Prate I. 
CHARA GYMNOPUS, A. Br. 
Var. elegans, A. Br. 
Sub-order, Cuare. Verticills of leaves mostly surrounded by a whirl of 
stipules. Leaves many-celled, with bract-bearing nodes. Bracts 
one-celled, shorter than the leaf. Antheridium lateral occupying 
the place of a bract, on the inner (ventral) aspect of the leaf, 
usually single. Sporangium on ventral aspect of leaf. Coronula 
of sporangium consisting of a single series of five cells, persistent. 
Genus, CHAKA. Sporangium arising from the uppermost cell of the 
basilar node of an antheridium or a corresponding bract, hence 
axillary. 
* DreLostepHan&. Whirl of stipules developed from a double series of 
cells, stem always corticated ; leaves usually so. 
** Perrect&. Cortex uniformly developed around the stem; the 
series of cells approximate leaving no interspaces. 
* * * GyMNOPODES. First basal internode of the leaf naked, not 
corticated ; other internodes triple-corticated. 
** * * Monacca. Antheridia and sporangia borne on the same leaf ; 
in one species (seyuzcta) on different nodes. 
CuHarA Gymnopus. This species has been established, by the late Prof. Braun, 
to include a large number of closely related forms from all parts of the world; and 
we are inclined to extend it so as to embrace all the moncecious Gymnopode. 
The variation in size of plant, size and shape of sporangium, development of 
bracts, length of the naked basal internode (very short in some American varieties, 
var. Humboldtii, etc.; very long in Ch. -Angolensis A.Br., and in Ch. Robbinsit. 
Halsted), number of corticated internodes, and of naked terminal internodes, development 
of the coronula, etc., is very great, and no satisfactory line can be drawn. Prof. Braun 
remarks in Characee Africane “ So long as I knew but fewforms of the Gywopoda, their 
distinction seemed easy ; but when it became necessary to determine sixteen to eighteen 
forms, I concluded to consider them all varieties of a single species, for which Gymnopus 
seemed the most fitting, though Cey/onica, Klein and Willd., is the oldest name.” 
