4* :* - ^s- J / ^ .■*< IV >•*■ 4fc*Pfo*$? jr&r\* * % < i'ihk :%~f i •*'- 4,-Ag; -«% > •# **%**W a***. t: - ?* 3«s3 > THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST: & fftaga^tnc of Xatural J^istorg. EDITED BY F, BUCHANAN WHITE, M.D., F.LS, VOLUME VI. "All the works of our Creator are great, and worthy of our attention and investigation, the lowest in the scale as well as the highest, the most minute and feeble as well as those that exceed in magnitude and might. Nor ought those whose inclination or genius leads them to one department, to say to those who prefer another, ' We have no need of you,' for each in his place, by dif- fusing the knowledge of His works, and adding to the stock of previous discoveries, contributes to promote the glory of the Great Architect of the universe and the good of His creatures." — Kirby and Si ence's 'Introduction to Entomology.' WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS, EDINBURGH AND LONDON. 1881-1882. I N D E X. PAGE PAGE General Index a , iii New Species— Species specially NOTICED— Plants vii Animals— New British Species — Vertebrate • •_ vi Animals . viii Invertebrate • • vi Plants . viii Plants — Flowering vi Reviews viii Crypt ogamic . . vi List of Contributors ix Galled vii G E N E R A L I N D E X. Alpine Flora in Scotland, On the Distribution of the Native . 306 Aquatic Plants, Notes on a few rare . ' . . . • J 53 Beroe, Phronima sedentaria, and its . . . . .56 Bird, A curious . . . . . . - 1 3 Birds, Occurrence of rare . . . . . - l 5 11 of the Basin of the Tay and its Tributaries, Notes on the . 4 Blatta germanica in Glasgow . . . . .14 Blue-throated Warbler, Occurrence in Scotland of the . . 203 Caltha radicans . . . . . • .142 11 Rediscovery of .... 345 Capercaillie in Scotland, The . . . i . 60 Coleoptera of Scotland, The .... 47? 88, 192 Collecting and preserving Myriapods, On .... 201 Cryptogamic Flora of Mull, The .... 155,210 Darwin, Charles Robert ...... 289 Dispersion of the Seeds of Scottish Wild Plants, The Modes of . 257 Distribution of the Native Alpine Flora in Scotland, On the . 306 Dog, Story of a . . . . . -59 44 *•• p« !;:>;> IV Index. Don, George, of Forfar, The Life and Labours of a Scottish Natu- ralist ....... Dytiscus lapponicus, Notes on the habits of . Effects of the Winter of 1 880-81 Endromis versicolor . 109 . 145 . 61, 142 . 344 Flowering Plants and Ferns of Orkney, A new List of the . 318, 361 11 11 Perthshire, Preliminary List of 133, 178, 230, 278, 326 Fungi of Perthshire, Preliminary List of . . -39 Fungus, A new British ...... 254 Gaelic Names of Plants, The . 20, 70, 125, 170, 221, 271, 297, 347 Galls, Scottish . . . . . . . 15, 255 Glacial Deposits, The Intercrossing of Erratics in . . 193, 241 Hebrides, The Lepidoptera of Orkney, Shetland, and the Outer 289, 337 Helix rufescens in the South-west of Scotland . . . 147 Lepidoptera of Orkney, Shetland, and the Outer Plebrides, The 289, 337 Lesser White-throat in Fyvie . . . . .13 Life and Labours of a Scottish Naturalist, George Don of Forfar, The ....... 62, 109, 149 Lindsay, Death of Dr W. Lauder . . . . .14 List of Flowering Plants and Ferns of Orkney, A new . 318, 361 ,, 11 Perthshire, Preliminary 133, 178, 230, 278, 326 List of the Fungi of Perthshire, Preliminary .... 39 Mammalia of Scotland, The . Mull, The Cryptogamic Flora of Museum, The Perthshire Natural History Mycologia Scotica, Myriapoda, On Collecting and Preserving New British Fungus, A 11 Trichopteron, A Notes .... Notes on a few rare Aquatic Plants . n on some Perthshire Plants, 11 on the Birds of the Basin of the Tay and its Tributaries 11 on the Genus Usnea, with descriptions of New Species 11 on the Habits of Dytiscus lapponicus . 11 on the Past Winter Notices of New Books Obituary Notice of the late Mr R. Walker . Occurrence of Rare Birds 11 Vertigo pusilla in Scotland 49 155, 210 97 30, 117, 163, 213 201 254 14 14 153 378 4 292 145 141 70, 142, 287 147 13 61 Index. v On Collecting and Preserving Myriapoda . . . .201 On the Distribution of the Native Alpine Flora in Scotland . 306 11 Genus Usnea, and a new Genus allied to it . . . 99 11 Occurrence in Scotland of the Blue-throated Warbler . 203 11 11 of the White-beaked Dolphin on the East Coast of Scotland ..... 1 Orkney, A New List of the Flowering Plants and Ferns of . 318, 362 11 Shetland, and the Outer Hebrides, The Lepidoptera of 289, 337 Phronima sedentaria and its Beroe . . . . . 56 Polypodium flexile and its relation to P. alpestre, Remarks on . 43 Preliminary List of the Flowering Plants and Ferns of Perthshire 133, 178, 230, 278, 326 Preliminary List of the Fungi of Perthshire .... 39 Rediscovery of Caltha radicans ..... 345 Remarks on Polypodium flexile and its relation to P. alpestre . 43 Reviews . . . . 49, 82, 142, 191, 287, 336, 371 Scottish Galls ....... Shetland and the Outer Hebrides, The Lepidoptera of Orkney Sphagnum Austini, &c, in the South-west of Scotland Storm-Petrels found in Perthshire .... Story of a Dog ...... • i5, 255 289, 337 378 206 59 The Capercaillie in Scotland ..... 60 The Coleoptera of Scotland ..... 47, 88, 192 The Cryptogamic Flora of Mull .... 155, 210 The Flora of Arbroath and its Neighbourhood . . . 336 The Gaelic Names of Plants . . 20, 70, 125, 170, 221, 297, 347 The Intercrossing of Erratics in Glacial Deposits . . 193,241 The Lepidoptera of Orkney, Shetland, and the Outer Hebrides 289, 337 The Life and Labours of a Scottish Naturalist, George Don of Forfar . . . . . . .62, 109, 149 The Mammalia of Scotland ..... The Modes of the Dispersion of the Seeds of Scottish Wild Plants The Perthshire Natural History Museum The Victor Overthrown ..... The Woodlark ...... Trichopteron, A new British .... Usnea and a new Genus allied to it, On the Genus . 11 with descriptions of New Species, Notes on the Genus Vertigo pusilla in Scotland, Occurrence of . Walker, Obituary Notice of the late Mr R. White-throat in Fyvie, Lesser Winter, Notes on the Past Winter of 1880-81, Effects of Woodlark, The 49 257 97 288 61 M 99 292 61 147 13 141 61, 142 61 VI Index. SPECIES MORE SPECIALLY NOTICED. {See also New, and New British Species.) ANIMALS. Enophorum alpinum no Lactuca mural is 378 Vertebrata. Naias flexilis . 153 Black Redstart 204 Potamogeton decipiens 154 Blue-throated Warbler 203 n Zizii 154 Capercaillie . 60 Pyrola secunda 378 Coot .... 141 Ranunculus confervoides 153 Desert Wheat-ear 205 Schsenus mariscus no Esquimaux Curlew . 13 Stratiotes aloides no Glossy Ibis . 13 Typha latifolia no Hoopoe 13 Thlaspi alpestre 378 Lagenorhynchus albirostris . 1 Larus marinus 288 Cryptogamic. Leach's Fork-tailed Petrel . Lesser White-throat . 206 13 Craterellus cornucopioides Cyathus striatus . 156 156 Little Storm-Petrel . 207 • 156 157 Lophius piscatorius . 288 Glyphomitrium Daviesii Isoetes echinospora . Megaceros giganteus . 55 n lacustris no Woodlark 61 ._ Jungermannia Pearsoni 378 Invertebrata. Metzgeria conjugata . • 378 Aphilothrix albopunctata 16 Milesia polypodii . 156 Aphis atriplicis 16 Myurium hebridarum 157 Blatta germanica H Nephrodium Filix-mas var. 159 Cecidomyia floricola . 255 Neuropogon melaxanthus 104 ti helianthemi 15 n trachycarpus 105 u piligera . 256 Peronospora rufibasis 155 n tornatella 257 Physotium cochleariforme . 158 Cynips Kollari 17 Polypodium alpestre . 43 Dytiscus lapponicus . 146 n flexile . 43 Endromis versicolor . 344 11 rhaeticum 46 Helix rufescens 147 Polystichum aculeatum 46 Livia juncorum 257 n angulare 46 Phronima sedentaria . 56 11 lobatum 46 Phytoptus pyri 255 11 lonchitis var. . 158 Vertigo edentula 61 Puccinia moliniae 155 ii pusilla 61 Sphagnum Austini . 378 ii pygmaea 61 ,, 11 var. imbri catum 378 H substriata 61 Usnea angulata 108 ti caternosa 108 PLANTS. 11 cornuta 103 Flowering. ,1 dasypoga 105 Agrimonia odorata . • 378 n elegans 295 Caltha radicans 110,141 , 142, 345 11 flammea 102 Choerophyllum aromaticum in ,, himalayana 103 11 aureum in ,1 intexta 102 Index. VI 1 Usnea laevis . 1 08 ii longissima 105 i> lurido-rufa 295 ii Pinker toni 294 .1 plicata 294 ii subsordida 104, 296 Galled. Agrostis alba 17 Atriplex Babingtonii 16 Atriplex patula 16 Chenopodium album 16 Elymus arenarius 18 Erineum on alder 20 ii ii beech 20 M n birch 20 Erineum on hawthorn 11 11 mountain-ash n 11 Populus tremula 11 11 Prunus padus 11 11 Pyrus communis 11 n Pyrus malus 11 11 walnut . Fagus sylvatica Helianthemum vulgare Juncus lamprocarpus Prunus padus Pyrus communis Quercus robur Sedum rhodiola Tanacetum vulgare Tilia europrea 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 256 15 257 15 255 16 256 256 255 NEW SPECIES AND VARIETIES Described in this volume. FLOWERING PLANTS. Aira flexuosa L. var. Voir- lichensis Cosmo Melvill, . Fungi. Hysterium eriophori Phill. . Peziza bulbocrinita Phill. 11 Roumegueri Karst. var. carnosissima Phill. Lichens. Eumitria, Stirton (new genus) n Baileyi, Stirton 11 firmula 11 formosa 11 implicita Usnea amplissima 11 arborea 11 comosa 11 concinna 11 consimilis 11 constrictula 11 dasiea 11 dendritica 11 distensa 329 165 12; 123 100 100 100 297 100 106 296 294 103 295 109 104 296 104 Usnea endochrysea , Stirton 107 11 filipendula 104 11 flexilis 106 11 fragilis 293 11 fruticosa 297 11 goniodes 108 11 lurido-rufa 104 " lurido-rufa, sub-species pallida, Stirton 295 11 maculata 11 293 11 mekista 11 105 11 mollis 11 109 n mutabilis n 107 11 nitida n 294 11 oncodes 11 106 n perplexans 11 io 3 11 Pinkertoni it 295 11 prrelonga 11 107 11 radiata 11 103 n robusta n 295 u rubicunda M 102 " rubrotincta 11 103 11 spilota 11 294 11 spinosula 11 107 11 splendens 11 296 VI 11 Index: Usnea subcornuta, Stirton 107 U snea subpectincta, Stirton 108 ii subflexilis h 106 n Thomsoni 11 107 ii subfloridana n 294 11 undulata it 104 ii subfusca ii 108 11 variegata 11 io5 n sublurida n 102 NEW BRITISH SPECIES Brought forward in this volume. {See also New Species.) Insects. Cecidomyia floricola Rudow. Molanna palpata M'Lach. Flowering Plants. Potamogeton nitens var. cur- vifolius Hart. Fungi. Agaricus elaeodes Fr. 11 Friesii Lasch. 11 pisciodorus Ces. 11 subsquarrosus Fr. n tumidus Pers. Cortinarius flexipes Pers. 11 mucirluus Fr. Cyphella gibbosa Lev. Hypomyces chrysospermus 255 Tul. ' 166 14 Lactarius helvus Fr. 36 11 vietus Fr. 217 Lophiostoma hederoe Fckl. 161 Peziza alniella Myl. . 124 154 11 leucothoea Pers. 123 11 scutula Pers. . 125 11 sordida Fckl. 163 215 11 subularis Bull. 163 34 11 sulphurata Schum. (?) 122 214 Polyporus zonatus Fr. 217 215 Puccinia allii Casp. . 218 213 11 oxyriae Fckl. 254 36 11 pimpinellae Lk. 119 35 Sphserella ditricha Fr. 169 38 Valsella clypeata Fckl. 167 REVIEWS AND NOTICES OF BOOKS. A List of British Birds.' By H. W. Marsden ... 87 A List of European Birds, including all Species found in the Western Paliearctic Region.' By H. G. Dresser . . . 143 A List of the Flowering Plants of Dumfriesshire and Kirkcudbright- shire. By J. M 'Andrew ..... 375 A Pocket Guide to British Ferns.' By M. S. Ridley . . 287 Dr L. Rabenhorst's Kryptogamen-Flora von Deutschland Oester- reich und der Schweiz' — Fungi. By Dr G. Winter . . 143 Illustrations of British Fungi.' By M. C. Cooke . . . 287 On the Protection of Wild Birds. ' By Thomas Edward . . 144 Papilio. Organ of the New York Entomological Club' . . 142 Prehistoric Europe: a Geological Sketch.' By Dr James Geikie, F.R.S. ........ 82 l)ldtX. IX Proceedings of the Berwickshire Naturalists' Club in 1879 ' ' Proceedings of the Natural History Society of Glasgow.' Vol. iv. Part 2 . The Berries and Heaths of Rannoch.' By a Snowdrop ■ The Fauna of Scotland, with special reference to Clydesdale and the Western District — Mammalia.' By E. R. Alston. Pub- lished by the Natural History Society of Glasgow ■ The Flora of Arbroath and its Neighbourhood ' ■ The Graduated List of British Birds ; specially compiled for label- ling Eggs.' By H. W. Marsden .... The Grallatores and Natatores of the Estuary of the Tay ; the Great Decrease in their Number of late Years ; the Causes ; with Suggestions for its Mitigation.' By Colonel Drummond- Hay ........ The London Catalogue of British Mosses and Hepatics ' The Scientific Roll and Magazine of Systematised Notes. ' Con- ducted by A. Ramsay ...... 144 191 49 6 1 T 87 144 H3 LIST OF COXTRIBUTORS. Cameron, John . . . 2, 70, 125. Campbell, J. M. Drummond-Hay, Colonel H. M., C.M.Z.S. Dunbar, L. D. Fortescue, W. Irvine Geikie, Professor James, LL. D. , F. R. S. Gibson-Carmichael, T.D. . Gordon, Rev. George, M.A., LL. D. Graham, Walter Harvie-Brown, J. A., F.R.S.E., F.Z.S. Japp, W. .... King, J. J. . King, M. Knox, John .... Landale, J. M 'Andrew 7 , James Moir, Edward Moncreiffe, T. J. Harry Rimmer, R., F. L. S. . Sharp, D. , M.B. Sim, George (Aberdeen) Sim, George (Fyvie) . Stevenson, Rev. J. Stirton, J., M.D., F.L.S. Sturrock, Abrara Trail, Professor J. W. H., M.A., M.D., F.L.S. White. F. Buchanan. M.D., F.L.S. 39, 43, 49, 61, 230, 254, I70, 22 1, 271, 297, 347 I . 41, 206 344 3i8, 361 193. 241 201 . 56, 288 141, 142, 345 . 60. 203 59 14 142 62, 109, 149 147 • 378 306 13 61 47, 88, 192 13 • 13; 01 3 O, 117, 163, 213 • 99; 292 153 14, 15, 255, 257 !33> '45; i55 ; 178, 210, 278, 28 9, 326, 337, 378 THE SCOTTISH NATURALISTIC VOLUME THE SIXTH. Iqq i -*.»-»»- L, LIBRAR ZOOLOGY. > ^tAS^> 4/ ON THE OCOURKENCE OF THE WHITE -BEAKED DOLPHIN (LAGENORHYNCHUS ALBIROSTRIS, GRAY), ON THE EAST COAST OF SCOTLAND. 1 By J. M. CAMPBELL, Joint Secretary of the Natural History Society of Glasgow, &c. ALTHOUGH it is to be expected that many of the rarer cetacea frequent our coasts, the as yet imperfect know- ledge of their habits, the difficulty of capture, and the nature of the element in which they live, all militate against the rapid accumulation of facts relating to their occurrence. The species which is the subject of this paper, although recorded as British so long ago as 1846, has not yet been added to our list of Scottish fauna. Mr Alston in his paper ' On the Mammalia of Scotland,' read to this Society in April last year, referring to this species says, " The White-beaked Dolphin is another species whose appearance in Scottish waters is to be expected, as it seems frequently to visit the Faroes, and the east coast of England {Cunningham, P. Z. S., 1876, p. 686), but as yet its actual occurrence does not seem to have been recorded." This species was first figured and described by Brightwell in the 'Annals and Magazine of Natural History' (vol. xvii. p. 21), in 1846, under the name of Delphinus tursio, Fabr., from a female 1 Read to the Natural History Society of Glasgow, November 30, 1880. VOL. VI. A 2 TJie Scottish Naturalist. taken by herring fishermen .it Great Yarmouth in October 1845, the skin and skeleton of which are now in the British Museum. There is, however, a skull of one which was killed at Hartlepool in 1834, in the museum of Cambridge University, the species not having been recognised at the time. Gray, after an examination of Brightwell's specimen, described it as a new species under the name Lagenorhynchus albirostris. On the 29th December 1862 a full-grown male was found stranded on " Little Hilbre," one of two closely contiguous islands at the mouth of the Dee, Wales, and is described in the 'Annals and Magazine of Natural History' for 1863, p. 268, by Thomas J. Moore, of the Liverpool Museum, to whom it had been sent. In 1866 one was shot on the coast of Cromer, Nor- folk, by H. M. Upcher of Sherringham Hall, the skull being preserved in the British Museum. In 1867, according to BelU a young male, whose skeleton is in the University of Cambridge, was killed on the English coast. Dr Murie, in his ' Notes on the -White-beaked Bottlenose ' (' Linn. Soc. Jour., vol. xi. p. 14 j ), in 1870, describes the anatomy of a full-grown male, captured a few years before on the south coast of England, part of the viscera of which is preserved in the College of Surgeons, and the skeleton in the British Museum. In September 1875 Dr Cunningham obtained a young female, caught off Great Grimsby, which he figured and described in the Zoological Society's Pro- ceedings for 1876, the skeleton of which is in the Edinburgh University Museum. The same volume also contains a paper by Mr Clark on a young male caught on 26th March 1876, off Lowestoft. In the 'Zoologist' for 1878, Mr A. G. More, Museum of Science and Art, Dublin, says in reference to this species : " We have long had in the Museum here a coloured cast of a Dolphin captured some fifteen years ago in the vicinity of Dublin Bay, which lately, by comparing a coloured sketch taken from the fresh animal with the excellent figure given in the Proceedings of Zoological Soc. for 1876, p. 679, pi. 64, I was able to identify as D. albirostris, J. E. Gray." The last recorded specimen was a young female captured by some Yarmouth fishermen on 24th August 1878, which Mr Thomas Southwell of Norwich has described in the ' Zoologist ' of that year. These are, so far as I have been able to learn, all the British specimens which have been recorded. On the Continent it has been taken at Ostend, Keil, Bergen, Gullholmen, and Skanor. The Scottish Naturalist. -> O The individual which I now describe — a young male — was taken by some fishermen near the Bell Rock on the 7th Septem- ber last, and came into the hands of Mr Walker, a fish merchant in Glasgow, who presented it to the Kelvingrove Museum on the 9th, in good condition. The following are a few measurements taken at the time : — Ft. Ft. In. Total length 5 8 Length of muzzle . **A Length to eye %% Length to blow -hole 10 Length to ears n,V Length to pectoral limbs 1 \ x /> Length to dorsal . 2 s*A Length of pectoral 1 I Skull :— Length, entire Length of nose from front oH of blow-hole 7 3 4 Width at orbit 5H Width in front of notches (base of beak) . z% Greatest breadth of pec- toral o Breadth of caudal . o Height of dorsal . . o Circumference of thickest part ... 3 Width of orbit . . o Width of blow-hole . o Width of middle of beak o Width of lower jaw at condyles o Length of lower jaw along one side, from condyles to symphysis . . o In. 3 l 4 il4 2H 10 In shape and colour it resembled more closely the Lowestoft specimen described by Mr Clark ; the body tapering gradually from the dorsal fin, and, like the female described by Mr South- well, it did not exhibit the humped appearance described by Dr Cunningham. The beaked shape of the head was very marked, the upper lip projecting i*4 inch beyond the head, which had a gradually-rounded outline. On each side of the upper lip were four black bristles, which projected but slightly through the skin. The general colour above was a beautiful purplish-black, the entire beak from the furrow dividing it from the head, and the ventral surface till within 21 inches from the cleft of the tail, was of a satiny-white, slighdy yellowish on the under surface. Above the pectoral fins and behind the eye was a greyish-white spot, thickly splashed or streaked with brown ; a similar linear- shaped spot ran in an oblique direction from slightly before the dorsal fin, in the direction of the vent, and a larger one, which measured about 13 inches long and about 3 inches wide, ran along the side behind the dorsal. The ear-opening was very small, and could be detected with difficulty, barely admitting an ordinary pin. 4 The Scottish Naturalist. The number of teeth in the upper jaws was 23 on each side, and in the lower jaws 24 and 25 ; but some of them were barely through the gum, one or two at the front being mere denticles. They were sharp, conical, and curved inwards, and had a slight longitudinal groove on their anterior and posterior surfaces. They seemed to be quite free and movable. The lower jaw projected slightly beyond the upper. Owing to insufficient facilities for maceration, a few of the teeth were lost ; and, for a like reason, I have been unable with certainty to note the number of vertebrae, some of the smaller being merely cartilage. Previous to maceration, I had counted 90 vertebras. The first two cervical vertebrae are anchylosed, the remainder free. I have not any doubt that this individual is a young Delfihimis albirostris, or, more properly, Lagenorhynchits atbirostris, Gray. I may remark that the figure given by Brightwell, and copied by Bell in his ' British Quadrupeds,' is very far from correct, that of Mr Clark, as I have already said, approaching nearer to this one. Some interesting anatomical peculiarities have been noted by Mr Clark and Drs Cunningham and Murie in their respective papers. NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF THE BASIN OP THE TAY AND ITS TRIBUTARIES. By Colonel H. M. DRUMMOND HAY, C.M.Z.S., B.O.U., &c. {Continued from Vol. V., p. 346.) 139. Sula bassana, Briss. (Solan Goose or Gannet.) So near the Tay as the Bass Rock stands (five-and-twenty to thirty miles), computed to contain from ten to twenty thousand breeding-birds of this species alone, the mouth of the Tay is naturally a great resort, where from early spring to late in autumn the Solan Goose may constantly be seen, either in twos or threes, heavily winging their way close to the water, bent perhaps on some distant fishing excursion ; or, in considerable numbers, high up in the air, plunging and dashing into the sea in pursuit of small fish, which congregate about the estuary, — ascending the river, according to Mr Nelson, even as high up as the Dundee Bridge The Scottish Naturalist. 5 140. Larus marinus, Linn. (Great Black-backed Gull.) Though never very numerous, the Great Black-backed Gull is well represented on all the lower parts of the Tay, occasionally ascending some way above Perth. Its breeding-grounds nearest to the Tay are the Bass and the Isle of May. The young birds during their first year assume a dark-grey speckled plumage, and formerly, when birds were not so well known as now, they were put down as a different species under the name of the Wagel. In this stage they are common in the river in autumn and winter. 141. Larus fuscus, Linn. (Lesser Black-backed Gull.) In the mature plumage this is not a common bird, but is generally found in the dark-brown stage of the first year, when it is not unfrequent, in autumn and winter, in the tidal parts of the river below Perth. Larus glaucus, Brunn. (Glaucous Gull.) Larus islandicus, Edm. (Iceland Gull.) Occasional examples of both these birds have been obtained in the lower parts of the Tay. A young Glaucous, mentioned by Mr Nelson as killed last winter near Broughty Ferry, is in the collection of the Dundee Naturalists' Society. 142. Larus argentatus, Brunn. (Herring Gull.) Of all the larger gulls that frequent the Tay, the Herring Gull is perhaps the more common. Young birds of the year in their grey plumage may be frequently seen in winter, mixed with other gulls, picking up garbage in the river both below the Bridge at Perth and in the harbours at Dundee. •& v 143. Larus canus, Linn. (Common Gull.) This is a common bird on the Tay, and may be seen in all stages of plumage. In the autumn and spring it assembles in large numbers in the fields in search of grubs, following the plough, and often associated with rooks. 144. Rissa tridactvla, Bonap. (Kittiwake.) The Kittiwake is common on the Tay, especially in the winter months, and is never, like some of the other gulls, to be seen inland, nor does it occur very high up the river. In summer it becomes more scarce, as it then retires to its nearest breeding- grounds on the Redhead, Isle of May, Bass, and St Abb's Head. 6 The Scottish Naturalist. 145. Chroicocephalus ridibundus, Eyton. (Black-headed Gull.) Of all our gulls this is the most generally spread throughout the whole district, being more of an inland species than any of the others. It is found both in summer and winter, often assembling in large numbers in the fields. In spring, selecting inaccessible marshy spots for its nesting-grounds, it is to be found breeding in many places. A very large nursery, which has been recently formed, is to be seen at the White Myre, at Methven, near Perth, having, owing to improvements lately made on the Dupplin Loch, where for many years they held full sway, deserted it for the above-mentioned place. The change from the white head, which it retains all winter, to the brown cap of the breeding dress, takes place early in March, and is accomplished in an incredibly short time, said to be fully effected in the course of three or four days. The eggs are much sought after, and when they are being collected the noise from the old birds is perfectly deafening. 146. Actochelidon cantiaca, Kaup. (Sandwich Tern.) A few pairs of the Sandwich Tern visit the Tay every sum- mer, and from their strong rapid flight, and hoarse jarring cry, may easily be distinguished from the other terns w T ith which they associate. Though I have not found their nests, I have no doubt but that they breed with us, having noticed them hover- ing over the sands on Tents Muir in the months of June and July in company with the three following : — 147. Sterna hirundo, Linn. (Common Tern.) 148. Sterna macrura, Naum. (Arctic Tern.) 149. Sterna minuta, Linn. (Lesser Tern.) All the above are to be found every summer, the two former being the more abundant. The Common Tern is to be often seen on our lochs and upper waters, and the Lesser Tern confines itself more to the sands on Tents Muir, where they, along with the rest, have their breeding-grounds. They are now, however, very scarce to what they used to be. In my earlier days, terns bred in large numbers on the sandhills of Barry, at the mouth of the Tay ; but this locality for them has long been left unten- anted, owing to wanton destruction of their eggs, and from the continued and perpetual disturbance of the old birds during the The Scottish Naturalist. 7 breeding season by egg-collectors, both there and on Tents Muir ; and should there be no effort made to stop the practice, the Tern, like many of the rest of our birds, will soon be a thing of the past. In treating of the Golden Plover, I have already denounced the wholesale depredation of eggs on the breeding-grounds of Tents Muir ; but since that was written, the following has come under ray eye, written by Mr Harvie-Brown, in the ' Proceed- ings of the Nat. Hist. Soc. of Glasgow,' and which so corrobo- rates my own statements, and so aptly fits in under the present article, that I feel I cannot do better than copy it for the benefit of my readers who may have any influence either in Dundee, Leuchars, St Andrews, or elsewhere in the neighbourhood, to put a stop to this infamous traffic : "The destruction of Terns' eggs is really deplorable, besides that of almost every other species which breeds on Tents Muir in Fife. Not for the first time in his letters to me does Mr Henderson of Dundee describe the awful mischief committed on this breeding-haunt by boys who come out from Dundee and elsewhere and harry the nests, and destroy wholesale all the nests they come across. Mr Henderson states that the Terns are posi- tively getting driven away by the continuous and wholesale destruction of their eggs. In this case the Protective Acts are a perfectly dead letter. The eggs are destroyed in thousands. Terns, Ring Plovers, Dunlins, Lapwings, &c, are suffering dreadfully. Scarcely a single bird gets flown ; and as for Sheldrakes and Eiders, every egg is blown or boiled. Such is the state of matters here, and I can substantiate every word to be correct." Mr Harvie-Brown, commenting on the above, adds, " Have we not a Society of Field Naturalists at Dundee? I think so : and is it not part of their duty to try and prevent this destruction ? It ought to be considered part of the duty of every local Natural History Society to do so. Pressure should be brought to bear on the magistrates, continued and repeated until something is accomplished." 1 Stercorarius pomatorhinus, Gould. (Pomatorhine Skua.) Stercorarius parasiticus, Gould. (Arctic or Richardson's Skua.) The autumn of last year (1879) w iU l° n » De remembered by 1 Tents Muir is in the hands of three proprietors, who, I am sure, would be willing to give every assistance were the matter taken up firmly by the Dundee Natural History Society. — H. M. D. II. S The Scottish Naturalist. ornithologists for the remarkable arrival of Skuas on all our eastern shores. During the months of October and November they appeared in unaccountable numbers, more especially the Pomatorhine ; many were killed on the Tay, as well as elsewhere in Scotland and in England, both of the above species being got in all the different stages of plumage. It is doubtful whether or not the two other species, the Great Skua {Stercorarius catarrhades, Gray) and Long-tailed or Buffon's Skua (S. longi- caudus, Vieill.), did not visit the locality at the same time. Procellaria glacialis, Linn. (Fulmar.) Mr Nelson mentions to me one example of this bird, which was caught alive a few years ago on Tents Muir, and seemingly in a dying condition. The Fulmar Petrel is nowhere common on our east coasts, but there are occasional instances of its being driven on shore in many different places. Puffinus anglorum, Bliss. (Manx Shearwater.) What I fully believe to have been a bird of this species I have noticed near the mouth of the Tay, but have received no men- tion of its ever having been noticed there by any of the Dundee naturalists ; but as this Shearwater is well known to me, and breeds in Orkney and Shetland, from whence it may possibly stray, I am probably right in my conjecture. Thalassidroma pelagica, Vig. (Storm Petrel.) I have never noticed this species myself on the Tay, but Mr Nelson informs me that he has twice seen the Storm Petrel on the river, and on each occasion immediately after a severe gale. Mr Horn also mentions its capture on Loch Tay. No doubt, like some other sea-birds noticed there, it was driven off the western coast in some of the prevailing gales from that quarter. In concluding the above list of birds of the district here selected, it will be necessary to make a few remarks in explana- tion. A glance at the map will show that what I have desig- nated the basin of the Tay comprises the whole of the water- shed, consisting of a large area in the very centre of Scotland, containing a considerable extent of mountain, lake, rich arable land, and sea, giving a bird-fauna at once large and interesting. This tract, stretching from the head of Loch Lydon, near the entrance of Glencoe in Argyle, the head of Glen Dochart and The Scottish Naturalist. Glen Lyon to the headlands of Barry and low-lying sands of Tents Muir on the sea-coast, in the counties of Forfar and Fife, covers a distance, as the crow flies, of nearly eighty miles; while, taking it in the widest part, from the hills above Glen Artney to the head of Glen Tilt on the borders of Aberdeenshire, we have a distance of close on fifty. Having been asked to give my orni- thological experience of this district, which I have been more or less acquainted with all my life, I have endeavoured to do so — at the same time feeling that I must fall far short of doing the subject full justice, as it would require the joint observations of the many, over a long series of years, to do so thoroughly. With the assistance of friends, who have kindly given me information where I have not been able to gather it myself, together with what has fallen under my own immediate notice, I find that the number of birds which reside in or visit the district, casually or otherwise, amounts to 188, the distribution of which may be taken as follows : — Resident species, 86. Of these 61 are regu- lar, t 4 doubtfully so, and n sometimes leaving in winter and becoming partially migrant. Of the birds of passage there are 62 species : 29 of these are summer, 23 winter, and 10 appear- ing in autumn or spring, and doubtful as to remaining. In all, 148 of regular appearance. 1 Of the remaining 40 species, 31 are occasional or accidental, 6 doubtful, and of those supposed to have escaped from domestication, 3. This does not include the solitary instance of the Purple Waterhen {Porphyria smarag- donotus) obtained on the Tay : see 'Scot. Nat.,' vol. iv. p. 37. REGULARLY RESIDENT. I. Golden Eagle. 12. Water Ouzel. 2. Sparrow-hawk. 13- Robin. 5' Peregrine Falcon. 14. Hedge Sparrow. 4- Kestrel. 15- Wren. 5- White Owl. 16. Tree-creeper. 6. Brown Owl. 17- Gold Crest. 7- Great Tit. 18. Skylark. 8. Blue Tit. 19. Yeilowhammer. 9- Coal Tit. 20. Corn Bunting. 10. Long-tailed Tit. 21. House Sparrow. 1 1. Blackbird. 22. Chaffinch. 1 In the body of the list 149 are enumerated, arising from the accidental numbering of one species, No. 16, Eagle Owl, which is now altogether omit- ted as having been ascertained to have escaped from confinement. IO 71 i c Scottish Naturalist. 23. Siskin. 24. Greenfinch. 25. Bullfinch. 26. Linnet. 27. Raven. 28. Carrion Crow. 29. Hooded Crow. 30. Rook. 31. Jackdaw. 32. Magpie. 33- Jay. 34. Wood-pigeon. 35. Capercailzie. Blackcock. Grouse. J™ 37 33 39 40 41 42 Ptarmigan. Partridge. Heron. Golden Plover. 1 Ring Plover. 1 Oyster-catcher. 1 Curlew. 1 Redshank. 1 Dunlin. 1 Woodcock. 2 48. Common Snipe. 49. Waterhen. Sheldrake. Wild Duck. Eider Duck. Razorbill. Guillemot. Cormorant. 56. Great Black-backed Gull. 57. Lesser Black-backed Gull. 58. Herring Gull. 59. Common Gull. 60. Kittiwake. 61. Black-headed Gull. 43- 44. 45- 46. 47- 5°- 5 1 - 52. 53- 54- 55- DOUBTFUL, 62. Sea Eagle. 63. Osprey. 64. Buzzard. 65. Merlin. 66. Kite. 67. Short-eared Owl. 68. Long-eared Owl. IF REGULARLY RESIDENT. 69. Kingfisher. 70. Goldfinch. 71. Crossbill. 72. Lesser Redpole. 73. Coot. 74. Pochard. 75. Tufted Duck. SOMETIMES LEAVING IN WINTER, AND BECOMING PARTIALLY MIGRANT. 82. Reed Bunting. 83. Starling. 84. Lapwing. 85. Teal. 86. Little Grebe. 76. Missel Thrush. 77. Song Thrush. 3 78. Stonechat. 79. Pied Wagtail. 80. Grey Wagtail. 81. Meadow Pipit. 1 Sea-shore in winter. 2 Placed here instead of among the birds of passage, as it breeds and remains so constantly in the district. 3 Though no instance has come under my notice of the Song Thrush re- maining with us, it is said sometimes to do so. The Scottish Naturalist. 1 1 IURDS OF PASSAGE, SUMMER. I. Nightjar. 16. Sedge Warbler. 2. Swift. i7- Tree Pipit. 3- House Swallow. 18. Cuckoo. 1 4- House Martin. 19. Wryneck. 5- Sand Martin. 20. Stockdove. 6. Spotted Flycatcher. 21. Dotterel. 7- Ring Ouzel. 22. Common Sandpiper. 8. Wheatear. 2 3- Red-necked Phalarope 9- Whinchat 24. Land Rail. JO. Redstart. * 2 5- Gannet. ii. Whitethroat. 26. Sandwich Tern. 12. Blackcap. 27. Common Tern. 13- Garden Warbler. 28. Arctic Tern. 14. Willow Wren. 29. Lesser Tern. J 5- Wood Wren. BIRDS OF PASSAGE, WINTER. 30. Redwing. 31. Fieldfare. 32. Snow Bunting. ^. Bramble Finch. 34. Mountain Linnet. 35. God wit. 36. Knot. 37. Jack Snipe. 38. Wild Goose. 39. Bean Goose. 40. Pink-footed Goose. 41. White-breasted Goose. 42. Brent Goose. 43. Widgeon. 44. Scaup Duck. 45. Common Scoter. 46. Velvet Scoter. 47. Golden Eye. 48. Long-tailed Duck. 49. Goosander. 50. Red-breasted Merganser. 51. Great Northern Diver. 52. Red-throated Diver. 1 I am glad to be able to state that since the commencement of this paper the Cuckoo, as well as the Owl, have been included in the Wild Birds Pro- tection Amended Act, passed this last session — 1880 — making it illegal to kill them between the 15th of March and 1st of August. At the same time it cannot but be regretted, when altering the law, that the interests of the Woodcock should have been so entirely overlooked, and that instead of the shooting of these birds terminating on the 1st of February, as it ought to do, it is now extended to the 15th of March, when they are known to be breed- ing (see Article, No. 104). It can only be hoped that though the public may not do so, the true sportsmen will refrain from destroying them at such a season. 1 2 The Scottish Naturalist. SPRING AND AUTUMN VISITANTS, DOUBTFUL AS TO ALWAYS REMAINING. 53- Rough-legged Buzzard. 58. Great Spotted Woodpecker 54- Honey Buzzard. 59- Green Shank. 55- Marsh Harrier. 60. Water Rail. 56. Hen Harrier. 61. Spotted Crake. 57- Grey Shrike. 62. Black-throated Diver. OCCASIONAL OR ACCIDENTAL. 1. Roller. 17- Whooper. 2. Hoopoe. 18. Shoveller. 3- Waxwing. 19. Pintail Duck. 4- Grasshopper Warbler. 20. King Duck. 5- Hawfinch. 21. Smew. 6. Rose Pastor. 22. Great Crested Grebe. 7- Green Woodpecker. 23- Black Guillemot. 8. Turtle Dove. 24. Little Auk. 9- Quail. 25- Puffin. 10. Bittern. 26. Glaucous Gull. 1 1. Whimbrel. 27. Iceland Gull. 12. Sanderling. 28. Pomatorhine Skua. 13- Turnstone. 29. Richardson's Skua. 14. Great Snipe. 1 3°- Fulmar. i5- Curlew Sandpiper. 3 1 - Storm Petrel. 16. Grey Phalerope. DOUBTFUL. {Examples not having been obtained for identification. ) 3 2 - 33- 34- Pied Flycatcher. Pine Grosbeak. American White-winged 35. Mealy Redpole. 36. Hooded Merganser. 37. Manx Shearwater. Crossbill. 38. Canada Goose. 39. Egyptian Goose. SUPPOSED ESCAPES. 40. Mute Swan. ( Concluded. ) 1 Omitted in Li.st — see 'Scot. Nat.,' vol. ii. p. 360. The Scottish Naturalist. 13 Occurrence of Rare Birds. — I have again to record the appearance of the Esquimaux Curlew {JVumenii% inches; beak, along ridge, 5^2 inches ; beak, legs^ and toes, greenish grey ; sides of head bare and of the same colour as the beak — those bare parts are, at their junction with the feathers, both above and below the eyes, edged with a narrow line of greenish white ; iris, brown ; weight \)/ 2 pound. So far as I can make out, this is the sixth occurrence of the species in Scotland. The first was shot in Ayrshire ; second in Fifeshire, September 1842 ; third near Banchory, Kincardineshire, 1844, the wings of which were given to the late Professor Macgillivray, and the occurrence of the specimen is noted in his work on British birds ; fourth one in Balta Sound, Shetland, October 1857, noted by Dr Saxby ; fifth one reported by the late Mr J- H. Dunn to Mr Gray, author of the ' Birds of the West of Scotland,' and sixth, the one now noted. On 18th October last a specimen of the Hoopoe (Upiipa epops) was shot in Unst and sent to me. It was a female, and its stomach was filled with ear- wigs {Forjicula auricidarid). — Geo. Sim, Aberdeen. Lesser Whitethroat in Fyvie. — Sylvia corruca, Lesser Whitethroat. A fine specimen of this bird was killed at Gourdas on the 4th November, and another seen at Mill of Tifty.— George Sim, Gourdas, Fyvie. A Curious Bird. — When shooting last week at Moncreiffe, I killed a rather curious variety of a Pheasant. It flew over my head, and I took it for a cock, and killed it. On examination, we found that it was a mule. It had long tail-feathers, a head like a cock, and was the same size as one, but its back and wings and breast were like a hen's, and it had no spurs. Its neck was a sort of reddish brown, — exactly the colour of the upper part of a Capercailzie hen's breast. The keepers about there say they are not very rare ; but I have never seen one before. Is it not rather a curiosity? [An old hen assuming male plumage. — Ed.] I also saw lately a House-sparrow, with white wings and white feathers on its back— in Piccadilly, of all places.— T. J. Harry Moncreiffe, 59 Ennismore Gardens, London, S.W., Nov. 24. 14 The Scottish Naturalist. Blatta germanica, L., in Glasgow. — While I was in Glasgow, at the meeting of the Cryptogamic Society, Mr John Rae, of the ' Glasgow Daily Mail,' gave me several specimens of a small Cockroach which is, he told me, very abundant in the office of that newspaper. On examining the insects I found them to belong to Blatta germanica. The species is easily distin- guished from its congeners in Europe by the presence of two longitudinal dark bands on the thorax, and by the veins of the outer two-thirds of the hinder part of the elytra not branching from the long axis, but being nearly parallel to it. B. germanica seems rather widely spread in central Europe, alike in houses and in the open country. In Stephen's 'Entomology ' (vi. 46) it is said to be found in various seaports in the south of England, but only in ships, warehouses, or dwellings, so as to indicate that it has been introduced into Britain by commerce. Its habits resemble those of the only too com- mon Blatta oricntalis, L. , but the latter insect seems to expel its smaller convener, as they are not found to remain together in a house. — J. W. H. Trail, 23d? Nov. 1880. [Blatta germanica is said sometimes to expel B. ori- entalis, but this would appear to need confirmation. — Ed. Sc. Nat.] A New British Tricfcopteron. — At the last meeting of the Glasgow Natu- ral History Society, I exhibited specimens of Molanna palpata M'Each., a species of Caddis-fly new to Britain. It has hitherto been known only from Finland and Siberia, and a specimen from St Petersburg was found among Kolenati's types of M. angustata in the Vienna Museum. The remarkable form of the third joint of the maxillary palpus, in both sexes, at once distinguishes it from its congeners. The above species was taken during my stay last summer at Cannich, Strathglass, Inverness-shire, and occurred commonly all through August. It was the common caddis-fly in all parts of the Strath visited by me. I found it along the margins of lochs by brushing with the net the over- hanging heather, &c. I cannot remember having seen it flying without its having been first disturbed. Angustata, De Geer, is the only other British species of the genus. — James J. King, 207 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow. We regret to have to record the death of one of our earliest contributors, Dr William Lauder Lindsay, F.R.S.E., F. L.S. Dr Lindsay was a student of science all his life, and was well-known for his investigations in one of the most difficult branches of Cryptogamic Botany— the Lichens. Of late years his attention was almost entirely directed to Psychology, with especial reference to the existence of mind in the lower animals, on which subject he wrote voluminously. For a long period Dr Lindsay was Medical Superin- tendent of the Royal Murray Asylum, Perth, but retired about a year ago on account of failing health. He died in Edinburgh, in November last, at the early age of 50. The Sixth Annual Conference of the Cryptogamic Society of Scotland was very successfully held in Glasgow at the end of September. The island of Mull has been selected as the place of this year's Conference. ^-^^^^^- ^ . r 0^& ► #inik- If^Ste 4^^fe^*- : . PHYTOLOGY, SCOTTISH GALLS. By J. W. II. TRAIL, M.A., M.D., F.L.S. HELIANTHEMUM VULGARE, Gartn.— (/;) I have this autumn found on this plant, on Scotston Moor near Aberdeen, galls of a mite (P/iytoptus) affecting the tip or apical half of the shoot. The mites seem to attack the young buds, causing the leaves to remain short and crowded, while numerous buds form but remain small. The epidermis of leaves and branches alike becomes covered with grey hairs, while the epi- dermal cells contain pink contents, frequently giving a pink tinge to the gall. The deformity is similar in its nature to the woolly galls so frequent on the Thyme (T. serpylluni), as also to the earlier stages of the "witch-knots" on Birch. The indi- vidual buds do not exceed one-fifth inch in diameter, though all the buds on a shoot may be attacked, so that the whole mass may be considerably larger. The gall described by me formerly (' Sc. Nat.,' ii. p. 31), though somewhat like the above, is readily distin- tinguished by its appearance ; and, as pointed out by Hardy ('Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist.,' 1850, p. 187), is the work of a midge, which he named Cecidomyia helianthemi. The mite-gall has been found in Switzerland, and is described by Dr Thomas (Giebel's ' Zeitschrift,' 1872, vol. xxxix. p. 469), but he has not met with the midge-gall, and hence suggests that they are not distinct, but that the midge larvae are inquilines. the mites being the gall makers. Dr Fr. Loew also has found the mite-galls in Lower Austria (' Verh. Z00L Bot. Gesellschaft,' Wien, 1879, vol. xxix. p. 721). Prunus padus, L. — (a) I some years ago (' Sc. Nat ,' i. p. 124), described shortly "nail-galls" (formed by a species of Phyptoptus) on the leaves. I have met with these galls in many localities ; they seem to be abundant wherever the plant occurs, and have been frequently mentioned by German authors. (b) Another mite-gall, also the work of Phytoptus sp., occurs 1 6 The Scottish Naturalist. on the leaves, but is readily distinguished from the former, though frequently they occur on the same leaf. It seems almost, if not quite, restricted to the lower surface of the leaf, where it forms irregular patches of very variable extent, but frequently more or less limited by the larger veins of the leaf. The patches are usually more or less scattered ; but frequently several seem to fuse together, and may cover a large part of the leaf. At first yellowish in colour they soon become darker, and finally become rusty brown. Usually opposite to each patch there is on the upper surface of the leaf a yellowish or reddish spot; but the galls are, as already said, confined to the lower surface. They consist of a close velvety pile of short, blunt, clubbed hairs ; the club bears numerous very short branches or tubercles, or may be nearly smooth, and each hair is sup- ported on a tapering stalk. Among these hairs live the four- footed mites. These galls were abundant on some plants of Primus padus at Forres in September, along with the " nail-galls," and I have also found them at Banchory, near Kingcausie, on Deeside. They have been described and figured by several Continental botanists as Fungi, under the names Erineum padinum, Duv., (Sec, E. padifieum, Fries, or Rubigo padi, Mart. Greville gives a good description and figure of the supposed fungus, under the name Erineum padi, in his ' Scottish Cryptogamic Flora,' vol. iii. t. 157, fig. 1. They seem widely distributed in Germany, and have been described by Dr Fr. Loew from Bavaria (' Verh. Z. B. Gesellsch., Wien, 1878, p. 140). Chenopodium album, L. Atrtplex patula, L. A. BABINGTON1I, Woods. On all of these plants one may frequently observe the leaves fleshy, pale, and rolled so as to enclose a space lengthwise, in which live multitudes of Aphis atriplicis, L. These pseudo- galls seem to be of very general distribution. QUERCUS ROBUR, L. (x) Galls of ApJiilotJirix allwpunctata, Schlecht., were found by me in May of this year near Aberdeen. The species was pub- lished as Scottish by Mr Cameron some years ago. The galls are sunk in the buds, projecting from among the bud-scales, and fall out of the buds to the ground in June. They are oval or ovate, about \-\ inch long x \-\ inch thick, have usually The Scottish Naturalist. 1 7 a rather prominent sharp knob at the tip, are naked, smooth, and in colour are green or brown, with numerous short white longitudinal streaks. The wall is rather thick, and the inner gall is hard, but is closely united to the outer wall. Of the oak- galls formerly described by me, I found at Forres, in the month of September, galls of Andricus terminalts, BiorJiiza renuni, Dryo- phanta fo/ii, D. divisa, Andricus curvator, Neuroterus lenticularis, N. numismatis, and old galls of Spathegaster vesicatrix. Of course the spring-forms had disappeared, but their occurrence is indicated by the existence of the autumn-galls. The gall of Cynips Kollari was shown me by Mr Smith, from Rafford near Forres. Agrostis alba, L. — In the month of October I found, on the coast near Aberdeen, galls 011 this plant. They are situated on the leaf-blade close to where it joins the leaf-sheath ; or, in a few cases, at distances not exceeding an inch from the sheath. The galls are dull red-purple swellings, oval or linear, rounded at the ends, and prominent below. They measure T V - \ by ^ T - ^V inch. On making a transverse section of a gall it is found to be due to enlargement of one side of the leaf, chiefly around and between the midrib and the next longitudinal vein of the leaf, seldom extending markedly beyond the midrib or reaching the margin. All the features of the normal leaf can be recog- nised both externally and internally in the gall, but considerably altered. The affected part becomes twice or thrice as thick as the healthy leaf. The cuticle becomes much thickened, and the epidermal cells become less regular, thicker-walled, and seem to form two or three layers of cells instead of one layer. The chlorophyll becomes less abundant, and may be almost absent ; and the cells that contain it in the healthy leaf are represented in the gall by considerably larger cells, lying with their long axis parallel to the surface of the gall. The thick-walled cells that usually form a sheath around each fibro-vascular bundle, and extend above and below it to the surfaces of the leaf, become much less conspicuous in the gall. In the centre of the gall a longitudinal cavity is formed, apparently by separation of the cells ; it seems not to open externally. In this space live the makers of the gall, — A?iguillulce, — usually in considerable num- bers. In the galls that I examined were numerous eggs and immature worms, but I found only one sexually mature female, which agreed with Bastian's genus Tylenchus ; but in absence of mature males the determination must remain uncertain for the VOL. VI. B 1 8 The Scottish Naturalist. present. In the eggs were embryos almost ready to emerge, so well formed that they moved actively within the transparent shell. They are three or four times as long as the oval eggs. In size the creatures approach very closely to those from the gall on Elymus described below. Usually only one gall is found on each leaf, but occasionally two may be situated side by side, separated by the midrib, or both may occur on the same side, but one a little way farther from the base of the leaf than the other. I have seen three galls on a leaf. Magnus (' Botan. Zeitung,' 1875, P- 579; a °d 1876, p. 586) has described similar galls found by him on leaves of Festuca ovina, L., and of Agrostis canina, L. ; and AnguillulcE. have been found to form galls on the inflorescence of Agrostis sylvatica, Huds., of Phleum Boehmeri, and of Ph. prataise^ and have long been known (under the name of Vibrio tritici) to cause " ear cockles " or galls in the ovary of wheat, and, less frequently, of oats and of rye. Elymus arenarius, L. — On this coast - frequenting grass I have found, near Aberdeen, galls on the fine rootlets pushed out from the rhizomes through the sand. They usually occur at the tip of the rootlet as a nearly round or oval swelling affecting its whole circumference, and tipped with a small knob, — the only- slightly- affected extreme end of the root. They vary in size from -g 1 ^ to oV mcn m diameter ; but, though so small, are easily distinguished, as the rootlets are only about t £q- inch thick. Some galls affect the rootlet nearer its base, causing a tapering swelling, which may reach ^ x T V inch in size. A transverse section of a normal rootlet is found to present a central fibro-vascular bundle of rather small thin-walled cells and vessels, the whole surrounded by two layers of cells with the cell-walls markedly thicker, especially on the inner side of the cells. Between these layers and the epidermis lie four or five layers (forming the cortex) of regular thin-walled cells, those to the inside smallest, those in the middle much larger than the inner and slightly larger than the outer cells. These contain usually some protoplasm, seldom filling half the cell, in which lies a nucleus by no means conspicuous. Outside of all is the epidermis, composed of a single layer of cells, distinguished from those below them chiefly by being empty, and by. giving off root-hairs. Comparing the structure of a gall with this, we find the follow- ing differences : The root-hairs are absent, as might be antici- pated from the position of the galls ; the epidermis has the cells The Scottish Naturalist. 19 usually empty, but not otherwise distinguishable from those below, and the gall is chiefly made up of a mass of thin-walled cells packed full of granular contents. In each cell is a strongly refracting nucleus, in which lies a distinct nucleolus. The layers of thick -walled cells have disappeared, but the fibro- vascular bundle is represented by cells smaller than those of the cortex. There is no distinct line of demarcation between the cortex and the central tissues, hence it is difficult to determine which has undergone the greater abnormal growth, but the cortex seems to be the less changed of the two. In the interior of the gall live the makers of it, as in A. alba; they are Anguil- lula, and belong to the genus Tylenchus, though of this I am not certain in the absence of males. In the small galls only one or two of the worms are to be found ; but in the larger galls, in October, a multitude of eggs and of newly -hatched embryos are present, with an occasional adult female. The eggs are oval, with blunt ends, about xoVo x tijoo mcn m size i and are so transparent as permit a full examination of the embryo within, which is three or four times as long as the egg. The immature worms, examined by me in October, were fiMJo- Wo x o 3 inch? and the adult females were about itNjJ inch. The Anguillulce from both this and the former gall are able to endure desiccation without being killed ; but I have not had an opportunity as yet of testing this power for any long period of time. Galls of Anguillulce on the roots of Elymus ai'enarius have been found in Denmark by Dr E. Warming (' Bot. Tids.,' 3d series, vol. ii., 1879); an< ^ root-galls formed by these creatures have also been found on Poa annua, on Triticum repens, on 7cheat, on barley, and on oats, but I am not aware that they have yet been met with on these plants in Scotland. In the ' Scottish Naturalist,' vol. iv. p. 206, I gave references to mite-galls, described and figured as fungi, under the generic name Erineiwi, by Greville, in the 'Edinburgh Philosophical Journal.' I have since had access to two works by Greville, — the 'Flora Edinensis,' published in 1824, and the 'Scottish Cryptogamic Botany,' published in 1823-28. In the former are described, and in the latter are described and figured, the fol- lowing mite galls, under the name Erineum. 1. E. clandestinum, Grev. — E. oxyacantha, Pers., on haw- thorn-leaves ('Sc. Nat.,' iv. p. 14). 'Fl. Edin.,' p. 450; ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. iii. t. 141, f 2. 20 The Scottish Naturalist. 2. E.fagineum, Pers., on beech-leaves (below). ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. v. t. 250, f. 1. (Though noted by Greville as "frequent," I have not met with it.) 3. E. populinum, Pers., on Populus tremula on lower surface of leaves (' Sc. Nat.,' ii. p. 254, d). ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. v. t. 250, f. 2. At Darnaway and other places in Scotland, and at Oxford. 4. E. Padi = E. Padineum, Fries, on leaves of Primus Padus, (see above), at Aviemore, and elsewhere in the Highlands. ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. iii. t. 157, f. 1. 5. E. Alncum, Pers., on lower surface of leaves of alder ('Sc. Nat.,' iv. p. 205). 'Fl. Edin.' p. 450; ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. iii. t. 157, f. 2. At Rosslyn. 6. E. roseum, Schultz = j£\ Betuloz D. C. ('Sc. Nat.,' iv. p. 17). ' Fl. Edin.,' p. 451, and ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. i. t. 21. 7. E. betuliuutn, Schum (' Sc. Nat.,' iv. p. 17), ' Fl. Edin./ p. 451. Nos. 6 and 7 both occur on leaves of birch (Betula alba), and are common. They are forms of one gall apparently. 8. E. pyrinum, Pers., on leaves of Pyrus mains, and of P. communis, on Craigie Hill, and in Devonshire. ' Fl. Edin.,' pp. 449, 450; ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. i. t. 22. (I have not found this species.) 9. E. tortuosum, Grev., ' Fl. Edin.,' p. 450 ; ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. ii. t. 94. On birch. 10. E. sorbi, Kunze, on leaves of mountain-ash {Pyrus aucu- paria). ' Sc. Cr. Fl.,' vol. v. t. 263, f. 1. Woods at Kinnordy, and elsewhere. 11. E. Juglandis, Gsertn. = E. Juglandinum, Pers. = E. subu- latum, Grev., on leaves of walnut, {Juglans regia). ' Fl. Edin./ p. 450; 'Sc. Cr. FL, vol. v. t. 263, f. 2, "not unfrequent." (I am not acquainted with this gall, or with that on the mountain- ash, which latter gall is distinct from the mite-gall described by me, ' Sc. Nat.,' ii. 79; the latter gall is common. THE GAELIC NAMES OF PLANTS. By JOHN CAMERON. ( Continued from Vol. V. , p. 361.) Anthemis nobilis — Common chamomile. Camomhil, from the Greek ya^ai 1^X0%, which Pliny informs us was applied to the plant on account of its smelling like apples. (Spanish : maucin- The Scottish Naturalist. 21 ilia, a little apple.) Lus-iian cam-bhil (M'Kenzie), the plant with drooping flowers. The plant is well distinguished by its flowers, which droop, or are bent down, before expansion ; but though the name is thus applicable, it is only a corruption from the Greek. " Bi'dh mionntain, c727//au/eo, euphraino, to delight, from the supposition of the plant curing blindness). Arnoldus de Villa saith, " It has restored sight to them that have been blind a long time before ; and if it were but as much used as it is neglected, it would half spoil the spectacle trade " (Culpepper). 28 The Scottish Naturalist. Pedicularis sylvatica — Dwarf red rattle. Irish: I us an gr oil a. P. palustris — Louse-wort ; red rattle. Gaelic : lus riabhach, the brindled plant, possibly a contraction of riabhdheargach (Irish), red-streaked, a name which well describes the appearance of the plant. Modhalau dearg, the red modest one. Lus na mial, louse-wort, from the supposition that sheep that feed upon it become covered with vermin. Bainne ghabhar, goat's milk, from the idea that when goats feed on it they yield more milk. Its beautiful pink flowers were used as a cosmetic. " Sail-chuach 's bainne ghabhar, Suadh ri t' aghaidh, 'S cha n' neil mac righ air an domhain, Nach bi air do dheidh." Rub thy face with violet and goat's milk, And there is no prince in the world Who will not follow thee. Rhinanthus crista-galli — The yellow rattle. Gaelic : modh- alau bhuidhe, the yellow modest one. Bodach na claiginn. Irish : bodan na cloigin, the old man with the skulls. Claigeann or (Irish) cloigoiu, a skull, from the skull like appearance of its inflated calyces. Scrophularia nodosa— Figwort. Gaelic : lus nan cnapan, the knobbed plant, from its knobbed roots. Old English : kernel- wort. Donn-lus, brown-wort, from the brown tinge of the flowers. Farach dubh (faracha, Irish), a beetle or mallet ; dubh, dark. Wasps and beetles resort greatly to its small mallet-like flowers. Irish : fotruni (fot,fothach), glandered — from the resemblance of its roots to tumours. In consequence of this resemblance it was esteemed a remedy for all scrofulous diseases; hence the generic name Scrophularia. Digitalis purpurea — Foxglove. Gaelic : lus-nam-ban-sith, the fairy women's plant. Meuran sith (Stuart), the fairy thimble. Irish : an siothan (sioth, Gaelic : sith) means peace. Sithich, a fairy, the most active sprite in Highland and Irish mythology. Meuran 1 nan daoine marbh, dead men's thimbles. Meuran nan caillich niharbha, dead women's thimbles. In Skye it is called ciochan nan cailleachan marblia (Nicolson), the dead old women's paps. Irish : siaji sleibhc. (Sian, a charm or spell, a wise one, a fox ; sleibhe, a hill). W^elsh : menyg ellyllon, fairy's glove. 1 Meuran and digitalis (digitabulum), a thimble, in allusion to the form of the flower. The Scottish Naturalist. 29 O'Reilly gives another Irish name, bolgan beic (diminutive of bo/g, a sack, a bag. Greek, BoAyo?, beic, bobbing, curtseying). And frequently in the Highlands the plant is known by the familiar name, an /us mbr, the big plant. Lus a bkalgair (Aberfeldy), the fox-weed. Orobanchace^. (From Greek, opofios, orobos, a vetch, and ayx^v, to strangle, in allusion to the effect of these parasites in smothering and de- stroying the plants on which they grow.) The name muchog (from ///////^■smother, extinguish, suffocate) is applied to all the species. 0. major and minor — Broom-rape. Irish and Gaelic: siorra- lach, (Shaw) — sior, vetches, being frequently parasitical on legu- minous plants ; or siorrachd, rape. Verbenace^e. Verbena officinalis — Vervain. Gaelic and Irish : trombhod, — from, a corruption of drum, from Sanskrit dru, wood ; hence Latin, drus, an oak, and bod or bbid, a vow. Welsh : dderwen fendigaid, literally, blessed oak, — the " herba sacra " of the ancients. Ver- vain was employed in the religious ceremonies of the Druids. Vows were made and treaties were ratified by its means. "After- wards all sacred evergreens, and aromatic herbs, such as holly, rosemary, &c, used to adorn the altars, were included under the term verbena " (Brockie). This will account for the name from- bhod being given by O'Reilly as "vervain mallow;" M'Kenzie, "ladies' mantle;" and Armstrong, "vervain." Labiate. (From Latin, labium, a lip, plants with lipped corollae.) Gaelic : lus an lipeach, or bi leach. Mentha — (From Greek Miv^t/, minthe. A nymph of that name who was changed into mint by Prosperine, in a fit of jealousy, from whom the Gaelic name mionnt has been derived.) Welsh : myntys. Mentha sylvestris — Horse-mint. Gaelic : mionnt each, horse- mint ; mionnt Jiadhai?i, wild mint ; and if growing in woods, mionnt choil/e, wood- mint. M. arvensis — Gorn-mint. Gaelic: mionnt an arbhair, corn- mint. M. aquatica — Water - mint. Gaelic : cairteal. Irish : cartal, cartloin, probably meaning the water - purifier, from the verb cartam, to cleanse, and loin, a rivulet, or Ion, a marsh or swampy 3, «jJ/# <%>•**, <^\4* PHYTOLOGY, THE LIFE AND LABOURS OF A SCOTTISH NATURALIST, GEORGE DON OF FORFAR. 1 c By JOHN KNOX. k EORGE DON, the subject of this sketch, was born in the T parish of Menmuir in the year 1764. The exact date of his birth cannot be ascertained, but he was baptised on the nth October, as the old parochial register testifies : "nth October T764, Alexander Don had a son baptised, named George." His mother's name was Isobel Fairvveather. Both parents were descended from respectable farmers in the parish, — the im- mediate progenitor of the Dons being a Thomas Don, who came from Aberdeenshire and settled in a farm in Edzell in the seven- teenth century. The father of the Botanist, Alexander Don, was a shoemaker, and for a few years after his marriage resided first in Menmuir, and then in the neighbouring parish of Careston. At last — probably about 1772 or 1773 — he came to Forfar, where he had an uncle who followed the same trade as himself. Here he took up his abode in the Little Causeway, a dreary square off the West High Street to the south. What education, in the technical sense, young Don received it is impossible to say. The likelihood is that it was very scanty. In whatever way he attained it, he wrote a bold, fairly-formed hand, and his style is clear and vigorous. His real education, however, was got out of doors, in the fields and by the lochside. His powers of observation very early attracted attention. It is said that on a visit to some relatives in his native parish, when still a mere boy, he collected and planted a number of wild flowers in his friend's garden, arranged according to a system of his own. In Forfar the tradition is that he began to learn his father's trade, but soon left it, his passion for flowers being so strong as to prevent him making any progress. He was then sent to Dupplin 1 Communicated to the Perthshire Society of Natural Science on January 6, 1881. The Scottish Naturalist. 6$ Gardens, which were under the charge of a relative, and there he spent some years as a gardener. His evenings were devoted to study, or to long rambles in search of plants — now across the Earn to the Ochils, and again to the outlying spurs of the Grampians ; and in this way he acquired a complete knowledge of the local flora. " On one of these botanical rambles," writes his grandson, George Alexander Don, in a letter to me, "he fell in with a young woman carrying a heavy pitcher of water. Entering into conversation with her, and helping her by taking her burden from her and carrying it himself, he began his acquaintance with Caroline Stewart, his future wife — an active, energetic woman, as my father has described her to me." Where he went to on leaving Dupplin is matter of uncertainty. It is said he went to the south of England, and after remaining there for a few years, came to Edinburgh and wrought as a gardener. In 1790 — it may be a year or two earlier — he was settled as a nurseryman in Forfar, where he remained till his death. He was appointed Superintendent of the Edinburgh Royal Botanic Garden under the Regius Keepership of Professor Rutherford (1784- 1819), but whether before he returned to Forfar or after, cannot now be known. If after he took up his residence in Forfar, he must have held the appointment but for a very short time, as by a careful collation of dates incidentally given in his 'Account of the Native Plants,' &c, it is clear he was never long away from Forfar after 1790 — the year in which he found the Caltha radicans. The ground which he converted into his famous Botanic Garden was a patch of nearly two acres lying just outside the town of Forfar to the north — a feu from the estate of Carsegray. The ground as a whole sloped to the west, and was shaped somewhat like a horse- shoe. From all sides, except the west, it fell towards the centre, from which a small oval-shaped knoll rose, known as the Dove hillock. On this Don built his house. From this knoll the ground dipped down to the west into what had been at one time the bed of Forfar Loch. Here he formed a large artificial pond, which he stocked with aquatic plants and fish. A walk ran round the garden, leaving room for a broad border, in which the native plants were arranged accord- ing to their orders, in their appropriate soils, of which there was abundance of all kinds at hand — loam, clay, sand, gravel, and moss. In addition to this he rented several acres of land from the town, which were used as a nursery for young trees. 64 The Scottish Naturalist. At this time Forfar was a small land-locked place, of about 5000 inhabitants. The principal trades were weaving coarse linens, shoemaking, and brewing. It being the county-town, there was a comparatively large number of writers and other functionaries connected with the administration of the law. The Forfarians of that day were a shrewd, kindly folk, with old- fashioned, home-spun ways. The only man of note in it at this time was the Rev. John Jamieson, afterwards Dr Jamieson, author of the ' Dictionary of the Scottish Language,' who was minister of the Secession Church. With him- Don is said to have been on terms of intimacy, and also with Mr Clarke, teacher of classics in the Burgh School, whose only title to remembrance is that he sent a pound to Burns on his death-bed, and to whom the poet wrote a letter of warm thanks, with as warm an entreaty for another note. About this time a. section of Forfarians — in- cluding among its number some of the most influential men in the town — sympathised deeply with the French in their efforts to rid themselves of the tyranny under which they had so long groaned, and looked upon Buonaparte, for a time, at least, as the regenerator of society. They were followers of William God- win, the founder of philosophic Radicalism, and adopted as their creed the principles — so far as they were practicable — laid down in his ' Inquiry concerning Political Justice.' It was through their exertions mainly that the Forfar Library was founded in 1795 — a library that will compare favourably with any other of its class. In addition to books, they also provided themselves with a telescope, microscope, and other philosophical instru- ments. To these men Don attached himself, and continued to be closely associated with them down to the time of his death. In 1799 he was made a member of the Library, on the condi- tions set forth in the following minute : — " 1 st February 1799. — George Don, Botanist, was admitted a member of the Library in consideration of having presented to the Library three volumes of Botanical Drawings ; and excepting the price of addenda, he is not to be liable in payment of any dues." There is now only one volume of Botanical Drawings in the Library — a volume of plates of Fungi, " Sowerby Delineator, 1796," — doubtless one of the three presented by Don. This little incident is significant enough. The Botanist is too poor to pay the subscription in money, but presents the three volumes of plates. He thus gains the command of a good library, and, The Scott 'is h Naturalist. 65 at the same time, places within the reach of the subscribers a valuable aid to the study of his favourite science. We cannot tell what use he made of the Library, as the reading-lists of those days are no longer in existence. That he would take full ad- vantage of it there can be no doubt, especially in the winter, when he had most leisure. His companions were readers, and met regularly to discuss books, politics, and the news of the day, in " Nanny Dagetty's " — a half-forgotten public-house in the East High Street. When spring and summer came, his out- door duties were sufficient to occupy his time. His active ener- getic nature soon led him into an extensive business. The county gentlemen largely consulted him as to their plantations and the best methods of laying out their estates. George Demp- ster of Dunnichen was one of the first to appreciate Don's abil- ities, and was a frequent visitor to the Forfar Garden. His love for botany, however, was an overmastering passion, to which everything else was subordinated, and drew him away from the ordinary, everyday work of the nursery, which, in sum- mer and autumn especially, was often left to the care of men who did not always do their duty to their master's satisfaction. Hence frequent quarrels between master and servant ; for Don, according to the testimony of those who knew him, was a chol- eric man. He was often away for two or three weeks at a time, but more frequently only for four or five days, in search of " Some rare floweret of the hills, or plant Of craggy fountain ; what he hopes for, wins, Or learns, at least, that 'tis not to be won : Then, keen and eager as a fine-nosed hound, By soul-engrossing instinct driven along Through wood or open field, Intent upon his onward quest." And when night came on, he would sit down under the shelter of some crag, eat his humble supper, and see "The hills Grow larger in the darkness, all alone Behold the stars come out above his head," till sleep closed his weary eyes. These excursions extended not only over the whole county of Forfar from the Grampians to the sea — every foot of which was to him familiar ground — but over the greater part of the middle Highlands, from Inverness to Ben Lomond. He was on Ben Lawers in August 1793, where he saw the Charadrius vol. vr. E 66 The Scottish Naturalist. himantopus, or long-legged plover; and in Skye and on the summit of Ben Nevis in 1794, where he for the first time found the Sagina maritima. But Clova was the district which had most charms for him, and to the exploration of which he de- voted most time and attention. " The lofty mountains which surround the upper part of Clova," says he, "present to the botanist an interesting field for rarities ; not even Ben Nevis, Ben Lawers, and Ben Lomond, and the high mountains of Cairngorm, taken altogether, can furnish such botanical treasures as are to be met with on the mountains of Clova." He has, indeed, made Clova classic ground for the botanist. For these long rambles over hill and dale Don was gifted by nature with capacities above most men. He was a tall, stalwait man, who could do the work of two ordinary men, and his power of endurance seems almost incredible. In these journeys he was often without food for long periods. He has been known to come into " Nanny Dagetty's," of an evening, direct from an excursion, and astonish his friends by clearing the table of every- thing eatable. They would rally him on his appetite ; but his defence was, that he had tasted nothing for twelve hours at least, and had during that time walked close on thirty miles, and heavily laden too. He would bring with him plants, some of them already dried and fit for the herbarium, roots and seeds to be planted and sown in his garden, or sent to one or other of his correspondents ; for he was in correspondence with some of the most eminent naturalists of the day, such as Dr Patrick Neill, Secretary of the Wernerian Society of Edinburgh ; Sir Joseph Banks ; Sir J. E. Smith, President of the Linnean Society, and others. There is a tradition in Forfar that a bishop of the Church of England — doubtless Dr Samuel Goodenough, Bishop of Carlisle — visited the town and inquired for Mr Don. It was not thought that such a grand man could have come to see George Don, and a messenger was sent with him to the resi- dence of a Colonel Don. Seeing the Colonel at a distance, he said, " That's not the man," and was then taken to the Gar- den, where he found the botanist busy at work, and was soon in cordial conversation with him, to the great wonder of his guide. It is much to be regretted that the details and incidents of these excursions, many of which were known to his associates, have not been preserved. They would have furnished matter lor a volume of deepest interest both to the general reader and TJic Scott is Ji Naturalist. 67 the man of science. But the men who knew them are all gone, and nothing now remains but a few reminiscences. Often, indeed, he returned from his expeditions with clothes torn or soiled with mud ; but on one occasion he came back in a still more sorry plight. Camping out on the hillside one night, he had gathered a few dry sticks and kindled a fire to keep himself warm. He then lay down and fell fast asleep, but was soon awakened by his burning coat. On examining the state of matters, he found the tails completely gone. When he set out for some of his longer rambles, it is said that he was in the habit of carrying two extra shirts with him : and when he thought it was time to have a change of linen he performed that operation by putting on an additional shirt. He sometimes got so absorbed in the search of plants that he forgot the days of the week. There is a story of his coming laden with specimens into the manse of St Vigeans one Sunday morning just before the church went in. Mr Muir, the minister, who was a great friend of his, expressed astonishment at seeing him there in such a guise at such a time. Don, who had already noticed that some preparations were being made for going to church, asked why Mr Muir was to preach that day. ^Yas it a Fast Day, or what? He was then told it was Sunday, and that he would have to go to church. " Oh, well, I have lost count ! " said he ; "but if I had my hands and face washed, I'll go to the kirk." He was shown up-stairs to a bedroom for this purpose, but not coming down in time, Mr Muir went up to call him. On opening the door he found the botanist stretched on the top of the bed in a profound slumber, which was not disturbed. Of the numerous letters he must have written, I have only seen one — a letter to his friend Mr David Booth, who at the time was settled in Newburgh as a brewer. I am indebted for it to Mrs Stuart, Balgonie, Markinch, who kindly sent it to me along with several others relating to circumstances connected with Don's death. Mr Booth was a very able man ; he was the author of the article "Brewing" in the Penny Cyclopaedia, 'In- terest Tables,' which are to be found in every bank office, 'An Analytical Dictionary of the English Language,' &c. At the time this letter was written he had been studying botany, and had asked Don to get him two volumes of botanical plates from the Forfar library. The David Mudie mentioned was at the time librarian, and Mr Roberts a writer in Forfar, both intimate friends of Don. Some of the older Forfarians say that Don was 68 The Scottish Naturalist. , an herbalist, and occasionally prepared decoctions and pre- scribed ; and this the mention of the " powder for scrofula with directions " would seem to confirm. George Don to David Booth. "Botanic Garden, Forfar, Nov. 19, 1812. " Dear Sir, — I have procured two volumes of Botanical plates with some difficulty. I have given my line to David Mudie, and Mr Roberts has become Bound for me that they shall be returned at the end of two months, and then I shall endeavour to procure the other when you return the two just now sent. I have sent the powder for scrofula with directions. "I will thank you to send the Jasmine fruticans and Serapis latifolia, and seed of Reseda lutea,* when the frost goes off. — With best wishes for the wellfare of Mrs Booth and family, I remain, dear sir, yours truly, G. Don. "Mr David Booth. (* And a plant of the Scirpus or Bull Rush that grows by the side of the river at Newburgh.) " N.B. — I have had a long Botanical Excurtion since I was in Newburgh, and have been successful, having discovered the fol- lowing new plants to Britain — viz., Salix lanata of Linn., and a nondescript species, Ranunculus rivalis of Linn., Astragalus campestris of Linn., Carex rariflora of Whalenberg, and also Carex salina of Swortz, and a nondescript species of Juncus, with many other rare plants, and some new and rare crypto- gameous plants. — Yours as above, G. D. " P.S. — The parcel is sent agreeable to your directions." The first time Don appeared formally as an author was, so far as I am aware, in the year before he wrote the above letter. He contributed a paper to the discussion of a question which was, at the time, engaging the attention of naturalists — the decay of the Scots fir. It is in the shape of a letter addressed to his friend Dr Patrick Neill, and was afterwards published in the Memoirs of the Caledonian Horticultural Society. It affords unmistakable evidence both of Don's remarkably keen powers of observation and of his common-sense ; and as it may not, even yet, have lost its interest, I shall quote the principal por- tions of it. The letter is dated " Forfar Gardens, 10th February 1811 : — The Scottish Naturalist. 69 " During the winter of 18 jo, when walking in some woods in the neighbourhood of Forfar, composed of Scotch fir, for the purpose of collecting mosses and lichens, my attention was drawn from these humble tribes by observing the very dissimilar appearances of different trees of what botanists consider as one species of Pinus, the Pinus sylvestris. " After examining a great number of trees, I became satisfied that it is possible to distinguish in our plantations at least four varieties ; and one of these, indeed, is of so fixed and marked a character that it may probably be entitled to rank as a species. " It may here be proper to state that lately, while observing the cutting down of a fir plantation near Forfar, I was not a little surprised at the great difference in the size, and conse- quently in the value, of some of the trees in comparison with others of the same species — the difference in value being not less than four times that of others, and in some individual trees exceeding six times. I was at a loss to account for this fact, as the trees were growing promiscuously in the same soil and situation, and had been equally thinned. On more minutely examining those that far exceeded the others in size, I perceived that they were all of that variety which I have suggested as pro- bably entitled to rank as a species. " About a month ago I re-examined the varieties of the Pinus sylvestris, in order to collect some cones of each variety for seed, and I was then led to examine them with considerable care." He then goes on to describe the different varieties, begin- ning with the common variety, which he calls variety 1, marked by its branches forming a pyramidal head ; leaves marginated, of a dark or full green colour, and but little glaucous under- neath ; cones considerably elongated and tapering to the point ; the bark of the trunk very rugged. This variety seems to be but short-lived, becoming soon stunted in appearance, and alto- gether a very inferior tree to variety 2 or 3. I shall now append his description of variety 2 : — " This strongly-marked and permanent variety is distinguished from the former by the disposition of its branches, which are remarkable for their horizontal direction and for a tendency to bend downward close to the trunk. The leaves are broader than in variety 1, and serrulated, not marginated as in variety 1. From that circumstance alone I should at once pronounce them distinct. The leaves are distinguished at a distance by their 70 T/ie Scottish-- Naturalist. much lighter and beautiful glaucous colour. The bark of the trunk is not so rugged as in variety i. The cones are generally thicker, not so much pointed, and they are smoother than those of variety I. The tree seems to be a more hardy plant, being easily reconciled to very various soils and situations. It grows very freely, and quickly arrives at a considerable size. Now may I here be allowed to conjecture that the fir- woods which formerly abounded in every part of Scotland, and the trees of which arrived at a large size, had been of this variety or species. I have certainly observed that the greater part of the fir-woods of the present day. and which are so much complained of, are of the common variety, or variety i ; at least not more than one tree out of ten or twelve is of variety 2, or the more desirable kind. I think this is the most natural way of accounting for the supposed decline of the Scots fir in this country, for two reasons : 1, Because variety 2 still retains all the good qualities ever ascribed to the Scots fir ; 2, Because, as variety 1 produces its cones much more freely than the other, the seed-gatherers, who were only to be paid by the quantity and not the quality, would seize upon the former and neglect the latter." And he goes on to say that he has planted seeds of the four varieties in his garden, and will report ; but he was cut oft" before the result of his experiment could be seen. (7c? be continued.) THE GAELIC NAMES OF PLANTS. By JOHN CAMERON. ( Continued from p. 30. ) M. pulegium — Pennyroyal. Gaelic : peighinn rioghail, the same meaning. " Am bearnan bride 's a pheighinn-rioghail." — M'Intyre. The dandelion and the pennyroyal. Welsh : coluddlys, herb good for the bowels. Dail y gwaed, blood leaf. Calamintha — Basil-thyme, calamint. Gaelic : calameilt (from Greek, koAos, beautiful ; and /javdr), minthe, mint), beautiful mint. Welsh: Llysie y g&th, catwort. Rosmarinus officinalis — Common rosemary. Gaelic : rbs Mhuire. Irish : rbs-mar — mar-ros, sea-dew, corruptions from the The Scottish Naturalist 71 Latin (ros, dew, and marinus). the sea-dew. Rbs Afhairi, Mary's rose, or rosemary. Welsh : rbs Mair. Among Celtic tribes rose- mary was the symbol of fidelity with lovers. It was frequently worn at weddings. In Wales it is still distributed among friends at funerals, who throw the sprigs into the grave over the coffin. Lavendula spica — Common lavender. Gaelic: lus-na-tuise, the incense plant, on account of its fragrant odour. An /us Hath, the grey weed. Lothail, " uisge an lothail" lavender-water. Satureia hortensis — Garden savory. Gaelic : garbhag ghar- aidh. the coarse or rough garden plant, from garbh, rough, &c. Salvia verbenacea — Clary. The Gaelic and Irish name, torman, applies to the genus as well as to this plant ; it simply means " the shrubby one " (tor, a bush or shrub). The genus consists of herbs or undershrubs, which have generally a rugose appear- ance. A mucilage was produced from the seeds of this plant, which, applied to the eye, had the reputation of clearing it of dust; hence the English name, " clear-eye," clary (Gaelic : clears bright). S. officinalis — Garden-sage (of which there are many varieties). Gaelic : athair /lath, the grey father. Saisde (from sage). Slan /us, the healing plant, corresponding with salvia (Latin : salvere, to save). It was formerly of great repute in medicine. Armstrong remarks : " Bha barail ro mhbr aig na sean Eadalltich do 'n lus so, mar a chithear o'n rann a leanas, — " Cur moriatur homo cui salvia crescit in horto?" " C arson a gheibheaclh cluine bas, Aig am bheil saisde fas na gharaidh ? " Why should the man die who has sage growing in his garden ? Teucrium scorodonia — Wood - sage. Gaelic : saisde coi/le, wood-sage. Saisde Jiadhaiu, wild sage. O'Reilly gives the name ebeirs/uaigh, perhaps from obar, shall be refused, and s/uagh, people, multitude, because it did not possess the virtues attri- buted to the other species, and even cattle refuse to eat it. Thymus serpyllum — Thyme, wild thyme. Gaelic and Irish : /us mhic righ Bhreatainn, the plant belonging to the king of Britain's son. Lus an righ, the king's plant. This plant had the reputation of giving courage and strength through its smell ; hence the English thyme (from Greek : Ov^os, thynws, courage, strength, — virtues which were essential to kings and princes in olden times). Highlanders take an infusion of it to prevent dis- agreeable dreams. Welsh : tcini. 72 The Scottish Naturalist. ( mari oran a I Origanum , > — Marjoram. Gaelic and Irish : ora- gan, the delight of the mountain. Greek : opos, oros. Gaelic : ord, a mountain ; and Greek, yavos, ganos, joy. Gaelic : gain, clapping of hands. Lus mJiarsalaidh, the merchant's weed, may only be a corrupted form of marjoram, from an Arabic word (rnarya- mych). Seathbhog, the skin or hide softener (seathadh, a skin, a hide, and bog, soft). " The dried leaves are used in fomentations : the essential oil is so acrid that it may be considered as a caustic, and was formerly used as such by farriers " (Don). Welsh : y benrudd, ruddy-headed. 0. dictamnus — Dittany. The Gaelic and Irish name, lus a phiobaire — given in the dictionaries for " dittany " — is simply a corruption of lus apheubair, the pepperwort, and was in all prob- ability applied to varieties of Lepidium as well as to Origanum dic- ta mni creti, whose fabulous qualities are described in Virgil's 12th ' ^Eneid,' and in Cicero's ' De Natura Deorum.' Hyssopus officinalis — Common hyssop. Gaelic: z.rth January 1814. " Dear Sir, — Mr Rodger says he wrote to you yesterday communicating the unpleasant news of the death of our friend, George Don, but had omitted to request you to write a short sketch of this singular and celebrated botanical genius, and to cause the sketch to be published in one of the English diurnal newspapers. To stimulate you to this is my chief object in writ- ing at present. If the article appear in one newspaper, it is probable it will be copied into all the other papers. " A man of eminence in any art or science is entitled to notice, and when he leaves the world it argues a degree of inexcusable insensibility to devote no attention whatever to his memory. George was not only a self-taught man of science, but he was our particular friend. I therefore expect that you, who knew every trait of his character, will not delay a moment in taking up your able pen to celebrate his memory. Your description will aid a benevolent plan which a number of your acquaintances here have formed in behalf of the unhappy orphans left by our friend. Judge, then, how anxiously we will look for the effusion of your pen on departed genius and modest worth. " George's family consists of five sons and one daughter. The two elder sons, George and David, have studied botany under their father, and have made considerable proficiency. They know the greater part of the immense variety of plants in his botanic garden. The second son, David, is a fine boy of about sixteen years of age, modest, communicative, and sensible, and the knowledge he has already acquired of plants would astonish you. Were his genius to be properly cultivated, I have not a doubt that he would soon be little inferior to what his father was in the science of botany. "A number of individuals here have it in contemplation to support these two young men, to enable them to reside with, and provide for, the three infant sons. With a view to this benevolent plan, letters are to be sent to those gentlemen who corresponded with George on the subject of botany, soliciting their aid. Perhaps a small fund may be raised in this way to preserve the family from starving, and to enable the two elder sons to follow their pursuit in the knowledge of botany; and if 1 Addressed to Mr Booth, Mr William Godwin's, 41 Skinner Street, London. 1 1 6 The Scottish Naturalist. they meet with any encouragement, they may possibly become an acquisition to the world. They are young and vigorous, and able to traverse Alpine regions in the pursuit of rare plants. The eminent Dr Smith patronised and justly appreciated the talents of the father. Perhaps you could apply to him for some aid to this friendless family ; perhaps you will think of others to whom you could make a similar application. Such sums as shall be received it is, intended to place with a banker, and to be under the superintendence of some people here who are to direct the proper application of the cash. When this celebrated botanist died he was completely in want, and I believe your good friend Mr James Webster was the first to throw in a temporary supply. " Be as kind to write to me at your convenience. From me you can expect little information. In this small place the same dull unvarying scene daily occurs ; but you are in the metro- polis, conversing with men of eminence, and perhaps you could communicate some information that would be amusing and in- teresting to me. Say whether the celebrated Godwin be engaged in any work at present. I lately, for the first time, perused his 1 Enquirer ' with greater interest than any book I ever read. I hope he will still continue to illuminate the intellects of men, which are, in general, sufficiently phlegmatic. You must have observed that our friend Holcroft gave a genuine description of the character of Buonaparte. Had he been less selfish and despotical, he would have rendered himself truly great, and have been the benefactor and regenerator of the world ; but he seems to have felt too little interest in the happiness of his species, and viewed them as instruments calculated for no other purpose than to forward his schemes of self-aggrandisement, — that is, what he considered to be aggrandisement. Sorry am I to see that the distinguished few follow the footsteps of Buona- parte in this respect. — Ever your sincere friend, " Will. Roberts. " Conclude your sketch with an observation that Mr William Hutchison, writer in Forfar, is appointed to receive subscrip- tions for the support of the poor indigent family of George, and that any cash remitted to Mr Hutchison will be faithfully applied for that laudable purpose." ( To be continued. ) The Scottish Naturalist. 1 1 7 MYOOLOGIA SOOTIOA. By Rev. JOHN STEVENSON. {Continued from page 39.) 2173. Hydnum acre Quel. Bull. Soc. Bot. France, 1877, /. 324, /. vi. fig 1. B. gn Br., No. 1893. Pileus fleshy, compact, turbinate then flattened, tomentose, then bristling with hairy tufts, tawny-bistre, more brown in the centre ; flesh greyish or bistre, fragile and bitter ; teeth grey-bistre, with the tips whitish; stem short, grey, bistre-colour at the base; spores very rough, tawny, '006 mm. The pileus and flesh are of the colour of a jonquil, tinted with bistre or olive. The taste is bitter and peppery at the same time. In pine-woods. East. Moray West. Forres. Rev. J. Keith. Europe. 2174. Exobasidium rhododendri Cr. Grevillea, viii. p. 8. Forming sub-globose or irregular fleshy nodules, resembling galls, of a bright reddish colour ; spores cylindrical, "008 mm. Among Hymenomycetes of doubtful affinity. On shoots and leaves of Rhododendron ferrugineum. East. Tay West. Perth. Sesrsrieden. Dr B. White. '&& England. Europe. * Leptothyrium pictum B. & Br. Mycol. Scot. p. 210. Perth. Dr B. White. 2175. Sphaeropsis malorum Berk. C. Hbk. No. 125 1. On stored apples. Winter. East. Moray — West. Forres. Rev. J. Keith. England. 2176. Darluca typhoidearum B. & Br. C. Hbk. No. 1286. Var. caricis Fckl. On Carex arendria. Autumn. 1 1 8 The Scottish Naturalist. East. ■ Dee West. ■ Aberdeen. Professor J. W. H. Trail. England. Europe. 2177. Melasmia alnea* Lev. C. Hbk. No. 1295. On living alder-leaves. Summer. East. Forth Tay Dee Moray West. England. Europe. 2178. Phyllosticta violae* Desm. C. Hbk. No. 1352. On leaves of violet. East. Tay West. England. Europe. 2179. Excipula macrotricha B. & Br. C. Hbk. No. 1362. On broom-sticks. March. East. ■ Moray West. Forres. Rev. J. Keith. England. 2180. Glseosporium cytisi* B. & Br. No. 1897. Spots white, sometimes encircled with red ; perithecia minute ; spores minute, elliptical. On Cytisus laburnum. Aug. East. Tay West. Pass of Killiecrankie, 1877. J. S. 2181. Puceinia amphibii Fckl. Symb. Myc. Nchtrg. ii. p. 15. Stylospores. Sori rather large, orbicular, pale brown ; spores ovato-globose, finely spinulose. Teleutospores. Sori opaque-brown-black, at first enclosed by the dark tuberculaled epidermis, which is at length ruptured ; spores oblongo - clavate, constricted, obtuse for the most part in front, shortly pedicellate, brown. On Polygonum ampJiibium var. terrestre. Autumn. East. Tay West. Scone, &c. Dr B. White. Europe. The Scottish Naturalist. 1 1 9 2182. P. malvacearum Cda. Grcvillea, ii. p. 137. Ilypophyllous, sori scattered, hemispherical, at first veiled in the centre by the persistent epidermis, circumference naked, umbilical e beneath ; spores densely crowded, ovoid-oblong, brown, even, some- what constricted in the middle, obtusely acuminate, on very long hyaline pedicels. On hollyhocks. Summer — autumn. East. Tay West. Perth. Dr B. White. England. Europe. Australia. Chili. 2183. P. pimpinellse Lk. Sp. ii. p. 17. Fckl. Syrnb. Myc. p. 52. On Pimpindla saxifraga. Sept. East. ■ ■ Moray West. Aviemore. Rev. J. Keith. Europe. This species is described by Fuckel, along with others,, growing on Umbelliferas, which are named after the host plant. He regards them as distinct species, since all their aecidia, so far as known, are essentially dif- ferent. They " have all similarly shaped teleutospores, which are longish, divided into two equal parts, obtuse at both ends, constricted in the middle, and with a very short pedicel." * P. veronicarum D.C. My col. Scot. p. 238. This is usually on Veronica montaua. * P. cirsii Lasch. My col. Scot. p. 237. Rannoch. Dr B. White, 1875. * P. galiorum Link. Mycol. Scot. p. 238. Add " Dee." Professor J. W. H. Trail informs me that he has gathered the plant on Galium verum and on Asperula odorata, accompanied by smooth trichobasis spores, while on Galium saxatile it has rough spinose spores of the trichobasis form. Both have been regarded hitherto as of one species. The plant on Galium saxatile will probably be found to be a distinct species. * P. lychnidearum Link. Mycol. Scot. p. 241. Add " Dee." Professor Trail has gathered the so - called species of Fuckel, P. stellariae, on Stellaria uliginosa, and P. sag- 120 The Scottish Naturalist. ina3 on Sagina procumbens. It is doubtful if there is sufficient ground for regarding these as distinct from P. lychnidearum. * P. fallens Cooke. Mycol. Scot. p. 241. Add " Dee." Professor Trail has found a few spores of this Puccinia, mixed with a multitude of spores of Trichobasis fallens, on Vicia sepium and Anthyllis vulneraria. * Uredo vacciniorum Pers. Mycol. Scot. p. 245. Usually on Vaccinium myrtillus. 2184. Coleosporium senecionis Fr. C. Micro. Fungi, Ed. iv. p. 218. Spots obliterated ; sori solitary or regularly crowded, sub-rotund or oval, on the under surface, surrounded by the ruptured epidermis ; spores sub-globose when free, orange. On various species of groundsel. Summer — autumn. East. Forth Tay Dee Moray West. Clyde Ross England. Europe. Very common and abundant. It will probably be found in ail the districts. 2185. Synchytrium mercurialis Fckl. Symb. Myc. p, 74. B. 6° Br. No. 1389. G rev ilka, ii. p. 162. Tubercles chiefly confluent on the nerves of the leaves, hemi- spherical, greenish, depressed at the summit, each with a papilla which is white ; sori oblong, grey, for the most part in pairs ; zoo- spores globose, uninucleate, hyaline ; spores echinulate, '0012 — •0015 in. On Mercurialis perennis. Summer — autumn. East. Tay Dee West. England. Europe. 2186. Ustilago succisae Magn. Waldh. Aperc. des Ustil. p. 30. Masses of spores pale ; spores globose or subglobose, colourless, •015— *oi6 mm. On anthers of Scabiosa succisa. Sept. East. Tay West. Rannoch, 1879. ^ r B« White. Europe. The Scottish Naturalist. 1 2 1 2187. ^Iridium behenis D.C. C. Hbk. No. 1622. On Silctie maritima. Summer — autumn. East. Dee West. Nigg, Muchalls, &c. Professor J. W. H. Trail. England. Europe. 2188. JE>. depauperans Vize. Grevillea, v. p. 57. Spots none, peridia scattered, at first round, becoming elongated, parallel with the length of the stem ; spores yellow. On Viola lutea, var. amcena. Spring — summer. East. Tay ■ West. ■ Perth. Dr B. White. England. * Milesia polypodii Berk. & White. Mycol. Scot. p. 261. Findhorn, Morayshire. Dr B. White. 2189. Sporocybe alternata Berk. C. Hbk. No. 1698. On damp paper. East. Tay West. Perth. Dr B. White. England. America. 2190. Helminthosporium nanum Nees. C. Hbk. No. 1712. On dead stems. Oct. East. Tay West. Parkfield. Dr B. White. England. Europe. Peronospora calotheca De By. Mycol. Scot. p. 277. Perth. Dr B. White. P. obliqua Cooke. Mycol. Scot. p. 278. Messrs Berkeley and Broom, in "Notices of British Fungi" ('Annals and Magazine of Natural History,' February 1881), state that this clearly belongs to the genus Ramularia, as revived by Saccardo. P. rufibasis B. and Br. Mycol. Scot. p. 278. Grantown. Rev. J. Keith. Apparently frequent where Myrica gale grows. 122 The Scottish Naturalist. 2191. Helvella infula SchaefF. Grevillea, viii. p. 99. Pileus lobed, deflexed, sometimes gyroso -undulate, smooth, rufous, cinnamon, or purple-brown, much paler and tomentose beneath, margin adhering firmly to the stem, becoming undulated ; stem thick- ened above and below, stuffed, then hollow, smooth, villous, pallid, or purplish white, often here and there irregularly lacunose ; asci cylindrical ; sporidia ellipsoidvate, binucleate, - oi8- "022 x '008 mm.; paraphyses septate, often twice or thrice branched, apices pyriform, coloured. On sawdust and rotten pine-wood. Sept. — Oct. East. Moray West. Rothiemurchus, 1879. Rev. J. Keith. England. Europe. * Rhizina undulata Fr. Mycol. Scot. p. 300. Sheriffmuir. J. M'Ara. Collection at Glasgow Show. 2192. Peziza (Humaria) xanthomela Pers. C. My c. Jig. 41. Sessile, gregarious, somewhat deformed, becoming black beneath, disc somewhat convex, becoming yellow ; asci cylindrical ; sporidia elliptical, very small, hyaline, smooth, 'oil - *oi2x '006 mm.; cups 2 mm. broad. On the ground. Oct. East. Moray West. Darnaway, 1879. Rev. J. Keith. Europe. 2193. P. (Humaria) sulphurata Schum. ? Fr. Syst. Myc. ii. p. 72 ; Ft. Dan. t. 1915,^ 2. Nearly sessile, gregarious, at first concave, then becoming plane, sulphureo-lemon coloured, pallid externally, and at the margin which is tumid, and at first very slightly fioculose ; sporidia 'oi2-'Oi7 x "003 - "0045 mm. On the ground, and pine and oak leaves. Sept. — Nov. East. • ■ Moray West. Cawdor and Forres, 1879. Rev. J. Keith. Europe. 2194. P. (Humaria) Roumegueri Karst. Grevittea, vii. p. 64. Apothecia gregarious, sessile, fleshy, orbicular, plane, naked, golden-yellow, paler externally and at the distinct, membranaceous, thin, erect margin, 3-4 mm. broad ; asci cylindrical, about 240 mm. long (the sporiferous portion 138 mm.), about 12 mm. The Scottish Naturalist. 123 thick ; spores 8 ; monostichous, fusoid-oblongated, 2-guttulate, even, hyaline, 24-27 mmm. long, 9 mmm. thick; paraphyses moderately numerous, simple, curved at the apex, clavate, pale golden-tawny, tinted blue by iodine. The plant may be recognised at once by the paraphyses alone becoming blue with iodine. Var. carnosissima Phill. in litt. Sporidia *oi6 - *oi8 x -005 — *oo6 mm. On decaying beech-leaves. Autumn. East. Tay West. Glamis, Hunter's Hill, 1880. J. S. Europe. 2195. P. (Sarcoscypha) bulbocrinita Phill. in litt. Scattered, sessile, at first globoso-hemispherical, then expanded, concave, externally brown, clothed with long, straight, septate, fulvous hairs, which are bulbous at the base ; disc bluish-grey ; asci cylindrical; sporidia 8, ovate, faintly coloured, '02x'oi3 mm.; paraphyses filiform. The peculiar bulbous base of the long hairs of the exterior is unlike anything seen in this group. On damp decaying prunings. July. East Moray West. Forres, 1879. Rev. J. Keith. 2196. P. (Sarcoscypha) hirto-coccinea Phill. and Plow. Gre- v ilka, v Hi. p. 100. Sessile, scattered or crowded, fleshy, hemispherical, then expanded, dull scarlet ; margin incurved, clothed with scattered, pale-brown, obtuse, septate hairs, longest on the margin ; flesh pale scarlet ; asci cylindrical ; sporidia 8, ovate with one or two large nuclei, "022 x - oi I mm. ; paraphyses rather slender, clavate at the apices, filled with scarlet granules ; cups 6-10 mm across ; the hairs below the margin shorter, often clavate, composed of a single cell. The white mycelium at times conspicuous below the cups. On mossy spots on the ground in pine-woods. Aug. East. Moray West. Rothiemurchus, 1879. Rev. J. Keith. 2197. P. (Dasyscypha) leucophsea Pers. Karst. Myc. Fenn. i. p. 177. Scattered or gregarious, sessile, hemispherical, pallid, strigoso- villose, with whitish or sulphur-coloured hairs, which become ferru- ginous-brown by drought and age ; epithecium whitish ; asci cylin- draceo-subclavate ; sporidia fusoid-filiform, simple, "007- 'Oi6 x "001 - '0015 mm. ; paraphyses rather acute at the apex. 124 The Scottish Naturalist. On stems of Stachys. June. East. Moray West Forres, 1879. Rev- J. Keith. Europe. 2198. P. (Dasyscypha) rhytismse Phil]. Grcvillca, viii. p. 101. Minute, gregarious, stipitate, white; cups at first globose, then expanded, clothed with short white hairs, bearing on their summits globular crystalline beads ; stem rather long, villous to the base ; asci cylindrical; sporidia 8, oblong-fusiform, '003- '005 x "ooi mm. ; paraphyses as broad but longer than the asci, acutely pointed. Distinguished from its allies by its habitat, size of sporidia, and the rough globose beads on the points of the hairs. Parasitic on Rhytisma accrinum Fr. June. East. Moray West. Forres. Rev. J. Keith. 2199. P. (Dasyscypha?) nuda Phill. Grevillca, viii. p. 101. Scattered, plane or convex, with a long, solid, rather flexuous stem, pale orange-red, smooth, glabrous; asci cylindrical ; sporidia 8, oblong or oblong-fusiform, '005 - "oi x *oo2 - '003 mm. ; paraphyses broad, longer than the asci, acutely pointed, filled with granules ; 5 mm. high, i l / z mm. across disc. This is an anomalous species, having the long pointed paraphyses not hitherto observed in any section besides Dasyscypha, yet destitute of hairs of any kind that would justify placing it in that section. On the ground among moss in fir-woods. Aug. East. Moray West. ■ Rothiemurchus, 1879. Rev. J. Keith. 2200. P. (Hymenoscypha) alniella Nyl. Karst. Myc. Fenn. i. p. 129. Subgregarious, stipitate, white or pallid-white ; cup plane ; stem slender, short, or very short ; asci cylindraceo-clavate ; sporidia 8, biseriate, or obliquely uniseriate, oblong enucleate, *co6 - "OI2X "0O2 - '004 mm. On catkins of alder. Oct. East. Moray West. Forres, 1879. Rev. J. Keith. Europe. 2201. P. (Hymenoscypha) echinophila Bull. C. Hbk. No. 2085. On chestnut husks. Sept. — Nov. The Scottish Naturalist. 125 East. Moray West. Cawdor and Forres, 1879. R ev - J- Keith. England. Europe. 2202. P. (Hymenoscypha) scutula Pers. Karst. Myc. Fenn. i. p. no. Gregarious, stipitate, rather firm, smooth, brick-red, or whitish becoming yellowish ; cup patelliform, margin quite entire, epithecium darker, yellow, or becoming brick-yellowish, nearly plane or slightly convex ; stem paler, flocculose, nearly equal, sometimes rufescent or rose-coloured downwards ; asci cylindraceo-clavate , sporidia acicu- lar-elongate, for the most part somewhat curved, 2-6 nucleate, "019 - '026 x '004 - '005 mm. On stems of Spircea. Oct. East. Moray West. Forres, 1879. Rev. J. Keith. Europe. ( To be continued. ) THE GAELIC NAMES OF PLANTS. By JOHN CAMERON. ( Continued from p. 82. ) Parietaria officinalis — Wall pellitory. Gaelic and Irish: lus a bhal/aidh, from balladh (Latin, vallum ; Irish, bulla), a wall. A weed which is frequently found on or beside old walls or rubbish heaps, hence the generic name "parietaria," from paries, a wall. Irish : mionutas chaisil {caisiol, any stone build- ing), the wall-mint. For mioiiutas, see Mentha. Humulus lupulus — Hop. Gaelic and Irish : lus ati leamia — lionii luibh, the ale or beer plant. Lionn y leann (Welsh, Ihyn), beer, ale. Ulmus — Elm. Celtic: ailm. The same in Anglo-Saxon, Teutonic, Gothic, and nearly all the Celtic dialects. Hebrew : rby, elah, translated oak, terebinth, and elm. U. campestris — Gaelic and Irish : leamhau, slamhan (Shaw), liobhati. Welsh : llwyfen. According to Pictet, in his work, 1 Les Origines Indo-Europeennes ou les Aryans Primitifs,'p. 221, " To the Latin : ' Ulmus ' the following bear an affinity (re- spond) — Sax.: ell 'm. Scand.: almr. Old German: elm. Rus. : ilemu. Polish : ilma. Irish : ailm, uilm, and by inversion, I2 6 The Scottish Naturalist. 'leawh,' or ' leamhan? " He says the root is ?//, meaning to burn. The tree is called from the finality of it, " to be burned." That is his opinion, and he is probably right. The common idea of leamhan is that it is from leatnh, tasteless, insipid, from the taste of its inner bark ; and lidbh means smooth, slippery. And the tree in Gaelic poetry is associated with or symbolic of slipperiness of character, indecision. Cicely M 'Donald, who lived in the reign of Charles II., describing her husband, wrote as follows : — " Bu tu' n t-iubhair as a choille, Bu tu' n darach daingean laidir, Bu tu' n ciiileann, bu tu 'n droighionn, Eu tu' n t ; abhall molach, blath-mhor, Cha robh meur annad do' n chritheann, Cha robh do dhlighe ri fearna, Cha robh do chairdeas ri leamhan, Bu tu leannan nam ban aluinn." Thou wast the yew from the wood, Thou wast the firm strong oak, Thou wast the holly and the thorn, Thou wast the rough, pleasant apple, Thou hadst not a twig of the aspen, Under no obligation to the alder, And hadst no friendship with the elm, Thou wast the beloved of the fair. Ficus — Nearly the same in most of the European languages. Greek : crvKrj. Latin : ficus. Celtic : fige. F. carica — Common fig tree. Gaelic and Irish : crannflge or fights. " Ach foghlumaibh cosamhlach do 'n chrann fliige" Learn a parable from the fig-tree. Morus — Greek : fiopos, moros. Latin : morns, a mulberry. Loudon, in his 'Encyclopedia of Plants,' says it is from the Celtic 7/ibr, dark-coloured. There is no such Celtic root ; it may be from the Sanskrit, murch, Scotch, mirk, darkness, obscurity; and the Greek name has also this meaning, — the fruit being of a darkish red colour. Old Ger. and Danish : mur-ber. M. nigra — Common mulberry. Gaelic and Irish : crann- maol-dhearc, tree of the mild aspect, or if dearc here be a berry, the mild-berry tree. Maol (Latin, mollis) has many significa- tions. Bald, applied to monks without hair, as Maol Ckolum, St Columba ; Maol losa, Maol Brighid, St Bridget, &c. A pro- montory, cape, or knoll, as Maol Chinntlre, Mull of Cantyre. The Scottish Naturalist. 127 Malvern, maol, and bearna, a gap. To soften, by making it less bitter, as "dean maol e," make it mild. Hence mulberry, mild- berry (Canon Bourke). Amentifer^e and Cupulifer^e. Catkin-hearers — Gaelic : eaitean, the blossom of osiers. " 'Nis treigidh coileach a ghucag 'S caitcan brucach nan craobh." — M 'Donald. Now the cock will forsake the buds And the spotted catkins of the trees. Quercus — Said in botanical works to be from the Celtic, quer, fine. There is no such word in any Celtic dialect, and even Pictet has failed, after expending two pages on it, to explain it. Q. robur — ("Robur comes from the Celtic, ro, excelling, and bur, development" — Canon Bourke). The oak. Gaelic and Irish : dair, genitive daracli, sometimes written darag, dur, drii. Sanskrit : dm, dntma, dn/ta, a tree, the tree ; daru, a wood. " Samhach' us mora bha 'n triath, Mar dharaig 's i Hath air Lubar, A chaill a dlu-dheug o shean Le dealan glan nan speur, Tha 'h-aomadh thar sruth o shliabh, A coinneach mar chiabh a fuaim." — Ossi^/C^ /*■ Silent and great was the prince Like an oak-tree hoary on Lubar, Stripped of its thick and aged boughs By the keen lightning of the sky, It bends across the stream from the hill, Its moss sounds in the wind like hair. Om, omna, the oak (O'Reilly). " Cormac, King of Cashel, Ire- land, a.d. 903, says of onifia that it equals fuamna, sounds, or noises, because the winds resound when the branches of the oak resist its passage. According to Varro, it is from os, mouth, and men, mind, thinking — that is, telling out what one thinks is likely to come. Cicero agrees with this, ' Osmen voces hom- inum ' " — Canon Bourke. Compare Latin : omen, a sign, aprog- nostication, — it being much used in the ceremonies of the Druids. Omna, a lance, or a spear, these implements being made from the wood of the oak. Greek : 86pv, a spear, because made of wood or oak. Eitheae/i, oak, from eit/iim, to eat, an old form of ith. Latin : ed-ere, as " oak" is derived from ak (Old German) to eat (the acorn). The "oak" was called Quercus eseulus by the Latins. Rail, railaidh, oak. 128 The Scott is Ji Naturalist. " Ni bhiodh achd, aon dhearc ar an ralaidh" There used to be only one acorn on the oak. Canon Bourke thinks it is derived from ro, exceeding, and ail, growth ; or ri, a king, and al or ail — that is, king of the growing plants. The Highlanders still call it righ na coille, king of the wood. The Spanish name roble seems to be cognate with robur. Q. ilex — Holm-tree. Gaelic and Irish : craobh thuilm, gen- itive of tolm, a knoll, may here be only an alteration of "holm." Darach sior-udine, evergreen oak. Q. suber — The cork-tree. Gaelic : crann ctirceain. Irish : era Jin aire. Aire, a cork. Fagus sylvatica — Beech. Gaelic and Irish : craobh fhaibhile. Welsh : ffaivydd. Fai, from <£ayw, to eat. rjy6^ t the beech-tree. This name was first applied to the oak, and as we have no Qiiercus esculus, the name Fagus is applied to the beech and not to the oak. Oruin (O'Reilly), see Thuja articulata. Beith na measa, the fruiting birch. Meas, a fruit, as of oak or beech — like " mess," " munch." French : manger, to eat. F. sylvatica var. atrorubens — Black beech. Gaelic : faibhile dubh (Fergusson), black beech, from the sombre appearance of its branches. The " mast " of the beech was used as food, and was called bachar, from Latin, bacchar ; Greek, fiaKxapts, a plant having a fragrant root. A name also given to Valeriana celtica (Sprengel), Celtic nard. Carpinus — Celtic : car, wood ; and pin, a head, — it having been used to make the yokes of oxen. C. betulus — Hornbeam. Gaelic : ieamhan bog, the soft elm. (See Ulmus campestris.) Corylus avellana — Hazel. Gaelic and Irish : cdlltuinn, cdll- dainn, callduinn, cailtin, colluinn. Welsh : callen. Cornish : col- widen. Perhaps from Armoric : call. Gaelic : colli. Irish ; coill, a wood, a grove. New Year's time is called in Gaelic, colli ; li oidhche coille, 1 ' the first night of January, then the hazel is in bloom. The first night in the new year, when the wind blows from the west, they call ddir na coille, the night of the fecunda- tion of trees ("Statistics," par. Kirkmichael). In Celtic supersti- tion the hazel was considered unlucky, and associated with loss or damage. The words call, col, collcn, have also this significa- tion ; but if two nuts were found together (cnb chbmhlaich), good luck was certain. The Bards, however, did not coincide with these ideas. By it they were inspired with poetic fancies. The Scottish Naturalist. 129 " They believed that there were fountains in which the principal rivers had their sources ; over each fountain grew nine hazel trees, caill crinmon (cri/ia, wise), which produced beautiful red nuts, which fell into the fountain, and floated on its surface, that the salmon of the river came up and swallowed the nuts. It was believed that the eating of the nuts caused the red spots on the salmon's belly, and whoever took and ate one of these salmon was inspired with the sublimest poetical ideas. Hence the ex- pressions, 'the nuts of science,' 'the salmon of knowledge.' " — O'Curry's ' Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish.' The badge of Clan Colquhoun. Alnus — Name derived from Celtic. Al, a growth ; and /an, full. According to Pictet, it is from aika, Sanskrit for a tree. A. glutinosa — Common alder. Gaelic and Irish : /earn — /earn, same origin as varana (Sanskrit), a tree. Welsh : gwernen — giuern, a swamp. It grows best in swampy places, and beside streams and rivers. Many places have derived their names from this tree, G'leann Fearnaite. Fearnan, near Loch Tay ; Fear/i, Ross-shire, c\:c. Ruaim (O'Reilly) (n/adh, red), it dyes red. When peeled it is white, but it turns red in a short time. The bark boiled with copperas makes a beautiful black colour. The wood has the peculiarity of splitting best from the root, hence the saying " Gach fiodh o'n bharr, 's am fearna o'n bhun." Every wood splits best from the top, but the alder from the root. Betula alba — Birch. Gaelic and Irish : beatha. Welsh : bed//, seemingly from heath. Greek : Puorrj. Latin : vita, life. Also the name of the letter B in Celtic languages, correspond- ing to Hebrew Beth (meaning a house). Greek : Beta. Generally written beith. " Sa bheith chubhraidh." — Ossiax. In the fragrant birch. The Highlanders formerly made many economical uses of this tree. Its bark {meilleag) they burned for light, and the smooth inner bark was used, before the invention of paper, for writing upon, and the wood for various purposes. The badge of the Clan Buchanan. B. verrucosa — Knotty birch. Gaelic : beatha carraigeach, the rugged birch ; beatha dubh-chasach, the dark-stemmed birch. B. pendula — Gaelic : beatha dubhacJi, the sorrowful birch (di/bhaeh, dark, gloomy, sorrowful, mourning, frowning). In VOL VI. 1 130 The Scottish Naturalist. Rannoch and Breadalbane : Beatha cluasach, the many (droop- ing) ear birch. (Stuart.) B. nana — Dwarf birch. Gaelic : beatha beag (Fergusson), the small birch. Castanea vesca — Common chestnut. Gaelic and Irish : chra- obh geanm chno. "No na craobha geanm-clino cosmhuil r'a gheugaibh. " — Ezekiel xxxi. 8. Nor the chestnut-tree like his branches. Geanm or geann, natural love, pure love, such as exists between relatives, — the tree of chaste love, and cno, a nut. The Celts evidently credited this tree with the same virtues as the chaste tree, Vitex agnus castas (Greek, ayvos ; and Latin, castas, chaste). Hence the Athenian matrons, in the sacred rites of Ceres, used to strew their couches with its leaves. Castanea is said to be derived from Castana, a town in Pontus, and that the tree is so called because of its abundance there. But the town Castana (Greek, Kdaravov) was probably so called on account of the virtues of its female population. If so, the Eng- lish name chestnut would mean chaste-nut, as it is in the Gaelic. Welsh : castan (from Latin, caste), chastely, modestly. The chestnut-tree of Scripture is now supposed to be Platanus oric?i- talis, the Chenar plane-tree. [iEsculus hippocastanum — The horse - chestnut. Gaelic : geanm chno feadhaich (Fergusson). Belongs to the order Acei'- aceaz. Was introduced to Scotland in 1709.] Populus alba — Poplar. Gaelic : pobhuill. Irish: poibleag. German : pappel. Welsh and Armoric : poll. Latin : populus. This name has an Asiatic origin, and became a common name to all Europe through the Aryan family from the East. 1 Pictet explains it thus : " Ce nom est sans doute une reduplication de la racine Sanskrit put, magnum, altum." Put put, great, great, or big, big, as in the Hebrew construction, very big. We still say in Gaelic mbr mbr, big, big, for very big. Put put is the Persian for poplar, and pullali for salix. This tree is quite common in Persia and Asia Minor, hence it was as well known there as in Europe. The name has become associated with populus, the people, by the fact that the streets of ancient Rome were deco- rated with rows of this tree, whence it was called Arbor populi. Again, it is asserted that the name is derived from the constant 1 See Canon Bourke's work on ' The Aryan Origin of the Gaelic Race anil Language. ' London: Longman. The Scottish Naturalist. 1 3 1 movement of the leaves, which are in perpetual motion, like the populace — " fickle, like the multitude, that are accursed." P. tremula — Aspen. Gaelic and Irish : critheann, trembling. " Mar chritheach san t' sine." — Ull. Like an aspen in the blast. With the slightest breeze the leaves tremble, the poetic belief being that the wood of the Cross was made from this tree, and that ever since the leaves cannot cease from trembling. Eadhadh. Welsh : aethnen (aethiad, smarting). The mulberry tree of Scripture is supposed to be the aspen (Balfour), and in Gaelic is rendered craobh nan smew: (See Morns and Rubus fruticosus. ) " Agus an uair a chluineas tu fuim siubhail an mullach chraobh nan smeur, an sin gluaisidh tu thu fein." — 2 Samuel v. 24. And when thou hearest a sound of marching on the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself. The badge of Clan Fergusson. Salix — According to Pictet, from Sanskrit, sala, a tree. " II a passe au suale dans plusieurs langues . . . Ces noms derivent de sala. " Gaelic and Irish : seileach, saileog, sal, suit. Cognate with Latin : salix. Fin.: salawa. Anglo-Saxon : salig, salh, from which sallow (white willow) is derived. Welsh : helyg, willow. (See S. viniinalis.) S. viminalis — Osier willow ; cooper's willow. Gaelic and Irish : fineatnhain (from fin, vine ; and niuin, a neck), a long twig — a name also applied to the vine. 1 Vimen in Latin means also a pliant twig, a switch osier. One of the seven hills of Rome (Viminalis Collis) was so named from a willow copse that stood there ; and Jupiter, who was worshipped among these willows, was called "Viminius;" and his priests, and those of Mars, were called Salii for the same reason. The worship was frequently of a sensual character, and thus the willow has be- come associated with lust, filthiness. Priapus was sarcastically called " Salacissimus Jupiter," hence salax, lustful, salacious ; and in Gaelic, salach (from sal) ; German, sal, polluted, defiled. The osier is also called bunsag, bun, a stump, a stock. Afaothan, from maoth, smooth, tender. Gall sheileach, the foreign willow. 1 " Finemhain fa m' chomhair " (in Genesis) — a vine opposite to me. 132 TJie Scottish Naturalist. S. caprea, and S. aquatica — Common sallow. Gaelic and Irish : suileag, probably the same as Irish, saileog (Anglo-Saxon, salig, sallow). Suit — the old Irish name — (in Turkish su means water), in Irish and Gaelic, the eye, look, aspect, and sometimes tackle (Armstrong). The various species of willow were exten- sively used for tackle of every sort. Ropes, bridles, &c, were made from twisted willows. " In the Hebrides, where there is so great a scarcity of the tree kind, there is not a twig, even of the meanest willow, but what is turned by the inhabitants to some useful purpose." — Walker's ' Hebrides.' And in Ire- land, to this day, " gads," or willow ropes, are made. Geal- sJicileach (Armstrong), the white willow or sallow tree. Irish : crann sailigh fhrattcaigh, the French willow. S. babylonica — The Babylonian willow. Gaelic: seilcach an f srutha {sruth, a brook, stream, or rivulet), the willow of the brook. " Agus gabhaidh sibh dhuibh fein air a' cheud la meas chraobh aluinn, agus seilcach an t srutha. " — Lev. xxiii. 40. And take unto yourselves on tbe first day fruit of lovely trees, and willows of the brook. Myricace^:. Myrica gale — Bog myrtle, sweet myrtle, sweet gale. Gaelic : rideag. Irish : rideog, rileog (changing sound of d to / being easier). Rod ox roid is the common name in the Highlands, perhaps from the Hebrew, E>m, rothem, a fragrant shrub. It is used for numerous purposes by the Highlanders, r. ; P. arenivaga Desm. ; Helotium virgultorum Fr. ; Phacidium repandum 1" r. ; Stegia ilicis Fr. ; Phyllactinia guttata Lev. ; Nectria Rousseliana Mont.; Dothidea podagrarise Fi*. ; Stigmatea potentillse Fr., on Potentilla anserina. THE GrAELIC NAMES OP PLANTS. By JOHN CAMERON. ( Continued from p. 1 33. ) P. picea — Silver pine. Gaelic : giubhas gea/(Ferg\isson), white pine. First planted at Inveraray Castle in 1682. Abies communis — Spruce-fir. Gaelic : guithas LochlannacJu Scandinavian pine. " Nuair theirgeadh giubhas Lochtainneach" — M'Codrum. When the spruce-fir is done. Lbchlannach, from loch, lake, and /au/i, a Germano-Celtic word meaning land — i.e., the lake-lander, a Scandinavian. '■ Giubhas glan na Lochlainn, Fuaight' le copar ruadh." Polished fir of Norway, Bound with reddish copper. P. larix — Larch. Gaelic and Irish : laireag. Scotch : larick. Latin : larix, from the Celtic, /dr, fat, from the abundance of resin the wood contains. Welsh : larswydden, fat wood. P. strobus (Strobus, a name employed by Pliny for an east- ern tree used in perfumery) — Weymouth pine. Gaelic : giut/ias Sasunnach (Fergusson), the English pine. It is not English, however; it is a North American tree, but was introduced from England to Dunkeld in 1725. Cupressus — Cypress. Irish and Gaelic: cuphair, an altera- tion of Cyprus, where the tree is abundant. C. sempervirens — Common cypress. Gaelic: craobh b/uviu, the tree of sorrow. Bron, grief, sorrow, weeping. Craobh uaine gii/thais, the green fir-tree. " Is cosmhuil mi ri crann uaine giuthais." — Hosea xiv. 8. I am like a green fir-tree. The fir-tree of Scripture (Hebrew berosh and beroth are translated fir trees) most commentators agree is the cypress. The Scottish Naturalist. i 7 1 Thuja articulata — Thyine-wood. Gaelic : fiodh-thine. " Agus gach uile gjanhfhiodka thine." — Rev. xviii. 12. And all kinds of thyinc-wood. Alteration of tkya, from Ovm, to sacrifice. Another kind of pine, Hebrew, oren (Irish and Gaelic, oruin), is translated ash in Isaiah xliv. 14, and beech by O'Reilly. Cedar — (So called from its firmness.) Hebrew: pj$, erez. Cedrus Zibani, cedar of Lebanon. Gaelic and Irish : cra?in she u dar, cedar- tree. " Agus air uile sheudaraibh Lebanoin." — Isaiah ii. 13. And upon all the cedars of Lebanon. The cedar-wood mentioned in Lev. xiv. 4 was probably Juniperus oxycedrus, which was a very fragrant wood, and furnished an oil that protects from decay — cedar-oil (/ceopiov). " Carmina linenda cedro " — i.e., worthy of immortality. " Agus fiodh sheudar, agus scarlaid, agus biosop. " And cedar-wood, scarlet, and hyssop. Juniperus — Said to be " from the Celtic jeneprus, which sig- nifies rough or rude" (Loudon), a word not occurring in any Celtic vocabularies that I have consulted. It seems to be the Latinised form of the Celtic root ///, iubh, iur, yw (see Taxus). From the same root comes yew in English. Irish : iubhar- beimie (O'Reilly), the hill yew ; iubhar-ialamh, the ground yew ; iubhar-chraige, the rock yew, — all given as names for the juniper. Junipei-us is mentioned by both Virgil and Pliny. Both the Greeks and Romans reluctantly admitted that they were in- debted to the Celts for many of their useful sciences, and even their philosophy (see Diogenes Laertius), as they certainly were for their plant and geographical names. J. communis — Juniper. Gaelic and Irish : aiteil, aitinn, aitiol. " Ach chaidh e fein astar latha do'n fhasach agus thainaig e agus shuidh e fuidh craobh aiteil."' — 1 KINGS xix. 4. And he went a day's journey into the desert, and he sat under a juniper tree. The juniper of Scripture, Genista monosperma, was a kind ol broom. Aiteil, from ait. Welsh : aeth, a point, furze. Irish : aitea/ui, furze, from its pointed leaves. Bior leacain (in Arran), the pointed hillside plant. Staoin (in the North Highlands), caoran staoin, juniper berries (staoin, a little drinking-cup). 172 The Scottish Naturalist. The badge of Clans Murray, Ross, M'Leod, and the Athole Highlanders. J. sabina — Savin. Gaelic : samhan (Armstrong), alteration of "sabina," the "sabina herba" of Pliny. Common in Southern Europe, and frequently cultivated in gardens, and used medicin- ally as a stimulant, and in ointments, lotions, &c. Taxus — According to Benfey, is derived from the Sanskrit, taksh, to spread out, to cut a figure, to fashion. Persian tak. Greek : to£o<$, an arrow. Irish and Gaelic : tuagh, a bow made of the taxos or yew, now applied to the hatchet used in place of the old bow. T. baccata — Common yew. Gaelic and Irish : iuthar, iubhar, iughar, from ////. Greek : pvs (Gaelic, abhra), the eyelash, to which the delicate fringe of the inner sepals may be well compared. " A plant with two leaves " — Freund. 0. or List era ovata — Tway blade. Gaelic : da-dhuillcach, two-leaved ; da-bhileach, same meaning. Epipactis latifolia — White helleborine. Gaelic : 'elebor-geal. 1 A plant used formerly for making snuff. " The root of hellebor cut in small pieces, the pouder drawne vp into the nose causeth sneezing, and purgeth the brain from grosse and slimie humors " — Gerard, 1597. This is probably the plant referred to in " Morag," when M'Donald describes the buzzing in his head, for even his nose he had to stop with hellebore, since he parted from her endearments. " Mo cheann tha Ian do sheilleanaibh O dheilich mi ri d'bhriodal Mo shron tha stoipt' a dh-elebor. Xa deil, le teine dimbis." Iridace.e. Iris — Signifying, according to Plutarch, the " eye." Canon Bourke maintains " it is derived from etpw, to settle. And as a name it was by the pagan priests applied to the imaginary mes- senger, sent by gods and goddesses to others of their class, to announce tidings of goodwill. At times they imagined her sent to mortals, as in Homer, to settle matters, or to say they were destined to be settled. Such was the duty of Iris. Now 1 See Helleborus viridis. 174 The Scottish Naturalist. amongst Jews and Christians, the rainbow was the harbinger of peace to man, hence it was called 'Iris;' and the circle of blue, grey, or variegated tints around the pupil of the eye is not unlike the rainbow — therefore this circlet was so called by optic scientists, simply because they had no other word; and botanists have, by comparison, applied it to the fleur-de-lis, because it is varied in hue, like the iris of the eye, or the rainbow. Iris does not and did not convey the idea of eye." I. pseudacorus — The yellow flag. Gaelic: boguisge — bog, soft, but here a corruption of bogha-uisge, the rainbow. Gaelic and Irish : seilisdear, often seileasdear, and siolasiar. The ter- mination tar, dear, or astar, in these names, means one of a kind, having a settled form or position. One finds this ending common in names of plants — as, oleaster, cotoueaster, &c, like • k ttjp " in Greek, " dear " in Gaelic. Sell (the first syllable), from sol, the sun : solus, light; sol and leus, i.e., lux, light. Greek : HXios (rj or e long), hence sell, e and i to give a lengthened sound, as in Greek. Seileastar, therefore, means the plant of light — Fleur de luce. Other forms of the word occur. Siol instead of sell, as siol sir ach ; siol or sil, to distil, to drop — an alteration probably suggested by the medicinal use made of the roots of the plant, which were dried, and made into powder or snuff, to produce salivation by its action on the mucous membrane. " Feileastrovi, feleastrom, feleastar. Here /is the affected or di- gammated form. When eleastar (another form of the word) lost the ' s,' then, for sound's sake, it took the digammated form (f)elcastar. Strom (the last syllable) is a diminutive termina- tion. Seilistear, diminutive form seilistrin, and corrupted into seilistrom " — Bourke. Crocus — Greek : KpoKoq. Much employed amongst the an- cients for seasonings, essences, and for dyeing purposes. C. sativus } o a- j a- ~ , , . . , > — Sanron crocus, meadow sanron. Colchicum autumnale j Gaelic and Irish : cro, crodh, crock — crodh chorcar. 1 " 'Se labhair Fionn nan chro-shnuaidh." — Conn Mac Dearg. Thus spake Fingal the saffron-hued. " Spiocnard agus croch." — Dana Sholhim, iv. 14. Spikenard and saffron. Saffron was much cultivated anciently for various purposes, but above all for dyeing. " The first habit worn by persons of dis- 1 For coi'cur, see Lceanora tartarea. The Scottish Naturalist. i / D tinction in the Hebrides was the iein eroic/i, or saffron shirt, so called from its being dyed with saffron" — Walker. The Romans had their croeota, and the Greeks 6 k/ookwto?, a saffron -colon red court dress. Welsh : saffrwm, saffron, from the Arabic name, zafaran, which indicates that the name of the plant is of Asiatic origin. A M ARYLLI DACE.«. Narcissus pseudo-narcissus ) ~ V ,'.. ~ r , ,• , f .,, } — Daffodil. Gaelic : lus a chrom ,, jonquilla J chinn, the plant having a bent or drooping head. Galanthus nivalis — Snowdrop. Gaelic and Irish : gealag lair, — gea/ag, white as milk ; ldr } the ground. Galanthus. Greek : yaXa, milk, and avOos, a flower. Aloe — Hebrew, m^ntf, aJialoth. Gaelic and Irish : aloe. " Leis na h-uile chraobhaibh tuise, mirr agns aloe.'''' With all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes. — Song OF SOLOMON, iv. 14. The aloe of Scripture 1 must not be confounded with the bitter herb well known in medicine. LlLIACE.E. Lilium — Greek : Xcipiov. From the Celtic : It. colour, hue. Welsh : ttiu. Gaelic : //. " A mhaise-mhna is ailidh lit " — FingaliAN Poems. Thou fair-faced beauty. 'Lily seems to signify a flower in general" — Wedgewood. Gaelic and Irish : lilidh or l\li. Convallaria majalis — Lily of the valley. Gaelic : lilt nan Ion. Lilt nan gleann. " Air ghilead, mar lili nan Idintean." — M 'Donald. Whire as the lily of the valley. " Is ros Sharon mise lili nan gleann.'''' — Stuart. I am the rose of Sharon, the lily of the glen. " The lily of Scripture was probably Lilium chalcedonicuni "- Balfour. Allium — The derivation of this word is said to be from all (Celtic), hot, burning. There is no such word. The only word that resembles it in sound, and with that signification, is sga//la, burned, scalded ; hence, perhaps, " scallion," the English for a vouns: onion. Latin : calor. 1 Aquilaria agallochum. 176 The Scottish Naturalist. A. cepa (cep, Gaelic : ceap, a head) — The onion. Gaelic : uinnean. Irish : oinninn. Welsh : wynwyn. French : oignon. German : onjon. Latin : unio. Gaelic : siobaid, sioba?in. Welsh : sibol. Scotch : sybo. German : zwiebel, scallions or young onions. Cutharlan, a bulbous plant. In Lome, and elsewhere along the W. Highlands, frequently called Srbnamh (probably from Srbn and amh, raw in the nose, ox pungent in the nose). A. porrum 1 — Garden leek. Gaelic and Irish : leigis, leiceas, leicis. German : lauch, leek. " Agus na leicis agus na Yfuinneinean." — Numbers xi. 5. And the leeks and the onions. Irish : bugha (Shaw), leeks, fear. O'Clery, in his ' Vocabulary,' published a.d. 1643, describes it thus: " Bugh, i.e., luibh gorm no glas ris a samhailtean sliile bhios gorm no glas." That is, a blue or grey plant, to which the eye is compared if it be blue or grey. The resemblance between a leek and the eye is not very apparent, as the following quotation shows : — " Dhearca mar dhlaoi don bliugha, Is a dha bhraoi cearta caol-dhubha." — O'Brien. His eyes like a bunch of leeks, And his two eyebrows straight, dark, narrow. Although Shaw gives the name to the leek, probably the plant referred to is the bluebell (see Scilla non - scripta). Irish : coindid, coimie, cainnen. Welsh : renin (cen, a skin, peel, scales, given to onions, garlic, leeks). " Do roidh, no do cohidid, no do ablaibh." Thy gale, nor thy onions, nor thy apples. Coindid, though applied to leeks, onions, &c, means seasoning, condiments. Latin : condo. A. ursinum — Wild garlic. From the Celtic. Gaelic and Irish : garleag. Welsh : gar/leg, from gar, gairce, bitter, most bitter. Gairgean. Creamh (Welsh, era/), cream, to gnaw, chew. Lurachan, the flower of garlic. " Le d' lurachain chreamhach fhason 'Sam buicein bhan orr' shuas." — M'DONALD. The feast of garlic, " Feisd chreamh," was an important occasion for gatherings and social enjoyment to the ancient Celts. 1 a Porrum " from the Celtic, port, to eat, to graze, to browse. The Scottish Naturalist. 177 " Ann's bidh creamh agus sealgan, agus luibhe iomdha uile fhorreas, re a n-itheadh lirghlas feadh na bleadhna ma roibhe ar teitheadh 6 chaidreath na n-daoine, do 'n gleann da loch." — Irish. Where garlic and sorrel, and many other kinds, of which I ate fresh throughout the year before I fled from the company of men to the glen of the Two Lochs. 1 A. Scorodoprasum — Rocambole. Gaelic and Irish : creamh nan crag (M'Kenzie), the rock garlic. A. ascalonicum — Shallot. Gaelic : sgalaid (Armstrong). (See Allium). A. Schoenoprasum — Chives. Gaelic : feuran. Irish : fear an, the grass - like plant. Saidse. Creamh gharadh, the garden garlic. Welsh : cenin Pedr, Peter's leek. A. vineale — Crow garlic. Gaelic: garleag Mhuire (Arm- strong), Mary's garlic. Narthecium ossifragum — Bog asphodel. Gaelic and Irish : blioch, bliochan, from blioch, milk, Welsh : gwaew'r trenin, king's lance. e * Nuair thigheadh am buaichaill a mach, 'Sa gabhadh. e mu chul a chruidh Mu'n cuairt do Bhad-nan-clach-glas, A bhuail 'air m bu trie am bliochd." — M'Leod. When the cowherd comes forth. And follows his cows Around Bhad-nan-clach-glas, Often he is struck with the asphodel. Scilla non-scripta— Bluebell; wild hyacinth. Gaelic : fit at h tnhuic, the pig's fear or aversion, the bulbs being very obnoxious to swine. Brog na cubhaig, cuckoo's shoe. Irish : buth a muc. Probably buth is the same as bugha (see Allium porrum), fear, the pig's fear. IVPLauchainn called it lili gucagach. " Lilt gucagach nan cluigean." The bell-flowered lily. S. verna — Squill (and the Latin, scilla, from the Arabic, dsgyl). Gaelic : l-ear uineann, the sea-onion. Lear, the sea, the surface of the sea. l< Clos na wm-lear uaine." — OssiAN. The repose of the smooth green sea. Welsh: winwyny mor, sea-onion. 1 A most gloomy and romantic spot in the County of Wicklow. " Glen da lough ! thy gloomy wave, Soon was gentle Kathleen's grave." — Moore. VOL. VI. M 178 The Scottish Naturalist. Tulipa sylvestris — Tulip. Gaelic : tuiliop. The same name in almost all European and even Asiatic countries. Persian : thoidyban (De Souza). Asparagus officinalis — Common asparagus. Gaelic : creamh maC'fiddh. Irish : creamh-miuc Jiadh, wild boar's leek or garlic. The same name is given to hart's-tongue fern. Asparag, from the generic name cnrapacrcru), to tear, on account of the strong prickles with which some of the species are armed. Ruscus — Latinised form of Celtic root rus, wood, husk ; rus- gach, holly. Welsh : rhysgiad, an over-growing. Also bruscus, from Celtic, brus, bruis, small branches, brushwood. R. aculeatus — Butcher's broom. Gaelic : calg-bJimdhainn (Armstrong). Irish: calg-bhrudhan (Shaw) — ca/g, a prickle, from its prickly leaves ; and bruth, bruid, a thorn, anything pointed ; brudha/z, generally spelled brughan, a faggot. Or it may only be a corruption from brum, broom. . Calg bhea/aidh, the prickly broom. It was formerly used by butchers to clean their blocks, hence the English name " butchers' broom." (To be continued.) PRELIMINARY LIST OF THE FLOWERING PLANTS AND FERNS OF PERTHSHIRE. By F. BUCHANAN WHITE, M.D., F.L.S. ( Continued from page 1 4 1 . ) XLIII. Arenaria L. 96. Verna L. Meall Duin Croisg, Breadalbane. 97. Rubella Hook. Rare. Breadalbane mountains. 98. Trinervia L. Common. 99. Serpyllifolia L. Var. sphcerocarpa Ten. Common. Var. leptoclados Guss. Local, or overlooked. 100. Cherleria Fenzl. Breadalbane mountains. xliv. Sagina L. 1 01. Apetala L. i. Sub-species apetala. Very local, or overlooked. ii. Sub-species ciliata Fr. Commoner than apeta/a, but also probably overlooked. Hi. Sub-species maritima Don. Invergowrie. 102. Procumbens L. Common. The Scottish Naturalist. 179 103. Saxatilis Wimm. Common on the richer hills. 104. Nivalis Fr. On several of the Breadalbane hills. 105. Subulata Wimm. Chiefly on the trap hills. 106. Nodosa L. Local. Var. glandulosa Bess. Local. xlv. Spergula L. ^< ^ T p "^ 107. Arvensis L. A common weed of cultivation, ^v --— ^5.C xlvi. Spergularia Pers. /o~ (O c *^rt\ 108. Rubra St Hil. Common, but sporadic. \0 109. Marina Camb. I ^ | L ' * Y J ZQ Sub-species media L. Estuary of the Ta\£ /^* PORTULACE^E. V^"" ^V^ xlvi 1. Monti a L. ^ — 2— ' 1 10. Fontana L. Var. minor Gm. Dry places. Local. Var. rivularis Gm. Watery places. Common. xlviii. Claytonia L. hi. Perfoliata Don. 112. Alsinoides Sims. Both as escapes in several places. C. sibirica is also reported as an escape. PARONYCHIACE^]. XLIX. SCLERANTHUS L. 113. Annuus L. A common weed of cultivation. Var. biennis Reut. Local. In stony uncultivated places on the trap hills. ELATINACE^E. L. Elatine L. 114. Hexandra D.C. Very local. HYPERICACE^. li. Hypericum L. 115. Androscemum L. Very local; in the south-west of the county. 116. Calycinum L. Only where planted. 117. Perforatum L. Common. 118. Quadrangulum L. i. Sub-species dubium Leers. Local. ii. Sub-species tetrapterum Fr. Not uncommon. 180 The Scottish Naturalist. 119. Humifusum L. Rather local. 120. Pulchrum L. Common. 121. Hirsutum L. Somewhat local. MALVACEAE. LII. Malva L. 122. Moschata L. Widely distributed, but not very common. Possibly an introduction. 123. Sylvestris L. Not rare, but often, if not always, an escape. LINACE^J. LIII. LlNUM L. 124. Catharticum L. Common. 125. Usitatissimum L. Rare, and always introduced. liv. Radiola Gm. 126. Millegrana Sm. Local, but widely distributed. GERANIACE^l. lv. Geranium L. Sanguineum L. Local. Sylvaticum L. Common. Pratense L. Not uncommon. Pyrenaicum L. Naturalised in a few places. Phaeum L. Not common. An introduction. Molle L. A weed of cultivation. Columbinum L. Very local. Dissectum L. Common. Robertianum L. Common. Lucidum L. Rather local. 127 128 129 130 132 133 *34 135 136 lvi. Erodium L'Her. 137. Cicutarium L'Her. Var. commixtum Jord. Var. trivia le Jord. Var. pilosum Bor. Widely distributed, but not usually abundant. OXALIDACE^l. LVII. OXALIS L. 138. Acetosella L. Common. The Scottish Naturalist. 181 AQUIFOLIACE^]. lviii. Ilex L. 139. Aquifolium L. Widely distributed, but rare as an in- digenous plant. EMPETRACE^E. lix. Empetrum L. 140. Nigrum L. Common in the Silurian districts. SAPINDACE^J. lx. Acer L. 141. Pseudoplatanus L. Naturalised. LEGUMINOS^]. lxi. Genista L. 142. Anglica L. Not uncommon. lxii. Ulex L. 143. Europaeus L. Common. lxiii. Cytisus L. 144. Scoparius Link. Common. lxiv. Ononis L. 145. Arvensis L. Not uncommon. lxv. Medicago L. 146. Sativa L. Rare. An escape in a few places. 147. Lupulina L. Common. 148. Maculata Sibth. Near Doune. Doubtless an escape. lxvi. Melilotus Tourn, 149. Officinalis L. Rare. An introduction. lxvii. Trifolium L. 150. Arvense L. Local. 151. Incarnatum L. Rare. An escape. 152. Pratense L. Var. sativum. Common ; an escape from cultiva- tion. Var. sylvestre. Not uncommon. 153. Medium L. Not uncommon. 154. Striatum L. Local. Mostly on the trap hills. 155. Hybridum L. Not uncommon. An escape. i% 2 The Scottish Naturalist. 156. Repens L. Common. 157. Procumbens L. Common. 158. Minus Sm. Common. lxviii. Anthyllis L. T59. Vulneraria L. Not uncommon. lxix. Lotus L. 160. Corniculatus L. Var. vulgaris. Common. Var. crassifolius Pers. Invergowrie. 161. Major Scop. Common. lxx. Astragalus L. 162. Glycyphyllos L. Local, and not common. 163. Hypoglottis L. Not uncommon, but local. lxxi. Oxytropis D.C. 164. Uralensis D.C. Ben Chonzie and Ben Lawers. Rare. lxxii. Ornithopus L. 165. Perpusillus L. Local. lxxiii. Vicia L. 166. Hirsuta Koch. Common. 167. Cracca L. Common. 168. Orobus D.C. Very local. Rannoch and Athole. 169. Sylvatica L. Local. 170. Sepium L. Common. Var. montana Koch. On the higher mountains. 171. Sativa L. i. Sub-species sativa. An occasional escape from cul- tivation. ii. Sub-species angustifolia Roth. Var. segetalis Koch. Local. Var. Bobartii Forst. Local. 172. Lathyroides L. Local. lxxiv. Lathyrus L. 173. Pratensis L. Common. 174. Sylvestris L. Very rare. An escape. 175. Macrorrhizu's Wimm. Common. Var. tenuifolius Roth. Common. 176. Niger Wimm. Very local and rare. Killiecrankie. The Scottish Naturalist. 183 ROSACEA. lxxv. Prunus L. 177. Communis Huds. i. Sub-species spinosa L. Common. it. Sub species insititia L. Rare. Doubtfully native. Hi. Sub-species domestica L. An escape. 178. Avium L. Not uncommon, but doubtfully indigenous. 179. Padus L. Not rare. lxxvi. Spiraea L. 180. Ulmaria L. Common. 181. Salicifolia L. In several places, but only where it has been planted originally. lxxvii. Rubus L. 182. Chamaemorus L. Common on the Silurian hills. 183. Saxatilis L. Not uncommon. 184. Idaeus L. Common. 185. Fruticosus L. Common in the Lowlands, less common in the Highlands. The following forms have been noticed. Probably many others occur and should be looked for. i. Sub-species suberectus Anders. Common in the Highlands. it. Sub-species fissus Lindl. Hi. Sub-species plicatus W. and N. iv. Sub-species affinis W. and N. v. Sub-species rhamnifolius W. and N. vi. Sub-species latifolius Bab. vii. Sub-species leucostachys Sm. (?) viii. Sub-species villicaulis W. and N. ix. Sub-species macrophyilus Weihe. Var. umbrosus Arrh. x. Sub-species radula Weihe. Common. xi. Sub-species Kcehleri Weihe. Var. infcstus Bab. xii. Sub-species foliosus Weihe. xiii. Sub-species corylifolius Sm. Common. LXXVIII. Dryas L. 186. Octopetala L. Local. Athole and Breadalbane. lxxix. Geum L. 187. Urbanum L. Common. 184 The Scottish Naturalist. 188. Rivale L. Common. The hybrid G. intermedium Ehr. is not uncommon, but the form approaching rivale (urbano-rivale) is commoner than the other (rivali- urbanum). lxxx. Fragaria L. 189. Vesca L. Common. LXXXI. POTENTILLA L. 190. Comarum Nestl. Common. 191. Tormentilla Sibth. i. Sub-species erecta L. Common. ii. Sub-species procumbens Sibth. Not common, or overlooked. 192. Reptans L. Local, and not common. 193. Verna L. Sub-species maculata Pourr. Widely spread on the richer hills. 194. Anserina L. Common. 195. Fragariastrum Ehr. Common. 196. Argentea L. Local. LXXXII. SlBBALDIA L. 197. Procumbens L. On the richer hills, but local. lxxxiii. Alchemilla L. 198. Arvensis Lamk. Common. 199. Vulgaris L. Common. Var. montana Willd. Rare. 200. Alpina L. Common on the Silurian hills. lxxxiv. Agrimonia L. 201. Eupatoria L. i. Sub-species eupatoria L. Local. ii. Sub-species odorata Mill. St Fillans. LXXXV. POTERIUM L. 202. Sanguisorba L. i. Sub-species sanguisorba L. Local and rare. ii. Sub-species muricatum Spach. Was established on rocks opposite Kinnoull church (whence it was re corded as P. sanguisorba), but the rocks have been removed and the plant is gone. It possibly grows in other places and has been confounded with the other species. Sanguisorba canadensis has been found in two localities. The Scottish Naturalist. 185 lxxxvi. Rosa L. 203. Spinosissima L. Local, but not uncommon. 204. Villosa L. 1. Sub-species mollis Sm. Common. Var. siibccerulea Baker. Dunkeld. ii. Sub-species tomentosa Sm. Common. Var. scabriuscula Sm. Rare. Var. subglobosa Sm. Not rare. Var. farinosa Raw. Blair-Athole. 205. Involuta Sm. Var. Sabini Woods. Rare. Var. Doniana Woods. Rare. 206. Rubiginosa L. Not uncommon. An escape (?). 207. Canina L. Common. The following forms have been observed, but much remains to be done amongst the Perthshire roses, both of this and of other species. Var. lutetiana Lem. Local. Var. sfthcerica Gren. Local. Var. dwnalis Bechst. Common. Var. urbica Lem. Common. Var. arvatica Baker. Not uncommon. Var. dumetorum Thuill. Dunkeld (?). Var. incana Woods. Killin (?). Var. andez>agensis Bast. Not common. Var. ccesia Sm. Rare. Var. verticillacantha Merat. Not common. Var. Reuteri Godet. Not uncommon. Var. subcristata Baker. Common. Var. implexa Gren. Local. Var. coriifolia Fr. Local. Var. Watsoni Baker. Local. Var. mai'ginata Wallrost. Rare. 208. Arvensis L. An escape in one or two places. R. alpina occurs on Kinnoull Hill, but is doubtless an escape. lxxxvii. Pyrus L. 209. Communis L. One or two plants escaped from cultiva- tion. 210. Malus L. Var. acerba D.C. Widely distributed, but rather local. Truly wild. Var. mitts. Here and there as an escape. 1 86 The Scottish Naturalist. 2ii. Aucuparia Gsertn. Common. lxxxviii. Crataegus L. 212. Oxyacantha L. Sub-species monogyna Jacq. Common, but usually though not always an introduction. SAXIFRAGACEA lxxxix. Saxifraga L. 2I 3- Oppositifolia L. Not uncommon on the Silurian hills. 214. Nivalis L. Rather local and rare. 215. Stellaris L. Silurian hills, not uncommon. 216. Umbrosa L. Naturalised in several places. 217. Aizoides L. Not uncommon. 218. Tridactylites L. Very local and rare. 219. Rivularis L. Reported from Ben Lawers. 220. Granulata L. Not uncommon. 221. Cernua L. Ben Lawers. 222. Hypnoides L. Sub-species hypnoides L. Not uncommon on the hills. Var. platypeiala Sm. Var. gemmifera Bosw. xc. Chrysosplenium L. 223. Alternifolium L. Local. 224. Oppositifolium L. Common. xci. Parnassia L. 225. Palustris L. Not uncommon. RIBBSIACE^E. XCII. RlBES L. 226. Grossularia L. An escape. 227. Alpinum L. Only where planted. 228. Nigrum L. Probably always an escape. 229. Rubrum L. Probably an escape. CRASSULACRaE. xciii. Sedum L. 230. Rhodiola D.C. On many of the richer hills. 231. Telephium L. Sub-species purpurascens Koch. Not uncommon but local, in the Lowlands. Native (?). 232. Villosum L. Local, and not very common. The Scottish Naturalist. 187 233. Album L. Rare, and only where planted. 234. Anglicum L. Local. 235. Acre L. Common in the Lowlands. 236. Reflexum L. Naturalised in several places. DROSERACE^S. xciv. Drosera L. 237. Rotundifolia L. Common. 238. Anglica Huds. Very local, and not common HALORAGACE^E. xcv. Hippuris L. 239. Vulgaris L. Very local. xcvi. Myriophyllum L. 240. Alternirlorum D.C. Common. 241. Spicatum L. Rare or overlooked. xcvii. Callitriche L. 242. Verna L. Common. The following forms occur — i. Sub-species vernalis Kuetz. ii. Sub-species platycarpa Kuetz. Var. stagnalis Kuetz. Hi. sub-species pedunculata D.C. 243. Autumnalis L. Locally abundant. ONAGRACE^J. xcviii. Epilobium L. 244. Angustifolium L. Common. Var. brachycarpum Leighton. Rare. An escape. 245. Hirsutum L. In the Lowlands only, and local. 246. Parviflorum Schreb. Local. Var. intermedium Merat. In several places. 247. Montanum L. Common. 24S. Tetragonum L. Sub-species obscurum Schreb. Common. Tetra- gonum proper requires corroboration as a Perth- shire plant. 249. Palustre L. Common. 250. Alsinifolium Vill. Common on many of the Silurian hills. 251. Alpinum L. Common on many of the Silurian hills. Var. anagallidifolium Lamk. The usual form. 1 88 The Scottish Naturalist. xcix. Circ^ea Tourn. 252. Lutetiana L. Local. 253. Alpina L. Local, but commoner than lutetiana. Var. inte?'media Ehrh. In several places. LYTHRACE^E. c. Lythrum L. 254. Salicaria L. Rare, though frequently an escape. It is native in a few places. ci. Peplis L. 255. Portula L. Rare or local. UMBELLIFER^l. en. Hydrocotyle L. 256. Vulgaris L. Common. CHI. ASTRANTIA L. 257. Major L. Very rare. Banks of the Tay. An escape. civ. Sanicula L. 258. Europaea L. Local. cv. Conium L. 259. Maculatum L. Rare, and like many other Umbellifera doubtfully native. cvi. Helosciadium Koch. 260. Inundatum. Local. cvii. Carum L. 261. Carvi L. In a few places. An escape. cviii. Cicuta. L. 262. Virosa L. Near Methven. Very local and rare. cix. Sium. L. 263. Angustifolium L. Rare. Carse of Gowrie. ex. ^Egopodium L. 264. Podagraria L. Common. CXI. PlMPINELLA L. 265. Saxifraga L. Common. 266. Magna L. An escape at Leny near Callander, where also CEnaiithe pimpi?ielloides has been found, but only as an introduction. The Scottish Naturalist. 189 cxii. Conopodium Koch. 267. Denudatum Koch. Common. cxiii. Myrrhis Scop. 268. Odorata Scop. Not uncommon, but local and scarcely indigenous. cxiv. Scandix L. 269. Pecten-Veneris L. A weed of cultivation. cxv. Ch^erophyllum L. 270. Temulum L. Common in the Lowlands. Native (?). cxvi. Anthriscus Hoffm. 271. Vulgaris Pers. Very local. Kinnoul Hill. Native (?). 272. Sylvestris Hoffm. Common. cxvu. GEnanthe L. 273. Crocata L. Banks of the lower parts of the Tay and Earn. cxvni. ^Ethusa L. 274. Cynapium L. A weed of cultivation. Rather local. cxix. Meum Jacq. 275. Athamanticum Jacq. Local, and not common. cxx. Angelica L. 276. Sylvestris L. Common. cxxi. Peucedanum L. 277. Ostruthium Korh. An escape in a few places. cxxn. Heracleum L. 278. Sphondylium L. Common. cxxiil Daucus L. 279. Carota L. Roadsides, &c. Not very common, and doubtfully indigenous. cxxiv. Caucalis L. 280. Anthriscus Huds. Common. Native (?). ARALIACEA cxxv. Hedera L. 281. Helix L. Not uncommon. 190 The Scottish Naturalist. CORNACE^E. cxxvi. Cornus L. 282. Suecica L. On some of the Silurian hills, but local and rather rare. CAPRIFOLIACE^3. cxxvii. Viburnum L. 283. Opulus L. Rather rare, but widely distributed. cxxviii. Sambucus L. 284. Ebulus L. In several places, but not indigenous, 285. Nigra L. Not uncommon, but doubtfully native. cxxix. Adoxa L. 286. Moschatellina L. Local, but widely distributed. CXXX. LONICERA L. 287. Periclymenum L. Not uncommon. cxxxr. Linn/ea Gron. 288. Borealis Gron. Very rare and local. RUBIACE^E. cxxxn. Galium L. 289. Verum L. Common. 290. Cruciata Scop. Chiefly in the Lowlands, where it is rather common. 291. Palustre L. Common. Var. Witheringii Sm. Not uncommon. 292. Uliginosum L. Local or overlooked. 293. Saxatile L. Common. 294. Sylvestre Poll. Var. montanum Vill. Glen Tilt and Glen Shee. 295. Mollugo L. Sub-species erectum Huds. Not common. 296. Boreale L. Locally abundant, and chiefly on river banks. 297. Aparine L. Common. CXXXIII. ASPERULA L. 298. Odorata L. Local, but not uncommon. cxxxiv. Sherardia Dill. 299. Arvensis L. Not uncommon. The Scottish Naturalist. 191 VALERIANACE^l. cxxxv. Valeriana L. 300. Excelsa Poir (* = Officinalis L. var. Sambucifolia Mik.) Common. 301. Pyrenaica L. Naturalised in a few places. cxxxvi. Valerianella Tourn. 302. Olitoria Mcench. Local. Possibly native in some localities. 303. Dentata Poll. Very rare. A casual in Carse of Gowrie. ( To be continued. ) REVIEW. The Berries and Heaths of Rannoch. By A Snowdrop. London : G. Bell & Sons, 1881. Pp. 24. With 12 Coloured Plates. The berries and heaths which adorn the Scottish mountain-sides are plants that are attractive to many of the numerous visitors whom sport, scenery, or business attract to Scotland every summer ; and though, of course, they are well known to many who do not pretend to botanical knowledge, yet there must be a numerous class who will be glad to learn something about these plants, and to have that knowledge presented to them in an attractive form. Our author, therefore, whose modesty has led him to conceal his identity, has probably placed a boon within the reach of many anxious inquirers ; and his work, though restricted to the species of one district only in Perthshire, will be found useful by the visitor to any part of the Highlands of Scotland. The berries enumerated are the cranberry ( Vaccinium oxycoccos), the com- mon bilberry, or, as it is called in Scotland, blaeberry {V. myrtillus), the bog bilberry ( V. uliginosiun), the cowberry or whortleberry, often termed (though erroneously) the cranberry (V. vitis-idcea), the redbearberry {Arctosta- phylos uva-icrsi), the black bearberry {A. a/pina), the crowberry {Empetrutn nigrum), and the cloudberry (Rubus chamccmorus), which is often called the averon. The heaths of Rannoch are the ling {Calluna vulgaris), the four- leaved or cross-leaved heath {Erica tetralix), and the three-leaved heath or common bell heather {£. cinerea). In addition to these, two other species are figured, Andromeda polifolia, which occurs in South Perthshire, and Lois- eleuria procutnbens, which grows on several of the Rannoch hills. In addition to popular and yet careful descriptions, accompanied by in- teresting remarks on the qualities of the fruit (in the case of the berries) and distribution of the plants, each species has a coloured plate (borrowed from Sowerby's ' English Botany ') devoted to it, which should render its identifi- cation perfectly easy to every one. A list of the Gaelic names extracted from the papers, by Mr Cameron, in these pages, completes a book which, with- out any pretension on the part of the author to have put forward a novel scientific work, will doubtless be a pleasant companion to many a sojourner among the hills, and perhaps induce them to take up the study of botany for themselves. * See Dr Bonnet's remarks in ' Le Naturaliste,' 1881, p. 386. 192 j n ii ■ ; 11 n n 11 11 1 1 1 _" " ' "~ " " " " " " H I f xc TT-Tl INSECTA SCOTICA, THE COLEOPTERA OF SCOTLAND. Edited by D. SHARP, M.B. ( Continued from p, 96. ) Index to the Families Enumerated. Anthicidae, v. 45. Anthribidae, v. 372. Brucidae, v. 373. Buprestidae, iv. 180. Byrrhidae, iv. 130. Cantharidae, v. 47. Carabidae, i. 204. Cerambycidae, v. 373. Chrysomelidae, v. 376; vi. 47. Cicindelidae, i. 204. Cissidae, iv. 324. Cleridae, iv. 276. Coccinellidae, iii. 280. Colydiidae, iii. 376. Corylophidae, iii. 280. Cryptophagidae, iv. 36. Cucujidae, iv. 35. Curculionidae, v. 47. Dascillidae, iv. 227. Dermestidae, iv. 130. Dytiscidae, ii. 89. Elateridae, iv. 224. Endomychidae, iii. 280. Erotylidae, iii. 280. Georyssidae, iv. 131. Gyrinidae, ii. 137. Heteroceridae, iv. 131. Histeridae, iii. 368. Hydrophilidae, ii. 138. Lagriidae, iv. 365. Lathridiidae, iv. 83. Limexylonidae, iv. 322. Lucanidae, iv. 176. Malacodermidae, iv. 228. Melandryadidae, iv. 364; v. 44. Mordellidae, v. 46. Mycetophagidae, iv. 129. Nitidulidae, iii. 370. Parnidae, iv. 131. Phalacridae, iii. 370, Pselaphidae, iii. 184. Ptinidae, iv. 322. Pyrrochroidae, v. 46. Pythidae, iv. 363. Rhipidophoridae, v. 47. Scaphadidae, iii. 277. Scarabaeidae, iv. 176. Scolytidae, v. 336. Scydmaenidae, iii. 232. Silphidae, iii. 323. Staphylinidse, ii. 144, &c. ; iii. 33. Tenebrionidae, iv. 362. Throscidae, iv. 223. Trichopterygidae, iii. 277. Trogositidae, iii. 376. ( Concluded. ) GEOLOGY, THE INTERCROSSING OF ERRATICS IN GLAGTAL DEPOSITS. By JAMES GEIKIE, LL.D., F.R.S., F.G.S., Of H.M. Geological Survey of Scotland. AMONG the many phenomena connected with the glacial deposits of this country which have puzzled geologists to account for, there is none more remarkable than the "inter- crossing of erratics." The fact that such wandered blocks have apparently crossed each other's tracks in their journeys, appears at first sight inexplicable on the assumption that their transport has been effected by land -ice. The phenomena in question, therefore, have always been appealed to by those who uphold the iceberg origin of our boulder-clays, &c, as evidence decis- ively in favour of their views. No one can deny that any degree and amount of intercrossing might take place in the case of icebergs. We can readily conceive how floating. ice, detached from a long line of coast, might be compelled by shifting winds and changing -currents to tack about again and again, so as to pursue the most devious course, and scatter their stony burdens in the most erratic manner over the sea-bottom. While, on the other hand, it is quite impossible to understand how a similar irregular distribution of erratics could take place under one and the same glacier, flowing in a determinate direc- tion. It is little wonder, then, that the curious phenomena of the " intercrossing of erratics" should have had much import- ance attached to it by the upholders of the iceberg theory, see- ing that all the other proofs which have been adduced in favour of this theory have only served to demonstrate its insufficiency. Upon the facts connected with the " intercrossing of erratics," the supporters of this time-honoured theory are now making what I must believe is their last stand. I purpose therefore, in this paper, to give a short outline of those facts, with the view of showing that so far from being antagonistic to the land -ice theory, they are in complete harmony with it ; and indeed VOL. VI. N 194 The Scottish Naturalist. must be considered as affording an additional demonstration of its truth. Some years ago I called attention to the fact that in the middle districts of Scotland the boulder -clay not infrequently contains a curious commingling of northern and southern erratics. 1 I showed that this was the case throughout a belt of country extending from the sea-coast near Ayr, north-east to the valley of the Irvine, and thence across the watershed into the Avon, and east to Lesmahagow, then down the valley of the Clyde to Carluke, stretching away to the east by Wilsontown, and thereafter continuing along the crest of the Pentlands and the northern slopes of the Lammermuir Hills, by Reston and Ayton to the sea. "All along this line," I remarked, "we have a ' debatable ground ' of variable breadth, throughout which we find a commingling in the till of stones which have come from the north and south. South of it, characteristic Highland stones do not occur, and north of it stones derived from the south are similarly absent." The explanation of these facts is obvious. The belt of ground referred to was evidently the meeting-place of the Highland and Southern mei's de glace. Here the two opposing ice-flows coalesced and became deflected by their mutual pres- sure to right and left — one great current going east and another west. It is evident that the line of junction between the two mers de glace would not be rigorously maintained in one and the same position during a period of glaciation, but would tend to oscillate backwards and forwards, according as one or the other ice-sheet prevailed. Sometimes the Southern ice- sheet would be enabled to push back the Northern mer de glace, while at other times the converse would take place. Nor is it necessary to suppose that the advance of one ice-sheet was general along the whole line. On the contrary, it is most likely that the move- ment was quite irregular — an ice-sheet advancing in some places, while at other points its line of junction with the opposing ice- sheet remained stationary, or even retrograded. Such move- ments would obviously give rise to oscillations in the sub-glacial debris of clay and stones ; and thus we have a simple and natural explanation of those intercrossings of erratics which are so characteristic of that region which I have termed the " debat- able ground." And this conclusion is borne out by the fact that the glacial striae of the same "debatable ground" afford like evidence of oscillation in the trend of the ice-flow. 1 ' (J rent Ice Age,' p. 609. ___ The Scottish Naturalist. 195 Along the base of the Highland mountains in Forfarshire, &C, we meet with similar intercrossings of erratics. Thus we occasionally encounter in the boulder-clays overlying the Silurian regions erratics of Old Red Sandstone rocks which have come from the east or south-east ; while the abundant presence of erratics of Silurian origin, on the other hand, bespeak an ice- flow from the west towards the low grounds. In some places within the Silurian area we encounter a greyish-blue boulder- clay, containing Silurian fragments only, while in other places within the same area the boulder-clay becomes reddish, and is charged with many boulders of Old Red Sandstone rocks. Now the greyish-blue till could only have been laid down by glacier- ice descending from the Silurian high grounds to Strathmore, while the red boulder-clay points to a partial invasion of the Silurian regions by land-ice, which had previously traversed the lower-lying Old Red Sandstone areas. These apparently contra- dictory movements are readily accounted for by the former presence in the area of the North Sea of the great Scandinavian mer de glace. My friend Dr Croll was the first to point out that the glacial phenomena of Caithness and the Shetlands could only be accounted for by the advance of the Scandinavian ice- sheet towards our coasts, where it encountered and deflected the Scottish ice-sheet out of its normal course — a sagacious induction, which the admirable and exhaustive researches of my colleagues, Messrs B. N. Peach and J. Home, have now firmly established. The lower blue boulder-clay was evidently accumu- lated at a time when the Scottish ice was able to flow more or less directly east or south-east towards what is now the coast-line ; while the overlying red boulder -clay points to a subsequent period when the presence of the Scandinavian mer de glace was sufficiently great to compel the Scottish ice out of its normal course, and cause it to flow in a north-easterly direction. In doing so it now and again passed from tracts of Old Red Sand- stone to invade the Silurian area, and thus an overlying red boulder-clay was here and there accumulated upon the surface of a greyish-blue till in which not a single fragment of any Old Red Sandstone rock occurs. 1 1 The blue or grey boulcler-clay of the region referred to, I am inclined to assign to an earlier epoch of the glacial period than I would the red boulder-clay. The latter I take to be the moraine profonde of the last ice-sheet which, as the researches of B. N. Peach and J. Home have shown, flowed northwards along the seaboard of Scotland from as far south at 196 The Scottish Naturalist. Recently Messrs B. N. Peach and }. Home, in a most instructive paper on the " Glaciation of Caithness," 1 have described some remarkable comminglings of material which occur in a region where the glacial striae afford equally striking evidence of conflicting ice-movements. These phenomena are developed here and there along a line which indicates the meet- ing-place of two rival ice-streams, on each side of which the boulder-clay presents different characteristics — the one boulder- clay being the moraine profonde of the ice that flowed E.N.E. and N.N.E. towards the Caithness plain, while the other is an accumulation formed underneath the ice that streamed across that plain from S.E. to N.W. These phenomena are thus, as my colleagues remark, quite analogous to those met with in the middle districts of Scotland, as described by me, and referred to in a preceding paragraph. Now it is obvious, that while these examples of " intercrossings " of erratics and "cross- hatching " of striae all go strongly to support the land-ice theory of the glacial phenomena, they at the same time negative the notion of floating- ice having had anything to do with the pro- duction of the phenomena under review. Before considering the evidence adduced by Mr Mackintosh and others as to the intercrossings of erratics in the drift- deposits of England, I shall mention some of the more re- markable examples of the same phenomena which have been noticed by Continental geologists. The first I shall cite are those which have been observed in the glacial accumulations of the Rhone valley in Eastern France. The land-ice origin of these accumulations has never been called in question, and as the intercrossings of erratics in that region are not only more common, but much more striking and apparently inexplicable than any which have been noticed elsewhere, it will be admitted that they of themselves afford a strong presumption that the conflicting courses followed by the erratics in certain regions of our own country are the result rather of oscillations in the flow least as Fife — erratics of Fifeshire rocks occurring in the till of the Shet- lands. Many facts connected with the glacial geology of Perthshire and Forfarshire have led me to the same conclusion. I believe, however, that the ice-sheet of an earlier cold epoch of the Glacial Period (represented as I think hy the grey till just referred to) flowed south rather than north in the bed of the North Sea, from some point probably as far north as Aberdeen- shire. Put the facts upon which this belief is grounded are too numerous and detailed to be given here. 1 Proc. Royal Physical Society, Edinburgh, 1881. The Scottish Naturalist. 197 of land-ice than of the random and eccentric action of icebergs. The researches of Swiss and French glacialists have proved that during the climax of the Glacial Period an enormous area in the low grounds of Eastern France was covered with a huge mer de glace formed by the union of the great Rhone glacier with the glaciers descending from the mountains of Savoy and Dauphiny. A line drawn from Bourg by way of Chatillon, Villeneuve, Tre'- voux, and Lyons to Vienne, and thence south-east by Beaure- paire to the valley of the Isere, a few miles above St Marcellin, indicates roughly the furthest limits reached by the mer de glace. Over all the low grounds between that terminal line and the mountains are found widespread sheets of boulder-clay and sand and gravel, together with loose erratics. Now and again, too, well-marked terminal moraines make their appearance, while the rock-surfaces, when these are visible and capable of bearing and retaining glacial markings, present the usual aspect of roches moutonuces. The same kinds of morainic materials and ice-markings may of course be followed up into the valleys not only of the Alps properly so-called, but also into those of the hills of Bugey and the secondary mountain-chain of Savoy and Dauphiny. It has indeed long been known that local glaciers formerly occupied the mountain-valleys of Bugey. A number of small glaciers, for example, have descended from the slopes of the mountains west of Belley (such as Bois de la Morgue, Bois de Lind, &c.) to the Rhone, and again from Mont du Chat to the north-west. These glaciers were quite independent of the greater ice-streams of the neighbouring Alps of Savoy, and the same was the case with the glaciers of that mountainous tract which extends from Nantua south to Culoz, between the valleys of the Ain and the Rhone. From this elevated region many local glaciers descended, such as that of the Valromey which flowed for a distance of some twenty miles from north to south. Again, similar local glaciers have left abundant traces of their former presence throughout that moun- tainous belt of land that stretches between Chambery and Gren- oble to the west of the valley of the Isere. The moraines of all those local glaciers, charged as they are with the debris of the neighbouring heights, clearly indicate that the local glaciers flowed each down its own particular valley. There are certain other appearances, however, which seem at first sight to contra- dict this view. Sometimes, for example, we encounter in the same valleys erratics which do not belong to the drainage- 198 The Scottish Naturalist. system within which they occur, but have without doubt been derived from the higher Alps of Switzerland and Savoy. And the course followed by these foreign erratics has crossed at all angles that which the local glaciers have certainly pursued — occasionally, indeed, the one set of erratics has travelled in a direction exactly opposed to the trend taken by the others. As examples, I may cite the case of the erratics which occur in Petit Bugey. In this district we encounter many locally-derived erratics which have come from Mont du Chat to the west of the Lac du Bourget — that is to say, they have travelled in a north- westerly direction. But in the same neighbourhood are found many erratics of Alpine origin which have been carried from north-east to south-west, or at right angles to the course followed by the local erratics. Again, in the valley of the Seran we have evidence in erratics and terminal moraines of a local glacier which flowed south as far as -the Lyons and Geneva Railway, in the neighbourhood of which, a few miles to the west of Culoz, its terminal moraines may be observed. This is the extinct Glacier du Valromey of MM. Falsan and Chantre. Now it is especially worthy of note that in the same valley we have dis- tinct evidence of an ice-flow from south to north — i.e., up the valley. Erratics and morainic materials which are unquestion- ably of Alpine origin have been followed a long way up the valley — for two-thirds of its length at least. Before they could have entered that valley and approached the slopes of Romey, they must have travelled down the valley of the Rhone from the higher Alps of Savoy in a south-west and south direction until they rounded the Montagne du Grand Colombier. It was only after they had rounded this massive mountain-ridge that they could pursue their course up the valley of the Seran, in a direc- tion precisely opposite to that which they had previously fol- lowed. These and many similar and even more remarkable examples of the " intercrossings " of streams of erratics are described by MM. Falsan and Chantre, and graphically por- trayed in their beautiful and instructive work on the 'Ancient Glaciers and Erratic Deposits of the Basin of the Rhone ; ' and the explanation of the phenomena given by them is extremely simple and convincing. The local erratics and moraines per- tain partly to the commencement and partly to the closing stage of the Glacial Period. Long before the south branch of the great glacier of the Rhone had united with the glacier of the Arve, and this last with the glaciers of Annecy and Beaufurt, The Scottish Naturalist. 199 and before these had become confluent with the glacier of the Isere, &c, the secondary mountain-ranges of Savoy and Dau- phiny and the hills of Bugey were covered with very consider- able snow-fields, from which local glaciers descended all the valleys to the low ground. But when the vast ice-flows of Switzerland, Upper Savoy, &c, at last became confluent, they completely overflowed many of the hilly districts which had formerly supported independent snow-fields and glaciers, and deposited their bottom-moraines over the morainic debris of the local glaciers. In other cases, where the secondary hill- ranges were too lofty to be completely drowned in the great mer de glace, long tongues of ice dilated into the valleys, and com- pelled the local ice out of its course ; sometimes, as in the case of the Valromey, forcing it backwards up the valleys down which it formerly flowed. But when once more the mighty mer de glace was on the wane, then the local glaciers came again into existence, and reoccupied their old courses. And thus it is that in the hilly regions at the base of the higher Alps, and even out upon the low grounds and plains, we encounter that remarkable commingling of erratics which has been described above. Not unfrequently, indeed, we find one set of moraines superposed upon another, just as in the low grounds of North- ern Germany, &c, we may observe one boulder-clay overlying another, the erratics in which give evidence of transport in different directions. The observations recorded by MM. Falsan and Chantre, and their colleagues, thus demonstrate that " intercrossings " of erratics of the most pronounced character have been brought about solely by the action of glaciers. In the case of the erratics and morainic accumula- tions of the basin of the Rhone, the action of icebergs is entirely precluded. I may now mention some of the more remarkable examples of " intercrossings " of erratics which have been recorded from the glacial accumulations of North Germany, &c. An exami- nation of the glacial striae, roches mouto.nnees, and boulder-clays of Saxony leads to the conviction, according to Credner, Penck, Torell, Helland, and others, that the whole of that region has been invaded by the great Scandinavian mer de glace which flowed into Saxony from N.N. E. to S.S.W. Erratics from Southern Sweden and Gothland occur in the boulder-clay, and the presence of these, taken in connection with the direction of the glaciation, leaves us no alternative but to agree with the 200 T/ie Scottish Naturalist. conclusions arrived at by the Saxon geologists. But, apparently in direct contradiction of this conclusion, we have evidence to show that boulders of the same kinds of rock occur in Denmark and Holland, pointing to a former ice-flow from north-east to south-west and west. Thus boulders derived from Gothland occur at Groningen in Holland, while fragments from the island of Oland are met with in Faxo ; and erratics from the borders of the Gulf of Finland are encountered at Hamburg. Indeed, when geologists come to examine the erratics in North Germany and Poland generally, they find evidence of apparently two ice- flows — one of which went south-south-west, south, and south-east — spreading out, as it were, in a fan-shape towards the southern limits reached by the great " Northern Drift," — while the other seems to have followed the course of the Baltic depression, over- flowing the low grounds of Northern Prussia, Holland, &c., in a south-west and west direction. Now, it is quite evident that no one mer de glace could have followed these various directions at one and the same time. The explanation of the apparent anomaly, however, is not far to seek. It is reasonable to infer, that long before the mer de glace had attained its maximum dimensions, when as yet it was confined to the basin of the Baltic and was only able to overflow the northern regions of Prussia, &c, its course would be determined by the contour of the pavement upon which it advanced. It would, therefore, be compelled to follow the Baltic depression, and for a long time it would carry erratics from Finland, the Baltic Islands, and Eastern Sweden, in a south-west and west-south-west direction. And this would continue to be the direction even after a con- siderable portion of the low grounds of Prussia, &c, had been overflowed. But when the ice- sheet was enabled to advance south into Saxony, Poland, and Lithuania, erratics from Fin- land, the Baltic Islands, &c. would necessarily cease to travel towards the west, and hold on a S. S.E., S., and S.S.W. course. Again, when the mer dc glace was on the decline, a time would return when the ice, as before, would be con- trolled in its flow by the Baltic depression, and this would give rise to a further distribution of erratics in a prevalent west- by-south direction. 1 1 For a fuller discussion upon the distribution of erratics on the Continent, I may refer to Appendix, Note B, in ' Prehistoric Europe,' where the reader will find references to the literature of this interesting subject. (To be continued.) ZOOLOGY, SOME NOTES ON COLLECTING AND PEESERYINC MYKIAPODA. By T. D. GIBSON-CARMICHAEL. N" EWPORT, writing in 1844, remarked : "The myriapoda have been more neglected by naturalists than almost any other division of articulata ; " and the remark, as far as this country is concerned, still remains' true. On the Continent of late years much has been done both in the way of description of known species and research into the internal anatomy of the group ; so much, indeed, that Haase, in the introduction to his pamphlet on ' Schlesiens Chilopoden,' claims for his study the merit that it is quite in accordance with the spirit of the time. It is much to be wished that some few, of the many persons interested in the fauna of this country, may take up the subject, at least so far as to collect specimens in their own districts, so that material may not be wanting to form a satisfactory list of our native species. They are not very numerous, yet they are to be found everywhere ; and much might be done at little trouble by our collectors of shells or of beetles. All that is needed for collecting them is a fairly wide-mouthed bottle, with some cotton-wool or bits of moss and broken bark in it. The creatures are easily caught with the fingers (the very small specimens are lifted by being touched with the wetted finger-tip), and on being placed in the bottle they run in among the moss or cotton - wool, where they become somewhat en- tangled, and lie still, without biting each other's limbs off, as they are apt to do when placed in an empty box or bottle. Both centipedes and millipedes are to be found under stones, in decaying wood, under loose bark, in fungi, in rotting fruit — in fact, in most places where beetles are to be found. It is as well, on turning over a stone or raising a piece of bark or wood, to do so slowly, as many of the centipedes are very 202 27ie Scottish Naturalist. quick in getting out of sight, while others drop to the ground at the slightest touch. First capture any of the quick-running centipedes, Lit/iobii, &c, which are visible; these are generally to be found in pairs. Then look carefully for any millipedes ; those which roll themselves into a pill-like ball should be secured first, then any large Juhis or Polydermus ; small specimens are less liable to drop, and may be picked up more leisurely. The long narrow centipedes with many legs (Geofihili), though rather hard to see when in a hole, seldom escape ; for though they wriggle a great deal they make little progress, wasting their energies in knotting themselves in the most curious manner. These latter, and all millipedes, are more or less gregarious in their habits. The peculiar odour given out by Jitlus generally enables the collector to know where to expect many specimens. A special look-out should be kept for specimens with eggs, or pairing, and for those which have just changed their skin, and are therefore particularly valuable for anatomical purposes. Such specimens should, where possible, be enclosed separately in a tube or pill-box, and the circumstances connected with them noted down. Shady and damp localities are the best for myriapoda ; both great dryness and great wetness being fatal. On reaching home the specimens must be transferred to bottles containing fairly strong spirit (70 per cent is perhaps the most use- ful). It is as well to do this soon, as centipedes die and shrivel up very quickly; the calcareous covering of the millipedes enables them to live longer. I find it most convenient to open my col- lecting bottles over saucers containing boiling or very hot water, into which the creatures are dropped. This saves trouble, as it kills them instantaneously, and so any sorting of the specimens is rendered easy, and the chances of the animals escaping about the room are greatly diminished. It also has an additional ad- vantage : many myriapoda, especially Jul us, give off a pungent liquid when annoyed ; this liquid stains the fluid they are im- mersed in, and by killing them in hot water before transferring them to spirit a great deal of this is got rid off. There is no need to go into details as to the preservation of the animals for the cabinet — each will adopt his own plan for himself. I hope, however, that these remarks may be of some use, and may induce a few collectors, even if they do not form a collection for themselves, to secure a few specimens for those who do. I myself shall be glad to receive specimens from any The Scottish Naturalist. 203 locality ; and if I can be of any assistance in giving information as to literature, dissection, or any other matters, I shall be glad to do so. In the present state of knowledge any notes regard- ing the habits of myriapoda are of value. The literature of the subject is mostly contained in scattered papers in the transactions of foreign societies, but it is well worth studying. Castle Craig, Dolphinton. ON THE OCCURRENCE IN" SCOTLAND OF THE BLUE -THROATED WARBLER. By J. A. HARVIE BROWN, F.R.S.E., F.Z.S. ON the 24th September of the present year I received a box containing three birds which were captured during the two previous days at the lantern of the Isle of May Light- house, in the Firth of Forth, and which the reporter, Mr Joseph Agnew, head lighthouse-keeper, desired to have named. One of these was a Night-jar, Caprimulgus europceus, a species hitherto unknown at this station ; another was an adult male Redstart, Ruticilla phoenicura ; and the third is the subject of this notice. Along with the box of birds, Mr Agnew sent me the third fully filled-in schedule which I have received from him for 1881, and I cannot pass on here without testifying to the intelligent interest and careful attention which is manifested in these schedules. At the same time, I am glad to testify in like manner to the general interest created by the Abstract of our Report on Migration, read at the last meeting of the British Association, and by the distribution of this report to the various lightship and lighthouse stations in England and Scot- land. We have to thank the Trinity House for the liberal view they have taken of the work, and for relieving us of much ex- pense in connection with it. According to Mr Agnew's schedule, under date Sept. 17th, the wind was light westerly with haze. The next record occurs on the 2 2d, the date of the capture of this specimen and of numerous arrivals of Redstarts, Mavises, Swallows, Golden Plover, Ring Dotterel, Lapwings, Chaffinches, one Corn-crake, one Robin, Curlews, &c. — indeed, of a "rush" of migrants. 204 The Scottish Naturalist. On that day, and for some days previous, the wind was strong S.E., and it continued so all day: weather, very thick haze, approaching to fog, with a continuous downpour of rain. Mr Agnew adds, "All the birds seen to-day seemed perfectly bewildered." The bird of which I now speak is Cyanecula Wolfi, or the white-spotted — sometimes spotless — form of the Blue-throated Warbler. The other form, Cyanecula suecica, or Red-spotted Blue-throat, is more northern in its range in Europe than the bird under consideration, and hitherto, with only three excep- tions, is the only species or form of the genus which has been recorded in Great Britain. Cyanecula Wolfi is found over Central Europe, and breeds in Holland, Germany, and south- ward, and is found in winter in Spain, Italy, and the shores of the Mediterranean (vide Dresser's ' Birds of Europe/ vol. i. p. 312); and according to Prof. Newton (Yarrell, 4th ed., vol. i. p. 324), has only once before occurred in Britain (vide Hadfield, Zool. 1866, p. 172, where the bird recorded as " Blue-throated Warbler" belongs to this form), vide Zool. 1876, p. 4956. The specimen in my possession closely agrees with the bird figured in Dresser's 'Birds of Europe' (vol. i. pi. 50), of which he says (p. 320), "a male of C. Wolfi in rather peculiar autumn plumage." I have now, therefore, to record the third occur- rence of the white - spotted form (which two Dresser unites under Cyanecula Wolfi) in Britain, and its first occurrence in Scotland. Now, in connection with the distribution and rare occur- rences of European or other species in Britain, I wish here to say a few words. In 1875, on the 10th November, I obtained a Black Redstart, Ruticilla titys, at Kincardine on-Forth, which was duly recorded, and the specimen exhibited, at the Royal Physical Society's meeting in Edinburgh, on the 21st February 1877. At that time I said, "What we have for a long time considered as accidental — purely accidental — occurrences of Continental species ought, in many instances, I think, rather to be held as indications of extension towards the north of their breeding limits on the Continent." Since then, as I will show, I have somewhat modified this opinion, as I think, besides such occurrences being partly due to northern extension of the breed- ing range, they are also due to prevalence of easterly and south- easterly winds and gales blowing the migrants more to the northward than in other circumstances they would be borne. The Scottish Naturalist. 205 But on this point see the Report on Migration of Birds in 1880. Again, near Alloa, at a locality not far removed from Kin- cardine on-Forth, where I shot the Black Redstart, Mr J. J. Dalgleish has recorded 1 the occurrence of another south- eastern species — viz., the Desert Wheat-ear — which will also be found alluded to in the same report. At that time also the prevailing winds were E. and S.E. Now again occurs another Central and South European species (C. Wolfi) at the Isle of May, in the Firth of Forth, during pre- vailing and strong S.E. winds, which species has not before been recorded from Scotland. "What I want specially to point out here is, that the localities of Alloa and the narrow part of the Firth of Forth, and the Isle of May and the shores of the Firth, aH Me in a li?ie, or nearly so, running from E. to W. ; and I only desire further to remark that Alloa and that part of the country appears to be visited by many other rarities, such as the Waxwing and Great Grey Shrike, and a line of distribution of the occurrences of the Great Grey Shrike runs also broadly across Stirlingshire, the narrowest part of Scotland. I indicate these facts for further study and com- parison, only adding that, as far as I can at present judge from numerous statistics at command, I believe the waves of migra- tion of certain species take certain and fixed lines, according to influence of weather and winds ; or, in other words, that certain Continental species are known to turn up at certain localities in Britain with greater regularity and precision than at others — and that, in extraordinary seasons, and with prevalence of wind from unusual quarters, a corresponding change will take place in the distribution of so-called " accidental occurrences " of Continental species in Britain \ and further, that this will be aided to a con- siderable extent by the northern range of such species on the Continent during the breeding season in exceptionally fine summers, or by the natural extension of the breeding haunts of many species. One more point I would like to bring forward in support of what I still consider theory, but which to me seems strongly supported already by known facts. In ' The Field' of May 7th 1 88 1, were recorded occurrences of the Pied Fly-catcher in Sutherland and Rosshire ; and about the same date other occur- rences were recorded from various parts of the east coast of 1 Proc. Royal Phys. Soc. Edin., 1SS0-S1, vol. vi. p. 64. 2o6 TJie Scottish Naturalist. Scotland. A pair lingered a long time at one locality in East Sutherland, but finally disappeared. These, of course, belonged to the spring migration of 1-881, Now, how are we indebted for such an unusual visitation so far west of the continent of Europe at this season ? My idea— theory, if you will — is as follows: As we have shown in our Report for 1880 that birds were carried further west than usual by the easterly gales of the autumn of that year, the consequence of this was that the birds wintered at localities further west than usual, and also returned to their breeding haunts by routes removed farther west than usual in the following spring. It may be said it is a pity to advance theories without suffi- cient bases of facts in such matters, and doing so might perhaps be characterised as unscientific ; but I advance it in what I believe to be the interest of our inquiry, whether correct or erroneous ; because what we want is more general attention to the meteorological necessities of our investigation, and a wider appreciation by our reporters and those who are assisting us of the necessity of a comparison of the data, year with year, in the future. It is on this account that I would urge the mapping out of the distribution of the occurrences of rare Con- tinental forms in Britain, year after year, and also the com- parison of these annual maps, the one with the other, and with the meteorological facts of each year. Mr J. J. Dalgleish and Mr Freke are doing good work in enumerating all the occurrences of American birds in Europe and mapping them out, and vice %>ersa. It would be desirable to extend this plan to all specimens of the rarer Continental species in Britain, the meteorological data, and a corresponding map of Europe, showing the northward range of these birds in the breeding season. We ourselves have not time to devote earnestly to this additional work, but we believe that the field suggested would be sure to yield to any naturalist, taking it up as a separate branch, a rich harvest in course of time. STOEM-PETEELS FOUND IN PEETHSHIKE. ' By COLONEL DRUMMOND HAY, C.M.Z.S. HAVE the pleasure of sending you notice of Leach's Fork- tailed Petrel {Thalassidroma Lcadiii) as having been picked up dead in Strathearn. in a field near Strathallan Castle, on Tues- 1 The Scottish Naturalist. 207 day the 2 2d November last, during the very severe gale of that morning. This bird was sent to me by Lord Strathallan, and proved to be an adult female. Another example of this rare British Petrel was got in A thole on the same morning by Mr Campbell, gamekeeper, who found it lying dead on the lawn in front of Blair Castle, as I was informed by Mr Malloch, Perth, in whose hands it had been placed for preservation, together with a fine specimen of the Little Storm-Petrel (Thalassidroma pelagica) got on the same day dead in a small pond near Dup- plin Castle by Mr Hart. To those who may not be familiar with these birds, it may not be uninteresting to mention something of their habits. The Little Storm -Petrel, the smallest of all our web -footed birds, though a rover for the greater part of the year over the wide Atlantic, often keeping for many days together in company with some ship, both for food and shelter, is abundant during the breeding season in June and July on most of the rocky promon- tories, holms, and skerries along all our coasts from Scilly to Shetland. Not so the Fork-tailed Petrel, a much larger bird, 1 and thoroughly oceanic in its habits, which, though perhaps not actually uncommon, yet being a much shyer and more retiring bird, seldom accompanies ships, like the Storm and Wilson's Petrel (which, however, I have occasionally seen them do, but keeping all the time at a respectful distance), and always breed- ing on some far outlying spots, is not often met with. The greater number of specimens obtained are generally, as in the present instance, either picked up dead far inland, or when driven on shore in an exhausted state, after some severe gale, many instances of which have occurred from time to time, both in this country and America. Strange to say, it was only com- paratively a few years ago that this bird was held to be a dis- tinct species, having been first separated by Dr Leach in the 1 The total dimensions of the Strathallan specimen were as follows : — Length from point of bill to longest tail-feather, . 8 inches. 11 11 to centre of fork of tail, . 7K " 11 from anterior joint of wing to longest quill, 6 n 11 11 carpel-joint to do., .... 6 l / 2 n Total spread of wings, . . . . . 18 n Length of bill from base, .....in 11 of middle toe, . . . . . ij4 » whereas in the Storm- Petrel the whole length does not quite reach § inches, and the wing from the anterior joint not more than ^% inches. 2o8 The Scottish Naturalist. year 1819, he having purchased it at the sale of Mr Bullock's Collection, who obtained it during the year previous at St Kilda, where it was found breeding, and where it is still to be got at that season. This was the first authenticated specimen (which Dr Leach considered to be an undescribed species) obtained in Great Britain, and which he transferred to the national collec- tion in the British Museum, now at South Kensington, there being at that time only three other examples known in Europe — two in private collections in France, and one in the Paris Museum. From the absorption of all fat and oily matter, with which the Petrel is copiously supplied, and which, on capture, is ejected in large quantities from the mouth and nostrils, as also from the bloodless appearance of the flesh, as well as the total absence of all food in the stomach, both in the Strathallan bird and those received by Mr Malloch, there can be no doubt but what they w r ere in a thoroughly starved condition, — possibly caught up in a cyclone many degrees to the southward and westward of these islands, and violently hurled along for days together at a con- siderable height, without once touching the ocean, as may be gathered from their having crossed the Grampian range at a height of not less than from two to three thousand feet, and perhaps considerably more, to the spots where they were found ; and, what is worthy of remark, none of these birds had the slightest appearance of violence, bruising, or extravasation on them, all being in good feather; and, what is curious, the body was quite limp and perfectly free from all the stiffness and rigidity found in a recently shot bird, having to all appearance died some time before reaching the earth. Had they been merely blown off the ocean from the vicinity of St Kilda, or any part of the Outer Hebrides, at the rate the wind was travelling on the morning in question, a couple of hours at most would have been sufficient to transport them to where they were found ; and in that short time the stomach could not have been empty, nor, in all probability, would such complete exhaustion have taken place as to produce death, but, on the contrary, life and vigour would still have been retained, and another half-hour carried them to the German Ocean, where life might have been preserved. The velocity and suddenness of this particular gale was such as doubtless to cause more destruction to bird-life than can possibly ever be known ; and so graphically is it all described by Professor Grant of Glasgow University, that I make no The Scottish Naturalist. 209 apology for quoting his observations, bearing as they do on the present subject: "The evening of the 21st presented no in- dications of the terrible commotion which was approaching. The sky was beautifully clear in every direction, the wind was blow- ing gently, and there appeared every prospect of an especially favourable night for astronomical observation. About 5 p.m., however, several significant changes were perceptible. The barometer began to fall steadily ; the wind, which had been blowing from the south-west during the day, was now found to be veering gradually towards the south, and was rapidly increasing in intensity, while the heavens in all directions were assuming a dark and threatening aspect. About 11 p.m. the storm was already raging with extraordinary violence, but it continued to increase in intensity till about 6 o'clock this morning. Just a few minutes before six, there occurred a tremendous gust of wind which, measured by Osier's anemometer, was equivalent to a wind pressure of 48 pounds on the square foot. This result received a satisfactory confirmation from the indications of Robinson's velocity anemometer. It was found by this instrument that the wind, for a few minutes about the same time, was travelling at the rate of nearly 80 miles an hour. As far as the self-recording instruments of this Observatory indicate, the storm of last night is the most violent with which Glasgow has been visited for at least twenty years." Seggieden, Perth. Perthshire Natural History Museum. — The Perthshire Society of Natural Science, under whose charge this institution is, has had a most successful bazaar at Perth in aid of the funds for furnishing and endowing the museum. The bazaar was one of the most popular ever held in Perth, and produced a sum of nearly ^1600. Contributions of scientific books, &c. , will be gratefully received by the Society for its library. VOL VI. O PHYTOLOGY. THE CKYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF MULL. 15 v F. BUCHANAN WHITE, M. D., F. L. S. Secretary of the Cryptogamic Society of Scotland. {Continued from page 162. ) Mosses. THE following contribution to a catalogue of the Mosses of Mull has been compiled by Messrs George Ross and Thomas King ; and, in addition to species noticed during the visit of the Society, includes a number observed by Mr Ross during his residence in the island. The absence of alpine species may be explained by the fact that Mr Ross had no opportunity of collecting on the higher mountains. Andreaea petrophila Ehr. 11 alpina Turn. Sphagnum cymbifolium Ehr. 11 compactum Brid. 11 molluscum Bruch. 11 acutifolium Ehr. Phascum subulatum L. Weissia controversa Hedw. 11 mucronata B. and S. Rhabdoweissia denticulata B. and S. Blindia acuta B. and S. Dicranum rufescens Turn. 11 heteromallum Hed. 11 scoparium Hed. 11 majus Turn. Leucobryum glaucum Hampe. Ceratodon purpureus Brid. Campylopus flexuosus Brid. 11 longipilus Brid. 11 turfaceus B. and S. Pottia minutula Ehr. The Scottish Naturalist. 211 Pottia truncatula L. Didymodon rubellus IB. and S. Tortula muralis Timm. it fallax Hed. n ruralis Hed. 11 intermedia Brid. Hedwigia ciliata Hed. Grimmia apocarpa B. and S. 11 11 var. rivularis. n pulvinata Sm. H Schultzii Brid. 11 patens B. and S. Racomitrium ellipticum B. and S. 11 aciculare Brid. 11 protensum Braun. 11 sudeticum B. and S. 11 fasciculare Brid. i! heterostichum Brid. 11 lanuginosum Brid. n canescens Brid. Glyphomitrium Daviesii Schwg. Ptychomitrium polyphyllum B. and S. Orthotrichum rupestre Schl. n crispum Hed. 11 Bruchii Brid. 11 phyllanthum B. and S. Zygodon Mougeotii B. and S. 11 viridissimus Brid. Diphyscium foliosum W. and M. Atrichum undulatum Beauv. Pogonatum nanum Brid. 11 aloides Brid. Polytrichum commune L. Aulacomnion palustre Schw. Bryum alpinum L. 11 inclinatum B. and S. n capillare Hed. 11 argenteum L. Mnium rostratum Schr. it hornum L. 11 punctatum Hed. 11 subglobosum B. and S. 2 12 The Scottish Naturalist. Funaria hygrometrica Hed. Physcomitrium pyriforme B. and S. Bartramia arcuata Brid. ii fon tana Brid. ii pomiformis Hed. ii ithyphylla Brid. Splachnum ampullaceum L. Fissidens bryoides Hed. ii osmundoides Hed. ii adiantoides Hed. ii taxifolius Hed. Antitrichia curtipendula Brid. Isothecium myurum Dill. it myosuroides Dill. Leskea sericea Dill. Hypnum tamariscinum Hed. it splendens Dill. ii rutabulum Dill. ii populeum Hed. ii plumosum Swartz. M striatum Hed. ii prselongum Dill. it denticulatum Dill. it undulatum Dill. M serpens Dill. .1 hamulosum Frol. ii cupressiforme Dill. ii crista-castrensis L. H cuspidatum Dill. it resupinatum Wils. ii purum Dill. ii squarrosum Dill. ii brevirostre Ehr. ii triquetrum Dill. ii loreum Dill. Neckera crispa Dill. ii complanata B. and S. Hookeria lucens Sm. Fontinalis antipyretica L. ( To be continued. ) The Scottish Naturalist. 213 MYCOLOGIA SO OTIC A. By Rev. JOHN STEVENSON. ( Continued from page 1 70. ) 2232. Agaricus (Amanita) lenticularis Lasch. C. Hbk. No. 15. In woods. East. Tweed West. Roxburgh. Rev. David Paul. England. Europe. 2233. A. (Lepiota) ermineus* Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 33. C. Illust. PL 40. White; pileus somewhat fleshy, campanulate then expanded, even, smooth, then silky-jibriUose round the margin; stem fistulose, equal, becoming smooth, with a remote, torn, evanescent ring ; gills approxi- mate. Fragile. Grassy place in wood. Nov. East. Tay West. Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. 2234. A. (Tricholoma) immundus * C. Illust. PL 61. In hilly pasture. Aug. East. Tay West. Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Berk. C. Hbk. No. 72. 2235. A. (Tricholoma) tumidus Pers. Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 61. Rigid-fragile ; pileus bullate then expanded, undulate, somewhat shining, then incised, rimose, cinereous, bent inwards at the thin margin, 3 in. broad ; stem solid, rooting, swollen^ striate, shining white, 3 in. long (but among moist mosses it is very much elongated); gills marginate, broad, somewhat distant, shining white, at length rufescent- cinereous. Odour and taste insipid. In woods. Oct. East. Moray West. Forres, 1881. Rev. James Keith. Europe. 214 The Scottish Naturalist. 2236. A. (Collybia) platyphyllus * Fr. C. Hbk. No. 139. Among beech-leaves. Oct. East. Tay West. Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. * A. (Collybia) tenacellus Pers. Var. stolonifer* Jung. Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 121. Stem with a creeping, somewhat stoloniferons root. Among pine-leaves. Nov. — Dec. East. Tay West. ■ Perth. Dr. B. White. Glamis. J. S. England. Europe. I have found this as frequently as A. tenacellus, from which it differs only in the root. * A. (Mycena) strobilinus Fr. My col. Scot. p. 27. Altyre, Sept. 1881. Rev. James Keith. Not recorded for Scotland since the time of Greville. 2237. A. (Nolanea) pisciodorus * Ces. Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 208. Pileus somewhat membranaceous, conical then campanulate, then convex, obsoletely umbonate, velvety-soft, tawny-cinnamon ; stem somewhat fistulose, tough, very thinly pruinate, chestnut then becoming black, paler at the apex, somewhat velvety ; gills slighty adnexed, pale yellow then flesh-coloured, at length tawny. Smell of rotten fish. Among decayed fir branches. Oct. East. Tay West. - — - Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. Very similar in appearance to A. cucumis Pers., and easily mistaken without examination of spores. 2238. A. (Pholiota) aurivellus* Batsch. C. Hbk. No. 298. On old fir-stump. Sept. East. Tay West. Logie, Forfarshire, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. America. Hie Scottish Naturalist, 215 2239. A. (Pholiota) subsquarrosus * Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 221. Pileus fleshy, convex, viscid, brown-ferruginous , with darker, floc- cose, addressed scales; stem stuffed, equal, yellow-ferruginous, with darker adpressed scales terminated in an annular zone, without a dis- tinct ring, 3 in. long, yi in. thick; gills somewhat free ; crowded, from yellow to dirty-tan colour. Similar in appearance to A. sqnarrosits, but distinguished by well- marked features. On old stump. Sept. East. — — ■ Tay West. ■ ■ ■ Glamis, 1881. J. S. Europe. 2240. A. (Pholiota) pumilus Fr. C. Hbk. No. 305. Among moss. Sept. — Nov. East. Tweed ■ [Moray West. Grantown. Rev. James Keith. Roxburgh. Rev. David Paul. England. Europe. Australia. 2241. A. (Hebeloma) sinapizans * Fr. C. Hbk. No. 311. In mixed wood. Sept. East. — — Tay West. Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. * A. (Flammula) carbonarius Fr. My col. Scot. p. 60. Growing along with Rhizina undulata Fr., both in abundance, on burnt sandy soil in fir-wood. Logie, Forfarshire. J. S. * A, (Flammula) astragalinus * Fr. Mycol. Scot. p. 60. Glamis, Oct. 1881. J. S. 2242. A. (Hypholoma) elaecodes* Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 291. Pileus fleshy, rather plane, somewhat umbonate, dry, smooth, opaque, brick -red or tan colour, flesh yellow; stem stuffed, then hollow, equal, fibrillose, of the same colour as the pileus, becoming ferruginous, commonly slender, incurved or flexuous ; gills adnate, crowded, thin, green, then pure olivaceous. Caespitose. Odour bitter. On dead trunk. Sept. East. Tay West. 216 The Scottish Naturalist. Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. 2243. Cortinarius (Phlegmacium) saginus * Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 340. Granite, vi. t. 92. Pileus fleshy, plano-convex, unequal, smooth, viscous, yellow, 4-5 in. broad ; stem solid, somewhat bulbous, fibrillose, dingy yellow, (becoming bright yellow), naked at the apex, with a fugacious veil, 3 in. long, I in. and more thick ; gills decurrent, broad, eroded, dirty- pallid, then cinnamon. Flesh white. Very gregarious, somewhat East. West. caespitose, large. In mixed wood. Oct. Tay Glamis, 1 England. 881. J. Europ< S. 2244. C. (Phlegmacium) turbinatus * Fr. C. Hbk. No. 497. In mixed wood. Oct. East. Tay West. ■ ■ ■ Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. America. 2245. C. (Myxacium) delibutus Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 357. Quel., Grev.j t. 108,/! 2. Pileus fleshy, thin, convexo-plane, obtuse, even, glutinous, yellowish, sometimes tawny on the disc, smooth, or when full grown fibrilloso- silky, 2-3 in. broad ; stem stuffed, at length hollow at the apex, elas- tic, thin, attenuated, zuhitish, and like the pileus glutinous, shining, 2-4 in. long, 3-4 lines thick ; gills adnate, obsoletely emarginate, de- current with a slight tooth, broad, plane, somewhat distant, serrulate, pallid-blue then clay-ferruginous. Soft. White within. In woods. Aug. East. ■ Moray West. Grantown, 1881. Rev. James Keith. England. Europe. 2246. C. (Myxacium) stillatitius Fr. C. Hbk. No. 503. In woods. Aug. East. ■ Moray West. Grantown, 1881. Rev. James Keith. England. Europe. The Scottish Naturalist, 217 2247. C. (Dermocybe) cinnabarinus * Fr. ITym. Eur. p. 370. Quel., Grez:, t. no,/. 4. Pileus fleshy, obtuse, silky, then become smooth, shining, and as well as the stuffed, short, firm, now and then bulbous, fibrillose stem, which never becomes yellow, and veil, scarlet cinnabar ; gills adnate, broad, unequal at the edge, somewhat distant, darker. Odour of radishes. In beech wood. Nov. East. Tay ■ West. Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. 2248. C. (Hygrocybe) germanus * Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 397. Quel, Grev., t. 114,/. 2. Pileus somewhat membraceous, conico-expanded, obtusely umbon- ate, somewhat silky, fragile, even, becoming fuscous (clay-colour), without striae, scarcely an inch ; stem somewhat fistulose, thin, equal, smooth, lilac then becoming pale, at length silvery, somewhat twisted, 3 in. long, I line thick ; gills adnate, somewhat distant, broad, watery cinnamon. Strong smelling. In pine-wood. Sept. East. Tay West. ■ Logie, Forfarshire, 1S81. J. S. Europe. 2249. Lactarius vietus * Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 432. Pileus fleshy, thin, at first somewhat umbonate, viscid, then flat- tened, umbilicate, sometimes infundibuliform, even, zoneless, when dry slightly silky, flesh-coloured or livid grey, becoming very pale ; stem stuffed then hollcnv, fragile, livid ; gills somewhat decurrent, thin, dead whitish ; milk from whitish to grey, tardily acrid. Thin, soft, fragile, variable in form. In grassy wood. Oct. East. Tay West. - — - Glamis, 1881. J. S. England. Europe. 2250. Polyporus zonatus Fr. Hym. Eur. p. 568. Pileus somewhat corky-coriaceous, convex, tubercnlose and gibbous behind, somewhat zoned, villous, opaque, becoming dead white at the margin ; pores minute, rounded or become angular, obtuse, dead whitish. On trunks. 2i8 ' The Scottish Naturalist. East. Moray West. Dunphail, 1881. Rev. James Keith. Europe. * Clavaria cinerea Bull. My col. Scot. p. 173. Along with the common form I have gathered fine specimens of the variety figured by Greville (Scot. Crypt. FL, pi. 321), with short thickened stem, ter- minated by a thick fringe of subulate processes. 2251. Clathrns cancellatus Linn. C. Hbk. No. 1067. In woods. East. Forth West. Tynningham, 1881. Miss Violet Chambers. England. Europe. America. * Hydrangium carneum Wallr. My col. Scot. p. 18 5. Edinburgh Botanic Garden, 1880. Dr M. C. Cooke. * Rhizopogon rubescens Tul. My col. Scot. p. 186. The plant recorded from Rannoch is referred to in Rev. M. J. Berkeley's Herbarium as R. luteolus Tul. * Hymenogaster Klotschii Tul. My col. Scot. p. 186. Edinburgh Botanic Garden, 1880. Dr M. C. Cooke. 2252. Puccinia allii Casp. (P. mixta Fckl.) Symb. Myc. />. 53- Spots elongate, dark ; sori dark brown, at first often rounded, be- coming elongate, subepidermal ; spores brown, cell walls nearly uniform in thickness, pedicels short, colourless. Many spores are two-celled, widened upwards, and rounded or squared at the apex, and slightly constricted in the middle (P. allii Casp.) ; others are smaller, undivided, and oval, obovate or quadrangular in form (Uromyces alliorum D. C. ). Both kinds of spores vary considerably in form. Along with them, or in separate sori, of the same form but yellow, occur round or oval oue-celled spores, with smooth, yellow- ish, nearly transparent cell walls, and deep yellow cell contents, forming Undo alliorum D. C. (Urcdo limbata Rabenh.) J. W. II. Trail. On Allium Schivnoprasum. Summer. East. Dee West. ■ Nigg, Aberdeen. Mr W. Forrest. Europe. The Scottish Naturalist. 219 2253. Uredo statices Desm. C. Hbk, No. 1580. On Armeria maritima. Summer. — Autumn. East. Dee West. Aberdeen. Dr B. White. England. Europe. 2254. Synchytrium taraxaci De By. & Wor. Grcvillea, ii. p. 162. Cellules variable, seated beneath the cuticle of living leaves. Zoo- gonidia '00013 mm. diam. On leaves of Taraxacum officinale. Summer — Autumn. East. ■ • Tay Dee West. Argyle England. Europe. 2255. Ascobolus depauperatus B. & Br. C. Hbk. No. 2207. On rabbit- dung. East. ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ West. • Argyle Mull. Dr B. White. England. * A. glaber Pers. My col. Scot. p. 337, growing on the disc of A. pilosus Fr. My col. Scot. p. 339. Mr W. Phillips, to whom I submitted this singular case of parasitism, has never met with a similar instance in his researches among EPoellacei. 2256. Apiosporium abietis Cke. Grevillea, ix. p. 94. Effused, black, velvety. Mycelloid hyphae black brown ; peri- thecia globose, very small (*i mm. diam.) ; asci clavate ('02x '007 mm.) ; sporidia elliptical, hyaline ("005 x -002 mm.). Investing the young twigs with a black incrustation resembling soot, in which the perithecia are seated. The subiculum consists of an irregular mass of brown cells resembling a low form of Sporidesmium. On twigs of living spruce. East. ■ Forth West. — Glencorse. Penicuik. Dr M. C. Cooke. The following districts are to be recorded for the species enumerated : — Tweed. — Agaricus ustalis Fr. ; A. columbetta Fr. ; A. sulphureus Bull. ; A. clavipes Pers. ; A. inolens Fr. ; A. stipitarius Fr. ; A. tenerrimus Berk.; A. phlebophorus Dittm. ; A. togularis Bull. ; A. marginatus Batsch. ; A. cucumis Pers. ; A. gracilis Fr. ; Bolbitius hydrophilus Bull. ; Cortinarius 220 The Scottish Naturalist. multiformis Fr. ; Lenzites ssepiaria Schseflf. ; Boletus Iaricinus Berk. ; Poly- porus brumalis Pers. ; P. sanguinolentus A. & S. ; Triphragmium ulmariae Link. ; Puccinia malvacearum Cda., Mycol. Scot. Supp., Scot. A r at. vi. p. 119; Peronospora obliqua Cooke ; Peziza humosa Fr. Forth. — Lenzites sa:piaria Schaeff. ; Hydnanguim carneum Wallr. ; Hy. menogaster Klotschii Tul. ; Sphaeria sabuletorum B. & Br. on Psamma armidinacea. Dee. — Paxillus atro-tomentosus Batsch. ; Polyporus perennis L. ; Uredo alliorum D. C. Moray. — Agaricus pterigenus Fr. ; A. radicosus Bull; Cortinarius clari- color Fr. ; C. livido-ochraceus Berk. ; C. leucopus Bull. ; C. decipiens Pers. ; Lactarius hysginus Fr. ; Marasmius porreus Pers. Argyle. — The following species were gathered on the Island of Mull, during the meeting of the Cryptogamic Society of Scotland in August 1881. Many of the commoner species, which have already been recorded for Argyle, were noticed on the same occasion : — ■ Agaricus granulosus Batsch. ; A. butyraceus Bull. ; A. confluens Pers. ; A. dryophilus Bull. ; A. rubro-marginatus Fr. ; A. polygrammus Bull. ; A. atro-albus Bolt. ; A. alkalinus Fr. ; A. ammoniacus Fr. ; A. filopes Bull. ; A. vulgaris Pers. ; A. chalybceus Pers. ; A. pascuus Pers. ; A. scaber Midi. ; A. semilanceatus Fr. ; A. separatus L. ; A. fimiputrus Bull. ; Coprinus atra- mentarius Bull. ; C. plicatilis Curt. ; Cortinarius cyanopus Seer. ; C. pur- purascens Fr. ; C. cinnamomeus L. ; C. torvus Fr. ; Gomphidius glutinosus Schaeff. ; Hygrophorus chlorophanus Fr. ; Lactarius insulsus Fr. ; L. blen- nius Fr. ; L. vellereus Fr. ; L. deliciosus L. ; L. quietus Fr. ; L. theiogalus Bull. ; L. glyciosmus Fr. ; L. mitissimus Fr. ; Russula nigricans Bull. ; R. rubra D. C. ; R. vesca Fr. ; R. heterophylla Fr. ; R. fcetens Pers. ; R. Queletii Fr. ; R. ochroleuca Pers.; R. alutacea Fr. ; R. fellea Fr. , Mycol. Scot. Supp., Scot. Nat. vi. p. 36; Cantharellus tubaeformis Fr. ; Marasmius peronatus Bolt. ; M. rotula Scop. ; Boletus luteus L. ; B. flavus With. ; B. chrysenteron Bull. ; B. subtomentosus L. ; B. eclulis Bull. ; B. luridus Schaeff. ; Polyporus perennis L. ; P. varius Fr. ; P. vulgaris Fr. ; Crater- ellus cornucopioides L. ; Thelephora palmata Scop. ; Corticium laeve Pers. ; C. calceum Pers. ; Calocera cornea Batsch. ; Tremella foliacea Pers. ; Lyco- perdon gemmatum Fr. ; Fuligo varians Sommf. ; Tilmadoche nutans Pers. ; Reticulata lycoperdon Bull. ; Cyathus striatus Hoffm. ; Melasmia alnea Lev., Mycol. Scot. Supp., Scot. Nat. vi. p. 118.; Septoria hydrocotyles Desm. ; S. scabiosaecola Desm. ; S. lysimachiae West. ; S. stachydis Desm.; Phyllosticta violae Desm.; Asteroma padi Grev. ; A. rosse D. C. ; Ceutho- spora iauri Grev. ; Torula pulveracea Corda. ; Puccinia moliniae Tul. ; P. scorodoniae Link. ; P. galiorum Link. ; P. circseae Pers. ; Coleosporium tussilaginis Lev. ; Melampsora betulina Desm. ; M. salicina Lev. ; Lecythea saliceti Lev. ; L. Valeriana? Berk. ; Trichobasis oblongata Berk. ; Synchytrium mercurialis Fckl., Mycol. Scot. Supp., Scot. A T at. vi. p. 120 ; Urocystis pom- pholygodes Lev. ; /Fcidium compositarum var. tussilaginis Pers. ; Milesia polypodii White ; Ceratium hydnoides A. & S. ; Cladosporium herbarum Link. ; Peronospora rufibasis B. & Br. ; Peziza badia Pers. ; P. humosa Fr. ; P. trechispora B. & Br. ; P. stercorea Pers. ; P. firma Pers. ; P. cinerea Batsch. ; Helotium auuginosum Fr. ; H. pallescens Fr. ; H. claro-flavum Berk. ; Bulgaria sarcoides Fr. ; Rhytisma salicinum Fr. ; R. acerinum Fr. ; The Scottish Naturalist. 2 2 1 Microsphceria penicillata Lev. ; Erysiphe Martii Link. ; Asterina veronicse Lib. ; Torrubia militaris Fr. ; Claviceps purpurea Tul. ; Hypocrea rufa Fr. ; Polystigma fulvum D. C. ; Doth idea junci Fr. ; Stigmatea Robertiani Fr. ; Hypoxylon coccineum Bull. ; Diatrype disciformis Fr. ; Gnomonia coryli Batsch. Ross (Skye). — Dactylium modestum Berk. & White. The following countries are to be added under the species enumerated : — Africa (South). — Agaricus muscarius L. ; A. procerus Scop. ; A. excori- atus Schaeff. ; A. ustalis Fr. ; A. melaleucus Pers. ; A. expallens Pers. ; A. velutipes Curt. ; A. laccatus Schceff. ; A. radicatus Relh. ; A. butyraceus Bull. ; A. acervatus Fr. ; A. tintinnabulum Fr. ; A. clavicularis Fr. ; A. corticola Schum. ; A. hiemalis- Osbeck. ; A. capillaris Schum. ; A. rusticus Fr. ; A. integrellus Pers. ; A. ostreatus Jacq. ; A. atro-caeruleus Fr. ; A. cervinus Schseff. ; A. togularis Bull. ; A; alnicola Fr. ; A. pediades Fr. ; A. tener Schoeff. ; A. hypnorum Batsch. ; A. arvensis Schaeff. ; A. campestris L. ; A. silvaticus Schaeff. ; A. obturatus Fr. ; A. melaspermus Bull. ; A. semiglobatus Batsch. ; A. fascicularis Huds. ; A. Candolleanus Fr. ; A. ericaeus Pers. ; A. atro-rufus Schaeff. ; A. semilanceatus Fr. ; A. fcenisecii Pers. ; A. corrugis Pers. ; A. spadiceo-griseus Schaeff. ; A. separatus L. ; A. campanulatus L. ; A. caliginosus Jung. ; A. gracilis Fr. ; A. pronus Fr. ; Coprinus micaceus Bull.; C. radiatus Bolt.; C. ephemerus Bull.; C. plica- tilis Curt. ; Bolbitius Boltonii Pers. ; B. fragilis L. ; Paxillus panuoides Fr. ; Hygrophorus virgineus Wulf. ; H. coccineus Schaeff. ; Marasmius rotula Scop. ; M. saccharinus Batsch. ; Schizophyllum commune Fr. ; Hydnum ochraceum Pers. ; Clavaria Kunzei Fr. ; Puccinia galiorum Link. ; Hypoxy- lon rubiginosum Fr. Australia. — Agaricus cristatus A. &. S.; A. inversus Scop. ; A. esculentus Wulf. ; A. speireus Fr. ; A. corticola Schum. ; A. capillaris Schum. ; A. gracillimus Weinra. ; A. atro-caeruleus Fr. ; A. praecox Pers. ; A. languinosus Bull. ; A. flavidus Schaeff. ; A. pediades Fr. ; A. inquilinus Fr. ; A. ericaeus Pers. ; A. atro-rufus Schaeff. Tasmania. — Agaricus laccatus Scop. ; A. radicatus Relh. Mauritius. — Polyporus betulinus Fr.; Hydnum ochraceum Fr. ; Hirneola auricula-Judae L. THE GAELIC NAMES OP PLANTS, By JOHN CAMERON. ( Cojitinued from />, 1 78. ) Naiadace.e. Potamogeton. — Greek : 7rora/xo's, a river, and yurov, near. P. natans — Broad-leaved pondweed. Gaelic : duiliasg na ttaibhne, the river leaf. Most of the species grow immersed in ponds and rivers, but flower above its surface. Liobhag, from 222 The Scottish A T aturalist. liobh, smooth, polish, from the smooth pellucid texture of the leaves, their surface being destitute of down or hair of any kind. Irish : liachroda, — Hack, a spoon, rod, a water-weed, sea weed ; liach-Brighide, Bridget's spoon. Probably these names were also given to the other species of pondweeds (such as P. polygonifolius) as well as to P. natans. Zostera marina — The sweet sea -grass. Gaelic and Irish: bilearacli (in Argyle, bileanach), from bileag, a blade of grass. The sea-grass was much used for thatching purposes, and it was supposed to last longer than straw. Alismace^e. Alisma. — Greek : akta-fjia, an aquatic plant ; said to be from a Celtic root, a/is, water. If ever this was a Celtic vocable it has ceased to have this signification : in Welsh alls means the lowest point, hell. A. Plantago — Water-plantain. Gaelic and Irish : cor-chopaig (cor or cora, a weir, a dam, and copag, a dock, or any large leaf of a plant). It grows in watery places. Welsh : llyren, a duct, a brink or shore. Triglochin palustre — Arrow-grass. Gaelic : barr a mhilltich, — " Bun na cipe is barr a' mhilltich.''' — M'Intyre. barr, top, and milltich (Irish), "good grass," and milncach, a thorn or bodkin — hence the English name arrow-grass. Generic name from rpets, three, and yAw^is, a point, in allusion to the three angles of the capsule. Sheep and cattle are fond of this hardy species, which afford an early bite on the sides of the Highland mountains. Milltich is commonly used in the sense of " grassy;" maghanaii millteach, verdant or grassy meadows. LEMNACE/E. Lemna minor — Duckweed. Gaelic : l mac gun athair, son without a father. Irish: lus gan athair gan mhathair, fatherless motherless wort. A curious name, perhaps suggested by the root being suspended from its small egg-shaped leaf, and not affixed to the ground. Gran-lachan, — gran, seed, grain, and lach, a duck. The roundish leaves, and the fact that ducks are voraciously fond of feeding on them, have suggested this and the following names : Ros lachain, the ducks' rose or flower. Irish : 1 Mac-gun-athair may have originally been meacan air, — mcacan, a plant, air, gen. of ar, slow (hence the name of the river "Arar" in France, meaning the slow-flowing river, — " Arar dubitans qui suos cursos agat " — Se.neca), the plant that grows in slow or sluggish water. The Scottish Naturalist. 223 abhran donog (O'Reilly), — abhran is the plural of abhra, an eye- lid, and donog, a kind of fish, a young ling. The fish's eye- lids ; more likely a corruption of aran tunnaig, duck's bread or meat. It was used by our Celtic ancestors as a cure for headaches and inflammations. Arace/e. Arum, formerly aron> probably from the ancient Celtic root a?-, land, earth ; hence Latin, aro, to plough, and Gaelic, aran, bread, sustenance. The roots of many of the species are used both for food and medicine. A. maculatum — Wake-robin, lords and ladies. Gaelic : cluas chaoin, the soft ear (caoin, soft, smooth, gentle, &c, and cluas, ear). The ear-shaped spathe would probably suggest the name. Cuthaidh, from cuth, a head, a bulb — hence cutharlan, any bulb- ous-rooted plant. Cuthaidh means also wild, savage. Gachar and gaoicin cuthigh are given in O'Reilly's Dictionary as names for the Arum, from cai, a cuckoo. Old English : cuckoo's pint. Orontiace^e. Acorns calamus — Sweet- flag. Gaelic : cuilc-mhilis, sweet-rush ; " Cuilc mhilis agus canal." Calamus and cinnamon. cuilc, a reed, a cane. Greek : KaAa/xo?, applied to reeds, bul- rush canes, e.g., cuile na Leig, the reeds of Lego. Cobhan cuilc, an ark of bulrushes. Cuilc-chrann, cane ; mills (Greek : /xeAio-o-a, a bee), sweet. Before the days of carpets, this plant is said to have supplied the " rushes " with which it was customary to strew the floors of houses, churches, and monasteries. TYPHACEiE. Typha, from Greek, ™os, a marsh, in which all the species naturally grow. T. latifolia — Great reed-mace or cat's-tail. Gaelic and Irish : bodan dubh, from bod, a tail, and dubh, large, or dark. Cuigeal ?iam ban-sith, the fairy-woman's spindle. It is often, but incorrectly, called bog bhui?ie or bulrush (see Scirpus lacustris). The downy seeds were used for stuffing pillows, and the leaves for making mats, chair -bottoms, thatch, and sometimes straw hats or bonnets. T. angustifolia — Lesser reed-mace or cat's-tail. Irish : bodan (O'Reilly), dim. of bod, a tail. 224 The Scottish Naturalist. Sparganium. — Name in Greek denoting a little band, from the ribbon-like leaves. S. ramosum — Branched bur-reed. Gaelic : figh seisg, the king's sedge, from its being a large plant with sword-shaped leaves. Seisg mheirg (Stewart), — meirg, rust, a standard or banner. S. simplex — Upright bur -reed. Gaelic: seisg madraidh. Armstrong gives this name to S. erectum, by which he doubt- less means this plant. Seisg, sedge, and madradh, a dog, a mastiff. Name probably suggested by the plant being in per- fection in the dog-days, the month of July, mlos Mhadrail. Juncace^e. Juncus, from the Latin jungo, to join. The first ropes were made from rushes, and also floor covering. Ancient Gaelic : aoin, from aon, one. Latin : wius. Greek : tv. Ger. : ein. " A dath amar dhath an aeil, Coilcigh eturra agus aein. Sida eturra is brat gorm, Derg or eturra is glan chorn. " (From the description of the Lady Crehe's house by Caeilte MacRonain, from the Books of Ballymote, a rare ancient poem. ) The colour [of her dihi\ is like the colour of lime : Within it are couches and green rushes ; Within it are silks and blue mantles ; Within it are red gold and crystal cups. J. conglomeratus — Common rush. Gaelic and Irish : luachar, a general name for all the rushes, meaning splendour, brightness; hence luachar, a lamp. Latin : lucerna. Sanscrit : lauchanau, from the root, lauch, light. The pith of this and the next species was commonly used to make rush-lights. The rushes were stripped of their outer green skin, all except one narrow stripe, and then they were drawn through melted grease and laid across a stool to set. " The title Luachra was given to the chief Druid and magician, considered by the pagan Irish as a deity, who opposed St Patrick at Tara in the presence of the king and the nobility, who composed the convention " — ' Life of St Patrick.' Brog braidhe (O'Reilly), — brog, a shoe ; but here it should be brbdh, straw ; braidhe, a mountain, the mountain straw or stem. J. elfusus — Soft rush. Gaelic : luachar bog, soft rush. Irish : feath, a bog. It grows best in boggy places. Fead, which seems to be the same name, is given also to the bulrush. Fead, a whistle, a bustle. The Scottish Naturalist. 225 " 'S X\ox\m\\ox feadan caol, Air an eirich gaoth." — M'lNTYRE. Doubtless suggested by the whistling of the wind among the rushes and reeds. The common rush and the soft rush were much used in ancient times as bed - stuffs ; they served for strewing floors, making rough couches, &c. J. articulatus — Jointed rush. Gaelic : lochan nan damh. This name is given by Lightfoot in his ' Flora Scotica,' but it should have been lachan nan damh. Lachan, a reed, the ox or the hart's reed. J. squarrosus — Heath-rush, stool-bent. Gaelic : bru-corcur (M'Alpine), — bru-chorachd, the deers' moor-grass; bru, a deer, a hind ; corcach, a moor or marsh. See Scirfius. ' ' Bnichorachd as ciob, x Lusan am bi brigh," &c. — M'Intyre in 'Ben Doran.' Heath-rush and " deer's hair, " Plants nutritious they are, &c. Specimens of this plant have also been supplied with the Gaelic name ?noran labelled thereon, and in another instance muran. These names mean the plants with tapering roots ; the same signification in the Welsh, moron, a carrot. (See Muirneach — Anwwphila arenaria.) J. maritimus and acutus — Sea-rush. Irish : meithan (O'Reil- ly). Meit/i, fat, corpulent. J. acutus (the great sea-rush) is the largest British species. Luzula. — Name supposed to have been altered from Italian, /uccio/a, a glow-worm. It was called by the ancient botanists gramen luxulce (Latin, htx, light). L. sylvatica — Wood-rush. Gaelic : luachar cb'ille, the bright grass or rush of the wood. The Italian name lucciola is said to be given from the sparkling appearance of the heads of flowers when wet with dew or rain. Learman (Stewart), possibly from tear or leir, clear, discernible; a very conspicuous plant, more of the habit of a grass than a rush, the stalk rising to the height of more that two feet, and bearing a terminal cluster of brownish flowers, with large light-yellow anthers. Cyperace/E. Schoenus (from xoivos or crxotVos, a cord in Greek). — From plants of this kind cords or ropes were made. 1 See Scirpus caspitosns. VOL. VI. P 226 The Scottish Naturalist. S. nigricans — Bog - rush. Gaelic : seimhean (Armstrong). Irish: seimhin (scimh, smooth, shining — the spikelets being smooth and shining ; or which is more likely, from siobh or siobhag, straw, — hence sioman, a rope made of straw or rushes ; the Greek name ctxolvos for the same reason). Scirpus, sometimes written sirpus (Freund), seems to be cognate with the Celtic cirs, cors, a bog-plant ; hence Welsh, corsfruyn, a bulrush (Gaelic, curcais). Many plants of this genus were likewise formerly used for making ropes. (Cords, Latin, chorda ; Welsh, cord; Gaelic and Irish, corda ; Spanish, cuerda, — all derived from cors.) S. maritimus — Sea-scirpus. Gaelic and Irish : brbbh. Name from brb. bra, or bradh, a quern, a hand-mill. The roots are large and very nutritious for cattle, and in times of scarcity were ground down in the muileann bradh (French, moulin a bras), to make meal ; bracan, broth, — hence bi'acha, malt, be- cause prepared by manual labour (Greek, fipaxtoiv ; Latin, brachium ; Gaelic, braic ; French, bras, the arm). S. caespitosus — Tufted scirpus, deer's hair, heath club-rush. Gaelic : dob, dpe, and dob cheann dubh (dob = x i fi s ■> Latin, cibus, food ; ceatui, head ; dubh, black). " Le'n cridheacha' meara Le bainne na cioba. ' — M'Intyre. This is the principal food of cattle and sheep in the Highlands in March, and till the end of May. Cruach luacJiair, — cruach, a heap, a pile, a hill, and luachair, a rush. The badge of the Clan M'Kenzie. S. lacustris — Bulrush, lake-scirpus. Gaelic: gobhal luachair, the forked rush (gobhal, a fork), from the forked or branched appearance of the cymes appearing from the top of tall, terete (or nearly so), leafless stems. When this tall stem is cut, it goes by the name of cuilc, 1 a cane, and is used to bottom chairs. Irish : gibiun, — gib or giob, rough, and aoin, a rush. Gaelic and Irish, bog mliuiue, boigeau, bog luachair, bog, 2 a marsh, a fen, swampy ground, to bob, to wag, — names indicating its habitat, also its top-heavy appearance, causing it to have a bobbing or wagging motion. Curcais (curach, a marsh, a fen) is more a generic term, and equals scirpus. Min-JJicur, a bulrush. (See Festuca ovina.) 1 " Mu lochan nan cuilc a tha ruadh." — Tigiimora. 2 Bog and bblg are frequently interchanged : bblg luachair, prominent or massy rush; from bblg, gen. builg, comes bul in bulrush. The Scottish Naturalist. 227 Badge of Clan M'Kay. Eriophorum (from Ipiov, wool, and €pw, to bear). — Its seeds are covered with a woolly substance — hence it is called cotton- grass. E. vaginatum and E. polystachyon — Cotton-sedge. Scotch : cats-tail. Gaelic and Irish : canach. Irish : cona (from can, white), from its hypogynous bristles forming dense tufts of white cottony down, making the plant very conspicuous in peaty bogs. The canach in its purity and whiteness formed the object of comparison in Gaelic poetry for purity, fair complexion, &c, especially in love-songs : — " Do chneas mar an canach Co cheanalta thla." — M'Intyre. Thy skin white as the cotton-grass So tender and gentle. " Bu ghile na'n canach a cruth."— Ossian. Her form was fairer than the down of Cana. In Ossian the plant is also called caoin cheann {caoin, soft), the soft heads, fair heads. " Ghlac mi'n caoin cheanna sa' bheinn 'Siad ag aomadh mu shruthaibh thall Fo charnaibh, bu diomhaire gaoth." — TiGHMORA. I seized cotton-grasses on the hill, As they waved by their secret streams, In places sheltered from the wind. This is only the plural form of the name canach — caineichean. " Na caineichean aluinn an t-shleibh." — M'Leod. O'Reilly gives the name sgathog fiadhain to E. polystachyon, — sgath, a tail, and og (dim. termination), the little tail, — to distin- guish it from vagitiatum, which is larger. Scotch : cat's-tail. Badge of Clan Sutherland. Carex (likely from Welsh, cors ; Gaelic, carr, a bog, a marsh, or fenny ground). — This numerous family of plants grows most- ly in such situations. Scisg, sedge; gallsheilisdcar, also seilisdear amh (for Seilisdear, see Iris), — amh, raw — the raw sedge. Welsh : hesg. Seasg, barren, unfruitful. Except C. rigida, they are scarcely touched by cattle. According to Dr Hooker, carex is derived from Greek, Kcipw, from the cutting foliage. The Sanscrit root is kar, to cut, shear, divide. C. vulgaris, and many of the other large species — Common 228 The Scottish Naturalist. sedge. Gaelic : gainnisg (Stewart), — gaimie, a sedge, reed, cane, arrow; and seasg. Gramine/e. Agrostis alba— Fiorin-grass. Gaelic and Irish : fioran, feor- iue, or fior-than ; derived from Gaelic : feur, feoir, grass, herb- age, fodder. Latin: vireo, I grow green, — 7'er, spring ; fcenum, fodder — r and ?i being interchangeable. This name is applied in the dictionaries to the common couch-grass, because, like it, it retains a long time its vital power, and propagates itself by extending its roots. Alopecurus — Foxtail-grass. Gaelic : jiteag,—fit, food, refresh- ment. Latin : vita. A. geniculatus. — Gaelic : fitcag chaw, — "A chuiseag dheireach's 7\xifMteagcham" — M'Intyre. ca?n, bent, from the knee-like bend in the stalk. A valuable grass for hay and pasture. Arundo Phragmites — Reed grass. Gaelic : seasgan; seasg, a reed. Lachan, the common reed. Irish : cruisgiornach, cruisigh, music, song; from its stem reeds for pipes were manufactured. Welsh : cawn wellt, cane-grass ; qwellt, grass. Anthoxanthum odoratum — Sweet meadow-grass. Gaelic: mislean, from mi/is, sweet. " 'San canach min geal 's mislean arm." — M'Intyre. The soft white cotton-grass and the sweet grass are there. Borrach (borradh, scent, smell). — (In some places this name is given to the Nardus strieta, which see.) This is the grass that gives the peculiar smell to meadow hay. Though common in meadows, it grows nearly to the top of the Grampians (3400 feet) ; hence the names are given as " a species of mountain grass " in some dictionaries. Milium effusum — Millet -grass. Gaelic: mileid. Welsh: miled. The name derived from the true millet misapplied. Mil- let is translated in the Gaelic Bible meanbh pheasair, small peas (see Faba vulgaris). — Ezekiel iv. 9. Phleum pratense — Timothy grass, cat's-tail grass. Gaelic : bodau, a little tail ; the same name for Typha angustifolia. " This grass was introduced from New York and Carolina in 1780 by Timothy Hanson." — Loudon. It seems to have been unknown in the Hebrides and the Highlands before that date ; for Dr Walker ('Rural Econ. Hebrides,' ii. 27) says, "that it maybe The Scottish Naturalist. 229 introduced into the Highlands with good effect." Yet Lightfoot (1777) mentions it as "by the waysides, and in pastures, but not common." Bo dan is also applied to P. arenarium and P. alpinum. Lepturus filiformis. — Gaelic : ditrfheurfairge, sea hard grass. Dur, hard (Latin, dunts) ; feur, grass ; fairg, the sea, ocean, wave. It grows all round Ireland, as well as in England and South Scotland. Irish : durfher fairge (O'Reilly). Calamagrostis. — Etym. KaAa/xos, and dypocn-15, reed-grass. C. Epigejos — AVood small reed. Cuilc fheur, cane -grass; gainne = cane. Lachan coii/e, wood-rush. Ammophila arenaria (or Psamma arenaria) — Sea-maram; sea- matweed. Gaelic and Irish : muirineach, from muir (Latin mare, the sea), the ocean. It is extensively propagated to bind the sand on the seashore; generally called miiran on west coast. The same name is applied to the carrot, an alteration of moron- — a plant with large tapering roots. M'Intyre alludes to " miiran brlghar" but whether he refers to the carrot or to this grass is a matter of controversy. Not being a seaside Highlander, he was more likely to know the carrot, wild and cultivated, far better than this seaside grass, and associating it with groundsel (a plant which usually grows rather too abundantly, wherever carrots are sown), makes it a certainty that he had not the " sea- maram " in his mind. (See Daucus carota.) Avena sativa — Oats. Gaelic and Irish : coin. Welsh : ceirch. Armoric : querch. Probably from the Sanskrit karc, to crush. " Is fhearr siol caol coirce fhaotuinn a droch fheararin na' bhi falamh. " Better small oats than nothing out of bad land. The small variety, A. nuda, the naked or hill oat, when ripe, drops the grain from the husk ; it was therefore more generally cultivated two centuries ago. It was made into meal by dry- ing it on the hearth, and bruising it in a stone -mortar, the " muileann brddh" — hand-mill or quern. Many of them may still be seen about Highland and Irish cottages. A. fatua and A. pratensis — Wild oats. Gaelic: coin fiadhain, wild oats ; coirc dubh, black oats. Also applied to the Brome grasses. ( To bt continued. ) .^""ol p""**""^ . Li library! , 230 The Scottish Naturalist. PRELIMINARY LIST OF THE FLOWERING PLANTS AND FERNS OF PERTHSHIRE. By F. BUCHANAN WHITE, M.D., F.L.S. ( Continued from page 191.) DIPSACACEiE. cxxxvn. Dipsacus Tourn. 304. Sylvestris L. Very local and rare. Kirmoull Hill. CXXXVIII. SCABIOSA L. 305. Succisa L. Common. 306. Arvensis L. Common in the Lowlands. COMPOSITE. exxxix. Arctium L. 307. Lappa L. Sub-species minus Schkuhr. Not uncommon. cxl. Saussurea D. C. 308. Alpina D. C. On the richer hills, but not very common. cxli. Centaurea L. 309. Nigra L. Common. 310. Scabiosa L. Chiefly in Gowrie, where it is not un- common. 311. Cyanus L. A weed of cultivation. cxlii. Carduus L. 312. Crispus L. Rather local. Var. litigiosus Gren. and Godr. Moncreiffe. 313. Lanceolatus L. Common. 314. Arvensis Curt. Common. Var. horridus Koch. In several places. 315. Palustris L. Common. 316. Heterophyllus L. Not uncommon. 317. Marianus Gaertn. A casual, and not common. CXLIII. EUPATORIUM L. 318. Cannabinum L. Very local. cxli v. Petasites Tourn. 319. Vulgaris Desf. Not uncommon in the Lowlands. 320. Fragrans Presl. Naturalised in several places. 321. Alba Gaertn. Naturalised in one or two places. Ihe Scottish Naturalist. 231 cxlv. Tussilago Tourn. 2,22. Farfara L. Common. CXLvi. Aster L. 323. Tripolium L. Lower part of the Tay. Several other Asters are naturalised on different parts of the Tay, in- cluding A. novi-Belgii, A. longifolius, &c. cxlvii. Erigeron L. 324. Alpinus L. Rare. Breadalbane. cxlviii. Bellis L. 325. Perennis L. Common. CXLIX. SOLIUAGO L. 326. Virgaurea L. Common. cl. Anthemis L. 327. Arvensis L. Local, but not uncommon in the Lowlands, and occurs also in the Highlands. Anthemis cotula L. has been found at Birnam, and may possibly have been overlooked elsewhere. cli. Achillea L. 328. Ptarmica L. Common. 329. Millefolium L. Common. clii. Matricaria L. 330. Inodora L. Common. cliii. Chrysanthemum L. 331. Segetum L. A weed of cultivation. 332. Leucanthemum L. Common. 37,3. Parthenium Pers. Naturalised in many places. cliv. Tanacetum L. 334. Vulgare L. Not uncommon. Native (?) clv. Artemisia L. 335. Vulgaris L. Not uncommon. Native (?) clvi. Gnaphalium L. 336. Sylvaticum L. i. Sub-species rectum Sm. Common. ii. Sub - species norvegicum Gunn. Reported from Athole. 337- Uliginosum L. Common. 338. Supinum L. On many of the richer hills. 232 The Scottish Naturalist. clvii. Antennaria Br. 339. Dioica Br. Common. clvii 1. Filago L. 340. Germanica L. Var. spathulata Presl. Local, but not uncommon in the Lowlands. 341. Minima Fr. Not uncommon. CLIX. DORONICUM L. 342. Pardalianches L. 343. Plantagineum L. This and the preceding are naturalised in several places. clx. Senecio L. 344. Vulgaris L. A weed of cultivation. 345. Sylvaticus L. Local. 346. Jacobaea L. Common. Var. flosculosus Jord. Rare. Rannoch. 347. Aquaticus Huds. Common. Var. barbarazifolius Reich. Banks of the Tay. clxi. Lapsana L. 348. Communis L. Common. clxii. Hypochceris L. 349. Radicata L. Common. clxi 1 1. Tragopogon L. 350. Pratensis L. Not common, and chiefly in Gowrie. Var. minor Fr. The usual form. clxiv. Leontodon L. 351. Hirtus L. Reported long ago from Dupplin. 352. Autumnalis L. Common. Var. pratensis Koch. Commonest on the hills. clxv. Lactuca L. 353. Virosa L. Very local. clxvi. Taraxacum Juss. 354. Officinale Wigg. Var. dens-lconis Desf. Common. Var. erythrospcrnium Andrz. Very local. Var. lazvigatum D. C. Very local. Var. palustre D. C. Not uncommon on the hills. The Scottish Naturalist. 2$$ clxvii. Crepis L. 355. Virens L. Common. 356. Paludosa Moench. Not uncommon. CLXVIII. SONCHUS L. 357. Arvensis L. 358. Oleraceus L. i. Sub-species oleraceus. ii. Sub-species asper Hoffm. All weeds of cultivation. S. asper is the least common. CLXIX. HlERACIUM L. 359. Pilosella L. Common. 360. Aurantiacum L. Naturalised in a few places. 361. Alpinum L. Rare. Var. holosericeum Backh. Breadalbane and Athole. Var. eximium Backh. Rannoch and Athole. Var. calenduliflorum Backh. Rannoch and Glenshee. 362. Nigrescens Willd. Rare. Var. pulmonai'ium Sm. Breadalbane. Var. globosum Backh. Athole. Var. senescens Backh. Breadalbane. Var. chrysanthum Backh. Athole. Var. lingulatum Backh. Breadalbane. 363. Lawsoni Sm. Sub-species anglicum Fr. Not uncommon on the hills. Var. acutifolium Backh. Breadalbane. 364. Murorum L. i. Sub-species murorum. Common. ii. Sub-species pallidum Backh. Not common. arge?iteum Fr. Rare. Hi. Sub-species caesium Backh. Rare. 365. Sylvaticum Sm. Sub-species vulgatum Fr. Common. 366. Prenanthoides Vill. Local. 367. Strictum Fr. Local. 368. Crocatum Fr. i. Sub-species inuloides Tausch. Breadalbane. ii. Sub-species corymbosum Fr. Breadalbane, &c. LOBELIACE^J. clxx. Lobelia L. 369. Dortmanna L. Not uncommon. 234 The Scottish Naturalist. CAMPANULACE^J. clxxi. Campanula L. 370. Rotund ifolia L. Common. Var. montana Bosw. On the hills. 371. Latifolia L. Local. 372. Rapunculoides L. Naturalised in a few places. ERICACEAE. CLXXII. Vaccinium L. 373. Myrtillus L. Common. 374. Uliginosum L. Local ; on the higher hills. 375. Vitis-idaea L. Common in the Highlands; rarer in the Lowlands. clxxiii. Oxycoccos Tourn. 376. Palustris Pers. Rare, but widely distributed. clxxiv. Arctostaphylos Adan. 377. Uva-ursi Spreng. On the hills, but local. clxxv. Andromeda L. 378. Polifolia L. Blairdrummond Moss. clxxvi. Erica L. 379. Tetralix L. Common. 380. Cinerea L. Common. clxxvii. Calluna Salis. 381. Vulgaris Salis. Common. clxxviii. Phyllodoce Salis. 382. Caerulea Bab. SowofAthole. clxxix. Loiseleuria Desv. 383. Procumbens Desv. On the higher Silurian hills, but not general. clxxx. Pyrola Tourn. 384. Minor Sw. Not uncommon in the Lowlands, rarer in the Highlands. 385. Media L. Not uncommon in the Highlands, rarer in the Lowlands. 386. Rotundifolia L. Reported from " Mid Perth." 387. Secunda L. Local and rare. 388. Uniflora L. Scone. The Scottish Naturalist 235 OLEACE^. clxxxi. Fraxinus Tourn. 389. Excelsior L. Not uncommon, both native and natural- ised. GENTIANACKffi. clxxxii. Erythr^ea Pers. 390. Centaurium Pers. Local and rare. clxxxiii. Gentiana L. 391. Campestris L. Common, especially in the Highlands. 392. Amarella L. Blair-Athole. Moor of Durdie (?) 393. Nivalis L. Very local. Breadalbane. clxxxiv. Menyanthes Tourn. 394. Trifoliata L. Common. CLXXXV. LlMNANTHEMUM Link. 395- Nymphaeoides Link. Moncreiffe, but doubtless planted. CONVOLVULACE^. clxxxvi. Convolvulus L. 396. Arvensis L. Local and rare. 397. Sepium L. Rare, and not native. clxxxvii. Cuscuta Tourn. 398. Europsea L. Seggieden, but doubtless an introduction. 499. Trifolii Bab. Occasionally found. An introduction. BORAGINACE^. clxxxvi 11. Echium Tourn. 400. Vulgare L. Local. clxxxix. Symphytum Tourn. 401. Officinale L. and var. patens Sibth. Not common. Doubtfully indigenous. 402. Tuberosum L. Local. Native (?) cxc. Anchusa L. 403. Arvensis Bieb. A weed of cultivation. 404. Sempervirens L. Naturalised in a few places. 236 The Scottish Naturalist. CXCT. LlTHOSPERMUM Tourn. 405. Officinale L. Loch Earn and Kinclaven. 406. Arvensis L. Chiefly in Gowrie. A weed of cultivation. cxcn. Myosotis L. 407. Palustris With. Common. Var. strigulosa Reich. In several places. 408. Lingulata Lehm. Common. 409. Repens Don. Local. 410. Alpestris Schmidt. Breadalbane. 411. Arvensis HorTm. Common. Var. u?nbrosa Bab. Not uncommon. 412. Collina Hoffm. Local. 413. Versicolor Reich. Common. cxciii. Cynoglosum Tourn. 414. Officinale L. Gowrie only, and local. 415. Montanum Lamk. Barnhill and Fingask ; perhaps native. SOLANACE^]. cxciv. Hyoscyamus Tourn. 416. Niger L. Very local and rare, and only a casual. cxcv. Solanum Tourn. 417. Dulcamara L. Not common. 418. Nigrum L. Pitlochry. Casual. cxcvr. Atropa L. 419. Belladonna L. Very rare, and probably an escape. PLANTAGINACE^3. cxcvn. Plantago L. 420. Major L. Common. 421. Media L. Rare, and only on old lawns, where it has been probably introduced. 422. Lanceolata L. Common.. Var. Tivibali Jord. Perth Harbour. Casual. 423. Maritima L. Banks of the Tay, &c, and mountain valleys. Not uncommon. 424. Coronopus L. Near Invergowrie. CXCVIII. LlTTORELLA L. 425. Lacustris L. Common. The Scottish Naturalist. 237 SCROPHULARIACE^]. cxcix. Verbascum L. 426. Thapsus L. Local, and not common. 427. Nigrum L. Very rare. An escape. cc. Linaria Tourn. 428. Cvmbalaria Mill. Naturalised in several places. 429. Vulgaris Mill. Local, and not very common. 430. Repens Ait. Naturalised in two places. cci. Antirrhinum Tourn. 431. Majus L. Rocks on Kinnoull Hill. Very rare. An escape. ecu. Scrophularia Tourn. 432. Nodosa L. Common. 433- Vernalis L. Naturalised in one or two places. cciii. Mimulus L. 434. Luteus L. Not uncommon. Naturalised. cciv. Digitalis Tourn. 435. Purpurea L. Common. ccv. Veronica Tourn. 436. Agrestis L. A weed of cultivation. i. Sub-species agrestis. Common. ii. Sub-species polita Fr. Rare, or overlooked. 437. Buxbaumii Ten. Not common. An introduction. 438. Hederaefolia L. In the Lowlands chiefly. A weed of cultivation. 439. Peregrina L. A weed in the Perth nurseries. 440. Arvensis L. Common. 441. Serpyllifolia L. i. Sub-species serpyllifolia. Common. ii. Subspecies humifusa Dicks. On the richer hills. 442. Alpina L. Rare. Rannoch and Athole ; Breadalbane (?) 443. Saxatilis L. On several of the richer hills, but local. 444. Officinalis L. Common. 445. Chamsedrys L. Common. 446. Montana L. Local, and not common. 447. Scutellata L. Common. 448. Beccabunga L. Common. 449. Anagallis L. Local, and chiefly in Gowrie. 238 The Scottish Naturalist. ccvi. Bartsia L. 450. Alpina L. Breadalbane. 451. Odontites Huds. Not uncommon. Calyx often 5-fid. ccvn. Euphrasia Tourn. 452. Officinalis L. Common. Var. gracilis Fr. Common. ccviii. Rhinanthus L. 453. Crista-galli L. Sub-species minor Ehr. Common. ccix. Pedicularis Tourn. 454. Palustris L. Common. 455. Sylvatica L. Common. ccx. Melampyrum Tourn. 456. Pratense L. Common in the Highlands, rare in the Lowlands. Var. montanum Johnst. On the hills. A white- flowered variety also occurs. 457. Sylvaticum L. Very local. Var. pallidi flora White. A thole. OROBANCHACE^E. ccxi. Lathr^ea L. 458. Squamaria L. Very local, and not common. LABIATE. ccxii. Mentha L. 459. Sylvestris L. Var. mollissima Bork. Very local. 460. Viridis L. Rare. An escape. 461. Piperita Huds. Not common. An escape (?) 462. Aquatica L. Sub-species hirsuta L. Common. 463. Sativa L. Not common. 464. Arvensis L. Common. ccxiii. Origanum Tourn. 465. Vulgare L. Local, and chiefly in the Lowlands. The Scottish Naturalist. 239 ccxiv. Thymus L. 466. Serpyllum L. i. Sub-species serpyllum. Common in the Lowlands. ii. Sub-species chamaedrys Fr. Common in the High- lands. ccxv. Calamintha Mcench. 467. Clinopodium Benth. Rather local. 468. Acinos Clairv. Rare. ccxvi. Nepeta L. 469. Glechoma Benth. Common. Var. hirsuta Waldst. and Kit. Moncreiffe, &c. ccxvi 1. Prunella L. 470. Vulgaris L. Common. ccxviii. Scutellaria L. 471. Galericulata L. Local. ccxix. Stachys L. 472. Sylvatica L. Common. 473. Palustris L. Common. Var. ambigua Sm. Very rare. 474. Arvensis L. Rare, and chiefly in Gowrie. 475. Betonica Benth. Very local. ccxx. Galeopsis L. 476. Ladanum L. Sub-species angustifolia Ehrh. Carse of Gowrie. Rare. 477. Tetrahit L. i. Sub-species tetrahit. Common. Var. bifida Bcenn. The commonest form. ii. Sub-species speciosa Miller. Common. ccxxi. Lamium L. 478. Purpureum L. /. Sub-species purpureum. Common. Var. decipiens Sond. Moncreiffe. ii. Sub-species hybridum Vill. Less common. 479. Amplexicaule L. Common, and like pu ■rfureutn, a weed of cultivation. 480. Album L. Not uncommon in the Lowlands. Native (?) 48 1. Maculatum L. Naturalised in a few places. ccxxii. Teucrium L. 482. Scorodonia L. Common. 240 The Scottish Naturalist. CCXXIII. AjUGA L. 483. Reptans L. Common. LENTIBULARIACEJ3. ccxxiv. Pinguicula Tourn. 484. Vulgaris L. Common. ccxxv. Utricularia L. 485. Vulgaris L. Very local. Flowers have not been seen, so the identification is so far doubtful. 486. Intermedia Hayne. Very local, but widely distributed. 487. Minor L. Local, but widely distributed. PRIMULACE^J. ccxxvi. Primula L. 488. Vulgaris Huds. Common. 489. Veris L. Common. ccxxvu. Lysimachia L. 490. Vulgaris L. Native in the south-west of Perthshire. 491. Nemorum L. Common. 492. Nummularia L. Very local. Perhaps native (?) 493. Thyrsiflora L. Very local and rare. ccxxviii. Trientalis L. 494. Europaea L. Common in the Highlands ; not uncommon in the Lowlands. ccxxix. Glaux Tourn. 495. Maritima L. Lower part of the Tay. ccxxx. Centunculus L. 496. Minimus L. Very local, or overlooked. ccxxxi. Anagallis Tourn. 497. Arvensis L. A corn-field weed. Not very common. PLUMBAGINACE^E. ccxxxi 1. Armeria Willd. 498. Vulgaris Willd. Banks of the Tay, &c. Var. planifolia Bosw. On the hills, but rare. ( To be continued. ) GEOLOGY. \L THE INTEROEOSSING OP EEEATIOS IN GLAOI DEPOSITS. By JAMES GEIKIE, LL.D., F.R.S., F.G.S., Of H.M. Geological Survey of Scotland. {Continued from page 200. ) i£ > NO one of late years has been more assiduous in the collec- tion of facts relating to the intercrossing of erratics in the drift-deposits of England than Mr D. Mackintosh. He has written many instructive and interesting descriptions of the phenomena in question, which he justly thinks are of prime importance from a theoretical point of view. In a recent paper 1 he presents us with the results of a systematic survey of the direction and limits of dispersion of the erratics of the west of England and east of Wales, which he evidently is of opinion afford strong support to the iceberg theory, while at the same time they are directly opposed to the theory of transport by land-ice. I have attentively considered all the arguments advanced by Mr Mac- kintosh in favour of his views — the one upon which he appar- ently lays most stress being that of the intercrossings of erratics observed by him — and I shall now proceed to point out how the phenomena described by him are most satisfactorily explained by the land-ice theory. They seem to me, indeed, to lend ad- ditional support to that theory, in the same manner as the inter- crossings of boulders observed in Scotland, Northern Germany, &c, and the sub-alpine regions of France. Mr Mackintosh calls attention to the fact that erratics of the well-known Criffel granite are found scattered over a large part of the plain of Cum- berland, from which they extend south along the coast to near the mouth of the estuary of the Duddon. They reappear again on the coast in the neighbourhood of Blackpool and Liverpool, and at intervals on the coasts of North Wales from Flint to Colwyn Bay, and thence to Penmaenmawr and the neighbourhood of Beaumaris. They are dispersed over the peninsula of Wirral 1 ' Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc.,'vol. xxxv. p. 425. VOL. VI. Q 242 The Scottish Naturalist. and the Cheshire plain, &c, and they have been followed south-east as far as the neighbourhood of Cardington near Church Stretton, Burton, Wolverhampton, Stafford, Hare Castle, Macclesfield, and Manchester. This great stream of boulders, therefore, spreads out to south-east, south, and south-west : the erratics, to quote Mr Mackintosh, " have radiated from an area much smaller than their terminal breadth." The same is the case, I may remark in passing, with erratics in the boulder-clays of Scotland, Scandinavia, North Germany, &c, as also with those in the drift-deposits of the great Rhone glacier and other ancient glaciers both on the north and south side of the Alps. Now the course followed by the Criffel erratics is crossed at an acute angle by that pursued by many boulders of Eskdale granite, and various felspathic rocks derived from the Cumber- land mountains. For example, Cumberland erratics of the kinds mentioned occur near St Asaph, and Moel-y-Tryfane, and in Anglesey, and they have been followed over a wide district in Cheshire, &c, extending as far south as Church Stretton and Wolverhampton, and as far east as Rochdale. More than this, we find that numerous erratics of felstone, derived from the mountain of Great Arenig in North Wales, have gone to north- east as far as Halkin Mountain in Flintshire, Eryrys near Llanarmon, and Chirk, from which last-named place they have been traced in a south-easterly direction to Birmingham, Broms- grove, &c. A glance at a map of England will show that this south-easterly drift of erratics crosses at an acute angle the paths followed by the Criffel granite boulders and the erratics derived from Cumberland, so that we have now several " intercrossings " to account for. How can this be done by the land-ice theory ? The explanation seems to me obvious, for the phenomena are, after all, less striking than similar appearances which have been observed in Scotland, especially by my colleagues, Messrs Peach and Home, in Caithness and the Orkney and Shetland Islands ; and they are certainly less intricate than the facts re- corded by MM. Falsan and Chantre concerning the intercross- ing, interosculation, and direct opposition of erratic paths in Savoy and Dauphine. We have only to reflect that the great mer de glace — to which, as I believe, all the English phenomena are due — did not come into existence and attain its maximum dimensions in the twinkling of an eye, nor could it afterwards have disappeared in the same sudden manner. On the contrary ? a period of local glaciation must have preceded the appearance The Scottish Naturalist. 243 of the great ice-sheet. At first, and for a long time, permanent snow would be confined to the higher elevations of the land, and glaciers would be limited to mountain-valleys : but as the tem- perature fell the snow-line would gradually descend, until at last, probably after a prolonged period, it reached what is now the sea-level. Thus the formation of neve and glacier-ice would eventually take place over what are now our low grounds, and other tracts also, which are now submerged. It is quite impos- sible that the vast sheets of ice which can be demonstrated to have covered Scotland, a large part of England, Ireland, Scandi- navia, and North Germany, and even the limited area of the Fasroe Islands, could possibly have been fed by the snow-fields of mountain heights only. The precipitation and accumulation of snow, and the formation of neve and glacier-ice, must have taken place over enormous regions in what are now the tem- perate latitudes of Europe. It is obvious that the direction of ice-flow in the basin of the Irish Sea opposite the south of Scotland and the west of Eng- land, while preserving a general southerly trend, would vary at different periods. Before the mer de glace in that basin had attained its climax, there must have been a time when the ice, streaming outwards from the high grounds of Cumberland, was enabled to push its way far westward out into the basin of the Irish Sea. At that time it was still able to hold its own against the pressure exerted by the Scottish ice. But as the general mer de glace increased in thickness, the course of the Cumberland ice would be diverted ever further and further to the south-east, until, eventually, the Scottish ice came to hug the coast of Cum- berland, and to overflow Lancashire in its progress towards the south-east. So gorged with ice did the basin of the Irish