288 "Wisconsin State Horticultueal Society. 



careous nature, permeated by the roots of the oak; and the 

 method pursued in France, the only country where the culture 

 has proved successful, is to select the required quality of soil and 

 sow it with acorns. When the saplings have attained a few 

 years' growth the truffles begin to grow. Owing to the subter- 

 ranean habit of the truffle, the difficulty of finding them, when 

 growing in the wild state, is great, and to this end several proc- 

 esses are in vogue, one of which is quite effectual, and at the 

 same time unique. Dogs and pigs are very fond of these delicate 

 bits of vegetable growth, and being endowed with a sense of 

 smell far superior to that possessed by man, are enabled to seek 

 out the truffles in their hiding places. "When the dog, or pig, as 

 the case may be, has found the locality of the plants, he is repaid 

 by a more available, though less palatable morsel from the truffle- 

 hunter's hand. 



Besides those already mentioned, there are many other species 

 of fungi which have won a general acceptance into the list of 

 those that are fit for food. 



Among the poisonous toadstools the Amanita miiscaria holds a 

 leading place, receiving its specific name from the fact that it is 

 sometimes steeped and the solution used in the destruction of the 

 house fly. The pileus is raised on a long stalk, and often attains 

 the diameter of four to six inches, having its upper surface studded 

 with large white protuberances, making the plant, if richness of 

 color and beauty of outline are considered, better fitted for the 

 throne of a fairy than the stool of an ugly toad. Though so 

 tempting in its beauty, its poisonous effects have become well 

 understood through the sad experience of many who have eaten 

 freely of its tender tissue, to suffer the severest pain, sometimes 

 only relieved by death. A variety of this species grows to some 

 extent in Northern Asia, and especially in Kamtchatka, where it 

 is highly prizsdTjy the natives for its exhilarating effects, possess- 

 ing, as it does, the power of producing a peculiar intoxication. 

 The fungus is gathered and dried with great care, and when a 

 state of inebriation is desired, a small piece is swallowed, and in 

 the course of one or two hours the drunkard is in his glory. This 

 fungus has a peculiar effect over muscular exertion. In his 



