leaves, not in spikes. The specimens of L selago, however, which 

 came under my notice, lacked the brilliant,! shiny green of 

 their larger cousiD, and were from about 1| to -i inches in height. 

 This species is a lover of the cold, and according to Hooker's "Flo- 

 ra Boreali- Americana,*' is found northward to the extreme Arctic 

 shores and islands. In the valuable herbarium of the Academy of 

 Natural Sciences at Philadelphia, specimens are preserved which 

 were collected by Dr. Kane's polar expedition, and also some brought 

 from Greenland by the Heilprin expedition of 1891. The presence 

 of the plant so far south as North Carolina is therefore very inter- 

 esting, but it has congenial company on its cool mountain top in 

 Arenaria Groenlandica, Alnus viride, Potentilla tridentata, Solida- 

 go virgaurea (var.), etc. — characteristic northern species. L. Sela- 

 go, in common with the other species of the genus, discharges its 

 spores in the form of a copious yellow powder, which is very im- 

 flamuiable. Anyone desiring an impromptu pyrotechnic display, 

 may have it by shaking the mature plant over a lamp flame, the 

 fal ing spore-dust changing like magic to a shower of brilliant 

 stars. — C. F. Sawnders, Philadelphia, 



ABNORMAL FRUITING FORMS OF OSHUNDA CINNA- 

 MON E A. 



' I »HE explanations offered in the July Bulletin by Geo. F. At- 



kinson and A. A. Eaton to account for the cause of so-call- 



ed varieties of Onoclea, Osmunda and other ferns, have re- 

 cently been verified to me by accidental circumstances. On the 

 10th of September I visited the swamp where I found the speci- 

 mens which were described in the Bulletin of last January. The 

 swamp is gradually being transformed into a celery garden and 

 fire has been used to a considerable extent in clearing the surface. 

 At my last visit I found a considerable area of thirty square rods 

 or so that had been burned over within a very few weeks -so that 

 every green thing had been destroyed. Over this blackened space 

 there was scarcely a fr< sh growth to be found except at the sum- 

 mits of the numerous rootstalks of Osmunda cinnamomea. Near- 

 ly all of these had put forth new fronds, the number Jfrom each 

 stalk ranging from one to a dozen. In nearly every case the first 

 frond to appear had been fertile in a greater or less degree, a few 

 seeming as perfect as those produced in the usual season. Un- 

 questionably the fire had induced the ferns to send up the fronds 



