105 



moments open, lose their spherical form, and put on 

 that of a bell, or complete polypus. This is the 

 manner in which clustering polypi are multiplied. 

 The whole operation is performed in throe quarters of 

 an hour. The cluster which they form, rests upon 

 a stem, which is fixed to some other body at its lower 

 extremity, and from it arise other branches; other 

 branches again shoot out from these in different 

 places, from these last other new ones, and so on. 

 At the extremity of each branch, is a polypus. The 

 assemblage of all these branches, with the polypi at 

 their extremities, form a cluster much resembling a 

 tuft of flowers. The stem which carries all the clus. 

 ter, is capable of a remarkable motion, each branch 

 contracts, when it is touched ; each can contract it- 

 self alone, though this seldom happens, for in con- 

 tracting it commonly touches another which then 

 immediately contracts with it. When the main stem. 

 which bears the whole cluster contracts, all the. 

 .branches contract together, and the whole becomes 

 entirely closed. A moment after, the branches and 

 the stem again extend themselves, and the whole 

 cluster recovers its ordinary figure. A cluster is 

 formed thus, a single polypus detaching from the 

 cluster, swims about in the water, till it meets wifeii 

 some proper body, to fix itself upon. It then has a 

 pedicle, but which is no longer than the polypus it- 

 self, but it becomes eight or nine times as long in 

 four and twenty hours, and is to bs the main stem 

 of the new cluster. In a day after it is fixed, it di, 

 vides itself i&to two, each of which in a lew hours 

 divides into two more. These soon alter puf out 

 branches, and all this is reiterated several times. 

 Thus a principal branch is formed, provided with se- 

 veral lateral ones, which afterwards become principal 

 one*, witii regard to others that spring from them. 



When a cluster is nearly stript of its polypi, the 



branches are no longer able to contract. Wifen but a 



few poiypi remain, none can contract but those to 



which they are fixed. Hence it appears ; that this 



F 5 



