The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 71
Fungus
Fungus.
The New Zealand fungus, known to commerce, is found on decayed timber. The export for 1891 was 7,984 cwt., valued at £10,948. The article is chiefly sent to China, where it is said to be used as a dye in the manufacture of silk, and also for making a kind of soup, for which dish it is much prized on account of its gelatinous properties and rich flavour.
There are some mineral products not enumerated in the list given which exist in the colony, some in ascertained considerable quantities—e.g. iron, lead and zinc ores. The purest form of marble is found in many localities in the middle island, also a great variety of excellent limestones suitable for building and other purposes.