THE BEGINNINGS OF LIPE. 521 



coccus., though not quite so quickly as the gemmae 

 thrown off by adult Hydatinae *. 



No more beautiful sight can be seen by the micro- 

 scopist than one of these bright-green Euglena carpets, 

 uniformly flecked with its carmine c eye-specks,' and 

 irregularly studded with the mysterious egg-like masses, 

 in each of which inscrutable molecular changes are 

 progressing, destined to terminate in the production of 

 a beautiful specimen of one of the largest and most 

 complex of the Rotifers. It is indeed a supreme 

 though utterly inexplicable process of Synthetic Hetero- 

 genesis, which almost as much surpasses in marvellous- 

 ness the origin of Ciliated Infusoria from aggregated 

 Bacteria, as this latter process transcends that of the 

 formation of the minutest speck of living matter from 

 colloidal molecules 2 ! 



What fate, however, awaits the various kinds of 

 Rotifers ? The finer specimens of Brachion, Hydatina, 



1 In a few days, after some of the Hydatinae produced from the 

 pellicle have been hatched, other heterogenetic germs developing from 

 the pellicle become abundantly intermixed with the large egg-like 

 gemmse thrown off from adult Hydatinae. A little experience, how- 

 ever, will soon enable the observer easily to distinguish the former 

 from the latter. The observations which revealed this mode of origin 

 of Hydatinse were made during the months of February and March 

 in the present year. It was, however, long ago pointed out by Dujardin 

 that specimens of Hydatina senta were almost invariably to be met 

 with in association with Euglense, more especially during the spring 

 months. 



a See p. 262. 



