W. G. PARLOW 
PUFF BALL LETTERS. No. i. 
Kew, England, 
January , 1904. 
It has been almost a year now since I have been in Europe and in the- 
meantime I have not been able to issue “Mycological Notes.” It has 
not been possible for me to prepare away from home, the photographic 
illustrations which are the feature of the publication. These letters I 
shall hope to issue frequently, but they are not intended to take the place 
of “ Mycological Notes,” which will be published in future as circumstances- 
will permit. I have received at Paris more than 500 “ puff-balls ” from, 
correspondents in all parts of the world, of course only a few of the jmost 
noteworthy can be considered in these letters. 
I beg to thank the following who reside in “ Foreign Countries ” for 
specimens. The contributions from Europe and America will be duly- 
acknowledged in following letters. 
R. T. Baker, Sydney, Australia. 
Robt. M. Laing, New Zealand. 
W. Jekyll, Jamaica. 
J. Medley Wood, Natal, S. Africa. 
W. G. Freeman, Barbados. 
L. J. K. Brace, Bahamas. 
E. Stuart Panton, Jamaica. 
Kingo Miyabe, Sapporo, Japan. 
Robert Brown, New Zealand. 
Wm. Lunt, St. Kitts, W. I. 
Walter Gill, Adelaide, Australia. 
L. Trabut, Algiers. 
W. W. Watts, Sydney, Australia. 
H. F. Macmillan, Peradeniya, Ceylon. 
J. G. O. Tepper, Australia. 
Dr. M. M. Solerzano, Mexico. 
W. R. Guilfoyle, Australia. 
G. H. Cave. British India. 
J. T. Paul, Grantville, Australia. 
Botanic Gardens, Saharanpur, India. 
Dr. Florentino Fellippone, Chilli. 
T. Yoshinaga, Kochi, Japan. 
Donor unknown, Brazil. 
Kurt Dinter, German West Africa. 
Miss B. Stoneman, South Africa. 
Miss Jessie Dunn, New Zealand. _ 
From far away Asia we have received a large specimen from Geo. H.- 
Cave, British India and the same from Hugh F. Macmillan Ceylon. 
This is the “ giant puff-ball ” of India, Lasiosphaera Fenzlii, 
characterized by its large size and caducous peridium, which falls away 
when the plant matures, leaving a compact spore mass. Over 40 years 
ago such a specimen was collected on the voyage around the world ot 
the “Novara,” named and deposited in the Museum at Vienna. . lhe 
peridium characters were unknown. Not another specimen has in the 
meantime been received in Europe, and the plant is not in the collections 
