BY THE REV. W. WOOLLS, PH.D., P.L.S. 9 



undergoes a remarkable change, and the traveller, as he ascends the 

 Zig-Zig, passes through an avenue of trees and slirubs differing 

 materially from those on the sandstone, though it must be observed 

 that some of the plants which I have mentioned are common to 

 that and the trap formation. Nothing can exceed the verdure and 

 beauty of the scene, and though the species are for the most part 

 common to Mount Wilson and Mount Tomah, yet no part of the 

 Blue Mountains seems equal to the former in its natural features, 

 or its suitability for the cultivation of European trees, shrubs, 

 fruits, and grasses. On both sides of the road, the beautiful 

 Prostanthera Insiantha (Labill.) was in full bloom. This is the 

 largest of Labiates, and from the scent of its foliage is sometimes 

 called the " Mint Tree," forming a pleasing relief to the darker 

 shades of the shrubs, and a contrast to the semi-tropical character 

 of the Tree-ferns which now begin to appear in great abundance. 

 The fertility of the soil at Mount Wilson is evidenced not only by 

 the indigenous vegetation, and the vigorous growth of cultivated 

 plants ; but the rapid way in which European and Asiatic weeds 

 are spreading is also an indication of the fact. Hypochmris glabra 

 (Linn.), Galinsoga parvi flora (Cav.), Siegesheckia orientalis (lAxin.,), 

 and Silene gallica (Linn.), are following the steps of cultivation; 

 whilst the grasses Poa pratensis (Willd.), Dactylis glomerata 

 (Willd.), Cynosurus cristatus (Willd.), as well as several foreign 

 clovers, have already established themselves on the Mount. 



The Botany of Mount Wilson is very similar to that of Tomah, 

 and as the observer views the gigantic Eucalypts, the graceful 

 Tree- Ferns (Dicksonia antarctica, Alsoj^Jdla Australis, and J. 

 Leichhardtiana), the robust climbers, and the epiphytal orchids of 

 the sombre woods, he is forcibly reniinded of Allan Cunningham's 

 trip to Mount Tomah in 1823, and of the plants which that 

 ■eminent Botanist discovered there (See Hooker's Journal of 

 Botany, Vol. 4, p. 285). Cunningham tells us, that owing to the 

 weakness of his horses and the difficulty of the track then recently 

 found by a surveyor, he did not proceed to Cox's River as he had 

 originally intended ; but, after having advanced a few miles 

 further, he returned to his encampment at Tomah, which he adds, 



