POISONOUS MUSHROOMS. 109 



ACRID MILK-MUSHROOM. 



Lactarius acris. 



(Plate XV. Fig. 2.) 



In so far as our experience goes this 

 species is uncommon, having met with it 

 very rarely during thirty years. It occurs 

 in woods, and is probably sometimes con- 

 founded with Lactarius fuliginosus'. The 

 pileus is of a dull, dark, sooty grey, and 

 often irregular and viscid, seldom two 

 inches broad, with a stem that is not un- 

 commonly placed somewhat on one side, so 

 that the cap is oblique ; it is pallid and 

 attenuated downwards. The gills are rather 

 crowded, and yellowish or tawny. When 

 cut or bruised it yields a white milk, which 

 is very acrid to the taste, and slowly becomes 

 discoloured, changing to a dull reddish or 

 neutral orange colour. This change is not 

 so rapid as in many species, but ultimately 

 takes place, and is a very good clue to the 

 species. It is altogether a darker fungus 



