MR. C. B. CLARKE ON THE FERNS OF NORTHERN INDIA. 511 
Nepaul, Wallich. Jaintea; Jowye, alt. 4000 feet, C. B. Clarke.—Distrib. Ceylon, 
Malaya to the Philippines, South China. 
This seems a very rare fern in North India; but it scarcely differs, except by its 
creeping rhizome, from 4. aculeatum, var. biaristatum forma Khasiana. Indeed some 
examples without rhizomes, referred by Mr. Baker to 4. biaristatum, have noted on them, 
.. by Moore, amabilis. The early-collected examples of this species were over-ripe ; and Col. 
Beddome (in his Suppl.) maintains his view that the genus is Lastrea rather than Poly- 
stichwm : but the example cultivated at Kew, as well as my Jaintea specimens, leave no 
doubt that the involucre is strictly polystichoid. 
10. A. AnisTATUM, Swartz, Syn. Fil. 53. Rhizome shortly creeping or erect ; frond 
large, ovate, acute, 3-pinnate, or sub-3-pinnate, or 4-pinnate, sometimes 5-pinnate, 
coriaceous, shining, both surfaces naked, margin aristate; sori large or small; in- 
voluere aspidioid.—Schk. Krypt. Gew. t. 42; Blume, Enum. Pl. Jav. Fil. 166; 
Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 27; Hk. & Baker, Syn. Fil. 255; Benth. Fl. Austral. vii. 757. 
A. speciosum, Don, Prodr. Fl. Nep. 5. A. comiifolium, Wall. Cat. 341; Mett. 
Farngatt. Pheg. & Asp. 67. A palmipes and caruifoliun, Kunze, in Linnea, xxiv. 
287, 292. A. Maximowiczianum, Miq. in Ann. Mus. Lugd. Bat. iii. 178. Polysti- 
chum aristatum, Swartz; Carr. in Fl. Viti. 3858.. Polypodium aristatum, Forst. Fl. 
Ins. Austr. Prodr. 82. Lastrea aristata and coniifolia, Moore; Bedd. Ferns South. 
Ind. tt. 101, 261. 
Himalaya, from Kumaon to Bhotan, alt. 4000-10,000 feet; abundant in Sikkim. 
Khasia; alt. 3000-6000 feet, very common.—Distrib. South India and Ceylon, Malay 
Peninsula and Islands, China, Japan, Australia, and Polynesia. 
The caudex is decumbent, curved, with several stipes near the summit in the Hima- 
layan plants: I have seen a more decidedly creeping caudex in the Nilgherries. I have 
never been able (in the Himalayan plants) to see that the more or less creeping caudex 
is accompanied by a more or less divided frond, by larger or smaller sori, or by any other 
of the characters proposed for the subdivision of this species. It seems to me a 
emarkably uniform plant, the difference between the 3-pinnate and 4-pinnate forms 
altogether trifling. 4. Cornu-cervi, Don, Prodr. Fl. Nep. 5, is founded on an unhealthy 
example collected by Wallich. The two following varieties are better marked :— 
Var. 1. affinis, Wall. Cat. 370. Frond 2-pinnate; secondary pinne 1-1} in. oblong, 
serrate or pinnatifid scarcely halfway down; sori large, not near the margin.— 
Lastrea aristata, B. Hamiltonii, Bedd. Ferns Brit. Ind. t. 369. 
Nepaul, Wallich. Sikkim, W. S. Atkinson. 
Var. 2. assamica, (sp. Kuhn, in Linnea, xxxvi. 108. "iced 2-pinnate; secondary 
pinne 1-2 in., lanceolate, acuminate, serrate or pinnatifid hardly halfway down ; 
sori large —Hk. & Baker, Syn. Fil. (2nd ed.) 493. 
Assam, Falconer. Sikkim, Dodgson, Jaintea, alt. 4000 feet, C. B. Clarke.—This is 
near the last variety, and runs very close indeed to 4. aculeatum var. 5. biaristatum. I 
SECOND SERIES.—BOTANY, VOL. I. 4A 
