390 J. C. Dalton, Jr., on the Proteus anguinus. 
there are minute punctiform openings, the orifices of cutaneous 
follicles, which exude an abundance of transparent colorless mu- 
cus. The peritoneal cavity is also filled with a similar exudation. 
There are but few peculiarities about the skeleton. The bod- 
ies of the vertebre are articulated to each other by concave sur- 
faces as in the fishes, instead of one of the articulating surfaces 
being concave and the other convex, as is the general rule among 
reptiles. 'The anterior extremities consist of a cartilaginous cla- 
vicle and scapula, fused into a single’ piece, a humerus, radius and 
ulna, three carpal pieces, and three digits, the two inner ones of 
which have three phalanges each, and the outer one, which is 
shorter, only two. The posterior extremities are supported by 
a simple pelvic ring, resting against the sides of the vertebral col- 
umn. ‘They are composed of a femur, tibia and fibula, a tarsus 
composed of three pieces, precisely similar to those of the carpus, 
and two digits of three phalanges each. All these parts are el- 
tirely cartilaginous, or so slightly ossified that it is difficult to be 
sure whether there is any trne bony formation or not. The snout 
is rather broad and thick. The nostrils open on the under sur- 
face of the upper lip, as in Lepidosiren Paradora. They are 
continued into a cylindrical, membranous canal, something less 
than a third of an inch long; situated in the thickness of the 
lip. There is a long row of fine, sharp, conical teeth in both. 
upper and lower jaw; and in the upper, there is also a 
much shorter row, in front of the first. The tongue is errone 
_ ously stated by R. Wagner (Comp. Anat. Vertebrata) to be want- 
ing. It is, on the contrary, very easily seen; about one-eighth 
of an inch long, but consisting only of mucous membrane and 
adipose tissue. The animal has the vertical stomach aud abort 
intestinal canal of the allied genera.. The anus is a longitudinal 
slit, just behind the junction of the posterior extremities with the 
The liver is a long, lobulated organ, wrapped round see 
stomach and upper part of the intestinal canal, and extending 
nearly two-thirds the whole length of the abdominal cavity: 
The heart, enclosed in a pericardium, is composed of a sing! 
auricle and ventricle. The arterial trunk arising-from the ventrir 
cle is partially converted into a double canal by an imperfect ne 
gitudinal partition. It sends off, on each side, three ser 
arteries, and the returning branchial veins unite immediately © 
oe situation of the heart, to form a single descending * aorta. 
lungs are simple, elongated. thin, membranous sacs, Se 
“by a fold of Seitoneurs oneal the posterior abdominal wall, aud 
somewhat unsymmetrically developed. The left runs downs 
from its opening into the cesophagus, nearly three-quarters a 
whole length of the abdominal cavity; the right but little 
one-balf the length. The blood globules of this animal 4: 
been long known to be remarkable on account of their large 57° 
