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out violence to nature be considered a variety of D. cicutania.” 
Judging from his description this is true, for it reads as if it might 
have been drawn from a frond of that species. Grisebach, how- 
ever, while still] retaining Swartz as the author of the species, gave 
it as “ non Hook,” thus showing that he did not agree with Hook- 
er’s description. Then came the « Synopsis Filicum,” which gave 
D. dissecta asa synonym of D. adiantoides 1.B.K., a bipinnate 
fern, and also gave it as “ Grisebach, non Hooker,” thus agreeing 
with Grisebach who gave “LD. adiantoides W. non Hook,” as a 
synonym for D. dissecta. This still further complicated the matter. 
The latest author to treat of the subject is Mr. G. S. Jenman in 
his “ Ferns of Jamaica,” 1891. He makes D. adiantoides H.B.K. 
the same as D. Pavoni in Hooker's « Species,” and places it next 
to D. Plumient HK. which has sori extending all around the edge 
of frond. His D, dissecta is placed next after D. cicutaria and D. 
apifolia, thus making it accord with them in a general way, as it 
undoubtedly does, : 
The Synonymy of D. dissecta is therefore decidedly mixed; 
but I accept Mr. Jenman as my guide, not only because he has 
been the latest to investigate the subject, and has enjoyed the 
Privileges of the Kew herbarium and library, but also because he 
was for years an active collector in the field, an extremely careful 
observer, and had unrivalled opportunities for the comparison of 
living plants in their native habitats. Besides, his descriptions 
are taken from Jamaica specimens, and it was from this island 
that Swartz obtained his specimens from which the species was 
Originally described. The only important point which Jenman’s 
description omits is the fact that the sori of D. dissecta are not “in 
a crenature near the base,” but on the summit of a tooth near the 
base, the whole width of which they cover, being about twice as 
broad as they are deep. Perhaps the “gibbous” feature of 
Swartz’s description may refer to this hump near the base of the 
crenature, 
The fact is that while the cutting of the frond quite closely 
resembles that of D. cicutaria, the situation of the sorus and the 
character of the sorus itself are distinctly different from that species. | 
The sorus is twice as broad as long, the involucre proper is scariose, — 
and the edge of frond is not changed in texture and hardly ever 
