and on a new Sjjecies o/Protococcus. 425 



to ten baby groups around them, while the phenomena of 

 enhirgcment, approach towards a globular form, and atropliy 

 of the spines have just now (October 19th) been most satisfac- 

 torily seen in one group of eight and in three groups of sixteen 

 cells each. (These specimens were taken from another gum- 

 bottle, in which a little of the sediment of the original one 

 had been placed about two months since, together with some 

 small bits of the jelly of Oplirydium versatile, and where ^o- 

 rastriwij thus transferred, has midtiplied as much as in its 

 original bottle, with even more robust dimensions.) 



The sediment of the original gum-bottle now became cliarged 

 with the old (fig. 1) and the new (fig. 8) groups of Sorastrum, 

 so that from six to ten old and young might be counted in 

 each di-op of the sediment when placed on the slide for exami- 

 nation. 



4. To those who had observed the contents of any algal 

 cells (especially those of the so-called unicellular Algaj), re- 

 spectively divided up into microgonidia and macrogonidia, 

 and the former swarming round and passing into the latter 

 for impregnation, as in Cryptoglena lenticidaris, Cart. (Annals, 

 ser. 3. vol. ii. pi. 8. figs. 18-27), it would not be unlikely that, 

 on witnessing a similar elimination in Sorastrinn sjji'nidosum, 

 this should also be set down as the time for impregnation and 

 formation of the spore. Hence I was not sui-prised to see for 

 the first time (viz. on the 6th of September) a spherical spo- 

 rangium, 13-6000ths inch in diam., densely filled with gonimic 

 contents presenting a deep dark sea-green colom*, precisely 

 like that of the groups of Sorastrum, and totally dilFereut from 

 that of everything else in the gum-bottle (fig. 9). 



Moreover, on minutely examining this sporangium, it was 

 observed to be invested with a soft gelatinous transparent en- 

 velope (a rt), and to possess a tough transparent coat (i), which, 

 when bm-st, was found to be filled with the usual contents 

 of a sporangium, viz. minute grains of starch, chloropliyll, oil- 

 globules, &c., but no distinguishable nucleus. 



Subsequently this sporangium became more abundant, and 

 in some cases double, but always presented the same size and 

 other characteristics mentioned, with the exception that occa- 

 sionally it appeared to be a little elliptical. 



How and when this sporangium was produced, assuming it 

 to be that of Sorastrum, I can only conjectm-c from the resem- 

 blance of the baby groups eliminated m the third stage, cor- 

 responding to that whicli I had seen to be the moment of im- 

 pregnation in the unicellular Alga to whicli I liave alluded, 

 where some of the groups eliminated were in the form of 

 microgonidia and others in that of macrogonidia, i. c. of minute 



