Botanical Society of Edinburgh. 307 
and grouped in fanciful combinations, imparted additional wildness to the 
scene. 
_ Next day we started betimes, and took a straight course for the sum- 
mit of the hill, which was reached after a stiff climb without our meeting 
with many plants which we had not picked the day before. With the 
exception, perhaps, of Ben Lomond, the view from the top of Ben Lawers 
is not equalled by that of any other mountain in the Highlands, and the 
day was favourable for enjoying it. Although the lake below appeared 
without a ripple on its surface, the mountain top was swept by a strong 
breeze, which rendered it difficult to maintain one’s footing on the more 
exposed ridges. The sun shone brightly, and the mountain and vale 
were disclosed in the clear atmosphere as far as the eye could reach. 
The fertile banks of the loch lay extended below, from the rich woods of 
Killin to where the sylvan beauties of Taymouth mingle in the view 
with the remoter hills and plantations of Tayside. Ben More is the 
most prominent mountain to the westward, beyond which rise the peaks 
of Ben Lomond and the other hills overlooking Loch Lomond. Schi- 
hallion is recognised by its graceful outline and isolated position on the 
north; and far beyond, in the same direction, may be descried the 
rounded summit of Ben Cruachan and the conical peaks of the hills over- 
looking Glencoe and Loch Etive. The eye could take in on the north- 
east the outlines of the snow-capped summits of the mountains surrounding 
the sources of the Dee, and southwards were discernible the ranges of 
Strathmore and Strathearn, the Sidlaws and the Ochils. We proceeded 
to explore the disrupted rocks in the cavity to the south-west of the sum- 
mit, the part exposed to the prevailing winds, and where the storms of 
ages have worn the ridge into the appearance of a volcanic crater. The 
moist rocks on this unpromising height have long been known as a station 
for Saxifraga cernua, one of the rarest of British plants. We were 
fortunate in obtaining a few specimens, which, as is usually the case, 
were in an immature state, but readily identified by their bulbiferous 
stem and well-marked leaves. Sawifraga rivularis we did not observe, 
although it has been found on the mountain. Draba rupestris occurs 
also sparingly in the crevices of these exposed rocks. Thalictrum al- 
pinum, and some of the more common alpines, are comparatively plenti- 
ful. Following the course of the bare inhospitable ridge to the north- 
ward, we again sought the productive cliffs of the corrie, and examined 
the side opposite to that which occupied our attention on the previous 
day. Here, in the channels of the rills and the crevices of the dripping 
rocks, were found quantities of Myosotis alpestris, which, although not 
absolutely amongst the rarest, was by far the most beautiful of our alpine 
treasures. ‘The first sight of this lovely Myosotis, with its bright azure 
flowers glistening in the spray, would have been an ample reward for 
more than the toil of twice ascending Ben Lawers ; and its frequent re- 
currence on the moist cliffs—sometimes within reach, sometimes (happily 
for our too eager acquisitiveness) beyond it—was a source of ever new 
delight. Haunting the same humid rocks were Saxifraga nivalis and 
S. stellaris. 
- On the 6th the party examined the grounds of Taymouth, under the 
guidance of Mr Peter Murray, the head gardener. On the 7th they 
visited Schihallion, without any definite idea of its botanical character, 
but with a lively interest in the hill itself, not only as forming a conspi- 
cuous and imposing feature in the scenery of the district, but still more 
particularly on account of its having been chosen by Dr Charles Hutton 
and Dr Maskelyne for their experiments to determine the density of the 
earth, and also from the subsequent observations of Professor Playfair 
on its geological structure. The lower part of the hill exhibits, in sec- 
