depending on the treatment. These cut slabs, resembling a small- 

 holed honeycomb, have many large holes and ridges running the length 

 of the sponge. These, and their extreme stiffness when dry, make 

 them easily identifiable. Many samples, however, will vary up to 

 the Hudson Grass sponge (figure 8) in character. 



The typical Anclote sponge has 

 very little outside loose fiber ex- 

 eept on the top edges j whereas the 

 typical Hudson Grass sponge (1) is 

 broader, more hairy all over, and 

 less ridged and (2) has smaller- 

 pored interior resembling the Flor- 

 ida Yellow sponge. Both grass 

 sponges, when wet and drained flat 

 but unsqueezed, pour out much water 

 when they are tipped to the vertical 

 position. Grass sponges, under the 

 lens, show more open structure and 

 fewer cross fibers, and these cross 

 fibers are attached more nearly per- 

 pendicular to the large parallel 

 main fibers. 



The Hudson Grass sponge, which 

 is relatively new on the market, ap- 

 pears to be similar both to the 

 Bahama Tellow sponge and to the Ba- 

 hama Velvet sponge described by 

 Stuart. The Hudson sponge was des- 

 cribed above as being different from the Anclote Grass sponge. It 

 might be confused, however, with the Florida Tellow — as well as with 

 the Anclote — owing to the red-brown interior, but no other sponge on 

 the market bears the fairly uniform hairy surface. The hairs tend to 

 concentrate toward the top edge of the sponge, as its variations ap- 

 proach those of the Anclote Grass sponge. The Hudson Grass sponge 

 is as stiff as is a Florida Yellow sponge when wet, and it does not 

 compress as readily on its side as does the Anclote Grass sponge, 

 owing to the reduced size of the main tubes. In other water tests, 

 as will be brought out later in the report, it parallels the Anclote 

 Grass sponge. 



The Blight seems to have changed the availability of sponges. 

 Almost no Wire, Velvet, Reef, or Glove sponges now can be found. 

 They, however, never were of great industrial importance. 



Interestingly, all of the sponges described in this report are 

 composed of absorbent cages made of fibers, whereas the synthetic 

 sponges examined were composed of spherical cells that had some 

 common walls and opened into each other through small holes. These 

 differences should have a definite effect on some tests and uses. 



Figure 7.— Anclote Grass 



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