POLTSTICPIUM ANGULARE. 119 



lay them before us side by side, on a sheet of paper, the diffe- 

 rence is so striking, that were our observations allowed no 

 wider range, we must exercise much sophistry in inducing even 

 ourselves to suppose them identical. The distinctly stalked 

 pinnules of angulare (fig. a), set on the stem at a more obtuse 

 angle than that of the deeurrent pinnules of aculeatum (fig. b), 

 offer instantly a character which it is impossible to resist : and 

 this, added to the discrepancy in the habit, texture, and figure 

 of the frond, must lead an observer to believe them distinct. It 

 is, however, from the constant occurrence of plants intermedi- 

 ate in habit, texture, figure and cutting, that the difficulty has 

 arisen. 



Of this species, or variety, whichever may be the correct 

 title, there are two most beautiful and remarkable forms ; in- 

 deed, these are so distinct, and the intermediate states so rare, 

 that they might claim a rank at least equal to that of the fern 

 under which I have placed them, were it not that their rare 

 occurrence, and the proximity of abundance of the usual form 

 of angulare, induces the conclusion that the variations are 

 merely accidental. The first of these has the stipes of nearly 

 equal length with the frond, and very sparingly clothed with 

 scales : the figure of the frond is elongate-triangular, the lower 

 pair of pinnae being the longest. The entire frond is nearly 

 without scales : its texture is leathery, but, in habit, as well as 

 in the form of the pinnules, it agrees very closely with the nor- 

 mal form of angulare. I found two or three roots in Hereford- 

 shire, and Mr. Jenner has presented me with a frond gathered 

 in Sussex. The second variety is still more remarkable. A 

 specimen, for which I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. 

 PampUn, has above twenty pairs of pinnae, of equal length : 

 these are gracefully curved and pendulous at the extremities, 

 the pinnules very slender and rather distant, and the auricled 

 portion at the base of each is completely divided to the midrib : 

 both the pinnule, and the lobe or auricle, terminate in a very 

 acute point : the whole is densely chaffy. I believe this plant 

 is very familiar to cultivators. The specimen given to me by 



