VARIKTIES OF VFJiNS IN TlIK HIUSTOL DISTIflCT. 227 



C. Carbonell, of Usk, lias come just in time to give a spurt 

 to the undertaking. Hitherto it has been too often tJie case 

 that collections accumulated with infinite pains and skill, and 

 containing unique things, have on the death of the collectors 

 been dispersed, and thus valuable tilings have been lost for 

 ever. All honour therefore to Mr. Carbonell for showing 

 how to prevent this. Nor can it ho doubted that when, it is 

 generally known that a permanent home for ferns exists, 

 in which any rare thing will be safe and at the same time 

 of public use, iinders and raisers will feel a pride in giving 

 of their best, feeling sure that, under the present pro- 

 gressive and discriminating management at Kew, anything 

 really good will be appreciated, and that nothing accepted 

 will be neglected. 



The time has happily passed when all botanists were con- 

 tent to regard the varieties of ferns as only " monsters," 

 mere "gai-den varieties," etc. It has long been recognised 

 that, with very few exceptions, all the more marked forms 

 have been found wild, Nature being entirely responsible for 

 them. It is also beginning to be recognised that varieties 

 do not ajipear altogether at haphazard, but in conformity 

 with certain fixed laws of development or deviation to which 

 all species are more or less subject. 



The varieties of ferns thei'eforo cannot any longer be 

 dismissed without attention, even if the extreme beauty of 

 many of them did not render this impossible. He must 

 indeed be wanting in some quality of sense or in knowledge 

 who can regard all the varieties of British ferns only as 

 degradations. Can it be maintained that many of them are 

 not in every sense higher developments, possessing with all 

 tlio symmetry of the normal form greater delicacy of 

 division and of texture, more freshness and variety of colour, 

 more grace of habit, often larger size, and at times an in- 



