THE STEUCTURE AND RELATIONS OF TUBirORA. 557 



of the polyps, but at the same time many important histological 

 details must remain doubtful until some further material can 

 be procured in which the polyps have been killed in the fully 

 expanded condition. 



Brief history of our knowledge of Tubipora. — The 

 first mention I can find of Tubipora is by Aldrovande, (1) who, 

 in 1648, describing it under the name '' Pseudo-corallium 

 rubrum calamites/' considered it could not be a true coral, 

 because, as he asserts, it does not adhere to rocks. "Hujus- 

 modi coralium caret cortice in fundo Maris crescit non autera 

 saxis adhseret more aliorum coraliorum." In 1651 Bauhin (2) 

 described it under the name " Coralliis affine alcyonium 

 rubrum." Subsequently, it was referred to by Imperato (9) 

 Rumphius (23) and Tournefort (25), the last named being the 

 first to give it the common name " organ-pipe coral." " Tubu- 

 laria est plantse genus, fere lapidem ex pluribus tubulis con- 

 stans, organi musici aemulum." Pallas, (21) writing in 1776, 

 was the first to give it the name Tubipora. He seems to have 

 made a much more accurate examination of it, and to have 

 beeti thoroughly convinced of its animal nature. In his 

 definition, he refers to the tabulae in these words : " Tubuli 

 articulati, siphunculo continuo ad orificium stellato communi- 

 cantes." The first good figure of the coral was published by 

 Ellis and Solander (6) in 1786, and this was improved upon 

 by Lamouroux (13) in 1821, both of whom figure and describe 

 the tabulae. The first attempt to give a figure of the polype 

 was made by Quoy and Gaimard (22) in 1833. 



Coming down to more recent times, our literature is still 

 very meagre. Percival Wright, (26) in 1869, first discovered and 

 described the formation of the skeleton of the tubes by the fusion 

 of spicules, and also described many details of the anatomy 

 of the soft parts which were previously unknown. In 1874 

 G. von Koch (10) published his dissertation on the anatomy 

 of the organ-pipe coral, but he seems to have been unacquainted 

 with the paper previously published by Wright on the same 

 coral. He gave figures for the first time of the mesenteries, 

 muscles, transverse sections through polyps in various regions, 



