94 



variety of the black slug, Arion ater, having the body 

 greenish-white and head and foot -margins bright orange, 

 was found. 



" We are indebted to Mr. Step for the identification of the 

 foregoing Mollusca, also for the following botanical notes. 



" Nothing out of the ordinary came under our notice speak- 

 ing botanically. The beech-woods in which our time was 

 chiefly spent are very like those on the Surrey chalk hills, 

 with which most of us have a more intimate acquaintance. 

 Yet for the guidance of others contemplating a visit some 

 of the plants may be here recorded. The ground beneath 

 the trees was pretty well carpeted in places with woodruff 

 (Asperula odorata), dog's-mercury {Mcrcurialis pcrennis), 

 melic (Melica uniflora), and a little woodsorrel (Oxalis aceto- 

 sella). Among the larger constituents were the wych elm 

 {Ulmus montana), a very large-leaved form of hazel (Corylus 

 avellana), probably due to close cutting, some fine examples 

 of the gean {Prunus avium), buckthorn (Rhamnus frangula) 

 in flower, and dogwood (Comus sanguined) . There were a 

 few patches of Clematis vitalba in flower among the wild 

 roses, and the wood spurge {Euphorbia amygdaloidcs) was 

 plentiful. A solitary wild gooseberry bush (Ribes grossularia) 

 was noted ; a few plants of perforated St. John's wort {Hy- 

 pericum perforatum) , cow wheat {Melampyrum pratense), the 

 sanicle {Sanicida europea), and a number of the white helle- 

 borine {Ccphal anther a pallens). On railway banks near the 

 station the beautiful musk mallow (Malva moschata) was 

 abundant, and with it were the long- stalked geranium {Gera- 

 nium columbinum), the yellow vetchling {Lathyvus pratensis), 

 the field scabious {Scabiosa arvensis), and bittersweet {Solanum 

 dulcamara). By the railway arch was discovered the skull- 

 cap {Scutellaria galericulata) , and on the Chalfont side of the 

 line a colony of the broomrape {Orobanche major) was found 

 on a bank. Along the road to Amersham Common the 

 figwort {Scrophularia nodosa) was growing in the hedge, also 

 the barberry {Berberis vulgaris), the older leaves well sprinkled 

 with patches of the orange cluster-cups {JEcidium berberidis) 

 — one of the stages in the tri-morphic history of the corn- 

 mildew {Puccinia graminis), yellow bedstraw {Galium verum), 

 white bryony {Brionia dioica) and {Carex remold) were other 

 plants noted along this road. Little was done with cryptogams 

 in addition to the JEcidium already mentioned, but in the 

 woods we noticed many male ferns {N ephrodium filix-mas), 

 and a few fungi. The well-named stinkhorn [Phallus impu- 

 dicus) was there in abundance, the honey-combed glebe 



