OUTLINES
B R I T I S H P U N O O L O G Y .
Introiiuctorg :^ a tte r.
CHAPTER I.
PE E L IM IN A B Y OBSERVATIONS.
E v e r y one is more or less acquainted with the sofR fugitive,
variously coloured, succulent plants, which abound every-
vi'here in our woods and meadows, and which are known
under the common names of Toadstools, Mushrooms, or
Champignons, according as they are objects of disgust or admiration,
from their real or supposed poisonous or nutritious
qualities. While therefore the former are, in general, kicked
on one side, or trodden down, the latter, in proportion to
the degree of knowledge possessed, are carefully gathered and
turned to use. There is, however, no general word in our
language which will comprehend even the whole of this group,
much less the vast tribe of plants which are classed with them
in every Natural botanical arrangement. Popular kno.wledge,
indeed, goes sometimes far enough to associate with them
some of the Fungi which grow on the trunks of trees, as the
nearly smooth Polyporus of the birch, and the scaly species of