THE FERNS OF NORTH-WESTERN INDIA . 
93 
5. C. albomarginata, 0. B. Clarke in Trans. Linn. Soc., Bot. Ser. 2, 
I. 456, t. 52 ; B^ker in Ann. Bot., Vol. V., No. XVIII. Bedd. H. B. 04. 
C. faruma , mr. albo-margimta, Bedd. Suppl. H. B. 22. 
The localities given by Clarke are 
N.-W. Himalaya— Kashmir, Falconer ; Basaoli 5000', C. B. Clarke. Dalhousie 
6000', C. B. Clarke. Simla 7000', T. Thomson. Garhwal 2-9000', H. C. Levinge. 
Distrib. Nilgiris, fide Major Henderson. 
The habitats in the Lists, and of the specimens, I have examined are 
Punjab: Hazara Dist,— 65-8000', Trotter; Chamba— Ravi Valley, “common 11 
4-5000', McDonell ; Kangra Vy, Hist. — Dharmsala, Trotter; Kullu — 7-9000', Trotter, 
Coventry ; Simla Reg . — 6-8500', Hope, Gamble, Blanf,, Bliss. 
N.-W. P. : D. D. Hiit. — Mussoorie 7000' and down to about 4000', very common ; 
T. Garh. — above Sahlra 7500', Gamble 1 ; Kumaun 4500 — 5000', S. and W. Naini Tal 
—Hope, Levinge, Davidson, Duthie, near Sosa 8-9000', Duthie. 
Distrib. — Asia : Eastern Plim. (Baker in Ann, Bot., Vol. V.) , S. Ind, Madras 
Presidency — Ganjam and Nilgiris, Gamble , 1884. 
“ Eastern Himalayas, ” in the Annals of Botany, is probably merely an 
addition to the habitats given by Clarke ; but, .if olbo-marginata scales be the 
distinguishing character of the species, O. albo-marginata was found long before 
Clarke’s “ Review” was published. Gamble’s No. 5200, July, 1873, “Old 
walls, Kurseong, 4500' (below Darjiling),” miist be placed here, though, were 
it whiter on the under-surface, it might perhaps be put under Blanford’s 
G. anceps. Gamble’s No. 13,886, from Mahendragiri, Ganjam District, 
Madras Presidency, 4500', March, 1884, and his No. 14,389, from Naduvatam, 
Nilgiris, 6000', June, 1884, have perhaps the most characteristic scales of any 
I have seen, though the shape of the former number is rather that of 
O. anceps. 
The name albo-margmata I have always thought a somewhat misleading one : 
the character which seems to have suggested it is merely — “ white margined 
scales.” And even this is hardly correct : the scales are brown in colour — dark in 
the centre, and paler at the edges — bicolorous, in fact. Blanford’s O. anceps also 
has bicolorous scales, as opposed to the self-coloured scales of C. Halhousne and 
G. farinosa ; but no one seeing these four plants growing, as I have, would think 
of uniting them, or even of making three of them varieties of the fourth. The 
four ferns are distinct and easily distinguishable each from the other. 
Cheilanthes albo-marginata is undoubtedly a good species, though it has 
hardly been adequately described by its author. I will not intrude with a revised 
description : Blanford has given one, and Beddome another ; but I may indicate 
where revision seems necessary. Clarke’s plate gives the shape of certain fronds* 
of the plant, but the frond is not, as he- says, lanceolate, the loweSc pin.mv being 
much the-- largest. The sequence in growth of the fronds is rather complex \ 
