The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1886-10-01
a CITY IN RUINS.

The Colony Of Iistie Animals Which
Once Lived In Thousands ~ Cradles
Not 50 Harmless - They seem.
Nothing that we find on the beach Is
more Of = wreck than the torn bit Of
seawecd that we preserve and spread
so carefully and that Is SO beautiful;
but the wrecks am telling about were
all the homes Of living animals, and
among your scawccd --ifyou have any
Il have no doubt you can find at least
two or three genuine wrecks. not Of
one creatures home, but Of whole cit
les Of little animals
When you pick up what looks like q
! bit OF weed. but Is rather stiff and
horny. keeping its shape rs you handle
| il. YOU may be sure il is no weed II
| II is shaped like tiny shrub. an inch
| or two high. il is one that j. very CON-
mon on our shores, the Bnguia fnrrita.
! II YOU look closely AT il. even with a
/, common magnifying glass or ''linen
| glass" you will see that il is in little
! Joints. Well. at every one Of these
4 joints is little cell. or room you may
( call ii. and when ii was in the sea a
little creature lived in each one It
| could draw itself down into a mere
lump in the bottom. or it could thrust
out daisy-shaped head and draw the
sea-water into its mouth.
\ \. hat is sfrangcst about them, all the
little fellows that lived in one Of these
, small shrubs were connected together
in such . way. through the hollow
stems. that they were like one
animal, and lived and died to-
gether. And. wonderful TO say,
Il ia all one family, and grew
from one mere dot of a sea BALI, " hich
swan around BY means Of the fringe
Of hairs or ella. till il wished to settle,
when il became fixed ON shell or q
weed. and began this great family Of
hundreds Of creatures
Sometimes you will find on broad
seaweed or . she'll hat colony 81
these little creatures. standing out like
the spokes Of wheel. and branching
in every direction. This u the Cristo
sburnea. and il had us tenant at every
Joint Nothing could be prettier than
this little white city when q fairy-like
blossom opened at every joint
One Of the most curious OF these
queer cities Is called the leafy sea mat
Il looks like thick-leayed plant from
4 half-inch TO two or three inches
high. and Of brownish color. Look
carefully At it, especially II you have ;
glass, and you will see that i j. coy
cred with little cells shaped Ike tin,
slippers. or. ~ one writer calls them
, cradles They do look like cradles. tn
more so as each one has It's living bah,
, In 1t.
Some ofthesc big sea families grow il
the shape II lovely feather from on
, . inch to three inches long: II j. Ser
/. tularia. and I dare say you have on
among your seawecds-Dearly ever.
one has. II il yellowish in color. am
stifI. and will not stick to the papc
like seaweed. Int has 10 be gummed 0
otherwise fastened. The beautiful pin
, corallinc thar you gather in the rocl
= pools or on sheik was once the HON
!: OF thousands
Little and harmless and weed-likc .
: they look, some Of them are well pro
yided with weapons The feather
: one spoke Of has been CAREFUL
Q studied through . microscope. and
' Il discovered that each tiny dot Of
; polyp (these little fellows are polyps
y has lance. or . dart. or whatever 70
! NAV call ia long. elastic thread
3 very strong. thas usually lies coiled
Il IN his CELL. but which he can thro
4 with great fores. i is armed vii
Z barbs, and Il in some way poisons an
q little creature 10 touches So IL ism
Z, % innocent biz q scawecd asst look
It's true wreck. not Of one, but
4 thousands a ruined polyp city. In fac
8 or what the books call Polypidom.
= Sometimes. among all these cite
!. you wiz find orr little fellow that liv'
n In his cunning she'll house all alon
q It IL about the sir Of pins head
II minute tube csiled up tightly and fas
cned % . seawecd- The owner, whs
!. alive, was worm-like creature wi
q an elegant aower-likc head, and
y cork-shapcd door TO keep out encmis
= Its name wss Spirorbis. Olive 1hor
- Miller. IN Chr5slion Union.