50' Dk. Aknott's Botanical Excursion to the Rhinns of Galloway. 



Prodr. under the name we all know it by. As to Statice bellidifolia, aurieu,- 

 Icefolia, and s2Mthulata, there seems to be such an inextricable jumble, that we 

 must either drop these names entirely, so as to prevent false ideas arising from 

 the name, or we must conjoin many that have lately been disjoined. The 

 volume of De Candolle containing Boissier's description of the Plumba- 

 ginece has only been published a few mouths ago : I have just got it, 

 and have as yet made only one hasty attempt to decipher my foreign 

 species by it. I may, however, be j^ci'mitted to remark, that the species 

 seem to be founded on the philosophy of the modern schools, that plants 

 differing in character, however trifling, if words can be found to express 

 them, must be distinct species ; instead of the older and more reasonable 

 doctrine of botanists, that plants must have a natural specific difference 

 before we can assign limits to their written characters. 



Before leaving the lighthouse, (where we were requested to remain all 

 night, if the four would nestle in a couple of beds,) we were shown the 

 curious mechanism by which this modern Cyclops exhibits its solitary eye 

 to the erratic mariner ; and perhaps no mechanism raises up in the mind 

 more lofty ideas than that exhibited by the lighthouses on our coasts, 

 erected by Stevenson, — inferior to none in the world, superior to most. 



We were then conducted to the Smuggler's Hole, and hoped to find some 

 good things on the adjacent rocks, but were disappointed. Near the " hole" 

 itself I found one solitary plant of the hairy variety of the common heath, 

 Callima vulgaris. On the shore about West Tarbet, we found Cramhe 

 maritima, or Sea Kale, in cousidei-able quantity ; a plant which, like the 

 Samphires, becomes much more tractable by dipping it in boiling water. 



From this point we pushed on, keeping the top of the rocks, instead of 

 the coast, as the distance from Drumore was considerable, and we had 

 much work yet before us. For this reason it is probable that we missed 

 the Ewpliorbia Portlandica, said to grow along the coast. On coming 

 near to Cardrain farm, (Mr. M'Culloch's,) we thought it advisable to call 

 there, as we hoped to get him to conduct us to the little Ononis 

 recUnata, almost the scarcest of Scotch plants. Unfortunately he was 

 from home, and his lady could give us no assistance. We returned 

 to the cliffs, but having only Dr. Balfour's notes in the Philosophical 

 Society's Proceedings, (vol. i. 209,) to guide us, we were led to suppose 

 that the plant grew on the top of the cliffs, along with the Oxytropis 

 fJrcdens^ls, instead of at the bottom, on a gentle declivity near the sea. It 

 must be confessed, too, that to find this plant in a good state, we were a 

 month too late. Geranium sanguineum was abundant. Alisma ranim- 

 culuides and Hypericum Modes, we did not see. The former I met with 

 shortly before on the west side of the greater Cumbrae, — an island 

 interesting for the endless profusion of Anagallis tenella, — and the latter 

 we found afterwards nearer Portpatrick. On returning to Cardrain 

 farm-house for our vascula which we had left there, we found by the 

 side of a ditch, abundance of Lepidimn Smltk'd, and a few specimens of 

 Stachys ambigua. This latter plant is supposed by many to be a hybrid 



