MITRULA. 481 



having continuous, hyaline spores, and absorbs into that 

 genus all the species of Leptoglossum reputed to have con- 

 tinuous spores, leaving the residue, having septate spores, in 

 Leptoglossum. As a matter of fact, the spores are not 

 continuous at maturity in Mitrula, hence Saccardo's distinc- 

 tion between Mitrula and Leptoglossum falls to the ground, 

 and the two form a very natural genus, Mitrula by priority ; 

 distinguished by the even, entirely adnate, globose, ovate, 

 or clavate receptacle; spores narrowly elliptic-fusiform, 

 hyaline, septate or continuous, 1-2-seriate. 



Growing on the ground, among dead leaves, &c. 



Mitrula phalloides. Che v., Fl. Tar., p. 114; Sacc, 

 Syll., viii. n. 92. (figs. 29, 30, p. 188). 



Ascophore - stipitate, fragile, becoming hollow, form 

 variable, clavate, subglobose, or ovate, often compressed when 

 large, obtuse, yellow or orange-yellow, very smooth, entirely 

 adnate to the stem, but the lower margin sharp and distinct 

 and usually with two small notches on opposite sides J-l 

 cm. high, and often almost as broad ; stem 2-4 cm. long, 2-4 

 mm. thick, straight or wavy, smooth and with a silky sheen, 

 white or tinged with pink or yellow, silky-fibrous and white 

 inside like the ascophore, becoming hollow ; hypothecium 

 formed of interwoven, closely septate hyphae, these pass 

 into strings of sausage-like hyphae, deeply constricted at 

 the septa, 8-11 /x thick, loosely interwoven, and filling up 

 the central portion at first ; asci narrowly cylindrical, apex 

 narrowed, base long and slender, 8-spored ; spores obliquely 

 1-seriate, or imperfectly 2-seriate near the apex, hyaline, 

 smooth, elliptic fusiform, continuous or sometimes 1-septate 

 at maturity, 12-15 X 3*5-4 //,; paraphyses septate, about 

 2 jx thick, sometimes branched, very slightly thickened at 

 the tip. 



Clavaria plialloides, Bull., Champ., t. 465, f. 3 (1789). 



Mitrula paludosa, Fries, iSyst. Myc, i. p. 491 (1821) ; Cooke, 

 Mycogr., fig. 175; Greville, Scot. Cr. Fl., pi. 312 (excellent); 

 Phil., Brit. Disc, p. 28, pi. ii. fig. 6. 



On decaying leaves in damp places, among Sphagnum, &c. 



Usually gregarious or even clustered, soft, quite glabrous 

 everywhere. When large, the head is very frequently 

 compressed, closely adnate with the stem, but its lower 



VOL. iv. 2 I 



