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THE FERN BULLETIN 



have since searched for it in vain at Tom's River, New 

 Jersey where it is known to grow and we incline to the 

 belief that it is owing to its wiry leaves and small size 

 that it is known from so few localities. — Mrs. E. G. 

 Britton in Linnaean Fern Bulletin, Vol. IV. p. ij. 



THE FRAGRANT SHIELD FERN. 



I had another gala day this season, when with the 

 help of a friend I found the last of our New England 

 ferns — Dryopteris fra grans. I have spent a good many 

 hours among our cliffs during these ten years past 

 hunting for this little fellow and had given up expect- 

 ing to find it. Several times I had thought it found 

 but it would prove to be only the Woodsia llvensis. 

 There could be no possible question this time as to its 

 identity. It was way up on the bare dry face of a cliff, 

 far out of reach except by some sort of a ladder. But 

 it was so unlike any other species, with its dry, curling 

 snuff-colored fronds of last year that I knew it was the 

 one I wanted. We found more of it later that was ac- 

 cessible. I think that the professors who have written 

 our descriptions of it have never found it for them- 

 selves. Its chief characteristics are : 1st, that peculiar 

 appearance of the old fronds ; you could not curl them 

 more gracefully than they appear drooping over the 

 ledge of rocks. 2nd, the glutinous fronds ; they cannot 

 be taken from the paper until they are dry and grass 

 and leaves adhere to them. 3rd, its peculiar fragrance. 

 Gray says "aromatic ;" that doesn't half tell the story. 

 I gathered a clump of it on the cliffs and dropped it 

 down in my handkerchief and the perfume lasted for 

 clays. I think it is like new mown hay composed 

 largely of sweet briar rose leaves. It grows on the dry- 

 est cliff sides, where everything else would be scorched 



