BY J. H. MAIDEN. 753 



*' Wang-ngai-a " of Gippsland. Subsequently Howitt refers to 

 the tree* in some detail. 



It was figured and described by Deane and Maiden f as var. 

 radiata, Benth. 



So that, as far as aboriginal and vernacular names are con- 

 cerned, it is the " Kayer-ro " of Sir William Macarthur; the 

 "White Gum" of Bent's Basin and the Nepean (Woolls;see B.Fl. 

 iii. 203); and the " Wang-ngara " of Mr. Howitt. 



It goes under the names of " River White Gum," " Ribbon 

 Gum," and also " Narrow-leaved Peppermint." 



Its favourite habitat is on the sides of gullies, or on the steep 

 banks of rivers, often some distance from the bed of the river or 

 creek, but usually on a well-drained slope leading to a watercourse. 

 It sometimes occurs on flats. 



It is often seen as a graceful sapling, but may attain the dignity 

 of a large tree; in this State I have seen it up to 3 feet in diameter 

 and more, with a height of 150 feet. It has rather sparse, droop- 

 ing foliage, which gives it, at times, something of a willow-like 

 aspect. 



Bark. — It is nearly a White Gum when very young, but after- 

 wards the bark of the upper part falls off in thin, long ribbons 

 (hence the name Ribbon Gum), and the lower part of the trunk 

 becomes covered, to a varying height, with fibrous bark of the 

 character known to many as Peppermint-bark. In its most 

 marked form the bark of the butt is more rugged than that of 

 amygdalina usually is. Sir William Macarthur spoke of the 

 fibrous bark; and subsequently Mr. Howitt pointed out that the 

 aborigines of Gippsland similarly used the bark for tying and 

 lashing, hence their name for the tree, "Wang-ngara," which 

 signifies "bark-string." 



Juvenile leaves. — The young stems have a rusty, glandular 

 appearance, and tlie leaves are very narrow. I do not note any 

 difi"erence between them and the leaves of the normal species. 



* "The Eucalypts of Gippsland." Trans. Roy. Soc. Vic. Vol. ii. Pt. i. 

 p. 86, PI. X., figs. 1-5. .y^h r^ 



t Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, 1895, p. 606, PI. Ivi. y<^^'' ^' <^ 



t-IBR ARY a 



