68 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF [1819. 



have examined authentic specimens, most of them in all stages of 

 growth. 



In all these different forms the character of the fructification is 

 the same, or at most there is only a slight variation in the size of 

 the asci and sporidia, so that from a microscopical examination 

 of the fruit alone it would be impossible to say to which of the 

 above species any particular specimen should be referred. This 

 similarity will be readily seen on examining the figures in Gre- 

 villea illustrating the species cited. All have the same broad 

 clavate, obtuse, stipitate asci which are often subject to a kind of 

 deformit}', being bent almost double. The paraphyses are simple 

 or sparingly branched, of a gelatinous nature, and, like the asci, 

 soon dissolved. 



The sporidia are two-ranked, mostly broad navicular, without 

 septa, hyaline or filled with granular matter mixed with oil glo- 

 bules and become at length brown. Some of the sporidia are of a 

 regularly elliptical shape; these are generally shorter and broader 

 while the navicular sporidia are often much longer and narrower. 

 The average size of the sporidia is about .03 mm long by ,013 mm 

 broad. In all the different forms the ascigerous perithecia are 

 accompanied by others producing stylospores of the Diplodia or 

 Sphseropxis type. (Sphseropsis fibriseda, C. & E , Grew 5, p. 89. 

 Diplodia thyoidea, C. & E., Grev. 5, p. 32.) These stylospores 

 never assume the navicular form, but are always regularly ellip- 

 tical, smaller than the ascospores, sub-hyaline and granular at first, 

 soon becoming brown. Other perithecia are filled with minute 

 hyaline oblong or subglobose micrpstylospores (spermatia) of 

 which Phoma fibriseda, C. & E., Grev. 6, p. 2, is an example. The 

 stylosporous perithecia may generally be distinguished from the 

 others by their short cylindric ostiola, which in the ascigerous 

 perithecia are oftener nearly obsolete. 



By referring to the description of Sphseria eriostega in Grev. 

 6, p. 14, it will be seen that mention is there made of certain 

 brown biseptate free spores, supposed to be ascospores. These 

 brown biseptate spores are found in all the aforesaid forms ; spa- 

 ring^ indeed for the most part, but always present and easily 

 recognized among the generally hyaline sporidia. I have never 

 seen these peculiar spores contained in asci, though I have exam- 

 ined during the past four years probably some hundreds of speci- 

 mens. I consider them however to be true sporidia, and have 



