324 SEMINAL VERMICULI. If, 



Such is an abbreviation of the obfervations 

 made on the femen of animals by the ilhiftrious 

 author of Natural Hi/iory ; whence he draws a 

 general conclufion, that the corpufcula examin- 

 ed and defcribed by Leeuwenhoeck a century 

 ago cannot, with the Dutch obferver, by any 

 nieans be termed fpermatic vermiculi, becaufe 

 they poflefs no characleriftics of animality. The 

 labour experienced in drawing along their tails, 

 in divefling themfelves of them, in changing 

 their figure fo often to form anew, before the ob- 

 ferver's eyes, their divifion into parts, and di- 

 minution of fize, feem to him peculiarities in- 

 compatible with animality. On the other hand, 

 r_ot being able to fay they were bodies perfedly 

 inert, becaufe he had really feen figns of anima- 

 tion, he inclines to conftitute them into a parti- 

 cular clafs under the name of organic molecules^ 

 which are particles diifeniinated throughout mat- 

 ter, original, incorruptible, animated, and always 

 active. Nor does he hefitate to confide the for^ 

 mation of the winged univerfe to thefe mole- 

 cules. 



Here I enter not into a difcufTion on organic 

 molecules, but occupied folely with the facls which 

 M. de Buffon relates, I fmcerely regret that the 

 cfiential difference between his account, and w^hat .. 

 ] have myfelf feen, has made a deep impreflion 

 on. my mind. It is not that I wifii to flatter my- 

 felf 



