The several impregnations were effected by means of a platinum wire, held by forceps, both having been first cleaned by passing through flame, and then smeared with the fungoid films. By this series of growings in closed vessels, which were but momentarily open at the time when we dropped the spores into them, we secured the separation of the mycoderma from all foreign organisms; and more particularly from germs of _mycoderma aceti_, which is generally found along with it, but which propagates with difficulty in neutral saccharine liquids. On the following days films of _mycoderma vini_ had spread over the surface of the liquid in the three flasks. To all appearance they were very pure; and the microscope showed the complete absence of any mixture of _mycoderma aceti_, lactic ferment, or other foreign growths.[66] On June 26th we decanted and distilled the liquid in A without finding any trace of alcohol. We shook up the liquids in B and C, with all due precautions, so as to submerge their films as much as possible, and then we raised the temperature of the flasks to 26° C. or 28° C. (82° F.). For some days afterwards we saw a constant succession of minute bubbles of carbonic acid gas rising through the liquid, which remained bright under the part of the film that had not fallen in. It had all the appearance of a slow but continuous fermentation. On June 29th we decanted and distilled the liquid in B, and found in it an appreciable quantity of alcohol, which showed itself in the first distillation. The flask C, which was shaken afresh, continued to give signs of fermentation, but, some days later, the evolution of the bubbles ceased. On July 15th, 1873, we examined the flask with its film and its deposit of _mycoderma vini_, without finding a trace of any foreign growths, either in the shape of _penicillium glaucum_, or _mucor mucedo_, or _rhyzopus nigrans_, or _mycoderma aceti_, or, in short, any of the organisms which could not have failed to appear on the surface of a substratum so peculiarly adapted to their development, had it been in the nature of _mycoderma vini_ to transform itself into one or other of those common fungoid growths. The liquid, moreover, still remained sweet, and did not contain any cells of actual yeast. We may conclude then that when one or more of these fungi occur, after an interval of some days, in a growth of _mycoderma vini_ conducted in contact with common air, it does so in consequence of that air having, without the knowledge of the observer, impregnated the liquid spontaneously with germs of these foreign organisms.