140 



EEEE S FERN. 



the same plant upon the moist wooded slope opposite the rocks at West 

 Hoathly ; and, conducted by my friend, Mr. John Hutchinson, I visited 

 this locaHty in August, 1853, and found it, not only there, but in other 

 neighbouring localities. 



Iheland. — Antrim ; I first saw this beautiful fern growing luxuriantly 

 below the basaltic cliffs at Fair Head. Londonderry ; near Goleraine, near 

 Kushbrook, in several localities near Garvagh, and near Londondeny. Do- 

 negal ; several places on the banks of Lough SwUly, Milroy Bay, Arrigal 

 Hill, near Donegal, and about Lough Derg. Sligo ; among limestone 

 rocks on the approach to Shgo from Manorhamilton. Mayo ; foot of Ne- 

 phin, Coraan Achill, Newport, Westport, &c. Galway ; about Clifden, 

 about Roundstone and BaUinahinch, and near Oughterard, Clare ; near 

 Loop Head. Kerry ; on all the mountains and in aU the woods : in the 

 neighbourhood of Killamey it is so conspicuous an object as to have excited 

 the admiration of many botanists. Mr. Ogilby, of Dublin, writes thus : — 

 " This is, in my opinion, the most beautiful of our robust ferns : in style 

 of growth and elegance of form it is most striking ; it presents two tiers of 

 fronds, if I may so describe them, the lower more pendulous, the upper 

 more erect, and it is on the more erect fronds that the fructification is most 

 perfectly developed : the dark purple stem contrasting with the Hght green 

 and crisped appearance of the pinnfe gives a peculiarly elegant feature to the 

 plant : it likes the seclusion of trees, and places where it is not pressed by 

 other vegetation ; on spots about Dinis Island, and more particularly under 

 Cromaglaun mountain, it may be seen fully developing all its loveliness." 

 At O'Sullivan's Cascade, in the same neighbourhood, I observed it in the 

 most graceful and beautiful luxuriance ; it forms a chief ornament of that 

 exquisite little waterfall. I am indebted to Mr. Ogilhy and Mr. S. P. Wood- 

 ward, for specimens from the vicinity of Killamey ; and to the late Dr. Tay- 

 lor, of Dunkerron Castle, for others from the neighbourhood of Kenmare. 

 Cork ; I found it in prafusion in the woods about Glengarriff, and am in- 

 debted to Mr. Woodward for a specimen gathered in the vicinity of Cork. 

 Watetford ; I saw fcenisecii in several places in this county without inten- 

 tionally searching after it. Wicklow ; most abundant, beautiful, and luxu- 

 riant at Glendalough : it hero occm's of every possible gradation of size ; on 

 the exposed and bare rocks it is very diminutive, but in the woods it attains 

 a large size, and is equally beautiful with the specimens growing in the 

 woods about Killarney. 



gtstriptioiL 



The radicles are very strong, and penetrate the fissures of 

 the Sussex rocks, on which this fern ahounds, to a great depth, 



