of the red snow discovered in Baffin* s Bay. 171 
diately decanted the water and red sediment into another 
glass ; when, on examining the empty glass, I found the 
appearance of the green substance was not only confined to 
the top of the glass, above the water mark, but I found many 
very minute clusters scattered, not only over the sides, but 
also over the bottom of the glass. I filled that glass with 
melted snow water, and closed it with a bladder, and in that 
manner I have kept it ever since. 
I examined the glass this morning, and find that a con- 
siderable increase of the green fungi has taken place since 
the 31st of January, when I filled it with water ; the green 
substance forms now an entire crust over the whole inner 
surface of the glass, particularly the bottom, where the new 
globules now form a sediment that is visible to the naked 
eye, and the whole glass is now of a greenish tinge. To 
what cause this change of colour is to be attributed, I cannot 
guess. 
The experiment mentioned in the beginning of my letter 
as having failed, was owing to an idea I conceived, that 
the red fungi would vegetate on the surface of the snow ; 
and with that view I filled on the 10th of December, 1819, a 
large glass cup with snow, pressing it hard, and giving it a 
perfectly smooth surface, on which I made an impression 
with a sixpenny piece ; the cavity thus produced I filled 
carefully with the original sediment of red fungi, expecting 
that on the slightest increase taking place, the fungi must 
come over the limits thus set them ; but the degree of cold 
at that time was so great, that, soaked in water as they then 
were, they froze almost before they came in contact with 
the snow. On examining them the next morning, when 
