Di" L. Mandl on the Stales of Fishes. 125 



are canals— these entire and smooth edges of the pUxtes are 

 nothing else than lines resulting from the fusion of the cells, 

 lines which are repeated on all the scales. We thus see that, 

 from the organization not being well known, a characteristic 

 description of scales could not be given, and some were con- 

 founded with others which yet offered true marks distinctive of 

 families. We find an example of this in the memoir of M. 

 Agassiz above cited. 



This distinguished savant supposes (1, c. p. 48), that the 

 relations which connect the Muges and Atherines with the 

 Cyprini have entirely escaped Cuvier, on account of the too 

 great importance which this celebrated naturalist attached to 

 the presence or absence of spiny rays on the back. M. 

 Agassiz had therefore to seek some character common to all 

 these fishes, that he might be able to bring them together, and 

 he says that he discovered this character in their scales, 

 which are all composed of plates of growth with entire edges, 

 and which he calls Cycloides. 



Now nothing strictly can be more different than the scales 

 of the Muges, Atherines, and Cyprini. The diflference is so 

 great, that it alone determined us to place the Atherines in a 

 separate family, a measure which had previously been hinted 

 at by Cuvier, and which he would not have hesitated defini- 

 tively to adopt, had he known the particular characters pre- 

 sented by their scales. We have seen with pleasm-e that 

 om- opinion is supported by Professor Nordmann, who makes 

 an entirely distinct family of the Atherines, as well as of 

 MuUhs. 



We can no longer affirm, with M. Agassiz, that JFitzinger 

 has done wrong in separating Cyprinus from Cobitis. We 

 shall not here discuss the reasons which determined the latter 

 to effect this separation, but it is certain that the microscopic 

 inspection of the scales justifies it completely, and that this 

 difference alone authorizes a distinction to be made between 

 these two genera. 



We shall not say more in this place in confirmation of our 

 opinion. The examples adduced already demonstrate suffi- 

 ciently, that the detailed study of scales by the aid of the 

 microscope, can alone reveal their forms. Of this we find a 



