OF THE MARINE ALG.E. 91 



before us it leads hiin to sacrifice the true relation of the 

 different parts to the prettiness and neatness of the prepa- 

 ration, to force branches into unnatural positions because 

 they appear to him to look better so, and generally to 

 distort the whole plant. All this may possibly make a 

 pretty object for the herbarium, but it alters its whole 

 character and destroys its value in the eyes of the real 

 botanist. 



We will imagine the reader to have received a packet of 

 dried Algae from a friend at the seaside. The first thing 

 to be done with each of the specimens is to immerse it in 

 clean soft water, and let it remain there until it has become 

 sufficiently flexible to allow of its being lifted without 

 injury from the paper to which it was fixed. The move- 

 ment may be aided by inserting a blunt knitting-needle 

 between the paper and the plant, so as to raise it gradually 

 from its bed. Let this be done very slowly and carefully, 

 as too much haste is almost certain to tear the specimen 

 and entangle the filaments. As soon as the plant floats 

 freely in the water, it must be rubbed and kneaded between 

 the fingers (roughly or lightly, for a longer or a shorter 

 period, according to the degree of coarseness and general 

 consistency of the specimen) until the different parts have 

 ceased to adhere together. When this is effected, the 

 needle is again brought into use (the plant still remaining 

 in the water), and is slowly drawn, beginning at the root 

 end, through first the upper, then the middle, and lastly the 

 lower stratum of stems and branches. In this way knots 

 and entanglements are got rid of; and it enables the opera- 

 tor to ascertain whether he is dealing with a single plant or 

 a whole colony — a circumstance of some importance, as the 

 crowding together of numerous plants makes it very diffi- 

 cult to recognise the true character of the species. 



As soon as order is introduced among the tangled p]ants, 

 the whole mass should be divided into portions, each of 

 such a size as is likely to make a good preparation. And 

 here let me caution the student to choose for preservation 



