Abstract
The shell of the sea worm from Sumatra, had only to be seen by any one engaged in comparative anatomy, to arrest his attention, and excite a desire for further information respecting it. In the spring 1805, Captain Maxwell of the Calcutta East Indiaman, obligingly gave me a specimen of this shell, five feet long, but imperfect at both extremities. He said it was brought from Sumatra, but could give me no further account of it. The appearance externally, and its radiated structure, led many of my friends to consider it as a mineral substance, formed into a hollow stalactite. Sir Joseph Banks, however, decided on its being the shell of a sea worm. The only means of ascertaining this point then in our power was adopted. It was analysed by Mr. Hatchett, who found that it was composed of carbonate of lime, and an animal gelatinous substance, which is greater in quantity than in the chama gigas , but less than in the common oyster.
Published Version
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