14 THE AMERICAN MONTHLY [Jan., 



After liavdng seen these things and having learned so 

 little about them, I received a communication from my 

 correspondent, Dr. Henry Shimer of Mt. Carroll, Hlinois, 

 in which he says, that while examining the stigmas of 

 apple blossoms he had been observing spores of a fun- 

 gus, needle-shaped, about 1-250 inch long by 1-5000 inch 

 wide, which seemed to be at work in a way not benefi- 

 cial to the flower. It is possible that those spores may 

 have some connection with the mycelium within the 

 horny seed-vessels, this supposition being especially 

 note-worthy in connection with what Dr. Shimer further 

 reports, as follows : — 



"I have examined several of the stigmata, now brown- 

 ish, from the blossoms in which the pollen is dead from 

 wet weather, and find much of the above fungus, the 

 spores in places standing on end among the papilhe, 

 densely packed together. I do not know, but possibly 

 it may have a scientific name among the few who study 

 these things, but for our purpose we may call it the 

 apple-blossom mould, though it is a very different thing 

 from the ordinary blue mould that is so common on our 

 bread and pies, if kept too long in hot weather; that 

 mould has roundish seed-spores, but in this the spores 

 are long, slender, needle-like seeds ; they are pale in the 

 microscope, and contain a granular fluid. or protoplasm. 



Besides, I observe long filaments or roots of the mould, 

 called mycelium, in the stigma and style, sometimes pen- 

 etrating clear down to the apple. But I did not in any 

 of my examinations find them in the ovary." 



If the mycelium from those spores penetrate to the 

 ovary, what is its form, and what is it doing, wliile the 

 ovary is developing into the apple ? 



But the easiest thing in the known world is to ask 

 questions. I hope some reader will be the "wise man" 

 able to answer these and all that go before. Which, 

 "when found, make a note of." 



