SOFT-SHELLED TRIONYX. 



CLASS REPTILIA. THE REPTILES. 



CHAPTER I. 

 THE CHELONIANS. 



General Characters of Reptiles popularly so-called -Divided into Reptilia and Amphibia THE BUCKLERED REPTILES 

 The Four Divisions The Buckler of the Chelonians The Carapace The Plastron Different kinds of Shells 

 " Tortoiseshell "Protecting Bucklers Feet -Shoulder-blade and Arm-joint The Humerus (foot note) Appearance 

 of Tortoise's Head The Process of Eating- Skull Mouth and Jaw Eye Ear Tongue How Chelonians Breathe 

 Their Lungs and Heart Digestive Organs The Eggs Extraordinary Vitality of Chelonians Brain THE 

 TORTOISES, THE LAND CHELONIANS Characters THE GREAT LAND TORTOISES Mr. Darwin's Visit to the 

 Galapagos Islands Enormous Size and Weight of the Tortoises Probable Extinction Distinctive Features Habits 

 Great Tortoises at the Water-springs Tortoises of the Mascarene^md Aldabra Islands Indian Tortoises The Common 

 or Greek Tortoise African and American Species THE EMYDES, THE RIVER, OR MARSH TORTOISES 

 Characters The Terrapins The American Box Tortoise Habits The Genus Emys Emys eMro/xm The Painted 

 Emys Clemmys i)isculptaThe Caspian Terrapin The Snapping Turtle The Chelodines - The Matamata The 

 Snake-necked Tortoises The "Aiyussa" Tortoise -THE TRIONYCIDES, THE MUD, OR SOFT TORTOISES- 

 Characters Habits The Soft-shelled Tortoise The Cryptopus The Egyptian Trionyx The Gangetic Trionyx THE 

 CHELONIADES, THE MARINE CHELONIANS, THE TURTLES-The Green Turtle Habits Size Food 

 Egg-laying How they are Caught Characters The Hawk's-bill Turtle Why so Named How the Tortoiseshell is 

 Obtained -The Logger-headed Turtles The Leather-back Turtles The Sphargis EXTINCT CHELONIANS Classifi- 

 cation of the Order. 



WHEN a Tortoise, a Lizard, a Snake, a Crocodile, a Newt, and a Frog are seen together alive in a 

 zoological garden, or stuffed in a museum, there is not the least difficulty in deciding that they, one 

 and all, ought to belong to a particular group of the animal kingdom, and that they differ from all 

 the other animals called beasts, birds, and fish. Whether they be alive or dead, they convey a 



