THIELAVIOPSIS PARADOXA. 517 



flask culture, which had betm started with a single (?) macro- 

 eonidiutn of Thielaviopsis, and contained an abundance of 

 macro- and micro-conidia, was put aside for an unstated period. 

 The flask was subsequently broken by accident, and on 

 examination there were found " two young perithecia, almost 

 colourless and without fruit, but bearing the long characteristic 

 bristle-like septate hyphae, present on the mature perithecia 

 (of Trichosphceria sacchari) found on the decayed cane ; two 

 examples of the initial stage of a perithecium were also 

 found." The initial stage of a perithecium, as figured, bears 

 much resemblance to the macroconidiophore bearing sup- 

 pressed macroconidia, such as often occurs in old cultures : 

 and in the absence of any spores, the identification of the 

 perithecia must be doubtful. In any ease the evidence scarcely 

 supports the conclusions formed by Massee. 



Prillieux and Delacroix. 



Prillieux and Delacroix* (7) investigated (in France) speci- 

 mens of sugar cane from Mauritius attacked by a disease which 

 they attributed to Coniothyrium melasporum (Berk.) Sacc. 

 They considered that the fungus was identical with Massee's 

 Melanconium, and with a species said to occur on sugar cane 

 in Australia, which Berkeley named Darluca melaspora ; 

 Thiselton-Dyer has, however, stated that Berkeley's fungus 

 came from Porto Rico, and is a Diplodia ; so that the latter 

 part of their identification is incorrect. 



In addition to Coniothyrium, they obtained from the 

 decayed canes an " endocellular " form of conidium, supposed 

 to be identical with the macroconidia of Massee's paper. 

 The conidia were produced in chains of five to ten at the ends 

 of the hyphae within the decajring tissues ; they were black, 

 oval, somewhat truncate, sometimes pyriform, or barrel- 

 shaped, 18 X 9 ^JL. Intercalary or terminal chlamydospores, 

 about 15 [jL diameter, were also observed. On placing diseased 

 canes in damp chambers, the cut surfaces were covered with 

 a black velvety coating formed by chains of the same conidia. 

 When sown in nutrient media, these spores, which the authors 

 here style brown, produced a white mycelium which practically 

 remained sterile ; only occasionally were found chains of 



6(11)10 (67) 



