OF PERIPATUS CAPENSIS. 887 



The ventral cords give off a series of nerves from their outer 

 borders, which present throughout the trunk a fairly regular 

 arrangement. From each ganglion two large nerves (figs. 8, 22, 

 26) are given off, which, diverging somewhat from each other, 

 pass into the feet, and, giving off branches on their way, may be 

 traced for a considerable distance within the feet along their 

 anterior and posterior borders. 



In front of each of the pair of pedal nerves a fairly large 

 nerve may be seen passing outwards towards the side of the 

 body (fig. 22). In addition to this nerve there are a number of 

 smaller nerves passing off from the main trunk, which do not 

 appear to be quite constant in number, but which are usually 

 about seven or eight. Similar nerves to those behind are given 

 off from the region in front of the first pair of legs, while at the 

 point where the two ventral cords pass into the oesophageal 

 commissures two large nerves (fig. 22), similar to the pairs of 

 pedal nerves, take their origin. These nerves may be traced 

 forwards into the oral papillae, and are therefore to be regarded 

 as the nerves of these appendages. On the ventral side of the 

 cords, where they approach most closely, between the oral 

 papillae and the first pair of legs, a number of small nerves are 

 given off to the skin, whose distribution appears to be to the 

 same region of the skin as that of the branches from the 

 commissures behind the first pair of legs. 



From the cesophageal commissures, close to their junction 

 with the supra-cesophageal ganglia, a nerve arises on each side 

 which passes to the jaws, and a little in front of this, apparently 

 from the supra-cesophageal ganglion itself, a second nerve to the 

 jaws also takes its origin (PI. 51, fig. 22 j n}.. These two nerves 

 I take to be homologous with a pair of pedal nerves. 



Between the nerves to the jaws and those to the oral papillae 

 a number of small nerves take their origin. Three of these on 

 each side pass in a dorsal direction and one or two in a ventral 

 one. 



The Supra-cesophageal Ganglia. The supra-cesophageal gan- 

 glia (figs. 8 and 22) are large, somewhat oval masses, broader in 

 front than behind, completely fused in the middle, but free at 

 their extremities. Each of them is prolonged anteriorly into an 

 antennary nerve, and is continuous behind with one of the 



