102 
European Ferns. 
says: 11 On Amersham, or Agmondesham, Church, Bucks, found by a Mr. Bradney, 
acccording to Hudson, and from whence it was brought alive to Kew Garden, by the 
late Mr. Aiton, from whom I have a specimen ; but the church has been whitewashed, 
and the plant destroyed.” Since then it has not been found at Amersham, although 
many botanists (ourselves among the number) have made very careful investigation of the 
walls of the church, in the hope that it might reappear. The accompanying figure is taken 
from one of the British Museum specimens referred to above. With reference to the Wy- 
bourn locality, mentioned by Hudson, Sir J. E. Smith says: “Mr. Hudson gathered the same in 
a stony situation near Wybourn, in Westmoreland ; or rather, perhaps, Wiborn, in Cumberland.” 
Nothing more has, so far as we know, been heard of the occurrence of the fern in this locality. 
The next record in chronological order is probably that which is also authenticated by 
specimens in the British Museum herbarium, which were originally (like those of Lightfoot, 
already named) in the possession of Mr. Brown. Unfortunately there is no date attached 
to them ; but they were probably collected early in the present century. The ticket accom- 
panying them runs thus : “ The specimen of Asplenium fontanum was gathered from a strong 
plant sent with many more of the same species by the Duke of Northumberland from his 
estate at Alnwick in Northumberland. They appeared to have been growing in the crevices 
of moist rocks, part of which were adhering to them. They varied from one to five inches high, 
and were found about two miles from the castle.” This account seems sufficiently circumstantial ; 
but it has not been corroborated by subsequent observers. About this time the plant was 
recorded from Keswick and Saddleback, Cumberland, in Hutchinson’s History of that 
county ; but it seems hardly likely that it would have escaped the observation of the 
numerous botanists who have visited the Lake district if it were really to be found there. 
More than one Yorkshire locality for the fern is on record : Mr. R. M. Redhead, in the 
