[ 6*5 ] 
I faw for the firft time the 'Polypi I have now 
been deferibing, on the joth day of May of the 
laft year 1746. They were upon a water-plant, 
which I had taken from a ditch, and difpofed in 
one of my large glafles. They immediately firuck 
me by their beauty, and I could not help being 
curious to know, in what manner fuch clutters were 
formed. The relation they bore to the fpecies firft 
above deferibed, and to fome other fpecies which I 
had before obferved, gave me reafon to believe that 
the clutter mutt have fprung from a fingle \ Polypus , 
by the means of feveral fucceffive divisions. I was 
not however contented with judging of them from 
analogy only, I was defirous to be adually an eye- 
witnefs of their operations $ and the obfervations 
which I therefore made upon them, difeover'd to 
me a new fad, which I fhould never have fuipeded, 
and which I could never have come to the knowledg 
of, if I had contented my felf with the judgment 
I made of them from Analogy only. 
I fuppofed, when I began to obferve, that every 
clutter in queftion came from a fingle fmall ‘Poly- 
pus, like to thofe with which the clutters were fo 
plentifully provided I therefore began by endea- 
vouring to get one of thefe Polypi fingle, and fixed 
upon fuch a body as I could well difpofe in my 
glafs, fo as to keep it within the reach of a magni- 
fier of a fhort focus s and I purfued for this purpofe 
my ordinary method. 
I took fome clutters of thefe Polypi well ad- 
vanced, I put them apart in a glafs filled with pro- 
per water to afford them fuftenance - y I put alfo into 
the fame glafs a flip of water horfetail, after I had 
carefully 
