38 Mr. E. D. Cope on the 



Such features of proportion are essential as characters of 

 species, but not of genera. In accordance with these views I 

 have united several of Dr. Gray's divisions into groups which 

 I call genera, and which repose on some definite structural 

 characters. Thus I combine his Uncia, Tigris, Leo, and 

 Leopardus into a genus for which I employ his name Uncia, 

 as the least objectionable*, after having confirmed by autopsy 

 the circular character of the pupil. This I was enabled to do 

 through the courtesy of my friend Arthur E. Brown, super- 

 intendent of the Philadelphia Zoological Garden, who aided 

 me in examining the eyes of these animals both by sunlight 

 and the light of a bull's-eye lanternf. The detailed charac- 

 ters of the genera will now be given : — 



I. The anterior and lateral faces of the mandible separated 



by an angle. 

 a. Inferior sectorial with a heel ; no anterior lobe of 

 superior sectorial ; no posterior lobes of the pre- 

 molars. 

 * An inferior tubercular molar. 



Premolars f Dinictis. 



Premolars §- Nimravus. 



** No inferior tubercular molar. 



Premolars \ ; incisors f Hoplophoneus. 



Premolars T ; incisors 2 - JEusmilus. 



aa. Inferior sectorial -without heel ; an anterior lobe of 

 the superior sectorial, and posterior lobes of the 

 premolars. 

 Premolars %, first inferior two-rooted Macheerodus. 



Premolars 2~j> first inferior one-rooted Smilodon. 



II. The anterior and lateral faces of the mandible con- 



tinuous, convex. (No inferior tubercular molar.) 

 a. Inferior sectorial tooth with a heel. 



Premolars f , no posterior lobes ; second superior 



with internal heel (plantigrade) Cryptoprocta. 



Premolars J , with posterior lobes ; no heel of second 



superior Pseudeelurus. 



aa. Inferior sectorial without heel ; premolars with pos- 

 terior lobes ; superior sectorial with anterior lobe. 

 /3. Superior sectorial with internal heel. 

 y. Pupil round. 



Premolars | Uncia. 



Premolars \ Neofelis. 



* I assume that this name is derived from uncus, a hook, which is ap- 

 propriate to the weapons of these animals. [Felt's uncia was the name given 

 by Gmelin to the Ounce; aud no doubt Dr. Gray simply adopted its specific 

 name for the genus of which he regarded it as the ^type. Its use in a 

 more extended sense is therefore unfortunate. — Ed.] 



t I add the following notes on some other Carnivora, which do not 

 come within the scope of this paper : — 



Hycena crocuta. Pupil a vertical slit. 



Viverridse. Three s^eciesot Ichneumon and Vivcrricuht,& horizontal oval. 



Nastta. A horizontal oval. 



