aw, but after cooking becomes quite pleasant
and is very nutritious.

_Prairie or Indian Turnip, Bread-root or Pomme-blanche of the Prairie._
This is found on all the prairies of the Missouri region. Its root was
and is a staple article of food with the Indians. The roots are one to
three inches thick and four to twelve inches long.

_Solomon's Seal._ The two Solomon's Seals (true and false) both produce
roots that are long, bumpy storehouses of food.

_Crinkle-root._ Every school child in the country digs out and eats the
pleasant peppery crinkle-root. It abounds in the rich dry woods.

MUSHROOMS, FUNGI OR TOADSTOOLS

We have in America about two thousand different kinds of Mushrooms or
Toadstools; they are the same thing. Of these, probably half are
wholesome and delicious; but about a dozen of them are deadly poison.

There is no way to tell them, except by knowing each kind and the
recorded results of experience with each kind. The story about cooking
with silver being a test has no foundation; in fact, the best way for
the Woodcraft Boy or Girl is to know definitely a dozen dangerous kinds
and a score or more of the wholesome kinds and let the rest alone.

_Sporeprint._ The first thing in deciding the nature of a toadstool is
the sporeprint, made thus: Cut off the stem of the toadstool and lay the
gills down on a piece of gray paper under a vessel of any kind. After a
couple of hours, lift the cap, and radiating lines of spores will appear
on the paper. If it is desired to preserve these, the paper should be
first covered with thin mucilage. The _color_ of these spores is the
first step in identification.

All the deadly toadstools have _white_ spores.

No black-spored toadstool is known to be poisonous.

POISONOUS TOADSTOOLS

The only deadly poisonous kinds are the Amanitas. Others may purge and
nauseate or cause vomiting, but it is believed that every recorded death
from toadstool poisoning was caused by an Amanita, and unfortunately
they are not only widespread and abundant, but they are much like the
ordinary table mushrooms. They have, however, one or two strong marks:
their stalk always grows out of a "_poison cup_" which shows either as a
cup or as a _bulb_; they have _white_ or _yellow_ gills, a ring around
the stalk, and _white spores_.

Deadly Toadstools

All the deadly toadstools known in North America are pictured on the
plate, or of the types shown on the plate.

The Deadly Amani