to be heard at the distance of a quarter of a league; and its throat exhaled an offensive vapour.

Mr. Bell gives the following account of those on record as having been captured on our coast. "Borlase, in his History of Cornwall,' mentions two of a vast size, which were caught in the mackarel nets, off the coast of Cornwall, a little after midsummer, 1756. The larger weighed eight hundred pounds, the lesser nearly seven hundred. Pennant states that a third, of equal weight with the first, was caught on the coast of Dorsetshire, and deposited in the Leverian Museum. This specimen, if I mistake not, is the one now in the British Museum.

"The late bishop of Carlisle informed me," proceeds Pennant, "that a Tortoise was taken off the coast of Scarborough, in 1748, or 1749. It was purchased by a family then resident there, and several persons were invited to partake of it. A gentleman, who was one of the guests, told them it was a Mediterranean Turtle, and not wholesome only one of the company partook of it, who suffered severely, being seized with dreadful vomiting and purging."

A large specimen, in the possession of Mr. Bell, measures eight feet in total length.

This species was certainly known to the Greeks, and it was of its carapace that the first lyre, as is supposed, was formed. The fable, or allegory is, that Mercury found on the banks of the Nile, the back shell of a Tortoise, the flesh of which was consumed, and that to this he applied strings; thus the first lyre was fabricated. The seven ridges are said to have suggested the adoption of seven strings, which appear to have been the ancient number; in honour of which, Amphion built the seven gates of Thebes. We need not remind our classical readers, that testudo in Latin, and xeλvs, (chelys,) in Greek, mean both a tortoise and a lyre, or lute.

Here we close our sketch of the Chelonia, or first order, comprising the Tortoises, terrestrial and aquatic;

and we trust that we have not only explained their general characters, and the principal modifications of form which they present, in their adaptation for the land, the marsh, the river, and the ocean, but that we have, at the same time, adduced collateral evidence of the wisdom of God in creation. Every proof of design, that is, every instance of the adaptation of an organ to a given end, leads us immediately to God, demonstrating at once his power and goodness. Every animal in the fulfilment of its allotted part, for which it has due instincts and organs, may be said, and rightly said, to praise its Creator, inasmuch as it shows forth his wisdom and omnipotence. But to trace God in his works and ways, belongs to man alone. Let, then, the student of nature, rise from the creatures which he contemplates, and whose structures astonish him, to Him who is the Lord and Giver of life and light, and whose glory is in all His works.

ORDER II.-SAURIA, OR LIZARDS.

THIS order contains a numerous assemblage of creatures, varying in size and power; from the terrible Crocodile, which lurks in ambush for its prey, to the harmless little Lizard, which shrouds itself beneath a withered leaf for concealment, or buries itself in the yielding sand. Not less remarkable is the diversity of form and habits which they display; nevertheless, they all agree in certain essential characters; which, as a preliminary, it is necessary to explain.

The general contour of the body is elongated; and the skin is protected, either by horny plates, by scales of various sizes and figures, or by granulations. In general, the limbs are four in number, and the toes are armed with claws. The body always terminates in a tail, which is frequently of considerable length. The eyes are protected by eyelids, excepting in certain instances; and in most species, a tympanic membrane covers the orifice leading to the internal organs of hearing. The ribs, unlike those we have contemplated in the tortoises, are distinct and moveable, and there is a sternum, or breast-bone, which does not occur in serpents. The jaws are armed with teeth, as in snakes, but the bones of the jaws are firmly united together, and not separable into distinct parts, as in the latter animals.

The eggs of the Sauria have a hard calcareous shell: the young undergo no transformation, as in the case of the newt and frog.

The tongue differs greatly in its form, and in the degree of freedom which it enjoys. In the Crocodile, for example, it is undeveloped, and scarcely to be distinguished from the general floor of the mouth, between the branches of the lower jaw. In other groups, it is broad, fleshy, and free only at its point: in the Chame

leons it is fleshy, cylindrical, and capable of being projected to a great distance, and then completely retracted. In some genera, again, it is slender and deeply bifid, (or forked,) like that of a snake, and, when at rest, withdrawn into a sheath; while in others, it is flat, very moveable, and notched, or forked at the tip. In all instances, it is lubricated with a glutinous saliva; but it does not appear to be endowed with a high sense of

taste.

In most of the Sauria, or Lizards, the body is so remarkable for its length and cylindrical figure, that, as Aristotle has observed, they resemble snakes with the addition of limbs. "Among all the Reptiles," says M. Bibron, "these alone, undoubtedly approach the nearest to Mammalia, both in the variety and rapidity of their different movements, especially if we compare their progression with that of Tortoises. There are, indeed, among the Sauria, species which enjoy many modes of progression; for they can creep, walk, run, climb, swim, dive, and even fly.

"Nevertheless, the elongated and heavy trunk of these Reptiles is not supported by the limbs without effort; they walk, in general, with constraint, and slowly, for the arms and thighs are short, slender, but slightly muscular, and directed outwardly; while the elbows and knees are too angular to support with ease the superincumbent weight. Still, however, notwithstanding this conformation, so faulty in appearance, (though not in reality,) they are capable of executing a great variety of movements, all bearing upon progression.' The form of the tail, the length of the body, the conformation of the toes, and the shape of the claws, determine the character of these movements, and harmonize with the the general habits of the animal. Thus, for example, palmated feet, or feet which have the toes united together by intervening webs, indicate aquatic habits; and the more so, if in conjunction with this structure of the feet, the tail be laterally compressed, and strongly ridged

above; for, thus modified, it is capable of acting the part both of oars and rudder: we may mention the Crocodile as an example in point.

Toes of great length, in conjunction with a long, slender, conical tail, denote an exclusively terrestrial mode of life; and a residence more particularly in sandy arid places, such as dry plains, or stony deserts.

A broad, flattened form of body, toes expanded on their under surface, and furnished with retractile claws, as we see in the Geckos, announce the power of adhering to smooth bodies, of traversing walls, or ceilings, like a fly, or of resting there, fixed and motionless, for an indefinite length of time.

Where we see, as in the genus Draco, a broad membranous expansion on each side of the body, supported by elongated ribs, acting the part of stretchers, we may be sure that the animal is endowed with the power of taking long flying leaps, from branch to branch. In certain of the Mammalia, as the flying squirrels, and also the flying phalangers of Australia, we find a similar provision for sweeping through the air.

The pincer-like feet, and the prehensile tail of the Chameleons, afford a clue to the general habits and locomotive powers of these singular animals.

Thus, then, are the manners and movements of the Sauria denoted by the structure of the limbs, and the conformation of the body. As in the Mammalia, we have only to regard with attention the external character of any species, to arrive at a general estimate of the situation for which it is designed, and of its prevailing habits; whether the species be arboreal, or aquatic; a tenant of dry and sandy places, or of marshy lands; whether it be inert, or active, slow, or rapid, in its actions.

The hotter climates of the globe are great nurseries of the Sauria. In our northern latitudes, unless by becoming acquainted with them through the medium of works treating upon their history, or of museums where