lO Stopes, a New Fern from the Coal Measures. 



some appear very clear and like endodermis. The second 

 case is in the large petiole ao (see Fig. i and Slide T. 5) in 

 the cortex of which lie two branches both far out. The 

 neighbouring slides do not repeat them, so that little is 

 gained, beyond the fact that when the petioles get some 

 distance from the axis they do branch. Petiole ao {Fig. i) 

 is the largest and furthest out of the series. 



The petioles give off a number of adventitious roots, 

 though none shew the stelar branching with any degree 

 of clearness. Among these numerous roots several small 

 branches similar to them but of rather different type, are 

 to be seen. These have rather more massive wood than 

 the ordinary root, and have three or four protoxylem 

 groups instead oi the typical diarch stele. They may 

 be small ramifications of the petioles, but there is no 

 direct evidence that they are so. One only shews a well 

 marked crescent stele {Slide T. 2), and this lies near a big 

 petiole of which it may be a ramification, they are in the 

 proportion of 2 mm. to 28 mm. in diameter, and their 

 steles are orientated back to back, but there is no direct 

 proof that the small one is a branch of this petiole in 

 particular ; though it is evidence that some of them must 

 branch. Among the two or three small branchlets about 

 the size of roots, but of uncertain nature, are two in which 

 the steles have divided, each into a smaller and a larger 

 portion (see Slide T. 25) but the series does not reveal 

 what happens to the branches. We have, therefore, no 

 clear case of branching among the petioles ; a point in 

 which this plant differs from the description of T. solenites, 

 where, according to Stenzel the petioles branched re- 

 peatedly giving off small pinnules while they were still 

 exceedingly near the main axis. He remarks on this as 

 being unusual (p. 45), in the words that " ungestielte, 

 gefiederte Blatter mochten bei lebenden Farnen kaum 



