ACALEPim 47 



now combined in vast multitudes, forming a broad 

 sheet of light. The vessel glides in amongst them, 

 or the oar throws up the white foam, and a shower of 

 stars rises but to fall a stream of living brightness. 

 Down below the surface these jellies seem like balls 

 of silver or gold : sometimes, as in the Girdle of Venus, 

 of the blue Mediterranean, appearing like a riband 

 of flame of several feet long ; or as in the yet more 

 luminous Pryosoma, enabling the voyager to read by 

 their light as he stands by the cabin- window of the 

 ship. Some of the larger species are described as hav- 

 ing the resemblance to white-hot shot, visible at some 

 depth beneath the surface ; our own rocky shores are 

 sometimes studded with them as with diamonds, and 

 many who have trodden on the tuft of sea-weed have 

 seen it shoot out in all directions rays of phosphoric 

 light, which reminded them of a star of artificial fire- 

 work." 



We have yet to mention another property of the 

 Acalephse. This is the unpleasant one of stinging, 

 whence comes the popular name of Nettle-fish. It 

 was at one time supposed that this was natural to 

 all, but the late Professor Forbes ascertained that it 

 was confined to comparatively a small number of 

 species. The stinging apparatus is formed of several 

 hollow and (what we should not expect from the 

 gelatinous character of the animal) muscular fibres. 

 This apparatus, however, has been observed in species 

 that have no urticating power. 



In Scotland, where they are known as Scoudres, 



