190 * Miscellaneous Intelligence. 



found of various dimensions. Upon minute examination 1 disco- 

 vered that every grain of ergot, as it emerged from the glume, 

 had attached to its apex the shrivelled rind of a grain of rye, which 

 had the appearance of once being in a healthy state. This led 

 me to conjecture, that a diseased state of the rye was the primary 

 cause of the ergot. To ascertain the fact I repaired to the rye- 

 field, where I discovered groups of flies collected upon the 

 heads of rye, apparently in the pursuit of something within the 

 glume. On opening the valve of the glume where the flies were 

 thus collected, I found the saccharine juice of the grains of rye 

 was oozing out, and would soon produce drops. I was then con- 

 vinced that it was this saccharine fluid which was so inviting to 

 the multitude of flies that collected upon those heads of rye 

 which contained any diseased grains. Having collected a num- 

 ber of grains of full-grown size, and exhibiting appearances 

 similar to those above described. I placed the same under a mi- 

 croscope, by which I could clearly discover a small orifice in 

 each, near the end opposite to that to which the thread of nu- 

 trition had been attached. I could also discover, that the juice of 

 the grain was still discharging from the orifice. 



On the morning of the 1st of August, by observing the groups 

 of flies, I found two heads of rye near each other, each of which 

 contained a grain of punctured or diseased rye. The culms I 

 tied to a stake drove between them, the better to enable me 

 again to find them, and to observe their future appearances. At 

 that time the punctured grains exhibited no symptoms of decay, 

 otherwise than a small discharge of fluid. During the first day 

 the flies were busily employed in extracting their delicious beve- 

 rage from the orifice of each grain, and when it did not flow in 

 sufficient quantity for their supply, they would probe it anew. 

 On August 2nd, both grains appeared to be in a state of fermenta- 

 tion, and rapidly tending to decay. On the 3rd, being forty-eight 

 hours from the time when I commenced my observations, each 

 grain had become a rotten and shapeless mass, and exhibited very 

 little appearance of healthy rye. Then, on carefully opening 

 the valves of the glume, I discovered in each a small black glo- 

 bule, the size of which was rather larger than a pin's head. 

 These were situate at the points of the peduncles of the diseased 

 grain, which afterwards proved to be ergot. During the first 

 four days, after the ergot was discovered, they grew in length 

 very near two lines in each twenty-hours, displaying the remains 

 of the diseased rye, from the glumes which they had occu- 

 pied. On the 12th of August, the ergot had attained its full 

 growth. The dimensions of one grain of ergot were twelve lines 

 in length, and three lines in diameter ; the other grain measured 

 a little less. 



On the 3rd of August, being convinced that the primary cause 



