24 The Scottish Naturalist. 



C. arcticum Lange, var. Edmondstonii, mihi. " Prater 

 colorem atrorubentem omnino mihi videtur cum C. arctico Lge. ,r 

 Dr. Lange in litt. 



One of my chief objects was to ascertain the true position of 

 this plant, and as it was found in ripe fruit, Dr. Lange had no 

 difficulty in giving a decisive opinion, which he was unable to do 

 in the case of Mr. Hanbury's plant from near Ben-muic-dhui, 

 owing to the absence of ripe seeds (see Scot. Nat., 1886, p. 331). 

 This plant has usually been placed as a variety of C. latifolium 

 Smith, though retained under C. latifolium L. in the last edition 

 of Babington's Manual ; while Dr. Hooker {Students Flora, ed. 

 III.) goes to the other extreme, and places it as a variety of C. 

 alpinum L. I think it has been pretty generally admitted for 

 some time past that we have not the true C. latifolium L. in this 

 country ; but the var. compactum (E. B. III.) is precisely the same 

 as the latifolium of Scandinavian authors, according to Syme. 

 Now, as Dr. Lange quotes 0. latifolium Hartm. as a synonym of 

 his C. arcticum, it is probable that at least several of the stations 

 given by Syme in Eng. Bot. III., especially those for the var. 

 compactum, will be found to produce arcticum. The difference 

 in the characters afforded by the seeds is perhaps not quite readily 

 appreciated when those of only one plant are examined ; but it is 

 sufficiently obvious when the ripe seeds of alpinum and arcticum 

 are compared. The var. acutifolium Edmondst. is a slight varia- 

 tion, observable chiefly in plants growing rather more inland. 



Stellaria media With. Common, a minute form on Crucii 

 field Hill, Unst. S. Tlliginosa everywhere in wet places ; S. 

 graminea sought in vain. 



Honkenya Peploides Ehrh. U. The usual form on Burra- 

 firth sands. *Var. diffusa Hornem. Y. Mid Yell Voe, " but 

 leaves broader and shorter in the Greenland plant." Dr. Lange. 



Alsine verna Bartl. *var. hirta Wormskj. u forma con- 

 densata." Dr. Lange. U. Very sparingly on the Serpentine hills 

 near Baltasound. Very close to A. rubella Wahl., with which it 

 must be placed if we maintain verna and rubella as distinct 

 species, which is the course adopted by Nyman. In the arrange- 

 ment used by Dr. Lange (El. Groenl., p. 24), hirta and rubella 

 are. placed as varieties of A. verna Bart. (Cf. J. G. Baker in Jounu 

 Bot, 1870, p. i86.)f 



t I doubt whether the Ben Lawers " rubella " differs from the Shetland 

 form 



