NOTABLE PHENOMENA. 113 
luminous property resides; this matter, which is said to be 
mucilaginous in the luminous wood, appears to be in the 
Rhizomorpha only a kind of chemical combination between the 
membrane and some gummy substance which they contain. 
Notwithstanding this opinion, I am assured that all external 
mucous matter was completely absent from the Agaricus olearius, 
and I neither discovered it upon the branches of Rhizomorpha 
subterranea nor upon the dead leaves which I have seen phos- 
phorescent; in all these objects the luminous surfaces were 
nothing else than their proper tissue. 
It may be remarked here that the so-called species of Zhizo- 
morpha are imperfect fungi, being entirely devoid of fructifica- 
tion, consisting in fact only of a vegetative system—a sort of 
compact mycelium—(probably of species of Xyluria) with some 
affinity to Sclerotium. 
Recently an extraordinary instance of luminosity was recorded 
as occurring in our own country.* “A quantity of wood had 
been purchased in a neighbouring parish, which was dragged up 
a very steep hill to its destination. Amongst them was a log of 
larch or spruce, it is not quite certain which, 24 feet long and a 
foot in diameter. Some young friends happened to pass up the 
hill at night, and were surprised to find the road scattered with 
luminous patches, which, when more closely examined, proved to 
be portions of bark or little fragments of wood. Following the 
track, they came to a blaze of white light which was perfectly 
surprising. On examination, it appeared that the whole of the 
inside of the bark of the log was covered with a white byssoid 
mycelium of a peculiarly strong smell, but unfortunately in such 
a state that the perfect form could not be ascertained. This was 
luminous, but the light was by no means so bright as in those 
parts of the wood where the spawn had penetrated more deeply, 
and where it was so intense that the roughest treatment scarcely 
seemed to check it. If any attempt was made to rub off the 
luminous matter it only shone themore brightly,and when wrapped 
up in five folds of paper the light penetrated through all the folds 
on either side as brightly as if the specimen was exposed ; when, 
* Rev. M. J. Berkeley, in ‘‘ Gardener's Chronicle’’ for 1872, p. 1258. 
