Page:Natural History, Reptiles.djvu/287

Rh the crevices of the rocks into this place, where they are found; and it does not appear to me impossible, when the peculiar nature of the country in which we are is considered, that the same great cavity may furnish the individuals which have been found at Adelsburg and at Sittich.”

Observations on the living animal, as well as the study of its anatomy, render it certain that it is in a perfected condition, and not, as has been supposed, the larva or tadpole of some large unknown Triton or Salamander inhabiting those Tartarean recesses. It has been found of various sizes, from the thickness of a quill to that of a man's thumb, but the form of the respiratory organs has always been the same. Its whole comparative anatomy forbids the conclusion that the form in which we see it is that of a creature in a state of transition. Professor Wagner, who had an opportunity of dissecting a male and a female, immediately after death, observes (in some notes communicated to the Zoological Society, November 1837) that he has no doubt that the pulmonary sacs or vesicles really perform the function of lungs. Each lung contains a large artery and a still larger vein, which are connected together by means of large and numerous vessels. He found the ova in the female very beautifully developed; their structure, as well as that of the ovary, corresponding perfectly with that of the other naked Amphibia, especially the Triton. It is an animal in fact well calculated to exalt our views of the greatness of God, who is able to produce and perpetuate animal life, and doubtless enjoyment, in situations,