MYCELIUM. 33 



reads the long list of names of classes, genera, 

 and species, as the latter are so closely allied in 

 resemblance. One has not always the time nor 

 inclination to condense facts for himself, nor to 

 collect necessary information so as to remem- 

 ber it most easily, all which has to be done in 

 the absence of an American manual or text- 

 book. A great deal has been written for us, it 

 is true, by experienced botanists, but a general 

 and comprehensive work has yet to be com- 

 piled. 



Before we begin our list of fungi, let us learn 

 what a mushroom is, and know something of 

 its component parts. A mushroom consists of 

 a stem and a cap, or pileus. The cap is the 

 most conspicuous part. The color varies from 

 white and the lightest hues of brown up to the 

 brightest yellow and scarlet. Its size is from 

 an eighth of an inch to sixteen inches and more 

 in diameter. The surface is smooth or covered 

 with little grains (granular) or with minute 

 scales (squamulose) shining like satin, or kid- 

 like in its texture. It may be rounded and de- 

 pressed (concave), elevated (convex), level 

 (plane), or with a little mound in the centre 

 (umbonate). It may be covered with warts, 

 marked with lines (striate), or zoned with cir- 



3 



