INTRODUCTION I7 



A few moments later we paused before a beautiful 

 specimen, lifting its parasol of pure white above the 

 black leaf mould. 



" And what is this?" I inquired. 



" I would certainly call that a mushroom," was his 

 instant reply. 



This mushroom proved to be a fine, tempting speci- 

 men of the Agaricus {amanita) vernus, the deadliest 

 of the mushrooms, and one of the most violent and 

 fatal of all known vegetable poisons, whose attractive 

 graces and insidious wiles are doubtless continually 

 responsible for those numerous fatalities usually dis- 

 missed with the epitaph, " Died from eating toad- 

 stools in mistake for mushrooms." 



So much, therefore, for the popular distinction which 

 makes " toadstool " a synonyme for " poisonous," and 

 " mushroom " synonymous with " edible," and which 

 often proves to be the " little knowledge " which is 

 very dangerous. 



The too prevalent mortality traceable to the mush- 

 room is confined to two classes of unfortunates: 

 I. Those who have not learned that 



The rustic there is such a thing; as a fatal mush- 

 authontieson • • 1 ^u 4. u 



"mushrooms" room ; 2. 1 he provincial authority who 



can " tell a mushroom " by a number of 

 his so-called infallible " tests " or " proofs." There is a 

 large third class to whose conservative caution is to 

 be referred the prevalent arbitrary distinction be- 

 tween " toadstool " and " mushroom," ardent disciples 

 of old Tertullian, who believed in regard to toadstools 

 that " For every different hue they display there is 

 a pain to correspond to it, and just so many modes 



