48 



THE FERN. BULLETIN 



a synonym would call it a variety of Matteuccia Struth- 

 iopteris. What the name will be under Mr. Clute's 

 code can only be conjectured till he enlightens us. — 

 A. A. Eaton, Ames Botanical Laboratory, N. Easton 

 Mass.. 



[It never occurred to the author of the name that 

 has given Mr. Eaton so much trouble that a mere pu- 

 bescent form of the ostrich fern was of enough signifi- 

 cance to merit an extended description in Latin and the 

 citation of synonomy from the dawn of creation to the 

 present. Mr. Terry did not think it important enough 

 for a name, and the editor merely suggested that it be 

 called the form pubescens in order to have a handle for 

 it. He will continue to use this name writing the name 

 of Mr. Terry, and not his own, after it as sponsor. We 

 note, however, that a prominent New England botanist 

 has recently made a new species of fern that differs 

 from one previously known only in the form of pubes- 

 cence; so it is possible that one cannot be too careful 

 in making species now that nomenclature has got down 

 to parting hairs if not splitting them. We would 

 therefore first describe the fern as Struthiopteris pubes- 

 cens with all the hard things Mr. Eaton has said about 

 it in synonmy added. .Then we should label it again 

 5\ Germanica forma pubescens, and yet again as 5\ 

 Pcnnsylvanica f. pubescens. Next paying our respects 

 to the memory of Todaro we would call it Matteuccia 

 pubescens, also M. Struthiopteris f. pubescens and still 

 also M. Struthiopteris var. pubescens. in this separate 

 citation of form and variety following the illustrious 

 example set in a recent Boston publication. Of course 

 all this makes trouble for the cataloguer, but 

 what is a cataloguer for? Serves him right 

 for wasting time on the names of plants when 



