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panicles in intermediate stages of development have the spikelets 

 of the upper portion tinted, and of the lower concolorous. The 

 same thing is noticeable in a specimen collected by Reverchon in 

 Sardinia, in one from Hyeres, and one from San Diego Co., 

 California, all of which are preserved in the herbarium of the 

 Califoruian Academy of Sciences, San Francisco. It appears, 

 therefore, that unless Dr. Kuntze's plant exhibits other charac- 

 teristics than those mentioned by him, by which it can be dis- 

 tinguished from typical Achyrodes aureum, its position as a variety 

 can no longer be maintained. — J. Burtt Davit. 



Malvastrum v. Malveopsis. — As stated on p. 38, Presl's genus 

 Malr tl>J ,*h is founded on Malva anomala Link & Otto. My only 

 knowledge of Malva anomala was derived from a specimen collected 

 between Kochmanns Kloof and Gauritzrivier, and published under 

 that name in Ecklon & Zeyher's Enum. PL Afr. Austr. p. 36; this 

 is certainly identical with Spharalcea elegans Don. Through the 

 kindness of the authorities at Berlin, I have since received authentic 

 material of Malva anomala, which shows the figure in Link & Otto's 

 Plantm Selects to have been badly drawn, especially as regards the . 

 involucre and calyx. Link & Otto's plant is not the same as that 

 of Ecklon & Zeyher; it comes nearest to a cultivated specimen 

 from Goodenough's herbarium, now at Kew, which I refer to 

 Milcastrum capense Gray & Harv. Presl's description of the genus 

 is as follows: — - Malra aunwala Link & Otto. Ic. p. 51, t. 22 i Lava- 

 :A. Prod. i. 440), ob involucrum cum calyce 

 connatum peculiare genus {Malveopsis anomala Presl) esse meretur, 

 non obstante fructu hucusque ignoto." This being the whole of 

 the description, and not applicable to Malvastrum as at present 

 understood, in many species of which the bracts are perfectly free, 

 while many others are ebracteate, it seems to me that the generic 

 name Malvastrum ought to stand, and that the revival of Malrea^is 

 is undesirable. — E. G. Baker. 



Potamogeton crispus L., var. cornutus mihi. — On examining 

 some P. crispus last summer, which grew plentifully in a pond at 

 Mansion, Dorset, I noticed a peculiar excrescence on the gibbously 

 rounded base of the back of the fruit, looking like a little spur or 

 horn, pointing back towards the peduncle. I sent this to Mr. 

 Arthur Bennett, both fresh and dried, to inquire whether this 

 feature did not constitute a variety. Answering in the affirmative, 

 he very kindly informed me that my specimens tallied with the 

 description of one of the nine species formed by M. Gandoger out 

 of the Linnean P. crispus, and which M. Gandoger named P. 

 macmn-h chu. (< k*t. Hat. Zritsrhrift, Xo. 2, \\ n, Feb. 1881). Mr. 

 Bennett thinks my plant has this distinguishing character more 

 pronounced than M. Gandoger's, judging from the description; 

 but as it seems to me (and to Mr. Bennett also) out of the question 

 to regard this Mansion plant as a species, I propose the varietal 

 name cornutus. The spur is subulate, or nearly linear above, and 

 stands out -fo in. from the surface of the drupelet, in the dried 

 specimens. The leaves are rather slender, compared with specimens 

 from running water, and also acute or subobtuse rather than 



