THE STIPITATE POLYPOROIDS. 



The subject of the polyporoids is quite extensive, embracing as 

 it does about three thousand alleged species. We have been engaged 

 in the study now two or three years, but except in a general way have 

 not been able to cover the entire field. We would divide them roughly 

 into about five divisions as follows : 



1st, The stipitate species, embraced in this pamphlet. 



2d, The genus Femes. 



3d, The genus Polyporus, sessile section. 



4th, The genus Polystictus, sessile section. 



5th, The allied genera such as Favolus, Laschia, etc. 



During the past two or three seasons we have visited all the museums of 

 Europe and America where most of the historical material is preserved, and 

 have made our studies, notes, and photographs of the type specimens. This 

 embraces the museum at Kew, the British Museum at London, the museums 

 of cryptogamic botany at Paris, Leiden, Berlin, and Upsala. We have looked 

 over a small collection at Copenhagen, and some of the specimens in the private 

 collection of Professor Patouillard at Paris. We did not have time to thoroughly 

 work over Patouillard's species while in Paris, hence a number of his species 

 are unknown to us. In America in our own collection we have more American 

 specimens than there are in all the other museums combined. We have thor- 

 oughly studied the collection of Professor Peck and the specimens of Schweinitz 

 at Philadelphia. The New York specimens we have not seen, as on both of our 

 visits to New York Mr. Murrill was absent and we did not wish to work with 

 his material in his absence. 



Our final work on this pamphlet was done at Kew, during February, March, 

 and April, 1911. There is no other institution in the world where one can 

 work to such advantage as at Kew, where there is not only the largest col- 

 lection of historical specimens, but the most perfect library, and where the 

 conveniences are best. 



The conclusions recorded in this pamphlet are our own, made on examina- 

 tion and study of authentic material. We have not indulged in the too common 

 practice of passing on species we never saw. We may be mistaken in some 

 of our opinions, but we. have perpetrated no fraud. When we record a species 

 as unknown, this means of course that it is unknown to us. In a few instances 

 where we have not seen specimens we have adopted the opinion of the Rev. 

 Bresadola, but in each such case this is distinctly stated. 



The first and we think the best division of the pore species was 

 made by Fries (1851) in his Novae Symbolae. At that time but rel- 

 atively few plants were known, but Fries' divisions were based in the 

 main on the most prominent characters, and of the eleven sections 

 into which we have divided the stipitate species, nine of them have been 

 taken mostly in their original signification from Fries' work. Pro- 

 fessor Patouillard has outlined a plan of division which we think on 

 the whole is not as good as that of Fries, but it embraced a few new 

 ideas and two of them, the sections Ganodermus and Amaurodermus 

 \ve have adopted. 



i 95 



