Mar. 1904 ] Notes fro?n Mycological Literature 
98 
finally the leaves and other green parts of the plant. Here in 
the presence of sunlight, the material is decomposed by the proto¬ 
plasm, new compounds are formed, and these further changed 
by processes, not yet fully understood, into products also not yet 
physically and chemically elucidated. But the digested material 
finally undergoes assimilation, or change into the vegetable fabric 
of the plant body. 
Respiration. — So important a life process as the consump¬ 
tion of oxygen deserves brief but special consideration. Taking 
carbon dioxide from the air and various other food materials 
from the soil, was outlined in the previous paragraph; the de¬ 
composition of these substances into simple elements and recom¬ 
position into simple and complex compounds, which takes place 
in the protplasm of the common plants, in those cells in which 
chlorophyll is present — the energy derived from the sun (i. e. 
light energy) appropriated for the performance of this important 
work, — have also been briefly mentioned. But this complicated 
work is done only when an ample supply of oxygen is at hand. 
If no air (oxygen) is present in the soil, the root-hairs and the 
rootlets are unable to perform the work of absorption. If the 
leaves are deprived of oxygen the protoplasm in their cells like¬ 
wise ceases its activity. Not only common observation, but 
accurate experiments as well, indicate the necessity of oxygen 
to the performance of what we call the vital activities. It is true 
for all organisms — whether vegetable or animal, whether simple 
or complex in structure or form. 
Life-outline of a Fungus. — The fungi are simple in 
"Structure and destitute of green matter — a substance that will 
hereafter be referred to as chlo'-ro-phyll (the word itself mean¬ 
ing ‘leaf-green’). They manifest simple life processes, though 
fundamentally these are the same in all organisms whether plants 
or animals, whether the structure is simple or complex. The 
most conspicuous distinction when contrasted with the common 
plants is their lack of chlorophyll; fungi may be hyaline, white, 
black, brown, yellow, or almost any other color, but never green, 
at least they are not green like common vegetation in which this 
universal coloration is due to the presence of chlorophyll in the 
cells. Evidently then their mode of life is very different; they 
can not manufacture their food material out of carbon dioxide, 
water, and other mineral substances. Consequently they must 
get their food — already prepared or partly digested — directly 
either from living plants or animals, or from the organic matter 
in which the life-processes have ceased to manifest themselves, 
the so-called dead matter. If they take their food from living 
organisms we say they are parasitic, but if they affect dead mat¬ 
ter (which they decompose to greater or less extent) we say they 
are sap-ro-phyt -ic. Whether they obtain food from living or- 
