108 H. J. Clark on the origin of Vibrio. 
composed of a single row of globular bodies, resembling a string 
ads, more or less curved, and move in a spiral path with 
great velocity, even faster than the eye can follow in many 
s. They exhibit, by their activity, more plausible signs of 
animality than any of the Desmidezx or Diatomacez, and fully 
as convincing indications of life as the spores of Algee, to which 
they were first referred by the late lamented Dr. W. I. Burnet, 
and after him by Rudolph Wagner and Leuckart. They have 
and vegetable matter. I was very much surprised to discover 
the manner in which they orginate from such substances. 1 was 
studying the decomposing muscle of a Sagitta, a little crustacean, 
as I consider it,—which, in passing, I would observe was foun 
by me a year ago last Manch: for the first time in this country, 
at Lynn Harbor,—when I noticed large numbers of Vibrio dart- 
ing hither and thither, but most frequently swarming about the 
muscular fibres. I was struck with the similarity of these bead- 
like strings to the fibrillze of the muscle, and upon close com- 
parison I found that the former were exactly of the same size, 
and had the same optical properties as the latter. Some of these 
ap red to be attached to the ends of the flat, ribbon-like 
fibres, and others at times loosened themselves and swam away. 
I was immediately impressed with the daring thought, that these 
Vibrios were the fibrillz set loose from the fibres; but as this 
was a thing unheard of, and so startling, I for the time persuaded 
myself that they must have been accidentally atinobiett and sub- 
sequently loosened. However, I continued my observation until 
I found some fibres in which the fibrillee were in all stages of 
decomposition. At one end of the fibre the ultimate cellules of 
the fibrillae were so closely united, that only the longitudinal 
and transverse striz were visible; further along, the cellules 
were singly visible, and still further they had assumed a globu- 
lar shape; next, the transverse rows were loosened from each 
other excepting at one end; and finally, those at the extreme of 
e fibre were agitated and waved to and fro as if to get loose, 
which they did from time to time, and, assuming a curved form, 
revolved each upon its axis and swam away with amazing ve 
locity. There was no doubting, after this, the identity of the 
Vibrios and the muscular fibrille; but I thought such a strange 
phenomenon ought to second witness to vouch for it, 
and therefore went for the best that could be wished for, Profes- 
sor Agassiz. I simply placed the preparations before him, and, 
without giving him the least hint of the origin of the muscle, J 
was pleased to have him rediscover what I had seen but fifteen 
minutes before 
The number of ultimate cellules in a moving string varied 
from two to fifty; the greatest number of strings were composed 
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