253 



tie, because it never fixes, and floats from one side ta 

 the other : its convex surface presents us only with an 

 infinite number of little grains or nipples. But its infe- 

 rior surface, which is concave, is extremely organized ; 

 in that \ve may see a great number of canals, which are 

 regularly disposed, and made with great art, some being 

 circular, and others disposed regularly, like the fellies 

 of a wheel, and which are full of a watery liquor, which 

 passes from one to the other. 



This strange animal wanders about in the sea : it is 

 specifically much heavier than water. He cannot there- 

 in sustain himself without the assistance of a spontane- 

 ous motion, which is worth observing, and cannot be 

 seen but in places where the water is calm. It is so in 

 this little creek, on the extremity of which we are sit- 

 ting. Look with attention on the surface of that jelly 

 which offers itself to your view : observe that it has cer- 

 tain motions, which you are tempted to compare witli? 

 those of the systole and diastole. However, they are 

 not the same : their only end is to cause the nettle to 

 float. You see that in the systole kind, the surface of 

 the animal becomes very convex, and that in the diastole 

 it becomes suddenly flat and wide : such is our gluti- 

 nous nettle's method of floating. When, dried in the 

 , sun, it is reduced almost to nothing : we imagine that 

 we see a little piece of parchment, or very transparent 

 paste. There is no room to doubt that this species of 

 nettle multiplies, like the rest, by slips f but I do not 

 know that there has been any experiment made concern- 

 ing this. A jelly must be attended \\ith greater ease in 

 regenerating itself than organized bodies of the same 

 genus, that are of a more firm and close consistence. 



20. There are no regular, or strange forms, of which 

 the animal kingdom does not afford us models. Here 

 is an animal whose form is precisely that bv which we 

 paint the stars in the firmament : it is nearly flat. From 

 the middle of its body proceed four or five ra>s. which 

 are almost equal, and resembling each other ; its upper 

 M 6 



