260 
LEEUWENHOEK AND HIS “ LITTLE ANIMALS” 
(which was become exceeding thin and clear) was * burst 
asunder; and that the ten particles, that were contained 
within the two big bodies, were moving about in the 
water, rolling first one way and then the other. 
Furthermore I perceived,’ after the space of five days, 
that the small particles inclosed in the third large body 
were not only grown in bigness, but I could also then 
discern that from inside these small particles other lesser 
round particles* were to come forth. After the lapse of 
five days more, this third round body was also a bit burst 
open, and its contained particles were also come out of it: 
but notwithstanding it was open on one side, it kept on 
going round in the water, and that as quick as it had 
done heretofore. 
Some days afterwards, I could make out nought but 
some little bits whereof the bigger bodies had been 
composed ; and soon after, these too went out of sight. 
Without a break I continued from day to day to watch 
these little particles that had issued from the bigger 
ones; and I always saw that they not only waxed in 
bigness, but that the particles contained within them got 
bigger too. 
At the end of September,’ I perceived that the con- 
tained particles were not so regularly round as the bigger 
bodies wherein they were inclosed, and therewithal that 
some of them were broke apieces ; and that the last particles 
that were come out of the big ones seemed not to be round, 
and lay without motion against the glass.’ 
1 waren MS.—corrected to was in printed version. 
2 dat (redundant) stands here in the MS., but has been removed in the 
printed version. 
* j.e., daughter-colonies within the daughter- colonies. This acute 
observation gave great support to the doctrine of the “ preformationists ”’ at 
a later epoch, though it was then usually accredited to Spallanzani—who 
merely repeated and confirmed L.’s observations. 
* Anno 1698. 
> The whole of the foregoing sentence is inexplicably omitted from the 
Latin version. 
