124 THE CORRESPONDENCE OF SCHWEINITZ AND TORREY 
specimen of my new Genus Craterium, allied to Peziza. It grows 
with us to an enormous size changing from its Clavaria form to a 
remarkably shaped deeply turbinate Peziza. Some of the Speci- 
mens were rather indistinct. To these I have subjoined a (?). _ 
In answer to your enquiry concerning the Phallus you have 
found I beg leave to observe that I have only once met with a 
Phallus here (altho I believe it not very rare but easily overlooked 
& requiring a wet season at a particular time, which generally 
with us is a dry one) & that in its ovular state. But this one was 
doubtless the same as yours for it had an indusium tho’ otherwise 
quite similar to the Ph. impudicus of Europe. I could not de- 
termine it specifically on account of the young state. The later 
mycologists of Germany call the Phalli indusiati—Hymeno- 
phallus—a new Genus & I am confirmed by your observation in 
supposing this American species one not yet described; but I 
believe the P. impud{icus| of Muhlenberg is a different one & the 
same European Phall{us| as my friend the Rev. Jacob Van Vleck 
informs me, that he has seen the Europ[ean] Phali[us] impud{icus] 
in Pennsylvania. What is the Phallus coccineus of your Cata- 
logue? It is not a Clathrus | suppose? Mr. Leconte once sent 
me a drawing of the Clathrus from Georgia. 
Having now answered your letter & added that you cannot 
possibly do me a greater favor than by continuing your communi- 
cations of plants & fungi I shall beg leave to give you some in- 
formation concerning my botanical labors & collections, in order 
to enable you to judge wherein I could serve your wishes. 
en I first came to Carolina I almost exclusively attached 
myself to the Fungi & formed a considerable collection now a- 
mounting to about 1500 Species, entirely from our immediate 
neighborhood, which still keeps increasing. Of these rather 
upwards of 1100 Species are identical with European ones, the 
rest appear to belong exclusively to our continent many of these 
necessarily, from being parasitical on merely American vegetables; 
others may probably occur in Europe likewise, as it is but of late 
that the Fungi have been closely examined there. Of the preserv- 
able ones I have with few exceptions preserved specimens in my col- 
lection (the Agarici &c. except the Pleuropodes | exclude entirely 
because altho’ they may be dried they lose all their characteristics, 
