FORMATION OF THE HUMAN HAND. 159 



ment. Thus if we follow the formation of the human hand, 

 we find first a differentiation between the carpus, or wrist, 

 and the metacarpus, or hand ; next the fingers are differen- 

 tiated, but, without any division into separate segments — 

 this takes place later ; then we have a separation between 

 the soft and hard parts, the cartilage separating from the 

 plastic mass ; then these cartilages become osseous ; and in 

 the soft plastic mass we distinguish differentiations into 

 muscle, tendon, skin, &c. ; when the single tissues are thus 

 separated we may begin to trace differentiations in the skin, 

 such as the papillae, the secreting glands, and so forth : till, 

 from a homogeneous mass of cells, we have traced the 

 development of that marvellous and complex structure, the 

 human hand. 



Applying this torch to the obscure question of the repro- 

 ductive system of the Anemones, it at once discloses to us 

 that the Anemone, being of a very simple organisation, we 

 shall be wrong if we expect to find in it a high complexity 

 of special organs. Anatomists, indeed, have often neglected 

 such a consideration, and have worried themselves in the 

 search after organs, which a priori were not likely to be 

 present. They have sought for and " discovered " nerves 

 and ganglia, each discoverer scornfully rejecting the alleged 

 discovery of his predecessor, and declaring the nerves were 

 in a totally different locality, while no one anatomist could 

 find them anywhere after another. They have worried 

 themselves about the Respiration of the Anemone, not 

 perceiving that Respiration, like Circulation and other 

 functions elsewhere dependent on a special apparatus. 



