﻿BOTANICAL GAZETTE 



to observe external evidence of a differentiation into stipe and 

 pileus. The plants were in the form of irregular tubercles, oval 

 to elongate, the larger ones i-i . 5 cm. long by 3-5 mm. in diameter. 

 Some of the larger ones in longitudinal freehand sections presented 

 evidence of a differentiation in the upper part where the pileus 

 and stem develop from the distal portion of the tubercle. When 

 the material was microtomed and stained it was found that all 

 stages were present, from a condition prior to any differentiation of 

 the hymenophore up to quite an advanced stage of development, 

 and often details of structure could be made out quite clearly by 

 microscopic examination immediately after the paraffin ribbons 

 were smoothed out on the slide. 



Coprinus atramentarius . — The first material was collected early 

 in September on the ground in a small park (Washington Park, 

 Ithaca), but this material was not very satisfactory, since it was 

 rather old and the compact soil was difficult to remove without 

 damage to the fruit bodies. During the latter part of September 

 some fine material was found growing on a very rotten stump on 

 the campus quadrangle. The stump had been cut quite close 

 to the ground, so that there was a sufficient amount of moisture, 

 and yet the surface of the stump was free fiom soil except dust 

 particles lodged from the air. The young fruit bodies were thus 

 in an excellent condition for preservation, free from soil particles 

 which might interfere with the knife in sectioning. There were 

 several different clusters growing on this stump. The cluster 

 which attracted my attention was about one-third grown, and 

 careful examination in the rotten wood revealed several other 

 clusters of very young fruit bodies from which the material was 

 selected. In this species there is no large tubercle formed, but 

 internal differentiation occurs when the basidiocarps are quite 

 small, and oval or more or less pyriform in shape. 



Coprinus micaceus. — This material was also collected from a 

 very rotten stump on the campus quadrangle. Several years ago, 

 as the elm trees were becoming too crowded on the campus, a large 

 number were removed by thinning out the stand, the stumps being 

 sawed off close to the ground. For several years enormous masses 

 of this species have appeared on these stumps, and from their root 



