392 NOTES AND COMMENTS [December 



The same fungus appears also to secrete a cellulose -dissolving 

 ferment, as its hyphae may be seen to penetrate with ease the walls of 

 the endosperm cells. 



More Sports. 



The Annals of Botany (Sept. 1899) contains an interesting paper by 

 Professor H. de Yries on the inheritance of sports. He has obtained 

 a race of Dipsacus sylvestris in which the leaves are all spirally arranged, 

 instead of being in the opposite-decussate system, typical of this plant 

 in general. The original parents were two individuals raised from 

 seed sown in 1884; these were carefully isolated, and from their seed 

 1650 plants were obtained in 1886, Dipsacus sylvestris being a biennial 

 plant ; but of this large number only two retained the spiral phyllo- 

 taxis. These were allowed to seed while all the others were destroyed 

 before flowering, and the third generation, composed of about the same 

 number of plants, contained sixty-seven twisted individuals, or about 

 four per cent. The fourth generation gave ten per cent, but, owing to 

 an accident, its seed could not be employed, so that another fourth 

 generation was raised from the remaining seed of the third generation 

 sown in 1891, and resulted in a yield of thirty-four per cent of twisted 

 individuals, a percentage which has not been greatly exceeded in 

 subsequent cultivations. 



The gradual rise in the percentage of good plants is accounted for 

 by improvements in the cultural methods, especially with regard to the 

 amount of space put at the disposal of individuals, while the richness 

 of the soil and the time of sowing are likewise factors of essential 

 importance in the production of successful results ; in short, the per- 

 petuation of such useless if not harmful variations requires the presence 

 of an environment as favourable as possible to the life of the plant. 



A Pontifical Plant. 



It cannot be laid to the charge of Natural Science that it has been 

 prone to get excited over the creation of a new species, but our 

 esteemed contemporary Science (October 20, 1899) has called our 

 attention to one which affords us a purr of delight. The reference is 

 to the Daily Chronicle, where botanists might naturally overlook it. 

 As to the description of the new species, it is given in somewhat 

 unconventional language, but this may be pardoned in the new 

 departure of a London Daily. " The Pope takes great interest in an 

 electric plant, to which he has given the name ' Ofrlcina Electrica 



