SUPERSTITIONS ABOUT FUNGI 91 



not call it to mind. And, we are assured, the girl be- 

 came lame, and remained so for the seven years. At the 

 end of that period she happened to be picking a mush- 

 room, when she was startled by the discovery of a strange 

 little fellow underneath the delectable fungus. This 

 fairy — for such he was — struck her leg repeatedly with 

 the wonderful herb until the lameness passed away, and 

 the maid became an excellent dancer. 



And there are still some ancient persons, quite medi- 

 eval in their beliefs, who will point to the fairy-rings in 

 the pastures as evidence of the existence of the little 

 people. If you can get into terms of intimacy with 

 these survivors of the Middle Ages, they will tell you 

 about — 



" The nimble elves 

 That do by moonshine green sour ringlets make, 

 Whereof the ewe bites not ; whose pastime 'tis 

 To make these midnight mushrooms." 



They are as fully convinced as the old writer who in 

 cold blood wrote of the little people: " They had always 

 fine music among themselves, and danced in a moon- 

 shiny night, around, or in a ring, as one may see at 

 this day upon every common in England where mush- 

 rooms grow." These fairy-rings are circles, or part 

 circles, of dark grass, which is more luxuriant than that 

 by which it is surrounded. They are sometimes quite 

 ancient, and of very considerable size. They were 

 associated with mushrooms and fairies by the super- 

 stitious. The fairies do not now enter into the account, 

 but the mushrooms are admitted. In brief, the rings 

 are due to the operations of the Fairy- ring Champignon 

 {Marasmius oreades), an edible fungus. The Rev. M. J. 



