ZOOPHYTES. 279 



on their surfaces a gauze-like crust, is exquisitely 

 beautiful under the microscope. The Rev. David 

 Landsborough and Dr. Johnston have seen a spe- 

 cimen of this, five feet in length by eight inches 

 in breadth : and Dr. Landsborough counted the 

 cells on every square inch, each of which cells had 

 been inhabited by a living polype, and found that 

 this " web of silvery lace " had been the work and 

 the dwelling-place of above " two millions of in- 

 dustrious, and doubtless happy inmates ; so that 

 this single colony, on a submarine island, was 

 about equal in number to the population of 

 Scotland." 



Many are the wondrous zoophytes belonging to 

 our own seas, and strewed about among the refuse 

 of the ocean on our shores, which we must here 

 leave unnoticed. Though familiarly acquainted 

 with the objects named in this paper, yet the 

 author is indebted for many of its details to the 

 interesting facts discovered and accumulated by 

 Dr. George Johnston. His valuable work on the 

 British Zoophytes cannot be read by any intel- 

 ligent person without wonder and delight. To 

 many it has opened a new world of ideas. View- 

 ing the subject with the feelings of a philosopher, 

 a poet, and a Christian, his book is a source of 

 gratification both to the scientific and the un- 

 learned reader. 



The verses which conclude the chapter were 

 written by Calder Campbell, for this little volume : 



"The sea! the sea magnificent, 



On which we love to pore, 



As if it were one huge extent 



Of sage but secret lore ; 

 Which, though upon the lesson bent, 

 Perplexes more and more. 



