4V8 . TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



Although these Coral Banks were known already to Pliny and Strabo, 

 nothing definite could be said of them ; they were believed to be plants, 

 which petrify by reaching the surface of the water. Travelers in this re- 

 gion were amazed on observing the wonderful variety of colors which these 

 banks presented to them. 



Ehrenberg enriched natural history by classifying and describing one hun- 

 dred and fifty different species of these animalculse, of which the lives of 

 centuries are required to increase in a small degree the height of these banks. 

 Many of the prejudices of the sailors and other travelers on these coral 

 banks, were dispersed by the light of science which Ehrenberg was holding 

 out in his works on the subject. 



The Prussian government conferred upon him the Professorship of the 

 University of Berlin, as soon as he returned from Egypt, and invited him, 

 after few years of his appointment, to accompany Humboldt and Rose to 

 Asia, which he accepted, the object being investigations of nature in this 

 part of the world. They returned in the year 1839, and since that time to 

 this day Ehrenberg's wdiole activity was devoted to the most difficult in- 

 vestigations and explanations of the wonders of microscopical life. 



Two great works are the fruits of his labor ; first, " The Infusoria as 

 Perfect Organism," and second, " Microgeology," (1853.) To these works 

 are attached the best drawings of the subject treated, and which were 

 made by Ehrenberg himself. The high prices of these works make them 

 inaccessible to private individuals, except rich ones, but for libraries, they 

 belong to the treasures of their collection. 



The microscopical life in a small space o/" the xuJiolc world, is the great 

 and wonderful subject which Ehrenberg undertook to investigate. He 

 himself traveled for this purpose in Europe, Asia and Africa, and he opened 

 connections with all parts of America and Australia, from where friendly 

 offers of such assistance were made to him, and thus he was supplied with 

 specimens taken from every part of the world — from the arctic regions as 

 well as from the tropics; from the highest mountains to a depth of 12,000 

 feet below the surface ; from the mud of rivers, as well as from the coasts 

 of lakes ; in short, from everywhei-e on this globe Ehrenberg examined 

 the microscopic beings, and he showed their forms to be as infinite as it is 

 in the world of macrocosme. 



He possesses svich a wonderful certainty of dcfination, that by the most 

 minute piece of silica he determines the family and genera of the infusoria, 

 and resembles in this respect, Cuvier, who could do it by a single bone 

 of an animal presented to him. 



Not only the forms of infusoria which exist at present are found by him, 

 but also those of thousands of years past. If we take into consideration 

 that not less than forty microscopic analyses of each specimen sent are 

 made by him, we must be astonished at the activity and perseverance of 

 this learned man to work as he has with the mos-t minute matters. 



It is no need stating that his observations are the most accurate and 

 reliable, and it is a prover of the admiration of the scientific world, that 



