PREFACE 



IN these pages I have attempted to place on 

 record in a connected form some facts of natural 

 history which have, directly or indirectly, passed 

 under my own observation during a number 

 of years, together with others which I have 

 collected from various sources. Many of them 

 are known facts brought into fresh conjunctions, 

 others are somewhat less familiar, and some are 

 practically new. I have endeavoured to render 

 the language intelligible to those who have 

 an inkling of biological knowledge ; and terms 

 which may appear difficult in the text are 

 usually explained in the context; but I have 

 found it impossible to avoid using the current 

 phraseology of the subject. 



Morphology as comprehending the analysis of 

 organic form is distinguished from art which 

 concerns itself with the portrayal of form ; and 

 it appeals to a much more limited circle, its 

 applications being obscure and, as a general 

 rule, of interest only to specialists. Its relation- 



