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tonly consigned to destruction. It was quite clear, that this portion 

 of the rocks had once been entirely clothed with the most luxuriant 

 tapestry of this delicate little fern ; that it had been wilfully torn down 

 and destroyed by wholesale, by some Goth or Vandal ; and that all 

 we had seen were the mere wrecks and fringes, that had escaped his 

 ruthless hand. We thought we could trace the very fitting of some of 

 the pieces on some parts of the rocks. The attempt, we believe, had 

 been to annihilate the fern entirely ; but, thanks to the energies of 

 Nature, it had so far failed, that, besides the scattered fragments here 

 and there surviving, a few small patches had evidently sprung up 

 since ; and on a very close inspection, we observed a fair sprinkling 

 of the seedling fern in various spots on the face of the rock, where it 

 had been denuded, again beginning to vegetate ; and if unmolested, 

 we have little doubt, in a few years, it will all be green again. At 

 what period this devastation was committed, we were unable to con- 

 jecture, not knowing how long the fronds of this fern will continue to 

 maintain some greenness in sufficiently damp situations. At the mar- 

 gins of some of the larger masses, were still a few partially green 

 fronds. We spent half an hour to an hour in carefully replanting all 

 we could find of these in the crevices, hollows, and other likely places, 

 in case of there being any life left. I can hardly desire that such a 

 ruthless barbarian as he whose agency had here been exemplified may 

 be among the readers of the ' Phytologist ;' but should this meet his 

 eye, I trust the consciousness and chance of exposure may inflict 

 some punishment, or, at least, the shame and indignity of being thus 

 made to " point a moral ;" and, he may depend upon it, he cannot 

 escape his due at some time. 



We afterwards observed the Hymenophyllum sparingly on the face 

 of a great rock close by the side of one of the made footpaths, and in 

 two places on the Eridge Rocks. We had not time to investigate Har- 

 rison's Rocks, but have little doubt the fern is to be found in other sta- 

 tions all over the series, wherever the conditions are presented. Our 

 observation of this day would lead us to the conclusion, that H. Tun- 

 bridgense does not affect particularly dripping or very wet rocks ; and 

 we should have missed it altogether, had we confined our search to 

 the bases of the rocks, as it grows at Ardingly, or like its congener, 

 H. Wilsoni, which delights in mountain streamlets, cascades, and the 

 sides of absolutely wet rocks. All the spots where we observed the 

 H. Tunbridgense were on comparatively dry parts of the rocks ; but 

 a moist surrounding atmosphere is undoubtedly most essential. I am 



