202 BRITISH SPECIES OP FALSE-SCORPIONS. 



cephalothorax is coriaceous ; the palpi are of a harder and more 

 chitinous nature ; while the legs and outside of the abdomen are 

 of a more flexible kind. The surface of the ceplialotlwrax is at 

 times glossy and smooth, at other times granulose or shagreened. 

 The hairs, with which various portions of their structure are 

 furnished, are either simple and fine, or stout and clavate. 



The Eyes when present are two or four in number, generally of 

 a flattened form, pale white or whitish, and placed symmetrically 

 on the sides of the caput, near its fore-extremity. The presence or 

 absence of eyes forms an important character in the separation of 

 genera, and is also of great use in grouping them. 



The Legs are short and vary in the number of their joints from 

 5 to 7, or even 8. i., The basal joint or coxa ; ii., the exinguinal or 

 troclianter ; iii., the femur ; iv., the tibia ; v., the tarsus. 

 Between the exinguinal joints and the femur there is often 

 another small joint more or less visible (or rather the femur 

 is sub-divided). This joint is called by M. Simon the 

 trochantin, and is used by him as a distinguishing family character. 

 Also in some examples of Obisium muscorum there is a distinct 

 joint between the femur and tibia; unless indeed the tibia is 

 shortened to a mere patella or cubital joint, and the tibia then becomes 

 a metatarsus, the tarsi being also sub-divided. The tarsus is also 

 frequently sub-divided into the metatarsus and tarsus proper. The 

 tarsi end with two curved finger-like claws, beneath which is a 

 kind of sucker, probably the modified form of an originally third or 

 inferior claw (found so commonly in numbers of other Arachnids). 

 This sucker is evidently intended to facilitate adhesion to smooth 

 objects in locomotion. The basal joints (or coxae) fit up almost 

 close together beneath the cephalothorax without any sternum. A 

 very small sternum-like portion, however, may be found in the 

 genus Garypus (Sim.), a genus not yet found in Britain. 



The Palpi (including the basal joint which corresponds to the 

 maxilla in the Araneidea or spiders) are six-jointed : i., the maxilla . 

 ii., the axillary joint ; iii., the humeral ; iv.,the cubital ; v.,the radial ; 

 vi, the digital. The radial and digital joints are very much 



