CONTEXT AND PORES COLORED. 



It loses these characters when old, but it usually is of short duration. It is infested 

 by a large, round worm that quickly destroys it. It is a curious fact that we have 

 never noted this particular worm in any other species of fungus. Polyporus cuti- 

 cularis bears, unfortunately, a most inapt name, and its early history was badly 

 confused. Bulliard gave a badly colored figure of it (t. 462), so poor that Persoon, 

 who knew the plant well, did not recognize the figure of Bulliard. Persoon called it, 

 evidently, Polyporus triqueter. Fries' description seems to apply to the plant, and he 

 took Bulliard 's name, but Fries' specimen at Kew of Polyporus cuticularis is labeled 



Fig. 693. 



Polyporus cuticularis. 



Trametes rubiginosa. The plant has been generally known both in Europe and 

 America under the name Polyporus cuticularis. All American mycologists have had 

 it right, until Murrill came along and spun a fairy story about it being Polyporus 

 perplexens of Peck (cfr. Myc. Notes, p. 378). Professor Peck always called the 

 plant, correctly, Polyporus cuticularis. We do not know why the plant was called 

 cuticularis. It has no application to it. In Bulliard's figure the flesh is shown thin, 

 2 mm., and we supposed Bulliard's name meant that the plant has thin flesh like a 

 cuticle. If so, it is a delusion, for the flesh is rarely less than % cm. thick, and often 

 a cm. or more. 



ILLUSTRATIONS. No figure seems to have been published excepting Bulliard's badly-colored 

 plate, t. 462. 



SPECIMENS. Many, from United States and Europe. The Japanese analogue we list under 

 the following name. 



Compare fusco-velutinus, Jamaicensis, Ludovicianus, perplexus, rubiginosus. 



POLYPORUS MIKADOI (Fig. 695). The Japanese form of Polyporus 

 cuticularis, and perhaps, too close to the European plant. It has the same context, 

 color, and general appearance, but is a smaller plant (4 x 2 x 2> cm.), with smaller 

 spores (3-4 x 4-5 mic.), and no setae found. It seems constant in Japan, and we have 

 five collections (cfr. Letter 43, p. 3). 



SPECIMENS. Japan, T. Yoshinaga (No. 7), A. Yasuda (Nos. 6, 75, and 112), J. Umemura 

 (No. 59). 



POLYPORUS RHEADES (Fig. 696). Pileus sessile, dimidiate, 

 subglobose, or ungulate, often imbricate. Surface tomentose, velu- 

 tinate, with short, fine, brown hairs. There is at first developed a 



360 



