Pennell: Plants of southern United States 339 



Mexican, extending into southern Arizona, but, so far as I am 

 aware, not before reported from the Gulf States. 



Lespedeza hirta (L.) Ell. 



Dry sandy oak-woods west of Sheridan, Colorado County, 

 Texas, collected < September 21, 1913, 552J. 



Galactia marginalis Benth. Ann. Wien. Mus. 2: 126. 1838 



Perhaps G. heterophylla (Gill.) Vail (Bull. Torrey Club 22: 

 502. 1895), but not G. heterophylla A. Gray (Boston Jour. Nat. 

 Hist. 6: 171. 1850). 



Sandy soil, one mile east of Aloe, Victoria County, Texas, > 

 September 18, 1913, 5497. 



THE GENUS CHAMAECRISTA Moench IN THE UNITED 



STATES 



During my two southern trips especial attention was given to 

 the genus Chamaecrista Moench. This genus or, if you will, 

 subgenus of Cassia L. has long been known as of particular taxo- 

 nomic difficulty. As long a^o as 1871 Bentham in his revision of 

 Cassia emphasized this. Hence it has seemed desirable to see 

 living plants and to study the behavior of the several species. 



From the following lists the extent and deficiencies of this 

 field-work will be apparent. I have collected nearly all the species 

 in my course, but, as I did not travel west of central Texas or south 

 into the Florida peninsula, I have seen but six of the thirteen species 

 here recognized. 



However, these six include all of the wide-ranging, widely 

 variable sorts, and, as in this genus the characters of diagnostic 

 value preserve well, the main importance of field-study has been 

 to form some appraisement of variation within and between 

 species. Of the geographic subspecies here treated, six in all, 

 the writer has collected three. 



Corolla large, exceeding i cm. in diameter; one petal only 

 moderately longer than remaining four. Stamens 

 10. Pedicels i-8, 7-40 mm. long. 

 Perennials. 



Petiolar gland slender-stalked. 



Leaflets 7-9 mm. long, rounded-mucronulate. 



