CLASSIFICATION. 99 



that their common characters elevate them into the 

 rank of an order, according to the prevailing prin- 

 ciples of classification. " Far," says he, " from 

 forming only one natural genus, they constitute a 

 distinct order, which is composed of many genera, 

 which comprehend numerous species."* We esti- 

 mate highly the value of M. Cuvier's labours in this 

 department, and believe that he pushed his disco- 

 veries as far as it was possible at the time. We 

 think his arrangement will probably be adopted, 

 and, accordingly, after the example furnished by 

 the Regne Animal, we will indicate it as we pro- 

 ceed, without, however, abandoning the simpler 

 division of Peron. Having thus stated the simple 

 arrangement which we mean to follow, we may 

 now add, that Dumeril places these animals in his 

 last family but one of the Mammalia, immediately 

 before the Whales, and that Latreille, in his Fa- 

 milies Naturelles du Regne Animal, makes them his 

 fifth order, that of the Amphibia, the first family 

 of which is the Seals and Otaries. Of all our 

 modern Naturalists, however, we believe that Pro- 

 fessor Nilsson, of the University of Lund, is the 

 individual who has most assiduously devoted atten- 

 tion to this difficult department of Zoology. His 

 work is sp-iedily expected ; and it is confidently 

 anticipated that much of the doubt and confusion 

 which still envelope the subject will then be re- 

 moved. We regret that we have not been able te 



iMammiferes, 1824. 



