340 Kansas Academy of Science. 



offspring (Evolution Theory, vol. II, page 369), but naturally pre- 

 fers his own hypothesis. 



Knowing the characteristics of life and the qualities of matter 

 by personal experience and observation, we ought to reach a large 

 measure of certainty as to which is the bearer of inherited qualities 

 by making a careful study of the process of reproduction in plants 

 and animals. The remainder of this paper will be devoted to a 

 presentation'of this process and to showing wherein the activities 

 of organisms .transcend all known powers and qualities of matter 

 and energy, but are germane to a third entity, life, as capable of 

 definition as are the other members of this triumvirate. 



MATURATION. 



A to H. — All protoplasmic cells of higher plants and animals con- 

 sist of protoplasm of several kinds in form and function. In the 

 outer part of the cell is the cytoplasm, A-1, concerned in the various 

 processes of absorption, nutrition and excretion; and near the cen- 

 ter of the cell, the nucleus, 2, possessing control over cell-conjuga- 

 tion and cell-division. The cytoplasm consists of a reticulum or 

 spongioplasm in which, in plant-cells, are embedded numerous and 

 variously colored plastids, nutritive in function, a fibrillar plasma 

 which influences the process of development, and a structureless 

 fluid, the hyaloplasm. Near the nucleus is an interesting body, 

 the centrosome, 3, which plays a very important part in nuclear 

 division in most animal cells and in the lower plants. The nucleus 

 consists of a structureless fluid, the nucleoplasm, somewhat differ- 

 ent from hyaloplasm, a reticulum holding one or more nucleoli of 

 unknown use, a granular material which stains deeply, the chroma- 

 tin, and fine fibers which for the most part do not stain at all, the 

 linin. 



At the beginning of the process of maturation the chromatin 

 granules, sometimes called chromomeres or microsomes, arrange 

 themselves, as though in obedience to some word of command, 

 along two crinkly threads of linin. In the diagrams which illus- 

 trate this paper no attempt has been made to represent the actual 

 appearance of these threads under the compound microscope, nor 

 has any attempt been made to show the spindle of linin threads, 

 which does such important work in cell-division. The two threads 

 of linin along which the chromomeres have arranged themselves 

 are the spiremes, 4. 



It should be remembered at the outset that cytoplasm is derived 

 from preexisting cytoplasm, that nucleus is derived from preexist- 

 ing nucleus or nuclei ; one does not make the other when it is ab- 



