68 



the appearance of solid spherical bodies. * Doubtless 

 these luminous particles were owing to salpce, or the 

 pyrosoma atlantica. 



Mr. Langstaff says. " In going from New Holland 

 to China, about half an hour after sunset, the sea pre- 

 sented a milky appearance ; the ship seemed to be sur- 

 rounded by ice covered with snow. A bucket of water 

 being hauled up and examined in the dark, discovered 

 a great number of globular bodies, about the size of a 

 pin's head, linked together : the chains thus formed 

 did not exceed three inches in length, and emitted a 

 pale phosphoric light. By introducing the hand into 

 the water, several chains of the luminous globules 

 were raised: the globules were so transparent that 

 they could not be perceived when the hand was taken 

 into the light."! These appeared to be the linked 

 young of some salpce. We find that Riville describes 

 a similar phenomenon off the Malabar coast : " The 

 surface of the sea, gently agitated, was covered with light 

 sparkling like stars ; each wave which broke around the 

 vessel gave out a very lively light, and like in colour 

 to that of cloth of silver electrified in the dark. The 

 waves which seemed from time to time to be con- 

 founded with one another, formed at the horizon a 

 plain covered in appearance with snow, and the track 

 of the vessel was of a lively and luminous white strewed 

 with brilliant and azure-coloured points." This pheno- 

 menon Mr. Thompson thinks ascribable to a crustaceous 



* " That luminous appearance which diffuses itself over the 

 whole surface of the sea arises from a dissolved slimy matter, 

 which spreads its light like that from phosphorous The most minute 

 glittering particles, when highly magnified, had the appearance of 

 small and solid spherical bodies." See Professor Smith' s Journal, 

 #c. p. 258. 



f Phil. Trans. 1810. p. 249. et seq. 



