MARVELS OF THE POND. 119 



with only a comparatively few exceptions, man 

 knows nothing at all about nearly one half of 

 creation ! This realm, over which dominion was 

 given to him " in the beginning," has not even been 

 explored, save by an adventurous observer here and 

 there. 



In this chapter I want to give a few glimpses, at 

 any rate, of this almost boundless region ; and to do 

 so I shall have to describe organisms that no human 

 eye can examine without optical aid. 



We will make our way to some neighbouring pond 

 where there is some kind of plant life, and with 

 muslin net and collecting bottle will secure some 

 of the mixed growing arid decomposing vegetable 

 matter that lies tangled together in the water. Or, 

 if we keep an aquarium, it will only be necessary 

 to place under the magic lens a minute spray of 

 the weed that we may have there, or simply take 

 a drop or two of the water and put it into the live 

 box for inspection. There will at once start into 

 vision all sorts and sizes of active organisms round, 

 oval, linear, while some have most bewitching forms 

 of fairy-like beauty. In general, these living things 

 are called Infusoria. The name originated from 

 the fact that they usually abounded in infusions of 

 vegetable matter. Indeed, if a few wisps of hay be 

 put into a jar of rain or pond water and kept a day or 

 two in a warm place, there will be found a number 

 of these interesting creatures, and the more offensive 

 the water becomes the more likely it is to contain 

 some of the objects I am going to describe. 



It may be as well to say that the word Infusoria 



