i8 American Qiiarterly Microscopical Journal. 



the valves, and the subulate blank spaces so characteristic of 

 A. Ralfsii are more or less apparent. Plate III, fig. lo. 



I have been much puzzled where to put this diatom, which I 

 have found only in this one filtering from Lake Erie water, it 

 was associated with an abundance of Stephanodiscus Niagarae. 

 At first sight it appears to be a Coscinodiscus, but as this genus 

 is limited at present, it has many peculiarities that would pre- 

 vent placing it here. Upon the whole, it seems to belong to 

 Actinocyclus rather than to Coscinodiscus ; in either case, its oc- 

 currence in fresh water is sufficiently remarkable, as all the 

 members of these genera, hitherto known, are marine. As it 

 has never been found in shore or inlet gatherings, and is very 

 rare among the filterings, having never been found except in 

 this one case, we might suppose, either that it came from an 

 accidental disturbance of some ancient marine deposit in the 

 Lake, or was living only at extreme depths, and passing into 

 the ordinary water supply after some storm which had raised 

 it nearer the surface. As it was living, and with the endo- 

 chrome perfect, as in the Step/ianodisci/s, so that I was enabled 

 to make careful drawings of it, we must dismiss the first sup- 

 position and conclude that it is one of those diatoms living at 

 considerable depths, and which are only brought up by dredg- 

 ing, or storms. That diatoms flourish in immense abundance, 

 notably the Coscinodisceoe, at great depths, is indicated by many 

 of the " Tuscarora " soundings, some of these, from depths of 

 over three miles, were almost wholly Coscinodiscus omphalanthus 

 and its varieties, fully charged with endochrome ; and belts of 

 " diatom ooze " at considerable depths were also found by the 

 " Challenger " naturalists. 



OBSERVATIONS ON SEVERAL FORMS OF 

 SAPROLEGNIE^.' 



BY FRANK B. HINE, B. S. 



{Received Sept. 28.) 

 The following results of recent observations made upon 

 this group are not claimed to be in all respects new to 

 science. They are facts as I have found them, and are 

 given not only on account of their peculiar and interesting 

 character, but mainly because this family has received but 



