46 1 ProccciliiKjs of Ihc Ohio Stale Academy of Science. 



Ill ])reparing tlie keys, llic most a])i)arent characters possible 

 liave been employed. The aim lias 1 een to produce accurate and 

 usable keys, rather than to exhibit relationships of species. Some 

 of the keys have been tested by use by mycology students at 

 Miami University for several years ami at the Ohio State Uni- 

 versity during the present year. Most of them have been re- 

 vised several times as suggested 1)\- use. 



The work is based largely on j^ulilislicd descriiitinn^. and 

 in some cases altogetlier. These are sometimes so l)rief or so 

 lacking in precise detail that it has been difficult to find reliable 

 and well-marked characters upon which to sci^aratc species. 

 This is especially true of species founded wholly ujion ilried 

 specimens. 



Xotwithstanding such errors, misconceptions and incorrect 

 conclusions as doubtless occur, it is believed that the pa]ier will 

 prove helpful to students, amateur mycologists and otliers in 

 the determination of ( )]iio Agarics. It is offered as a summary 

 of our present knowledge of tlie Ohio plants, and is to l)e re- 

 garded as only a preliminary study. 



It is not within the scope of this paper to discuss the species 

 in detail, so that many points of interest and of some impor- 

 tance must necessarily lie omitted. With each species included, 

 however, a list of references to the most available and useful 

 works is given. One or more of these should always be con- 

 sulted before reaching a decision as to the determination of 

 any ])lant. 



Idle matter of the classification and nomenclature of the 

 Agaricaceae is still in an unsettled condition. It has seemed best 

 in most instances to follow the arrangement given by Saccardo 

 in his Sylloge Fungorum for two reasons: It is not the pur- 

 pose to present a critical study of the nomenclature of the family, 

 and most of the available works on this group will lie fouml to 

 follow a similar system. 



The writer wishes here to acknowledge his many obligation? 

 to Dr Tlrucc Fink under whose direction the work was under- 

 taken. He is also indebted to Dr. A\\ A. Murrill for the privilege 

 of examining sj^ecimens in the herbarium of the New York 



