ODONTOR'NITHES, a sub-class of birds whose fossils have been found by Marsh in the cretaceous formation of Kansas. They include two orders, odontolcte, and odon tormae. The order odontolcw was founded by Marsh for the reception of the extraordi nary hesperornis regalia. The fossil of this gigantic bird indicates that in many points of structure it resembled the loons of the present day. It measured between 5 and 6 ft.from the bill to the toes, and it stood nearly as high. Its jaws were furnished with numer erous conical, recurved teeth, sunk deep in a continuous groove. The front of the under jaw was not furnished with teeth, and was probably encased in a horny beak. The breast-bone had no central ridge or keel, and the wings were too small for a bird of flight. The tail consisted of about 12 vertebrte, of which the last three or four were amalgamated to form a flat, terminal mass. The tail was probably capable of a con siderable up and down movement, enabling it to act as a paddle. Toe cervical and dor sal vertebral were of the ordinary bird type. The legs were powerful and the feet adapted for rapid paddling. It was undoubtedly a swimming and diving bird, larger than any of the present day, and probably lived upon fishes. Lestornis crassipes, also of the cretaceous, is nearly related to hesperornis ' • and enatornis of the cretaceous of Great Britain is probably allied to the same genus, but the formation of its jaws is unknown. The next order, odontolcm, was founded by Marsh for the reception of two remarkable birds which he has named ichtkyornis dispar and apatornis celer. lchthyornis dispar may be taken as the type of the order. Its teeth were contained in distinct sockets instead of grooves as in hesperornis. They were small, compressed, and pointed, and all of them which have been preserved are of similiar form. The lower jaw contained about twenfy on each side, all more or less Inclined backward. Those in the upper jaw resembled those in the lower. The skull was of moderate size, and the eyes placed well forward. The jaws were long and slender, and apparently not encased in a horny sheath. The articular faces of the vertebrae were biconcave, as in fishes. The wings were large in proportion to the legs, and the humerus had an extended radial crest. The 'metacarpal bones were united as in ordinary birds. Whether the tail was elongated cannot at pres ent be determined; but the last vertebra of the .sacrum was The fossil found
by prof. Marsh was that of an adult, and about the size of a pigeon. The species was carnivorous, and probably aquatic. Apatornis resembled ichthyornis, but was rather more slender.
cECOLAMPADIUS, ;ThANNEs—a name Latinized, according to the fashion of the age, f&om the German JortANN HAUSSCIIIEN—one of the most eminent of the coadjutors of Zwingli in the Swiss Reformation, b. in 1482 at Weinsberg, in Swabia. His father des tined him for the profession of the law, and he studied for it in Heidelberg and Bologna; but yielding to Us own strong inclination, he relinquished this study for that of the ology, which he prosecuted at Heidelberg. He then became tutor to the sons of the elector Palatine, and subsequently preacher in Weinsberg. This office he resigned in order to study the Greek language under Reuchlin at Stuttgart. He also learned Hebrew from a Spanish physician, Matthew Adrian. Being appointed preacher at Basel, he formed the acquaintance of Erasmus, who highly appreciated his classical attainments, and employed his assistance in his edition of the New Testament. In 1516, CEcolana padins left Basel for Augsburg, where also he filled the office of preacher, and where he entered into a convent. But Luther's publications exercised so great an influence on him that he left the convent, and became chaplain to Franz von Sickingen, after whose death he returned to Basel in 1522, and in the capacity of preacher and professor of the ology, commenced his career as a reformer. He held disputations with supporters of the church of Rome, in Baden in 1520, and in Bern in 1528. In the controversy concern ing the Lord's supper, he gradually adopted more and more the views of Zwingli, and at last maintained them in 1525, in a treatise, to which the Swabian ministers replied in the Sgagramarat Suevicum. In 1529 he disputed with Luther in the conference at Mar burg. He died at Basel, Nov. 23, 1531, not long after the death of his friend Zwingli. He was remarkable for his gentleness of character. His treatise De Rita Paschidi, and his Epistola Canonicorum Indoctorum ad .Ecciaon, are the most noted of his works.— See Herzog,• Das Leber des Joh. M'colatualius (1843); and Hagenbach's Ch7colampadins (1859).