- 4 8- 



plants, including about 6000 species distributed throughout the 

 world. A few familiar examples are, the pea, bean, alfalfa, vetch, 

 lupine and all the clovers. The family is especially interesting 

 on account of little knobs which occur on the roots. These are 

 filled with bracteria which have the power of using the nitrogen 

 in the air as food for the plant, a power which only this family of 

 plants possesses. While many of these plants are of great value 

 as forage for stock, and food for man, yet there are a large num- 

 ber of exceedingly poisonous ones, the most dangerous being the 

 loco- weed. 



KING'S CLOVER. 

 (Tri 'folium Kingii, Watson.) 



PL. XXIII. 



This clover was found quite abundantly in shaded places 

 near springs in the mountains around Webber Lake and Lincoln 

 Valley. Stock are very fond of it. In a ravine in the Tehaun- 

 tepec range where we rested at noon, this clover was about the 

 only forage plant. The animals ate heartily and seemed to relish 

 it. It was considered a valuable plant by Flanigan's herders, one 

 of whom said that it was formerly more abundant, but twenty 

 years of continuous grazing had exterminated some patches and 

 had caused others to yield a much smaller crop of forage. The 

 plant is Irom six to twelve inches high, with sharp-pointed leaves 

 and a cluster of pink-purple flowers on the end of a stalk which 

 resembles an umbrella partially closed down. (See pi. XXIII). 



BREWER'S CLOVER. 

 (Trifolium Breweri^ Watson.) 



This exceedingly small clover was found quite abundantly in 

 large patches in meadows or by the side of springs, between 

 Webber Lake and Lincoln Valley. It is eaten greedily by horses, 

 cattle and sheep. As it seldom grows over three inches in height, 

 it can hardly be considered of any special value for horses and 

 -cattle. In one instance while resting at noon this clover formed 

 the principal part of the meal for the horse and mules. The 



