206 
N THE GEELONG NATURALIST. 
case the membrane lines the pores ; again the surface may be covered 
with spines like a poreupine and the membrane covers these spines, 
or it may be quite smooth, when the hymenium will just cover the 
smooth surface. I presume you have all seen what is called a puff 
ball, in this case the hymenium or membrane is crushed up as you 
might crush up your handkerchief to put into your pocket, and thus 
crushed is placed in a round closed fleshy bag. If this bag is left long 
enough, the hymenium will disappear, and nothing will be left but 
thousands of brown dust-like spores. 
In a short paper, given in one night, it would be confusing if I 
were to endeayour to explain the various difference between the 
different kinds of toadstools, sufficient it will be to state that 
individual plants of any particular species will always bear the 
same characteristics, whether in the colour of spores or the form of 
its different parts. Before leaving this part of my subject I would 
like to point out that naked spores, such as I have described, borne 
on basidia, arising from a hymenium, are only found in one great 
division of these plants. In another great division the spores are 
concealed in bags, or as they are termed, asci. These bags or asci, are 
something like sausage coverings, only pointed at each end, and each 
bag contains eight spores placed side by side. 
It is remarkable how constant the numbers are, nearly always 
four naked spores on the basidium, and eight concealed spores in the 
bag or ascis. 
Let us examine a single species of each of these two great 
divisions. In the Agaricus which I described, the spores are borne 
naked on the ends of the sterigmata and fall off when ripe. Nowlet us 
look at a specimen of the genus Peziza; we find a firm semi- 
gelatinns substance, cup shaped, the outside often rough, but the 
inside generally smooth, some species have stems, but they are 
mostly sessile. There is no appearance of spores, in fact it is not 
unlike the one half of a tiny india rubber ball only made thicker at 
the base. If the inside of the base be carefully observed in the 
middle of the day a perceptible discharge of dust may be observed 
issuing from its surface. This is occasioned by the asci forcing 
their way from the matrix and each ascus bursting at its apex and 
thus discharging the spores into the air. 
The knowledge of toadstools, or as we might now call them by 
their proper botanical name of fungi, is important to mankind in 
two ways. Ist—For their use asa food. 2nd—For the injury they 
frequently inflict on both plant and animal. In the latter case it is 
absolutely essential to know something of their structure and habits 
in order to destroy them. Their uses are little known amongst 
English speaking communities; out of the hundreds of edible species 
of fungi we only recognise one, which we call the mushroom. But 
in other countries their uses are well known. 
