179 



pended upon the character of the water, and not upon its 

 exposure. 



He had heard that one of the reservoirs connected with the 

 town waterworks had been twice cleaned out, hoping to get it 

 free from vegetable and animal growths. He did not think 

 this would succeed, as new growths would constantly take 

 place. The most efficacious plan would be to cover the sur- 

 face by floats, and thus darken the reservoir. 



He then remarked, in opposition to the authorities quoted 

 by Mr. Moss, that the microscope proved that the so called 

 suckers in the feet of insects were not so in reality — and that 

 pneumatic influence had nothing to do in the progression of 

 these creatures. 



He promised a paper on this subject at a future time. 



Dr. Inman then referred to some observations he had re- 

 cently made upon the "Cercaria seminis" in the human 

 subject. 



He had ascertained that the so called head was the nucleus 

 of a cell ; that the tail was not originally joined to the head, 

 but became so in the progress of growth ; that the tail in the 

 secreting organ would appear like a long cilium projecting 

 from a cell wall; and that when the spermatozoa were discharged 

 the nucleus was torn from its attachment, carrying away with 

 it a portion of the delicate cell membrane. This fragment he 

 had frequently detected, which led him long ago to surmise 

 the real nature of these spermatozoa, but he had not succeeded 

 in finding a perfect cell until a day or two ago. 



