LOTUS ANGTISTISSIMTJS. 335 



16. Verrucaria tesselatula, Nyl. Allied to V. virens, Nyl., and V. 

 Novee-AngUce, Tuck., but at once differing in the smooth thallus and 

 shorter spores. Saxicole. 



LOTUS ANGTJSTISSIMUS, Linn,, IN KENT. 

 By B. D. Jackson, F.L.S. 



On the 16th of August, 1875, whilst on a botanical excursion to the 

 Isle of Grain, North Kent, with the Rev. W. W. Newbould, I had the 

 good fortune to find Zo^ws angiistissimiis, Linn., in some quantity; the 

 plants were for the most part bitten close by sheep. This discovery 

 is interesting, since, besides adding a plant to the flora of Kent, it ex- 

 tends the range northwards from Hastings, where the plant was origi- 

 nally found, and very slightly to the eastward. A few notes on the 

 synonyms and history of the plant are appended : — 



Lotus angustissimus, Linn. !, Sp. PL, 774 (1753), ed. 2, 1090 

 (1762). —Herb. Linn. ! in part.— Smith, English Flora, v. 3, p. 315 

 (1825).— Seringe, in DC. Prod., 2, p. 213. 



TrifoUum corniculatum minus pilosum, C. Bauhin, Prod., p. 144 

 (1620). 



Lotus pentaphyllos minor hirsutus siliqua angustissima, C. Bauhin, 

 Pinax, p. 332 (1623).— Courten ! in Herb. Sloane, tom. 56, fol. 246. 

 From Montpellier. 



L. corniculatus minus pilosus, Parkinson, Theat. Bot., p. 1103 

 (1640). Fair description of the plant, but commits the error of stating 

 that it is ** as common with us as at Montpellier." — Petiver ! in Herb. 

 Sloane, tom. 247, fol. 88. 



L. corniculatus siliquis singularilus, vel hinis, tenuis, J. Bauhin, 

 Hist. Plant., tom 2, p. 356, with woodcut (1651). 



L. annua 6Xiyo:i.'^oLTos siliquis singularihus hinis ternisve nobis, Hori- 

 son, Plant. Hist., tom. 2, p. 175, sect. 2, tab. 18, fig. 1. Copied in 

 part from John Bauhin. 



L. diffusus, SolanderMS. ! in Herb. Banks.— Smith, Fl. Brit., v. 2, 

 p. 794 (1800).— Sm., Eng. Bot., tab. 925 (Sept. 1, 1801).— Seringe 

 in DC. Prod., 2, p. 213.— Syme, E. B., v. 3, p. 69 (1863). First 

 found in England by James Dickson, *' on the rocks near Hastings, 

 29th May [17]98 " ! The figure in E. B. was drawn from specimens 

 gathered there by Edward Forster in August of the same year. 



Smith remarks in "English Botany" (I.e.): — "Linnaeus con- 

 founded it with his L. angustissimus, which is a larger plant, with 

 smooth leaves, and shorter, much thicker pods. The specific name was 

 given by Dr. Solander, who described specimens gathered in Madeira." 

 Smith subsequently modified his views as follows : — '* A Montpellier 

 specimen of this plant from Sauvages, bearing the synonym of C. Bauhin, 

 is the original authority for L. angustissimus. To this Linnaeus had 

 pinned a nearly smooth one of the last species [* L. decumhens, Forst.,' 

 Sm. = L. tenuis, Kit.], which Solander in the Banksian herbarium has 

 taken for the true angustissimus, calling our present plant L. diffusus, 

 and this great authority misled me. A scrutiny of the Linnean 



