34 A MONOGRAPH OF THE GENUS PODAXIS DESV. (= PODAXON FR.). 



belonging to the section Amanita. For a distance of 1 cm. i'rom 

 the base the tissue is very compact, and is continued upwards as a 

 stout, central, cylindrical axis ; a thick peripheral portion of the 

 young fungus, in organic continuity with the apex of the central 

 axis and the basal compact portion, also remains as a protective 

 wall, homologous with the pileus of an agaric ; finally, the weft of 

 hypha between the central axis and the external wall becomes the 

 gleba, which in the median vertical section appears as an elongated 

 elliptical area on each side of the central axis, occupying the same 

 position as the gills in the vertical section of a young, unexpanded 

 agaric (fig. 2). 



Contemporaneous with the above changes, the hyphae forming 

 the peripheral portion of the entire fungus for a thickness of about 

 1 mm., owing to gelification of their walls, have formed an external 

 cartilaginous coat, adnate at first to the inner, still living portion, 

 as in the genus Bovista. There is an absence of the sinuous cavities 

 bounded by well-defined tramal-plates, so characteristic of Gastro- 

 mycetes, but from the earliest condition the gleba presents a sponge- 

 like structure, its very irregular walls consisting of thin-walled, 

 sparsely septate hyphae, originating as lateral branches from the 

 hyphae forming the central axis or the inner portion of the outer 

 protective wall. Mixed with the colourless, thin-walled hyphae 

 described above are others, which originate from the hyphae of the 

 axis ; these latter eventually become coloured, and form the capil- 

 litium. The thin- walled colourless hyphae forming the irregular 

 walls of the gleba send into the interstices numerous long, lateral 

 branches ; these branches — the ascogenous hyphae — are aseptate, 

 have very thin colourless walls, are richly supplied with granular 

 vacuolated protoplasm, average about 6 /x in diameter, and at the 

 tips produce two or more short branches, which in turn emit short 

 secondary branches, the whole forming a compact tuft ; these 

 terminal branches differ from the parent hyphae in being broken up 

 into numerous short cells by transverse septa ; each component 

 cell produces a lateral outgrowth, at first papillaeform, then 

 cylindrical, and eventually broadly obovate, and attached to the 

 parent cell by a narrow neck ; these terminal cells, — the asci, — 

 after receiving all the protoplasm from the parent cell, are cut off 

 from the latter by the formation of a septum across the narrow 

 basal portion, and, when fully developed, measure about 20-24 x 

 12-14 [x. Owing to the fasciculate arrangement of the terminal 

 branches, the asci are densely crowded, varying in number from 

 ten to fifty, or even seventy on specially vigorous heads. The asci 

 are developed in succession, and it is not unusual to meet with 

 empty shrivelled asci, others with the spores not yet differentiated, 

 and others quite young in the same cluster. I am inclined to 

 believe that the short, ascigerous branches are also produced 

 laterally on the aseptate hyphae, but am not certain on this point. 

 The asci are usually constant in form and size, but now and again 

 an exceptionally large one may be seen, and sometimes one or more 

 lateral prominences disturbs the usual symmetry of outline. The 

 asci are normally monosporous, but occasionally two spores are 



