in any cell may divide into very many minute particles, 

 into from seven thousand to twenty thousand the botanists 

 tell us. Now each bit of protoplasm, which may be called 

 a protoplast, is able to do a wonderful thing; it can make 

 a room for itself just as a snail can make its own house. 

 So all these seven thousand or more protoplasts enclose 

 themselves in transparent walls, and the old cell wall ha.s 

 within it a multitude of new Cells. Can you guess the rest 

 of the story? The tiny new cells move about, arrange 

 themselves into a net, and grow together ; the old cell wall 

 breaks, and the tiny new net floats out to begin life by 

 itself. In our sunny summer days the pools are filled up 

 rapidly with new nets ; but since our rainless season is so 

 long, the pools may dry up, and then the nets must die. 

 Botanists tell us that, as this danger approaches, the proto- 

 plasts into which a cell divides, escape at once into the 

 water and swim about for a time ; then two protoplasts 

 from different cells may unite to form a cell that behaves 

 like a seed ; that is, one which can rest a long time and can 

 stand drought and heat or cold until it has a good chance 

 to grow into a new plant. 



There are many other kinds of green Algae, as these 

 scums are called. Some of them are very beautiful under 

 the microscope, and many interesting things have been 

 found out about them. You may have a chance to study 

 them yourselves in higher schools. 



In the ocean, too, are plants that get all of their food from 

 the water, though not all of them can be said to live easy 

 lives. Often they grow on rocks where the waves are 

 constantly breaking. Perhaps you can imagine, if you have 

 been in the surf yourselves, how these plants are pounded, 

 tossed and twisted by the breakers. The brown Algae, or 

 rock weeds and kelps, are the most common plants along 

 the shore. Have you ever noticed how they are fastened 

 to the rocks ? No. 2, Fig. 2, is a drawing of one kind of 



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