CHAPTER II L 



FERNS. 



" The stately Fern, the golden Broom, 

 The Lily tall and fair — 

 All these in rich succession bloom, 



And scent the summer air. 

 In secret dell, by murmuring rill, 



In gardens bright and gay, 

 Within the valley, on the hill, 

 They cheer our toilsome way ! " 



Ilimon. 



A KING- our way across the dell towards the 

 moors, we gathered some tall Ferns by the 

 side of the path. These resembled the Poly- 



stichums in form, but grew more erect ; still, however, in 



the basket-style of group. The pinnules were bluntly 



cut, not sharply like those of the Prickly Shield-Ferns. 



The pinnae were placed alternately on the rachis, covering 



three-fourths of its length : semi- 



transparent brown scales clustered 



thickly on the stem where it was 



free from pinnae, and thin narrow 



ones were scattered along it, 



even where the pinnae were pre- 

 sent. Plentiful spore-masses were 



sprinkled over the backs of the 



pinnules, ranged in a row on either side between the 



LASTREA. 



