Mr. Gray's Reply to Mr. Swainson. 525 



BuHmus amarula. Var. Brug. Diet. 309. 



Icon. Lister^ ManttssUy t. 1055. f. 8. (full grown.) Gualtier^ 

 Ind. t. 6. f. B. Martini^ Berlin Mag. iv. t. v. f. 646. (young). 

 ChemnitZy ix. t. 134. f. 1220, 1221. (young, probably a copy of 

 the last.) Favanne t. 61, f. 9. (young.) Zoological Journal, 

 t. 8. f. 6. (full grown, 6. young, 7. spine, 8.) 



It thus appears that the shell in question had been described by 

 no less than four authors from difterent specimens, and that four 

 original figures of it had been published, previously to that in the 

 " Journal of Science and The Arts." The figure of Favanne is par- 

 ticularly characteristic, and was instantly recognized by two 

 conchological, friends to whom it was shown. 



With respect to the third point, the tubular nature of the spines 

 of Neritina Corona, Lam,, I shall abstain from commenting on 

 the uncertainty which must ever attend the negative evidence to 

 be deduced from a particular character not having been described 

 by preceding authors. A reference to the shell itself, which has 

 lately become not uncommon, would at once prove that the spines 

 are tubular, as I described them : but as authorities may be re- 

 garded as possessing more weight than would attach to any state- 

 ment that I could advance, I shall subjoin a few which demon- 

 strate the justness of my previous remarks. Chemnitz in his 

 specific character, p. 68, as correctly quoted by Mr. Swainson, does 

 not notice the perforation of the spines, but in his description, 

 p. 70, he says expressly, " Sie sind innerlich hohl wie ein Rohr," 

 they are inwardly hollow like a reed. Even on the opposite page, 

 p. 69, to that from which Mr. Swainson copied the specific charac- 

 ter, among the synonyma of this shell, are the following: 



Une nerite des Indes, rare, vert fon9e, a six epiues fortes 

 placees le long du milieu de la spirale, de plus en plus grandes a, 

 mesure qu' elles approchent du bord ; la derniere de ces epines 

 est souvent plus longue que la coquille nieme. D^Jvila, Cat* 

 Raisonnee, j. n. 964. p. 430. 



Nerite epineuse. Nerita fluviatilis spinis pcrforafis et elatis 

 armata, ex colore viridi nigrescens ; columella edentula et intus 

 propensa ; testa tenuis insignis. Les epines en forme de pelits 



Vol. I. 2 N 



