The  late  C.  E.  Amos , C.E. 
263 
the  more  strictly  scientific  portion,  gives  cowgrass  as  the  English 
name  of  Trifolium  medium  ; whereas  Mr.  Gorrie,  in  the  prac- 
tical section  of  the  same  article,  makes  it  the  popular  name  of 
Trifolium  pratense , and  specially  of  the  variety  of  the  species 
called  perenne.  The  name  properly  belongs,  I believe,  to 
Trifolium  medium,  but  the  seed  sold  under  the  name  of  cow- 
grass  is  that  of  Trifolium  pratense,  the  same  species  as  red 
clover.  I have  never  been  able  to  discover  any  of  the  seed  of 
Trifolium  medium  in  commerce.  This,  which  is  the  true  cow- 
grass,  is  certainly  a longer-lived  plant  than  the  other.  Its  roots 
are  creeping,  and  its  stem  takes  a fresh  turn  at  every  leaf, 
giving  it  a zigzag  appearance.  The  produce  is  said  to  be  less 
than  that  of  red  clover.  Though  it  may  not  be  of  equal  value 
in  alternate  husbandry,  it  would,  perhaps,  be  a more  important 
ingredient  in  permanent  pasture  than  the  common  species. 
Similar  experimental  plots  have  been  sown  with  rye-grasses, 
for  the  purpose  of  determining  the  duration  of  their  lives. 
In  both  clovers  and  rye-grasses  the  half  of  each  plot  is 
prevented  from  seeding  by  being  cut  when  the  flowers  appear, 
a course  equivalent,  as  far  as  the  plant  is  concerned,  to  what 
takes  place  in  pastures  on  which  a full  amount  of  stock  is 
placed.  The  other  half  is  allowed  to  go  to  seed  before  it  is  cut, 
care  being  taken  to  prevent  any  seed  being  shed  on  the  plot. 
The  plant  is  thus  allowed  to  carry  on  its  year’s  life  to  the 
natural  end ; and  the  result  of  this  part  of  the  experiment  will 
show  whether  the  different  species  and  varieties  are,  in  the 
proper  sense,  perennial,  that  is,  whether  the  same  plant  ripens 
its  seed  for  several  successive  years. 
The  experiments  are  carried  on  in  duplicate,  the  one  set 
being  in  light  sandy  soil,  the  other  in  the  heaviest  land  avail- 
able on  the  farm. 
Some  plots  of  the  more  valuable  pasture  grasses  have  been 
sown  alongside  these  experimental  crops. 
XII.  — The  late  C.  E.  Amos,  CE.,  formerly  Consulting  Engineer 
to  the  Society.  By  Sir  B.  T.  Brandreth  Gibbs,  Vice- 
President  of  the  Society. 
ALTHOUGH  the  primary  object  of  the  following  brief  Memoir  is 
to  trace  the  connection  of  the  late  Charles  Edwards  Amos,  C.E., 
, with  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  of  England  during  the 
period  he  acted  as  its  Consulting  Engineer,  it  would  be  manifestly 
incomplete  if  it  did  not  contain  some  prefatory  notice  of  his 
