80 THE PLANT WORLD. 



often grows, frequently attaining a lieiglit of three feet. The 

 crest of the slipper is beautifully stained with majenta, and chan- 

 neled ado\^ai the sides, suggestive of a dainty sea shell rather 

 than a flower. 



Over the rocky slopes of Hogsback mountains the Round- 

 Leaved Orchises and Rattlesnake Plantain of the Orchid family 

 bloom in their season ; and later in their turn Arethusa, Pogonia 

 and Limodorum nod and dance among the sedges about Mud 

 pond. In the open meadows, and bordering elusive streams, 

 the Purple-Fringed Orchises and the Ladies' Tresses (Gyro- 

 stachys Rommizoviana) , flourish ; and somewhere nestling in the 

 deeper marsh in June, the Wild Calla Lily blossoms for him 

 who dares to venture through dangerous and mud<ly waters in 

 a leakv boat. 



A^UTTALL AND PURSH AXD SOME EARLY SPRING 

 FLOWERS OF COLORADO. 



By George E. Osterhout. 



The early spring flowers may not be the most beautiful 

 ones, but often they are the most attractive, beeause they are 

 first to greet the eye, first to express the amazing contrast 

 of winter and summer, and are prophetic of the host of beau- 

 tiful blossoms to follow. In Colorado whoever collects some 

 of the early spring flowers and consults the books to see by 

 whom they were first described and named, finds that many 

 of them were first made known to science bv Nuttall and Pursh ; 

 or to write their names in full, Thomas Nuttall and Frederick 

 Pursh. 



There is Lupimis pusllhis Puvsli, an annual which starts 

 with the warm rays of the April sun and keeps its cotyledons 

 till past flowering. It is one of the plants collected by Meri- 

 werther Lewis on that first memorable journey of Lewis and 

 Clark across the continent. Mr. Lewis gave to jMr. Pursh 

 the collection of plants which he made on the return trip from 

 the Pacific to be named, and this was amojig them. It was on 

 this memorable journey, too, that Islv. Lewis found the plant 



