MEMOIR OF PALLAS. 25 



siia genera accurate definite speciesqueJ^ In its com- 

 position he availed himself of all that had heen 

 done hefore him, including the labours of Marsigli 

 and Roemphius, of Peysonelli and Trembley, and 

 especially of the more recent discoveries of Linnaeus 

 and Ellis. In the volume we find an Elinchus 

 A uctorum ad Historiam Zoophytorum Spectantium 

 We thence perceive that he consulted no fewer than 

 a hundred treatises on the subject, and in the rich 

 collections of Holland he found treasures more 

 varied and extensive than probably had ever fallen 

 under the examination of any other individual. 

 All these he handled as a master. He divided 

 those he considered as true zoophytes into 15 genera 

 and 250 species ; and added three genera which he 

 considered doubtful, genera amUgua^ comprehending 

 22 species. The former included, 1st, the Hydra; 

 2, Eschara ; 3, Cellularia ; 4, Tabularia ; 5, Brachi- 

 onus; 6, Sertularia; 7, Gorgoniae; 8, Antipathes; 

 9, Isis; 10, Millepora; 11, Madrepora; 12, Tubi- 

 pora; 13, Alcyonium; 14, Pennatula; and 15, 

 Spongia. The three ambiguous genera are Tenia, 

 Volvoces, and Corallina. His definition of sponge 

 is animal amhiguum^ crescens^ torpidissimum ; and 

 he distinctly says that corals are to be referred to 

 the class of vegetables. But we must not enter 

 upon any thing like criticism : Cuvier remarks of 

 the work generally, " that the clearness of his de- 

 scription, and the care with which he refers the 



* BUd. Dot. t. ii. 5QQ. 



