10 THE PLANT WORLD. 



Gibson made a selection of thirty native food varieties easily- 

 recognizable by their marked individualities, giving simple rules for 

 the identification of the poisonous species. His book is illustrated 

 by thirty colored plates, with fifty-six other illustrations, but it is 

 likely to be too expensive a luxury for any but the wealthy. 



In the annual report of the State Botanist of the State of New 

 York, Prof. Charles H. Peck, issued in 1896, is a handsome volume of 

 238 pages, with thirty-six colored plates giving figures of sixty-three 

 edible species, about forty of which have been tested by the writer; 

 three poisonous ones are also figured. A few quotations may be of 

 interest: 



' ' That there are dangerous species whose use as food should be 

 most carefully avoided, is an acknowledged fact, but the number of 

 such species is far less than many suppose. According to the au- 

 thority of those who have especially investigated this subject, the 

 dangerously poisonous species found in this country all belong to a 

 single genus, Amanita. About a dozen species of this genus have 

 been found in our State, and of these, two are known to be harmless 

 and edible, three or four only are commonly classed as poisonous, 

 and probably a single one of these is responsible for a vast majority 

 of the fatal accidents resulting from ' mushroom poisoning. ' There 

 are, however, some species in other genera that are capable of causing 

 nausea, vomiting and derangement of the digestive organs. They 

 are unwholesome because of their persistently bitter, acrid or other- 

 wise disagreeable flavor, or because a toughness of texture or the 

 possession of some quality repugnant to the stomach. The dangerous 

 species do not appear to possess such irritating qualities, and the symp- 

 toms of sickness do not appear till several hours after eating, gen- 

 erally eight to fifteen. 



" When symptoms of poisoning do appear it is best to summon 

 medical aid at once. Many rules have been proposed for distinguish- 

 ing the edible from the harmful ones, and there is a widespread feel- 

 ing against the use of all except the field mushroom. This is so 

 familiar in cultivation and so frequently offered for sale in our mar- 

 kets that all observant housekeepers would recognize it in the field. 

 Many also are familiar with the Morels or Morchelle, commonly found 

 in the springtime in woods in the vicinity of New York City. It is 

 abundant in Van Cortlandt Park and its neighborhood, and may be 

 usually collected in May and June. There are six species of Morels 

 in this State and none of them are known to be poisonous. The same 

 may be said of puff-balls; no harmful species are known among them, 

 and very little or no risk is taken in eating any puff-ball if fresh and 

 of good flavor. But, as shown by Prof. Peck's figures, many species 

 are quite variable in color and size, changing with age and condition, 

 so that it is necessary to take care in the selection of specimens, even 

 of those species known to be edible. They should be gathered in 

 good condition when well grown and sound, and only fresh specimens 

 should be chosen. Old, partly-decayed, water-soaked, worm-eaten or 

 withered plants should be discarded. Even young and sound ones 



