1919] Miller,— A Distinction between Carices 23 
Batchelder's Flora of Manchester, New Hampshire, and Vicinity 
reports the species as very rare at Andover, New Hampshire. "There 
is also a report of it from Gill, Massachusetts, in Stone's Flora of 
Franklin and Hampden Counties. 
In Europe it has a fairly wide range throughout the western part 
of the continent and as far east as the Caucasus. Apparently it 
frequents the more hilly regions, not getting into the steppe country 
of Russia. It is reported as growing in the mountain pastures, 
heaths, moors and sterile places. In Switzerland and Italy it is 
found in the subalpine regions, through the Apennines, Corsica 
and Sardinia. 
As Waterville is subalpine, and the golf-links have a sterile acid 
soil, forming a habitat much like that which it frequents in its Euro- 
pean home, the colony may become permanently established here. 
It must have existed for a number of years, if one may judge by the 
size and vigor of the tufts, but it had been previously overlooked by 
the writer. This grass (wire-bent or mat-grass) is rather noticeable 
in appearance, growing in tufts with tough, closely matted culm-bases, 
fine wiry dark-green leaves a foot or more long, and curious secund 
spikes with a double row of single-flowered spikelets. The attention 
of collectors is called to it. Specimens have been deposited in the 
Gray Herbarium. 
HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT. 
^. 
A DISTINCTION BETWEEN TWO CaRICES.— Carex laxiculmis Schwein- 
itz and C. digitalis Willdenow are well-marked species of sedges 
which can, as a rule, be easily separated by any one of the half-dozen 
characters given in the manuals. These diagnostic features are all 
somewhat variable, however, so that occasional plants are puzzling 
and nearly connect the two species. The one recognized variety, 
C. laxiculmis copulata, was originally described by Prof. Bailey as 
C. digitalis var. copulata, and was treated as a variety of the latter 
species by Kükenthal in 1909. Any additional mark of distinction 
between these two species is therefore welcome, particularly if con- 
stant. Such a character seems to be found in the nature of the pistil- 
late spikes. In both species there are normally from one to three 
minute scales at the tip of each pistillate spike; these are usually 
