DEVONIAN FISHES OF IOWA 



271 



number of exquisitely preserved specimens. One of these is 

 shown in text-figure 40 A, and others which fortunately sup- 

 plement it in important details are now the property of the 

 American Museum of Natural History. The entire suite of ma- 

 terial exhibiting the soft parts within the interior of the head in 

 this species has been submitted to several experts for examina- 

 tion, among 'whom should be mentioned Professors Dean, Patten 

 and Parker, and to these three friends in particular the writer 

 is indebted for valuable hints and suggestions. The liberality 

 of the first-named in committing all the specimens in his keep- 

 ing to the writer's hands for study and report testifies to his 

 extreme interest in furthering so promising an investigation, 

 and the writer is mindful of his instructions to section or other- 

 wise manipulate the precious material in order to gain all pos- 

 sible information. Sectioning has not been resorted to, how- 

 ever, because the structure of the phosphatic matter into which 

 the organic tissue was transformed hnmediately after death is 

 seen to be amorphous, except for a thin superficial layer which 

 faithfully preserves the outline of the different organs. Fur- 

 thermore, it seemed advantageous to request Dr. Parker, of the 

 Harvard Zoological Department, to draw up a succinct account 

 of his lection of the membranous labyrinth in order that stu- 

 dents may have the benefit of his views. This suggestion met 

 with a ready response, and we accordingly have pleasure in pre- 

 senting the following statement on the part of a skilful investi- 

 gator of the sense organs of vertebrates. It will be profitable 

 to consult in this connection the same author's papers on hear- 

 ing and allied senses in fishes.* 



* Parker, G. H., Hearing and Allied Senses in Fishes. Bull. U. S. Fish Com m. 

 (1902), 22, pp. 44-64. -The Sense of Hearing in Fishes. Amer. Nat. (1903), 37, 

 pp. 185-204. See also in volume 38 of the same journal a paper by H. B. Bige- 

 low on The Sense of Hearing in the Goldfish, Carassius auratus Linn. 



