Chapter 27

(Plate LXXIX.)Galera tenera.Two-thirds natural size.

(Plate LXXIX.)

Galera tenera.Two-thirds natural size.

G. te´neraSchaeff.—tener, tender.Pileus½ in. and more high,of one color, pallid rust-color when damp, becoming pale when dry, hygrophanous, somewhat membranaceous,conico-bell-shaped, commonly smooth, slightly striate when moist, wholly even when dry, opaque, somewhat atomate.Stemcommonly 3–4 in. long, 1 line thick, tubular, fragile, equal or when larger thickened downward,tense and straight, somewhat shining, striate upward, of the same color as the pileus when moist, and like it becoming pale when dry.Gillsadnate in the top of the cone, appearingas if free, ascending, somewhat crowded,linear, cinnamon.

Pastures and grassy places in woods. Common. May to November.Stevenson.

Sporesellipsoid, 14–21×8–12µK.; 14–8µW.G.S.; 14×7µW.P.; 12–13×7µMassee; elliptical, dark rust-color, almost rubiginous, 13–16.5×8–10µPeck.

Var.pilosella(Agaricus pilosellus Pers.), has both pileus and stem clothed with a minute erect pubescence when moist. A form is sometimes found in which the center of the pileus is brown or blackish-brown.Peck, 46th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

Var.obscu´riorPk. A notable form of this species was found growing in an old stable of an abandoned lumber camp. The plants were large, the pileus in some being more than an inch broad, the stems were 3–6 in. long and the color was rust-colored as in G. ovalis, to which the plants might be referred but for the large spores. Essex county. July. I have labeled the specimens varietyobscurior.Peck, 50th Rep.

Haddonfield, N.J.; Chester county; West Philadelphia, Pa.; West Virginia. In rich pastures, on lawns, dung in woods. Common. June to October.McIlvaine.

Very variable in size and in color when wet and dry. The color of gills and spores readily distinguishes it in its habitats. From spring tofrost it can usually be gathered in quantity. It is small, tender, shrivels in cooking, but makes a savory, excellent dish.

Var. obscurior found cespitose on very old manure at a ruined stable, Mt. Gretna, Pa., August.McIlvaine.

G. fla´vaPk.—flavus, yellow.Pileusmembranous, ovate or bell shaped, moist or subhygrophanous, obtuse, plicate striate on the margin, yellow.Lamellæthin, narrow, crowded, adnate, at first whitish, then yellowish-cinnamon.Stemequal or slightly tapering upward, hollow, slightly striate at the top, sprinkled with white mealy particles, white or yellowish.Sporesovate or subelliptical, brownish-rust-color, 13×8µ.

Pileus6–12 lines broad.Stem2–3 in. long, 1–1.5 lines thick.

Damp vegetable mold in woods. Tompkins county. July.

This species is well marked by the pale-yellow color of the pileus and its plicate striations which are very distinct even in the dried specimens. They extend half way to the disk or more. When dry the pileus is seen to be sprinkled with shining atoms as in some other species of the same genus. Occasionally the yellow cuticle cracks into squamules or small scales.Peck, 46th Rep.

Trenton, N.J.,Sterling; Haddonfield, N.J.; Pennsylvania. Among chips in woods and on woods ground.McIlvaine.

This species is frequent, and when plentiful well worth gathering. It has a more woody flavor than other Galera, but is tasty.

G. vittæfor´misFr.—vitta, a chaplet;forma, form.Pileus½-1 in. broad,date-brownwhen moist, membranaceous, conical then hemispherical, obtuse,even at the disk, striate toward the margin, smooth.Stem1½-3 in. long, ½-1 line thick, tubular, equal,somewhat straight, but not tense and straight, smooth or sometimes pubescent, slightly striate under a lens,opaque, rust-color.Veilscarcely conspicuous.Gillsadnate, broader at the middle, in the form of a segment when larger, somewhat ascending, somewhat distant, at firstwatery-cinnamon, at length rust-color.Fries.

Sporeselliptical, 12×6µMassee.

Haddonfield, N.J.; Mt. Gretna, Pa. On pastures, lawns, etc. June to September.McIlvaine.

Not previously reported.

Though small it makes up in quantity when found. The stems are not as tender as the caps. Quality good.

Gr—cow’s dung.

Pileusmembranaceous.Gillsadnexed or free, membranaceous, soft, salmon-color or rusty, dissolving (not dripping as in Coprinus), powdered with the rusty spores.Stemcentral; universal veil absent, partial veil often obsolete.

Very delicate and fragile, remarkable among the Ochrosporæ for the gills dissolving into mucus, and in this respect analogous with Coprinus among the Melanosporæ, and Hiatula amongst the Leucosporæ. Growing on dung or amongst grass where dung abounds.

A small but very natural genus, with the vegetative portion like Coprinus and the fructification resembling Cortinarius, hence occupying an intermediate position between these two genera.Fries.

B. Bol´toniFr.—after Bolton.Pileusrather fleshy, viscid, at first even, then with the membranaceous margin sulcate, disk darker, subdepressed.Stemattenuated, yellowish, at first floccose from the remains of the fugacious veil.Gillssubadnate, yellow then livid-brown.Fries.

Haddonfield, N.J., cespitose among manure on sawdust.

Of small substance but good consistency and flavor.

(Plate LXXX.)Bolbitius fragilis.Two-thirds natural size.

(Plate LXXX.)

Bolbitius fragilis.Two-thirds natural size.

B. fra´gilisFr.Pileus2 in. broad,light yellow, then becoming pale, somewhat membranaceous, almost pellucid, conical then expanded, somewhat umbonate, smooth, viscous,striate round the margin(which is often crenulated).Stem3 in. long, 1 line or little more thick, fistulose, attenuated upward,naked, smooth(and without a manifest veil), yellow.Gillsattenuato-adnexed, almost free, ventricose,yellow then pale cinnamon.Sporesrust-colored.Fries.

Thinner than B. Boltoni, etc., very fragile, rapidly withering.

On dung. Common. June to October.Stevenson.

Sporessubspheroid-ellipsoid, elliptical, 7×3–5µMassee.

West Virginia; Pennsylvania. June to frost. On rich grass and dung.

Pileus usually not over 1.5 in. across. Often in plenty. Its substance does not cook away as with C. micaceus. It amply repays gathering, being highly flavored.

(Plate LXXXa.)Bolbitius nobilis.About two-thirds natural size.

(Plate LXXXa.)

Bolbitius nobilis.About two-thirds natural size.

B. no´bilisPk.—noble.Pileusthin, fleshy on the disk, ovate then bell-shaped, smooth, plicate-striate, pale-yellow, the disk tinged with red, the margin at length recurved and splitting.Gillssubdistant, tapering outwardly, attached, the alternate onesmore narrow, pale-yellow with a darker edge.Stemlong, equal, smooth, striate at the top, hollow, white.

Plantcespitose, 3–5 in. high.Pileus1 in. broad.Stem1 line thick. Ground in woods. Greig. September.

A fine large species, but probably rare.Peck, 24th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

I have not seen this species. Figure after Professor Peck.

Gr—a slipper.

(Plate LXXXI.)Crepidotus mollis.Natural size.

(Plate LXXXI.)

Crepidotus mollis.Natural size.

Veilwanting or not manifest.Pileuseccentric, lateral or resupinate.Sporesrust-color.

The Crepidoti correspond in shape and habit to the smaller Pleuroti and the Claudopodes, but they are distinguished from both by the rust-color of their spores. These are globose in several species, in others they are elliptical. In some there is a depression on one side which gives them a naviculoid character and causes the spore to appear slightly curved when viewed in a certain position. In consequence of the similarity of several of our species, the character of the spores is of much importance in their identification, and it is unfortunate that European mycologists have so generally neglected to give the spore characters in their descriptions of these fungi. In most of the species the pileus is at first resupinate, but it generally becomes reflexed as it enlarges. It is generally sessile or attached by a mass of white fibrils or tomentum. For this reason it is usually somewhat tomentose or villose about the point of attachment, even in species that are otherwise glabrous. In several species the pileus is moist or hygrophanous and then the thin margin is commonly striatulate. This character is attributed to but one of thedozen or more European species. Their mode of growth is usually gregarious or somewhat loosely imbricated, in consequence of which the pileus, which in most species is white or yellowish, is often stained by the spores, and then it has a rusty, stained or squalid appearance. The species occur especially on old stumps, prostrate trunks and soft much decayed wood in damp, shaded places.Peck, 39th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

C. ful´vo-tomento´susPk.—tawny-tomentose.Pileus¾-2 in. broad, scattered or gregarious, suborbicular, kidney-shaped or dimidiate, sessile or attached by a short, white-villose tubercle or rudimentary stem, hygrophanous, watery-brown and sometimes striatulate on the margin when moist, whitish, yellowish or pale ochraceous when dry,adorned with small, tawny, hairy or tomentose scales.Lamellæbroad, subventricose, moderately close, rounded behind, radiating from a lateral or eccentric white villose spot, whitish becoming brownish-ferruginous.Sporesellipticaloften uninucleate, 8–10×5–6µ.

Decaying wood of poplar, maple, etc. Common. June to October.

A pretty species, corresponding in some respects to the European C. calolepis, but much larger and with tawny, instead of reddish scales. The cuticle is separable and is tenacious, though it has a hyaline gelatinous appearance. The pileus is subpersistent, and specimens dried in their place of growth are not rare.Peck, 39th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

Haddonfield, N.J.; Angora, West Philadelphia. On decaying hickory.McIlvaine.

Substance fair. Taste strong but pleasant.

Grouped by F.D. Briscoe—Studies by C. McIlvaine.Plate LXXXII.Fig.Page.Fig.Page.1.Cortinarius squamulosus,3184.Cortinarius turmalis,3092.Cortinarius violaceus,3145.Cortinarius armillatus,3233.Cortinarius ochraceus,319

Grouped by F.D. Briscoe—Studies by C. McIlvaine.Plate LXXXII.

Cortina, a veil or curtain.

Veilresembling the consistency of a cob-web, superficial, distinct from the cuticle of the pileus.Fleshof pileus and stem continuous.Gillspersistent, dry, changing color, powdered with the spores.Tramafibrillose.Sporesglobose or oblong, somewhat ochraceous on white paper.Fries.

This genus is not easily confounded with any other, the cob-webby veil stretched from stem to pileus in the young plant not being found in other fungi. This must be looked for only in youth, as from its tender character it soon breaks and often appears only as a very indistinct collar on the stem, colored from catching the falling spores. The colors are generally pronounced and often extremely bright, there being very few prettier toadstools than those inclined to the blue or purple shades, which are not uncommon in the immature form. The color of the spores is also a marked feature, being rusty or brownish-ochraceous, turning the gills to the same color at maturity. On account of this change it is generally necessary to have specimens at both stages of growth to accurately determine the species. The gills are thin, attached to the stem in various manners, rarely slightly decurrent.

Cortinarius is distinguished from Flammula by growing on the ground and by the bright ferruginous color of its spores.

Cortinarius is a sturdy, hardy genus preferring northern latitudes and autumnal months, though several of its species grow as far south as Alabama, and one, a new species described by Professor Peck, is found on the Helderberg mountains in May. The genus contains many species, most of which produce in great numbers, yet being woods-growing, and coming as they do when leaves are falling, they are often missed because of their similarity to their surroundings.

Heretofore, less than a dozen species have been reported as eaten. This number is now doubled. While several species are bitter and others equally unpleasant, not one has been accused of harm. It is highly probable that other varieties than those herein given will prove equally acceptable as food. I have tested all I have found in sufficient quantity to warrant passing judgment upon them.

The genus does not contain as many species of superior excellence as other fleshy genera of like numbers. The flesh is frequently dry and ofa strong woody or musky flavor, which it does not lose in cooking. The stems are seldom cookable. All can be fried in butter, but cut in small pieces and well stewed, or stewed and served in patties, or made into croquettes are certain ways of keeping them in palate memory.

ANALYSIS OF TRIBES.

Phlegmacium(Gr—shiny or clammy moisture). Page308.

Pileus viscid. Stem firm, dry. Veil partial, cobweb-like.

A.Cliduchii(Gr—holding the keys—the typical subdivision). Page308.

Partial veil as a ring on the upper part of the stem which is equal or slightly expanded above. Not distinctly bulbous.

*Gills pallid then clay-colored.

**Gills purplish then clay-colored.

B.Scauri(Gr—club-footed). Page310.

Bulbous. Bulb depressed or top-shaped, with a distinct margin caused by the pressure of the pileus before expansion. Veil generally ascending from the margin of the bulb. Gills somewhat sinuate.

*Gills whitish then cinnamon.

**Gills blue then cinnamon.

***Gills brownish-white then cinnamon.

Myxacium(Gr—mucus). Page313.

Universal veil glutinous. Pileus and stem viscid. Stem slightly bulbous. Gills adnate.

Inoloma(Gr—a fibrous fringe). Page314.

Pileus dry, not hygrophanous or viscid, covered at first with innate silky scales or fibrils, becoming smooth. Veil simple. Pileus and stem fleshy, rather bulbous.

*Gills violaceous, then cinnamon.

**Gills pinkish-brown, then cinnamon.

***Gills yellow, then cinnamon.

Dermocybe.Page320.

Pileus thin, equally fleshy, at first silky with a fine down, becoming smooth when adult. Not hygrophanous, but flesh watery when moist or colored. Stem equal or larger above, externally rigid, elastic or brittle, internally stuffed or hollow. Veil single, thread-like.

Telamonia.Page323.

Pileus moist, hygrophanous, at first smooth or sprinkled with the whitish superficial evanescent fibrils of the veil. Flesh thin, or when thick it becomes abruptly thin toward the margin, scissile. Stem ringed below or coated from the universal veil, slightly veiled at the apex, hence with almost a double veil.

Hygrocybe.Page325.

Pileus hygrophanous, smooth or covered with superficial white fibrils, not viscid, moist when fresh, becoming discolored when dry. Flesh very thin or scissile, rarely more compact at the center. Stem rather rigid, bare. Veil thin, rarely collapsing and forming an irregular ring on the stem.

A.Cliduchii.*Gills pallid, then clay-colored.

A.Cliduchii.

*Gills pallid, then clay-colored.

C. seba´ceusFr.—sebum, tallow.Pileus2½-5 in. broad, unicolorous,pale, of the color of tallow, equally fleshy, convex then rather plane, commonly very repand, viscid, smooth, but at the firstcovered over with a whitish pruinose luster.Fleshwhite.Stem3–4 in. long, ½-1 in. thick, solid, stout, compact, never bulbous, often twisted and compressed, slightly fibrillose, pale white.Cortinadelicate, fugacious, adhering only to the margin of the pileus.Gillsemarginate,not crowded, connected by veins, 4 lines broad, clay-color or pallid-cinnamon, paler at the sides.Fries.

The flesh of the pileus is not compact at the disk and abruptly thin at the circumference, but equally attenuated toward the margin. The flesh of the stem is white. The gills never turn bluish-gray. Taste mild.Stevenson.

Sporespip-shaped, 9×7µCooke.

A very common and prolific species in West Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North Carolina.McIlvaine.

Pushing from the earth in great clusters it raises the mat of leaves above it into hut-like mounds through which it seldom bursts. Yet side openings to its huts show its coziness, and reveal the ground thickly dusted with its spores. Detecting these mounds is part of the woodcraft of a toad-stool hunter.

Where clusters are not dense, or the fungus is solitary, the stem is frequently swollen at the base, even bulbous.

Both caps and stems are edible, but the stems are not equal to the caps. It is a valuable food species, because of its lateness and quantity. It is not of best quality.

C. tur´malisFr.—turma, a troop. (PlateLXXXII, fig. 4, p. 306.)Pileusyellow-tan, most frequently darker at the disk, not changeable, compact, convex then plane, very obtuse, even, smooth (sometimes obsoletely piloso-virgate), when young veiled with pruinate but very fugacious villous down, soon naked, viscid.Fleshwhite.Stemsometimes 3 in., sometimes 6 in. long, 1 in. thick, solid, very hard, rigid,cylindrical, here and there attenuated at the base, shining white when dry,when young sheathed with a white woolly veil, naked when full grown. Cortina entirely fibrillose, superior and persistent in the form of a ring, at length ferruginous with the spores.Gillsvariously adnexed, rounded or emarginate, even decurrent with a tooth, crowded,serrated, white then clay-color.Fries.

I find it edible and of great value, being plentiful in pine woods, Maryland. I have collected a bushel in less than an hour in October. Under pine needles forming mounds.Taylor.

The localities and the habit of C. turmalis are very like that of C. sebaceus. The leaf mat broods the clusters.

C. turmalis is on a par with C. sebaceus. Personally I prefer the latter.

**Gills purplish, then clay-colored.

C. va´rius(Schaeff.) Fr.—varius, changeable.Pileus2 in. and more broad, brightferruginous-tawny, compact, hemispherico-flattened, veryobtuse, regular, slightly viscid, even, smooth, the thin margin at first incurved, appendiculate with the cortina.Fleshfirm, white.Stemcurt, 1½-2½ in. long, 1 in. and more thick,bulbous, absolutely immarginate, compact,shining white, adpressedly flocculose, the superior veil pendulous.Gillsemarginate, thin, somewhat crowded,at firstnarrow,violaceous-purplish, then broader and ochraceous-cinnamon, always quite entire.

Variable in stature, but the habit and colors are always unchangeable. It varies with the stem taller and somewhat equal, the pileus yellow-tawny, and the gills dark blue.Fries.

In woods. Uncommon. September to November.Stevenson.

Minnesota; Ohio.

Edible.Cooke, 1891.

*Gills whitish then cinnamon.

C. intru´susPk.Pileusfleshy, rather thin, convex, then expanded, glabrous, somewhat viscid when moist, even or radiately wrinkled on the margin, yellowish or buff, sometimes with a reddish tint.Fleshwhite.Lamellæthin, close, rounded behind, at first whitish or creamy-white, then cinnamon, often uneven on the edge.Stemequal or slightly tapering either upward or downward, stuffed or hollow, sometimes beautifully striate at the top only or nearly to the base, minutely floccose when young, soon glabrous, white.Sporesbroadly elliptical, brownish-cinnamon, 6–8×4–5µ.

Pileus1–2.5 in. broad.Stem1–3 in. long, 3–6 lines thick.

Mushroom beds, manured soil in conservatories or in plant pots. Boston, Mass.R.K. Macadam.Haddonfield, N.J.C. McIlvaine.

This interesting species is closely allied to Cortinarius multiformis and belongs to the Section Phlegmacium. It has a slight odor of radishes and is pronounced edible by Mr. McIlvaine. Its habitat is peculiar, but it possibly finds its way into conservatories and mushroom beds through the introduction of manure or soil, or leaf mold from the woods. It seems strange, however, that it has not yet been detected growing in the woods or fields. Hebeloma fastibile is said sometimes to invade mushroom beds, and our plant resembles it in so many particulars that it is with some hesitation I separate it. The chief differences are in the stem and spores. The former, in Hebeloma fastibile, is describedas solid and fibrous-squamose and the latter as 10×6 micromillimeters in size. The brighter color of the smaller spores and the stuffed or hollow smooth stem of our plant will separate it from this species.Peck, Bull. of the Torrey Bot. Club, October, 1896.

Cortinarius intrusus was a happy find. Several pints of it were collected by the author in February—usually a famine month for the mycophagist. They grew on the ground, in beds among plants, and with potted plants in a hot-house in Haddonfield, N.J. The crop continued well into the spring. The species is delicate, savory, and a most accommodating renegade from its kind. I have never found it elsewhere.

**Gills blue, then cinnamon.

C. cærules´censFr.Pileus2–3 in. across, equally fleshy, convex then plane, obtuse, regular, even, almost glabrous, but often fibrilloso-streaked; viscid, when dry shining or opaque, dingy yellow, almost tan-colored, varying to yellowish-brown, etc.Gillsslightly rounded behind, adnexed, thin, closely crowded, 2 lines broad, at first clear intense blue then becoming purplish, at length dingy cinnamon.Stemabout 2 in. long, ½ in. thick (bulb more than an inch), firm, equally attenuated upward, at first fibrillose, bright violet, then becoming pale and whitish, naked, bulb often disappearing with age; veil fibrillose, fugacious.Sporeselliptical, 9–10×5µ.

Amongst moss in woods, etc.

Neither the gills nor the flesh change color when broken, a point which distinguishes the present from C. purpurascens. When young every part is generally blue. Smell scarcely any.Fries.

Spores10–12×5µCooke.

Haddonfield; West Virginia; Mt. Gretna, Pa. In woods September to frost.McIlvaine.

The American species seldom entirely loses the bluish-purple color of its cap. The beautiful color fades somewhat or becomes splotched with yellow. Neither does the bulb ordinarily disappear with age. It is common. Taste of cap is mild, somewhat woody. They require long, slow stewing, and are better made into patties and croquettes.

C. purpuras´censFr.—gills becoming purple when bruised.Pileus4–5 in. across, fleshy, disk compact, obtuse, wavy, variable,covered with a dense layer of gluten, but opaque when dry, bay or reddish then tawny-olivaceous, spotted; often depressed round the margin, which is at first incurved then wavy, marked with a raised brown line.Fleshentirely clear blue.Gillsbroadly emarginate, 3 lines and more broad, crowded, bluish-tan, then cinnamon, violet-purple when bruised.Stemabout 3 in. long, ⅔ in. and more thick, solid, bulbous, everywhere fibrillose, intensely pallid clear blue, very compact, juicy, becoming purplish-blue when touched, bulb submarginate.Sporeselliptical, 10–12×5–6µFries.

Var.subpurpuras´cens. Massachusetts.Frost.

Plentiful in West Virginia mountains in mixed woods, 1882. On South Valley Hill, near Downington, Pa., October, 1887. Haddonfield, N.J., 1892. In woods. September to frost.McIlvaine.

Both stems and caps are juicy when young and of agreeable flavor. It is among the best edible species of Cortinarius.

***Gills brownish-white, then ferruginous.

C. turbina´tusFr.—turbo, a top.Pileusunicolorous, dingy-yellow or green,becoming pale, hygrophanous, opaque when dry, fleshy, convex then flattened, obtuse, at length depressed, orbicular, even,smooth, viscid.Fleshsoft,white.Stemcommonly curt, 2 in., but varying elongated, yellowish, springing from a globoso-depressed distinctly marginate bulb, otherwise equal, cylindrical,stuffed then hollow.Gillsattenuato-adnate, thin, crowded, broad,quite entire, at first pallid light-yellowish, at length somewhat ferruginous.

The typical form isregular, distinct from its allies in thehygrophanous pileus, in the gills being isabelline-ferruginous and quite entire, and in being without any dark-purple or purple color. Easily distinguished by its turbinate bulb.Fries.

In woods. Uncommon.Stevenson.

Sporesrough, 14–16×7µ; rough,Cooke.

Cap2–4 in. across.Stemcommonly about 2 in. long, sometimes longer.Massee.

North Carolina,Schweinitz; Pennsylvania,Schweinitz; Massachusetts,Frost; Minnesota; Nova Scotia.

Edible.Cooke.

(Plate LXXXIII.)Cortinarius collinitus.About natural size.

(Plate LXXXIII.)

Cortinarius collinitus.About natural size.

C. collin´itusFr.—collino, to besmear.Pileusconvex, obtuse, glabrous, glutinous when moist, shining when dry.Gillsrather broad, dingy-white or grayish when young.Stemcylindrical, solid, viscid or glutinous when moist, transversely cracking when dry, whitish or paler than the pileus.Sporessubelliptical, 13–15µ.

The Smeared cortinarius is much more common than the Violet cortinarius and has a much wider range. Both the cap and stem are covered with a viscid substance or gluten which makes it unpleasant to handle. The cap varies in color from yellow to golden or tawny-yellow and when the gluten on it has dried it is very smooth and shining. The flesh is white or whitish. The young gills have a peculiar bluish-white or dingy-white color which might be called grayish or clay color, but when mature they assume the color of the spores. They are sometimes minutely uneven on the edge.

The stem is straight, solid, cylindrical and usually paler than the cap. When the gluten on it dries it cracks transversely, giving to the stem a peculiar scaly appearance.

The cap is 1½-3 in. broad, and the stem 2–4 in. long, and ¼-½ in. thick.

The plant grows in thin woods, copses and partly cleared lands and may be found from August to September.

It is well to peel the caps before cooking, since the gluten causes dirt and rubbish to adhere tenaciously to them.Peck, 48th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

In 41st Rep. N.Y. State Mus. Nat. Hist., p. 71, Professor Peck describes a closely allied species, C. muscigenus, n. sp., “separated by its more highly-colored pileus, striate margin and even, not diffracted-squamose stem.”

Prof. L.B. Mendel gives the following analysis: “Young specimens gathered in New Haven early in November, 1897, gave:

Edible.Cooke.

In appearance the Smeared cortinarius does not appeal to be eaten. Neither does an eel. But peeled both are inviting. Raw, the caps of this fungus have a strong woody smell and taste. This is somewhat subdued by cooking.

I have found the plant in West Virginia, Pennsylvania and North Carolina, often among the leaves in mixed woods, but it prefers a goodly supply of light and the freedom of open places. It is often gregarious, sometimes tufted.

C. io´desB. and C.Pileus1½-2 in., convex, at length plane, viscid, firm, violet-purple.Fleshwhite, thick.Veilfugacious, spider-web.Stem2–3 in. long, 1½ in. thick, solid, thickened below.Gillsviolet, at length cinnamon, ventricose, adnate, sub-emarginate, irregular, sometimes forked.B. and C.

This is a small but beautiful species, the pileus, lamellæ and stem being of a bright-violet or purplish-violet hue. The spores are subelliptical, generally uninucleate, 10×6µ.Peck, 32d Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

The pileus in this species is sometimes spotted with white. The bulbous white stem is adorned with lilac-colored fibrils.Peck, 35th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

Sparingly found among roots at Mt. Gretna, Pa., September, 1897–1898.

The caps are fairly good.

*Gills violaceous then cinnamon.

C. viola´ceusFr. (PlateLXXXII, fig. 2, page 306.) One of our most plentiful and beautiful autumnal fungi. As the American plant differs somewhat from the European, Professor Peck’s description is given.

Pileusconvex, becoming nearly plane, dry, adorned with numerouspersistent hairy tufts or scales, dark violet.Lamellærather thick, distant, rounded or deeply notched at the inner extremity, colored like the pileus in the young plant, brownish-cinnamon in the mature plant.Stemsolid, fibrillose, bulbous, colored like the pileus.Sporessubelliptical, 12.5µ long.

The Violet cortinarius is a very beautiful mushroom and one easy of recognition. At first the whole plant is uniformly colored, but with age the gills assume a dingy ochraceous or brownish-cinnamon hue. The cap is generally well formed and regular and is beautifully adorned with little hairy scales or tufts. These are rarely shown in figures of the European plant, but they are quite noticeable in the American plant and should not be overlooked. The flesh is more or less tinged with violet.

The gills when young are colored like the cap. They are rather broad, notched at the inner extremity and narrowed toward the margin of the cap. When mature they become dusted with the spores whose color they take.

The stem also is colored like the cap. It is swollen into a bulb at the base and sometimes a faint ochraceous band may be seen near the top. This is due to the falling spores which lodge on the webby filaments of the veil remaining attached to the stem.

Cap2–4 in. broad.Stem3–5 in. long, about ½ in. thick.Peck, 48th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

Minerva, Essex county. A form of this species occurs here, having the pileus merely downy or punctate-hairy under a lens, no squamules being distinguishable by the naked eye. July.Peck, 50th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

Spores12–14×10µCooke.

The spider web veil is exquisitely displayed in this species. This, with its strongly bulbous base and violet tinge throughout, easily mark it. Though usually solitary great numbers of it are found in its settlements. The mixed woods of central New Jersey abound with it in July, August and September. Throughout Pennsylvania and West Virginia it is common, and is reported from several other states. In Redman’s woods, near Haddonfield, N.J., a densely clustered form of singular beauty occurs. A dozen individuals of various forms and sizes with swollen stems form a compact mass, rich in color, and cutting crisp and juicy as an apple. They are far better than other Cortinarii I have eaten. I have not seen it elsewhere.

C. violaceus is everywhere eaten, and is in my opinion the best of its genus. The American plant is not inodorous, but has a decided mushroom smell and taste.

(Plate LXXXIV.)Cortinarius albo-violaceus.One-half natural size.

(Plate LXXXIV.)

Cortinarius albo-violaceus.One-half natural size.

C. albo-viola´ceusPers.Pileusfleshy, rather thin, convex, then expanded, sometimes broadly subumbonate, smooth, silky, whitish, tinged with lilac or pale violet.Lamellægenerally serrulate, whitish-violet, then cinnamon-color.Stemequal or a little tapering upward, solid, silky, white, stained with violet, especially at the top, slightly bulbous, the bulb gradually tapering into the stipe.

Height, 3–4 in.; breadth of pileus, 2–3 in.; stipe, 3–6 lines thick.

Ground in thin woods, more frequently under poplars. Center. October.

The stem is sometimes subannulate, and being violet above and white below the obscure ring, it appears as if sheathed with a silky-white covering. Inodorous. Sometimes the stem gradually tapers from the base to the top, so that it can scarcely be called bulbous.Peck, 23d Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

Spores12×5–6µCooke; 6–9×4–5µK.; pruniform, 10µQ.

An allied species C. (Inoloma) lilacinus,Peck, with the stem and bulbous part much broader than the cap, is not as common, but of far better flavor.

Common in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, in mixed woods. September to frost.McIlvaine.

A mushroom flavor develops in cooking. The consistency of the flesh is good. It is of medium grade.

C. lilaci´nusPk.Pileusfirm, hemispherical, then convex, minutely silky, lilac-color.Lamellæclose, lilac, then cinnamon.Stemstout, bulbous, silky-fibrillose, solid, whitish, tinged with lilac.Sporesnucleate, 10×6µ.

Plant4–5 in. high.Pileus3 in. broad.Stem4–6 lines thick. Low mossy ground in woods. Croghan. September. This is a rare but beautiful plant, allied to C. alboviolaceus, from which it may be distinguished by its stouter habit, deeper color and bulbous stem. In the young plant the bulb is much broader than the undeveloped pileus that surmounts it.Peck, 26th Rep. N.Y. State Bot.

Massachusetts,Frost; Minnesota, Nova Scotia.

I have found a few specimens in several places: West Virginia, Redman’s woods, Haddonfield, N.J., in which place it is more plentiful than in any locality I have noted. Near lake at Eagle’s Mere, Pa., August, and at Springton, Pa. Excellent.

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