176 On the Submarine-Cable Fauna. 
PORIFERA. 
Small fragments of a sponge occurred on the stems of a 
zoophyte. Not recognizing it, I forwarded it to Dr. Bower- 
bank, who pronounced it new, and has characterized it as 
below. There was also a mass of siliceous root-fibres, re- 
minding one strongly of those of Holtenia Carpenter’; but 
they are not referable to that species, inasmuch as there were 
no hamate spined spicules (véde Thomson’s plate lxviii. fig. 5), 
and the simple spicules were of two sizes—the one much larger 
than those of H. Carpenter?, the other very much more slender. 
Tam not able, therefore, to refer this ‘beard ” to any known 
sponge. I should add, however, that Dr. Bowerbank thinks 
they belong to Holtenia; but I cannot agree with him, for the 
reasons I have stated, in thinking so. 
“ Tsodictya funalis, Bowerbank, n. sp. 
Y ; ) I 
“‘ Sponge massive, sessile. Surface smooth, but uneven. 
Oscula simple, dispersed, minute. Pores inconspicuous. 
Dermal membrane pellucid, spiculous ; tension-spicula acerate, 
slender, subfasciculate, rather few in number ; retentive spicula 
bi- and tridentate equianchorate, rather few in number, and 
rarely palmato-tridentate equianchorate; also simple and 
contort bihamate spicula, minute and very slender, rather few 
in number. Skeleton: spicula acuate, stout, rather short, 
basally incipiently spinous ; primary lines tri- or quadrispicu- 
lous, rarely more; secondary lines mostly unispiculous, rarely 
more than bispiculous. Interstitial membranes sparingly 
spiculous ; spicula same as those of the dermal membrane. 
“Colour, in the dried state, milk-white. 
“Hab. On one of the Atlantic cables, 150 miles from the 
Land’s End (Str James Anderson). 
“‘ ixamined in the dried state.” 
EXPLANATION OF PLATE XII. 
Fig. 1. Acryptolaria exserta, Busk, with Scapus tubulifer, Norman, para- 
sitic at a: natural size. 
Fig. 2. A portion of Acryptolaria exserta, magnified. 
Fig. 3. A portion of the surface of Scapus tubulifer, Norman, magnified. 
Figs. 4-7. Hippothoa divaricata, var. carinata, Norman, magnified. 
