T. Kirk. — On Veronica. 515 



convex on the outer surface ; strophiole very small. H. lati- 

 folia, var. chathamica, F. Mueller, Veg. Chat. Islds., 9. 



North Island. — Wellington: Patea : Sir James Hector. 

 Flowers and fruit not seen. 



Chatham Islands. — Originally discovered by Captain Gil- 

 bert Mair ! September, October. 



Distinguished from all, other species by the long lanceolate 

 sharply-toothed leaves, strictly dioecious flowers, tetramerous 

 stigma-lobes, and 4-seeded berries. Occasionally the leaves 

 are linear-laceolate, and less than -^in. in breadth. I am in- 

 debted to my friend Mr. Cox for excellent specimens of the 

 male plant. 



Art. LII. — Notes on Certain Veroyiicas, and Descriptions of 



Neto Species. 



By T. Kirk, F.L.S. 



[Read before the Wellington Philosophical Society, 36th February, 1896-] 



It is not proposed to oifer a complete revision of the New 

 Zealand Veronicas on the present occasion, although it is 

 hoped that this much-needed work may be accomplished in 

 a short time. It is, however, desirable to supplement the 

 published descriptions of certain species from more copious 

 material than was available when they were originally drawn ; 

 to amend certain errors that crept in from the examination of 

 imperfect specimens ; and to describe a few new species, most 

 of which have been in hand for some years past. 



With the full revision it is intended to furnish an account 

 of the most striking characteristics of the New Zealand 

 species generally, more especially with regard to their mor- 

 phology and distribution. It may, however, be pointed out 

 that the species of the dimorphic — or, as it might with equal 

 propriety be called, the mimetic — section are invested with 

 special interest, the entire section, with the single exception 

 of the AustraUan V. densifolia, being endemic in the colony. 

 At present, strangely enough, our knowledge of the early 

 leaves of these singular plants has been chiefly obtained from 

 old specimens on which they are often produced by reversion, 

 especially under cultivation : the subject will not be satis- 

 factorily worked out until the seedling as well as the more 

 advanced stages have been studied in a systematic manner.''' 



* For the first recorded mention of dimorphism in the leaves of New 

 Zealand Veronicas, see Trans. N.Z. Inst., xi. (1878), 464. 



