Knowledge of the Spongida. 327 
rest, 2. ¢. 1-3rd inch in diameter, while the five entire ones, about. 
an inch long respectively, of which two, as before stated, are 
bifurcate, are all closed and round at the extremities. In- 
ternal structure consisting of an open reticulated, coarse, white 
spicule-fibre (that 1s, composed of spicules only held together 
by a minimum of sarcode, or holorhaphidotic), which fills the 
cavity of the body and in the horizontal section at the base 
presents a subconcentric growth, covered on the surface by a 
thin, soft, dermal layer of small spicules. Body-structure per- 
meated vertically by tubular channels, which respectively com- 
municate with the tubular appendages of the surface, which on 
their part are formed by hollow extensions of the coarse reti- 
culated structure of the body covered by that of the soft brown 
dermal layer before mentioned, which also extends more or 
less into the ¢nterior of the reticulated structure generally. 
Spicules of two forms, viz.:—1, large, skeletal, acerate, fusi- 
form, curved, smooth, more or less abruptly sharp-pointed and 
often blunt, about 72 by 4-6000ths inch in its greatest dimen- 
sions (P]. XIII. fig. 17, a) ; 2, smaller spicule, cylindrical, 
smooth, much curved, obtuse and rounded at each end, 
sausage-like, varying in size from 10 to 20 by 1-6000th 
inch (fig. 17,5). Skeleton-spicules chiefly confined to the 
now white body-fibre, and the smaller ones to the now brown 
dermal layer. Size of specimen, in its present hemispherical 
truncated form, about 1 inch high by 2 and 11 inch re- 
spectively in diameter across the truncated surface or pre- 
sent base, thus irregularly oval. 
Hab. Marine. 
Loc. Singapore. 
Qbs. The bright colour when fresh and the spiculation are 
the distinguishing characters of this species. Although the 
excretory canals in the body-structure can be seen to be in 
continuation, as above stated, with the tubular appendages, 
yet there is, as in other species of the group, no appearance 
upon the latter or the body generally of vents; but their being 
in continuation with the tubular appendages indicates that the 
whole belong to the excretory canal-system, and the open 
structure observed at the extremity of the appendages them- 
selves in Oceanapia (‘ Annals,’ 1882, vol. x. p. 119) seems 
to confirm this view, by supplying the place of a distinct vent 
or vents of the usual form. 
There is a similar specimen in the Johnstonian collection 
in the British Museum, now bearing my running no. “54,” 
but no register no. and no locality. That belonging to the 
Liverpool Free Museum is numbered 24. 5. 83. 21, and was, 
together with another specimen of about the same size, but 
still more incomplete, presented by Dr. Archer. 
