RARE AGARIC. 



ages, and given rise to many, are not found with 

 us ; yet we have a small scattering too, some of 

 which are perhaps not undeserving of notice ; and, 

 though rather partial to a class which has afforded 

 me many hours of gratification and delight, yet, 

 sensible of the little interest they generally create, I 

 must limit my mention to a very few. 



The odorous agaric (agaricus odorus) may per- 

 haps be locally found in plenty, but to me it has 

 always been a plant of rare occurrence. Its colours 

 are delicate and modest, rather than splendid, and 

 a near acquaintance only makes us sensible of the 

 justness of its name. We have another scented 

 agaric (agaricus fragrans), much more commonly 

 to be met with, which diffuses its fragrance to some 

 distance : but the former species does not spread its 

 fragrance, until brought into a temperate apart- 

 ment, when it fills the room with an odour like that 

 proceeding from the heliotrope, or from fresh bitter 

 almonds, and communicates it to our gloves, or 

 whatever it touches. I have found it sparingly here 

 among dry beech leaves in Wolf-ridge copse. 



There is a rare, local, and I believe unnoticed 

 agaric, trailing its long roots in October among the 

 small decayed fragments of some old hedge, elegant 

 in itself, but more remarkable from the coloured 

 fluid - it contains, which upon being wounded it 

 emits, not as a milky fluid, but like an orange- 

 coloured, tasteless, spirituous extract, long retaining 

 its colour upon paper, and tingeing the hand like the 

 celandine, or blood- wort (sanguinalis canadensis) ; 



