114 Mr. E. Kidston on a neio Sjiecies of 



his specimens, Geinitz figured and described another species, 

 Lycojjodites Guthieri^ . 



All these plants Schimper has placed in the recent genus 

 Lycopodhim^. Both Goldenberg and Geinitz considered them, 

 if not identical with Lycopodium^ extremely closely related to 

 that genus. 



Schimper's opinion of the systematic position of these plants 

 has been adopted by Renault:}:, who has described a small 

 Lycopodiaceous stem under tlie name of Lycopodlum puncta- 

 tum^ ; another, in the same communication, is described by 

 Ad. Brongniart as Lycopodium Renaultn. 



Both these small stems, though perhaps closely related to 

 Lycopodmm ^ possess some structural diii^'erences which we are 

 inclined to regard as of sufficient importance to exclude them 

 from the recent genus in which they are placed. 



Renault, in his very interesting paper, has pointed out the 

 presence of areolated vessels in his fossils, which he admits 

 do not occur in recent Lycopodium. It is quite possible that 

 the specimens described by Renault and Brongniart are stems 

 of plants similar to Goldenberg' s Lycojiodites ; but as they are 

 not identical in structure with any known Lycopodium^ I 

 think it better to place them in Lycopodites than in Lyco- 

 podium. 



The same train of reasoning inclines me to reject the genus 

 Lycopodium for Goldenberg's species, notwithstanding their 

 undoubted close relationship to it. If we place them in 

 Lycopodium, we commit ourselves to the opinion that the 

 fossils are identical in all essential structural peculiarities with 

 their recent representatives — an opinion not at present satis- 

 factorily substantiated by proof. I therefore propose to rein- 

 state the genus Lycopodites^ Goldenberg, for the following 

 species : — 



A. Sporangia placed in the axils of the leaves. 



1. Lycopodites denticuIatuSj Gold. 



2. elonyatuSj Gold. 



B. Sporangia forming terminal cones. 



3. Lycojjodites primcevus, Gold. 



4. leptostachyus, Gold. 



* ' Die Versteinenmgen der Steinkohleuformation iu Sacbsen,' p 32 

 pi. i. fig. 1 (1850). "^ ' 



t Schimper, Tiaite d. paleont. veget. vo]. ii. p. 8, pi. Ivii. (1870). 



X Cours d. botan. foss. p. 74, pi. xii. figs. 9, 10 (1882). 



§ Ann. des Sciences Nalurelles, 5<~ ser. Bot., vol. xii. pp. 178-182 

 pip. xii.-xiv. ri869). 



