THE OVAKIAN EGG. 287 



Every egg is already such a centre, differing from 

 the cells that surround it by no material elements, 

 but by the principle of life in which its individ- 

 uality consists, which is to make it a new being, 

 instead of a fellow-cell with those that build up 

 the body of the parent animal, and remain com- 

 ponent parts of it. This intangible something is 

 the subtile element that eludes our closest anal- 

 ysis ; it is the first indication of the immaterial 

 principle according to which the new being is to 

 develop. The physical germ we see ; the spirit- 

 ual germ we cannot see, though we may trace its 

 action on the material elements through which it 

 is expressed. 



The first change in the yolk after the formation 

 of the Purkinjean vesicle is the appearance of 

 minute dots near the wall at the side opposite the 

 vesicle. These increase in number and size, but 

 remain always on that half of the yolk, leaving 

 the other half of the globe clear. One can hardly 

 conceive the beauty of the egg as seen through 

 the microscope at this period of its growth, when 

 the whole yolk is divided, with the dark granules 

 on one side ; while the other side, where the 

 transparent halo of the vesicle is seen, is brilliant 

 with light. With the growth of the egg these 

 granules enlarge, become more distinct, and un- 

 der the microscope some of them appear to be 

 hollow. They are not round in form, but rather 



