192 
J. D. F. GILCHRIST. 
from the oviduct, being greatly developed, and constituting 
the main part of the whole ovary. Each of these eggs is lodged 
in a follicle of small cells. Scliepotieff ( 8 , p. 81, fig. 63) has 
described the large ova of certain species as lying between a 
central epithelial lumen and the wall of the oviduct, where 
they are surrounded by a relatively large quantity of blood. 
This has not been observed in the present species, in which 
the ovum in its follicle is always in close contact with the 
surrounding ova. The ova appear to arise in the walls of 
the oviduct. 
Two questions have been raised with regard to the ovary — 
the function of the pigment of the oviduct, and the method 
of discharge of the very large ova. With regard to the 
first, there is nothing new to add, except that the pigmented 
oviduct does not seem to be a luminous organ as has been 
suggested. None of the living animals examined, with a 
special view to ascertaining this, showed any trace of 
luminosity. With regard to the second question, Masterman's 
suggestion, with which Andersson (2, p. 86) does not agree, 
that the ova are set free on the death of the animal, seems to 
have some partial confirmation, from the fact that, in the 
fresh material, detached ovaries were frequently found. 
These may, of course, have been forcibly detached in the 
trawl, but living zooids were also observed in which the 
ovary, loosely attached to the animal, was seen to be quite 
exposed, suggesting that the whole ovary, or part of it, may 
break away from the body, without, however, necessarily 
involving the death of the animal — a condition which may 
also, perhaps, have been brought about by pressure in the 
trawl-net. 
Certain histological features of the ovarian egg, which do 
not seem to have been noted, may be worthy of mention, as 
they seem to indicate that the subject is worthy of further 
study. The nucleus (PI. 13, fig. 1) is a prominent feature of 
the developing egg. It is of a clear, almost homogeneous 
appearance, with only indistinct indications of chromatin 
elements. It has a distinctly demarcated border, which may, 
