STUMP MUSHROOMS. 1 89 



XXVIIL— STUMP MUSHROOMS. 



The most common and the most universally eaten on 

 the Continent of all the stump mushrooms is the one 

 which has no favour in this country. In Vienna it is 

 called the stump mushroom and is exposed for sale 

 everywhere. It is always in demand, and yet we con- 

 sider it tough, bitter, and not at all pleasant. Perhaps 

 it is because we use it differently, for there they only 

 employ it as a kind of condiment, adding a little to all 

 their soups, stews, and made dishes. So common is 

 this fungus with us in the autumn that Agaricus melleus 

 is a bye-word and a nuisance. If we could only eat 

 it and recommend it, perhaps we should reduce the 

 number perceptibly, but now it turns up everywhere. 

 No fungus is perhaps more variable in appearance, and 

 it takes a long time to be sure of it under its many 

 phases. It may be premised that it is more or less 

 confined to rotten stumps, and even when it seems to 

 be growing out of the grass it may be concluded that 

 there is some bit of rotten wood buried beneath 

 where it springs. As a rule it forms dense clusters, 

 almost covering the old stump from which it grows. 

 The cap is of a honey-coloured brown, about two 

 inches across, sometimes twice as large, occasionally 

 larger, with a darker centre, more or less scaly or 

 fibrous. The stem is rather long, it may be six 



