174 THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. 



CHAPTEE YII. 



SLIDES OF ZOOPHYTES. 



" Lord, how manifold are thy works ! in wisdom hast thou made 

 them all : the earth is full of thy riches. So is this great and wide 

 sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable." 



Psalm civ, 24, 25. 



" Look who list thy gazeful eyes to feed 

 With sight of that is fair : look on the frame 

 Of this wide universe, and therein read 

 The endless kinds of creatures which by name 

 Thou canst not count, much less their natures aim ; 

 All which are made with wondrous wise respect, 

 And all with admirable beauty deckt." 



AN explanation of these useful slides to every sea-side 

 student seems necessary, from the fact that many persons 

 inquire, "What is a Zoophyte?" and if shown one of 

 these under the microscope, will presently declare that it 

 certainly may be an animal, for it moves. Tin's has hap- 

 pened to myself more than once, and an explanation required 

 to prove the fact is a post-mortem examination, and then 

 we only see the body, or rather the framework, which 

 supported the once living polype. 



These are the skeletons of Zoophites mounted to show 

 the beauty of their structure, and the variations of form 

 which determine the species. 



If we would see them alive, we must gather them at the 

 sea-side fresh from their native element, on the sea-weed 

 or the rock, and by placing them in a watchglassful of water 

 under the microscope, the question " What is a Zoophyte ?" 

 will be answered far better than any tongue can tell or pen 

 describe. Nevertheless, to appreciate these slides we must 



