90 
OF THE MARINE ALGjE. 
phyllum, several of the Callithamnia, Polysiphonise, &c. r 
all of which ought to be placed a second time under the 
press before really good preparations can be hoped for. 
Other species (as those of W rangelia) are completely spoiled 
by being immersed in fresh water * while in a living state, 
as it turns them to the colour of ink. 
These untoward events may be met by giving the plants 
a preliminary drying on some stout paper, just as they are 
taken from the sea. To prevent the paper from wrinkling, 
it is advisable to load the corners with weights ; or, better 
still, to press the objects as soon as they are tolerably dry 
between sheets of blotting paper. The fact of a few pieces 
of the drying material clinging here and there to the Alga? 
is of no consequence, as they may be easily removed after - 
wards by applying a little water with a soft hair pencil. 
The possibility of rearranging Algas, at a future period, 
which have been already dried, is (as I observed just now) 
of the last importance to botanists who can rarely visit the 
coast, as it gives them an opportunity which they could 
not possibly have otherwise of becoming acquainted with 
these lovely denizens of the sea. For while mere prepara- 
tions, however beautifully got up, can give but a very 
imperfect picture of the plant itself, these same examples, 
when once more acted on by water, represent very fairly 
its original habit, and afford the student abundant material 
for investigation. 
With no group of Algas is the caution more needed than 
with this, to be most careful in preserving the natural habit 
of the plant. To be led away by the mere love of the 
beautiful, or what the operator is pleased to consider the 
beautiful, is fatal to the prosecution of science. In the case 
* I take this opportunity of observing that, sooner or later, all 
Marine Algae must be immersed in fresh water before the final drying. 
If this precaution is neglected, the salt contained in their tissues will 
absorb such an amount of moisture from the atmosphere as will 
keep the plants in a continual state of dampness and mouldiness. — 
Ed. 
