M. C. Semper on Euplectella aspergillum. 27 



if the simplest circumstances threatened to become confused 

 by the help of our savants j who do not hesitate to support by 

 scientific reasonings the simple fancies of a set of fishermen, I 

 think it is time for me to bring my own observations to light. 

 Under the name of ^^ regadera"*, these sponges are brought 

 by the fishermen for sale to Cebii, one of the Visaya islands. 

 In the course of several years I myself saw there seven or 

 eight specimens ; and, as I was told by a very intelligent 

 mestizo in the town, about twelve to fourteen specimens in all 

 had, up to that time (1864) been sent to Europe. As, how- 

 ever, nearly all these specimens, having been bought by 

 Spaniards, went to Spain, and probably remained for the most 

 part as ornaments in the state rooms of private individuals, we 

 may easily understand how, since the investigations of Owen 

 and Bowerbank, no further details as to these organisms came 

 into the possession of the scientific world. Recently the fisher- 

 men of Cebii seem to have discovered the true habitat of the 

 sponge ; at least this is indicated by the rapidly increasing 

 number of the specimens of Euplectella since my return in the 

 year 1865. This was certainly not the case during my resi- 

 dence. In a dredging voyage which I made in the year 1864 

 round the neighbouring island of Bohol ; and in the channel 

 between Bohol and Cebii I anchored for two days in 120 fa- 

 thoms, at the spot where the fishermen of S. Nicolas asserted 

 they had found the Euplectella. As I fished for them in vain, 

 it seems probable that they had deceived me as well as all 

 other Europeans, so as not to bring down the price of the 

 sponges by betraying the place of their origin — a stratagem 

 which is well known to be employed not only by Malay 

 fishermen. As I was unlucky in my fishing, I purchased a 

 specimen, which, unfortunately, was much bleached and no 

 longer fresh. Subsequently I obtained through a kind friend 

 fourteen specimens, all, with the exception of two, perfectly 

 preserved. Nearly all of these contained the crustacean which 

 I had long known, and the association of which with this 

 sponge was first made known by Gray. 



* " Regadera " means " watering-pot." The false spelling ('' rigederos ") 

 of Messrs. H. Chevalier and Gray reminds me vividly of a time when I en- 

 deavoured in vain to teach an English sailor the correct pronunciation of 

 some Spanish names. The Spanish e and a were constantly pronounced 

 by him as i and e. Exactly the same orthography seems to have been 

 adopted in the above case. I might venture here to cite a third, and this 

 time a Germanized spelling of the Spanish word "regadera," namely 

 "reidschidiros," By such felicitous changes we may hope by degrees to 

 introduce this denomination again into the Philippines as true Malay. 

 At least, the attempted derivations of the word " Papua " show the pos- 

 sibilitv of this in an allied case. 



