126 
OF THE FUNGI. 
for at least twelve hours before being operated on. The 
work itself is rendered much easier, and there is less chance 
of the delicate parts being mangled. 
Small coriaceous Fungi (the Polypori, Thelephorse, &c.) 
must not be weighted too severely. There are some kinds 
of Fungi, which are as hard as wood; from such thin 
sections may be taken in various directions, and put away 
at once. Several species belonging to the genera Peziza, 
Hirneola, &c., are of a totally different consistency, being 
strictly gelatinous. These will partially recover their 
original form and appearance on being moistened, long 
after they have been deposited in the herbarium. 
As a final process, subsequent to the pressure and dry- 
ing, every portion of the Fungi — of the leathery and fleshy 
kinds, I mean — must be impregnated with corrosive subli- 
mate, to save them from the attacks of insects. But with 
regard to this I will speak more freely when treating of the 
herbarium, and the best method of preserving its contents 
uninjured. 
However well prepared, dried Fungi, especially the 
pileate group, are very difficult of determination. If, 
therefore, from want of time or leisure, the student is 
unable to submit his freshly gathered examples to a rigid 
•examination, he should at least assist his memory by 
making a note of such characteristics as come under his 
eye before the plants are dried. The main points to observe 
are these : the colour of the stem and of the upper surface 
of the pileus ; consistency of the fleshy substance, whether 
hard and brittle, tough and gelatinous, soft and spongy, &c. ; 
the odour emitted, of garlic, of violet, of putrid flesh, &c. ; 
the presence or absence of a milky fluid when fragments 
are broken off ; and, lastly, the changes of colour, which 
take place when the plant is freshly cut. For a more 
scientific diagnosis it is necessary to ascertain, what relation 
the reproductive parts hold to the general structure of the 
organism ; whether, for instance, the spores are imbedded in 
lamellae (as with the Agarics), are borne in tubes on the lower 
