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flower only in a garden, to which the wild root, in its flowerless state, 

 had been removed by Mr. Andrews, whose name it appropriately 

 bears, not only as that of the discoverer of this particular species or 

 variety, but as that of a botanist who has devoted more attention to 

 the Saxifrages of Ireland, and acquired a more exact and familiar ac- 

 quaintance with their proteiform characters, than can be claimed by 

 any other of Her Majesty's subjects. The discovery of this remark- 

 able example was curious, and merits quotation in the words of Mr. 

 Andrews, as a good illustration of the advantage which may result 

 from exact observation of varieties, or what appear to be such. 



" With regard to my Saxifrage," writes Mr. Andrews, " I have but 

 little to say beyond the following. Professor Allman, on the 25th of 

 June, 1845, read a paper at one of the sectional meetings of the Bri- 

 tish Association, held at Cambridge, conveying my views of the 

 Robertsonian Saxifrages. In the views (which were altogether in 

 opposition to those advanced by Mr. Babington, and published by 

 him in the 'Annals of Natural History' for June, 1844) I stated, as 

 my opinion, that all the forms of Geum and umbrosa of Ireland, were 

 identical with those of the Pyrenees, and that forms of leaves of Geum, 

 equally as obtusely crenate as those of the Pyrenees, were met with 

 in Kerry. Further, that all these forms passed so completely into 

 each other, that neither /Ursula, elegans, nor serratifolia had any 

 pretension to specific difference. This view of the subject has since 

 been confirmed by Mr. Spruce, as noted in the ' London Journal of 

 Botany' for July, 1846; but Mr. Babington has not yet found time 

 to correct any of the statements in the journal where they have been 

 so positively asserted by him. To strengthen still further my points, 

 I assiduously, in September, 1845, collected in my rambles in Kerry, 

 every form of leaf of Geum and umbrosa that I could meet with, and 

 among them found the very remarkable form of leaf of the plant that 

 you have so kindly undertaken to draw and describe. The specimens 

 of this last were collected, growing on moist cliffs of a mountain at 

 the extreme termination of Glen Caragh, either Cluan or Claraby, I 

 am not certain which. They were not in flower at the time of 

 gathering. I removed roots to my garden, where they did not pro- 

 duce flowers till this season (June, 1848), when the more remarkable 

 characters were apparent." 



The individual writer of this notice can fully confirm the statements 

 of Mr. Andrews, in respect to the very variable forms and serratures 

 of the leaves of the Robertsonian Saxifrages of Ireland ; as well as 

 their general identity, in these respects, with examples of the same 



