268 BICKNELL: VIOLA OBLIQUA HILL AND OTHER VIOLETS 
the bearding in Viola obliqua—his Viola affinis.* ‘‘ Flowers 
blue, white at their base,”’ points also to Viola obliqua for, while 
the petals of all these violets are white at their base, the flowers 
of this one are lighter towards the throat where those of our 
“ cucullata’”’ are characteristically of deeper hue, often in sharp 
contrast with the pale blue surrounding parts. 
It is not to be believed that Pursh did not know both of 
these common violets, and I have been at pains to determine 
and to lay stress upon each of his described species the better to 
emphasize the identity of his Viola papilionacea, for it would 
appear that by right of priority this is the true name of our meadow 
violet that we have been miscalling Viola cucullata Ait. 
If a decade and more ago we knew as much about our violets 
as we know today, however scant our present knowledge may be, 
Aiton’s Viola cucullata would scarcely have been construed in 
terms of our meadow violet that, as we have just seen, Pursh called 
Viola papilionacea. Doctor Greene in pointing out to us this 
distinct but long hidden species did not adopt for it a doubtfully 
applicable name without using a deliberate mark of interrogation.7 
However unmistakable the description of any later author may 
be, there is not one word by Aiton himself that can be deemed 
distinctive of this plant. Quite otherwise. His Viola cucullata 
had, for instance, subterete scapes shorter than the leaves, which 
were attenuate at the apex, and the petals, the upper pair not 
being reflexed, were white at their base. His entire description 
differs in no essential from the description of Hill’s Viola obliqua, 
nor does it fail at any point to apply to that plant. That species 
must have been the very one he had before him but, believing 
Hill’s plant to be characterised by erect flowers, partly stramineous 
in color like some of the European species, he very naturally 
considered his own plant to be distinct by reason of blue inverted 
flowers on scapes reflexed at the apex, which characters, although 
common to all violets, he is particular to report. Can it be 
doubted that the name Viola cucullata Aiton is but a synonym 
of Viola obliqua Hill and that our meadow violet that we have 
allowed to bear Aiton’s name should now inherit from Pursh the 
name Viola papilionacea? 
* Loc. cit., p. 671. 
} Fittonia 3: 143. 18096. 
