4 BULLETIN 68, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



While it is probable that Hugh Cuming, in the first third of the 

 nineteenth century, during his researches on the coast of western 

 South America, may have collected some Pyramidellidfe, the system- 

 atists who described his novelties after his return to England were 

 long busy with the larger, more attractive, and more conspicuous 

 shells. 



The first Pyramidellid described was named by Alcide D'Orbigny 

 in 1840, in the report of his voyage to South America, the Ohemnitzia 

 cora from Peru. 



The next contribution was that of Prof. C. B. Adams, of Amherst 

 College, in his account of the shells of Panama, published in 1852, in 

 the Annals of the Lyceum of Natural History of New York. It 

 included the following species: Pyramidella conica; Chemnitzia acu- 

 leus, acuminata, affinis, clathratula, communis, gracilior, major, mar- 

 ginata, panamensis, simiUs, striosa, turrita; Cingula inconspicua, 

 paupercula, terehellum, and turrita. 



In the same year Dr. A. A. Gould described, in the Boston Journal 

 of Natural History, from Mexico and the Gulf of California, the fol- 

 lowing species: Odostomia gravida and achates; Chemnitzia torquata. 



In 1854, Karl Theodor Menke, in the Malakozoologische Blatter, 

 i\esQ.v]he(\. Pyramidella hicoJor, from California. In the same year Arthur 

 Adams, editing the PyramidellidsB of Sowerby's Thesaurus Conchy- 

 liorum, named Obeliscus hastatus and clavulus. 



The most numerous addition to the known species of the coast yet 

 made appeared in 1856 in the Mazatlan Catalogue of the Reigen col- 

 lection in the British Museum, by Dr. Philip P. Carpenter. This 

 comprised the following forty species: Odostomia suhlirulata, lamel- 

 lata, suhsulcata, vallata, mammillata, tenuis; Parthenia scalariformis, 

 quinguecincta, lacunata, armata, exarata, ziziphina; ChrysaUida ovata, 

 nodosa, rotundata, ohlonga, teJescopium, reigeni, effusa, fasciata, ovulum, 

 convexa, photis, indentata, clausiliformis ; Chemnitzia c-h-adamsi, muri- 

 cata, prolongata gihhosa, gracillima, undata, jiavescens, terebralis, tenui- 

 lirata, unifasciata; Dunkeria paucilirata, subangulata, cancellata, inter- 

 media; and Eulimella ohsoleta. Camera drawings of these by Doctor 

 Carpenter are among the archives of the U. vS. National Museum. 



Morch, in the Malakozoologische Blatter for 1859, describes Turho- 

 nilla craticulata, suhula, and cincteUa. Baird in the Proceedings of the 

 Zoological Society of London, 1863, names Chemnitzia Vancouver ensis. 



In the report of the British Association for the Advancement of 

 Science for 1863, Dr. P. P. Carpenter names the following species: 

 Pyramidella adamsi; Obeliscus variegatus; Odostomia nucifannis, and 

 variety avellana, 0. satura and variety gouldii, 0. injiata, straminea, 

 tenuisculpta, cincta, and pumila; Dunkeria laminata; Chemnitzia tri- 

 dentata, cJiocolata varieties aurantia, subcuspidata, and stylina, C. 

 virgo; all these have a few words of diagnosis, but not enough to 



