Psilocyn mushrooms

Since the original publication of this book, there has been a virtual mushroom revolution. Head shops and mail order houses now sell complete kits for home cultivation of Psilocybe cubensis (spores included). The flagrant ignorance of the law-makers is reflected in the fact that in Title 21 the alkaloid psilocin is misspelled as psilocyn. This small error is a product of the same mentality that classified cocaine as a narcotic in the 1922 Amendment to the Narcotic Drugs Import and Export Act and deliberately retains the error to this day. 

Because of the afore mentioned ignorance of our lawmakers it is difficult to determine how the use of certain hallucinogenic substances would be treated in the courts. Possession of psilocybin and psilocin (misspelled in the U.S. Code as psilocyn) is a felony under Title 21, Section I, (C) of the United States Code (1970 Edition). Psilocybe Mexicana is also illegal. There was sufficient ignorance on the part of the lawmakers not to include the many other mushroom species containing psilocybin and psilocin. Theoretically the possession of any psilocybin bearing mushroom would be the same as possessing the alkoloid itself. But when it comes to prosecution it does not necessarily work like that. 

A well-researched booklet appeared in 1968, with procedures for synthesizing psilocyn [sic] and growing mycelium of psilocybian mushrooms for extraction (Brown 1968). This pioneering booklet was illustrated with a water-color painting of Psilocybe hoogshagenii, rather fantastically copied from a black-and-white photograph of dried specimens in the mycological literature (Heim Wisson 1958). 

In addition to marijuana (described in the last chapter), another form of plant-based drug exhibit seen in crime labs contains mescaline. This hallucinogen is obtained from the peyote (peyotl) cactus (Lophophora williamsii). Psilocyn (psilocin is also an accepted spelling) and psilocybin (psilocybine), are obtained from the mushroom Psilocybe mexicam, and are members of the indole... 

Psilocin/psilocyn An indole amine/tiyptamine found in mushrooms Psilocybe mexicana. 

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