76 TRANSACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



but not pedunculated at the base." So far Forbes and 

 Goodsir. We need not follow them into the internal 

 structure; but I have reproduced in fig. 18 the original 

 picture which accompanied the above description; and 

 fig. 19, for comparison, is taken from a water-colour 

 sketch of the largest " Runa " colony when alive, made 

 by my wife. 



Our specimens of Syntethys obtained while dredging 

 from the ' ' Runa ' ' this summer were found : — 



(1) A few miles south of Barra Head, in the 



Atlantic, 60 fathoms, one large colony 

 measuring 9} x Tj x 5 inches, and of a 

 beautiful translucent pale green colour. 



(2) On East Shiant Bank, in the Minch, N. of Skye, 

 27 fathoms; some smaller pieces. 



One of the smaller pieces was preserved in formaline, 

 and it is still of the same pale transparent green hue as 

 when alive. Another fragment was preserved in alcohol, 

 and it became of a pale purple or mauve tint (A on Plate). 

 The large colony was placed in the large tank of methy- 

 lated spirit and shut up until the end of the cruise. On 

 opening the tank a month later it was found that the 

 spirit was stained green and the colony of Syntethys was 

 now of a well-marked violet colour, recalling vividly the 

 appearance of Diazona violacea, from the Mediterranean, 

 described by Savigny in 1816. Fig. 20 is from a 

 photograph of this colony in its present (violet) 

 condition ; and B on the Plate shows the colour. 



The fact is that, as I pointed out in 1891,* 

 from the examination of a specimen dredged by 

 the late Duke of Argyll off the North Coast of 

 Mull, and which reached my hands through Sir 

 John Murray, it is highly probable that Forbes and 

 * Annals and Mag. of Nat. Hist, for August, 1891. 



