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THE ESSEX FIELD CLUB.
The Eighth Annual Cryptogamic and Botanical Meeting,
and Ordinary Meeting,
Friday and Saturday, October 28th and 29th, 1887.
In marked contrast to the miserable weather we had suffered under on some
former occasions, our two fungus-hunting days this year were, meteorologically,
all that could be desired—the bright sunshine and mild spring-like air put every
member of the party in good spirits as we started on Friday morning from
Chingford Station, bent on a good day's collecting in the woods. The Secretaries
had engaged a large "break" to carry the party, so as to avoid long and exhaust-
ing walks from one part of the forest to another. The direction of the collecting,
and the scientific determination of the specimens, were again undertaken by the
two eminent mycologists, Dr. M. C. Cooke and Mr. George Massee, F.R.M.S.,
who have so often given their valuable aid on like occasions, and under their
supervision portions of the woodlands from Chingford to the north of Epping
were explored. The absence of one well-known face was sincerely lamented by
all—Mr. James English, of Epping, who had attended every previous "Fungus
Foray" since the establishment of the Club, and whose intimate knowledge of
the best localities and the mycological productions of the forest was always so
abundantly evident from the contents of his collecting baskets, was suffering under
severe illness, which had confined him to his room for months, and was, of course,
unable to join in the excursion. The party was driven by his cottage in Lindsell
Street, Epping, in order that the members might wave a "good-day" and best
wishes to our staunch coadjutor in past autumnal huntings. Canon Du Port and
Mr. Worthington Smith, with other good men and true, were also unable to
be present, to our loss and regret.
Although the days chosen purposely for the meeting this year were a month
later than ordinarily, the long drought of the summer, and the recent keen night
frosts, had much diminished the numbers and manifestly checked the growth of
even the most familiar woodland toadstools. Dr. Cooke reported that so detri-
mental had the continued dry weather been to the plants, that the results of a visit
to the forest by himself and Mr. Massee on October 1st (about the usual date of
our "Fungus Forays") had fully justified the wisdom of this year's postponement,
for not more than seven or eight common species of fungi had been found on that
occasion. On October 15th, the date selected by our good friends the Hackney
Microscopical Society for their annual field-day, the weather, fungologically
speaking, had somewhat improved, and although there was still a very great
dearth of individuals compared with favourable years, it was found possible to
complete a list of upwards of one hundred species seen during the excursion.
Of these about half-a-dozen were additions to the mycological flora of Essex,
namely:—Agaricus (Stropharia) merdarius, Fr. ; Agaricus (Collybia) ocellatus,
Fr. ; Agaricus (Mycena) roridus, Fr. ; Agaricus (Hypholoma) epixanthus, Fr.;
Agaricus (PIeurotus) limpidus, Fr. ; Polyporus (Fomes) fraxineus, Fr.; and
the variety mulleri of Agaricus (Pholiota) squarrosus, Fr., as determined by
Dr. Cooke and Mr. Massee, who were also present at that meeting. At our
own "foray," the exertions of our collectors were but ill-requited; it was
with great difficulty that even small vasculums and baskets could be filled, and