VOL. Iv.] Contributions to Western Botany. Al 
carpels three to five, barely surpassing the calyx or even five 
lines long, much inflated and almost cartilaginous when short, 
shining and very sparsely hairy, or in the larger ones 
membranous, flattened, inflated much or little, abruptly acute, 
not greatly divergent, seeds one or more, broadly obovate, one- 
half a line long, ovary always densely white-hairy. From the 
above it will appear that the leaf character, length of carpels 
and shape of seeds are very variable in the oldest species. 
Neillia opulifolia (1,.) Brewer & Watson, var. mollis, 
Brewer & Watson; JV. capitafa (Pursh), Greene, Pittonia ii, 29. 
My material comes from Oakland and from Duncan’s Mills, 
Cal., and was collected by myself. So far as my speci- 
mens go the following is true: Leaves broader than in the 
type, two to two and one-half inches long, and fully as wide or 
wider, lateral lobes a little larger than in the type, and very 
rarely is there any evidence of secondary iobes, as is almost 
always to be found in the other species of Neillia; leaves more 
pubescent, and more or less cordate at base; carpels vitreous 
shining, inflated, very sparsely pubescent, shortly acute; seeds 
lanceolate obovate, incurved or straight; branches not very long 
nor climbing among the bushes. The corymbs are occasionally 
proliferous. The only character relied on by Mr. Greene, that of 
the seeds, proves in my specimens to be valueless, and I cannot 
see any other good character on which to keep up the species. 
In some of my specimens at least the seeds are a little narrowed 
at the apex, but this doubtless is not constant. 
Neillia monogyna (Torrey) Greene, Pittonia ii, 30. This is 
the VV. ZJorreyt of Watson, etc., in part. It may be advis- 
able for the present to keep up this species, but there is no 
necessity for concealing the probable fact that it is only the most 
reduced form of 1. opulifolia. No character that has ever been 
given it holds except the less inflated pod. Mr. Greene puts this 
under the head of ‘‘carpels indehiscent,’’ but they are dehiscent 
doubtless when fully developed as that is the case with the variety 
malvacea (N. malvacea Greene). ‘The form which grows on rocks 
in Colorado is alone sufficiently distinct, but unfortunately the 
forms growing on better soil and so better nourished differ. The 
