— 134 — 



origin and general aspect are exactly similar. Till now such a 

 hypha has been described only in species of Sphaeriales with a 

 typically developed stroma. 



It remains to indicate that the development of Sporormia some- 

 Avhat differs from what was discribed by Dangeard (1907), Greatly 

 swollen barrel-shaped cells, giving origin to the knot, were never 

 found here bv us. 



In conclusion after all we have above stated (without mentioning 

 the development of the Sporormia, which, as was just noted, stands 

 quite apart from the investigated species of the Sordariaeeae family), 

 one must first of all note the extremely great uniformity of the 

 information obtained, and the proximity of all the investigated 

 forms of Podospora and Sordaria resulting therefrom. So to say 

 before the formation of young asci, that is, till the spherical pe- 

 rithecium begins to take a bottle shape, all these species morpho- 

 logically scarcely differ from each other. The difference is only* 

 apparent perhaps in the larger and smaller dimensions of the cells 

 of the ascogonium and the transparency of the perithecium. In all 

 these species can be noted, the complete reduction of the male 

 sexual cells, and a fully developed female sexual organ, having 

 the appearance of a multicellular spiral coiled ascogonium. Several 

 of its cells participate in the formation of the ascogenous hyphae. 

 The development of the latter always proceeds very rapidly and 

 extremely strongly. This circumstance is probably connected with 

 the formation, at this stage of development within the fruit- 

 body, of a cavity in which can easily grow and branch the asco- 

 genous hyphae. On transversal sections of the fruit-bodies we can 

 easily see, hoAv, out of a common centre, at the bottom of the 

 perithecium, rises in the cavity a dense mass of ascogenous hy- 

 phae, asci and paraphyses. It is especially distinct in P. fimiseda 

 and Sordaria. 



The cytological informations also show great similarity. In all 

 the species the same characteristic phenomenom is repeated: in 

 the cells of the ascogonium are formed two tj-pes of nuclei, some 

 larger, others smaller, and part of both, excepting in P. fimiseda, 

 are lying in pairs. The same disposition of the nuclei in pairs can 



