nels may therefore be regarded as a primitive character. 
Perhaps the most important characteristic of this husk 
is that it shows no evidence of ever having been shaped 
around an ear. Furthermore, the stem or shank on which 
it occurs is quite slender, so slender indeed that, of the 
cobs which occur in Strata I and II, only a cob similar 
to that illustrated in Plate X XVII could have been 
borne on it. ‘The husks, as shown in this Plate, are far 
longer than needed to enclose an ear of this type. 
All of these facts combined point to the almost ines- 
capable conclusion that the husks at this stage in the 
evolution of maize did not enclose the ear. Instead, they 
were nothing more than an involucre of leaf sheaths, not 
greatly modified, subtending and surrounding the base 
of the pistillate inflorescence, but by no means com- 
pletely enclosing it. 
The remaining seven specimens of husks together are 
not as interesting as the single specimen found in Stra- 
tum II. One of the specimens found in Stratum V ap- 
pears to be intact or almost so and has a maximum length 
of 10.5 em. It includes five leaf sheaths, all glabrous and 
lacking in leaf blades and ligules. The veins are parallel, 
but are more closely spaced than in the sheaths found in 
Stratum II. The husks in Stratum V differ from those in 
Stratum IT primarily in their shape, which gives definite 
evidence of having once enclosed an ear. 
Two other specimens found in Stratum V differ from 
the one described immediately above in having scattered 
hairs and numerous prickles on the outer sheaths and 
anastomosing venation on the inner. Both show evidence 
of having once enclosed an ear. 
The four specimens found in Stratum VI are too frag- 
mentary to be of great value. Two of the specimens, 
however, show evidence of having once been shaped 
around an ear. ‘lwo of the four specimens are glabrous. 
[ 282 ] 
