MUSHROOMS AS FOOD 



poisonous and remain bright if they were edible, that was long 

 ago proved to be most unreliable by a fatal experiment in 

 which several persons lost their lives because the cook put 

 confidence in it. We are, therefore, forced to conclude that 

 no abstract rule is at present known by which the good can in 

 every case be separated from the bad. The only safe and 

 reasonable way to do is to learn to recognize each species by 

 its own peculiar specific characters. It is in this way that 

 we recognize the useful and esculent species among flowering 

 plants, and it must be in this way that we select our edible 

 mushrooms. A little more care may be necessary in one case 

 than in the other, because of a closer resemblance in some cases 

 between good and bad mushrooms than between good and 

 bad flowering plants. The principle that is to govern in this 

 matter is the same in both cases. The greater the number of 

 edible species clearly recognizable by any one the greater the 

 field from which he may draw his supplies. If he is acquainted 

 with but one species he should limit his use of mushrooms 

 to that one species, unless he can avail himself of the more ex- 

 tensive knowledge of some one else or unless he is willing to 

 take the risk of eating some poisonous or unwholesome species. 

 In a few instances it is possible to affirm of certain groups of 

 species or of certain genera, that no deleterious species are 

 known in them. He who can discriminate between puff balls 

 and all other fungi does not incur very much risk in eating any 

 puff ball of good flavor, though he may not be able to dis- 

 tinguish the species from each other. The probability is 

 that he will suffer no harm by so doing, but there is not abso- 

 lute safety. It is possible that some rare species exists having 

 deleterious qualities which have not yet been ascertained by 

 experiment, hence the lack of absolute certainty; for we know 

 by experience among the amanitas that excellent edible species 

 may exist in the same genus with and be closely related botani- 

 cally to dangerously poisonous species. 



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