﻿BOTANICAL GAZETTE 



more translucent rim that extends into the suspensors. It may be 

 subtended by a similar appearing but crescent-shaped mass (fig. 2) 

 likewise surrounded by a translucent rim. In fixed material the 

 central body of the quiescent nucleus shows still greater variations 

 in appearance. One or more vacuolar-like appearances may be 

 seen within, or these may be lacking, the space being filled with 

 substances differentiated in the double staining. Sometimes the 

 central body may be composed of many small granules uniformly 

 deeply stained, although double staining in the cell has differ- 

 entiated parts of the chromatophore. 



That such a body, generally termed the nucleolus, is a nucleolus 

 in every species of Spirogyra appears very doubtful to the writer. 

 The position and relative amount of cytoplasm suspending the 

 nucleus and forming a border to the same, the extent of nuclear 

 plasm, nucleolus, and nucleolar vacuole exhibit great variations 

 in the different species. Hence the suspicion arises that some of the 

 discrepancies in results obtained by investigators such as Trondle 

 (11) and Zacharias (13), working on the microchemical reactions 

 of the central body, may be due to the fact that in some species 

 the central body is a nucleus, the considerable space about it 

 being cytoplasm; while in other species only a narrow border of 

 cytoplasm exists, the nucleus with the contained nucleolus com- 

 prising all. The limits of this paper will not permit the extended 

 comparisons of different species that would serve to establish such 

 a view. The term central body will be used in preference to that 

 of nucleolus, the main object here being to present certain new 

 details in the history of the chromatic figure. 



Prophase living 



Although the central body appears to become diffused in 

 enveloping plasm, as preliminary to this process an infusion of 

 cytoplasmic substance flowing in through the suspensors must 

 have taken place to account for the enlargement of the mass. This 

 inflowing substance mixes with the nuclear plasm and denser sub- 

 stance in the spherical body, causing the sudden overflow as it 

 were of the boundaries of the sphere. This change takes place 

 with great rapidity, as shown by comparison of figures, beginning 



