REPORT OF THE STATE BOTANIST. 125 
The soft downy tomentum which is characteristic of this species and 
which covers the whole pileus gives it a pruinose appearance when 
viewed from a little distance. The stem is generally short and is some- 
times broader than long. ‘The lamellz vary in width from two to four 
lines and are generally about equal in width to the thickness of the 
pileus. They become stained where bruised. The milk, which is some- 
times quite abundant in wet weather, exudes from wounds and dries 
into cream-colored gummy granules. The taste is very acrid. Cordier 
states that it is poisonous according to some authors, edible according 
to Leveille. 
X Lactarius deceptivus, Peck. 
Deceptive Lactarius. 
Pileus compact, at first convex and umbilicate, then expanded and 
centrally depressed or subinfundibuliform, odsoletely tomentose or gla- 
brows except on the margin, white or whitish, often varied with yellow- 
ish or sordid stains, the margin at first involute and clothed with a dense, 
soft or cottony tomentum, then spreading or elevated and more or less 
fibrillose ; lamellz rather broad, distant or subdistant, adnate or decur- 
rent, some of them forked, whitish, becoming cream colored ; stem equal 
or narrowed downward, solid, pruinose-pubescent, white; spores white, 
.00035 to .c005 in.; milk white, taste acrid. 
Pileus 3 to 5 in. broad, stem 1 to 3 in. long, 8 to 18 lines thick. 
Woods and open places, especially under hemlock trees. Common. 
July to September. 
This plant appears to have been confused with L. vellereus, which it 
closely resembles, but from which it appears to me to be quite distinct, 
both in the character of the tomentum of the pileus and in its de- 
cidedly larger and rougher spores. The young pileus is clothed with a 
thin, silky tomentum, which, on the involute margin, is quite thick, but 
very sq and cottony, and sometimes striated with parallel impressions, 
producéd by previous pressure against the edges of the lamella. In the 
mature plant the pileus appears nearly or quite glabrous, or is merely 
shaggy fibrillose on the margin. Sometimes the cuticle seems to be 
slightly rimose, and the surface then has a kind of scaly appearance. 
The lamelle are as broad and distant as in LZ. vellerews, but the stem is 
generally a little longer in the present species than it is in that. The 
glabrous form of this species was referred to LZ. piperatus in the Twenty- 
third Report. An experiment of its edible qualities was made without 
any evil consequences. ‘The acridity was destroyed by cooking. 
tt Pileus glabrous or merely pruinose or pruinose-pubescent, not 
squamulose. 
y Lactarius piperatus, J’. 
Peppery Lactarius. 
Agaricus piperatus, Scop. A. acris, Bull. A. Listeri, Krombh. 
Pileus compact, at first convex and umbilicate, then expanded and 
centrally depressed or infundibuliform, even, glabrous, white ; lamellez 
narrow, crowded, dichotomous, adnate or decurrent, white or cream 
colored ; stem equal or slightly tapering downward, solid, glabrous, 
