THE OVARIAN THREADS. 239 



the constriction. But these latter must be described 

 particularly. 



Each of the animals, as soon as it had arrived at 

 this stage of its suicidal process, was seen to be 

 -wrapped up in a swathing-band of white threads, 

 which, issuing in a bundle from the rupture, soon 

 became involved in inextricable confusion by the 

 writhings and knottings of the animal. The threads 

 were of great length, and closely resembled in appear- 

 ance white sewing-cotton. The microscope revealed 

 their structure. They were not ciliated, and therefore 

 had no spontaneous motion ; in these respects differing 

 fi'om the convoluted filaments of the Actiniae, to which 

 they bear great affinity. The common texture was 

 composed of a multitude of very minute round gTanules 

 of hyaline and nearly colourless jelly, about ^oVo"^^ 

 of an inch in diameter, having no motion when 

 crushed down. In this granular substance were set 

 numerous ova, ranging from y^th to -g^oth of an inch 

 in diameter. These consisted of a hyaline integument, 

 including an opaque brown granular yelk, sometimes 

 nearly filling the interior, at others occupying not 

 more than two-thirds of it. Within the yelk in each 

 there was a well-defined, globular, hyaline nucleus. 

 On continued pressure, the integument burst with a 

 start and a loud crepitation ; the yelk oozed through 

 the rupture, retaining its integrity, though its elastic 

 form changed as it passed through the narrow aper- 

 tm'e : the nucleus was also compressible and elastic, 

 escaping entire, a clear globular vesicle. 



I was in hopes that this spontaneous protrusion of 

 the egg-tubes was a normal process, and that by 



