268: Contribution fo our knowledge of Pelagic Mottusca. [No. 4, 



naked, as well as shelled ones, — and place them by themselves in a 

 tumbler of fresh sea water, as they accumulate there again by species, 

 taking care to keep the water free from shrimps, fish and Crustacea 

 which soon destroy its purity. After that invert and shake the ■ bag 

 into a basin of water the inside of which should be painted white ; as 

 this fills, pour off the floating refuse, preserving the sediment which, 

 on straining the next morning through a pocket handkerchief, will be 

 found to consist of minute Atlanta, some species of Spirialis, embry- 

 onic univalves of all kinds &c. The little animals die soon after capture. 

 After 24 hours maceration, the retractor muscle will relax sufficiently 

 to allow of their bodies being picked out of the shells with a needle or 

 a pair of delicate forceps, and all that is wanted for them then is cot- 

 ton wool and pill boxes of sizes. 



To those ignorant of the names of these animals, the simplest me- 

 thod would be to put the result of the day's work into one or more of 

 the one-ounce glass-stoppered bottles filled with methylated spirit and 

 water, half and half ; number the bottles, and let the numbers be entered 

 on the chart opposite the proper date. The bottles should also bear 

 on a label the following information : the hour and date of capture \ 

 the ship's position at noon ; the temperature of the air and surface ; ; 

 temperature of the sea,, and the name and direction of the current. 



