THE ORCHIDOLOOY OF INDIA. 171 



Philippine Collection, Chinese plants from Fortune, Champion, 

 and Vachell, authentic specimens from Wight and Achille Eichard, 

 and a pretty extensive series of Malay plants placed in my hands 

 by my friends Prof. De Yriese and the late venerable Prof. Rein- 

 wardt. To these should be added whatever the herbarium contains 

 of Dr. Stock's, whose loss we have so lately had to deplore, the 

 whole of Wallich's materials, and every thing that the great Hook- 

 erian Museum, or the Gardens of England have been able to 

 supply. In short, there is little that has not been entrusted to 

 me except the Malay plants of Horsfield in this country and those 

 of Blume from Java and other Dutch islands. 



To deal with so large a mass of materials in a single communi- 

 cation would fatigue the Society, even if it did not render any 

 communication whatever altogether uncertain. I therefore propose 

 to take up different portions of the subject as time will permit. 



To nothing, perhaps, more remarkable does an examination of 

 Indian Orchids lead, than to the unexpected fact that they show 

 certain species to have a most extensive geographical distribution. 

 Hitherto it has been believed that these plants are extremely local, 

 and such is probably the case with epiphytes, but it is quite the 

 reverse with terrestrial species, the range of some of which proves 

 to be as wide as that of the most ubiquitous species belonging to 

 other natural orders. 



It has been long known that our Orchis latifolia wanders into 

 North-Western India, where it was found by Buchanan Hamilton, 

 Wallich, and Eoyle ; to this must now be added Western Thibet, 

 whence Dr. Thomson has brought it (Hb. 254). But this is no 

 solitary case. 



Herminium MbnorcMs, in no respect whatever distinguishable 

 from its English state, is found in North- Western India, and pro- 

 bably also in Sylhet; while the Herminium unalasclikense* of 

 Chamisso, from the distant Aleutian Islands, is identical with the 

 Herm. congestum found on the Alps of Sikkim. 



Gymnadenia cucullata, a plant of Eastern Europe and Siberia, 

 seems to be the same as a plant gathered by Dr. Hooker, in 

 Sikkim, at the elevation of 14,000 feet. 



Goodyera repens is common in Sikkim at the height of 11,000- 

 12,000 feet; while Goodyera procera extends from Sikkim to 

 Hong Kong, by way of the Nilgherries, Ceylon, and Java. 



In like manner Zeuxine sulcata is as much an inhabitant of 



* This is by no means Platanthera Sehiffmareffiana, as Prof. Reichenbach 

 supposes. 



