416 Microscopical Essays. 



here. A polype, a b, Fig. 20, with a young one, c d, places 

 it's body in an arch of a circle a d b, againft the fides of the glafs, 

 the young one being fixed at the top d of the arch, with it's head 

 alfo fixed againft the glafs ; fo that the mother, by contracting the 

 body, and thus becoming ftrait, loofens herfelf from the young 

 one. 



The young ones fhoot in proportion to the warmth of the wea- 

 ther, and the nature of the food eaten by the mother ; fome have 

 been obferved to be perfectly formed in twenty-four hours, while 

 others have required fifteen days for the fame purpofe ; the firft. 

 were produced in the midft of fummer, the latter in a cold 

 feafon. 



The tail of the young polype communicates with and partakes 

 of the food from the parent in the fame manner as it's own arms do, 

 and the food lies in the fame manner as in the arms. When this 

 fcetus is furnifhed with arms, it catches it's prey, fwallows, digefts, 

 and diftributes the juices thereof, even to the parent body ; every 

 good is common to each. Here then we have evident commu- 

 nication between the fcetus and the mother ; this communication 

 was further proved by the following experiment. A large polype 

 (one of the hydra fufca) was placed on a flip of paper, in a little 

 water ; the middle of the body of the young one was cut, and 

 the fuperior part of that end which remained fixed to the parent 

 was found to be open. The parent polype was then cut on each 

 fide of the fhoot. Thus a fhort cylinder was obtained, which was 

 open at both ends. This being viewed through a microfcope, the 

 light was feen to come through the fide flip, or young one, into 

 the flomach of the old one. For further conviclion, the cylindri- 

 cal 



