278 



PHA 



THE UNIVERSAL HERBAL; 



PHA 



crop ; until so much mischief had arisen from this practice, 

 that it was found necessary to forbid it by law. According 

 to Mr. Sowerby, in his elaborate work on English Fungi, the 

 Morel belongs much more properly to the genus Helvella, if 

 we consider its texture, duration, and qualities. It is well 

 known, and much esteemed as an ingredient in gravies and 

 ragouts, both recent and dried ; for this purpose, it may be 

 kept many months, or even years. In Great Britain, it has 

 been observed at Moor Barns, Trumpington, Triplow, &c. ; 

 ia Magdalen College walks, Headington Wick Coppice, and 

 Shotover plantations : at Stone, and Swanscomb, in Kent ; 

 at Boughton, Walcot, Weekly, &c. in Northamptonshire ; 

 near Asply and Onthorp, in Nottinghamshire ; in Scotland, 

 at Blair in Athol ; in the woods at Langholm in Eskdale ; 

 and in Logton wood, near Dalkeith, &c. 



2. Phallus Impudicus; Obscene or Stinking Morel. Pi- 

 leus or cap cellular above, even underneath, not united to 

 the stem ; stem perforating the pileus, and open at the end ; 

 roots fibrous ; fibres large, round, white, creeping a little 

 under the surface, with white globules or tubercles growing 

 to them here and there, which when full-grown project above 

 ground, and appear in the form of eggs, a little flattened at 

 the base, smooth, the size of a tennis-ball, white, and heavy. 

 On the bursting of this, the stalk rises up, and is about the 

 thickness of the thumb, four inches and more in height, a 

 little crooked, round, white, spongy, hollow, very light, and 

 pointed at both ends. Cap somewhat conical, sitting loosely 

 on the stalk, at first smooth, solid, olive-coloured, slippery, 

 soon becoming highly fetid ; the cells being as yet filled with 

 the matter containing the seed, which flowing out, or being 

 eaten by the flies, the outer surface appears cellular, the inner 

 a little wrinkled, the top as if cut off, very white, oblong, and 

 open. Though this Fungus is so intolerably fetid, yet in its 

 egg state it has no offensive smell ; the o'dour resides in the 

 green matter which fills the cells of the cap, and is commonly 

 very soon devoured by flies, particularly the large blue flesh- 

 fly. It remains many days in the egg-state, before it bursts 

 through its wrapper ; but this being done, the stem pushes 

 up with amazing rapidity, attaining the height of four or five 

 inches in a few hours. The offensive green matter, already 

 noticed, contains the seeds, which may be seen by the as- 

 sistance of a good microscope. Such as have courage to 

 smell this matter closely, will find it much less disagreeable 

 than at a distance, for it then seems to have a slight pun- 

 gency, like that of volatile salts. The wrapper is filled with 

 a clear jelly, like the white of an egg, but stiffer; within this 

 is found the green matter, and within that the young plant : 

 when it shoots up, the wrapper and the clear jelly remain at 

 the root. The disagreeable carrion-like smell of this Fungus 

 has occasioned it to be called Stinkhorns in some counties. 

 It nourishes not only several species of flies, but also snails 

 and slugs, which are extremely fond of the stem. In August, 

 September, and October, it appears in woods and hedge- 

 rows, in some places abundantly, in others but sparingly. 

 It has been found near London, about Hackney; in Coomb 

 wood at Norwood ; in the closes about Streatham ; but more 

 plentifully in a small fir wood on Hampstead heath. It has 

 been noticed in sandy places near Bungay in Suffolk ; in 

 Kingstone woods, Oxfordshire ; at Silsoe and Market Street 

 in Bedfordshire ; at Middleton 'in Nottinghamshire ; in the 

 woods of Blair, at Athol ; and in the sands by the sea side, 

 on both sides of the Forth, and at Carubber bank, in Scot- 

 land. 



3. Phallus Caninus ; Red-headed Morel. Pileus or cap 

 wrinkled, red, covered with a greenish matter, conical, closed 

 at the end ; stem yellow, tapering at the bottom ; volra the 



size of a nutmeg, of an oblong ovate shape, white, smooth, 

 gelatinous within, the inner coat cut off at top ; stalk beyond 

 the volva, an inch and half or two inches in length, the size 

 of a large goose-quill, round, filiform, terminating in a point 

 at bottom, cellular, somewhat transparent, of a pale orange 

 colour, hollow within, soon becoming flaccid ; head sitting 

 on the stem, sessile, about half an inch in length, and of the 

 same diameter with the stem, oblong, a little pointed, imper- 

 vious, and whitish at top, at first of a livid colour, and 

 covered with a very thin shining membrane, under which is 

 a small quantity of a greenish liquid almost without scent ; 

 which being removed, the surface of the head appears of a 

 red colour, and transversely wrinkled, but by no means cel- 

 lular, as in the stinking Morel. This Fungus was first dis- 

 covered in this country in the woods and shady places near 

 Shrewsbury ; it has also been found about Caen wood, and 

 about Silsoe in Bedfordshire. Curtis observes, that the 

 structure of the head by no means agrees with Linneus's 

 generic character. It differs from the preceding species, in 

 having no pileus properly speaking, but the part, on the out- 

 side of which the seminal matter is lodged, forms a head, 

 which is only a continuation of the stalk, differing in its 

 structure and colour : this head has a wrinkled, not articu- 

 lated surface; within these wrinkles, which are not very 

 deep, the seminal matter is contained, and covered by a 

 very thin membrane. 



Pharnaceum; a genus of the class Pentandria, order Tri- 

 gynia. GENERIC CHARACTER. Calix: perianth five- 

 leaved ; leaflets subovate. concave, spreading, equal, perma- 

 nent, coloured within, having a thin edge. Corolla : none ; 

 hence the edge of the calix is thin, and the inside of it is 

 coloured. Stamina : filamenta five, awl-shaped, the length 

 of the calix ; antherce bifid at the base. Pistil : germ ovate, 

 three-cornered; styles three, filiform, the length of the stami- 

 na ; stigmas blunt. Pericarp: capsule ovate, obsoletely three- 

 cornered, covered, three-celled, three-valved. Seeds : nume- 

 rous, shining, orbicular, depressed, surrounded by a sharp rim. 

 Observe. The parts of fructification differ in the sixth species. 

 ESSENTIAL CHARACTER. Calix : five-leaved. Corolla: none. 

 Capsule : three-celled, many-headed. The species are, 



1. Pharnaceum Cerviana ; Umbelled Pharnaceum. Pedun- 

 cles subumbelled, lateral, equalling the linear leaves. 

 Annual, flowering in June. Native of Russia and Spain. 



2. Pharnaceum Lineare ; Linear-leaved Pharnaceum. 

 Umbels unequal ; leaves linear, in remote opposition. Stem 

 even, prostrate, jointed, with knobbed knots, dichotomously 

 branched; flowers in a spurious umbel, of a tawny hue. 

 Native of the Cape of Good Hope. 



3. Pharnaceum Teretifolium ; Round-leaved Pharnaceum. 

 Leaves filiform, mucronate ; umbels lateral. Stem erect, fru- 

 tescent. Native of the Cape of Good Hope. 



4. Pharnaceum Microphyllum. Tomentose : peduncles 

 umbelled ; leaves ovate, roundish, obtuse, interwoven with 

 wool ; flowers few, yellowish. Native of the Cape. 



5. Pharnaceum Marginatum. Leaves ovate, margined, 

 blunt; flowers axillary, sessile. Native of the Cape. 



6. Pharnaceum Mollugo; Bedstraw Pharnaceum. Pe- 

 duncles one-flowered, lateral ; flowers the length of the leaves. 

 Stem depressed ; root annual ; peduncles at the whorls, not at 

 the forkings of the stem, four or five, the length of the leaf, 

 one-flowered. The whole plant in its appearance greatly re- 

 sembles Illecebrum Ficoideum. Native of the East Indies 

 and Cochin-china. 



7. Pharnaceum Glomeratum. Flowers glomerate; stem 

 flexuose ; leaves linear. Root annual. Native of the Cape 

 of Good Hope. 



