38 



plant of a brighter green which has been found in CUviger. The 

 plant found is a highly variable one and has been distinguished 

 into twenty or tliirty different species. Another very early flower is 

 the Moscatel, which may be found in hedge bottoms at the top of 

 Brunshaw and elsewhere. It bears a little green obscure looking 

 flower, but pretty under the lens. It is a genus, says Bentham, 

 consisting of a single species and is allied to the Elders and 

 Honeysuckles, though it does not look it. Dog's Mercury is 

 another very vulgar weed, but interesting to the botanist. It 

 may be found under any hedge, and is worth attention, not only 

 for itself, but as being a near relation of the Spurges, The 

 flowers are unisexual, i.e., the stamens are in one flower and the 

 ovary in another. In the Spurges the two different kinds of 

 flowers are found on the same plant, but in the Mercury the 

 stamen-bearing flowers are all on one plant and the ovary-bearing 

 flowers on another. In one place you may look a long time and 

 find nothing but stamen-bearing plants, and in another you may 

 look as long without discovering anything but the seed-beaxung 

 plant. Linnfeus called plants of this kind dioecious, or plants of 

 two houses. Like Coltsfoot and several others of our local 

 plants, the flowers of this Aveed appear before the leaves are fully 

 out. 



Following the subject into still further detail, the reader enu- 

 merated a great number of local species and gave descriptions 

 of their habitats and associations, concluding with some remarks 

 on the common names of plants. The j)aper was illustrated by 

 a number of very beautiful and well-preserved specimens of local 

 plants, belonging to Mr. Simpson, and kindly lent for the 

 occasion, which were inspected by the members present with 

 great interest. 



DISCUSSION : THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE 



COTTON TRADE SINCE 1875 ; CAN IT 



BE MAINTAINED? 



By JAMES GREENWOOD, J.P. March 15th, 1887, 



It may be remembered that in 1875 I introduced a discussion 

 in this club on the subject : — " Can England maintain her 

 commercial supremacy ? " — and I thought it would not be in- 

 appropriate to continue an examination of the subject from that 



