1878. } Rambles of a Botanist in New Mexico. 173 
In fine contrast with the sun yellow of the California poppies, 
was the bright purple of a spreading Verbena, common here (V. 
bipinnatifida Schauer), a species which adorns the plains all 
along the base of the Rocky mountains from Mexico to. the far 
northward. A blue flowered dwarf lupine (Z. brevicaulis Wats.) 
was noticed in very sandy places, and two larger leguminous 
plants were conspicuous, not by their flowers which in both spe- 
cies were small, dull-purple, but by their large inflated pods. On 
one of them (Astragalus diphysus Gray) these pods were deci- 
dedly ornamental, being specked with dark purple, and looking 
almost like nests of birds’ eggs as they lay in clusters on the 
sand, for the stems that bear them are nearly or quite prostrate. 
The other is also an Astragalus (A. triforis Gray), producing 
almost white and very thin membranous pods of oblong shape. 
These when mature fall from the stem without opening to dis- 
: charge their seeds, and are tossed about over the plains by every 
wind; sometimes lying in heaps under the lee of bushes and tufts 
of grass or other herbage. These harmless toys of the winds 
had, before I was accustomed to their ways, to my nerves, a sin- 
gular little faculty of suggesting evil, the effect of which might 
slightly have amused a witness, had there been one. The weed 
_ gatherer on these plains needs to be always on the look-out for 
rattlesnakes; one of these reptiles may be lying coiled up under 
or near by any plant which he steps aside to examine or collect. 
The warning rattle is a sound he is familiar with. Now while he 
-~ bends over some novel and interesting plant, absorbed in contem- 
' plating its peculiarities, or busily preparing specimens of it for 
his port-folio, lét a passing breeze set in motion one of these blad- 
~ dery capsules, and as it tumbles near with its detached seeds rat- 
_ tling within, ten to one he will be startled with the idea that a 
: serpent is at his heels. The sound of the rattlesnake is very per- 
fectly reproduced by the moving dry astragalus pod and seeds. 
_ From these plains we pass gradually up to the highest lands of 
the low range, called the Burro Mountains, and are within an easy 
day’s journey of the ruins of Santa Rita del Cobre, and equally 
near a number of new and lively mining camps. Fora south- — 
eT PO en Sy a a e PE Pere eee Sere EME Te 
lohed that is to say, there are small springs and streamlets to 
be met with at. intervals of a few miles, and their gentle slopes 
and rounded summits produce a scattered growth of oaks, pines 
