BEITISH FOSSILS. 



DECADE THE FIFTH. 



IiT apologizing for tlie unavoidable delay which has takeii place 

 in the publication of this Decade, owing to the much lamented 

 decease of Professor Edward Forbes, it is right to state that the 

 materials left behind by him were scanty, and had been unfor- 

 tunately mislaid a short time before his death. The first descrip- 

 tion only, that of Solaster Moretonis, had been fully written by 

 him ; of the others, we had here and there notes on the distinctive 

 characters of the species, and of his views as to their S3aionymy or 

 history. The plates, however, had been all engraved under his own 

 eye, and the specific designations under which he wished the figures 

 to stand, were recorded in the last edition of Morris's Catalogue. 

 He had there also applied MS. names to a number of species to 

 be described in the Decade. 



In a few cases only it has been found necessary to alter some of 

 these names ; and this has been done in deference to an authority 

 which would have been gladly admitted by Professor Forbes. 

 To Mr. S. P. Woodward, of the British Museum, we are indebted 

 for all the notes respecting these supplementary species ; and he 

 has also furnished full descriptions of three of the plates. With this 

 valuable aid, and the friendly communications of Dr. T. Wright, of 

 Cheltenham, we can present the Decade in nearly as complete a form 

 as it would have possessed had our friend and Master lived to finish 

 it. We miss, however, his lively remembrance of the living species, 

 and his practical acquaintance with their variations, — defieieiicies 

 not to be supplied by reference to his published works, 

 [v.] 5 a 2 



