220 Mr. W. S. Kent on two new Siliceous Sponges. 
order CORALLIOSPONGLE of J. E. Gray *. Unfortunately bs 
unique specimen taken was devoid of the sarcode which in- 
vested it in life, and in a fragmentary condition on its a 
on board our yacht. Sufficient, however, was remaining to 
illustrate the peculiarities of the form and its distinctness from 
any other member of the group previously described. One 
of the most striking superficial characters of this sponge 
lies in the presence of nme spherical bodies, varying in 
size from the diameter of about 4! to =1, of an inch, contained 
within its general interior cavity; these are invested with, 
and have radiating from their external surfaces, an irregular 
meshwork o comparatively coarse siliceous fibres, which 
pierce through the delicate inner layers. and coalesce with the 
external reticulation of the cortex to be presently described. 
structure of these large coarser fibres 1s such as to warrant 
their being described as for the most part entirely, minutely, 
and erectly spined ; interspersed among and attached to them 
are numerous minute “ rectangulated hexradiate " spicula (Pl. 
. fig. 9a); these are also spined in a like manner. The 
specimen taken (about one half of a perfect individual) con- 
tained as many as nine or ten of the spherical Pone alluded 
with some of the con- 
tamed spherules, is represented in Pl. XV. fig. 8. Fig. 9 is 
one of these bodies isolated, with the investing and radiating 
fibres considerably enlarged ; an M : is an example 
less magnified, showing its relation to the cortical layer 
beneath. At first the possibility of these bodies being of 
the nature of gemmules most strongly RARR itself; but 
a clean section of one (Pl. XV. fig. 11) at once proved 
that they were simply close aggregations of spicula forming 
a dense and not altogether irregular network, comparable to 
the reticulated pith of many plants, such as that of Juncus, 
viewed under similar conditions. Fig. 12 is a minute frag- 
* [ must here venture to affirm that this order, t the AP EEE Dino 
of Dr. Gray, embodies all the characters of a most natura and must 
necessarily take precedence of that of the XR. subseque eid roposed 
y Prof. Wyville Thomson. t ncludes all those sponges of which the 
essential skeleton is compose coalescent or ere ees siliceous fibres 
or spicula instead of free or Slated ones, To rst pushes it seems 
ble that that of the fundamental ‘ ‘eared ate” type of the com- 
xenon spicula, proposed by W yv. Thomson should. be A added, thn 
wr ie. rmatory essai 1s wanting inm any instan 
nning my notes on Pheronema for the last ‘Number of the 
ness of Dr. Gray's order due the genus would hive been arran 
