302 



REPORT ON THE 



C. exouiensis being a hybrid between C. Mossiae and Laalia 

 purpurata ; so that there is actually only a quarter blood of 

 Laalia in the plant, and yet it is called a Lselia. 



With respect to hybrids between species the matter is more 

 difficult, for though compounded names are possible in some 

 cases they are not so in others, owing to the length and un- 

 wieldiness of some of the specific names. "Where practicable 

 they may be used, but in all cases where it is certain that the 

 plant is a hybrid, a cross (x) should be always put after the 

 name whenever printed. "Where the same parents produce 

 different forms, a fancy name could be added to the compounded 

 name to distinguish them. 



I shall be very glad if anyone can suggest anything better for 

 the naming of hybrids. One more thing I would like to men- 

 tion is with respect to the publishing of names. A great deal 

 of confusion and difficulty has been caused by the utter irregu- 

 larity with which some of the names are published. They are 

 published first it may be on a label sent up to the Horticultural 

 Society, and they find their way iuto a book, but nobody knows 

 from whom they come, or, what is infinitely worse, to what plant 

 they apply. Every plant which receives a name should 

 receive it only after careful consideration and examination ; 

 and it should be published in the Gardeners Chronicle, or 

 some other scientific paper, or some well-known and easily 

 procurable book. It is not sufficient that names are 

 published in seed lists, trade catalogues, or such ephemeral pro- 

 ductions, which are difficult to obtain even a year or two after 

 publication. There is hardly a complete series of some of the 

 seed lists, in which numerous plants have been described, in 

 any of the libraries in England, and you will see, therefore, 

 how difficult it is to trace plants whose names have been 

 published in one of those seed lists. I think if some such plan 

 of publication as I suggest were adopted, a great deal of simpli- 

 fication could be attained at once. 



Discussion. 



Dr. Masters said that some of them might wonder what 

 possible reason he could have to say anything about Orchids, 

 he laying no claim to any but a general knowledge of the order, 

 and that only from a botanical point of view ; but, as a botanist, 



