34 Massee. — A monograph of 
clusters of aciculate crystals of oxalate of lime are present in 
the gleba (Fig. 40), and are alluded to by Berkeley as follows : 
c Some parts of the flocci have at tolerably regular intervals 
little fascicles of bristles, the nature of which I cannot deter- 
mine/ 
The above statement explains why Husseia insignis has 
been placed in the genus Calostoma in the following arrange- 
ment. All the species referred to still exist in an excellent 
state of preservation in Berkeley’s herbarium at Kew. 
II. Affinities. 
Calostoma is morphologically most nearly related to the 
genus Geaster , the homology in many respects being absolute, 
the differences at the same time extreme. The external 
peridium of Geaster , which splits in a stellate manner when 
ripe, corresponds to the exoperidium and endoperidium in 
Calostoma , the inner peridium in Geaster being the morpho- 
logical equivalent of the spore-sac in Calostoma. The outer 
flakey layer of Geaster , which is more or less mucilaginous in 
most species when young, as proved by the presence of 
numerous foreign particles in its substance, represents in a 
reduced form the universal gelatinous volva of Calostoma. 
The thick brown continuous layer of Geaster represents the 
exoperidium of Calostoma , and finally the collenchyma-layer 
of Geaster corresponds to the endoperidium of Calostoma. 
In Geaster the morphological equivalents of the exoperidium 
and endoperidium in Calostoma usually remain in contact 
and break away as one membrane, but there are exceptions. 
In Geaster triplex , Jungh., the thick brown layer splits from 
the apex in a stellate manner, the rays becoming reflexed, 
whereas the collenchyma-layer remains in the form of a cup 
enclosing the inner peridium like the endoperidium in Calo- 
stoma. In Geaster fornicatus , Fr., the brown layer and 
collenchyma-layer remain in contact until after splitting into 
rays, when the latter separates and becomes strongly arched 
