IGO TKANSAUTlOxXS AND PKOCEEDINGS OF THE [Sess. LXVi. 



village, and of very humble appearance, but clean and 

 comfortable. Here they remained from the Wednesday 

 evening till the Saturday morning, and they can recommend 

 Mrs. O'Connor's to any botanist who may desire accom- 

 modation in that part of Kerry. 



The main object in view was to find the Killarney fern. 

 Unfortunately, the first day, Thursday, was very wet, 

 and the search was unsuccessful, — the searchers being 

 compelled to return to the inn early in the afternoon, 

 drenched. The next day, however, was fine, and, having 

 with them as guide a very intelligent man belonging to 

 the village, who professed to know where the plant was 

 growing, they again passed up the valley of the Owenmore, 

 a fine fishing stream, to the point where the road is crossed 

 by a tributary burn issuing from Lough Cruttia. This 

 tributary they followed up till they reached the Lough, 

 a sheet of water about a mile long by a quarter of a mile 

 broad. The guide led them up the rocky hillside on the 

 south-west side of the Lough, to a point about 300 feet 

 above its level, and showed them a pretty large plant of 

 the fern growing in a deep hole among the boulders. 

 There was no water near, and it seemed to be entirely 

 dependent on the rain for the moisture it requires. One 

 or two leaves were taken, but the plant was left undis- 

 turbed. Another similar hole, under a great rock farther 

 up the hillside, was pointed out, where a much larger 

 plant was recently growing, but the whole of it had been 

 rooted up and sold. The guide, who knew the fern well, 

 said he had very carefully searched over the whole 

 hillside, and looked into every likely hole, but that he 

 knew of no other plant now remaining. It was satisfactory 

 to see even a single plant of it, although one had to be led 

 to the spot by a guide. 



Trichomanes radicans, Swartz, is found, or used to be 

 found, in seven of the twelve botanical districts into 

 which Ireland is divided ; but in many of its former 

 localities it has been exterminated. It was formerly 

 plentiful in parts of Kerry, whereas it is now very rare 

 in the country. In 1858 it was "abundant on the Tore 

 Mountain " near Killarney, and it was seen there as late 

 as 1889 ; but Dr. Scully states in the " Cybele Hibernica " 



