1896] BRIEFER ARTICLES 411 
noted for being one of the few Republican counties in the state and 
for the possession of only a single family of blacks, is a wild unsettled 
region toward the northwestern portion of-the state, with a railroad 
crossing it at its southwestern corner. It must therefore be reached, 
if at all, by private conveyance. It is about equally near to Cullman 
and Decatur, and from either place would require a ride of about forty 
miles over a rough mountain road. It could also be reached from 
Haleysville, whence we made our exit, but railroad connection is 
uncertain in this direction, as we found, being obliged to wait twenty- 
one hours for a train. The distance in this direction is only about 
twenty-five miles, but the means of transit are mostly in the form 
of sharp-angled mules, and if the streams are “swimming” you are 
hot certain to reach your destination the same day, or even the 
same week, particularly if you have any desire to keep your collec- 
tions dry, 
The people, as might be supposed, are primitive in their habits as 
well as quaint in their language, but are hospitable, and will share 
with you their best accommodations, and treat you well if you are not 
» Prone to show too much anxiety as to the place where they manufac- 
hed “mountain dew,” a product of the mountains which is not myth- 
ical! In their gardens they cultivate old English herbs that are rarely 
seen elsewhere in this country, and: they preserve many of the old 
English expressions and forms of speech. The region is heavily tim- 
bered, with very little cleared land, and the flora is of exceeding inter- 
&st. It is the home of the magnolia, no less than five species growing 
here, one of them with leaves that often measure three feet in length 
and nearly half as wide as long. Most of the trees are of the decid- 
ous types, with occasional areas of pine and a few hemlocks scattered 
among the ravines, 
Here we find more of the northern types of ferns, among them 
many of the common ferns of the northern states. Among them are 
olga balgore, Dryopteris spinulosa intermedia, paves eee 
i a : angustifolium, in addition to most of those me 
ich are here in greater abundance. Nowhere, however, Co we 
ae thing of the profusion of ferns so common in oe bi opera 
We find oo eoed and Middle states. On the rocks, 1 nese 
a. : @a atropurpurea, which a little farther - sen ae 
einen ayne) rendered us a most interesting series Oo yey g A me 
ing with cordate entire leaves, varying with age to broadly 
