2 ARTHUR DENDY. 



a glass of sea water I soon saw that it was still alive, and 

 that it exhibited very unusual features, differing widely fi'om 

 any pelagic organism with which I was acquainted. After 

 studying it for some time with the aid of a pocket lens I 

 took it up to my laboratory at Christchurch, and continued 

 my examination of the living animal the same night. Being 

 unwilling to risk the attempt to keep it alive until the next 

 morning, I then killed it by the addition of osmic acid to the 

 sea water, and preserved it in alcohol. It was unfortunate 

 that the lateness of the hour prevented me from making a 

 more exhaustive examination of the living organism, as 

 more light might have been thereby thrown upon its move- 

 ments and habits; but it seemed best to try and make sure of 

 having it well preserved for minute investigation subse- 

 quently, and in this I was fairly successful. The action of 

 the osmic acid was, as might have been expected in the case 

 of so large an organism, very unequal, some of the more 

 superficial parts being much blackened, while the interior 

 was apparently not affected at all, and consequently turned 

 out to be not in so good a condition for minute histological 

 investigation as I could have wished. Had I suspected how 

 complicated and remarkable the structure of the interior 

 really was I might have thought it best to cut the organism 

 in half in order to allow the osmic acid to penetrate, but as 

 it was it did not seem to me desirable in any way to mutilate 

 the unique specimen at that early stage of the investigation. 

 It was very soon obvious that the organism was an 

 enormous free-swimming hydroid, from the greater part of 

 the surface of which numerous little medusoids were being: 

 budded off in groups. Being about to pay a visit to 

 England, however, I postponed the greater part of the 

 investigation until after my arrival, when I resumed the 

 work in the zoological laboratory of the Owens College. It 

 affords me very great pleasure to express my thanks to 

 Professor Hickson and his staff for the kind hospitality 

 which I received at their hands, and for the valuable assist- 

 p-nce rendered to me during the progress of my research. 



