ON DEVELOPMENT OF ATYEPH1RA COMPRESSA. 401 
The size of the germinal vesicle is proportionately larger in 
young eggs than in the older ones, the growth of the vesicle 
being slower than that of the egg. Their proportionate sizes are 
to be seen from the following : — 
Egg. 
Ger. Ves. 
•01 
mm. 
. '007 mm. 
•on 
33 
•009 „ 
•013 
93 
•009 „ 
•014 
93 
•0095 „ 
•016 
99 
. -oi „ 
•017 
99 
. -oi „ 
•018 
99 
. -oi „ 
•020 
33 
CM 
r-H 
o 
•021 
99 
• -012 „ 
•024 
33 
. -013 „ 
•026 
93 
. -013 „ 
Egg. 
Ger. Ves. 
•028 mm. 
•014 mm. 
•05 „ 
•02 „ 
•052 „ 
oo 
04 
o 
•068 „ 
•03 „ 
•08 „ 
•035 „ 
•085 „ 
•03 „ 
•09 „ 
•03 „ 
•095 „ 
•035 „ 
•160 „ 
•045 „ 
•350 „ 
•07 „ 
It is clear from this that while the germinal vesicle is at 
first more than one half, it is only one fifth when the egg 
attains the diameter of about ‘35 mm. In Eupagurus, Mayer 
mentions a similar case, where he found the germinal vesicle 
of 44 jj. in the egg of 72 fi, and soon after the germinal 
vesicle of 62 n in the egg of 146 n (I4p ). 
The germinal vesicle is provided with one or more germinal 
dots, but never more than three. They generally take an 
excentric position, and are, in the first stages of their develop- 
ment, simply aggregations of the protoplasmic granules in the 
germinal vesicle ; which gradually coalesce into a form of con- 
siderable dimension (fig. 12). This coalescence takes place 
either at a single spot, when only a single dot is formed, but 
often at two or three different places, when we have two or 
three germinal dots. At this stage of development, which is 
represented by the egg of, at the most, *02 mm., they have no 
definite boundary, but as they grow in size, the granulations 
seemingly fuse together into a roundish mass, having a smooth 
edge. At the same time, a number of vacuoles appear in them, 
which, however, dwindle away later. 
When the eggs grow to the size of at least *10 mm. in 
