en Polypes cut a [wider. 89 



Polype has little or no other Colour than 

 what it receives from the Appearance of its 

 Food through the Skin -, that its Juices are 

 perfectly colon rlefs; (as is the Cafe of feve- 

 ral other Infedts called, very improperly, Ex- 

 angiies, v^ho have a circulating Fluid, though 

 not of a red Colour:) and that an Effufion 

 of fuch colourlefs Fluid muft neceffarily be 

 undifcernable, unlefs its Current were fo con- 

 fiderable as to occafion fome apparent Emo- 

 tion in the Water where it undergoes the 

 Operation ; which cannot be expelled from 

 the minute Veffels of fo fmall an Animal. 

 We muft not, therefore, conclude as a Cer- 

 tainty, that no Kind of Fluid iffues from the 

 Wound, becaufe we are unable to fee any : 

 for though, at firft, nothing is indeed per- 

 ceivable, it is common after a few Hours to 

 obferve a Slime or Mucus adhering to the 

 wounded Parts, and which iflues, without 

 Doubt, from the Veffels that are cut afunder, 

 though in too flow a Manner, and too tranf- 

 parent, to be taken notice of. It is more- 

 over evident, that all the Juices of this Crea- 

 ture are extremely vifcid : and, perhaps, to 

 that vifcous Quality may reafonably be im- 

 puted the Smallnefs of their Effufion, and 

 the fudden clofing of the Veffels, or healing 

 of the wounded Parts : fomething of which 

 may alfo probably be the Reafon, why many 

 other Animals, fuch as Snakes, Eels, &c, 

 live many Hours after they are cut in pieces; 



though 



