lxiv FLORA ORCADENSIS. 
that it extends much farther. If the land were 
raised a few hundred feet we would have what 
would account for the unity of the flora in the 
north of Scotland. The flora of Caithness does not 
differ more from that of Orkney than it does from 
that of Sutherland. Mr Arthur Bennett, F.L.S., has 
taken great trouble to keep a reliable record of the 
floras of the different counties, and no doubt further 
investigation will bring the floras in still closer 
harmony. 
SOME INTERESTING BOTANICAL FACTS. 
The study of botany reveals some very interesting 
features of plant life, a few of which we may here 
specify. Some plants are glabrous, and this is more 
especially the case with aquatic plants, to which a 
covering of hairs would be a great encumbrance. 
Many land plants are covered with hairs. Some 
have the hairs adhering to the stem and leaves, 
whilst others do not. It is thought that hairs 
pointing downwards form a protection to the plant 
against injurious insects. These cannot climb the 
stem if thus protected, and hence the pollen and 
pistil are not interfered with—the reproductive parts 
of the plant. It is well known that leaves on land 
plants have many stomata on their underside. These 
mouths allow the carbon-laden air to pass in with 
its feeding properties, and the oxygen, of which the 
plant has a superabundance, to pass off. These are 
important functions, which, when interfered with, 
retard the growth of the plant. Now it is believed 
that in a climate such as ours, with a large number 
