332 J. H. MAIDEN. 



sonally I very largely use the fruit (unripe fruits may be 

 very misleading), for diagnostic purposes, but in many cases 

 it must be carefully used for it displays an enormous amount 

 of variation. This much is proved, and I go further and 

 say that some fruits only appear to have an approximately 

 constant shape because we have so much to learn in regard 

 to the range of the species and consequent possibilities of 

 variation. Of course I at once admit the fact that some 

 species are "stronger" than others. To sum up, for 

 herbarium work the anthers and fruits are the best char- 

 acters to go by; for the scientific forester, the bark and 

 the timber, but all characters display a puzzling amount 

 of variation. 



II. Has variation in Eucalyptus now ceased? 

 Bentham (B. Fl. iii. 186 — 188) shows the variability of 

 the various characters of the genus, and notes on vari- 

 ation are given to nearly all his groups and series. 



At p. 186, he says: — 



" It must be admitted, indeed that these groups, distinct as 

 they may be in the typical species, pass very gradually into each 

 other through intermediate forms, but I have endeavoured to 

 supply cross-references to facilitate the determination of dried 

 specimens in doubtful cases." 



And again: — 



. . . "but to the botanist who is unable to compare them 

 in a living state, the due limitation and classification of their 

 species presents almost insuperable obstacles. The extraordinary 

 differences in the foliage of many species at different periods of 

 their growth add much to the ordinary difficulties arising from 

 the gradual transition of varieties, races, or species one into the 

 other." 



Mr. R. T. Baker however, holds a different opinion. For 

 example: — 



