384 Paine . — -On the Supposed Origin of 
According to Dr. Bastian many forms of Bacteria, Torulae and fungal 
hyphae are to be found in the amorphous matrix which this deposit always 
presents. 
Dr. Bastian claims that successful infections can be made of these upon 
various nutrient media. In this he is supported by A. and A. Mary ( 3 ), 
and also by A. H. Drew ( 4 ), who, according to Dr. Bastian, has succeeded 
by the use of tyrosine in cultivating bacilli more or less freely. On the 
contrary, J. Wright in New York ( 4 ) repeating these experiments has 
obtained similar structures, but has been unable to obtain growth of these 
on artificial media. 
In 1913 Dr. Bastian showed some of his supposed organisms to many 
biologists, amongst others to Professor Farmer and Professor Blackman 
at the Imperial College of Science and Technology, who, in fairness to him 
and in view of the fact that his later methods made sterility more probable 
than was the case in some of his earlier experiments, desired that a careful 
repetition of the experiments should be made. At their instigation the 
author commenced, as stated in a note in Nature ( 5 ), an investigation in order 
to discover if possible the origin and nature of the organisms described. 
Experiments have been carried on now for more than two years, 
and altogether eighty-five tubes have been under examination. These 
tubes were prepared in accordance with the directions given by Dr. Bastian 
in his book ‘The Origin of Life 5 , and contained a mixture of dilute 
solutions of colloidal silica, ammonium phosphate and phosphoric acid, 
or a mixture of colloidal silica with liquor ferri pernitratis ; the former 
he speaks of as the colourless solution , the latter as the yellow solution . 
In addition, during last year a few experiments were made with mixtures of 
colloidal iron, potassium ferrocyanide and sodium silicate, which Dr. Bastian 
found to be specially fruitful. The conditions of experiment have followed 
as closely as possible those of Dr. Bastian’s experiments ; the tubes were 
sealed and sterilized according to his instructions and exposed to light at an 
east window. 
When examined six to eight months after sterilization, the majority of 
the tubes showed deposits consisting mainly of an amorphous mass of 
silica together with minute shining plates, also presumably of silica. 
There also occur very frequently small highly refracting spheres either 
scattered singly in the amorphous matrix or collected together in masses. 
They are in size and appearance very similar to the bodies described by 
Dr. Bastian as fungus germs . 
A very large deposit of these bodies was found in a 10 per cent, 
solution of sodium silicate which remained tightly stoppered in a 100 c.c. 
flask from February to October of last year. The deposit had formed 
a loose layer 3 to 4 mm. thick at the bottom of the flask. The microscopic 
appearance of these bodies is shown in the accompanying photograph 
