Of the Frejh Water Polype.' 165 
And firft thefe animals were not hitherto entirely un¬ 
known, for Mr. Leeuwenhoek gives a defcription of a 
furprizing fort of minute animal, in the Philofophical 
Tranfactions, number 283. It is reprefented at fig. 328. 
as it appear’d fattened to a root of duck-weed, whilft in 
the water, and about three times bigger than it appeared 
to the naked eye; this was a large one of the fort, and 
had eight horns : at C is fhewn a very fmall animalcule 
coming out of the other’s body, fuppofed at firft to be 
fattened thereto by fome accident; but on a clofer exa¬ 
mination, was found to be a young one in the birth, al¬ 
though it had at firft but four fmall horns; after fixteen 
hours its horns and body was grown much larger, and 
in four hours more was quite excluded its mother’s 
body ; againft this on the other fide appeared a little round 
knob, which gradually increafed in bignefs, and in a few 
hours was pointed as at D, fig. 328. About fourteen 
hours after it was grown much larger, and had two horns; 
three hours after it alfo fell off from its mother and 
fhifted for itfelf. 
An Englifh gentleman 1 difcovered one of them in fom£ 
clear water taken out of a ditch; but with the utmott 
attention he could find no more therein. It appeared 
the firff day as at fig. 326. but varied every moment, and 
the knob at a, looked like the gut cenum ; two or three 
days after he obferved fome white fibres at the extremity 
of the knob ; on the fourth it was extended at full length, 
and appeared as fig. 327* which then convinced him 
this excrefcence was really an animalcule of the fame 
fpecies, having fix horns; next day he found it feparated 
from its mother; it is feen in its contracted ftate as deli¬ 
neated by this gentleman at fig. 329; and 330. 
M 3 
1 Phil. Tranf, No. 2S8. 
There 
