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Ascomycetes. The following is a summary of a few of the more 

 important results obtained: 



The spores of the Hymenomycetes are very adhesive when freshly 

 liberated. Paraphyses are useful as spacial agents. Direct sunlight 

 injures the vitality of the dry spores of certain species. Spores 

 falling from a fruit body suspended in a closed beaker can be seen 

 in clouds or individually without magnification by using a concen- 

 trated beam of light. Fruit bodies of corky or leathery consistency 

 are xerophytic, for when revived after drying, they resume the func- 

 tion of discharging spores; the spores liberated are viable. 



The four spores on each basiditini are forcibly and successively 

 discharged. Each spore is shot out horizontally from its sterigma 

 to a distance of about o.i mm., with an initial velocity of 40 cm. 

 per second, but is rapidly checked by the resistance of the air, in 

 consequence of which the spores describe a sharp curve called the 

 " sporabola " and then fall vertically to the ground if in still air. 

 The specific gravity of certain species ranges from 1,02 to 1.21. 

 The falling spores are claimed to be electrically charged. 



W. W. FORD. The distribution of poisons in the Amanitas. 



(Jour. PharmacoL and expt. Ther., i, 1909, N. 2, pp. 275-287; 

 E. S. jR., XXI, Dec, 1909). 



The author claims to have developed a method for the isolation 

 and purification of poisons in Amanitas, particularly of hemolysin, 

 and he gives the results of studies with a number of species in 

 which the presence or absence of the poisonous substances ama- 

 nita hemolysin, amanita toxin, and muscarine was determined. As 

 a result of his experiments, which were carried on with rabbits and 

 guinea pigs, he found Amanita phalloides, A. virosa, A. spreta, A. 

 porphyria, A. strobiliformis, A. radicata, A. chlorinosma, and A. mu- 

 scaria definitely poisonous and to be avoided, while A. rubescens 

 and A. russuloides are considered as probably free from toxic pro- 

 perties. 



Studies made of A. frostiana, a species that is closely associated' 

 with A. muscaria, showed that an aqueous extract was hemolytic 

 in moderate degree, but that all the plants were free from resistant 

 toxin and muscarine. It is thought that this species can not be 

 as closely related to A. muscaria as its botanical characteristics 

 would suggest. On account of its close resemblance to the fly agaric 

 the author states it should be scrupulously avoided. 



