THE JELLY-FISH 1325 



and the large, turned-upside-down, basin-shaped, 

 jelly-looking mass is a waif from the ocean. If one 

 of these stranded jelly-fish is looked at, as it lies on 

 the sand, its shape appears to be something like that 

 of an umbrella without the stick. It is thick, how- 

 ever, and has some curious markings about its sur- 

 face and inside. Even something like a fringe of 

 thick hairs may be detected around the edge. On 

 trying to take it up or turn it over, the fingers go 

 into it, so readily does the animal tear; but on get- 

 ting the umbrella on its back, the underneath part is 

 seen to be made up, in the middle, of some projections 

 slightly more solid than the rest of the body; and if 

 put between them, the finger passes through a sort 

 of tube into a cavity in the body, which is the 

 stomach. 



Some of these jelly-fish, or Medusae, as they are 

 called, are pounds in weight; but after a while only 

 a shred of membrane-looking stuff remains, the 

 water which makes up nearly all the animal having 

 drained away. It is evident that the large Medusa? 

 grow from small ones, and that there are many kinds 

 of them, some of which are always small. A great 

 jelly-fish, two feet across, Was once a little one, lead- 

 ing exactly the same life. They grow, and to grow 

 they must have nourishment; they are never still, 

 and their muscles, transparent as they may be, have 

 to be nourished, or their strength would soon give 

 way. They require not only food, but also air in 

 the water, so that they consume it, and make its 

 oxygen gas of use to them. They seek the light in 

 a remarkable manner, and get out of the way 



