24 



g-ive up all their store of food material, and finally collapse 

 almost entirely. The tissues never hreak down entirely, 

 but they do get fairly loose AA-hen the spores escape on 

 maturity. 



The division of the protoplasm in the spore mother-cell 

 takes place by the formation of several walls, but always 

 in such a way that the resulting- four tetraspores are 

 arranged either in one jjlane round a common point, or in 

 the fashion of a pyramid of four billiard balls, or in two 

 pairs, the wall separating the two spores of one pair 

 running at right angles to that of the other pair. The 

 spores are said to have been formed by cruciate division. 



The tetraspore is, on its escape, found to be a round, 

 non-motile and naked reproductive cell, wliicli soon after 

 its escape is surrounded by a firm cell wall. It contains a 

 large amount of food material, starch forming an im- 

 portant constituent of the latter. The protoplasm of the 

 spore is also seen to include a rhodoplastid. The latter is 

 rather difficult to make out, owing to the large amount of 

 starch present. It seems to be of the form met with in 

 the old cells of the conducting tissue of the shoot. It 

 consists apparently of larger and darker portions regularly 

 distributed just inside the cell wall of the spore, and these 

 are connected by fine strands. Fresh tetraspores, fixed 

 with, iodine, were heated and mounted in glycerine jelly. 

 They then showed the rhodoplastids — now quite green — ■ 

 and their ramifications very well. 



"When it has escaped, the mature tetraspore is probably 

 able to proceed to germination at oaice. How soon it starts 

 and how rapidly it continues to grow in nature it is still 

 impossible to say. Probably it starts very soon. The 

 tetraspores have not the appearance of resting spores. 



By employing a method, which gave me good results 

 when applied to the tetraspores of Acfinoeoccus siihcu- 



