i8 95 . CONTINUITY OF PROTOPLASM IN PLANTS. ill 



a delicate closing membrane, which stretches across the ring trans- 

 versely, and in which there either remains a single central pore, or 

 several of these scattered over its surface ; in the latter case we get a 

 sieve-like diaphragm interposed. Mr. Hick, in 1884, published a 

 work on continuity in the Florideae (14), and in 1885 he issued 

 another paper wherein he showed the existence of protoplasmic 

 communications in several species of Fucits (15). In 1884 Terletzki 

 (13) and Schaarschmidt (11 and 12) noticed continuity in certain ferns. 



The above is a brief sketch of the chief landmarks in the history 

 of the doctrine of protoplasmic continuity ; there are many more 

 published articles and memoirs on the subject, but it is believed that 

 these, excellent as many of them are, do not mark the decisive steps 

 in the establishment of the principle that most of those here men- 

 tioned do. The complete literature can be gathered together from 

 references in the works quoted at the end of this note. 



It will be perceived that there is very good reason for believing 

 in the universality of the phenomenon, and a little reflection will show 

 the significance which such an intercommunication of the living 

 substance has for the plant. 



REFERENCES. 



1. Hartig, T. — " Ueber die Querscheidewande zwischen den einzelnen Gliedern 



der Siebrohren in Cucurbit a pepo." Botan. Zeitung, vol. xii., p. 51 ; 1854. 



2. Tangl, E. — "Ueber offene Communication zwischen den Zellen des 



Endosperms einiger Samen." Pringsheim's Jahrb. wiss. Botanik, vol. xii , 

 p. 170 ; 1879-81. 



3. . — " Zur Lehre von der Continuitiit des Protoplasmas im 



Pflanzengewebe." Sitzb. k. Ahad. Wiss. Wien, vol. xc, p. 10 ; 1884. 



4. Strasburger, E. — "Ueber den Bau und des Wachsthum der Zellhaute." 



8vo, Jena ; 1882. 



5. Gardiner, W. — " Note on Open Communication between Cells in the Pulvinus 



of Mimosa pudica." Quart. Journ. Micr. Set., N.S., vol. xxii , p. 365 ; 1882. 



6. . — "On the Continuity of the Protoplasm through the Walls of 



Vegetable Cells." Proc. Roy. Soc, vol. xxxv., p. 163 ; 1883. 



1 The Continuity of the Protoplasm in Plant Tissues." Nature, 



vol. xxxi., p. 390 ; Feb., il 



8. Russow, E. — Several papers in Sitzb. Naturf. Gcsell. Dorpat, vol. vi. ; 1S82-84. 



9. Schmitz, F.— " Untersuchungen ueber die Befruchtung der Florideen." 



Sitzb. k. Ahad. Wiss. Berlin, 1883, part i., p. 215. 



10. Hillhouse, W.— " Einige Beobachtungen ueber den intercellularen Zusam- 



menhang von Protoplasten." Botan. Centralbl., vol. xiv., pp. 89, 121 ; 1883. 



11. Schaarschmidt, Gy. — "Protoplasm." Nature, vol. xxxi., p. 290; Jan., 1885. 

 12. . — [Abstract of a Magyar paper.] Botan. Centralbl., 



vol. xviii., no. 18 ; 1884. 



13. Terletzki.—" Ueber den Zusammenhang des Protoplasmas, etc." Ber.Deutsch 



Botan. Gesell. (2), vol. iv., p. 169 ; 1884. 



14. Hick, T. — " On Protoplasmic Continuity in the Florideae." Journ. Botany, 



vol. xxii., pp. 33, 65 ; 1884, 

 15. . — "On Protoplasmic Continuity in the Fucaceas." Journ. Botany, 



vol xxiii., pp. 97, 354; 1885. 

 16. Moore, S. L.— " Studies in Vegetable Biology." Journ. Linn. Soc. (Bot.), 



vol. xxi., p. 595 ; 1885. 



Rudolf Beer. 



Bickley, Kent. 



