290 



BRISTLE FEEN. 



sliowu, that of the receptacles being five and even six times 

 longer than the indusia. These distinctions (from his own 

 long experience and knowledge of these beautiful ferns, having 

 succeeded for many j'ears in cultivating them to perfection 

 under glass in the conservator)'), led him to state that he con- 

 ceived the sj)ecimens produced by Mr. Andrews to be perfectly 

 distinct from T. brevisetum." 



The next notice I find on this subject is in the report of the 

 meeting of the British Association, held at Cork in August, 

 1843. It appears that Dr. Allman on this occasion exhibited 

 specimens of the Glouin Caragh plant, calling attention to the 

 characters already pointed out ; and that Dr. Mackay again 

 expressed " his conviction that it was a new species." 



Mr. Andrews has obligingly furnished me with the following 

 characters of the two plants : — 



" Tricliomanes speciosum. Frond angular, thrice pinnated ; 

 lowest pinna3 longest, densely crowded and tripinnated; lobes of 

 the pinme linear, blunt. Racliis winged, short. Receptacles 

 two or three times longer than the involucra. Root thick, 

 densely tomentose. Habitat Turk, Ivillarney; Glouin Caragh ; 

 Mount Eagle, Kerry. 



" Trkltomanes ? Frond lanceolate, twice pinnated ; 



lower pinnte distant, short, ultimate segments of the pinnae 

 decurrent, serrated, lobed, linear, acute. Rachis winged, very 

 long. Receptacles six times longer than the involucra. Root 

 long, scarcely tomentose. Habitat, moist rocky cave, Glouin 

 Caragh, Kerry." (See the figure at page 292). 



Mr. Andrews further observes, that " the striking character 

 of the Glouin Caragh planf is the amazing length of the re- 

 ce^Jtacles, which, in the growing state of the plant, turn upi from 

 the involucre in a curved manner, showing a most bristly 

 appearance over the entire frond : all the fronds presented the 

 lanceolate character, the lower pinnae being distant and short ; 

 the ultimate segments of all the pinnae are serrated, the pin- 

 nules being decurrent and running to a point: the entire length 

 of the frond was sixteen inches, and from the base of the lowest 

 ])inno3 to the apex of the frond eleven inches," 



