AMANITA MU SC ARIA. FLY AMANITA. 
Class XXIY. CRYPTOGAMIA.— Order IV. FUNGI. 
Natural Order, FUNGI. THE MUSHROOM TRIBE. 
Many species of this order are used as food, or rather as condiments; and several of them are known to 
rank among the most active of the vegetable poisons. Accidents arising from the poisonous Fungi being 
taken through mistake for the esculent mushrooms, are frequent both in this country and on the continent, 
especially in France, where many species are eaten that are rejected by us. Almost the only ones in use in 
this country are the Argaricus campestris and oreades, the deliciosus, which the ancient Romans esteemed 
the greatest of luxuries, the truffle, and the morel. Even some of these, under certain circumstances, have 
proved injurious, if not poisonous; hence the greatest caution is necessary in selecting any species of this 
tribe for food. Haller informs us that the Russians eat the whole race, using the poisonous ones as means 
of intoxication. It appears, however, that these are used after a process of fermentation, so that their 
noxious effects are, probably, diminished. The poisonous species found in this country have not been cor- 
rectly determined; those most commonly fatal are Amanita muscaria, and its varieties; the Agaricus serrii- 
globatus, and Agaricus globosus. 
The Amanita muscaria is one of the largest and most beautiful of the Agaric tribe, and really deserves 
the name of “imperial,” applied to it by Batsch; “for the most indifferent person must be attracted by 
the glowing hues of its ample pileus, its regular form, tall pillar-like stipes — extremely conspicuous, even at 
a distance, in the shady recesses of its native woods.” It is found in woods throughout the whole kingdom, 
and is extremely abundant in the Highlands of Scotland. 
The pileus is from three to six inches in diameter, convex at first, at length nearly flat, striated at the 
margin, varying very much in colour, being mostly bright red or orange, but sometimes liver-coloured, 
yellowish, or even whitish, and beset with downy, angular warts. The warts are white, or yellowish, pro- 
minent, pretty regular, scattered over the surface, but sometimes wanting. The lamellae are flat, adnate 
with the stipes, very numerous, broad, and whitish. The flesh is thick, and white, partaking to a small, 
depth of the colour of the pileus. The stipes are cylindrical, smooth, white, very straight, subsolid, from 
four to eight inches high, and bulbous at the base. The volva, according to Dr. Greville, is perfect only in 
extremely young plants, cracking immediately into pyramidal warts, which become less elevated, and more 
distinct, as the pileus expands, and generally leave a few traces upon the bulb, at the base of the stem. 
Qualities and Chemical Properties. — Mushrooms are of rapid growth and speedy decay. 
When they putrefy, they give out an extremely unpleasant odour, and approach animal matter more closely 
than other vegetable substances. Braconnot, who, with M. Vauquelin, has analyzed a great number of 
species, distinguished the insoluble spongy portion, which characterises mushrooms by the name of fungin. 
It approaches woody fibre in its properties; but is sufficiently distinguishable by various characters, parti- 
cularly by constituting a nourishing article of food, and being much less soluble in alkaline leys. Bracon- 
not also ascertained the existence of two new acids in mushrooms. One of these is termed boleiic acid, and 
consists of irregular four-sided prisms, of a white colour, and permanent in the air: the other acid, which 
constitutes a very general ingredient in mushrooms, is called funyic acid. Both may be obtained from the 
expressed juice of the Boletus pseudo igniarius, the latter also from B. juglandis, Merulius cantharellus , 
Peziza nigra, and Phallus impudicus. Proust has likewise discovered in them the benzoic acid, and phos- 
phate of lime. 
Amanita muscaria. This was examined by Vauquelin, who extracted from it an animal matter, in- 
soluble in alcohol, osmazome, a fatty matter, muriate, phosphate, and sulphate of potash. 
Poisonous Effects. The symptoms which generally arise from eating the noxious Fungi, are pains 
of the stomach, nausea, &c.; sense of heat of the bowels, faintings, cramps of the lower extremities, con- 
