1900] Churchill, — An unusual form of Drosera 71 
,leaved Sundews (Drosera intermedia Hayne, var. Americana, DC.), 
which I collected here on July 4, 1898, were behaving in such unusual 
fashion that it seems proper to record it. 
Our Sundews are all “stemless ” plants, so called; that is to say, 
the leaves are all tufted at the base of the flower-stock in a rosette upon 
the ground. When, however, this long-leaved species gets into deep 
water, it gets out by raising this basal rosette of leaves, and the flower- 
stalk, “on its prolonged caudex " (Gray, Manual, 6th ed. p. 178), the 
* rootstock " (not the stem), “is elongated two to four inches when 
growing in water" (Britt. & Brown, Ill. Flora, II, p. 161). And we 
often find such specimens with the tuft of root-leaves many inches from 
the ground, after the water has perhaps subsided. Now, these long- 
leaved Sundews at Ponkapog were growing upon a floating mud-bank, 
and, though but little submerged, they were getting up, not at all by 
the elongation of the rootstock, as prescribed, but by the elongation of 
the stem proper, thus transforming our stemless Drosera into a long- 
stemmed plant with scattered leaves. The leaves were no longer tufted 
at the base, but by the lengthening of the internodes were now disposed 
separately along the stem. 
This is so well shown by the figure which Mr. Faxon has kindly 
drawn that little further description is needed. The plants were from 
six to ten inches high, not more than two inches below the water, and 
branched from the base. ‘There were no traces of flowers or fruit; the 
unusual development of stem and leaf had apparently exhausted the 
plant and rendered it sterile. 
The significance of this unusual development remains in doubt. 
Some exotic members of this family are caulescent. Is this a reversion 
to an ancient type, which is so often suggested or indicated by such 
abnormal growths? Or are these individuals the forerunners or ad- 
vance guard in their species, progressing through evolution and natural 
selection towards a superior and more advantageous form, to which 
their related species have long ago attained? — J. R. CHURCHILL, 
Boston. 
EXPLANATION OF PLATE 15, fig 8. Caulescent form of Drosera intermedia, 
var. Americana, 
RUSSULA EMETICA IN VERMONT.— Russu/a emetica Fr. has been fre- 
quently reported for the United States, but, until last October, I had 
failed to collect specimens clearly referable to it.. Its close relative 
