Ob ENGLISH BOTANY. 



persistent. Lamina firm or snbcoriaceous, bright green, usually 

 without glands, oblong or strapshapecl or oblong-elliptical, gradually 

 or suddenly acuminate or cuspidate, rather abrupt at the base, 

 bipinnate or once pinnate with the pinnae pinnatipartite or deeply 

 pinnatifid ; lowest pair of pinnae triangular-strapshaped or triangular, 

 shorter than the succeeding pair, but not very greatly so ; all of them 

 very shortly stalked or subsessile, pinnate or pinnatipartite or jjinna- 

 tifid, flat or concave ; pinnules or ultimate segments oblong or strap- 

 shaped-oblong, or the basal ones triangular-oblong, scarcely at all 

 falcate, decurrent on the posterior side of the base, obtuse or sub- 

 acute, serrate or crenate-serrate, especially towards the apex, more 

 rarely inciso-serrate or even pinnatifid throughout, at least in those 

 nearest the rachis, with the margins not recurved over the sori ; the 

 serratures sharp, but not spinous, pointed. Ultimate veins running 

 from the midrib to just within the margin of the segments, with one 

 or more with branches, according to the size of the lobes into which 

 they run, one branch at least of each vein running into a tooth. Sori 

 confined to the pinnae of the upper half or third of the frond attached 

 to the back of the anterior fork of the ultimate veins, forming a line 

 on each side of the main vein rather more approximate to it than to 

 the margins of the pinnule or segment, usually confined to the lower 

 two-thirds of the pinnule, and sometimes on the basal lateral veins 

 only. Indusium firm or subcoriaceous, persistent, reniform or roundish- 

 reniform, convex, often very greatly so, glabrous or sprinkled with 

 minute glands over the whole surface. Spores granulated. No sterile 

 fronds dissimilar to the fertile ones. 



Var. a. genuina. 



Fronds erect. Stipes short ; scales rather numerous, subdiaphanous, 

 ultimately pale brown, slightly ciliate or pectinate-ciliate, the lowest 

 ones broadly lanceolate, the upper ones linear, intermixed with a few 

 rather flexuous hair-like ones, the greater number of them falling off 

 early and leaving the rachis nearly naked. Lamina firm, bright 

 green with very pale brown subhyaline scales when it is unfolding, 

 ultimately rather dull green, a little paler beneath where it is some- 

 times sparingly glandular on the rachis, narrowly oblong or strap- 

 si laped-oblong, pinnate; pinnae all narrow, flat or rarely concave, 

 and all, except a few pairs near the base, pointing towards the apex 

 of the frond, and so making an acute angle with the rachis, pinnate 

 oi- pinnatipartite (at least towards the base) ; pinnules or ultimate 



