OF THE ANNULOSA. 353 



as well as lulus, " Us naissent avec six pieds, ou n^ont pas 

 du mows dans les premiers instans de leur vie tons ceux 

 gu'ils offriront dans leur etat adulte." Anxious to ve- 

 rify by personal observation this curious circumstance 

 respecting the history of the young Scolopendrcs, I took an 

 opportunity of searching for them, and satisfied myself that 

 the Chilopoda, like the hili, have no more than six f^et 

 in their youngest state. In spring they are not very un- 

 common under stones in certain situations, such as the 

 moist shady borders of w^oods, and in this their larva state 

 Vi'ill be found very pale, almost indeed white, but quite 

 as nimble for their size as when they possess their full 

 number of feet. 



The Ametabola, or insects which present the first vestige 

 of metamorphosis without, in any case, being able to per- 

 fect it so completely as some of the Winged insects, vary 

 in form as much or more than the amphibious Fertebrata, 

 with v^hich they correspond in the nature of their meta- 

 morphosis. The general characters therefore of such a 

 group are very few and scarcely decided ; I had almost 

 said that the dissimilarity between the several external 

 forms of the orders may be enumerated among the cha- 

 racters of the class. Thus their head is not always distinct ; 

 nor do they always possess antennae or eyes. Sometimes 

 they are provided with maxillae, and at others only with an 

 haustellum, which however, there is reason to think, will 

 always be found resolvable into maxillse. The antennas of 

 Ametabola are never more than two in number. These 

 animals have also never more than two eyes, which differ, 

 however, from those of Winged insects in this, that they 

 are never compound, but are either single ocelli or groups 

 of such. The sexes appear to be always distinct ; which 

 L 2 A 



