270 CLASSIFICATIONS OF THE AMPHIBIA. 



5thly, the want of feet ; — as the five different characters 

 whereby the five several orders are classed, strikes me as be- 

 ing too varied, and too much departing from simplicity and 

 uniformity ; which, in my opinion at least, are so essential in 

 every classification, and in which indeed consist the real abi- 

 lity and clearness of the methods of arrangement, so manifest 

 in the Linnean g Sy sterna Naturae.' 



Although I may thus differ from my friend Prof. Bell in 

 his view of the above classification, yet I must be allowed to 

 call the attention of my readers to his able essay on the Am- 

 phibia, in which are given instructive and perspicuous de- 

 scriptions, not only of the anatomical, but also of the physio- 

 logical structure and organization, of this class of animals. — 

 The essay is illustrated with many good woodcuts, and is 

 contained in Todd's * Cyclopaedia/ Part I, p. 90, &c, pub- 

 lished in June, 1835. 



The last arrangement which I have met with, is that intro- 

 duced by Mr. Kirby, in his Bridgewater Treatise, (vol. ii. p. 

 415), as here shown. 



REPTILES. 



Sub-class I. Soft-coated. (Reptilia Malacoderma). 



Order 1. Amphibians. Siren. Proteus. Axolotl, &c. 



Order 2. Batrachians. Amphiuma. Triton. Salamander. Toad. 

 Frog. &c. 



Next, if one person should be desirous of classifying the 

 Amphibia, as the Count de La Cepede, M.M. Dumeril, Op- 

 pel, and others have done, by making the tail, or the absence 

 of one, the characters of the adult animals, for his two divi- 

 sions or orders ; the modern genera would then be distributed 

 in this manner. — 



Order I. — Urophora. Tail present. 



Genera. — Ccscilia. Salamandra. Salamandrina. Molge. Triton. Me- 

 nopoma. Amphiuma. Siren. Parvibranchus. 1 Proteus. Menobranchus. 

 Siredon. 



Order II. — Andra. Tail wanting. 



Genera. — Rana. Ceratophrys. Hyla. Bufo. Rhinella. Otilopha. 

 Dactylethra. Bombinator. Breviceps. Astrodactylus. 



Also, if another person should prefer to characterise these 



1 As the generic name Pseudobranchus is apt to convey an incorrect idea, 

 concerning the use and function of the small gills, in the branchial classi- 

 fication herein subsequently given, I have thought it right to substitute 

 that of Parvibranchus for it. See Cuvier's note ( 2 ) at p. 121 , tome ii, of the 

 'Regne Animal, ' edit. 1829. 



