ORDER OF EDENTATA. 
The designation of Edentated (toothless), applied to the Mam- 
mals which compose this Order, does not infer that they are 
completely devoid of teeth, although this is really the case in 
several species, but only that in them the incisors are always 
wanting, so that there is an empty space in front of their jaws. 
Another peculiarity which characterises this Order is that their 
teeth, when they have any, are, as nearly as possible, all alike, 
and not of various shapes, as in most Mammals ; added to this, 
the root of each tooth is single, having but one fang. 
In individuals of the Order Edentata, the limbs are terminated 
by very strong claws, which are used for climbing or scratching. 
These animals are, in general, of a clumsy form, slow in their 
motions, and possessed of but little intelligence. Some, instead 
of being clothed with hair, are covered with scales — a pecu- 
liarity which adds to the strangeness of their appearance. 
Their habits and system of feeding differ much in the various 
families : some living on vegetables, others on animal substances ; 
some burrowing in holes, others living on trees. All, how- 
ever, are natives of the warm regions, both of the Old and New 
World ; none exist in Europe, and the larger number of them 
are found in South America. They never attain great size, 
the largest species measuring about three feet in length, not 
including the tail. This, however, was not always the case. 
Deep in the bowels of the earth the remains of some of 
this Order have been found, the races of which have long 
been extinct, and their vast proportions are a just cause of 
astonishment. Of this kind are the Glyptodon, the Mylodon , 
the Megatherium, &c. Most of these fossil species are pecu- 
liar to America, and their dimensions equal those of the Ox, 
