Marshall Ward, — On a lily -disease* 369 
regard his fungus as a form physiologically midway between 
the ordinary saprophytic Pezizas, and my parasitic one ; in 
other words, De Bary’s fungus is in process of being educated, 
to parasitic habits. It might be supposed at some future time 
to gradually produce a little more ferment in its ripening 
spores, or a stronger form of the ferment ; if it did so it would 
be able to penetrate the plant at once, as does the lily-fungus, 
without previous invigoration by dead nutritive materials. 
This is, of course, a hypothesis ; but I venture to point out 
that it is in accordance with some of our recent knowledge, 
and that, if clearly kept balanced in the mind as a suggestive 
hypothesis, it would be well worth while to work through the 
group of sclerotium-forming Pezizas, to see if they are not 
a series of fungi in the transition state of saprophytes which 
are gradually becoming parasites. There are some facts, 
indeed, which render it not improbable that this hypothesis 
might be extended to other groups of Pezizas, but the above 
is sufficient for the present. At a future time I hope to have 
something to say on the possible bearing of this on an old 
suggestion of my own as to the gradual loss of sexual organs 
in these fungi ; for these sclerotium-bearing forms are 
gradually losing the last traces of them. 
APPENDIX. 
I add the following summary of the average meteorological 
record for the months of June, July, and August of 1886, 1887, 
and 1888, which I owe to the kindness of my colleague, Prof. 
McLeod, F.R.S., who has for many years tabulated the results 
obtained from observations at the Royal Indian Engineering 
College, Cooper’s Hill, and which observations are commu- 
nicated to the Meteorological Office every month. It is to be 
deplored that the Cooper’s Hill Station is not provided with 
continuous recording instruments, and that we have no register 
of the amount of sunshine ; nevertheless much information can 
be gained from the tables, from which extracts are appended. 
