20 GESTRICKLAND. 



which the road leads. This Betula had 

 also catkins upon it, which are sessile and 

 erect, not pendulous as in the Common 

 Birch, about half an inch long and as thick 

 as a goose-quill, situated about the lower 

 part of the branches. The female catkins are 

 more slender than the male, erect, and ses- 

 sile upon the upper branches. Their scales 

 ovate and almost leafy, green, pointed, 

 three-cleft, with three pair of purplish pis- 

 tils. Here and there grew the Marsh 

 Yiolet {Viola pa lustris), with its pale grey 

 flowers, marked with five or seven black 

 forked lines on the lower lip. 



In the forest on the other side of this 

 marsh were many kinds of Club-moss (Li/- 

 copodium clavafum, Selago, alpimwi, and 

 complanatum). 



A quantity of large stones lay by the 

 road side, which the governor of the pro- 

 vince had caused to be dug up in order to 

 mend the high-way. They looked like a 

 mass of ruins, and were clothed with Cam- 

 panula scrpiflUfolia (the plant afterwards 



