'i66 ANIMALCULA OF INFUSIONS. ti 



with infers which are fo all their lives, and 

 continue gelatinous during exiftence. Such arfe 

 thofe belonging to the fmgular and numerous fa- 

 mily of polypi : alfo the animalcula of infufions. 

 How many infedts fhould be tranfparent in their 

 primitive ftate in the ftate of a germ ! It is, in- 

 deed, a niofl remarkable fact, and on which 

 fufficient attention is not beftowed, that all 

 animals and vegetables are, in their original 

 ftate, nearly of the fame confiftency, and thofe 

 which, like the oak and rhinocerosj afterwards 

 acquire the greateft folidity, have at firft no more 

 than the polypus. By what wonderful mechanifm 

 does nature bring them to the degree of confift- 

 ence and opacity proper to the fpecies ? Here ob- 

 fcurity thickens more and more. Only the rudi- 

 ments of the profound theory of increment are 

 known. Thefe rudiments I have attempted to trace 

 in Part II. PaimgeneftePhi!ojQ)phique, and fhown the 

 philofophic naturalift in what manner he may 

 throw more light on this important fubjecl. The 

 principles, by which I many years ago attempted 

 to give a reafon for increment, are in fome mea- 

 fure confirmed by Nature herfelf. M, Heriifant 

 has been her interpreter j and his ex:cellent experi- 

 ments on the growth of the bones and of marine 

 bodies have greatly ftrengthened the probability of 

 my ideas. He has communicated them to us ; 

 and i have had the fatisfadion of doing juftice to 



bis 



