THE BEGINNINGS OF LIFE. 289 



the bottom of the watch-glass was scrutinised in very 

 many situations with an immersion T y objective. No 

 living thing of any kind was seen, though scattered 

 over the bottom of the glass were a large number of 

 tiny crystals, some larger and some smaller than ^^" 

 in diameter. Under the polariscope they gave the 

 most beautiful and varied colour reactions. The watch- 

 glass was then placed on a mantel-piece with a soft 

 surface (covered with velvet), a wine-glass, with its 

 stem broken off, was inverted over it, and this again 

 was covered by a tumbler, in order, as much as 

 possible, to prevent evaporation and keep out dust. 

 After twenty-four hours the bottom of the watch-glass 

 was again carefully examined with the T |-'' object-glass, 

 and no change was observable. There were the same 

 minute crystals perhaps rather more numerous than 

 before but no recognisable specks of protoplasm or 

 other trace of living things. The watch-glass was then 

 replaced as before. The next day (June i6th) the weather 

 was hot and extremely sultry. The temperature was 

 about 85 F. in the shade, and a thunder-storm, 

 which seemed imminent during the whole of the day, 

 began about 7 p. M., and continued till the early 

 hours of the morning of the following day. At about 

 11.30 P.M. of this 1 6th of June, I again examined the 

 solution in the watch-glass forty-eight hours after it 

 had been prepared. Then, what appeared to be Fur/gus- 

 spores were seen in all stages of development, scattered 

 over the whole of the bottom of the glass, and 



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