180 



The work of the day soon commenced again in earnest. Tlie Club had 

 part of theii- dinner to procure in the park— not in the shape of vension from 

 the deer — but as vegetable beef-steaks from the trees. Whilst some of th« 

 gentlemen were admiring the picturesqxie blasted trunk of au oak hard by, a 

 joyful cry from Master Houghton, " Here's the beef-steak !" "Here's the beef- 

 steak !" was gladly welcomed, and the two specimens — his quick eyes had 

 detected of the FistuUna hcpatka, the "Liver fungus," or "vegetable beef- 

 steak" as it has been termed were soon gathered. Several other specimens 

 were afterwards met with — one nearly two feet in diameter, and weighing 10 

 or 121bs. — on nine different trees, and had the search for it been continued 

 many more might doubtless have been found. 



Scattered about in proper hunting order the members climbed the hiU. 

 They were specially diiccted to look out for the very rare grey Chanterelle 

 CanthereUus cinereus, which was found here three years since, but which 

 Berkeley marks in his book as "not found since the days of Bolton." It was 

 not found, however, but many other agarics were gathered. The delicate 

 Agaricus prunulus or OrccUa, "vegetable sweetbread," as it has been termed, 

 was met with, also one of the agarics destined for the day's dinner ; the 

 common mvishroom A. cam^Kstris, the horse mushroom A, arvensis, and its 

 smaller and more delicate variety the A. cretaceus, all of course edible ; as 

 ■was also the small jjuff ball Lycoperdon (jenimatum, the large rough stemmed 

 Boletus scaber, the buff gilled Bussula ulutacca, the less common JRussula 

 vesca, and the Parasol Agaric A. 2'>'>'0cerus. Some others, however, were col- 

 lected here not quite so good in character. There was the button of an agaric, 

 which was thought to be a brown variety of the Fly Agaric the A. verrucosus 

 of Bulliard; the small ^. Akalinvs; the Zactarius sulidulcis; the A. fiimosus ; 

 the A. radicatus ; the A. laccatus ; the A, lacrymahundus ; the small Xylaria 

 Hypoxylon : some rotten wood stained green by the mycelium of a Peziza, 

 (Helstium cervginosum) ; the Coprinus micaceus; and the "deadly Agaric'' 

 Lactarius lorminosus or necator. Some fine pale orange looking specimens 

 of this last poisonous agaric were gathered, wliich at first sight certainly re- 

 sembled the delicious edible "orange milk agaric" so highly recommended, 

 and figxired in the Club's Transactions last year. It had, however, a shaggy 

 wooUy margin, it had not the orange gills, nor had it the striking orange 

 coloured milk, and it ought not therefore ever to be mistaken for it. 



By this time the members had reached the crest of the hill and stood 

 before another well-known example of the most noble oaks this county can 

 produce, the celebrated "Monarch" of Holm Laccy park. This magnificent 

 tree has already been described in the published records of the club, and it 

 need only be repeated here that it has a diameter of 21ft. lOin. at 5ft. from 

 the ground, tliat it has a spread of foliage 38 yards in diameter, has a central 

 trunk two-thirds of its height, and is a very handsome well-balanced tree. 



The route was continued along the hill, where the views of the undu- 

 lating grounds of the park, of the mansion itself, and the neighbouring lulls 



