INSULAR FLORAS. 293 



but, although it is improbable that this palm ever grew in 

 the Maldive Islands, something yet remains to be done to 

 complete its history. John de Barros, a Portuguese 

 author, is thus quoted (16) by the writer of an article on 

 these islands : — 



"Their productions he also enumerates minutely, especially 

 the coconut, both of the ordinary kind and of that called 

 coco-de-mer, almost peculiar to the Seychelles, the seed of 

 which appears to have been borne thence to the Maldivas 

 by the currents of the ocean ". 



Since the publication of my notes on the flora of New 

 Zealand and the outlying islands (17) several interesting 

 papers on the subject have appeared, though there is only 

 one of sufficient importance to call for more than brief 

 mention. But first the minor ones. Mr. F. Kirk is the 

 author (18) of a series of monographs treating of the 

 genera Gentiaua, Colobatttktis, and Gunnera, as re- 

 presented in the New Zealand region, besides descriptions 

 of a number of new species belonging to various natural 

 orders. The forms of Gentiana are numerous, and the 

 species exceedingly difficult of delimitation. Kirk defines 

 ten species, and about half of them comprise several 

 varieties. They are spread all over New Zealand, except 

 the extreme north, and they extend to the Chatham, 

 Antipodes, Auckland and Campbell Islands ; but hitherto 

 no species has been found in Macquarie Island, the southern- 

 most of these islands. They chiefly inhabit the mountains, 

 in alpine and subalpine situations, and the sea-coast ; four 

 out of the ten, it is stated, not being found out of the reach 

 of the sea-spray. They all belong to one group, char- 

 acterised by having pentamerous flowers, unappendaged 

 corollas, and versatile anthers. White is the prevailing 

 colour of all the species, though some of them occasionally 

 exhibit various shades, mostly dull, of red, purple, and violet, 

 and more rarely a pale yellow. This is in direct contrast to 

 the behaviour of the northern species, speaking generally, and 

 we are indebted to Mr. Kirk for the observation. Colo- 

 banthus (Caryophyllaceae) is one of those densely tufted 

 moss-like genera of which there are representatives in 



