Ou 
Mr. A. Hancock on the Excavating Sponges. 355 
where been tamed, and so as to form the stock now living of 
any tame race, has not perhaps through any comparisons been 
fully shown; but Prof. Owen supposes that the small-grown, 
small-horned, often hornless cattle in Wales and in the High- 
lands of Scotland descended from that race which he considers 
was tamed before the invasion of the Romans, by the original 
inhabitants; when, on the conquest of the country, they fled 
with their herds to the woody mountain-tracts. If it exists 
among us in any tame race of cattle, it would seem to be in the 
so-called Finn cattle. 
The forehead more broad than long, convex: the horns set 
on anterior to the ridge which separates the forehead from the 
occiput. The intermaxillary bones never reach up as far as 
the nasal bones. 
XXX VIII.— Observations on My. Morris’s paper on the Excava- 
ting Sponges. By Autpany Hancock, Esq. 
To Richard Taylor, Esq. 
Dear Sir, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Oct. 15, 1849. 
I nap much pleasure on reading im the last Number of the 
‘Annals,’ Mr. Morris’s abstract of the papers published by 
Dr. Nardo and M. Michelin on the Excavating Sponges, and 
am only sorry that I was not aware of the investigations of these 
naturalists at the time I drew up my own observations on the 
subject. The access to scientific works im the country is very 
limited, and those referred to by Mr. Morris I have had no op- 
portunity of seeing. 
When, in my paper read at the Swansea Meeting of the Bri- 
tish Association, I first stated my belief that Cliona excavated 
the chambers it inhabits, the assertion met with such general 
opposition, that I must confess I am now somewhat surprised on 
bemg informed that this subject had been so fully discussed 
some years ago ; so far at least as relates to the question whether 
or not these sponges make the holes in which they are found 
concealed. Indeed it seems strange that there should ever have 
been two opinions on this pomt ; for after the attention has once 
been called to it, a simgle specimen, in good condition, is suffi- 
cient to convince the inquirer that Cliona does really form its 
complicated habitation. This appeared to me so evident on ex- 
amining the first specimens I procured, that had this fact not 
been disputed by naturalists of great eminence, I should never 
have thought it necessary to have dwelt so long on it. At that 
time I should have had great pleasure in quoting Nardo or Mi- 
chelin m confirmation of this part of the argument, which was 
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