192 Phillips. — On the Development of the 
the trichogyne, were not the equivalents of these, and not 
‘ carpogenous,’ but sterile in their nature. The second circum- 
stance which aroused my suspicion was the fact that in 
cystocarps at this stage I repeatedly found the carpogonial 
branch lying intact near the base of these filaments. In other 
Rhodomelaceae the carpogonium itself, soon after fertiliza- 
tion, becomes disorganized, and cannot be traced; the three 
remaining cells of the branch atrophy, and are in some cases 
detached and pushed off on the subsequent formation of spores. 
Might not the formation of the sterile branches in Dasya be de- 
layed, taking place almost wholly after the fertilization of the 
trichogyne ; and might not the fertilized carpogonium remain 
quiescent pending their formation, and until a suitable stage 
had been reached for conjugation with an auxiliary cell ? Later 
observations gave a complete answer to these inquiries. 
There is no doubt that we have here an analogy with the 
cases of those Orchidaceae which only form ovules upon 
the placenta, after pollen has been deposited upon the stigma, 
the pollen-tube delaying its advent to the ovary until the 
ovules have been formed. So here, the procarp only proceeds 
to the further development of the pericarp, and the formation 
of the ‘ placental apparatus ’ including the auxiliary cell, when 
a spermatium reaches the trichogyne, the activity of the 
fertilized carpogonium remaining in abeyance until the com- 
pletion of these operations. Some of the sections illustrating 
this stage showed that a superior cell was cut off from the 
pericentral cell, as was found to be the case in most other 
Rhodomelaceae. 
Fig. 4 shows an exceedingly interesting stage in the de- 
velopment of the cystocarp. The two sterile tufts have 
branched copiously, only a portion of the ultimate filaments 
being shown in the figure. The paranematal filaments have 
almost reached the carpostomium. The superior cell has 
been cut off from the pericentral cell, and at the base of the 
lateral branch lie the cells of the carpogonial branch. As 
every pit- connexion in this figure was made out clearly, there 
is no doubt as to the identity of the cells. A stout process 
