Objects for the Microscope. 41 



wheat, until it is crushed, when a fetid black powder is 

 seen, the spores of which are larger than those of the smut. 

 Nevertheless, each grain contains four millions of them. 

 They are of an oily nature, so that they stick to the 

 healthy grains, and, if sown with them, infect the next 

 crop ; therefore farmers dress their wheat with potash to 

 destroy this fungus. 



UREDO, OR jECIDIUM. 



I mention this, although few specimens are mounted, 

 because it is met with abundantly throughout the autumn 

 and winter on the underside of the Coltsfoot leaf, on Spurge 

 in our gardens, on the twigs of Fir-trees, and on almost 

 every garden vegetable. These yellow spots on leaf or stem 

 are beautiful microscopic objects. The orange-coloured 

 spores form under the cuticle, which breaks sometimes like 

 a cup, or coronet, full of golden dust, that is most interest- 

 ing to the observer. 



I will only add that there are 4,000 species of fungi, most 

 of which are parasitic on plants and animals. The human 

 body is also subject to their growth the internal parts, as 

 well as the bulb of the hair, the tongue and palate. The 

 tartar of our teeth is partly a fungus, and so is the thrush 

 in infants. 



We can find a rich store of curious and beautiful forms 

 on every dying leaf or decaying stem. Examine the mould 

 on paste or jam ; the Puccinia on Rose-trees, Beans, Black- 

 berries ; the ^cidium, growing in bright-red spots, on 

 Gooseberry and Barberry leaves in June and July ; also on 

 the white film on leaves of the garden pea. ^Ecidium is 

 called erysipJie, and has little spore-cases dotted over it. 

 So also on the leaves of the willow, a lovely little erysiphej 

 each black dot fringed with hooked filaments. These will 

 give some idea of the variety of fungi, and their invisible 

 and unknown beauty. Look over Greville's work on the 

 Cryptogamia, and Mrs. Hussey on the Fungi ; or get at 

 Bulliard's fine old book on Microscopic Fungi, when your 

 winter walks will abound with hitherto undreamt-of objects 

 of delight: 



3 



