54 Dk. Aenott's Sotanical Excursion to the Rhinns of Galloway. 



these of course we left : only about a dozen were obtained in a good 

 state. The coast instead of a south-easterly, takes now a south-westerly 

 direction to Mary-port, nearly half-way between KaUiness point and Mull 

 farm. At Mary-port we met with Rcqihanus maritlmus, very luxuriant, 

 but apparently passing into R. Raphanistrum, unless indeed both were 

 growing intermingled, and forming hybrids. The strangulated or beaded 

 appearance of the fruit has always appeared to me the best character, 

 although that has been departed from by most botanists, who lay more 

 stress on the lyrate, or simply pinnatisect nature of the leaves ; to this 

 latter I object, as it does not seem of much value in other species of the 

 Cruciferas, but I by no means insist on the validity of that obtained from 

 the fruit, for reasons best illustrated by the specimens on the table. Near 

 Mary-port the Hdosciadkmi nodiflorum was found, and Savwlus Vcderandi, 

 the first time we had seen it on this coast. 



Carlina vulgaris was got on a sloping bank vis-a-vis to the Mull farm 

 house. From this point to the lighthouse, we observed nothing worthy 

 of notice : and no sooner had we got to the lighthouse, than a cold drizzle 

 came on, which made our scrambling down among the rocks too hazardous 

 to be attempted : we got here a boy accustomed to them, to descend for 

 the Crithmum maritimutn, and Inida crithmoides : the former was not suffi- 

 ciently advanced, for this, like aU other Umbelliferse, ought to be collected 

 when the fruit is almost mature. This plant is not so scarce in Scotland 

 as supposed, extending from the Mull of GaUoway to the parish of Kirk- 

 bean, on the east coast of Kirkcudbrightshire : it is also found to the 

 south of Ayr. The Golden Samphire, /. crithmoides, is more rare. 

 To dry both I found it necessary, on my return to Glasgow, to scald 

 them in boiling water, not only to kill them, but to take the salt 

 out of them, which last, if not extracted, ruins specimens that are 

 not kept constantly in a perfectly arid atmosphere. We could not 

 obtain a boat, and therefore we found neither the Atriplex portu- 

 JMcaides, nor Statice spathidaia, found here, as I understand, by Dr. 

 Balfour and his party, in 1843. I was rather disappointed at this, 

 because I never happened to see, in a growing state, the Statice, so called 

 in this country, although it appears to be by no means uncommon. My 

 attention was many years ago directed to probably a form of it as 

 distinct from S. Limonium by Mr. M. Y. Stark, now a clergyman 

 in Canada, who found both on the south shores of England, and observed 

 that the S. sjMthidata uniformly grew in circles or rings, like fairy rings, 

 while the other never did. As to the name this plant ought to bear, it 

 seems tolerably certain that it is not S. spathidaia of Desfontaines, — 

 indeed, Boissier, the latest writer on the subject, places them in different 

 sections of the genus ; it appears to be the S. bdlidi/olia of most French 

 botanical writers, but not of Sibthorpe's Flora Graeca, nor of De Candolle: 

 it is the S. olecefolia of Willdenow, but not of Scopoli, and it is the S. 

 Willdenovii of Loisleur in part only, the specimens he had chiefly in view 

 being the S. densifiora of Girard, a Mediterranean plant : indeed until 



