28 The Mycefozoa, and 



heights above the ground. But of this power, this im- 

 pulse, this faculty, this gift of resisting the force of gravity, 

 and the attraction of the earth what shall we say ? what 

 account can we give ? We can only keep silence. 



CAPTURING FOOD. The habits of swarm spores in the 

 pursuit or capture of their food have been very successfully 

 observed by Mr. Lister. In the case of Perichcena corticalis 

 he observed a swarm spore with four vacuoles, each stuffed 

 with from six to eight bacilli ; and in the course of twelve 

 minutes he saw four bacilli drawn in by the projecting 

 parts, or pseudopodia of the swarm spore. In the case 

 of Didymium (or Chondrioderma) di forme, he observed 

 that the capture of a bacillus is sometimes effected by 

 pseudopodia. More often, a funnel-shaped aperture was 

 formed in the posterior part of the swarm spore, and when 

 a bacillus was unwary enough to enter, it was enclosed by 

 a folding over of the lips of the funnel. The bacilli thus 

 captured were seen to dissolve in the vacuoles, but no 

 refuse matter was observed to be rejected ; probably the 

 whole bacillus was of absolutely digestible matter. On 

 another occasion, Mr. Lister observed a swarm spore come 

 upon a group of motionless bacilli. It spread itself out 

 so as to cover four of them, and in about two minutes 

 resumed its former shape, and crept away, carrying two 

 bacilli in its vacuole. In the case of Stemonitis fusca, he 

 observed the capture by pseudopodia of a bacillus so large 

 that when drawn up into the body of the swarm spore it 

 forced the swarm spore to bulge out on either side. On this 

 followed a violent jerking motion of the swarm spore, which 



