63 



men to feed cattle in the win 1 er. They are expected to " rustle 

 around," as the phrase is, and find their living, and in ordinary win- 

 ters, as the fall of snow is light, thej' are enabled to subsist and 

 make a pretty good appearance in the spring. But in severe win- 

 ters there arc losses of cattle, sometimes very heavy. 

 9. B. polystachya, Torr. (Chondrosiurn, Benth.) Texas to Arizona. 

 B. polystachya, var. major, Vasey. Texas to Arizona. 



10. B. prostrata, Lag. (B. pusilla, Vasey.) Colorado to Arizona. 



11. B. racemosa, Lag. (B. curtipendula, Gr.) 



This species ranges from Mexico to British America, and east of 

 the Mississippi River in Wisconsin and Illinois. It is easily distin- 

 guished from the others by its taller growth, and by the long, slen- 

 der raceme of twenty to fifty or more slender spikes. These are 

 usually about half an inch long and reflexed. There are from six 

 to ten spikelets on each spike. 



12. B. Rothrockii, Vasey. Arizona and New Mexico. 



13. B. Texana, Watson. (B. affinis, of some.) Texas. 



14. B. trifida, Thuro. Texas to Arizona. 



Eleusine, Gaert. 



Spikes two to five or more, digitate at the summit of the culm, 

 sometimes a few scattering ones lower down ; spikelets sessile and 

 crowded along one side of the rhachis, two to six or more flowered, 

 the uppermost flowers imperfect or rudimentary ; outer glumes 

 membranaceous, shorter than the spikelet ; flowering glumes usually 

 obtuse; palet folded, two-keeled. 



1. E. Indica, Gaert. Yard-grass, Crow-foot, Crab-grass, Wire-grass. 

 Introduced. 



An annual grass belonging to tropical countries, but now natural- 

 ized in most temperate climates. In the Southern States it is found 

 in every door-yard and in all waste places. The culms are from 1 

 to 3 feet high, usually coarse and thick, and very leafy, especially 

 below. The leaves are long and rather wide. At the top of the 

 culm there are two to five or more thickish, densely-flowered spikes 

 proceeding from a common point, with sometimes one or two scat- 

 tering ones lower down on the culm. The spikelets are sessile and 

 crowded along one side of the axis, each being from two to six flow- 



