108 DR LAUDER LINDSAY ON THE SPERMOGONES AND PYCNIDES 
The spermogones must be looked for and examined at a particular stage of their 
development; otherwise our results cannot fail to be unsatisfactory. They may 
be too young, and the spermatia are undeveloped ; or too old, and the spermatia 
have all escaped ;—the sterigmata may have become sterile and hypertrophied, 
filling up the cavity of the spermogone; or the body of the organ may have fallen 
out, nothing being left save a large irregular cavity. Observers are probably too 
much in the habit of examining only fruited specimens of lichens—thalli-bearing 
apothecia—in their search for spermogones. But two circumstances must be borne 
in mind,—jirstly, That in development, the spermogones normally precede the 
apothecia; and that, consequently, the former may have disappeared, or have 
become old and degenerate, by the time the latter have arrived at maturity ; 
and secondly, That spermogones are frequently most abundant, or are only found 
on thalli, or portions of thalli, bearing no apothecia. The only safe rule for the 
student, therefore, is to examine specimens 77 every state, however unpromising, 
whether fertile or sterile, old or young; and he should never feel secure in re- 
garding a particular conceptacle as a spermogone or pycnide, unless he see dis- 
tinctly abundance of free spermatia or stylospores. ‘This procedure implies, of 
course, an immense amount of fruitless labour. I have myself acted on this 
principle, and followed out this plan; and I regret that I cannot yet indicate to 
the student any more “ royal road” to a knowledge of the secondary reproduc- 
tive organs of the lichens. He must advance himself slowly and gradually, by 
sheer plodding industry, and perseverance unconquerable: he must labour 
patiently for months, aye years, before he sees even dawnings of the interesting 
and important results, which it may be his good fortune subsequently to achieve. 
Considerable discussion has occurred regarding the spelling and use of the 
words, ‘“‘spermogone” and “ spermatogone.” The former word is that originally intro- 
duced by TuLasneE to designate the conceptacle containing the linear corpuscles, 
which he calls spermatia. The latter is used by the Rev. M. J. Berxexey in his 
‘Introduction to Cryptogamic Botany,” on the ground that it is etymologically 
more correct. I confess to a natural repugnance unnecessarily to render even 
scientific terms pedantic and repulsive; and my desire in this case to retain the 
simpler of the two words in question is supported by the opinion of the present 
Professor of Greek in the University of Edinburgh. In a letter to me (of date 
15th April 1858), Professor Blackie remarks, ‘“‘ There is not the slightest necessity 
for your altering spermogone, which has the advantage of being shorter. The 
analogy of the well-known Greek word oz:guorsyos, which you will find in the New 
Testament (Acts xvii. 18), and other compounds in the commonest dictionaries, 
are quite sufficient to defend the shorter form.” I will therefore, throughout 
this memoir, make use of the word “ spermogone” instead of “ spermatogone.” 
For the sake of uniformity of arrangement, but by no means as implying my 
concurrence in his classification and nomenclature, I have adopted, in the follow- 
