F£A',VS. 221 



pretty Cystopteris ; a very small evergreen fern, a miniature likeness ot 

 Asptdium Dwrginale, size four inches, with fruit dots very distmct ; 

 root-stock very thickly coated with pale, chaffy scales. The same fern 

 was also given me from Lake Temiscamingue, and also a small beautiful 

 frond of Phegoptoris polypodioides, and Woodsia Ilvensis, from the same 

 place ; this last resembles the Woodsias that were found on the rocks at 

 Fairy Lake, on the borders of Stoney Lake, where, however, this fern is 

 rare, and not so large as the fine specimens that were kindly sent to me 

 by J. Watt, Esq., and by the late Mr. Barnston, Hudson's Bay Co., 

 Montreal. And here I must remark that Nature seems, by the force of 

 .1 secret sympathy, to draw together those that take an interest in the 

 same pursuits and tastes, creating a kindly and generous feeUng even to 

 the unseen and unknown individual, making the Naturalist eager and 

 willing to communicate to such, their treasures and knowledge. The 

 Botanist and Naturalist seem to me, of all men, the most liberal and the 

 least given to jealousy or envy ; any new discovery seems to be a source 

 of pleasure to all ; they rejoice with them that do rejoice, and regard 

 the happy finder of a new species of plant as a general and public bene- 

 factor. Such, at any rate, has been the fortunate experience of the 

 writer, to which she gladly bears testimony. Much more might be said 

 on this interesting subject, but having, to the best of my ability, described 

 the peculiarities of ferns as to the general characteristics of the order, 

 I will now introduce to my readers the native species which have come 

 under my own observation. 



Rock Polypody. — Polypodium vulgare, (L.) 



The Rock Polypody is found in considerably extensive beds on 

 some of the rocky islets, and along the shores of Stoney Lake, and similar 

 places in the North-east and North-west townships, bordering upon that 

 interesting chain of inland waters, known familiarly as the Back Lakes. 

 It is also found in many other similar localities throughout Canada, but 

 generally in rocky and undrained places, where swamp and rocks 

 abound. 



It is not usually a forest or wood fern. The rhizome is yellowish, 

 thick and creeping, to a certain extent scaly, sending up stiff upright 

 stipes, smooth and green, rootlets strong and wiry. In its outline this 

 fern is narrow-lanceolate, simply pinnate, veins straight, forked ; sori 

 large, round, destitute of the thin membranous covering, which the 

 botanists term thf Indusium, such as distinguishes the fruit-dots of the 

 tribe Aspidiere, and some others of the dorsal ferns. 



These fruit dots or sori in the Polypodies are the distinguishing 

 characteristic of the group. In P. vulgare or Common Polypody, they 



