269 PITTONIA. 
approach, a picture of freshness and verdure at the showery 
season of the year, the months from December to February, 
during which the several visits were made. At this time 
sweet flowing water was found in most of the canons and 
ravines; a eondition not likely to hold during the summer 
season. 
The collection of plants is from the principal islet com- 
monly ealled West San Benito, and was made at intervals 
during the period above indicated. The easternmost island 
was once visited, but no plants were observed other than had 
been found on the chief member of the group. The middle 
island is deseribed as low, and it remains unvisited. Ishould 
expect its vegetation to differ somewhat from that of the 
elevated ones. 
Out of the twenty-four species obtained, three are clearly 
new; and this raises the number of endemic ones to five. 
The other nineteen, collectively regarded, will interest all 
students of plant distribution, as indicating a closer relation 
of the San Benito flora to that of Guadalupe Island, a hundred 
and fifty miles to the seaward, than to that of Cedros which 
lies barely twenty miles distant and near the continent. To 
cite one or two partieulars only: Cedros may be said to 
abound in polygonaceous plants, while Guadalupe, as was 
early remarked by Mr. Watson, the first writer upon its 
flora, is entirely destitute of them ; and so are the Benitos. 
The large genus Asíragalus also, well represented upon 
Cedros, fails to appear upon either Guadalupe or the Benitos. 
Brodiwa, Eschschollzia and Lavatera, altogether absent 
from Cedros, are plentiful on both Guadalupe and San 
Benito. ; 
On the other hand, the most characteristic composite of 
Cedros, Viguiera lanata, occurs on the West San Benito; 
and another allied plant, Encelia conspersa, is common to 
both; but the absence of all the other peculiar plants of 
Cedros from this closely neighboring spot is adding one more 
to the many curiosities of our insular botany. 
