384 THE AMERICAN MONTHLY [Dec 



much smaller and now represented the nucleus itself. 

 The contractile vesicle was very distinct and the inter- 

 vals Itetween diastole and systole were short. This ex- 

 trusion of lobate processes was witnessed forsome time, 

 and it Avas noticed that there was no change in the posi- 

 tion of the young amoeba, but that after awhile it re- 

 tained the elongate form and would throw out pseudo- 

 podia from all parts of its body, that would at times, ex- 

 ceed the length of the zooid. At these times it had the 

 appearance of a minute Amoeba proteus, many of the 

 forms now measured as much as 1-900 inch, without the 

 pseudopodia. The hour being late, the slide was care- 

 fully prepared and put away with a view to continuing 

 the observation later. 



On again resuming the observation, nineteen hours af- 

 terwards, the field was found strewn with a very large 

 number of small and active Amoeba that differed from 

 the larger forms of Amoeba villosa only in the absence 

 of the villous processes. The endoplasm was slightly 

 granular, the nuclei and contractile vesicles as distinct 

 as in the large forms. They were freely moving about 

 and extruded only the lobate processes. Measurements 

 showed them to range from 1-800 to 1-550 inch. In two 

 places on the slide were a number of forms, from ten to 

 fifteen, closely huddled together, as if dropped in a mass 

 at that place. In size and shape tliey were the same as 

 the free moving ones; the nuclei, contractile vesicles and 

 anterior clear spaces being exceedingly distinct. They 

 had a slight movement on and alongside of each other, 

 without seeming to increase tlie space occupied by them. 

 They would remind one of a litter of kittens a day or 

 two old. In speculating on this phenomenon, one could 

 come to the conclusion that those nuclear-looking bodies 

 that remained in the Amoeba after a part had been ejected, 

 were developed within the confines of the body, and 

 were freed only after the dissolution of the firm ecto- 



