

PREFACE 

 T|0 THE FIRST EDITION. 



The term " Malacology,'''' an abbreviation of " Malacozoo- 

 lugy^'''' from tbe Greek /uuxa}Lo;, soft, ^aov, an animal, and 

 Koyo^i a discourse, was firstemplo3'^ed by the French naturalist 

 De Blainville to designate an important division of Natural 

 History, in which the leading' feature of the animals dis- 

 cussed was the softness of the flesh, or, to speak with greater 

 accuracy, of the general envelop. This division compre- 

 hends not only ihe Mollusca, but also the Testacea of Aristotle 

 and of Pliny, and, of course, had reference to molluscous 

 animals in general — of which the greater portion have shells. 



A treatise concerning the shells, exclusively, of this greater 

 portion, is termed, in accordance with general usage, a Trea- 

 tise upon Conchology or Conchyliology ; although the word 

 is somewhat improperly applied, as the Greek conchylion, 

 from which it is derived, embraces in its signification both 

 the animal and shell. Ostracology would have been more 

 definite. 



The common works upon this subject, however, will ap- 

 pear to every person of science very essentially defective, 

 inasmuch as the relation of the animal and shell, with their 

 dependence upon each other, is a radically important con- 

 sideration in the examination of either. Neither, in the at- 

 tempt to obviate this difficulty, is a work upon Malacology 

 at large necessarily included. Shells, it is true, form, and, 

 for many obvious reasons, will continue to form, the subject 

 of chief interest, whether with regard to the school or the 

 cabinet ; still there is no good reason why a book upon Con- 

 chology (using the common term) may not be malacologieal 

 as far as it proceeds. 



In this view of the subject the present little work is oflfered 

 to the public. Beyond the ruling feature — that of giving an 

 anatomical account of each animal, together with a descrip- 



