30 THE AMERICAN MIDLAND NATURALIST 



given in chapter XI. Two species in Chapter XI have often been 

 reduced to one in chapter XII: Dondia depressa and erecta to D. 

 depressa, Actaea rubra and eburnea to A. rubra, Crataegus chrysocarpa 

 and rotundijolia to C. chrysocarpa, Kuhnistera Candida and olig- 

 ophyUato Petalostemon candidus. A floral "melting pot" established 

 merely in part is undesirable. Contradictions are by no means 

 rare: Onosmodium molle Michx. of chapter XI has (correctly) 

 been called 0. occidentale in chapter XII, where it is told also that 

 this is not 0. molle Michx: still the Barnes County plant belongs 

 here, as the genus has only one species within the state. Other 

 species regarding which "to be or not to be is the question," are: 

 Lepidium apetalum Willd. (Chapter XI) and L. apctaluni authors, 

 not Willd. (Chapter XII) : Atriplex hastata L. (chapter XII) and 

 A. carnosa Nels. (A. hastata Am. authors not L. (chapter XII) ; 

 Smilax herbacea L. (chapter XII) and Nemexia pulverulenta (5. 

 herbacea Am. authors) in chapter XI; Viola canadensis L. (chapter 

 XI) and V. rugulosa Greene {V. canadensis auth. not L.) in chapter 

 XII. Another group of plants is not mentioned in chapter XII, i. e. 

 they are not supposed to grow in North Dakota while they are 

 enumerated in chapter XI as Barnes County plants: Equisetum 

 variegatum, Thalictrum dioicum, Xanthium speciosum, Antennaria 

 campestris (though perhaps this species has been dumped in the 

 melting pot and was meant as a part of A. neglecta in chapter XII) 

 and Helianthus strumosus. We do not attempt to solve this mystery. 



The following remarks are to be applied exclusively to chapter 

 XII (the flora). A lamentable defect with the work is that it does 

 not report the total number of plants known within the state up 

 to the date of publication (191 7). A check list (of 191 2?) containing 

 962 numbers can be considered its precursor. Based on this list, 

 though with many additions and exclusions, the revised flora was 

 emitted, but the original number of 962 was retained (if my count 

 is correct). A conservative estimate would add at least 25 per 

 cent to this number, even if all proposed new species and varieties 

 weie to sufi'er an indiscriminate universal slaughter, as the retained 

 old species mainly would fill the vacancies. 



Such author names as Greene, Rydberg, Aven Nelson, Fernald, 

 representing as brilliant stars on the botanical firmament as the 

 Polar Star in the space, (Stella Polaris nescit occasum) are conspic- 

 uous by their scarcity or absence or misapplication (analogy 

 lucus a non lucendo.) 



