Mr. ellis on the Gorgonia . 7 
the apportion of new layers from the bark, which can- 
not be produced but while the bark is fubfifting. 
Nor can the gorgonia increafe in fize, in thole parts 
where it is deprived either of the flefh with the polype 
fuckers, or the furrounding flelhy tubes, which commu- 
nicate with thele fuckers ; for thel'e fuckers and tubes are 
the organs that prepare and depofite the fever al thin 
layers, which form the fupport or bony part (here called 
wood), as I have fhewn before. If upon examining the 
internal ftruCture of thefe zoophytes it were found, that 
their growth and fabric anyways refembled that of vege- 
tables, this would indeed afford a prefumptive argument, 
that they did participate of a vegetable nature. Yet even 
in that cafe, it would be much more reafonable to fup- 
pofe them animals of the loweft order, raffed but one 
degree above the vegetable tribe, than to conjecture a 
monftrous metamorphofis repugnant to the general ana- 
logy of nature. But the truth is, that although the hard 
parts of many gorgonia have very much the external 
appearance of wood, yet the internal ftruCture differs in 
the molt effential points from vegetables. 
In order to prove this, I have compared different fec- 
tions of the gorgonia with correfpondent feCtions both of 
lea and land plants, and find they differ in the following 
particulars : The longitudinal feCtions of the hems of 
the larger fuci, fuch as the fucus digit at us, efculentus , 
nodofus , and facharinus , appear compofed of parallel 
jointed tube-like figures, the joints of which are com- 
pofed of gland-like cells; thefe tubular appearances, 
when highly magnified, are dilcovered to be connected 
together 
