193
THE ESSEX NATURALIST.
The weather was bright and sunny, after heavy rain throughout the
previous day and night.
The route traversed by the eighty persons composing the morning
party, which assembled at Loughton railway station at 10.41 o'clock, was
by way of Staples Hill, Debden Slade, the Loughton Camp, and so to
Little and Great Monk Woods; thence by way of the Wake Valley to
Highbeach.
The smaller afternoon party met at Loughton station at 2.37 o'clock,
and proceeded by a shorter route via Shelley's Hill to Highbeach.
Each party was met at the station by the Hon. Secretary.
Collecting was carried on assiduously throughout the day, but no great
profusion of fungi was in evidence in any part of the Forest; nevertheless,
a goodly display was ultimately made at the headquarters, the Roserville
Retreat at Highbeach, where tables had been set out, and named and
labelled specimens placed on exhibition, under the careful superintendence
of Mr. Gould.
An interesting interlude was afforded during the afternoon by Mr. S.
Hazzledine Warren, who gave on the site a brief account, to some 50
interested members, of some experimental excavations by the Club, which
had just been carried out under his direction to determine the probable
age of the mysterious mounds on the high ground overlooking the Lea
Valley, and which he had reason to suspect might be of prehistoric date.
As Mr. Warren will write a full report of his work for publication in the
Essex Naturalist at a somewhat later date, it is unnecessary to give
details here.
Returning to the headquarters some time was spent in examining the
trophies collected during the day, and tea was taken at 5 o'clock.
At a meeting of the Club held after tea, with the President in the chair,
five persons were nominated for membership, and the President then
called upon each of our conductors in succession for a report on the day's
finds.
Miss Wakefield reported that an average collection had been made, of
which the more noteworthy forms were Russula mustelina Fr., Hygrophorus
discoideus (Pers.) Fr., Hygrophorus mesotephrus B. & Br., Clitocybe conglo-
bata (Vitt.) Bres., Naucoria myosotis Fr. and Microglossum viride Karst.
Mr. Gould thought the day's collection was an interesting one; there
were some curious abnormalities in certain forms, as, for instance, in
Collybia maculata, which were due to the rapid alternations in temperature
and in humidity which had been experienced during the past week. The
day's gatherings showed a comparative scarcity this year of species of
Lactarius and Cortinarius, whilst forms of Russula were notably abundant.
Mr. Ramsbottom expressed the pleasure felt by members of the British
Mycological Society at being again associated with the Club in this impor-
tant annual function. He remarked on the abundance this year of
Amanita phalloides.
Miss Lister reported that the day had yielded 26 forms of myxomycetes;
of these the following were the most noteworthy :—
Diderma radiatum (L.) Morgan, var. umbilicatum.
Colloderma oculatum (Lipp.), G. Lister.
Cribraria argillacea Pers., occurring on oak wood.