HOTSON. — CULTURE STUDIES OF FUNGI. 24") 



Plate 1). Ordinarily there arc about one and a half to two turns in 

 the spiral, but occasionally there are as many as four. If a lateral 

 branch fails to divide, as it often does, only one primordium is pro- 

 duced (Figure 4, Plate 1). Frequently after the first dichotomy, 

 one of the branches does not divide again, but coils up immediately, 

 while the other may divide once or twice before coiling (Figures 2-3, 

 Plate 1). Thus, according to the number and regularity of these 

 dichotomous divisions, there may appear one, two, or more primordia 

 which are more or less closely related to each other. Usually, however, 

 the pedicels on which they are formed elongate, and thus they may 

 become separated from each other. When this primordium has made 

 about two turn-, sometimes as many as four, small branches are pro- 

 duced from the -ides of the coils (Figures 5-6, Plate 1), which at this 

 stage often become separated from each other, as shown in Figure 6. 

 It is, however, a very obscure structure, the further details of which 

 are difficult to follow. 



( )ccasionally on media like potato, more frequently on bran, Spanish 

 chestnuts, sweet potato, etc., and quite freely on rat and dog dung, 

 little white patches of hyphae are seen scattered over the substratum. 

 These are the young apothecia. The fine, white, wool-like hyphae 

 become thickly matted together and form a white superficial dome- 

 shaped structure with fine filaments growing out on all sides (Figure 7, 

 Plate 1), and asthese become older, they lose their contents and as- 

 sume a brownish color. Shortly a circular opening appears at the apex 

 (Figure S, Plate 1), apparently due to the rapid and extensive growth 

 of the inner portion of the apothecium. This opening gradually 

 increases in size, often exhibiting a conical depression in the center 

 which, as the hymenium enlarges, becomes flat and then slightly con- 

 vex. Microtome sections, made at the time of the opening of the 

 apothecium or shortly before, show the upper region closely crowded 

 with long narrow paraphyses, nearly uniform in thickness, which a 

 little later, slightly enlarge at the ends, forming the somewhat even 

 surface of the hymenium (Figures 9-10, Plate 1). 



A short distance below the center of the apothecium, when about 

 the age of that represented in Figure 8, Plate 1, a large cell containing 

 deeply staining material is seen in microtome sections. This appears 

 to be the aseogonium and from it very narrow hyphae, which also 

 stain deeply, grow up between the sterile cells of the apothecium, and 

 eventually produce the asci. At maturity the apothecium is brown- 

 ish, mea suring 3-10 mm. in diameter and 3 ."> nun. in height : often in 

 groups and occasionally with a short stem-like base 



