12 THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



assumed that bears confine their attention to tliis single species 

 — they relish any of them. The "box huckleberry," according 

 to the books is G. brachyccra though in the localities where it 

 grows it is known as "juniper berry." Gaylussacia dumosa, 

 because of its small size, is the "bush huckleberry," "dwarf 

 huckleberry" and "gopher berry." 



Although many botanists include the cranberries in the 

 genus Vaccininin, they are always given a separate section and 

 not infrequently this section is raised 'to generic rank as 0.^3;- 

 coccus. Following this latter course, our small cranberry is 

 Oxycocciis pahistris. It is found in the Old World also and 

 is called "crane-berry," "cran-berry," "crone-berry," "crow- 

 berry" and "craw-berry." It has been assumed that the cor- 

 rect term is "crane berry" since the plants grow in wet 

 places frequented by cranes, but the correct derivation seems to 

 be "cran-berry" from cran, a marsh. The plant is also called 

 "marsh-berry," "moor-berry" and "moss-berry," the last name 

 given because the plant usually grows in the moss of moors 

 and bogs. "Sour berry" and its variation "sow-berry" are 

 intelligible as is also "swamp red-berry" and "European -cran- 

 berry." The larger cranberry {O.vycoccus marocarpum) is 

 found only in America, and is naturally the "American crati- 

 berry," and "large cranberry." Among its other names are 

 "marsh cranberry" and "bearberry," the latter term a misno- 

 mer but one that is readily suggested by the size and habit of 

 the plant. The "southern mountain cranberry" is O. erythro- 

 carpum. 



There are probably few American heathworts with a lon- 

 ger list of vernacular names than the "bearberry" (Arctos.ta- 

 phyllos uva-ursa). The plant is a conspicuous one in desert- 

 like places and has medicinal properties as well which insures 

 a variety of common names made by the very common people. 



