83 



first state of the gem, one or several horizontal walls, and 

 then these newly originated cells are more or less regularly 

 divided by longitudinal septa into smaller cells : during this 

 time the circumference constantly increases until the whole 

 formation is completed. Mr. Dickie also repeated the expe- 

 riments on the germination of the gemmae, which had been long 

 before instituted, described, and figured in Germany ; he saw 

 the first radicle make its appearance at the side of one extre- 

 mity, and it appeared as if it had proceeded from the interior 

 and had broken through the membrane. 



Mr. Berkeley's* observations on the second membrane in 

 the Asci of some Fungi, as in Spharia populina, pedunculata, 

 &c., will require new observations to be made on this subject 

 with the aid of modern microscopes. 



M. Schwannf has published a series of interesting experi- 

 ments on vinous fermentation, which appear to give another 

 direction to the answer of the question 'respecting equivocal 

 generation. He discovered that vinous fermentation is con- 

 stantly connected with the development of a peculiar fungus, 

 which he proposes to name Saccharomyces, Sugar Fungus. 

 He had also accurately observed the development of a si- 

 milar fungus in beer-yeast, when this subject was published 

 in the Institut du 23 Nov. 1836, by M. Cogniard-Latour. I 

 did not enumerate the latter observations in last year's Report, 

 in order to compare them simultaneously with those of M. 

 Schwann, as these interesting discoveries evidently belong to 

 both naturalists. M. Cogniard-Latour observed that the mash 

 an hour after the addition of yeast exhibited some single 

 globules resembling those contained in the yeast; an hour 

 afterwards some of these globules had doubled, while it ap- 

 peared as if the second globule had been expelled from the 

 first. The second globule soon became of the same size, and 

 subsequently no single globules were found ; nay, finally al- 

 ways three, four, or more such globules were found adhering. 

 M. Cogniard-Latour came directly to the conclusion that the 



* On the existence of a second membrane in the Asci of Fungi. Maga- 

 zine of Zoology and Botany, vol. ii. p. 222. 



t Vorlaufige Mittheilungen betreffend Versuche iiber die Weingahrung 

 und Faulniss. PoggendorfPs Ann. der Phys. und Chem. vol. xli. p. 184. 



G 2 



