592 



occasionally attains the height of forty or fifty feet, and a circumfe- 

 rence of from four to five feet. The largest willow {S. speciosa) seen 

 was twenty feet high and nearly five inches in diameter. It had such 

 a juvenile appearance that, judging from the growth of trees in milder 

 climates, it would have been pronounced to be five or six years old ; 

 yet on closer examination its age proved more than eighty years. 

 The leaves are alternate in 208 species, opposite or verticillate in 30, 

 simple in 224, and compound in 15. Many flowers are large, 170 

 regular, and 69 irregular. The predominant colour of the floral en- 

 velopes is white in 83 species, greenish in 59, yellow in 43, purple in 

 24, blue in 17, rose-colour in 7, and red in 3. It is remarkable that 

 red only occurs in three instances, and that scarlet is wanting. The 

 predominance of white in plants approaching the Pole is analogous to 

 the change of colour of many Arctic animals, — the ermine, the ptar- 

 migan, the hare, and others, whose outer covering turns white in the 

 beginning of winter. The fruit is dry in 33 species, and succulent in 

 9. Thus, speaking generally, it may be said that the plants of West- 

 ern Eskimaux-land are perennial herbs, have alternate, simple leaves, 

 regular white or yellow flowers, and a dry fruit. In all, 315 species 

 have been discovered : 35 Thallogens, 38 Acrogens, 45 Endogens, 

 and 197 Exogens ; or 242 Phanerogams and 73 Cryptogams. The 

 most numerous orders are the mosses and Compositse, the former being 

 represented by 30, the latter by 26 species. Then follows the family 

 of the lichens with 21 members, that of the grasses with 20, Saxi- 

 frageae with 19, Rosaceae with 18, Cruciferae with 17, and Ranuncu- 

 lacese and Carophyllese each with 15. The most extensive genera. are 

 Saxifraga, containing 18 species, Potentilla 9, Salix, Ranunculus and 

 Polytrichum 8, and Pedicularis and Hypnum 7 ; Senecio has but 6 

 representatives, and the rest still fewer. 



" The greater number of these plants are common to the Alps, the 

 Rocky Mountains, and the northern portions of Europe and Asia ; 

 some even are inhabitants of the Antarctic countries. Few are pecu- 

 liar to Arctic America, and only three, Artemisia androsacea. Seem., 

 Eritrichium aretoides, Alph. DeCand., and Polytrichum cavifolium, 

 Wils., have exclusively been found in Western Esquimaux-land. 

 Formerly a considerable number were thought to belong to the Polar 

 regions of the north. In proportion, however, as knowledge increased, 

 the endemic species have either been reduced to mere forms or varie- 

 ties, or have proved to be plants common also to other countries. 

 Now only a few remain, and there is reason to suppose that even these 

 few will be found to extend their range over a much wider extent of 



