1904] Ames, — Spiranthes ne^lecta 27 



the visit over and the friend gone, his hours were immediately read- 

 justed to the old routine. 



To the casual acquaintance Mr. Frost spoke of his botanical 

 interests only when questioned, but he welcomed everyone who came 

 to him for botanical help, assisted courteously, and was always ready 

 to give careful directions for finding the station of any plant for 

 which the student might be inquiring. 



When this reserved man labeled a specimen "more precious than 

 gold " he was giving for a moment a swift vision of the enthusiasm 

 and love for his' special calling which lay deep in his strong nature, 

 where it burned like a fine fire. Mr. Frost's character in its entirety 

 makes him a representative of a type challenging admiration, com- 

 pelling respect and inspiring to ideals of patient, thorough, and 

 persevering work. It is not necessary for me to speak specifically of 

 Mr. Frost's work in his chosen field of botanical research. Any 

 discussion of this subject would come far more fittingly from the 

 University of Vermont, which has just done so much to honor his 

 name and has given his work a permanent place and association with 

 her history. 



SPIRANTHES NEGLECTA. 



Oakes Ames. 

 (Plate 51.) 



What I propose to call Spiranthes ne^/ecta, is a rare New Eng- 

 land orchid, often confused with Spiranthes praecox^ Watson, of the 

 Southern states. It is scantily represented in most herbaria, though 

 the known stations from which it is reported are numerous enough 

 to show tliat the characters considered of specific value are not con- 

 fined to a localized form. In the New England Botanical Club Her- 

 barium there is a single specimen from Connecticut ; in the Gray 

 Herbarium there are several specimens, among them one from 

 Washington, D. C, and one from Georgia, but none from New Eng- 

 land, if we exclude a specimen with nothing more definite on the 

 label as to habitat than, "collected on the Cape, August, 1896," 

 which conjecturally may be ascribed to Massachusetts. Mr. Walter 



