206 Alexander Goodman More. (~1868 



Onebotanical mission he found time for on the way home. 

 He got out at Millstreet, spent a night there, and at 5.30 

 on the following morning (August 8) started to examine 

 the shores of Gurthaveha Lake. It was not quite two 

 years since Gurthaveha had risen into botanical fame, 

 through the announcement that Eriophorum alpinum, a 

 cotton-grass otherwise unknown to Ireland, had been 

 gathered beside it. Whether the record could be verified 

 or not was a question which could not be let sleep. Hence 

 his visit to Gurthaveha Lake. " Gloun-na-flickran Rocks, 

 over the lake looking east, is best locality," runs the note 

 in his pocket-book, "bounded on south side by dark rugged 

 limestone and fissured rocks, whose clefts of 300 feet 

 form deep shady cavities. On north side a lower ridge 

 sloping down, to west end of lake, where is the outlet. 

 Stony borders. A sort of rough road runs along north 

 side and a ruined boat-house at east end." 



Rocks above Gurthaveha Lake : Asplenium viride, Cystopteris, 

 Polypodium Phegopteris, P. vulgare, Polystichum aculeatum, Aspl. 

 ruta-muraria, A. Adiantum-nigrum, A. Trichomanes, Hymenophyllum 

 Wilsoni, Solidago cambrica, Asperula odorata, Hedera, Valeriana 

 officinalis, Saxifraga Geum and umbrosa, Hieracium anglicum, Andro- 

 saemum, Rubus idaeus, Pinguicula grandiflora, Isoetes and Lobelia, 

 Littorella, Myriophyllum alterniflorum : could only find Scirpus csespi- 

 tosus with little woolly heads. 



The above notes embody in brief the fruits of his long 

 search, which pretty well convinced him that no "alpine 

 cotton-grass " grew by Gurthaveha : though it was not till 

 the locality had again been carefully examined by Dr. 

 Moore that they drew attention to the probable inaccuracy 

 of the record. On the evening of August 8th he returned 

 to Dublin. 



His love of botany would seem to have rather increased 

 than diminished during these years, and his summer holi- 

 day, taken in the following September, was chiefly devoted 

 to it. Most of the time was spent at Braemar and other 

 places in the Eastern Highlands. On the slopes of Loch- 

 nagar he found himself in quite a naturalist's paradise, 

 and long walks over mountain and moor, with generally 

 some botanical object in view, were his almost daily 



