1866.] REVIEW — SMITH ON FERNS. 157 



REVIEW. 



Ferns : British and Foreign ; By John Smith, A. L. S. 



The well-known ex-curator of the Royal gardens, Kew, has 

 lately published this most useful fine manual ; intended primarily 

 to assist fern cultivators, it is nevertheless valuable also to 

 botanists. He gives a very interesting history of the introduction 

 of exotic ferns into European gardens ; an essay on the genera of 

 ferns and their classification ; an enumeration of the ferns at pre- 

 sent cultivated, and very full instructions on their cultivation. 

 Mr. Smith's mode of classification aims to be natural and his 

 tendency is to multiply genera unduly. His enumeration extends 

 to 1084 species (nearly half of those known to science) ; he gives 

 many synonyms, a reference to the best descriptions and engrav- 

 ings in standard works, and wood-cut illustrations of the genera. 

 Sir William Hooker recently said of our author : — 



" The formation of this fine collection [of cultivated ferns in 

 " Kew gardens] is mainly due to the exertions and ability of Mr. 

 " John Smith. His knowledge of ferns and his writings upon 

 " them, justly entitle him to rank among the most distinguished 

 " Pteridologists of the present day." 



Mr. Smith gives us, northern North Americans, no credit for 

 having the following ferns in our native flora : 



Phegopteris rha3tica (the Polypodium alpestre of British 

 botanists), which is found on the eastern side of the Rocky Moun- 

 tains ; Dryopteris Thelypteris, one of our commonest ferns ; 

 Polystichurn Lonchitis, which has a wide range and is locally 

 plentiful ; Scolopendrium vulgare, which is local but also abun- 

 dant ; Asplenium Ruta-muraria, which is found in all the neigh- 

 boring States, as far west as Michigan and further south than 

 Virginia; A. viride, which ranges from Newfoundland to the 

 Rocky Mountains, and perhaps thence to the Pacific Ocean ; and 

 A. septentrionale, not uncommon on the Rocky Mountains. We 

 learn nothing of our author's views on Woodsia ; he gives only 

 two species, Ilvensis and hyperborea, and gives North America 

 credit for neither of them ; moreover his wood-cut, which is said 

 to be a frond of Ilvensis, is unmistakeably hyperborea, as we 

 understand that species. 



We believe the following to be bad species : — Asplenium 

 Michauxii is A. Filix-fcemina, one of the most variable of ferns ; 

 Cystea tenuis is merely a form of the protean C. fragilis ; 

 Aspidium atomarium should have been referred to C. bulbifera ; 

 Osmunda spectabilis is not separable from 0. regalis, nor does our 

 Onoclea Struthiopteris differ from the European form. Onoclea 

 gracilis, and Ophioglossum pedunculosum are unknown to us. 

 Mr. Smith's arrangement of the following species of the genus 

 Dryopteris (or Lastrea) is not understood by us. He places Ame- 

 rican plants thus : Filix-mas, remota, rigida, marginalis, Goldiana, 

 dilatata, cristata, intermedia, spinulosa. We look on their affinities 



