387 
fortunate in being able to see some of the original Schweinitz 
specimens and to recognize that they agreed in every way with 
specimens of Berkeley’s Hypocrea Richardson. (In Herb. Curtis, 
Russell, Mass. 5870.) Although the external appearance is that 
of a Tubercularia, yet the structure is in no way that of a Zubercu- 
laria. As to its being a //ypocrea, there are to be sure structures 
which by many have been mistaken for asci and their spores, but 
which, as will be seen, are of an entirely different nature. 
The fungus is scattered over the branches of poplars in 
tubercular, purplish-red masses, breaking through the epidermis 
at an early Stage. It is attached to the substratum at the centre, 
is disc-shaped and convex above when young, becoming more or 
less wrinkled when old. On sectioning a single mass it will be 
found to consist of a loosely woven mycelium on the inside, the 
hyphe of which gradually become parallel, forming a cortex of 
- parallel hyphe. Into this layer there extend large club-shaped 
bodies filled with larger and smaller oil-globules (“c” fig. 4.) These 
bodies are in most cases perfectly club-shaped, but some very 
irregular forms are met with, branching or swelling at the apex 
into bodies resembling sporidia. By various authors these bodies 
have been taken for asci and described as such, but it is evident 
from their vague and uncertain descriptions of spores that they 
were not sure of having seen any. More recent writers have 
always reported the fungus as sterile. (Ellis"’, Peck", etc.). 
On closely examining the tips of the parallel hyphz, some of 
them were found projecting beyond the others, slightly swollen 
and provided with four distinct sterigmata and spores. In order 
to see these distinctly, it was found very advantageous to treat the 
Sections for several minutes with potash and employ a high 
magnification. The fertile basidia are not very numerous, and are 
difficult to distinguish from the paraphyses, as I would call the 
Parallel hyphe. The sterigmata are short and have at their tip 
fuliginous elliptical basidiospores. There is a possibility that the 
idia at first have conidia, in fact some of the sterile basidia 
Were constricted at the top as if about to beara conidium. As to 
the clavate bodies there is some question concerning their func- 
"I: J. B. Ellis and B. M. Everhart—Journ. Myc. 2: 62, 1886. 
"8. C,H. Peckagth N. Y, State Mus. Rep. 103. 
