—————— me o bin 
Sans — el 
on the Britifb Species of Carex. 159 
triqueter, angulis acutis afperis. Spica androgyna, compofita, fæpe 
decompofita: fpiculæ circiter decem, infernè remote, fuperné con- 
tiguæ, ovate, fefliles, apice mafculæ, braéteatæ bra&eà bafi fub- 
ovata, fuperné in foliolum fetaceum hifpidum definenti—hee 
bractea ad inferiores fpiculam fuam longé fuperat—Squamæ ovatz, 
acute, capfulà breviores, fufcæ, margine membranaceo albo, nervo 
dorfali viridi. Cap/ule ovate, acute, hinc planz, illinc convexa, 
glabræ, ad margines fuperné hifpidiufculæ, fub-divergentes, ore. 
bifido. Filamenta ut in plerique. Stylus ftigmatibus duobus. 
The Linnean herbarium countenances my differing from the 
authors of our country in the naming of this plant C; muricata; 
for it ftands there fo infcribed by Linnæus himfelf. Indeed the little 
plant which is ufually called mwricata, by no means juftifies.the accu- 
racy of appellation for which Linneus was fo remarkable. On the 
contrary, this plant fully correfponds with the appearance which 
might be expected from that name. 
I am very fully perfuaded that Limneus, and after him the Swedifh 
botanifts, confounded the two plants. This appears pretty evident 
from the figures quoted by L;zmeus; and it is but fair to imagine 
that they thought it varied from foil and fituation. Haller, i in his 
hiftory, n. 1366, fays he received Mr. Hud/on's muricata from Sweden 
under the name muricata. This circumftance, and Linneus’s nam- 
ing this plant of which I am now fpeaking muricata alfo, confirm. 
me in my idea. 
C. muricata differs from vulpina, by never having its fpike Seti 
decompofite, nor the culm enlarged beneath the fpike. It differs. 
from C. divifa of Mr. Hudfon, by its fibrous root, and by having its. 
capfules diverging, and no erect leaf under the fpike. It differs. 
from flellulata, by its numerous and contiguous fpiculæ, and its.cap- - 
fules divided at the fummit, 
Var. 
