not articulated upon the stem, and the fertile frond to be bi- 
pinnate, formed a section of this under the name “ Caffraria,” 
and M. Fée afterwards raised it to the rank of a genus, Loma- 
viobotrys. It is doubtful whether it should be referred to the 
Lomaria- or to the Acrostichum-group ; but seeing that the 
under surface of the pinne is so clothed with capsules as to 
leave scarcely any margin which can be called involucre, I prefer 
placing it in the latter genus, where it ranks near Acrost. sorbi- 
Jolium, L.; a species which Mr. J. Smith at first referred to 
Stenochlena, but subsequently to Lomariopsis of Fée ; in other 
words, to those true Acrosticha which have pinnated fronds. To 
strengthen the character of Stenochlena, Moore lays stress* upon 
the presence of “ costal areoles” to the pinne, which Mr. J. 
Smith does not speak of in that light; and on the “ marginal 
gland near the base at the upper edge of the pinne,” distinct 
enough, but of which Mr. Smith takes no notice. Now these 
so-called areoles, very seldom seen aé all, and rarely indeed so 
distinct as we have represented them in our Fig. 4, appear to be 
constituted by a narrow thickened edge to the costa, which Mr. 
J. Smith describes as ‘“‘ an obscure transverse vein, continuous 
with, and close to, the costa,” from which the veins originate : 
these occasionally separate a little from the costa; but this would 
seem to be rather. an abnormal feature, and quite unsuited to 
form a generic mark of distinction. 
This noble Fern is not by any means confined to the Cape 
colony, but extends to eastern tropical Africa, Madagascar and 
its islands, and to Mauritius ; and probably the Zomaria decompo- 
sita, of Desvaux, as well as the synonyms we have above intro- 
duced, all belong to this species; the Lomaria grandis, from the 
island of Galega, certainly does. 
Prate 16. Fig. 1. Greatly reduced figure of Acrostichum (Euacrostichum) 
Meyerianum, with fertile and sterile fronds. 2. Portion of caudex and base 
only of a sterile frond. 38. Single pinna (showing the gland) :—naturad size. 
4. Portion of a sterile pinna, showing the venation, and the thickened edge of 
the costa slightly separating from the costa. 5. Portion of a rachis and a pri- 
mary pinna from the fertile frond :—natural size. 6. Small portion of a fertile 
pinnule, with the sori removed from one side of the costa,—magnified. 
ae “A genus admirably marked by the costal areole and the marginal gland.” — 
oore. 
