THE GLASS-SPONGES. 



537 



rugose, having almost imbricating rings. Beheld for the first time 

 under the microscope, its sight recalled the appearance of the hairs 

 of a hat. I have convinced myself that this is the functional intention 

 of the frayed end of the fascicle, hy a careful examination of a suite 

 of specimens obtained for me at Enosima, Japan, hy Prof. Griffis, of 

 the Imperial College at Yeddo. 



But the deep-sea dredging described in Dr. Thompson's book sheds 

 much light on the Hyalonema. Says the writer : "When we trace its 

 development, the coil loses its mystery. In two or three hauls we got 

 them in every subsequent stage beautiful little pear-shaped things, a 

 centimetre long, with a single osculum at the top, and the whisp like 

 a small brush. At this stage the Palythoa is usually absent, but, 

 when the body of the sponge has attained 15 mm. or so in length, very 

 generally a little pink tubercle may be detected at the point of junc- 

 tion between the sponge-body and the coil, the germ of the first 

 polyp." 



Fig. 4. 





Pheronema Ann.e. Half the natural size. A glass-sponge, obtained at Santa Crnz, W. I. 



Allusion has been made to the ingenious manipulation of these 

 glass-sponges by the Japanese. Says Dr. Hadlow, then in Japan : 

 " We sometimes meet with portions of the glass coil most ingen- 

 iously attached to and grouped with corals, shells, and other ma- 



