34 THE AQUARIAN NATURALIST. 



of very minute gelatinous granules,, which lie imbedded 

 in the soft substance. These yellow granules are the 

 rudiments of the eggs, or gemmules, of the sponge, and 

 when they are first perceptible by the aid of a micro- 

 scope, they consist only of a small, round, compact 

 group of the same gelatinous-looking bodies which 

 compose the living portion of the mass ; but as they 

 arrive at maturity, they assume a regular form ; and 

 when mature, are washed out of the body of the pa- 

 rent by the issuing currents, ready to become dispersed 

 wherever the presence of the species may be made 

 available for the beneficent purposes of Nature. 



But here a difficulty presents itself, which at first 

 sight might well be regarded as insurmountable. The 

 parent sponge, deprived itself of all power of moving 

 from place to place, fixed and motionless as the rock 

 on which it grows, must obviously be incapable of 

 distributing to a distance the numerous progeny 

 which it furnishes ; and without some special pro- 

 vision for the purpose, they could only have accu- 

 mulated in the immediate vicinity of their place of 

 birth. The seeds of vegetables, sometimes winged 

 and plumed for the purpose, are blown about by the 

 winds, or transported by various contrivances, to 

 distant localities; but in the present instance such 

 a mode of proceeding is out of the question, and as 

 germs so soft and delicate could hardly be removed 

 by the agency of other animals, by what possible 

 means are the young sponges to become dissemi- 

 nated through the ocean ? 



It is said that a heathen philosopher, old Galen, 

 we believe, a declared sceptic and atheist, happen- 



