270 HETEROGENETIC ORIGIN 



vesicles are beginning to form, such as are to be seen well developed 

 in C. In D we have a representation of what was a very slowly 

 revolving Ciliate within one of these small egg-cases, and still 

 within its hyaline envelope, so that no cilia are visible. While in 

 E we have a typical but small Otostoma formed from one of these 

 small eggs, which has just escaped from its egg-case. By way of 

 contrast a small Hydatina, just after its emergence from the egg- 

 case, is shown in Fig. 68 (x 250). The latter is, of course, a 

 comparatively high multicellular organism, while the heterogenetic 

 product is a comparatively simple unicellular creature — belonging 

 therefore to a totally different class. 



My experience, since the discovery of this remarkable transfor- 

 mation of the substance of the Hydatina egg, has been such as to 

 cause me no little surprise, owing to the incredulity and scepticism 

 I have had to encounter during my efforts to make this discovery 

 known to biologists generally, in the usual manner, through the 

 medium of the Royal Society and one or other of the European 

 Academies of Science. It will be well for me, therefore, to add 

 some additional elements of proof to those already furnished. 



To any one who has worked at the subject, as I have done, for 

 some months and has seen hundreds of these great Cihates, when 

 taken from the pots, either in or emerging from the Hydatina egg- 

 cases, there could be no room for doubt as to the reality of this 

 transformation — especially when none had ever been seen under 

 any other circumstances in association with similar material. 

 Those, however, who have been told of these changes, even when 

 they have seen the photographs and some of the specimens, have, 

 in many cases, remained profoundly incredulous. Thus, one 

 eminent Professor of Zoology, in reply to an invitation to come and 

 see some of the living specimens, wrote as follows : " Nothing 

 short of the demonstration by actual observation, continuous and 

 unbroken, of the hnks connecting the egg (whether partially de- 

 veloped or not) with the Infusorian, would convince me of the 

 accuracy of your conclusions." This was a requirement not likely 

 to be satisfied, seeing that the change, as I then knew it, took 

 place only when light of all kind was excluded, and was stopped 

 as soon as light was admitted. I could only reply, therefore, that 

 I trusted to find others who would be guided by reason, as well as 

 by observation. Another former Professor of Zoology was so sure 

 of his own ability to gauge the potencies of natural phenomena, 



