The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-11-10

phorically, at times, but when those
ornamental appendages are literally
off no fresh heads take their place. A
worm. on the contrary, has been
known to grow a new brain, as well
as the more humdrum but useful
mouth and throat, in the course of a
couple of months.
New Eyes Developed.
That mixed multitude of animals
classed together by naturalists as mol
luscs, which include the lie-a-bed oy
ster and the wide-awake cuttlefish,
contains also the snail, far famed for
it's marvellous speed it's habit of evad-
ing the ground landlord by carrying
its house on it's shoulders, and for it's
ability to open new eyes should the
originals be permanently darkened. The
eyes, as is well known, are carried at
the ends of two horns, and can be
pulled in or thrust out with more than
mechanical ease and precision. If the
eyes are lost by any accident, the life
which pervades the creature, beginning
from the mere stumps, builds up the
optic nerves afresh, furnishes them
with appropriate cases, and places ac-
curately constructed lenses at the ends.
In the case of a human being who
has lost his eyes the ophthalmist has
nothing more practical to do than to
SCllQ III lltb Dllt5 anu OpllSldil 10
reduced to the construction of glass
eyes, or some other appliance to hide
the deformity; whereas the snail, treat
ed in the ophthalmic hospital of ma
ture, grows new eyes and goes mer-
rily but sedately to his reVels on
tender cabbage leaf under the moon.
Few insects are known to replace lost
members, although they are frequently
found minus a foot or one of their an
tennae. This is probably due to the
fact that most insects emerge sud
denly into the mature form, when
growth practically ceases, and it is in
the immature stage that uncommon
growth is most marked.
Two insects, however. which grow
from larvae to perfect individuals
without any great change of form are
able to replace lost antennae or legs.
| Earwigs begin life with antennae of
eight joints each, and by subdivision
| increase the joints to fourteen. The
| antennae are brittle, and joints fire.
quently break off, but are readily re-
placed, the disturbance arising from
the fracture often producing a varia-
tion from the usual number.
Extravaganza in Limbs.
Spiders and crabs, which are near re-
| lations, are able, after a series of
mouths, to replace limbs which have
disappeared in battle. 1t is somewhat
startling on the morrow after shutting
up in box a dark spider with seven
| legs, to find two spiders, one dark and
| the other light, one with eight legs
| and the other with seven, the captive
| having changed his clothes and grown
a new leg during the hours of darkness
Crabs are warlike, and when two or
three enter the same crabpot are apt
to destroy one ahother's limbs in a
way which to less richly endowed races
seems extravagant. Fishermen cannot
afford to throw them back into the sea,
but they often render first aid. Thrust
ing a finger into the mound of the
mangled limp, they irritate the owner,
who thereupon jerks off the paw"
leaving a neat film at the end of the
stump, which prevents any further
loss of blood. Grabs are more excitable
than their appearance would suggest,
and it is firmly believed by the fisher
men that when they are confined in the
store-pots in shallow water a thunder
storm will bring about a wholesale
kicking away of their unfortunate
limbs.
All things considered, this reproduce
ton of lost members-heads, eyes legs,
and tails-is one of the most remark
able things connected with the daily
miracle of growth.