96 
WHAT IS LICHENOPSIS? 
** Sporidiis muriformibus. 
Platysticta simulans, Gke. fy Mass. Lichenopsis sphceroboloides , 
Berk in Herb, pro parte. 
Immersa, erumpens, discoidea, urceolatis, margine albo. 
Ascis cylindraceis. Sporidiis cylindraceis, utrinque rotundatis, 
medio constrictis, pluriseptatis, dein muriformibus, byalinis, 
120-135x16-17 p. 
On Quercus. S. Carolina. Ho. 2423. 
THELEPHOREI. 
It bas long been, and probably still is, somewhat a reproach 
to mycologists that whereas so much has been done in other 
orders of Eungi, the Thelephorei remain pretty much the same 
as they were fifty years ago. Yet there is ample scope for 
improvement, since the microscope has been very little brought 
into use with the view of facilitating their classification or more 
accurate determination. One slight step was taken in advance 
when certain species of Stereum were separated, and constituted 
a distinct genus, under the name of Hymenochcete , but even this 
failed to command universal acceptance. This failure was 
hardly based upon legitimate grounds, for the genus is a most 
natural one, but may partly be attributed to a prejudice against 
microscopical characters, on account of the additional labour 
involved, until it became almost compulsory. Another effort 
was subsequently made to obtain recognition for the genus 
Peniophora, which to some extent approached Hymenochcete , and 
was composed, for the most part, of species separated from the 
large genus Gorticium. This, again, was not at all generally 
appreciated, and mycologists still went on attempting to identify 
species by the aid of a pocket lens, and the short, imperfect 
diagnosis of the older authors. 
Anyone who has ever attempted the identification in this 
manner of the species of Corticium is painfully conscious of the 
difficulties which beset the way. The consultation of any good 
herbarium will consequently result in the discovery that, when 
the microscope is brought into operation, a series of specimens, 
having considerable external resemblance, are so different in 
fructification, and sometimes in texture, that only a very catholic 
spirit could induce anyone to accept them as one species. And 
yet there are so many good features in texture, as well as of 
fructification, that one is led to marvel that these have not been 
taken advantage of long ago to reform the classification. 
It is needless to indicate here what are the features to be 
relied upon in a revision, since the work has long since been 
taken in hand by Mr. GT. Massee, who for many months has 
been engaged in examining types, and elaborating new features 
