SPONGE CULTURE. 611 
having verified this statement. Allemand is far more convinced, for he has 
observed that ‘‘ the whole of the cuttings taken from a small sponge gavea greater 
volume than that obtained from an identical sponge placed whole at the same 
time and under the same conditions.” It is rather difficult to have this state- 
ment agree with another of the same author, i. e., ‘the growth of a fragment or of 
a sponge derived from a fragment is much slower than that of a sponge growing 
spontaneously and not coming froma fragment.’ Wemight conclude, perhaps, 
that the sponge ‘‘ placed under the same conditions,”’ the term of the comparison, 
had not a normal subsequent development. An accident in experimentation can 
not serve as a basis for generalization. It is, moreover, to be regretted that 
the most of the authors who have given us information on the culture of sponges 
do not give any precise definition of what they mean by size and volume; it 
seems tome that what they mean by doubling or trebling the size is the diameter, 
and not the size or volume. 
Marenzeller, taking into consideration the results reported by Schmidt and 
Buccich, seemed to be skeptical as to the future of sponge culture. He finally 
raised the question whether this method of culture ought not to be applied 
only to the cutting up of flat and worthless sponges, the pieces of which would 
give sponges of rounded shape, or to the grafting together of badly shaped and 
consequently cheap sponges. Such application would be of very small impor- 
tance. The fishermen garner sponges haphazard, without taking pains to give 
the care and minute precautions demanded for the manipulation of individuals 
destined for cuttings. When the sponge brought up by the harpoon is of little 
worth it is not reasonable to expect the fisherman to lose time in manipulating 
and preserving this worthless piece, which might be utilized in a more advan- 
tageous manner if he continued his fishing. Supposing that the fisherman 
followed scrupulously the directions given him, the worthless sponges thus 
gathered would cost the breeder of sponges much more than the sponges to be 
had on the market. He would then have to continue with them a series of 
procedures involving expenditures the history of which has been given here. 
And all this to bring about what results? To obtain at the end of several 
years sponges which also might be worthless, fit only to be thrown aside, like 
their parent. 
The project of fusing badly shaped sponges into one does not deserve to be 
considered. It is only a pastime for the naturalist, not a procedure for daily 
practice, and only the virtuosi of sponge culture might attempt it with some 
hope of a modest remuneration for their day’s work. But we have not yet 
gone so far, and there is no dean in sponge culture. Moreover, there is nothing 
to prove that the final result of these operations would always be perfect. 
Should I judge by what I obtained from attempts of grafting halves of different 
