26 



aud ill moderate abundance. In 16 days the entire substratum was 

 dark purplisli red ; the perithecia, yellowish red. At the end of a month 

 the perithecia were of good size, but many of the ri])e ones (discharg- 

 ing brown ascospores) were colorless or pale yellow and the rest were 

 yellowish red. i^one were coral-red or bright red of any shade, and 

 the majority were pale yellowish white — i. e., different enough to be 

 considered another species, as species are often made. After 2^ 

 months one of these cultures was still very interesting. The cylinder 

 of hominy, which was now about 3 centimeters high, had shrunk away 

 from the walls of the tube aud its surface bore about a thousand 

 normal-shaped perithecia. A majority of these had jirotruded asco- 

 spores which adhered in irregular brown masses to the top of the 

 neck around and over the ostiolum. The striking fact was that not one 

 of these ripening and rijje perithecia was red; all a- ere pale or dirty yel- 

 lou'ish ichite, including those crowned by the ascospores. Another 

 culture of the same date and kind was exactly like this one, except that 

 it contained about twice as many perithecia, not one of which was red; 

 all were dirty or pale yellowish white. Many were shedding asco- 

 spores, but not so large a number as in the preceding tube. Nothing 

 could be plainer than that the fungus was unable to extract a red color 

 from this substratum; still it was able to ripen its ascospores normally. 



(8) The color of the peridium was very slow to appear in perithecia 

 on alkaline agars, and on the same with the addition of cane sugar. 

 After 75 to 85 days, only a few were bright red, while many were color- 

 less or only faint roseate or yellowish. 



(9) On rice steamed with distilled water (5 drops of very dilute hydro- 

 chloric acid added to each test tube) the substratum was dark purplish 

 red at the end of 16 days, except for a few white grains which pro- 

 jected above the rest. The perithecia were numerous and full size, but 

 ranged from colorless to yellowish red. None were vermilion or coral- 

 red. On the surface of a thick rice gruel no perithecia had formed at 

 the end of 24 days. The body of the gruel, which was in a small Erlen- 

 meyer flask, had become dirty white; its surface was mottled brown 

 and pale rose color. At the end of 38 days the body of the rice was 

 light ecru drab, with possibly a trifle of rose color in it. The surface 

 was thickly sj^otted with brown flecks, the largest of which bore numer- 

 ous reddish-brown perithecia. In a few places white hyj)hai were 

 pushing out into the air in small numbers. At the end of 65 days the 

 fungus in this flask had formed a nearly continuous dark-brown sur- 

 face mat, which bore numerous j)erithecia, some of which had shed 

 ascospores. The color of the peridium varied from pale yellowish 

 brown to reddish brown, and even to dark brown. The body of the 

 rice was rather feebly stained — vinaceous cinnamon mixed with a little 

 vinaceous pink. 



(4) The development of the jyerithecia. — By the use of strongly alkaline 

 media the writer found it possible to entirely prevent the formation of 



