148 TOILERS IN THE SEA. 



" Large tangled masses of them, which are full of 

 beauty in themselves, are cast ashore, and if ex- 

 amined while still fresh, and moist, will often be found 

 to conceal some of the smaller kinds in a living 

 state." It would be an unwarrantable presumption 

 on our part to suppose any stray visitor to the sea 

 coast ignorant of such pretty objects, and withal 

 such " common objects of the sea shore ", as Zoo- 

 phytes, which may be seen adhering to every scallop- 

 shell in the town fishmonger's window. Some may 

 even have admired them when cleaned and grouped 

 in fanciful shapes, for ornamental purposes, as offered 

 for sale in the shop windows at fashionable watering- 

 places. 



Should any mind be still harassed by doubt, a 

 glance at one or two of the woodcuts may serve to 

 restore peace. It is hardly surprising that, in days 

 gone by, these organisms were regarded as sea-plants, 

 kind of sea-weeds. Fixed to the rock, branched and 

 divided (fig. 20), and bearing capsules, resembling a 

 kind of fruit, so long as their minute structure, and 

 method of life, were unknown, it was excusable that 

 such mysterious "Toilers in the Sea" should be deemed 

 vegetables. Now, when their innermost secrets have 

 been revealed, no one would hesitate to pronounce 

 them animals, colonies of little animals, building for 

 themselves these horny, plant-like homes, and 

 dwelling in them. 



