PREFACE. vii 



mention the Foraminifera, the Covered-eyed, and 

 Ciliograde Medusa?, the Turlellaria, the Sessile- 

 eyed Crustacea, the Annelida, and a portion of the 

 Polyzoa, in proof of this alleged deficiency. 



Let it not be supposed that I think lightly of 

 the Monographs I have alluded to. I should only 

 convict myself of gross ignorance if I were to do 

 so. They are of the highest value, models of 

 scientific research, acumen, and accuracy ; but the 

 very care and labour which have been bestowed 

 upon them, to give them the perfection they con- 

 fessedly possess, have necessarily put them (as a 

 whole body of science) out of the reach of the 

 great multitude of students. My little book is 

 not a rival, but an introduction, to these elaborate 

 works. It is a Manual, that can be carried in the 

 pocket, and referred to, as the tyro sits upon a 

 weed-fringed rock, or stands on the tide-washed 

 beach. 



I do not speak theoretically only, but experi- 

 mentally, when I say that such a work as this is a 

 felt need. Most of the books I have alluded to 

 above, are in my own library, but still I have often 

 felt the want of a Manual, which should contain 

 the characters of every Class, Order, Tribe, Family, 

 and Genus, of our native marine animals, so ar- 

 ranged as to be suitable for ready reference. The 

 Manual did not exist, and I set myself to make it. 



I believe the student will find here the means 



