CANADIAN SPRUCES. 171 



fii'S were classed together under the one generic name Abies. Link, in 

 1841, separated the two groups into distinct genera, restoring the 

 chissical names, Picea for the spruces, and Abies for the firs. But in 

 Britain, where Coniferfe have been gi-own to an enormous extent, both 

 for ornament and use, especially since the middle of the present century, 

 a silver fir continued to be almost universally called a Picea, and a 

 spruce an A bies, — until within the last few years, when English scien- 

 tific writers have adopted Link's use of the names, and thus adapted 

 their nomenclature to continental custom and classical usage. Among 

 English foresters, gai'deners, and nurserymen, however, the old way, 

 so long familiar, will be given up slowly, and not without regret. 



The Canadian Spruces, so far as regards their distinctive specific 

 characters, have been a puzzle to botanists. They were not known to 

 Linnseus. Miller and Alton recognized two species, alba and nigra, 

 and Lambert introduced a third (rubra) that had been recognized by 

 the younger Michaux as a variety of nigra. Accordingly, in most of 

 the works on Conifera^ published since Lambert's (1825) by European 

 and English botanists,* we find the three spec'es described without 

 hesitation. But, there have not been wanting expressions of doubt as 

 to the permanent distinctness of the third species, and of suspicion 

 even, that all three were connected by intermediate forms so closely as 

 to be doubtfully entitled to i-ank as more than varieties of one species. 

 A full statement of synonymy would occupy too much space, and 

 indeed be out of place, in this publication ; a brief indication of the 

 views held by a few prominent botanists will suffice for the present. 



In Persoon's Synopsis Plantarum, 1807, (the authorship of which is 

 believed to belong to Richard), rubra is described with rubicund 

 cones, slightly bilobed scales, and red brown bark, and is curiously 

 enough assigned geographically to Hudson Strait ; alba, with incurved 

 leaves, lax subcylindrical cones, entire scales, whitish bai-k ; nigra, 

 with straight leaves, ovate black-purple cones, scales undulated at the 

 -margins, bark blackish. 



Endlicher, in the standard work on Coniferte for the time (1847), 

 " Synopsis Coniferarum," charactei'ized three species as follows : 

 (pp. 112-15) : alba, cones subcylindrical, lax, pendulous, scales bi-oadly 



* Persoon, Antoine, Don, Loudon, Link, Parlatore, Endlicher, Gordon, etc. 



