6l6 . PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. [aNNO I762. 



\fiins the figures and descriptions of some singular and remarkable fungi ; the 2d 

 contains proposals for publishing the figures of all the fungi growing in Bavaria, 

 coloured after nature. The titlepage farther sets forth, that the materials for 

 this work were already provided, and that it was carried on under the direction, 

 and at the expence, of the Electoral Academy at Munich in Bavaria. 



Tlie author begins, by thinking it would be acceptable to the public, if he pre- 

 fixed something of a new and singular nature to the proposals; to which purpose 

 he thought nothing could be better adapted than coloured figures, and descrip.- 

 tions of some remarkable fungi, which had lately fallen in his way. These were 

 selected from a number of others, and according to him, serve to illustrate and 

 confimi an hypothesis he had adopted, and by which the existence of seeds, and 

 consequently the propagation of the fungi, are rendered doubtful. 



The fungi which he has given figures of, and which he uses to confirm his 

 opinion, are certainly very irregular, and perhaps not easy to be accounted for. 

 In the 3 first of them, more than one fungus grows from one common base, or 

 stem; and what seems extraordinary to the author is, that part of the base of 

 one of the fungi does not touch the ground, but rests on the pileus, or aip of 

 the other, and consequently cannot receive from the ground what is necessary 

 for its rise, evolution, and nourishment. Mr. H. remarks that he does not see 

 the force of this argument; for why may not one common stem, the bottom of 

 which is fixed in the ground, give nourishment to each of the fungi, though part 

 of the stem of one rests on the pileus of the other? Does not common expe- 

 rience prove, that nourishment can be conveyed through imperfect branches, 

 even when such parts as would be judged at first sight to be necessary to convey 

 the nutritive pieces are wanting? This is the case of trees, when all the bark is 

 stripped oft' quite round a branch, and yet that branch shall bear flowers and fruit 

 in great quantity. The 4th figure exhibits 2 fungi, out of the pileus of which 

 grows another complete fungus, with stem, pileus, and lamellae, of the same 

 kind with the lower one in every respect. However extraordinary this may be, 

 yet it seems by no means to prove his hypothesis, or even suggest any reason for 

 a new one, about the propagation of the fungi ; for why may not the cap of the 

 fungus afford as proper a bed for a seed that happens to be lodged there, as the 

 earth itself? We know that a birch tree has often been found growing out of 

 the head of an oak, yet no one suspects from thence, that the birch is propa- 

 gated without seed. This author indeed seems to be sensible himself of the in- 

 8ufl[iciency of his arguments, hitherto made use of, to prove his new hypothesis, 

 and suspects, he says, had he nothing more to produce in its favour, people 



r ..IT ',!.-; I-.,/ «\i« t til it 



to the LinnaeaD system. This work met with much apprpbation, and a second improved edition was 

 published in 177 8« . r. , ., ', , . „ .4 ■■.■ , . 



