ee PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 329 
by contact with fluid. Now I can readily understand why these fungi 
were not discovered until after a long lapse of time: I find solutions 
of sodic phosphate throw down a flocculent precipitate after a time, 
and in those specimens which Dr. Bastian was courteous enough to 
show me, I observed that the object was surrounded by just such a 
precipitate, which he called correctly enough granular matter. I sus- 
pect the collection of such a flocculus around the fungus drew his 
attention to the spot where the minute mass of fungus was. 
Another reason for not believing that the fruit-bearing stems of 
Penicillium, which Dr. Bastian figures, were formed in the solutions, is 
that these fungi never fructify in fluid. My friend Mr. M. C. Cooke 
tells me that he never heard of any fungi, except such as are parasites 
on insects, fructifying in fluid, or so long as a plentiful supply of fluid 
is present. As he very forcibly put it, take the vinegar plant as an 
example; so long as there is plenty of fluid, it never produces fruit ; 
but take it out of the fluid, and its surface will soon be covered with 
blue mould. With regard to the so-called spiral fibre organisms of 
Dr. Bastian, they have puzzled me very much. I never, however, 
believed but that they were some very common accidental material 
which had found its way into his solutions. 
I observed that he only found these “ organisms” in solutions con- 
taining sodic phosphate. I have tested and had tested for me three 
samples of crystals of this salt, and in all free soda was present. I 
have since tried the action of very dilute solutions of caustic alkali on 
various kinds of organic fibre, and have found wool fibres, minute 
particles of feathers, and some kinds of spiders’ thread twist into 
spirals under its influence. Now, the spirals produced from spider’s 
silk correspond most closely with Dr. Bastian’s spiral fibre. In my 
own mind I have no doubt the specimen he kindly showed me was 
spider’s silk.* 
At any rate, gentlemen, I do not think in the face of this we ought 
to conclude that we have discovered spontaneous evolution from the 
appearance of spirals in an alkaline solution. 
I apprehend then, sir, from what I have said, if my experiments 
are confirmed, which can easily be done, that at present, let our 
“philosophic faith be what it may,” we have no evidence whatever of 
spontaneous evolution. 
A discussion followed entirely in favour of Mr. Lowne’s views on 
the insufficiency or absence of any evidence in favour of spontaneous 
generation, in which the President, Mr. M. C. Cooke, and others took 
part. The President, having left the chair for the purpose, also spoke 
at some length upon the subject, demonstrating with great clearness 
several important errors into which Dr. Bastian must have fallen, and 
disposing in a masterly manner of a number of arguments advanced 
and relied upon by the advocates of spontaneous generation. The 
results of some experiments by Dr. Child, which were made at the 
* My friend Mr. Charles Stewart tells me one species of common spider spins 
twisted silk. I have not seen this; but I found the silk of Lpiera diadema, the 
common garden spider, sometimes twists into beautiful spirals under the influence 
of dilute alkaline solution, 
