Mv. Yiirrell's Notes on Comparative Anatomy. 315 



numerous specimens of recently deceased animals which are daily pre- 

 sented to the Society, afford opportunities, such as seldom occur, for the 

 study and description of the animal economy. In most cases these 

 opportunities have not been neglected. The greater number of the ani- 

 mals brought to Bruton Street have been opened in the first instance with 

 the view of ascertaining the cause of their death; and this examination ge- 

 nerally led to a further inquiry into their structure. These investigations 

 were for the most part carried on under the superintendance of Mr. Yarrell 

 and myself; that gentleman having kindly undertaken to point out to me 

 some of the general laws relating to the internal conformation of 

 animals; — a subject, in which his extensive studies and his accuracy in 

 dissecting enabled him to give the most valuable instruction. In the 

 course of these inquiries we took many notes of the various appearances 

 of the animals before us ; not, however, in any systematick form, but in a 

 desultory manner, as the many interruptions, and various avocations 

 attendant on an establishment like ours, allowed us leisure to note down 

 our observations. 



On looking into the papers which contain these notes, we find a 

 mass of information, crudely, it is true, and confusedly brought 

 together, and infinitely less extensive in details than would have been 

 the case, had we not been debarred by want of leisure from commit- 

 ting to paper all that we were enabled to observe; but still information 

 of value to ourselves, and on which we can place every reliance, as 

 having been the result of our own observation. We think that some 

 selections from these notes, relating to a few of the animals which more 

 rarely occur,* may prove interesting to many of our readers. We shall 

 therefore make occasional extracts from the note book of the Society, and 

 particularly where we meet any subject of importance. Little, we are 

 aware, of what may thus appear will be more than a repetition of what 

 has often been repeated. But still the repetition of previous intelligence 

 from authentick sources is always of service, as tending to corroborate it. 

 At the same time it not unfrequently occurs that differences are observable 



* A more detailed account of some of the more important subjects belonging 

 to the Society has already been given in this Journal : such as the economy of 

 the Tapir, Fennec, Chlamyphorus, Sec. 



