Nuclear Osmosis and Meiosis. 
2 7 
parallel threads that can be observed during the early stages of 
prophase as I have already given a brief epitome of them in a recent 
note on “ Telosynapsis and Parasynapsis ” in the current volume of 
the Annals of Botany. 
Professor Lawson, in quoting the work which has issued from 
this laboratory, curiously enough rather exaggerates points of 
difference between us, but it seems a pity that in doing so he should 
have imputed to us opinions which are the very reverse of those 
which we have advanced. I do not propose to enter at full length 
into this matter, for controversy on matters of history where the 
evidence is readily accessible is useful only in so far as it serves to 
prevent error from becoming stereotyped, as it is apt to do if allowed 
to go entirely unchallenged. 
Professor Lawson states on p. 605 :— 
“ But this diminution [in the chromatin volume], which is a 
very slight one, 1 do not interpret in any sense as a 
‘ synaptic contraction ’ as generally understood by many 
writers (Farmer, 1905; Gregoire, 1910; Overton, 1909; 
Digby, 1910, and others, and others), nor do 1 believe 
it to be a feature peculiar to meiosis.” 
Now this is thoroughly misleading, for while Gregoire and his 
followers have regarded the conjugation of the somatic chromosomes 
as the essential features of this stage, my co-workers and I have 
simply regarded it as a puzzling feature which we were bound to 
accept, though we could not explain it. But we have held that 
what Grdgoire believes to indicate lateral approximation of somatic 
(or premeiotic) chromosomes in reality represents the longitudinal 
fission of the spireme, precisely as Professor Lawson appears to do. 
And confirmatory evidence of this has been advanced both by Dr. 
Fraser and by ourselves in several papers published during the 
last two years. 
There are other passages in which Professor Lawson betrays 
a singular lack of critical historical feeling ; I will only quote one 
example:— 
“ It should be remembered that the interpretations of 
Farmer (1905)-are based on the assumption that the 
chromatin consists ‘of one continuous spireme, which 
segments transversely so as to form definitive chromo¬ 
somes.’ ” 
Such a statement is not in accordance with fact, it does not fairly 
describe our position in 1905, and still less does it represent the 
views we have advanced in more recent papers. It is quite true 
that we frequently spoke of a continuous thread, for in 1905 the 
opinion was almost universally held that the spireme did consist of 
an unbroken thread, which only later segmented and formed the 
chromosomes. But we ourselves ventured to throw doubt on the 
view, and described examples in which there was definite proof 
either that a continuous spireme was never formed ( Blatta ), or 
that at any rate that it was not present in the early stages ( Trades - 
cantia), “ It is quite certain that during these early stages of 
prophase there is no continuous spireme present. The ends of the 
stainable threads can be clearly recognised.” (Farmer and Shove, 
Q.J.M.S., 1905, p. 653). Furthermore, in discussing the question 
