Cortinarius communis Pk. subgenus Sericeocybe Cap 2-6cm, convex; pallid creamy buff with a gray bloom at first, gradually becoming more yellowish then more reddish brown with age and as it is bruised; young specimens have white remnants of the cortina near the edge. Gills adnexed with a slight decurrent tooth; pale cream, more ochre-rusty in age. Stem 40-60 x 10-14mm, swollen at the base; whitish cream, bruising yellowish then reddish fawn; fibrous. Flesh pallid cream with touches of yellowish. Odor pleasant. Taste slight. Spores ellipsoid, warty, 9-10.2 x 5.4-6.1µ, quotient 1.65. Deposit rusty brown. Habitat in conifers or mixed woods. Rare in the East - my collection was in Washington. Season September-October. Not edible. Comment The mushroom illustrated fits Peck's description of Cortinarius communis well, but since he referred to the cap as "subviscid" the species was placed in subgenus Phlegmacium. My specimens are not really subviscid, but nevertheless I feel I have Peck's fungus. I have therefore transferred it to subgenus Sericeocvbe.