roots of grass; it soon extends up every stem and blade, in appearance like a brandling madrepore, and 

 encloses every object, grass, straw, or tvrig, in its stifling embrace ; as soon as it becomes free from the 

 encumbrance of the grass, which is about two inches from the foundation, it begins to form pileate fronds, 

 wliich are connected together and confluent in a rosette style. Each pileus is ridged, owing to the plaited 

 rows of pores beneath ; the disposition of these reticulations, course above course, is very elegant, they do not 

 extend so far as the margin, wliich consequently incurves and collapses for want of support. The margins 

 are tiuged with bright rose colour and more or less denticulated (or toothed); the liymenium is flesh-coloured- 

 bufi', mixed with shades of rose, and when the wlute spores are developed, has a sliot-sUk effect. The upper 

 surface is tomentose, drab-coloured or bufp when moist, and growing white in drying. The smell when old 

 is very strong and disagreeable. 



The specimen from which the drawing is taken was found among the ancient oaks, wliich sustain and 



shelter an innumerable family of dependants of this kind, at the foot of Hayes Common, going towards 



Wickham. Fistulina hepatica juts out in scarlet glory from their lunbs ; the soil at their roots is loosened 



by thousands of httle congregated brown heads belonging to the excellent Agarims fusijies ; pink, grey, and 



buff members of the milky tribes show themselves to the lugliest advantage on the luxuriant carpet of 



green moss ; there, are as many Verdettes as the most unreasonable epicure could desire, and Boletus edulis, 



large enough to sustain the feast ; there did we once discover an ambitious toad, who, having forsaken liis 



legitimate stool beneath, was perched half-way up a tree, upon a carrion-looking Fistulina, which perhaps 



had tempted lum thither, but how he got up he never vouchsafed to tell ; in short, from the warm spring 



showers to the clully autumn dews, under those picturesque old ruins of the forest, which might have seen 



Csesar if ever Caesar had been there, the Mycologist will find a harvest of some kind ; and greatly do the 



boys who hunt up the pigs straying for acorns, and the boy who raises his sleepy head from the sheep-dog's 



back, wonder why, day after day, Bond-street coats and mushn gowns invade their out-of-the-world sohtudes. 



Those noble old trees ! no traveller passes them without respectful admiration, and the spot is sacred to 



better things than Agarics ; the roots of the venerable Enghsh Oak go down into the tumulus of some 



British chieftain, who looked, in the pride of freedom from liis strong position, over those pleasant expanses 



of Kent and Surrej', which perhaps he fell in defending against the invading Ehemi.^ His memory has 



perished ; but the name of a greater man, the defender of hberty by that weapon of eloquence which shall 



one day supersede the sword, consecrates a younger tree on the brow of the lull. Under it, sat and mused 



Lord Chatham ! seeking repose of body and peace of mind after the turmoil of the stormy senate, and the 



petty, factious opposition which chafed his patriotic soul, and kiUed him at last. He did not die in " The 



House ", as many who look on Copley's noble picture suppose ; they brought him down to his own quiet 



Hayes, and there his spirit passed away. 



' Keston is known as a Roman station, and called Caesar's Camji, but was first a British strong-hold, of which 

 the fortiKcations remain in Holwood, or, according to a more ancient speUiug, Holy-wood (the modem park of 

 Ml-. J. Ward, formerly the favourite home of Lord Chatham's famous son, William Pitt), this is said to have been 

 the head quarters inland of the Remi, or Rbemi, who shortly preceded the Romans, and were m league ■Kith them. 

 The last out-post to the east is Fai'n-borough or burg, and to the west extends an elevated table-laud, frequently 

 scarped, called the War-bank, the terminating ])oint of which is known as War-end, vulgarized into TFarren, hOl ; 

 this is the site aUuded to above, and it is crowned by Lord Chatham's favourite tree ; wliile half way down is the 

 Tumulus, on which two oaks of a thousand years are stiU flourishing. 



