CHLAMYDOMYXA LABYRINTHULOIDES. 121 
Labyrinthula vitellina, Cienk., forms little brick-red, or 
orange-coloured patches, about the size of a pin’s head, upon 
seaweeds covering the piles in Odessa harbour. Placed under 
the microscope, and allowed to repose for some hours (say 
twenty-four), three principal constituents catch the eye of 
the observer: the ‘‘central mass,’ the “ spindles,’ and 
the ‘filamentary tracks ” (‘‘ Fadenbahn,’”’? Cienk.). The 
“central mass” consists of globules (0°012 mm. in diam.), 
with a very delicate contour, and of a brick-red or yelk- 
yellow colour, which in the aggregate are held together by 
a delicate, finely granular, basic substance, often present- 
ing, externally, a thin colourless margin. Passing off there- 
from in various directions are seen numerous slender, mostly 
very thin, anastomosing strings, the “filamentary tracks.” 
Towards the periphery of the mass the little orange-coloured 
globules acquire a more elliptic figure, and they can be 
watched passing up, one by one, upon the tracks, where they 
assume a fusiform figure, and gradually, but very slowly, 
glide onwards. In the course of several hours the greater 
part of these little bodies have ascended the tracks, and slowly 
pursued their way to the margin of the drop of water. It is 
therefore clear the little globules at first seen, and the ‘“ spin- 
dles *’ afterwards found travelling on the slender tracks, are 
identical. Their contour is very delicate, they never become 
fused, though do not seem to possess any evident membrane. 
The middle of each is occupied by “‘ a nucleus, appearing like 
a clear vacuole, enclosing a strongly refractive nucleolus ;” 
they increase in number by self-division, and are hence to be 
regarded as true “cells.” Treated with tincture of iodine, a 
sharply circumscribed contour makes its appearance on their 
surface, becoming brown, and standing off, more or less, from 
the contents. Alcohol dissolves the pigment, leaving the 
globules deprived of colour ; the spindles so treated do not 
become blue by iodine, which at once takes place when tinc- 
ture of iodine is added to fresh material ; allowed to operate 
longer, the whole spindle becomes dark brown. ‘The beha- 
viour of the pigment under sulphuric acid shows it belongs 
to the category of colouring substances, forming the red 
specks (“‘ eye dots”’) of Euglenz, Rotatoria, the orange-yel- 
low contents of Uredines. ‘They are very contractile, altering 
their figure on contact as they glide along. Their main di- 
rection is centrifugal, towards the margin of the drop of 
water in which they are under observation, but they do not 
always take the shortest course ; they appear also capable of 
gliding over one another ; some of them thus delayed en route 
may preserve their original globular figure ; but haying passed 
