Notes on Fungi. 47 



the tough Marasmii and Pani, which dry up rather than cor- 

 rupt in decay ; the Paxilli, with their gills separable from the 

 pileus ; and, lastly, the inky fungi, which in a few hours pass 

 into a black ink-like fluid, though some of these even are 

 esculent in a young state, the student with a real Agaric in 

 hand has to determine to which of the numerous divisions in 

 the genus his species belong. 



Now there is a character which will at once enable him to 

 refer it to one of six great groups into which Agarics have 

 been so cleverly divided by Fries — a character which, though like 

 other characters in natural history, is not absolute, but accords 

 with the real affinities of these plants — I mean the colour of the 

 spores. A very little practice will enable the student at once to 

 say to which great group any particular species belongs ; but till 

 this tact is acquired, or where doubtful cases arise in the course 

 of more advanced study, it will be well to collect the spores by 

 simply placing the specimen on a sheet of white or black paper, 

 inclosed in some vessel which excludes the air. In the course 

 of a few hours there will be a thick deposit, unless the speci- 

 men is too far advanced, or has become dry from exposure to 

 the sun. The spores will be found to be either white, or pink, 

 or ferruginous, or brown, or purplish-black, or black, according 

 with the divisions Leucospori, Hyporhodii, Dermini, Phseoti, 

 Pratellini, or Coprinarii. Amongst the Leucospori in a few 

 instances the spores will have a slight tinge of yellow, or pos- 

 sibly of pink, but not of so decided a .character as to invalidate 

 the importance of the distinction ; in Dermini there will be 

 different ferruginous shades, partaking more in one case of 

 yellow, and in another of a red tint ; but there will be no real 

 difficulty, and the peroxide tint of the spores of Cortinarii will 

 be distinctive enough even apart from the spidery veil. The 

 spores themselves will not very frequently present distinctive 

 characters ; but two prominent forms will be found in Hypo- 

 rhodii, distinguished by great neatness of outline and extreme 

 irregularity; while amongst the Dermini cases will be found 

 where they are studded over with granules, presenting an 

 excellent mark of distinction between species which might 

 otherwise be difficult to separate. 



The student having thus ascertained to which of the six 

 main divisions his species belongs, will proceed to the characters 

 of the sub -divisions, or sub-genera. It appears greatly pre- 

 ferable to consider them as sub-genera than as genera, as it 

 keeps the whole under one common view, and there is really 

 no less difficulty in the one case than in the other, though 

 something of the kind is often alleged as an excuse for 

 multiplying generic names. 



Before, however, he proceeds further it will be well to have 



