Bibliographical Notices. S7f 



We have devoted so much space to the consideration of th« 

 general characteristics of this work, that we have hut Httle to spare 

 for particular instances of the authors' sins. We must howet^t 

 select a few, if only to show how little dependence can he placed 

 upon their judgment, even in making use of the materials which lay- 

 ready to their hands. Thus we find amongst the Annulosa, a class 

 of Epizoa, or Fish-parasites, including Crustacean families, Lernceidcey 

 CaligidtB and their allies, and a miscellaneous assemblage of Helmin- 

 thoid forms. Amongst the latter are included the LinguatulidcE ! The 

 entire group of Radiate animals also is a most extraordinary jumble. 

 We find the Rotifera placed in this division, between the Acalephse 

 and the Polyzoa ! ; these are followed by the Coelelmintha, these by 

 the true Polypes, after which we come to the Sterelmintha, or Cestode 

 and Trematode worms. That such an arrangement as this should 

 have occurred to any one engaged upon a Manual of Natural History, 

 will, we should think, excite a little surprise in the reader's mind. 



Amongst the Sterelmintha we find an order of Cystic worms, 

 without a single hint of the extraordinary discoveries of Van Beneden, 

 Vogt, Siebold and others, which have now proved the cystic worms 

 to be merely phases in the development of the Tape-worms. In like 

 manner the wonderful mode of reproduction prevailing amongst the 

 Medusae, which has given rise to Steenstrup's theory of the "Alter- 

 nation of generations," is passed over without a word of notice; but as 

 if to make up for the absence of information for which the reader 

 might reasonably look, we are favoured with some statements 

 concerning the Acalephse, which certainly have the merit of novelty 

 to recommend them. Thus we learn for the first time, and we must 

 confess not without surprise, that Cydippe is "often seen . . . making its 

 way slowly by the regular contraction and expansion of its umbrella- 

 like body." In Bero'ewe are told, " the organs of progression are in 

 the form of long filaments, which enable their possessors to roll along 

 through the water in a very rapid manner ;" and Mr. Huxley will be 

 astonished to learn, that " those curious double gelatinous animals, 

 the Salpce,^' are placed "in the Diphydous order." These state- 

 ments all occur within the compass of a single page (page 336) ! We 

 do not pretend to say that this is an average sample of the work, but 

 there are certainly few pages of the Zoological portion in which some 

 errors are not to be met with. 



Of the Botanical portion we need say but little, the authors theriir 

 selves admitting that they have employed " a slight modification of 

 the scheme offered by the learned author of the * Vegetable King- 

 dom.' The only modification that we can perceive is, that they have 

 reversed the learned Doctor's arrangement, and raised his "Alliances '* 

 to the rank of " Orders." The characters of the families (Orders, 

 Lindl.) appear to be copied almost verbatim, except the omission here 

 and there of characters which we must confess seem not unfrequcntly 

 to be of some importance. 



It is not so easy to ascertain the source from which the system of 

 Mineralogy is derived, but as it is undoubtedly the most useless part 

 ot" the book, it is just possible that it may be the most original. We 



