EXPERIMENTS, &c. 149 



thofe of the male. They ought, for the fame 

 reafon, to be found in the feeds of plants, in the 

 nedanumjand in the ftamina, which are the mofl 

 eiTential parts of vegetables, and contain the or- 

 ganic particles neceffary for their reprodudion. 

 I therefore determined to examine with the 

 microfcope the feminal liquors of males and fe- 

 males, and the germs of plants; and, at the fame 

 time, I imagined that the cavities of the glandu- 

 lous bodies of the uterus might be the refervoirs 

 of the female femen. Having communicated 

 my ideas of this fubject to my ingenious friends 

 Mr Needham, M. Daubenton, M. Gueneau, and 

 M. Dalibard, they encouraged me to commence 

 a fet of experiments in order to throw light up- 

 on this myfterious operation of Nature. All of 

 thefe gentlemen occafionally attended and allifted 

 me; but particularly M. Daubenton, who was 

 never abfent, and who was witnefs to every ex- 

 periment 1 made. 



1 employed a double microfcope, which I had 

 from Mr Needham, being the fame with which 

 he made his numerous and ingenious obferva- 

 tions *. This inflrument is infinitely preferable 

 to thofe employed by Leeuwenhoek "f. 



K3 EXPERI- 



* Publifhed in the year 1745. « 



f Here M. de Buffon mentions the advantages of the double 

 niicroi'copc, and fome precautions necellary in tlie management 

 of it, which, now that tlie inftrument is well known, and much 

 improved fince the author wrote, it is unnccelTary to tranflate. 



