304 J. E. S. MOORE. 
returning into rest. The closeness of the similarity of the 
spermatic reduction described by Brauer with those detailed 
above is perhaps best seen when presented in the same 
schematic form. 
51. There are thus several well-established cases of spermato- 
genesis in which the reduction process described by Weis- 
mann is departed from. Besides Boveri’s account, it is appa- 
rent from Brauer’s! figures of the ovogenesis of Branchipus, 
published in 1889, that the twenty-four chromosomes of the 
cells of the first ovogenetic series are reduced to twelve, during 
the synapsis, before the commencement of the second, while 
each of these twelve chromosomes splits twice at the beginning 
of the first “‘ Richtungspindel.” The quadripartite chromo- 
somes thus formed, divide and redivide in the two subsequent 
mitoses, without any intervening rest, so that there are twelve 
single chromosomes left finally in the ovum. 
52. There are thus several well-established cases of both 
spermato- and ovo-genesis in which the reduction process 
described by Weismann is departed from, not only in the 
absence of the ‘‘ Reductions ”—as opposed to the ‘‘ Equations- 
theilung,”’—but also in the fact that the halving of the number 
of the chromosomes takes place in resting nuclei, one or more 
generations before the formation of the final sexual cells—from 
all of which it will have become sufficiently apparent that 
the Reductionstheilung of Weismann is universal neither among 
animals nor plants, and although an attempt may possibly be 
made to foist the theoretical burden which it carries on to the 
“ synapsis”’ instead, there are cogent reasons for believing 
that the advocates of such a process will simply travel further, 
and in the end fare worse. It is obvious that the objections 
chromosomes have, during the previous rest stage, been numerically reduced 
to four. These four chromosomes now split up, first into eight, and then into 
sixteen, and all these residual chromosomes are distributed by a quadripolar 
spindle figure in groups of four, amongst four spores, and this final number of 
the chromosomes persists through all the succeeding divisions of the gameto- 
phyte generation. (‘Annals of Bot.,’ vol. viii, pp. 35—51, 1894.) 
1 “ Uber das Hi von Branchipus Grubii,” ‘ Abhandl. d. preuss. Ak. d. Wiss.,’ 
Berlin, 1892. 
