170 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



in early Roman times, and have been used in large quantities and 

 ill considerable variety for two or three hundred years in Italy, 

 France, Russia, and Germany. The common people of France 

 and Italy depend upon mushrooms to supply their table at certain 

 seasons of the year, and seem to have an intuitive knowledge of 

 the edible species, although from ignorance of recent investiga- 

 tions mistakes still occur in those countries with fatal results. 

 Mushrooms are gathered in the Himalayas and the Vale of Cash- 

 mere, dried, and shipped to Europe; Japan exports large quan- 

 tities to China ; Patagoniaus have them for an exclusive diet 

 during part of the year ; in New Zealand and Australia the con- 

 sumption is very noticeable, and yet in this country the use of 

 mushrooms has been confined to a very limited area, and until 

 within a few years to a single species, and that not one of the 

 most conspicuous, or, in the opinion of many mycologists, the 

 most valuable, the mushroom of commerce, Agaricus compestris, 

 ■with its several varieties. The reason of this is not far to seek : 

 First, this mushroom is almost the only one, so far, which lends 

 itself to artificial propagation, and so has become more generally 

 known as an edible species than any other; and, second, because 

 of a wholesome and necessary fear of bad results from eating 

 poisonous mushrooms, for it is known to all that some are very 

 injurious if eaten; in point of fact it is probable that every year 

 there are from twenty to thirty deaths in the United States from 

 this cause alone. 



It may be argued from this that if the use of our native mush- 

 rooms is made more general and popular these fatalities will 

 largely increase, and so instead of a blessing this new food product 

 will prove a curse. This would undoubtedly be the case unless the 

 knowledge of the poisonous species goes before and follows and 

 surrounds all acquaintance with mushrooms, and this knowledge 

 it is the aim of mycologists (and, it seems to me, of this Society) 

 to make prominent and foremost in all speech, writing, or object 

 lessons, by exhibition or photograph given upon this subject. It 

 is necessary that the student of this subject shall be first fright- 

 ened to death that he may afterwards rise into peace and satis- 

 faction and eat his mushrooms without fear and trembling. How 

 can this knowledge be obtained ? Is there any rule or guide by 

 which poisonous mushrooms can be known at sight and all danger 

 eliminated, so that we may go forth into the fields or woods and 



