278 ON TIIE IRISH CAREX RHYNCHOPHYSA. 
these plants, whether growing in the marsh, or in shallow water, 
or in the deeper water of the drain itself, showed the peculiar 
outline and shape of the fruit which I take to be characteristic 
of the Finland and North European plant; although those from 
the drain, and others also growing in other ditehes and drains 
near the Lough, seemed to be, so far as my recollection went, 
identical with the plant figured in the ‘Journal of Botany’ as 
C. rhynchophysa. The spikes also varied considerably iu shape, 
some with large fruit being much longer and comparatively thinner 
than those figured, while others with short, stout spikes had 
smaller fruit. 
Therefore, after the somewhat prolonged search, I came away 
very sceptical as to having gathered the true C. rhynchophysa ; 
and on reaching home, a comparison of my specimens with 
Finland, Swedish, and Russian plants convinced me that I had 
been unsuccessful. On the other hand, my specimens appeared 
to be inseparable from the plant figured in the ‘ Journal of Botany’ 
as C. rhynchophysa. 1 therefore communicated with Mr. Praeger, 
and he kindly told me that he had presented specimens to the ' 
herbaria of Kew and the British Museum. At the earliest 
opportunity I consulted the herbaria of the latter institution, but 
found that the Irish Carex rhynchophysa had not yet been placed 
amongst the British plants. At Kew I was more fortunate, for, 
kindly assisted by Mr. C. B. Clarke and Mr. N. E. Brown, I was 
enabled to examine Mr. Praeger’s specimen. ‘This, with all 
deferenee to Mr. Arthur Bennett's well-known knowledge, is in 
my opinion not the true C. rhynchophysa of North European 
botanists, but an extreme form of Carex rostrata, Stokes, which 
has been called var. latifolia by Ascherson, and agrees exaetly 
with some of my specimens of that plant collected at Mullagh- 
more and corroborated by Pfarrer Kükenthal. Messrs, Clarke 
aud Brown also agree with me in referring my own plants and 
that of Mr. Praeger to C. rostrata, and in considering that 
neither is identieal with true C. rhynchophysa from Northeru 
Europe. From this it differs, as Mr. Brown observes, in the 
spikes of the Irish plant being not so stout in proportion to 
their length, in being usually longer, in the utricles being not so 
crowded as they are in C. rhynchophysa, thus giving the spikes 
a different appearance ; in the utricle of the Irish plant being 
not so abruptly contracted into a beak, and in the beak being 
