Full text of "A naturalist's rambles on the Devonshire coast"

See other formats

Professor John Satterly
University of Toronto
Department of Physics

qx'^

NATUEALIST'S RAMBLES

DEVONSHIRE COAST.

S. VIVIAN, PRIXTER, BROAD STREET, BATH.

pia/£ xxyji

1-4 CHRTSAORA CTCLONOTA

PREFACE

The following pages I have endeavoured, as far as possible*
to make a mirror of the thoughts and feelings that have
occupied my own mind during a nine months' residence on
the charming shores of North and South Devon. There
I have been pursuing an occupation which always pos-
sesses for me new delight, — the study of the curious forms,
and still more curious instincts, of animated beings. So
interesting, so attractive has the pursuit been, so unex-
pected in many instances the facts revealed by the research,
that I have thought the attempt to convey, with pen and
pencil, to others the impressions vividly received by my-
self might be a welcome service.

Few, very few, are at all aware of the many strange,
beautiful, or wondrous objects that are to be found by
searching on those shores that every season are crowded
by idle pleasure-seekers. Most curious and interesting
animals are dwelling within a few yards of your feet,
whose lovely forms and hues, exquisitely contrived struc-
tures, and amusing instincts, could not fail to attract and
charm your attention, if you were once cognizant of them.
"But who will be our guide to such sources of interest?"
Deign to accept these pages as your " Hand-book" to the
sea-side. They contain a faithful record of what actually
has fallen under an individual's observation in a single
season, and may therefore be assumed to present a fair
average of what may be expected again.

But I have not made a book of systematic zoology ; nor

VI. PREFACE.

a book of mere zoology of any sort. I venture to ask
your companionship, courteous Reader, in my Rambles
over field and do^vn in the fresh dewy morning; I ask
you to listen with me to the carol of the lark, and the hum
of the wild bee ; I ask you to stand with me at the edge
of the precipice and mark the glories of the setting sun ;
to watch with me the mantling tide as it rolls inward, and
roars among the hollow caves ; I ask you to share with
me the delightful emotions which the contemplation of
unbounded beauty and beneficence ever calls up in the
cultivated mind.

Hence I have not scrupled to sketch pen-pictures of the
lovely and romantic scenery with which both the coasts
of Devon abound ; and to press into my service personal
narrative, local anecdote, and traditionary legend ; and, in
short, any and every thing, that, having conveyed pleasure
and interest to myself, I thought might entertain and
please my reader. It is not the least of the advantages
of the study of natural history, that it strengthens in us
"the habit of wishing to discover the good and the beau-
tiful in all that meet and surround us."

If it should be objected that — to treat of the facts which
science reveals to us, in any other manner than that tech-
nical measured style, which aims not at conveying any
pleasurable emotions beyond the mere acquisition of know-
ledge, and is therefore satisfied with being coldly correct,
— is to degi-ade science below its proper dignity, I would
modestly reply that I think otherwise. That the increase
of knowledge is in itself a pleasure to a healthy mind is
surely true ; but is there not in our hearts a chord that
thrills in response to the beautiful, the joyous, the perfect^
in Nature ? I aim to convey to my reader, to reflect^ as it
were, the complacency which is produced in my own
mind by the contemplation of the excellence impressed on
everything which God has created.

PREFACE. VU.

Wordsworth has said that man and nature are essen-
tially adapted to each other, and that the mind of man is
naturally the mirror of the fairest and most interesting
properties of Nature. The same mighty mover of the
human heart tells us that " Poetry is the impassioned
expression which is the countenance of all Science." And
all that is required to make the remotest discoveries of the
Man of Science proper objects of the Poet's art is famili-
arity with them, so that " the relations under which they
are contemplated by the student be manifestly and palpably
material to us, as enjoying and suffering beings."

Another eloquent ^vriter thus speaks of the relation
existing between Poetry and the Physical Sciences.

" Such studies lift the mind into the truly sublime of
nature. The poet's dream is the dim reflection of a
distant star : the philosopher's revelation is a strong
telescopic examination of its features. One is the mere
echo of the remote whisper of nature's voice in the dim
twilight ; the other is the swelling music of the harp of
Memnon, awakened by the Sun of truth, newly risen from
the night of ignorance."*

Yet I would not have it supposed that I have ever
stated the facts of Natural History in a loose, vague,
imaginative way. Precision is the very soul of science, —
j)recision in observation, truthfulness in record : and I
should ^eem myself unworthy of a place among natu-
ralists, if I were not studious to exhibit the phenomena
of Nature with the most scrupulous care and fidelity.
Humanum est err are : I dare not suppose I have escaped
error ; but I am sure it is not the result of wilfulness, I
trust it is not that of carelessness.

Some of the investigations here touched upon are of
high interest to naturalists : such as those connected with

• Hunt's ' Poetry of Science', p. 292.

Vlll. PREFACE.

the alternation of generations, the embryology and develop-
ment of the Zoophytes, and the nature and functions of
their special organs. The varied forms and singular
properties of the Thread-Capsules in the Polypes and the
Medusae, in particular, have excited my own admiration.

The curious observations of Sir J. G. Dalyell and other
zoologists on the propagation of the Hydroid Zoophytes,
might seem to render those recorded in this volume need-
less; but the words of the indefatigable naturalist just
named warrant the multiplication of observed facts.
Speaking of the mysterious appearance of certain Medusce
in connexion with Tubulariee, he says, " Were similar
instances recorded, our embarassments might be relieved ;
for more frequent, easier, and stricter investigation being
admitted, doubtless such a train of discovery, and thence
the solution of what are to us the most abstruse problems,
would follow."

The plates have been all drawn from living nature, with
the greatest attention to accuracy. They are twenty
eight in number, of which twelve are printed in colours :
they comprise about two hundred and forty figures of
animals and their component parts, in many instances
drawn with the aid of the microscope.

London: March 30ih, 1853.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

A Flitting to the Coast — Rival Claims of North and South De-
von— Marychurch selected — Beauty of Devonshire Lanes —
Author's Outfit — First exploring Jaunt — Babbicombe Sands
— Pretty Rock-pool — Petit Tor— Jackdaws— Kestrel — Pol-
lock-fishing on the Rocks — Boulders examined — Contents of
a shallow Pool — Green Sea- worm — Smooth Anemone — Turn-
ing stones at Babbicombe — Finger-cutting Serpulai — Naked-
gilled MoUusca — Their Elegance and Beauty — Manners in
Captivity — Spawn of Doris — Form and Structure of the
young — Anthea — Its Form and Colours — Voracity of an Eolis
— Manners of Anthea — Its Mode of marching — of swimming
— Beautiful Variety — Reflections. Page 1

CHAPTER II.

Petit Tor — Squirrel — Limestone Ledge — Stone-borers — Anemones
and Sea-weeds — Clear Rock-pools — Daisy Anemone — Diffi-
culty of procuring Specimens — Mode of Operation — A
Metamorphosis — Description of the Species — Tentacles —
Colours — Varieties — Habits — Structure of the Tentacles —
Thread-shooting Capsules — Petit Tor Pools — ^Thick horned
Anemone — Description of the Species — Suggestions of Iden-
tity with A, coriacea — Its Habits — Beautiful Varieties —
Changes of Figure — Deep Tide-pool— Prawn — Its Beauty of
Colour — Changes produced by Exposure to Light. 21

CHAPTER III.

A Visit to Brixham — The Road — Character of the Coast — Berry
Castle — Legends — Brixham — Coast Scenery — Animals of the

X. CONTENTS.

Shore— The Painted Scallop— Its Beauty— Mantle — Tentacles
— Gem-like Eyes — Climbing Powers — Leaps — Mode of per-
forming these misunderstood — Explanation — Functions and
Structure of the Eyes — Structure of the Gills — Ciliary Action
— Beauty of the Phenomenon — Oddicombe Rock-pool — Its
Form — Contents— The Feather-star — Its Habits in Captivity —
Reproduction of its Limbs — Watcombe — Romantic Scenery
Sandstone Cliffs— The Sea Lemon — The Purple Dye — Mode
of applying it — Changes of Colour— Tor Abbey Sands— Shore
Animals— The Pholas— Its Siphons— Their Use, Structure
and Currents— Curious Contrivance — Anstey's Cove — View
from Babbicombe Downs — Skylark's Song — Precipice of
Limestone — Abundance of Animals — Pleurobranchus. 44

CHAPTER IV.

The Dead Man's Fingers — Appearance when contracted — when
expanded— Beauty of the flower-like Polypes— Structure —
Spiculse — The Polypidom — Zoophytes and Crustacea upon
Tangle — Small Nudibranchs and their Spawn— The Angled
Laomedea — Its medusiform Young — Appearance, Manners
and Structure of the Embryo — Escape of one from the Vesicle
— Regular Arrangement of the Zoophytes — The Rosy Ane-
mone— Its Locality — Description — Habits — Structure — The
Snowy-disked Anemone— Peculiarities of its Locality — De-
scription— The Snake-locked Anemone — Description — Fare-
well to South Devon. 76

CHAPTER V.

llfracombe — Beautiful Scenery —Walk to Watermouth— Hele —
Hockey Lane — Fine Sea-view^Daws — Doves — Charms of
Spring — Watermouth — Curious mode of Fishing — Grove of
Flowers — Rabbits— Sharp Rocks — Gemmaceous Anemone —
Living Madrepores — Their Localities — Appearance — Mode of
detaching them — Their Structure — The Plates — Beauty of
the Animal — Protrusion of the soft Parts — Their Translu-
cency — Analogy with the Anemone — Brilliancy of Colours —
Tentacles — Cilia on their Surface — The globose Heads — The
Tentacles are tubular — Imprisoned Animalcule— Sensibility

CONTENTS. XI,

of the Madrepore to Light —Experiments in feeding them —
Sense of Taste — Reproduction of Parts — The Frilled Bands
— Their Use — Their Structure — Thread- Capsules — Singular
Forms of these Organs — The Madrepore easily preserved
alive. 101

CHAPTER VI.

A Walk to Hele— Bird's-eye View of the Harbour— Quay Fields
— Lion Rock — Hele Strand — A threatened Shipwreck — Eu-
cratea — Description — Mode of Growth — Form of the Cell —
Structure of the Polype— Tentacles — Digestive System — Mus-
cular Bands — Evanescence of the radiate Character — ^Root-
Thread — Snake-head Coralline — Frill — Vermicular Organs —
Door and Hinge — Ciliated Cellularia — Cells — Spines — Birds*
Heads — Their Motions — Slimy Laomedea — Structure of a
Sertularian Zoophyte — Its Contraction — Marginal Folds of
the Cell — Researches in Gastronomy — Anemones cooked —
Eaten — Commended — Best mode of preparing them — Anthea
tried. 128

CHAPTER VII.

Charm of the Sea-side — Watching the receding Tide — The Lion
Rock — Approach of Evening — Its Accompaniments— The
Warty Cycloum — Harvey's Syrinx — Capstone Hill — Its Pro-
menade— Precipitous Walks — Noble Prospects — Sunset —
Bird's-eye View— The Welsh Coast — Flowers — The Summit
— Inland View — Seaward Rocks — Wildersmouth — A fatal
Accident — The Gemmed Anemone — Description — Habits —
Production of the Young — Sea-Spider — Black Sand -worm —
A second Visit to Watermouth — Flowers — A Crab at Home
— A walk to Lee— Beautiful Valley— Character of the Cove
— Stone-turning — The Worm Pipe-fish— Its Form and
Colours — Manners in Captivity — Intelligence — Appearance
of Disease — Surgical Aid — Difficulties of Microscopical
Sketching. 154

CHAPTER VIII.

Rock-pools — Their Abundance — Southey's Description — Its truth
to Nature — Their Loveliness — Chondrus — Its brilliant Reflec-

Xll. COIS'TEXTS.

tions — The Brandling Coryne — A Parasite — A Beautiful
Sea- weed — Structure of the Zoophyte — Origin of its Name —
Tentacles — Their Structure — Egg Capsules — Escape of the
Eggs — The Bird's-head Coralline — Elegant Shape of the Poly-
pidom — Advantage of studying living Animals — The CeU
— The Polype — Its Organization — Muscles — Economy in
God's Works — A Populous Stone — Enumeration of its Te-
nants— Reflections — God's Purpose in Creation — The hopeful
Future — The Sessile Coryne — The Belgian Pedicellina— Its
Form and Structure — Production of its Young — Its Habits
— Its Affinities — ^The Slender Pedicellina — Its singular Bulb.

188

CHAPTER IX.

Metamorphosis of Lepralia — Appearance of the Gemmule —
Budding of the Cell- spines — Development of the Polype —
Growth —The Three-headed Coryne — Singular Use of its
Disk — Beania — Coralline Light — Lime Light — Tubulipora —
Marine Vivaria — The Principle explained — Elegance of Sea-
plants — Facilities for Study — Details of Experiments —
Mode of procuring the Sea-weeds — Success — Anticpations
— A curious Coincidence — Sponge-Crystals — Their elegant
Form — Immense Numbers — Mutual Entanglement — Ciliated
Sponge — Its crystal Coronet — Powers of Restoration. 218

CHAPTER X.

Respiration and Circulation — A Transparent Ascidia — Organs of
Sight— Play of the Gills— Ciliary Waves— The Heart- Cours-
ing of the Blood-globules — Reversal of the Current — " Na-
ture," what is it ? — The Praise of God — Luminosity of the
Sea — A Charming Spectacle — Light-producing Zoophytes —
Luminosity a Vital Function — Noctiluca, a Luminous Ani-
malcule— Its Structure — Production of its Embryo — The
Slender Coryne— Description— Parasites. 240

CHAPTER XI.

Hillsborough — ^Meaning of its Name — Its Grandeur — Its Flowers
— Commanding Prospects — View Westward— Inland— East-
ward— Seaward — Formation of a Beach — A Rock-slip — An-

CONTENTS. XllU

thea-lts Tentacles retractile — Their Structure — Thread-
Capsules — A Summer Morning Walk — Autumnal Flowers —
Lahgley Open — The Hangman — Curious Legend — Coast
Scenery — Lee — A Ship's Travels — Solitude — Caves — Sponges
— The Hispid Flustra — Its Appearance and Structure —
Expansion of its Bells — Ciliary Action — A miniature "Whirl-
pool— Visit to Braunton — Carn Top — Tragical Legend —
Score Valley — Squirrels — Trentistowe — "White Bindweed —
Oak Hedges — Reaping — Braunton — Curious monumental
Inscription — Braunton Burrows — Sea-side Rocks — Marine
Animals — Rare Plants on the Cliffs — Snails — Botany of the
Burrows — Insects — Shells — The Feather Plumularia — Its
Egg- Vesicles — Young Polypes — Their Development from
Planules — Structure of the Polype. 261

CHAPTER XII.

A Visit to Smallmouth Caves — Chasm formed by a Rock-slip —
View of Samson's Bay — Samson's Cave— Smallmouth —
Natural Tunnel — View of Combmartin Bay — Brier Cave —
Abundance of Animals — The Twining Campanularia — Form
of its Cells— The Polypes— The Egg- Vesicles— Birth of a
Medusoid — Its Form and Structure — Tentacles — Eyes — Cir-
culating Canals^Altemation of Generations — Ride towards
Barricane — A Showery Journey — Lee — Damage Farm — A
romantic Dell — Devonshire "Wells — Rockham Bay — White
Pebbles — Morte Stone — Shipwreck — Gallant Exploit — Morte
— ^Tomb of De Tracy — Approach of a Storm — Kestrels —
Parasites on a Crab — The Bristle Plumularia — Birth of its
Young — Dissolution — The Lobster's Horn Coralline — Second-
ary Cells — Suggestion of their Purpose — Egg- Vesicles —
Birth of the Planule — Its Development into the Polype-form
—Death. 292

CHAPTER XIII.

Capstone Spout-Holes — Purple Hue of low Rocks — ^Tadpole of a
Mollusk — Its Habits — Visit to Barricane — A Beach of Shells —
Rock-pools — Their Contents — Antiopa — Its Spawn — Hatch-
ing of the Embryos — Immense Number in one Brood — The
Torrs — Bloody Field — Flowers— View from the Cliff— Torr

XIV. CONTENTS.

Point — Rocky Staircase — "White Pebble Bay — Tide-pools —
Maiden-hair Fern — ^The Precipice — A curious Medusoid —
Medusoid Fishing — Mode of Operation — Difficulties — Thau-
mantias pilosella — Its Luminosity — Description of its Struc-
ture—The UmbreUa— The Sub -Umbrella— The Peduncle—
The Radiating Vessels — The Ovaries — The Tentacles — Pig-
ment-cells—Eyes. 320

CHAPTER XIV.

Rapparee Cove — Strange Gravel — Its singular Origin — The
Glassy -^quorea — Its Form and Structure — The Forbesian
^quorea — The Bathing-Pool — Medusae therein — Description
of a new Species — Its Habits — Luminousness — Distinctive
Characters — The Ruby Medusa— Its first Occurrence — Wig-
mouth — Production of the Gemmules — Their Appearance — -
Motion of the Turris — Metamorphosis of the Gemmules —
Their Polype-form — Goodness of God in the Beautiful — A
Christian's Interest in Nature — The Redeemed Inheritance —
The Crystalline Johnstonella — Its Beauty — Its Doubtful Affi-
nities— ^The Starry Willsia — Parasitic Leech — Thread- Cap-
sules— Nature of these Organs. 338

CHAPTER XV.

This Coast favourable for Oceanic Productions — The Red-lined
Medusa — Its Form and Structiure — The Eyes — The Fur-
belows— A parasitic Shrimp — Its supposed Young — Beauty
of the Medusa — Its Prehensile Powers — Capture of Prey —
Curious Mode of eating— Experiments — ^New Use of the
Furbelows — Development of the Eggs — Their Structure —
Thread-Capsules — Synonymy — The "White Pelagia — The
Mantis Shrimp — Its spectral Figure and strange Actions —
Its "Weapons — The Caddis Shrimp — The Tiny Oceania —
Busk's Thaumantias — The Fairy's Cap. 363

CHAPTER XVI.

The Maritime Bristle-tail — Its Nocturnal Habits — Discovery of
its Retreats— Its Companions — The Scarce Polynoe — Its
Armoury of "SVeapons— A rocky Bay — Romantic Incident —

CONTENTS. XV.

Chivalrous Self-sacrifice — The Tunnels — Crewkhorne Cavern
—The Torr Cliffs— Precipitous Path— Torr Point— Solitude—
The Scarlet and Gold Madrepore — Scene of its Discovery —
Description of the Species — Its Microscopical Structure — The
Stony Skeleton — Thread -Capsules of Actinia — The Club-
bearing Medusa — Entanglement of Air — Structure of the
Tentacles— The Eyes. 389

CHAPTER XVII.

Various Effects of Light on Scenery — Ode to Light — The Sabella
— Its Tube — Its Crown of Plumes — Patal Attack — Discovery
of more Specimens — Laborious Mode of Procuring them —
The Young — Reproduction of the Crown — The Corynactis —
A low Spring-tide — The Tunnel Rocks — Discovery of the
Species — Its Form, Structure, and Colours — Manner of taking
Food — ^Thread- Capsules — Their elaborate Structure — Propul-
sion of the Thread — Identification of the Species — The Pur-
ple-spotted Anemone — Its Locality and Manners — Its Form
and Colours — Thread- Capsules — Nature of these Organs —
Systematic List of Zoophytes — Conclusion. 412

APPENDIX.

Marine Vivaria — Facts Established — Ozone— Its Mode of Action
— Application of Principles — Aquaria in the Zoological Gar-
dens— Parlour Aquarium. 439

LIST OF PLATES

LIST OF PLATES,

Plate

To face page

Actinia bellis, &c.

Pleurobranchus, &c.

Alcyonium, &c.

Laomedea geniculata

Caryophyllia Smithii

112

Eucratea chelata, &c.

134

Cellularia ciliata, &c.

142

Actinia gemmacea, &c.

168

CorjTie ramosa

„

190

Cellularia avicularia

196

Antennularia antennina

314

Pedicellinge

210

Lepralia, &c.

218

Corynes

222

Clavellraa, &c.

236

Coryne stauridia, &c.

254

Plumularia pinnata

288

Campanularia

296

Medusoid of Campanularia

„

300

Willsia, &c.

>«

360

Thaumantias Corynetes

408

Medusoid of Coryne, &c.

332

^quorea vitrina

342

^quorea Forbesiana

»)

346

Johnstonella Catharina

356

Balanophyllia, &c. -

400

Chrysaora. -

- (Frontispiece)

Thread- capsules

428

A NATUEALIST'S KAMBLES.

CHAPTER I.

A Flitting to the Coast — Rival Claims of North and South De-
von— Marychurch selected— Beauty of Devonshire Lanes —
Author's outfit — First exploring jaunt — Babbicombe sands
— Pretty Rock-pool — Petit Tor — Jackdaws — Kestrel — Pol-
lock-fishing on the Rocks — BoTilders examined — Contents of a
shallow Pool — Green Sea-worm — Smooth Anemone — Turn-
ing stones at Babbicombe — Finger- cutting Serpulse — Na-
ked-gilled Mollusca — Their elegance and beauty — Manners
in Captivity — Spawn of Doris — Form and Structure of the
young — Anthea — Its Form and Colours — Voracity of an Eolis
— Manners of Anthea — Its Mode of marching — of swimming
— Beautiful Variety — Reflections.

"You are seriously ill, Henry," said my wife; "you
have been in the study a great deal too much lately ;
you must throw it all up, and take a trip into the
country."

" 0 no," said I, " not bad enough for that, I hope ; a
few days' inaction, with God's blessing, will set me
right. I do not want to leave London."

But I got worse ; sitting by the parlour fire, doing
nothing, was dreary work ; and it was not much
mended by traversing the gravel walks of the garden

2 A FLITTING

ill my great coat: there was notliing particularly
refreshing in the sight of frost-hitten creepers and
chrysanthemums in January. To walk about the
streets in the suburbs, or even in the city, was dreary
too, when there was no object in view, nothing to
do in fact but to spend the time. But, after all,
the dreariness was in myself; I was thoroughly
unwell, overworked, and everybody said there must
be a rustication. The Doctor added the casting vote:
— " Bad case of nervous dyspepsia ; you must give
up study, and go out of town." I succumbed.

"Now where shall it be ? Leamington — Ton-
bridge Wells — Clifton?" No, none of these; since
I must go, it shall be to the sea-shore ; I shall
take my microscope with me, and get among the
shells and nudibranchs, the sea- anemones and the
corallines. What part so promising as the lovely
garden of England, fair Devonshire ?"

Devonshire then was decided on. But North or
South Devon ? The Bristol or the British Chan-
nel ? Ilfracombe or Torquay ? Each had its claims
for preference, each was unknown, each was said to
be "comely in its kind;" South Devon I knew
(by report) to be rich in its marine zoology ; North
Devon was described as magnificent in scenery.
Each too had its objections. The South was too
relaxing for a nervous complaint ; the North was
out of the world, and difficult of access in winter.
So nearly were the pros and cons balanced, that
the very evening before the time determined on for
starting left the point suhjudice, when a friend calling,
a Torquay man, settled it.

TO THE COAST. 3

"Why not try Marychurcli? It is very high,
and the air is hracing. Moreover you will he within
an easy walk of the shore at several points; the
coast round is indented with coves and inlets;
most of it is very rocky, and will give you plenty
of hollows and dark pools, full of sea-weeds and
zoophytes, interchanged now and then with sandy
and shingly heaches. Try the South first; you
will then be as well situated as now for reaching
the North coast, should the air not suit you."

The counsel seemed sound and seasonable. The
next day the luggage was sent off to the Torquay
station, and we all, (wife, self, and little naturalist in
petticoats) followed by easy stages.

And very pleasant it was to us to find ourselves at
the end of January in the midst of the "Devonshire
Lanes." No frosts had as yet sullied the verdure of
the hedge banks, or nipped the shrubs in the sweet
cottage gardens. Indeed frost seems here almost
unknown, if we may judge by the myrtles dressed in
their glossy foliage of deepest green, reaching up to
the eaves of the houses, and the fuchsias, not always
of the most common varieties, whose thick roughened
trunks have evidently braved the open air through
many winters. As we trudged, despite the tenacious
red mud that lay ankle-deep, along the narrow lanes
around Marychurch and West-hill, lanes that were
even now dark with the tall hedges, and the roadside
trees that met over our heads, we felt that we had left
the reign of winter far behind us. The high sloping
banks were fringed every where with the long pendent
fronds of the hart's tongue fern ; the broad arrowy

4 DEVONSHIRE LANES.

leaves of the wake-robin, glossy and black-spotted,
and great tufts of the fetid iris, a rare plant elsewhere,
were springing up from all the ditches. Strange warm
damp lanes, so suited for lovers' evening walks, (not
exactly at this season to be sure) winding and turning
about, ever opening into some other lane, that again
presently into another, and all leading apparently
nowhere, — with the little birds hopping fearlessly
about the hedge-tops and the trees overhead, the robin
sweetly singing, the tiny gold-crest peeping into the
crevices of the ivy, the yellow hammer and the chaf-
finch in their gay plumage twittering almost within
reach of your hand ! And ever and anon we pass
some thatched cottage in the sheltered bottom, its
little garden in front trimly kept, and still bright with
the blossoms of the chrysanthemums, the trailing roses
over the porch displaying a lingering flower or two,
and the indispensable myrtle peeping in at the cham-
ber lattice ; while at one of the lower windows sits the
venerable dame in a snowy cap of ancient fashion,
with horn spectacles on her wrinkled but gentle face,
reading her large Bible. Early violets were beginning
to peep from their lowly retreats, and very soon we
found them in plenty, and the delicate pale yellow
primroses quickly bespangled every bank.

It was in the midst of such rural scenes, and yet
within a quarter of an hour's walk of the boundless
sea, that I set myself down for a temporary sojourn.
I had brought with me a plain but good working
compound microscope, a small simple one, and a few
books essential to the littoral naturalist. Among
them were Cuvier's and Jones's Animal Kingdom,

BABBICOMBE BEACH. O

Forbes' Star-fishes and Naked-Eyed Medusae, John
ston's Zoophytes, Sponges, and Introduction to Con-
ohology, Yarrell's Birds, and Fishes, Alder and
Hancock's Nudibranch Mollusca, Swainson's Mala-
cology, Grant's Outline of, and Owen's Lectures on.
Comparative Anatomy, Audouin and M. Edwards'
Littoral de la France, Harvey's Marine Algee, and his
beautiful little Sea-side Book, and a few minor works
on the same or kindred subjects. I was not long in
discovering that with such aids to inquiry, an ample
field was before me, and that I should not lack abun-
dant materials of entertainment and instruction for
myself, and, as I hope, for others also.

It was on the very first afternoon, that is to say, on
the 30th of January, 1852, that I set forth to see what
promise the shore might afford. A zigzag road, such
as a carriage can traverse, leads down the steep from
Babbicombe to the beach below. The beautiful coast
stretches away before us ; first appear the blufi* red
headlands from Petit Tor northward, in distinct pro-
minence, but each becoming more dim than its prede-
cessor: the white houses of Exmouth shining in the
full afternoon sun on the blue hazy shore ; thence the
blue becomes fainter, more hazy and watery, and the
band of coast itself slenderer, till at length it can only
be discerned by the eye carefully tracing it from the
visible part onward. In front expanded

The peaceful main,
One molten mirror, one illumin'd plane
Clear as the blue, sublime, o'erarching sky.

MONTGOMERT.

The rocks to the right presented little to reward

(5 TIDE POOL.

the toil of scrambling over their projecting masses,
but I observed strong iron bars driven perpendicularly
into the crevices here and there, to which, in one case,
a line was affixed that ran out into the sea : this I
was told was attached to a herring-net, set across the
tide ; though few herrings are yet come in. On the
sand and shingle were several young dog-fish ; pro-
bably hauled in the seine, and thrown out to putrefy
as useless. Towards Oddicombe on the left, in
climbing and crawling around the face of the rough
cliff, I found a pretty tide-pool, a delightful little
reservoir, nearly circular, a basin about three feet wide
and the same deep, full of pure sea-water, quite still,
and as clear as crystal. From the rocky margin and
sides, the puckered fronds of the Sweet Oar-weed,
(Laminaria saccharinaj sprang out, and gently
drooping, like ferns from a wall, nearly met in the
centre; while other more delicate sea- weeds grew
beneath their shadow. Several sea-anemones of a
kind very different from the common species, more
flat and blossom-like, with slenderer tentacles set
round like a fringe, were scattered about the sides :
when touched they contracted, more and more forcibly,
into a whitish grey tubercle.

PETIT TOR.

Feb. Srd. — When the tide was nearly at ebb, I
walked down to the cove at Petit Tor. The red
earth, so abundant hereabout as to tinge the clothes
of the peasants, the coats of the numerous donkeys,
and the wool of the sheep, of a rufous tint, was satu-
rated by the recent rains, and formed a tenacious mud,

PETIT TOR. 7

very unpleasant to walk in, of which the little lane
leading from Marychurch has quite enough. This
passed, however, a gate leads out on the down at the
summit of the cliffs, whence, as the day was most cloud-
lessly brilliant, the prospect out upon the sea was mag-
nificent. There was scarcely any wind, the atmosphere
was very clear, and the transparent blue of the water
sparkling in the sun was particularly summery The
mossy turf of the down was scarcely firm enough to
sustain the tread on the slope, but continually slid
away beneath the feet from the ruddy mud, affording
a treacherous footing in the descent, which as the
pathways over the cliffs frequently pass close to the edge
of tremendous precipices, is not without danger. A
zigzag road, however, leads down to the beach through
the gully, or chine, ( as it would be called in the Isle
of Wight) which bears the name of Petit Tor, though
this name belongs of right to the bluff promontory
on the south of it. The object of the road appears to
have been the transport of the beautiful variegated
marbles, huge blocks of which, some of them sawn and
marked with numbers, were lying beside the way at
different points, ready for removal. By running,
jumping and sliding I arrived at the bottom, and paused
awhile to look around. The ruined walls of what was
once probably a fisherman's cottage, built in the curious
manner peculiar to the neighbourhood, of rough frag-
ments of friable limestone, set in a strong red mortar,
stand on the declivity ; and in the midst of the beach,
starts up from the very shingle a pointed columnar mass
of rough conglomerate rock about 60 feet high, remind-
ing one of our common idea of the pillar of salt. The

8 jackdaws' manceuvres.

back of the cove is like the receding slope of an
amphitheatre, on the grassy sides of which, half-covered
with furze-hushes, and tufts of the stinking Iris, and
brakes of fern, a few sheep were grazing. On the
northern side the cliffs of red conglomerate rise to a
great height ; and on looking up to the summit my eye
was caught by the Jackdaws, which were playing there,
and I sat down on a mass of rock partly hidden by fern
and brambles to watch their movements. A Jfiock of
fifty or sixty, sometimes more, sometimes fewer, were
flying about a chasm near the lofty inaccessible summit,
now and then alighting in the fissures, then shooting
down into the air to join their comrades' play. They
uttered a short querulous call, more sharp and impa-
tient than the caw of the rook, and occasionally two
would engage in a sort of conversation, a rapid reite-
ration of the note. Now they disappeared one by one,
and presently they would come trooping round the
seaward face of the headland in little companies, as if
assembling by agreement, their glossy backs and wings
gleaming in the bright sun, play awhile in the air
about the chasm, then go again. The rough face of
the rock was partially concealed by large patches,
green and yellow, of ivy, reaching, irregularly and
interruptedly, from the very base to the top ; in the
upper parts of this, the daws would frequently rest
awhile, but not long. A Hawk, which from its size,
and the dark margin of its tail I took to be the Kestrel,
was hovering among the troop ; its superior ease and
grace of flight were very observable, though the daws
are birds of powerful wing. The latter were apparently
unfavourable to the intrusion of the suspicious stranger;

SEA-SIDE BOULDERS. 9

for they set upon him in a troop and chased him away,
though not far. Presently a Gull came by and sailed
away straight out to sea for a long distance, then
turned, as if to challenge the terricolous daws to try
an ocean-flight with him.

The beach ends northward in a wilderness of boul-
ders, enormous masses of red conglomerate detached
from the precipice above, and piled in confusion upon
each other, — Pelion uponOssa, and Ossaupon Olym-
pus. This sort of composite rock readily yields to the
action of the weather, and hence the fallen masses
take rounded forms. On one of the most prominent
stood a gentleman, angling ; I scrambled over to him,
and learned that he was fishing for pollock ; they come
in shoals and bite readily ; but it was rather too early
in the season now.

Great boulders like these do not generally afford a
very favourable field to the naturalist ; whore, however,
one is resting partially on others, so as to allow an
examination of its under side, this is sometimes pro-
ductive, provided it be not far from low-water mark.
In a dark cavernous recess here I found attached to
the overhanging surface of a huge mass, a specimen,
as big as a dinner-plate, of that curious dense sponge
discovered by my esteemed friend Mr. Bowerbank, and
named by him Pachymatisma Jolmstonia. In another
similarly situated, was a numerous colony of the
common smooth Sea-anemone {Actinia mesemhry-
anthemum), composed, in about equal numbers, of two
pretty varieties, the one a fine dark red, the other a
clear grass-green.

I went back to the limestone ridge at the southern

iO SMOOTH ANEMONE.

extremity of the cove and amused myself with examin-
ing the little shallow tide-pools, one or two inches
deep, regularly paved with small muscles, and fringed
with dwarf fuci^ ulv(e, Rhodyme?iia jpabnata, and
coralHne, — representatives of the olive, green, red, and
stony sea-weeds, all gathered together, but all stunted
and poor, being so high above low-water line. Seve-
ral of a long slender many-footed sea-worm fPhyllo-
doce lamelligera), looking like a centipede, but of a
bright green colour, were lithely crawling and turning
among the sea-weeds and muscles, and were difficult
to get hold of, from their length and slipperiness.

These shallow pools, the sides of the rocks, the
boulders, and the small stones left dry by the tide, are
all studded with the common Smooth Anemone (Act.
mesemhryanthemum) in great abundance. The most
frequent variety is of a rich deep red, sometimes
brightening into blood-red, but more ordinarily deep-
ening into a full brownish purple or liver- colour. Less
common is the olive variety, likewise varying in tint
according as the green or the brown element prepon-
derates. And not rarely we see specimens, usually of
large size and of oval outline, with the ground-colour
dark-red, marked with numerous and close-set green
dots. This species is the most careless of exposure
to the air of all our native zoophytes; we see them
adhering to the rocks almost up to high-water mark,
so that the periods during which these are left dry are
considerably longer than their immersions. Yet it is
only while covered with water, that they expand their
beautiful flower-like disks and petaloid tentacles, and
consequently obtain nutriment. And even when we

NAKED-GILLED MOLLUSCA. 11

look at such as are immersed, we quite as frequently
see them closed as open.

Southey has poetically described the influence of the
returning tide upon these charming creatures.

Meantime with fuller reach and stronger swell,
"Wave after wave advanced ;
Each following billow lifted the last foam
That trembled on the sand with rainbow-hues :
The living flower that, rooted to the rock.
Late from the thinner element
Shrank down within its purple stem to sleep, —
Ifor feels the water, and again
Awakening, blossoms out
All its green anther-necks.

Thalaba, xii. 3.

* NAKED-GILLED MOLLUSCA.

Feb. \^th, — The beach atBabbicombej which, when
the tide is in, is composed entirely of pebbles, changes
lower down to larger stones, and at extreme low water
presents only rounded and flattened blocks from
six inches to a yard in width. They are invested
with a clothing of green weeds, and are hence slippery
to walk on, and when their drapery is flagged and
half withered by the sun, are unpleasing to the eye.
It struck me that I might find something under them,
however, and I spent an hour or two turning them
over, not without some loss of blood, for their edges
and under sides were crowded with the shells of
Serpulce, the little projecting points of which over
the mouth were as sharp as needles, and cut and tore
my fingers continually. But I was rewarded by a
good many of those elegant creatures, the naked

12' MANNERS OF BOLIDES.

gilled Mollusc a, wLicli were adhering to the surface of
the loose stones, awaiting the return of tide. The large
grey Eolis pajnllosa, the little Doris hilamellata, and
a more minute buff-coloured species of Doris^ I took
here ; and the pretty green Polycera ocellata was nu-
merous ; but the most abundant, and at the same
time the most lovely species was the exquisite Eolis
coronata, with tentacles surrounded by membranous
coronets, and with crowded clusters of papillae, of
crimson and blue that reflect the most gem-like
radiance.

I brought home my captives and placed them in a
vase of sea-water to observe their manners. When out
of water they exhibit nothing of their peculiar beauty,
and if the searcher has not a sharp eye, he may
readily overlook them ; they look like little shapeless
lumps of fibrous jelly. But on being dropped into
water, no sooner do they feel the bottom and begin
to crawl, than all the clustering branchiae are separated
and waved, the long oral tentacles are thrown from
side to side, and the pellucid animal glides quickly
along with a graceful even motion. Both the species
of Eolis bristle up their branchiae and throw them
forward when irritated. One or two of my specimens
had lost some of their tufts of these organs, which
were evidently sprouting again. I tlunk that they
lost some while in captivity.

E, coronata was very active, continually gliding
with a uniform motion around the sides of the vessel,
or climbing about the numerous branching sea-weeds,
that were growing in it. They frequently crawled
close to the edge of the water, but never came actually

SPAWN OF DORIS. 13

out, though they occasionally floated at the surface
by means of the expanded foot, back-downward.

Polycera oceUata on the other hand is fond of
coming out of the water, and of remaining at the
edge of the vessel, when it looks like a little ball of
olive-coloured jelly. It frequently floats by the
foot, and is capable of a slow progression in this
manner. If pushed under water, it retracts its bran-
chiee and tentacles, incurves the edges of the foot,
and sinks rapidly to the bottom ; but soon recovers
its equanimity, and crawls up to the summit of the
nearest sea-weed, or up the sides of the reservoir to
the surface again.

Doris tuberculata slowly glides round and round
the vessel just beneath the surface, now and then
lifting and puckering up the edge of the cloak, and
allowing the air to bathe the body.

Doris hilamellata, of which there were three in the
vessel, was very social in confinement, continually
finding out one another, and crowding close up toge-
ther. They crawl round the pan, generally resting
close to the surface, often with the mantle a little
raised, so that the air may reach the body.

Feb. 22nd. — The Doris hilamellata laid a ribbon
of spawn attached to the side of the pan almost at
the surface of the water. It adhered by one edge
and formed an imperfect spire or cup, the ribbon
being bent upon itself; the upper edge or brim
leaning a little outward, and being puckered. The
general substance is white and opaque, owing to a
vast number of minute eggs, enveloped in a clear
jelly. The colour therefore appears uniform except

14 YOUNG OF DORIS.

that a clear line runs round just within the edge,
caused by a narrow space free from eggs The ova,
though numerous and close-set, occupy only the cen-
tral portions of the hand (seen in section), there
being a considerable space of transparent jelly with-
out them, on each surface. The Doris was disturbed,
'and seems to have finished prematurely, the latter
part of the ribbon being distorted.

Within a day or two after this, the other two of the
same species laid their spawn ; it had much the same
appearance as the first, that of a long ribbon irregu-
larly bent or folded on itself; that of the largest is
above f ths of an inch high, and 1 inch long.

Early in March I observed, similarly attached to
the overhanging surface of a rock between tidemarks,
a ribbon of like appearance, but much larger ; about
fths of an inch high. Doubtless this was the spawn
of D. tuherculata : it hung down in a wet flaccid
manner, being left uncovered by the recess of the
tide.

On the 19th of March I cut ofi" a small piece of the
first ribbon of spawn (laid Feb. 22) and examined it
beneath the microscope. I found that the young
were fully formed, each enclosed in a globular egg,
perfectly transparent and colourless. The young
Doris, unlike the adult, which is a naked slug, inhabits
a transparent shell, formed like that of the nautilus,
from the mouth of which project two large fleshy cir-
cular disks set round with long cilia. These latter
organs were in constant and vigorous vibration, by
the motion of which each little animal revolved freely
in its egg-shell, incessantly turning upon its centre

GREEN ANTHEA. 15

every direction. Sometimes one would suddenly
suspend the motion of its cilia, as if tired ; then after
having rested a few moments, put forth one cilium in a
cautious manner, then another, and in a moment the
whole were again in vibration, and the little embryos
was gyrating in its giddy dance.

The embryos remained active in the piece of the
ribbon under the microscope, for several days, but
did not appear to increase in development, nor were
any hatched. They then became motionless, and
were doubtless dead.

ANTHEA CEEEUS.

Feb. 2d)'cl. Under a stone at low water mark I
found a fine specimen of Antliea ceretis, attached to
the under surface. I kept it some days in the viva-
rium, where its appearance was very beautiful. The
body is about Ij inch thick, and the same in height,
of a purplish-brown hue marked with numerous lon-
gitudinal narrow bands of dull lilac, each band mar-
gined with darker colour. The tentacles when fully
expanded are 1|- inch long, and about a line in thick-
ness at the base, tapering gradually; of a brilliant
satiny light-green, with the tips purplish*red. The
tentacles were contractile but not retractile, and were
never regularly radiating, but mingled irregularly in
a tortuous manner in all directions. They were adhe-
sive to any foreign substance on all parts of their
surface The body was frequently distended by the
imbibition of water; when it became more pellucid.

In the same pan I had three individuals of Eolis

16 FEROCITY OF EOLIS.

papulosa. One of these was rather large, the others
scarcely half grown. One day I found the largest
eating the tentacles of the Anthea, and when I at-
tempted to pull it away, it held so firmly that the
mouth was almost everted. Soon afterwards I again
found it at the same work of destruction, and one of
the smaller specimens was attacking the unfortunate
Anthea also. They were eager and fierce, stretching
forward to their prey from their points of attachment,
to which they adhered only hy the extremity of the
foot, and frequently erecting and reversing their
crowded branchiae. On being again removed they
again returned, though from a considerable distance;
so that whenever I looked at the pan, I almost always
found one or all of the Bolides devouring their victim,
so much larger, though more sluggish, than them-
selves. The tentacles when gnawed and torn, became
shrivelled ; some of them were torn away by the
Eolides, and a large quantity of viscid albuminous
matter was discharged in the form of irregular threads
or webs, attached to the surrounding objects. The
process went on from day to day On one occasion,
one of the Eolides attacked a magnificent Actinia
crassicornis in the same vessel, and had eaten a hole
in its side as large as a pea before I discovered it.

Anthea cereus is abundant around Tor Abbey
Headland, inhabiting in great numbers the shallow
pools in the red sandstone and conglomerate, which
occur on the broad surface left exposed at low water.
They are principally of the variety with plain grey ten-
tacles, but specimens of the more beautiful variety
described above, having those organs of a satiny

MANNERS OF ANTHEA. 17

green with rosy tips, are sufficiently numerous. They
are content to be covered with a few inches of water,
their bases resting on the rough bottom, in which
they seem to be imbedded to a slight depth ; but this
is probably the effect of the animals' choosing a hollow
of suitable dimensions ; for I do not believe that their
muscular base has any faculty of eroding the rock.
When half-a-dozen or more are seen inhabiting a small
pool, their appearance is curious, and not a little
beautiful. The great mass of long and slender tenta-
cles are not arranged, like those of other Actiniat, in
circles of divergent rays, but contorted and inter-
twined in all directions, like the dishevelled snake-
locks of Medusa's head. In the beautiful lines
already cited from Southey, I think he had this
species in view when he speaks of the "green anther
necks" ; but the "purple stem" of the sleeping one
was most likely the common Smooth Anemone.
Perhaps he thought that they Avere the same species
in different conditions.

In a large vase of sea-water Antheas actions are as
peculiar as its appearance. It is fond of climbing up
the sides of the glass, a feat which it accomplishes
with a considerable measure of (comparative) activity.
It glides up by the broad fleshy base, pretty much in
the same manner as a gasteropod does by its expand,
ed foot ; and yet the process is not exactly the same.
The power which Anthea has of inflating portions of
its body, swelling them out in large tumid lobes
separated by deep sulci from the rest of the circum-
ference, assists it in crawling. We will suppose the
Anthea resting on the bottom of the vessel, when it

18 BEAUTIFUL VARIETY OF ANTHEA.

feels a desire to mount the sides of the glass. Push-
ing out a great inflated lobe towards that side, the
sok of which is free from the surface, it takes hold of
the glass with the edge of the lobe, and when the
contact is firm, relaxing its former hold, it slowly
drags forward the body, until the lobe is again lost in
the general circumference, or even till the body pro-
jects in two smaller lobes, one on each side of the
principal one. The base being now made firmly to
adhere, again the lobe is freed, and again protruded,
and the same process is repeated until the animal is
satisfied with the position that it has gained. Some-
times this is at mid-height, the intertwined tentacles
streaming loosely down by their own weight. At
other times it rises to the very water's edge, and even
thrusts out its base in an inverted position upon the
surface of the water, as if it would float by the mere
contact of the dry base with the air, just as the
Isinnece and many other Mollusca do. It does not,
however, so far as I can judge, appear capable of
quite accomplishing this; but it can remain so
suspended, if the slightest possible portion of the
margin remain in adhesive contact with the side of
the glass.* A little shaking of the vessel, however,
causes the water to overflow the surface of the base,
which had been hitherto dry, when the animal in-
stantly falls prone to the bottom.

April 2Srd. — I found a curious and beautiful
variety of Anthea cereus in a pool at Tor Abbey
Headland. Its body and oral disk are very light

* I have since seen one, however, floating quite freely on the surface
of the vessel, base uppermost.

SYSTEMATIC RANK OF ZOOPHYTES. 19

pellucid olive, but the tentacles are spotless snowy
white, as if carved out of ivory, or rather as if mo-
delled in the purest white wax. Its appearance, as it
hangs on the side of a glass vessel, with the long and
slender tentacles arching and drooping downward in
the most graceful curves, is exquisitely attractive.

These objects are, it is true, among the humblest
of creatures that are endowed with organic life. They
stand at the very confines, so to speak, of the vital
world, at the lowest step of the animate ladder that
reaches up to Man ; aye, and beyond him. Creatures
linked in the closest alliance with these were long
reckoned among the sea-weeds and mosses, even by
the most eminent philosophers ; and to this day the
collectors who make sea-weeds into pretty baskets,
arrange the hydroid polypidoms among them without
a misgiving of their identity. Nay, the madrepores
and corals, nearer kindred still to the Actinia, were
supposed even by the immortal Eay, to be inanimate
stones, with " a kind of vegetation and resemblance
to plants."

The lamp of vitality, then, is just going out in these
forms ; or, if you please, here we catch the first kind-
ling of that spark, which glows into so noble a flame
in the Aristotles, the Newtons, and the Miltons of our
heaven-gazing race. What then ? shall we despise
these glimmering rays ? Shall we say they are mean
creatures, beneath our regard ? Surely no : God does
not despise them. The forecasting of their being

20 A TRIBUTE OF PRAISE.

occupied his eternal Mind " before the mountains were
brought forth ;" the contrivances of their organization
are the fruit of his infinite Wisdom, and elicit adoring
wonder and praise from the hierarchies of angels ;
and the exquisite tints with w^hich they are adorned are
the pencillings of his almighty Hand. Yes, 0 Lord!
the lowly tribes that tenant these dark pools are, like
the heavens themselves, " the work of thy fingers/'
and do as truly as those glowing orbs above us
" declare thy glory," and " show thy handy work."
If then they were worthy to be created and sustained
by Thee, they are not unworthy to be examined by us
with reverential regard.

CHAPTER II.

Petit Tor — Squirrel— Limestone Ledge— Stone-borers — Anemones
and Sea-weeds — Clear Rock-pools — Daisy Anemone — Diffi-
culty of procuring Specimens — Mode of Operation — A
Metamorphosis — Description of the Species — Tentacles —
Colours — Varieties— Habits— Structure of the Tentacles —
Thread -shooting Capsules— Petit Tor Pools— Thick-homed
Anemone — Description of the Species — Suggestions of Iden-
tity with A. coriacea — Its Habits — Beautiful Varieties —
Changes of Figure — Deep Tide-pool — Prawn — Its beauty of
Colour — Changes produced by Exposure to Light.

The beach of white shingle at Oddicombe, whither
ladies so often repair to search for pebbles containing
fossil madrepores, washed up by the tide, is bounded
on the north by the promontory known as Petit Tor.
This is a bold bluff headland, almost entirely compo-
sed of compact limestone, which, on the side that
fronts the sea, has been extensively out away by the
quarrymen, for building and ornamental purposes.
Its rounded summit is clothed with a turf of that
beautifully smooth and close texture, peculiar to
downs, which many a nobleman's lawn might envy ;
sheep love to graze on it, and may be seen perched
about the giddy heights, and upon the narrow winding
footpaths that their own steps have worn, nipping the
short fine grass in perfect security, where a false step
must send them down upon the stony beach below.
The always verdant and almost always blossoming

22 SQUIRREL.

furze covers large spaces with its profuse clumps,
interspersed with beds of the stinking Iris, a plant
which has little to recommend it, but w^hich is very-
common on these seaward slopes. Down the perpen-
dicular steeps hangs and creeps the ivy, concealing
the rugged rock with its evergreen beauty ; and on
the slopes that are less precipitous, matted thickets
of the brake-fern and bramble inclose and protect
little sheltered spots, where, all through the spring,
primroses grow by handfuls, and stud the hill-side
with thick spots of their delicate yellow, as thick as
stars and constellations in the sky of a winter's night.
In these thickets I was rather surprised and pleased
to find the Squirrel residing ; one morning in March
as I was quietly sitting on a stone, looking down from
the brow of the promontory on the sea that was
beating in over the rocks below, out pops Squggy,
and with a grunt and a flourish of his feathery tail
over his back in he dashes again, then out to peep,
and away to go again ; I all the while holding my
breath, in hopes to confirm his confidence. But no ;
he would not adventure again.

The limestone at the base of the promontory, on
that side I mean which faces the south, and bounds
Oddicombe beach, is very precipitous ; but it has
been fretted by the incessant breaking of the waves
into caverns and groins, buttresses, basins, shelves
and ridges of all sorts of fantastic shapes. In some
places there are spout-holes, the sea running up into
a funnel-shaped cave, with a peculiarly hollow sound
when you hear it beneath your feet, and breaking out
at an opening some way within, wdth a gust of wind

STONEBORING SHELL-FISH. ^ 23

and spray, and a loud roar. The surface of the rock
itself, from some distance above high- water mark
downward, is corroded into a thousand little cavities,
all honey-combed, as it were, in the most irregular
manner, a circumstance which greatly facilitates the
action of the sea in wearing down the masses. These
cavities have been produced by a stoneboring shelled
Mollusk, Saxicava rugosa, which, as I believe, attacks
only limestone, but this, hard as it is, it burrows
through and through. It can live only where it is
covered during a part of every tide ; and therefore as
part of this honey-combed structure is now above the
reach of the tide, it must be inferred that this lime-
stone has been elevated, since the existence of these
stoneborers. It would be worth wdiile to inquire
how far the honey-combed limestones of other regions,
of the South side of Jamaica for example, may have
had a similar origin, though this is explained by
Sir H. de la Beche in a very different manner.

One can scramble out upon the side of these rocks
at low water, and find between tide-marks a sort of
ledge sufficiently level to permit examination ; though
the rough surface, and especially the sharp points
that project between the honey-combed cavities, ren-
der the footing precarious and uncomfortable. The
surface is leprous with myriads of acorn-shells, each
tenanted by its living inhabitant, and every one put-
ting forth, as soon as covered by the tide, its delicate
little grasping hand of feathery fingers, or, if you
please, its casting net, with which it is perpetually
making its little throws for passing prey. Limpets,
periwinkles, and murices also stud the rock, and in

24 ANEMONES AND SEA-WEEDS.

the lower parts, where the limits of the tide's recess
are approached, are ActmicB of a deep red hue, the
common, unattractive species, the only one known
however to thousands of sea-side visitors who talk
enthusiastically of sea-anemones, — A. mesemhryan-
themum. The whole of the space between the tide
lines is covered more or less thickly with matted
masses of olive sea- weeds, short and stunted on the
higher sites, and becoming more and more luxuriant
as they approach low-water mark, where they wave
in tangled tresses at every incoming sea, or hang in
streaming shaggy locks as it recedes. The irregu-
larities of the surface necessarily produce many
hollows of various sizes, which, being covered at high
water, remain full as the tide recedes, and, except in
very rough weather, when the seals much loaded with
earthy particles, hold their contents in the most beau-
tifully transparent condition: and the contracted
dimensions allowing no room for the action of the
wind, no ruffling of the surface is there to mar the
glass- like clearness of the water, or to prevent the eye
from peering down into every comer and crevice.
The constant presence of water in these basins allows
many delicate species of sea-weeds to grow freely in
them, at a height above low- water mark, where other-
wise they would never be found : and hence sheltered
tide-pools constantly present specimens of the smaller
and more lovely AI(/(b in great perfection. In some
of these grow along the sides, just beneath the surface,
single fronds of the pretty little Rhodymenia ijalmettay
and waving tufts of the finer sorts of Ceramium, with
the moss-like Plocamium coccineum, and whole

THE DAISY ANEMONE. 25

masses of Chylocladia articulata, that look like the
thickets of prickly pear which we see in the tropics,
only viewed through a diminishing glass, and turned
purplish-red. Laurencia pinnatifida clothes the
lower rocks abundantly, where the sea washes up ;
and along the margins of some of the ledges, and
around the rims of some of the lowest pools,
that curious plant Rhodymenia ciliata throws out
dense pendent tufts of its deep red fronds, all bristled
over with little leaflets in the most singular fashion.

THE DAISY ANEMONE.

All along this line of limestone rock, in almost
every tide-pool and hollow that retains the sea-water,
from the size of one's hand upwards, we may at
any time find colonies of the lovely Daisy Anemone,
Actinia bellis. In the sunshine of a fair day they
expand beautifully, and you may see them studding
the face of the rock just beneath the surface, from the
size of a shilling to that of a crown piece. Nothing
seems easier than to secure them, but no sooner do
the fingers touch one, than its beautifully circular
disk begins to curl and pucker its margin, and to
incurve it in the form of a cup ; if further annoyed,
the rim of this cup contracts more and more, until it
closes, and the animal becomes globose and much
diminished, receding all the time from the assault,
and retiring into the rock. Presently you dis-
cover that you can no longer touch it at all : it is
shrunk to the bottom of its hole ; the sharp irregular
edges of which project and furnish a stony defence

26 DIFFICULTIES OF CHISELLING.

to the inhabitant. Nothing will do but the chisel,
and this is by no means easy of appliance. It is rare
that the position of the hole is such as to allow of
both arms working with any ease ; the rock is under
water, and often, if your chisel is short, it is wholly
immersed during the work, when every blow which
the hammer strikes upon its head has to fall upon
a stratum of water, which splashes forcibly into your
eyes and over your clothes ; the rock is very hard, and
the chisel makes little impression ; and what is fre-
quently the greatest disappointment of all, the powdery
debris produced by the bruising of the stone mingles
with the water and presently makes it perfectly opaque,
as if a quantity of powdered chalk had been mixed with
it, so that you cannot see how to direct the blows, you
cannot discern whether you have uncovered the
Actinia or not, and frequently are obliged to give up
the attempt when nearly accomplished, simply because
you can neither see hole nor Actinia, and as to feeling
in the pap-like mud that your implement has been
making, it is out of the question. Supposing how-
ever, that you have got on pretty well, that by making
a current in the pool with your hand you have washed
away the clouded water sufficiently to see the where-
abouts, and that you perceive that another well-direc-
ted blow or tw^o will split off the side of the cavity,
— you have now to take care so to proportion the
force that at last you may neither crush the animal
with the chisel on the one hand, nor on the other
drive it off so suddenly that it shall fall with the
fragment to the bottom of the pool out of reach.
However, we will suppose you have happily

A METAMORPHOSIS. 27

detached and secured your Actinia without injury.
But how unlike its former self, when you were desirous
of making its closer acquaintance, is it now ! A little
hard globose knob of flesh, not so big as a schoolboy's
marble, is the creature that just now expanded to the
sun's rays a lovely disk of variegated hues, with a
diameter greater thau that of a Spanish dollar. It is
moreover covered with tenacious white slime, wdiich
exudes from it faster than you can clear it away ; and
altogether its appearance is any thing but inviting.
You throw it into a jar of water, wbich of course ydu
have with you when collecting living zoophytes ; and
thus bring it home, when you transfer it to a tumbler
or other suitable vessel of clear sea-water freshly
drawn. And here let us watch its changes; — which,
however, will not be effected immediately ; for it will
not expand itself in all its original beauty until it has
taken a fresh attachment for its base, which will not
in all probability be for a day or two at least.

The body or stem of Actinia hellis is more or less
cylindrical generally ; though subject to some change
in this respect, for it is occasionally a little enlarged,
as it approaches the disk; the sucking base is slightly
larger than the diameter of the body, which in speci-
mens ofaninch-and-a-half expanse, may be about half
an inch. The length of the body varies much, accord-
ing to the depth of the cavity in which the animal
lives, for it must expand its disk at the surface. In
the open water in a vase, when it appears at home, it
may commonly be about an inch from the base to the
expansion of the disk, but I have a beautiful specimen
before my eye at this moment, which has stretched

28 THE DISK.

itself to a height of three inches, expanding at the
extremity as usual : the thickness of the stem is in
this case somewhat diminished.

From the upper part of the cylindrical stem or hody,
the disk abruptly spreads around to the width above
indicated. In this respect the A. hellis differs so
greatly from other littoral species of sea-anemones,
that it can never be mistaken by those who have once
seen it. In these the disk is merely the termination
of a short thick column, occasionally a little expanded
over the edge ; in hellis, however, the diameter of the
disk is generally four times that of the body, at the
point from which it expands. Its form, viewed
externally, is that of a shallow cup, but its surface is
in general almost flat, or a very little depressed to
the centre. The whole bears a likeness closer than
usual to a flower, with a footstalk. The disk is so
thin and membranous, that it is continually changing
its form ; the margin is frequently bent over out-
wardly or inwardly in places ; as it lies on the uneven
rock, it accommodates itself to the roughnesses, and
is hence often irregularly undulated ; it very com-
monly bends inward the edge in several places, so as
to make puckers or frilled scollopings around the
margin. And this surely must be meant by what
writers describe and draw as "lobes" to the disk: for
of lohes proper it has none ; not the slightest trace ;
the outline of the disk is most perfectly and beauti-
fully circular ; and I find it often expanded in this
state, without any puckering or festooning. (See
Plate I, fig. 1.)

The tentacles are small but numerous : they are

30 THE COLOURS.

exquisitely beautiful ; the diverging but almost pa-
rallel fibres, resembling the grain of a beautiful piece
of wainscot, and each ending abruptly with a rounded
point, where the tentacle springs up from the surface
on the opposite side.

The colours of this very lovely Actinia I have not
found to vary much. The base is white, which as it
ascends becomes flesh-coloured, then lilac, passing (at
about the point where the disk expands) into a dull
greyish purple, more or less tinged with brown. The
upper part of the stem, and the w^hole of the outer
surface of the disk, are studded with pale spots, which
are the extremities of tubular glands, one use of
which is to attach by a kind of suction, minute bits
of shell, gravel, &c., to the surface, for concealment
as is supposed. I have not seen this habit commonly
resorted to by this species, but I have witnessed it.
(See fig. 2.)

The upper surface of the disk is of a rich deep
umber-brown, often mottled with grey at the first row
of tentacles, and merging into grey, lavender-colour
or white, towards the third or fourth row. The tenta-
cles are tapered to a point ; they are grooved longitu-
dinally on the upper side ; they are commonly dark
brown at the base, and yellowish-brown through tne
rest of their length, blotched and speckled with white.
Those of the inmost row, and frequently some of the
others, have one or two broad rings of pure conspi-
cuous white near the basal part, and a broad spot of
white divided by a brown line lengthwise, on the disk
just at their foot. There is some diversity in the
proportions of brown and grey, in difierent individuals.

BEAUTIFUL VARIETIES. 31

but the yellowish brown tentacle studded with whitish
specks is, I think, characteristic.

There is, however, a very marked variety; for
though I at first was disposed to consider it distinct,
it must, I feel sure, be referred to this species. In a
specimen before me from Capstone Hill, Ilfracombe,
the disk and tentacles are unrelieved by any trace of
white or grey, being of an uniform dark brown, ex-
cept that the tentacular ridges that cross the disk are
bounded on each side by a fine line of scarlet,
scarcely visible except with a lens : its effect is however
to give a tint of chocolate to the surface. The out-
side of this specimen difi'ers not materially from the
common state ; it is, however, of a particularly bright
crimson, instead of purplish. (See fig. 3.)

That this is a variety of A. hellis is manifest, be-
cause I have another on the table from the same
locality, which beautifully connects the two states.
This is a very handsome specimen ; the disk is deep
brown, almost black, with the fine lines of scarlet
diverging from the centre as in that just described.
The tentacles are some of them brown with one or
two specks only of white near the base, and others,
mottled in the ordinary manner with dark brown,
light brown, grey and white ; what is strange is that
these varieties of colour are disposed in groups, a
cluster of tentacles of the former hues, and then a
batch of the latter. The scarlet runs up around the
base of each tentacle, flushing its lower parts in a
very elegant style ; and the oral aperture is marked
around the very edge with conspicuous white tooth-
like lines. This specimen was remarkable for the

32 STRUCTURE OF THE TENTACLES.

extent to which it was clothed with coarse gravel, and
for the tenacity with which it held fast its strange
stony garment, not dropping a fragment even after
several days' captivity. In general Actifiice drop
their gravel coats soon after they are put into a vessel
of clear water.

It is for the most part a stationary species, and that
not only in its own selected hole in the rock-pool, but
even in captivity. It seldom leaves the spot in the
glass vessel to which it has once attached itself. I
have had a specimen, however, take it into his head
to he a traveller, after several weeks' residence in one
spot : he walked off in a straight line to a distance of
four inches, performing the feat, at a pretty uniform
rate, in about eight hours, or half-an-inch per hour.

In order to examine the structure of the tentacles
I cut off with a fine pair of scissors the tips of one or
two, and submitted them to the microscope upon the
compressorium. As soon as the pressure began to
flatten them, it became apparent that the tentacle was
composed of rather thick gelatinous walls surrounding
a tubular centre. The latter was filled with a vast mul-
titude of very minute granules of a rich sienna-brown
hue, and almost quite globular in form ; all being
quite alike in shape, colour, and dimensions. These
escaped by thousands, on the increase of the pressure,
from the tip of the tentacle, where there was evidently
a natural orifice forced open by the pressure, but or-
dinarily, as I suppose, kept firmly closed by muscular
action. The gelatinous walls of the tentacle con-
tained, imbedded in their substance, a goodly number,
(not so immense as in some other species) of those

THREAD-SHOOTING ORGANS. 33

highly curious organs known as the filiferous capsules.
They are in this case very minute, being about one
twelve hundredth part of an inch in length, almost
linear, and slightly curved. The pressure being con-
tinued, each of these little organs suddenly shoots
forth from one end to a great length, a slender,
highly elastic thread, which had hitherto been coiled
up spirally within its cavity. The expulsion of this
thread is effected by a proper organism, excited by
the pressure on the tissues of the tentacle, but not
forced out by the compression of the capsule itself, for
this is much too minute to be compressed by the glass
plates, under any power that can be brought to bear
upon them. It is supposed that the adhesive touch
of the tentacles resides in these little organs, and that
a poisonous fluid accompanies the emission of the
thread ; since the mere contact of a tentacle with any
small animal appears at once to paralyse it, however
lively It may have been but a moment before. If this
be so, what a highly curious example is here of the
wondrously effective provision which the infinite re-
sources of the Divine Wisdom have made for the
wants of every creature ! We shall have further occa-
sion to speak of these curious organs, and to exhibit
them under forms even much more complicated and
wonderful than they appear here.

PETIT TOR POOLS.

The north side of the limestone promontory of Petit
Tor, — that side that bounds the little cove where
Woodley cuts the great blocks of variegated marble

34 THE THICK- HORNED ANEMONE.

which he makes into his well-known tables and chim-
ney-pieces,— is not less rugged and worn into caverns
and holes than that side which I have just been
describing. It is, however, very different in its
character and its productions. The erosions have a
greater tendency to form deep basins in which the
water always lies ; and the lofty rock overhangs much
more. Add to this that, the aspect being north, the
sun's rays never penetrate to the cavities. For all
these reasons they are particularly dark, and therefore
favourable for the development of the deeper-growing
Alg<2, and many of the zoophytes which are impatient
of much light.

To get at them you walk along a tolerably level
platform of rock beneath the cliff, for some distance,
towards the point of the promontory, till you are
arrested by a cleft, a little too wide to be leaped, that
runs right up to the perpendicular face of the cliff.
By means of one or two slight projections you can
scramble across here, and then from the opposite side
descend into the chasm, where you will find one or
two beautiful little deep basins, almost as regular and
smooth, especially near the bottom, as if they had
been chiselled but of the marble by a sculptor.

ACTINIA CRASSICORNIS.

In the few holes and angles that are found around
the sides of these rock-pools dwell some fine speci-
mens of the noblest species of Sea-anemone that I
am acquainted with. Actinia crassicornis. They are
rather difficult to procure, because of the firmness

DESCRIPTION. 35

with which they adhere to the rock, and the protection
which their base receives from the edges of the hol-
lows in which they live. One large fellow that I
attempted, just below the surface of the pool, con-
tracted so forcibly on being touched, that little
streams of water as thick as a pin shot out perpen-
dicularly from many of the tentacles to the distance
of a foot. The species became a favourite with me,
for its magnificent beauty ; and I kept in captivity
many specimens.

A fine variety not uncommon has the body of a dull
dark red, with numerous, rather large, grey warts;
the tentacles dark purplish red, with pale, almost
white, tips. When fully expanded, and quite at home,
it imbibes water to such an extent as to become sub-
diaphanous. Under these circumstances it is exqui-
sitely beautiful. A specimen now before me is about
two inches in the diameter of the body, which is not
inflated to nearly its full capacity. The ground-
colour of the body is pale olive, tinged rather ir-
regularly wdth red, becoming darker towards the
oral margin. The warts are pale lilac, evidently
arranged in perpendicular rows of about fifteen in each
row ; the tentacles are large, tumid, and elegantly
diaphanous ; their general colour is pale purple or
lake-red, the tint disappearing towards the tip, which
is whitish brown ; a rather broad ring of white goes
round near the middle of each tentacle, which ring is,
however, broken on the outer side. Besides this,
each tentacle is marked on one side with a large patch
of opaque white extending from the base through
about half its length. This patch frequently sends

36 A SUSPECTED ALIAS.

off a half-ring of white, on the interior side, near its
middle. The patch itself is irregular in form and
extent, generally losing itself gradually at its up-
per extremity ; it is not always on the same side ;
frequently two contiguous tentacles have the patch
on their two opposing faces. The oral disk is dark
vinous red, crossed by some streaks of white, each of
which is double, separating to enclose the base of an
inner tentacle, and re-uniting. These stripes have a
very pleasing effect.

I doubt much the specific distinction of A. crassi-
cornis and A, coriacea. Dr. Johnston describes the
former as best distinguished by the readiness with
which the rim of the disk is twisted, by the facility
with which it becomes tumid, and by the vesicular
furrowed lobes, which are frequently protruded from
the mouth. All these characters my specimens have
with distinctness ; the last named I shall presently
allude to. For one of the others the following
instance may suffice. I brought home a fine speci-
men of the crimson variety, which I put into a pan of
water just sufficient to cover it. In an hour or two it
protruded the lips and inflated them so immensely
that at first sight I thought the animal had turned
bottom upwards, and that I was looking at the broad
base. The surface was nearly smooth, flat and cir-
cular, about two and a half inches in diameter, occu-
pying the whole breadth, so that the tentacles were
partly overlaid by it, and appeared only as a thick
fringe peeping out from under its edge in a horizontal
plane. There was a curious, sharp-edged, narrow
groove across the centre of the surface, rather deep,

APPLE -LIKE VARIETY. 37

extending from one margin to the opposite, and meet-
ing in the central orifice, looking as if it had been cut
with a knife. The animal remained in this state all
through the evening and night, and in the morning
slowly retracted its pouting lips, and resumed its
ordinary appearance.

On the other hand the same excellent authority
affirms that A. crassicornis never endues itself with an
extraneous covering, a habit which he notices as dis-
tinctive of A. coj'iacea. Now I generally find my
specimens, which are abundant on this coast, covered
with a coating of gravel, adhering to the warts, which
however is soon thrown off" in captivity. Mr. Couch's
description too of A. cor. agrees closely with mine.
I particularly notice, in the variety I am about to
describe, the thickened rim of the body outside the
tentacles, which comes to a distinct edge all round,
crenated with close-set, yet isolated, small white
glandular knobs.

I have no doubt that the species is the A. coriacea
of Rapp, and the A, gemmacea of Dalyell; but
throughout this volume I have taken as my standard
of nomenclature the Brit. Zooph. of Dr. Johnston,
the second Edition.

A more common and still more beautiful variety
has the body of a clear green, more or less inclined to
olive, and profusely marked with crimson, arranged
in longitudinal stripes of irregular form and size,
varying from fine undulating lines to very broad
bands; the whole presenting an appearance, especially
when the tentacles are withdrawn, like that of some
apples that are streaked with red. Tlie warts are, as

38 CHANGES OF FORM.

in the former case, clear bluish grey. The tentacles
agree with those of the former variety, except that the
redness has none of the purple element in it; it is more-
over very faint, and is confined to an annular band, ex-
tending from the white ring about half-way to the tip.

The peristomatous disk is of the same rich red as
the body; but the part from which the tentacles
spring is pale pellucid glaucous, streaked with red.
The streaks are convergent towards the centre, and
for the most part embrace a tentacle, uniting both
behind and before its base ; which produces a beau-
tiful efi'ect.

The changes of figure in this species when kept in
captivity, are remarkably great and rapid. They are
evidently efi'ected by the admission of water into any
part or the whole at will, and its ejection, or transmission
from one part to another. Sometimes it appears vase-
like with a small foot, above which there is a strong
constriction, the whole of the body above being
greatly tumid and diaphanous ; then the animal will
transmit the contained fluid into the foot, and the
constriction is made to pass in quick succession all
up the body, until it disappears at the margin of the
oral disk, imparting the most curious gradations of
form. At others it is greatly lengthened perpendicu-
larly, being thick withal, cylindrical with an expanded
top, or else with the top rounded, and perhaps the
tentacles crowded, and just peeping forth.

Such then is one of the finest native examples of

The zoophyte,
That link -which binds Prometheus to his rock.
The living fibre to insensate matter.

MONTGOMEBT.

A LARGE TIDE-POOL.

THE PRAWN.

Beyond the chasm just described, we scramble
into another, and come to a far larger and lower
tide-pool, so low as to be separated from the sea
only at spring-tides. It is about twenty-five feet
long, and eight or ten wide, and is quite over-
shadowed by the dark rock, in a sort of cavern of
which it lies. The great oar-weeds and tangles
( Laminaria saccharina and digitata) have here room
to attain their full size ; and their rich brown fronds
wave to and fro, or lie motionless in the clear water
often supporting whole forests of tiny zoophytes,
such as Laomedea geniculata. All round the edges
of the pool, from the water-line downwards, grow in
luxuriance the large oval dark red fronds of the
dulse ~ {Iridcea ediilis) and the more brilliant and
more elegant Delesseria samjuinea, of which an
American Poet has said, —

"The crimson-leaf of the dulse is seen
To blush like a banner bathed in slaughter ;"

and other minor sea-weeds, mostly of the red class,
are found in fine condition, some in and some out of
the water.

Large Prawns swim at freedom through this large
pool; and a very pleasing sight it is to watch them
as they glide gracefully and equally along. The tail-
fans are widely dilated, rendering conspicuous the
contrasted colours with which they are painted ; the
jaws are expanded, the feet hanging loosely beneath.
Now one rises to the surface almost perpendicularly ;

40 THE PRAWN.

then glides down towards the bottom, sweeping up
again in a graceful curve. Now he examines the
weeds, then shoots under the dark angles of the rock.
As he comes up towards me, I stretch out my hand
over the water ; in an instant he shoots backwards a
foot or so ; then catching hold of a weed with his
feet, and straddling its vertical edge, he remains
motionless, gazing up at me witli his large prominent
eyes, as if in the utmost astonishment.

This Prawn, that comes to our tables decked out and
penetrated, as it were, with a delicate, pellucid, rose-
colour, beautiful as he is then, is far more beautiful
when just netted from the bottom, or from the overhang-
ing weed-grown side, of some dark pool. If you happen
never to have seen him in this state, let me introduce
him to you. Form and dimensions of course you are
acquainted with ; these do not change, but I will just
observe that it is a " sizeable" fellow that is now
before me, whose portrait I am going to take. Stand
still, you beauty ! and don't shoot round and round
the jar in that retrograde fashion, when I want to jot
down your elegant lineaments ! There, now he is quiet!
quiet but watchful ! maintaining a sort of armed neu-
trality, with extended eyes, antennse stretching per-
pendicularly upwards, claws held out divergently with
open pincers ready to seize, as if those slender things
could do me any harm, and feet and expanded tail
prepared in a twinkling to dart backward on the least
alarm.

Look then at his cephalo- thorax, or what you
would perhaps call the head, the cylindrical shield
that you would pick ofi' as the first essay towards eating

ITS BEAUTY OF COLOUR, 41

him. Its ground colour is a greenish grey, but so
translucent that we can hardly assign any hue-proper
to it. This is marked with several stripes of rich
deep brown, running longitudinally, each stripe being
edged with buff. Then the body, or more correctly
the abdomen^ is marked with about a dozen stripes of
similar colour, but set transversely, girding the seg-
ments round with a series of dark lines ; and the last
segment before the setting on of the tail-fins has
three lines running lengthwise again.

Now we come to the tail. But here the pen fails ;
only the pencil could convey an adequate idea of this
exquisitely painted organ. The four oval plates, that
play over each other, and that form a broad and
powerful fin when expanded, are bordered with a pale
red band: the outer pair have in the centre a red
spot, the inner pair a streak of the same hue ; each
plate has near its extremity a spot of cream-white
(much larger on the outer pair) made more conspicu-
ous by being broadly margined by reddish brown.
Finally the plates are studded all over with red specks,
which when magnified are seen to be stars. Besides
these colours, there are scattered over the body in
symmetrical order, several spots of opaque cream
white, and some of pale chesnut or fawn-brown. And
to close this enumeration of colours, the claws and
feet are light blue, encircled at regular distances by
bands, of which half is deep purple and the other
half pale orange. I have not spoken of the fringes of
the jaw-plates, nor of those that terminate the tail-fin,
but the structure of these is exquisitely fine, especially
when examined with a lens.

42 INFLUENCE OF LIGHT

To add to these beauties there is seen in certain
lights a rich flush of iridescent purple reflected from
the whole surface of the animal.

A few hours' captivity changes all this, and the
Prawn, though it does not appear to have suffered in
health or vigour, has put on a most quakerly sobriety
of colour, all the fine bands and stripes and spots
having become so pale as to be scarcely distinguish-
able from the general pellucid olive hue of the body.

I cannot tell how this loss of colour is effected 5
but I have reason to think that light, the great agent
in 'producing colour in most case's, is the cause. I
took two specimens just dipped from a deep poo], and
equal in the richness of their contrasted colours ; one
of these I placed in a large glass vase of sea-water
that stood on my study-table ; the other in a similar
vase shut up in a dark closet. In twenty-four hours
the one that had been exposed to the light had taken
on the pale appearance just alluded to ; the one that
had been in darkness had scarcely lost any of the
richness of its bands and stripes, though the general
olive hue of the body had become darker, and of a
brow^ner tint. This individual, however, assumed the
appearance of the former, before it had been an hour
emancipated from its dark closet. Without attempt-
ing to account for the phenomenon, I would just
advert to the parallel exhibited by the sea-weeds.
The brilliant colours displayed by many of these
exist, as is well known, in the greatest perfection,
when the plants grow at considerable depths, or in
the caves and holes of the rocks, where light can but
very dimly penetrate. Some of these will not grow

UPON COLOUR. 43

at all in shallow water or in a full light ; and those
thatcanhear such circumstances are commonly affected
by them in a very marked degree, — marked by the
degeneracy of their forms, and by the loss of their
brilliancy of colour. The Prawn, as I have already
hinted, delights in the obscurity of deep holes and
rocky pools ; it is here alone that his fine zebra-like
colours are developed. When taken in shallow pools,
he is of the plain pale-olive tint of the specimen that
had spent four-and-twenty hours on my table.

CHAPTEE III.

A Visit to Brixham — ^The Road — Character of the Coast — Berry
Castle — Legends — Brixham — Coast Scenery — Animals of the
Shore — The Painted Scallop — Its Beauty — Mantle — Tentacles
— Gem-like Eyes — Climbing Powers — Leaps — Mode of per-
forming these misunderstood — Explanation — Functions and
Structure of the Eyes — Structure of the Gills — Ciliary Action
— Beauty of the Phenomenon — Oddicombe Rock-pool — Its
Form — Contents — The Feather-star — Its Habits in Captivity —
Reproduction of its Limbs — Watcombe — Romantic Scenery
Sandstone Cliffs — ^The Sea Lemon — The Purple Dye — Mode
of applying it — Changes of Colour — Tor Abbey Sands — Shore
Animals — The Pholas — Its Siphons — Their Use, Structure
and Currents — Curious Contrivance — Anstey's Cove — View
from Babbicombe Downs — Skylark's Song — Precipice of
Limestone — Abundance of Animals — Pleurobranchus.

On a fine morning near the middle of March I
walked to Torquay Station, and took my seat on the
"box of the omnibus for Brixham. I wanted to see
what advantages the place might present for a tempo-
rary settlement, what rents were, what sort of a coast it
was zoologically, and so forth. The road was plea-
sant, or rather would have been, if it had not been so
bitterly cold; but the wind had been for many weeks,
was then, and was destined to continue, most pertina-
ciously at East, and it blew right upon the shore, along
which the way lay for a great part of the distance.

Long beaches of sand and shingle, the Tor Abbey,
the Livermead, and the Paignton Sands, divided by

SONGS OF BIRDS. 45

low but perpendicular cliffs of red conglomerate, often
underworn and sometimes insular, jutting out in bold
headlands, — are characteristic of the shore hereabout,
till we arrive at Paignton ; a variety of coast which
cannot but be productive to the littoral naturalist,
especially as the receding tide lays bare an ample area
of low sandstone, hollowed into thousands of tide-
pools.

My fellow passenger was a legal gentleman from
town, revisiting Brixham after an absence of twenty
years, intelligent and facetious ; Coacheywas commu-
nicative and confidential ; and by and by, as the sun
came out, and we turned off into the sheltered road
from Paignton onward, under the lee of high hedges,
we began to find it not so dreary after all.

The songs of birds came from the groves, mellow
and cheery, though spring had not yet thought of
beginning to deck with leaves their naked bowers.
How delightful is the voice of a sinking bird ! how it
soothes the mind, and fills it with pleasant emotions !

'Tis sweet in solitude to hear
The earliest music of the year,

The Blackbird's loud wild note ;
Or, from the wintry thicket drear.

The Thrush's stamm'ring throat.

In rustic solitude 'tis sweet

The earliest flowers of spring to greet, —

The violet fi-om its tomb.
The strawberry, creeping at our feet,

The sorrel's simple bloom.

MOXTGOMERT.

The ruined castle of Berry, standing about three

46 BRIXHAM.

miles on the right hand of the road gave occasion to
discuss the legendary history of the Pomeroy family
to whom it belonged. In particular, the story of that
redoubtable Baron who slew the King's herald sent to
arrest him for high treason ; who then gained pos-
session of the Monastery on St. Michael's Mount by
assuming the disguise of a monk, and who caused
himself to be bled to death when unable longer to
maintain it against the royal forces. And the romance
of his two sons, who rather than yield their castle to
be dismantled, leaped on horse-back from the preci-
pice on which it was built.

The little town of Brixham, pretty as it appears
when viewed from Torquay, is but a sordid affair
when you see it at hand. The lower town particularly
is close, mean, and dirty ; indeed, truth to tell, I saw
refinements in filth here, which I had never the fortune
to see parallelled in all my wanderings. The place
looked, with sonle exceptions, pretty much as one
may suppose it to have looked in the days of the
Plantagenets or the Stuarts, stationary, when all
around is advancing. " Fast place this !" said my
fellow traveller of the morning, with an arch leer, as
he saw me resume my place on the box to return,
after the day's exploration.

The scenery on either hand, when once clear of
the harbour, is bold and magnificent. The coast is
rocky and precipitous, (the town itself appears
strangely stuck upon precipices, reaching from top to
bottom) and is indented with little coves, the most
picturesque imaginable. Berry Head, a noble pro-
montory of compact limestone, rears its lofty head

ANIMALS OF THE SHORE. 47

abruptly out of the sea not far from the town, and
forms a commanding boundary of the prospect, con-
spicuous all around.

I did not obtain much in the way of natural
history on the shore, except what I was already
familiar with at Petit Tor. Under the large stones
at low water Trochus ziziphinus was numerous, a
handsome shell, very regularly conical, and marked
with triangular spots of purple on a grey ground.
The animal also is handsomely coloured, the foot
being pale orange, somewhat like the flesh of a melon,
spotted and freckled above with" dark brown. Hun-
dreds of tiny crimson warts were projecting from the
face of the slimy overarching rock, each of which
when touched disappeared, and left to mark the spot
only the orifice of a minute hole. This was the
siphon of Saxicava rugosa, a little bivalve shell, the
animal of which is endowed with the power of boring
holes in the hardest limestone. And under the flat
stones I obtained two or three small specimens of that
beautiful scallop, Pecten opercularis^ which is taken
in great abundance with the dredge ofi" this harbour.
I came home with little desire to see Brixham
again.

THE PAINTED SCALLOP.

I have before me a small specimen of Pecten oper-
cularis, which I have kept for some days in a glass
phial of sea-water. The transparency of the vessel
enables me to observe it and to w^atch its motions with
advantage. An object of unwonted beauty indeed it
is. Its ordinary condition is to lie with its valves

48 THE PAINTED SCALLOP.

separated to the distance of about one-sixtli of an
inch. In this state I will describe it. The open
space is occupied by what seems a fleshy cushion,
extending from one valve to the other all round, but
just within their edge. It is of a delicate flesh-colour,
with mottlings of dark brown, making a kind of
irregular pattern with transverse bands; a close
examination, however, shews that this substance is
divided into two parts ; for when the animal is quite
at ease, it is seen to gape, with a fissure parallel to
the valves, widely enough to give us a peep into
the internal structure. This is, in fact, the mantle,
of which these two parts are the thick and glandular
edges. Around its circumference, on each portion,
just where it is in contact with the valve, there are
sot a groat number of tentacles, — delicate thread-like
organs, tapering to a fine point, and of a pellucid
white appearance ; they are capable of being protru-
ded and retracted at the will of the animal ; I have
occasionally seen some of them extended to a length
equal to the diameter of the shell. They are mx)re
commonly contracted to about one-fourth of that
length, or even much less, with the points curled up ;
but frequently the animal protrudes them to their
utmost extent, bending them back above the edges
of the shell, and waving them slowly in every
direction. Sometimes one or two only are protruded,
and the others kept short. Along the very edge of
each division of the mantle, bordering the fissure, is
another row of similar tentacles, smaller in their
dimensions. But the most beautiful feature of
this animal is yet to be described. In the line of the

ITS DIAMOND EYES. 49

larger tentacles, and alternating ■with them, is seen
a row of minute circular points, of high refractive
power, possessing all the hrilliancy of precious stones.
They look indeed like diamonds of the first water,
each set in a ring or socket of black substance, which
greatly enhances their beauty. They are about
half as numerous again as the radiating grooves of
the shell; but are not set with perfect regularity.
They are still less uniform in size, some having a
diameter twice as great as others. These are
believed to be eyes, and certainly they are well
placed for enabling the animal to watch the world
around it. It is very sensitive, withdrawing its ten-
tacles and mantle, and bringing the valves of its shell
together, on any shock being given to the vessel in
which it is kept. I observe, however, that it will not
actually close the valves, unless it be repeatedly dis-
turbed, or unless the shock be violent; contenting
itself with narrowing the opening to the smallest
space appreciable ; yet even then the two rows of
gem-like eyes are distinctly visible, peering out from
the almost closed shell ; the two appearing like one
undulating row from the closeness of their contiguity.
Those who are familiar with the pincushions, so fre-
quently made between the valves of these very Scallop
shells, can hardly fail to be struck with the resem-
blance borne by the living animal to its homely but
useful substitute ; and the beautiful eyes them-
selves might be readily mistaken for two rows of
diamond-headed pins, carefully and regularly stuck
along the two edges of the pincushion. A friend,
to whom I showed it when nearly closed, compared

50 ITS MANNER OF CLIMBING.

it not unaptly to a lady's ring set with small
brilliants.

My attention was attracted to the Pecten by this
curious circumstance, that it was adhering by one
valve (the flat one) to the side of the glass phial, at
some distance from the bottom. On close examina-
tion with a lens, I discovered that it was attached by
a very delicate byssus. Curious to ascertain how it
contrived to mount from the bottom to this position,
I touched it slightly, and caused it to loose its hold. In
the course of half an hour I found that it had resumed
the same position again. I again disturbed it, and
began to watch its motions. It was lying with the
convex valve downwards on the bottom of the phial.
The first thing I observed was the thrusting forth of
the deli(!ate little foot, an organ which seemed to me
appropriately named, when I marked its close resem-
blance in form to a human foot and leg, enveloped in
a white stocking. What I may call the sole of this
tiny foot w^as pressed against the side of the glass,
feeling about from place to place ; while with the lens
I could distinctly see, in the part corresponding to the
toe, the opening of the fleshy lips, or sides of the
grooves, in which the threads of byssus are said to be
formed. While it was thus engaged my surprise was
excited by seeing it suddenly throw itself with a jerk
into an upright position ; but the action was too
startling to enable me to see how it was perfonned.
I again laid it prone, and though for a moment it
closed the valves, it presently opened them again, and
performed a similar feat. This w^as followed by seve-
ral leaps in different directions, in quick succession ;

ITS MANNER OF LEAPING. 51

"but I was still at a loss to know the modus operandi.
It appeared to me certain, that the ordinary supposition,
viz., that the action is performed by the vigorous
opening and shutting of the valves, was not the correct
one. At length a favourable obsei"vation gave me a
suspicion of the trutli. I perceived the lips of the
mantle, (which were held in contact, though the valves
were considerably separated,) suddenly open to a partial
extent, as if by a hlowimj from ivithin. At this
instant there w^as a leap in the opposite direction,
attended with a considerable agitation in the water.
With this clue, I observed more definitely. Having
rendered the water a little turbid, in order the more
distinctly to see any motion of the particles suspended
in it, several leaps confirmed the notion that had sug-
gested itself to me. The mode of proceeding is as
follows : when the Pecten is about to leap, it draws in
as much water as it can contain within the mantle,
while the lips are held firmly in contact. At this
instant the united edges of the lips are slightly drawn
inward, and this action gives sure w^aming of the com-
ing leap. The moment after this is observed, the
animal, doubtless by muscular contraction, exerts a
strong force upon the contained w^ater, wdiile it relaxes
the forced contact of the lips at any point of the cir-
cumference, according to its pleasure. The result is,
the forcible ejection of a jet of water, /)'cwi that point',
which, by the resilience of its impact upon the sur-
r{)unding fluid, throw^s the animal in the opposite
direction, with a force proportioned to that of they^^^
dean. The action may be well imitated by the human
mouth l)l()wing a stream of air from any detemiined

52 ITS CIRCUMSPECTION.

point, while the lips are held firmly together at all
other points. The resemblance, indeed, of the mantle
to the human lips performing such an action, (a
resemblance perhaps more close than flattering) struck
me as ludicrously faithful. Nor was the appearance less
suggestive of a pair of bellows without a nose, of
which the valves were the covers, and the mantle the
leathers, discharging their contents from any part of
their sides.

That the Pecten widely opens and forcibly closes
its valves, if left uncovered by the water, is doubtless
correct ; I have seen my specimen perfonn such an
action, and perhaps it might by such means jerk itself
from place to place with considerable agility. But I
do not think so rude a mode of progression could
enable it to select the direction of its leaps, which
under water appears to me to be determined with
accurate precision.

I observed also a fact which appeared confirmatory
of the supposition that the brilliant points among the
tentacles are organs of vision ; viz., that in the ordi-
nary state of expansion, and when about to make these
quick movements, the gem-like points are so situated
as just to project beyond the margin of the shell.
So that when the latter is viewed perpendicularly, the
eye of the beholder looking dowTi upon its convexity,
the minute points are seen, all round its circumference,
just, and but just, peeping from under its edge. It is
clear that if they are eyes, tliis secures to them the
widest range of vision with the least possible exposure.

The death of my little Pecten gave me the opportu-
nity of submitting some of the gemmeous specks to

STRUCTURE OF ITS GILLS. 53

the iiiicioscope. With a power of 220 diameters, I
distinct] y perceived a large lens, a glassy coat invest-
ing this, which itself was huried for more than half
its volume in an investiture apparently granular of
a yellowish hrown coloui', having an ill-defined circle
near its anterior side, of a blackish hue. Under
pressure with the compressoiium, the lens was mani-
festly circular ; the coloured socket discharged dark
granules, hiuI from the darkest part a deep crimson
pigment, which did not appear to he granular
(S'ee Plate III. fig. 5.)

I submitted portions of the gills also to the same
magnifying power. Eacli of the four laminee consists
of a vast number of straight slender transparent fila-
ments, evidently tubular, and about y^th of an inch
in diameter, arranged side by side ; or rather of one
jilament, excessively long, reverted upon itself
again and again, at both the free and the at-
tached end of the laminae, throughout its whole ex-
tent. This repeated filament is armed on each of two
opposite sides with a line of vibrating cilia, the two
lines mo^•ing in contrary directions ; by the action of
which a cuiTfiit of water is made continually to flow
up and down each of these delicate filaments ; so that
the ])lood which circulates in their interior (for they
are doubtless blood-vessels) is continually exposed
throughout this its long and tortuous course to the
acti(m of oxygen.

Like all organic functions, the a(;tion of these cilia
is not under the will of the animal. It is said that if
during life a small portion of the gills be cut off, the
motion of the cilia will convey the fragment swiftly away.

54 ODDICOMBE ROCK-POOL.

with a smooth easy motion, through the surrounding
fluid, in a definite direction. It does not cease even
with the Hfe of the animal. The specimen which I
examined had been dead at least fifteen hours, yet
when I placed the torn fragments of the branchiae, one
after another, beneath the microscope, the energy of
the ciliary action, as the wave flowed with uniform
regularity up one side and down the other of every
filament, filled me with astonishment. Even the next
morning, twenty-six hours after death, when the
tissues of the filaments were partially dissolved, the
ciliary motion Avas still going on, on portions that
preserved their integrity.

Surely, when a Christian naturalist examines the
more recondite anatomy, not of the human body merely,
but of any, even the lowest, forms of animal being, he
is constrained to say with the Psalmist, " I will praise
Thee ; for [all is] fearfully and wonderfully made :
marvellous are thy works, and that my soul knoweth
right well !"

ODDICOMBE EOCK-POOL.

I took another look at my pretty little rock-basin
at Oddicombe. It is a deep, oval, cup-hke cavity,
about a yard wide in the longest diameter, and of the
same depth, ]ie\yii out, as it were, from the solid lime-
stone, with as clean a surface, as if a stone-mason had
been at work there. It is always, of course, full of
water, and, except when a heavy sea is rolling in, of
brilHant clearness. All round the margin are growing
tufts of the common Coralline, forming a whitish

ITS CONTENTS. 55

bushy fringe, reaching from the edge to about six
inches down : a few plants of the Bladder Fucus are
scattered around and above the brim ; and the arching
fronds of the Sweet Laminaria, that I before spoke of,
hang down nearly to the bottom, closely resembling,
except in their deep-brown hue, the hart's tongue fern
that so profusely adorns the sides of our green lanes.
Below the Coralline level are a few small red sea-weeds,
as Rhodymenia palmata ; and the dark purple
Chondrus crispiis growing in fine tufts reflecting a
rich steel-blue iridescence. But all the lower parts
of the sides and the bottom are almost quite free from
sea-weeds, with the exception of a small TJloa or two,
and a few incrusting patches of the Coralline-base,
not yet shot up into branches, but resembhng smooth
pink lichens. The smooth surface of the rock in these
lower parts is quite clean, so that there is nothing to
intercept the sight of the Actinia}, that project from
the hollows, and spread out their broad circular disks
like flat blossoms adhering to the face of the interior.
There are many of these, all of the species A. hellis,
and all of the dark chocolate variety, streaked with
scarlet ; and they are fine in the ratio of the depth at
which they live ; one at the very bottom is fully three
inches in diameter.

There is something exceedingly charming in such
a natural vivarium as this. When I go down on my
knees upon the rocky margin, and bring my face
nearly close to the water, the whole interior is dis-
tinctly visible. The various forms and beautiful tints
of the sea-weeds, especially the purple flush of the
Chondrus, are well worthy of admiration ; and I can

56 .THE FEATHER- STAR.

see the little shrimps and other Crustacea busily
swimming from weed to weed, or pursuing their in-
stinctive occupations among the fronds and branches,
— an ample forest to them. Tiny fishes of the Blenny
genus are also hiding under the shadow of the tufts,
and occasionally darting out with quivering tail ;
and one or two Brittlestars are deliberate! v crawlinsf
about, by means of their five long and flexible arms, in
a manner that seems a ludicrous caricature of a man
climbing up by his hands and feet, — only you must
suppose an additional arm growing from the top of his
head. The variety of their colours, and the singular but
always elegant patterns in which they are arranged,
render these little star-fishes attractive.

Such a calm clear little well as this, among the
rugged rocks, stored with animal and vegetable life,
is an object well calculated to attract a poet's fancy.
The following description must have been drawn from
just such a rock-pool, and most true to nature it is.

In hollows of the tide-worn reef,
Left at low water glistening in the sun.
Pellucid pools, and rocks in miniature,
With their small fry of fishes, crusted shells.
Rich mosses, tree-like sea-weed, sparkling pebbles.
Enchant the eye, and tempt the eager hand.
To violate the fairy paradise,

Montgomery.

THE FEATHER-STAR.

At Petit Tor in March I found, adhering to the
under side of a rough stone, a fine specimen of the
Kosv Feather- star. It was of the size of Prof Forbes'

ITS HABITS. 57

figure, but was much more beautiful than I had sup-
posed, even from that representation. It was marked
all over with alternate bands or patches of crimson
and yellow, not very regularly ; the latter colour
studded with red dots. The larger dorsal filaments
were thirty, the smaller, I think only two or three.
The pinnae were forty (not 34) on each side of
each arm. I saw the hooked claws of the larger fila-
ments, but could not make out the points of the
pinnae.

In captivity the Feather-star sits upon the frond
of a Sea-weed, or on a projecting angle of rock, which
it grasps very firmly with its clawed filaments ; so firmly
that it is difficult to tear it from its hold. When
violence is used, it catches hold of its support or any
other object within reach, with the tips of its aims,
which it hooks down for the purpose, and with its
pinnae, so that it seems furnished with so many claws,
the hard stony nature of which is revealed by the
creaking, scratching noise they make as they are
forced from any hold, as if they were made of glass.
I was surprised to observe that several of the arms
were unsymmetrically short; and examining these
with a lens, saw distinctly that each had been broken
ofi" and was renewed; the new part agreeing in struc-
ture and colour with the rest, but the joints were much
less in diameter; and this difference was strongly
marked at the point of union, the first of the new
joints being not more than one-third as wide as its
predecessor. The appearance much reminded me of
a Lizard renewing its tail.

In sitting, the Feather- star bends its arms with a

58 AN EXCUSABLE FAULT.

sigmoid curve, the tips bending upward. It waves
them now and then, hut not much ; and remains long
without moving from its hold. Though I repeatedly
took it out of water, removing it forcibly, it manifested
no tendency to voluntary dislocation.

WATCOMBE.

One of the most wildly romantic scenes in this
neighbourhood is Watcombe, about a mile from
Marychurch, on the Teignmouth road. A narrow
lane, muddy from a little streamlet that oozes down
it, but fringed with primroses and violets, leads off
from the highway on the right, and presently opens a
magnificent prospect of the sea, with a handsome
villa just in front in the midst of ornamental grounds.
A step or two farther, and we are on a large area of
broken ground, most irregular and uneven, but covered
with the fine close turf, peculiar to downs, on which
the sheep are tranquilly grazing. On the left, rise
abruptly from the turf, perpendicular cliffs of red
sand-stone of stupendous height, their summits cloth-
ed with turf and thickets of furze ; so angular and
uniform are they that they look like the ruined
walls of some Cyclopean castle. The place is formed
by wdiat geologists call o. fault, the ground having at
some period fallen in from the higher to the lower
level, a catastrophe which explains the uneven cha-
racter of the down, the hills and vales, the chasms
and pits, that are so remarkable here.

The fault, — which is certainly one that we cannot
very harshly blame, since its effect is so beautiful, —

THE SEA LEMON, 59

is still at a great elevation above the sea-level ; and
when we have made our way to its sea-ward margin,
and look down upon the pebbly beach, we find that
we can reach it only by a narrow zigzag path, or
almost a succession of narrow steps, so steep and
hazardous that the utmost circumspection is necessary
to descend it with safety.

Once down, we can walk along the rough platforms
and ledges of sandstone that extend along at the foot
of the lofty cliffs towards the north from the cove.
The strata form narrow shelves with shaq) edges,
sufficiently level to be traversed without difficulty,
but gradually rising from the horizontal, so that we
cannot pursue any given stratum beyond a short
distance, as we find it carrying us too far above the
sea, but must successively descend to lower ones.

In the crevices and shallow pools of the ledges
between tide-marks I observed numerous colonies of
Actinia hellis, a variety more than usually pied wdth
white on a dark ground : and the fine A, crassicornis
was common in the darker fissures. It was here that
I saw for the first time the largest of our naked-gilled
MoUusca, the Sea Lemon, Doris tuberculata. It was
lying in a narrow horizontal shelf under the shadow
of a rock, whence it had doubtless fallen after it had
been forsaken by the tide. My first momentary
impression was that a large limpet had been extracted
from its shell and thrown there to die, but an instant's
examination told me what it was. I carried it to a
shallow pool and threw it in ; and presently it turned
itself on its foot, and protruding its two curiously-rib-
bed tentacles from their holes, began to glide along

60 THE PURPLE-SHELL.

the bottom, expanding, as it proceeded, its beautiful
starry flower of branchiae in the centre of its back.
When this and the horns are concealed, the animal
bears a curious resemblance in size, form, colour and
warty surface to the half of a lemon, divided longitudi-
dinally.

THE PURPLE DYE.

These two days past I have been experimenting on
the dye of Purpura lapillus. Hundreds of this shell
may be seen adhering to the rocks between tide-marks,
some quite white, or discoloured only with age, while
others, (frequently all found in one particular locality)
are rather prettily marked with three broad bands of
yellow or brown, running spirally round the whorls.
The latter variety is much more furrowed than the
white variety, and the bands of colour are often divided
into several narrow lines separated by the ridges. The
inner part of > the mouth, especially in old specimens,
is often tinged with purple, which may help an unini-
tiated observer to identify the species. They congre-
gate together, and you may easily collect, at low- water,
as many as you please. The best way to kill them
that I know is to break the shell to pieces with a
hammer, moderating the blow cautiously, so as not to
crush the soft animal, and then, having shaken off the
fragments, throw it into a basin of cold fresh- water, in
which the creature presently dies. With the shell
unbroken, I find it has the power of resisting the
action of fresh-water for a time far longer than would
be fatal to many marine Gasteropoda ; for some that

APPLICATION OF THE DYE. 61

I placed in a basin of fresh-water, proved to be quite
uninjured when I broke the shells eighteen hours
afterwards, as was seen by their forcible contraction
when divested of their shelly covering. Doubtless
this power of resisting the action of fresh-water con-
sists in the close-fitting operculum, which is forcibly
drawn in under the stimulus, so as to keep the water
perfectly out. .

When the animals appear dead, examine them for
a vessel of yellow or cream-coloured matter, that runs
diagonally across the body, behind that projecting
veil under which the tentacles retire when contracted.
It is sufficiently conspicuous, flat, somewhat wrinkled,
as if not quite full, with one margin blackish. Insert
into the membrane, which is very tender, the point of
a sharp pair of scissors, or a needle, and open the vein,
which you will find filled with a substance exactly
resembling in colour and consistence the pus or mat-
ter formed in a boil. You will not find much ; that
of a large Purpura I managed to spread over a space
of calico as large as a shilling. From its viscid con-
sistence it is difficult to use with a pen, and I do not
know how it may be uniformly diluted ; but with a
small camel's-hair pencil I have used it with much
more facility.

As soon as the matter is applied to the linen, its
hue is a rich " King's yellow," but becomes in a few
minutes a delicate pea-green. In about an hour, if the
weather be cloudy, it has become a yellow grass-green,
from which it slowly and imperceptibly turns to a blue
green, thence to indigo, and thence to blue. A red
tinge now becomes apparent, generally in parts, cans-

62 TOR ABBEY SANDS.

ing the hue to become first violet, then a purple more
and more tinged with red, till at length, after five or
six hours (in a room without direct sun -light) it
assumes its final tint, a rather dull purplish crimson,
or lake. The direct beams of the sun, however,
greatly expedite the process, and at any stage will
carry the remaining stages through to completion in
a few minutes,

TOR ABBEY SANDS.

OiF the Tor Abbey sands and headland, the receding
tide leaves bare a large surface of rock, chiefly sand-
stone and conglomerate. Little shallow pools occur
abundantly, filled with AlgcB of various species, among
which colonies of Anthea cereus^ of both the grey and
the green varieties, are common. The soft sandstone
is inhabited by Pholas daciylus,midL Ph. parva; the
orifices of whose burrows reveal their secret ; the first
stroke of the hammer on the stone causes the animal
to contract in alarm, and the result is an instant
ejection of a slender jet of clear water from the hole,
to the distance of several inches.

Under loose stones I found Doris hilamellata nu-
merous, four, five and six under one stone, mostly
spawning ; one specimen of the blackish-grey variety of
B, jpilosa occurred among them. The soft spongy
texture of the cloak in this species gives it a character
very diff'erent from that of the former. In the same
situations also I found several of the pretty little
Gibbous Starlet {Asterina gihhosa /) also the young
of Trochus ziziphinus, and a lump of rock covered with

SIPHONS OF BIVALVES. 63

living Serpulm, the expansions of whose fans in cap-
tivity, and the use of the stoppers, — were highly
amusing.

PHOLAS DACTYLUS.

The respiration of many of the bivalve mollusca is
effected by means of a siphon, the two extremities of
which are situated close together, and are often
united so as at first to appear but one tube. A glance
at the very tip, however, even in this case, shews
that there are two openings, one of which is a little
smaller than the other, and commonly this subordi-
nate orifice diverges at a slight angle from the princi-
pal one. The latter is the entrance, the former the
exit for the water, a perpetual change of which is ab-
solutely indispensable to the life of the animal. The
interior of these tubes is said to be lined with innu-
merable delicate cilia; by the action of which the
surrounding water is drawn towards the entering ori-
fice, and conveyed in a strong current through the
tube over the surface of the gills. Then, having
been deprived of its oxygen, it is poured through the
other tube and expelled in a jet at its extremity, by a
similar machinery.

This apparatus of double siphonal tubes is princi-
pally developed in those species which burrow,
whether in sand, mud, wood or stone. As the bur-
rowing bivalve usually, if not always, dwells in the
interior of the passage it has excavated, it is needful
that there should be a communication with the exter-
nal water, and hence a hole is always found extending
to the surface of the material bored. The entering

64 SIPHONAL CURRENTS.

and departing currents keep this passage clear, a pro-
cess which in mud or sand might seem at first not
very easy of accomplishment. It is facilitated, how-
ever, hy the faculty which the boring bivalves have
of lengthening the siphonal tubes at will ; and the
degree to which this may be accomplished depends
on the depth of the cavity which the species is ac-
customed to make.

If we take one of the stone-boring Mollusca, a
Pholas or a Saxicava for example, from its excava-
tion, without injuring the animal, and place it in a
glass vessel of sea-water, it will not be difficult to de-
tect the currents in question, even with the naked
eye ; though a lens of moderate power will render
them more distinctly appreciable. The vessel should
be so placed as that the light may be nearly, but not
exactly, opposite to the eye. By this arrangement
the minute atoms of floating matter are illuminated
while the back-ground is dark, and these by their
motion clearly reveal the currents of the fluid in which
they are suspended. A few moments' practice will
enable even an unaccustomed eye to perceive the
atoms converging from all points around, with an
even but increasing velocity, towards the principal
tube, down which they disappear like the streams of
passengers and traffic in the neighbourhood of a great
city, converging towards it as to a common centre of
attraction by a hundred different routes. The current
of the expelling tube is even still more marked in its
character; a forcible jet of water is continuously
ejected from this orifice, which draws the surrounding
particles into its vortex, and shoots them forward to a

A BEAUTIFUL CONTRIVANCE. 65

distance of many inches. It is by the expulsive force
of this anal current, chiefly, that the passage is kept
free from the deposit of mud and other substances,
which would otherwise soon choke it up.

A fresh supply of water for respiration, and its
dismissal when no longer fit for use, are efficiently
provided for by this contrivance, But since many
particles of matter float in the water, which from
their form or other qualities, might be hurtfal to the
delicate tissues of the viscera to be traversed, how is
the entrance of these to be guarded against in an in-
discriminating current ? A beautiful contrivance is
provided for this necessity. The margin of the enter-
ing siphon, and sometimes, though more rarely, of
the ejecting one, is set round with a number of short
tentacular processes, varying indeed in their length,
but the longest scarcely more than equalling half the
diameter of the mouth of the tube. In Saxicava
rugosa, which bores through and through, with small
holes, the hardest limestone of our coast, these ten-
tacular appendages are found fringing both the tubes.
The tentacles in this species are simple, and appear
as if cut ofi" transversely; and some are not more
than half as long as the others, with which they irre-
gularly alternate. The object of this diversity in
length, will be manifested presently. In Pholas
parva, the processes are few and short, and are confin-
ed to the receiving tube, from the interior margin of
which they project, towards the centre. But it is in
Pholas dactylus, a noble species of large size that
excavates the softer rocks on our shores, that this
apparatus is developed with peculiar beauty, and its

66 A NET OF TENTACLES.

use is made most clearly manifest. The tentacular
filaments are in this case also confined to the oral
tuhe. They are numerous, each forming a little
tree, with pinnate branches, hearing no small resem-
blance to the flower of feathery branchise, that ex-
pands around the mouth of a Holothuria. These
branched tentacula are ordinarily bent down across
the mouth of the tube, the longest of them just
meeting in the centre ; alternating with these are
placed others of similar structure, but inferior size ;
and the interspaces are occupied by others smaller
still, and simply pinnate ; so that when the whole
occupy their ordinary transverse position, the small
ones fill up the angles of the larger, and the branches
of all form a net- work of exquisite tracery, spread
across the orifice, through the interstices or meshes of
which the current of entering water freely percolates,
while they exclude all except the most minute floating
atoms of extraneous matter. The accompanying
figure, which I have drawn from a fine specimen of
Pholas dactijlas just obtained from the submerged
sandstone at Tor Abbey, and at this moment receiving
and ejecting its currents in my glass jar, as placidly
as if it were still ensconced in its own quiet hole, will
give some idea of the form of this tentacular net, a
portion only of which is here given, that the ramifi-
cation may be seen with greater clearness. (See Plate
11. fig. 7.)

(P. S.) After a while, these beautiful organs lost
their elegance, and shrank up into thick wart-like
bodies, merely digitated at their tips, in which, if I
had not personally, so to speak, known the individual

PlaitJl

j^.

f(p

M Ifii

]-^, PLEUROBRAKCpius PLUMULA.
7 PHOLAS DACTYL US

DIVINE BENEFICENCE. 67

animal, I should not have been able to trace any re-
semblance to the ramified trees that had at first
guarded the orifice. It would appear therefore that
they are to be seen in perfection only when the Pholas
is in high health, and newly taken from its rock.

This contrivance, or rather this series of contri-
vances, for the health and comfort of a poor shell-fish
that spends its whole life buried in a sepulchre of
stone, may seem to some but an insignificant matter.
But it strikes my mind with power as an example of
the beneficent care of God over all his creatures, and
of the infinite resources of Divine wisdom in which
creation has been planned and executed. And so far
from the meanness of the object on which such care
is bestowed rendering it less worthy of remark, that
very circumstance ought to enhance our admiration.
It seems less difiicult to conceive of the tender bene-
ficence of God exercised towards an angel, or towards
man who was made in his own image ; but that the
Mind of the High and Lofty One that inhabiteth eter-
nity should occupy itself about the feelings of such a
worm as this, is marvellous indeed ! It is one of those
innumerable examples that occur to the Christian
philosopher, in which " the invisible things of Him from
the creation of the world are clearly seen, being un-
derstood by the things that are made, even his eternal
power and Godhead."

anstey's cove.

April Qth. A lovely spring morning ; one of those
that make one say with the Royal Poet of Israel, " Lo,

68 SPRING ON THE DOWNS.

the winter is past, the rain is over and gone ; the
flowers appear on the earth ; the time of the singing
of birds is come ; and the voice of the turtle is heard
in our land." I took my basket of collecting jare,
my hammer and chisel, in my hand, and determined to
explore some of the rocky coves that I had not yet
visited, for it was spring-tide. It is a favourable cir-
cumstance for the littoral naturalist on the Devonshire
coast, that lowest water on the days of spring-tide is
near the middle of the day. This is a point that
should be attended to in selecting a site for such re-
searches, as in some places the lowest water might
occur at a much less convenient hour of the day.
At Margate, at Portsmouth, and at Whitehaven for
example, it is about six o'clock in the morning and
evening on the days of new and full moon.

It was exhilarating to walk over the lofty Babbi-
combe Downs, and gaze out upon the wide expanse
of sea, its sparkling azure speckled over with ships
and boats whose white sails gleamed brilliantly beneath
the rays of the mounting sun.

There lie the ships,
Their sails all loose, their streamers rolling out
With sinuous flow and swell, like water-snakes.
Curling aloft ; the waves are gay with boats.
Pinnace and barge and coracle ; — the sea
Swarms like the shore with life. O what a sight
Of beauty !

SOUTHEY.

There was breeze enough to raise up a curling ripple
fringed here and there with a foaming mantle, and to
mark with a long line of white the foot of the red cliffs

A COAST-PROSPECT. 69

that receded away to the northward. Beautiful these
looked in their bold fantastic forms, as they receded,
headland after headland, from the palpable grandeur
of those close at hand to the hazy indistinctness of
those a dozen miles off; the ruddy hue gradually and
insensibly changing into the clear decided blue of the
distant line of coast. The handsome white villas
above Petit Tor and Watcombe reflected the sun, as
did presently the houses of Teignmouth, and its con-
spicuous church-tower, just opening behind a project-
ing cliff; and on the blue shore across the broadly-
incurved bay, the terraces of Exmouth were singularly
distinct. The little hamlet of Babbicombe was be-
hind, and below my feet were the gardens and shrub-
beries of several villas, the trees and bushes in which
were just beginning to burst their leaf-buds. I did
not hear the voice of the turtle, it is true, — it had
hardly as yet arrived — but the carol of the lark was
blithely pouring forth, " at Heaven's gate," as Shak-
speare says, far above even these elevated cliffs. Far
up, far up, higher and higher into the radiant dazzling
sky he soars, and still he struggles up and up, till the
watering eye can with difficulty find the tiny speck, —
yet his heart all the while is down in some humble
tussock of grass.

" Wild is thy lay, and loud,
Far in the downy cloud,
Love gives it energy, love gave it birth :
Where on thy dewy wing.
Where art thou journeying ?
Thy lay is in heaven, thy love is on earth."

Hogg.

The very loftiest part of the down terminates in an

70 anstey's cove.

abrupt precipice of compact limestone, which has
been quarried away for some distance inland, leaving
only the flat base like a stone-cutter's yard a little
above the water s edge, to mark where the cliff for-
merly reached- Alongside of this base, as at a
natural pier, craft of considerable size lie, and receive
their cargoes of the quarried marble, and one or more
may commonly be seen here. I inquired of a quarry-
man if there were any practicable access to this plat-
form, but found there was none but a narrow and pre-
carious path from the summit, available only to the
practised feet of the stone-workers. Nor can they
always tread it with impunity ; he mentioned a quarry-
man who was lately dashed to pieces by falling from
near the summit although he had been nearly fifty
years in the occupation.

This abrupt head forms one boundary of Anstey's
Cove, a favourite resort of Torquay visitors, and a
very picturesque scene. A beach of pebbles of snowy
whiteness, among which the fossil madrepores for
which the vicinity is famed, are often found, is divid-
ed by a projecting pile of rocks into two coves, the
one of which is overlooked by the stupendous lime-
stone precipice, and the other merges into a shore
strewn with boulders, beneath a lower cliff of slate
and shale.

I found the base of the precipitous rocks to the
south of this latter cove very productive. Beneath
the shadow of the cliffs, animals are much more
numerous under the limestone boulders, than they
are under similar stones where the sun shines, though
only just left uncovered by the tide. Very fine tufts

ITS PRODUCTIONS. 71

of Iridcea edulis and of Delesseria sanguinea grow in
the shallow hut shaded pools near low water mark.
Among the creatures I hrought home were several of
the Common Squat Lobster (Galathea rugnsaj and
a fine specimen of the much more beautiful Gal. stri-
gosa, with its livery of scarlet and azure. Trochus
ziziphinus was common ; Cyprcea Europcea, common ;
Pecten distort us, several ; Pecten opercularis, small ;
A?iomi(B and Serpulce, common on stones ; two or three
Botrylli; two of a heemtiiul Pleurobranc/ms ; Dorh
tuberculata, D. Johnstoni f^J, and another Doris ;
Ophiocoma rosula, abundant, and in much variety ;
one had the body velvet-black; — Polynoe cirrata ;
Actinia alba, and one or two other small species ;
Echinus esc'ule?itus ? ; a rough Sponge ; a small
Crab ; and a mass of eggs, probably of a crab.

THE PLEUROBRANCHUS.

The most interesting of these captures was the pair of
Pleurobranchi. The species proved to be P.plumu-
la, an animal very rarely seen by naturalists, and
a variety more than usually rich in colouring. It
therefore appeared to me worth while to make careful
drawings and notes from these individuals, which
lived for some time with me (See Plate II.)

Length when crawling If in. breadth f in. The
form oval, convex ; the cloak ample, smooth ; the
oral veil, undulate at front margin, the tentacular
sides produced into blunt angles, and the centre
notched. Dorsal tentacles blunt, curved outwards,
projecting a little beyond the veil. Eyes small, black

72 DESCRIPTION OF PLEUROBRANCHUS.

round points, beneath the skin, at the outer and upper
part of the base of dorsal tentacles.

General colour golden or orange chrome ; the veil
and foot rather paler; under side of the foot (fig. 2.)
approaching to flesh-colour; showing a large black
cloud in the centre. The same spot seen dorsally
(fig. 1.) makes a cloud of brown, slightly tinged with red
in front. In this part, over the internal dark body, are
many dots which appear pellucid, and two or three
larger than the rest, through which the dark body
appears ; the yellow mantle between the dots assumes
a reticular appearance. The tentacles, especially
the dorsal pair, have a central line of dark brown ;
all are tubular, by the bending together of their sides,
but open in front and beneath, where the edges do
not quite meet. The branchial plume projects from
between the mantle and foot in crawling ; it is trans-
parent, and appears when viewed from above, to be
composed of many triangular laminse set imbricate,
and pointing backwards. Each lamina shows trans-
verse wrinkles. (See fig. 3.) Viewed laterally it is
seen to consist of a central stem, with about 18 pinnae
on each side, each pinna being again pinnated on
each side (fig. 5.) The stem, pinnae and pinnulae are all
dilated, inwardly, so that the stem, which is narrow
and slender at (5), is wide at (3), and the pinnae are
the triangular laminae, whose wrinkles are in fact the
pinnulae. The organ is connected with the bottom of the
lateral sulcus for about two-thirds of its length by a sort
of membrane. The plume can scarcely be recognized
in its two aspects, even though examined again and
again in quick succession. It appears very sensitive

ITS HABITS. 73

and changes much in appearance by its various
degrees of contraction and expansion. Fig. 4 is a por-
tion of fig. 3 more carefully drawn, and more enlarged.

Of the two specimens found, one was rather paler.
In captivity they were sluggish, fond of hiding
among the fronds and leaves of Delesseria and Iridaa;
but at times gliding freely like a Doris. They swam on
the surface by the foot reversed, and then left behind
a great wake of clear viscid jelly. They were beauti-
ful animals. After keeping them' in health about a
fortnight, I put one into fresh water to kill it, for
preservation. This, however, was not so readily fatal
to it as I had supposed, for at the end of half an hour I
found by its contraction when touched, that it was still
alive. Probably the mode in which it had contracted
on being put in, the foot being narrowed, and the
edges of the mantle being incurved on all sides around
the foot, may have in some measure prevented the
access of the water to the vital parts. At the end of
that time I replaced it in sea-water, when it soon
partially recovered its activity, relaxing its mantle,
and contracting it dorsally so as to expose the
sulcus between it and the foot greatly, protruding the
tentacles ^nd veil, and the branchial plume. Thus I
was enabled to get a much better sight of these parts.

As soon as it w^as replaced in the sea-water, a
quantity of white mucus was discharged from the
whole surface, most copiously from the foot, which
as it lay on its back, was uppermost. This mucus,
gradually, by the contractions of the animal, was
accumulated in a knob at the posterior end of the
foot, and then thrown off. The reticulate structure

74 THE MOUTH.

of the mantle-integument was much more distinct
than in health ; it was seen to form a delicate lace-
work of yellow fibres all over the surface, covering
and inclosing a pellucid parenchyma.

The animal evidently had been injured by its bath
of fresh water ; for it lay on its back, expanding and
contracting its various parts, without the power
of turning over to crawl, or even of adhering by the
foot when turned, but rolling helplessly back. The
form and appearance too were very different from
those of health, the sulcus being widely exposed by
the contraction of the mantle, much like the figure in
Prof. Jones' 'Animal Kingdom,' which I should think
was taken froi5 a specimen in spirit; it does not
much resemble mine in health.

Kunning along near the edge of the foot, parallel
with it, on the upper surface, is a narrow projecting
lip or ledge, more opaque than the surrounding parts,
and capable of being slightly raised. Between, this
and the oral veil is the mouth, from which in my
sick specimen was projected a large pear-shaped or
vase-shaped body, of which the narrow part, which
was outward, was wrinkled up, and showed at times a
small central orifice, triangular in form. The body
was pellucid with an opaque central nucleus.

The oral veil is thick, and is deeply grooved
along each outer edge : the margins of these grooves,
being infolded, make the oral tentacles. Fig. 6 repre-
sents the outer side of the left dorsal tentacle ; show-
ing a sinuosity in the edge of the cleft ; probably acci-
dental, since I did not observe it in the other tentacle.

After death the form of the shell could very dis-

THE SHELL. 75

tinctly be traced in the centre of the back. On
making an incision I found it superficially placed
within the substance of the mantle, whence it was
very readily extracted, having apparently no organic
adhesion to the flesh. A careful examination shews
a very close agreement with that of PL plumula, which
I have no doubt it is. Its length was exactly \ inch,
its breadth a little more than \ inch. It lay over the
dark brown liver : its own colour was darkish horn,
tinged with reddish : as it dried, a silvery nacre
covered it in parts, which gradually extended to the
whole. There were two radiating depressions on the
surface.

CHAPTEE IV.

The Dead Man's Fingers — Appearance when contracted — when
expanded — Beauty of the flower-like Polypes — Structure —
Spiculse — The Polypidom — Zoophytes and Crustacea upon
Tangle — Small Nudibranchs and their Spawn — The Angled
Laomedea — Its medusiform Young — Appearance, Manners
and Structure of the Embryo — Escape of one from the Vesicle
—Regular Arrangement of the Zoophytes — The Rosy Ane-
mone— Its Locality — Description — Habits — Structure— The
Snowy-disked Anemone — Peculiarities of its locality — De-
scription— The Snake-locked Anemone — Description — Fare-
well to South Devon.

ALCYONIUM DIGITATUM.

At low water, after an unsuccessful hour spent in
turning stones, I went to the end of the rocks at Petit
Tor, and by leaping over an inlet through which the
tide was pouring in and out, reached a mass of rock
covered with Fuci and LaminaricB. Here, growing on
the side of a deep hole under water, illuminated by
light proceeding from the far end of the cavernous
passage, I had for the first time the pleasure of seeing
Alcyonium digitatum. It was composed of two cy-
lindrical lobes rounded at the ends, their form sug-
gesting both of the names vulgarly applied to this
Zoophyte, of Dead-man's-fingers and Cows' paps, or
the more elegant appellation, assigned to it by Sir
John Dalyell, of Mermaid's Glove. By lying down
and creeping beneath a ledge of rock, and thrusting my

THE DEAD MAN S FINGERS. 77

arm down the hole, I succeeded in laying hold of it,
and easily detached it from its base without laceration.
My basket of bottles being at a distance, I gently put
my prize into my coat-pocket, until I could again
immerse it in clear sea-water. The lobes were now
contracted, about as large as a man's forefinger, of a
cream-white hue, of a smooth surface, except that it
was covered with slight depressioils of a long-oval
form, divided by narrow angular lines. In this state
I brought it home, and placed it in a glass vase of
clear sea-water.

After a few hours how difierent was its aspect I I
will endeavour to describe it as it lies now before my
eye ; and the more willingly because neither any de-
scription that I have met with, nor any figures, give
an adequate idea of either its form or its surpassing
beauty.

I do not mean that its general form and structure
are not correctly stated, but that the details of the
beautiful flower-like polypes themselves are not given
with accuracy. The fingers or lobes are now greatly
swollen both in length and thickness, the colour is of
a much purer white, and the substance is almost
pellucid, especially in those oval, or rather polygonal
depressions, which I have mentioned above, and which
are the terminating cells of the aqueducts that run
through the whole system. They are now, however,
depressions no longer ; for from each has protruded a
polype, which resembles a flower of exquisite beauty
and perfect symmetry. But how shall I describe one
of these ? From each of the cells springs a clear
white tube, translucent, but not perfectly transparent,

78 THE PETALS.

and yet sufficiently so to reveal with perfect distinct-
ness the few and simple organs contained in the
interior. Its hase is commensurate with the margin
of the cell from which it springs ; but it tapers up-
ward to the length of nearly half-an-inch, where it
dilates into a flower of eight slender and pointed
petals, which diverge in a trumpet- form. Each
slightly bulges outward at its junction with the tube,
so as to give a slightly campanulate outline to the
flower ; indeed the resemblance to the blossom of a
Campanula is sufficiently striking. Examined with
a lens each petal is perceived to be furnished, on
each of its two lateral margins, with a row of deli-
cately slender pinnae or filaments, which are short at
each extremity, but increase in length, in regular gra-
dation, towards the middle of the petal. These
pinnae do not proceed in the same plane, but arch
outwards, so as greatly to increase the elegance of
the flower. Submitted to a higher power, the pinnae
are seen to be roughened, throughout their whole
length, with numerous prickly rings, somewhat like
the horns of an antelope. The whole appearance is
very diff'erent from the broad petals, notched along
each edge, which are commonly represented. * (See
Plate III. fig. 1.)

* Ellis observed long ago that "each tentaculum or claw had on
both sides rows of minute short fibres, like the down on some pappous
seeds of vegetables." (Corall. p. 84.) And this appearance he has
expressed in the plates of his " Corallines" and of his " Zoophytes."
But these figures, notwithstanding Dr. Fleming's verdict on their
accuracy, do not represent very precisely what presents itself to my
eyes. Sir John Dalyell says, " Each side of the tentaculum is bordered
by cylindrical fleshy prongs, whence the pectinate aspect." (Rare
Anim. of Sc. ii. 178.)

ThhM

rsovtst.Jtiu.Uik

Trinttd ljlhJhrutnitl.l£if<dtx,-r

14, ALCYONIUMDICITATUM
5 ETE OF PEC TEN

THE SPICUL.E. 81

Around the neck of the expanded Polype, that is,
just below the base of the petals, there are seen by
means of a lens, a number of short lines placed trans-
versely. With a higher power, on the animal being
subjected to pressure, these are found to be calcareous
spiculae, arranged in a singular manner, as seen at
fig. 2. They are fusiform, and slightly knot-
ted. The basal part of the animal is also studded
with minute points ; these likewise prove to be
spicule, but of different form and appearance, (fig. 3.)
each consisting of a star of six points, all truncate and
digitate. These are scattered all over the base, for
about one-fourth of the height of the Polype, but
there are rounded accumulations or constellations of
these stars among the rest, where they are densely
crowded together. These clusters seem to be arranged
one in each interspace of the septa ; the former kind
runs up in points into the base of each petal.

When the polypidom is carefully cut open length-
wise, it is seen to be permeated by canals running
throughout from the base to all parts of the surface,
where they dilate a little and fonn the cells, which
contain the several polypes. Under a microscope,
the substance which separates the cells, is seen to be
spongiose, containing a great number of spiculae of
much larger size than those of the polype-skin. They
vary in foim, but follow one model, and much resemble
very gnarled branches of oak, with the branchlets
broken off", leaving ragged ends. I have figured some
of them at fig. 4.

EOLIS DESPECTA, ETC.

In the largo tide-pool at Petit Tor, I pulled up by

83 PARASITES ON SEA-WEED.

the base a frond of the Digitate Oar-weed, the footstalk
of which was densely crowded with a parasitical forest
of the angular stems of Laomedea geniculata as thick
as they could bristle. A considerable number of
stems of that lovely feather-like zoophyte, the Crested
Plumularia^ were also springing from the root of the
Oar- weed, most of which were studded with curiously
folded ovarian vesicles in various degrees of maturity.
A small Mantis-shrimp, (CaprellaJ of curious form
and . the most delicate transparency, which I have
found to make its favourite home upon this zoophyte,
was upon the plumes in some numbers, and a few
were also upon the Laomedea. Its habit is to take a
firm hold of the zoophyte with its hindermost feet, and
to rear its long spectre-like form in the free water,
through which it sways backward and forward, catohing
with its singularly constructed fore feet for any strag-
gling prey that may be passing, exactly in the manner
of that curious predaceous insect, which in habit, as
well as in structure, it so closely resembles.

Many of the stems of the Laomedea were studded
with little oval masses of wliite spawn, each enclosed
in a ball of transparent jelly, the largest not so big as
a small pin's head. These were doubtless the spawn-
masses of the minute Eolides of the section Tergipes,
so readily distinguished by having the branchiae dis-
posed in large but few club-shaped excrescences,
growing along each side of the back.

I put the whole stock into a glass of water; and the
next morning on searching over it with a lens I dis-
covered adhering to the side of the vase a specimen
of the pretty Eolis despecta^ which I had no sooner

# NUDIBRANCHS. 83

exti'acted with a tube than I observed sprawling on
the bottom, the tiny E. exigua. A careful examina-
tion of the zoophyte revealed three or four more of
E. despecta, adhering by the slender foot to the
zigzag stems, so firmly that I could scarcely dislodge
them. Near the base of the frond-stalk I detected a
specimen of the beautiful Doto coronata, a curious
creature, with the dorsal tentacles springing from the
midst of trumpet-like sheaths, like a stout pistil out
of the midst of a flower, and with large branchiae all
budding out with prominent knobs. It is indeed a
pretty little creature, studded all over with purple
specks upon a pale buff, pellucid ground. I observe
that both this species and Eolis despecta have the
power of elongating and contracting the branchial
processes at will ; so that these are sometimes fully
twice as long as they were the moment before, and as
they appear perhaps the moment after. This is a pecu-
liarity that I have not seen noticed. One of the E. des-
'pecta deposited from its side, while in the trough under
examination, a minute globule of jelly containing a
small quantity of spawn; and as there were visible in the
pellucid body several more detached white masses of
similar appearance, I conclude that this Mollusk de
posits its ova not all at once but in successive portions
as matured ; each mass, however, being always en-
closed in its own envelope of jelly. Perhaps, indeed,
this is the habit of all the nudibranchs ; for the spe-
cimens of Doris Hlamellata that I have kept have
commenced to deposit a second ribbon of spawn a
day or so after completing the first.

Doto coronata^ like the Derides, occasionally

84 ' THE ANGLED LAOMEDEA.

crawls completely out of the water, a habit which I
have not observed in the Eolides.

THE ANGLED LAOMEDEA.

The elegant zoophyte itself, on which the Mollusca
just described were living, was eminently worthy of
admiration. I mean the Laomedea geniculata, I
have called it a forest^ for the slender zigzag stems
shoot up in crowded rows like trees in a wood, from
a creeping root that meanders over the sea-weed,
every angle of the stem bearing a glassy cell inhabited
by a many-tentacled polype.

The frond had not . been in my possession many
hours before I observed, on holding up to the light
the phial in which I had placed it, one of those deli-
cate little medusa-like objects that Mr. Peach and
others have described, dancing through the water.
Presently another appeared, and then another, and in
the course of an hour or two, there must have been
scores of them, playing about in the most entertaining
manner. The naked eye readily detects them, and can
even distinguish their form, which is that of a circular
disk, or rather a shallow vase with a foot, and fringed
all round the edge with slender threads about as long
as the diameter of the disk. (Plate IV. fig. 4.) The
little creatures are very active and sprightly, making
their way rapidly through the water, by a sort of flap-
ping motion of all the marginal threads together ; an
action w^hich, when viewed in profile, could not fail to
remind the observer of the flight of a flagging-winged
bird ; but so exquisitely delicate is the tiny creature.

Fiale /r

L/.OMEDEA GENTC UL ATA .

THE DISK. 85

SO transparent, so shadowy, that a friend to whom I
shewed it aptly called it the soul of the zoophyte.
There is something in it also that reminds me of the
pappus of a dandelion floating on the hreeze.

Immense numbers of these tiny sylph-like creatures
were successively produced from the Laomedea in the
glass jar, so that the water at length seemed quite
alive with them ; but I could not find that a single
individual either became stationary, or changed its
form, or grew. In the course of a day or two they all
died.

I will now describe one of them more in detail.
Under the microscope it is seen to be a pellucid
colourless disk or umbrella of considerable thickness,
about ^th of an inch in diameter in its average state
of expansion. Its substance has a reticular appear-
ance, probably indicating its cellular texture. Inter-
nally, the disk rises to a blunt point in the centre,
w^hence four vessels diverge to opposite points of the
margin. These form elevated ribs, the surface being
gradually depressed from each to the centre of the
interspace. (See fig. 1.) Externally* the centre of
the disk is produced into a fleshy foot, having a
narrow neck, and then expanding into a sort of
secondary disk, of a square form with the angles
rounded. (See figs. 1 and 0.) This organ appears to
be muscular, or at least it is capable of varied precise
and energetic motions. The angles, which correspond
in their direction to the four internal ridges, are very

*I use the terms "internally" and "externally" only with reference
to the appearance of the embryo : this process is the representative of
the peduncle of a Medusa, vrhich is within the concavity of the umbrella.

66 THE TENTACLES.

protriisile, and when the little animal is active are
contimially being thrust out in various directions,
sometimes everted, but more cfommonly made to
approach each other in different degrees ; sometimes
one being bent in towards the centre, sometimes
all closing up around a hollow interior. These four
lobes, thus pei-petually in motion, and changing,
within certain limits, their form and their relation to
each other, remind one of the lips or the tongues of
more highly organised animals. The substance of
this foot appears to be delicately granular ; but there
is a very manifest tendency to a fibrous character in
its texture, the fibres being directed from the exterior
towards the interior, supposing the lobes to have their
points in contact.

Let us now look at the margin of the disk. Here
are attached twenty-four slender tentacles, six in each
quadrant formed by the divergent ribs ; but in some
specimens I could not count more than twenty-three.
Each tentacle springs from a thickened bulb, which is
imbedded iii the margin of the disk : it is evidently
tubular, but the tube is not wider in the bulb than in
the filament. The general surface is rough wdth pro-
jecting points, wdiich in some assume a \ery regular
muricate appearance (as shown at 7), and the tentacle
terminates in a blunt point. The discal part of the
bulb is fringed with a row of minute bead-like glands.
Around the edge of the circumference of the disk, on
the exterior, are arranged eight beautiful organs,
which are doubtless the seats of a special sense.
They are placed in pairs, each pair being approximate,
and appropriated to each of the quadratures of the

THE MARGINAL CAPSULES. 87

circle : they do not appear to be organically connected
with the tentacles. Each of these organs consists of
a transparent globe, not enveloped in the substance
of the disk, but so free, as to appear barely in contact
with it (see fig. 2) : it contains a smaller globule or
lens, of high refractive power, placed excentrically
towards the outer side. The inexperienced naturalist
on first seeing these organs would unhesitatingly
pronounce them eyes. They are, however, considered
as rudimentary organs of hearing ; the crystalline
globule or otolitlie being capable of vibration within
its vesicle. Their exact counterparts are found in
most of the small Medusae, a tribe of animals, which
this tiny zoophytic embryo represents in its whole,
form and structure.

The disk is endowed with an energetic power of
contraction, by which the margin is diminished,
exactly like that of a Medusa in swimming ; and the
tentacles have also the power of individual motion,
though in general this is languid, their rapid flapping
being the efiect of the contraction and expansion of
the disk just mentioned, producing a quick involution
and evolution of the margin, and carrying the tentacles
with it. Occasionally, however, all the tentacles are
strongly brought together at their tips, as at fig. 5, with
a twitching grasping action, like that of fingers, which
is certainly independent of the disk, and may be con-
nected with the capture of prey.

Several months afterwards, having obtained some
populous colonies of this species attached to alr/a, I
selected some, to examine afresh their embryology.
Some of the stalks were crowded with vesicles, which

88 BIRTH OF A MEDUSOID.

projected in regular succession in one plans, forming
a right angle to the distichous arrangement of the
cells. The vesicle contains as many as ten or more
developing medusoid .embryos, (or rather chorions,
each containing several embryos) included within the
nutrient membranous tube, which they swell out into
ovate sacs. The basal part of this tube, containing
no embryos, is recognisable, but so tensely does it en-
velope themedusoids in the greatest part of its length,
that one would be ready to conclude these were free in
the cavity of the vesicle. The nutrient granules are
seen to circulate through the base of the tube, in some
specimens their course being from the medullary core
of the stalk into the vesicle, in others vice versa.

I was so fortunate as to see the escape of one of
the medusoid embryos. The terminal swelling was
larger than the others, and seeing what I fancied to be
the tentacles of the medusoid projecting from the
mouth of the vesicle, I watched it. (See fig. 8.)
These were, however, extraneous particles of matter,
but it so happened that presently the real tentacles
began to protrude, all in a loose bundle, bent and
irregularly contracted, just as the polype protrudes
from the cell. It emerged rather leisurely, and when
at length it was free, I was surprised to see that the
globose sac, which I had supposed to be the escaping
medusoid, was scarcely diminished, that in fact it
contained others, two more I should think at least,
from a comparison of its bulk with that of the libe-
rated embryo, — and that, therefore, to judge from
analogy, each of the swollen sacs in the ovigerous tube
of the vesicle contains not one, but several developing

ITS BREVITY OF LIFE. 89'

medusoids. And this explains the very great abun-
dance of the Uttle airy creatures that presently swarm
in the vessel in which we have put only a limited
colony of the zoophytes.

As the embryo was slowly emerging from the nar-
row neck of the vesicle, I could see the fluids run
into those parts of the tentacles that were extruded,
carrying minute clear granules into them.

The medusoid when liberated seemed feeble, its ten-
tacles corrugated and shortened; it slowly fell through
the water, makinsf now and then a weak contraction,
but it gathered strength in a few seconds, the tentacles
lengthened, and the motions acquired the vigour and
sprightliness that characterize this interesting form.

Again I have been utterly unable to presei've the
fragile medusoids for more than a few hours, thougli
with every precaution to maintain the oxygenation of
the water by living algm. They soon sink to the
bottom, when the tentacles become indistinct, the
whole outline becomes obsolescent, and shortly a mere
mass of granules is all that remains. Has it ever
been proved that these continue the race ? Are they
male polypes ?

The Laomedea cjeniculata does not always grow in
the close forest-like masses above described. I found
in May a frond of Laminaria digitata, just ready to
tlirow off the old lamina of last season. On the smooth
olive expansion of this old frond the gemmule of a
Laomedea had rested after its brief gyrations ; from
it a glassy thread of extreme tenuity had crept along
for a length of about seven inches, adhering so
firmly to its support as not to be removed without

90 THE ROSY ANEMONE.

tearing. The filament had proceeded for about three
inches in a line hut slightly curved, it had then made
a right angle for about an inch, then another, and
another, so as to inclose a square area, across which a
branch joining the two sides had been sent forth,
dividing the area equally. From this creeping thread,
as a root or base, there had shot pei'pendicularly
upward into the free water, the zigzag stalks which
bore the cells with their indwelling polypes, arranged
very evenly at intervals of about one-sixth of an inch,
and standing about half-an-inch high. There were about
forty stalks in all, each carrying from fourteen to
twenty polype-cells, so that this colony may have
included 7 or 800 individuals. The appearance of
the regular stalks, growing along the line, as the
frond gently waved beneath the transparent water,
was very pretty and attractive.

THE ROSY ANEMONE.

The very beautiful species of Actinia, which
believing it new, I describe below,* — has the habit
of A. hellis, protruding its beautiful rosy disk from
holes in the sides of shallow pools. I find it rather
numerous in the hollows of the worm-eaten limestone
rock, that bounds Babbicombe to the north, the south
face of the promontory known as Petit Tor, where also

* Actinia rosea. Mini. Body elonj^ate, cylindrical, tentacula about
120, arranged in four series, the innermost and next row containing ten
each, the third about 20, and the fourth about 80. Oral disk ribbed
divergently ; mouth 4-lobed, crenated. Tentacles rose-red ; disk olive.
Body rich umber-brown, marked with numerous white sucking glands,
not always visible. Inhabits holes in rocks.

ITS LOCALITY. 91

A. hellis is abundant. The position of these pools
is several feet above low-water, but many species of
interesting Alr/m grow in them. The Actinice in
question strike the eye at once by their brilliant con-
trast with the rock, though they are not large ; none
that I have seen exceeding an inch in diameter in
widest expansion. Like A. hellis, they can be ob-
tained only by means of the hammer and chisel ;
for they retire into their holes on being annoyed, so
that they cannot then be removed, nor even their ba-
ses be touched. By chiselling away the rock, however,
an operation of considerable difficulty under water,
I detached several, which I brought home for exami-
nation. The long white seminal filaments were dis-
charged copiously by the larger ones, both from the
detached base and from the mouth ; and these, as
usual, were endowed with independent motion when
liberated, by means of the delicate cilia with which
they are covered. Some of the tentacles when disten-
ded, as will presently be described, showed, in their
pellucid interior, beautiful coils of these filaments.

The body (Plate I. fig. 6.) when contracted is glo-
bose, slightly wrinkled both transversely and longitu-
dinally, and studded with white glands, not warty, to
which minute gravel, &c. adheres. The ground co-
lour is umber-brown, sometimes verging to reddish-
brown. The disk, in the ordinary state of expansion,
undistended, presents an exquisite marginal fringe of
tentacles, (fig. 5.) of uniform rosy-red, the colour very
pure and brilliant, the outmost rows perhaps showing
a slight tendency to lilac. When these are just pro-
truding from the opening animal, like a budding

92 DESCRIPTION..

daisy, the appearance is also very attractive. The
tentacles are all of the same size, about one fourth of
the diameter of the fully expanded disk in length :
they are arranged in four or five rows, not with per-
fect regularity ; the innermost series when distended
are apt to stand upright, while the others lie down,
or hang over the edge. Although a considerable
space exists between the inmost series and the mouth,
each tentacle may be traced by an arched ridge run-
ning from its base to the mouth ; the mouth is formed
of four rounded lobes so as to make a cross, and the
edge of each lobe is notched with many distinct and
very regular white crenations, the terminations of the
tentacular ridges. The disk thus formed is pale olive,
somewhat silvered ; deeper brown around the bases of
the tentacles, where this colour forms sinuoas encir-
cling lines. The ridges are marked throughout with
close-set transverse wrinkles of extreme delicacy.

The animal, like A. crassicornis, protrudes the
peristoma in large corrugated pellucid lobes. It also
distends the tentacles to a translucent condition ; in
which state they are seen to be annulated with a
broad blackish band at their base, and with two re-
mote pale narrow ones, at one and two thirds of their
length. This appearance of the tentacles again re-
minds us of crassicornis.

May 12th. In one that has been in my possession
about three weeks, I see several of the tentacles con-
tain the white seminal filaments coiled up throughout
their length, beautifully distinct through their pellu-
cid substance.

The tentacles on being cut off and flattened by the

THE SNOWY-DISKED ANEMONE. 93

compressorium are seen to be covered with very
minute but close-set and numerous hairs. The move-
ment of extraneous particles indicates the presence of
vibratile cilia also upon the surface. The cavity of
the tentacle is large, the walls being proportionally
thin. They contain, imbedded in their substance,
but in no great numbers, the usual filiferous capsules,
which are of the ordinary appearance in the Actinice,
linear, slightly curved and minute, averaging about
y^th inch in length. The projected thread too is
short, being generally about six times as long as the
capsule.

THE SNOWY DISKED ANEMONE

I found this species,* April 20th, the same day as
A. rosea, and in situations not very dissimilar. It was
on the north side of the limestone promontory of Petit
Tor, where the rock forms those large somewhat
cavernous pools already described, isolated only at
very low tides, and dark with the shadow of the slimy
sponge-covered precipitous rocks that overhang them ;
and where Laininaria digitata grows and waves
abundantly, and affords many a nidus for profuse
forests of parasitical Corallines of the genera Sertu-
laria, Plujnularia and Laomedea. The little shining
red orifices of thousands of Saxicava ruyosa hang

* Actinia nivea, mihi. Body elongate, cylindrical, studded with suck-
ing warts : tentacula about 120, in four series, sub-equal in size and
length. Oral disk ribbed divergently ; mouth conical, a slit with
slightly tumid lips. Body yellowish brown, becoming pale and nearly
white towards the base ; disk and tentacles snowy white. Inhabits
tubular holes in rocks beneath low-water mark.

M ITS NATIVE POOLS.

down from the holes which they have excavated in
the solid limestone, each terminated by a shining
diamond-drop of water, awaiting the moment when
tlie returning tide shall cover their abodes, and restore
to them activity and enjoyment. It is their season oi
periodical idleness and repose. Among the rough-
nesses of the rock, and the conical papillary pores of
the sponges, which, olive, yellow and scarlet, stud the
surface, — green Nereidous worms glide along in and
out, by means of the curious packets of slender
bristles, alternately projecting from every segment
and withdrawn, that serve them instead of feet. Below
tlie water line, that is to say, the level of the lowest
part of the margin of the pool, which of course never
varies, such animals and plants as require to be per-
petually covered with water enjoy circumstances
suited to their wants. In the deepest shadow fine
specimens of the fleshy Dulse firidcea edulisj and
the lovely leaf-like Delesseria sanyiiinea display their
crimson fronds in copious tufts, plauts that cannot
bear the absence of water, their delicate leaves be-
coming orange-coloured in large patches, which soon
die and slough away, — if left unbathed even for a
single tide. The curious white Cows' paps, all stud-
ded with their clear glassy polypes, project from the
rock, and here I saw several white Acfinice, which at
once attracted my notice, though beyond my reach,
on the opposite side of the pool. At length, however,
by searching in another smaller pool, to which I
could gain access, I found, beneath the drooping Oar-
weeds, one of the white Actinia within reach. It was
three or four inches beneath the surface, so that to

ITS FORM AND COLOUR. 95

procure it, it was needful to bale out the water to that
depth, which I effected by the aid of one of my collect-
ing jars, and t^en to cut out the animal's cell with the
steel chisel. I was however sufficiently repaid for
the labour by the beauty of this snow-white Anemone.

It does not appear to exceed f inch in diameter
when expanded ; when contracted it is about the same
in height, and about J inch in thickness ; though by
more forcible contraction it becomes more globose.
In this state it is wrinkled both transversely and
longitudinally ; its colour is yellowish-brown, gradu-
ally merging into white on the basal half; the
porous suckers are also white, and are rather large,
and papillary. (See Plate I. fig. 8.) The number,
arrangement, and character, of the tentacles closely
agree with those of A. rosea, and, as in that and other
species, they are continued across the disk in lines
converging to the mouth. They do not appear how-
ever to be capable of distension, so as to become
diaphanous. The mouth forms a sort of conical tu-
bercle in the centre of the disk, the lips of which are
only slightly tumid, not protruded in lobes. The lips
do not appear to be crenated. The tentacles
and disk are opaque white, beautifully distinct,
without any markings, except that, when fully ex-
panded, a grey tinge spreads in a circle around the
disk, at the bases of the tentacles ; produced by the
degree of pellucidity of which the integment is capa-
ble, when filled with water.

When much alarmed, as when we attempt to remove
it from its place of attachment, it discharges the con-
torted seminal filaments in unusual copiousness from

96 THE SNAKE-LOCKED ANEMONE.

the pores on the outside of the body, as well as from
the mouth. These are slender, and of the purest white.
The animal sometimes shows slight traces of longi-
tudinal bands of pellucid white, alternating with the
opaque.

(P. S.) I have since taken it in May at extreme low
water, on the rocks at Wildersmouth, Ilfracombe ;
attached to a frond of Delesseria.

THE SNAKE-LOCKED ANEMONE.

In the coves around Marychurch I have found
attached to stones, generally on the under side, near
very low water mark, a smallish Actinia, which I take
to be the A. anguicoma of Mr. Price. It is by no
means common, however. The largest specimen I
have seen was obtained at Anstey's Cove in April,
beneath the shadow of the high rocks that form its
southern boundary, below the slab of slate that some
one has laid as a seat for those who will venture along
the narrow giddy ledge on the precipitous face of the
rock. This individual, in contraction (See Plate I, fig.
10), hasabase of about an inch in diameter, and forms a
hemispherical wart of \ inch in height, much narrower
than its base. When expanded its height and thick-
ness are subject to gi'eat variation. Mr. Price speaks
of its stretching itself to a length of 5j inches ; I
have never seen my specimens attain nearly that
height, but do not in the least doubt the fact, from
the tendency which I perceive the animal has to
elongate itself in the darkj at the expense of its thick-
ness, to become, as a gardener would say of a flower

ITS FORM AND COLOURS. 97

if in like manner deprived of light, drawn. I think
two inches may be the limit of length to which I
have seen mine extend.

The body is of a delicate buff hue, elegantly pen-
cilled with fine irregular lines of dark brown, running
in longitudinal bands, which diverge from the disk.
As these bands approach the base they become more
defined, and the contrast between the dark rich brown
and the buff is beautifully distinct, especially as the
alternating light and dark bands are about equal in
diameter, and pretty regular. A few blackish-brown
specks are scattered around the body near the edge
of the disk.

The oral disk is rather wide, and prettily mottled
and speckled with pale and dark brown, and white
(fig. 2). On examination this effect is seen to be pro-
duced by the converging ribs which reach from the
individual tentacles to the mouth, and which are
common to the genus. These run in sub-parallel,
but irregularly undulating lines ; they are raised in
the middle, with a depression between them, and are
delicately striated transversely. Each rib has a dark
brown spot on each side, at the very base of the ten-
tacle, it is then pale brown for about half-way to the
mouth, when it becomes blackish, then white, then
blackish again, and finally pale as it is lost in the
oral apertui:e. The narrow lines that separate the
ribs are whitish, and the different distances from the
centre at which the black and white spots occur in the
alternate tentacle-ribs, (those of the inner rows crush-
ing out, as it were, the others) give the pretty speckled
appearance, which is I think characteristic. From

98 THE INTERNAL LAMINAE.

the two ends of the mouth, which is an oblong aper-
ture, contracting to a slit, there are two more con-
spicuous white dashes each extending towards the
nearest tentacle.

The tentacles are very long, slender, taper and
flexible. They form about five alternating rows, of
which the outmost are shorter and more numerous.
They appear to me to be numbered as follows: — 12.
12. 24. 48. 96=192: of course approximately. They
are of the most delicate pellucid white, marked with
two or three annular bands of positive white, but very
evanescently ; these are, however, more perceptible
in young than in adult specimens. Each tentacle
is striated with a narrow line of dark brown, which
runs along each side throughout its length. This
line is readily identified, and appears quite character-
istic of the species.

When looked at through a glass, to the side of
which the base is adherent, the transparency of the
substance permits with peculiar facility the internal
structure to be seen. The converging laminae are
very distinct, arranged in pairs, about twelve of which
extend from the circumference to the centre, about as
many intermediate pairs are lost before they reach
the centre, and other pairs respectively occupying the
interspaces, can be traced only a short distance from
the circumference. The appearance is well suited to
give a vivid impression of the analogy in structure
between an Actinia and a Madrepore. Let these
membranous plates only have a deposit of lime upon
them, and they become the skeleton of a coral.
Within the spaces inclosed by the laminse, I could

THE CAPSULES. 99

see the seminal filaments copiously lying, coiled up
in contorted masses.

The species is well-named; for its long intertwining
slender tentacles give the animal somewhat of a
snaky-haired aspect, a sort of Medusa's head appear-
ance ; — at least as far as such a symbol can agree
with beauty, for delicately beautiful our Actinia cer-
tainly is. It seems to expand more readily than
many species, almost always being in full blossom
when covered with water, and if alarmed to closing,
soon recovering its placid confidence, and opening
again. The transparency of its tentacles can scarcely
be represented by painting, at least not without
greatly enlarging the scale.

I took a specimen at Watermouth, near Ilfracombe,
in May ; in similar circumstances to the former ones.

Young specimens have the colours much paler and
more pellucid ; the delicate bufi" of the longitudinal
bands being almost white.

Filiferous capsules are abundant in the walls of
the tentacles : they are linear, slightly curved, and
minute, being about y^oth inch in length. I could
not see the discharged thread with a power of 300
diameters.

100 ADIEU TO THE SOUTH.

Here end my littoral researches in South Devon.
My residence there was not attended with that
improvement in health, that had been looked for,
and I determined to try the more bracing climate of
the northern coast. At the end of April, before yet
the pertinacious easterly winds that characterised the
spring of 1852 had ceased, when all nature seemed
scarcely more advanced than I had seen it three
months before, I bade adieu to Marychurch. I left
behind unexplored much well worth visiting; many
of the beautiful coves and rocks in the vicinity I had
not even seen ; my infirm health, and the frequent pre-
valence of a heavy surf upon the shore, caused by the
undeviating wind setting full on the coast, prevented
my making so full use of a three months' littoral
residence as I could have wished.

CHAPTER V.

Ilfracombe — Beautiful Scenery — Walk to Watermoutli— Hele —
Hockey Lane — Fine Sea-view — Daws — Doves — Charms of
Spring — Watermouth — Curious mode of Fishing — Grove of
Flowers— Rabbits — Sharp Rocks — Gemmaceous Anemone —
Living Madrepores — Their Localities — Appearance— Mode of
detaching them — Their Structure — The Plates—Beauty of
the Animal — Protrusion of the soft Parts — Their Translu-
cency — Analogy with the Anemone — Brilliancy of Colours —
Tentacles — Cilia on their Surface — The globose Heads — The
Tentacles are tubular — Lnprisoned Animalcule — Sensibility
of the Madrepore to Light — Experiments in feeding them —
Sense of Taste — Reproduction of Parts— The Frilled Bands
— Their Use — Their Structure — Thread- Capsules — Singular
Forms of these Organs — The Madrepore easily preserved
alive.

ILFRACOMBE,

May \st. We are come to sojourn in this charm-
ing place, the scenery of which is most beautitul.
My study looks out upon the Public Baths, and one
or two pretty villas, with the fields of the Runna-
cleaves behind them most richly green, sloping up-
wards to the edge of the cliffs that border the sea.
The sheep, peacefully lying or grazing, speckle with
white these verdant slopes: and young ladies come

102 ILFRACOMBE.

out there in the afternoon from one of the houses,
with their targets and hows, to practise archery. Cap-
stone Hill with its flag- crowned summit and its hold
precipitous face, round which a scarped promenade
winds, rears itself on the right, hetween which and
the slopes is a pretty little peep of the Channel, and in
clear weather of the Welsh Coast heyond ; the blue
water lying as it were in a cup, and momentarily
relieved by the ships and small craft that pass to and
fro, whose white sails are seen for a brief space as
they emerge from behind the Capstone and glide
across the opening.

Behind the house we step out from our sitting-
room window upon a little garden of grass, bounded
not by hedge nor walls, but by steep even banks, so
that the little inclosure is a sort of grassy basin.
The turf was at first gay with daisies and dandelions,
and the ripe seeds of the latter presented a tempta-
tion to Goldfinches, which came in little flocks, with
Chaffinches and Yellow Ammers, to twitter and feed
in unsuspecting confidence immediately before the
window. But the mower has just been here, who has
no mercy on dandelions or daisies ; and now there is
only the smooth-shaven turf and the flower-beds that
are cut out of it. It looks cleaner and brighter for
the change to be sure, but the Goldfinches will come
no more to it. Other gardens lie beyond ours, and
then the upper part of the town, with the fine old
church, and the whole view bounded by an ample
amphitheatre of sloping fields and high downs
crowned with golden-blossomed furze. It is indeed
a lovely view, especially in the morning sun ; and to

THE OPENING SPRING. 103

US just come to it, it seems as if we could not be pro-
fuse enough in admiration.* ,

THE MADREPORE.

Mr. Kalfs, who has furnished some valuable zoolo-
gical and botanical lists to the North Devon Guide,
gives Watermouth and Smallmouth as localities for
Caryophyllia Smithii. To search forth is interesting
coral then was the object of my first excursion. Cir-
cumstances were favourable : it was spring-tide, and
the time of low-water was about eleven in the fore-
noon : there was no sea running, for the winds had
lately been light ; it was delightful weather, and as I
passed along the edge of the cliffs that border the sea
beyond Hillsborough, the long line of coast to the
north of the Channel, and Lundy Island in the offing,
that have been for several days barely visible, stood
out in bold distinctness, darkly blue. The lofty emi-
nence of these cliffs allowed me to see even the low
line of land that stretches away beyond the promon-
tory known as Worms Head, and that forms the back
of Caermarthen Bay on towards Tenby.

The opening of Spring is always pleasant, but to
a naturalist it is like the opening of the gates of
Eden : and now its charm was enhanced by delay

*I hope I shall he excused for giving a grateful testimony to the way
in which our comfort was studied while in the lodging house of Mrs.
Williams of Northfield, Ilfracombe, We remained here the whole time
of our residence in the place, six months ; and during this period the
unvarying cheerfulness and kindliness, the utter disregard of self, and
the entire devotedness to our wishes, manifested by the inmates, were
such as one rarely finds, except from the warmest friends.

104 HOCKEY LANE.

through the long continuance of dreary east winds.
Every thing was lovely, the young fresh verdure of
the hedges, the leafing trees, the sun, the sea, the
birds, the butterflies, the flowers, — all contributed to
make this morning more than usually delightful.

Leaving behind me the pretty little village of Hele,
with its neat houses and cottages, its trim gardens
sloping up the steep side of old Hillsborough, and its
hedges covered with white garments put out by the
laundresses for the benefit of this brilliant sun, — I pass
over a brook by a rustic one- arched bridge, and wind
up Hockey Lane to the lofty downs. The lane, barely
wide enough for a wheelbarrow, has been scarped out
of the soft slaty rock; but the ruggedness of its sides
is concealed by a profusion of verdure. On the left
or seaward bank, all starred with primroses, dog-
violets, and daisies, is a hedge of thorn, just now out
in its primal greenness. The right side is more per-
pendicular, and is for the greater part of its length
densely tapestried with ivy, and crowned with bramble
and elder bushes. On both sides the cheerful pilewort
is abundant, and the spotted arum, now in flower ; and
ferns are abundant too, the common Pteris or brake,
and the Hart's tongue, especially the latter, whose
young yellow-green fronds stand up thickly with their
curled points, among the torn and black-stained fronds
of last year.

On the edge of the down at the top of this lane is a
limekiln for the burning of the blue limestone which
is so rare on this side of the county, but a little vein
of which occurs just here in the almost universal
grauwacke. Here I stood awhile to look out upon

THE BRISTOL CHANNEL. 105

the beautiful Bristol Channel, with its white-sailed
craft beating up against the faint easterly breeze, and
to gaze down on the romantic coves and rocks about
Killage point; the ridges of slaty rock running out
edgewise into the sea, the oarweeds and/uci laid bare
about their bases by the recess of the tide, and the
beaches between of smooth grey sand, still wet with
the recent water. Jackdaws, recognized by their grey
polls, were shooting out from the clefts of the preci-
pices, and hovering round with shrill cawings, pre-
sently returning to the crevices which doubtless
contained the callow objects of their parental solici-
tude.

Fair is the dark [blue] deep ; by night and day
Unvex'd with storms, the peaceful billows play ;

The firmament above is bright and clear ;
The sea-fowl, lords of water, air, and land.

Joyous alike upon the wing appear.
Or when they ride the waves, or walk the sand ;

Beauty and light and joy are everywhere.

Ejshama, XV. 13.

Farther on, a pair of Kock Doves, alarmed probably
at the sound of my footsteps, darted forth from the
ivy-mantled cliff, just beneath me, and flew away on
rapid wing side by side. They too probably had the
" home where'er the heart is", in some rugged nook in
these inaccessible heights. I was now above Water-
mouth, the outlet of a little stream, which at low water
(as now) winds along a channel through a muddy
creek to the sea ; but which at high tide is lost at the
head of the inlet, which is then filled by the sea. It is
a very romantic creek, being walled in as it were by

106 CURIOUS MODE OF FISHING.

high precipitous rocks, especially at the very mouth,
one side of which is formed by a conical hill, gay with
blooming furze, which is known as Saxon's burrow.
Across the inlet, at some distance within its mouth I
observed a row of stout poles erected, about twenty-
five feet high, from each of which a rope extended to
the head-line of a net that lay along at the foot, and
a chain-hawser was affixed to a stouter post at some
distance up the creek. A number of men were busy
about the net, and some of them were dragging a light
cart towards the shore, with a net formed like a
shrimper's net, but much larger. A hind who was
passing on the road told me that the net is set at high
water by men who go thither in a boat, raised doubt-
less by the lines which I saw at the top of the poles.
It remains during the spring tides, but at neap tides
it is taken in. Grey Mullet are the chief fish taken,
which are found in the pools of the mud after the
recess of the tide; two hundred-weight, he assured
me, were taken at one tide, about six months ago,
when the net was first set. The fishery belongs to
Arthur Bassett, Esq., the proprietor of the estate,
whose mansion, a castellated structure of grey stone,
overlooks the inlet, and has a rather imposing appear-
ance.

The foot-path above the inlet passes through a
small grove, the more pleasing as timber is not a
common feature in the landscape hereabouts. The
russet hue of the budding oaks contrasted with the
difierent shades of green displayed by the expanded
foliage of the sycamores and thorns; and the sloping
turf beneath was covered with clumps of primroses

WATERMOUTH. 107

and spotted with glossy pileworts, those ubiquitous
flowers, mingled with frequent spikes of the graceful
wild hyacinths, and now and then one of the more
beautiful purple orchis. The pilewort, or celandine, as
some call it, is one of my favourites ; for I must cer-
tainly beg to be admitted among the " three or four"
whom Wordsworth covets to praise his little flower of
the " glittering countenance." Blackbirds were pour-
ing forth their rich mellow notes from some of the
trees.; and from the summit of a furze- crowned hill
opposite came the welcome call of the Cuckoo, the
more welcome because it was the first time I had
heard it for the season ; and Cuckoos' notes had been
of late years somewhat of a rarity to me.

Below the house, I crossed a small bridge over the
brook, and climbed the steep face of the down, — where
wheatears were flitting to and fro, and goldfinches
were rifling the seed-heads of the dandelions, and
humble-bees were probing the dead-nettles, — to the
edge. This is margined with furze, a cover for nu-
merous rabbits, whose infant progeny ran out and in
before me in surprise and afiright at the intrusion.
Here I saw before me the sea-washed rocks again,
and though the little cove at my feet was neither
Watermouth nor Smallmouth, I resolved to try it, as
I presumed that a zoophyte common to those locali-
ties might be found at an intermediate station.

On scrambling down to the water's edge, an ope-
ration much more difficult and dangerous than on the
South Devon Coast, owing to the rock here universally
being grauwache, a grey, friable slate, which stands
up in sharp, almost perpendicular, ridges, — the first

108 THE GEMMACEOUS ANEMONE.

thing that caught my attention was an Actinia, which
I at once saw was new to me. It was projecting ex-
panded from a crevice in the rock, just helow the
surface, in a little pool. A few minutes' labour en-
abled me to open a passage for the draining of the
water, so far as to expose my Anemone, which I then
soon dug out of his retreat by means of the chisel
and hammer. On examination at home it proved to
be Act. gemmacea^ a fine species apparently rare,
since Dr. Johnston seems not to be personally ac-
quainted with it. He gives only Gaertner's specific
character and locality, and old Ellis's description, and
for his figures he is indebted to Mr. Cocks. Mr. Ealfs,
however, had given in the Guide to North Devon
this very locality for the species, and I afterwards
found it not uncommon on this coast.

I searched some time without success for the Coral,
and had begun to despair of finding it, for the tide
was almost at its lowest ; when sudddenly I caught
sight of one projecting from the under surface of one
of the slanting ridges of rock. The water would not
allow me to reach it with any hope of detaching it
uninjured, but presently I peeped into a small cavern
formed by large masses of the rock piled one against
another, in which there were nearly a score of them.
By a little manoeuvring I managed to squeeze my
body between the stones, so as to work with the chisel,
disregardful of the water that covered my feet below,
and of the coating of mud, the slimy zoophytes, and
sponges, that adhered to the overhanging rock above
me. The Corals varied in size, from that of a pea to
J of an inch in height and diameter. They were not

THE MADREPORE. 109

at all clustered, but scattered at irregular distances. I
observed them to be affixed to perpendicular and over-
hanging surfaces, but in no case on a diagonal or a
horizontal one with an upward aspect, not even in
the remotest part of the cavern. All that I saw were
left exposed by the receding tide, though in any but a
spring-tide they would all have been constantly cover-
ed. I afterwards found a few more on the sides of
pools in the rocky ridges, several feet above low-water
mark.

In general the terminal half shewed only the
white radiating plates of stone, within which the animal
was so completely drawn that the eye could not detect
the delicate membrane which enveloped them. From
some of the largest, however, particularly those which
were affixed to overhanging surfaces, there depended a
shapeless mass of transparent jelly, extending in some
cases to I5- inch. This, however, was speedily retract-
ed when the Coral was rudely touched. I procured a
dozen specimens, for the friable slate was easy to
dislodge ; but in many cases the Coral itself was
detached from its base during the process ; and of
some I found that I could detach them, and even break
to pieces the texture of stony plates, with my fingers.
I brought home and put in sea- water all that I obtain-
ed but those only which remained attached to a piece
of rock expanded their tentacles Those which had
been broken from their bases contented themselves
with protruding the tips of these organs around the
oral disk.

But after some weeks those whose bases had been
detached opened as freely as those which had the

110 THE MADREPORE.

pieces of rock, and all displayed their beautiful strac-
ture without any reserve.

Just eight weeks have now elapsed since I took the
specimens above-mentioned ; and I have added two
more which I found at Hele, adhering to the perpen-
dicular side of a narrow, but deep I'ock-basin. They
are all alive and in excellent condition, with the ex-
ception of one or two that I selected to experiment
on. I shall proceed to describe these interesting and
beautiful pets.

Doubtless you are familiar with the stony skeleton
of our Madrepore, as it appears in museums. It con-
sists of a number of thin calcareous plates standing
up edgewise, and arranged in a radiating manner
around a hollow centre. The upper edges of these
plates are rounded in their outline, and are free, that
is, not in contact with each other ; but a little below
the outer margin, their individuality is lost by the
deposition of rough calcareous matter, mingled and
overlaid with dirty floccose extraneous substances ; so
that only the general form is discernible on the out-
side, except at the very summit. This general form
is more or less cylindrical, commonly however a little,
and sometimes considerably wider at the top than just
above the bottom. The base itself is a flat expansion,
or rather a low cone, of which the breadth varies
greatly in different specimens.

The plates are not all of the same size. There are
commonly about fifteen principal ones, which are
higher than the rest, and project more into the cen-
tral cavity. Between each of these and the next, are

ITS SKELETON. Ill

normally three small plates, of which the middle one
is a little larger than the others. This regularity,
however, of arrangement is not always perfectly
maintained. All the plates, though very thin and
delicate, are roughened on hoth surfaces with minute
tuberculous knobs, set in rows in quincuncial order
(See Plate V., fig. 5), which near the edges run into
one another, and make small ridges. In looking at
this structure I was reminded of the spiculse of Alcy-
onium, &c., which are roughened with similar knobs ;
and though the latter are only minute atoms imbed-
ded in the flesh, they are doubtless the rudimentary
representatives of these stony plates.

The interior edges of the plates form a deep cup,
at the bottom of which they meet. The central one
of the three intermediate plates, or what has been
called the second cycle, sends off another plate into
the hollow of the cup, which is similar in form to
those of the circumference, but much smaller, the top
not rising to nearly their level. The centre of the
cup is occupied by a series of slender frilled and
irregularly twisted plates, forming a spongy mass, the
top of which is still lower than the level of the sub-
ordinate circle of plates.

This is but the skeleton ; and though it is a very
pretty object, those who are acquainted with it alone,
can form from it a very poor idea of the beauty of
the living animal. When we take it from its attach-
ment and remove it from its native element, the
violence causes it to contract so forcibly, that you
would see nothing but what I have described, and
would scarcely perceive any difference between it and

]12 THE MADREPORE.

the dry skeleton. Nor would any alteration be pre-
sently manifest on again putting it into sea-water.
But let it recover its confidence, its equanimity ; then
you will see a pellucid gelatinous flesh emerging from
between the plates, little exqusitely formed and
coloured tentacles fringing the sides of the cup-
shaped cavity, across which stretches the oral disk
marked with a star of some rich and brilliant colour,
surrounding the central mouth, a slit with white
crenated lips, like the orifice of one of those
elegant cowry shells that we put upon our mantel-
pieces.

The animated part of the zoophyte will some-
times rise to the height of an inch above the level of
the plates, exclusive of the tentacles, which can be
extended to almost half an inch more. Its resem-
blance to an Actinia is then seen to be as great in
appearance as in structure, though the diversity, in-
dependent of the stony base, is sufficient to prevent
your confounding one with the other. Like the Sea
Anemone, our Madrepore has the power of filling its
body and tentacles with water from without, a process
which when carried to an extreme, as it often is, espe-
cially when the animal is expecting food, or after it
has received it, imparts to the tissues a charming
translucency, a sort of filmy cloudiness to the eye, as
if we were looking on the ghost of a zoophyte, instead
of real solid substance. (See fig. I.)

How far down on the outside the gelatinous en-
velope extends, whether indeed it surrounds the
whole stony deposition, even passing between the
base and the rock, close as the contact seems, I can-

'late V

/VuUM tr Nullmjmdtl & yrnJtin

CARYOPrr'/LLrA SMITh!!

ITS CILIATED TENTACLES. 115

whole animal appears white, a translucent white. This
is a very lovely variety. Still, even in these, the hues
I have mentioned ahove may in general be faintly
traced.

I am not aware that any naturalist has recorded an
interesting peculiarity, that I have observed in the
tentacles. It is that their surface is delicately ciliated.
I was examining one with a rather low power, when I
thought I saw something like a current in the water
over the tentacles. I immediately put on a power of
140 diameters, which was but just sufficient to show
it distinctly ; I was precluded from the use of a higher
power by the nature of the vessel in which the speci-
mens were kept. However I unmistakeably saw
minute atoms slowly moving in the water come into
proximity to a tentacle, then immediately whirled
along with rapidity in the direction of the point ; the
same thing was seen on both sides of the tentacle, and
in fact all over its surface, the direction being in all
cases the same, from the base towards the point. I
tried many tentacles, and two specimens of the Madre-
pore, with precisely the same result. I saw a very
minute atom, hurled along close to the surface, rise
over the warts and descend into the hollows between
them, so as to show that the cilia clothe both the
warts and the plain surface of the tentacle. The
globular tip, however, I think is destitute of them, for
though the atoms were often hurled partly round this,
I believe it was only by the impetus already acquired,
for I could never see any motion either originated or
undeniably continued there. The cilia themselves I
could not detect by the most delicate manipulation.

116 THE MADREPORE.

nor the marginal haze that generally indicates their
presence ; still I am as certain of their existence by
the results, as if I had seen them. They must evi-
dently he very minute ; none hut the smallest atoms
oheyed the current ; larger ones continued their course
or remained motionless.

Under this power the globular head of the tentacle
is seen to be clothed with a dense coat of very short
hairs : the warts also of the body are rough, though
not so definitely. The tubular nature of the tentacles
was singularly illustrated in one instance. Within
one of the tentacles was a small living animal, formed
like an Annelide, but the imperfect transparency would
not permit me to make out its characters with preci-
sion : it swam vigorously, with a serpentine wriggling,
and was forcibly driven, over and over, towards the
narrow extremity of the cavity. I am almost sure,
however, that more than its own spontaneous motion
was in exercise : it seemed to be driven forward against
its strenuous efforts, sometimes making a Httle way,
then hurled along backward. If this was so, the
inference is unavoidable, that there is a current over
the interior surface of the tentacle as well as over the
exterior, and in the same direction. I did not see,
however, any evidence of a stream passing through
the tip of the tentacle, and hence suppose that
the internal waves spend themselves at the extre-
mity of the cavity. A curious inquiry remains, —
How did the little animal find its way into its living
prison ?

The tentacles are adhesive, but in a slighter degree
than those of an Actinia of the same size : I did not

ITS MODE OF FEEDING. 117

find the least heat or stinging follow the contact, even
with tender parts of the skin, as the hacks of the
fingers.

Like the Actiniae the Caryophyllice appear to have
a sense of the stimulus of light. They expand most
during the night, or in the darkness of a closet; and
I have several times ohserved that one fully dilated
in a dark cupboard would suddenly, on the door
being opened, draw in some of the tentacles and
perceptibly contract itself, though it might expand
again a moment afterwards ; and this in a deep glass
vessel, covered with six or eight inches of water, so
that no vibration of the air could have been appreci-
able. I have not however been able to detect any
coloured tubercle at the angles of the mouth, nor any
other organs which might be supposed to be analo-
gous to eyes.

The feeding of the Madrepores affords much amuse-
ment ; they are very greedy, and the presence of food
stimulates them to more active efforts, and the display
of greater intelligence, than we should give them
credit for.

I put a minute spider, as large as a pin's head,
into the water, pushing it down with a bit of grass to
a Coral, which was lying with partially exposed tenta-
cles. The instant the insect touched the tip of a
tentacle it adhered, and was drawn in with the sur-
rounding tentacles between the plates, near their
inward margin. Watching the animal now with a
lens, I saw the small mouth slowly open, and move
over to that side, the lips gaping un symmetrically ;
while at the same time by a movement as impercepti-

118 THE MADREPORE.

ble as that of the hour-hand of a watch, the tiny prey
was carried along between the plates towards the cor-
ner of the mouth. The latter, however, moved most ;
and at length reached the edges of the plates, and
gradually took in and closed upon the insect : after
which it slowly returned to its usual place in the cen-
tre of the disk.

After some quarter of an hour, observing that the
tentacles were more fully expanded than before, and
inferring that so tiny a morsel had only whetted the
Coral's appetite, I caught a house fly in the window
pane, and taking hold of its wings with a pair of pliers,
plunged it under water. The tentacles held it at the
first contact as before, and drew it down upon the
mouth, which instantly began to gape in expectation.
But the struggles of the fly's legs perhaps tickled the
Coral's tentacles in an unwonted manner, for they
shrank away, and presently released the intended
victim, which rose to the surface like a cork ; only
however to become the breakfast of an expectant
Actinia hellis, which was much too wise to reject or
to let slip so dainty a prey. The poor Coral evi-
dently regretted the untoward necessity of letting
it go, for his mouth, — I will not say watered, for
being under water the expression might be open
to criticism, but — gaped, for some time after the
escape.

I more commonly, however, fed them with shell
fish, such as limpets, perri winkles, &c., cutting these
into pieces proportionate to the size of the Madrepore.
In taking a large morsel, the mouth is produced out,
and stretched over it, the unyielding stony margin of

ITS SENSE OF TASTE. 119

the Stomachal cavity preventing it from being drawn
in, as it would be in the case of an Jctinia ; and
hence when the food has disappeared, the lips having
first embraced it on every side and then covered it,
meeting in a little puckered knot in the centre, the
whole oral disk projects perpendicularly, from amidst
the tentacles like a thick pillar, through whose pellu-
cid sides the contained food is seen as a dark nucleus.
Maceration, however, soon softens the morsel, and it
is not long before all the parts resume their ordinary
proportions and relations; the tentacles and the outer
margin becoming distended with water, and rising to
the level of the mouth, if the size of the food still
prevents the latter from sinking to theirs. After a
period, varying from five or six to twenty-four hours,
the morsel is evacuated rather suddenly, very little
changed, if it be solid, in form or appearance, and
not invested with that glairy mucus, which covers the
rejected remains of an Actinia's food.

There appears to be the sense of taste, or some
perception analogous to it, in these creatures, at least
so far as to enable them to discriminate in their re-
ception of food. I cut a large specimen of one of
our most common rock shell-fish, Trochus cinerarius,
into many pieces, distributing most of them among
my dozen pet Madrepores. They began to take in
their morsels with as prompt a voracity as usual, but
every one, without an exception, rejected the food
before it was half swallowed. The same pieces were
taken and swallowed by Actinm hellis, gemmacea, and
auguicoma, and by Anthea cereus, though not appa-
rently with much gusto. The lean of cooked meat,

15^0 THE MADREPORE.

and portions of earth worms were unobjectionable
to all.

Dicquemare has recorded an experiment in which
an Actinia, being cut across transversely, instead of
healing up into a new basis, produced another mouth
and tentacula, so that an animal was formed which
caught its prey and fed at both ends at the same time.
The same power of reproduction belongs to the
Madrepore. One of the specimens which have been
in my vases for the last five mouths has just exhibited
to me a phenomenon exactly parallel. When it was
dislodged from its original rock, the fragment of stone
broke in such a manner, that only the very edge of
the base of the Coral remained in junction, all the
rest of the base (perhaps four-fifths) being exposed.
The stone, however, that adhered thus slenderly was
sufficient to keep the base of the Coral from contact
with the bottom of the vessel in which it has been
since kept ; and I have just discovered (Sept. 27th),
in casually taking it up, that a new disk, with mouth,
tentacles, and a new array of radiating plates, has
formed on what was originally the base. The proper
disk has retained full vigour and beauty, so that here
is a Madrepore with a head at each extremity. The
new disk is smaller in all its parts than the whole
one, but is perfect in its symmetry, and its colours
agree in their hues and distribution with those of the
their extremity ; as indeed was to be expected, since
it is not a new animal, but only a new growth of the
old ; just as any accidental variation of tint in a
flower, though liable to be lost when the race is

REPRODUCTION OF PARTS. 121

reproduced by seed, "will be retained in new shoots
and cuttings, whicli are integral parts of the indi-
vidual plant. While I write these lines, the new
mouth is swallowing a morsel of raw beef, stretching
its expansile lips with the same deliberate skill as if
it had had many years' practice, instead of this
being the first occasion of its so hanselling its new
powers.

I have another specimen in which about half the
disk of calcareous plates had been broken away in
the act of dislodging it. New plates were very soon
formed to replace the lost ones, which, however, have
not attained the height of the former, so that though,
when looked at vertically, the radiating disk of plates
appears perfect, when viewed side-wise, a deep step or
shoulder is seen across the disk, the new half pre-
senting a considerably lower level than the old. Yet
when the soft parts are protruded, the distortion is not
conspicuous, the disk only seeming somewhat oblique
instead of horizontal.

On breaking a living Coral in pieces we find among
the plates a multitude of narrow membranous bands
with thickened edges, frilled and puckered and con-
voluted to a great degree, and of a pale salmon-red
tint. These answer to the similar bands that I have
before mentioned in the ActinicB, and are considered to
be the ovaries. If we watch them closely we shall
see that they have a spontaneous motion, slowly
twisting and twining over each other like so many
worms ; and if we submit a small portion to micro-
scopical examination we shall find it fringed with
minute vibratile cilia.

122 THE MADREPORE.

But are these frilled bands ovaries ? A specimen
that was broken longitudinally into two nearly equal
portions, I was keeping in a glass cell for examination,
hoping to see the commencement of the process of
reproduction of the parts. Both the portions of the
fractured animal appeared to be in good health, not-
withstanding the accident, and were so placed in the
glass (which had parallel sides) as to be highly con-
venient for observation. I wished to see the process
of feeding, now that only half a mouth was possessed
by each ; and therefore presented to each a minute
morsel of raw beef. The interior of the animal was
opposite my eye, as I watched it with a lens. The
lips slowly expanded and embraced the morsel exactly
as usual, to the degree that their imperfect condition
permitted, and when this was effected, I saw with
surprise, that the salmon-coloured frills from the in-
terior slowly reared themselves up one by one, and
appressed their surfaces and extremities (which ap-
peared somewhat dilated), to the sides of the morsel,
embracing it closely on that side which (on account
of the fracture) was open, but not confining them-
selves to that side. These phenomena were the same
in the other specimen, and were repeated in each, on
subsequent occasions, whenever fed.

My first inference was that these organs were per-
forming a part analogous to the chyliferous system of
higher animals, absorbing those juices from the food,
which were destined to nourish the vitality of the
Coral. But having detached a minute portion of one
of the bands, I submitted it to an uniformly graduated
pressure on the stage of the microscope, when I found

THREAD- CAPSULES. 123

that in its substance were imbedded a great number of
filiferous capsules, exactly resembling in essential
points, those of certain Medusae.

The capsules are transparent and colourless, in
shape a long oval from — to ^^ inch in length, and
are seen to contain a thread closely coiled. When
the pressure reaches a certain point, the capsule
shoots forth from one end the elastic thread, which
in a moment starts out like a spring to a length thirty
times as great as that of the capsule : sometimes in a
straight line, sometimes in a serpentine or (as 1
rather believe) a spiral form. The capsules do not
hurst, yet at the . instant of the propulsion of their
filament there is a distinct crack heard.

I now cut off carefully, with fine-pointed scissors,
two or three tentacles from one fully expanded, and
submitted them to the same scrutiny. The rounded
head of the tentacle appeared rather rough or hairy
at first, but as pressure began to flatten it, filiferous
capsules were seen to be protruding from the outline,
which increased in number as the pressure proceeded,
until an amazing multitude appeared, and the whole
substance of the tentacle-head was seen to be literally
composed of these capsules, as thick as spicula? in any
sponge, with only a slight quantity of gelatinous mat-
ter to hold them together. To see these thousands of
little vesicles discharging their missiles in rapid
succession, like the flights of arrows in ancient battles,
was an astonishing sight. When the propulsion
could be distinctly followed by the eye there was always
seen a little zigzag line on each side of the thread
reaching to a considerable distance from the base,

124 THE MADREPORE.

which I at first thought indicated a delicate memhrane
pushed out from the orifice of the capsule by the
projected thread, until it at length burst, and shrank
back in folds around the base. The form of the
capsules differed from that of those described above,
in that they were proportionally longer and more
slender, being in fact almost linear. I could not
discover any capsules in the body of the tentacle ; but
only in the head.

If, indeed, these projected bristles are so many darts
injected into the bodies of those minute animals which
are the prey of the Madrepore, accompanied, as we
must suppose each puncture to be, to insure its effect,
with a fatal poison, — does not their presence in the
convoluted bands of the interior militate against the
supposition that these bands are ovaries, especially as
I have seen the curious manner in which these are
appressed to the swallowed morsel ? Is it unreason-
able to conjecture that their office may be accessory
to that of the tentacles, destroying what may remain
of life in the victim, after it has been inclosed by the
lips, and is consequently out of the reach of the
tentacles ?

This inference was confirmed by the results of fur-
ther investigation ; for, examining in the same man-
ner other minute portions of the frilled bands, as I
could detach them with the point of a pin, I at
length found a piece in which the capsules were much
more numerous, and vastly larger than any that I had
yet seen, whether in the bands or the tentacle-heads.
They were fully ^th inch in length, long-oval, but
somewhat curved.. Their size enabled me with a

STRUCTURE OF THE THREAD. 125

power of 300 diameters to see their structure much
more distinctly.

At the larger end is situated a lozenge-shaped body
reaching to the middle ; from the inner end of this,
partly coiled round it, but extending through the
remainder of the capsule is the thread, lying in an
irregular, rather loose spiral, the appearance of which
differs considerably in different capsules. (See Plate
XXVIII. fig. 14). When it is projected, the wlwle
contents of the capsule disappear from the interior,
in a manner which induces me to believe, strange as
it seems, that the lozenge-shaped body at least, if not
the whole thread, is turned completely inside-out ; for
the extended thread is attached, not to the smaller,
hut to the larger end^ without the least appearance of
rupture. (Fig. 15).

Now for the structure of the thread, or wire, for it
is as elastic as steel. This is marvellously elaborate,
especially when we consider its excessive tenuity, the
threads of the largest capsules being less than 7555th
of an inch in diameter, and those of the smallest per-
haps ^5-555th of an inch. The basal part of the thread,
to a length about half as-great-again as that of the
capsule, is clothed with alternate series of triangular
plates, laid one over the other, or imbricated, like the
scales of an artichoke. About half of this portion
is furnished with an armature of hairs rather closely
set, standing out at right angles, like a bottle-brush ;
they are twice or thrice as long as the diameter of the
thread, in the middle of the brush, but diminish to
each end; the individual hairs taper to a point.
(Fig. 16).

126 THE MADREPORE

T have offered a conjecture that the projection of
the thread is an evolution of its interior, and I believe
that it is a complete one through its whole length. I
have, even since I wrote that conjecture, seeu an
example of the process, which I can scarcely describe
intelligibly by words, but the witnessing of which
left on my own mind scarcely a doubt of the fact. It
was effected not with the flash-like rapidity common
to the propulsion, but sufficiently slowly to be
watched, and hy Jits or jerks, as if hindered by the
tip of the lengthening thread being in contact with
the glass. In consequence, probably, of this impedi-
ment, it took a serpentine, not a straight form, and
each hend of the course was made and stereo-
typed (so to speak j in succession , while the tip went
on lengthening ; and the appearance of this lengthen-
ing tip was exactly like that of a glove-finger turning
itself inside out.

The brush of hairs, I think, is originally inclosed
in the lozenge at the large end of the capsule. Both
the lozenge and the brush are wanting in the small
filiferous capsules ; when I observed them in the large
ones, the suggestion occurred that I might have over-
looked them in the smaller, on which I examined some
afresh with the utmost care, but in each case, the thread,
which at first occupied the whole cavity of the capsule
without any lozenge, was simple when evolved.

The capsules appear confined to the thickened edge
of the frilled band, in which they are set side by side,
pointing outwards.

At the great recess of the tides in October I ob-
served that the rocks and caves all about Ilfracombe

EASILY PRESERVED ALIVE. 127

were studded at low-water mark with this Madrepore,
— a curious and interesting spectacle. I obtained at
this time a considerable number of individuals, many
of which were of large size and of great beauty.
Double specimens were numerous, triple ones not un-
common, and I possess a four-fold one, the bodies
being all agglomerated into one, and the plated disks
with the fleshy parts alone being separated ; these
diverge in the form of a cross. (Plate V. fig. 5). I
presume that these forms are to be accounted for by
supposing that two, three, or four gemmdes hap-
pened to affix themselves near together, and that in
process of growth, the stony particles deposited be-
came soldered together. The appearance however of
the specimens is that of a hranchiny Coral.

The Madrepore is as easily kept in captivity as an
Actinia^ and from its beauty is particularly suited to
an inmate of such a marine aquarium for the parlour
as I have been endeavouring to form, and shall pre-
sently describe. At the time of these pages going to
press I have specimens which have been in my pos-
session more than eight months.

Plate V, fig. 2, represents Caryophyllia Smithii,
of the natural size, a fine specimen, much distended,
but little expanded. Fig. 3 is a smaller one, in a
different condition. Fig. 1. One fully expanded,
about 21- times as large as life (linear measure).
Pig. 5. The quadruple specimen above-mentioned.
Pig. 4. The calcareous skeleton split open, to show
the internal structure : — magnified 2 J times.

CHAPTEK VI.

A Walk to Hele— Bird's-eye View of the Harbour— Quay Fields
— Lion Rock — Hele Strand — A tlireatened Shipwreck — Eu-
cratea— Description — Mode of Growth— Form of the Cell-
Structure of the Polype — Tentacles— Digestive System— Mus-
cular Bands — Evanescence of the radiate Character — Root-
Thread — Snake-head Coralline — Frill — Vermicular Organs —
Door and Hinge — Ciliated Cellularia — Cells — Spines — Birds'
Heads — Their Motions— Slimy Laomedea — Structure of a
Sertularian Zoophyte — Its Contraction — Marginal Folds of
the Cell — Researches in Gastronomy — Anemones cooked —
Eaten — Commended — Best mode of preparing them — Anthea
tried.

A pleasant walk of about a mile leads to Hele, a
picturesque village, inhabited chiefly by gardeners,
laundresses, donkey-keepers and other persons, whose
subsistence is largely dependent on summer visitors
to Ilfracombe. There is a foot-path through the
fields to it, which is pleasanter than the carriage-road,
and is a favourite walk with me. I like to stand in
the quiet lane above the shipbuilder's yard, and look
down upon the harbour, as I lean over the iron rail
that guards the steep bushy cliff. The fishing-boats
are perhaps just come in from trawling on the oppo-
site side of the Channel, and the idlers are crowding
down to the quay-steps to see the fish as it is landed.
Pleasure skiffs full of laughing ladies and attentive

THE QUAY- FIELDS. 129

beaux are leaving the stairs for a few hours' sail
along the coast. The Bristol Steamer at the pier-head
is impatiently blowing off her waste-steam, as some
tardy passenger is seen bustling along with babies
and luggage, almost too late. The coasting schooners
are taking in or discharging cargo ; below my feet is a
busy scene, where the brawny shipwrights are wielding
the hammer and adze with continuous din around the
growing skeleton of a fine ship. All this is pleasant
to contemplate on a sunny day from the elevated nook
I speak of, its bowery quietness forming an agree-
able contrast with the bustle below.

Down the slope of the Quay fields, over the rustic
bridge that strides the deep road leading to Larkstone
Cove, between hedges full of blossom, on which the
gay tortoise-shell butterfly is fluttering, and scores of
banded and yellow snails are crawling, and along the
foot-path through the corn across Brimlin's fields to
the high road. In the midst of these fields, if we
pause and turn, we shall get a fine and commanding
view of the town. The slopes above the terraces on
the left, and the majestic Hillsborough on the right,
form a sort of ample basin, in which a wide expanse
of sea lies, half filling the concave. In the centre
rises Capstone Hill, a conical mass verdant to the
summit, and crowned with its signal-staff; and below
the base of this is seen the harbour and the lower
part of the town. Between Capstone and the Kun-
nacleaves, the green slopes to the left, is the favourite
bathing cove of Wildersmouth, through which we
have a fine view of the sea ; and here, if the tide be
in, the stranger's eye can hardly fail to be attracted

130 HELE STRAND.

by an insular rock at some distance from the shore,
that bears a very faithful resemblance to a couching
lion. It is visible of course at all times, except at
very high spring-tides, when the sea reaches the level
of the colossal statue's back, but it is only the apex
of the rock that forms the likeness, and this is of
course less conspicuous when the shapeless lower
part is also exposed. ,

I said that Hele is a picturesque village. The
houses are partly placed around the base of Hillsbo-
rough, up whose steep side the gardens extend, and
partly up a lovely valley. A brawling brook comes
down through this wooded glen, turns the village
mill-wheel, and runs off to the sea between two walls,
one of which forms a causeway about a yard in width,
between the cottage-doors and the water-course.

This leads us to the cove, — Hele Strand as it is
called, — an admixture, like all the coves hereabout, of
pebbly beach and ledges of rough rock, with many
sharp ragged points and eminences rising on every
hand. The bounding promontories that form the
inlet are of the same rough character, wildly pictur-
esque to look at, but scarcely less unapproachable
than chevaux defrize.

Almost every little cove with which this iron-bound
coast is indented has its legendary story of shipwreck,
or marvellous escape from shipwreck. Our landlady's
daughter is eloquent in her description of an incident
of the latter character that occured in this little cove.
I will give it you as nearly as possible in her own
words.

"There was a little vessel called the 'Maid of

A THREATENED SHIPWRECK. ]31

Alicant', a fruiterer. I don't exactly know whether
she was a hrig or a schooner, but she had two masts,
and I remember she had what I call D -sails.* She
was a beautiful little thing, just like a gentleman's
yacht. Well, sir, it was on the 6th of December,
about four or five winters ago, that there was a
report in Ilfracombe, about a vessel going on the
rocks at Hele. Almost the whole town went out to
see, and I went among the rest. 0, it was such a
dreadful sight ! It was blowing a perfect storm, and
the sea upon the rocks was rolling mountains high !
The little vessel had dropped her anchor just within
the cove ; every body was expecting that every wave
would loose her hold, and then there would have been
no help, but she must have been immediately dashed
to pieces on the rocks. We could see the crew
standing up, and could hear their cries and screams
for help. One gentleman wanted to strip and swim
off to her, but the people held him back, because you
know, sir, though he was a very good swimmer, he
could not have given them any assistance. The hob-
blers, (that is what we call the men that own little
boats, and get their living partly by fishing, partly by
piloting, and partly by letting out their boats for
hire) wanted to try to go round to her from Ilfra-
combe, to bring the crew ashore, for there are no boats
at Hele; but the hobblers' wives hung round them,
and some even went down on their knees, beseeching

• This odd expression she explained. It was an original and inge-
nious mode of indicating what are technically called "square-sails,"
looked at edge-wise, when bellying out before the wind ; the mast
being the upright part of the D.

132 THE EUCRATEA.

them not to risk their lives ; for it was blowing a
most dreadful gale. So nobody went off, but the
little anchor held on beautifully, and the vessel rode
out the storm till the next day. Then the wind
abated, so that she was able to come round to Ilfra-
combe harbour ; and it was a very wonderful deliver-
ance. She was repaired here, and I have often seen
her in the harbour since."

'Tis pleasant by the cheerful hearth, to hear
Of tempests, and the dangers of the deep,
And pause at times, and feel that we are safe ;
Then listen to the perilous tale again.
And with an eager and suspended soul
Woo terror to delight us.

Madoc. it.

EUCRATEA CHELATA.

In a round and deep little pool in a rock at Hele,
overshadowed by its side, and almost as regular in its
form as if it had been chiselled by human art, I found
two specimens of Caryophyllia ; and close to it, in
another open pool, grew Dasya arhuscula, on the old
decaying frond- stalks of which that rather rare and
very pretty zoophyte, Eucratea chelata, was numerous.
The inhabiting polypes were in high health and
activity, and afforded me an opportunity of making
myself acquainted with their structure.

The Polypidom is irregularly branched, but the
whole is composed of cells in single series, and
springs from a single cell at the base. The normal
shape of the cell has been compared to a bull's horn,
(perhaps a powder-horn would be a better compari-

ITS MODE OF GROWTH. 133

son,) the outline being nearly half a crescent. The
increase of the branch is effected by a cell growing
out of the upper and outer rim, the aperture being
obliquely truncate ; from the outer rim of this
another grows ; and so on in succession for an indefi-
nite number. But when a new branch is to be formed,
the first cell of which it is to be composed shoots
from the inner and lower rim, and the cells then face
the opposite way to those of the original shoot. The
basal part of the cells is slender for some distance
before the expansion commences ; and the germina-
tion of a new cell is a slender tubular process ; and
this, in the case of the commencement of a branch,
is the explanation of " the spinous process beneath
the rim," which is mentioned in the specific character
by Ellis as if it were an essential part of the cell,
which it is not. The name chelata (clawed), if
derived, as I presume, from this supposed spine, is
therefore a misnomer.

The cells are pellucid white, but when viewed by
transmitted light are tinged of a yellowish horn
colour. They are, however, perfectly transparent,
especially the upper ones, for those nearest the base
are more homy, and are liable to become studded
with parasitic Diatomacece.

The aperture of the cell is large, oval, oblique, and
surrounded by a rather high rim. This is covered
with an elastic membrane, which, when the polype is
withdrawn into its cell, projects considerably beyond
the rim (as seen in Fig. 3, Plate VI.), but, when the
animal is projected to its utmost (as in Fig. 4),
shrinks within the homy rim and becomes concave.

184 THE EUCRATEA.

The actual orifice for the emission of the animal is at
the upper and outer part of this membrane, where the
integuments are protruded by gradual evolution,
according to the universal rule in this Class of
Zoophytes, in three successive stages, which resemble,
when fully protruded, the slides of a telescope. The
first of these is horny, and has a sort of spine on the
inner margin ; the second, of about the same length,
is of the most delicate filmy transparency, and has its
margin surrounded by a sort of scolloped frill, com-
posed of short ribs united by a waved membrane,*
and diverging at right angles to the tube. From this
projects the third, which generally bulges more or
less at the back or outer side, where the orifice of
the rectum is situate. A bell of twelve ciliated
tentacles, nearly as long as the interior of a cell, crowns
this last evolution ; and the whole when extended to
the utmost, is more than commonly prominent.

Let us now examine the anatomical structure of
this beautiful animal. The tentacles are slender fila-
ments, set with cilia, which are seen to be hairs of
extreme tenuity, and at least five or six times as long
as the diameter of the tentacle. This, however, can
be detected only by using a high power (say 200
linear) with delicate manipulation, when the ciliary
action is suspended ; as when the tentacles are in the
act of emerging. The waves of the ciliary motion
run (as usual in Polyzoan zoophytes) up one side of

* This marginal frill is, I presume, analogous to those fine setse, con-
nected by a membrane, which Dr. Farre has described as surrounding
the sheatliing tube of the polype, in Bowerbankia densa. (Phil. Trans.
1837.

P/^ftr 17

FH&oMt deletUth

hinifj hy h'ullmand^i/i. Wol/m .

E U CRAT E A C H E L A T A

THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. 135

the tentacle and down the other. A slender thread is
seen to pass through the centre of each tentacle, con-
nected with a thickened ring which surrounds the
base of the circle ; possibly this is nervous in its
character.

The tentacles are set around a circular mouth,
which leads into a funnel-shaped gullet, the walls of
which are thick, granular, expansile and contractile,
and highly sensitive. From the outer (or upper) side
of its margin, there is given off a singular thick band
apparently identical in texture with the walls of the
gullet, which passing down by the side of this cavity
unites with it at a short distance, being free in the
gi'eater part of its course, but connected with the
gullet at each extremity. The use of this curious
band I cannot, after many and careful examinations,
discover. It appears equally sensitive with the gullet ;
a vertical aspect shows that it is not, as I was dis-
posed to imagine, tubular ; and I do not think it is a
muscle. It must not be confounded with the rectum,
which is quite distinct, though on the same side.

The gullet passes into a lengthened tube, which
after a narrowing, becomes slightly swollen, and pre-
sents the same granular texture with minute trans-
verse corrugations, as the funnel of the gullet. After
another constriction it opens into a long-oval stomach,
which occupies nearly the centre of the cell, and for
a reason which I shall presently mention, is capable
of but little change of position.

Close to the entrance of the first stomach is the
exit, the intestine being inserted in the upper end of
this viscus, just behind the extremity of the gullet.

136 THE EUCRATEA.

It is a short thick tube, and presently leads into an
oval second stomach, closely resembling the former,
but a little smaller. Both have thick walls, and their
internal surface is lined with cilia, by whose action
the contents are formed into lengthened pellets, and
continually made to revolve on their long axes. From
the upper extremity of the second stomach proceeds
a slender but expansile tube of great length, which
may be called the rectum, and which proceeds upwards
parallel with and behind the gullet, to its terminal
aperture, on the posterior side of the head, a little
below the tentacular ring.

The first and second stomachs, and the intestines
connected with them, retain their position perma-
nently ; at least so far as any change might be pro-
duced by retractation ; for the lower extremity of the
first stomach is bound to a slender thread, which
passes up from the preceding polype, through a fora-
men in the bottom of the cell. This thread appears
to merge into the integument of the stomach ; and at
its upper extremity, it collects again into a thread,
which goes up through the back of the cell into the
tubular foot of the next, aud through the foramen at
its bottom to be tied to the extremity of the stomach
of the succeeding polype, in like manner. This
thread is the link of vital connection, and, as far as I
can see, the only one, between the individual polypes,
uniting them in a corporate life. When a new branch
is to be formed, another thread goes ofi" from the
lower extremity of the stomach, to the front margin
of the cell, where as I have described above, the new
branch pullulates, and enters the tube, as in the other

THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM. 137

case. The course of this thread is indicated by the
dotted line in fig. 4.

These threads tie the stomach to one position in
the cell ; but besides these there is another thread,
which is fastened to the hinder part of this viscus, and
passes down diagonally to the hinder part of the cell,
where it is inserted in the walls. Thus the only
motion permitted to the stomach is, that it may swing
a little backward by the elasticity of the connecting
threads, and this is allowed, to make room for the
anterior parts to retire within the cell. These, for-
cibly retracted by muscles presently to be described,
push the first stomach, and in a less degree, the
second also, out of the centre, towards or even into
contact with, the hinder wall of the cell : as it is seen
in Fig. 3.

Many bands of muscular fibre appear with beauti-
ful distinctness in this zoophyte. The great retractor
muscle rans along the whole length of the animal on
the ventral or front surface. It is inserted into the
front side of the tubular foot of the cell, a good way
below the bottom of the cavity, through which it must
pass, and which therefore must be perforated near its
front margin as well as in the centre. The muscle
is a ribbon of fibres, which widen and diverge as they
proceed, so as to be narrowly fan-shaped ; the broad
end is fastened into the body of the animal, probably at
one or other of the points where the integument sheaths,
but I have not been able to trace it much beyond the
margin of the cell in the extruded animal. It is
certainly free for the greater part of its length, for I
have seen it, in partial retractation, thrown into sinu-

138 THE EUCRATEA.

Otis curves, when its flat ribbon-like form was also
distinctly shown. It is evident, from the necessity of
the case, that this or any other retractor muscle must
perforate the integument and be inserted in the inner
surface, in order to sheath it in the manner in which
this operation is known to take place : but at what
point this perforation occurs, the transparency of the
parts forbids my detecting.

There is a second muscle, (or rather perhaps a sym-
metrical pair,) inserted in the hinder wall of the cell
just below the point whence the new cell grows. Its
insertion here is broad, and it narrows upward ; I can
trace this to the bottom of the funnel of the gullet :
and its contraction is probably the first step in the
process of retractation. Beyond this point, the funnel
and the tentacles are not inverted, but descend directly
by the introversion of the integuments below them ;
the tentacles merely closing together in a fascia, as
they descend.

Besides these, there are inserted within the horny
margin of the cell, some eight or ten bands, or perhaps
more, composed of parallel fibres. The course, and
use of these are very difficult to make out intelligibly,
from their apparently contradictory appearances in
difi'erent aspects and circumstances. I incline to
think however that they pass from the corneous rim,
to various parts of the lining membrane, and in
particular to that portion of it which covers-in the
broad aperture of the cell, — that which I have
described as prominently convex and protuberant
during the retractation of the animal, and concave
during its extrusion. I venture to presume that it is

THE RADIATE CHARACTER. 139

by the means of these muscles that the extrusion of the
polype takes place : these muscle-bands, drawing in
the membrane to a concave form, diminish the con-
tained space, which is already full, either with water,
or as I rather suppose with the vital juices ; the only
yielding part is the long body of the polype,
which accordingly is forced out through the proper
aperture.

It is manifest that the radiate structure is becoming
a subordinate character in these zoophytes ; at least
so far as that character implies a perfect circular
symmetry. This Encratea for example has certainly
a dorsal aspect and a ventral one : the direction of
the intestinal canal, and the position of the excretory
orifice making sufficiently plain which is the former.
For from this arrangement, which is almost exactly
repeated in some of the tubicolous Rotifera, as
CEcistes for example, the oval orifice is gradually
brought lower down the back by successive stages in
Melicerta, Limnias, and Stephatioceros ; until in Mo-
nocerca, Furcularia, and Notommata among the
illoricate Rotifera, it attains the normal situation
which it holds in the higher animals. Hence I have
not scrupled to call this the dorsal side of the zoo-
phyte, in the preceding description. While on this
subject I may mention that Eucratea frequently
inflates the membranous integument just below
the anus, in a manner common to many of the
Rotifera.

The ciliary action is doubtless in some measure
involuntary; but the tentacles have the power of
separate and voluntary movement. I observed an

140 THE EUCRATEA.

aiiimal, apparantly annoyed by the introduction into
the tentacular vortex of a mass of foecal matter recently
discharged, drive it out again forcibly, by altering the
current in some way : it was presently drawn in
again, and again driven forth; again and again it
returned. At length, as if convinced that other
means must be resorted to to get rid of the intrusion,
the animal suddenly bent inwards one of the tentacles,
and by a beautifully precise and momentary action,
pushed out the substance sideways, or lifted it out as
it were, and it returned no more.

Though very sensitive, — often, when in the midst of
full play, suddenly withdrawing in an instant within
the protection of the cell, and remaining there, perhaps
for hours, before it ventures to peep forth again, and
that without any cause of alarm appreciable by us, —
the animal is not easily induced to retract by any tap
or jar given to the table, or even to the vessel in
which it is held. Nor does the admixture of indigo
with the water cause it to suspend its motion, as is
frequently the case when we wish to administer pig-
ment to zoophytes. The colour is readily imbibed,
and affords, by its conspicuous visibility, an excellent
demonstration of the course of the digestive system.

The form of the cells is liable to considerable
variation from that which is normal ; but not so
great as to make it all difficult to be recognized.
The degree to which the animal can protrude itself
differs greatly in different specimens, perhaps also
with the will of the animal. I have drawn one in ex-
treme extension, in which the distance from the base
of the tentacles to the margin of the cell was about

THE ROOT-THREAD. 141

equal to the depth of the cell measured to the
rounded hottom. The tentacles themselves were
nearly as much more. The average length of a well-
grown cell is about^th of an inch, measured from its
origin to its dorsal margin ; of this the cavity, and
the foot or tube, make nearly an equal division.

Another specimen shows me more distinctly the
manner of growth. Along the delicate frond of a
Rliodymenia, runs a shelly pellucid thread of excessive
tenacity, from which, at intervals of about a line,
spring up the rows of single cells. The whole appear-
ance reminds me of a Laomedea. The foot of the
first cell, at its emergence from the root thread, is
constricted at short intervals, so as to resemble joints,
or nodes. In another case the thread wanders over
the rock, or rather over the thin stratum of incipient
Coralline, which covers it. (Fig. 2.)

No ray of phosphoric light was elicited on plunging
specimens into fresh water in the dark, though the
experiment was repeatedly tried.

Fig. 1 represents the zoophyte of the natural size.
Fig. 2, the same enlarged. Fig. 3, A single polype,
viewed sidewise, retracted, much magnified. Fig. 4,
the same extruded. Fig. 5, the same, retracted, viewed
in front.

THE SNAKE-HEAD CORALLINE.

The crevices between tke slanting ridges of the
slaty rocks at Hele form little angular pools, densely
fringed with various species of red sea-weeds, many
of which are of exceeding delicacy and beauty, and

142 THE SNAKE -HEAD.

grow under the shadow of the overhanging ridges
with profuse luxuriance. Among these I found that
elegant species, Delesseria hypoglossum. Around its
base and twining up the lower part of its frond were
two interesting little zoophytes wliich had entwined
their slender trailing stems with each other, in irregu-
lar tortuous windings, forming a sort of mat. One of
these was Anguinaria fipatalata. It consists of a
long creeping stem, which embraces the sea-weed,
just as a creeping plant does a tree, throwing out, at
irregular intervals, the cells, which form the habi-
tations of the polypes. These cells are unlike those
of any other zoophyte ; each consist of a bent cylin-
drical neck of considerable length, swollen at the end
into an oblong head, which is open on one side some-
what like a spoon, (Plate VIT, fig. 15) ; whence the
specific name : the resemblance however of the cell to
the head of a snake is much more obvious, and has
given rise to the generic appellation, and this likeness
is increased by numerous rings that surround the
neck throughout its length, somewhat like the cart-
lages of the windpipe. The swollen head is marked
with minute punctured dots, arranged in lines paral-
lel to the rings of the neck, of which they are a con-
tinuation; though the distinction between them is
abrupt and well marked. A polype of twelve slender
tentacles protrudes in a funnel-like form from the
end of the cell (Fig. 8), or contracts itself into the
neck, along which the tenl^cles then lie close-pressed,
as a bundle of parallel fibres.

June ^4.th. I saw an Anguinaria with the mem-
branous sheath of the polype partly extruded, the

rint^ v//.

TH.Gosse dil a bdi / n iilni hy i li i

1-7 CELLUioARlA CJLIATA
8,16. ANGUJNARIA :SPA'1'UI .ATA

ITS DOOR AND HINGE. 143

extremity of which was surrounded by an extremely
delicate fringe or frill of filmy rays united by a den-
tated or vandyked membrane, closely resembling that
of Eucratea. The appearance of the protruded mem-
brane and the cell, I have very carefully copied at
Fig. 9 ; but the relation of the parts to each other is
very difficult to understand. The interior of the
sheath contains many very slender threads constantly
waving with a vermicular motion; indeed they might
be mistaken for minute intestinal worms. They are
probably long ciliary hairs.

Aug. I4.th. A stem of Plumularia crutata, itself
parasitic on the shell of a Crab, was covered for
its basal half with a numerous colony of Anguinaria
spatidata, and for its terminal half with one equally
crowded of Plum, setacea. An examination of the
former enables me to add a little to my knowledge of
this curious zoophyte. I perceive that the terminal
extremitv of the head is furnished with a sort of door
that works on hinges. When the polype is throughly
retracted, this is closed, and held firmly down by
means of a ligamentous muscle fastened to its interior,
and connected with the animal. When the latter
relaxes, the door begins to open, I presume by the
elasticity of the hinge acting as a spring ; and as the
polype protrudes, the door in proportion falls back,
until it makes more than a right angle with its closed
position. It appears to consist of a half- ring of homy
substance, across which is stretched a delicate mem-
brane, contyiuous with that which covers the large
ventral aperture. I have seen it in many individuals,
in various aspects and positions, and have witnessed

144 THE CILIATED CELLULARIA.

the opening and closing of it repeatedly. It is a beau-
tiful piece of mechanism, contrived for the protection
of the delicate little inhabitant, permitting him to
inhale the surrounding fluid without exposing himself,
and enabling him in a moment to shut and bar his
gate on the approach of danger. For I see that it is
not necessary that the polype should protrude in order
that the door should open widely ; this seems to be
dependent on the relaxation of the muscular ligament ;
it is often wide open while the animal is far within,
then in a moment it is pulled to, with a simultaneous
shrinking on the part of the inhabitant, though with-
out any appreciable withdrawing further.

Figs. 10 to 12; lateral views, the door open in dif-
ferent degrees. 13, 14 ; back views, door open, and
shut.

Anguinaria spatulata, though described as rare, is
by no means uncommon in this neighbourhood. It is
very frequently found densely investing the stems and
fronds of the smaller sea-weeds that grow at low
water.

THE CILIATED CELLULARIA.

Still more abundant is another species, like the
former frequently parasitic on sea-weeds, but less
exclusively so, Cellularia ciliata.

To the naked eye it appears like a minute shrub
composed of numerous branches rising to about half
an inch in height. With the microscope the branches
are seen to be set with a number of transparent cells,
somewhat like a wine glass in form with the rim
oblique. They are set alternately on opposite sides

THE SPINOUS CELLS. 145

of the branch. From the higher and outer side of
the rim spring five long and slender spines gracefully
curved, which are each affixed by a joint to a tubercle
on the rim. A sixth spine exactly similar springs
from a little below the margin on the outer side,* and
a seventh from the middle of the inner rim. In my
specimens these spines are of great length ; on some
of the older cells I have seen them four and even five
times as long as the cells. The spines grow after the
cells are formed ; for on the same branch may be seen
oval cells not yet opened, yet containing the polype,
without the least appearance of spines ; others on
which they are just budding ; others on which they
are short but distinct ; and so on in all intermediate
stages of growth, through those in which they are -
perfect in length and number, to those near the base
of the branch, from which the polypes have died out,
and from whose margin the spines have been either
partially or wholly broken off. The polypes that
inhabit these cells have about twelve tentacles,
but I have not been able to see one in a state ol
expansion, beneath the microscope. They remain
contracted within their cells, their tentacles wrinkled
up and pressed together, and showing no voluntary
motion, except now and then a spasmodic contraction,
on a slight shifting of some of their parts. Their

* Dr. Johnston (Br. Zooph. i. 335,) says, "on the inner side," but
I am sure this is a mistake. The perfect transparency of these crea-
tures often renders it difficult to determine on which side of the glassy
surface any given point is. By delicate focusing, however, I have dis-
tinctly proved this spine to originate on the outside, as indeed was,
a priori, more likely.

146 THE birds' heads.

transparency however permits the intestines to be
perfectly visible, and the contents of these, of a yell
lowish colour, are often seen whirled round and round
with a rapid movement, doubtless by the action of
internal cilia.

But the most singular chapter in the history of this
polype is the presence of some curious appendages
which it has in common with a few more species of
the same family. On the outside of some (not all) of
the cells, in this species, there is a little tubercle near
the bottom, to which is articulated by a slender joint
an organ which has been aptly compared to the naked
head of a vulture. It has a beak with two mandibles,
of which the lower alone is moveable, opening and
shutting like that of a bird, but with a far greater
width of gape ; for the lower mandible can be opened
till it extends in the same line with the upper. The
upper mandible is furnished with five strongly pro-
jecting teeth on each edge; the lower has a single
tooth at its point, which fits into the notch between
the terminal pair of the upper. The whole of the
back of the head is wrinkled transversely.

The motions of this strange appendage are in keep-
ing with its curious structure. The whole head
ordinarily sways to and fro upon the slender joint at
the poll, at intervals of a few seconds ; but besides
this motion, which is even, though rather quick,
the lower mandible, which commonly gapes to its
utmost extent, now and then at irregular intervals
closes with a strong sudden snap, much like the snap-
ping of a turtle's jaws, and presently again opens, and
leisurely resumes its former expansion. The muscles

THEIR PROBABLE USE. 147

■which move the lower mandible are distinctly seen,
occupying the position of the palate, and extending
back to the inner surface of the skull, if we may use
such terms for an organization so remote. These
motions are highly singular to witness, and one can
scarcely look upon them without ascribing them to
an active volition in the animal.

But curious questions arise in connection with
these birds' heads. Are they a part of the organiza-
tion of the polype ? If so, why are they found
attached to some cells, and not to others? w^hy to
some specimens and not to others ? and why are some
species of a genus furnished wdth them, while others,
essentially the same in every other respect, are desti-
tute of any such appendage ?

Anatomical examination does not throw any light
on these questions. The animal within the cell appears
to be organically independent of the bird's head, for
as Dr. Keid affirms, and as I have myself witnessed
in another species, the latter continues its movements
for a considerable time after the polype has been dead.
Dr. Johnston suggests that the use of the organ is to
grasp and kill passing animalcules, which then may
be drawn into the cell by means of the ciliary currents
of the tentacles ; and this seems to me not improba-
ble, and receives confirmation from the toothed
structure of the beak, which, though strongly marked,
I have not seen noticed. Plate VII. Fig. 1. Cellu-
laria ciliata, nat. size. 2. a portion of a branch,
(magnified 200 diameters.) 3. a cell containing the
contracted polype. 4. the bird's head appended to
it. 5. an immature cell. 6. the bird's head more

148 THE SLIMY LAOMEDEA.

enlarged, seen from beneath. 7. the same viewed
sidewise.

I have not at all entered into the structure of the
polype itself in the preceding description ; for the
specimens that I have as yet observed were not in
sufficient vigour to allow me to have a sight of one at
work. It is only under very favourable circumstances
that these sensitive creatures will display their beauti-
fully delicate organization ; in nine cases out of ten,
or even more, you will find the polypes forcibly con-
tracted within their cells, and pertinaciously refusing
to protrude themselves until they die.

THE SLIMY LAOMEDEA.

May I6tk. A very clean and beautiful specimen of
Laomedea yelatinosa affords me an excellent example
of the structure of a Sertularian polype ; the more so
because the stem carries but a single cell, the inha-
bitant of which expands with the utmost confi-
dence. From a fibrous thread that creeps along the
lilac crust of a Coralline, springs up a slender
transparent tube standing erect to a great height as
compared with its thickness, sending off at remote
intervals branches on either side. These branches
are marked just above their commencement and just
before their termination with a number of constrictions,
causing the substance between to assume the form of
so many rounded joints, or appearing as if tied
tightly round. The end of each branch bears an
elegant vase-like cell, in form like a deep ale- glass, of

ITS STRUCTURE. 149

the most hyaline transparency. Such is the polypi-
dom, which appears to me to he perfectly homogene-
ous, though some ohservers profess to have seen a
delicate net-work of vessels ramifying through its
walls. This horny tuhe, however, is permeated hy a
central core of living flesh, of a thin gelatinous tex-
ture, which runs through the whole stalk and through
each hranch, without any apparent variation until it
reaches the cells. A good microscope shows that the
flesh of the polypidom is tubular ; its walls are com-
posed of a clear jelly inclosing a loose texture of
equally colourless granules. The tubular interior
appears to be filled with a subtle fluid, in which mi-
nute colourless granules may be seen here and there to
move with an irregular quivering dancing motion, to
and fro or round and round, but not with any definite
order or progression. The motion does not appear
to be ciliaiy, but more like that of the granules in
the cells of plants, except that it is more minute,
and follows no settled order. Intervals occur in
which no such motion can be traced ; the dancing
globules are very minute and few, but obvious enough,
if carefully looked for.

A little above the bottom of the cell there is a par-
tition or false bottom running across, perforated in the
centre, because the core of flesh passes through it.
From this point may be considered to commence each
polype : the body is homogeneous with the fleshy core,
which it a little exceeds in thickness, being dilated how-
ever into a sort of cushion at the bottom, which rests
on the partition. At its upper part it spreads into a
star of many rays, very elegantly expanding over and

1 50 COOKERY.

around the edge of the vase-like cell. The rays or
tentacles are slender and long, of equal thickness
throughout, and marked with numerous whorls of
rough projecting points, which appear to me to ter-
minate in very fine but short bristles, not however of
a ciliary nature. I cannot discern any vortex produ-
ced by the tentacles at all. When alarmed, or when
the water becomes deoxygenated, the polype contracts
its whole body (uniformly by a real contraction of its
substance, not by an involution of the parts,) and
draws the tentacles within the cell in a parallel bun-
dle. If further annoyed, it contracts still more, both
the body and the tentacles themselves, which can be
reduced in length, until they look like so many teats
or fingers.

When thus contracted the margin of the cell can be
examined. In this specimen there is no extraneous
matter adhering, which is a great advantage : the edge
however is so subtle that it is only at the sides that
it can be distinctly seen. I perceive that it is trans-
verse ; I think perfectly so, but the sides themselves
form angular longitudinal folds near and at the edge,
which may perhaps account for the conflicting de-
scription of this species, as having an even or a serru-
late rim.

GASTKONOMY.

And now for a paragraph of cookery. Dicque-
mare's testimony to the excellence of Actinia crassi-
cornis for the table tempted me to taste it, and I
determined to take an early opportunity of cooking a

A NEW DISH. 151

few. In a few minutes I collected some half a dozen
of different sizes at low water near Wildersmouth, and
having rubbed them with my fingers in a tide-pool
till the coating of gravel was pretty well got rid of,
brought them home. I put them into a pan of sea
water for the night to cleanse them, and most beauti-
ful and gorgeous was the appearance they presented
when expanded ; no two alike in colours, and yet all
so lovely that it was difficult to say which excelled.
Perhaps one with the tentacles partly cream- colour
and partly white was as beautiful as any.

The next morning, however, I began operations.
As it was an experiment, I did not choose to commit
my pet morsels to the servants, but took the sauce-
pan into my own hand. As I had no information
as to how long they required boiling, I had to find it
out for myself. Some I put into the water (^^a-water)
cold, and allowed to boil gradually. As soon as the
water boiled, I tried one : it was tough, and evidently
undone. The next I took out after three minutes'
boiling : this was better ; and one at five minutes'
was better still ; but not so good as one which had
boiled ten. I then put the remaining ones into the
hoiling water, and let them remain over the fire boil-
ing fast for ten minutes, and these were the best of
all, being more tender, as well as of a more inviting
appearance.

I must confess that the first bit I essayed caused a
sort of lumpy feeling in my throat, as if a sentinel
there guarded the way, and said " It shan't come here."
This sensation, however, I felt to be unworthy of a
philosopher, for there was nothing really repugnant

152 ACTIMAS BOILED,

in the taste. As soon as I had got one that seemed
well cooked, I invited Mrs. G. to share the feast;
she courageously attacked the morsel, hut I am com-
pelled to confess it could not pass the vestibule ; the
sentinel was too many for her. My little hoy, how-
ever, voted that "'tinny was good," and that "he
liked 'tinny ;" and loudly demanded more, like ano-
ther Oliver Twist. As for me, I proved the truth of
the adage, Ce 7iest que le premier pas qui coute ; for
my sentinel was cowed after the first defeat. T left
little in the dish.

In truth the flavour and taste are agreeable, some-
what like those of the soft parts of crab ; I ate them
hot, with the usual crab-condiments of salt, pepper,
mustard, and vinegar, mixed into a sauce. The in-
ternal parts, including the ovaries and the tentacles,
though from their mottled appearance rather repelling
to the eye, were the most agreeable in taste ; the in-
teguments somewhat reminded me of the jelly-like
skin of a calf 's head. I wonder they are not com-
monly brought to table, for they are easily procured,
and are certainly far superior to cockles, periwinkles,
and mussels. After a very little use, I am persuaded
any one w^ould get very fond of boiled Actinias.

Some I had left with a little of the gravel still ad-
hering, in order to see whether this would be thrown
off, when life departed ; but it was not so. They should
be cleansed before cooking, which can be easily and
quickly done with the fingers under water ; the base
also should be scraped, so as to remove any bits of
slate or rock or dirt, that adhere to it. Attention to
these particulars greatly improves the appearance

AND FRIED. 153

when cooked. They are of a pellucid rosy hue, of a
firm consistence; at least sufficiently firm to be readily
cut with a knife.

The next that I tried were prepared in a different
manner, and truth to say, the experiment was far
more successful this time. I cleansed them more
perfectly, carefully scraping the bases, until they were
freed from every particle of extraneous matter and
from slime. These I had fried in egg and bread-
crumbs, and they were very far superior to even the
best on the former occasion. All prejudice yielded
to their inviting odour and appearance, and the whole
table joined in the repast with indubitable gusto. I
know not if my readers are familiar with a dish which
in Newfoundland during the codfishing season we used
to consider worthy of an epicure, — the tongues of the
cod taken out as soon as the fish are brought on
shore, and fried immediately. The Actiniae fried as
above described I should scarcely be able to distin-
guish, either by the eye or by the taste, from fresh cods'
tongues, except that perhaps my proteges are slightly
firmer in consistence.

Anthea cereus I subsequently tried, prepared in the
manner last mentioned. They too were savoury, but
the sliminess of the tentacles was somewhat disagree-
able. They are far less substantial, in proportion to
their apparent size, than the Actiniae, little, indeed,
remaining, but a mass of tentacles. When Dr.
Johnston speaks of "the hot and peppery Anthea^'
I presume he glances at its urticating properties, for
there is no pungency in its taste.

CHAPTEE VII.

Charm of the Sea-side — Watching the receding Tide— the Lion
Rock — Approach of Evening — Its Accompaniments — The
Warty Cycloum — Harvey's Syrinx— Capstone Hill— Its Pro-
menade— Precipitous Walks — Noble Prospects — Sunset —
Bird's-eye View — The Welsh Coast — Flowers — The Summit
— Inland View — Seaward Kocks — Wildersmouth — A fatal
Accident — The Gemmed Anemone — Description — Habits —
Production of the Young — Sea Spider — Black Sand- worm —
A second Visit to Watermouth — Flowers — A Crab at Home
— A walk to Lee — Beautiful Valley — Character of the Cove
• — Stone-turning — The Worm Pipe-fish — Its Form and
Colours — Manners in Captivity— -Intelligence — Appearance
of Disease — Surgical Aid — Difiiculties of Microscopical'
Sketching.

The sea-side is never dull : other places soou tire
us ; we cannot always he admiring scenery, though
ever so heautiful, and no body stands gazing into a
field, or on a hedgerow bank, though studded with
the most lovely flowers, by the half-hour together.
But we. can and do stand watching the sea, and feel
reluctant to leave it : the changes of the tide, and the
ever rolling, breaking, and retiring waves, are so
much like the phenomena of life, that we look on
with an interest and expectation akin to that with
which we watch the proceedings of living beings.
Last night we sat long to gaze on the receding tide
from the promenade that looks out upon the little

THE RECEDING TIDE. 155

cove called Wildersftiouth. It was spring-tide, and
the water had just begun to ebb ; presently the sharp
ledges of rock here and there began to peep above
the surface, making black oblique lines upon the face
of the water only just ruffled by the evening air, and
reflecting all the ruddy glow of the north-west sky
opposite. We thought of the Poet's words : —

Bright with dilated glory shone the west ;

But brighter lay the ocean-flood below,

The burnish'd [golden] sea, that heav'd and flash'd

Its restless rays, intolerably bright.

Madoc, ii.

The most distant insular peak of rock needed not
a warm fancy to form into a couching lion ; the re-
semblance was very- exact, and soon became even more
perfect, by the sinking of the water revealing what
seemed his outstretched fore paws. His face, his
mane, the undulation of his back, and the rounded
haunches were all represented in verisimilitude.

How rapidly the sea leaves the beach ; yonder is an
area distinguished from the rest by its unruffled smooth-
ness on the recess of the w^ave ; presently a black
speck appears on it ; now two or three more ; we fix
our eyes on it, and presently the specks thicken, they
have become a patch, a patch of gravel ; the waves
hide it as they come up, but in an instant or two we
predict that it will be covered no more. Meanwhile
the dark patch grows on every side ; it is now connect-
ed with the beach above, first by a little -isthmus at
one end, inclosing a pool of clear perfectly smooth
water, a miniature lagoon in which the young crescent

156 EVENING.

moon is sharply reflected with inverted horns : the
isthmus widens as we watch it ; we can see it grow,
and now the water is running out of the lakelet in a
rapid ; the ridges of hlack rock shoot across it, they
unite; — the pool is gone, and the water's edge, that
was just now washing the foot of this causeway on
which we are sitting, is now stretched from yonder
points, with a great breadth of shingle-heach between
it and us. And now the ruddy sea is bristling with
points and ledges of rock, that are almost filling the
foreground of what was just now a smooth expanse ;
and what were little scattered islets, now look like the
mountain-peaks and ridges of a continent. The glow
of the sky is fading to a ruddy chestnut-hue ; the moon
and Venus are glittering brightly ; the little bats are
out, and are flitting, on giddy wing, to and fro along
the edge of the causeway, ever and anon wheeling
around close to our feet. The dorrs too, with hum-
drum flight, come one after another, and passing
before our faces, are visible for a moment against the
sky, as they shoot out to sea-ward. The moths are
playing round the tops of the budding trees; the
screaming swifts begin to disappear; the stars are
coming out all over the sky, and the moon that a
short time before looked like a thread of silver, now
resembles a bright and golden bow; and night shuts
up for the present the book of nature.

'Tis spent, — ^tHs burning day of June !

Soft darkness o'er its latest gleams is stealing :

The buzzing dor-hawk round and round is wheeling : —

That solitary bird

Is all that can be heard

In silence deeper far than that of deepest noon !

Wordsworth.

THE CYCLOUM AND SYRINX. 157

THE WARTY CYCLOUM.

I found at low water near the Tunnel what seems a
curious variety of Cycloum papillosum. It embraces
the slender stem of a red sea-weed, encrusting it all
round, so as to form a cylindrical or sub-spindle-
shaped mass, not at all lobed, an inch in length, and
■J inch in diameter. A portion of the membranous
frond accidently hanging down, has been attached by
the surface of the polypidom, and adheres firmly.
The substance is fleshy, closely covered with conical
papillae, which appear imperforate (under 200 lin.),
and certainly do not contain the polypes ; they are
more or less filled with green granules and vermicular
threads, which give a colour to the whole mass, of
olive brown. The polypes protrude seventeen long
tentacles (I counted four or five specimens over and
over, and invariably found this the number) set with
cilia, and expanding in the form of a bell.

Harvey's syrinx.

On turning over a flat stone at the water's edge at
Wildersmouth I picked up a curious creature, not
very attractive indeed to look at, but which I found,
on examining Prof Forbes' Brit. Starfishes at home,
to be a rare species, Sijrinx Harveii. His figure is
admirably exact, and agrees with mine in size and
contour. My specimen is lively for so dull a creature,
inverting and unfolding its proboscis with great
rapidity, and to a length fully equal to that of its
whole body besides. The very extremity is encircled

158 Harvey's syrinx.

with several rows of short bristles, as if it had omitted
to shave its heard since the day before, and when these
are all everted, out pops a dense tuft of white tenta-
cula, like those of a half-expanded Actinia. These
are no sooner exposed then they are infolded again,
and the process of inversion runs rapidly down to
the base of the proboscis, hke the drawing of a
stocking or a glove-finger within itself ; the tentacles,
however, during the brief moment they remain out,
are kept in quick motion, wriggling and twisting
about among themselves. The whole proboscis is' of
a dull dirty brown, as is the abruptly>pointed tail;
they are both reticulated, being marked with coarse
annular and longitudinal wrinkles : this texture, as
well as the colour, is separated abruptly from that
of the body. The latter is pure white, of a satiny
lustre, smooth to the eye, but examined with a lens
seen to be marked with innumerable fine punctures,
oblong in form and connected with each other by
very delicate transverse lines. The posterior half of
the brown tail of this Syrinx was studded with little
projections which I at first thought were the viscera
forced through pores in the skin, but which I
presently discovered, to my surprise, to be a colony
of PedicelUncB, (of the species Belgica, I believe)
which had chosen this strange Ibcahty to spread their
mat upon, surely without asking leave of the tail's
owner. The gemmule having once fixed itself, was
a tenant for life, and the various wanderings of the
Syrinx could not displace its parasitic friend, but
only carry it about, while it proceeded to rear its
familv.

CAPSTONE HILL. 159

CAPSTONE HILL.

The favorite promenade of visitors to Ilfracombe is
on the side of Capstone Hill. The little town is
built in a valley, that runs for awhile parallel to the
sea, a range of hills rising like a wall between it and
the rocky coast, and thus sheltering it from the fierce
cold breezes from the north and north-west, that pre-
vail so greatly here, especially in winter. The newer
parts of the town are arranged on the landward slope
of the valley, forming handsome terraces on its steep
side, and commanding those fine views of the sea that
are so much admired over the seaward range of hills.

In this range there is but one interruption, but one
natural way of access to the shore. For the hills,
though they present inviting verdant slopes on the
valley side, are externally the most abrupt and rugged
precipices, being cut down, as it were, perpendicularly
from their very summits to the wash of the tide. At
one point, however, there is an exception to the con-
tinuity, where a little brook, finding its way to the
sea, forms a narrow cove.

The bounding hill-range, which on the left of the
cove attains no great elevation, rises on the right into
a large, somewhat conical hill, known as the Cap-
stone. It is an enormous mass of shale, in some
parts very friable and rotten ; in others more com-
pact, with occasional narrow veins of white quartz
running through it. The upper and inner portions
are covered with turf, and afi'ord pasturage for a few
sure-footed sheep that hang and climb with uncon-

160 PRECIPITOUS WALKS.

scious security in places where a false step would
plunge them headlong. But in other parts, and
especially on the side that overlooks the little cove of
Wildersmouth, the sides are awfully perpendicular
and even projecting, and the broad faces of the grey
rock are here particularly majestic and picturesque.
With considerable labour, availing itself skilfully of
the natural facilities of the rock, a broad road has been
scarped round the seaward- side of the hill, extending
from the back of Wildersmouth round to the eastern
extremity, and sending off branch roads in zigzag
directions, by which the lofty summit may be gained.
To a new-comer these tracks seem not a little dan-
gerous, for though they are guarded by low parapets
here and there, they are everywhere so steep, often so
slippery, and in some points approach so close to the
yawning edge of the perpendicular precipice, that the
blood beats with a quickened energy as we ascend,
especially if we are accompanied by children. But a
few weeks' residence rubs off the edge of this sensi-
tiveness, and we wonder after a little while that we
could have associated danger with what appears so
commonplace a matter.

But no frequency of repetition avails to prevent our
appreciation of the beauty and interest of this charm-
ing promenade. The crowds of persons who frequent
it sufficiently proclaim its power to please. On a
beautiful summer evening we may see the visitors not
only thronging the walks, and filling the comfortable
seats that have been let in so numerously into the
solid rock, but studding the steep sides from the
summit to the water's edge, on ledges, and points, and

GLORIES OF SUNSET. 161

slippery projections, wherever there is standing room.
And truly this bold headland commands some noble
views. To see the sun set on such a calm evening as
I have mentioned is very fine : the clouds piled, like
mountain upon mountain, about the horizon, all
brilliant as he sinks among them, like an oriental
monarch into his bed of gold and gems ; and then,
having hidden his person fyom our view, proclaiming
who is behind by the gilded edges, almost too bright
to gaze on, that fringe them ; the broad expanse of
blue water just broken into a ripple by the breath of
the western breeze, awakened as the sun goes down,
and reflecting the glowing radiance of the sky, like a
great causeway of light reaching across its bosom
from the spectator to the horizon: — this surely is a
magnificent sight, behold it where and when we may :
and it is seen to unusual advantage from the elevated
promenade of Capstone Hill. The spectators linger
on the sight, every face turned towards the west;
though the glittering splendour has changed to rich
hues of crimson and orange, and these in their turn
have faded to a ruddy brown hue, that is already
leaving the western quarter and creeping round to-
wards the north, and will not quite leave the horizon
all through the night, until it brightens in the eastern
sky with the rays of morning.

On a clear sunny day it is very pleasant to wind
along the rocky path, resting at intervals on the con-
venient seats, or pausing to enjoy the beauties pre-
sented by different points of view. As we ascend the
western side, we may stand at the parapet and look
over the precipice on the beach of Wildersmouth

162 PROSPECTS.

below. Perhaps the tide is out, and the long ledges
of rock are exposed, alternating with little spots of
shingle. The bathing machines are drawn down to
the water's edge, and the singularly-attired priestesses
of the bath are carrying out little girls in flannel
gowns, and duckiog them in the wave. Ladies are
speckling the grey rocks with their gay dresses and
parasols as they sit in the sun, and merry children
are sailing their tiny boats in the pools, or digging
up the pebbles with their toy-spades.

We proceed, and gradually open the dark, iron-
bound coast of North Devon, as far at least as the
Bull point, a bluff promontory, black and frowning,
that projects far into the sea. Far out upon the horizon
appears Lundy Island, like a band of blue ribbon,
dark and palpable. As we wend farther round, we
descry Worms Head, a distant mountain, the termi-
nating point of a long line of coast, stretching away
upon the northern horizon. This is the opposite side
of the Bristol Channel, and those hills that we can
just discern, rising range beyond range, are the
mountains of South Wales.

But if we turn our eyes to the scene round about,
we shall find much to admire. The varying effects
of light and shadow on these great breadths of angu-
lar rock ; the inclination of their strata, at an angle
of 45° to the horizon ; the fissures that run directly
across these, some filled with the quartz deposits,
others gaping ; the greasy gleam of the shale in some
places, the singular light-bay tint in others that
makes one think the sun's rays are falling on the
spot and are clouded elsewhere, — may all claim a

THE SUMMIT. 163

passing notice. Or we may find objects of interest
in the plants, that leave not even our rocky cliffs
quite barren. In spring, and lingering on even into
early summer, sweet and delicate tufts of primroses
grow in profusion on the sloping turf, and in the
hollows and clefts. The fleshy, glossy leaves of the
scurvy-grass, hot and pungent, are seen in many
spots, and the tufts of thrift are gay everywhere. The
kidney-vetch, varying from light-yellow to cream-
white, the bird's-foot lotus, and the bladder-campion,
are very abundant ; samphire adorns the precipitous
sides with bunches of dark-green succulent leaves,
flowering late in the season; curiously- cut leaves of
the buckhorn plantain form radiating crowns of foliage
over the minor clefts ; and ivy all the year round
spreads an ample drapery of graceful foliage over the
otherwise bare rock, especially in those aspects where
the rays of the sun can seldom reach, and where
flowers scarcely love to grow.

If we trace our way up one of the winding paths
to the very summit, we shall be rewarded by the wide
grandeur of the view. At one point a corner of the
track comes to the very verge of the cliff, and here a
short iron rail is placed as a guard. Few would pass
this without a moment's gaze of admiration at the
precipice, a hundred and fifty feet in height, and
perfectly perpendicular, that is just over against us,
or a glance at Wildersmouth far beneath. The
wheat-ear twits and flies over the edges of the cliff as
we disturb him, and the rock-pipit may be seen
perched on some projecting rock ; while at the top
numerous agile wagtails are running over the breezy

164 BEAUTIFUL AMPHITHEATRE.

down among the sheep that are grazing and bleating
there.

And here we are at the summit, nearly three hun-
dred feet above the level of the sea. A flag-staff has
been rigged on this point, and around the knot of rock
on which it stands there are seats facing various
directions. Seaward the view embraces the coasts
already mentioned, but the horizon is of course more
distant, and the range of sight more ample. The
numbers of craft of all sorts, continually coming and
going, add much to the interest of this scene. If we
turn and look inland, a prospect equally beautiful,
but of very different character demands admiration.
From the west round by the south to the east a
verdant amphitheatre extends, bounded by hills of
various form and elevation, and diversified with woods
and cultivated fields. The peaks called the Torrs,
the rounded elevated down of Langley Cleve, and a
curious, somewhat isolated conical peak known as
Carn Top, that always reminds me of Mount Tabor,
are the leading eminences to the west and south-west.
Then gentle slopes sweep away along the south line,
with the town, spread out as in a map, occupying the
bottom. To the eastward the noble mountain-mass
of Hillsborough, presenting a bluff headland to the
sea, nearly five hundred feet in height, and Rillage
Point, running out in a long sharp spit behind it,
terminate the view ; but between us and the former
is the harbour of Ilfracombe, with its shipping and
fishing craft, and perhaps a steamer lying at the pier;
and Lantern Hill, another almost isolated peak of
inferior elevation, crowned by its ancient lighthouse.

SEAWARD ROCKS. 165

and facing its opposite neighbour the giant Hills-
borough, the joint guardians of the harbour mouth.
And thus we have gazed over a semicircle, and are
brought round to" the channel again.

If now we descend to the principal promenade,
and stand on that side which faces the Welsh coast,
there stretches down from our feet to the water's edge
a rough, irregular slope of rock about fifty feet in
perpendicular height, broken into broad shelves and
wall-like descents, and cleft with deep narrow chasms,
up which the sea shoots and boils with a tremendous
uproar. Steps rudely cut in the rock give easy access
to the ledges at different elevations, and on fine sunny
days these are favourite spots with the ladies, who
scramble down and seat themselves with their books
or their netting on the little rocky perches by the
hour together. When there is a heavy swell in from
the north or west, these stations are in more than
wonted demand ; for the incoming sea rushing upon
the stony barrier, dashing up to a great height in
impotent fury, and breaking into a cloud of spray and
foam that sprinkles the beholders even far up on the
heights, is a sight well worth seeing.

WILDERSMOUTH.

The little bay that lies between Capstone and the
Runnacleaves is scarcely less attractive as a place of
resort than the promenade of the former hill by which
it is overlooked. A tiny brook, dignified however

lob WILDERSMOUTH.

with a proper name, the Wilder, discharges itself here
after a long brawling course through the upper part
of the town, and imparts to the cove itself an
appellation, familiar to the ear of every one who
has visited Ilfracombe, — Wildersmouth. Before the
Tunnels were pierced through the Kunnacleaves, now
affording access to the bathing pools at Crewkhorne,
this cove was the only bathing place available, — in-
deed the only access to the shore. And still it is a
favourite lounge, especially when the tide is out.
There are great masses of rock, sloping upward from
the land-side, but projecting in a sharp angle over the
sea, scattered everywhere about the cove, and up these
inclined planes visitors climb, ladies as well as gen-
tlemen, and sit or lie at length by the hour together,
in the pleasant sun, tempered by the breeze of sum-
mer. Some may be seen collecting from the rocks
the adhering limpets, or the tiny periwinkles of va-
rious hues, — white, green, orange, — that lie by scores
in the fissures, or gazing with curious eyes on the
glossy purple Anemones, that crowd the rocks between
tide-marks. And later in the season, the heaps of
sea-weeds washed ashore by autumnal gales afford an
endless subject of interest to collectors.

The sunny cove seems the very abode of mirth and
recreation; and yet it has been the scene of dire
disaster and heart-breaking sorrow.

Some years ago a party of nine ladies went down
to the rocks at Wildersmouth, at the part below the
Capstone, which is rather secluded by means of the
more than usually large masses of rock that rise
there. One of the ladies was the aunt of another, the

A FATAL DISASTER. 167

latter a little girl, whose parents were in India. The
child was to be bathed, but the sea was high, and she
did not like it. When she had been dipped twice,
she begged that it might suffice, but all protested that
she must have her full allowance of three dips. The
aunt accordingly plunged her a third time, but at
that instant a heavy wave coming in took the child
out of the grasp of her relative, and bore her back
beyond reach. The tide was setting down, and the
party had the agony of seeing their little companion
carried rapidly away across the mouth of the cove
towards the Tunnel rocks.

A young man, a relative, I believe, of one of the
ladies, instantly stripped and swam after the child,
who still floated. He succeeded in catching her, but
so fast had the tide swept her down, that he had to
land on the Tunnel side of the cove, and then to
climb the precipitous cliffs with his helpless burden
in one arm. She was found, however, to be quite
dead, and no appliances could restore her.

The aunt was like a maniac ; crying and tear-
ing her hair in distraction. They put her into
one of the bathing machines until the first paroxysm
of her grief had exhausted itself; but she never reco-
vered the shock. She used long afterwards to come
down to the fatal spot, and gaze out upon the sea in
hopeless and speechless melancholy, a melancholy
that never left her.

To complete the sad story, the parents of the child,
who had not heard of the event, were returning from
India shortly after, when the ship was wrecked, and
they too were both drowned.

168 THE GEMMACEOUS ANEMONE.

THE GEMMACEOUS ANEMONE.

The most obvious character of this fine species lies
in its large and numerous warts. These are not con-
tractile, or otherwise changeable in appearance, and
therefore are always appreciable. They are well-
defined, protuberant, round or oval, of considerable
size on the upper part, but diminish regularly towards
the base : they are arranged in about 30 longitudinal
series, which of course diverge from the centre w^hen the
animal is contracted ; between some of the principal
series there are other smaller rows, not included in
the above number. Each principal series contains about
twenty-two warts. Six of the rows are white, and these
are disposed symmetrically, so as to form a white star
on the summit. Between every two white rows, are
from three to five rows of an ashy grey, with dark
grey centres. The ground colour is delicate rose-pink
or carnation at the base, gradually merging into a
reddish-grey between the thickly-set warts. The re-
semblance which the Actinia, in this condition, with
its radiating lines of warts, bears to the common Sea
Urchin denuded of its spines, is singularly close and
striking. (Plate YIII. fig. 1.)

The tentacles are about fifty in number, arranged in
three or four imperfect circles. They increase in size
from without, the innermost range being largest:
they are conical, obtusely pointed, and more or less
bent in a sigmoid curve, like the branches of a can-
delabrum. Their colour is a pellucid olive on the
exterior side, unspotted, but marked across the inner
side with about eight transverse oval bands of white.

Plal^ YIII

UA^jnunxU^ i .la<

]p ge:,:'.l^£:a 6-:c, .■ or. . _ ..a : a: la:

: JMRRIUFCPMS ::-i3 AC-^^iJvI/ CAIiD'JA.

THE SEA-SPIDER. 171

produced ; some of them twice. One young at a time
seems the rule, though I should not have expected so
limited a birth : it is extruded from the mouth of the
parent (as I conjecture, for I have not witnessed the
parturition) and dropping on the bottom, attaches it-
self close by her side, or not far off, and maintains its
position pretty pertinaciously, expanding its star-like
disk for prey, and greedily seizing and devouring it
when offered ; even though it should be so large as to
swell the body up to twice its former dimensions.

The tentacles on beiug subjected to pressure display
a great number of filiferous capsules (Fig. 5) which
are thrown off in multitudes with the mucus pressed
off. They are very minute, almost Unear. about jg^th
inch in length. The extruded thread reaches to
about ^th inch : no barbs were discernible on it.

SEA-SPIDER.

A singular marine spider fPhoxichilusJ looking like
a skeleton, throws about its long legs, and crawls
slowly over the parasitic Crisim &c. from the roots
of LamitiaricB. A small one found to day carried
under it four globose masses of eggs, altogether much
wider than its body. They were difficult to detach,
being firmly held by the first pair of feet, which are
slenderer than the rest and bent under : the e^^ masses
were of a flesh-colour, and under the microscope were
full of minute perfectly globular opaque ova.

BLACK SAND-WORM.

May 22nd. — I again visited Watermouth and

172 THE BLACK SAND-WORM.

Smallmouth. The Primrose still lingers in the lane
leading up from Hele, hut is almost replaced by the
greater Stitchwort, and the red Campion ; the pretty
Milkwort is sprawling profusely over the hanks, with its
heads of delicate pink blossoms ; the ramping Fumi-
tory, with flowers more than usually rich in colour,
occurs, and even the spikes of the common Bugle are
attractive to the eye, though the plant is somewhat
coarse on examination. In the httle grove above
Wateimouth, the wild Hyacinth is still profuse, and
the purple Orchis is abundant, and many of its spikes
particularly fine, both in the size and number of their
constituent blossoms. In a pond, the Water- crowfoot
was filling the margins with its many-spht leaves, and
its unpretending little white flowers. At the shore I
found under a stone a species of A7'enicola, an uncouth
creature, of a deep black hue, or rather what a tailor
would call "invisible green." It is about six inches
long, and J inch in greatest thickness, which is nearest
the head, but not abruptly. The whole is divided
into 28 segments, each consisting of 6 annuK, of which
the foremost on each segment is stouter, and preceded
by a deeper incision than the rest. The 16 posterior
segments are furnished with branchial tufts, and pen-
cils of bristles; the former are two on each large
annulus, on the dorsal aspect ; they are protrusile, and
consist of a great number of short filaments, incurved,
which have the. power of independent motion. When I
first examined it, these little filaments were freely
pushed out and retracted, and moved with a sort of
grasping action; but after a day or two they were
still. They were largest near the tail, gradually dimin-

ITS YELLOW DYE. 17:3

ishing to the middle of the body. On the outer side
of each tuft is a small tentacle, or rather a fleshy
tubular sheath, from which issues at will a flat pencil
of fine bristles, arranged transversely to the line of
the animal : they point upwards and sHghtly outwards.
Tlie bristles are very fine and gradually tapering to a
point ; they are plain, except near the tip, where they
are clothed with the most delicate barbules, which
however are closely appressed. These pencils of bris-
tles do not cease with the branchial tufts, but are
continued on every great annulus to the head. The
mouth is constantly being everted and retracted ; in
the former process a trumpet-shaped mouth is unfold-
ed, the edges and interior of which are set with dense
papillae ; sometimes, especially after a day's captivity,
this mouth is evolved to a still greater extent, so as to
project the interior itself in a convex or almost globu-
lar form, which assumes a pellucid appearance, and a
pale-brown hue. The rings of the body are occasion-
ally adorned with a blue iridescence ; they are longitu-
dinally wrinkled, and hence there is a sort of reticulation
on the animal. When I first touched it, it discharged
(I think from the tufts) a yellow fluid, which strongly
stained my fingers : and on being kept in a saucer of
clean sea- water, I found the latter in 24 hours tinged
with olive ; as was the water, with which I replaced it,
the following day.

I subsequently found another specimen of this
animal in similar circumstances. The colouring fluid
was poured out in this case much more profusely. I
stained some writing paper with it ; the tint was at
first a full greenish-yellow, but after a day or two it

174 A CRAB AT HOME.

changed to a purplish- brown, quite permanent, neither
alterable with water nor with time. The specimens
came near to Arenicola hranchialis of Aud. et M. Edw.,
but did not quite agree with the characters given to
the species by those zoologists.

A CRAB AT HOME.

At the water's edge at the outer base of the Cap-
stone at low water, spring-tide, I was looking about
for Actinias, when peering into a hole I saw a fine
Crab, not of the very largest, but still of very nice
table dimensions. I poked in my arm and took hold
of him, and though he made vigorous efibrts to hold
fast the angles and notches of his cave with his sharp
toes, I pulled him out and carried him home. I
I noticed that there came out with him the claw of a
crab of similar size, but quite soft, which, 1 supposed,
might have been either carried in there by my gentle-
man to eat, or accidentally washed in. After I had
got him out, for it was a male, I looked in and saw
another at the bottom of the hole, which appeared to
me considerably smaller. I debated whether I should
essay this one also, but reflected that I could only eat
one at a supper, and that moderation in luxuries is
becoming ; " So," said I, " friend Crab, stay there till
next time ; I may find you here again on some other
auspicious morning." When I arrived at home, how-
ever, I discovered that I had left my pocket-knife at
the mouth of the crab-hole ; a fine strong-bladed
implement, that had already stood me in good stead
on several occasions, cutting holes for my footsteps

A SOFT CRAB. 175

in the soft rock in climbing up the precipice, when
embayed by the tide, and so forth. I felt loth to
part with my old knife, and therefore at once put on
my hat, running hard for fear the tide, which had
already turned, might be too high. I got to the place,
however, just in time, found my knife, and then took
another peep at the Crab. It had not moved, and
thinking that if I could not eat it myself I might ask
my neighbour's acceptance of it, I drew it out with my
fingers, as I had done with the former. But lo ! it was
a soft Crab; the shell being of the consistency of wet
parchment, and the colours (all except those of the
carapace) being pale. It was a female too, without
any sign of spawn, and had lost one claw ; strange !
that I had not thought of connecting the soft claw
that I had drawn out before, with this Crab that I
saw at the bottom. But I carefully put the helpless
creature into the hole again, and saw that it settled
its legs and body comfortably in its old quarters ;
and there I left it : for our Crab is worthless for the
table in this condition, unlike the Land Crabs of the
West Indies, which are esteemed peculiarly delicate
in their soft state.

What then are we to infer from this association ?
Do the common Crabs live in pairs ? and does one
keep guard at the mouth of their cavern, while its
consort is undergoing its change of skin ? If this
is the case, it is a pretty trait of cancrine character,
and one not unworthy of their acute instinct and
sagacity in other respects. The male displayed no
appearance of the moult, its coat being of a shelly
hardness. I have no doubt that the claw of its mate

176 A WALK TO LEE.

was unintentionally torn off, in its efforts to grasp
some hold when resisting my tugs in dragging him
out.

LEE.

A three miles' walk to the westward brings the
pedestrian to a romantic little spot called Lee. The
road lies over the downs, along the margins of those
very precipitous cliffs that so characterize the coast
hereabout. It does not present any unusual features,
to be sure, in a country where grandeur and variety of
scenery are the rule, but even if these were wanting,
green lanes and downs, hedges covered with flowers,
the glittering insects and the singing birds, the surge
of the sea far below, the sun, and the breeze, would
make any walk enjoyable at this season. Hither
then, basket in hand, I strolled, to discover what the
shore might afford me of the minuter works of God,
which are so eminently worthy of being studied, so
eminently calculated to afford the contemplative mind
food for wonder, delight, and meditation, though nine
hundred and ninety-nine out of every thousand of
mankind never bestow a thought upon them, and even
the great bulk of those who seek recreation by the sea
side, tread them beneath their feet in the most abso-
lute unconsciousness of their very existence.

Lee is the opening of a beautiful valley, which
bends to the right as you look at it from the sea.
The bottom is chiefly occupied by meadows, to whose
carpeted surface the late rains had imparted the
most brilliant verdure. The hedge-rows are profusely

CHARACTER OF THE SCENERY. 177

planted with elms and other trees, which, whatever
may he thought of their utility in husbandry, do
certainly improve the landscape wonderfully, affording
the finest contrasts between their dark masses of
foliage, and the tender green of the fields, as bright
as an emerald in the sunlight, seen in peeps between
them. A few farms and villas, embowered in orchards
and gardens, constitute the hamlet of Lee, and being
scattered over the bottom and along the slopes are
very picturesque. The valley rises a little inward,
and is presently lost to view by bending round to the
right, where it is shut in by the steep rounded hill
that forms that side. The whole of this hill, from its
base to its lofty summit, is covered with wood, while
the hill on the opposite side, equally lofty and equally
steep, is an open down, varied only by a few scattered
clumps of furze. A Uttle stream turns the huge wheel
of a mill at high-water mark ; then spreads itself over
the sand and shingle in broad shallow sheets rather
than channels, till it finds the receded tide. The
character of the rocks is rather peculiar : around
on either side of the cove there are the same sharp
rugged upslanting ridges and pinnacles as elsewhere,
and some pretty little deep nooks are formed in the
high rocks on the western side, enclosing sloping
beaches of sand, entirely dry at low water but covered
by the flood-tide. The whole lower part of the cove
itself, however, that is, all between tide-marks, consists
of the usual rocks, grey friable slate, cut off as it were
to one level, about three or four feet above the shingle,
and these intersected by a thousand irregular channels,
and now and then interrupted by broad areas of sand

178 STONE-TURNING.

and gravel. At the extreme of low water (it was
spring-tide), the points where these channels, (the
drainage of the sea-water from the weed-covered rocks,
mingled with the stream from the land) debouched
into the sea, were strewn with loose stones and
boulders of various sizes, partly embedded in the
deposit of mud which this formation so copiously
supplies ; for the ease with which the substance of
this grey slate is abraded by the action of the waves
covers the bottom with a fine whitish slimy mud,
very unpleasant to the feel, and ever ready to be
stirred up when a little sea is on. The water here
therefore scarcely ever has the brilliant clearness
which characterizes it among the limestones and
sandstones of South Devon.

Stones found in such circumstances afford a good
hunting ground for the naturalist; fishes, Crustacea,
annelides, and star-fishes in particular haunt under
their shelter, and an hour's turning wdll, unless his
fortune be unusually inauspicious, yield him material
for days study. Beneath one of these stones I found
a specimen of our smallest native Pipe-fish, w^hich
Mr. Yarrell has described under the name of the Worm
Pipe-fish (Syngnathus lumbriciformisj. It is a
much more beautiful little creature than you might
suppose from either the figure or the description of
that eminent zoologist, who probably has had no
opportunity of seeing its living grace and elegance.
Mr. Yarrell simply says that its " colour is dark olive
green" ; this however very imperfectly expresses its
various tints, a want which I will endeavour to supply
with the httle beauty before my eyes ; premising that

THE WORM PIPE-FISH. 179

it is not very easy to describe in detail an agile
creature that is every moment gliding in and out
among the sea-weeds in its vase. (See Plate VIII.
Figs. 6 and 7.) The general hue of the body is a
warm yellow olive, becoming silvery grey on the under
part of the lengthened tail, from the vent backward.
The sides of the head and neck are profusely marbled
wdth conspicuous spots of pure white, of varying form
and size, the effect of which is heightened by each
being surrounded by a border of black ; on each side
of the crown also there passes off from behind the eye
to the occiput, an interrupted streak of white, bordered
below with black. A flush of red purple suffuses the
middle of the operculum, covering without concealing
the spots and clouds of that part. Between the gills
and the vent there are numerous rows of white dots,
arranged perpendicularly on each side of the body at
regular intervals ; these doubtless mark the plates of
the mailed covering, a row to a plate, but whether
they are placed in the middle or at either edge of the
plate, I cannot say, for all my efforts will not avail to
make out the limits of the plates in the living fish ;
the contour of the body is perfectly smooth and flow-
ing, not cylindrical, but compressed and forming an
edge on the back and on the belly. Scattered specks
of white lie between the perpendicular rows. Behind
the vent the body is perceptibly constricted between
the plates, and this alternate swelling and constriction
extends to within half an inch of the extremity of the
tail ; the remainder being abruptly attenuated and
smooth. Each of the plates on the tail is marked at
each edge of the under side, by a roundish well-

180 ^ MOVEMENTS OF ITS EYES.

defined white spot, succeeded by one of black ; and
the whole of this part, which glistens with a lustre like
that of tin -foil, is sprinkled with numerous irregular
white and black spots. The eye is very beautiful ; it
is particularly large, full, and glassy ; the pupil is
encircled by a fine ring of golden red, and the iris is
marked with alternate divergent bands of grey and
brown. The fin-rays are simple, and, with the mem-
brane, which is very subtle, are studded with very
minute olive specks, except in diagonal spots and
bands of clear space.

The muzzle is abruptly narrowed immediately before
the eyes (looking at it vertically), and widens a httle
towards the tip : the mouth opens, as in other Pipe-
fishes, perpendicularly. The nostrils form minute
projecting warts. The line of the belly is gently
curved to the vent, from wliich point the body is much
more slender, both laterally and ventrally. The tail
is compressed, and terminates in a flattened point. I
observed a curious bladder-like tumour, under the
throat, just behind the gill-covers, but whether it is
normal or accidental I cannot say.

In captivity the manners of this pretty little fish
are amusing'and engaging. Its beautiful eyes move
independently of each other, which gives a most
curious effect as you watch its little face through a
lens ; one eye being directed towards your face, with
a quick glance of apparent intelligence, while the other
is either at rest, or thrown hither and thither at various
other objects. I was strongly reminded of that strange
reptile, the Chameleon.

Another point of resemblance to that animal our

ITS INTELLIGENCE. 181

little Pipe-fish presents in the prehensile character of
its tail. It curves just the tip of this organ laterally-
round the stem or frond of some sea-weed, and holds
on by this half-inch or so, while the rest of its body
roves to and fro, elevating and depressing the head
and foreparts, and throwing the body into the most
graceful curves. The immediateness, with which the
prehensile action followed contact of the part with
any object, reminded me of what I have observed in
the tails of the American Monkeys, in which the
slightest and most accidental touch of the tail-tip
instantly excites the grasping action. Perhaps it is
in a measure involuntary.

Al] the motions of the Pipe-fish manifest much
intelligence. It is a timid little thing, retiring from
the side of the glass at which it had been lying, when
one approaches, and hiding under the shadow of the
sea-weeds, which I have put in both to afi'ord it shel
ter, and also to supply food in the numerous animal-
cules that inhabit these marine plants. Then it
cautiously glides among their bushy fronds, and from
under their shelter peeps with its brilliant eyes at the
intruder, as if wondering what he can be, drawing
back gently on any alarming motion. It was only
by taking my opportunity, presenting my pocket lens,
and approaching my face to the side of the glass very
slowly and cautiously, that I could examine it suffi-
ciently for the purposes of delineation and de-
scription.

In swimming it is constantly throwing its body
into elegant contortions and undulations: often it
hangs nearly perpendicular, with the tail near the sur-

182 ITS MANNERS.

face, and the head near the bottom of the glass, only
bent upwards with a sudden curve : now and then it
butts against the side of the vessel, or even against
the bottom, with reiterated blows of its nose as if it
could not make out why it should not go forward
where it can see no impediment. Now it twists
about as if it would tie its body into a love-knot ; then
hangs motionless in some one of the " lines of beau-
ty " in which it has accidentally paused ; its air-
bladder conspicuous as a pellucid oblong spot about
halfway between the nose and the vent, as you look
at its body between your eye and the light ; and then if
you apply your lens carefully you will see the constant
action of the gill-covers, and the periodical currents
of water shot forth behind in two forcible jets, from
a minute orifice on each side, just above the operculum
edge. The little fin that rides on the middle of the
back, so filmy as to be scarcely noticeable while un-
moved, is constantly, while the fish is swimming, and
at frequent intervals while it is at rest, fluttered with
a rapid vibration, like that of the gauzy wing of an
insect. This is a very charming action.

My specimen is about five inches long, which is the
size given by Mr. Yarrell as that of adult age ; but I
do not see any trace of ova, or of the pouch proper
to the male ; it is probable it is a female.

It does not appear to be nocturnal in its activity :
it ordinarily lies quiet, if undisturbed, and concealed
among the more bushy of the sea-weeds, for the
gieatest portion of its time, but usually comes forth
once or twice in the day for a half-hour's play, when
it swims about in contortions in the manner I have

ITS DISEASE. 188

described. I think I have observed that the afternoon
is a favourite season for these exercises ; not, how-
ever, that it adheres with any regularity to time.

June 2Srd. — I have had my little Pipe-fish now
nearly three weeks. The terminal portion of the tail,
that I mentioned above as abruptly attenuated, flat-
tened, and smooth, has grown considerably : it was at
first not quite half-an-inch in length, it is now nearly
an inch : the appearance is exactly like that of a
renewed tail, like that of a Lizard for instance. But
there is another change in my little captive, that is
less pleasing. The bladder-like tumour beneath the
throat has increased, and spread, so that above, on the
sides, and below, all about the body, the fish is nearly
covered with large patches of bladders, many of them
contiguous to each other, evidently filled with water
or air. It is probably air ; for the efi'ect is to float
the fish on the surface ; and it is only by muscular
energy in swimming that it can get dow^n again
when once at the top ; and when among the w^eeds
it is fain to take hold with its prehensile tail to keep
itself there. It is evidently a disease ; analogous, one
might say, considering the difl'erence of the elements
in which we respectively live, to the dropsy among
ourselves. I endeavoured to tap some of the largest
bladders with a needle, and fancied it felt some relief;
but I was afraid to attempt much at this kind of
chirurgery, lest I might be found guilty by a jury of
fishes of the crime of fish-slaughter. What little I
did, however, seemed to do good, for the next day
many of the bladders had disappeared, but only to
return in greater numbers and size than ever. The

184 ITS DEATH.

poor little fish now could only float at the surface ;
and as that could not last long, I resolved to attempt
a more extensive puncturing. I accordingly took it
into my fingers, and pierced the bladders here and
there in various parts of the body, and then returned
it to the water. At first I was afraid I had killed it
by keeping it out of water, though only for so brief a
period as a few minutes (certainly not more than two
or three); for it floated belly uppermost, and appeared
much exhausted, but gradually recovered. Though
it did not appear immediately that the bladders com-
municated with each other, yet they certainly did, for
the next day they had greatly diminished, and in a
few days they had entirely disappeared ; the skin had
healed and become smooth and healthy, and the little
creature was able to enjoy itself again.

July ^^th. — I found my pet dead, on my return after
a week's absence from home ; it had apparently been
dead about three or four days ; so that it has lived in
captivity rather more than four weeks.

The difficulty of delineating with accuracy objects
that can be defined only with microscopic powers
would hardly be imagined by those who have never
attempted it. In the case of this little fish, every
glance at its form or colours, in order to transmit
them to the paper, was taken through a triple pocket-
lens, which had to be exchanged for the pencil at
each stroke. The focus of this glass was about half
an inch, but the fish was swimming freely in a large
glass vase five inches wide ; so that it was only when
it spontaneously approached close to the side of the
transparent vessel, that I could get a sight. It was.

MICROSCOPICAL DRAWING. lf^5

of course, of no use to try to ^pw^f/^ it to the required
spot; the atterapt only alarmed the little creature, and
made it dart hither and thither ; I could only wait
patiently its wayward will. When it came, perhaps
it would be with the wrong side presented towards
me, or the part w^hich I wanted would be turned to
one side, or in some way altered from its former
position. And very often indeed, just as I had got
my glass to the focus, and my eye to the glass, after wait-
ing perhaps for a quarter of an hour, — before I could
get a glance w^ith sufficient distinctness to impress an
image on my eye for delineation, the fish would dart
over to the other side, and leave me to exercise
patience for another quarter.

This is the perpetual experience of those who draw
living animals with the microscope. The camera
lucida is an admirable aid for motionless forms, but it
is powerless for such as are agile and fitful. Nor is
the case of those minute creatures that are viewed
through the compound microscope at all better than
that of my Pipe-fish watched through a lens held in
the fingers. In order to see it to advantage, you must
allow your Zoophyte or Annelide space sufficient to
expand or move in ; w^hen, if it be a lively species,
probably, just as you have got it steady enough to
delineate the first two or three lines, away it suddenly
starts, its position is quite changed, the relation of its
parts to your eye is altered, or perhaps it shoots clean
ofi", out of the field of vision.

CHAPTER VIII.

Rock-pools — Their Abundance — Southey's Description — Its truth
to Nature — ^Their Loveliness — Chondrus — Its brilliant Reflec-
tions— The branching Coryne — A Parasite — A Beautiful
Sea- weed — Structure of the Zoophyte — Origin of its name —
Tentacles — Their Structure— Egg Capsules — Escape of the
Eggs — The Bird's-head Coralline — Elegant Shape of the Poly-
pidom -Advantage of studying living Animals — The Cell
— The Polype — Its Organization — Muscles — Economy in God's
works — A Populous Stone — Enumeration of its Tenants —
Reflections — God's Purpose in Creation — The hopefid Future
— The Sessile Coryne — ^The Belgian Pedicellina — Its Form
and Structure — Production of its Young — Its Habits — Its
Affinities — The Slender Pedicellina — Its singular Bulb.

EOCK-POOLS.

What a delight it is to scramble among the rough
rocks that gird this stern iron-bound coast, and peer
into one after another of the thousand tide-pools that
lie in their cavities ! They are particularly abundant
here ; and indeed it is to the peculiar character of
the rocks, their rugged unevenness, depending upon
their laminated structure, and the inclination of their
strata, that we are indebted for the pools, which make
the coast so rich and tempting a hunting ground to the
naturalist. I do not wonder that when Southey had
an opportunity of seeing some of these beautiful quiet

ROCK-POOLS. 187

basins hollowed in the living rock, and stocked with
elegant plants and animals, having all the charm of
novelty to his eye, — they should have moved his
poetic fancy, and found more than one place in the
gorgeous imagery of his oriental romances. Just
listen to him.

It was a garden still beyond all price.
Even yet it was a place of Paradise ;

*******

And here were coral-bowers.
And grots of madrepores,
And banks of sponge, as soft and fair to eye
As e'er was mossy bed
Whereon the wood-nymphs lie
With languid limbs in summer's sultry hours.
Here too were living flowers.
Which like a bud compacted.
Their purple cups contracted.
And now, in open blossom spread,
Stretch'd like green anthers many a seeking head.

And arborets of jointed stone were there.
And plants of fibres fine as silkworm's thread ;
Yea, beautiful as mermaid's golden hair

Upon the waves dispread.
Others that, like the broad banana growing,
Rais'd their long wrinkled leaves of purple hue.
Like streamers wide outflowing.

(kehama, XVI. 5.)

A hundred times might you fancy you saw the
type, the very original of this description, tracing
line by line, and image by image, the details of the
picture; and acknowledging, as you proceed, the
minute truthfulness with which it has been drawn.
For such is the loveliness of nature in these secluded
reservoirs, that the accomplished poet, when depicting
the gorgeous scenes of eastern mythology, scenes the

188 * BEAUTY OF SEA-WEEDS.

wildest and most extravagant that imagination could
paint, drew not upon the resources of his prolific
fancy for imagery here, but was well content to jot
down the simple lineaments of nature, as he saw her
in plain homely England.

It is a beautiful and fascinating sight for those who
have never seen it before, to see the little shrubberies
of pink coralline, — the "arborets of jointed stone," —
that fringe these pretty pools. It is a charming sight
to see the crimson banana-like leaves of the Deles-
seria waving in their darkest corners; and the purple
fibrous tufts of Polysiphonia and Ceramia, ^^fine as
silkworm's thread." But there are many others which
give variety and impart beauty to these tide-pools.
The broad leaves of the Ulva, finer than the finest
cambric, and of the brightest emerald-green, adorn
the hollows at the highest level ; while at the lov/est
wave tiny forests of the feathery Ptilota and Dasya^
and large leaves, cut into fringes and furbelows, of rosy
Rhodymenice. All these are lovely to behold, but I think
I admire as much as any of them, one of the com-
monest of our marine plants, Chondrus crispus. It
occurs in the greatest profusion on this coast, in
every pool between tide-marks ; and every-where, —
except in those of the highest level, where constant
exposure to light dwarfs the plant, and turns it of a
dull umber-brown tint, — it is elegant in form and
brilliant in colour. The expanding fan-shaped
fronds, cut into segments, cut, and cut again, make
fine bushy tufts in a deep pool, and every segment of
every frond reflects a flush of the most lustrous azure,
like that of a tempered sword-blade. Professor

THE PTILOTA. 189

Harvey, than whom no higher authority can be cited
on the subject of marine botany, says that this species
"has been observed to be occasionally iridescent."
But he has surely not seen it around Ilfracombe ;
for, with the exception of the stunted fronds that grow
near high-water, I have never seen it otherwise, and
I have seen roods upon roods of the plant. This
iridescence is common to it also around Torquay ;
it is not lost nor even diminished when the plant is
kept in an aquarium, for I have specimens that have
been growing for many weeks in my pans and glass
vases, and which are as brilliant as when they were
first procured.

THE BRANCHING CORYNE.

Peeping about among the pools that lie clear and
calm in the hollows of the rocks below the Torrs, my
eye was attracted by a tuft of that feathery sea-weed,
Ptilota sericea. It is not uncommon, fringing the
perpendicular sides of the ragged ledges and out-
cropping strata, near the lowest tide-mark, wherever
the form of the succeeding ledge allow^s the water to
lie in a long, narrow and sharp -bottomed pool. The
colour of this sea-weed is not particularly attractive,
for it is of a dull brownish red, and the fronds have
frequently a ragged appearance ; but if it be carefully
spread out in a saucer of sea-water and examined,
there will always be some branches to be found of a
livelier hue than the rest, and these will best show
the exquisite plumose structure. Each branchlet
resembles a tiny feather regularly pinnated ; and if

190 THE BRANCHING CORYNE.

examined in a microscope of rather high power, each
of the ultimate nerves of the pinnation, as well as the
vanes or pinnules themselves, is seen to be com-
posed of a single row of red transparent cells, of an
oblong cylindrical form sometimes swollen in the
middle, attached to each other end by end, looking
something like the back-bone of a fish, when all the
ribs and spines are detached.

But what attracted me on this tuft of sea-weed
whose soft feathery branches were hanging from the
sides of the rock into the calm and dark pool, was a
slender branching filament that was evidently a para-
site. I separated the Ptilota with as much of the
base as I could, and put it into a broad-mouthed
phial of clean water, I could not wait till I got
home, but looked out for a dry smooth stone on
which to sit, pulled out my pocket-lens, and looked at
it. To my gratification it was a polype that I had
several times vainly wished to find ; I had no difficulty
in recognizing its similitude to Mrs Johnston's beau-
tiful figure of Coryne lyusilla in Brit. Zooph. pi. ii.
(2nd. Edit.); though I think it rather belongs to the
species distinguished as ramosa. It may possibly
be the C. glandulosa of Dalyell (An. of Scot. V^ol. ii.
pi. 21) ;— but hardly of pi. 22.

It was not however, until I could institute a closer
examination of it at home, that I fully apprehended
its curious structure or its elegant beauty, and this, by
the aid of a sketch that I immediately made of its
microscopic appearance, I will endeavour to convey
to you.

The animal as seen by the naked eye looks like a

Vut^.?:

PhMul fyMuJtmanJil t Waitif,

ZOWmi RAMOSA.

ITS STRUCTURE. 191,

very slender branching plant. (Plate IX. Fig. 1.) It is
altogether about as thick as fine sewing cotton ; an
irregularly winding thread creeps along the frond of
the sea-weed, clinging firmly to it as it goes, yet not
so tenaciously but that it may be pulled away with-
out dividing. This creeping root sends off frequent
rootlets, which crossing each other appear to anasto-
mose, making a sort of net- work of a few oblong areas.
Free stalks shoot up here and there from the creeping
stem, one of which in my specimen is upwards
of three inches in length : they show a very slight
disposition to ramification ; but send forth at short
intervals the polype-branchlets, irregularly on all sides.
A few of these are compound, one branch let giving
origin to another from its side. The creeping fibre,
the stalk, and the branchlets are seen under the
microscope to be tubular, and the two latter are mark-
ed throughout their course with close-set rings, or
false joints, apparently produced by the annular infold-
ing of a small portion of the integument. (Fig. 2.) The
tube is of a yellowish -brown colour, sufficiently trans-
lucent to reveal a core or central axis of flesh running
along its centre, and sending off branches into the
polype-branchlets, from the open tips of which the
flesh emerges in the form of a thickened oblong head,
somewhat club-shaped, whence the name Coryne, (from
xo/jt;j/vj, a club) which has been assigned to this
genus by naturalists. The tube or sheath becomes
membranous, or I think gelatinous, (like that of some
Rotifera) at its margin, the ultimate three or four
rings being evidently soft, scarcely consistent, viscid
(entangling extraneous matters), almost colourless,

.192 THE BRANCHING CORYNE.

of undefined outline, and larger than the rest.
The polype-flesh, which is very slender within the
tube, enlarges rapidly as it emerges. The club-
shaped head of the polype is studded with short
tentacles of curious and beautiful structure. They
vary much in number on each polype, but the full
complement appears to be from twenty-five to thirty ;
they are arranged in somewhat of a whorled manner,
in four or five whorls, which are, however, (especiallv
the lower ones) often irregular and scarcely distinct.
Four tentacles usually constitute the final whorl ;
about six the next, the others respectively contain
seven or eight, and ten or twelve. The tentacles
spring from the axis with a graceful curve, thev are
rather thick and short, when contracted, but slender
when elongated, nearly equal in diameter, except at
the termination, where each is furnished with a glo-
bose head. This head (See Figs. 3 and 4) is studded
with minute tubercles on every part, which reflect the
light, and which viewed by transmitted light are seen
to be the terminations of numerous oval cells or folli-
cles set in a divergent manner around the centre.
Each tubercle is tipped with a minute bristle. The
neck or body of the tentacle is perfectly transparent,
pellucid, whitish or nearly colourless, and appears to
be a tube with thin w^alls slightly hairy on the surface,
but containing a colourless thickish axis, freely per-
meating its centre, marked with delicate parallel
rings. The globose knobs at the tips of the tenta-
cles remind me of the unexpanded blossoms of an
Acacia : they are generally tinged with pale red,
and in some polypes, especially terminal ones, they

THE EGG-VESICLES. 193

are of a fine rose colour, and have an attractive
appearance.

The tentacles are endowed with the power of free
motion, and they frequently throw themselves to and
fro with considerable energy ; when perfectly at ease
they are canied projecting at right angles from the
polype, hut are more commonly curved up towards it.
The whole polype can he also tossed from side to side
at pleasure. The tentacles are contractile and exten-
sile in some degree ; for if the animal be taken out of
water for an instant, and again replaced, these organs
are found to he shrunk up to less than half of their
former length. In a few minutes they recover their
extension.

Some of the polype heads are furnished with organs
of another kind. Among the tentacles, chiefly of the
lower whorls, are seen one or two oval bodies, about
twice or thrice as large as a tentacle-head, which are
attached by short footstalks to the polype-body. They
are composed of a clear jelly-like granular mass, with
an oval dark nucleus in the centre, connected with the
attachment: the nucleus is of an orange or yellow
hue, and is coarsely granulated. In some that I kept,
this dark nucleus became larger until it almost filled
the interior; but the death of the animals prevented
my seeing the full development. These are egg-cap-
sules, as I afterwards ascertained.

About the end of August a fine specimen in one
of my glasses fell under my notice, as having an appear-
ance which made me think that it had just renewed
its polype-heads after the old ones had decayed away.
But in looking at it I saw that one head bore two

194 DISCHARGE OF THE EGGS.

ovigerous vesicles of so large a size that I at once
isolated the head in hopes of witnessing the develop-
ment of the embryo.

The capsules showed the same structure, but as
one was larger and evidently more developed than the
other, I selected that one for particular examination.
(Fig. 5). It was perfectly spherical, with a short
footstalk, through which a neck of dark brown sub-
stance connected with the central nucleus, which
was also dark brown, round or slightly oval, and well-
defined. This nucleus is not an aggregation of ova,
as Dr. Johnston seems to suppose (Br. Zooph. 39),
but a sort of placenta around which many ova are
arranged, in the manner shown at Fig. 5 (representing
for clearness' sake a section). These ova fill the
whole space between the nucleus and the walls of the
capsule ; they are of a clear, yellowish-brown hue,
slightly granular in texture, rondo -triangular in form,
with one angle resting on the placental nucleus.

I had not been watching the capsule many minutes
before its gelatinous walls burst at the side the
farthest from the footstalk; and the ova began to
issue forth in quick succession, as shewn at Fig. 6.
It appeared that the elasticity of the walls was the
inmaediate cause of their exit, for they w^ere evidently
pressed out ; and towards the end of the process when
few remained, the collapse of the walls became quite
evident, and when the last ovum was excluded, the
capsule had shrunk up so as to leave scarcely any
appreciable space between the skin and the nucleus,
which latter remained unchanged

Twenty five ova were thus excluded from one cap-

THEIR STRUCTURE. 195

sule, the process being all over in about a minute.
To my surprise they were neither medusoids, nor
ciliated planules, but soft gelatinous inanimate eggs,
closely like those of Rotifera, without the least
appearance of cilia, or of spontaneous motion (Fig. 7).
They all sank immediately to the bottom of the glass
cell, and remained motionless, as far as respects
change of place. But after several hours I perceived
that each egg was undergoing a constant change of
shape, reminding me of those alterations of outline
seen in the Ammba among Infusoria. Sometimes a
constriction would appear across one end of an egg,
which would move towards the middle, cutting it into
two portions, then be slowly obliterated. Or from
some point in the circumference little swellings would
protrude, and these I have reason to think separated,
for though I did not actually see this done, I saw
several small globules lying, by, of exactly the same
substance and colour as the ova themselves. Or an
Qgg would imperceptibly become from round to oval,
thence to pear-shaped, and thence assume some
irregular form, and gradually revert to its original
appearance. These changes were slow in operation,
but they indicate that the ovum remains soft and
shell-less, and that there is a principle of volition
within it. They one by one decomposed.

THE bird's head CORALLINE.

In one of the shallow pools near the base of Cap-
stone Hill, I took several beautiful specimens of one
of the prettiest of the Polyzoan polypes, Cellularia

196 THE bird's-head coralline.

avicularia. Well does it deserve the name of Bird's
head Coralline, given it hy the illustrious Ellis, for
it possesses those curious appendages that resem-
ble Vulture's heads, in great perfection. All these
specimens of mine were most thickly studded with
them, not a cell without its bird's head, and all see-
sawing, and snapping, and opening the jaws, with the
most amusing activity, and (what was marvellous)
equally active on one specimen from whose cells all
the polypes had died away, as in those in which
the polypes were protruding their lovely bells of
tentacles.

The polypidoms were distinctly visible to the naked
eye, and attracted my attention before T touched them,
while yet in their native pool ; though of course I did
npt know what they were until I examined them to
better advantage. Some of them stand two inches in
height, and are about one third of an inch in widest
diameter. The cells are set in longitudinal series,
two or three rows abreast, and closely adhering; the
branchlets thus formed divide dichotomously, (that is,
into two, and each of these into two more, and so on,
and so make broad fan-shaped branches, which are
segments of funnels : and the peculiar elegance of
this zoophyte consists in the mode in which these
ultimate branches are set on the stem, viz. in a spiral
turn, so that the effect is that of several funnels set
one within another, but which yet are seen, on turning
the whole round, to compose one corkscrew band of
fans. (See Plate X. %. 1.)

The stem ascends perpendicularly from a slender
base which is attached to the rock, or to the cells of

riai^X

PrtntedhyMlMonMR Vaitoa .

CELLULARIA AVICULARTA.

LIVING MICROSCOPY. 197

a Lepralia which encrust the rock; the midmost
part of the spire is most expansive, whence the
diminution above and below is pretty regular, The
general colour, while alive, is pale buff, but the cells
become nearly white in death.

When examined microscopically it is, however, that
the curious organization of this zoophyte is discovered,
especially when examined in full health and vigour,
with all the beautiful polypes protruded and expanded
to the utmost, on the watch for prey. It seems to me
a poor thing to strain one's eyes at a microscope over
a dead and dry polypidom, as it does to examine a
shrivelled and blackened flower out of a herbarium ;
though I know well that both the one and the other
are often indispensable for the making out of techni-
cal characters. But if you want to get an insight
into the structure and functions of any of these
minute animals, especially such as are so transparent
that all the offices of life are discernible in active
operation, or if you want to be charmed with the
perception of beauty, or delighted with new and sin-
gular adaptations of means to ends, oi if you desire
to see vitality under some of its most unusual and yet
most interesting phases, or if you would have emotions
of adoring wonder excited, and the tribute of praise
elicited to that mighty Lord God who made all things
for his own glory, — then take such a zoophyte as this,
fresh from his clear tide-pool, take him without injury
done by violently tearing him from his attachment,
and therefore detach with care a minute portion of the
surface-rock itself, and then drop him with every
organ in full activity into a narrow glass cell with

198 THE birds' heads.

parallel sides, filled with the purest sea-water, and
put the whole on the stage of your microscope with a
power of not more than 100 linear, at least for the
first examination ; — I greatly mistake if you will not
confess that the intellectual treat obtained is well
worth, aye, ten times more than worth, all your
trouble.

The cells of the Bird's-head Coralline are oblong,
shaped somewhat like a sack of com, with a spine
ascending from each of the upper comers. (See figs.
2 and 3.) Each stands on the summit of its prede-
cessor in the same row, and side by side with those of
its fellow rows, in such an order that the top of one
cell comes opposite the middle of the one beside it.
The top of the cell is rounded and appears imperforate,
but we shall presently find an opening there. The
broad side that faces inwardly has a large elliptical
transparent space occupying nearly its whole surface,
which, from its well-defined edges, I was long tempted
to think, was really a great aperture, though delicate
manipulation appeared to give a very subtle surface
to it ; this, as I subsequently found, is covered with a
very thin and elastic membrane, and answers a pecu-
liar end. Just below one of the spines that crowns
the summit of the cell, on one of the edges, x-ather on
the interior than on the exterior, is situated a little
tubercle, to which is attached, by a very free joint, a
bird's-head process, in all essential particulars agree-
ing with that of Cellularia cilitata which I have
already described. The lower mandible in this case
is, however, set farther back, and the upper is desti-
tute of those tooth-like serratures that characterize it

THE POLYPES. 199

in the kindred species. The motions are exactly
the same in both cases. I observe that sometimes the
place of the bird's head is occupied by an oval or
pear-shaped body, which is probably an early stage of
its development; and when perfectly formed there
is much difference of size, some of these curious
organs being twice as large as others on the same
specimen.

Now let us come to the polype itself. It is when
we get a good lateral view of a single inhabited cell,
that we obtain a knowledge of the structure of the
tenant. The summit of the cell is then seen to pro-
trude, diagonally towards the inner side, — (i. e. to-
wards the axis of the spire) a tubular mcTiith, which
is membranous and contractile. When the animal
wishes to emerge, this tubular orifice is pushed out
by evolution of the integument, and the tentacles are
exposed to view, closely pressed into a parallel bun-
dle (See fig. 4); the evolution of the integument, that
is attached at their base, goes on till the whole is
straightened, when the tentacles diverge and assume
the form of a funnel, or rather that of a wide-mouthed
bell, the tips being slightly everted (See fig. 5).
They are furnished with a double row of short cilia
in the usual order, one set working upward, the other
downward. Their base surrounds a muscular thick
ring, the entrance to a funnel-shaped sac, the substance
of which is granular, and evidently muscular, for its
contractions and expansions are very vigorous, and
yet delicate. Into this first stomach passes with a
sort of gulp any animalcule, whirled to the bottom of
the funnel by the ciliary vortex, and from thence it is

200 THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.

delivered, through a contracted, hut still rather wide
gullet, into an ohlong stomach, the lower portion of
which is ohtuse. An extremely attenuated duct con-
nects this, which is prohahly the true stomach, with a
globular, rather small, intestine, which is again con-
nected by a lengthened thread with the base of the cell.
By an arrangement common to the ascidian type of
the digestive function, the food is returned from the
intestine into the true stomach, whence the effete parts
are discharged, through a wide and thick tube that
issues from it close behind the point where the gullet
enters. This rectal tube passes upwards parallel to
the gullet, and terminates by an orifice outside and
beliind the base of the tentacles. All these viscera
are beautifully distinct and easily identified, owing to
the perfect transparency of the walls of the cell, the
simplicity of the parts, and their density and dark
yellow colour. All of them are manifestly granular
in texture, except the slender corrugated tube which
connects the stomach with the globose intestine :
this is thin and membranous, and is doubtless, if I
may judge from analogy, capable of wide expansion
for the passage of the food-pellet.

The sudden contraction of the polype into its cell
upon disturbance or alarm, and its slow and gradual
emergence again, afford excellent opportunities for
studying the forms, proportions, and relative positions,
of the internal organs. In contraction, the globular
intestine remains nearly where it was, but the stomach
slides down into the cell behind it, as far as the flex-
ible duct will allow, and the thick gullet bows out in
front, shewing more clearly the separation between it

THE CELL-MEMBRANE. 201

and the rectum, and the insertion of both into the
stomach. This retractation is in part effected by
a pair of longitudinal muscular hands, which are
inserted at the back of the bottom part of the cell, and
into the skin of the neck below the tentacles. The
contraction of these bands draws in the integument
like the drawing of a stocking within itself, and
forces down the viscera into the cavity of the
cell, which is probably filled with the vital juices-
(See Fig. 4).

Besides the hind bands there is one or a pair of
similar muscular bands attached on each side of tha
front part of the base of the cell, and inserted simi-
larly into the neck. It was while watching the con-
traction of these that I discovered with pleasure the
use of the membrane- covered aperture up the front of
the cell. At the moment of the retractation of the
viscera into the cell, a large angular membrane was
forced outward from the frout side, which was pro-
truded more or less in proportion to the degree of
withdrawal of the polype, and as the latter emerged
again, the membrane fell back to its place. It is
evident then that this a provision for enlarging the
cavity; the walls are horny and probably almost
inelastic, but when the stomach forces the intestine
forward, and the thick gullet is bent outward by the
withdrawal of the neck and tentacles, the needful
room is provided by the bulging out of this elastic
membrane, which recovers its place by the pressure
of the surrounding water, when the pressure of the
fluids within is removed.

202 ECONOMY IN NATURE.

A POPULOUS STONE.

The economy with which God works in nature has
been often noticed, and especially that phase of it
which consists in the profusion and variety of exist-
ance that can he crowded and sustained in a given
space. A plant is growing in the earth; it occupies a
certain amount of room, and appears, to speak
loosely, to fill it. But on examination we may find
other plants growing on it ; its back, the angles of its
branches, its buds, its leaves, the interior of its blos-
soms, its seed-vessels — are occupied by many species
of spiders and insects, which find ample room for the
carrying on of their respective functions and the
enjoyment of their lives ; not to speak of the birds,
and butterflies, and bees, and flies, that are but tem-
porary visitants, mere comers and goers. Many of
these minute animals have other creatures living on
them as parasites ; the earwig that is snugly enscon-
ced in the tube of that flower is tenanted by a long
intestinal worm ; yonder caterpillar so calmly gnaw-
ing out sinuous cavities in the edge of a leaf, sup-
ports within a colony of infant ichneumons ; the little
wild bee that has just alighted on this blossom would
be found to carry about sundry maggots whose black
heads peep out from beneath the rings of his abdomen.
Even the very juices that circulate in the vessels of
the plant probably bear along in their course the
germs of invisible animalcules ; for if we take the
leaves, or the flowers, or the stems, and make an
infusion of them, carefully covering the vessel to

A POPULOUS STONE. 203

prevent intrusion from without, we shall find in a
day or two that the water is swarming with living
creatures of various kinds, known to microscopic
observers as infusory animalcules.

But I think nowhere is this economy seen to better
advantage now nowhere here is it more admirable than
in the sea, especially about the rude rocks that fringe
our coast, and that we are apt to think so barren and
repulsive. The rough stony surface of the rock
between tide-marks, is quite alive with beautiful and
interesting creatures both animal and vegetable ; and
as we find the profusion increase the nearer we
approach to that line whence the nutrient water never
recedes, we have a right to conclude, that it extends
to an indefinite distance below tide-limit. The tiny
pools that lie in the. hollows, renewed twice every day
by the influx of the sea, are perfect nurseries of plants
and animals of the most curious forms, and of the
most interesting structure.

I will endeavour to enumerate the diverse kinds of
organic life that I have detected on a small fragment
of rock now before me. It is a bit scarcely bigger
than a penny-piece, which T detached the other day
from a little rock-pool near low-water mark on the
sea-ward side of Capstone Hill. One single polype
on it attracted my notice by its beauty ; and when I
applied my chisel to the fi-agment, I did not suspect
that it was particularly rich in animal life ; nor is it
richer than usual in the amount of animal life that it
supports, but the variety certainly struck me as
remarkable on so small a surface, when I came to
examine it.

204 SEA-WEEDS.

First of all, the surface is largely encrusted with
the cells of a Lepralia, the species of which I shall
probably better know when the development of some
of its granules that I am watching is further advan-
ced. Over these cells a yellow Sponge has spread
itself, very thin, and profusely spiculous ; and patches
of a scarlet Sponge of another kind occur. Another
portion of the surface is occupied by the rose-coloured
crust of the common Coralline, overspreading like a
beautiful smooth lichen, but without a single shoot or
many-jointed stem as yet thrown up, to indicate its
true character.

These then may be called the ground-work, for we
have not yet got higher than the surface. From this
spring up two or three tiny Sea-weeds. That very
elegant plant, Bryopsis plumosa, is represented by
several of its fronds, of a most lovely green hue, pec-
tinated on each side like a comb, with perfect regu-
larity. Then there is a little specimen of Ptilota
sericea, also a pectinated species, something like the
Bryopsis in delicacy, but of a brownish red colour,
and much less beautiful. Besides these, there are
growing parasitically on one of the polypes presently
to be mentioned, several very minute ovate fronds,
not more than one eighth of an inch in length, of a
rose-red hue, which are probably very young specimens
of some of the Rhodymenm.

Now let us look at the Zoophytes. Most conspi-
cuous are several of the corkscrew-funnels that first
caught my eye while undisturbed in the quiet pool,
and induced me to secure the fragment of supporting
rock, — the spiral polypidoms of Cellularia avicularia.

ZOOPHYTES. 205

one of the most curious of our native zoophytes. The
specimens are particularly fine ; the cells tenanted
with healthy polypes in great numbers, protruding
their crystal stars of tentacles, and covered with scores
of birds' heads nodding to and fro their bald heads
like so many old men sleeping at church, and opening
and shutting their frightfully gaping jaws like snap-
ping turtles.

Up the stem of one of these Bird's head Corallines
a colony of Pedicellitia Belgica has entwined its
creeping clinging roots, and is displaying its clubbed
polypes with unfolded tentacles in every direction.
This is a very common species in our rock- pools,
parasitic on many sea-weeds and calcareous polypes.

The most abundant thing of all is Crisia aculeata,
a delicate and pretty species, easily recognised by its
long slender spine springing from the margin of every
cell. The multitude of these spines- gives a peculiar
lightness to the little shrubs in which this species
delights to grow.

Several other species are parasitic on the Crisia. I
detect the curious tiny snake-heads of Angiiinaria
spatulata, entwined about its stems. A stalk of
Bowerbankia imbricata also is here, studded with
little aggregations of cells in dense clusters, set on the
slender thread-like stem at wide intervals. And a few
of the pitcher-hke cells of that singular zoophyte,
Beania mirabilis, set with hooked prickles, I find ;
in one of which I can see the polype snugly packed,
though I cannot get him to display his beauties out-
side his door.

Besides all these, there are at least two kinds of

206 STARFISHES.

Hydroid polypes, both species of the family Corynidm.
The one is a minute sessile Coryne, I believe unde-
scribed ; the other is either Clava multicornis or a
Hydractinia, for though two specimens occur of it
(as well as of the former) I cannot, from their youth,
determine to which genus it is to be referred.*

When I first looked over the fragment with a lens,
I was sure that I saw Eiicratea chelata, with active
polypes ; but as I cannot by close searching again find
it, it is possible I was mistaken.

But even at this moment I discover something new ;
for two little Balani have just opened their valve-like
shells from amidst the yellow sponge, and are now
throwing out their curled fans of most exquisitely
fringed fingers, with precise regularity.

The minute Crustacea that hide and play among
the tangled stems of the zoophytes I will not mention,
because their presence there may be considered as only
accidental. But I cannot reckon as transient visitors
a brood of infant Brittle-stars which I find creeping
about the bases of the Cellularia, because I perceive
that they have quite made the spot their home, and
though they have been now several days in a vessel
of water, free to leave their tiny fragment and visit
others, or to roam over the expansive bottom of the
the glass, if they will, they have no such desire ; but

* Its head is rose-coloured, and this agrees with Clava, but the
tentacles are covered with whorls of pointed tubercles, which Dr.
Johnston states is not the case in that genus. On the other hand I
cannot trace any echinated crust from which the polype springs, which
is characteristic of Hydractinia. There are about nine tentacles, which
appear to me to be set nearly in the same plane. No appearance of
OTarian capsules is to be traced. It is probably a yoimg Clava.

god's providential care 207

cling to the circumscribed limits of their native rock,
with as unconquerable a partiality as if they were
Swiss, and these fragments of stone were their own
dear Alps. They crawl and twine over the surface,
and round the edges ; but it is with the utmost reluc-
tance, and only by the use of force and stratagem
combined, that I can get one off from the hold to
which he tenaciously clings. I am watching the
development, and I may say metamorphosis, of the
little brood with interest, and cannot yet say what
they are ; but I think they will turn out to be either
Ophiocoma rosula, or O.minuta, probably the latter.
Now is not this a very pretty list of the tenantry of
a bit of slate-rock two inches square ? And does it
not read us an instructive homily, — one of those
"sermons in stones" that the poet speaks of, — on the
beneficent care of Him who " openeth his hand, and
satisfieth the desire of every living thing" ? What a
family is his to be provided for day by day, and yet
every mouth filled ; — not one of these hungry polypes
going unsupplied ! What a vast amount of happiness
we here get just a glimpse of! for life, the mere
exercise of vital functions in health, and in suitable
circumstances and conditions, — the circumstances and
conditions, I mean, for which the creatures themselves
are fitted — is undoubtedly enjoyment, probably of as
high a nature as the inferior animals are capable of
receiving. We need not then ask for what purpose
God has made so great a variety of creatures of no
apparent benefit to man. Is it not an end worthy of
a Being infinitely wise and good, that He has stocked
every nook and corner of his world, even to overflow-

208 THE RESTITUTION OF ALL THINGS.

ing, with sentient existences, capable of pleasure, and
actually enjoying it to the full, hour by hour and day
by day? It is sin alone that is the cause of suffering ;
and though as a whole the domain of man partook of
the lapse of its federal head and lord, and so " the
whole creation groaneth and travaileth together until
now," " by reason of him who so subjected it to
vanity," yet we may suppose that at least the inverte-
brate portions of the animal creation suffer their share
of the fall rather coi'porately than individually, rather
nominally, in dignity, than consciously, in pain or
want. And yet I suppose that at that glorious
"manifestation of the sons of God," when creation
shall be more than reinstated in primal honour, and
shall be permanently established, so as no more to be
liable to lapse, in the immutability of the Manhood
of the Son of God, who is able to " bear the glory,"
even these low-born atoms of almost unseen and
unsuspected life, shall in some way or other, get an
augmentation of happiness, and thus take their humble
share in the blessing of the redeemed inheritance.

THE SESSILE CORYNE.

The little Coryne that I have mentioned in the
preceding enumeration, appears to differ from any of
those mentioned by Dr. Johnston. It may possibly
be the young of some recognised species, but mean-
while I shall describe it provisionally, as Coryne
sessilis. (Plate XIV, fig. 3). The polypes, about -^
inch high, stand erect from the creeping stem, without
any portion of the tube being free. They are long,

THE SESSILE CORYNE. 209

slender, club-shaped, transparent, colourless except
near the extremity where the core is dark red. The
surface is much wrinkled transversely, and there is a
very distinct polygonal reticulation, as if of cells,
visible, beneath the integument, since it is not in the
same focus as the wrinkles. The tentacles are very
numerous, (I counted forty-five on one head, and
there were probably some unseen,) shaped as in the
larger species, with w^hich their structure agrees, with
a hyaline wrinkled neck enlarging abruptly into a
globular yellowish head ; they are arranged in about
six whorls, and stand out just as in the other species.
They are greatly smaller than those of ramosa, as is
the whole polype, but especially the tentacles, their
diameter not being more than one-fourth that of the
tentacles of G. ramosa. I see no capsules on any
head. (Fig. 1.)

Several of these polypes were standing up, not very
near together,- from a crust of Lepralia (on the stone
just mentioned as chiselled from a rock-pool at Cap-
stone) close around the base of a cluster of Cellularia
avicularia. On very carefully separating one from
its root, I found that the creeping stem was very
small, not more than one-fourth the length of the
free pol}^e ; it appeared to consist of a homy trans-
parent tube not distinguishable from the integuments
of the polype, with which it was evidently continuous.
If the animal is young, is the encasing tube not
formed until some advance is made to maturity ?

Another specimen, sessile on the Lepralia without
any apparent creeping stem, was much taller and
more slender, apparently by voluntary elongation.

210 THE BELGIAN PEDICELLINA.

being undisturbed. The polype was almost quite
hyaline, with the red core only near the tip. The
tentacles were still smaller than in the other, the
necks tapering evenly to the junction of the globose
heads, where they were very attenuated : the necks
were hyaline with a few distant rings. They stood
out at right angles, generally quite straight. The
only tube appeared to be a very few investing folds
of gelatinous matter lying like a loose stocking about
its foot. Fig. 2 represents this variety. After a day or
two, both specimens shrank up into a shapeless club,
with all the tentacles agglutinated together and
around the body, in a mass.

THE BELGIAN PEDICELLINA.

One of the most common of the minute zoophytes
on this part of the coast is a species oiPedicellina.
Dr. Johnston informs me that it is the*P. Belgica of
Van Beneden, a species which, when the " History of
the British Zoophytes " was published, had not been
recognised on our shores. I find it in great abund-
ance parasitical on the bases of the smaller sea-weeds
that grow at low water, and trailing over other objects
also.

The base of the animal consists of a cylindrical
stem (Plate XII. fig. 1.) about -^ inch in diameter,
which creeps in an irregular twining manner over the
support, branching at intervals irregularly, the branch-
es intertwining and crossing each other, and sending
forth, at more or less remote intervals, rounded buds,
which soon elevate themselves upon a foot-stalk.

THE TENTACLES. 21 I

Both the stalk and the head now develop themselves
in length and thickness, until the stalk attains a
length of ahout -^ inch, and a thickness of ahout -^.
The head or body of the Polype has now become
somewhat bell -shaped, more gibbous, however, at one
side than elsewhere ; and this side, for distinction's
sake I shall call the back. The edge expands into a
wide circular disk sometimes slightly reverted, around
which are set, a little within the extreme rim, four-
teen rather short cylindrical tentacles, separated from
each other by somewhat more than their own width.
They do not expand (so far as I have seen) beyond
the limits of the disk, but rising perpendicularly
from the edge, they curl over their tips in an elegant
manner towards the common centre. The sides of
these tentacles are set with delicate cilia (Fig. 2), the
waves of which pass up on one side and down on the
other. I think that the cilia are confined to the sides,
for at either edge of the tentacular circle, where the
exterior came between the eye and the light, I could
not detect the least ciliary action. By means of the
motions thus produced I saw minute, floating parti-
cles drawn within the disk, and others shot forcibly
out.

The tentacles do not appear to be capable of con-
traction or elongation, but when expanded their in-
curved tips are continually being thrown inward, so
as to increase the curl, and again opened. This
action, which is almost constantly being performed,
is a little spasmodic jerking or grasping, very slight
in its degree. When alarmed, however, they are
drawn inward by the common contraction of the

212 THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.

disk, the edges of which then close together and form
a puckered nipple, and the whole head becomes pear-
shaped, in which state the animal might be mistaken
for some large species of the stationary Rotifera.

The colour of the whole animal is pellucid white,
and viewed by reflected light, gives us no insight into
its internal structure. It is only when examined as a
transparent object that its interior is at all revealed.
Even then the intguments are but imperfectly trans-
parent ; the whole animal, body, stalk, and stem, is
covered with a thick coat of gelatinous matter, which
is viscous, and in which Diatomacece, and other ex-
traneous bodies, become entangled ; the whole exter-
nal surface is either granular or slightly corrugated,
and transmits the rays of light tinged with yellowish
brown ; these circumstances, combined with the over-
lying of the viscera in the globose body, render the
internal parts difficult of determination. It appears,
however, that the funnel of the disk proceeds diagon-
ally downwards, until it nearly reaches the wall of the
abdominal cavity on the ventral side. It then sud-
denly turns, and (as I think) performs several convo-
lutions transversely across the body. At length it
merges into a capacious sac which occupies the whole
of the lower part of the cavity of the body. It appears,
however, as if the centre only of this sac were void,
for granules of the food may be observed, in almost
every individual, agglomerated into a somewhat loose
lengthened pellet, which continually revolves on its
long axis. This food-pellet becomes visible as a
slender thread near the middle of the sac, and passes
diagonally upward, increasing in size as it advances

THE GEMMULES. 213

towards the middle of the back, where it terminates.
An outline, a little larger, is visible around it, which
I conjecture to be the internal wall of the intestine,
within which an energetic vermicular ciliary action
goes on ; the rest of this viscus is composed probably
of a thick glandular tissue, a structure not uncommon
among the Rotifera. Within the substance of this
sac, or else overlying it is a large transversely-oval
viscus, of a yellowish brown hue, punctured all over
with close- set round dots. The large intestinal sac
passes in a narrow tube, from the point where the
food-pellet terminated, forwards and upwards towards
the front, and probably opens into the funnel ; for
under pressure the contents of the intestine were
forced out at the mouth, following the course of this
tube. Such is the digestive system, no gizzard or
manducatory organs being visible in any part.

By one of those fortunate accidents which some-
times occur unexpectedly, but which cannot be
commanded, I obtained some light on the generative
function of this zoophyte. Looking at one through
the microscope, I perceived seated on the front, which
was in a semi-expanded state, a minute oval hyaline
body set with long cilia, with which it seemed to be
struggling to free itself from the contact of the parent
animal. Presently I saw another emerging, and I
then observed what had escaped my notice before,
that several more were lying in the free water around,
sluggishly waving their cilia, but not swimming. On
this I applied a slight pressure with the compres-
sorium, and presently a mass of some twenty or thirty
was protruded from the mouth, most of which mani-

214 THE GEMMULES.

fested independent action. These bodies, (germs I
may surely call them) are somewhat pear-shaped (Fig.
3) with a little tubercle at the larger end, around which
are set a few (about four or five) long cilia or setae,
twice or thrice as long as the body. These are not
used for vibratile action, but as oan slowly waved
through the water, or apparently to push withal, when
the gemmule is making good its exit. When this is
effected, it proceeds only a short distance ; the waving
motion then becomes more feeble, and presently
ceases. Under stronger pressure a larger mass was
forced out, consisting mostly of germs immature, in
which the cilia appeared as a broad thin band stretch-
ing out from the neck forwards, but without any
motion. I could distinctly trace the course of these
germs through the pellucid body, and found that
they proceeded from a large opaque mass, lying across
the cavity, between the buccal funnel and the large
intestinal sac; and they appeared to issue by the
same orifice as that which gave exit to the contents
of the intestine. I hence infer, that like other animals
whose adult character is to be fixed to a changeless
base, the young of this species are endowed for a brief
period with the faculty of locomotion, sufficient to
enable them to transport themselves to a site more or
less remote from the parent, where then each fixes
itself and becomes the founder of a colony.

The motions of this zoophyte are lively and ener-
getic; and hence we may infer the existence of a
well-developed system of muscles. The body is
occasionally tossed to and fro by the forcible bending
of the foot-stalk; this latter is in some degree capable

AFFINITIES OF PEDICELLINA. 215

of contraction, though not to any great extent. The
creeping stem, however, which appears to he homoge-
neous with the foot-stalks, has no power of contraction.
The stem and stalks are transparent, of a yellowish
hue, shewing a fibrous texture, or perhaps one com-
posed of irregular lengthened cells. By contraction
and flexure it is thrown into annular wrinkles, from
the appearance of which I should judge the substance
to be coriaceous. Something like a fibrous core can
be discerned traversing its axis, which can be traced
through the slender constricted joint into the body,
whence it dilates as it passes upward. From analogy
in stalked Rotifera, I conclude this to be a fascia of
muscles, perhaps becoming two bands in the body,
and passing upwards on opposite sides to the head ;
their office being the retractation of the tentacular disk.
The opacity of the integument precludes the sight of
any other muscles, or of any nervous cords, if such
exist.

The structure of this zoophyte seems to point it out
as osculant between the Anthozoa and the Polyzoay
though manifesting no very close affinity with the
normal genera of either. It is interesting also as
being evidently a link by which the Zoophyta are con-
nected with the Rotifer a, since it certainly approaches
nearer to Stephanoceros, and Floscularia than any
other Polype yet discovered.

After these observations were made, I obtained
specimens of much larger size and in great profu-
sion, entwined among the stems of a Crista, from low-
water off the Tunnel. It was a beautiful sight to look
at the hundreds of heads all in active motion, the

216 THE CILIARY DISK.

moment after they were detached from the rock (a
piece of stone being chiselled off) and put into a
phial of clear water. The crown of arching tentacles
was much more elevated than I had yet seen it, the
tips only being incurved ; and the floating atoms
were ever and anon shot forcibly from out the disk.
Some excellent views with the microscope enable me
to correct and augment my observations. The ten-
tacles are nearly square in section, or slightly grooved
down the back. Their bases interiorly may be traced
a good way down the funnel. The marginal part of
the disk that surrounds and connects their bases is
like a hyaline web, marked with close-set concentric
lines or wrinkles. The lateral ciliary current of
each tentacle runs down until it meets a strongly-
marked ring of cilia, set round the funnel a little
below the origin of the tentacles, and it was interest-
ing to see in a vertical aspect each individual current
merge into this great vortex. The walls of the fun-
nel below this circle are more thick and opaque, and
are perhaps muscular and endowed with the power of
various contraction; like the oesophageal funnel in
Stephanoceros, &c. Two that I counted had each
fifteen tentacles.

They associate with other Polypes. In this intsance
PedicelUna, Anguinaria spatulata^ and Bowerhankia
imhricata, had all entwined their creeping steems to-
gether around the CrisiUj which was also intermingled
with Crisidia cornuta.

When the tentacles are much extended and expan-
ded, the resemblance to some conditions of Stephaif-
oceros is very striking, and they are every instant

THE SPINED AND SLENDER PEDICELLINA. 217

twitched inwards at the tips, in the same manner as
those of that genus.

I find two other species of the same genus : the
one is P. echinata, much like the ahove in every
respect, except that the stalk is more or less studded
with thick hristles or prickles standing out at right
angles. The other is marked hy a very slender stalk,
sometimes gently swollen in the middle, and having
its base abruptly enlarged into a bottle-shaped bulb.
The tentacles nearly meet in the centre of the disk.
(Plate XII. Fig. 5). This species chiefly occurs on
the common Coralline. I have little doubt that it is
the P. gracilis of Sars ; though T find the bulbous
base much more abruptly angular than in his figures;
my specimens also have fifteen tentacles, whereas
twenty are assigned to the species by this eminent
Norwegian zoologist. This character, however,
depends probably upon age rather than upon species.

CHAPTER IX.

Metamorphosis of Lepralia — Appearance of th.e Geramule —
Budding of the Cell-spines — Development of the Poh-pe —
Growth — The Three-headed Coryne — Singular Use of its
Disk — Beania — Coralline Light — Lime Light — Tubulipora —
Marine Viviaria — The Principle explained — Elegance of Sea-
plants — Facilities for Study — Details of Experiments —
Mode of procuring the Sea-weeds — Success — Anticipations
— A curious Coincidence— Sponge -Crystals — Their elegant
Form — Immense Numbers — Mutual Entanglement — Ciliated
Sponge — Its crystal Coronet — Powers of Restoration.

METAMORPHOSIS OF LEPRALIA.

Ju7ie Wth. — I detached a minute atom of a red
colour swimming rapidly in gyrations in the water in
which were fragments of polypiferous rock. I caught
it with a tube and examined it. It was a globose, or
rather semi-elliptical body, of a soft consistence,
covered on its whole surface with strong bristly cilia,
in rapid vibration. Near the rounder end, was evi-
dently an orifice, with amorphous lips ; and when the
globule was submitted to slight pressure, just sufficient
to confine it, it made eff'orts to get away by slightly
lengthening itself, and drawing in the sides around
this mouth, which was in a manner protruded forcibly

Tlarj^XIR.

^r>:fifrp^.^

umi^

^Hfrc

PrLniixLl.-HtUbitajf'di'njlmt

1-5,. LEPR ALIA coccmr; A?

>. in, TURRiS NF(^;,K(;TA
!l -lOI': ANI •' '■'• i' l.A .

GEMMULE OF LEPRALIA. 219

and repeatedly. Presently on the restraint being
continued, the globule threw out from different parts
of its periphery, long lancet-like flexible pointed
bristles twice as long as the cilia, with which it
pushed here and there. These lancets I perceived
were ordinarily bent at an acute angle near their base^
so as to lie flat on the body unperceived ; and I think
there were many of them, for I fancied I saw the
minute basal parts of many that were so concealed.
Those that were exj)osed were ever and anon suddenly
bent up again and so concealed, and again protruded.
After examining it awhile, I carefully put it without
injury into a glass of sea- water alone. Its diameter
was about -^0^^^ i^^^^ (^^^ Plate XIIL Fig. 1).

I afterwards saw another in the original vessel, and
both this and the former had the habit of coming
into contact with the side of the vessel, and continuing
in one spot for a considerable while, (half an hour or
more) not moving a hair's breadth from the place, and
yet evidently not adhering, because gyrating uniformly
all tlie time by the ciliary action. One of these I lost,
and the one that I isolated got into a comer of the
cell, and decayed. But carefully looking at the origi-
nal vessel, I found some half a dozen scattered over
the sides, but in a more advanced condition. These
were all firmly adhering to the glass, and that so
inseparably that the most careful touch of a pin's
point to detach one, tore it into a shapeless mass of
broken flesh. The youngest of these had taken the
form of a flattened oval, or long hexagon, with one
end more pointed than the other, in which the redness
was curdhng and separating into masses. The others

220 BUDDING CELL-SPINES.

showed eight points budding from the more acute
end ; and in one the most advanced, these were already
produced into eight slender spines, set around the
end like the teeth of a comb, and slightly divergent.
In this the the general hue was a pale pellucid flesh
colour ; and an opaque band of deep red was
arranged in a horse-shoe form, around the end oppo-
site the spines. (See fig. 2).

During the next day httle change took place except
the lengthening of the spines ; but by the following
evening, forty-eight hours after I had observed it in
the state just described (fig. 2) it had made importan^
advances. The spines, without increasing in thick-
ness, had shot out, until the middle and next pair were
nearly as long as the transverse diameter of the body >'
the other two pairs were much shorter. A touch
with a pin broke short off" two of these, proving that
they were very brittle, whence, and from their crystal-
line appearance, I infer tlieir calcareous or siliceous
nature. But while I was examining it I was surprised
to observe a bundle of filaments among the spines,
and much resembling them, except that they were
bent irregularly, and slowly moved among themselves,
while the spines were fixed. Lo ! the bundle is gently
protruding, and presently the whole is withdrawn Hke
lightning out of sight into what I can no longer hesi-
tate to call the oval cell. A simultaneous jerk in the
contents of the cell set me upon trying to make out
the form of these, in which, notwithstanding the con-
fusion of the parts, I had already traced (or fancied)
the body of an ascidian polype, doubly bent up, like
that of a Membranipora or Flustra. By careful

DEVELOPMENT OF THE POLYPE. 221

watching during many protrusions and retractions, I
was enabled to make out this with sufficient distinct-
ness ; though some portions of the area were still semi-
opaque, and therefore obscure. I could see also an am-
ple aperture on the surface opposite to that at which I
was looking (viz. the adhering base, for as it was in
a glass vessel, ] could apply my microscope only to
the outside, and therefore only saw it through the
glass to which it had attached itself) ; this aperture
on the upper surface, was excentral, and situated on
tlie half nearest the spinous end. Possibly this aper-
ture was covered with a membrane, (like that in
Cellularia avicularia) for I think that the bundle of
tentacles were not protruded through it, but through
an orifice more terminal, yet still above the plane of
the spines. The body of the polype, of a homy
yellow hue, was doubly bent to one side, and behind
the angle was an irregular transverse mass of deep red
matter, and another small spot of the same was a
little on one side of the centre. These were all the
remains of the scarlet substance left. (See fig. 3).

On the morning of the third day I found the polype
perfectly formed and well-expanded, a circle of
thirteen tentacles; these were usually protruded in
tlie form of a funnel, with the rim so slightly everted
as scarcely to entitle it to be called a bell, but now
and then they were momentarily spread out quite flat
so as to make a beautiful plane star, the tips forming
a regular circle. I could now distinctly see the intes-
tinal tube, which is inserted into the stomach low
down in the body, and proceeds nearly parallel with
it to the aperture. The body of the polype is con-

222 THE THREE-HEADED CORYNE.

siderably protruded from the cell, below the diver-
gence of the tentacles. The great circular aperture
on the upper surface, appears to have a rim. (See

%• 4).

June iSt/i. A week old: no material alteration
from last record. I found, however, the next day a
gemmule represented at fig. 5, which perfects the series.
It was in a state intermediate between figs. 1 and 2.
Its length is ^th inch. The edges are pellucid, and
have an appearance of radiating fibres. The redness
is curdled, but not wholly separated. This continued
for several days, the red mass slowly concentrating •
but no spines appeared ; and at length I fear it was
broken accidentally ; granular matter came out, leav-
ing a glassy cell attached to the side of the vessel.
The species was probably Lejiralia coccinea ; but
eight spines are more than are ascribed to any of
our species.

THE THREE-HEADED CORYNE.

June 18. — In the glass jar that contains Actiniae,
&c., that I brought from Torquay, I found on the
Membranipora, a very young specimen of Polycera
4:-lineata, about J inch long : very pretty. Some of
the cells of the polype appeared to have been recently
gnawed, probably by this little mollusk.

In the same vessel I found another species of
Coryne. (Plate XIY, figs. 4 — 6). It is sessile on a
decaying frond of some Alga, about gQ-inch in height
in medium extension, with no appearance of tube.
The polype is sub-cylindrical, slightly clavate, round-

hinlAdhylluJimajidfL 8t iiitJlii

i^;-} CORYNE SESSILTS.
4- 6. CORYNE CIEKBERUS,

ITS FORM. 22^

ed at the tip, where there are three tentacnla formed
exactly Hke those of C. ramosa, but the round heads
are much larger in proportion, and more coarsely
granulated ; their diameter is nearly equal to that of
the polype : the head is flattened vertically ; the oval
grains of which it is composed are very distinct, and
eacli is furnished with a conical transparent point
ending in a short bristle. Tliis point is distinct from
the oval granule, and its outline is perfectly discernible
when seen vertically, as well as laterally. (Fig. 6).
Near the base of the polype, at a slight swelling, there
are four or five arms, which seem to be the withered
remnants of former tentacles, from which the round
heads have sloughed off. The specimen may be the
young of C. ramosa, (Fig. 5.) The animal is active,
bending both the tentacles and the body in all direc-
tions : the latter especially is frequently curved round
into a circle, so that the tip touches some part of the
side, or one of the tentacles. The very extremity
above the tentacles is surprisingly flexible ; and its
walls are contractile and expansile. I saw the terminal
orifice often partially opened by evolution of the skin,
and then partially closed by a puckering of the sur-
rounding margin : sometimes the interior was turned
out so far as for the head to form a longish cylinder.
But to my surprise, I find that this orifice is a great
sucking disk. I had put the animals in what micros-
copists call a live-box, and the two glass surfaces were
just wide enough apart to allow the animal free liberty
to turn about in all directions as far as it wished. On
my looking at it after a momentary interval I saw that
the extremity had suddenly become a large circular

224 SINGULAR USE OF ITS DISK.

disk, of thrice the diameter of the body ; its substance
was gelatinous, full of oblong granules arranged con-
centrically. (See fig. 4.) I neither saw this disk
evolved nor retracted ; but after some time, on looking
at it, the same phenomenon was repeated. In order
to obtain a better sight of it, but without a suspicion
of what I was about to effect, I slightly turned the
tube of the box, carrying with it the alga to which the
polype was attached, my eye upon it attentively
observing all the time. The base of the polype moved
away from its position, but the broad disk was im-
moveable ; I continued to turn the upper glass, until
at length the body was dragged out so as to be con-
siderably attenuated ; still the disk maintained its
hold of the lower glass, with no other change than
that of being elongated in the direction in which it
was dragged. At length it slowly gave way, and
resumed its original shape by gradual and almost
imperceptible diminution of the circumference.

The oval grains of the tentacle-heads appear to be
packed in a gelatinous substance which fills their
interstices, and envelopes the whole, which is then (I
tliink) inclosed in a thin calcareous shell, for it breaks
with a loudish crepitation under pressure. It is pos-
sible however, that this crackling may have indicated
the crushing of the grains themselves.* They often
get loose from the heads without pressure, and then

• At this time I was not familiar with the filiferous capsules of the
Helianthoid Zoophytes. I will not cancel my recorded impressions of
the actual observation ; but I now think that it is likely the granules
were filiferous capsules, the crepitation that which marks the emission
of the thread, and the "film of jelly," possibly the filament itself.

BEANIA. 225

appear to drag a film of the jelly in which they are
inclosed. Each granule is hollow at the centre, the
cavity being oblong, and connected with the surface
by a slender orifice at the interior end of the oval. I
am astonished that Van Beneden should say there is
no globosity in these tentacles in the active and vigo-
rous polypes, and that this is merely the result of
contraction. On the contrary I do not believe that
the head is capable of contraction ; and I am sure
that it is globular in polypes in the highest health and
activity.

I venture to assign to this little Coryne a provisional
appellation, subject, of course, to future correction.
Its triple head suggests the name of Coryne Cerherus.

BEANIA MIRABILIS.

The Beania mirahilis before-mentioned was para-
sitical on the same Cellularia avicularia, and con-
sisted of only a few cells springing from their creep-
ing thread. Dr. Johnston's figure is very good, but
the spines in my specimens were more regularly
curved, and tapered to a point. Their direction more-
over is not fully expressed by him, they shoot partially
around the cell, following the curve of its transverse
outline, but diagonally also, towards the point. The
spines of both series thus curve diagonally towards
each other, and if sufiiciently projected, would meet
and cross at obtuse angles, and embrace the cell. I
cannot see any keels ; the spines appear to me to
spring from the smooth glassy side of the cell.

226 COMBUSTION OF LIME.

COEALLINE LIGHT.

The common Coralline, if held to the flame of a
candle, burns with a most vivid white light. If we
take a shoot and let it dry, and then present the tips
to the flame, just at the very edge, not putting them
into the fire, the ends of the shoot will become red
first, snapping and flying ofi" with a crackling noise ;
some, however, will retain their integrity, and these
will presently become white-hot, and glow with an
intensity of light most beautiful and dazzling, as long
as they remain at the very edge of the flame, for the
least removal of the Coralline, either by pulling it away,
or by pushing it in, destroys the whiteness.. It will
however return when again brought to the edge. The
same tips will display the phenomenon as often as you
please. I did not find the incrusting lamina that
spreads over the rock before the shoots rise, show the
light so well as the shoots.

The brilliant light obtained by directing a stream
of oxygen gas upon a piece of lime in a state of com-
bustion, occurred to my mind as a parallel fact ; and
I experimented with other forms of the same substance.
The polypidoms of Cellularia avicularia, and of
Eucratea chelata, one of the stony plates of Canjophyl-
lia, and a fragment of oyster-shell, I successively placed
in the flame, and all gave out the dazzling white light
exactly as the Coralline had done. The homy poly-
pidom of a Sertularia, on the other hand, shrivelled
to a cinder.

THE FAN TUBULIPORA. 227

TUBULTPORA FLABELLARIS.

June 21. — At Hele, in a dark tide-pool between
overhanging rocks, I gathered a frond of Nitoj}hyllum
laceratum, on which were several patches of a pretty-
zoophyte, evidently identical with the Tuhulijwra
Jllahellaris of Fabricius, which though known to
inhabit the shores of Europe from Greenland to the
Mediterranean, has been only lately recognised as a
British species by Mr. W. Thompson, who found it on
the North coast of Ireland. It consists of a great
number of long, slender, cylindrical tubes of pellucid
coral or shelly substance, set side by side and over-
lapping each other on the frond of the sea-weed, to
which they adhere for a portion of their length, and
then curve upward so as to be free at their terminal
portions. The tubes are somewhat crowded, but
diverge from each other, so as to form a resemblance
to a curling feather. The margins of the tubes are
oblique in some cases, in others quite transverse ; and
the edges are slightly expanded. The exterior of the
tube is set with many annular ridges, which are
evidently the expanded rims of the tube at various
periods of its growth ; the new shelly matter being
deposited not from the very edge, but from a ring a
little way within it, so as to leave the narrow expanded
lip projecting as a permanent ridge, in a manner com-
mon in many shells. The walls of the tubes are
sparsely studded with minute round grains, like those
of Grisia ; and similar ones are found far more thickly
in the shapeless mass of shelly matter that envelopes
the bases of some of the tubes, connecting them like
a web.

228 MARINE VIVARIA.

MARINE VIVARIA.

One prominent object that I had in view in coming
to the coast was the prosecution of a cherished scheme
for the conservation of marine animals and plants in
a living state.

For several years past I have been paying attention
to our native Kotifera, and in the course of this study
had kept fresh water in glass vases unchanged from
year to year, yet perfectly pure and sweet and fit for
the support of animal life, by means of the aquatic
plants, such as Vallisneria^ Myriophyllum, Nitella
and Char a (but particularly the former two), which
were growing in it. Not only did the Infusoria and
Rotifera breed and multiply in successive generations
in these unchanged vessels, but Entomostraca, Plan-
aruB, Naides and other Annelides, and Hydrce, con-
tinued their respective races ; and the young of our
river fishes were able to maintain life for some weeks
in an apparently healthy state, though (perhaps from
causes unconnected with the purity of the water) I
was not able to preserve these long.

The possibility of similar results being obtained
with sea-water had suggested itself to my mind, and
the subject of growing the marine Algae had become
a favourite musing, though my residence in London
precluded any opportunity of carrying out my project.
My notion was that as plants in a healthy state are
known to give out oxygen under the stimulus of light^
and to assimilate carbon, and animals on the other
hand consume oxygen and throw ofi" carbonic acid^
the balance between the two might be ascertained by

THEIR ADVANTAGES. 229

experiment, and thus the great circular course of
nature, the mutual dependence of organic life, be
imitated on a small scale.

My ulterior object in this speculation was twofold.
First, I thought that the presence of the more delicate
sea-weeds (the Rhodosperms or red famihes especially,
many of which are among the most elegant of plants
in colour and form), growing in water of crystalline
clearness in a large glass vase, would be a desirable
ornament in the parlour or drawing-room ; and that
the attractions of such an object would be enhanced
by the presence of the curious and often brilliant-hued
animals, such as the rarer shelled Mollusca, the grace-
ful Nudibranchs, and the numerous species of Sea-
anemones, that are so seldom seen by any one but the
professed naturalist.

But more prominent still was the anticipation that
by this plan great facilities would be afforded for the
study of marine animals, under circumstances not
widely diverse from those of nature. If the curious
forms that stand on the threshold, so to speak, of
animal life, can be kept in a healthy state, under our
eye, in vessels where they can be watched from day to
day without being disturbed, and that for a sufficiently
prolonged period to allow of the development of the
various conditions of their existence, it seemed to me
that much insight into the functions and habits of
these creatures, into their embryology, metamorphoses,
and other peculiarities, might be gained, which other-
wise would either remain in obscurity, or be revealed
only by the wayward " fortune of the hour."

Nor have these expectations been wholly unrealized.

230 LIVING SEA-WEEDS.

My experiments, though not yet entirely successful,
and needing much more attention and time to com-
plete them, have yet established the fact, that the
balance can be maintained between the plant and the
animal for a considerable period at least, without dis-
turbance of the water ; while my vivaria have afforded
me the means of many interesting researches, the
details of which form the subject of these pages.

The first thing to be done was to obtain the Algse
in a growing state. As they have no proper roots,
but are in general very closely attached to the solid
rock, from which they cannot be torn without injury
by laceration, I have always used a hammer and chisel
to cut away a small portion of the rock itself, having
ready a jar of sea- water into which I dropped the
fragment with its living burden, exposing it as little
as possible to the air. The red sea-weeds I have
found most successful : the Fnci and Laminarice,
besides being unwieldy and unattractive, discharge
so copious a quantity of mucus as to thicken and
vitiate the water. The Ulvm and Enter omorjjhce on
the other hand are apt to lose their colour, take the
appearance of wet silver-paper, or colourless mem-
brane, and presently decay and slough from their
attachments. The species that I have found most
capable of being preserved in a living state are Chon-
drus crispus, the Delesserice, and Iridea edulis. The
last-named is the very best of all, and next to it is
Delesseria sanguinea, for maintaining the purity of
the water, while the colours and forms of these render
them very beautiful objects in a vase of clear water,
particularly when the light (as from a window) is

DETAILS OF EXPERIMENT. 231

transmitted through their expanded fronds. Many
of my friends, both scientific and unscientific, who
have seen my vases of growing Algse at various times
during the present year, both at Torquay and at this
place, have expressed strong admiration of the beau-
tiful and novel exhibition.

I have not as yet been able to preserve the water
to an indefinite period. Sometimes the experiment
has quite failed, the plants decaying and the animals
dying almost immediately ; but more commonly, the
whole have been preserved in health for several weeks.
The following are the particulars of the most success-
ful of my efforts.

On the 3rd of May I put into a deep cylindrical
glass jar (a confectioner's show-glass) 10 inches deep
by 6j inches wide, about three pints of sea-water, and
some marine plants and animals.

On the 28th of June following, I examined the
contents of the jar as carefully as was practicable
without emptying it, or needlessly disturbing them.
It had remained uncovered on the tables in my study,
or sometimes in the window, ever since, a little water
only having once been added merely to supply the
loss by evaporation. The water was perfectly clear
and pure. A slight floccose yellow deposition had
accumulated on the sides of the jar, but there was
very little sediment on the bottom. I had taken no
note of the plants or animals when I had put them
in ; but as none of them had died, and none had been
either abstracted or added, the following enumeration
gives the original as well as then present contents.

There were at this time in the jar the following

232 MARINE PLANTS AND ANIMALS.

Algae, all in a growing state, and attached to the
original fragments of rock : —

Two tufts of Delesseria sanguinea, each with nume-
rous leaves.

Two oi Rhodymenia juhata, one small, the other a
large tuft.

A small Ptilota plumosa, growing with one of the
last-named.

A Chondrus ci'isjms, with

An Ulva latissima, growing parasitically on one of
its fronds.

These seven plants had supplied fpr eight weeks
the requisite oxygen for the following animals, which
were at this time all alive and healthy : —

Anthea cereus.

Actinia hellis, a large specimen.

hellis, a half- grown one.

anyuicoma, large.

anguicomay small.

nivea.

rosea.

rosea, a small specimen.

mesemhryanthemum, young.

mesemhryanthemum, young, another variety.

Crisia denticulata, a large tuft.

Coryne ?, young.

Pedicellina Belgica, two numerous colonies.

Membranipora pilosa.

Doris (hilineata ?^ J.

Polycera 4.-lineata, very small.

Phyllodoce lamelligera^ about 1 1 inches long.

A coil of small Annelides.

END OF THE EXPERIMENT. 233

Several BerpiilcB.

Acarida.

Entomostraca.

Infusoria.

Grantia nivea. And other smaller zoophytes and
sponges which I could not identify.

Soon after this examination I went on a journey,
and did not return till the 7th of July. The weather
had set in very hot : whether this, combined with the
closeness of the room, had had any effect I do not
know; but on my return I found the water beginning
to be offensive, a sort of scum forming on the surface,
and the animals evidently dying. Some were already
dead, but most of the others recovered on being
removed to fresh sea-water. This result, though it
puts an end to my experiment at this time, I do not
regard as conclusive against the hypothesis ; for of
course animals are liable to death under any circum-
stances, and the corrupting body of one of these in so
limited a volume of water would soon prove fatal to
others, even though there might be no lack of oxygen
for respiration. It is possible that one of the large
Actinim may have casually died during my absence,
the timely removal of wliich might have averted the
consequences to the others ; but this is only conjec-
ture. Perhaps there was too large an amount of
animal life in proportion to the vegetable ; but the
maintenance of all these in health and activity for
nearly nine weeks seems hardly to agree with such a
supposition.

Should these experiments be perfected, what would
hinder our keeping collections of marine animals for

234 ANTICIPATIONS OF SUCCESS.

observation and study, even in London and other
inland cities ? Such a degree of success as I have
attained would admit of so desirable a consummation,
for even in London no great difficulty would be expe-
rienced in having a jar of sea-water brought up once
in a couple of months. I hope to see the lovely
marine Algae too, that hitherto have been almost
unknown except pressed between the leaves of a book,
growing in their native health and beauty, and wav-
ing their delicate translucent fronds, on the tables of
our drawing-rooms and on the shelves of our con-
servatories.

It is a curious circumstance that experiments
exactly parallel to these, founded on the same prin-
ciples, have been simultaneously prosecuted with the
same results by another gentleman, whose name is
well known in the scientific world. Mr. Robert
Warington of Apothecaries' Hall has now (Dec. 1852)
at his residence in London a marine aquarium, with
living Algae and Sea-anemones in a healthy condition.
I find, on comparing notes, that Mr. Warington has
precedence of me in instituting these experiments;
but the particulars that I have above detailed of my
own success were fully recorded before I had the
slightest knowledge that the thought of such a project
had ever crossed the mind of any person but myself.
(See Appendix)'

GRANTIA BOTRYOIDES.

Highly curious are the needle-like crystals or spi-
culae of flint or lime that enter into the composition of
many of our Sponges ; and I would hardly wish to

SPONGE-CRYSTALS. 235

give a greater treat to an intelligent but unscientific
friend then by placing an atom of woolly stuff, scraped
from the surface of a rock with a pin's point, beneath
a good microscope with a rather high power on, and
bidding him peep. I am sure you would have been
charmed with the sight I have had this morning ;
I was both surprised and delighted myself.

Going carefully over, with a triple lens, a frond of
Nitophyllum laceratum, that I obtained a day or two
siuce at Hele, — the same frond, by the way, that had
already yielded me the interesting Tuhulipora Jiahel-
laris, — my eye was caught by what appeared to be the
ends of the tubes of some larger species of the same
genus projecting from over the edge of the sinuous
and lacerated frond. I immediately transferred it to
a glass cell, and applied it to the stage of the com-
pound microscope with a power of 220 diameters.
To my astonishment a mass of starry crystals met
my view, entangled among each other almost as thick
as they could lie, by scores, nay by hundreds. For
a moment the eye was bewildered by the multitude of
slender needle-like points crossing and recrossing in
every possible direction ; but soon the curious spec-
tacle began to take some kind of order ; the crystals
were seen to be all of one form, though varying con-
siderably in length and thickness ; they are three-rayed
stars, diverging at an angle of 120 degrees : tbe rays,
straight, slender needles, perfectly cylindrical except
that they taper to a fine point, smooth and transparent
as if made of glass, and highly refractive.

These spiculae appear to me to be held together only
by their mutual entanglement and interlacing ; their

236 STRUCTURE AND

points, in the process of formation, (I had almost
said, of crystallization J have shot through and among
each other, so that it would be almost impossible to
extract one from any point without either breaking
off its rays, or tearing away a considerable portion of
the whole surface. The rays shoot in the same plane,
and in that plane the stars lie, not quite at random,
as to their direction ; for the great majority have one
point directed lengthwise from the mouth of the tube
towards the base. There are not wanting however
many, which point in the opposite direction; and
several at intermediate angles. Of course, it requires
but little divergence from the first named direction to
produce the second; still, however, the prevalent
order appears to be this.

I cannot trace any fibrous or gelatinous or granular
matter in which the spied se are set ; but beneath the
layer formed by their interlacing points, there is a
surface composed of round granules of transparent of
pellucid matter, set as close as possible, which are
plainly seen between the crossing needles. This ap-
pears to be the interior lining of the tube, in fact the
tube itself, around which the spiculse are arranged as
a loose outer casing, giving firmness to the whole. I
could not detect spiculae of any other form than the
three-rayed stars; but several of these had one or
more of their rays broken short; for from their com-
position they are very brittle, as I have often proved
in other species.

The form of this specimen was so very irregular
that but a poor idea can be conveyed of it by words :
it may, however, be roughly described as an elliptical

PlaU XY

F.H.(Hyssedd.ttUth

Jointed by}{ulJbn,ii-Mi$cHaIttn..

I £ CL^Wt:L.LmA LISTERI
3-6 GRANTI/-. BOTRYOIDES

FORM OF A SPONGE. 237

mass, sending forth from one side several tubes, which
divide or branch into others. The former portion lies
adhering to the face of the sea-weed, but most of the
tubes project from the edge of the frond. The longest
tube is about J inch in length, and -^ inch in greatest
diameter. The tubes terminate with plain transverse
orifices, without any thickening : in one the margin
is shghtly expanded, but this is evidently accidental.
The spicules project from the edge their points in brist-
ling array, as they do from the whole surface; and if
it were an object of large size, one would say it was a
formidable affair to take hold of with ungloved hands,

I watched carefully for any trace of vortex or cur-
rent ; but the particles and floating atoms in the
vicinity of the apertures were perfectly still ; and I
could not detect the least appearance of motion in the
water. If there be any circulation, as Dr. Grant has
satisfactorily shown to exist in the genus, it is pro-
bably periodical.

The accompanying figures may assist you to form
a notion of the general appearance of this sponge,
and of the peculiar structure or armature which I
have described above. Fig. 3, Plate XV., represents
the natural size of the entire mass ; Fig. 4 the same
considerably magnified, attached to the surface of a
piece of the sea-weed frond ; Fig. 5 represents the
terminal portion of the largest tube, much more
highly magnified, with the spiculse, and the granular
surface beneath. The colour is dull pellucid white.
The characters of the species appear to identify it with
the Grantia hotryoides of naturalists, a sponge said
to be rare in the south of England.

238 THE CROWNED SPONGE.

GRANTIA CILIATA.

On the same Alga I find a compound specimen of
another pretty and interesting sponge of the same
genus, Grantia ciliata. It is seated near the edge
of the frond of the sea-weed, and sends up two little
oval lobes with short necks, of which a very exact
notion may be obtained by comparing them with the
bottles in which soda-water is sold ; but they are not
more than -J inch in height. The oval body is bristled
over with slender simple spiculse, all pointed, some
abruptly, others very gradually : they vary much in
thickness and length, some being of excessive tenu-
ity; they stand out in all directions from the sur-
face, like the quills of a porcupine, but there is a
slight tendency to point forward. Abundance of loose
granulous or floccose matter is entangled among the
spines, but this is probably accidental and uncon-
nected with the organization of the sponge. The
colour is dead-white ; and this I should suppose to
be produced by the reflection of light from the thou-
sands of shining spiculse, just as the whiteness of
snow is merely the light reflected from a vast number
of minute crystals of ice.

The neck of this bottle-like sponge consists of a
dense fringe of the ordinary spiculse, perhaps more
slender than the average, which are set around the
orifice like a crown, pointing forwards and a little
outwards; so as to perfect the resemblance to a
bottle-neck.

I incline to think that the stream of water periodi-

ITS RESTORATIVE POWER. 239

cally projected from this orifice may be the mould, if I
may so say, upon which this coronal fringe is modelled,
or at least a means of restoring its form if acciden-
tally injured. I had a specimen at Torquay, much
larger than this, globose in form and about half an
inch in diameter. The neck of fringing spines had
been accidentally crushed and distorted; but after it
had lain for some days in a vessel of sea-water I was
agreeably surprised to find it restored to its original
regularity aad beauty. I cannot detect any jet of
water from this specimen before me, but in that ob-
tained at Torquay, (unless my memory greatly fails
me,) T distinctly and repeatedly saw it.

CHAPTER X.

Respiration and Circulation— A Transparent Ascidia— Organs of
Sight— Play of the Gills— Ciliary Waves— The Heart— Cours-
ing of the Blood-globules — Reversal of the Current — "Na-
ture," what is it r — The Praise of God— Luminosity of the
Sea— A Charming Spectacle — Light-producing Zoophytes —
Luminosity a Vital Function — Noctiluca, a luminous Animal-
cule— Its Structure — Production of its Embryo — The Slender
Coryne — D escription — Parasites .

RESPIRATION AND CIRCULATION.

To take a stolen peep into the Adyta of nature's
mysteries, to surprise, as it were, life, carrying on its
more secret and recondite functions, must always afford
a peculiar pleasure to the reflecting and curious. This
the microscope often allows us to do ; and when our
eye is brought to the little dark orifice of the wonder-
shewing tube, we may fancy that we are slyly peeping
through the keyhole of Madam Nature's door, her
laboratory door, where she is actually at work, con-
cocting and fashioning those marvellous forms which
constitute the world of living beings around us.

I have been for the last two or three hours engaged
in watching two of the most important vital functions,
respiration and circulation, under circumstances of
unusual felicity for the study. In looking over one

TRANSPARENT ASCIDIA. .241

of my vivaria^ a pan containing marine plants and
animals that have been undisturbed for several weeks,
I found, attached to a sea-weed, a tiny globule of
jelly, not bigger than one of those little spherules
wherewith homoeopathy supplants the jalaps and
rhubarbs that our grandmothers believed in, and
swallowed. It is an Ascidian mollusk, one of that
tribe of humble animals that form the link by which
the oyster is connected with the zoophyte ; and it
appears to belong to that genus that the learned
Savigny has named Clavellina. Transparent as the
purest crystal, it needed only to be transferred in a
drop of its native sea-water to the stage of the micros-
cope, and the whole of its complex interior organism
was revealed. The old sage's wish that man had a
window in his breast, that we might see into him, was
more than realised in this case : the whole surface of
the little animal was one entire window ; its body was
a crystal palace in miniature. (See Plate XV., fig. 1.)
To form a correct notion of this tiny creature,
imagine a membranous bag, about as large as a small
pin's head, with an opening at the top and another
very similar in one side ; the form neither globular
nor cubical, but intermediate between these two, and
rather flattened on two sides. One of the orifices
admits water for respiration and food; the latter
passes through a digestive system of some complexity,
and is discharged through the side aperture. The
digestive organs lie chiefly on one side, the opposite
to that which forms the principal subject of my ex-
amination : they are but dimly indicated in the accom-
panying sketch, and I shall not further notice them.

242 THE EYES.

The two orifices scarcely differ from each other in
form or structure ; from what I know of them in other
animals of this tribe, they are protrusile tubes of flesh,
terminating abruptly, and fringed around the interior
with short filaments or tentacles ; the exteriors of the
tubes are furnished with minute oval specks of crimson,
which are doubtless rudimentary eyes ; they look like
uncut rubies or garnets, set in the transparent colour-
less flesh, without any sockets ; and probably convey
only the vague sensation of light, without definite
vision. How many there are around each aperture I
cannot say from observation, (probably eight on one
and six on the other) for I have not seen either so
far protruded as to be properly opened : each is slowly
thrust out in a puckered state for a little way, slightly
opened, then suddenly and forcibly drawn in, and
tightly constricted.

The whole animal is inclosed in a coating of loose
shapeless jelly, that appears to be thrown off" from its
surface, rather than to be an organic part of it ; still,
at one corner of the bottom it forms a thick short
foot-stalk, by which the creature is attached to the
sea- weed ; and this foot- stalk evidently has an organic
core into which there passes a vessel from the body
of the animal.

What first strikes the eye on looking at this little
creature, and continues long to arrest the admiring
gaze, is the respiratory organ in full play. The gills
are large ; they form a flattened bag, nearly of the
same shape as the animal itself, but a little smaller
every way, which hangs down like a veil on one side
of the general cavity, — the side nearest the eye as

THE PLAY OF THE GILLS. 243

you look on the accompanying figure ; the digestive
organs lying beyond and beneath it. The inner sur-
face of this transparent sac is studded with rings of a
long-oval figure, set side by side in four rows. These
rings appear to consist of a slight elevation of the
general membranous surface, so as to make little
shallow cells, the whole edges of which are fringed
with cilia, whose movements make waves that follow
each other round the course in regular succession.
In truth it is a beautiful sight to see forty or more of
these oblong rings, all set round their interior with
what look like the cogs on a watch-wheel, dark and
distinct, running round and round with an even, mo-
derately rapid, ceaseless motion. (See fig. 2). These
black running figures, so like cogs and so well defined
as they are, are merely an optical delusion ; they do
not represent the cilia, but merely the waves which
the cilia make ; the cilia themselves are exceedingly
slender, and close-set hairs, as may be seen at the ends
of the ovals, where a slight alteration of position pre-
vents the waves from taking the tooth-like appearance.
Sometimes one here and there of the ovals ceases to
play, while the rest continue ; and now and then, the
whole are suddenly arrested simultaneously as if by
magic, and presently all start together again, which
has a most charming efi'ect. But what struck me as
singular was that while in general the ciliary wave
ran in the same direction in the diff'erent ovals, there
would be one here and there, in which the course was
reversed ; and I think that the animal has the power
of choosing the direction of the waves, of setting them
going and of stopping them, individually as well as
collectively.

244 THE HEART.

I am afraid my attempt to describe these phenomena
is but partially successful : I am sure it cannot convey
to you any adequate idea of the spectacle itself. Have
you ever gazed with interest on a compUcated piece
of machinery in motion, such as is common in our
large manufacturing houses ? If so, I dare say you
have felt a sort of pleased bewilderment at the multi-
tude of wheels and bands, rolling and circling in
incessant play, yet with the most perfect steadiness
and regularity. Something of that sort of impression
was made on my mind by the sight of the respiratory
organ of this tiny Ascidia, coupled as it was with
another simultaneous, equally extensive system of
movements, yet quite independent, and in nowise
interfering with the former. I mean the circulation
of the blood.

At the very bottom of the interior, below the
breathing sac, there is an oblong cavity, through whose
centre there runs a long transparent vessel, formed of
a delicate membrane, of the appearance of which I
can give you a notion only by comparing it to a long
bag pointed, but not closed, at either end, and then
twisted in some unintelligible manner, so as to make
three turns. This is the heart ; and within it are seen
many minute colourless globules, floating freely in a
subtle fluid ; this is the nutrient juice of the body,
which we may, without much violence, designate the
blood. Now see the circulation of this fluid. The
membranous bag gives a spasmodic contraction at
one end, and drives forward the globules contained
there ; the contraction in an instant passes onward
along the three twists of the heart, (the part behind

THE BLOOD-CURRENTS. 245

expanding immediately as the action passes on) and
the globules are forcibly expelled through the narrow
but open extremity. Meanwliile, globules from around
the other end have rushed in, as soon as that part
resumed its usual width, which in turn are driven
forward by a periodic repetition of the systole and
diastole.

The globules thus periodically driven forth from
the heart now let us watch, and see what becomes of
them. They do not appear to pass into any defined
system of vessels that we may call arteries, but to find
their way through the interstices of the various organs
in the general cavity of the body.

The greater number of globules pass immediately
from the heart through a vessel into the short foot-
stalk, where they accumulate in a large reservoir.
But the rest pass up along the side of the body,
which (in the aspect in which we are looking at it,
and as it is represented in the figure) is the right. As
they proceed, (by jerks of course, impelled by the
contractions of the heart) some find their way into
the space between the breathing surfaces, but how I
can hardly say, if the breathing organ is indeed, as I
had supposed, a sac ; — they certainly do slip in be-
tween the rows of oval rings, and wind along down
between the rings in irregular courses. Of course, I
know that I am liable to mistake here, confounding,
through the transparency of the organs, those globules
which are outside the breathing sac with those that
are within it ; still after the utmost care by focusing,
I think I am sure the globules do pass as I have said ;
besides those which wind along on the outside, or

246 REVERSAL OF THE CURRENT.

between the outer surface of the sac and the interior
surface of the body; for many take this course, on
both sides of the sac.

But to return to the current which passes up the
right side : arriving at the upper angle of the body,
the stream turns off to the left abruptly, principally
passing along a fold or groove in the exterior of the
breathing sac, until it reaches the left side, down
which it passes, and along the bottom, until it arrives
at the entrance of the heart, and rushes in to fill the
vacuum produced by the expansion of its walls after
the periodic contraction. This is the perfect circle ;
but the minor streams that had forked off sideways in
the course, as those within the sac, for example, find
their way to the entrance of the heart by shorter and
more irregular courses.

One or two things connected with this circulatory
system are worthy of special notice. The first
is that its direction is not constant but reversible.
After watching this course follow^ed with regularity
for perhaps a hundred pulsations or so, all of a sud-
den, the heart ceased to beat, and all the globules
rested in their circling course, that I had supposed
incessant. Oh, ho ! said I, —

" Thy stone, 0 Sisyphus, stands still,
Ixion rests upon his wheel ; — "

when, after a pause of two or three seconds, the pul-
sation began again, but at the opposite end of the
heart, and proceeded with perfect regularity, just as
before, hut in the opposite direction. The globules,
of course, obeyed the new impulse, entered at their

PERIODS OF THE PULSATIONS. 247

former exit, and passed out at their former entrance,
and performed the circulation in every respect the
same as before, but in the reverse direction.

Those globules that pass through the vessel into the
foot-stalk appear to accumulate there as in a reser-
voir, until the course is changed ; when they crowd
into the heart again and perform their grand tour.
Yet there is a measure of circulation here, for even
in the connecting vessel one stream ascends from the
reservoir into the body as the other (and principal
one) descends into it from the heart ; and so, vice
versa.

I have spoken of these motions as being performed
with regularity ; but this term must be understood
with some qualification. The pulsations are not quite
uniform, being sometimes more languid, sometimes
more vigorous ; perhaps forty beats in a minute may
be the average ; but I have counted sixty, and pre-
sently after thirty ; I have counted twenty beats in
one half-minute, and only fifteen in the next. The
period during which one course continues is equally
uncertain ; but about two minutes may be the usual

I time. Sometimes the pulsation intermits for a second
or so, and then goes on in the same direction ; and
sometimes there is a curious variation in the heart's
action, — a faint and then a strong beat, a faint and a
strong one, and so alternately for some time.
Several other points in the organization of this
animal I might notice ; as the forked muscular bands
that ramify from each aperture, the use of which is
doubtless to perform the strong retractations of those
—

248 NATURE — WHAT ?

that hang down freely like so many walking-sticks
into the cavity of the body from the oral orifice, to
the number of ten at least, the nature and use of
which organs I am not aware of.

Wishing to see the course of the food into the
stomach, I mingled indigo and carmine with the
water ; but though I saw the particles of pigment
continually taken in (not, as I had expected, by the
oral aperture but by the anal), I could not trace
them beyond the immediate vicinity of the orifice ;
nor could I discern the least discoloration of the
stomach or intestines by it. Indeed I could not
detect any distinct canal or tube leading from either
aperture to the stomach. The gelatinous coat, how-
ever, which invests the whole animal, has apparently
the power of imbibing water ; for on my lemoving it
into clean water after two or three hours' immersion
in the coloured, the whole of the investing coat was
tinged with faint purple, which slowly disappeared.
The admixture of pigment was probably injurious to
its health, for both circulation and respiration were
suspended, and were resumed only after some half-
hour's immersion in the pure water.

When I spoke just now of these wonderful mechan-
isms and functions as " Nature's operations," I used
the phrase in playfulness rather than in seriousness.
For who indeed is Nature, and what are her attri-
butes ? Is not the term one in which we take refage
from the necessity of acknowledging the God of
glory? " It has become customary," says the greatest
of modern zoologists, to personify Nature, and to
employ the name for that of its Author, out of re-

THE WORK OF GOD. 249

sped." I fear it is rather out of shame than out of
respect ; the potent dread of that terrific word "cantj"
I much fear has effected the suhstitution. If we
remember the word of Jehovah himself, " Whoso
offereth praise glorifieth me" (Psalm 1, 23.), we shall
not think it any mark of respect to conceal his name
in speaking of his wondrous works, and to give the
honour of their formation to a fabulous and imaginary
power.

No, this little ball of animated jelly is one of the
inventions of the Almighty Son of God ; of Him who
is the Brightness of God's glory, and the express
Image of his Person, without whom there was not
any thing made that was made. Its intricate ma-
chinery, all its clock-work circles and revolutions, were
originally the contrivance of his infinite wisdom, the
workmanship of his matchless skill. And they are
maintained in their beautiful order and precision, not
by any inherent force implanted in them at first, but
by his perpetual sustaining will. He, upholding all
things by the word of his power, maintains the vital
functions of this tiny globule, as truly and with as
absolute a volition as He maintains the motions of
the solar system, or they would instantly collapse into
nothing. He made this also for his own glory ; and
it is included in that extensive category, of which it
is declared, " For his pleasure they are, and were
created."

Every word of the above description was penned,
and my dramng was made, long before I was aware
that this little animal had been already described and

250 A CHARMING SPECTACLE.

figured by Mr. Lister in the Phil. Trans, for 1834. He
assigned to it no name, hut it has since been called
Perojjhora Listeri. Whatever points of agreement
are found between the observations of that eminent
naturalist and my own, are due to our having drawn
from a common original : and I will not cancel this
paper, since a concurrence of independent research is
valuable in all science.

LUMINOSITY OF THE SEA.

I was coming down lately by the Steamer from
Bristol to Ilfracombe in lovely summer weather.
Night fell on us when approaching Lynmouth, and
from thence to Ilfracombe, the sea, unruffled by a
breeze, presented a phenomenon of no rare occurrence,
indeed, to those who are much on the water, but of
unusual splendour and beauty. It was the phospho-
rescence of the luminous animalcules ; and though I
have seen the same appearance in greater profusion
and magnificence in other seas, I think I never saw it
with more delight or admiration than here. Sparkles
of brilliance were seen thickly studding the smooth
surface, when intently looked at, though a careless
observer would have overlooked them ; and as the
vessel's bow sploughed up the water, and threw ofi" the
liquid furrow on each side, brighter specks were left
adhering to the dark planks, as the water fell off", and
shone brilliantly until the next plunge w^ashed them
away. The foaming wash of the furrow itself was
turbid with milky light, in which glowed spangles of
intense brightness. But the most beautiful eff'ect of

ILLUMINATED WAVES. 251

the -whole, by far, and what was novel to me, was pro-
duced by the projecting paddle-boxes. Each of these
drove up from before its broad front, a little wave
continually prolonging itself, which presently curled
over outwardly with a glassy edge, and broke. It
was from this curling and breaking edge, here and
there, not in every part, that there gleamed up a
bluish light of the most vivid lustre, so intense that T
could almost read the small print of a book that I
held up over the gangway. The luminous animals
evidently ran in shoals, unequally distributed ; for
sometimes many rods would be passed, in which none
or scarcely any light was evolved, then it would appear
and continue for perhaps an equal space. The waves
formed by the summits ©f the swells behind the ship
continued to break, and were visible for a long way
behind, as a succession of luminous spots ; and occa-
sionally one would appear in the distant darkness,
after the intermediate one had ceased, bearing no
small resemblance, as some one on board observed, to
a ship showing a light by way of signal. The scene
recalled the graphic lines of Sir Walter Scott : —

Awak'd before the rushing prow.
The mimic fires of ocean glow.

Those lightnings of the wave ;
Wild sparkles crest the broken tides,
And flashing round, the vessel's sides

With elfish lustre lave ;
While far behind, their livid light
To the dark billows of the night

A blooming splendour gave.

Lord op the Isles, i. 21.

While on this subject I will mention the charming

252 LIVING SELF-LIGHTED LAMPS.

spectacle presented by some of the Sertularian Zoo-
phytes, in the dark. Other naturalists, as Professor
Forbes, Mr. Hassal, and Mr. Landsborough, have
observed it before me, and it was the admiration
expressed by them at the sight that set me upon
witnessing it for myself. I had a frond of Laminaria
digitata, on whose smooth surface a populous colony
of that delicate zoophyte Laomedea geniculata had
established itself. I had put the frond into a vessel
of water as it came out of the sea, and the polypes
were now in the highest health and vigour in a large
vase in my study. After nightfall I Avent into the
room, in the dark, and taking a slender stick struck
the frond and waved it to and fro. Instantly one and
another of the polypes lighted up, lamp after lamp
rapidly seemed to catch the flame, until in a second
or two every stalk bore several tiny but brilliant stars,
while from the regular manner in which the stalks
were disposed along the lines of the creeping stem,
as before described, (See p. 90 ante), the spectacle bore
a resemblance sufficiently striking to the illumination
of a city ; or rather to the gas-jets of some figure of
a crown or V. R., adorning the house of a loyal citizen
on a gala-night ; the more because of the momentary
extinction and relighting of the flames here and there,
and the manner in which the successive ignition ap-
peared to run rapidly from part to part.

It has been a question whether the luminosity of
these polypes is a vital function, or only the result of
death and decomposition. I agree with Mr. Hassal
in thinking it attendant, if not dependent, upon vita-
lity. The colony of Laomedea in the preceding

LUMINOUS ANIMALCULE. 258

experiment was still attached to its sea-weed, and
this had not been washed up on the beach, but was
growing in its native tide-pool when I plucked it ;
it had never been out of water a single minute, and
the polypes were in high health and activity both be-
fore and after the observation of their luminosity.

LUMINOUS ANIMALCULE.

Some weeks afterwards I had an opportunity of
becoming acquainted with a minute animal to which
a great portion of the luminousness of the sea is
attributed. One of my large glass vases of sea-water,
I had observed to become suddenly luminous at night
on being tapped with the finger ; the light was in
minute but brilliant sparks, chiefly at various points
on the surface of the water, and around its edge. It
is possible, however that the vibration of the glass
produced a more powerful effect on the animals in
contact with it, than on those in the water at some
distance. After the first tap or two, the light was not
again produced, and no jarring or shaking of the ves-
sel would renew it. I determined to examine the
water carefully in the morning.

In the mean time, however, in the course of
examining some polypes from another vessel, I unin-
tentionally isolated a minute globule of jelly, which I
presently recognized as Noctiluca miliaris. Kemem-
bering that this animalcule is highly luminous, I
immediately suspected that the luminous points of
my large vase might be owing to the presence of this
same little creature. I accordingly set the jar in the
z

254 THE NOCTILUCA.

window between my eye and the light, and was not
long in discovering, without the aid of a lens, a
goodly number of the tiny globules swimming about
in various directions. They swam with an even glid-
ing motion, much resembling that of the Volvox
glohator of our fresh water pools, but without any
revolution that I could perceive. They appeared
social, congregating into little groups, of half a dozen
or more together ; and when at rest affected the sur-
face and the side of the glass next the light. A
jar or shake of the vessel sent them down from the
surface.

It was not very easy to catch sight of them, nor to
keep them in view when seen, owing rather to their
extreme delicacy and colourless transparency than to
their minuteness. They were in fact distinctly appre-
ciable by the naked eye, for they measured from -^ th
to -^ th of an inch in diameter.

With a power of 220, each was seen to be a globose
sac of gelatinous substance, ordinarily smooth and
distended, but occasionally roughened with fine
wrinklings in the surface. At one side there is a
sort of infolding, exactly like that of a peach or plum
(see figs. 6 and 8, Plate XVI.) ; and this if viewed
directly sidewise appears to be a deep furrow, from
which the two rounded sides recede, with two minor
lobes between them. (See fig. 7). From the bottom
of the furrow springs a small slender proboscis of a
thickened ribbon-form, very narrow, and about as
long as two-thirds the diameter of the globe, with the
tip slightly swollen. (Fig. 11). It is frequently
twisted with one curl, but is moved sluggishly in

ni GMtf <ui tnui.

I 5, GORYKE STATIRTDIAI.
6-11, KOCTILUCA IvfflutARIS.

DEVELOPMENT OF A GEMMULE. 257

points of contact. Each of these globules is con-
nected with its fellows, by a long straight vessel, and
also with the mouth. They do not therefore float
freely, but are moored within the cavity, at a little
distance from the internal walls, by threads which
pass in various directions to the walls. I incline to
think them germs, but am not certain.

This last conclusion has been just confirmed ; for
having found one with a single vesicle, much larger
and evidently more developed than any before, I con-
tinued to watch it. I presently saw that the vesicle
was being drawn nearer to the fissure, very slowly
and gradually, but uniformly : at length it became
evident that it was about to be discharged ; and after
about two hours from the time I first observed it, it
was clear of the parent, though still sessile on the
part from which it had escaped. It was now a per-
fect sphere, about -^ inch in diameter, of a granular
surface, of a horny yellow hue, containing within it a
small, well-defined, but irregular-shaped mass of dark
red substance, near the centre. Its appearance is
shown at figure 10, more magnified than the other
figures. Twelve hours produced no change in the
appearance of the excluded ovum, and the next morn-
ing, in shifting the water, I unfortunately lost it.

THE SLENDER CORYNE.

I find in a vase of old sea-water kept pure by
living sea-weed, a Coryne which appears to have a
very distinct character and habit from the others that
have fallen under my notice. It is adhering to the

258 THE SLENDER CORYNE.

cylindrical footstalk of a Rhodymenia, about which
it creeps irregularly in the form of a white thread, of
about the same thickness as a human hair, as I found
by placing both beneath the microscope together.
This thread is cylindrical and tubular, perfectly hya-
line, and without any vestige of rings or wrinkles,
but permeated by a central core apparently cellular in
texture, and hollow, within which a rather slow circu-
lation of globules, few in number and remote, is dis-
tinctly perceived. The thread is very long in pro-
portion to its thickness, and here and there starts
from the support and sends off free branches, or
rather divides; the ramifications generally forming
an acute angle, and continuing of the same thickness,
form, and structure as before. Some of the branches
send off others, some soon form the terminal head,
others run to a great length, even to ten-times the
the length of the head. This excessive length and
tenuity of the branches constitute a character very
unlike that of (7. ramosa. (See Plate XVI. figs.
1-5).

The polype-head appears to be a clavate enlarge-
ment of the branch, no open end of an investing tube
being visible in any part of the zoophyte. The head
is oblong, usually cylindrical, rounded at the end »
but sometimes considerably ventricose in the middle ;
and wherever this form occurred, I invariably found
a large bubble of air in the midst of the swollen part.
The head is transparent, slightly tinged wdth yellow-
ish; corrugated with coarse annulations. The core
of the stalk enters into its lower part, and soon dilates
into a semi-opaque granular mass, becoming more

ITS TENTACLES. 259

dense at the very extremity, where it quite fills the
interior. At the extreme point are fixed four tentacles
of the usual form, directed to the cardinal points,
they are long, slender, and furnished with globular
heads. The number was four, neither more nor fewer,
in every head on the zoophyte, as also in each head
of another specimen near. Near the lower part of the
polype-head, viz. at about one- third from its com-
mencement, four tentacles project in the same manner,
exactly similar to the terminal ones, but without dilat-
ed heads. I had thought, in examining a similar
phenomenon in Coryne Cerbei-us^ that these were
tentacles from which the heads had sloughed; but
their appearance in this animal is too healthy to
allow me to maintain that opinion; and the con-
stancy of their number and position in every example
induces me to conclude them normal. Are they male
tentacles as described by M. Loven in Cory fie Sarsii ?
Both these and the capitate ones are seen on close
examination to be studded with tubercles, somewhat
whorled, from which short bristles project at right
angles. (See figs. 4, 5). The inferior tentacles are
furnished with rounded extremities, somewhat globose,
but not larger than the diameter of the tentacles
themselves.

The form of the polype reminds one of a familiar
kind of turnstile, or of those presses the screw of
which carries arms loaded at their extremities with
globes of metal to increase their impetus when turned.
It seems more closely allied to C. Cerberus than to
the other species that I have met with, though differ-
ing in the ramified habit, and in the number of its

260 PARASITIC ANIMALCULES.

capitate tentacles. It is much infested with parasites :
a Vorticella grows on it ; and a sort of Vibrio. The
latter is in immense numbers, forming aggregated
clusters here and there, the individuals adhering to
each other, by mutually twisting in several turns
around each other, and projecting in bristling points
in every direction. These animalcules vary in length,
some being as long as—inch, or more; with a diameter
of ^^ inch. They are straight, equal in thickness
throughout, and marked with distinct transverse lines;
they bend themselves about with considerable activity
and frequently adhere to the polype by one extremity,
or by a small portion of their length, while the
remainder projects freely.

Fig. 1. Represents the Coryne of the natural size,
which is distinctly perceptible to the naked eye

2. The same magnified.

3. The polype more highly magnified.

4. An inferior tentacle.

5. A capitate tentacle.

The species, I find, has been well figured by M.
Dujardin, in the Ann. des Sci. Nat. for 1845, by the
appellation of Stauridia; though I do not very
clearly apprehend whether he intends this for the
designation of the species. If so it must be called
Coryne stauridia.

CHAPTER XI.

Hillsborough — Meaning of its Name — Its Grandeur — Its Flowers
— Commanding Prospects — View Westward — Inland— East-
ward— Seaward — ^Formation of a Beach — A Rock-slip — An-
thea — Its Tentacles retractile — Their Structure— Thread-
Capsules — A Summer Morning Walk — Autumnal Flowers —
Langley Open — The Hangman — Curious Legend — Coast
Scenery — Lee — A Ship's Travels —Solitude — Caves — Sponges
— The Hispid Flustra — Its Appearance and Structure —
Expansion of its "Rells — Ciliary Action —A miniature Whirl-
pool— Visit to Braunton Cam Top — Tragical Legend —

Score Valley — Squirrels — Trentistowe — White Bindweed —
Oak Hedges — Reaping — Braunton — Curious monumental
Inscription — Braunton Burrows — Sea-side Rocks — Marine
Animals — ^Rare Plants on the Cliffs — Snails — Botany of the
Burrows — Insects — Shells — The Feather Plumularia — Its
Egg- Vesicles — Young Polj^es — Their Development from
Planules — Structure of the Polype.

The most remarkable object in this neighbourhood
is the noble mountain-mass that forms the eastern
headland of the harbour of Ilfracombe. Its name is
now spelled and pronounced Hillsborough, but there
can be little doubt that the essential part of this word
is cognate with Hele, the village that lies at the foot
of the hill. The element " borough" or " burrow" is
commonly found hereabouts in the names of elevated
rounded hills, especially such as are tenanted by rab-

262 HILLSBOROUGH.

bits. Thus we have Saxon's burrow y at the entrance
to Watermouth, and Braunton Burrows; and the
word is continually used as an appellative, synonymous
with rabbit-warren.

Hillsborough is sure to catch the eye of a stranger
from nearly all points of the vicinity. From the
promenade of Capstone its gigantic form is broadly
conspicuous; its loftiness brings its summit into
view the first of the eminences that surround the town,
as you mount any of the other hills ; and as you
walk down the steep and narrow street that leads to
the quay, there is the bold and picturesque mass
straight in front, filling the field of view. There is
something particularly grand and noble in its appear-
ance : the highest point is nearly 500 feet above the
sea, and from this point there descends to the water's
edge one broad ample face of cliff almost perpen-
dicular, its naked majesty unbroken from top to
bottom, except' by the variations of light and shadow,
and the slight diversities of the warm brown tints
that mark its surface. It is the character of the
friable shale Avhich is the prevalent formation here, to
form great breadths of surface, and to this I tliink is
owing much of that grandeur for which the coast
scenery of North Devon is so remarkable.

It is a pleasant, though somewhat toilsome exer-
cise, to climb to the summit of this hill in summer,
and enjoy the wide expanse of prospect visible thence.
I do not mean that you must climb the precipice, for
you might almost as well essay the side of a church,
but ascend the grassy slope from the landward side,
which, though steep, is not impracticable. We go by

ITS FLOWERS. , 263

the pleasant path across the Quay Fields, and just
where this leads into the dusty road, turn down a
lane for ahout a dozen yards, instead of going on to
Hele, clamber over a gate, — and we are on the
mountain.

It is near the end of July. The pale blue Scabious
and lilac Knautia are now in blossom; the yellow
spikes of the Agrimony, with battlemented calyx, and
the rosy flowers of the Eest-harrow, elegant in form
and beautiful in colour ; these are about the foot of
the slope. As we get up higher, the turf becomes
shorter and finer ; the cheerful little Bird's-foot Lotus
appears ; large patches of Thyme occur here and
there, as soft as a feather-bed, where the wild bee is
humming ; the tiny star-like flowers of the yellow
Ladies' Bedstraw are grouped by hundreds ; and not
rare is the lovely little Centaury, timidly displaying
its tufts of pink blossoms, that hardly venture to pro-
trude their pretty heads above the short turf. The
yellow Hawkweeds and Cats'^ears are flaunting here
and there, one species of which, the Mouse-ear, of a
delicate lemon-yellow tint, is both beautiful and
curious, for its leaves are studded with fine erect
hairs of great length and slenderness, and are covered
on their under surface with a close downy wool. On
the summit, two kinds of Stone-crop, that known as
distinctively English fAnglictimJ, and the much
rarer White (album) are growing profusely about
the clefts and weather-beaten sides of the rocks ; the
latter distinguished by its large silky blossoms, with
purple anthers ; the inflated calyxes of the Bladder
Campion, so prettily marked with delicate purple

264 COMMANDING PROSPECTS.

veins, are seen on the abrupt face of the precipice
itself, and bushes of the Bramble and the Sloe with
beds of Fern fringe the very yawning edge, giving a
sense of protection and security more apparent than
real.

But though I mention these plants and flowers
first, they are not the first things that claim attention
here. He would indeed be an enthusiastic botanist
who could look at flowers, until he had somewhat
satiated his eyes with the glorious prospect around.
One knows not where to commence the admiring survey
— sea-ward, land- ward; up the coast, down the coast; —
all is magnificent, or beautiful, or both. Let us turn
westward first ; overlooking the harbour and the town
of Ilfracombe, the craft in the one, and th-e streets
and terraces of the other, looking almost as in a map.
Here is Lantern Hill just beneath us, crowned with
the old chapel of St. Nicholas, the supposed patron
of mariners in the times of Papal ignorance, then
Compass Hill, and the conical Capstone with its con-
spicuous walks and its signal -staff"; then come the
green slopes of the Eunnacleaves, and the seven
peaks of the Torrs, and the rounded outline of
Langley Cleve, a loftier elevation than this on which
we stand : the rugged rocks, and coves of the coast
line are seen here and there, and far away on the dim
horizon lies Lundy, blue and hazy, like a sentinel
keeping his guard at the entrance of the channel.

Now for a gaze inland. Under our feet is the
village of Hele, embosomed in gardens and orchards,
and half hidden by tall and shaggy elms. A valley
winds up to the left, with a little stream running

' RILLAGE POINT. 266

through its wooded bottom, of which, however, we
can scarcely catch a glimpse here. Another lovely
vale, that of Chambercombe, leads off to the right, and
then curves round parallel with the former ; the sides
of its bounding hills are covered still more luxuriantly
with woods of oak and ash, the dark shadows of which
contrast finely with the sunny fields between, cut up
by roads and cross-paths like a ground-plan of an
estate in a land-agent's office.

We walk on a little way to the eastern brow of the
hill, which is less precipitous than the other. Hence
we look down upon extensive gardens sloping away
from our feet to the cottages on the road side. Oppo-
site us rises a broad hill-side covered with fields of
com and potatoes. Between there is the valley, the
village-mill, the "one arch'd bridge" crossing the
brook, and the brook itself now in full view brawling
and sparkling away to the cove. The sea is breaking
on the beach in rolling waves ; and the black rocks
of Rillage Point that runs out in a bristling ridge,
like a ruined wall, are fringed with a snowy line of
foam, from the beating surf, whose hollow roar falls
loud upon the ear. Overtopping the whole is the
dark outline of Great Hangman, a mountain of regu-
lar form nearly 1200 feet in height.

Once more. In another direction we gaze far
down upon the lovely face of the sea, bounded
in part by the blue line of the opposite shore run-
ning out to a dim, almost invisible, point, but for
a considerable expanse of the horizon so mingling
with the sky that the separation is with difficulty
defined,

266 A LAND-SLIP.

Silent and steadfast as the vaulted sky
The boundless plain of waters seems to lie : —
Comes that low sound from breezes rustling o'er
The grass-crowned headland that conceals the shore ?
No ; 'tis the earth-voice of the mighty sea.
Whispering how meek and gentle he can be ! —

i Wordsworth.

These views are very diverse from each other. I
know not which most to admire, the wild magnificence
of the iron-bound coast, the soft luxuriance of the
fields and woods, or the busy scenes of activity and
industr}^, the occupations and homes of human life.

This hill affords an instructive example of the for-
mation of a shingle-beach. About two years ago, one
winter's night, the inhabitants of the town were
affrighted by a tremendous and unaccountable noise,
and in the morning perceived that a large portion of
old Hillsborough had fallen. It had before presented
an uneven and broken slope, covered with bushes and
herbage nearly to the water; but now they saw all
this gone, and an abrupt precipice in its stead, as if a
giant had taken a rick-knife of suitable dimensions,
and had cut off a huge slice from the top to the bot-
tom. The fallen mass of debris formed a vast heap
piled against the side to nearly half the height. Up to
this time there had been no beach at the foot ; the
water had been deep to the cliff, and bristled with pro-
jecting masses and points of rock.

The action of the waves and the weather soon took
down the piled heap of rubbish ; and in a very few
months the whole had assumed its present state. A
wide beach was formed by the debris settling itself
into the sea ; the projecting rocks are quite covered

ANTHEA. 267

by it ; and the fragments of the fallen mountain are
already worn into round and smooth pebbles by the
rolling surf, so that no one would think on looking at
it that it had not been a shingle-beach ever since the
deluge.

ANTHEA.

On several occasions I have touched the tentacles
of Anthea cereus with my lingers, but have never ex-
perienced any other sensation than the shght adhesion
common to the Actinioi : not the least stinging. At
Hele, too, where the species is very numerous in
shallow rock-pools, a lad gathering periwinkles as-
sured me that it did not sting, and as a confirmation
of his assertion, immediately touched the tentacles of
one before me, with impunity.

Very fine specimens are common in the pools
below the Tunnel, near extreme low water. They
are of tints varying from the most silky emerald green
to plain drab ; some are of very large size, fully three
inches in diameter of disk ; much more in expanse of
tentacles. I perceive, what I had noticed also in
specimens kept in captivity, that when the animal is
distended and expanded freely, the tentacles are
arranged in clusters or tufts of a dozen or twenty,
which are united at their bases, somewhat hke the
stock of a very branching shrub.

Ehrenberg is right in affirming that this species
has the power of retracting its tentacles. My white
specimen described in an early page of this volume,
after having been in my possession more than six weeks

268 ANTHEA.

without showing any tendency to do so, at length per-
formed this feat. On the evening of the 6 th of June,
I observed it in the ordinary bell-form assumed by
Actiniae when at rest, with the tentacles protruded
only as regards their tips. I immediately touched it
both on the body and the tentacles, in the hope of
inducing further contraction, by the irritation; but
the power seemed to have reached its limit, for the
animal opened under the annoyance instead of closing.
But on the next night I observed it quite contracted ;
the campanulate shape was again assumed, and the
tentacles were quite withdrawn. I have no reason to
suppose that the specimen was unhealthy; it after-
wards expanded its tentacles, and allowed them to
hang loosely about, just as before.

The finest specimens that I have seen are at Ilfra-
combe, between Capstone and Lantern Hill ; there is
a group of the fine green variety in a tide-pool, all of
which expand fully six inches in diameter, with ten-
tacles four inches long.

The crimson extremity of one of the tentacles I
submitted to examination under pressure. The walls,
which were very mucous, seemed almost wholly com-
posed of filiferous capsules of a linear form, slightly
curved, about ^^th of an inch in length. The pro-
jected thread varied much in length, from four to
twenty five times that of the capsule. Those of the
body of the tentacle did not differ from those of
the tip.

The numerous convoluted bands with which the
body is filled, and which are considered to be ovaries,
are covered with close-set short cilia, the vibration of

A MORNING WALK. 269

which produces strong currents in the surrounding
water, and suffices to carry away the hands themselves
if they he cut off from the mass. The walls of these
tuhes seem also to he mainly composed of filiferous
capsules set in a gelatinous matter ; they agree ex-
actly with those of the tentacles.

A SUMMER MORNING WALK.

Who does not know the delightful feehngs excited
hy a walk in the early momiug of a hot summer's
day ? The freshness, the coolness, the thinness of
the air, the unclouded clearness of the blue sky, the
warm glow that hangs all about on the horizon, the
silvery dew that lies upon the grass and herbage Uke
a veil of fine muslin, — all combine to produce a buoy-
ancy and exhilaration of spirits, peculiar to the time.
I set out on a walk to Lee on such a morning about
the end of July ; the sun was not yet up, but the long
Vermillion clouds that stretched across the glowing
sky in the north-east, told of his presence, like the
gorgeous standard that floats over the pavilion of
a king.

The great black slugs were crawling on the wet
turf by the road-side ; creatures any thing but attract-
ive in themselves, and yet, associated as they are with
the mornings and evenings of the most charming
season of the year, not only tolerated but even
welcomed.

Before I had reached the end of the long steep lane
that terminates in Langley Open, the sun was climb-
ing his steeper course, and pouring down such con-

270 AUTUMNAL FLOWERS.

centrated rays as foretold a calm burning day. The
liills were covered with a hot haze, in which their
outlines were tremulously quivering. The air was
filled with a constant buzz from the two-winged flies
that were hovering about the hedges ; and the dull
brown butterflies were flitting along in their dancing
jerking flight all around.

] marked the change in the appearance of the hedge-
rows and banks produced by the progress of the season.
The spring flowers had all departed ; there were no
primroses now ; no germander speedwells, no violets,
no pileworts, scarcely any red campions ; but purple
loosestrife and the great willow-herb sprang up in the
ditches ; the long straggling shoots of the brambles
were covered with flesh-coloured blossoms ; and the
dense spikes of Teucrium were every where prominent.
The abundance of yellow flowers indicated the
approach of autumn; the handsome spikes of the
yellow toad-flax with its curiously spurred flowers
crowned the tall hedges, and a Potentilla was seen
here and there on the bank ; but the composite
flowers that botanists term Syngenesia were chiefly
characteristic ; the hawkweeds, and groundsels, and
ox-tongues, and sow-thistles.

The foliage of the hedges and all the herbage had
lost the delicacy of spring, and had grown rank, and
coarse, and sprawling ; seeds were ripening on all
sides, and ferns were putting on their under- clothing
of brown tracery.

"Not seldom did we stop to watch some tuft
Of dandelion seed or thistle's beard.

LANGLEY OPEN. 271

That skimmed the surface of the [grassy field] ;
Suddenly halting now, — a lifeless stand!
And starting off again with freak as sudden."

Wordsworth.

Langley Open is a wide undulating down of great
elevation : it is, indeed, with the exception of Langley
Cleve, a large rounded hill on the left, the loftiest
land in the vicinity. Hillsborough, which is nearly
500 feet above the sea level, is considerably inferior,
for the eastern horizon was visible above its summit.
It was a lovely scene. From my feet the green down
sloped away a few hundred yards to the edge of the
precipice, in one direction indented to form a deep,
fem- covered glen, which appeared as if it would
afford an easy access to the beach ; a deceptive
promise, however; for the adventurer, after wending
his diflBcult and hazardous way through the gulley,
would at length find himself at the margin of a yawn-
ing chasm, with angular, almost perpendicular, sides,
and see the inviting little beach, perfectly inaccessible,
a hundred and fifty feet below him.

From the position in which I was, however, I could
not see any portion of the shore except the termina-
tions of one or two projecting points of rock; but the
hollow sound of the surf that was breaking over those
points, and rolling in among the boulders and pebbles,
came pleasantly on the ear. The deep blue sea lay
spread out in wide expanse, studded with shipping
and bounded by the distant coast : tiny waves ruffled
up by the western breeze were speckling the surface
with those snowy masses of foam that mariners call
"white horses ;" or, to use the poet's similitude, —

272 LEGEND OF THE HANGMAN.

"Ocean's mermaid shepherdess
Drives her white flocks afield, and warns in time
The wary fisherman ;"

and the dark shadows of the floatiug clouds were
chasing each other over the sparkling plain, turning
the hrilliant whiteness of the ships' sails into a dusky
grey, as they fleeted hy.

Turning, I saw the valley up which I had heen
toihng; the town of Ilfracomhe embosomed among
the hills, the shipping in the harbour, Hillsborough
and other bluff headlands that distinguish tliis part of
the coast receding in succession, until they faded into
a dim and untraceable line far up the channel towards
Bristol. But prominent among them was one conical
mass, attracting notice as well by its superiority of
magnitude to all the others, as by the simple majesty
of its uninterrupted outline, rising to a peak from the
land, and then descending with a similar angle to the
sea. This mountain, which is between eleven and
twelve hundred feet above the sea-level, bears the sin-
gular name of the Hangman, derived from a romantic
incident which legendary tradition has preserved.

Many, many years ago, it is said, a man went out
one night and stole a sheep from the flocks, which
then, as now, grazed on the slopes of these lofty
downs. He had killed it, and was carrying it home
on his back, having tied the legs with a single rope
which he had passed over his head, and held in his
hands. As he was crossing the down he came to one
of the low stone walls which form the fences in this
part of the country, and being tired he rested his
burden for a few minutes on the top of the wall. By

LEE. 273

some accident, ho^yever, the sheep slipped over the
wall, and the wretched man, being off his guard, was
not quick enough to prevent the rope from catching
liim by the tliroat, nor could all his efforts then suc-
ceed in relaxing the pressure. He was found in the
morning in this position quite dead, the providence
of God having ordained that thus suddenly he should
meet the felon's doom, and that his ill-gotten booty
should itself become his executioner.

As I turned to pursue my walk, another fine
example of coast scenery lay before me. The bluff
and bleak promontory known as the Bull was there,
projecting its abruptly precipitous head far into the
blue sea, and between me and it was the little bay of
Lee, a lovely spot, whose beauty I have before record-
ed. The cliffs on the opposite side, covered with
small wood, bushes, fern, and ivy nearly to their foot,
and inclosing, as if with lofty walls, on all but the
seaward side, Uttle quiet bathing coves with beaches
of white sand, attracted my admiration ; surmounted
as they were with a pretty villa embosomed in
orchards and surrounded by cultivated fields. A
flagstaff crowned one of the peaks that rose above
this scene, and far beyond all, on the distant
horizon, was stretched the lone blue isle of Lundy.

A steep and rocky lane wound down from my ele-
vated position to Lee, where the road runs along the
beach at the head of the cove. The tide was already
far out, and revealed the weed-covered rocks, inter-
sected by narrow channels, through which the little
stream that flows down from the valley, was pursuing
its meandering way to the sea, after spreading itself
over the sandy beach.

274 A ship's travels.

I stood beside the water-wheel of the mill at the
end of the lane, and gazed over the wide-spread area
of broken rocks that I have described on a former
occasion, before my eye met the sea. It seemed
incredible that under any circumstances of tempest
or tide, a vessel of size could be carried to the spot
where I was standing. Yet if trustworthy persons
are to be trusted, a brig called the " Wilberforce" was
a few years ago lifted by the violence of the surf clean
over the floor of rocks, and lodged high and dry here
by the side of the mill. The crew, it is supposed, had
in despair taken to their boat previously, and were all
unhappily drowned, their precaution proving their
destruction. The brig was comparatively little in-
jured; she was bought by a shipwright of Ilfracombe,
repaired and floated, and has continued ever since to
trade from the harbour.

I wended my way, over the rocks and through the
matted sea-weeds that were crisped and blackened by
their brief exposure to so burning a sun, to the coves
that I had seen from the heights. The rugged clifi's
rose perpendicularly like walls, inclosing the most
charmingly smooth beaches, whose invitations to bathe
in the clear wave I found irresistible.

On either side
The white sand sparkling to the sun ; in front
Great Ocean with its everlasting voice.
As in perpetual jubilee, proclaim'd
The wonders of the Almighty.

SOUTHET.

It was indeed a glorious scene : the majesty of the
lofty precipices, their rugged sides leading the eye up

THE HONEYCOMB SEA-WORM. 275

to dark shadowy bowers among the ivy and bushes at
their summits, combined with the bold outlines of the
far-receding coast, and the expanse of the sea, to con-
vey an impression of great grandeur ; an impression
unmarred by the presence of any object mean or little
or common-place ; for where I stood no trace of the
proximity of man, of his buildings, or his cultivation,
was visible, nothing but the works of God himself. It
was one of those times and scenes in which probably
most tliinking persons have occasionally found them-
selves, in which we are unfit for study or for action,
but in which the whole soul seems alive and awake to
enjoyment.

THE FLESHY FLUSTRA.

When I was at the beach, a shower coming on
induced me to seek a shelter in a narrow cleft between
the perpendicular rocks; and being within I found a
shallow cavern on each side, w^hich afforded me suffi-
cient protection from the rain- drops, though a briny
shower was dripping freely from the stony roof. Of
course I could not stand there without looking to see
if I could do anything in the way of business. From
one of the caves a narrow hole ran slanting upwards
many yards, till it opened at the top of the rock and
let the light streaming in. The floors of both were
covered with the curious cells of the honeycomb sea-
worm (Sahella alveolataj, all composed of minute
fragments of gravel imbedded in a delicate mosaic-
work, of which two broad spoon-like blades projected
around the mouth of every tube, exquisitely thin and

276 THE FLESHY FLUSTRA.

delicate in their texture. About the wet walls were
scattered irregular patches of a scarlet sponge fHali-
chondria sanguinea) as big as one's hand, or bigger,
and many specimens of a smaller kind of a yellowish
colour, more projecting into teat-like eminences (H.
pa?iiceaj. Many limpets were about, some of which
were very evidently stationary inhabitants, notwith-
standing their power of free locomotion, for the sur-
face of the rock on which they were seated was in
many cases eroded to the depth of an eighth of an
inch, for a space just large enough comfortably to
embrace the margin of the shell. Other such oval
depressions, from whence the limpet had either fallen
or wandered away, showed the spots where this little
shell-fish had certainly taken up his abode for a time.
On the roof of one of the caves I observed a
roundish encrusting substance of a dull olive-brown
colour, which attracted my curiosity, and induced me
to attempt its removal. I found I could easily get it
off by forcing the blade of my pocket-knife under it,
though it adhered with considerable tenacity I after-
wards observed other patches of the same substance
in the vicinity, some of which I took away in a man-
ner less liable to injure its vitality, viz., by chiselling
off a portion of the rock itself. On examining it
at home, I cannot find that it disagrees with an
encrusting polype that is found commonly enough
investing the fronds of the serrated Fucus, and which
I presume to be the Flustra hispida or carnosa of
naturalists. It forms a rough surface, about one
twelfth of an inch in thickness, and spreading in all
directions to an indefinite breadth; some of these

ITS STRUCTURE. 277

patches were an inch and a half in width. The micro-
scope reveals that in this suhstance, which is gelatinous,
and of a consistence somewhat hetween flesh and car-
tilage, are imbedded numerous oblong cells, set as
close to each other as they will lie, with the orifices
slanting outward to the surface, and so arranged as
that each opening shall be in a line between the two
that are just behind it ; in other words, disposed in
quincunx. The upper and free portion of each cell
is surrounded by short spines standing up and diverg-
ing a little, their number varying from one or two to
five or six. Between them is the opening of the cell,
a transverse slit, or pair of lips capable of separating
and of allowing the integuments to be protruded by
evolution ; the usual mode of expansion among the
Polyzoan polypes. You would fancy it was the finger
of a fairy glove, slowly turning inside out ; the mem-
branous tube lengthening all the while upwards from
the midst of the spines, and unfolding with more and
more rapidity, until at length a bundle of fine threads
appear, and in a moment expand on all sides into a
most lovely bell of thirty tentacles. Meanwhile
another and another is protruding in like manner,
and presently the uncouth skin that looked like a
piece of rough leather, is adorned every where with
these beauteous bells as thick as they can stand.
They appear as if they were spun out of glass thread,
so crystalline is their substance; and the double curve
of their outhne is peculiarly elegant. To add to their
beauty, every filamentous tentacle is furnished with a
double series of minute cilia, the rapid play of which
is perpetually passing up one side from the base to
B 2

278 A LIVING WHIRLPOOL.

the tip, and down the other in ceaseless waves, an
appearance which no familiarity enables one to look
on without admiration and delight. Every moment
too, one and another of the tentacles is thrown inward
with a sudden jerk towards the centre, bending over
the head, and then gracefully recovers its place. This
action, which seems odd and unaccountable at first, is
an instinctive effort to secure food, the great object of
life, the end for which the protrusion of the polype, the
bell-like expansion of its tentacles, and the unceasing
play of their cilia are alike ordained. In order to
make this action intelligible it is necessary to premise
that a stationary polype, being unable to seek its food,
must be provided with means to bring it within reach:
the cilia accomplish this ; they create an impetuous
current in a certain definite direction, and form a
vortex in the surrounding water, whose effects are felt
to an incredible distance. Any minute floating animal-
cule near is drawn into this whirlpool, the centre of
which is the bottom of the polype's bell ; once within
the circle; it is whirled round and round, descending
at each gyration till at length it is within the fatal
circle ; the glassy tentacles encompass it with a wall
on every side, and it still whirls round with ever
increasing velocity in the giddy dance, and at length
is sucked into the yawning abyss at the bottom, the
gaping throat, which expands with a treacherous
embrace as the helpless atom enters, and then closes
over it with a strong muscular contraction, forcing it
down into the stomach, no more to emerge alive.
But if, in performing the gyration within the bell,
the floating atom should be driven too near the

A VISIT TO BRAUNTON. 279

margin, it might possibly escape through the inter-
stices of the tentacles, for they do not stand in actual
contact. To prevent the contingency, the cilia of the
tentacles are endowed with an exquisite sensibility ;
and if an object but touch the tip of one of these
most minute hairs, the irritability of the tentacle is
excited, and it immediately moves inward with that
sudden jerk, which throws the poor animalcule right
back into the very whirl of the vortex.

BRAUNTON BURROWS.

The next day I set out to visit Braunton, a place
whose origin is said to date as far back as the third
century. The road, a little way from Ilfracombe, lies
between the peak called Cam Top on the right, and
the lovely valley of Score on the left. Both of these
were beautiful. The conical hill, with its groves of
oak, and its top sheeted with furze, is a striking object,
and always reminds me, from something in its form
and general appearance, of the representations that I
have seen of Mount Tabor. From its lofty summit a
wide and varied prospect is commanded ; it is, how-
ever, precipitous and difficult to climb. There is
another reason why its romantic height is seldom
scaled ; it has the reputation of being haunted. Some
seventy years ago, a tragical deed of violence was
committed here. A Jew pedlar, travelling with a
richer pack than pedlars usually carry at the present
day, was murdered on this lonely hill. The head and
a part of the body of the unfortunate man were dis-

280 SCORE VALLEY.

covered on the very summit of the hill by an inquisi-
tive dog; the rest of the mutilated remains were
aftei wards found wrapt in a woollen apron, and con-
cealed in a brake on the hill-side. The peasantry of
the neighbourhood believe with an undoubting faith,
that the ghastly head of the murdered Jew is still to
be seen, in the gloaming, among the bushes of Cam
Top.

On the opposite side of the road Score presented an
appearance still more attractive. It is one of the
loveliest vales in the vicinity. A flourishing farm,
with its cultivated fields of varied hues, its animals,
its agricultural operations, its out-buildings, and other
appurtenances, occupies the bottom, through which
flows a clear little stream. The sloping sides of the
hills, projecting irregularly in bold masses into the
valley, are well wooded ; a feature which greatly con-
tributes to the beauty of the scene. A pair of
squirrels, with erected feathery tails, scampered across
the field as we passed, and took refuge in the shelter
of these woods.

Farther on Trentistowe displayed a similar combi-
nation of smiling fields and dark woods. The blue
blossoms of the sheep's-bit studded the banks, and
there was a wall covered with the Convolvulus arvensis,
in which the white flowers were so thick, that it
looked as if a pall of green velvet had been thrown
over it, studded with silver stars.

We pass West Down, a pretty village on a hill to
the left, and come to Buddicombe Barton, where the
rounded hills are covered with coppice of small oak ;
out the trees become finer as we approach the bottom.

BRAUNTON. 281

The hedges hereabout are composed of oak and hazel^
and the nuts, which were very plentiful this season,
hung enveloped in their green coats, in inviting
clusters.

The country around Braunton is so fertile that it
is frequently called the Goshen of Devon. A great
deal of corn is cultivated, and it was more advanced
to maturity than any that I had seen elsewhere.
Keaping had just commenced, and the fields were
lively with the voices of the cheerful husbandmen,
gathering in the gifts which a bounteous God had so
richly provided. "Thou crownest the year with thy
goodness, and thy paths drop fatness : they drop
upon the pastures of the wilderness, and the little
hills rejoice on every side : the pastures are clothed
with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with
com: they shout for joy, they also sing."

Braunton possesses little to attract notice, except
the ancient church, which I did not enter. It is said
to contain some curious carvings in good preser-
vation ; one of these, in a pannel of the roof, repre-
sents the singular subject of a sow with a litter of
pigs; in allusion to the ridiculous legend, that St.
Branock, its founder was directed by a dream to
build a church on the first spot on which he might
find a sow and pigs.

I found in the church-yard a monumental stone,
elaborately carv^ed, and inscribed with the following
epitaph; which I copy for its curiosity, and not
from any sympathy with the doctrine inculcated
in it, of the excellence of celibacy, nor with the per-
version of scripture which it contains.

282 CURIOUS EPITAPH.

Here lieth interred Mrs.

Deborah Keene late owner

of tlie Mannor of Braunton

Arundell in this parish ; shee

Was bapt'd Febr' the 24th 1627,

Lived unmarried and was bur,d

Decern, the 31. 1694.

Virginity was had in estimation

And wont to be observed wth veneration

Above tis still so, single life is led

In Heav'n none marry nor are married

But live Angelick lives, & virgins Crown^

All wth their coronets the Lamb surround

This maiden landlady has one obtain d

"VVch tho much sought in marriage still rettain,d

And now the inheritance undefild obtain,d.

Hgeredes posuere.

A tall and ancient elm tree in the centre of the
street, where four ways meet, indicated the spot at which
I turned off for the sea-side, the immediate object of
my ramble. I found the botanical character of the
neighbourhood very different from that of Ilfracombe.
The beautiful flowers of the wild succory, large and
blue, were so abundant along the road- sides between
Braunton and Santon, as to be quite characteristic.
The Knautia, and different species of Centaurea,
particularly fine, were growing on the banks; and
from the crevices of a wall near Santon I noticed that

BRAUNTON BURROWS. 283

tufts of the wood horse-tail were springing in con-
siderable numbers.

Between Santon and the sea is an extensive tract of
ground called Braunton Burrows, consisting of more
than a hundred acres of sand-hills. It seems to have
been at one time a wooded district ; for a peasant, ex-
cavating the sand about a century ago, uncovered
the top of a tree, which proved to be thirty feet in
height. The origin of the change is doubtless to be
found in the exposed position of the district, and in
the character of the adjacent shore. The latter is a
smooth beach of fine white sand, several miles in
length, and of great breadth, especially when the tide
recedes ; the westerly winds, blowing full upon the
shore, have in the course of ages drifted the fine sand
upon the land, to such an extent as to cover what
was once a forest, and reduce it to its present deso-
late condition.

These Burrows, so called because they are perfo-
rated by the holes of myraids of rabbits, present
many interesting plants to the botanist, some of which
are of great rarity. The round-headed club-rush
fScirpus holoschcemisj one of the most uncommon
of British plants, is found here.

Before I examined the sands, however, I sought
the rocks towards Croyde Bay and Baggy Point; for
it was nearly low water and spring tide, and I wished
to see what this locality would aff'ord of novelty in the
littoral animals, which were the chief object of interest
to me. The sands terminate at this extremity in a
belt of ridgy shale, occupying the space between the
sea and low clifis of a yellow sandstone, disposed in

284 RARE PLANTS.

thin horizontal strata, and covered at the top with a
layer of poor soil, on which barley was growing.

At the edge of the rocks, near low water mark, the
points and projections of the shale were covered
with the curious honey-combed tubes of Sahella
alveolata ; a covering which gave to the rocks an
appearance of rounded masses, singularly suggestive
of the brainstones of tropical seas. Pretty tide-pools
and deep inlets occurred between the rocks, with
sandy bottoms ; their sides densely fringed with Ser-
tularian zoophytes and Polyzoa, sponges and various
sea-weeds. Actiniae of the species mesembryanthemum,
crassicornis, and yemmacea, I observed ; the last-
named more than usually fine : the common shore
shells, whelks and purples, tops and periwinkles, were
crawling about in profusion. One of these crea-
tures I shall return to presently.

I climbed up the sandy cliffs. The great sea-stock
(Matthiola sinuataj, a rare plant, was numerous on
these cliffs, now displaying its purple flowers, I was
struck with the curious large yellow glands on the
leaves and pods. The samphire in dark green tufts,
the pretty sea lavender, and the common thrift were
likewise clothing the cliffs ; and on the top, between
the barley and the very edge, was a narrow belt of
wild plants, which I had scarcely time to look at
before a peasant came along and cut them all down
with his merciless scythe.

There was the rest-harrow, the little centaury, both
beautiful ; the fragrant yellow-bedstraw ; the woad,
or wild mignonette ; the brilliant azure flowers of
the viper's bugloss : and the golden heads of the

BOTANY OF THE BURROWS. 285

ragwort. The large purple musk- thistle was attracting
in considerahle numbers the pretty bumet hawkmoths,
which were flying about and sucking the flowers ;
and the herbage generally was crowded with two little
banded snails, proper to the sea-shore, the cone-snail
CBulimus acutusjy and the navel-snail {Helix vir-
gataj. The clifl' in one place, rather less precipitous
than usual, was entirely faced with honeysuckle from
the top to the bottom.

As I returned, I spent an hour in examining the
botany of the Burrows ; though it would require days
to go over the whole ground, even cursorily. The
privet grows on the sand-hills in large thickets of
beautiful glossy green foliage, thick and dense; the
stems lean away from the sea, and the surface of the
thickets is as smoothly rounded by the winds as if
cut by the shears of a gardener. Near the sea was
the small bugloss (Lycopsis arvensisj, with blossoms
like those of a forget-me-not growing on a rough
sprawling prickly herb. I found the rare musky
stork's bill, a plant with little pretension to beauty,
nor does its rank odour please me, though it is said
by Sir William Hooker to be cultivated in gardens
for its scent. The viper's bugloss was again numer-
ous, and the contents of its nectariums were evidently
attractive to the bees of different species, which were
thronging around the spikes, half-burying themselves
in the blossoms, with a shrill deprecatory hum. Two
species of spurge, Euphorbia peplus, and the much
finer and more uncommon E. Portlandica, occurred.
That singular plant, the prickly saltwort, was found
near the sea, and farther inland the fuller's teasel*

286 INSECTS AND SHELLS.

which I had seen also on the road. A few tufts of
the stinking iris, so common in South Devon, but
scarce almost everywhere else, were growing near the
sea, but not in flower ; and the more elegant yellow
iris was abundant in a ditch that bounds the Burrows
interiorly, with other common hedge-plants.

The sand of the hills was beaten quite hard on the
seaward side by the force of the drift ; but inwardly
it was soft and loose : great tracts were covered with
a slender rush of a glaucous hue, but as I saw none
in flower I do not know the species. The ragwort
also covers extensive areas. Towards the interior
side I passed through a large tract of the brake-fern,
with an under- growth of rest-harrow, and a few plants
of the yellow mountain violet in blossom. These I
think were pretty nearly all the plants that fell under
my observation, except such as were common every-
where. Of animal life I did not notice much. Rab-
bits indeed were numerous, popping out of their holes
at every turn, gazing at the intruder for an instant,
and then jumping away with elevated rump and tail.
Two insects, an Asilus and a Cicmdela, were taking
short impatient flights over the sand ; singularly alike
in manners, though of widely difi'erent orders ; the
one a two-winged fly, the other a beetle. On the
sand and beneath its surface, were thousands of shells
of the common garden-snail ; the heat and the dry-
ness had, as it were, embalmed them, and they
appeared in the finest preservation. One might have
been tempted to think, but for the familiar form and
pattern of the marking, that it was some foreign
species of superior beauty, for the dark colours were

THE FEATHER PLUMULARIA. 287

changed to a fine cliestnut-red, while tlie lighter parts
had become pure ivory-white.

THE FEATHER PLUMULARIA.

A tuft of weed that I had pulled off from the side
of one of the rock-pools, and brought home screw-
ed up in a bit of paper, was almost covered with the
elegant plumes of Plumtilaria pinnata. I put it into
sea-water as soon as I arrived at home, after it had
been out of water about eight hours, carried within
my hat. When I came to examine it, many of the
Polypes appeared alive, though contracted. Many of
the lower stalks were nearly denuded of branches,
except at their tips, but were densely crowded for the
most of their length, with the ovigerous vesicles.
(Plate XVII, fig. 4.) These are placed in a single
series, on the upper side of the arching stems, as
thickly as they can stand, about twenty-five on each.
By single series I mean only that they are all seated
on one side of the stem, and all point the same way,
(with an occasional exception) ; for they are two,
three, or even four abreast. Their substance is hya-
line, but the contents are opaque and flesh-coloured.
Their shape is sub-oval, larger at the tip, but the
sides are fluted so as to form about six rounded
angles and as many furrows. Near the tip several
divergent tubercles or blunt spines are given off.
Fig. 5 represents a lateral view of one; Fig. 6 a
vertical, from a very good view : the opaque ova in
the middle.

The tuft alluded to I put into a glass vessel made

288 THE FEATHER PLUMULARIA.

of the chimney of an ordinary lamp, with the bottom
closed by a plate of glass : this was about half-full of
sea-water. In three or four days, examining curso-
rily with a lens, I was surprised to see the bottom
crowded with young polypes growing erect from every
part. They were there by hundreds ; I detached a
few for more particular examination. Each consisted
of an irregular dilated glassy plate, adhering to the
bottom : from some point of which sprang up erect a
slender tube, with one or two joints, and terminating
in a cell of the same form as those above described.
The medullary core permeated the tube, and was
developed into a perfectly-formed polype inhabiting the
cell, and freely expanding from it. The tube, the cell
and the polype, were of the same dimensions as in the
adult. Some of the cells already shewed, in the form
of a tubercle budding from their bases, the com-
mencement of a new joint of the lengthening poly-
pidom. (Fig. 13.)

Along with these, on the floor of the glass-vessel,
were many minute animalcules of an opaque white
hue, somewhat planaria-like, which crawled slowly
and irregularly, protruding the anterior portion of
the body in a blunt point, but often contracting the
whole outline into a sub-globose form. (Figs. 7, 8,
and 9). These worm-like animalcules I found to ba
the primal form of the young polype, and though I
have not been able to trace the metamorphosis
through every stage of its development in the same
individual, the facts T have observed leave it indu-
bitable.

I took two plates of thin glass, and suspended

DEVELOPMENT OF THE YOUNG. 289

them by threads in the vessel, near the bottom, hori-
zontally ; with a view to obtain some of the embryos
rooting themselves thereon, which I might afterwards
take out, to watch their progressive development under
the microscope. Meanwhile I secured the first step
in the inquiry, by opening with needles some of the
crowded vesicles of the adult polypidom, from which
I obtained some of the minute white worms. In two
or three days I drew out the plates of glass, and put
them in shallow cells of sea- water, fit for the stage of
the microscope. I found upon them the young
animals in various stages. Some of the worms were
yet vagrant, and crawled freely about the surface :
others had selected their position and were adherent,
but still retained the power of motion, to such a
degree as enabled them to change their form by pro-
truding certain portions of their outline : others were
contracted into a globule fixed and changeless, with
the matter produced in the form of a creeping rootlet
(Fig. 10).

The next stage that I observed, was that in which
the adherent mass had become shelly ; as I presume,
for the marginal portions were perfectly transparent
and colourless ; and the opaque granular matter had
retired to the centre, where, irregular in form, it had
given rise to a tube (Fig. 11). This tube had
already formed one joint: its extremity was closed
and rounded, and had not yet begun to dilate into a
cell. The medullary matter, proceeding from the
granular mass at the base, passed through the lower
portion of the tube as a central cord, but completely
filled the terminal moiety. Another specimen had
c 2

290 DEVELOPMENT OF THE CELL.

proceeded so far as the formation of the cell, the bot-
tom of which was filled with the granular matter as
yet amorphous, no trace of the polype being yet dis-
coverable (Fig. 12). This was the most matured
phase of the development that appeared on the expe-
rimenting plates of glass; but the transition from
this state to that of the young polypes already de-
scribed at the bottom of the vessel is short and obvious ;
and the progress from one of them to a perfect poly-
pidom is but a matter of increase and aggregation.
There is, however, a hiatus in this chain ; I should
have particularly wished to see one or more specimens
between the condition of the adherent globule, and
that of the formed and growing tube : but of this
intermediate stage my glass plates presented no spe-
cimen. And whether the water in the shallow stage-
troughs, to which I removed the plates for microscopic
examination, afforded insufficient nutriment, I know
not ; but I could not find that any individual speci-
men continued to grow after the removal from the
larger vessel ; and they shortly gave evident tokens of
death and decay.

In examining a cluster of the same polype from the
Bathing Pool, I was struck with the great similarity
of the expanded disk to that of the embryo of Lao-
medea genicidata. I have figured a segment at fig. 3.
I cannot find any trace of the so-called auditory cap-
sules. The tentacles are very distinctly armed with
whorls of tubercles, some of which have two, and
even three points. They are as it were jointed, being
crossed at regular intervals by well-marked transverse
lines (i. e. planes). The centre of the disk is protu-

THE DISK. 291

berant ; and there is a dark granular disk, which is
sometimes contracted considerably within the circum-
ference, and at others expanded so as to reach beyond
the webs which connect the bases of the tentacles. Fig.
2 shews a well expanded polype, as seen laterally: there
is a neck below the disk, and then a flask-shaped
body ; this latter fills the narrow limits of the cell, so
that the poh^e has no power of withdrawing itself;
it can do no more when alarmed than draw the tips
of its tentacles together, and contract them into a
ball ; and this it does with that spasmodic grasping
clutching sort of action that I noticed in the young of
Laomedea genicidata. A beautifully distinct circu-
lation of granules in a fluid was seen pervading the
medulla of the stem and branches to the cells. The
whole polypidom was much infested with fine radiating
fibres, doubtless parasitic ; and with some Vaginicol(B.
I counted seventeen tentacles in one, nineteen in
another.

CHAPTER XII.

A Visit to Smallmouth Caves— Chasm formed by a Rock- slip-
View of Samson's Bay — Samson's Cave — Smallmouth —
Natural Timnel— View of Combmartin Bay— Brier Cave-
Abundance of Animals — The Twining Campanularia— Form
of its Cells— The Polypes— The Egg- Vesicles— Birth of a
Medusoid— Its Form and Structure— Tentacles— Eyes— Cir-
culating Canals-Alternation of Generations— Ride towards
Barricane — A Showery Journey — Lee — Damage Farm — A
romantic Dell — Devonshire Wells — Rockham Bay — White
Pebbles— Morte Stone — Shipwreck — Gallant Exploit— Morte
— Tomb of De Tracy — Approach of a Storm — Kestrels — ■
Parasites on a Crab— The Bristle Plumularia— Birth of its
Young — Dissolution — The Lobster's Horn Coralline — Second-
ary Cells — Suggestion of their Purpose — Egg-Vesicles —
Birth of the Planiile — Its Development into the Polype-form
—Death.

SMALLMOUTH CAVES.

Aug. 2nd. — I paid another visit io Watermouth
and Smallmouth, principally for the purpose of seeing
the perforations and caverns of the latter place. The
road thither was of course the same as when I had
traversed it three months before, but the almost entire
change of the accompaniments made the effect differ-
ent. The flowers that had adorned the banks in May
had left scarcely a representative, and comparatively
few new ones had sprung up in their place. Of these
few, however, one of the prettiest was the perfoliate

SAMSONS CAVERN. 293

yellow-wort, which, though I had not met with it else-
where, was somewhat numerous in Hockey Lane above
Hele. The enchanter's night-shade, the eyebright, and
the centaury were likewise growing here; and near
Watermouth the mountain willow-herb, and the com-
mon vervain were numerous.

At the most elevated part of the coast-line where
the down comes to a precipitous edge some hundreds
of feet above the sea, there is a narrow but deep cleft
in the land, into which we can gaze down from the
road. It is an awful chasm, with nearly perpendicular
sides ; and was formed, as I was told, in one night,
about a year ago, by the sudden falling in of the earth .
There was still the hedge running along the margin
of the precipice, interrupted by the chasm, which had
cut it right through. These land-slips are by no
means of rare occurrence, and they frequently alter
and modify the appearance both of the cli£fs and of
the sea-margin below.

A little way beyond this point the traveller looks
down upon a cove called Sampson's Bay ; it is girt in
with rocky cliffs of great massiveness and wild gran-
deur, too abrupt and perpendicular to be scaled, even
by the most expert climber. An ample cavern yawns
on the western side of the bay, into whose depths, as
the tide was high, the surf was dashing, with a roar
that rivalled the discharge of artillery. I thought of
the fine simile of Moore ; —

Beneath, terrific caverns gave
Dark welcome to each stormy wave.
That dash'd, like midnight revellers, in.'

294 SMALLMOUTH CAVE.

This, however, was not one of the caverns of which
I was in search. They, are situated at Smallmouth,
about a mile farther to the eastward. The stream
that runs in front of Watermouth Castle, expands into
a little pond, the water of wliich is made to pour down
a square well of stone, from the bottom of which it
escapes again as a brawling brook. Just at this
point, a path leads off from the main road, which
presently conducts the traveller to a steep descent
into a sort of glen, rough with boulders, and unplea-
sant to walk in, from the admixture of sand and mud
which forms the bottom. This glen is the head of a
long and narrow inlet, confined between precipices,
and up which the sea enters, to an extent which
varies with the condition of the tide. A stranger
might readily leave this cove with the impression that
he had seen all it had to display ; but if he turn into
a narrow opening in the rock on the right hand, he
will be rewarded by a sight of more than ordinary
sublimity and beauty. A great natural tunnel opens
before him, perforated in the solid rock. The roof is
nearly horizontal ; but the sides spring out into
angular groins and projecting buttresses. The interior
of this archway is as dark as night; its obscurity
being heightened by contrast with the briUiancy of
the sunlight, that illumines the scene without, visible
at the far end. The prospect beheld through this
cavern is a lovely one, and reminds the beholder of a
sunny picture, set in an ample black frame. His eye
ranges across the beautiful bay of Combmartin, on
the surface of which, when I looked at it, the fresh
breeze was raising hillocks of foam upon the green

BRIER CAVE. 295

water, that flashed and sparkled in the sun. On the
opposite side were the red cliffs of the Hangman,
with their verdant turfy crown, sloping down to an
abrupt point ; the caves and various irregularities of
their sides distinctly visible, though in hues softened
and mellowed by the distance. The floor of the
cavern is rough with weedy rocks, on which the foot
finds but a slippery and precarious hold ; among
these lie shallow tranquil pools, tranquil because pro-
tected from the wind without, and reflecting, with
mirror-like precision, the form of the distant coast,
and every white cloud that skims over the azure
sky.

If the visitor now retrace his steps, and, crossing
the cove, examine the rock on the opposite side, he
will find a longperpendicular fissure just wide enough
to permit him to squeeze his body through. After
pursuing this gallery for a score yards or so, he finds
himself in an area, open to the sky and leading away
to the right and left. On either hand is another
natural archway : that to the right resembles the one
just described (except that it is narrower), and looks
out upon the same scene. The one to the left is
essentially similar, but as it leads inland, it may be
traversed ; and the explorer mil find himself, at the
end of the arch, at the bottom of a deep circular pit,
about as wide as an ordinary room. The sides are
precipitious, about thirty or forty feet high, and
fringed all round at the top with matted brambles,
whence the hole has acquired the name of Brier Cave.
At first there seems no mode of escape from this
prison, except through the gallery by which the

296 THE TWINING CAMPANULARIA.

visitor entered ; but a careful examination reveals a
narrow pathway among the bushes, which climbs
up one side, to daylight and liberty on the downs
above.

These natural perforations are among the most
curious phenomena which a visitor can see in the
vicinity of Ilfracombe ; as the tunnels which lead to
the public baths are the most interesting of the works
of art : though, from the readiness with which they
may be overlooked by strangers, even when close to
them, many go away vdthout seeing them.

To the littoral naturalist these caves and the sur-
rounding rocks present a fruitful field of observation.
The surface is broken and uneven, and covered with
tide-pools of varying level, most of which are richly
stored with plants and animals. The water's edge at
low tide is strewn with stones, not difficult to lift,
beneath which are found Crustacea, Annelides, and
Star-fishes, in abundance. The perpendicular sides
of the bounding rocks themselves, and the interior
of the fissures, are studded with Madrepores, many of
which are fine specimens both for size and colour;
these are exposed and readily accessible at the lowest
spring-tides.

THE TWINING CAMPANULARIA.

From the rocks around Smallmouth Caves, I ob-
tained a little tuft of that very elegant Sertularian
zoophyte, Camjpanularia voluhilis. The cells were
numerous, and many of them were inhabited by their
polypes, expanding freely in full health and vigour.

Male mU

P H ^wMc dfi ft liHi Priutni hy IfaUma'u/e/H' Walton

CAMPANiriuATUA YOLUJHMS,

ITS STRUCTURE. 297

The genus is distinguished from Laomedea by the
cells being placed on long ringed footstalks, which
spring in an irregular crowded manner from a
creeping adherent stem. The stem in this instance
had twined about the slender fronds of a small
sea-weed.

The cells in this species are shaped like an old-
fashioned ale- glass, being long and narrow, with a
slight constriction just above the point of their con-
nexion with the footstalk ; and at this constriction, a
sort of false bottom, or diaphragm, runs across, which
is perforated with a narrow hole in the centre. (See
Plate XVIII, fig. 1). The margin is cut into about
eleven deep equal teeth, and expands in a very slight
degree (fig. 2). The stalk has usually about six or
eight well marked rings at each extremity, the middle
portion being smooth. The walls, both of the stalk
and cell, are thin, and perfectly transparent and colour-
less ; the former is permeated, but not filled, with the
medullary core, through which a fluid circulates,
carrying minute granules with a quivering jerking mo-
tion. This core is exceedingly attenuated to pass
through the perforated diaphragm of the cell, after
which it merges into the body of the polype.

The polype (fig. 1.) is slender (when protruded);
dilated at the base into a sort of foot which spreads
over the diaphragm, and widening still more at the
top, where it fills the mouth of the cell, and gives
origin to about twenty (less or more) slender tenta-
cles, roughened with whorls of tubercles, and set in
two or three series. In the central space suiTounded
by the tentacles, a large fleshy mouth protrudes.

298 THE EGG-VESICLES.

somewhat funnel shaped, but capable of great alter-
ation of form. Its lips are endowed with the power
of protrusion and contraction to a great degree, and
appear to be very sensitive : they are pushed out, and
turned in and out, and modified in various ways, with
much energy. Its walls are thick and granular, and
the cavity wliich they inclose can be traced for a con-
siderable distance down the body.

Among the foot-stalks were several of the egg-vesi-
cles springing from the common stem. (Figs. 3 & 4).
They are somewhat like the cells in form, but are
about twice as large, both in height and diameter.
They are pointed at the bottom, and are attached to
the stem by a very short bulbous foot-stalk, which
joins the vesicle on one side, a little above the point,
which thus forms a sort of spur. The walls of the
vesicle are transparent, but corrugated with many
coarse irregular rings, and the mouth is somewhat
trumpet- shaped, though not quite so wide as the
middle part. The core, which permeates the stem,
sends ofi" a branch into the vesicle through the foot-
stalk, where it is swollen into a little node. It then
passes through the centre of the vesicle, being slender,
but dilates at the extremity, and becomes commensu-
rate with the shelly mouth, to the margin of which it
is adherent. Thus it closely resembles in appearance
the polype-inhabitant of a cell, supposing the latter to
be divested of its proboscis and tentacles. It is
however seen in this condition, only after it has
performed the office for which it was made. Ordina-
rily it is swollen into three or more oval knobs, of
which the outermost are the largest; through the

THE MEDUSOID EMBRYO. 299

development within its tubular walls of as many
embryos. These, as they develop themselves in
succession, show evidence of life, in their contraction
and change of form ; the outmost one sometimes
occupying the mouth of the fleshy duct and filling its
diameter, at others retiring to some distance, leaving
the duct long and slender, between the extremity and
the embryo.

I have not seen the escape of the embryo, but per-
ceiving that one and another had escaped, I searched
the water of the minute glass box in which the animal
was kept. There I found the little new-bom creatures
I was seeking, but in a shape that surprised me not a
little. A moment's recollection, however, of what I
had seen as the progeny of the allied Laomedea,
diminished my astonishment. (See Plate XIX.)

The embryo, then, of Camp, voluhilisi^ a gelatinous
globose sac, about -^ inch in diameter, somewhat
orange-shaped, perfectly circular in vertical aspect
(figs. 1 and 2), but flattened at the top, and as it were
cut ofi'at the bottom (fig. 3). The whole surface is
smooth until we arrive at this truncate bottom, round
the edge of which runs a tubular cord or canal of wrink-
led gelatinous substance, through which, as I believe,
circulates a fluid. At least, I perceive minute clear
globules, one here and there, in diff'erent parts of the
canal, playing backward and forward with a dancing
movement, which indicates some fluid in motion there,
though I am not sure that it strictly circulates. The
truncate surface sometimes appears slightly funnel-
shaped, the sides inclining inwardly to a central
orifice, larger or smaller at the will of the animal, by

300 MEDUSOID OF CAMPANULARIA.

contraction or expansion. No tliickened edge marks
the orifice, which can be discerned only by delicate
manipulation. The whole of this truncate surface is
marked with the most evanescent concentric corru-
gations.

We return now to the marginal canal. At each of
four equidistant points, quadrating the circle, there
springs from the canal a filamentous tentacle of great
length, with a bulbous root. When extended it may
be about twice as long as the diameter of the whole
globe, but it is usually much contorted ; and especial-
ly when swimming, the whole filament being then so
contracted and twisted together, as to appear only an
oblong knob, very little larger than the bulb alone in
its ordinary state. The filament is distinctly tubular
throughout; and the bulb has an enlarged cavity pro-
portioned to its size, which evidently communicates
with the marginal canal (Fig. 0). The bulb is filled
with a yellowish granular matter, which does not extend
into the tube of the filament. The walls of the filament
are composed of oval grains (filiferous capsules, no
doubt) set in a clear glairy matter, transversely to
the length, and radiating from the centre, their tips
projecting on all sides. Towards the extremity, the
surface becomes more and more tubercled and rugged,
and at length is studded with sharp conical points
irregularly set: the very tip being slightly dilated
into a rounded bulb (Fig. 7).

I observe that the globe no sooner is at rest by
touching the bottom of the vessel, that it unfolds and
extends the four filaments, still however corrugated
and contorted : probably for the purpose of entwining

Flaie XIX

hMf.l byHulbnanMt Wt/U

THE EYES. 301

around any objects they may meet with, and so moor-
ing the animal. That contact stimulates the tentacle
to grasping I infer from the frequency with which I
see one or more inserted into the central orifice of
their own umbrella, and bent round the edge. Tbe
tips, probably, accidentally get in, in roving about,
when the touch of the edge stimulates the filament to
bend tightly round it.

Midway between each pair of tentacles, and thus
quadrating the circle at four other points, the mar-
ginal canal carries on its exterior side a little swelling,
within the cavity of which are contained half a dozen
or more minute granules, in which I could not detect
any motion. Its cavity is isolated from the course of
the canal, which can be traced independently. (See
fig. 4). And close to this bulb, on each side, project-
ing from the interior of the canal, but sessile thereon,
is a globular capsule furnished with a narrow waved
veil or membrane hanging from its interior surface,
and formed apparently of the same substance as the
canal, but containing in its centre a spherule, trans-
parent, colourless, and of high refracting power — a
crystalline lens, in fact (Fig. 5). The vesicle which
carries this spherule is furnished with a very minute
tubercle, projecting from its edge towards the interior
of the animal.

These vesicles, of which there are eight altogether,
I should without hesitation have set down as visual
organs, but for the weight of authority which has
pronounced them organs of hearing. Mr. Busk, how-
ever, in his memoir on a species of Thaumantias
(Trans. Micr. Soc. 1850, p. 22), has given what ap-
d2

302 EMBRYONIC VISION,

pear strong reasons in favour of the former conclusion.
Whether the intermediate cavities containing granules,
be auditory organs, or rudimentary tentacles, I can-
not determine. It is interesting to see in this case, as
well as in that of the Feather Plumularia, before de-
scribed, the presence of eyes in the free roving Medu-
soid, while they are absent in the fixed and stationary
Polype. Where these organs are of service, they are
provided ; where they would be useless, they are not
only denied, but obliterated. The very same phe-
nomena are presented by the tubicolous, and therefore
stationary, Rotifera, as Stej)hanoceros, FlosculariGy
&c., which are sightless when adult, but have two
brilliant ruby-like visual specks in the active and
swimming young. How beautifully such discrimina-
tions show the minute, individualising care exercised
by the Only Wise God in creation !

From the lateral aspect of the globe, carefully de-
picted at Fig. 3, I infer that the substance of which
it is composed varies in thickness in different parts ;
being thickest at the top, and thinnest towards the
marginal canal. From the centre of the roof, hangs
down freely within the cavity an organ of granular
flesh, somewhat trumpet-shaped and four-sided, its
free extremity forming four thickened lips, capable of
much alteration of form, and apparently very sensi-
tive. From its base diverge four canals, passing ap-
parently along the interior of the globe, and joining
the marginal canal at the four points where the bulbs
of the filaments originate. These four canals are
permeated by a circulating colourless fluid ; for at a
point about midway in their course, where each en-

ALTERNATION OF GENERATIONS. 303

larges into a little sac, I perceived two minute granules,
which quivered and jerked about in a vacillating but
rapid motion, just as if under the influence of a strong
current, they not being free to be carried along by it.

The substance of the globe carries many scattered
oval bodies, apparently imbedded in it. They are
very minute, are set with their long diameter always
pointing from the centre, but are not arranged re-
gularly.

I need scarcely say that this embryo of the Sertu-
larian Zoophyte, Cainpanularia, like that of Laomedea
before described, is a veritable Medusa ; in no essen-
tial point to be distinguished from those Naked-eyed
forms so exquisitely figured and described by Pro-
fessor Edward Forbes, in his beautiful Monograph.
And the case is illustrative of one of the most startling
and most interesting series of facts that modern science
has discovered, those connected with the Alternation
of Generations. Here is a fixed and celled Polype,
giving birth to free-swimming Medusse ; hereafter
we shall have occasion to describe a Medusa produc-
ing an embryo which presently assumes the form of a
fixed and celled Polype. In both cases, the law ap-
pears to be established, that there is an alternate put-
ting on of the two forms by successive generations ;
neither the one nor the other being a phase in meta-
morphosis, like the caterpillar, and chrysalis of a
butterfly, but each form producing the other in the
way of generation; and thus, as has been cleverly
said, any one individual is not like its mother or its
daughter, but is exactly like its grandmother and its
grandaughter.

304 A SHOWERY JOURNEY.

ROCKHAM BAY.

My first attempt to see Barricane was a failure.
The weather had heen unsettled for some time, and
though it gave a treacherous promise of truce when I
set out, the cessation of hostilities lasted only long
enough to beguile me as far as the romantic valley of
Lee, when the artillery of the clouds began to batter
away at my head, with the energy of a garrison that
has reserved its missiles, to pour them on the besiegers,
when almost at the summit of the scaling ladders.

A hasty run for the nearest tree ; — half an hour's
tedious idleness under the drip of some poplars ; — fre-
quent longing glances at the sky ; — and an occasional
sally out into the rain to take an observation of the
weather to windward. Black and threatening enough
it looked, especially over the sea, where the sky was
filled with ragged pillars driving perpendicularly along
in misty grandeur ; or, as the poet has said, with the
torn fragments of a canopy : —

" The day is low'ring ; — stilly black
Sleeps the grim wave, while heaven's rack,
Dispers'd and wild, 'twixt earth and sky
Hangs like a shatter'd canopy."

MOOBB.

I had taken the precaution to cover the saddle of
my steed, when I alighted for shelter, with an im-
promptu cloth of weeds from the ditch, binding it on
with a flexible root of ivy snatched from an old wall ;
so that when I mounted again after the shower, I had
the satisfaction of a tolerably dry seat.

DAMAGE FARM. 305

At length patches of blue sky, as brightly and
purely blue as if it had never been sullied by a cloud,
began to open, and grow, and coalesce, until the storm
was fairly put to the rout, and fled from the aerial
field.

I ventured to proceed. On the steep road up from
the cove the traces of the shower were still strong.
The rain ran in gutters and rats, and hung in drops,
like thousands of diamonds, from the brambles and
cornels of the hedges. The lovely white bindweed
presented its beautiful trumpet-blossoms to the sun,
as smilingly as though not a drop had fallen on them.
The fields, however, gave sadder proofs of the vio-
lence of the storm ; for large breadths of the brown
wheat, more than ready for the sickle, were beaten
down, and laid by the rain ; and the precious grains,
shed out, were lying on the sodden earth by handfuls.

Thus I came to a farm bearing the inauspicious
name of Damage. Streams of muddy water covered
with brown froth poured across the road; the sky
looks black again; the clouds have rallied, and are
mustering to renew the assault; they gain ground
upon the azure, and now they have fairly overpowered
it. An archway of the farm-buildings ofi'ers a kindly
shelter, and I dismount, despite the growlings of a
suspicious mastiff, the Cerberus of the place. The
view to sea-ward, over Bull Point and the neigh-
bouring head-lands, is magnificiently grand, almost
worth the disappointment and the wetting to behold.
A dark dim veil of mist passes over the sea, gradually
enveloping and concealing every thing, and spreads
away to leeward. The rain descends, first in great

306 DEVONSHIRE WELLS.

drops, then in bucketfuls, then in drops again, — and
the shower is over.

Thence through a little shady dell, where the wet
branches of the trees hang down so low that they
deposit their drops upon the traveller, as he brushes
past them ; — a romantic little dell, half- encircled by a
rivulet, now swollen into a turbid torrent; and I
come to a place where the stream pours over a wall
in two tiny cascades, each of which is received into a
high trough, for the benefit of thirsty cattle. It is
now a hiJly road, and a winding one, across fields, and
through a multitude of gates, to Houseworth, another
farm. Here a little object struck my eye quite cha-
racteristic of Devon. One of those enclosed wells,
which we so often see by the road-side, was here
erected in the very centre of the highway, or rather
in the spot whence three ways diverge. It was built
with more than ordinary care, a regular four-sided
house, except that the front was open, and covered
with a bungalow roof, as tidily as a cottage. It was
pleasant to look in, and see the water beautifully
clear and pure, shadowed over with ferns of various
kinds, depending from the walls all round the interior,
the nakedness of the stone above' the brim of the
water being concealed by a thick drapery of liverwort
of the most refreshing greenness.

Still over cultivated hills, now commanding a fine
view of the sea-ward horizon, and Lundy Island. I
arrive at Morte ; but before entering the village, I
wished to explore Kockham Bay, situate about a mile
to the right. Dismounting, therefore, I waded through
the wet litter of a farm-yard, and along a narrow

ROCKHAM BAY. 30T

zigzag road, through fields, to the edge of the clifis,
and by a footpath down to their base. The wild and
romantic bay opens before me ; but the sky again
threatens, and compels a search for refuge. I find a
little cavern that looks as if it had been made on pur-
pose, and get into it just as the first drops fall.

It is a narrow indenture of the rocky coast, as wild
and silent as a desert island in the midst of the
Pacific ; enclosed with lofty and inaccessible cliffs of
hard blue slate, hollowed into many small and shallow
caverns. The floor of the cove, if I may be allowed
the expression, is of the same slate ; there is indeed
a coating of sand in some places, and of pebbles in
others ; but everywhere the slate crops oat in blue
ridges and hillocks, rubbed smooth (though still un-
even) by the constant action of the waves. Farther
out the rock forms long bristling ridges running into
the sea, draped in their lower parts with yellow sea-
weed and tangle, and holding in their angular hollows
many a perpetual pool of still water ; while here and
there, between the ridges, are lanes of the finest
yellow sand. In some spots there are extensive beds
of minute pebbles, most of them of quartz of dazzling
whiteness, and in general not larger than children's
sugar-plums, which they closely resemble in form
and colour.

The most absolute solitude reigns here : no hamlet
is nearer than Morte ; no fisherman's hut stands upon
the shore ; no net is spread upon the sands to dry ;
no boat lies at anchor in the offing. One might
wander beneath these blue cliffs for days, —

308 THE DEATH-STONE.

Hearing no voice save of the Ocean-flood,
Which roars for ever on the restless shores ;

Or, visiting their solitary caves.
The lonely sound of winds, that moan around.

Accordant to the melancholy waves.

Kehama, XV. 8.

The southern boundary of this Bay is formed by a
promontory, which juts out far into the sea; the
angle where the coast abruptly bends to the south-
ward. From the point, a long line of sunken rocks
projects, at the extremity of which is an insulated
rock, called Morte Stone, or the Kock of Death.
This name is supposed to owe its origin to ancient
Norman mariners, and to have been given in allusion
to the extraordinary fatality of this iron-bound shore.
Partly owing to the form of the coast, partly to the
fogs which so frequently prevail in winter, but chiefly
to the set of the currents, this rock has always been
infamous in the annals of shipwreck. Scarcely a
winter passes, without one or more vessels striking
upon it; and to touch it is almost equivalent to
immediate destruction. The months of January and
February of last year witnessed the loss of five vessels
on this point. One of them was the occasion of a
daring and successful exploit of which this little Bay
was the scene.

It was on the seventeenth of the former month,
that the ship " Thomas Crisp," of Bristol, struck on
the Morte Stone in a thick fog, and immediately went
to pieces. The crew, ten in number, had recourse to
their boat, though ignorant of the character of the

A GALLANT EXPLOIT. 309

coast, and unable to discern it through the fog,
although so near.

By God's good providence it happened that the
"Cornwall" steam-packet was passing at the time, on
her way to Hayle. Captain Vivian, her commander,
heard what at first he took for the wailing cry of a
sea-hird. The sound was, however, repeated; and,
straining his eyes in the gathering dusk of evening,
he saw a black speck. The experienced seaman ob-
served that no spray broke over it, whence he con-
cluded that the object was afloat, and that it was pro-
bably some ship's boat.

It was five o'clock, a January evening ; the sky ob-
scured with fog, and a heavy gale blowing from the
westward : a narrow bay was before him, which he
knew to be bristling with sunken and exposed rocks,
among which the sea was breaking and foaming, like
a field covered with snow. But humanity called, and
the gallant commander, supported by his willing crew,
took no counsel with fear, but at once resolved on the
perilous adventure of steering his steamer into Kock-
ham Bay. With much labour and danger he suc-
ceeded in rescuing the nine ship-wrecked men, one of
the number having been drowned in leaving the ship ;
but so dangerous was his position, the rocks not al-
lowing him to turn his vessel, that he was obliged to
hack her out of the hay.

I return along the cliff-path to Morte, an ancient
village, celebrated for having afforded refuge to Sir
William de Tracy, one of those who executed their
Monarch's vengeance on the haughty prelate Becket.
The remains of the knight lie interred in the village

310 DE TRACY'S TOMB.

church, which is said to have heen founded hy him ;
and on his tomb the curious stranger still beholds his
effigy clothed in priestly vestments, and reads in old
Norman characters, —

" SYRE WILLIAME DE TRACE.
DIEU DE SA ALME EYT MERCY."

Here terminated my day's excursion, or at least the
exploring part of it ; for a return through torrents of
rain yet remained. Before I set out homeward, how-
ever, I could not but admire the awful grandeur at-
tendant upon the approach of a heavy thunder-storm,
as I witnessed it from the gate in front of the little
village inn. From this spot the eye ranges over a
coast-line of nearly thirty miles. Hartland Point ex-
tends, like a long wall, upon the horizon, over which
the storm is darkly brooding. The wind is driving it
rapidly along towards me ; the wall-like promontory
is soon shrouded beneath the lowering cloud. Now
it comes pouring over Baggy Point in perpendicular,
black, misty lines. Woollacombe Sands, a beach of
three miles in length, are below ; the tide is far out,
and the surf is breaking upon the sands in a long
curving band of white foam ; while the expanse of sea
outside is as black as ink, beneath the rain-cloud.
During the whole approach of the storm I was amused
by observing two red- backed hawks, hovering over the
edge of the cliff almost close to me ; they continued
to occupy the same spot in the air, without sliifting
in the least, for many seconds; now and then the
wings were flapped vigorously, but stil] without any
change of position. By their colour, I had no doubt

THE BRISTLE PLUMULARIA. 311

they were Kestrels ; and this curious habit of remain-
ing suspended on the wing in the face of the wind, has
acquired for them the provincial names of Standgale
and Windhover. The pelting storm drove me into
the house ; hut when it had abated, after some half-
hour's duration, I again looked out, and there were
the hawks hovering yet, just where I had left them.

THE BRISTLE PLUMULARIA.

Aug. lith. — I found a Spider-crab in a hole, whither
he had retired for the purpose of sloughing. The
carapace and limbs were thickly studded with Anten-
nularia ayitennina, and Plumiilaria cristata, many
stems of each well set with ovigerous vesicles. One
of the stems of the latter bore, parasitically springing
from it, many stems of a more delicate congener,
Plum, setacea, and some of these were also furnish-
ed with vesicles, which I presently submitted to
examination.

I selected a specimen with many vesicles, some
empty, some broken off in the middle, others contain-
ing more or fewer gemmules, or "planules;" and one
in the midst of the last-named, uniformly filled with
the common granular matter of the medullary core,
not yet condensed into ova. About five or six seemed
to be the complete number of gemmules in one vesicle,
of which those nearest the narrow neck were alive and
active, while the most remote was a small motionless
sphere.

My attention was presently attracted to a gemmule
free in the water, which I knew to have just escaped,

312 BIRTH OF A PLANULE.

though without my seeing it : and I sat down to
watch a vesicle. Presently one of the contained
worm-like gemmules began to elongate its body, and
to move slowly along the narrow neck of the bottle-
like vesicle, toward the mouth, with a steady progres-
sion, which the power I was using (220 diam.) enabled
me to see was ciliary. It soon began to emerge, the
soft shapeless body taking a globose form as it pro-
truded, and swelling upon the mouth of its prison, like
a large globular head of a decanter. (See Plate XX,
Fig. 6). As soon as it was well out, however, it took
a definite form, that of a sub-conical oval, of which
the larger end progressed foremost. Its length was
about -^ th of an inch, and its breadth about half as
much ; but as it moved, it became rather shorter. In
appearance it exactly resembled an Infusory animal-
cule, being of an uniform granular texture, and co-
vered with minute vibrating cilia in every part of its
surface. (Pig. 7).

At first it revolved on its long axis, but presently
this action gradually ceased, and it proceeded steadily
in the same direction as it at first set out, until it had
reached about twenty times its own length, when it
came to a rest, about half an hour after its emergence ;
the vibration of the cilia still continuing.

In an hour and a quarter the ciliary action was but
just discernible ; it had not moved from its place of
rest, though its whole mass slightly quivered and vi-
brated. The outline was now become ragged, and set
with minute clear globules projected and isolated, as
if the connecting gelatinous substance which bound
them together was dissolving. I was now called away,

THE lobster's-horn. 313

and when I returned in two or three hours, the ani-
malcule was a mere loose mass of granules, as w^ere
those which were as yet confined in the parent vesicle-
I presume therefore that the quantity of water which
I had allowed to the specimen (a large drop in the
live-box of the microscope), was not sufficient to sup-
port life longer than an hour or so, and that this little
embryo was thus prevented from contributing any fur-
ther to my knowledge of its development.

THE lobster's-horn CORALLINE.

Aug. l^th. — There w^as a sort of appropriateness in
the circumstances under which I became acquainted
with the Lobster's-horn Coralline : it was thickly
studding the shell and limbs of a Crab, which was
thus formidably bristling with hairy horns. I am not
quite sure, however, whether the Zoophytes were
growing there, though many of them were furnished
with their slender waving root-fibres, and stood erect.
As stones in sand, and the sand itself are mentioned
as the localities affected by the species, it is probable
that the Spider-Crab, having casually been roving over
a forest of the stems, had got many of them entangled
among the close-set stiff hairs that everywhere cover
his shell, and had carried them away when he depart-
ed. I think this the rather because many of the
specimens were fragments of stalks, evidently so
entangled.

The Antennularia has an aspect very diverse from
the Sertularice, Plu77iulari(e, and Campanularim with
which it is allied, in its more robust form, its deep -
E 2

314 SECONDARY CELLS.

yellow colour, and especially in the branchlets being
set in close whorls, like the Horsetail among plants.
These branchlets are slender, and look to the naked
eye like bristles, closely girding the stem through-
out its length. The polype-cells are confined to
them, and are arranged along the upper or inner
side, as they form an acute angle with the stem.
The cells are small funnel-like cups, and among
them are interspersed, on the same aspect of the
branch, more numerous minute cellules, deep in
j)roportion to their width, which exactly resemble
those on PL setacea. The use of these secondary
cells has not been explained. Their constancy and
number, I think, preclude the supposition that they
are abortive cells, as Dr. Johnston suggests. Each is
inhabited by what seems a living tenant, destitute of
tentacles, connected organically with the common core.
As more perfect observation is continually finding a
bisexual distinction among animals in which it was
before unsuspected, may it not possibly exist in these
zoophytes, and may not these minute cells be those of
the males ? In the Rotifer a, the male is always
smaller, and always destitute of the digestive system ;
this might perhaps explain the absence of tentacles in
the small polype. (See Plate XXI. fig. 1.)

I could not find one specimen that contained living
polypes ; but several were crowded with the egg-bear-
ing vesicles. These are rather large, glassy, some-
what oval, but more flattened on the inner side, and
out ofi" with an oblique aperture, ou the same aspect.
(Fig. 2.) They are seated, with a small stalk, in the
axils of the branchlets ; and have a false bottom, evi-

OF THE POLYPE-TUBE. 317

slender branch, which presently united again with the
main core. The total length was now -^ inch, of
which the tube was -tt inch, the diameter of the latter,
just below the joint, being about -^ inch. I could
not discover, with the closest watching, any circu-
lation or other motion among the granules of the
medulla. No indication of sensitiveness was given,
though an Euplotes with its bristly feet was running
rapidly to and fro about the tube, and occasionally
crossing the tip.

The next morning, Aug. 20th, I could perceive no
increase over the condition of twelve hours before ;
but slight changes in the form of the medulla were
taking place, that shewed life was active. Throughout
this day I perceived the extremity slowly lengthening,
not quite uniformly, but pushing out a portion in a
little tumour, the depressions around which would be
presently filled up, and the surface would become
smooth and round again ; then in a little while,
another swelling would appear, which would again
be obliterated, and thus the increase went on. The
clear opening in the granular core also lengthened,
and another formed above it, the two at length
merging into one, thus dividing the medulla into two
lateral columns ; sometimes a very delicate film was
partially sketched across the interspace, which was
gradually reduced to a thread as of viscid substance,
and then obliterated.

On the morning of the 21st, the budding portion
exterior to the joint was equal in length to that
portion below it. (See fig. 7). The young portion
appears to be very soft and flexible, for on my incau-

318 INCREASE OF THE TUBE.

tiously pouring off the water to change it, the whole
part outside the joint heing deprived of the support
of the dense fluid, fell down hy its own weight to a
right angle with the other part, and so remained bent,
ever after the water was repoured in, until I carefully
lifted it with the point of a pin to its original position
which it was then able to retain. This morning I
first perceived the creeping root, in the form of two
slender cylindrical shoots springing from one side of
the basal bulb.

About the middle of this day the separation of the
medulla extended to within a short distance of the
tip ; this pait was quite filled with it in a very dense
condition, and from it the medulla descended in two
columns, separated from the walls of the tube, for
some distance downward.

2^rd. — The tube increases in length, but not in
diameter, (See fig. 8). the division of the medulla
into two slender lateral columns is complete, except
in the budding tip. The two rootlets have grown a
little, and one of them has sent forth an irregular
lateral plate of colourless shelly substance.

Increase proceeded no further than this point;
though it was manifestly alive for a day or two longer,
during which the condensation of the granular pulp
still went on ; — but on the 26th the multitude of
active Infusoria swarming around the tube warned me
(though none of them seemed to have as yet attacked
it, and though no change in its appearance could yet
be detected) that death had ensued. It is remarkable
how immediately these minute creatures appear to
have notice of the decay of any animal matter in

VALUE OF OBSERVATIONS.

319

water, both fresh and salt, and how rapid is their
multiplication in such circumstances. Some of these
were of the genus Eiiplotes, a large and a small
species ; but the swarming multitudes -were of sim-
pler structure, more like the family Monadina of
Ehrenberg.

The next day I found the indication but too true ;
decomposition was going on in the granular pulp,
which was becoming undefined in outline ; and had
retired from the shelly tip of the tube.

The minute details of such observations as these,
especially when prematurely terminated, some of my
readers may possibly think needless, and therefore
worthless: but the phenomena connected with the
reproduction of the Zoophytes, are among the most
important of those which are now receiving the atten-
tion of naturalists. And it is only by carefully
watching and accurately recording such phenomena,
in every species, as they may occur, that we may
hope to establish a sure basis for philosophic genera-
lization. Isolated facts are better than none.

CHAPTER Xlir.

Capstone Spout-Holes — Purple Hue of low Eocks — Tadpole of a
Mollusk — Its Habits — Visit to Barricane — A Beach of Shells —
Hock-pools — Their Contents— Antiopa— Its Spawn — Hatch-
ing of the Embryos — Immense Number in one Brood — The
Torrs — Bloody Field — Flowers — View from the Cliff— Torr
Point — Rocky Staircase — White Pebble Bay — Tide-pools—
Maidenhair Fern — The Precipice — A curious Medusoid —
Medusa Fishing — Mode of Operation — Difficulties — Thau-
man tias pilosella — Its Luminosity — Description of its Struc-
ture—The Umbrella— The Sub-umbrella— The Peduncle—
The Radiating Vessels — The Ovaries — The Tentacles — Pig-
ment-cells— ^Eyes.

CAPSTONE SPOUT-HOLES.

At the most precipitous part of the promenade
round the Capstone, the N. W. corner, the rock
is broken into angular buttresses and projections
of more than usual massiveness. You look down
over the low parapet upon an area of flattish rock of
considerable size, raised but a little above low-water
mark. By taking a round, you may scramble down
over the ledges to this part, and admire the wild
grandeur of the scene. On two sides is the sea, and
on the other two sides the precipice forming an angle.
That on the south side rises perpendicularly like a

THE SPOUT-HOLES. 321

wall ; and its base is separated from the area where
you stand, by a long but narrow fissure, through
which the sea rushes and recedes, with every wave.
In the shadow of this great wall of rock there are
several round deep basins, always full of water,
fringed with the finer sorts of sea-weeds, and empur-
pled all round their interior with the encrusting coral-
lines. If you go down at extreme ebb, in a low
spring-tide, you will see the whole of the surface of
rock, that is covered in ordinary tides, but now
exposed, tinged with the same reddish purple hue,
very pleasing to the eye; a colour derived in part
from the number of red and purple sea-weeds that
flourish at this level, but principally from the com-
mon coralline, not only in its free tufted state,
but also, and chiefly, m its form of a shelly crust,
that spreads like a lichen upon the surface of the
rock.

At the extremity of the rocky wall, there are two
small holes in a ledge, which communicate with the
sea by funnel-shaped orifices. Through these the
sea spouts in an interesting manner. The wave
rushes in under the ledge with its hollow roar, and
dashes up forcibly beneath it. At the same instant
there issues from the first hole, which is only a nar-
row slit, a powerful jet of steam-like vapour, resem-
bling the rush from the wa^te-pipe of an engine.
This is the pioneer : the next instant a cloud of water
and foam shoots upward and outward from the
second hole with terrific force, and is thrown to a
distance of twenty or thirty feet. The regularity of
the succession, the suddenness of the outburst of

322 MOLLUSK TADPOLE.

white foam from the dark purple rock, and the rush-
ing sound of the explosion, all add to the effect.

The ragged rock-pools that lie in the deep shadow
of the precipice on this area are tenanted Avith many
fine kinds of algm^ zoophytes, Crustacea and medusce.
In one of these I took with a ring-net about the end
of August, when fishing for medusce, what seems from
its resemblance to published figures to be the tadpole
of Amaroucium proliferum, one of the aggregated
Tunicata. Its resemblance to the tadpole of a frog
is curiously close, though its total length, including
the tail, is not more than -^^Xh of an inch. It consists
of an oblong oval body of a pellucid yellow tinge,
with a central nucleus of rich vermillion, deepest in
the centre, which sends off some indistinct branching
vessels towards the front part, and is continued pos-
teriorly all through the tail, nearly to its extremity.

The activity of this tiny creature is remarkable ;
its motions are like those of a fish, executed by the
vibration of the long flat tail from side to side. By
this means it scuttles along through the water with
great rapidity, in a tremulous manner. Its beautiful
colour makes it conspicuous in a glass of clear water,
notwithstanding its minuteness ; it looks like a bril-
liant little ruby. Yet it is as evanescent as beautiful ;
a very brief confinement puts a period to its existence.

BARRICANE.

A few weeks after my former disappointment, I
again set out for Barricane. It is one of the places
in this neighbourhood invariably mentioned as 7iota-

BARRICANF BEACH. 323

hiliay which every visitor to the town must see
without fail. Its peculiarity is, that it has a heach
entirely composed of shells, some of which are rare,
or at least are not found anywhere else in this vicinity.
The scenery around is also varied and heautiful, and
would of itself present sufficient attractions to reward
a visit. It lies about half a mile below Morte, at the
foot of the cliffs of the promontory, and at one end
of that long incurved shore, known as Woollacombe
Sands.

From the grassy slope at the top of the cliffs a
narrow footpath leads steeply down to an area of what
seems to be small pebbles ; but which, on examina-
tion, prove to be shells, of many kinds. Most of
these, having been washed up by the tides, are broken
into fragments ; but a good number are found in toler-
able integrity. Groups of women and girls from the
neighbouring hamlets may always be seen, during thg
summer months, raking with their fingers among the
fragments, for unbroken specimens; collections of
which they offer for sale to visitors.

Among the shells of which the beach is composed,
there were some which were interesting to me. Be-
sides two or three little kinds of whelk, and the
common murex and purpura, which are everywhere
abundant, and the beautiful little cowTy, which can-
not be considered rare, there is the elegant wentle-trap
fScalaria communis), the elephant's tusk or horn-
shell fDentalium efitalisj, the cylindrical dipper
C Bulla cylindraceaj, called by the local collectors
*' maggot," and the beaded Nerite fNatica monili-
feraj, a large and beautiful shell, to which the

324 BARRICANE POOLS.

women have given the euphonious appellation of

I wished to procure some of these species in a liv-
ing state, and hoped that I might he able to find them
about the rocks at extreme low water, as it was now
spring-tide. Therefore, leaving the shell-collectors,
I strolled down the long narrow inlet, of which the
shell-beach was the head, towards the tide-pools at
the water's edge. It was a long way down the cove,
which resembles a narrow lane, bounded by high walls
■of sharp and rugged rock ; and as I walked down, I
perceived that the accumulated shells were found only
at high water mark ; below this there was nothing but
soft yellow sand to the edge of the sea.

The black and rough bounding rocks, however, in-
closed in their hollows many pools, some of which
were of large dimensions. Those near the water's
edge were generally deep, narrow, wall-sided, and
dark ; all of which qualities made them excellent ex-
ploring ground for a naturalist. Their steepness and
depth rendering them difficult of examination from
without, I stripped and jumped in, the weather being
warm, and worked away with my hammer and chisel,
as long as I dared in water breast-high.

I could find not a single individual of any of the
rarer species of shells alive ; but other objects oc-
curred, which were not devoid of scientific interest.
Among other sea-weeds there were two growing in this
deep pool, far under water, which I had not before
met with. One was CladostepJms verticillatus, con-
sisting of stalks much branched, no thicker than
threads, but set round at short intervals with close

THE CRESTED ANTIOPA. 325

whorls of minute, olive-coloured hairs. The other
was a rare species, though sufficiently ahundant here;
Taonia atomaria, resemhling a thin yellowish leaf,
split into several divisions, and cut to somewhat of
the shape of a fan. The whole leaf is crossed hy
many dark hrown lines, which on being magnified are
seen to be composed of dots, clustered together in
this manner. These are the spores, or seeds of the
plant.

Among the animals was a creature of exquisite
beauty, which I now saw for the first time. It was
the Crested Antiopa, one of the naked-gilled MoUusca,
closely allied to the Eolides, some of which formed the
subjects of observation in an earlier part of this volume.
The breathing organs are very numerous; they con-
sist of oval bags, delicately pellucid, arranged all
round the sides and front of the animal, and have an
extremely elegant appearance. Each one has a brown
line running through its transparent substance, and is
tipped with silver-white. The general colour of the
animal is pellucid-grey, with spots and lines of opaque
white, that have the lustre of silver. It is about an
inch in length.

This beautiful little animal I brought carefully
home, and placed in one of my large glass vases of sea
water, kept in a fit state for the support of animal life
by growing sea-weeds. It immediately became at
home in its new residence, and remained in good
health for a considerable period. In about a week it
laid on the side of the glass, just beneath the surface
of the water, a beautiful coil of spawn, which looked
like a necklace of white beads arranged in successive
F 2

326 BIRTH OF THE YOUNG.

furbelows or figiires-of-8, in a spiral form, making just
a coil and a half A closer inspection showed that
these folds were inclosed in a band of clear transparent
jelly. A most beautiful object it was, even when
cursorily looked at ; but when examined with a lens,
each of the beads, which at first I had supposed to be
the ova, was really a nidus of many : a perfect sphere
of clear jelly containing about sixty embryos, arrang-
ed in crescent form in the globule, filling more than
half of its volume.

Five days after the deposition I saw that the
embryos were in rapid motion within their spherules j
I therefore detached two from the gelatinous band,
and placed them in a cell beneath the microscope.
The little nautilus-like embryos were now seen, each
in his tiny shell of one spire, vibrating his cilia with
energy, and all swimming rapidly among each other
within their sphere, seeking an outlet. The soft walls
yielded and protruded here and there, as one and
another pressed forcibly against them, and at length
burst, and the embryos came out in turn, as they
discovered the breach.

Taking sixty to be the average number of embryos
in each spherule, I endeavoured to estimate the total
number in this coil of spawn. I found about 25
spherules in each figure-8, which gives 750 embryos;
then there were about 30 such convolutions in the
whole coil, which gives the total 45,000 embryos.
Yet this coil was not all the spawn perfected by this
animal in the season, for a large contorted roll is yet
visible in the ovary through the pellucid body of the
Antiopa; and these creatures are w^ell known to

THE TORRS. 327

lay their spawn at short intervals all through the
season.

THE TORRS.

The back-windows of the house where I reside look
out upon a sort of amphitheatre, the boundaries of
which are lofty hills, with slopes green to the summit.
Those to the right terminate in several pointed peaks,
the principal of which are known as the seven Torrs.
Though their inland side presents a gradual grassy
slope, seaward they form precipices of tremendous
abruptness, descending perpendicularly more than
four hundred feet to the water's edge.

The ascent of these peaks, and the walk round
their summits by a narrow path which has been cut
for the purpose, is a most agreeable promenade ; but
as the Torrs are private property, a small toll is ex-
acted for the admission of visitors. We approach it
by the pleasant path which winds beside the Wilder,
now called Church-path, but formerly bearing the re-
pulsive appellation of Bloody-field, from a fatal duel
which legendary tradition reports to have been once
fought there.

A light ornamental iron gate admits us within the
precincts. We cross the little stream, and pursue our
way along its side, beneath the willows and alders that
hang over it, and almost hide it. It is near the end
of August, and the banks are fringed with a rank,
coarse herbage, adorned with many autumnal flowers.
The great willow-herb and the purple loose-strife are
conspicuous from their fine crimson blossom; the
hemp agrimony, the teasel, and the knapweed, are

328 TORR POINT.

here in coarse profusion, with the ragwort, and other
yellow compositce. The thorn bushes are blushing
with their ripening scarlet haws, among which the
foliage of a white convolvulus has gracefully entwined
itself, now starred with its noble snowy flowers.
Kobin-redbreast is pouring forth his simple song by
broken stanzas in an elm over-head ; and a rabbit
pops out from a bush, and runs into a sort of quarry
on our left hand ; a comer half-inclosed by walls of
perpendicular rock, some twenty feet high, ivy-clad,
and crowned with furze.

A winding path, with a hedge at one side, leads
steeply upward; and presently we stand at the edge of
the cliff, with a beach of rocks and boulders below.
A fog from the sea is driving up before the wind, and
rises in flocky masses and shreds of mist, veiling the
lofty precipices in dim undefined grandeur. The mist
lifts a little, and we recognise, away to the right, the
Ladies' Bathing Pool, with its wide area of quiet
water. The path winds along the verge of the cliff,
fringed with bramble, heath, and fern, among wliich
the modest little milkwort charms by its elegant beauty,
and the meadow-sweet by its delicious fragrance.

A narrow green promontory runs from this part into
the sea, sloping rapidly to the extremity : it is about
a hundred yards in length, and less than half as wide.
At first you would suppose its close verdant turf to be
grass, but when you examine it carefully you see that
it is almost exclusively composed of the common thrift,
which forms a bed, softer, more spongy, and more
elastic than any grass turf. This projection is called
Torr Point.

WHITE PEBBLE BAY. 320

Such green sloping promontories, with precipitious
sides, seem characteristic of this part of the coast-
There are several which I know of, succeeding each
other at short intervals, just here : one of them bears
the name of Greenaway's Foot. They are all exactly
alike in structure and appearance ; so much so, that
it is almost impossible to distinguish them, except
by their mutual position, or by their relation to the
hills above.

I walked down to the end, thinking that as the
slope had been so steep, I might find it easy to gain
the beach from the extremity. But no ; the precipice
was as abrupt and perpendicular here as anywhere,
and the sea still far below : wdiere a huge angular
rock of picturesque form raised its brown head out of
the clear greenish-blue depths.

From near the middle of the western side, however,
a zigzag staircase of steps, rudely cut in the living
rock, leads down the face of the lofty cliff, to a
narrow cove of blue sand, quite inclosed by rocks ;
which, at least at the back and sides, are almost per-
pendicular, and two hundred and fifty feet in height.
By clambering over the piled masses that project into
the sea, I found myself in White Pebble Bay, an in-
dentation of more ample dimensions, strewn with large
rounded pebbles of white quartz, thick veins of which
are seen pervading the ridges of blue slate that run
along the beach. The slate, being softer than the
quartz, is more rapidly worn away by the action of
the waves and the weather ; and the latter is left pro-
jecting, until a heavier sea than ordinary breaks off frag-
ments, which by rolling soon acquire a rounded form.

330 THE MATDEN-HAIR FERN.

Capacious tide-pools occur among the rocks far
down the beach, presenting at low-water excellent
bathing pools, some of them large and deep enough
to swim in, and sheltered from the wind by surround-
ing walls of solid rock. I enjoyed the amenities of a
bathe in one of these, in whose pure waters Laminaria
saccharina and digitata, and Halidrys siliquosa,
were waving, and the delicate crimson tufts of Rhody-
menia jiihata were fringing the sides, while colonies
of Anthea cereus were stretching abroad their green
and snaky tentacles.

This little bay is one of the few recognised locali-
ties for the true maiden-hair fern ; and it so happened
that while I was looking about to discover a specimen
on the cliffs, I met with a gentleman who was here
with the same object. He, however, was better in-
structed where to procure it, and how ; for he had
brought servants with him, and had taken the trouble
to provide himself with a ladder, which he had reared
against the side of a glen or chine at the back of the
bay. Here, some fifteen or twenty feet up, among
the debris fallen from above, grows the maiden-hair
in little tufts, to obtain which without injury it is
necessary to detach fragments of the rock with a
hammer.

Keturning to the top of the green slope, I pursue
another path along the margin of the cliffs, over the
head of White Pebble Bay. The scenery, as I sit on
the turf at the edge, is most magnificent. There is a
dark gulley on the left, cleaving the rocks down to
the cove, and then, above this, immediately in front
of me, is a broad and rugged precipice of dark grey

MEDUSOID OF CORYNE ? 331

slate, nearly four hundred feet in height, in one un-
broken mass. Grass and ivy grow on the narrow
ledges and slopes, and the towering summit is crowned
by a conical peak of verdant turf, the loftiest of the
forrs.

Up to this giddy height the path still winds by a
zigzag course ; every step bringing the traveller into
a purer atmosphere, and giving him a wider and more
exhilarating prospect ; just as a child of God, the
more his walk approaches heavenward, obtains fuller
and sweeter communion with his Father, and enjoys
clearer and more expanded views of his purposes, both
of providence and grace.

A NEV^ MEDUSOID.

Aiig. 26th. In a large glass jar containing sea-
weeds and many kinds of zoophytes, &c., alive, I
found swimming in the water among the medusoids
of Campanularia voluhilis, and Laomedea ge?iiculata,
a single medusoid, in general resembling the former,
but a little smaller, and differing in the following par-
ticulars. (See Plate XXII.)

The teatacles were eight pairs, each pair set in con-
tact with each other: at first they seemed only twin
bulbs, but after a time they lengthened into short
cylindrical wrinkled flexible arms, each terminated by
a globular head, of nearly twice the diameter of the
arm. The globose head contained an irregular num-
ber of clear oval grains, each of which had an oval
mark within it ; the form and structure closely resem-
bling those of the tentacles of Coryne.

332 MEDUSA-FISHING.

Between each pair of tentacles and the next pair
was set a single visual or auditory capsule, compara-
tively large, sessile on the outer border of the circular
canal: its substance was transparent and colourless,
and the higly refractile spherule within was connected
with an oval cell or vesicle, forming apparently the
end of it.

The sub-umbrella was campanulate, dense in struc-
ture, with longitudinal fibres or rugae. The umbrella
contained many oval clear granules scattered in its
substance, proportionally larger than those of the
medusoid of Camp, volubilis.

After some time I perceived that it was reversed ;
the pedicelled stomach being on the outside, and the
visual capsules being within the margin. Figs. 1
and 2 represent the Medusoid: 3, a pair of tentacles :
4, an organ of vision.

MEDUSA FISHING.

A sail for a mile or two along the coast opened up
to me a new field of interesting research, and made
me acquainted with a tribe of beautiful creatures that
I had hitherto known only by report. I had provided
myself with a ring-net of fine muslin, a foot wide and
two feet deep, afl&xed to a staff six feet in length, for
capturing my prey; and a basket containing two or
three glass jars of different sizes, for preserving the
specimens and bringing them home. At first I sat in
the stern-sheets and held the net at the surface per-
pendicularly, with the staff against a thole-pin, as if
it had been an oar ; drawing it in for examination after

PhxielOR.

1-4,MEDUS0ID OF CORIT^E^ 5-ll,THAUMANTJAS BUSKIANA.
12-14, CERAFUS WHITEI 15, YOUNG OFKYPERIA.

MODE OF OPERATION. 333

every two or three minutes. But I found that though
I took many specimens thus, they were of little value ;
for the way of the hoat, though there was only a light
breeze, pressed them so strongly against the muslin
of the net, that they were generally dead and shape-
less when transferred to the jars.

Finding that little effective was to he done thus, I
determined to try the rocks. We steered for Samson's
Cave, a huge cavern, the entrance to which is guarded
by two large masses of projectmg rock. The tide was
high, however, and the sea was breaking into the
cave's mouth, and dashing against the perpendicular
cliffs, forbidding a landing here. But within the inner
point there was a little sheltered beach, where the
rocks shoaled so as to allow landing to an agile foot,
and to afford standing place for the use of the net.
Here then I took my station, and soon perceived
several of the little beauties floating in the clear and
comparatively calm sea within reach ; and these I
dipped out readily.

I adopted the plan recommended by Prof. Forbes
for transferring the captives to the jar, viz., turning
the bag of the net inside out into the water within
the jar, and letting the animals float off. But it
seemed to me that this mode injured many ; perhaps
because the mouths of the jars were somewhat too
narrow to admit the net without its faUing into folds.
If a Medusa of considerable size happened to be be-
tween the folds, it would probably become spoiled by
the pressure, before it could be freed under the water.
Some of the smaller ones, moreover, say about the
size of a pea or a small button, would occasionally

334 THAUMANTIAS.

adhere to the muslin so firmly as not to float off when
immersed. I found it best, therefore, to look into the
net as soon as I had dipped, and notice all the knobs
of jelly that were visible, taking them one by one,
then putting my finger beneath each on the opposite
side of the muslin, push it under water, giving it a
slight jerk if it did not detach itself at once. Then,
when all that were perceptible were thus freed, I re-
versed the net in the jar for the minute and incon-
spicuous ones. Thus I obtained in a little while a
great multitude of specimens, many more than T could
identify when I arrived at home. I made out, how-
ever, about ten species, and I am sure there were
many more ; but by the time I had taken sketches of
such as were not mentioned by Prof. Forbes, and had
identified some of those that were, the rest were lying
a dead confused heap at the bottom of the jars.

By far the most common species hereabouts is
Tkaumantias pilosella. It occurred by scores about
the rocky points ; it was sure to be in the net when I
looked at it in the boat, and it occurs in tide-pools
and recesses below the Capstone, and in the bathing-
ponds at the Tunnel. It is about three-fourths of an
inch in diameter, like a watch-glass in form, but
rather deeper, crossed at right angles by four narrow
lines of a faint purple tint, and margined by a great
number of short slender threads, each of which has
at its base a bulb, with a dark purple speck in it.
This circle of dark dots is visible even to the naked eye,
and they are conspicuous when a pocket lens is brought
to bear on them. But there is a way in which they
may be made most beautifully and brilliantly con-

ITS LAMPS OF LIGHT. 335

spicuous. I went into my study after dark without a
candle, to try whether any of the captives in the
diiFerent vases were luminous. I took a slender stick
and felt ahout in the water at random ; presently I
touched something soft, and instantly a circle of
hright little lamps was lighted up, like a coronet of
sparkling diamonds, or like a circular figure of gas
jets, lighted at a public illumination, and seen from a
distance ; more especially as some of the constituent
sparks appeared to go out, and revive again, just as
do the gas-flames if the night he windy. The phos-
phorescence, though but momentary, was renewed as
often as I touched the animal, which was not very
often, as I feared to injure it.

As this was the commonest species of Medusa here,
as its structure is simple and may be taken as normal
in the tribe, and as it belongs to a genus that in-
cludes by far the largest number of British species, I
will describe it in detail as a sample of the rest.

It consists of an umbrella- shaped bell of clear
colourless jelly, like a watch-glass, if you imagine it a
great deal thicker in the centre than at the margins ;
but sometimes becoming hemispherical in outline.
The inner surface of the bell is lined with a skin
equally gelatinous transparent and colourless with the
former, but often minutely wrinkled, and generally
easy to be distinguished by its appearance : this is
called the sub-umbrella. From its centre depends a
very moveable, flexible peduncle, composed of more
substantial flesh than the bell, and evidently cellular
and fibrous. In this genus it is small, but in some
it protrudes beyond the margin of the bell ; it gene-

336 STRUCTURE OF A MEDUSA.

rally terminates, as in the present case, in four ex-
panded fleshy lips, extremely flexible and versatile,
and capable of seizing prey, which is transferred to a
stomach situated in the interior of the peduncle.

From the base of this hanging stomach, four slender
vessels diverge at so many right angles, and passing
across the surface of the sub-umbrella, proceed to its
margin, where they communicate with another vessel,
that runs completely round the edge. The circulation
of a nutrient fluid can be very distinctly traced in all
these canals.

The four radiating vessels are bordered in the out-
ward half of their course by the ovaries, which in this
species are narrow and linear, but are more or less
conspicuous according to their degree of development.
In a specimen now before me, these ovaries are full
of clear globose ova with central nuclei ; they are of
various sizes, some being so large as to bulge out the
side of the ovary.

The sides of the marginal canal are thick and
granular, and give rise to a number of bulbous pro-
cesses, composed apparently of the same substance,
and running off* into slender thread-like tentacles very
flexible, extensile, and contractile. The bulbous bases
frequently contain highly- coloured masses of matter,
which are considered by Prof. Forbes and others as
rudimentary eyes. In the species before us, these
spots are crescent-shaped, and of a deep purple hue,
forming a conspicuous circle of specks around the
margin, even to the naked eye. In general the ten-
tacles, whether many or few, are all of the same kind;
but in this species there are several (from four to

THE VISUAL CAPSULES. 337

seven) minuter tentacles without bulbs, between every
two of the larger sort. The latter vary much in
number and size, and are not at all symmetrical, either
in position or arrangement, some being twice as close
together as others. In the specimen before me, the
quadrants of the margin formed by the radiating
canals present respectively the following numbers of
primary tentacles : — 16, 10, 9, 14; =49. Some, too,
of these are small and apparently developing.

Besides these organs, the margin is furnished with
others, which, by those who consider the pigment
masses to be eyes, are believed to be organs of hear-
ing, but which seem to me rather to be the true media
of \asion. They consist of cells, usually more or less
globose, containing one or more spherical bodies of
high refracting power. Prof. Forbes has not noticed
them in his description of this species; they are, how-
ever, large and peculiar ; — first in shape, being semi-
elliptical swellings of the substance of the marginal
canal, and secondly in the number of their spherules,
which varies from about 35 to 50 in each capsule.
The spherules are arranged in a double crescentic
row, those which form the middle being generally
larger than those at the extremities. The capsules
are eight in number, two in each quadrant, nearly
equally distributed ; but not holding any fixed rela-
tion of position to the tentacles,

G 2

CHAPTER XIV.

Bapparee Cove— Strange Gravel — Its singular Origin — The
Glassy ^quorea— Its Form and Structure — The Forbesian
^quorea — The Bathing-Pool — Medusae therein — Description
of a new Species — Its Habits — Luminousness — Distinctive
Characters — The Ruby Medusa— Its first Occurrence — Wig-
mouth — Production of the Gemmules — Their Appearance —
Motion of the Turris— Metamorphosis of the Gemmules —
Their Polype-form — Goodness of God in the Beautiful — A
Christian's Interest in Nature— The Redeemed Inheritzmce —
The Crystalline Johnstonella — Its Beauty — Its Doubtful Affi-
nities— The Starry Willsia — Parasitic Leech — Tmread Cap-
sules— Nature of these Organs.

As the visitor pursues the pleasant walk leading
through what are called the Quay Fields, he cannot
help seeing, here and there, a rather obtrusive direc-
tion-board with a finger pointing towards a certain
point of the shore, accompanied by the announcement
that such is the way to Rapparee Cove, whose claims
to notice as a bathing place, on account of its
privacy and comfort, are somewhat boastfully set
forth.

I visited it, and found it indeed, like so much of
the scenery hereabout, sufficiently wild, romantic, and
picturesque. It is situated immediately opposite the
entrance to the harbour, under the shadow of the

RAPPAREE COVE. 839

gigantic Hillsborough. The Cove itself is a spacious
area, almost locked in, being protected seaward by
rocks, and environed on three sides by cliffs, more
than usually lofty, and much too steep to be climbed.
In fact there is no access to it, when the tide is in,
but by a narrow foot-path, that has been cut in one
part of the rock, the entrance to which is guarded by
a gate. Precipitious as are these cliffs, however, they
are green with ivy, that trails and hangs in graceful
freedom over their surface, and with fern which grows
upon them in great luxuriance. Tufts of samphire
spring from the rugged ledges; and at the foot of the
cliffs, which jut out in projecting buttresses, like the
great spurs of the cotton-trees in tropical climates,
the white goose-foot was growing, with its large a-n
gular leaves curiously covered with a sort of web,
easily removeable with the fingers, and having on
their under surfaces an appearance and texture that
closely resembled fine flannel. There, too, was the
corn sow-thistle, a fine plant with large yellow flowers,
eminently characteristic of the season, for it was the
month of September.

The floor of the cove is principally composed of
sand, which changes, as it approaches low-water mark,
to small shingle. Among the latter, the observant
stranger notices a quantity of yellow gravel, scattered
all along the water-line between tide-marks. This at
once strikes him as a remarkable feature, seeing that
nothing of the kind is found on other parts of this
coast, nor does any analogous fonnation exist in the
vicinity.

On inquiry, he learns that these yellow pebbles are

340 A RECORD OF SHIPWRECK.

Strangers, and not natives of the place ; that they are,
in fact, the enduring records of a tragical event that
occurred some fifty years ago.

It was in the war with France, which ushered in
the commencement of the present century, that two
transports returning from the West Indies, with black
prisoners from some of the French Islands, were
driven on shore in this cove, while attempting to
enter the harbour of Ilfracombe in stress of weather.
Most of the people escaped with their lives, but
almost everything else on board was lost ; and for
years after the sad event, the people of the town used
to find gold coins, and jewels, among the shingle
at low- tide. The vessels were ballasted with this
yellow gravel, which though washed to and fro by the
rolling surf, remains to bear witness of this shipwreck,
and to identify the spot where it took place ; a curious
testimony, which probably will endure long after the
event itself is lost in oblivion, and perhaps until the
earth and all the works therein shall be burned up.

THE GLASSY iEQUOREA.

Among the treasures which rewarded my first at-
tempt at Medusa fishing was a beautiful translucent
species of a genus, which when Professor Forbes pub-
lished his Monograph had not been recognised as
British, but a species of which has been lately de-
scribed by that accomplished naturalist. Though the
genus contains many species, I cannot find any de-
scription that agrees with the present, which I desig-
nate as the Glassy ^quorea (Mquorea vitrina).
It may be thus described.

THE GLASSY ^QUOREA. 341

Umbrella hemispheric, or sub-conic, about 1^ inch
wide and J inch high. (Plate XXIII. fig. 1). Sub-
umbrella very low, depressed and funnel-shaped in
in the centre, which is quite perforate, the sides of
the funnel descending into a peduncle, which expands
into many (about 20) narrow, pointed, divaricating,
reflexed, furbelowed points, reaching to about the
level of the margin. The peripheral half of the sub-
umbrella is traversed by about ninety radiating lines,
(See fig. 2) which are colourless but resemble bands
oi frosted or ground glass upon a body of clear glass.
They are swollen irregularly or attenuated in parts,
and where swollen appear to be penetrated by a cen-
tral vessel. The central portion of the sub-umbrella^
a perfect circle, into which these lines run, is of the
frosted appearance, with radiating fine lines of crys-
talline, proceeding from the centre of each of the
marginal lines. In the funnel of the sub-umbrella,
lines of opaque white commence, alternating with the
crystalline lines, and gradually emerge into the fur-
belows of the peduncle (fig. 5).

The vessels of the sub-umbrella appear to be in
many cases lost just before reaching the marginal
canal; some however can be traced into it. The mar-
ginal canal is very slender, and gives origin to a great
number of excessively attenuated white tentacles, two
or three to each vessel, or more than 200 in all.
Their bulbous origins are minute ; they are generally
much wrinkled and contorted, and adhere to any
object they touch. (See figs. 3 and 4).

I had turned the animal back-downwards for ex-
amination, and presently saw the funnel-like peduncle

342 THE GLASSY ^QUOREA.

dilate into a wide circular orifice, of which it formed
merely a delicately-membranous margin, the white
lines radiating through it (as seen at fig. 7) and pro-
longed into long narrow furbelowed filaments, remote
from each other, and connected by a sort of a web,
waved at its edge. Where the stomach can be I
cannot conceive, since the peduncle is nothing but
this membranous circle. I passed a slender stick
through the orifice without meeting any resistance
until it touched the clear, perfectly transparent sub-
stance of the umbrella, at the level of the highest
part of the sub-umbrella.

Not a trace of colour appears in the whole animal,
which yet is exquisitely beautiful. It was swimming
near the surface, a mile or two off" shore, near Water-
mouth, when I dipped it, on the afternoon of August
26th. In captivity it was moderately active, swim-
ming gracefully, but keeping the tentacles generally
contracted and inconspicuous. It was luminous when
irritated in the dark.

A day or two afterwards I obtained another speci-
men much smaller, not more than ^ inch in diameter,
to which I was enabled to apply a higher power.
The tentacles in this specimen (perhaps from its con-
dition of adolescence) alternated with bulbs not de-
veloped into tentacles, and each had at its base a very
minute but perfect colourless ocellus, with from two
to five highly refractile spherules unsymmetrically
included within the globule. Two or three was the
most common number; and they were not always
of the same size, one being frequently present not half
the size of the others. Fig. 6 shows a portion of the

THE FORBESIAN ^QUOREA. 345

On examination the larger flattened ones resolved
themselves into two species. One was the colourless
frosted JEquorea that I had obtained before, several
specimens of which appeared in no wise to differ from
the former. But the majority of individuals now cast
ashore were of a much larger and finer species of the
same genus. (See Plate XXIV).

It differs from the former species in the following
particulars. It is much larger, being from two to three
inches in diameter, but lower in proportion, being
about \\ inch in height, and resembling a cake or
bun in shape. The umbrella is smooth, clear, and
apparently colourless; but when viewed sidewise^
against a dark back-ground, the rays of light that
pass through the whole diameter of the umbrella are
tinged of the most brilliant azure blue, which colour
prevails for about a quarter of an inch above the sum-
mit of the sub -umbrella, and is then gradually lost,
doubtless by the rapid diminution of the thickness of
substance through which the rays are transmitted.

The sub-umbrella is very low and depressed, about
\ inch in height : its substance is colourless, but the
radiating vessels that traverse it, and which were
frosted in the former species, are here of a delicate
rosy hue, which is the colour also of the dependent
margin of the central circle that occupies the place of
a peduncle. They are fewer (about 65 or 70 in all)
and more slender, than in M. vitrina.

The sides of this circle are cut into four triangular
lobes of membrane (more or less developed), which
are fringed with delicate attenuated pink filaments,
depending and floating freely in the water. The

346 THE FORBESIAN ^QUOREA.

microscope shows them to be furbelowed slips of
membrane, as in the former species, but here they are
much finer, and instead of being equal and con-
tinuous, are graduated and interrupted. Each trian-
gular lobe has them longest at its middle point,
whence they decrease in length on either hand ; and
there is a space between every lobe and the next,
which is quite destitute of fringe.

The marginal vessel is very slender, and carries
about thirty-six very fine thread-like tentacles,
usually contracted in close spirals to J inch in length,
but ^sometimes depending to the extent of several
inches, in which case they seem as fine as a spider's
thread. They are not symmetrically disposed, nor do
they bear any regular relation of position to the radi-
ating vessels. Their colour is pale pink or flesh
colour. Their texture is minutely granular, and their
bulbs present a similar appearance to those of the for-
mer species. As in that also, so here, there are
numerous auditory or visual capsules, with from one
to four spherules in each.

This very fine Medusa commonly floats at the
surface in captivity ; and seems to have little locomo-
tive power, contrasting strongly with the minute
Turres and Oceanm that shoot along with vigorous
leaps in various depths. It maintains a pretty uniform,
not very rapid, contraction of its sub-umbrella, but
with occasional intervals of quietude. I observe that
at the beginning of contraction after repose, the action
of one side is frequently not simultaneous with that
of the opposite, but presently they become so.

At night I tried its luminous power. When I

WIGMOUTH. 349

was it dij0&cult to protract the pleasure ; for the little
creatures are kept alive with great ease for many
days. (See Plate XIII. fig. 6, nat. size ; fig. 7.
magnified).

My first acquaintance with the species was made on
August 28th. A tiny specimen, not more than -jo-th of
an inch in height, was caught among other Medusse
off the little cove of Wigmouth. This is a beautiful
little nook for bathing, being quite unfrequented,
about two miles from the town, and having a smooth
sandy beach evenly sloping down, without rocks, ex-
cept at each side, where rocky walls inclose it about
fifty yards apart. These rocky sides projecting into
the sea allow of our walking out on their points and
ledges close to the water's edge. Here I stood, and
with a muslin net at the end of a pole dipped for the
smaller Medusae that were enjoying the afternoon sun
at the smooth clear surface. Many of these the rays
of the sun made visible against the dark depths, and
such I could select ; but the more minute kinds were
not perceptible, and these I could only dip for at a
venture, unconscious of their presence, until the ever-
sion of the net in the collecting jar discovered them
as prisoners.

This pigmy Turris was inert when I examined it ;
the gelatinous umbrella turbid and almost opaque,
and the peduncle large and dull crimson. But in the
course of the next day considerable alteration had
taken place in its appearance. (Plate XIII. fig. 8).
The margin was contracted and turned back, exposing
a great part of the peduncle, which had become both
thicker and longer; its redness was also more intense
H 2

350 GEMMULES OF TURRIS.

and inclined to orange, and many oval gemmules of
dark lake-crimson, or pui*ple, were seen in its sub-
stance. On the floor of the cell in which it was con-
lined were moi'e than a dozen of the gemmules already
escaped ; I at first supposed them eggs, but on closer
examination, found that they were active little swim-
ming creatures with a will of their own ; that they
were in fact gemmules, perfectly oval in form, about
■j^inch in length, and of a fine lake hue : their whole
surface covered with vibratile cilia, by means of which
they glided about with an even quick motion. (See
fig. 9).

Two days afterwards these gemmules were still
active, and possessed the power of locomotion. They
were not perceptibly changed in appearance, except
that they seemed a little larger.

On the 4th Sept. I noticed one lying at the bottom
of the phial in which I had put them. I extracted it
by means of a glass tube, and found that its colour
had become paler, being now of a rose-pink, that its
surface was irregularly granulose as if decomposing,
and that motion had ceased.

On the same day I took two specimens about -g- in.
high, brilliantly conspicuous from the orange coloured
or pale vermillion ovaries studded with large ova of a
rich j)urj)le hue. The umbrella is remarkably turbid,
being scarcely more than pellucid, and appearing
quite white against a dark background. When rest-
ing in a phial of water, the tentacles are elongated,
like white threads of an equal thickness throughout,
and are extended in every direction, some perpen-
dicularly upwai'ds, some downwards, and some arching

MOTION IN THE MEDUSiE. 351

outwards. Thus it lies quite motionless, but on the
slightest jar being given to the vessel, or to the table
on which it stands, all the tentacles at the same in-
stant are contracted into minute contorted balls, so
suddenly that it seems the work of magic. If undis-
turbed, however, they are quickly unrolled again^
almost as quickly as they were contracted. If the tenta-
cles when thus extended are carefully examined, they
are seen to be shghtly club-shaped at their extremities.

The tentacles in this species, when subjected t(i
pressure, are resolved into a multitude of minute oval
granules set close together, without any variation of
density in different parts. Their length is not more
than -^^ inch. I suppose these, from analogy, to be
filiferous capsules, though their minuteness prevents
me from seeing (with a power of 300) more than an
evanescent indication of the filiferous cavity ; and the
plates of the compressorium were not able to produce
a projection of the filament.

The lips of the peduncle ar6 furnished with capsules
exactly similar, crowded together in groups, and (as
it appears to me) forming httle tubercles, from which
their points diverge in every direction.

The motion of the Medusae through the water seems
to be performed on the same principle as that of the
larva of the Dragonfly ; viz. by a jet of water forcibly
expelled, and impinging on the surrounding fluid.
In Turris, whose motions, owing to its muscula>'
development, are very energetic, the jet is very distinct
and strong. This appears to be the modus oj)erandi :
four muscular bands, as Prof. Forbes has shown, pass
across the surface of the sub-umbrella, from the root

352 A TURRIS OVIPOSITING.

of the peduncle to the margin. This course is not a
straight but a curved one. When therefore these
hands are simultaneously and forcibly contracted in
length, they are drawn from a curved into a straight
line, and the cavity which was bell-shaped becomes
more conical, and its capacity is considerably dimin-
ished ; a portion of the water which it before held is
therefore driven out at the mouth, and by its reaction
forces the animal forward with a jerk in the opposite
direction. I think, however, that the action of the
radiating bands of muscle is aided by circular bands
lining the sub-umbrella, as well as by the marginal
one ; for when a Turris in strong contractions is at-
tentively watched in an upright position, there are
seen indrawings of the sides from the perpendicular at
every contraction, that the shortening of the radiating
bands is not sufficient to account for.

Fig. 8 represents a Turris in the state of oviposit-
ing; the peduncle enormously swollen and become
globose, with its lower part showing the four orange
ovaries, distended with purple gemmules. It Ues on
its side on the bottom, the four lips protruded at one
extremity, and around the other the diminished and
reverted umbrella gathered in small vesicular puckers.
In this condition one would not recognise it as a
Medusa, if not familiar with it.* The oval purple

* Of the scores of this species that I have kept, this was the common,
and therefore, I presume, the natm'al, termination of life. Mrs. Davis,
in the interesting note of one kept by her, communicated to the Ann.
N. H., vol. vii, alludes to it. " At the end of a fortnight one of my pets
turned itself inside outwards, and remained in this state for some time,
when it died, and left only a few floculent particles at the bottom of the
vessel." I do not doubt that if the sediment had been carefully ex-
amined with a microscope, the intelligent observer would have dis-
covered among it many of the crimson oval gemmules.

ASSUMPTION OF THE POLYPE -FORM. 358

gemmules (fig. 9) seem to escape from the walls of the
ovaries, workmg their way out at the sides. They
drop down on the bottom of the vessel, where they
move about slowly for a while, to no great extent, by
means of their vibratile cilia.

All through September, as this species was very
numerous in the harbour and in the neighbouring
coves, I procured great numbers of them, most of
which I placed in a deep cylindrical glass vessel, —
the chimney of a lamp, in fact, with a plate of glass
cemented across one end for a bottom. By examining
this bottom-plate from beneath with a lens, I found
early in September that a good many of the gemmules
had affixed themselves to it, and were changing their
form. By watching them, I ascertained the follow^ing
facts. The gemmule, having adhered to the glass,
grows out into a lengthened form, variously knobbed
and swollen, and frequently dividing into two branches,
the whole adhering closely to the glass. After a day
or two's growth in this manner, a perpendicular stem
begins to shoot from some point of this creeping root,
and soon separates into four straight, slender, slightly
divergent tentacles, which shoot to a considerable
length. The whole is of a crimson hue, with the
exception of the growing extremities of the creeping
root, which are pellucid white. The little creature is
now a Polype of four tentacles. (See fig. 10).

I could not follow the development farther, for
though I had perhaps, a dozen in this stage, on the
bottom of the glass, they all died without farther
growth. And though, for weeks after, many gemmules
were deposited, and I could see plenty every day

354 GOODNESS or GOD IN THE BEAUTIFUL.

crawling about the glass, not one manifested the least
inclination to become adherent, or to grow into a
Polype. Indeed, they differed in appearance from
those first produced, for these were all true planules,
being elongated and produced at one end into a blunt
point, with considerable power of change in the
outline.

When we look at a lovely object like this, we are
conscious of a positive enjoyment, arising from the
gratification of our sense of beauty ; a sort of appe-
tite, if I may so call it, implanted in our nature by
the beneficent Creator, expressly for our satisfaction.
The garden which the Lord God prepared for unfallen
man was furnished with " every tree that was pleasant
to the sight," as well as " good for food." And surely
it is not too much to suppose that even in the Infinite
Mind of God himself there is a quality analogous to
this in us, the sense of material beauty, the approval
of what is in itself lovely in form and colour and
arrangement, and pleasure in the contemplation of it ;
distinct from and independent of the question of
relative fitness or moral excellence. If such a suppo-
sition needed proof, I would simply adduce the pro-
fuse existence of beauty in created things, and refer
to the word that *'For His pleasure they are, and
were created."

But there is another point of view from which a
Christian, — by which expression I mean one who by
believing on the Lord Jesus Christ has passed from
death unto life, and not one who puts on the title as
he would a garment, merely for convenience or cus-
tom's sake — looks at the excellent and the beautiful

A christian's interest in nature. 355

m'nature. He has a personal interest in it all ; it is
a part of his own inheritance. As a child roams
over his father's estate, and is ever finding some quiet
nook, or clear pool, or foaming waterfall, some lofty
avenue, some hank of sweet flowers, some picturesque
or fruitful tree, some noble and wide-spread prospect,
— how is the pleasure heightened by the thought ever
recurring, — All this will be mine by and by ! And
though he may not understand all the arrangements,
nor fathom the reasons of all the work that he sees
going on, he knows that all enhances the value of the
estate, which in due time will be his own possession.

So with the Christian. The sin-pressed earth,
groaning and labouring now under the pressure of the
Fall, is a part of the inheritance of the Lord Jesus,
bought with his blood. He has paid the price of its re-
demption, and at the appointed time will reign over it.
But when the Lord reigneth, his people shall reign
too ; and hence their song is, " Thou hast redeemed

us to God by thy blood, and we shall reign on the

earth." For unto the angels hath He not put in sub-
jection the world to come, but unto Him who though
Son of God is likewise Son of Man, — even to Him
in association with the "many sons" whom He is
bringing to glory.

And thus I have a right to examine, with as great
minuteness as I can bring to the pleasant task, con-
sistently with other claims, what are called the works
of nature. I have the very best right possible, the
right that flows from the fact of their being all mine,
— mine not indeed in possession, but in sure reversion.
And if any one despise the research as mean and little.

856 THE CRYSTALLINE JOHNSTON ELLA.

I reply that I am scanning the plan of my inheritance.
And when T find any tiny object rooted to the rock, or
swimming in the sea, in which I trace with more than
common measure the grace and delicacy of the Master
Hand, I may not only give Him praise for his skill
and wisdom, hut thanks also, for that He hath
taken the pains to contrive, to fashion, to adorn
this, for me.

THE CRYSTALLINE JOHNSTONELLA.

I have the pleasure of announcing a new animal of
much elegance, which I believe to be of a hitherto
unrecognised form. I shall describe it under the
appellation oi Johnstonella Catharina. (Plate XXV).

Body f inch long, g inch in greatest diameter, flat,
thin, as transparent and colourless as glass.

Head dilated on each side into two lobes, which are
flat, pointed, and leaf-like, extending laterally to a
considerable distance. Along the posterior pair are
soldered a pair of excessively long, slender antennae,
tapering to a fine point ; they appear simple unjointed
filaments, directed divergently backwards to a greater
length than the body, and incapable of change in
direction. The basal moiety of their length is invest-
ed with a loose skin, which corrugates into folds.

Eyes two, black, small, on the summit of the head,
between the posterior lobes : a line of minute black
specks runs down the middle of the neck behind
the eyes.

Body narrow at each extremity, widening in the mid-
dle : furnished on each side with sixteen fin-like narrow
lobes, each of which bears at its extremity two oval

PhuWf.

JOHNSTONELLA CATHARINA.

THE WILLSIA AND ITS PARASITE. 359

THE STARRY WILLSIA.

Sejyt. Sth. — In the clear quiet water of the bathing
pool I (lipped this afternoon many Medusae, almost
all of these two species, Thaumantias pilosella and
Willsia stellata. One of the former presented a curi-
ous deviation from ordinary structure, in that one of
the radiating vessels was divided into three branches
at about one third of its length from the marginal
canal, the ovary likewise branched correspondingly.
The other vessels were quite normal.

Less numerous than this, but sufficiently common,
was the pretty Willsia, a little gem, with its six-rayed
star of yellow ovaries, and its- circlet of black eyes.
(Plate XX, fig. 1). The radiating vessels in this
species, six in number, are naturally divided into
branches, each entering the marginal canal by four
mouths, like the Delta of some great continental river.
The sub-umbrella is not evenly round, but lobed,
the radiating vessels running along deep depressions
or valleys, between which the surface rises into hills.
(Seefig^2).

I found in one of the WilUim a curious parasitic
Leech. I know not on what part, for I first discover-
ed it after I had subjected the Medusa to the compres-
sorium. It is an active little animal, with two suck-
ers, of which the anterior is imperfect and mouth-like,
and the posterior is circular, produced into a thick
wart, and set on the ventral surface at about one
third of the whole length from the tail. There are eight

360 THREAD-CAPSULES.

eyes, very minute, colourless, and set around the
frontal margin of the anterior disk; the anus is
terminal. The ovary is large, and filled with a number
of clear, globular, highly refractile ova. Close-set
transverse annuli were conspicuous on the fore half of
the body.

When the Medusa was subjected to pressure, I
observed several vesicles of exceedingly subtle mem-
brane, loosely wrinkled, containing a number (varying
from one or two to thirty) of clear oval bodies, about
j^th inch in longest diameter. (See fig. 3). The
vesicles were placed at the end of a short canal, or
neck, or footstalk, of similar membrane, originating
from the marginal canal, and freely standing up on
the outside of the umbrella, as I believe. Each of
the oval granules had, a body within it, which I at
first supposed a cell, but in one I distinctly saw that
it was composed of a number of obhque parallel lines
(See fig. 4). On pressure being increased, all the
oval capsules simultaneously shot forth, from one end,
a thread of great tenuity and of excessive length. I
could trace them to about fifty times the length of the
oval, and am not at all sure that I saw their extremity,
for with a power of 300 they became undistinguishable
farther. The thread, in an instant so brief as to be
inappreciable, assumed perfect straightness, (except a
slight curve in some cases), just as if composed of
some highly elastic substance, that had hitherto been
compressed But close examination showed an appear-
ance like that of a corrugated sheath enveloping it
for a considerable portion of its length, perhaps one
third, from the oval capsule (See fig. 5).

Plate AX

% '

'^y^

r^)V,<. <f^ \

FHdossf dti •'Uth

PrtMel hrJ6Jhnaiald»}M<dton,

1-5. WILLSIA STELLATA.
6 Z PLUMJLARIA SETACEA

THE OVARIES. 361

This was the first occasion on which I had an
opportunity of seeing the filiferous capsules, as these
bodies are called, for though I have described, in
previous parts of this volume, similar organs, the
actual observations so recorded were, in point of time,
subsequent to this.

The presence of these aggregations of capsules
appears to be subject to much variation. In some
specimens of the Willsia that I examined, there were
several, perhaps five or six ; in many I could not by
strict searching, find more than one or two solitary
capsules, seemingly scattered in the substance of the
umbrella near the margin, yet shooting out the thread
on pressure, exactly like those aggregated in a vesicle.
But perhaps in these they may have been present,
though overlooked, in a situation where I afterwards
found them numerous in each specimen that I ex-
amined, viz. within the substance of the double
ovaries, and chiefly near their termination. In each
lobe there were many capsules, not arranged nor
'gathered into vesicles, but apparently loose in the
yellow granular substance. But none of these had
developing ova ; only one that I examined had ova
in the form of transparent globules with a central clear
nucleus ; and that specimen I had destroyed before I
had detected this situation for the capsules. However,
in that specimen I know that, after pressure, I could
find no more than a single capsule, all over the
Medusa,

These facts suggested the thought that possibly
these organs that look like ovaries may in some cases
be testes, and the filiferous capsules be organs of
I 2

362 SPERMATOZOA.

conjunction, I do not think them analogous to Sper-
matozoa, though these appear to be present also ; for
when the ovaries (or testes) gave way under pressure,
their substance contained with the coloured granules
a multitude of excessively minute bodies with spon-
taneous vibratile motion. They were evidently
oblong, but too minute for me to discern their tails,
if they had any.

CHAPTER XV.

This Coast favourable for Oceanic Productions — The Red-lined
Medusa— Its Form and Structure — The Eyes — The Fur-
belows—A parasitic Shrimp — Its supposed Young — Beauty
of the Medusa — Its Prehensile Powers — Capture of Prey —
Curious Mode of eating — Experiments — New Use of the
Furbelows — Development of the Eggs — Their Structure —
• Thread-Capsules — Synonymy — The White Pelagia — The
Mantis Shrimp — Its spectral Figure and strange Actions —
Its Weapons — The Caddis Shrimp — The Tiny Oceania —
Busk's Thaumantias — The Fairy's Cap.

THE RED LINED MEDUSA.

The conformation of the Bristol Channel, and of
the adjacent coasts, offers peculiar facilities for the
study of those marine animals whose proper sphere of
existence is the wide ocean. The prevailing westerly
winds, driving up the surface-waters of the Atlantic,
impel them along the shores of Portugal, Spain and
France, whence a large portion passes through the
English Channel into the German Ocean. But
another large portion, turned northward by the pro-
jecting point of Cornwall, finds itself in a vast funnel,
between the Irish and English coasts, which has two
terminations, the one open and leading into the
North Sea, the other closed and confined within the

364 THE RED-LINED CHRYSAORA.

narrowing limits of the Bristol Channel. Each of
these three localities, — the shores of the English
Channel, the Irish Sea, and the Bristol Channel, —
receives its portion of oceanic productions brought by
the winds and currents ; but the former two are open
passages, while the last-named, being closed, retains
such as are brought within its boundaries. And the
southern side of the Channel is likely to receive the
greatest part of such deposits ; for the winds setting
them upon the Cornish coast, the current would natu-
rally follow the bending line of the shore ; and thus the
rocky coves and inlets of North Devon might be
expected to be more than usually rich in those rare
and accidental stragglers, which the waves bring in
from their roamings in the boundless sea.

So I have proved it. Two new species of Mquorea
I had already found here, a genus of which but one
example had been recorded as British ; and I have
now to add a magnificent species of Chrysaora, which,
though not new, appears to be rare on the British
coast. It occurred to me on the 14th of September, at
low water, embayed in a little tide-pool in the rocks
below the Tunnels, where it attracted my attention
by its vigorous and regular pulsations. (See Plate
XXVII, where it is represented about half the natu-
ral size).

The umbrella (fig. l.) is about three inches in
diameter, depressed and sub-conic in expansion,
hemispheric in contraction, pellucid and nearly
colourless, but tinged about the summit with a deli-
cate flush of rose-colour. The surface is slightly
frosted or tomentose, and studded with a multitude

THE TENTACLES. 305

of minute orange warts, most conspicuous in the cen-
tral parts. About thirty-two fine orange lines radiate
from near the centre, which are lost before they reach
the circumference. The margin is cut into thirty-two
concave ovate lobes, a tentacle being between every two,
with the exception of eight of the interspaces sym-
metrically disposed, where a pedicled ocellus takes the
place of a tentacle. The pair of lobes which inclose
each ocellus are larsrer than the rest, and are of a rich
sienna-brown ; the other lobes are not associated in
pairs, are smaller, and are of a paler tint of the same
warm colour.

The tentacles, twenty-four in number, are all alike :
their substance is pellucid- white with the tips crim-
son; the latter, however, are very liable to be torn
off. Their base can scarcely be called bulbous, but
this part is dilated into an ovate form in one direction
(viz. that from the centre outward) and thin in the oppo-
site. They are long and attenuated, being frequently
stretched to the length of a foot, and as slender for
most of their length as the finest sewing-thread-
They are waved and contorted in various free and ele-
gant curves, but are never drawn up into spiral coils ;
their contraction, which is sometimes so great as to
reduce them to an inch in length, being effected
entirely by the shortening and thickening of their
substance. They are very adhesive, but I did not
find in them any power of stinging.

The eyes, eight in number, are minute oval bodies,
opaque yellowish-white, each placed at the tip of a
rather long, slender footstalk, depending perpendicu-
larly from the margin of the umbrella, and protected

368 THE RED-LINED CHRYSAORA.

by a tubular fold of the common pellucid membrane,
which extends to about double its length. (See fig.
2). On crushing one of these eyes with graduated
pressure beneath the microscope, it was most interes-
ting to find its substance entirely composed (so far
as I could perceive) of an infinite multitude of regu-
lar colourless crystals, the greater number of which
were short six-sided prisms, and, as I thought, with
convex extremities. (See fig. 3). Of this latter
point, however, I am not quite sure ; but their hex-
agonal form was perfectly distinct ; and I could not
but conclude these to be true visual lenses, perhaps
as perfect as those of Crustacea or Insects. Their
diameter was about j^q*^ of an inch.

The sub -umbrella agrees in general form with the
umbrella, but is much more depressed. From its cen-
tre depends an ample globose peduncle, which after
being constricted, terminates in four membranous
arms of excessive delicacy and beauty. Each arm
consists of a cylindrical, or rather insensibly tapering,
process, resembling a tentacle in length and slender-
ness. All along one side of this filament is attached
a ribbon of pellucid membrane, more delicate than the
finest ckmbric : it is upwards of an inch wide above,
but gradually tapers to a point; and is so attached by
one of its edges to the filament, as to fall into ample
folds or furbelows, exactly like the flounces of a
muslin dress. The grace and beauty which these
appendages impart to the animal can scarcely be
imagined by those who have not witnessed a similar
spectacle. Sometimes, indeeed, they are contracted
into a shapeless mass, only two or three inches in

ITS CRUSTACEAN PARASITE. 3G7

length, so puckered and confused as to render their
disentanglement apparently hopeless ; but in a few
moments we see their graceful folds, all separated,
stretching their taper length to a distance of ten
inches from their base, and waving slowly through
the water with every contraction of the ever-pulsating
umbrella. The colour of these elegant organs is
white at their upper part ; but a faint tinge of rose-
red becomes perceptible about their middle, and
gradually increases in intensity till it becomes at
their extremities a decided pink. This hue, however,
seems in some way to be dependent on the will of the
animal, frequently becoming stronger or fainter in the
course of a few minutes.

The interior of the peduncle is divided by four
perpendicular septa into as many ample chambers,
which are visible from above. Other folds of mem-
brane partially cross their area, causing them at times
to appear six or more in number. From beneath,
large round openings are seen communicating with
the interior of these chambers, into which the sur-
rounding water is thus freely admitted.

Whatever other purposes these cavities may fulfil in
the economy of the Medusa, they serve the conveni-
ence of another animal of widely different organiza-
tion. A little shrimp -like creature, about half-an-inch
in length, with large lustrous green eyes (Hyperia
medusarumj , makes these chambers his residence,
dwelling in them as in so many spacious and commo-
dious apartments, of which he takes possession, I am
afraid, without asking leave of the landlord, or paying
him even a peppercorn rent. There however, he

368 THE RED-LINED CHRYSAORA.

snugly ensconces himself, and feels so much at home,
that he is not afraid to leave his dwelling now and
then, to take a swim in the free water ; returning to
his chamber after his exercise.

That this is the natural habit of life followed by
this Crustacean, I have no doubt. There were three
or four specimens on this Chrysaora, and I have
found it parasitic on other large Medusae. But there
were also on the one I am describing a vast number
of minute white specks, which on examination proved
to be little Crustacea, and, as I suspect, the larvae of
this species. They are not larger than a grain of
sand, shaped somewhat like a toad, with the abdomen
distinctly separated, narrow, and bent abruptly under,
in the manner of the Brachyura. (See Plate XXII.
fig. 15).

To return, however, to our Medusa. Though this
genus is described as peculiarly phosphorescent, I
found this specimen scarcely at all luminous. A
very slight and dull flash or two was all that I could
obtain, with repeated pushings and other disturbances
of the animal in the dark.

The appearance of this fine Medusa in captivity
was noble and imposing. I kept it for several days
in a deep glass vase of clear sea-water, where its
chestnut-lobed umbrella, throbbing with a continual
pulsation, throwing its circle of hanging tentacles
into a succession of serpentine undulations, and its
long four-fold fringe of gauze-Uke flounces, floating
through the water, formed a sight which the beholders
were never weary of admiring, and from which we
could scarcely vdthdraw our eyes. Its pulsations

THE FURBELOWS. 3G9

were perfectly regular, leisurely, and energetic ; yet
their effect in moving the body seemed feeble and
laborious ; every stroke, for example, raising the disk
an almost inappreciable distance, when it wished to
ascend from the bottom to the surface; forming a
marked contrast to the minute but agile Turris
neglecta, which shoots at every contraction a distance
three or four times its own diameter.

The Chrysaora does not rest at the surface as some
Medusae do ; but occasionally allows itself to sink
slowly to the bottom, where (or but slightly elevated
above it) it intermits for a while its laboured con-
tractions.

The furbelows, as well as the tentacles, are organs
of prehension, used for the capture of prey. I have
some reason to believe that the former, at least near
their origin, perform an active part in digestion-
Casually touching the animal with a stick, not only
did several of the tentacles entwine round it, but the
furbelows also presently adhered to it, partially em-
bracing it; and I became conscious that the latter
were drawing the stick towards the peduncle with
considerable force; nor was it an easy matter to
liberate it from the firm grasp. This circumstance
suggested the thought that the animal might be
hungry, especially as it had been in my possession
several days without food.

I determined therefore to give it a dinner ; and, that
there might be wanting no incentive to appetite, one
which a prime minister would not have disdained — a
Whitebait dinner. I had just before netted in a tide-
pool, half a dozen of these brilliant little fishes ; and

370 THE RED-LINED CHRYSAORA.

one of these I devoted to my experiment, and the
Medusa's appetite. The fish was already dead, and I
had no difficulty in guiding it so that it might touch
the tentacles. These were immediately, as I had ex-
pected, entangled around the fish, and so were the
furbelows. At first I was not aware that anything
more was going on, for the weight of the fish had
carried it to the bottom of the vessel, and the delicate
membranes were lying in confused heaps over it.

After some time, however, I perceived that the fish
had moved from that part of the furbelows which had
first seized it ; for whereas at first not more than
half-an-inch lay between that part of one of the fur-
belows which embraced the head of the fish, and its
extremity, the head was now several inches higher up
towards the peduncle. This induced me to watch it
closely. The tentacles had now no part in the matter ;
having delivered the prey to the furbelows, they had
disentangled themselves, and were now sprawling
loosely about, as usual. Three of the furbelows had
grasped the fish; one embracing the head, another
the tail, and a third the middle of the body ; the
fourth had not touched it at all, and the middle one
presently relinquished its hold, resigning the task to
the other two. These embraced their respective parts
in the most curious manner ; not being twined about
merely, but the fleshy membrane adhering to the
surface of the fish, filling every hollow, and rounding
every projection of its burden, so closely as to manifest
not only the sensitiveness, but also the muscularity,
of these filmy organs.

It was easy to perceive the constant though slow

ITS MODE OF TAKING PREY. 371

progression of the fish upward ; the surface of the
furbelow, with its closely adhering plaits and pucker-
ings, being moved over the fish, with an uniform
gliding, like that of the foot of a mollusk over the
surface on which it is crawling. The crustacean larvae
already spoken of, like minute white specks scattered
about the furbelows, enabled me distinctly to mark
the advance of the fish, which proceeded at the rate
of about a line in a minute. The contractions of the
umbrella went on with the usual force and precision
during the whole time ; and as the fish was gradually
brought nearer to the umbrella, the furbelows acquired
the power to lift it from the bottom, and to suspend
it between them in a horizontal position.

After two hours had elapsed from the first seizure,
the fish was brought to the mouth of the peduncle,
about half-an-inch above the separation of the furbe-
lows ; and where it remained, without any further per-
ceptible change, for a full hour. The head of the fish
alone was so much elevated as this, for the furbelow
at the tail had latterly ceased to act, while the other
had proceeded ; and consequently the fish had become
nearly perpendicular. Its head was closely embraced
by the lips of the peduncle, and the peduncle itself
was protruded in a remarkable manner, by the partial
inversion of the umbrella, the upper surface of which
was slightly concave, though the margin was bent
over, and continued its contractions.

At length, after about an hour, the Medusa slowly
relinquished its prey, which fell again to the bottom.
To my surprise, however, I could not discover, on
examination, that the digestive eff'orts of the Chry-

372 THE RED-LINED CHRYSAORA.

saora had produced the least alteration in the appear-
ance of the fish ; the surface of which was as clean
and its edges as smooth and well defined, as they
had heen three hours before. Yet I would not hence
too hastily conclude that no nutriment whatever had
been extracted by the pores of the stomachal membrane.
It seemed possible, too, that the weight and unwieldy
dimensions of the fish may have disappointed the
animal of its expected feast ; and that a smaller
morsel might have been more completely inclosed.

Acting on the last suggestion, I offered to the
Chrysaora, a day or two after the above experiment,
a piece of cooked meat about half-an-inch square. Jt
was caught by the furbelows, and slowly passed up to
their base, where it was closely embraced for several
hours. I know not how long it remained there, but
the next morning I found that it had been received
during the night into one of the four cavities, into
which the peduncle is divided. It was visible through
the pellucid integuments from above, and without any
intervening substance from below, through the oval
aperture of the chamber, which was not closed upon
it. Here it remained two days and nights, being
dropped to the bottom in the course of the third eve-
ning. I examined the morsel ; it was white from the
long maceration, but was not decomposed, nor sur-
rounded by any mucus, as are the rejecta of the
Actiniae, &c. ; nor had it the least putrescent smell, a
circumstance which appears to me to prove that a
true digestive process had operated on it. For if the
morsel had lain in the water for that time, it would
undoubtedly have become offensive, whereas the gas-

EVERSION OF ITS UMBRELLA. 373

trie fluids are known to have an antiseptic power in
the Vertebrate animals.

After I had kept this Chrysaora for about a week
its manners underwent a change. It no longer swam
about freely in the water by means of its pumping
contractions, nor was its appearance that of a um-
brella. It began to turn itself inside out, and at
length assumed this form permanently, its shape
being that of a very elegant vase or cup, with the rim
turned over and the tentacles depending loosely from
it, the furbelows constituting a sort of foot. The
latter were new put to a new use : the animal began
habitually to rest near the bottom of the vessel, or
upon the broad fronds of Iridaa, which were growing
in the water and preserving its purity ; but occasion-
ally it would rise midway to the surface, and hang
by one or two of the furbelows. A fold or two of the
latter would come to the top of the water, and dilate
upon the surface into a broad flat expansion, exactly
like the foot of a swimming Mollusk ; from this the
Medusa would hang suspended in an inverted position.
All the other furbelows, and the parts of this one that
lay below the expansion, floated as usual through the
water, except that, on some occasions, an accessory
power was obtained by pressing a portion of another
furbelow to the side of the glass, and making it ad-
here, just like the part that was exposed to the surface
air. The texture of the furbelows when thus stretched
smooth was exquisitely delicate.

The eversion of the sub-umbrella was connected
with the maturing of the ovaries. I had observed
that in Turris the development of the ova was inva-
K 2

374 THE RED-LINED CHRYSAORA.

riably accompanied by their protrusion, and the
shrinking up of the umbrella ; and in the case of this
Chrysaora, I found the ovaries assuming a greater
size and opacity. They formed frill-like expansions
spread around the interior of the four stomachal cham-
bers, and now began to protrude from the oval
apertures in convoluted masses. A portion of one of
the protruding masses I cut off with fine scissors,
and submitted it to a magnifying power of 220
diameters.

The mass consisted of a plexus of gelatinous tubes,
very numerous, not a single one many times convolu-
ted, for the rounded and closed ends of many were
traceable, though I could not follow any one to its
other extremity, except where cut off by the scissors.
They moved and twisted about, gliding along like so
many worms, by means of the cilia with which their
surface was clothed. I could not indeed see the cilia
themselves, but the uniform currents that swept the
floating atoms along left no doubt on this point. The
diameter of the tubes was not equal, but varied from -^
to -^ inch ; and their walls were rather thick. In
the mass were scattered a great number of globose
ova, of granular texture, and yellowish-brown hue ;
the most mature of which were about -^ inch in dia-
meter, but others were much smaller, and pellucid in
the ratio of their immaturity. None appeared to have
a clear nucleus. Some of the ova were certainly
within the tubes, and though the greater part appeared
to lie free among the convoluted mass, and a few
were loose in the water, I am inclined to attribute
this entirely to the tubes having been cut across by

DEVELOPMENT OF THE OVA. 375

the scissors, causing the escape of the ova. Such as
were quite loose gave indication of heing ciUated, in
that they had a feehle spontaneous motion, a quiver-
ing oscillation.

A week afterwards (October 2nd) I again examined
the ovaries : the one that most protruded was more
opaque, of a creamy hue. With a lens I perceived
that the free ends of many of the tubes were project-
ing, and hanging down like a short fringe of threads,
with blunt tips. I again cut off and isolated a por-
tion in a watch-glass. The appearance was much
changed since I examined it last. The tubes, which
had the same vermicular motion as before, and were
similarly convoluted, were greatly swollen in irregular
parts, and contained many ova much more developed
than before. These were clear globules, yet evidently
granular, varying from ^ to ^ inch in diameter. I
soon found that they were escaping from the ovarian
tubes, (not however, from the free ends, which were
Blender and contained no ova) ; and after the severed
fragment had remained a night in the watch-glass a
great number, of varying sizes, were found on the
bottom, moving about.

Some of these I examined with a power of 300
diameters. Each was a soft globose body, not quite
regular, nor even fixed in form, of a clear brownish
hue, composed of a great number of irregular granules
aggregated together, which projected from the gene-
ral outline ; as if a handful of roundish pebbles from
the shore had been agglutinated by some invisible
cement into as good a ball as you could make of such
materials. The globule revolved in all directions on its

376 THE RED-LINED CHRYSAORA.

centre, and progressed slowly through the water, with a
quivering jerking motion, exactly like that of many of
the compound Monads. I could not detect the cilia
which produced this motion, but infer their existence.
On pressure being applied to flatten the globule, each
component granule was seen to be itself composed of
a multitude of minute granules. The pressure being
heightened the primary granules at length separated
from each other, leaving for an instant angular chan-
nels between them, which appeared to be occupied
with a very subtile gelatinous fluid ; and presently
these granules themselves yielded to the pressure,
and dissolved each into a vast number of pellucid
secondary granules of almost inappreciable minute-
ness.

On submitting to pressure portions of the tentacles,
I found the walls rather thick in proportion to the
tubular cavity, and moderately densely studded with
filiferous capsules of great minuteness. Their form
was perfectly oval, the smaller end being that from
which the thread projected. The largest were about
2"^ inch in length, the smallest about g^ inch, with
the thread occupying an oval cavity about two-thirds
of the entire volume. The projected thread from one
of the largest reached to about -^ inch, or more than
a hundred times the length of the capsule ; those of
many of the smallest on the other hand were not more
than -^ inch in length, or about eleven times that of
the capsule. I could not see the least appearance
of barbs, hairs, or imbrications on the threads
(fig. 4. represents a large capsule, magnified 300
diameters).

ITS DEATH. 377

The capsules of the furhelows do not differ in size
or appearance from those of the tentacles ; they are
however distributed in groups, consisting of from
thirty to sixty, large and small capsules together;
these groups form the minute white specks that are
seen dotting the whole surface of these organs. None
were seen in the ovaries.

Notwithstanding this armature, the species appears
to have no stinging power appreciable to our senses.
I passed the back of my fiuger, where the skin is very
sensible, over the surface of both tentacles and fur-
belows. They adhered, indeed, to my skin, but no
sensation of stinging was felt, nor any other unplea-
santness.

This Medusa lived about three weeks in a glass
vase, and died at the end of that time what I may
call a natural death ; that of exhaustion from the
discharge of ova. Eeproduction, as is well known, is
the great object of existence, in many of the inverte-
brate animals, and also its closing act. It may be
so with this Medusa.

In the mean time I found another specimen, closely
agreeing with the former in appearance, but slightly
smaller, — floating in one of the nooks of the harbour
of Ilfracombe.

The species is doubtless the Cyanea chrysaora of
Cuvier's Kegne Animal (Edit. 1836); of which a
figure, not very accurate, is given in plate xlvii. The
editors refer it to Chrysaora cyclonota of Peron and
Lesueur. It was first described by Borlase in the
Nat. Hist, of Cornwall ; and his description and
figure are quite recognisable.

378 THE WHITE PELAGIA.

THE WHITE PELAGIA.

Two days after the capture of the Chrysaora, I
obtained, in the bathing-pool near the same spot, a
species of Pelagia. The disk is about an inch wide.
The projecting lobes of the umbrella give it, when
expanding, a hexagonal form. There are eight eyes,
as in the preceding species ; but only the same num-
ber of tentacles, instead of twenty four ; these organs
are white. The peduncle divides into furbelows pro-
portionally lower down, and the furbelows themselves
are much more simple, and extend only to about two
inches in length. The ovaries are not purple, nor
are the tentacles or the disk tinged with rose-colour ;
the whole animal being colourless, except for the
whiteness which arises from the imperfect trans-
parency of the membranes. The umbrella, however,
is studded with minute and scarcely perceptible red-
dish warts.

Messrs. M' Andrew and Forbes have described and
figured (Annals N. H. 1847, p. 390) a species of
Pelagia (P. cyanellaj, which they met with on the
Cornish coast. It is possible that the animal above
described may have been a very young specimen of
the same species ; though the differences are great,
not only in size and colour, but also in form and pro-
portions. The umbrella in their P. cyanella forms
almost a perfect globe, but in my individual less than
a hemisphere, resembling in shape that of the Ghry-
saora (See Plate XXVII.) It would be rash, however,
to constitute a species on a single specimen ; and
hence I leave the matter for future investigation.

THE MANTIS SHRIMP. 379

THE MANTIS SHRIMP.

One can never take a living specimen of that beau-
tiful zoophyte 'Plumularia cristata, without finding
its numerous pinnated branches inhabited by curious
Crustacea of the genus Caprella. They are as much
at home in the tree-like zoophyte, as a family of
monkeys in their arboreal bowers, and indeed their
agility as they run from branch to branch, catching
hold of a twig just within reach and pulling themselves
in an instant up to it, then stretching out their long
arms in every direction, strongly remind me of the
Spider Monkeys of South America. One needs little
systematic knowledge to see that they are highly pre-
datory : a glance at their form and manners would
reveal that fact. Strange spectre-like creatures they
are I or rather skeleton-like ; with long slender bodies
composed of few joints, and wide -sprawling limbs set
at remote distances. And such limbs ! Two pairs of
stout antennsB bristled with stiff spines project from
the head, then the first and second pairs of legs, (but
especially the latter,) have the last joint but one de-
veloped to a great size, while the terminal joint is so
formed as to shut down upon it just as the blade of a
clasp-knife does upon the handle. Then to add to
the efficiency of this instrument of prehension, the
great joint which represents the haft is armed with
a double row of spines set at an angle so as to make
a groove, into which the blade falls, and this latter is
cut along each side of its edge into fine teeth like
those of a file. I find several species even on the same

380 THE MANTIS SHRIMP.

small fragment of weed, if it be tolerably well peopled
with Plumularm or Pedicellina, some much larger
than others, and beautifully mottled with transparent
ruby- colour on a clear horn, and distinguished by
variations in the relative size, in the shape, and in
the armature of these formidable weapons ; and there
is a species larger still, of a dull purplish-red hue-
But all have pretty much the same manners, except
that the smaller species are more agile.

These manners are excessively amusing. The
middle part of their long body is destitute of hmbs,
having instead of legs two pairs of oval clear vesicles,
biit the hinder extremity is furnished with three pairs
of legs armed with spines and a terminal-hooked
blade like that already described. With these
hindmost legs the animal takes a firm grasp of the
twigs of the polypidom, and rears up into the free
water its gaunt skeleton of a body, stretching wide its
scythe-like arms, with which it keeps up a see-saw
motion, swaying its whole body to and fro. Ever
and anon the blade is shut forcibly upon the grooved
haft, and woe be to the unfortunate Infusorium,
or Mite, or Eotifer, that comes within that grasp.
The whole action, the posture, the figure of the
animal, and the structure of the limb are so closely
like those of the tropical genus Mantis among in-
sects, which T have watched thus taking its prey in
the Southern United States and the West Indies, that
I have no doubt passing animals are caught by the
Crustacean also in this way, though I have not seen
any actually secured. The antennse, too, at least the
inferior pair, are certainly, I should think, accessory

ITS STRANGE MANNERS. 381

weapons of the animal's predatory warfare. They
consist of four or five stout joints, each of which is
armed on its inferior edge with two rows of long stiff
curved spines, set as regularly as the teeth of a comb,
the rows divaricating at a rather wide angle. From
the sudden clutchings of these organs, I have no
doubt that they too are seizing prey ; and very effect-
ive implements they must be, for the joints bend
down towards each other, and the long rows of spines
interlacing must form a secure prison, like a wire-cage,
out of which the jaws probably take the victim, when
the bending in of the antennae has delivered it to
the mouth.

But these well-furnished animals are not satisfied
with fishing merely at one station. As I have said
above, they climb nimbly and eagerly to and fro,
insinuating themselves among the branches, and
dragging themselves hither and thither by the twigs.
On a straight surface, as when marching (the motion
is too free and rapid to call it crawling) along the
stem of a zoophyte, the creature proceeds by loops,
catching hold with the fore limbs, and then bringing
up the hinder ones close, the intermediate segments
of the thin body forming an arch, exactly as the
caterpillars of geometric moths, such as those for
example that we see on gooseberry bushes, do. But
the action of the Crustacean is much more energetic
then that of the Caterpillar. Indeed all its motions
strike one as peculiarly full of vigour and energy.

I have seen the large red species swim, throwing
its body into a double curve like the letter S, with the
head bent down, and the hind limbs turned back, the

382 THE CADDIS SHRIMP.

body being in an upright position. It was a most
awkward attempt, and though there was much effort,
there was little effect.

THE CADDIS SHRIMP.

On sub-merged tufts of that seaweed that is sold in
a dry state under the name of Carrageen moss
(Chondrus crispusj, I have found in considerable
numbers a Crustacean resembling in many points the
Gaprella^ but belonging to another order of this great
Class. Without perhaps actually confining itself to
this particular species of weed, it seems to affect it
more than any other. Not, however,; that you would
find it on those ample tufts of Chondrus that grow in
shallow rock-pools exposed at half- tide, the fronds of
which glow at their tips with the most refulgent
reflections of steel-blue. It must be sought at ex-
treme low- water, about the sides of rocks that are laid
bare only at the spring tides of March and September,
and the alga itself will be masked under a crowd of
Laomedece, Sertularice, Anguinari(2, PedicellirKB, and
other parasitic zoophytes, and half covered with a
thick coat of dirty floccose matter, the ejecta, as I
suppose, of these creatures.

Among these, and assisting to conceal and meta-
morphose the plant, you may find a number of conical
tubes varying from ~- to -|-th of an inch in length
made of a somewhat tough papery or leathery sub-
stance of a dusky colour and of a rough surface.
They are stuck upon the fronds of the sea-weed in all
directions, without any order, some laid along, others

ITS WEAPONS. 38<

standing erect ; sometimes singly, sometimes asso-
ciated. From the open extremity project two pairs
of stout jointed antennae, both of which are armed on
their under edge with double rows of spreading spines,
like those of the interior antennae in Caprella. These
well-armed organs are affixed to a large oval head just
in front of two black eyes, and are thrown about
incessantly, forcibly clutching at the water, or rather
at whatever may be passing in the water, just as
described above in the kindred and companion species.
The head ordinarily just projects from the mouth of
the tube sufficiently to see what is going on without,
and what prospect there is of a successful throw, but
sometimes the creature protrudes his first two pairs of
feet. These, especially the second pair, have a great
oval joint at the end, (See Plate XXII, fig. 13) with
a sort of knife-blade shutting on it, all formed on
the same model as in Caprella, but the next two
pairs of limbs have the middle joint curiously de-
veloped into a large projection on the upper side (Fig.
14). Three more pairs of legs follow, long, hooked
at the end, and directed backwards, and the body,
which is arched downwards like that of a shrimp, has
three pairs of swimming bristles, and terminates in
two styles. But all these latter details can be seen
only by opening the tube with a couple of needles,
and extracting the lurking inhabitant; when you
may place him in the live-box of your microscope and
examine him at leisure (See fig. 12).

The animal in its tube much resembles the larvae
of the genus Phryi/anea, that anglers value under the
name of Caddis-worms. There, however, the case is

384 THE TINY OCEANIA.

composed of a mosaic of minute pebbles, bits of shell,
&c., imbedded in a glutinous silk with which the
interior is smoothly lined. In our little Crustacean,
I do not know of what it is made, or how, but it
seems to be homogeneous, and is certainly of home
manufacture, and not the tube of a zoophyte surrep-
titiously obtained, as has been supposed to be the
case with the Cerapus tuhularis of North America.
Perhaps, however, closer examination might refute
the charge of piracy brought against that species.

Our little animal is somewhat longer than its tube,
or from ji to -j inch in length. It belongs to the
genus Cerapus as restricted, but appears to differ
from either of the species hitherto recognised as
British : I therefore propose to call it C. Whitei, after
my esteemed friend Mr. Adam White of the British
Museum.

MEDUS.E.

A single specimen occurred in my dip-net the other
day of a very tiny Medusa, which I cannot certainly
identify, and which I hardly know how to apportion
to its proper generic place. It has some resemblance
to the lovely little Mo deer ia/ormosa, but the number
and arrangement of its tentacles seem to point out
the Ocea?iiad(B as its allies. I do not see the con-
spicuous museular bands which would indicate it as a
Turris, and I shall therefore call it an Oceania. I
describe it in the following terms. (See Plate XIII,

fig. 11).

Oceania pusilla. Umbrella mitrate, constricted

busk's thaumantias. 385

above tlie middle, with the summit rounded, ^ inch
in height. (Fig. 11). Margin with about 21 short
tentacles, springing from globose, yellowish bulbs,
each of which carries a red ocellus within. (Fig.
14). The tentacles are usually contracted, and bent
upwards. (Fig. 12).

Sub-umbrella nearly as large as the umbrella ; from
its centre depends an ample membranous peduncle^
somewhat vase-shaped, but seen vertically to be four-
lobed, each lobe pyriform in transverse section, the
small ends meeting around a minute square central
space. (Fig. 13). These lobes are marked with de-
licate veins, as if the structure were irregularly cellular,
and are tinged with yellow. The greater part of the
peduncle is occupied by the ovaries, four in number,
altogether somewhat pear-shaped, the larger end below,
and filling the peduncle ; they are of an opaque yellow,
and each contains a nucleus of dark red. The whole
descends into a flexible many-lob ed lip, the extremities
of which are puckered up, and slightly fimbriated.

This minute species was energetic in swimming, shoot-
ing several times its own length at each contraction.

I have found also on two or three occasions a small
Thaumantias, with the following characters. (See
Plate XXIL, Figs. 5 to 11.)

Umbrella when young, globose when older, hemis-
pheric, or shallow- c amp anulate, "like a Chinese hat,"
(Forbes) from -^th to -^th inch in diameter, trans-
parent, colourless. The margin fringed with about
thirty-two tentacles ; these are very slender, and exten-
sile, occasionally reaching to four or five times the
L 2

386 busk's thaumantias.

diameter of the body ; their tips adhere with force to
other substances, and moor the animal : their bulbs
contain a yellow undefined nucleus. A colourless
ocellus between each tentacle-bulb and the next.
(Fig. 7).

Sub- umbrella moderately high, with a narrow veil.
Ovaries small, oval, around the radiating vessels;
each with a yellowish nucleus ; one was lengthened
and constricted in the middle ; and one was wanting.
In others the ovaries contained globular ova with clear
centres in various degrees of development. (See figs.
9 and 10).

Stomach small, quadrangular, almost colourless,
with thickened edges not fimbriated. (Fig. 8.) Ka-
di ating and circular canals very slender.

The tentacles vary much in number, sometimes
eight in each quadrant, at others not more than five :
some of the bulbs are often small, without filaments,
and as if developing. Sometimes two ocelli are be-
tween one pair. An ocellus occasionally has two
spherules in it.

This little creature, which is very active in captivity,
has occurred about the shore in the neighbourhood of
Ilfracombe. I have little doubt that it is the species
which forms the subject of a valuable memoir by Mr.
Busk, in the Transactions of the Microscopical Society.
(Vol. iii., p. 22.) I would therefore propose to dedi-
cate it to that gentleman, under the appellation of
Thaumantias Buskiana.

The length to which the tentacles of the Medusae
can be extended is very great. I have seen those of
this little Thaumantias about an inch long, though

THE fairy's cap. 387

the bell was only one line broad; and yet the tentacle
was even then corrugated, and seemed capable of
almost indefinite prolongation. What is curious, too,
is that they were stretched perpendicularly upward,
and not pendent.

THE fairy's cap.

The elegance and beauty of the smaller Medusee
have been celebrated by poets and naturalists, and
have sometimes excited the latter to use the enthusi-
astic phraseology of the former. Here is a tiny
species, which I venture to think any one looking at
it, or even at the magnified figure of it in Plate XXVI,
will not hesitate to pronounce one of the gems of the
sea, though I will not presume to back it against that
lovely atom, of which Professor Forbes affirms that
"there is not a Medusa in all the ocean which can
match it for beauty."

I have met with only a single specimen of the
species, which was taken in a rock-pool near the
Spout-holes at the base of Capstone-hill, on the 29th
of August. The following characters distinguish it.

Saphenia Titania. Umbrella somewhat pear-
shaped or campanulate, the summit round, and
crowned with a largish cylindrical cap of colourless
membrane, sometimes falling into folds, but capable
of enlargement by inflation. (Fig. 8). It is connect-
ed with the sub -umbrella, which is parallel and
almost equal with the umbrella in all its dimensions.
From it depends a parallel-sided peduncle reaching
about two-thirds down the bell, composed of four

388 THE fairy's cap.

lobes, and terminating in four lips slightly expanded,
not fimbriated. The margin of the sub-umbrella
bears, at the points where two of the four radiating
vessels enter the circular canal, two tentacles with
very large and thick bulbs ; the filamentous portions
can be produced to twice or thrice the length of the
bell, but are more frequently coiled up or contracted,
or both. The other two radiating vessels have a
small oval bulb or swelling with a yellowish nucleus at
their termination; and between each of these and the
bulbs of the true tentacles, there are three smaller swell-
ings almost obsolescent, of which the middle one is a
little more developed than the others. (Fig. 9). A
rather wide veil borders the margin inwardly, which
is alternately sucked in and blown out at each vigo-
rous contraction of the umbrella. The lower half
of the umbrella is wrinkled transversely.

The whole animal is transparent and colourless,
except the peduncle, which is wholly of a delicate
lemon-yellow; and the tentacles, whose thick bases
are of a rich purplish crimson, gradually fading to a
carnation tint on the filaments. The whole animal
is very minute, being only ^g inch in height (Fig. 7) ;
but the richness of its hues makes it conspicu-
ous under a lens, especially in the sun's rays, and
when viewed with a dark background.

Its little fairy-cap, and its beauty, suggested the
name of the 'faery queen' for its specific appellation.-

Its motions are vigorous, shooting by long leaps
through the water by means of its contractions, at
each of which the floating particles are forced in a
jet out of the bell.

CHAPTER XVI.

The Maritime Bristle-tail — Its Nocturnal Habits — Discovery of
its Retreats — Its Companions — The Scarce Polynoe — Its
Armoury of Weapons — A rocky Bay — Romantic Incident-
Chivalrous Self-sacrifice — The Tunnels — Crewkhorne Cavern
—The Torr Cliffs— Precipitous Path— Torr Point— Solitude—
The Scarlet and Gold Madrepore — Scene of its Discovery —
Description of the Species — Its Microscopical Structure — The
Stony Skeleton— Thread -Capsules of Actinia — The Club-
bearing Medusa — Entanglement of Air — Structure of the
Tentacles— The Eyes.

THE MARITIME BRISTLE-TAIL.

Lingering one evening on the ledges of grey rock
below the promenade on Capstone Hill, I accidentally
learned some particulars in the economy of the
Machilis. It was at the north-west comer, where a
broad shelving slope affords standing room, and
where a rude seat presents accommodation for visitors,
who resort to the comparative seclusion of the spot,
to watch the glories of the setting sun, or the first
flash from the light-house on the summit of distant
Lundy.

Just about the time when all objects but those im-
mediately around were becoming indistinct in the
advancing darkness, I perceived some little moving
specks on the white rock, and stooping down to get a
better view, I saw that they were insects, which were
running nimbly about in great numbers, and which

390 THE MARITIME BRISTLE -TAIL,

leaped away whenever I attempted to lay hands on
them. With some difficulty I succeeded in taking
two or three, hy slapping my hand suddenly down
upon them, and crushing them. Having brought
home my captures in that improvised collecting-box,
that every entomologist finds need now and then to
resort to, — a scrap of paper screwed up at both ends,
— I found that they were the same little active crea-
tures that I had met with before, Machilis maritima.

I visited the spot the next day, but could not dis-
cover a single individual : at the approach of night,
however, they came out as before by hundreds. I
suspected therefore that night was the proper season
of activity for these insects ; and that during the day
they would probably be found secreted in the nume-
rous fissures, with which this slaty rock abounds.

Accordingly I took an early opportunity of examin-
ing the place, furnished with a hammer and chisel.
It was as I anticipated. On my detaching a loose
fragment of the slate, I disturbed about a score of the
insects, varying in size, — the old parents shining in
all the lustrous radiance of their scaly coats, and their
hopeful family of all ages clustering round them in
duller raiment. A large heap of ejecta showed that
the fissure had been their regular and constant dwel-
ling. Not that the place however was confined to
them ; for several of the amphibious marine Woodhce
(Lygia oceanica) were hiding there, and there were
also some half-dozen of the tailed and horned pu-
pa-cases of a two-winged fly, in one of which I
found the perfect insect nearly ready for expulsion,
but dead and dry. They were of the species named

THE SCARCE POLYNOE. 391

Eristalis tenax, that bee-like fly, that is so very
common in every garden in the latter part of the
summer, hovering motionless over the flowers for
several seconds, and then shooting suddenly away to
hover again in like manner. Its association here with
the Machilis and the Oniscus was a rather curious
circumstance.

POLYNOE IMPAR.

Sept. ^Ith. — In turning over stones at low water
on the outside of the harbour, I found an Annelide,
which appears to be the rare species described by Dr.
Johnston (Ann. N. H., Feb. 1839) by the name of
Polynoe impar. It is not more than half-an-inch in
length, and to the naked eye presents nothing con-
spicuous or worthy of special notice, but submitted
to microscopical examination it proves highly curious.
The kidney-shaped shields with which the back is
covered, and which are detached with slight violence
(though not quite so readily as those of P. cirrata),
are studded over with little transparent oval bodies,
set on short footstalks ; the intermediate antennee, the
tentacles, and the cirri of the feet are similarly fringed
with these little appendages, which resemble the glands
of certain plants, and have a most singular appear-
ance. If we remove the shields, we discover on each
side of the body a row of wart-like feet, from each of
which projects two bundles of spines of exquisite
structure. The bundles expanding on all sides re-
semble so many sheaves of wheat, or you may more
appropriately fancy you behold the armoury of some
belligerent sea-fairy, with stacks of arms enough to

'392 A worm's armoury.

accoutre a numerous host. But if you look closely at
the weapons themselves, they rather resemble those
which we are accustomed to wonder at in Missionary
museums, the arms of some ingenious but barbarous
people from the South Sea islands, than such as are
used in civilized warfare. Here are long lances made
like scythe-blades set on a staff, with a hook at the
tip to capture the fleeing foe and bring him within
reach of the blade. Among them are others of similar
shape, but with the edge cut into delicate slanting
notches, which run along the sides of the blade, like
those on the edge of our reaping-hooks. These are
chiefly the weapons of the lower bundle ; those of the
upper are still more imposing. The outmost are short
curved clubs, armed with a row of shark's teeth to
make them more fatal; these surround a cluster of
spears, the long heads of which are furnished with a
double row of the same appendages, and lengthened
scymetars, the curved edges of which are cut into
teeth like a saw. Though you may think I have
drawn copiously on my fancy for this description, I
am sure if you had under your eye what is on the
stage of my microscope at this moment, you would
acknowledge that the resemblances are not at all
forced or unnatural.* To add to the effect, imagine

* It was not until after I had penned the above sentence that I met
with the following remark in Andouin et Milne Edwards' " Littoral
de la France" (ii, 40). Speaking of the bristles of the Annelides
generally, these learned zoologists say, — *: Leur usage nous a 6te d'au-
tant plus facile a comprendre que nous avons retrouv6 dans ces petites
armures les modeles exacts des diverses formes que I'homme a su
donner, avee calcul, a ses armes de guerre, pour les rendre plus re-
doubtables et pour assurer leur coups ; il n'en possede certainement
pas de mieux adapt^es a ce but que ceiles dont sent pourvues certaines
Ann61ides."

A EOCKY BAY. 393

that all these weapons are forged out of the clearest
glass instead of steel; that the larger bundles may
contain about fifty, and the smaller half as many,
each, that there are four bundles on every segment,
and that the body is composed of twenty-five such
segments; and you will have a tolerable idea of the
garniture and armature of this little worm, that grubs
about in the mud at low-water mark.

The spot where I found this Annelide is invested
with a melancholy interest, from its having been the
scene of a romantic incident that proved fatal to one
of the actors in it. Let me bring before your mind
the locality.

If at low water you descend the steep flight of steps
from the north-east corner of Capstone Promenade,
you will find yourself in a wilderness of rocky boulders,
through which, partly by climbing over their slippery
masses, partly by winding round and between them,
you may pick your way eastward. After a little while
you come to a part where the precipitous coast recedes,
with a wide but shallow curve, to some distance from
the water's edge. The whole area bristles with pointed
rocks, except a narrow inlet or cove of coarse sand
that runs up obliquely from the north-west to the foot
of a wall of stone, which has been built up to the
height of thirty feet, where the cliff's failed. This is
the yard-wall of several of the houses that stand on the
quay and face the harbour; and from a door at its
summit, a triple zigzag flight of rude steps, the lower
range of which is cut out of the living rock, leads to
the beach. An iron rail at the top, almost eaten
through with rust, tells that the beating of the sea is

394 ROMANTIC INCIDENT.

no stranger even at this height; and if you were to
take your stand on these steps when the tide is in,
you would look out on a wide hay of clear water, the
margin of which would he washing your feet. On
your left hand a projecting bluff mass of rock, jutting
out from the harhour-head, forms the western boundary,
or, if you please, you may consider the more imposing
Capstone itself as the boundary, and this only as a
projection into the curve of the bay, which then you
must draw with a wider outline. Away to your right,
you see the verdant summit of Lantern Hill, crowned
with an ancient building that was once a Popish mass-
house, helping to diffuse spiritual darkness, but now
makes some amends by exhibiting a nightly light to
guide mariners to the harbour-mouth. In the rugged
side of the cliff you see a cavern, in which, during a
brief shelter from a passing shower, I made these
notes of the locality.

Four or five years ago the large house from which
these steps descend was temporarily occupied by two
ladies of rank, one of whom, among other accomplish-
ments not very common to her sex, was distinguished
as an expert and fearless swimmer. She w^as accus-
tomed to plunge from these private steps when the
water was high, and swim out to sea, over yonder belt
of horrid rocks, in all weathers. On the occasion I
speak of, a morning in autumn, she had boldly, nay
rashly, sought her favourite amusement, though a gale
of wind was blowing, and the foaming sea was break-
ing in furious violence almost to the very top of the
wall.

The fishermen and idlers on the quay were just

CHIVALROUS SELF-SACRIFICE. 395

going to their breakfasts, when the sister of the swim-
mer rushed out of the house with a scream of distress.
*'A lady is drowning behind! who will save her?"
was her eager demand, as she passed one young man
after another. None replied, for the weather was
tremendous; till a poor shoemaker offered himself.
"Ill save her, if I can," said he ; and he followed her
swiftly through the house and yard to the head of
the steps.

There indeed was the lady still bravely breasting
the rolling waves ; she had taken her outward range,
and was returning, but the rebound of the sea from
the cliffs was so powerful that she could not come in
to the steps ; her strength too was failing fast, and
it failed all the faster because she was thoroughly
frightened.

The young cordwainer, throwing off his coat and
shoes, and taking a rope in his hand, leaped at once
into the waves, and being himself a skilful swimmer,
he quickly reached the drowning lady. He managed
to pass the noose of the cord round her, by means of
which she was presently drawn up by other men who
had congregated on the steps. "Take care of the
poor man !" was her first exclamation, even before
her own feet had touched the firm ground. But "the
poor man" was past their care ; he had saved her life
chivalrously, but it was with the sacrifice of his
own.

As soon as he had secured the lady's hold of the
rope, he sought the shore for himself, but scarcely
had he swam half a dozen strokes, when the specta-
tors on shore beheld his arms suddenly cease their

396 THE TUNNEL ROCKS.

vigorous play and hang down ; his legs too sank into
the same pendent posture, and his head dropped upon
his breast with the face submerged. Thus he con-
tinued to float for a short time, but moved no more.
He had been subject to occasional swooning fits, from
a severe blow which he had received on the head some
time before; and his brother, from whose mouth I
received these details, conjectured that one of his at-
tacks had suddenly come upon him, his pre-disposi-
tion being perhaps aggravated by his having gone out
without having broken his fast.

The tide soon carried the body away out of sight ;
efforts were made as soon as practicable to recover it
by dragging ; and it was once hooked and brought to
the surface, but before it could be hauled into the
boat it sank again, and it was not till more than a
fortnight after that it was found at Comb-Martin,
some five miles to the eastward.

Nothing could exceed the distress of the lady at
the death of her courageous deliverer ; for awhile she
appeared inconsolable, and the efi"ect of the whole
transaction is said to have been a permanent melan-
choly. Her gratitude was shown in providing for the
widow and children of her benefactor, who continue
to this day her pensioners.

THE TUNNEL ROCKS.

On a coast where the subhme and the awful almost
everywhere are characteristic, where the scenery gene-
rally is such as the savage genius of Salvator Kosa
would have revelled in, — there are some parts where

CREWKHORNE CAVERN. 397

these characters are more than ordinarily prominent.
The beach stretching away from the Tunnels on either
hand, but especially that to the westward, is a scene
which every lover of the picturesque cannot but ad-
mire. The Tunnels tliemselves, pierced through the
solid rock, at an enormous expense of labour and
money, to give access to the beach, are an object of
curiosity, and the visitor, as he traverses these long
sepulchral corridors, finds in their chilliness and dark-
ness a not inappropriate prelude to the wild solitude
of the shore below.

In one place the excavation of the tunnel has
broken into the roof of Crewkhorne cavern, and the
visitor, as he walks across a bridge of logs, passes
over a gloomy den, which tradition affirms, perhaps
without much foundation, to have afibrded a tempo-
rary shelter to De Tracy, when first he sought a refuge
after the assassination of Becket, Overwhelming in-
deed must be the terror which would impel a man to
hide himself in such a place as this ; for though it is
a lofty cave, with an ample mouth, the interior is
frightfully desolate ; the sea closes the entrance at
every tide, and at springs must wash up almost, if not
quite, to the very extremity.

The Ladies' Bathing Pool, a lake partly natural
partly artificial, and the beaches and coves where
gentlemen enjoy the same luxury, are just before and
around this cavern, and these spots are during the
summer generally frequented by visitors. But I prefer
to wander on towards the westward, beneath the pre-
cipitous Torrs, clambering over the huge angular
spurs that jut out here and there from tlie base of the
M 2

398 A PRECIPITOUS PATH.

cliff, to enjoy the solitude and the magnificence. Far
overhead, around the summits of the peaks, the husy
and clamorous daws are flying, and the wailing cry of
a gull issues now and then from some of the fissures
with which the cliffs are rent. Perhaps the tide is in,
and the wavelets are rippKng on the shingle, or the
green arching billows are dashing up with thundering
roar. Perhaps the tide is out, and from the beach
extends a broad area before the water's edge is reached,
a wilderness of boulders and masses of rock of all
forms and dimensions. As we proceed, the shore be-
comes more and more rugged, the strewn masses be-
come larger, and are piled on one another in yet
wilder confusion, until at length further progress is
stopped by a lofty promontory that projects into the
sea so far that no spring-tide leaves its base uncovered.
Yet, if the visitor have nerve for the enterprise, he
may ascend to the top of this ridge ; for there is a
flight of steps, very narrow, shallow, and shppery,
cut in zigzag lines up the face of the precipice, now
passing over a slender archway of rock, but just wide
enough for the foot, then climbing the edge of a sort
of steep sloping ridge or wall by long steps, with no-
thing on either side but the thin air, and the points
of rock far below. I have ascended and descended
two or three times, but never without a shuddering
coldness as I came to these parts, and an emotion of
thankfulness when they were passed. Yet the pros-
pect from the summit, the access into still more se-
cluded coves and bays beyond, and the exhilaration
always felt at a considerable elevation, make the ascent
worth the risk. Besides that, there is in most persons

SOLITUDE. 399

a sort of appetite for hazard, the excitement itselt^
the pleasure of daring and of surmounting danger,
being a sufficient remuneration.

The promontory is Torr Point, that long narrow
slope of green turf which I have already described, in
a walk by which it is attained from above. The
projection and the elevation combine to afford the
beholder a wide-spread range of prospect from its
height, a prospect of sublime features.

This district of the coast, including not the Point
only, but the bays and margining rocks on either hand,
was one to which I chiefly delighted to resort; the
rather because in its rugged recesses, the particular
objects of my scientific inquiries were found in rather
than ordinary profusion and variety.

To sit on rocks, to muse o'er flood and fell.

To slowly trace the forest's shady scene.
Where things that own not man's dominion dwell,

And mortal foot hath ne'er or rarely been ;

To climb the trackless mountain all unseen.
With the wild flock that never needs a fold ;

Alone o'er steeps and foaming falls to lean ; —
This is not solitude ; 'tis but to hold
Converse with Nature's charms, and view her stores unrolled.

Childe Harold ii. 25.

THE SCARLET AND GOLD MADREPORE.

Sept. IQth. — A very distinct species of Madrepore,
and one of great beauty, I discovered to-day. It was
spring-tide, and the water receded lower than I have
seen it since I have been here. I w^as searching
among the extremely rugged rocks that run out from

400 THE SCARLET AND

the Tunnels, forming walls and pinnacles of danger-
ous abruptness, with deep, almost inaccessible cavities
between. Into one of these, at the very verge of the
water, I had managed to scramble down ; and found
round a comer a sort of oblong basin about ten feet
long, in which the water remained, a tide-pool of three
feet depth in the middle. The whole concavity of
the interior was so smooth that I could find no resting
place for my foot in order to examine it ; though the
sides all covered with the pink lichen-like Coralline,
and bristhng with Laminarise and zoophytes, looked
so tempting that I walked round and round, reluctant
to leave it. At length I fairly stripped, though it
was blowing very cold, and jumped in. I had exam-
ined a good many things, of which the only novelty
was the pretty narrow fronds of Flustra chartacea in
some abundance, and was just about to come out,
when my eye rested on what I at once saw to be a
Madrepore, but of an unusual colour, a most refulgent
orange. It was soon detached by means of the ham-
mer, as were several more, which were associated with
it. Not suspecting, however, that it was any thing
more than a variation in colour of a very variable
species, I left a good many remaining, for which I
was afterwards sorry. All were affixed to the perpen-
dicular side of the pool, above the permanent water-
mark ; and there were some of the common Caryo-
phyllia associated with them.

The new species may be at once recognised by its
brilliant colours. The whole of the body and disk,
exclusive of the tentacles, is of a rich orange, yellower
in young specimens, almost approaching to vivid

Fhu -XXW

TV Cmz.- dtl •^Ti0>.

v?e.'^r^c-..•««"*='A,T

1-6, BALA-NOPHYLIA KEGIA
7-9 SAPHEINIA TITANIA

GOLD MADREPORE. 403

If any additional evidence were wanting to show
that this species approaches much nearer the Actiniae
than C. Smithii does, it would be found in the stony
skeleton. This is very different in appearance from
that of the kindred species, and is manifestly rudi-
mentary. When the soft parts have been carefully
removed by several days' maceration in fresh water,
and the gelatinous matter all cleared away from the
stony plates by a slender stream of water allowed to run
upon it from a height, a vertical view shows the following
arrangement : — First, at the very margin there is a
narrow circle of white calcareous plates, small and
very irregularly anastomosing, so as to resemble in
miniature the honey- combed limestone rock that we
find around Torquay and elsewhere. In the centre of
the cavity, there is another loose spongy mass of
similar irregular plates. Eighteen perpendicular radi-
ating plates extend between the marginal circle and
the central mass, arranged in six threes, so as to make
a six-rayed star. The order of each trine series is as
follows : the middle one is the thickest and shortest,
reaching scarcely more than half-way from the cir-
cumference to the centre. On each side of this there
is a longer thinner plate, neither parallel nor converg-
ing towards the centre, but diverging at a small angle,
so that each of these lateral plates meets the lateral
plate of the next trine series, at a point consider-
ably short of the centre, whence a plate sometimes
goes to the central mass. The arrangement will be
better understood by a reference to Plate XXVI, fig.
6, whit3h represents a quadrant of the circle, much
magnified.

404 THE SCARLET MADREPORE.

The plates are all very rough, with irregular pro-
jections and erosions. They do not rise in an arched
outline above the level of the margin, but the whole
surface is concave. I have described and delineated
what appears to be the normal arrangement, though
this in fact is adhered to in different degrees of pre-
cision.

The form of the calcareous skeleton identifies this
interesting addition to the British Corals with the
genus BalanojjhylUa of Mr. Searles Wood ; a fossil
species of which has been found in the Crag. The
royal colours in which the present species is arranged
— scarlet and gold — suggest the specific name of reyia.
The distinctive characters of the skeleton may be thus
summed up.

Balanopliyllia regia. — Corallum cylindrical or sub-
conic, fixed by a rather broad base. Four cycles of
septa. Cup circular, much depressed. Plates not
rising above the border ; much crenulated, and rough-
ened with grains. Margin thin, distinct. Columella
strongly developed, spongy. Epitheca investing, to
the edge of the cup ; beneath which extend low ridges,
close- set, rough, and geniculate.

I afterwards found the same species in considerable
number, especially during the very low springs of the
October new moon, among the rocks off the Tunnels,
all in the vicinity of the spot where I found the first.
They were always in the same circumstances, crowded
into colonies ; one little cavity, just large enough to
turn in, containing perhaps a hundred, speckling the
walls with their little scarlet disks, near extreme low
water. Not one that I took presented the least varia-

THE THICK-HORNED ANEMONE. 405

tion from the characters I had jotted down already;
hut one specimen had adhering to its hase two very
young ones, one about a line in diameter, the other
not more than one-third of a line. Examination wdth
a lens revealed no difference either in form or colour
between these and the adult; the condition of their
skeleton is unknown, as I did not choose to destroy
the infant specimens.

Plate XXVI, fig. 1 represents the Scarlet and Gold
Madrepore expanded ; magnified.

Fig. 2. The same of the natural size, contracted-

3. A tentacle, greatly magnified.

4. A tentacle of Caryophyllia Smithiiy for

comparison.
6. Filiferous capsules.

THREAD -CAPSULES OF ACTINIA.

I have been dissecting a fine specimen of Actinia
crassicornis. The interspaces of the abdominal septa
I found filled with the ovigerous tubes, so-called.
When examined closely these are seen to consist of a
narrow ribbon, about half a line in width, convoluted
and puckered in a very irregular manner, but having
a tendency to form spiral turns, of a whorl, or a whorl
and a half, each ; the ribbon itself being nearly flat,
and one of its edges being the axis of the spire. The
ribbon consists of two parts ; a yellowish-brown mass
occupies the portion next the axis, for about three -
fourths of the breadth; the remaining fourth is an
exterior border of pellucid substance, I placed some
of the whorls under the microscope, and observed the

406 THREAD -CAPSULES.

external edge beset with a fringe of delicate vibratile
cilia, by whose constant action not only were the
floating atoms in the water hurled in a rapid and
regular current along the edge, but the spires of
ribbon themselves were made to swim through the
water, principally with a slow gyratory motion, suffi-
ciently perceptible even to the naked eye.

On subjecting some of the whorls to the compresso-
Hum, an immense number of yellowish granules were
discharged from the brown part, while the pellucid
border displayed the filiferous capsules in considerable
number, pointing towards its outer edge. They are
club-shaped, or almost fusiform, with one end the
larger, varying from -^ to -^th inch in length; the
contained thread occupies a slender linear cavity>
extending about two -thirds through the length, and is
thence continued as a line of almost invisible tenuity.
(See Plate XXVIII., fig. 17.) When the thread is
forced out by pressure, it sometimes extends to 7^ or
even -^ of an inch. The basal portion of the thread,
for a length about equal to that of the capsule, is zig-
zagged, and each angle of the zigzag is furnished
with a short bristle, projecting in the direction of the
joint from which it springs. There are about four or
six angles, the first being removed a little from the
tip of the capsule. (See fig. 19).

The capsules of the tentacles are much smaller,
being from -^^ to y^th inch in length, and more pro-
perly linear than any I have yet seen. (Fig. 18). I
could not force the ejection of the thread.

In the ribbed coriaceous skin that surrounds the
mouth, the capsules are the most developed of all,

THE CLUB-BEARING MEDUSA. 407

both in size and numbers. They are pretty uniformly
about ^ inch in length, with the linear cavity reach-
ing more than fths of the total length. (Fig. 20.)
Multitudes are scattered loosely in the mucus that is
copiously discharged from the surface, and many
appear to be irregularly distributed in the coriaceous
tissues ; but others are crowded into groups, whence
the threads are projected in dense brushes, to the length
of about a line, or thirty- three times that of the
capsule. I observed in most of the evolutions, of
which I witnessed a great many, that the filament was
not projected with the rapid suddenness observed in
many cases, but with comparative slowness, and by
degrees; the tip being gradually lengthened, most
commonly in a long spiral. In every instance that I
could note the fact, the bearded part at the bottom
was first projected, and was perfected before the
length of the thread proceeded beyond that extent — a
convincing proof that the process is one of evolution,
and not of simple propulsion.

THE CLUB-BEARING MEDUSA.

Thaumantias ? Corynetes. (Plate XXT.) — Um-
brella about Jth inch in height ; bell-shaped ; trans-
parent; colourless. (Fig. 1, magnified; 2, nat. size).

Sub-umbrella, rather more than two-thirds as high
as the umbrella, campanulate or sub-conical ; margined
with a narrow scolloped veil. Ovaries elliptical,
about the outer half of the four radiating vessels, ir-
regularly ventricose, reaching to the marginal canal.
Their substance, in one that I examined, was com-

408 THE CLUB-BEARING MEDUSA.

posed of delicate polygonal cells (fig. 7), witliout any-
developed ova.

Tentacles twenty-four, arranged in eight bundles of
three each, at the points of junction of the four radi-
ating vessels, and midway between them. One in
each group is minute and rudimentary (fig. 4) ; the
others are peculiar in form ; they arise from conical
bulbs set in twins close together, with a nucleus of
dark red pigment in each ; they are at first slender,
but swell towards their termination into a thick ovate
or fusiform club, surrounded by from sixteen to forty
thickened rings, which are close or remote according
to the degree of contraction of the tentacle. They
are generally carried divergent, with a sigmoid
curve.

The marginal canal carries about the same number
of (visual or) auditory capsules as of tentacles ; they
are perfectly globular, hyaline, each with a single
spherule. They are arranged three between two
groups of tentacles, but not quite symmetrically.
(Figs. 3 to 5 represent a group of tentacles, with their
ocellated bulbs, and capsules.)

Peduncle small, ovate, with a neck, and slightly en-
larged extremity ; the outline seen vertically is qua-
drangular : it terminates in a thickened lip, pucker-
ed and obscurely four-fold. The whole is pellucid
flesh-coloured, viewed by transmitted light; but in
the sun's rays the basal part is of a lively yellow-green
and the lips bright rose-pink. (Fig. 6.) It does not
seem very mobile or extensile.

I have called this curious species Corynetes, from
the resemblance of its tentacles to loaded clubs or

'rS'Soasc, i^l.ti, U/A

, .y iy fhMmv,>tJ,«J. & Mafto

TltALTMAl^TT JAS G ORYKE T E S

STRUCTURE OF THE EYES. 411

fifty or more in each ring, the interspaces being free
from them. (Fig. 8.) The capsules are not regularly-
arranged. They are minute egg-shaped bodies, with
a cavity of similar form towards the larger end, which
I presume to contain the projectile thread. (Fig. 9.)
But owing to the minuteness of the capsules, their
longer diameter not exceeding ^^th of an inch, the
plates of the compressorium would not act upon them
so as to effect the propulsion of the filament in a
single instance that I could detect, even with many
trials.

The secondary or small tentacles have not in general
the capsules disposed in regular rings, but only a few
scattered throughout, with the exception of their tips
which are composed of a globose dense assemblage of
these organs. A few are scattered through the sub-
stance of the peduncular stomach.

The visual organs (fig. 5) are from -^to -^thinch
in diameter. They appear to be composed of gelatin-
ous matter, with a central oval cavity about -^th
inch in diameter, in which at one end is a globular,
highly refractile, crystalline lens, about j^th inch in
diameter. On graduated pressure being applied, the
vesicle is seen first to flatten, then the cavity ; but
when the plates of the compressorium act on the lens,
it breaks into pieces like a crystal, and usually with
a fracture that radiates from its centre. The frag-
ments do not differ in appearance from the entire
spherule.

CHAPTEK XVII.

Various Effects of Light on Scenery — Ode to Light— The Sabella
— Its Tube — Its Crown of Plumes — Fatal Attack — Discovery
of more Specimens — Laborious Mode of Procuring them —
The Young— Reproduction of the Crown — The Corynactis —
A low Spring-tide — The Tunnel Rocks — Discovery of the
Species — Its Porm, Structure, and Colours — Manner of taking
Pood — ^Thread- Capsules — Their elaborate Structure — Propul-
sion of the Thread — Identification of the Species — The Pur-
ple-spotted Anemone — Its Locality and Manners — Its Form
and Colours — Thread- Capsules — Nature of these Organs —
Systematic List of Zoophytes — Conclusion.

LIGHT.

How much of the charm of scenery depends upon
an element, which, if we have never accustomed
ourselves to analyse our sensations and the causes of
them, we may be apt to overlook, or at least not
consciously recognise ! I mean the diversity that is
produced by the different degrees and combinations
of light and shadow. How different the same scene
looks at different times of the day, and in different
states of the weather ! The edge of a grove in full
foliage, when looked at on a cloudy day, is not at all
the same thing as when the sun-light falls slantingly
on it, bringing out masses of rich bright green, and
throwing intervals into black shade. There is the

EFFECTS OF LIGHT. 418

broad side of Capstone Hil] visible from my window ;
all through the day, indeed, it is a fine object, though
only a mass of brown rock with a grassy top ; but
sometimes, just as the sun is setting, his red rays
falHng full upon the precipitous side, illuminate it
brilliantly, and communicate to its ample surface a
rich rosy hue most beautiful to behold ; but as trans-
ient as charming; for we have scarcely uttered an
involuntary ejaculation of surprise, before the old
dusky appearance is put on again. ^

The sea, again ; — how many of its changing aspects
depend on the lights that fall on it ! On a bright
sunny day, its sparkling, glittering, ripples break up
the soft blue surface with tiny rays, like a plain of
sapphire inlaid with diamonds. Fleecy clouds appear
in the sky, and communicate a new feature to the sea
below ; for their dark shadows flit along and chase
each other over the surface, in patches of grey or
green of various shapes and sizes.

Look upon it in a calm summer's evening. How
gloriously it reflects, as from a mirror, the flood of
soft lustre in the western sky, and the sun itself
sinking down that glowing path, like a shield of
burnished gold ! Watch till the fiery King has sunk
to rest, and the burning glow begins to soften and to
fade. How vividly do we see repeated below —

The canopy of eve
That overhung the scene with gorgeous clouds,
Decaying into gloom more beautiful
Than the sun's golden liveries vrhich they lost.

MONTOOMERT.

Take it in another condition. The sky is overcast

414 EFFECTS OF LIGHT.

with clouds, with breaks here and there in the grey
smoky canopy. Out seaward the horizon is of a dark
purplish-blue tint, then indigo, blending into a blue-
green, and this into a dull leaden hue. But there is
a wide patch just beneath the place of the sun, where
the rays fall through an opening in the clouds on the
sea, in form like an inverted fan ; the water just there
is a flood of light, in which the ripples sparkle and
quiver as if thousands of silvery fishes were every
moment leaping up. All round, the surface presents
only the dull lead-colour, rendered more obscure by
the contrast of this spot of lustre. Ships and smaller
craft are scattered about the distance; one and another
is suddenly illuminated by one of the streams of light
falling on the spot where each happens to be; her
sails, which before were scarcely distinguishable from
the grey sea, in a moment become beautifully white and
conspicuous. Just as a Christian, on whom the light
of God's countenance rests, is bright and happy, while
his fellows walking in comparative darkness, remain
dull and covered with clouds.

These and other examples of the potent influence
of light have often recalled to my mind a poem which
was given me many years ago in Newfoundland. It
was from the pen of a young clergyman, a native of
the island, the Eev, Joseph Clinch. I possess it in
manuscript; whether it has ever been published I
know not, but in my judgment the beauty of the
thoughts and the elegance of the versification are
worthy of perpetuity. If the gifted author still
survives, he will, I trust, pardon me for enriching my
pages with some of the stanzas.

LIGHT.

415

ODE TO LIGHT.

Jot of the Universe sublime !

Thy beams have lit the waves of time,

E'er since the Almighty's hand
With worlds unnumber'd spangled space.
And urged them on their rapid race,

A bright and glorious band.
Yet 'twas not with the sploudid sun,
That thy bright being was begun ;

For ever hath thy ray
Of glory canopied the Throne
Of the Eternal Three in One

In one unceasing day.

'Twas not when Night in fear beheld
A brilliant universe impell'd

Through all her wide domain,
And fled in panic from her post,
Before that grand and glittering host.

That wide and mighty train ;
It was not then thy being bright
First flash'd to view, O favouring Light !

Not then commenc'd thy race ;
For God is light, and Heaven would be
No Heaven, fair beam, depriv'd of thee.

No envied resting place.

When Night's dark curtains were unfurl'd.
And robe-like wrapp'd the new-born world.

And, on the wrathful deep.
Slept in a dark and grim repose,
Until that mighty voice arose

Which bade thee burst their sleep ; —
How grand, how glorious, was the sight,
When thou awok'st, triumphant Light,

Upon that curtain'd sea, —
Pour'd forth the ocean of thy rays.
And wrapp'd all Nature in the blaze

Of thy divinity !

And now, although the stream of years
So long hath roll'd, thy beam appears
As fair, as pure, as bright,

416 LIGHT.

As when the joyous Ocean gave,

To meet thy smile, his first-bom wave

With foaming mantle white :
Yes ! now thou art as fair to view —
When o'er the morning billows blue

By zephyr gently toss'd.
Or o'er the mountain's misty side
Thou pour'st the splendour of thy tide —

Fair Light ! as then thou wast.

Most glorious Light ! how glad thy ray
To him who treads a trackless way

Through forests wild and high :
When Night displays no planet's gleam
To cheer him with its dubious beam,

And bless his anxious eye !
Or when, upon the midnight wave,
(His vessel's and his comrades' grave,)

The sailor braves the sea,
And, grasping some precarious hold.
Prays, with his wild eye heavenward roU'd,

For safety and for thee.

And glorious art thou, when thy rays
Play on the prisoner's startled gaze.

Dejected, sunk, and wan ;
When, from the dungeon and the chain.
Freedom to thee and life again

Restores the wretched man ;
Or when upon the couch of woe
Sickness, with many a bitter throe

And dim and wakeful eye.
Counts the long night, and raptur'd sees
Thy first ray touch the dewy trees,

And gild the casement high.

THE SABELLA.

Oct. I2th. — Peeping into a little crevice of an over-
hanging ridge at Hele, within the fissure that leads

^■bp to the

THE SABELLA. 417

ip to the curious Perforated Rock, I saw a tube pro-
jecting, just beneath the surface of the water, about
Ij inch long. I could just get my arm into the
crevice, and feel the tube with my fingers ; it resembled
both in consistency and appearance half-boiled maca-
roni. I thought it was a sponge, and tried to pull it
off; unfortunately I could get only one hand in, and
so could not work with the hammer and chisel. But
by loosening some of the laminae of the shale with my
fingers, I managed to expose the tube for several
inches lower down, and at length detached it by pull-
ing. The lower part was membranous, of a clear
reddish-brown colour, and angular. Again looking
into the obscurity of the hole, for I could only look
and work by turns, I saw in the now turbid water
what seemed a noble white Actinia, with expanded
tentacles. I now felt again with my fingers, and
presently pulled away a couple of inches more of the
membranous part of the tube ; still it did not occur
to me to connect it with the actinia-looking creature,
which I could still dimly see in the muddy water.

By feeling carefully 1 got hold of the animal, and
having worked my fingers down as close to its point
of attachment as possible, I pulled it away, and put
my prize into the glass-jar of clear water. 0 what a
magnificent creature ! I thought, as I gazed delighted
upon it, that it excelled in beauty any of the marine
animals I had yet found. It proved to be a Sahella,
and, as T believe, the 8. vesiculosa of Montagu.

It was a large stout worm, beset along each side
with little bundles of satiny bristles, closely packed in
pencils, of a golden colour. There was no proper

418 THE SABELLA.

head, but the anterior extremity was furnished with
two ample fans of many plumes, each fan having
one side curled spirally inward, and the pair forming
an exquisite funnel-shaped appendage, inclosing two
beautiful volutes of the same. The expansion of this
elegant organ was fully an inch and a half, and the
length of the plumes but little less. The latter were
bearded with short vanes of extreme tenuity, and
reminded me of those feathers of the bird of Paradise,
that are worn in ladies' head dress. Their colour was
white and maronne-brown, in broad alternate bands.

This feeble description can afford scarcely any idea
of the elegance of this plumous crown, which seemed
as if it would have well become the head of some
noble cacique, or the lord of one of those isles in the
distant east which are the depositories of earth's most
precious things. Well, I put my captive into my jar,
and was gratified to see the crown expanded, and grace-
fully waving ; notwithstanding that in dislodging the
animal I had unfortunately torn off the hinder ex-
tremity of the body. This, however, I hoped, might be
healed, and reproduced.

But a disappointment was in store. Presently
afterward, I came across a pool in which several
specimens of Anthea cereus were stretching their
snaky tentacles like so many Medusas' heads. Wish-
ing to show the species to a friend, I selected one, and
unthinkingly dropped it into the jar which held my
Sabella. The long tenacious tentacles could hard-
ly fail to come into contact with its beautiful plumes,
and I soon saw with vexation that such was the case;
and that several of these organs were entangled around

MORE SPECIMENS. 419

the crown and body of the worm. I did not well
know what to do, but I thought the best thing was to
take both out, and endeavour to pull away the tenta-
cles of the Anthea one by one. While thus engaged,
to my infinite chagrin, the lovely coronet suddenly
came off all in a piece from the body, though pulled
with the least imaginable force. To use a phrase of
the ladies, " I could almost have sat down and cried."
I did no such thing, however, but put body and head-
dress into another bottle, only, alas ! to note the sad
contrast between its now shrunken form, and that
which it had assumed when the life was pervading it,
spreading its graceful curves, opening and closing the
spires, and gently waving every delicate filament.

It has often occurred to me, — so often that I have
wondered at the coincidence,- — that when I have found
any thing very rare or curious that I have long vainly
desired to see, I meet with others directly afterwards,
though in circumstances which have no connexion
with the first. It was so with respect to this Sabella.
The very next day a man who keeps a little shop for
the sale of shells, corals, and other specimens of
natural history, took me to the cove at the back of the
quay, to shew me " a sort of barnacles" that he had
found there. What should these be but a colony of
this very Sabella ? When we arrived at the place,
there, in a little hollow about as large as a washing-
basin, were the tubes of some eight or nine clustered
together, and protruding, apparently, from the edges
of the laminae of the shale, for there was no visible
crevice.

We emptied the little basin with our hands, and

420 THE SABELLA.

set to work with hammer and chisel to cut out the
rock around them. The hollow was breast-high in
the side of a great mass of rock, so that it was easy
to work at it ; the shale too was fortunately very soft
and friable. In about an hour we had cut away the
surrounding parts to the depth of five or six inches,
when the laminae of the shale came away piecemeal,
with the tubes adhering by the side to them. The
membranous matter, of which the tubes are formed,
and which is, I have no doubt, an exudation from the
skin of the animal, was spread about upon the surface
of the laminae on each side of the adherent tube.
What was particularly interesting was that some of the
tubes had a family of young ones attached to them.
These were of different ages, and their little slender
tubes were creeping in irregular directions along the
parent tube, from the thickness of a hog's bristle to
that of a goose-quill. The young tubes are not
straight, but bent at various angles, adherent to the
parent for the greatest part of their length, but free
at the anterior extremity, where a tuft of plumes pro-
trudes. The feathery crown does not differ from that
in the adult essentially, but consists of fewer plumes
in the ratio of age, and these are pure white to their
base. The youngest that I can find, inhabiting a
tube about as thick as a bristle, and half-an-inch long^
has a simple brush of five or six filaments, in the
form of a concave fan, the middle plumes being the
longest. Another, with a tube about as thick as a
stout pin, has thirteen, and one, as thick as a wheat-
straw, seventeen plumes, arranged in each case in a
simple funnel-like circle.

REPRODUCTION OF THE CORONET, 421

At the time of preparing this note for the press, the
Sabellm have been in captivity about four months,
more than three of which have been spent in Lon-
don. Some have died, but the others are still
apparently in good health. No increase has taken
place in the young ones, in the number of filaments
in their coronets, nor, so far as I can perceive, in the
dimensions of their tubes. The species is probably
slow of growth and long-lived. The man who shewed
me the group in the rock, had himself known them to
be there for several years past, and they were as large
when he first discovered them as at last.

An interesting circumstance, however, has occurred,
illustrative of the faculty which the creature has of
reproducing its organs. When the specimens were
transferred to London, I found that the confinement
in close jars had been well-nigh fatal to several. Two
were disposed to desert their tubes, but I pushed them
back by gentle force, and these presently recovered,
though their fans were very flaccid at first. Those of
two other tubes, which were attached, side by side, to
the same fragment of rock, did not protrude the fans
at all, and though I watched day by day, it was in
vain, for these beautiful organs appeared no more,
and I concluded that the animals had died.

I did not, however, remove the tubes from the vase
of water, but allowed them to lie week after week upon
the bottom ; remarking all the time, with curiosity,
yet without suspicion of the actual state of the case,
that neither the tubes, nor, as far as I could see, the
contents, showed any tendency to decomposition, nor
did the water become off'ensive.
o %

422 REPRODUCTION OF THE CORONET.

At length, on the 4th of January, about two
months after the disappearance of the animals, I was
surprised to see issuing from each tube, a new fan-
disk, the filaments very delicate, of a translucent
white, and about a quarter of an inch long, curled at
their tips. Each formed a nearly flat disk, about as
large as a sixpence, divided into two semi-circles, but
without any appearance of the spiral volutes. There
were about twenty-two filaments in each moiety : and
the bases of all formed a ring apparently as large as
the old neck, but this part I could not see distinctly.
The disks of the two animals agreed precisely in ap-
pearance with each other.

It is manifest that each of the tenants of these
tubes, — full-grown animals, — has undergone first the
loss, and then the reproduction of the tentacular disk.
Perhaps the accident which befel the first specimen
that fell under my notice, may be one to which the
species is not unexposed naturally ; and hence it is a
merciful provision that an organ so easily lost, yet so
essential, should be replaceable. Dr. Williams, of
Swansea, in his able 'Keport on the British Anne-
lida' (1852), does not notice this power in Sabella,
and seems (p. 247) to doubt its existence in the whole
class.

THE CORYNACTIS.

The spring tides of the new moon in the middle of
October this year, were lower than I had ever seen
at Ilfracombe, a circumstance the more fortunate for
me that it was the last opportunity I had of exam-

THE TUNNEL ROCKS. 423

ining the shores. Large tracts of the rocks were
exposed every day for a week, which I had never be-
fore been able to approach, and my searchings were
rewarded with several interesting novelties. Among
these was the charming little Corynactis Allmanni.
(Plate VIII.)

If the visitor, standing at the mouth of either of
the Tunnels, or at the margin of the Ladies' Bathing
Pool, look out seaward, he will see that the rocks,
which are low for some distance from the beach, rise
at length into enormous angular masses, the strata of
which project towards the sky in a diagonal direction
from the shore. One of these masses lying far
away to the right, is the Lion Kock, so conspicuous
and remarkable an object in the view from Wilders-
mouth, and from the field-path leading to Hele, when
the tide is pretty well in. The next is separated from
this by a wide space of clear water ; and is seen when
you come close to it to be not a single solid rock, but
rather a collection of masses, divided by chasms and
fissures, with deep but narrow inlets running between
them, strewn with boulders and gravel. It was down
at the water's edge in one of these inlets, as I was in-
tently examining the beetling sides of the lofty rock,
that I looked into a shallow cavity into which the tide
was washing. The rock is here more solid than usual,
and the surface, bathed by the sea, has none of that
ragged friable appearance that so characterises its ex-
posed parts. The cavities and projections, though of
various irregular forms, are nearly as smooth as if
wrought by the sculptor's chisel. They are almost
quite free from sea-weeds, at least^where the outline is

424 THE CORYNACTIS.

near the perpendicular ; yet they are not naked, being
encrusted with Flustrce, Cellularim, Lepralice, C9'isi(e,
Sertularice, and S2)onges ; and the lower parts are
studded with the elegant Madrepore, CaryopJtyllia
Smithii.

The over-arching roof of the hollow in question, —
it cannot be called a cave, — was studded over with
scores of what seemed a new Actinia, for as the tide
had left them dry, they were all in a contracted state,
and I had no opportunity of seeing the beautiful
clubbed form of their tentacles that distinguishes the
genus Corynactis. They were, however, much more
tender and soft than the Actiniae, so that, though T
had no difficulty in detaching them with the point of
my pocket-knife, their substance yielded so much that
I feared I was destroying them ; especially as under
the irritation they gave out an enormous quantity of
thick, tenacious white mucus, scarcely less consistent
than their own substance.

They were of various colours, but all beautiful. I
will describe them, however, not as I imperfectly saw
them then, hanging from their native roof-tree, but as
I see them now before me, some five and twenty of
the finest that I selected for preservation, now comfort-
ably established in a saucer of sea-water.

First as to form. When contracted they are com-
monly little flattish warts or sub-conical buttons,
much like Actiniae ; but sometimes one will greatly
elongate its figure, swelling at the extremity, somewhat
like a long fig. (Fig. 8.) Sometimes they are very
much depressed, the surface corrugated, and the out-
line irregularly lobed. (Fig. 9.)

THE TENTACLES. 425

When expanded, the margin of the disk forms a
distinct crenated rim, outside the tentacles, always
brilliantly coloured. This rim is everted in the most
complete expansion, the tentacles spreading over it,
and the disk dilated beyond the diameter of the body.
But a more common state is that of a short cylinder,
the rim upright, and the tentacles crowded in nearly
perpendicular rows, and scarcely projecting over the
edge. (Fig. 10.) The tentacles have exactly the
same form and structure as in Caryojohyllia Smithii,
consisting of a rather short thick body tapering from
the base upward, and studded with transversely-oblong
warts, and of a large globular head, diverse in colour
and surface from the body, and covered with a dense
coat of short down. They are arranged in two com-
plete marginal rows, and two incomplete and irregular
discal rows. T counted them in one specimen, and
found the exterior rows to contain twenty-four each,
and the interior about eighteen each; making the
total number eighty-four. In another there were
more than one hundred, and then there were four
compact rows, besides smaller scattered ones on the
disk, so that I feel sure the number and arrangement
of these organs form but insufficient specific characters,
especially since we know that in the Actiniae they
increase with the age of the animal.

The oral disk is usually concave, the mouth, how-
ever, rising into an oblong cone. The disk is marked
as usual with radiating lines. The mouth forms two
projecting lips, which are strongly crenate, like the
edges of a cowry- shell. The whole appearance of the
disk, tentacles, lips, and all, is almost exactly a

426 THE CORYNACTIS.

counterpart of these parts in Caryophyllia Smitkii,
so that we can scarcely avoid considering it a nearer
approach than the Actinise to this Madrepore.

In taking food, such as a morsel of meat presented
to it, the Corynactis does not protrude the lips to
embrace it, nor close the tentacles over it, like the
Actiniae in general ; but dilates the oral orifice slowly
and uniformly until the lips form a circle strongly
crenated, of great width, nearly as wide indeed, as
the entire disk, within which the stomach, like a broad
shallow saucer, is seen, with the coils of ovarian (?)
filaments lying all over its bottom and sides. Into
this gaping cavity the morsel is drawn, and then the
lips gradually contract and embrace it, finally protrud-
ing in a pouting cone.

Now for colours. The most common hue is a pale
and very delicate rose or flesh-colour, with the rim a
brilliant coral-scarlet, or an equally brilliant emerald-
green ; in the latter case, the body is slightly tinged
with lilac. The delicate tint of the body is lost
towards the base, which is of a whitish-brown. The
disk is of the same colour as the body. When the
rim is scarlet, the tentacles are pure white ; or rather
the body is pellucid with white warts, and the globose
head is also white. When the rim is green, the ten-
tacle-warts are umber-brown, and the centre of the
head is of the same hue. The size of these varieties
does not exceed, so far as I have seen, a quarter of
an inch in diameter at the base, about one-sixth across
the disk, and about the same in height.

A larger variety, half- an -inch in width of base and
in height, is of a rich sienna-brown, the rim and the

THE THREAD-CAPSULES. 427

lips brownish orange, the tentacle bodies deep umber-
brown, and the globose heads pure white. This has
a very line appearance.

The filiferous capsules of this little Corynactis (See
Plate XXVIII. figs. 1 to 13) are the largest that I
have yet seen, being as long as those of Caryophyllia
Smithii, (-^th inch) and twice their diameter. They
are ovate or elliptical, compressed in one aspect (fig.
13), with a little nipple at the anterior end. (Figs. 1,
12, 13). Within the cavity and almost filling it, the
thread is distinctly seen, coiled round and round in a
spiral more or less regular in different individuals.
There is no lozenge-shaped body at the anterior end,
and in correspondence with this lack, we find the
thread when projected to be destitute of a brush of
hairs, and to be of uniform structure throughout its
length. The length of the thread is very great ; one
that I measured reached to about |^th inch, or about
thirty-seven times that of the capsule. Its thickness
also is distinctly measurable, and I found it ^^ th of
an inch, equal throughout. It is marked for its entire
length with diagonal lines, alternating at right angles
to each other, which I presume to indicate a similar
structure of imbricate plates to that observed in Cary-
ophyllia, but set more widely apart. (See fig. 2). By
delicate manipulation a series of transverse or angular
strise were visible throughout the thread, rather close
together, about four or five to each alternation of the
diagonal imbrications.

Such then is the structure of the larger capsules
and their filaments. These are very numerous, both
in the ovarian bands and in the tentacles. There was

428 THE CORYNACTIS.

much diversity in the manner of the projection of the
thread. In many cases, especially in such capsules
as were found loose in the enveloping mucus, (libe-
rated probably in the act of detaching the fragment
for examination,) the thread was found already shot
to its utmost, when presented to the microscope,
before pressure was applied with the compressorium.
Many under pressure projected it in a moment, and I
invariably found that the imbricate structure could
be made out only in such threads as were thus per-
fectly and suddenly expelled.

But it was quite as common for the thread to shoot
out partially, and by starts, a coil or two at a time
emerging ; and in this case, the projected part appear-
ed thin and shrivelled, with no defined marks, nor
even a distinct diameter. I think the cause of this
imperfect transmission was always some obstruction
lying in the way of the tip of the thread, sometimes
overcome, but often presenting an insuperable barrier,
when the capsule would remain half empty, the an-
terior portion of the coil having disappeared, but the
posterior part remaining unchanged.

A curious proof of the projectile force employed
was by accident presented to me. The tip of a thread
in the act of emission came into contact with a cap-
sule already emptied. It was stayed for an instant :
but the crystalline wall of the capsule was driven
inward in an indentation, and presently it yielded,
and the thread forced its way in, shooting all round
the interior of the oval cavity.

These capsules, and even their projected threads,
are distinctly visible with a common triple pocket-lens.

THE THREAD-CAPSULES. 429

But besides these, there are other smaller capsules
differing in their structure. They have the common
oblong form of those of the Actinice, but attenuated at
one end, which is sometimes drawn out to a needle
like point, (fig. 8). Sometimes at the small (4) but
more commonly at the large end (7, 9, 11), there is a
cylindrical clear body, about one-third of the length
of the capsule, besides the evanescent spiral coils
which occupy the remainder of the cavity.

The thread of these is furnished with a brush of
divergent bristles at its base, extending up a space
about equal to the length of the capsule (5) ; so that
I have no doubt of the connection of this elongated
body with the brush. These capsules vary much in
form (figs. 7 to 11), and also in size ; the largest being
about -g^ inch, the smallest -^ inch in length. Of these
latter, however, I could not discover the thread,
either coiled or evolved.

The specimens readily expanded their tentacles in
captivity, and were not at all sensitive or impatient of
irritation. They did not, however, make any attempt
to affix themselves by their adhering bases, but
remained loose at the bottom of the vessel.

I feel no doubt that they are identical with the
Corynactis Allmanni of Mr. Thompson, described
and figured in Dr. Johnston's Brit. Zooph. (2nd
Edit.) p. 474. His single specimen differed in some
minute details of colouring from all mine, but in so
variable a species this is of no consequence. None of
mine have any adventitious covering, except that the
base was surrounded by a dense mucus, in which mud
had become entangled. This mucus is thrown off, I

430 THE PURPLE-SPOTTED ANEMONE.

believe, by all Actiniae, A. gemmacea in particular,
round which it often hangs like a loose annular vest.

Whether, however, there is any specific difierence
between it and C. viridis of Prof. Allman, I have
strong doubts. I should not hesitate to say there is
none, but for Prof. Allman's personal opinion on the
specimen submitted to him by Mr. Thompson, and
for Mr. Peach's figure published by Dr. Johnston
(Brit. Zooph. p. 35) in which all the tentacles have
hi-glohose heads.

THE PURPLE -SPOTTED ANEMONE.

A little Actinia, which though it does not present
all the recorded characters of A. alba of Mr. Cocks, I
was at first disposed to refer to that species, occurred
to my explorings during the very low spring- tide of
October 16th, in two localities. Both were on the
surface of rocks near the extreme low-water ; the one
was an overhanging, the other a perpendicular surface.
In both cases the animals were social; in the one case
I found three individuals associated, in the other
many dozens, a large colony thronging the sides of a
narrow fissure or chasm, just wide enough to get into,
that runs far up the rock at the seaward base of
Capstone Hill. Even here many of the specimens
were hanging from beneath the little points and
projecting ledges.

Its consistency is very soft and yielding, somewhat
resembling, in this respect, another social Anemone,
that I had found in similar circumstances the day
before, Corynactis Allmanni. It is easily detached.

DESCRIPTION. 431

as it does not inhabit holes or crevices ; nor is its
body indued with gravel, or any extraneous substances.
When put into a vessel of water it very readily expands
its large conical tentacles, and dilates its disk to the
utmost ; and though, on being touched, it will par-
tially contract, it unfolds the instant the annoyance
ceases, and is presently full-blown again.

None of the specimens that I saw exceeded about
half-an-inch in height, and the same in expanse.
There is scarcely any variation in their colouring.
They are ribbed longitudinally with many opaque white
lines and bands, differing in breadth, that traverse
the ribs ; these lines are separated by interspaces,
always narrow, of pale, semi-pellucid brown or drab.
The margin is sometimes slightly tinged with reddish-
brown. The oral disk is opaque-white, marked with
five pellucid radiating lines. The mouth and lips are
also pure white. The tentacles are arranged in three
or four irregular rows, and are graduated in size, those
at the interior row being much the largest, and the
exterior ones the smallest. They are all opaque
snowy-white, without the least appearance of bars or
rings, except that the very base of each is encircled
with a narrow ring of dark purplish-red or brown*
which passes off in a line behind the tentacle. Some-
times this ring is obsolete, except around the base of
the twelve largest tentacles that form the innermost
circle, where I think it is never wanting. The lips
are capable of being inflated and protruded to an
immense extent.

None of my specimens have any yellow spots on
the lips, nor the least trace of the minute tubercles

432 THE PURPLE-SPOTTED ANEMONE.

which Mr. Cocks speaks of, as surrounding the mar-
gin of his A. alba in three rows. Hence, considering
also the well-marked dark ring embracing the tentacle-
bases, I am inclined to doubt whether the present
may not be an undescribed species. Should it prove
such, I would propose for it the name of Actinia
Candida.

Plate VIII, fig. 1 1 represents this species of the
natural size, contracted ; fig. 12, the same, magnified;
fig. 13, with the disk expanded.

The (so-called) ovarian filaments are protruded from
the pores in various parts of the body with great readi-
ness by this species on the slightest irritation. They
are slender, white, and highly ciliated, so as to move
freely with apparent spontaneity. On being subjected
to pressure, they were found to contain a number of
filiferous capsules quite amazing ; I should think it
by no means a hyperbole to presume that many mil-
lions of these offensive weapons are wielded by one
Actinia. As usual, they exhibit diff'erent models of
structure, and different sizes. (See Plate XXVIII. ,
figs. 21 to 27.)

The largest are longo-elliptical, or oblong, slightly
enlarged towards one end; -^th inch in length, and
gg^th in width ; a linear cylindrical body passes down
through the centre, which seems to pervade the whole
length, but becomes evanescent towards the posterior
end. (Figs. 21, 22.) The thread when propelled is
quite unique ; it is not more than Ij times as long as
the capsule ; and is armed, except at the basal third,
with a dense brush of bristles, pointing in a reverse
direction, and thus constituting so many barbs. (Fig.

THREAD-CAPSULES. ^ 433

14.) I had noticed that the tentacles of this species
were more than usually tenacious : whether this quality
may he owing to the harhed armature of the filiferous
capsules, I will not certainly say, hut I think it not
unlikely.

The small capsules are of a similar shape (fig. 23),
hut are not more than y^th inch in length ; and they
propel a thread, which, with the microscopic power
that I use, appears simple, to the length of — th inch,
or six-times that of the capsule. (Fig. 25.)

The tentacles do not, so far as I have seen, contain
any large capsules ; nor are the small ones present in
extraordinary numher. The larger, f^th in. long, are
long- oval, a little curved, and permeated hy a clear^
cylindrical hody throughout their centre. (Fig. 26.)
The smaller are more linear, f^th inch in length,
with a central evanescent line, that appeared zig-
zagged, or perhaps spiral (fig. 27) ; hut the minute-
ness here precluded a satisfactory resolution. The
same reason, prohahly, prevented my seeing the struc-
ture of the emitted thread ; hut the similarity of
appearance between the central column of the larger
tentacular capsules, and that of the larger ovarian
capsules, suggests a similarity of structure also.

I cannot help thinking, from facts already recorded
in these pages, that the filaments which are so freely
shot forth hy most Actinim from pores scattered
over their whole surface, are neither seminal nor
ovarian ducts, hut ofi'ensive weapons. In all cases
in which I have examined them, they are filled more or
less densely with filiferous capsules, and those the
most elaborately armed. Why should seminal or
p 2

434 ' LIST or ZOOPHYTES.

ovigerous ducts be shot forth by the animal at
various points when irritated ?

The following is a List of the Zoophytes that I have
found during the present season (from May to October
inclusive) in the neighbourhood of Ilfracombe. It
may be useful as a guide to other naturalists who may
hereafter visit the place.

Clava muUicornis. — Near Watermouth.
Goryne ramosa. — Tunnel Eocks, &c.
sessilis. — Capstone base.
Cerheriis. — C apstone.
stauridia. — Ilfracombe.
Sertularia rosacea. — Wildersmouth Beach (dead).
argentea. — Wildersmouth Beach (dead).
ahietina. — On Oysters from Lee.
pumila. — Smallmouth. On Corallina offic.
Plumulariasetacea. — Tunnel Eocks; Santon Eocks.
pinnata. — Smallmouth.
cristata. — Capstone.
Antenmdaria antennina. — Hele ; on a Crab.
Laomedea gelati?iosa.—ln a rock-pool at Capstone
base.

geniculata. — Tunnel Eocks ; on Tangle.
obliqua. — Tunnel Eocks, extreme low-water.
Campanularia voluhilis. — Santon ; Smallmouth.
Alcyonium digitatum. — Tunnel Eocks.
Caryophyllia Smithii. — Tunnel Eocks ; Small-
mouth ; extreme low- tide.

Balanophyllia regia. — Tunnel Eocks ; extreme
low-tide.

LIST OF ZOOPHYTES. 485

Corynactis Allmanni. — Tunnel Bocks ; extreme
low-tide.

Actinia mesemhryanthemum. — Wildersmouth.

Candida. — Fissure at Capstone base.

anguicoma. — Smallmouth.

gemmacea. — Wildersmouth ; Smallmouth ;
Tunnel.

crassicornis. — Wildersmouth; Tunnel; Hele.

bellis. — Capstone base ; Tunnel.

nivea. — -Wildersmouth.
Anthea cereus. — Tunnel ; Compass Hill ; Hele.
Tuhulipora Jlabellaris. — Eock-pool at Hele, on
Alg(B.

Crisidia cornuta. — Hele ; on Delesseria sang.
Crisia deiiticulata. — Hele ; on Algm.

geniculata. — TunnelKocks; roots of Tangle.

ehurnea. — Tunnel Kocks ; Hele.

aculeata. — Capstone ; in a rock-pool.
Eucratea chelata. — Capstone base ; Hele.
Anguinaria sj)attilata. — Tunnel ; Hele ; on Algce.
Lepralia spinifera. — Tunnel ; on roots of Tangle.

coccinea. — Capstone base.
Memhranipora pilosa. — Everywhere; on Algm.
Cellularia avicularia. — Capstone ; in a rock-pool.

ciliata. — Tunnel Rocks ; Watermouth.

reptans. — Wildersmouth Beach (dead).

Hookeri. — Smallmouth.
Flustra foliacea. — Wildersmouth Beach (dead).

chart ace a. — Tunnel Rocks ; very low tide.
Alcyonidium hispidum. — Lee ; in caverns.
Cycloum papillosum. — Tunnel.
Beania mirahilis. — Capstone ; in rock-pool.

436 CONCLUSION.

Valkeria cuscuta. — Hele ; on small Algce.

jmstulosa. — Barricane ; in a deep pool.
Bowerhankia densa. — Wildersmouth ; on a small
Alga.

Pedicellina eckinata. — Smallmouth .

Belgica. — Tunnel ; Hele ; on Algcs, and on
rocks.

gracilis. — Capstone ; on Corallines.

And here ends the record of a delightful season
spent on the Coast of Devon. I suppose it would be
quite superfluous to assure my readers that it was
delightful, that the whole of the nine months, ill
health notwithstanding, was one continuous, un-
flagging holiday. I wish that the perusal of these
pages may awaken in any, even a few, of my
readers, a relish for similar pursuits, and induce
them to drink of this ever flowing stream of pure
water.

It has indeed been delightful to read page after
page of God's book of nature ; and though I am con-
scious that the study has not been, so much as it
might, a pathway to Himself, yet the impress on all
of His hand, who is our Father and our Saviour, has
added a keener edge to the enjoyment. It is sweet
(to use the words of a dear friend,) to feel no stranger
to the great Architect, to feel the friendship of a
blood-redeemed and reconciled sinner with that glo-
rious Being, the Maker and Sustainer of all things ;
to be able to come into his presence, to speak to Him,
to anticipate a yet far deeper acquaintance witli Him,

CONCLUSION.

437

to know that "this God is our God for ever and
ever !'* Blessed revelation ! that has opened such
springs of sweet and lasting joy in the wilderness of
a sinner's heart !

" If music, with its mysteries of sound,

Gives to the himian heart a heavenward feeling ;

The beauty and the grandeur which are found

Wrapping in lustre this fair earth around,

Creation's wondrous harmonies revealing.

And to the soul in truth's strong tongue appealing,

With all the magic of those secret powers,

Which, mingling with the lovely band of light.

The sun in constant undulation showers

To mould the crystals, and to shape the flowers,
Or give to matter the immortal might

Of an embracing soul — should, from this sod,

Exalt our aspirations all to God."*

" For of him, and through him, and to him are

ALL THINGS ; TO WHOM BE GLORY FOR EVER. AmEN."

• Hunt's '* Poetry of Science," 162.

APPENDIX

Marine Vivaria. (See p. 228, et seq.) Since the former
note was written in September last, on the keeping of
marine animals alive in unchanged Sea-water, I have
continued the prosecution of experiments on the same
subject, with the most gratifying results. Actiniae of
different species and other interesting animals, brought by
me from Devonshire, are now living in the highest health
in London, some of which have been in confinement
nearly eleven months.

The following facts may be considered as established.
Marine animals and plants may be kept in health in glass
vases of sea- water for a period of greater or less length
according to circumstances, provided they be exposed to
the influence of light. The oxygen given off by healthy
vegetation under this stimulus, is sufficient for the support
of a moderate amount of animal life; and this amount can
be readily ascertained by experiment.

But another element in the question soon obtrudes
itself. The Actiniae and other animals habitually throw
off a mucous epidermis, and other excretions, which fall to
the bottom of the vessel, or accumulate around them.
The process of natural decay also continually goes on in
the older fronds of the Algae. Here then there is a con-
tinually increasing deposit of organized matter in a
state of decomposition ; and after a while the presence of
this substance becomes too manifest in the offensive odour

440 APPENDIX.

which proceeds from the water, especially when it is dis-
turbed, and in the feebleness, disease, and final death of
the animals.

In this difficulty chemistry came to my aid. Professor
Schonbein had proved that phosphorus possesses the
curious property of causing water and hydrogen to unite so
as to form a new compound, the peroxide of oxygen, which
he calls ozone ; and that ozone then immediately re-acts
upon the phosphorus, and oxidates it, producing the pecu-
liar light called phosphorescence. In like manner he had
suggested that the luminosity of the sea is dependent on
the particles of organic matter being brought into contact
with the atmosphere. The phosphorus of this organic
matter causes the union of the atmospheric oxygen with
the water so as to form ozone, which immediately oxidates
and destroys it.

What then is necessary but the presentation of the
water, so charged with organic matter, to the atmosphere
in a minutely divided state ? This I did, and found the
objectionable qualities of the water at once removed, and
my difficulties vanished. I even took sea-water, contain-
ing animal matter in suspension, so putrescent as to be
highly offensive, and after passing it through the air in a
slender stream a few times successively, the water was
restored to purity.

Another advantage is secured by the same process,
viz. the aeration of the water. For though the requisite
oxygen may be supplied by the agency of the plants alone,
the mechanical admixture of the atmospheric air with the
water by artificial aeration is highly conducive to the
health and comfort of the animals, as is evident from
their vigour and increased action under its stimulus.

Should any of my readers wish to see these experiments
in operation, or to cultivate a personal acquaintance with
many of the individual specimens whose history has been

APPENDIX. 441

recorded in the preceding pages, they may do both by
visiting the Zoological Gardens in the Regent's Park. The
able and zealous Secretary, D. W. Mitchell, Esq., has
already set up one large glass tank, filled with sea-water,
(the purity of which is maintained in the manner I have just
described,) and stocked with marine plants and animals
so as to resemble one of those charming tide-pools, so often
mentioned in these pages, with the advantage of having its
sides formed of plate-glass, and its whole contents there-
fore clearly visible. There the visitor may see the Sahelke,
the ActinicB of brilliant hues and many kinds, Mollusca both
shelled and naked, Crustacea^ and Annellida^ all pursuing
their various avocations and enjoying themselves without
restraint, under circumstances scarcely distinguishable
from those of nature. All who have seen this aquarium
concur in considering it a most attractive exhibition ; and
it is fairly anticipated that when seven other tanks of
equal dimensions are added to the one already stocked,
each containing some of the numerous tribes of marine
creatures (a result which we hope to accomplish in the
course of a few months), the whole will form one of the
most unique and interesting features of these beautiful
Gardens.

But my attention has been directed to the realization of
such a desideratum as I have before mentioned (See p. 234,
ante) a Marine Aquarium for the Parlour or Conservatory.
An apparatus for this purpose has been for some time in
the manufacturer's hands ; and though there are some
minor difficulties attendant on the mechanical part of the
execution, they are not such as to throw any material
doubt on my confident expectation, that in a short time an
elegant vase stocked with algae and sea-anemones, and
comprising within itself the elements of its constant self-
purification, will be before the world.

'\JL€^ SeC^ .4>t-.**«^f»US

GENEEAL INDEX. i;^^?-^^-'

Acorn Shells, 23 ; 206.
^quorea, (glassy), 340 ; 345.

(Forbesian), 343 ; described, 345 ; luminosity of, 346.

(Forskal's), 347.

Anemone, (Smooth) ; 9 ; 10 ; poetical allusions to, 11 ; 17.

(Purple-spotted), 430 ; described, 431.

(Daisy), 24; 25; difl&culty of procuring, 26 ; change of

its form, 27 : description of, 27 ; varieties of,
31 ; habits of, 32 ; 55 ; structure of, 32.

(Thick-horned), 34 ; probably identical with ^.coriacea,

36 ; habits of, 38 ; cooked and eaten, 150.

(Rosy), 90.

(Snowy-disked), 93 ; habits of, 95.

(Snake-locked), 96.

(Gemmaceous), 108 ; described, 168 ; young of, 170.

Animals, On keeping in unchanged sea- water, 228 ; 439.

Animalcules, luminous, 253 ; parasitic, 260 ; 291 ; 359 ; 367.

Annelida, 10; 94; 172; 275; 391.

Anstey's Cove, 70 ; animals of, 71.

Anthea described, 15 ; habits of, 17 ; white variety, 18 ; table
qualities of, 153; stinging powers, 267 ; power of retrac-
tion, 268 ; thread-capsules, 268.

Antiopa, crested, 325 ; spawn of, 326.

Aquarium, marine, 229 ; 439.

Ascidia, a transparent ; 241 ; larva of, 322,

Babbicombe, 5 ; 11 ; prospect from, 68.

Barricane, visit to, 322 ; shell-beach of, 323.

Bathing-pool, 344 ; 397.

Beach, process of its formation, 266.

Beania, 205 ; 225.

444 GENERAL INDEX.

Birds, songs of, 45 ; 69 ; 107.

Bloody-field, 327.

Boulders, barren of animals, 9.

Bowerbankia, 205.

Braunton, fertility of, 281 ; legend of, 281.

Burrows, 283 ; botany of, 285 ; animals of, 286.

Bristle-tail, 389.

Brixham, visit to, 44 ; appearance of, 46 ; its natural history, 47.

Brittlestars, 56 ; 206.

Campantilaria, structure of, 297 ; egg-vesicles, 298 ; medusoid, 299.

CapreUa; 82; 379.

Capstone Hill, 102 ; 129 ; description of, 159 ; prospects from, 162 ;
164; spout-boles, 320.

Care of God over his creatures, 67 ; 144 ; 201 ; 207 ; 302.

Cam-top, 279 ; legend of, 279.

Caverns, 293 ; 294 ; 397.

CeUularia, (ciliated) cells of, 144 ; bird's heads of, 146.

(bird's head), 195 ; cells of, 198 ; polype of, 199 ; 204.

Chondrus, iridescence of, 188 ; 382.

Chrysaora, 364 ; eye-prisms of, 366 ; parasites of, 367 ; light of,
368 ; beauty of, 368 ; mode of taking prey, 369 ; of
ovipositing, 373; eggs, 374; thread-capsules, 376.

Circulation, in Alcyonium, 80 ; in Laomedea, 149 ; in Tunicate
Mollusca, 240.

Clava, 206.

Compass-hill Bay, 393 ; legend of, 394.

Coralline, 204 ; white light of, 226.

Corynactis, 423 ; its locality, 423 ; varieties of, 424 ; structure of
424 ; mode of feeding, 426 ; colours, 426 ; thread-
capsules, 427 ; habits of, 429.

Coryne (branching), 190 ; generation of, 194.

(sessile), 208.

(three-headed), 222.

(slender) 257 ; tentacles of, 259.

Crab, habits of, 174.

Crewkhorne Cave, 397 ; legend of, 397.

Crisia, 205.

Cycloum, 157.

Dead-man's fingers, 76 ; 94 ; beauty of its polj-pes, 77 ; structure
of, 79 ; circulation in, 80 ; spiculse, 81.

GENERAL INDEX. 445

Devonshire, claims of, 2 ; beauty of its scenery, 3 ; 104 ; lanes of,
4 ; 305 ; rocks of, 107 ; 307 ; 329 ; 396 ; wells
of, 306.
Disaster, a fatal, 166 ; 395.

Doris, 12 ; 62 ; 71 ; habits of, 13 ; 59 ; spawn of, 14.
Doto, 83.

Economy in Nature, 202.
Eolis coronata, 12.

despecta, 82.

papillosa, 12; voracity of, 16.

exigua, 83.

Epitaph, curious, 282.

Eucratea, its mode of growth, 133; 141 ; structure of, 134 ; ana-
logy with Rotifera, 139 ; ciliary action, 139.
Exploit, a gallant, 309.
Feather-star, 56 ; its habits, 57.
Fishing, Mode of, 106.

Flowers, 104; 107; 172; 263; 270; 280; 284; 292; 327; 339;
Flustra, fleshy, 276.
Galathea, 71.

Glory of God in Creation, 248 ; 354.
Grantia, 235.

(ciliated) 238.

Hangman Hill, 265 ; legend of, 272.

Hele, 104; 130 ; legend of, 130 ; pools of, 141.

Hillsborough, 129; etymology of, 261; described, 262; fall

of, 266.
Hockey Lane, 104.
nfracombe, beauty of, 101 ; View of, 128 ; 129 ; Tunnels of, 397 ;

Zoophytes found at, 434 ; Farewell to, 436.
Jackdaws, 8 ; 105.
Johnstonella, 356.
Kestrel, 8 ; 310.
Landslips, 266 ; 293.
Langley Open, 271.

Laomedea, (angled), 82 ; medusoids of, 84 ; mode of growth, 84;
89 ; luminosity, 252.

(slimy), 148 ; circulation in, 149; polype of, 149.

Lee, beauty of, 176 ; 273 ; in a shower, 304.
Legends, 46 ; 130 ; 166 ; 272 ; 279 ; 281 ; 308 ; 327 ; 340 ; 394 ; 397.
Lepralia, 204 ; metamorphosis of, 218.

Q 2

446 GENERAL INDEX.

Light, influence of upon colour, 42 ; produced by animals, 250 ;
253 ; various effects of, 412 ; ode to, 415.

Lime Light, 226,

Limestone, honey- combed, 23,

Lion Rock, 130 ; 155 ; 423,

Lobster's Horn, 313 ; secondary cells, 314; generation of, 315;
development of stem, 316,

Madrepore (Smith's), locality of, 103 ; 108 ; 127 ; 132 ; skeleton
of, 110 ; resemblance to Actinia, 112 ; the fleshy struc-
ture, 113; beauty of, 113; tentacles of, 114 ; 116;
ciliary action, 115; modeof feeding, 117 ; reproduction
of parts, 120; the frilled bands, 121; thread-capsules,
123 ; aggregated specimens, 127.

(Scarlet and gold), 399 ; locality of, 400 ; 404 ; beauty

of, 400 ; characters, 401 ; 404 ; skeleton, 403 ; thread-
capsules, 402.

Marj'church, visited, 3; farewell to, 100.

Medusae, mode of procuring, 332; 349 ; luminous, 335; 346.

structure of, 335; 341 ; 364 ; generation of, 353 ; 368.

Ruby, 348; motions of, 351; habits of; 369; 409;

disease of, 409.

• Fairy's cap, 387,

Medusoids of Polypes, 84 ; 299; 331.

Microscope, diiflculties of, 184 ; charms of, 197.

Morte Stone, 308.

village, 309 ; legend of, 309.

Oceania, tiny, 384.

Oddicombe, 6 ; 21 ; 54.

Pedioellina, (Belgian), 158; 205; 210; structure of, 210; gene-
ration of, 213.

— (spined), 217.

(slender), 217.

Pelagia, white, 378.

Petit Tor, prospect from, 5 ; cove of, 7 ; the promontory,

21 ; 33.
Pholas, habits of, 62 ; respiration of, 63 ; siphonal tubes, 64 ; their

tentacular extremities, 65.
Pipe-fish, described 179 ; habits of, 180 ; disease of, 183.
Pleurobranchus, described, 71 ; habits of, 73 ; shell, 75.
Plumularia, (crested), 82.
(bristle) 311 ; generation of, 311.

GENERAL INDEX. 447

Plumularia (feather) 287 ; generation of 288.

Polycera, 13 ; 222.

Polynoe, 391 ; weapons of, 392.

Pomeroy family, legends of, 46.

Pools in rocks, 6 ; 10; 24; 34; 39; 54; 93; 141; 187; 324;

330; 423.
Prawn, habits of, 39 ; its beauty of colour, 41 ; changes, 42.
Prospects, 5; 105; 162; 264.
Purpura, 60 ; experiments with its dye, 61.
Rapparee Cove, 338~; legend of, 340.
Respiration in MoUusca, 63 ; 240.
Rock of Death, 308.
Rockham Bay, 306.
Sabella, beauty of, 417 ; mode of procuring, 419 ; reproduction of

the crown, 421.
Samson's Cave, 293 ; 333.
Sand-worm, 171 ; dye of, 173.

Saxicava. its boring powers, 23 ; its habits, 47 ; 93.
Scallop Painted, beauty of, 47 ; the mantle, 48 ; eyes, 49, 52 ;

spins a thread, 50 ; the foot, 50 ; manner of leaping, 50 ;

structure of the gills, 53.
Score Valley, 280.
Sea spider, 171.
Sea- weeds, 24 ; 39 ; 55; 71; 94; 142; 188; 189; 204; 230 J

324; 330.
Sea- worm, honeycomb, 275 ; 284.
Serpula, 11 ; 63.

Shipwrecks, 131 ; 274 ; 308 ; 340.
Shrimp (Medusa), 367 ; metamorphosis of, 368.

(Mantis), 379 ; its weapons, 379 ; its habits, 380.

(Caddis), 382.

Shore, charm of, 154.

Smallmouth, Caves at, 294 ; animals of, 103, 296.

Snake-head, 142 ; 205 ; cells of, 142 ; their door and hinge, 143.

Sponges, 9 ; 94 ; 204 ; crystals of, 234 ; 238 ; 276.

Spriag, charm of, 68 ; 103.

Squirrel, 22.

Stone, a populous, 202.

Stone-turning, a productive occupation, 178.

Sunset, glories of, 161 ; 413.

Syrinx, (Harvey's), 157,

448 GENERAL INDEX.

Thaumantias (hairy), 334 ; 344.

(Busk's), 385.

(Club -bearing), 407.

Thread-capsules, of Act. bellis, 32 ; of A. anguicoma, 99 ; of

Caryophyllia, 123 ; of Anthea, 268.
suggestions respecting, 33 ; 124 ; phenomena of,

123 ; 360 ; 407 ; 428.

elaborate structure of, 125 ; 406 ; 427 ; 429.

evolution of, 126, 407.

of MedusEe, 351 ; 360 ; 376; 410.

of Balanophyllia, 402 ; of Act. crassicornis, 405.

of Corynactis, 427 ; of Act. Candida, 432.

Tor Abbey, 62.

Torr Point, 328 ; 399.

Torrs, 327 ; 397.

Tracy, Tomb of, 310 ; legend of, 397.

Trochus, 47 ; 62.

Tubulipora, 227.

Tunnel Rocks, 896 ; 423.

Turris, Ruby, 348 ; generation of, 349 ; 353 ; thread-capsules,

351 ; beauty of, 354.
Vivaria, marine, 228.
Walk, Summer morning, 269.
Watcombe, wild scenery of, 58,
Watermouth, 105 ; 172.
^Vhite-pebble Bay, 329.

Wildersmouth, 129 ; 155 ; 160 ; 162 ; described, 165.
Willsia, 359 ; parasite of, 359.
"Woodlouse, 390.
Woollacombe Sands, in a shower, 310.

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

VERTEBRATA.

Mugil chelo, 106.

Blennius, 56.

Clupea alba, 369.

Syngnathus luinbriciformis,l78.

MOLLUSCA.

Doris tuberculata, 13, 14, 59, 71.

bilamellata. 12, 13, 62, 83,

232.

pilosa, 62.

Johnstoni, 71.

Polycera ocellata, 12, 13.

quadrilineata, 222, 232.

Doto coronata, 83.

Eolis papulosa, 12, 16.

coronata, 12.

despecta, 82.

exigua, 82.

Antiopa cristata, 325.
Pleurobranchus plumula, 71.
Patella ^nilgata, 23, 276.
Purpura lapillus, 60.
Trochus cinerarius, 119.

ziziphinus, 47, 62, 71.

Littorina littorea, 23.
Cypraea Europaea, 71.
Pecten opercularis, 47, 71.

distortus, 71.

Anomia, 71.

Mytilus edulis, 10.

Saxicava rugosa, 23, 47, 65, 93.

Pholas dactylus, 62, 63.

parva, 62, 65.

Botryllus, 71.
Perophora Listeri, 241.

Atnaroucium proliferum, 322.
BalauTis, 23.

ANNELLIDA.

Serpula, 11, 63, 71, 233.
Sabella vesiculosa, 416.
Sabellaria alveolata, 275, 284.
Arenicola brancliialis (?) 172.
Polynoe cirrata, 71, 391.

impar, 391.

Phyllodoce lameUigera, 10, 232.
Hirudo (?) 359.
Johnstonella Catharina, 356.

CRUSTACEA.

Cancer pagurus, 174.
Maia squinado, 311.
Galathea rugosa, 71.

strigosa, 71.

Palsemon serratus, 39.
Hyperia medusarum, 367.
Cerapus Whitei, 382.
Caprella, 82, 379.
Ligia oceanica, 390.
Phoxichilus, 171.

IN8ECTA.

Machilis maritima, 389.
Eristalis tenax, 390.

Tubulipora flabellaris, 227.
Crisidia cornuta, 435.

450

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

Crisia denticulata, 232.

geniculata, 435.

ebumea, 435.

aculeata, 205.

Eucratea chelata, 132, 206, 226.
Anguinaria spatulata, 142, 205,

216.
Lepralia spinifera (?) 204.

— cocinea, 218.

Membranipora pilosa, 222, 232.
Cellularia avicularia, 195, 204,

226.
ciliata, 144.

-reptans, 435.
-Hookeri, 435.

Flustra foliacea, 435.

chartacea, 400.
Alcyonidium hispidum, 276.
Cycloum papillosum, 157.
Beania mirabilis, 205, 225.
Valkeria cuscuta, 436.

pustulosa, 436.

Bowerbankia densa, 134, 205,

216.
Pedicellina Belgica, 158, 205,
210, 232.

• echinata, 217.

gracilis, 217.

ECHINODEBMATA.

Comatula rosacea, 56.
Ophiocoma neglecta, 56.

rosula, 71.

minuta, 207.

Asterina gibbosa, 62.
Echinus esculentus, 71.
Syrinx Harreii, 157.

ACALEPH^.

Chrysaora cyclonota, 364.

Pelagia ? 378.

Willsia stellata, 359.
Turris neglecta, 348, 410.
Saphenia Titania, 387.
Oceania pusilla, 384.
^quorea vitrina, 340, 345.

-Eorbesiana, 345.

Thaumantias pilosella, 334, 344,
359.

Thaumantias Buskiana, 385.

(?) Corynetes, 407.

Noctiluca miliaris, 253«

ZOOPHYTA.

Clava multicornis, 206.
Coryne ramosa, 190, 232.

sessilis, 206, 208.

Cerberus, 222, 259.

stauridia, 257.

Sertularia rosacea, 226.

argentea, 434.

abietina, 434.

pumila, 434.

Plumularia setacea, 143, 311.

pinnata, 287.

cristata, 82, 143, 311,

379.
Antennularia antennina, 311,

313.
Laomedea gelatinosa, 148.
geniculata, 39, 82,

84, 252, 290.

obliqua, 434.

Campanularia volubilis, 296.
Alcyonium digitatum, 76, 94.
Caryophyllia Smithii, 103, 108,

132, 226, 296, 400, 405, 42i,

427.
Balanophyllia regia, 399.
Corynactis Allmanni, 423, 430.
Actinia mesembryanthemum, 9,

10, 24, 232.

Candida, 430.

anguicoma, 96, 120, 232.

gemmacea, 108, 120,

168, 284.

crassicomis, 16, 34, 59,

92, 150, 405.

bellis, 25, 65, 69, 120,

232.

nivea, 93, 232.

• rosea, 90, 232.

alba, 71.

Anthea cereus, 15, 62, 120, 153,
232, 267, 330, 418.

PORIFERA.

Pachymatisma Johnstonia, 9,

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

451

Halichondria panicea, 276.

celata, 204.

sanguinea, 204,

276.
Grantia botryoides, 234.

ciliata, 238.

nivea, 233.

ALGJi.

Halidrys siliquosa, 330.

Fucus, 10, 55, 230,

Laminaria digitata, 39, 82, 89,

93, 230, 252, 330.
saccharina, 6, 39,

55, 330.
Taenia atomaria, 325.
Cladostephus verticillatus, 324.
Polysiphonia, 188.
Dasya arbuscula, 132, 188.
Laurencia pinnatifida, 25.
Chylocladia articulata, 25.

Corallina officinalis, 10, 54, 188,

204, 226.
Delesseria sanguinea, 39, 71,

94, 188, 230, 232.

hypoglossum, 142.

Nitophyllum laceratum, 227.
Plocamium coccineum, 24.
Rhodymenia ciliata, 25.

jubata, 232, 330.

palmata, 10 ; 55,

188.

palmetta, 24.

Chondrus crispus, 55, 188, 230,

232, 382.
Iridaea edulis, 39, 71, 94, 230.
Ptilota sericea, 188, 189, 204.

plumosa, 232.

Ceramium, 24, 188.
Bryopsis plumosa, 204.
Ulva, 55, 188, 230, 232.
Enteromorpha, 230.

FINIS.

S. VIVIAN, PRINTER, BROAD ST. BATH.

PINDING- JUN12

QL Gosse, Philip Henry

128 A naturalist's rambles

G7 on the Devonshire coast

VlM^oi

PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE
CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY

i^f^VJklti

^H ^^HC-^ VJ':>:"

Internet Archive Audio

Featured

Top

Images

Featured

Top

Software

Featured

Top

Books

Featured

Top

Video

Featured

Top

Mobile Apps

Browser Extensions

Archive-It Subscription

Save Page Now

Full text of "A naturalist's rambles on the Devonshire coast"

See other formats