304 



THE FLORAL WOELD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



powers and characters of a perfect individiial ; so tbat in this way it 

 is like a plant propagated by cuttings. 



I have, in Tarious ways, put to the test the reproductive powers 

 of the Hydra. I once managed to cut one into forty-two parts, and 

 they soon became perfect Hydras. I divided one lengthwise into 

 two parts, but left the two parts joined at the base, expecting to see 



Hydra fuica — a, natural size ; h, magnified, extended ; c, the same contracted j 

 d, the same teen vertically to show its mouth, e. (After Corda.) 



two perfect animals joined at the foot, but the divided parts united, 

 and very soon there was one complete Hydra as before. I there- 

 fore divided another in the same manner, but divided it completely, 

 and this became two independent animals ; but the posterior end 

 did not acquire completeness. This did not surprise me, for I have 

 always found the sea-anemones capable of reproducing lost parts ; 

 but any injury to the sucking disk is usually fatal to them. The 



