Part 40

_Symbiosis._--The remarkable case of life in common first observed in lichens, where a fungus and an alga unite to form a compound organism--the lichen--totally different from either, has now been proved to be universal in these plants, and lichens are in all cases merely algae enmeshed in the interwoven hyphae of fungi (see LICHENS). This dualism, where the one constituent (alga) furnishes carbohydrates, and the other (fungus) ensures a supply of mineral matters, shade and moisture, has been termed _symbiosis_. Since then numerous other cases of symbiosis have been demonstrated. Many trees are found to have their smaller roots invaded by fungi and deformed by their action, but so far from these being injurious, experiments go to show that this mycorhiza (fungus-root) is necessary for the well-being of the tree. This is also the case with numerous other plants of moors and woodlands--e.g. Ericaceae, Pyrolaceae, Gentianaceae, Orchidaceae, ferns, &c. Recent experiments have shown that the difficulties of getting orchid seeds to germinate are due to the absence of the necessary fungus, which must be in readiness to infect the young seedling immediately after it emerges from the seed. The well-known failures with rhododendrons, heaths, &c., in ordinary garden soils are also explained by the need of the fungus-infected peat for their roots. The role of the fungus appears to be to supply materials from the leaf-mould around, in forms which ordinary root-hairs are incapable of providing for the plant; in return the latter supports the fungus at slight expense from its abundant stores of reserve materials. Numerous other cases of symbiosis have been discovered among the fungi of fermentation, of which those between _Aspergillus_ and yeast in sake manufacture, and between yeasts and bacteria in kephir and in the ginger-beer plant are best worked out. For cases of symbiosis see BACTERIOLOGY.

AUTHORITIES.--_General_: Engler and Prantl, _Die naturlichen Pflanzenfamilien_, i. Teil (1892 onwards); Zopf, _Die Pilze_ (Breslau, 1890); De Bary, _Comparative Morphology of Fungi_, &c. (Oxford, 1887); von Tafel, _Vergleichende Morphologie der Pilze_ (Jena, 1892); Brefeld, _Unters. aus dem Gesamtgebiete der Mykologie_, Heft i. 13 (1872-1905); Lotsy, _Vortrage uber botanische Stammesgeschichte_ (Jena, 1907). _Distribution_, &c.: Cooke, _Introduction to the Study of Fungi_ (London, 1895); Felix in _Zeitschr. d. deutsch. geologisch. Gesellsch._ (1894-1896); Staub, _Sitzungsber. d. bot. Sec. d. Kgl. ungarischen naturwiss. Gesellsch. zu Budapest_ (1897). _Anatomy_, &c.: Bommer, "Sclerotes et cordons myceliens," _Mem. de l'Acad. Roy. de Belg._ (1894); Mangin, "Observ. sur la membrane des mucorinees," _Journ. de Bot._ (1899); Zimmermann, _Die Morph. und Physiologie des Pflanzenzellkernes_ (Jena, 1896); Wisselingh, "Microchem. Unters. uber die Zellwande d. Fungi," _Pringsh. Jahrb._ B. 31, p. 619 (1898); Istvanffvi, "Unters. uber die phys. Anat. der Pilze," _Prings. Jahrb._ (1896). _Spore Distribution_: Fulton, "Dispersal of the Spores of Fungi by Insects," _Ann. Bot._ (1889); Falck, "Die Sporenverbreitung bei den Basidiomyceten," _Beitr. zur Biol. d. Pflanzen_, ix. (1904). _Spores and Sporophores_: Zopf, _Die Pilze_; also the works of von Tafel and Brefeld. _Classification_: van Tieghem, _Journ. de bot._ p. 77 (1893), and the works of Brefeld, Engler and Prantl, von Tafel, Saccardo and Lotsy already cited, _Oomycetes_: Wager, "On the Fertilization of _Peronospora parasitica_," _Ann. Bot._ vol. xiv. (1900); Stevens, "The Compound Oosphere of _Albugo Bliti_," _Bot. Gaz._ vol. 28 (1899); "Gametogenesis and Fertilization in _Albugo_," ibid. vol. 32 (1901); Miyake, "The Fertilization of _Pythium de Baryanum_," _Ann. of Bot._ vol. xv. (1901); Trow, "On Fertilization in the Saprolegnieae," _Ann. of Bot._ vol. xviii. (1904); Thaxter, "New and Peculiar Aquatic Fungi," _Bot. Gaz._ vol. 20 (1895); Lagerheim, "Unters. uber die Monoblepharideae," _Bih. Svenska Vet. Acad. Handlingar_, 25. Afd. iii. (1900); Woronin, "Beitrag zur Kenntnis der Monoblepharideen," _Mem. de l'Acad. Imp. d. Sc. de St-Petersbourg_, 8 ser. vol. 16 (1902). _Zygomycetes_: Harper, "Cell-division in Sporangia and Asci," _Ann. Bot._ vol. xiii. (1899); Klebs, _Die Bedingungen der Fortpflanzung_, &c. (Jena, 1896), and "Zur Physiologie der Fortpflanzung" _Prings. Jahr._ (1898 and 1899), "Uber _Sporodinia grandis_," _Bot. Zeit._ (1902); Falck, "Die Bedingungen der Zygotenbildung bei Sporodinia grandis," Cohn's Beitr. z. Biol. d. Pflanzen, Bd. 8 (1902); Gruber "Verhalten der Zellkerne in den Zygosporen von _Sporodinia grandis_," _Ber. d. deutschen bot. Ges._ Bd. 19 (1901); Blakeslee, "Sexual Reproduction in the Mucorineae," _Proc. Am. Acad._ (1904); "Zygospore germination in the Mucorineae," _Annales mycologici_ (1906). _Ustilagineae_: Plowright, _British Uredineae and Ustilagineae_ (London, 1889); Massee, _British Fungi_ (Phycomycetes and Ustilagineae) (London, 1891); Brefeld, _Unters. aus dem Gesamtgeb. der Mykol._ Hefte xi. and xii.; and Falck, "Die Bluteninfektion bei den Brandpilzen," ibid. Heft xiii. 1905; Dangeard, "La Reproduction sexuelle des Ustilaginees," C.R., Oct. 9, 1893; Maire, "Recherches cytologiques et taxonomiques sur les Basidiomyceten," _Annexe au Bull. de la Soc. Mycol. de France_ (1902). _Saccharomycetaceae_: Jorgensen, _The Micro-organisms of Fermentation_ (1899); Barker, _Ann. of Bot._ vol. xiv. (1901); "On Spore-formation among the Saccharomycetes," _Journ. of the Fed. Institute of Brewing_, vol. 8 (1902); Guillermond, _Recherches cytologiques sur les levures_ (Paris, 1902); Hansen, _Centralbl. f. Bakt. u. Parasitenp._ Abt. ii. Bd. 12 (1904). _Exoascaceae_: Giesenhagen, "_Taphrina, Exoascus, Magnusiella_" (complete literature given), _Bot. Zeit._ Bd. 7 (1901). _Erysiphaceae_: Harper, "Die Entwicklung des Perithecium bei _Sphaerotheca castagnei_," _Ber. d. deut bot Ges._ (1896); "Sexual Reproduction and the Organization of the Nucleus in certain Mildews," _Publ. Carnegie Institution_ (Washington, 1906); Blackman & Fraser, "Fertilization in _Sphaerotheca_," _Ann. of Bot._ (1905). _Perisporiaceae_: Brefeld, _Untersuchungen aus dem Gesamtgeb. der Mykol._ Heft 10 (1891); Fraser and Chamber, _Annales mycologici_ (1907). _Discomycetes_: Harper, "Uber das Verhalten der Kerne bei Ascomyceten," _Jahr. f. wiss. Bot._ Bd. 29 (1890); "Sexual Reproduction in _Pyronema confluens_," _Ann. of Bot._ 14 (1900); Claussen, "Zur Entw. der Ascomyceten," Boudiera, Bot. Zeit. Bd. 63 (1905); Dangeard, "Sur le _Pyronema confluens_," _Le Botaniste_, 9 serie (1903) (and numerous papers in same journal earlier and later); Ramlow, "Zur Entwick. von _Thelebolus stercoren_," _Bot. Zeit._ (1906); Woronin, "Uber die Sclerotienkrankheit der Vaccineen Beeren," _Mem. de l'Acad. Imp. des Sciences de St-Petersbourg_, 7 serie, 36 (1888); Dittrich, "Zur Entwickelungsgeschichte der Helvellineen," Cohn's _Beitr. z. Biol. d. Pflanzen_ (1892). _Pyrenomycetes_: Fisch, "Beitr. z. Entwickelungsgeschichte einiger Ascomyceten," _Bot. Zeit._ (1882); Frank, "Uber einige neue u. weniger bekannte Pflanzkrankh.," _Landw. Jahrb._ Bd. 12 (1883); Ward, "_Onygena equina_, a horn-destroying fungus," _Phil. Trans._, vol. 191 (1899); Dawson, "On the Biology of Poroniapunctata," Ann. of Bot. 14 (1900). _Tuberineae_: Buchholtz, "Zur Morphologie u. Systematik der Fungi hypogaei," _Ann. Mycol._ Bd. 1 (1903); Fischer in Engler and Prantl, _Die naturlichen Pflanzenfamilien_ (1896). _Laboulbeniineae_: Thaxter, "Monograph of the Laboulbeniaceae," _Mem. Amer. Acad. of Arts and Sciences_, vol. 12 (1895). _Uredineae_: Eriksson and Henning, _Die Getreideroste_ (Stockholm, 1896); Eriksson, _Botan. Gaz._ vol. 25 (1896); "On the Vegetative Life of some Uredineae," Ann. of Bot. (1905); Klebahn, _Die wirtwechselnden Rostpilze_ (Berlin, 1904); Sapin-Trouffy, "Recherches histologiques sur la famille des Uredinees," _Le Botaniste_ (1896-1897); Blackman, "On the Fertilization, Alternation of Generations and General Cytology of the Uredineae," _Ann. of Bot._ vol. 18 (1904); Blackman and Fraser, "Further Studies on the Sexuality of Uredineae," _Ann. of Bot._ vol. 20 (1906); Christman, "Sexual Reproduction of Rusts," _Ann. of Bot._ vol. 20 (1906); Ward, "The Brooms and their Rust Fungus," _Ann. of Bot._ vol. 15 (1901). _Basidiomycetes_: Dangeard, "La Reprod. sexuelle des Basidiomycetes," _Le Botaniste_ (1894 and 1900); Maire, "Recherches cytologiques et taxonomiques sur les Basidiomycetes," _Annexe du Bull. de la Soc. Mycol. de France_ (1902); Moller, "Protobasidiomyceten," _Schimper's Mitt. aus den Tropen_, Heft 8 (Jena, 1895); Nichols, "The Nature and Origin of the Binucleated Cells in certain Basidiomycetes," _Trans. Wisconsin Acad. of Sciences_, vol. 15 (1905); Wager, "The Sexuality of the Fungi," _Ann. of Bot._ 13 (1899); Woronin, "_Exobasidium Vaccinii_," _Verh. Naturf. Ges. zu Freiburg_, Bd. 4 (1867). _Fermentation_: Buchner, "Gahrung ohne Hefezellen," _Bot. Zeit._ Bd. 18 (1898); Albert, _Cent. f. Bakt._ Bd. 17 (1901); Green, _The Soluble Ferments and Fermentation_ (Cambridge, 1899). _Parasitism_: "On some Relations between Host and Parasite," _Proc. Roy. Soc_. vol. 47 (1890); "A Lily Disease," _Ann. of Botany_, vol. 2 (1888); Eriksson & Hennings, _Die Getreideroste (vide supra_); Ward, "On the Question of Predisposition and Immunity in Plants," _Proc. Cambridge Phil. Soc_. vol. 11 (1902); also _Annals of Bot_. vol. 16 (1902) and vol. 19 (1905); Neger, "Beitr. z. Biol. d. Erysipheen" _Flora_, Bde. 88 and 90 (1901-1902); Salmon, "Cultural Experiments with 'Biologic Forms' of the Erysiphaceae," _Phil. Trans_. (1904); "On Erysiphe graminis and its adaptative parasitism within the genus, _Bromus_," _Ann. Mycol_. vol. 11 (1904), also _Ann. of Bot_. vol. 19 (1905). _Symbiosis_: Ward, "The Ginger-Beer Plant," _Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc_. (1892); "Symbiosis," _Ann. of Bot_. 13 (1899); Shalk, "Der Sinn der Mykorrhizenbildung," _Jahrb. f. wiss. Bot_. Bd. 34 (1900); Bernard, "On some Different Cases of Germination," _Gardener's Chronicle_ (1900); Pierce, _Publ. Univ. California_ (1900). (H. M. W.; V. H. B.)

FUNJ (FUNNIYEH, FUNG, FUNGHA), a very mixed negroid race, occupying parts of Sennar and the hilly country to the south between the White and Blue Niles. They traditionally come from west of the White Nile and are affiliated by some to the Kordofan Nubas, by others, more justifiably, to the negro Shilluks. These Funj, who became the dominant race in Sennar in the 15th century, almost everywhere assimilated the speech, religion and habits of the Arabs settled in that region. Until the 19th century they were one of the most powerful of African peoples in the eastern Sudan. About the end of the 15th century they overthrew the kingdom of Aloa, between the two Niles, and conquered the neighbouring peoples of the Sudan, Nubia and even Kordofan. The Funj had mixed much with the Arabs before their conquests, and had been converted to Islam. But they were still in many ways savages, for James Bruce (who traversed the district in 1772) says that their most famous king, Malek-el-Gahman, preferred human liver to any other food, and the Belgian traveller E. Pruyssenaere (1826-1864) found them still performing pagan rites on their sacred Mount Gula. Ernst Marno declared that as late as 1870 the most southern branch of the race, the Boruns, a non-Arabic speaking tribe, were cannibals. The Funj kings were content with levying tribute on their neighbours, and in this loose way Shendi, Berber and Dongola were once tributary. The Arab viziers gradually absorbed all power, the Funj sovereignty becoming nominal; and in 1821 the Egyptians easily destroyed the Funj domination. To-day the Funj are few, and represent no real type. They are a bright, hospitable folk. Many of them are skilful surgeons and go far afield in their work. The fellahin, indeed, call surgeons "Senaari" (men of Sennar). See further SENNAR AND SUDAN (Anglo-Egyptian).

FUNKIA, in botany, a genus of rather handsome, hardy, herbaceous plants belonging to the natural order Liliaceae, and natives of China and Japan. They are tuberous, with broadly ovate or heart-shaped leaves and racemes of white or pale lilac, drooping, funnel-shaped flowers. They are useful for the borders of a shrubbery, the lawn or rock-work, or may be grown in pots for the greenhouse. The plants are propagated by dividing the crowns in autumn or when growth begins in spring.

FUNNEL (through an O. Fr. _founil_, found in Breton, from Lat. _infundibulum_, that through which anything is poured, from _fundere_, to pour), a vessel shaped like a cone having a small tube at the apex through which powder, liquid, &c., may be easily passed into another vessel with a small opening. The term is used in metal-casting of the hole through which the metal is poured into a mould, and in anatomy and zoology of an _infundibulum_ or funnel-shaped organ. The word is thus used generally of any shaft or passage to convey light, air or smoke, as of the chimney of an engine or a steam-boat, or the flue of an ordinary chimney. It is also used of a shaft or channel in rocks, and in the decoying of wild-fowl is applied to the cone-shaped passage leading from a pond and covered with a net, a "funnel-net," into which the birds are decoyed.

FUR (connected with O. Fr. _forre_, a sheath or case; so "an outer covering"), the name specially given to the covering of the skin in certain animals which are natives of the colder climates, lying alongside of another and longer covering, called the overhair. The fur differs from the overhair, in that it is soft, silky, curly, downy and barbed lengthwise, while the overhair is straight, smooth and comparatively rigid. These properties of fur constitute its essential value for felting purposes, and mark its difference from wool and silk; the first, after some slight preparation by the aid of hot water, readily unites its fibres into a strong and compact mass; the others can best be managed by spinning and weaving.

On the living animal the overhair keeps the fur filaments apart, prevents their tendency to felt, and protects them from injury--thus securing to the animal an immunity from cold and storm; while, as a matter of fact, this very overhair, though of an humbler name, is most generally the beauty and pride of the pelt, and marks its chief value with the furrier. We arrive thus at two distinct and opposite uses and values of fur. Regarded as useful for felt it is denominated staple fur, while with respect to its use with and on the pelt it is called fancy fur.

_History._--The manufacture of fur into a felt is of comparatively modern origin, while the use of fur pelts as a covering for the body, for the couch, or for the tent is coeval with the earliest history of all northern tribes and nations. Their use was not simply a barbarous expedient to defend man from the rigours of an arctic winter; woven wool alone cannot, in its most perfect form, accomplish this. The pelt or skin is requisite to keep out the piercing wind and driving storm, while the fur and overhair ward off the cold; and "furs" are as much a necessity to-day among more northern peoples as they ever were in the days of barbarism. With them the providing of this necessary covering became the first purpose of their toil; subsequently it grew into an object of barter and traffic, at first among themselves, and afterwards with their neighbours of more temperate climes; and with the latter it naturally became an article of fashion, of ornament and of luxury. This, in brief, has been the history of its use in China, Tatary, Russia, Siberia and North America, and at present the employment of fancy furs among civilized nations has grown to be more extensive than at any former period.

The supply of this demand in earlier times led to such severe competition as to terminate in tribal pillages and even national wars; and in modern times it has led to commercial ventures on the part of individuals and companies, the account of which, told in its plainest form, reads like the pages of romance. Furs have constituted the price of redemption for royal captives, the gifts of emperors and kings, and the peculiar badge of state functionaries. At the present day they vie with precious gems and gold as ornaments and garniture for wealth and fashion; but by their abundance, and the cheapness of some varieties, they have recently come within the reach of men of moderate incomes. The history of furs can be read in Marco Polo, as he grows eloquent with the description of the rich skins of the khan of Tatary; in the early fathers of the church, who lament their introduction into Rome and Byzantium as an evidence of barbaric and debasing luxury; in the political history of Russia, stretching out a powerful arm over Siberia to secure her rich treasures; in the story of the French occupation of Canada, and the ascent of the St Lawrence to Lake Superior, and the subsequent contest to retain possession against England; in the history of early settlements of New England, New York and Virginia; in Irving's _Astoria_; in the records of the Hudson's Bay Company; and in the annals of the fairs held at Nizhniy Novgorod and Leipzig. Here it may suffice to give some account of the present condition of the trade in fancy furs. The collection of skins is now chiefly a matter of private enterprise. Few, if any, monopolies exist.

_Natural Supplies._--We are dependent upon the Carnivora, Rodentia, Ungulata and Marsupialia for our supplies of furs, the first two classes being by far of the greatest importance. The Carnivora include bears, wolverines, wolves, raccoons, foxes, sables, martens, skunks, kolinskis, fitch, fishers, ermines, cats, sea otters, fur seals, hair seals, lions, tigers, leopards, lynxes, jackals, &c. The Rodentia include beavers, nutrias, musk-rats or musquash, marmots, hamsters, chinchillas, hares, rabbits, squirrels, &c. The Ungulata include Persian, Astrachan, Crimean, Chinese and Tibet lambs, mouflon, guanaco, goats, ponies, &c. The Marsupialia include opossums, wallabies and kangaroos. These, of course, could be subdivided, but for general purposes of the fur trade the above is deemed sufficient.

The question frequently arises, not only for those interested in the production of fur apparel, but for those who derive so much comfort and pleasure from its use, whether the supply of fur-bearing animals is likely to be exhausted. Although it is a fact that the demand is ever increasing, and that some of the rarer animals are decreasing in numbers, yet on the other hand some kinds of furs are occasionally neglected through vagaries of fashion, which give nature an opportunity to replenish their source. These respites are, however, becoming fewer every day, and what were formerly the most neglected kinds of furs are becoming more and more sought after. The supply of some of the most valuable, such as sable, silver and natural black fox, sea otter and ermine, which are all taken from animals of a more or less shy nature, does very gradually decrease with persistent hunting and the encroachment of man upon the districts where they live, but the climate of these vast regions is so cold and inhospitable that the probabilities of man ever permanently inhabiting them in numbers sufficient to scare away or exterminate the fur-bearing wild animals is unlikely. Besides these there are many useful, though commonplace, fur-bearing animals like mink, musquash, skunk, raccoon, opossum, hamster, rabbit, hares and moles, that thrive by depredations upon cultivated land. Some of these are reared upon extensive wild farms. In addition there are domestic fur-bearing animals, such as Persian, Astrachan and Chinese lambs, and goats, easily bred and available.

With regard to the rearing of the Persian lamb, there is a prevalent idea that the skins of the unborn lamb are frequently used; this, however, is a mistake. A few such skins have been taken, but they are too delicate to be of any service. The youngest, known as "broadtails," are killed when a few days old, but for the well-developed curly fur, the lambs must be six or seven weeks old. During these weeks their bodies are covered with leather so that the fur may develop in close, light and clean curls. The experiment has been tried of rearing rare, wild, fur-bearing animals in captivity, and although climatic conditions and food have been precisely as in their natural environment, the fur has been poor in quality and bad in colour, totally unlike that taken from animals in the wild state. The sensation of fear or the restriction of movement and the obtaining of food without exertion evidently prevent the normal development of the creature.

In mountainous districts in the more temperate zones some good supplies are found. Chinchillas and nutrias are obtained from South America, whence come also civet cats, jaguars, ocelots and pumas. Opossums and wallabies, good useful furs, come from Australia and New Zealand. The martens, foxes and otters imported from southern Europe and southern Asia, are very mixed in quality, and the majority are poor compared with those of Canada and the north.

Certain characteristics In the skin reveal to the expert from what section of territory they come, but in classifying them it is considered sufficient to mention territories only.

Some of the poorer sorts of furs, such as hamster, marmot, Chinese goats and lambs, Tatar ponies, weasels, kaluga, various monkeys, antelopes, foxes, otters, jackals and others from the warmer zones, which until recently were neglected on account of their inferior quality of colour, by the better class of the trade, are now being deftly dressed or dyed in Europe and America, and good effects are produced, although the lack of quality when compared with the better furs from colder climates which possess full top hair, close underwool and supple leathers, is readily manifest. It is only the pressure of increasing demand that makes marketable hard pelts with harsh brittle hair of nondescript hue, and these would, naturally, be the last to attract the notice of dealers.

As it is impossible that we shall ever discover any new fur-bearing animals other than those we know, it behoves responsible authorities to enforce close seasons and restrictions, as to the sex and age, in the killing for the purpose of equalizing the numbers of the catches. As evidence of indiscriminate slaughter the case of the American buffaloes may be cited. At one time thousands of buffalo skins were obtainable and provided material for most useful coats and rugs for rough wear in cold regions, but to-day only a herd or so of the animals remain, and in captivity.

The majority of animals taken for their fur are trapped or snared, the gun being avoided as much as possible in order that the coat may be quite undamaged. Many weary hours are spent in setting baits, traps and wires, and, frequently, when the hunter retraces his steps to collect the quarry it is only to find it gone, devoured by some large animal that has visited his traps before him. After the skins have been carefully removed--the sooner after death the better for the subsequent condition of the fur--they are lightly tacked out, pelt outwards, and, without being exposed to the sun or close contact with a fire, allowed to dry in a hut or shady place where there is some warmth or movement of air. With the exception of sealskins, which are pickled in brine, all raw skins come to the various trade markets simply dried like this.

_Quality and Colour._--The best fur is obtained by killing animals when the winter is at its height and the colder the season the better its quality and colour. Fur skins taken out of season are indifferent, and the hair is liable to shed itself freely; a good furrier will, however, reject such faulty specimens in the manufacturing. The finest furs are obtained from the Arctic and northern regions, and the lower the latitude the less full and silky the fur, till, at the torrid zone, fur gives place to harsh hair without any underwool. The finest and closest wools are possessed by the amphibious Carnivora and Rodentia, viz. seals, otters, beavers, nutrias and musquash, the beauty of which is not seen until after the stiff water or top hairs are pulled out or otherwise removed. In this class of animal the underneath wool of the belly is thicker than that of the back, while the opposite is true of those found on the land. The sea otter, one of the richest and rarest of furs, especially for men's wear, is an exception to this unhairing process, which it does not require, the hair being of the same length as the wool, silky and bright, quite the reverse of the case of other aquatic animals.

Of sealskins there are two distinct classes, the fur seals and the hair seals. The latter have no growth of fur under the stiff top hair and are killed, with few exceptions (generally of the marbled seals), on account of the oil and leather they yield. The best fur seals are found off the Alaska coast and down as far south as San Francisco.