COMMON MUSHROOM. 569 



gills when ripe, are, no doubt, wafted by the wind, and become 

 attached to the stems and leaves of grasses and other herbage ; 

 and notwithstanding they are eaten by such animals as the 

 horse, deer, and sheep, pass through their intestines without 

 undergoing any material change in their vegetative existence : 

 arid hence, in the dung of these animals, when placed to- 

 gether, and kept moderately dry, and brought to a slight 

 state of fermentation, we discover the first stage of the ex- 

 istence of the future brood of mushrooms. This is practi- 

 cally called ' spawn,' and consists of a white, fibrous substance, 

 running like broken threads through the mass of dung, which 

 appears to be its only and proper nidus." Mclnt. It is pre- 

 pared for use as follows : 



" In June and July, take any quantity of fresh horse-drop- 

 pings, the more dry and high-fed the better, mixed with 

 short litter, one third of cow's dung, and a good portion of 

 mould of a loamy nature ; cement them well together, and 

 mash the whole into a thin compost, and spread it on the 

 floor of an open shed, to remain until it becomes firm enough 

 to be formed into flat, square bricks ; which done, set them 

 on an edge, and frequently turn them till half dry ; then, 

 with a dibble, make two or three holes in each brick, and 

 insert in each hole a piece of good old spawn about the size 

 of a common walnut. The bricks should then be left till 

 they are dry. This being completed, level the surface of a 

 piece of ground, under cover, three feet wide, and of sufficient 

 length to receive the bricks, on which lay a bottom of dry 

 horse-dung six inches thick ; then form a pile by placing the 

 bricks in rows one upon another, with the spawn side upper- 

 most, till the pile is three feet high ; next cover it with a 

 small portion of warm horse-dung, sufficient in quantity to 

 diffuse a gentle glow of heat through the whole. When the 

 spawn has spread itself through every part of the bricks, 

 the process is ended, and the bricks may then be laid up in 

 48* 



