ON THE FLOEA OF NOBTHEKN CHINA. 375 



their margins, leaving a hollow space in the axis, where they do 

 not adhere together. I must not omit to mention that when a 

 transverse section of the seed is made (not previously macerated), 

 the embryo is white, extremely hard, with the texture of cow- 

 horn, or nearly as dense as ivory. 



A Contribution to the Flora of Northern C 

 By J. G. Bakee, F.K.S., F.L.S., and S. Le M. ftfooEE, F.L.S. 



[Bead June 19, 1879.] 

 (Plate XVI.) 



In October 1877 there reached Kew a collection of 600 speci- 

 mens, made by Mr. John Ross in the province of Schin King, the 

 most northerly portion of the Celestial Empire, and situated 

 between latt. 40° and 42° N. Owing to the unfrequented nature of 

 this province, and to the rich returns which have accrued to ex- 

 plorers in neighbouring parts of Eastern Asia, it was our hope 

 to be able to note, by way of excursus, some facts of geogra- 

 phical interest. The collection, as a whole, is by no means 

 devoid of noteworthy points, as is sufficiently evinced by the 

 discovery of such forms as Exochorda serratifolia (an addition to 

 a genus that has for years remained monotypic), Saxifraga Rossii, 

 Brachybotys paridiformis , and Setula exalata. Withal many of the 

 specimens prove to be duplicates, such a number are in too frag- 

 mentary a state to come to any decision about*, and the flora of 

 Eastern Asia is being so rapidly augmented by the labours of 

 Maxim owicz, Hance, Franchet, and others as to cause the inva- 

 lidation of any code of results after a very short period. Hence 

 we have relinquished our original intention, and content ourselves 

 with laying before the Society a list with localities of such of 

 the species as could be determined, together with descriptions of 

 those which seem new to science. 



Kanuncttlaceje. 

 Clematis panicttlata, TJibg. West of Chienshan ; Jaoling. 

 Anemone hepatica, L. (hairy form). Kwandien mountains. 



Among the fragments, we may notice a new Prunus, near P. japonica ; 

 a curious Centaurea (§ E haponticum) , an apparently undescribed Rhodo- 

 dendron near R. dilatatum, Miq. ; a very large-fruited Ulmus or Holoptclca, 

 seemingly quite different from any thing hitherto known, several Willows, 

 Carices. &c. 





