CROCODILES AND ALLIGATORS 
The link next to the tortoise tribe is formed of an important group of reptiles, containing 
the largest of the reptilian order, larger, indeed, than most present inhabitants of the earth, 
if we except one or two African and Indian animals, and some members of the cetaceous tribe. 
As is the case with nearly all reptiles, they are carnivorous, and owing to their great size, 
strength of muscle, voracity of appetite, and the terrible armature of sharp teeth with which 
their jaws are supplied, they are the dread of the countries which they inhabit, ruling the 
rivers with a sway as despotic as is exercised by the lion and tiger on land, the eagle in the air, 
or the shark in the seas. 
On account of the peculiar manner in which their bodies are covered with square, keeled, 
bony plates embedded in the skin, and protecting the body with an armor that effectually 
guards its upper and more exposed portions from any ordinary weapon, they are separated 
from the true lizards, and scientifically termed Emydosauei, or Tortoise-lizards, the bony 
plates being considered to have a certain analogy with those of the shielded reptiles. By some 
zoological authors these animals are termed Loeicata, or Mailed Reptiles, from the Latin 
word lorica , which signifies a coat of mail, or cuirass. 
Although these creatures are capable of walking upon land, for which purpose they are 
furnished with four legs, they are more fitted for the water than its shores, and are swift and 
graceful in the one, as they are stiff, awkward, and clumsy on the other. Through the water 
they urge their course with extraordinary speed, their long, flattened, flexible tail answering 
the double purpose of an oar and a rudder ; but on land their bodies are so heavy and their 
legs are so weak, that they can hardly be said to walk, a term which seems to imply that the 
body is wholly supported by the legs, but to push or drag themselves along the ground, on 
which rests a considerable portion of their weight. 
The head of these creatures is always rather elongated, and in some species is lengthened 
into a narrow and prolonged snout. Each jaw is furnished with a row of sharply-pointed and 
rather conical teeth. These teeth are hollow, mostly grooved on the surface, and are replaced 
when they fall by new teeth that grow behind them, and in process of time push the old ones 
out of their sockets. 
The nostrils are placed at the very extremity of the skull, and npon a slightly raised 
prominence, so that the animal is able to breathe by merely exposing an inch or so above the 
water, and thus can conceal itself from almost any foe, or make an unsuspected approach upon 
its prey. There is yet another more important use for the position of the nostrils. The Croco- 
diles feed on fishes and various water-loving creatures, but also are in the habit of lurking by 
the river-bank, and suddenly seizing upon any unfortunate animal that may come to drink. 
Suppose, for example, that a calf or a dog is thus dragged into the water, the reptile grasps it 
across the body, and sinks below the surface, so as to keep the head of the victim below water 
while itself can breathe by means of the elevated nostrils. 
But as during this process the mouth is held widely open, it might be rationally presumed 
that considerable inconvenience would be caused by the water running down the throat. Such 
would indeed be the case, were not this difficulty provided for by a simple yet very wonderful 
contrivance. At the back of the throat, a pair of thin, cartilaginous plates are so arranged, 
that when the animal opens its mouth the pressure of the water rushing into the mouth imme- 
diately closes one upon the other, and effectually prevents the passage of a single drop, the 
closure being in exact proportion to the volume of water. The structure, indeed, is very like 
that of the valves of the heart. The channels which lead from the nostrils run very far back 
through the skull, and open behind the throat-valves, so that respiration is in no way impeded. 
They cannot, however, swallow their prey while under water, but are obliged to bring it on 
shore for that purpose. The tongue is small, and fastened down to the lower jaw throughout 
its length, so that it was formerly thought that the Crocodiles were destitute of that organ. 
