THIRD WEEK] May 117 



one of the greatest wonders of the world. The egg which 

 consisted of but one cell is now divided into two exactly 

 equal parts, of the deepest significance. Of the latter 

 truth we may judge from the fact that if one of those cells 

 should be injured, only one-half a polywog would result, - 

 either a head or a tail half. 



Before long the unseen hand of life ploughs another 

 furrow across the egg, and we have now four cells. These 

 divide into eight, sixteen, and so on far beyond human 

 powers of numeration, until the beginnings of all the 

 organs of the tadpole are formed. While we cannot, of 

 course, follow this development, we can look at our egg 

 every day and at last see the little wiggle heads or polywogs 

 (from pol and wiggle] emerge. 



In a few days they develop a fin around the tail, and 



