December, 1912. 



kno\vli:dge. 



out in water. The fungus used to be bruised and 

 steeped in milk, and the milk used for killing flies. 

 Chemists have isolated an alkaloid, muscarine, from 

 it as a clear, syrupy liquid. This substance is very 

 poisonous to animals. It slows the heart and in- 

 creases secretions, acting in most respects in exacth- 

 the opposite wav to atropine, the poisonous principle 

 of the Deadly Nightshade {Atropii hclhidoiiiiti). and 

 when the heart of an animal has almost ceased to 

 beat through muscarine it may be stimulated to 

 strong action by the use of atropine. But mus- 

 carine is not the only poison in the Scarlet Fly 

 Cap, for specimens from which the muscarine 

 has been extracted still give rise to 

 symptoms of poisoning analagous to 

 those which arise in an animal 

 poisoned by the Scarlet Fly Cap and 

 treated by atropine. There is also 

 present in the fungus a second 

 alkaloid, called hv Robert pilz- 

 atropine, which neutralises to a 

 greater or less extent the effects of 

 muscarine. It is very likely that in 

 those parts of France and Russia 

 where Ainanita ntiisairia is used for 

 food, the amount of pilz-atropine 

 present in the fungus is relatively 

 large. 



The Panther Cap (Aiiuinita paii- 

 therinai and the Sorceress (Aniaiiifti 

 nuippii) are both poisonous, and gi\e 

 rise to similar s\inptoms to the 

 Scarlet Flv Cap {Amanita mtiscaria). 



Eiitoloma siiiiiatiim and E. fertilis, 

 toadstools with pink spores, nearly 

 poisoned Mr. Worthington Smith. 

 the botanist. 



Libertv Cap(P.s/7ocT/jt' semilanceafa ) 

 a small toadstool with a conical yellow 

 cap, dark gills, and a long stalk, 

 commonlv found on dung (see Figure 



492), 



of Lactarius with 

 white milk (the 

 edible Lactarius 

 lieliciosiis has red 

 milk) are danger- 

 ous. The Emetic 

 Russule (Riisstila 

 ciiictica) with its 

 bright red cap, 

 the Burning 

 Lactar {Lactarius 

 pyro}<al iisK the 

 Slaver {Lactarius 



^^ 



iMCL-Ri; 4')7. 



Helvetia crispa. 

 jure 494), the Frins; 



Figure 496. 



The Common Morel 



tMorcliella csculenta 



liave 



appears to 

 poisoned 

 two 



Figure 495. 



The Pill Sprout iPanus 



stypticiis). 



children on 

 separate oc- 

 casions. 



The Skull Cap 



Stropliaria semi- 

 •^lohata) a some- 

 what similarform, 

 also growing on 

 dung, but with a 

 rather larger and 

 more rounded cap 

 and more or less 



>f a ring round 

 tiie stem, is stated 

 b\- Sowerby to 

 have proved fatal. 

 Probably most 

 of the Russulae 

 and those species 



rufiis. Figure 494), the Fringed 

 Lactar {Lactarius torininosus) should 

 especially be avoided. While a good 

 manv cases of poisoning from species 

 of Russula and Lactarius have oc- 

 curred, none seem to have proved 

 fatal. \\'ithin half an hour to an 

 hour vomiting and diarrhoea, thirst 

 and abdominal pains supervene, and 

 are generally followed by giddiness, 

 con\ulsions and a semi-conscious 

 drunken condition. 



The Pill Sprout {Paiius stypficus), 

 a small dark brown form with the 

 stem to one side, common on rotting 

 wood (see Figure 495), is said to act 

 as a violent purgative. 



The Satanic l^oletus {Boletus 

 satanus), a large toadstool with a 

 buff cap and bright red pores below 

 it. has proved fatal. It acts as a 

 violent irritant poison when eaten raw or cooked, 

 and causes sickness with bloodstained vomit 

 and diarrhoea with the passage of blood : con- 

 vulsions and collapse are also present in severe 

 cases. Boletus hiridus is described as poison- 

 ous by some writers and as harmless by 

 others. 



The Common Morel {Morchclla csculenta. Figure 

 496), has at times given rise to symptoms of poisoning 

 and even proved fatal. \"omiting. depression, 

 cramps, delirium, jaundice and collapse were the 

 chief svmptoms. 



Helvellas (see Figure 497) are much eaten in 

 France, Germany and Russia : but sometimes cause 

 fatal poisoning. ' The poison, Helvelhc acid, is only 

 present in mature specimens and is easily dissolved 

 out in water. If Helvellas are boiled, squeezed, 

 and dried thev are harmless, but the water they 

 were boiled in^ though pleasant to the taste, is very 

 poisonous. Dogs drink it readily but are poisoned 

 b\- it. The principal symptoms produced are sick- 



