30 Revieivs — Desor's and Loriol's Echinologie Helvetlque. 



and thin scales without enamel, mostly of a lengthened rhomboid 

 shape, but varying considerably, being sometimes equally high as 

 long, — sometimes, especially towards the dorsal and ventral profile, 

 considerably longer than high, and losing the rhomboidal shape, and 

 produced into a point. The greatest differences in size and shape 

 are observed on the abdomen, behind the clavicular plates, where the 

 crowded and delicate longitudinal striae and furrows are replaced by 

 ridges, radiating from an eccentric centre, calling to mind the cover- 

 ing of the thorax in many Loricarince. The lateral line runs parallel 

 to the vertebral column, and has left behind the impression of the 

 rather wide and long tubes, that may be seen towards the point of 

 the tail. 



The description is illustrated by four plates. On the affinities of 

 this interesting fossil genus Prof. Kner gives no decided opinion ; 

 but the writer cannot refrain from asking, should this not be the 

 Ccelacanthus Miinsteri of Agassiz, of which a description was never 

 published, but was stated by Prof. Huxley to be a peculiar extinct 

 type allied to Phaneropleuron ? In the second part of his paper (also 

 with four plates) Prof. Kner dwells on the structure and characters 

 of the AeantJiodes of Lebach, adding to, and correcting in many im- 

 portant points, the contributions to our knowledge of this genus 

 given by Troschel and Roemer. But as an abstract of this part of 

 the Memoir cannot well be made, I shall refer paleeichthyologists to 

 the original paper itself, and only venture to insert here a sketch of 



a restored Acanihodes, based on the restoration of Eoemer's and Kner'i 

 corrections, as a sort of graphic summary of our actual knowledg» 

 of the genus. 



I. — Echinologie Helvetique. Description des Ouksins Fossile* 

 DE LA Suisse par E. Desor et P. de Loriol. Lv. I., II., III. 

 Tabl. XII. Eeinwald, Paris, and Kreidel Wiesbaden, 1868. 



PALEONTOLOGISTS have long been impressed with the im- 

 portance of the study of the Echinodermata to the progress 

 of Geology, for the marked differences between the forms of these 

 fossils found in layers of different ages had long attracted the notice 

 of observers. It is now upwards of forty years since Goldfuss gave, 

 in the Petrefacta Germanice. admirable figures and good descriptions 



