64 
appearance, on the coast line, the most widely-distributed member 
of the Orache family,{being found at Silloth, Allonby, Maryport, 
Workington, and St. Bees. 
POLYGONACE. 
Rumex nemorosus, var. b. sanguineus ; this Dock is far from uncom- 
mon towards the western coast line. I have seen it about St. Bees, 
Workington, Seaton, Flimby, Broughton, Maryport, and Old Maw- 
bray ; the characteristic bloody veins are more distinctly traceable 
in the root leaves in early spring, than in those of the stem at a 
more advanced stage of growth. A. obtusifolius; the Common 
Dock, so well known by farmers as a pest, haunts the shore, as 
well as the inland part of the county ; it is, however, largely out- 
numbered on the beach by A. crispus,a fine variety of which, 
distinguished as 2. ¢r7granulatus, is quite common from Maryport 
to Ravenglass. &. alfinus; a reputed alien; grown in gardens 
by the butter-wives, who use its fine large leaves for the purpose 
of keeping their pounded butter cool in hot weather ; is sometimes 
found in a half-wild state. &. acetosa, ‘Sour Dockin’,” and 
R. acetosella, “‘Sheep’s Sorrel,” are both quite common ; the latter 
luxuriates on the turfy soil of newly-reclaimed bog land. &. scu- 
tatus; an alien, occasionally cultivated as a salad herb; I was 
greatly surprised to find patches of this plant growing at the foot 
of the rocky bluffs that overlook the sea a little on the White- 
haven side of Harrington; how it came there, except through the 
agency of birds, I was at a loss to imagine; the fondness of 
linnets, finches, &c., for the seeds of the Common Sorrel I had 
frequently noticed, and I was fain to accept this theory as a 
probable solution of the puzzle. Polygonum fagopyrum is a plant 
which I have only met with about the docks at Silloth, imported 
by ballast as at Maryport. /. convolvulus, and P. aviculare, are 
both quite common; the former, as Black Bind Weed, has a 
bad habit of twisting itself spirally round any plant within its 
reach, and thereby seriously impeding its growth, P. razz 
resembles an overgrown, or luxuriant, type of P. aviculare, with 
long procumbent stems; it is, however, readily distinguishable 
