THE MOUNTAIN AVENS— continued. 
distribution the genus is distinctly “ Arctic-alpine,” extending from Spitzbergen and 
Iceland to the mountains of Macedonia and Dalmatia, the Alps and the Pyrenees, 
and into corresponding latitudes in North America ; but not into the Mediterranean 
peninsulas. Our own species does not occur south of Staffordshire in Britain and 
reaches altitudes of 2,700 feet in Scotland, while it descends to sea-level in the 
north and west of Ireland. It is equally at home on the mica-schists of Scotland 
and on the limestones of West Yorkshire and Ireland, 
The oak-like outline of the leaves attracted the attention of early writers. 
Clusius, Lobel, and Dalechamps call it ChamcBdrys (from the Greek ^a/xai, chaniai, 
on the ground ; 8pGs, drus, an oak), a name which we retain as a specific name for 
species of Veronica and T eucrium wfith. leaves of a similar outline; while Linnaeus gave 
it the more poetical Dryas, from the Greek Jpud?, Druas, a Dryad, or nymph of the 
oak-woods. The large delicate white blossoms with their numerous golden anthers 
certainly resemble those of the Cisius, so that Clusius’s full name for the plant was 
Chamcedrys alpina, cisti flore, “ the alpine Ground-oak with the flower of a Cistus ” ; 
while Johnson, relying mainly on leaf form, placed it under Teucrium as Teucrium 
alpinnm, cisti flore. The acumen of Robert Morison placed it near Geum under the 
name Caryophyllata alpina, chamcedryos folio, “ Alpine Clove-root with the leaf of a 
Ground-oak.” 
It is certainly characteristic of the genus to have both the slender stipules and 
the long leaf-stalks hairy and the under surface of the leaves of a hoary whiteness, 
and to have the number of leaves in both perianth-whorls increased above five ; but 
those of the calyx are all in one whorl, so that there is no indication of an epicalyx. 
Though eight leaves is the rule in our species, nine frequently occur. The beautiful 
white petals of our British species are replaced in the North American Dryas 
Drummondi Richardson by golden yellow ones. In the Alps Dryas octopetala is 
androdicecious, i.e. some plants bear flowers that are entirely staminate. 
Though the crowded stamens conceal the honey on the concave hairy receptacle, 
and there is sometimes some difference in the period of maturation of the anthers 
and stigmas, self-fertilisation can readily occur, if insect visits fail. After flowering, 
the peduncle lengthens considerably ; and the dense head of feathery awns from one 
to two inches long may obviously prove of service in the dissemination of the seed. 
Glandular hairs on flower-stalk and sepals may be a protection against unbidden 
guests, i.e. crawling, honey-robbing insects useless as fertilisers. 
