iqS 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



lilood-red colour ancT richly ciliated in a spiral manner ; 

 the hooks are bisected at the top, and the bristles 

 are like a flat turn-bolt. 



The genus Spi'o is distinguished by the unique 

 length and development of the tentacles of the head, 

 and by the extreme beauty of the branchite, which are 

 ciliated, and serve to aerate the peritoneal fluid. S. 

 seticoi-nis inhabits a tube built up of grains of sand ; 

 the antenna; are extraordinarily developed, and there 

 are four eyes arranged in a square : here also do we 

 observe well -developed feet with an upper and a 

 lower branchial thread or cirrus, and two tubercles 

 carrying bristles and hooks — the bristles are long, 

 slender, and sharp at the point ; the hooks are short, 

 stout, and divided at the apex into sharp claws. 



Ncrine zndgaris is a long, spare animal of a reddish- 

 brown colour, darker behind, and marked with red 

 cross lines over the back, indicating the branchice 

 folding over thuswise ; the antennse are about half 

 an inch long, and incline forwards, and there is a 

 long tapering sort of snout to the head ; the eyes 

 seem very small or rudimentary ; the tail is a broad, 

 horizontal semicircular fin, and assists the cirri 

 and bristles in enabling the creature to move with 

 vigorous agility through sand or shingle, although in 

 water its progress is rather dilatory. N. conioccphala 

 is distinguished by the distinctly conical shape of the 

 head, while the antennae spring from behind it and 

 incline backwards ; it exhibits a starfish-like talent 

 for shuffling off its antennae, and breaking itself to 

 pieces. 



The genus Syllis comprises a company of seaworms 

 that manifest a special predilection for creeping about 

 and browsing upon> seaweeds, the shape of their feet 

 and bristles being eminently adapted for this sort of 

 life. The head bears some curious lobes projecting in 

 front, and has four eye-like dots ; a necklace-like 

 structure of long antennae and cirri encompasses the 

 body ; there is a long proboscis, quite destitute of 

 jaws or glandules, but the stomach exhibits a highly- 

 organised glandular organ at the rear of the throat ; 

 the branchice are furnished with cilia at the base of 

 the feet, whereby the peritoneal fluid only is aerated. 

 ^. annularis frequents the deep sea ; it has two 

 lobes in front of the head, and three antennae longer 

 than the lobes ; the upper cirri exhibit a necklace- 

 beaded pattern, and are four times longer than the 

 width of the body ; the bristles are jointed and 

 curved near the pointed apex. S. prolifcra is a small 

 species, half an inch long, and has no head lobes ; 

 the antennas are very long, ciliated and unjointed, 

 and are invariably seen curled or twisted ; the eyes 

 are set in a square ; the upper cirri are only about 

 twice as long as the width of the body, and are 

 merely slightly wrinkled ; the bristles are simple and 

 unjointed. 



Glycera alba is a very peculiar form. It is gener- 

 ally found buried in the sand or mud heaped between 

 the crevices of the rocks and stones that lie scattered 



about between tide-levels. Shovel the worm out of 

 its oozy tenement, and immerse it forthwith in a bowl 

 of sea- water, and you will witness a lithe and vigorous 

 wriggling on the part of the creature, as if it had 

 "gone daft," winding up the performance by grace- 

 fully twisting itself like a serpent into a neat spiral. 

 There are bright red lines on each side, and a large 

 proboscis, which perpetually protrudes, and then 

 vanishes with admirable facility. This proboscis is 

 thickly villose with papillary glandules, and bears 

 four brownish-black teeth which are curved at the 

 point, and have a number of processes fore and aft, 

 whereby it presses the sand and sowise moves on- 

 wards ; the feet arc much less complicated than in 

 Nereis, consisting only of one wedge-shaped piece 

 with very short cirri ; the peritoneal fluid is abund- 

 antly supplied with red corpuscles, and is aerated in 

 hollow cylindrical branchia;, which bear on their 

 inner wall vihratile cilia ; the bristles are very pro- 

 trusile and dovetail-jointed, the terminal piece being 

 bayonet-shaped and very sharp. 



( To be continued.) 



STAINER AND OTHERS v. BACILLUS. 



THE case for the plaintiffs having concluded, 

 Counsel for the defendant rose. 

 May it please your lordship, and gentlemen of 

 the jury, this action is an attempt to dislodge my 

 client from ancient right of domicile, user, and ease- 

 ment, involving an issue charging him as a common 

 malefactor and disseminator of disease. In combating 

 these allegations, I shall show absolutely a divarica- 

 tion, and contradiction of evidence. Assuming the 

 defendant does not bear the best of characters, I submit 

 the plaintiffs have no case. The actual existence of 

 the defendant must be accepted : whether he be " a 

 vegetable germ, not originating from the world 

 outside," or the result of a " decomposition or degra- 

 dation of other life," he has some "functional object," 

 possibly creating new combinations from effete matter. 

 It has been said, the defendant could not be supported 

 ' ' except under abnormal conditions, and an enormous 

 power of fecundity." This is a grave charge, but I 

 submit does not justify the persecution and annoyance 

 to which he has been subjected. Take a case. The 

 actuality of "splenic fever;" it does not emanate 

 from him ; he necessarily must have some habitat, 

 and such a condition is his raison eCctre. At all 

 points meeting antagonism, his disposition has 

 naturally l>ecome soured and ol)stinatc. No 

 wonder ! When I present before you the story of a 

 persecution, an oppression, aimed at existence itself ; 

 who could tolerate the ferocity of opponents attempt- 

 ing to reveal your (^so-called) wickedness and vice 

 with a battery of chemical obscurities, aided by 

 magnifications of iSoo to " 5000 " diameters ? 



