of Spinifex and Vitex or relieved by an occasional tuft of Crinum, 

 Belamcanda or other sea-side flower. Above this a shrubby belt ot 

 Screw-pine often appears with patches of Caesalpinia. On i""^^y 

 shores there is frequently a dwarf mangrove formation formed by 

 small Rhizophoraceae and Aegiceras in the shallow water. Where salt 

 marshes occur various Gyperaceae are predominant as in other parts 

 of the world. 



Supposing now that the visitor proceeds across the fields towards 

 the nearest village, it is very probable that waste ground plants 

 will next engage his attention, and the usual tropical weeds of 

 such places including many species of Desmodium, Solanaceae, 

 Amaranthaceae, Ghenopodiaceae, and adhesive-seeded Compositae will 

 be seen. The arable land consists largely of rice fields, which 

 yield a rich flora of water-loving weeds, small Scropliulariaceae 

 predominating. The drier vegetable fields become covered, if 

 neglected, with Cruciferous and other annuals, or, in the coastal 

 regions, with introduced weeds such as Ageratum and Oxalis. 



The farms and villages are nearly always surrounded by fine old 

 Fung-shui (or ' good luck ') trees, mostly Banyan {Ficus retusa). 

 There may also be clumps of thorny and other large bawiboos. 



Passing on now to an examination of the mountain vegetation, it 

 will at once be noticed that, except in the most inaccessible regions, 

 or those carefully protected (such as Hongkong), their surface in 

 the granitic regions presents the appearance from a distance of 

 smooth grassy downs, whose gigantic and varied forms, broken here 

 and there by rock masses, close in the horizon. In the limestone 

 districts more rock and less down is seen, but, even there, the less 

 remote mountains are destitute of all woods. The cause of this is 

 the old, and perhaps excusable, custom that the Chinese have of 

 cutting down all the wild trees, shrubs and grass near their villages 

 for fuel, and of setting fire to the turf in the dry season to extirpate 

 the remnants of arborescent vegetation. The gullies or ravines, 

 being saved from the grass fires by their rocky character and less 

 pronounced dryness during the north-east monsoon, contain a dense 

 vegetation, particularly rich in flowering shrubs and ferns. This 

 vegetation, which extends into the open ground, wherever allowed 

 so to spread, has a constant element throughout the province of 

 beautiful and abundant shrubby species such as Rhodomyrtus, 

 Melastoma, Gordonia, Gardenia, Mussaenda, and equally common 

 though less conspicuous Strophanthus, Raphiolepis, Pittosporum, 

 Lespedeza, Furya, Zanthoxylum, Diospyros, and shrubby Euphor- 

 biaceae, and Urticaceae. In the more rocky and damp ravines are 

 found various epiphytic orchids, Gesneraceae and herbaceous 

 Urticaceae. 



Between the gullies, the mountain sides have, as has been said, a 

 general appearance of smooth grass. On closer inspection this is 

 found to consist of numerous dilierent formations of lowly growth. 

 On the highest mountains, where clouds are not infrequent even in 

 the dry season, level plains of fairly close turf (Ischaemum, etc.) are 

 found, containing ground orchids. Balsams and mountain Compositae. 

 On the middle and lower slopes there is usually an irregular covering 

 of coarse grass associated with patches of Melastomaceous and 

 Ericaceous undershrubs. On these grassy slopes Hedyotis species 



