390 M. E. Claparede on the Theory of the 



'^^ t much regretted the loss of my httle pet, which I had at one 

 time looked forward to bringing up to years of maturity, and 

 which had afforded me daily amusement and pleasure by its 

 curious ways and the inimitably ludicrous expressions of its little 

 countenance. Could I have obtained a regular supply of milk, 

 or better still, could I have found some animal to have given it 

 suck, I have little doubt it might have been reared, though it 

 would probably never have reached the dimensions of its parents. 

 It is probable that so young an animal of this species has never 

 been before observed by Europeans. I have therefore given this 

 brief account of its habits, which may not be uninteresting to 

 lovers of nature. 



Dimensions of young Orang-Utan. 



ft. in. 



Length : heel to crown 1 2 



arms extended 1 11 



legs extended 1 7 



of feet 4 



of hands 3 



Girth of body 11 



of thigh 3f 



of arm 3^ 



of head, chin to crown 1 H 



Weight 3 lb. 9 oz. 



XXXV. — On the Theory of the Fecundation of the Ovum, 

 By E. Claparede. 



[Concluded from p. 311.] 



We have already seen that J. Miiller, on discovering an open- 

 ing in the envelope of the ova of Holothuria^ could not avoid 

 mentioning the analogy of this canal with the micropyle of the 

 Phanerogamous plants, so naturally did this comparison occur 

 to the mind. Keber in his turn adopted the name of micropyle 

 in treating of the ova of the Naiades, and we may now say that 

 both the name and the analogy are sanctioned by science. The 

 analogies between the modes of fecundation in the vegetable and 

 animal kingdoms are indeed of more than one kind. What, in 

 fact, are the phytosperms of the Cryptogamia, — for an exact 

 knowledge of which we are particularly indebted to Nageli and 

 Leszczyc-Suminski, — unless they are the spermatozoa of these 

 plants ? Is it not a very remarkable fact, that in both cases 

 fecundation should be connected with particles endowed with 

 motion, which at first sight might be taken for animated crea- 

 tures ? Prevost and Dumas, Siebold, Miiller, Wagner, Kolliker, 

 Quatrefages, Bischoff, Leuckart, Sec, have more especially 



