134 HIDDEN BEAUTIES OF NATURE 



shells are so small that 280,000 of them have weighed 

 but one ounce ! This opens up a subject for the 

 exercise of our minds. 



The chalk of Europe is the result of foraminiferal 

 life, as are also many of the so-called greensands. 

 Many of the rocks of earlier ages than those yet 

 mentioned, namely, the carboniferous limestones, 

 consist of shells of Foraminifera, notably that known 

 as 'fusilina limestone.' 



In the chapter on ' Atlantic Ooze' we see that the 

 building-up process is progressing at the present 

 moment, and what is taking place in the Atlantic 

 occurs in other oceans and seas. The families of the 

 Foraminifera may be different, but their agency is 

 incessant and almost universal. We ought not, 

 therefore, to find any difficulty in obtaining samples 

 of these beautiful shells for examination. Beauty, 

 and that in a high degree, characterises all the shells 

 of the Foraminifera, whether recently found floating 

 on the ocean surface or forming an integral part of 

 some limestone rock. 



I can imagine some young friend saying, ' I should 

 like to see the Foraminifera shells from the floor of 

 the further end of the Mediterranean Sea, but I have 

 no means of getting a supply.' It can be managed 

 in this way, for you do not require a cartload. A 

 sample that will cover a sixpence will be sufficient 

 for microscopic examination. Go to a chemist, or 

 any dealer of sponges, and get him to shake a new 

 sponge on a sheet of paper. You may find a good 



