PREFACE. vil 
have been embodied in the last chapter, for which 
I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. Cooke, one 
of the ablest of our British mycologists. They 
have been taken from his most admirable ‘ Hand- 
book of British Fungi,’ which no botanist should 
be without; and were drawn, I believe, by Mr. 
Worthington Smith, who has done so much by his 
learned pen and graceful pencil to elucidate the 
history of these obscure productions. The bor- 
rowed wood-cuts, I may mention, are Figs. 27, 28, 
31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 40, 43, 48, and 52; all the rest 
are original. 
One of the greatest annoyances of the Crypto- 
gamic student is the constant changing of the 
nomenclature. More accurate knowledge leading 
to an improved method of classification has doubt- 
less in many instances been the cause of this 
procedure. But it is to be feared that some 
authors introduce innovations capriciously and 
without any adequate necessity; thus adding 
greatly to the toil of identification, and to the 
chaos of synonymy with which our text-books are 
burdened. On this point I have exercised what 
I believe to be a wise discretion. I have followed 
the new fashion to a limited extent, but have 
