INK CAPS 



The stem is long and largest at the base. It is 

 pale brown in color and generally has a network of 

 pink lines. As it is apt to be tough and stringy, it 

 should be cut out when the plant is cooked. 



These mushrooms are often dried and used for flav- 

 oring. They are also eaten raw with pepper and salt. 



It is best to be very cautious about the use of these 

 plants. None that have not been pronounced safe by 

 good authority should ever be eaten. 



In color, the boleti are crimson, green, or yellow. A 

 strange thing about them is the way that they change 

 color when cut, broken, or bruised. In some, the flesh 

 becomes red immediately, while others turn blue or a 

 bluish green. 



INK CAPS 



Ox some summer or autumn morning you may 

 find, on the lawn, a crowded mass of odd-looking mush- 

 rooms. A few hours later the tall stems may be stand- 

 ing, but the caps are broken or melted away. An inky 

 fluid is, perhaps, still dropping from them. 



These plants are ink caps and are sometimes called 

 "inky toadstools." The stem is slender, smooth, and 

 hollow. The cap is of a gray color. The gills are broad 

 and lie closely packed side by side. When young they 

 are a creamy white, but later they turn to a pinkish 



77 



