1918] Long,— American Record of Scirpus mucronatus 45 
height. They are robust plants with heads of about 5-15 spikelets, 
in ripe fruit. There are three tickets attached to this sheet, two of 
which are of interest. What is apparently the original collection 
label reads: “Scirpus mucronatus, Rhodes Swamp, Springfield, Del. 
Co., Sept. 18, 1864. Leidy, C. E. Smith, Geo. Smith, A. H. Smith, 
testes.” This is written in a light ink in the hand of Aubrey Smith. 
In an upper corner of this ticket is pencilled “Gray says it is S. muc. 
Torrey says the same.” Under which is written in a dark ink “ (They 
arein error. A. H. S. Apr. 20, 68)” and under “Scirpus mucronatus” 
in the same dark ink appears inserted “This is S. debilis, Pursh. 
A. H. S.” The second ticket is a long, critical note on the compara- 
tive characters of “the European plant” and “the American,” in 
the characteristic hand and form of Charles E. Smith. There are 
sixteen lines of comparative description, in which he says, in small 
part, “ The culm and involucre of our plant are slender. . . .and nearly 
terete — those of the European are stout, triangular.” At the foot 
of the note he also has affirmed his conviction — “Scirpus debilis, 
Pursh. Not S. mucronatus.” The other sheet bears a label in 
Aubrey Smith’s hand, “Scirpus debilis, Rhodes Swamp, Del. Co.” 
and a note, “This plant differs much from the plant usually called 
by this name — it is much stouter with more numerous spikes — has 
few or no leaves and has the involucre bent to one side.’’ His descrip- 
tion accurately fits the robust plant on the sheet, and his idea of char- 
acteristic debilis is readily explained, for the most part, by the other 
specimens he had — material from Upper Darby and from Lancaster 
County being of plants much smaller and more slender, with heads 
of fewer spikelets and the involucral leaves mostly erect. (These 
are not Scirpus Smithii, however, which is a quite distinct species. ) 
The Herbarium of the Delaware County Institute of Science at 
Media, Pennsylvania contains many valuable specimens bearing on 
local records. Here there is a sheet of Scirpus debilis from Rhoads’ 
Swamp originally bearing the name “Scirpus mucronatus??”’ Its 
identity had already been the source of considerable divergence of 
opinion before it came under my own hand, for its original identifica- 
tion with two interrogation points had been corrected to “debilis,” 
which in its turn had been discredited and “mucronatus” restored. 
But despite the apparent conclusiveness of all this Philadelphia 
evidence, it is not to be forgotten that the record of 1889 technically 
rests upon the material at New York seen by Dr. Britton. He has 
