FIG. PAGE. FIG. PAGE. 1. RUSSULA CYANOXANTHA, 198 5. RUSSULA ROSEIPES, 209 2. RUSSULA EMETICA, 201 6. RUSSULA VIRESCENS, 194 3. RUSSULA FLAVIDA, 197 7. RUSSULA PUELLARIS, 208 4. RUSSULA SORDIDA, 190 RUS´SULA Pers. Reddish. (Plate XLV.) [Illustration: RUSSULA.] =Pileus= regular, rigid, usually becoming more or less depressed. =Flesh= of the pileus descending into the gills forming a cellular trama. =Veil= and consequently the ring absent. Stem smooth, stout, rigid, brittle, spongy within. =Gills= rigid, fragile, edge thin and acute. =Spores= rounded, often echinulate, white or yellowish. On the ground. Closely allied to Lactarius but separated by the absence of milk. The gills of some species exude watery drops in moist weather. Owing to the similarity of form and the variable coloring many species are difficult to determine; all the characters should be carefully noted, not omitting that of the taste. Russulæ are readily distinguished by the stout, short, brittle stem and the fragility of the pileus and gills. They especially love open woods and appear during the summer and fall months, some being found until sharp frosts occur. It has been claimed by mushroom growers, until within a few years, that the spores of the mushroom have to pass through the digestive apparatus of the horse before they will germinate. It has been conclusively demonstrated that such a transmission is not a necessity. It was for a long time my opinion—following the opinion of others—that such assistance was necessary. In my many efforts to propagate valuable food species of the wild toadstools I endeavored to find the method by which the spores were disseminated, and through what digestive medium they passed—either of insect or animal—before germination. Noticing that the Russulæ were fed upon by a small black beetle, I planted in suitable places, not the toadstools, but the beetles found upon them. The result was that in several instances I grew the Russulæ. My experiments, while interesting, are not conclusive, because I later found that the same results could be obtained from the toadstool itself when planted under its own natural life conditions. It is certain that beetles can not be raised by planting Russulæ.