34 
XIII. “Adjectival specific names should agree in gender 
with the name of the genus. Hence the names G/lomerel]q 
conctum (B. & C.) Spauld. & Schr, G. piperatum (E. & Ey 
Spauld. & Schr., Puccinia hibisciatum (Schw.) Kell, thus formed 
because the imperfect stages are of the neuter gender (Gloeos- 
porium and Aectdium), are to be rejected, as well as 
for the 
reason that the authors cited within parentheses knew only the 
imperfect stage, which is altogether different from the perfect, 
The name Nummularia nummularium (Bull.) Keissl, Krypt. 
exsicc. Vindob. no. 516 (1900) is likewise to be rejected, both 
on account of tautology and the difference in gender.” 
Approved. 
RECENT RESEARCHES ON PARASITISM. 
By R. H. Biffen, M.A. 
The scientific study of parasitism dates from the year 1866, 
when De Bary’s Morphologie and Physiologie der Pilze, etc, 
containing the results of researches carried out between the 
years 1853 and 1863, was published. With rare exceptions, 
amongst whom we must mention Berkeley and Kuhn, most 
authors before this period vaguely supposed that the parasitic 
fungi were the hypertrophied cells of the host plants or even 
their cell-contents such as chlorophyll grains. De Bary, by 
means of infection experiments, gave us in this work the first 
clues as to the actual relations of the host plant and the parasite, 
and marked out, once for all, the lines along which subsequent 
investigations have been carried out. Within the last forty 
years the experimental methods he adopted have been widely 
applied, with the result that our knowledge of parasitism has 
increased with a rapidity which on looking backwards is little 
less than amazing. Instead of an isolated worker here and 
there there are now many adding almost daily to our knowledge 
of the subject. We now have: special journals devoted solely 
to the publication of their researches and, what is perhaps more 
remarkable still, the economic value of such studies has been 
realized and we are frequently in a position to combat the 
attacks of parasites on the wholesale scale. 
Amongst all of the researches carried out in this period those 
of Enksson embodied in his Die Getrezderost, 1806, stand oi 
from all others and mark a fresh starting point second in im 
portance only to De Bary’s. This work has opened new a 
unexpected fields, which have already been worked with cot 
