THE WHITE ROCKERY 69 



few high botanic spirits know where they live ; and, 

 in the case of some other equally rare British plants, 

 the habitat is kept by a sort of inner circle of 

 specialists good men and true who would hold it a 

 sin against science to publish these haunts of choice 

 treasures. Mine was the privilege to rediscover a tiny 

 hare's ear, buplerum aristatum, after it had been lost 

 to our local botany for nearly fifty years. This little 

 annual suddenly spread his minute loveliness before 

 me, where I hunted for certain plants of the clover 

 kind. I could not believe my eyes ; I supposed that 

 I must be in some botanical dream, and that this was 

 the spirit of buplerum come to brighten an uncon- 

 scious hour. But I was awake ; no possibility of 

 doubt existed. Remembering the parallel case of a 

 great meeting, I raised my hat and said, " Buplerum 

 aristatum, I presume ! " Then I selected four speci- 

 mens and drew them out of the earth and went upon 

 my way. Every eye appeared to read my secret and 

 people regarded me with suspicion. Doubtless they 

 thought my joy was simulated, or that my keeper had 

 lost me. 



The genial editor of the " London Catalogue of 

 British Plants" honoured buplerum by accepting 

 specimens of it, and some day I hope to have the 

 pleasure of taking him to see it in its home. But 

 he must hasten, or bricks and mortar will bury that 

 minute hare's ear for ever. 



Another native plant, the bastard balm, sur- 

 prises botanists here and is very well worthy 

 of its place ; while at its feet grows modiola ger- 



