204 ms BOTANICAL GAZETTE [MARCH 
further series of hooks in which anastomoses may likewise take place, 
all the resulting processes finally ending in asci (text jig. and figs. 
32, 38, 40-42). 
Occasionally there has been obviously no fusion of the terminal 
and antepenultimate cells, yet a branch has arisen from the former. 
As in such cases the antepenultimate cell retains no nucleus, it is 
probable that pairing of the daughter nuclei has taken place before 
the cutting off of a binucleate penultimate cell, a case quite compara- 
ble to that observed by MAIRE (15) in Galactinia succosa. 
Summary 
The mycelium of Helvella elastica is subterranean. Its cells are 
multinucleate. 
The fruiting body arises from clumps of thick short-celled filaments. 
This fruiting body is quite early surrounded by an envelope which 
is transitory and breaks up irregularly. Closely associated with 
the veil in early stages, but persisting throughout the life of the fruit- 
ing body, is an external layer of club-shaped palisade hyphae. 
Certain large irregular cells occurring in all parts of the fruiting 
body (except the stem) apparently have the function of storage organs. 
The “ascogenous hyphae” arise as a clearly differentiated sub- 
hymenial complex of filaments. From this layer grow out vertical 
branches whose end cells contain usually two nuclei. Hooks are 
formed by these end cells, while the proximal part of the branch 
degenerates. 
The process from the first hook, without fusion of its two nuclei, 
may proceed to form a second and similar hook. From this second 
a third may arise, and so on, up to the number of at least six, the 
process from the last becoming the ascus after nuclear fusion. 
In any hook of such a series a “fusion” or “anastomosis” of the 
terminal and antepenultimate cells may take place, the nuclei of 
both passing into a process arising from the former. This process 
is equivalent to that springing from the penultimate cell, and con- 
ducts itself in the same way. 
The two nuclei which fuse to form the primary ascus nucleus are 
directly descended by conjugate division from the two which occupied _ 
the end cell of the young ascogenous hypha. 
