386 PROCEEDINGS: BOSTON SOCIETY NATURAL HISTORY. 
Ustilago condensata Berk., in litt., [Fisch. de Waldh., Ann. Sci. Nat., Bot., 
vi, 4 : 199. 1877]. 
Cintractia Sorghi-vulgaris Clint., Bull. Ill. Agr. Exp. Sta., 47 : 404. 1897. 
Sphacelotheca Sorghi Clint., Journ. Myc., 8: 140. 1902. 
Exsiccati: Cintractia sorghi (Lk.), on Sorghum vulgare, Kell., Ohio Fungi, 
4-7; Sphacelotheca Sorghi (Lk.) Clint., on Sorghum vulgare, Seym. & Earle, 
Econ. Fungi Clinton Ust. Supp., C 46, C 47, C 48 ; Ustilago Sorghi , on 
Sorghum vulgare , Ell., N. A. Fungi, 1496, Ell. & Ev., Fungi Col., 982, 
Seym. & Earle, Econ. Fungi, 545, Syd., Ust., 117, Ell. & Ev., Fungi Col., 
1483, Griff., West Amer. Fungi, 213. 
Sori usually in the ovaries or the essential organs, forming oblong 
to ovate bodies 3—12 mm. in length, rarely fusing the very young 
spikelets into irregular forms, protected for some time by false 
membrane but upon rupture olive brown spore mass becoming scat¬ 
tered, leaving naked the distinct columella of plant tissues; sterile 
cells of membrane breaking up somewhat into groups, hyaline, ob¬ 
long to subspherical, chiefly 7-18 p in length; spores subspherical 
to spherical, smooth, contents often granular, 5.5-8.5 p in diameter. 
Hosts: Sorghum Halapense , Cuba; S. vulgare and vars., Ala., 
Calif., Conn., D. C., Ia., Ill., Ivans., Neb., N. J., N. Y., Ohio, Okl., 
S. Dak., Wise.; Jamaica, Ontario. 
This smut occurs on a number of the different varieties of Sorghum 
vulgare , especially on sorghum and broom-corn. Ustilago cruenta 
Kuhn is described as occurring in the inflorescence, pedicles and the 
culm of this same species. The form issued in liab., Fungi Eur., 
no. 2594, as forma culmicola has a distinct appearance, but a speci¬ 
men in the Farlow herbarium collected by Kuhn himself, in the in¬ 
florescence of the host has the appearance of specimens of S. Sorghi 
the writer has collected, in which the infection was so severe that 
the young spikelets were run together into an elongated body. 
The two species are certainly very closely related. Cmtractia 
Sorghi (Sor.) DeToni (also on Sorghum sp. and possibly identical 
with the species described here) is described as having larger spores 
but has other characters in common. While S. Sorghi , as shown 
by the writer’s previous study, has a somewhat Cintractia-like 
method of spore development, the more natural position of the spe¬ 
cies is evidently under Sjdiacelotlieca, as the genus is understood in 
this paper. Its germination has been described by Brefeld, Clinton, 
and others. The specimen on S. Ilalapense from Cuba, collected 
