Cordyceps, we had no specimen, this being the first we have received. 

 The perithecia are brown, easily rubbed off the axis, and measure 

 225 x 450 mic. The spores are tardily broken into secondary spores, 

 and are mostly entire in the asci. The secondary spores are about 

 2}4 x 1 l /i mic.' 



CORDYCEPS NUTANS, FROM J. UMEM- 



URA, JAPAN. (Fig. 720.) We are particularly 

 pleased to get this specimen, for we have seen none in 

 any museum in Europe. It was originally well de- 

 scribed and figured in Bull. Myc., France, 1887, page 

 127. It came from Japan, and we believe is only 

 heretofore known from the original. It is peculiar in 

 several things. It is the only Cordyceps recorded on a 

 Heteroptera or "true bug," as entomologists designate 

 it. The insect belongs to the Pentatomidae, I am ad- 

 vised by Prof. Osborn, but does not appear in list of 

 Japanese Hemiptera published by Uhler. Mr. 

 Umemura sends a colored figure (fig. 720), which 

 shows the club erect, not "nodding," as its name 

 would indicate. He sends two specimens and two fig- 

 ures, and all four show a branching stem, as shown 

 in the figure. Whether this represents another club 

 that has been broken off, or a sterile branch, I can 

 not say. The stem is black, but the club and upper 

 portion of the stem is orange rather than "violet," 

 as originally described. As the material is scanty, I 

 do not w r ish to cut the specimen. The second- 

 ary spores were described as 1-l^xl 0-15 mic. , 

 which are unusually long. We hope our Jap- 

 anese friends who find this w r ill send us more 

 ample material, as we should like to examine 

 it under the microscope, and should also like 

 Cordyceps nutans. an explanation of that branching stem. 



CORDYCEPS SOBOLIFERA, FROM S. KAWAMURA, 



JAPAN. 



(Fig. 721.) This is a most welcome addition to my collec- 

 tion. The species was well illustrated by Tulasne, from 

 West Indian material, but no specimen is found in his her- 

 barium. In fact, I found no specimen in any museum in 

 Europe, and I believe the specimen just received is the 

 only one in any museum of America or Europe. 



Cordyceps sobolifera was named from the West Indies 

 in 1763. In the very early times several papers were pub- 

 lished regarding it, as in those days they supposed it to be 

 a mutation of an insect into a plant. It was said to be fre- 

 quent in several West Indian islands, but no specimen 

 seems to have reached Europe. Dr. Kawamura writes 

 me that it is common in Japan. The species was not 

 included in Matsumura's list. 



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