ORDER BATRACHIA. 431 



The tongue is entirely fleshy, and differs from that of the 

 toad only by being bifurcated in the point. It is composed 

 for the most part of a thick glandulous mass, formed by a 

 crowd of little tubes united by their base, and separated, like 

 hairy papillae, at the surface of the organ. 



The lower jaw is a very open arch, composed of six pieces, 

 the two middle ones of which are less thick than the others. 

 This jaw alone is moveable. There is no eminence observable 

 for the attachment of the digastric muscle, as in some other 

 reptiles ; neither is there any coronoid process. 



The upper jaw alone is armed with teeth : these are about 

 forty in number on each side, the eight intermaxillary ones 

 being slender, pointed, fine, and crowded. 



There is no epiglottis. It is clear that the hyoid bone, 

 by means of the muscles which raise it, contributes to deglu- 

 tition. It would be perfectly beside our purpose to enter 

 into the anatomical minutiae of this muscular and osseous 

 apparatus. It equally contributes to the inspiration of air, 

 which is performed by a sort of deglutition, while its expira- 

 tion is the consequence of the action of the abdominal 

 muscles. 



In many species of frogs, the i-ectum is more or less coni- 

 cal and pyriform. The aperture of the anus is placed at the 

 extremity of the back, and consequently above the animal — 

 a singular arrangement, which is referrible to that of the pel- 

 vis. There is but one sphincter in this part, which is the 

 only muscle. 



On the organs of circulation and respiration, it is not neces- 

 sary to enlarge here. 



The eggs of frogs, when fresh laid, are globular, black on 

 one side, and whitish on the other. They are placed in the 

 centre of a glary and transparent mass, which must serve 

 for the nutriment of the embryo. This matter is contained 

 in two membranous envelopes, which represent the shell of 



