ROSA STRICTA, 43 
has aculei, stricta never. It may be urged that I have 
in other instances rejected much better characters as 
insufficient to distinguish species; and with apparent 
reason. But when it is remembered that there is no 
instance of a North American Rose being found in 
Europe, and that this must form an exception, if it be 
deemed not distinct from rubella, I shall have the im- 
portant difference in geographical distribution in my 
favour. 
It has been known in this country ever since the 
days of Dillenius, who raised it in Sherard’s garden 
from seeds received from New England, and published 
a figure of it in the splendid Hortus Elthamensis. From 
not attending sufficiently to his description, much con- 
fusion has arisen inits history, since his figure has been 
cited by every one to a variety of a different species, 
probably the offspring of cultivation; and thus my R. 
alpina y has been pronounced a North American plant, 
to the great perplexity of botanists of that country, 
who have long sought for it in vain. To explain how 
this has originated, it becomes necessary to trace the 
history of the plant from its source. 
The specimen of R. pendulina in the herbarium of 
Linneus belongs decidedly, as I have observed already, 
to the plant always known under that name in our 
gardens. It is the end of a branchlet and not unlike 
Dillenius’s figure. It does not appear from what 
quarter he received it, and may therefore have been 
known to him only in a dried state, which will suffi- 
ciently explain the cause of his error in quoting the 
Hortus Elthamensis. In the first edition of Species 
Plantarum the specific phrase of .R. pendulina is “ fruc- 
tibus oblongis pendulis,” which served to distinguish it 
from the rest of his species, because he was not then 
acquainted with R. alpina. But before the second edi- 
tion appeared he acquired this last plant, and then it 
became necessary to alter the character of pendulina to 
“ germinibus ovatis glabris, pedunculis cauleq. hispidis, 
petiolis inermibus, fructibus pendulis ;” which proves 
beyond a doubt that he held the “ stipites innumeris 
G 2 
