4 THE PLANT WORLD 



summer a couple of fine large plants of the royal fern (O. regalis) shaded 

 by the surrounding bushes, but apparently healthy. In August, when 

 they were first seen, it appeared that nearly all the fronds had been fertile 

 at the tip (9), but the empty spore-cases had dropped off. A large 

 number of pinnules on the upper pairs of pinnae looked ' ' queer, ' ' and 

 were found to be more or less contracted and fertile (lO). The one in 

 the illustration represents the average. Some were scarcely contracted 

 and had ver>- few spore-cases on them, while others, not more than an 

 eighth of an inch wide, bore spore-cases all along their edges. Here 

 again there was no evidence of early mutilation. The sterile pinnae were 

 of the usual size, and the fronds were tall and healthy in appearance. It 

 is not impossible that there was some injury done to the young fronds 

 before they uncoiled, but I hardly think such is the case. 



There are many curious transition forms between the contracted fertile 

 pinnules and the broad sterile ones of the climbing fern i^Lygodium pal- 

 matuni), but they are of the same general order as those of the roj-al fern. 

 The fertile portion of one of these pinnules is contracted while the rest of 

 it is of the usual size. 



I have thus hurriedly discussed these ferns, but hope enough has been 

 said to show that there is an interesting inter-relation between the fer- 

 tility and the amount of green tissue in these species. The article will 

 have ser\^ed its purpose if it leads others to make observ^ations along 

 related lines. 



The Preservation of Our Native Plants. 



By Ruth E. Messenger. 



Nature has made so lavish an expenditure of beauty, delicacy and 

 grace in our native plants and wild flowers, that the most careless of us 

 can not but be attentive to her plea for their protection and preservation . 

 Among the varied interests of our lives, perhaps we do not realize that 

 her voice is being raised in feeble remonstrance against the destruction 

 all around us of her fairest gifts. vStill, such are the facts. It is sadly 

 true that many of our choicest species are rapidly becoming extinct ; 

 that the gathering of great quantities of ferns, holly, laurel, fringed 

 gentian and the like, has entirely stripped many localities of these 

 beautiful plants ; that the destruction of forests, particularly in our 

 own State, has reached alarming proportions. It is equally true that the 

 interest of the people must be aroused in defense of their favorites ; that 

 by appeal to the public, or by State legislation, some means must be 

 found to check the evil before it has progressed further. 



