82 



S. marylandica, with leaves cordate, serrate, acute, at base 

 rounded, petioles ciliate below, fascicles of panicle laxly few- 

 flowered; flowers greenish -brown ; "June-Aug. " Comparing 

 both these descriptions with the brief summaries above, it is 

 clear that leaf -form and serration, inflorescence and flower-color 

 would indicate that (a) lanceolala is (A) leporella, and (b) is 

 (B) marylafiddca. But the statements of Howering-season seem 

 to indicate the reverse! 



Granted that occasional variants of each species could ap- 

 proach the characterization of the opposite species in individual 

 features, would not the assumption that Pursh had in both 

 instances described such abnormal plants, and had from each 

 drawn up a description actually more characteristic of its op- 

 ponent species, be improbable or impossible? Much more 

 likely he has, either on his labels or in the passage of his book 

 through the press, simply transferred his data of season from 

 species to species. That Pursh had present leporella is proven 

 by his statement of months, for "June-Aug." is impossible 

 for marylandica, while his description of his "early" plant 

 with leaves cordate, etc., forces us to seek his leporella des- 

 cription under his other species, and to lanceolala it fits well! 



Mr. Bicknell has argued that Pursh 's Scrophularia lanceolala 

 is applicable to some narrow-leaved form of 5. marilandica L. 

 But this would not remove the difficulty that the contrasting 

 description is not of leporella, and under one caption or the other 

 that plant must be accounted for. I regret that all efforts to 

 discover Pursh 's types have failed; they are not at the Phila- 

 delphia Academy of Natural Sciences, the British Museum, nor 

 / the University of Oxford. 

 4 To summarize, I adopt for our early summer figwort the name 

 ^ Scrophularia lanceolala Pursh, 1814, placing in its synonomy 

 S.pectinata. Raf., 1840, and 5. leporella Bickn. 1896; and as a 

 )/'- ; variety I establish S. lanceolata occidentalis (Rydb.) Pennell, 

 comb. nov. {S. nodosa occidentalis Rydb. Contrib. U. S. 

 Nat. Herb. 3:517. 1896).'' 

 I/' 1 181. Scrophularia lanceolata Pursh (p. 160). 



"New York to Virg[inia]." Supposed to be distinguished 

 from S. pectinata Raf., by its stem acutely, not obtusely angled, 

 and its leaves lanceolate, unequally and doubly vSerrate. These 

 are variable characters in this species. Rafinesque appears to 

 have correctly applied this name. See discussion above. 



