1895.] The Distinction Between Animals and Plants. 965 
without any reference to a proteid membrane, which may, 
however, be considered the crucial diagnostic character. 
Another set of organisms, with apparently naked proto- 
plasm during the vegetative stage, are the endophytic parasites 
belonging to the group of genera represented by Synchytrium, 
Woronina, Olpidiopsis, Rozella and Reesia. Whether they 
ever possess any demonstrable proteid envelop has not been 
ascertained, but it is known that they have no cellulose en- 
velop; they are, therefore, not plants, and must, in conse- 
quence, be animals. This disposition of them has already 
been made by Zopf” on the ground that a “ plasmodial char- 
acter of the vegetative condition is entirely foreign to the 
Eumycetes.” The Chytridiacez, which are usually associated - 
with the Synchytria, have a much reduced but demonstrable 
mycelium formed of cellulose, and are, therefore, unmistakable 
plants. 
Among the lowest forms, as generally classified, the Rhizo- 
pods, including Amoeba, and the far simpler Monera, show no 
distinct proteid envelop, but neither do they show any indi- 
cation of a cellulose envelop, and as the other affinities appear 
to be with animals rather than with plants, they are doubt- 
less rightly placed in the animal kingdom. It is reason- 
able to expect that more careful examination will, in some 
cases, show a simple or imperfectly formed proteid envelop. 
It may be well to specifically state for sake of clearness that 
the nature of the investment of spores or sporophores has no 
significance in this connection. They are to be regarded as 
adaptations without primary classificatory value. 
The crucial diagnostic character, which is here proposed, 
has in its favor the separation of plants and animals upon a 
line which accords well with the consensus of opinion of 
thoughtful students, both botanists and zoologists, an opinion 
which has been formed from a variety of structural, physio- 
logical and developmental data. True relationship must 
necessarily be adduced from a study of the full life-history of 
organisms, diagnostic characters only forming points of depart- 
ure. 
® Die Pilze, 1890, p. 2. 
