494 ON THE OCCURRENCE OF FLESH-SPICULES IN SPONGES. 



The extraordinary rich material which five months dredging in 

 Port Jackson has brought to light, together with the numerous 

 and well-preserved Sponges of all parts of the Australian Coast in 

 the Museum of the Hon. William Macleay, and in the Australian 

 Museum, which I have had opportunity to examine has rendered 

 fresh proofs to this hypothesis, which I wish to draw attention to- 



I have found an Aplysillidse with numerous anchors in the 

 ground substance, and a representative of the Spongidse, a Sponge 

 which would otherwise be undoubtedly referred to Cacospongia 

 containing numerous truncate spicules in the ground substance. 



I therefore consider myself to be justified in arranging the 

 Families without regard to the existence of Flesh-spicules beside 

 the fibres in the ground substance, and so divide all Families in 

 which Flesh-spicules are sometimes met with into Sub-families with 

 and without siliceous bodies in the ground substance. 



As these discoveries tend greatly to prove the correctness of my 

 former statements, which may have appeared perhaps to stand on 

 too weak a foundation of facts, it may be worth while to publish 

 them now as it will be some time before I shall be able to lay that 

 part of my Monograph of the Australian Sponges before the 

 Linnean Society of New South Wales, which dwells on the 

 Families of the Ceraospongise. 



