DENTALIUM. 235 
The present species inhabits the coralline zones of the 
South Devon coasts, five or six miles from land, in twelve or 
fifteen fathoms water. 
I had written thus far when I received from Paris M. 
Deshayes’ memoir on the Dentalia, which I had not seen for 
twenty years, and its contents had nearly passed from my 
memory; on looking it over I find that the differences be- 
tween that gentleman and myself are more important than 
I was aware of, but I am not inclined to abandon my own 
views. Jam also glad to find that I am enabled to fill up 
many gaps as regards the functions and habitudes of these 
animals. 
This gentleman, in stating the anus in Dentalium to be 
posterior, observes that it is the only molluscum that has it 
so situated; but this anomaly, if it be so, I think I have 
disposed of. 
Those organs which I consider to be the symmetrical 
branchize are termed by M. Deshayes the lobes of the liver, 
each pouring into the stomach the bile by their biliary vessels. 
I cannot persuade myself that this view is correct; I have 
submitted them to the microscope, and in each principal 
strand I have seen the leading vein distended with red blood, 
as well as the net-hke connecting ramifications; I there- 
fore consider what are called the bilary vessels to be the 
branchial veins conveying the blood to the heart instead of 
bile mto the base of the stomach. M. Deshayes in his figure 
has omitted to mark the vem which runs at the dichotomous 
points of his organ, which, when viewed under high powers, is 
very visible, and which I take to be the branchial vein. 
What I term the salivary glands, are the branchiz with M. 
Deshayes, combining the functions of tentacula: he does not 
mention such glands. I must consider this assumption in- 
correct ; and to support this opinion I state that the heart is 
separated the whole length of the stomach from the bases of 
what M. Deshayes terms the branchiz: this is a position 
without parallel, as that organ is invariably in the closest 
