158 THE BEGINNINGS OF LIFE. 



difficult to reconcile with the views of those who do 

 not accept this legitimate interpretation. 



Some of the bodies found were partly like unicellular 

 Algse, and partly like ordinary Torul^e. They exhibited 

 only the faintest green tint, and yet the general cha- 

 racter of the corpuscles was less like ToruU than that 

 of some forms of Frotococcus. Associated with them 

 also was a filament of an algoid character. We have 

 already pointed out the very gradual nature of the 

 transitions which exist between Fungi and Algse, by 

 means of the various forms of Leptotkrix and Oscilla- 

 tor'ia filaments, to say nothing of other intermediate 

 forms, such as Achlya^ Saprolegnia^ and similar types. 

 The transitions between the Mucedmea and Leptothrix 

 are as gradual and unbroken, as those which exist 

 between Leptothrix and the colourless Oscillatorlte, 

 The latter develop a green colour in an equally 

 gradual manner, and insensibly take on characters 

 which affiliate them to the other filamentous AlgiE. 

 And now our experiments tend to show, definitely, 

 that there is no radical difference between Fungi 

 and Algae, but that the evolution of the one or the 

 other is regulated in part by the mere presence or 

 absence of certain constituents. Where no iron is 

 present new-born specks of living matter may develop 

 into Bacteria or ToruU and gradually unfold into fungus- 

 forms j but if iron be present such new-born specks 

 may incorporate this element, develop green proto- 

 plasm, and assume the form of Frotococcus^ with ten- 



