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FROMTHE LIBRARY 9^>LRK01MES
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Vol. XXXVII. No. 5 WASHINGTON

May, I<)20

^ THE

NATDONAL
GEOGMAIPMDC
AGAZI

COPYRIC^HT. 1 920. BY NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY. WASHINGTON. D. C.

COMMON

MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED
STATES

• By Louis C. C. Krieger

Continuing its policy of presenting to its readers comprehensive and especially
timely articles and illustrations in color which stimulate a keener interest in and
a more satisfying enjoyment of the glories and wonders of Nature's forests, plains,
and hills, the National Geographic Magazine publishes the accompanying series
of matchless mushroom paintings and intimate descriptions by L. C. C. Krieger,
who is associated zmth Dr. Howard A. Kelly, of Baltimore.

The delicacy of coloring and variety of hues, the curious forms and astound-
ing fertility of mushrooms, will amaze the reader. It is believed that Geographic
members ztnll take the same delight in their "Mushrooms'' Number that they have
expressed previously in such Nature-study numbers as ''Birds of Tozvn and
Country'' "Ainerican Game Birds," "Mankind's Best Friend — The Dog," "Our
State Floivers," "Wild Animals of North America," etcetera.

The reader is especially cautioned, hozvever, that the illustrations and text
MUST NOT be used as final authority in deciding whether a particular specimen is
an edible or a poisonous fungus, because no treatise zmthin the limits of a single
number of even The Geographic could be sufficiently detailed and complete to
protect the novice against the deadly species, which are very numerous. For those
zvho desire more detailed description of mushrooms, this article is being amplified
zmth much technical data and can be obtained separately, bound in cloth, at $3.00
per copy, postpaid.

IV /f ^-^^-^ ^^^^ thirty-eight miUion
m/l po^^^s of edible mushrooms
J_ T A were imported into our country
during the five years immediately pre-
ceding the World War. In addition to
this vast amount, we consumed not only
the large output of our own growers, but
quantities of wild species besides.

The species imported from France
comprise the cultivated variety of the
common meadow or pasture mushroom,
Agaricus campcster (for illustrations see
Plate I and page 400) ; the expensive
truffle ; the cepe ( B. cdulis. illustrated
in Plate IV and on page 406).

China sends us certain species largely
for the use of her own people resident
among us. Our own producers limit
themselves to the cultivated variety of
the meadow mushroom.

The names of the wild species mar-
keted cannot be ascertained definitely,
since there is with us no such legal con-
trol of the sale of mushrooms as obtains
in most cities in continental Europe.
Gatherers in the United States either eat
their finds themselves or sell them pro-
miscuously to any mushroom-hungry in-
dividual who has the temerity or the
knowledge to venture purchasing.

388

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

Photograph by A. G. and B. Leeper

ONE OF THE POISONOUS MEMBERS OF THE AMANITA MUSHROOM FAMILY

The top view of the specimen on the right shoAvs that the deadly Amanitas peel as readily as
the edible mushrooms. "Peeling" is, therefore, no sign of edibility.

From personal observation, however,
and from a perusal of the popular litera-
ture which advises the consumption of
certain species, we may judge that the
following species most frequently find
their way into the kitchen: Agaricus
campester, Agaricus arvcnsis (see Plate
I), the Parasol mushroom (Lcpiota pro-
ccra, see Plate XIV), certain species that
grow on trees {Pleurotus ostreatus, etc.,
see page 402), ink-caps (species of Cop-
rinus, see Plates VIII and XII), "fairy-
ring" mushrooms (see page 397), puff-
balls (pages 414-419), and, of course.
Morels (Plate VII and pages 420, 421).

Since the establishment of mushroom
or mycological clubs in some of our large
cities, considerable interest has been
aroused, with the result that members
and their friends have learned to recog-
nize many of the lesser known, yet
equally safe and good species. The war,
too, has had its effect. Food is scarce
and high-priced, and people, following
suggestions offered in the public prints,

are turning to hitherto unknown or dis-
regarded sources of food supply, includ-
ing the spontaneously growing crop of
wild mushrooms.

RATTEESNAKE DENS VERSUS POISONOUS
MUSHROOMS

But those who, unadvised or ill-advised,
would gather wild species for the table
should remember that they are embark-
ing upon an adventure that may lead to
a sudden and horrible death.

To ask a person to gather his own
mushrooms for the table, without previ-
ous instruction that will enable him to
avoid the deadly kinds, is equivalent to,
if not worse than, inviting him to put his
unprotected hand into a den of rattle-
snakes. Indeed, of the two risky per-
formances, the latter would be the safer ;
for there are at least two known anti-
dotes for rattlesnake venom, whereas
there is none for the poison or poisons
of the exceedingly common Amanita
phalloidcs (see Plates X and XVI) and
its multitudinous forms and varieties.

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

389

,„,* — • COTHUf^r'ATA

FROSTJAN.A MUSCARIA STROBILIFORM-S p^r^^^lKlN^

SPRETA

P/fALLOlDES

PHALLOlPES

VAIV. CITRINA

PHALLOIDES

PHALLOIDES
VAR. VIR09A

PHALLOJDES

the: DANGKR SIGNAI.S, OR DKATII-CUPS, WHICH NATURE PLACES ON THE BASES OR
UNDERGROUND PORTIONS OE THE AMANITA SPECIES

The death-cup is technically known as the volva and at first encloses the entire plant
just as the egg-shell does the egg. As the plant grows the stem lengthens, and in doing this
ruptures the bag. The illustration shows how the death-cup, or volva, differs in structure
with the various species of Amanita. There are two distinct types of death-cups, the bag-like
type (Nos. lo and ii), and the more or less fragile, crumbling, or scaly type (Nos. i, 2, and
3). Both types are subject to variation, the variations being characteristic for different
species or groups of species. Number 7 represents a diaboHcal attempt on the part of one
Amanita to camouflage its identity, both bulb and bag-like volva being difficult to discern.
A reduction of the ''friable" (crumbling) type of volva is seen in No. i, only a few grains
being left to tell the tale, and sometimes even these are absent. When absent from the bulb^
however, they are usually to be found on the ground, leaves, twigs, or needles immediately
surrounding the base, or on top of the cap, where they form warts, provided rain has not
washed them away. The beautiful Amanita cccsarea, Plate IX, and the Blusher (page 390)
are two exceptions in the dangerous Amanita family, being edible though possessing death-cups.

In this connection it is of interest to
note that poisonous serpents and fungi
were associated in the mind of man from
early times.

Pliny writes: "Noxious kinds must be
entirely condemned; for if there be near
them a hobnail or a bit of rusty iron or
a piece of rotten cloth, forthwith the
plant, as it grows, elaborates the foreign
juice and flavors into poison ; and coun-
try-folk and those who gather them are
alone able to discern the different kinds.

"Moreover, they imbibe other noxious
qualities besides; if, for instance, the
hole of a venomous serpent be near and
the serpent breathe upon them as they
open, from their natural affinity with poi-
sonous substances, they are readily dis-
posed to imbibe such poison. Therefore
one must notice the time before the ser-
pents have retired into their holes."

Were it not that the subject is such a
serious one, we should feel inclined to
laugh at the simplicity of the ancients.

390

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

Photograph by A. G. and B. lyceper

THE BI.USHKR (Amanita rubescens) is Edible:

There are many thousands of species of mushrooms and many strange forms, as the
succeeding photographs show. The collector observes especially variations in the cap (i),
gills (2), ring (3), stem (4), volva (see page 389), and color of the spores (for an account
of these marvelous reproductive bodies, see pages 392, 402, 415).

Though edible, the Blusher is a member of the dangerous genus Amanita, and should
therefore be eaten only by those who are thoroughly familiar with a large number of
Amanitas. Its volva has disappeared into warts on the cap, see description of figure i,
page 389. It may be yellowish, entirely white, and often very much deformed or aborted in
shape, and quite frequently specimens are found that refuse to "blush." The Blusher is
found in thin and dense woods, solitary or scattered; time, July to September; distribution,
United States, east of the Mississippi, and in Europe. About natural size. For color figures
of Amanitas, see Plates II, V, IX, X, XV, and XVI.

COMMOX MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

391

Curiously enough, some of the ancient
behefs as to the origin of poisonous fungi
persist at the present time in Italy. A
Sicilian laborer whom the writer inter-
rogated on the "funghi," vouchsafed the
''information" that the poisonous kinds
grow from rusty iron (nails, etc.) in the
ground, but that they are easily to be dis-
tinguished from the wholesome kinds in
the process of cooking by simply drop-
ping a piece of bright silver (a new coin
or the like) into the stew: if the fungi
are poisonous, the silver will blacken ; if
not, it will retain its luster. The efficacy
of this **test" is believed in by an aston-
ishing number of people.

But not only tradition is active in pro-
mulgating error in this life-and-death
matter. Newspapers occasionally and in-
advertently publish "general rules" that
are often misleading. For example, an
article in a representative daily in one of
our large cities, after assuring the reader
that there are but six poisonous kinds
among more than a thousand, acids :

"No poisonous mushroom is ever found
growing in cluster form."

In refutation of such a generality, the
reader is referred to the symptom pro-
duced by Olitocybe illndens, a poisonous,
though not a deadly poisonous, agaric
that grows in dense clusters (see Plate
III and text, page 403).

GENERAL RULES FOR BEGINNERS

General rules for the guidance of
mUvsh room-hunters are trustworthy and
serviceable only when formulated by ex-
perienced botanists. The following six
rules* by the late Dr. W. G. Farlow, Pro-
fessor of Cryptogamic Botany in Har-
vard University, will prevent, if scrupu-
lously observed, the eating of notoriously
poisonous species :

"(i) Avoid fungi when in the button
or unexpanded stage ; also those in which
the flesh has begun to decay, even if only
slightly.

"^2) Avoid all fungi which have death
cups, stalks with a swollen base sur-
rounded by a sac-like or scaly envelop,
especially if the gills are white. (Study
the Amanitas and diagram, i)age 389.)

"(3) Avoid fungi having a milky juice,
unless the milk is reddish.

* Published in Bulletin No. 15. U. S. Dcpt.
of Atrriculturc, Washington, D. C.

"(4) Avoid fungi in which the cap, or
pileus, is thin in proportion to the gills,
and in which the gills are nearly all of
equal length, especially if the pileus is
bright-colored.

"(5) Avoid all tube-bearing fungi in
which the flesh changes color when cut
or broken or where the mouths of the
tubes are reddish, and in the case of
other tube-bearing fungi experiment with
caution.

"(6) Fungi which have a sort of
spider web or flocculent ring round the
upper part of the stalk should in general
be avoided."

Professor Farlow adds that "Rules i,
2, and 5 may for the beginner be re-
garded as absolute, with the exception to
Rule 2, Amanita ccosarca (Plate IX), the
gills of which are yellow. Rules 3, 4,
and 6 have more numerous exceptions,
but these rules should be followed in all
cases unless the collector is content to
experiment first with very small quanti-
ties and learn the practical result."

Other rules that will help to protect
from serious poisoning are :

Do not collect mushrooms in or near
wooded areas except for study purposes.

This rule is very general, as it does
not protect against the green-gilled Le-
piota (see illustration on page 393), nor
against an occasional Amanita and some
others; but it does prevent the beginner
from entering the very "lair" of the man-
killers.

Do not accept mushrooms from a self-
styled expert, even if you have to dis-
oblige a dear friend. Learn the subject
yourself.

That an animal (insect, squirrel, turtle,
etc.) has eaten of a mushroom is no cri-
terion of the edibility of that mushroom
for man. Insect larvae thrive and grow
fat on the violentlv poisonous Amanita
phalloides (Plates X and XVI).

Soaking or boiling in water does not
render a poisonous sjiecies edible.* The
poisons of Amanita phalloides are de-
stroyed onlv by continued boiling in pow-
erful acids. (Dr. W. W. Ford.)

* J. Henri Fabre, in his "The Life of the Flv."
relates that the peasants of Serignan, in the
south of France, render such notoriouslv
poisonous species as Amanita panthcrina and
Amanita citrina (Plate V) edible by parboiling
in water. Other reliable evidence speaks
against this practice, however.

392

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

The truth is that inviting any one to
become a mushroom-eater is tantamount
to. asking that person to become some-
what of a botanist, assuming, of course,
that one has no ulterior motives on his
or her Hte.
HOW we; may acquire this knowledge

The preceding paragraphs are likely to
dampen the ardor of those who would
be pleased to learn how to collect and
select their own mushrooms, but who are
not sufficiently interested to go to the
length of acquiring the necessary knowl-
edge that will enable them to do this with
safety. Those who are so affected had
better do without mushrooms for the rest
of their lives, bearing in mind that, so
far, there is no "player attachment" to
the study of mushrooms.

The most expeditious way of acquir-
ing this knowledge is to join a mushroom
club, if there happens to be such an or-
ganization in the city of one's residence.
Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, and
Detroit have, or have had, such clubs.

MUSHROOMS ARE THE FRUIT OF FUNGI

The removal of the bark from a rotting
tree-trunk or the disturbance of the dense
mat of decaying leaves on the floor of the
forest will reveal fine threads, usually
white in color. These threads, may be
loosely scattered and mould-like, com-
pacted into a dense meshwork of cords,
or spread out in flat sheets of the texture
of white kid leather. In old mines the
timbers are often festooned with long
streamers of this soft substance, which
to botanists is known as "mycelium," to
mushroom growers as "spawn."

As every one who has cultivated these
plants knows, mushrooms grow from
these threads, not, however, as the apple
tree grows from its roots, but rather as the
apple grows on the tree, for the mycelium
is the olant, the mushroom the fruit.

THE MARVELOUS SPORES

Every mushroom species arises from a
mycelium of its own ; yet, to distinguish
between species, students rely exclusively
on the forms, colors, and microscopic
characters of the fruit-body (the mush-
room), the mycelium rarely presenting
characters sufficiently distinct for identi-
fication purposes.

The forms of mushrooms are ex-
tremely varied, but all have in common
the ripening and liberation of the micro-
scopic spores ("seeds" or reproductive
bodies), by means of which the species
are enabled to spread over wide areas.
Some of the remarkable qualities of these
spores are told on pages 402 and 415.

The mushroom collector can make
some interesting experiments with the
spores, as follows :

If the expanded cap of the common
pasture mushroom {Agariciis canipester)
(see Plate I) be removed from its stem
and placed upon a sheet of white paper,
gill side downward, and left there under
cover of a finger-bowl for an hour or
two, there will be formed a beautiful de-
posit ("spore-print") of the microscopic,
purple-brown spores.

If an Amanita (Plates II, V, IX, X,
XV, and XVI), a Lepiota (Plate XIV),
a Tricholoma (Plate VII), a Clitocybe
(Plate III), or an Armillaria (Plate VI)
be treated in the same way, a white spore-
print will result. With a Volvaria ( Plate
\') the deposit will be reddish or pink-
ish. Pholiotas (Plates VIII and XIII)
and Cortinarii (Plate VII) will throw
down spores of some shade of brownish
yellow, rusty brown, or cinnamon. Cop-
rinus (Plates VIII and XII) and Panse-
olus (Plate VIII) species precipitate
black or blackish spores.

Similar experiments may be made with
other varieties.

FUNGI IN nature's economy

The Fungi, a class of plants of which
mushrooms are the most familiar exam-
ples, play an important role in their influ-
ence on the higher forms of life. As
parasites on plants, animals, and man,
they cause destruction on an almost in-
calculable scale. As scavengers and as
rock-disintegrators, on the other hand,
they accomplish work that is basic for
the very existence of all life.

Rock is the raw material of the farmer's
soil ; but before the farmer can have this
soil it must first be made. How is it
made ?

Violent weather changes — heat, cold,
rain, snow, and ice — start the breaking-
up process. Associated with these agen-
cies, the lichens begin their work. Dry,
crusty things, these plants produce an

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

393

Photograph by C. Cramer

THIS GREEN-GiLLED LEPioTA (Lepiota morgani) is poisonous

Beware of this false Parasol mushroom. It differs from the true edible Parasol mush-
room (Plate XIV and page 439) in its greenish gills, coarser scales, and larger size. These
two young specimens were photographed on a lawn in Washington. D. C. Approximately
natural si;^e. This Goliath of Mushrooms, the green-gilled Lepiota, is especially plentiful in
the Mississippi Valley, but it also occurs in the Middle and South Atlantic States, in South
America, in the West Indies, and probably in Bohemia and in the Philippines. Its habitat is
in rich pastures, cultivated ground, in open woods, and on lawns in cities: time, June to
October.

394

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

Phot()grai)h by George Shiras, 3d

Tiii: EDIBLE iioNEY-MusiiROOM (Armillaria incllea) ''finishing" a tree

This mushroom is the bane of the orchardist. The growth extended eight feet up the
maple tree and four feet at the base (see text, page 411, and Color Plate VI, upper figure,
and opposite page).

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

395

Photograph by George Shiras, 3d

"a tragedy in the forest"

Armillaria mcUea is here shown at its destructive work. This tree is doomed. This
species of fungus is also shown as the upper figure of Color Plate VI and on opposite page.
If you chop off the mushrooms, others will soon replace them, for they are simply the fruit
of a parasite infesting the tree (see page 392 and the bracket fungus, page 409).

THK ABORTIVE cr.iTOPiLus (Clifopilits abort iz'us) and abortivk Forms, rut latter

SHOWN ON THE RIGHT. EDIBLE. ONE-HALE NATURAL SIZE

The eye tliat is sensitive to subtle color arrangements always meets with pleasure the
imobtrusive habitant of our woodlands, known as the Abortive Clitopilus. When specimens
are found, they are almost invariably accompanied by the odd, puff-ball-like masses, 1^4 to
214 inches in diameter, irregular in shape, and of a whitish tint, shown in the right of the
photograph. It would be interesting to ascertain whether these queer masses are caused by
insects or by some parasitic fungus. An inspection of the interior will show that there is no
differentiation of tissues into cap, stem, and gills. Similar masses are found accompanying
the Honey mushroom (see Color Plate VI) and other species. Both the perfectly developed
and the aborted forms are edible. They should be thoroughly cooked to bring out the flavor.

Photographs by A. G. and B. Leeper

THE GREENISH RUSSULA (Russula vircSCCUs) . EDIBLE

The various Russulas are difficult to distinguish from each other. This species, however,
IS sufficiently well marked to be recognized by the layman. Painted with the hues of the
rainbow, the Russulas bring a touch of brightness into the gloomy depth of the forest.
Vivid reds, greens, purples, violets, and yellows predominating, these conspicuously colored
agarics are at the same time the joy of the painter and the despair of the student who at-
tempts their classification. The Greenish Russula grows in thin woods and in grassy,
onen places; time. July and August: distribution. Maine to Virginia, and west to Ohio and
Michigan; also in Europe. About one-half natural size.

3Q6

THK FAIRY-RING MUSHROOM {Marasiiiiits arcades ). ediule

The specimens shown grew in the grounds of the White House, Washington. D. C. Approxi-
mately one-half natural size.

Photographs courtesy of U. S. Department of Agriculture

A "fairy-ring" formkd dy Marasmius orcadcs, onk of the best edible

MUSHROOMS

The beginning of a "fairy-ring" may be a single mushroom which drops its spores or
seeds in a circle about the base. The next season the small ring of mushrooms drops a
larger ring of spores, and so the circle expands, year by year, exactly as the ripples spread
out on the surface of a millpond when a rock is cast into the water. Fairy-rings, formed in
Colorado, have been estimated to be about 600 years old. Legend informs us that these rings
are the magic circles within which elves and other nimble fairy folk hold their revels at mid-
night on our lawns. There is another superstition that the rings mark the spots where bolts of
lightning have struck the ground. Marasmius arcades is found in grassy places (lawns,
pastures, and by the roadside) from May to October, being widely distributed in both the
North and South Temperate zones.

397

398

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

THE VELVET-STEMMED COLEYBIA {Collybia velutipes). EDIBLE

In winter time the mushroom lover yearns for a taste of wild species. This he may
have if he will be on the lookout for this tree-inhabiting Collybia. About one-half natural
size. With its stem encased in a suit of dark-brown velvet, its rich yellow cap protected by
a mucilaginous covering, the plant is admirably adapted to stand the rigors of the boreal
season. This mushroom is gathered in the spring, autumn, and winter; distribution, eastern
United States as far west as Kansas and Iowa ; probably in the Pacific Coast States ; also in
Europe and Mexico; a variety (spongiosa) in Alaska.

Photographs by A. G. and B. Lceper

THE ROOTED COLLYBIA (Collybia radicafa) . edible

With its yello\v-brown, wrinkled caps perched on a tall stem, this Collybia is met with almost
immediately one enters a beech or pine forest. About one-half natural size.

CO^niOX ^lUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

^99

acid that crumbles the hardest rock.
Rains wash the disintegrated particles
into cracks, crevices, and crannies down a
slope. The remains of the dead lichens
are added to the debris to form the first
beginnings of soil in which other lichens,
small ferns, and seed plants find a place
to thrive and eventually die, each plant
leaving behind some small particles of
matter. Gradually, with infinite patience,
Nature thus deposits soil in the valleys.
Ages of this slow but cumulative w^ork,
in which soil bacteria and other fungi
play an essential role, and we have rich,
virgin soil ready to receive the precious
grains of wheat. Then the eye of hungry
man is gladdened by the sight of acres
of the golden crop.

FUNGI RAISE THK DOUGH

Bread made from unleavened dough is
not to the taste of most of us. It must
be light and spongy to be palatable. To
.obtain these qualities we are again de-
pendent on the fungi. The good house-
wife buys yeast, dissolves it in water, and
adds the fluid to the heavy dough, which
is then thoroughly kneaded and set aside
overnight in a suitable temperature. The
next morning she is pleased to note that
t»he dough has risen. After further
kneading, it is placed in the oven and
baked into appetizing loaves. On being
ctJt, the bread exhibits a multitude of
small bubbles of nearly equal size.

The little Brownies that labored while
oXhers slept are microscopic fungus cells
rfiat were introduced with the yeast.
Given sugar, starch, moisture, and warmth,
these cells multiply with incredible ra-
pidity, at the same time giving ofif carbon-
dioxide and another product. The car-
bon-dioxide gas collects in bubbles, and
thus distends and lightens the dough.

If bread be left in a moist place it will
mould. Here, too, we have fungous ac-
tion.

Moulds, like bacteria and yeast fungi,
are ever present and ready to alight and
feed upon organic substances suitable to
their taste. Roquefort cheese owes its
flavor to a certain mould. Another is
known to plug up the human ear.

Some of the industries in which the
action of the ferment fungi is essential
are: The making of buttermilk and
cheese, the tanning of leather, tobacco-

curing, the fermentation of vegetables
(sauerkraut, fodder in silos, etc.), all
bread-making where yeast is used, and all
fermentation processes in which alcohol
is produced.

FUNGI DKSTROY WHEAT, TREES, AND WOOD

In 1916 the black-stem rust destroyed
in the United States and Canada 280,-
000,000 bushels of wheat. Add to this a
15 to 25 per cent reduction of the barley
and oats crops, and we become aware of
the appalling destruction that a single
fungous disease can cause.

One of these, Bndothia parasitica,
threatens with extinction the glorious
chestnut trees of our eastern coast. The
disease caused by this fungus fiend, the
chestnut bark disease, starting in the vi-
cinity of New York City about 1904,
spread rapidly as far north as New
Hampshire and south to Virginia. In its
devastating march it has destroyed tim-
ber valued at more than two hundred
million dollars, and the end is not yet.

Another disease, the white pine blister
rust, though not yet as widely known
as the chestnut disease, is likely to be-
come so unless preventive measures are
adopted and cooperatively carried out by
the States concerned.

While the destruction of living woody
tissues is steadily going on in the forests,
dead wood, including that used in build-
ings, railroad ties, etc., is likewise being
destroyed by species that specialize in
saprophytism or scavenger-work.

ANTS "cultivate" MUSHROOMS

The almost human sagacity of the ant
has interested man from earliest times.
Isn't it possible that Homer called the
Thessalian legions "myrmidons" because
they swarmed like ants and fought with
the cunning and bravery of these insect
warriors ? The foresight exhibited by the
ant in storing its food, furnished i?i)sop
with the theme for one of his most de-
lightful fables. Later, upon closer obser-
vation, we were startled to learn that
Mr. Ant is also a good "dairyman,"*
milking his "cows" whenever he wants
"milk" ; but it was not until recently that

* See "Notes About Ants and Their Resem-
blance to Man," by Dr. William Morton
Wheeler, in the Nationai, Geographic Maga-
zine, August, 1912.

400

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

Photographs by A. G. and B. Lyccper

the; common meadow mushroom {Agaricus campcstcr). KdiblR

Brownish, scaly variety above; white, smooth variety below. Before the war America
imported annually millions of pounds of this delicacy from France, and our own producers
and bountiful Nature have assisted materially in meeting the ever-increasing demand. Do
not attempt to gather this or any other mushroom for eating purposes unless you have a
competent authority with you (see Color Plate I and text, page 401). When picked they will
fruit again as a continuous crop when cultivated in special mushroom cellars, and out-of-
doors as long as the weather is propitious.

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

401

Pliotograpli l)y A. G. ami 1'.. l^ecper

THE BRTCK-RKD II vpi loi.OMA (HypJiolojiia siiblatcvitium) . edibility doubtful

Few mushrooms are commoner than the Brick-top. It grows in dense clusters at the base
of old chestnut and oak trees. About one-half natural size.

we were apprised of the fact that mush-
room-^s^rowing- is also one of his accom-
plishments.

Scientific travelers in Java and South
America record that some of the larger
species, the termites, construct veritable
mushroom-cellars, in which they ''culti-
vate" (on the mycelium of some large
fungi) little globular bodies as food for
themselves.

Mushroom-growing is a most tmcertain
business unless conditions favorable to
the growth of the spawn are rigidly
maintained. The ants know this, too, and
take precautions necessary to insure a
good "crop."

THE COMMON MEADOW MUSH-
ROOM (Agaricus campester)

{Sec Color Plate I)

When the average person uses the word
"mushroom" the common Meadow mushroom,
or Pink Gill {Agaricus camfyester) is meant
(see Color Plate I and photographs on page
400). Imported from France in enormous
quantities before the war; cultivated by our
own growers with ever-increasing zeal, and
gathered in the wild state as soon as it makes

its appearance in the fall, it is so well known
that even the most timid feel no hesitation in
ordering their juicy tenderloin "smothered
with mushrooms."

The records, however, show that not infre--
qucntl}^ other deleterious species are eaten
along with, or in the place of, the common
mushroom. It therefore behooves the eater of
mushrooms to be as cautious with this species
as he would be with one less well known.

Of course, only the most careless or unin-
formed would mistake the poisonous Amanitas
for the Agaricus; but there are other poison-
ous species, not necessarily deadly, that are
apt to get by the eye and into the mouth if one
is unaware of, or neglects to observe, the
botanical characters that distinguish the good
from the bad. Species that are likely to be
mistaken for the common mushroom are dis-
cussed further on.

Remarks on the preparation of the Meadow
mushroom for the table are superfluous, as any
cook-book will give full directions.

The common Meadow mushroom is at home
in grassy places, lawns, pastures; never in
thick woods; also (when cultivated) in cellars,
caves, abandoned mines, and in other places
where the temperature can be held between
50° and 65° F. and where moisture conditions
can be controlled ; time, when growing wild, in
.\ugust and September, occasionally in the
spring; when cultivated under suitable condi-
tions, throughout the year; distribution, cos-
mopolitan.

402

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

Photograph by A. G, and B. lyceper
the; OYSTER MUSHROOM (PleUrOtUS OStVCatUs) . KDIBLE

The name of the luscious bivalve was given this species because of a fancied similarity
in appearance. The plants may be found from June until late in the Autumn, growing on
deciduous trees. About one-third natural size.

If one has discovered one or more trees that bear Pleuroti, it is a good plan to water the
spots from which specimens have been taken. In this way the plants may be "cultivated," as
new "fruit" will appear in a week or two.

When specimens are brought indoors and placed in a sunny nook, away from drafts,_ the
interesting phenomenon of spore-discharge may be watched. Like twisting, curling spirals
of smoke from the burning end of a cigar, the fine spore-rain drifts off into space in quest
of tree wounds where it may lodge and start a mycelium that in turn will produce more
Pleuroti.

Related species and poisonous species are
sometimes eaten in place of it, though Agari-
cus campester is so well marked that it is in-
conceivable how poisonous species, especially
Amanitas, can be eaten by mistake.

A mere glance at the illustrations of the
common mushroom and those of the Amanitas
(see Plates II, V, X, XV, and XVI) ought to
prove instructive, even to the most superficially
observing, and, if in addition the descriptions
be compared, wide differences will at once be-
come apparent. To call attention to a few:
Agaricus campester has a squattier appear-
ance ; lacks a bag, or volva ; has pink gills that
turn to a chocolate brown, and never grows
in woods or forests, preferring rich, well-ma-
nured ground, such as old pastures, where
horses are turned loose.

The Amanitas rarely occur anywhere except
in woods, or in places where woods have re-
cently stood, such as lawns in new suburbs;
throw down from their gills a white spore-
powder, and have, in addition to the ring, a
more or less pronounced volva at the usually

bulbous base of the stem (for figures of the
various forms of the Volva, or Death-cup, see
Nature's Danger Signals, page 389).

THE FIELD, OR HORSE MUSHROOM
(Agaricus arvensis). Edible

{See Color Plate I)

This coarse and heavy species is edible only
when young and tender. Some epicures object
to its anise-like odor. The distinguishing fea-
tures are: its large size (breadth of cap some-
times more than a foot) ; peculiar ashy-pink
tint of the young gills ; large, thick, double
ring (the lower one split radiately) ; the bulb-
ous stem, and the tendency to turn yellow on
the slightest bruise.

It is not so choice in its habitats as the com-
mon mushroom, growing in cultivated fields,
grassy pastures, in waste places, under old
hedges, and occasionally near trees, and in
the borders of thin woods. It should be sought
from July to September. Occasionally it forms
huge fairy-rings (see page 397).

COAfMOX MUSHROOiMS OF THE UxXlTED STATES

403

THE FLY MUSHROOM (Amanita

muscaria and its varieties).

Deadly poisonous !

tSec Color Plate II for mature plant
and Color Plate XV for
young specimens)

Beaut}', though attractive, is often
deceptive. This is admirably illus-
trated in Amanita muscaria, the
"most splendid chief of the agaricoid
tribe," as Greville, r.n eminent Scotch
botanist, describes it.

"In the highlands of Scotland," he
continues, "it is impossible not to ad-
mire it, as seen in long perspective,
between the trunks of the straight fir
trees ; and should a sunbeam pene-
trate through the dark and dense foli-
age and rest on its vivid surface, an
effect is produced by this chief of a
humble race which might lower the
pride of many a patrician vegetable."

Contrast with this the dire effects
of its poisons on the human system.
Very shortly after eating the fungi
(from one to six hours, depending
upon the amount eaten) the victim
exhibits excessive salivation, perspira-
tion, flow of tears, nausei, retching,
vomiting, and diarrhea. The pulse is
irregular and respiration accelerated.
Giddiness and confusion of ideas are
also present.

Delirium, violent convulsions, and
loss of consciousness develop in rapid
succession when large quantities have
been, eaten, the patient sinking into
a coma that is followed by death.
In light cases the patient, after an at-
tack of vomiting and diarrhea, falls
into a deep sleep, from which he
awakes several hours later profoundly
prostrate, but on the road to recov-
ery. Within two or three days, in
such cases, complete recovery takes
place.

Atropin is the perfect physiological
antidote for muscarin, one of the
poisons present. However, being a
poison itself, it should not be ad-
ministered except by a physician. The
early appearance of the symptoms is
characteristic of poisoning by this
species,^ those caused by Amanita phalloides
presenting themselves much later ^see this
species. Plates V, X, and XVI).

The Amanita muscaria is verj- common in
woods, thickets, in open places, and sometimes
in pastures, from June until the first frosts.

THE JACK-O'LANTERN MUSHROOM,

OR FALSE CHANTRELLE (Clito-

cybe illudens). Poisonous

{See Color Plate III)

To see light emanating from a mushroom
is at least a novel experience that is possible
if one views perfectly fresh specimens of the

Photograph by George Shiras, 3d

A SPKCIRS OF PLEUROTUS MUSHROOM GROWING
FROM A FALLEN LOG

A sight such as this is calculated to make the mush-
room-hunter's mouth water. Note that the central, ec-
centric, or lateral attachment of the stem to the cap is
a matter of position of growth ; the caps on the side of
the log have lateral stems, those on the top central, or
very nearly central, ones (see illustration, page 402).

Jack-o'-Lantern by night; but this is the limit
of its interest for us. As an edible species, it
is not to be thought of; for, though pleasant
enough to the taste and enjoyed without in-
convenience by some, it acts as a powerful
emetic with most people. Moreover, recent
chemical investigation of the plant has demon-
strated the presence of muscarin in its tissues,
the same substance that plays such an impor-
tant role in poisoning by Amanita muscaria
(see text on this page).

Dense clusters of this Clitocybc may often
be seen growing on or about old stumps of
chestnuts, oaks, and other deciduous trees.
Occasionally, such clusters contain hundreds

404

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

Photograph by A. G. and B. I,eeper

the: gustkning coprinus {Coprinus micaceus) . edible:

Soon after the first showers in April this tiny ink-cap emerges from the ground in
clusters of hundreds of individuals. The best harvesting implement is a pair of scissors.
It grows at the base of old trees, stumps, and from buried wood in lawns. Caps tawny, and
glistening with minute, mica-Hke particles; stems white. About natural size (see figure,
lower left, Color Plate VIII).

of individuals. It should be looked for in the
autumn.

The caps often measure as much as ten
inches across, the stems being proportionately
long.

Pleurotus olearkis, another phosphorescent
mushroom that parasitizes the olive tree in
southern Europe and is also poisonous to hu-
man beings, is closely related to, if not iden-
ical with, this plant.

EDIBLE AND POISONOUS FLESHY
TUBE-FUNGI (Various species
of Boletus)

{See Color Plate IV)

Though similar in shape, the fleshy tube-
fungi differ in one important point from the
gill-fungi; instead of gills, the under side of
the cap exhibits a layer of small, vertically
placed tubes, on the inside of which the spores
are borne.

The Boleti are fairly safe; yet the beginner

ought to be forewarned against certain species
that are likely to cause illness when eaten.
Chief among these is a group collectively
known as the Luridi. The prime distinguish-
ing mark of species belonging to this group is
the more or less bright red, orange-red, or
maroon coloring of the tube-mouths; also, all
Boleti that show the slightest tendency to as-
sume some shade of blue when broken or
bruised should be avoided. Bitter species, too,
should not be eaten, especially B. fcUeiis, a
somewhat robust plant with pinkish flesh-
colored tubes.

The edible Boletus, the cepe of commerce
{Boletus edulis), Plate IV, is the well known
and much sought cepe of the French. Before
the war, a regular article of commerce, one
could purchase it, either dried or canned, at
the little delicatessen shop "around the corner."
Now we are dependent upon our own supply,
\yhich is none too plentiful. In the coast coun-
ties of California, however, it seems to be
fairly abundant, for the writer has seen Italian

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UXITED STATES

405

Photograph by Roland McKee

THE INKY COPRINUS (Copriiiits atniinciitarlus vakikty). EdiblE

This variety lacks the line scales on the top of the cap. wliich are prominent in the typical
form. The very delicate silvery gray luster of the cap vanishes with the slightest touch.
The "ink" from this mushroom makes a forgery-proof writing fluid (see page 439). Natural

residents there return from collecting trips
with their automobiles laden with them.

In preparing it, either for immediate use or
for pickling or canning, the layer of tubes and
the tough portion of the stems should be re-
moved. When used fresh, the cooking should
be rapid over a brisk fire. Frying or broiling
with butter or olive oil, with the usual spices
added, seems best adapted for this fungus.
When pickled, add cloves, bay leaves, and other
spices.

Except for the stem, which is at times much
shorter, and club- or pestle-shaped, the illus-
tration shows a fully matured plant. When
young, the tubes are pale, creamy white, but
as the plant develops they become greenish,
and when touched or bruised change to a
greenish-ocher color, not to blue.

The species is extremely variable, both as to
shape and color, some specimens showing a
brownish-lilac color on both cap and stem.
The constant features, however, are the colors
and color changes of the tube layer, and the
fine mesh of white lines on the stem, usually
but not always confined to the upper part.

The edible Orange-cap Boletus (Boletus
7rrsipcllis) is much coarser and larger than
the cepe and not so desirable. Still, in the ab-
sence of something better, it is eaten by those
who must have their mushrooms (see page
406).

It is quite common and easily recognized by
the numerous rough, blackish points on the
stem and by the overlapping margin of the red-
dish- or orange-colored cap. Its flesh changes
color to a neutral, reddish gray.

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406

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

407

Photograph by A. G. and B. I^eeper

THE EDIBLE BEEF-TONGUE MUSHROOM {Fistuliua kepat'ica)

Cap blood-red, pores (on under side of cap) creamy pink, flesh streaked with red and
pink, this fungus grows on chestnut and oak stumps from July to October. The plant is so
distinct that it is not easily confounded with other species. The illustration is about one-half
natural size.

THE HANDSOME VOLVARIA (Volva-
ria speciosa). Edibility doubtful

{See Color Plate V)

Opinion as to the edible qualities of the
Handsome Volvaria diverges considerably.
While some speak of it as ''a fine edible agaric,"
others pronounce it "watery and unpleasant to
the taste," or even poisonous. Since the plant
is somewhat variable, and therefore not clearly
separated, except by spore characters, from
the very poisonous Volvaria gloiocephala, it is
advisable to let it alone.

Only recently Prof. W. C. Coker, of the
University of North Carolina, reported a
variety of V. speciosa from the sand dunes
of Smith Island, North Carolina. His plant
had spores larger than those of the type and
differed in other characters.

In the eastern United States it is of infre-
quent occurrence, but on the Pacific coast,
especially in California, it is so abundant dur-
ing April and May that one finds it wherever
the soil is rich with decaying vegetable matter.

The odor of the fresh plant is repellent, re-
sembling very markedly that of rancid lard.

The Handsome Volvaria is gathered from
April to October ; distribution, temperate
North America, Europe, and North Africa.

CORAL MUSHROOMS (Various species
of Clavaria). Edible

(See Color Plate V)

"But that is not a mushroom !" exclaims the
tyro, seeing his first Clavaria. "Why, it looks
like coral."

It is true that these plants show no differen-
tiation into cap, gills, tubes, or teeth, but they
are, nevertheless, true fungi, the spores being
borne on the exterior of the branches.

With the exception of a single species, all.
so far as known, are good to eat, provided the
taste is agreeable and the specimens are fresh
and free from insect attack. The exception is
a species (C dichotoma) in which the branches
are rather thin, flaccid, whitish, and divided
regularly into twos.

Clavaria fusifonnis (see Color Plate V) is
long, bright orange-yellow with a delicate
bloom, dark-tipped, and usually grows in tufts.
The interior is solid at first, then hollow. Oc-
casionally specimens are found that are vari-
ously bent, twisted, or malformed.

Clavarias may be sought in both deciduous
and coniferous woods from July to September
(see illustration, page 4^2).

Other edible species are Clavaria flava and
Clavaria botrytes.

4o8

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THK rXTTKD STATES

409

i'iiotograpli by George Shiras, 3d

A BRACKKT-FUNGUS (Polyporus applaitotits)

Note the concentric zones marked with match-sticks. Each zone indicates the limit of
a year's growth. The under side of this woody fungus makes an admirable sketching sur-
face. A sharp twig will do for a pencil. The bracket fungus is the fruit-body of a destructive
parasite very common in our forests (see page 417). You do not rid the infected tree of its
fungus parasite by removing the fruit-bodies. The disease is produced by the mycelium (or
spawn) threads, which (more or less compacted into tissues) permeate the wood of the
tree. This particular species has a whitish, porous surface, whicli is easily embrowned on the
slightest totich — hence its use as a sketching surface.

THE DEADLY AMANITA, OR DE-
STROYING ANGEL (Amanita phal-
loides and its varieties). Deadly poison-
ous !

(Sec Color Plates V, X, and XVI)

"Do not eat mushrooms and you will not be
killed by them."

If every one followed this injunction, fur-
ther advice would be superfluous. That it is
not universally followed is certain, for each
year brings new records of poisoning cases,
most of which are caused by species of Aman-
ita. The first duty of those who insist on eat-
ing mushrooms is, therefore, to become thor-
oughly familiar with the botanical features of
this genus. These once impressed upon the
mind, the danger from Amanita poisoning will
be much reduced if not entirely eliminated.

The following characterization of .Amanitas
should be memorized by the beginner as he
would mernorize a theorem in geometry:

Any white-spored, more or less free-gilled
fungus that possesses both ring and volva is a

member of the very dangerous genus Amanita
(see chart, page 389).

Extremely common in all parts of the coun-
try from June until the first frosts, the deadly
Amanita grows singly or scattered, in and
near both deciduous and coniferous woods, in
the soil, among leaves, particularly where the
ground is low, wet. and not too sandy ; also in
places where woods have recently been cut
down, such as lawns, pastures, and fields in
new suburbs.

The symptoms of poisoning from this fungus
appear much later than those due to Amanita
muscaria. The unfortunate victim remains
quite well until seized suddenly with violent
abdominal pain, in from six to fifteen hours
after eating the fungi. Excessive vomiting,
thirst, and either diarrhea or constipation ac-
company the abdominal pain.

The paroxysms of pain may be so severe
that the face becomes drawn, pinched, and of
a livid color (Hippocratic face). The attacks
of pain and vomiting come on periodically, the
patient loses strength rapidly, jaundice fre-
quently sets in, and coma finally develops, fol-

410

CO^rMOX MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

411

Photograph by George Shiras, 3d

AN UNUSUALLY BEAUTIFUL CORAL MUSHROOM {Hydnum lachuatum) GROWING ox

A prostrate: tree:

The species is closely related to H. coralloides, shown on page 410. It is edible when white
and fresh. Size: Individual clumps up to 10 inches.

lowed by death. Convulsions may or may not
occur toward the end.

The duration of the illness is from three to
eight days, depending upon the age of the
patient and upon the amount of fungus eaten.
There is no known antidote for the poisons,
and th€ death-rate is, therefore, very high,
ranging from 60 to 100 per cent.

A description of Amanita phalloides and its
varieties : Cap 2 to 6 inches broad, fleshy, at
first egg-shai)ed to bell-shaped, then obtusely
convex, finally plane or depressed (concave
when old and overexpanded), usually a little
elevated in the center, but not umbonate, white
(in the spring form, A. venia, and in A. virosa,
the latter illustrated in Plate X), light yellow-
ish-white, dull yellow or light brown, grayish,
grayish-brown or olive-brown (livid purplish-
brown in A. porphyria), the disk frequently
darker in some individuals, approaching black
(see Plate X\'I), citron-yellow {A. citrina,
illustrated by the figure on the extreme right
in Plate \'), greenish yellow, green or olive-
green, occasionally streaked with darker shades
of the prevailing color or with dull reds.

THE HONEY-COLORED MUSHROOM,
OR OAK FUNGUS (Armillaria

mellea). i'Mlblc

{Upper figure, Color Plate VI)

Tcte de Mcdusc is a French common name
for this agaric, the api)earance of which in an

orchard is as much feared by the owner of the
trees as was the Gorgon head of old.

Its appetite for living, ligneous substance is
truly astounding. With equal zest it feeds
upon oaks, chestnuts, pines, larches, hemlocks,
and white cedars, reserving for dessert the
grapevine and most fruit trees. When times
are hard and "pickins' slim," it turns upon
the humble potato. Once, so far as we know,
its attack was met, and this by an orchid.
After a battle for supremacy, the two finally
came to an understanding and decided to work
together for their mutual benefit.

Like most successful organisms, it has a
great capacity for adapting itself. Equally
at home on plains, mountain peaks, and in
mines, it pursues its prey relentlessly, its rapid
propagation being aided by blackish cords
(rhizomorphs) that do reconnoitering duty
under the ground and under the bark of trees.
Even the orchardist plowing over the site
of a tree killed by the Armillaria unwittingly
assists in its distribution by scattering frag-
ments of these rhizomorphs over new feeding
ground.

Much work has been done to combat this
fungus pest, latest among which is that by
Prof. W. T. Home, of the University of Cali-
fornia.

As might be expected in so widely dis-
tributed and adaptable a plant, its tendency
to vary, both in color and in structure, is al-
most limitless (see pages 394 and 395).

412

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

THE HEDGEHOG HYDNUM (Hydfium evinaceus) . EdibeE

Not infrequently the assiduous mushroom-hunter, "new to the game," finds specimens
that do not tally with his conception of what a mushroom should be like. This is one of
those surprises. Whitish to creamy-white when fresh. Somewhat under natural size.

Photographs by A. G. and B. Leeper

A CORAL MUSHROOM (Chvaria flava). edibee

The novice seeing this remarkable growth for the first time finds it difficult to believe
that it is a mushroom. Branches pale yellow ; base and main stems white. Common in woods
from July to September. Somewhat under natural size. (For another Clavaria, see Color
Plate V, middle figure.)

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

413

A HUGE, CONSPICUOUS MUSHROOM SOMETIMES FOUND IN FORESTS (Spaiassis

herbstii). edible

This rare and beautiful fungus should be looked for in oak woods. About one-half

natural size.

Because of the acrid taste that is usually
present in the raw plant, it is not rated very
high as an edible species.

This mushroom grows wherever there is
wood to be attacked in the open, commonly in
woods, on the ground, or on decaying stumps
and trunks of trees, singly, scattered, or in
dense clusters ; time, mainly in the autumn,
though it may occur as early as June; distri-
bution, cosmopolitan.

THE GARLIC MUSHROOM (Marasmius
scorodonius). Edible

(See Color Plate VI)

Sorne people enjoy the flavor of garlic. To
these it will be interesting news that they may
have their garlic in mushroom form if they
will enter a pine or spruce forest. Here, in
vast hordes, covering the fallen twigs, sticks,
and needles, grows the little Marasmius. One
cannot mistake the plant, for the odor is so
pronounced that the "nose knows" it before
the eye sees it.

It may be used like garlic, in dressings, and
as a flavor for roasts, etc. Since it occurs in
great abundance and dries readily, it can be
stored for use in the winter, when it will also
prove a reminder of the pleasant days spent
in mushroom-hunting. The dried plants must
be steeped in water before they are employed
in the kitchen.

The Garlic mushroom grows in woods, espe-
cially of pines, on needles, twigs, etc.; time,
July to October, very plentiful after heavy
rains; distribution, temperate North America
and Europe ; also in Siberia.

THE LITTLE WHEEL MUSHROOM
(Marasmius rotula). Edible

(See Color Plate VI)

After a summer shower it pays to scrutinize
closely the decaying debris of a near-by wood.
Almost certainly one will see on bark, roots,
and old leaves tufts of this delicate and mar-
velously made little agaric.

Note particularly the manner in which the
hair-like stem is set into the tiny socket, the
sparsity of the gill development, and the fine
furrows and scallopings of the margin of the
cap. A Swiss watchmaker could not excel
such workmanship.

During dry weather the plants shrivel into
invisibility, but, like all members of the genus
Marasmius, they regain their pristine freshness
with the return of rain. Sometimes, as if fa-
tigued from the production of so much minute
workmanship, the plants fail to produce caps,
and the stems, too, are often abnormally grown
together in a branching manner.

For culinary purposes this species is used as
an addition to gravies. When garnishing veni-

414

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

Photograph by A. G. and B. Leeper

THE) GKMMED PUFF-BALi, (Lycoperdoii gemmatum) found e:vfrywhkrE

Though small, this ''gem-studded" species is much sought by mushroom-eaters and may be dis-
covered growing scattered or in tufts, usually on the ground. About one-half natural size.

son, it adds the appropriate touch of the wild
woodlands.

This species grows on decaying wood (bark,
roots, and stumps) and on old leaves' in woods
of maple, beech, etc. ; time, June to Septem-
ber; distribution, temperate North America,
Europe, and South Africa.

HEDGEHOG MUSHROOMS (Various
species of Hydnum)

{See Color Plate VI)

Not infrequently the assiduous mushroom-
hunter, "new to the game," finds specimens
that do not tally at all with his conception of
what a mushroom should be like. He has soon
learned, of course, to recognize the gill tribes
(see page 390), and the Boleti (see page 406),
and perhaps the Clavarias (see page 412), but
should he encounter a toadstool with "teeth,"
he will be nonplussed, until assured by his
mycological mentor that there are such "ani-
mals," and that they go by the name of Hedge-
hog mushrooms.

They are not as frequent as the others, and
therefore all the more of a surprise when met
with. Some are conspicuously beautiful, and
the story that the great Swedish mycologist,
Elias Fries, was attracted to the study of the
fungi on beholding in his youth a specimen of
the snowy-white coral Hydnum may well be
believed (see illustration, page 410).

The teeth, varying in size and color in dif-
ferent species, clothe the lower side of the
fruit-bodies, w^hich may be cap-like, as in
agarics and boleti, branched, solidly formed
into tuberous, fleshy masses, or spread out in
a flat layer. No poisonous species are known,
though many are tough, bitter, or malodorous,
and thus naturally unattractive to the my-
cophagist.

Hydnum fennicum, the Finnish Hydnum (see
Color Plate VI), is too bitter to be eaten,
but its general aspect gives some idea of the
appearance of the edible H. hnbricatum. The
latter species has a more umber-colored, less
reddish cap, no blue discoloration in the flesh
of the stem, a less bitterish taste, and coarser
teeth. Deer are said to be fond of it.

THE CINNAMON CORTINARIUS
(Cortinarius cinnamomeus). Edible

{See Color Plate VII)

Plants belonging to the bulky genus Corti-
narius are very numerous in our forests dur-
ing the autumn months ; yet, except for a few
well-characterized species, one and all are left
severely alone by the average student of mush-
rooms; this not because of any fear from poi-
soning— the genus is a fairly safe one — but
because of the difiiculties attending their study.

It is easy enough to say that one has found a
"Cort" — the term of endearment for members
of this "offish" genus. To determine the plant

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

415

Photograph by A. G. and B. Leeper

THE GIANT PUFF-BAi,!, (Colvatia gigantca)

The best-known of all puff-balls. A single specimen will suffice for the largest family.
Diameter often fourteen inches and over.

As children, we have «ill squeezed the puff-ball to make it "puff," little realizing that in
doing this we were liberating billions of spores, which — if everything went well with them —
would produce in turn billions of puff-balls. But there is "many a sHp" in the life of a puff-
ball spore. Were this not so, the whole country at the proper season, would be paved with
puff-balls.

A recent investigator, Professor Buller, computing the number of spores in a single
good-sized specimen of the giant puff-ball, found that it contained about seven trillions
(7,000,000,000,000) ; and yet this species is by no means as common as those who know its
delicious flavor would like it to be. One is inclined to ask — as we do about the fate of pins —
what becomes of them all? . . . The plant grows in grassy places, in August and Sep-
tember, sometimes in "fairy-rings." It is not very common, we regret to say.

To escape acceptance of the theory of the spontaneous generation of life, it has been
suggested that extraordinarily minute organisms (bacteria, for example), or their spores,
propelled alive through space, might be capable of carrying life to planets. When it is con-
sidered that the vitality of some spores remains unimpaired after prolonged exposure to
liquid air and even liquid hydrogen, the suggestion seems plausible.

See also pages 392 and 402.

416

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

otugraph Ijv A. G. and U. Lccper

THE CUP-SHAPED PUFF-BALL (Calvatia cy at hi for mis) common in fields

The purplish-brown surface, cracked like an alligator's skin, is the distinguishing feature
of this much-hunted species, which grows in pastures and in cultivated lands during August
and September. Less than one-half natural size.

specifically, however, is a different problem,
largely for the reason that it is essential to
have more than one specimen, preferably a
whole series, covering the development from
extreme youth to full maturity.

If such a series is at one's disposal, impor-
tant notes can be made — first, on the difference
in the gill-color of young and old specimens ;
second, on the color of the cobweb-like veil,
present in all true Cortinarii, and on the pres-
ence or absence of a secondary or universal
veil ; third, on the shape, color, and general
surface characters (including degree of sticki-
ness) of the plants.

The species included here and figured m
its natural colors is sometimes found. The
change in the color of the gills is shown, as is
also the difference in the general aspect due
to growth. The amateur would scarcely con-
sider the two plants as belonging to one spe-
cies. To complicate the situation further, this
species has several varieties, one of which, with
blood-red gills, is quite common.

Many species of Cortinarius exhibit beauti-
ful coloration, the light lavender, blue, and
violet-colored ones being noted in this respect.
A few have bright red bands encircling their
stems, as in the common C. annillatus.

THE CHANTRELLE (Cantharellus
cibarius). Edible

(See Color Plate VII)

On special state occasions the golden Chan-
trelle graces the festive board, yet there is no

reason in the world why it should not be on
every man's table throughout the land and
throughout the year. Abundant and easily
recognized, any one may gather it in quantity
and without fear of being poisoned.

Its natural habitat is in forests of spruce,
pine, hemlock, beech, and other trees ; com-
monly found growing in troops, from June to
October. Long cooking over a slow fire, in
a covered vessel, improves both flavor and
consistency. The dressing may be simple or
very elaborate. It dries readily.

Though a somewhat variable fungus, both as
to shape and color, its characteristic, dull-
edged, irregularly forked gills render identifi-
cation easy.

It is a cosmopolitan species, but limited, as
are most fleshy fungi, to the more temperate
regions of the earth (see Clitocybe illudens, the
False Chantrelle, Plate III).

THE PERENNIAL POLYSTICTUS
(Polystictus perennis)

(See Color Plate VII)

When in the woods, "stalking" the edible
fungi, the hunter, sensitive to the beautiful as
well as the useful, cannot but stop to admire
the little cinnamon-colored cups of various
Polystictus species that stud his pathway. The
present species is one of the commonest. A
West African species, the magnificent Poly-
stictus saccr is an object of religious worship
with the natives. Let us hope that it is merely
a worship at the shrine of beauty.

COMxMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

417

The genus Polystictiis is a member of a
large family, the Polyporaceae. Some of the
bracket- or hoof-shaped species of the poly-
pores are familiar objects to the forest ram-
bler. Unfortmiately, they are only too familiar
to the forester, many being very destructive
to our trees. Polyponis applanatus, a common
bracket fungus, deserves notice because of the
use to which it is put by the collector who
combines artistic proclivities with his myco-
logic ones. The under, or hymenial, surface
of this fungus is almost white. Upon the
slightest scratch, however, the white is re-
moved and a dark line appears.

Provided with nothing more than a good
fresh specimen of this fungus and a stylus
in the form of a sharp-pointed branchlet, con-
veniently picked up at his feet, the artist-
mycologist may proceed to sketch the land-
scape. If he has the ability of a Seymour
Hayden or a Pennell, the result will compare
favorably with a good etching. After the fun-
gus is thoroughly dry, the picture is perma-
nently fixed, and it mav then be set up in the
summer bungalow to recall a day pleasantly
and profitably spent (see page 409 for illustra-
tion of P. applanatus).

THE EQUESTRIAN TRICHOLOMA
(Tricholoma equ3stre). Edible

(Lower left figure, Color Plate VII)

The Tricholomata are attractive agarics.
Clean, trim, often of elegant stature and beau-
tiful coloring, they have become known in some
countries under the attractive name of Knightly
mushrooms. The time for their appearance
is rather late in the autumn, when the air is
a little chill and the forest foliage is beginning
to elow with Titian's tints.

The present species, the Equestrian tricho-
loma, is one of the better-known examples of
the gehus. It is edible and therefore eagerly
sought as soon as the weather is propitious.
The taste is apt to be a little unpleasant in
uncooked plants, but this is true of a number
of edible species, notably of Armillaria mellea
(Plate VI) and of Lac'tarius piperatus, a very
large, coarse, white. "milk"-exuding species,
common in woods. Conversely, some of the
deadliest species of Amanita give no forewarn-
ing at all through the sense of taste.

The Equestrian tricholoma is found in pine
woods; time. September to November; distri-
bution. North America and Europe.

MORELS. (Edible)
(See Color Plate VII)

The Morel, or Sponge mushroom, belongs
with the .-Xscomycetes. fungi quite distinct
from those which bear gills, tubes, teeth, etc.
Not only is there a marked departure in the
external form, but the microscopic features,
likewise, show a fundamental difference (see
pages 420-42 1 ) .

The normal time for Morels to appear is in
spring, though they have been known to occur
in autumn. After a gentle April shower, the

fungus-hunter, betaking himself to the nearest
apple or peach orchard, or to recently burnt-
over wooded areas, searches for the light
brownish, fawn-colored, or olive gray, pitted
heads. If luck is with him he doesn't search
long, for he soon finds enough of the coveted
'sponges" to give him his first taste of fresh
mushrooms of the year.

For centuries the Morels have been favorites
with the fungus-epicures. Indeed, so highly
were they regarded by some European peoples
that forests were burned down by them to ob-
tain the substratum best suited to their de-
velopment— a method of procedure that recalls
Ho-ti's way of roasting pigs. In recent years
efforts have been made by French investigators
to grow the plants artificially.

Before proceeding to cook them, the plants
should be washed to remove any earth that
may be lodged in the pits of the cap. Then,
cutting off as little of the stems as possible, the
hollow interior must be thoroughly rinsed with
hot water. Having further assured one's self
that the plants are perfectly fresh, crisp, and
clean, cooking can begin.

The methods of preparation for the table are
various. Stuffed with veal, chicken, or ancho-
vies, and garnished as elaborately as one
pleases, they are especially delicious. But they
lend themselves to any mode of cooking. Penn-
sylvania farmers, who know them as "Mer-
kels," prefer them in a pot-pie.

Different species have been distinguished,
but they are one and all edible when in first-
class condition. Some, like M. esculeuta (Color
Plate VII), have a more or less rounded cap;
others are conical in shape (M. conica, page
420), and one, which is said to be better than
the rest, has a somewhat oblong, cylindrical,
olive-gray cap, which is often a little curved.
{M. deliciosa, page 420), The species \I. semi-
libera is shown in the illustration on page 421.

THE DELICIOUS, OR ORANGE-MILK,
LACTAR (Lactarius deliciosus). Edible

(See Color Plate VII)

When injured, certain fungi have the pecu-
liarity of exuding a colored, uncolored, or
color-changing juice, called "milk." or latex.
Among the larger gill-fungi that have this
property are the members of the genus Lac-
tarius.

Of the numerous edible species, the Orange-
Milk Lactar — so named because of its orange-
colored milk — is the most generally known,
ivs reputation extending back to the old herb-
alists of the sixteenth century, and possibly to
ancient Roman days, for a picture of this spe-
cies, said to be the earliest representation of a
fungus extant, was discovered on a wall in
ill-fated Pompeii.

The following quotations will convey some
idea of the esteem in which it was and is still
held.

Sowerby says : "It is very luscious eating,
full of rich gravy, with a little of the flavour of
mussels." Sir James Smith pronounces it "the
most delicious mushroom known." Other

418

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

Natural size or a

Photograph by A. G. and B. lyceper

THE PKAR-SHAPED Pui^F-BAi^L {Lycopcrdon piriforme)

This small, edible species may be found on almost any rotting
stump or log from July to late in the autumn,
little under (see also picture on opposite page).

commendatory comments are : "Good, pre-
served in vinegar" (Richon and Roze) ; "Most
excellent" (Berkeley) ; "Fried with butter and
salt, it has a taste like lamb" (De Seynes).

Dr. Peck, our own more recent authority,
says, it is "one of our most valuable mush-
rooms, but scarcely equal to the best. Doubt-
less differences of opinion concerning it may be
due in part to different methods in cooking."

With regard to tastes, it is always well to
remember that they are individual; "other-
wise moths would not eat cloth."

When eaten in the raw state, the Orange-
Milk Lactar develops an acrid taste, and when
old its bright-orange coloring changes to dull,
grayish-greenish, unattractive hues. It is,
therefore, inadvisable to eat uncooked or old
specimens. Pickled in vinegar, however, it

is very appetizing when
served as a relish with
cold meats.

This desirable species
is found in moist, mossy
woods of pine, tamarack,
hemlock, etc. ; time, July
to October; distribution,
North America and
Europe.

PAN^OLUS Species

Poisonous

(See Color Plate VIII)

Every collector of edi-
ble species should learn
to distinguish the Pan-
seoli from Agariciis cam-
pester and the Coprini.
Because of the dark,
blackish coloring of their
gills, they are very apt
to get into a mess of
either of these species,
and when this happens
the eater is almost sure
to experience symptoms
of poisoning. The differ-
entiation of the species
is an extremely difficult
matter, but, generically,
they are easily recog-
nized by their slender
stems, grayish or reddish-
brown (sometimes hy-
grophanous), commonly
bell-shaped or obtusely
expanded caps, and — most
important — by the black,
or very nearly black,
spores that are borne on
non-deliquescent gills,
generally in spot-like
areas, causing the gills
to appear mottled with
black.

The symptoms from
Panaeolus poisoning ap-
pear very soon after the
fungi have been eaten, sometimes within fifteen
minutes. They seem to vary slightly, depending,
presumably, upon the species and the amount
consumed. The following have been recorded :
failure of muscular coordination, giddiness,
difficulty in standing, inabihty to walk, drowsi-
ness, lack of control of the emotions (inordi-
nate hilarity), incoherent or inappropriate
speech. The sight is usually affected, causing
the furniture to appear bent, pliable, r.nd in
motion; and there are visions of beautiful
colors. Temporary paralysis of a liml) may
occur.

The effects of the intoxication are said to
pass off within a few hours : still, it would seem
that emetics ought to be administered without
delay to prevent the complete absorption of
the poisons.

COMMON- MUSHROOMS OF THE UXITED STATES

419

Photograph by George Shiras, 3d

the: pear-shaped pufF-bael (Lycopcrdon piriforme)

It is seen growing on and about the base of a tree (for another illustration of this species, see
page 418). The plants are edible as long as the "flesh" is white.

THE SKUEE- OR BRATN

Pliotograph by A. G. and H. Ixn-pc

II Mil) i'UFF-baee (Calvatia cramiformis)

One of the best, so Ion? as the interior is white. Once the color changes, it is yei7
bitter. Should be looked for in the autumn, in thickets by roadsides. About one-third
natural size.

420

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

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m

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1

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W '

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■^ -i JBL^si#><

v't:-. ^ .

B

m-

W^^^ . -:-V*- ^- ' M

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Photographs by A. G. and B. Leeper

morels: uppkr i^igurk, Morchclla deliciosa; lower Figure, MorchcUa cornea.

EDIBLE

After a gentle April shower the fungus-hunter will find these delectable mushroom
morsels growmg m old apple and peach orchards or in recently burnt-over wooded areas.
Ihe plants vary m height from two to six inches (see figure, lower right, Color Plate VIL
and text, page 417).

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

421

THE BROWN GYROMiTRA {Gyrouiitra hninnca). edibility doubtful

Since one species of Gyromitra is known to be poisonous, it is perhaps just as well to let
them all alone. G. bntnnea reaches a height of seven inches.

Photographs by A. G. and H. Lcepcr

THE HALF-FREE MORCHELLA {Morchclla scmi-Uhera) . edible

This morel is small and not as sapid as the larger species. The term "half-free" refers
to the attachment of the cap to the stem. The sectional view on the extreme right shows that
the cap is only half-attached, or half-free. (For other Morels, sec page 420 and figure in
lower right. Color Pl.ite, VH.)

422

THE XATIOXAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE

LAWN MUSHROOMS (including Nau-
coria semiorbicularis, edibility doubtful,
and Pholiota praecox, edible)

{Sec Color Plate VIII)

Some one has said that he who wishes to
explore the world should begin at his own
doorstep. Addressed to the incipient mush-
room collector, this maxim imparts wholesome
advice, for without stirring far from home—
ves, within eyeshot of his front door— he can
collect enough species to make a respectable
hst, and not a few that will give him some-
thing more substantial in the way of a de-
licious snack of mushrooms; also, he is likely
to encounter some that are poisonous.

Among the species to be looked for on lawns
and other grassy places are:

Naucoria semiorbicularis (see Color Plate
VIII, the small cluster and single figure in
upper right), is very common on lawns. The
caps are somewhat sticky in wet weather and
the stems have a characteristic, easily removed,
pale pith within. Edibility doubtful.

Pholiota precox, the early Pholiota (see
Color Plate VIII, showing two plants, young
and old, lower right). This is another com-
mon, edible, mushroom of our lawns. Appears
early in the spring. The young plant shows
the ring before it becomes detached from the
edge of the cap; the older one shows this
tissue hanging down and covered with a dense
deposit of the rusty-brown spores. The cap
of the early Pholiota varies in color from
darkish ocher and brownish to a creamy white
more or less pale. Occasionally the surface is
finely cracked into little areas. The variety
shown here grows in thin woods. In young
plants the gills are colored a beautiful warm
gray.

THE GLISTENING COPRINUS
(Coprinus micaceus)

{Sec Color Plate VIII)

The Glistening Coprinus {Coprinus mica-
ceus), illustrated on page 404, is familiar
to every one. It is one of the first mushrooms
to respond to the showers of early spring. Al-
most any stump will yield hundreds of speci-
mens. To save trouble, the abundant crop
should be "harvested" with a pair of shears.
When simmered down they make an excellent
ketchup.

The minute glistening particles on the cap
and the fine, long grooves on the margin of
the same at once mark the species.

THE IMPERIAL AGARIC, OR CE-
SAR'S MUSHROOM (Amanita
caesarea). Edible

(See Color Plate IX)

This brilliantly colored, stately agaric is the
famed "boletus" served at the feasts of the
emperors of ancient Rome, and lauded in prose
and verse by the writers of that period. So
highly was it esteemed by epicures that they

prepared and cooked the plants themselves, per-
forming these operations with utensils of am-
ber and gold. Special vessels, "boletaria," were
used in cooking the boleti, though in some
households they doubtless got mixed occasion-
ally with other pots and pans. Martial, in his
"Epigrams," lets one that was so treated bewail
its fate:

"Although boleti have given me
so noble a name, I am now
used, I am ashamed to say, for
Brussels sprouts."

From Juvenal we learn that the preparing of
boleti by the young patricians themselves was
regarded as a sign of the mollycoddle, for he
writes :

"Nor will that youth allow any
relative to hope better of him
who has learnt to peel truffles
and to pickle boleti."

Caesar's mushroom grows with us today, its
distribution being limited, however, to the
States east of Ohio. It is especially abundant
in the South, and occurs sparingly as far north
as Nova Scotia. If there is much showery
weather, it may be looked for in open conif-
erous and deciduous woods from July to Octo-
ber. Occasionally it forms huge "fairy-rings."

Except for the very real danger of confound-
ing it with the deadly Amaniia inn.scaria
(Color Plates II and XV, and chart, page
389), there is no reason why it should not
again become a favorite with those who, like
the old Romans, are fond of rare delicacies.
But those who wish to try it should postpone
the pleasure until they are thoroughly familiar
with a considerable number of Amanitas, as
an error in observation may mean death, pre-
ceded by horrible agonies (see the symptoms
of poisoning by Amanita muscaria. on page
403).

No difficulty will be experienced in avoiding
the citron-colored variety of the deadly Amanita
phalloides (see figure at extreme right of Plate
V). The cap in that variety is never orange,
the gills and stem are never clear yellow, and
the volva is composed of short, thick segments
surrounding the upper part of the large, globu-
lar base of the stem.

[For Color Plate X, see the Deadly Ama-
nita, page 409).

THE SOOTY LACTAR (Lactarius lig-
niotus). Edibility doubtful

{See Color Plate XI)

To the city dweller, who through force of
circumstances is allowed a limited number of
cubic feet of air in which he must "live, move,
and have his being," it must be tantalizing to
read that this attractive lactar leads its life in
the cool, mossy depths of the vast fir forests.
In the hot months of July and August, the time
of its occurrence, it is well to have ready this
excuse for an outing: "T am going in quest
of the sootv lactar."

THE FIELD, OR HORSE MUSHROOM {AGARICUS ARVENSIS): Edible

The large plant and sectional view. Somewhat reduced in size.

The strong, sweetish odor given off by this agaric is objectionable to some.

THE COMMON MEADOW-MUSHROOM (AGARICUS CAMPESTER): Edible

Figure at lower right. Under natural size.

When the average person says ** mushroom," it is this species that is meant.

THE FLY-MUSHROOM {AMANITA MUSCARIA): Deadly poisonous
Mature specimen. Somewhat under natural size.
This species and Amanita phalloides (see Nos. X and XVI) are the common causes of serious mushroom-
poisoning (for figures of young plants, see No. XV).

II

JACK-O-LANTERN (CLITOCYBE ILLUDENS): Poisonous
About four-fifths natural size.
A conspicuous object by daylight, this CUtocybe is also visible in the profoundest darkness, the phos-
phorescent light which it emits betraying its presence. Should not be confounded with the edible Chantrelle
(see No. VII, figure at upper right).

Ill

THE EDIBLE BOLETUS, THE "CEPE" OF COMMERCE {BOLETUS EDULIS)

Somewhat under natural size.
The mushroom connoisseur should cultivate the acquaintance of this most excellent sp>ecies.

IV

4

^ "^

.>§»

HD^'^'-

^i^^^^^^^H

K'

*

^.^■^^H

r

'^

/

Upper figure: THE HONEY MUSHROOM, OR OAK FUNGUS (ARMILLARIA MELLEA) :
Edible. This common agaric is the bane of the orchardist (see also photographs and text). Figure in the
middle on the left : THE GARLIC MUSHROOM {MARASMIUS SCORODONIUS) : Edible. The
odor of garlic is so pronounced in this little species that the " nose knows " it before the eye sees it. Figure
in the middle on the right: THE LITTLE WHEEL MUSHROOM {MARASMIUS ROTULA): Edible.
When garnishing venison, this dainty Marasmius adds the appropriate touch of the wild woodlands. Lower
figure: THE FINNl'SH HYDNUM (HYDNUM FENNICUM). This species is too bitter to be eaten,
but the nearly related H. imbricatum is a great favorite with European peoples. Ail figures about two-thirds
natural size.

VI

Upper left: THE CINNAMON CORTINARIUS {CORTINARIUS CINNAMOMEVS). The Cin-
namon Cortinarius is not highly recommended as an edible species. Upper right : THE CHANTRELLE
(CANTHARELLUS CIBARIUS): Edible. (See Clitocybe illudens, No. iii.) Upper middle: THE PER-
ENNIAL POLYSTICTUS (FOLYSnCTUS PERENNIS). "Stalking" fungi, the hunter, sensitive to
beauty as well as usefulness, must stop to admire this species. Lower left : THE EQUESTRIAN TRI-
CHOLOMA (TRICHOLOMA EQUESTRE): Edible. They appear in our forests late in autumn. Lower
right: THE MOREL (MO RC HELL A ESCULENTA): Edible. F^steemed by epicures. Lower middle:
THE DELICIOUS, OR ORANGE-MILK LACTAR {LACTARIUS DELICIOSUS): Edible. «* It is
very luscious eating, full of rich gravy, with a little of the Havour of mussels." AH figures about two-
thirds natural size.

VII

Upper left : A species of PAN^OLUS (poisonous). Upper right : NAUCORIA SEMI-ORBICU-
LARIS (edible qualities doubtful). Lower left : THE GLISTENING COPRINUS (COPRINUS MICA-
CEUS): Edible. Lower right: THE EARLY PHOLIOTA (PHOLIOTA PRECOX): Edible. All
figures about two-thirds natural size.

VIII

^^

CiESAR'S MUSHROOM (AMANITA C^SAREA): Edible
Somewhat under natural size.
History tells us that a dish of this mushroom, "seasoned" with mineral poisons, constituted the last
meal of the Roman Emperor, Claudius Ca;sar. His wife, Agrippina, did the seasoning.

IX

THE DESTROYING ANGEL {AMANITA PHALLOIDES VAR. VIROSA).
Deadly poisonous. About four-fifths natural size.
One of tlie worst of the man-killing mushrooms. Note the "death-cup" at the base of the stem (see
No. XVI ; and No. V, figure on right).

THE SOOTY LACTAR (LACTARWS UGNIOTUS): Edibility doubtful

Somewhat under natural size.

The play of light on the velvety coat of this species attracts the artist who delights in texture rendering.

XI

THE SHAGGY-MANE {COPRINUS COMATUS): Edible
About four-fifths natural size.
The oval caps of the Shaggy-mane, poised on end, like Columbus' egg, are familiar objects on lawns
and other rich grounds. Note the ** cord " suspended in the hollow of the stem.

XII

THE GYPSY (PHOLIOTA CAPERATA) : Edible
Somewhat under natural size.
Tliou-li (ommonly known as Pholiota caperata, this species has been so much thrown about, from genus
to genu , tiiit, likj the <;yp3ies, it may be said to be quite homeless ; whether this is the reason for its com-
mon iKiine has not been ascertained.

XIII

THE PARASOL MUSHROOM {LEPIOTA PROCERA) -. Edible
About four-fifths natural size.
The Parasol is a prime favorite with mushroom eaters — so much so, that one shares a mess of it only with
one's best friend.

XIV

THE FLY-MUSHROOM (AMANITA MUSCARIA): Deadly poisonous

Young specimens. Natural size.

A mature specimen is shown in No. II.

XV

THE DEADLY AMANITA (AMANITA PHALLOIDES)

Somewhat under natural size.
The avoidance of Amanita P/ialloides znd A. muscaria (see No. II) should be the first concern of the
mycophagist.

XVI

COMMON MUSHROOMS OF THE UNITED STATES

439

Fully to appreciate its beauty, one should see
the plant in Nature's own setting, as it reposes
upon a fresh, green, mossy bank at the foot
of a great tir, with the crystalline drops of the
morning dew still studding the smooth, velvety
coat, with birds singing overhead and squirrels
scolding us for calling at such an unseasonable
hour in the morning.

THE INK MUSHROOMS, OR INK-
CAPS (Species of Coprinus)

{See Color Plate XII)

The Ink-caps need no formal introduction,
for every one has seen the "Shagery-mane"
(Coprinus comatus) (Color Plate XII) stand-
ing on end. like Columbus' egg. in lawns and
other grassy places. If one returns later one
may behold

"Their mass rotted off them flake by flake,
Till the thick stalk stuck like a murderer's

stake.
Where rags of loose flesh yet tremble on high,
Infecting the winds that wander by."

Shelley's lurid lines allude to the liquefaction
of the caps, a feature which at once distin-
guishes the Coprini from other black-spored
agarics. It is, however, not a process of putre-
faction, as the poet would have us believe, but
a natural physiological one.

Shaggy-manes are rapid growers, and, com-
ing up in dense masses, as they sometimes do,
they are capable of producing considerable
pressure upon objects that obstruct their
growth. The writer knows of a case where a
thick, newly laid concrete walk was broken up
for some distance by a colony of these large,
yet tender, mushrooms.

The black "ink" into which the caps of Cop-
rini dissolve can be employed for writing. In-
deed, in France, during the war, it was pro-
posed that Coprinus ink be used in place of the
regular article, which was becoming more and
more expensive. But even in peace times the
mushroom ink would prove valuable, as it
could be used in legal documents or in any
important papers that are apt to be fraudu-
lently imitated.

Ink from some especially rare species with
well-marked spore characters would be well-
nigh impossible to imitate, as the microscope
would divulge instantly and beyond peradven-
ture whether the fluid was obtained from the
rare Coprinus. To make matters still more
difficult for forgers, characteristic, easily rec-
ognized spores from other rare species — not
necessarily black-spored nor from agarics —
could be added to this forgery-proof and in-
delible writing fluid. Small amounts of gum
arabic and essence of cloves in the ink will
give adliesiveness and a pleasant odor.

The edibility of the Coprini (see also Glis-
tening Coprinus. Color Plate VIII) is unques-
tioned by most writers, but care should be ex-
ercised that only fresh specimens are utilized,
and that they be cooked without delay, as
deliquescence sets in very soon.

THE WRINKLED PHOLIOTA, OR

THE GYPSY (Pholiota caperata).

Edible

(See Color Plate XIII)

The ocher-colored cap with whitish, fleecy,
silky fibrils scattered over the central portion,
the brownish-yellow, longitudinally wrinkled,
saw-edged gills, together with the slightly vol-
vate, whitish stem that bears a double-edged
ring about midway of its length, make the
Wrinkled Pholiota one of the most easily
recognized species.

It is quite common, growing scattered or
gregariously in woods (especially of pine), in
mossy swamps, and in open places, from July
to October. Its edibility is unquestioned.

THE PARASOL MUSHROOM (Lepiota
procera). Edible

(See Color Plate XIV)

Happy is the mushroom-hunter if, after a
foray, his "bag" includes many Parasols, for it
is not often that he encounters this most de-
sirable species in sufficient quantity to satisfy
his appetite.

Though pretty effectually camouflaged in
coloring, its great height makes it a conspicu-
ous object. A giant specimen once reported to
the writer measured seven inches across the
cap and twenty-two inches in stem length.
This monster mushroom was found growing
among low blueberry bushes — a fact that would
seem to indicate an acid food requirement for
the species.

Successful efforts have been made in France
to cultivate the plant from its spores, and Pro-
fessor Duggar, in this country, has demon-
strated that it responds vigorously to the
tissue-culture method. It is to be hoped that
some of our pure-culture spawn-producers will
take up the problem and produce the spawn on
a commercial scale, so that it may be bought
by growers. Lepiota rhacodes, a near relative
and just as desirable, might prove even more
responsive to culture methods.

In the opinion of gourmets, the Parasol
mushroom is at its best when quickly broiled
over the live embers of a camp-fire, with just
enough basting with hot butter to keep it from
burning. Then, properly seasoned and served
with a partridge or two, the gustatory appara-
tus experiences sensations not readily for-
gotten.

Such an eventuality as an oversupply almost
never happens, but if by rare chance more
specimens should be collected than can be at
once disposed of, it is well to remember that
dry they are even better than fresh.

The habitat of the Parasol mushroom is
rneadows, pastures, and open, thin woods;
time, summer and early autumn; distribution.
cosmopolitan.

[For Color Plate XV, see the Fly Mush-
room, page 403.]

(For Color Plate XVI, see the Deadly Ama-
nita, page 409.]

HURDLE RACING IN CANOES

A Thrilling and Spectacular Sport Among the Maoris

of New Zealand

By Walter Burke

THE title of this article sounds like
a fairy tale; yet hurdle racing in
canoes is a highly developed sport
among the New Zealand Alaoris.

Two or three things are necessary for
the sport : First, the canoes must be dug-
outs. The dainty canoes so popular on
the American lakes and rivers and the
beautiful birch-barks of the Canadian
voyageurs would be too fragile, crump-
ling up like matchwood at the first hurdle.

A swift-running river is also desirable,
in order that the crews may have the help
of the increased speed given by the cur-
rent to carry the centers of the canoes
over the hurdle. This is an important
consideration, as can be seen from the
photographs. And the contestants must
be good swimmers. As every Maori —
man, woman, or child — is, there is no risk
of drowning, even in the roughest water.

One sees the game at its very best at
Ngaruawahia, a village in the North
Island, a little south of Auckland, on the
seventeenth of March in any year — St.
Patrick's Day.

At this point the Waikato, one of the
finest rivers in the Dominion, widens out
and sweeps round a bend to meet another
branch. The river carries a great volume
of water, draining an enormous water-
shed in the center of the island, including
Lake Taupo, into which some thirty
streams discharge. The Waikato plunges
over the Huka Falls, a miniature Ni-
agara, below which are the Aratiatia
RajMds, quite impassable for any boat.
It is at this point that it is proposed to
generate sufficient electricity to run the
railway system of the North Island.

Prior to the day, the Maoris collect
from all the adjacent territory, bringing
with them their prize canoes, each dug
out of the trunk of a tree. Some of these
boats are large enough to carry a crew of
from thirty to more than forty paddlers.
These are not for hurdling, however !

The secret — more or less — trials pro-
ceed ; training is keen and hard ; the bet-
ting heavy, for most Maoris are well-to-
,do and are keen sportsmen, willing to
gamble on anything, from *'fly loo'' to a
horse-race ! The excitement progresses
till the eventful day, when special trains
bring immense numbers of Maoris and
Pakehas (white people) from far and
near.

The program includes many and varied
events, but the great attraction is the
hurdle racing, just as the steeplechase
attracts the eager crowd at a turf event.
Of course, in saying this, I am not belit-
tling the excitement over the big canoe
races. There is not the fun in these,
however, as there are no accidents, while
the hurdle racing is one continuous series
of them — a spill at practically each hur-
dle, of which there are usually three or
four.

Unless the bow of the canoe is well out
of the water, it cannot take the hurdle,
which is from twelve to eighteen inches
above the surface. The object is to get
up such speed that when the bow slides
on to the hurdle the smooth and well-
greased bottom will continue to glide till
past the center of gravity, when the mem-
bers of the crew run forward and their
weight causes the bow to go down with a
''flop" and the stern slides off. The bow
usually dips under and partly fills the
canoe with water, which is removed by
rocking or is splashed out with the aid
of the flat of the paddle.

This is the program when all goes well!
And it will probably happen when one
canoe can shoot away from the others
and negotiate the first hurdle alone. But
usually about four or five canoes come
down almost simultaneously, the crews
yelling like fiends, and there is a thrilling
mix up, from which the brainiest crew,
with the best of luck, gets out of the ruck
and away.

440

6

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