full-grown specimens, singly and in dense clusters. As fast as they
reach the desired size twist them from their sockets. Do not cut or
pull them. Keep the gills downward, to prevent dirt getting in them.
Take care not to disturb those left in the beds more than is
necessary. It is unnecessary to add, cook them, but it is very
necessary to tell how, because many excellent cooks commit the
outrageous sacrilege of peeling mushrooms. A large amount of the
flavor and deliciousness of a mushroom is in the skin—as it is in the
apple. One might just as well peel a strawberry. First, always holding
the plant gills downward and not over others, cut away the extreme
base of the stem and brush off any adhering dirt. If the cap shows
much scruff, rub it off with a piece of coarse flannel or cloth. Throw
the mushrooms thus cleaned into cold water; they will float. Run the
fingers through them several times, then lift them to a fresh pan of
water, wash them and place them, gills downward, on a cloth to drain,
or put them in a colander. Then cook them to taste. Here, again,
sacrilege is frequent. Many foods are simply mediums for added
flavors. Not so the mushroom; it has a decided, exquisite flavor of
its own. It should not be made in cooking to taste like something
else. Put the mushrooms in a stew-pan with a little water; cover them,
and stew slowly for twenty minutes, adding butter, salt and pepper to
taste. Cream or milk may be added. Another very good way is to butter
well a medium-hot pan; cut the mushrooms into equal-sized pieces, put
them in it, cover, and fry. Stir them from time to time, and when
quite done season with salt and pepper. A good gravy is made for them
by using water, milk or cream. Now if you must have a meat of some
sort, put the meat on one dish and the mushrooms on another. By doing
this you spoil the taste of neither.
Beds will continue to produce for several weeks if properly cared for.
As soon as they cease bearing remove them, clean up, white-wash,
coal-oil every inch of wood, salt the floor, and be ready to try
again. After the amateur has his or her hand in, the bed area can be
largely increased by building rough berths, one above the other, in
which beds can be made. An important bit of advice is: Start in a
small way. Do not expend any more money than you can afford to lose.
Transcriber’s Note
This is a complex text, with a great deal of structure, which
occasionally lapses. In general, the text is given as printed, except
that minor lapses of the conventional punctuation have been silently
corrected. Where the author’s intent is unclear, the notes collected
here will indicate the resolution, if any.
The text proved difficult to outline, with different sections adopting
various schemes. The only class contained here is FUNGI.
In each Genus section, the 'Analysis of the Tribes' tabulation
indicates one or more subsections to follow, keyed by one or more
asterisks. Frequently, these references have no corresponding
subsection. In general, this scheme is unreliable.
On p. 34, the outline entry ‘_B._ PILEUS VISCID. NEITHER SCALY NOR
WARTY’ almost certainly refers to the incorrectly lettered and titled
section on p. 49, ‘_A._ CUTICLE VISCID. NEITHER SCALY NOR WARTY.’. The
‘cuticle’ is an attribute of the ‘pileus’.
As examples, on p. 133, there are no asterisks on the references to
the Collybarii or Mycenarii, but one asterisk appears in the
subsection Collybarii directly below. On the other hand, there is no
matching subheading for Mycenarii.
On p. 271, the reference '* Ægeritini. _P. ægerita_, the type of the
section,' in the Table of the Tribes has no matching section.
Where the subsection references have matching subsections, hyperlinks
have been included to facilitate navigation.
There are number of issues associated with the many illustrations.
There is a parenthetical reference on p. 142 to Plate XXXV_a_ on the
same page, which does not exist in the text, nor in the List of
Illustrations.
On p. 216, the page reference for Plate CXXXVI, fig. 4 was omitted.
The correct page (p. 508) has been provided.
On p. 319, Plate LXXXVIa (_Cortinarius autumnalis_) is mislabeled as
LXXXVIb. Plate LXXXVIb (_Cortinarius annulatus_) appears properly on
p. 320.
Plates LXXXIX, CXXIII, CXXVII and CLVII are missing from both the List
and the text.
On pp. 569–570, the quotation marks associated with the passage “The
botanical description of Gastromycetes, given by M.C. Cooke, is ... by
various transformations of the peridium.” are confused. They are given
as printed here.
On p. 664, the reference to MONOCOTYLEDON in the entry for ENDOGEN has
no corresponding entry.
p. xxiii The Clavariaceæ—branched or Missing,
club-shaped[—]often found but
likely.
p. 64 In other re[s]pects Added.
p. 65 mot[t]lings Added.
p. 100 =Spores= 5–6×3–4[µ] _B._ Added.
p. 227 [Novia] Scotia _Sic._
p. 285 dangerous plant.[”] Added.
p. 297 _Mrs. Mary F[a/u]ller_ Corrected.
'Fuller'
elsewhere.
p. 324 at M[r/t]. Gretna, Pa. Corrected.
p. 351 som[e]what Added.
p. 352 evidence against it.[”] Added.
p. 363 [A/H]. Candolleanus Corrected;
the genus
following
this
entry.
p. 407 Pile[o]us yellow Removed.
p. 464 =Spores= oblong, 12–14×4–5[µ]. Added.
p. 467 =B. gra[´]cilis= Added.
p. 471 the type of a new tribe.[”] Added.
p. 484 Philade[l]phia Added.
p. 517 *[*] _Plant white, gray or yellowish._ Added.
p. 548 MITRUL[L]A VITELLINA. _sic._
p. 660 (_cortina_[)] Added.
p. 663 plan tbefore/plant before Corrected.
p. 671 LA´TEX (_latex_, liquid; [_ferre_, _Sic._
bear]),
p. 679 as i[f/n] _pruinatus_ Corrected.