THE ARCHIPELAGO OF CHAUSEY. 41 



sometimes too a Holothuria*, with its long, polygonal, 

 whitish body, would slowly move across this living 

 carpet by means of its sucker-like feet, spreading 

 abroad its coronet of arborescent tentacles. How 

 rapidly the hours passed, amid this profusion of life, 

 while I was filling my boxes and bottles! How 

 gladly would I have admired, examined, and carried 

 off all that I saw! But I was soon forced to think 

 of returning. The long riband-like fronds of the 

 laminarias or oarweeds, which hitherto had been in- 

 clined towards the sea, wavered for a moment, and 

 bending gently backward, they soon turned land- 

 ward, their plaited bands undulating more and more 

 rapidly as they yielded to the swell of the flowing 

 current. The ocean was resuming its sway, and I 

 was compelled to have recourse to my boat, not, 

 however, until I had promised myself the pleasure 

 of speedily returning to the same rich field of dis- 

 covery. 



The wandering annelids (anndlides errantes) oc- 

 cupied my special attention during my earliest 

 explorations.! Hitherto I had only known this 

 numerous family of animals (commonly designated 

 sea-worms) through engravings ; but, although I had 



* The family of the Holothurias belongs to the class of the 

 Echinoderms. 



f The Annelids constitute a very remarkable class of animals, to 

 which I have devoted special attention, and many of my results will 

 be referred to in the following pages. (We may refer on this 

 subject to the works of Savigny and of M. Edwards, as well as to 

 the joint Memoirs of MM. Edwards and Quatrefages, in the Annales 

 des Sciences Naturelles.') 



