708 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 189S. 



as well as by the penial structure. Probably tiie following sclioine 

 expresses the history : 



Dromicin/^ Xenodont/n/€ Natricin/^ 



?. 



? Lycodontin/e. 



Calamarina. 



In this table the Lycodoutiuie are not regarded as charaftized by 

 elongate anterior teeth as is usually done. Some of the genera are truly 

 so characterized, as Lycodon and others, but they are off the main line. 

 As to the Xenodontinse it is impossible to determine whether they are 

 derived from Calamariuie (which are not now found in the same region 

 with them) or whether they have come off the Oolubrinas by loss of 

 calyces and development of apical disc. 



IV. HISTORY. 



Linnaeus did not correctly distinguish the suborder Serpentes, but 

 placed its species in a heterogenous assemblage,' along with the snake- 

 like lizards and the batrachian Coeciliidse. Laurenti, in 17G8,^ followed 

 him, changing the name to Serpentia. 



The name Ophidia was jjroijosed by Brongniart in 1799,^ but the defi- 

 nition of this order, as he esteemed it, was not improved. In the sys- 

 tem of Oppel (1811)^ we find the Ophidia (which he spelled Ophidii), 

 purged of all extraneous forms excepting the Amphisbtienia. Under 

 the name Serpentia, Merrem, in 1820, adopted the group as left by Oppel. 

 Wagler^ finally reduced the division to its proper contents in 1830 and 

 retained for it the name Serpentes. As this was the first publication 

 in which the suborder, was properly limited, the name given must be 

 retained. Dumeril defined the group correctly, employing the Brong- 

 niartian name Ophidia. In this he has been followed by most later 

 authors, including Gray, Stannius, Owen, and Huxley. 



As regards the contents of the suborder Serpentes, the first classifi- 

 cation of a thorough character was that of J. Miiller, who in 1831,'* 

 divided the Serpentes into two divisions, the Microstomata ( = Angio- 

 stomata) and Macrostomata ( = Eurystoniata), basing them on the pro- 

 portions and position of the paroccipital bone or suspensorium of tlie 

 quadrate; separating the Peropoda on account of the rudiments of 

 pelvis. The next classification was that of Dumeril, who with Bibron 



'Systema Naturae, lOth ed., 1758, p. 196. 



- Specimen Synopsin Reptilium, Vienna, 1768. 



'Bulletin, Academy of Sciences, Nos. 35, 36, 1800. 



■•Ordnungen, Familieu u. Gattungen der Reptilien, Munich. 



•"' Natiirlichea Syst. der Ampliibien, Miinchen. 



<*Tiedemann and Treviranus, Zeitsclirift f. Pbysiologie, IV, p. 190. 



