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The Autobasidiomycetes have undivided basidia, which bear spores 
only on their apex. The Hymenomycetes make up the bulk of this 
group and appear to have been derived from Tilletia-like forms, 
while the Dacryomycetacem have genetic relationships with the 
Tremellineae, and the Gasteromycetes with the Pilacreae, to which 
they are closely connected by Tylostoma. The basidia, however, in 
this great group are so similar that some other means of classification 
must be resorted to, and this is found in the fruit body. Proceeding 
from lower to higher, the group is divisible into (1) Dacryomycetes, 
with basidia split downward into two forks, but not septate; (2) Hymeno- 
mycetes, with short cylindric or club-shaped simple basidia, bearing 
usually 4 spores on delicate sterigmata, and having a variable but 
always finally gymnocarpous or only semi-angiocarpous fruit body; (3) 
Gasteromycetes, with basidia borne inside of various sorts of angiocar- 
pous fruit bodies; (4) Phalloideae, having the basidia borne during the 
early stages in a closed fruit body and subsequently pushed up through 
this and exposed to the air on a rapidly elongating sporophore. 
The Dacryomycetes have also ordinary conidia and oidia. The 
simplest Hymenomycetes, the Tomentellem, are destitute of a fruit 
body, and the more complex forms appear to have originated from these. 
Next come the gymnocarpous Thelephorem and Olavarke; then the hemi- 
angiocarpous forms, bearing the hymenium on the under surface of the 
pileus, on spines in Hydnei, on the walls of pores in Polyporei, and on 
lamellae in Agaricinem. The Polyporei are mostly poor in accessory 
fruit forms, but oidia occur in some species of Polyporus, Dmdalea, 
and Lenzites, while Heterobasidion (Polyporus annosus) bears ordinary 
conidia, and Oligoporus and Fistulina bear chlamydospores, the former 
very abundantly. The genus Oligoporus was formerly described under 
Polyporus, and its chlamydospores were supposed to be something 
entirely different and were put into the form-genus Ptychogaster. In 
this genus Oligoporus, the formation of chlamydospores occurs in essen¬ 
tially the same manner as in Chlamydomucor racemosus or in a IJstilago. 
Various Agaricinese produce sclerotia and rhizomorphs, but no ordinary 
conidia have been found. It must be remembered, however, that a great 
many forms have not been studied critically. Oidia, on the contrary, 
occur in many genera and are specially abundant in the genus Nyctalis. 
Chlamydospores are also abundant in this geuus, and may occur even 
in the hymenial layer, but have not been discovered in other genera. 
In Gasteromycetes the fruit body is not only angiocarpous in early 
stages, like that of many Hymenomycetes, but remains so. The simplest 
forms connect directly with the angiocarpous Protobasidiomycetes 
(Pilacrem). Accessory fruits (oidia) are known so far only for the Nidu- 
lariacem. The basidiospores of most Gasteromycetes do not germinate 
immediately, and consequently there is a difficulty in the way of study¬ 
ing this group in artificial cultures. For this reason, we know them 
only in the mature state and in stages leading directly up to this. Pro- 
