44 BOTANICAL TOUR IN THE 



The tufts of Silene acaulis, with its green cushions of matted 

 leaves spread over the face of the rock, and its brilliant pink blos- 

 soms, form about as charming an object as can well be imagined. 

 Saxifraya oppositifolia hangs in larger festoon-like patches on 

 and over the rocks ; but at our visit the flowers were nearly all 

 gone, and the fruit had succeeded. In this state they have lost 

 all their charms. Saxifraga stellaris of various sizes, from an 

 inch to six inches high, still abounded at this altitude, and the 

 rarer S. nivalis was soon collected. This species has white flowers, 

 but the petals are smaller than in S. stellaris, and they are of a 

 slightly different shape. They want the yellow spots at the base, 

 and the plant has larger and more rounded radical leaves. The 

 stem is leafless in S. nivalis ; in S. stellaris this organ is leafy. 

 Draba incana also abounded on these rocks, and so did Arabis 

 hirsuta. We believe Draba muralis grows on the same place. 

 We thought we had captured a specimen of Arabis petraa, but 

 on inspection it turned out to be Cardamine hirsuta, without 

 hairs and of very slender habit. C. hirsuta of the common form 

 and C. pratensis were also observed, but the latter not so high 

 up the mountain as the former. One of the showiest species of 

 this Alpine Flora was Cochlearia grcenlandica. This plant usually 

 affected damp, sheltered places, where it was almost covered by 

 the upper and impending crags. It was often seen in open 

 exposed parts, but not in such luxuriance and beauty as when 

 nestled in these cozy crannies and corners among the surround- 

 ing rocks. Sagina saxatilis, Wimm. (Spergula saginoides, Sin.), 

 a plant which does not differ much from S. procumbent, was not 

 uncommon on the rocky fragments that abound everywhere 

 under and between the impending precipices. Thalictrum alpi- 

 num, not more than two or three inches high, was plentiful every- 

 where on the rocks and on their debris. 



By this time the evening was beginning to draw near ; the 

 shadows, when the sun favoured us with a gleam, began to 

 lengthen. This and our own feelings admonished us that it was 

 time to seek a place of repose. We had, in the morning, when 

 we arrived at Lawers, engaged our beds at our inn, and now we 

 made up our minds to take our ease at it for the night. We 

 descended to the base of the mountain, or rather to the borders 

 of the lake, and went along its margin and along the course of 

 the stream which issues from it until we reached the village of 



