PREFACE. 



The object of the present Catalogue is to give a description of all 

 the genera and species of apodal fish known to exist in the dif- 

 ferent English and continental collections. 



For this purpose, the specimens contained in the Museums of 

 Paris, Leyden, Berlin, and Frankfort on the Maine, have, by the 

 kindness of their curators, been brought together, and carefully 

 compared and examined with those in the British Museum and 

 the Museum of the Naval Hospital at Haslar. 



The German MS. of Dr. Kaup has been translated, and the 

 printing of the work kindly superintended by Sir John Richardson, 

 K.C.B., M.D., F.R.S., who had, in the Natural History of the 

 Voyage of H.M.S. Erebus and Terror, previously described and 

 figured many of the Apodals in the British Museum. 



During the printing of the work and the engraving of the plates, 

 the genera have been adopted by Sir John Richardson in his 

 article Ichthyology, in the new edition of the Encyclopedia Britan- 

 nica ; and a synopsis of the genera and new species has been 

 published by Dr. Kaup, in German, in the Archiv. fur Naturrjes- 

 cldchte, xxii. 41, 1850. 



JOHN EDWARD GRAY. 



December 30, 1856. 



