50 Three Young Crusoe s 



had finished his share. "Well, just hand them over 

 to me; I may as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb." 



''I believe I could learn to like them," said Edna, 

 " if I wasn't afraid of being poisoned." 



''You certainly started out all right," said Henry. 

 "The lecturer said it was perfectly safe to eat any 

 mushroom if you went about it right, trying a little 

 bit at first and then more and more if you found it 

 didn't hurt you, until you were certain it was an edible 

 kind. We would have to experiment with most of 

 the kinds here in that way, anyhow, because they 

 are almost sure to be new to us, like the trees and 

 flowers." 



"How about the one we ate ? " said William. 



"That was so much like the one in the New York 

 markets," replied Henry," that I thought we could 

 take a chance. I looked carefully for a Meath-cup' 

 and I noticed the pretty pink gills, which turned 

 black when they got old. This kind grows wild all 

 over the world and is cultivated in cellars, caves, 

 old mines, and specially constructed mushroom 

 houses. You can buy it in cans, too." 



" Me for mushrooms ! " said William. 



It is remarkable how far an idea, thus accident- 

 ally picked up, will sometimes carry with young 

 people. The whole family. Snowball and the mon- 



