160 ON THE FOSSIL FLORA OF THE COAL DEPOSITS OF AUSTRALIA, 



Three leaves visible in each spiral. About three rows in a centi- 

 meter. Length of leaves, from 2 to 3 mill. ; breadth, from 5 to 6. 

 Diam. of cauline stem at widest part, 10 mill ; of branchlets, 8 

 mill. ; length of shortest, 18 mill. 



Amongst the fragments imbedded around, there are some with 

 rhomboidal depressions like lepidodendroid scars. These are stems 

 from which the leaves have been shed. They are about 30 mill, 

 long and 2 wide. 



Ipswich coal, the only specimen I have seen. 



Taxites. Brongniart. 



Leaves linear, narrow, or sub-falcate, obtuse, coriaceous, fleshy, 

 with a median rib ending in a minute mucrone, flat, furnished with 

 a half -twisted pedicel which is briefly decurrent. 



This is a mesozoic genus of few known forms, about some of 

 which Schimper says that he would not venture to offer an opinion. 

 No doubt it includes different genera as those groups known 

 only by the form of the leaf must necessarily do. They are 

 known from Italy and Greenland, besides two species from the 

 Upper Gondwana system (Jabulpur, Sripermatur, and other 

 places) on the Madras coast. The general habit and form of the 

 leaves shows that we are dealing with plants closely allied to our 

 living species of Taxus or Yew. 



Taxites medius, n.s., PI 9, fig. 3. Branchlets thin, leaflets 

 spirally and bilaterally disposed, emerging at an acute angle, sub- 

 alternate, sometimes slightly curved outwards, narrow linear, 

 obtuse, rather long, and the decurrent pedicel thick, long, and 

 broad (nearly as broad as the leaf at times). Midrib thick and 

 conspicuous, surface shining and transversely wrinkled. Ipswich, 

 Q. L., precise locality unknown. 



This specimen is on a stone which has impressions of Equisetum 

 stems and Thinnjeldia odontopteroides. The fossil is conspicuously 

 shining, no doubt from its coriaceous surface, the wrinkling of the 

 leaves is due to their fleshy nature. The number of detached 

 leaflets scattered on the stone manifest their deciduous attachment. 

 I name the specimen from its intermediate character between the 



