FLORA 



NE 



E ALAND. 



Past II. CRYPTOGAMIA. 



Nat. Obd. FILICES, Juss. 



o^eVze 1 "I 1 U r 7, % ^ ^ m ° St C ° nSpiCU0U ^ and at the Same time h ^™> Natural Orders 

 of New Zealndplants. I have enumerated 117 species in the following synopsis, a number which, forrea 

 ons have elsewhere stated (Introductory Essay, p. vi), is not likely to be much augmented by nove Z 

 hough , may be doubled by those who attach importance to those variations of outlfne and texture ^ 



cific vie t aCC T Pam \ ^^ ° f StmCtUre " W ° uld induCe me to consife them of spe- 

 ri£ t ., P " C ° mprehenslve view be take * of ^e species of Ferns, and considerable latitude be 

 allowed for the. vanatmns, there are no limits assignable to the number of forms they present, wh ch 2 b 



sucl" e 7 d Mme ; §h ^ P ° SSeSSmg C ° nStant CWte " E ^ *"*" ° f wide^istniutioXl 

 uch a tendency to vary wrfh each modification of temperature, soil, and exposure, that none can be 



pronounced d.tmct from its allies until examined in all its forms and from many count ies It is an 



unfortunate cxrcumsta.ee for the state of Pteridology, that this fact has been so systematical! disreLded 



X^r^fssr is — bered ■* a — ** * **■ ~s 



cautio^inTef fj ^f™ ° f ^ hufivHnal S P ecieS ° f Ferns is - ot her fact that should enforce 

 caufaon m then- study; but though every succeeding work on the subject enlarges our knowledge of the 

 range of each spec.es ^stances are daily occurring of plants being proposed and described as new which 

 have no claim to novelty but their birth-place. 



I would particularly draw the attention of the New Zealand student to two principle, -on the 

 hand, that he must allow some latitude to the construction of the characters I have laid down and on the 

 other that though a Fern under examination may be obviously new to this Mora, it is not therefore necessaril v 

 new to scrence. The neglect of this latter consideration has added numerous names to th Z zZnd 

 Ferns : ln one ease a New Zealand Fern well known to general botanists for many years wa founl in 

 Europe for the first time, and, because not included in any European Flora, was nam 12 Zi ed as 



