VOL. 11. ] Plants of Baa California. 151 
Santos and its absence from those of San José and other places, 
creates a suspicion that it may be an introduced species. The 
Notholene are of course handsome ferns, but the most graceful of 
all is Adiantum concinnum, which grows with its long fronds pendent 
from rocks and overhanging the streams of the Sierra de la Laguna. 
The inhabitants of the Cape Region are dependent on the vegeta- 
tion in many ways and the native plants are put to all possible uses. 
Very many of them are credited with medicinal properties and every 
disease is treated by some plant which is supposed to at least allevi- 
ate the sufferings of the person affected. Bark of the different 
“ copal’’ trees tan the hides ; small sticks cut from bushes are tied 
together with rawhide into crates for holding ‘‘pinoche’’ and even 
complete dwellings are constructed wholly from native bushes. Va- 
rious wild fruits, such as Solanum nigrum, Malphigia, Vallesia, etc., 
not as desirable as those of Cactacee and Cyrtocarpa (ciruela) are often 
eaten. The intimate association of the vegetation with their existence 
has broughta certain knowledge of the plants to the people, greater 
than is usually found in more civilized communities. Nearly all the 
plants have local names, sometimes of Indian origin, often undoubt- 
edly very old and many times evidently applied at a more recent date. 
The old women are the best authorities in native nomenclature, 
probably on account of their habit of collecting and preparing the 
medicines for family use. In common with many people holding 
much higher rank they do not like to admit ignorance and when- 
ever a plant is shown to them are sure to name it something, and 
although nearly all the plants really do possess distinct names, some 
of these names include several species and genera. Such a one is 
‘yerba del venado’’ (deer brush), which is applied to Porophyllum 
and is sometimes used in the same sense that “ grease wood’? is 
in Alta California,—that is fora mixture of small bushes of many 
sorts. Pega-pega is usually applied to the different members of the 
Loasa family but may mean any plant whose leaves and twigs stick 
to the clothing in the same way. Plumieria is known as * Caca- 
loxochitl,” a corruption of an old Aztec word and the same term is 
applied to this showy bush or tree in Central America. Many 
~ names of Lower Californian plants are given to species and genera 
very different from those having the same name on the mainland of 
Mexico. 
