Fomes leucophaeus. Its book history has been most confusing, and 

 we were much interested in straightening out the tangled threads in 

 our last visit to Kew. We learned the plant years ago from Morgan, 

 who had sent it to Cooke, and Cooke named it for him, "Thelephora 

 dendritica, B. & C." As there is no Thelephora dendritica given in 

 Saccardo, and as the only plant so named by Persoon years ago is 



Fig. 742 



Sebacina dendroidea, growing on the hymenial face of Fomes applanatus. 

 Photographed by Burtt Leeper, Salem, Ohio. 



now called Cladoderris dendritica and evidently not this plant, 

 Morgan was much mystified over it. He never published it. I found 

 at Kew that the original specimen reached Berkeley from Venezuela, 

 and was named by him in manuscript, "Stereum dendriticum, B. & 

 C." He did not publish it, however, until he got it from Ceylon, and 

 then he published it as Hymenochaete dendroidea, with incidental 

 reference to the Venezuelean specimen, but none to the label on his 

 previous specimen. Cooke, in Grevillea, claimed that Hymeno- 

 chaete dendroidea should be called Thelephora dendroidea, and it 

 was so compiled by Saccardo. 



As to the proper classification of the plant, I am in doubt, as I 

 do not know either its spores or its basidia. I do not question, how- 

 ever, that it is a Sebacina, from its habits of growth. I have never 

 collected the plant fresh, and am unable in the dried specimen to find 

 either spores or basidia. I presume that Prof. Burt will enlighten 

 us on the subject some day, if we live long enough. The dried spec- 

 imens are always contaminated with the colored Canodermus spores 



539 



