ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST. 



287 



Many of the Ranunculacje are used in inedi- 

 ciue, having acrid and stimulating properties. 

 This species has but little of these acrid qualities. 

 The root has a very slight pungent taste — a taste 

 peculiar to all of this genus — which the leaves 

 do not possess at all, but are succulent and 

 rather pleasant. The seeds are, however, quite 

 pungent, or " peppery," when chewed. It is 

 not probable, however, that this plant will ever 

 be used in medicine. 



The most interesting thing relating to this 

 pretty little plant is its habitat. Prof. Gray 

 says it is found on the sea shore from Maine to 

 New Jersey, and adds that it is also found at 

 the Salt Springs, Saliiia, New York, to Illinois 

 and westward. The question arises in Ihe mind 

 of the botanist. Why is it found away from the 

 sea shore, if it is a marine plant? The fact of its 

 being found near the Salt Springs in New York 

 would seem to show that it has a liking for 

 saline earth. "Why should it be found on the 

 shores of the great Lakes? I do not know that 

 it is found an the shores of Ontario, Erie, Huron 

 or Superior; Foster and Whitney, in their re- 

 port on the Lake Superior region (Geological), 

 do not enumerate it among the plants found 

 there. 



When I came to Chicago, in 18G0, 1 found it 

 growing all over the city, even to Twelfth street 

 on the south, or as near to the river as was pos- 

 sible on account of the population. From the 

 mouth of the Chicago river, its habitat extended 

 on the north, west, and south sides to a distance 

 of two or three miles. Beyond that area it can 

 not be found ; at least I have not observed it in 

 other localities. 



Why has it selected this locality? If it was 

 once a marine plant, and has become accustomed 

 to inland soils, why is it not found more exten- 

 sively distributed all over the country? We 

 know that there arc several species of plants, 

 supposed to be marine, which have apparently 

 become accustomed to a different soil, and 

 flourish in inland locaUties. Would it seem too 

 fanciful to suppose the theory taught by some 

 geologists, that the great Lakes, now fresh, 

 were once salt, or that a sea once existed in the 

 same location? If such was the case, we may 

 suppose that, when the change occurred, it was 

 so gradual that the flora on its shores was not 

 subjected to such a sudden transition as to 

 destroy it, but gave it, or a few species of it, 

 sufficient time to become accustomed to its new 

 soil and atmosphere. We must cither accept 

 this theory, or another, namely, that the seeds 

 of this species and others have been transported 

 from the ocean, or salt water, to this locality. 



I would like to inquire of the readers of this 

 journal, if they have found the R. Cymhalaria 

 on the banks of the Mississippi, or on the shores 

 of the smaller lakes of the Northwest; and I 

 hope this biief paper will call out some discus- 

 sion on the subject broached herein. 



[The R. cymbalaria occurs on the sandy and 

 muddy baid<s of many Western rivers, as on the 

 Platte at Denver, and on the west side of the 

 ISIountains in Middle Park, and still fartherwest 

 on the Green river. AVe do not see that it has 

 any claim to be considered a saline plant.— Ed.] 



CoKKECTioNs. — In an article on "Our Woody 

 Composila^,'" in the May number, it was stated 

 that, cast of the Mississippi river, we had no 

 woody Composita;. This statement was based 

 on a hasty i-eview of the Composita; of the 

 Northern States. Our attention has been called 

 to the fact that in the Southern States there are 

 several shrubby members of the family in ques- 

 tion, for instance, several species oi JSaccharis, 

 one species of lea, and a Borrichia. AVe make 

 the correction with pleasure. 



In our June number we gave, under the head 

 of " Plants to Name," a list of specimens from 

 Mr. S. A. Forbes, in which we unintentionally 

 did him injustice ; as really the larger portion 

 of the specimens were correctly named by him, 

 and were contributions to the cabinet of the 

 editor. 



In the Natural Order LegKiiiinusw there are 

 no doubly-pinnate leaves belonging to the sub- 

 order Papillionaceoi; but in the sub-orders 

 Cesalpinidi and MimoKcu the pinnate form of leaf 

 is found. No pinnate leaves are known in Gen- 

 tianacea; and Rubiaccoi. Simple and compound 

 leaves frequently occur, not only in the same 

 family, but in the same genus. 



" It is singular that no mention of the beauti- 

 ful arborescent ferns is to be found in the classic 

 authors of antiquity ; while reference is made to 

 Bamboos, to the Banyan, or Indian Fig tree, 

 and to Palms. The first mention of arborescent 

 ferns is by Oviedo, a Spanish writer, in 15;^.5, 

 in describing the vegetation of Hayti. 'Among 

 terns,' says this traveler, 'there are some which 

 1 class with trees, because they are as thick and 

 high as pine trees. They mostly grow among 

 the mountains, and where there is much water.' 

 Between the tropics, on the declivities of the 

 Cordilleras, the true region of arborescent ferns 

 lies between about 3,2i)0 and .■),;J.50 feet above 

 the level of the sea. They seldom descend lower 

 toward the plains than" 1,'J80 feet. The mean 

 temperature of this region is between &i° and 

 70° Fahr." 



