Orr.. 1004.1 



KNOWLEDGE & SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



231 



III. TKe Influence of 

 Fvingi 



For BslcI on OtKer Forms of Life. 



Bv George Massee, F.L.S. 



Fungi arc looked upon with a certain aniouiU of 

 justifiable suspicion by the majority of people, on ac- 

 count of their poisonous properties. Some kinds are 

 undoubtedly very poisonous, but the dangers attendant 

 on eating fungi have been much exaggerated. The 

 percentage of edible fungi, compared with the whole 

 number, excluding the microscopic forms, is mucii 

 greater than in the flowering plants. 



A very considerable number of the cases of fungus 

 poisoning recorded annually are in reality not due to 

 having eaten poisonous fungi, and may be explained 

 as follows. In the country, when fungi are abundant, 

 they are frequently not used sparingly, in the sense of 

 a relish, but often constitute the greater portion, if not 

 the only dish for a hearty meal. If a meal of this 

 nature is accompanied or followed by the drinking of 

 alcoholic liquor, more especially spirits, the fungi eaten 

 coagulate and form an indigestible mass, which to say 

 the least causes much discomfort, and may become 

 serious. Strong tea acts in a similar manner to 

 alcohol. An oyster supper followed by a copious 

 supply of whisky would in most instances produce 

 similar unpleasant results. 



Nevertheless all such instances are recorded as cases 

 of poisoning by fungi. 



This is not the place to enter into an explanation of 

 the differences between edible and poisonous fungi; it 

 is, however, necessary to state that the old fables on 

 the subject, such as the separable skin of the cap, or 

 the blackening of a silver spoon when brought into 

 contact with the cooked fungus, are absolutely unre- 

 liable. 



Above ninety per cent, of the cases of poisoning by 

 fungi, both in Europe and North America, is due to 

 partaking of one particular kind of fungus called the 

 " Death cup " (Agaricus flialloides). The popular 

 name is derived from the presence of a loose cup-like 

 sheath surrounding the base of the stem. 



The presence of a cup at the base of the stem is not, 

 however, the hall-mark of all poisonous fungi; in fact, 

 some among the best known of edible fungi have a 

 similar cup, and it is the sum-total of characters pre- 

 sented by the " Death cup " that enables it to be re- 

 cognised with certainty. 



The " Death cup " is very abundant in woods in 

 this country, but does not grow in open pastures like 

 the common mushroom. When full-grown, the cap 

 is slightly convex, smooth, and usually of a very pale 

 primrose colour ; the gills remain permanently white ; 

 the stem is from four to five inches in length, white, 

 and bearing a loose white collar some little distance 

 from the top ; the base is surrounded by ?. loose cup- 

 like sheath having a ragged edge. 



Lack of space forbids entering into a detailed ac- 

 count of the numerous diseases caused to members of 

 the animal kingdom by fungi — " Thrush " (Oidium 

 albicans), appearing in the mouths of infants ; " ring- 



worm " [Ac/iorion Schociilcnii), a disease which passes 

 from man to animals ; " Muscardine " {Botrylis 

 knsHimt) proves very destructive to silkworms. Men- 

 lion has already been made of the diseases of other 

 insects caused by fungi. 



In speaking of fungi benelicial to other forms of life, 

 it was stated that wo bcnelited to the extent of 

 hundreds of millions of pounds sterling annually 

 through work done by fungi. On the other hand, it 

 is equally true that we annually lose at least an equal 

 amount, due to the injury caused by parasitic fungi. 

 In support of this statement, which, perhaps, might 

 be considered as improbable, it may be well to give 

 soMH- ollirial statements. The Prussian Statistics 

 lUneau announced a loss of ;£,2o,628, 147 on wheat. 



The "Death. tup" Vun^uti lAi^nyUut iihuUuUh'i). Natural size. 



rye, and oats grown in Prussia, caused by grain rust 

 during the year 1891. Wheat rust caused a loss of 

 ;£.'2, 500,000 on the wheat harvest of 1890-91 in 

 Australia. In the year-book of the United States De- 

 partment of Agriculture for 1898 the loss of cultivated 

 crops caused by fungi for that year is estimated at 

 ^40,000,000. A fungus disease called peach leaf-curl, 

 which proves very destructive to peach trees, does 

 injury to the extent of ^.600,000 annually in the 

 United States. No oflicial statements as to the 

 amount of injury done by fungi to cultivated crops are 

 issued in this country, but it is quite certain that we 

 suffer as much in this respect as other countries. 

 English cucumber growers suffered a loss of at least 

 ^20,000 during the year T901, caused by the ravages 

 of a microscopic fungus parasite. 



The question naturally suggested by the above state- 

 ments is. Can nothing be done to prevent, or at least 

 to reduce, such enormous losses? In answer it may be 



