Toadstools, mushrooms, fungi, edible and poisonous; one thousand American fungi / How to select and cook the edible; how to distinguish and avoid the poisonous, with full botanic descriptions. Toadstool poisons and their treatment, instructions to students, recipes for cooking, etc., etc.

by Charles McIlvaine; Robert K. Macadam

GATHERING THE CROP.

The mushrooms will now show in various sizes, from pin-head to large, 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.

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 club-shaped[—]often found	Missing, but likely.
p. [64]	In other repects	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, bear]),	Sic.
p. [679]	as i[f/n] pruinatus	Corrected.