1914] Fernald,— The alpine Bearberries 29 
bricated in the bud. Stamens 10, rarely 8, included; filaments short, subulate; 
anthers short, erect, introrse, with 2 recurved awns on the back, the sacs 
opening by a terminal pore. Disk 8—10-lobed. Ovary 4-10-celled; ovules 
solitary in the cavities; style slender. Fruit a drupe, with 4—10 seed-like 
nutlets coherent into a solid stone." 
AnRCTOUS (* MarRANIA").. .“ A low shrub, with shreddy bark, alternate thin 
deciduous leaves clustered toward the ends of the branches, and small white 
clustered pedieelled flowers. Calyx 4-5-parted. Corolla 4-5-toothed, the 
short teeth spreading or recurved. Stamens 8 or 10, included; anther-saes 
with 2 recurved dorsal awns. Ovary 4-5-celled; ovules 1 in each cavity. 
Drupe globose, with 4 or 5 separate 1-seeded nutlets." ! 
The description of Arctous (“ Mairania") is briefer than the other, 
but it seems to contain only these strongly contrasting or by inference 
opposing characters: Arctous “with shreddy bark, . . .thin deciduous 
leaves" as opposed to Arctostaphylos with character of bark not stated, 
leaves "petioled, firm or coriaceous, persistent, evergreen"; and 
Arctous with nutlets separate as opposed to Arctostaphylos “with 
4-10 seed-like nutlets coherent into a solid stone." "The key states 
these points concisely : 
" Nutlets coalescent; leaves persistent. 19. Arctostaphylos 
Nutlets separate; leaves deciduous. 20. Mairania." 
Some others, Drude? for instance, add to these characters the juicier 
pulp of Arctous as contrasted with the more mealy pulp of Arcto- 
staphylos. | Niedenzu;? on the other hand, bases his "generic" dis- 
tinction chiefly on the anatomical structure of the leaves, Arctostaphy- 
los Uva-ursi and others (with the exception of A. glauca which is 
allowed to remain in Arctostaphylos) having a more or less dense coat 
of pubescence on the leaves (“Deckhaare vorhanden U) Arctous 
having glabrous leaves (“ Deckhaare fehlen"), ete. 
If all these contrasting characters, ascribed by one person or another 
to Arctous as opposed to Arctostaphylos, would only exhibit themselves 
in nature as they do on paper the genus Arctous would have much to 
commend it; but unfortunately not one of the weightier characters 
stands three minutes’ test in a representative herbarium. The shreddy 
bark, for example, of the trailing branches of Arctostaphylos (or Are- 
tous) alpina is so like that of Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi that only after 
long practice could the two be distinguished by the bark. 
! Britton in Britton & Brown, Ill. Fl. ii. 572 (1897). 
? Drude in Engler & Prantl, Pflanzenf. iv. Ab. 1, 49 (1889). 
3 Niedenzu in Engler, Bot. Jahrb. xi. 178, 179 (1890). 
