Cash : The late Mk. William Wilson. 



205 



entirely, come over to your mind on the subject of your Gymnostomnm 

 ■ — not ojlne, for that name is pre-occupied, but Wilsoni, MBS. ; and 

 you will think me unreasonable in requiring the testimony of another 

 botanist before I could satisfy myself on the subject. Scarcely two 

 days after I sent you my last letter, Drummond''' came to me from 

 Forfar, and told me that he had found a new Gymnostomum allied to 

 iruncatulum. I told him I knew what it was, and would show it to 

 him. We then compared his species and yours, which exactly agree ; 

 and he (Drummond) declares he could find no specimen to vary from 

 these which were before us. I shall, with your permission, publish 

 figures in my ' Botanical Miscellany ' — probably in the next." 



In the same letter Sir William speaks of the fruit of Mnxum o-ffine, 

 which Mr. Wilson had gathered in perfection shortly before, near 

 Over, as "an excellent discovery." It would appear that fruiting 

 specimens of this moss had not previously been observed in Britain. 



The letters, of which abstracts are given above, constitute a pleasing 

 addition to our knowledge of the history of Pottia Wilsoni, Hook. Mr. 

 Wilson gathered the moss in subsequent years in the same locality ; 

 and in March, 1831 (as appears by a memorandum he made at that 

 time) it was very fine and abundant in the original station. I regret 

 not to be able to report that it grows there still. In the spring of this 

 year I searched long and carefully for it, but failed to discover any 

 trace of its existence. It is, however, recorded from several other 

 localities in Britain, and quite recently I have had a specimen sent to 

 me from Minehead, in Somersetshire. On the continent it is reported 

 as occurring in France and Sardinia. f 



It may be fitting here, as the species has been mentioned, to say a 

 little more about Mnium affine. About the same time that he found 

 the Pottia which bears his name, Mr. Wilson was fortunate enough to 

 observe this species with young fruit. The locality, I have reason to 

 believe, was Paper Mill Wood, where, three years later (March, 1831), 

 he sought it again without success. On the 11th April, 1831, however, 

 he came upon fruiting specimens at a place called Dale Ford, the fruit 

 being nearly ripe ; but being unable to make further search at the 

 time, he determined to devote a day specially to it. Accordingly on 

 the 15th of April he set out for Sandiway Head, and by nine o'clock 

 in the morning he was on the ground. At the end of the day he had 

 the satisfaction of recording that he had found Mnium a fine in 



* Thomas Drummond, the distinguished botanist and traveller, 

 t Schimper, "'Synopsis," p. 152. 



