«uiAjmMmiim«MMju i WiHMiiiriiiii in

fnflpHPffMB—pi I
iw»
'"i1>i|y|||ff^mm«mHHHIWffln iM^
O>607
.C62
1904
 PL. 1.

Agaricus muscar
 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT
OF

BRITISH FUNGI
WITH ESPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE ESCULENT
AND ECONOMIC SPECIES

BY

M. C. COOKE, M.A., LL.D.

With Coioured Plates of Thirty»Four Species and numerous

Woodcuts

RK
BOTANICAL
OARDfcN

£Mntnirgb

JOHN GRANT
31 GEORGE IV. P. RIDGE
1904
 PEEFACE TO THE THlftD EDITION.

A Third Edition of this little work having been demanded,

I have taken the opportunity of making a few verbal cor-
rections and of entirely revising the Plates. Some of the
figures have been replaced by others more characterise
of the species, but in no case has the individual species
been altered from what it was in the first and second
editions. In the colouring, as well as in the drawing,
it is hoped that the illustrations to the present edition
will be found more satisfactory than in either of the
preceding.
The apologies made in the earlier editions of this work
for its production are no longer necessary, since its ready
sale has justified its publication. During the period which
has elapsed a considerable addition has been made to the
number of students of Fungi in this country, and facilities
are now afforded for the prosecution of that study which
were unknown when this work first made its appearance.
It may be permitted me to indicate here, for the benefit
of those who may desire to pursue the study further than
the present volume will carry them, where they may find

C_r>the assistance they require for such an extension. In the

.-'first place the general structure, relations, affinities, and
* — differences of the principal groups are treated much more
'

fully and completely than they could be in a work such

as the present in a volume entitled Fungi, their Nature,
'

Uses, Influences, &c.,' written by me for the 'International

a 2
IV PREFACE.

Scientific Series.' Microscopical species, especially those

found growing on living plants, arc illustrated in a com-
panion volume to the present, entitled, 'Kust, Smut, Mil-
dew, and Mould;' whereas an enumeration of all British
Fungi known up to the time of its publication will be

found Author's 'Handbook of British Fungi.' The

in the

pages of the 'Popular Science Review' will also be found

to contain various contributions from the same pen, which
serve to illustrate phases and sections of this extended
subject.
Whenit is remembered that at the present time scarecly

less than four thousand species of fungi are found to

inhabit our islands, it must be conceded that a small
volume like this can only pretend to serve as an intro-
duction to more elaborate works. In one sense, however,
the present volume may be regarded as ample, since it
contains, as its main feature, observationson the edible
and poisonous kinds, with tho best advice which could
be afforded for their discrimination.
In conclusion, tho same words may be employed as
terminated the first preface:
" Let me assure the student that all times, seasons, and
localities will afford him some
species for examination;
and whether he lias felt interested in them before, or now,
for the time, adopts these interesting plants as objects
firs!

worthy of his special regard, I would commend them to

his patient and persevering attention, in the assurance
"
".Vet this pursuit will 'had from joy to joy.'

M. C. COOKE.

Upj'cr Uolloway, London, X

 CONTENTS.

PAGE
Giix-bearing Fungi 12

True Agarics 24

Pseudo-Agarics f)0

Pore-bearing Fungi 68

Teeth-bearing Fungi 84

Leathery Fungi 8G

Club-bearing Fungi 87

Gelatinous Fungi 90

Peridiate Fungi 91

Subterranean Fungi 92

Stinkhorn Fungi 93

Puff-ball Fungi 94

Dust-like Fungi 100

Thready Fungi 102

Mucoraceous Fungi 103

Spobidiiferous Fungi 104

Discrimination and Preservation of Fungi .. .. 118

Tabular Arrangement of Orders and Genera .. 125

 LIST OF PLATES.

Fly Agaric, Agaricus muscarius Plate 1

Parasol Mushroom, Agaricus procerus

Halli masch, Agaricus melleus ..

Satiny Mushroom, Agaricus dealbatus

Ivory-caps, Hygrophorus virgineus ..

Spindle-stem, Agaricus fusipes

Elm Sidefoot, Agaricus ulmarius

Furrowed Clavaria, Glavaria rugosa..

Cylindric Clavaria, Clavaria vermiculafa

Oyster Mushroom, Agaricus ostreatus

St. George's Mushroom, Agaricus gambosus

Common Mushroom, Agaricus campestris
Maned Agaric, Coprinus comatus

Ink Mushroom, Coprinus atramentarius ..

Grey Clavaria, Clavaria cinerea

Masked Mushroom, Agaricus personatus ..

Variable Mushroom, Russula heterophylla

Amethyst Clavaria, Clavaria amethystina

Chantarelle, Canthardlus cibarius ..

Milky Agaric, Lactarius dtliciosus ., .,

via LIST OF rLATES.

Emetic Mushroom, Iiussula emetica .. Plate 13,

Orange-cups, Peziza aurantia

Fairy-ring Champignon, Marasmius oreades

False Champignon, Marasmius peronatus

Nagelschwamme, Agaricus csculentus

Edible Boletus, Boletus edulis

Scaly Polypore, Polyporus squamosum

Oak-tongue, Fistulina hcpatica

Imbricated Steccherino, Hydnum imbricatum

Hedgehog Mushroom, Hydnum repandum

Lattice Fungus, Clathrus cancellatus

Truffle, Tuber cestivum

hed Truffle, Melanogaster variegatus ..

Olive Earth-tongue, Qcoglossum olivaceum

 BRITISH FUNGI.

rpO some — and we would hope that the number is

* few — the very name of Fungus is unknown. To
others this name is associated only with the pileated

species, or at most with the addition of puff-balls, or such

as possess a truly fungoid odour. There doubtless may be
found a privileged few, amongst the unscientific denizens
of our islands, who acknowledge a broader view, and
include a far less limited series of these extraordinary

productions of the vegetable kingdom within the terms

of our title.

It would be vain to attempt a general and compact

definition of a fungus, or to describe in a few words
what included in the large group to which the name
is

of Fungi is given, so as to be popularly intelligible.

The contents of the present volume must be left to

perform this office for us, or so much of it as remains

untold we have pointed out some of the most
after

homes of the race.

characteristic of the
It is indeed a singular and despised
family to the
history of which we are about to dedicate this volume.
"
Many of those who would merit the title of good
2 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

botanists" know little or nothing about them. That

literature which is devoted to them
part of our scientific
is remarkably scanty and the young student, or the
;

operative botanist,
whose means are limited, inquires
in vain for assistance in gaining even a slight know-

ledge of a very interesting section of our Flora. For

such we can scarce hope to accomplish much ;
but
even this little may prove unwelcome.
not Whilst
manuals of flowering plants, with or without illus-

trations, are abundant, no corresponding guides

to
or
cryptogams can be found equally complete, cheap,
useful.

The Spitalfields weaver, who gets away into the

falls to his lot, for the
country, whenever a half-holiday
purpose of adding to his humble herbarium, or becoming
better acquainted with the Flora of his native land,
must look upon the lichen or fungus as objects reserved
for the study of those who can better afford the neces-

assistance. Although this may still be

sary literary
asserted, with equal justice, when our
work is accom-

yet if we succeed in exciting an interest

plished ;

readers, this hasten the time

amongst only a few may
when the desideratum shall be supplied.
To say that fungi may be found everywhere, would
not perhaps be always literally true but to say where
;

are not to be found, under any circumstances,

they
would be puzzling. Not only are shady woods, mossy
dells, secluded lanes,
and green pastures, the habitats
of fungi, but we meet with them in almost every
situation where vegetable life is possible, and traces
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 3

of them where it is not. Wherever decaying vege-

table matter exists, we may expect to find a new

race flourishing among the debris, as in the decay

" the "
of the garden of sensitive plant described

by Shelley :
—
And plants at whose name the verse feels loath,

Fill'd the place with amonstrous undergrowth,

Prickly and pulpous, and blistering, and blue,
Livid, and starr'd with a lurid dew,

And agarics, and fungi, with mildew and mould,

Started like mist from the wet ground cold ;

Pale, fleshy, as if the decaying dead

With a spirit of growth had been animated.

Their mass rotted off them flake by flake,

Till the thick stalk stuck like a murderer's stake,

Where rags of loose flesh yet tremble on high,

Infecting the winds that wander by.

Such a spot is an almost certain home for fungi.

Every rotten stump or twig, every decaying leaf or fruit,

has its
peculiar species,
—
some large enough to attract
immediate attention, others so small as to be invisible
to the unaided eye. But we need not travel from home
to meet with examples the unwelcome dry-rot may
:

have committed its ravages beneath our kitchen floor ;

or on the walls of our cellars,and our casks, or bottles

of wine, may be infested with members of this ubiquitous
race. Can we find no morsel of bread or cheese upon
which a mould is flourishing ? no towel or other article

of household linen presenting traces of mildew ? Are

we perfectly certain that all our preserves are unvisited,
b2
4 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

or, to come nearer to some of us, all our books un-

touched ?

But, in places which many would consider more un-

*
likely still, we may look for and expect to find fungi :

on whitewashed walls, plaster ceilings, dirty glass, old

flannel, andold boots and shoes, or leather of any

description on ;carpets, mats, and boards, and even the

plants in our herbaria must be watched against their
ravages. Animals bear them about on their horns and
hoofs, and the housefly often carries in its body the

vegetating fungus which ultimately deprives it of life.

The yeast that employed for fermenting our bread
is

and our beer a fungus, as well as the mildew and

is

smut that infest our growing corn.

From cesspools and traps, the minute dust-like spores
of hidden fungi rise into our dwellings, unseen they
float in the air, entering everywhere, depositing them-

selves everywhere, and vegetating wherever the con-

ditions are favourable to their development.
It was strongly affirmed at one time that our cholera

visitations were due to these invisible agents, and a

larorc volume has been written on these vegetable
on men and animals. " When our
parasites beer
becomes mothery, the mother of that mischief is a

* As a
difficulty is occasionally experienced amongst amateurs
with reference to the pronunciation of this word in its plural
form, we may remind them, that in the singular the g should be
hard as in gum, whilst in the plural fungi lias the g soft, as
Fun-ji. It may be permitted us to protest against such a bar-
barism as funguses, which has sometimes been employed as the
plural of fungus.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 5

fungus ;
if pickles acquire a bad taste, if ketchup

turns ropy and putrefies, fungi have a finger in it all.

—
Their reign stops not here they even prey on each
other. The close cavities of nuts occasionally afford

concealment to some species ; others, like leeches,

stick to the bulbs of plants, and suck them dry and ;

some pick timber to pieces as men pick oakum." Hop-

mildew, vine-disease, turnip-mildew, bunt, smut, ergot,
potato-murrain, pea and wheat mildew, may all be
traced to them as the fertile source of mischief.
That fungi may be developed under, apparently, the
most unfavourable circumstances, may be gathered from
an instance recorded by Schweinitz, of a blacksmith at
Salem, who, having thrown on one side a piece of iron
which he had just taken from the fire, was called off
to some other business, and on his return in the morning

was astonished to see on this very piece, lying over the

water on his smith's trough, a mass of fungi two feet in

length. It had crept from the iron to some adjacent

wood, and not from the wood to the iron. This im-
mense mass had grown during the space of twelve hours.
The Rev. M. Berkeley also found a species of fungus
J.

vegetating on a lead cistern at Kew ; and Sowerby, the

author of an illustrated work on British Fungi, pub-
lished more than half a century since, found a species

growing on some cinders on the outside of the dome of

St. Paul's.

Nor are these plants less worthy of notice on account

of the rapidity of their growth. The great Puff Ball
springs up in a marvellous manner to the size of a
D A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

pumpkin during the night ;

and the late Dr. Lindley
computed that the cells of which its structure is

composed, multiply at the extraordinary rate of sixty

millions in a minute. Dr. Greville mentions an instance
of one of the largest of our British fungi {Polyporus
squamosus) attaining a circumference of seven feet five
inches, and weighing thirty-four pounds, after having
been cut four days. It was only four weeks in attaining
to these dimensions, thus acquiring an increase of

growth equal to nineteen ounces per day. Daring

the past summer we noticed an individual of this

same species, which reached a diameter of eleven

inches within the short space of a week. Blue -mould
is also rapid in its growth, although the plant indivi-

dually is small, and a meadow or pasture which in the

evening exhibited no prominent signs of mushrooms,
may in the morning yield a good basket-full. The
popular notion, current in some agricultural districts,
that fungi melt away when the sun shines upon them,
sends the mushroom-gatherer to seek them
" When the grass is wet with dew,
In the morning early."

Dr. Carpenter relates an instance of the expansive

power resulting from the rapid growth of the soft

cellular tissue of fungi which seems marvellous. Some
years ago the town of Basingstoke was paved and not ;

many months afterwards the pavement was observed

to exhibit an unevenness which could not easily be
accounted for. In a short time after, the mystery was
explained, for some of the heaviest stones were com-
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 7

pletely lifted out of their beds by the growth of large

toadstools beneath them. One of these stones measured

twenty-two inches by twenty-one, and weighed eighty

-

three pounds, and the resistance afforded by the mortar

which held it in its place would probably be even a
It became necessary
greater obstacle than the weight.
to repave the whole town in consequence of this re-

markable disturbance. A similar incident came under

our own notice, of a large kitchen hearthstone which
was forced up from its bed by an under-growing
fungus, and had to be relaid two or three times, until at
hist it reposed in peace, the old bed having been removed
to the depth of six inches, and a new foundation laid.
A circumstance recorded by Sir Joseph Banks is still
more extraordinary, of a cask of wine which, having
been confined for three years in a cellar, was, at the
termination of that period, found to have leaked from
the cask, and vegetated in the form of immense fungi,
which had filled the cellar and borne upwards the
empty wine-cask to the roof.

a curious fact in connection with the growth of

It is

these singular plants, that, while Phanerogams under

ordinary circumstances absorb carbonic acid from the

atmosphere, and respire oxygen, in this instance the
order is reversed, and carbonic acid gas is given off
It is believed that the
absence of green colouring
matter, with the exception in some few instances of a
kind of mineral green, is due, in part, to this reversal
of transpired gases. One thing is certain, that in

flowering plants light is

absolutely essential not onlv to
8 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

the growth ami healthy condition of the plant, but also

to the production of the green chlorophyl, or colouring

matter. Fungi, on the contrary, would appear to

flourish best in the absence of light, in dark cellars,
under flagstones, in hollow trees, and in like places,
where no other form of plant could exist while some ;

genera are entirely subterranean.

The luminosity of fungi is a phenomenon which we
do not often see exhibited in these temperate regions ;

but in countries nearer the tropics it is not at all an

uncommon occurrence for fungi to give out a kind of

phosphorescent light with sufficient intensity to enable

the traveller to read his letters or write up his journal.

" And unctuous meteors from spray to spray

Crept and Hi ted iu
i broad noonday
Unseen, every branch on which they alit
By a venomous blight was burned and bit."

In our schoolboy days we remember to have often

carriedhome in our pockets a piece of touchwood, to be
taken to bed with us on account of the little light it
afforded. What we, in common with our elders and

betters,termed touchwood, was merely the light, white,

decaying wood of an old stump, entirely permeated with

the minute mycelium of a fungus, and which exhibited

phosphorescence in the dark. The fact was well enough

known to us, but the cause was a mystery the remotest
;

idea of its
being due to the presence of a fungoid growth
never entered our boyish Ik ads.
A kind of Polyporus (P. sulfureus), often found
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 9

forming a dense mass on the stumps of trees, exhibits

phosphorescence in the early stages of its decay.
The forms which these singular plants assume are

extremely diversified : in some instances Ave have a

distinct stem supporting a cap, and looking somewhat
like a parasol in others the stem is
;
entirely absent,
and the cap is attached either by its
margin, and is

said to be dimidiate, or by its back, or that which is

more commonly its upper surface, when it is called

resupinate. Sometimes the form and colour so nearly

resemble that of a tongue, that, as Dr. Badham
says,
"
in the days of enchanted trees you would not have
cut it off to pickle or eat on any account, lest the

knight to whom it belonged should afterwards come to

claim it of you." In some species the form is that of
a cup in others of a goblet, a saucer, an ear, a birds-
;

nest, a horn, a bunch of coral, a ball, a button, a

rosette, a of jelly, or a piece of velvet.

lump Indeed,
so protean are they in shape, that description fails in

giving an adequate idea of their variety.

In colour they are almost as variable as in shape :

inone or two instances decidedly green but this colour ;

must be considered as rare amongst them. We have

all shades of red, from light pink to deepest crimson ;

all tints from sulphureous to orange

of yellow, all ;

kinds of browns, from palest ochre to deepest umber ;

and every gradation between pale grey and sooty black.

Blue and violet tints do not abound ;
but even these,
as well as a beautiful amethyst, occasionally occur.
White or creamy tints are very common. There is a
10 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

livid and suspicious shade to many of the species, not

peculiarly attractive to the disinterested observer.

Odours are manifestly agreeable, or disagreeable, to
a considerable extent, according to the taste of the

inhaler; but it must he confessed that some of the

fungi exhale an odour so intolerably foetid, that no set

of olfactory nerves could be found to endure it longer
than was absolutely necessary. lady having found A
a specimen of the truly elegant, but rare, Clathrus, set
about making a sketch of it but, notwithstanding her
;

urgent desire to accomplish the task, she was compelled

to have the fungus removed from the house before her
sketch was finished.
A
gentleman of our acquaintance, during a stroll
through Daren th Wood, met with a specimen of the
common stinkhorn {Phallus impndicus) which, having
,

deposited in his sandwich-box and consigned to his

pocket, he designed to take home and examine. For
some time he had become conscious of an unpleasant
odour but it was not until he had entered the railway
;

carriage, to return to town, that he discovered the

true Everybody in the compartment com-
source.

plained, and wondered what could be the cause, and

it as soon as an
quitted opportunity offered. Nothing
but a resolute determination to make a drawing and
section of the fungus could have prevented our friend
throwing away stinkhorn and sandwich-box long ere
his arrival in town but, in this instance, botanical
;

enthusiasm overcame all

physical difficulties.
The foetid or unpleasant odour is not, however, uni-
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 11

versal in fimsri. There are some which have the scent

of tarragon, of new-mown hay, of violets, of anise, of

walnuts, of new meal, &c. while there are others

;

which, we must have the odour of onions, of

confess,

garlic, of tainted meat, of fish, and equally unpleasant

substances and others, again, which are devoid of any
;

perceptible odour. Some persons are very fond of

tasting, and here they may gratify that propensity for ;

in fungi they will meet with a variety of flavours, some

<.f which will be calculated to please, and others to

disgust. In the raw state, probably, the acrid or

unpleasant prevails in the majority of cases, for some

species which are pleasant when cooked, have a very
acrid taste when eaten raw. The number of poisonous

species has, perhaps, been exaggerated ;

but of these
there are many, and the dangerous properties of
a few are extremely virulent.
always We have

imagined prudent to taste unknown species with

it

caution, since we have learnt that some mycologists,

having, perhaps, more enthusiasm than caution, have,
from merely tasting very virulent species, suffered
for some time afterwards considerable pain and in-

convenience. More especial reference will be made

hereafter to the species recommended as esculent, and
which may be found, in greater or less number, in our
own islands.

As
articles of food, fungi are certainly deserving of

more attention than they have hitherto received from

the majority of our countrymen. People widely sepa-
rated by mountains, oceans, or vast tracts of desert,
12 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

have been found employing certain species as delicacies.

Not only in China, as evidenced by the examples of

dried edible fungi sent to the International Exhibition
of 1862, but also in the Himalayas and in the Rocky
Mountains, as well as in Terra del Fuego, New Zealand,
and Australia, to say nothing of European countries,
certain species afford wholesome and nutritious food.
Of their chemical composition we are very deficient in

information. Few authentically- determined species have

yet come under the cognizance of the chemist, and there
is but doubt that not only does the composition
little

vary greatly in different species, as evidenced by their

wholesome or unwholesome properties, but also in the

same species under different conditions of climate and
habitat, as well as during the different stages of its
existence ;
a few hours being sufficient in some cases
to convert a wholesome food into a very injurious, and,
perhaps, dangerous substance.

GILL-BEA1UNG FUNGI.
With a view to a mo. comnletp knowledge of the
structure and arrangement (/ Vungi, it will be advisable
to commence with an examination of one of the best

known, as a type of the higher divisions of this inter-

esting group of plants. Every one knows what a mush-

room is, at least so far as regards its external
appearand'.
If we carefully remove the soil from the base of the
stem which bears the cap-like receptacle of mushrooms,
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 13

we shall lay bare a number of pale entangled threads,

which constitute the mycelium, or spawn. These

thread-like processes consist of a number of separate

individuals, which unitedly produce the stem already

alluded to.

The mycelium of fungi is not always composed of

filaments, but this kind will, for the present, serve the

purpose of
illustration. At certain points in this en-
tangled mass of threads, a little rounded protuberance
at first which, as it enlarges, ruptures, and the
appears,
be seen within it, with its cap or
young mushroom may
its stem. The membrane which
pileus supported upon
has up to this point inclosed the young mushroom is

termed the voka, or wrapper, portions or traces of which

often remain permanently at the base of the stem.
The or cap, for some time after it has
young pileus
emerged from the wrapper, retains
its spherical or hemi-

spherical
form. As it expands, the under surface, which
is seen to consist of a membrane, or in some cases only

of a mass of entangled threads, ruptures, leaving a

portion attached to the stem, or stipe, in the form of an
irregular collar, rinor, or annulus. This collar is in

some species of Agaric permanent, in others it is move-

able, whilst in many it is entirely absent.
The breaking
of the membrane from the under surface of the
away
a series of plates or
pileus, as already described, exposes

gill-like processes,
called also lamella?, which radiate
from the stem. These are covered with the fruc-
gills
which bears the
tifying surface, termed
the hymenium,

spores, or reproductive bodies.

14 A TLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

The accompanying woodcut will make clearer the

position and relation of the parts we have described.

At the base of this section of an Agaric the mycelium is

represented at m, proceeding
from this the stipe or stem

(.s), surrounded by the remains

of the volva or wrapper (v).
The stem is surmounted by a
pileus or cap (p), bearing
lamella) or gills on the under
surface (g). which have been

exposed by the disappearance

of the indusium or veil, leaving traces in the form of
an cumulus or ring (a) around the stem.
If we collect a specimen of mushroom, or any Agaric.
and having separated the stem from the pileus, invert
the latter, with the gills downwards, upon a piece of

glass or a sheet of writing-paper, in the course of an

hour or two a number of fine dust-like bodies will be
seen to have fallen from the under surface of the pileus

upon the glass or paper. These are the reproductive

bodies, known as spores, which arc borne upon the
surface of the lamellaB. Their colour will in many
instances be white, but in some of a purple tint, or
various shades of brown. The further and more
minute examination of these bodies requires the aid of
a microscope.
It has been said that the spores of Agarics are home

upon what are termed Jic gills, and that the spore-
bearing surface is called the hymcniuin. In the genus
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 15

now under description this hymenium is folded or plaited

series of plates radiating from

together in the form of a
the stem the two sides of these folds adhere more or
;

less by their backs, and in some species may be easily

out. Upon the surface of the hymenium will
opened
be found a number of swollen threads or cells, called

sporophores, or basidia (b),

each surmounted by four
smaller branches, termed spicules, or stigmata (a), each
of which is terminated by a spore. An immense number
of these spores are borne on the hymenium
of a single fungus, as will be evident by
the deposit obtained in the manner already
indicated. The spores vary not only in size,
but also in colour and form. Fries says

of
"
them :— They are so infinite — for in a single indi-

vidual I have reckoned above 10,000,000— so subtile,

scarcely visible to the eye,
and resembling thin smoke ;

so light, and are dispersed in so many ways, that it

is difficult to conceive a place from which they can be

excluded."
The whole of the description now concluded will

only apply to the Agaricini, or Gill-bearing Fungi. Of

these there are believed to exist at least three thousand

species, and one-tenth of them are probably esculent,

while perhaps one sixth of them are not positively
unwholesome.
To determine the species to which any individual

Agaric may belong, necessary that the following

it is

particulars should be noted —

i.k., whether found grow-

ing singly or in groups, and whether, if

gregarious, it
16 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

formed a portion of a ring also, if found on the ground

;

or upon decaying wood, and whether rooting or not.

It should carefully be noted if the stem is stout or
slender, bulbous or fusiform, scaly, downy, or smooth ;

whether central in its inser-

tion, eccentric, lateral, or

almost obsolete ;
what is the
colour of the pileus, gills, and

stem, the form ol the pileus

a in the
young as well as the
mature plant and what is the ;

nature of the surface of the pileus, whether downy

or smooth, dull or shining, viscid or dry. Then, by
cutting the pileus and stem down the centre, the
texture of both, their colour, and
also whether the stem is fibrous,
stuffed (i.e., filled with a spongy
or cottony mass) or fistulose
b
(i.e., hollow) (a b). The form and
position of the gills must also be noted. If their interior

extremities are distant from the stem, they are remote

(c) ; reaching the stem, but not attached thereto, free

(d) but if attached, they are

;

then termed adnate(e). If the

gills run down the stem, they

are said to be decurrent (/)•
* Their opposite or outer ex-
tremity may be forked, or their interior toothed or
emarginate (<i) and the whole surface of the gills
;

may be narrow or broad, and they may be closely

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 17

packed side by side, or distant. And, finally, the

colour of the spores and (if practicable) their form,
as shown by the microscope, should be determined.
This catalogue of desiderata will have intimated the
points of variation which will be
found in different species of Aga-
ricus, and which will, some of
them, be illustrated by the ex-

amples to which we shall hereafter

more particularly refer.
The entire mass of Fungi subdivide themselves
naturally into two great divisions. In one of these, and
by far the largest, the spores, or reproductive bodies, are
naked or exposed, generally clus-
tered in groups of four, or some
multiple of that number. It will
be borne in mind that in En-
three is the *
dogenous plants, mys-
tical, typical, or representative number, whilst in
the alliance of plants now under consideration
that typical number is The first
four. great division
of fungi, in which the
spores
are naked, is termed Spori-
fera, orspore-bearing. In
the second, or smaller division,
the spores are contained in

bags, or sacs, called asci, /

and the division bears the name of Sporidiifera.
The Sporiferous division of fungi, again, contains four

families, which are arranged according to the following

18 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

distinctive features :
— In one family, the hymenium,
whether distributed over gills, tubes, pores, or fissures,
is the most prominent object. Hence these are called

Hymenomycetes, a word compounded of hymenium and

mycetes, the latter being the Greek term for fungi :

so that these might be called Hymenium-fungi ; of

which the common mushroom may be accepted as an

example.
In the second family the hymenium is enclosed in a
peridium, or case, which seldom ruptures before the
spores are ripe.
To this family the name of Gastero-

mycetes is given ;
from gaster a belly, because the hy-

menium, with the reproductive bodies, are enclosed

all

in a kind of uterus or womb, from whence they are

expelled when mature. Of this family, the puff-balls

may be taken as an example.
In the third family, which contains very minute
individuals, the spores are the most conspicuous bodies ;

the name employed Coniomycetes, derived from the

is

Greek konis, signifying dust, on account of their dust-

like nature of which mildew and smut may be taken
;

as types.
In the fourth family the spores are small and in-
conspicuous compared to the threads upon which they
are borne, and which latter are the distinctive features
of the family. Hence it is termed Hyphomyceles, from
the Greek word hypha, a thread ;
wherefore they might
be called thread-like fungi. Of this family, blue-mould
may be taken as an example.
Having now briefly characterized the four families of
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 19

Spcrriferous fungi, we will return to the first of these,

and examine it more minutely.
The Hymenomycetous fungi are those in which the
hymenium is the most prominent feature. In some of
these the hymenium is inferior, and in some it is su-

perior. We will commence with those in which it is

inferior. This family contains six orders, of equal im-

portance, and equally natural to similar divisions of

flowering plants. It will be remembered henceforth,

that we make noallusion to groups, of whatever size or

importance, not represented in the British Flora.

The first and most prominent order is termed Agari-

cini, and contains the Gill-bearing fungi, or those in
which the hymenium, or spore-bearing surface, is inferior,
and spread over lamellae or gills, which radiate from a
common centre, and each of which lamellae may be
separated into two plates.
This order is well represented in Great Britain, for

we have not less than one thousand distinct species

already described. The eighteen British genera will
be found arranged in the systematic table appended to
this volume.
The first genus of this order is often amalgamated
with the second, on the authority of Fries but Dr. ;

Greville long ago proposed its separation. In this work

we shall retain the old name of Amanita for the thirteen

species found in Britain, deeming the character of

the volva to be of sufficient importance to justify their
removal from the large genus with which they are often
associated.
c 2
20 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

In Amanita the volva is distinct, the gills are mem-

branaceous, with acute edges, and the spores are white.
The volva, on breaking up, remains attached to the
pileus in fragments resembling warts. Of the thirteen

species found in this country, many are poisonous, and

one is especially deserving of notice from its extraor-

dinary application abroad. This species, the Fly Agaric

{Amanita muscaria), has a bright scarlet or reddish
umber pileus, studded with warts of a dirty white or
yellowish tint (Plate 1). The stem is bulbous, con-
taining cottony threads. It is found most commonly

in birch woods, and not very plentifully in Britain.

A decoction of this fungus has been employed as a fly-

poison ;
whencevulgar name.
its

M. Roques, work on Esculent Fungi, says dis-

in his

tinctly that this plant has not its poisonous properties

modified by any climate. The Czar Alexis lost his life
by eating ofit, and yet it has been affirmed that in

Kamtschatka "it is used as a frequent article of food."

And we have been informed that it is cooked and eaten
in Russia, albeit it is also on record that several French
soldiers ate of it within the confines of the Russian

dominions, and became very ill. In Siberia it supplies

the inhabitants with the means of intoxication similar
" " "
to that produced by the haschisch and " majoon
of the East. The fungi are collected during the sum-
mer months, and hung up to dry in the open air, or they
are left to dry in the ground, and are collected afterwards.
When the latter course is pursued, they are said to
possess more powerful narcotic properties than when
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 21

dried artificially. The juice of the whortleberry in

which this substance has been steeped, acquires thereby
the intoxicating properties of strong wine.
The method of using this singular production is to

roll it
up in the form of a bolus, and swallow it whole.
A day's intoxication may be procured at the expense of
one or two of these fungi, and this intoxication is
affirmed to be not only cheap, but remarkably pleasant.
The result follows within an hour or two of participation.
Some of the effects produced by this fungus resemble
those resulting from intoxicating liquors others are ;

similar to the accompaniments of an indulgence in

" haschisch."
At first it generally produces cheer-
fulness, afterwards giddiness and drunkenness, ending
occasionally in the entire loss of consciousness. The
natural inclinations of the individual become stimu-
lated. The dancer executes a pas d 'extravagance,
the musician indulges in a song, the chatterer divulges
all his secrets, the orator delivers himself of a philippic,
and the mimic indulges in caricature. Erroneous im-
pressions of size and distance are common occurrences :

a straw lying in the road becomes a formidable object,

to overcome which a leap is taken sufficient to clear a

barrel of ale, or the prostrate trunk of a British oak.

But this is not the only extraordinary circumstance
connected therewith. The property is imparted to the
fluid excretion of rendering it intoxicating, which pro-
perty it retains for a considerable time. A man, having
been intoxicated on one day, and slept himself sober by
the next, will, by drinking this
liquor to the extent of
22 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

about a cupful, become as much intoxicated as he was

before. Confirmed drunkards in Siberia preserve this
as a precious liquor in case a scarcity of fungi should
occur. This intoxicating property may be communicated
to every person who partakes of the disgusting draught,
and thus with the third, fourth, and even fifth distilla-

tion. By means, with a few fungi to commence

this

with, a party may shut themselves in their room and

indulge in a week's debauch.*

A species of Amanita {A. strobiliformis, Fr.), rarely
found on the borders of woods, and which attains a large
size, is said to be esculent, but is too rare to become of

any importance as an article of food. The pileus is

studded with persistent warts, as in the Fly Amanita ;

but instead of the bright red colour of that species, in

this instance the pileus is of a purplish grey.
The Red Amanita (^4. rubescens. Pers.) is also gene-
rally described as an esculent species. The whole
plant becomes red when bruised
or rubbed, a character-
istic by which it
may be readily distinguished. It is

very common in woods, and has the pileus covered

with scattered mealy warts. Dr. Badham and M. Roques
include this amongst esculent species ; and I am assured

by a friend in the country, who experiments upon all

the reputed esculent
species which fall in his way, that
"
this kind makes excellent
ketchup." Berkeley, not-
withstanding, considers it as doubtful. Whilst Mr.
* Further' details may be found in "The Seven Sisters of
Sleep," by M. C. Cooke, pp. 336—345. London: James
Blackwood.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 23

Curroy from long experience he can vouch

states, that
as Dr. Badham
for its being not only wholesome, but,
"a
says, very delicate fungus."
There is yet one other species of Amanita {A. vagi-
nata) which is very common in woods and under
trees. It is extremely variable in size and in colour.
The is thin, at first bell-shaped, and ultimately
pileus
expands to nearly a plane surface. The stem is hollow,
and the volva loose. The free gills are white in the

earlier stages of growth. This species is entirely desti-

tute of any ring. Dr. Greville found a white variety
of this species, which he calls A. nivalis, growing on
the bleak summits of the loftiest Grampians, where, he
" it enlivens the few
says, turfy spots which occur in
those desert regions by its symmetry and extreme
whiteness. In its young state it is completely enve-

loped in the smooth

volva or wrapper, and bears a near
resemblance to a pigeon's egg, scarcely rising above the
dark moss. After bursting from its confinement, it
the coldest
rapidly advances to maturity, uninjured by
winds, or the snow with which it is sometimes covered,
even in the middle of August." This species has not

only enjoyed the reputation of being esculent, but also

of being poisonous. From the very questionable company
in which the three species of Amanita now named
are found, and from the conflicting testimony as to
their wholesome properties, we conclude that it would
be much which are grouped
safer to regard all the species
under that name as suspicious, and not to collect and
employ any species of Amanita as an article of food.
24 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

TRUE AGARICS.
The genus Agaricus bears a name, the origin of
which is involved in a little obscurity, from whence the
Rev. M. J. Berkeley, the prince of British mycologists,
has thus endeavoured to rescue it :
—
" In all books which profess to give the derivations
of botanical terms, it is said that Agaricus derives its
name from Agaria, a region in Sarmatia, or from

Agarus, a town and river in the same country. This

derivation, at first sight, seems equally absurd with the

parallel drawn by Fluellen between Macedon and Mon-

mouth. What has Sarmatia to do with toadstools more
than any other country, as they are found everywhere ?

The fact, however, is, that the original name, Agaricum,

for so it stands in Pliny, had nothing whatever to do
with them, but was applied by Dioscorides to a peculiar

drug, supplied by the Pohjporus of the larch, which

was obtained principally, if not solely, from Agaria, but
which, though formerly of considerable repute, appears
now to have gone almost entirely out of use in regular
practice. It is, however, still to be had of the herbalists,

who import it from Germany, a form on Larix siberica

being obtained occasionally from Archangel. As the
true species occurs only on the larch, and, indeed, upon

very old trees, it is confined almost entirely to places

where that genus of conifers is indigenous.
"Other Polypori have often been substituted for
that of the larch, and, therefore, the name Agaricum,
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 25

or Agaricus, as it was afterwards

written, became, to a
certain extent, generic for Polyporus, and it is so used

by Micheli, Ray, and others, the word Fungus beino-

generally applied to what, after Linnaeus, we now call
Agaricus. It is to be
regretted, that when that great
author reformed the system of botany, he too often took

any names which offered themselves in the older

authors, without giving himself the trouble to inquire
whether they belonged really to the plants to which

they were attributed, and thus the familiar name of

Agaric is now applied to plants which should never

have borne it. Our earlier herbalists rightly it applied
to corky arboreous fungi ;
as Agaric of the oak, &c. In
like manner the Greek Hydnum, instead of being a
conspicuous pileate fungus, such as we now recognise
under the name, was originally a kind of truffle and ;

other instances of similar misnomers

many might be
adduced. It is, however, now too late to mend such

matters, and we may be glad to substitute such a word

as Agaric for Toadstool, which
not only disgusting
is

in its real etymology, but helps to keep

up the feeling
of contempt with which a most
interesting class of
plants is too frequently regarded."
The A garics constituting
such a large and important
genus, has
it been found convenient to arrange them in

five very natural series, to the colour of the

according
In the first series, termed
spores. Leucospori, the
spores are white ;
of which Agaricus procerus may be
taken as an example. In the second series, called Hypo-
rJwdii, the spores are salmon-coloured; of which Agari-
26 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

cus prunidus will serve as an example. In the third

denominated Dennini, the spores are ferruginous,
series,
and sometimes tawny or brownish ;
of this series Agari-
cus matabilis will afford a type. In the fourth series,
called Pratellce, in which the spores are brownish- purple
or brown, the common mushroom, Agaricus campestris,
is included. And of the fifth series, styled Coprinarius,
in which the spores are black, we have an example in

Agaricus campanulatus.
Each one of these series contains a number of sub-

genera, which were formerly considered to have the

value of genera, but which are now merely retained to
serve as guides to the synonyms of old authors, or to
facilitate the grouping and arrangement of species. In
this work they will all be considered as species of the
one genus Agaricus.
Under the vague and general name of mushrooms
several species of fungi are consumed as articles of
food. It may be true that in some localities only
one or two species are dignified with the appellation
of mushroom, whilst all the rest which resemble it in
form are condemned as toadstools ; yet we believe
that there is in prospect an age when more of those
which are really worthy will be admitted to the tables
of rich and poor, without that accompaniment of

suspicion and dread which attaches to the dish of

mushrooms. We accord perfect justice to Agaricus
campestris, the mushroom of cultivation, whilst more
delicious kinds, and equally harmless, are allowed to
flourish and decay year by year without molestation.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 27

Whoever has read Dr. Badham's " Esculent Fun-

"
guses of Great Britain will not fail to recognise the
following observations :
—"
have this autumn myselfI

witnessed w hole hundredweights of rich wholesome

r

diet, rotting under trees : woods teeming with food, and

not one hand to gather it and this perhaps in the
;

midst of potato- blights, poverty, and all manner of

privations, and public prayers against imminent famine.

I have, indeed, grieved when I have considered the
straitened condition of the lower orders this year, to see

pounds innumerable of extempore beefsteaks growing

on our oaks in the shape of Fistulina hepatica ; Aga-
ricus fusipes, to pickle in clusters under them ;
Puff-

balls, which some of our friends have not inaptly

compared to sweetbread, for the rich delicacy of their

unassisted flavour ; Hydna, as good as oysters, which

they somewhat resemble in taste ; Agaricus deliciosus,

reminding us of tender lamb kidney the beautiful ;

Yellow Chantarelle, that Kalon Kayathon of diet, grow-

ing by the bushel, and no basket but our own to pick
up a few specimens in our way the sweet nutty Bole- ;

tus, in vain calling himself edulis, where there was none

to believe him ;
the dainty Orcella, the Agaricus
heterophyllus, which tastes like the craw-fish when
grilled ; the red and green species of Agaricus to cook
in any way, and equally good in all." The faithful
remembrance and wholesome dread of poison lurking
beneath the cap of fungi, which have filled up pages
in the history of the past, mixed up with a little romance
and superstition, have combined to prevent the accor-
28 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

dance of justice to this numerous alliance of plants.

It is true also that the odour and appearance of

some species are repulsive enough to have warranted

their association with that despised reptile which has
been said to carry a jewel in its head, and with a con-
temptuous epithet the toadstool has been trodden under
foot without even a suspicion of its use, except as a
throne for a toad.
Instead of the one or two species which appear in
our markets in the autumn, there are upwards of fifty
which might be easily discriminated from the noxious
kinds, and the majority of which are fully equal, and
some perhaps superior, to any of the kinds popularly
considered esculent.
Foremost in the genus Aqaricus stands a group
naturally associated together under the sub-generic
name of Lepiota, derived from the scaly appearance
of the surface of the pileus (lepis, Lat. a scale). The
hymenophorum, or part which bears the gills, is distinct
from the stem, and the veil breaks up into scales on
the surface of the pileus or cap. The gills differ from
those in the succeeding sub-genus in being nearly or

entirely free.
Occasionally, a very suspicious-looking fungus, Aga-
ricus procerus, a member of this sub-genus, is found
exhibited for sale in Covent Garden Market, but
which is, nevertheless, very good eating. It is often

several inches in diameter, and isfound growing in

pastures. The stem is

long, hollow, and bulbous at
the base, clad with closely -pressed scales. The pileus
 PL. 2.

Ayaricus proa rus. / V

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 29

has a thick cuticle, which breaks up into distinct

scales (PI. 2). The ring is moveable and the gills are
distance between
very remote, leaving a considerable
them and the stem. This fungus is esteemed also in
Germany, France, Italy, and Spain,
where it is known

locally by various names ;

as parasol schwamm in Ger-
many, coulemelle in France, buhbola maggiore in Italy,
and cogomelos in Spain. Although it has but little
flesh, it is very savoury and
of an excellent odour,

and is generally cooked in oil, with salt, pepper, and

a little garlic, the stems being excluded. An allied

species, Agaricus rac/iodes, found in shady pastures,

has flesh which is mostly red when bruised. The pileus
isglobose in the young state,
but afterwards expands
and becomes depressed. The cuticle is thinner than in
the last-named species, and, like that, is broken up into
scales. doubted by some whether this is really
It is

a very wholesome species it may be eaten, and we

;

are assured by those who have eaten them, that both

species are equally excellent. They will, either of

them, afford a good ketchup, and, consequently, it is

said, realizea good price in Covent Garden, although

we have never had the good fortune to see them there.
Another and smaller species of the same sub-genus
(A. excoriatus) has been eaten, but it is not to be recom-
mended. The cuticle is also thin, and breaks up into
patches. The stem is short, hollow, and nearly white.
Amateurs would do well to confine their gastronomic

experiments to the first-named of these species {A. pro-

cerus). It is so distinct in habit and general appear-
30 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

ance, that it would be almost impossible tomistake any

unwholesome species for the true Parasol Mushroom.
The most delicate of the Lepiotas is one found in
Northamptonshire {A. gracilentus). It lias also a
thin cuticle breaking up into scales or patches. The
stem is long, hollow, and slightly bulbous but, unfor-
;

tunately, it is too unfrequent to be of any service as a

source of food. In
all of the four
species of Lepiota
now named, the pileus is fleshy and scaly the ring is ;

moveable ;
the base of the stem more or less bulbous ;
and the gills are distinct from the stem.
The sub-genus Armillaria is a small one, and con-
tains but one species said to be edible. The three
other species found in Britain are either local or
uncommon. The veil is but partial, the substance of
the hymenophorum, on which the gills are arranged, is
continuous with the stem, and the gills are not free as
in Lepiota. Varieties occasionally occur from which
the ring is absent, at least in some of the species, if
not in all.
The very common fungus Agaricits melleus, which
constitutes the one edible species of
sub-group this

(PI. 3), found growing in dense tufts on dead stumps.

is

It is of a pale reddish-brown colour with a tint of

yellow, and is much eaten on the Continent, though

possessed of an acrid taste when raw. The pileus,

when fully developed, presents a level, plane surface,
clad with fibrous scales. The stem is elastic, the gills
white and mealy, hooked or toothed at the end.

Reports are various as to the qualities of this species ;

 PL. 3.

Agaricu*. Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 81

for, while it is affirmed to be eaten largely under the

name of Hallimasch in Vienna, and we have seen it

in the markets of that city in enormous quantities, and

one author compares its flavour to that of lamb, and
recommends it to be eaten as an ingredient in stews, —
Dr. Badham says it is nauseous and disagreeable, and
some others, that it is economically valueless. It

must be confessed that the odour is not in the least

disagreeable, but rather inviting, whilst the taste is

slightly acrid when

raw, and pleasant enough, though
deficient in aroma, when cooked.
A larger group succeeds that to which we have now
alluded, bearing the sub-generic name of Tricholoma.

The characters in this group are pretty distinct, and the

species often large and imposing. The veil is absent

or nearly so, or, if present, is very fugitive, and the
gills have
a notch or silus behind, at the
extremity
next to the stem. It is extremely probable that this

group does not contain a single unwholesome species,

and it certainly contains several with very fair esculent
properties. The whole of these, and indeed almost
every species except the common mushroom, are charac-
" toad-
terized by the majority of our countrymen as
stools
"
:
—
" But the
mandrakes, and toadstools, and docks, and darnels,
Rose like the dead from their ruin'd charnels ; "

or, as locally termed in the eastern counties, " toad-

skeps," a probable corruption of "toads-cap;" for

"skep" is there held and used as a synonym for a large
basket, with which mushrooms have nothing in common.
•32 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

Let us hope that such names, which originated, and

have been perpetuated in ignorance, will soon become
obsolete.

The St. George's Mushroom (A.gambosus) is an early

species, as it makes its appearance, growing in rings,
about May or June. It has a most powerful odour, and

sometimes attains a very large size. Although another

and veiy distinct species has shared the honour of
bearing the name of the patron saint of England, this
is believed to be the true St. George's mushroom. To
whichever of the two the genuine patronage belongs, it
is said to have been first ascribed to it
by the Hun-
garians, on account of its being the special gift of that
saintly champion. Others, dissenting from so romantic
an origin, declare that the name resulted simply from
its making its
appearance about the time of St.
George's
day.
If the latter be the true source of the name, the

present species establishes its claim to it

by flourishing
in spring, whilst the pretender is an autumnal species.
The pileus in this mushroom is thick and fleshy,
smooth, and ultimately becomes cracked and fissured.
The stem is stout and solid, and the yellowish-white
gills
are much crowded together. The odour of this

species is so strong, both in the matured state and in the

earliest stages of its growth, as to become oppressive
and overpowering. Workmen employed to root them
out are said 'to have been so overcome by the odour as
to be compelled to desist. Although this cannot tvj

considered one of the most delicate-flavoured of funui,

 OV BRITISH FUNGI. 33

it is nevertheless welcome at such an early period of

the year, when the more desirable kinds are not to be
obtained.

Perhaps our word mushroom was derived from the

French moucheron or mousseron, by which this species
seems to have been designated on account of its growing
amongst moss. In France and Italy it is so highly
esteemed that, when dried, it will realize from twelve to
fifteen shillings per pound. Its capability
of under-

going successfully the drying process, gives this species

the advantage over the common mushroom, which
some have declared it
already possessed on account of
its flavour. An amateur writes of it thus
" —
It is
:

very good broiled ;

but the best way of cooking it, is to
bake it with a little butter,
pepper, and salt, in an oven,
on a plate under a basin. A great quantity of gravy
comes out of it, mingled, in the case of a good specimen,
with osmazome, which tastes very much like the similar
brown exudation on the surface of a roast leg of mutton/'
Agaricus prunulus, although one of the numerous
synonyms of this species, is more correctly attached
to another esculent fungus hereafter
described, and
which has a greyish pileus and coloured spores.
Amongst the species occasionally sold in Covent
Garden is a common one known there by the name of

Blewits, but to botanists ;.s A. personatus (PI. 11,

fig.1). When mature it has a soft, convex, smooth,
moist pileus, with a solid, som* what bulbous stem, tinted
with lilac. The gills are of a dirty white, and rounded
towards the stem. This species scarcely stems to be
i)
34 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

known as esculent on the Continent, though it consti-

tutes one of the very few having a marketable value in

England, where it is employed chiefly for making

ketchup. It is quite essential that this species should

be collected in dry weather, and when it is not moist

with the early dew, as it absorbs moisture very readily ;

for if regard be not had to these conditions in eratherine,

it will probably afterwards suffer condemnation.
Opinions vary as much as tastes differ, as to the quality
of this fungus but though agreeable to some when
;

well and seasoned with sweet herbs, it has a

broiled

peculiar flavour which would not commend it to others.

It certainly does not deserve to stand in the first class of

our indigenous species, and the ketchup it affords is

It has the recommendation of being
poor. readily dis-
tinguished by its violet-tinted stem, and smooth, sleek
pileus, and, did it not appear in October, when other
and better species are plentiful, might be accepted as a
substitute.

The sub-genus Clitocybe is also well represented in

the British Flora. The name (hiitos, a declivity, and

kube, a head) originated in the funnel-shaped pileus of

some of the species. This group differs from Tricholoma
in the gills not having a sinus behind,
they being
attached abruptly, or tapering gradually and running
down the stem. There are several esculent species to
De found in this group, some of which we shall proceed
to notice.

One- fungus especially deserving attention may often

ne found in our woods, growing
amongst dead leaves.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 35

although without any charms of colouring to check the

rambler in his path, and cause him to stay and admire.
All its charms are those which appeal to the internal

sensibilities of the gastric regions. This, sometimes

called the Clouded Agaric (A. nebuhris), has generally a

mouse-grey or dun-coloured pileus, scarcely four inches

in diameter, supported upon a robust stem of about three
inches in height. The edge of the pileus is rolled in,
and the fungus has altogether a smoky appearance, as
though it had been exiled from town to vegetate peni-

tentially in the wood. The gills are dirty white, nume-

rous, and run a little way down the stem. The flesh is

thick, and odour strong.

It must, moreover, not be forgotten that the spores
in this species are of a snowy whiteness, so abundant as

to sprinkle and whiten the surrounding grass, which

will enable the novice to avoid confounding it with less

useful or more noxious species with pinkish or roseate

spores.
All who have tried this fungus — and it is not at all
difficult to distinguish — agree that it is of a most deli-
cate flavour, and easy of digestion.
The Fragrant Agaric odorus) is a very beautiful
(^4.
little species, but far from common. In dry weather
especially, it exhales an odour reminding one of new-
mown hay or melilot. The pileus is from two to three
inches in and generally of a more or less
diameter,
greenish tint. The gills are numerous, pale, or tinged
with flesh-colour. The stem is solid and firm. It has
the reputation of supplying a rather delicate dish ;
but
P 2
36 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

failins: in satisfying ourselves of its merits sufficiently

to serve as a basis for its recommendation, we have not
riven an illustration. It docs not appear to be eaten

on the Continent ;
and although included by some

persons amongst
edible species, Roques considers its

alimentary qualities as doubtful.

A very large mushroom, called appropriately A . maxi-
iit
us, attaining sometimes the
diameter of nearly a foot,
is occasionally found in woods growing in rings. The
pileus
is covered with a fine down,«md ultimately splits
or cracks ; very crowded, and at first
the gills are

white, becoming yellowish with age. This species is

affirmed to be sweet and agreeable cooked in
any
way ;
and certainly some of the individuals occasionally
found are large enough to furnish any one with a meal.
A
very elegant fungus. {A. dealbatus) is occa-
little

found in dense clusters on mushroom -beds, and

sionally
more often on the ground in fir plantations. It is of a

clear ivory whiteness, especially when young, and the

which is depressed and ulti-
upper surface of the pileus,
mately cup shaped, has a satin-like appearance. The
gills are crowded, thin, and white, and the stem is

fibrous, thin, and equal throughout length. its The

margin of the pileus is commonlj waved and folded,
and the whole appearance of the plant is exceedingly
elegant. In our plate (PI. 4, lig. 1) the lower figure

represents a young specimen when the pileus is but

little
depressed ;
the upper, a portion of a group fully
matured.
We can speak from recenl experience of the whole-
 PL. 4.

1. Ayaricus dealbalus. Fr.

.'.
Hygrophorus virgineus. Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNGJ. HI

some qualities of this species. The whole substance is

less watery than the common mushroom, and if old
specimens are mixed in the dish, or any of them are
not cooked carefully and slowly for some time, the result
will prove become
very unsatisfactory, for they will as

tough as leather but a dish of young individuals will

;

make a most excellent stew, with the usual

accompani-
ment of sweet herbs, pepper, and salt.

Another fungus {A. geotropus) is often found in

considerable quantities, growing in rings, in the
neigh-
bourhood of fir-trees, having a convex funnel-shaped
pileus, which is either white or tan-coloured. It has a

solid, compact stem, decreasing in size towards the

pileus. The gills are of the colour of the pileus,

crowded, and running down the stem, and have at

the odour of garlic, which afterwards resembles
first,

more that of bitter almonds. This species, especially

one of its varieties, is considered excellent, equal to

many, and superior to most, of our edible fungi. All

the species nearly allied to it are harmless, so that there
is no danger in their being confounded.
The succeeding group (Collybia) has also its edible

representatives, albeit they are scarcely worthy of any

eulogium. Any one who has been in the habit
of noticing with any interest this singular class of

plants, have
will met with a very common species of
this sub-genus with a
rooting stem, to which the name
of A. radicatdit has been given. It is on account of
this deviation in its habit from the ordinary growth nf
Agarics that we refcr to it and not on account of any
38 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

suspicion that it will ever prove valuable for any pro-

perty which it
may possess.
Although it is sometimes confidently affirmed that
no species of fungus is good for food which grows in
clusters or on old stumps, both these conditions are
combined in a very common species (A.fi/sipes), which
flourishes often in dense tufts in such localities, and is,

moreover, very good to pickle, unless we can conceive

that excellent authorities are either deceiving 01
deceived. This species has the pileus of a reddish-
brown colour, often cracked when mature. The stem
is similar in colour, tapering towards each extremity, so
as to be fusiform or spindle-shaped, and generally

twisted or split, The gills are nearly free, pale, and

often spotted. There is considerable variation in the

size and form ;
but our plate represents its ordinary
character (PI. 5).
this same sub-genus, A. velutipes,
Another species of
may be found growing in tufts on old stumps long after
the frosts of winter have commenced indeed, we have ;

found it
flourishing through
whole of the past the

winter, its
bright yellowish cap and dark velvety stem

making it an
object of interest amid the desolation of
this inclement season. The singular A. tuberosum,
which is
produced from little dark elongated tubers
found on decaying Agarics, is also a member of this

Bub- genus.
The NdgeUckvmmme of the Austrian markets
esculent in) is common in the fir
plantations of
{A .

on account of its bitterness, is not much

Scotland, but,
 PL 5.

Arjuricu* fmipi -. Fr,

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. S9

esteemed. It is a spring fungus, at which season large

baskets of them are exposed for sale at Vienna. The

pileus expands to nearly a plane surface, and is smooth
and clay-coloured. The straight tough stem is of the

same colour as the pileus, and the gills are loose and
whitish. In size it is always small, and in quality so
mediocre that one is led to wonder at its becoming a
marketable commodity anywhere (PI. 14, fig. 3).
We ar not aware that the sub-genus Mycena,
amongst its fifty P>ritish species, contains one that
can be termed esculent. For the mycologist they
possess features of interest, but none for the cook.

Of Omphalia our report must be to the same effect.

Indeed, the species are generally so small that they can

establish no claims to the honour of an experiment.
The sub-genus of the white-spored Agarics i£
last

Pleurotus, or side-foot as some of the species have been

called. This name is probably derived from two Greek
words signifying side-bone or ribs.
The species contained in this group are lovers of
wood, upon which they are generally found growing,
some on living trees, others on dead stumps or posts.
The stem is either inserted into the cap away from the
centre or in the margin, or it is absent altogether.
Some are not larger than the thumb-nail and solitary,
while others are large and grow in dense masses. Some
are occasionally subjected to culinary operations, but
none present very great attractions to the epicure.
Tne trunks of elms often support a large and beau-
tiful species, which not only makes itself a home
40 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

on those venerable trees, elevated many feet above the

ground, but also from them derives its specific name
[A. ulmariui). We have seen it occasionally around
Hampstead and Highgate, but it is not considered a
very common species. The specimen from which our
drawing was made came from the former locality it ;

was flourishing alone, but it is more usual to meet

with them in tufts. The stem is thick and inserted a
little out of the centre ;
the pileus is smooth, slightly
and minutely spotted ;
and the gills are broad, close,
and of a dirty white. Although perfectly wholesome,
there is not much flavour in it, and whatever it may

be when young, it certainly exhibits a tendency to

toughness when fully matured, which does not recom-
mend it to the
gastronomist. It has been customary

to regard this and some of its allies as alimentary,

but there is no doubt that they could all be very
well spared from the list (PI. 6, fig. 1).
Late in the autumn the Oyster (^4. ostreatus) may
be found growing on trees. But, whilst in the animal
world the oyster that groweth upon trees is considered
;is degenerate and unfit for
becoming the food of man,
in the vegetable world the tree-loving oyster is held

by many to be excellent food. The fungus to which

we have thus alluded has generally so peculiar an
appearance, common only to a very limited number of
British species, that it can scarcely be mistaken. The
only one which would be liable to be confounded with
it makes its
appearance in spring, and is not esculent,
whilst theoy8ter is an autumnal species and is decidedly
 PL. 6.

I. A I':.

Bull.

Sen/,.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 41

edible. The densely clustered or imbricated mass in

which they are generally found, with the stems attached
near the side of the pileus, the dirty white gills run-

ning far down the stem, all serve to characterize a

species with which our plate (PI. 7) can scarce fail to

make one familiar. As to its value or quality when
prepared for the table, there is
certainly no unanimity
of opinion. Another species (A. salignus), found some-
times solitary and sometimes in clusters on the trunks
of trees, is said to be eaten in Austria, but we are not
aware that it has been tried in England.
The first
sub-genus in the division with salmon-
coloured spores is termed Voharia. The veil forms a
distinct volva,and gives a decided feature to the group.
One species common in hothouses, where its satiny,
is

dark-grey cap, as it bursts and emerges from the volva,

makes it an attractive object. No species is of eco-
nomic importance amongst the half-dozen found in these
islands.

The sub genus Pluteus has the hymenophorum, or

part on which the gills are situated, distinct from the

stein, by which it is
distinguished from the succeeding
group. The veil is absent, which distinguishes it from
the preceding group There isno esculent British species.
In Entoloma the hymenophorum is continuous with.
and the gills have a tendency to separate from, the
stem.
The next sub-genus is
Clitopilus (klitos, Gr., a slope,
pilos, a cap), in which the hymenophorum is continuous
with the stem, down which the attenuated gills de-
42 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

scend in a decurrent manner. In this group we have

an esculent species.
The true A. prunulus lias the disadvantage of being
often robbed of its good name. It is an autumnal
species found growing in woods. The pileus is fleshy,
and either white or some pale shade of grey. The gills
are rather distant from each other and whitish or flesh-

coloured, decurrent, or running down the solid stem.

The odour resembles that which one experiences on
entering a flour-mill. There can be no doubt that it is
a very good esculent species, but the confusion of this
and A. garnbosw under the same name has perhaps
led some to attribute to it part of the honour due to its
rival. TheSt. George's mushroom (A. gambosus) is a

vernal, and A. prumdus an autumnal species.

Three other sub-genera complete the division of
Agarics in which the spores are salmon-coloured ;
these
are Leptonia, Nolanea, and Eccilia.
In Leptonia the stem has a cartilaginous bark. The
of the is at first curved inwards, and the
margin pileus
gills divide away from the stem.
In Nolanea the stem is cartilaginous, but instead of

being curved at the margin of the pileus is straight,

first,

and closely pressed to the stem.

In Eccilia the stem is also cartilaginous, and the

pileus at first inflexed at the margin ;

the gills are at-
tenuated behind, and truly decurrent, or running down
the stem. Until very lately, it was not known that
this sub-genus had a representative in Britain. Two
species have, however, been discovered but in none ;
 PL. 7.

Agancus ostreatus. Jacq.

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 43

of these sub-genera do we recognise any species that is

edible.

The series called Dermini. which have rust-coloured

or tawny spores, is also
divided into sub-genera, the first
of which is Pholiota, probably derived from the Greek

pkolidotos,
and "signifying covered with scales," which
is a characteristic of many of the species. In this group
the stem is furnished with a ring. It has been stated
that A. mutabilis, a member of this sub-genus, is escu-
lent and, having tested the truth of the assertion,
;
we
admit it as such, though with no special commendation.
Another species (A. squarrosus), which is commonly
found D-rowing in dense clumps on trunks of trees, with
its cap and stem rough, and bristling with innumerable

dark scales, has been found to be wholesome, but we

have many others far more worthy of recommendation.
In this same group occurs a more commendable species
cannot be called
{A. pudicus), but unfortunately it
fleshy, smooth, and
common. The is of a
pileus
The stem is solid and of the same
dirty-white colour.
size throughout its length. The gills
are at first

whitish and ultimately tawny. This fungus will be found

on elder trunks, and
growing on trees, more particularly
has been recommended as wholesome and agreeable.
In Hebeloma, the veil, when
present at oil, is thread-
like, and the gills have a sinus or depression at the

extremity next the stem. Several species are very

common, but none are esculent.

The sub-genus Flammula has the gills either firmly

attached to or running down the stem.

4-4 A PLAIN ANL EASX ACC0UN1

In Naucoria the stem is of a cartilaginous character

on the outside, and the pileus or cap is bent or turned
inwards. A
very common species may be noticed
little

during the summer in almost every pasture, having a

fleshy hemispherical pileus ;
whence its specific name
of semi- orbicularis is derived.
In the sub-genus Galera, the pileus is somewhat
bell-shaped, and the margin is
straight.
The next sub-genus, Crepidotus, has an eccentric

pileus, which distinguishes it from all the others. This

completes the series with rust-coloured or tawny spores.
It will have been remarked that in all this series there

does not occur a single species which can be recom-

mended as an article of food ;
still there are a few which

may he eaten without injury. Although interesting to

the mycologist, our space will not permit us to give
mure than this brief summary of the principal features
of the groups into which the series is subdivided.

Succeeding these are the PratelljE, a series of

Agarics in which the spores are brownish-purple or

brown, and the first and foremost sub-genus is Psalliota

(from psalion, Gr., a ring), having the veil affixed to

the stem, and forming a ring. In this group we en-
counter the mushroom of the English, the Pratiola of
the Italians, or the A. campestris of botanists (PI. 8, fig.

2). "May he die of a pratiola !" is the worst wish that an

Italian can express for an enemy. Hence we may learn
(he small esteem in which our general favourite is held
by the most extensive of fungi-eaters in
Europe. Were
this species to appear in the markets of Ilnue for sale, it
 PL 8.

I,' ,r \ \> «

/.
Agaricvs gambosus. Fr.
2. Agarjcus campestris. Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 4-5

would be certain of condemnation by the Inspector of

Funo-i as unwholesome. Autres homines, autres moeurs.
In Milan it only became recognised as worthy of being

eaten after Vittadini had stood up as its champion, and

in the Venetian states it is scarcely known. The sus-

picion that attaches to this fungus

in the Peninsula
extends even to Hungary, where it seldom appears at

table,although the Boletus, so rarely eaten in England,

furnishes a common dish. At Vienna, on the other
hand, the rejected pratiola meets with a welcome, and
is enjoyed with impunity. In France, as in Britain,
it isprobably the one most extensively consumed al- ;

though in the former country the consumption of other

kinds is more common than in the latter. For the true
enjoyment of a mushroom, much will depend upon the
method of cooking, which, notwithstanding the little
variety in the methods employed here, may be served up
in a number of ways. From amongst the most common
of continental modes, the following are selected.

Having picked a number of freshly-gathered mush-

rooms, cut them in pieces, wash them in cold water,
and dry them in a cloth. Put them in a pan, with
butter, parsley, salt, and pepper, and place them over a
luisk fire. When ready, add cream and yulk of egg.
to bind them together.
Some tastes arc in favour of having them dressed
a laProven^ ale, in which case they must only be cut
in two, washed and dried as before, and then soaked in
oil for one or two hours, with salt, pepper, and a piece
nt the end of this
of garlic ;
period they should be put
46 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

into a stewpan, with oil, and cooked over a brisk fire;

when done, a little
chopped parsley and some lemon-
juice should be added.
There is a delicacy under the form of stuffed mush-
rooms, which, although unknown to us bv practical
experience, is so
strongly recommended by those who
count them amongst their experiences, that we are
induced to quote M. Roques's instructions for their
"
preparation. Take mushrooms of a medium size, and
prepare for them at the same time the following

stuffing ;
i e., take a piece of butter, grated bacon,
some bread-crumbs, sweet herbs, garlic, salt, coarse
pepper, and the least morsel of spice when these are ;

all well mixed, turn over the mushrooms with the

concave side upwards, take away the stems, and fill the

concavity with this stuffing then wrap each in paper,

;

and cook them in a pan, adding a spoonful of oil as

occasion may require. If thought fit, a few slices of

fowl, partridge, or pheasant may be added."

There is also an economical method, and one which

may serve alternately with, or as a substitute for, the

slovenly old English plan, which seems to reduce all

ccoking to three types — mast mutton, and

beef, boiled

grilled chopg or steaks; even mushrooms must be

cooked up in one of these plans, unless we can induce
a change for the better.
Having peeled your mush-
rooms, and removed the stems, place them in a stewpan,
with fresh butter, and let them stow over a brisk
fire;
when the butter is melted, squeeze, in the juice of a
lemon ;
after a little while add salt, pepper, ^pi'-e, and a
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 47

in which a clove of garlic has been

spoonful of water
soaked for half an hour let them stew altogether for
;

about an hour, and then add yolk of egg to bind them ;

pour your stew upon some small crusts

of bread which

you would have previously fried in butter.

A variety that is charming may be found on "cold-
"
mutton days in hashing the mutton with mushrooms,
makinir what our transmarine neighbours would call
Hachis aux champignons. To accomplish this, two dozen
mushrooms should be selected, washed, and well dried,
then put in a stewpan with a piece of butter. When
the butteris melted, stir in a tablcspoonful of flour,

two glasses of beef gravy, salt, pepper, and a bay-leaf.

These should be cooked until reduced one-half, and then
poured over the hashed leg of mutton. The whole
should be well mixed together, and served with small
crusts of bread fried in butter.
To make a Puree of mushrooms, select such as are
of a globular shape, called locally in some parts
" button

mushrooms/' wash them in cold water, and wipe them

dry ; chop them as fine as possible, and press them in
a cloth put them in a stewpan, with a little butter and
;

pepper, let them stand over a brisk fire, and when the
butter melted, squeeze in lemon-juice, and add jelly
is -

broth, according to the quantity of mushrooms stew ;

until reduced to the consistency of pea-soup, and serve

with meat, fish, or poached eggs.
These recipes will suffice to show that there are more
ways of cooking mushrooms than stewing them inde-
finitely in an uncertain quantity of water, or committing
48 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT
:i
them to the sails everything."
gridiron It will not be

necessary to append a description of a species so well

known but it may not be out of place to repeat the
;

recommendation, that to retain all their aroma, as well

as to prevent any unpleasant consequences from a free

indulgence in them, care should be taken to reject such

as have lost by age the pinkish tint of the gills, and to
cook those selected as speedily as possible after being

gathered.
The varieties into which this fungus diverges are
almost infinite ;
both the cultivated and uncultivated
kinds presenting great deviations from typical forms, as

great, indeed, as
in some instances separate species, and
as such some authors have regarded them.
The cultivation of mushrooms has not hitherto
received attention equal to that which has been be-
stowed upon other garden vegetables, and all the atten-
tion which they have received is centred in this one

species, as far as English horticulturists are concerned.

The promoters of a well-known journal devoted to
practical horticulture have once and again recommended
experiments on other species, but apparently hitherto
^\ith but little success. It may be that while there are
for fine cauliflowers or rich grapes, there
prizes offered
"
:ire none for improved ruushruouis."
A kind of mushroom is found in meadows, o-rowinn;
in large and often attaining an enormous size,
ring-,
which has been considered by some as only a variety
of the common mushroom, and by others as a distinct

species (Aparicus arvemis, Sehoefh). The name of

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. *S

St. George {Agarieus Georgii) has been applied to (his,

as well as to another species of Agaricm. Locally it is

sometimes called the horse-mushroom, from its size, and

" The
one variety is termed Springers." gills are a
first paler, and when old, of a darker brown than those
of the pasture-mushroom. They are said to be coarser

and less finely-flavoured, but to make excellent ketchup,

for which purpose they are occasionally sold. Like
its ally, the common mushroom, it has several varieties,
and some of these are of a much finer flavour than
others. To some palates the taste of this species is

affirmed to be more agreeable than that of the other.

It is worthy of consideration whether some of these
varietiesmight not be cultivated, and, perhaps, thereby
improved, as well as the ordinary bed-mushroom, which
is
probably not the very best which could have been
selected for the purpose.
There are no other examples of edible species to
be found in the remaining sub-genera of the PitATELLiE,
or brownish-spored series. In Hypholoma the veil is

web-like, adhering to the pileus at the margin.

During
the autumn nearly every post or old stump has its base
adorned with clusters of a yellow fungus, with greenish-

grey gills. very variable in size, and at times

It is

much contorted in form but so common is it, and so

;

readily recognized, that we are almost tempted to regret

that, not only is it bitter and unpleasant to the

taste, but probably dangerous. This species, which

is named A. fascicular is, from its habit of growing in
fascicles or bundles, belongs to the sub-genus I/yp/ioloma.
E
M) a plain and easy account

The next sub-genus, Psilocybe, is sometimes without

a veil, avid when present it is not in the form of a ring,

which also characterizes the succeeding sub-genus, from

which this may be known by the pileus having its
margin at first curved inwards ;
whilst in Psathyra
the margin is at first straight.
The last series of true Agarics, in which the spores
are black (Copri?iarii), is a small one with but two

sub-genera, Panwolus and Psathyrella. In the former

the veil is interwoven, the pileus is inclined to be

fleshy, with the margin extending beyond the gills.

In the latter the veil not interwoven, and the pileus
is

is thin, with its

margin not extending beyond the gills.
The members of the first sub-genus are found on dung,
and of the last under hedges. They are all so small,
that no one would think of committing them to the

charge of the cook for the sake of experiment.

PSEUDO-AGARICS.
Closely associated with the last sub-genus of the

genus Agaricus, and agreeing therewith in some points,

is the genus Coprinas, which differs mainly in the

deliquescent character of its membrane-like gills. The

spores are black, as in Coprinarius ; therefore it is

to the melting or deliquescing gills that the attention

must be directed.
In almost every rich pasture, and often in gardens,
we meet, during the autumn, with the Maned Agaric
(Coprlnus rov/attii), commanding attention by its
 PL 9.

'oprinus comatus. Fr.

(
 OF BRITISH PUNGI. 51

Singular and graceful form. It rises from the ground

like a cylinder with a rounded end, and afterwards the

cap opens to the size and shape of a hand-bell. The
whole surface is delicate and silky, and the cap, tinged
with brown at the top and greyish at the base, soon
becomes covered with scales as of entangled threads.
The stem is of a glossy unsullied whiteness, tall,
tapering upwards, and hollow within. The narrow
ring which surrounds the stem is seldom fixed. The
gills are very close together, and are at first pinkish,

passing through shades of purple and brown to black.

The substance of the hymenophorum, or that portion
of the pileus on which the gills are situated, is very
thin, and soon becomes torn and margin. In
split at the
this state probably its name
originated {coma, a wig),
for it bears a fancied resemblance to a
wig upon a barber's
block. This species is so rapidly deliquescent, that
while standing, or more speedily if
gathered, it melts
away drop by drop, and is soon converted into a black
fluid resembling ink ;
and indeed this resem' -lance is so

complete, that it may readily be employed as a substitute;

all that is required
being to boil and strain it, and add
a small quantity of corrosive sublimate to its
prevent
turning mouldy. There is
generally no difficulty in pro-
curing them for this, or any other, purpose at the proper
season. During the past autumn they have been
exceedingly abundant in some places, especially in the
gardens of Chelsea Hospital. If gathered
young, they
afford no despicable dish, though perhaps not quite
equal to the common mushroom. Even when more
b 2
52 A PLAIN AND KASY ACCOUNT

advanced, they may lie converted into a very passable

ketchup. This condiment will then be equal to the

majority of samples sold as mushroom ketchup, made

too often from a very heterogeneous mixture of species,
and not always before these have passed into a state of
decomposition. Whether prepared for the table or for
ketchup, it should always be remembered that the
sooner the preparation takes place after the fungi are

gathered the better. The plants have been blamed

"
manv a time and oft" for being unwholesome, or
affording an indifferent ketchup, when the blame ought
to have rested in the kitchen. (PI. 9.)

Closely allied to the Maned Agaric is another species

(Coprinw atramentarius) resembling it in

greatly
appearance, except that the scales are absent from the
pileus, which in this instance is smooth am! of a greyish
colour. It is extremely common about old stumps and
also in gardens, flourishing on the naked soil. This
species is often found in large clusters, and for all escu-

lent purposes should be collected young. It has not

only a similar habit, but also similar properties to the

foregoing. When fully expanded and melting away in

inky drops, it is unfit for anything except to replenish

the inkstand. Popular prejudice is as strong against
fungi of this kind as against the gigantic frondose
polypori and the puff-ball, and one might almost as
readily hope to convince the labourer in agricultural
districts that flint stones are convertible into soup as
"
that such toad's meat" is fit for the table of ft
Christian. (PI. 10.)
 PL 10.

S
V
/. (Joprinus atrawientariuts. Fr.
 u* miirisii fvmii. 53

The genus ftnfhifii/* is small "ml unimportant, but

that of Cortinarim, which succeeds it, must not be
so speedily dismissed. In this genus, while the gills
are membranaceous as in Coprinus, they do not deli-
quesce, or melt away. The veil consists of threads of an
arachnoid, or spider's web texture, and the spores are
commonly of the colour of rust of iron. This genus
is subdivided into six groups, founded on minor dis-
tinctions, and the names are given in the tabular

arrangement at the end of this volume.

One of the brightest and most beautiful of this, or

any other British genus, not only commends itself to

our notice on this account, but also for its excellence
as food. The which we allude (Cortinarim
species to
violaceus) is found in woods, although by no means com-
mon. The colour is a beautiful dark violet, sometimes
approaching nearly to black, with a coppery-red gloss or
shade. The stem is bulbous and spongy, with a white
cottony substance at the base. The gills are broad,
thick, and distant and the spores are of a rusty brown.
;

There is such a distinctness about the character of

this species, that one regrets it is not more
common,
especially when we remember that it has not only the
taste and odour of the mushroom when raw, but it is
of "a particularly rich flavour when cooked." M.
Roques states that he has eaten it, and docs not hesitat
to include it
amongst those of good quality.
The Matron of the French, and Cortinarim casta-
neiLs of botanists, is
only a small species, deriving both
its French and its scientific name from its chestnut
54 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

colour. It is common in woods and gardens on the

naked ground, and has violet stem and gills, the latter

becoming ultimately of a rusty brown. It is certainly

a wholesome esculent species, but a great number would

make a good dish.
be required to
The Cinnamon Mushroom (C. cinnamomeus) is a very
common species, with a cinnamon-coloured pileus and a
yellowish flesh. It is a lover of woods, and in northern

latitudes found inhabiting them everywhere.

is In its
fresh state it has the odour and flavour of the spice
after which it is named, and peculiar to
so powerful

itself, that this alone a good test of its identity.

is

The Germans are said to be very fond of this species,

which is generally stewed in butter and served with
sauce for vegetables.
The small genera Paxillus and Gomphidius are
intermediate between Cortinarius and Hygrophorus.
In this latter genus the main feature is found in the

waxy character of the hyineniuin, or spore-bearing

surface
Herein are found three species, more or less available

for culinary purposes. The best of these (H.virginem)

is of a beautiful, pure ivory whitenesswhen in good
condition, becoming tawny when
dingy orold. The
are distant and decurrent, or produced down the
gills
stem. common on Bhort pastures and downs, and
It is

small i- well worth the trouble of

although collecting.
Without a continental reputation, although occasionally
eaten in France, it merits a better a :quaintance.
When cooked, the method recommended is to stew
 PL. 1

/. .Uj'ir I',-

2. Rusxula ! (la. Ft.

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 55

them gently with fine herbs and delicate sauce : in

this manner, Berkeley says that they may supply the

place of better species, and a correspondent, who always
economizes all he meets with, affirms that they are
excellent. It is believed that our figures (PI. 4, fig. 2)
will enable the amateur to distinguish them with
facility.

The second species (H. pratensis) is found in open

pastures in the autumn, not uncommonly. In colour
it is variable, in all shades between a light luff and a

dark orange. Its habits are gic-^iious, growing gene-

rally in tufts, and sometimes in parts of circles. The
pileus slightly elevated in the centre, and smooth.
is

The stem becomes rather smaller at the base, and is

more or less spongy in the interior. The gills are
not numerous, but thick and decurrent, and of a red-
dish buff-colour, and there is no trace of a ring. In
colour, therefore, readily distinguished from the
it is

last species, although occasionally it may be found

nearly white. In habit and general appearance it

resembles II. xirgineus. It is perfectly wholesome, and

is sometimes eaten in France ;

and if not quite equal
to the other, it is
certainly preferable to some which have
been more strongly recommended. It is scarcely neces-

sary to caution our readers against an allied species of

the same genus, which is extremely variable in colour,
and is at first covered with a greenish evanescent
gluten.
The best that can be said of it is, that it is
suspicious.
It is sometimes called the Parrakeet Mushroom (Il.psit-
tacinus), and its tints are generally bright, combin-
56 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

ing parrot-like hues ;

whence its cognomen has been
derived.
The third edible species (H. eburneus) cannot be so

well recommended as either of the others, to the first of

which it bears some resemblance, but may be distin-

guished from it by the glandular scales with which the

upper portion of the stem is dotted. This is also
common, but prefers woody localities, and betrays a
foxy tint as it decays. Did it not flourish in a different
situation, there would at least be no dangerous results
from confounding the species.
To these might be added still another species
(//. /tici/is), which so nearly resembles //. virgineus
that it
may not ultimately prove to be specifically dis-
tinct from it. It is, moreover, much smaller, being
sometimes so insignificant that it would appear absurd
to talk of cooking it, notwithstanding that it is very
common in pastures. Whenever found large enough,
it
may be eaten with II. virgineus, from which the
amateur will find a difficulty in
distinguishing it.

The group of Agarics now classed together as a genus

under the name of Lactarius, are distinguished by the
presence of a milky fluid, from whence the generic
name has been derived. This fluid is commonly at
first white, but in one instance it is coloured. In certain
of the British species this milk is acrid, and the fungi
of that group are not only valueless as food, but many
of them are decidedly injurious. There are but two
out of thirty species which can be recommended
with any confidence, and even these have not escaped
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 57

the censure of some who perhaps have never tasted them.

In France they appear to be held in but little
repute,
although in other continental countries they are sought
after and esteemed. In Austria, for example,
they are
considered equal to any that are brought to table.
One would imagine from the name {Lactarius
to the reddish orange
deliciosus) given fungus found
in almost every fir
plantation, that it would be a
treasure to an epicure ;
and so indeed it is, if the testi-

mony of Sir J. Smith is to be received, that "it

really deserves its name, being the most delicious mush-
room known." A gentleman of our acquaintance says
that whenever he finds them he considers himself

possessed of the
greatest which the fungoid treat
world has to but that, having made their virtues
offer ;

known to his neighbours, it is now but seldom that he

has the good fortune to enjoy them. (PI. 12, lower
figure.)
The pileus in this species
is
fleshy, and depressed in
the centre, of a reddish orange, with zones or rino-s of a
darker colour the stem and gills are also of an orano-e
;

colour. The milk which it contains is atfirst of a

deep
yellow, but upon exposure turns to a dull green when
:

raw, the taste is

slightly acrid. In some seasons and in
some localities this
species is very common, especially in
the fir
plantations of Scotland ;
and the characters are
so distinct that there is no fear of mistaking
any other
species for it.

The other esculent species {Lactarius

tolemum) is
not common. When found, it
generally occurs in woods,
58 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

and will attain a diameter of four inches. It is of a

golden tawny colour, and the crowded gills, which are at

first white, become ultimately yellowish. The milk in
this is abundant and white, wherein it differs
species
from the preceding. There is a more common species of
Lactarius, found generally in fir plantations, with a
darker coloured reddish pileus and white milk but it is ;

acrid and disagreeable to the taste, whereas the milk of

L. volemum is mild.
It would be well to guard carefully against the
red species, as it is certainly dangerous and should
;

the colour not be sufficiently decided to satisfy the col-

lector, the taste will at once set the matter to rest. If

the reader has ever inadvertently masticated the leaf, or

a portion of the root, of that common hedge-side plant

" "
called locally Lords and Ladies {Arum maculatum) ,

he will have experienced some such a sensation, as would

have resulted from the mastication of a portion of one
of the acrid milky fungi to which we have alluded.

Lactarius volemum has been celebrated from the

earliesttimes, and when properly prepared is said to

resemble lamb's kidney. The method employed is to

mince as many as may be required, and fry them in

a pan with a piece of butter, stirring them about mean-

while: when done, strew over them salt and pepper,

parsley chopped fine, small portion of shalot, and

a
a little flour. Add, finally, a glass of champagne (or
perry will answer nearly as well), and a little of the
juice of a lemon, and cayenne.
The genus Bu88itla may be known from the last b)
 PL. 12.

/. '
'antkart litis Fr.
.'. I Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNOI. 69

the sharp- edged gills not being milky.

stiff, It con-

tains of the best and some of the worst of fungi,

some
viewed in an alimentary aspect, and some of the most

brilliantly coloured of British species. There is evi-

dence of the little interest which fungi have hitherto

possessed in the popular mind, in the general absence
of vulgar or local names for the different species. This
may, in part, be accounted for in the similarity of exter-
nal form in many of the Agarics, but other causes have
had their influence. A mushroom, a toadstool, and a puff-
nail in many districts will comprise the entire vocabulary
for the larger kinds. Had they been pleasant to the eye,
agreeable to the nose, or of reputed miraculous power in
curing the ills that flesh is heir to, each would have
enjoyed a cognomen by which it would have been recog-
nized as readily as the dandelion or daisy, heartsease or
violet. Returning, however, to Russula, which we
cannot characterize by a more popular name. Of two
species found in woods which are deserving of notice,
one (R. vesca) is far from common, and the characters
are scarcely such as could be described without fear of
mistake on the part of the unscientific, or those to
whom the plant is hitherto unknown. Had our space
permitted of the introduction of a figure, some of these
difficulties would doubtless have vanished.
The other species (R. heterophil 1 '<(),
1

though very
variable in colour, is so common and well known, at
least by sight, if not by name, that, with our figure
60 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

becoming depressed, often of some shade of grey. The

gills are white,
much crowded together, and forked.
The stem is white, solid, and firm.
Both these species are covered in their young state
with a thin pellicle, or superficial skin, which disappears
with age, and the latter especially is subject to great
variations in colour.
Another mild species (B. lepida), not very common,
may be met with in the Kentish w oods and elsewhere. r

It has a compact, fleshy pileus, with a solid white

or pinkish stem, and rounded, thicki.-h, white gills,

crowded together. It is commonly consumed on the

Continent, where it is much more plentiful than with
us.

A species (A', virescens) with a rough, warty, greenish,

is occasionally found in woods. It has also a
pileus,
whitish stem and gills, but, although very wholesome,
it is not common enough to be of importance as a food
resource. In France this species
is said to be
preferred
by some the ordinary mushroom, and is known in
to
"
the south under the name of Verdctte." It is com-

mon Languedoc, where

in it is collected and grilled
with small herbs and oil.
There is, however, a very common species (It. aluta-
cea) found in similar localities, which, like all the other
edible species of Russula, is mild to the taste when
raw ;
the pileus is
generally depressed and changeable
in colour. The stem is stout, and either white or red.

The gills are always yellowish in all

stages of growth.
The large size and yellowish gills are sufficient to
 PL 13.

/. /' metica. Fr,

I <". Fr,
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 61

distinguish this species from all its congeners. Its flesh

is soft and savoury, and may be eaten without fear of

unpleasant consequences.
We have already hinted at the poisonous character
of some members of this genus. As an example we
might refer to one which fortunately is not very com-

mon with us (R. emetica), and which, could we forget

its character, would commend itself by the beauty of its
colours and the variety of their shades. Although red
is by far the most common tint, this sometimes fades
into pink, or deepens into purple. The surface of the

pilens smooth and shining, and the flesh beneath as

is —
well as the broad gills and solid stem white. Many —
are the stories of disasters recorded from the inadvertent

indulgence in the Emetic Agaric, as it is sometimes

termed, only a small fragment of which is said to occa-
sion unpleasant sensations, and establish its claims to
its specific name. questionable whether any
It is

amount of culinary preparation will remove all its poi-

sonous properties, notwithstanding that the acrid juices
of many plants are of so volatile a nature that they

may often be dispelled by heat, as in the case of the

root of theMandioca plant of Brazil, from whence tapioca
is prepared. A
figure of this species is given in our
plate (PI. 13),which represents the shade of colour in
the pileus most usually encountered.
There are also two or three other members of this
genus believed to be equally dangerous, and perhaps
more common so that, under all circumstances, it would
;

be more advisable to reject all, than risk any, unless the

62 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

esculent species are so well known that there is not the

remotest possibility of a poisonous species associating
with its betters unawares. This advice is given in
remembrance of the the poison of the dan-
fact that

gerous species is so powerful, that a single specimen

is capable of producing most unpleasant and fatal

results.

The genus Cantharellus has thick, swollen, and

branched with the edges blunt and rounded so as
gills,
to have the appearance of veins rather than gills.
The beautiful little yellow Chantarelle (Cantharellus

cibarius) having been once seen, is sure to be recog-

nized, and, once tasted, to be remembered. It is of a

bright, deep yellow colour, with a smell like that

of ripe apricots ;
the pileus becomes at first convex
and wafterards funnel-shaped. (PL 12, upper figure.)
The gills are thick and branched, and of the same
colour as the pileus. The chantarelle is common in

woods and occasionally more open localities, although

in

another species unworthy of commendation is generally

found on heaths and commons.
"
Berkeley states that the chantarelle is occasionally
served up at public dinners at the principal hotels in
London on state occasions, where every effort is made
to secure the rarest and most costly dainties." In some

parts of Kent, and also in Sussex, they may be found

in profusion at the proper season of the year, and there

is no reason why their use should be confined to first-

"
class hotels and state occasions," provided the preju-
" "
dice against eating toadstools could be overcome.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 63

Persons who do not emulate French cookery, or cannot

provide the adjuncts, are recommended to prepare the

chantarelle as they would the common mushroom ;

taking care that their stew is not hurried, for if boiled

too violently they might as soon experiment upon shoe-

makers' parings, for their chantarelles
will become " as
tough as leather/' In France, Germany, Austria, and
Italv, this fundus is alike esteemed, and it is not at

all uncommon to hear from epicures, who have been

fortunate enough to encounter a well-cooked dish of

chantarelles, rapturous encomiums on this golden fungus.

Battarra says that if properly prepared the chantarelle

would arrest the pangs of death. But regardless of
what Battarra or Trattinick, Boques or Vittadini may
say, we would advise our readers to taste and try for
themselves, should a dish of chantarelles ever come in
their way. To this end we will give directions for

cooking them as employed in France.

After having picked and washed them, they are put

into boiling water, then stewed in fresh butter, a little
olive oil, chopped tarragon, pepper, salt, and a little

lemon-piel when they are cooked, they are allowed to

:

gently simmer over a slow fire for fifteen or twenty

minutes, and moistened from time to time with beef
gravy or cream when about to be served, the stew is
:

thickened with yolk of egg.

As a substitute for such elaborate cookery, the chan-
tarelles may be simply fried in butter or oil, with

pepper and salt, adding a few bread-crumbs, or pouring

them when done over a slice of toasted bread..
&'* A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

The chantarelle may be preserved for winter use,

either by drying in a current of air, or pickling in sait
aud water, and, before being used, soaked a short time
in lukewarm water.

The genus Nyctalis, which is .intermediate between

the last and the next, contains species which are small
in size and parasitic in habit, and of which we have but
two representatives.
Tn Marasmius, the hymenophorum, or part which
bears the gills, though continuous with the stem, is dif-
ferent in texture. The spore-bearing surface is
dry,
and the folds are thick and tough, but sharp or acute at

the edge. The majority of species are also rather small

in size, but are not parasitic on other fungi, as in the
last genus.

It is a singular fact that whilst in this country

" mushroom " is a kind of general name for all the
" ''
edible species, in France its synonym mousseron
"
is applied to but one species, whilst champignon,"
which is used in the latter country as a general term for
all fungi, is in England restricted to one species, which
is amember of the present genus.
The little Fairy-ring Champignon {Marasmius
oreades) is one of the privileged few that enjoy a

good reputation but even in this instance the reputation

;

is but local. (PL It, upper figure.) In the dried

state they, are available for culinary purposes, whilst
thousands of them annually rot on the pastures where

they grow, without a hand to gather them. There

is very little
difficulty
in recognizing the champignon,
 PL 14.

/. Mtirasmiu* oread -. Fr.

:. M on-. Fr.
. . !/ ir dentus. Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI.

which is found growing in rings, and the

pileus at
first is of a brownish ochre, becoming paler as it

grows older, until it fades into a rich cream colour.

Another species is occasionally found mixed with it,

which might perhaps by carelessness be mistaken for
it, but not if the two are compared. The taste of
Marasmius wrens, the latter species, is acrid, and the
gills yellowish or brownish, and narrower than in the
true champignon the stem of both is alike solid, but
:

in the spurious kind clothed with a white down at the

base, whilst in the edible kind it is
quite naked. A
third allied species {Marasmius peronatus) is some-
times found in woods, but this is
generally larger, and
has the base of the stem clothed with
yellow stiff hairs
or bristles. (PI. 14, lower figure.) As we should not
search for the true
champignon in woods, there is
less fear of
mistaking this species. There is scarcely
a more delicious fungus than the
champignon, and the
chance of confounding other species with it is more

imaginary than real. The evidence of the Eev. M. J.

Berkeley is strongly in its favour:
"
When of a good —
size and quickly grown, it is perhaps the best of all
fungi for the table, whether carefully fried or stewed
with an admixture of fiia-ly-minced herbs and a minute

portion of garlic. It is at the same time tender and

easy of digestion, and when once its use is known and
its characters ascertained, no be used with
species may
less fear. It is so common in some districts that bushels

may be gathered in a day." be readily also

They may
dried by
stringing the caps together on a thread and
v
66 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

suspending them in a dry kitchen, and when thoroughly

dried may be kept in close tins. Only a month or two
since thesame gentleman, whose name we have already
mentioned, directed attention to this species in the pages
of the Garch-ners' Chronicle, in terms of strong com-
mendation. Indeed, we could not mention a species the
evidence in whose favour is so strong, and yet bushels
are allowed to decay every year, whilst scarce a single
mushroom of the common kind is allowed to remain for
man or hoy can
twenty-four hours, wherever the foot of
find access. This species would yield good ketchup,
but in very small quantities if, however, a few are
;

added with other mushrooms, it greatly improves the

flavour of the ketchup.
The Rev. Gerard Smith thus describes the general
character of the circles on the grass found where these
mushrooms do grow, and which were long attributed
to—
" The nimble elves

That do by moonshine green sour ringlets make,

Whereof the ewe bites not whose pastime 'tis
;

To make these midnight mushrooms."

"
Fairy-rings consist, generally speaking, of circles
or parts of circles of grass, of a darker colour and more
'luxuriant growth than the
surrounding herbage, the
outer cd^e of the circle being well defined, while the
colour and stature of the grass diminish and fade so

gradually inwards, that it is difficult to determine the

exact limit of the ring towards the centre. Very com-
monly there is to be observed an outer and contiguous
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 67

ring, much narrower than the inner, and of which the

grass is either short and weak, or faded and brown,

remarkably contrasting with the vivid green of the
inner ring : on this brown ring, or just upon its
margin,
fungi are found. The duration of fairy-rings varies
much ;
some disappear in a few weeks, others endure
for years. A severe winter will obliterate the external
traces of a ring, and prevent the usual crop of fungi
appearing upon at the proper season ; but such
it
rings
often reappear, and are thus considered to have been

suddenly formed. During the whole course of their

appearance the rings increase in diameter, spreading
outwards from the centre, the faded brown circle becom-

ing rank with green and copious grass, and a fresh outer
circlebeing formed of dead or feeble blades of grass.
The rate of increase is various, some enlarging their
diameter a few inches in the year, others as
many feet.
The circles frequently meet in the course of this
gradual enlargement, In such cases the point of con-
tact becomes obliterated ;
and when this contact occurs
between the margin of several such
rings, the oblitera-
tion of the parts which meet leaves a
variety of seg-
ments of circles
upon the turf, which, pursuing an
independent course, and some increasing more rapidly
than others, present eventually an unaccountable irre-

gularity, and, as it were, patchwork of greener and

paler, stronger and weaker, portions of turf. When

the turf is cut through such a ring at two contiguous

points, so that abreadth is taken up from the inner

rank green, through the faded
breadth, to the outer
f 2
 68 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

ordinary state, the soil of the faded ring is always found

drier and of a paler colour than the adjoining parts,

and abundantly impiegnated with mycelium. Indeed,

a careful examination will show that the faded and
impoverished condition of the turf of the outer ring is
due to the close investment of its roots by the mycelium
of the fungi which occupy the ring. The dimensions
of the rings vary from three feet to three hundred feet
in diameter they are at times very irregular in form,
;

an accident arising either from the nature of the soil

and the obstacles which they meet with in their cir-

cumferential expansion, or from more than one ring

coalescing, and producing an outline of undulating
curves."
That these fairy-rings were
the nightly haunts and

dancing-grounds fairy-folk was a general belief

of
before the existence of these little people came to be
doubted. One old author writes, "They had always
fine music among themselves, and danced in a moon-
shiny night, around, or in a ring, as one may see at
this day upon every common in England where mush-

rooms grow." Numerous conjectures were ventured

as to the origin of these lings when their fairy history
was no longer believed in.
They were attributed to
the exhalations of a fertile subterranean vapour, to the

burrowing of moles, to the effects of lightning, and, in

1807, Dr. Wollaston ascribed them to the growth of
certain species of Agarics, which so entirely absorbed
all nutriment from the soil beneath, that the herbage
was for a while
destroyed.
 OF BRITISH FUNG! 69

The Rev. M. J. Berkeley, an excellent authority, writes

of them :
' '
These rings are sometimes of very ancient
date, and attain enormous dimensions, so as to be dis-
tinctly visible on a hill-side from a considerable distance
It is believed that they originate from a single fungus,
whose growth renders the soil immediately beneath unfit

for its reproduction. The spawn, however, spreads all

around, and the second year produces a crop whose
in

spawn spreads again, the soil behind forbidding its

return in that direction. Thus the circle is continually
increased, and extends indefinitely till some cause
intervenes to destroy it. If the spawn did not spread
on all sides at first, an arc of a circle only is produced.

The manure arising from the dead fungi of the former

years makes the grass peculiarly vigorous round, so
as to render the circle visible even when there is no
external appearance of the fungus, and the contrast is

often the stronger from that behind being killed by the

old spawn. This mode of growth is far more common
than is
supposed, and may be observed constantly in
our woods, where the spawn can spread only in the
soil or amongst the leaves and decaying fragments which
cover it."*
One of the fairy legends associated with mushrooms
is that of the two serving-girls at Tavistock, to whom
the fairies were very kind. One of them by her negli-
gence having offended the little
people, they proceeded
to her room, and debated together as to what punish-

* " Outliucs of British 41.

Fttogolofrr," p.
 70 A PLATN AND EAST ACCOU.N?

ment they should inflict. This conversation the

unoffending one overheard, and it was to the effect that
her companion should have a lame leg for seven years,
and be ultimately cured by a herb growing on Dartmoor,
but with a name so long that the girl could not remember
it. In the morning the other girl arose lame, and con-
tinued so to the end of the period assigned when, one ;

day, as she was picking a mushroom, up started a

strange-looking little boy, who insisted upon striking
her leg with a plant which he held in his hand. This
was the magical plant, with which he continued striking
her leg till she became perfectly cured, and one of the
best dancers in the country.
Marasniius oreades is not the onlv fundus which has
this habit of growing in rings. One of our largest gill-

bearing fungi, as well as some others, indulge in this

eccentricity — probably, in times past, to the great alarm

of the superstitious.
Marasmius scorodonius is
largely consumed in

Austria, Germany, and some other continental countries.

It is known under the name of Lauchschwamm and

Hayyma gomba ; but neither these nor its

garlic odour
would commend it to our own countrymen. This little

species grows in dry pastures and on heaths. It has a

tough and crisped reddish pilous, a hollow smooth
reddish-brown stem, and dirty-white gills. Although
plentiful in 'the countries already named, it is rare
with us.
Two or three other species might also be enumerated,

equal, if not superior, to the latter for culinary purposes;

Bob tint edvlis. I'r.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 71

but their inconstant or limited occurrence would only

serve to raise expectations not likely to be realized.
Five other genera complete the order Agaririni, all
more and dry, becoming at length hard and
or less tough

cork)'. In Lentinvs the sharp edges of the tough gills

are toothed, and in Panus they are equally sharp and

touMi,
Ci t
but not toothed. In Xerotus the O gills
tous»;h CD
are

forked, but with blunt or obtuse edges ;

and the two
divisions into which theseparate are spreading or
gills
rolled back in Schizophyllum. In Lenzites the whole
substance is corky, and the gills are often so connected
by lateral branches as to form irregular cavities resem-
bling pores.

POKE-BEARING FUNGI.

The observing eye of the lover of nature in all its

Protean forms will have discovered fungi, which in
external those we have already
contour resembled
described, being furnished with a cap or pilous sup-

ported upon a stem but when

;
more closely examined
have been found to present the
important distinction of
having the under surface of the pileus not divided into
plates or gills, but apparently perforated with small
hole.>, as if pricked with a pin by some fairy in childish

sport. Others, again, entirely devoid of a stem, and in

some instances of extraordinary size and as tough as
and unyielding as cork or wood, with the
leather, or hard

under, or sometimes upper surface, similarly perforated.

And, again, yet others of a waxy, or almost gelaiinoua
72 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

texture, with wrinkles or folds more or less i in

perforated ;

all of which arc united into a group, or

botanically
distinguish them from
natural order, in which the pores
the gill-bearing order, and to which the distinctive

appellation of Polyporei has been given. It requires

no great erudition to arrive at the conclusion, that this
name has been given in allusion to the numerous pores
with which one or other of the surfaces of these fungi
are studded, derived from the Greek word polus, signi-
fying many. These pores are the extremities of more
or less connected tubes,
upon the walls or inner linings
of which the hymenium, or fructifying surface, support-
ing the reproductive bodies, or spores, is borne. Like
the Agaridni, this order is again subdivided into
smaller groups, or genera, in each of which the indivi-
duals agreeing most intimately with each other are
associated. In the first genus, Boletus (bolos, Greek,
a ball), the tubes arc separable from one another. In

Polyporus the pores are not easily, if at all,

separable.
In Dcedalea the pilcus is
corky and hard, and the pores
are labyrinthiform, irregular, or torn. The remaining
genera are briefly characterized in the Tabular arrangement
of Orders and Genera with which this work concludes.
Upwards of thirty species of Boletus are British, and
one of the commonest of these (B. edulis) in the

opinion of some is scarcely inferior to the best mush-

room in flavour. has a smooth, brownish pileus,
It

with tubes at first yellowish, but becoming greenish or

green as it advances in age. For esculent purposes
they should be collected whilst stillyellow. The stem
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 73

is reticulated, especially towards the summit, with a

delicate pinkish network of fine lines
(PL 15). It is
frequent in woods, especially in the South of England,
and is well diffused and appreciated on the continent of

Europe. Frequently it will attain a large size, so that

two or three of them are sufficient to furnish a
family
with a meal. The hest feature by which to
distinguish
this species from its congeners, is the reticulation of the
stem. It would be well to notice if the flesh changes

colour when bruised or cut, for the juice of the most

unwholesome species of this genus speedily turns blue
on exposure to the air. Dr. Badham "
says the that
best manner
of cooking this
fungus must be left to be
decided by the taste of the gourmand in every
way ;

it is
good. Its tender and juicy flesh, its delicate and
sapid flavour, render it equally acceptable to the plain
and to the accomplished cook. It imparts a relish
alike to the homely hash and the dainty ragout, and
may be truly said to improve every dish of which it is
a constituent." Mr. Berkeley takes exception to its
excellence, and gives as a result of his experience
that it is very moderate eating. Our own knowledge,
and that of gentlemen of our
acquaintance who are
much greater amateurs of fungi, hold rather to the
opinion of Dr. Badham but ; tastes are universally
allowed to vary. The ancient Romans are believed to
Lave employed this species of Boletus, and,
apart from
their predilection for snails, cossi, and other delicacies
which we do not nowadays admire, were, on the
whole,
not bad judges of dainties.
74 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

In Lorraine this species is eaten under the Dame of

PolishMushroom, because, it is said, certain Poles first
showed by their own example that these Boleti could
be eaten without danger. In Russia they are strung on
threads and dried for future use. When the fasts of the
Greek Church come round, these dried fungi are in requi-

sition, being prepared by simple simmering till in water

they become soft. In the department of Gironde, in

France, great quantities are preserved in this manner
and sent annually to the Parisian markets, and when

required for use are soaked in lukewarm water, or beef

gravy, till they become softened, and are then cooked
in the same manner as when in the fresh state. French
cookery has devised many variations in the art of pre-
paring this, as well as almost every other commonly

used fungus, for the gastronome. There is certainly a

kind of sliminess about the Boleti which would not
commend them to the tastes of many ;
but this becomes
far more unpleasantly evident in some methods of pre-
paration than others. They arc, nevertheless, in any
way better than no dinner at all, and if our rural
population could be induced to look upon them with a
littlemore favour, they would often get a relish with
" "
their potatoes and point for the trouble of col-

lecting and cooking, while the Boleti are now per-

mitted to flourish and decay year by year, without care
or regret.
In all cases the young state, while the under surface
is still of a pale yellow, is preferable. One ready
method of preparation consists in removing the stem,
 PL. 16.

> » - •
"

* 4**:» ^ **
y

Polyporui aquamomis. Fr.

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 75

clearing away the pores, and then drawing off all super-
fluous moisture upon a gridiron, wiping them, and after-
wards stewing them with olive oil, parsley, garlic, pepper
and salt, adding, when nearly ready, a little lemon-juice.
In the rural districts of France they are simply cooked
on the gridiron, and seasoned with salt and pepper, or
fried in a pan with butter or oil. M. Roques states,
that in the Lower Pyrenees the farm servants and others

regale themselves with these fungi, baked on a dish and

seasoned with oil, garlic, and parsley. This sometimes
forms their principal meal.
For a stew, or soup, half a dozen young Boleti are
put into a stewpan, with salt, pepper, a little grated
nutmeg, a pound of lean ham minced small, half a

pound of bread-crumbs, and a quarter of a pound of

fresh butter. These are then placed over a brisk fire for
an hour, care being taken to add from time to time a little
beef gravy. The stew is then strained, and put on the
fire again to simmer for twenty minutes, adding beef
to taste. It is finally
gravy according poured into a
soup-tureen upon crusts of bread cut in pieces.
A gregarious species (B. bovinus) may be found
growing in heathy and especially in fir woods.
localities,
The pileus is reddish grey, sometimes
tinged with
purple, and the angular tubes are of a greyish yellow,
ultimately becoming of a rusty brown. The spores in
this species are yellowish. The taste and smell are
sweetish and agreeable and Krombholz it is
;
says,
much sought after abroad as a dish, and is
good when
dried.
76 A PLAIN AND EAST ACCOUNT

Another species of Boletus (B. scaber) is very com-

mon in woods, but, though esculent, does not enjoy so

good a reputation as the last.

The tubes are white or
the stem rather and it is much inferior in
dingy, tough,
and flavour to Boletus edulis.
respect of size, smell,
Boletus castaneus, a small species with a velvety,
cinnamon-coloured pilens and stem, short, white, and
afterwards yellowish tubes, and white unchanging flesh,
is rarely found in woods, and although eaten on the

Continent, is of inferior flavour.

Anelegant Boletus (B. elegans)
is found in woods,

especially of firs, which is remarkable for the brilliant

and in moist
golden-yellow tint, its pilous being viscid
weather the
;
flesh is of a pale yellow, and though

said to be eatable, is certainly not worthy of recom-

mendation.
Two other species (B. impolitus and B. aestivalis),
also found in woods or woodland pastures, have the

reputation of being wholesome. The latter we have

seen growing freely in Darenth Wood, Kent the flesh ;

is firm, of a nutty flavour when raw, and not to be

despised when prepared

for the table.

It will be advisable to caution all who are incx-

perienced in collecting
Boleti for alimentary purposes,
and who may yet desire to make trial of them, that

numerous species of Boletus are common to Great

Britain, and 'several of these are unwholesome, some

decidedly poisonous. If upon cutting or bruising any

specimen, should
it be found to change colour, it should
be rejected. Pome species become blue almost immc-
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 77

diately upon wounding. Those with reddish stems, or

with the edges of the tubes, i. e. the under surface of
the pileuSj red or crimson, should also be rejected.
The large B. the very name of which
satanas,

conveys suspicion, should be guarded against. It is

occasionally found in woods. The under surface of the

pileus appears of a blood-red colour, as also the stem.

The
spores of the Boleti may be collected for exami-
nation in the same manner as already described for the

Agarics. In many instances they will be found to be

coloured, and in some of a beautiful roseate tint. The
prevailing colour will be some shade
of pallid or reddish

brown, white being the exception rather than the rule.

The genus Polyporus has the pores not easily sepa-

rable, they being closely packed and united together.

The substance of the hymenophorum descends between
the pores, where it is called the trama. This is not the
case in Boletus ; for in that genus the hymenophorum
isquite distinct from the pores.
This genus is a very large one, and contains every
intermediate texture of substance from succulence or

pulpiness, to the hardness

and density of wood. We
remember a slice from one of the latter species
being-
sent to us for identification, with a number of specimens
of wood, and which was supposed to be "some kind of

palm wood/' Forms are as varied as texture, and colour

as devious as form. Some have stems which are central,
others that are lateral, but the majority are without
stems at all.

A very familiar species (P. squamosa*) of those

78 A PLAIN AND EAST ACCOUNT

having a lateral stem is found on almost every decayed

ash, and sometimes on other trees. It has a pale ochre-

tinted pileus, somewhat of a fan shape, with the surface

covered with darker scales (PL 16). The stem is thick
and dark-coloured, the pores running some distance
down it. It is extremely various in size, occasionally

attaining enormous dimensions, perhaps seven feet in

circumference, and weighing forty-two pounds. We have
already alluded to the rapidity of its growth.* We
have seen drawings of exceedingly curious forms that
have heen found growing in cellars. The edible qualities
of this species cannot be declared first-rate. Mrs. Hussey,
who is a very good judge in such matters, says one might

as well think of eating saddle-flaps. Young specimens,

before have acquired the leathery consistency,
they
would serve for an occasional meal. In this stage they
are prepared for the table in some parts of the Con-
tinent. A
more suitable application, and one strongly
recommended to those who, in these hirsute days,
require such an instrument, is to select a large tough
specimen, and after drying it carefully, cut it into shape,

and employ it as a razor strop. person A who has had

one in use formany years, says that it is far superior to
the majority of those offered for sale. Another Poly-
porus {P. betulums), without a stem, and not uncom-

monly found growing on birch-trees, is equally available

for the same purpose.

Two other species are recommended as esculent,

although neither of them is at all common in our

• G.
Page
 PL. 17.

MM
Fi.fi a,' i na hepatica. Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 79

islands ; they are both of them peculiar in appearance,

from being broken up into numerous pilei, so as to

look like a dense cluster of separate individuals.

P. intybaceus, the first of these, is strongly recom-

mended, and sometimes attains so large a size that

one fungus will weigh forty pounds and suffice for the
meal of a very large family. In cooking this species,
it is advisable to cut off the darker coloured pileus,
and only employ the white branching stem when pre- :

pared in this way, it is equal to any Agaric we possess,

according to the testimony of some, whilst all agree
that it is excellent. The odour is inviting, and we
would advise any who may meet with it to condemn it

to the stew-pan.

P. giganteus is the other species to which we have

alluded, and which, with P. intybaceus, is more com-
mon on the Continent, where its esculent qualities are

known and duly appreciated. Both of these are found

growing on the trunks of trees, and sometimes attain

extraordinary dimensions.
The trunks of trees, of various kinds, are often found
bearing a
very conspicuous sulphur-coloured fungus
{P. sulphureus), consisting of a number of overlapping
pilei of the consistence of a mellow cheese. When
wounded, it exudes copiously a yellow juice, which has
been employed in dyeing, though it is doubtful whether
it is
any great value for such a purpose.
of As this
fungus dries, it becomes covered with beautiful crystals
of oxalate of potash, which might suggest the presence
ot more active properties than the majority of the mem-
80 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

bers of this genus possess. During decomposition this

plant emits a bright phosphorescent light, a feature not
common in our native fungi, and which makes this an
object of curiosity, although we need scarcely add that
it is entirely unfit for food.
The dry-rot of oak-built vesselsis a species
belonging
to this genus (P. hybndus), whilst the common dry-rot
of fir timber is a species of Merulius.
A curious leathery substance, known under the name
of A madou, or German tinder, found in tobacconists'

shops, occasionally in sheets, or irregularly-shaped pieces,

but more commonly manufactured into fusees, gives but
little external evidence of its fungoid This sub-
origin.
stance is obtained from several species of Polyporus,
and consists of slices of these hard and
corky Fungi,
beaten out till
they have become quite soft and flexible,
then saturated in a solution of saltpetre and dried. At
one time it was rather extensively employed in medical

practice as a styptic, but is now seldom resorted to in

England. On the Continent it is still an article of

commerce, and Northern Europe, the smoker would

in

almost as soon think of venturing abroad without his

tobacco and pipe as without a supply of Amadou to

rekindle his extinguished fire. One of the species

usually employed in the manufacture of this article is
P. fomentarim, a stemless species common on the
trunks of fcr< es.

Trametea and Dwdalea arc genera containing no

BpecieB of economic value. The latter includes a
fungus which, from its
corky, rugged nature and
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. £1

common is likely to interest the

occurrence, young
mycologist. Dccdalea quercina grows on oak-stumps,
sometimes to a large size, spreading out from its sup-
port in a semicircular manner, and having the under
surface broken up into a number of long, irregular,

wavy fissures, as if the walls of several contiguous

tubes had been bruken down. Another equally com-
mon species (D. unicolor), with a zoned or banded

pileus, may be met with on stumps. The peculiar

form of the pores is one of the chief features of the

genus.
In Merulins, the genus which succeeds it, the tex-
ture not of the woody character of Dcedalea, but
is

on the contrary soft and waxy, and the hymenium is

disposed in porous or wavy toothed folds. The only
popularly known species is one which unfortunately
is too well known under the name of dry-rot. This
name must not be supposed to indicate that the fungus
dry, or is caused by the absence of moisture,
is itself —
the contrary of this being the case ; but probably on
account of its ravages reducing the structure upon
which it establishes itself to a kind of dust. The
Meruliw lacrymans (lacrt/mo, Lat., I
weep) is often

dripping with moisture, as if weeping in regret for the

havoc it has made. It is found sometimes attaining:
a dimension of several feet, and to check or prevent its

ravages numerous experiments have been instituted,

none having resulted in the
discovery of a remedy
thoroughly effective, though saturation with creosote
appears to be the best.
d
83 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

The last genus in this order is Fistulina, which

bears much external and general resemblance to Poly-

poms, and was at one time included in it but is now ;

separated, on account of the hymenium being at first

covered with littlepap-like elevations, which afterwards
elongate into distinct tubes bearing the reproductive
bodies. The only species Ave possess is termed F.hepa-
tica (hepar, Lat., the liver), from its colour, which
resembles that of liver. This fungus assumes a great

variety of forms. In its earliest stages it sometimes

looks like a strawberry when more advanced it has
;

often the appearance of a tongue. One of its conti-

nental local names is Lingua di Castagna, which
applies to this It is a fleshy, juicy
resemblance. fungus,
with an undivided, unstalked pileus, and when cut pre-
sents a bright streaky appearance, not unlike beetroot,
and contains a red juice ;
the porous under surface is

yellowish or flesh-coloured (PI. 17). The trunks of old

oaks are very commonly the habitat of this species,
which occasionally attains a very large size. When old,
it becomes rather tough, but in all its stages it affords

an excellent gravy, and, when young, if sliced and

grilled, would pass for a good beefsteak. Specimens
are now and then met with that would furnish four or
five men with a good dinner ;
and they have been col-

lected weighing as much as thirty pounds. The liver-

colour and streaky interior are sufficient guides whereby

to recognise this species under all its protean forms.

Mr, Hussey says of it, that " if it is not beef itself, it

is sauce for it ;" and she recommends that it should be

 0* BRITISH FUNGI. 83

sliced and macerated with salt after the manner of

making mushroom ketchup. The deep
red liquor that
is produced should be put hot into a dish with a little

lemon-juice and minced shalots, and a broiled rump-

steak deposited in it. Great will be the surprise of the

epicure at the quantity of gravy the steak has afforded,

greater still when told that
it is the
simple juice of
a fungus for the
;
similitude to the juice of beef is exact.
The ketchup must be strained from the substance raw,
and afterwards boiled with spice for keeping, like ordi-

It ahould not be employed but to

nary ketchup. repre-
sent beef gravy, as it does not possess the flavour of
mushrooms. In France, where this species is also

eaten, it is first washed and dried, then placed in boiling

water for a short time, and afterwards stewed with
butter, parsley, scallion, pepper and salt yolk of egg
;

being afterwards added, when the stew is ready for the

table. It is also grilled. In Vienna it is cut in thin
slices and eaten with salad as we employ beetroot, and
is also cooked with meat, adding a little cream or lemon-

juice. It will be found necessary, whichever method of

cooking is adopted, to employ fresh specimens, as they

will shrivel up and become leathery if sliced and dried.

The mode of preserving for future use, is by con-

best

verting them into the kind of sauce or gravy to which

we have allud d. The late Dr. Blount affirmed that
it is of far greater excellence as an article of food, than
either our remarks or those of Dr. Badham would lead
the reader to imagine.
«4 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

TEETII.BEARING FUNGI.
The third order of fungi is termed Hydnei, from

Hydnum (udna, Gi\, puff's resembling mushrooms), the

typical genus.
In this order Ave encounter numerous

spines, teeth, or pap-like projections from the surface,

over which the is spread, and bearing the
hymenium
spores. The not
order
is a very large one, but is distinct
in its features from the preceding.
In Hydnum the spines are awl-shaped, and distinct
or separate at the base. This structure will be better
understood by a reference to our plate (PI. 18), in which
a portion of the pileus of Hydnum repandum is shown
in section, magnified. This species is common on the

ground in woods and woody places, and has a compact

wavy pileus, with spines of unequal length proceeding
from the under surface, which is rather paler in colour.
There is a variety much redder than our plate, which
has been treated as a distinct species under the name
of rufescens, but which appears to be the same in every
feature except colour. The flesh of this fungus is firm
and white, rather hot to the taste when raw, but mild
when cooked.
On account of its containing less than the average
amount of water in its composition, it
may be dried

successfully, and in this state preserved for winter use.

It is
employed as food in Austria and Belgium, as well
as in France, in all of which localities it is a common
Bpecies From the firmness of its texture it
may be
 PL. 18.

- '£*&*&!&*>

tf
I m.

I
Hydnum imbricatum. Fr.
:'.
Hydnum repandum. Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. o5

concluded that young and fresh specimens are the best,

and the cooking operations should be carefully per-
formed. The method recommended is to cut them in
pieces, steep them in warm water, and afterwards stew
them in a rich brown sauce.
Roques says that after
steeping they should be cooked in hog's lard with pepper,
salt, parsley, and beef gravy, taking care that they are
cooked lono; enough to become tender.

Singularly enough, this species has suffered under

the imputation of being poisonous but this was evi- ;

dently destitute of foundation, for M. Roques says that

himself and friends scoured the woods of Malmaison,
" where we
gathered a dish of these champignons,
which prepared myself with butter, grated nutmeg,
I

pepper, salt, a point of garlic, and some spoonfuls of

chicken broth. This ragout, poured over some thin
toasted bread, well browned, was served at table, and
was greatly relished by the guests." In France this
all

species is known locally by the name of Eurchon,

Rignoche, and Arresteron ; in the Vosges as Barbe
de vache (cow's beard) and Pied de mouton (sheep's

foot).
The scaly-capped Hydnum {II imbricaturri) is found '.

but rarely in our pine woods but when once seen is not
;

likely to be forgotten. Our plate (PI. 18, fig. 1) will give

a very good idea of its general appearance, and experience
the best test of its esculent properties, which are affirmed
to be fully equal to those of
any other member of the
genus. It is much more common on the continent of

Europe than with us, where it is

regarded equally with
86 A TLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

//.
repandmn, and in Austria especially it is included

amongst the esculent species.

H. coralloides in its early stages greatly resembles a
cauliflower ;
it is whitish and very much branched,
appearance from any fungus which hitherto
differing in
we have encountered. It occurs on decayed trees and
stumps, especially of fir, beech, and ash. This is said
to be fully equal to H.
repandum, but unfortunately
it, as well as the succeeding species, is rare in our

country.
II. caput-Medusw has
very much the same habit and
appearance, being branched in a similar manner, but
has ultimately a greyish tint. It is also found on the
trunks of trees. Though rarely occurring in Fiance,
it is common in Italy and in parts of Austria, where it

is reckoned among the edible species. The flavour of

both these is said to resemble greatly that of the com-
mon mushroom.
No other speciesis recorded in this or the
remaining
seven genera of the order, as of any service to man.
The student will find at the end of the volume the
names and characters of these genera.

LEATHERY FUNGI.
The fourth order, Auricularini, has distinct pecu-
liarities ;
but as no member is of sufficient importance, on
account of the absence of economic properties, to claim
our notice, we will not attempt the somewhat difficult
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 87

task of defining it so as to be comprehended by our

non-scientific readers, except by stating in general
terms that the hymenium, or fructifying surface, is

almost destitute of folds or projections. No fungus is

more common or better known than Stereum hirsutum,
which found on stumps everywhere.
is The leathery
out from its matrix, hairy on its upper
pileus spreading
surface, of a colour bordering upon olive, zoned with a
darker tint, and bearing a yellowish margin. In size
it is generally three or four inches across, and several

pilei are often closely arranged one above another.

Many others in this group are nearly equally common,

did the limits of our work permit of their description
and illustration but as more important genera are still
;

unnoticed, we must content ourselves with again referring

to the synopsis.

CLUB-BEARING FUNGI.
In this order (Clavariei) another change of form
takes place. We have herein, grouped together, a
series of club-shaped, or branched, fleshy fungi, with
the hymenium scarcely distinct from the portion which
bears it, and often obtaining a great expansion of surface

by means of multiplied and intricate ramifications.

The
most beautiful examples are not met with in Britain,
but those which we have may serve to give a general
idea of the more magnificent kinds which vegetate
in the Alpine regions of Europe. Some of the species

have white, and others yellowish spores. The former

are nearly all wholesome, the latter seldom. It has,
88 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

however, been distinctly affirmed that none of them are

dangerous. Small specimens of some of the edible
kinds are represented in our plates, and also a species
of Geoglossum (PI. 20) ; the latter being added
for comparison, belonging as it does to a different

order, to which a brief reference will be made, and

which does not furnish any kinds that are esculent.
Clararia riif/osa is not an uncommon inhabitant
of woods, but is generally so small, and sparingly
distributed, as not to repay collecting for esculent

purposes. This species may be found either simply

club-shaped, delicately white, and with longitudinal
furrows, or with the tip more or less lobed, or with
decided branches proceeding from the axis. Occa-
sionally it is found of a dirty white, or with a bluish-

grey tinge. If laid upon a piece of slate or black

paper, the white spores will be thrown down. All the

white- spored Clavarias are wholesome, but some are so

tough and leathery, and others so small, that the num-

ber at all available for alimentary purposes is limited.

They should, after being collected, be washed in lake-

warm water and perfectly dried, then tied together in
little bundles like asparagus, and cooked with butter,
and salt when cooked, they may
parsley, onion, pepper, ;

bo improved by the addition of a little cream and the

yolk of an «gg. It has also been recommended that

a feu s]
of ids of stock be milled during the cooking.

Rogues states that at Vienna they arc fricasseed with

butter and sweet basil. (PL 6 fig. -.)
A fleshy, much-branched species, with red tips (C.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 89

Botrytis), is rare in this country, but is common in the

Vosges, and in Carintliia, where it is

usually eaten.
The cinereous Clavaria (C. cinerea) is common in
woods in some districts. It has a short thick stem,

is very much branched and irregular, and becomes ulti-

mately of a cinereous hue. The substance is brittle,

and not tough as in some species. In France this is
known under various names, as Pied de cog, Galli-

nole, fyc, and in Italy as Ditola rossa, in both which

countries it is eaten. (PI. 10 fig. 2.)
An extremely common, clustered, yellow species is
found in pastures (C. fastigiata), and although some
authors have proscribed all the yellow species, Piques
affirms that it is equally good eating with those

generally esteemed as the best, and that in Germany

it is eaten under the name of Ziegenbart (goat's

beard).
The most beautifully coloured species (C. amethys-
tina) found in Britain, is rare and small, so that it
would be vain to seek sufficient to constitute a dish.
It nut plentiful on the Continent, where
is it is pre-
ferred by some to all the other species, and is said to

possess a very fine flavour. (PI. 11 fig. 3.)

The coral-like Clavaria {G. coralloides) has rather
a thick stem, is much and irregularly branched, white,

hollow, with a mushroomy odour and agreeable taste.

It isan inhabitant of woods, but not a plentiful species

on this side the Channel. It is found commonly, and

much esteemed in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, &c.

In these countries they arc preserved for winter use by
90 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

beinf plunged in boiling water, dried, and macerated

in vinegar.
kinds are edible,
Probably others of our indigenous
especially
one resembling C. fastiyiata, which is found
palish umber, not
on lawns, and is of a tint of at all

inclining to yellow ;
and C. cristata, which, as well as

C. rugosa, is Should either of these

found in woods.
be found in sufficient merit the
quantity, they certainly
trouble of an experiment.
The largest and most beautiful fungus of this section
been found several
(Sparassis crispa) has recently
times in this it somewhat resembles a
country;
iu appearance, and
yellow cauliflower or a Millepore
is excellent eating.
The three remaining genera of this order contain no
for notice.
species calling

GELATINOUS FUNGI.
The last order of the first family of Fungi is Tre-

mellini, in which the whole plant is

gelatinous, and
more or less folded. The fructifying surface is
always
and following all its foldings
uppermost, spread over,
and With but one exception, this order
inequalities.
is unhonoured in history or romance, and unknown as
fojd or physic. The
exception is in favour of
the

Jew's-ear {Hirneola auricula Jwin), which had at

one time a reputation for the cure of sore throats,
and also as a topical astringent, and eyen now it has
South
lvputr aim It is largely collected in
soiii" ad.
 OF BRITISH FUXGI 91

Sea Island-', and exported to China, where it is a

favourite article of food. Its faculty of absorbing
and holding water like a sponge has resulted in
its use ai a medium for applying eye- water to weak
or diseased eyes, and similar purposes. Of late years it
is seldom to be met with in the herbalists' shops, and,
in England at least, its reputation and "occupation 's

gone/' The curious name it has appropriated to itself

may be traced to the ear-like form which it sometimes
assumes. It is not uncommonly found on elder stumps,
and sometimes on elms. A variety, shaped something
like a bird's nest, has obtained the distinctive
appel-
lation of Nidularia, but its forms are by no means

permanent.
The six orders already described, and in part illus-

trated, constitute that most important group called

Hymenomycetes, from the fact of the hymenium being

the most prominent feature. Space will not permit of
our entering so fully into the particulars of the succeed-

ing groups, which need be less regretted as many of

the members are exceedingly minute, and scarce any

present features of equal interest with those which

have hitherto occupied our attention

PERIDIATE FUNGI.
The second family of fungi
termed Gasteromycetes
is

(paster, Gr., a stomach mzekes, a

mushroom), which,
;

though in common with many others to be found in the

Appendix, a long and complicated name, truly repre-
92 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

sents the features of the group to which it is

applied.
Herein the hvmenium, or spore-bearing surface, is in-
closed within a covering called a peridium (from perideo,

Gr., I wrap round), so that all the spores are produced

and ripened within a kind of stomach or gaster ; and
from this feature the family bears the name of Gastero-

mycetes. Every one knows the puff-ball, a spherical

pouch, containing, when ripe, an almost impalpable

brownish dust, not unlike Scotch snuff, and which
mischievous schoolboys delight in puffing in each other's
faces. The pouch is the peridium or stomach, and the
brown dust the innumerable ripened spores. But puff-
balls are not the sole members of this group ; they
constitute but one of five orders.

SUBTERRANEAN FUNGI.
Ckhtain fungi having such a structure as we have
described, are subterranean in habit, and these are in-
cluded in the first order under the name of Hypogasi

(apo, fir., under

gcea the earth).;
In these fungi the

hymenium does not become dusty, but remains perma-

nent nor does
;
it melt away as in other groups, except
when it becomes decayed. Some of these resemble
truffles so nearly as to be confounded with them. One
,-ji
cies of Melanogast&r was sold in the markets of
\'.w\\\ under the name of red truffle, and is therefore
edible. This is the only example which has come to our

knowledge ipI ;i useful species. M<1< (uogaster variega-

tus is found under tress, especially in (lie neighbourhood
 PL 19.

< 'I'll In- H.i can /',-.

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 93

of beeches, in the south and south-western counties of

England, and resembles, externally, a brownish irregular

tuber ; internally it is divided into cells by whitish
walls, containing at first a black pulp, and ultimately a
number of minute dark spores (PI. 20, fig. 2). The
surface of the red truffle is smooth and not covered with

warts or tubercles as in the true truffle. It is believed

that the taste and aroma of this species is inferior to

that of the truffle, although it may be employed as a
substitute when the genuine article is scarce. Although
we have employed the term subterranean as representa-
tive oiHypogwi, and applied it to this order, it must not,

therefore, be concluded that it includes all funo-i which

are subterranean in habit, as the Truffles, for
instance,
are excluded, and must be sought for in the Sporidi-
ferous families.

STINKHORN FUNGI.
An acquaintance with the members of this order,
which is known botanically as Phalloidei, will convince

any one of the propriety of assigning to them not only

their common English but also their scientific Greek
name. Some of them are rare, but the common Stink-
horn will serve as a type, and answer as a convincing
argument in both cases.

One of the most striking in

appearance, disgusting
in odour, and noxious in properties of all
fungi, is the
Latticed Stinkhorn (Clathrus cancellatus), which is,
however, so rare as scarcely to merit a notice here except
to call attention to its
only commendable feature, that
94 A PLAIN AND EAS1 ACCOUNT

of the beauty and singularity of its form (PI. 1!)).

The receptacle resembles a spherical network or lattice-
work of coral, but is of so putrescent a nature that its
odour materially detracts from its beauty ;
and it is

recorded of a botanist who gathered one for the

purpose
of drying it for his herbarium, that he was compelled by
the stench to rise during the night and cast the offender
out at the window. M. Roques relates of its properties

that ayoung person having eaten a morsel was seized

with violent convulsions, lost the use of her speech,
and ultimately a stupor which lasted forty-
fell into

eight hours prompt

: attention was given to her, but it
appears to have been some months before she was per-

fectly cured.
The common Stinkhom {Phallus impudicus) has an
equally abominable odour, to which we have already
alluded,* with nothing of beauty to recommend it, and
although not uncommon, no one would think of pre-
paring it for a meal.

PUFF-BALL FUNGI.
In the of the two orders just noticed, the
first

hyrncnium neither melts nor becomes dusty in the ;

last it melts, and in the present order it dries into

a dusty mass of threads and spores. From the remote

resemblance which this mass sometimes bears to a lock
of soft brown wool, the order has been called Tric/to-

gastr>g (thrix, (Jr., wool or hair). The most pictu-

* Kide 10.
p.
 OF 13IUT1SLL FUNGI 95

res ]ue of forms are found in the genus Geaster ; but

although we have a dozen indigenous species, none of

these are common. In those the peridium or covering
is double, the outer one, bursting and dividing into sepa-
rate lobes, falls back in a stellate manner at the base of
the ball formed by the inner peridium, which latter
ultimately opens and discharges its spores from the
summit. Although useless, these are very curious and
interesting fungi,and are not possessed of the strong
and unpleasant odour of the members of the last group.
The genera Bovista and Lycoperdon, which follow,
may be distinguished from each other by the bark of the
former at length shelling off, and of the latter remaining
attached in the form of scales or warts. There are but
three species of Bovista indigenous to Britain, dis-

tinguished chiefly by the colour of the peridium.

B. nigrescens is blackish, and B. plumbed of a lead-
colour. Although we have never heard of the former

being eaten, it is stated that the latter furnishes a

very palatable dish.Bovista plumbea and Lycoperdon
pyriforme have, however, been so confounded together^
sometimes in name and sometimes in the individuals
themselves, as evidenced by the fact that figures of the
latterhave been given with the name of the former,
that one seems disposed to doubt whether both have not
been eaten the one for the other, and whether both

may not be esculent, though perhaps not excellent.

Two species of Bovista are very common in pastures,
and resemble little round
which, when ripe, dis-
balls,

charge their dust-like spores from openings in the top of

96' A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

the papery peridium the third species, B.

;
ammopldla,
isnot common.
There is
scarcely a dweller or stroller into the country
that has not seen the
giant puff-hall (Ly coper don nigan-
urn), sometimes attaining the size of a child's head, and
f<

in its earlier stages of a dirty whitish colour,

becoming
browner by age, in which latter condition, if broken, it

emits a cloud of snuff-coloured impalpable dust Very few

persons are, however, aware that when in its young and

pulpy condition this Lycoperdon is excellent eating, and,
indeed, has but few competitors for the place of honour
at the table. It is especially esteemed in Italy, and
would be with not only on account of the impossi-
us,

bility of confounding it with other species, on which

account the repast may be enjoyed without fear, but also
for its own intrinsic value. Unfortunately this fungus
deteriorates very speedily after gathering, and should be
discarded if, when cut, any yellow marks or stains are

visible, for then it is too old. When the cut surface of

the puff-ball is white as snow, then cut it
up into slices

of a quarter of an inch in thickness, and fry it in fresh

butter, adding according to your taste a sprinkling of

pounded sweet herbs, pepper, ami salt. Mrs. llussey

recommends that each slice lie dipped in the yolk of
an egg and sprinkled with chopped sweet herbs and
"
spice. Then, she they are much lighter and
says,
more digestible than egg omelettes, and resemble brain
fritt'

Our late friend, 11. Ward, Esq., of Chouse Hall, who,

in edible fungi, writes,
by the bye, was a connoisseur
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. \)1

" We have a delicious dish in this fungus, which is not

uncommon in some seasons in these parts. Sliced and

seasoned with butter and salt, and fried in a pan, no

French omelette is half so good in richness and delicacy

of flavour. I am too glad to seize upon them when I can

get them ;
of course, in the soft pulpy state." This is

not the only testimony we have of their excellence.

"
Another connoisseur says, The puff-ball makes such
an excellent omelette, and is so much better than any
mushroom I ever before tasted, that it ought not to be
called mushroom." To this we may add our own expe-
rience, derived while this work was first pass'ng through
the press. A gardener brought us a large puff-ball,
equal in size to a half-quartern loaf, and which was still
in its young and
pulpy state, of a beautiful creamy
whit' ness when cut. It had bean found developing
a garden at Highgate, and to the finder its
itself in

virtues were unknown. We

had this specimen cut in
slices of about half an inch in tLuckm iss, the outer skin
peeled off, and. each el c dipped in an pgg which had
•

been beaten up, then sprinkWd with bread crumbs, and

fried in butter, with salt and pepper. The result was
exceedingly satisfactory and finding this immense
;

fungus more than our family could consume whilst it

remained fresh, we invited our friends to partake,
and they were as delighted as ourselves with the
new breakfast relish, to them, and to us the — first,
but we hope not the last,
experiment upon a fried
puff-ball.
Hi' great puff-ball has an ancient reputation for tiie
98 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

stanching of blood, and

was consequently dried and

preserved by many
a good housewife in days gone by,
and is still considered by some of the antique dames of
for a cut
the past generations as a sovereign remedy
finder. The the spongy portion as a tinder
use of

must also be reckoned amongst the achievements of

the past, When

burnt, the fumes of this fungus are
said to possess a stupefying narcotic property in this ;

form the Lycoperdon is still occasionally employed to

stupefy bees, so that

their hives may be robbed of the

honey without danger. Lately these fumes have been

as an anaesthetic in the place
proposed and recommended
of chloroform. But the most important of all uses is
that of food, to which we have already alluded.

Lycoperdon ccelatum is another common species

a size, and occasionally found
scarcely attaining so large
growing in rings. The spores in this species
are yel-

whilst in the are of an

lowish, great puff-ball they
olive-colour. When this puff-ball is dried, it may be

employed as amadou, first soaking it in a solution of

nitre,and afterwards drying it. It is questionable

whether in any stage it is wholesome as food.

The to which
pear-sh;ipedpuff-ball (L. pyriforme),
allusion has already been made, may be found in clus-
ters in almost any old decayed stump. It is small

and pear-shaped, as its name implies. If good for food

all, it must be during

at its young state.

The remaining genera, Scleroderma, Polysaccum,

and dnococcum, contain no species of general interest
li lias been stated that the powder from some of the
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 99

Scleroderma is
irritating to the eyes and nose, and that,
taken inwardly, they are poisonous but for neither of
;

these statements are we prepared to vouch.

The order next in rotation is
Mi/xogastres, in which
the entire mass is at first pulpy and gelatinous, becom-
ing ultimately dusty. This is a remarkable
group,
sometimes presenting individuals
exceedingly beautiful
both in form and colouring and were they not of such
;

microscopic dimensions, they would certainly become

popular favourites, only surpassed by some species of
JEcidium, which would compete with them for the
preference. Unfortunately, however, these beautiful
creations are unknown, save to the privileged few who
have, by the aid of the microscope, become acquainted,
not only with these, but other minute denizens of a
new floral world. As it constitutes a portion of the

plan upon which this work was designed, that it should

not include more than incidental references to
species
unapprecialle by the naked eye, these and many suc-
ceeding groups, of greater or less extent, will have to be
thus summarily dismissed.
It is probable ihat the young student of nature has
found, and marvelled at, certain curious cup or crucible-

snaped receptacles containing a number of roundish or

elliptical bodies, which caused the whole to assume the

appearance of a miniature birdsnest containing eggs,

and hence procured for them the name of Birdsnest
Fungi. These singular, but not uncommon, produc-
tions are members of the order 2V idulariacei (nidulus,

Lat., a little nest), so termed from the features alluded

u 2
 100 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

to. In this order the spores are compacted together

into lenticular or similarly shaped masses, inclosed in
a peridium, and several of these are contained within
an outer peridium, either open or closed this outer ;

peridium constituting the nest, and the compacted

masses of spores the eggs. This little order has not
more than seven representatives in Britain.

DUST-LIKE FUNGI.
Tin: third group or family, termed Coniomycetes,
consists of dust-like fungi in which the prominent
feature the spores.
is The mycelium is often obsolete
and the threads short they ;
are in some instances
naked, and in others inclosed. The spores are large in
proportion to the rest of the plant, and extremely abun-
dant. We shall not attempt to characterize the different

divisions of this group, containing, as it does, objects so

minute and uninteresting to the general observer. There
are, however, some few facts which, even in a work of
this description, deserve to be recorded.

One section of this family includes the numerous

species of rust and mildew which arc found all over the
world as parasites upon flowering plants. It was

doubted at, one time whether these were plants at all,

and now that they are acknowledged as members of the

vegetable kingdom, are verymuch despised and neglected.

They may not present such beauties of form and colour
as to enchant the fashionable collector, or induce him to

stroll into the in search of them but the agricul-

country ;
 OF BBTTISH FUNGU. 101

views them as amongst the pests of the farm, and,

turist

no other reason, they deserve to be better known.

if for

The Puccinicei are developed on almost every

plant,
— on wheat, grass, asparagus, mint, plum-leaves,
beans, beet, oak, birch, poplar, sallow, willow, roses,
violets, primroses, thistles, coltsfoot, &c. &c. The
Dhoora corn of the tropics, and the maize of temperate

regions, are not less certainly the victims of these

parasites than the wheat, barley, and oats of our own

land. It has been said, and we fear with some show of

truth, that bunted wheat ground up into flour is

largely
used in the manufacture of gingerbread in which case
;

the colour is concealed on the one hand, and the taste

on the other and not having been found to be seriously
;

injurious, no depreciation in gingerbread has resulted

in consequence. Many species of JEcidivm are exceed-
ingly beautiful when viewed under the microscope. The
clusters of brightly-coloured, urn- shaped bodies resemble
the delicate waxy flowers of exotic heaths but to the
;

naked eye these appear only as rusty spots on the leaves

or other portions of plants
upon which they establish
themselves.
In early spring the leaves of the pilewort
{Ranunculus
ficarla) will often be found with blight orange-coloured
spots on the under surface and occasionally on the
petioles. When viewed through a lens, these spots will
be seen to consist of clusters of
cup-shaped receptacles,
fringed at the margin, and filled with minute, bright,
dust-like These
spores. are examples of JEcidium
ranunculacearum, which is alsofound on other species
102 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

of Ranunculus. There are species of ^Scidium found

flourishing on the living leaves of other plants equally
interesting and beautiful. For further particulars of
this group we refer our readers to a companion volume
on " Microscopic Fungi."

TH11EADY FUNGI.
The fourth group contains the ffyphomycetes, in

which the threads are the principal feature. These

naked spores, are white, brown,
threads, which bear the
or coloured,and the best-known examples are those
which bear the common name of Moulds. These are

amongst the most insatiate of the fungoid race ;

scarce

anything escapes them

—
dead fungi or dead
:
spiders,
meal or sugar, cheese or onions, pears or oranges, linen

or glass. Mouldy cheese may be relished, and pains

taken to engraft or bud the plant upon others, yet the
moulds are not always so harmless. In certain species

they are decidedly poisonous. Turpin says that milk

arrested for some time in the udder of a cow was found
to contain mould, and species of fungi belonging to this

group are not unfrequent in the lungs and stomach of

the human subject in certain conditions of disease.
The yeast-plant is a fungus, or, to speak more pre-
cisely, a kind of Penkillium, growing
and increasing
almost indefinitely, and by a species of chemical action
with
producing fermentation in any saccharine matter
which it is mixed. When microscopically examined,
yeast will be found to consist of a multitude of ovoidal
 OP BRITISH FUNGI. 10o

cellscontaining a nucleus. The fresh yeast consists of

these individual cells but after being mixed with the
;

wort of beer for an hour, budding will

have commenced (as in fig. g). These
buds will ultimately increase to the size
of the parent cells, and these will
again
bud ;
so that in six or
eight hours a

string of cells will be found to have been

produced, attached to each other like a

strin^ of beads, with occasional lateral branches. Some
authors have referred the yeast-plant to a low station
in a subdivision of A Igce.

The vinegar-plant is of a similar nature, and both

are more correctly included amongst those plants with
which we have associated them. This view is supported
by the most eminent mycologists of the present day.

MUCORACEOUS FUNGI.
The group or family, the Physomycetes, is a
fifth

small one, at least so far as British examples are con-

cerned, and forms an intermediate link between the

Sjyoriferous, or naked-spored fungi, and the Sporidiife-

rous, or those in which the spores are inclosed, to which
thisgroup belongs. In the Phrfsomycetes, the cells
which contain the spores are bladder -shaped, and
scattered upon threads, which are not compacted into a
distinct hymeiiiuin. Like the true moulds, these
minute plants are found upon decaying vegetable sub-
stances, especially articles of food. The bread-mould
is a common and familiar example, and if, in this
104 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

instance, decay lias nut already taken place, it is

speedily accelerated.

SPORIDIIFEROUS FUNGI.
The sixth and last group consists of the Ascomycetes,
in which the spores are developed in cells or bags, called
asci, often accompanied by abortive asci in the form of

threads, and termed paraphyses. These are produced

upon a sometimes forming a cavity, or
cellular stratum,

envelope, which constitutes the peridivm, and some-

times the p&ridium is absent. A
portion of the members
of this group are subterranean in their habits and ;

though the majority of them are too small to serve

as articles of food, there are some which have great

repute amongst the lovers of delicious repasts.

In the order Ehellacei the hymenium becomes more
or less exposed. The substance is in most instances
fleshy, in others waxy, and the form commonly either
is

cup-shaped or club-shaped. The genus Peziza con-

tains some of the most elegant of British fungi, as in
the example (Peziza aurantia) given on PL 13 fig.

2, and which was gatherod amongst the grass on lamp- 1

stead Heath, early in November. It by no means an

is

uncommon species, very beautiful, but of no economic

value. Another species (P. coccinea) is still more
beautiful, both in form and colouring, but less common.
Almost every fallen twig of the larch will afford ex-
amples of the little white and red Peziza (P. calycina.)
Two other species, of more modest hu^, have th« re-
commendation ol lining esculent.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 105

The sporidia of many of the Pezizoe are ejected from

the hymenium with such force, and in such profusion,
that they form a cloud or
vapour of minute sporidia in
the air around the plant from whence
they are expelled
In some of the genera of this order the surface of the

hymenium is greatly enlarged by folding or plaiting,

so that there are
deep fissures or cavities, which give
such a distinct feature to the plants, that there is little
fear of confounding them with other
species.
In the order Elvellacei we meet externally and
superficially with the appearance of a return to the
pileated forms encountered in
the commencement of our sur-
vey. The hymenium is at length
more or less exposed, and some-

times borne on a stem. In the

genus Morchella the hymenium
is folded upon a stalked recep-
tacle, these folds forming dee])

pits, at times irregular, at others

definite in shape. In such species
as have the pileus free at the base,
the external contour reminds
one at first of a conical-capped Fig.h.

Agaric but this resemblance no longer obtains when

;

it is remembered that the

hymenium is borne on the
upper surface, and not on the under, as in Agarics
and Boleti.
The Morell (Morchella esculenta) is chiefly em-
ployed in this country in the dried state a? a seasoning
100 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

for soups, in which state they are imported. The

retail price at times reaches as much as one shilling
an ounce. Although only employed here in its

dried state for seasoning, it is far more delicious when

fresh, aud affords a liquor of much more exquisite
flavour than the ketchup of mushrooms. The demand
was formerly so great for morells in Germany, that the
peasantry were induced to
burn down the woodland in
immense tracts, on account of the more productive
nature of the burnt soil, until legislative enactments

put an end to the practice.

We have three native species of Morchella, one of
which (31. patula) is too rare to be of economic im-

portance. Of the other two, 31. esculenta is distin-

attached to the
guished by having the base of the pileus
stem (fig. h). In 31. semilibera the pileus is free half-

way up from its base. In the former the pileus is

commonly ovate, and in the latter conical. 31. esculenta
is more a lover of woods, and 31. semilibera of hedges.

The capability of distinguishing between the two is of

littleimportance for alimentary purposes, since both are
good, and equally esteemed
abroad. We have the
authority of M. Iloques for stating, that they are not
less esteemed in France than in Italy, in Germany than
in Switzerland, and in Brabant than in England. Some

give the preference to one kind, and some to the other ;

but both have nearly the same odour which gratifies the
smell, and the same flavour which pleases the taste ;

but they must not be gathered with the dew upon them.
Different methods of cooking morells are in vogue
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 107

in France. Amongst the most approved are the

following :
—
Ragout of Morells. — Pick and clean your fungi
and cut them in two, wash and dry them well by wiping,
then put them in a stewpan with butter, place them
over a brisk fire, and when the butter is melted, squeeze
in a little lemon-juice, give a few turns, and then add
salt, pepper, and a little grated nutmeg. Cook slowly for

an hour, adding at intervals small quantities of beef gravy

or jelly broth. When done, thicken with yolks of eggs.
Morells may also be treated in this fashion :
— Put
them upon the fire with butter, salt, pepper, and a
small bundle of herbs. Simmer and add a little flour.
Soften them with good beef gravy. Let them cook and
reduce on a gentle fire, then remove the bundle of herbs.

Fry some bread-crumbs in butter, then beat up the yolks

of three eggs, add a pinch of powdered sugar, which
mix with the morells, and pour the whole over the fried

bread-crumbs, previously put into a dish.

Morells a la Italienne. Pick, wash, and dry —
your morells. Cut them in two or three pieces accord-
ing to size, and place them in a stewpan over a lively
fire ;
add olive oil, pepper, salt, and a bundle of herbs ;

letthem simmer some minutes, then add chopped parsley,

a little onion, and a chive of garlic. Continue the

cooking over a gentle fire. Soften with beef gravy

and a glass of white wine. Serve with the piece of a

lemon, and bread-crumbs fried brown and crisp.

Besides these ways, morells are eaten in a variety of

styles but M. Koques affirms that there is none so

;
108 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

delicate as a piece of veal surrounded with morells,

suitably seasoned, and cooked in an oven in its own

juices.
In the genus Helvetia the return to the forms oi

Hymenomycetal fungi seems to be still more complete,

on account of the even manner in which the hymenium

overspreads the surface, a feature distinguishing this

genus from the preceding but the student must not be
;

led by the external appearance in opposition to impor-

tant structural differences.
The best substitute for the expensive morell may be
found in two indi-

genous species of

Helvetia {II. crispa

and //. lacunosa).
Like the morell, they
may be collected

during the season

and dried, and thus
preserved for use all
the year round. lie
must be indeed an
excellent judge and
of a most exquisite
*"r
taste, who can detect
''"!' *'
the difference in

flavour between the Morchella and the Helvetia, for

both are equally good. Five species are found in Great
Britain ; i.e., H. sulcata, crispa, lacunosa, clastica, and
ephippium. Doubtless all of them would be esculent
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 109

but two only are large enough or sufficiently plentiful

for the table.

Helvetia crispa has a lobed and defiexed pileus, pallid

above and ochraceous beneath (fig. *). The stem is

fistulose or hollow ;
when dried, the texture is tough and
leathery, and in this condition it resembles crumpled
up pieces of wash-leather, that have been saturated with
water and allowed to dry. It is a common species in

woods, and may occasionally be found growing on banks

in the autumn. It is almost impossible to confound

these with any other species of fungi found in Britain,

so that they may be enjoyed without fear.

Helvetia lacunosa is also common, and is found in

similar localities to the last. It much resembles II.

crispa in everything save the

colour of the pileus, which, in

this instance, is cinereous-black

{jag.h). Thiskindis not met with

so large or so plentifully as the
other. Fur all purposes to which
the morell is
applicable, these
species may either of them be
substituted. They impart an
excellent flavour to gravies and

soups, and in establishments

where they have been once in-
troduced and tested, will, we 9- *•

doubt not, for ever afterwards hold equal sway with

the more aristocratic morell. Unlike the Agarics,
there is no necessity for the Helvellas to be used as
110 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

soon as gathered, and for this reason, superadded to an

experience of their excellent qualities, one cannot but

feel surprised at their absence from our markets, while the
truffle and morell obtain at times most extravagant
prices. During the past summer
a country gentleman,

living remote from town and railway, has assured us

that his own kitchen, and those of many of his friends,
are kept with a supply of Heltellas, for culinary purposes,
from year to year. In Sweden and Germany they are
considered equal to the morell, and are known in the
latter country under the name of Gemeine Morchel or
Stu mpf- Mo rch el.
In the succeeding genus, Verpa, we meet with forms
somewhat intermediate between the pileate or capped
Heltella and the club-shaped Geoglossum ; both species

are, however, rare. The only species of Spathularia,

with a yellowish, spoon-shaped head, is more common,
as are also two or three of Geoglossum. In this genus
the receptacle is club-shaped and simple, with the fruc-

tifying surface surrounding the club, and, as our figure

of G. oUeacenm (PI. 20) will show, might at first be
taken for a species of Clavarla. Both the common
species of this genus are black, and there is no fear of a
tyro cooking them instead of a Clavaria, from which
they are further removed by the unbranched and dis-
tinctly clubbed termination. One of these is
hairy (G.
hirmtum) and the other smooth (G. diffbrmc), and
both are found growing amongst grass.
The surcs.Mon of such forms as are met with in the
genus Pcziza seems to be far more sudden. The cup-
 OP BRITISH FUNGI. 1 1 1

shaped form of the fully expanded plant alone being

it would seem to he out of place
considered, hut its ;

structural association is far more complete. The genus

is a large one, and the species exceedingly variable in

size, some having an expanse of several inches, whilst

others are microscopically minute. On account of dif-

ference in substance, this genus is subdivided into three

series, each of which contains three or four subgenera.

Although many of the Pezizas are exceedingly beautiful,

they are equally useless. It is true that one or two

species have been mentioned as affording a wholesome

and agreeable article of food, but it is questionable

whether they really deserve recommendation. The

localities on which these fungi are
produced are as
variable as they are themselves in colour and size. A
great number may be found on the ground, others on
damp walls, on the branches and trunks of trees, on

stumps and decayed wood, on fir-cones, on plaster ceil-

ings and whitewashed walls, on sticks, rushes, dead
leaves, and gravel walks. Of those that are found on

wood, the majority confine themselves to trees of one

species or genus, whilst a few are less exclusive in their
" natural selection."

Allied to this genus is that of Helotium, in which the

disc, instead of being at first closed as in Peziza, is

always open : the species are less numerous, but the

localities are similar. Nearly all the members of both
genera may be collected and dried by exposure to the
air, and kept, in company with a little cotton wool that

has been dipped in, or sprinkled with, oil of turpentine,

 112 A PLAIN AND EASY. ACCOUNT

in small paper pill-boxes for future reference or exami-

nation. Some forms, especially of Peziza, resemble the
snields or receptacles of certain lichens, with which,
nevertheb none but a novice would confound them.
ss,

In the manufacture of the handsome Tunbridge-ware.

,i
variety of wood is employed, under the name of green
oak. Although of a mineral-green colour, this is the

ordinary British oak ;

but the alteration which it has
undergone is due to the presence of a fungus. A hand-
some little species resembling a Peziza (HHotium cent-
al nosum) traverses with its

of such wood, and these minute threads jnve their green

tint to the timber.
*

When
examined under the micro-
CO
mycelium the whole fabric

the beautiful network of the green

scope, mycelium is
distinctly This fungus attacks the fallen oak-
seen.

branches, and the timber affected by it is therefore

generally small in diameter but, from the minute size

;

required in the manufacture for which it is employed, it

answers equally with the largest. Green wood is so

exceedingly uncommon that, although in a state of

decay, the green oak becomes of a marketable value.
The little green open cups of this Helotium are not so
commonly met with as the timber showing traces of its

mycelium.
So long since as the time of Pliny and Dioscoridcs,
the truffle seems to have been known and appreciated.
There are numerous species, and several of these are
indigenous to Britain. In form and habit they differ

considerably from the majority of fungi, having the

appeal ance of rough, dark-ooloured, warty nodules,
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 1 1 .')

occasionally nearly as large as the fist, and which are

found buried beneath the surface of the soil (PI. 20, fig. 1).

The ordinary method of searching for mushrooms will

not succeed in this instance, and, therefore, dogs are
trained to hunt for truffles

by the aid of their peculiar

odour, which makes itself evi-

dent to the acute canine sense

of smell. In some of the con-
tinental countries of Europe
where these fungi are found,
hunters. Fiff- '
pigs are employed as
Krombholz gives the following instructions for the
who would undertake the search
benefit of those :
—
" You must have a
sow, of five months old, a good
walker, with her up, and for her efforts
mouth strapped
not easily
recompense her with acorns ; but as pigs are
are stubborn, and astray, and dig after
a thou-
led, go
sand other things, there is but little to be done with
them. Dogs are better; of these select a small poodle."
The truffle most commonly obtained in Britain is
Tuber ocsthum (the T. cibarium of some authors) ;

but the ordinary truffles of the Parisian markets are

much larger and better flavoured. They are, doubtless,
more common in chalky districts than has been sup-
posed. Our native supplies are obtained chiefly from
the downs of Wiltshire, Hampshire, and Kent. From
the Continent we import them sliced and dried ;
but is

this condition one can have but a faint idea of the true

appreciate which they must be

truffle flavour, to cooked
i
114 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

fresh. Lovers ofa dish of truffles protest also against

the barbarity of paring them, by which process much of
the delicious aroma is lost, Like other fungi, these
cannot be eaten too fresh ;
and amateurs speak with
delight of fresh truffles cooked in the embers. Inferior
as the dried truffles are, they ordinarily realize from
fifteen to twenty shillings per pound in the London

market, and on the Continent this fungus always ob-

tains a good price, which has occasioned many experi-
ments being made on its artificial culture. In woods in
the south of France, are raised by watering the
truffles

soil with water in which the skins of these tubers have

been rubbed. In Vaucluse crops have been raised in a

meadow manured with truffle
parings. In the latter

locality, also, seedling oaks have been reared, and with

them, what have been termed oak-truffles. M. de Gas-
parin, one of the jurors of the Paris Exposition, has
reported the result of his visit to one of these truffle-
grounds at Carpentras. Encouraged by the high price
of truffles, the proprietor of a somewhat stubborn soil
determined to convert it into a truffle ground. The
land was sown with the acorns of the common and of
the evergreen oak. In the fourth year three truffles
were found, and in about four years more upwards of
thirty pounds were collected. When M. de Gasparin
visited the plantation, upwards of two pounds of truffles

were gathered in a very poor part of the plantation

within an hour. All the truffles collected on this

ground have been taken at the base of evergreen oaks ;

but other jdantations in Vaucluse produce them at the

 PL. 20.

M.C.C.

1. Tuber aeslivum. Vitt.

2. M Ur variegatus. Tul.
5. Geoglossum olivacenm. P
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 1 15

foot of the common oak. It has been remarked that

the truffles produced about the latter trees are larger
and more irregular in form than those of the evergreen
oak, which are nearly always spherical. The planta-
tion of vines in these truffle-plots has been found

advantageous so that, ;
in some cases, rows of vines
alternate with those of oaks. As a remunerative
speculation, however, thus far the experiment has not
been altogether successful.
M. de Gasparin says, " A sow is employed to search

for the truffles. At

the distance of twenty feet she
scents the truffles and makes rapidly for the foot of the

oak, where she finds them, and digs into the earth with
her snout. She would soon root up and eat her treasure
were she not turned aside by the light stroke of the stick
on her nose, and given an acorn or a dry chestnut,
which is her reward."
The truffles are gathered at two periods of the year.
In May white truffles only are found, which never
blacker, and have no odour ;
these are dried and sold
for seasoning. The black truffles are dug up a month
before, and a month after Christmas, when they have
become hard and acquired all their perfume.
In order that all who are fortunate enough to find a

dish of fresh truffles may be able to cook them to the

best advantage, let uscommend them to a few of the
most approved methods. If one should desire a ragout,
then let the tubers be well washed and afterwards
soaked in oil, then cut them in
about a quarter slices

of an inch in thickness,
place them in a stewpan, with
i 2
116 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

oil, or butter if preferred, salt, pepper, and a little white

wine. When cooked, bind the whole together with the
yolks of eggs. Another method employed in France
includes a bottle of champagne in the preparation. A
far more economical one consists wrapping each
in

truffle in a sheet of buttered paper, and cooking them

by steam. Should it be desired to prepare them a I'lt-

alienne, then middle-sized truffles should be selected,

cut into fine slices, placed in a stewpan, with oil, salt,

pepper, parsley, shallots, and chopped garlic. Let

them
cook gently over a slow fire, and serve with the juice of
a lemon. If it is
preferred that your dish of truffles
should be prepared a la Piemontaise, then, having
soaked them in oil, slice them thin, put them in your

stewpan (an eminent French authority says it should

be a silver dish), add thereto salt, oil, and pepper, and

grate over them some Parmesan cheese ; then place

the
dish over the hot cinders for a quarter of an hour. One
method which is highly recommended by those who
have adopted it, consists in cleaning some good truffles,
sprinkling them with salt and pepper, and wrapping
them in several folds of paper, garnished with rashers
of bacon. They should be cooked a good hour, then
denuded of and served hot.
their paper envelope, wiped,

It will suffice to add a method for preparing a ratafia

which may recommend itself to some. Take two pounds

of truffles, cut into fragments, and soak them in two

pints of good brandy, to which has been added about

half an ounce of vanilla cut in pieces. After three

weeks, strain the liquor and add two pounds of sugar

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 117

dissolved in one pint of water. The ratafia may then

be preserved in well-corked bottles for use. If this

process has nothing else to recommend it, it has at least

the merit of being rather an expensive one.

Besides this the following species are also indigenous
to Great Britain : T. brumale, macrosporum, bitumina-

tum, rufum, excavatum, scleroneuron, nitidum, puberu-

lum, and dryophilum ; but of their esculent properties
we confess ourselves profoundly ignorant.
Under the name oiLycoperdon nuts, or Hart's truffles,
one species of Elaphomyces (E. granulatus) had for-

merly a medicinal reputation, and might be met with

in the herbalists' shops ;
but now the name is almost
unknown. In some country amongst the
districts,

lovers of the marvellous and antique, it still bears a part

of its original reputation, and occasionally obtains
employment.
The medicinal substance known under the name of

ergot of rye has a fungoid origin,

and is, indeed, an
altered condition of the grain, caused by the growth of
a parasitical species of Glaviceps (C. purpurea). The
mycelium of this parasite traverses the substance of the
grain, and so entirely changes its properties, that what
was before available as an article of food, now becomes
decidedly injurious. Bread made of ergotized grain
produces a form of disease called ergotism, which has

at different times overspread large districts on the Con-

tinent, as though it were the visitation of the plague.

The genus Claviceps belongs to the order Sphwriacei,

which is
nearly allied to that which contains the truffle
UH A PLAIN AKD EASY ACCOUNT

DISCRIMINATION AND PREShRVATION OF

FUNGI.

It may, perhaps, be anticipated, that some general

rules will be given to facilitate discrimination between

esculent and poisonous species. Unfortunately, all

attempts at establishing such a code of regulations,
which shall be applicable in all cases, have failed for ;

unless universally applicable, such rules are useless.

We remember to have seen the following example of
generalization, which would exclude several useful
"
species; viz., All that hav Hie following characters
are poisonous :
—
"
I. Such as have a cap very thin in proportion to
the gills.
" II. Such as have the stalk growing from one side
of the c;ip.
" III.
Those in which the '.'.ills are all of equal

length.
"
IV. Such as have a milky juice.
"
V. Such as deliquesce that is, run speedily into
;

a dark watery ilnid.

"
VI. And lastly, every one that has the collar that
surrounds the stalk filamentous, or resembling a spider's
Web."
If the second rule were always true, then the elm

agaric, Aaaricus uhnarhts, which has its stem excen-

tric, or near the margin of the cap, would be poisonous,
 OF BRITISH" FUNGI. 1 19

whereas it is often eaten without ill effects. If the

fourth ru\e is without exception, how is it that the

orange agaric (Lactarius deliciosus), which contains a

milky juice, has obtained the name of delicious, and is
reallyconsidered so by those who have tried it, and
without inconvenience ? If the fifth rule is accepted,
then both species of Coprinus, which have been recom-
mended as affording an excellent ketchup, must be
avoided.
In default, however, of general rules, we would re-
commend no one to experiment upon species which are
unknown to them, or which we have not pointed out as
safe. It is not advisable to venture upon such as have
a decidedly acrid or unpleasant taste in the raw state,
unless they arc known to be edible. One or two species
which possess such properties when uncooked, are whole-
some when dressed ;
but these are exceptions to the

general rule. If only such species are employed as we

have described in the foregoing pages, and delineated
in the plates, there is no fear of unpleasant results.

Unfortunately, it is too true that some people will not

five themselves the trouble to think or examine, or we
should never hear of such manifest stupidity, as con-

founding the root of monkshood with that of horseradish ;

two roots almost as unlike as roots well can be, and
much more distinct than many a noxious and esculent
mushroom. Upon such individuals all rules and
recommendations would be thrown away ;
but the

majority of our readers will, we think, confess that

we have given them the best guide in the distinct
I 20 A PLAIN AND EASY ACCOUNT

specific characters of each fungus which enjoys a good

reputation.
Suhjcct as all fungi are to speedy decomposition,
which intimates the existence of new compounds as the
result of the chemical action, it is always advisable that
all mushrooms, whether of the ordinary kind or those
less commonly included under that term, should be
prepared for the table as soon as possible after being
collected. Not only do they lose flavour by keeping,
but they are then more likely to produce unpleasant
results. It is also an excellent precaution
employ to

plenty and spice

of salt the preparation. in Even
poisonous fungi, and those of an active character, have
been cooked with plenty of salt, and eaten with safety.
It is only under such circumstances that we can imagine

a fungus so injurious as Amanita muscaria being eaten

at all, as it is said to be in Russia. The fact is equally
well known, that in Russia fungi are thoroughly cooked,
and with plenty of salt. We
have always exercised
what we believed to be a prudent caution in experiment-

ing upon the esculent qualities of fungi, and would

recommend others to follow our example. It is true
that we have a number of species which are now known
to be wholesome ;
but an amateur testing a species for

the first time would do well to exercise caution in con-

ducting the' experiment, to have regard to the taste

when raw, and to proceed still more cautiously if there

isany evidence of acridity in the uncooked fungus. We

would fain hope that our little account will be found a
" "
plain and easy one, and that it
may lead to a better
 OF BRITISH FU^'GI. 121

acquaintance with such species as we have recommended

without fear hut we would, nevertheless, lend no
;

encouragement to a promiscuous consignment of un-

known species to the charge of the cook for a hash or

puree.
It has oftenbeen alleged, not only that the study of

fungi has but few attractions, and cannot compete suc-

cessfully in interest with that of ferns and algas, but

also that there are such insurmountable obstacles in the
way of preserving them, that, having once secured the
specimens, there is no chance of making them available
for a future occasion. It may be true that the delicate
and elegant forms and beautiful tints of many sea-weeds,
as well as the graceful outline of the fronds of ferns,

may make these members of the vegetable kingdom

more suitable for the lady's album, but
not every
it is

one who is privileged to dwell by the seashore through

the entire year, and the ferns of one locality may soon
be collected and consigned to their resting-places.
Fungi, on the contrary, abound everywhere, and the
collector can never declare the resources of his
locality
exhausted. Beautiful objects are by no means rare,
and the pocket lens and microscope are sure of constant
employment. There is no difficulty whatever in pre-
serving the minute species upon the leaves, or other
matrices upon which they vegetate. These may be
dried and fastened down upon small squares of white
papei, named, and arranged with as great facility as
either of the more popular classes of plants to which we
have adverted. Occasionally a group will be met with,
122 A TLAIN ANL EASY ACCOUNT

the individuals composing which are so exceedingly

fragile that such a

method of preservation will not avail.
In many such cases the mould, or fungus, may be
mounted at once in the ordinary way on a slide for the
microscope, and all its features carefully preserved.
Thegreatest difficulty rests with the larger species,
such as many of the Agarics and Boleti ; and for these
no better method can be recommended than that detailed
by Klotsch, himself an indefatigable collector, thirty

years ago :
—
" With a delicate
scimitar-shaped knife or scalpel,
such as is found in a surgeon's instrument-case, I make
a double vertical section, through the middle, from the

top of the pileus to the base of the stem, so as to remove

a slice. This, it will be at once seen, shows the vertical
outline of the whole v fungus, the internal nature of its

stem, whether hollow, or spongy, or solid, the thickness

of the pileus, and the peculiarities of the gills, whether

equal or unequal in length, decurrcnt upon the stem, or

otherwise, &c. There will then remain the two sides,
or nearly halves of the fungus, which each in itself
gives a correct idea, if I may so express myself, of the

whole circumference of the plant. But before we pro-

ceed to dry them, it is necessary to separate the stem
from the pileus, and from the latter to scrape out the

fleshy lamella) or gills,

if an Agaric, or the tubes of
;i Boletus. We have thus the fungus divided into
five portions, — a central thin slice, two nearly halves of

the stem, and the same sections of the pileus. These,

after being a little exposed to the air, that they may
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 123

part with some of their moisture, but not so long that

they shrivel, are to be placed between dry blotting-

paper, and subjected to pressure as other plants, the

papers being changed daily till the specimens are per-

fectly dry. When this is the case, the central portion
or slice and the two halves of the stem are to be

fastened upon white paper, together with the respective

halves of the pileus upon the top of the latter in their

original position. Here will thus be three sections, from

which a correct idea of the ^hole plant may be obtained.
The volva and ring of such species as possess them must
be retained. With care, even the most fugacious species
may be well preserved, according to this method. Some
of the smaller and less fleshy kinds will not require to
have the gills removed. In collecting fleshy fungi, care
must be taken that they are not too old, and absolutely
in a state of decomposition, or too much infested with
the larvae of insects. When this latter is the case,
some oil of turpentine poured over them will either
drive them rapidly from their holes, or destroy them.

Species with a clammy viscid pileus it is better to

expose to a dry air or the heat of a fire, before being

placed in papers.
"
The separate parts of the genera Phallus and
Clathrus I fill with cotton, keep them for a time

exposed to a dry atmosphere, and then, after removing

the cotton, subject them to pressure. The same may
be done with the large tremelloid Pezizce."
In order to protect the specimens as far as possible
from insects, it is recommended that they should be
124 BRITISH FUNGI.

washed over, by the aid of a camel-hair pencil, with oil

of turpentine, in which a little finely powdered corrosive

sublimate has been mixed. As the sublimate will not
dissolve in the turpentine, it is essential that it should
be powdered as fine as possible, and that the mixture
should be well shaken before it is employed. *
Some of the smaller species may be dried at once
without dissection, and there are others, which,
though
larger, are less watery, and may be dried in a current of

air, so as to retain much of their original character.

Many of the species of Pohjporus, Dcedalea, Thelephora,

&c, require nothing more than drying in the air, wash-
ing with a little turpentine, and keeping in paper trays
or boxes. It is scarce worthy of inquiry what fluid
will best preserve the specimens immersed in it, since
the room occupied by a series of glass bottles or
jars,
each containing its own individual species, would be so

great as to render the method impracticable. Withering

recommended, that for such a process two ounces of
sulphate of copper should be powdered and dissolved in
a pint of boiling water, and when cold added to half a

pint of spirits of wine. In this liquor the specimens

should be immersed for three or four hours, then taken
out and placed permanently in glass bottles
containing a
preserving fluid of the proportions of three fluid ounces
of spirits of wine to a pint of water. We nevertheless
entertain serious doubts whether such a plan would in
its results offer
compensation for the labour, room, and
expense to be sacrificed.
* much
\
fadotibtedly turpi atine disc lours the specimens very \

b .t urbolic acid ilm-n -o much more.

 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT
OF

BRITISH FUNGI.

Cellular plants, nourished through

flowerless their

mycelium or spawn living in air

; propagated by spores
; ;

naked, or inclosed in asci. Destitute of green gonidia

(by which feature they are distingished from Lichens).

Cohoiit I.— SPOMFERI.

Having the spores or reproductive bodies naked or
exposed.

Family I.

HYMENOMYCETES or AGAEICACE^.
Hymenium, or spore-bearing surface, exposed ; spores
generally in fours, borne on distinct spicules.

Order I.— AGAEICINI. Gill-bearing Fungi.

H\ menium, or spore-bearing surface, inferior, spread
over lamellae or gills, which radiate from a common
centre, and each of which may be separated into two
plates
Genera.

I, Volva distinct; gills membranaceous, persistent,

acute. Amanita.
1:20 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

2. Gills membranaceous, not melting ; edge acute,

Agakicus L.
Series 1. — Lcucospori, with white spores
Sub-Gen. Lepiota. Sub-Gen. Colly bia.
Armillaria. Mycena.
Tricholoma. Onipbalia.
Clitocybe. Pleurotus.

Series 2. — TTi/porftodii, with salmon-coloured

spores.
Sub-Gen Volvnria. Sub-Gen. Clnulopus.
Piuteus. Leptonia.
Entoloma. Nolani a.
Clitopilus. Eccilia.

Series 3. —Dermini, with ferruginous spores,

sometimes tawny.
Sub-Gen. Pholiota. Sub-Gen. Xancoria.
Hcbeloma. Galera.
Flaininula. Crepidotus.
Tubaria.

Series ±.—Pratell(e, with brownish-purple or

brown spores.
Sub-Gen. Psnlliota. Sub- Gen. Deconica.
Pilosace. Psilocybe.
Strophuria. Psathyra.
Hyplioloma.

Series 5. — Coprinarii, with black spores.

Sub-Gen. Panaeolus. Sub Gen. Psatbyrella.

3. Gills membranaceous, deliquescent; spores black.

Cop kin us, Fr.

4 GUIs becoming moist ; spores coloured.

Imu.bitius, Fr.
5. Gills persistent; veil arachnoid or cobweb-like;
spores rust) oehrc CoitTlNAiUUS, Fr.
Sub Gen. Pblegmacium. Sub-Gen. Dermocybe.
Myxacium. Telainonia.
Hygrocybe.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 127

6. Gills persistent, distinct from hymenophorum.

Pasillus, Fr.

7. Gills slightly branched ; pileus top-shaped

•

spores
fusiform. Gomphidius, Fr.

8 Hymenophorum continuous with stem.

Hygeophorus, Fr.
9. Gills milky.
Lactaeius, Fr.

10. Gills rigid, not veil absent.

milky ;

Eussula, Fr.

11. Gills thick, branched,

obtuse-edged.
Cantuarellits, Fr.
11.* Gills venose, forked; edges channelled or

crisped. Trogia, Fr.

12. Gills fleshy, obtuse ; often parasitic.
Nyctalts, Fr.

13. Hymenium dry, continuous between the gills ;

lamella} thick,
rough, and acute-edged.
Maeasmius, Fr.

14. Pileus hard, dry, and tough ; edge of gills acute,

toothed .
L e N n n d s, Fr.

15. Pileus fleshy and tough ; edge acute, entire.

Pa>ls, Fr.

16. Gills tough and forked ;

edge obtuse, entire.
-\
EBOTUS, Fr.

17. Gills split longitudinally, with the two divisions

spreading. Schizopiiylluai, Fr.

18. Corky; gills anastomosing. Lehziteb, JV.

128 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

Order II.— POLTPOREI. Tube-bearing Fungi.

II vmenium, or
spore-beariug surface, lining the cavities
of tubes or pores, which are sometimes broken up into
plates.
Genera.

19. Tubes separable from one another hymenopho-;

rum distinct from hymenium. Boletus, Fr.

20. Spores globose, or broadly elliptic and rough.

Strobilomyces, Berk.

21. Pores not easily separable. Polyporus, Fr.

22. Pores concrete with the pileus. Trametes, Fr.

23. Substance corky; pores labyrinthiform.

DjEdalea, Pcrs.

24. Substance waxy, with sinuous toothed folds.

Merulius, Fr.

2o. Covered with papillae, ultimately opening.

Porotiielium, Fr.

2G. Hvmenium inferior; papillfiB forming distinct

tubes. Fistulina, liuM

Order ITT. — TTYDXEI. Spine-bearing Fungi.

Fructifying surface spread over spines or teeth.

Genera.

27. Spines awl-shaped, distinct. IIydnum, L.

VH. Gill-like teeth, irregularly distributed, bearing tike
hyineniiiin. Siktothema, Pers.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 129

29. Teeth in rows, or like network, connected.

Ibpex, Fr
30. With waxy irregular tubercles. Eaduluh, Fr.

31. Hymeniurn subgelatinous, spread over persistent

veins. Phlebia, Fr.
32. Hymeniurn granulated. Gra>bi-via, Fr.
33. With spiny, crested warts. Odontia, Fr.
34. Hymeniurn rough, with bristles. St.
Kneotia,

Order IV.— AUEICULAETXI. Leathery Func/i.

Hymeuium commonly even.

Genera.

35. Fleshy, smooth, putrescent when old.

Cbateeellus, Fr.
36. Hymeniurn tough, fleshy, without a cuticle, at
length rigid and flocculent. Thelephoea,.^.
37. Hymeniurn leathery, having a cuticle, even, not
bristly. Branson, Fr.
3S. Hymeniurn leathery, even, beset with shurt bristles,
Hymexochjete, Lev.
30. Hymeniurn gelatinous when wet, folded, differing
in substance from the pileus.
Ac Rice labia, Fr.
40. and
Hymeniurn soft fleshy, swollen when moist.
CoBTiciuir, Fr.
41 Cup-shaped. Hymeniurn inferior, confluent witb
the pileus. Fr.
Cyphella,
K
130 TABULAR ARliANGEMENT

Order V. — CLAVAK1EI. Club-bearing Funai.

The hymenium not confined to a particular surface,

and scarcely distinct vertical.
;

Genera.

42. Fleshy, much branched, branches dilated.

Sparassis, Fr.
42*. Fleshy. Hymenium dry, simple or branched.
Clavaria, L.
43. Gelatinous. Hymenium viscid, simple or branched.
Calocera, Fr.
44. Filiform, flaccid. Hymenium thin, waxy.
Typiiula, Fr.
45. Club-shaped, waxy, thin, horny. Cellular.
PrSTILLARIA, Fr.

Order VI.— TEEMELLINI. Gelatinous Fungi.

Whole plant gelatinous ; spicules elongated threads.

Genera.

40. Immarginate. Hymenium not papillate.

Tbemella, Fr.
47. Margined, fertile above, glandular ;
barren below.
Exidia, Fr.
48. Cup-shaped. Hymenium not papillate, outer sur-
face velvety. Iihneola, Fr.
I

49. Nucleus solid, entirely invested by the

hymeniiia.
Nqdmatblia, Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 131

50. Conidia in moniliform rows, sporophores clavate.

Dacrymyces, Nees.
51. Hollow, inflated, floccose, smooth.
Apyrenicm, Fr.
52. Effused, maculseform, very thin.
Hymenula, .Fr.

53. Orbicular, discoid. Hyinenium at first veiled.

Ditiola, Fr.

Family II.

GASTEROMYCETES, or LYCOPERDACEJE.
Hymenium, or spore-bearing surface, enclosed ia a
peridium ; spores generally in fours, on distinct spicules
or stalks.

Order VII.— HYPO GyEI. Subterranean Fungi.

Hymenium not becoming dusty, or melting ;

subter-
ranean.
Genera.

54. Peridium cottony, with a sterile base. Cells at

first empty. Trama byssoid. Spores rough.
Octaviania, Vitt.

55. Peridium without a distinct base. Cells at first

pulpy. Spores smooth.
Melanogaster, Gorda.

56. Peridium fleshy, without a distinct base. Cells

at first empty. Spores echinate.
Hyonangium, Wallr.
57. Peridium separable. Cells at first empty.
Spores
minute. Hysterangium, Vitt.
k 2
132 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

58. Peridium continuous, traversed with branched

fibres. Cells at first empty. Spores smooth.
EnizopoooN, Tul.

59. Peridium fleshy, with an absorbing base. Cells at

first
empty. Trama not byssoid. Spores
various. Hymenogaster, Tul.

Order VIII.— PHALLOIDEI. Stinkhorn Fungi.

Hymenium melting.

Genera.

60. Pileu8 perforated at the apex, free. Phallus, L.

61. Pileus imperforate, adnate. Cynophallus, Fr.
62. Receptacle forming a network.
Clatitrus, Mich.

Order IX.— TRICHOGASTRES. Puff-ball Fungi.

Hymenium drying into a dusty mass.

Genera.

63. Receptacle pileate, seated on a tall stem.

Batarkea, Pers.
64. Peridium thin, distinct from the elongated stem.
Tulo stoma, Pers.
65. Peridium double, the outer dividing in a stellate
manner. Geaster, Mich.
ijij. Peridium with a distinct bark. Spores pedicellate,
Hovista, Dill.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 138

67. Peridium membranaceous, bark adnate, breaking

up into scales or warts. Base sterile.
Lycoperdon, Tourn.
68. Peridium firm, veined internally. Spores large,
grauulated. Scleroderma, Pers.
69. Common peridium simple, interior divided into
cells filled with peridiola. Polysaccum, DC.
70. Peridium naked, thick, at length hollow.
Cenococcum, Fr.

Order X.— MYXOGASTRES. Dust Fungi.

At first pulpy ;
afterwards filled with threads and
dust-like spores.

Genera.

71. Peridium double, persistent, warty or mealy.

Flocci delicate, adnate. Lycogala, Mich.
72. Peridium simple, fugitive, naked. Plocci flat, sub-
reticulate. Beticularia, Bull.
73. Peridium with a floccose coat. Flocci interwoven.
^Ethalium, Link.
74. Peridium simple, crustaceous. Spores enclosed in
the folds of a membrane. Spumaria, Pers.
75. Peridium double, external smooth, internal eva-
nescent. Flocci adnate. Diderma, Pers.
76. Peridium scaly or floccose. Bursting irregularly.
Didymium, Schrad.

77. Peridium delicate, smooth. Columella absent.

Puysarum Pert.
134 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

78. Peridium membraneous, bursting longitudinally.

Flocci adnata.
flat, Angioridium, Grev.
79. Peridium naked or mealy. Spores clustered at
first in
cysts. Badhamia, Berk.
80. Peridium simple, at first closed with an
opercu-
lum. Ckaterit/m, Trent.
81. Peridium delicate, falling away in fragments.
Diachea, Fr.
82. Peridium delicate, evanescent. Threads reticulate,
springing from a central stem.
Stemonitis, Gled.
83. Peridium delicate, evanescent, except at tbe apex.
Spores in cysts. Enerthenema, Boiom.
84. Peridium delicate, evanescent, veined with the
enclosed threads. Dicttdium. Schrad.
85. Peridium persistent below. Flocci netted above.
Cribraria, Schrad.
8(3. Peridium Bimple, evanescent above. Threads
elastic, not spiral. Arctrta, Hill.
87. Peridium simple, bursting longitudinally. Threads
of two kinds 1. delicate, bearing
:
spores ;

2. thicker, branched and echinulate.

Opihotiieca, Gurr.
88. Peridium simple, persistent, bursting irregularly.
Threads spiral. Trichia, Hall.
89. Peridium simple, persistent, splitting
horizontally.
Threads not spiral. 1'KitrciiJENA, Fr.

90. Peridium membranaceous, bursting irregularly.

Spores not mixed with threads.
Licea, Schrad.
91. Peridium persistent, splitting longitudinally.
Spores large, rough. Piielonitis, Chev.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 135

Order XI.— NIDULAEIACEI. Nest-bearing Fungi.

Spores compacted into globose or disk-shaped bodies,

nested in a distinct peridium.

Genera.

92. Peridium composed of three membranes. Spo-

rangia plane, attached by a thread to the walls.
C tat hits, Pers.
93. Peridium uniform, spongy. Sporangia plane,
attached by a thread to a little tubercle.
Cktjcibulum:, Tul.

94. Peridium double. Inner one at length inverted,

ejecting a globose sporangium.
SniiEROBOLUS, Tode.
95. Peridium globose, somewhat fle^y. Sporangium
globose, papillate. Thelebolus, Tode.
96. Peridium sub-hemispherical, hyaline. Sporangia
large.
«
Polyangium, Link.

Family III.

CONIOMYCETES, or UREDINACE^I.
Spores single, on more or less distinct sporophores ;

flocci, or threads of the fruit, obsolete, or nearly so.

Order XII.— SPHiEPOJNEMEI.

Perithecium distinct.

Genera.
97. Perithecium membranaceous. Spores simple.
CoNiOTimtiUM, Corda.
136 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

98. Perithecium membranaceous, breaking off at tho

base. Spores simple, minute.
Leptostroma, Fr.

99. Perithecium subglobose, sometimes incorporated,

Spores simple. Phoma, Fr.

100. Perithecium flat, breaking off at the base. Spores

cylindrical or irregular.
Leptotiiyrium, Kze.
101. Perithecium orbicular. Spores fusiform, simple.
ACTINOTHYRIUM, Kze.
102. Perithecium covered. Spores fusiform, simple.
Cryptosporium, Kze.
103. Perithecium free. Spores minute, oozing out
and forming a globule. Sphjsroneha, Tode.

101. Perithecium free, distinct, papillate. Spores

minute. Aposfh^ria, Berk.

10.3. Perithecium distinct. Spores various, simple,

escaping at the apex. Sphjeropsis, Lev.

10G. Nucleus immersed in the stroma. Astoraous.

Spores pedicellate, simple. Dotiiiora, Fr.

107. Perithecium free, bursting by fissures. Spores

simple. Clinteriitm, Fr.

[For Acrospermum, see Ascomycetes, page 161.]

109. Perithecium. distinct. Spores uuiseptate.
Diploma, Fr.
110. Perithecium distinct. Spores two or multisep-
tate. Hendkusonia, Berk.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 137

111. Perithecium delicate. Spores containing a row

of sporidiola, oozing out in a tendril.
Daeluca, Cast.

112. Perithecium thin, bristly. Spores vermiculate.

Veehiculaeia, Tode.

113. Perithecium flat, opening at the base. Spores

septate, aristate. Discosia, Lib.
114. Perithecium scutellseform. Spores curved.
Pilidium, Kze.
1L5. Perithecium membranaceous, at length effused.
Spores minute. Melasmia, Lev.
116. Perithecium irregular, thiu, confluent.
Spores
large, obovate, at length tomiparous.
Piggotia, Berk.
117. Perithecium minute,
incorporated. Spores ob-
long or thread-shaped, or
simple septate, es-
caping in tendrils. Septoeia, Fr.
118. Perithecium distinct. Spores uniseptate or sim-
ple, escaping in tendrils. Ascochyta, Lib.
119. Perithecium minute, seated on a discoloured
spot.
Spores ovoid or oblon?, straight, minute,
ejected in tendrils from a terminal pore.
Piiyllosticta, Pers.
120. Perithecium subglobose. Spores more or less
globose, escaping in tendrils through a fissure.
Ciieilaeia, Lib.
121. Perithecium bursting
longitudinally. Sporophorea
branched. Spores oblong, uniseptate.
Cystotricha, Berk.
122. Perithecium concealed.
Spores hyaline, crested.
Neottiosporia, Desm.
138 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

123. Perithecium excipuliform, hispid. Spores hya-

line, attenuated. Excipula. Fr.

124. Perithecium excipuliform,

hispid. Spores hyaline.
anstate. Dinemaspobium, Lev.
125. Perithecium composed of ilocci with free apices.
Spores concatenate. Mtxokmia, Berk.
126. Perithecium carbonaceous. Spores fasciculate,
fusiform, septate, attached to articulated
threads. Pbosthemium, Kze.
127. Perithecium flat, attached to creeping branched
threads. Spores Bimple or uniseptate.
Asteroma, DO.
128. Conceptacle thin, cup-shaped, covered. Nucleus
gelatinous. Rabenhobstia, Fr.
129. Perithecium irregular or compound. Spores
minute, oozing out in tendrils or globules.
Cttispoba, Fr.
130. Perithecium innate, without ostirolum.
Spores
simple, linear. Miceopeba, Lev.
131. Perithecium spurious, sometimes excipuliform.
Spores elongated, simple or uniseptate.
D isc ella, Berk.
132. Perithecium spurious. Spores elongated.
Phlyctjen'a, Desm.

133. Perithecium spurious, innate, multicellular.

Spores ejected from one or more orifices.

Ceuthospoba, Fr.
134. Stroma multicellular. Spores quaternate, filiform,
seated on short sporophores.
Ekiospoha, Berk.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI, 139

Order XIII.— MELANCONIEL

Perithecium obsolete or absent.

Genera.

135. Spores simple, oozing out in a dark mass.

Melanconium, Link,

136. Spores cellular, oozing out in a dark mass.

Stegonosporium, Corda.

137. Spores septate, oozing out in a black mass.

Stilbospora, Pers.

138. Spores septate, stellate, oozing out in a black

mass. Astebosporium, Kze.
139. Spores septate, seated on a cushion-like stroma.
Cortneum, Kze.
140. Spores septate, pedunculate, crested above.
Pestalozzia, Be Not.

141. Spores collected in bundles, at the tips of hyaline

sporophores. Cueirospora, Ft.

142. Spores of two kinds, coloured, oozing out in

tendrils. Nemaspora, Pers.

143. Spores minute, of one kind, coloured, forming

tendrils. Mtxosporium, Be Not.
144. Spores simple, hyaline, forming tendrils.
GljEosporium, Mont.
140 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

Order XIV.— TOEULACEI.

Perithecium obsolete ; fructifying surface naked.

Genera.

145. Spores simple, tomiparous. Tortjla, Pers.

146. Spores multiseptate, radiating, coloured or
hya-
line. Bactriditjm, Eze.
147. Spores filiform and involute, articulated.
Helicospoiuum, Nees.
148. Spores didymous, moniliform.
Bispora, Corda.
149. Spores multiseptate, moniliform.
Septonema, Corda.
150. Spores quadriseptate, at first enclosed in a mem-
brane. Sporoschisma, Berk.
151. Spores multicellular, irregular,
springing from the
mycelium. Sporidesmtum, Link.
152. Spores multicellular, conglutinate.
Coniothecium, Corda.
153. Spores multicellular, tongue-shaped, cells sub-
concentric. Dictyospoiuum, Corda.
151. Spores quadri-articulate, growing in fours.
Tetraploa, Perk.
155. Spores simple, fasciculate,
rough.
Eciiinobotryum, Covda.
150. Spores simple, arising from the matrix.
G YMNitsroiuuM, Corda.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 141

Order XV.— PUCCINItEI. Parasitic or Mildew Fungi.

Peridium obsolete ; spores germinating, aud producing

secondary spores.

Genera.

157. Spores stipitate, multiseptate, moniliform.

Xenodochus, Schlecht.

158. Spores stipitate, multiseptate, cylindrical.

Aregma, Fr.

159. Spores stipitate, biseptate.

Triphragmium, Link.

1G0. Spores stipitate, uniseptate. Pucsinia, Pers.

161. Spores immersed. Stroma gelatinous, expanded.

Gymnosporangium, DO.

162. Spores immersed. Stroma club-shaped.

Podisoma, Link.

163. Spores simple, not stipitate, springing from deli-

cate threads. Tilletia, Tul.

164. Spores simple, deeply seated, not stipitate, pul-

verulent, blackish. Ustilago, Link.

165. Spores simple, superficial, not stipitate, yellow or

brown. Ure^o, Lev.

166. Spores simple, not stipitate, nor enclosed in sepa-

rate cells. Lecitiiea, Lev.
142 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

167. Spores simple, with deciduous appendages.

Tiuciiobasis, Lev.

168. Spores simple, with permanent appendages.

Uromyces, Lev.
169. Spores compound, irregular.
Polycystic, Lev.
170. Spores compound, subglobose or shell-shaped.
Tuburcinia, Ft.
171. Spores of two orders : 1. spherical ;
2. cylin-
drical, septate. Coleosporiuh, Lev.
172. Spores of two orders 1. spherical 2.
:
; wedge-
shaped, compact. Melampsora, Cast.

173. Spores of two orders 1. concatenate,

:
exposed ;

2.
spherical, concealed. Cystopus, Lev.

Order XVI.— ^CIDTACEI.

Peridium cellular.

Genera.

174. Peridium elongated, separating in threads.

Rcestelia, Reb.

175. Peridium elongated, rupturing

irregularly.
Feridermium, Chev.
176. Peridium abbreviated, or semi-immersed.
.Kcidium, Pers.

177. Peridium immersed. Enuopiiyli.um, Lev.

 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 143

Family IV.

HYPHOMYCETES, or BOTRYACE^E.
.Filamentous ; spores naked, often with divisions.

Order XVII.— ISAKIACEI.

Threads compacted.

Genera.

178. Receptacle elongated, floccose, tips of thread*

free.
Isaeia, Rill.
179. Eeceptacle elongated, dilated above, confluent
with the stem, tips of thread free.
Anthina, Fr.
180. Receptacle branched, subgelatinous, reticulated.
Ceeatium, A. and S.

181. Stem solid, clavate above, dusted with minute

spores. Pachnocybe, Berk.

Order XVIII— ST1LBACEI.

Receptacle globose; spores minute, involved in gluten.
Genera.

182. Stipitate, globose. Spores minute.

Stilbum, Tode.
183. Sessile. Receptacle bristly, spores diffluent.
VoLUTELLA, Tode.
184. Verruciform, covered with a stratum of
spores.
Tubeuculahia, Tode.
J 44 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

185. Discoid, covered with difflueut spores.

Fusarium, Link.
186. Marginate. Spores forming a dark green stra-
tum. Mykotmecium, Tode.

187. Subglobose, studded with lare;e spores,

Epicoccum, Link.
1S8. Spores irregular, pulverulent.
Illospoeium, Mart.
189. Spores irregular, nionilifbrin, on branched pe-
duncles. jEgeiuta, Pers.

Order XIX.— DEMATIEI. Black Moulds.

Threads free, coated, or dark-coloured ;

never white.

Genera.
190. Stem compacted of jointed threads. Spores
large, radiating, septate.
AitTiiuoBOTRYUM, Cesati.

191. Threads jointed, free, branched above. Spores

terminal, septate. Dendryphium, Corda.
192. Threads jointed, simple, capitate. Spores simple,
surrounding the head. (Edocephalum, Pr.
193. Threads compacted into a stem. Head globose,
spores terminal. Peiuconia, Corda.
194. Threads jointed, free. Heads globose, studded
with spores. Sporocvbe, Pr.
i

195. Threads jointed, free. Spores borne singly ou

the tips of branchlets, which form little beads.
Stachybotuys, Corda.
19(3. Threads jointed, tree. Spores concatenate,
colourless. IIaploguapiiium, Berk.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 145

] 97. Threads jointed, free, supporting large subglobose

black spores. Monotc-spora, Corda.
198. Threads jointed, free ;
branches tufted, bearing
globose spores. Cephalotrichum, Link.
199. Threads free, flexuose. Spores on sporophores
at the base. (Edemium, Fr.
200. Threads irregular, bearing scattered multiseptate
spores. Helminthospoeium, Link.
201. Threads jointed or torulose, bearing terminal,
solitary or agglomerated spores,
Mystrosporium, Corda.
202. Threads obscure, spores stalked with transverse
and vertical septa. Macrosporium, Fr.
203. Threads jointed, bearing tri-radiate, septate
spores. Tkiposporium, Corda.
201;. Threads jointed, bearing from their sides pale
spiral spores. Helicoma, Corda.
205. Threads branched, upper joints swollen. Spores
large, septate. Cladotrichum, Corda
206. Threads moniliform. Spores didymous.
PoLTTniuNciuM, Kze.
207. Threads jointed, branched. Spores uniseptate.
Cladospo-rium, Link.
208. Threads jointed, thickened at the joints. Spores
fusiform. Artiirinittm, Kze.
209. Threads jointed, thickened at the joints. Spores
angular, in whorls. Gonatosporium, Corda.
210. Threads thickened at the joints. Spores curved,
in terminal clusters. Camptoum, Link.
211. Threads jointed. Spores moniliform, seated at
the base. Sporodum, Corda.
211*. Threads erect, not jointed. Spores siuiplo, ac-
cumulated at the base, or scattered.
Chloridiuit, Link.
L
146 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

Order XX — MUCED 1 N ES. Blue Moulds.

Threads never coated, white or coloured.

Genera.

212. Threads joiuted, head globose, bearing moniliform

spores. Aspergillus, Mich.
213. Threads clavate at the tips, bearing moniliform
spores on spicules. Nematogonum, JDesm.
214. Threads jointed, clavate, bearing spores on dis-
tinct spicules. Khinotrichum, Corda.
215. Threads jointed, branched, bearing terminal
spores. Botrytis, Mich.
215*. Threads erect, branched. Apices of the branches
quadriarticulate, spirally convolute. Spores
subglobose, granulated, formed from + he
joints. Acrospeiha, B. § Br.

216. Threads seldom jointed, bearing terminal conidia,

with large globose spores on the mycelium.
Peronospora, Corda.
217. Threads jointed. Branches in whorls. Spores
terminal. Verticillium, Link.
218. Threads jointed, simple or forked, with spores
Bcattered over the tips. Haplaeia, Link.
219. Threads jointed, branched above. Spores in ter-
minal clusters. Bolyactis, Link.
220. Threads jointed, bearing tassels of moniliform
spores, Penicillium, Link.
2?) Threads short, bearing a moniliform string of
spores. Oidium, Link.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 147

222. Threads short, spores cylindrical, septate, at-

tached end to end. Cylindbitj}!, Bon.
223. Threads jointed, necklaces of spores
bearing in
bundles at their tips. Monilia, Hill.

224. Threads jointed, branched,

bearing terminal, sep-
tate spores.
Dactyliuh, Nees.
225. Threads evanescent. Spores nearly straight,
filiform.
Fusidium, Link.
226. Threads jointed, tufted. Spores simple, scat-
tered. Spobotbichum, Link.
227. Threads short, with the joints at intervals cut
half-way through. Zygodesmus, Corda.
228. Threads jointed, black, furcate.
Spores minute,
scattered. Viegabia, Nees.
229. Threads jointed, simple, curled at the tips.
Spores large, globose, stipitate, basal.
Bola-COTbicha, Berk.
230. Threads branched. in little masses near
Spores
the base. Mtxotbichum, Kze.
231. Threads branched, knotted, with whorls of
branchlets bearing globose masses of
spores.
Gonytriciujai, Nees.
232. Threads jointed.
Spores terminal, at first in
bundles, spindle-shaped or cylindrical.
Menispoba, Pern.
233. Threads jointed, tapering, branched at the baae.
Spores cylindrical, terminal on the branches.
Cii-etopsis, Grev.
234. Threads jointed, creeping, with short, simple
branches, each terminated by a spore.
Acbemokium, Link.
L 2
148 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

235. Threads jointed, erect. Internodes swollen,

bearing spicules, terminated by obovate spores.
GoNATOBOTRYS, Corda.
236. Threads jointed above. Branches in fours. Spores
in spikes. Clonostaciiys, Corda.
237. Threads jointed, erect. Branches short, bearing
the simple spores in clusters of five at their
tips. BoTRTOSPORlUM, Corda.
23S. Threads jointed, prostrate, with short erect
branches bearing cellular heads studded with
two to four partite spores.
PAPULAsroRA, Preuss.
239. Threads jointed, swollen into a bead at the tips.
Spores borne singly on spicules, each of which
springs from a cavity in the head.
Khopalomyces, Corda.

Order XX1.-SEPEDONIEI.

Mycelium threadlike; spores resting on the matrix.

Genera.

2i0. Spores large, simple, globose.

Sepedobiuh, Link.
241. Spores fusiform, curved, septate, in a gektinoua
.mass. Eusisporium, Link.
242. Spores septate, attached to the matrix.
Epociinium, Link.

213. Threads persistent, joined in a mass, covering the

simple spores. Psilonia, IV.
 OP BRITISH FUNGI. 149

Order XXII.— TEICHODERMACEI.

Threads covering the spores with a kind of peridural.

Genera.

244. Stem solid. Head of flexuous radiating threads,

globose. Spores terminal. Pilacre, Fr.
245. Stemless, containing cavities filledwith spores.
Institale, Fr.
246. Peridium spurious, roundish, formed of inter-
woven threads. Spores spread over the disk.
TiueiiODERHA, Pers.
247. Peridium spurious, roundish, formed of inter-
woven jointed threads. Spores collected in the
centre. Arturoderma, Curr.

Cohort II.— SPORIDIIFERA.

Having the spores or reproductive bodies contained in

asci or bags.

Family V.
PHYSOMYCETES, or MUCORACEJE.
Spores surroundeu by a veil or sporangium.

Order XX I I I.— A N T E NN A E I E I.

Threads black, felted, moniliform.

Genera
248. Threads felted. Spores chained together, im-
mersed in gelatinous pulp.
Antettnarta, Link.
150 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

219. Mycelium septate, byssoid. Sporangia thin and

brittle. Spores simple. Zasmidium, Fr.

Order XXIV. — MUCORINI.

Threads free, bearing sporangia.

Genera.

250. Sporangia collapsing and dependent. Fruit

sometimes of two kinds. Ascopuora, Tode.

251. Threads free. Sporangia at length bursting, not

dependent. Mucor, Mich.
252. Threads erect, terminated
by a vesicle at first
crystalline, at length indurated.
Hybrophora, Tode.
253. Vesicle delicate, perforated by the stem, filled
with threads and globose spores.
Endodromia, Berk.
254. Stem dichotomous. Vesicles terminal, splitting
horizontally. Spores simple, growing on the
columella. Sporodinia, Link.
255. Threads with branches in whorls. Vesicles ter-
minal, pierced by the threads.
ACROSTALAGMUS, Corda.
25G. Threads branched. Vesicles of separate branches
conjugating and forming a sporangium.
SyZYGITES, Khrenb.

257. Hypogrcous. Threads collected into a spongy

mass, vesicles globose. Ekdogonk. Link.
 OF BRITISH FUNQI. 151

Family VI.

ASCOMYCETES, or HELVELLACE.EJ.

contained in a case
Sporidia generally eight together,
or ascus.

Order XXV.-ELVELLACEI.
Substance soft; hymenium at length exposed.

Genera.

258. Receptacle clavate or pileate. Hymenium folded

and Morchella, Dill.
pitted.

259. Eeceptacle inflated, rough with raised ribs.

Gyromitra, Fr.
2G0. Eeceptacle pileate, barren below. Hymenium
even. Helvella, Link.
201. Eeceptacle clavate or conical. Hymenium rugu-
lose or nearly even. Verpa, Schwartz.
262. Fleshy, capitate. Hymenium surrounding the
inflated head. Mitrula, Fr.

263. Eeceptacle capitate, compressed, running down

either side of the stem.
Spathtjlaria, Pers.
204. Eeceptacle pileate, margin revolute, covered every-
where with the smooth viscid hymenium.
Leotia, Hill.
Asci and
265. Receptacle capitate, margin adnate.
spures ejected, rendering the hymenium
vel-
vt
vety. VlBBISSEA, Fr
152 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

266. Eeccptacle clavate, confluent with the stem.

Ilymenium surrounding the head.
Geoglossum, Pers
267. Crustaceous, effused then bullate or inflated,
;

supported on rootlets. Riiizina, Fr.

2G8. Receptacle cop-shaped, soon opening. Disc

naked. Asci fixed. Peziza, Link.

Series 1. —Aleuria, fleshy ; cup always open.

Sub-Gen. Discina. Sub-Gen. Humaria.
Geopyxis. Enceelia.

Series 2. — LacJiuea, waxy ; cups hairy,

Sub-Gen. Sarcoscyplia. Sub-Gen. Tapesia.
Dasyscypha. Fibrina.

Series 3. — Phialca, waxy, or membranaceous;

cups smooth.
Sub-Gen. Hymenoscypha. I Sub-Gen. Patellea.
Mollisia. I

269. Receptacle discoid, always open, convex or

concave, naked. Helotium, Fr.
270. Receptacle indeterminate, immarginate. Hyme-
nium always exposed. Psilopezia, Berk.

271. Receptacle patellacform, margined, always open.

Ilymenium dusty with sporidia. Asei fixed.
Patella kia, Fr.

272. Receptacle almost horny, naked, with a narrow

mouth. Disc at length dusty with sporidia.
Sphinctbina, Fr.

273. Disc waxy, persistent, covered with a deciduous

excipulum. Mouth contracted.
Laquearia, Fr.
 0? BRITISH FUNGI. 153

274. Eeceptacle cyathiform, horny. Hymenium at

length breaking up. Ttmpanis, Tode.
275. Eeceptacle coriaceous, at first covered
closed,
with a thick cuticle.
Cenangium, Fr.
276. Receptacle orbicular, marginate. Asci exploded.
Ascobolus, Tode.

277. Eeceptacle orbicular, glutinous within.

Hyme-
niutn smooth. Bulgaria, Fr.

278. Eeceptacle waxy, gelatinous when moist, sphe-

rical, fertile all round. Agyrium, Fr.
279. Eeceptacle obsolete. Hymenium immersed in
the matrix, orbicular or
elliptic.
Stictis, Pers.

2S0. Parasitic. Asci forming a thin powdery stratum

mixed with jointed threads.
Ascomtces, Mont, fy Besm.

Order XXVI.— TUBEEACET.

Subterranean ; hymenium wavy and packed.

Genera.

281. Integument warty or

fcuberculate, no definite
base. Asci saccate. Sporidia reticulate or
spiny. Tubeb, Mich.
2S2. Integument even. Base definite. A^ci clavate.
Sporidia spherical. Ciioiuomtces, Vitt.
154 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

283. Integument thick. Asci saccate, evanescent

Sporidia globose, amylaceous.
Amylocarpus, Curr.

284. Integument warty, with a terminal aperture.

Base distinct. Asci clavate. Sporidia sphe-
rical. PaCHYPHLOSUS, Tul

285. Integument cottony. Base distinct. Asci cylin-

drical. Sporidia globose, at length verrucose.
Stephensia, Tul.

286. Integument minutely papillose. Ilymenium

complicated. Asci oblong. Sporidia globose,
tuberculate. Hydnotrya, Berk.

287. Integument replaced by evanescent down. Ily-

menium complicated. Asci elliptic. Sporidia
globose. Hydxobolites, ThI.

288. Integument wanting. Ilymenium exposed. Asci

linear. Sporidia globose.
Spn.EROSOMA. Kl.

289. Integument warty. Ilymenium lacunoee, not

leading to the surface. Sporidia cylindrical
or oblong. Balsamia, Tilt.

200. Integument warty, with a terminal aperture.

II \ raenium sinuate. Asci cylindrical. Spo-
ridia globose. Genea, Tiff.

291. Integument thick, hard. Asci globose or obovate.

Interna] mass ultimately dusty.
Elaphomyoes, Nees.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 155

Order XXVIL-PHAC1DIACEI.
Hard ;
hymenium ultimately exposed.

Genera.

292. Perithecia bursting in the centre by valvular

teeth. Phacidium, Fr.
293. Perithecia fjloboso-depressed, at length open
above. Heterosph^ria, Grev.
294. Perithecia confluent, opening by flexuose fissures.
Khttisma, Fr.
295. Perithecia labiate, splitting from the centre.
Tuiblidium, lieb.

296. Perithecia labiate. Mouth linear, narrow. Asci

elongated. Htsteeium, Tode.

297. Perithecia branched. Mouth linear, narrow.

Asci subglobose. .Ailoguapuum, Lib.
298. Perithecia hemispherical, seated on a byssoid
mycelium, splitting irregularly. Asci short.
Astebina, Lev.
299. Perithecia stipitate, wedge-shaped. Mouth
linear, narrow. Asci elongated.
Lophium, Fr.
300. Perithecia orbicular, splitting horizontally, with
a deciduous operculum. Ntf.gia, Fr.

301. Disc innate, erumpent, Beated on a black hy-

pothecium, persistent. TROCniLA, Fr.
156 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

Order XXVIII.— SPH^EEIACEI.

Perithecia opening by a distinct ostioium or orifice.

Genera.

Section I. — Xylarici.
302. Stipitate. Stroma corky, rarely fleshy. Perithecia
immersed. Sporidia uniseriate, simple, ovate,
dark-coloured. Xyi.aria, Fr.

303. Stem shrubby or simple. Perithecia of the same

substance as the stem.
TlIAMNOMYCES, Ehr.

304. Stipitate. Stroma between fleshy and corky.

Fructifying surface discoid. Perithecia im-
mersed. Sporidia ovate, simple, coloured.
Poronia, Fr.

305. Convex or plane. Stroma corky or brittle.

Perithecia immersed. Sporidia ovate or lan-
ceolate, curved unsymmetrical, simple, dark-
coloured. Hypoxylon, Bull.

300. Stroma expanded, pulverulent, becoming indu-

rated and carbonized. Perithecia immersed.
Sporidia uniseriate, lanceolate, curved, simple,
d'ark-coloured. Ustulina, Tul.

307 Stroma Perithecia immersed, in sepa-

discoid.
rate cells. Sporidia ovate or ovato-globose,
straight, simple, dark-coloured, excluded in
tendrils. NUMMULABTA, Tul.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 157

303. Stroma effused, crustaceous. Perithecia im-

mersed, shortly papillate, paraphyses few. Spo-
ridia small, cylindrical, curved, pale-coloured.
Stictospileria, Tul.

309. Stroma fused with the matrix. Perithecia im-

mersed, sometimes in the matrix, papillate,
paraphyses few. Sporidia clustered, linear and
curved, or ovate and straight, simple, pale.
EUTTPA, Tul.

310. Perithecia none. Nucleus immersed in the

stroma. Ostiolum papillate. Sporidia simple
or septate. Dothidea, Fr.
311. Epiphyllous. Perithecia globose, immersed in
a fleshy stroma. Sporidia ovate, simple.
POLTSTIGMA, P.
312. Stroma globose, depressed, cellular. Perithecia
immersed, adnate. Sporidia fusiform, four to
six-celled, pale. Meloguamma, De JSFot.

Section II — Vulsei.

313. Stroma determinate, verruciform. Perithecia

immersed in the stroma. Sporidia small,
spermatoid, hyaline. Diatrype, Fr.
Sub-Gen. 1. — Diatrypella.
Ai-ci many-spored.
,, 2. — Diatrype.
Asci eight-spored.

314. Stroma determinate, verruciform. Sporidia two

to four-celled, hyaline. Mamiania, Be Not.
315. Perithecia circulating, rostrate, ending in a com-
mon disc. Sporidia hyaline. Valsa, Fr.
Sub-Gen. 1. Sporidia spermatoid, hyaline.
— Valsa. De Not.
2. —
Sporidia bilocular. Valsaria. De Not.
,,

,, 8. Sporidia plurilocular.
— Pseudovalsa. De Not.
158 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

3L6. Perithecia rostrate, in a

circinating, ending
common disc. Asci cylindrical, very long.
Sporidia linear, vermiculate, hyaline.
TuBERCULOSTOMA, Sollm.

:^17. Compound or simple. Stroma effused. Sporidia

four to eight, ovate or
oblong, straight or
curved. Septate, with or without
appendages,
pallid, at first involved in a copious mucus.
Aglaospora, Tul.

Section III. — Splicer iei.

3 IS. Caespitose, erumpent. Perithecia globose, de-

pressed, or minutely papillate. Sporidia
plurilocularand cellular, or two to four-celled,
and hyaline. Cucijrbitaria, Qray.
319. Csespitose. Perithecia between waxy and horny,
aculeolate, astomous. Sporidia bilocular,
translucid. Gibbera, Fr.
320. Perithecia coriaceous, immersed, with an erum-
pent ostiolum. Sporidia large, epispore thick,
hyaline, three or more-celled, cells unequal,
dark-coloured. Massaria, Be Not.
321. Csospitose, with a more or less crustaceous or
byssoid stroma. Sporidia simple, elliptic, ob-
long or fusiform, dark.
Eosellinia, Be Not.
322. Oricn Perithecia tough, rugose or
csBspitoae.
rimose. Ostiolum very minute. Sporidi.i
uniseptate (or plurilocular), cylindrical, curved,
obtuse, hyaline. BerTIA, Be Not.
323. Perithecia carbonaceous, Ostiolum
erumpent.
large, compressed. Sporidia two or many-
celled, coloured or hyaline.
LOPHIOSTOMA, Fr.
 OF BRITISH FUNGI. 159

824. Perithecia globose, depressed or conical. Spo-

ridia large, ovate, many-celled, with transverse

septa, coloured. Pl^ospoba, Rabh.

325. Perithecia superficial, scattered, carbonaceous,
hence Sporidia oval, oblong, or oblong-
brittle.

fusiform, two or many-celled, coloured.

Spii^ria, Fr.
326. Perithecia horny, acute. Sporidia acicular, sep-
tate, pale or hyaline.
Hhapiiidospora, Be Not.

327. Perithecia scattered, coriaceous, at first covered

or superficial. Sporidia oblong or fusiform,
often curved, two or more-celled, hyaline or
yellowish. Leptosph.eria, Be Not.

328. Perithecia scattered, immersed, membranaceous,

with an erumpent ostiolum. Sporidia cylin-
drical, curved, or straight, simple, rarely uni-
septate, hyaline. Crypto sph^ebia, Be Not.

329. Perithecia rugulose or setulose. Sporidia ovoid,

simple, dark-coloured (sometimes caudate at
one extremity). Soedabia, Be Not.
330. Perithecia fragile, hispid or setulose at the apex.
Ostiolum large. Paraphyses none. Sporidia
two-celled, brownish. Ventubia, Be Not.
331. Perithecia papyraceous, villose or strigose. Spo-
ridia elongated, septa obscure, hyaline or pailld.
Lasiosph-Ebia, Be Not.
332. Perithecia membranaceous. Ostiolum subulate,
rostrate. Sporidia simple.
'kkatosto.ua, Fr,
(

833. Perithecia papyraceous, scattered, rostrate. Spo-

ridia cylindrical or oblong, often curved, two
to four-celled. Gnomonia, Be Not.
/
/

ItiO TABULAR ARRANGEMENT

334. Perithecia membranaceous, immersed, scarcely

papillate. Sporidia elliptical or oblong, two or
four-celled, rarely simple, hyaline or pale.
Spiijirella, Fr.

335. Parasitic. Perithecia globose, black, innate,

slightly prominent. Nucleus firm, at first
mouthless, then with a roundish aperture.
Stigmatea, Fr.

330. Perithecia globose, black, mouthless, innate, con-

cealed by the blackened substance of the leaves,
ultimately splitting across.
Hypospila, Fr.

337. Nucleus without a perithecium, coloured or black,

covered by the transformed substance of the
matrix, or immersed therein. Isotiiea, Fr.

838. Parasitic. Mycelium creeping, black. Perithecia

elongated, often branched, composed of con-
fluent threads, with the tips often free at the
apex. Capnodium, Mont.

339. Perithecia subcarbonaceous, elliptic, closed, burst-

ing by a longitudinal Assure. Nucleus and asci
diffluent. Dicu^na, Fr.

Section IV. — Nectriei.

340. Stroma vertical, fleshy, clavate or capitate.
Perithecia immersed. Sporidea linear, multi-
septate, breaking up into fragments.
TOEEUBIA, Lev.
341. Stipitate, with a globose head, produced from a
sclerotium, fleshy. Asci linear. Sporidia
filiform, simple. Claviceps, Tul.
 OF BRTTTSH FUNGI. 161

312. Parasitic on grass. Coloured. Perithecia fleshy,

immersed in a mycelioid stroma. Sporidia
linear. Epichloe, Fr.
343. Stroma variable. Perithecia fleshy, pallid or
coloured, ovato-globose and obtuse. Asci eight-
spored. Sporidia uniseriate, didymous, with
two globose and equal cells, at length separa-

ting. Hypocrea, Fr.

344. Parasitic on fungi. Mycelium byssoid. Peri-
thecia small, globose, papillate. Asci eight-
spored (rarely two to tour), without paraphyses.
Sporidia uniseriate, lanceolate or elliptic, rarely
obtuse, uniseptate, ejected in tendrils.
Htpomtces, Tul.

345. Stroma definite. Perithecia free, clustered or

scattered, black or coloured, fleshy or horny.
Asci eight or many-spored. Sporidia of two
kinds. Nectria, Fr.
346. Perithecia erect, contained in a coloured sac,
which is free above. Ostiolum punctiform.
Oomyces, B. and Br.
346.* Perithecia cylindrical. Sporidia filiform
Acrospermum, Tode.

Order XXIX.-PERISPOPJACEI.
Perithecia sub-globose, astomous, membranaceous,
often seated on threads, and Nucleus
appendiculate.
never diffluent.
Genera.

347. "Without appendages. Asci clavate. Spores

numerous. Peribporium, Fr.
348. Central peridium attached to radiating fibres
Secondary peridium ascigerous. Asci cylin-
drical. Lasiobotryb, Kze
M
 C)2 TABULAR ARRANGEMENT, ETC.

349. Appendages dichotomous. Sporangium single.

PoDOSPHJERA, Kze.
350. Appendages floccose. Sporangium single.
SpujEkotiieca, Lev.
351. Appendages needle-shaped, rigid. Sporangia
numerous. Phyli actinia, Lev.
352. Appendages hooked. Sporangia numerous.
TJncinula, Lev.
353. Appendages dichotomous. Sporangia numerous.
MICROSPH.ERA, Lev.
354. Appendages floccose. Sporangia numerous.
Erysiphe, Iledw.
355. Perithecia brittle. Asci linear. Sporidia lemon-
shaped, dark. Ch^tomitjm, Kze.
356. Perithecia thin, seated on branched threads.
Asci linear. Sporidia elliptic, dark.
Ascotricha, Berk,
357. Perithecia reticulated, coloured, seated on muce-
dinous threads. Asci delicate.
EUBOTIUM, Link.

Order XXX.-- ONYGENEI.

Peridium of closely woven threads ; sporidia in a com-
pact dusty mass.
( 'Cnus.

358. Parasitic on animal substances. Peridium sti-

pitate. Asci delicate. Sporidia forming a
dusty mass. Onygena, Pert.
 I N DEL

PAGE. VAGB.
Acrid Aciarics 61 Agaricus personatm 63
/Ecidium, genus ]01 ,, jniiii nsi.i £5
,, ranuncidacearum 101 ,, procerus 28
A garicini 19, 15 „ prunulus 43, 33
Agaricus alutaceus 60 „ psitlacinus 57
,,
arvensis 49 ,, pudicus 43
,, campestris 44 „ rachodes 29
,,
canlhartllus .... 62 ,, salignus 41
„ castaneus 53 ,, scorodonius 70
,, cinnamomeus .... 54 ,, semi-orbicular is 44
. .

,, comatus 51 ,,
to determine .... 15
,,
dealbatus 36 ,, tubcrosus 38
,,
deliciosus 57 ., xdmarius 40
,,
eburneus 56 ,,
urens 65
., emeticas 61 ,, velutipes 38
,,
esculent us 38 ,, vesca 59
„ excoriatus 29 „ violaceus 53
„ fascicular ix 49 ,, virescens 60
,, fusipes 37 ., virgineus 54
,, gambosus 42, 32 ,,
volemum 57
„ genus 24 Amadou 80
„ Georgii 49 A manita, genus 19
,, geotrupus 37 „ muscaria 20
it gi?/anteus 36 „ nivalis 22
,, gracilenlw 30 ,, ruhescens 23
„ keierophyllus .... 59 ,, strobilifwmis. . 22
. .

,, lepidus 60 „ vaginata 23
,, melleus 30 Arwi'laria, snW-ueim .... 30
„ mutabilh 43 Arrangement, tabular .... 12
,,
nebularis 35 Auricularini, order 86
„ niveus 56
,,
odurus 35 Barbe de Vache 85
,,
weades 64 Bath truffles 92
„ ostrealus 40 Beef-gravy substitute .... 83
,, peronalis 65 Bird's-nest fungi 99
 64 INDEX.

PAGB. PiQB.
Black and white truffles . . 115 Cooking of Saint George's
Bolbitius, genus 53 mushroom . . 33
Boletus wstivalis 76 truffles 115
,, bovinus /5 ihpi inns atramentarius 52
,, castancus <'t> ,, contains 51
,. edulis 72 Cortinarius enstancus .... 53
,, elegans 76 ,, cinnamomeus . . 54
„ impolitus 76 ,, violaccus 53
„ satanas 77 Crepidotus, sub-genus .... 44
. ,scaber 76 Cultivation of Mushrooms . 48
Boinsla nigrcscens 95
„ plumbea 95 DjEDAI.EA QDKRCINA 81
Bread-mould, the Iu3 ,,
tin icolor 81
Discrimination of fungi . . 118
Ditola Rossa 89
CaNTHABKLLUS C'TBSRTUS . . 62 Dried fungi 74, 65
Champignon, Fairy-ring . . 64 Dry-rot 81,80
Chantarelle, the 62 Dust-like fungi 100
Cinnamon mushroom .... 54
Clathrus cancellatus 93 Eccilia, subgenus 42
Clavaria amethystine/, .... 89 Elaphomyces granufatus .. 117
,, botrytis 89 Elvellacei, order 104
,, coralloidcs 89 Emetic agaric SI
,, cristata 90 Ergot of rye 117
,, fastigiata 89 Entoloma, sub-genus 41
,, rugosa 88
Cluviceps purpurea 117 Fairy-rings 66
Clilopilus,sub-genus 41 Fistulina hepatica 82
Clouded Agaric 35 Flammula, sub-genus .... 44
Club-bearing fungi 87 Fly Agaric 20
Clytocybe, sub -gen us 34 Forms, variety of 9
Cullifbia, sub-genus 38 Fragrant Agaric 35
Colour, variations in 9
Common Stinkhom 94 Galera. sub-genus 44
Conidhi iic< tee, family 100 Gallinole, the S9
Cooking of Boleti 73 Gastcromycetes 91
,, Champignon . . 65 Genster, genus 95
,, Chantaielles . . 63 Gelatinous fnngi 90
,, Clavaria; 88 Gemeine Morchel 110
,, Common mush- Geoglossum diffurmt 110
room 48 ,,
hirsutum 110
Fiatulina .... 85 ,,
olivaccum .... 110
„ Uydnum .... 85 German tinder 80
„ Milky Agarics , 58 Giant puff-ball 96
„ Morellu 107 Gill-bearing fungi 12
v ,
Pufl'-ball 96 G ills, structure of 16
 INDEX. 165

PAGE. PAGB.
Habitats of Fungi 2 Marasmius oreades .... 64
Hachis aux champignons. . 47 ,, peronatus .... 65
Hallimash ?1 ,, scorodonius . . 70
Hart's truffles 117 ,, urens 65
Hebeloma, sub-genus 43 Marron, of the French. ... 53
Helotium ceruginosum. .... 112 Melanogaster variegatus . . 92
Helvetia crispa 108 Merulius lacrymans 81
,, lacunosa 109 Mildew 100
tfirneola auricula-Juclce . . 90 Milky Agarics 57
Hydnum caput Medusce. ... 86 Morckella esculaita .... . Wb
„ coralloides 86 „ patula i06"
,, imbricatum 85 ,, semilibera 106
,, repandum 84 Morell ketchup 106
,, rufescens 84 „ the 105
Hygrophorus ebumeus .... 56 Morells a la Italieune .... 107
,, niveus 56 ,, ragout of 107
,, pratensis .... 55 Moulds 102
„ psittacinus . . 56 Mucoraceous fungi 103
,, virgineus .... 54 Mushrooms, derivation of 33 .

Hi/iiienomycetes 19 ,, English 44
Hyplioloma, sub-genus .... 49 ,, to cook 44
Hyphomycetes, family .... 102 „ \i la Provencale 45
Hypogcei, order 92 Mycena, sub-genus 39
Myxogastres, order 99
Ink from mushrooms .... 51
20 Nagelschwamme 38
Intoxicating fungi
Naucoria, sub-genus 44
Nidulariacci, order 99
Ketchup, 22, 34, 52, 66, 83, 106 Nolanea, subgenus 42
Klotsch's method of preserv- 64
Nyctalis, genus
ing 122
Oak Truffles 114
LACTARIUS DELIOIOSUS. .. . 57 Odours 10
,, volemum .... 57 Oinphalia, sub-genus .... 39
Larch polyporu.s 24 Oyster mushroom 40
Latticed Stinkhorn 93
Lauchschwamme 70 PaneuLUS, sub-genuB .... 50
Leathery fungi 86 Parasol mushroom 23
Lepiota, sub-genus 28 Parrakeet mushroom ... 56
Leptonia, sub-genus 42 Pear-shaped puff-ball .... 98
Lingua di Castagna 82 Penicillium, genus 102
Luminosity 8 Peridiate fungi 91
Lycoperdon ccelatum 98 Peziza aeruginosa 112
• giganteum .... 96 ,, aurantin 104
illi.H 117 ,, coccinm 20*
rj pyriforme. .
.98, 9." .t elegaru 10-*
166 INDEX.

JAGK. PAGK
1 1 1 Rye, ergotized 117
Pcziza, genus
Pkalloidei, order
93
94 SCALY-OAPFED HyDNOH .. 85
Phallus impudicus 117
43 Sphceriacei, order
Pholiota, sub-genus 104
103 Sporidiiferous fungi
Physomyceles, family 17
Sporifera and Spoiidiifera
.

Pied de coq 89
Springers
49
Pilewort fungus 101
Stereum liirsutum 87
PL urotus, sub-genus 30
St. George's mushroom . . 32
41
Plutais, sub-genus " Stinkhorn fungi 93
Poisonous boleti Structure 13
fungi
H8 HO
mushroom 74 Stuuipf Morcbel
Polish Subterranean fungi 92
78
Polypo>~us letulinus
fumtnlurius .... 80 Tabular Arrangement of
' a 124
,, ffigamb&M British Fungi
hybridus
80 84
,, Teeth -bearing fungi
intybaceus 79 102
,,
24 Thready fungi
„ of the larch .... 31
Toad's-cap, or toadskep . .

78 90
u sqitamosus Tremellini, order
79, S 94
,. sulfureus Trichogastres, order
71 31
Pore-bearing fungi Tricholoma, sub-genus ....
Pratiola of Italians 44
Truffle, the
H2
Preservation of fungi .... 120 114
Truffle-culture
Psalliota, sub-genus 44 113—115
Truffle-hunting
.... 50
Psathyrella, sub-genus Truffles £ la llalhnne .... 116
Pseudo-agarics 50 a la Piimontaise . 116.
,

Psilocybe, sub-genus
50 of Bath 92
„
Puccinicei 101 red 92
„
Puff-ball fungi 94 113
Tuber (BStivum
to cook 96 113
„ ,, cibariwm
Puree of mushrooms 47
\ BBDl ttb 60
103
Rapidity op Growth .... 5 Vinegar-plant, the
78 Votvaria, sub-genus 41
Razor-straps
Red truffle »9
liussuta alutacea 60 Wheat blights 101

,, emetica . . 61 Witbering's method of pre-

59 serving 124
„ hetetvphylla
,, lepida 60
vcsca 59 Yeast-plant, the 102
,,

,,
virexccns 60
Riwt 100 ZlEGKNBAKT 89
 PRINTED BY
OLIVER AND BOYD
EDINBURGH
 New York Botanical Garden Library
QK607.C62 1904 gen
Cooke, M. C. /A plain and easy account of

3 5185 001 6 2195