6 RESEARCHES ON FUNGI 



never white,i in this respect resembling the fruit-bodies which I 

 found at Birmingham. 



A very young fruit-body is shaped like an hour-glass and the 

 diameter of the swollen stipe equals that of the unexpanded pileus.^ 



The pileus, when very young, is ovate or barrel-shaped and 

 nearly twice as long as broad. Before expansion, it may attain a 

 height of 1 to 1 -25 inches. On expanding, it becomes campanulate 

 and then obtusely conical, but never plane. The disc remains 

 prominent and the general form of the pileus much resembles that 

 of Lepiota procera. The width of the expanded pileus varies from 

 about 2 to 3 inches. The pileus-flesh is thin except at the disc 

 where it may attain a thickness of close upon 0-1 inch. It almost 

 disappears toward the pileus-margin which, after expansion, becomes 

 semi-transparent and plicate. The surface of the pileus is mealy 

 and squamose with scattered plumose scales, especially at the disc ; 

 and its general colour is pale lemon-yellow, the scales being some- 

 what darker or more sulphur-yellow. The scales can be easily 

 removed from the pileus as coarse dust by rubbing the surface 

 with a finger. 



The gills are at first quite vertical and appressed to the stipe, as 

 in the genus Coprinus (Fig. 3). At their inner extremities next to 

 the top of the stipe, they soon become free ; and, as the pileus 

 expands, they become separated from the stipe by a circular space. 

 They are pale yellow, ventricose, about 1 inch long, and from • 2 

 to 0-3 inch wide in the middle. They are also extremely thin but, 

 at the same time, tough and flexible : they can be bent by the 

 fingers without tearing. 



The stipe is about 3 inches long, straight or curved upwards, 

 firm, almost smooth but slightly pruinose ; narrow, • 1 to • 2 inch 

 wide, and pale yellow at the top ; but decidedly ventricose, 0-4 to 

 0-5 inch wide, and more sulphur-yellow below ; hollow above but 

 solid near the base. The annulus is perfect, erect, persistent, and 

 distant from the base of the stipe. 



The spores are colourless, smooth, oval, 7-8 /a long, 5 fi wide, and, 



1 T. Petoh, " European Fungi in the Tropica," Trans. Brit. Mycological Soc, 

 vol. iii, Kill, p. 342. 



^ Fetch makes a similar remark for his Ceylon specimens. Ibid. 



