85 



ther development when again brought under the microscope ; 

 and M. Cogniard-Latour* exposed them to various degrees 

 of cold ; but even after the action of a cold 90 cent, they still 

 retained the property of decomposing sugar. 



Similar plants occur in cider ferment ; they are articulated 

 and ramified in the same way as in the beer-yeast, but their 

 joints are mostly three times as broad as long, and I also ob- 

 served on them an increase by mere separation, although 

 rarely. 



M. Schwann demonstrates the connexion between the fun- 

 gus described and vinous fermentation : however it is proba- 

 bly yet too soon to explain the phaenomena of fermentation 

 from their development ; first, because the formation of the 

 fungus is carried on much earlier than the development of 

 carbonic acid in the fermenting fluid, and then there are se- 

 veral other plants which are developed more or less at the same 

 time with them in the fermenting fluid, several of which, in 

 connexion with the former, are described under the unte- 

 nable genus Mycoderma, Persoon and Desmazieres ; nay, if the 

 supposed species of Mycoderma had not been figured by Des- 

 mazieres f we certainly should never have had a clear notion 

 of them. Desmazieres described a Mycoderma vini y glutinis 

 farinulce, malti-juniperi, malti-cerevisice y and ceremsice ; but 

 here two entirely distinct things are constantly united which 

 do not at all belong to one another ; namely, the small articu- 

 lated fungus previously mentioned, which we call Saccharo- 

 myces after M. Schwann's proposal, and form at present the spe- 

 cies Saccharomyces vini, cerevisice and pomorum, occurring in 

 all fermenting substances, together with a larger confervoid 

 one, the formation of which is also in many respects highly re- 

 markable. To this place belongs the confervoid fungus which 

 Amici observed in the sap of the weeping vine, the growth of 

 which also takes place very rapidly, so that the elongation can 

 be observed in a few minutes. This confervoid fungus is more 

 or less shortly articulated in various fermenting substances, 

 frequently unarticulated and unramified for some length, and 

 then the articulations form at the branches, frequently over 

 the whole thread at more or less regular distances, and then 

 again, especially towards the end of the branch, the articula- 



* L'Institut, 18 Feb. 1837. No. 199, p. 73. 

 t Ann. Scienc. Nat., torn. x. 



