THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 81 



the exposed portions of the meadow, so that plants, in order 

 to live at all, must he able to conserve what little moisture they 

 can absorb during favorable periods. Some have foliage that 

 is finely cut into many very narrow, closely crowded divisions 

 and, in some species, is curled up at the edges. Among these 

 are mountain avens (Sieversia turbinate/,), purple polemonium 

 (Polcmonium cemfertum), yarrow (Achillea lanulosa), alpine 

 wormwood (Artemisia frigida), and the cinquefoils (Poten- 

 tilla sps). Others have only the tiniest of very narrow leaves, 

 like the sandworts (Arenania sps), the harebell (Campanula 

 petiolata), the narrow-leaved primrose (Primula angustifolia), 

 the tonestus (Tonestus pygmacus), the cushion pink (Silene 

 acauUs), and the sweet androsace (Androsacc earinata). 



Many of these plants form broad intricate mats that hug 

 the ground closely. No better description could be written of 

 these plants than Wordsworth's : ■ 



"There clinging to the ground it lies 

 With multitude of purple eyes, 

 Spangling a cushion green, like moss." 



If we substitute "starry" for "purple," these lines describe 

 accurately and equally well the cushion pink, the two-flowered 

 sandwort, the paronychia, the alpine clover, the golden saxi- 

 frage, and the creeping sibbaldia. Among the very woolly 

 types are the Arctic fleabane (Erigeron simplex), woolly four- 

 nerve (Actinclla lanata) alpine sunflower (Rydbcrgia grandi- 

 Hora), dandelion ragwort (Senecio taraxacoides), mountain 

 forget-me-not (Eritrichium argenteum) and cat's-foot 

 (Auteuuaria media). Some have thick, fleshy leaves with a 

 tough outer skin that prevents evaporation; examples of this 

 type are snow-ball, saxifrage, golden saxifrage, roseroot, whit- 

 low grass and stone-crop. 



All parts of the meadow land are not uniformly moist 

 though water from the clefts and chasms of the highest parts 

 of the peaks is continually seeping downward through the rocks 



