902 
THE TlUxXClPLES OE liOTANY. 
Stilly ill directing attention to tlie study of the Agarics_, we 
must remind our readers that many species possess most 
active qualities, and this fact should stimulate the medical 
student to look deeper into their history, not merely with a 
view to the adding to his store of remedial agents, as well as 
increasing the food products of our country, but with, if 
possible, the still more important matter of what to avoid, or 
how to act in the case of danger. 
The Rev. J. M. Berkeley, in the second volume of Dr. 
Hooker^s ^ British Flora,^ has described no less than 333 
species of plants, referred to different sections of the genus 
Agaric, now, we think, unwisely divided into many genera. 
Of these Dr. Badham has described forty species as being 
wholesome as food; and since his book, before cited, made 
its appearance, this list has been greatly extended, and it is 
known that many species are commonly eaten on the Conti¬ 
nent which are refused in this country; and we shall pre¬ 
sently see that the one we call mushroom par excellence is 
looked upon with great disfavour in Italy. We would now 
describe the following species with a view of bringing some 
important facts in the history of these plants the more 
prominently before our readers. 
1. Afjaricus campestris, L. Mushroom. 
2. „ Georgii. With : White caps. 
3. ,, Scop. Mouceron, May mushroom. 
■i. „ oreades, Bolt. Fairy-ring agaric. 
1. The first of these is the well-known mushroom, so well 
known, indeed, as to require no further description in this 
place. It is the mushroom of England, and the only one 
recognised as fit for food by, for the most part, the inhabi¬ 
tants of these islands; and yet we year by year see para¬ 
graphs in the papers detailing cases of poisoning by some 
one having partaken of “ toadstools in mistake for mush¬ 
rooms ! Here, then, at starting, to describe edible fungi 
it Avould seem curious that we should have either to cast 
doubt upon the qualities of the favourite, or really to admit 
that there is such difficulty in the discrimination of a mush¬ 
room as to render it dangerous to trust to it. But the truth 
is, that the veriest bumpkin is never mistaken in the common 
species; but, alas! either from eating too greedily of such 
an admitted dainty, or from some peculiarity in constitution, 
mushrooms sometimes exert a very dangerous power: and it 
is not a little interesting to find that this commonly received 
English edible mushroom is really considered dangerous on 
the Continent. 
