CALAMARIEAE. 



ferous limestone of Rothwaltersdorf in Silesia, a branch of Archaeocalamites 

 radiatus bearing terminal fertile spikes, and known by its long dichotomously 

 divided leaves. He gives a new figure 1 of the impression of the spike, 

 which unfortunately is in a very bad state of preservation. He believes 

 that he recognises in it a spike composed of numerous sporophylls inter- 

 rupted from time to time by a sterile leaf-whorl. This view is to some 

 extent in accordance with the arrangement of the parts in Pothocites, and 

 it reminds us of the structure of the fructifications, perhaps belonging 

 to Phyllotheca, which was described above on p. 181. Lastly, Renault 2 in 

 a preliminary communication has described fructifications, which he says 

 that he has found in a good state of preservation and still attached to their 

 branches. The more detailed account of these objects will perhaps throw 

 more light on them. According to his statements, the ' male fructifi- 

 cations of Bornia ' are spikes bearing sporophylls only. These sporophylls, 

 from eight to ten in a whorl, are umbrella-shaped, and as usual bear four 

 sporangia. They come from the anthracite-beds of La Vende'e, and, as 

 Renault distinctly says, have been already figured by Grand' Eury 3 . The 

 figure in the text of Grand' Eury's work does not indeed appear to me to 

 answer too well to the description. We are not told whether the spikes 

 which Grand' Eury found attached to his Bryon (see on p. 323) are referred, 

 as they might be, to these forms. 



It would be very important to know what were the organs of 

 vegetation belonging to each of the fructifications in the rich series which 

 has now been described. On this point unfortunately there are but few 

 quite certain facts to which we can appeal. It has been ascertained in 

 the case of a number of spikes, as appears from the foregoing remarks, 

 that they are attached to leafy branches resembling those of Asterophyl- 

 litae, but this leaves us still in ignorance in almost every case of the 

 stems to which the leafy shoots belonged. Conjectures on this subject 

 there are indeed in plenty, based more or less on personal persuasion for 

 which no exact reasons can be given, but such views cannot be discussed 

 here to any profit because of the instability of their foundations. In the 

 following remarks therefore I shall mention only those cases in which 

 spikes of known organisation have been found in direct connection with 

 vegetative parts capable of being determined, for only these can serve as a 

 basis for further research. The first that should be mentioned are Cala- 

 mostachys tuberculata, Weiss, and C. calathifera, Weiss, both of which were 

 found attached to leafy branches of Annularia longifolia and A. sphenophyl- 

 loides in impressions near Lugau in Saxony. Sterzel 4 has illustrated the 

 connection between the two latter forms by means of excellent figures, 



1 Stur (6), p. 15, f. 4. * Renault (19) and (18). s Grand' Enry (1\ p. 54, f. I. 



4 Sterzel (3\ t. 28. 



