Vil 
should maké them general favourites. The Primrose, the Cowslip, 
the Hycacinth, and otker of our wild flowers, find their way into 
the cottage garden, but we never yet saw an Orchis in a cottage 
garden or taking part in a rustic nosegay ; however, great heaps of 
the commoner ones may occasionally be noticed laying prostrate 
by a stile or scattered about the country childrens’ play-ground, 
having been gathered by the little unsophisticated creatures who 
have always a deep love for “ pretty flowers,” which, in as far as 
the Orchis is concerned, is early destined to be clouded by a 
prejudice which, in after life, is so strong as not merely to lead 
to indifference, but to a positive superstitious dread of these 
beautiful and harmless creations. 
This feeling would appear to have been derived from the name, 
which country people apply to some of the commoner species, 
namely, that of “ Bloody Man’s Fingers;” no doubt applied on 
account of the digitate roots which are white and fleshy, and bear 
no distant resemblance to bloodless fingers; and yet, curiously 
enough, this form of root is not common to the commoner species 
as the two everywhere met with, the Orchis morio and O. mascula, 
have two rounded tuberous appendages below the surface of the 
soil, which contain so much starch as to make the plant by some 
be considered as worthy of cultivation. 
Little however as these plants have been attended to as objects 
of floral culture yet they will be found well worthy of notice in 
this respect, to which end field specimens should be marked when 
in flower for removal in the autumn, a remark necessary inasmuch 
as the usual plan of taking up flowering roots when first observed, 
usually results in disappointment in these, as it would be the case 
with most plants when in full flower. Of course observation of 
the locality, soil, and habit of growth, would conduce greatly to 
success. 
The following is a list of all the species which I have met with 
in our County. These are 18 belonging to 8 genera, being some- 
what more than half the genera belonging to the British Flora, as 
described by Hooker and Arnott, and nearly half the species, the 
numbers being of total British species 38 appertaining to 14 
genera. 
List of the Orchidacee of Gloucestershire. 
1. Epipactis latifolia, Broad-leaved Heleborine.—In the woods in Oakley 
Park, Cirencester, Birdlip, and most of the Cotteswold 
woods and thickets. 
2. i grandiflora, large white H.—Plentiful in Oakley Park, and 
" a north Cotteswold woods, but no where in the 
ale. 
Sa us ensifolia, narrow-leaved white H.—A few years since I met 
with two specimens of this plant beneath the Rookery 
trees of Oakley Park, and not deeming but there 
would be others, I at once appropriated these exam- 
ples of an exceedingly rare plant to my Herbarium, 
but alas, the most diligent search for years has not 
again given me sight of a living specimen. It may 
