8 
Ohio Biological Survey 
(Fisch 32 and B'rank 34), has spermagonia, sperinatia, ascogonia, and 
jierhaps trichogynes especially like those found in many of the Leca~ 
noralcs. Gnomonia crytJirostoma also has given similar results (Frank 
35). Working on the former plant, Blackman and Welsford (10) 
confirmed the findings of Fisch and Frank regarding the female tract in 
general, but thought that their supposed trichogynes might be vegetative 
hyphie which protrude through the stomata, that the spermatia might be 
functionless, and that the ascogenous hyphie might arise from somatic 
tracts (Fig. 3). However, all of these results on Polystigma are offset to 
some extent by Nienburg’s results given below. Brooks (13) found in 
Gnomonia- crytJirostoma spermatia attached to the trichogynes, but 
thought that both spermatia and trichogynes might be functionless. As 
was noted by several workers, these reproductive tracts, however degen¬ 
erate they may be, show in both spermagonia and archicarps a strong 
resemblance to conditions well known in certain lichens which are con¬ 
sidered below. Higgins (41) has recently found in Sphacrclla very similar 
appearances, which need further investigation. 
It is convenient to call the coils of an ascocarp an ascogonium and 
the remainder of the structure a trichogyne, but such use of terms is often 
inexact. Nienburg (51), working on Polystigma rubrum, seems to have 
found that one uninucleate cell of the coiled portion of the archicarp 
is the ascogonium. A multinucleate cell next the uninucleate cell in the 
same coil, he regards an antheridium. He finds what he supposes to be 
functionless trichogynes and spermatia, and regards the antheridium and 
the method of reproduction respectively a secondarily acquired reproduc¬ 
tive organ and a secondarily acquired sexual process. He believes that 
the ascogenous hyphse do arise from the ascogonium. The question 
remains whether he may not have missed a temporary perforation of the 
transverse sejita of the trichogynes and the passage of sperm nuclei 
through the trichogyne and other cells of the highly differentiated coil 
to the ascogonium. His paper is remarkably interesting and suggestive 
and will of course result in a re-examination of the much-studied but 
still not fully understood Polystigma rubrum and many other ascomycetes 
which have similar reproductive tracts. We must pass over Nienburg’s 
evidence of delayed nuclear fusion and his discussion of probable rela¬ 
tionship between the Ascomycctac and the Oomycctac. In this matter, 
his views are similar to those of Claussen (16). Recent work by Dodge 
also sheds light on the real nature of the ascogonium (23 and Fig. 7). 
According to Miss Nichols (49), Ccratostoma brevirostrc has a one- 
celled, coiled ascogonium, to whose tip an antheridium becomes attached 
