94 JOHN G. WALLER, OBSERVATIONS ON THE 



tary motion, either as a whole or in the individual members ; ex- 

 cept, however, and this is important to note, that the six indi- 

 viduals were really in three conjugating groups, and each group 

 did change slightly its relative position, but it was by a passive 

 kind of motion, backwards and forwards, showing that the bodies 

 were only adherent together, and had no such union as was the 

 case with the pairs conjugating ; and I am inclined to think that 

 the group, together with the empty cyst, may have been an acci- 

 dental circumstance, and was not connected with the life history of 

 the organism. 



I was, however, unable to conclude my observations thoroughly, 

 being called away, and the water evaporated before I could return 

 to it, as it was not covered. But my interest was now fairly roused. 

 I took another drop of the water, and finding many of the animal- 

 cule conjugating, made a drawing of one example, which seemed 

 as in the act of separation. (Fig. 2.) One individual exhibited a 

 protuberance or budding, as if in gemmation; but whether that 

 had any relation to the phenomenon of conjugation I had no means 

 of proof; what I observed in this instance being merely the act of 

 separation, which I watched until its completion, making drawings 

 from time to time. (See Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.) It was slow and 

 gradual, and apparently effected chiefly by the mere force of gravi- 

 tation. As it proceeded to completion the band of union became 

 more and more -attenuated ; at length it twisted in opposite direc- 

 tions, much as one twists a piece of thin cord to break it, and finally 

 portions of it snapped asunder, and then each gradually withdrew the 

 broken band into its own substance. During the extension of the 

 band, and also in the peculiar manner in which it ultimately broke, 

 leaving a ragged edge, I recognised a remarkable semblance to 

 India rubber when a small piece is drawn out until it breaks, and 

 thence concluded the substance to be very elastic. I did not wit- 

 ness any further phenomena, although I watched for some time the 

 individual which seemed to be in the condition of gemmation. 

 In fact, here again I had been careless enough not to protect 

 the water from evaporation, and it dried up just as I had noted an 

 increased development in the gemmule, and had recorded it by a 

 drawing. (Fig. 9.) 



The question now arises, and which is one of the difficulties of 

 the subject, was it fission or was it conjugation, with the result a 

 gemmule and a subsequent separation, that I had witnessed ? I did 



