48 NortH AMERICAN SORDARIACEAE 
Dry specimens: On dog and human dung, Newfield, N. J. 
(Ellis). 
Cultivated specimens: On cow dung in greenhouse ; Colum- 
bia University, winter and spring, 1899; goat and dog dung, New 
York City, August, 1899; pig dung, Brookings, S. D., Novem- 
ber, 1899 (Carter); pig dung, De Soto, La., August, 1899 
(Frierson). 
Like two other species of this genus, .S. fimicola and S. humana 
appear so closely related that a discussion of one necessarily in- 
volves the other. The difference between them is very slight, 
and it was very difficult for me at first to make a separation, al- 
though an abundance of dry material was at hand. It was only 
after cultures of both species were made side by side that it was 
really decided that they were different. But when the differences 
are all summed up there is only one which appears to hold through- 
out—the shape of the spore. About a half dozen cultures of S. 
humana were made at once under varying conditions of light, tem- 
perature and moisture in order to determine whether the forms of 
the spores varied, but in no case was the ellipsoid spore of S. fimi- 
cola seen to develop. One seems justified, therefore, in arriving 
at but one conclusion, that there are two species here, as have 
been described, although they are established on but one constant 
specific character. 
7. Sordaria? hyalina sp. nov. 
Perithecia small, scattered, sunken, subglobose, about 1560 م‎ 
in diameter, thin, membranaceous brown, smooth, with cellular 
structure plainly visible: beak papilliform or entirely wanting, when 
the ostiolum is simply an opening in the top of the subglobose 
perithecium. 
Asci 8-spored, cylindrical, broadly rounded or truncate, and 
perforate above, and contracted below into a stipe of medium 
length, very numerous and quite persistent, 5-6 U x 45-55 ge: 
paraphyses absent. 
Spores obliquely uniseriate, ellipsoid, broadly rounded at the 
ends ; 2.5-3 م‎ X 4.5-5 pt: gelatinous covering very narrow. (Z7. 
3, f. 28-30) 
Distinctive character: Hyaline spores. 
Cultivated specimens: On cow, horse, and goat dung, Ft. Lee, 
N. J., and New York City, summer, 1899 ; cow dung, Rooks Co., 
