[ 5 6 1 
what Progrefs he made in this Undertaking, his many 
valuable Works are the beft Teftimony. Among 
them, his Hifiory of Fungus's bears not the leaf 
Chara&er 5 he therein enumerates a great Variety, not 
only of the efculent, but noxious Kinds ; but, as the 
different Appellations of every Species was not, at 
that time, much confider’d, he gives no other Syno- 
nyms to either Clafs, than that of, viz. Efculento- 
rum primum Genus , Noxiorum decimum Gems , and 
fuch-like. But this Want of fpecific Names has been 
iufficiently luppiied by 'John and Cafpar Bauhin , 
Ray, Mori fan, Tournefort , Vaillant ; but, above all, 
by \ Dillenius , in his Catalogns Gijfenfs , and by 
Micheli , in his Nova Riant arum Genera. In mod 
of thefe Authors we find Inftances of mifchievous 
Effects from the pernicious Kinds $ which Property 
iome of them have equal to Opium , Aconite, or 
Henbane 5 but how far this Property proceeds^ from 
Animalcules, the following Infiance will fufficiently 
demonftrate. We have a Sort growing in England , 
called, by Cafpar Bauhin , Fungus albus acris ; which 
Monfieur Tournefort has rightly obferved ftimulates 
the Tongue, and is alrnofi as fharp as tho’ it were 
fieep’d in Spirit of Nitre; and, being rubbed upon 
Paper dyed blue with Turnfole, turns it as red as any 
violent acid Spirit will. This caufiic Quality re- 
mains even after the Fungus is dry. We need make 
no further Inquiry for the Caufe of the Poifon in 
this Plant; the above-mentioned is a fufficicnt Cri- 
terion. John Bauhin likewife tells you, that after 
having handled this Fungus , he rubbed his Eyes by 
Accident, and brought on a violent Irritation upon 
his Eye lids. Cafpar Bauhin mentions a Sort which 
kills 
