Having some jars of it filiicli had been boiled down, and had afterwards fermentedj the contents 

 were smeared upon and into the recesses of pollard oaks, wliich had been grubbed the spring previous, and 

 here and there shot out a few leaves in expiring energy; six weeks afterwards, on the fourth of 

 September, a very fine Fistulina grew on one of the trunks ; this does not prove that it came from the 

 fermented fungus we had placed there ; it might have grown of its own accord, without our apphcatiou, as 

 the tree was exactly in the state to produce it ; but be this as it may, the opportunity for watcliing the 

 growth and development was good, and the results are given, as the liistory of one is the history of all. 



A nodular excrescence of bright vermilion and rich crimson appears, it is quite dull in surface, minutely 

 papillate and velvety all over; in a few days it is spathulate or tongue-shaped, less scarlet in colour, but 

 stiU all over papillate, except a few shining streaks on the upper surface ; the growth continues laterally as 

 well as forwards, so that the spathulate shape is lost, and the "langue de bceuf" is broader than it is long; 

 it retains the appearance of a stem from the part next the tree wanting room for expansion. The pileus 

 becomes all over deep dull red and shining at the top, rather viscid, and the epidermis is dotted with the 

 dispersed papillae ; beneath it Kes a stratum of red jelly, which runs out if the skin is pierced, .(eventually 

 the growth of the plant absorbs tliis liquid) ; the hymenium has now become very distinct from the upper 

 surface and is of a lovely buff salmon or ilesh colour, studded with dots of a redder hue, the minute 

 "rosettes" which as yet veil the tubes; these give a roughness exactly like the texture of a cow's tongue. 

 In the next stage the tubes appear, lengthen as they grow, and have lost the rosy tinge, being plain straw- 

 buff; as yet their orifices are closed. When these open, they are fringed, and the whole under surface 

 turns dingy olivaceous yellow from the ripened spores ; these are hanging beneath in an elegant net-work, 

 not attached " by spider's threads " as at first supposed, but, as far as can be ascertained, attached to each 

 other by an innate viscidity at the moment of ejection from the tubes, thus forming little loops like 

 necklaces ; they are pallid ochre wdth a slight olivaceous tinge. The upper part of the fungus has ulti- 

 mately become rough and blackened red, channelled in the direction of the fibres, flaccid and discoloured ; 

 it resembles at last a piece of bullock's liver, whence its name Hepatica. The process of growth to maturity 

 occupied a fortnight, to decay a third week. 



The Fistulina hepatica often attains considerable dimensions, but an average fine specimen of the 

 ordinary standard may measure ten inches across, and weigh three or four pounds. The largest being 

 flaccid are not nearly so heavy in proportion as more compact ones. When cut across the likeness to a 

 slice of tongue is ludicrous. In youth the flesh is mottled, pink-white, short, and crisp ; in age deep red 

 or purplish, tough, and stringy. It may be taken as a rule that Fistulinas are not fit for the table after 

 their tubes are fully developed. In substance we do not recommend them unless finely minced with veal 

 and a little lemon, which amalgamates with the acid of the Fistulina itself; tliis preparation is very eatable : 

 broiled they may appear like a beaf-steak to a hungry Croat, but John BuU is better acquainted with the 

 genuine dish. If, however, Fistulina liepatica is not beef itself, it is sauce for it, sliced and macerated with 

 salt after the manner of mushroom ketchup ; the deep red liquor that is produced should be put hot into 

 a dish, with a little lemon-juice and minced eschalots, and the broiled rump-steak deposited on 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 the beef is exact. This ketchup must be 

 strained from the substance raw, afterwards boiled with spice for keeping like other ketchup, but is not to 

 be employed except to represent beef gravy ; it has not the flavour of Mushrooms. 



