292 43. R. c^sius. 



very irregular and lax, wavy, leafy, witL. many short red 

 setae. Flowers in irregular terminal and axillary corymbs. 

 Fedundes very setose, finely felted. Sepals ovate-acuminate, 

 with a long slender point, pale green, felted, setose, as well 

 as the peduncles, scarcely at all hairy, spreading, clasping 

 the glaucous fruit, which consists of a few large drupels. 

 Petals white, ovate, notched, shortly clawed. Filaments 

 white. Anthers cream-coloured. Styles greenish. Primor- 

 dial fruitstalk about as long as the sepals. After the 

 petals have fallen the sepals quite close over the drupels so 

 as to bring theii' flattened points together : in which state 

 they closely resemble the buds, scarcely difiering except in 

 size and the length of the points : the swelling of the fruit 

 causes them again to open. 



This variety seems to be or to include the R. serpens 

 (Godr.), with which two of my specimens almost exactly 

 agree. One of these, from Fakenham in Norfolk, has a 

 slight trace of bloom on its stem and straight prickles on its 

 petioles ; it also has nearly naked unarmed sepals : the other 

 (from Buildwas in Shropshire), which is derived from the 

 Herb. Leighton, agrees better in these respects with R. 

 serpens. Both have much more numerous drupels in each 

 fruit than is usual in R. ccesius, which has rarely more than 

 1 — ,3 large ones. Godron states that the fruit-calyx of R. 

 serpens is reflexed, which is not the case in our plant. The 

 specimen of R. serjoens in Billot's Fl. Gall, et Germ, agrees 

 very well with the present variety. 



Dr Mercier divides this species into R. ccesius and 

 R. agrestis by the "impari-cuneiform" terminal leaflet of the 

 former and the "impari-cordate" leaflet of the latter. I can- 

 not find much other difierence between his plants, and con- 

 sider that character not even of use as separating varieties. 



IVIr Syme states that he is unable to distribute the speci- 

 mens which he has seen into my varieties. I have rarely 



