FOSSIL REPTILES. 183 



to little in the illustration of the genus except in the case of the 

 crocodile of Siam, the peculiarities of which are well distin- 

 guished in his comparison. The species of the Nile is so 

 badly authenticated by him, that most of the characters attri- 

 buted to it belong in reality to the cayman. Even the cranium, 

 of which he gives a figure, is not that of the crocodile, but one 

 belonging to a cayman of a particular species. 



Still there are many passages in M. Schneider containing 

 useful and true indications respecting the multiplicity of species 

 in America. He has also the merit of having been the first to 

 recognise the distinction of that species, called by the mission- 

 aries the crocodile of Siam, and which certainly seems to be 

 distinct His porosus seems to be the same as the biporcatus 

 of Cuvier, which we shall notice presently. The pores to each 

 scale, which M. Schneider makes a specific character, are more 

 or less to be found in all the crocodiles, properly so called. He 

 also enumerates as distinct the longirostris or gavial universally 

 known to be so. That which he names scleropSj and very erro- 

 neously gives as the crocodile of the Nile, is the most common 

 cayman in Guiana. His crocodilus triijonatus appears to be 

 another cayman, which is named palpebrosus by Cuvier. His 

 crocodilus cazrinatus, oopholis and palmatus, all belong to the 

 crocodile division, but his characters are so insufficient, that it is 

 impossible to refer them to one species more than another. 

 Lastly, his crocodilus pentonix is an imaginary being. It may 

 be added that all his figures are made with singular carelessness 

 and inaccuracy ; neither do the descriptions of the text always 

 accord with them. 



M. Geofiroy St. Hilaire rendered a very eminent service to 

 this branch of natural history by bringing from the Thebais a 

 well-authenticated crocodile of the Nile. He has informed us 

 that the fishermen of that country pretend to be acquainted 

 with two other species. He brought back the mummy of a 

 cranium from the catacombs, which induced him to examine 



