132 
was called by f Reid the contractile substance ; by ^Muller 
colonialnervensystem ; by §Reichert the colonialbewegungs- 
organ; and within the last few months || Joliet has suggested 
the term coenosare ; but I think he may have overlooked the 
fact that Hincks and others have already used this term in a 
somewhat different sense in the Hydrozoa, though as the 
term funiculus is so far from satisfactory now that more 
is known of the funicular system, it is quite possible that 
if this stands criticism, and J diet is satisfied to retain it, 
that it may be used instead of the older term which has lost 
much of its original significance. 
"Reid mentions change of this contractile substance in the 
avicularia ; Reichert found a slow change take place in his 
colonialbewegungsorgan which he did not perhaps inter- 
pret quite correctly, and Joliet has shown that the finer 
anastomosing threads of the funiculus or coenosare often 
change their positions altogether in the course of one 
or two hours. This is of course a very strong argu- 
ment against this being a nervous system, for we see that 
these threads occur in various positions in the different cells 
of the colony, and in each the arrangement varies from time 
to time, which has no parallel in any nervous tissue. 
Joliet believes the greater extension of the funiculus in 
the marine Bryozoa is represented by the middle layer of 
the endocyst of the fresh water, but as I am not practically 
acquainted with this group I cannot express any opinion. 
In the fresh-water Bryozoa a nervous ganglion has long 
been known, but with the exception of Pedicellina none is 
known with certainty in the Gymnolsemeta, though in a 
few instances it has been thought that one cou]d be distin- 
guished. 
f “Anatomical and Physiological observations on some Zoophytes/’ by 
Jno. Reid, M.D., Ann. Nat. Hist., Yol. XVI., 1845. 
% “Das Kolonialnervensystem der Moosthiere.” Wiegmann’s Archiv, 
XXVI., 1860. 
§ Abhandl. der Konig Akad. der Wissensch. Berlin, 1869. 
|| Loc cit. 
