AMPHIUMA. 389 



oesophagus and back-bone, giving off vessels to the neighbouring parts ; 

 and when it has got as low as the intestines, it sends off the mesenteric 

 artery which supplies the intestines and liver. The main trunk goes 

 down the back to all the other parts. 



The fourth [aortic] branch passes out, gets above the before-mentioned 

 bones, running along the upper edge of the uppermost bone, sends 

 down branches to the tongue, &c, gets upon the oesophagus behind, and 

 joins a branch from the united trunk of the other two, going up to the 

 head. 



The veins set out from the rectum and bladder in two directions, one 

 in front, the other behind ; the anterior vein runs along the abdominal 

 muscles to the liver, and is there joined by the other. The posterior 

 vein runs up the back, receiving the blood from the kidneys, oviducts, 

 &c, passes forwards at the upper part and dips into the liver. 



The mesenteric vein, after having formed the ' vena portarum,' passes 

 also forwards to the lower edge of the liver, and is joined by the ante- 

 rior [front or sternal] vena cava. From the left there are veins running 

 from the stomach, oesophagus, &c, which join the same. All these 

 pass through the liver, and are collected at the upper part and enter the 

 auricle 1 . 



The Ounkishee \_Amphiuma didactylum, Cuv.]. 



This animal is the second remove or link in the chain from the fish 

 towards the Tricoilia. 



The general shape of this animal is that of the eel, excepting the 

 tail, which at its anterior part is pretty round, but thence by degrees it 

 becomes laterally flattened towards the tip, which is almost a point. 

 There is nothing of the fin-kind in the edges of the tail. The one 

 from which this description was taken was about 29 inches long. It is 

 of a very dark colour, with scarcely any difference in this respect 

 between the back and belly 2 . The general form of the head, its direc- 

 tion, as also the shape and direction of the mouth, are pretty similar to 

 those of the eel. There are four small processes, which, from their situ- 

 ation, may be called legs ; the anterior are placed a little way from the 

 head, just behind the openings of the gills * they are small projecting 

 bodies, straight, and without any appearance of joints ; and, at their 

 terminations, they are a little forked or divided into two small toes, the 

 lowest of which is the shortest. There is nothing like nails on the 



1 [Hunt. Preps. Phys. Series, Nos. 916, 917 ; and original drawings, Nos. 83 and 

 85, engraved in the second volume of the ' Catalogue of the Hunterian Physiological 

 Series,' 4to, 1834.] 



2 [Hunt. Preps. Nos. 915 (anterior moiety), and 2397 (posterior moiety).] 



