Frisch, ' Vog. Deutach./
1. 185 (Temminck).
Summer Plumage, or Nuptial Dress. — Male. — The whole plumage,
the middle of the wing alone excepted, of a sooty-black ; wing coverts
forming a laige space or speculum of pure white. Bill black, ^e
inside of it and the feet bright red.
Female. — Rather less. The black of the plumage less deep, and
the white of the plumage less extended and lees pure. At the periods
of the two moults white feathers in more or less quantity are visible
on the under parts of both sexes. M. Temminck, who gives this
description, refers to the following synonyms and works as illustra-
tive of this state of plumage, and some of its stages : V* OryUe, Lath. ;
Colymbua OrylU, GmeL (Linn. ?) ; Columba C/raenlandica, Brvsa. ; Le
Petit Guillemot Noir, Bufi^ ;* Black Guillemot, Lath. ('Syn.'); Penn.
*Brit ZooL,' p. 188, t H. 4, an individual preserving some of the
feathers of its youth; Penn. 'Arct Zool.,' p. 616, No. 487 — ^Edw.,
' Glean.,' t. 60. ; Der Schwarze Lumme, Becbst, ' Naturg. Deutsch,'
V. iv. p. 686 — Meyer, * Taschenb.,' vii p. 446 — Meyer, 'Yog. DeutechL,'
V. i—Heft, 18, t 8 and 4— Naum, ' Vog.,' t. 64, No. 6. f. 100, very
old male.
M. Temminck remarks that the indications of the pretended species,
Cephui Zoctoo/fM (Pallas, 'Spic' v. 6, p. 83), which Lauiam has recorded
as his Uria Uuteola (* Ind.' v. 2, p. 798, sp. 8)— CbZym&ta laeteoUu
(Gmel) — ^have reference to an individual in its winter plumage, acci-
dentally variegated with white; and that this albino was obtained by
Pallas on the maritime coasts of Holland.
Mr. Selby observes that from the short description given by Cuvier of
his genus Uephus, in the ' Rdgne Animsl,' it is evident that the Rotdie,
or Little Auk, of some of our writers (AlcaAUe) is there considered
to be its typical representative, and not the Black Guillemot ; and,
he observes, this appears still more evident from the note at the
bottom of the same page, in which (after adverting to the figures of
the Lesser and Spotted Guillemots in the second volume of Pennant's
' British Zoology,' pL 88) Cuvier says, ** Ces sont des Ghiillemots pro-
prement dita. Au contraire, VAlca AUe, Penn. ('British Zoology,' 11,
pi. 82, 1 ; Albin, 1, 86), appartient aux Cephut" Mr. Selby goes on
to remark that Dr. Flemmg has however appropriated this generic
term to the Black Guillemot, making the distinction between it and
l/ria to consist in the want of a terminal notch in the upper mandible ;
but as this character does not appear to be constant^ Mr. Selby having
seen some specimens with the notch, though not so fully developed
as in the Foolish Guillemot, he has retained it in the situation where
it was originally placed by Dr. Latham.
The note alluded to by Mr. Selby is in the first edition of the
* R^e Animal ;' but in Cuvier^s last edition (1829), which Mr. Selby
does not appear to have seen, the note is omitted. In this edition
the generic appellation " Cephut (Yulg. Golombes de Greenland) " is
retained with the same characters, but the subsequent part is veiy
much altered, for it stands thus in the last-mentioned edition : —
" The species most known, called Petit Guillemot^ or Pigeon de Groen-
land {Colymbtu minor, Gm. EnL 917; Mergviua AUe, Vieill., Gal. 296;
'Brit. ZooL' pi. H. 4, f. 1 ; Edw. 91 ; Naum. Ist ed. 66, f. lOt), of the
size of a gocKi pigeon, is black above, white below, with a white mark
on the wing as in the Guillemot Its biU is black and its feet are red.
It inhabits all tbe coasts of the north, and nestles under ground
(' niche sous terre'). We see it also sometimes in winter." Notwith-
standing the confusion in the passsge just quoted, and some parts of
the description, references, ana alleged nidification which can hardly
be made to apply to the Little Auk, or Rotche, it seems probable
that Cuvier meant to take that bird, as Mr. Selby observes, as the
type of his genus Cephue.
It is also called the Black Greenland Dove, Sea-Turtle, or Dovekey,
by the northern voyagers ; is the Sesekesewuck of the Cree Indians,
and Gwylim dd Eas gan longwr of the Welsh.
It inhabits the same countries as Uria Troile ; migratory during
winter along the borders of the ocean ; more rarely seen on land than
Uria Troile, and then only by accident; very rare in the seas and
lakes of the interior. (Temminck.) Widely distributed in the arctic
circle, and met with in very high latitudes, inhabiting all the icy
regions of Europe and North America. (Selby.) Abounds in the
atctic seas and straits from Melville Island down to Hudson's Bay,
and remains, though in diminished numbers, all the winter in the
pools of open water, which occur even in high latitudes among the
floes of ice. Small flocks extend their migrations, in that season, as
far south as the United States. (Richardson.)
Mr. Selby observes that in the northern parts of Scotland and its
isles this is a numerous species, but becomes of rarer occurrence as
we approach the English coast, where indeed it is but occasionally met
with. ** Although Montagu," continues Mr. Selby, " has mentioned it
as resorting 'to the Fam Islands, and Mr. Stephens has repeated the
same, I can safely assert that this has not been the case for the last
twenty-five or thirty years, having been in the habit of visiting this
group of islands almost annually during that period ; and had it been
a visitant I feel confident it could not have escaped my observation,
or that of the keepers of the lighthouse, who reside there. It cer-
tainly breeds, though in very small proportion, upon the Isle of May,
• M. Temminck tpeaks of Boffon't deseriptioii as being eorreet, bat not so
tbe figure in the * Planehes enlnmin^es* (917).
at the mouth of the Frith of Foi-th, but 14 not fouud ia large cou^i-m-
gated numbers till we reach the vicinity of the Orkney and Shetland
isles. In these parts it is resident throughout the year, never migrating
to the same extent as the preceding species {uria Th'oile) and the
Razor-Bill Auk. Its habits are veiy similar to those of its congeners,
and it is rarely seen upon land, except for the purpose of incubation.
It breeds in the crevices or on the ledges of rocks, whence it can
readily drop into the water or get upon wing, and lays a* single egg,
of a grayish-white, speckled with black and ash-gray. Its food consists
of fish, OrueiaeecB {Cfnuiacea), &c." So far Mr. Selby, with whose
accuracy as an observer we have often had occasion to be satisfied.
Mr. Gould moreover speaks of its depositing on the ledges of the rocks
" its single egg." We mxist however now let one of the most inde-
fatigable observers speak for himself, more especially as his account
differs so essentially from those above mentioned, and indeed from
those of most other authors, except NuttalL "Wherever," savs
Audubon, " there are fissures in the rocks, or great piles of blocks
with holes in their interstices, there you may expect to find the Black
Guillemot Whether European writers have spoken of this species at
random, or after due observation, I cannot say ; all I know is, that
eveiy one of them whose writings I have consulted savs tiiat the Black
Gtiillemot lays only one egg. As I have no reason whatever to doubt
their assertion, I might be tempted to suppose that our species differs
from theirs, were I not perfectly aware that birds in different places
will construct different nests, and lay more or fewer eggs. Our species
always deposits three, unless it may have been disturbed; and this
fact I have assured myself of by having caught the birds in more than
twenty instances sitting on that number. Nay, on several occasions,
at Labrador, some of my party and myself saw several Black Guille-
mots sitting on eg^ in the same fissure of a rock, where every bird
had three eggs under it ; a fact which I communicated to my friend
Thomas NuttalL What was most surprising to me was, that even
the fishermen there thought that this bird laid only a single egg ; and
when I asked them how they knew, they simply and good-naturedly
answered that they had heard so." The same graphic author address-
ing the reader tells him, in order to satisfy himself, to go to the desolate
shores of Labrador. " There," continues the American ornithologist,
" in the vernal month of June, place yourself on some granite rock,
against the base of which the waves dash in impotent rage ; and ere
long you will see the gay Guillemot coming from afar by the side of
its mate. They shoot past you on fluttering wings, and suddenly
disappear. Go to the place ; lay yourself down on the dripping rock,
and you will be sure to see the birds preparing their stony nest, for
each has brought a smooth pebble in its bill. See how industriously
they are engaged in raising this cold fabric into the 'form of a Irue
nest before the female lays her eggs, so that no wet may reach them
from the constant trickling of the waters beneath. Up to the height
of two or three inches the pebbles are gradually raised : the male
stands by his beloved ; and some morning when you peep into the*
crevice you observe that an egg has been deposited. Two days after
you will find the number complete." (' Ornithological Biography,'
vol. iil)
Captain Sir James Ross, R.N., who in March 1823 shot near Igloolik
the specimen described by Sir John Richardson, says that one indi-
vidual only was obtained by the expedition during the winter, although
several others were seen off Fury Point in February, 1883. It was, he
adds, subsequently met with in great numbers as they travelled along
the high precipitous land between Fury Point and Batty Bay, where
the biids congregated in vast quantities during the breeding season,
affording to the party many delicious meals, and proving a valuable
addition to their then scanty stock of provisions. Several thousands
were shot by their sportsmen; and by means of this providential
supply of fresh food several of the men, who had been long afiiicted
with that most dreadful malady the sea-scurvy, were restored to health.
Captain Sir J. Ross adds that it is not equal in flavour to Uria Troile,
but is much more numerous and more extensively dispersed along the
coasts of the arctic seas.
The species of this genus are but few. Speaking of Uria ladvry*
mane, the Bridled Guillemot, Mr. Gk>uld, in his ' Birds of Europe,'
where it is beautifully figured, states that he is doubtful of its specific
value, as it bears so close a resemblance to U Troile, from which it
differs only in the white mark which endrcles the eyes and passes
down the sides of the head. It inhabits the same localities as
U. Troile, and is even often found in company with it on various parts
of our coast, particularly in Wales, where Mr. Gould has been informed
both kinds are equally numerous. He remarks that it was first
described as distinct by Choris, who states that it is abundant at
Spitzbei^gen and in the neighbouring seas; and adds that M.
Temminck and the French naturalists consider these two Uria
distinct.
U, Bnmnichii, Briinnich's Guillemot, the Thick-Billed Guillemot
The distinctions of this species have been well pointed out by Colonel
Sabine in his memoir on the birds of Greenland. It is at once
distinguished at any season of the year from the Common GuiUemot
by the shortness, stoutness, regularity, and greater depth of its bilL
It is on this aooount that it has been called the Thick-Billed Guillemot.
This bird is recorded to have been occasionally seen in the British
Islands. It has the habits of the Common Guillemot
;ij: OUINKA-FOWL.
OUINEA-FOWL. [PivoHiBi]
OUINEA-PEPFER, the seedi of two ipsdfB of Amoatum, found
on tha weat eoait of Africn, vithin the tropica; the one, A. gratia
Paradiai; iiie othir, A. gyand\flora». Theytra powerfullf uomktia,
stimuluit, ftnd cordul, uid ue lued br the game purposee aa
Cardunoms.
OUINEA-PIQ (Can's Cobaya, Rertleu C>tt), tha wsll-knowu
Brvalimi rodent noir domealjcated iu Europe. [HraTBIClDA]
QUINEA-WORM, [Entozo*.]
QULL. [Lakidjl]
aULO. tha generic name under which the Glutton, or Wolvarane,
uid the Qruon (Galklii of Bell), with other Camiforoui ooDgenera,
have heeo arranged.
M. F. Cuvier, in the Sia\ number of hi* 'Deota dea Mammifiree,'
lava that he might have treated of the Oriaon, the Tayra ((7. barbatut
of Deamareat), and the Qlutton, in hia preceding article, where he
treata of the dentition of tha PutolB {Putorim of Q. Cuvier), Zorille
(Zoi-ilfa), and Martee {MatieoB] j for he rapiarka, the dental arnnge-
nicnt of the Orison and Tayra reeembte that of Putoriut, and that of
the OriaoD is similar to tha formula ohserved in Martea. The tvo
first, he states, have two fslse molora aboia and three helow, and the
last haa an additiooal one in each jaw. For the rast, these animals
have nothing iu their teeth to distinguish them; that is to say, he
continues, they hare the aame inciaivea, the aame csnioes, and tha
same tubercular teeth. They have consequently all a relish for blood,
and could not be aeparated from each other were it not for the
plaatigrade feet of the Orison, the Tayn, and the Oluttoa, an oi^ni-
satioQ which does Dot however change their propcnaitiee, and only
loads to the modificalioa of the meani by which they satisfy their
The dental formula of the group baa beea stated aa follows : —
aOLO.
IIM
Iu<
'he dental formula of the group baa h
6— S
6—5' '
T. - 84 0.
The WBll-derelopad caniivoroua dentitiou, united with the planti-
gnde foot, seems to hare thrown a difficulty in tha way of loologiata, ,
aa to the proper plaisa of theae animala ia a natural arrangemeat.
LinnEBUS plaoed the Quickhatch ( f/rws lutau) among the Bean ;
but ha appear* to have conaidered the Qlutton of the old ooDtineut
not only as a diSercDt epeciui', butaa > differeut form, under tha name
of ifmltta Gulo. This species is preceded by the M, itUrit, M, intra,
li. liitnvla and li. iarftoro—tbo latter the Qalera of Browne, Jam. (t) ;
and at the end of the desoription of M. 0<iia Linnteua inquire!
whether a]l these aperiea ought not to be referred to the genua
Viverra. " Cum fata mihi denegarint prmmissaa species intueri riraa,
Tideant alii numne ad Vivamia referri dabeantj hoc suadet Lutm
ataturs ; hoc Oulonis fselor, soanaura arborum, summa laniena."
('8yst.Nat,'ed. 12.)
Baron Cuvier {1817-1S29) DOtlcei the poaition among the Bean
assigned to tha Glutton by '■l<i''T"", but does not allude to ita place
among the Muilcla of Lintuaus, though he obserrea that tha Gluttons
approach more to the Hartena in thiuT dentitiou as well as in their
general nature, while they only ahow their proximity to the Basra bj
their plantigrade feet. They have, he olMervas, three false moUrs
above and one below in front of the carnivorons tooth <camaaai^),
and behind it a small tubercular tooth, which in tha upper jaw i*
wider than it ia long. The upper carnivorous tooth has onlj one
small internal tubercle, and this, he remarks, is very Dearly the danta]
system of tha Uartens. Ua concludes by stating that the Gluttona
Dr. J. E. Qrsy (' Aonala of Philoaophy,' 1S2S) divides tha Urtida,
the aecond of hia five familiea of the order Pera, into five sub-
families. The third of theae aub-families, which he plaoea in his
second section {tubercular grinder 1 — 1 above and below), ia Onloniixa,
and consista of the genera Atlo, Rata ; Gale^ Browne; A-tMntia, Qiayj
and itMvota, Storr.
M- Lesson (182T), in hia 'Manual,' arranges the genua OuIo, Beti^
between the Badgers and the Batel {SfelUmii'a, Storr.) ; and be gives
the following definition of the genus : — " Feet pentadactjie ; two
fblda of skm, but no pouidi near Uie vent; body mora or leaa
slender (effild), more or lesa elevated on the less ; tail rather
abort." The dental formula stated by LeasoD ia tfie aame aa that
abov.
pveu.
Dr. Fischer (1829) pUwea Onto between Mydatu and .^ilxnta.
Hr. SwaioBon, in bis ' ClaBaiQoation of Quadrupada' (ISSG), says,
" In it* general appearance and physiology the Otter is not unlika the
ordinary Polecats ; aud the reaemblanca is iljll further stresigthened
by the latter having scmipalmnted or half-webbed toes, and oeca-
aicnally frequenting the waler in aearch of fiah. On the other hand,
the Qnason (Orison), OtUo nUata (villatiu), and the Taira, 0. boriara
(ioriarwi), now placed among the Oluttons, have their feet also aemi-
palmated ; and, observes M. Cuvier, it appears they have eometimas
been mistaken for ottem. We may thoa terminate the aeries of the
Miutdma irith tha genus Ovlo, which, although plantigrade, appears
to have an affinity to the Polecata through LtUra, while at the same
time it may open a passage to tha Badgers and Bear*." In tha same
page Ur. Swamaon writes, " It will be a question for future inrsati-
gation whether the Gluttons (t?ub), the RatteU (Ratela), Ratclui, aud
the Bodgera {Miltt), form the aberrant portion of tha Ursine circle,
or whether they merely represent the Be<u«, and enter into the circle
of the MtuteUda. For the preaent wa may consider the two laat in
the former light, and thus pasa onnard to the sub-family of ^rtiair,
typically dlatinguished from all other* of the MuaUliiia by their
great size, their omnivorous diet, and their abort tails." In the third
part of the work, "the claaa JUanmaiia arranged according to ita
natural affinitiea," Onto ia placed among the Huttdina, a sub-family
which is preceded by Vivtrinit (Ftvemwil), and followed 1^
The apeoies of (Title noted by Cuvier are :— 1, the Glutton (I/mt*
GiUa, not of Linnaus, aa Cuvier quotes it, but of Pallaa and Omolin)
of the old coutiueut, which, Cuvier observes, does not appear to differ
fhim the Glutton of North America (^rnts ttuciu of Liunaua);
2, the Orison ( riiwrni vitlala, not, aa Cuvier quotes it, of LinntBus,
who has no auch species of Ftasrra in hia last edition of tha ' Syalema
Katurv,' but of Qmelin) ; and 3, tha Taira, or Tayra {Ittuttla barbara
Lesson admita the following species of (TvIotks .- — O. arclictu of
Desmarast; Urnt Gula, Linn. (OmeL), ^, the Qlutton, with Umit
luteru, Linn., aa a variety; 0. vUtalut of Deamarestj Vivtrra viUaia,
Linn. (QmeL), luL, the Orison; 0. barbatui of Deamareat ; MialtU
barbala {barbara), Linn. ; the Tslra, or Oalera, Grand Fure^ of
D'Azara ; and 0. itfifniatu of Uorafiald, Nientek of the Javanese.
Dr. Fischer makes tba reoent spedes consist of O, arttictu, Daain.,
O. viUalui, Desm., 0. barbalut. Deem., O. laaatia and O. Captntu,
Desm. (the Ratal), obaerving that tbia last would be better removed
to a distioot genua, and making thia genenl remark on the whole
generic aieemblage — " Genua e apeciebua nimis heterogeneia uti videtur
couSatum." In his addenda he introduces 0. larealut, Temm. and
Hamilton Smith, and Q. ferrugintui, Hamilton Smith,
Tha Orison has been separated into a genus, named Oalictii by Hr.
Bell, and Qntoraa by Dr. Gray, who alao diatinguiahea the Tayra
, generically under tha name of Oalrra, Browne ; and obsenea, on the
occaaion of defining his genus ifsUAu ('ZooL Proix,' 1831), that the
Gtilo ortmtofu ofDr. Horsfield's 'Zoologies] Bnaenrehas in Java'
appeaiB to him to form a second species of tha genus.
Palhu, and after him Pennant, who both anauged the form among
tbs B«an, tntt tba Qlatton of the old and tlut of iba Dew oontioeDt
(u idaDtickl; uid indeed coologiet* eeem now to agree fa ooming to
that conoltuion, but the synonTma affbrd sood evidence o( the
iliKreDoe of opinion that has prevailed with r^ard to its proper
peaition.
The aintton (Oifo hifCM) U the Carciyoa of La Hontan and the
French Caoadiani; Quiokhatch {Umda affinii Anurieana) of Cateiby
(Carolina) ; Quiokahatch of the Eogliah reaideota at Hudson's Bar ;
Qnickhatch, or Wolrerane, of Ellia ; WoWanne of Pennant ; WalvenD,
(juiqitibatch, or Carcajou, of Oraham (manuacripta) ; Kablee-arioo of
the Esquimaiii of Meldlla Pemnaula ; Kt IS wfisk of the Eaquimaiu
of Boothia Felix; }Tagha)-eh of the Chippewayi ; Omcneetbataeea,
Okeeooohasew, and Oheeooohawgeea (whenoe, aa Sir John Righardaan
obaenea, tfie term Quickhatch of the European bbouran in the
aerrice of the Hndaon'a Bay Company ia evidently derived), of the
Creea, or AlKonquioa ; Roaomak of the Riuaiana ; Jarf, Filfreee, of the
'FaunaSueciea';TimmiofthB Kamtachatkaju; Haeppioftbe Koratzki;
Olauton of the Freooh ; O^o of Olaua Hagnua ; OmIo, VielfraaB, of
Qemer ; Bgana and I/mu J'rtti Hudtanit of Briiaon ; Mtutda (hiio
and Uthu Uurut of Linnniu; Vrra Onto of Pallas and Qmelin;
Taxvi Gulo of Tiedemann ; Onto arvtieiu ot Dssmarest ; Giiio vtilgarit
of Qriffith'i Cuvier ; OtUe lutm* of Babine.
>[ GlutI
a (Cxlo Im,
Olaua Magnui
aeemi to have been the eouroe whenoe moat aueoeed-
. B drawn their marvalloua aocounta of the Glutton,
■etting forth ita cruel and destructive powers, its inordinate voracity,
and the means which it adopts far filling itself till it is ready to buret,
and for getting rid of the load which it liaa swallowed. Bi^on, who,
too proue to cenaure other writers, and even nature herself, appears
to have had almost the appetite of a Pliny for every wonderful tale,
eloquently presents the relationa of the older writen, not tbrgettiog
Yhbrsndt, deaoribjag the Olutton aa a ferooioui aniinal, prompt to
attack the larger quadrupeda. and even fearleaaly approaohiiig man.
He telle ua that the wily beast auppUee the want of awiftneaa by the
extraordinary degree of cunning which it manifaata in aurpriaing ita
prey ; be relatea bow it will climb a tree, and there lie in ambuah
for ibe elk and the nin-deer, pouncing on their baoka aa they paas
unsuapiciously beneath, and adhering so firmly by ita daws, that all
t fTorte to dislodge the grim rider by the tcrtuied and terrified animal
are vain. Nor is this all; it is said even to bait the ground by
throwing down the moas which is so favourite a morael with the rttn-
deer, to lurs that animal to its deatruction. So mueh for legenda.
Turn we now to the aecounts of actual obserrera. 9ir John Kiobard-
f on remarks that this chaiacter of tbe Glutton seema to be entirely
fictitiQus, ' - ' --
itulat^J'
Wolveren
d to have partly originated in the name of Glotlflu having
oocasionally to Lynxea and Slotha, adding, after recap-
« verj
a the habita of the
liuSbn's name of tihe 'Quadruped Vulture,' aa applicable to the
Glutton, has more foundation in fact, for it appeara to prej occasion-
ally at least upon the dead bodies of quadrupeda; but ao much
cannot be said for his repelition of the asseitioD that the beast will
approach man without feai — unless indeed it fa sorely preaaed by
Sir John Richardson states that the Wolverene feeds chiefly npon
tbe earcaaaea ot beasta which have been killed by accident, that it haa
great strength, and that it annoys the natives bj destroying their
hoards of provision, and demolishang their mart«i traps.
Mr. Orabam in his manuuripta informs us that the Wi
citi-emely mischievoua, and that they do more dam
OULO. iwo
fur trade than all the other acimals conjointly. They will, he states,
follow the marten-hunt«r'B path rouud a line of trape extending
iO, CO, or 60 milea, and render tbe whole onserviceabla, merely to
come at the baiU, which are generally the bead of a partridge or a
hit ot dried venison. They are not food of the martens themselves,
but never fail of tearing them in pieces or of burying tbem in the
snow by the aide of the path, at a considerable distuoefrom the trap.
Drifts of snow often conceal Che repoaitories thus made of the martens
at the eipenae of the hunter, in which case they furnish a regale for
the hungry fox, whose sagacious nostril suides lum unerringly to the
spot ; and two or three fuzes are often seen following the WulTereoe
for this purpose.
Such IS Mr. Gnham'a interesting and, we believe, faithful account
of tbe habits of the Wolverene. Hay not the attendant foiee have
given rise to the story that the arctic fox is the jackal, or provider
pieoes, scatters the logs of which it ia biult, and then ames off the
bait. It feeds also on meadow mice, marmota, and other rodentia,
and occasionally on disabled quadrupeds of a larger tlie. I have>seen
one chasing an jLmerican hare, whioh waa at the same time hansaed
bya snowy owL It reaemblea the bwr in its gait, and is not fleet;
but it is very induatrioos, and no doubt feeds well, as it Is generally
fab It is much abroad in the winter, and tbe track of ita journey in
a single night may be often tmced for many miles. From the ahort-
,neas of ita legs, it makes its way through loose snow with difficulty,
but when it falls upon the beaten track of a marten-trapper, it wit]
pursue it for a long way." ('Fauna Boreali-Americana.') The same
author remarks that the Wolverene ia said to be a great destroyer of
beavers, but that it must be only in summer, when those industrious
animals are at work on land that it can surprise them ; for sn attempt
to break open their house in winter, even suppoajog it possible for the
claws of a Wolverene to penetrate the thiok mud-wslls when frosen
aa hard as stone, would only have t^e eflect of driving the beavera
into tbe water to seek for aheller in their vaulta on the borders of the
dam. He further tells ua that though the Wolverene is reported to
defend itself with boldness and success agtunst the attack of other
quadrupeda, it fliea ttom the face of man, and makes but a poor fight
with a hunter, who requiree no other arms than a stiok to kill it
CaptaJn Sir James Ross (Appendix to Sir John Boss's ' Last
Voyage') gives a striking Darratire of the boldness of the species
when urged by famine. Tbe incident happened at Victoria harbour.
" There," writea the gnllant captain, " in the middle of the winter,
two or three meotha before we abandoned the ship, we were one day
Biupriaed by a visit from one, which, pressed hard by hunger, had
climbed the anow-wall that surrounded our venel, and came boldly
on deck, where our craw were walking for exeniiae. Undismayed at
the presence of twelve or fourteen men, he aeiied upon a oaniater
which had some meat in it, and waa in so ravenous a state thatwhilat
busily engaged at his feast he suffered me to pass a nooae over his
head, by which he waa immediately aeoured and strangled. By dia-
oharging the oontents of two secretory organs, it emitted a most
insupportable stench. These secretory vessels are about the siie of
a walnut, and discharge a fluid of a ysllowish-lmiwn oolour, and of
the consistence of honey, by the rectum, when hard prasead by its
The Wolverene produoas young one* a year, in oumber from two
to four, and the cubs are covered with a downy fur of a pale cream
ooiour. (Richardaon.)
shorea of the PaoiBa and the ialands of Alaaka. It even viaita the
ialands of the Polar Sea, ita bones having beeo (buod in Melville
Island, nearly in latitude 7G°. It is not rare in Canada. The extent
of range to the southward it not mentioaed by Ameriean writers.
(Richardson.)
Sir Jamas Roas ramarka that aome traces of the existenoe of
the Wolverene in the highest northern latitudes were observed
on two of the Arctic expeditiona : but none of the anlmala were
seen on thuae oooasions ; although, he obserrea, we know thai it
remaina throughout Uie winter as fkr north as 70* N. lat, and is not,
like other «n™«l« of that rigorous climate, subject to any change of
oolour from the intense oald. A few days previous to the arrival of
the Eaquimauz near Fells Harbour, in January 1830, the tracks of
this an&nal were flrat aasn ; and aoon after the akins of two old and
two yonng ones were brought to the ship by the natives, who had
taken thrai in ti^ia built of atone. During each of the fallowing
winters their tr«aks were oooaaionally seen, and at Victoria Harbour
Pennant notea it aa inhabitbg Lapland, the northern and eastern
parte of Siberia, and Eamtschatka.
Lesson states that it inhabits a complete circle round the north polo.
In Eorope and Asia, aa well as Amsrios.
Ws have seen what mitohiaf the Glutton does to the tispper, and
the akin of the animal doea not compensate for Its deatmetive habits.
Pennant bs^b that the skin sold in Siberia for four or six shUliuga ; at
Yakutsk for twelve ahillingi ; and still deaiw in KamtBchatka, wher*
lUl GULO,
tlo women drew their hair nith iU white pnw<, wbich thay recboa n
Kreat arDuneot. The fur, he ndda, it gnatlj erteemed in Europe, nnd
he lenurka that the ikjna of the north of Europe and Aula, which
are loinetiine* to be aeen in the fiirriern' ■bopi, are iaRnitelj finer,
hlacker, and mora glowy than those from AiQfnca. Sir John Richard-
■on aaja tiiat the fur ot the American Glutton bean a great Bimilaritv
to that of the black Var, bat that it is not >o long nor of ao much
The head of tbii animal ii broad and compact, snddenlj rounded
off OD erery aide to form the note ; Java reaembliag thoae of a dog io
shape; back arched; taillow and buaby ; leg* thick and short ; whole
oupeot indicating strength without much activity. Fur generally
dark-brown, paseing in t^e height of winter almoet into black. A pale
red dish brown band, more or lesa dietinet, and aocietimeB fading into
aniled brownitli-white, commencea behind the ahoulder, and running
along the flanks turns up on ttie Lip and unites with its fellow on the
rump; the short tall thickly covered with long black hair; some
white markings, not constant in aize or number, on the throat and
between the fore legs ; legs brownish-black ; claws strong and sharp.
Sir John Kichardson, from whose work (• Fauna Boreali- Americana")
the above description is taken, adds that the animal places il« feet on
the ground much in the manner of a bear, and imprints a track on
the snow or sand, which is often mistaken for that of the bear by
Europeans en their firat arrival in the Fur Countries ; but the Indian*
distinguish the tracks at the first glance by the length of the itepa.
It baa the following dimensions : —
Feet. loobn. •
I.clrgth'of liend and body 2 6
Length of tail (vertebrte) 0 7
Length of tail with fur 0 10
The Orison, Gido viltalut of Dearmarest, Vitara viltala ot Schreber
and Omelin, ^Ura villata of Trailt, Urnu BratUUatit of Thanberg, and
GaliclU villala of BelL The anatomy of this animal has been made
known to us by Mr. Mattin, who, in Uie ' Zoological Proceedinga' for
1S3S, states the resalts of the post mortem examination of a male which
had bren kept in the Gardens at the Regent's Park. Tbe animal,
trom the note to the insertion of the tail, measured 1 foot 6 inches,
and the t«l was 6i iucbes in length. The intostiDes, as in the
Mvltlida generally, exhibited no division into small and large, eicept
that the rectum became gradually increased in circumference; their
total length was i feet S inches. Hie stomach, when moilerately
inflated, measured lOi inohea in its greatest oiroumforence, ?" '
itsgreater, nnd> inches along its lesser curve. The omentum
and irregularly puckered together. At about S inches from the
anus commenced a group of tiiickly crowded mucous follicles,
ing a space of i inchea in length. The anus was famished with two
Inlands, each of the site of a nutmeg, and containing a fluid of the
consistence and colour of liquid honey, and of a most intolerable
odour; the orifice or duct of these glands opened just within the
verge of the anus. Tho liver naa tripartite, the middle portion being
divided into one large and one small lobe ; on the nnder side of the
laigD lobe, in a deep furrow, was situated tjie gall-bladder, ot a moder-
ate eixe and somewhat elongated form. The biliary secretion entered
the duodenum an inch and a half below the pylorus, Tbe pancreas was
long, flat, and narrow ; beginning in a curved form near the pylorus,
and following the course of the duodenum for about i inches. The
The heart was of an obtuse figure, measuring an inch and a half in length
and an inch in breadth. The primary branches of the aorta were, lat,
a right branch, or arleria innominato, which, running for a quarter of
an inch, gave off the two carotida and the right tub-olavian ; and,
2nd, a left branch, pasing to form the right subclavian. The
epiglottis was acuminate, and in close approximation to the tongue,
wliicb was tolerably smooth, with a cresoent of distinct fussulate
papilla: at ite base. The os hyoitles was united by a succession of
four bones on each side to the skulL The kidneys were of an oval
form, the right being half its length higher than the lefl ; length of
each an inch and a half. The tubuli entered the pelvis of the kidney by a
single large conical papilla. Bupra-rer.ol glands smalL The testes
each as large ssa stnsJl nutmeg; Uie cremaster muscle, embracing tbe
spermatic cord ss it emerges from the ring, very distinct. The psnis
had been injured in removing tho ikin of the animal ; ita length from
the pubes was about 3( inches, and its muscles wera very distinct It
contained, as in the dog, a slender bone, If inch long, rather stout at
its commencement, then narrowing as it proceeded till near the apex,
when it suddenly bent at an obtuae angle, giving off at this part two
small processes. The distance of the prost&te from tbe bladder was
au inch and a half.
The habits of the Orison an very sanguinary, and it is a great
destroyer of the smaller quadrupeda It inhabits the greater part of
South America, but more particularly Guyana and Paraguay. Dr.
Kennger notes both it and Qalo iorfranu among the plantigrade
Canitara of Paraguay, where both species are called Yaguapa
Tbe bead is rather large ; ears broad and short Body very much
elongated ; fur abore deep brown, each hair lipped with white, which
gilts 0 gray or hoary aspect to the upper parts. A broad white line
OUM-KESIKS.
'■i*.^
There it a notica tn the ' Zoological Proceedings ' for 183l}-31 of the
eihilntion of a living quadniped nferrible to Oaio barbarut. It ma
presented to the Society by Edmonstone Hodgkinson, Esq., of Trinidad,
who described it ss being " playful and gentle, although easily exdtad
and very voracious. It is exceedingly strong, as is indicated by ita
shape; and it has tho same antipathy to water as a cat." Hr.
Hodgkinson suspected it to be a native of Peru. He obtuned it in
Venciuais, where it was presented to him by the preaident, Oeneral
Paea. The name he received with it waa the Quacbe; but this
appellation, it was observed by Ur. Bennett, waa probably erreneoasly
applied to the present animal, belonging rather to the Coat!, tbe
orthography of wbich is variously given as Coati, Conati, Qunsje,
Quaohi, and GuachL The latter form, it ik remarked, occurs in the
' Personal Narrative ' of the Baron Von Humboldt, where it evidently
refers to a nootumal speciea of Noma. The form and general appear-
together with the typical OiUo barbanu. A specimen of the latter
was placed upon tbe table, from which the living animal was shown
to differ by tbe absence of the large yellow spot beneath the neck: a
remarkable distjnction in this group, bat on Uie occmrence of which,
unless confirmed by several spedmens, it was considered improper to
propose regarding it as a distinct species.
There is a figure and description of the Galera, referred to by Lin-
naius for his MvtUia tarbara, in Browne's ' Jamuca,' p. 485, tab. i9.
Bivwne calls it tbe QaUra, or Ooinea Foi, and says that it is often
brought to Jamaica fkim tbe coasts of Ouinea (Guyana t), where it is
a native, and frequent enough about nil the negro settlements. It is,
he says, of the siss of a small rabbit or cat, and vei'y strong in its fare
feet, which are much shorter than the hinder. [Uusreuna.]
Fossil Gluttons have been detested in the ossiferous caverns ; GiUo
fpeteiu<aoldfuss), for instance, hsa been found in those of Oailenreuth,
and Sundwick, in Westphalia. Prefessor Ksup also records another
eitiaot species, OiUii atitedilmiatnii <Kaup), from the Epplesheim
Sand.
GUU, a vegetable sabalance frequenlJy met with in the tissaes of
plants. It exudes from some phmta in large quantities, especially the
species of Aeaeia [Acaoia], and is collected for commercial and
medicinal purposes. [OuH, in Ahiv ajiD So. Div.] In a pure state
gam is clear, and when dry it is brittle like glass. It is soluble in
water and dilute adds, but not so in ether, alcohol, and volaUle and .
fixed oiU The action of alcohol makes it homy, and it is coloured
pale ydlow by iodine. Its composition is nbarly identical with starch
and dextrine. Berzelius makai it C„ H,, 0,„ and HUlder C„
H,o 0,0, It closely reeembUs dextrine, and through it is allied to
starch. The substances called Ceraiin, Arabin, and Vegetable Hudlage,
seem to be modiflcaUons of gum. The principal difference between
gum and dextrine consists in the fact that by the action of dilute
salpburic acid, or diastase, tbe latter is converted into grape-sugar,
which is not the case with gum. Oum seams to originate with
dextrine. JDextbihs; StabOH.]
QUM-RFSINS an substances found in planU in which Oum and
Resin are mixed together in various proportions. Some familiea of
plants, as the UMb<llifcra, an remukable for exuding these sub-
stanoss, Ammoniaoum, Aasafojtida, Sanpenimi, and Oalbanam, are
examples. Th^ frequeotly contaOn uTied with them a Tolatile oil
1193
GUMTRAOACANTH.
GYMNOOENS.
1131
which gives to them a medicinal yalue. rOuM-BssiiiB, in Arts akd
Sc. Div.]
GUM-TRAGACANTH. [AerBAOALUs.]
GUM-TREE. [EucALTPTUB.]
GUMS. [DsNTmoN; Txbth.]
GUNNELL. ^UILBKOIDBS.]
GURHOFFIAN. [BoLOKrrs.]
GURNARD. [Tbiola.]
GUTTIFERA [Clubiacka]
GUTAQUILLITE, a form of Fossil Resin found in South America.
It is soluble in alcohol
GTALL, the name of the Indian Jungle Bull, Bos frontalis of
Lambert [Boyida.]
QTMNADE'NIA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Orehidaeea and the tribe Opkrydinea, It is distinguished from the
genus Orchis by the glands of the pollen masses being without a
pouch. There are two British species, O. eonopsea and (7. aVtida,
O, eonopsea has a S-lobed lip ; the lobes equal, entire, obtuse ; the
lateral sepals spreading, spur filiform, twice as long as the germen ;
root-knobs, palmate. The stem is a foot high; leayes linear-
lanceolate.
O, Breyerii is a native of South America at the river Magdalena.
It has blue flowers ; leaves with two or three pairs of unequal leaflets,
the extreme ones oblong, elliptical, unequal-sided, middle pair
obovate, lower ones roundish ; peduncles umbellate.
G, verticale is a native of Mexico and St. Domingo. The flowers
are blue with vertical petals. The leaves with three or six pairs, but
usually flve pairs of oblong coriaceous mucronate leaflets, the outer
ones obovate, which are as well as the branches very smooth.
6, sanctum is a tree 20 feet high, a native of South America,
particularly in the island of St. Domingo, Mexico, and BrasiL
GYMNARCHUS, a genus of Malacopterygious Apodal Fishes. The
body is long and scaly ; the gill opening before the pectoral fins ;
dorsal fin running the whole length of the back; tail ending in a
point; head naked and conical; mouth small, with a single row
of cutting teeth. G, Niloticus is the only species; it inhabits
the Nile.
GTMNEMA, a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order
Asclepiadacecs. It has a sub-urceolate 5-cleft corolla, the throat
usually crowned by five scales or teeth inserted in the recesses between
the segments of the corolla. The stamineous corona is wanting. The
anthers terminate by a membrane, the pollen masses are erect, fixed
by the base. The follicles smooth. Seeds oomose, generally matgi-
nate. The species are usually twining shrubs, natives of the East
Indies, the tropical parts of Australia, and Equinoctial Africa.
The leaves are opposite, membranous, and flat The umbels inter-
petiolar and cymose. In the greater number of species the stamens
are not usually naked, but are furnished with a gland-Hke body or
fleshy tuft at the base of each filament
' {?. laetiferum, Cow-Plant or Milk-Bearing Gymnema, has an erect
stem, or rather twining ; the leaves are on short petioles, ovate, bluntly
acuminated, usually imequal-sided ; the umbels many-flowered,
shorter than the petioles ; the throat of the corolla crowned by five
fioshy tubercles; the tube furnished with double pilose lines
running from the tubercles. It is a native of Ceylon, where the milk
of the plant is sometimes substituted for cow's milk, and the leaves
are boiled with food.
G, tingens is a native of Pegu. It has a twinbg glabrous stem,
cordate leaves, acuminated to oval ; the umbels or corymbs often twin,
at first shorter than the petioles, and at length spirally elongated ;
the glands of the filaments one*half shorter than the stamens ; follicles
cylindrical, spoon-shaped ; stigma simple, oval» mutic, crowning the
tube of the corolla, and therefore exceeding the stamens. The
flowers are largish, numerous, and of a pale-yellow colour. The
calyx 5-clefb to the base. From the leaves of this plant a green dye
is prepared by the Burmese. Seventeen species of this genus are
enumerated, none of them of any particular interest.
(Lindley, Vegetable Kingdom ; Don, JHchlamydeous Plants.)
GYMNETRUS, a genus of Fishes belonging to the group of
Riband-Shaped ^canMop/ery^i. It has the foUoiring characters: —
Body elongated, compressed ; a single dorsal fin extending the whole
length of the back ; ventrals conSsting each of a single ray, only
sometimes very long and dilated at tiie end; no anal fin; teeth
pointed, small. The species of this genus have very rarely been
obtained entire. They have generally been taken dead, and con-
sequently have been crushed and mutilated. Of the species of this
genus, Mr. Tairell says, "three probably belong to the Mediterranean,
two to the seas of the North of Europe, and two to India. One
northern species, besides one of those apparently belonging to India,
has been taken on the shores of this country. That of the north has
occurred more than once in Scotland; that of India once on the coast
of Cornwall."
G. Havkenii (Bloch), Hawken's Gymnetrus, the Oared Gymnetrus,
the Ceil Conin of CornwalL This species has been taken in Com-
waU. The following description has been drawn up by Mr. Couch
from a drawing and notes of a specimen taken in a net at Mount's
Bay in 1791 :->" The length without the extremity of the tail, which
was wanting, was 8^ feet ; the depth lOj inches ; thickness 2} inches;
weight 40 Iba In the drawing the head ends in a short and
elevated front ; eye large ; pectoral fin round ; no anal fin ; the dorsal
fin reaches from above the eye to the tail The ventrals are formed
of four long red processes, proceeding from the thorax, and ending
in a fan-shaped appendage, of which the base is purple, the expansion
crimson. The back and belly are dusky-green ; the sides whitish ;
the whole varied with clouds and spots of a darker green ; the fins
crimson.'* A very fine specimen of this fiwh caught off the coast of
Northumberland, was exhibited in London at Uie time the discovery
of the Great Sea-Serpent wsa announced, and was supposed to explain
the nature of this discovery.
The Gymnetrus arcticus of Cuvier, the Yaagpnaer, or Deal-Fish, h^s
been referred to the genus Treichypterus. [Tbachtpterds.]
GYMNOCEPHALUS. [Coracika.]
GTMNO'CLADUS (from T^/ivor, naked, and icXcCSot, a branch),
a genus of Plants belonging to the natural order Leguminosa, It has
dioecious flowers ; the calyx tubular, 5-cIeft; the petals flve, equal,
oblong, exserted from the tube ; the stamens ten, inclosed ; the legume
oblong, thick, filled with pulp inside. There is but one species,
G. Canadensis, the Kentucky Coffee-Tree. It is an upright deciduous
tree, with compound alternate, stipulate, bipinnate leaves, and white
flowers in terminal racemes. The branches of this tree are withoilt
any appearance of buds, which, during the winter, gives it the aspect
of a dead tree, and hence the Canadian name ' chicot,' or stump-tree.
The wood is hard, compact, and of a fine rose colour. In America it
is used in cabinet-making and carpentry. It has the property of
rapidly converting its sap-wood into heart-wood, so that the smallest
trees may be converted to useful purposes. The seeds were at one
time roasted and ground as a substitute for coffee in Kentucky and
Tennessee ; but they are not often used in this way at the present
day. The pods, preserved in the same way as the tamarind, are said
to be wholesome and aperient This tree grows well in Great Britain,
but does not ripen its seeds. It is best propagated by imported seeds,
but it will alao grow freely from cuttings of the roots. It requires a
rich, deep, free soiL (Loudon, Encyclopcedia of Trees and Shrubs.)
QYMNODACTYLUa [Gbckotidjb.]
GYMNODERUS. [Cobacina.]
GYMNOGASTER. [See Supflbmbnt.]
GYMNOGENS, or GYMNOSPERMS, one of the divUions under
which the vegetable kingdom U now classified. The name is derived
from the seeds being naked, that is to say, unprotectrd by a peri-
carpal covering, and fertilised by the pollen coming in direct contact
with the ovule, not by the intervention of the apparatus called
stigma and style. In this respect Gymnosperms are analogous to thoso
reptiles which, in the animal kingdom, have eggs that are impregnated
by the male after they have been deposited by the mother.
The plants comprehended in this cUss have nearly an equal relation
to flowering and flowerless plants. With the former they agree in
habits, in ^e presence of sexes, and in their vascular tissue being
complete ; with Ferns and CIub^Mosses, among the latter, some also
accord in habit, in the peculiar gyrate vernation of the leaves of some
Cycods, in their spiral veasels being imperfectly formed, and in the
sexes being less complete than in other flowering plants ; the females
wanting a pericarpal covering, and receiving fertilisation directly
through the foramen of the ovule, without the intervention of style
or stigma, and the males sometimes consisting of leaves imperfectly
contracted into on anther bearing a number of pollen-cases upon their
surface. So great is the resemblance between Club-Mosses and cer-
tain Conifers, that there is no obvious external character except size
by which they can be distinguished. Gymnogens are known from most
other Vcueulares by the vessels of their wood having lai^e apparent per-
forations or discs. [CoKiTBBiB.] It is not however on this aocount to be
understood that they differ in growth from other Exogens ; on the
contrary they are essentially the same, deviating in no respect from
the plan upon which Exogenous Plants increase, but having a kind of
tissue peculiar to themselves. At this point of the vegetable kingdom
there is a plain transition from the highest form of organisation to
the lowest Gymnogens are essentially Exogens in all that appertains
to the organs of vegetation; they have concentric cones in their
wood, a vascular system in which spiral vessels are found, and a
central pith, but they are analogous to reptiles in the animal king-
dom. The two most remarkable of the orders are Conifeia and
Cycads. Of these the former is connected with Club-Mosses among
Acrogens by means of the extinct genus Lepidodendronf and their
branches are sometimes so similar to those of certain Lycopods them-
selves as to leave no doubt of their relation. Compare, for instance,
Lycopodiwn phlegmarioy and CtMninghamia sinensis. Some Cycads
have the gyrate vernation of the leaves of true Ferns, along with the
inflorescence of Conifers; and their mode of forming their trunk,
although essentially the same as that of Exogens, yet resembles the
growth of Acrogens in lengthening by a terminal bud only. While
however the class of Gymnogens is thus distinctly marked by the
most important physiological peculiarities, it approaches the highest
forms 01 vegetation by that portion of it which bears the name of
Joint-Firs ((^netaceor)-— plants with idl the structure of their class, but
with the manner of growth of Chloranths {Chloranthacece) and Beef-
woods {Casuarinacece). (Lindley ' Vegetable Kingdom.')
The following figure of Juniperus Oxycedrus^ will show the pecu
1191
OTMKOPa
liuititt of thia c]uf.~Fig. 1 ii a male (Mkia;fig. 2, » acal« from it
liaviog sullien on iti under >ide ; Jig. 3, n. femala cliutor of floiren
MtAttA at tha end ot a icoiy pedunc!* ;fig,i,K longitudinal Kction of
tiie_ nine, (bowing the uakfd oiule* (eated within the lules -.fig.Bia
a ripe fruit, oompOMd of throe Bales, become fi»hy and ooneolidated,
and bucking tbe eeeda within their centre ; ;!;. 0 in the came fruit
divided tnmiversely, to ahow bow the eeeda are placed within the ripe
fruitj fy. T U » aeed; fg. 8, a longitudinal, and Jig. 9, a tnuu-
Tene aeetion of the aame. [Cicm>aCbs ; Tuacza; QtrnAnEAj
Inciaom, -
OYMNOPS, a genua of Biida eatabliabed hj Curier and daKribad
\}j him ai having a bill atrong ae that of the Oriolee; the aoatrili
round, withoat ac^eaarany membranoiu appandu^.and a great part
of the head denuded of feather*. He refers to Gramla calra, OmeL,
Mino Onmonfii, Leu., and Oracuia cyarmta. Lath. iUcropt eyanotU,
Bb.), u examples.
It has the following genetio characten ; — OilU partiall; closed hj
msmbrane, and opening before the peotorala ; the vent placed very far
forwards; body without any perceptible scales, and without doraal.
fin; anaJ fin extending the great«r part of the length of the body.
0. tUdricut (Linn.), from the resemblance it bean to an eel, and
Om electric powrr whicb it possassea, has been called tha Electric-EeL
It ia about fi or a feet in length ; the bead is rather brosd and
depressed ; the muula ia obtuao : the body, compared with that of
the common eel, is stouter aud eborter in proportion; the anterior
part is nearly cylindrical, but towards and at the tail it is oompreeeed ;
the pectoral fiiu are small and rounded ; the anal fin oommencea at
■ abort diatanca behind tha line of the pectoral Gn^ aod eitenda
onintemiptedly to the tail; there ia no caudal fin. Ita colour ia
btowuidt-black.
The Bleotiio-Ecl is wd to oommunicste shocks ao violent that man
•sd aveo hoTMa are overpowered by tbun. Thia power ia dependent
OD the will of the aninul, but decreaaea in stnigtb if frequontly
repeated, uuleea at ciiniiderabla interval;. Tbe oigans by which this
QTMNURA. im
shock ia produe«d are minutely deaodbed by Hunter in the 65clt
volume of the ' Philo»phical Transactions." All the spedea of
^rmnoftw inhabit tbe rivers of South America. [Ei:ECTBiCITV OF
Oboutio BEuros.]
Tbe geuus Ceraput of Cuvier coutains inch species of Oymnotta of
the older authors as have the tail lengthened and tapering, and tha
body compceaied and furnished with scalea. They also inhabit
South America.
OYUNU'RA, a genua of Animals belonging to the familj Talpida
and the order Fera of Dr. Qray. Tbe only apeoies of thia genua waa
first described by Sir Stamford Raffles. It was aftarwwde mora
accurately examined by Dr. Horafield and Mr. Tigon, who Ggnrad it
in tbe ' Zoological JournaL'
Sir Stamford Raffles referred the Ipedas to the Liniuean genua
FiiieiTo, and recorded it as Virrm tfyaaura. But although he did
not nominally raise tbe animal to tbe importance of a genua, be gave
■o clear and accurate a description of ita generic characten that Dr.
Horafield and Hr. Vigors do not hesitate to attribute the firtt indi-
cation of the group to htm ; and they proceed to give the geoerio
character of Oymaura :^
Indsors, 2 above, remote, very Urge, aubcylindrical, rounded at
the apex ; 6 below, the four intermediate approiimate, rather abort,
inclined (proclives) oompressed, the anterior surftoe (pagioa) convex,
tbe interior flat, edge rounded (scnlpro rotundato), the two lateral
abbreviated, acute. Canines (Lsniirii), 2 on each aide above, remote
from tbe incisore sud shorter than them, the anterior ones the longest ;
1 un each aide below, very large, conical, aubarcuate, looking inwarda.
HoUiri, 8 on each siiie above, remote from the caniues, the three
nolerior unicuepid, tbe first elongated and factorial; the second and
third abbreviated; the fourth with an elongated conical point and a
]iosteriDr and exterior abbreviated lobe or alep (gradu) at the base;
the fifth with the exterior cusp very long, and Uie interior one abbre-
via(eil : the sixth and saTBUth very large, multicuspid, the cuspa
stib-abbreriated and rounded ; the eighth amaUer and more fashioned
for triturating (subtritorios), the cuspa rather obtuse ; 7 below, tho
three anterior unicuspid, compressed; the first and aecoud shorter;
the third aub-elongatad ; the fourth with an elongated cusp, aa
anterior lobe, and another posterior lobe (gradu) abbreviated; the
fifth, sixth, and seventh vaiy large, multicuspid, tha ouapa rether
elevated and acute.
Head elongated, acuminated, narrowed, compressed on the aide^
flnttish above. Mutila (roatrum) obtuse, elongated, stretched forward
(protenaum), much eurpassing the lower jaw in length. NoetrilB
lateral, prominent, with tbe margiae convoluted. Tongua rather
smooth, latgs. Auricles rounded, somewhat prominent, nued. Eyes
small. Whiaken (vibrissc) elongated.
Body rsther robust, ground of the fur (cordoria) soft, but with
distant erect sobelongated harah hoiro. Tail rather long, smooth,
att<>nuated, naked, scaly, with a few acattered hairs in youth.
Feet moderate, plantigrade, pentadactyle, the fore feet with a
rather abort thumb, the three intermediate flngera nther long and
sub^equal ; tbe hind feet with a very short great toe, the three inter-
mediate toea very much elongated, and tbe external toe moderate.
Claws moderate, narrow, curved, oompreaeed, very acute, retractile.
Such is the character given by Dr. Horafield and Mr. Vigore to
Oymnura, and they state their opinion that the nsareat affinity to thia
genus appears to be met with in Tupaia (Raffles^. From that group
however they say that Gymnvra la sufficiently diatinguiahed, betides
tha diSereace in the syatem of dentition, by tbe elongation of the
retractile daws, and tbe nakedness of tbe tea In general appear-
ance they hold that tha group beara a alrong resemblance to some
apeeiea <i tbe Harsupial genus Did^kit.
0. RagUm, the Bulau or Tikus, baa tbe body, feet, stripe above the
I, scattered occipital hairs, and tlie basal half of the tail, black ;
bead, the neck, the scattered haita of tbe back, and tha other half
of l^e tail, white. (Hoisfield and Vtgon.)
An adult specimen examined by Horafield and Tigora measured —
Length of the body and bead from the aitremity
of tbe proboacia to tbe root of the tul . .1 2 3
Length of the tail 0 10 0
Length of the head
Length of the proboscis
Breadth of tha bead acroaa tbe e.ira .
Distance between tbe eyes
Height at the shoulder
Height at the rump
Length of the anterior taniua and toea
Length of the poaterior ditto .,030
U. Lesson ('Manual,' 1827), pUoes the 9ith genus, Oymnura,
between tbe dog. with hvaena'a feet (Canu pidM, Deam. j
Byma pieta, Temm,), and Kierro, Lmn., tbe first sub-gsnua of
whicb he makes to oonsist of the true Civets. He aaja of f^aora.
OTNAWDHIA.
nuting to the ClvoU, and pcriiaps approilmatiDg (till norer to the
Paradtxitri, which u« pluitignda. We pUoe it proTinoiwll; kmong
the digitigndei. It hia > pointed maule, a toft tongua, ronnded
ear*, ereot and naked, oompreued olawi, ourred and >hup, a naked
UH, and the following dental formula ; —
" Inoiurea, ~ ; canfAM^ -^ ; maUn, ^^ ^ 10.
" In tlie upper jaw the two middle inoiuveiaie thelargait, and
■eparmtod (icartte) one tcota the other ; the two lateral ones an Toiy
■mall ; the oaninea are maderate. The Bret molar haetwo pointa, the
second one onl; ; the fourth and Sfth baTe foar lubarolea, the aixth
haa only three.
" In the lower jaw the cMiinea an long,
"Specia, Gmnum Rafiaii, Viterra Qymmtra, BaSle& Thii
ipeciea, from the Eaat Indiee, ha* the muizlc^ which exoeedi the
lower jaw bj aa inoh, pointed ; the eiea are unall, the mouitaolie*
long; the tail, wbich ii naked, like that of a rat, ia oolj 10 inohea
long, and the head and body nwaaure 1 foot The fur oonaiita of two
aorta of hair, a abort under fur (boarre) reir thick and aott, and a
long huih hair ; the bo<^, lege, and firat half of the tail are black ;
the head, the neek, and Uie shoulden are irhili ; a blaok band j-i'in
OTec the ajat, Habita unknown."
aTPOOERANDa
IIM
aymKura HaJUtil. ]
Id and Tiger*.
H. LeaaoQ doea not atat« bom what apeotmen he haa ttkea hii
deeerlptionii, which rary from thoaa of Dr. Horafisld and Mr. Viffon,
in aome inatancea eaientially; bnt the latter state the ample matetiali
trom which they deSned their characters.
Cuvier aaya, " The genua Gynniira of Ueaara. Vigom and HorsfieH
' ZooL Journal,' iii. pi. S) appear* (a approach Oadoiata in its teeth,
and the ahrewB (muBamignea) in ite pointed muaile and acal; tail. It
lias five unguiculatsd toee on all its feet, and rather stiff bristles
(soles assea rtidea) projecting forth from the woolly hair. It eannot
be well olasaed till its anatomy is koown."
The term Oyamura hits been applied to daalgnate a ganaa of Sea-
Ducka [DucEal ; and Spii oses the wold Oynnuiri aa the naioe of a
family of HoDth American Honkeya.
Orif A'MDRIA, one of the claeses in the artificial system of boUoy
inTsotedby Linnnua, the character of which is to hsTc the stameDs
and piatU oonaoUdated into a aingle .body. The principal part of
the claaa oonsiBt* of Orohidaseooa Plaut^ forming in it the order
JfonoMdna.
QTNOOAKDIA. [Plaooubitacbs.]
QYPAGTOEI, Storr'a geneiio name for the L&mmeiBeyar, or
Bearded Qriffin (Qypaitoi barbat<tt), a bird of pre; which may be
oonaideTed aa intarmediale between the Eaglea and the Vulturee.
CVDi-iORro*] ^
OYFOQE'RAtfUS (lUiger), a genus of Birds embiacingthe well-
known Secretary Bird. Mr. Bennett, ia the 'Tower Menagerie,'
ramarka that the aingular conformation of thia bird, so different in
many respects trom that of the ord«r to which both in its leading
oharecten and in its habits it obviously belongs, rendered it for a
long time the torment of ondtholo^^ta, who puxiled themselves in
vain to aaign it a definite piece in the eyatem, and ooulJ not agree
even with r^ard to the grand division of the cUas to which it ought
to be referred. " Thus -^ ocntinuce the author, " M. Temmiuck was at
one time inoUned to refer it to the Omllinaoeaus order; and M. Vieillot,
after repeatedly changing hia mind upon the aubjent, at last airanged
it among the Waders, with which it haa absolutely nothing in oom-
moD eioept the length of its legs. It appears however to be now
almost ouivaraally admitted that ita closest affinity ia with the
Vulturee, with which it agrees in the moat eaaeatial particolan of ita
organiaatioD, and from which it diSen chiefly in oertaia external
cbaraeters alone, which miqueatianably give to it an aapect exceed-
ingly diatinct, but are not of themselvea of sufBdent importance to
authorise its removal to a distant part of the olasaiBoation. It oon-
atitutes in fact one of those mixed and aberrant forms by means of
whioh the arbitmy divisions of natunl objeeta eatabliBhBd by man are
■AX. BIR. HIT. TOI. U,
ao frequently assimilated to each other in the most beautiful, and
ODCasionally in the moat nnexpeoted manner." Mr. Swainson, in the
firat volume of hia 'Classification of Birds,' plaov Uie "SeiffBtary
Vulture of AMca" among the Yullurida; but in tbe aeoond vcluma
of the aame work (1837), he makee it a genua id *^a AqitiinuE, a sub-
bmily of the Faiiiinda.
Dr. Bparnnan fint saw this bird (a drawing of which, given by
IL Toamaer under the denomination of SagUtarina, he alludes to) in
the neighbourhood of the warm baths of Hottentot Holland. " It is
not," be says, " a very shy bird, but when scared begins at Gnt to
endeavour to save itself by alternately bopping and acudding aloug
very swiftly, and afterwards does it more effectoally by fiight. In
external appeeisnoe, in some respeote it resemblee the eagle, and in
others the orane, two birds oertamly vary unlike each other; though
in my opinion it ought to be referred to neither of tlieae genera. The
Hottentots give it a name moat suitable to ita nature, namely, aa
tranatatsd into Dutch, SUngen-Vreeter (or Serpent-Eater) ; and in
fact it is for the purpose of coafining within due bounds tbe r«ce of
serpents, which in Africa i> very ext^naiFe, that nature baa principally
destined this bird. It is larger than our orana, with legs 2{ feet long,
and the body in proportion leas than the crane's. Ita lieak, claws,
stout thighs cOTenid with feathers, and short neok, are like those of
the eagle and hawk kind." Then followa a particular deaoription of
the bird, after whiidi the Doctor continnea thus: '*Tbia bird haa a
peculiar method of seizing upon serpent*. When it approachea them
It always takes (»r« to hold Uie pc' ■ * * ■'---—'--'--- ■• -■-
order to p
tunity of I
a point of o:
■» wings beic
ee it finds ai
lug and treading upon its antagonist, or else of taking
II up on lis pmions and throvring it into Uie air; when by thii
method of proceeding it has at length wearied out its adveraai^, and
rendered it almoet aenaeteaa. It then kiUa it and swallowa it witliout
danger. Though I have very frequently aeen the Secretary Bird,
both in ila vrild and t&me atate, jet I have never had an opportunity
of seeing this method it baa of catching serpents ; however t can by
no meana harbour any doubt concerning it, after having had it con-
firmed to me by so many Hottentots as well as Christians ; and siaoe
this bird has been observed at the menRgerie at the Hague to amuse
and exercise itself in the same manner with a straw. If, finally, this
aerpent^ater ia to b^referred U> the Amipitret, or the Hawk kind,
the name of Fi:Ueo Serpenlariiu appear* to be the moat proper to
diatinguiah it by in the 'Systema Naturae.' It haa even been remarked
that these birda, when tams^ will not diadain now and then to put up
with a nice chicken."
Sparrman, it ii tru^ did not biniae^ m« the soene which ha
deaoribes ; but that hia account is correct in the main will not be
doubted when we present the reader with a trvnsliitian of the testi-
mony of an eye-witness — of one at whose tdations the devoted
admiren of Baflbn were too apt to smile increduoualy, but whose
aocuraay is now generally allowed to be unimpeachable. We give it
entire, because even in those parts which are not directly illustrative
of the habits of the bird, the diffareoce between the actual obeerver,
the field Eoologist, who 1^ studied nature in her own wildemeas, and
tha cabinet theorist, who bad only viewed her through the false
medium of hii own brilliant but delusive imsgination, ia strikingly
displayed. Le Taillant, in one of hia jonmeya in the Namaqua
oountry, arrived at a spring at the very moment when a Seoretary
was drinking there : he lulled it at the firat shot, and gave to the well
the name of the Secretary's Foontain. His narrative then proceeda aa
follows :—
" The Dutch have named Hiis bird the Secretary on aooonnt of the
tuft of ptumee which it oarriea at the back of the head ; for, in
Holland, clerks (geika de Dabinet), when they are interrupted in tjieir
writing, stick the pen among their hair behmd the right ear, so as to
imitate in some degree its oreat. BuSon, speaking of it, says that it
haa only been known at the Cape recency ; and the proof wliich he
addiiceais, that Kolbe and other suoceeding writers say nothing of
it. This is advancing a groundltis assertion (on fait ftux), and
endeavouring to prove it by another as true aa the first The
Seovtuy is known in the colonies both under the name of Seoretaris
and that of Ijlang-Vreeter. It ia under thia last denomination that
Kolbe apeaka of it; and he certainly knew it, at least from Uie
relation of othen, beoause be exactly enumerates all the kinds of
food which it habitually takes. It ia true that, in hia daKuiption, he
translates the Dutch word Slang- Vreeter by the French word Pdlioui,
and that ocnsequenU; he makes a single species out of two very
different ones. But iCotbe was no naturalist, and his work oontains so
many other errors Uiat it would be astonishing not to find this. I have
been more aurpriaed, I confees, to see that our modem nataraliata,
even those who have spoken of the Secretary in the greatest detail,
make no mention of ttkree bony and blunt protuberanoea whish it
haa at the bend and last joint of the wingi, but infinitely leas appa-
rent than in the Jacana or in the Kamicki. Thia omission has
appeared strange to me, in BuSbn partioularly, who haa not described
it from the relation of otben, but from an mdividual which he had
Iwfore his eyea, and which I believe waa in the cabinet of Hauduit.
It is nevertheless an eaaential omission, beoanse it dsprivaa the
Secretary of one of its principal distinctive Dhanoters, and t
the protubaranoes of whioh I speak form one of the arms of U
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