72 MULLER, ON SPH.EROZOUM 



thereupon grows into a young Vaucheria, exactly resembling 

 the parent plant (fig. 19, 20). Close observation shows that 

 the innermost layer, elongating, breaks through the thick 

 outer membrane, and becomes the young tube, exactly in the 

 same way as I have described the process of development in 

 the germinating spore of Spirogyra. 



The observation of the germination of this spore, however, 

 completes the proof that the cell produced in consequence of 

 the action of the spermatozoids is the true propagative cell of 

 Vaucheria arising from a sexual act. 



{To he continued.) 



On Sph^rozoum, Meyen. (Thalassicolla, Huxley.) Nocti- 

 LUCA, and the PoLVCYSxiNiE. By Prof. Muller. {^Report 

 of Berlin Academy,^ April 19, 1855.) 



In the ' Annals of Nat. Hist.,' 2 ser., vol. 8, p. 433, Mr. 

 Huxley describes what he regarded as a new genus of 

 zoophytes, under the name of Thalassicolla. This produc- 

 tion, whether animal or vegetable, is found in transparent, 

 colourless, gelatinous masses of very various forms and size ; 

 showing no evidence of contractility nor any power of loco- 

 motion. 



Of such bodies Mr. Huxley notices two very distinct 

 kinds — the one, consisting of oval or constricted, and many 

 spherical masses, is distinguished to the naked eye by pos- 

 sessing numerous darker dots scattered about in its substance ; 

 whilst the other is always spherical, has no dots, but presents 

 a very dark, blackish centre, the periphery being more or less 

 clear. 



For the former kind Mr. Huxley adopted the provisional 

 name of T. punctata^ and for the latter that of T. nucleattty 

 but without prejudging the question as to the existence of 

 specific distinctions. 



These creatures, which are described as consisting funda- 

 mentally of a mass of cells united by jelly, " like an animal 

 Palmella," are placed by Mr. Huxley with the Protozoa, and 

 regarded by him as belonging to the same great division as 

 the Sponges, Foraminifera, InfusoricB, and Gregarinida, — 

 unicellular animals. Of the two species, T. punctata and 

 T. 7iucleata, the former appears to present several varieties, 

 and the latter seems to approach very closely in its nature to 

 X^octiluca. 



In the Reports of the Berlin Academy for April 19, 1855, 

 is a paper by Prof. MUller upon Sphcerozoum and Thalassi- 



