Vol. XXVIII. 

 1912 



j Weindorfer, The Cradle Mountains, Tasmania. 217 



bases overgrown by Muehlenheckia axillaris, and over the drier 

 parts of the plains, where an open gum forest offers shelter to 

 plants which seem to require such, are found clusters of Olearia 

 myrsinoides, Hakea microcarpa, Coprosma Billardieri, and C. 

 nitida, with here and there a specimen of waratah, Telopea 

 truncata, and Pittosporum bicolor — the last-named, strange to 

 say, in lower elevations, as far as I have noticed, preferring 

 swampy ground. Tiny specimens, such as Botrychium lunar ia, 

 Coprosma Moorei, Haloragis depressa and H. micrantha, 

 Colohanthus Billardieri, Actinotus Moorei, Mitrasacme niontana, 

 and Scleranthus biflorus, are occasionally met with. 



Unpropitious weather conditions setting in with the early 

 morning of the 29th did not invite extensive walks ; a warm 

 fireplace, with now and then a little outing, was more congenial. 

 So it came that our further advance did not take place before 

 the 31st, when we, following an invitation of Mr. W. Black, 

 of Lea River, to stay at his newly-erected hut at the Fiery 

 mine, at the foot of Mount Remus, started in reality amongst 

 the mountains with two pack-horses and a Mr. Perry, whose 

 love for the bush had kept him several years in this locality. 

 The track to this lately-discovered galena mine leads up the 

 plains in sight of the Iris River as far as the western boundary 

 of the V.D.L. Co.'s land, where the newly-blazed track into 

 the Cradle Mountains was followed for about two miles. An 

 undefined track from there to the right — leading over button- 

 grass marshes, with Gleichenia dicarpa and Xyris gracilis, now 

 through bushes of Orites acicularis, waratah, and Leptospermum 

 myrtifolium, now over barren country in which the Bossicea 

 cordigera, PuUencea subumbellata, and Bellendena montana 

 flourish — brings us, all the time gently rising through a cluster 

 of Fagus Cunninghami, on to the northern end of Hounslow 

 Heath, which, absolutely devoid of tree growth, stretches for 

 miles towards the Cradle Mountains, their crags clearly dis- 

 played on the horizon. The Heath, narrowing at that point, 

 was soon traversed, and, enjoying the varied sight of mountains 

 and the sombre shade of their wooded gullies, we descended 

 to the Fiery River, some 200 feet, and reached the hut at 12 

 noon. The same afternoon was spent botanically exploring 

 the Fiery River as far as the MTntosh Gorge, and on ist 

 January Mounts Romulus and Remus were visited, the flora 

 not differing in detail from that of the Cradle Mountains, with 

 the exception of that of the higher altitudes of the latter, which 

 were our main object. 



It was soon manifest that the Fiery hut, though very com- 

 fortable, was too far from the Cradles to use the place as an 

 operating basis. To shift camp into the Cradle valley was 

 unanimously decided. The morning of the 2nd saw two men. 



