THE LIFE OF THE SEA-SHORE 



143 



brushes to arrange the fronds, thinning 

 out the superabundant branches with the 

 scissors. When the seaweed is arranged 

 to your satisfaction, cautiously raise the 

 paper out of the water, taking care that 

 the position of the seaweed is not altered, 

 and drain off the water. In drying, it 

 is advisable to place a piece of old linen 

 or muslin on top of the mounted weed, 

 to prevent its sticking to the upper paper, 

 and both muslin and blotting paper must 

 be changed at least twice during the 

 drying process. To anyone possessing 

 a student's microscope, the seaweeds 

 and their fruiting organs offer a rich 

 field of beautiful and intensely interesting 

 objects. The space at my disposal, how- 

 ever, will not admit of my describing in 

 detail this interesting subject ; I must 

 therefore refer those of my readers who 

 think they would like to take it up, 

 to the chapters on Seaweeds in my book 

 on " Denizens of the Deep." 



In looking for the seaweeds, we are sure 

 to see and collect ntunerous feathery, 

 slender objects, mostly of a brownish hue. 



the early naturalists, their true nature not 

 being thoroughly understood until the 

 microscope became a more perfect instru- 

 ment, and people began to study the 

 living organism instead of the dead 

 specimens cast up by the tide. Then, 

 however, their real character was soon 

 realised, and they were placed in the 

 Animal kingdom. These graceful, horny- 

 textured objects are really deserted 

 villages, once the home of an active and 

 wonderful animal colony. Careful re- 

 search in the rock pools will often reveal 

 one of these colonies in the full vigour 

 of healthy active life. Then it will be 

 seen that all along the sides of the stems, 

 tiny, delicately tinted heads, each with a 

 little circlet of feelers, are protruded, 

 making the whole resemble an exquisite 

 miniature garland. It is from their re- 

 semblance to a minute spray of flowers 

 that these creatures have gained their 

 popular name of Garland Polypes ; their 

 scientific name is the Compound Hydrozoa. 

 Some of them live on the rocks in the 

 tidal pools, and below low-water mark, 



THE DELESSERIA, 



and rather horny to the touch. At first 

 sight they might very easily be mistaken 

 for seaweeds, and indeed for a long while 

 they were classed amongst the i)lants by 



fomiing a dense growth of fair size ; 

 others grow as minute single sprays upon 

 the seaweeds, and on the wooden piles 

 of the breakwaters, or upon the whelk 



