MUSHROOMS. 13 



the greater part of our common shelf-fungi. 

 The polypores are so named from the nu- 

 merous pores which sharp eyes may often 

 discover on their under surface. In these lit- 

 tle holes the sj^ores are borne. Some of the 

 soft polypores are edible, while some of the 

 corky ones are tough enough to be cut into 

 excellent razor-strops. Some of the larger 

 species attain a horizontal diameter of three 

 or four feet. A beautiful species in Guinea 

 is worshiped by the natives. 



The Puff-halls^ Mushrooms^ and Toad- 

 stools are remarkable for their rapid growth, 

 and often for their great size, peculiar colors, 

 and curious shapes. They are widely dis- 

 tributed over the earth, but are most abun- 

 dant in moist and warm climates. They 

 grow upon nearly all kinds of decaying mat- 

 ter. Occasionally they prove the presence 

 of decaying substances where one would 

 least expect it ; they spring up in a night, 

 from dry pastures and lawns. The genus 

 Agaricus includes the mushrooms, of which 

 there are no less than a thousand species. 

 The Agaricus campestris, "field agaric," is 

 now extensively grown in vegetable gar- 

 dens. If we were to examine critically this 

 mushroom in its early stages of growth, we 



