(51) STUDIES AND ILLUSTRATIONS OF MUSHROOMS : II. 511 



of Coprinus micaceus from a large tuft growing around the base 

 of a stump on one of the principal streets of Ithaca, a passer-by 

 halted, probably for the charitable purpose of giving some infor- 

 mation which he thought might save my life. " Them's toad- 

 stools ain't they? " " Yes," I replied. " Well, I thought so," 

 said he. Thereupon I ate one of the "toad-stools" raw, and 

 received from him a look of mingled pity and despair as he 

 passed on. 



All of these three species have a somewhat nutty flavor, that 

 of fresh hickory nuts when eaten raw, but they are more palata- 

 ble when properly prepared for the table. The Coprinus mica- 

 ceus need only be rinsed to remove from the caps any adhering 

 particles of soil. The other two species may be peeled if it is 

 desired to remove the outer and tougher layer of the pileus, or 

 this may be done by gently scraping. The shaggy-mane peels 

 well by starting at the margin of the pileus and with the fingers 

 stripping off the outer layer. The ink-cap peels more readily by 

 first splitting the pileus in halves and then starting the strip at 

 the top of each half. It is sufficient, however, to gently scrape 

 the surface of the pileus to remove the coarser outer fibers and 

 whatever soil may adhere. 



To those who are not acquainted with any of the species of 

 coprinus and wish to extend the range of species collected for 

 table use these three species are commended. The shaggy-mane 

 is perhaps the most delicious of the three, but the other two are 

 much more abundant usually. By a careful comparison of the 

 species growing in lawns, and along streets with these descrip- 

 tions, and especially with the illustrations, there should be no 

 trouble in identifying them. While the camera here has not at 

 present succeeded in reproducing all the colors, this series of pho- 

 tographs illustrates well the habit, texture and specific characters 

 of the plants, and the color values in black and white are quite 

 faithfully represented. It is doubtful if any hand coloring has 

 yet succeeded in producing such perfect imitations as these pho- 

 tographic studies of the shaggy- mane and ink-cap. That they 

 accurately portray the habit and specific characters of these plants 

 I am convinced by the experience of my little boy of eight years. 

 While selecting the illustrations for this study one evening, I 



