140 Dr. A. Dendy on the 



development is complete, and then always die. Professor 

 Sedgwick quotes these statements in his monograph of the 

 genus, and yet in replying* to my letter in 'Nature' he 

 states that " no one knows whether the eggs so extruded 

 undergo complete development." I suppose that most 

 animals sometimes extrude eggs which never complete their 

 development, but this has really little to do with the question. 

 What I have been endeavouring to prove is that the larger 

 Victorian species of Peripaius is normally oviparous. The 

 two principal arguments originally brought forward — both of 

 which have been entirely overlooked by my critics — were 

 (1) that female specimens dissected at various times of the 

 year were never found with embryos in the uterus, as has 

 been so frequently described for other species, but generally 

 with large undeveloped eggs of definite oval shape and with 

 a thick membrane ; (2) that the shell or membrane of the 

 eggs after (but not before) being laid is very definitely and 

 characteristically sculptured on the outer surface, in such a 

 manner as to recall the eggs of many insects. This sculp- 

 turing alone appears to me to indicate a truly oviparous 

 habit, and, inasmuch as it affords another character common 

 to Perijjcitus and the Insecta, to deserve special attention. I 

 am not aware that a sculptured egg-shell has hitherto been 

 observed in Perijmtus, and I should be glad to learn from 

 Mr. Fletcher wliether anything of the kind has ever been 

 found around embryos of the New South Wales species which 

 have, as he informs usf, been extruded in the process of 

 drowning. 



The additional evidence on the subject which I now wish 

 to bring forward consists in the subsequent history of the 

 fourteen eggs which were laid in my vivarium between the 

 18th May and the 31st July last year, and of one which, 

 though possibly laid about the same time, was not discovered 

 until September 16. Before going any further, however, I 

 may premise that the fact that the eggs are really those of 

 Peri-patus lias been absolutely proved by their development. 

 It may also be as well to relate the fate of the parent animals 

 by which the eggs were laid. 



It may be remembered that on the 31st July, 1891, when 

 the eggs were first found, there were in the vivarium three 

 females and one male, all apparently in good health. The 

 male specimen died shortly afterwards, but on August 17th 

 the females were still all alive and apparently healthy. On 



* ' Nature,' September 24, 1891. 



t Proc. Lmn. Soc. N. S. W., September 30, 1891. 



