SS THERE A CLA W IN A LION S TAIL ? 3 1 



alluded to the belief that that wonderful romancer, 

 " Buffon," entertained on this and many other subjects, 

 however it was excised, either as being deemed ir- 

 relevant, or from want of space, or from a spirit of 

 jealousy that actuated a very ignorant editor. My 

 opinion of this once popular naturalist is not, I 

 know, exceptional, for I have frequently heard him 

 spoken of by scientists of the " first water " in much 

 stronger and far more condemnatory terms. 



However, after all that has been written or said 

 upon this question, permit me to conclude by stating 

 that I cannot help thinking that the whole might be 

 summed up thus, that prickles, thorns, spikes, and 

 claws are, in this instance, "distinctions without a 

 difference/' and that each term is used with the 

 intention of misleading the general reader. 



