216 FOOTNOTES FROM 



far exceeds that employed in the projection of a shell 

 from the largest mortar, or a cannon-ball from an Arm- 

 strong gun. It is a far more curious and interesting 

 object than the squirting cucumber of which so much is 

 made. Another denizen of the hot-bed (Peziza vesicib- 

 losa) exhibits somewhat similar properties. When the 

 sun is shining warmly upon its cup, the least agitation 

 raises a visible cloud of sporidia like a thin wreath of 

 vapour. These are beautiful instances of the adaptations, 

 with which nature has provided these lowly plants, for 

 the certain dissemination of their seed. 



The mushroom may be regarded as an ideal fungus of the 

 highest type ; and consequently the preceding description 

 is only applicable to the class which it represents. There 

 are varieties of structure as there are varieties of form. 

 There are four large sub-orders of fungi in which the or- 

 gans of fructification are widely different. The first sub- 

 order is called Hymenomycetes, or naked fungi, because 

 the seed-bearing organs are naked, or placed externally: 

 This is the largest, most important, and most highly de- 

 veloped order, containing in this country forty-six genera, 

 and upwards of seven hundred and twenty species. The 

 mushroom, chantarelle, amadou, toadstool, morell, and 

 ergot, are familiar examples of this order. The hymen- 

 ium assumes various shapes in the different genera. 

 In the mushroom it forms gills, in the toadstool tubes, 

 in the chantarelle veins, in the amadou pores, and 

 in the hydnum spines. Sometimes it is placed on the 

 lower surface of the pileus, as in the mushroom, and at 

 other times it is formed on the upper surface of the cap, 

 as in helvella. The second sub-order, called Gasteromy- 



